RIVAL: An Enemies to Lovers Why Choose Country Romance

Chapter 57

Looking around my master bedroom one last time, I sigh, flipping the light on and off slowly for Blakely. I don’t know what the hell it is about this room in particular, but the light fixture in here has completely entranced our little girl.

She’s just starting to get gassy and fussy on the regular, so when I was walking her around, I came in here to grab something, flipped the light on to search, and, not finding it, turned it back off.

Her mouth popped open, and her mewls at being upset died right down. So, I did it again, and again, and sure enough, she was enthralled.

“You know,” I tell her softly, shifting her so she’s able to see the ceiling better. “We’re going to have to find a room at the new house with lights you’ll approve of. If I need to, I’ll take this one with us and put it in your room.”

Blakely wiggles, eyes wide with her mouth hanging open, gaze moving everywhere as I blink the lights on and off once more.

Chuckling softly, I press a kiss to her head, then laugh outright when she crinkles her face in frustration that I’ve blocked her view. She’s going to give us a run for our money if her attitude is anything remotely close to Mason’s. Although, the way that man has been brought to his knees by this little eight-pound, fourteen-ounce girl is something to write into the history books.

I tip my head back to look at the lights with my daughter and I picture all the things she’s going to learn in the years we’ll have the honor of raising her. Julia flashes into my head and a pleasant feeling fills me, only an echo of sadness tagging along at the end. She’d have been over the moon with Blakely.

Dipping my chin down, I meet her eyes, now gazing at me sleepily. I begin a soft sway as I whisper, “Did I ever tell you about the time your Aunt Julia thought she could do stunts while riding her bike? No? Well, at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, there’s this real long driveway that stretches all the way to the road. Aunt Julia and I were racing each other to the mailbox and back. Grandma was on the porch with a stopwatch to see what our times would be and call out a winner.”

I lean my body to the side, using my elbow to turn the light off for the last time as I keep talking. Maybe I’ll get her to sleep for a nap before the last drive to Mason’s farm where we’ve all decided to move.

Edith leaning against the door frame surprises me when I turn, so I toss her a wink. A soft pink blush fills her cheeks, and she bites her lip. Seeing that our girl is almost asleep, she whispers, “Finish the story.”

Keeping my voice low, I nod once. “My dad’s parents were in town visiting for the weekend, so they had their van parked on the drive, part way into the grass. Aunt Julia and I made it to mailbox in record time, then spun our bikes around to race back to Grandma.”

“You guys ready to get on the—”

Edith presses her finger to her lips, hushing Griffin as he finds us, then widens his eyes. “Oops. She wanted the lights again?”

I nod, and we all smile when Blakely lets out a shuttered sigh. It’s one of those that signals she’s calmed from her fussing fit and she’s content for now. “On our way back, Aunt Julia was ahead of me because my feet kept slipping off my pedal. I was due for a bigger bike and my long legs just couldn’t pedal fast enough. She turned around to laugh at me and threw her hands out to the side, calling out how she could beat me even with no hands. Then she smacked the back of our grandparents’ van.”

My love covers her mouth to stifle a laugh, and I hold in my own so I don’t wake Blakely. “That girl fell over to the side, arms curled around her stomach, laughing her butt off, then got right back up and practiced riding with no hands the rest of the way home. Eventually she got it figured out and only had a few scrapes and bruises to show for it, but within a year, she could do all sorts of tricks and jumps on that pink thing with streamers on the handles.”

Moving over to my side, Griffin touches Blakely’s hand and whispers, “My Blakely-Blake isn’t gonna have a single wipe out when she learns how to ride. I won’t stand for it. I’m gonna take her out to the truck and get her home.”

Home.

Mason’s parents felt it was time for them to find a smaller place and wanted all of us to buy the house from them so we can be on the Cooper farm with a larger place to raise Blakely.

“Wanna ride with me, darlin’?” Griffin asks, then coos at Blakely as he lifts her from my arms and settles her against his chest.

Edith is watching me hard. “No. Jaxon and I will be there soon, if you don’t mind.”

I’m not sure what’s happening with her right now, but she seems contemplative and Griffin, understanding her, gives her a quick kiss and disappears out of the room.

“What’s goin—”

She holds up a hand to stop me, then leans back to watch down the hall. As soon as we hear the door shut, she throws herself into my arms. Climbing my body, she locks her legs around my waist, and I scramble to hold on to her ass so we don’t fall over.

“You love her deeply, don’t you?” she asks after tilting her head back. Her eyes are bouncing back and forth, studying my reaction as if she can read my mind.

Swallowing hard, I nod. “More than anything.”

“And every day, when you’re giving me your truths, you always finish by telling me you love me as well.” Her words sound tight, as if she’s pushing them past a lump in her throat.

Gathering her closer, I look at her fiercely, begging her to hear how truthful I am. “With my whole body and soul.”

Settling her palm over my heart, that’s beating hard and fast under her palm, she’s silent for a moment. A radiant smile slowly spreads across her face seconds before it falls away, and she seems heartbroken.

“Sweetheart,” I call to her. She’s chewing on her lip, practically on the verge of tears.

“I’m sorry I said you were my villain. You’re not. I was hurting and—” She presses her face against my neck, breathing deeply. “You were hurting, too. I forgive you for the words you said, and I know you didn’t mean them. I love you s-so much, Jaxon.”

Holding the back of her head to keep her against me, I tip my head back and blink away the moisture welling behind my eyes. Agony has had me in its grip for months, wishing and hoping I’d hear those words from her lips, and it’s like all that fear and pain has been purged.

Both love and forgiveness. Both I don’t deserve, but I’ll be damned if I ask her to take it back.

Edith’s hands slide up my shoulders to grab my face and tugs me down to her. Curling my back, I meet her lips with fervor, our mouths fusing together in need and desire to make all the hurt disappear.

She clings to me, almost as if she’s afraid if she lets go, I’ll vanish. It’s not going to happen. I need her more than the air I need to breathe. My hands move over her body, clinging to her with need, wanting to touch every part of her I haven’t had a chance to get to know since she had our little girl.

It’s painful when she rips her mouth from mine, but she’s breathing hard, yanking on my shoulders to bring me closer. “Jaxon. Please… I need you so bad.”

“Yes,” I hiss out, gripping her leg to hook over my hip. Her body rolls against me, grinding her pussy over my cock, and lust drives me to drag her to the wall. With a hand on her shoulder, I spin her to the wall so she can brace herself.

I drop down, grip her pants and tug them, panties and all, down her legs. She steps out of them, kicking her shoes off in the process, then arches her back to grind her ass against me as soon as I stand.

My hand slams against the wall next to her head, my lips sucking and licking over her neck and shoulder as I work the button and zipper of my jeans down. They only make it halfway before I’m reaching around her body and sliding the head of my cock through her saturated folds.

Lining myself up, my cock is pressed at her entrance just as my senses come back to me. “I don’t have a condom.” I hate ruining the moment, but she did just have a baby because all of us were careless.

Her gasping breath is rough, poised, and ready for me to take her. “I started birth control after I had Blakely.”

I don’t wait for any more permission, bending my knees slightly to drive up into her, hard and fast, filling her to the hilt with my cock.

Edith’s head drops back against my shoulder and I wrap my arm around her stomach, reaching my fingers to her clit as I pull out, only to thrust into her once again.

Her hands grapple for the wall, so I let go when she finds purchase, standing up straighter to wrap a second arm over her chest, fingers digging into her shoulder.

I fuck her hard, groaning out how much I love her and how good she feels. With her back to my chest, I have her cradled into me, pounding into her heat and working her clit furiously.

“More,” she gasps out, her eyes rolling back when I tilt my hips. She digs her nails into the wall, and I growl out a cry when she yells, “Jaxon, please!”

Lifting her, her toes leave the floor and I press her against the wall, rubbing her clit as she shifts her hips back for me to fuck her deeper.

A continuous cry is pouring from her, and I bite her shoulder, moaning as I feel her pussy clamping in pulses around my cock. She’s coming all over me, legs shaking and stomach tensing up.

Screaming into the empty room, the echoes fill me with pride, and I drive in a few more times, filling her with jets of my cum as I empty inside myself.

My fingers are dug into her skin so deeply, I worry I’ve bruised her. Then a surprising thought hits me. I wish she wasn’t on birth control.

Regret washes over me, remembering how I told her I wouldn’t ever want to father a child with her, but her shaky hand reaches up and lazily strokes the side of my face in contentment.

We’re both catching our breath, awed that this just happened so quickly. Even though I just came, my cock is still hard inside of her, and I move inside of her lazily, enjoying her little tremors as she feels those ending jolts of her orgasm.

I slip my hand up her body and turn her chin so I can see her face. There’s a serene, happy smile stretching her lips and I’m so relieved she doesn’t seem to be unsure after all of this.

Kissing her lips lightly, I nip and suck at them until she has the energy to move her mouth under mine. Opening for me, our tongues touch and her shuddering sigh fills my lungs.

I could live off her breaths alone.

“Maybe someday, we’ll actually make it to a bed.” Her words are heavy, laced with sleepy desire.

Chuckling, I ease myself from her body and wince as clenches around the head of my cock just before we separate.

“Let’s shoot for round three in a bed. That way, I can take my time with you.”

She bites her lip to hide her smile, and I help her right her clothes, then tuck my still pounding cock away.

A strand of hair falls across her cheek, so I use it as an excuse to touch her again, tucking it behind her ear. We kiss again where I pour out all my appreciation for her forgiveness into it.

“Want to go home?” I ask, pulling her into a hug.

Her arms wrap around my waist as she nods yes against my chest.

“I want to, very much.”

As we lock up my house, for the first time I feel no remorse leaving it behind. We climb into the truck and as soon as we’re on our way, Edith unbuckles her seatbelt to move next to me.

Laying her head against my shoulder, she gazes up at me.

“Thank you for loving me.”

With a wink, I pull her against me and enjoy her warm softness at my side. “You make it so damn easy.”