“I’m not wearing any,” she says, her voice trembling, thick with desire.
My forehead rests against her collarbone. “Fuck…”
A giggle works its way past her lips. “I’m just kidding.” With her hands on my shoulders, she presses a kiss to the side of my neck. I feel that kiss from my junk to the base of my skull. “Black.”
“Sometime soon.” I draw in a quick breath and step back, swallowing hard. “I’m going to see what they look like around your ankles.”
This time a sigh leaves her lips. “I think I might like that.”
Sev’s working up to max volume and woke up Camdyn, who I’m pretty sure never went to sleep. Inside their room, Sev is crying into her pillow, and Camdyn is rubbing her back. “Toddlers are a lot of work.”
I push my hand through my hair and take a breath as I turn on the light. “What’s wrong?”
“She threw up,” Camdyn tells me without pity. “It stinky.”
Fuck. I kneel beside them to see Sev has, in fact, puked all over her bed and herself. “Little girl. It’s just puke. No need to cry.”
That does nothing for her. She screams louder, her tiny body trembling. Despite being covered in vomit, she reaches for me while Camdyn plugs her nose. And now I have vomit all over me. Her teeth chatter dramatically, and she holds onto my neck, sobbing.
I end up having to give Sev a bath and lie with her for over an hour. It’s nearing four in the morning when I finally get her back into bed with clean sheets and both of us in fresh clothes. I have to be up in two hours to help Morgan, and though I need sleep, I can’t help but check on Kacy before I go to bed.
She’s sprawled out on my couch like she flopped herself on there and passed out. What if I woke her up and snuck her into my room? She wouldn’t mind, would she?
Unfortunately for me, I’m a sucker for a girl sleeping. There’s something so undeniably beautiful about the peacefulness on their faces. I can’t disturb her. But I do sneak another glance at her flawless, makeup-free face framed by her auburn hair. The fire I started when we came home is starting to fade, but it casts a soft glow on her complexion. I wish her eyes were open so I could see those bright blues staring back at me.
Sighing, I head to my room and close the door. I think about pushing my dresser in front of the door to keep myself in here, but I don’t and chalk it up to another sleepless and fuckless night.
I’ll take calloused hands and Carhartt any day
KACY
What the fuck was I thinking last night? I shouldn’t have kissed him.
Girl, you shouldn’t have done a whole string of events. Let’s go over all the ways you’ve fucked yourself, sadly, not in the ways I’d like.
One, wrecked your car into his shop. Dumb move, but not entirely my fault.
Two, took him up on his offer to stay at his house. Should have had him take me to a hotel.
Three, fell in love overnight with his kids. I’m a sucker for little Southern girls.
And fourth, you slutty slut, you shouldn’t have fucking kissed him.
But… it was oh so worth it. I can’t even accurately describe this guy’s magnetic charisma. I feel completely comfortable around him, and strangely, as if to be in his presence gave me a sense of awe. Like it’s a privilege to know a hard-working man like Barron Grady. And I know that’s crazy talk, but this country boy—confident in an easygoing way, reclusive about his past and oh so sexy, broad-shouldered, and a dusting of dark hair on his jaw—I’m aching to know more.
The early morning sun shines through the vast windows overlooking the snowy fields behind his house. I’d be perfectly content never leaving his couch. Lie. I’d rather be in his bed. It’s early, and I know I haven’t slept much, but I can hear him in the kitchen by the heavy footsteps and the frequent “fuck” that falls from his lips when he bumps into something. Peeking my head up over the side of the couch, I watch him moving through the kitchen, a thermos in hand and a slice of toast hanging from his lips as he grabs his keys off the counter.
Fuck, I wish I was a piece of toast. I’m buttery and moist. Ewe. No, Kacy.
Spying on him going about his morning routine, I realize he’s just a kid himself. Not that I’m any better, but here he is, twenty-four-years-old and raising two kids on his own. Not the ideal situation for any of them, but they make it work together.
Ladies, if you’re looking for Mr. Right. Don’t go looking at the bars. Check out the Texas country boys who work hard for what they want instead of partying. Find the ones who are raising two kids on their own and building their dreams in the process.
Being responsible for the lives he created, that makes Barron all the more sexy if you ask me and Tara look like the piece of shit she is. Fuck. Tara. The reminder of her, and me being here, sends my heart to my stomach. How am I going to tell him I used to work for her? It’s going to look like I planned this, isn’t it?
While I silently argue with myself, Barron notices me staring at him. “Hey,” he says. That gravelly, grating voice sends shivers down my spine and a tingle to my clit. Goddamn. Waiter, I’ll take a cowboy, please.
I wave, unsure what else to do, and wrap the blanket around my shoulders. Standing, I pad my way over to him, barefoot and wearing nothing but my damn shirt from last night. No pants.
Quickly I realize he’s seeing my bare-ass legs for the first time, and by the hooded, hungry look he’s wearing, he’s not disappointed.
I smile unapologetically. “See? Black.” And then I wiggle my hips and wrap the blanket around me tighter. “And still thinking about that kiss.”
“You and me both.” He frowns, the thermos in his hand hitting the concrete countertop. “Now, all I’m going to think about today is what color your bra is.”
I laugh and take a seat across from him. “I’m not wearing one.”
He blinks slowly, probably waiting for me to say “just kidding,” but I don’t.
Clearing his throat, he draws in a heavy breath and then blows it out slowly. “While I’d love to see that, sadly, I have to help Morgan this morning. I work the ranch on Saturdays.”
“Okay. Do you want me to watch the girls for you? It’s the least I can do for you letting me stay here. Oh, and how’s Sev feeling?”
“Still sleeping, but she never got up again, so I’m assuming she’s feeling better.”
“Poor baby.”
“I should wake them up. They usually spend the day with Lara Lynn. I was just getting ready to take them over there.”
“Who’s that?”
He shifts his stance and zips his Carhartt jacket I’ve been wearing lately. I hope it smells like me, and I invade his thoughts like he does mine. “My stepmom.”
“Oh, okay.”
“But if you want them….”
Excitement shoots through me, and I can’t help my smile. “I’m actually dying to spend some time with them. They’re so adorable,” I gush, thinking of Camdyn’s mesmerizing dark eyes that mirror her father and Sev’s addictive personality.
He smiles, wide, as if this is hilarious to him, or he’s laughing at me. “Uh-huh. Come talk to me tonight after you’ve spent the day with them.”