I couldn’t find the words so I only nodded my head in agreement. Being with Hayes…it didn’t matter what we did, I always loved it. But sex with him was mind-blowing. I’d never known it could be like this and how having a true connection could make it even better.
He lifted me off of him, groaning from the loss of contact, and removed the condom. He tied it off and tossed it into a nearby trashcan.
Rolling over, his eyes slid over my body and then his fingers followed the same trail.
“I want you again already.”
“Mmm,” I hummed, “I’d like that.”
“You’re not too sore?” He asked, concern coloring his tone.
I reached out, rubbing my fingers over his strong jaw. “No.”
“Thank God.” He rolled on top of me and kissed me deeply. “And this time,” he ducked his head, ghosting his lips against my ear, “it’s going to be slow. The exact definition of what making love should be.”
My body tightened at the promise in his voice as he reached over and grabbed another condom from the drawer.
He put it on and rocked his hips leisurely against mine before sliding in completely.
He held still once he was all the way inside and gathered his breath.
And then he did as he promised and made love to me again and again and again until we both passed out from exhaustion.
I WOKE UP with Hayes between my legs and I decided then and there that I never wanted to wake up any other way ever again.
I didn’t know how after last night he’d possibly have the energy for another round, but the man was insatiable.
My muscles were sore, but in the best way possible, and I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face if I tried.
“I’m going to go make breakfast.” Hayes said as he stepped out of the bathroom, drying his hair with a towel.
He’d asked me to join him in the shower, but I’d been too tired and ended up falling back to sleep. Besides, I knew if I’d taken him up on the offer showering would have been the last thing we were doing.
“Mmm,” I hummed in response.
He chuckled. “Any special requests?”
“Mmm.”
“Can you form any coherent words this morning?”
“No.” I smiled at him.
He grabbed a pair of sweatpants from a drawer and let the towel around his waist drop to the floor before slipping them on. He remained shirtless and I took the opportunity to let my eyes feast on his sculpted chest and the intricate tattoo adorning the top of his left arm. It was beautiful with bright swirls of colors creating the image of an octopus, mermaid, a turtle, and fish on the blue ocean back drop.
“Like what you see?” He grinned at having caught me gawking at me.
I nodded, wrapping my arm around the pillow. It smelled like him and I was once again reminded at how crazy it was that I was here with him. I’d thought if I gave him a chance I’d be just another girl that the playful rock star took for a ride, but I’d been wrong. I was glad that he’d been so persistent and hadn’t given up on me when I kept pushing him away. Most guys would have. Not Hayes, though. He was one of a kind, and for some reason he loved me.
“I love what I see.” I finally replied.
His smile widened and he took me in where I lay in the middle of his bed, wrapped in his sheets.
“And I love what I see.” Tossing the wet towels into a hamper, he said, “I was going to make egg sandwiches, does Mia eat those?”
I nodded. “She’s not super picky like most kids. What time is it?” I asked, glancing around for a clock.
“A little after six,” he replied.
I yawned. “I feel like I didn’t sleep at all.”
“Well, that’s because you kind of didn’t.” He winked.
I sat up, holding the sheet to cover my chest. “I’m going to shower really quick before Mia gets up.”
“If she gets up early I’ll tend to her,” he assured me. “Don’t feel rushed.”
I rubbed at my sleepy eyes. “You’re too good to me.”
“Only because I love you.” With a small, almost shy smile he disappeared from the room.
I knew this whole thing was probably as strange and exhilarating for him as it was for me. But while I’d been in love before—because I had loved Todd before things went to shit—Hayes never had been.
I saw my suitcase sitting on the bench in front of the bed and I scurried out of the bed and grabbed some clean clothes and my shower things Hayes had so thoughtfully packed.
Now that it was morning, and Hayes wasn’t around to distract me, I could finally admire his bedroom.
It was done in mostly gold and brown, with dark wood furniture. The walls were painted in two colors of gold, forming horizontal stripes around the large room.
His furniture was massive, but the room was so large that it actually made the furniture seem normal-sized. To my right was the bathroom, and even from here I could tell it was ginormous, and to my left was a sitting area complete with a couch, two chairs, and a TV over a fireplace. In the sitting area there was a counter with a sink, mini-fridge, and a coffee maker. You would never have to leave this room if you didn’t want to.
Clutching my clothes I stepped into his bathroom.
The gold and brown glass tiles glimmered from the chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The counter boasted two sinks and was so long that if two people were getting ready there would be no chance of them bumping into each other.
A large soaker tub sat in front of a window overlooking the backyard—where I could see a covered pool, pergola, and a small pool house.
I always knew there were people who lived in spectacular homes like this one, I just never expected to meet one, let alone date one.
I turned away from the bathtub and stared open-mouthed at the shower.
Although, calling it a shower hardly seemed to do it justice.
You could probably fit ten people in this ‘shower’. There were several sprayers in the walls and a showerhead hanging from the top. I thought I’d remembered hearing this kind called a rain shower.
The shower was closed off from the rest of the bathroom by an open piece of glass.
I set my clean clothes on the counter and stripped down, fiddling with all the showerheads until I got it right.
I stood underneath the water and let it uncoil my stiff and sore muscles.
Once I was showered I dressed and brushed my hair and teeth. Since my hair was still damp I pulled it back in a messy bun so that the strands didn’t drip and make my shirt wet.
When I left his room I went to check on Mia and found that she was just waking up. She was slightly disoriented with waking up in a strange place, so I was happy I was there to calm her down.
After some coaxing I managed to get her out of bed and dressed before we headed downstairs.
In the kitchen Hayes was finishing up and slid the third egg sandwich onto a plate.
“There’s my girls!” He crowed. “Did you sleep good, Ms. Mia?” He asked her, tweaking her nose before lifting her into his arms.
She nodded. “I felt wike a princess. Dat bed was huuuuge.” She held her arms out as wide as she could.
He tickled her stomach and picked up a plate. “Wanna carry those into the dining room for me?”
“Of course.” I gathered the other plates and followed him.
Mia was telling him all about her dream—it involved a unicorn and a prince—when I went back to the kitchen to grab glasses and a bottle of orange juice.
By the time I returned Mia still hadn’t finished her tale, but Hayes listened with rapt attention, hanging on to every word she said like it was the most important thing he’d ever heard.
I loved that he didn’t ignore her and try to brush her aside. Most guys dismissed kids, even their own.
Mia sat at the head of the table, which left Hayes and I across from each other.
I poured each of us a glass of orange juice and slid his across the table. H
e smiled at me before fixing his attention on Mia once more—she’d now launched into a story about preschool.
I marveled at how right it felt to be sitting here the three of us.
In a short time, we truly had become our own little family, and that thought brought tears to my eyes.
“Arden?” Hayes prompted, his brows wrinkling together in concern. “Are you okay?”
I nodded. “Yeah,” I rushed to assure him, dotting my wet eyes with a napkin. “Everything is perfect.”
And for now it was.
“WHY THE HELL did you not tell me you were staying with Hayes?” Sadie asked the moment I entered through the back of the store.
I sighed and set my purse down on a small chair and removed my coat.
She stood, blocking the entrance into the main store and crossed her arms over her chest, tapping her foot impatiently.
I’d had the last four days off for a short Thanksgiving break and all of that time had been spent at Hayes’ house watching movies—although, we did go into the city one day to get out, and Mia had loved strolling the streets of D.C. But in that time, I hadn’t bothered to inform my friend that I was staying with Hayes. I knew she’d be excited, but also curious as to why I was staying with him. She knew I was a sheltered person and that there would have to be a reason for me to be there.
“Who told you?” I hung my coat up on the rack.
“Emma—Hayes told the guys, so naturally Maddox told her, because those two tell each other everything. I’m pretty sure if he farts he sends her a text to let her know.”
I snorted.
“It’s true,” Sadie demanded, “anyway, why didn’t you tell me?”
“It didn’t seem important,” I shrugged innocently.
“Not important?!” Her voice spiked with impatience. “Of course it’s important. And I know you, Arden, so tell me what happened. Why are you staying with him? Did a pipe burst or something?”
I was a terrible liar, but she gave me the perfect opening. “Hot water heater burst, and they can’t fix it until the end of the week.”
Maybe it was silly, but I felt like by telling her about Todd showing up I was only giving him more power to hurt me. I wanted to pretend his threat didn’t exist, and the less people that knew he was back the easier it would be.
“Aw, that’s awful,” she frowned, “but at least Hayes is taking care of you.”
“Mhmm,” I nodded.
She narrowed her eyes on me. “What are you not telling me?”
“Nothing,” I breezed past her, into the main store.
She followed, and unfortunately the store was empty so I couldn’t use a customer as a buffer.
“You are such a liar, Arden.”
I busied myself by straightening the display on the checkout counter.
“I’m no such thing,” I said, refusing to meet her eyes.
She rolled her tongue around her mouth and waved a finger at me. “I’m going to find out what’s really going on. You can’t keep any secrets from me.” Straightening, she grabbed her purse from where she’d stashed it behind the counter. “Luckily for you, I have a dentist appointment, so I can’t bug the shit out of you at the moment.”
“Bye, Sadie.” I laughed at my crazy friend.
“I was a detective in another life,” she said, easing towards the back, “so don’t dismiss my sleuthing skills. I’m watching you.” She pointed at her eyes and then me. Letting the façade drop, she added with a smile, “And we need a girl day sometime. With Emma and Remy too.”
“Sure thing,” I saluted her, “now go before you’re late for your appointment.”
“See ya!” She called over her shoulder.
She hadn’t been gone more than two minutes when my phone vibrated in my pocket. I didn’t receive many phone calls so I immediately grabbed it, afraid that something had happened to Mia with the sitter.
The caller ID flashed MOM though.
“Hey,” I answered, “I’m at work, can I call you back?”
“This’ll only take a minute…okay, more like five. But it’s important.” Her rapid sentences and overall distressed tone of voice immediately had me on edge.
“What is it?” I asked, watching the front of the store for any possible customers so I could hang up quickly if I needed to.
“Todd showed up.”
“At your house?” I leaned against the wall for support.
“Yes,” she replied, her tone as shocked as mine, “he started asking all of these questions and—”
“Whoa, whoa,” I halted her, “what kind of questions?”
“Mostly about you, and Mia, of course. He wanted to know if Mia was in school,” I scoffed at this, the idiot didn’t even realize she wasn’t old enough to be in school, “and he asked for some pictures.”
“Please tell me you didn’t tell him anything.”
“Of course not.” She seemed appalled that I’d think such a thing.
I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling a headache coming on.
Clearly, trying to pretend the Todd problem was going to go away was not working in my favor.
“Has he talked to you?” She questioned.
“Yes,” I admitted reluctantly. “It wasn’t a very pleasant conversation.”
“I didn’t think it would be…Arden,” she started, “this has me worried.”
“I know,” I sighed, fighting the urge to breakdown, “it’s worrying me too.”
My parents, at the time, hadn’t known how bad I’d had it with Todd. Around them he’d always been a perfect gentleman, kind, and carrying. I recalled my dad once telling him that he couldn’t have picked a better man for me to marry. But once Todd disappeared I had to explain everything to them so they’d understand. My mom had cried for a weak straight and my father swore if he ever saw Todd again he’d kill him with his bare hands, chop up his body, and feed it to the bears.
“Just…be safe, sweetie. Okay?”
“I will.” I assured her.
“Your father and I still want to meet Hayes,” she said. “Could you come over for dinner Friday evening?”
“Friday…” I mulled over my schedule. “I’m free. I just have to talk to Hayes.”
“Excellent!” She chimed. “Well, that was all. I’ll talk to you soon. Love you!”
“Love you too,” I said, but she’d already hung up.
Hayes picked me up from work since my car was still at home.
“How was your day?” He asked, leaning over to kiss me.
“Todd showed up at my parent’s house,” I admitted.
He cursed, tightening his hands around the steering wheel as he pulled away from the store and headed in the direction of Mia’s sitter’s house.
“That guy…” He hissed. “He’s asking for it.”
“I don’t know what to do,” I whispered. “I’m scared.”
It was the first time I’d said those two words out loud, but they were true.
The fear that had cloaked me like a blanket while I was married to him had disappeared once he was gone, but now it was back and even heavier, like a weight around my ankle dragging me down.
Hayes reached for my hand and kissed the tops of my fingers as he drove. “Everything will be fine. I’ll never let that asshole touch you.”
Tears pricked my eyes. “Isn’t this too much for you? I mean, we’ve only been dating a month and now my ex is back and wants Mia…or at least that’s what he’s saying. Who knows what he really wants.” I laughed, but there was no humor in the sound. “You didn’t sign up this. I’m nothing but a burden.”
He glared over at me. “You’re right. I didn’t sign up for this.”
I gasped and started to pull my hand away, but he only tightened his hold.
“You know what I did do? I met this crazy, beautiful girl this past summer, with an equally amazing daughter, and she wound her way into my heart where I fell irrevocably in love with her. I didn’t ask to fall in love with you, but I did,
and I don’t fucking regret it. And correct me if I’m wrong, but when you love someone you’re supposed to fight your battles together. That’s what I’m doing Arden. I’m fighting with you.” He pulled off the road and stared into my eyes, trying to sear each and every word into the recesses of my mind. His fingers delved into the hair and the base of my neck and he pulled me forward, pressing his forehead to mine. “You will never, not ever be a burden to me. And yes, this is still a new relationship for the both of us but when something’s right it just is. Let it be and stop questioning every little thing. I’m here and I love you and I’m not going anywhere.” He pressed his lips against my forehead tenderly. “I’ve waited a long time to give my heart to someone, and at times I never thought I would, but it’s yours Arden, and I never want it back.”
My lower lip trembled with the threat of tears.
“Aw, fuck, Arden. I didn’t mean to make you cry. I’m sorry.”
“No, no,” I waved away his concern, “I don’t even know why I’m crying…it’s just…that’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard.” Shaking my head I wiped at the silly tears streaking my face. “How did I get so lucky?”
He grinned, brushing a piece of hair away from my forehead. “Nah, I’m the lucky one. Before you I didn’t know what I was missing, and now that I know how much better my life is with you in it I can’t go back. I won’t go back.” Clearing his throat, he added, “From now on we fight our battles together. Got it?”
I let out a small laugh as he pulled back onto the road. “You know, for someone that’s never been in a relationship before you’re awfully good at this.”
He flashed me a cheeky smile and winked. “I’m good at everything.”
I rolled my eyes, laughing fully at his comment. I loved Hayes at all times, but I especially loved him when he was being his silly, cocky self.
A few minutes went by as he drove to the sitter’s house and finally I broke the quiet by asking, “So, my mom wanted to know if we could have dinner with them Friday night?”
His lips twisted together in thought. “Yeah, that should work…your dad’s not going to whip out a massive gun collection and show me a bunch of mounted animal heads before telling me my head will be mounted next if I hurt you, is he?”
Take A Chance Page 19
