Alive With You (Real Love #1) (7 page)

CHAPTER 11

Claire

"Good morning, sweetness!" I gave Tara her latte, handing it to her with my left hand. Her jaw hit the ground, and she jumped up, almost spilling the hot drink down the front of her shirt.

"Please tell me that's what I think it is! It's about damn time. I'm so happy for you!"

"Thanks! We decided we want to do it soon, a small intimate thing. A barbecue with a bonfire, music, friends, and fun. Then my husband can take me home and knock me up!"

"Sounds like a blast. So are you gonna name the baby Tara?"

"I make no promises. We are doing it next Saturday so you need to reschedule your appointments. I also need you to escort a friend of mine there."

"Who? If it's small and intimate, who's going to be there that I don't know?"

"He's a new friend. We actually just met this weekend. He's super sweet and incredibly easy on the eyes. Tyler is bringing his best friend. I told him to swing by at 11 o'clock to meet you."

"Come on, Claire, you know I don't do blind dates." I could tell she was pissed off at me. "The last two blind dates I went on were horrible. The first one ended with me finding out that he had a wife and a girlfriend because the wife stormed into the restaurant thinking I was the girlfriend. I had to use the mace I keep in my purse on the other one. Sorry girl, I swore myself off blind dates."

"It's not a blind date if you meet him first. Trust me, you'll love me for this."

The door opened and Dylan walked in. "Hi I'm—"

Tara interrupted, "You're Dylan Cross!"

He smiled at her. "Well, I was gonna say early, but that works, too."

"Huh?" She looked at me with wide eyes. "No fuckin' way!"

Dylan laughed. "So, is that a yes?"

She blushed. "Umm… I..."

"How about I take you out for dinner tonight, so we get to know each other before our first date?" He gave her his lady killer smile that so many girls got all wet in the panties over. "Except that would make tonight our first date."

"Are you sure? I mean, I'd love to but..."

He covered her lips with his finger. "You know, you're even prettier in person." He wrote down his phone number and rubbed his thumb across her cheek. "Call me when you get done work, and I'll come pick you up." He gave her a quick peck on the lips. "Later, beautiful."

Tara looked at me with the biggest grin on her face. "You are by far the coolest, Claire. I can't believe he called me beautiful. Dylan Cross thinks I'm beautiful. This has to be a dream."

I had to laugh at the look on her face. "I thought you didn't do blind dates."

"I thought it wasn't a blind date if I saw him first!"

"Tyler's going with Winston Ryan." I still couldn't believe it myself.

"How did all this happen?"

"It's a long story, I'll fill you in over lunch."

She sat in her chair, sipping her latte, still grinning from ear to ear. "Okay, back to earth. There was a message confirming the sign delivery today. Actually, they'll be here soon. Also, this envelope was under the door when I opened this morning."

I opened the envelope, and it was a picture of Gavin and me at Comic Con a few months ago. There was nothing written on it to let me know who'd left it or why. We were talking to one of the comic book artists about my shop. He was actually a really cool guy. He gave me shit about only having Hulk and Black Widow tattoos. He said if he ever saw me again I better have an Iron Man or Thor tattoo. I told him if he would do a promotional appearance at my shop, I'd get Iron Man tattooed anywhere he wanted, within reason. He told me to get it on my ass cheek so I could tell people that I got to sit on Robert Downey, Jr.'s face. Gavin didn't appreciate the comment; I, on the other hand, found it hilarious.

"This is creepy. I hope I'm not about to become a
Criminal Minds
episode." I sent Gavin a text telling him about it. I watched too much TV to not be worried.

The bell on the door to KC's chimed and in walked a very pretty woman. She had a short, chestnut colored bob, a petite frame, long legs, and gorgeous blue eyes that looked strangely familiar to me. Tara greeted her, but the whole time they were talking, she kept peeking into the comic shop at me. I smiled politely and waved even though she was creeping me out. Glancing at the clock, I realized it was already 2:30.

"I'm gonna go meet Gavin at the school. I'll be back soon." I gave the customer a nod as I left.

Gavin was standing outside of the school with the other parents, playing on his phone. I snuck up behind him and grabbed his waist, nuzzling my head in between his shoulder blades.

"Hey beautiful! How was your day?" He pulled me close and gave me a soft peck on the lips.

"Better now. I missed you."

I felt Sasha's eyes burn the back of my head. As juvenile as it may be, showing off the fact that he chose me felt so good. I showed him the picture from under the door, and he was just as confused as I was.

"I don't know what to say about it. Should we go to the cops? They can't really do anything with just a picture. We can just keep an eye out for anything strange."

"Okay. Just tell the lineup of ladies that you're officially off the market." I made sure I was talking loud enough for Sasha to hear. "I can't have a chick go all crazy, and I can't throw down once I'm pregnant."

"You're all I've ever needed, baby girl. You better know that by now."

"We have to decide who we want at the wedding so I can invite them. Why don't you guys stay at my place tonight, and we can figure it out?"

"We can do that and start packing your stuff to come move in with us, then you can hop on my baby maker."

"You're an ass." My phone started to buzz; it was a text from Tara. The sign had been put up for the comic store. I didn't tell anyone what the official name on the sign was going to be, I wanted it to be a surprise when they saw it.

"Mommy, Daddy!" Miles hopped up into my arms.

"I have a surprise for you back at the shop, love bug. You guys are both gonna love it!"

We drove back to the shop, and sure enough, there was the sign. It was a big white circle with a cartoon version of Miles wearing a Superman suit. The official name on it was
MILES OF COMICS
.

"Oh, my God, that's amazing, Claire!" Gavin was actually getting choked up. "So how do you like it, Mr. Monster?"

"Mommy, I'm Superman!"

CHAPTER 12

Claire

I dragged Tyler with me to pick out a dress. I wanted something simple but pretty, obviously a wedding dress. We walked through Greyson's boutique and looked at so many different things, but nothing struck my fancy. We turned to leave and there it was. It was a 50s style, Audrey Hepburn-type dress, and I could picture how perfect it would look on me with a red flower in my hair. Simple and sweet, just like the wedding, I was in love with it.

Tyler grabbed my hand and pulled me against her chest. "You are gonna look so pretty. I'm so glad this is finally happening for you guys." Wiping a tear away, she sniffled, "I love you both so much."

"I love you, too. This wouldn't be happening if it wasn't for your wonderful match making abilities."

Tara looked at me with an expression I wasn't sure how to read. "Claire, it's beautiful, but I…I need to go. I'm sorry, hun, for bailing on the wedding shopping for today. Call me later tonight, and we can talk."

Tyler was pissed. "What the hell?"

"It's okay. I'm not mad at all. I actually give her credit for leaving instead of bringing me down."

"Credit? She just bails while we were supposed to be focusing on you. I'm so annoyed right now; I can't wait to tell her exactly what I think."

"Think about it Ty. She was Kayleb's best friend. All this would have been done for Kayleb and me. She's going to be fine. I'll call her later."

"I didn't think about that. I guess I get it. Enough about that, let's find a dress for me!"

We looked in a few different places and finally found the perfect dress for her. It was so nice, like the infamous white dress Marilyn Monroe wore in
Some Like It Hot
but it was red. They had Tara's size, too. "Tyler, in less than two weeks I'm going to be Mrs. Gavin Price! Can you believe it? Not to mention, my love bug is really going to be mine. I'm a mom again."

"Claire, he's been yours for a long time now, at least in his eyes. The only difference is, now you'll have the same last name."

"Let's call it a day, girl. I want to go home and see my future husband."

On the way home, I brought up the conversation Gavin and I had after I took the pictures of Tara. All he said and did that night had been running through my mind for the past few days.

"I thought the pictures were sexy and dangerous. If they were G-rated, what does he want to do to me? Is it weird that I want to know how kinky he wanted to be that night? He never did say anything even close to that again. He's a biter, but that's all he's ever tried. Our sex is amazing, but I want him to have exactly what he wants."

"Well, it looks like I'm taking my nephew for the night. I want you to show up after I pick up Miles and work your magic. You can use that power you have over him to get him to tell you exactly what he wants. Dress sexy, be seductive, and he'll be like melted butter!"

After I got home, I decided to take Calvin to the dog park until I knew Miles was with Ty. I needed some time to think after Tara ditched us. The very last thing I wanted to do was doubt Gavin and me. This was right; it was what I wanted and needed. Nothing was going to stop the happiness I felt with him. I threw the ball for Calvin to fetch a few times and noticed a woman staring at me; it creeped me out until I recognized her. She was the lady from the comic store a few days ago. She gave me a fake smile when she realized I noticed her. I had an awkward feeling in my gut. Something told me she had potential to be a royal bitch.

She walked over to me. "Hi, I'm Sammie. I recognize you from the tattoo shop."

"Yeah, that was me. I own the shop. Did you book an appointment with Tara?"

"Yes. I'm coming in this week so she can add to the tattoo I have already."

"Tara's great at what she does, so I'm sure you'll love it. Oh, by the way, I'm Claire."

"I know your name already; Duke and I have to split." She pet her dog then shook my hand.

Maybe I was wrong. She seemed nice enough, a little rough around the edges, but nice nonetheless. I walked Calvin home and sent Gavin a text saying I'd be there soon.

Standing in the shower, I tossed around whether or not I wanted to explore uncharted territory. Was I making what he said out to be more than it really was? I had read enough books with all the BDSM in it and knew it was kind of different. Gavin didn't seem like the type to be into the whole pain room kind of thing. I also don't see him as the dominant type. There was something in his voice that day though, the power behind his words, that let me know there was a hidden desire. I needed to figure out what it was.

I decided to take Ty's advice and use sex appeal to get what I wanted. He loves when I wear red, so I chose my new red ribbon g-string. It's totally see-through in the front and ties together in a satin bow in the back; I knew he'd love it. The rest of the clothes seemed pointless. I threw on my makeup, put on my leather coat and left. I was off to please my lover.

I walked into his house, and he was sitting on the couch. He looked me up and down with a huge smile on his face. "Mmm… now what have we here? I'm curious, my little minx, what are you wearing under that jacket?"

"We need to talk about something."

"No, we can talk later. Right now, I need to eat that delectable pussy."

Letting the coat fall to the floor, I climbed on his lap and straddled him. Pushing my breasts into his face, I ran my fingers through his hair and whispered in his ear. "I want to give you a little extra fun tonight, big boy. I want you to do anything you want with me."

Biting and pulling at my nipples, his eyes met mine. "Where is all this coming from? You do give me everything want."

I started to slowly grind on him. "I was thinking about the very first time you made me cum. You said you'd show me how nasty you could be, how much fun you could have with me. If those kinky pictures were G-rated, then I want to know what your version of NC17 is."

"Baby girl, I love our sex life; I don't want to hurt you. I've pushed away some hard-core desires; I just lost control that night. I shouldn't have said those things. I'm sure you've picked up on how much I love to bite you, to claim you as mine. Isn't that rough enough for you?"

"Normally, yes, I love the way we make love. It's just that I know you want more; I can see it in your eyes. I want one night of hard-core fucking; do anything to me you want. Dominate me; own me. I promise I'm not going to say no to you. I know you want to, Gav; I can feel how hard you are."

"If I agree to this, I can't promise I won't hurt you. I'll stop if you want me to, but I may lose my self-control, I might do something you don't like. I don't want you to be afraid to make love to me again."

"Baby, I came here asking you. If I didn't want to, I wouldn't be begging you for it right now."

He stood up with me in his strong arms, my legs wrapped tight around his waist. Pressing me against the wall, he wrapped his fist tightly in my hair, pulling my head back firmly, and then sank his teeth deep into my shoulder.

"The second I saw your beautiful face, I wondered what it would be like to have you tied up, begging for my cock. I wanted to hear you scream while I paddled your perfect ass." He pressed his erection against me. "I still jerk off imagining myself tongue fucking it while I finger your beautiful pussy." His voice was like a growl, "Do you realize devouring your sweet ass is my biggest fantasy? I'm gonna make sure it takes every inch of my rock-hard cock, little girl. Tonight that tight little asshole belongs to me."

"I never knew you were such an ass man; it's all yours, love!"

"I'll tell you what, tonight can be a teaser, an appetizer if you will. If you like it really rough then we can do it one more time, with some toys. It can be the main course. If you don't like it then you need to tell me, and be honest. Your safe word will be 'truth'. Say it and everything will stop, I promise. How does that sound?"

His grin was evil as he stripped off his clothes. As I gazed on his gorgeous body, I answered his question by falling to my knees.