Reunited in Good Hope (A Good Hope Novel Book 8)

by Cindy Kirk

  He wasn’t going to rush her, push her to go harder and faster than she was ready to go.

  She nodded and glanced at the bed. “Can we lie down? I don’t think my legs will hold me for much longer.”

  His eyes twinkled. “Are you saying I make you weak in the knees?”

  She laughed. “Something like that.”

  Still clad only in her panties, Cassie pulled back the covers and moved to the middle of the bed. When Krew settled beside her, she expected him to start kissing her right away, maybe even pull off the last scrap of lace.

  Again, he surprised her.

  His hand was gentle as he pushed back a lock of her hair. “Let’s get one thing clear.” His voice was as soft and soothing as his touch. “You don’t need to ask me if we can do anything. What you want is what I want. Tell me what you want.”

  “I want to kiss you—”

  “I hear a but in there.” His gaze searched her face.

  “I also want you to touch me.” The heat burned as it traveled up her neck to her face. “I really want you to touch me.”

  His smile eased her fears. “I’m glad, because I want to touch you, too.”

  When his lips closed over hers, his large hand, capable of plucking a football out of midair, closed around her breast. As they kissed, his thumbnail flicked over her nipple, sending shock waves of feeling to the very core of her body.

  His tongue swept her lips, and when she opened and he plunged inside, feeling and need wrapped around her and squeezed tight. Breathing became difficult.

  She wanted…

  She needed…

  As if sensing her struggle to hold on to control, he moved his hand to stroke her back. That sensual hand slid past her hips, then back up the side of her body, fingers brushing lightly against her breast before beginning their downward descent.

  Her breathing evened out.

  Then his lips were on hers again, offering soft, warm kisses full of emotion and promise. The desire that surged this time built slowly, and she found herself leaning into it instead of pulling back.

  Krew’s lips trailed from her mouth to her neck, where he lingered before heading lower. His hands were back on her breasts, stroking, kneading, until they ached for more. When his mouth replaced his fingers and he suckled, she came up off the bed.

  He pulled back ever so slightly.

  “No,” she pleaded. “Don’t stop.”

  “Never.”

  As his mouth continued its downward journey, Cassie was pummeled by all the feelings. This was more than sex. This was making love. She’d been around the block enough to appreciate the difference.

  Never, not ever, had it been like this.

  When he left the bed to grab a condom, she had the feeling it would never be like this again.

  Not with anyone else.

  Only with him.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  “Tell me about the test.” Krew turned onto Highway 57 with more than a little regret. He and Cassie would soon be home all too soon.

  Cassie leaned back in her seat, looking tousled and tumbled and very pleased with herself. “What would you like to know?”

  “Were the questions as difficult as you thought they’d be?”

  “You really want to talk about me?”

  “Of course.” Something in her voice had Krew curious. “Why does that surprise you?”

  “I thought you’d want to talk about your meeting. You know, with the front office.”

  “We can talk about that later.” He took her hand, playing with her fingers. “This was a big day. I know that you passed, but not much else.”

  Krew wanted to hear all about the test. Without him asking direct questions, she probably wouldn’t tell him much. From what he’d observed, Cassie had become adept at putting everyone else’s needs before her own.

  It was time that stopped.

  “Don’t spare the details.”

  “I thought I’d be more nervous.” She flashed a smile that managed to look both proud and shy. “I told myself to take my time, to read each question carefully.”

  Any other time, Krew might have jumped in and taken charge of the conversation, firing questions at her. It was his natural tendency. But this was her story to tell. In her own time. In her own way.

  “About halfway through, my heart started beating so fast I thought my chest was going to explode.” The delightful flush he found so charming colored her cheeks. “You know what I did?”

  He shook his head, loving the excitement in her voice.

  “I focused on my breathing until I felt calmer.” She smiled at his obvious confusion. “Dr. Gallagher has me meditating each night. He says focusing on your breathing helps you be present in the moment. It sounds crazy, I know.”

  “It doesn’t. Not to me, anyway.” Krew slowed the car as they approached Sturgeon Bay. “In the past few years, the team has worked with players on what they call mindful meditation.”

  “Really?” Cassie shifted in her seat, appearing intrigued.

  “As you might suspect, everyone who reaches the NFL is very goal-oriented. The problem is, it’s difficult for such personalities to stay in the moment. Instead, players and coaches are always focusing on past missteps, or they’re looking ahead to where they want to be in the future.”

  Cassie’s nod of understanding had him continuing.

  “It’s not a new concept,” Krew explained. “Bill Belichick has been spouting ‘do your job’ with his teams for years. There’s just more focus now as the game continues to change and evolve.”

  “Is the mindful meditation something you’d be involved with as an assistant coach?”

  Though Cassie’s obvious interest pleased him, Krew didn’t want to talk about the future. A future that would involve them seeing each other only sporadically, if at all.

  Just because he’d maintain his relationship with Dakota didn’t mean that would include her mother.

  “I’m not sure.” He redirected the conversation back to her. “So, what’s the plan now that you can get your license?”

  “Well,” she took a moment to consider, “I need a sponsoring real estate broker. I’m hoping Tim will sponsor me.”

  “Your mother’s old boyfriend.”

  “Tim is extremely successful. I think, I hope, he’ll take me on.”

  “Have you ever considered moving to a bigger market?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t like big cities.”

  Krew thought how wonderful it would be to have her in the same town. “Not a big city. Perhaps a town the size of Green Bay.”

  The more Krew thought about it, the more jazzed he was about the idea.

  Cassie apparently wasn’t seeing it as she gave her head a slow shake. “The idea of being in a new community and starting fresh is appealing. If I was single. But I have the kids to think of. Not to mention, it’s expensive to relocate.”

  “True,” Krew conceded, resisting the urge to push hard. “Though bigger schools would have a lot to offer both Braxton and K.T.”

  “I don’t want to sound like a user.” Cassie spoke slowly. “But in Good Hope I have friends and family. People I can call on if I get sick or need help.”

  Krew thought of all the years he’d had to worry only about himself. Cassie had never experienced that freedom. From the time she’d been fifteen, she’d had to take someone else into consideration.

  “What about Clint?”

  A startled look crossed Cassie’s face. “What about him?”

  “Is staying close to where he’s incarcerated part of the consideration because he’s Axl’s father?” Just thinking of Clint ever touching Cassie had Krew’s jaw tightening.

  “No.” Cassie’s voice turned hard. “Actually, I’d love to be farther away from him than I am.”

  “Do you hear from him much?”

  “More at first, but I heard from him just last week. He offered to relinquish his parental rights to Axl for a thousand dollars. Apparently,
he needs it in order to hire what he calls a ‘real’ attorney, which I took to mean one who isn’t court-appointed.”

  “Are you going to do it?”

  “I looked into the possibility.” Cassie gazed down at her hands before looking up. “I don’t want him being any part of Axl’s life. When I mentioned something to Beck—who’s an attorney—about Clint’s offer, I discovered termination of one parent’s parental rights isn’t usually granted without an accompanying stepparent adoption.”

  “That seems strange.”

  “I thought so, too. Beck says the state feels that a child is entitled to have two legal parents to support them.” Cassie lifted one shoulder and let it drop. “I would have had to try to borrow the money, anyway.”

  Krew thought of Axl. The kid was spirited but as sweet as they came. What would happen to that childish innocence when Clint Gourley got out of prison and asserted his parental rights?

  Clint would come around, Krew had no doubt of that, if only to make Cassie’s life miserable.

  “You could marry me. I’d adopt Axl, and then you’d be free of Clint forever.”

  Cassie inhaled sharply, then gave a soft laugh. “I believe that’s the most generous offer anyone has ever made me. But I have to say no.”

  Krew had shocked himself with the proposal. The words had been out of his mouth before he’d had a chance to fully consider what he was offering.

  Marriage? Adopting a child? What about the older boys? They would be part of the package, too.

  When Cassie touched his arm and gave him a shy smile, Krew fought a surge of emotion that told him maybe asking her to marry him hadn’t been such a crazy idea after all.

  “Thank you,” she whispered, even though they were the only ones in the car.

  “For what?”

  “For caring.” Her eyes grew misty. “For just being you.”

  The seven-foot Douglas fir Krew had personally picked out that morning showed up, as promised, on his porch at noon.

  Krew stared at the perfectly shaped tree positioned in front of the window. When he and Tessa had been kids, they’d begged for a Christmas tree. His dad had considered them a waste of money, preferring to spend any extra cash on another bottle of cheap whiskey.

  None of the teammates Krew had lived with had been into holiday decorating, so they’d never bothered with a tree.

  His fingers stroked the surprisingly soft needles. He hoped to get Cassie, Dakota and the boys to help him decorate.

  Krew had discovered Dakota possessed a love for the holidays. She and Cassie were alike in that regard. When he’d dropped Cassie off yesterday, there had been no tree in their living room. Then again, there was really no room for one.

  Cassie had done her best to make the house look festive by draping red and green rings of construction paper that Axl had obviously glued together around a sad-looking plant.

  Pulling out his phone, Krew texted Cassie.

  Got a tree today.

  Tree?

  Xmas tree. Want to bring kids & help decorate tonight?

  Do you have decorations?

  He didn’t, but he could pick some up today. Yes.

  He pictured Cassie in his living room handing ornaments to Axl to hang on the tree. Laughing with Dakota and teasing Cassie’s sons. Krew thought how nice it would be to watch Cassie put a star at the top.

  He wanted her here. Wanted all of them here.

  Sure.

  He smiled. Plan on seven. I’ll have food.

  Krew glanced at the bare tree. If things went as he hoped, tonight it would be festooned with strings of lights and ornaments.

  The holiday was off to a great start.

  Cassie couldn’t believe she would see Krew three days in a row. Tomorrow night, she’d go with him to Rakes Farm to sing Christmas carols and drink hot apple cider. Tonight, they would decorate his Christmas tree.

  At the moment, her heart simply overflowed with holiday cheer.

  “Do you think he’s getting pizza?” Braxton asked from the passenger seat.

  “If he does, I bet it’s pepperoni.” K.T. spoke from behind her. “Krew knows it’s our favorite.”

  “All I know is there’ll be food.” Cassie added a bit of warning to her voice. “Regardless what it is, we’ll say thank you.”

  “We know, Mom,” Braxton said. “But if he got hamburger, we have to give him grief.”

  “Brax.” She said his name in a low growl.

  “He expects it, Mom.”

  “Yeah,” K.T. agreed. “He’d wonder what was wrong if we didn’t razz him.”

  Cassie didn’t know how to respond to that, so she focused on the road. She couldn’t recall the last time they’d decorated a Christmas tree as a family. Her mother always ordered a flocked tree and had it professionally decorated.

  “Our thanks will be to toss some ornaments on his tree,” Braxton said.

  “Even for pepperoni, I draw the line at singing Christmas carols,” K.T. asserted. “Just sayin’.”

  The pronouncement drew a harsh intake of breath from his big brother.

  “Is that even a possibility?” Braxton’s tone held horror.

  Cassie laughed and turned into the driveway, parking behind a shiny red Honda that looked brand new. “It’s going to be fun.”

  When Dakota had said she’d meet them at Krew’s home, Cassie had assumed Krew was giving her a ride. She hadn’t considered Dakota would bring a friend.

  “Whose car is that?” Braxton asked.

  She wasn’t the only one who was curious.

  K.T. wiped the condensation off the window and gave a low whistle. “That is one sweet ride.”

  “I wanna see.” Axl began jumping up and down in his car seat, as far as the restraints would allow.

  “We’ll find out who it belongs to soon enough.” Cassie spoke in a matter-of-fact tone. Years ago, she might have envied the person who owned such a beautiful vehicle. Now, she was simply thrilled to have a car that ran. “K.T., can you carry your brother to the house?”

  “That’s okay, Mom.” Braxton’s lips quirked upward. “I think I can walk.”

  The two teens started laughing like hyenas at his little joke. Even though Axl didn’t understand, he laughed along with them.

  Cassie only shook her head, but a warmth flowed through her at their easy camaraderie. The boys might bicker at times, but they were good friends and they had each other’s back.

  Dr. Gallagher had told her to embrace her successes. Her children’s closeness was a small one, but she’d take it.

  Glancing at the grand house awash with lights, Cassie felt her heart lighten.

  A Christmas tree.

  An evening with her family.

  Krew.

  Her life couldn’t get any better.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  The door swung open when Cassie and the boys reached the porch. Dakota and Krew stood with welcoming smiles on their faces, motioning them inside.

  Cassie handed her coat to Dakota and exchanged a glance with Krew.

  She resisted the urge to wrap her arms around him and pull him close. Cassie had hoped their lovemaking would quench her desire for him. Instead, she’d dreamed of him last night and had awakened this morning aching for his touch.

  When his eyes locked on hers, she saw the same flicker of want.

  “Whose car is that?” Braxton’s gaze scanned the room to see who else was at the party.

  “It’s mine.” Dakota now held Axl, who’d buried his head in the curve of her neck.

  “You can’t afford a new car.” The blunt words popped out before Cassie could stop them.

  “Dad bought it for me.” Dakota smiled at Krew. “He wants me to have reliable transportation when I go back to school.”

  Cassie whirled, fixing her gaze on the perpetrator of this unwelcome surprise. “You never mentioned you were even considering buying her a car. Have you given one thought to what the insurance on a new car will cost? Because let m
e tell you, it’s expensive.”

  Practicality was a necessity in Cassie’s world. While a new vehicle was nice, having an older car was a plus when it came to insurance rates. Especially with a teen driver on the policy.

  “I see the car and covering the insurance as part of paying for her education.”

  Dakota appeared as puzzled as Krew. “Why would he need to explain anything to you? This is between him and me.”

  Cassie opened her mouth, but Krew spoke first.

  “She’s right that I should have mentioned it to her before I bought it for you. In my eagerness to do this for you, I forgot that important step.” Krew’s tone remained calm. “Your mom and I are your parents, which means we’re a team. Team members work together, not in isolation. Understand?”

  “I guess so.” Dakota glanced at Cassie.

  “It’s a beautiful car.” Cassie knew when to let something go. “I hope you’ll give me a ride in it sometime.”

  “Sure.” Dakota shoved her hands into the pockets of her cardigan. “It’s not frivolous, Mom. Having a car will give me more options regarding part-time jobs when I return to La Crosse. And I won’t have to look for someone to give me a ride home on breaks.”

  “Is anyone hungry?” Krew asked, obviously done with the car conversation. “I have pizza.”

  Braxton and K.T. exchanged glances.

  “Pepperoni?” Cassie voiced the question she knew they wanted to ask.

  Krew lifted his hands and shot the boys a wink. “Is there any other kind?”

  The two boys high-fived each other.

  Cassie opened the pizza boxes while Axl sat on Krew’s lap and the older children vied for Krew’s attention. It didn’t bother her, Cassie told herself. Well, maybe just a little. Despite arriving late in the game, Krew had slipped so easily into her children’s affections.

  Didn’t they realize he’d soon slip out of their lives just as quickly as he’d slipped in? Perhaps she should have done a better job at keeping him away from—