Decker (Sidewinders: Generations Book 5), page 20
“Hey, baby doll.” Decker smiled at me.
“Decker! What are you doing here?” I reached for the flowers.
“I have twenty-four hours to get back to Florida,” he said, stepping into the foyer. “And I want you to come with me.”
“Okay.” I nodded, watching his face.
“O-okay? I flew all day for okay?” He seemed startled, and I smiled.
“Did you want me to say no? I can change my answer.”
He snaked out a hand and yanked me against him, his mouth covering mine. Though it was gruff and demanding, the kiss was also tender and full of promise. His tongue sought out mine, and I unconsciously dropped the flowers as I wrapped my arms around his neck. I kissed him back with the passion that had been building the last few weeks, along with all that rage, hurt, and frustration.
“You are not going to have sex in my foyer,” Daisy’s voice made us break apart. “I’ll take care of the flowers. You guys go on upstairs or whatever. I don’t want to watch.”
“You watch Zoe,” I teased.
“When Jean-Michel is here, and we’re—oh my god, is this what you want to talk about right now?” She rolled her eyes. “I’m going over to Mom’s. Please don’t leave the state without saying goodbye. Oh, and hi, Decker!”
I laughed as Decker grabbed my hand and pulled me up the stairs. I was back in the regular guest room since I could navigate stairs again, and he closed the door behind us. We toppled onto the bed, but instead of kissing me again, he held my face between his hands.
“Are you sure, Eden? I want you to be happy in Florida. I know how much you wanted to be near Daisy.”
“Daisy has her own life. Yes, it would have been nice to be in the same city, but with pro hockey player husbands, this is the life we’re signing up for.”
“Husband?” His eyes met mine. “That what you want?”
“Yes. Absolutely.”
“I wish we could get married today,” he whispered, those incredible sapphire eyes glued to mine. “But there’s no waiting period in Florida, so as soon as the final papers arrive, we can do it.”
I shook my head. “We need to have a wedding. My parents will be disappointed if we don’t.”
“Okay. Whatever you want.” He leaned forward, his eyes still focused on mine as our lips touched. “I love you, Eden. Crazy fast as everything has happened, I want you with me. Forever.”
“Same. But don’t you ever lie to me again.” I reached out and playfully took hold of his crotch, squeezing firmly. He hardened against my hand, and I couldn’t help but laugh. “That’s not the reaction I was looking for.”
He chuckled. “No? You want me shriveling in fear?”
“Yes. Because if you lie to me beyond something to do with a gift or a surprise, I will put a world of hurt on you. Understand?”
“Absolutely.” He moaned as I slid my hand inside his sweats. “God, please don’t tell me you’re going to cut it off.”
“Oh, no. I have something else in mind.” I slid down, pushing his sweats down enough to free his erection, which was now at full mast. “You said I’d have to beg for it, but I’ve decided you’re going to beg me.”
“That so?” His smile was faint, completely overshadowed by the look of desire in his eyes. I loved when he looked at me as if I was his whole world. Because I planned to be. Maybe not literally—we both had careers we were excited about—but in the grand scheme of life? I planned to rock his world on a daily basis.
Starting now.
Instead of using my mouth, I used the side of my face to nuzzle his erection. I cupped his balls with one hand, squeezing hard enough to make him flinch but not hurt him. I wasn’t sure why I needed to be in control this time, but whatever it was, he seemed to understand. He was letting me do what I wanted, at my own pace.
Still, I didn’t use my mouth.
I tormented him with my hands, my face, my body, but not my mouth.
When he started to leak pre-cum, I used the tip of my tongue to taste him, and he groaned, digging his fingers into my hair.
“You’re killing me, baby doll.”
“I know.” I smiled as I continued to toy with him, making him wait.
This was something we hadn’t done yet, and I’d been looking forward to it. Now that it was happening, I wanted to savor the moment while simultaneously driving him crazy.
“Eden.” The word came out more like a low, needy groan.
“Did you need something?” I purred, blowing on the tip of his cock.
“You. Dammit, Eden.”
“Uh huh. I know.” I kissed the underside of his massive erection and looked up at him innocently. “Can you be more specific?”
“Suck me. Please.” That last word was nothing but a growl, and I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Maybe.”
I teased him a little more, squeezing and licking, but not taking him in my mouth. A few more seconds. Then I’d let him have it.
“Eden.” He tightened his fingers in my hair, though he didn’t try to move my head.
“Like this?” Oh, the hell with it. I wrapped my lips around him and sucked hard.
“Ah! Fuck.” He thrust deep into my mouth, making me gag, but I didn’t mind.
I’d take all of him.
Literally and figuratively.
Sexually too.
“Goddamn, baby doll, that’s good.” He was gliding in and out of my mouth, deep throating me and then pulling back. He was totally in control now, but that was okay. I loved this feeling, the intimacy between us, and doing something I’d never done before. I’d given blow jobs, but I’d never dared try to deep throat. Now I had, and it was sexy as hell.
“I’m going to come down your throat,” he said, breathing hard. “You okay?”
I nodded, despite the tears starting to stream down my face.
“That’s it, baby doll.” He got off with a roar, throwing back his head and shooting off hard enough to make me choke.
Then it was over, and he quickly pulled out.
“Come here, beautiful.” He tugged me into his chest, wiping my mouth with his T-shirt.
I settled against him happily, feeling dirty and sated even though I hadn’t gotten off.
“Want to tell me what that was about?”
32
Decker
“I needed to be in control,” she said after thinking for a moment. “Because it’s usually you, and while I like that, today was different. I don’t know if that makes sense.”
“Yeah, it does.” I gently stroked her hair, thinking how lucky I was.
Eden was stunning no matter what, but looking down at her with my dick in her mouth? That was scorching hot. Letting me deep throat her for the first time? Fucking blistering on the hot scale. Forgiving me and agreeing to move to Florida? That was next-level stuff.
Now I needed to be inside of her.
“Can we be done with condoms?” I asked softly. “I haven’t been with anyone else since about a month before I met you.”
“Yes. I trust you.”
“And I you.”
We made short work of our clothes, and then I was buried between her legs, her soft, warm body beneath me. I didn’t rush, though. I couldn’t. I brushed her golden hair out of her face and looked into her eyes.
She was so, so beautiful.
And so, so mine.
I took her face in my hands and kissed her. Softly. Gingerly. Without rushing. There would be time for restraints and swinging from the ceiling and making her scream my name. A lifetime. Today I wanted to relish her. Appreciate the woman she was and the man I got to be because of her.
If I hadn’t found her, I’d still be hiding.
Somehow, she’d set me free of the things holding me back in life.
Not only that, I was free to talk about what I’d endured growing up. I hadn’t been sexually abused, but I’d watched it going on around me and hoped to be an advocate for kids like that someday in the future. Adopting, fostering, somehow helping kids like Kristy who had no one else to turn to.
“How do you feel about fostering children?” I asked, the words slipping out unexpectedly.
Her eyes opened, and she cocked her head. “It would be lovely. Not now—I want you all to myself for a bit—but yes, I’d like to do that. Maybe after you’ve left hockey, when you have a little more time.”
“You want babies of our own?” I started to move, gliding in and out slowly.
“Oh, yes.” Her fingers dug into my hair, tugging lightly. “But we’re going to talk about all that later. Right now, I need you to make love to me.”
“Isn’t that what I’m doing?
“As the great Elvis once said, how about a little less conversation?”
I laughed, covering her mouth with mine.
A while later, after we’d showered and gotten dressed again, I sat on the bed while she started to pack. She had four massive suitcases and a bunch of smaller ones. Luckily, all I’d brought was a backpack, so we’d be able to check the big bags and carry the smaller ones. Daisy could ship anything that didn’t fit. Of course, I was currently living in a hotel room, so we were going to have to find a place to live sooner rather than later.
“How do you feel about house hunting when we get back to Lauderdale?” I asked, watching her throw six pairs of high heels into one of the suitcases.
“Are we ready for that?” she asked, glancing up.
“I think we have to be considering you’re going to need a walk-in closet the size of my current hotel room.”
“I like clothes and shoes,” she said, turning to me. “And handbags. That suitcase there—” she pointed to one against the wall. “Is nothing but shoes, boots, and purses.”
I swallowed. “High-maintenance. Got it.”
“Is that… going to be a problem for you?”
“I make four million a year. After taxes and expenses, I’m not sure what’s left, but do you think you can live on a budget like that?”
She laughed, throwing a pair of panties at me. “I can buy my own shoes, thank you. I have a job too, you know. And while I don’t make seven figures, I make a very respectable six.”
“Then I guess we’re good.”
“I have a few things to do this afternoon,” she said, all business again. “I have to go over to Renee’s to discuss some details and say goodbye. I also want to say goodbye to Margot and a few others I’ve been friendly with. Have you already booked our flights home?”
Home.
I smiled.
I’d been in Fort Lauderdale three days, and it was already home because Eden would be coming with me.
I’d never known how badly I wanted a home until I met her, and now I knew why.
“I can come with you to Renee’s, if that’s okay, and work on getting you on my flight and finding a realtor. The Knights are super helpful with all that stuff, so I can do some of that while you do what you need to do. Assuming I can get you a seat, our flight tomorrow is at eight in the morning. We’ll be at the hotel the team put me up in until we find a house, so that’s going to be your priority because I have to focus on hockey.”
“I know. Daisy and I talked about what it’s going to be like for me, having to take on more of the responsibility while you’re playing.”
“And you’re okay with all that? Because it can be a lot, especially when you get traded. I’ve never done it with a partner, so usually it’s just me worried about my Xbox and whether or not it’s worthwhile to move my TVs.”
“I’m good,” she replied. “If I don’t know how to do something, I can always reach out to Daisy or Renee.”
“And Coach Petrov said his wife is always available. I knew her well since they used to be here in Vegas, and Tessa’s great.”
“Then we’re all set.” She closed her suitcase and looked around. “Daisy has one of those contraptions you use to weigh your suitcase to make sure it’s not overweight. I have to ask her where it is.”
I waved a hand. “Don’t worry about it. If it’s overweight, we’ll pay the fee. You need your stuff, and the fee will probably be less than what it would cost to ship the overage.”
“Okay.” She looked at me. “I love you, Decker Reese.”
“I love you too, baby doll.” I held out my arms. “Come here.”
She moved between my legs and leaned down to kiss me. “I’m not going anywhere. Except to Florida.”
“I like the sound of that.”
EPILOGUE
Decker
Three months later
I’d never imagined settling down could feel so good, but life with Eden was better than anything I’d imagined in my head. We’d made friends in Fort Lauderdale, and I really liked my teammates. The season was over, and we’d just closed on a new house yesterday, so there was a lot going on, but I had no complaints.
I missed my friends in Vegas, of course, but I kept in touch with Anton and Simon, and having Anton’s dad as my head coach had been a mostly seamless transition. So I wasn’t surprised when Anton called me on a Monday morning at the end of May.
“Hey.” I answered on the first ring since I was in my SUV driving to the hardware store.
“Hey. This a good time to talk?”
“Sure. Heading to Home Depot for painter’s tape and more swatches in the blue family.”
He chuckled. “That sounds so fucking familiar. We were going to hire someone to paint the downstairs powder room, but it’s not that big of a room, so Sasha was like, ‘oh, let’s do it ourselves!’ Yeah, fourteen trips to Home Depot later, it’s still not done.”
I laughed. “I’m excited about the new house, but also looking forward to going on vacation.”
“Same.” He paused. “So, listen. Remember that thing you asked me to investigate?”
I froze. “My sister?” I’d asked him if he could use his connections to a high-level security firm to help me find her, and I wasn’t sure what I would do if he had.
“Yeah.”
“You found her?” My breath caught.
“I don’t know. Grim found someone in California who might be her.”
“Jesus.”
“You have to tell me what you want to do.”
“I honestly don’t know,” I admitted. “I’ve had no luck finding her over the years and pretty much convinced myself it was futile.”
“I’ll email you the information, and you can do what you want with it.”
“I owe you one, man.”
“Nah. I’m glad I could at least put you on the right track.”
“Thanks.”
“Okay, talk soon.”
“Bye.” I disconnected and stared straight ahead.
Had he found Harper?
Was there a chance I was going to get my sister back? Did she even want to have a relationship? Did she blame me for not being able to protect her? I didn’t have any answers, and it was heady stuff.
I had to talk to Eden, get her thoughts on everything.
Not today, though.
We were in the process of moving into the new house, and I had a huge surprise for Eden later today.
Harper had been gone for a decade.
A few more weeks wouldn’t make much difference.
Eden
“I’m never moving again,” I muttered, wiping sweat off my brow.
“Stop complaining.” Daisy laughed, nudging me with her hip.
“Says the woman who moved into an already established house with her new boyfriend, and didn’t have to do anything but put away her clothes.
“Fair enough, but still. You just bought the most amazing house and got engaged to the love of your life.”
She had a point.
Decker had proposed the day he got the final divorce papers in the mail. We were planning a wedding for next summer in England. My parents had insisted and really, what did it matter if we got married here or there or in South Africa? Our closest friends would come regardless, and I didn’t mind adding a touch of tradition to what I hoped would be the greatest day of my life.
“Well, this simply is not acceptable.” Someone with a deep British accent and a stern tone made us both turn.
“Surprise.” Decker grinned as he came in behind Mrs. Bengston. “I thought you could use a little help, and Mrs. B seemed anxious to get here.”
“Oh my gosh!” I hurried over to them, hugging Mrs. Bengston tightly. It was probably only the second time I’d ever hugged her, but I didn’t care. She was a bit stiff and old-fashioned, but she’d obviously wanted to come so she would have to adjust to some shows of affection.
“Yes, yes.” She patted my shoulder. “Far too much to do to stand around being emotional.”
“You’ve just gotten off an international flight,” I protested. “You should rest.”
“Poppycock. I got in last night, and Decker thoughtfully booked me a hotel so I could do just that. I am fresh as a newborn today.” She rubbed her hands together as she looked around. “When are the movers coming?”
“They’ve already come,” I said. “We don’t have a lot of stuff yet, so what’s here is what there is. We’re going shopping for everything else.”
Her eyes widened. “First we have to clean.”
“Already done. I learned from the best, you know. I didn’t spend a lot of time with you, but I picked up on the important stuff. Had a service come in and sterilize the place from top to bottom before we put any of our things in it. Now we’re putting the kitchen together, and it’s a bit daunting.”
“Then this is where I begin and you…” She wrinkled her nose and made a shooing motion. “Go do something else.”
“Er…” I hesitated. Did I want someone else putting things away in my first kitchen?
“We can adjust once I’m done,” Mrs. Bengston said, her eyes softening a bit. “Go take care of your clothes, the washroom, things like that. Go on. This is why I’m here, isn’t it?”
She had a point.
