For the first time that Curtis knew of, Sawyer had made his feelings for a woman known. Through the years, his second-oldest son had earned a reputation of a heartbreaker. The love-’em-and-leave-’em type, he’d heard people say when talking about Sawyer. But those days seemed to be long gone. Or at least he hoped so.
Granted, Sawyer didn’t share much of his personal life—especially when it came to the ladies—with the rest of them. Instead, Sawyer had figured out a way to be the happy-go-lucky guy, which allowed him to dodge any sort of serious relationship.
He hadn’t dodged it this time, that was for sure.
The room got quiet for a second and Curtis looked up to see what the cause was. As though that was his cue, Zane entered, his boisterous personality following him. He made his way over to his wife before he informed the room he had an announcement to make.
Lorrie jumped to her feet, clapping her hands together as she watched their youngest boy. He could see the excitement in her blue eyes and he didn’t have to ask what she was hoping Zane would say.
“We’ve got some news, too,” Kaleb said, getting to his feet and moving over to where Zoey was sitting, currently beside Beau.
You could’ve heard a pin drop.
“You first,” Zoey told Zane.
Zane glanced down at V, who was grinning from ear to ear. “We’re havin’ a baby,” he announced proudly.
After that announcement, Curtis wasn’t sure a marching band could’ve been heard over the shrieks and cheers. Getting to his feet, he made his way over to Zane after everyone else had offered their congratulations.
He held out his hand to his youngest son, doing his damnedest not to shed a tear. He’d never live it down, but sometimes, even he was overwhelmed by emotions. Now that his boys were grown and starting families of their own, he found his emotions were getting the best of him more and more often.
“Boy,” he said, taking Zane’s hand and jerking him forward. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks, Dad,” Zane said, hugging him in turn.
Curtis stepped back, watching Zane momentarily and then looking over at V. She was laughing at something Zoey said, but she must’ve felt his eyes on her because she turned to face him. When she did, he held out his arms and she walked into them.
He whispered his congrats and she offered him a “Thanks, Dad,” in return. Curtis liked that his daughters-in-law had resorted to calling him Dad.
“Now for your news,” Travis said to Kaleb, dropping to the arm of the sofa beside Gage.
“It’s gonna be hard to top that one,” Kaleb said, grinning. “But we’re havin’ another baby.”
More shrieks and applause echoed in the room, and Curtis wasn’t sure he’d ever seen more happiness in one place.
chapter TWENTY-SIX
Sawyer had resumed his spot beside Kennedy on the couch after the ruckus died down. Some.
He continued to watch his brothers while he held her hand in his. Enjoying her touch, he tried to hold back his own excitement. One of these days, he hoped he and Kennedy would be making that announcement. Then again, he would probably need to propose to her first.
All in due time, he reminded himself.
But he couldn’t deny that he was happy for his brothers. More babies on the way. Just what they needed.
“So, when are y’all gonna have a baby?” Zane was the one who asked the question and Sawyer followed his gaze to see that it landed on Ethan and Beau. Kennedy squeezed his hand.
“We’ve been tryin’,” Beau said sarcastically, grinning up at Zane.
“Funny man,” Zane retorted. “There’s always adoption.”
Beau looked at Ethan, but neither man said anything more. Sawyer wondered what the look that passed between them meant. As much as he wanted to know, he didn’t ask.
“We’ve been thinkin’ about it,” Beau admitted. “But we’ve decided we’re not ready yet.”
“Fair enough,” Zane replied, surprisingly leaving it as is. “What about y’all?” Zane’s question was directed at Braydon and Jessie.
“We’re gonna get married first,” Jessie told him, but Sawyer noticed she didn’t look over at Braydon.
Something else he noticed was the way Brendon’s gaze slid over to Cheyenne, right before he got up and headed back into the kitchen. Sawyer leaned over to Kennedy and excused himself, before following him.
“You okay?” he asked Brendon when they were in the kitchen, no other ears listening in on them.
“Fine. Why?” he barked.
“Man, I’m not here to bite your head off,” Sawyer stated defensively.
“I didn’t figure you were,” Brendon said snippily. “I just figured you were here to tell me your thoughts. Aren’t you always the one to come in and clean up the messes? Well, have a fucking field day. I’m a fucking mess. Time to clean that shit up.”
Sawyer didn’t respond to Brendon’s tirade. He wasn’t about to get into an argument with his brother. Not here. Not now.
Hell, maybe not ever, if Brendon wanted to be such a dickhead. If Brendon had only realized that Sawyer hadn’t asked to be the one everyone leaned on all the goddamn time. He hadn’t wanted to keep Ethan’s secret. He would’ve preferred to let the world know Ethan’s business so that they could right the wrongs that had been done to his younger brother. He’d spent years keeping his mouth shut. But no, he was the one that his brothers turned to when they needed someone to lean on.
He wondered if it would kill Brendon to be happy for everyone else for a minute. But he didn’t say as much. No matter what, Sawyer would be there for Brendon, when and if he ever wanted to talk.
“Hey.”
Sawyer turned to see Cheyenne standing behind him, her eyes on Brendon. “Do you think we could go outside and, you know, talk?”
Brendon’s eyes widened briefly. He didn’t say anything, but at least the fool had the decency to nod. It wasn’t until Cheyenne moved in front of him that Sawyer noticed something he hadn’t seen in a long damn time.
Brendon actually smiled.
TWO HOURS LATER, sitting on his couch with Kennedy by his side while Buster gnawed on a tennis ball, Sawyer noticed how quiet it was.
“You hear that?” he asked her, putting his arm over her shoulders and pulling her to him.
“I don’t hear anything,” she said, resting her head on his chest.
“Exactly.”
Kennedy chuckled. “I had fun today. Thanks for invitin’ me. Your family is . . . fun.”
“And loud,” he offered.
“That, too. But it was still fun.”
“It’s always like that,” he told her.
She peered up at him. “I don’t know why I thought this, but I figured Greyson would be there.”
Sawyer looked away, thinking about that. Greyson didn’t usually come to the family functions. Not anymore, anyway. Ever since Kaleb got married and then the others started following behind him, Greyson had begun to put some distance there.
Then, of course, there was the incident at the resort. No matter how Sawyer twisted the information he’d received, it still looked as though Greyson was responsible for spreading the news about Mack. And not only had it been a breach of the resort rules, but that information had caused some major issues. From what Sawyer learned last night from Kennedy, it looked like Mack’s own son had gotten word and now there were problems between Jeff and Mack.
Sawyer’s first instinct was to try to figure out how to fix that, but Kennedy had assured him that it would be fine. They were grown men; they’d figure it out.
But knowing that Greyson had been responsible . . . hurt. That reminded him of something. Twisting so that he could see Kennedy’s face, he said, “Remember the day Tim kidnapped you?”
Kennedy giggled and patted his chest. “I don’t think it was really kidnapping.”
“Well, I beg to differ, but that’s not the point. You had made a comment to Tim that there was some information you needed to share. What was
that?”
Kennedy sat up and looked at him, her eyes wary. “I was wonderin’ if you were gonna ask about that.”
He didn’t say anything, waiting to see if she would elaborate.
Kennedy propped her knee up on the couch and turned to face him more fully. “I should’ve told you this already, but when Tim and I were talkin’ that day, he told me that he . . .” She paused briefly and he could see she was worried about something. “He was the one who had shared the information about Mack.”
“What?” he asked, sitting up straight. “But I thought . . .”
“He wanted you to think it was Greyson,” she explained. “He told me that he had talked his way into the resort, claimin’ he was doin’ a security check, after seein’ my father and Mack go inside. I think he was really tryin’ to dig up some dirt on . . . well, some dirt on you, honestly. When he heard we were datin’, I think it upset him. So, he was the one who said he saw Mack.”
“So he shared that news?” Sawyer asked, although his mind was already outlining how to find out who had allowed him in without permission.
“He did. He was at Moonshiners and Greyson was there. Apparently, Greyson was pissed off and Tim used that to his advantage. He was the one who leaked the information, but he set Greyson up for it.”
“Holy shit.” Sawyer got to his feet and paced the floor. “All along I thought it was Greyson. I even called him on it.”
“You did?” she questioned.
Yeah, and that hadn’t gone over well. When he accused Greyson of being the leak, an even bigger rift had formed between them.
“Sawyer . . .”
He turned to face Kennedy, hearing something in her tone that had him stopping in his tracks.
“I’m sorry,” she mumbled, her eyes dropping to the floor.
“For?”
“For not telling you sooner. I knew I should have, but I didn’t. I . . . I knew Greyson wasn’t the leak, but I got scared.”
“Scared?” Sawyer wasn’t understanding. Why would she be scared?
“I guess part of me was still worried that you might just dismiss me to go back to the way things were . . .”
Sawyer thrust his hands through his hair and he sighed. “All along I’ve been tryin’ to prove to you that you can trust me, but you still didn’t?”
“I did. I do,” she countered. “It’s just that I . . .”
“You what, Kennedy? You didn’t trust me completely. If you did, you would’ve told me. And here I’ve been thinkin’ the worst of Greyson, but that’s what you wanted me to think?”
“No!” she exclaimed getting to her feet. “Maybe. Yes.”
Sawyer could see Kennedy’s struggle with this, and although it hurt to learn that she still had trust issues, seeing the regret in her eyes pained him more.
Closing the gap between them, Sawyer came to a stop directly in front of her. Tilting her chin up with his finger, he noticed the turbulence brewing in her eyes.
“I’m sorry,” she muttered again.
“And I’m sorry,” he told her. “I’m sorry for all the stupid shit I did when I was younger. I’m sorry for hurtin’ you the way I did. You didn’t deserve that.”
“And you didn’t deserve what I did,” Kennedy stated firmly. “I do trust you, Sawyer. Honestly, I do. And I would never intentionally hurt you. Or Greyson.”
Sawyer knew that. He really did. Nodding his head, he leaned in and kissed her lips gently. “I need to talk to Greyson. I need to clear this up with him.”
Kennedy merely nodded.
Sawyer grabbed his phone and thumbed the screen to life. He pulled up Greyson’s name and sent him a message.
“You want a beer?” he asked Kennedy as he waited for Greyson to respond.
“No, I’m good. But if you don’t mind, I’d like to take a shower.”
Just like that, Sawyer’s mind instantly moved from Greyson to Kennedy. More accurately, he thought of her in his shower . . .
“A shower’s good,” he said, placing his phone on the table. “Mind if I join you?”
KENNEDY WAS CONFUSED by Sawyer’s abrupt mood change. One minute she’d been worried he would never trust her again, the next he was inviting her to take a shower with him. The only reason she had mentioned a shower was to give him a little privacy to talk to Greyson. Clearly, she’d derailed his thoughts with the request, and if nothing else, she had learned one thing over the past few weeks . . . She couldn’t seem to tell him no, so she didn’t even bother to try.
A few minutes later, they were both naked in the oversized shower. Kennedy could tell that Sawyer was lost in thought, although he was trying to convince her he was right there with her.
“Do me a favor,” she told him, moving up against him, pressing her breasts to his chest.
“What’s that?” he asked, looking back at her with curiosity glowing in his eyes.
“Don’t move.”
Sawyer’s eyebrow jumped and a small smile formed on his lips. “I’m not movin’.”
“Good.” Kennedy took a step back and grabbed the liquid soap she kept in the shower. It was unscented and she’d used it on Sawyer before. Squeezing some into her hands, she lathered them up and then began running them over his shoulders, his arms, hands, chest.
She took her time, enjoying the way he was watching her, the sharp intakes of breath he made when she tweaked his nipples before moving lower.
Bypassing his erection, which was standing proud and tall from his body, Kennedy lowered herself to her knees and applied more soap. She then gave the same attention to his legs, starting at his feet and moving upward, one at a time.
The water was washing the soap away as fast as she was applying it, but that didn’t stop her from continuing. Pouring more soap into her hand, she began stroking his cock slowly, her eyes locked with his as he watched her.
“Does that feel good?” she asked, encouraging him to talk the same way he did to her.
“Fucking fantastic,” he said roughly.
When the soap was washed away, Kennedy leaned forward and pressed her lips to the swollen head of his cock, licking slowly, gently. She never took her eyes off his.
She was impressed by the fact that he hadn’t moved, hadn’t threaded his hands into her hair, wasn’t trying to pull her closer. She might’ve wanted him to, but she had told him not to move. He was nothing if not obedient.
Kennedy giggled.
“What’s so funny?” he asked, his hooded eyes moving to watch her hands as she stroked him.
“I was just thinkin’ about how obedient you are.”
“Is that right?” he asked, the disbelief clear in his tone.
“Yeah. I told you not to move. You haven’t. I’m impressed.”
“Well, I can fix that,” he said, sliding his hands to her head and cupping gently. “I was just thinkin’ about how pretty your mouth looks wrapped around my dick.”
“Like this?” she asked as she sucked him into her mouth.
Sawyer groaned, his hands tightening in her hair. Then he did pull her close, his hips thrusting forward. For the next few minutes, Kennedy allowed him to fuck her mouth while she watched him.
“Oh, damn, baby. That’s good.”
Kennedy didn’t slow her assault, sucking him harder, faster, until Sawyer wasn’t holding back. A short time later, he stopped, holding her head still. She had known he was going to stop. He was always more concerned about her pleasure, but right now, it was all about him. Kennedy pulled him into her mouth, refusing to let go until he was groaning.
“I’m gonna come in your mouth, Kennedy. Is that what you want?”
She didn’t answer, just moaned around the thick erection tunneling past her lips.
“Damn,” he growled as his hips began to thrust forward again. She met each thrust by taking him deeper, using one hand to knead his balls until he was saying her name over and over. And when his hips stilled this time, it wasn’t because he was stopping.
“Fuc
k!” Sawyer roared as he came in her mouth, holding her head as he watched.
It was the hottest thing she’d ever seen. And that was saying something.
A SHORT TIME later, they were out of the shower and lying in Sawyer’s bed. Kennedy was curled up against his side, wondering what was on his mind.
“Did you hear from Greyson?” she asked.
“No. He didn’t reply.”
“Maybe you can talk to him tomorrow.”
“Maybe,” he said, but he didn’t sound convinced.
“What are you goin’ to do about it?”
“I don’t know yet,” he replied, pressing his lips to the top of her head. “Right now, that’s the last thing I’m worried about.”
“Oh?” she asked, looking up at him, trying to look innocent.
“Yeah. Right now, I’m thinkin’ about making both of our fantasies come true.”
“Is that right?” Kennedy knew exactly what he was referring to, and after the little oral celebration they’d had in the shower, her body was eager and waiting for him to put his hands on her.
He didn’t disappoint when he pulled her on top of him, his mouth sliding to her neck, then to her ear. “I’m gonna take your ass, Kennedy.”
His whispered words sent a shiver through her.
“I’m gonna take you in a way no man has ever taken you before.”
Kennedy turned her head to give him better access as he brushed his lips against her skin.
“Is that what you want? You want me to bury my dick in your sweet ass?”
“Yes,” she said in a rush. She’d actually wanted it the last time he’d teased her, but for whatever reason, Sawyer had held back. It seemed so taboo, unspeakable even. But the way Sawyer said it, the wickedly delicious things he did to her body, made her want things she never thought she’d want. And this was only one of them.
“On your belly,” he instructed.
Kennedy rolled off him and lay on her stomach on his bed while he got to his feet. She wondered if he was just going to get right to it when he pulled a tube of lubricant from the nightstand drawer.
But she shouldn’t have questioned him. Sawyer was certainly thorough.
Sawyer Page 28
