Beau
I’d seen the confusion on Birdie’s face when Ma scooped up Juniper and declared she was going home with her and Dad for the night. But Birdie hadn’t said anything, just looked at me with her big blue eyes. And when I smiled and shrugged, she seemed to accept that everything was okay.
But it wasn’t. Because I hadn’t had a single chance to do anything nice for Birdie since the day Juniper came home.
She was safe, and that was important, but after everything had happened, especially with her fucked up work situation, I wanted to do something nice.
To show her how serious I was about dating her.
So, I’d pulled a few strings behind the scenes. Even Denver and Kip had volunteered to help out with my plans. And while the sun set on the horizon, they should have been putting the finishing touches on the plans I came up with.
“How would you fancy a stroll this evening?” I asked, bowing low as I pulled my hat off my head.
“Is this…are we going to?”
“We’re child-free for the evening, if you haven’t noticed.”
“Oh, I’ve noticed. Your mom even told me she’d keep Juniper until tomorrow afternoon if we wanted to catch up on sleep, since she knew we wouldn’t be doing much sleeping tonight.
I thought I was going to burst into flames!
” The last few words came out lower than a hiss, and I was holding my side as the stitch hit from how hard I was laughing.
“No hanky-panky before I get to wine and dine my girl.”
“Wow…this is a special day, isn’t it?”
“The most special,” I admitted.
I wrapped my hand over hers, and she followed me down the road.
“You’re just gonna leave your truck at Lach’s?”
“Yep. I’ll grab it tomorrow. No big deal.”
“Okay.” She looked over her shoulder, then back to the road. Her eyes went up to the sky, and she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth.
I planted my feet in the dirt. We hadn’t taken more than fifty steps, but I could tell something was wrong.
“If you don’t want to—”
“No! I do. I want to so bad. It’s just my mind being loud.”
I nodded. “Loud how?”
“I want it to be good for you, too,” she whispered. “And I don’t know how to make sure that it is.”
God, this woman. “Birdie, there is not any situation, in any universe, where us being together is going to be anything other than fucking bliss for me. Remember what happened just from us kissing?”
Her cheeks lit up brighter than the golden light of the sunset in front of us. “What if I break it?” she whispered.
“Break what?” I asked, thinking she meant the condom.
In which case, I’d be fucking thrilled, because the idea of having my baby in her belly felt so fucking right.
I’d been fucking forced right out of my fear of having kids when Juniper came home.
And now, I couldn’t stop thinking about growing our family.
“You know…” Her eyes dropped to my…er…zipper and she pointed with her finger. “It. People have broken them before.”
I lost it.
“Don’t laugh at me!” she giggled, as she slapped my arm. “We’re not young…I don’t want to do any permanent damage. I could be so bad that it happens.”
“We’ll avoid any positions that might put us in danger tonight, Chickadee. How about that?”
“And you know what those positions are?”
“Mmm. I think that after I show you I’m unbreakable, you’ll love riding me. I know I’ll love it, even if there is a risk of you breaking my dick.”
“Okay.”
“Come on.” I squeezed her hand and we started walking again. “Maybe we should talk about what you think you’d like.”
“Do we have to talk about it?” she squeaked. “I’m sure whatever happens will be great.”
“I’d actually like to talk about it because consent is key, and I want to make sure everything about tonight is special for you.”
Her hand lifted, and the heel of her palm pressed against her chest. “This shouldn’t be hard to talk about…so why is it?”
“Because it means so much to both of us,” I admitted as Birdie’s eyes widened. “When you are…handling things yourself…what are you thinking about?”
“Um.” There went her damn lip back under her teeth. “I usually picture one of the scenes from a book I’ve recently read. Something steamy…you know. Where he calls her a good girl in a growly voice and says she’s the only one for him.”
“And you picture the characters? When you’re touching yourself?” Fuck, why was I feeling jealous? Because I wanted to be the one she pictured? Because I wanted to know I lived so deep in her heart that she only ever thought of me. I was an asshole.
“Uh, no. Not exactly. I usually picture myself…”
“Yes…” I pushed.
“Um. Well it’s usually hard to get a lock on who is…uh…in my mind…”
We had stopped walking. At some point in this conversation, we’d turned to face each other, my body pulled towards hers so we were almost pressed against each other. I swept back a strand of hair that had fallen out of her braid at some point during the day.
“Just say it. You’re not going to hurt my feelings.”
“Well no,” she laughed. “I wouldn’t think your feelings would be hurt by knowing it’s you I always picture.”
My. Fucking. Heart. Stopped.
“Me?”
“Don’t act surprised! I told you that night on the porch…I told you I was waiting for someone I felt something deeper than a superficial connection. You’ve always been—”
I couldn’t wait a second longer. I pulled my hat off my head, bent down, and captured her lips with mine.
My arms slid around her back, and when Birdie jumped, I caught her.
The weight of her legs wrapped around my hips felt so fucking right.
She kissed the hell out of me. That same zap of excitement rolled through me like the first time we kissed.
My hands slid over her ass and I squeezed.
“We have to stop,” I groaned as she pulled away. “We have to stop or I’m never going to be able to make it to your surprise. I’ll have to run home with you in my arms and the guys will never let me live down everything they did while we were at Lachlan’s.”
Her eyes went wide as her lips dropped open. And I lost my resolve. “You know what? Fuck ‘em. You’re worth all the razzing in the world.”
“No!” Birdie wiggled down out of my hold. “No. I can behave. I want to see the surprise. Please.” She frowned, and I was done for.
“Come on. The faster we eat, the sooner I can feast on you.”
“What in the world is all this?” Birdie’s eyes sparkled under the dusky sky as we walked up to the picnic area the guys had helped me set up. Thank God for Denver and Kip not being completely useless. I’d half expected it to come out a disaster.
“This is all that romance I promised you,” I whispered as I pulled her into my side, sneaking a kiss on her temple before she smiled and started pulling me toward the blanket.
We settled onto the ground next to the pillows that were placed against the cooler.
I tried to release the tension in my shoulders; there had been a tightness there all day as I checked in with Birdie.
Not out loud, but just watching the way she moved.
How she seemed when no one was watching. Well, no one but me.
I’d been waiting for the other shoe to drop. For the panic to set back in. For her to cry, or scream, or be angry about what was happening with her job. But she’d been so strong all day. So locked in on enjoying every moment with Juniper and my family.
“I can’t believe how many stars are already out. The view out here is always unmatched.”
“It really is,” I answered. I couldn’t help the heat that crawled up my chest as I looked at her, so unburdened by stress or worry. It truly was just her and I, out here under all these stars. And I wasn’t about to waste that precious gift.
“Were you just looking at me when you said that?” she asked, a smile spreading across her face as she crinkled up her nose.
“Of course. You’re my favorite view.”
“Smooth.” But there was no denying her smile was genuine.
I wiggled my eyebrows. “So smooth it deserves a kiss?”
“So smooth I want you to do a lot more than just kiss me.”
I settled a hand on her face, my thumb skimming over the freckles that had popped up across her cheeks and nose during our day in the sun. “I haven’t fed you yet.”
“I’d rather you eat first…”
I pressed my lips to hers, licking at the seam, begging for entrance.
Her mouth opened, teeth raking over my bottom lip.
Our eyes met for a moment, and I saw the last wall Birdie had in place crumble.
She was giving herself to me. Outside of fatherhood, I couldn’t think of a more precious gift to be given.
“I love you so much,” I admitted. “But I was planning on taking you home for that part of our night.”
“I love you, too. And I want you now. Here. Please don’t make me beg…”
“Never. You never have to beg, unless you discover that you like that.”
Her mouth dropped open into a little circle as she shook her head. “No. I don’t. I know I don’t.”
“Then you won’t.” My fingers moved from her collarbone, to behind her neck, where I pulled the knot out of the straps holding her dress up.
Birdie’s skin pebbled as the thin fabric fell down her arms, my lips kissing the sexy dip right at the edge of her neck.
I trailed kisses over her chest, my fingers working the fabric down her body.
The kisses never stopped. I pressed my lips over the sweet, soft swell of her breasts, my dick now painfully hard, seeking any kind of friction for relief as my tongue flicked out over her peaked nipple.
Birdie gasped, her fingers raking through my hair, pressing my head into her chest as her back arched into me. I wrapped my arms around her back and leaned, laying her down on the pillows.
“That’s better,” I whispered as I pressed myself between her legs. I slipped down her body until my hands were under her hips, and my head rested just between her legs.
“Lift your dress up for me.” She didn’t waste a second before following my command. My thumbs hooked the band of her panties, pulling until the fabric ripped. The sound of Birdie’s sharp breath was so fucking satisfying.
“Oh my God! Beau, I liked those!”