Текст книги "Оллмп"

Автор книги: Меган Куин

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Текущая страница: 19 (всего у книги 24 страниц)

Our once calm, leisurely kiss has now turned into something frantic, something completely carnal. Her grip on the back of my head grows tighter. My hand falls to her jaw and I hold her mouth in place, gaining control over this kiss.

Because I’m falling.

In this moment, with her legs spread and my erection resting against her center, our hands holding on tightly, our mouths claiming each other . . . I’m fucking falling. I can feel it in my bones.

She’s not what I was expecting.

But she’s everything I fucking want.

Pulling my mouth away, I kiss her chin, then her jaw, then the column of her neck to her collarbone. Her body shifts under mine, and I move down to her breasts, dragging my tongue along her skin, until I meet her pert nipple. I massage her right breast as I pull her left into my mouth, sucking hard.

“Yes,” she whispers. “Yes, Huxley.”

She pulls on the strands of my hair as my teeth massage her nipple. When I nibble, a hiss escapes her lips, followed by a drawn-out moan.

“I’m so wet,” she whispers and then takes my hand and brings it between her lips. “Feel me. Feel how drenched I am for you.”

I slide my finger across her pussy, and fuck, she’s right. She’s dripping.

I lift off her breasts and her eyes connect with mine. “I want you,” she says softly. “Please, Huxley.”

“I’m all yours, baby,” I say as I press a sweet, gentle kiss to her mouth.

Her legs spread even wider so I take the opportunity to smooth my hand down her leg and then carefully lift it until it’s draped over my shoulder.

“That okay?” I ask, wanting to make sure she’s comfortable.

“Yes, so good.”

“Perfect,” I say as I grip my cock and tease her entrance with it. She thrusts her hips toward me, and I smile at how impatient she is.

Hell, I’m just as impatient.

I move my hips forward and shift my cock inside her just an inch.

But that inch is all it takes.

Her warmth sucks me in, and I push farther, not giving her much time to adjust.

“Fuck,” I mutter. “You’re so goddamn perfect for me.” I take a deep breath and ask, “Are you okay?”

“More,” is all she says. “I want more, Huxley.”

Given the green light, I thrust all the way in until I bottom out, unable to push any farther. She groans as her eyes fly shut and her chest arches toward me. I take that moment to bring her breast to my mouth again, wanting to make sure she’s as relaxed as possible, because I’m not going to be able to hold back very long. Not when she feels this good.

Needing to feel her, I slowly thrust into her, while my mouth plays over her taut nipples.

“You’re so big,” she says, letting out a deep breath. This relaxes her more, and I’m able to thrust farther.

“Baby, you need to relax some more, you’re tense.”

“Then bring those lips back to my mouth,” she says, pulling at my chin with her finger.

I don’t automatically move up to her lips. I drag my tongue along her skin and pepper kisses up her neck and along her jaw, leaving a path of pleasure in my wake. I own every last inch of her. When I reach her mouth, I waste no time in tangling our tongues together.

And I feel her relax even more.

Fuck. I thrust again, and I go deeper, so deep that my vision narrows.

“Yes,” she whispers against my lips.

Mouths connected, I pick up my pace and thrust harder, quicker.

“Never been this good,” I admit as my tempo becomes frenzied. “Never in my goddamn life.”

“Same,” she cries, her back arching more, her leg clamping around my shoulder. “Oh God, I’m getting close. More, Hux.” I’m so close. So fucking close. So good.

I lower her leg from my shoulder, press her thighs wide open, and say, “Hold your legs.”

She does, and I brace myself on the mattress as I pound into her harder.

My hips are relentless. Pushing and pushing and pushing.

The pleasure between us heightens.

My body begins to float as the first ripple of pleasure shoots up my spine.

“Fuck, Lottie. I’m going to—”

“Yes,” she moans as her pussy clenches around my cock. “You’re making me come. Oh God, Huxley.”

With a cry of absolute pleasure, so goddamn loud I’m almost positive the pilots can hear us, she comes all over my cock, and I use her spasms to push me over the edge while she gasps in sweet agony.

My balls tighten, and with one final pulse of my hips, my orgasm rips through me like a goddamn wrecking ball through my ribcage.

It takes my breath away.

It rocks me to my very core as I come over and over inside her.

The lasting ripples of pleasure casually throb up and down my spine as I collapse on top of her.

Her arms wrap around my back and her hands gently caress my shoulders as we both catch our breath. After a few seconds, I lift up just enough so not all of my weight is on top of her, and I reach up to brush my thumb over her cheek.

“Are you okay?” I ask, worried that I was too rough.

“I’m perfect,” she answers with a sated smile. She lifts up and presses another kiss to my lips. “I’m really so perfect, Huxley.”

And she looks like she is. Heady eyes. Satisfied smile. Relaxed body.

“Are we able to just lie here for a second?” she asks.

“As long as you want. Let me just get something to clean us up.” I press one more kiss to her lips and then lift off her. There’s a bathroom attached to the bedroom, thankfully, so I walk in there, clean up quickly, and then wet a washcloth for her. When I turn to go back to the bedroom, I discover her standing in the bathroom doorway, wearing my shirt.

Fuck.

She looks so damn good with her hair rumpled, coming loose from her ponytail, and a satisfied expression on her face.

I hold out the washcloth. “Here,” I say.

She presses her hand to my chest, kisses my jaw, and then takes the washcloth and goes into the bathroom. Giving her some privacy, I step into my boxer briefs, then hop into bed and under the covers. We have an hour before we have to be back in our seats.

After a few minutes, she comes out of the bathroom, looking sexy as hell in my shirt, and crawls into bed next to me. I open my arm, and she curls against me, her head resting on my shoulder and her hand on my bare chest. I curl my arm around her, clutching her tight.

And just like that, I’m a taken man.

Fucking besotted.

This is what I want.

Her, in my arms.

Exactly like this.

It’s as if the last few weeks have been the most intense foreplay of my life, because the end result, Lottie in my arms . . . yeah, the best fucking thing that could happen.

“I’m on the pill,” she says softly.

“I figured,” I say, moving my hand over her hair.

“I don’t want you thinking I’m trying to trap you.”

“I’d never assume such a thing. You have too much pride to consider doing anything like that.”

“That’s true.” She chuckles. “But I thought I’d let you know anyway.”

“Thank you.” I kiss her forehead and close my eyes.

After a few beats of silence, she says, “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything,” I answer. I don’t think I’ve ever been this comfortable, this carefree, as I am in this moment.

“When you said it’s never been like this, did you mean that?”

“Fuck yes,” I say without skipping a beat. “I wouldn’t lie about shit like that.”

She lifts up, and I open my eyes to find her staring at me. “Are you saying I’m the best you’ve ever had?”

I chuckle. “Looking for a trophy?”

I mean it’s not a lie, she is the best, hands down. And I know a lot of that has to do with this connection I feel toward her.

“I wouldn’t mind one.”

I tickle her side and she squirms against me, laughing.

“After all you’ve put me through, I’d say a trophy wouldn’t kill you.”

“Call it character building.”

She rolls her eyes. “Such a businessman-type thing to say.”

“Get used to it. That’s who you’re dating now. A businessman.”

Her brow arches in question. “Oh, are we dating now?”

“Yeah,” I answer. “What the hell do you think tonight was?”

“A lucky night out with my fake fiancé?” She smirks.

“Is that how you want to see it?” Fuck. I hope not.

She shakes her head. “No, I don’t want to go back to whatever it was that we were. That was stressful.” She’s right. It was stressful. Not only did I have my normal job to do, but I felt enormous pressure to be someone I’m not around her. I’m not a hard-hearted asshole. I’m reticent. Slow to show my inner self. Protective. And yet, somehow she’s managed to pull deeper parts of me to the surface. But, thank fuck, she’s not tossing that back in my face. She wants more of me . . . and I want her to have it. Willingly. Gratefully.

“So then, we’re dating.”

She pauses, thinking about it for a second, and then she chuckles. “Never thought I’d date my fake fiancé, but then again, I never thought I’d do half the things I’ve done since I’ve met you.”

“And we haven’t even gotten started yet.”

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter Nineteen

LOTTIE

“I’m nervous. Why am I nervous? Should I be nervous?” I twist my hands in front of me as I pace the entryway of Huxley’s house.

He’s sitting on the stairs, a grin spread across his face.

“And I don’t like that you’re finding joy in my pacing.”

He chuckles and stands, then steps in front of me to keep me from wearing a path into his beautiful floors. He stills me with his hands to my shoulders and then lifts my chin. Only to bend down and place a soft kiss to my lips. Not sure I’ll ever get tired of receiving his affection.

Ever.

“You have nothing to worry about.”

“Easy for you to say. My mom already loves you, but I’ve never really spoken to your brothers before. Besides a few pleasantries, they’re strangers to me. And they must know I’m some kind of lunatic for agreeing to be your fake fiancée.” I grip my forehead. “God, what they must think of me.” Eyes wide, I ask, “Do they think I’m a gold digger? Because I’m not. I’ll break up with you right now to prove them wrong.”

“They don’t think you’re a gold digger. If they’re judging anybody, they’re judging me. Trust me, I’ve taken enough shit from them over the past week about us getting together. They’re going to be ecstatic to get to know you better.”

“They’ve given you shit?” I ask.

“They said from the very beginning that I liked you but I was in denial. So, basically, them just rubbing it in my face.” He shrugs his shoulders as if it’s nothing.

“And they know my mom thinks we’re engaged?”

He nods. “They’re well aware. Everyone is going to act as though we’re engaged.”

I blow out a deep breath and step into his embrace.

His hand rubs up and down my back. “It’s going to be okay, Lottie.”

“Why did we think it would be a good idea to have our families over for a barbecue? This seems like a recipe for disaster.”

“I thought it was because you wanted to tell everyone how amazing my cock is.”

My head shoots up and I catch the blatant humor in his expression. “What is wrong with you?”

He chuckles. “Trying to lighten the mood, babe. It’s really going to be okay.”

“And what if your brothers don’t like me?”

“They will, trust me. Anyone who can give me as much shit as you do and bring me to my knees, they’re going to love. I wouldn’t be surprised if they showed up wearing Team Lottie T-shirts. Trust me, they’re fans.”

“Team Lottie. I like the sound of that.” I press a kiss to his jaw. “And you still don’t have any regrets?”

He shakes his head. “None.”

It’s been a little over a week since the concert, since we confessed our feelings, since Huxley Cane took me by storm. When we got back home, he brought me back to his bedroom and fucked me until we passed out. The next day, he called in sick—I told Kelsey I’d be working from Huxley’s place—and we spent the entire day getting to know each other all over again. He told me about how when he was an Eagle Scout, he used to boast about it to get girls to notice him. Sadly, none of them cared, which made me laugh so hard I snorted. And I told him about the time I caught my mom making out with Jeff in the pantry when they first started dating, and how Mom said she lost her Tic Tac in his mouth. She was trying to find it. Which then inspired Huxley to proceed to push me on my back and say he lost a Tic Tac as well . . .

I’ll be honest, I’ve never had this much sex in my life. I’ve never been contorted the way Huxley contorts me. And I never knew there were so many surfaces you can have sex on.

Bathroom counter.

Stairway landing.

Lounge chairs.

Patio table.

Fence.

Hood of a car . . .

Basically, if I can sit or lean on it, Huxley can fuck me on it, and he has.

And it’s been amazing. So amazing that I admitted to Kelsey yesterday that I’m embarrassingly addicted to his cock. So bad that anytime I see him, I can practically feel him already between my legs. Yup, I’ve lost it completely.

And yet . . . it’s not just that. In fact, it’s making me see how superficial my previous boyfriends were. Especially Ken. God, I dated an idiot. I knew Huxley had a deeper soul than it seemed when I first met him. And I’ve gotten to know him. Yes, he has pretentious business goals and aspirations, but he’s also generous with his time. He looks for opportunities to grow his employees by offering his expertise when that benefits them. He encourages growth in employee skills. He shared some of his drive with me, and it got me even more excited about opportunities for Kelsey’s company. And for what I’m actually capable of. He complimented me for my business acumen, and that felt extraordinary. He is extraordinary.

Grabbing me by the hips, Huxley asks, “Do you have any regrets?”

“Are you serious?” I ask. “The only regret I have is not stripping down for you on day one.”

He laughs. “Pretty sure you hated me too much to strip down.”

“Angry sex is better than no sex.” I reach up to kiss him just as the doorbell rings. I stiffen in his arms and whisper, “Oh God, they’re here.”

“They’re going to love you. I promise.” He kisses me one last time, then takes my hand in his and brings me to the front door. When he opens it, he reveals Breaker and JP, both holding Tupperware and flowers in their hands.

“There she is,” Breaker says, pushing through the door. “The girl who turned our brother into a walking pile of lusty mush.”

“Jesus,” Huxley mutters.

“These are for you.” Breaker hands me flowers and then pulls me into a hug.

JP follows behind him, handing me flowers as well. “You’re a goddess,” he says, giving me a hug as well. “We want you to tell us everything.”

Huxley inserts himself between his brothers and separates us. “That won’t be necessary. You know enough.”

“You can’t protect her all night. We will get her alone, and we’ll ask her embarrassing questions. We need as much ammo as we can get,” JP says.

There’s a knock at the door.

With a warning glare, Huxley says, “Be on your best behavior.”

His brothers roll their eyes—which I think is hilarious—and they walk toward the kitchen as Huxley answers the door. “Maura, Jeff, Kelsey, welcome.”

Huxley swings the door all the way open, revealing my family on the other side. Mom made homemade churros and Jeff brought a fruit salad I know he spent at least an hour making. He takes his fruit salads seriously. It shows. They’re positively beautiful and really freaking delicious.

“Thank you so much for having us. I’ve been itching to see where our Lottie has been staying,” Mom says as she steps in and gives Huxley a hug. Jeff offers him a handshake and Kelsey gives him a fist bump, which I think is kind of funny. We’ve had two meetings with Cane Enterprises, and even though Huxley is extremely professional, Breaker and JP have made the business relationship more easygoing. I can see that in the easy manner Kelsey has around Huxley now.

I give them a quick hello before we all head back to the kitchen. Reign prepared a spread of food, which he arranged on the kitchen island while Huxley and I were busy doing . . . other things.

The sliding glass doors to the backyard are open, and there’s music playing softly in the background.

“Wow,” Mom says in awe. “Your place is spectacular.”

“Thank you,” Huxley says while taking the food Mom and Jeff brought. “Can I get you anything to drink?”

Over the past week, I’ve come to know the real Huxley. The Huxley I thought I met when we ran into each other on the sidewalk. Easygoing, fun. The once stiff and unapproachable man I knew is no longer in sight. Actually, the only thing stiff about him is his cock.

After we’re all settled, pleasantries and introductions behind us, we head out to the patio with our food and take a seat at the large patio table on which Huxley and I have had sex three times. But no one needs to know that.

Huxley leans into my ear and whispers, “Your mom is sitting in the exact same spot where you came so hard, you squirted.”

“Can you not?” I whisper back, feeling my face go red.

He chuckles and kisses my cheek.

“What are you whispering about over there?” Kelsey, who’s sitting across from me, asks. The glint in her eye tells me she knows exactly what we’re talking about, because I told her about our patio table escapades.

“Nothing,” I say, glaring at her.

“So, Jeff, are you going to tell them the news?” Mom asks, thankfully changing the subject.

“What news?” I ask, glancing down the table at Jeff, who’s partaking in some of his fruit salad and Reign’s homemade macaroni casserole.

The table grows quiet as Jeff sets down his fork and lifts his head. “I received a letter in the mail yesterday. Apparently, someone contacted the beautification committee and suggested they take a look at our house. They came by last week while visiting the other properties and congratulated me on a well-preserved yard with exquisite definition and color selection in our planters.” Mom squeezes Jeff’s arm.

“Seriously?” I ask, in complete shock.

Jeff nods, his smile so large that it’s contagious. “Unfortunately, the house isn’t within the boundaries of the contest, but they did give me an honorary award and said they’d be working with the city on expanding the boundary line so I can possibly be included in the future.”

“Holy shit,” I say. “That’s amazing, Jeff. Oh my God, you’ve worked so hard.”

He nods again and his eyes well up. He looks at Huxley and says, “Thank you, Huxley. I’m not sure you know how much this means to me.”

Huxley?

I turn around to look at him, and he offers Jeff a simple nod. “I just made a phone call. You did all of the work.”

“Wait, you called the beautification committee?”

“Nothing to make a big deal about,” he says under his breath. “Congrats, Jeff. It’s a well-deserved honor.”

In the most sincere voice, Jeff says, “It means the world to me to be recognized, Huxley. Thank you.”

And then the table falls silent as my mind swirls with this new information.

Jeff heard from them yesterday.

But they did their rounds a week to two weeks ago.

Which means . . . Huxley must have called them before we were together, when we were at each other’s necks with anger and frustration.

And he did that. He called.

He put that smile on Jeff’s face.

“Huxley,” I whisper.

He picks up my hand, places a kiss across my knuckles, and says, “We’ll talk about it later.”

“Please tell us you have some embarrassing stories,” JP says as he takes a seat across from me on a lounger. Breaker joins him.

I glance over at the patio, where Huxley is in deep conversation with Jeff and my mom. Kelsey left a while ago because she claimed she had another engagement, but I saw right through her. She was avoiding JP and his flirtation. Frankly, I was enjoying the show, but Kelsey could only take so much.

Hunkering down with the boys, I say, “I’m not sure the man is capable of doing anything embarrassing.”

“Obviously he’s been able to hold it together so far in front of you. Trust me when I say, the man can embarrass himself.”

“Oh yeah? Why don’t you delight me with a story?”

Breaker and JP exchange glances. “Did he mention the time he did a presentation at NYU about entrepreneurship, and the entire time, his fly was undone?”

“What?” I laugh out loud. “No, he didn’t.”

Breaker nods. “He did. At the end of his presentation, one of the dickhead college kids asked him if he was hot.”

“Oh God.” I clamp my hand over my mouth, giggling.

“Of course, Huxley was confused and answered no and asked why. Then the kid said because he didn’t know why else his fly would be undone unless it was for a cross-breeze.”

I burst out in laughter and draw Huxley’s attention away from his conversation. He eyes his brothers suspiciously, and there’s no doubt he knows what his brothers are doing.

“What did he do?” I ask.

Breaker rubs his hand over his jaw, something I’ve noticed Huxley does as well. “He of course was humiliated. Zipped up his pants, cleared his throat, and then thanked everyone for their time before bolting. Bro was an epic dick for days after, blamed us for sending him out there unzipped.”

“What?” I ask.

JP presses his hand to his chest. “Exactly. Explain to us how that’s our fault. Are we supposed to hover over him like a helicopter mom?” JP shakes his head. “No, not our job. Be an adult man and zip up your pants.”

“Now, before we go into any meeting, we always whisper to Huxley to check his fly.”

“Stop. Do you really?” I chuckle.

Breaker nods. “Yeah, he hates us so much for it, but to hell if we’re going to be blamed again for his mistake.”

“You’re protecting yourself,” I say.

“Exactly,” Breaker says to JP. “She gets it.”

“She gets what?” Huxley asks, joining us, my mom and Jeff at his side.

“Nothing,” JP says. “This is between us. Nothing you need to concern yourself about.”

“If you’re talking to my girl, I’m concerned,” Huxley responds, which of course makes me all weak in the knees because of the possessive tone he uses.

“Ooo, I like this side of him,” JP says. He stands and slaps his brother on the shoulder. “As much as I love talking to your fiancée about your embarrassing moments, I need to head out.”

“Me too,” Breaker says.

“We’re headed out as well,” Jeff says. “We came over to say bye.”

I stand and give Jeff and my mom a hug, making sure to squeeze them extra tight. It was good seeing them again. I’ve been so wrapped up in my hectic life that I’ve missed spending time with them. Hopefully things are slowing down now, though, so we can plan more things like this.

Together, as a group, we head to the front door, where we all exchange hugs, thank-yous and goodbyes. Once the door is shut, Huxley turns toward me and asks, “What did they say to you?”

I chuckle and head into the kitchen to start cleaning up. “Afraid they said something that would deter me away from you?”

“Yes.”

“It’s going to take a lot more than a story about your fly being down to tear me away.”

He groans and leans against the counter. “They didn’t.”

I pin him with a look. “Was it for the cross-breeze?”

The look in his eyes is absolutely murderous, and it just makes me laugh even more.

“You’re no longer allowed to talk to them.”

“Such a shame,” I say. “We got along very well.” Since we already took care of the food earlier, I just stick the dishes in the dishwasher and then turn toward Huxley. “I’d love to talk to them more. They seem really grounded.”

“Yeah, I’m sure you would.” When I close the dishwasher, he comes up to me and tugs on my hand, pulling me in close. “Did you have fun today?”

“I did.” I smooth my hand up his chest. “But I do have to ask you something.”

“What’s that?”

“That phone call you made—”

“It’s not a big deal, Lottie.” He starts to move away, but I stop him.

“It’s a big deal to me. I’m not sure you realize this, but you made Jeff’s year. He works so hard on our front yard, and to be recognized like that, it means everything to him.” I force Huxley to look at me. “When did you make the phone call?”

“Why does it matter?”

“Because it does. When did you make it?”

He lets out a deep sigh. “I don’t know, like four weeks ago.”

“Four weeks ago?” I ask, astonished. “As in, right after we met?”

He pulls on his neck. “Yeah, probably around then. But like I said, it doesn’t matter.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” I say, reaching up to him and gripping his cheek. “Huxley, you did this out of the kindness of your heart, because you knew it meant a lot to someone else. Not many people would stop to do something like that.”

“We don’t have to make a big deal out of this.”

I pause and observe him. The fidgetiness of his body. The inability to look me in the eyes. “You don’t accept compliments very well, do you?”

“I don’t think it’s necessary to make a big deal out of something that, in the grand scheme of things, was small on my end.”

“But it wasn’t small,” I counter. “It wasn’t small at all. You made Jeff, a man so special to me, happy. You truly made his year, Huxley. I can’t tell you how grateful I am for that.”

He grips my hips and leans forward, pressing a kiss to my forehead. “If you’re happy, then I’m happy.”

He takes my hand and guides me up the stairs to his bedroom. The entire way, I keep thinking about how things have changed, and so quickly. We went from being at each other’s throats with insults to not wanting to let each other go. Kelsey was right—there really is a fine line between love and hate, and we crossed over it.

“I don’t feel comfortable with this,” I say as we wait for Dave and Ellie to show up. “We need to tell them.”

Huxley looks just as uncomfortable as I feel. “I know, but I don’t know how to fucking do it. I still haven’t secured the deal, because he keeps cancelling on me.”

We’re waiting outside a tall brick building for a newborn class. Dave asked if we wanted to join them, and of course, Huxley—still on his quest to secure Dave’s properties—said yes. But now that we’re here, it doesn’t feel right at all, especially since we’re actually together now.

“What do you think he’d do if he actually knew the pregnancy thing wasn’t true?”

“I don’t know,” Huxley says, looking out toward the street. “I’m pretty sure he’d never do business with me, because I lied. And my worst fear would be the news getting out to everyone around us, all the people I work with. It could be absolutely disastrous.”

“Yeah, I can’t imagine people wanting to do business with you after you’ve claimed a fake fiancée and child all in one day.”

“Doesn’t bode well for me.”

I nudge him with my shoulder. “I know I’ve said it before, but it was a pretty idiotic move.”

He chuckles, pulls me closer against his chest, and kisses me on the top of the head. “Yes, you’ve made that statement before.”

“Hey, you guys, over here,” we hear Dave say from behind us. Together, we turn around to find Dave and Ellie wearing jeans and matching white button-up tops, walking toward us with their arms wrapped around each other’s waists. They are something else.

Huxley lifts his hand in a wave and then quietly says to me, “I’ll figure out a way to make this better, I promise. Let’s just get through today.”

“Okay.” I give him a squeeze, and then we join Dave and Ellie.

“Oh, wow, you look amazing,” Ellie says, pulling me into a hug. “You’re positively glowing in this dress.” I chose to wear a flowy dress just in case I’m supposed to be showing, which I’m not. “Isn’t she glowing, Dave?”

“She is,” Dave says with a sly smile. “She looks like a woman in love.” I nearly choke on my own saliva.

I cough a few times and Huxley rubs my back. “You okay?”

“Yeah, sorry.” I cough again. “Just swallowed wrong for a second.” I gather myself and smile at everyone. “Uh, so, are we going in?” I thumb toward the door awkwardly.

“Yes, I’m so excited. I heard the dolls are so lifelike in this class that they actually pee on you. Doesn’t that sound thrilling?”

Keeping my composure, I answer, “Oh yes. Very excited for that surprise.” About as excited as I was for the fake breastmilk to fly across my face.

Dave and Ellie walk in before us, and Huxley hangs back for a second, tugging on my hand. “Everything okay?” he asks.

“Yeah, everything is fine. Why?” I ask, pasting on a smile.

“Because you’re acting weird.”

“Am I?” I ask in a high-pitched tone. “I feel as though I’m normal.”

He studies me for a few beats before reaching for the door and opening it for me. Hand on my lower back, he guides me in to where Dave and Ellie are waiting for us. Ellie holds up a baby doll and says, “We got our baby. His name is Enoch. Isn’t he dreamy?”

Dreamy?

It’s a doll.

I really want to know what species Ellie is because there’s no way she’s human. Not even close to it. She’s an odd one.

“What a lovely baby,” I say. “Very . . . plasticky.”

Huxley tugs on my arm toward the registration desk. He lowers his mouth to my ear and in an amused tone, he asks, “Plasticky?”

I chuckle softly. “I don’t know how to compliment a fake baby.”

“Hello, who is the reservation under?” the receptionist asks.

“Mr. and Mrs. Cane,” Huxley says, shocking me.

“Ah, I have you right here. Let me go grab your baby and supplies.”

When she takes off, I turn to Huxley with an arched brow. “Mr. and Mrs. Cane?”

He smirks. “Has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?”

“Uh . . . what?” I ask, about to choke on my saliva again.

He laughs and tugs me closer to him to place a kiss on the top of my head. “Your fear of being attached to me is making me feel like a god today.”

The receptionist comes back out and hands us a girl doll. “Her name is Judith. She’s a cranky one.”

Judith?

Are we taking care of a seventy-year-old?

I take the baby and glance down at it . . .

“Good Jesus,” I whisper. “She’s missing an eye.”

The receptionist nods. “Not all babies are perfect.”

“But this baby doesn’t look as though it was born like this, it looks as though it was mauled by a pack of coyotes.”

“More like a brothel of chihuahuas,” the receptionist says. “Judith has been through a lot, but I know you two will take great care of her.” The receptionist motions toward the room. “Hurry on in, the class will be starting soon.”

I tuck Judith in my arm and turn toward Ellie and Dave, who are cuddling Enoch as if he’s their own. Sorry, Judith, we probably won’t be having the same bond.

“She’s what nightmares are made of,” Huxley whispers in my ear.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if somehow she finds a way to hitch it back home with us and stare at us in the middle of the night while we’re sleeping.”

With his hand on my lower back, Huxley says, “If I look over my shoulder as I’m pounding into you and see her, I’m telling you right now, I’m going to leave you.”