Текст книги "Deal Breakers"

Автор книги: Laura Lee

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Текущая страница: 10 (всего у книги 12 страниц)

DEVYN

“HERE IT IS,” RILEY says.

We just pulled in the driveway of Riley’s new home. Our new home, rather. God, that’s so strange to say but at the same time, it feels so right. The house is a Craftsman style, painted light blue with white trim. I smile when I see the white wooden swing hanging by some chains. I can easily picture relaxing on it under the covered porch, lying on Riley’s lap, with a cold beer in hand. The yard is meticulously landscaped and has a few mature trees offering shade.

“It’s perfect,” I say.

Riley smiles as he exits the vehicle. “Wait until you see the inside.”

I get out of the car and open the back door to help Nathan out. He immediately runs up the stairs and tries the front door.

Riley laughs. “Whoa, slow down there, buddy. I need to enter the code to get the key.”

Nathan scrunches his brow. “How come we hafta have a secret code?”

Riley looks at his phone and punches in the combo his realtor gave him to unlock the key box. “This funny looking thing is just temporary. It will be gone once the sale of the house is final.”

Nate bounces on the balls of his feet as he waits for Riley to open the door. As soon as the lock unlatches, Nathan sprints inside.

“Nathan! Wait for us!” I say.

Riley takes my hand and leads me inside. He grabs the back of Nathan’s shirt as he runs by. “Hold up, dude.”

Nathan stops mid-stride. “Aw, man!”

Riley chuckles. “I thought the three of us could look at the house together. Does that sound okay with you, buddy?”

Nate rolls his eyes. “If we hafta.”

I grab his hand. “Yes, we have to. Now behave yourself, mister.”

“Aw, mom,” Nathan whines.

Riley smiles. “So, what do you think?”

The main level consists primarily of one big open space with dark plank wooden flooring throughout. The living room takes up the front portion and boasts a gas fireplace with large windows that allow tons of natural light to filter in. A gorgeous kitchen with an oversized island is towards the back. The cabinets are white, the countertops are quartz, and the appliances are stainless. There’s a nice-sized space in between that could easily accommodate a six-person table.

“It’s ginormeous, mommy!” Nathan exclaims.

“It sure is, baby. Riley, this is incredible. It looks like something off HGTV.”

Riley chuckles as he moves about opening doors for me to peek inside. “Coat closet, powder room, and pantry. The bedrooms and laundry are upstairs.”

Riley tugs on Nate’s hand. “Do you want to go see your bedroom?”

“I get my own bedroom?” Nate asks.

Riley nods. “You sure do.”

Nathan scrunches his face and looks up towards me. “But where will you be, Mommy?”

I make eye contact with Riley as I reply. “I’ll be right here with you, baby. The three of us are going to live here together.”

“What about Unca’ Drew?”

I kneel in front of him. “Uncle Drew is going to stay right where he is. I’m sure he’ll come over for lots of visits though. And if you miss him, I can take you to see him too.”

“Promise?”

Riley ruffles his hair. “We promise. You wanna go pick out your new room?”

Nathan’s face lights up. “I can pick?”

Riley nods. “You sure can. Mommy gets the biggest bedroom but you can choose your room from the other two.”

“Then you get the one I don’t want?” Nate asks.

Riley gulps and looks at me. “That’s up to your mommy, dude. She gets to choose where I sleep.”

I feel the blush creeping into my cheeks as his words sink in. He’s going to let me set the pace. Even though I’ve agreed to move in, he’s not going to pressure me into a relationship with him. We haven’t really had a chance to talk about it yet, but I meant what I said earlier. I’m pushing full throttle here; I’ve waited long enough for this opportunity. The three of us can finally be together every day. Riley and I can be together as a couple and we can raise our child together. I can’t think of anything that I want more.

Nathan giggles. “So she can make you sleep in the toilet?”

Riley laughs. “Yep. She sure can.” He holds out his hand. “Let’s go pick out your room, buddy.”

Nathan grabs on and Riley extends his free hand towards me. I clasp our fingers together and follow as he leads us up the stairs. There are two rooms for him to choose from, each one about ten by ten in size with a full bath in between.

Nate points to the one on the right. “I want that one!” He runs into the room and starts pretending to be an airplane.

Riley stands in the doorway watching him. “Hey, dude, are you going to be okay in here for a few minutes? I want to show Mommy her room.”

In reply, Nathan continues spreading his arms and making plane noises.

Riley turns to me. “You ready?”

I nod. “Lead the way.”

RILEY

I TAKE HER INTO the master bedroom. She trails her fingers over the light gray walls and walks across the room to perch herself on the window seat. She tilts her face towards the sun and looks out the window.

She presses her hand on the glass. “Oh, wow! You can see the water from up here.”

I smile. “You like it?”

“I love it, Rye. It’s absolutely perfect.”

I offer my hand to help her stand. “Let me show you the master bath.”

She takes my hand and allows me to lead her into the attached bathroom. She looks around the room from the marble double vanity to the rainhead shower and finally to the deep soaker tub.

She raises her eyebrows suggestively. “A tub built for two. Brings back some good memories.”

“Huh. Look at that. I didn’t even notice.”

She laughs and smacks me playfully. “Right.”

She peeks into the small walk-in closet and steps back into the bedroom.

I shove my hands in my pockets. “So…”

She tucks a hair behind her ear. “So…”

We share a heated glance but don’t say a word. I can’t stand not touching her anymore so I stalk towards her until she backs into the wall. She gasps when I place my hands on her hips and lean over to whisper in her ear.

“You’re not really going to make me sleep in the toilet, are you?”

She chuckles as she wraps her arms around my waist. “Hmm, I haven’t decided yet.”

I place soft kisses down the nape of her neck. “No? Maybe I can help you decide.”

She moans when I pull her against me. “How are you going to do that?”

“I have some ideas…”

She ghosts her hand over my denim-clad erection. “Such as?”

I groan as I press into her palm. “Honey, you keep doing that and I’m about to show you every idea I’ve ever had up against this wall.”

She shivers. “That sounds promising.”

I pull back to look her in the eyes. “You think so?”

She bites her lower lip. “Very much so.”

I smile as I hover over that sexy mouth of hers. I pause for a second, giving her a chance to back out before I press my lips against hers. She responds instantly, opening so I can slide my tongue between her lips. Fuck, she’s so warm and tastes so sweet.

I deepen the kiss, thrusting my tongue inside her mouth as I grind my body against hers. She pulls me into her, practically climbing me like a tree trunk. She keeps making these sexy little whimpers like she’s so hungry for me, she can’t get enough. Desperate to feel her bare skin, I glide my fingertips beneath her shirt and brush the underside of her breast.

She gasps. “Oh, Rye.”

“Whatcha doin’?” Nathan asks.

Shit! We both break apart instantly. I didn’t even hear him come into the room. Devyn smoothes her shirt down. She looks down and sees the tent in my pants and smirks. She steps in front of me so I can hide behind her as we face our son.

“Hey, buddy,” she says.

“Why were you making those funny sounds, Momma?”

Her eyes widen. “Um, your daddy and I were um…we uh…we were just making silly animal noises.”

Holy shit! Does she realize what she just said? Did Nathan catch it?

I know the moment it hits her. Her jaw drops and she gives me a look that says, Oh my God, did I really just do that?

I adjust myself and hunch down to the floor. “Hey, bud. Remember when you asked me if I was your daddy?”

Devyn’s eyes widen. Oops, I guess I forgot to tell her about that.

Nathan nods. “Yep.”

“And do you remember what you said to me?”

“That it’s okay if you wanna be my daddy but you have to wuv my mommy.”

I smile. “That’s right, big guy. And do you remember what I said to you after that?”

He bounces on his feet. “Uh huh. You wuv her.”

I glance up at Devyn and she has tears pooling in her eyes as she silently watches our exchange. “That’s right. I did. So are you okay if I’m your daddy?”

Nate scrunches his little face while contemplating my question. “Can I punch you in the nuts?”

I bark in laughter. “What? No, dude. You can’t punch me in the nuts. You probably shouldn’t do that to anyone.”

“Are you gonna get mad at me like Momma does when I say a bad word?”

I smile. “Probably. So what do you say? Can I be your dad?”

He shrugs. “I guess. As long as you don’t act like a duth-bag.”

“Nathan!” Devyn scolds.

I crack a smile. “I’ll do my best, buddy.”

DEVYN

MONDAY MORNINGS ARE HARD enough but the fact that I can’t stop thinking about Riley is making it worse than usual. I keep flashing back to our little make-out session at the new house and what happened afterwards. I smile when I think about how the whole daddy reveal went with Nathan. I’ve been building it up in my mind for so long I never considered he’d be so nonchalant about it. I know it’s too early to know for sure, but my gut is telling me that he’s going to naturally accept Riley being a part of his life.

There’s a light tap on my cubicle wall. “Hey, Devyn. Do you have a few moments?”

I look up and see Gary Styles, the VP of Creative Marketing. “Sure, Mr. Styles.”

He smiles. “Now, Devyn how many times do I have to tell you? Please, call me Gary.”

I blush. “Sorry, Gary.”

He nods behind him. “Let’s head to the conference room.”

I stand up to follow him. “Sure.”

We walk down the hallway that bisects the art department from the copy department until we reach the glass-enclosed conference room towards the end. Mr. Styles…er, Gary, pulls out a chair for me at the long, rectangular table.

“Please, have a seat.”

I notice that Norah from Human Resources is here as well. What the heck is going on?

“Is everything okay?” I ask.

Gary takes a seat. “Of course. I just wanted a little privacy.” He sees me eyeing Norah and adds, “Norah is here to help make things official.”

I scrunch my brows. “Make what official?”

Gary folds his hands together on the table. “I spoke with the people from Sage Management this morning.”

That’s the account I’ve been working so hard on. Did something go wrong? “And? Did they decide to go with someone else?”

He chuckles. “On the contrary. They’ve agreed to a three-year contract with the possibility of renewal. They were incredibly impressed with your ideas. They said, and I quote, ‘You’d be a moron not to do everything in your power to keep that one happy.’”

“They did?”

He nodded. “Indeed. So…that’s why I’ve invited Norah to this meeting. You’ve been with us for almost three years now and we’ve been nothing but impressed with your work ethic, creativity, and drive. As you know, Rena Schwartz recently moved over to the media department which leaves us with an opening for Creative Director. We’d like to offer that position to you. Should you accept, you’ll take the lead on the Sage account as well as a few other long term clients. You’d have your own office complete with administrative assistant. You will lead the art and copywriting team you work with now and report to me directly. In addition to this, there’s a substantial salary increase. So what do you think? Do you want the job?”

I’m smiling so wide my cheeks hurt. “Of course, sir. I’d be honored.”

He stands and shakes my hand. “Great. I need to head into another meeting so I’ll leave you here with Norah to work out the details. Congratulations, Devyn. You’ve earned it.”

“Thank you so much. You won’t regret it.”

“I have no doubt,” he says as he walks out of the room.

RILEY

I’M WALKING INTO THE production plant for a meeting when my cell phone rings. I duck into a small alcove and pull it out of my jacket pocket. I smile when I see Devyn’s face on the display.

“Hello, beautiful.”

“Hi,” she says excitedly. “I have news. Do you have a few minutes?”

I look at the time. “I have a meeting in about ten minutes so I can spare a few. What’s this news of yours?”

“I got the job!” she squeals. “It’s effective on the first of next month. I can give you the details later but there’s a huge raise, I get an assistant, an office, the whole nine yards. It’s not normal to jump into this position for at least another couple of years but the position opened and they offered it to me anyway!”

“That’s great, baby. Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” she says. “God, Riley. I can’t believe how perfectly everything is falling into place. It makes me nervous. It almost seems too good to be true.”

“We should celebrate tonight,” I suggest.

“I can’t,” she says. “I’m meeting the guys at Kelly’s for Monday Night Football.”

“So I’ll join you. I should be able to get out of here in time.”

“Really?” she asks.

“Sure. Unless…you don’t want me to?”

“No, of course I want you there,” she insists. “It’s just...well, it would be our first official outing together. Are you sure you’re ready for that?”

“Did you change your mind? About being all in?” I hold my breath waiting for her reply. Fuck, I don’t know what I’ll do if she says yes.

“No way, Rye. Balls to the friggin’ wall, baby.”

I let out a relieved sigh. “Well, then it’s a date. I’ll see you around five.”

DEVYN

RILEY IS ALREADY AT the table when I walk into the bar. I get a goofy grin on my face when he starts walking towards me with a sexy swagger.

As he reaches me he whispers, “Are we allowed to kiss in front of them?”

I look behind him and see everyone staring at us, not even trying to be discreet. “Sure.”

Riley moves in for a chaste kiss which quickly escalates into something much more appropriate in private.

“Damn it, am I going to have to see this all the time now?” Drew complains.

We break apart and laugh as we take a seat.

Brody takes a sip of beer. “So, what’s the deal? Are you two officially an item now?”

Riley and I look at each other.

“Yep,” Riley replies. “We sure are.”

Brody lifts his beer in toast. “Well, all hail the magic pussy, brother!”

I narrow my eyes at Riley. “I’m sorry, but ‘all hail’ the what?”

Riley looks embarrassed. “Ignore him. He’s an idiot.”

Brody gives Riley the finger. “I’d rather be an idiot than pussy whipped.”

Riley smiles at me. “If that’s what I am, I’m good with that. You’ll see what I mean when it happens to you.”

“Ha! Never going to happen, dude,” Brody says.

I lean in to kiss Riley again. “You’re whipped, huh?”

He smiles. “Abso-fucking-lutely. And proud of it, baby.”

RILEY

AFTER GETTING DEVYN A beer, I clear my throat. “So, Devyn has some exciting news.”

“What’s up, Dee?” Rainey asks.

I swear the smile Devyn gets on her face lights up the room. “It turns out I nailed that account I was telling you about. I got the promotion I wanted!”

A round of whoops and congratulations go around.

“There’s more,” I say. “I bought a house on Mercer Island.”

Drew whistles. “Fancy neighborhood for someone living the bachelor life.”

I raise an eyebrow at Devyn asking for permission to proceed. With her eyes, she gives me the go ahead. “Yeah…about that. I’m not moving in alone. Nathan and Devyn are coming with me.”

“Ah, fuck,” Drew whines while everyone else offers their congratulations again.

Drew leans over and mock whispers. “You sure about this, little sis? You just got back together with the guy. I know you have the kid to think about but you two don’t even know each other anymore.”

She shakes her head. “That’s not true, Drew. I know it seems fast—I know we haven’t caught up on everything that’s happened over the past five years—but we’re still the same people together, only it’s better now. I know what I’m doing.”

Drew raises his beer. “Well, then I guess it’s my job to give you my blessing.” He gives me a stern look. “But don’t forget what I said earlier. You hurt her and I’ll hurt you.”

“No worries there, man,” I assure him. “I have no intention of ever doing that again.”

Brody claps Drew on the back. “Well, now that the bodily threats are out of the way, let’s celebrate! Big brother here would be happy to buy a round of shots to offer his blessing. Right, buddy?”

Drew rolls his eyes and grunts.

Brody laughs and calls our waitress over. “Hey, Jessica. Can we get a round of Patròn for everyone? Put it on the big sulky guy’s tab here.”

“Sure thing, guys,” Jessica laughs.

We drink our shots when they arrive and trade jibes while watching the game. As I look around the table I can’t help but think what a lucky sonofabitch I am. I have a great group of friends, the most incredible son anyone could ever ask for, and the most amazing girl by my side. Devyn offers me a shy smile when she catches me staring at her. My God, she’s beautiful. I can’t imagine ever getting over the excitement that I feel every time I look at her. And it’s not just her physical features. She fucking radiates goodness, compassion, love, and this sexiness that she doesn’t seem to be aware of, but it’s inherently a part of her. She challenges me like no other. She keeps me grounded. She makes me want to be the best version of myself. I know that I’d be an entirely different man without her in my life.

She slyly moves her hand over my thigh, making me alter my thoughts about her inability to recognize her own sexiness.

Her fingers creep up higher and higher until they reach the bulge behind my fly. Her pinky lazily moves up and down over my dick. She gives me a saucy smile when I start rising to the occasion, confirming that she knows exactly what she’s doing. She leans into me slightly and her entire hand joins in on the action. Fuck, she’s practically giving me a hand job under the table in front of everyone! I’m going to embarrass myself pretty fucking quickly if she keeps this up.

Without warning, Devyn suddenly releases her grip and stands up. “I have to go to the bathroom. Be right back.”

I jump up so fast, I have to save my chair from toppling over. “Yeah…me too. What she said.”

I practically run after her and catch her in the hallway to the bathroom. I cage her against a door that’s marked Employees Only and grind my hard-on into her backside. “You’re going to pay for that, you little temptress.”

She arches her back, pressing herself into me. “Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it?”

I try the knob to the door and it’s unlocked. I peek my head into a storage closet. Perfect!

I open the door wider and shove her inside. “You’ll see.”

I pin her against the wall and our lips instantly crash into each other. Her moans are like fuel, igniting this flame of desire that’s always present when I’m anywhere near her. She fists my hair and meets every stroke of my tongue with ravenous strokes of her own. My dick feels like it’s about to burst through my zipper but my thoughts shift away from relieving the ache to give her more pleasure.

I untuck her blouse, being a little rougher than I probably should but I need to feel her skin. I bunch the material up and I’m rewarded with a pale pink lace bra. Best of all, it closes in the front. As I pop the clasp, I silently thank the genius that invented these things. Her tits spring free and my mouth instantly attacks them. I take one pretty pink tip into my mouth while I mold the other with my hand. She’s curvier than she was before, pretty much everywhere, but especially here. I can’t wait to get my hands on the rest of her.

“ Rye,” she pants.

Devyn hooks her leg around mine and her pencil skirt starts riding up her thigh. I grab her with both hands and shove it up further, then I pick her up and wrap her legs around my hips. She shivers when I run my finger over her matching panties. We both watch as I slip my index finger beneath the fabric and trace her silky smooth skin.

I smile when I get to the center of her body and realize that she no longer has that little strip of curls. “This is different.”

She gasps when I move my finger downward. “You like it?”

I dip my hand even lower and find her soaking wet. Fuck, I think I’m going to jizz in my pants like a teenager. “I love it, baby. I can’t wait to put my mouth all over you.”

I push a finger inside and she gasps loudly. “Oh God, yes!”

I pump my fingers in and out. “You’re so wet, baby. I think you liked getting me all worked up under the table. Didn’t you?” I nibble her neck while I continue to work her down below. I stop moving when she doesn’t answer.

“What are you doing?” she says. “Don’t friggin’ stop now!”

I smirk against her cheek. “Just tell me what I want to hear, baby. Your panties were soaked before we ever came in here, weren’t they? You loved knowing that you were making me hard in front of everyone, didn’t you?”

She digs her nails into my shoulders. “Yes! Now start moving, damn it!”

I chuckle. “Yes, ma’am.”