by Josie Kerr
“Hmm? Oh! I’m sorry. I must have spaced out – pregnancy brain, you know. What?”
Colin grinned at his new neighbor. Man, she was cute, with that sweet ringlet of strawberry blonde hair hanging down over her big grey eyes, and that little baby belly. Well, the baby belly wasn’t that little, but it was still cute.
Colin wondered how old Bailey was. She looked about twenty, but Em said that she had known Bailey for over six years, so that couldn’t be right. She had to be older than she looked.
“I said, I was gonna start on the fire pit this weekend, so there’s going to be a big truck blocking part of the driveway for part of the day on Saturday. If you don’t want to get stuck at home all weekend, you might want to move your car on the street tonight.”
“Oh, okay. I’ll probably just leave it where it is, if it’s not in the way of doing what you’re doing. Not being able to go anywhere will force me to do the stuff around the house that I need to do. Speaking of, do you mind if I paint the nursery a different color than the boring old cream that’s on the walls now?”
“No, go ahead. I was actually going to ask you about painting. My side needs painting in the worst way, and I’m sure your side does as well. Why don’t you pick out some colors and I’ll take care of it?”
Bailey blinked. “Really?”
“Yeah, sure. Needs to be done, might as well live with something you like, right? I hate the bland beige. I’m sure as hell not going to put more of that color on the wall. No biggie at all.” God, Colin. Shut up, man. Why are you jabbering at her?
“That’s awfully nice, Colin. So how much paint do you think it will take to paint each room?”
“Maybe two cans for each bedroom, and four for the living room. Why?”
“Well, I can pick it up on the way home this week. There’s a store right by the office and...”
“Oh no, Bailey, hold it right there,” Colin said. “I’m the landlord. I buy the paint. I paint the rooms, or hire someone to paint the rooms. We can go together to pick out the paint, but there’s no way you’re paying.”
“Well...”
“Nope. Not going to argue with you.”
Bailey opened her mouth to protest some more, and Colin shot her a pleading look that made her relent.
“Well, then. Okay. When do you want to go? I can go any time pretty much.”
“We can go now, if you want. I need to go to the home improvement store anyway.”
“Um, sure. Let me change clothes.”
Damn. She wasn’t going to wear those little pants? The ones that showed off her cute bottom? “Sure. Come on over when you get ready. No rush.”
Colin was pleased to see that she was still wearing those little pants, but had put on a slouchy, stretchy sweater thing over her tank top and a hoodie over that.
Bailey shrugged at his look. “I know I kind of look like a bag lady, but none of my clothes really fit. I need to do some shopping.”
“You always look nice, Bailey,” he said, enjoying the way his compliment made her face pink up. “Hey, it’s about dinner time. Do you want to grab something?” Colin asked as he locked up the house.
“Uh, sure. We could do that, if you want.”
“I want to.”
Colin opened the door to his Charger and helped Bailey get seated. When he was busy backing out of the driveway, Bailey wondered, not for the first time, where he found clothes to fit him. His arms were huge. He was just generally huge. He was wearing a hoodie now, but earlier, he was wearing a t-shirt and the armholes were stretched to capacity over his big biceps. Just...damn.
“Pregnancy brain again?” Colin said with a grin.
“What?”
“Where’d you like to eat?” He was laughing at her.
Bailey, you seriously need to get a grip on yourself, girl.
“Oh, it doesn’t matter, really. Wherever you’d like. You’re the one that’s going to be doing a bunch of work.”
“There’s nothing you’re craving? That’s a real thing, right?”
“Oh, it’s definitely real. I am craving something, but the nearest restaurant is outside of Birmingham, so that’s a little far.”
“Oh, what place is that?”
“Whataburger. I would kill for a Whataburger.”
“Oh, man, I love Whataburger. Did you grow up in Texas?”
Bailey licked her lips and looked down at her lap. “Yeah. Yeah, I did.”
Hm. I wonder where she grew up. “I grew up outside of Houston. Love Whataburger.”
Bailey eyed Colin’s flat abdomen, the muscles apparent through his t-shirt where his hoodie had ridden up. “You don’t look like you eat a lot of Whataburger.”
“No, I don’t. But after a fight or whenever I got back to Texas, the first place that Duke and I went was Whataburger.” He took a deep, shaky breath.
“Oh, Colin.” Bailey patted that big arm and he gave her a weak grin.
“Thanks, Bailey.” He blew out a breath. “It still gets to me, sometimes.”
“Colin, your daddy’s been gone, what? A month? Of course, it still gets to you.”
“Does it go away?”
“Does what go away?”
“That hole. The feeling of wanting to tell him something, but realizing that he’s not there to tell?”
It was Bailey’s turn to breathe deeply. “I...don’t know, Colin.”
“Dammit. I was hoping you would tell me ‘just a few more days,’” he said with a shaky laugh.
She gave him another consoling pat on the arm. “Sorry.”
“Yeah, it’s okay. But I’ve got an idea for dinner that Duke would approve of. You game?”
“Sure, I’m game.”
Ninety minutes later they were back in the car and finally headed to the home improvement store.
“Oh, dear Lord, I can’t believe I ate the whole thing,” Bailey laughed.
“I can’t believe you ate that whole thing. Where the hell did you put it? That burrito was literally as big as your face.”
“Oof. The baby wanted it,” she said with a grin. “I’m either going to sleep like a log tonight or be up all night with heartburn. We’ll see. It’s always a surprise. But my doctor did tell me that I needed to put on some weight, so I’m just following the doctor’s order, right?”
“Sounds good to me.”
It pleased Bailey that Colin’s mood perked up. She didn’t like to see him so visibly unhappy. He was a pretty quiet man, in general. In fact, he talked more today than he she ever had heard him speak, even with his brother and Rory.
“So do you want to stop for ice cream?”
“Are you crazy? No. As good as it sounds, I couldn’t eat another thing. Oh, you’re teasing me.” Bailey mock-scowled at him, but then grinned. “Brat.”
Colin grinned as he pulled into the parking lot. He shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe I’m a brat, maybe I’m not. So, what color do want for the nursery?”
Chapter Five
Colin stood looking at the Atlanta skyline, enjoying the cold night air. Atlanta wasn’t as warm as Houston in February, but it sure beat the hell out of Wisconsin.
Man, how much has my life changed in the past year?
Last February, he was in pretty bad shape, physically and emotionally. He was recuperating from the first defense of his heavyweight title and dodging Andrea’s constant calls and texts, and, for the first time, Duke actually seemed ill, even though he had had the cancer diagnosis for over a year.
Colin sucked in a shaky breath as he thought about his father. Damn, I miss you, Duke. You’d know what to do about Bailey.
The thought of Bailey brought a grin to his face. She, Ashley, and Em had been downstairs in the nightclub, doing whatever girls do at bachelorette parties, while he, Mick, and Rory celebrated upstairs on the heated deck.
Colin snorted. It seemed like what girls did at bachelorette parties was drink. Ashley and Em were thorou
ghly toasted, but Bailey wasn’t, of course.
She had looked so pretty tonight, wearing a soft blue sweater that made her big eyes look even greyer. Colin just wanted to touch her – pet her curly hair, stroke that soft sweater, and nuzzle the creamy skin of her neck.
“Okay, b’y, I want to talk to you,” Mick said. He leaned against the railing, a drink clutched in his hand.
“You okay with all this, Mickey? Really? I mean, talk about an instant family.”
Mick huffed a laugh. “I better be, right?” He took a sip of his drink. He inhaled deeply, and then blew the breath out slowly. “A wife and a baby, after all these years, b’y. When I got that call, all I could feel was guilt.”
“Guilt?” That was the last emotion that Colin expected.
“Yes, guilt. When I signed that paper for Emily’s father, Jesse, I knew that I was taking on a huge responsibility. He made it through three tours, three tours. And two weeks before he was due to come home…” Mick’s voice trailed off.
“He couldn’t. And now you get to raise his baby daughter.”
Mick nodded. “I get to experience all the things he should have gotten to experience.”
“But why guilt?”
“Because I’m thrilled to get to have another chance to do it, you know? I’m happy.”
“Mickey, you should be happy. You deserve happiness, man. Fuck, all that bullshit that you had to deal with when you were a teenager, and then losing Grace and your children in a senseless accident?” Colin shook his head. “No, Mick, if anyone deserves a second chance at happiness, at a family, it’s you.”
The brothers stood side-by-side, looking at the twinkling city lights.
“You deserve some happiness, too, Colin. You’ve lost just as much.”
Colin snorted. “I wouldn’t say that at all. Duke rescued me. I had a decent childhood. Hell, I had a great childhood except for that year when Moira sent you away and we moved back to Newfoundland.” Colin turned to Mick. “Even when we were cold and hungry and scared to death, I was okay, because I had you. And then, I had Duke. You had no one. And then you had Grace, and the boys, and then you didn’t. I don’t know how you fucking survived it, Mick. I really don’t.”
Mick shrugged. “It’s what I do, b’y. I survive. But I’ll tell you something: it’s only in the past few months that I’ve started to live again.” He grew silent again, and Colin waited for his older brother to continue. “Duke was afraid for you. Afraid that you’d never get a chance to meet someone that complements you, that completes you. He was worried.”
Colin huffed a laugh. “Well, he met Andrea; that’s probably why he worried.”
“Yeah, he mentioned meeting her. She sounds like a lovely woman,” Mick said, and grinned when Colin made a face. “But he desperately didn’t want you to be lonely, you know? And that’s why I’ve got to ask you.”
“Ask me what?”
“What’s going on with you and Bailey, b’y? You two circle each other like two wary cats.”
Damn, Big Brother doesn’t miss a thing, does he?
Colin sighed. “I don’t know, Mick. I’m really attracted to her. Is that weird? That I am dying to rip a pregnant woman’s clothes off and have my way with her?”
Mick laughed so hard that Colin thought that he was going to choke.
“Oh, Colin, you might be surprised,” Mick said. “B’y, if she is anything like Grace, she’s so wound up she can barely sit still. I think I spent the majority of Grace’s pregnancies either with my mouth on her or my body behind or underneath her. The woman was insatiable.”
Colin’s mouth dropped open. “So... it’s okay to, you know...”
“Yeah, it’s usually fine. I don’t think that there have been any problems. She’d probably welcome the release, if you know what I mean.”
“Huh.” Colin thought about it. He chewed his lip. “Anything...special...I should do? If I decided to, you know, pursue this?”
“Spoon position? Bailey’s big enough now that position that would be the most comfortable. And there’s always oral.”
“I can’t believe I’m talking to you about this.”
“It always pays to talk to someone with experience.” Mick shrugged. “Bailey’s a lovely woman. She’s had a rough time during these past few months. She’s got a story, too. I don’t know it, but I’m thinking it goes a lot further back than this business with Tripp. And you’ve not had exactly the easiest time, either. If you’re both game, why not?”
Yeah, why not?
When Colin returned to their duplex, he found Bailey on the couch in front of the fire pit with her feet on the coffee table, frowning.
“Hey, Bailey. What’s going on? Something wrong?” Colin asked, concerned. His little neighbor was generally perky and all smiles.
Bailey blew air out of the corner of her mouth and scoffed. “I wanted to paint my toenails, but I can’t bend over far enough to reach them, and it’s too awkward for me to pull my foot up. And my only pair of maternity pantyhose has a big run in them and I can’t shave my legs.” She looked miserable.
“Would...would you like me to shave your legs and paint your toenails for you?” Dear lord, I must really need to laid.
Bailey sniffled. “You would do that?”
“Sure, why not?” he shrugged. “It’s not like I’ve never shaved legs before.”
“You’ve shaved a woman’s legs before?”
“Uh, no. I’ve shaved mine though. As a matter of fact,” Colin said as he pulled his pants leg up, “I bet my legs are more stubbly than yours.” His showing of a massive, and yes, stubbly calf made Bailey smile. “Come on. It’ll be late-night spa time.”
The duplex’s bathrooms each featured a sunken tub with a built-in seat, which made shaving Bailey’s legs easy. She sat on the toilet while Colin ran water in the tub. When the water was warm and a few inches deep, Colin helped Bailey into the tub to sit on the bench. He lathered up his hands with some lightly scented soap and smoothed them down one of Bailey’s calves while he held her foot in one big hand. His touch was amazingly gentle as he glided the razor carefully over her calf. He shaved the other calf with the same meticulous attention that he did the first.
“Um, you don’t need anything higher, right?” Colin chewed on his lip again. Bailey thought that the nervous habit was cute.
She giggled. “No, just calves are fine.” She rubbed her hand down her leg. “What are those razors? I don’t think my legs have ever been this smooth. I need to get me some of those.”
Colin chuckled as he helped her step out of the tub and dried her legs off. “Okay, now for phase two. You’ll have to help me with this part because I sure haven’t ever painted anyone’s anything before.”
“We can do this part in my living room. The stuff is already on the coffee table.”
They got settled on the couch and Bailey put her feet in Colin’s lap. He kneaded her feet and calves for a few minutes. Bailey groaned with pleasure.
“Colin, you have magic hands. Good Lord.” Colin allowed himself a small grin as he continued massaging her lower legs and feet.
“Okay, now for the scary part.” Colin picked up the small bottle of nail polish. He uncapped the bottle and brushed some polish on her big toe. Bailey giggled.
“You sure are giggly tonight,” Colin said. He stuck his tongue out of the side of his mouth in concentration. When he got some on her skin, he frowned and quickly scraped it off with his own nail.
“You’re making me laugh because you’re so serious about this. Plus, I’m really ticklish.”
“I want to do a good job. We can’t have a terrible pedicure detracting from Mick and Em’s wedding. Ashley would have my head.”
“This color is called ‘Makes Men Blush.’ It’s pretty apropos,” Bailey said with another giggle, this time at Colin’s pink ears.
Colin finished painting her toenails, but kept her legs in his lap. He continued gently ma
ssaging and touching her feet and calves. He worked his way up to her knees and then further up her leg, kneading one thigh and then the other. He slowly scooted toward Bailey, all the while keeping her legs over his lap. When he got to her upper thighs, he let out his own groan.
“Bailey, is this okay?” he asked as his fingers slid against the soft skin of her inner thigh.
“Uh huh. That’s just about perfect.” Bailey had her eyes closed.
“Bailey.” Something changed in Colin’s voice, prompting her to open her eyes. When she did, she found his face inches from hers, his eyes blue eyes sparking with desire.
“Oh,” Bailey exhaled as Colin’s hand softly brushed against her mound. His face moved closer to hers and he brought one hand to her face to cup her cheek, and then he placed the softest of kisses on her mouth.
Bailey placed her hands around Colin’s face. She rubbed her thumbs over his bottom lip. He gave one of them a little nip.
“Colin. Colin, I want...” Bailey stopped, her face flaming red.
“Tell me what you need, sweetheart. Tell me, Bailey.”
Bailey didn’t trust herself to be able to articulate what she needed, so she showed him by pulling his mouth to hers and kissing him deeply. She opened her mouth, willing Colin to follow suit, which he did.
He pulled away from her, and looked her in the eyes, stroking her cheek. He began kissing her neck and licking her ear, murmuring sweet nonsense syllables into it. He drifted his hand over her belly, and snaked behind her back to pull her closer to him. Bailey’s hands did their own wandering, stroking across his broad shoulders and down his thick chest. She gave his big thighs a squeeze and then fluttered her fingers over his flat, hard belly, skimming them over his fly, where she felt his erection, long and hard and thick. Oh lordy, that would feel so good.
Colin ran his hand down her thigh to the hem of her sleep shorts. He dipped his hand under the hem and ran his fingers over her hip, discovering that she wasn’t wearing any panties. He groaned.
“Goddamn, Bailey. You make me crazy. You are the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.”
Bailey laughed and looked up at him. “You’re nuts, Colin. What?”
