by C. A. Harms
Chapter Eighteen
Clayton
“Is she sleeping?” I asked Palmer as I stepped inside their apartment and spoke in a low tone.
“No, she’s in the shower.” I noticed the smirk on her lips as she scooped Ethan off the floor. “This little guy and I are going out for a long walk, and then we’ll be back.” She turned to face me. “She is tired though, so maybe you could convince her that she should relax a bit.”
Palmer was anything but discreet, and I’ll admit I loved the fact that she was a no-bullshit kinda girl. She was in my corner one hundred percent, and for that I was also thankful.
As she passed me, I reached out and ruffled Ethan’s hair, which triggered him to reach out for me. Willingly I accepted him, and he wrapped his two little arms around my neck, hugging me tightly. “Tell Auntie P to get you a cookie or something sweet on your walk.” I grabbed two twenties from my back pocket and passed them over to her. “Maybe bring something back for Mommy too.”
I kissed the top of his head and passed him back to Palmer just before they slipped out the door.
As I walked down the hall toward the bathroom, I stepped over a dump truck with five diapers piled in the back of it, clean ones, thank god. We never knew with Ethan; he was always testing Palmer, and lately Emelie too. The older he got the more hassle he provided. Me, I thought it was hilarious; them, not so much.
Turning the handle to the bathroom, I stepped inside and was immediately met with steam filtering throughout the room. I could see the silhouette of my girl behind the fogged doors of the shower. I didn’t want to scare her, so I decided to announce my arrival, although stepping inside with her did sound a whole lot more exciting.
“Em.” I stood in the doorway and watched her body go rigid behind the glass. “It’s Clay.”
She reached out and slid the door open just enough to peek through the crack. Water beaded on her cheeks and lips as she offered me a smile. “Hi.”
“Mind if I join you?”
She looked toward the floor and then her eyes met mine once more. “Where’s Ethan?”
“With Palmer.” I stepped inside and locked the door handle behind me. “She said they were going for a long walk, then stopping for something sweet to bring back for all of us.” She bit her lip and slid the door open just a little further. “She played some pretty heavy emphasis on the word ‘long,’ too.”
“I’m sure she did.” I watched Emelie run her hands along the contour of her hip and instantly I grew hard. “You plan on joining me, or are you standing out there until I’m done?”
She moved away from the opening and stepped beneath the water once more. I don’t think I’ve ever gotten undressed faster as my clothes began hitting the floor in a hurry.
As I stepped inside, she kept her back to me. Her long hair lay wet against her back as the water ran freely. Soap from her hair mixed with the water trailing along her back and ass, before running along the backs of her thighs.
Fuck me, my girl was sexy.
Stepping in closer, I ran my hands over her hips and down the front of her thighs as she leaned back into my touch.
“I’ve missed you,” I whispered near her ear.
She’s been working so much lately. With the hospital and then her second part-time job at a retirement home, I felt like our time was even more limited. It had been three days since the last time I was able to hold her.
“Me too,” she confessed, placing her hands over mine and moving them to the insides of her thighs.
“I think you need a break.” Among other things.
“I think I need you,” she whispered in return, like she was reading my mind.
“You have me anytime you want me.”
She turned in my arms and pressed her chest tightly to mine. The hardness of her nipples rubbing against me only further excited me as I pushed my hips forward against her. “I want you now,” she cooed, kissing over my chest.
“I want you all the time.” When she looked up at me through her long lashes my heart felt as if it lurched in my chest. Damn, that look of hers got me every time and made me feel weak.
Bending just enough to bring my lips to hers, I began kissing her, slowly at first. Within seconds she was demanding more as she fisted the hair at the back of my head and pulled me tighter into her.
When she reached between our bodies and gripped my cock, I moaned into our kiss. Her tiny hand fisted me and began to stroke, and it took all I had to keep from pinning her against the wall and sinking inside her.
“Are you done showering?” She nodded her head and I reached around her to turn off the water. Her lips trailed over my jaw, along the side of my neck, and her hand never left my hardness. Her grip only tightened, and my thighs tensed as I continued to talk myself down. “Let’s get out.”
I turned around and she reluctantly let her hand slide away from my cock as I grabbed for a towel and tossed it to the floor. Stepping outside of the shower, I reached out and helped her do the same before I picked up a second towel and started to dry off.
The way she was watching me, her eyes lingering over my body, made my heart race even faster. After I was dry, I stepped toward her and slowly started to towel her off too. She didn’t even attempt to take it from me, only watched me with a hungry look in her eyes.
I took my time drying her body, allowing my fingers to contact her skin with each attempt…my thumb grazing over her nipple, my forefinger exploring the inside of her thigh. As I kneeled before her, I made sure to blow out a long, slow breath against her clit, that was only a few inches from my lips. I heard her whimper and looked up to find her watching me with her mouth slightly open. Taking it one step further, I continued to watch her as I leaned in and pressed a soft kiss against her, and she widened her legs, inviting me to continue.
When I gently stroked her with my tongue, she gripped my shoulders and I wrapped my own arm around her back to ensure she remained upright.
There was nothing better than how responsive Emelie was. It was always this way with us; in fact, I think each time we were together it only got better. When I continued my assault, she started to shift her hips against me, a sure sign she was seeking more. I pressed my thumb to her clit and slid my finger through her wetness before carefully pushing it inside her. “Yes,” she moaned, her hips moving faster. I let her take what she needed and watched her move.
Mind-blowing was what came to mind.
Her breaths grew shorter as she started panting. I reached out in search of my pants and retrieved my wallet with my free hand. Once I gathered the condom inside, I tore it open with my teeth and began to roll it over me carefully. She was close, I could feel her pussy tighten around me, but I wanted to feel her around me.
Pulling back my hand, she groaned in protest as I stood and grabbed her hips. “I wanna feel you,” I explained as I backed her up to the vanity and lifted her up to sit next to the sink. Gripping her hips, I pulled her to the edge and together we watched between us as I stepped up close.
The second my cock made contact I swear my knees almost gave out beneath me. She felt amazing and incredible, so warm as she pulsated around me.
“Oh my god,” she whispered as I pushed forward until I was completely inside her. “I need you.”
“You have me.”
“I need more.” Emelie shifted against me. “Please.”
I started to move, knowing just what she was demanding. Gripping her hips tight, I started to thrust, my toes curling into the tile floor beneath me.
“I’m so close,” she panted as she propped her back against the fogged mirror behind her. This only gave me a better view of the place we were joined and that made it difficult to hold back. I wanted to feel her come, I needed it.
Her legs hooked over my hips, linking together behind my back. Her mouth hung open just slightly as her tits bounced with each thrust. Just when I thought I wouldn’t be able to hold out any longer, she called out my name as her pussy clenched around m
e tightly.
It was the moment I let go, slamming inside of her over and over, feeling my own release rip through me.
Never had I felt anything more earth shattering. Emelie was my everything.
***
“It’s for four days,” I whispered in the darkness and carefully crawled over her body. “I think you and Ethan both deserve a little time away. And I wanna show you where I’m from. I want my family to meet you.”
“I have bills to pay,” she protested.
“Palmer told you already more than once that four days is not gonna set you guys back. You two got this, and since you won’t let me help you…”
“Because it’s not your responsibility to pay my bills.” She placed her hand against my jaw and I leaned into her touch. “Even though you still manage to sneak in diapers when I’m not looking and food that just randomly appears in our refrigerator.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” I kissed her and felt her smile against my lips. “I want you two with me. I wanna show off my girl and boy.” I loved the way her expression softened when I referred to her and Ethan as mine. But I wasn’t saying anything that wasn’t true; it’s how I envisioned them both. I couldn’t honestly remember what it was like without them and I didn’t want to remember, either. They changed me; I was still the same fun guy, but now I was in love with a girl and her son.
“Palmer can even come too.”
“To Kentucky?” she asked with her brow arched.
“Yeah,” I said, kissing her again. Maybe I could manage to kiss her delirious, then she’d agree before she had the chance to register what she was agreeing to. Hell, it was worth a try.
“I’ve never been outside of Florida,” she confessed.
“Then that’s a yes?”
“It’s a maybe,” she corrected and I hung my head. “I just need to check with work and make sure I can arrange it.”
“And if it ends up being good with them?”
“Then it looks like we’ll be taking a trip to Kentucky,” she smiled, “but remember you invited Palmer too.”
Chapter Nineteen
Emelie
Palmer and I rode in the backseat during the eleven-plus hour drive to Morehead. This was against Clayton’s wishes; of course, he wanted me up front with him. But there was no way I was going to leave Palmer in the backseat with Corbin and Ethan both. Poor girl could handle her own for sure, but what kind of friend would I be if I didn’t try to at least serve as a buffer?
It didn’t help that the first thing Corbin said to my best friend when we walked out of our apartment was she had a nice rack. The daggers she shot him scared even me. When she mumbled something about suffocating him before the trip was over, I figured it was best to keep them at a distance.
Much like his brother, though, Corbin does not let things go and he continued to antagonize Palmer for the first three hours of our drive until Clayton threatened to buy him a bus ticket at the nearest station and force him to take that means of transportation for the remainder of the trip. Now he’d just resorted to peeking over his shoulder every so often.
She got better at ignoring him though, and had become completely absorbed with Ethan. They were coloring on the iPad Clayton offered with a few newly installed kids’ games for the road. The man was a genius for sure.
It truly warmed my heart how he managed to put Ethan first so often.
“You two better be ready for some barbecue.” Corbin looked back over his shoulder, smiling wide at the both of us.
“We’ve lived in Florida our entire lives, dumbass. That doesn’t mean we’ve lived in a cave. We know what barbecue is.” Palmer rolled her eyes at Corbin and looked out the side window at the open land that passed us by.
“You may’ve had barbecue, but you’ve never had my ma’s. There ain’t another person out there that makes it like her.”
I could tell Palmer wanted to shoot back with another smartass comment, but she wouldn’t out of respect for their mother. And probably Clayton too, but definitely not for Corbin himself.
“So, Clay, tell me about growing up in Morehead.” Palmer looked right past Corbin’s eager look. I kind of felt bad for the guy, until he opened his mouth.
“You’re feisty. That usually means that a woman is a Dynamo in bed too.” He wagged his brows, but before Palmer had the chance to reach out and slug him, Clayton smacked the back of his head.
“Knock it off.”
“What the heck?” Corbin rubbed the spot his brother just whacked. “You said the same thing about Emelie before the two of you got together.”
“Oh really?” It was my turn to shoot daggers.
“I don’t remember that.” Clayton glared at his brother, making him chuckle as he turned back around to face the front. Instead of Clay answering the question Palmer asked, Corbin responded.
“Growing up in Morehead was a blast. Dirt bikes, racing on the back roads, or hanging out down by ol’ man Richard’s drinking moonshine ’til we couldn’t see straight. In fact, it was behind Rich’s barn that Clayton and I both got our first blo—”
“No,” Clayton said, looking up in the rearview mirror, making eye contact with me. “Some stories don’t need retold.”
Corbin chuckled. “Ol’ Molly Hoover, damn that girl could—”
“I said enough.” Clayton looked over at his brother and they shared some hidden twin language.
“Such a pig,” Palmer told me, and I had to disagree. I saw a lot of Clay in Corbin and I thought it would only take the right girl to bring out his less than arrogant side. He was funny, and I’d noticed long ago the way he’d look at Palmer when she wasn’t looking. It made me wonder what was actually rolling around in his mind.
“He’s harmless.” I leaned in toward her so only she could hear me. “I think he might like you.”
“No thanks.” Palmer curled her lip in disgust. “I don’t feed stray cats because of the smell, and their manners are nonexistent. In the end all you get is scratched, or worse, you get fleas.”
I laughed, and when I looked up, Clayton was once again watching me in the rearview mirror. I think he thought maybe I was upset about the blowjob behind the barn story; but frankly, what did I have to be mad about? That was a long time ago. Granted, I didn’t want a recap, but in no way did I ever think he was innocent. He was too cocky, and way too adorable, to be innocent.
***
“This is Morehead,” Corbin said as we passed a sign that said “Welcome.” Both Palmer and I looked out our windows as the town began to come into view. It was nothing like I imagined, but better. It seemed so peaceful.
Small storefront properties, little boutiques, it all seemed so homey.
“I thought we’d head to the house first,” Clayton said as he made a right turn. “My parents will be at The Pit,” he added, making another turn up a long, narrow drive. “We can head over there after we unload.”
“The Pit?”
Corbin turned around in his seat and winked at Palmer. “The best barbecue in Kentucky.”
Instead of giving him the normal annoyed look, she nodded her head and looked out her window once more.
Just up ahead I could see the peak of a roof come into view through the mass array of trees. Everything was so green and rugged. I loved it. As we rounded a corner, I felt like my eyes bugged out of my head when I saw the house.
“Home,” Corbin said, almost in awe. “Didn’t realize how much I missed this place until now.”
“Yeah,” Clayton added as he slowed to a stop.
A large A-framed peak sat high, almost as tall as the trees that surrounded the home. Lined with tall windows, it reminded me of a cabin, only it was the most beautiful and largest cabin I had ever seen in my life, or in pictures. A large deck surrounded the entire thing, a porch swing perched high and overlooked the large hill that dropped down the left side of the property.
“Wow,” I mumbled, still completely lost in the view. “It’s beautiful.
”
“So majestic,” Palmer added, and I couldn’t have agreed more.
“Come on.” Corbin hopped out. “We’ll show you around.”
Palmer didn’t hesitate for a second as she climbed out and followed the guy she could hardly stand for the last eleven hours or more. I found it funny how she’d dropped her disgust so quickly and raced after him.
Clayton climbed out and opened the back door, looking past me toward Ethan, who was still sleeping soundly at my side. “He handled that ride better than I thought he would.”
“Yeah.” I looked toward my son. “I’m surprised too.”
“So, you wanna go see where I grew up?” I turned back to face Clayton and found him smiling. He looked so anxious, so kid-like, and I couldn’t hold back my own smile. He was so damn cute.
“Yeah,” I told him as I crawled out. “We just need to get the monster.”
“Let me.” He placed his hand on my shoulder and I stepped aside, allowing him to move toward Ethan. He unbuckled him carefully, then scooped him from his carseat like he weighed absolutely nothing. Ethan didn’t wake, only curled into Clayton and continued to snore lightly.
I knew I’d never get tired of seeing the two of them together; they fit so perfectly. Clayton may not be Ethan’s dad, but he was his best friend and I would always be thankful for the love he gave my son. Clayton was a man in every sense of the word. He’d been raised right. Though college may have brought out his crazy side, he never turned from his upbringing. He was so gentle and caring that it overwhelmed me at times.
“I love you, do you know that?”
Clayton paused just before we started to climb the stairs to his childhood home and looked at me with awe on his face.
“I don’t think I’ve told you that enough. But I needed to say it now.” I moved around in front of him and placed one hand on each side, my son securely between us. “You make everything better.”
