Chapter 10
FORD
Brielle sets her fork down and looks up at me as she finishes her bite. “This was delicious. I wish I had the ability to cook like this.”
I throw my napkin to the side. “You’re fine. Connor loves your mashed potatoes.”
She laughs to herself. “Not exactly earth-shattering to make.”
“I don’t know. You have to get the ratio of butter and milk right or it doesn’t have the right consistency. Or at least that is what Connor tells me when I attempt to make them.”
There it is. Sentimental fondness gracing her face.
“I love him so much,” she reflects as she takes her wine glass in her hand. Leaning back in the chair, she looks out over the lake which is nearly dark since the sun disappeared over the pines on the horizon. “You won’t let him skate on the lake when it freezes, right?”
“Of course not. I’ll take him to a pond nearby or the training facility. Where’s that coming from?”
“Nothing. It’s just a beautiful lake, and for some reason, I thought about winter and how the lake freezes sometimes, plus you play hockey, Connor loves hockey. My mind spins a little.”
“Ah yes, mom instinct.”
She throws me a playful glare. “It’s a superpower.”
“I have a few superpowers too.”
Brielle folds her arms onto the table. “Oh yeah? Do tell.”
“Restraint, endurance, and pleasure,” I confidently inform her before throwing back a sip of wine.
I notice she blows out a small breath between her lips and tucks a strand of hair behind her ear, but her smile never wavers. “I’m sure.”
Our eyes hold, with the light of the candles offering a dim reflection. “There is too much distance between us,” I inform her.
“You mean the table?” She points down to double-check.
“Yeah.”
Her fingers trace the top of her wine glass. “I might consider finding a new seat if you tell me the truth about something.”
My ears perk up, as I’m not entirely sure what’s on her mind. “What would that be?”
“Why did it have to be Lake Spark where you set your roots down?”
I shrug my shoulder. “It’s a great little town, a perfect spot to build a house, great for winter and summer… and it reminds me of you.”
Her eyes flick up. “You decided to build a house here already a few years ago.”
“Exactly,” I confess. “Remembering our time together kept me going. Just like a compass, you always go back to the starting point.” Her cheeks tighten, and she seems to have gone mute from my revelation. “I think deep down you figured it out too, otherwise you wouldn’t have asked me just now.”
The lids of her eyes close for a few beats as she collects her thoughts. When her eyes open, I see it all. I know she is affected, because water swells in the bottom of her eyes, but mostly I recognize the agreement hinted in her look.
“Now tell me the truth.” It’s my turn.
“What?”
“If I didn’t make this week happen, would you have ever told me the truth about how you feel?”
Brielle stands up and takes a few steps to look out over the lake. “Truthfully? I don’t know. I got little pieces of you, and sometimes I thought that would be enough to keep me from falling apart.”
“Little pieces?” I ask as I grab the bottle to pour us more wine.
“You know, seeing you at pick-ups and a few moments that we just… I don’t know.” She glances back at me. “Like a few months ago when Connor had the flu, and we agreed it wasn’t a good idea for him to go to your house, so you came over to see him and then…”
“I slept on the couch until his fever went down,” I finish her sentence.
She nods. “I knew you visited for Connor, but you were in my house, sleeping, just there… so close.” She covers her face with her hand, as if she could hide. “Fuck, I just admitted that.”
I have to smile to myself. “Sorry I didn’t take my shirt off,” I say in an attempt to make her laugh, but then my face grows stoic because I know what she’s saying. “I pretended to sleep.”
“What?”
“I pretended to sleep,” I repeat. “I couldn’t sleep a wink knowing you were in the other room in your bed. I think I stayed more because I knew it would be the next best thing. I got to be near you for a night.”
She laughs, swiping away a tear. “Are we horrible parents? We had a hidden agenda while our son had a fever.”
“We’re allowed to put ourselves first sometimes. Besides, his fever was going down, and we had the situation under control.”
Brielle slowly walks to my side of the table. “I think I’m going to move seats now.” Her smile is sultry.
“Oh yeah?” I lean back, ready to welcome her.
She sits on my lap and loops her arms around my neck. “Right here, if you don’t mind.”
I tip my chin up to get a better angle to kiss her lips. “I insist.”
Cementing our lips together, it’s Brielle this time who kisses with determination, her fingers raking into the hair on the back of my neck. She has me captivated and at her mercy. Yet, I have the courage to sneak my tongue into her mouth to show her that I’ll lead us if she lets me.
Our tongues duel before her lips create a trail of hurried kisses down my jaw and neck.
This is it.
We snap.
There is no going back.
“We can skip the brownies, right?” I husk as my hands roam her body.
She pulls away for a second with a serious look. “Wait, there are chocolate brownies?”
“Uhm… yes.” I’m concerned that her love for dessert is one step higher on her pedestal for me.
Her look tells me that I’m being brushed to the side, but then her face breaks. “I guess they can wait.”
Relief hits me, and I’m quick to usher her up, never letting go of our interlaced fingers. “Let me blow out the candles.” I lean over to extinguish the flames.
“Fire safety, so responsible,” she chides.
“I’m a dad,” I proudly counter.
Brielle yanks my arm to lead us inside.
Our hands don’t drop as we slowly walk into my bedroom, and I’m not quite sure who is leading whom. The problem with slow is that it ups the ante and makes the realization of what we are doing more profound. The air is thick with anticipation, and the beating of my heart feels strong.
When we are near my bed, I reel Brielle into me and wrap my arm around her waist. “You okay?” I have to smile.
“Perfect.”
“Not nervous?”
Her lips quirk out. “I mean, it’s not every day that Ford Spears, star hockey player, takes me to bed, but ya know, there are worse hardships in life.”
A laugh escapes me before I remind her of the obvious. “You’re the only one that I’ve ever wanted.”
“Okay, now you’re setting the bar high. I might be a little nervous now.” She wryly smiles and then jabs my chest with her finger. “It’s been a while since we did this. Together. I mean, you and me.”
“We were teenagers.”
“I got pregnant.”
“Oh, we’re already there? It was three sons, right? I guess if I aim right…” I tease her. I’m following her cues because she seems to be anxious.
She swats me playfully. “We don’t need to worry, I have an IUD. Without going into detail, my priorities haven’t been on dating lately. So, if we’re good on all fronts, then we are set.”
With my fingers, I comb her hair away from her face. “We’re good. Look at us being responsible adults.”
“I’m stalling.”
“I noticed.”
Her beautiful eyes lock with mine. “Is it crazy that my body feels like it might explode? Because this has only ever been a dream, and now it’s a reality.”
“This afternoon you didn’t want me to stop.”
“I know, but every minute more with you and I realize how deep we are.”
I tighten my hold with our fingers, bringing her hand up to my lips for a feathery kiss. “Does that scare you?”
“The opposite.”
I gently kiss her lips to ground us, but my attempt to do soft is thwarted by Brielle returning my kiss with what I can only describe as passion. It’s fervent, electrifying, and when she invites me to follow her as she walks backward, it’s a confirmation that I don’t need to go slow.
“I want you,” she rasps right before she drops to sit on the mattress.
“There hasn’t been a day I stopped wanting you.” I begin to pull my shirt up at the same time my knee lands on the bed. With my shirt thrown to the floor, I guide Brielle back until she’s under me.
Kissing her, my hand skims the fabric of her dress until I find the hem. Dragging the fabric up, her knee moves which means I’m better aligned with her center.
“You drive me crazy.” My voice is gruff.
Her body arches up which causes her dress to bunch around her waist, and her panty-covered pussy presses against my hard length. “I bet I can make you go insane.”
I pin her wrists to the mattress, which makes Brielle giggle and squirm, especially as I nibble the base of her neck, trailing my lips along her collarbone. “Keep your hands where they are,” I warn her.
Making sure she watches me, I begin to unbutton her dress, and the moment all the buttons are free, I hiss a sound of pure admiration that she is lying in my bed with a matching black lace bra and panties. “Gorgeous,” I whisper.
“Take more off.” Her hands reach for the buckle of my jeans.
Quickly, I push her hands away. “Arms on the bed.”
“Ooh, bossy.”
I flash her a fake unimpressed look before I step out of my jeans and return to her. I slide down her bra strap and trace her skin until I reach her breast. My tongue darts out to twirl around her lace-covered nipple, and her body curves from enjoyment.
I peer up to see her watching me. I repeat the movement on her other breast before I move both cups down to twist her nipples between my fingers to play with her.
She moans and breathes heavily, which only encourages me to kiss between the valley of her breasts and lower. Giving a few extra popcorn kisses around her belly button and then moving below her navel.
Brielle writhes under me, and her sweet scent of desire hits my nose as I travel over her mound. I nuzzle over her soaked lace. It’s intoxicating, and I want more, which is why I lap my tongue up her panties, getting a taste.
Brielle claws the sheets in surprise and moans a breath.
“I need more,” I growl. Peeling her panties off, I dive right back to where I was. Spreading her lips, I lick, taking a moment to swirl and explore. I could do this for hours; I only need to feast on her for survival.
“Ford,” she cries.
I dip my tongue inside her center, before swiping back up to her clit, but I pause. “You’re ready. Are you aching for me?”
“Yes,” she responds and brings her hands to my head. “Don’t stop.”
“We’re just getting started,” I promise. My tongue flicks her clit, and my finger arrives at her center to explore her wet channel.
I suck and lick her, until she is panting and near her edge.
“I’m almost there.”
I work harder, find a rhythm, and keep her begging for more.
Then she’s convulsing against my mouth, and I slow down. I take a moment to enjoy her taste of subtle sweetness and inhale her. I keep my tongue flat against her clit until I feel she’s steady.
Brielle is trying to capture her breath, but I decide to kiss her anyways. She seems taken aback when she whimpers a sound, but then realizes her taste is on my lips, and she gets greedy.
My hand travels between her legs to feel her open and wet. She joins me in exploration, giving herself a stroke, but only once because she moves my boxer briefs and takes hold of my cock.
“Inside of me, please,” she pleads, ensuring our eyes stay connected.
“Get comfortable, baby.”
I invite her to scoot back onto my bed until her head rests on my pillow, and she unclasps her bra while I discard my boxer briefs.
Gliding my fingers up her inner thigh, I find my destination. Settling between her legs, the tip of my cock slides between her, taunting her clit and driving me feral.
“I’ll start slow,” I promise.
I begin to fill her, and she gasps, but our eyes catch and a reassuring smile spreads on her lips.
“You’re mine again,” I breathe into her neck.
“I was always yours.”
Inch by inch, I enter her, waiting for her cues, which are difficult to read, as her eyes remain committed and filled with what I believe is love.
I interweave our hands against the pillow by her ear, dragging myself in and out just enough to drive us wild.
“It’s okay, you can go deeper,” she encourages.
I stay inside of her but stop moving, and instead, I take the moment to bring my hand to her face to brush my thumb against her lips.
Brielle is the one I’ll spend my life with, I know it, which is why I deliver her request. We get lost in this moment until we are riding a wave that involves two sweaty bodies, moving together, locked in a gaze, because the future is ours for the taking.