Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
Laney
God, what is wrong with me?
As soon as Ayden gave me the most mind-blowing orgasm I’ve ever had, my head clouded with doubt.
What if we don’t work out or he hates it here?
What if he blames me for being stuck in Texas and leaves again, breaking my heart for a second time?
His proclaiming his love for me has made everything so real. It’s what I’d wanted all these years, but now that it’s happened, I’m swarmed with anxiety.
Ayden being here is a dream come true and everything I’ve ever wanted, but I’m worried my lack of sexual experience will add to my insecurities and fears.
It’s been years since I’ve been intimate with a man, and even before the last time I was, it had been years before that with Ayden.
He was my first and only up until my divorce.
My mom pushed me to go for it and date again, but it was an awful experience.
As he had me on the counter, spread out like his favorite holiday feast, there was that lingering doubt that I wasn’t as sexually experienced as I once was with him.
We couldn’t keep our hands off each other during our teens, but it was puppy love.
We had no responsibilities and no one else to compare the other to.
But now, nothing felt as intimate as when his head was between my thighs, and I was floating to heaven on an orgasmic wave.
The aftershock of what we’d done hit me harder than I expected.
It’d been years since I’d felt that kind of intimacy, and I mentally shut down.
However, the last thing I want is for him to think I’m not attracted to him or share the same feelings.
I just need to push through my self-doubt and go for what I truly want.
So when I hear Ayden get in the shower an hour before we have to leave, I decide to go for it. He leaves in two days, and even though he’s already agreed to move here, I want to make it crystal clear that I’m in this for the long haul, too.
I strip off my clothes, inhale a deep breath, and open the bathroom door. Steam covers most of him through the glass door, but the outline of him is visible enough for me to see how good he looks.
When I open the door, Ayden blinks at me and slowly lowers his gaze down my naked body. Stepping in, I move under the warm water, then close the door behind me.
“Good mornin’,” I say casually.
He scrubs a hand over his face, wiping water out of his eyes and hair, and smirks. “Mornin’.”
“You don’t mind if I join you, do ya?”
“Uh, not at all.” He smiles wide as his eyes linger on my chest.
“You gonna stare at me the whole time or share the water?”
He wraps his arms around my waist and then pushes me to the wall. “Oh, I plan to do more than stare, baby.”
Grabbing the back of his neck, I pull his mouth to mine and intertwine my tongue with his.
He abruptly breaks away. “Wait. What about Serena?”
“My mom took her to Arrow Café for donuts and will meet us at the museum.”
“Good, then you don’t have to be quiet this time.” He yanks me up until my legs wrap around him.
Our mouths crash, and heat pools between my thighs as his erection pulses against me. Lifting my hips, I rock into him, telling him exactly what I want.
“Ayden...” I nearly beg when he doesn’t help dull the ache.
He moves his kisses to my neck. “Are you sure, Laney? I was serious when I said I didn’t have condoms.”
“Yes, I’m positive. I want you.”
He growls in my ear. “Say that again.”
I reach down between us, grip his shaft, and stroke him. “I want you, Ayden. Fuck me, please.”
“Such a good girl usin’ her manners.” The devious smirk on his face has me angling myself to position the tip of his cock against my pussy.
“Take what you want, baby,” he demands.
Arching slightly, he greets me with a thrust and pushes inside. With a gasp, I take all of him as he holds me tighter. My heart races at the strong connection I’ve missed for so long.
“Holy fuck.” He presses his forehead to mine, and I know he feels it too.
As Ayden pins me with his hips, the water cascades over us, and our breaths catch with each intense movement.
“I’ve missed this, Laney. I’ve missed you.” He cups my breast and squeezes as his lips find mine.
Ayden’s tender words have me reaching closer to the ledge and racing toward the high that’s soon to take over my entire body. He has me feeling everything at once—desired, needed, loved. I’ve never felt anything this intense before.
“We’ve missed out on so much for so long,” I breathe out, holding on to his shoulders as he increases the pace.
“I’m gonna make it up to you. I promise.” His words dive deep into my chest.
“You already are,” I reassure him. “You being back means more than I could’ve ever dreamed.”
“I’m never leavin’ you again. I want nothin’ short of a lifetime with you.”
I melt into him, pulling his mouth to mine and handing over my heart. It’s his—hell, it always has been.
Ayden’s gaze finds mine as I unravel around him. He moves his hand to my clit and adds pressure until I fall over the edge, moaning and screaming through the waves of pleasure.
“I’m gonna come. You want me to pull out?”
“No!” I say urgently. “I want all of you.”
Ayden curses under his breath as if he’s trying to hold back but then buries his face in my neck and releases a deep moan.
“Fuck, your tight pussy feels too good.” He grunts, thrusting a few more times.
“My whole body feels like butter.” I lean back against the shower tile. “And I still need to wash my hair.”
His amused chuckle rings through the shower. “C’mon, I’ll help ya with that.”
Ayden carefully lowers me to my feet and then rinses us off. He grabs the soap and lathers it between his palms before gliding over my skin with his calloused hands. “Sorry, they’re kinda rough.”
“Trust me, I don’t mind.”
He smirks, focusing on every inch of my body.
“Do you wanna talk about what this means?” I ask nervously. We’ve only discussed future plans as being Serena’s parents.
“No, nothin’ to discuss.”
I frown as my brow furrows in confusion. “Oh.”
He takes the shampoo next, lathers it, then massages it into my hair. I wait impatiently as he finishes rinsing it out and again when he does it with the conditioner.
“Laney.” His low, gravelly voice has my gaze meeting his. “There’s nothin’ to discuss because I’m never lettin’ you go. I’m movin’ here to be a family. Not only as a dad to Serena. I’m here for us, too.”
A grin forms on my face. “Like...as my boyfriend?”
Ayden releases an amused laugh. “I guess we can say that—for now.”
“Or would you rather use the infamous baby daddy term?”
He cups my chin, his mouth inches from mine. “Sweetheart, you call me whatever you please as long as you’re still screamin’ my name when I’m inside you.”
I groan, my pussy clenching with desire at how much I want him. “We better get outta here before I beg you to fuck me again.”
He presses his lips to mine, sliding his tongue in and taking over. His hands roam down to my ass, and he playfully smacks a cheek. “I’m gonna fuck you over and over, sweet Laney. Gonna fill you with my come and then fuck you again. This time, I’m gonna make sure I see you pregnant.”
“Ayden!” I gasp at his filthy words, nearly losing my breath at how much I want him to take me.
He cups my throat, holding me in place as he teases a nipple with his free hand. “I warned ya. Once I had you, there was no goin’ back.”
“You can’t talk about knockin’ me up so casually. That’s something we should plan for,” I say, then moan at the sensation of him massaging my breast.
“Why? We didn’t plan it last time.”
I roll my eyes. “This is different.”
“I promised Serena a sibling, didn’t I?”
“That’s not a legit reason to have another baby!”
“No?” His fingers drop down to my clit. “You didn’t mind the risk when I went inside you bare.”
“Well, that’s because I was horny. I wasn’t thinkin’ straight.”
He lowers his mouth to my neck. “Fine, let’s discuss it then. Wanna have my baby?”
“Ayden, you can’t just...” My words die as he sucks on the sensitive part below my ear. “Oh my God, stop that. I can’t be reasonable when you do that.”
“Then don’t be.”
The ache between my legs returns, and I squeeze them for relief. He notices and increases his pace. His dick pushes into my lower stomach, and goddammit, I want him inside me again.
“Yes or no, darlin’? We’re on crunch time here.”
“Do you really wanna have a baby with me?” I ask seriously. “Not just the act of makin’ one but the late-night feedings, diaper changes, and lack of sleep? The pregnancy cravings, hormonal changes, and stress of havin’ two kids? This isn’t gonna be easy.”
He cups my cheeks, staring intently into my eyes and looking sincere.
“I want everythin’ with you. The highs and lows.
The ups and downs. The good and bad. I wanna be here for all of it.
Whatever that is, just the three of us, or if we add more to our family, I’m ready for it.
I’m here. I wanna give you everythin’ you’ve ever wanted. ”
“I wanna give you that, also,” I murmur.
He missed so much with Serena and is actively trying to make up for that, so I understand him wanting another one.
“Honestly, I want another one, too. I just don’t wanna do it alone.”
“If I had my way, you wouldn’t have to lift a finger. I’m gonna take care of you no matter what.”
My heart flutters at the thought of watching him with our baby. For years, I thought this was as good as my life would get. Then he flipped it around and showed me how much better it could be with him in it.
Smiling wide with certainty, I say, “Then let’s do it. Maybe you already have, but if it happens, then it happens.”
With a cocky smirk, he turns off the shower, then lifts me and carries me out the door.
“What’re you doin’? Oh my God, don’t fall.” I hold on tighter as he grabs the towel.
Water drips off us as he walks to my bed.
He sets me down on the mattress and towers over me with a hand on each side of my body. “I’m not doin’ this if it happens, it happens shit. If I have a mission, I’m fuckin’ completin’ it. No guesswork.”
“Then you better make it fast, Casanova. We gotta leave soon.”
“Don’t you worry.” He flashes a wink as he spreads my thighs and sinks inside me. “I’ve never failed to finish a mission.”
By the time we get dressed, we have to rush out the door to make it to the class on time.
Luckily, my mom set up a table for the four of us so all we have to do is sit and start painting.
Ayden sneaks side glances each time he looks over his canvas.
I try to stay focused on what I’m doing, but it’s useless.
My mind races with what happened between us and the potential of me getting pregnant.
His promises are what I’ve always wished for, yet I’m second-guessing if Ayden moving here will truly make him happy.
Leaving behind his home, job, and everything he’s worked for over the past decade is a big change.
I love that he wants us to be a family, but I also don’t want him to give up his whole life.
The more I contemplate it, the more I wonder if Serena and I need a fresh start.
This town has years’ worth of memories with Howie, which I love, but it’s also a reminder of Ayden’s father and the puppet strings he pulled.
Being here would put us in proximity to Mr. Carson and his conniving and manipulating ways.
Ayden wanted to be far away from his family, and moving back only gives his dad access to him again.
Though I’d miss my mom and hate leaving the store behind, she’ll be in good hands. I’ll train the new manager and am only a phone call away to assist with anything they need.
I’ve made my decision before we leave the museum, but I want to talk to Serena first. This has to be something she wants too.
If she’s on board, then we’re moving to Tennessee.