Текст книги "Faithful"

Автор книги: Kelly Elliott

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Текущая страница: 24 (всего у книги 25 страниц)

I sat in my car and took a deep breath. I had dropped Alex off with Grace and Jack, and I’d made sure again that it was okay if they kept her for the night. I hated leaving her all night, but I wanted to spend some time with Gunner.

I wasn’t expecting him to be back home so soon, but with Jeff and Josh both helping him tag the cattle, they must have finished up sooner than expected.

Why in the hell am I so nervous about telling him that I’m pregnant? It’s not like we weren’t trying.

I looked at myself in the small mirror. Oh man, I look like shit. My hair was pulled up in a ponytail, and I was wearing an old Longhorn T-shirt with cutoff blue jean shorts. It was not how I wanted to greet him.

After I opened the car door, I slowly got out and made my way into the house. It was so quiet, but I could hear our shower running. I smiled as I got an idea. I quickly made my way to the bedroom, and then I started to take off my clothes as fast as I could. When I heard him humming in the shower, I had to smile. I loved it when he would sing.

I opened the bathroom door, and I walked into the bathroom, naked. I peeked in and saw his back was facing me. I stepped inside the shower and wrapped my arms around him.

“Hmm…I was wondering where you were.” He lifted up my left hand and kissed my wedding ring.

“I dropped Alex off at your parents’ house…for the night.”

Gunner turned around and smiled at me. “No shit?”

I laughed and nodded. “No shit!”

His eyes turned from love to lust in a matter of seconds, and the ache between my legs grew stronger. He reached up and pushed a piece of my hair behind my ear as he gazed into my eyes.

“I’m going to make love to you all night long.” He gave me that damn crooked-ass smile of his.

“Drew?”

He was kissing my neck. “Yeah, sweetheart?”

“May third.”

“Mmm…what about it?” He continued to kiss my neck as he moved his hands all along my body.

“It’s, um…well…it’s kind of an important day.”

He pulled back and looked at me. “Oh yeah? Why’s that?”

“’Cause it’s the due date.”

He looked at me, confused. “Due date for what?”

I picked up his hand and placed it on my stomach. It took about ten seconds for it to click.

He gave me the most beautiful smile. “Ells…you’re pregnant?”

I nodded. He let out a yell as he picked me up and hugged the shit out of me.

“Oh god, Ellie, you’ve just made me the happiest man on earth!”

He pushed me up against the wall and looked into my eyes.

“I’m going to make love to you, sweetheart…slow, sweet love to you.”

I bit down on my lip and wrapped my legs around him. As I felt him slowly enter my body, I put my head back against the shower wall and lost myself…body and soul…in his lovemaking.

I sat on the back porch, wrapped in a blanket, listening to the night sounds. I closed my eyes and thought back to the one moment that had changed everything. It was the first time Gunner had put his hands on me and took me to heaven and back.

I placed my hand on my stomach and silently thanked God for this baby. When I heard the back screen door open, I looked over to see Gunner walking out onto the back porch…butt-ass naked. I let out a laugh and shook my head.

“It’s a damn good thing that it’s three in the morning. You never know when Garrett will be walking up.” I smiled at him.

He winked and sat down next to me on the swing. He wrapped himself up in the blanket with me. “What are you doing out here, Ells?”

“Thinking.”

“Thinking about what?”

“How blessed we are. How happy you make me.”

“You make me happy, too, Ellie. More than you’ll ever know.”

“I know we should probably wait to talk about this, but I’m thinking after we have this precious little gift…” I glanced over at him as he looked at me. “Well, I’m thinking two is the perfect number. What about you?”

He put his arm around me and pulled me closer to him. “Two sounds like the perfect number.”

I slowly let out the breath I had been holding. Why was I so scared to tell him that? “Gunner? Will you do something for me?”

“Anything, sweetheart.”

“Will you take me inside and make love to me again?”

The next thing I knew, he was picking me up and carrying me back inside. On our way to the bedroom, he hit his elbow on the doorjamb, whacked my head on the bedroom door, and stepped on one of Gus’s toys. By the time we made it to our bed, Gunner was swearing, and I was laughing. He threw me on the bed and crawled on top of me.

“Oh, Mrs. Mathews, so you thought that was funny, huh?”

I nodded and giggled. “Yep!”

As Gunner kissed my neck and moved down to my nipples, I looked over and saw Gus standing in the doorway to our bedroom. I tried to ignore him, but I couldn’t.

“Gunner…”

“I know, baby…I want to sugar stamp you all over your body.”

Wait. What? “Sugar stamp?”

Gunner looked up at me with that smile of his. “Yeah…kiss you with my lips all over your body. Sugar stamp you.”

I tried really hard not to laugh, but I couldn’t help it. “Oh. My. God. I love you, Drew Mathews!”

He moved up and captured my lips with his as he slid his hand down and spread my legs open. He slowly began to touch on my clit. When his lips pulled away from mine, he made his way back down to my nipples. I looked back over to the doorway, and Gus was still sitting there…just staring at us.

“Um…Gunner.”

“Hmm…Ellie.”

“No…I mean…Gunner…” I tapped his shoulder.

“What? What’s wrong?”

I pointed over to the doorway.

Gunner turned and looked at Gus. “What? The dog?”

“Yes. I can’t do this with him watching us.”

Gunner turned and looked at me with a funny expression on his face. “Uh…it’s never bothered you before.”

“It’s like he knows…”

“He knows what?”

“Oh hell, I don’t know. I just can’t concentrate with him watching us.”

“Okay. Do you want me to shut the door?” Gunner asked with a laugh.

I nodded. Gunner jumped up, made Gus go out in the hallway, and then shut our bedroom door. As he walked back toward me, I opened my legs more to him. He smiled as he grabbed my foot and started to kiss me all the way up my leg. The moment his lips touched my clit, I just about jumped out of the bed. I grabbed his hair and started saying his name over and over again. I didn’t even realize he was on top of me and inside me until he started to move.

“Drew, I love you so much.”

He moved so slowly, in and out of me, as he gently bit down on my earlobe. “I love you more,” he whispered in my ear.

When I looked up, I saw Mindy walking on the street, heading straight toward me. Shit! What is with this girl? And where in the hell is her husband all the time?

“Hey, Josh. How are the babies?” she asked with a wink.

Fuck me. I glanced down the street. Heather would be coming home any second. “They’re doing great. Thanks.”

“How old are they now?”

“Thirteen weeks old.” I looked back down the street, waiting to see my truck pull up at any moment.

Mindy turned and glanced down the road. When she turned back, she smiled and winked at me. “You must be feeling…overwhelmed. Heather sure looks…tired lately.”

I just looked at her. “Yeah, she is pretty tired. It’s not so easy with twins.”

She bit down on her lip and then stuck her finger in her mouth. “I bet. She probably doesn’t have much time to…fulfill certain needs.”

Motherfucker! This is not happening. As I looked her up and down, I noticed her tits were practically falling out of a short white dress that might as well have been see-through.

“You like what you see, Josh?”

Wait. What? Fuck. I wasn’t checking her out! I looked her right in the eyes. “Listen, Mindy, I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but I happen to be very, very happily married.”

She smiled as she took a step closer to me. I took a step back.

“Oh, I’m happily married also, Josh. But that doesn’t mean I don’t like to…experiment…if you know what I mean.”

“No. I don’t know what you mean.”

“Josh, come on. I’ve seen the way you look at me. I’ve noticed you running by my house again. I know you want me as much as I want you.”

Note to self: Don’t ever run by her house again. I glanced down the street again, looking for Heather. “Okay, I’m going to be blunt with you, Mindy, because I don’t really have time to jack around with this bullshit. I’m not interested in you, I’ve never been interested in you, and I’ll never be interested in you. I only have one woman in my life, my heart, my soul, and in my bed. That woman happens to be my beautiful wife, and she will always be my wife. So, if you don’t mind, I’d like to get back to what I was doing. You can take your pathetic, depressing, and rather sad attempt of coming on to me and turn around. Please…don’t ever bother trying to talk to my wife or me again. The next time you do, I’ll be sure to let your husband know what a piss-poor job he’s doing at keeping his wife happy.”

She stood there, just staring at me, with her mouth dropped open. She finally straightened up her shoulders, turned, and walked away.

I let out the breath I had been holding and shook my head. Next time I see her husband, I think I’ll remind him about that house he was interested in on Barons Creek.

I walked back over and started messing with the fence again. I wanted to have it up and done before Heather and the kids came back. When I heard my truck coming down the street, I turned and watched Heather pull into the driveway as she smiled at me.

Tomorrow was the big birthday party for her, Ells, and Ari out at Ellie and Gunner’s place. They all were twenty-one now, and they were more than ready to get legally drunk, except for Ells, who couldn’t drink because she was three months pregnant.

Heather jumped out of the truck and shut the door. She gave me that smile that just about dropped me to my knees. She leaned back against the truck and raised her eyebrows. I waited for her to turn and get the kids out of the back. When she didn’t, I looked at her funny.

“Um…Heather…don’t you think it might be getting kind of hot to keep Libby and Will in the truck?”

She tilted her head and smiled. “They’re not in the truck.”

“What do you mean they’re not in the truck?”

“Your mom and dad decided to come into town for a bit. They wanted some time with Libby and Will, so they rented a hotel room for tonight.” She raised her eyebrows.

I almost wanted to jump up and down and pump my fist in the air. “We’re alone? Like alone…alone? As in, I can walk through the house naked if I want to?”

She nodded. “Or maybe make love to your wife…in the kitchen, living room, bedroom, bathtub…you pick.”

My heart dropped to my stomach. I love this girl so damn much I can’t even think straight. “How about all of the above?”

She walked up to me and placed her hands on my chest as she reached up to kiss me. She pulled away and smiled. “I’ve always wanted to say something to you, and now seems like the perfect time to do it.” Her cheeks turned a beautiful rose color.

I smiled, wondering what in the world she could say that would cause her to blush like that. My dick jumped, just thinking about what she might say. “I’m listening.”

“Take me inside, Mr. Hayes, and fuck me.”

My heart slammed in my chest as I looked at her. Jesus. H. Christ. I wasn’t expecting that. “Motherfucker.” I reached down and picked her up.

She slammed her lips against mine and let out the sweetest, sexiest moan I’d ever heard.

As soon as I shut the kitchen door, I put her down and started taking off her tank top. I barely moved my lips from hers, and I only did so long enough for us to pull each of our shirts over our heads. She grabbed me and started running her hands through my hair as she kissed me so passionately that I thought I might come just from the sheer intensity. I started to push her shorts down as she worked at unbuttoning my jeans. I kicked off my boots and helped her get my jeans off. I reached up and unsnapped her bra, and then I pulled her back against me.

“I want you so badly, Josh,” she whispered.

“Do you like these panties?” I asked.

She looked down and then back up at me, confused.

I reached down, and in one quick movement, I ripped the lace panties off her body.

“Oh god.” She leaned back and held on to the kitchen island. “I can’t take it any longer, Josh. I need you inside me…now.”

I reached out and scooped her up in my arms as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

“Your wish is my command, princess.”

As I moved through the house and up the stairs, I smiled, knowing that this was the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. She was the only woman I ever wanted to even touch. She would always be my last first kiss.

After I gently put her on the bed, she moved her body up, and then she lay down on her pillow. I looked her up and down as I licked my lips. Her body was beautiful and perfect. I would have never known that she’d just had twins a few short months ago, except for the scar from the C-section. I bent down and kissed along her scar as she let out a long, soft moan.

“My god, I love you so much, princess.”

“Josh…”

I moved up, and while lying on top of her, I put my hands on each side of her face, and I just looked at her.

“I just want to lie like this for hours.” I softly kissed everywhere on her face.

She let out a giggle. “We have three hours before your parents bring Libby and Will home.”

“I can work with that.” I kissed her lips so tenderly. “I just want to be with you…always. I look at you, and sometimes, I just want to cry because I love you so much. I’d never do anything to hurt you, princess.”

She smiled, and I saw a tear slide down the side of her face.

I slowly entered her body as I kissed her. I reached under her and grabbed her ass as I moved and kissed her neck. She moved her hands up and down my back.

“I love you, Josh. Oh god, I love you so much.”

“God, you feel so good,” I whispered into her ear.

“Josh…yes…oh god…it feels like heaven.”

I made sweet, slow, passionate love to her.

She grabbed on to my ass and pulled me deeper into her as she started to say my name. “Josh, I’m…oh god…”

I moved faster and harder as she kept along with me. My heart slammed in my chest when she moved her lips to my ear and whispered, “Josh, I love you so much.”

“Oh god, Heather. I’m going to come, baby. Fuck…it feels so good.”

I didn’t move for a good minute as she gently ran her fingertips up and down my back. We didn’t need to say a word to each other. I’d never felt so alive in my life.

I’d do anything for her. I’d move any mountain and swim across any ocean just to be with her. I’d lay down my life for her.

I walked out onto the back porch and handed Heather a glass of sweet tea. She had her hair pulled up in a ponytail, and she was wearing one of my old T-shirts with a pair of my sweatpants. She was swimming in a sea of clothes, and she looked sexy as hell.

“Thank you,” she said.

I sat down and looked out into the yard. I started drawing a mental picture of the swing set I wanted to build for the kids.

“I’ve never been so happy in my life,” Heather said as she turned to me.

I looked at her and smiled. “I feel the same way, princess. I just wish we had more afternoons like this,” I said with a wink.

She threw her head back and laughed. “God…it’s finally getting a little bit easier…or I’m just getting the hang of this whole parenting thing.”

I nodded as I glanced back at her. She was breathtaking, and I really couldn’t believe she was mine. The first moment I put my eyes on her, I’d known she was the one. When those blue eyes looked into mine, I’d known that was it. I would never be with anyone but her.

She smirked at me and tilted her head. “What are you thinking about?”

“The first time I ever saw you. You walked in with Ari, Ells, and Amanda, and my heart dropped in my stomach. Something about you just took my breath away. I’d waited so long for someone to have that effect on me, and there you were—the perfect picture of innocence mixed with the perfect amount of sexy.” I let out a little laugh as I shook my head. “And it scared the fuck out of me.”

She laughed and raised her eyebrows. “Same here. I just had to look into your eyes, and I knew I was in trouble. Gunner even walked up to me that night and told me to be careful with you.”

I shook my head. “That fucker.”

Heather laughed as she grabbed my hand, and when I felt that familiar jolt of electricity, I smiled.

Still. She still has the same effect on me.

“Love at first sight?” Heather asked.

I leaned over and barely put my lips to hers. “Yes…love at first sight, and a love that will forever and always remain faithful.”

“Always,” she said.

When she kissed me, I could practically feel her love pouring into my body.

I pulled away from her lips and gazed into her eyes. “How much more time do we have?”

She slowly let a smile play across her face. “Thirty minutes…maybe forty if they don’t come back early.”

I grabbed her tea and set it down on the table. I stood up as I took her hand in mine. “Perfect. Time to get our naughty on, Mrs. Hayes. My wife asked to be fucked, and I intend on doing exactly that.” I watched the blush move up her cheeks.

We were both lying in bed, panting for air.

I rolled over and looked at her. “Mrs. Hayes, have you been well-fucked?” I asked as I watched her chest moving up and down.

She laughed as she nodded. “Yes! Yes, I have. Can I just say that was awesome? I, um…I’d like to do that kind of play more often.” Her cheeks flooded with pink.

I reached over and untied her hands from the back of the bed. I slid her panties down her chest, and then I reached with my other hand and rubbed her wrists.

“I’m going to have to agree with you. That was pretty fucking awesome. I’ve dreamed of tying you up and having my way with you for way too long now.”

“Hmm…I love you, baby.” She rolled over and kissed me. When she pulled away, she hid her face in my chest. “I can’t believe we just did that!” she said with a giggle.

She looked over at the clock and jumped up. “Oh my god! They’re due back any minute, Josh!”

I sat there and watched her stumble out of bed. She ran over to the dresser to get clothes. I’d never in my life seen anyone move so fast. She glanced up at me and smiled.

“I think I’m going to have to talk my mom and dad into moving here.”

She stopped, looked at me, and then gave me a bigger smile, like she knew something I didn’t.

Then, I heard the doorbell ring.

“Shit, get dressed, or they’ll know!”

I let out a laugh as I jumped up and grabbed her. I swung her around and then kissed the shit out of her. I pulled away and winked at her. “Princess, I’m pretty sure they already know what we’ve been up to.”

When she looked down and away, I used my finger to pull her chin back toward me. “I love you, Heather. God, I love you more than anything.”

“I love you, too, Josh.” She smiled. “I have two surprises for you. One, you’re about to get, and the other, you’ll get during our next alone time.”

Ah hell…she can’t do that to me.

She got up, quickly threw on some clothes, and started to head downstairs.

“What’s for next time?” I called out after her.

She laughed as I heard her running down the stairs.

I quickly pulled on my shorts and a T-shirt as I looked at the picture of us at Enchanted Rock. I smiled as I felt a complete sense of peace wash over my entire body.

“Yep. I’ll always love and protect her. Forever.”

I promise you…

I quickly made my way to the back door and unlocked it. When I opened it up, I smiled at Greg and Liz. They were each carrying a baby, and Elizabeth had the biggest smile on her face.

I instantly felt my face flush. Oh god. What if they ever found out their son tied me up and made such passionate love to me?

As Elizabeth walked by, she stopped and looked at me. Then, she gave me the biggest smile I’d ever seen.

“Oh…I’ve known that feeling before,” she said with a wink.

“What feeling?”

“If that flush on your cheeks says anything, I’m going to safely assume my son makes you very happy…very happy indeed.”

“Oh. My. God. Elizabeth! You did not just say that?”

She threw her head back and laughed. “Oh, the hell I didn’t.”

Josh walked into the kitchen and immediately took Will out of Greg’s arms. “My big boy! Did you have fun with Grammy and Gramps?”

“He sure did. He also slept the whole time,” Greg said with a smile.

Josh and I both snapped our heads over toward him.

“He slept that whole time?” Josh asked.

Elizabeth laughed and handed Libby to me. “Pretty much. Once all the paperwork was signed, the prince and princess woke up, demanding food, and then they nodded back off to sleep.”

“What the hell? They never do that for us,” Josh said.

I laughed as I watched Elizabeth shrug her shoulders and smile.

“Wait. What paperwork were you signing?” Josh asked.

My heart started beating so fast. I’d been dying to tell Josh, but his parents had made me promise not to say a word.

Elizabeth walked up and kissed Greg so sweetly on the lips that it caused me to look away. She pulled away and smiled at Josh. “Oh, it’s nothing really. We just signed on the house we bought.” She turned, reached into a cabinet, and pulled out four wine glasses as Greg grabbed a bottle of wine.

Josh looked at both of them and then at me. The expression on his face was priceless. He was confused as hell.

“Wait. What house? Where?” he asked.

Elizabeth turned around and leaned against the counter. “Oh, the darling little cottage house we bought here in town. It’s about fifteen minutes from here.”

I watched as the smile spread across Josh’s face. I knew how close he was to his parents and how much he missed them. He hated living over an hour away from them.

“Y’all bought a house here?”

At the same time, Greg and Elizabeth both said, “Yep!”

“Holy hell! Mom, Dad…this is wonderful! Oh my god, I’m so damn happy. Wait…Mom, what about the law firm?”

“Well, since I now have two beautiful grandchildren, I’m going to need more time to be the best Grammy ever, so I decided to somewhat retire. I’m going to work from home, but I’m mostly just going to do consulting for the firm. I still own half of it, but I’m just becoming more of a silent partner in it.”

If I didn’t know any better, I would have sworn I just heard my husband let out an eeeppp. He walked up and hugged both of them and then turned to me.

“Surprise number one?” he asked.

I nodded and smiled. “I wanted to tell you so bad.”

He walked up to me, leaned down, and kissed Libby on the forehead. Then, he kissed me and gave me that crooked smile of his.

I wanted him again, and he knew it.

“Oh, princess, I’ve got a few surprises up my own sleeve.”

I smiled and whispered, “Bring it on.”

Ells, Ari, Amanda, and I all sat on Ellie’s back porch as we listened to the music the DJ, Jack, was playing. I felt guilty that we were all drinking, and Ellie was sipping on lemon water.

I looked out and saw the guys, including Smitty and a few other friends of ours, playing tag football. I watched as Scott ran up and jumped on Jeff before he brought him down to the ground.

“Jesus H. Christ, if one of them gets hurt and ruins my twenty-first birthday party, I’m cracking heads,” Ari said.

“Hey, y’all,” Jessie said as she walked up. She started giving everyone a kiss on the cheek.

“Jess! Holy shit, girl. Long time, no see,” Ari said with a laugh.

Jessie sat down and let out a sigh. “Shit. I’m so damn tired that I can’t even think straight. Between still taking classes and working at the vet clinic, I hardly have any downtime. Shit. They have me working so much. I’m pretty much on call twenty-four/seven. Do you know how many damn times people call for me to come watch their dogs give birth? We live in the damn country. They are supposed to be country folk. What the hell?”

Ellie, Amanda, and Ari let out a laugh.

“How about Scott? How are things going there?” I asked.

Jessie’s smile faded for a quick second before she looked out at him while he was running around with the guys.

“I’ve never felt this way before. It’s…It’s…”

“Magical?” all of us said at the same time.

As we all let out a loud laugh, Gunner and Josh stopped and looked at us.

“What’s so damn funny?” Gunner called out.

Ellie smiled. “Just girl talk, babe, but you’re about to be—”

That was when Brad tackled the hell out of Gunner. Josh looked at me and smiled before he jumped on top of Brad.

Jessie let out a breath. “Yes. Magical. But I’ve seen so little of him lately. He’s been busy himself. Jeff and Scott decided to go in on a horse together…a racing horse of all horses.”

Jessie looked at Ari as she rolled her eyes.

“Scott had to leave for Kentucky twice this last month. I hate that we’re just starting off our relationship, and we barely see each other.”

Amanda smiled. “Well, when y’all do see each other, make it count, girl. Get your dirty on…like Heather here.”

I snapped my head over to Amanda. “Amanda! Oh my god!” I felt my face turning hot as I looked at Ells and Ari, who were just smiling. I glanced back at Jessie, who was also smiling. “Do y’all know?” I asked as I glanced back at Ari.

She shrugged her shoulders. “What? You’re like the most innocent one of the group. When you go all Fifty Shades on us…we have to talk about it.”

My jaw dropped, and I just shook my head. “I’m never telling your ass anything ever again, Arianna Johnson. Ever!”

After they all laughed for a good two minutes, Ellie turned to Jessie. “Just make sure y’all find time for each other, Jess. I know how much Scott loves spending time with you.”

Ari sat up and looked at Jessie. “Speaking of loves…has he yet?”

It was Jessie’s turn to turn red. When she nodded, we all let out a squeal.

“How?” I asked before I took a drink of beer.

“Well…he was nervous as all get out. We were just getting back from a picnic that he’d planned. Oh, it was so romantic.” She let out a sigh. “We were walking the horses and just talking, catching up on what was going on in our worlds, and Scott turned and asked me if I wanted to move in.”

Everyone let out a gasp.

“Oh my god! Oh my god!” Ari said as she sat up straighter.

“What did you say?” Ellie asked.

“Well, at first, I was shocked. I mean, that’s a huge step. I asked him if he was sure we were ready for that, and he just busted out and said, ‘Jessica, I love you. All I want to do is spend every waking moment with you.’ And I started crying. I told him…yes!”

“Did you tell him you loved him back?” Amanda asked.

“Yes! I told him I loved him, too, and that I couldn’t imagine my life without him in it.”

Ari and Ellie got up and started jumping up and down, which caused Jeff and Josh to do the same thing. Scott turned, looked straight at Jessie, and smiled. I could see the love in his eyes when he looked at her.

“Y’all don’t think it’s too soon? My father does. He wants me to get my own place.”

“No! It’s not too soon at all. You both love each other, and this way, you will get to see each other more often. Plus, that damn house needs a woman’s touch for Christ’s sake,” Ari said before she downed another beer.

Ellie laughed. “Ari, you’re on your way to getting drunk.”

“Fuck yeah, I am!”

After another hour passed, I watched as Gunner, Jeff, Josh, and Scott all got plastered. Brad was the only one who wasn’t drinking. The plan was for all of us to just crash at Ellie and Gunner’s place, but Brad had told Amanda he felt like one of them should stay in control.

Gunner and Josh had made a dance floor, and Ari and Jeff were cutting up to Shania Twain’s “If You Wanna Touch Her, Ask.”

Then, “Buttons” by The Pussycat Dolls started playing. I grabbed my drunk husband and led him out to the dance floor. When we started moving together, I felt when his dick instantly got hard. As he moved his hands up and down my body, I ached to feel him inside me.

He leaned down and moved his lips up against ear. “I want you so fucking bad. Let’s sneak away, baby.”

I smiled at him as I took his hand. I started to lead him away, but then I saw Sharon and Grace walking up to Ellie. The expressions on their faces gave me chills.

Something’s wrong.

I turned and smiled at Josh. “Baby, hold on to that thought for just one second. I think something’s wrong.”

I glanced back up to Ellie and Jessie. As I headed over to the back porch, Josh followed me. I got to Ellie right when Sharon put her hand on Ellie’s shoulder.

Ellie turned to them. “Oh my god. Alex.”

Grace shook her head. “No, sweetheart, Alex is fine. Jenny is playing with her in the house right now.”

Confused, Ellie glanced between the two of them. “What’s wrong? The look on your faces is scaring me.”

Grace looked out at Gunner. “Ellie, how much has Gunner had to drink?”

Ellie snapped her head over to Gunner as tears began building in her eyes. She looked back to Grace. “A lot.”

Grace was trying so hard not to cry.

Sharon grabbed Ellie’s hands. “Baby girl, listen to me, okay? Something has happened.”

Ellie started to cry as she looked up at Grace. “Jack?”

“Jack is fine, sweetheart. It’s…it’s…” Grace couldn’t finish her sentence.

Sharon took a deep breath as I put my arm around Ellie. My heart was beating so fast that I could hear it.

“Ellie, Gramps had a heart attack. Jack is with him now, and they’re in an ambulance on their way to Fredericksburg as we speak.”

Ellie’s whole body went limp, but Josh was standing there, and he grabbed her before she could fall.

Josh looked at Jessie and me. “Girls, I need you to take Ellie inside.”

Ellie was crying hysterically now. Jessie, Sharon, and I all wrapped our arms around Ellie, and we led her into the house.

When I turned, I saw Josh talking to Grace. He started to walk toward Gunner with Grace following behind him.

After we got Ellie into the house, we sat her down on the sofa. When I looked out the window, Josh was talking to Gunner while Grace was standing next to him. Jeff put his hand on Gunner’s shoulder right before Gunner fell to the ground.

He buried his head in his hands as he started crying out, “No,” over and over again.

I put my hand up to my mouth and shook my head.

Oh, God, please no. Don’t take Garrett away from us. Please.