by Rye Hart
“Mom, back off,” Grace said.
“Mommy, what's wrong?” Harper said.
“Nothing’s wrong, sweetie. I’m just asking questions,” Donna said.
“That’s not all you’re doing and you know it,” Grace said.
“Did anyone see that basketball game last night?” Amy asked.
All of us whipped our heads over to Amy as she stabbed at her food.
“You know, all those goals and touchdowns and stuff.”
“I think you have your sports mixed up,” Grace said.
“You know, I’ve never been a fan of basketball, but I love baseball. Not on television though. That’s boring. I like actually being there for the games,” I said.
“I wanna play tee-ball, but Mommy won’t let me,” Harper said.
“I’m sure your mom has a very good reason if she won’t let you,” I said.
“She wants to play tee-ball, but she doesn’t want to get dirty,” Grace said.
“Well, that’s a problem. Because half the fun of tee-ball is getting dirty,” I said.
“I don’t like getting dirty. It’s gross.”
“Not even to play tee-ball?” I asked.
“Why do sports have to be dirty?”
“I think the better question is why don’t you want to be dirty? When I was a kid, I loved digging in the dirt.”
“Because then I have to take a bath and Mommy scrubs my head really hard.”
“Her hair is thick at her scalp. It’s like it’s made to cling to dirt,” Grace said.
“I know a thing or two about that,” I said as I raked my hand through my hair. “That’s why I keep mine this length.”
“If I cut my hair, will you let me play tee-ball?” Harper asked.
“Look at what the new guy started,” Amy said, with a grin.
“Whoops,” I said. “Sorry.”
“It’s not a problem. I like the fact that she wants to play sports,” Grace said.
“We could go to all of her games and cheer like crazy with beers in our hands,” Amy said.
“Yep. You really haven’t changed a bit,” I said with a grin.
“And you’ve changed a lot, shockingly enough.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Donna said.
My eyes whipped over to Grace’s mother as my brow furrowed.
“What was that?” I asked.
“Nothing,” Grace said. “It was absolutely nothing.”
I wasn't sure why Donna was acting weird toward me, but she was. I thought that we had come to an understanding of sorts, and that she accepted that I wasn’t the same asshole kid I’d been in highschool, causing trouble just to cause trouble. The way she was looking at me now, though, made me nervous.
“Donna,” I said. “Are you still working? Or are you retired?”
“Still working,” she said.
“What do you do?”
“I’m the manager at the grocery store in town.”
“Do you enjoy what you do?”
“About as much as you do,” she said flatly.
“Then, you do enjoy it,” I said.
“Grandma, why are you being mean to Mr. Ryan?” Harper asked.
“No, no. She’s okay, guys. I promise,” I said.
We all sat in thickening silence while Grace and her mother glared at one another. “Well, this train wreck has been fun,” Amy said. “But I believe I’m going to tell you guys that work is calling so I can go home and not be a part of the awkward fun any longer.”
“That’s okay. Thanks for staying for dinner,” Grace said. “I’ll walk you out.”
“Can I come say bye to Auntie Amy?” Harper asked.
“Of course you can, princess. Come on,” Grace said.
The three of them got up and walked out the door, which left me staring at Donna. This was the perfect time to address whatever the fuck was wrong. It was one thing to come at me like that, but it was another thing entirely to make Grace feel the way she felt and to put Harper in the middle of it all.
And even though I was new, I still wasn’t going to stand for it.
“Would you like to talk about why you don’t really like me?” I asked.
“I’m onto you,” Donna said.
I felt my stomach drop to my toes as my eyes hooked onto hers.
“I only hope Grace can wake up soon enough from whatever trance you have her in.”
“I care about your daughter. Greatly.”
“You better,” she said.
“I do. In fact, I think I might still love her.”
“You think? Still? You have no idea what you’re talking about. You’re lying to her and she doesn’t even care. Whatever you’ve done to my daughter, I hope she can break free from it.”
I tried to keep my composure as my mind started swirling. I was beginning to worry. I was taken aback by the aggressiveness of Donna’s tone of voice, but I wondered what she knew about me. Was it possible she knew what I was really doing in town? How did she know I wasn’t really a construction worker?
And what did she mean by saying Grace didn’t believe her?
“I’m not going to hurt your daughter. I love her, and Harper. And I’ll do whatever it takes to provide for them.”
“You've been in the picture three weeks,” Donna said. “You don’t know what it takes to love a woman like Grace. Someone who has been broken and has lost so much. I won’t let a man like you hurt her. A liar and a cheat, born from nothing more than a criminal.”
I sat back in my chair, feeling like I’d been slapped across the face. There it was. The real reason she didn’t like me. Despite the fact that she somehow knew I wasn’t working construction, she really didn’t like me because of who my father was. She was still looking at me like I was that eighteen-year old hoodlum boy in high school.
Maybe I wasn't good enough for her daughter, but that didn’t change how I felt about Grace and Harper. It didn’t change my plans to stop the life I was leading after this last heist so I could try to live the life I wanted.
Hopefully, with Grace by my side.
“I only have the purest of intentions, despite who my father is,” I said.
“We’ll see about that,” Donna said.
“Mr. Ryan?”
Harper’s voice pulled me from the conversation as I looked down upon the little girl.
“Yes?” I asked.
“Can you come finish my movie with me now?”
“Of course I can. Let me clear my plate. And you should do the same with yours. Your grandmother cooked, so she shouldn't have to clean,” I said.
My eyes rose up to Donna one last time before I got up from my chair.
I could hear Grace and Donna bickering with one another in the kitchen as Harper and I sat on the couch. I pulled the little girl close to me, hoping she was paying attention to the movie. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but I picked up little bits of the conversation. Things like ‘he isn’t all that’ and ‘get off it’ and ‘don’t come back’ and ‘I’m your mother’. I had no idea what was going on, but it was bad.
Donna stormed through the house and dashed out the front door. Harper got up on her knees, watching through the window as her grandmother stormed off. I pulled her into my arms and cradled her close as we continued to watch the movie, but I could see the sadness in her eyes.
Whatever was going on, it was affecting Harper.
And when Grace emerged from the kitchen with puffy red eyes, I knew it was affecting her, too.
“Come here,” I said.
I held out my arm for Grace as she flopped onto the couch.
“Let’s finish the movie, then I’ll tuck you guys in. How does that sound?” I asked.
As if the two of them were connected with a thread, Harper and Grace both leaned into me. Nothing had ever felt so natural in all my life.
CHAPTER 22
GRACE
I knew I needed to tell Ryan tonight. With my mother and Amy both gone, and
Harper already in bed for the night, it was just the two of us. We were sitting on the edge of my bed with the door closed and I could feel Ryan wanting to help comfort me in any way he could.
But he couldn't truly comfort me until he knew what was going on. Why my mother and I had been fighting all night.
“Thank you for coming by tonight,” I said. “I’m sorry things were so crazy.”
“Don’t apologize,” Ryan said. “I’m glad you thought to call me when things were getting rough.”
“I’m so sorry for whatever my mom said to you. I tried to get it out of her because I knew she would corner you if I left. But I wanted to walk Amy out. I needed a little pep talk.”
“Pep talk? About what?” he asked.
I sighed and looked over at Ryan before I turned to face him. My hand fell to my thigh before he wrapped his strong hand around it. I was trembling, and I knew he could feel it. My body was filled with fear and my eyes were watering and I didn’t know how to stop the flood of emotions.
“Grace, what's going on?” Ryan asked. “Are you okay?”
“I’m scared,” I said.
“About what? Talk to me.”
“I’m pregnant,” I said, breathlessly.
I felt my heart stop as Ryan’s face faltered. The concern on his face slowly morphed into shock as his hand gripped mine. I was waiting for his reaction, for him to storm out, to tell me to get an abortion, or that he couldn't do this, or that none of this was what he had signed up for. I could see the fear and hesitancy in his eyes and it made me sick.
But instead of getting up and walking away, he pulled me into his body.
I threw my arms around him and he opened himself up to me. I laid against him, his back leaning against the headboard of my bed. He stroked my hair as I cried into the crook of his neck, his lips pressing gentle kisses against my ear.
“It’s going to be okay, Grace. I’m going to take care of you.”
I furrowed my brow at his words. I picked my face up from his shoulder and looked into his eyes. They were filled with uncertainty and so many questions, but the one thing I didn't see was deceit.
He wasn’t lying when he said those words.
“What?” I asked.
“I’m scared, like you are,” he said. “I’ve already got questions I want to ask. But I need to settle the fears you have right now. I’m not going anywhere, Grace.”
He cupped my cheek as he slowly rolled me over onto my back.
“You won’t do this alone.”
I rose up to capture Ryan’s lips as his hands smoothed out over my body. His hand cupped my stomach, holding within the palm of his hand the part of my body that would morph and grow with his child. His lips pressed against my cheek, catching the tears I had been crying. They slid to my neck as my hands ran through his hair, my legs parting to accommodate him.
“I will take care of you,” he said into my breasts. “You, and Harper, and our baby.”
He kissed down my stomach as his hands slid the fabric up my legs.
“Ryan,” I said breathlessly.
“You won’t be alone in this,” he said again, as he kissed my thigh. “I promise, you’ll never be alone again.”
I felt my jaw trembling as his hands pressed against my knees.
“I’ll make sure you have what you need,” he said, as he kissed my skin. “I’ll make sure our family is protected.”
I shivered as he hooked his fingers into the band of my panties.
“I’ll make sure you know how much I love you,” he said.
I lifted my head up and watched him slide my panties down my legs. He kissed back up my skin, making me jump the closer he got to my pussy. Had I heard him right?
Did he say he loved me?
His lips hovered over my wet pussy as his eyes whipped up to mine. There was a shadow of a grin upon his cheeks as his eyes ignited with a passionate fire. I felt my heart slamming against my chest as his hands ran up my legs, wrapping around my thighs and pulling my ass to the edge of the bed.
“I love you, Grace. I always have.”
“I love you too, Ryan.”
The words slipped from my lips as easily as they had in the past. The first man I had ever loved. The first man I had ever given myself to. His tongue licked up slit and my head fell back to the bed as my body was flooded with relief.
My hands curled into the sheets of the bed as his tongue worked slowly around my clit.
“I love your body,” Ryan said, as he sucked the tight bud. “I love your taste. I love your sounds and your smells and the way your smile lights up your face.”
“Ryan,” I said breathlessly. “Don’t stop.”
“Mmmm, I won’t,” he said, before he slid his tongue deep into my pussy.
My back arched off the bed as my hips rolled into his face.
“And I’ll love our child as much as I love you,” he said, as he kissed my thigh.
His tongue ran along the folds of my pussy, licking up my wetness and making me moan. I squirmed against him as his arms pinned me to his face. He licked and he sucked. He whispered how much he loved me into my dripping folds. He slid a finger inside and crooked it, causing fire to burst behind my eyes. I wrapped my legs around his face as his tongue tortured me with its slow pace. I bucked against him, my hands curling into the thick locks of his hair as he smiled into me.
“You’re perfect,” he said, with a whisper.
“Ryan, I can’t—I have to—please—”
Over and over again, he pulled me to the edge before backing off. Two fingers filled my pussy as one of his hands slipped from my thighs. I heard his zipper before his hand began to move, and the thought of him stroking his cock was too much to bear.
I leaned up and pulled him onto the bed, his pants staying on the ground.
“Get over here,” I said, breathlessly.
Ryan’s eyes filled with a lustful darkness as he pulled me on top of him and spun me around. His cock was dripping for me as I parted my lips to receive him. He sank his tongue back between my folds as his cock slid to the back of my throat, and I bobbed up and down on his dick while he ate me out.
He moaned into my pussy as he fucked my throat.His tongue raked across my clit as his fingers worked their way back inside of me. I bucked into his palm, coating his skin with my juices as his cock throbbed against my throat.
I felt so close to Ryan, even as we lost ourselves in our own pleasure.
“Come for me. Come for me. Let me taste you,” I said around his cock.
“I love you, Grace. So much. You’re going—shit—to be—fuck—”
I felt his legs contracting as my toes began to curl. His tongue was moving at lightning speed as his fingers fucked my pussy. My hands dug into his thigsas his cock dripped down my throat.
My hips reared off his face, swallowing his fingers whole as he crooked them against that electric spot. Fire shot through my veins as I hollowed out my cheeks, and I felt Ryan’s body trembling underneath me.
His hot cum shot down my throat, filling me as my pussy throbbed against his face.
“Ryan. Ryan. Yes. Yes.”
“Grace. Oh shit. I love the way you taste. I love all of you. Every part of you.”
His tongue was licking me up. Swallowing my juices down and cleaning my pussy. I collapsed to the bed, and he pulled me against him.
I didn’t know what we were going to do from here, but knowing Ryan was going to be there made things better.
It settled my mind in a way I hadn’t expected it would be settled. I was so comfortable and reassured, I fell asleep right in his arms.
CHAPTER 23
RYAN
There was no way I could go through with this heist. Way too much was at stake at this point. It had been two days since I’d seen Grace the night she told me she was pregnant, and the only thing on my mind since then was how to provide for her and Harper. How to become the man she needed me to be so we could raise our child together. I was in love w
ith Grace. In some ways, I always had been. She had been the perfect girl for me back in high school, and she was the perfect woman for me now. I was in love with Grace and we were going to have a baby together, which meant I had to keep my nose clean.
There was no way I could risk going to prison and becoming what my father had become to Jason.
I had to cut ties with Kenneth and Jesse. I wasn’t sure what it was going to take, but it had to happen. Whatever they wanted, I would provide. Whatever they needed, I would try to make it happen. I didn’t fucking care.
But I had to get out.
I sat in the kitchen, pulling up all of my financials. I had done well for myself and done even better for Jason. Setting aside his college fund, I had enough money to get me through the next couple of years before I would have to find a job. And if I threw that money at a two-year education of some sort, I could still find a part-time job to work somewhere and contribute financially. I could get a two-year degree in something I could be proud of. Mechanics or HVAC or even medical transcription. Some shit that would help me to provide for my family. I ran down the numbers and looked up how much a two-year education would cost, and it wasn’t as much as I thought.
I could easily get it done in a year and a half if I took summer courses and still be able to contribute financially to the household.
With a financial plan in place, I sent a message out to Kenneth and Jesse. I knew the plan was to keep from coming together before the robbery, so we had to make sure we got together on neutral ground. We needed to avoid traffic cameras and main roads, sidewalks that had cameras out front of certain stores and shit like that. But we needed to meet and Kenneth seemed more than ready to touch base before the job.
I really hoped this didn’t backfire in my fucking face.
Getting in my car, I kept to the back roads. I avoided as many cameras as I could and found my way to the very first place we had met up at. I parked beside the open container and found Jesse and Kenneth inside, waiting for me to start the impromptu meeting that went against all our plans.
“I’m glad you wanted to meet. We gotta talk,” Kenneth said.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“A new security guard was hired at the bank.”
“Wait, how do you know that?” I asked. “We weren’t supposed to go anywhere near that place for the next couple of weeks.”
