He was sad more often than he wanted either of us to see, but until this morning, I’d have said he was more cheerful all the time. Still, his smile was like the sun coming out from behind dark clouds. “A little, baby,” he told her. “But I’m happy, too. Your mama left me with two awesome girls, and you know what?”
“What?” she asked, looking more cheerful now.
“We are going to take that trip to Mexico, you and me and Mae. Your mama would like that.”
“And Uncle Zave.”
Ronnie’s eyes lifted from his daughter to meet mine where I stood holding his other child. “Do you think Uncle Zave would like to go?”
She nodded. “He wants to go.” Love the surety of children. Then she stepped back and, as soon as I handed Mae to her daddy, Maggie took my hand and led me toward the oven. “More toast, please?”
I served her and sat down myself to eat my coolish breakfast, but my mind was swirling. A family trip. With me as...manny? As Ronnie’s boyfriend? His alpha? We were so new, yet not new at all, but maybe a trip would be just the thing. And it wouldn’t be right away anyway. Boy I could use a vacation. And one where I could hang out on the beach with my omega and his beach-ready body gleaming with suntan lotion?
Yeah, I could do that.
Crunching on a strip of delicious crisp bacon, I decided not to think too much about it, though, because Ronnie had just gone back to work after his family leave and it would be some time before he could take a vacation. For now, we were all busy people with other priorities.
While he fed Mae, I cleared the table and wiped as much syrup as possible off Maggie. A bath was in this little girl’s future. We went back to our regular morning sort of tasks, and, within a half hour, Ronnie was heading out the door to work.
But before the door closed behind him, he leaned back inside and said, “Maggie, I forgot to tell you, your Papi and Nana invited you and Mae over for the weekend. They want to take you to see Puppies on Ice. Do you want to—”
Carrying Mae toward her bedroom, I paused, expecting hysterical excitement. Maggie had been babbling about her friend seeing the ice show all week, and I knew how badly she wanted to go. But to my amazement, she was quiet for a long moment before saying. “I didn’t think they liked me anymore.”
And my heart shredded.
Ronnie flew back in and knelt in front of her. “Maggie, of course they like you. They love you so much. Why do you think that?”
“Because they don’t come over anymore.”
“Baby doll,” he said, clearly struggling, “they miss Mama, too. She was their little girl, like you and Mae are mine. And we need to remind them how much we love them, right?”
She nodded slowly. “Right.”
He hugged her. “That’s my big girl. They are so excited for your visit.”
“Me, too.” She was still a little subdued, but then her natural self broke through, and she bounced over to me and grabbed Mae’s hand. “We’re going to see Puppies on Ice, Mae. Yay!”
Only then did I realize what all this meant.
No girls all weekend.
Just Ronnie and me.
Yay!
Chapter Twenty-One
Ronnie
“This is insanity.” I plopped the last bag down in the foyer. “There is absolutely no reason they are going to need this much for one weekend.” Yet I had packed it all, so I had no one to blame but myself.
“Did you use the list I made you?” Zave leaned into the doorway. He knew I hadn’t. Not a soul seeing the pile in front of me would think I had used any list whatsoever. Unless the list said something to the effect of take everything.
“I started to.” It had been a sensible list. An outfit per day plus two extras because...messy kids...bottle and diaper supplies for Mae, and Maggie’s favorite stuffy. And I did pack all of that. Only thing was I didn’t stop there.
“And then you thought of five thousand ways the girls would get messy and packed an outfit for each one?” He tilted his head and held back a chuckle—mostly held it back anyway. “They do have the ability to wash clothing if things get that crazy.”
“I went overboard.” It was true.
“They aren’t even leaving until tomorrow.” He walked over, brushed past me, and grabbed two of the bags. “Let’s get this straightened out.” He tilted his head to the side, and I grabbed the other three bags. Fine. He was more than right.
I followed him up and into my room. The girls were both asleep for the night, so the decision made sense. The last time I’d seen him in my room, we’d both gotten very naked. That could not happen again. Not without a conversation or five.
“Do you still have the list?” He plopped the bags on my bed.
“Yeah.” I pulled it from my pocket.
“How about an empty suitcase?”
“I can get one.” I made my way to the basement where our suitcases lived, and, by the time I came back with it, Zave had all of the clothing on the bed in piles of some sort of order. I couldn’t quite tell what, but they were still nicely folded and the bags I’d used stacked nicely to the side.
“If you use a suitcase instead of all the little bags, it will probably be easier on their grandparents. They can even use it like a little dresser of sorts if need be.” He took the suitcase from me, his hand settling on mine a fraction of a second longer than necessary. I instantly wished it was longer.
After opening the suitcase, he placed it on the bed and stepped back.
“Now what?” I mean, pack obviously, but he seemed to have a plan and I couldn’t quite figure out what it was.
“I have six piles here. Pick one.”
I picked up the first pile I came to.
“Now, put it in the suitcase.”
I did.
“Now, zip up the suitcase.” His smirk said so much. Had I really packed enough for six weekends?
“I went beyond overboard into some whole new realm.” I zipped it shut and placed it on the floor.
“Just a little bit.” And just like that, he walked out of the room, the suitcase still beside me.
I hemmed and hawed on whether or not to follow him and was about to leave when he waltzed back in with two laundry baskets. “White basket is Maggie and the yellow one for Mae.” He set them down where the suitcase had been and started to dismantle the piles.
“You are remarkably good at this,” I commented as I assisted in getting all the clothing into the right basket.
“More that I don’t have the emotional stress attached to this weekend that you do.”
I paused, trying to figure out what he meant. I trusted them completely, so there was no stress there. And if he meant stress between the two of us, he would feel that, too.
“Explain.” I sat on the edge of the bed once the piles were no more.
“You want this weekend to go well for them and, in your desire to make this less stressful for your in-laws, you piled the stress on yourself.” He sat beside me, his hand settling just above my knee.
“I hadn’t thought of it that way.” I leaned my head on his shoulder. “It broke my heart when Maggie said she thought they didn’t love her anymore. And, in a way, I guess I wanted to avoid anything that would make the stretch between visits that long again.” Maggie bounced back quickly from her melancholy, but she shouldn’t have to be so resilient—she at least shouldn’t have so much practice at it.
“It will be fine. All of this will be fine. Maggie is excited, they went out of their way to do something they were pretty much guaranteed would be perfect for the occasion, and it is only one weekend. One baby step.”
“You always know the right things to say.” And not just with me, but also with the girls and even Sally who had come to him a couple of times for kid advice. “You are too good to be a manny.” Please don’t leave us.
“Being a manny is the one thing I’ve ever been truly good at.”
“Is that why you have been keeping your distance?” I’d gone back and fo
rth on whether it was him or me causing the space between us.
“Maybe partly.”
“And the other part?” I closed my eyes, fearing the answer. Giving me space to preserve his job was a hurdle we could jump over together. Not being interested in more than one night—that would be a different matter.
“I wasn’t sure what we were doing and what we would tell Maggie.” Which was very much not an I don’t really like you. I just wanted a romp in the sack.
“We have all weekend to decide.” I lifted my head then twisted around so we could see each other. “I would like it if you would spend it with me.” He generally did stay home on the weekends—most of the time anyway. At least recently.
“I would like that very much.” He leaned in, hovering less than an inch from my lips. I closed the distance, and we kissed sweetly then settled our foreheads together. “I don’t want to ruin things with my job, but I equally want you to be more than my boss.”
“Thank fuck.” I snapped my mouth shut. “I mean I agree with both your desires.”
As his rich laughter filled the room, I felt for the first time that this would all work out. And that was good enough—at least for now.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Zave
So, we agreed. After Nana and Papi zoomed away with the girls safely buckled into their seats in the back of their SUV, we had nothing but each other for the very first time. They were going to return the children Sunday afternoon, having some kind of entertainment planned for that day as well.
And...the theme to Footloose ran through my head. We walked up the path to the front door side by side, in silence, to all appearances nothing more than friends or to those in the know, boss and employee. I had my fingers crossed we wouldn’t run into Sally who might try to get us to babysit again or just come over for coffee, which generally went at least two hours as she shared all the gossip of her family, gossip more colorful than most TV reality shows.
Usually, it was entertaining.
But today, I had other things in mind.
We made it safely inside, and Ronnie locked the door behind us, then dead bolted and slid on the chain. He turned to face me, grinning.
“Alone at last,” I said, not trying to hide my smile.
“Let’s go to the bedroom.” He took a fast step, but I grabbed his arm and spun him back to face me. His lower lip thrust out, and I wanted to bite it. So I did.
His groan was deep and heartfelt when we finally stepped apart. “I thought you didn’t want to do it for a second there.”
I shook my head. “Not at all. I want to do it in every room in the house—except the kids’ of course.”
“Of course.” His eyes flicked left and right. “Where first, alpha.”
So many options. “I didn’t get a chance to shower this morning…”
“Mmm.” He was already stripping his shirt over his head as he trotted toward the master bath with its big, luxurious glassed-in shower that somehow never fogged. “I’m dirty myself.”
“A dirty dirty omega,” I muttered, but it had nothing to do with lack of showering. And everything to do with the list of things I wanted to do to him. We’d likely be needing a shower afterward, too. If all went well.
The dual showerheads quickly filled the bathroom with steam, but we didn’t need to see well to find the soap. I rubbed the bar over a soft washcloth, creating a luxurious, silky foam and, starting at his feet, washed Ronnie’s toes and arches, insteps and ankles, calves and thighs, pausing after each section to allow the dual spray to wash the bubbles away. His hands, braced on my shoulders, tightened as I skirted his groin to soap up his belly and chest, slowing to make foamy circles around his puffy but still masculine nipples. He shuddered, and I made a mental note. Sensitive nipples could lead to some fun playtimes. I’d even heard of one omega who could come just from attention to those hot buttons.
“Close your eyes, omega,” I told him before washing his face and splashing the soap away. “Now, turn around.”
He hesitated. “I think you forgot something.”
I chuckled. “I forgot nothing. Turn around so your alpha can wash your back.”
To my great pleasure, and what I planned to make his, he moved to face away from me. “Is this okay?”
“Yes.” I trailed the freshly lathered cloth down his back. “Now, bend over, grab the bench, and lift your face so you can see the mirror on the door.” I loved all the fog-proof glass, and that the mirror also possessed the magical clarity.
“Yes, alpha.”
I continued to take my time, also blessing the instant water heater that ensured this shower never ran cold. His back was sparkly clean, his shoulders, arms...before I turned my attention to his bottom and soaped his cheeks carefully...and slowly. His knees wobbled, but I only tsked. “So much omega to get clean. Hmm, what’s this?” I parted his cheeks and rubbed the cloth between them, cleansing the rosette of muscles that called to me. Reaching around, I enclosed his stiff prick in my soapy hand and rubbed up and down while lining up at his foamy, slick hole. When he emitted a shuddering whimper, I plunged inside in one stroke, piercing his body with my cock.
I drove in again and again, retreating only to thrust harder, while stroking his dick and watching him watch us in the mirror. Ronnie closed his eyes, once, but I stopped moving until he opened them then gave him a grin and continued on. “You’re so hot, omega, so tight.” For a man who’d born two children he had the elasticity and tension of a virgin, and when my balls tightened, I gave his cock a hard squeeze. “Come for me, omega.” His knees wobbled and I wrapped an arm around his waist, supporting him and me with difficulty.
“I—” But words were, fortunately, unnecessary as he painted the glass with jets of his white, thick, silky cum, the sight pushing me over the edge. I did my artwork inside his body, long strokes on his interior walls,
My knot swelled, and I brought us both down to the shower floor, the water pouring over us, still warm and caressing while I held him to me and felt a whole new kind of bonding. I already loved him but, somehow, in this symbolic and real cleansing, all the past washed away, leaving just us alone in a Garden of Eden for the weekend. Even while I panted and my heart pounded in my ears, I planned to take him to bed and suck him until he was hard then do it again. Then on the couch—we’d somehow gotten waylaid from that—then over the kitchen table, the desk in the den…
We wouldn’t be able to walk by tomorrow afternoon. If all went as planned.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Ronnie
“Just five more minutes.” I squeezed my eyes shut. Zave and I had managed to screw our brains out most of the day, and as much as I didn’t want to break the spell that was our lust-filled frenzy, I needed a longer snooze than the five minutes I’d gotten. “I just need a quick nap.”
I found myself rolling into Zave’s arms, my head settling on his chest, eyes still closed.
“Oh sweet omega, I think you and I have a much different definition of a quick nap. You’ve been asleep for five hours.”
That had my eyes open and then squinting to read the clock on the dresser on the far side of the room. “Fuck,” I mumbled.
“Why, yes, we did—a few times.” He squeezed me tightly in his arms and kissed the top of my head. “Did you have someplace you needed to be?”
“No, nothing like that. I just didn’t want to waste our time together sleeping.” I pushed myself up to a sitting position and rubbed my eyes.
“I found I quite enjoyed watching you sleep.” He flexed the arm I’d had under me...for five hours?
Great. So not only was I sleeping off my orgasms like an old man, but I’d trapped Zave in bed with me.
“You could have rolled me off your arm. I wouldn’t be cross.” I’d feel the loss, for sure, but he shouldn’t feel obligated to just stare at me all weekend while I snored.
“I did get out of bed for a bit.” His confession shocked me.
Had I been that dead to the
world?
“I threw together a baked ziti which should be done in about twenty minutes, which was why I woke you.”
“Great.” I flopped back on the bed. “I feel like such an old man. You had time to recoup, watch me sleep, and make a fancy dinner in the time it took me not to want to wake up yet.”
“Or”—he tapped my nose—“you were worn out from yet another crazy week, and I decided I could gift you a nap and push through my tired.”
“Which would make me feel guilty.” I got up and picked my boxer briefs up off the floor and slipped them on.
“Not cherished?” He brought his lips to my ear, sending a shiver down my spine as his breath tickled me. “Because guilt wasn’t what I was going for.”
Cherished. He wanted to make me feel cherished.
“You’re something else.” I leaned back into him, and we both ended up falling on the bed.
“Something not a tightrope walker with my balance.”
We both laughed, our silliness interrupted by his phone’s alarm going off.
“Dinner’s ready.” He bounded away. “Last one there needs to do dishes.”
I let him win. Watching his ass strutting down the hall in nothing but his briefs was totally worth any amount of dishes waiting in the sink.
“It smells divine.” I inhaled the aroma as he opened the oven and pulled out the pasta bake. “I’m going to keep you.” And just like that, the elephant in the room sat—on both our toes.
We’d spent every second since the girls left ignoring everything but our physical desires, and relationships were so much more than that. We both knew that and had hinted at it all week. But when the time came for us to figure things out, we decided to get good and naked instead.
“I was hoping you would.” He brushed past me, pasta in hand, bringing it around to the trivet he must’ve set on the table earlier. Did he sleep at all?
“What can I do to help?” I offered, looking at the beautifully set table, wine already breathing.
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