by Whitley Cox
Setting her wineglass down, she reached for his hand, cupping it in both of hers. “Knowing you’re in my corner means a lot, and even though I just got out of a long-term relationship, heck, an engagement, this is no rebound. I have some really deep feelings for you too. Feelings that”—she shook her head and laughed choppily—“feelings that both excite and terrify me.”
“We’ll take it slow, then.” He set his wineglass down as well and let his other hand join hers. “I come with some baggage, and … ” His throat bobbed on a swallow. “And I—”
“You love your wife. I got that right away when you told me how long she’s been gone for. I’m not looking to fill anybody’s shoes.”
He nodded, a pained expression flitting across his face. “We were high school sweethearts. Went to college and law school together. She was my”—he glanced up at her, his eyes beseeching, almost worried—“my first and only.”
Her mouth opened. “You mean … ”
“Last night was a huge deal for me, and the fact that we went at it like angry animals surprised and scared the fuck out of me.”
“Pile on the whole no condom thing.” She released his hand and shoved her fingers in her hair. “I went and got a blood test today, just so you know. Again, I am so sorry. I have condoms in my purse.”
“You brought condoms?”
Oh, crap.
“Was that not what tonight was about?” She stood up, stepped away from him and began pacing in front of the fireplace. “Oh my God. Did I assume? Did I overstep? Was this a date with no … Do you not want to, you know … with kids in the house? Oh my God. Oh my God. I am so sorry. I should just go.” She made to leave, but he was up off the couch and had his hands on her waist before she had even reached the door.
“Tessa, come sit down.” He led her back to the couch, handed her her wine and took a sip of his own. The glint of humor in the dark gray of his eyes and the crook at the corner of his sinfully sexy mouth said he found her little fluster hilarious.
“Don’t laugh at me,” she scolded, drinking more wine.
“I’m not laughing at you. I happen to think you’re adorable and sexy and wonderful.”
She sat back against the couch. “Say more things like that.”
His grin stole every molecule of oxygen clear from her lungs. “You’re beautiful, Tessa. Smart, sweet, kind. And the fact that you like to ride a crotch rocket while also wearing healing crystals … ” He reached out and gently picked up the crystal pendant that fell between her breasts. “It just makes you all the more unique and multifaceted.”
She raked her top teeth over her bottom lip. Her body was an inferno, her nipples had grown tight, and her pussy was pulsing. His thumb caressed it and an ache formed deep in her belly, spreading lower and growing into a throbbing warmth.
“I like you, Tessa. I want to get to know you. And if sex is where tonight goes, then great. But I’m okay if that is not where we end up. The girls are upstairs in bed. I have their monitors linked to my phone.” He tilted his head toward his iPhone. “We can watch a movie down here. I can pop some popcorn. Or we can just talk and get to know each other. I need to take this slow, and by slow, I mean I need to learn how to be with a woman who is not my wife. And not just in bed; in every way. She was my first girlfriend—my only girlfriend ... ever.”
“You’re a unicorn,” she whispered.
He snorted. “I suppose you could say that.”
“I’m okay taking it slow,” she said. “I was just dumped, and he stole my dog. I’m not looking to rush into anything either. Plus, I have my PhD defense coming up in a month, and my mom … ”
Like a curious puppy, he tilted his head. “What about your mom?”
Right, her mom.
“She’s in a home, and it just takes a lot of time and energy out of my day to go and see her is all.” She wasn’t ready to reveal the big A that hung over her head like a scarlet letter.
“And from what you said about your tattoo, your father passed away?” he probed.
“Yeah. He was a helicopter pilot and went to go and find some lost hikers up on the mountain. They say he got caught in a blizzard and the crash of the helicopter against the side of the mountain caused an avalanche.”
“Oh my God.”
“About two years ago now, I guess. Feels like longer, but at the same time it feels like just yesterday he and I were tinkering on my bike in his garage.”
“I feel the exact same way about Samantha.”
She blinked up at him and reached for his hands again. “I’m okay if you want to tell me about your wife, if it will help, or even if after speaking about her you realize you aren’t ready to be with me. Don’t think you can’t ever talk about her to me.”
His small, placid smile spoke of appreciation and acceptance. “Maybe over time. But not yet, at least not much.” He placed one hand on her knee. “But thank you for that.”
She untangled their hands, and they both reached for their wine.
“So should I go pop us some popcorn?” he asked, reaching for the wine bottle and topping them both up.
She grimaced inwardly.
Now came the whole conversation about all the things she didn’t eat in the hopes it gave her a brain a few extra years before it turned to mush.
His expression turned quizzical. “You don’t like popcorn?”
“I like popcorn. I just don’t eat popcorn. But you don’t have to feed me. I ate before I came over. It’s okay. I have some dietary restrictions or preferences or whatever, and they can be a bit much to take on.” Damn it, she should have just brought herself a container of raw veggies like she did most places. Kept her from going hungry and deviating from her healthy-brain meal plan.
“Like allergies?” He seemed genuinely concerned. “You’re not deathly allergic to anything, are you?”
She shook her head. “No. Not anything like that. It’s just there’s a family history of some illnesses I’d rather not get into right now, and I’m just being proactive and preventative by keeping on a strict, healthy diet.”
He seemed to understand and nodded. “What about some raw veggies cut up? Nuts? Are nuts out of the question?”
Damn, he really was a unicorn. Carlyle had never been so accommodating to her, even when they first started dating.
His gaze turned more intense and probing. “Can you eat that stuff?”
Smiling, she sipped her wine. “I can, thank you.”
“I’ll be right back.” He turned on the television, brought up Netflix and then handed her the remote. “Find something for us to watch.” Then her unicorn headed out of the room, leaving her alone with her thoughts, Netflix and the wine bottle.
Atlas piled all the sliced celery, peppers, cucumbers and baby carrots on a plate, then grabbed the jar of mixed nuts from the pantry. He was just about to head back downstairs when Cecily’s cry from down the hall gave him pause.
Shit.
He waited a moment. Sometimes she simply cried out in her sleep but wasn’t actually awake and he didn’t need to go to her. Other times, she managed to settle herself back down without his intervention. Compared with Aria at this age, Cecily was a breeze.
She cried again, but it wasn’t urgent-sounding. With light footsteps on the wood floor, he headed down the hallway. That’s when he heard the quiet but distinct sound of Aria in Cecily’s room.
What the ... ?
“Shhhhh, baby. It’s okay. Aria’s here.”
Careful not to let either of them see or hear him, he adopted stealth ninja mode and hunkered down onto his knees before peering around the doorjamb into Cecily’s room.
What played out before him was damn near unbelievable.
Aria was on the floor of Cecily’s room on the plush carpet next to the crib, with a blanket from her own bed and her own pillow, and she was holding Cecily’s hand through the bars. Cecily was smiling and cooing now.
“I’m sorry, baby,” Aria whispered. “I won’t hit you ag
ain.”
Cecily giggled.
“Sleep, baby,” Aria whispered.
Cecily said something in baby-speak, then giggled again.
“Go to sleep, little baby. Go to sleep, little one. When you wake in the morning, you’ll be greeted by the sun,” Aria sang, butchering the song and mispronouncing her th, but nonetheless making Atlas’s heart melt on the spot. Samantha used to sing that song to her when she was still pregnant and Aria was restless, and then when Aria was a baby and colicky. He hadn’t sung that to her once since Samantha passed—it was just too hard—but it amazed him she still remembered it.
“The birds will sing a song for you. The flowers will smell extra sweet. Sleep now, my child, rest your head, for on the morrow, our hearts will meet.” Aria lifted up and pressed a kiss to Cecily’s hand. “Love you, baby.” Then she settled down on the carpet, beneath her blankets, and Cecily seemed to quiet down too, their hands still clasped.
It was like night and day. His child was … his child again. And in only three sessions with Tessa. Was she really the miracle worker Zak claimed her to be?
She’s managed to bring you out of your miserable funk. Why wouldn’t she also help Aria?
Leaving his girls to sleep as they were, he left the food on the counter and raced down the stairs. This woman, this magician, this sorceress, she’d put a spell on all of them, and they were all the better for it. He’d left the door to his office open and found her sitting quietly on the couch, sipping wine and flicking through the movie list on Netflix. Without a word and in three strides he was with her, pulling the remote from her hands and crushing his lips to hers.
She was startled at first, but the moan that bubbled up from the back of her throat and the way she melted against him said it was a surprise she liked. Her arms wrapped around the back of his neck, and she pulled him down to her. He spread her out on the couch and covered her body with his, careful not to rest his full weight on her. Their tongues tangled and teased, teeth nipped and lips sucked. He’d been dying to kiss her again since last night and couldn’t believe how much he missed the taste of her already.
After a moment, she pulled her lips from his and tucked her face into the crook of his neck. “Not that I’m complaining, but what was that for?” Her chest heaved against his, and her words came out as a bit of a pant.
“Aria has finally accepted Cecily—at least for now. She’s upstairs in Cecily’s room, sleeping on her floor, and they’re holding hands. That never would have happened before. I would have had to worry about her smothering Cecily with a pillow rather than comforting her. Whatever you’re doing with her … ” He lifted his head and gazed down at the woman who had bewitched them all. “I’m a convert. Keep doing what you’re doing. I feel like I finally have my daughter back.”
She smiled up at him and blinked those beautiful blue eyes of hers. “I’m just giving her an outlet. Giving her a chance to express her feelings in a constructive and positive way, and when she discusses those feelings with me, I help her sort them out. She realized today that Cecily is not to blame for things and that as a baby, she can’t be Aria’s target. It took a bit of convincing, but by the time you came to get her, she’d pretty much figured it out. She’s incredibly bright, and her language is quite advanced for three and a half. You’re doing a great job with her.”
Pressing his elbow into the couch, he swept the hair off her face and cupped the side of her head. “You’re the miracle worker.” His lips fell to hers again.
She chuckled against his mouth. “Aria isn’t that bad off. Cut yourself—and her—some slack. She has a stable home environment, a father that loves her and she’s well socialized with kids at pre-school and other children. She’s just hit a rough patch, but she’s going to be just fine. It also helps that you’re home more for her. That is really helping.”
“So I’m not raising a future serial killer because she hit her cousin with a toy train and then screamed in her face?”
Her laugh made both their bodies shake. “Not at all.”
“She apologized to me for doing that earlier this evening and then apologized to Cecily just now.” The knuckles of his free hand traced the delicate line of her collarbone.
“She’s an emotional child but also very sensitive and empathic. You’ll have your hands full as she gets older and sorts out those emotions, but as long as you provide her with a constructive outlet and let her know that her feelings are okay and that you’re there for her, she’s going to be just fine.” Her fingers toying with the hair at the nape of his neck felt really good, and he tilted his head a bit for her to get a new spot, his eyelids growing heavy at the same time. “You’re a great dad, Atlas.”
He blinked wide at her, studying the gentle contours of her face, the pink in her cheeks and flecks of white in her eyes. “Say more things like that.”
Her smile was magnetic. “You are a great dad,” she repeated. “And damn sexy. A bit moody, but we’ll work on that.”
He lifted an eyebrow at her, but she lifted one back at him in challenge.
“You’re raising great kids,” she continued. “Don’t beat yourself up over Aria’s reaction to Cecily’s arrival and you working. Life has its challenges, and she’s coming to learn that the world doesn’t revolve around her. A hard concept—one that some adults never learn—but one that will make her a better person in the long run. I don’t have kids, but I know that nobody is perfect, and as long as your children know they’re loved, they’re going to be all right.” Her fingers tightened their hold in his hair. “Did you forget the nuts?”
Huh?
He wanted to kiss that smile clean off her face. “The nuts and veggies. Did you forget them when you were overcome by lust and raced down here?”
He rolled his eyes and levered up to a sitting position. “More gratefulness than lust, but there was certainly some of that in there too. And no, I’ll run up and grab them.” He stood up and headed toward the door, unable to keep his eyes from her and how goddamn gorgeous she looked all flush-faced and easily ravishable on his couch.
Sitting up, she smiled coyly as she took a sip of her wine. “My purse is on your coat hook on the landing. Maybe grab it for me, please?”
“Okay?”
She lifted her brows.
Oh, right! The condoms.
He nodded, then raced upstairs to grab the veggies and nuts, snatching her purse on his way back down.
He still wasn’t sure how things were going to go or whether he was ready to move on, but he knew that not taking a chance on Tessa and the connection they had would be something he’d regret for the rest of his life.
14
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” Atlas ground into the phone the following Wednesday night as he and Tessa once again sat on the couch in his office and watched a movie.
“Believe me, we’re all equally pissed off,” Richelle replied. She and Liam were at Liam’s house and on speakerphone with Tessa and Atlas. “So the meeting with them has been pushed back for three weeks until they return from their vacation. How fucking convenient.”
“Is that even legal?” Tessa asked, tears welling up in her eyes. “Who has Forest while they’re off on their European vacation? Why didn’t they just give him to me?”
“It is legal,” Atlas said grimly, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and pulling her into his body. He wanted to punch and maim this Carlyle fucker, but he needed to rein in his anger and focus on the woman beside him who needed softness and comfort. “And he didn’t give you Forest because he’s a fucking douchebag who is making a power play.”
“If he’s like a couch—property, of which I own half, can I not just go to the boarding kennel or dog-sitter and take him? It’s not like I’m stealing my own dog.” She leaned into him and wiped beneath her eye with the hem of her T-shirt.
“I’m afraid not,” Richelle said with reluctance. “At this point, even though your name is on the registration, until the courts decide on w
ho owns Forest, it would appear as theft. I know this sucks, Tessa, and if it were legal, I would be right there with you picking up that dog and helping you bring him home, waving the court order in the face of anybody that protested. But for now, we just need to sit tight and wait.”
She sniffled and shuddered against his body. “But he’s my dog … This doesn’t make any sense. Why would Carlyle do this to me?”
Atlas rubbed his hand down Tessa’s arm. “I’ll see if McGregor can find out where they took Forest. If it’s a boarding kennel, we might be able to get you visitation. If it’s just a random friend or dog-sitter, I’m not sure what we can swing. Particularly if Carlyle and his little first-year Jezebel had the forethought to forbid the dog-sitter from letting you see him.”
“I wouldn’t put it past Blaire,” Richelle replied. “She’s a first-year law student, don’t you know? Means she knows everything about the justice system.”
“Thank you for calling,” Tessa whispered, her entire body having seemed to collapse in on itself. She seemed so small in his arms now, so defeated.
“I’ll be in touch,” Liam said, remorse in his tone.
Atlas turned off the speaker and put the phone back to his ear. “Has Rickson hired counsel yet?”
“Not that we’re aware of,” Liam said. “But that doesn’t mean he hasn’t, just that he and his lawyer haven’t filed anything yet. Do we know what he does for work?”
Atlas turned to Tessa. “What does fuckface do for work?”
“He’s got a bachelor’s degree in biology. Was working for some environmental agency for a while, but he applied at the college not too long ago for an opening they had in one of the labs.”
“You hear that?” Atlas said to Liam.
“Sure did. I wonder if Adam knows anything about him? He was, after all, just made dean of the biology department.”
