Save Me (36 page)

“Penelope,” I groan, as my balls grow tighter. When she touches her clit I just about blow but am able to hold it off. I grip the headboard and slam into her, much to her delight.

“Yes, Tucker. Oh fuck, fuck, fuck, yes I’m coming.”

“Holy shit, you’re squeezing me so tight.” The way her pussy milks my cock sends me into a frenzy. I pound into her harder until I blow my load, jerking through the aftershocks of one of the most powerful orgasms I’ve ever had.

“Fuck.” I’m out of breath and my chest is heaving for air. I roll off of her, feeling the immediate loss when our bodies part. Pulling her into my side, she weaves her legs with mine and snuggles into my side.

“You don’t know how long I’ve been waiting for this.”

“I think I have a pretty good idea, Tucker.”

I laugh, even though the situation isn’t comical. I move to my side so I can look at her—so she can feel the words that I’m about to say.

Her hair is crazy and I try to tame it by pushing it behind her ear. I kiss her gently and show her how the rest of her night is going to go. I don’t care if I have to drink three pots of coffee in the morning we’re not sleeping tonight. We have a lot of time to make up for and this was just the beginning.

“I love you, Penelope McCoy. There wasn’t a day that went by that I didn’t think about you and Claire. Even though I now know the letters weren’t from you, hearing about your life, pretend or not, gave me a lot of hope when I was out there. When I came back, I scoured the city looking for you, determined to find you. I refused to believe that you left me. I knew in my heart that you were out there. I just had to find you. And now you’re here, in my arms where you belong.

“Your love for me saved me, Penny, from the demons that threatened to take us away from each other. When I saw you for the first time, I knew I’d die a lonely man before I loved again because you are it for me. You and Claire are the reason my heart beats, and without either of you, I am nothing but a shell of the man you met at Magoos so many years ago.”

Tears fall and dampen her face. I kiss them away until I reach her mouth. Her fingers dig into my hair as her tongue meets mine. She moans, and as I try to pull her leg over my hip—because there’s nothing hotter than watching the woman you love bounce on your cock—she stops me.

“It’s my turn, Tucker. The day I saw you in that hotel room I felt like I could breathe again. For years I have had this ache in my chest, but you made that go away. I was living, but I was not alive until you walked back into my life. I’m sorry it’s taken me so long to get here, but I’m here and here to stay forever.

“I love you, Tucker McCoy. I love that you’re a man of your word. I love that you will do anything for Claire and me. I love that you’re a SEAL despite what they’ve done to you; you’re able to overcome and look past the transgressions of one person, to continue to serve a country that loves you. Most importantly I love that you’re mine.”

She closes her eyes and I feel her body go soft. The last thing I want to do is sleep, but maybe she needs a nap. We have the rest of our lives to make up for what we’ve missed. There doesn’t need to be a rush on tonight.

“Sleep, my sweet Penny. I’ll always protect you.”

IT’S THE FIRST day of my new school. The school I likely would’ve started if my mom and I hadn’t been forced to move. She still doesn’t talk about that day, and I’m okay with it. I don’t think I want to know, at least not yet. My mom assures me that the person who ruined our lives will never do so again. Sometimes I have to remind her my life isn’t ruined, but when I do that I feel like I’m not honoring my dad, Ray.

It’s odd to think I have two dads, but I do. I don’t know what I’m going to tell kids when they ask me about my life, it’s not something I practiced, but everyone knows now. We’ve been all over the news, and I hate it. For a while the news people were sitting outside our house and they made my parents angry. My Aunt Ryley says the news never came around until Senator Lawson pleaded guilty and everything was out in the open. She’s angry, too, mostly for EJ. She says the news in Washington have been following them everywhere. My escape has been at the Clarke’s. I have spent a lot of time there this summer. I feel safe there and Jensen reminds me of Ray.

I miss Ray. He’s not a secret in our house. My dad, Tucker, he talks about him. He asks questions and tries to make him a part of my life. My mom says that Tucker is trying to make sure I never forget about the man who raised me. And I like that, even though I know it hurts Tucker’s feelings.

As I stand looking in the mirror, I wonder what other kid has gone through so much. I’m sure there are a few, and they probably have memories. The only time I remember something is when my mom is talking to my dad and I overhear. I think they’re memories, but maybe they’re figments of my imagination being pieced together by my mom’s story.

Today is going to be a new day for me, and I’m scared.

“Of what?” I hear behind me, causing me to jump slightly. I hadn’t realized I actually said the words out loud, but it makes sense. I’m often talking to myself, catching my dad off guard.

My dad stands in the doorway, leaning against the doorjamb. He’s dressed for work, but according to my clock, he should already be gone.

“I’m scared about school.”

“Why?” he asks, motioning toward my bed. I nod and he comes in and sits down. I stay where I am, though for only a second, and quickly sit down next to him.

“What if the kids don’t like me?”

“Impossible.”

“You’re biased. You have to say nice things because you’re my dad.”

He nods and pretends to contemplate something. He does that a lot when he’s thinking of the right thing to say, dragging out the thought process. Mom says he does it to make him look like a genius.

“You’re right, but I also know you as a person. You have to remember that I didn’t get to be here while you were growing up, but these past few months I’ve gotten to know you and I think you’re a pretty cool kid. You have a lot to offer your new classmates.”

“Like what?” I huff.

“Like you’re really smart and you’re fun to hang out with. Your dad is like really awesome.”

I can’t help but roll my eyes and punch him in the arm. He pretends to fall over, but pulls me into a hug instead.

The day he made me breakfast, after Ray died, I wanted to hate him. I didn’t want him to be a part of my life and I definitely didn’t want to move here. When we came to visit, everything changed. He made his house a home for me and never pressured me into calling him dad, or tried to make me do bonding things. He invited me everywhere, though, and going to work with him quickly became my favorite thing. It was one of his trainees who opened my eyes to the great dad Tucker already was.

“Can I invite friends over?”

“Of course you can. Are you ready to go to school?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Well I’m taking you today, so if you’re not ready, we’ll skip work and school and hit the beach. Or we can take our bows over to the Clarke’s and shoot.”

I love that Tucker loves to do one of the things Ray taught me, and now I’m teaching him. I think that is when I knew everything was going to be okay here.

“Or we could go shopping?”

My dad shakes his head. “No, no way in hell. If you want to shop, your mom can play hooky. You and I are going to do sporty stuff, like scale walls and repel from buildings.”

The thought of hanging out at SEAL beach all day does excite me, but making new friends is important, too.

“Maybe after school we can go to the beach?”

He winks. “Sounds good to me.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

“Anytime, Claire.”

He leans down and kisses me on the forehead, reminding me that it’s never too late to be a parent.

Read other books by Heidi McLaughlin

Dan & Amy ~ Thank you so much for the… well everything. From listening to all my panics, helping with research, especially the trip to SEAL beach, taking stealthy candid’s at Coronado and to opening your lives to me. I love you guys and truly can’t thank you enough.

Yvette ~ this concludes your idea! What’s next?

Christine ~ you, my friend, are a workhorse. I’m so thankful we entered into a partnership. You’ve taken so much off my plate. I’m so very grateful.

BT Urruela ~ I was so nervous to email you & ask if you’d pretend to be a Navy SEAL, but you nailed it. I can’t thank you enough of helping me bring my character to life and giving him a badass attitude to go with it.

Eric ~ you’re a master behind that lens. Thank you for capturing the right image.

Sarah ~ thank you for always making the best covers for me. Each new one is always my favorite.

Emily & Crew ~ you ladies work around the clock to make sure everything is perfect. Thank you.

Megan ~ my lovely mama to be! Thank you for sitting down and reading this story before anyone else. Your feedback was so helpful. I really can’t thank you enough.

Leslie, Adriana, Ann Marie, Rachel, Jay and Kirby ~ thank you, thank you, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to read and blurb SAVE ME. You have no idea how much your words mean to me.

Audrey, Georgette, Kelli, Tammy, Tammy & Veronica: You ladies sure do know how to make everything right in my world. I really can’t ask for a better group of girls to spend my time with.