Chapter Thirty-Seven
GEMMA
The moment I leap off the bed, Tyler’s chasing me, and I squeal all the way down the hallway. He quickly catches me in his arms and spins me until I’m facing him.
“Nice try.” He flashes a devilish smirk as his arms slide down my back. “You have an amazing ass, by the way. I can’t stop touching it.”
Tyler has no idea how many years I’ve spent hating my body—too flat, too skinny, too ugly.
He notices my expression change and tilts up my chin. “Whatever negative thoughts are filling your mind right now, stop. You’re beautiful. Your sweet tits and fine ass are just a bonus.”
I burst out laughing and pull his lips down to mine, sinking my tongue into his mouth. “Thank you,” I mutter. “I appreciate you saying that.”
“I fucking mean it, Gemma. Nothing will ever affect how I feel about you. I’m in love with you because of who you are. Not anything else.”
“And that’s why I love the hell out of you. Now, get me in that shower now,” I demand. “I have some wild fantasies to fulfill.”
Tyler shakes his head and turns on the shower. Once the water’s warm, we step in. Immediately, I’m swarmed by the hot stream and Tyler’s hands and mouth. I can’t get enough of him. I never could, and I most definitely won’t be able to now.
The anticipation of Tyler claiming my body again is almost too much for me to handle. As the memories of our summer together flood in, I remember why I never stopped loving him.
I spin around in his arms until his chest is to my back.
His thick cock presses against my body as I arch my back, allowing him to slide it up and down my pussy.
Leaning down and flattening my palms on the shower wall, I widen my legs to give him access.
Squeezing my hips, he pushes in deep, making me gasp out in relief.
He ravages me from behind with desperate thrusts, and I can’t control the moans that escape from my lips.
Tyler grunts and slides his hands up and down my body.
He circles my clit, massages my breasts, and pounds into me as if his life depends on it.
Once the buildup is too much, my pussy clenches, and I unravel around his dick. This feeling is almost too much yet at the same time, not enough.
I want more.
I always want more of him.
Tyler’s close, and when I look over my shoulder, his eyes are closed tight. I whisper sweet words and tell him to fuck me harder. Moments later, he’s growling out his release as he spills inside me again.
The connection between us is so intense that I get emotional thinking about it. He holds me in his arms after we clean up. When he kisses me slowly, he nearly steals my breath away.
Once we’re satiated, it doesn’t take long before we’re ready to pass out. I immediately fall asleep in his arms without a worry in the world.
The next morning, Tyler wakes me with his tongue between my legs. After he devours me as if I’m his queen, he crawls up my body and kisses me, allowing me to taste myself, which is a real turn-on.
“I could get used to that,” I say. “Who needs coffee first thing when you can have an orgasm instead?”
“Exactly.” He smirks. “But just to be extra nice, I’ll make you breakfast in bed with coffee.”
“You keep treating me to sex and food like this, and I’m never gonna leave your bed.”
Tyler smiles, then kisses my forehead. “That’s my plan.”
I lie down while he goes to the kitchen to cook. I honestly don’t know how things could get any better.
Thirty minutes later, Tyler brings a tray with two steaming hot mugs and two plates of eggs and toast. I sit up, and he grabs his, then settles next to me.
“So what’s the plan today?” I ask after gulping down half my coffee. Though I’m definitely not complaining, I don’t think either of us got enough sleep.
“Well, my only plan was to ravish you, but maybe after you shower and change, we can go on that hike?” he suggests.
“I’d love that! We just have to be careful in public.
I have to humor Robert’s ridiculous idea for a bit.
I should probably speak to my dad and triple-check that Robert’s telling the truth.
And if he is, then maybe my dad will have a solution.
But unless he drags me by my hair down that aisle, I’m not saying I do. ”
“We’ll think of something, baby. I promise,” he reassures me. “Don’t forget I have some connections in Vegas who could easily take care of him,” he teases with a wink, but I don’t think he’s joking.
After we finish eating, I help him clean the kitchen and take every opportunity to kiss him. It’s almost eleven when I get dressed, and Tyler walks me to my car. We look around to make sure we’re not being watched or followed before he kisses me goodbye.
“I’ll call you after I speak with my dad,” I tell him. “Then we can pack some snacks and hit the trails.”
“Sounds good. I love you.”
My heart nearly leaps out of my chest when I hear him say that. “I love you more.”
“Pfft. Not fucking possible.” He gives me one final kiss and then opens the car door for me. “Drive safe.”
I can’t wipe the foolish grin off my face as I drive home. Every part of me is lit up with happiness, and nothing could bring me down when everything feels so perfect and right.
The moment I pull into my driveway, I realize I spoke too soon, and my world comes crashing down.
A moving truck is backed in, and a crew is loading up my belongings. I glare at them, confused, wondering what they think they’re doing. When I pick up my pace and turn the corner, I see Robert. “What the hell are you doing?” I shout as I storm toward him.
“Good morning, darlin’.” His eyes scan down my body in disgust. “Hope you enjoyed your final night of being a whore because today, you’re moving in with me.”
“What?” I put my hands on my hips. “Have you lost your ever-loving mind?”
He steps toward me, closing the gap between us. “Watch your goddamn tone,” he hisses. “That was the deal. We get married, you move in, and you quit your job. Don’t like it? Then say goodbye to all of this because I’ll get a team out here this afternoon to bulldoze it down.”
Tears threaten to surface as I take in his angry tone and the bulging vein in his forehead. He’s not messing around, and I have no doubt he’d do exactly that.
“I hate you,” I seethe.
“Get over it, princess. They’ve already started packing and moving your shit.”
“You can’t do that! You can’t touch my personal property!” I argue. “I’ll call the sheriff!”
He leans back, pure amusement on his ugly face as he crosses his arms over his chest. “Go ahead. Remind him to bring a case of beer to our barbecue tonight while you’re at it.
” Robert laughs as he walks away and goes toward the cottage.
I’m going to lose my shit if they’ve touched my mother’s paintings.
At that thought, I march past him and barge through the door to check what they’re doing.
“Stop! Get out. Don’t move anything else,” I demand.
Three men stare at me, expressionless, then glance over at Robert. When I look at him, he shakes his head, and the guys continue working.
Goddammit!
Everyone’s on his fucking payroll, so no one will listen to me.
“You’ll never get away with this,” I say between gritted teeth.
“I already am.”
I storm out and go back to my car, feeling hopeless. Knowing Everleigh’s at work, I call Katie, and when she answers, I lose it. Tears fall and there’s no stopping them.
“Gemma? What happened, sweetie?”
“Robert!” I say between harsh breaths. “He has a company moving everything out of my place. He’s forcing me to live with him and get married to help his image.”
“What? That’s insane, Gemma!” she shrieks. “Tell him to kick rocks!”
“I tried!” I grow more hysterical with every passing second. “He owns my dad’s property. If I don’t do what he says, he’ll tear it all down.”
“What the hell? How’s that even possible?” she asks, and I explain all the details.
I feel awful for not knowing or helping, but my father’s a prideful man and keeps his problems to himself.
“So it’s either marry him, have his children, and quit my job, or my dad loses everything.”
“What about the shop?”
“I think that’d be safe, but he’d have no place to live, and it’s more than just a house to him.
It’s the home where he and my mom made memories, and where Noah and I were raised.
And to dig the knife even deeper, Robert knows how much the cottage means to me.
Even if I can’t live in it, I’d be devastated if he destroyed it.
” I cry harder at the thought. “I don’t know what to do, Katie.
I love Tyler. We finally made love last night, and now everything around me is falling apart. ”
“Does Tyler know about Robert’s ultimatum?”
“Yes, and he said we’d figure something out together.”
“Tyler should kick his fucking ass! Charge him caveman style and use his boxing skills to rearrange his ugly old face!”
I’d laugh at her dramatics if I wasn’t in the middle of a crisis.
“Trust me, he’s ready to do just that.” I sigh. “I need to ask my dad about this. It’s gonna kill him, but I have to make sure Robert’s not lying to me. I don’t know how I’m gonna get out of this without hurting Tyler or my father.”
“Robert seriously thinks you’re gonna marry him after this whole stunt?”
“He’s got me by the damn throat and has made sure I have no other options. The minute I defy him again, he’ll make his threats a reality.”
“Which means he could literally hold this over your head for years. If you don’t do what he asks during your marriage, he’ll throw it at you again. You’ll be miserable, Gemma. You can’t marry him,” she pleads. “There has to be a way out of this without jeopardizing your dad.”
“I’m listening,” I say between tears. “Because I can’t think of any solutions.”
“Make him sign the deed over to you. Negotiate a deal with him. A trade, of sorts. He gets the wife and kids, and you get what you want too. After a year, file for a divorce.”
“A divorce? He’d never go for that. That’d be against his values.”