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  Between the two of us, we got Austin tucked in for a nap. I walked him upstairs, and Melody rushed around, trying to make it up for him just right. I settled him down, and she tucked the blankets around his body. I grinned as she kissed his forehead, whispering how much she loved him. I saw the adoration in her eyes. The love she had for her son. And it warmed my heart.

  She really was a good woman.

  “Thank you so much for today,” she whispered.

  We slipped out of Austin’s room before she closed the door.

  “It’s really not a problem. I’m glad he had fun. But did Austin’s mother have fun?”

  She smiled. “Yes. I really did.”

  She wrapped me up in a hug, and I held her tightly. Her head fell directly against my chest, and I slid my fingers mindlessly through her hair. Feeling her in my arms again felt like euphoria. It felt like heaven had graced me with a little slice of its presence here on earth. I kissed the top of her head mindlessly. I listened to her sigh. And as her face tilted up to mine, I couldn’t resist her a second longer.

  So, I dipped my lips to capture hers.

  I cupped her cheek. I slid my fingers through her hair and softly fisted it. I held her to me, feeling her moan as she collapsed into my body. The weight of her drowning me. Threatening to swallow me whole. I slowly backed us into the room behind me. The darkness shrouded us as I reached out with my free hand. I closed the door as our tongues dueled, then wrapped my arms around her back. Cloaking her. Pulling her close. Refusing to let her go.

  “Tyler,” she whispered.

  I kissed down her neck before slipping her shirt over her head.

  “We have to be quiet. My son.”

  I pulled her breast out of her lacy bra and suckled on her puckered peak. Pulling a moan from her lips.

  “I need more,” she panted.

  And as my lips found her ear, I felt her hands fall to the button of my jeans.

  “I simply can’t wait to taste you.”

  Chapter 12

  Melody

  I shivered at his words. We stripped one another down until my skin settled against his. He backed me to the bed until I fell against the mattress, my legs spreading apart for him. His mouth rushed down my body as he tossed my legs over his shoulders. He kissed my thighs, nibbling on their excess as his hands slid up my body. Massaging my breasts and tugging softly at my nipples.

  “Relax,” he murmured.

  I sighed as I gazed up at the ceiling, feeling his breath pulsing against my slit. His tongue lapped softly. Tenderly. A stark contrast to the command of his hands. I lifted my pussy lips to his. I heard him chuckle as his tongue gathered my juices. My heart raced as his tongue breached me. Pierced me. Dove deep before settling against my clit.

  “Oh,” I gasped.

  “There it is,” he grunted.

  My hands reached for his hair. I clung to him as his tongue flicked my clit. I felt myself throbbing. Teeming with a need for release. I bucked against him. I felt his stubble tickling my wetness. And as his tongue slowly licked deeper, my orgasm caught me by surprise.

  “Oh! Oh, my gosh!”

  He hummed against my body, but he didn’t stop. His tongue moved faster. My thighs jumped at every caress of his skin. I shook underneath him. His palms massaged my breasts as I rocked heavily against his face. Juices dripped down my skin. His tongue filled my entrance. He lapped up my pussy. He pressed his tongue against my clit, flattening it out. Holding it there for me to use.

  “Yes!” My back arched. My pleasure choked off my words. My eyes rolled back, and my bare heels dug into his skin. I gasped for air as he held me still. Pinned my hips to the bed. He slowly moved his tongue along my clit, working me through my pleasure as stars burst behind my eyes.

  “Oh, yes,” I choked out.

  I collapsed back to the bed, and he pulled away. I felt naked without him. Empty and lonely. I reached out for him. My legs twitched as I laid there, unable to move.

  “Tyler?” I asked softly.

  “You have no idea how breathtaking you are to me.”

  He fell to the bed, hovering above me as our lips collided. I tasted myself on him, and the heady feeling I got took my breath away. I spread my legs for him and felt him inch his cock inside. Every swollen, thickening part of him sank into me. Shivering me to my core. I wrapped my arms around his neck. I locked my legs around his. He bottomed out as his tongue explored my mouth. Allowing me to suck his lower lip. Allowing me to suck my scent off his skin.

  My eyes fell open and they met his. Dark. Wanton. And filled with something I didn’t recognize. His hands unraveled my own from his neck, pinning them above my head. My body open for his taking. And as he slowly moved, I felt our bodies become one. I felt our souls finally greeting one another for the first time.

  “Oh, Tyler,” I whispered.

  I met him thrust for thrust. My mattress squeaked as his mouth swallowed my sounds. I couldn’t take my eyes off him. That look. What kind of look was that? Never in my life had I felt so desired. So wanted. So beautiful. And as our movements grew more furious, my back began arching again.

  “That’s it, Melody. Squeeze me. Take what you want.”

  “Tyler. Come with me. I’m so close. So close. So close.”

  “You like that?”

  “Yes.”

  “You like me?”

  “Oh, yes.”

  “Then come for me, Melody. Show me how much you want me.”

  I bucked ravenously against him. My pussy swallowed his cock down as my juices drenched my ass crack. I wiggled out of his grip. I threw my arms around his neck. And as I clung to him, I sank my teeth into his shoulder. Pulling from him a growl as he collapsed against him.

  His cock flooded my pussy. With hot threads of come after every pulse. And my pussy massaging him. Milking him. Pulling from him all he had to give me.

  “Oh, yeah,” he grunted.

  “So good,” I whispered. “So good. So good.”

  We quivered against one another as we lay on my bed. His body weighing me down like a blanket I never wanted to push away. The haze of my mind slowly lifted. My hands softly fell away from his body. Tyler kissed my neck. My shoulder. The side of my head. And slowly, he inched his cock out from between my thighs.

  Before an awkwardness overcame me.

  It finally happened.

  For the first time since before Austin was born, I had a man in my bed. And I started wondering if I’d rushed things. Tyler flopped down beside me, catching his breath as he reached out for me.

  But I quickly got up.

  “Melody?” he asked.

  I scrambled to get dressed. Pulling out a pair of pajama pants and a T-shirt from my dresser.

  “Melody,” he said.

  “I need to start dinner. Austin will be hungry when he wakes up.”

  “Melody, look at me.”

  I slowly turned to face him. “Yes?”

  He sighed. “Would you like some help?”

  “You don’t have to do that. You’re free to leave whenever you want.”

  “Is that what you want?”

  I paused. “I don’t—”

  “Because here’s what I want. I’d like to give you a hand with dinner in the hopes you’ll invite me to stay. So I can spend more time with not just you, but Austin. Because, you know, boy stuff and all that.”

  I giggled softly. “Boy stuff?”

  He shrugged. “You’re a girl. You wouldn’t get it.”

  “Oh, is that true?”

  “Oh, it’s very true.”

  I snickered. “You want to keep staying?”

  He slid out of bed. “For as long as you’ll let me.”

  Some of my tension melted away. “Really?”

  He walked his naked body over to mine and pulled me into his embrace. I sighed against his warmth, feeling him comfort me as his hands slid up and down my back. I kissed his chest. I pressed my ear close to his heartbeat. He kissed the top of my head over
and over again. Then his voice filled my ear.

  “I’m not interested in a wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am kind of scenario with you, Melody. I want to explore this connection we have. A connection I know you feel. I’m not walking out the door right after sex. Unless that’s what you want from me.”

  I paused. “A what kind of scenario?”

  He chuckled. “I’d love to stay for dinner, if you’ll let me.”

  “Depends. How do you feel about roasted chicken?”

  “I don’t trust people who don’t like a good roasted chicken.”

  I giggled. “Then it’s settled. You can slice up the oranges and grapefruit for me.”

  “The what now?”

  “Oh, you haven’t had roasted chicken until you’ve had my citrus-roasted chicken.”

  As I smiled up at him, I saw a genuine kindness in his eyes that put me at ease.

  Along with that damn look again I couldn’t place before he put his clothes back on.

  Chapter 13

  Tyler

  “These poor oranges,” Melody said. “They’ve seen better days.”

  “You need better knives,” I said.

  “Or you need better cutting skills.”

  I shot her a look, and she fell apart in a fit of laughter. A sound that never ceased to stop my heart in amazement. I watched as she whipped up some butter in something I could have sworn was used to make a cake. I watched her add sprigs of rosemary. Splashes of thyme. Things that normal people usually shoved into the chicken itself.

  “Got the grapefruit done,” I said.

  “Is it sliced or diced for its life?” she asked.

  “You’re proud of that one, aren’t you?”

  She laughed. “I really, really am.”

  I shook my head and smiled. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed cooking with her in the kitchen. Helping her make dinner. Usually, I heated some sort of frozen meal up. Or ate at Colt’s restaurant after work. I rarely made meals for myself because cooking for one wasn’t anyone’s specialty. And it was kind of depressing.

  This was much more fun, though, than heating something up.

  “What are you going to do with all that butter?” I asked.

  “Slather it on the chicken, of course.”

  I paused. “The entire chicken?”

  “Uh huh.”

  “All of that butter is going on the chicken.”

  “Yep. I’m putting it on a roasting pan to lift it up in the oven. Then, I’m going to have you slice open those potatoes, and I’m putting the potatoes face down on the pan. Some pepper on the potatoes, and then while they’re roasting in the oven with the chicken, they’ll catch the buttered drippings and be absolutely perfect to eat.”

  My mouth watered. “Colton would be jealous of this meal.”

  “Who’s that?”

  “You know C.L.T.’s?”

  “The restaurant near your shop?”

  “Yep. He owns it. He’s a good friend of mine. And he’d be jealous of this recipe.”

  She smiled. “Well, don’t go giving away all my trade secrets.”

  “Trust me. It’s safe right here.” I rubbed my stomach, and she threw her head back in laughter.

  She handed me the potatoes to cut in half. But I botched them about as much as I did the citrus. Still, we did it together. All the while teasing one another about things. And when I was done chopping things up, she walked me through the cooking process of this entire meal.

  “So, now that the potatoes are halved, I put pepper on them. Just pepper, though. There’s enough salt in the butter and things that’ll drip down onto them in the oven.”

  I nodded. “Got it.”

  “I don’t mind getting bigger potatoes like this because roasting an entire chicken takes about an hour and a half. Give or take. So, preheat the oven to four-thirty, slide everything in, and set a timer.”

  “And that’s it?”

  “Yep, that’s it. You can tell whether or not the chicken’s done by the browned color on the outside. You cook it until it’s tan. Like it’s been out in the sun all day on the beach.”

  “Sunbathed chicken. Got it.”

  “And after that’s done, we pull it out, tent it with some tinfoil to let some of those juices soak back up into the meat, and it’s good to go.”

  “There any vegetables with this meal we need to do something with?”

  “Actually, I thought we could prep dessert to go into the oven after the chicken comes out. How do you feel about a blueberry crumble?”

  I paused. “You cook and bake?”

  She smiled. “I’m a woman of many talents. And cheap, good recipes to feed a growing boy.”

  I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her in for a kiss. A searing hot kiss that stole even my own breath away. She sighed, relaxing against me. I softly backed her into the kitchen counter. My tongue sweeping into her mouth. I slid mine across her own. I pressed my knee between her thighs, feeling her warmth already growing.

  I tilted my head off to the side, kissing her one last time before pulling back and gazing into her eyes.

  “Wow,” she whispered.

  “You’re remarkable, Melody.”

  She blushed. “You’re pretty neat yourself.”

  I relinquished her back to the kitchen. But not without a soft pop of my hand against her ass. She squeaked and jumped, making me smile as she whipped around. She eyed me with a playful anger that made me reach out for her. I fisted her hair, making her gasp as I took a large step toward her.

  “I wouldn’t cock such a cute little attitude if you don’t want to do anything about it.”

  She smiled. “And who said I didn’t?”

  “Mom?”

  Her son’s voice filled the hallway, and I dropped her hair. I stepped away, watching as she fanned her face. I shoved my hand down my pants, rearranging my growing cock to a more comfortable position. I cleared my throat as Melody giggled, trying to regain her footing.

  And just as Austin emerged from the hallway, I spun around.

  “How about we set the table?” I asked.

  I guided the tired boy over to the cabinets. He showed me where everything was, and we pulled out plates. Cups. Forks and knives. The smell of rosemary and butter slowly filled the room. The more Austin woke up, the faster the table got set.

  “Mommy, when’s dinner?” he asked.

  “Not for another hour or so, sweetheart,” she said.

  “Can I have a snack?”

  “A small one. I don’t want you to ruin your appetite.”

  “Can I have a snack, too?” I asked.

  She tossed me a look, and I smiled.

  “Oh!” Austin said. “We can share a snack! How about Cheez-Its?”

  “I love Cheez-Its,” I said. “How’d you know?”

  “You just look like a Cheez-Its person.”

  “Must be a pretty handsome person then. If I look like you.”

  “I’m not handsome. I’m pretty. Like Mom.”

  I grinned. “Just like Mom.”

  I tossed Melody a wink before I took Austin into the living room. He showed me his dino truck, and I didn’t know how many times we retrieved those things. He shot them from the cage on the back before I dove to get them. We played with Legos and built towers as high as the sky. Austin had a great sense of humor. He had me laughing so hard my stomach hurt. I heard Melody puttering around in the kitchen, but her son and I had gotten so preoccupied that we didn’t realize how much time had passed.

  “Dinner’s up, kiddos,” she said.

  “Yeah, chicken time!” Austin exclaimed.

  “Wait, it’s already dinner time?” I asked.

  She smiled. “It’s already dinner time.”

  “All right,” Austin said.

  The entire dynamic was wonderful. And I didn’t want to spend my Sunday any other way. As we all sat around the table, I got a preview of what having a family felt like. As the blueberry crumble in the oven taunted us, I looked
from Melody to Austin and back again. Sunday dinners. Massive desserts. A day in the park to wind down the end of the week.

  I want to spend every night like this.

  Dinner spiraled into clean-up. Which I offered to do while Melody gave her son a bath. We settled on the couch for story time. But to my surprise, Austin wanted me to read. I looked at Melody, and she nodded. Beckoning for me to take over.

  And as we sat there with Austin squished in between us, I started reading.

  I read that story six or seven times before Melody finally intervened. But I would’ve read it seven more times had he wanted me to. Austin took my hand and led me to his bedroom. Wanting me to tuck him in instead of Melody. Again, I looked at her. Watching for a sign that I was overstepping.

  But when she smiled, it warmed my heart.

  I tucked Austin in and chanced a kiss on his forehead. I rubbed his back until he turned over, snuggling back down into bed. I whispered goodnight, walked back out into the hallway, and watched as Melody closed his door.

  Then, she fisted my shirt.

  “Come here,” she murmured.

  Our lips crashed together once more, and my hands fell to her hips. I gripped her tightly, backing her into the hallway wall as she cupped my cheeks. The steamy kiss ached my cock. I wanted to take her right back into her bedroom and make love until the sun came up.

  But when I felt her hands against my chest, I pulled away.

  “Today was wonderful,” she whispered.

  I grinned. “Glad you liked it.”

  “Did you?”

  I cupped her cheek. “I loved it, Melody.”

  “When’s my next workday at the shop?”

  “Thursday afternoon. You come in same time as always.”

  “I suppose I’ll see you then.”

  My heart ached at the idea that I had to wait so long. “I’ll see you then, beautiful.”

  I kissed her softly. One last time before I had to peel myself away from her. And as I drove home in my truck, I knew more than ever what I wanted. I wanted Melody. Her son. Her life. Her presence. I wanted everything that came with her and more.

  Now, I just had to convince her that I was the right man for her. The perfect man for her. The man who could step up and take control of a life that seemed to bury her from time to time.