Refrain & Reprise_a Falling Stars novella_Book 3.5

by Sadie Grubor

  "Ah, well, once you two are sorted, give us a call and let us know when you're on your way for dinner."

  "Will do," I confirm before we both end the call.

  In an attempt to make sure Sid didn't feel like something was missing during the holidays, we flew out to Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving, with my entire family following along. My mother practically wept when we all sat down at an extended dinner table to eat.

  "It's like a Norman Rockwell painting," she’d said, sniffling.

  Now, continuing to ensure Sid realized living across the country didn't mean losing her family, I flew Mark and Charlene out to Los Angeles for their first California Christmas experience. And when my mother found out Mark and Charlene were opting for a hotel instead of staying with Jack and Liza or us, she insisted they stay with them. Tonight, my family would converge into the massive home for Christmas Eve dinner with Sid's parents, Jack, Liza, the boys, and Maria and Gilbert joining us.

  Dropping my chin, I look down at Sid. I have roughly three hours to appease my little hell cat and get us to my parents’ house.

  "So, what's this surprise you mentioned?" She smiles wide and bats her eyes.

  "It doesn't have anything to do with porn," I warn, knowing where her mind goes first.

  I don't miss the small droop to her smile before she shrugs.

  Taking my phone out of my back pocket, I unlock it and hold it out for her.

  "What's this?" she asks, eyes roaming over the website already displayed.

  "It's Nissan's website," I begin.

  "You’re going to have me replace my baby with a newer model," she exaggerates with flourish. "That's such a guy move. I could never, ever, just replace my—"

  "Nissan introduced a limited-edition 201 Rogue SUV," I tell her.

  "So?"

  I touch the screen and bring up what I really want her to see. "So, it's Star Wars themed, comes with a collectible Death Trooper helmet, and you can customize the exterior and interior."

  Bringing the phone closer to her face, her eyes widen, and she licks her lips. Sid's thumbs start moving against the screen.

  "The leather interior is embossed with the New Order symbol," she moans.

  Gripping her arms, I pull her out of the chair, take her place, and then seat her on my lap. She doesn't argue or show that she realizes I've moved her at all.

  "Look at the red detail on the rims," she sighs, leaning back into me and wiggling her ass.

  "See, Tiger, you can custom build your own Rogue SUV New Order vehicle," I whisper into her ear.

  Running my hands up her sides, I slip them to her stomach before cupping her breasts. She's not wearing a bra, and my dick pulses.

  Sid presses her ass into my hardening cock and releases one hand from the phone to resituate one of my hands between her legs.

  "You might have to fuck me as I stare at this soon-to-be-mine Star Wars the Last Jedi car," she rasps.

  Dropping my mouth to her exposed neck, I confirm against her skin, "I can do that." And I can. I’m not above using Star Wars to get her naked and my cock inside her.

  Curling my fingers inside her shorts and underwear, I run one finger along her slit.

  "What are you going to name her, Tiger?" I slip a finger past her lips and circle her clit.

  "Oh, yes, right there," she gasps.

  "That doesn't sound very Sith," I tease, snaking my arm under her shirt so I can palm her tit.

  "Darth Maulie," she says all breathy as her hips rock against my finger for more.

  When I plunge one finger inside, she drops my cell to the floor and works herself against my hand.

  "I need more," she demands.

  "What do you want me to give you, Tiger?" I ask, rolling her nipple between my fingers and lightly biting where her neck and shoulder meet.

  "Your cock," she answers immediately.

  Planting my feet on the floor, I move both hands to her hips and push us out of the chair. Before she can complain, I yank down her shorts, shove her over the desk, fist the messy knot of hair on top of her head, and plunge two fingers inside her.

  "Fuck, Xavier," she cries.

  "Don't worry, hell cat, that's exactly what I'm gonna do."

  Removing my fingers, I suck the taste of her from them before freeing my cock and driving into her pussy.

  "Oh yes," she yells.

  The desk jostles and moves about half a foot by the time I finish fucking Sid.

  "How long do you think it takes for the car to be ready?" she asks, her eyes focused on the tablet in front of her face.

  "The dealer said a couple months," I remind her. We called the local dealership in L.A. and got the details on how to make this car happen. "They'll let us know once it's being transported to their dealership."

  Sighing, Sid drops the tablet into her lap and leans back in the seat of my car.

  "Wait," she shouts, sitting straight, and also making me jump.

  "Christ, Sid, I'm fucking driving," I scold.

  "Do the girls know about the car?"

  "Of course not," I scoff. "Like I would tell them anything about your gifts after the great treachery of July this year."

  Rolling her eyes at my dramatics, she twists to face me.

  "Are you still sulking about that?"

  "You bribed the twins to tell you about your birthday gifts," I remind her, a little are-you-fucking-kidding-me-right-now in my tone.

  She shrugs, giving an exaggerated sigh, "One of my best moments."

  "My own flesh and blood betrayed me." I'll admit it, I'm pouting.

  "Oh, come on, I made it up to you with anal."

  "You like anal," I snap.

  "You would prefer I didn't like it?"

  "Of course I don't," I grumble. "It's just…damn it, woman, is it too much to want to surprise you with things?"

  When I don't get a snarky or sarcastic comment in return, I glance over.

  Her brows are furrowed as she bites her bottom lip between her teeth. Taking my right hand off the steering wheel, I palm the top of her thigh, and croon, "Hey." Then, I give her leg a squeeze.

  "Yeah?" She snaps out of her daze-like state and puts a hand on top of mine.

  "I'm not mad," I blurt, hoping she doesn't think I’m truly pissed about it. At the time, I had been frustrated, annoyed, and a little angry. I mean, I wanted to surprise her with the trip to Dante's View in Death Valley National Park where they shot some of the Luke and Obi-Wan scenes.

  "Oh," she pats the top of my hand, "I know."

  "Then what just happened?"

  "Nothing." She shakes her head and turns back to the front of the car.

  "Bullshit," I accuse. "You didn't give me any shit at all. I know something's up."

  Dropping her head, she lets her curtain of hair hide her profile.

  Holy shit, hiding behind her hair is the first sign it's about to get real.

  "You're right," she mumbles. "That's all."

  "Did you just say I was right?"

  Sid shoves my hand off her leg and crosses her arms under her chest.

  "Don't fucking get used to it," she snaps, still behind her hair. "I'm sure this is a fucking fluke. We should probably check to see if hell froze over."

  Pulling into my parents’ driveway, I park the car and turn off the engine, but don't get out. Instead, I turn toward her and move her hair away from her face.

  "Look at me."

  She doesn't.

  "Please, look at me," I whisper, leaning toward her.

  The familiar smell of Honeysuckle wraps around my senses. Warmth spreads from my chest across all limbs. Fuck if this woman doesn't make me burn for her in every kind of way.

  "What?" she barks out, giving me a petulant look.

  Being real scares the shit out of Sid and makes her so uncomfortable, you see the tension in every muscle and feel the fear swirling around her. I hate it. This woman is so many types of badass—smart, funny, sexy, perverse, and loyal. To see her so afraid to open up
makes me want to beat the shit out of every fucking man, boy, woman, and girl who hurt her.

  So, instead of teasing her, I get fucking real too.

  "I love you." Moving my hand to her face, I run my thumb along her soft cheek. "I love you so much."

  Bringing my left hand to the other side of her face, I pull her toward me and press my lips to her furrowed brow before placing my forehead to hers.

  "I love your sneaky, bribing ways, your crazy, your ridiculousness…fuck, Sid, there isn't a damn thing about you I'm not completely over the fucking moon, stupid in love with."

  The muscles in her cheek bunch against my palms when she smiles.

  "You love my crazy?" Her hands wrap around my wrists.

  Pulling back, I stare into her eyes.

  "I think we both know it's my fucking kind of crazy, Tiger."

  Sid's smile grows, brightening her entire face. Then the mischievous glint I know all too well shines from her eyes.

  "Is that all?"

  "All?" I ask on a laugh. "That's not enough for you?"

  "I mean, this is like perfect romance movie set up to propose," she says, matter of fact.

  Blinking, I jerk my head back.

  "Propose?" I ask, shocked.

  "Oh my God, your fucking face," she squeals, falling into a fit of hysterics.

  "You're fucking with me," I deadpan.

  She clutches her stomach, gasping for air.

  "This is the best day of my life," she shouts, still laughing. "The look of panic on your face—"

  "That wasn't panic," I cut her off.

  "Bullshit," she counters. "I got an up close and personal view of the flash of that reaction."

  "It wasn't panic," I say a bit harder.

  The seriousness in my tone silences her amusement. Brow furrowed once again, her eyes meet mine. A question hangs in them, and I'm so damn sure she doesn't want the answer, but I'm gonna give it to her anyway.

  "That was reevaluation," I state.

  "Reevaluation?" the question falls from her lips on a whisper.

  "Yeah, Tiger." I pull her face close to mine again. "On whether I needed to say fuck Christmas Eve, fuck this family dinner, and turn this car around so I could get the ring I bought you two months ago."

  She inhales sharp before stating, "You have a ring."

  I nod and watch her eyes widen.

  "What you saw was me thinking maybe I don't have many more months to convince you of what I already fucking know is going to happen." Knowing anything more would scare the shit out of her, I keep the rest to myself.

  I'm so gonna marry you. You are going to fucking marry me if I have to super glue the fucking ring to your finger.

  "Xavier," she starts, her tone revealing everything.

  I still have months to convince her.

  Moving my thumbs to her lips, I stop her from finishing.

  "I know you're just fucking around." The right corner of my mouth lifts, and I run my thumbs along her soft lips. "Just know I'm not going to just fuck around forever."

  A flash of panic crosses her eyes.

  "Don't freak out," I order. "Just resign yourself to being Mrs. Stone at some point and everything will be gravy."

  Shoving my hands away, she reaches for the car door handle. "Resign myself?" she scoffs.

  "Yep." I grin.

  "Resign yourself to letting me peg you, then we'll talk about this missus bullshit," she counters.

  Before I can respond to that, she's opening the door and climbing out of the car.

  Exiting on my side, I push up and turn, meeting her eyes over the roof.

  "You know I have no desire to be fucked in the ass," I argue.

  "Oh, whatever," she mocks. "You love when I stick my finger—"

  "Ahem," a throat clears a few feet from us.

  "God damn it," Sid groans, closing her eyes. Spinning around, she watches my father approach us. "Duncan," she calls out, "we've got to stop meeting this way." She refers to the first time they met, as well as other times my father seems to show up while Sid goes full non-filter.

  "We were getting worried something was wrong," he explains.

  Though, I'm not entirely sure the old man doesn't purposely wait for moments like this. Dad loves Sid, him and mom both do.

  He continues. "You two have been out here for a while."

  "We were exchanging proposals," she admits.

  Dad's brow lifts and his eyes move to mine.

  "Are congratulations in order?"

  "Only if he lets me peg him first," Sid responds.

  With a pat of her hand to his chest, she walks around his dumbfounded expression wearing self and enters the house.

  As I round the car, I lock eyes with my father.

  "Don't say a fucking word," I warn.

  "What?" he asks. "I mean, if that's all it takes to lock her down, son…"

  "Don't." This time, it's more a threat.

  "I mean, it's not as bad as you think," he continues.

  "Dad," I shout. "I don't need to hear about your—"

  "If you're worried, there are videos you can watch. Just remember to use lubricant." When he finishes, he stares at my scrunched face. "What?"

  Staring straight into his eyes, I tell him, "You're a bastard."

  His loud laughter follows me into the house.

  Stepping inside my parents’ house is comforting. It's the home I grew up in, and all the voices and noise in the big house are like a memory brought to life. My mother is the first to spot me, of course.

  "Baby," she coos.

  Tall, gold heels clack against the hard flooring as she makes her way to me.

  Opening my arms, she steps into my personal space, and we wrap each other in our limbs.

  "Merry Christmas," I say, planting a kiss to the top of her head.

  "It is, isn't it?" Her question is muffled by my chest, but I can still hear how happy she is.

  Mom loves family, and the more she can get under one roof, the better. So, having all of us here has got her on the biggest fucking high—one she’s constantly planning dinners and parties to get another fix.

  Glancing up, I take in the group. With her husband by her side, my oldest sister, Kami, stands with her neck craned up. Her husband is talking, but she's just staring up at Jackson Shaw. The look on her face is fucking priceless. It's one I've seen on a ton of women when he's around. It's a mixture of awe at his height and lust because the overgrown fucker is smooth. I'm tempted to take a picture of my hard-ass sister just to taunt her with it later.

  Sid's voice draws my attention to the next group of people. Mark and Charlene stand as close to her as possible, but my daughters, Lyra and Cass, clearly got to her first. They stand on each side of her, giggling profusely. Mark's shaking shoulders give away his amusement, and Charlene has a hand over her face.

  Ember, my other sister, has her head back, laughing. Her husband's eyes meet mine. The humor in them confirms whatever Sid is telling them, the joke’s on me. Probably about what just happened out in the car. Sid glances over her shoulder, and our eyes lock. She lifts one brow before blowing me a kiss.

  Next, I find Liza, and I can't fight my laugh. I bury my face in my mom's hair and chuckle.

  "What?" Mom asks, finally releasing me.

  Looking up at me, she runs her perfectly manicured fingers over her hair, then follows my eyes to where Liza sits surrounded by my nephews and father. Surprisingly, Maria and Gil are seated next to her as well.

  "She's quite fascinating," my mother says, watching her grandsons ogle the poor girl.

  "Is that what we're calling it?" I tease.

  I feel the weight of her stare before I meet her gaze.

  "Yes," she confirms. "It's better than calling her spank bank material."

  "Christ, Mom! You can't just say shit like that." My outburst gets everyone's attention for about a minute, then they return to their own conversations.

  She just shrugs.

  "You're okay with Dad
—"

  "Not your father," she says, like it's so fucking crazy.

  "The last time I checked, he's still a man," I remind.

  "Yes, but his interest is different."

  "Ya think so?"

  Crossing her arms, she turns back to face me. "I'm well aware of how much of a man my husband is, Xavier."

  "Don't," I warn.

  "He made it very clear this morning," she continues.

  Wrinkling my nose, I shake my head. "Didn't need to know that."

  "I also know you can appreciate the female form and its beauty without adding it to your mast—"

  "Nope!" I cover my ears. "Not gonna hear that."

  I don't give a fuck if you grow up with porn stars as parents, knowing about sex—all kinds of sex—and are raised with an open discussion format, you still don't want to hear about your parents fucking, masturbating, or any of their sexual fantasies. Just. Fucking. No.

  Rolling her eyes, she waves a hand in the air between us.

  "Fine," she exaggerates the word. "You should be happy we're still sexually active, especially your father. That shit is genetic."

  Dropping my head back, I groan, loudly.

  This time, all conversation stops, and it stays silent.

  Lifting my head back up, I smile wide, and announce, "Who wants to presents!"

  I clap my hands and rub them together.

  "That's after dinner," my mother scolds as my nephews and daughters raise their arms.

  "Alright," I draw out like a disappointed child.

  My nephews and the girls groan their own displeasure.

  "Now that everyone’s here, let's—"

  The doorbell rings, over, and over, and over.

  "Who could that—" my father starts to ask as the door bursts open.

  "Surprise!" Levi, Kami's only son, exclaims.

  "Oh my God!" Kami screams, pushes away from her husband, and practically tackles my oldest nephew. In between planting kisses on his face, she asks, "How? When did you get back in the country? Why didn't you tell me?" She buries her face against his camo shirt.

  His only response is, "So, you're happy to see me?"

  Kami laughs, squeezing him tighter and burrowing deeper into his Army fatigues.

  "Of course we are," her husband adds, wrapping his arm around them both.

  Then, we all take turns welcoming our soldier home for Christmas.