by Lacey Black
“I’m not marrying her because there’s only one woman I want to spend the rest of my life with, and it sure as fuck isn’t her. I want to marry you, Dani. I want to wake up next to you, fall sleep with my arms wrapped around you, spend every waking moment with our son, and maybe even give him a few brothers and sisters. I want a life, and I want it with you.”
“You’re not marrying her?” I whisper, afraid that the words he’s saying will somehow disappear or I’ll suddenly wake up from whatever dream I’m having.
“No, Dani. I’m not marrying her.”
Sobs erupt from deep in my throat as my vision blurs from the tears yet to escape. Reid reaches up again and strokes my cheek, wiping away the seeping tears. “I don’t know the exact moment my life changed, but I know it was for the better. I was nothing but an asshole, money hungry and desperate to dominate everything and anyone I could. I don’t want to be that man anymore, Dani. I want to be the man you need and one you can be proud to call your own. I want to be everything you need because you are everything I need. You and Ryan are everything to me. I don’t deserve you, but I’ll be damn sure I prove myself worthy every day that you give me.”
I stare up at him for several tense moments, while my heart tries to explode from my chest. I’m sure he’s waiting on me to say something, but for some strange reason, I can’t form a single sentence. I want to say so much, but have no clue how to begin.
“Please say something, sweetheart.” His words give me just the jolt I need.
“I love you, too,” I whisper. It seems like the only thing to say in this moment as I stand before the man I’m crazy in love with as he professes his love to me, saying everything he can to prove it. And finding out he found a way to break that contract sure is the best way to prove it.
A small smile spreads across his devastatingly handsome face. “Say it again,” he orders.
“I love you, too,” I say a little louder this time.
“I will never get tired of hearing you say that,” he mumbles moments before claiming my lips with his own. It’s the sort of kiss that curls your toes and soaks your panties. It professes love and commitment, and even dirty things to come.
“I can’t promise I won’t mess up a time or two, but I promise that I will always do everything in my power to make it right and to be the man you deserve.” Reid claims my lips once more in another searing kiss.
“You did an amazing thing for Ryan today,” I tell him, pulling back from the kiss.
“I’m sorry I missed most of the party. I’m even more sorry that I had a reason to miss it.”
“It’s okay, Reid. I understand why you did what you did–all of it. I may not agree with it, but I get it.”
“I’m a different man, babe.”
“No, you’re not. You’re the same man I met in the desert almost nine years ago. You just kept him buried deep down and refused to let him out.”
“But I couldn’t hide him from you.”
“I knew there was more to you than the facet you showed the world.” Reid gives me another of those panty-melting kisses that steals my breath and makes me forget my own name. He’s so damn good at that.
“Babe?” he asks, pulling back ever so slightly without breaking much contact.
“Yeah?”
“This suit was built for a smaller man,” he says with a smile against my lips.
“Smaller man?” I’m sure my face shows my confusion.
“Down below,” he adds with a laugh.
Dropping my eyes down, I take in the very tight plastic suit stretched tautly over Reid’s impressive bulge. The sight makes me laugh. It looks like his dick is being strangled by a big, black condom. “I’m pretty sure that wasn’t included in the original Batman costume. Why are you still wearing that thing?” I ask through my laughter.
“Uh, because my clothes are still in the back of the Town Car that left about thirty minutes ago.”
“So you need to borrow clothes?” I ask, unable to control my laughter.
“If you thought an adult men’s black vinyl Batman suit was hot, you should see me in a pair of woman’s yoga pants,” he says with a wiggle of his eyebrows.
“Or we could just forget the clothes altogether,” I suggest, running my hands down the chest of his suit.
Instantly Reid’s eyes heat up. “Even better. Let’s go with your idea,” he says with a wicked grin.
And before I realize what’s happening, Reid picks me up and hoists me over his shoulder like I weigh nothing. “Reid! What are you doing?” I exclaim.
“Taking Batgirl to the Batcave so Batman can ravish her body from head to toe,” Reid says moments before he slaps my ass hard enough to sting. And because I’m staring at his delectable ass as well, I give him a playful swat on his rear in return. “I have big plans for us tonight,” he adds as he walks straight into my bedroom.
Big plans that involve a lot less vinyl.
Chapter Twenty-Six – Reclaiming What’s Mine
Reid
Waking up next to Dani is heaven. Her soft skin caresses me from my shoulder all the way to her blue polished toes. Fucking heaven on earth. I can feel the heat from her core against my leg, and it makes me harder than granite. Best way to wake up. Period.
Waking up with a pair of gray eyes that belong to your kid staring at you…not so much.
“Hey, buddy! What are you doing up so early?” I ask casually, trying not to rouse Dani from sleep. Besides the fact that I kept her up pretty late with our mattress aerobics so she could use a little extra sleep, but I’m also afraid that she’ll jostle the sheet and expose her mouthwatering tits to our son. They’re barely covered up by the sheet as it is.
“I’m hungry,” Ryan says with a sleepy smile.
“Okay. How about you and I make breakfast for your mom.”
“Remember what happened last time?” Ryan asks with a huge smile.
“True. How about we start the coffee and run down the street and get bagels?”
“Probably a better idea,” he says with one of those smiles that you can’t help but reciprocate.
“Go get dressed and brush your teeth, and I’ll meet you in the kitchen in a few minutes,” I instruct.
“Okay!” he yells while running out the door without shutting it.
“It’s only six,” Dani mumbles next to me.
“I know, and apparently, Ryan is hungry. We’re going to go grab breakfast and be back. Get a little more sleep,” I say before placing a kiss on her forehead.
“What exactly are you going to wear? Your Batman costume?”
“No, Steven dropped off a car last night and included a change of clothes for me. He put a bag by the back door.”
“Do you want me to go get them?” she asks without opening her eyes.
“No, I’ll slip on a towel and get them.”
“You’re going to make my eighty-year-old neighbor very happy if she sees a hot young man streaking by her kitchen window.”
“Then I better keep the towel on, huh,” I say just before giving her another kiss, this time on her lips.
“Don’t forget the blueberry cream cheese,” she mumbles as I slip out the bedroom door, my laughter the only response I give.
“Ready, Dad?” Ryan asks after I retrieve my bag, throw on a fresh set of clothes, and brush my teeth and hair.
“Yep. Let’s go, buddy.”
Ryan talks the entire ride to the small corner deli and bakery four blocks away. We’ve discussed everything about his birthday yesterday, from the cookout to the swimming, and especially the presents. And when I say we discussed it, I mean I listened intently as Ryan filled me in on everything starting the moment he woke up that morning.
On our ride home with a bag of fresh, delicious smelling bagels with a variety of cream cheese, I steer the conversation back towards the birthday that I missed. “Hey, buddy, you know I didn’t want to miss your party, right? Sometimes adults have things that come up and they can’t get out of the
m. I wanted to be there in person so that I could give you my present,” I say.
“You got me a present? What is it?” he asks. Of course he would focus on the gift aspect of the conversation.
“You’ll have to wait until later today to get it, okay? I thought maybe you, your mom, and I could go for a ride later. That okay?”
“Yep!”
I have one more thing I want to discuss with him, but this one is proving to be a little more difficult subject to broach. I’m running out of time, though, since we’re almost back to Dani’s house. “Hey, Ryan. Can I ask you something?”
“Sure.”
“This morning, when you woke up, I was in your mom’s bed,” I start, not really knowing how to start this.
“I know,” he says casually with a shrug of his shoulders.
“Are you okay with that?” I know he isn’t going to get the full meaning of the statement, and I sure as hell am not going to tell him, but it seems important to make sure he’s okay with finding me in his mom’s bed. I’m sure if Dani was fully awake, she would have been just as concerned as I am.
“Yeah. I mean, you’re my dad and she’s my mom. Aren’t you supposed to sleep in the same bed? All of my friends’ moms and dads sleep in the same bed. Brenden told me that one time his mom was sitting on top of his dad in bed and -”
“Okay, I’m glad you’re alright with our sleeping arrangement,” I interrupt. I’m pretty sure I know exactly where that story was headed, and it’s not something I want to hear my kid share. I also make a mental note to ensure the door is thoroughly locked every time I consider getting naked with Dani. In fact, I think I need to install a second lock.
“So, when are we going to get my present?” Ryan asks as I pull into the driveway, breaking my train of thought away from the idea of our son busting us getting busy in the bedroom.
“Soon, buddy. Soon.”
* * *
“Do I want to know what you got him? I mean is there a reason we had to come to your place and then trek to the back of your property?” Dani asks as we walk past my in-ground pool, past the pool house, and towards the acres of flat, manicured grassy area that surrounds my pond.
“There is a reason, yes.” As we reach the pond, a dog barks, drawing Ryan’s attention.
Steven is standing by the pond, holding the leash of a rescued Labrador that I purchased from a shelter Carly helped me find online. “Dad! There’s a dog back here,” Ryan exclaims moments before taking off and running towards the animal.
“You didn’t,” Dani whispers, shock and maybe a little anger evident in her voice.
“Uh, I might have,” I reply with a sheepish grin.
“A dog? You got him a dog? After I told you no?”
“In my defense, you told me no before we really discussed it.”
“We didn’t discuss it, Reid,” she says.
“True, but in my experience, it is easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission. So, this is me asking for forgiveness in purchasing a gift for our son that he really, really wanted. I’ve discovered in the past few weeks that I’m unable to tell him no.”
“Oh, he’s well aware of that fact and is using it to his advantage.”
“If it helps, Sam is housebroken and has been through all of his obedience training. His previous owner kept him up on shots and whatnot, and he’s fixed. There will be no baby Sam puppies popping up in the neighborhood following his wild nights of humping.”
“How old is he?” she asks, the anger completely void from her voice.
“He’s almost a year old. The owners had to move to a heavily populated part of town and he wasn’t able to get the exercise he needed. When I stopped by the shelter–just to look–he had only been there about two hours. I knew as soon as I saw him that I wanted him. For Ryan.”
“Where are you putting this dog?” she says as we start to walk over towards where Steven and Ryan are playing with Sam.
“Here at my house,” I tell her. “And I’m hoping that Ryan will come over all the time and help take care of him. A dog is a great way to teach responsibility, Dani. It’s a valuable lesson that he can’t learn just anywhere,” I add. I’m pulling out all the stops right now, including throwing in one of those charming smiles that melts her annoyance away and helps drop those panties.
“Okay,” she says defeated.
“But that’s just temporary,” I say, crouching down and grabbing the ball that Ryan just tossed for Sam.
“What’s temporary?” she asks.
“Ryan visiting to take care of his dog. That’s the temporary arrangement until you’re ready to make this his permanent residence,” I add confidently. I’d call a moving company and move them in today if I thought she would go for it.
“Permanent?” she asks, her voice just barely over a whisper.
“Yeah. When the time is right for you and Ryan, I want you both to move in here. With me.”
I can practically see the wheels turning inside that beautiful head of hers. She’s considering what I said and dissecting it from every angle imaginable. It’s one of the many things I love about her. She doesn’t just jump in with both feet like so many. She looks at every aspect of whatever it is she’s considering.
“You want us to move in with you?”
“When you’re ready, Dani. I won’t pressure you, but I want you here. Both of you. I want forever, and I want it with you.” I reach for her, and pull her perfection into my arms. She links her slender arms behind my back and rests her cheek against my chest. I can’t help it, and I take a whiff of her hair. Yep, I turned into that fucking doe-eyed, sappy guy, and I don’t care.
“I kinda want that, too,” she says against my chest. Her words vibrate through my entire being. I feel peaceful.
“Good, because I’m not letting you slip through my fingers again,” I say honestly before claiming her lips with a kiss.
“Dad! Steven says the dog’s name is Sam. Can he sleep in my room?” Ryan asks as he tosses a stick towards where Steven is standing.
“He sure can, Ry. Every day you’re here, you’ll have to feed him and provide him with fresh water, take him for walks and play with him, and even help brush him. And if he wants to, he can sleep on the floor by your bed,” I tell Ryan.
“Yay! Sam, you want to sleep in my room, buddy?” he asks as Sam jumps on him and knocks him down. Dani and I both laugh as the playful pup starts to lick his face relentlessly.
“I think you did good,” she says as she wraps her arms around my midsection.
“As long as I have you two with me, I can’t go wrong,” I say before twisting in her arms.
Sliding my hands across her cheeks, I bend down and graze my lips across hers once more. I could kiss this woman every day, and if I have anything to say about it, I will make sure that I do.
Love isn’t just a feeling, but an action. It’s in the way I touch and hold her in my arms, and talk to her with words that reflect my affection. I’ve never wanted love; I ran from it my entire life. But with Dani, I didn’t have a choice. Love is inevitable; like the sun rising in the East every morning. It’s in my heart and burrowed into my soul. It’s forever.
Life without love isn’t a life at all.
It’s a prison sentence. Slow and painful.
In this moment, with my arms wrapped around the woman I love more than my own life, while we watch our son play with his new dog, I know that my life has only just begun. My love for her is infinite, and the love she gives back so effortless and abundant. Her love is pure, and it’s all mine.
That’s my greatest profit.
Epilogue – My Fairytale Ending
Dani
2 months later
The Vegas sun is definitely brutal. The entire month of July was hot enough to fry an egg on any outdoor flat surface, and it’s proving to be just as scorching as we roll into August. Since school released, we’ve spent a bit of time in the pool. Okay, so we’ve basically camped out in the pool f
or the past thirty days. And not in my own pool either. No, Ryan and I have spent as much time as possible with Reid at his house.
Today, we are heading over to Carly and Blake’s house to celebrate Natalia’s second birthday. I’ve gotten to know Carly quite a bit over the past couple of months, and she has quickly become a close friend. She’s well organized and as much of a detail-oriented person as Reid is, and she definitely keeps him structured and orderly. Plus, she loves to tease him about the whole Batman costume, so she wins mega points for that alone.
Ryan is already out of the car and heading around to the backyard before Reid gets his car in park. Ryan has proven himself a father hen where Nat is concerned. Every time he takes her by her little hand and leads her towards the swing set to play, my heart melts a little bit more. He’s going to make a great big brother.
And that thought brings me right back to my surprise for Reid later tonight. He has been talking a lot in the last few weeks about adding to our family. Since Ryan is already eight, we’re both eager to give him a little brother or sister. I’ve been putting him off, not really commenting when he brings it up. It’s not because I’m not ready or not excited to grow our little family, but because I’m anxious to do it right this time around. And my decision to have more kids with Reid falls into my planned surprise for later.
“I see he didn’t even wait for us,” Reid says, pulling my attention from my thoughts.
“He usually doesn’t. And did you notice that he grabbed her present? He wants to be the one carrying it up so she knows who brought the gift.”
“Smart man. Already workin’ to impress the ladies,” Reid says with a laugh as we get out of the car.
“Yeah, just like his father. Always thinking of a way to sway the female population.” The smile on my face is contagious. I’ve had it plastered there since the night Reid told me about getting out of the contract to acquire Bravado Resorts, and subsequently the woman he was contracted to marry. That’s also the night he told me he loved me. He’s held up his promise and told me every chance he’s gotten since that night as well. There’s nothing better than hearing the one you love profess their love to you.
