Chapter Eighteen – Liam
Liam
Never in my life had I ever experienced anything so magical. Making love to Aurora felt so completely different. It felt like we were one, a completed pair. All of those months of me dreaming of being inside her were nothing like the real thing.
Once I got my laughing under control, I rolled off her. “I take it that was the first time you tasted cum?”
“Yes, it was my first time, and I thought I was going to be some sexy wonton woman by doing that.”
I turned and smiled. “I thought it was sexy, until you turned and spit it out.”
She covered her face with her hands and laughed. Then she dropped them and looked at me. Repositioning to her side, she said, “That was amazing.”
“It was beautiful,” I replied softly as I reached for her hand and intertwined our fingers.
When she smiled, I felt my heart double in size.
She was so beautiful, not only on the outside, but also on the inside.
And while I had no intention of ever comparing her to Hope, Aurora made me feel alive.
She made me feel like my touch was something she had craved for her entire life, and that did something to me.
“That was…amazing.”
I grinned back at her. “You said that already, but I will agree with you. It was. I know this might sound cliché, but I’ve never experienced lovemaking like that before. I’m not even sure I can put it into words. I felt so…”
“Connected?” she whispered.
“Yes.”
Her leg slid over my body. “I felt the same way. It was beautiful.”
Running my finger along her jaw line, I replied, “It was magical, Aurora.”
Her eyes sparkled. “It was.”
“I’ve got to say, I’m glad we didn’t take things slow.”
Aurora’s cheeks turned a soft shade of pink as she giggled, then dropped her forehead to my chest.
Running my hand down her back, I stated, “I should get back. Lord only knows what my father is going to do with Winnie if he’s left to his own devices. She’ll be ramped up on sugar.”
Aurora lifted her head and let out a soft breath. “I’m only going in for a few hours, then I have lunch with the girls. What do you need me to do to help get ready for the trip?”
I kissed the tip of her nose. “Nothing. Well, besides packing a bag with some clothes and whatever you’ll need. I reserved the campground for four days.”
“Do I need a sleeping bag?”
“No, I have the fifth wheel and we’ll all sleep in that.”
She slowly sat up, letting the sheet fall to her waist. “You do?”
“I mean, it’s not mine exactly. It’s my dad’s, but I’ve taken it out a few times.
Mostly with some friends of mine when we go hunting or fishing.
Winnie hasn’t had the opportunity to experience it at all.
I’m excited to see what she thinks about camping.
” I had almost said Hope didn’t like camping but caught myself.
I wasn’t going to bring her into this part of my life. My time with Aurora was our time.
A brilliant smile lit her face. “I’ve only ever gone tent camping, so this will be like glamping for me!”
I laughed. “I’m glad you see it like that.”
Her phone rang, and she quickly turned to reach for it. “Shit! It’s Lou.”
She swept her finger across her phone. “Hey, sis. Yes, I know I’m running a bit late. Let me grab a shower, and then I’ll be down. Wait, why are you there?”
Aurora’s eyes met mine before she rolled her eyes.
“I’ll be down in a few.”
She ended the call, gave me one more kiss, then slipped out of bed.
“I need to get going. We open in twenty minutes, and my sister is acting like a mob of people will be coming in. She only came in because she heard from Tillie Mathews I had spent the night at your place, and she figured I would be late.”
I reached for her hand and pulled her back to me, causing her to tumble back into the bed. “You’ve got my cum all over you and I can’t explain how that makes me feel.”
She giggled. “You like marking me?”
Nodding, I kissed her. “Let me make you come once more.”
Her eyes went wide. “Liam, I have to…oh God.”
The moment my fingers brushed over her clit, her words fell away. The need to be with Aurora had nothing to do with the fact I hadn’t had sex in two years, but more to do with the fact it was Aurora. I desired her more than I desired anyone in my life.
“Give me three minutes,” I said, moving down her body before I covered her clit with my mouth once again. I could taste Aurora and myself mixed, and it nearly made me come, knowing I had been inside her.
Her fingers tangled in my hair while she lifted her hips for more. “You’re so good at that. Oh my gosh. Yes. Don’t stop!”
Less than a minute later, Aurora was crying out my name as she came. I would never get used to hearing my name spill from her lips in the throes of passion. I’d dreamed of hearing it, but experiencing it was something completely different.
When she scrambled to get away, I looked up and smiled.
“I can’t.” Her chest rose and fell. “It tickles, and I’m so late because of you!”
“If making you come makes you late for work, then sign me up!”
She laughed and quickly got out of bed. “I’ll remember that when you’re getting ready to head to The Muddled Moose!”
The image of Aurora on her knees making me come was nearly my undoing. I quickly got out of bed and headed behind her and into the bathroom.
Aurora held up her hand. “Oh, no!”
“I promise not to touch you.”
She narrowed her eyes but then turned on the water. Once it was at the right temperature, she stepped inside. I followed her, taking her bar of soap and washing her body for her. I moved quickly since I knew she was in a hurry to get down to the bookshop.
While she rinsed off, I soaped up my own body.
Aurora stepped out of the shower and began to dry off as I turned the water temperature colder.
I needed to get rid of my erection somehow.
If this was how it was going to be around her camping, we were going to have to find a way to be quiet in that small RV.
I’d never seen anyone get ready as fast as Aurora had. She hadn’t washed her hair, and it was piled up on top of her head in a messy bun. She was already dressed when I finally got out of the shower and started to dry off.
“I’ve got to run, but make yourself at home. I’ll call you once I’m finished with lunch and make sure Lou doesn’t have any questions for when I’m gone.”
Kissing her on the lips, I fought the urge to deepen it. Now that I’d had a taste of Aurora Banks, I needed more, but it would have to wait.
“Have a good morning, and we’ll talk soon.”
She smiled, blew me a kiss, and dashed down the steps.
“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy before,” my father said with a wide grin.
With a smile of my own, I replied, “I don’t think I’ve been this happy before.”
He put his hand on my shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. “You deserve this happiness, Liam. I hope you know that.”
I let out a soft breath. “I do know that. I won’t lie and say that a part of me still feels guilty, but Hope and I weren’t meant to be.
No matter how many times life threw us together, it wasn’t meant to happen.
I just hate that Hope won’t ever get a chance to live the life that she deserved to have as well. Or watch Winnie grow up.”
“Hope can see her from where she is.”
I sighed. “You’re right.”
With a nod, he turned and faced the RV. “So you’re going to start this relationship up on a camping trip, huh?”
Laughing, I replied, “I am and lucky for me, Aurora is excited about it. I don’t want to pretend to be something I’m not this time around. I did that with Hope, and I know a part of me always hoped that she would want the same things I wanted, and she thought the same of me.”
When I stopped talking, my father said, “Does she know about Winnie?”
“Yeah,” I replied. “I told her everything.”
My father and I had always been close, and he knew everything, including my feelings for Aurora. He had never tried to tell me what to do, but allowed me to figure it out on my own, and I would forever be grateful to him for that.
“And have you decided what you’ll tell Winnie someday?”
I looked at my father. “The truth. There have been way too many secrets, and I’m done with all of that. When the time comes, she’ll know the truth. But for now, I want her to have a childhood like I did. Camping, fishing, being a part of a family that loves one another.”
A sad look appeared on my father’s face.
“Have you heard from Mom?”
He nodded, drew in a deep breath and slowly exhaled. “I have. She said she is enjoying her time in Italy.”
I didn’t want to admit how that felt like a knife in my chest, but that was my mother for you. She didn’t care about anyone but herself. “I’m sorry, Dad.”
He waved off my concern. “Don’t be. Honestly, it’s for the best, Liam. Your mother has this mean streak in her that I don’t think will ever go away. She is bitter that Hope lied to you about Winnie, and she can’t move past it. She should stay away.”
“She can’t even accept Winnie as my daughter, Dad. How can she be so cruel?”
“I’m not sure, son. The good news is you don’t need her in Winnie’s life. She has so many people who love and care for her now. In the end, that is all that matters.”
I nodded, but it still hurt that my mother didn’t want to know her granddaughter. “You’re right.”
“Come on, let’s get this all taken care of so you can get out there and enjoy your camping trip with your two girls.”
My two girls. I liked the sound of that.
Dad and I spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning and packing the RV for the camping trip while Winnie napped in her bedroom at my dad’s house.
He had exhausted her earlier that morning, and all the running she did while we got things ready made for one tired girl.
I had to wake her up so she wouldn’t sleep all afternoon.
Opal had offered to swing by the store for me to pick up the items on my shopping list and was pulling into the driveway right after me.
When I looked in the back seat, I laughed. Winnie had fallen asleep once again.
“Looks like someone had fun today,” Opal said as I gently put a still-sleeping Winnie over my shoulder.
“Let me get her to the sofa, and I’ll help with the food.”
“You give her to me,” Opal said, taking Winnie from my arms. “And help Jake with the food.”
“You’re sure?”
“This little girl is going to keep us young, no doubt about that.”
I laughed as I made my way over to help Jake carry in the food.
With Winnie still asleep on the sofa where Opal deposited her, they decided to head on out.
Looking at Jake, I asked, “Do you have a second for us to talk before you leave?”
He gave me a knowing smile. “If this is about Aurora, there is no need to talk, Liam. I’m happy you’ve finally opened your heart once again, and I could not be happier that it’s with Aurora.”
I smiled and looked at my father-in-law. “I did love Hope, Jake. I hope you know that.”
Reaching for my shoulder. He gave it a soft squeeze. “I know you did, Liam. You wouldn’t have stayed with her through all of that if you hadn’t loved her. Now is your time to find your happiness. Just like I have with Opal, I’m just glad you won’t have to wait as long as I did.”
I laughed. “I wrote down where we will be just in case. Nathan is going to watch The Muddled Moose for me, and I’ll be sure to give Aurora all the information to give to Lou.”
“Liam, everything is going to be fine here. Don’t worry. Just enjoy this time with Winnie and Aurora. Relax and catch some fish!”
“You don’t think it’s strange to be asking her to start up a relationship on a camping trip?”
“I think you both deserve to get some time away from Moose Village. Away from memories of Hope, so you can start this off on your terms.”
I nodded. That had been my thinking as well when I conceived the camping trip. I wanted Aurora and me to be in a place where I hadn’t spent any time with Hope.
“Have a fun and safe trip,” Jake said, pulling me in for a quick hug. We walked out to the car and I kissed Opal goodbye.
“Have fun!” she called out as they drove off.
When I got back into the house, Winnie was waking up. I smiled and walked over to her and bent down.
“Do you want to help me pack some food into the RV?”
Her little eyes lit up. “Yes!”
Picking her up, we headed to the kitchen. Over the next hour, I packed up some food and toys for Winnie.
With one more look around the camper, I clapped my hands together. “We are about ready to go!”
Winnie stood on the leather sofa and jumped. “Oh no you don’t,” I said as I swept her up into my arms. “The no jumping on furniture applies to the camper as well.”
Nathan, who had stopped by earlier and helped me with getting things ready in the camper, poked his head in. “What time are you leaving tomorrow?”
“I’d like to get out and on the road by nine.”
“Is my sister spending the night here again tonight?”
I felt the heat in my cheeks. “She fell asleep in Winnie’s bed last night.”
He raised a brow. “And your visit to her place this morning?”
My mouth fell open. “Christ, can no one stay out of anyone’s business?”
Nathan laughed. “It’s Moose Village, Liam. People were talking about you two being together before you even were.”
I rolled my eyes. “Damn town.”
He clapped me on the back. “And there is nowhere else on Earth you’d rather be!”
“You’re right about that!”
Turning to my best friend, we both smiled.
“Go easy on her. This is a big change for her.”
“Yeah, she told me she’s never been camping before.”
Nathan rolled his eyes. “That’s not what I meant, Liam.”
“I won’t hurt her. I can promise you that.”
He nodded. “I’m holding you to that.”
We stepped outside of the camper, and I set Winnie down.
We walked in silence toward the side door when Nathan stopped and faced me.
“Liam, will you do me one favor?”
The seriousness in his voice caused my heart rate to pick up slightly. “Of course I will.”
He rubbed at the back of his neck, and I worried for a moment he was going to say something I didn’t want to hear. Instead, when he lifted his head, he wore an evil smile.
“Please put a frog in Aurora’s bed.”
My brows shot up. “I’m sorry?”
“I beg of you to do it. She’ll know it was from me.”
“She’ll know that a frog in her bed will be from you?”
Nathan let out a roar of laughter. “Yep! She’ll know.”