Page 29

Maverick

S unday dinners at Jack and Mabel’s house have become a routine.

I was gone last Sunday, but Ava came down by herself and hung out with Aspen and the rest of the family.

She fits in so perfectly here. She’s the puzzle piece I didn’t know was missing but just snapped into place.

Now I can see the big picture, and it’s the best damn thing I’ve ever seen.

Buttoning the top of my jeans, I look over as Ava comes out of the bathroom, putting an earring in.

God, she’s so fucking beautiful it hurts.

Her blue jeans perfectly conform to her curves, sitting low and leaving a sliver of skin showing.

My gaze feels heated, and when her eyes meet mine, it’s as if she can read my thoughts.

“Don’t even think about it, cowboy. I am starving.”

Not bothering putting on a shirt, I stalk over to her.

I’m unable to take my eyes off her, and my hands are itching to get a touch.

“Hey, I’m starving too.” Burying my face into the crook of her neck, I get a whiff of her perfume and feel my cock instantly harden behind my zipper.

I can’t get enough of her. I feel like a desperate teenager, greedily taking anything she gives me.

My hands slide under the back of her tight T-shirt, and I feel the warmth of her skin against my rough palms. Her arms wrap around my neck, and I mentally calculate how long I can spend with her.

“Mav, we’re supposed to go to dinner. ”

“I know, baby, but I can be quick. I just want a little taste.”

She pats my chest twice and slowly backs away. “I just finished my hair. You can mess it up when we get home. Maybe that’ll be the motivation you need to not eat yourself into a food coma.”

“You’re killing me, sweetheart.” My voice comes out as more of a whine.

“I can promise you, no man has ever died from blue balls. Now let's go eat. The sooner that’s done, the sooner you can have dessert.” She winks at me, and I slide my shirt and hoodie on in record time.

We walk in the doors and are greeted with the smell of garlic and basil. The kitchen bar is surrounded by its usual people. I always love walking into this house because the first thing you hear is laughter.

“Hey guys! We’re glad you made it,” Mabel greets us as she waves from the kitchen, busy whipping up dinner at the stove.

“Thanks for having us,” Ava responds as she slips off her shoes. She’s really warmed up to Mabel, but she has a way of making everyone feel welcome. Don’t get me wrong, she’ll beat your ass if you step out and need corrected. Plus, you have to be one strong woman to be married to Jack for so long.

“I see you got a little lady with you,” Tommy, our new farrier, says as he walks toward us. He’s almost as tall as I am but a little leaner. He took over for his dad when he retired last year. I haven’t quite warmed up to him like the others have.

“Yeah, I do, this is my—uh—my…” I struggle to find what to call her. We’ve decided we're together, but introducing her as my girlfriend fe els wrong—not quite enough—which causes a whole other round of thoughts to barrel through me. What would she say to that? If I told her I was all in?

“Hi, I’m Ava.” She puts her small hand out to shake Tommy’s. He gives her a strong shake and looks over to me with eyebrows raised.

“This is Maverick’s new wife,” Weston says, all too happy to butt in. If I could deck him right now, I would. He somehow always knows when I’m having inner turmoil and relishes bringing it to everyone else’s attention.

“Oh! I didn’t even know you were seeing anyone,” Tommy says as his eyes bounce from Ava to me, the look of disappointment a little too obvious on his face.

“Uh, what can I say? When you know, you know.” I look over to Ava and realize those words are one hundred percent true.

I do know.

I’ve never met someone like her who works as hard as she does. Most girls I’ve met have known my name and always expected something, but she’s the opposite.

She refuses my help even when I wish she wouldn’t. She wants to work for everything she’s got, and I respect that more than I can say.

I get her, and she gets me.

The scars on her soul look really similar to mine. I guess they were right when they said like calls to like. You wouldn’t get that from looking at us, but I guess that’s what I love most.

That I am the only one who knows that dark little corner of her and I like even more that she’s let me in there. That’s a privilege I never plan to take for granted .

“Yup,” Ava says, the edges of her lips curving up into a smile, showing off her perfect full lips as she tries to hide the smile begging to pop out.

“Well, I am happy for you. It looks like you married up,” he appraises her, eyeing her up and down, his eyes lingering a little too long.

“Sure did.” I’m not sure if I need to tell him to stop eyeballing my wife like that. He has about one more second of staring at her before eating his own balls for dinner.

My hand slips around her waist, giving him a gentle reminder that she’s mine. This woman has turned me into a fucking caveman.

He seems to notice the gesture and smiles warmly at both of us before turning back and walking to the center island.

“Do you also need to pee on me?” She cocks her eyebrow up at me.

I can’t help but laugh as I lean over and kiss her cheek, whispering in her ear, “Well, if you wouldn’t have left me all wound up, I would have already marked my territory. My cum would’ve been dripping out of you as we speak.”

“Jesus, Mav.” A blush rises up from her exposed chest all the way to her cheeks. Pulling her closer, I kiss her cheek once more for good measure. When I lift my head, I see everyone in the kitchen staring at us—big ol’ smiles on all their faces.

“I think I can speak for the group that we’re glad you two wised up and noticed how good you are for each other,” Mabel says. “Now, for the rest of you, head to the table. Rhett and West, can you help me out?” They both nod and push off the granite counter.

I’m used to all eyes on me, so I laugh it off, but Ava tucks her head, hiding her blush. My hand finds her lower back as I guide her to the right and head straight for the large table. On an average night, there are a lot of us. But with the addition of Tommy, the table is packed to the brim.

“So, Ava, are you from this area?” Tommy asks from across the table.

“No, I actually was born and raised about two hours from here.” She takes a sip of her wine, and my hand instinctively lands on her thigh.

Following the stitching pattern on her inner thigh, my hand moves higher and higher.

She squeezes her thighs, trapping my hand between them, which is fine with me.

“She’s adjusted to ranch life like a pro,” Weston says, tipping back in his chair. I wasn’t sure how she’d like it out here, but if you didn’t know better, you’d have thought she was born into it.

“I don’t know about that, but I do love it out here. It’s much more peaceful than being in town.”

“And she’s made some great friends. Tell them about your best friend, Betty,” I joke with her. She’s still way too attached to some of our cows. Now we’ll never be able to sell them because they’re her pasture puppies.

“I’m going to tell Betty to run your ass over next time your back is turned to her,” Ava says, narrowing her eyes at me with a little bit of an embarrassed flush to her cheeks.

“So I take it, I won’t be taking Betty or her calf to the sale barn?

” Jack raises his grey bushy eyebrows at me.

I shake my head no, and he just chuckles under his breath.

Somehow, I get the feeling Mabel has done this exact thing to him.

He exchanges a look with her, and her sheepish smile confirms my suspicions.

After we finish eating, the chatter of voices fills the room, each one of us having our own conversations and laughs.

My hand still firmly planted on Ava’s leg, I give it a squeeze, hoping now that dinner is done, we can leave.

I was promised dessert, and I’m ready to cash in on that reward.

My thumb moves in slow, tortuous circles on the inside of her thigh, causing her to squirm in her seat.

It appears I’m not the only one who’s all hot and bothered tonight.

“Well, I picked up a shift in the morning, so I am going to head out,” Aspen says.

“Yeah, all this wonderful food made me pretty tired. I am going to head out,” Rhett says, rising out of his chair.

“Are we still going to pick up a load of hay tomorrow?” He looks to Weston, who nods his head, shoving a bit of his second helping of lasagna into his mouth.

Honestly, how that guy is the skinniest of all of us is a mystery.

Taking advantage of Aspen and Rhett leaving at the same time, as always, I force my hand out of Ava’s thighs and say, “Yeah, we are probably going to head out too.”

“I’ll see you at work tomorrow, Ava!” Aspen says as she makes her way to her boots and slides them on.

“Hopefully, you two can have a nice, quiet day tomorrow,” Tommy says.

“You’re an asshole,” Aspen says, her eyes shooting daggers toward Tommy.

“What?”

“The Q word is banned in healthcare. You pretty much just cursed us to have the worst day ever,” Ava says, clearly feeling a little less reserved than normal. She’s either comfortable or pissed off. Either way, I like it.

“Well, in that case, I hope you have a busy day.”

“You can’t reverse Uno the Q word. But nice try.

Goodbye, everyone!” Aspen says as she swings open the door.

Rhett waves as he closely follows her out.

We make our way to the door and say our goodbyes.

My pace is picked up the second I hear the click of the door.

Heading home has never sounded as good as it does right now because I have plans for me and my woman. Plans that will take the entire night.