Hot Stuff

by Weston Parker

  “She’ll come around.”

  “Yeah, she’ll have to come around. With a new little baby brother or sister on the way, she’s going to have to learn to be a big sister.” I decided to lay it on thick. “If she only knew how much I love Lauren, she’d want her daddy to be happy.”

  “Dude, that’s the sappiest shit I’ve ever heard from you.”

  “I can’t help it, man. I do love her. I love her and my sweet Olivia, and I just wanted us all to be a family. If only Ollie would come out from under that bed.”

  Noah laughed. “She’s listening, isn’t she?”

  “Yes, she is. She’s the prettiest daughter ever, and I needed to find her a beautiful and sweet mother. One who I could trust with my special little girl.”

  “You’re laying it on thick, brother. What you need to do is gather up that little one, and go after my sister.”

  “Did you mean that? Brother?”

  “Yeah, you stupid pain in the ass. You’ve got it bad enough already, so I’ll cut you some slack and forgive you. Besides, I’ve always been Uncle Noah; we’ll just make it more legal and official. You do plan on making an honest woman of my sister, right?”

  “I haven’t asked yet, but, yes, we’ve talked about it. I just feel so bad that I think I might cry. I love them both and just wanted everyone to be happy.”

  Noah laughed and then his radio went crazy. “Gotta go, brother. You stop your pussy whining and go get those two girls together. I’m sure Ollie’s in tears by now.” He hung up the phone, and I didn’t take it personally since someone’s life was at stake.

  As soon as I placed the phone down, Ollie stuck her head in again. “Daddy? Don’t cry!” She ran across the room and climbed up into my lap with her big stuffed bear that usually wore my boa and crown.

  “I’m so sad, though. Lauren left, and you’re mad at me.”

  “I’m not mad at you, Daddy. I love you.” She looked up at me with those big, blue eyes and patted my chest. “Where did your friend go?”

  “She thinks that you don’t like her. She really wanted to meet you, and now, she’s run away.”

  “We can go find her if you want.” She shrugged her little shoulders and leaned over to hug my neck.

  “I think that would be a good idea. And maybe you could explain to me why you hid under the bed on the way.”

  She pulled her lips in tightly and climbed down from my lap with her bear. I got my keys out of my desk and then held her hand as we went out to the truck. I lifted her up and put her in the seat, buckling her in her little booster seat. After tucking her bear in beside her, I went around and climbed into the front. Lauren had a little head start, but with the roads free of ice, I hoped to do a little catching up. I’d be safe with my daughter in the truck, but she had better hold on to that bear.

  When I spun rocks out of the driveway, she giggled and then she cheered as we headed out on the road. “We’re going to get my new mommy, aren’t we Daddy?”

  “Do you like that? Her being your new mommy?”

  “Yeah, she’s really pretty. Helen said that you were bringing a woman home and that hopefully, she’d be able to make me behave. That I’d have to mind the new lady of the house.”

  “You do need to mind her.”

  “Will she hit me?”

  “Hit you? What gave you that idea?”

  “Helen said she’d gladly hand her the strap.”

  “What strap?”

  “The one she shows me when I’m bad.”

  “When you’re bad, she shows you a strap? Has she ever hit you?”

  “No, Daddy, but only because I’m too fast. She swings and misses. She can’t outrun me, and I can hide better than she can hunt. She said one day, you’d take the strap to me, too.”

  It took everything for me not to turn the truck around and go back to my house and run that old lady down, but I gritted my teeth and kept driving toward the cabin. No wonder Ollie was having so many issues with the woman. I should have known when the woman talked to me about discipline that she had some antiquated ideas about child-rearing. Spanking was one thing, but that was my place, and I’d never used a strap. But to threaten my child with abuse, her ass was out. She could enjoy her last few hours, oblivious to the fact that I finally had her number, and it was up.

  “No one is ever going to hurt you, Ollie. You’re going to be a good girl, and we’re all going to get along together.”

  “Will I really get to be a big sister?”

  “Yes.” I hoped Lauren wasn’t going to be angry that she knew, but I needed to try and win her over somehow. It would have been a lot easier if that damned Helen hadn’t interfered and put ideas in her head.

  “Where are we going, Daddy?”

  “To Lauren’s cabin. I think that’s where she is.” I hoped. It would take another long trip home to use the phone if she wasn’t.

  “Is a cabin a house?”

  “Yes, it is. And this cabin is where I spent some of the best times of my life as a boy with your Uncle Noah. Lauren is his little sister.” I hoped that wasn’t too confusing for her and decided not to try and explain too much until she was older. Besides, Uncle Noah would be her uncle through Lauren soon enough, and it would all work its way out.

  “Is it where you’d go fishing, Daddy?” I’d told her all about how Noah and I used to take our fishing poles down to Wade’s Creek and fish off an old log. And how we’d tried to tie logs together to make a raft like we’d seen on TV, but it sank on us as soon as we got out in the deep water. We’d hung onto one another as the current dragged us downstream, but thankfully, we’d caught onto a branch and pulled ourselves out. We’d kept that secret for years, knowing his mother wouldn’t have let us go down to the creek alone if she found out.

  “Yeah, baby. It’s where me and Uncle Noah became brothers.” For life.

  Chapter 30

  Lauren

  I pulled up at the cabin with tears in my eyes. Gage had tried to call me a good half hour ago, but I had needed time to clear my head. I had hoped things would go so much better with me and Olivia, but it was obvious she hated me.

  Even the bitchy old maid didn’t want me in the house, and if nothing else came of me and Gage, I was still going to warn him about that old hag. I didn’t like her tone when she’d mentioned Ollie, and I had gotten a bad feeling about her the moment I bumped into her. She’d been lurking in the hallway to see what was going on, and I wondered how she treated Olivia when Gage wasn’t around.

  I sat in the car thinking about it all and wishing I hadn’t tucked tail and ran. I needed to learn to face my problems head-on, especially since I was going to be a mother soon. I placed my hand on my tummy and rubbed it. Soon enough, I’d feel the little one move, and even sooner, I’d know if it was a boy or girl.

  I wanted to give him a son so badly, but not only that, I just felt it was a boy from the moment I found out.

  I heard a truck in the distance and looked in my rearview to see Gage’s big truck driving up behind me. He parked close to my bumper as if it was his way of making sure I didn’t drive off again.

  I got out of the car, and that was when I saw Olivia climbing over the back of his seat into the front of the cab. He’d managed to coax her out, and she seemed to be in a better mood.

  I held up a hand. “I’m sorry I left.”

  “No, I don’t blame you, and we’re sorry. Aren’t we, Ollie?”

  “Yeah, I’m sorry, too. I didn’t mean to make you sad.”

  “It would seem that someone put some very scary ideas in her head about having a new lady in the house.”

  “I can imagine I know who you’re speaking of, and I had my own little encounter with her before leaving.” Gage didn’t seem too happy to hear that, and his eyes narrowed with anger as he put Ollie down on her feet.

  “I’ll be taking care of that problem for good once we’re home. I should have and would have done it sooner if I’d known how bad it truly was.”

 
I looked down as Ollie approached, and she came right up and placed her hand on my lower belly. “The lady next door to my grandma had a baby in her stomach, too.” I wasn’t sure she knew about the baby, but she seemed to be okay with it.

  “Really? So, you already know all about babies then, right? Such a smart girl.” I looked up at Gage, who shrugged.

  “Will our baby be a brother or a sister?” She crinkled her little nose and then took my hand.

  “I don’t know yet. I go to the doctor in a couple of weeks, and they will take a look. Would you like to go with me? They’ll show us the baby.”

  Her eyes went wide, and she smiled. “Daddy! I get to go to the doctor and see the baby!” She danced on her feet and then pumped her fist.

  “Where did you learn to do your fist like that?”

  “Grandma Edna does it every time she wins a bingo.” Gage and I laughed, and he took her other hand, and we walked to the door.

  “I take it you haven’t been inside the house.” He took the keys from me and then pushed one into the lock.

  “No, I didn’t know if I should stay or go back home. I just needed a little time.”

  “From now on, we don’t run.” He turned to Olivia and placed his hand on her head to get her attention. “We don’t hide in a corner under our beds either, okay?”

  Olivia and I nodded as Gage held out his pinky. “Pinky swears all around.” We both giggled and locked our fingers together as he turned the knob and pushed the door open. “From here on out, we’re a family.”

  We stepped into the cabin, and Olivia took off running across the room. “Daddy, that’s you and Uncle Noah!”

  “Yeah, there are a lot of pictures around. You’ll see some of Lauren when she was a little girl like you.”

  “Take a look around.” She ran off down the hall, and Gage took my hand.

  He brought it to his mouth and kissed it. “I want to show you that surprise now.”

  “I almost forgot that there’s a hole in the wall around here. The place looks clean enough. Is it in my room?”

  “The master bedroom, yes. Let’s go have a look.” He pulled me in the direction of the room, down the long hallway to the back where my parents used to stay on the opposite side of the house.

  I quickened my steps to get ahead of him, but he pulled me back and covered my eyes with his hands. “You can’t peek until I’m ready.” He stepped close behind me to lead me where I needed to be.

  “Show me, already.” I laughed as he leaned down close to my ear.

  “This is inspired by that night we spent in front of the window at your apartment. How you could see the whole sky lit up with fireworks and stars.” He pulled his hands away, and I couldn’t believe how different the room was. Not only was there a huge portion of the wall gone, which had been replaced by a window that wrapped up to the ceiling for a skylight effect, but there was a beautiful, built-in reading nook.

  “This is incredible.” The moon was just starting to rise in the night sky, and there were so many stars visible that I felt like I was closer to heaven.

  “Yeah, this is the first time I get to see it at night, but I knew it would have to be amazing. You’ll get both the sunrise and the sunset.”

  “Can we stay here tonight?”

  “Anything you want. It might do Ollie some good, too. When we do go home, I meant what I said; I’m letting that housekeeper go. Ollie told me that she’s been threatening her with a strap, and she’s overheard some talk in the past. I can’t have a person like that around my children. We’ll have to hire someone else.”

  “Actually, I’d rather not hire anyone. I know you’re used to having someone around helping out, but I’d rather do my own cooking and cleaning.”

  “Ollie loves Ava and her cooking. I’m afraid if we let her go now, Ollie might resent it.”

  “Well, let’s talk about it, and maybe we can make a smooth transition, and perhaps Ollie and I can do the cooking some nights together.” I didn’t want to take away someone who Ollie got along with and look like the bad guy, but maybe if we just had the woman come in part-time, it might be a good compromise.

  “I don’t see anything wrong with that, but when the baby comes, who knows? You might be too busy or tired to cook.”

  “We’ll see.” I stepped into his arms, and we stood there in front of the window, enjoying the full moon over Wade’s Creek in the distance.

  He turned and kissed me, and I melted against him. All the worry I’d had before was gone, and now, it was replaced with unbridled joy.

  “Daddy! There are two beds stacked way up on top of one another!” She’d found Noah’s room with the bunk beds. She skipped up to the door and stopped.

  “That’s where I used to sleep when I’d come over,” Gage said. “Reed used to take the couch bed and give us the room.”

  “I remember that. He said he liked it better. He could watch TV that way. Remember we used to have that satellite dish?”

  “Yeah, that thing took up half the yard. Your dad had my crew remove it when they did the updating out here.”

  Ollie came in and gave a little squeal. “I can see the moon! It’s so big!” She ran around the room, and then after a moment of leaving handprints on the glass and pressing her little nose against the window to look up and see the moon, she turned and ran out screaming something about the bunks again.

  She was a ball of energy. I couldn’t help but think about what my father had said at the reading of his will. “My father left me this cabin, hoping I’d have my family here. In his last testament video, he said that he and my mom had fallen in love here, so they bought the place. Now he wanted me to have it for the same reason. I think he’d be proud of me and happy for us both. He always loved you like a son, Gage.”

  “I know. I loved him, too.” He turned and narrowed his eyes at me. “Do you really like the room?”

  “Yes, but it’s worth way more than the work I did for you.”

  “That’s no matter. I wanted you to have a beautiful space to get away, and I was hoping you’d not only find it magical at night, but I wanted you to see this place like I always have. It’s amazing here.”

  “Yeah, no more being cooped up inside while you and the kids have all the fun, that’s for sure. Even when I’m inside, it’s like I’m outside.”

  “Yeah, about that. There’s one more thing I need to show you.” He walked over and pulled out a small remote to open the window and then stepped out onto a little landing that I hadn’t even known was there. “I did this in case you decided to venture out.”

  I stepped out with him and put my arm around him. The crisp night air was a welcome feeling, and I had never felt more in love or alive as I did at that moment.

  “I never dreamed I could be so happy,” he said as if reading my mind. He leaned over and kissed my mouth, and after a moment, it grew so deep that I was heating up. My body responded in a way I never knew it could, and as my nipples hardened, I grew so wet between my legs that it was as if I’d orgasmed. My damned hormones were out of control.

  I tried to remember that Ollie was in the next room, and I wondered what kind of sleeping arrangements we’d have for the night. Surely, he’d need to tuck her into bed soon. He rolled his hips into me, pressing his long, hard cock against me.

  I reached down and cupped it. “What about Ollie?”

  “Yeah, we need to get something to eat, I guess, and then I should tuck her into bed. Then the two of us are making love under the stars by the light of a full moon.”

  “That sounds romantic. But there’s just one problem; there’s nothing to eat here, and the only store that is still open is twenty minutes away.” We had no choice but to venture out.

  “Then we’ll go. That will give this place sometime to warm up. I want it steamy later.” He gave me a wink, and then we went to find Olivia. The sooner we got her fed and tucked in, the sooner we could be together.

  Chapter 31

  Gage

  I
had been so relieved to find she was at the cabin and was glad that she’d liked the surprise. We headed out to find something to eat and ended up stopping in at a little burger joint in Gatlinburg.

  Ollie sat beside Lauren in the booth and refused to use a booster seat. She propped herself up on her knees, so I wasn’t too afraid that she’d have a problem.

  “What can I get for you?” The waitress popped her gum, and Olivia’s eyes widened.

  “Can I get a burger and fries?” Olivia bounced in the seat beside Lauren, who couldn’t take her eyes off of her.

  “That sounds good. I’ll have the same, but make mine the double cheese bacon burger please.” Lauren passed her menu to the waitress as Ollie stood up in the seat.

  “I want a double cheese bacon burger, too.”

  The waitress looked at me like she needed my permission to write it down. “That’s an awfully big burger, little lady. In fact, you could probably split it with your mother.”

  Lauren smiled. “Thank you. Would you like to do that Ollie? Then we can split a milkshake after?”

  Ollie liked the sound of that. “Yes, please.”

  “And for you, sir?”

  “I think I’ll have one of my own, please; all the way.”

  “You have a beautiful family. I see that it’s growing.”

  “Yes, ma’am. I’m due in September.” It all seemed to hit me at that moment. I did have a beautiful family, and this was the first of many nights together like this.

  When the food came, Ollie and Lauren were shocked to see that the burger was nearly as big as the plate.

  “I’m really glad we’re sharing. All three of us probably could have.” Lauren took the steak knife from the napkin it was wrapped in and cut the burger in half.

  “You two might be able to finish it. I have to tackle this thing all by myself.” I rolled up my sleeves, and then Lauren passed me her knife.