Forever (This #5) (16 page)

Her eyes twinkle. “This place is magical. It’s absolutely incredible.” She looks at Bradley, then at Joe. “Thank you for inviting me.”

Bradley nods. “Magical, indeed. The pleasure was ours. Maybe you’ll be able to join us for more of our adventures and yearly traditions, Rebecca.”

Ryan coughs, and I scan him, but he’s glaring at Rebecca and then at Joe. My eyes roam to Sam, and she’s also looking at Joe. “Bradley, do you want another cup of hot chocolate?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “Do you?” I nod. “I’ll get it for you, then.”

I watch as he walks to the table. His shoulders are broad, filling out his sweater, and his hips narrow. The jeans hang perfectly, and even after all this time, I can’t believe that gorgeous specimen of a man is mine.

No one says a word, and I’m almost afraid to ask what has happened since we all split up, and then, I think even if I’m not afraid, I don’t want to open a proverbial can of worms, so we all stand in silence.

Bradley puts his hand on my back. “Here you go.” He kisses my temple. “Let’s get in line for the next bus.”

When the rest of the group is out of earshot, I whisper, “Is it just me or has something shifted with them?”

“I’m sure it’s nothing some alone time and alcohol can’t fix.”

“Right. Because those things fix everything.” I jab my elbow into his side.

“Hey.” He smirks. “All I can say is it sure as hell helps.”

“True, Mr. Banks.” The triplet girls we’d seen before are in the same line as us. Turning around, I pull Sam to my side. “Look at those little girls. Are they not the most adorable things you’ve ever seen?”

“Oh man. A triple threat.”

“I can’t imagine triplets, but if I had them, I’d wanna dress them just like that.”

Rebecca chimes in, “I want a kid. Not multiples.”

I raise my eyebrows at Sam and shrug, but she sighs and rolls her eyes. She addresses Rebecca. “It’s not like you get an order form where you can tick off little checkboxes for what you want, Rebecca.”

“I know that, Sam.”

“You should also know that in many cases of multiples, those folks have spent years trying to conceive just one, and they are elated to have had their prayers answered. Three is a triple blessing.”

“Look, I’m not dissing anyone for having multiples. I’m just saying I want a single child, and that’s it.”

Sam crosses her arms and glares at Joe and then back at Rebecca. “Good for you. I hope you’re not one of the ten percent of women who have difficulty conceiving or staying pregnant so you don’t ever require IVF, which increases your chance for multiples.” My sister looks back at Joe.

Joe takes a step between her and Rebecca. “That’s—”

Sam puts her palm to his chest before continuing. “I hope the person you fall in love with wants the same things you do because, for me, it’d be a deal-breaker to want a bunch of kids and have my partner on a different page.” Her glare turns to Ryan.

Ryan takes her hand and pulls her toward the bus that just arrived. “Let’s go.”

Bradley sweeps me off my feet as he pushes the door open to our room at The Carriage House Inn with his foot.

I wrap my arms around his neck, kissing his cheek, then his ear before whispering, “Did you manage to actually get us in the same room we were in on our engagement night?”

He eyeballs the area like he’s looking for something and then flashes a devilish grin. “Are there actually others here?”

“I wouldn’t know.” I thread my fingers through his hair and gaze into his beautiful blue eyes, his black lashes and eyebrows making them pierce me. “I think they should rename this one The Banks Suite.”

“You do, huh?”

I nod. “The room is beautiful.” Red and pink roses are scattered over the bed and floor. A bottle of wine is chilling, and there’s a platter of chocolate covered strawberries. “Everything is beautiful. I just wanna know when are you gonna stop talking and kiss me, though?”

He kicks the door closed with his heel, and his lips capture mine. I dart my tongue in his open mouth and deepen our connection. He walks me toward the bed and gently places me back as he crawls over me. “I hate winter.” His kisses go to my neck then to the sensitive part behind my ear.

So random. “Why do you hate winter?”

He blows on the delicate skin he’s giving his attention to, causing my body to shiver. My hips rise in an effort to create the friction I’ve been yearning for since this morning. “Why do you hate winter, Mr. Banks?”

“So many damn clothes in my way.” He tugs my sweater up, and his fingers trace a trail to my breast.

“Stop.”

He freezes. His brows crinkle, and he swallows.

I smile. “Let me up a minute. I won’t be long.”

He smirks and rolls over on his side. “Do you have some surprises of your own tonight, Mrs. Banks?”

I wink before pulling my scarf down with one hand and letting it fall to the floor. “I’m not sure if it’s the kind of surprise you may be thinking of.”

“And what is that?”

My fingers undo the button of my jeans, and slowly, I pull the zipper to where each notch can be heard. “I don’t have any kind of fancy lingerie or heels.” Bradley sucks in a breath. “You saw what I put on this morning.”

His eyes dart to my breasts and back to my fingers. “When you were teasing me in the closet? Why, yes. I remember.” I nod, shimmying my pants down to my ankles. Turning around, I lean over and remove my boots and socks, then slide the pants off. When I turn around, Bradley’s scooted to the edge of the bed, closing the distance between the two of us, and kicks off his own shoes. His eyes are on me as his fingers push his own socks to the floor. “If your surprise is stripping and teasing me, you’re doing a fine, fine job.”

I lick my bottom lip and bite it. “Do you think Santa will think I’ve been a naughty girl and only bring me coal for Christmas?”

He chuckles. “Santa saw you in the kitchen last night with Chaos. He was so proud of the sexy, confident woman you’ve become.”

My lips curve into a huge grin as I cast a sidelong glance, then pull all the layers covering my torso over my head. “Screw the striptease. Ain’t nobody got time for all that.”

Bradley throws his head back, laughing. “I love you, Gabby. Come here.”

Taking a few steps, I straddle him and pull his sweater and shirt over his head before tossing it on the floor. He places his hands on both of my hips, and our heads go to opposite sides and devour each other’s necks like we’re vampires who haven’t eaten in a thousand years. His hands move up my back, and the clasps of my bra are swiftly undone. The black lace fabric becomes loose before he tosses it to the pile on the floor with the rest of our garments. My hips start to move from back to front and then side to side against the steel length beneath his denim. Bradley’s mouth finds my freed breast and scrapes it with his teeth. I toss my head back and slide my fingers up and down his chest. “I swear I could come just like this. It feels so good.”

“What’s stopping you?” he murmurs as he nibbles his way to the other nipple.

My lips part as I gasp for air like a fish out of water. “Can I?”

He trails his tongue up my chest to my neck, and then our mouths meet. “Please.”

My pace increases as I climb the mountain of ecstasy. As the peak approaches, everything starts to ripple until everything explodes. Bradley grunts and growls, and it only makes the orgasm that much better—to know I affect the man I love so much.

When the waves become farther apart, Bradley flips me over to my back and towers over me as he undoes his belt, then his button and zipper. He slides his jeans and boxers to the floor as Chaos springs free. I manage to keep my laughs to a minimum, but I can’t help but smirk. His fingers slide under my panties, and he pulls them down as he steps out of his jeans. I shake my feet to kick them to the floor.

“Bradley?”

His eyes are a smoldering grayish-blue. “Yeah?”

“Do that growl thing you just did.”

He chuckles. “Like right now? While I’m standing here naked in front of you?”

I giggle. “Yeah.”

His lips curve in an amused smile. “I can’t grunt on demand.”

“Then come here.” I summon him with my finger. “And let me give you a reason to do it.”

He pushes me farther back on the bed, then licks his way down my body until his head is at my core. His tongue swirls my mound, thrashing and lashing my clitoris. My legs start to shake, and I thread my hands in his hair as he grunts. “Yes. That. Keep doing that.” My hips buck up and down. “Need. You. Now.” His head bobs up, and he plunges Chaos into me, filling me completely. “Ah.”

This morning our sex was slow and sensual, but not tonight. This is fast, feral. He pounds in harder each time, and I give him back everything I can, desperate for him to reach me as deeply as he can. My head becomes fuzzy. I close my eyes and let my hands see for me as they roam his chest and then his back. The heat increases with each thrust, and I’m about to tip over the edge again. “Come with me,” I beg. “Can you? Now?”

He growls and our parted lips touch as we both breathe each other in while he releases his orgasm, and my body consumes it.

When we still, I wrap my legs around his waist, and he slides to the side. We hold each other, and bliss is the only thing I feel.

He strums my hair. “You know earlier when I was picking on you about baby fever?”

“Yeah.”

“I think I may be the one with the baby fever.”

The way he spoke those words was so soft, tender, and raw. I don’t think he’s kidding, but he can’t be serious. My mom made me promise her things before she passed, and Bradley’s already been so patient. I hate to even bring up this one.

“Gabby?” His fingers skim my cheek, then my chin and trace their way down my chest, and finally land on my belly. “Let’s make a baby.”

My chest tightens.

“Say something,” he whispers in my ear.

“I’m not ready.”

“No one is ever really ready.” I clasp my hand with his and put it over my pounding chest. “Those triplets tonight, the boys at the tree farm.” He shakes his head. “I found myself wondering if our little girls would have your unruly hair and those gold specks in their eyes. When I saw little boys, I wondered if they’d be momma’s boys.”

My throat tightens. Things were going so well, but Bradley seems determined to bring up every possible tense situation today. “It’s really important to me that I finish school.”