The Key West Anthology (60 page)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Jude

Stretching out on the couch, I flipped on the television and began scanning through the channels. I had been impatiently waiting for Callie to get home and had run out of things to occupy my time with. It was a little after ten, and I was starting to wonder if I should call her, but then I knew where she was. She was working late tonight to cover someone else’s shift and was going to stop by her parents’ after. Whenever Calvin and Mallory got to talking, it could take a while to get away.

My problem was I hated being home in the evening without her. Whenever I was, my mind would wander over the years of guilt and regrets. It never paid to play the blame game, but I found myself doing in often.

Callie was my reasoning; she was my balance. Whenever she was near, things just felt like they were as they should be. The kids loved her and I adored her. Looking back on it now, I can’t believe I actually thought I could ignore my feelings for her. Thank God Katelynn had other ideas.

The sound of keys jingling in the lock sent a wave of excitement through me. From my position on the couch, I had the perfect view of the door. So instead of moving, I remained there lounging with the remote in hand. Though whatever was playing on the television didn’t hold my interest in the slightest, I pretended I was completely engrossed. As the door came open, I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and slowly looked over toward her. Callie was frozen, staring at me with a smirk on her lips.

“What?” I asked as I looked down at myself. The kids were in bed asleep, so wearing my boxer-briefs shouldn’t be an issue.

I watched as she lowered her purse to the table just to the left of the door and placed her keys there as well. Sliding her sweater from her shoulders, she began walking toward the couch, biting her lower lip. I couldn’t stop the grin that spread across my face. Her mood had instantly shifted, and I could read it in her eyes. She had plans.

“Is there a reason you decided to wait on the couch in your boxers?” she asked as she pressed her knee into the space next to my hip.

I refused to reach out and grab her, even though my hands were itching to do just that. It was like a magnetic pull, and my palms were tingling. “No,” I said, trying to hold my shit together. “I was just watching a little television.” Pulling off this uninterested act was harder than I thought. Hell, I heard the doubt in my own voice. The moment her smile grew, I knew she had caught me and there was no longer a reason to fight it. She straddled my hips and pressed her body against mine. The tingling sensation that had once been confined to my palms had now spread to other parts of my body. My cock twitched as she gently rocked her hips against me, and her warmth let me know she was feeling it too.

“Don’t act like you didn’t miss me,” she whispered, bringing her lips within inches of mine.

“Oh, I never said I didn’t miss you.” I gripped her hips and thrust my own upward, allowing her to feel I was prepared to take this little reunion to the next level. She was already panting from the friction we were both creating. As her hips rocked in time with mine, I decided it was time to eliminate the barriers between us. I wrapped my hand around the back of her neck, pulled her to me, and took over her mouth with my own. Tasting her was like throwing fuel on a fire. As her tongue tangled with mine, I carefully released my hold on her hips and began lifting her shirt up, exposing her perfection. Her body was fucking amazing, and if I could spend every day of my life touching and tasting every inch, it would be the greatest gift.

“I miss you,” I whispered, and she smiled against my lips as we continued to kiss and devour one another. “I always miss you, baby, from the second you’re out of my reach.”

She rose just enough to allow me to lift her shirt over her head. I took the opportunity to reach behind her head and release her hair from the clip in the back. It immediately fanned out over her shoulders and fell onto my chest. The vision made my heart race, and want surged through me, sending me into overdrive.

I sat up quickly and took her with me. Spinning around at an impressive speed, I then placed her onto the couch, covered her body with my own, and pinned her arms above her head. “You are so fucking gorgeous,” I said as I kissed my way down her neck and onto her chest. Still pinning her wrists with one hand, I used my other to release the front clasp of her bra. As it fell away, I wasted no time leaning in and sucking her nipple into my mouth.

“Jude,” Callie moaned as she arched her back, pushing her chest upward.

“Sh,” I said before I flipped my tongue over her nipple. She whimpered and bit her lower lip to control her moans. I let go of her hands, and she started to lower them. When I shook my head, she looked at me in confusion. “Keep your hands above your head.”

I lowered my head again and began to kiss her stomach as I worked to unfasten her pants. I looked up without lifting my hand and found she was watching me closely, her breaths growing deeper as she trembled. When I had her pants undone and began to lower them and her panties, she lifted her hips, making it easier.

Callie lay spread out before me, looking so fucking beautiful it literally made my chest ache. To think I was almost too pigheaded and proud to admit that she had me hooked, but now I knew Callie was my forever.

The moment I brushed my thumb over her clit, her legs fell farther apart. I slid off the couch and placed my knees on the floor as I turned her body before me. Spreading her legs wider with my hands pressed on her inner thighs, I lowered my mouth to her pussy. She bucked her hips as I flipped my tongue over her clit.

With the combination of her movements and mine, I knew she was racing toward relief. Slipping a finger inside of her only enhanced her pleasure as she began to fuck my hand. I watched her as I continued my movements, and her eyes were closed tightly as she fisted the cushion at her side.

As she tightened around my finger, my cock was so fucking hard it hurt. The moment she arched her back and moaned out her release, I lifted my head and watched in amazement. Watching Callie fall apart was nothing short of intoxicating. I had never in my life witnessed anything sexier. When she relaxed against the couch, I wasted no further time before gripping the waistband of my boxers and lowering them down my thighs. I fisted my cock and trailed the head through her wetness, coating myself. As I did, she opened her eyes as and parted her lips in anticipation.

“What do you want, Callie?” I asked as I continued to tease her with the head of my cock. I was beginning to think my teasing game was going to backfire because my legs were fucking shaking with need.

“You,” she said. “I want you inside me.”

I slammed into her, and a small gasp escaped her as she began to move her hips again.

Callie’s eagerness drove my need to have her. She was so responsive, and I loved what I could do to her with just one small touch. It was as if our bodies were so in tune with one another that we didn’t even need words. We always seemed to know with one look what the other needed.

“You feel amazing,” she whispered as I slid inside her over and over, my own release coming on quickly. I appreciatively ran my hands over her body and tweaked her nipples between my fingers before traveling lower to grip her hips. Taking over her movements, I began thrusting harder, pulling her body against mine over and over.

“I’m so close,” she moaned. “Oh my God, Jude.”

I was hanging on the edge, and I knew I was about to explode. I released her left hip, brought my hand to the apex of her thighs, and pressed my thumb against her clit. As I began to move it in a circular motion, she tensed and moaned out her release, thrusting her hips faster and faster.

Allowing my own pleasure to take over, I slammed into her, coming harder than I had ever before. My fingers dug into her hips as I held her against me, emptying myself fully.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Callie

“Can we keep him?” Zoey asked as she cuddled the tiny puppy.

My resolve slowly faded as both kids looked up at me with excitement and hope in their eyes. Coming inside the pet shop was not a good idea. I don’t know what I was thinking when I agreed.

“I don’t know, guys, maybe we should call Uncle Jude,” I said as I looked up at the teenager working behind the counter. He shrugged, and I knew he was going to be no help.

“He’ll say no,” Matthew said with a sad pout. “But if we already have him at home, then he’ll have to let us keep him. We can name him Warrior.” His bright smile once again returned as he leaned in closer to the black puppy and allowed him to lick his cheek.

“Ew,” Zoey groaned. I thought for sure she was referring to the slobbering puppy as it continued to lick at Matthew’s hands and face. But when Zoey continued to groan, I closed my eyes tightly as if to shut out the argument I knew they were about to have.

“We are not naming him Warrior. We should call him Charlie, or maybe Buddy,” she insisted.

“But Uncle Jude calls me Buddy, so that’s my name,” he fired back, and Zoey’s face contorted into the expression that made her look like a teenage girl.

“Please, stop whining. It drives me insane.” Zoey rolled her eyes at her younger brother. I blinked as I watched them go back and forth. Looking over at the young kid behind the counter, I cocked an eyebrow, as if to say,
“See what you did?”
After all, he was the one that pointed out the puppies to Zoey and Matthew in the first place.

“Please, Callie,” Zoey begged, bringing my attention back to her. “We’ve never had a puppy, and I’ve always wanted one. Uncle Jude always said that with Mommy being sick that we couldn’t afford one.”

Instant guilt washed over me, and I knew I was caving. Katelynn’s illness was always so unpredictable, so of course they’d had to go without a lot of things.

“How big does he get?” I found myself asking the clerk as I continued to watch the puppy jump around happily as the kids showered it with attention.

“He’s a black lab, so he can actually grow up to an average of sixty to eighty pounds.”

He acted as if what he had told me was nothing. I looked at him, and I knew my eyes were huge as I tried to visualize just how big that was. Why couldn’t he have shown us a tiny dog that would stay tiny? I may have been able to convince Jude to adopt a smaller dog, but if we brought a huge monster home, I was sure he’d kill me.

I snorted in laughter as I remembered the look of terror on his face when he’d seen Harper’s mastiff. His eyes bugged out as he backed up and held out his hands. I never expected that anything would frighten him that much, and after that I decided Jude was probably not a dog person.

When I looked back at the kids, they were staring at me with their big, pleading eyes, and slowly my reservations were fading. Hell, even the puppy had paused and sat back on its hind legs, wiggling its tail happily.

I truly had no hope of walking out of this place without this puppy in tow. I knew it, and so I decided to stop fighting it.

“We are not going to fight over what we name him,” I said, and both Zoey and Matthew smiled brightly. “We will each put a name in a hat, and whatever we draw is what we will call him. Can we agree on that?”

They nodded, and I turned to the kid behind the counter. “I need you to help me gather everything I’ll need for this puppy.” His smile only grew wider. “And stop smiling so brightly,” I said as I narrowed my eyes at him. “You did this to me, and if my boyfriend freaks out, I’m giving him your name.” I looked down at his nametag before looking back to meet his gaze. “Dylan.”

He nodded and walked away, trying to hide his chuckle. I followed as he began tossing things in a shopping cart, and all I could do was shake my head. I had just been played by two kids, a teenage boy looking for a commission, and a little black puppy. I was such a sucker.

***

“Hello.”

I froze as Jude’s voice carried up the stairway, then jumped up from my position on the floor in our bedroom and scrambled for the door. Before I opened it, I turned back to face the kids, who were playing tug-of-war with the unnamed puppy. “Stay here.”

They both nodded, and I slipped out of the room, closing the door behind me.

Jude had just reached the top of the steps, and he looked up with a smile. “Where are the kids?”

“They’re playing in our room,” I said as I approached him.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing,” I assured him as I continued to walk. He cocked an eyebrow at me, and my stomach dropped. He was seeing right through me. I was such a bad liar.

“The kids are busy. Wanna sneak downstairs and have a quickie?” I wagged my eyebrows, but his facial expression did not change in the slightest.

“Now I know you’re full of shit. You’re actually attempting to distract me with sex,” he said with a grin.

I was just about to argue when the puppy barked.

“What was that?” he asked.

“Uh…” My stomach was flipping around anxiously, and I didn’t even get to figure out a way to break the news before everything broke loose. The bedroom door came open behind me, and I heard the puppy’s claws tapping against the hardwood floor as Zoey and Matthew followed him. Squealing and laughter filled the hallway as I remained locked in place. I avoided looking at Jude. In fact, I stared down the floor instead.

“Are those my boxers?” Jude asked, and I looked up. He was pointing at the puppy, who was sitting back on his butt looking up at Jude. Hanging from his mouth were a red pair of Jude’s Calvin Klein boxers I had just purchased last week.

“Warrior likes to play tug-of-war with them,” Matthew announced as he pulled on the other end of the red material. “See, you just hook your hand through this handle, and he pulls back.” Matthew slipped his little hand through the front opening in the boxers.

“His name is not Warrior,” Zoey argued. “We still have to draw for his name, remember? Callie said so.”

I could feel Jude’s eyes boring in to me. I knew he was waiting for me to look up, but I was avoiding eye contact.

“What do you think we should name him, Uncle Jude?” Matthew asked. “I like Warrior, but Zoey said Buddy or Charlie. I don’t like those.”

The kids began to argue over the name of our new puppy, and of course I continued to keep my head down as my heart raced with the idea that Jude may be angry.

“Callie,” Jude said, and my stomach lurched. He didn’t sound mad, yet he didn’t sound happy, either. Silence set in, and I knew all eyes were on me.

I took in a deep breath and closed my eyes tightly. “I never should have let them convince me to go into the pet store, but before I knew what hit me, they were laughing and playing with this cute little guy.” I looked up and found Jude staring back at me, an unreadable expression on his face. “They ganged up on me, and they gave me that look. You know the one.”

It was then I noticed the smile tugging at his lips. “Are you ever going to be able to tell them no?” Jude asked as he stepped around the puppy.

I shook my head. I knew the moment they turned on me and gave me those big, sad eyes, I was putty in their hands. I was unable to disappoint them.

“So we have a dog now,” he whispered as he hooked his finger in the waistband of my pants and pulled me against him.

I nodded as he slipped his other hand around my waist.

“I love that you want to make them happy,” he said. I looked up, and our eyes connected immediately. “We live together, we’re raising Zoey and Matthew together.” He paused as he lowered his mouth closer to mine. “And now we have a puppy. Is this practice before the next step?”

My heart sped up and felt as if it may beat right out of my chest.

“I think we should probably make things more official since our family is now growing.” His lips hovered over mine. “Just a thought I think we both need to look a little further into.” He kissed me before stepping back and kneeling to formally meet our newest family member.

“I don’t know, Zoe, I think I kinda like Warrior too,” Jude said as he tugged at the boxers the puppy still held in his mouth.

Zoey looked at him and wrinkled her nose. She crossed her arms over her chest and sat back on her feet.

“Just think, if Matt is focused on this Warrior,” he said, pointing toward the dog, “he won’t be trying to feed your Barbies to the toilet.

“No, he’ll just feed them to the dog instead.” She pouted.