Wild Hearts (The Wilde Brothers #5)

Chapter 20

20

ADDISON

I didn't need any presents for Christmas. It was enough that Walker was back in my life and I'd gained his daughter as a friend. But the fact that he wanted to spend a weekend alone with me felt really good.

Dakota came first, but I liked that he wanted to carve out private time for us, especially since it was too soon for me to sleep overnight. I had something to look forward to.

The holiday with my parents, even with Crystal in town, was quiet. But dinner with the Wildes was wild.

It was loud and crazy with lots of laughing and joking. There was a ton of food and drink. Everyone was happy. Clara seemed ecstatic to have all her children in one house.

Killian had his leg propped on the ottoman with the ever-present bag of ice on his knee. He had a perpetual frown on his face.

I imagined it was tough to be injured in the middle of the season, but I hoped for his family's sake that he got out of his cranky mood.

Dinner was served at a large dining room table. I remembered being here when I was younger, but I was never invited to Christmas dinner. Back then, we spent time with our respective families. It was nice to be included now.

Joey was placed next to Dakota, and I heard her ask him, "What did Santa bring you?"

He ticked the items of his list, and she listened with rapt attention.

When he was finished, she said, "Wow. You're so lucky to get all of that. Can I come over and see your new toys?"

He nodded enthusiastically, and then asked, "What did you get?"

A smile curved over her face. "An easel with new paints and brushes."

"Oh, I love painting."

Dakota smiled. "Yeah? Maybe you can come over sometime and we can paint."

"Can I, Dad?" Joey asked Oliver.

"Can I what?" Oliver asked, looking from him to Dakota with a bemused expression on his face.

"Can I go over to Dakota's and paint? She got an easel for Christmas."

Oliver looked at Walker. "If that's okay with Dakota and her dad."

"Joey's always welcome at my house," Walker said.

Conversation went on around us, but I noticed that Walker was pleased that Dakota was interested in Joey. She was good with him.

Walker turned his attention to me. "How are you holding up?"

"This is different from my family, but it's nice." You couldn't feel alone surrounded by this many people who were all in a jubilant mood.

"I, for one, am pleased to have another grandchild at the table this year," Clara said with a smile.

Dakota flushed. "I'm happy to be here too. "

"It would be nice to have a few more grandbabies around here. I haven't held a baby in a long time," Clara said with her brow raised.

"Grams, I'm still a baby. You can always hold me," Joey said around a mouthful of roll.

"You are my baby, aren't you?" Clara said affectionately.

Talk continued around us, and I reveled in being part of the Wilde family. There was no way that Walker could walk away from this again. He seemed happy, and so was Dakota. She was fitting in here and enjoying spending time with her new family. I didn't have to worry about them going to Virginia. Nothing was going to change.

After dinner, I helped clean up.

Clara took a dish from me. "It's good to have you around again, Addison."

"It's good to be here. Thank you for including me."

"You've always been good for Walker. He needs you in his life. I don't know what happened that caused you two to break up?—"

For the moment, it was just us in the kitchen. "I suppose it was bad timing. We were young."

She pressed her lips together. "For what it's worth, I told him he was an idiot for breaking things off. You can meet the one you're supposed to be with when you're young. It happens."

"You don't think that maybe it was just not the right time for us? We're older and more mature now. We're in a different place in our lives."

"Oh, definitely. Yes."

Scarlett came in with the leftover bowls. "What are you two talking about?"

"Walker and Addison. I thought they made a great pair in high school. Walker was hard to reach back then, and Addison was the only one who could make him smile. "

"Oh, I don't know about that," I said a little embarrassed by the scrutiny.

"He'd just lost his parents and felt out of place here with us. No matter what we did, he didn’t feel like a part of the family. I think that's why he enlisted. He thought he wasn’t enough for any of us. But now, it seems like he feels differently. I think he finally feels like he's part of our family."

"I think so too," I said softly.

"I'm happy to have another woman at these things. Sometimes there's a lot of testosterone in one room, if you know what I mean," Scarlett said conspiratorially.

"You have Carolina, Tori, and Kylie," I pointed out.

Scarlett nodded. "But now we have Dakota and you. It's even better."

"What are we going to do about Killian? He's a bear right now. He's staying in the penthouse. But I'm worried he's going to scare off all the guests in the hotel," Clara said.

"Eli is worried about him. He sat at the bar last night and drank, complaining about his doctors and physical therapists. Saying they won't let him work out, when it's clear that he's in no condition to be on a mountain."

Clara shook her head. "The boys seem to think that assigning Noelle as his personal assistant will help. She'll get him anything he needs, and they used to be friends."

Scarlett exchanged a look with me. "I'm not so sure about that. Something happened between them, but she won't tell us."

"Noelle is private," I added.

"I think the boys just want someone else to deal with him. I feel bad for Noelle and the poor physical therapist who has to work with him. He thinks he can just do his own workout without any assistance. He doesn't want to listen to his doctors, and he's going to hurt himself even more."

"Killian's a big boy. He'll come around," Scarlett said with more confidence than any of us felt .

"He's used to being on the slopes and surrounded by adoring fans. He won't find that here," Clara said.

Scarlett smiled. "Maybe this will be good for him and force him and Noelle to figure out whatever happened between them."

I wondered if they'd engaged in a one-night stand or a relationship but kept it a secret. It seemed like something Noelle would do. I'd never seen her really date anyone. She always said she was too busy, but what if she just kept it quiet?

Clara disappeared into the dining room.

Scarlett lowered her voice. "Are you thinking what I am?"

"That Noelle needs to come to terms with whatever happened between her and Killian?"

Scarlett grinned. "I think some matchmaking is in order."

"We don't know that they even dated or liked each other. They were friends." Or at least that's what Noelle always said.

Scarlett chewed her lip. "Killian dated the popular girls in school, and I think it bothered her."

"And what? Maybe one day he realized he liked her? This isn't a rom-com."

"Maybe they didn't want to mess up their friendship, but something happened, and it did anyway."

"That's quite a theory. Have you been watching a lot of romance movies?" I asked her.

Scarlett sighed. "Possibly. But it makes for a nice story."

"But we could be wrong, and Noelle wouldn't like us talking about her."

"She'd hate it. But what if a little meddling meant a happily-ever-after? It worked for us, and now you."

"I wouldn't jump to a happily-ever-after for me yet. I don't know if this is permanent or not."

Scarlett gave me a look. "Please. I see the way he looks at you, and Dakota adores you. "

"That's sweet." I loved that they wanted to spend time with me.

We played some games after dinner, and when Dakota was tired, we headed home. Dakota hugged us, and then said she was going to bed.

"I'm exhausted," I said as I plopped onto the couch.

Walker wiggled his brows. "You don't want to play around in the bedroom?"

I grinned. "If you do all the work."

He scooped me into his arms, and I laughed.

"That can be arranged."

He closed and locked his door, setting me on the bed. He undressed slowly. "It's a good thing the master is across the house from the other bedrooms."

"Lucky you."

He winked at me. "It's going to be lucky you in a second."

I moved to take off my shirt, and he stopped me. "Let me. I'm supposed to do all the work, remember?"

"That hardly seems fair," I murmured as he pushed down his pants and briefs.

"I gave my word, and I always keep it."

When he was naked, he placed me on the bed and pushed me backward. "We have all night for me to worship you." He kissed my neck. "She won't come over here. She never does. You know how teenagers are. I bet she's playing with her new laptop."

"You're a great dad, you know?"

He lifted his head. "You don't think I'm spoiling her?"

"Not yet. You had a few years to make up for."

"That's what I thought. I've saved my money all my adult life, and who better to spend it on than my daughter?"

I ran my fingers through his short hair.

"But I'm focused on you." He nibbled on my earlobe, then sucked .

A tingle ran down my spine as he shoved my shirt up and kissed my stomach. I widened my legs, letting him settle between them.

He pulled the lace cups of my bra down and admired my breasts. "You're so beautiful."

"Mmm. You are too."

He sucked one nipple into his mouth, and my brain short-circuited. I wanted more of his wet mouth on my body. I wanted everything.

When my nipple was a hard nub, he moved to the other one, the hard ridge of his cock pressing against the seem of my pants.

"Walker. I want to feel you." I wanted him inside me.

"I'm not done with you yet." Then he moved down my body, pulling my pants down. I lifted up, pulling my sweater the rest of the way off. I unhooked my bra, and he gazed appreciatively at my body. Then he settled between my legs, parting my folds. "You're already wet for me."

As much as I loved his mouth on me, I really wanted his cock filling me up. But when he licked my pussy, my body locked up. I was powerless to say no, not when he worked his tongue over me. I fell onto my back, giving into the overwhelming sensations.

I whimpered when he added a finger, his tongue circling my clit. I was close to going over, but I wanted more. "I want you inside me."

With a growl, Walker moved up my body, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. Then he fed his dick inside me. It felt so good, so much better than last time. I gripped his forearms, which were taut.

His gaze was on the spot where his cock was inside me. I got wetter just thinking about what he could see and how it was affecting him. He braced his hands on either side of my head and thrust inside me .

Every flick of his hips hit something deep inside me. The desire was coiling, and my body prepped to go over.

Then he dropped his mouth to mine, kissing me as the orgasm shot through my body. It only seemed to encourage him to move faster, thrust harder. Within a few seconds, he released inside me. I savored the weight of his body until he moved to my side.

"Dakota mentioned me having more kids this morning."

"Oh?" I asked, my heart thumping.

"She said so I could experience all the firsts with a new baby." He was quiet for a few seconds, then added, "But that seems wrong."

I rested my head onto his shoulder. "You'll never get those firsts with Dakota."

"And I shouldn't have another child just to experience having a small baby or a child."

"It comes down to whether you want to have another child. It's not really about Dakota," I said carefully. I'd never navigated this particular situation, especially with a boyfriend.

"Wouldn't it be a big gap between Dakota and a baby?"

"Dakota's great with kids. I'm sure she'll be a good big sister. She's the one who's encouraging you."

"I'm overthinking this. It's just I never really thought about it. I was so busy with work; I couldn't see myself settling down and having kids. But everything's different now."

"You don't have the constraints of the military schedule."

"For now, I want to enjoy having Dakota in my life."

"That's fair. You only just got her." I tried not to read too much into this conversation. It was his first time considering having kids after he discovered he had a surprise teenager. He didn't ask me what I wanted. But he'd only just considered it as a possibility. Maybe he wasn't thinking of kids with me yet.

I tried not to let that bother me. My head was reeling with anxiety when his breathing evened out .

I hoped I wasn't making a mistake being with him. That all he needed was time and everything would come together. He'd realize what he wanted out of life, and we could have that discussion. We were so new. We had plenty of time.