Chapter 14 Profess Undying Love #2
I sighed. “No, but you also didn’t answer the question.”
After a brief stare-down, he said, “I would never put you in danger.”
“Punc—”
“Honey, it’s club business, and most brothers don’t share that with their women. Do I break the law? Not really.”
I chuckled. “That isn’t a very good answer.”
“Do you speed?”
“Punc.”
He shrugged. “It’s breaking the law, Smythe. Nobody’s perfect all the time. And there are shades of gray in the world.”
“I hadn’t expected you to get philosophical on me.”
He grinned. “I’m a well-rounded man. To be fair, you didn’t answer my question, are you cool with me being a biker and hanging at the clubhouse?”
“Is that a deal-breaker?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No. There are brothers who don’t bring their women to the clubhouse very often, but until we start a family, I want to get in as many wild and crazy nights with the brothers as we can.”
My mind was tripping over two things he said.
“F-family? Did I hear you right? And what makes for a wild and crazy night?”
He chuckled. “Baby, I turn thirty this year. I want what Alanis has, but I gotta find the right woman first. I’m just laying it all out here. Two kids will work, four would be better.”
My eyes rounded. “Four? That’s a lot, Ted.”
His chin dipped. “It’s a nice even number, babe. Are we doing this?”
My mind was overloaded with visions of little boys who looked like Ted and I responded automatically. “Yes, but no matter what happens, I get your sister.”
He tipped his head back and laughed. After his laughter waned, he looked down at me, and his eyes blazed with hunger. “Not gonna let this go bad, baby. Are you gonna kiss me? Or should I kiss you?”
My tongue darted out to moisten my lips.
“Fuck,” he hissed.
Then he kissed me.
And as usual, my toes curled and I got lost in all the perfect and delicious sensations.
He pushed forward, walking us backward into the living room. I had my phone in my hand still, and I broke the kiss just long enough to put it on an end table. Punc kissed my neck and sucked at a spot near my earlobe. I twisted my head and got his lips back on mine.
My legs hit the edge of the couch, and I toed off my shoes. Punc kept pushing forward and I fell on to the couch, then we went down and he was on top of me. I tugged at his shirt, but he grabbed my hand.
He kissed me harder, deeper, taking from me like a man possessed.
I slid a hand under his shirt, and he pulled back.
“Are you sure? Been a long time since I’ve lost control like this. We can just make out if you want.”
“Why wouldn’t I be sure?” I asked.
He dropped his head onto the couch next to my shoulder and chuckled. When he lifted up, I liked seeing him hovering over me. “Honey, you just said you’d take a shot on this. I didn’t think we’d have sex before we even had lunch.”
“It isn’t lunchtime, Ted. If I’m giving you a shot, why tip-toe around about it? We’ve wanted each other for weeks now - longer than that for me, if I’m being honest. The house is empty…why would we wait?”
“You’re sure?”
“Yes,” I said, leaning up to kiss him.
None of my past lovers had ever kissed me so thoroughly. Punc’s hands were skimming the edges of my bra under my shirt, while my hands were skin-to-skin, exploring the ridges and dips of his back.
Everything he did felt divine, and he hadn’t even touched me directly. I felt ravenous, but not for food.
The doorbell rang.
My body froze.
Punc leaned up and glanced toward the foyer, not that he could see anything from here.
“You don’t think that’s Frank, do you?” I asked.
He turned back to me and cocked a brow. “No.”
I heard the faint sound of a baby fussing.
“Are you expecting my sister today?” he asked.
I grinned and sat up. “No, but that never stopped her before.”
Punc stood and cleared his throat.
I hurried to the door while running my fingers through my hair and straightening my t-shirt.
I opened the door to Alanis. She wore four-month-old Nina on her chest in a burgundy and white polka-dot baby wrap.
Dalton stood beside her, holding her hand.
Kyra, the oldest, was shifting foot to foot while twirling a lock of hair around her index finger.
“Hey, y’all! I didn’t know you were coming by today. Come on in.”
Alanis waited for Kyra to go first before she guided Dalton inside.
I bent at the waist. “Hi, Kyra.”
“Hi, Auntie Anna,” she murmured. Then her head tipped back, her eyes lit up, and she yelled, “Uncle T, you don’t live here!”
“No, but I’m friends with Auntie Savannah, too,” Punc said from behind me.
I closed the door, and turned around to see Punc had tossed Kyra into the air. My heart melted watching him with her. The way his eyes lit up, he would be a fantastic dad.
Alanis bumped my bicep with hers. “What’s he doin’ here?”
In a low voice, I said, “He slept over last night because someone was in our backyard. He knows about Frank now.”
“Uncle T, you have lipstick on you,” Kyra said.
I felt Alanis staring at me. “He just ‘slept’. Are you sure?”
I turned to her. “Yes. We had a chat earlier, and let’s just say your timing leaves a lot to be desired.”
She held out a hand. “That’s more than I need to know.”
Punc
“We play ungle im,” Dalton demanded, climbing on to Punc’s lap.
He sat on the floor with his back against the couch, his right arm draped over Savannah’s left leg. Before Dalton put his little knee to Punc’s groin, he hoisted him up using his other arm.
“My man, where do you get your energy? We just came inside from playing hide and seek. It isn’t easy being a human jungle gym.”
“Please,” Dalton said.
Punc winked at him. “If you can get Kyra and Auntie Savannah to play too, we’ll do it.”
As he expected, Kyra perked up at her name and she raced to Savannah. “C’mon Auntie Anna, human jungle gym is my favorite.”
Punc leaned forward, lifting his arm from her leg.
Savannah made a noise of hesitation. “I don’t know, Kyra. I’ve never played this before, maybe I’ll just watch.”
Alanis sat in a nearby armchair, and chuckled. “Nice try. It’s in the name, Savannah. All you gotta do is sit or lay on the floor and let them climb all over you.”
Punc locked eyes with Savannah. “Until you don’t, then it’s all roughhousing… but not too rough.”
“Please,” Kyra pleaded with Savannah.
“Your eyes are my Kryptonite, Kyra,” Savannah said, sliding down to the floor.
“What’s Kwyptonite?” Kyra asked.
“It’s from a movie, sweetie,” Alanis said.
Savannah aimed a dry look at Alanis. “A comic strip, technically.”
Punc shot a serious look at Dalton. “You’re with Savannah. She hasn’t done this before.”
His nephew’s eyes lit up. “Okay. I help her.”
Kyra came to him. “Horses.”
Punc shifted to his hands and knees and heard Dalton telling Savannah to do the same.
“Little man, I don’t think this is a good idea,” Savannah muttered after Dalton climbed on her back.
“Oh, sure it is. This video is going to be epic,” Alanis said.
Punc noticed his sister had her cell phone pointed at them.
“Great,” Savannah grumbled.
It was great, but he had to keep that to himself. Watching her with his sister’s kids only solidified what he’d told her earlier. He wanted a family with the right woman, and the last hour and a half had shown him Savannah was that woman - no matter what she said to refute him.
They spent another half an hour playing with the kids before Nina became too fussy.
“All right, someone’s ready to hit the road and all these kiddos need their naps,” Alanis said, hoisting the diaper bag onto her shoulder.
Punc stood, picked up Kyra, and gave her one last toss in the air.
“Again!” she said, when he caught her.
“No can do, Kyra-Boo. That’ll have to hold you until next weekend.”
She pouted and he set her on her feet.
“Get your shoes on, we have to help your mommy.”
Savannah held Dalton on her hip and slid her feet into her flip flops.
Punc reached out for his nephew. “I’ll take him. You stay inside.”
She shook her head. “It’s all right, Ted. I can—”
“I know you can, but I want to be careful.”
She kissed Dalton’s cheek before handing him over to Punc. “Be a good boy, okay?”
Kyra hugged Savannah’s waist, then bounded out the front door in front of Punc.
He pulled the front door closed as he followed his sister to her minivan. She straightened from the van after strapping Nina into her car seat. “Why are you being so careful? Did you catch whoever was in the backyard last night?”
He buckled Dalton into his seat and looked at Alanis. “No, it happened before I followed Savannah home.”
“Do you think it was the loan shark?”
“Not sure, and what the hell, ‘Nis? You knew she had that big-ass debt, and you didn’t tell me? How long have you known?”
Alanis cocked her head to the side. “Since the night I told her not to do anything drastic like stripping. I never thought she’d do that, and definitely didn’t expect her to end up at Platinum’s.”
He leaned forward. “You should have told me about the debt that night at the hospital.”
“Mommy, is Uncle T mad at you?” Kyra asked.
Alanis shook her head and looked down at her daughter. “No, sweetie. Get in your seat for me.” She caught Punc’s gaze. “I couldn’t betray her about the debt. She would have been pissed as hell, I wouldn’t have blamed her for that, and honestly, what would you have been able to do?”
He hated when his little sister made sense.
“Fine. Are you cool with me and her being together?”
She pressed her lips together and stared at him for a beat. “Like I said at the hospital weeks ago, don’t jerk her around like you did those other girls, and it’s all good.”
He pointed a finger at her. “I’d never do that to her.”
She helped Kyra with her seat buckle. “I don’t know that, but I’m holding you to it. Love you, Ted.”
“Love you, too. Drive safe.”
He returned to the house and heard Savannah on the phone with someone. From the snippets he heard, he guessed it was Catalina.
“Are you sure? Her parents are going to be there, right? I don’t want you to have to deal with a situation like last time again.”
Pause.
“Okay, all right. I’m putting Rita’s car in the garage then. I’ll try to remember to move it before you come home in the morning.”
Another pause.
“Right. I love you, too, Cat.”
She ended the call and plugged her phone into a charger.
He stalked toward her. “Why can’t you park Rita’s car in the garage normally?”
The skin around her eyes crinkled when she grimaced.
“There’s boxes of stuff in there. Pretty sure it’s Mom’s.
I would have tackled it, but the doctors told me not to do any heavy lifting for at least six weeks after I was in the hospital.
” Her eyes darted past him for a second.
“Guess that’s something I can handle soon. ”
He nodded. “Yeah, parking in the garage would be safer.”
“Which was why I insisted Cat park there. It’s more important for her to be safe.”
“It’s important for both of you to be safe,” he said, cupping her cheeks in his hands.
“You know what I mean.”
“Did you tell her about the call from Frank and your father being involved in some way?”
With her nod, she pulled free of his hold. “Yeah. Can’t say it was a surprise, we both suspected it. I’m just pissed he won’t return either of our calls at a normal hour.”
He gave her a half-hearted grin. “If he’s avoiding you two, that’s the best way to do it. Are you ready for lunch?”
“Yeah, those Goldfish wore off while playing jungle gym.”
“Is there a grill around here?”
“Um… I don’t think so, though I suppose there could be one hidden behind the boxes in the garage.”
He frowned. “How about a grill pan or something like that? It isn’t ideal, but I thought I’d grill you a steak for lunch.”
She put her hand on his bicep. “As much as I appreciate that, I don’t eat that much at lunch, honey. My breakfast was pretty filling.”
His lips quirked with skepticism. “Your breakfast was one of those quiche pastries from Panera. If you’re hungry, I’m feeding you. How about chicken fajitas?”
Her eyes lit up. “That would be a great dinner. Seriously, I’m good with a sandwich.”
He shot her a glower. “Fine, but we’re using the Kaiser rolls.”
She grinned. “Of course. I haven’t met a form of bread I don’t love.”