****
“Friday, no exceptions.”
“I’m not the one who made the exception tonight.” Gwen poked him in the chest. “That was you.” She turned back around and crunched down the edges of foil covering the baking dish on her counter.
“You know darn well I had no choice.” He took a step closer, pressing his chest against her back. He gripped the counter on each side of her body and leaned in to nip at her neck. Knowing they had someplace to be made it easier to touch her, kiss her. There wasn’t time for it to get out of hand. If they were late there would be hell to pay.
Gwen tipped her head to the side, giving him easier access. He pushed tighter against her. “You smell so good.”
One of her hands tangled in his hair and the other gripped his thigh. A soft moan escaped her lips as she pushed her bottom into his groin. “You feel so good.”
He slid one hand across her stomach. The hem of her shirt caught on his thumb. His fingers met the smooth skin of her belly. She sucked in a breath as his hand traveled father, gliding across her ribcage.
They had ten minutes before they had to leave for Heath and Gabbi’s. He decided to make the most of them.
He leaned into her ear. “Can I touch you?”
“I really wish you would.” She swayed her hips, rubbing against his straining dick. It would have to wait until Friday. There was no way he would consider bedding Gwen until he’d at least properly taken her out.
However, he was more than willing to give her something to think about during the week.
He slid his hand softly over her breast. The thin, unlined cup of her bra hid nothing. He gently pinched her already puckered nipple through the soft fabric, smiling as she gasped his name. Hooking his index finger under the edge, he flipped the cup under the swell of her breast. He did the same with the other side.
He caught her other nipple between his fingers, gently kneading until it was a tight nub. He imagined how it would feel sucked deep into his mouth as she writhed under him.
Friday.
He nipped at her ear and down the tight column of her neck as his other hand slid across her belly, pulling her against him. For a second he savored the feel of her body pressed into his, her breast pushed into his palm, his name on her whispered moans.
He slowly tucked his fingers into the waistband of her shorts. Using his thumb and index finger, he flipped the button, freeing it and allowing him more working room.
He moved lower, down the silky skin of her lower stomach and under the lacy fabric of her panties.
Her skin was hot and swollen, begging to be touched, rubbed, stroked. He was happy to oblige it.
He held her tightly as he slid his fingers into her wet slit. He circled her engorged clit a few times before sinking into her. She sagged against him as he pulled back and returned to her sensitive nub.
Slowly he massaged the hard little bud, supporting her weight with his other arm as that hand kneaded and twisted her taut nipples. He slid his fingers back inside continuing to stroke her with his thumb. He picked up speed as she started to shake, pulling his fingers out and using his soaked digits to rub between the puffy folds.
She bucked against him as her nails dug into the skin of his neck. He sank his fingers deep inside her, wanting to feel her convulse around him. He held her tightly, until she relaxed back against him, her head falling back onto his chest.
“Oh my gosh.” She dropped the hand at his neck to the counter to brace herself.
He kissed the top of her head as he redid the button and zipper of her shorts. “I hate to tell you this, but we have to go.”
“I don’t want to go. I want to stay here.” She turned and wrapped her arms around his neck as she pressed her body against his. “Please?”
“Do you want to make that phone call?”
She huffed at him. “No.” She turned back around and grabbed the foil wrapped dish off the counter. “Let’s get this show on the road then.”
Twenty minutes later they were pulling up in front of Heath and Gabbi’s. Cassondra and Caroline were rolling across the front yard as Heath watched from the porch. When they saw Gwen’s car pull in the driveway, they jumped up and came running.
“Mommy finished making dinner but we couldn’t eat it till you got here.” Cassondra threw her arms around Gwen’s knees. “She said you were prolly late ‘cause you were rolling around so we decided to roll around too.”
Gwen gave Heath a dirty look. “We’re not late.”
Heath threw his hands up. “I didn’t say anything!” He opened the front door. “Come on girls.” He tickled Cassie’s neck as she skipped by. “Trouble maker.” She giggled as she disappeared inside with her sister.
Gwen followed the girls in while Joe hung back.
“How’s things?”
“Haven’t heard anything. They’ve been really quiet.” Heath stepped inside.
“So we’re fine?”
Heath nodded. “I don’t think it was ever anything.”
Joe let out the breath he felt like he’d been holding for weeks. He followed Heath into the kitchen, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders.
“All by yourself?” Gabbi stood beside Gwen with her arms crossed and her eyebrows high on her forehead. Both women were staring at the dish Gwen carried in.
“Yes, all by myself, jerk.” She pulled the foil off. “I can balance the finances of a multi-million dollar company, but you can’t believe I can make cheesecake bars without assistance?”
Gabbi peeked down at the dish. “Those look good Gwennie.”
Gwen rolled her eyes as she tucked the foil back in place and picked up the pan.
“You just never cook. I’m sorry. I was surprised.”
Gwen shoved the cheesecake bars in the fridge. “Just because I don’t doesn’t mean I can’t.”
Gabbi lifted the lid on a bubbling pot of spaghetti sauce and gave it a stir. She gave Joe a once over. “Maybe I was wrong.”
Nineteen
Joe stared out the window at the bright morning that stole his dream before it could even really get started. His eyes burned as his brain tried to kick into gear. He'd struggled to sleep through the almost constant lightening of last night's storms. They finally gave way, just in time for the sun to come up. He needed blinds.
With a frustrated groan, he shoved his tired body up off the bed. He was exhausted. Thank God he didn’t have any work lined up for the day. Gwen told him she was going to be working extra this week and as much as he hated not being able to see her, he needed the time.
Seeing Gwen in his house Saturday just made it clear how very much he’d neglected to do. He wanted her to feel comfortable here and right now that was probably not even close to happening. Luckily he had all day to get as much done as he could.
The first thing on his list was to put up some blinds.
Grabbing a pair of jeans from the closet, he pulled them on. The air inside the house was already starting to get warm so he decided to skip the shirt for now.
Shuffling downstairs, he started a pot of coffee brewing while he collected what he needed on the kitchen table. Ten minutes later he had a hot cup of coffee perched on the windowsill as he measured inside of the frame.
After measuring the windows in his bedroom, the downstairs bathroom and the living room, he sat down at his computer. Three hundred bucks later, custom blinds were set to be delivered in a week.
Gulping down the last bit of coffee in his cup, he went to the kitchen for a refill. Leaning back against the counter, he looked around. He’d been so focused on the big things he wanted to do that he’d turned a blind eye to some of the other things the house was lacking. Things like more than one chair at the kitchen table, towels in the bathroom that still have their hemmed edging, and a bed with more than a fitted sheet. He didn't just need a house anymore.
He needed a home.
Taking his fresh cup of coffee, he went back to his computer and started sh
opping. Living like a bachelor was fine for him, but Gwen deserved a place with more than the bare essentials, even if she was only there to visit, for now. Hell, he would enjoy a towel with some nap left on it… and maybe a new set of sheets.
He was scrolling down a page filled with bed covers, looking for something without lace that didn't look like it belonged in a log cabin either, when his phone started ringing from the kitchen counter.
He looked at the clock. It was already lunchtime. He jumped up and hurried to grab his phone.
“Hi sweetheart. How’s your day going?”
Gwen sighed into the phone. “Just long. I can’t believe it’s only Thursday.”
“Do you want me to come take you to lunch?” Joe ran his hands through his loose hair, a tiny bit of dampness still lingering from his shower late last night or early this morning depending on how you looked at things. He’d been up late installing a small window air-conditioner in his bedroom.
“I do, but I’m going to lunch with a couple of the people here.”
He was disappointed, but reminded himself she would be all his for the whole weekend starting tomorrow night and he was working his butt off to make sure it was as perfect as he could make it.
“Well in that case, I hope you have fun.”
“We’ll see I guess.” She sounded hesitant and more than a little unsure. “Is it okay if I call you tonight when I get home?”
“Of course.” Their hour long conversations each night had been the best part of his week.
He hung up with Gwen and dialed Heath.
“Hello.” His friend’s voice was raspy.
Joe laughed.
“Hey. What’s going on?” Heath yawned into the phone, the sound of little girl chatter loud in the background.
“Just working on getting this house together.” He heard Heath yawn again and chuckled. “Those girls wearing you out already?”
“I might be a little hung over.”
That might be the understatement of the year. Joe watched the girls last night while his friends enjoyed an evening out. Gabbi pretty much had to haul his ass into the house when they got home. Joe helped her dump him on the bed and he was asleep before they got out of the room.
“Sad thing is it probably didn’t take you too much to get there.” It was true. There comes a point in a man’s life where he just can’t hang like he used to. That point seems to follow the arrival of a job and a wife and children. Hopefully that would be a club he joined in the near future.
“I didn’t even expect it man. Gabbi got me to drink a couple of those damn mixed drinks she likes. Those bastards pack a punch.”
Joe laughed out loud this time. The thought of his cop buddy sipping some pink fruity liquid out of a stemmed glass was funny enough, but the fact that it knocked him on his ass was hilarious. “I’ll try to remember that the next time we have a girl's night.”
“Real fuckin’ funny.”
“What’s funny is Gabbi leaving you hung over and watching the princesses of chaos.” He could only imagine the copious amounts of coffee and ibuprofen it was taking to keep Heath functioning under those conditions.
“I think she did it on purpose man.” Cassie’s voice chirped in the background. “Daddy will get it in just a minute.”
“I was calling to see what you were up to, but you have your hands full so I’ll let you get back to it.”
“Maybe go out for a ride this weekend?”
Joe rinsed his coffee cup out in the kitchen sink. “Can’t. My weekend’s booked. It’s supposed to rain anyway.”
Heath sighed into the phone. “I remember when my weekends were booked like that. Be careful, those weekends are what produced the little monsters running wild through my house right now.”
“I’ll try to remember that.” Hell, he was counting on it.
Making his way back upstairs he grabbed a shirt out of his closet and pulled it over his head as he headed back down the stairs. It was time to get moving on his day.
Stuffing his feet in his boots by the door, he grabbed his keys and headed out. His first stop was the mall. Normally one of his least favorite places on earth, but today the idea of shopping didn’t seem so unappealing. Mostly because it felt a little like he was planning for a new life. A life with Gwen.
The mall parking lot was empty and he pulled his van into a front spot then headed inside.
As he wandered the aisles of one of the end cap department stores, a little overwhelmed by the sheer number of choices just in sheets, a very young woman came bounding up to his side.
“Can I help you with anything?” Her smile was huge, probably excited to show off her straight teeth after getting her braces off.
“I’m just looking, thanks.” Her intensity level was a little much for him so whether he needed her help or not, she would need to find another victim.
“Are you looking for something specific?” Her big blue eyes stared right up at him never seeming to blink.
Joe raised an eyebrow at her. He was not usually the guy anyone wanted to approach, let alone some girl fresh out of high school, making her persistence more than a little baffling.
“Nope. Just looking.” He turned his attention away from her and back to the wall of packaged sheets that extended three feet above his head.
He thought she’d gotten the hint and took off, but instead, she stepped directly in front of him, that damn smile still plastered on her face.
“Need some new sheets?”
“Yup.” He sidestepped away from her, continuing to do his best to ignore her as he tried to make sense of the differences between five-hundred and six-hundred thread count, besides twenty bucks.
“For your bed?” The way she dropped her voice and let the words slip slowly out of her mouth, had him looking down at her in shock. She still had a smile on her face but it had changed dramatically. “Maybe I could help you put them on.”
“What in the hell is wrong with you?”
Her eyes went wide as the smile on her face finally disappeared. “I just thought—"
“You thought maybe you’d like to proposition a strange man almost twice your age and risk him being some sort of deviant who would kidnap you and do who knows what to you?”
Tears brimmed at the corners of her eyes as her mouth hung open in shock. This probably wasn’t a reaction she was used to. Boys her own age were probably terrified of her. He had news for her. Grown ass men wouldn’t react the same way.
“Do you have any idea what you could have gotten yourself into?” He’d seen girls like her, clueless to the way the world worked, living their lives in a safe little bubble, completely unaware of the kind of people that were out there, just waiting.
Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she shook her head, blinking hard, wiping her cheeks with the back of her hand. He scared her. Good. She needed to be scared.
“I do.” Unfortunately he knew all too well what could happen when girls like her thought they could control what happened and what didn’t. “And you don’t want to find out.”
He stood staring at her considering finding a way to let her parents know just how naive of a daughter they’d raised. He studied her carefully.
Hunting down her parents would do more harm than good and the terrified girl in front of him was a far cry from the seductress she was trying to be less than two minutes ago.
“Please don’t do something like that again.” There was always the chance his warning fell on deaf ears, but he prayed it didn't.
She nodded quickly before scurrying off and was out of sight within seconds.
This day was getting real heavy real fast. Grabbing a set of beige-y sheets and a blue comforter with the same color as a swirly thing in the pattern, he headed to a register. On the way, a soft looking blanket in the same shade caught his eye. It reminded him of the blanket Gwen kept on her couch. The blanket he’d piled over her sleeping body on the evenings when she fell asleep while they watched television together.
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Grabbing it he quickly checked out and headed home ready to put this place and the memories it was stirring, behind him.
Thirty minutes later, Joe pulled up to his house, damp tire lines coming out of his driveway. The pitted gravel held onto quite a bit of water and after a rain like last night, there would still be puddles for a couple days.
The air lodged in his lungs. Someone had been at his house. Recently.
He forced himself to start breathing. He was overreacting. More than likely someone just used his house to turn around. Addresses weren’t marked well out here and it was easy to pass what you were looking for.
He pushed the thought to the back of his mind as he carried his stuff in and started pulling it from the packaging to load it into the washer. Rummaging through the fridge as he waited for the first load to cycle through, he couldn’t get the way the girl at the store acted out of his mind. He knew he wanted a family, but things like that scared the shit out of him.
If he had daughters they would grow up in a world where they had to be careful. Careful with how they dressed, how they talked, how they acted. It shouldn’t be that way, but it was.
It tore open the painful memories of a battle he’d wanted so much to fight, but one he had no choice but to walk away from. That walk is what landed him in jail eight years ago and ultimately changed his life for the better. But he would never find a way to be grateful for the situation that saved his life.
How could you be grateful for what was happening to innocent girls all over the world? Girls like the one he met today being forced to do things they didn’t want to do.
Twenty
Gwen hit enter, sending the last e-mail of a week that seemed to both drag on forever and go too quickly. Grabbing her purse out of the drawer, she dropped her phone in and dug her keys out. She walked out of her office and into the parking lot, hopping in her car and turning on the air.
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