Chapter Thirty-One Dare
A va put the kibosh on Piper’s playtime shortly before we ran out of tickets. Apparently, it was getting close to her bedtime. Since she was still pissed at me, she told Piper that, not me.
When Piper whined and refused to get out of the ride she was on, I remembered Thomas’s words. Reaching inside, I picked her up and pulled her out. As she shrieked in protest, I said, “Piper, your Mommy said it was time to go, so we’re going.”
“But yous don’t have to do what she says,” she countered through hiccuping cries.
I didn’t bother glancing at Ava. I could only imagine the stone-cold fury emanating from her face. I shook my head at her. “Good little girls listen to their mommies. You want to be a good girl, don’t you?”
“I wants to pway!” she protested.
“It’s time for us to go.”
“But–”
“No, buts.” Reaching into my memory, I remembered one of the threats Callum used on Julianna. “And if you don’t stop crying, I’m going to call Santa and tell him what a bad girl you’re being.”
Piper’s eyes bulged comically wide. “No, no!”
“Then are you going to be a good girl?”
She bobbed her head obediently. And just like Callum always had Julianna apologize to Caterina for not listening, I said, “Now tell your Mommy you’re sorry.”
“I’d sowyy, Mommy.”
Ava merely blinked in disbelief at me and Piper. “Uh…good. Right.”
“Come on. Let’s go home.” Before I could set Piper on her feet, she wrapped her arms around my neck. When I dared to glance at Ava, her jaw unhinged.
Since I still didn’t have a fucking clue about the car seat, I just eased back for Ava to do it. To give her the space she desired from me, I decided to sit up front with Thomas.
The drive back to Ava’s was quiet. When I peered in the backseat, Piper’s eyes were heavy, and I could tell she was fighting sleep. Ava was furiously texting on her phone. I could only imagine she was talking to Nick and telling him what an asshole I’d been, forcing her to let me take them to dinner and then offering to take Piper to get her cat.
When we pulled into the driveway, Ava began working on Piper’s buckles. “Come on, Pipes. We need to get you inside and in bed.”
“Hang tight, Thomas. I’ll walk them in.”
“Yes, sir.”
As I was getting out of the passenger side, Ava got out with Piper. When I started to hang back, Piper glanced at me over her shoulder. “Mommy, can Dare reads my bedtime story?”
Ava’s body tensed. To my surprise, she nodded. “Of course, sweetheart.”
I fell instep beside them. At the thought of what my nieces and nephews' bedtime routine entailed, I rubbed the back of my neck. “Should I wait downstairs during bathtime?”
“Piper takes her baths in the morning.” At what must’ve been my surprised look, she replied, “She still has some nighttime accidents.”
Piper shrieked in horror. “Don’t tells him dat!”
“Watch your tone, young lady,” Ava chastised.
As Piper peeked at me in mortification, I held my hands up. “It’s okay. I used to have accidents until I was five.”
“You did?” she asked.
“I sure did.” Chuckling, I replied, “None of my brothers ever wanted me to sleep with me because I’d get them wet.”
Piper giggled. “Oh no.”
“I grew out of it, and you will too. It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“Okay,” she replied with a yawn.
After Ava unlocked the door, we headed inside. As she typed in code on the alarm system’s keypad, I remarked, “I’m glad to see you have that.”
Ava merely nodded and started up the stairs with Piper in her arms. She stopped at the first bedroom on the right. When we entered Piper’s room, I was surprised not to be assaulted by a pink overload. Instead, her walls were done in mint green with some purple.
“Looks like you’re a fan of green, huh?”
“I am.”
A smile curved on my lips. “Me too.”
“Is your room gween?”
Chuckling, I replied, “No. But as much as I like yours, I might have to redo it.”
While Ava got Piper into her pajamas, I eyed her bookshelf of books. When a green spine caught my eye, I pulled it out. “Spot’s Lucky Day,” I murmured.
“Dat’s one of my favs,” Piper replied back, her voice muffled as Ava pulled her pajama top over her head.
“Then we’ll read it.”
Once her pajamas were on, Ava ushered Piper into the bathroom to brush her teeth. I waited patiently for them to return. When they did, Piper threw back the covers and hopped in bed. To my surprise, she patted a spot on the bed. “Yous can sit here.”
With a nod, I eased down beside her. I then began regaling her with the story of Spot. When I finished, Piper’s eyes were heavy. “
“ Aisling milis,” I whispered.
“What’s dat mean?”
“It means sweet dreams in Irish. That’s another language that I speak.”
“And whys you talks funny.”
I laughed. “Yeah, that’s why.”
“Night.”
As I rose off the bed, I hesitated. I didn’t know if it was the right thing to do or not or if Ava would appreciate me doing it. But I did it instead.
Leaning over, I kissed Piper on the top of the head. Without another word, I headed to the doorway where Ava stood. Although she kept her mouth shut, I could feel the anger flowing off of her.
Since I knew she wanted to talk to me, I started down the stairs. “Where are you going?”
“Downstairs so we can talk,” I replied.
When we got to the bottom of the stairs, Ava crossed her arms over her chest. “I thought you were running away from me.”
“No, that’s what you do.”
The instant the words left my lips I regretted them. I sure as hell wasn’t taking Thomas’s advice by groveling. No, I was poking the fuck out of the bear instead.
Smacking her palms against my chest, Ava shoved me, sending me crashing back into the opposite wall. Her nostrils flared before she stalked over to me. She eyed me contemptuously. “You fucking bastard. First, you undermine my parenting, and then you come at me with that bullshit.”
“I wasn’t trying to undermine you. I just wanted more time with Piper.”
“By playing the hero and taking her to get her cat.”
“You’re the hero for telling her she could have one.”
“Bullshit.”
“I don’t know why you’re making such a big deal about this. Maybe it was a cheap shot telling her I’d take her. But it’s not like I told her I’d get her a cat when you said she couldn’t have one.”
“You think you can just waltz in here and change the world I’ve built for Piper.”
“That’s not what I want at all. I just want a part in her world.” Swallowing hard, I added, “And in yours.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“I am. I meant everything I said today in my office.”
“Well, I want nothing to do with you.”
Once again, I decided to poke, rather than grovel. Leaning over, I slid my nose up the column of her throat. “Tell that to your wet panties, love.”
In a flash, both of Ava’s hands reached out, and I braced myself for her to hit or choke me. I wasn’t even going to defend myself because I deserved it.
Instead, she fisted my shirt before ripping it open, sending buttons scattering onto the floor. A wild look flashed in her eyes as she surveyed her handiwork.
“Damn, woman, I thought you were going to choke me. This is infinitely better,” I remarked with a grin.
“Shut up,” Ava snapped.
“Yes, ma’am.”
Her arms snaked around my neck, tugging the hair at the base of my neck. Her lips came down harsh against mine, and I welcomed the warmth of her tongue in my mouth. God, I’d missed her taste. Despite all the women I’d had since I’d been with her, none of them had her taste.
It drove me fucking wild.
Grasping her by the ass, I hoisted her up to wrap her legs around my waist. I spun us around, pinning her against the wall. With one hand, Ava’s fingers jerked through my hair, tugging almost painfully at the strands while the other slipped between us to stroke my dick over my pants. “Fuck, Ava,” I groaned into her mouth, causing her to rub me even harder.
I dipped my head to nip at her breast through her shirt. My tongue wet the fabric as I circled her peaked nipple. When I grazed it with my teeth, Ava whimpered. I pumped my hips against her hand, working the friction to my advantage. I realized if I kept it up, I was going to blow my load right there in my pants, which wouldn’t do either of us any good.
Grabbing Ava’s hand off my dick, I guided it between her legs. Jerking her lips from mine, Ava’s wide eyes flared with desire when I used her own fingers to stroke her over her soaked panties. “Mmm, Dare,” she whimpered, rocking her hips.
“Do you want to get off with my fingers or yours?”
“Yours, please.”
“Fuck. That word on your lips.”
“Take me to bed, Dare,” she pleaded.
“I thought you’d never ask.” I brought my mouth back to hers, kissing her feverishly. When I got to the hallway, I glanced around. “Where’s your bedroom?”
“Two doors down from Piper’s,” she mumbled against my lips.
Although my knees screamed in agony from where Piper had smacked me with the bat, I carried Ava upstairs. Our lips remained locked as our tongues battled angrily against each other.
When I got into the bedroom, I gently eased Ava down on the mattress. I took off what was left of my shirt as Ava reached for my belt buckle. Within seconds, she was tearing my pants and briefs down over my hips, sending my cock springing forward.
After I stepped out of my pants, Ava reached around my back, pulling me on top of her. My dick rubbed against her wet heat, causing us both to moan. I continued thrusting against her, sending her hips moving in a frenzy. “Do you want to come now or with my cock buried in you?”
“Inside me. Please.”
Just as I was about to thrust inside her, Ava smacked her palms against my chest. “Wait!
“What?”
“Do you have a condom?”
“Yeah. One sec.”
A girlish giggle slipped from her lips. “Why am I not surprised you’re not without a condom?”
“Some things never change.”
After grabbing my pants off the floor, I snatched one out of my wallet. Once I rolled it down my length, I was back in her arms.
Ava opened her thighs to me, and I positioned myself between them. Taking my cock in my hand, I brought it to her opening. With one thrust, I buried myself deep inside.
She felt like heaven, and I groaned in pleasure. “Fuck, I’ve missed this.”
“I’ve missed it, too.”
Staring into her eyes, I said, “I’ve missed you, Ava.”
Instead of repeating my words, she brought her lips to mine. Instead of the pounding sex we’d had in the past, this was surprisingly slow, tender, and…heartfelt. It caused a whole range of emotions to ripple through me. As I kept my eyes on hers, Ava’s hips rose to meet my thrusts. Her whimpers and moans made me hot as hell, but I reined myself in. It felt too good and it’d been too long to have it end too soon.
When Ava came, her arms clutched me tighter against her. Her cries echoed through the bedroom, but I loved that she called my name. It didn’t take long before I was tensing up and coming inside her.
After I was done, I didn’t immediately roll off her. Instead, I let her continue swirling lazy circles with her fingers on my back while I buried my face in her neck. I inhaled her soft skin and smelled the perfume she wore all those years ago. The silky strands of her hair tickled my nose, and I rose up to kiss a trail over her neck and chin and slowly back to her mouth. I thrust my tongue inside, seeking out her warmth.
It didn’t take too long being so intimately close to her for my cock to rise to the occasion again.
When she pulled her lips from mine, Ava grinned up at me. “I see some things never change.”
“Like I said before, never doubt my stamina.”
And then I began kissing a wet trail down the valley of her breasts and to my favorite place to be–Ava’s pussy.