by Terry Spear
“Got it, Boss. Only you and your mate take naps.”
Jade laughed.
When they got home, Toby woke.
“I’ll take care of lunch for him,” Aidan said. “And I’ll take him swimming. The furniture should be arriving in an hour or so, and we’ll be in charge of that. Won’t we, Toby?”
“Yes!”
“Mind Uncle Aidan and Uncle Edward. We’ll be out in a bit.”
“Okay, Mommy.” Toby took Aidan’s hand. “Can we have a hot dog?”
“Have you heard anything about Kenneth?” Jade asked as she and Rafe retired to the master bedroom.
“Nothing. I called this morning while you were still sleeping, or trying to sleep. They’re still looking for him. They’re trying to use Lizzie as bait.”
“That could be dangerous for her.”
“After what she pulled? Hell, she doesn’t deserve a second chance. Not only was she going along with kidnapping Toby, but then she tried to sell him on her own.”
“I agree. But she didn’t want him dead. It was my brother who kept threatening to kill him.”
“We’ll safeguard her, but we need to take him down. You and Toby won’t be safe until we do. My brother either, if Kenneth still has this harebrained notion of taking him into custody.” Rafe shut the door and led her to the bed. “We need to move your things in here too.”
“I’ll do that after we rest a bit.”
Just then, Rafe got a call, and he yanked his phone out of his pocket. Not now, Sebastian. “Yeah, what is it?”
“I found a place for Jade and her son that’s close by, just half a mile down the road. If you want me to, I’ll put down a deposit on it, as it’s likely to go fast.”
“Change of plans,” Rafe was delighted to say, pulling Jade into his arms and kissing her on the mouth. “They’re staying here permanently. I need you to make arrangements for a quick wedding for next week. No invitations. Just our small group—those who work for me, my brother, and Derek.”
“Hot damn. I’ll get back with you on dates as soon as I’ve got some. Are you turning the boy?”
“Yeah, after the wedding and at the beginning of the new moon. Aidan will handle it.”
“Okay. Let me know if you need anything else. And congratulations.”
“One other thing. I want you to find a wolf judge who can sign a marriage certificate that states we were married before Toby was born. We’ll make up some story about falling in love and getting married, and then we need to make up a story of why we were separated after that.”
“Any ideas?”
“Working on it. Thanks. Talk to you later.” Then he set the phone aside and said to Jade, “Now, about that nap…”
* * *
Jade wished she could be on the yacht again, but this time making wild and passionate love to her mate in that king-size bed in the master suite while they rolled with the waves. She certainly had that in mind for a later date.
For now, they were quickly dispensing with their clothes. Half of the joy of making love to her mate was the cuddling after, and she wanted enough time to do that too. She loved how he didn’t just have sex and fall asleep. He enjoyed the intimacy between them just as much.
Even so, she tried to slow it down a bit, sliding her hands up his T-shirt and making him suck in his breath as she ran her fingers over his nipples and teased them.
But then he was unbuttoning her blouse and baring her lace-covered breasts, cupping them, rubbing the centers with his thumbs, sensitizing them to the point that she gave up on trying to do this slowly and began jerking off his T-shirt.
He pulled her blouse off her shoulders and dropped it on the floor, then slipped his hands beneath her lace bra. His warm, large hands molded to her breasts as he kissed her mouth. But she wasn’t done with his chest. She licked his nipple, making him groan. She loved it when he sounded like he was losing control, the way he stiffened under her touch. She licked the other nipple, her lips gently pulling at that one, her fingers doing the same with the other.
This time he growled, that feral sound his wolf made when he was ready to rip off her clothes and have his way with her. Loving him, she reached down and cupped his crotch and felt his erection straining against his jeans, running her hand down the length of it with a whisper-soft touch.
He quickly unsnapped her bra in front and slid it off her, tossing it aside, then began working on her jeans.
She kicked off her tennis shoes and tugged at his belt, his hands cupping her face again, his mouth devouring hers, his teeth nibbling gently on her lips.
For the moment, she forgot his zipper and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her bare breasts against his bare chest, his hair tickling her nipples, and she gave into the kiss. She loved his kisses, the way he took charge. The way he drew her in and wanted more. His hands skimmed down her back, across her ribs, then lower until he had his hands around her jean-covered buttocks, pulling her tighter against his aroused body.
She loved the feel of him like this—so hard and fit and wanting to please. The way his scents teased her senses—smelling of musk and wolf and male. The way his pheromones drove hers insane.
But then he moved his hands down to her jeans again, unzipping them and pulling them down, helping her out of them. She slid her hand over his briefs, molding to his arousal on the slide down, then helped him out of his boots before he yanked off his jeans and pulled her to stand.
Then they were kissing again, rubbing their bodies together, his hands on her shoulders, until he moved one down, slipping it inside her panties and cupping her sex. She copied him, sliding her hand beneath his waistband and cupping him. He smiled a little against her lips, his eyes glazed over with feral passion. Then he began stroking her, and she molded her hand around his erection.
The pleasure wending through her stole her concentration, although she’d thought she was an expert at multitasking. But not when Rafe was tormenting her with his sweet strokes. Something had to give, and she let go of his cock and clung to his shoulders, making him smile against her lips, the rogue.
She felt herself climbing toward that ultimate peak and falling at the same time, her body on fire, her need to find completion driving her insane.
Their breaths uneven, he continued to plunder her mouth, caressing her tongue, stroking her feminine bud until she cried out, digging her fingers into his shoulders and ready to collapse.
He lifted her and she wrapped her legs around his hips. He carried her to the bed and set her down. As soon as she resituated herself, she parted her legs, inviting him in.
His body piping hot, Rafe accepted his mate’s open invitation, pushing in between her wet folds and dying to fulfill his own needs. Though watching her come would always give him pleasure.
Now, she wrapped her warm wetness around him like a silky, hot mitt and stroked him right to the top. Breathing in her warm wolfish scent, he surrounded himself with her essence, the heat of her body, the smell of her, the softness that was all Jade’s.
He slowed his pace, enjoying the pleasure sliding inside her always gave him, but it was never enough and it couldn’t last. Reminding himself this was only the beginning for them, he pushed hard and deep, thrusting until he felt the climax rising. And shattered. When he was completely spent, he finally rolled over onto his back and pulled her into his arms.
She sighed against him; no words were necessary. She was heaven and earth and every place in between. And for now, being with her like this was more than perfect.
Jade had snuggled up against Rafe, still breathing him in after feeling totally satiated and well loved, thinking it couldn’t get better, before she and he slept for about an hour. Slowly waking, she knew she had to get up and take care of Toby. She’d never thought she could make love to a mate and, beyond that, never thought to have a ton of built-in nannies to allow it to happen. Then squeals of delight broke out in the living room. “They’re here! They’re here! Hurry, Uncle Aidan.”
Jade smiled a
nd tightened her hold on Rafe, figuring Aidan had this covered and her son wasn’t going to miss her anytime soon.
“Sounds like we’ve got some more time to fool around,” Rafe said, kissing the top of her head.
She laughed. And then he made love to her all over again, proving what a dream come true he really was.
In the afterglow, he sighed, cuddling with her and stroking her arm. “Okay, we need to come up with a plausible reason for us separating after we were married four years ago. Not that it would have ever come to pass if we had been married before you had Toby.”
“We had a whirlwind romance somewhere on a trip, married, and I began to worry that we had made a mistake.”
“Because of—?”
“How about if you were off somewhere and met me. No one knew about it. But after the quick marriage, I began worrying about fitting into your lifestyle. Where we were staying, you and I were just everyday people, nothing fancy. Not living the life of the rich and famous. No spotlight on us. I was making a moderate income, but not in your league. But it seemed doable because I wasn’t being exposed to all of this.”
“Okay, and the trigger why you left me?” he asked, frowning down at her as if she truly had left him over this made-up version of their lives.
“Well, you wanted me to give up my intimate apparel wear.”
“No…way.”
She laughed. “Okay, you had a hot deal on a real estate sale. You’d have to make sure you were there to handle the deal. I was to wait at this modest resort for you, but you kept being delayed and delayed and delayed. You finally had Sebastian call and say you’d send me a plane ticket to take me to your place and you’d meet me there in a month. The notion I would be living at some strange place where no one knew who I was… Well, I couldn’t do it, and I figured it had all been a mistake. It would have been bad enough if you had called me, but you didn’t even do that. You had your hired help do it! And we were newlyweds. What was I to think? Ten years down the line, it would be even worse! So I went home on my own.”
“Hell, I swear I’ve mended my ways. I had to be an idiot.”
She chuckled and rubbed his chest with the palm of her hand, loving the feel of him, the scent of him, that he was all hers.
“Why wouldn’t I have sent everyone after you to find you? I would have.”
“I was good at escape and evasion. In truth, I was hiding out from Toby’s father and my brother. Kenneth didn’t catch up to me until your brother contacted him about taking blood samples. So I was living under a different identity.”
“What about your intimate apparel wear? I would have learned where you were through that.”
“I was out of the country for a while.”
“When Toby was born?”
“Before. I returned before Toby was born. I was in a little village in Mexico. You would never have found me.”
“And you didn’t tell me about Toby? He’s my son too, you know.”
She laughed. “You’re too funny, Rafe. That’s another reason I love you. Okay, so you had made a passing comment about not wanting children right away. That you and I had to get to know each other better first. And when I learned I was pregnant with Toby, I knew you wouldn’t want that kind of a lifestyle change. I had him at home so you wouldn’t know about it. Which I really did, but not for that reason.”
“But we’re getting a birth certificate made up for him.”
“Oh. With your name on it?”
“Absolutely. I’m his father.”
She smiled, loving him. He was so right for her. “Okay, so I couldn’t leave your name off it, because I did love you and you were his father. But I was afraid you wouldn’t want to see him or claim him as your own. So I kept working at creating intimate apparel and then started designing specialty clothing for children too, because Toby inspired the new line. And they have done well. But Toby was in a preschool class, and sometimes the daddies would pick up their toddlers. When Father’s Day rolled around, the teachers had the kids make up cards for their daddies. Well, of course, Toby came home and asked who his daddy was.”
“For real?”
“Yeah, for real.”
“Hell. I’m so sorry, Jade.” Then he frowned. “Where’s my Daddy’s Day card?”
She smiled. “In my stuff stored at Kenneth’s house. I kept it. If we ever get our things…”
“Something else we need to do.” Rafe took a deep breath and rubbed her arm. “So you felt guilty and—”
“I learned where you were living and thought if you saw me, maybe we could talk. I was trying to get up the nerve to see you. But I hadn’t expected that I’d nearly risk drowning myself. Then I didn’t let you know you had a son right away, afraid you’d be angry with me. Things were progressing with us so hot and heavy, and I took the chance to tell you about him…”
“Hell yeah. And I don’t ever want to let my business get in the way of our pleasure. If I ever am gone too long on business, remind me of what made you leave me before.”
With tears in her eyes, she kissed him. “I love you, Rafe.”
“I love you just as much back, Jade. We’ll make this work.”
“So what was the story that Aidan referred to about something you and he did when I was talking about Toby climbing out of his crib so early?”
Rafe chuckled. “Oh, that. Aidan and I loved Mom’s apple pie. So one day we were hungry and the pie was sitting on the windowsill cooling while she was outside hanging the laundry to dry. She’d made the pie for us, and we figured it was cool enough already. We stacked pillows and quilts on top of apple crates and everything else we could find, and climbed up on top until we could reach the pie. We knocked it over by mistake, and it went crashing into a jar of honey, a tin of flour, and a bowl of apples.
“We just watched as they all fell to the wooden floor and broke to smithereens. We couldn’t have stopped any of it if we had tried. Mom heard the racket and hollered at us. We knew we were in trouble. But it had all been Aidan’s idea—that time. She ran into the house to see what had happened and yelled at us to stay away from the mess. That was only one of the times we got into trouble for climbing on things we shouldn’t have.”
“Boy, I’m glad you didn’t tell Toby that story. I could see him trying to copy you and your brother because he copies everything you do already.”
Rafe smiled and kissed her cheek. “I’ll say.”
“Mommy! Mommy! Come see my new tree house!” Toby yelled out.
Jade hugged Rafe. “Guess the nap is over.”
He smiled and hugged her back. “Over way too soon.”
They got out of bed and dressed, then joined Toby and Aidan to see what the furniture looked like and watched as Toby asked a million questions of the deliverymen who were putting the bed together.
After the men left and Toby was happily setting up housekeeping, Rafe shared his and Jade’s made-up story with his wolf staff, his brother, and Derek so everyone would have the story right.
“I can’t believe you kept Jade secret from me all these years,” Aidan said. “Your own brother.”
Everyone laughed.
Chapter 15
Jade had spent the night helping Toby get his room fixed up. He was excited about being a big boy again and having his own room to sleep and play in. She was glad because that would give her and Rafe the time to be a real mated couple.
Most of all, Toby loved his tree house. He had climbed up and down the ladder numerous times, hauling toys up there.
Edward had moved into the bedroom next door and told Toby to let him know if he needed anything. Jade had moved all her clothes to Rafe’s room and felt more settled in.
Rafe had given instructions to a couple of his men to locate Jade’s room at her brother’s house and remove everything that belonged to her. She had given them directions to find her room and a list of everything that was in it. No one was living there currently, so it wouldn’t be a problem. Especially since Jade had a key to th
e place, surrendering it gladly to Rafe’s men.
Sebastian had been busy making wedding arrangements, something he’d never had to do before. He was well on the way to making it a fairy-tale wedding scaled down in size. If the paparazzi got wind of it, they’d be all over it.
But now she had to buy a wedding gown too.
That night when they retired, Jade told Toby she was sleeping with Rafe, so if he needed them, he could come get them. He was tired after seeing the wolves, “helping” the men put his tree-house bed together, and carrying a ton of his toys up the ladder. But then he realized he needed Dino and Buddy in bed with him. He climbed up the ladder and dropped Buddy to Jade and then the dinosaur. When he was tucked into bed with his bear and Dino, he was asleep before Jade even finished reading a book to him.
Retiring to bed that night with Rafe, she saw the hungry intrigue in his expression. Unless Toby intruded, she was Rafe’s the whole night.
* * *
Early the next morning, Rafe made love to a sleepy mate and felt happily satiated. Sleeping all night with her, around the bouts of lovemaking, was the best thing ever. Though he wouldn’t have minded if Toby had awakened and felt the need to see Jade, he was glad that he hadn’t.
Both Jade and Rafe needed this mating time to be together. He kissed her shoulder, and she snuggled against him. “I promised I’d spar with Edward this morning. Aidan and Sebastian might join us. We’ll be in the gym downstairs.”
She made a pleasant “hmming” sound, and he smiled, gently laid her back down on the bed, and got dressed to work out, figuring she was going to sleep a while longer.
When he headed down the stairs to the gym, he saw Toby dressed in his Captain America pj’s, punching away at a junior-size punching bag.
Aidan was running on the treadmill. “Sebastian got it for Toby so he could exercise like us guys and build lots of muscles.”
Rafe laughed. “Good.”
Edward arrived and began to spar with Rafe. Sebastian joined them. “Like your punching bag?” he asked Toby.
“Yeah.” But his eyes were wide, his jaw hanging as he watched Rafe and Edward trying to get the best of each other in martial arts moves on one of the floor mats.
