Chapter 19 #2
He sinks inside me, filling me with one smooth thrust, and I’m sure I see his eyes roll. “Jesus, fuck. Your pussy feels like nirvana, you know that?”
Nirvana is a pretty good word to describe this.
Nirvana, bliss, paradise. Elysium. All of the above and more.
He kisses me again, tongue tangling lazily with mine as he fucks me gently, drawing out another rolling orgasm from me before he finds his own release.
Afterwards, we lie together on the sheets.
“That’s a real good way of getting rid of awkward tension about your boss catching you in bed with his brother,” I say.
“You bet, baby. Any time you need some stress relief, you know where I am.”
I laugh and curl up into his arms. He holds me close, dusting kisses on the side of my face. I feel so deliciously floppy, my limbs exhausted, a big dumb smile on my face.
“So, you know I missed brunch at my Dad’s house.”
“I know. I’m sorry about that.”
He nips my ear playfully. “No need to be sorry, I was definitely having a better time here with you. But Mason said we should, uh, come to dinner.”
I tense slightly and hope he doesn’t notice. “Dinner?” I squeak. “With your Dad?”
“Not just my Dad. It will also be all of my brothers, their partners, and their kids. Possibly some dogs.”
I gulp. It’s a lot. “I do like dogs.”
Maddox strokes my arm. “There’s no pressure, Ellie. I know my family can be a little intimidating.”
I think of my own family. My two younger sisters and my kid brother, the ones I looked after all on my own from when I was fifteen until I was eighteen…
I push that thought away. Those memories have no place here today.
Then there’s my adopted family. I’m not officially adopted because I was an adult when I met them, but that doesn’t make them any less family to me, and they make sure I know they feel the same every single day.
My adopted mom, Keres. A name which means spirit of death, one that she’s lived up to in her past. My dads, Romeo and Ace, and the way they look out for all of us constantly.
How tough they are, and how proud they always are of me.
Then of course there’s the extended adopted Chicago clan, the Morettis.
Probably something else about my life I’ll have to talk to Maddox about soon, but I don’t expect he’ll have any kind of issue with where I came from.
He’s non-judgmental like that. Yeah, even with all of those people in my family, a dinner with the entire James clan is still intimidating. Nothing I can’t handle, though.
I grin and gaze up at him. “I’d love to come for dinner. I’m okay with it, as long as you are. Because that whole no pressure thing goes both ways. This is new, and we’re both taking baby steps.”
“Baby steps,” he murmurs before pressing a soft kiss on my lips. “Then I guess it’s settled. And we still have a couple of hours left to ourselves before we have to leave.”
“Any ideas what you’d like to do?” I ask cheekily, even though I don’t think my tender, swollen lady parts could take any more of him right now.
He beams. “Dinner is four hours away and I’m pretty sure we should hydrate or something. So, how about I make us some snacks.”
My stomach growls at the thought.
Maddox’s hand slides to my ass. “And then I’m thinking I bring you back to bed so we can just spend the rest of the afternoon making out. Naked.”
Holy goddesses, he is the most perfect man in the history of men. “Sounds perfect.”
I stopped by my apartment to change on the way to dinner and was delighted to feel the cool rush of air on my face.
Looks like Mr. O worked a miracle with the AC.
It seems to be the season for blessings, and I send up a little prayer of thanks to the universe for the ones I’ve received—cool air, Maddox’s homemade waffles for lunch, and multiple screaming orgasms. Especially the last one.
The James family home is pretty much what I thought it would be—a huge mansion in attractive landscaped gardens, with gorgeous balconies and stylish architecture.
But it’s very much a family home. The kids and the three rescue dogs all add to the chaotic charm, and I feel comfortable there straight-away, despite the odd situation.
Maddox and I walk into the garden and find everybody out enjoying the summer weather.
The babies are sleeping in the strollers, safely shielded from early evening sun, and his oldest nephew Luke is throwing a ball for a fluffy white dog.
Each time it brings the ball back and drops it at his feet, Luke lets out the cutest full-throated chuckle that makes his round body vibrate. He really is a little chubmuffin.
“Hey,” Mason says, standing up to greet us. “You made it. I’m so happy you managed to drag yourselves out of bed.”
Nathan shoots him a warning look and gestures to Luke, who’s listening with interest. “Out of bed, where you were having a real nice time reading the Gruffalo and taking a nap,” Mason adds quickly.
“Yeah. We made it,” Maddox replies. He’s holding my hand, and it’s so sweet.
I am vaguely nervous, because this is all so new.
I’ve met all of them before, and obviously know some better than others, but I’ve never been to the family home.
This is a different situation to being at a charity function or saying hi in the Jamestech offices.
I’m not sure what the etiquette is here. I mean, what do I say? How do I fit in?
Maddox gives my hand a reassuring squeeze. “Everyone, I know you’ve all met Ellie before, and most of you know her as the Jamestech VP of marketing. But today, well, she’s here because she’s also my girlfriend.”
I blush, the warmth on my cheeks spreading to my heart. He made it clear earlier today that he wanted more, that our time together hadn’t been a one-off. But hearing him say that to his whole family makes me go mushy inside.
Everybody cheers, and all of Maddox’s brothers gather ‘round him at once. There are hugs at first, which quickly turn to them football tackling him to the grass and roughhousing. Amber, Melanie, Amelia, and King head over and offer me welcoming words and hugs. Then we all watch our James men with amusement as they roll around the grass. Luke takes a flying leap and lands right in the middle of them, showing zero fear. He crowd-surfs his dad and uncles like he’s in a mosh pit, laughing his little head off.
Melanie goes slightly pale. “That child is too much like his father for my peace of mind,” she says with a shudder.
Dalton James, Maddox’s father and the granddaddy of Jamestech, strides over. He holds out his hand and I shake it, but then he pulls me in for an embrace. “Welcome to the family, Ellie. We couldn’t be happier to have you here. Now, who’s hungry?”
Everybody is, of course, and we all head inside the house for drinks before dinner.
Nathan and Drake enjoy showing me some embarrassing baby pictures of Maddox.
I get baby cuddles with both Henry and Evie, am honored to be given a gift of a building block from Luke, and King and Mason’s dogs scamper around the place.
It’s loud and fun, and I love it, no matter how overwhelming it is.
King winks at me. “Get used to it, Ellie. It’s always like this. The best families in the world aren’t necessarily the ones you’re born into.”
I know King was born into one of the absolute worst. His childhood was filled with trauma that he’s now quite open about.
Mine wasn’t exactly a fairy tale either.
I know exactly what he means, and I feel a rush of happiness at being part of all of this.
At the banter, the laughter, the way that everybody here is uniquely themselves but also part of a loving whole.
My New York family just got a whole lot bigger.
Dinner is a blast, and I don’t think I’ve laughed so much for an age.
Amber and Amelia are hilarious. Mel is the sweetest human ever.
Nathan is so dry and biting that he has me creased up laughing numerous times.
Drake has the best stories, Elijah is caring and considerate and looks after everyone so well, and Mason is his usual fun and charming self.
Most of all, though, I can’t keep the smile off my face because of him.
Because of Maddox.
He stays by my side for most of the evening and always seems to be touching me. A hand on my back, a thigh pressed against mine, a quick kiss dropped on my shoulder. He is ever-present. Far from feeling smothered like I have with other over-attentive men in the past, I absolutely love it.
I can’t get enough of him, either.
The night starts to wind up, and I glance at Maddox as he says goodnight to the babies, kissing them on their fuzzy heads. He’s going to be such a good dad one day…and boom, just like that, my womb contracts.
It’s insane, I know, but I can’t help thinking about it—about a future for the two of us, maybe a future for the three of us, four of us, five of us.
I’ve always wanted a big family. Keres says I have a whole world of love to give, and I think she might be right.
I know I’m young, and I’m focusing on my career, yet it all feels possible now.
But I’m jumping the gun, getting way ahead of myself. Maddox and I have been friends for a while, but this part is new. I need to walk before I can run. I’m getting carried away and fantasizing about a life that might never happen, like I used to when I was a little girl.
Although eventually my dreams did come true when Keres, Ace and Romeo came into our lives. But I made that happen because of what I did.
So, maybe I can make all of my dreams come true then. Huh.
We arrive back at my apartment and stand outside the door.
Fantasy or not, I’d be quite happy for Maddox to come upstairs with me right now and start practicing for the baby-making.
He looks down at me, and I suddenly feel nervous.
I have no idea why. Maybe it’s because I want him so much it feels a little overwhelming.
“So. The AC was fixed,” I tell him. “Would you, uh, like to come up? I have that green tea you like.”
He doesn’t answer, and my nerves do a little tap dance inside my stomach.
This feels borderline awkward, and maybe this is what I was afraid of—that the whole phenomenal sex-thing would affect our already phenomenal friendship.
I wouldn’t normally feel awkward asking Maddox if he wanted to come up for a tea, not even a tiny bit.
He slips his thumb beneath my chin, turns my face up so I’m looking into his eyes. Goddess of all that’s holy, the man is disgustingly good-looking.
“I’m going to take a raincheck on that, baby, if you don’t mind. I have such a big day tomorrow, and a super-early meeting. I need to get some sleep. I don’t think I’ll get much at all if I’m around you.”
He grins, but is he just being nice when he says that? He hasn’t even kissed me.
“Okay, that’s cool. Uh, see you soon.”
I turn to leave, eaten up with embarrassment, but I don’t make it more than a single step away from him.
He grabs hold of me, slamming my body into his.
He kisses me then. So well I almost fall over.
Once he’s done, he keeps his arms around me for support and squeezes my ass.
I’m in a daze, and even more so when he leans down and whispers into my ear, “Take this sexy ass of yours off to bed, Ellie. You need some rest too, baby. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay? ”
I nod, incapable of speech. He kisses me again and leaves me there. In a puddle of desire and ‘what the fuck just happened?’