Intent (19 page)

After we’ve touched every surface, opened every drawer, and checked every square inch for infant safety, it’s blatantly clear we won’t be leaving the store without the furniture. Stella gave us some space to look everything over and talk about it before she approached us again.

“Ace, are you having another baby?” Stella asks when she rejoins us and her eyes drift to my stomach.

“Well, not me, personally,” Ace replies. “But Layne and I are getting ready to bring a baby home.”

“I didn’t even know you two were married.”

“We’re not,” he replies, then his gaze swings to meet mine. “Yet.”

“I’m afraid I don’t understand,” Stella replies curtly.

“We’re adopting a baby. The rest will come in time.”

“In my day, that was just unheard of.”

“Welcome to this century, Stella,” Ace deadpans.

“I love the entire set. We’ll take it—every piece,” I interject to change the subject.

“Don’t you want to know how much it costs first?” Stella asks condescendingly.

“No, we don’t. We already know we want it, and we’re very tenacious when there’s something we want,” I reply confidently.

Stella’s attempt at a smiling response looks like she’s experiencing equal parts of severe pain and horrible distaste. But a large sale in a town this small can’t be turned away, no matter how much she wants to deny us, so she marches to the counter and writes out our purchase order. “When and where would you like it delivered?”

“My house,” Ace replies. “On your next available delivery date. Layne and I want to get the nursery ready as soon as possible.”

Stella takes her time checking her calendar planner before she gives us a timeframe. “We can fit it on the delivery truck one week from tomorrow. How does that sound?”

“That actually works out perfectly. It’ll give us time to paint or anything else we want to do first,” I reply.

Ace wraps his arms around me from behind and leans his chin on my shoulder. He sweetly kisses my cheek and nuzzles into my neck. “Great idea, my love.”

After I pay for the furniture and delivery, Ace and I walk through the store with one arm wrapped around each other. Ace calls over his shoulder as we walk out the door. “Thanks for your help, Stella. See ya later.”

She harrumphs loudly, conveying her disgust and displeasure with us, despite the exorbitant amount of money I just spent in her store. “She is such a lovely lady. Thank you for introducing me to her,” I joke with Ace.

“You’re the one who wanted to go in that store,” he reminds me. “You were supposed to hijack my truck and go shopping in Atlanta. Since you didn’t, that means you don’t have to get up as early in the morning.”

“Yeah. So?”

“That means I can keep you up later tonight,” he replies, his tone low and seductive. “We have the house all to ourselves, and we still have rooms left to christen.”

A
CE

“
A
re
you sure you don’t mind if I take her away for a couple of weeks?” Lily asks me for the third time.

“It’s. Fine. Lily,” I overly enunciate each word. “Stop asking me that. River will have fun at the beach with you.”

“With summer school over, I don’t have to go back to jail for several more weeks.”

“High school is like jail?” I laugh.

“Yes! It’s been a long time since you were in high school, Ace.” She shakes her head at me and I envision her chastising her students. “River, it’s time to leave and let your daddy work. We’re going back to my house to pack our suitcases for our beach trip!”

“Yay!” River jumps up and down on her toes while wearing the cutest smile on her beautiful little face.

“Come give me some love before you leave me here to slave away while you have fun at the beach.” I kneel and hold my arms out toward her.

She skips toward me while singing, “Daddy has to work. We get to play!”

The corners of my eyes crinkle in mock threat when I look at my sister. “What have you been teaching my daughter?”

“She knows I’m way more fun than you are. I didn’t have to teach her that,” Lily retorts.

With River wrapped securely in my arms, I stand and squeeze her to my chest. “Got you! I changed my mind. You can’t leave me.” With that, I take off running with River, her squeals of laughter echoing through the valley.

“Daddy! Put me down,” she laughs. “You have to work. I get to play!”

“You stay here and work so I can go to the beach and play.”

“Nope.”

“You don’t play fair.”

“I know.”

“You have all kinds of female problems,” Lily chimes in.

“How’s that?”

“You’re wrapped around River’s little finger, but you’re also wrapped around Layne’s,” she smiles slyly. “Don’t even deny it.”

“Deny it? I have no reason to hide it.” I pin her with my gaze as I put River down. With my arms folded over my chest, I advance on Lily until I’m invading her personal space. “Is there anything you want to tell me? Something you’re hiding?”

Her eyes grow wide, her lips part with an unexpected gasp, and it’s obvious she’s running the scenarios through her mind.
Does he know? Should I tell him?
My sister has never been able to hide anything from me.

All through our teenage years, she tried to hide her boyfriends from me, but I always tricked the information out of her. Then threatened to beat the shit out of them if they touched her. The fact that she thinks she has me fooled now amuses me. I’m not ready to reveal what I know, so I’ve allowed her to think I’ve been none the wiser.

She wordlessly shakes her head from side to side, still unsure of which answer to give me.

“No? Hmm. Okay.” A staring contest begins and I have to physically withhold my laughter when she guiltily looks away first. “You’d better get going so you can pack.”

“That’s right. I do need to pack. Let’s go, River.”

When I kneel again, River hugs me tightly and kisses me on the cheek. “Will you be okay without me?”

“It’ll be hard, but don’t worry about me, precious. Have fun with Aunt Lily and be good. Come on, I’ll carry you to her car.”

I kiss my baby girl goodbye, put her in the car seat, and tell them to call me before they leave in the morning.

Lily starts the car and blasts the air conditioner wide open to cool off the interior. When I close River’s door, Lily steps out of the car and gets my attention. “Ace? Have you heard from Margot again?”

“No, not since she showed up out of the blue. I filed a police report about her violating the restraining order. She said that won’t keep her away, though.”

“This thing between you and Layne…is it serious?”

“Yes, it is. Very serious, actually.”

“I’m so happy for you. You deserve to be happy. River loves her, she talks about her all the time. Layne seems like she’d be a great mom to our little girl.”

“I need to tell you something before the town gossip gets around. This will come as a shock, but Layne is moving here permanently and we’re adopting Zoe’s baby together.”

Her face contorts into a mixture of shock, horror, and disbelief as she absorbs the bomb I just dropped on her. When she’s finally able to speak, she presents the very argument I expected her to have. “But Ace, you haven’t known her for very long at all. You, of all people, know what’s at stake when a baby is involved.”

“Aren’t you the same person who just said she’d be a great mom to River?” I chuckle. “Honestly, I know we haven’t been together very long, but I
know
her, Lily. Just like Frankie knew her when he first met her. I have no doubt that we belong together. We stay awake most of the night just talking, sharing everything we can think of from our lives. Remember what Mom used to say after Dad died? Why she never remarried?”

“She said Daddy was her barn owl.” Lily smiles affectionately at the memory.

“Right. Because once barn owls choose a mate, they’re faithful and monogamous until they die. Mom also used to say that we’d know when we found our barn owl. Layne is my barn owl.”

“Have you told Layne that?”

“Not in those words. Yet,” I grin.

“Did you tell Layne about Mom during one of those talks of yours?”

“No. So far, I’ve just skirted around it, changing the subject to something that doesn’t involve her. I’ll tell her all about it; I’m not hiding it. I just don’t want to ruin the mood, and that topic always does it for me.”

“She meant well, Ace. You need to let it go.”

Lily slips back into the car and drives away. I wave to River until they’re out of sight. “Yeah, you’re probably right, little sister. I do need to let it go. Hell if I know how, though.”

A few hours later, I hear the familiar slam of a car door and look up in time to see my love rounding the corner. When our eyes meet, her gorgeous smile spreads across her face, her skin tinges pink, and her step quickens. She greets me with a kiss that instantly heats my blood to boiling.

“Hello, gorgeous. What did I do to deserve that? I want to make sure I do it again.”

“At the risk of inflating your ego, I’m just literally the happiest I’ve ever been in my life.”

“And do I have something to do with that?”

“Maybe just a little.” The smile she can’t wipe off her face and the love in her eyes say otherwise.

“I guess I’ll just have to try harder. Can’t have anyone else putting that kind of smile on your face.”

“Do you mean you haven’t been giving me your best? You been holding out on me, Sharp?”

“Well, of course. Wait. You mean, all the women
haven’t
figured out that the guys keep their best moves in reserve?”

“Uh, no.”

“Damn. That was like a best-kept secret, then.”

“And when do you use these reserved best moves?”

“Mainly on very special occasions. Proposals. Anniversaries. If we sense another guy is sniffing around a little too much. And, of course, to get out of or stay out of the doghouse.”

“Wait. Let me get this straight. I have to get mad at you or you have to get jealous over another guy before I get your best moves?”

“You got it.”

“Hmm. Interesting theory. Wouldn’t it just be easier to always give your best and avoid all the unnecessary drama entirely?”

“You may be on to something. Let’s give it a test run. I’m going to use one of my best moves on you now and see if it turns this conversation around.”

“Give it your best shot, Ace.”

Without warning, I pick her up and throw her over my shoulder. She squeals then laughs as her head dangles down my back and the perfect globes of her ass are level with my mouth.

“Ace, you’ve already used this move—
Ow!
”

“I didn’t bite your ass last time I used the caveman move on you.” I really shouldn’t have to explain the difference at this point. But the blood rushing to her head may be affecting her reasoning skills.

Her body shakes with her laughter. “Thanks for clarifying that. I totally missed that important point.”

After closing the barn doors behind us, I put her down and point toward the ladder to the loft. “Up we go.”

Once we’re both in the loft, I walk her toward the square bales of fresh, soft hay. As we pass the storage closet, I grab a clean blanket. With the blanket spread out on the hay, I gently push her down until she’s lying flat on her back.

“Here’s another important move in the caveman arsenal,” I explain as I crawl onto her. “The life of a caveman was hard. Always hunting and gathering just to have enough to eat. When food was scarce, he had to be very creative in finding things to eat.”

Her anticipation of what’s to come is building inside. Her chest rises and falls faster, making her breasts surge with each breath. Skimming my fingers up her bare legs until I reach her shorts makes the chill bumps ripple across her skin. Quick with the button and zipper, I slide them over her hips and down her legs, dragging her panties with them.

“And eating this—” my finger gingerly slides down her wetness “—was the equivalent of having dessert before dinner.”

She inhales sharply and sucks her bottom lip between her teeth. Her hands curl into fists, gathering the blanket between her fingers as her anchor. She doesn’t realize there’s no anchor known to man that can keep her from soaring in the clouds once I put my mouth on her. Yet. She’s about to find out, though.

“I’m ready for my dessert now.”

Scooping my hands underneath her, I raise her ass off the blanket and prop it up on my bent arms. When my tongue touches her, she releases a pleasure-filled moan. My tongue makes circles around her clit, savoring every bit of her flavor. Intense need immediately overcomes her, and she releases the blanket only to use my hair as her handhold.

Voracious craving engulfs me as I consume every drop of her. My tongue darts in and out of her softness, driving her higher and higher, closer and closer to the edge. Her body bucks underneath my mouth, but it doesn’t deter me in the least. Her reaction only encourages me, pushes me to give her more, to take all I want, until she’s completely spent from total satisfaction.

Her grip tightens in my hair, her hands recklessly pull and push my head, and her moans of pleasure quickly become screams of ecstasy. She’s ready, more than ready, and with a scrape of my teeth across her clit as I suck it into my mouth, shudders wrack her body with the powerful orgasm coursing through her. I lap up every drop as her essence spills onto my tongue.

“You taste so fucking good,” I murmur with my lips still against her core. “Maybe I need to have a second helping today.”

“Oh my God,” she pants. “I’m not sure I can handle seconds right now. That was amazing. Never. In my life.”

“It was my pleasure.” I lick her swollen clit and her legs clench together, holding my head still. “You know that can’t stop my tongue.” Then I demonstrate my point.

“Ace!” The inflection in her voice simultaneously warns and begs me. I love the effect I have on her. “I can feel you smiling against my legs, you know.”

“Loosen your headlock and you won’t have that problem.”

Her legs relax and fall open. Unable to resist the sight before me, my confining clothes are quickly shed and I crawl up her body to take my rightful place. I push her shirt up and pull her bra down to expose her perfect, perky breasts for my feasting. Our bodies intimately joined, we find nirvana as the sweat beads and drips from our exertions. Her scent, the feel of her body, and the sounds she makes are forever burned onto my mind like a brand.

“Umm, Ace, why is this blanket in the barn?”

“We use them sometimes when a mare is about to foal. One of us sleeps here in case the foal is born at night. Why do you ask?”

“Just seemed odd, but now it makes complete sense. Is there a shower here too?”

“There is. Did you not get enough? Want me to show you my special shower moves?”

“That really isn’t a fair question.”

I chuckle at her honesty. “Come on. Let’s go wash off. You’re all sweaty and you got me all sweaty.”

She playfully smacks me on the arm as we stand. We gather the clothes strewn all over the barn loft and quickly rinse off in a cool water shower. While she stands under the spray, I massage her shoulders, still eager to touch her in every way I can. “Was there another reason you graced me with your presence today? Or did you come by here just to seduce me while I was working?”

“Actually, I came to tell you that the home study woman called. She’s coming over the day after the baby furniture will be delivered. Having a bedroom ready for the baby should give us extra points, right?” she asks hopefully.

“I don’t know much about Georgia adoption laws, but I can’t imagine anyone denying you the right to adopt a baby. With or without the furniture. But since we’re in a home that’s already kid-friendly, and soon will be baby-ready, I think this is just a formality.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“Don’t worry, babe. We’ll make it right.”

“You are too good to be true,” she says and turns to face me. “How did I get so lucky to find you?”

“I’m the lucky one. Out of anywhere in the world, you came here. My hot little sexy lady who wasn’t afraid to put me in my place. You saved my daughter’s life and now she loves you with all her heart. And you also have all of my heart.”

“You sure are a sweet-talker when you want to be.”

“Just one of my secret reserve moves, babe. Want to hang around and help me with Frankie for a little while today?”

“Thought you’d never ask. I’d love to.”

When we finish for the day, Layne mentions that she’s going by the cabin to talk to Zoe before coming over to my house. I follow behind her, lost in my daydreams of the afternoon I spent with her, until she turns into her driveway. The strange car waiting at her place pulls me out of my reverie.

I slow to a crawl before just stopping in the middle of the road to watch. Layne parks but doesn’t immediately get out of the car. The driver’s door of the stranger’s car opens and a blond-haired man steps out. He stands stock-still, staring at Layne while she remains in her car. When she finally gets out, I immediately recognize the stance she takes. She’s not happy to see him, she’s ready to fight, and she’s cautious about being around him.