Chapter 15
Fifteen
Eliot
My mind was getting fucking blown. I gripped the sheets on the bed I normally slept in alone. I was sitting on the edge of the mattress with my jeans around my goddamn ankles. She hadn’t waited for either of us to undress. She ripped open my fly, and as soon as her warm hand gripped my shaft, my brain shut off.
She was kneeling on the floor in front of me. I’d never be able to get a second of shut-eye in this room again with this memory.
Her dark hair framed her face. The room was dark, but her hollowed cheeks were visible. I wanted to hold on, to make this last, but it’d been a long time since I’d gotten off. And then there was that earth-shattering experience on the couch.
So fucking amazing.
Now, the tables were turned. She had me at her mercy with the way she kneaded my balls while pumping the base of my shaft. Then she did a swirl with her tongue.
“Fuck, Lily. I’m going to blow.” I said it as a warning, but she took it like she had my permission to increase suction.
She had all my permission, but the energy coiling at the base of my spine grew impossibly stronger, more charged. How the fuck was I going to stay quiet while coming?
Another tongue flick at the crown of my erection and fuck— I was done. “Lily.” Her name came out strangled.
She didn’t back off.
Electricity shot through my body and exploded down my cock. My release shot out, but she didn’t let go, drinking all of me in, working me with her tongue and her hands. Sheer ecstasy filled me to overflowing, and I had to close my eyes and clench my teeth to keep from roaring her name.
“Fuck. Lily.” I had only two words left in my vocabulary. “Fuck.”
She finally released me. I dragged her up to the bed with me before I fell backward. She drew her legs up while mine hung down. My dick was probably bobbing in the air, but the door was closed and locked.
If we both got our way and a box of condoms, my cock would be out around her behind closed doors whenever possible. “Christ, woman. That was amazing.”
“I’m glad you liked it,” she said in a way that made me think her prick of an ex was an ass about that too.
“Fucking unforgettable.” I stared at the ceiling. There was no looking at the clock and wondering how best to leave. “And it’s not because it’s the first time I’ve had a snake for an audience.”
She giggled. “Flakes isn’t a prude, and he doesn’t gossip.”
“Good to know.”
“I can move him so you don’t have a roommate when you stay over.”
“I’m not a snake guy, but after being afraid he was lost, I warmed up to him.” I pressed a kiss to her temple. “I kind of like having you next to me in bed.”
She rolled up to an elbow and traced her fingers down my shirt. “I like it too.”
“You wanna sleep in here tonight?” I was more nervous asking to have her in my bed than asking her on a date. I hadn’t done that yet either.
She chewed on the corner of her lip. “Each kid has their own bedroom. I was going to move in here eventually.” Her brow furrowed. “Cali knows we’re married. And it’d be more believable if others came over.”
Believable. Right. But if that meant she wasn’t leaving my side, then I was good with it. I didn’t have condoms, but I had a lot of ideas. “Hey, Lily?”
“Mm?”
“Get those pants off. I’m not done with you yet.”
Eliot
A ding woke me. I cracked an eye open. A round bottom was pressed into my side, and I did not want to move. When had I ever woken up this comfortable? I usually didn’t linger in bed. There were chores. Guys to touch base with. A full day of work.
Another chime sounded through the house.
The warm body next to me shifted. Lily.
She’d put on a shirt and pajama shorts before bed. I was in a pair of basketball shorts in case Cali walked in.
“Mo-om!” Cali called as if summoned. “Someone’s ringing the doorbell.”
Kellan let out a cry. It wasn’t an I’ve got to eat now sound, but he wouldn’t last long.
“Who’s visiting this early?” Lily groaned and sat up.
Exactly what I’d like to know. I could’ve been ensconced with her for a few more minutes. The kids might’ve slept in.
I checked the time on my phone. It was after nine. Oh. We all slept in.
Lily rolled out of bed. She wasn’t wearing a bra, and I was captivated by her chest. Unbound tits, full and?—
Knocking resounded through the house.
“I’ll get it.” My morning wood was flagging enough to hide with a loose shirt. I threw on the same one I’d been wearing last night. Lily’s sunshine scent was all over it and goddamn. I might never wash it.
I snuck down the hall. Pebbles meowed and rubbed against the entry to the kitchen. “Cali, can you feed the cat?” I asked as I made my way to the front door. I didn’t bother to check who it was when I opened it.
Linda stared back at me. Her brows lifted. “Oh. Eliot. You’re here.”
The surprise in her voice was like sandpaper on my eardrums. “Why wouldn’t I be?” I asked with more heat than intended. I didn’t appreciate her reminder that I woke up with Lily because it was best for appearance.
She blinked rapidly. “I talked to my brother. He said Jasper was going to work for you. You still work in Montana?”
She might not have heard about the specifics, and she didn’t know about my workforce issues. This was an organic time to play them up. “I’m not around as much, so I need another employee. We’re still trying to figure out the commuting. Having Jasper might help me get away more.”
More freedom wasn’t the reason I’d hired Jasper. The ranch needed me as a full-time employee more than anyone else. I didn’t like faking that I was living with my wife. I hadn’t needed to officially change addresses. Everything I did was under Knight’s Arabians and Cattle Company.
“Hmm.” There was a crease in her brow. She looked past my shoulder. “Good morning, Lily.”
“Aunt Linda? Hi.” Lily appeared next to me. Kellan was getting louder. She must’ve seen her aunt and come to rescue me. “Do you want to come inside?”
I should’ve offered, but I was still cranky about feeling like I’d lied to her.
“No, it’s early. I’m sorry to bother both of you. I was just doing a check-in to satisfy the requirement of the trust.” The corners of her eyes pinched. “Darren and I are heading out of town.”
“No problem.” Lily folded her arms. She’d put on a bra. Another reason to be cranky about the intrusion. “Going anywhere fun?”
“To Rapid City. Just a little getaway.” She let out a heavy exhale. “I’ve been inundated with questions and inquiries regarding…” She waved a hand around. “All this.”
Sympathy filled Lily’s face. She had a big heart. I didn’t feel sorry for Linda.
“Who’s been hounding you?” Lily asked.
Linda’s mouth tightened. “Your father, of course. He’s not used to not being in charge. And Violet. She keeps double and triple-checking my interpretation of the stipulations.”
“I hope that’s a sign she doesn’t want to marry Willis.”
Linda snorted. “I would never sign off on them after a year. I doubt West would either.”
Lily hugged herself tighter. “You wouldn’t? You’d really attest that Violet and Willis didn’t meet the requirements?”
I heard our names instead of her sister and her boyfriend. At the end of our year, would Linda really claim our arrangement was bullshit? My pulse thudded. I didn’t intend to give her a reason to think Lily and I weren’t legit, but Linda had six relationships to sign off on before she got her own inheritance. Most people wouldn’t look beyond the dollars.
“Of course.” Linda blinked owlish eyes. “I care about all of you, and I know your grandma wanted the best for you.” She hesitated. “May I come in after all?”
I stepped back. Lily had already invited her inside. “I can get some breakfast ready for all of us.”
“I won’t be long. I just?—”
Kellan started crying again. Cali came out of her room, fully clothed in a ball gown and a tiara. She scooted behind Lily and eyed her great-aunt.
“You can attend to the baby,” Linda said with a stiff tone. “I don’t have long, but I don’t want to rush what I have to tell you.”
Lily exchanged a worried glance with me. I gave her an encouraging smile. We were doing nothing to make Linda think we weren’t a real couple. She went to the bedroom.
“Have a seat while I get Cali something to eat.” I gestured to the recliner. Cali tucked her hand into mine. “Want some toast, boss lady?” That earned me a smile.
By the time I was done making toast and Cali was at the table where we could see her, Lily was in the living room with Linda. Kellan was strapped into his bouncy chair and willing to wait a few minutes before he nursed.
I sat next to Lily on the couch. I took her hand in mine. The gesture wasn’t for show. She was tense, her mouth set in a line. She should be as content and relaxed as she’d been in bed next to me.
Linda glanced at us both. She folded her hands. “Before you were born, I was married to someone else. Darren is my second marriage.”
Lily straightened. “Really?”
I was mildly surprised, but Lily hadn’t known?
Linda nodded. “I thought it was true love. Quick and impulsive but pure.” Sadness infused her eyes, and she looked older than her sixty-some years. “On my end, maybe. He just saw an easy life. The oil boom was happening, and we had wells on our land. Both Weston and I drove new cars. I didn’t have loans from college. He thought he was getting a free ride.”
“I’m so sorry, Aunt Linda.”
I was, too, but I could see where this was going. Linda had been deeply hurt by this man, used, and she’d make sure that didn’t happen to Lily or her siblings. It was why she was in charge of the trust and not her brother.
“When I learned the real reason why he married me”—she squeezed her hands into fists—“I was devastated. I can’t describe the pain. And the divorce.” Her laugh was full of scorn. “We spent so much money fighting him. In the end, I had to pay him spousal support. For years. If his bad decision didn’t cut his life short, I’d probably still be paying it.” She made a disgusted sound. “He had a good lawyer. Poor Darren had an ironclad prenup slapped in front of him as soon as he proposed.”
Lily’s fingers twisted around mine.
“This isn’t easy.” She circled her hand like she was talking about everything around her. “Having to decide if the man you married really loves you. But I will. No one will take advantage of a Duke again. And since you left that worthless piece of trash, you are a Duke again.”
I didn’t want to like Linda when she had so much influence on her niece, but the way she spoke about Carter put us on the same side.
“I’m a Knight now. You were ready to kick me out,” Lily said flatly. “All because I wasn’t married.”
Linda’s features tightened. “Like I said, this isn’t easy. I was tempted to call your bluff that day in the office, but I thought worst-case scenario, it gave you time to move.”
“You didn’t believe me?”
That had made two of us that day when I first heard about Lily’s situation.
Linda nodded. “Not at first, but here you both are. After all I went through, and all my divorce put my parents through, my mother trusted me with this legacy. She knew West and I would do our best to make sure you all are seriously happy before we sign off. Do I want my share of the inheritance?” Her laugh was barely more than a breath. “It’d make retirement more comfortable, but I take my duty seriously. Both your father and I do.”
“Lily shouldn’t have had to worry about being homeless.” My tone was harsh, but I didn’t care. Lily gave my hand a reassuring squeeze. “Now we have to stress that you’ll kick her out again because I’m not here enough.”
Linda lifted her chin. “I acknowledge this is just as hard for you. But if you’re truly in love, then I can live with you having to rush the wedding.”
Rush the wedding. Lily’s grip would’ve been painful for a lesser man. I was losing feeling in my fingertips.
I couldn’t move in permanently, but I had to do what I could to put Lily’s mind at ease after her aunt’s visit. “I trust you won’t hold it against us that I run a business three hours away, and this transition might take longer as I’m entering my busy season.”
Linda didn’t respond right away. Lily’s grip grew impossibly harder.
“You can trust that I’m not looking at that alone .” She sucked in a breath and let it out slowly. “I really do want you happy, Lily. You were always such a precocious child, and I know West worries about all of you.”
“I appreciate that,” Lily said rigidly. “As long as you appreciate the pressure this puts on me. On our relationship.”
On our fake marriage. What Linda said made sense, it made her the guardian in her eyes, but Lily and her siblings shouldn’t have had constraints on any inheritance left behind. It created a lot of stress for the recipients.
“I do respect what you’re going through. I was glad to see Eliot open the door.” She smiled, and it softened her features. A whole different woman. “You two look happy.”
“We are,” I said without hesitation.
“Good. Well.” She looked around like she was making sure she had everything, but she hadn’t had a thing when she entered. “I should get going. Darren wanted to leave an hour ago.”
Lily walked her to the door. After Linda was gone, she closed the door and slumped against it. “Oh my god, that was close. If Cali hadn’t called you…”
I wouldn’t be here.
Lily needed more of an effort from me. “I’ll come back in two weeks.”
“No.”
Had I imagined the weekend? Was she second-guessing everything that had happened between us and deciding we needed more distance?
“No,” she said again. “You’ve been worried about how busy you’ll be. We can make it until Halloween.” Her smile was shy. “But I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you too.” I sauntered closer to her. “But know that when I land on your doorstep again, I’m going to have a big box of condoms.”