'Tis the Season for Romance

by Kristen Proby

  “Harder, Rocket,” she cajoled. “I’m not going to break.”

  “I’m a lot bigger than you,” he said as he held on to his iron control.

  “You are. And I love feeling you deep inside me. But I need more.”

  At that, his eyes met hers once more. And that was all it took.

  “I’ll always give you what you need,” he said, and this time, instead of easing back into her, he slammed his hips forward.

  They both moaned.

  “Yessss,” she hissed.

  He did it again. And again. Until Jayme was once more awash in pleasure. The sound of his hips smacking against her flesh was loud in the room, seeming to echo around them, enhancing the pleasure.

  Jayme stared up at Rocket in fascination. His upper chest was red and blotchy from his efforts, and he was panting as he took his pleasure. The muscles in his biceps rippled as he held himself up, not wanting to squish her as he fucked her hard.

  Each thrust inside her pushed Jayme closer to orgasm. She’d never been one to be able to get off during actual intercourse, but because of Rocket’s size, and how sexy he made her feel, she was on the verge once again.

  Moving one hand between them, she couldn’t resist caressing Rocket’s cock as he pulled out of her body. He was slick with her excitement, and she used that to lubricate her clit as she flicked it.

  “Damn,” Rocket said. “Yes, get yourself off. I want to feel your tight pussy strangle my cock. Faster, Jayme. I’m close…”

  His words spurred her to move her fingers faster, desperate to give him what he wanted. It didn’t take long. Between his thrusts, his dirty talk, and the way his eyes bored into hers, Jayme was coming.

  “Ah, shit, that is so fucking good!” Rocket said just as he began thrusting into her even harder than before. The entire bed jolted each time he pushed inside her, and Jayme knew her boobs were bouncing up and down with the motion.

  She also knew the second Rocket lost it. One hand went under her ass and he pulled her in tight as he pushed into her one last time, holding himself as far inside her as he could get and throwing his head back. The veins in his neck stood out as he grunted his satisfaction.

  Jayme dug her fingernails into his biceps and watched as he experienced the high only an orgasm could provide. It was over way too quickly for her liking, before his body slowly relaxed. He fell to the side, then onto his back, still clutching her ass. Jayme ended up straddling his lap, and she sat up, staring down at him.

  His arms flopped out to his sides and his chest heaved up and down as he tried to catch his breath. “Holy shit, woman. You killed me,” he quipped.

  Jayme giggled and felt his cock twitch inside her. She raised an eyebrow.

  He grinned. “Well, I’m not quite ready to go another round, but give me five minutes.”

  She wouldn’t be surprised if that was true.

  One of his hands came up and he lightly traced her nipple with his forefinger. It immediately hardened at his touch. His gaze met hers briefly, before he wrapped his arms around her and turned her onto her back. His cock slipped out of her, and Jayme moaned.

  “I know. I need to take care of the condom. I’ll be right back. Don’t move.”

  Rocket eased out of the bed, but before he headed for the bathroom, he pulled the sheet and comforter up and over her body.

  Jayme watched as he walked completely unselfconsciously to the bathroom. He was back within a minute, climbing under the covers and taking her into his arms as if he’d done it every day for the last twenty years.

  Jayme snuggled into him, feeling completely at ease. His fingers lightly traced her shoulder as they lay there, simply enjoying the feel of each other.

  “Rocket?”

  “Hmmm?”

  “Thank you,” Jayme told him quietly.

  He didn’t ask for what. Didn’t tell her she didn’t need to thank him. He simply said, “You’re welcome.”

  Chapter 6

  Rocket couldn’t remember a time before Jayme was in his life. Well, he could, but he didn’t want to. He was as busy as ever with work, but the difference was, now when he came home, more often than not Jayme was at his house. She made dinner for them every night, and his house was always filled with the delicious scent of the delicacies she baked each day.

  Winnie had hooked her up with a real estate agent, and she was close to signing the paperwork for the perfect space that would make Warm Delights a reality and Rocket couldn’t be happier for her. He knew there was a lot of hard work ahead, and it would mean less time for her to spend with him, but it would be worth it to see her blossom.

  Two months had passed since they’d first gotten together…and Rocket had just bought an engagement ring for her a couple days ago. She was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with; he was just waiting for the perfect time to ask.

  Even though she was spending every night with him at his house, she still visited her grandmother every day, checking on her and making sure she had everything she needed and wasn’t lonely. Now it was Saturday, and they were spending it with Winnie at her house. She needed some yard work done, and Rocket had gladly volunteered. When her neighbors had seen him outside in the yard, they’d come over as well.

  Kane Temple—known as Brain to his friend and teammates—was in the Army, and he frequently mowed Winnie’s yard. His girlfriend, Aspen, came over when she saw Jayme and Winnie sitting on the porch. The three women had laughed and talked as he and Brain hauled away fallen limbs from a recent storm and tidied up Winnie’s yard.

  When they were done, they joined the women. Jayme had made some banana bread for her grandmother, and Winnie graciously shared it with all of them as they relaxed on her porch.

  “How’s the new job going?” Winnie asked Aspen.

  “It’s good. Really good,” she told her.

  Winnie turned to her granddaughter and Rocket. “Aspen was in the Army. She was a combat medic. She got out and now she works for an ambulance company.”

  Rocket was impressed. “Combat medic, huh?” he asked.

  But it was her boyfriend who responded. “Attached to a Ranger team,” he informed them.

  Rocket whistled low.

  “What? What am I missing?” Jayme asked, looking confused.

  “They’re responsible for providing medical treatment for soldiers wounded on the battlefield,” Rocket explained. “Army Rangers are some of the best-trained soldiers in the world. They’re an elite force that conducts special military missions on short notice. To be attached to one of their units, a combat medic practically needs to be a Ranger him or herself.”

  Rocket noticed Brain smirking, but the other man didn’t say anything.

  “I didn’t think women were allowed in combat?” Jayme asked.

  “In 2013, the ban was lifted on women serving in combat, in 2015 the first woman graduated from Ranger school. Then in 2016, all combat jobs opened to women. It’s been an uphill battle, pun intended, but ever so slowly, things are changing,” Aspen said.

  “Would it be rude for me to ask why you got out?” Jayme asked. “I mean, you can ignore that question if you want. I’m just curious.”

  The other woman shrugged. “When I joined the Army, I had grand hopes that I’d be able to save the world. That I could make a difference. But not everyone is ready to embrace the fact that women can be just as effective on the battlefield as men.”

  “What she’s not saying is that the men on the team she was attached to were assholes,” Brain clarified. “She’s an amazing paramedic, and the Army lost a hell of a medic when she quit. But their loss is Killeen’s gain. She saved my life not too long ago.”

  The look of love and respect Brain shot his girlfriend was easy to read.

  “Really?” Jayme asked.

  Aspen shook her head. “I didn’t do anything that anyone else wouldn’t’ve have done,” she protested.

  “Wrong.” Brain looked back at his audience. “It wasn’t too long ago, du
ring that tropical storm that made Houston flood so badly. We were sent down to the city to help out. I was…er…wounded, and ended up floating facedown in the floodwater. Aspen jumped out of the boat and dragged me to safety, giving me rescue breaths until I started breathing on my own. Then when we were separated from the other rescuers, she sat with me all night on a doorstep. If it hadn’t been for her, I would’ve been a goner for sure.”

  “Holy crap!” Jayme said.

  Rocket eyed the couple. He was astute enough to realize a lot of the details of whatever had happened were being left out, but the love between Brain and his girlfriend was as clear as day.

  “You did something boneheaded after that though, didn’t you?” Winnie berated.

  Brain’s brow furrowed. “Yeah.”

  “Memaw!” Jayme scolded.

  “What?” Winnie asked.

  “That wasn’t polite.”

  The older woman scoffed. “I’m too old to worry about hurting someone’s feelings. Everyone makes mistakes, and it’s obvious they’ve gotten over it.”

  Rocket couldn’t argue with that. The couple was obviously head over heels in love. Brain couldn’t go more than a minute without turning his head to check on his girlfriend while they’d been working, and the pride in his tone now was obvious.

  “Still. It was rude,” Jayme insisted.

  “I might be old, but I’m not an idiot,” Winnie retorted. “What do I have to do all day but stare out the window and observe my neighborhood? There was a week or so when Aspen didn’t visit Kane. Everyone else came to visit him, but not her.”

  “Right… So, after I got hurt, I pushed Aspen away. Thought she was better off without me,” Brain said.

  “Then you got your head out of your butt and realized you were being stupid,” Winnie added.

  Both Aspen and Brain chuckled. “Yes, ma’am,” Brain said.

  “Good. Because I like her,” Winnie said with a smile. “I could have obnoxious neighbors who throw parties and leave their trash can at the curb for days after the truck comes, but you two don’t do that.”

  “Nope,” Aspen said with a smile. “And if you ever need anything, we’re right next door and can come over at a moment’s notice.”

  The other woman sent a meaningful glance toward Jayme.

  “Which we’re very thankful for,” Jayme said gratefully.

  “I’m not dying yet,” Winnie griped. “I don’t need anyone hovering over me, waiting for me to kick the bucket.”

  Jayme patted her hand. “No one said anything about hovering,” she said, trying to smooth over the situation.

  “What do you do?” Brain asked Jayme, effectively moving the subject away from Winnie’s health.

  “Right now, nothing. But I’m working on buying a piece of property and opening my own business. A bakery.”

  Rocket thought it was comical how Aspen’s eyes widened in excitement.

  “Really?” she asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “That’s awesome! I’m not a bad cook, but I’m a horrible baker. I think the world needs more cupcakes.”

  The two women smiled at each other.

  “Tell her the name,” Winnie told her granddaughter.

  Jayme rolled her eyes, but complied. “I’m planning on calling it Warm Delights.”

  “Ooooh, I love it!” Aspen exclaimed.

  “Thanks. Me too. I moved here to Texas when the opportunity to own my own bakery in Seattle fell through. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do for work, but Rocket kind of helped me see that just because things didn’t go the way I’d wanted in Seattle, that didn’t mean I couldn’t open a bakery here.”

  “Damn straight,” Winnie said.

  “Are you going to make birthday cakes and stuff for people or will you stick with just selling cookies and breads and stuff like that?” Aspen asked.

  Rocket hadn’t planned on interjecting himself into the conversation about Jayme’s bakery, but he couldn’t help himself. “She’s gonna take specialty orders, but only a specific number a day…say, around five or so. So people will have to think ahead and move fast if they want to get on her list.”

  Jayme turned to gape at him in surprise, but Aspen and Brain nodded.

  “Smart. Establish a situation where people can’t just pop in and order something on the fly. It’ll create a demand for your services, even become something special that people will hopefully bend over backward for,” Brain said with a smile.

  “Exactly,” Rocket told him.

  Conversation turned to Winnie’s latest outing, when she and her friends went to a bar instead of heading to the senior center for bingo, and how much fun they’d had.

  Glancing over at Jayme, who’d become subdued, Rocket could tell she was annoyed. He knew he’d overstepped, but he hadn’t meant to upset her.

  Aspen and Brain stayed to chat for another twenty minutes or so, but eventually they said they needed to get going. After several promises to stay in touch, they wandered back over to their house.

  “We should probably get going too,” Rocket said. He didn’t have any plans for the night, but he had a feeling if he didn’t clear the air with Jayme, he’d be sleeping alone—which wasn’t something he ever wanted to do again.

  He was addicted to Jayme. Loved falling asleep with her in his arms and loved waking up with her next to him, as well. He even liked that, despite her claim to the contrary, she wasn’t a morning person…at least not until she’d had two cups of coffee. He loved everything about her, and having her in his house was a dream come true.

  He could tell Jayme wanted to argue. Wanted to stay at her grandmother’s house longer, but he needed to explain why he’d said what he had. He’d been thinking about her bakery for weeks now, and they’d even had several discussions about the business, and he wanted her to succeed more than he wanted just about anything in his life.

  Without a word, Jayme headed into the house to grab her purse.

  “You done stepped in it now,” Winnie told him. But she was grinning as she said it.

  “I know,” Rocket admitted.

  “For the record, I think what you said is a good idea. But my granddaughter’s always been a bit stubborn. Once she gets something in her head, she just goes for it. Which isn’t a bad thing, mind you, but she forgets to look up and assess every now and then.”

  Rocket nodded. He’d noticed that about Jayme, and it was one of a hundred things he loved about her. The passion she had for life was exciting and seemed to permeate everyone around her. He’d gladly protect her from anyone who wanted to sabotage that excitement or take advantage of her. He could be the bad guy without any issue, but she needed to know that he was always, one hundred percent, on her side.

  “I appreciate your support,” Rocket told Winnie.

  “You’re good for her,” the older woman said. “I can spot a con man a mile away, and you, Rocket Long, are anything but. I was lucky enough to be with my Steve for over fifty years. I always wanted that for my Jayme, and was beginning to despair of her finding her soul mate. But the second you offered to help me in that grocery store, I knew you would be good for her.”

  Winnie’s words meant a lot to Rocket, even if he thought she was a little crazy. “Thanks,” he said diplomatically.

  Winnie chuckled. “You don’t believe me, and that’s okay. I’m just a senile old lady who you’re humoring, and I don’t care. But, I have to say, I’m not getting any younger, and I’d like to hold my great-grandchild at least once before I pass on to be with my Steve.”

  Rocket blinked in surprise. Years ago, he’d thought about having children. About being a father. But as time passed, he’d pushed those desires to the back of his mind. Now, the image of Winnie holding a tiny baby flashed in his mind and wouldn’t leave.

  Then he pictured Jayme, round with their child…and instead of freaking him out, something settled deep inside his belly.

  He wanted a family with Jayme.

  Leaning forward, Rocke
t kissed Winnie’s cheek and whispered, “I’m workin’ on it.”

  “Good,” she replied with a smile. “Oh, and you should know, I told Jayme that I want to walk her down the aisle, so don’t go elopin’ or nothin’.”

  “Noted,” Rocket said with a chuckle.

  “What’s noted?” Jayme asked as she reappeared on the porch.

  “That since you gave away my banana bread today, you need to make me a replacement loaf,” Winnie said without missing a beat.

  Jayme rolled her eyes, but smiled. “Of course, Memaw. You need help getting inside?”

  “What am I, an invalid?” her grandmother asked. “Of course I don’t need help! I’m gonna sit out here for a while longer. It’s almost time for the neighbors across the way to get home, and they always come over to say hello. You know that.”

  “Right, sorry,” Jayme said. Then she leaned over and kissed her grandmother. “Call if you need anything.”

  “I will, but I won’t,” Winnie said.

  “I can’t believe I understood that,” Jayme said with a small laugh. “Love you, Memaw.”

  “Love you too, child,” Winnie responded. “Don’t be too hard on him.”

  Jayme pressed her lips together and shook her head. “See you tomorrow.”

  Rocket wasn’t surprised Jayme didn’t rise to her grandmother’s bait. She’d wait until she had him alone to lambaste him.

  Chapter 7

  Jayme was able to keep her ire to herself all the way back to Rocket’s house. It wasn’t that she didn’t want Rocket talking to Aspen and Brain about her bakery. It was more that it kind of sounded like he’d had all the ideas about her bakery. Yes, he had a business degree and had some really good ideas, but it wasn’t as if she was an idiot. Jayme knew she was working herself up over Rocket’s words, but she couldn’t help but feel as if she had back in Seattle. That her ideas were brushed aside and not as important as a man’s.