A Secret Chance: A Small Town Love Story (Chance Rapids Book 4)

by A. J. Wynter

  She rested herself on her elbows, her eyes meeting his as he gazed up from below. He flicked his tongue and her breath hitched. “Take off your pants,” she said. He kissed her, the warmth of his lips finally meeting her body and she moaned. His pants dropped to the floor with a dull thud, his manhood tenting out the fabric of his boxer briefs. “Those too.” She stretched out her leg and grabbed the waistband of his boxer briefs with her toes and tugged.

  His cock thudded against his body as he complied, and he stepped out of his underwear. “Now what?”

  Lauren knew that his cock was substantial, but the monster in front of her was bigger than she remembered. He put his hands on his hips and raised his eyebrow at her. “I’m waiting,” he said.

  “I want you to...” her voice trailed off.

  “I’ve heard you in action, Miss Bunkman.” He trailed a finger down her thigh. “You own the courtroom.”

  She met his gaze and held it. He was right, she was a powerful woman. If they were in the courtroom, she would have no problem ordering him around, and secretly getting off on wielding that kind of power. She hopped off the counter and dropped to her knees in front of him. She didn’t tease, she licked the tip of his cock and then grabbed his ass, pressing him into her mouth as far as she could. His legs were quivering, and she did it once more. She stood up and nipped at his lip this time.

  “Go get a condom,” she ordered. He smiled and grabbed her by hand, leading her out of the kitchen. He broke out into a run and she giggled as they sprinted through the hallway of the mansion into the dark master bedroom. His hand fumbled around on the wall until he found the dimmer switch.

  “You’re so beautiful,” he said as he adjusted the lights to a soft glow. He cupped her cheeks and kissed her gently, his cock brushing against her body. She grabbed onto his wrist and pushed him away by his chest. “Brock,” her words were breathy. “I need you inside of me.” She stepped toward him, pushing him until the back of his legs was against the big four-poster bed. He grabbed her by the arms, spun her around and tossed her onto the silk duvet cover like she was a feather. Lauren writhed on the bed as he rolled on the condom. “Fuck me.” He sprang on top of her and paused at her opening, one eyebrow raised. “Now.” She managed to growl and smile at the same time. He smiled back and winked at her. She nudged him with the heel of her foot, and he groaned as he plunged into her. She dug her nails into his back and moaned as his hardness filled her. He started pumping slowly and rhythmically. She balled the bajillion thread count sheets in her fists, squeezed her eyes closed, and her breaths started coming faster mirroring his thrusts as he drew in and out of her. Her body started to tingle, and her toes curled so hard she thought her feet might cramp. She opened her eyes at the same time he opened his. He smiled at her, his body still moving, her leg hooked over his waist, and she smiled back.

  He pulled out of her completely and kissed where his cock had just been. “It’s my turn to do what I want,” he said, a devilish look in his eyes.

  “What do you want to do?” Lauren’s sweaty hands were still holding on to the sheets.

  “Make you come,” he grinned.

  Lauren moaned as Baxter buried his face between her legs, his tongue doing exactly what she wanted it to and when her legs started to quiver and she tried to pull away, he dug his hands into her ass and held her, continuing until the strongest wave of an orgasm Lauren had ever experienced washed over her entire body. “Oh, my god, Baxter,” she screamed. Her limbs tensed and a tingle surged from her core all the way to her fingertips. He kissed her thighs and her chest heaved as she panted, recovering from the pleasure that had just train wrecked her body.

  He kissed her belly and ran his fingertip between her breasts, stopping to rest his hand on her racing heart. He kissed her neck. “Turn over,” he whispered into her ear. Lauren smiled and turned beneath him. Baxter interlaced his fingers with hers and let his body weight press her down into the firm mattress. He kissed the back of her neck as he slowly slid into her from behind. Even though it had only been momentary, her body had missed having him inside of her, and once he was there again, she felt complete, like the last missing piece to a puzzle had just been found. Baxter proceeded to make love to her tenderly and slowly, reaching his hand between her legs and making sure that when his body bucked against hers, that she was coming too. He moaned loudly at the same time as she screamed out his name. He pressed into her hard from behind, his cock twitching inside of her as he came. He collapsed on top of her and she smiled and nuzzled her face into one of the down pillows, his panting weight on her back welcome.

  “I love seeing you smile.” He kissed her cheek.

  “You can make me smile like that all night long.” The slightly sassy words sounded foreign coming out of her mouth, but good.

  “Sounds like a challenge,” he said.

  A challenge he completed three more times that night.

  Chapter 24

  BAXTER TURNED OVER and inhaled her scent – sandalwood and citrus. He opened his eyes and the sight of her brown hair splayed over his pillow warmed his heart. Her lips were parted slightly, and her chest rose and fell with her breathing as she slept. He rolled into her, burying his face in her hair and taking her scent more deeply. His morning wood was harder than usual and as he wrapped his arms around Lauren’s waist to pull her in tightly, his cock throbbed against her round ass.

  She murmured and shifted further into his embrace, pressing her body firmly against his, her breath resuming its soft sleeping pattern. He kissed her lightly on the cheek and slid out of the sheets, slipping into a pair of sweatpants. He didn’t bother to tie the drawstring, fully intending to return to the bedroom to drop his pants and wake up the gorgeous woman in his bed. But first, coffee.

  His feet were warmed by the radiant floor heating as he walked barefoot through the mansion. He ground the beans and leaned against the counter while the machine churned out espresso. He shot it back and proceeded to make an americano with milk and a little bit of sugar for Lauren and cream for himself. He was tired, but it was a good kind of exhaustion. The kind you can only get from staying up late fucking. Lauren was a tigress in the courtroom, and the fact that she was a chameleon in the bedroom didn’t surprise him. He loved the dichotomy of the woman, powerful and commanding, combined with sweet and generous. The hair prickled on his arms as he thought about how they had alternated between sweet slow lovemaking and straight-up carnal fucking. He knew every curve of her body after last night – every single one and all he wanted was more.

  He set the coffee down on the nightstand and watched the smell rouse Lauren from her sleep. She opened her eyes and squinted at him, a sly smile spreading across her face as she saw his massive hard-on practically busting through the seam of his sweatpants.

  “That smells amazing.” She propped herself on her elbow and took a sip of the coffee. The sheet fell from her chest and unlike most women he had been with, she didn’t move to cover herself. The quiet confidence of the woman was refreshing, and he wanted to drink her in. He crawled on top of her and kissed her gently. “Sorry about the morning breath,” she whispered.

  “I don’t fucking care about that.” He took the mug from her hand and practically devoured her mouth. He kissed her collarbone and traveled down her body with his lips, removing the sheet as he went, exposing her body until he found himself between her legs, desperate to taste her sweetness again.

  The room lit up as the sun crested above the jagged horizon, bathing the master suite in a glow of orange. She’s radiant, he thought as he looked up at her, her hands rested limply on the pillow beside her head, her eyes closed. No, she wasn’t a supermodel; she was better. She was Lauren.

  Her phone buzzed on the nightstand. “I should get that,” she said through a moan.

  “It can wait.”

  The phone buzzed again, but this time it was a call. “Hold that thought, Baxter,” Lauren said and slid up, leaving him lying in wait halfway down the bed. She pick
ed up the phone and glanced at the screen. “I have to take this,” she said. She slid out of the covers and scurried naked into the ensuite bathroom, sliding the huge slab door shut behind her.

  Seconds later she rushed into the bedroom. “I have to go.” She tossed the duvet back and patted down the sheets to try to locate her discarded panties.

  “Is everything okay?” Baxter asked. He handed her the bra that had been tossed onto the floor. Lauren rushed down the hallway as she was zipped up her jeans and pulled on her shirt. Baxter followed. “Don’t forget this.” He held out her purse.

  “Thanks.” She looped the purse over her shoulder and grabbed onto his hand. “I had a great night,” she said.

  He looped his arm around her waist and pulled her in for a kiss. Their lips lingered and then she pulled away to root through her handbag for her car keys.

  “Is there anything I can do?” Baxter asked. She looked frantic.

  She turned to face him, her hand on the door handle. “Baxter, there’s something we have to talk about.”

  “Sounds serious,” he said.

  She cast her eyes downward, “It is.”

  “Oh no.” He searched her eyes, “Was last night a one-off?”

  She shook her head, “There’s something I have to tell you, I just can’t do it now.”

  “Come back then and we can talk tonight.” He squeezed her tighter.

  “Alright,” she agreed. She stood on her toes and kissed him again, and he swore he saw a touch of sadness in her eyes.

  “I hope everything is okay, with, whatever it is you have to do.” He pointed to the phone she still held clutched in her hand.

  “Thanks. Bye.”

  He held the door open for her and watched as she jogged down the heated walkway to her little car. “Bye.” He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was very wrong, he just didn’t know what. All he knew was that he had just had the best night of his life, and he would do anything to have more nights like that with Lauren.

  Chapter 25

  NO MOTHER LIKES TO pick up the phone and hear the anguished cries of their daughter. She knew that she had to tell Baxter about Tabitha and had planned to do it that morning, but Tabitha was sick. That super hard conversation she had been avoiding would have to wait for a few more hours. Even though she knew it was wrong, she was relieved to put it off a while longer but was terrified of what was going to happen when she told him about his daughter. She sped into town, worrying about Tabby and trying to figure out how to tell Baxter the truth about her.

  What they had was real. There was no denying it. And after Monday, they wouldn’t have the development dividing them like a brick wall. But once she told him... She shook her head; she couldn’t worry about how he was going to react. Her priority was Tabitha.

  Tabitha’s face was pale when she came to the door behind Julia’s mom, Charmaine.

  “Hi, sweetie.”

  “Hi, Mom.” Tabitha’s voice was quiet, but she let Lauren hug her in tightly.

  “Are you okay?”

  “She must have the flu or food poisoning or something,” Charmaine said. “She threw up this morning, I put her pajamas in the laundry.” She handed Lauren Tabitha’s overnight backpack.

  Back at home, Lauren tucked her daughter into bed and heated some chicken noodle soup up on the stove. She left a big bowl of it beside Tabitha’s bed, along with the trash can in case she got sick again. Once she was sleeping soundly, Lauren curled up on the sofa with a book, but her eyes kept reading the same paragraph as she tried to figure out what to tell Baxter.

  Throughout the afternoon, Lauren monitored Tabitha’s temperature and as the day wore on her bouts of vomiting tapered off. She hated when Tabby was sick. It was such a helpless feeling as a mother, and she would give her right arm to trade places and be sick for her.

  As the afternoon turned into evening, the color started coming back to Tabitha’s cheeks, and she was able to keep the soup down. Lauren knew that she had rounded the corner when she asked for her favorite – a grilled cheese sandwich.

  Lauren made them both a sandwich and the two of them cuddled up on the sofa and ate their lunch. Lauren’s phone pinged and she knew before picking it up that it would be Baxter. She had promised to come back to him, but there was no way she could leave Tabitha right now.

  Still coming over? the text read.

  She set the phone down and cleared their plates. She poured Tabitha another ginger ale and herself a glass of wine. Once settled back on the sofa, she typed and retyped her message to Baxter, deleting it and then re-writing a similar version. She finally settled with, ‘not feeling great.’ It was the best she could come up with, and technically it wasn’t a lie.

  “Is all of your homework done for school tomorrow?” Lauren asked.

  Tabitha nodded. “I did it on Friday.”

  “Of course, you did.” Tabitha was Lauren the book nerd’s daughter after all. Lauren smoothed out Tabitha’s hair and kissed her on the top of her head. “Do you want to watch a movie?”

  Tabitha nodded and she handed her the remote. Lauren didn’t see any of the movie as she was lost in thought while she absentmindedly stroked her daughter’s hair. She was periodically brought back to the present whenever Tabitha giggled at the TV. “Mom, could I have some more ginger ale please?”

  Lauren glanced at her watch; it was just past eight. “You know that’s got a lot of sugar in it and it’s late.”

  “Please.” Tabitha’s eyes were huge behind her glasses. “I’m still not feeling good.”

  Lauren knew that wasn’t the case but took the glass and headed into the kitchen. “Only because you’re sick,” she shouted.

  The doorbell rang, it’s loud mechanical chime startling Lauren so much that she spilled the soda on the counter. “Shit,” she muttered.

  “I’ll get it,” Tabitha jumped up from the sofa.

  “No,” Lauren shouted and dropped the can of soda into the sink. For someone who only minutes earlier couldn’t walk to the kitchen, Tabitha was surprisingly fast.

  Lauren stood frozen at the entrance to the living room, the glass in her hand, and the door opening in slow motion. She held her breath, knowing exactly who was waiting on the other side.

  It was him. Baxter turned as the door opened. He smiled at Tabitha and Lauren swore her heart stopped.

  “Hi,” Tabitha said.

  “Hi. It’s Tabitha, right?” Baxter said.

  Shit. Shit. Shit.

  “What are you doing here?” Tabitha asked. Lauren had managed to unglue her feet and walked to hold the door open over her daughter.

  “I heard that your aunt wasn’t feeling good, so I brought her some soup.” Baxter held out a jar of broth.

  “My aunt?” Tabitha said. Lauren’s stomach lurched. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to go. She reached down and grabbed onto Tabitha’s shoulders to steer her away from the door, but she wasn’t fast enough.

  “Auntie Charlotte isn’t here.”

  Baxter tilted his head and Tabitha turned to face Lauren. “Mom, what’s he talking about?”

  “Go to your room,” Lauren whispered to Tabitha. She shrugged in the way that pre-teens do and headed into her bedroom. Lauren stepped out onto the porch and pulled the door closed behind her.

  “I can explain,” she whispered.

  “You’re not sick,” he said. “Your... daughter is sick?” It was both a statement and a question.

  “Yes.” She hung her head and kicked at the piece of ice on her front step with the toe of her slipper.

  “Why didn’t you tell me that you had a kid?” Baxter handed her the soup.

  “I-I-I...” As much as Lauren had practiced her speech to Baxter, the words weren’t coming.

  “You lied.” He took a step back.

  “I didn’t lie exactly.” Lauren reached for Baxter’s hand, but he pulled it away. “I just didn’t tell you the truth.”

  “And there’s a difference?” Baxter’s voice g
rew louder. Lauren raised her finger, ready to retort, but as the redness spread from the collar of his jacket up his neck couldn’t find the words. “I thought that she was your sister’s kid, and both of you let me believe it.” His eyes flashed and he crossed his arms across his chest.

  “It wasn’t a lie,” Lauren repeated.

  “Classic lawyer speak.” Baxter’s voice was cold. “But why?” he shook his head. “Why didn’t you just tell me?”

  “I couldn’t,” Lauren whispered.

  “Why the hell not?” Baxter’s voice was hard and angry as he backed away from her. Lauren glanced back to the house and then followed him down the stairs. She grabbed Baxter by the elbow and led him to the sidewalk. “I never told you that she was Charlotte’s daughter. You assumed,” she hissed.

  “And I assumed wrong.”

  “You did.” Lauren knew that she was totally in the wrong but didn’t know how to backpedal.

  “It doesn’t make any sense.” He said. “Why would I care if you have a kid? Is that what you think of me? That I wouldn’t be interested in you if you had baggage?” He stepped back from her, and she stepped forward filling the gap between them.

  “I was going to tell you,” she whispered. She tried to take his hand again. “That’s what I was going to tell you this morning.”

  “I still don’t know why you couldn’t have told me this before.” Baxter pulled his hat off his head and ran his fingers through his hair.

  “Baxter.”

  “What?” he snapped.

  “I’m sorry. I should have told you sooner.”

  “You think?” His eyes were narrow, and he stepped to the door of his car. “Lauren,” he began and turned to face her. He sighed and leaned against the door, “I fucking love you.”

  Lauren felt the tears spring up in her eyes. “I love you t—”

  “Stop,” he snapped. “I love you and you lied to me – for no reason at all.”