Chapter 34
I’VE NEVER DONE THAT BEFORE.
Poppy
Lily
Have fun on your date tonight!
Blair
Oh my god, that’s tonight? Have the best time ever.
Thank you. I don’t know why I’m so nervous.
Lily
Don’t be. It’s going to be perfect. You deserve that.
Change used to scare me.
It used to be so debilitating that it would send me into a spiral of thoughts, making me feel on edge and out of control.
But in just one week, everything has changed.
I’ve found a new normal with both Dallas and Sage.
A routine that I actually look forward to.
One night, Sage came over and helped me with the baseball puzzle that Dallas got me while we ate cotton candy ice cream on the couch.
Another night, Dallas showed up to drop off flowers, nothing more, but ended up staying for hours.
We talked, laughed, and ended up in my bedroom having explosive sex.
The night after that, Griffin invited me over for dinner, only to also invite Dallas and Sage.
It’s not out of the ordinary since we’ve all had dinner at his house before with everyone.
What makes me feel comfortable around it all is that Dallas looks out for my needs, not just in the bedroom, but in all aspects of life.
He doesn’t want to ruin whatever routine I have.
He never once judges me for the lists I have lying around my house, or that I’m constantly wiping down my kitchen counters, even if we don’t eat on them.
He understands me in a way I didn’t think someone ever could.
So abandoning my plans for a Friday night to have a picnic by the lake with him doesn’t make me feel like I’m stepping away from my normal.
Dallas has turned into a part of my normal.
More and more, I’ve been thinking about the future, though.
There’s no doubt I’m falling for Dallas Westbrook.
I’m in deep, and the crippling fear of him going back to the city is enough to make me lose sleep some nights.
It’s not something I like to think about, but he cares about me.
I know he does. So there’s a new voice in the back of my head telling me he’s not doing all of this if it’s a temporary fling to get him by while he’s here.
The knock on the door pulls me from any other thoughts.
Opening it, I find Dallas standing there wearing a pair of jeans and a red long-sleeved T-shirt rolled up to his elbows, exposing his forearms that make me weak.
His eyes trail me as he takes in the knee-length spring dress I settled on, pairing it with a cardigan for when the sun starts to set over the mountains.
“You look… God, Poppy. You look beautiful.”
His words fall from his tongue as he steps toward me, wrapping one arm around my waist to pull me flush to him, with the other cupping the side of my face. His lips press to mine, soft and sweet, like it’s part of a routine he can do for the rest of his life.
“Thank you,” I say against his lips before I lean in to steal one more.
I step away, opening the door wider to let him in.
“I dropped Sage off with her mom for the weekend, and ran to the General Store to grab some sandwiches for us,” he says, standing on the opposite end of the counter from me. He places the plastic bag next to a wicker basket.
“I put some snacks in here for us, too,” I add.
He takes the sandwiches and places them in the basket, and hooks it in the crook of his elbow. “Ready?”
I nod. He extends a hand for me to take, and I do. Following him out the front door, where he only releases my hand to allow me to lock my front door. Like a true gentleman, he opens the passenger door of his Tahoe for me.
The ride there is quick as I guide him past the barnyard and Barlow Ranch. He has his hand over the center console, resting on my thigh the entire time. Every so often, I look down and smile.
There’s a small trail I guide him down, and he looks at me curiously.
I giggle in my seat. “This is how we get out to the lake. There’s another entrance about five minutes down the road, but everyone uses that.
This one is on the Barlow Ranch property, so only Griffin, Lily, and I use it.
Besides, the views at the end of this trail don’t compare to any other part of the lake. Trust me.”
“I do,” he says quickly.
My stomach swirls with butterflies. I know he means more than just this trail.
He’s offering me words of affirmation, my love language, without realizing it.
Looking forward, I sit up taller in the passenger seat, pointing to the open clearing off to the left. “Right there.”
He turns the Tahoe and parks it in front of the smaller path that’s only accessible by horse or on foot. He jumps out quickly, rounding the hood of the car to get the door for me again.
I smile up at him, gravity pushing me into his chest as I rake my arms around his neck to kiss him again. As much as I know he needs his lips on mine, I think I’m starting to feel the same.
He’s intoxicating—addicting.
But the way he holds me and angles my head just enough to deepen the kiss, and it sends a fire right to the spot between my legs.
“Sorry,” he says, pulling away. “I get a little carried away with you.”
“I don’t mind.” I shrug.
He shakes his head and interlocks his fingers with mine as I guide him down the path to the lake. Once we get there, he stops, pausing as he slowly scans the area. I watch him while he takes it all in. His lips are parted, and his eyes barely blink.
“All this time, this has been on the other side of the ranch?”
“Yep. It’s one of our favorite spots. Since it’s secluded, we come out here and are able to enjoy this view of the mountains without anyone bothering us.”
“I thought the view from my backyard was nice, but this…this is unreal.”
I follow his gaze to the open lake. The water almost looks like glass tonight, quiet and calm, reflecting the mountains on its surface as if the world is folding in on itself.
We both stand there, just breathing.
No noise.
Just the quiet of the lake.
“It’s been so long since I’ve been out here,” I admit.
“But you brought me?”
I nod, still looking forward. “I forgot how peaceful it was out here.”
“It’s beautiful,” he says, barely above a whisper.
Slowly, I turn to face him, and he’s smiling at me. It’s the same signature one I saw the very first time I met him. He’s flipped my world upside down in all the ways I wasn’t ready for—in all the ways I didn’t know I needed until him.
For the next hour, we lay down the blanket next to a tree.
We talk about school, the baseball team’s improvement, and Sage.
He even tells me about how Nan tried convincing him last week to join the pickleball team in town.
We laugh the entire time, and neither of us thinks about anything but being in this moment together.
When I glance out at the lake again, I see the sun just barely above the mountain.
The sky shifts as if it’s ready to put on a show for us.
Dallas notices and quickly puts away whatever is left over from our meal into the basket.
Then he settles himself behind me, his legs on each side of me, and pulls my back to his front, holding me there with one arm around my chest.
We watch as the sky shifts to a golden glow, clinging to the edge of the clouds before turning to a delicate pink. As the minutes tick by, I don’t move. No words are spoken between us. But finally, I settle deeper into him, as if I can’t get close enough.
“Careful, Poppy,” he growls into the crook of my neck.
The tone of his voice and the feel of his breath on my neck send shivers down my spine. I tilt my head further to the side, allowing him full access to me. His arms move from my chest to my thighs, where he gives me a light squeeze. The feel of his palms resting so high on my legs makes me squirm.
My legs tighten, as if I’m trying to hold back the tension forming between my legs. He trails a finger delicately up each leg, across my hip, and up my sides until stopping right under the swell of my breasts. My chest rises and falls with every inch he moves, my heart beating faster than before.
“You’re in control here,” he whispers against the shell of my ear. “Tell me to stop, and I will.” With one hand gripping my waist, he trails his other hand up the sides of my breast, and my body sinks further into him.
I don’t answer because I don’t want him to stop.
He takes my silence and cups both breasts from behind. My head rolls back onto his shoulder as he takes his thumb and index finger and rolls my nipple between them through my dress, pinching just enough to cause me to moan.
“You’re so responsive to my touch, baby,” he says before bringing his lips back to my neck, letting them linger over my pounding pulse.
Letting one shoulder of my dress fall down my arm, he brings the top down enough that he can take my bare chest in his hands.
It only forces me to moan more, my legs pinch tighter together, craving some sort of friction between them, with how turned on I am right now.
I trust that Dallas will take care of me.
“Your body is craving more, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” I breathe out, but my voice is hoarse from him still gripping my breasts.
“Spread your legs for me.” I do, letting my dress ride up further on my thigh. “I want to see how turned on you are right now.”
“I am. Trust me.”
“Show me,” he demands. “Touch yourself and show me how wet you are from me just playing with your nipples.”
Lifting my dress higher, I reach between my legs, moving my panties to the side. The moment my index finger makes contact with my clit, my back arches, and I suck in a sharp breath. I’m about to show him like he asked, but he stops me.
“Play with it for me, baby,” he says in a rough tone. “Rub your clit and pretend it’s me.”
Releasing one hand from my breast, he reaches down between my legs.
I’m about to remove my hand where it rests, but he holds me in place with his hand on top of mine, forcing my back to arch.
He starts moving my finger in slow circles, sparking my entire body to life.
I squirm between his legs, but he holds me down.
The feeling is so intense in this moment.
Not only are we outside where anyone can find us.
But I’m touching myself, and he’s showing me without judgment.
The thought of the two things makes me exhale a moan, moving my other hand that isn’t playing with my clit, to grip his thigh.
“Fuck, you’re dripping for me, Poppy.”
“Yes.” I let his fingers guide me, moving faster and harder, as the pressure builds. It’s not enough, though. “More, Dallas. I’d rather this be your fingers. I need you to touch me, please.”
“I love when you beg,” he growls, letting his finger replace mine, as he presses harder against my clit and I scream out in pleasure. “Wider. Spread your legs wider for me.”
I do, and open as wide for him as I possibly can.
He wraps his arm around my body to give him better access, and instantly, his fingers are inside me.
My hips start to rock on their own as he moves his fingers quickly in and out of me while his thumb plays with my clit.
My breathing grows faster, more unraveled.
“Dallas,” I keep my voice low.
“Such a good fucking girl,” he whispers against my ear. “As much as I want to hear you screaming my name when I fuck you with my hand, I’d much rather not share your noises with the world. They are mine,” he grits out. “Every sound belongs to me.”
“I belong to you,” I pant. “Dallas, you have me. You have every part of me.”
A rumble vibrates in his chest on my back, and he moves his fingers inside of me faster and harder than before, like a primal beast just released from its cage.
And it’s just enough for my body to tense up as my orgasm climbs.
My hips rock against his hand, his erection pressed into my back, all of it’s so much right now—so intense.
“Right there. Don’t stop.”
“I didn’t plan on it.”
Within seconds, my body quivers and shakes as the orgasm rocks my body. My vision goes hazy, and I repeat his name over and over again like a chant as I ride out the intense feeling of all of it.
As soon as my breathing slows, Dallas pulls his hand between my legs. I trail his movements as he brings them to his lips, sucking them clean. His eyes flutter closed as if he were eating some kind of dessert straight from heaven.
“That was…wow.”
He pulls my back flush with his front again, holding me again the way we were before things got out of hand. I never want this feeling to end. Just having his arms around me is everything I never knew I wanted.
“Dallas?”
“Yes, honey?”
“Will you stay over tonight?”
“Are you sure?”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything.”