“You’re so gorgeous,” she said, lifting her hips, her pussy drawing pleasure up his length as she shifted.
“You’re an angel,” he said, unable to take his eyes off her as the morning light filtered in through the window above them and lit her golden hair in otherworldly beauty.
“An angel?” She chuckled, her fingertips bumping over the muscles of his chest. “A naughty one maybe.”
“That’s the best kind.”
He’d been right. She was all he needed at that moment. What came next didn’t matter. This moment. Now. He could live for now without the past rushing up to smash him down or worries of the future crushing him further. Lindsey was his now.
The little breathless sighs that huffed from between her parted lips made him want to give her more, so much more. He’d never been the kind of lover who just lay there and took it. He wanted to participate. He wanted to make her moan. And beg. And come completely undone by the things he did to her body. Wanted all of that, but couldn’t quite find the confidence to make it happen.
You’re a goddamned loser, Marine! He wasn’t sure why his drill sergeant from boot camp was suddenly yelling through his memory. His shoulder was starting to ache from holding Lindsey’s breasts, but he wasn’t about to let that stop him. He pinched her nipples, and her body jerked. He rubbed her nipples with his thumbs and when she relaxed, pinched them again. What he really wanted to do was soothe them with his mouth—licking and sucking, nibbling when she didn’t expect it. He dropped his elbows to the mattress and pushed himself upright. His shoulder protested, and he felt unbalanced by the shift in weight, but he wasn’t going to think about what he wanted to do, he was going to fucking do it. He’d give every task his all, like he’d always done.
When he sucked the tip of one of her breasts into his mouth, her back arched, and she moaned, her hands shifting to hold the back of his head. He loved the feel of her swollen belly against his, even though it served to remind him that she’d been with others, including his own brother.
“That feels amazing,” she whispered. “Can you . . . Harder, please.”
The harder he sucked, the faster she rose and fell over him, the louder she moaned. He squeezed her ass and shifted his mouth to her other breast. She curled around him, kissing his head, grinding her hips. God, she felt good. He wondered how she tasted. He wrapped his arms around her back and turned her, pressing her down on the mattress. His shoulder and leg protested the sudden shift in movement, but as he took over, the rest of him cried out in triumph. His leverage felt a bit off, but he soon figured out how to use his knee and what remained of his right leg to help him thrust deep.
“Chad,” Lindsey cried out to him. “Yes.”
He grabbed her hips to hold her firmly as he forced himself deeper and then ground into her, wanting her to have every inch he had to offer.
“Oh God,” she said, lifting her head to look at him as if she couldn’t believe he was capable of fucking her right. “So good,” she murmured, dropping her head back onto the bed.
Good? He always strove for perfection. Good wasn’t what he was going for here.
She moaned when he pulled out and lifted her head again to watch him as he shifted down her body. Her sexy belly broke their eye contact when he settled his shoulders between her splayed legs and sampled his first taste of her.
Mmm. So sweet.
He swirled his tongue around her opening, satisfied when her cries of excitement reached a fevered pitch and her thighs began to quiver. He shifted his mouth to her clit and sucked her to orgasm, every sound she made a testament to his search for normalcy. He licked her center as she quaked through her release, and then he crawled back up her body to enter her once more.
Her body had fully awakened to his. She matched his rhythm, rocking into his thrusts as he sought release. He should probably make this last; it might be their only time together. But she felt so good, he couldn’t have calmed his frenzied strokes even if he’d wanted to.
This was something he could still do and do well. Something that made him feel like a man, almost whole again. He kissed her as he let go, filling her with more than his cum as he quaked in ecstasy, taking more than pleasure as he found release. When the ripples of bliss faded, he tugged his mouth away from hers, settling his face in the crook of her neck, and worked at catching his breath.
“Wow,” she said with a breathy laugh. “And I thought your brother was good in bed.”
A place deep inside Chad whimpered in protest. Since Owen had been with her first, she would probably always compare him to his brother. There wasn’t anything he could do to change that, but maybe he could make her forget Owen.
“Lindsey?” Owen called at the top of the stairs, as if to prove that reaching his goal wasn’t likely.
Lindsey stiffened and scooted up the mattress. Chad’s spent cock slipped from her warmth. There was no way in hell he could make her forget Owen. Not when she was living with him.
A knock sounded on a door upstairs. “Lindsey? Don’t you have a doctor’s appointment this morning?”
“Shit!” Lindsey said, scrambling from the tangled sheets. “We have to be careful, or we’re going to get caught.”
Chad wouldn’t mind that one bit, but he understood why she’d be embarrassed. She collected her nightgown from the floor and slipped it over her head.
Heavy footsteps clunked down the steps. “Lindsey?” Owen called. “Are you down here?”
“Just checking on Chad,” she called.
“Can I come in?” Owen asked from outside the door.
“It’s your house,” Chad said.
Lindsey reached for her panties, but the doorknob was already turning, so she kicked them under the bed.
She smoothed her tangled hair and glanced over at the bed to find Chad lounging, propped on one elbow, his happy cock still exposed and the remnants of their activities clearly evident on the sheets. Explain this to my little brother, he thought defiantly. She cringed and jerked the sheet over him and the wet spot just as the door opened.
“How are you feeling this morning?” Owen asked Chad, hardly sparing Lindsey a glance.
“Much, much better, thanks to Lindsey.”
“She’s a good caretaker,” Owen said.
“The best.” The flush on her checks, her swollen lips, and her taste still on his lips had Chad already craving a little more of her care.
“I need to get in the shower,” Lindsey said. She turned to Owen. “Can I borrow your Jeep today?”
“Yeah, that’s fine. If I need to go anywhere, I can use Caitlyn’s Camaro.”
Chad noticed how Lindsey flinched at Caitlyn’s name. Or maybe she just really hated General Motors. He preferred sporty foreign cars, himself.
“I can’t wait until I get my car back,” she said. “Even if it is a piece of junk.” She offered Chad a soft smile before leaving the room.
When her footsteps faded up the stairs, Owen closed the door.
“Do you really think screwing her was a good idea?” Owen asked.
So apparently the sight of Chad’s cum-wet cock wasn’t necessary for Owen to figure out what they’d been up to.
Chad shrugged and sat up, bunching the sheet around his naked waist. “Felt like a good idea.”
“She’s easy, Chad.”
“So?” He happened to like that about her. He didn’t have the energy for games.
“She’s pregnant.”
“Hard to overlook that when she’s naked. Are you jealous?”
Owen hesitated for just a second before blurting, “Why would I be jealous? I could have her if I wanted her.”
“Now that she’s experienced the more talented Mitchell brother, I wouldn’t be so sure of that.” Chad grinned and found his shorts caught on the edge of the mattress. He slipped into them, noting that such a task, which had seemed daunting only days ago, had already become second nature.
Owen laughed and punched him in the shoulder. “You do seem more l
ike your old self this morning.”
Mentally, maybe, but he was still acutely aware of his physical shortcomings. He planned to do everything in his power to minimalize those as well. “Are you going to the gym today?”
“I’d planned to, but if you want to do something else . . .”
The sound of water draining from the bathroom upstairs made Chad wish he could rush up the steps and join Lindsey in the shower.
“No, I want to go with you. Would you mind wheeling me along?” Chad asked. He had a powerful need to build more muscle, since Lindsey had been so appreciative of what remained of his once impressive physique.
Owen smiled. “Not at all. I’d love a workout buddy.”
“I don’t plan to take it easy on you.”
“Best news I’ve heard all day.”
“I got laid is the best news,” Chad assured him, maneuvering himself up off the bed and hopping toward the door. He had to steady himself on Owen’s arm as he passed him, but hopping beat sitting in that damned wheelchair by a mile. He didn’t have everyone looking down at him when he stood on his own one foot. And where his heart once raced at the mere thought of hopping, it was already becoming second nature. Still, there were much better ways to get around. “I wonder how long I’ll have to wait for a prosthetic leg.” They’d told him it would be when the swelling eased enough that they could make a good mold for the fitting, but he didn’t know when that would be. He’d like to be able to circle a date on the calendar.
“Knowing you, it won’t be long,” Owen said, not rushing to open the door for Chad.
Chad loved the little shit for understanding his need to feel capable.
“I still can’t believe you nailed her,” Owen said, shaking his head.
“It was more like she nailed me,” he admitted. “At first. But I took charge after I stopped feeling useless.” And he’d never let that feeling take command of him again.
Chapter Nine
Lindsey gulped down more water as she sat in the waiting room of the doctor’s office. Her bladder was already about to burst, but she’d been told the ultrasound would show better results if she had to pee. She crossed her legs and squeezed her thighs together. The results were bound to be exemplary. She definitely had to go, and her case of nerves didn’t help her hold her gallon of water. This would be her first glimpse of her child. What if something was terribly wrong with him?
Joan had accompanied her as promised, but now that Lindsey knew her baby wasn’t going to make the wonderful woman a grandmother, she couldn’t help but feel guilty for wasting Joan’s time. She needed to suck it up and get her confession over with. She owed Joan the truth even if it resulted in another mother figure discarding her.
Joan showed her a page in the catalogue she was flipping through. “Isn’t this the most darling crib set?” she asked.
The bright comforter had cute and colorful owls lined up on rows of branches, and yes, it was completely adorable. “I love it!” But yikes, the list price was frightening. Maybe she could find something similar at a thrift store. Or take up sewing.
“Are you going to find out the gender today?” Joan asked, eyeing the pink comforter on the next page. “Or are you going to wait and be surprised?”
“I haven’t decided.” Lindsey licked her lips. “Joan, there’s something I need to tell you.”
A medical technician in purple scrubs came out into the waiting room. “Lindsey Parker?” She searched faces for any takers.
Joan was on her feet before Lindsey could even uncross her legs. Would the news be worse for Joan if she sat through the ultrasound before Lindsey told her the baby wasn’t Owen’s? Probably, but Lindsey wasn’t sure she could find the heart to tell her. Joan looked absolutely elated to be there.
“Joan?” Lindsey said as the two of them followed the technician through a door that led to the procedure rooms. “How would you feel if the baby ends up not being Owen’s?”
Coward. Coward. Coward. Just tell her. You know it isn’t his.
Joan grabbed her hand and squeezed. “You’ll still let me smoother your little one with love, won’t you?”
Lindsey blinked back the mistiness that suddenly clouded her vision and nodded. “It would make me so happy if you would do that.” Every baby needed a dotting grandparent or twelve.
Joan squeezed her hand again. “Owen already told me the news.”
“He did?” Lindsey clung to Joan’s fingers, afraid to let her go. “Then why are you here?” Out of obligation? Knowing what she did about Joan, Lindsey bet the woman probably never backed out of a promise.
“Because I can’t wait until that baby’s born to get my first glimpse,” Joan said. “Do you still think it’s a boy?”
Lindsey smiled and nodded, a flood of relief washing over her. In her heart, she was sure she would have a son, but then she’d also been sure that Owen was the baby’s father.
God, why couldn’t this baby be Owen’s? Everything would have worked out perfectly in that case. Maybe Owen wouldn’t have ever loved her, but his family accepted her, and they wanted to be a part of the baby’s life. She couldn’t say the same about her own family. Her mother had told her not to bother calling if she needed anything. Her parents wanted nothing to do with an illegitimate grandchild. It was like their values had arrived via a time machine from 1820.
“I love my boys more than anything,” Joan said, “but I’m hoping for a girl to dote upon. James and I tried for a girl after Owen was born, but it wasn’t meant to be.”
“A girl would be wonderful too,” Lindsey said. Either way, she’d be happy. She wanted a healthy baby. Gender didn’t matter. She just had the feeling she was carrying a boy.
“Maybe Chad and Josie will get busy and make me another baby to love soon.”
Lindsey’s smile faltered. Joan still didn’t know that Josie had dumped Chad? It wasn’t Lindsey’s place to say anything, and she definitely couldn’t confide in the woman that her feelings for Chad were growing. If Joan didn’t already think Lindsey was a tramp over the baby-daddy mystery, discovering she’d slept with Chad when he was supposedly engaged to Josie would cement a negative opinion. She wasn’t sure Joan could forgive her for jumping Chad’s bones at his first sign of interest.
“Maybe,” Lindsey said as she entered the room indicated by the technician.
“I assume he’s still capable of fathering children,” Joan added as she followed Lindsey. “It’s an awkward question to ask your son.”
Lindsey flushed. He was definitely capable of the act. She couldn’t be sure that he could give Joan more grandbabies, though.
“Gown opening to the front, please,” the technician told Lindsey.
“Do I need to strip down completely?” Lindsey worried that she wouldn’t be able to hold her urine if she moved around too much.
“Whatever you need to remove to give full access to your belly.”
“Would you like me to step out?” Joan asked.
“It’s fine,” Lindsey said. “I’m not modest. I just have to pee really, really bad and don’t think I can uncross my legs long enough to get my pants down.”
Joan laughed. “A mother’s sacrifices begin early.”
A while later, both Lindsey and Joan were watching the screen for that first glimpse of the baby. Lindsey was very late in her pregnancy for a first ultrasound and far enough along that the baby would be fully developed.
“There you are, little one,” the technician said as she scraped the ultrasound wand over Lindsey’s gel-slickened belly.
Lindsey’s breath caught as a face and tiny fist came into view.
“These 3-D machines are amazing,” Joan said. “Just look at that face. He definitely has your nose, Lindsey.”
“My nose?” Lindsey squeaked, committing that perfect face to memory.
The technician took measurements and pointed out body structures on the screen.
“Healthy?” Lindsey asked, still unable to take a full breath. That was
all she needed to hear.
“Perfectly so and thriving. Your predicted due date is right on target. Would you like to know the sex?”
Lindsey was nodding before she could think the decision through. A few more swipes of the wand, and a tiny rear end was displayed. “I don’t see any extra appendages.” The technician grinned and winked.
“It’s a girl?” Joan said on a loud gasp.
“Definitely a girl,” the tech verified.
“Oh God, she’s so beautiful,” Lindsey said, not sure why she was crying. Maybe because that squirmy creature that lived inside her now had a face. Her baby felt like a real, separate-from-Lindsey person for the first time.
Joan squeezed her hand, tears in her own eyes. “I can’t wait to meet her.”
Lindsey wondered if the baby’s father—Jacob or Adam—would feel the same way. Maybe she could make a life without him ever knowing the baby was his. She was starting to feel like she might be able to handle motherhood on her own. Well, not completely on her own. She knew the support of the Mitchell family was the only thing giving her this newfound confidence. She smiled as Joan cooed at the tiny face displayed on the ultrasound screen, her heart aching from missing her real mom. She tried not to think of Mom much or how disappointed she was in her daughter of loose morals.
When Lindsey arrived back home—temporary home, she reminded herself—Chad and Owen weren’t there, but Caitlyn was, and so was Kellen’s girlfriend, Dawn. Rather than giving her the anxious and judgmental stares she was used to receiving from all of Sole Regret’s significant others, they greeted her.
“Do you want to help us plan an engagement party?” Caitlyn asked.
Lindsey’s stomach lurched. “Owen asked you to marry him?” she squeaked.
Caitlyn gasped. “Not for me. For Gabe and Melanie.”
“And Adam and Madison too,” Dawn added.
“Oh.” Lindsey blew out a relieved breath. She knew she shouldn’t be glad that Owen hadn’t popped the question, but she couldn’t help it. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” she asked. “Aren’t the guys at odds right now?”
Love Me Page 10
