Merry with a Single Dad (Love Beach Holiday Collection)

Chapter One

Emily

“Honey, I’m home!” Chris, the adorable yet sexy man of mine, called as he walked into my house.

The sound of the door closing hit my ears, and another rush of arousal flooded my already damp panties. I’ve been waiting for him since texting him earlier.

Standing in a teeny pair of hot pink underwear and a matching pushup bra, Chris’s mouth dropped open when he found me in my bedroom.

He cleared his throat. “Well, well. Did someone order a nooner?” His voice was husky and hungry—and not for lunch. His brown eyes darkened with an intensity that stole my breath.

“I did.” My voice cracked.

We both took one step closer.

Our eyes locked. Our chests rose and fell together as we breathed the same breath.

His jaw flexed, and I licked my lips as another second ticked by.

And then we smiled.

Lightning fast, we crashed together.

His lips on mine were heaven-sent, and I ran my hands over his crisp dress shirt as he moved to loosen and remove his tie.

I wanted him as naked as I was. I craved his touch. The hard but smooth ripples of his sculpted body quivered under my fingers. I scraped over his skin, and the moan he released was feral, gritty, and desperate.

I loved hearing him like this—wanting me as much as I wanted him.

My mind flashed back to the night we met.

Chris was only supposed to be a one-night stand. Who would’ve ever thought what started out as an evening full of lust could turn into love—an everlasting kind of love?

His mouth swallowed me—body and soul—and every touch of his hands as they slid over my skin ignited me from the inside out.

I pushed at his pants. He slipped out of his shoes, pulled off his socks, and kicked his pants away. As he unclasped my pretty little bra, he plunged into my mouth, devouring me, feasting on me.

We fell to the bed.

He cupped my breasts, thumbing his fingers over my nipples.

“Mm,” he growled, moving over my neck, down, down, down, until his mouth was on my skin.

Eyes closed, I threaded my fingers into his hair, holding on.

Just like that night so many months ago, he worshipped my body.

He played with the elastic of my underwear, teasing me with promises that he wouldn’t leave this bed until I was completely satisfied.

His tongue met my clit as he sank deep inside me with his fingers.

Blinded by his perfected methods, I groaned his name. He’d memorized my body, my wants—and I didn’t mind one little bit.

As he licked and thrust, I moved with him, already knowing the steps of this sinful dance. Electric sizzles raced through me, and within seconds, I came all over his mouth.

“Fuck yes,” he mumbled, lapping at my juices. Moans of appreciation vibrated through me from the yummy sounds he made. “Baby, you taste so good.”

“Come here,” I croaked, my voice hoarse from my heavy panting.

His tongue twisted with mine. Tasting myself on his lips, smelling my scent on his skin, fuck, it was such a turn-on.

Chris pressed against me, slicking his cock with my arousal.

He pulled away to look at me. The love in his eyes would break any heart. "Em.” His whisper was an animalistic but tender plea.

"I love you,” I said.

His eyes lit up, and the corners of his mouth lifted. “I love you too, baby.”

Everything was so right. So perfect.

We came together again, a kiss so heart-meltingly sweet, reminding me that even though this was hard and fast fucking during his lunch hour, there was nothing but love between us.

Moaning as his cock pulsed against me—clit, lips, inner thighs, and all—Chris grinned and slowly sank inside.

The deliciousness of being spread wide open elicited another moan.

He pulled away, never losing our connection, and slammed back into me. Every push, pull, thrust, and bang hauled me closer and closer to that blinding, numbing, titillating, ecstatic release.

Chris was a wicked wizard when it came to the magical ways he could make me come. Even the first night, it was as if he had already memorized a map of my body and knew exactly what he needed to do to make me come undone and scream his name.

I’d never felt this way about someone in my life.

I never would again.

I fell so deep.

So deep.

In love.

Our mouths fused together, our bodies united. The little spasms inside got stronger and stronger. Tension and pleasure intertwined, and he knew I was just on the edge.

“Come on, baby,” he whispered before flipping us over.

I clamped onto his shoulders, riding him hard and strong. Grinding against him, my clit throbbed. I pressed harder against him.

He cupped my tits in his hands, rubbing my nipples under his thumbs, squeezing harder and harder. I collapsed onto his chest, my nipples rubbing against his skin as my clit slid against him. Chris grabbed onto my hips, helping me ride him and yanking me forward, pushing me back, pulling again and again until I was crying out into his mouth.

The stars shot across the backs of my eyes, and I seeped more juicy wetness over his cock.

“Keep going, baby,” he said, moving me the same way he was moments before.

And although I was tired and blissfully exhausted, I sped up my pace, repeating the tempo that would get him there.

His growls and groans spurred me on.

He jerked my hips and moved me with the force of a man who was used to hardcore workouts. His strength and endurance astounded me.

I bit and kissed, licked and sucked at his mouth, neck, chest. Ravishing him with my mouth, I squeezed myself around him, harder and harder, coaxing him to the finish line.

“Fuck, baby,” he growled.

I bit down hard and clawed at his chest.

And his delirious pleasure mixed with a pained groan reverberated off the walls in between his moaning my name.

I stopped moving, enjoying the way his dick pulsed deep inside me with each spew of come.

His body spasmed, glistening with sweat, a smile plastered to his face.

I fell forward, loving every drop of slippery wetness between our bodies and my thighs.

My pussy still throbbed when I started my group session at Bark Park.

October, and it was still warm enough to wear a tank top with my yoga pants.

The last part of the year typically meant skimming back on my hours at Mannered Mutts, but this year was an anomaly. Mannered Mutts was thriving like never before.

Maybe Chris and Hudson were my good luck charms. I’d done well in business before they came into my life, but now that I had an overpouring of love—and not just from my fur babies—everything else seemed to be coming to me in abundance, too.

“Emily? Cheri? ” Celine Collins called in her perfectly posh French accent. “I was wondering if I could chat with you about Gigi.”

Celine was one of my favorite clients, and we’d become more than business owner and client over the past couple of months. When she needed to go out of town for a long weekend getaway with some of her girlfriends, she always asked if I’d be willing to take care of Gigi. Celine was sophisticated and chic, always impeccably dressed and polished to perfection. So was her French poodle, Gigi.

“Sure,” I said, throwing the dog toys into the plastic bin.

“I need someone to watch mon bébé . I’m going to Paris.”

“I’ve always dreamed of a vacation in Paris,” I said.

She chortled, saying, “Darling, this is far from a holiday. I have to take care of my sister.”

“Is she okay?”

She patted at her dark hair, stylishly pulled back into a perfect French twist. “Oh, she’s fine, darling. She has to have surgery. Bunions on both feet. And well,”—she sighed—“it’s my sisterly duty to help her while she recovers. I’d take Gigi with me, of course, but I think taking care of Elodie will be too much for me. And Gigi would miss her grooming. You know how much she loves her spa days.”

I chuckled. “Don’t we all?”

“Plus, I know you take such good care of her. She’d have her play dates with you . . . that is if you’d be willing to watch her while I’m away.”

“Of course.”

“Before you agree, Cheri , I must let you know that it will be longer than last time.”

“Celine, really, it’s not a problem. It’s nice that you can be there for your sister.”

“I’ll be gone for a month at the least.”

“A month!” My cheeks flared, and I apologized for my outburst. “I can’t imagine being away from my boys for a month.”

“I know. I hate the idea of being separated from my precious girl for that long, and I’m hoping to return sooner. But Elodie’s doctors told her it would be up to six weeks for a full recovery. She’ll be in a cast or a boot. I’m not sure.”

“Wow. That sounds awful.” I touched her arm sympathetically. “I’m sorry.”

“I am, too. I love my sister.” She chuckled. “She’s been a nightmare to deal with over the phone, and I know she’s going to be much worse in person.”

“Celine, I’m sure it won’t be as bad as you think.”

“You don’t know my sister.”

I aimed for a reassuring smile. “I’m sure she appreciates you helping her out.”

“So, you’ll watch Gigi?” At hearing her name and knowing we were talking about me dog sitting, Gigi nudged my hand. Her soft, curly fur was like finely spun silk under my fingers.

“Of course, I will,” I said. “How much trouble can she be?”

“Oh, Cheri , thank you,” Celine said. “Gigi, say thank you.”

At the command, Gigi yipped and held up her paw for me to shake. “I’ll make sure to take her to Cassie before I bring her over, but you can take her while I’m gone, right?” she asked, referring to my best friend who owned Purrfect Paws—a salon for cats and dogs.

“Of course. That won’t be a problem at all. And Hudson will love having another dog to play with,” I said.

“From the smile I’ve seen every time we meet, I think it’s safe to assume things are going very well for you all?”

“Yes, things couldn’t be better,” I said. Celine and I talked for a few more minutes about Chris and Hudson and how extraordinary our life together was. I started dating Chris a couple of months ago.

It was so funny to think of how things had progressed for us since our one-night stand over a year ago.

I never thought I’d see him again since he was in Love Beach on business when I met him at The Cove Bar and Grill. I had Cassie to thank for that. She’d practically thrown me into Chris’s arms the night we saw him sitting alone at the end of the bar. It wasn’t like me to have a one-night stand, but he was so perfect I couldn’t resist. I left his hotel room, never in a million years thinking I’d see him again because he was in town on business. And when he showed up on my doorstep almost a year later looking for a dog trainer for Luke, his precarious golden retriever, I thought I had to be hallucinating.

I wasn’t.

The very hot man from that unforgettable night had been standing right in front of me.

Unwilling to repeat past mistakes and resistant to the idea of mixing business with pleasure, I turned him down the first couple of times he asked me out. The man was determined, and I lost the battle of heart versus head. But that cute smile and sexy body did something to me, and eventually, I agreed to dinner. That led to another night of mind-blowing sex . . . and now here we were.

But it wasn’t just me and Chris.

It was me, Chris, his son, Hudson, and our three dogs—Moose, Rufus, and Luke.

Life had certainly changed for both of us. In the blink of an eye, we were an instant family. Things were crazy at times, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Life was perfect.