Skin Tight

By J.M. Stone

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Cover Design by J.M. Stone

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Kindle Edition, License Notes

This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment. Ebook copies may not be resold or given away to
other people. If you would like to share with a friend, please buy an extra copy, and thank you for
respecting the author’s work.

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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and
retrieval system without the prior written consent from the publisher, except in the instance of quotes
for reviews. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded, or distributed via the internet without the
publisher’s permission and is a violation of the International Copyright Law, which subjects the
violator to severe fines and imprisonment.

This is a work of fiction. The names, characters, incidents, and places are products of the author’s
imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or actual
events are entirely coincidental. Any trademarks, service marks, product names, or named features
are assumed to be the property of their respective owners, and are used only for reference. There is
no implied endorsement if any of these terms are used.

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Dedication

To my Momma, who is my biggest fan. Thank you for everything you do, you’ve done, or will do.
You mean the world to me and I love you to the moon and back, beyond the stars, and Always Ever.

Chapter 1

“Miss Jensen, I can’t find Gerry!”

I groaned and closed my eyes briefly. Briefly as in, like, two seconds. This was because I’m a
teacher and I had a class of twenty kindergartners sitting in front of me and you can’t look away from
them. You do, there’s no telling what would happen.

Case in point? Gerry, the classroom gerbil was now MIA. For the second time this week.

Remind me why I became a teacher? Oh. Yeah…because I wanted to shape the mini-minds of the
future. And because I love kids.

Seriously, I do. Most days, anyway. Which is why I’d gone through cosmetology school, and worked
my way through college by cutting hair. Last year was the first year I’d taught, so I felt pretty
confident that I had my finger on the pulse and all that shit.

Turns out I was wrong. Namely, because I thought it would be a good idea to have a classroom pet,
hence Gerry the Gerbil, aka Houdini. I shouldn’t give him all the credit for being an escape artist; it’s
more that the kids giggle and twitch when they hold him and then set him down and…well, you get the
idea.

I clapped my hands and raised my voice as I said, “Alright, kids. Settle down and sit down, please.
Maybe then we’ll be able to see where…”

I sighed as a muffled scream sounded from the room next door. Guess we knew where Gerry went,
huh?

That pretty much set the tone for the rest of my day. Thank God and every single star in the sky that it
was Friday and, not to mention, a long weekend because of Labor Day. Which I had dearly been
looking forward to, because I’d get to spend some time with my family.

I pulled into the garage attached to my house with a sigh, hitting the button to shut the world out
behind me. I gathered my purse and my bag overflowing with lesson plans and all that good stuff and
headed inside.

Dropping everything onto the kitchen table, I walked directly into the living room and plopped down
on my couch, sprawling out less than gracefully, not caring that my skirt rode up and my panties were
showing to anyone who wanted to see them.

The next thing I knew, I was being shaken awake, a voice like sinful velvet teasing my ears and
pulling me from the arms of Morpheus.

“Leah,” Ian said, softly.

I blinked up at him, his gorgeous face shadowed in the dim light coming from the kitchen. I sat up
quickly, making him jump back to avoid our heads colliding, looking out the window in shock.

“Holy shit, what time is it?” I asked, stretching and yawning as I noted the street lights popping on
against the darkening sky.

Ian chuckled and moved up behind me, wrapping his arms around my shoulders and pulling me back
against his chest. “Seriously? That’s all I get from you after I haven’t seen you all day? You try to
break my nose and stare out the window, no hello kiss, no, ‘hey honey, I missed you like crazy and
can’t wait to suck your face off all night long,’ nothing? Huh.”

I rolled my eyes and spun in his arms, jumping up so my legs were around his waist, my arms were
laced around his neck, and my lips were level to his. He caught me gracefully, completely used to me
doing this by now.

“Hmmm…” I murmured against his mouth. “Is this better?”

I parted my lips and traced the seam of his with the tip of my tongue, silently asking to be let inside.
He complied immediately, a low groan breaking from him as I slipped it in to slide against his, our
tongues tangling sinuously in a slow, sensual dance.

His hands squeezed convulsively on the taut cheeks of my ass where they held me, pulling me even
closer to his body, letting me feel every inch of hardness hidden behind the denim of his jeans against
the soft, giving flesh at the apex of my thighs.

I finally broke the kiss, leaving us both breathing hard, our foreheads pressed together, eyes locked.
We stayed that way for a while, trying to catch our breath and…

“You blinked!” he hollered into the stillness suddenly, dropping my feet to the floor and doing a
weird victory dance that was just Ian while I stood in front of him, hands on hips, shaking my head.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah…doesn’t matter. I’m still winning by like, what is it now? 16 to 4?”

He leaned in and kissed me once more, a brief peck, before he moved back to flop down on the
couch. “Do you think we’re seriously bent? I mean, who else in the world plays the staring game in
the middle of a heavy make-out session?”

I shrugged. “Nah. People are probably jealous because we’re cool like that.”

He nodded, puckering his lips out and giving me that ‘I’m cool’ look. Trying to, anyway.

“Duck-face says what?” I asked him, giggling when he scowled at me.

I moved to the couch and straddled him, sitting on his lap. He leaned his head back and watched me,
his hands coming up to cradle my hips. I drank him in, the sight of his hardened, tattooed body
stretched out beneath me. His beautiful eyes, heavy lidded with a combination of contentment and lust,
stared back at me, the dark green of them, flecked with gold, warming as they watched me. His lips
quirked into a smile, their fullness beckoning me closer until I couldn’t help but lean forward and
touch them with mine.

He opened immediately, driving the kiss deeper until we were both moaning and arching into each
other, the friction of our bodies pushing me dangerously close to the edge of shattering. My hips
jerked against him as his fingers dug into me, pulling me harder and harder against him, urging me
toward the finish line.

He moved his lips away just enough to whisper, “That’s it, baby…come for me…”

And that did it. I arched my back and closed my eyes, letting out a long, low moan as pleasure washed
over me in waves, leaving me breathless and slumped against him when it was over.

“Hey!” I cried out in mock outrage as Ian’s hands came down on my ass cheeks, smacking them
smartly.

He chuckled and squeezed them gently, kissing my forehead once more before he asked, “Wanna go
get some food?”

I sat up and looked at him strangely. “Seriously? You get me off and suddenly you want nothing more
than food?”

He pecked my lips and moved me off his lap onto the couch beside him. He got up and held his hand
out to help me up as he winked and said, “Don’t worry. You’ll pay me back later.”

I laughed and let him help me up, shaking my head and muttering, “See? We’re seriously bent,” as I
followed him to get ready to leave.

Chapter 2

Staring across the table at Ian an hour later at dinner, I had the fleeting thought that I should really
thank my brother again for taking me to the UFC fight with him that night. Actually, I should thank the
drunken bastard that started being a douche and set in motion the events that led to Ian carting me out
of the fight over his shoulder. Just looking at him, drinking in all that was Ian, I still can’t help but feel
amazement that he’s been mine since that night over a year ago.

Yeah, so I second guessed myself a few times in the beginning, especially when that whore-face
started showing up everywhere we went, claiming to be his girlfriend. She almost earned herself a
beat-down when Ian and I had gone to his house one night (one of the rare times we slept at his place
instead of mine), and Victoria was in his bed. Naked. Did I mention that she was IN. HIS. BED.
NAKED!?

I didn’t get a chance to show of my own personal UFC skills, because Ian had gone nuclear, but in
that quiet way of his. The way that you can see the depths of fiery-pissed-off-ness blazing in his eyes,
every inch of his body tight, almost vibrating with rage, but his voice is so deceptively calm and dark
that it makes you unable to decide whether or not to run, piss your pants, or come all over yourself.
Okay, so that was the way I felt about it, and, thank God, that anger has never been turned at me. Ever.
But Victoria? She’s good at invoking that beast.

Thankfully, the Victoria pop-ups had dwindled, though she still lurks around the edges.

But, back to Ian. Jesus, he was so good looking. Dark green, gold flecked eyes, dark brown hair that
he kept cut short, but was still unruly; it gave him that I-just-woke-up-but-how-sexy-am-I? look that
was just…yummy. Take into account his tall (6’3”), lean but muscular frame, the delicious collage of
premium ink winding up both of his arms and disappearing beneath the sleeves of his shirt, and his
killer smile and you’ve got…well, Ian.

And Ian was just about perfect. He owned his own construction company and did very well for
himself, a fact that, even though his parents love him dearly and support him (mostly), did not sit well
overall with his family. That’s because his family is rich. Like uber rich. And they don’t think he
needs to work himself so hard, you know, him being only 31 and all. (Insert eye roll here.)

I hated the fact that he came from money because the first time I met his parents, they acted like I was
only with him to ride the gravy train to trophy wife town. They don’t know me well, obviously, but
I’m working on changing that. And by working, I mean avoiding them at all costs unless I absolutely
have to be around them and their uppity friends, especially the Jones family. Victoria is their
daughter. Need I say more?

So, a lot has happened in the year since we met. For instance, Brandon and Chloe are planning their
wedding, Liam (Allie and Jacks’ gorgeous baby boy) and Everly (Emma and Luke’s beautiful baby
girl) both turned one, and I became an auntie again as my sister, Jenna, and her husband, Noah, had
their third child, a sweet, even tempered little baby boy named Caleb Andrew, who was now almost
three months old.

My parents love Ian, so there’s that, and Calland, my brother, gets along with him very well, too.
Everyone does. And I love that. I love that he already had history with Brandon and Luke (a fact that I
found out the night we met; I mean, what a coincidence that they were the ones who did all his
tattoos?), and now he’s grown pretty close to T.J., the new tattoo artist that Brandon met in L.A. when

he went with Chloe. Did I mention that even Allie’s family loves Ian? Especially Nanny…

Everyone was happy, but, in my opinion, no one was happier than me.

“Leah Nicole Jensen!”

I shook my head, jarred from my reverie by Ian’s voice, smiling automatically at the warm mirth I
heard in his tone.

“Well, hello, stranger. Are you going to join me for dinner instead of staring at me all night? Not that I
mind…I am a rather fetching fellow,” he said jokingly.

I shrugged and grinned at him as I grabbed my fork and speared a nice, creamy bite of chicken
alfredo.

“Where the hell were you, love? You seemed a million miles away.”

I chewed and swallowed, taking a sip of my wine before I answered. “No where, really. Just kind of
thinking about you and the last year. And maybe thanking my brother and the douchebag at the UFC
fight mentally for basically dropping you in my lap.” I winked at him and shot him a saucy little smile
when his eyes lit up.

The corners of his mouth turned up in his endearing little grin and he winked back. “I think you were
the one dropping in people’s laps, love.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I muttered. He wasn’t wrong. I literally had launched myself at the drunken asshat
after he’d dumped his whole beer down Chloe’s back, and then when she looked at him, he’d said
some pretty nasty stuff. I’m kinda little and I’m quick on my feet, so before Calland could do anything,
I did. I tried, anyway. Ian came out of nowhere and caught me in his arms, throwing me over his
shoulder and whisking me away to the lobby.

We’d all missed the rest of the fight but I can’t say that we much cared.

I pulled myself back to the present and Ian and I finished dinner before making a quick run through the
store so I could pick up a couple things I needed to make double-dipped strawberries for the party. I
had to make two batches; one that the kids and “good” adults could eat, and another for me and the
other “bad” adults. Those were the special ones, injected with hundred proof vodka. So freakin’
delicious and addictive.

It was around ten at night by the time we got back home and settled in. I took a few minutes to wash
and prep the strawberries so they’d be ready to inject and dip in the morning and then have time to
chill before the party, which would start at two.

When everything was cleaned up and put away, I walked in and plopped down in Ian’s lap, reveling
in the way he accepted my presence with no complaint, his arms coming up to embrace me, pulling
me closer into his chest.

“Ready for bed?” he asked me, his voice rumbling through me.

I scoffed. “At almost eleven at night on a Friday?” I looked at him like he had two heads and then
finished, “Hell, yeah, I’m ready for bed!”

Sad part is that I was and not only because I was ready to jump him, but because I was seriously
tired.

He smacked my thigh gently and commanded, “Up,” getting to his feet and pulling me down the hall
once I’d vacated his lap.

Without a word, I stripped down and crawled into bed, Ian following me close behind. He hit the bed
and stretched out, his arms already reaching for me. He dragged me into his arms, my head pillowed
on his chest, one of my thighs draped over his, my arm around his stomach. I sighed as we settled into
our familiar night-time pose, and then laughed as Ian whispered into the silent darkness.

“So…you remember when I said you’d pay me back later? Well, it’s later.”

I smacked his chest lightly with my hand, my lips smiling against his warm skin. I faked (sort of) a
big, jaw-cracking yawn, and snuggled tighter into him before whispering back, “I’m soooo sleepy…”

He just chuckled and squeezed me tight.

So I did what any woman who was so over-the-moon, happy in love with her man would do- I kissed
down his chest, moved lower, and paid him back. In full.

***

“EMMA MARIE CRIMSHAW!”

I winced as I carefully kicked the door to Ian’s truck shut, balancing the trays of strawberries as I
looked at Ian over the hood.

His face was lit with amusement, even as he shook his head, muttering, “That bodes well for the
party, already, eh?”

I sighed, opened my mouth to say something but didn’t get a word out as the shrieking started back up
again.

“EMMA! Seriously! Get your Godforsaken dogs OUT!” Allie was screaming.

“It’s not MY FAULT that YOUR DOG taught mine how to swim!” Emma shrieked back in defense,
her voice overriding the now audible barking of multiple canines.

“Well, so what! Who cares about that? Get them OUT OF THE HOUSE!” Allie yelled in reply.

I winced again as a crash sounded and then heard, “There! They’re out, are you happy?”

“They just took out my screen door; do you THINK I’m happy?”

“Allie, I’m not sure if you realize this, but that was YOUR DOG who just took out the screen door…
NOT MINE!” Emma screeched.

Mumbling under my breath, I headed up the stairs onto the porch, Ian following behind me, his eyes
sparkling with mirth as he reached for the knob to open the front door of Allie and Jacks’ house.

Before he could open it, though, it swung wide and Jacks was there in front of us, Liam on his hip.
“Run. Get out while you still can…it’s not safe in here!” he mock-whispered. Then he rolled his eyes
and said, “And I swear to God, I’m not replacing that screen one more time. This is the fourth time
Grady has run through it this month.”

I shook my head at him and kissed his cheek when he bent and presented it to me, then kissed Liam’s
rosy little cheek in passing, cooing to him that I’d be back to give him more lovin’ as soon as my
hands were empty.

I braced myself and headed into the war zone, leaving Ian behind, talking with Jacks. As soon as I
stepped foot in the kitchen, I saw Luke standing against the wall, holding Everly, both of them wide-
eyed but grinning. I smiled and said hello as I sat the strawberries down on the counter.

“I see I didn’t miss the fireworks,” I quipped, winking at my brother-in-law.

“Nope,” he replied, drolly.

“How long has this been going on?” I asked him, moving across the kitchen to peek outside, but not
seeing either of the crazies.

“Oh, you know. Since Grady decided to show Doug and DJ that the pool is a great toy and then break
down the screen door to let them all run wild and wet through Allie’s house last week. And again
today.”

“Yeah, but they have a gate, so how’re Doug and DJ getting into the pool area?” I asked Luke, moving
back across the kitchen to take my niece from him.

I kissed her cheeks and cuddled her as Luke replied, “Grady has figured out how to knock the latch
just right with his nose, so he swings it open and leaves it wide so his friends can come through.
Pretty smart if you ask me…but it’s not my house they’re trashing.”

I winced, pulling air through my teeth as I thought about three large dogs, each roughly a hundred
pounds plus, running wet through my nice, well kept house. I’d probably kill them…which is, I’m
guessing, what Allie was wanting to do right about then.

Jackson and Ian came into the kitchen, Ian now holding Liam, just as Allie and Emma came back
inside, each still glowering at the other.

“Aww, fight nice, kids,” I called out to them, grinning mischievously and then laughing as they both
transferred their glares to me.

Emma’s broke first, but that had more to do with the fact that I was holding her daughter, whose face
had lit up when her mom had walked into the room.

Emma crossed the kitchen and reached for her daughter, just as Everly yelled out, “Mama!” in her
sweet little voice, thus breaking the tension in the room.

I looked over at Allie but she just shook her head at me and moved to take her son from his father.
Jackson left the room briefly, coming back with a stack of towels, and then he and Luke went off to
clean up the mess. They’re pretty good husbands, eh?

As they left the room, Allie walked over by Emma, both of them holding their kids, and we watched
in amusement as Emma leaned her head on Allie’s shoulder and whispered, “I still love you and I’m
sorry my dogs are jerks.”

Allie leaned her head against Emma’s and whispered back, “I still love you, too. And I’m used to it.
After all, Grady gets it honestly-he is definitely his father’s son.”

Emma nodded and whispered back, “Damn dogs.”

Everyone else started arriving then, and it was a whirlwind to get things set up, but it didn’t take long
before everyone was seated wherever they could find a place, eating food, and enjoying the sunshine
and company.

Ian was sitting on the lounger beside me, his plate heaped high with food. I was sharing a lounger
with my now 6 year old niece, Hayden, who was telling me, so very kindly as I ate, about her baby
brother’s latest diaper blow-out.

“Auntie Leah, it was everywhere! Like, Mommy had to change the bed and his clothes and her clothes
and it was all down his legs and…”

“Alright, kiddo, I think Auntie Leah and Uncle Ian have heard enough about that,” Jenna called from

the porch. “Come on up here and get something to eat.”

“But, Mom, I already ate-” Hayden started to whine, but Jenna cut her off quickly with a stern look.

“Uh-oh, better go on, Hayden-girl. Your momma’s got that Mother-stink-eye look going,” Calland
called out, laughing, winking at Hayden as she grinned his way and nodded.

“Calland!” Jenna yelled exasperatedly. “Can you ever just keep your mouth shut and not teach my
children bad habits?”

“Nope!” he replied sweetly, then gave an exaggerated wince as our mother smacked his shoulder
when she walked by.

I just shook my head and looked over at Ian, who was, as usual, silently laughing through the whole
exchange, and then continued eating.

I’d finished eating when a gravelly old voice broke in loudly and looked up to see Allie’s grandma,
Nanny, standing beside Ian.

“You gonna let an old woman just stand here, stud? Or are you gonna move that tight little hiney and
let me sit with you?” she asked him, hands on her hips, the toes of one foot tapping impatiently.

Ian wisely moved over to sit beside me, giving up his whole lounger to let Nanny sit down. “That’s
more like it there, hot stuff. But you could’a just sat here with me, you know,” she grumbled, shooting
a glare at him.

“Sorry, Nanny,” he said smoothly. “I figured you might want to stretch out and rest yourself a little so
you can go for a swim with me in a bit.” He finished that up with a wink that had her chortling with
glee.

“Hooo-we! Aren’t you just a hot one? Trying to get me in my bikini and in the water so you can get a
look at my goodies,” she cackled, clapping her hands together as she laughed.

“Your goodies, Nanny? Is that what you’re calling them these days?” Allie called from the table by
the door where she was sitting with her parents, my parents, and Poppy, Nanny’s husband and Allie’s
Grandpa.

“Allie, girl, you know I still got my girls. They haven’t given up on me yet, and your Poppy can vouch
for me.”

Allie giggled and nudged her mom before she replied, “You mean your fried eggs?”

“I’ll show you fried eggs!” Nanny hollered and before anyone could blink, she flipped her shirt up
and flashed everyone. And she didn’t have a bra on. Oy. But seriously, Nanny’s girls have gone a
little flat over the years, so strangely (or maybe not-so-strangely), Allie’s fried egg reference fit.

The fall-out from this act was instantaneous and deafening. Allie could only laugh; her mom yelled,
“MOTHER!” loudly; Poppy grinned and waggled his eyebrows; my parents both shook their heads
and looked away, but I could see them trying to fight back their laughter and smiles; Calland yelled,
“My eyes!” and clapped his hands over them; Emma just laughed outright while Luke kept his eyes
averted.

Thankfully, Brandon and Chloe had gone inside, so they missed the peep show, and the kids were in
the house with Jenna to clean up, but, seeing as how Allie and her family have been a part of their
lives since birth, I wasn’t so certain they hadn’t seen this before.

Ian, on the other hand, looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

Never a dull moment around here…

Chapter 3

I giggled and tapped Ian’s ass, since it was literally dangling in front of my face. Okay, so it wasn’t
dangling so much as I was, seeing as how I was thrown over Ian’s shoulder and he was carrying me
through our house into the bedroom. Quite a familiar pose for me by now.

He sighed good-naturedly and jiggled me on his shoulder, making me giggle again and, because I
could, pinch his ass.

Then I was (seemingly) flying through the air to land on the bed that had (miraculously) showed up at
just the right time to catch me.

It was late, almost one a.m., and we were just getting home from the party, which was a laugh riot as
Nanny made Ian keep his word (even though he really didn’t intend to go swimming) and get in the
water with her. And yes, she really wore a bikini. The woman had no shame.

And, of course, my Mom had brought out pitchers of her kickass sangria as the party wore on, so I
was more than a little tipsy, as was much of my family. Yeah, so it was pretty much all of the female
members of my family, and Allie’s, but we were all pretty lucky in that we had hot-as-sin men that
didn’t mind taking care of us. The only one left unattached was my brother, Calland, and we pretty
much disparaged any woman ever being able to calm him down.

Which brings me back to the moment, me on my back, fully clothed, and giggling uncontrollably,
while Ian stood across the room, carelessly stripping his clothes off.

“I like it when you get naked,” I said, my eyes drinking in every inch of him as it was revealed to me.

“You do, huh?” he asked, a small grin quirking up one corner of his luscious mouth.

I nodded sagely, rolling carelessly to my stomach and then pushing up until I was sitting on my knees
in the middle of our decadent, king-size bed.

Without a word, I reached for the hem of my tee and pulled it up and over my head, leaving me in my
bra, short denim shorts, and, strangely, my flip flops that miraculously had stayed on my feet.

Ian raised a brow at me and his smile grew, his eyes darkening as he took in my breasts spilling over
the lacy cups of my bra. I smiled back and hooked my fingers into the waistband of my shorts,
flopping (ungracefully) to the side before I dragged them and my panties down my legs and kicked
them off, along with my flip flops.

I cringed and then laughed as they went flying and Ian had to duck to avoid being hit in the face. He
cocked his head at me and bared his teeth in a grin I could only describe as predatory before he
started stalking to the bed.

I scrambled up as quickly as my tipsy-self could, warding him off by waving my hands, not even
realizing that I was mumbling, “No, no, no, no, no,” under my breath until he started nodding his head
in response.

“Ian,” I whined, sticking my bottom lip out in a pout that I could only hope was sexy and cute. “I
wanted to give you tipsy-crazy-drunk sex!”

“You will,” he replied, still advancing. By this time, his knee was on the bed and he was moving
close to where I’d plastered myself against the headboard.

“But I wanted to be in charge,” I continued, still pouting, but ruining the effect with a giggle.

“Nu-uh,” was all I got in response.

But then I didn’t care anymore as his hand reached out and curled around my neck, pulling me
forward against his chest as his mouth took mine in a hard kiss, his tongue sweeping inside to tangle
with mine.

I groaned as he nipped at my bottom lip and then laved the sting with his tongue, all the while his
hands were moving, pulling me closer into his body. I could feel the hard length of him pressing
against my belly, a searing heat that made me arch into him, whimpering for more.

We were chest to chest, both kneeling at the head of the bed and my head was swimming with a heady
combination of alcohol and lust, pushing me over the edge of reason.

Breaking the kiss, I breathed, “Fuck me, Ian.”

He growled low in his throat and shifted. I found myself face down on the bed, while Ian jerked my
hips up, his knees spreading my thighs wide, the hot, thick length of him sliding through my wetness
before he notched himself into my drenched opening, slamming deep with one thrust.

I twisted my hands into the comforter and arched my back, tipping my hips up as Ian fucked me hard, a
keening cry being wrenched from my lips as the heavy slap of his balls against my clit and the fast,
pounding thrusts of his cock brought me to the edge of release almost immediately.

He gave no mercy and I loved it, but he took it even further when he growled, “Up,” and pulled me up
so I was on my hands and knees. He rode me faster and harder then, slamming into me over and over
again, sending me screaming over the edge when he fisted his hand in my hair and jerked my head
back firmly but gently, ordering, “Come on my cock, baby. Now.”

I came and I came hard, then rushed headlong into another orgasm as he thrust deep and stayed buried
inside me, grinding into me as he found his release.

We stayed like that for a minute, Ian still throbbing inside me, my sex still pulsing around him, until
he, at least, caught his breath enough to move. I felt him leave the bed as I collapsed, face first once
more, onto the bed, still fighting to catch my breath.

He was back shortly and I sighed as a warm, wet washcloth dipped between my thighs, tenderly
cleaning away the evidence of our lovemaking.

I smiled to myself as I felt his lips brush the back of my thigh before he was gone to the bathroom. It
seemed like in no time, he was back and gently moving us beneath the covers, snuggling in with me.

“Love you, baby,” I murmured, settling against him and yawning as sleep dragged me down.

But I was awake enough to smile softly against his chest when he whispered, “Love you more,”
against my forehead.

***

My eyes cracked open, squinting against the sun peeking through the curtains and shining directly on
my face. I stretched and yawned, then rolled over to cuddle closer to Ian.

An invisible Ian, apparently, because the bed beside me was empty. I threw off the comforter and got
one leg off the bed before the bedroom door swung open and Ian filled the doorway.

“Morning, sleepyhead.”

“Mornin’,” I mumbled back.

“Don’t leave the bed, baby. I made you breakfast,” Ian said, moving into the room.

I finally noticed the tray (not really a tray…it was a cookie sheet) in his hands and swiftly tucked
myself back into the bed, pulling the covers up and leaning against the headboard. Of course, then my
bladder started screaming, so I threw the covers off and scrambled off the bed, throwing a hurried,
“Wait a sec, gotta pee!” over my shoulder as I ran for the bathroom.

His low chuckle followed me through the room.

In a flash, I was back on the bed, tray in my lap, with Ian lounging at my side. I bit into a perfectly
cooked, crispy piece of bacon and moaned.

“You’re so good to me, you know that?” I asked him once I’d chewed and swallowed.

He didn’t reply, but he did curve his hand over my thigh just below the tray, squeezing lightly.

“How are you feeling this morning?” he asked after a minute.

I paused in devouring the plate of cheesy, fluffy scrambled eggs and toast that he’d made to
accompany my bacon to answer. “I’m good. You know I don’t get hungover,” I said, scooping another
bite into my mouth.

“Yeah, I know, but you also don’t usually down six glasses of your Mom’s sangria,” he said with a
grin.

“Six? I thought I finished the pitcher!” I said, laughing.

He shook his head at me, fondly, as he replied, “You did. That was your sixth glass.”

I finished eating and he took the tray from me, leaning over the side of the bed to place it on the floor,
before rolling back into me and pulling me beneath him.

“What are you doing?” I asked softly, reaching up and winding my arms around his neck.

He dipped his head and nibbled my throat. I sighed and pressed my head back into the pillow to give
him better access, then groaned in protest when he lifted his head.

“Just telling you good morning the nice way,” he replied, leaning down to brush his lips gently across
mine.

“Well, good morning to you, too. Again,” I said, lifting my head to increase the pressure of my lips
against his.

When he lifted his head again, I smiled up at him. “Breakfast in bed and a morning make-out? Damn,
how’d I get so lucky?”

Chapter 4

“Ian,” I muttered, but that’s as far as I got.

It was Monday, the last day of my lovely three day weekend. Sunday had been perfect; how could it
not have been with a kickass wake-up from Ian that included breakfast in bed, and then we’d spent the
day together, just the two of us. We’d driven down to the huge flea market off 75, spent some time
walking around, and then made a pit stop at the new casino they’d built, before I’d made him take me
to Mellow Mushroom for dinner. It’s my all time favorite pizza place.

But, unfortunately, that perfectness had ended about half an hour ago when we’d left the house. This
was because we were at Ian’s parents’ house for a ‘backyard get together’, and that doesn’t make for
a great day. Ian had agreed to go because, well, because they were his parents and he loved them and
they loved him. Even if they didn’t quite understand each other.

Honestly, though, that’s not even the reason it wasn’t a great day. What made it a not-so-nice ‘get-
together’ was the fact that his parents had advised that (what a shame!) the Jones family would not be
able to make it as they were vacationing on the (no joke) French Riviera…normally good news.
However, they’d neglected to mention that Victoria, their daughter and the current bane of my
existence, had not gone with them and would be very much in attendance.

Case in point? The she-bitch was currently standing chest-to-overflowing-chest with Ian, her arms
lifted and wrapped securely around his neck as she cooed her hello in his ear. Yes, his face was
annoyed, and yes, I could see him trying to pull away from her.

But did it irk me that his hands were around her cinched-in waist, perfunctorily returning her embrace
even as he tried to push her away? Hell to the yes.

“Aw, how cute are they?” Ian’s mom, Margot, preened, clapping her hands in delight as she came to
stand by me in the foyer. “They’ve been friends for so long, you know,” she said, turning my way.

I braced myself. The cattiness was coming and we hadn’t even been in the door for ten minutes.

“Everyone always assumed they’d end up together, which would only cement the long-standing
companionship our families have enjoyed for so long.” She sighed and waved a hand. “Oh, well. I
guess some things just take time…” she paused for effect, “or just aren’t meant to be.”

Aaaand there it was. The disappointed resignation that thinly veiled the sharp barb of disapproval,
tipped in poison to garner the maximum sting.

“Mother,” Ian rebuked tightly, finally free of the octopus, moving close and taking my hand in his.

With a vague smile, she turned and gestured for us to follow her. We moved through the large,
ostentatiously decked-out house to the back porch where about a dozen and a half people milled
around, all very overdressed for a backyard “get together.”

She paused, looking me up and down before she said, “Well, I suppose you’ll do.” She then
proceeded to call out, announcing our arrival to everyone milling about on the back deck area.

I stiffened immediately, feeling very self-conscious as every eye turned to look at us, and not one of
those eyes seemed friendly. I smoothed the skirt of my sundress down and wished that I’d had the
foresight to wear something a little dressier. Not that there was anything wrong with what I was
wearing; at least, I hadn’t thought so. The dress was baby pink and spaghetti-strapped with a fitted
bodice, and the skirt flared out a bit at the hip, stopping at my knees. It fit my petite frame perfectly,

accentuating my curves in a flattering way. I’d paired it with white platform wedges (I needed the
height since Ian’s 6’3” and I’m a measly 5’2”), and braided my long, wavy, dark brown hair over my
shoulder. My makeup was light, but I’d played up my eyes, making the bright, jade green of them pop.

But all the women standing on the deck were perfectly coiffed, dressed in head-to-toe designer
couture, dripping jewelry, and holding champagne flutes as if they were accessories. They looked
like they’d just stepped out of a magazine, and I...didn’t. I hadn’t thought anything when we’d come in
because Ian’s mom always dresses to the nines, and of course, Octopus-Girl looked high-end
whorish, as always, but no one ever looked askance at her because she belonged. She was one of
them.

Clearly, I wasn’t, and Margot and all her little minions weren’t going to let me forget it.

I heard Ian sigh beside me and stepped closer to him, knowing that he wasn’t happy with the situation.
He wrapped his arm around me and pulled me into his side as we walked out among the crowd,
moving toward his dad, who was standing at the railing, overlooking the lush green yard that backed
up to the lake. It was beautiful and, given different circumstances every time I’d been there, I could
envision myself enjoying the house and the view. Just needed better company.

“Ah, there’s my son, the hard-working, building man!” His dad boomed out, reaching for Ian’s hand
and shaking it vigorously while his other pounded him on the shoulder, jostling both of us. “You ready
to retire, live the life of luxury, yet?”

“Cut the boy some slack, William, he’s still young enough to want to sow his wild oats before he
settles into the life of investments like we have. He’ll put his tools down eventually and settle with
Victoria, and then you can train him in the game,” one of Ian’s dad’s cronies retorted.

“Sure, sure,” Ian’s dad answered, jovially.

“Dad,” Ian said, nodding toward his father, ice coating that one word thickly. He then turned to the
gentleman standing beside his father, the one who so kindly planned out Ian’s future for him in two
brief sentences.

“Mr. Cline.” He pulled me closer to him and replied, “Dad, I’m sure you remember Leah Jensen, my
girlfriend. Mr. Cline, I don’t know that you’ve had the pleasure. Leah, Charlie Cline, my dad’s co-
worker and he’s the investment broker for my parents.”

I inclined my head in greeting but didn’t get a chance to reply as Ian excused us tersely and moved
quickly through the crowd back towards the house. He pulled me through to the kitchen and stopped
where his mother was directing the catering staff on where to set up.

“Mother, a word.”

She turned to him, a small smile quirking the corner of her lips as she asked, “Yes, dear? Is something
wrong?”

“We’re leaving. I don’t know why I do this to Leah, making her come here when you and Dad have
done all you can to make her feel uncomfortable. I told you the last time to stop the snarky comments,
but both of you continue to be rude and to entertain these ridiculous notions that I’m going to marry
Victoria. It’s not happening, and I won’t put up with this anymore, nor will I subject Leah to it.”

“Ian, what on earth are you talking about? Of course the girl is welcome here, and I do apologize if
we’ve made her uncomfortable. How on earth would we have done that?” She played the part to the
hilt, laying her hand against her chest and tilting her head towards him in confusion.

“Oh, come off it, Mom. I love you and I know you love me, you and Dad both. In your own ways,
you’re just trying to make sure I’m happy and taken care of. But I AM happy, much happier than I ever
have been, and that’s because of Leah. I love her, she loves me, and that’s the way it’s gonna be.
When you decide to stop showing off your money and status, stop pushing Victoria Jones on me, and
act like the real human beings I know you and Dad can be, then we’ll be back. Until then?” He paused
and then shrugged his shoulders. “I’m done.”

He didn’t say anything else then, just turned on his heel and tugged me with him towards the foyer.

“Ian Thomas Mitchell, how dare you speak to your mother like that!” she sputtered. “We’ve stood
beside you when you’ve desecrated your body with all of those…those…things all over yourself. We
put you through school, let you follow your dream to start your own construction company, even
though your father wanted you to go into investments with him. We just want what’s best for you, and
we don’t want you to have to work yourself to death in the process. And the whole thing with
Victoria, well, you’ve been close friends for your whole lives, and it’s just been assumed that you’d
end up together. She’s heartbroken that you refuse to go out with her any longer, especially now that
Leah’s in the picture.”

She turned to me and her smile, though catty, was slightly less hackle-raising than usual. “Leah, I do
apologize that we’ve made you uncomfortable. I’m sure you’re a lovely girl and all, it’s simply just a
matter of differences. You understand, yes?”

I opened my mouth to reply, even though I was at a loss for words since she’d pretty much just told
me I wasn’t good enough (in not so many words), but didn’t have to say a thing.

“And once again, Mother, you’ve just reaffirmed my decision. I hope that you and Dad will eventually
come to your senses and get your noses out of the air.” He leaned in and kissed her cheek gently and
swiftly. “Goodbye, Mother.”

And that was that. My heart ached for him, because he’d just essentially written his parents off
because they were so…so…stuck up. There’s no other word for it. And I was the reason he did it.

For the first time ever in our relationship, I was second-guessing it. What kind of person would I be
to allow myself to come between Ian and his family?

“Stop it.”

I blinked and turned my head to look at Ian. I’d been staring out the window, watching the scenery
pass by as he drove us home.

“Stop what?” I asked, carefully.

“Stop overthinking what just happened. It’s not your fault.”

“But, Ian-”

“I’m not built like them, Leah. I’ve known it since I was young. You know it, too, and I hope you
realize that I would never stand by and let someone continue to belittle you. And that’s what they’ve
done since they met you. It’s been over a year, Leah. I let it go on for too long, and for that, I’m
sorry.”

I sighed. “I know you’re not like that, Ian. I’ve told you before, I’m not sure how you turned out like
you did being raised by them. But they’re your parents.”

He shrugged. “And you’re the woman I love. You’re the woman I want to spend the rest of my life

with. They’ll come around eventually. If not? We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

We didn’t speak again until we got home, though he did reach over and take my hand, holding it for
the rest of the drive. My cell rang as we got inside. I reached into my purse to grab it as Ian headed
down the hall toward the bedroom.

“Hello?” I asked, answering without looking at the display.

“What are you doing?” Chloe asked me.

“Just got home from Ian’s parents’ house,” I told her.

“Oh. How’d that go?” she asked, and I could hear the sarcasm in her voice. She already knew the
score on that front.

“Meh. About as well as you’d expect. Only this time? Let’s just say, I don’t think we’ll be going back
there anytime soon.”

“That bad?” she asked, and I could tell she was wincing, even through the phone.

“The usual snark and then shit about Ian finally retiring to work investments with his dad. And don’t
even get me started on the looks I got about what I was wearing.”

“What did you wear?” she asked me.

I sighed before I replied, “My pink sundress with my white wedges.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Chloe shrieked indignantly.

I nodded, even though she couldn’t see me. “I wish I was. But you’d think I’d shown up in a garbage
bag the way they all looked at me.”

“But that dress is adorable and you look hot in it!” She growled and I couldn’t help but laugh at her.

“Thank you, sunshine,” I said, deliberately using Brandon’s pet name for her.

“Hey!” Brandon’s voice came through the phone in the distance. “That’s my name for her!”

“Chloe! Do you have me on speaker phone?”

“Uh…yeah. Sorry.” She giggled. “I actually had a reason for calling you, and that’s why it was on
speaker. I just got sidetracked when you started talking about Ian’s parents.”

“What’s up?”

“Wait a sec, though. Was Skanktoria there?” Chloe asked.

I laughed as I heard Brandon in the background again. “Chloe! That’s mean,” he said.

“But it’s true, Brandon, and you know it. She is a skank, the way she throws herself at Ian whenever
she’s around. Granted, she’s not been around lately, but still. You saw her the last time, practically
naked in his lap down at Griff’s.”

She wasn’t lying. A couple of months ago, we’d all be down at Griff’s for a night out. It was packed,
which wasn’t unusual for the place, especially because they had a live band that night, but we’d been
dancing when Ian was grabbed from behind. When he’d gotten untangled, he’d turned to see it was a
very scantily clad Victoria, and she’d been sloshed out of her mind. It wasn’t a fun night.

I cut in, stopping Chloe from arguing Brandon to death. “Yeah, she was there, and she didn’t waste
any time getting her octopus arms around Ian. And of course, then his mom had to go on and on about
how they were meant to be together or whatever, blah blah blah.” I rolled my eyes, even though she

couldn’t see me.

“So, same ol’ same ol’, that’s what you’re saying, right?” Chloe asked me, laughing.

“You got it.”

“Hmm. Anyway, that’s not what I was calling for. I have an idea that I think you’re gonna want in on.
It’s something that we haven’t done in a long time, and it’s overdue in my opinion.”

“What?” I asked, completely intrigued.

All she said in reply was, “Down & Dirty,” before I’d chimed in.

“I’m in!”

Chapter 5

I waved as the last child stepped onto his bus, and then turned to go back inside to straighten up my
classroom and gather things up before I headed home. On the way, I stopped by Gerry’s cage and
topped up his food and water, then sat at my desk to go over the next day’s lesson and to check my
supply list for the activities I had planned.

Once I had that done, I looked over the rhyme and match worksheets we’d done in class today before
I locked up my desk and grabbed my keys. I stood, stretching before I reached for my purse, then
twirled around in surprise when I heard a noise behind me.

“Hey!” I said, smiling at Chloe who had entered the room.

“Hey, yourself!” she called, moving closer to give me a hug, which I gladly returned.

“What are you doing here?” I asked her, moving back to my desk to reach for my purse once more.

“Coming to steal you so we can meet Emma and Allie for dinner to discuss the fun party we’re gonna
have,” she said, doing a crazy little jig of excitement.

“Sweet!” I said. “I just have to call Ian and let him know.” I grabbed my cell and dialed Ian, hoping
he’d answer so I wouldn’t have to leave him a message.

Turns out, I was lucky today. He answered on the second ring.

“Hey baby,” he said.

I could hear the smile in his voice and my lips curled up automatically. “Hey, yourself, handsome.
Just wanted to call and let you know that Chloe just showed up here and we’re meeting Allie and
Emma for dinner. Want me to pick something up for you to bring home?”

“Sure, baby. I’ll see you later, then. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” I told him, still smiling as I hung up the phone.

Chloe rolled her eyes at me.

“Don’t you roll your eyes, goofy. You forget I know you very well, and I know how you and Brandon
are,” I said, narrowing my eyes at her playfully.

“Truth,” she said, nodding her head and grinning unrepentantly.

I glanced at the clock. “It’ll be an early dinner, though, is that okay? It’s only…oh. I guess I took
longer than I thought to go through papers and lesson plans,” I said, noting that it was going on five
already. Classes usually let out just after three, so I’d been working on stuff for almost two hours?
Huh.

“Yep,” she said. “Let’s go. They said we could pick, just have to call and let them know where we’re
going.”

I looked at her and, without missing a beat, we both said, “Manny’s!”

Half an hour later, the four of us were laughing around a table, stuffing our faces with delicious salad,
pasta, and garlic bread, and sipping glasses of sangria. Manny had already come out and berated
Allie and Emma for coming in without bringing the little ones to see him. When he’d left the table,
Emma told us that she and Luke had come in to eat with Everly last month and when they’d been
seated, Manny had walked right out of the kitchen, up to their table, barely said hello to them, and had

taken off with Everly. Allie then told us that he’d done the same to them two weeks ago when she and
Jackson had come in.

I wasn’t surprised; we’d been coming to Manny’s since we were all kids and Manny and his wife,
Gia, absolutely adored kids. Seriously, they had 7 of their own.

I took a sip of my sangria as Chloe asked, “So when are we wanting to do this? Allie, are you stocked
up on everything?”

“I actually did a party last week and refreshed my supplies then, so I should be good. But you know
the drill, anything I don’t have on hand, you’ll still have it in a week or so.”

“I know,” Chloe said with a twinkle in her eye. “But there’s some stuff I was hoping you’d have and I
wouldn’t have to wait!”

Allie rubbed her hands together with glee and waggled her eyebrows crazily. “Yay! I love it when I
get to have a party with friends that makes me money!”

Emma quirked an eyebrow at her and said, drolly, “What money? You always use up your revenue
replenishing your stock or buying your own goodies.”

“Duh,” Allie replied. She winked at Emma, who just shook her head.

I spoke up. “Why don’t we give it a couple weeks or so to make sure we get the invites out. Where do
we want to have it?”

We hammered out the details and then just sat and talked with each other, even long after the food was
gone. Emma’s phone rang, breaking into the conversation, and I looked at my watch to see that it was
already seven and I hadn’t even ordered anything for Ian, yet.

As Emma answered her phone, I waved our waiter over and ordered some chicken marsala with a
side of fettuccini alfredo for him, which then reminded Allie and Chloe that they needed to do the
same. I kicked Emma under the table and motioned, asking silently if we needed to get something for
Luke.

She spoke into the phone. “Do you want me to get you something from here?”

She paused. “Uh-huh. Nope. Yep. Okay, I know. Honey, I just asked you a question, is it that hard to
answer?” More pausing. “Fine. Love you…yeah, yeah, yeah. Love you, bye.”

She hung up and quickly added two more meals to the take-out orders we’d already placed.

“Damn,” Allie said, looking at Emma weirdly. “Is Luke eating for two or are you hungry again?”

Emma laughed. “No, it’s for T.J.”

Chloe’s face got soft and then worried at T.J.’s name. “Have you talked to him lately?”

“Who? T.J.?” Emma asked. Chloe nodded and she continued, “Yeah, he comes over quite a bit when
he’s not over at your house. Why, what’s up?”

Chloe shook her head, almost sadly, and shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m just worried about him. He’s
got so much going on in his head all the time, and I swear, anytime a phone rings anywhere near him,
he’s jumpy as hell. But, he just blows it off, says everything is fine.”

Allie broke in again. “So what was all that other shit, then?” she asked Emma.

“Oh, you know. The usual. Am I coming home soon? Did I miss him? Which, of course, I lied and
said nope, but we all know I always miss him,” she broke off, giggling. “Are we having fun? We need

dog food, so I have to stop at the store.” She shrugged. “No biggie.”

I knew my sister too well, and so did Allie because she called her out right away. “Nope. That’s not
all. What was the yeah, yeah, yeah for after you said I love you? Hmmm?”

Emma blushed, which was the exact reaction we all knew we’d get. “Nothing!” she exclaimed.

“Emma,” I said, my voice low with warning.

“Jesus, he just reminded me I owed him, okay?” she finally said, breaking after I stared her down
comically.

Chloe held her hands up. “Nope! We’re good! No more details!” she cried, laughing.

Emma grinned devilishly, opened up her mouth, and proceeded to tell us, in detail, why she owed
him, no matter that all of us were shrieking for her to stop, laughing, and practically falling out of our
seats, making fools of ourselves, much to the amusement of the people around us. Thankfully, we
were in a more secluded section of the restaurant and there weren’t many people there.

Unfortunately, the poor waiter just happened to bring out our to-go orders during Emma’s….erm…
description, and was standing, red-faced, beside her chair, holding the bags out to us and looking at
the floor.

As soon as Emma saw him, her face turned an even brighter red (which is saying something) and she
dropped her head in her hands in mortification.

Just another night with the girls…never a dull moment. Ever.

Chapter 6

After wrapping up my evening with the girls, I grabbed the food I’d ordered for Ian and made the
drive home, rocking out with the windows down and the music up loud. And when Uptown Funk
came on, I turned it up even louder and sang along at the top of my lungs because, let’s face it. You
can’t help but dance and sing to that song. Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars know what they’re doing, for
sure.

I pulled into the driveway and parked beside Ian’s truck, not bothering to pull into the garage. I
gathered all my stuff and Ian’s food up and walked inside, hollering, “Honey, I’m home!”

Receiving no response, I laid his food on the counter and dropped everything else beside it, moving
through the house looking for him. He was nowhere to be found inside the house, so I checked out on
the back porch. I saw him there, sitting in the chair, staring off into the distance.

“Hey,” I said softly as I walked out to him, stopping at his side.

He was leaned back, the neck of a bottle of beer dangling from his fingers.

“Hey,” he said back, not moving, not looking at me.

I sat in the chair beside him, concern washing over me. “Is everything okay?”

He nodded once, and then quickly shook his head. “Just a rough day today, I guess. I had to fire a man
for being so careless that one of my other workers ended up in the hospital today.”

“Oh my God,” I breathed, reaching out and taking his free hand in mine. “What happened?”

“Carl happened. Fucker went to Griff’s for lunch, which is no big deal, but he decided to have a few
beers and a shot while he was at it. That is a real big deal. Came back, got into the bobcat, and then
didn’t pay attention when he swung it around the corner. Ran it right into the side of an S-10 truck that
was just pulling in. The guy driving, when the bucket hit the truck, thank God, was wearing his
seatbelt, but he hit his head against the window. Knocked him out.”

I sank back in my seat, my hand automatically coming up to cover my mouth. “Is he okay?”

Ian nodded. “Yeah, he’ll be fine. He’s off for a couple weeks with a concussion, unless there’re
complications with him. Carl got a little whiplash from hitting the truck, but he was fired on the spot. I
mean, drinking on the fucking job! Goddamn, that pisses me off! He could have killed someone!”

Ian was yelling, his voice getting hoarse with emotion. I let him vent, still holding his hand in mine,
my thumb drawing soothing circles against the back of his. Finally, he took a deep breath and then
finished off the rest of his beer.

“You know, it could have been a lot worse. But what gets me, what pisses me off the most, is that
Carl is a damn good worker. But he’s a fucking alcoholic. How did I not know that? How did I not
catch that when he’s been with me for over a year now?”

His face was tortured, his breathing ragged.

I moved from my chair and draped myself over his lap, wrapping my arms around him and holding
him tightly to me. He dropped his bottle and his arms came up and squeezed me.

“Baby, it’s not your fault. He’s your employee, you’re not his father. Have you ever caught him
drinking on the job before?”

He shook his head. “No, but I’m at different sites all the time, so I’m not always there.”

“What about the foreman for that job? Has he noticed anything, since he’s there all the time?” I asked
him. He shook his head again and I continued, “Then how would you have known he was an
alcoholic? Sometimes people with addictions are pretty adept at hiding it, until they get to that point
that they just can’t anymore. It sucks that that’s where he’s at, apparently, and it really sucks that it
caused someone else to get hurt.”

Ian nodded against me and then heaved a sigh, his warm breath washing over my skin. “I know. I just
can’t help but feel like it’s my fault, like I should have been paying more attention.”

I kissed his forehead and his cheek, remaining silent for the moment. After a bit, he released me and I
stood, reaching for his hand again. “Come on and eat, and then we’ll veg out for a while, okay?”

“Okay,” he replied. He stood and pulled me into his chest, one of his hands coming up to cradle my
jaw and tip my head back so he could see my eyes. “I love you,” he said, softly.

I could feel just about every inch of my body softening against him, and my lips curled into a smile as
I pushed up on my toes, pressing my lips against his and whispering, “I love you, too,” before I kissed
him.

Afterwards, Ian and I cuddled up on the couch while he ate and watched reruns of The Big Bang
Theory, pausing the TV only once when Ian’s phone rang. I listened with half an ear as he spoke to
someone about the events of the day, but as soon as he was done, he un-paused the TV and went back
to watching without a word. I didn’t push him to talk, and he didn’t offer anything more.

But we didn’t need to talk. It was enough just to be together, to draw strength from each other when
needed without the words needing to be said. It worked for us…and it was perfect.

We were lying in bed a couple hours later, cuddled up as usual, when Ian broke the silence of the
darkened room.

“So, what was this whole get together about tonight, anyway?” he asked.

I laughed softly, asking in return, “Why did it have to be about something? We always like to get
together for girl’s nights anyway, you know.”

“Yeah, but I know when you guys are up to something. So what do I have to look forward to, now?”

“Nothing for you to worry about, I promise!” I said, humor lacing the words.

“Uh-huh. Famous last words…” Ian mumbled good-naturedly.

I leaned back and propped my head on my hand, my elbow digging into the mattress. “Nope,
seriously. It’s a good thing,” I said, drawing the words out with a breathy tone.

“I’m listening,” he replied, and I could tell he was completely intrigued now.

I laughed and rolled into him again, my lips finding his in the darkness and giving him a quick kiss.
“We’re having a Down & Dirty party in a couple weeks. You know, just another excuse to get
together and drink and have a good time. And maybe buy some new sex toys while we’re at it…” I let
my words trail off suggestively as I trailed a finger down his chest.

He stopped my hand with his, pressing it fully against his chest as he said, quickly, “I’m down with
that. Sure…when’s the party?”

I shook my head and chuckled as I kissed him once more, then settled back down in the bed, my head

on his shoulder, my arm lying across his stomach, my leg thrown over his thigh.

I yawned as I answered, “I already told you in a couple of weeks. Geez, pay attention.”

He just chuckled and gave me a squeeze, kissing my forehead. “Night, baby. Love you.”

“Mmm,” I murmured, snuggling in closer. “G’night. Love you, too.”

We were quiet again for just a moment before I cleared my throat and asked him, softly, “Are you
okay?”

I heard him take a deep breath, then he kissed my forehead once more, pulling me even closer to his
body and replied, “With you in my arms, in my life, I’m more than okay.”

I smiled against his chest and drifted off to sleep.

***

The next few days were pretty uneventful. Ian was busy dealing with the insurance people and all that
shit that goes along with what happened. He’d even spoken to Emma’s old boss, Floyd Grim, to get
his professional opinion on everything, just to cover his bases.

Ian had gone to his office this afternoon to meet with him, and Floyd had agreed to help him out with
the legal side of things if he needed it, which was nice of him. He’d then asked Ian to see if Emma
would like to come back to work for him since his current secretary didn’t hardly know her ass from
a hole in the ground. His words apparently, not Ian’s.

Ian called Emma when he got home and relayed the message, which prompted Emma to call Floyd
and thank him for the offer, but, between Skin Deep and Everly, she had her hands full, so she’d
declined regretfully. He had asked her to call Mrs. Allen and check on her every once and a while,
though, seeing as how the old woman still called every week and now instead of only bitching about
Doc (the vet) and Fluffers (her mangy, overweight, freak of a cat), she spent most of the time
bemoaning the fact that her Emma wasn’t there to talk to her.

I knew this because Emma had just called me and was filling me in.

“I feel bad for him,” Emma was saying about Floyd. “He’s a really good attorney and a lot of people
applied for my job, but I guess he was doing a friend a favor and letting this girl work for him but she
keeps losing files because she can’t remember how she filed them in the cabinets. Yikes.”

“Wait a sec, what happened to the woman that had stepped in to cover when you left?” I asked.

Emma sighed. “She was just filling in, but apparently she retired, so…this is what he’s left with.”

“Hmmm,” I said, feeling bad for Floyd. “So, did you call Mrs. Allen?” I asked her, tongue-in-cheek.

Emma groaned. “Oh, God. Yes, I did. I swear I’m a glutton for punishment because she kept me on the
phone for a good forty-five minutes talking about Fluffers and the latest hairball he’d hacked up.
Don’t even get me started on the whole Doc thing, either. Jesus, you’d think the man would just let the
cat be a matted mess rather than subjecting himself to the ass-chewing he gets every time.”

I laughed until tears were pouring down my face as Emma continued to recount her conversation.
When she was finally done, we chatted a little bit more, with her asking about Ian and if he’d gotten
everything worked out about the accident at work. Then she asked about my class and if I had any new
funny stories.

Ironically (or not so ironically), I did. And who did it involve? Gerry the Gerbil, of course. “Yeah, I

had a kid try to smuggle Gerry out of the classroom yesterday. How did he do that, you ask? Well, let
me tell you,” I said, heavy on the sarcasm and disbelief. Seriously, if it wasn’t something I’d lived
through myself, I’d probably think I was a liar.

Ian was sitting in the recliner and I was kicked back on the couch, but he must have been listening
with half-an ear, because he started chuckling.

Emma was already laughing, too, just imagining what was coming. “Hold on, wait, wait…let me put
this on speaker. I know Luke, Brandon, and T.J. are gonna wanna hear this!”

I paused, asking, “Are you still at the shop?” I looked at the clock, seeing that it was after seven and
she was usually home with Everly by then.

“Yeah, Mom and Dad took the baby for the night, and the guys had a couple clients booked so I hung
around. Watching all the tatted up sexiness strut around is hard work, you know,” she drawled, and I
could hear the guys laughing and hooting in the background.

“Geez, what a rough Friday night you’re having,” I retorted, rolling my eyes at Ian. Emma just laughed
again. “Anyway, back to Gerry-”

I was cut off by T.J. asking, “Who the fuck is Gerry?” but before I could reply, I heard Luke say, “Not
who, what. Gerry’s a gerbil, dude.”

I opened my mouth to continue again, and once more was cut off. Ian looked at me weird, so I covered
the phone with my hand and whispered to him, “She put it on speaker, so now the guys are all
interrupting.” He nodded in an, ‘Ahhh, I get it,’ way and went back to watching TV, his lips still
twitching in anticipation of what I was about to say.

“What the hell do you have a gerbil for, Leah?” T.J. asked.

I didn’t even bother answering, and for good reason. I heard Brandon pipe up with, “For illicit sexual
acts, dumbass. What do you think?” He said it sarcastically, thank God, which is the only reason I
still kept my mouth shut. “It’s the class pet.”

“Oh, yeah,” T.J. answered. “I forgot she was a teacher.”

I winced when Emma clapped her hands loudly, obviously not bothering to move them away from
where she must have laid the phone down when she put it on speaker phone. “Alright! Let the poor
girl finish or I’m taking it off speaker and you don’t get to hear!” she yelled.

Yup. That’s my sister.

“Okay,” I started again. “So about half an hour before the end of class, one of the boys in the class
asked if he could get Gerry out and hold him for a bit. I said sure, helped him get him out, and set him
up-oh, did I tell you I got a tiny little plastic kiddy pool and put it in the corner so the kids could kneel
at the side and put Gerry in it so he’d quit getting loose?” I asked, cutting myself off.

“No, you didn’t. That’s a good idea! Now you won’t have to worry about the other teachers staging a
protest anymore,” Emma said.

“Anyway, I let the boy put Gerry in the pool and he was sitting there, petting him and watching him
run around. I turned around to answer another student who asked a question and when I turned around,
Gerry was not in the pool anymore. I asked him where Gerry was and he said that he jumped out of
the pool.”

Emma and the guys must have been completely invested in the story now, because I wasn’t hearing a

peep from their end.

“I looked around, but I was a little suspicious, especially because I noticed that he was starting to
fidget a lot more than usual-”

Brandon interrupted this time. “The kid, not Gerry, right?”

I sighed. “Yes, the kid, I didn’t know where Gerry was, remember? Pay attention!” I said, jokingly.
“Moving on. I asked the kid if he was telling the truth, and his face got really red. All of a sudden, he
let out this God-awful shriek and started dancing around, holding his crotch!”

“Aw, hell no!” one of the guys hollered. “He put it down his pants? That’s just messed up!”

“I know, right?” I replied, still in disbelief that it had actually happened. “I got him to hold still and
asked him to please carefully take Gerry out of his pants. He did, and handed me a very clearly
traumatized, but no worse for the wear, gerbil. But the poor kid was crying, saying that Gerry bit him
so I had to get someone to cover my room for a minute and walk him up to the office to call his
parents. They had to come down and check him with the nurse, you know, since it was in a delicate
area.”

“Oh, God!” I heard a mix of groaning and laughter coming from the other end of the line and figured
that the guys were probably cupping themselves protectively, same as Ian did last night when I told
him what happened.

“He didn’t really get bit on his little…you know. It was more like Gerry just nipped him on his thigh,
didn’t break the skin, no marks, nothing. Do you know how mortifying it is to have to explain to a
parent that their son put a gerbil in his pants?” I cried, feeling my face flame red with embarrassment
once more, just thinking about it.

“What did his parents say?” Emma asked.

“They just asked him why he put Gerry in his pants and he told them he just wanted to take him home
so he could have a gerbil. No other reason.”

Luke called out, “Well, Leah wins most interesting day, hands down.”

Sadly, no one disagreed.

With that conversation over, Emma and I talked for just a couple more minutes and hung up, but only
after I promised that we would be at Mom and Dad’s for Sunday breakfast. That was something we’d
always done, but since the group had grown so much and everyone had their own things going all the
time, we didn’t do it as often, but Mom had put her foot down and said she was reinstating Sunday
breakfast, or else. We didn’t ask or else what. We knew the answer.

Because she said so.

Chapter 7

I stood in the doorway to Ian’s office, completely dumbstruck by what I saw.

It was Friday once more, and the week since the “incident” as we were calling it had passed without
event. I was grateful for that…until now. I’d come down to Ian’s office, which I did from time to
time, just to see him, especially when I knew he’d be there and not out on a job.

But it wasn’t Ian in his office chair.

Nope. Far from it.

And as I stood there, frozen to the spot, unable to say a word, though rage was working its way
through my body, coursing through my veins until they were almost boiling, I felt warm hands circle
round my waist, pulling me back against a hard chest.

The velvet, deep voice that I so loved spoke in my ear, saying, “Hey, baby…”

That’s when his eyes followed my gaze and his whole body stiffened. “Fucking hell!” he roared,
gently pushing me to the side out of his way. He strode into his office, reaching for the zippered
hoodie he had hanging on a hook just inside the door and threw it at Victoria, who was lounging in his
chair, feet propped up on his desk.

Naked. With the exception of a hard hat and high heels.

“Get the fuck outta my chair and cover yourself!” Ian growled, clenching his fists and glaring at the
woman.

She just giggled and slowly lifted herself out of his chair, taking her time wrapping herself in his
shirt. “Hey, lover!” she said, cheerfully. “I came by to surprise my boyfriend at work but,” she paused
and turned to look at me.

I’ve never been scared of Victoria. Nothing about her had ever given me pause that maybe, just
maybe, she was a little more dangerously unhinged than we thought…until that moment.

The moment her eyes hit me, chills raced down my spine and goosebumps crept along my skin. There
was a deeper calculation in her eyes that I’d never seen before, and it didn’t get any better when she
spoke. It was like a totally different woman from the one I’d been dealing with for the past year.

“But, someone obviously can’t take the hint that we’re together,” she continued. She turned to Ian then
and said, “You know, I’ve let you have your fun, but don’t you think it’s time you were done sowing
your wild oats? I’m ovulating, so it’s the perfect time to start our family, and your mom has been
holding your grandmother’s ring for you to give me. I even had it sized already, so it’ll fit perfectly
when you finally propose.”

She preened and minced over to Ian, reaching up and running her hand down his t-shirt covered chest.
She pouted when he flinched away, knocking her hand down.

The shock wore off enough that I finally found my tongue. “Don’t touch him!” I said, sharply. She
turned to look at me again, a disturbing gleam in her eyes. “Get your shit and get the fuck out of here.
You aren’t wanted here by anyone, Victoria, especially Ian. Get it through your fucked-up head,” I
said, my voice low with warning.

She only tossed her hair and giggled again, her eyes never leaving mine as she stepped forward,
deliberately moving toward Ian, who backed away from her advance, hands still clenched at his

sides. She kept going, watching me as she backed him into the wall and pressed herself against him,
rubbing her chest against his. She dropped my gaze long enough to lean forward, aiming her lips
toward Ian’s face and, when he turned his face away, licked along his jawline until she pressed her
lips against his cheek, leaving a bright red imprint of her lips behind before he brought his hands up
and cupped her shoulders, gently but firmly pushing her away from him.

In that moment, I wished, just for a second, that Ian was the type of man to hit a woman. Because there
was no woman on the face of the planet who deserved it more right then.

Unable to control myself, I stepped forward, my hands fisted at my sides so I wouldn’t jerk her away
by her hair and pound her in her face until she was unrecognizable. “Bitch,” I said, tightly, but I didn’t
get any further.

Ian moved away from her, grasping my arm and pulling me into him, his arms wrapping around me for
two obvious reasons. One, to keep me from attacking, and two, to show Victoria, again, that he was
choosing me.

His words, when he spoke, were sharp and brutal. He pulled no punches this time, all thinly veiled
attempts at niceness completely out the window.

“I’ve told you time and time again that there is nothing between us. There never will be. Any schemes
that you have with my parents, or even on your own, that you’ve cooked up in that Godforsaken
bubble of a brain, just forget them. It’s NEVER going to fucking happen. Do you understand?”

I could feel him trembling against me, knew he was beyond pissed.

Victoria cocked a hip and pouted, sticking her lip out comically, like a five year old would. Her eyes
filled with tears and she stood there staring for just a second before she stomped her foot and
shrieked in her throat, literally throwing a temper tantrum.

I couldn’t help it. Disbelieving laughter bubbled from my lips. I mean, seriously, was this 30 year old
woman really acting like a toddler?

As soon as she heard me laughing, the pout left her face and I bit my lips, all traces of humor gone in
an instant because that cold calculation was back in her eyes. She drew Ian’s hoodie close around her
and walked to the door, swaying her hips exaggeratedly. She stopped in the doorway and looked over
her shoulder at us.

“I tire of these games, Ian. I’ve overlooked all of your little affairs over the years, knowing that you
just had to get it out of your system before we got married and started our family, just like our parents
have always planned. But this one? She’s overstayed her welcome. I’ll give you six months to deal
with this…this…” she waved her hand at me, her face twisted in disgust before she continued, “girl.
But then I expect you to come home to me. And trust me, I’ll be checking in in the meantime to make
sure that you’re scraping her off.”

After delivering her ridiculous ultimatum, she flung her hair over her shoulder and strode out.

I glanced up at Ian and saw him staring out the doorway, a muscle in his cheek twitching. I slid my
arms around his waist and buried my face against his chest, shaking my head, utterly baffled by what
had just happened.

I felt Ian pull me closer, then his head came down and he rested his cheek against the top of mine. He
held me like that for a moment, then lifted my face to his with a gentle finger under my chin.

“You know that she’s completely delusional right? There’s no way in hell that I knew she was going

to be waiting here in my office…”

“I know. But…God, Ian, did you see the way she looked at me? Like, I felt chills. Does she have a
history of torturing household pets, or any other characteristics of a serial killer? Because, seriously,
she just gave me that vibe.”

A ghost of a smile crossed Ian’s face and faded quickly. “No, she’s not dangerous. But she’s
obviously got a screw looser than I thought. Don’t worry, baby. I’m not playing around anymore. I’m
calling my parents and letting my mom know exactly what I think of her conniving little ploy, and then
I’ll be calling Victoria’s parents and telling them just what she’s been up to.”

I kept silent. There was nothing to say to that because I think we both knew that it wouldn’t help.
We’d thought she’d given up and she came back with a vengeance.

And now, I was a little afraid to see what she’d come up with next.

An hour later, it was still the foremost thought on my mind as I threw together a salad while Ian
grilled some steaks and corn on the cob for dinner. We really hadn’t spoken any more about it; I don’t
think either of us wanted to bring it up.

Ian came in the back door and sat the platters of perfectly cooked meat and corn down on the counter,
then placed a sweet kiss on my shoulder as he moved behind me to the cabinet to get plates out for us
to eat on.

We sat at the table to eat rather than eating in the living room in front of the TV, which is what we
usually did. But then again, it’s easier to eat corn on the cob and steak when you’re not balancing a
plate in your lap. Trust me. Or, I guess it could be just that my whole family is just accident prone…

Ian was the first to break the silence. “So, the big party is tomorrow, huh?” He waggled his eyebrows
at me, making me roll my eyes and grin at him.

“Yes, the party is tomorrow. Why?” I asked him suspiciously.

“Nothing. Just wondering.” He shot me a cocky smile and I narrowed my eyes at him.

“You’re up to something,” I stated, pointing my finger in his direction. “What did you do? Or what are
you going to do?”

He pretended to look affronted, gasping, “Me? How dare you assume that I’m up to something? You
know what they say about assuming…”

“I’m keeping my eye on you,” I told him, and he only laughed at me and finished eating.

He helped clean up the kitchen and just as we were about to sit down in the living room, there was a
knock at the door.

Ian went to answer it, stepping back and letting my brother inside.

“Since when do you lock the door?” he asked me.

“Uh, since the last time you walked in here unannounced and…well, you know what happened.” I
could feel my face turning red, even though it’d been a while since.

Calland visibly cringed and shuddered. “Yeah. Truth. Thanks for reminding me of the reason I
willingly gave up my key.”

See, Ian and I were getting busy on the kitchen counter one afternoon and Calland dropped in.
Needless to say, he got an eyeful of Ian’s bare ass (thankfully that’s all he saw) and hightailed it out

like his own ass was on fire. I hadn’t been able to look him in the eye after that until just recently.

“What’s up?” I asked him, thinking it a little weird that he was at my house, alone, on a Friday night.

He blew out a breath and moved past me, falling onto the couch and saying, “I think I’m in trouble.”

I glanced at Ian, seeing the same surprise etched on his face that I knew was on mine. We both sat
back down, Ian in the recliner, and me on the couch beside Calland as I asked, “What do you mean,
you think you’re in trouble? Calland, what’s going on?”

“You know that girl I’ve been seeing?”

“Lucy?” I asked him, hedging on the name. I can’t keep track of all the different ones he dates all the
time.

He shook his head. “Lily, but nice try. Okay, so you remember the girl I dated before that?”

I raised my hands, shrugging and shaking my head as I tried to think. “I don’t know, Fluffy? Muffin?”
(To my credit, I managed to keep a straight face while teasing him.)

He glared at me. “Ha ha, funny. No, Grace.”

“Yeah, Calland, I don’t really remember. I can’t keep all your women straight. Have you thought
about settling down? Maybe keeping one for longer than a month or two?”

“Oh, got jokes tonight, huh?” he said, then turned to Ian and asked, “How the hell do you put up with
her?”

Ian just grinned and replied, “Cause she’s awesome and I love her.”

Calland pretended to gag. “Anyway, so I just found out that Grace is Lily’s sister.”

I stayed silent for a moment, letting the logistics of that sink in. “So, you dated Grace. Now you’re
dating Lily, and they’re sisters. I mean, that’s kinda low, moving from one sister to the next, Calland. I
mean, what the hell is Grace saying about this?”

“Well,” he hedged, “That’s where the trouble is. I just found out. I knew Grace had a sister, but they
didn’t get along the greatest. I never met her, never knew what her name was. But then Lily was just
talking about her sister, who’s named Grace, and how they’ve gotten closer lately and she’s so happy
about it.”

Ian chimed in. “So? There’s a lot of Graces in the world. How do you know that she’s talking about
the Grace you were just seeing?”

Calland sighed. “Maybe because she showed me a picture of her sister who apparently is so
heartbroken over the douchecanoe that broke up with her a couple months ago. I’m not kidding. She
held up the picture and asked me, ‘Look? Isn’t she so pretty? How could that ass just toss her away
like that? She said he’s already dating some other skank. Can you believe it?’”

I snorted, trying to contain my laughter, but failed miserably because he had raised his voice and
delivered “Lily’s” speech in a creepy, valley-girl inspired falsetto. “Please tell me that’s not how she
really sounds?” I asked him, mockingly.

“Does it matter? How the hell do you tell the girl you’re seeing that the skank who’s dating her
sister’s ex is her?” Calland threw his hands up and sat forward on the couch, running his hands
through his hair agitatedly.

“Wow.”

He glared at me. “Is that all you have to say? Wow?”

“What do you want me to say, Calland? You’re 29 and practically a confirmed bachelor. You’re a
serial dater who always seems to find the most vapid females around to date. What you need is to find
a good woman who won’t put up with your shit, and who’ll knock you down a peg or two when you
need it.” I cocked my head at him and widened my eyes as I continued, “Which is always.”

He curled his lip up at me. “God, you sound like Mom. But that’s not going to solve my problem right
now. What do I do?”

“You’re gonna have to tell her the truth. You can’t keep dating her after just breaking her sister’s
heart. What are you gonna do when she wants to double date with her sister? When she wants you to
set her sister up with a friend?” I asked him.

“I know…” he replied, sounding glum.

“Well if you know, then why’d you come here asking me for advice?”

“I really didn’t come for advice. I just needed an alibi since I told her I couldn’t go out with her
tonight because I promised I’d come over here for dinner and to talk about family stuff.”

“You’re an ass, Calland,” I told him, shaking my head at him.

“But you love me,” was his reply.

Chapter 8

“You’re fucking kidding me,” Chloe gasped, her jaw dropping.

“I wish I was,” I replied, succinctly.

We were at Allie’s house for the Down & Dirty party, helping her set things up. Allie and Emma
were in the kitchen putting together a veggie tray while Chloe and I moved chairs into the living room
from the dining room table to make sure there were enough seats for everyone.

I was filling Chloe in on all the details of what happened with Victoria at Ian’s office yesterday, and
while I wasn’t whispering, I wasn’t talking loudly, but that didn’t stop my sister and Allie from
stomping into the living room, wiping their hands on paper towels.

“I heard the name Victoria and I know you aren’t in here telling stories that we can’t hear,” Emma
said sternly. Allie stood beside her, nodding her agreement.

I opened my mouth to say something and the door opened, bringing my mom and oldest sister, Jenna,
into the room. They called their hellos, but only got half-assed hellos in response because everyone
was still staring at me.

Chloe gave me a sympathetic look, because I’d already told her I was just gonna fill the rest of my
family in at breakfast tomorrow, but…my family, especially the women, are like a dog with a bone
when they want to know something. They’d do well in the CIA or the FBI; they’d just talk prisoners to
death, or at least into giving up all the information they had.

My mom’s eagle eye read the situation immediately and turned to me. “What are you hiding?”

I threw my hands up. “I’m not hiding anything! Geez Louise, people!” I sighed. “Can’t a girl have a
private conversation with her best friend?”

“Leah Nicole…” Mom warned, and I grinned.

“Okay, my God. I was gonna tell you all at breakfast tomorrow, but just wanted to tell Chloe because
she and Brandon can’t make it tomorrow.” I shot Chloe an apologetic look, because I’d just
essentially thrown her under the bus.

My mom picked up on that immediately, too. “Chloe? You guys aren’t coming tomorrow?”

Chloe glared at me and then smiled at my mom, shaking her head regretfully. “No, we actually already
had plans…” she took in my mom’s crestfallen expression and backpedaled. “But we can move things
around and be there!” she said brightly.

My mom beamed because she’d just gotten her way. “Good, that means everyone will be there,
including your mom and her…and T.J. and Allie’s parents, too.”

Chloe’s eyes narrowed. “My mom and her what, Mrs. Jensen?”

“Oh, blah. I’ve told you time and time again, call me Jan. Mrs. Jensen was my mother-in-law. And,
nothing, I don’t know what I’m talking about. Don’t mind the ramblings of an old woman. Now, Leah,
you tell us right now what you’re hiding.”

And just like that, my mom had effectively closed that subject.

“I wasn’t hiding anything, I promise,” I began, and then told them everything that had happened with
Victoria.

With all that finally out of the way, we got back to setting up for the party. Chloe and I headed to
Allie’s office to start dragging out her tubs of stuff and getting it all laid out on the table she had set up
in front of the fireplace.

Chloe was arranging the wide array of dildos, cock rings, vibrators, bullets, and other interesting
items designed to make you scream alongside the bottles, jars, and tubes containing creams, lotions,
powders, and lubes of all types for whatever you could imagine, while I went back to get the star of
the show, Big Kirky.

I was a little apprehensive lugging him into the living room, because, well…I honestly didn’t know
what kind of crazy thing Nanny would pop off with when she saw him. Big Kirky was an eighteen
inch tall, ten inch diameter, jelly-type dildo, complete with veins and balls, and the thing weighed
like ten pounds.

Allie joked around about using him for a door stop (which I think she actually did at one point), but
really she had just gotten him for the shock factor when she started selling Down & Dirty. I’ve been to
a few of her parties over the past few years, and he’s always been the ice breaker, for sure.

Thankfully, Nannny had gone into the kitchen with Daisy and my mom, so I made my way over to
Chloe, calling out for her to clear a spot for Big Kirky. She shook her head and laughed as she did so,
then laughed even harder at the thump he made when I set him down.

We moved back from the table and studied our handiwork, satisfied that we’d remembered to set up
everything like Allie had asked us to.

She came into the living room, holding a stack of catalogs and pens in her hands. When she saw the
table, she nodded to us. “Thank you, you two! Looks great! I guess we’re ready?”

I shrugged, looking around. I didn’t see anything else that needed to be done. The front door opened
and Jackson walked in.

“Jesus…” he muttered as his eyes went directly to the table we’d set up. “I forgot about that thing.”

Allie just grinned and lifted her face to meet his kiss. “What are you doing here? The party is getting
ready to start.”

“I know, I just forgot to grab extra diapers to refill the diaper bag with and wanted to get them before
everyone got here,” Jackson called over his shoulder as he headed upstairs. He was back downstairs
in an instant, clutching a handful of diapers.

Emma walked out of the kitchen munching on a carrot stick and almost ran into him as he stepped off
the stairs. “Ooh. Sorry, Jacks,” she said, patting his chest fondly and moving away from him. She
stopped and turned back to him, her eyes narrowing.

“Where’d you come from?” she asked.

“This is my house, you know,” he said, drolly.

“Smart ass,” she muttered. “You know what I mean. Is everything okay with Luke and Everly?”

Since the party was at Allie and Jacks’ house, all the guys, along with the babies, were hanging at
Luke and Emma’s house.

“Chill, mama bear, everything’s fine,” Jackson said to her. “I just needed to grab some diapers.”

Emma looked confused. “You could have just grabbed one of Everly’s. She just moved up to the same
size as Liam. Why’d Luke make you walk over here just for diapers?”

Allie interjected with, “Yeah, what she said. You checking up on us?”

Jackson gave her a look and said, “No, woman. I’m not checking up on you. I’m also NOT putting my
SON in one of Everly’s diapers. They’re girly!”

Emma screwed her face up at him. “What? They aren’t girly, they’re just normal diapers,” she said,
looking at him like he’d lost his mind.

“They have Minnie Mouse on them!” Jackson exclaimed, looking affronted that it was even suggested
he use a diaper depicting a female cartoon character on his son.

Emma rolled her eyes and said, “They also have Mickey Mouse on them.” She turned to Allie. “Your
husband…”

Allie just laughed. “I know, but I love him,” she said, lifting her face to receive a kiss from him again
as he moved past her on his way to leave.

Jackson kissed her and waved hello/goodbye to everyone as Nanny and the moms came out of the
kitchen and filed into the living room.

“Holy giant ballsack!” Nanny crowed, blinking her eyes at Big Kirky.

Jackson practically ran for the door, hollering bye again as he slammed it behind him. Which was a
good thing, considering the comments that flew from Nanny’s mouth afterwards.

“Allie-girl, tell me you don’t get up on that thing!” Nanny called in her gravelly voice, her eyes still
locked on the giant dildo. She didn’t give Allie a chance to answer. “Back in my day, I could
probab-”

“Mom!” Daisy yelled, trying to distract her.

“What?” Nanny snapped back at her. “I’m just sayin’, I might have been able-”

The doorbell rang and we all practically sighed in relief.

“I’ll get it!” Allie said brightly, rubbing her forehead with her fingers as she moved to answer the
door. “What the hell did we get ourselves into?” she whispered to Chloe and me as she passed us.

We just grinned at each other.

Within the next half an hour, the living room was almost full of women, most of which I was either
related to, or might as well have been, for how close we were. Chloe and I were sitting cross-legged
on the floor, Emma and Jenna on the loveseat behind us. My mom was sitting with Daisy, Nanny, and
Chloe’s mom, Sarah, on the couch. All of the other ladies, a mixture of friends and neighbors, were
seated randomly on chairs placed around the room, or on the floor like us. Altogether, there were
about sixteen of us, which would make for a pretty good party for Allie.

Allie stood in the middle of the room, right in front of the table, and started her “show.” She kicked it
off with a couple of games, one of which included tossing glow necklaces around Big Kirky in a
wacky, adult version of the ring toss game. Once the games were over, Allie had given out a couple
of prizes (go me! I won a mini variety pack of warming, flavored massage oils), and then we moved
on to the non-sex-toy section of the catalog.

We passed around the pots, jars, creams, and all that good stuff as Allie told us about each of the
products. I found a new body butter that smelled absolutely delicious and earmarked that page to
order some. Once we’d all sampled everything (laughing through most of it, if not because of the
things Allie was saying, but because of Nanny), Allie invited everyone to take a break and get some

goodies from the kitchen.

With a glass of wine and a plate piled high with buffalo chicken dip, chips, veggies, dip, and mini
cherry cheesecakes, I settled back down on the floor with Chloe to wait for everyone else to come
back in.

She leaned back against the couch and popped a bite of buffalo dip in her mouth, chewing thoughtfully
as she looked at me.

“What?” I asked?

“We didn’t get to finish our talk. What are you going to do about the bitch?”

I shrugged. “I have no idea. Ian said he was going to call his parents, and hers, to let them know just
what she’s been up to. I mean, she’s done the whole naked thing before. I’ve seen her naked more than
I have myself, I swear,” I said with a snort. “But, Chloe, the look in her eyes was something I’d never
seen before. I’ve never thought she was stupid, but I never thought she was smart. Do you know what
I mean?”

Chloe nodded as she sipped her wine.

“I just think something has snapped in her head. I don’t think she’s going to stop unless she’s forced
to. Geez, can you imagine us trying to get a restraining order against her?” I shook my head, picturing
it. “Excuse me, can I please get a CPO against this crazy bitch who keeps showing up at my
boyfriend’s house and office, naked and wearing a hard hat? They’d laugh me out of the courthouse.”

Chloe tipped her head to the side in half-hearted agreement, but before she could reply, the women
started trickling back in. “We’ll get together this week so we can talk,” she said quietly.

I nodded quickly, and we shared a smile before I turned to ask my sister, Jenna, how my baby nephew
was doing. We all chatted while we ate and when we were finished, Allie jumped back up in front to
start the “fun” part of the fun party.

She held up her catalog, opened to the first page of toys, but before she could say anything, Nanny
opened her mouth and rendered the room silent.

“Allie-girl, start with that ginormous piece of man meat you’ve got thumped on the table! You know,
if I ever used something like that, your Poppy would have to strap a board across my ass so he
wouldn’t fall in! Whoo-wee!”

The silence lasted for point-two seconds and then the room roared with laughter, over which Daisy
could be heard groaning, “Oh, God no, Mom…”

Poor Allie just covered her face with her hands and shook her head, but we could see her shoulders
shaking with laughter.

Chapter 9

“How’d the party go?” Ian asked a couple hours later in the car.

A rueful laugh escaped in answer. “It was interesting, that’s for sure,” I said.

Ian chuckled. “Yeah, Jackson looked half spooked when he came back from getting diapers. Said
Nanny and that’s all it took. We didn’t need to hear anymore.”

“Yup. I wish I hadn’t heard more…Good Lord, that woman’s a handful!” I replied, but with fondness.

He reached over and took my hand, lacing our fingers together and bringing them up to his mouth. He
kissed the back of my hand and then rested our entwined hands on his thigh.

I laid my head back against the seat and just looked at him, drinking in the sexy hotness of him in the
dim light of the dash and the passing street lights.

I saw the corner of his mouth quirk up, and without looking at me, he asked, “What?”

I smiled. “Nothing. Just looking at you.”

“Weirdo,” he said, squeezing my hand briefly.

He held my hand on his thigh the whole way home, only releasing me when we pulled into the garage
and parked. I got out, grabbing my black plastic bag full of goodies I’d bought from Allie from the
floor to take inside.

I was a little shocked that Ian hadn’t asked what I bought the whole way home, but I knew his
curiosity would get the best of him sooner rather than later.

Five seconds later, I realized I shouldn’t have been shocked, and that I was right on the money. He
held the door open for me to pass by him into the kitchen and as I did, he grabbed the bag out of my
hand and took off through the house.

“Ian!” I yelled, dropping my purse on the counter and stepping out of my heels before following him
down the hallway to the bedroom. I didn’t chase him; what was the point? I knew where he was going
and, trust me, he definitely was gonna want me with him when he started trying things out.

Er, at least I’d hope so. If not, that could end up being kinda awkward…

I stopped in the doorway of the bedroom and looked in to see him lounging on the bed, the bag beside
him, still closed.

I quirked a questioning brow at him and leaned against the door frame, crossing my arms over my
chest.

“Whatcha doing?” I asked him conversationally.

He leaned on one elbow and crossed his legs, mocking me, I guess. “Not much. What are you doing?”

“Nothing, really,” I replied mildly.

He lifted his chin in a nonchalant nod. “Sounds pretty boring.”

I gave him a one-shouldered shrug and stayed where I was. He reached out his hand and patted the
bed beside him, jerking his head at me. I just smiled and stayed put. He jerked his head again and
patted the bed once more, then rubbed his hand over it.

I sighed and dropped my arms, slouching toward the bed. “Oh, alright…”

He reached out and pulled me down on to the bed beside him, tossing the bag at me. “Show me,” he
demanded.

“I’m shocked you haven’t looked already,” I mused, sitting up and dumping the contents of the bag on
the bed between us.

He poked around, lifting each item and reading the label before he’d throw it back down. By the time
he’d gone through everything, he was scowling.

“You didn’t get anything fun?” he asked, borderline pouting.

I gathered up the body butter and the massage oil pack and other little things I’d bought, putting them
back in the bag. “Massage oil is fun,” I hedged, but his face just looked even more crestfallen.

“Are you really that upset that I didn’t get a new toy for us to explore?” I asked him, watching his
face.

He smiled and shook his head. “Nah, just messing around with you, baby. You know I don’t need
anything to make you come hard.” He winked and his smile turned cocky, his eyes gleaming with a
mixture of humor and lust.

“Mmmm…that’s so true. I actually did get something, but it’s in my purse. You jumped the gun, there,
honey,” I told him, giving him a sly wink as I slid off the bed.

He leaned over and smacked my ass. “Well, get your ass in gear and go get it!”

It didn’t take me long to retrieve my purse and dig out the small, wrapped package from the side
pocket. I tossed it to Ian when I walked back in the room and watched him look at it, perplexed.

“Uh, that’s awfully small, don’t you think?” he asked, turning it over in his hands. “And flat.”

“Open it,” I told him, crawling onto the bed beside him.

He opened the package carefully and pulled it out, looking even more confused. “It’s…an MP3
player?”

I sighed and took it from him, unwrapping the wires and showing him exactly what it was. “This cuff
goes around the wrist, which is where the controls are. These little things go on your fingertips, the
wires connect them to the control and…” I pressed the two ear bud-looking things into his palm and
hit the on button. “Voila! It’s a fingertip massager.”

His hand jerked and then closed around the vibrating pads. “Mmmm…I see potential here,” he said.
“A little limiting, though.”

I just smiled. “Nope. Waterproof. Can go in and out.” I took it from him and set it on the nightstand
beside the bed before I stood and started playing with the hem of my shirt. “Maybe you should strip,”
I told him softly, slowly edging the bottom of my shirt up over my stomach.

His eyes darkened, watching every move of my hands. He rose from the bed and pulled his shirt off in
one fluid movement, his gaze never wavering from mine. He tossed it to the floor and unbuttoned his
jeans with one hand, unzipping them with the other, then hooked his fingers in the waistband and
shoved them off, kicking them away.

His erection sprang free of the confining denim to stand proudly at attention, every thick, velvety-steel
inch of him beckoning my touch. Instead of reaching for him like I wanted, I quickly divested myself
of my clothes until we were both standing naked on opposite sides of the bed.

I grabbed the massager and slid the cuff on my wrist, then fixed the finger pads to my middle and
forefingers.

Ian put one knee on the bed, but I stopped him with a quick shake of my head, crooking a finger at him
to call him to me. He sauntered over, his hand sliding down his rock hard abs to curl over the
gorgeous length jutting from his body, stroking it slowly. My lips tipped up in a smile and I watched
his eyes darken even more when I slid to my knees on the floor in front of him.

“Leah,” he breathed, his voice low and deep, thick with desire.

With my free hand, I pushed his fingers away, leaning in and capturing the head of him in my lips,
rubbing my tongue over the ridge on the underside of his cock, eliciting a rough groan from him. I
dropped my hand to my wrist and thumbed on the vibration, the pads on my fingertips thrumming to
life.

I returned my free hand to the base of him, wrapping my fingers firmly around his girth, and brought
my other hand up, lightly tracing the vibrating pads up and down his hardened length as I continued to
suck and tongue the knobbed head of him. He jerked at the first touch of them on that ultra-sensitive
skin, unconsciously feeding more of his cock into my mouth and I sucked harder, making him moan
louder.

I took him deeper, my jaw stretching wide to accommodate the largeness of him, breathing through my
nose as I fought my gag reflex until he was touching the back of my throat. I swallowed around him,
making him twitch and jerk against my lips, his breathing harsh in the silence. His hands lifted and
fisted in my hair, one on either side of my head, holding me in place for just a moment longer before
he tugged gently, pulling me back and slipping out of my mouth.

I made a sound of protest in my throat and pushed forward again, the slight sting of his fingers tangling
in my hair sending a thrill down my spine. I set a rhythm, sliding him in and out of my mouth, using my
free hand to follow my mouth and stroke him, twisting my hand up and down his shaft as I sucked the
swollen head, moaning at the salty-sweet tang of precum on my tongue and drowning in the
intoxicating, all male, musky scent of him.

He gasped my name and I cut my eyes up, watching him through my lashes, his eyes blazing into mine.
“Touch yourself, baby,” he whispered.

I complied, sliding the two fingers tipped with the soft vibrating pads down my body and into my
cleft, moaning against Ian’s skin as they skimmed over my clit, through the copious moisture gathered
between my thighs, dripping down the inside of them.

His breath hissed out between his teeth as he watched, his hips taking up the rhythm I’d set, thrusting
against my mouth. It wasn’t long until I was squirming against my own fingers, the pulse of the small
buds rippling through me, pushing me closer and closer to that razor edge of ecstasy. I could tell that
Ian was getting close, as well, his hips beginning to thrust wildly, his hands tightening more and more
in my hair. I dragged my fingers back up over my clit, shuddering at the sensation, but not allowing
myself to finish.

I had other plans for those fingers at the moment…plans I carried out with spectacular results.

Ian’s head dropped back, his mouth open, low sounds emanating from his lips as I worked him with
my mouth and my un-wired hand harder, faster, urging him toward the finish line. I felt him swell
against my tongue, becoming impossibly larger, ready to explode and at just that moment, I pressed
my two vibrating digits, still wet from my body, firmly against his perineum, that smooth strip of flesh

just behind his balls.

Ian’s body went rigid as the pulsing pressure rocketed through him, sending him over the edge
immediately, his voice echoing through the room as he shouted, “Holy FUCK!” He pressed my head
into his hips, lodging his cock in my throat as he came hard and fast, pulsing on my tongue, guttural
cries being wrenched from his lips as I swallowed around him, drinking him down.

I kept my fingers pressed against him, the vibrations feeding his release, and moved my head against
the pressure of his hands, sliding him free of my mouth, only to slip him back inside, sucking and
licking, until every drop had been wrung from him and he was twitching against me, his legs
trembling with the effort to keep standing.

His voice came above me, hoarse and low. “No more…oh, God, Leah.”

I released him, thumbed off the vibration of the pads strapped to my fingers, and sat back on my heels,
watching and smiling with smug satisfaction as he staggered and collapsed on the bed, breathing
heavily.

My thighs clenched against the throbbing ache that had settled deep into my sex, and I shifted to my
feet, stripping the device off my wrist and dropping it back onto the nightstand before I slid onto the
bed beside Ian, pressing my breasts against his side and leaning in to kiss his jaw. He turned his head
and captured my lips, his tongue tangling with mine in a deep kiss.

I broke from it on a sigh, unable to stop my body from shifting restlessly on the mattress.

Ian stared at me, his eyes still dark and shining with a heady mixture of love, lust, and satisfaction.
“Beautiful girl…my God, you’re amazing.”

I felt his words on my skin like a caress, shivering against him. He moved, reaching up to cup my
cheek. “You’re ready to explode, aren’t you, baby?”

I jerked a shoulder, but my body betrayed me, my thighs clenching tightly again. He slid his hand
down and curled it around my thigh, pulling gently as he urged, “Come here.”

“Ian…” I whispered, but he narrowed his eyes, giving me a look that had heat tingling through my
veins, pooling low in my belly.

“Baby, come here. Right now, you’re gonna get up here and I’m gonna eat your sweet pussy until you
come all over my face. And then when I’m ready, I’m gonna spread you wide and fuck you hard and
fast until you scream.”

Need surged through me and I complied, moving to straddle him. His hands slid under my ass, pulling
me forward. I shifted with him, letting him move me where he wanted me until I was kneeling over
his head, my glistening, soaked folds hovering over his mouth. I gasped as I felt the tip of his tongue
just barely circle the engorged nub of my clit and then a jagged cry broke from my lips as his hands
curled around my thighs, spreading them even wider as he pulled me down onto his mouth.

He ate at me voraciously, burying his face in the hot, silken flesh of my sex, his tongue spearing into
my entrance, thrusting in and out and then swiping up to circle my clit again, closing his mouth over it
and sucking, pulling it into his mouth and gently biting, sending sharp spirals of pleasure through my
core.

He kept up his assault on my tender flesh, his fingers digging into my thighs as he held me down on his
mouth, working me with his tongue until I broke, crying out my release as I flooded him with sweet
honey. He lapped up every drop as I ground my pelvis down on him, shuddering and gasping,

breathless with the piercing bliss washing over me until I was boneless and sated.

I carefully slid to the side, collapsing in a heap beside him as he gathered me in his arms, his lips
finding mine and stealing what little breath I had left with a sweet kiss. When he finally released my
mouth, we laid there entwined with each other in the silence broken only by our ragged breathing.

Then when we’d come down enough, he rolled, nudging my thighs apart and settling his hips between
them before he pressed inside me and did everything he promised he would.

And then some.

Chapter 10

I rolled over and silenced the alarm blaring through the room, effectively silencing a groaning Ian,
too.

He pulled me into his arms and tucked me back into his side, grumbling in my hair, “Why the hell did
you set the alarm clock on a Sunday?”

I patted his shoulder and kissed his chest, yawning as I answered, “Breakfast at Mom and Dad’s,
remember?”

“God…” he groaned again, burying his face against me further.

We’d been up most of the night, both of us taking turns exploring each other with the new toy I’d
gotten from Allie’s party last night (I was lucky, it was the only one she’d had with her), neither one
of us remembering, or even caring for that matter, that we had to be up early to be at my parents’
house. Thank God I’d set my alarm earlier that evening before we’d left just to be sure I wouldn’t
forget, or there would have been hell to pay.

I could only imagine my mother stomping into my house, into the bedroom, whipping the covers off of
us (naked or not), and screeching at us to get our asses in gear. Because she’d do it, just to make sure
all of her babies were together for breakfast, especially since we hadn’t done it in a while.

I cuddled closer to Ian for a moment longer, then pulled away, sliding out of bed and stretching before
I walked into the bathroom to take care of business. I stepped into the shower, the steam billowing
around me, making me moan as the hot water pounded down on muscles sore from the vigorous
activities of the previous night. I was halfway through my shower routine before I realized that Ian
had never stumbled into the room.

“Ian!” I hollered, my voice echoing through the room. “You have to get up!”

I laughed as I heard him growl then yell back, “I’m awake! Isn’t that enough?”

“No,” I shouted back. “Get moving, we’re gonna be late!”

Forty-five minutes later, we were showered, dressed, and pulling into my parents’ driveway.
“Damnit,” I muttered under my breath, realizing that we were the last ones to arrive. We hurried
inside, calling out hellos, counting it as a minor blessing that they hadn’t started eating yet. Most of
them were all sitting in the living room, with the exception of Emma, Jenna, Mom, and Daisy, Allie’s
mom.

I glanced around, looking for Chloe (since my mom had guilted her into coming today), noticing that
she wasn’t in the room, either, but Brandon was, sitting beside a man that I’d never seen before. I
raised an eyebrow at him in question and he just gave a barely perceptive shake of his head, telling
me silently that he’d tell me later. I glanced up at Ian to see him watching Brandon with the same
inquisitive expression that I had, but let it go. Ian joined Luke, Brandon, and the stranger on the couch,
saying hi to Noah, who was sitting on the loveseat with Jackson, holding Caleb. Allie, her dad, and
Calland were on the floor with Everly, Liam, and Hayden, while Jarrod sat on the arm of my dad’s
recliner, showing him some kind of handheld game. I waved to everyone and then walked into the
kitchen to tell my mom, sisters, and Daisy hello.

“Leah, hi, honey!” Mom said when I entered the room, not giving me a chance to speak. “Do me a
favor and have one of the guys open this jar for me. I can’t get it open!”

She thrust a jar of strawberry jam at me and turned back to the stove. Jenna was standing at the
counter pouring batter into muffin pans, and Emma was at the toaster, toasting what looked like a
whole loaf of bread.

“Oooh, we’re having popovers?” I asked as I gripped the jar and turned the lid, giving my mom a
WTF look when it popped right off in my hand.

She just sighed and shook her head. “I couldn’t get it open. Don’t judge me.”

“Where’s Chloe?” I asked the room in general. “And who’s the dude on the couch?”

Before I got an answer, my niece Hayden ran into the room, shouting. “Mommy, Daddy said he needs
your boobies, please.”

Jenna let out an exasperated sound and motioned me over. “Here, take over. Apparently, my
‘boobies’ are required at the moment.” She turned to her daughter. “Hayden, come on. Stay out of
Mamaw’s way. And did your Daddy actually tell you to come in here and say boobies?”

Hayden followed her, and we all bit our tongues to contain our laughter at the conversation that
followed as they left the room.

Hayden replied, “Uhhh…well, he told me to come get you and tell you that the baby was hungry.”
Then she asked her mom, “Can I help feed him?”

Jenna sounded resigned as she answered, “Not right now, Hayden. Remember? You can only help
when your brother is drinking from his bottle, but Mommy has to use her boobies this time.”

“I could still help, Mommy. I could hold your boobie like I hold the bottle when I feed him other
times. You know, like Daddy holds your boobies sometimes.”

There was a pause and then Jenna said, “Oh, I hear Jarrod calling for you. Is he outside? You better
go check to see what he wants…”

I glanced over to see Daisy’s and Emma’s shoulders shaking uncontrollably, same as my mother’s,
and I couldn’t hold it in any longer. A shout of laughter burst out of me, followed by a snort from
Emma, and then we all lost it, laughing until we had to wipe our eyes.

Chloe and her mom entered the chaos of the kitchen, looking at us like we’d lost our minds until I
recapped the conversation we’d just witnessed, amid bouts of giggling, until they were both laughing
right along with us.

I finished filling the muffin pans and took them to my mom who popped them into the oven. That done,
I leaned against the counter beside Chloe, asking, “Where were you when I came in? And where’s
T.J.?”

She gave her mom a look that I couldn’t decipher and answered wryly, “T.J. said he had something to
take care of but sent his regrets and regards. And I was talking to my mother outside. She was
explaining that little slip-up your mom almost had last night at the party.”

I turned my head to look at my mom, who just shrugged. “I made a promise. I kept it. But it doesn’t
matter now, anyway. Sarah spilled the beans herself.”

“Ohhh-kaaayy…?” I drew the word out, getting more confused by the second.

Chloe took pity on me. “Did you see the guy in the living room?”

I nodded.

“Well, that’s my mom’s boyfriend,” Chloe said. “My mom was hiding him from us because she was
afraid that Jackson and I would be upset. Your mom introduced them at the grocery store a few weeks
ago.”

“Who the hell is he, Mom?” I asked her. “I’ve never seen him before.”

“I met him at the doctor’s office when I was there for my checkup. He was nice. Sarah and I were at
the store together a few weeks ago and ran into him, and…well, the rest is history,” Mom said,
waving her hand in the air like it was no big deal.

Emma jumped in. “So, basically what Mom is saying, is that she was picking up random dudes at the
doctor’s office.”

Mom swatted Emma’s ass. “You’re not too old, you know. I brought you into this world and I WILL
take you out,” she said, glaring at her, but the twinkle in her eyes have her away.

Emma rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, yeah. How many times did we hear that growing up?” she asked
me. “And we’re still all alive.”

Mom smacked her again. “That can change in an instant,” she growled, but ruined the effect by
laughing.

Sarah laughed and then took over the conversation. “His name is John, he’s a doctor, and he’s
widowed with two grown children of his own, but they live in different states. And he’s very, very
nice.”

Her face was beaming, and I caught Chloe looking at her, her gaze soft with happiness.

“I don’t know why she was so worried about us knowing she was dating. It makes me happy to know
that she’s got someone of her own now. Jacks and I always hoped she’d find someone. So, no more
secrets, right Mom?” she asked firmly, pointing her finger at her mom. She turned to my mom then.
“Jan?”

Mom and Sarah shared a look and grinned. We could only shake our heads.

“Alright,” my mom said, changing the subject with a clap of her hands. “Let’s get this shit on the table
and feed everyone, yeah?”

***

Breakfast went as it most always did; loud, chaotic, and loaded with hilarity. Calland did as he
always does and aggravated Emma non-stop. But don’t think that he didn’t get Jenna and me just as
much, because he did. He just chose to pick on Emma that much more because she always got so
pissed off at him, which meant everything ended up being ten times funnier than it would have been.
Take, for example, the time that Emma and Calland fought over the leftover scalloped potatoes my
mom had made. They ended up in the driveway with Emma stomping her feet and Calland licking the
whole bowl of potatoes just so Emma wouldn’t take them. Of course, they didn’t know that there were
double the amount of potatoes and I’d already filled and hidden a bowl of my own. I learned real
quick to be smart like that as the youngest.

Anyway, Calland took Emma’s bacon, Emma squealed, got more, he took that bacon, too, and so on
and so forth. Luke shut it down, finally, by giving Emma the napkin full of bacon he’d already grabbed
and stored by his plate. He was smart, too, because he knew how to keep his wife happy. Given the
look she sent him, she was planning on making him pretty happy later.

I’d caught Ian’s eye as he sat across the table from me, his eyes warm and bright, enjoying the loud
banter and the complete chaos that was my family, and it filled my heart even more, just as it did
every time I watched him interacting with my family and friends. And just as always, I counted my
lucky stars because I still couldn’t believe that he was mine, that he loved me.

We’d hung out a little while longer once everyone was done eating and the mess had been cleared
away, but eventually took our leave when Chloe and Brandon did.

“So, John is nice,” I hedged to Chloe, feeling her out.

“He is. I don’t know why Mom was so worried about Jacks and I. Seriously, our father left a long
time ago. I’d have been happy for my mom to have met someone back when we lived in L.A., but she
always seemed content with just us. I don’t know, I guess now that we’re all here, and she knows that
we’re settled and beyond happy,” she looked over at Brandon and I could see her feeling written
clearly across her face, “she can focus on maybe finding that happiness for herself.”

Brandon winked at Chloe, his face echoing perfectly everything that Chloe’s had. They’d had a bit of
a rough start, since Brandon and Jacks both were with Allie before Chloe had come to town, but long
story short, things worked out the way they should have, and it was clear to anyone who was around
them that they were totally and irrevocably in love with each other, same as my sister and Luke, and
Allie and Jacks.

“Well, what are you two kids up to now, since you had to change your plans around?” I nudged Chloe
with my shoulder to get her attention, but Brandon’s the one that answered me.

“We were going to go down to Newport to walk around the aquarium and get something to eat down
there afterwards, but instead, when T.J. gets done, we’re just gonna meet him up at the lake to take out
the new boat he just got.”

“T.J. got a boat?” I asked. “He lives in an apartment, doesn’t he? Where’s he going to keep it?”

“Actually, he bought a house here, too. He got a place over on Vineyard. It’s pretty nice,” Chloe
replied.

I gave a low whistle. “Those houses are very nice over there. Damn. When he settles in, he settles in,
doesn’t he?” I said, chuckling.

“Hey!” Chloe said brightly. “He got a pontoon, so there’s plenty of room. You guys wanna go with
us? We’ll probably cookout beside the lake later, too, or get something at one of the places right there
by the water. It’ll be fun!”

I glanced at Ian and he shrugged, indicating that it was up to me. “You sure T.J. won’t care?”

“Nah,” Brandon said, “We’re gonna leave in about an hour, so we’ll swing by and just pick you up.
Sound good?”

“Sure.”

Plans in place, we all headed out to get things ready, and an hour later, we were on the road to the
lake in Brandon’s Expedition, windows down, radio blasting, enjoying the sunshine and warmth of
the last days of summer.

It took about forty-five minutes to get there and T.J. was already there when we pulled up at the
marina. He was on the boat, kicked back with his feet up and his hands behind his head, a ball cap
covering his hair and dark sunglasses hiding his eyes.

He didn’t move as we walked down the ramp onto the dock, but I could tell he was tracking us by the
slight movement of his head.

“What’s up?” he drawled, dropping his hands and getting to his feet as we all boarded the boat.

The guys shared handshakes and the back-slapping man-hug that was required of them, and then T.J.
gave me and Chloe hugs before we got things situated and he put us underway, heading out into the
open water of the lake.

Chloe and I sat up front, while Ian and Brandon sprawled on the ‘L’ shaped lounger, talking to T.J. as
he sat in the captain’s chair, maneuvering the boat across the water. It was a beautiful day, but was
starting to get hot and humid.

I gathered my hair and tied it up on top of my head, not only to cool myself marginally, but also to
stop it from whipping around my face like crazy, noticing that Chloe was doing the same with her
long, blonde hair.

We motored around the lake for a bit and then T.J. pulled us into a cove just beyond a line of buoys
marked with ‘Swimming Area’. Brandon got up and moved to the front of the boat, dropping the
anchor out for T.J. as I looked back at him and asked, needlessly, “We’re going swimming?”

“You don’t want to?” he asked in response, shutting off the engine.

“Didn’t say that,” I said, grinning at him. He smiled back and stood, removing his hat and sunglasses,
dropping them onto the dash console before he yanked his shirt off, leaving him standing there in
nothing but his low riding board shorts.

Ian and Brandon followed suit, and suddenly, Chloe and I were sitting there, looking at three half-
naked, Grade-A Prime, tattooed, pierced, and perfect, hotter-than-hot, males.

“God, they’re pretty,” Chloe breathed beside me. I could only nod in agreement.

We looked at each other and grinned when Brandon cleared his throat and crossed his arms,
commenting dryly, “We’re not just gonna stand here all day for you to ogle.”

T.J. turned away and opened the gate to the back platform, lowering the ladder into the water.
Brandon followed him and jumped in with no hesitation, disappearing beneath the water as Chloe
stripped out of her shorts and tank top, revealing a navy and white striped bikini.

I stripped down to my own blue, green, and white patterned bikini, feeling a pang of pride and relief
at how at ease Chloe was with herself now. Last year, Chloe would never have worn anything
revealing that would possibly show the scars left behind by her psycho ex, who’d abused her beyond
belief, resulting in killing the baby she’d carried and almost Chloe. She’d gotten away, but he found
her last year, and kidnapped and tried to kill her once more.

He ended up six feet under, and Chloe ended up with her happy ever after, which she deserved more
than anything. Since then, Brandon had done wonders for her, shown her that she was beautiful, scars
and all, which just endeared him to me even more.

Chloe moved to the back of the boat and looked for Brandon, who had surfaced a few feet from the
boat. She grinned and jumped into the water, swimming directly into his arms once she broke the
surface.

T.J. followed, diving into the water with precision and grace, leaving Ian and I along on the boat. I
stepped toward the back, intending to follow them all into the water, but shrieked when Ian scooped

me up in his arms suddenly.

“Ian…” I warned, “No. Don’t you dare throw me in!” I struggled in his arms, but knew better. His
hold was too strong, albeit very gentle.

He chuckled. “You were about to jump in anyway, right?”

“Yeah, but that’s not the same as being thrown in. You love me, don’t you?” I cajoled in a saccharine
sweet voice, batting my eyes at him.

“I do,” he replied, matching my tone. “But that’s not going to save you.”

He strode to the back of the boat, stood on the platform and kissed me quickly before he grinned…and
tossed me into the water.

I swam up to the surface, glaring up at him. “You ass!”

“But you love me,” he said, still grinning unabashedly. Then he jumped in, sending a wave of water
splashing up in my face.

Chapter 11

We played in the water, splashing and dunking like adolescents, enjoying the company and the
freedom of the moment. After a while, I was done swimming, so I climbed back up into the boat and
wrapped my towel around me, pulling my hair down from its knot and wringing it out over the side.

I piled it back up on my head and curled up on the lounger, watching Ian float by on his back, grinning
up at me as I looked down at him over the side. I noticed that Brandon and Chloe had gotten quiet, so
I chanced a glance over at them, only to smile when I saw Chloe wrapped around Brandon, his hands
cupping her ass, faces close as they talked quietly to each other in the water, kissing every so often
between words.

I felt the boat sway and looked back to see T.J. climbing up the ladder. He grabbed a towel and
wrapped it around him, plopping down on the other end of the lounger by my feet.

He smacked my leg playfully and asked me, “Have fun?”

I nodded. “Yep. Too bad you waited til the end of summer to get a boat,” I quipped, jokingly.

A weird look flashed across his face briefly, so quick I wasn’t even sure I really saw it, before it was
replaced with a rueful half-smile. “It is too bad, isn’t it,” he stated in agreement.

“So you got a place over on Vineyard, huh?”

He nodded in response, but didn’t offer any information.

I glanced back down in the water, watching Ian cut through the water with sure strokes, like he was
swimming laps, rather than floating like he had been.

T.J. and I sat in silence for a bit, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. It was companionable, because I’d been
around him so many times before, but I still hadn’t talked to him very much. Most of the guys like
Luke, Brandon, and Ian were the strong silent type, but T.J. made them seem like gossip mongers. And
he really didn’t ask anyone for anything; he showed up, did his job, or whatever activity we asked
him to do with us, and then he went home.

That’s why I was caught off guard when T.J. broke the silence with a question.

“Chloe said you used to cut hair. Will you cut mine for me?”

I blinked in surprise, but answered quickly, “Yeah, sure. When do you want to do it?”

“Can I come by tonight?” he asked, hesitantly.

“Of course! Just swing by after you drop the boat off at home. I’ll have my stuff ready for ya.”

“Cool. Thanks.”

We both looked back at the dip of the boat to see Ian step up off the ladder. I jumped up and reached
for his towel, tossing it back to him.

He caught it with a wink. “Thanks, babe.”

He dried himself off and leaned in, pressing his lips to mine in a quick kiss before he moved past me
to take a seat up front, just as Brandon and Chloe made their way into the boat.

“Let’s get some grub, man. I’m starving,” Brandon called, his voice muffled under his towel as he
dried off his hair.

We all seconded that, so we headed back to the dock and helped T.J. load and tie down the boat

while we discussed what we were going to do for dinner.

“We can hit up the little grocery store and go cookout by the water in the park, or check out one of the
restaurants around here,” T.J. said. “I’m up for whatever.”

It didn’t take long to decide just to stop somewhere and eat before heading home. When we were
finished, Brandon and Chloe took us home and T.J. stopped by his house to drop off the boat before
he came over.

As soon as we got home, while we were waiting for T.J., Ian and I jumped in the shower to wash the
lake water off of us. We’d just gotten out and I was getting dressed when the doorbell rang. Ian,
who’d already donned a pair of basketball shorts and a t-shirt, went to answer while I pulled on a
pair of cotton shorts and a tank top, grabbing my case with my stylist supplies.

In short order, Ian was sitting at the kitchen table, and I had T.J. sitting in a chair with a cape snapped
around his neck to keep the hair off him, running my fingers through his hair as I asked what he wanted
me to do with it.

“I don’t know. I think it’s just time for a change.”

His hair was a long mohawk that he usually spiked up, and it was dyed black, red, and yellow, so it
looked almost like flames. His hair, paired with his whiskey colored eyes, only enhanced the striking
look of him; seriously, there was no denying that the man was H.O.T.

“If I cut it shorter, you’ll have to dye it again, because I’ll end up cutting most of the lighter colors off.
You’ll probably just have the red and black left,” I told him, pulling his hair up and measuring with
my fingers.

“You know what? Just cut it all off,” T.J. said decisively.

“Are you sure? How about I just cut it short, that way you can still keep the ‘hawk, just shorter.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, that’s fine.”

He didn’t say anything else, so I took it that it was decided. I grabbed my clippers and buzzed the
sides down, then took my scissors and cut the length off the rest until he was left with a three inch
long mohawk on top. Most of the color was gone; in fact, his hair was black, with just the tips barely
showing the red.

He and Ian had talked a little while I was cutting, mostly about the tattoo shop, Skin Deep, that T.J.
was now part owner of with Brandon and Luke, but they’d lapsed into silence the last few minutes.

I was running my fingers through his hair, checking to make sure the length was even when he spoke
again.

“Thanks for doing this,” he said quietly.

I brushed the hair off the back of his neck and unsnapped the cape. “You’re welcome. It’s no trouble,
really. Next time you need it cut, just let me know.”

He stood and reached into his back pocket, pulling out his wallet. “How much do I owe you?

Ian laughed and shook his head. “Dude, don’t. You’re just gonna piss her off.”

Well, he wasn’t wrong. I stood with my hands on my hips, glaring at T.J. “I don’t want your money.
You’re a friend, T.J., practically family. You asked for a favor, I helped you out. I did it because I
like you. Get it?”

He put his hands up in front of him defensively. “All right, all right…down killer,” he soothed
jokingly, his lips curled into a cute little half-smile.

I dropped my hands and smiled back. “You know, you should smile more often,” I told him, then
cursed myself when his smile disappeared. “I don’t get you, T.J. Conley. You’re so serious all the
time, but you let your guard down with us every now and then, just for a second before you slap that
baby right back up.”

“Leah…” I heard Ian warn softly behind me.

“No,” T.J. interrupted him. “She’s right. But Chloe’s really the only one who calls me on it. She
reminds me of my sister in a way, even though they’re totally different.”

I sighed. “See? I didn’t even know you had a sister.”

He gave me that ghost of a smile again. “Well, I do. But I don’t talk about family.”

I shook my head at him. “You don’t talk about anything.”

“I know. It’s better that way. Maybe one day…just not now. But, like I’ve told Brandon, Chloe, Luke,
and even your sister, Emma, -who by the way, tried her hand at cracking me open, as well- you guys
have opened your lives to me and given me back something that I didn’t think I’d ever have again.
Friendship, caring…a home.” He glanced over at Ian. “And you’re good people, all of you. The way
you guys take care of your women, your families…it warms my heart. And that’s also something that I
thought would never happen again. Ever.”

Ian stepped up and clapped him on the back. “You’re good people, too, man. We all know it. And
we’re all here for you, regardless of your past, even if you never talk about it.”

I watched T.J.’s shoulders relax just a bit, just beginning to realize that he’d tensed up when I’d
started to pry. Wanting to lighten the mood again and, honestly, just wanting him to smile once more, I
said lightly, “And you’re so damn pretty, too. It’s no hardship to have you adding to the view.”

I capped it off with a saucy wink that made Ian growl playfully before he reached out and pulled me
into a hug, and we all ended up laughing, effectively breaking the tension.

Ian released me and I grabbed the broom to sweep up the mess on the floor, but didn’t get far with it
because T.J. deftly moved in and took it from me. I shot Ian a did-you-see-that? look, but he just
waved me away.

T.J. had the floor swept clean, the chair pushed back into the table, my case packed up (neatly, I might
add), and the broom put away in the blink of an eye, leaving me gaping at him again.

“Damn, you’re quick,” I quipped as he leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms like he
hadn’t moved.

“Only when I need to be,” he drawled, his lips twitching up in a sexy little smile as he winked
exaggeratedly, being deliberately suggestive.

I flushed, unable to help it. “I…uh…okay. You guys want a beer?” I asked, stammering a little,
making both Ian and T.J. laugh at me. Without waiting for an answer, I went to the fridge and grabbed
two out, twisting the caps off automatically and handing one to each.

“You flustered her,” Ian chuckled, nudging T.J. with his shoulder as they stood side by side, leaning
against the counter like they didn’t have a care in the world.

“It happens.” T.J. shrugged and gave me that maddening half-smile again.

“Grrrr…” I growled at him, glaring. “I can’t get you to hardly string sixteen words together before
tonight, you barely ever smile, and now you’re sexy smiling and winking at me? What the hell?” I
threw my hands up in frustration, ending with my legs apart and my hands on my hips as they both just
smirked at me.

I gave up and crossed my arms, content just to glare at them when T.J. send a sideways glance at Ian
and said, “She’s a feisty one, isn’t she,” and Ian just nodded slowly, his eyes warming with glee.
“Yes, she is, T.J. Yes, she is.”

“Assholes,” I muttered, stalking out of the kitchen and throwing myself onto the couch, smiling to
myself when I heard them laughing behind me. I wasn’t really mad. How could I be? T.J. laughed and
smiled…and opened himself just the tiniest bit.

There’s a story there. And Chloe and I would figure it out eventually.

The guys made their way into the living room, T.J. perching on the edge of the recliner, his half-empty
bottle of beer dangling from his fingertips between his wide-spread knees, and Ian picked my legs up
and sat down, arranging my thighs across his lap, one of his hands curling possessively around my
upper thigh while he traced his other one slowly up and down my shin.

I glanced at the clock, noting that it was only eight o’clock.

Ian pinched my thigh lightly as he broke the silence, asking, “You over your fit?”

I ignored him, instead addressing the room in general. “Wanna watch a movie?” I hit the button on the
remote to go to the pay-per-view new releases and scrolled through to the comedy listings, popping
them up on the screen.

Nothing caught my eye, so I dropped the remote and snuck a look at the Ian and then T.J., noting that
they were both still smirking at me.

“Are we going to watch something or not?” I asked them, more to make them stop staring at me then
anything.

T.J. chuckled and shrugged, then drained the rest of his beer.

“Want another?” I asked him, looking to see if Ian needed one, too.

He shook his head. “Nah, gotta drive home after the movie.”

“Want something else?”

He shook his head again, so I looked at Ian and got a negative shake of his head, as well. I reached for
the remote again, but Ian snagged it and turned it immediately onto one of the new shoot-‘em-
up/bang-‘em-down movies that had just come out. Not my favorite but…whatever.

So it was totally not my fault that I was asleep within the first half hour.

Chapter 12

I was pacing back and forth across my sister’s living room floor, agitation written across every inch
of my body. I was so pissed that I couldn’t even enjoy the cuteness of my niece as she watched me
pace, her little head tracking me as I moved past her where she sat in her octagon-shaped, gated play
yard, tossing her toys around and teasing the dogs that were watching her through the fence.

They’d finally given up on following me, which was a good thing because every time I turned around
to pace back the way I’d come, I’d almost trip over one of them as they scrabbled to get out of my
way.

Emma was sitting on the arm of her couch, watching me with concern, her fingers fidgeting with the
hem of her shirt. She’d given up trying to get me to sit down and try to get calm once we’d gotten back
to her house.

Ian had called Luke, who’d sent Emma to get me and take me to their house until things were dealt
with at home and he could get to me, because he didn’t want me driving while I was so upset.

It was Wednesday, three days after a pretty kickass weekend that had ended with me asleep on the
couch while my man watched a movie with T.J. When it was over, Ian had woken me to say goodbye
to T.J., who’d swooped me up in a tight hug, thanking me for cutting his hair and letting him hang.
Then Ian had taken me to bed and…well, he’d just plain taken me, sending me off to sleep with not
one, not two, but three toe-curling, hair-pulling, eyes-rolling-back-in-the-head, screaming orgasms.
He’s good like that.

And Monday and Tuesday were perfectly fine, normal days. Today had been, too. Until about an hour
ago when I walked into my bedroom to see a stack of Louis Vuitton luggage sitting in front of the
dresser, the top one open and full of Ian’s shirts, folded neatly. More than that, there was a very
strong chlorine-y smell filling the room, making my eyes water.

Confused, and more than a little disturbed, I’d retrieved my phone from my purse on the kitchen
counter and called Ian.

“Um, are you going somewhere, or you planning on leaving me?” I’d asked him, half-jokingly. “And
did you use bleach or something in the bathroom today?”

He’d sounded distracted when he answered, “What? What the fuck are you talking about? I’m not
going anywhere and I’m sure as hell not leaving you. Why in the hell would you ask me something
like that? And no, I didn’t use…”

His words cut off and he’d me to hold on because he was getting a lot of texts coming through and the
phone was beeping non-stop in his ear. Suddenly, I’d heard him growl, his voice low and menacing
as he’d asked, “Are you at home?”

I opened my mouth to reply but stopped when a slip of paper on Ian’s pillow caught my eye. Picking it
up, I’d read the first line, my fingers tightening on it as the words penetrated, leaving me unable to
utter anything to Ian other than, “Get. Home. Now,” through tightly clenched teeth.

I’d hung up on him, finished reading the note, and then stalked to my dresser to confirm what had been
written. I was still standing there, ignoring my phone as Ian called me back over and over again,
staring down into the drawers I’d wrenched open, the note still crumpled in my fist when my sister
had walked in, Everly on her hip.

As soon as I’d seen her, I’d whirled and pushed her gently out of the room, crying, “NO! You can’t
have Everly in here, it’s too strong!” I’d moved her into the kitchen before I’d asked, “What are you
doing here?”

She’d explained that Ian had called Luke to send her over to pick me up, but hadn’t really told her
why. Just that she needed to take me to their house and wait for Ian. I hadn’t explained anything to her
then, either. I’d just opened my hand and dropped the crumpled note onto the counter. She’d smoothed
it out as best she could while still holding my niece, then gasped as she read.

Then she’d folded it haphazardly, shoved it in her pocket, and after grabbing my keys off the counter,
she’d shoved my purse into my hands and marched me out the door and into her car.

Which brought us back to here, me pacing the floor of Emma’s living room incessantly.

I’d just turned on my heel to start back across the room when a car door slammed outside, sending the
dogs into a barking fit. I glanced out to see Ian running flat out for the house and met him at the door as
soon as it opened.

He grabbed me by the shoulders, leaning down to stare into my eyes as he asked, urgently, “Are you
okay? Why wouldn’t you answer me? What happened after you hung up?”

“Did you go home before coming here?” I asked, flatly.

“No, I came straight to you because you were so upset, and I couldn’t imagine that it could be worse
than it already was. But you’re still not going home until I get whatever it is cleaned up. What
happened there? You never answered my questions.”

I looked up at him, my face screwed up in confusion. “What? You couldn’t imagine it could be
worse? I’m confused, Ian. Did you go home and check it out or not?”

“No, I-” he started, but I cut him off.

“Then you have no idea what that…that…fucking cunt…did. So how could you say that it couldn’t be
worse than it was?” I stared at him for a second longer, rage still burning me up. But then it clicked in
my head. “What else?”

Ian’s fingers tightened on my shoulders and he tried to pull me into his embrace. “Baby.”

“No. Don’t you ‘baby’ me, Ian. Tell me. What else? What else did she do, because it’s obvious there
was more, and it wasn’t at the house.” I was practically growling at him, and I knew it was getting to
him because I saw him swallow hard, but I was beyond caring, though it wasn’t him I was pissed off
at.

It was Victoria, the fucking she-bitch from hell that was due to get her face rearranged just as soon as
I got my hands on her.

Ian looked over my shoulder at Emma. “You might want to take Everly out of the room for a minute.
I’m so sorry, I know this is your house…or we could go outside. I just know this isn’t going to be
pretty.”

Emma stood immediately and walked over to pluck Everly up from the play yard before she walked
toward the stairs. “It’s fine, she probably needs changed again, anyway.” She suddenly jolted, like
she’d remembered something, which she had. She reached into her back pocket and pulled out the
folded, crumpled up note that I’d shown her at my house. “You’ll need this,” she said, stopping to
hand it to Ian.

Just…” she bobbed her head around, her mouth opening and closing like she had something else to
say, but just couldn’t get it out.

Ian nodded and said, quietly, “I know. I will. She’ll be fine.”

Emma sent him one last look that faded into relief at his words and ascended the stairs.

Ian didn’t speak until they heard the door close upstairs. “Here.”

I took his phone from his hand when he held it out. It was an automatic movement, one I regretted just
as soon as he said, “Text messages.”

My stomach dropped and I felt sick, my mind making up a million and one scenarios as to what I’d
find when I clicked open his messages. But none of them could even come close to what I saw.

Picture after picture of Victoria, naked, sprawled across my bed. Our bed. The bed Ian and I slept
together in every night, the one we cuddled, played around, and made love in every night. Each image
was different, and each was more graphic than the last. They started with her just laying in the middle
of the bed, arms outstretched.

Then they moved to her spreading her legs, holding her breasts. And from there, it got worse. On all
fours, spread wide so every inch of her pussy and ass was on display for the camera, while she bit my
pillow. MY pillow!

On the edge of the bed, legs still splayed, fingers shoved inside herself as she (I’m assuming)
masturbated.

But the last one…the last one made one thought crystallize in my mind, ice-cold, and sharper than a
blade…and that thought was, ‘I’m going to fucking murder that bitch.’

Because it was a picture of Victoria, once more spread eagled on the bed, but this time her head was
thrown back in what looked like the throes of an orgasm with her hand buried between her thighs,
fingertips pressed against the apex of her cleft…and she was wearing my new fingertip massager toy.
The picture was with a text that read, ‘OMG, this thing was amazing. Bring it with you when you
leave the tramp. It’ll make it interesting when we fuck again.’

My skin was prickling with heat, my stomach was roiling, and my eyes were boiling over with
scalding hot tears of rage. My arm cocked back automatically, but Ian wrenched his phone out of my
hand before I could let it fly. As soon as it was free from my grasp, my hands clenched so hard I
could feel my nails biting into my flesh, and my mouth opened on a scream so terrifyingly long, loud,
and so full of angry pain that it would have put a hellcat to shame.

Then I was moving, shoving past Ian towards the door. I felt him reach out to catch me, but I
sidestepped and flung the door open, shoving open the screen door and rushing blindly through it, my
scream still echoing off my lips.

I didn’t get very far, though, as I slammed into a solid wall of unyielding man-chest. The owner of that
man-chest’s arms wrapped around me and held tight as I fought to get free, my only thought just to get
away, find Victoria, and rip her apart from limb to limb.

But I couldn’t move as those arms banded around me, and I went limp when Luke’s voice boomed
above my head, hard and sharp enough to get my attention. “LEAH!”

“I’m sorry!” The words were wrenched from my lips on a sob, and the damn broke completely,
leaving me bawling into my brother-in-law’s chest as he just held me and rocked gently from side to

side.

I registered movement at my side, but couldn’t stop crying enough to know what was happening until I
was being swung up through the air into Ian’s arms. I clutched at him, burying my face in his neck as
emotion poured itself out of me in the form of a gut-wrenching sob-fest that left me drained, my breath
coming in on hiccupping little gasps.

Through it all, Ian just held me, settling on the couch, whispering soothingly in my ear as he rubbed
my back and rocked me.

Finally, I lifted my face to see Ian’s right above mine, looking every bit as ravaged as I imagined
mine did. I looked away, ashamed of how I’d acted, feeling even lower when I realized that Luke was
sitting beside us, watching me with concern etched across his face, and my sister was standing at the
top of the stairs, looking down at me with tears streaming unchecked down her face.

“Oh, God…” I whispered, turning back to look at Ian. “I’m so sorry, baby.”

“Shh…it’s okay. I’m the one who should be sorry that this is happening.” He shook his head sadly, his
handsome features pinched with worry and pain.

I felt a tentative touch on my ankle and looked up as Luke asked, “What happened?”

Emma rushed down the stairs, reaching for the crumpled up piece of paper that had fluttered to the
floor, forgotten in the craziness of the moment. She met my eyes and I could see the question in hers. I
nodded my assent, knowing exactly what she was asking and, frankly, relieved that I didn’t have to
say it.

“The note explains it. Most of it, anyway. I’m not…not really sure what was on Ian’s phone and I
don’t know that I ever want to know. But, when I went to pick her up, she was standing there looking
down into her dresser.” She winced as she went on. “The room smelled straight up like bleach. Lots
of it. And that’s because Victoria opened every single one of Leah’s drawers in her dresser and
poured bleach over everything. I didn’t see the damage, but I had Everly and Leah made sure we
weren’t around it.”

Ian’s arms tightened around me almost painfully.

Emma reached out with the note and handed it to Luke. “Read it. Out loud. Ian hasn’t gotten to see it
yet. Oh, and there was a stack of luggage on the floor that looked like it had all your stuff packed into
it, Ian. So…I don’t know if that’s something she did? Or…”

Ian gave a short bark of laughter that had no amusement in it, whatsoever. “No. I definitely didn’t do
that.”

Luke cleared his throat. “Do you want me to read it?” he asked Ian.

Ian gave a sharp, quick nod, his arms tightening even more in preparation, definitely moving into the
borderline painful zone, but I didn’t protest. I buried my face back into his neck, knowing that, if the
pictures set me off on top of what had happened at home, Ian was about to go postal.

Luke opened the note carefully and muttered, “Oh, mother fucker,” before he started to read.

‘I’m getting impatient, so I went ahead and packed for you, lover. I know I gave you time, but I’m
sick of waiting. Anyway, your bed is super comfy and I know you’ll just love the pictures I took for
you. Next time, though, I want you with me so we can take even naughtier ones. Oh, and I made
sure to come extra hard all over your sheets. I know you’ll want to smell me all wrapped around

you while that tramp pants all over you, smelling like desperation and cheapness. I did her a favor
and disinfected her discount lingerie. Don’t worry, though. I left her church mouse teacher clothes
alone. Wouldn’t want to give her any reason to spend my our money. Call me later, okay? I love
you!’

Chapter 13

We stood at the door of the Jones’ residence, Ian’s finger pressing insistently on the doorbell. After
what happened this evening, Ian was done. We’d agreed between us to not press charges for the
moment; at least not until we talked to Victoria or her parents, which is why it was after eight in the
evening and we were standing on their front stoop, waiting for someone to answer the door.

An old man finally answered the door, his face screwed up like he smelled something bad when he
looked out at us.

“Is there something I may help you with?” he said with a sneer.

“Yes, Sweeny, there is. You can quit pretending you don’t know who I am and get Victor and
CeeCee. I need to discuss something very important with them,” Ian said gruffly.

Sweeny huffed and motioned for us to follow him. We stepped into the foyer, one eerily similar to
Ian’s parents’ house, and waited off to the side as the butler (I didn’t know people actually had those
anymore) shuffled off.

Fifteen minutes later, the impeccably dressed couple swept into the foyer, calling greetings out to Ian
in overly loud, saccharine sweet voices. But it didn’t take long for Ian to change that.

“You need to call off your daughter. I don’t want to press charges, though I will if she doesn’t stop
interfering in our lives. She’s delusional, and it stops now. Are we clear?”

Victor Jones drew himself up, puffing out his chest. “You’d do well to remember who you’re talking
to, Ian Thomas. I will be having words with your parents to let them know the outrageous things
you’re coming in to my home and saying. I have lost all respect for you. Do you hear me?”

Victoria’s mom had her hand to her chest, repeating, “Well, I never!” over and over again.

Ian smirked. “I think you’d better hear me out before you go making threats to me. You can tell my
parents anything you want because I plan on talking to them next. I’ve already pretty much written
them out of my life, and you hold no special place in my heart, so don’t fool yourself into thinking I
care one fucking bit what you think of me or how much you respect me.”

He stepped forward, his voice lowering as he went on. “Your daughter has a knack for showing up
uninvited to places I’m at, calling herself my girlfriend, acting like we’re lovers…when that’s never
been the case. I’ve found her naked in my bed before I moved in with Leah, and a few weeks ago, I
caught her lounging naked in my office.” His jaw was clenched when he continued.

“But today your daughter decided to break into our house and destroy personal property, not to
mention the lewd acts she documented herself doing on our bed. I have all the evidence I need to
ensure that a protection order is granted, and that she possibly serves jail time.”

CeeCee gasped in outrage. “You are lying, you spoiled little…little…ugh!”

Ian just quirked an eyebrow at her. “Spoiled little what, CeeCee? I assure you that I am the most
grounded person you have ever known. Tell Victoria that the game is done. Tell her that, if she
contacts me or Leah or anyone else close to us ever again, I won’t hesitate to take what I have to the
police, and to ensure that the Prosecutor’s Office has a hey-day with the pictures I have. Got it?”

“You’re bluffing,” Victor said coldly. “I don’t know what you’re trying to prove-”

Ian spoke over him, asking, just as coldly, “Am I bluffing, Victor?”

Ian swiped across his phone to wake up the screen, tapped the text message icon, and immediately,
the final, most graphic photo Victoria had taken popped up on the screen. Ian held it up, not giving
two shits that he was showing Victor a picture of the man’s daughter literally twaddling herself on our
bed.

The man blanched, his skin going pasty white as his hand came up to clutch at his chest. CeeCee
screamed and covered her eyes, stumbling back from Ian’s hand like it was a snake about to strike.

I reached out and gently pressed Ian’s arm down, effectively removing the offending image from
everyone’s view. I hated the bitch, but no one needed to see that much of Victoria for that long.

On a sigh, Ian shoved his phone back into his pocket, and we he spoke again, his tone was almost
gentle. “Victor, I hate that it’s come to this, but I can’t stand by and make excuses anymore. I’ve
always said that Victoria’s harmless, that she just had a crush on me that she’d grow out of. I never
encouraged her, no matter how much you and my parents have wanted us to end up together, but she’s
still wreaked havoc on my life for years now. She’s conspiring with my mother for me to propose to
her, which is never going to happen, and something I will be addressing with my mother as soon as I
can.”

He pulled me into his side, his arm sliding around my shoulders. “Leah is the only woman for me.
She’s the one I’m going to marry, the one I’m going to spend the rest of my life trying to make as
happy as she makes me. She’s my world, and I won’t let your daughter hurt her ever again, in any
way.”

My heart stuttered and melted when Ian uttered the ‘M’ word, and I had to bite my lips hard to keep
from grinning, because it was totally not the time to be doing that.

Then suddenly, I didn’t have to worry about grinning in front of them, because I was fighting to keep
my claws sheathed as the front door opened and Victoria sailed through, like she didn’t have a care in
the world.

“Hi, Mommy, Hi, Daddy! What are you…Oh!” Eyes huge, she skidded to a stop, panic washing
across her face fleetingly before it was gone. In it’s place was the carefree bimbo she usually
presented.

“Ian! How nice to see you! Awww…and you brought Leah? Sweetie, we need to get together soon for
drinks and to catch up.” She rolled her eyes and flapped her hands as she squealed and said, “Oh, the
stories I could tell you about our little Ian.”

“Shut up, Victoria!” Victor thundered loudly, his voice making us all jump in surprise.

Victoria flinched and raised wounded eyes to her father. “Daddy, why are you acting like this?” she
whimpered.

Victor raised his hand and swung, catching Victoria in a ringing slap across her cheek. He raised his
hand again, but didn’t connect, because Ian stepped forward and grabbed his wrist, halting the
movement.

“Stop, Victor. She may well deserve it, but I will not abide a man beating a woman, even if she is his
child,” Ian warned, releasing his arm and stepping back again.

“Thank you, Ian,” Victoria simpered, batting her eyelashes, her hand cradling the reddened mark on
her cheek.

Ian whirled on her in an instant. “Don’t you thank me, you devious little witch.”

She gasped and tears filled her eyes, but Ian kept going.

“I wasn’t doing it for you. They know what you’ve done today, Victoria. They’ve seen the proof,” he
paused, delivering the final words on a growl, “in pictures.”

“No…no, no, no, no, no…” Victoria began chanting, shaking her head from side to side almost
maniacally.

“Yes,” Ian hissed, nodding his head just as vigorously. “That’s it, Victoria. Stay the fuck away from
me, stay the fuck away from Leah, stay the fuck away from my family, and that includes all my friends,
Leah’s friends, anyone that I love. And for the record? That list DOES NOT include you!”

Ian glanced at Victor and CeeCee, lifting his chin as he asked, “Are we clear in what we discussed?”

Victor jerked his chin upwards once in a sharp nod, but CeeCee just stood there beside him, hand still
clamped around her mouth, her face sickened.

Ian nodded once back at him, took my hand, and we walked out of the door.

And…umm…I may have shoulder checked Victoria as I walked by. Hard enough to make her
stumble.

“Are you okay?” I called sweetly. “Gee, be careful where you step. It’s so easy to stumble in heels
that high…” I said, shooting her my best butter-wouldn’t-melt-in-my-mouth smile as I closed the door
behind me.

Once we were safely ensconced in the car and on the road, Ian sent me a sideways glance, the corner
of his mouth tipped up in a wryly amused half-smile.

“Was that necessary?” he asked, dryly.

“What?” I asked in reply. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

I spent the rest of the ride staring out the window…but I couldn’t help the sly ghost of a smile on my
face.

We finally got home after taking a quick side trip to Ian’s parents’ house, but I stayed in the car for
that one. It didn’t take long, anyway, as they met him at the door. I saw a lot of head shaking on Ian’s
Mom’s part, while his Dad just looked sick to his stomach. Thankfully, Ian didn’t have to pull out his
phone to drive his point home, but I think it had more to do with the fact that Victor had called them
before we pulled up, hence the reason they met Ian at the door.

Brandon’s Expedition was sitting in our driveway as we pulled past it and parked in the garage, and
Chloe and Brandon were sitting at the kitchen table when we walked in, eating pizza directly from an
opened delivery box on the table between them.

“Pizza?” Brandon asked, taking another big bite of the slice he was holding.

“Yes!” I cried, practically running for the table to grab up a slice, biting into the piping hot, mouth-
watering blend of pizza sauce, pepperoni, and cheese. “God, I’m starving,” I mumbled, my voice
muffled by a mouthful of food…and very bad manners, but I couldn’t bring myself to care at the
moment. Any dinner plans we may have had were completely ruined by Victoria, and we hadn’t
stopped to eat in between delivering our cease and desist messages.

Ian wasn’t far behind me, grabbing his own slice and I swear he inhaled it without chewing.

I swallowed the last bite and moaned, grabbing a paper towel and wiping my fingers. “Thank you for

sharing with us,” I told Chloe and Brandon, smiling at them gratefully. “And thank you, seriously, for
coming over here and cleaning up the mess while we were gone. You didn’t have to do that; I could
have handled it when we got back.”

Chloe shook her head. “Stop. I don’t want to hear that. As soon as Brandon told me something was
going on, did you really think I’d just let you deal with it on your own? No. You’re my best friend.”

Brandon and Chloe had shown up at Luke and Emma’s house as we were about to leave. Luke had
mentioned what happened to Brandon before he left to go home, so naturally, Brandon had told Chloe,
and they’d told us in no uncertain terms that they’d be going to our house to clean up the mess so we
wouldn’t have to deal with it.

And they’d gone the extra mile and provided much needed sustenance for us…so needless to say, I
have the best friends. Ever.

Ian and I sat down at the table to eat pizza with Chloe and Brandon. I’d barely gotten seated when
Chloe started questioning us about what had happened. We filled them in, starting with the note that
they hadn’t gotten to read.

When I was finished reading, Chloe looked ready to commit murder on my behalf.

“Calm down, killer,” I soothed, jokingly. “Remember? I get dibs on doling out bodily harm, and I
need you to be on hand to bail me out.”

She laughed and we grinned at each other; the guys just shook their heads, but still, Ian warned,
“There will be no bodily harm done to anyone that will cause either one of you to end up needing bail
money. Yes?”

Like we’d rehearsed it (which we hadn’t, obviously-great mind just think alike!), Chloe and I both
saluted Ian smartly, yelling, “Sir, yes sir!” But then we couldn’t contain our giggles when Ian just
rolled his eyes and muttered, “Smart asses,” at the same time Brandon did.

We were brought back down when Ian suddenly asked, “We never really looked to see or anything
before we left, but how the fuck did she get in? Did you see anything?”

Brandon grimaced. “Yeah, she broke the glass out of the window in the spare bedroom and crawled
through, using a chair from the back porch to stand on. Bold, but, since the window faces the back,
she had no worries about anyone seeing her. And since the gate on your privacy fence doesn’t have a
lock…”

He trailed off, shrugging regretfully, but he didn’t have to finish what he was saying. I knew. I hadn’t
put a lock on the gate because, honestly, it was a good neighborhood in the country, my sister never
had any problems when she lived there, and I hadn’t either, until now. But I also wasn’t counting on
my boyfriend having a stalker. Though, maybe I should have…he is pretty damn sexy. (Wink wink!)

“I know,” I sighed. “I guess I’ll be going out tomorrow after work and getting lock for it. I wish I
would have known about the window…it’s just gonna be open all night because it’s too late to get
something to board it up or whatever. I’ll have to call and get a new one priced, too.”

Ian cleared his throat. “Did you forget what I do, baby?”

“Oh. Yeah.” I smiled sheepishly at him. “Wasn’t thinking. You can do the window then, but what are
we gonna do tonight? We don’t have any plywood or anything…I don’t think…” I wracked my brain,
inventorying the contents of my garage mentally, but coming up empty.

“It’s taken care of,” Brandon interrupted. “Jackson had some extra plywood pieces in his garage. I
swung by and grabbed one, and Luke and I boarded up the window earlier.”

I jumped up and swung around the table, practically throwing myself at Brandon. He scooted his chair
back quickly as I was bearing down on him, opening his arms at the last second and catching me to his
chest, settling me across his lap as he wrapped me up in a big bear hug. I squeezed him tight for a
moment before pulling back and looking him in the eye as I said, “Thank you, Brandon. For
everything.”

He chuckled and gave me another squeeze as he replied, “You’re welcome.”

I kissed his cheek before I moved off his lap and walked back toward my chair, but veered at the last
second, plopping myself down in Chloe’s lap next, wrapping my arms around her neck and kissing
her cheek over and over again until she was squealing, laughing, and trying to push me off.

“You’re welcome, you’re welcome! God, Ian, get your crazy-ass woman off me!” she yelled, still
laughing.

I kissed her cheek one last time and grinned at her. “You guys rock, you know that?” I asked.

She pretended to breathe on her knuckles and polished them on her shoulder, pursing her lips and
nodding her head in that yep-I’m-awesome-and-badass way. “I know,” she said, cockily.

Brandon groaned. “Oh, Christ. You’re gonna give her an even bigger head,” he grumbled, but the
twinkle in his eyes told us he was kidding.

But Chloe took the cake with her comeback. “No, she’s not, but you will later…” she said, winking
saucily at him.

When we were done eating and joking around, I motioned for Chloe to follow me, moving down the
hall to my bedroom as Ian and Brandon tossed paper plates and pizza boxes into the trash, cleaning up
after dinner. “Alright. So tell me, how bad was the damage? I know most of my bras and underwear
are ruined.”

And that made me want to cry.

I opened the bedroom door, gritting my teeth in a flash of anger as the unmistakable scent of bleach
teased my nostrils.

Chloe grimaced. “I opened the windows and aired out the room, but…she used two whole gallons of
straight bleach. I found the containers in the bathtub. Why they were in the tub? No clue…but…”

“Two gallons?” I whispered, cringing at the thought. “Jesus, did it melt them?”

“Well,” Chloe hedged. “Let’s just say that you’re gonna need a new dresser and all new underclothes.
And your shorts and tanks in the bottom drawers?”

She gave me a pained look, with jaw clenched, teeth showing, eyes squinting, and nose crinkled. She
didn’t have to say another word.

I closed my eyes and breathed out, trying not to cry. As a teacher, I didn’t have a huge income. I had a
decent savings account balance, but replacing my dresser and a good chunk of my wardrobe was
going to hurt.

“I cleaned it all out and put it in a trash bag. Your underwear was pretty holey, like it had just eaten
through most of them. Bras, too. None of it was worth saving. I’m so sorry…” she ended on a
whisper.

I sighed, blinking rapidly to keep from crying. And it wasn’t that I was crying for my belongings; I
mean, that sucked big, huge donkey balls, but things can be replaced. I was fighting tears of anger,
because she came into my home, my sanctuary, and violated it. Plus, she was after my boyfriend, and
that’s not okay.

“Don’t apologize, Chloe.” I sucked in a breath and blew it back out, realizing that I had spoken
sharply. “I’m sorry,” I told her, stepping over and giving her a hug.

She smacked my shoulder lightly. “Don’t you dare apologize to me, either, Leah! It’s been a long,
trying day. I put away Ian’s clothes for him…so he’s a boxer brief man, huh?” she asked, her eyes
twinkling with mirth.

I winked at her, no longer in danger of bursting into tears. “When he remembers to wear them,” I said,
slyly.

She lifted a shoulder and widened her eyes comically as she cooed, “Oooh…sexy commando,”
before she busted out laughing once more. She sobered quickly, though, as she remembered
something. “Oh, yeah. I meant to ask you about Ian’s luggage. I didn’t know where to put it, so…”

My eyes narrowed. “That’s not his luggage. He’s not a label whore. That’s Victoria’s.” Her name
came out on a hiss.

Chloe dusted her hands together and nodded, obviously coming to a decision in her mind. And as
soon as she looked at me, I knew exactly what she was thinking. “Then there’s only one thing to do
with it, right?” she asked, lightly.

Our eyes met, both of our mouths curled up in very evil grins, and we said, together, “Bonfire!”

Chapter 14

“Mmmm…” I moaned against Ian’s neck, languidly tracing my tongue along his skin, nipping here and
there, my breath coming in slow pants against his throat.

My fingers dug into the back of the couch, my knees braced on the cushions alongside Ian’s muscular
thighs, and I kept up my slow pace, gently raising and lowering myself on his cock, reveling in the
feel of the thick, heated length of him stretching and sliding against my slick, tender folds.

I was riding him slowly, deliberately, taking my time, rocking against him with every move, the tips
of my breasts brushing against his chest, enhancing the pleasure curling through my body, streaming
over every inch of my skin.

“Baby,” he groaned, his fingers digging into my hips, urging me to move faster, but I resisted.
“Harder…” he breathed.

“No,” I gasped, my head dropping back, arching my back and swirling my hips before grinding down
on him, still rotating my hips smoothly, but not increasing my pace.

“Jesus, Leah!” he gritted out between clenched teeth. “Faster!”

I shook my head, denying him once more. I knew he was ready to explode, could feel his thighs
trembling underneath me with the effort to hold back his urge to pound furiously inside of me, knew I
was pushing him.

But that’s what I wanted. I wanted the wildness that would come when he couldn’t fight it anymore,
when he couldn’t take the pace I had set.

“Leah,” he growled again and I buried my face back into his neck to hide my smile.

I used my thighs to raise myself again, this time letting him slip completely out of me, then glided my
wetness over him, sliding against him back and forth, the thick ridge of the head of his cock bumping
over my clit again and again until I was moaning uncontrollably and my body was aching to have him
fill me once more.

Ian’s muscles bunched underneath me and I felt his hand slide up my body until he cupped my jaw, his
thumb brushing my lips and then shoving inside roughly. I sucked hard on it, loving the rough snarl
that emitted from his lips. He jerked it free and grabbed my hips, gripping them tightly.

I felt myself being lifted as Ian flexed his hips, sliding himself against me one more time until the tip
of him notched into my entrance and he slammed home, pulling me down to meet his almost violent
upward thrust.

“Fuck!” he yelled as he powered up into me, his hand sliding up my back until his hands curved over
my shoulders, giving him leverage to hold me in place as he fucked up into me with wild abandon,
finally at the breaking point.

I gave myself over to it, the gentle but overwhelming release that had been building slowly bearing
down on me like a runaway freight train, no longer coasting into pleasure, but instead, crashing into
me and sending me screaming over the edge, Ian right there with me.

He roared his release, his whole body bucking and juddering beneath me, his cock swelling and
jerking as he buried it deep inside me. My sex clenched around him, milking him as I ground my hips
down, wringing every last drop of pleasure from him until I collapsed against his chest, both of us

breathing like we’d just run a marathon.

Finally, after a long moment, I roused myself enough to unclench my fingers from the back of the
couch, groaning as I straightened them.

“Ow…” I grumbled, then glared up at Ian as he chuckled, his chest rumbling beneath my cheek.

“It’s your fault,” he said, smirking down at me.

I didn’t reply, choosing instead to bask in the afterglow of my orgasm. I cuddled closer to him and he
wrapped his arms around me tighter, his cheek resting on the top of my head.

“I love you,” he said, softly.

I closed my eyes. “I love you, more,” I whispered back before I sighed and shifted, lifting up off of
him. I shivered as I felt him slip out of me and smiled at his soft groan, leaning down to kiss him once
more before going to clean up.

It’d been a month and a half since the last incident with Icktoria (Chloe came up with the new name)
and, hopefully, she’d gotten the message, because we hadn’t heard anything from her. Does that mean
that I breathe easy thinking that it would never happen again? Hell, no!

We’d gotten the window replaced and put a lock on the gate, plus we’d had an updated alarm system
installed. I’d replaced my clothes and underwear that she’d damaged, and yes, we had a bonfire with
some hellaciously expensive luggage that would probably make some people weep and question our
sanity.

In fact, most of the guys had been on fire and baby duty that night, being the gracious
husbands/fiancés/boyfriends they are, and we women had gotten gloriously wasted on Ice Wine,
champagne, and sangria. Even Nanny had attended and had sipped a finger’s worth of champagne
(she’s not supposed to be drinking), claiming that as the reason she took off her bra (underneath her
shirt, thank God) and whirled it around her head as she danced around the fire.

What’s worse? My mom and Allie’s mom joined in.

So we couldn’t be left out, right? And there may or may not be a video swimming around a phone
somewhere that I just know is gonna end up on YouTube. My brother’s a dick sometimes. A funny
one, but one nonetheless, and he lives to torture us. Add in the chance to torture our Mom? It’s
inevitable. I just thank God that Calland was nice to me at my graduation party. He almost didn’t live
to see the end of Emma’s…poor girl. But still, that video is going to come back to haunt us…

Ian walked into the bathroom while I was getting in the shower, breaking me free from my thoughts. I
couldn’t help the thrill that shot through me at the sight of his naked body, impressive in all ways,
even when things were…let’s just say sleeping.

“You okay? You were taking forever,” he said, conversationally, as he opened up the shower door
and pushed me back, stepping into the enclosure with me.

I quirked my eyebrow at him and reached for the shampoo.

He took it from me, squirted some in his palm, and then spun me around before sinking his fingers into
my hair, gently massaging my head as he worked up a lather. I moaned and let my head fall back,
giving myself over to his ministrations.

“So, do we have plans today?” he continued speaking, rinsing my hair carefully under the spray and
moving on to conditioner.

“Umm…” I mumbled, unable to think right then. “I don’t think so…”

He rinsed my hair once more, and when he was done, I leaned back into him, feeling that not-so-
sleepy-anymore part of him prodding my back. “You’re poking me,” I grumbled, playfully, still
keeping my eyes closed and my head tipped back.

He muttered something under his breath that I didn’t catch, but when I turned my head to look at him,
he just gave me an innocent look and reached for my bodywash and loofah, sudsing it up to the max.

“What’d you say?” I asked him sweetly.

He shook his head and smiled to himself as he bent to his current task, which was cleaning my body
thoroughly. And by thoroughly, I meant that ten seconds into it, he abandoned the loofah and just slid
his soapy hands all over my skin, teasing, tickling, and cleaning at the same time. He paid special
attention to my nipples, rolling and pinching them with his fingers and then palming my breasts and
massaging them until I was moaning against him again.

I arched my hips back, rubbing myself against his cock, which made his hands clench on my breasts,
squeezing them almost painfully.

“Oh!” I gasped, arching even more into his hands, then staggered when he spun me quickly until we
were facing each other. He caught me against his chest and his hands slid down to grasp my hips,
lifting and opening my legs so that I was held in his arms, my back against the shower wall, his
hardened length nestled right where I wanted it most.

He pressed himself forward, the tip of him barely parting the moist folds at the apex of my thighs, then
slid back and forth, bumping against my clit over and over again until I was panting and shuddering
against him.

I squirmed, trying to slide him inside me when he glided back toward my entrance once more. “Ian!” I
groaned. “Please, now…” I begged him.

With no further hesitation, Ian slammed himself high inside me, pressing me fully back against the
wall. He dragged his cock out of me slowly and then thrust back in, quickly setting a pounding rhythm
that had me screaming out with release in seconds, and he wasn’t far behind.

When we were finished, he let me slide slowly down his body, both of us winded but more than
satiated since we’d essentially fucked the morning away.

But I wasn’t complaining!

***

“Trick or treat!” my sister yelled, waving like a madwoman as she walked up the sidewalk in front of
my house, pushing Everly in front of her in the stroller.

“Oh my God!” I cried, clapping my hands together in delight. “She looks so cute!” I moved out onto
the sidewalk and unclipped her from the straps holding her in and hefted her into my arms.

Emma had dressed the baby up as a little ladybug, complete with a red and black polka-dotted tutu.
Emma herself was dressed in an all pink sweatsuit, and a tennis shoe was strapped to her head.

I kissed Everly’s cheek and asked her, “And just what the heck is your Mommy tonight, huh?” She
giggled and smacked my cheek before pointing at her mom.

Emma raised her eyebrow and twirled. “Really? You can’t tell what I am?”

“Uh, no,” I answered, shaking my head. “I wouldn’t have asked if I knew.”

“I’m bubble gum on the bottom of a shoe!” she crowed, grinning widely.

“Aaaaahhh…” I said, nodding my head slowly. “I see now. Where’s the rest of the group?” I asked
her, looking down the driveway.

“They’re coming. I just got a little ahead,” she mumbled guiltily.

It was Trick or Treat night in Phillus and Emma, Allie, and Jenna had banded together to make the
rounds with the kids, not only to make sure the family got to see the kids in their adorable costumes,
but to maximize the amount of candy they’d get to confiscate. Lucky for me, Jarrod and I have a deal
worked out. He’s not a fan of Kit Kat bars and I love them, so every year at Halloween, I trade him a
small bag of Reese cups for his Kit Kats. It’s a win-win situate that has served me well for the past
couple of years, provided I get to his bag before Jenna does. She likes Kit Kats, too.

They’d all already made the rounds to my parents’ house, Allie’s parents’ house, Chloe’s Mom’s
house, and had parked down the street to hit up the neighbors houses before they got to mine, since my
house used to be Emma’s. The neighbors had practically threatened her if she didn’t bring Everly and
the other babies by.

“Hey, Emma. And there’s my little girl!” Ian cooed, coming up behind me and taking Everly from me.
He disappeared inside just as the others came up the driveway.

I looked over at my brother-in-law and busted out laughing. “What the hell did she do to you?” I
asked him when I could talk.

He gave a long-suffering sigh and answered, “A tornado.”

I cocked my head and studied him. “Well, Emma. You outdid yourself this year, I think. Where the
hell did you get so many miniature…things?” I asked, waving my hand vaguely at Luke.

His costume was black sweat pants and black hoodie, and Emma had pinned or glued random
miniature trees, houses, cars, farm animals…pretty much anything she could get her hands on…in a
spiral around his body, starting with his left ankle and ending with his shoulders.

Emma grinned and said, “The craft store. I can come up with something for you next year, if you
want?”

“Uh, yeah…maybe…” I replied, then addressed my other sister, Jenna, in hopes that Emma would
forget to include me in her new costume making venture. “You and Noah didn’t dress up?”

She shook her head. “No. I swear with these three, I’m lucky to put deodorant on in the mornings.
Here. Take your nephew.”

I reached out and took Caleb from her. “Aww…don’t you just make the cutest little elephant?” I
cuddled him close to my chest and called hello to Noah, Hayden (who was dressed as Elsa from
Frozen), Jarrod (who was in ninja gear), and Jackson (surprisingly not in costume), before I greeted
Allie.

“You let my sister get to you, didn’t you.”

She responded pretty much the same way Luke did, sighing heavily. “Ya think?”

“Okay, give. Why are you wrapped in tin foil?”

She spread her arms out. “I’m leftovers. Can’t you tell?”

“Sure!” I said brightly, pasting a fake smile on my face.

Her arm darted out and smacked me on my hip, careful not to jostle the baby in my arms, or the one on
her hip.

“Hey!” I cried in mock affront, then laughed when Liam chortled. “That’s funny, huh? You like when
Mommy hits me?” I asked him, using my free hand to tickle his furry little tummy. He was dressed in a
little monkey costume, complete with stuffed banana. “How’d Jackson get out of it?”

Allie shrugged. “I’m still not so sure of that one myself.”

We moved into the house, everyone milling around and eating the plates of snacks and things I’d put
out, knowing that they’d all hang around for a while. We took turns passing candy out to the kids that
came to the door, but by the time everyone had gotten there, Trick or Treat was almost over.

It was going on nine o’clock when they all started leaving, and that was another whirlwind of
goodbyes, hugs, and kisses. Jarrod had crowed when he’d dug in to the bag of Reese cups (I’d gotten
him the bigger bag this year, much to my sister’s dismay) but then had glared at his mom when she
forbade him from eating any more tonight.

By ten, Ian and I were alone, snuggling on the couch and watching a movie. Halfway through it, Ian
kissed the top of my head and said, “Can you believe it’s almost the holidays already?”

I nuzzled his throat and murmured my response against his skin. “I know. It’s crazy. This year has
gone by so fast.”

I felt him nod against my head, and then grumbled when he shifted. “Mmm…don’t move,” I ordered
him. “I’m comfortable.”

He chuckled softly, but then time stood still and everything fell away as his hand came up in front of
my face and I caught sight of the diamond ring dangling from his fingertips.

I sat up in a rush, my hand flying up to cover my mouth even as I gasped, “Oh my God! Ohmigod,
ohmigod, ohmigod…”

His face was earnest, his free hand clasping my wrist to keep me close. “Leah…I was going to wait
until Christmas to do this, but I just can’t wait anymore. I had a big thing planned, and I know you
probably would want your family to see this, but…” He paused, sliding off the couch to kneel in front
of me, eliciting another round of ‘ohmigod’s’ from me.

He took my hand in his once more, then continued. “I’ve learned a lot about love from you and from
your family. I’ve learned that sometimes love is quiet, and sometimes love is loud. Sometimes love is
small, and sometimes it’s so huge that it encompasses your every breath, your every move. That
love…that’s what I have with you. I couldn’t imagine my life without you, and I never want to. So,
Leah Nicole Jensen, will you do me the greatest honor and please be my wife? Will you marry me?”

He looked up at me, his face so serious, but shining with so much love that I could never doubt in a
million years the way he really feels about me. Tears spilled over and a sob broke from my lips as I
reached for him, crushing my mouth to his in a fervent kiss, even as I whispered, “Yes, YES!” against
his lips.

He kissed me back briefly, but broke it to slide the ring on my finger. I looked at it, really taking it in.
It was beautiful, a large, solitaire princess cut diamond rimmed with smaller diamonds, and a
diamond encrusted, white gold band.

“Ian,” I breathed, “I love you, you know that?” I asked him. It was totally a rhetorical question, and he
knew it since he just smiled.

His hand came up and wiped away my tears, and he leaned in and took my lips in a sweet kiss. “So,
that’s a yes, right?” he asked.

“No, baby, that’s a HELL YES!” I shouted at him, throwing myself into his arms.

Chapter 15

“Jesus Christ, for the love of everything holy on this fucking planet, stop ringing my fucking
doorbell!” an enraged Brandon yelled as he threw open the door. He was bare-chested, wearing a
pair of basketball shorts that hung loosely around his hips, and scowling hard enough that, if I didn’t
know he adored me, I’d think my time on earth was over.

I was standing on their doorstep, and in his defense, I’d been ringing the doorbell non-stop for the last
couple of minutes, even though I have a key, but I’m not currently keen on using it again any time soon.
That’s another story. And maybe it didn’t help that it was barely eight in the morning, but I was a
woman on a mission. I had news that I needed to share with my best friend, who didn’t answer her
phone last night!

“Oh. L-Leah…Hey,” Brandon stuttered, his eyes narrowing in confusion. “Sorry, I-uh, why did…are
you…?” He shook his head, completely at a loss for what to say, apparently, his hand moving up to
rub the back of his head nervously.

I took pity on him. “Good morning! Sorry, but I really needed to talk to Chloe and she didn’t answer
her phone last night.” I gave him my brightest smile and batted my eyelashes at him, making him look
at me even more weirdly, but then he turned to the side and motioned me in.

“Why didn’t you use your key?” he asked me.

“Uh, because I knew you guys would still probably be in bed and, given the voracity of your lust for
each other, I didn’t want a repeat visual like the other day,” I told him, matter-of-factly.

“Ah. Gotcha,” he said, nodding. “Yup. Totally understandable. Just-uh, yeah. Chloe’s in the kitchen.”
He pointed the way unnecessarily, and I slid by him, shaking my head as he shut the door behind me
and then disappeared down the hall.

See, a couple weeks ago, I’d been meeting Chloe to pick her up to go out to dinner, but apparently, the
love bug had bitten her and Brandon just at that moment and I’d walked into the house to see them…
well, how to put this delicately…humping like rabbits hopped up on speed on top of the ottoman in
the living room. It’s a little unsettling (if not a little humorous) to lock eyes with your best friend and
her lover as he slammed home one last time and they both belted out very loud (and I’m guessing very
satisfying) orgasms.

Truth be told, I’d shrieked and apologized profusely as I stood there, but just couldn’t get my feet to
move, completely frozen to the spot in embarrassed, abject horror. And, of course, staying true to my
(total family trait, unfortunately) usual weird awkwardness, I’d laughed nervously as we stared at
each other and then had quipped, ‘Well, I don’t know about you, but I need a cigarette now. Good
form, ol’ chap, good form!’ before I’d turned on my heel (finally unfrozen) and walked back out the
door. I’d sat in the car until a fully dressed and absolutely fire-engine-red-faced Chloe had slunk into
the passenger seat, not saying a word.

So, yes, a little bit of awkwardness still hangs there when I see Brandon now, but I think it’s more on
his part, stemming from the fact that all of his sister-in-laws have seen him naked by this point. Again,
in his defense, it was all by accident; trust me, my sisters and I have no desire to go around spying on
him naked…although, yes, we all must say that he is definitely one fine specimen of totally hot
maleness. And Chloe (and Allie) agrees.

I jumped into the kitchen, a ball of wired, blissfully happy energy, yelling, “CHLOE!”

She jerked, shrieked, and sloshed her cup of coffee down the front of her which earned me a nice
death stare.

But that changed very quickly to concern as I danced in front of her, flapping and waving my hand
frantically in front of me.

“Um, Leah, are you okay? Do you have to pe-OH MY GOD!” she screamed, cutting herself off mid-
sentence as she finally noticed the large rock winking from my finger. “Is that a ring? An
ENGAGEMENT RING?!”

She reached out and grabbed my hand, pulling it toward her face almost violently so she could get a
good look at it and then caught my eye. When I nodded ‘yes’ to her, she started jumping up and down,
screeching and babbling and crying, holding my hand tightly between her boobs, which jerked me
back and forth wildly until I gave in and started jumping with her.

We were laughing and crying and still yelling at each other with giddiness when Brandon poked his
head around the corner, his lips and eyebrows curled up in a concerned, slightly scared, wholly you-
two-are-insane look as he asked, “What the hell is going on in here?”

Chloe dropped my hand but pulled me close into a tight hug, swaying me back and forth as she
squealed to Brandon, “We’re getting married!”

He blinked at her in surprise before saying, cautiously, “I know, sunshine. We’ve been planning the
wedding, and Leah already said she’d be your maid of honor.” He then glanced at me, silently asking
me to translate the situation for him, but before I could say anything, Chloe shoved me backwards, but
kept my hand.

“No, you idiot!” she cried, stomping over to him and dragging me along with her. “Ian proposed!
Leah’s getting married, too! We’re getting married!” By the time she was done with her explanation,
she was grinning and bouncing once more, which made me bounce again by default.

Brandon moved into the doorway and leaned against it, grinning as he looked at my ring, then winked
at me as he replied, “Oh. Yeah, I know. Congrats!”

I pulled away from Chloe. “Wait, what? How’d you know?” I asked, suspiciously.

“Yeah,” Chloe growled beside me, glaring at Brandon in a way that was the epitome of menacing.
“How did you know that?”

Brandon shrugged half-heartedly, looking decidedly less confident. “Ian called me last night?” He
made it a question, which didn’t help matters any.

Chloe jumped forward, thankfully releasing my hand before she did, and smacked Brandon’s bare
shoulder, making him wince, though I know she didn’t actually hurt him. “You knew last night and you
didn’t tell me?” she yelled. “How could you?!”

Brandon back-pedaled quickly. “Okay, so I didn’t know that they were engaged, technically, I just
knew he was going to propose, and, come on, we all know there’s no way in hell she’d have said no.
He would have tied her up and drug her to the altar regardless, he’s so far gone in love!”

I smiled at his words, glancing back down at my hand to marvel at my ring. “He is, isn’t he?” I mused.
“And of course I said yes!”

Chloe looked back at me and her face softened. “I’m so happy for you, Lee.” She turned back to
Brandon, scowling once more as she said, “It’s you I’m not so happy with.”

But, naturally, Brandon just shot her a wink, a shit-eating grin, and grabbed her up in his arms before
planting a big, smacking kiss on her lips, and everything was right in the world again.

Evidenced clearly by the fact that, as soon as Brandon let her go, Chloe swung back to me, face lit
with glee and said, “Hey! Let’s have a double wedding!”

***

It had taken some doing, but I’d finally extracted myself from Chloe’s clutches and non-stop wedding
plans that had suddenly doubled. I’d convinced her that she deserved to have her own special day
separate from mine, and therefore, she reluctantly agreed to ditch the double wedding idea, but she
was adamant that we start planning mine ASAP. Now that, I didn’t mind.

Before I left their house, Brandon had stopped me, leaning close to say, “You know, I’m really happy
for you guys. I knew Ian before you guys met, but I’ve gotten to know him a lot better since he literally
swept you off your feet. He’s a good guy, treats you good. You deserve that. I’m really happy for you,
little sister,” he’d said fondly, wrapping me in his arms in a tight hug. “I thank whoever’s listening
every day for bringing your sister and Allie into our shop, because it gave me and Luke the family that
we’d never really had.” He’d paused, then whispered, “Love you, Leah.”

I’d hugged him even tighter and whispered back, “Love you, too, Brandon,” and couldn’t help the
tears that had gathered in my eyes. But then I was laughing when I’d looked up to see Chloe standing
there with her hands clasped to her heart, tears pouring down her face, and she’d said, “Damn you,
bitches, for making me cry!”

After leaving there, I made my way over to my parents’ house to continue making my rounds, since I’d
made a lot of calls last night to let my family know that Ian had proposed, and every single person
was overjoyed at the news, but I had to promise that I’d visit all of them today so they could get the
deets and see the ring.

Although, I’d been the one surprised when I called my parents to find them absolutely unsurprised—
but that was only because Ian had actually gone to see them and asked permission to marry me. I’d
also found out that (again, surprisingly from my parents) that Ian had called Brandon to tell him what
he was doing and to ask him to be his best man. Brandon (and Ian, for that matter) had left out that
little detail, too, so I could only laugh as I imagined Chloe slapping Brandon for keeping that from
her, as well.

The visit to my parents’ place was pretty quick, mainly because Ian had already showed my mom the
ring, and she’d previously oohed and ahhed over it—but that doesn’t mean she didn’t fuss
appropriately over me—cause she totally did. Dad smiled as he grunted, so I took that to mean he was
happy. I love my parents…

My brother, Calland, was next on the list, mainly because I had to pass his place on the way to
Jenna’s. He was his usual self, especially since the first words out of his mouth were, “He knock you
up?” He’s an ass, but he did redeem himself by showing his very seldom seen softer side and giving
me a hug before he told me that he was very happy for me.

Jenna reacted much the same way Chloe did, but on a quieter scale because she’d just gotten the baby
down for a nap. Noah hugged me, and the kids smiled, but weddings, to them, are no big deal.

Emma reacted much the same way as Chloe, but it was twice as bad coming from her because it
wasn’t just Emma there. Allie had made sure that she was waiting for me, too, since Emma had called
and told her I was coming. I got double-timed, both of them jumping around me, hugging me, and

screeching non-stop until Jackson and Luke had to make them quit because they startled the little ones.

All of the guys had given me big hugs and their own little speeches like Brandon had done, making me
tear up once more, I finally headed back home to Ian, who’d still been sleeping when I left. He knew
where I was, though, because he’d called me when he woke up, chuckling in my ear when I told him
what I was doing.

He was standing in the doorway when I pulled in, smiling at me. I closed the garage door behind me
and walked directly into his arms, my hands sliding up his chest to lock around the back of his neck,
pulling his head down to me.

I met his lips with mine in a lingering, searching kiss, moaning against his mouth as he moved his
hands down to my hips, lifting me so that I straddled his waist. We held the kiss for a long moment
before I broke it, dropping my legs down with one last peck. He set me down gently on my feet,
moving back into the house so I could follow.

“Well? Did you go show off your bling-bling?” he asked, smirking.

“First off, never use that word again…” I started, shaking my head and my finger at him. “And
second, of course I did!”

I tossed my keys down on the counter with my purse and my phone and then turned back to him. “So.
What are we gonna do today?” I asked, sweetly.

“It’s Sunday, we have nowhere else to be today, right?” he asked.

“Nope,” I replied, popping the ‘p’ exaggeratedly and grinning.

“Then what the fuck you standing around here for?” he growled, stepping toward me, his intent
gleaming in his eyes.

“Run, Leah,” he murmured, inching toward me once more.

“Why?” I asked smartly. “You gonna chase me?” I shot him a heated look, my tongue darting out to
lick my lips, curling up into a sassy grin when he tracked every movement, his eyes darkening.

Right then, I knew exactly what my day was going to consist of…

So I ran.

And sweet God in heaven did he catch me...again and again and again.

Chapter 16

“Hey!” Emma called out in greeting when I walked into Skin Deep, striding past the clients waiting
on the comfy leather couches they had arranged in the lobby of the shop. I moved beyond the counter
and hugged my sister, then slid onto the empty stool beside her after hanging my coat up on the rack.

“What are you doing here?” she asked, swiveling her own stool so we were facing each other behind
the counter. “And why the hell are you wearing shorts? It’s like negative six out there!”

“I came to see if one of the guys had time to squeeze me in,” I told her. “And it’s thirty-nine, not
negative six. Yes, before you ask, my legs are freezing, but it’s not like I was running around in shorts
for nothing.”

It’d been a week since the proposal and I was still on cloud nine. Chloe had already practically
planned my wedding in that time, and then threatened my life when I told her we were probably just
gonna elope like Allie and her brother did. Seriously, if looks could kill, I’d be dead.

I’d had to convince her that I was just joking (sort of), and then steered the conversation back to her
own upcoming nuptials. They’d decided on a Christmas wedding and everything was finally in place
and planned completely down to the minute. We just had roughly eight weeks to go and I swear, she
got giddier with every passing day. Not that I could blame her, because she seriously deserved all
that happiness and more.

Emma brought me back to the present when she chuckled. “Have you seen the waiting area?” she
asked.

I looked back out and counted five people sitting or standing around the lobby. “Are they all waiting
for tattoos?”

She shook her head. “No. It actually shouldn’t be too long. Most of them are waiting for piercings. It’s
weird, really. People have been coming in like crazy for them.” She lowered her voice, leaning in so
no one else could hear. “I swear, if one more simpering co-ed comes in here wanting her belly button
done…” she trailed off, shaking her head.

“That bad?” I asked back, just as quietly.

She shrugged. “It wouldn’t be, but they all seem to have a penchant for passing out and then milking
the situation for all its worth when the guys show concern.” She rolled her eyes. “I caught one
yesterday reaching up and grabbing Luke’s bicep, squeezing it dramatically before she batted her
eyelashes and said, ‘Oh my, you must really work out,’ and then giggled uncontrollably.”

I winced. “Yeesh. That is pretty bad.” Then I smiled, my words laced with amusement when I asked
what Luke had said about it, knowing that it’d be good.

Emma, to her credit, managed to keep her voice low as she told me, “He just stared at her and asked
if she had something in her eye. You know, ‘cause she kept batting her damn eyelashes like a little
twit.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t smack the eyelashes off her simpering little face,” I muttered wryly as I
reached over and stole a mint from the basket she had sitting beside her.

“Me, too,” she grunted, then laughed.

I shook my head as I opened the mint, popping it into my mouth as I replied, sighing, “Well, I guess it

comes with the territory. You married a hot-ass tattoo artist that has a hot-ass brother tattoo artist, and
they have an extra-hot-ass new business partner/tattoo artist. Can you blame the ladies for lining up?”
I bit into the mint, breaking it into pieces in my mouth, because I’ve never been able to just let one
dissolve. Pity. I might’ve started if I’d known what was coming.

“So, I’m extra-hot-ass, huh?” a deep, low, smooth as silk voice said softly, right behind my ear.

I jumped and took a startled breath, sending a small piece of mint rapidly to the back of my throat. I
coughed, not quite choking, but not quite breathing right at that second. My embarrassment of T.J.
catching me saying what I said just added insult to injury.

T.J. pounding me on my back wasn’t helping matters any, either, nor was the fact that my sister had
jumped off her stool and had my arm in her hands, raising it up in the air and flapping it wildly,
yelling, “Lift your arm above your head! Breathe!”

I could feel my face flaming as I noticed that everyone waiting in the lobby was on their feet, eyes
riveted to the drama unfolding behind the counter.

“Okay! Enough!” I hollered once my coughing fit had stopped, my voice hoarse from the combination
of coughing, being beaten half-to-death, and embarrassment.

T.J. immediately ceased pounding, his hand still resting on my back, and Emma froze, my arm still
suspended mid-air, her fingers clenched around it like a vise, so, of course, that’s exactly the tableau
that was laid out before Luke and Brandon when they walked up front from their studios.

“Why am I not surprised?” I heard Luke mutter, just as Brandon asked, laughingly, “What the hell is
going on out here?”

T.J. patted my back, gently this time, thank you God, as he quietly asked, “You good?”

I nodded and jerked my arm away from Emma, scowling at her.

“Hey, Mom always did it to us and all the grandbabies…” she mumbled, shrugging.

I snorted and shook my head as exasperated laughter bubbled from my lips. “Good Lord, there’s
never a dull moment around this damn family,” I sighed, sliding off the stool. I waved my hand toward
the lobby, calling, “I’m fine, everything’s good, someone will be with you shortly,” urging them to
ignore me again. Most of them (laughing, of course) sat back down, or turned their attention back to
whatever they were doing previously while they waited.

That left me with the attention of the said hot-ass tattoo artists and my sister, who, traitor that she is,
gleefully filled Luke and Brandon in on why I was choking and hacking all over their counter.

“She choked on a mint when T.J. heard her calling you all hot-ass tattoo artists.”

Luke’s lips twitched and, shaking his head, he turned away without saying a word, heading back to his
studio.

Brandon’s mouth opened and shut a few times before he pressed his lips tightly together, I’m
assuming to hold back the (naturally) smart-assed and (most definitely) inappropriate comments
sitting on his tongue. He finally settled on a wink and a shit-eating grin as he, too, made his way back
down the hall to his own studio.

T.J., however, didn’t move. Nor did he even try to contain the mirth plastered across his face, now
that I wasn’t in danger of choking to death. “What’s up? Where’s Ian?” he asked me.

“He’s still at work, trying to finish up a job. He’ll be here when he’s done, if I’m not a home before

then. I came in to see if any of you had time to squeeze me in for a tattoo, but,” I glanced around the
lobby again. “You guys are pretty busy.”

“I’ll get you, if you don’t mind waiting a little bit.” He turned to Emma. “Chase Ledford’s design is
done. Will you call and get him scheduled?”

She nodded and then handed him the signed consent form and info sheet for his next client. “These are
mostly walk-ins for piercings,” she said, motioning to the room. “That guy, that girl, and that guy,” she
said, pointing quickly, “are here to see about tattoos.”

Before T.J. could say anything, Emma continued. “Just looking, picking out of the books, probably
just flash, in and out, will wait.”

T.J. grunted, apparently because he understood what she’d just said. I didn’t, but who asked me?

He called his next client back with him and disappeared with a quick smile and a ‘wait here’ motion
to me.

Emma swiveled on her stool once more. “Alright, give. You don’t just show up here out of the blue
for a tattoo on a whim.”

I shrugged. “Yes, I do. I told you that when I came in and you asked what I was doing here. Did you
forget already? Remember, the whole conversation about shorts and the weather and…are you getting
senile?”

She narrowed her eyes at me. “Don’t deflect. Just answer the question. I’m so sorry I didn’t ask it as
soon as you walked in the door, but we got a little sidetracked in conversation and coughing fits,
remember? Now spill!”

I gave her a wide-eyed look. “Seriously, Emma, I just came in to get another tattoo.” I paused,
smiling. “And Ian is working, Chloe is helping her mom with something, and I was bored.”

Looking at me suspiciously, she responded, “You sure that’s it?”

“Oh my God! Yes, Emma!”

She cocked her head and raised her shoulder, giving me a haughty-raised brow look as she dead-
panned, “Okay, fine. Whatever.”

After that, we both giggled and the conversation turned to tattoos and wedding plans. I helped her
answer the phone and handed the guys paperwork as they worked through the waiting clients. There
was only one left when Ian sauntered in the door, looking dirty, disheveled, exhausted, but still so
sexy he took my breath away.

I sighed, not even realizing I was doing it, until my sister laughed at me and nudged me with her
elbow.

“I remember those days,” she said, dreamily, staring off into space. “When just the sight of your man
takes your breath away and then makes you wanna run to him and tear his clothes off and make hot
monkey love to him sixteen ways to Sunday.”

Ian stopped in front of me, his lips twitching with laughter as he mouthed, ‘Hot monkey love?’ to me
silently.

I pursed my lips and nodded my head solemnly, mouthing back, ‘Yep. So hot. So monkey-ey.’

He couldn’t contain his chuckle any longer and let it out, his mouth stretching into a full grin.

Emma jerked her head to the side and looked at Ian. “You laughing at me, Ian?”

“Nope. I would never, dear sister-in-law-to-be,” he said cheekily. “But I might need to get some
pointers from your husband on how to make hot monkey love sixteen ways to Sunday.”

Emma’s cheeks flushed and she muttered, “Asshole,” under her breath, making Ian laugh even more.

He turned back to me. “You get your tattoo, yet?”

“No. They were pretty slammed when I got here, but T.J. said he’d do it if I waited. You wanna go
home and get cleaned up? Wait for me there?”

He shook his head. “Nah. I’ll wait with you. Unless you’re trying to get rid of me, already?”

“Nope. Not a chance in hell, buddy. You’re stuck for life,” I told him, tipping my head back and
puckering my lips at him, wordlessly asking for a kiss.

He moved behind the counter and pecked my lips quickly. “I’m all hot, dirty, and sweaty. You don’t
want me too close until I get cleaned up.”

“Mmmm…you make that sound so sexy…” I waggled my eyebrows at him, earning another shake of
his head.

Emma snorted, then commented, “Hot and sweaty? Leah and I just had this conversation. It’s like
negative two outside, so how can you be hot and sweaty?”

Ian (with a straight face, might I add) said, “Emma, it’s thirty-nine, not negative two. And some of us
actually do manual labor that makes us hot and sweaty, even in the cold. You know, unlike others who
sit in nice warm buildings all day…” He winked at Emma when she sputtered in mock-outrage, and
the two went back and forth for a bit, bantering good-naturedly, as usual.

A few minutes later, Brandon came out and took the last waiting client back after saying hi to Ian, so
when T.J. emerged from his studio room, he looked around to double check that he wasn’t missing
anyone waiting still and then jerked his head for me to follow him as he greeted Ian, as well.

Ian and I followed him down the hall, but Ian peeled off to go wash up a bit. I settled into the chair in
the middle of T.J.’s studio room as he asked if I knew what I wanted.

“I want just a line of script across the front of my upper thigh. Easy peasy.”

“You have any particular font you’re wanting?” he asked me.

“Can you just write it out for me, see what you can do?”

“Sure. Here, write it down for me and I’ll work on it for a minute, see what you think.”

I took the scrap of paper and pen from him and wrote what I wanted before handing it back to him.

He glanced over it and then nodded at me. “I like that. What’s it from? It sounds kind of familiar.”

“It’s from an e.e. cummings poem, my father moved through dooms of love.”

“Hmm.”

With that, he turned away from me and began writing, but it didn’t take him long. And as soon as he
turned and handed me the paper where he’d scripted the quote, I handed it right back and said,
“Perfect.”

“You sure? You don’t want me to try a couple different ways, or-”

“Nope. That’s perfect, T.J. Thanks,” I told him with a smile.

Not long after that, I was the proud owner of new ink, scrawled flawlessly in simplistically beautiful
script across my thigh…

‘love is the whole and more than all.’

And I loved it.

Chapter 17

“Remind me again why I told Chloe about our engagement?” I groaned to Ian as I face planted into his
chest as he walked into the house.

I burrowed against him and then paused, taking a good long sniff at his shirt. I pulled back, my face
scrunching up. “Why do you smell like you took a bath in perfume?”

It was early afternoon on Saturday and Ian had had to go down to his office to finish up some
paperwork. I stayed home to do a couple things that I had to finish before Monday.

He grimaced and pulled away from me, which immediately raised my hackles because I knew right
then what had happened. “She was there, again, wasn’t she.”

He let out a breath and nodded.

“Jesus criminey, what the fuck did she do this time? And why can’t she get shit through her fucking
head, that she is not welcome anywhere near us?”

“I know, baby. I was working in the office when she came in, said she saw my truck and wanted to
say hi and apologize for everything. Tried to get me to agree to lunch as part of it, but she left when I
told her no. She didn’t act crazy or anything, surprisingly.”

I crossed my arms and shot him a skeptical look.

“I’m being serious. She was her normal self…well, as normal as she was before all this shit
escalated. Gave me a hug before she left, and even asked me to apologize to you for her, because she
knows that you probably never want to see her again.”

“Are you kidding me? Fuck no, I don’t want to see her face! Nor do I want her plastering herself all
over you, even if it is an apology hug. She gets no hugs, do you hear me? Why were you so nice to
her?” I asked, plaintively.

“Leah,” he pleaded. “I wasn’t really nice to her. I just wasn’t really mean. I didn’t want to chance
setting her off again, especially when you were home alone. You know I wouldn’t do anything to
encourage her…”

I sighed. “I know. I just…I just don’t trust her Ian. I have a feeling that the minute you show her some
kindness, no matter how small it may be, she’s gonna run with it in ways that will probably end up
with me in jail. And I’m just saying, orange is not my color.”

Ian chuckled and leaned in, kissing me chastely on my forehead. “I’m gonna go take a shower. Wanna
come keep me company?”

“I’ll come watch,” I told him, winking saucily and then slapping his ass when he turned to walk away.

He was in the shower and I was sitting on the counter, painting my toenails when he asked, “So, why
are you regretting telling Chloe?”

“Eh. I’m not really. She’s just in the wedding planning mode and now that her wedding is all set,
she’s focused on ours.”

I finished one foot and started on the other. “Not that I mind…but honestly, I don’t know if I want a
big huge wedding, and you and I haven’t even gotten to talk about it, yet. You know?”

A grunted ‘hmm’ came from the shower.

I looked up from my toes. “Hmm? That’s all you have to say?” I rolled my eyes, muttering, ‘men’
under my breath.

Ian sighed and responded with a placating, “Whatever you want, Leah. I just want you to be happy.”

I snorted. “Uh huh…sure.”

I finished my toes and had just slid off the counter when Ian shut the water off and stepped out,
grabbing his towel.

“Hey, Brandon called me earlier while I was at the office and asked if we were still on for tonight.
Your mom and dad are gonna keep the kids, I guess, so Allie and Jacks are coming, too. He also told
me to tell you that Emma’s making liquid cocaine again.”

“Mmmm…” I moaned. “That stuff is so yummy, but damn, it’s potent! Yeah, we’re still on, if you still
want to go.”

Ian left the bathroom to dress and I followed, doing the crazy toes-up duck walk that all women do
when their toes are freshly polished and still susceptible to smears, dings, and imprints.

Ian’s voice was muffled from the closet when he answered me. “Yeah, that’s fine. But just so you
know, we’ve all agreed that you’re not dancing on the bar this time.”

“Uh, what do you mean, this time? I’ve never even been to this club before. Don’t try to punish me
and Chloe for something that my sister and Allie did a long time ago.”

He moved out of the closet, pulling a t-shirt over his head. “I’m just relaying the message. Your sister
and Allie cooked this whole thing up to go dancing, and the last time they did, they ended up dancing
on the bar and almost causing a riot. According to your brother-in-law, anyway. I wasn’t there.”

He leveled me with a dark look. “And I’ll be damned if my woman will be up there shaking her ass
where anyone but me could see.”

“What are you gonna do? Bash me over the head with your club and drag me home?”

“If that’s what it takes,” he said, smirking.

“Ugh. Neanderthal.”

He grinned. “You love me.”

“You’re lucky,” I quipped, then changed the subject. “I’m hungry,” I whined, sticking my lip out in a
pout.

Ian banged on his chest with his fist and grunted. “Me caveman, get you meat. Feed woman.”

“Ha, ha, ha…cute,” I said sarcastically, then shook my head, muttering, “Asshole.”

He just laughed and tackled me backwards onto the bed, kissing my neck and jaw before claiming my
lips in a hot, wet kiss.

“Mmm,” I moaned, opening to him, but it was over just as quickly as it began.

He lightly slapped my hip as he stood, reaching his hand down to help me up. “C’mon, let’s get you
some food,” he said, smiling.

***

“Wait a second, who’s DD tonight?” I called out, talking over everyone as we stood in Emma’s
kitchen, dressed to the nines and ready to have some fun.

Chloe glanced over. “You obviously weren’t paying attention a minute ago. We already discussed
this. Luke and Jacks are being DD’s tonight, just in case your parents need anything with the little
ones.”

I nudged Ian and waggled my eyebrows at him crazily. “Know what that means, big man?”

He just grinned and shook his head, tipping back his beer and finishing it off.

Chloe, Allie, Emma, and I all grabbed our glasses of liquid cocaine and finished them off, then
hustled the guys out to Brandon’s Expedition, which he’d offered up so we’d only have to take one
vehicle. We were pretty scrunched up, but we made it work. Luke drove and Emma made Jacks sit up
front, while Emma, Chloe, and Brandon sat in the middle, and Ian, Allie, and I all crawled into the
back.

It didn’t take very long to reach The Dungeon, which is the relatively new club we were going to. It
had been opened for almost two years now, but I hadn’t been there, yet. I didn’t really hit up the clubs
anymore since Ian and I started dating, except for that time my sister and I dragged Luke and Ian to
Shimbots with us for a drag show. But that’s a story for another day.

When we finally got in the door and settled into a large, circular booth, Emma leaned in close to me
so I could hear her over the music. “What do you think?”

I looked around the club, taking in the dimness, the black, red, and silver color scheme, and the cages
on either side of the stage area. “Looks pretty much like I expected, only a little less…dungeon-y.”

She shrugged and grabbed Allie’s arm, tugging on it as she nudged Luke to slid out of the booth and
let her out. “We’re going to dance while you get drinks,” she told him, then jerked her head and me
and Chloe, signaling us to join her.

Two hours later, it was pretty safe to say that we were having a good time. All of us were half-lit
(some more so than others…okay, so mainly the girls) and exhausted from dancing, and had finally
taken a break.

But that’s when Victoria sauntered up to the table, one of the waitresses following behind her with a
tray full of shot glasses.

“Hey, guys,” she called, happily. Her gaze settled on Ian and she shot him a dazzling grin, ignoring the
chill in his eyes. “Peace offering. I got shots for everyone, so drink up, okay?”

She turned to me. “Leta-”

“Leah,” Ian growled, interrupting her. “Her name is Leah, and you damn well know it. What the fuck
are you doing, Victoria?”

The music was loud in the club, but they were talking louder to be heard over the music and it was
beginning to draw attention from other people around us.

“I’m apologizing, if you’ll quit interrupting me, Ian,” she said to him before turning back to me once
more. “Leah,” she began, putting emphasis on my correct name, even though she still rolled her eyes
slightly as she said it, “I’m really sorry for everything and I’d love to make it up to you. Ian wouldn’t
let me call you, though, so here I am, doing it now.”

Emma stood up and leaned over the table, her face dark and angry. “Look. I don’t know what kind of
sick, twisted game you’re planning, but you need to go. There’s no reason for you to ever speak to my
sister, or to Ian, ever again. You’ve caused enough trouble, and I don’t even know how you knew we

were here tonight, but you aren’t welcome. GO. AWAY.”

Luke put his hand on Emma’s shoulder in a restraining motion. She let him guide her back into her
seat, but by that time, the waitress had stepped forward, eyeing us warily.

“Okay, these shots are paid for, so I’m setting ‘em down here. Drink ‘em or not, but we don’t want no
trouble. If y’all are gonna fight, you’re gonna hafta leave.”

I stood up now. “There’s no trouble, there’s not going to be any fighting. Thank you for the shots, but
no, we’re not going to drink them. Give them to another table,” I told the waitress, and then turned to
Victoria.

“I’ll accept your apology, Victoria. But that doesn’t mean that we want anything to do with you. I
don’t want you around Ian, and neither does he. I’m not your friend, I never will be, and Ian is merely
a former acquaintance to you. Stay away from me, stay away from Ian, stay away from my family.”

With that, I sat down and dismissed her with a flick of my hand. My heart was pounding out of my
chest, and, even though she’s a menace, I felt really bad when tears welled up in Victoria’s eyes.

That feeling didn’t last long, though, because her face turned hard, and that cold, calculating look was
back. It was fleeting, but it was there. She hid it well, covering her face with her hands and letting out
a sob. She mumbled another apology and stumbled away from the table, moving quickly for the exit.

The table was silent, every eye on me. I pasted a smile across my face as Ian dropped his arm around
me and squeezed me against his side.

We left the club not long after that, the mood pretty much ruined for the night. Jacks drove this time,
but he still dropped everyone off at their respective houses, because we had been drinking,
regardless, even though the buzz was definitely gone.

When Ian and I were lying in bed a little while later, I rolled into his arms and buried my face against
his chest.

“How the fuck did she know where we were?” My words were muffled against his skin, but he still
heard me.

He heaved a sigh before he answered. “She had to have been watching or something. I don’t know.
She was so…normal…earlier.”

I lifted my head. “Yeah, and remember what I said? Give her an inch and she’ll take a mile. She’s off
her fucking rocker, Ian!”

“I know,” he sighed, cuddling me close again. “I know, baby.”

I drifted to sleep, my head on Ian’s chest, but my mind was churning. The last thing I thought of before
the darkness claimed me was, ‘what next?’

Chapter 18

The next couple of weeks were a flurry of activity to prepare for the holidays and for Chloe and
Brandon’s wedding. Not that there was anything left to do, with the exception of the last minute things
that couldn’t be done until closer to the wedding, but I had a bachelorette party that I was in charge of.

I figured I’d con Allie into helping me, since she did such an awesome job with my sister’s, but it
didn’t take any conning at all. She was up for the task and had already made a list of things that she
was going to give me, whether I wanted her help or not.

Of course, I did check with Sarah, Chloe’s mom to make sure she’d be okay with what we had
planned. We didn’t bother even checking with Allie’s mom or mine, because, let’s face it; they’re
good with whatever crazy shit we come up with, even though they might shake their heads and ask
where they went wrong with us.

Or maybe that was more my mom than Allie’s, given that Daisy and George were more…we’ll call it
free-spirited and free-loving.

So, with Allie’s help (and Emma’s, because she didn’t want to be left out), the party was planned,
reservations were made, and we were ready to rock, especially after our trip to Hustler for all things
penis in the way of party favors.

Ian was cautiously amused at the amount of penis paraphernalia that was lying around our house, but
he made me store it all in the spare bedroom (and double check to make sure I got it all) when he sat
down on the couch after his shower one evening, only to discover that he was being poked in the butt-
cheek by a stray jumbo, fruit flavored cock pop that had apparently slipped between the couch
cushions. In my defense, I’d dumped everything out of the bags into piles on the couch (I ran out of
room on the coffee table) to make kind of an assembly line when I was putting together my party favor
gift bags for everyone.

So sue me for missing one huge, hot pink, penis shaped sucker. And the two penis straws and a tin of
dick mints that were down in the couch, too.

Thankfully, we hadn’t seen hide nor hair of Victoria since that night when we went out, but that didn’t
mean I was resting easy. I had a sneaking suspicion that she would try something on Thanksgiving, but
Ian had stopped that before it even started.

Ian’s parents had invited us to their posh, catered dinner party for the holiday, but since they invited
the Jones family, regardless of everything that Ian had told them, he’d advised them in no uncertain
terms that it’d be a cold day in hell before we’d show up. I felt bad for him, because they are still his
parents, but he was adamant that he refused to stand for me being disrespected by their ridiculous
notions. But, of course, I was absolutely jumping for joy on the inside that I didn’t have to spend any
time with them.

The day of Thanksgiving, Ian and I went over to my parents’ house early so I could help my mom.
She’d called two days earlier and asked if I would (like I’d say no), and Ian had just come with me
rather than having two separate vehicles there, so he was in the living room with my dad, who was
flipping back and forth between the two parade channels and bitching that football wasn’t on yet.

I was cubing up blocks of Colby cheese for my mom’s homemade mac & cheese while my mom
chopped onion and celery for the stuffing when she asked me, out of nowhere, “Are you happy?”

I blinked in surprise. “What?”

“Are you happy?” she asked again.

“Well, yes, Mom, I am. Why would you ask me that?”

She shrugged one shoulder and continued to work, chopping vegetables without missing a beat. “I’ve
asked both of your sisters that at one time or other. It’s a relevant question. I want to know that my
children are really, truly happy with their lives. So can you answer your momma, please?” She huffed
and pursed her lips at me, but I could see the twinkle of laughter in her eyes.

“Yes, Mom,” I said, my lips tilting up in an indulgent half-smile. “I’m happy. He makes me very
happy, as you well know. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be marrying the man.”

“Okay. That’s all I need to know. So how about this Icktoria bitch? You punched her in the face, yet?”

“Mom!” I exclaimed, laughing. “No, I haven’t punched her in the face. Do you want your child to go
to jail?” I asked her, shaking my head. “I take it Emma and Allie opened their big mouths and told you
what happened at the dance club that night?”

“Does a bear shit in the woods?”

I dropped my head and sighed. “You could have just said yes, Mom. Simply yes would have
worked.”

She just hummed and tossed the chopped vegetables into a bowl. “Have you talked to your brother
lately?” she asked, changing the subject.

She’s good at that, and she does it randomly, with a quickness.

I loaded the chopped cheese into the baking dish with the cooked macaroni and reached for the milk,
shaking my head as I did. “Why? What’s he done, now?”

She sighed. “I just wish he’d settle down, or at least find someone decent to date. I’ve had enough of
the Buffy, Kitty, Nimby-Pimby girls he’s been seeing lately.”

“Nimby-Pimby? Mom, seriously. Those aren’t even words. And Calland will settle down, eventually.
He just needs to find the girl that won’t take his shit and puts him in his place.” I smiled. “God, I can’t
wait to watch that.”

“Should be pretty interesting, I’ll give you that,” Mom commented, moving to the sink to wash her
hands. “So, when are you gonna give me grandbabies?”

“Jesus, Mom!”

***

Ian was shaking his head, his shoulders bouncing with silent laughter.

We were all sitting around the table, stuffing our faces with the overabundance of food that had been
prepared for the day, talking over one another, and having a good time, in general, but in that moment,
I knew exactly what had caught Ian’s eye and caused his laughter.

But then, so did my sister, who groaned and dropped her head onto my shoulder, since she was sitting
next to me.

“Mother! How many times have we told you not to give him eggs?” she whined as she watched our
mom slip a deviled egg under the table to the waiting yellow lab snout we knew was resting on her
knee.

“What?” she said, defensively. “I’m not doing anything!”

Yes, she said that with a completely straight face as she slipped a sliver of turkey under the table to
the black lab snout we all knew was resting on her other knee, the yellow one’s perfect counterpart
and partner in crime.

Luke wisely kept his mouth closed, not bothering to argue with his mother-in-law, but his lips were
twitching.

“Doug! D.J.!” Emma yelled, lifting her head and then hunching down to peek under the table at the
wagging tails attached to the opposite end of the snouts that were currently chomping down on
whatever else Mom had slipped to them.

“Might as well give it up,” I muttered to her. “You know they won’t leave her side.”

She glared at me and then sat back up, shrugging. “That’s fine. You know the rules. Dogs are yours for
the night, Mom. And you know what’s going to happen. Happens every time you give Doug eggs, and
then Dad bitches at you, you call me complaining and swearing because he’s stinking up the house…”
She crossed her arms and stared at Mom defiantly. “Hope you’re happy.”

Ever since Luke and Emma had gotten together, Doug, and now D.J., were required to attend every
family event at my parents’ house, especially Thanksgiving. In fact, the very first Thanksgiving Doug
had attended with my family, my mom had set him up with his own little plate at the kitchen table, and
fed him with a fork. Now that there’s two of them, she’s settled for simply feeding them from her
plate while they hide under the table with their heads in her lap, but they still get their fair share of the
Thanksgiving feast, no matter how many times Emma pleads with her to stop.

And Emma’s right; she gives Doug deviled eggs every time, and without fail, Emma and Luke leave
him (and now D.J., too) at their house for the night, and Doug returns the favor by passing enough
toxic fumes from his rear end to choke a horse and subjecting my poor parents to the stench.

It’s a vicious, hilarious circle, but hey…that’s my family.

After dinner, we all tucked into the stock pile of desserts, laughing as usual when Calland (who had
actually refrained from hiding the mac & cheese from her this year) started messing with Emma.

She’d gotten a piece of pecan pie smothered in whipped cream, and was feeding Everly small bites of
the whip cream in between taking bites of her pie. Whenever she’d turn to the baby, who was sitting
in the high chair beside her, Calland would move the plate just enough that when she’d turn back, her
elbow would cruise through the whipped cream, smearing all over her sleeve.

She kept swearing and calling herself a klutz as she wiped it off, but eventually our snickers gave it
away and she flicked a spoonful of whipped cream at Calland’s face. He ducked, of course, causing
the cream to splatter on the wall behind him.

I guess it was only right that Mom made Calland clean up the mess…but then she could only stand
there and laugh while shaking her head when he called D.J. over, hefted him into his arms, and let the
dog lick the mess off the wall.

My family hung out for a while after everything was cleared away and the leftovers divvyed up, until
Jenna and Noah took the kids and headed to Noah’s parents’ house for their Thanksgiving dinner.
Since we didn’t have anywhere else to go, Ian and I went home while the rest of my siblings scattered
to do whatever else they had planned.

When we got home, I changed into comfy clothes and collapsed onto the couch, reaching for the

remote. Ian grabbed it before I could, though.

“Hey, give that back,” I said, half-heartedly.

He waved it in the air and said, “Come get it.”

“Meh. I’m too lazy. Anything good on?”

He flipped through channels before answering. “That would be a negative. Want to watch a movie?”

Since we had nothing else pressing to do (besides the fact that I needed to clean Gerry’s cage out
since he was home with me on Thanksgiving vacation), I agreed, and that’s just what we did. When
the first movie was over, Ian stretched his arms up and blinked at me in the darkness of the room. We
hadn’t bothered to turn any lights on, and night was falling outside.

“Damn. I didn’t realize that movie was so long.”

“I didn’t either. Oh well, though. Perfect end to the day, don’t you think? Lazing around watching
movies…and we’ve got plenty of leftovers if you’re hungry.”

“Nah. I think I’m still full. Maybe a snack here in a little bit. What now, another movie?” he asked
me, kicking back in the recliner once more.

“Sure. I need wine first though.” I hopped up and headed for the kitchen, just the remembering the
unopened bottle of ice wine I had in the fridge. Once I was looking in the fridge, though, the
strawberries we’d bought a couple days ago were staring me in the face, so I decided that those
needed to go with me, too.

Before I was done, I’d had to grab a cookie sheet as a make-shift tray to cart my movie watching
spread into the living room.

Ian glanced at me as I walked by him and then did a very noticeable double-take. “Holy shit! I thought
you were just getting some wine?”

I grinned sheepishly. “I was. Then I saw the strawberries and they looked good, so I grabbed them.
Then I remembered I had chocolate fruit dip for them, and you know strawberries are best with
chocolate, so when I got that out, I saw the whipped cream. That’s a no brainer. So, I guess I was
hungry.”

I shrugged and then slid the makeshift tray onto the coffee table, sitting cross-legged on the floor
behind it, and leaned back against the couch.

“And the pineapple?” Ian asked, conversationally once I was settled.

“It looked good. Don’t judge me!” I popped the lid off the can of whipped cream and grabbed a
plump, ripe berry, holding it up while I squirted it with a perfectly spiraled dollop. “Want one?”

He declined, but he did come lay behind me on the couch, so in between bites and sips of wine, I’d
lean my head down on his chest and he’d play idly with my hair as we watched the movie.

By the time the movie was over, I’d put a decent dent in the fruit, and the bottle of wine was empty,
(In my defense, bottles of ice wine are smaller than normal!) and I was feeling pretty mellow,
especially when Ian’s hands started roaming.

I moaned at his touch, my head dropping down against his chest again, but then his fingers slid into my
hair and pulled my head up once more. He shifted, leaning close enough to capture my lips with his in
a soft, barely there kiss.

His tongue darted out and probed the seam of my lips, slipping deftly inside to tangle with mine when
I parted my lips to allow him entry.

“Mmm…” he whispered against my mouth. “You taste good. Sweet and fruity. Do you taste like that
everywhere?” he asked, his lips caressing mine softly with every word.

Breathless, I answered, “Maybe you should find out.”

I’d meant the words as a joke…a tease…but that’s just what he did.

Chapter 19

Ian’s hands made short work of my clothes until I was laid bare on the floor, the carpet’s usual
softness feeling almost rough against my highly-sensitized skin. He shoved the coffee table out of the
way, but I had my wits about me enough to noticed that he’d grabbed the can of whipped cream before
he did, tossing it on the couch beside him.

He knelt beside me and used his hands to part my thighs, sliding them up and down and around in a
teasing caress until I was spread wide, every inch of me open to his heated gaze. He licked his lips
and I shivered, the sight immediately bringing thoughts of those lips, that tongue on me…in me…to my
mind.

Ian’s voice was low, gravelly with lust when he said, “What are you shivering for, baby? Are you
cold?”

I shook my head, my breathing coming in pants as he peppered my open thighs with tiny, fluttering
kisses and quick, sharp nips of his teeth, both ramping up the want flooding my core until it was
almost unbearable. “Please,” I whimpered, gasping when he pressed an open mouthed kiss to the bare
flesh of my mound, just above that aching, hardened nub begging for his attention.

“Is this what you want?” he breathed against my skin, the tip of his tongue flicking out to trace one tiny
circle around my clit, so softly I could barely feel it.

My hips arched up, begging him silently to give me more, but he pulled away. I cried out, but my
dismay was short lived when he moved back over me almost immediately, the can of whipped cream
in his hands and a wicked gleam in his eyes.

“Oooh…” The helpless sound escaped my lips at the feel of the chilled cream against my heated skin.

Ian squirted a line of whipped cream across the top of my sex, then added two more dots, this time on
top of each of my turgid nipples. Without missing a beat, he tossed the can away from him and leaned
over my body, taking one whipped cream coated nipple in his mouth, sucking and licking away the
sweetness before subjecting the other one to the same treatment.

Once they were clean, he kissed down my stomach and closed his mouth over me, whipped cream and
all. He ate at me voraciously, alternately sucking my clit into his mouth and flicking his tongue over it
until I was writhing against his face. He gripped my hips with his hands, trying to hold me still, and
plunged his tongue deep inside my entrance, fucking me with long sure strokes.

“Oh my God! Oh, fuck…” I screamed out, my hands fisting in his hair and pulling his face tighter into
my sex, thrusting my hips up and fucking his face wildly as he continued to spear his tongue into me. I
could feel my release rushing up, an epic wave of sensation towering over my body, poised and ready
to crash over me, drown me, completely take me under.

Ian slid his tongue up through my folds and unerringly found my clit, sucking it between his lips and
nipping it gently but firmly, and the wave broke. I came on a keening cry, my hands clenching so
tightly in Ian’s hair that I knew I had to be hurting him, but I couldn’t stop. He kept up the exquisite
torture, wringing desperate cries from my lips until I was a quivering mess, begging him to stop, even
though my hands told a different story, still holding him close as I ground my hips up into his mouth,
and even then, he didn’t stop he’d lapped up every last drop of my release.

I collapsed back onto the carpet, breasts heaving with every ragged breath I sucked in, attempting to

regulate my body once more, but it was hard to do with the aftershocks coursing through me, almost
like I was short circuiting.

I forced my eyes open, glancing down the length of my body to see Ian’s face, eyes dark and heavy-
lidded with desire, staring back at me, his mouth still hovering over my folds. I could see my wetness
glistening on his face, and just the sight of it made my stomach drop as want curled through me once
more.

He licked his lips, the corner of his mouth tipping up in a wicked smile. “Mmm…sweet and
creamy…you do taste good everywhere.”

I gasped. “Ian,” I moaned, heat suffusing my skin. It didn’t matter that I’d just come hard all over his
face, he just had to look at her and she was ready.

“Ready to go to bed?” he asked me, his voice deep and low.

I nodded vigorously and his smile grew. He leaned down and lifted me in his arms, shifting until I
was straddling his lap where he knelt. He lightly tapped my ass as he kissed my lips softly, pulling
away before I could take it deeper.

“Shut the lights off, baby, while I put away this stuff,” he said, gesturing to my movie snacks.

“Yeah, you definitely want to put that whipped cream back in the fridge. We don’t want that going
bad…” I winked and stood, watching as he gathered everything up and turned for the kitchen.

I shut the lights off, with the exception of the kitchen and hall so Ian would have some light, and
practically ran for the bedroom, sprawling out in the center of the bed on top of the covers, but then
quickly jumping up and dashing to the bathroom to clean the residual stickiness of the whipped cream
from my body, before diving back onto the bed.

Ian followed soon after. I watched his shadow moving into the room in the darkness, heard the rustle
of him shedding his clothes, the softness of his footsteps as he stalked the bed. A shiver of
anticipation worked its way up my spine.

I felt his weight depress the bed beside me and then he was over me, sliding his body against mine
until we were chest to chest, his hips settling snugly into the cradle of my outspread thighs. I groaned
as he dragged the thick, heated length of his cock against my slit.

“You’re so wet for me,” he whispered in the darkness.

“Always,” I moaned, arching into his thrust as the head of him stroked directly over my clit.

“I’m gonna fuck you, baby, and while I’m doing it, you’re gonna play with yourself,” he rasped, his
voice soft, but no less demanding.

A small mew of assent was about all the response I could drum up at the moment as he moved his
hands behind my knees and pressed upwards, drawing my legs up and out as he slid inside my
channel.

He gave a couple shallow thrusts before he filled me completely, his hands still holding my legs
wide, then growled, “Now, Leah. Reach down here and rub that pretty little clit for me.”

I complied, sliding my fingers down my stomach and over my mound, sighing in pleasure as I brushed
over my clit. I circled the nubbin gently, then moved my hand lower, feeling the heat and wetness
where our bodies were joined, felt the silky, hot length of Ian’s cock sliding between my fingers as he
filled me over and over again.

He groaned at the feel of my fingers touching the base of him while he was buried inside my sheath,
the walls of my sex clasping him tightly, drawing him further inside me, but I didn’t linger. His thrusts
became heavier, harder, eliciting the thick, meaty sound of skin slapping skin as he pounded into me.

I moved my free hand up to pluck at my nipples while my other fingers went to work on my clit,
rubbing and circling feverishly, adding to the sensations already building beautifully inside me. I was
writhing in heat, hovering on the precipice of blinding bliss. Ian was grunting with every thrust,
moving faster as he approached his own release, until, on a guttural cry he urged, “Come! Now!”

I did. I hurtled over the edge, a breathless cry breaking from my lips as the heat of his seed filled me.
He held tight, his cock pulsing inside me as my sex milked him, wringing every last drop of his
release from him.

We stayed locked together until our breathing even out, and only then did he slowly slip out of me,
moving to collapse at my side, pulling me into his arms and kissing me sweetly.

“I love you,” he whispered against my lips. “I think you’re gonna be the death of me, but damn, I
fucking love you.”

“I fucking love you, too,” I whispered back, settling against him when our lips parted, my head
pillowed on his shoulder, my thigh draped over his.

I let sleep take me under with a smile on my face and Ian softly snoring in my ear.

I don’t know how long I’d been asleep when I woke up on a low moan, the finger between my thighs
manipulating my clit in a halting, yet effective rhythm. The finger pressed harder, circling and
circling, pushing me closer and closer to coming. Without warning, it slid inside to press against the
wall of my pelvis almost painfully.

A small yelp broke from my lips and I moved restlessly, trying to alleviate the discomfort. “Ian…”

The finger pressed back inside me, twisting and scraping unnaturally, and it hurt. I cried out and
squeezed my thighs together tightly, reaching down to shove away Ian’s arm.

Ian shifted beside me and let out a moan, but I couldn’t feel him up against me, other than the feel of
his hand between my thighs, but since I pushed it away, that was even gone. I gasped as he moaned
again, longer and louder this time.

I sat up and squinted into the darkness, a feeling that something just wasn’t right prickling up my
spine.

“Ian?” I said tentatively.

“God, Leah…” Ian gasped, and the bed shifted once more. Then, “Leah?”

I reached over and clicked on the bedside lamp, dread curling sickeningly in my stomach as I stared
at the tableau stretched out before me…a real life nightmare. Victoria was crouched over Ian, her lips
stretched into a maniacal grin, even as they were wrapped around Ian’s dick, feverishly working him.
I watched, detached, as she slid her hand back from where it had been lying near my thigh, feeling
even sicker as she brought her fingers to her nose and sniffed, her eyes glistening with unholy glee.

I watched Ian stiffen, blinking in the light now flooding the room, his face twisting into an expression
like nothing I’d ever seen as the situation hit him, but before he could do anything, I felt myself move.

It all happened in the blink of an eye.

A scream of rage poured from me as I lunged at Victoria, my hand fisting in her hair and ripping her

off of Ian as I tackled her, sending both of us flying off of the bed to land in a heap on the floor.

Victoria shrieked and scrambled to get away from me, her hand reaching up to scratch at my face, but
I slapped it away and jerked her head back viciously once more with the hand that was still gripping
her hair.

My pulse was pounding, the sound of it echoing in my ears, almost drowning out everything else as
my arm drew back. It was almost as if I was watching myself, the red haze that had settled over my
vision dissipating, dissolving to black as I lost control and let my fist fly…again, and again, and
again.

I was vaguely aware of Ian speaking, of Victoria screaming, and of someone growling and shrieking
wildly. What I wasn’t aware of was the fact that it was me growling and shrieking…or that I was
doing it while I pummeled Victoria until she was a bloody mess mewling on the carpet of my
bedroom floor.

I wasn’t aware, nor did I care, that I was naked astride a crazy woman who’d broken into my house
again, this time while we were sleeping. Who’d violated my body, who’d violated Ian…

Time froze…and then slipped away as hands roughly pulled me off of Victoria.

There were voices shouting, lights were flashing, and chaos was reigning.

And all I could do was stare silently down at my hands; one was bloody and bruised…the other held
a hank of black strands I’d ripped from Victoria’s head.

My vision blurred as tears filled my eyes. I sat, blinking them away, as the last thing Ian had said
reverberated in my head.

He was on the phone. To who, I don’t know.

But all he said…no, yelled, was, “Leah’s being arrested!”

Chapter 20

I heard whispering as I laid on the couch, curled into a ball, staring off into space as I tried to get a
little bit of sleep.

I’d managed to doze off for a little bit, but couldn’t stay asleep because the phones were ringing off
the hook and people were in and out to check on us. Sleeping on the couch in practically the middle of
the day isn’t very conducive to peaceful rest, but that’s how it was going to be until I decided if I was
going to burn my bed or not.

I knew what the whisperers were saying—I could hear them, even though they tried to keep their
words from reaching my ears.

‘She’s never been like that before, that I know of. I can only imagine she just snapped.’

‘I know…she was the captain of the cheerleading squad, perky as all get out, and everyone loved
her in school. She’d never lift a finger to anyone!’

‘Personally, I’m glad she did. I’d have probably killed the bitch…but damn, Leah tried…’

I couldn’t discern who was saying what because they were whispering, but I was definitely not going
to be getting any sleep with them all sitting around talking about me. I huffed and got up, stomping into
the kitchen to stand in front of them, tapping my foot and glaring.

“I can hear you,” I said, unnecessarily.

A couple of them had the decency to look ashamed, but most of them just grinned unabashedly.

“We thought you were sleeping,” my sister, Emma said.

“Clearly, I’m not,” I replied, being a total smart ass. It’s kind of required in my family.

I glanced around to see where Ian was, finding him leaning against the counter. Emma was sitting at
the table with Chloe, Brandon, and Calland, and Allie was perched on my countertop by the stove.

“Why aren’t any of you at work?” I asked, sounding surly.

“Damn, being arrested made you mean,” Allie quipped, jokingly.

Chloe’s eyes got huge as she gave Allie an ‘I-can’t-believe-you-just-said-that’ look and rushed to
say, “Because we’re all off today and wanted to check on you rather than braving the craziness of
Black Friday. Are you okay?” Chloe asked, her voice sincere.

I walked to Ian and wrapped my arms around his waist, nodding to Chloe in reply. “Yeah, I’m good.
Just…I mean, did that really happen last night?”

I felt Ian sigh, his arms tightening around me reflexively. “I wish it didn’t. Goddamn, I wish it didn’t.”

I shook my head, not even wanting to think about it, but the memory, still fresh, swam to the forefront.

Ian had grabbed the phone last night as soon as I lunged at Victoria. He’d called the cops, so that’s
who had pulled me off of her, but when they’d walked in, everything had been so crazy that I’d ended
up handcuffed and in the back of the cruiser. The cop wouldn’t listen to Ian at first, so Ian had called
my brother-in-law, Noah, who’s a detective.

Noah had rushed over and helped to calm the situation down enough that I was let out and the cuffs
were taken off, and instead, Victoria had been loaded up in the ambulance to go treat her injuries, but
she was being charged with burglary and sexual battery.

When we’d gone to bed in such a hurry, neither one of us had set the alarm. The door was locked, but
that didn’t matter. She’d broken out the window in the spare bedroom like she did before and crawled
into bed with us.

It made chills crawl over my skin when I thought about that bitch skulking through my house, and the
fact that we didn’t hear a thing.

We’d found out that she was drunk, and it only fueled her delusions. Now she was laid up the hospital
under lockdown with a dislocated jaw, broken nose, and two black eyes. Not to mention a nice little
bald spot where I’d ripped out her hair.

And me? I was the proud new owner of a restraining order and a prescription for nerve pills. I hated
the fact that she’d be back on the street in no time, out on bond, and probably out for blood and a
piece of paper wouldn’t stop her.

Ian had called Victoria’s parents to let them know where they could find their daughter. They weren’t
happy, and when they kept denying that she would do something like that, Ian put the cop on the phone
with them. Needless to say, they believed then.

I burrowed a little closer into Ian for just a brief moment before I moved away from him, heading for
my Keurig. I had a feeling that I’d be putting a serious dent in my coffee supply before the day was
out.

I drank two cups of coffee after I hoisted myself up on the counter beside where Ian was leaning as
we all talked about what had happened, but then my stomach growled loudly, causing everyone to
stare at me.

“Was that you?” Emma asked.

I shrugged. “I’m hungry.”

With the declaration, Ian told me to go get dressed so we could go get some food, and everyone else
took their leave, finally, leaving us alone for what seemed like the first time in forever. I ran back to
the bedroom and threw on a pair of jeans with my hoodie and shoved my feet into my tennis shoes and
we were out the door and on our way to IHOP.

When we were seated and had ordered, I glanced up to see Ian watching me, concern etched into his
handsome features.

“Ian,” I said, softly. “It’s okay, baby. I’m fine. Are you okay, though?”

He nodded sharply. “Yeah, I’m good, but I just can’t believe…” he cut off on a bark of disbelieving
laughter. “You think you know someone. She’s been around practically my whole life. A nuisance,
but…she’s so fucking unbalanced and I had no clue.”

I reached across the table and took his hand in mine. “Ian, you can’t beat yourself up about this. She’ll
get what’s coming to her.”

He sighed, but the conversation waned as the waitress came with our food, turning to more mundane
items.

“Are you excited about the wedding?” Ian asked, cutting another bite of his pancakes.

“Ours or Chloe and Brandon’s?” I smiled and winked at him.

“Ours, silly girl.”

“Yeah, I am. I’ve seriously been thinking about eloping, though. Do you think my parents would kill
us?” I joked.

Ian’s eyes widened. “Elope? What, like Vegas or something?”

I shrugged one shoulder as I forked a whip-cream covered bite of blueberry pancake to my mouth. I
chewed thoughtfully, then swallowed before answering. “Sure. Or Niagara Falls, or Gatlinburg. I just
don’t want to be married by Elvis.”

Ian let out a heavy breath. “So, are we really discussing this, like you really want to run away and get
married?”

I giggled and gave a half-hearted shake of my head. “Nah. We probably shouldn’t. Chloe would kill
me if my parents didn’t. I think she’s more excited about it than we are,” I said on a laugh, but I
couldn’t help the wistful tone of my words.

“You said we shouldn’t. You didn’t say we couldn’t. Leah, let’s do it. Let’s go get married!”

I blinked at him in surprise. “Seriously? You’re being serious right now. Really?”

He nodded, then threw down his napkin and got to his feet. He moved to my side before he dropped to
one knee and took my hand in his, staring up into my eyes beseechingly. “Leah, will you run away and
marry me?”

I grinned, my eyes filling up with tears. “You’re so goofy,” I said, my voice clogged with emotion.
“But yes, you crazy man, I will run away with you and marry you!”

I leaned down and kissed him briefly, but only because pure pandemonium reigned around us as
people broke into cheering and applause. I glanced around, my cheeks flushing as I found that we
were the center of attention for the whole restaurant.

Ian took it in stride, standing up and pulling me up into his arms as he grinned widely at all the well-
wishers.

I finally got him to sit back down and we finished breakfast, all the while nailing down the details of
when we were going. I pulled out my phone and did some checking, but before we left the IHOP, we
had a plan: by Christmas, I would be a married woman.

***

The next week flew by in a flurry of last minute preparations for Chloe and Brandon’s wedding the
following weekend. We had the bachelorette party to look forward to just a day away, on Saturday
night, and then it was the seven day countdown until The Big Day. Chloe was bouncing off the walls
with excitement, even more so than usual, but who could blame her?

I had scheduled to have the Friday before the wedding off so that I could help Chloe out, much to the
dismay of my students, but honestly, I think they were more upset that Gerry would be coming home
with me on Thursday since I’d be gone on Friday and it was the weekend. I felt bad about it, because
the kids absolutely love Gerry, but no way in hell would I leave him at the mercy of a room full of
rambunctious kids and a substitute teacher that may not catch someone trying to smuggle him home in
their underwear. (Thankfully that hadn’t happened anymore since the last time.)

I hadn’t taken the Friday off before the bachelorette party, because, let’s face it; I didn’t really need a
whole day prep time to get ready to basically get wasted, and I already had all the favor bags packed
up and waiting to be passed out.

Ian was going out with the guys for Brandon’s bachelor party on the same night, but we knew nothing
about the details of it. They said that they were keeping it a real secret this time so we didn’t all end
up at the same place. Chloe was worried because, of course, my brother got involved in the planning,
just like he had been for Luke’s. I put her mind at ease a little bit, though, reminding her that Luke’s
hadn’t been too over the top.

You know…except for Emma and Allie waking up on various kitchen surfaces…

Anyway. Thankfully, things had been quiet on the crazy stalker front. We’d been told that Victoria
was out of the hospital and had been taken downtown to be booked and then released, because her
dad was already there with the bond paid so she didn’t have to spend any real time sitting in the jail.
We’d also been told that she looked positively dreadful with a swollen jawline and nose, and two
sickeningly dark black eyes.

Those descriptions came via Ian’s Mother, who’d called and “apologized” (in her own roundabout
way) for the way she tried to throw her son together with that “madwoman.” Ian had listened, rolling
his eyes the whole time, and had ended the call with, “As soon as you apologize to Leah, then maybe
we’ll see you at Christmas.”

I wasn’t holding my breath. I had a feeling I’d be dead by the time that happened.

Ian hadn’t mentioned anything about our engagement to her, nor had he told her that we were going to
be married before Christmas down in Tennessee. We’d decided Vegas just wasn’t for us, wedding-
wise, and Niagara Falls, while it would be absolutely breathtaking, would just be way too cold
(because no way could you go there and not visit the falls), so Gatlinburg it was.

We’d found the cutest chapel down there that had gorgeous pictures of Christmas weddings they’d
performed there. With the decorations and the snow, the place looked like it was straight out of a
dream, absolutely breath-taking in its simplistic beauty.

I’d even managed to sneak away on Wednesday night and found a wedding dress that was perfect. It
was basically a simple, white strapless gown, slim fitting at the top, then slightly flaring out at the
hips into a full skirt, but it had an overlay of tulle to give it more of that floaty kind of look. The top of
the dress had a long-sleeved, fitted overlay of scalloped lace that buttoned up the back, with a wide,
boat-neck style that left the tops of my shoulders bare. Add in the white lace, peep-toe bootie shoes
with the four inch heels I’d found and I was set.

What Ian didn’t know, though, was that I couldn’t go wedding dress shopping without my mom. It was
hard enough to keep it a secret from my sisters and my best friend, but I think my mom would have
had a coronary if I’d gone without her. So, she knew about the wedding, and I’m pretty sure she’s
already got a plan in motion to attend.

I was completely okay with that, especially because it meant my dad could walk me down the aisle. I
was pretty sure that, once I told Ian, he’d be okay with it, too. He’s kind of a great guy like that.

The day of the party dawned bright and beautiful…and super early, due to an overeager bride-to-be
pounding on my door at a time no one should be up, especially on a Saturday. When I answered the
door, I glared at her, but that didn’t dampen her spirits in any way.

“Why are you here at…what time is it?” I growled at her, squinting in the sunlight.

She shot me a weird look and glanced at her watch. “It’s almost nine. What the hell are you doing still
sleeping?”

I yawned. “Uh, I don’t know, I was up late last night? But seriously, why are you here so early? I
thought we weren’t meeting up until later this evening.”

She shrugged. “Yeah, well, I thought you and I would go to breakfast and hang out for the day, if that’s
okay with you? Did you have something else planned before the party?”

“No,” I replied, moving aside to let her in. “C’mon in, just give me a sec to get dressed.”

She practically skipped into the kitchen, calling back her intent to make me a cup of coffee to get me
going while I got ready.

Ian was awake when I walked into the bedroom. “What’s going on?”

“Chloe wants to hang out for the day before the party. Are you good with that? We’re gonna go to
breakfast, right now. You could probably tag along, if you want. At least to eat…”

He shook his head, stretching his glorious body under the sheet. “Nah, I’m good. I’ll probably head
over to see what Brandon’s up to, then. But before you do anything, you need to bring that sexy ass of
yours over here and kiss me.”

I smiled at him before I jumped into bed, landing on my knees beside him. He pulled me into his arms
across his body and pressed his lips to mine in a sweet, but totally toe-curling kiss.

I finally broke away on a moan when I heard Chloe yelling for me to hurry up. “Damn you’re good at
that,” I sighed. With a quick smack to his chest, I bounded from the bed, scolding, “Now keep your
lips to yourself or I’ll never get out of here.”

He laughed softly behind me, stacking his hands behind his head as he watched me get dressed. And
yes, I may have put a little extra wiggle in my hips as I did it…but I heard no complaints.

When Chloe yelled at me again, I leaned over the side of the bed and kissed Ian quickly, hollering
goodbye as I dashed out of the room. Chloe was holding a travel mug in one hand, my purse and keys
in the other, urging me out the door.

“Geez,” I muttered, taking the mug and everything else from her. “I just woke up and you’re rushing
me…feel like I’m getting kicked out of my own house!”

She pushed me out the door, pulling it shut behind her. “Grumble all you want, but today is going to
be awesome. So smile, sunshine!”

I smirked, walking to the passenger side of her car. “Isn’t that illegal?”

“Huh?”

“Calling someone sunshine. I thought that was reserved solely for your future husband when speaking
to you.”

She tsked. “Someone’s grouchy. You just sit back and drink your coffee…leave the rest to me. For
now, at least…”

Chapter 21

“Chloe, we need to get going! We’re going to be late for your own bachelorette party!” I cried,
looking at my phone to check the time. “We have an hour to get ready and everyone will be showing
up!”

She waved her hand at me, indicating she heard me, but not bothering to move any quicker.

“I have to find something really cute to wear tonight.” She moved down another aisle, sorting through
skirts one by one.

“We’ve been to five stores today, not counting the liquor store. The outfit you bought at the first place
is super hot, so let’s go!” I whined, slumping along behind her. “Seriously, the limo will be picking
us up in an hour.”

She stopped in her tracks. “You got me a limo?” she asked, incredulously.

I blinked at her. “That’s what got your attention? Not the fact that we’re running late?”

“A limo?” she repeated.

“Oh my God, Chloe, yes! A limo! How the hell else are we supposed to get around when we’re all
drinking? We used one for Emma’s party, why would you think we wouldn’t do the same for you?”

“Well, I don’t know,” she hedged. “I just figured…I mean it’s not like I’m family or anything. I
just…” she shrugged.

My eyes narrowed at her and she swallowed. “Not family? Chloe, you are family, and if I ever hear
you say otherwise, I’m gonna punch you in the face. I’m being totally serious, too.”

Her eyes filled up with tears and she rushed in to give me a tight hug. “I don’t know how I got so
lucky to find such great friends…family,” she hurried to finish when I cleared my throat at her.

I hugged her back even tighter. “You deserve it all, sweetie. Now, can we go get ready now? You got
me up early to shop and eat food all day, and I was supposed to be getting stuff together for the party.”

“Pshaw. You’ve had the bags ready to go for a couple weeks now, so don’t give me that. You just
wanted to spend the day in bed with Ian.”

I grinned. “Is there something wrong with that?”

She grinned back. “No, but I figured since Brandon had to go in to work for a couple hours and I
couldn’t spend the day in bed with him, you wouldn’t get to do it with your man.”

“You bitch!” I yelled, laughing,

With that, I was able to finally drag her away from the stores and home to get dolled up for her party
night. We’d been gone so long that Ian was on his way out when we got to my house, looking sexy as
hell in a fitted button down and tight, ripped jeans.

I stepped in front of him and tipped my face up for his kiss. “You look so yummy,” I drawled, winking
up at him.

“Yummy?” he snorted, quirking a brow at me.

“Yep. I said yummy. You got a problem with that?”

He shook his head and smiled fondly. “I suppose not.”

I kissed him briefly and moved around him, stopping only to smack his ass as I hollered, “Now get
your ass outta here! We got girly shit to do!”

His answering laughter followed him through the kitchen and out into the garage as he left.

After that, it was nothing but a flurry of activity as both Chloe and I got dressed up to go out on the
town to celebrate her upcoming nuptials. Thank God I had two bathrooms, because both of us had to
shower, since we’d been here, there, and everywhere all over town that day.

Forty-five minutes later, my sisters and Allie showed up, and not long after that, the Moms all came.
And by the Moms, I meant my mom, Jan; Allie’s mom, Daisy; Chloe’s mom, Sarah; and yes, even
Nanny, Allie’s grandma. Needless to say, it was shaping up to be one interesting evening, because
Nanny was a last minute edition; the last we’d heard, she’d said she was, ‘too old to be gadding about
town like a harlot.’ Not to mention, we were planning on hitting up the strip club tonight, too, and God
only knows how that was gonna go with Nanny riding along.

But whatever happened, I knew it was gonna be fun.

I started passing out goody bags, saving all the items I’d gotten for Chloe for last. Before I’d even
turned around with Chloe’s Bride-to-Be sash, Nanny had a penis headband on her head, the kind with
the two big-ish penises attached to long, floppy springs (I didn’t buy that), a penis shaped shot glass
on a beaded necklace looped around her neck (okay, so I did buy that), and she’d opened up her
jumbo cock pop and stuck it in her mouth.

Every single one of us stood there with varying expressions of horror, shock, and humor plastered on
our faces as she twirled the oversized, penis-shaped sucker in her mouth before popping it out and
saying, “Mmm…blueberry. Why can’t all of ‘em taste that good? I know I’d be more likely to put it in
my mouth on a regular basis if they did. Hmm.”

She cocked her head and stared at me. “You got any more of those things? Maybe I could just wet it
down and rub it along-”

“Nanny!” Allie gasped, and her mom was right there with her, yelling, “Mom!”

My mom just shook her head and grinned while Sarah blinked, not quite used to Nanny’s antics yet.

Yep. This was definitely gonna be an interesting night.

Four hours later, we’d had dinner at Manny’s (kind of tradition at this point), we’d been to a couple
of bars, including Griff’s, and were just leaving Shimbots, where Emma’s friend, Needa Mann, had
bought us all two rounds of shots. She tried to get us to stay for her drag show, but we were on our
way to the strip club.

I’d reserved a table up front, just like Allie had done for Emma, with Chloe seated right by the stage.
Her cheeks were flushed with alcohol and happiness, just as I imagined most of our faces were.

Nanny had tussled a little bit with Allie, who’d just so happened to take the seat across from Chloe,
which put her right by the stage, as well. Eh…maybe it wasn’t so much of a tussle as Nanny just told
Allie to move her scrawny ass because she was sitting there because she has bad eyesight and needs
to be able to see those ‘dangling wangers’ up close.

Nanny’s kind of a perv. But we love her.

***

I barely cracked open my eyelids and slammed them back down, squeezing them tightly shut against

the bright sunlight flooding the room.

I burrowed deeper into the blankets and cuddled closer to the super-soft, sweet smelling pillow under
my cheek.

A rumble of laughter caught my attention, but the words that followed it had my eyes popping open
wide.

“I’m not sure if we should be aroused or amused at this point,” a low, sleep laden voice mused.

My eyes widened even more as they took in the view directly in front of them, which was the t-shirt
clad chest of someone decidedly female. The body of which my arm was wrapped around, whose arm
was also thrown over my side, so that we were basically sleep-hugging.

I raised my head, shaking it and blinking as I looked around. I had a head-ache, that’s for sure…and I
know things got a little fuzzy last night after the last pink panty dropper I’d had (the cocktail, not the
punch), but I didn’t think I’d drank enough to warrant waking up wrapped around my best friend. The
kicker of it, though, was when I raised my head, I’d noticed the Chloe and I weren’t alone in the bed.

In fact, I was staring into the grinning face of Brandon, who was lying on the other side of Chloe…
and when I turned my head, it was to see the also-grinning face of Ian, who was lying behind me.

“Uh…” I couldn’t say anything else.

Our arms were still around each other when I glanced down to see Chloe staring up at me, frowning.

Her head jerked back and she squinted, her mouth opening and closing, but nothing came out.

“Good morning, Sunshine,” Brandon said softly behind her.

I had to laugh when Chloe’s eyes got even bigger and her head spun around in shock. “Oh my God!
What the fuck is happening here?” she cried, then screeched when she lifted her head to see Ian still
lying behind me, his head propped up on his hand.

“Ian? Why…did we…how drunk was I?” she moaned, plopping her head back down on the pillow
and trying to cover her face with her hands, gaping at me when she realized that we’d been holding
each other.

Finally, Ian broke the stunned silence permeating the room. “You two were sleeping when we got
home, so we crawled in here with you since every other surface in our house was taken, unless we
wanted to pull an Emma and Allie and sleep on the kitchen table and counters.”

“Huh? I asked, carefully removing my arm from Chloe and sitting up. “What do you mean?” Then I
snorted, the situation really hitting me. “Guess it’s a good thing we have a king size bed, huh?”

I grinned at the round of chuckles that brought from my other bedmates.

We all sat up and Brandon chimed in. “Well, Nanny and Daisy are in the spare bedroom, snoring up a
storm. Allie and Emma are sharing the couch, and Chloe’s mom is in the recliner.”

“Where’s my mom?” I asked.

“Oh, your dad picked her up when he was dropping the babies off to my brother and Jacks. And he
said to tell you that he loves you, he loves your sisters, and he loves your brother, but the next time
you all go out and leave him and Noah with all the kids, he’s killing you all.”

“Well, he volunteered,” I muttered. “Besides, I don’t even have a kid, so why’s he telling you to tell
me?”

Brandon smiled evilly. “He said to pass it along to each and every one of you, including your mom.
But you get to tell her now that I told you.”

“Chicken shit,” I coughed out, barely attempting to conceal my words.

He nodded solemnly, making me laugh again.

I stretched, almost knocking Ian off the bed in the process. With a sheepish smile, I apologized and
suggested that we get up and go wake everyone else.

As Brandon walked by me, I reached up and wacked the back of his head, making him wince and yell,
“Hey! What the hell was that for?”

“That was for your comment, you ass!”

“What comment?” he said, defensively.

I answered him, deepening my voice comically as I mocked, “I don’t know if we should be amused
or aroused right now.”

Brandon drew back and huffed exaggeratedly. “That’s not what I said.”

“Yes, it was!” I shouted. “Don’t you lie!”

“I’m not lying,” Brandon stated simply. “You just didn’t say exactly what I said. I said, I’m not sure if
we should be aroused or amused at this point.”

I rolled my eyes. “Seriously? That’s almost exactly what I just said, just with a couple different
words. You’re such a smart ass, Brandon. You know that?”

“I know,” he replied, smugly.

I just walked away from him, shaking my head.

I heard movement in the kitchen and went to investigate while Chloe gently shook my sister’s
shoulder, trying to get her up.

I stopped dead in the doorway to the kitchen, grunting when Ian ran into me from behind.

Nanny was traipsing around the kitchen in one of Ian’s t-shirts, her bare little chicken legs sticking out
the bottom. His shirt covered her from neck to shin, and her hair was sticking straight up in the air,
almost like she’d put her finger in a light socket.

“Good morning!” she crowed, waving at me with the spatula she had clenched in her hands. “I figured
I’d get up and make breakfast for you sleepy heads.” She addressed Ian over my shoulder. “I snuck in
and grabbed one of your shirts, cause I didn’t know I’d be sleeping over. You guys were so cozy
lookin’, all snuggled up in that big ol’ bed.” She looked back at me. “I put my clothes in the washer.
Hope you don’t mind.”

“Uh…no. Nope, I don’t mind. What time you did you get up, Nanny?” I asked her, entering the kitchen
to see what she was cooking.

“I don’t know, it was like five a.m. I tried to get Daisy up to take me home, but that damn woman
would only snore and bat me away.”

I snatched a piece of bacon from a pile and she smacked me with the spatula.

“You go on and get everybody in here so we can eat,” she ordered.

“Yes, ma’am,” I answered cheekily, biting into the bacon with a grin.

Once everyone was at least half-awake, I ushered them into the kitchen where Nanny fed us all
heaping plates of pancakes, bacon, and scrambled eggs.

The talk quickly turned to tales of last night’s activities, including Nanny’s blow by blow account of
the “Buff Daddy” that shook his “man meat” in her face so close she’d been afraid he’d poke her eye
out.

“So, I take it your night wasn’t as wild?” Chloe asked Brandon.

“Not really. We weren’t out too late because Luke and Jacks promised they’d get the kids from
Emma’s dad and Noah, and it just wasn’t as fun without you girls around like last time,” Brandon
replied, dryly.

“And you’re full of it, too,” Emma answered.

“Rule number one of Bachelor Party Law is you don’t speak of what happens!” Brandon called out,
earning him a swat from Chloe. He just grinned, because he knew we knew he was kidding.

I thought of something then and turned to Allie. “Hey, you remember how many life savers you put on
that Suck-for-a-Buck shirt you made Chloe?”

“Yeah, I think I stuck a hundred of them suckers on there. Why?”

“Holy shit! I made a hundred bucks last night?” Chloe exclaimed, looking around for her purse.

“Sweet!” Brandon said. “How come I didn’t get a suck me off shirt?”

Chloe sighed as Ian laughed without correcting him, or answering his question.

Breakfast was completed with a lot of laughter, good natured ribbing, and lots of Nanny-isms that had
us rolling until Daisy decided we’d (she’d) had enough and left with Nanny in tow, clutching her
clothes to her chest. She’d kept Ian’s t-shirt and hadn’t bothered asking if he wanted it back.

It wasn’t long after they left that everyone else started giving their goodbyes and leaving for their
respective homes and spouses, until just Ian and I were left.

We collapsed in a heap on the couch and traded more stories from the night before, especially the one
where Jenna tripped and landed face first in a ten foot snowbank in the parking lot of the strip club. It
had snowed a good amount two nights before the party, so thank God they’d stacked the piles high or
Jenna might not have had such a soft landing. Not that she was feeling much at that time…

During a lull in the conversation, Ian asked me if his mom had called me.

I so badly wanted to tell him yes, that she had called and apologized, but I couldn’t lie to him. “No,
baby. She hasn’t called.”

He sighed. “She’s so stubborn. I just thought that maybe with…oh, well.”

“I’m sorry,” I whispered, laying my lips against his chest in a gentle kiss.

“Anyway, are you ready for school tomorrow?” he asked, changing the subject.

I nodded and the conversation turned back to more mundane matters, but both of us skirted the dark
thoughts that circled in the back of our minds. I had a feeling we both knew it wasn’t over…not by a
long shot.

The sad thing about it is, neither one of us knew just how right we’d end up being.

Chapter 22

I glanced around the room to make sure none of the kids needed help getting their coats on, smiling at
a few of them that bounded over to hug me and tell me goodbye.

“Miss Jensen, do you hafta take Gerry?” a little voice called, a small hand tugging on my pocket to get
my attention.

I sighed and looked down at Adam. “Yes, honey. I’m sorry, but Gerry has to go home with me. I can’t
leave him here all by himself all weekend, can I?”

“Yes!” the little boy hollered, looking at me with that ‘duh’ expression that kids are so good at
utilizing.

I sighed, but thankfully the bell rang, signaling it was time to go to the buses.

When the last kid was gone, I packed up my bag, put Gerry in his ‘weekend home’, and made sure I’d
left the lesson notes for the substitute coming in to cover for me tomorrow. With everything set, I
loaded up the car and set off for home, my excitement building more and more for the weekend
festivities.

I made it home before Ian and decided to make a batch of homemade potato soup for dinner. It was
almost done by the time Ian walked in the door.

“Hey, baby,” he said as he walked by me. He paused long enough to kiss me hello before he went to
clean up.

The poor man works himself to death, even in the winter when the construction business usually
slows down. Ian, though, generally maps out his projects so that the majority of the building is done in
the summer and fall months, so that all the finishing and indoor work can be done during the winter,
therefore keeping him busy year-round.

It’s been even more hectic for him since Jackson had been recommending Ian to all of his clients, and
vice versa. It was a pretty beneficial partnership for them both; Jackson would design the buildings or
whatever they wanted, and Ian would make it happen. Win-win for everyone, right?

The week since the bachelorette/bachelor parties had been uneventful, which we were thankful for.
Victoria went to her pretrial and, last we heard, she and her attorney were trying to work out a deal
with the prosecutor, but her trial wasn’t until the second week of January.

I’d still managed to keep my own upcoming nuptials a secret, which had been unbelievably difficult,
especially because my parents knew. So far, my mom hadn’t blabbed, but since my wedding was next
weekend, I was getting more nervous that she’d slip up.

Turns out, it was my own mouth I had to worry about.

Early Friday afternoon, the girls and I had all met up to get manicures and pedicures in preparation
for the wedding the next day. Once we were done at the salon, we were all due to meet at the church
for the rehearsal, and then the rehearsal dinner.

I was halfway through my pedicure, enjoying the calf and foot massage portion of it, when Emma
asked what I was doing next weekend.

Without thinking, I answered, “Getting married, why?”

“I wanted to see if you wanted to keep your niece for…wait, what?”

I glanced over at her. “What, what? You know I’d love to keep her, but I can’t because…”

It hadn’t registered in my head exactly what I had said just yet. Not until I noticed that Emma, Allie,
Chloe, and Sarah, Chloe’s mom were all gawking at me wide-eyed as my words trailed off.

Oh. Shit.

“You’re getting married?” Emma repeated, cocking her head sideways. “Did I hear you correctly,
Leah?”

I winced. “Uh…no?” I tried to backpedal, but...it didn’t work.

Chloe’s eyes narrowed on me. “Are you and Ian trying to freakin’ elope?”

I fidgeted, noticing that the whole salon was now staring at me, but none more raptly than the woman
who was giving me my pedicure. Or, had been, rather, because she was gazing up at me, her hands
frozen in place around my foot, waiting to see what I’d say next, I suppose.

I blew out a breath and closed my eyes for a second. Without opening them, I rushed to answer. “No,
we’re not trying to elope, we are eloping.” My eyes popped open at the gasps that filled the air
around me.

“Look, I’m sorry I didn’t mention it to anyone. We just decided that neither one of us really wanted to
have a big wedding, and there’s the cutest little chapel down in Tennessee that’s perfect around
Christmas time, especially when it’s been snowing, so…we’re getting married next weekend.”

Emma looked hurt. “But what about your family? Mom and Dad? They’re going to be heartbroken.”

Yikes. And just like that, I had to throw my own parents under the bus. “They’re coming.”

“What? They know? Are you kidding me, Leah Nicole Jensen?” she screeched, sitting forward. The
tech doing her pedicure scrambled to the side, getting out of her way.

“You guys can come,” I threw out softly, hoping to diffuse the situation. Jesus, Ian was going to kill
me.

Allie snorted. “You can bet your sweet ass that we’ll be there, girlie!” She laughed dryly. “Can’t
believe you thought you’d get away with doing that without everyone. Well, guess I know what I’ll be
doing Sunday.”

Emma sat back and let the poor tech get back to her job. She crossed her arms over her chest and
grinned smugly. “I can’t wait to tell Jenna and Calland,” she sang. “You’re in for it.”

I groaned, and not from the massage that had resumed.

I turned my head to look at Chloe, who’d been silent except for her initial outburst.

She was watching me, hurt still shining in her eyes, but I could also see understanding.

“Mad at me?” I asked, quietly.

She shook her head. “No. I understand. I just can’t believe you were gonna do it like my brother did,
and cut everybody out of it.”

“No, no, no…it wasn’t like that, we weren’t trying to cut everybody out of it, we just, I guess we just
didn’t want to make a big deal of it. I’m sorry,” I told her, reaching out across the space between our
chairs to grab for her hand.

She let me take her hand, squeezing my fingers briefly before letting them go. “You’re just lucky that
we were already coming home on Friday from the honeymoon. Now, instead, we’ll just take a detour

and be at your wedding, along with everyone else.” She winked and grinned.

I groaned again. Yep. I was totally dead.

Finally, the conversation turned away from the topic of my wedding, and as soon as it did, I palmed
my phone and texted my mom on the sly.

Me: Remember how I told you not to tell anyone about the wedding?

Mom: I didn’t tell anyone, I swear!

Me: I know. But I sure as hell blabbed by mistake.

Mom: Yay! Now I can tell everyone!

Me: No! Mom, no, not yet. I haven’t even told Ian that I let it out yet…

Me: Mom?

Me: Jesus…

“Right, Leah?”

I jerked, sliding my phone back into my pocket as I looked up to see who’d been addressing me.
“Hmm? What?”

Chloe gave me a weird look and repeated what she said. “I’m staying with you tonight, because
Brandon and I aren’t supposed to see each other. Right?”

“Yeah,” I confirmed, nodding.

“You okay?” she asked me, still looking at me like I was crazy.

I waved her off with another nod and changed the subject. “So, Emma. You heard who our brother
dearest is bringing to the wedding as his date?”

Emma snapped her head around, eyes wide. “No, who? Tell me, tell me tell me!”

I sighed, letting my shoulders sag with disappointment. “Damnit! I thought you knew, that’s why I was
asking.”

“No, the rat bastard won’t tell me,” she replied, glaring at even the thought of our brother keeping a
secret from us.

Chloe giggled beside me and shot me a knowing smirk.

I narrowed my eyes at her, growling out, “You know, don’t you.”

It wasn’t a question.

She only grinned.

Once all of our fingers and toes were all prettied up for tomorrow, we headed out to the church, still
trying to get Chloe to rat out Calland. For the rest of the night, no matter what we did to cajole her,
she refused to tell us who Calland was bringing as a date.

The rehearsal went smoothly, though Sarah had to smack a couple of serial gigglers throughout the
process. And no, one of them wasn’t me.

Okay, so she smacked me once…but she was laughing right along with me!

The rehearsal dinner was being held at Manny’s in the back party room, and the wine and beer was
freely flowing. We toasted the happy couple so many times that Brandon finally held up his hand and

stopped Luke’s next one.

“Dude! You guys aren’t gonna have any toasts left for tomorrow!” he cried, laughing.

Luke winked at him. “Trust me. I have plenty of material left over for tomorrow, brother.”

For a brief second, Brandon almost looked scared, but then ended up laughing and clutching his
brother’s shoulder as Luke continued wishing the couple well.

I settled back in my seat, nestling into the arm Ian had draped over my shoulders. He was grinning at
me, so I just went with it, figuring it’d be a good time to tell him that I let the cat out of the bag. I
picked now for two reasons; One, because there was a crowd of witnesses, and two, because he was
in a good mood and there was a crowd of witnesses.

“So…you love me, right?”

He nodded, still grinning. “Of course.”

“Good. Cause I let it slip about the wedding to the girls today.”

His grin stayed, but I did see his eye twitch just a little bit in surprise.

“Are you mad?”

That’s when his grin slipped away. “Mad? How the hell could I be mad? Baby, I would never get
mad for you wanting your friends and family to be a part of this. I know we said we wanted to just
keep it quiet and not make a big deal of it, but I think it’s gonna work out the way it should. You
know?”

I bit my lip. “But what about your parents? I know mine were already coming, but I’ve been feeling
horrible about you not having anyone there for you.”

He leaned down and kissed my forehead. “I was already gonna tell them, give them the option of
showing up. But don’t get your hopes up. Besides, now I have friends coming.” He gave me a wink
and another grin, kissing me briefly on the lips before turning back to the party.

Chloe caught my eye and raised a brow in question. I smiled in response and settled back against my
fiancé once more, enjoying the rest of the night with my friends and family.

***

Music swelled through the speakers, letting us know that it was time to get into place.

I dabbed at my eyes once more as I took in the sight of my best friend, standing there in her wedding
gown, so beautiful it was breath taking.

“No crying,” she scolded, dabbing at her own eyes as tears began to well.

“No! No crying!” Emma called frantically, flapping her hands in both of our faces as if to dry our
eyes that way. “That’s our cue to go stand in line, so pull yourselves together this instant!”

“Okay, Mom,” I told her dryly, dodging her hand when it darted out to slap me, jokingly.

“You ready?” I asked Chloe, who nodded, and then turned to Sarah, Chloe’s mom. “Are you?”

She nodded, flapping her own hands in front of her face to ward off the waterworks that were
threatening. She blew Chloe a kiss and strode from the room to get into place and to collect herself a
bit.

As soon as she did, I glanced around the room, feeling my heart swell as Jackson stepped forward,

handsome as ever in his tux, and reached for his sister’s hand. He didn’t say anything, just smiled
softly and kissed her forehead before motioning for us to precede them out of the room, holding tightly
to her hand as he prepared to give her away.

It was a gorgeous ceremony; everything went smoothly and it couldn’t have been more picture perfect
for them, and they didn’t deserve anything less.

We moved through the pictures and all the normal post-wedding/pre-reception requirements as
quickly as possible so we could all get to celebrating. Chloe finally told me and Emma that Calland
wasn’t bringing anyone to the wedding with him, but half an hour later while I was sitting at the head
table eating my dinner, I realized she’d been lying when I noticed the blond girl sitting next to my
brother.

I nudged Emma, who was seated to my right, jerking my chin at Calland when she looked my way.
Her eyes widened and we both glared at Chloe, who wasn’t paying any attention until I elbowed her.

When she followed the direction of my gaze, she laughed out loud, shaking her head at us and
shrugging unapologetically before she turned back to her new husband.

We didn’t get a chance to corner him until later, once we’d gotten the requisite wedding party dances
out of the way, and Chloe and Brandon had cut the cake.

Emma and I finally approached him as he was sitting with Mom and Dad and Jenna and Noah.

I held out my hand for her to shake as I introduced myself. He hadn’t said anything about dating
anyone new, so I figured this must be one of the unfortunate sisters. The bad part? I couldn’t
remember which one he was supposed to be with at the moment.

So I took a chance…and failed miserably, much to the delight of my sisters, and the comical horror of
my brother.

“You must be Grace! Nice to finally meet you!”

She froze with her hand in mine, her eyes narrowing on me. “Um, no. I’m-”

I cut in again, trying to rectify the situation by letting her know that I did know her name…which I
didn’t. “Lucy! I’m so sorry…I don’t know where…I…hi!” I finally finished, my cheeks pinched into a
wide smile so fantastically fake it might as well have been plastic.

She pulled her hand from mine and gritted out, “Lilly. My name is Lilly.” With teeth still clenched,
she turned to Calland (who was glaring at me, by the way) and asked, “Who’s Lucy? And why would
she call me Grace? That’s my sister’s name…oh my God. You’re the douchcanoe!” She wailed the
last part, then buried her face in her hands before standing abruptly and darting out of the room.

My eyes found Calland’s and I smiled sheepishly. “Wow. She picked up on that pretty quickly, huh? I
uh, take it you didn’t tell her about her sister yet?”

He glared at me and then yelped as my mom swatted him, calling him a cad and man slut while my
dad grunted with what sounded like muffled laughter.

“Jesus, Leah, what a way to ruin my date!” Calland growled. “I hadn’t had a chance to tell her yet.”

“Well, I’m sorry. I honestly thought I had the right name at first. It’s not my fault that you’re a
whoredog,” I replied snarkily.

He sighed. “Oh well. The only reason I brought her was because I hadn’t figured out a way to tell her,
yet, but that’s not how I wanted it to happen.” He puffed out a breath again and turned, mumbling

about making sure she got home okay.

When he’d walked away, I noticed that the rest of my family was all looking at me and shaking their
heads, but their lips were twitching with smiles.

I shrugged. “My bad…”

I drifted away to find the bride and smack her for not warning me.

Her response? “He said he wasn’t bringing a date, but then changed it at the last minute. And I’m
sorry I didn’t warn you, but that’s exactly why I didn’t—I couldn’t remember her name either!”

The rest of the night passed in a blur of dancing, drinking, and once again toasting the happy couple
before we sent them off on their honeymoon in Key West, Florida.

Once the reception hall was cleaned up (I’d told Chloe I’d make sure it was taken care of so they
could leave), Ian and I headed home.

I’d barely gotten in the door and disarmed the alarm when his hands slide up my body to cup my
breasts as he whispered in my ear, “You look fucking hot in that dress.”

I whimpered as he tweaked my nipples through the satin bodice, turning my head to nip at his shoulder
as I breathed, “I bet I’d look a lot hotter out of it.”

“Probably. But I’ve had this fantasy all night…”

He didn’t say another word, but he sure as hell showed me what fantasy he was talking about as he
suddenly dropped to his knees and slid under the long skirt of the dress I was wearing. I gasped,
reaching for his shoulders to brace myself as he wrenched my panties to the side and buried his face
in my already drenched folds, his tongue dragging along my clit with unerring precision that swung me
up into near detonation almost immediately.

He didn’t stop until he’d taken me over the edge twice, literally holding me up with his hands as my
knees buckled after the second orgasm, but still not moving until he’d lapped up my release with long,
languid strokes that made me writhe against his face.

After that, he bent me over the table in the kitchen, tossed my skirt up over my back, and proceeded to
fuck me hard and fast until he brought me screaming once more before he rocked up high into me one
last time and let go, spending his scalding hot release deep inside my body.

When we caught our breath, we managed to make it to the bedroom before stripping down and
collapsing in a satiated heap on the bed.

All in all, I’d say it was a pretty good way to end a pretty good day.

Chapter 23

It was official. I was Mrs. Leah Nicole Mitchell.

And it was awesome!

The wedding was perfect, even though it was a little different than we’d originally planned, but I
know neither one of us would change a thing. Shockingly, Ian’s parents had made the trip, showing up
to surprise him half an hour before the ceremony.

Of course, I’d been pretty surprised myself when Margot had walked into the room I was getting
dressed in, asking if she could talk to me alone for a minute.

My mom had taken one look at her and went full on Mama Bear, telling Ian’s mom that she had two
minutes and if she made me cry, she’d pay for every single tear that left my eyes.

Have I mentioned that I love my mom? Cause I totally do…she’s pretty fucking awesome.

But she didn’t make me cry…though it was the most backhanded apology I’d ever received in my life.

She’d looked me up and down, sniffing once before grudgingly admitting, “You look…pretty.” She’d
continued on after I’d thanked her, saying, “I’m sorry that I was rude to you and that I threw Victoria
up in your face all the time. It’s just that she’s more suited to our Ian and the life he’s been
accustomed to, you understand, and you’re…well, you’re not. Really it’s nothing against you, dear,
but for what it’s worth, welcome to the family. I suppose.” She’d brushed her hands together then,
almost like dusting the apology off of them, straightened the jacket of her very smart, sleekly fitted
skirt-suit, and said, briskly, “Now. If you’d find it in your simple little heart to forgive me, I’d
appreciate it, and we will expect you both at the annual Christmas party.”

She’d then leaned in and given me one of those perfunctory, barely-touching-almost-hugs and an air
kiss before she’d turned on her heel and left the room, leaving me standing dumb-founded and a little
confused. But she’d apologized, so that counts for something, right?

I won’t say that things miraculously turned around one hundred percent, but a tentative truce had been
put into play for now. We’ll see how things turn out when we go over there for Christmas next week.

We had an impromptu reception after the wedding at a restaurant there in Gatlinburg; they’d
graciously allowed us to take over a back room where we ate a delicious dinner and then danced
along to the soft music playing from the restaurant’s speakers overhead. When we’d left to return to
our hotel, we somehow got shuffled around behind everyone and were the last ones out of the door of
the restaurant, only to walk out to a shower of bubbles everywhere as our friends and family lined the
sidewalk, blowing their little hearts out.

I wasn’t sure how Mom had managed to finagle that whole thing, but I wasn’t surprised.

Ian and I didn’t get to take a honeymoon just yet, because I had to go back to work on Monday after
the wedding, but since this Friday starts the holiday break, we had been talking about maybe taking
the week between Christmas and New Year to go somewhere, hopefully a place that was warmer and
had a lot less snow. You know, like none. But that didn’t mean that we weren’t still acting like we
were on our honeymoon…wink wink!

It’s funny when you think about it, I suppose. Ian and I lived together for almost a year already, and
our sex life was already pretty hopping. But there’s something about the whole newlywed thing that
increases your sex drive like crazy.

So the first couple of days after the wedding were almost perfect, even though we were pretty much
back to normal life, both of us working during the day, and then spending the nights secluded together,
locked in just about every carnal position we could imagine, and then some. We’d sorta-kinda told
everyone we were putting a hiatus on friend/family visitation for at least the first week, which got us
a few knowing grins and a lot of understanding, especially from Chloe and Brandon who’d adopted
the idea for themselves.

By Wednesday, I was ready for a vacation for sure, not only to spend some uninterrupted time with
my husband (I love calling him that!), but because the kids had been on a whole other level since I’d
been back. I’d never seen them so wound up!

I called Ian on the way home from work to see when he’d be home so I could start dinner for us, or to
see if he just wanted to pick something up, but he didn’t answer. I was pleasantly surprised to see that
his truck was in the driveway when I got home.

I pulled in and shut it behind me, entering the house and calling for him as I sat my bag down on the
counter. I heard a muffled response coming from the back of the house, so I went to find him.

And find him I did.

I pushed open the bedroom door and froze as I saw Victoria standing there, pointing a gun at Ian. I
couldn’t move, couldn’t speak, the gravity of the situation dropping like a lead weight in the pit of my
stomach as dread curled through my veins.

Against all odds, I hoped and prayed silently that she hadn’t seen me…but she had.

Ian was standing, hands out in supplication, unmoving. I could see the fear in his eyes, but I was
almost certain that it wasn’t fear for himself; no, he was afraid of what Victoria would do to me.

She smirked and cocked her head, not taking her eyes off of Ian as she addressed me. “Oh, good.
You’re here. I was hoping you’d get to see this part.”

“Victoria-” Ian roared, stepping forward, to do what, I’m not sure.

But he didn’t get anywhere.

She pulled the trigger, and I screamed as blood bloomed on Ian’s chest. He fell backwards onto the
carpet, hitting his head on the dresser as he went down. His body was still and silent when he landed,
not responding as I screamed his name over and over again.

I moved to go to him, but found myself blocked as Victoria stood in front of me, her hand shaking as
she pointed the handgun at my face. I noticed in that moment that she was perfectly coiffed as usual,
but her eyes gave away just how far she’d come unhinged, and I wondered if I would make it out of
this alive.

“Why?” I shouted at her, tears of rage filling my eyes and spilling over as helplessness washed over
me. I couldn’t move, couldn’t go to Ian to see if he was alive, because what good would I be to him if
I ended up with a bullet in my brain? I cursed myself a dozen times over for the fact that my phone
wasn’t in my pocket, but instead, was tucked inside my purse, sitting on the kitchen counter where it
would do me no good.

Victoria let out a chilling laugh. “Why? Why not! That’s the real question, LEAH.”

She backed away from me, motioning with the gun for me to follow. I stepped forward cautiously,
following her silent directives until I was standing inside the room, about five feet from Ian.

“Let me-” I began, taking one more step towards him, but stopped when Victoria screamed, “NO!”

“You want to know why, so I’m going to tell you. I mean, like I said before, why not, honestly,
because he was pretty much asking for it. Traipsing around with you, waving you under my nose when
we ALL know he’s supposed to be WITH ME!”

Victoria screamed the last part, making me flinch as she swung the gun back into my face, pushing it
forward until it rested against my forehead, right between my eyes.

“Well.” She started speaking once more, her voice wavering slightly, but otherwise remaining low
and calm. “I’ve decided that I don’t want to go to jail. And I’ve decided that I’m not waiting any
longer for him to come to his senses, so, if I can’t have him, neither can you.”

She said it simply, as if she was reciting the weather to me, or some other mundane topic of
conversation.

“You’re crazy,” I bit out through clenched teeth.

She tilted her head back and let loose with a loud, long, psycho-killer laugh that confirmed the fact
that she’d gone beyond unhinged.

It was killing me to not be able to check on Ian, so I tried reasoning again, rushing the words this time
so she couldn’t cut me off. “Please, just let me check on him!” I cried out fervently.

She tucked her chin into her chest and stared at me, her laughter cutting off sharply. “No. You can’t
help him. He’s dead. And you know what? You’ll have to live with that for the rest of your life.”

I swallowed hard, then breathed a sigh of relief as she pulled the gun away from my head once more.
My jaw was aching with the pressure of clenching my teeth so much, but I was so afraid of setting her
off…and I couldn’t let myself believe that Ian was gone.

“You know, if you’d have just listened when I tried to warn you off, when I told you I was his
girlfriend…we wouldn’t be in this predicament, now would we? But you didn’t listen. Oh! Thank
you, by the way. I forgot to tell you how much I enjoyed using your little love toys while Ian watched
me on video. He really enjoyed the pictures, too. Did he tell you that?”

“You disgusted him, Victoria.” The words were out before I could stop them.

She paused, turning her head sideways as she studied me, a small smile playing about her lips.
“You’re trying to distract me. And you’re lying.” She smirked. “I wasn’t disgusting to him when I had
my lips wrapped around his dick, sucking him off.”

A low growl sounded through the room, and it took me a second to realize it was coming from me.

Victoria sighed and rolled her eyes. “Oh, don’t act like you didn’t enjoy that night, too. See how nice
I can be? I was willing to share him with you, went as far as shoving my fingers up your greedy little
cunt to keep you happy, but did you appreciate that fact? No! No, you didn’t, you stupid little bitch!”

She’d reverted back to screaming at me, her face blood red, and her eyes squeezed shut.

I took that opportunity to glance at Ian, trying against all hope to see some sort of movement from him,
but that was a mistake.

While I was distracted, Victoria struck out with the hand still clutching the gun, slamming it against
the side of my head. It was a glancing blow, catching me more on my forehead just above my temple,
but as warm wetness started trickling down my face, I knew my skin had split.

“I didn’t say you could look at him, you fucking bitch!”

Victoria was breathing hard, the sound sawing in and out loudly in the silence. My head was
pounding, and I was blinking quickly, trying to keep blood out of my eye.

She stepped away from me again, keeping me in her sights as she lowered herself on to my bed,
scooting into the center of it and arranging herself artfully. “Now. Here’s what’s going to happen.
Since you came home and caught us,” she waved back and forth between herself and Ian, “you shot
him in a jealous rage. Then, you shot me.”

I gaped at her. Surely she saw the gaping holes in her plan…but if not, I sure as hell wasn’t going to
tell her. I shook my head in denial, but kept quiet.

“Get over here, Leah, and take the gun,” she yelled.

I shook my head again, my body trembling from trying to hold myself so still for so long.

Victoria lunged to her knees, anger painting her face a dull red as she screamed, “Take this fucking
gun right now and fucking shoot me! DO IT!”

A high-pitched, half-delirious squeal of laughter formed on my lips, bubbling free at the ludicrous
reality that a woman was sitting in front of me, begging me to shoot her. “You’re insane, Victoria.
You’re seriously fucking insane.”

She brandished the gun again, only this time, she was using it to gesture with. “You’re supposed to do
what I say,” she whined, her eyes wide, lips pouting, poking the barrel of the weapon into her chest to
emphasize her words. She sat like that for a minute and then said, softly, “I’ll just have to shoot you
instead. I mean, you were coming at me. You were going to kill me, so I had to protect myself. I had
to get the gun from you. Just such a shame that you died in the process.”

“Victoria…” I breathed, imploring her almost wordlessly not to do this.

A low moan had us both looking toward the floor where Ian was lying, still unmoving. But that sound
gave me hope that he was alive, that she hadn’t hit anything vital, and that maybe, if this ended soon
enough, he wouldn’t bleed to death before I managed to get some help.

I whispered Ian’s name, tears once more flooding my eyes as I saw his fingers twitch, and finally saw
his chest moving slightly with his breathing, something I’d been unable to detect before now.

“Shut up, bitch!”

Her words brought my attention back to Victoria, who was now kneeling on the end of the bed, having
moved closer to look at Ian.

“Well, that’s perfect,” she purred, giving me a sly, secretive smile. “Now he doesn’t have to die, and
he and I will live happily ever after with you out of the way.”

She once again used the gun as an extension of her words, pointing it at different parts of my body to
punctuate every word as she mused, “Where. Should. I. Shoot. You?”

Another groan sounded from Ian, but Victoria ignored it, pressing the barrel of the gun under her chin
in place of her hand or finger as she adopted an exaggerated thinking pose.

Two things happened then, both of them seemingly in slow motion.

A loud bang sounded outside, startling me…

And it also startled Victoria.

The difference? I didn’t happen to be holding a gun pressed to the bottom of my chin when I jerked.

But she did.

Chapter 24

Two Months Later

I pressed tighter against my husband, reveling in the feel of him wrapped around me as we danced to
Angel Eyes by The Jeff Healy Band in the middle of the dance floor at Griff’s.

Funny how things come full circle, sometimes, isn’t it? I rubbed my cheek against his chest as I
remembered the moment I knew that this man would become my life; right here in this bar, on this
dance floor, dancing to this song on the night we met.

Two months ago, I didn’t think I’d get a chance to talk with my husband ever again, let alone dance
with him, because he’d been shot by a psycho bitch with a stalker complex. Luckily, it had hit him in
the upper chest/shoulder area, missing his vital organs, and just barely missing his subclavian artery.

Thank God he’d survived, but if that artery would have been hit, he wouldn’t have. The wound had
healed nicely, but we both still have nightmares every now and then about that night.

The loud bang that had startled us turned out to be a car accident that had happened almost right in
front of my house. The neighbor’s dog had gotten loose and ran into the street, causing a car coming
up the road to swerve to avoid it…only they’d ended up rear-ending a parked car instead. They
weren’t hurt, thank God, but I could have kissed them regardless for being the catalyst that ended the
nightmare we’d been trapped in that day.

Victoria wasn’t so lucky, though. When she’d jerked, her finger had tightened on the trigger and I’d
watched in horror as she died, right there on my bed. I’d been frozen to the spot, tears tracking down
my face as my brain tried to process what had happened, those few, crystallized seconds burned into
my memory forever.

Another groan from Ian had broken my stupor and I’d rushed to him, dropping to my knees at his side
and frantically trying to assess his wounds to see just where he was shot. There was so much blood,
but that was to be expected, I supposed, since he’d just been lying there, bleeding as everything
played out.

It seemed like those moments had stretched out into hours, a never ending loop of horror that was
actually only fifteen minutes. Fifteen of the longest minutes of my life.

As soon as I’d checked Ian, I’d ran to get the phone, calling for help as I grabbed towels to press to
his chest to stop the bleeding, as we waited for help. We left the house that night and only went back
to pack up most of our stuff.

There was no way we were going to stay in that house with the ghosts that would haunt it forever
now.

We’d put our belongings in storage and had been staying at Emma and Luke’s house, but thankfully,
we’d managed to find a new place that we fell in love with a couple weeks ago. If everything went
well, we’d be closing on it next month.

Christmas and New Year were spent with our closest friends and family that, surprisingly (or maybe
not so surprisingly), included Ian’s parents. They’d received a wake-up call for sure when they’d
come close to losing their only son. Since then, I’d gotten a very heart-felt apology from them both
and they’d made it a point to meet us for dinner at least once every two weeks, if not more often. I
was still a little cautious around Margot, but she’d stopped the snarky comments altogether and

seemed to genuinely want to get to know me better.

They don’t talk to or see the Jones’ anymore. No one does. They buried their daughter and moved to
their home in France, leaving everything behind. I didn’t blame them; I don’t think I’d be able to bear
the whispers behind my back. I also didn’t blame them for what Victoria had done. I think they truly
loved their daughter enough to look past her faults, but it doesn’t change the fact that there was so
much more going on with that girl that they should have seen.

Things have slowly gotten back to normal, though. Well, as normal as our family and friends could
be…

Shaking myself back to the present, I tipped my head back to see Ian staring down at me.

“Hi,” he murmured, smiling softly.

“Hi,” I said, smiling back.

“Good?”

I nodded. “Yep. Perfect,” I replied, going up on tip-toe to kiss him.

We finished out the song and returned to the table where Chloe and Brandon were sitting with Allie
and Jacks. Liam was with his Grandma Sarah, who was still happily seeing the doctor friend she’d
met. Emma and Luke had stayed home tonight, because Everly had been sick, and Jenna and Noah
said they were too worn out to go anywhere.

Calland had met up with us, but his eye had already been caught by an absolutely stunning, tattooed
redhead standing at the bar, looking over everyone with a bored expression, but there was a
sharpness in her eyes that said she didn’t miss much. I’d never seen her before, but I had a feeling my
brother would not win with that one.

I slid into the booth beside Chloe, and Ian followed me in just as the waitress stopped by with new
drinks for us. The guys were drinking beer, and Chloe and I were sharing a pitcher of mango
margaritas, but I hadn’t been able to figure out what Allie was drinking, since she’d ordered it at the
bar when they came in.

“Allie, what are you drinking tonight?” I asked, curiously eyeballing her glass.

She blushed and glanced up at Jacks, who just smiled and gave a small nod.

“Water,” she answered, her eyes sparkling.

Chloe stared at her quizzically, then grinned as understanding dawned; I knew that my expression
matched hers, our faces lighting up even more as Allie nodded and confirmed our thoughts.

“We’re pregnant again!” she crowed, clasping her hands together over her belly lovingly.

Congratulations were flying and toasts were made as the joyous news was yelled throughout the bar
to strangers, acquaintances, and friends alike.

We laughed as Allie nudged Jackson and said, “Good thing we told the parents and Emma earlier or
we’d be in trouble, huh.”

He just grinned and nodded before leaning in and kissing the tip of her nose.

It wasn’t too long after that we all decided to call it an evening. As I stood to leave, I looked around
for my brother, not seeing him anywhere.

“Ian, I’m gonna look for Calland while you pull the car up, okay? I don’t want to just run off on him.”

He nodded, pecking my lips as he moved past me after saying goodbye to everyone. I hugged them all
and called goodbye as they walked out, reassuring them that I was just going to find Calland to let him
know we were leaving.

I finally found him coming back from the bathroom, making a beeline for the empty stool on the other
side of the redhead, but I intercepted him.

“What’s up, sis?” he asked, keeping his eyes trained on his prize.

“We’re heading out. Figured I’d tell you, but I guess you’re a little occupied at the moment, huh?”

He glanced at me, grinning shamelessly. “I’d like to be occupied, but she’s got that fuck off vibe that
keeps everyone at a safe distance so they don’t end up getting throat punched.”

“You’re hopeless, you know that, Calland?”

“Yup. So, I heard the news. New rugrat gonna be coming along, right?”

I smiled. “Yep. They’re so happy…and I’m happy for them. I love babies!”

He nudged me. “Then maybe you should get to working on one of your own.”

I nudged him back. “You never know; maybe we’re already working on it.”

His eyes met mine, his brows raised in surprise and happiness. “Are you? Really?”

I winked, laughing as I replied, “We’re practicing working on it. All the time. Like four times a day.”

His face melted into a grimace and he shoved me gently. “Go on with that shit, you sicko. I don’t need
to hear about your sex life!”

“Payback’s a bitch, isn’t it, brother dearest?”

He shook his head, chuckling softly. “Now go on, get out of here. I’ve got work to do.”

It was my turn to shake my head, following his gaze to the redhead once more. “I think maybe you
should leave well enough alone, big brother. I think that one bites, and she’d likely hand your balls to
you on a silver platter.” I paused. “You know what? Nevermind. That just might be what you need to
get your head outta your ass and find a good girl. Leave the Fluffy, Muffy, and Huffy to the younger
ones.”

He narrowed his eyes at me. “Bitch,” he growled, but I knew he was playing.

“Ass,” I replied, patting him on the shoulder and waving as I walked away.

I thought about bringing Ian back in and hanging around to see how this all played out. I had a feeling
it was about to get interesting…

But I decided against it. I had a sexy, tattooed husband sitting outside waiting on me.

And we had more practicing to do.

***

Calland

I waved goodbye to my sister and sauntered over to the bar, leaning against it beside the redhead I’d
been eyeing all night.

She’s fucking gorgeous, pierced and inked up, and had legs for days, but the prickly vibes she was
throwing off was keeping most of the fuckwads around here away.

Not me, though. I had to talk to her, just once, to try and break past that wall she had up and get her to
smile. Even if I crashed and burned like Leah thought was gonna happen.

She was steadfastly ignoring me, but I still gave it a shot.

“You’re new in town. What’s a beautiful girl like you doing in a backwoods place like this?”

Her lips curled into a smirk as she turned to face me. “Really? That’s what you’re leading with?” she
snorted.

I shrugged. “Not leading with anything, just making conversation. I didn’t say anything that wasn’t
true. You are beautiful…but you know that. And you’re definitely new in town, cause I’d remember
that face.”

She tilted her head, studying me for a brief moment before opening her mouth and dropping me.
“Okay, stud. You’re a good looking guy. Used to getting what you want, right? So, right now, you’re
expecting me to bat my lashes, twist my hair, giggle, and blindly follow you home for a brainless
night of mediocre sex,” she said in disgust. “Am I close?”

“Ouch. Mediocre? Not close at all. Mind-blowing, maybe,” I couldn’t help but retort, regretting it
almost as soon as the words left my lips.

She rolled her eyes and twisted back around, blowing me off.

I tried again. “You’ve got me all wrong, Red. I didn’t have you pegged for the simpering, giggly girl.
You’re all woman, and that’s clear to see, but damn. My bad for attempting to make conversation with
you.” I stood straight, intending to walk away, stopping only when I felt a soft, small hand grab my
wrist.

I looked at her, one eyebrow raised in question, not saying anything.

“Look, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m here looking for someone and I don’t have time to
mess around with every hot Tom, Dick, or Harry that glances my way.”

“Good thing my name is Calland, then,” I said, winking at her.

Her lips twitched but she never let the smile come, just shook her head.

But that lip twitch left me determined to see her smile.

I extended my hand to her and she took it automatically, shaking it as I winked at her and said, “Hi.
I’m Calland. Come here often?”

**********

Author’s Note:

Thank you for reading Skin Tight! I hope you enjoyed the fourth installment of the Skin Deep Series as
much as you did the others. Stay tuned for the next and final book of the series, which is still untitled
as yet, that will follow Calland’s story. But don’t worry…that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll never
see the gang again. ‘Cause I have it on pretty good authority that you just might. ;)

XOXO,

J.M. Stone

Acknowledgments:

First and foremost, once again, the biggest THANK YOU goes out to my readers for all your support
and encouragement during this journey. I can’t believe that this series is almost over, can you? I still
haven’t lost the deep appreciation and heartfelt gratitude that I have for you all for sticking with me,
and I promise, there’s a lot more in store for the future! Who’s ready for the next series?? Muah!

To my hoemancer, Josie Leigh: Woman, you are a superhero for everything that you go through on a
daily basis. I can’t thank you enough for being there for me throughout the past two years, and for
allowing me to vent to you at random times, and especially for sending me inappropriate (but
hilarious) texts that seem to come when I need a laugh the most. I’m proud to call you friend. Much
love to you, chickie!! (I’m still waiting on Lucian, btw. Wink, wink!)

A huge shout out to my street team for all you do and for loving me, even when I’m MIA or leave
random, crazy posts for you. Trust me, the love is mutual!

Thank you to Amber Binion, as always, for not only leading my street team, but for helping me out in
the myriad ways you do. I’m so glad you’re going to be by my side to calm my nerves on this
upcoming venture…you totally have my permission to slap me if I get too crazy. But seriously, I
couldn’t do this without you. XOXO

Much love and thanks to my betas, Josie, Jenn, Amber, and Naarah for telling me when things suck
and when they don’t, and for talking me down from the edge when I feel like scrapping everything;
you guys keep me sane! And Ben? I still miss my accidental editor! That being said, any editing
mistakes are mine alone and I sincerely apologize for them. I hope they’re not too heinous.

A BIG THANK YOU to all the bloggers and reviewers who have shown their love and support to me
during this journey. You guys totally ROCK!

Last but not least, I have to say thank you again to my family for encouraging me every day, for
pushing me and telling me I can when I think I can’t, and for loving me the way you do. I love you
all…ALWAYS EVER!

About the Author:

USA Today and Amazon Best Selling Author J.M. Stone is a legal assistant by day, and a writer by
night. She started writing at a young age, mostly poetry and song lyrics, some of which were
published. She currently lives in Ohio where she's lived for most of her life, and enjoys spending time
with her other-half, their mouthy daughter, three spoiled and crazy dogs, and the rest of her abnormal
family. (Don't worry, abnormal is good!) In her spare time, she loves to read, write, sing, and make
people laugh, which usually happens at her own expense!

She loves to hear from her readers, so drop her line at jadelynna23@yahoo.com or connect with her
online!

Goodreads:

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4560885.J_M_Stone

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/JM-Stone/622443461116902

Twitter:

https://twitter.com/authorJMStone

Website:

http://jadelynna23.wix.com/authorjmstone

Happy Reading!

******

Other works by J.M. Stone