by Emerson Rose
Ash
One week is never going to be enough. There has to be some way to get this woman to stay longer, if not forever, but what that is I can’t figure out. I’ve offered her everything–– great sex, a job being Cannon’s nanny, free college, and a mansion with everything anyone could ever want. For most women, this would be a no-brainer, but Stella’s been stuck in one spot not moving forward in her life for so long it’s going to take a huge push to get her going again.
It’s Thursday morning already, and I’ve spent every possible minute of time with Stella and Cannon for almost two weeks. I have to get out to the barns today and touch base with my ranch hands before they forget who I am.
It’s been years since I’ve worked in the fields regularly, I miss it. Handling the financial end of a billion-dollar ranch became a full-time job a long time ago, but I want to be an approachable boss. I don’t want to be the king sitting in his castle ruling on a throne. I care about my employees too much for that.
It’s almost eight a.m. I’ve been up since five working in my office trying to get the necessary things finished before Stella wakes up. I don’t want to drive out to the barns without telling her where I’m going but I have done everything I can for now, and she’s still sleeping like a log.
I’ve exhausted her physically and mentally with my nightly attempts to convince her that she needs to stay with us. When I enter my bedroom, I find her curled up on my side of the bed with one foot outside the covers. Her long chestnut hair is spread out all over my pillow, and her naked body calls to me to crawl back in bed and make love to her again. But this is one time I have to fight the urge to wake her with my cock and settle for a soft kiss on her cheek. I sit down on the edge of the bed and tuck a piece of her wild hair behind her ear and whisper. “I’m running out for a little while. I have to go out to the barns.”
Her eyes open a slit, and the first thing she does is smile at me. I love this sweet I’m not quite awake, but I’m trying smile.
“You’re leaving?” she asks in a sleepy voice.
“Only for a little while.”
“What about Cannon?”
“He’s not awake, yet, either. It’s only eight o’clock. Ridge will handle him until I get back.”
Her smile falls, and she rolls over onto her back. “He doesn’t have to do that. I’ll get up and make breakfast. I promised to go swimming with him today anyway.”
“You sure? I don’t want to pressure you into taking care of him. Ridge is capable, he doesn’t especially like it, but he can handle Cannon.”
“No, I want to do it, we had plans. When do you think you’ll be home?”
“A couple of hours’ tops.”
“Okay, could you tell Ridge I’ll shower and be down in 30 minutes?”
“Sure, Cannon's still sleeping, though, so don’t hurry. You’re sure about this?”
She sits up with the sheet tucked under her arms, and the thought of her naked only inches away from me makes my cock twitch. I could skip the barns, crawl back into bed and spend an hour or two losing myself in her again.
No, this billion-dollar empire isn’t going to run itself, I have to go.
“I’m positive. You go, work while we have fun.” She flashes me a mischievous smile, and I can’t hold back.
“Come here,” I growl pulling her into my lap to kiss her long and deep. When I pull away, she’s breathless and dazed. “Now I can go work while you two have fun without me. You have my number, call if you need help.”
She rolls her eyes like she always does when I mention that she might need help with Cannon. “I won’t need help.”
“I’m starting to believe that.”
“Good, you better go, I feel a problem developing under me, and if we get to solving it you’ll never get out of here.”
“Since when has my cock been a problem?”
“Since it started keeping you from getting your work done.”
“You’re not the only one who can multitask.”
“I don’t see how you can multitask sex with me and riding out to the barns to check on your employees.”
A vision of Stella and I riding my horse naked on the way to the barns enters my mind, and I grin a devilish grin.
“Oh my gosh, stop, I know what you’re thinking.”
“Yeah? What am I thinking then?”
“You can’t multitask those two things. It’s never gonna happen.”
“You’re right. You deserve all of my attention when I do this to you.” I roll onto the bed taking her with me. Her eyes widen, and she squeals when I keep moving until I’m straddling her.
“I thought you had to…” I quiet her with a kiss and press my hard cock against her warm, soft body.
“I do have to go, but I need you first.”
Her long delicate fingers search for ways to undress me. She pulls at my belt, untucks my shirt, and tries to jam her hands into the waist of my jeans. Since it’s in my best interest to help her, I do, and within a minute I’m naked under the sheets with her like I wanted to be the second I walked into the room.
I cover her mouth with mine, her legs wind around my waist, and she pulls me in to nestle between her legs. I could slide in with no effort in this position. Nothing is separating us, nothing but the need for a condom.
I never asked her if she was on birth control or how many partners she’s had. I don’t want to think of her in anyone else’s bed. If she’s on birth control, it means she has sex regularly enough to need to prevent an unplanned pregnancy. And also, if she’s on the pill it might mean she sleeps with men without condoms which would put her at a high risk of having an STD.
“Ash?”
I blink and look down at her. “Where’d you go?”
“What?”
“You left me for a second, where’d you go?”
Time to rip off the BAND-AID and find out if I can ride her bareback.
“Are you on the pill?”
The worry in her eyes disappears, “Yes, since jr. high to regulate my periods.”
Perfect answer. “So, you take it every day the way you’re supposed to?”
“Well, yeah, it’s not something most people abuse by taking more than the prescribed dose.”
She knows where I’m going with this but, as usual, she has to dish out a side of sass with her answer.
“How do you feel about not using a condom?”
“How do you feel about not using a condom?” she asks answering my question with a question.
“Well, I’m asking, so I’m considering it.”
“I’m protected, and I haven’t had sex with anyone for a long time but…”
“But what?”
“I’m just surprised you want to after…” She’s too kind to refer to Cannon as a mistake.
“That was different. I’m pretty sure she hijacked my condom to get pregnant. I don’t want anything between us. I want to feel you, all of you.”
“Then I think you have your answer.” She slides her hand down between us and positions me at her entrance. Holding her eyes, I push into her slowly relishing the feel of her surrounding me without a barrier.
She moans tilting her hips up, and I push into her balls deep and pulsing. “Don’t move for a second, you feel so fucking good.” If she so much as flinches, I might come, and I don’t want this to end that way. Her eyes are on me, waiting, searching for permission to move. When I have my shit under control again, I nod and start a steady, deliberate rhythm that allows us to experience this to the fullest.
I’ve never done this before. I never trusted a woman to be honest with me before Stella. I know she wouldn’t lie to me, in the deepest part of my consciousness I’m sure of it.
I push up onto my hands and plunge into her harder, deeper, watching her breasts bounce with every thrust. All of my senses are on total overload, the sound of our bodies slapping against each other, the smell of her lavender and lemon shampoo when her hair is damp from working up a sweat, t
he salty taste of her skin.
“Ash, I, I can’t wait…”
“Come with me,” I grunt, and her back instantly arches off the bed, she presses her head into the pillow, and her eyes roll back in ecstasy. With her nails digging into my back I let go and come inside a woman without a condom for the first time in my life.
When we’re panting and gasping for breath, on the other side of the best orgasm I’ve ever fucking had, I relax into her and roll us to our sides still connected.
“That was incredible, like holy shit incredible.”
I chuckle and kiss her pink swollen lips. “You can say that again. I’ve never done that before.”
“Sex without a condom?” she asks.
“Yeah.”
“Me either, I was always too scared.”
“But not with me?”
Her hand comes up to cup my cheek, and her thumb sweeps over my skin while she watches it move. “No, I’m not scared of anything with you.”
I reach up and cover her hand on my cheek. “Then don’t leave me. Stay, take college courses, be Cannon’s nanny, be a part of our lives.”
“Okay.”
I rise onto my elbow, “Did you say okay?”
She bites her lip for a moment, and then I watch a huge smile spread across her face. I pull her against my chest and swallow past a lump that has formed in my throat. Relief spreads through me like a burning fuse. I was starting to give up hope that she would agree to any of my offers and now she’s agreed to all of them.
“Ash,” she murmurs against my chest.
“Yeah, darlin’?”
“I can’t breathe.”
I release her, and she inhales a deep breath. “I’m glad you’re staying.”
She chuckles, “I gathered that when you crushed me in a hug.”
“You can’t change your mind now, you agreed, I get to keep you.”
“I won’t.”
“Promise?”
“I promise, would you like me to sign a contract in blood to prove it?”
“No, a verbal agreement will do fine.”
“You’d better get going, Cannon will be awake soon, and since I’m his new nanny, I should probably be prepared.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t refer to you as the nanny. He has negative connotations about that for some reason.”
“I’ll just keep being his friend, how is that?”
“Perfect, you are not the nanny, but you’re my girlfriend, got it?”
“Got it.”
“Daddy? Tella? What cha doin?” I hear Cannon say from the end of the bed. Stella’s eyes bulge, and I freeze in her arms.
Man, this kid has some bad timing.
11
Pride family sandwich
Stella
“Good morning, Cannon,” I sing-song casually.
“Hey, buddy, we were just getting up, why don’t you go down to the kitchen. Stella’s going to make you breakfast.”
“And then we’re going swimming,” I add crossing my fingers and toes that he takes off to find his swimming trunks.
“Yay! Swimming! Tella’s goin’ swimming!” he yells and races out the door and down the hall.
“Good save, I can’t believe I forgot to lock the door.”
“Thanks, being in the throes of passion will do that to you sometimes.”
“Do what?”
“Make you do things you wouldn’t have done otherwise.”
His body stiffens next to me, and I realize my bad choice of words.
“I didn’t mean it the way you’re thinking, I mean, I'll admit I think I was a little coerced into making the decision to stay, but I don’t regret it, yet.”
“You won’t regret it ever if I have anything to say about it.”
“Go on now, get to work before he comes back.”
He holds my eyes for a moment, looking back and forth from one to the other like he’s trying to convince himself that I’m not going to change my mind. When he comes to whatever conclusion he comes to, he slides out of me and rolls out of bed.
I watch his fine backside walk to the bedroom door and lock it before returning to the bedside where he offers me his hand. “Come on, I need a shower now.”
“Didn’t you shower this morning? You were dressed and ready to go.”
“I was, and I did, but I want to do it again with you.”
“Ash, we don’t have time to…”
“I’m not suggesting we have more sex, not right now anyway. I just want to shower with you, come on.”
I scoot to the edge of the giant king-size bed, and he helps me up.
True to his word we shower together without having sex. He kissed me and washed my hair and my body, but he did it with a warm, soft affection instead of the hot out of control passion we share in bed.
I returned the favor, loving every second of running my soapy hands over his skin and my fingers through his hair. When we finished, we dressed, him in his button-up shirt, jeans, and cowboy boots and me in a bikini.
I haven’t been swimming in years. There’s no public swimming pool in Redwater. Even if there were, I wouldn’t have had time to go to it, long hours in the saddle checking up on cattle doesn’t leave much leisure time. I can’t say I’ll miss that.
I have no idea how I’m going to break this news to my parents. They’re going to freak out. They might even disown me, but as Ash says, I have to start living my life for me instead of living it for everyone else.
I hadn’t planned on accepting Ash’s invitation, deal, job offer, or whatever it is, but at that moment I knew I couldn’t leave him and go back to my old life. What sane woman says no to living with the sexiest man alive? Oh my God, that’s what this is, isn’t it?
I’ve been thinking about the whole thing as being Ash’s girlfriend, a job opportunity, and a chance to go to college, but this is moving in with a man, living with him, sharing his bed and taking care of his child. And I’m doing it less than two weeks after meeting him. I’ve lost my damn mind.
Now I understand why Ash keeps his nannies out of his bed at arm's length. The line between work and relationship can get pretty blurry. I’m starting to think Cannon’s not the only problem with the nanny situation.
Why didn’t Ash just hire a fat old grandma nanny who isn’t interested in sleeping with him or being part of the family? Maybe he did, who knows? Maybe fat grandma nannies fall in love with Ash Pride, too? I’ll bet they do.
I can see why all of that is upsetting to Cannon. He’s just a little kid, but he can sense when someone isn't being straightforward. If all his nannies were interested in Ash, maybe he felt second best, a means to an end. Poor kid.
I grab my swimsuit cover up and slip it over my head, slide my feet into my flip-flops and make my way down to the kitchen. I haven’t cooked in his kitchen yet. He has a chef that does all the cooking, housekeepers who clean everything before it has time to get dirty, drivers, personal assistants, gardeners galore, pool people, plural, not just one, and countless people working outside the house on the ranch.
I’ve got a speech prepared for his chef Consuela. I’d like to convince her that I am capable of whipping up some waffles by myself. But, as the queen of the kitchen she’s the boss, if she says no then I’m out of luck.
“Hi, Tella, Wayla’s not here, are you making me breakfast?” Cannon asks when I enter the bright sunlit kitchen. I’ve never been much of a cook, but if I were, this is the kitchen I would wish for. The island is the size of Texas, big and square with a farm sink on one side and six bar chairs on the other side. The room is open and bright, and all of the cupboards are white with glass fronts. You can see what’s inside and everything has been organized like someone with OCD stocks the shelves. There are commercial grade stainless steel appliances and a wine refrigerator bigger than our regular fridge at home.
It’s probably a typical billionaire’s kitchen, but Ash is the first billionaire I’ve ever met so I wouldn’t know for sure.
�
�Do you know where she is?”
“Nope,” he says smiling like he knows something he’s not telling me. I wonder if Ash told her to take a hike so I could make Cannon’s breakfast myself.
“Well then, yes, how about some waffles?”
I watch him climb onto one of the barstools. He slips, and I take a step forward but stop when he rights himself. When he’s on the seat, he sits on his knees leaning forward on the island with his arms crossed on the marble counter. “Like Eggo’s?” he asks.
“No, well, yeah, sort of but not in the toaster. Haven’t you ever had homemade waffles?”
He shakes his head no. “Wayla says they got too much sugar and sugar makes me bad.”
That pisses me off. Just because he used to act out didn’t mean he was bad and sugar isn’t always the root of all evil.
“Well, Consuela’s not here, and I think sugar is okay in moderation. Do you know what moderation means?”
“Nope.”
“It’s when you have a little of something once in a while.”
“So I get waffles?”
“Yep, you do. I just have to look around and find a few things. Maybe you can help me?”
“Okay,” he says, hopping off the stool and rushing to my side.
We work together opening every cupboard looking for a waffle iron, and in the fridge for the ingredients we need. When we have everything I sit him on the counter, and we go about making a colossal mess, and we have a blast doing it.
Cannon is smart, he catches on to things fast. When we are done, he knows which measuring spoon is the teaspoon and which is the tablespoon. He can also measure out a half cup of milk by himself. I love how his eyes light up with pride when I tell him he’s doing a good job, it’s like nobody’s ever done that before.
At the end of our breakfast extravaganza, we look at each other and then the mess in the kitchen. “We have to clean it up before we can go swimming.”
“Ugh, I’m full, I don’t wanna.”
“I know, but part of cooking is cleaning up your mess. Come on, if we do it together we’ll be done in no time.”
“Okay,” he drags himself off the chair and takes my hands pulling me out of mine. We work side by side rinsing the dishes and putting them in the dishwasher and wiping down the counters.
