Declan raised his hand to show Willa his wedding band.
Willa’s eyes teared in earnest and overflowed, leaving wet streaks of makeup on her cheeks.
"Willa, customer at the window," the pharmacist repeated, coming forward. "Is there a problem here?" Willa turned to face him and for the first time he saw she was crying. "Willa? What's wrong?"
"She needs a shoulder to cry on," Declan said to the man.
He hesitated a moment before opening his arms to her.
Declan reached over the counter and took back his prescriptions. "I'll get these filled elsewhere," he said to the pharmacist. "Maybe you can take her out after work for a couple of drinks and let her tell you what happened. Then, take her home, turn her over your knee and spank her hard. She'll feel better after a good cry. Trust me."
Chapter 42
Between finding another pharmacy, filling the prescriptions, returning the rental car to the airport, and fueling the RV, it was more than two hours later when they found themselves back on the highway on their way to meet up with the kids.
"Mom, you don't have to hover next to the bathroom. Nyxie's got this."
"I don't know; she's been in there a while."
"I'm reading the insert in the box," came Nyxie's voice through the door. "I'm pretty sure I understand. I'm just reading about toxic shock syndrome. I'll be out in a minute. Jeez!"
"Mom, go up there," Declan said, pointing at the leather passenger seat. "Make sure Dad is staying between the lines and not getting us lost."
Roy intentionally eased the RV on to the rumble strip on the road’s edge. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, son."
Dorothea raced to the front seat and buckled up. "Roy, pay attention," she said and began micromanaging her husband.
Roy cast a look at Declan over his shoulder and then at Dorothea. He eased the RV onto the rumble strip once more as he reached over and turned the radio up to drown out his wife. Declan knew when Nyxie came out, the music would help keep their conversations from drifting to the front also.
When Nyxie emerged, her cheeks were pink and she cast a few daggered looks at Dorothea's back. Declan sat sideways at the dining table, waiting for her to join him. The bottom of one foot was flat in the bench, his knee bent, and his other foot rested on the floor. He patted the seat next to him and as soon as she sat down, he grabbed her, pulled her close and threw his leg across her lap—trapping her between his legs.
Nyxie didn't know exactly what this game was about, but rubbed his cock through his shorts as she leaned over and kissed him—fairly confident that unless one of his parents stood up, her actions were concealed by the back of the opposite bench and the table.
Making a strangling sound, Declan grabbed her hand and pulled it away as he broke the kiss. "None of that." He reached behind his back and one by one pulled out the calculus book and everything she would need to work her way through a few assignments.
Her whole body slumped. "Seriously? I thought we were on vacation."
"Think of it as summer school."
Nyxie tried to move away but he tightened his legs and locked them together at the ankles.
"Wouldn’t you rather make out or something?" she asked, running her small hand up his thigh.
He slapped playfully at her hand. "It's not going to work."
"Meanie.” Nyxie stuck out her tongue at him then pouted her lips in an adorable moue.
That nearly worked.
"Mean? Oh, but I have some sweet rewards in mind for good grades."
She glanced at his parents sitting ten feet away. "All things considered, how sweet can they be?"
He tapped on his lip and looked off to the side as if thinking. "How about a 90% gets you a five-minute kissing break?"
"Will you pull my hair?" she asked with a shy smile.
"I'd like to see you stop me."
"May I have a sample to see what I'm working for?" she asked, leaning toward him, her neck stretching and lips puckering.
He laughed as he pulled back, his hands on her arms holding her away. "If you want to kiss, you'll have to earn it. And if you score a 95%, I'll throw in a date night when we get home."
"A date night? Like dinner and a movie or like marathon sex?"
“You’ll have to get a hundred if you want marathon sex," he said, still chuckling.
"But I still get to make out with you now, right?"
"Absolutely. I know you have no ability to delay gratification."
She frowned as if the comment was meant as an insult. "Yes, I do."
"When?"
Nyxie racked her brain, trying to think of a way in which she waited for something – anything. Nothing. It was not something she did well and she knew it. "I, uh….”
"Don't worry about it."
The longer it took her to come up with an example, the more sullen she became. Lines formed between her eyebrows and her lips drew into a stubborn line. She knew all about the stupid marshmallow test given to preschoolers. Nyxie would have eaten that marshmallow before the researcher left the room.
"It doesn't matter, Nyxie."
"Apparently, it does."
Nyxie reached for the book and tilted it up until she could see the piece of yellow paper marking her progress and opened the book. She spent a moment organizing her workspace, intentionally ignoring him.
As always, Nyxie found herself lacking, compared to other people. She didn't know if it was because of the environment she grew up in, or her brain chemistry, but she knew according to the researchers, the toddlers who waited to eat their marshmallow until the testers returned and received a second marshmallow as a reward, were said to be more successful in life.
"Are you always this irritable during your period?"
Wrong thing to say.
Slowly, Nyxie turned her head. "Do you always assume when a woman is in a bad mood, it has to do with her period? You can't imagine I have anything to be upset about. Hmm, let's see, why could I possibly be cranky? Could it be that your mother hates me?" she said quietly, casting a quick glance to the front where Dorothea and Roy were engaged in their own conversation. "Or maybe that rather than let them fly home, you invited them on our honeymoon?"
"Along with your kids and the nanny," he said, reminding her that they were both making sacrifices. "I think we've been having a good time and getting our share of alone time despite the lack of privacy."
"Not that it matters now that my period came. I can assure you I haven't missed having one at all. And if that wasn't bad enough, everyone including your parents knows.
"Oh," she continued. "Let's not forget about running into Willa."
He cringed slightly, surprised she hadn't brought her up before now. "I thought you believed me when I said I didn't know she worked there."
"I do."
"How upset are you over running into her?" Nyxie lifted his shoulder in a half shrug, either unable or unwilling to elaborate. "I take it that you are pretty upset. You have no reason to be jealous. I only have eye for you," he said poking a little fun at his injury.
"It's not that I'm jealous exactly—and I am, I don’t deny it—it's just that I feel kind of bad for her. I'm sure she feels rejected and I know how that feels."
Nyxie may have never been dumped by her boyfriend, but she certainly knew the sting of rejection—whether it was being pushed away by her parents or not being accepted by classmates. Perhaps that had been part of why she had never flirted—she just couldn't imagine anyone would want her.
"Well, you know when she called that time, she did offer to have a three-way," he reminded her.
"Oh, I'm sure you would like that." Nyxie said, crossing her arms and pulling away as far she could with his legs wrapped around her.
"In theory, it sounds like fun, but in practice… well, let's just say, I know myself well enough to know that the moment her lips touched you, even if it was just on the mouth, I would hurl her out the nearest door or window. I wouldn't give a shit that she was nake
d, dressed, or somewhere in between. I wouldn't care if it was broad daylight or midnight. I wouldn't care if it was the middle of an ice storm or a tornado, I would absolutely go nuts with jealousy."
A small smile lifted one corner of Nyxie's pouty lips before disappearing. "Good," she said, her eyes lifting toward his in shy satisfaction, for only a moment. "Because I'm struggling with my own jealousy issues at the moment. As soon as I knew who she was, all I could see was her mouth with all that red lipstick wrapped around your cock. I kept wondering if there was a ring of scarlet wax circling your shaft after she blew you."
"I wore a condom," he said nonchalantly. "And when I was inside her, I closed my eyes and imagined it was you I was fucking."
The slight smile on Nyxie's face was back. "Really?"
His arms reached around her, pulling her close, a boyish grin upon his face. "Absolutely. I don't think I've been with anyone since I was eighteen years old that I didn't think of you when I was having sex. I think I've been in love with you since the first time I saw you."
Leaning closer, Nyxie tilted her head up and kissed him. All the warm languid feelings she had when they kissed returned in full force. She couldn't imagine she could be happier than she felt at that moment. How Onyx Carmichael could ever be loved was beyond her. And yet he did and it was so strong, it was practically palpable. Maybe the reason she had never experienced love from anyone but her brother and nieces, was so she would have room in her heart for Declan’s overwhelming love. Even filling every nook and crevice of her heart, she could not hold it all and she wondered if her heart would explode from being so packed.
His hand weaved through her hair and her sex clenched as his long fingers fisted against her scalp. A breathy moan passed between her lips into his mouth, making him chuckle softly. Her back arched and her breasts tingled as her nipples hardened against the lace of her bra.
The hand on his knee trailed softly upward. Suddenly, he pulled back, grabbing her wayward hand with a glance towards his parents. "Stop that," he groused in a lust-husky voice. "Between my parents and your period, I'm going to be left with a pair of blue balls the size of Montana."
"That will make it hard to walk," she teased. Nyxie licked her lips. "I bet I can figure out a way to help you."
He groaned as if she had just told him he had to eat a food he hated. "How am I supposed to save up my swimmers to knock you up if you are just going to tempt me like that?"
"We're going to abstain until I ovulate?"
He laughed at her plaintive tone. "This is one of those times when I can't delay gratification," he said.
Chapter 43
Nyxie turned off the ignition and let her hands drop to her lap with a sigh. She twisted in her seat to face him in the dim light of their garage.
"Feels good to be home, doesn't it?" Declan asked.
"Yeah. I thought a vacation was supposed to be relaxing."
He released his seatbelt with a slight chuckle. "We have a couple of days to ourselves before the kids get back. I say we spend most of it in bed."
Nyxie looked a bit horrified, making him laugh again. "How long does your period usually last?"
"About four days."
"So tomorrow should be the last day? That's perfect. We can go to bed early, sleep late in the morning and maybe take a nap tomorrow. Then if it's over, we can have a day where we play before I start my fellowship."
Declan pulled the door handle, carefully pushed out his door so he wouldn’t hit the BMW parked next to it, and climbed out of the Jeep just as Sonia opened the door from the mud room. Nyxie waved as she waited for Declan to come around to her side to let her out. He still insisted.
"Thank you, dear," she said as he held her hand as she exited the vehicle.
"My gosh! What happened?" Sonia asked, seeing the bandages and metal eyepatch on Declan's face.
"Nyxie thought I was looking at a waitress's butt and she clouted me one," he joked and waited for Sonia's reaction.
"Oh, okay as long as you deserved it," she replied, not believing his tale for a second.
"Actually, I got hit by a falling rock while rock climbing."
"I kicked it loose," Nyxie said glumly.
"Oh! I bet you feel terrible," Sonia said to Nyxie, shifting her sympathy.
"Yeah. Who wants to spend the night in a hospital on your honeymoon?"
"Are the kids coming in on the other side? I just shampooed by the breakfast bar. The carpet’s still damp."
"My parents flew up. They're taking the kids to the Grand Canyon before coming home." Declan closed the car door and stepped to the back of the Jeep to get the luggage.
"I can get those for you," Sonia said. "You go on in."
"I've got them. You may work for me, but I’m still the man," Declan said, hefting two rolling cases out of the back and shutting the hatch. "As a matter of fact, why don't you take a few paid days off. The kids should be home Tuesday and I know you’ve had a lot of work cleaning up the construction debris."
“The crew cleaned up the big stuff, so it was just a bit of vacuuming and dusting.”
"I actually forgot about the doors," Nyxie said. "How do they look? Did they do a good job?"
Sonia beamed happily. "Come in and see. I think you’ll be pleased. It’s been really nice to be able to move from one side to the other without going outside."
Nyxie pressed the button to close the garage door as she passed, and followed Sonia into the mud room where a pocket door had been installed to connect the two sides of their home. Without bending over, she slipped off her shoes, haphazardly kicked them into the corner of the space so no one would trip on them, and followed Sonia through the open kitchen into the main room. The living rooms were now connected by an eight-foot-wide opening. On Declan’s side—she needed to stop thinking of it as his side and her side—two five-foot-wide barn doors flanked the opening and hung on rails to easily slide in front of the opening for privacy. The doors were made of solid weathered wood and added a warm charm that his house had lacked.
"The house looks huge now," Nyxie noted. With the doors opened, the space was airy and flowed seamlessly.
"Looks awesome," Declan said, setting the luggage down. "Even a one-eyed man can see your brother-in-law did nice work. Thank him for me."
"I'll tell him. I guess if you don't need anything else, I'll be on my way."
"Thanks, Sonia."
"Oh! I almost forgot. Last week your mom dropped off some pictures. I put them in your inbox in your office with your mail." Sonia picked up her bright pink purse off the breakfast bar and put the strap over her shoulder. "Call me if you need anything."
Because Sonia’s car was parked in front of the house, Nyxie walked the housekeeper to the front door and locked the deadbolt behind her. When she turned around, Declan was gone, luggage and all.
"Declan?"
"Sit down on the sofa and close your eyes. I've got a surprise for you," he called down the stairs.
She didn't have to wait long for him to join her on the sofa. He sat down so close that the cushions lowered on one side of her, drawing her against his side.
"Okay, open your eyes."
Nyxie's eyelids slowly lifted to find him holding a stack of envelopes, the one on top had a clear plastic window revealing a school photo of Reina.
"Oh, my God. Where….? How…?"
"You left your camera running the day you went to Chimera Flats. I heard you ask the secretary about Cody's pictures. I asked my mom if she could get them for you. Mom likes it when I give her little projects. I think she's bored silly being retired."
"Thank you." Nyxie gave him a quick kiss before turning her undivided attention to the portraits. "Oh…"
The first one was Reina's first grade portrait. The head shots were taken just a few months after the girls had come to live with her and Nyxie could see the frightened little girl who still felt out of place. It was amazing how much she had grown in one year, both in looks and demeanor.
&nbs
p; She set the envelope aside without opening it, knowing that all the pictures were the same. Beneath it, she revealed an identical envelope containing Lotus's fourth grade portrait. Nyxie marveled over how pretty the girl was and how much she resembled Melinda at that age. An aah escaped her lips as memories of getting the girls ready for picture day appeared in her mind.
When she had looked her fill, she set the packet on top of Reina's to reveal Cody's sixth-grade picture. Nyxie became unnaturally still as a flood of emotions sent tears to her eyes. He had changed so much since his accident, it was almost difficult to look at him the way he was before and to know a reckless teenager had changed the course of her brother’s life forever.
"Are you okay?" Declan asked, seeing her reaction. He put his arm over her shoulder and gave her a side hug as he examined what Cody used to look like. The boy appeared so normal, no slackness in one side of his face, no scar slashing through his hair. He was strong and healthy, like most boys that age. Cody wore a wide grin that looked natural and exuded happiness.
Nyxie blew a deep breath through her mouth as she shook one hand in the air as if she could somehow stave off her reaction by doing so. "Yeah, it's just hard to see him finally happy and to know it was really short-lived."
"Finally happy?"
"You know, after Daddy died.”
Declan nodded his head in understanding. "Look how far he's come since his accident. He's not finished healing yet. Give him time and I bet the time will come when he is 95% back to the way he was."
"I hope so."
Nyxie's head cocked to one side as she realized his sixth-grade picture was not the last one. She set it aside and found Cody's fifth grade portrait underneath. It took her several minutes to file through several years of photographs. He may have been smiling in the photos of his younger grades, but the happiness was not reflected in his eyes. She laughed and giggled at Cody's various looks and oohed when she saw his snaggletooth portrait in the first grade.
"The tooth fairy never came to our house. I hated to tell him there was no such thing."
The Love He Craves (The Love She Craves: Selling Her Soul to Declan Book 2) Page 39
