Page 21 of Nave (Henchmen MC: Next Generation #14)

Nave

The words Let’s just see how it goes after what had to be the most meaningful sex of my life had been, admittedly, a little jarring.

Especially because I was ready to be in. All in. A little starter house with a nursery and room to grow kind of in.

That said, I had to understand where Lolly was coming from. She’d just barely gotten away from an ex who’d controlled every aspect of her life for years, who literally kept her captive and incapable of starting over without him.

Or so he thought.

She probably felt like she had to look at every man like he was potentially just wearing the mask of kindness and care, looking for any possible cracks in the veneer, any proof that her worst fears might be realized.

She had to worry about the baby now too. About what situations she was getting him or her into.

I couldn’t take it personally.

And, hell, even if I was taking it personally, I couldn’t really blame her for looking at what I brought to the table and being unsure.

She met me when I’d been doing illegal shit for shady people. She found me again as an arms-dealing biker. I represented danger as much as safety. And as much as I knew I had everything I needed, an outsider wouldn’t see what I had to offer.

Just a room at a clubhouse. No home base of my own. A history of partying and casual sex.

Not exactly a poster for Boyfriend of the Year . And damn sure not father material.

She couldn’t know what I knew about the men in this club. About how, yes, they lived and partied and fucked around hard. But when they found their woman, their loyalty and devotion were absolute. There wasn’t a bad husband or father in the bunch.

“That’s a serious fucking look for eight in the morning.” Fallon came into the kitchen, making a beeline for the coffee pot.

“You’re here early.”

“I got a kid who fucking volunteered to work at Hailstorm this summer. Guess who gets to drive them all the way up there every morning.”

“At least you know you don’t have to worry about them there.”

“That’s true,” he agreed, turning with his cup to look at me. “So, what’s with the lines?” He gestured to his own forehead.

“What real estate agent did you use to get your place?”

“Ah, I get it,” he said with a dry laugh.

“Get what?” I asked, feigning ignorance.

“Oh, fucking please. You might have been gone for a while, but I grew up with your ass, remember? I know how you think. And right now, you’re thinking you got a pretty thing with a bun in the oven and nothing to offer her but a windowless room in a clubhouse where no one goes to sleep until sun-up. ”

“Alright, maybe you do know how I think.”

“This ain’t my first rodeo. Been watching you fucks stumble and fumble around when the right woman comes around for years now.”

“Says the man who nearly went to war with the woman who became his wife.”

“Shit,” he said, a smile spreading, eyes going far away. “Those were some wild times, man. You missed some good shit, being away. But I guess you’d never have met that girl if you’d kept your ass here.”

I’d never thought of that.

Fate, it seemed, had really fucking good planning.

My stomach clenched at the idea of Lolly still being in that glass house. Alone. Scared. No hope of escape.

How the fuck would someone like Ben even handle the idea of a pregnancy? I was damn sure he didn’t want a kid. Too messy. Too germy. Too uncontrollable.

There was no way he’d have let her keep it.

And, clearly, despite everything, she wanted the baby. She’d escaped hell to give it a chance at a normal life.

“I’ll go back through my shit and figure out who the agent was,” Fallon said, pulling me back to the present. “It’s a shit time to buy. Prices are through the fucking roof. But I think it’s about time you get your own place. Getting old, man.”

“Says the guy I just heard talking about the weather and the condition of the roads. You start bird-watching, and I’m gonna be worried, man.”

There was a soft bark, making Fallon glance down to see Edith looking up at him expectantly.

“‘Sup, dog? You are a dog, right? Could be one of those curly-haired guinea pigs.”

From the familiarity with which he said it, I would put good money on one of his kids getting ready to ask for one.

“Edith!” Lolly whisper-yelled. “Get back—oh.” She appeared in the doorway wearing just one of my tees, her hair all bed-messy, her bangs half sticking up. “Hi.”

“Lolly,” Fallon greeted her. “I think your hamster wants to go outside. Want me to take her?” He was already reaching for the leash in Lolly’s hand.

“Oh, thanks. That’s really nice…”

“Fallon,” he supplied. “That schmuck’s boss,” he added, nodding toward me. “Come on, chipmunk, let’s go.”

“He’s really your boss?” she asked when we were alone.

“Also my cousin.”

“That makes more sense,” she decided.

“Do you want coffee? Or I could make some decaf.”

“I think I saw some orange juice in here,” she said, going toward the fridge. “If no one used it for mix—oh, good.”

With only a couple of sips left, she drank it straight from the bottle.

“I don’t know why I’m so dehydrated,” she said, catching me watching her.

“Oh, I got an idea,” I said, thinking about how wet she’d been for me the night before. I got to watch the way a blush crept across her cheeks as realization dawned. That shit was cute as fuck.

“You hungry?” I asked as she went to the sink, rinsing the bottle, then placing it in the nearly overflowing recycling bin.

Beer cans and liquor bottles had really piled up quickly.

Spike and Cain would have a lot of work to do when they got up.

And it was nice to no longer have to worry about shit like that myself.

“Actually, I hate to do this, but—”

“But?” I prompted.

“I kind of agreed to have brunch with Gracie today. You know, before all this happened. She’s making crepes. I can ask if you can come.”

“Gracie’s brunches are girls-only,” I said, shrugging. “Nah, it’s fine. I can drop you off there once you get ready. And pick you up when you’re done. I like that you’re making friends.”

“Gracie is really sweet.”

“She is. She’s the glue around here, and I don’t think enough people see that.”

“You sure you don’t mind?”

“Babe, friends are important. I can keep myself busy for a few hours. Are you taking Edith, or do you want her to stay here with me?”

“No, Gracie demanded to see her.”

That worked out then. It would give me some time to go online, look at houses, maybe even see one if there was one that seemed promising.

After Fallon brought in Edith, we set food down for her, and Lolly went into the bedroom to shower.

When Fallon took off, well, I wasn’t going to waste a perfectly good opportunity for some alone time before we went our separate ways for a chunk of the day.

I stripped as I made my way through the bathroom, then peeled back the shower curtain.

There she was.

Water cascading down her perfect body, her skin pink from the heat.

My cock, already stiffening at the idea of being with her again, got rock-hard with just one look.

Her gaze slid from my face, down my body, lingering on my cock, then letting out a sweet little mewling sound.

“You’ve been living on the homestead for a while now. Figure you must know how important it is to… conserve water.”

“Oh, yes,” she agreed as I got closer, angling her head up to look at me. “It’s very important to be kind to the environment.”

“You know what else is important?” I asked, backing her up against the shower wall. The coolness of it made her gasp, made her nipples harden.

“What?” Her voice was breathless.

“Making sure you come at least twice every morning.”

“That does suddenly seem really important,” she agreed, her eyelids going heavy.

My hand grazed down her body, teasing over her breast, her hip, her thigh, then slipping between.

A soft moan escaped her as my fingers drifted up her pussy. “Already so wet for me,” I said as my thumb found her clit and two of my fingers slipped inside her.

She whimpered as her pussy tightened around my fingers. And as my fingers started to thrust, her own wrapped around my cock, working me at the same time.

As my own need grew, my fingers fucked her faster, harder, driving her up until she was rocking against my palm, until her moans filled the bathroom.

“There,” I said as she came, her body shuddering hard. “That’s one,” I said, moving in to press a kiss to her neck as I worked her through it. “How do you want your next one?” I asked. “My fingers?” I tapped them against her top wall. “My mouth?”

“No. No, I need you inside me,” she said, her hips rocking with the words.

“Thank fuck.”

“No,” she whimpered as I released her and went to pull back the shower curtain.

“I need to grab—”

Her hands grabbed me, pulling me back, plastering her front to mine. “My tests came back clear,” she told me. “And it’s not like you can get me pregnant,” she added, a smile softening her expression. “So, if you…”

“You have nothing to worry about from me,” I said, reaching down to grab her leg and pull it up, thankful for every safe sex encounter in my life, for my negative test results, for the opportunity to feel her tight walls close around me as I slipped inside.

“Fuck,” I groaned as she cried out.

“Oh my god,” she whimpered, rocking her hips, restless in her need.

“How do you want it?” I asked, my cock aching with the restraint to stay still. “Like this?” I asked, pulling most of the way out, then slowly driving back in, loving the deep cry that escaped her. “Or like this?” I asked, thrusting fast. “Or maybe this?” I asked, both hard and fast.

“That,” she cried, fingers digging into my shoulders. “Yes, that,” she whimpered as I made another thrust.

There was no more talking then.

Just movement.

Just the sounds of our bodies crashing together, the water cascading to the floor, our labored breathing, her throaty moans, and my groans as her pussy got tighter and tighter around my cock.

“That’s it. Come for me,” I grunted as she tightened hard enough to make my thrusts harder. “Fuck,” I groaned as she cried out, her pussy pulsing around my cock, taking me with her, my whole body shuddering as I came.

We stayed there for a while after, the water starting to get cool enough to make us both rush to clean up and climb out so we could dry off and warm up.

“I kind of wish I didn’t have to go,” Lolly said as we sat side by side on the foot of the bed, neither ready to get dressed just yet.

“Hey, I’ll be here when you get back. Gives us something to look forward to.”

“That’s true,” she agreed as I got to my feet and helped her to her own.

With that, we got dressed, grabbed Edith, and headed over to Gracie’s place. Where I sat and watched her disappear inside, surprised by the depth of my longing for her when she was literally just a few feet away.

But it was all the more reason I needed to get my shit together and have more to offer her and the baby.

It was time to get us a new home.