Page 25 of The Last Thing (Baker Girls #4)

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

WILSON

When we walk into Hallie’s old apartment after a long afternoon and early evening with her parents, her body instantly relaxes.

So much so that she looks like she might fall over or fall asleep where she’s standing.

“You okay?”

She spins to face me with a relaxed smile. “I’m good. A little tired. Today went pretty well though. Even if I wanted to kill my dad when he asked that question about you paying me.”

“It’s something we’ll have to talk about.”

“Yeah. We . When we get there.”

“He cares. That’s a good thing.”

She sighs. “I know. And I appreciate it. But I’ll be twenty-four soon. He has to let me grow up.” She runs her hand over her stomach. “I’m going to be someone’s mom soon.” Looking around the room, she shakes her head. “Can you believe the last time we were here together, we made this?”

I stalk over to her and run my lips down her neck.

“Of course I can believe it. Every second of that night is a vibrant memory. A perfect, unforgettable memory. The way my body moved with yours changed me. I’d never felt the things I felt with you with anyone else.

The next morning, I forced myself to leave because I already knew I had feelings for you.

” I slip my hands under her shirt. “Feelings I thought I couldn’t have.

” I switch to the other side of her neck.

“I never dreamed I’d be lucky enough to keep you.

To call you mine. Because you are. You can keep that sweet little heart of yours walled off, but that doesn’t make you any less mine.

Mine to protect, mine to care for, mine to touch and please… ”

“Wilson,” she breathes, hands sliding into my hair.

“What do you need, baby?”

“You. All of you.”

“You’ve got me,” I rumble in her ear. “I’m yours.” And with that, I sweep her off her feet and carry her to her old bedroom.

I set her down near the bed and stand back to look at her.

“Strip for me.”

“Only if you’re going to give me the same show in return.”

In one fluid motion, I pull my shirt over my head and drop it to the floor.

She sucks in a breath and stares at my naked chest, her teeth sinking into her bottom lip. Then she pulls her shirt off and unclasps her bra, dropping both to the floor.

I groan as I stare at her hardened nipples, aching to suck them into my mouth, tease them with my tongue.

I palm my hand over the crotch of my jeans, trying to calm down, give my aching cock a reprieve, but nothing helps. All I want is to be buried inside her.

“Your turn,” she breathes.

I undo the button of my pants and let them drop to the floor, but don’t go for my boxers. Instead, I stroke myself through the soft fabric.

“Wilson,” she whines. Then her tiny shorts are on the floor, and I get the most perfect view. Her standing there, naked except for a soft cotton thong, with the tiniest baby bump on display.

Mine . The word is a feral growl in the back of my mind.

She’s mine. I need to feel her pulsing around my cock. Need to paint her pussy with my cum over and over. Mine .

“Get on the bed.”

I toe my socks off as she climbs onto the bed, lying in the center.

Kneeling on the end of the bed, I crawl over to her, settling between her legs. Then achingly slowly, I graze my fingers up her legs, savoring the goosebumps that rise on her skin. When I get to her hips, I hook my fingers in the waistband of her thong and pull it down.

Then I’m in heaven. Shifting onto my stomach, I push her legs up, inhaling her scent as I stare at her glistening pussy.

“God, you’re perfect.”

I circle my tongue around her opening, then trail it up her center until I’m teasing her clit.

Her hands fall to my head, and she rolls her hips toward me. I reach up, giving her perky little tits a squeeze, then find her nipples and roll them between my thumbs and forefingers.

But I barely have time to play because with one more flick of my tongue, her body goes taut, and she cries out, pulling on my hair.

“Yes!”

The way she moans and cries out has me grinding against the mattress to ease the ache in my cock.

I lift my head and slide up her body, shoving my boxers down as I do. But it’s Hallie who grabs my face and pulls my lips to hers, kissing me deeply as she urges me inside her.

“Easy, Hellion.”

“No. I need to feel you inside me. But I want you to go slow. I want this to last. I’m aching, and I just need to feel you. I want you inside me for as long as possible. Please.”

“Baby, those words are going to kill me,” I rasp. “Roll on your side.”

She does it, and I lie down behind her.

Holding her steady, I push inside her, the pure pleasure in her moans igniting me as I bury myself to the hilt.

She lets out a shuddery breath once I’m fully seated inside her.

Slipping my hand between her legs, I rub her clit as I move in and out of her in short, slow strokes. Her hand snakes up and wraps around the side of my neck as I drop my lips to her neck, kissing and sucking the skin into my mouth.

It’s gentle and controlled as I draw out another orgasm from her, then do everything I can to keep from coming as well.

She whimpers when I slow my movements, rolling her hips in desperation.

“Does your greedy little clit need more?”

“Yes,” she whines.

“Stay just like that.”

I carefully roll onto my knees, so she’s still lying on her side, but I’m straddling her legs, pressed inside her sideways.

“Play with your nipples.” I stroke my thumb over her clit, then slowly thrust deeper. “How does that feel?”

“Perfect.”

Fingers digging into her hip, I move a little faster, holding on to the edge of my sanity. I come close, then pause, letting myself come back down again. I want this to last for her. I want her to be completely sated when we’re done.

Sometimes she doesn’t want anything more than me gently stroking her clit, but when she wants sex like this, she’s ravenous.

I work her clit faster, slowing my thrusts.

“Yes, yes…” She throws her head back as she cries out, her pussy spasming around my cock in hard pulses. “Oh my god.”

My abs burn from holding back, but I need to make sure she has everything she needs first.

“I need more. Not hard, but more…”

“I understand. Lie on your back.”

She shifts, and I thrust deeper and pull out farther, though I keep my strokes gentle.

“Yes. Just like that.” She claws at my back, dragging me down so I’m hovering over her.

“Do you have another orgasm for me?”

She nods vigorously.

“Good. Work your clit. Keep your eyes on me.”

Her eyes widen slightly, then lock on mine as her hand slips between her legs.

“Just like that. Such a good girl, baby. I can’t wait to feel your pussy squeeze my cock, to fill you with my cum.”

I wrap my hand around the side of her neck.

“I need to come so badly,” I whine. “Are you going to milk my cock?”

“Yes,” she moans, working her fingers faster.

“Yes?”

“Yes.”

“Say my name.”

Her eyes flare.

It’s one thing she hasn’t done yet. Probably another little way of holding back, even if I don’t understand why. She’s called me Deck, Decker, and Mr. Decker in bed. But she’s never called me Wilson.

I move a little faster, and she cries out again.

“Say my name, Hallie.”

She stares at me for a moment more, then it finally falls from her lips.

“Wilson.”

“That’s my girl,” I groan.

Her breathing quickens.

“Oh…Wilson. Wilson,” she cries out as her eyes roll back and her beautiful body racks with spasms.

Her coming while crying out my name sends me flying over the edge. My spine tingles and my balls tighten as she squeezes my cock. “Fuck. Hallie.” Her name is a high-pitched moan as I spill inside her, marking her as mine all over again.

My eyes fall shut as I ride out my high, her pussy still occasionally pulsing around me.

I groan as I fall to the bed beside her, not wanting to pull out of her yet. She’s still breathing heavily as she runs her fingers through my hair and kisses me. My eyes are only half open, but I wrap my arm around her, pulling her closer as I deepen the kiss.

“Mm,” she mumbles against my lips.

I hold her tighter, but she wriggles against me. “I need to get up. Clean up.” I groan in protest, but she kisses my cheek. “The doctor said it’s important to prevent infection.”

Reluctantly, I loosen my grip, and I’m rewarded with another kiss.

“I’ll be right back.”

I peel my eyes all the way open just in time to watch her naked ass strut away. Flopping onto my back, I stare at the ceiling. Hearing her say my name like that was?—

“Wilson!”

I leap out of the bed and tear across the room at the sound of her panicked voice.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

She’s sitting on the toilet, shaking, with tears in her eyes.

She holds up a piece of toilet paper with a pinkish-light red tint.

Oh, fuck.

Okay. Breathe. Calm. Think.

“Is there anything bright red?”

She shakes her head.

Okay, that’s good. I think.

“It’s been a while since I read up on all this, but it’s probably just some spotting after sex. I think I remember that being a thing. Try to stay calm. We’ll go to the ER and get you checked, just to be sure.”

She looks up at me, utterly broken.

“What—what if?—”

I lift her off the toilet and carry her back to the bedroom. I set her down and take her face in my hands. “It’ll be okay.” Tears stream down her cheeks, and I push all my fears away. I need to take care of her right now.

All I can do is pace.

Back and forth in this tiny room.

It’s better than the waiting room we were in for two hours.

Hallie was intermittently crying for the first hour or two, but now she’s just sitting in the little hospital bed, an oversized gown hanging off her body. Thick white blankets cover her legs, which are pulled up to her chest. She’s resting her chin on her knees and staring blankly at the wall.

She won’t talk to me. She’s almost catatonic.

They came in and drew labs and ordered an ultrasound. We’re waiting on the results of the labs and for the ultrasound technician.

I’m not convinced this is the worst-case scenario, but it’s still scary as fuck.

My stomach is in knots, but I’m in dad mode. Compartmentalizing. That’s what has to be done when everything else is falling apart and I have to be the reliable one.

I’m thirty-one and still wish for an adultier adult sometimes, but as a dad, unfortunately, I’m usually the adultier adult.

“This is why I don’t do love.”

I whip around to look at Hallie, who is wiping her eyes.

“What do you mean?”

She glances at me, but doesn’t quite meet my gaze.

“Loving opens you up to heartbreak. And this?” She gestures to her body. “It’s too much.”

I sit down on the edge of her bed and grab her hand. “Where is this coming from?”

She finally meets my eyes, and she knows what I mean.

Not the fears she’s feeling tonight. Why does she keep her heart walled off? Why is she afraid of love?

“Growing up, I was obsessed with my grandparents’ love story.

I’d beg my gran to tell me about it over and over.

Finding a love like that was what I wanted out of life.

When I was fourteen, my grandfather was in the hospital, recovering after some heart stuff.

He was expected to make a full recovery, and my grandmother had been staying with us while he was there.

One night I woke up to my grandmother screaming.

I ran downstairs and found her on her knees on the floor, my mom in front of her crying.

Frannie was beside me a moment later, and then our dad told us what happened.

Pop had passed away suddenly.” Her voice thickens, and she sniffs back tears.

“I will never forget Gran screaming at the top of her lungs that she was supposed to die first because she couldn’t live without him.

That was the moment I knew I never wanted to fall in love because I didn’t want to endure that type of pain.

Losing parents, siblings, friends… those are all painful, but losing the person your soul is tethered to?

” She shakes her head. “I don’t want to do that.

” Her lip quivers as she rests her hands on her stomach.

“But I didn’t think about this. Losing a child—the thought is unbearable. ”

Well, fuck me.

I assumed someone hurt her, but really, she’s terrified of experiencing the kind of pain that comes with deep loss.

My chest cracks open when I think about what that means. All this time she hasn’t been afraid of falling for me. She’s afraid of loving me that much. I don’t know how to convince her it’s okay. But that’s for another time. Her feelings for me aren’t what’s important right now.

I put my hand over hers where it’s resting on her stomach. “We don’t know what’s going to happen, but even if we lost this baby, would you regret loving them?”

Her nostrils flare and tears fall down her cheeks.

“This is scary, but it’s a part of life.

If you try to hide and prevent yourself from feeling pain, all you’ll be left with is emptiness, and I know that’s not what you want.

I understand your fear. I lost my dad suddenly, and I’m still grieving him.

I always will be. Grief is love transformed.

And it fucking hurts sometimes, but I’d rather feel that hurt and remember the way he loved me than to have never had it at all.

Love is a risk, but it’s the best risk you’ll ever take.

Without love, life is meaningless. Don’t prevent yourself from experiencing it.

And when it comes to this, how would you ever be able to love this little person as fully as they deserve to be if you’re scared to open your heart all the way? ”

She moves her hand and twines our fingers together over her stomach, resting her head on my shoulder.

“I’m really scared.”

“I know you are. I’m scared too. But my dad would have told me to have hope.

So that’s what I’m doing right now. For myself.

For you. For our baby. That’s his love still here.

Still getting me through.” I brush my lips over her forehead.

“It’s okay to be scared. But don’t give up.

And don’t regret loving this baby because I can guarantee it’s the best thing you’ve ever done. ”

She turns her body into me, and I wrap my arms around her, holding her close while she cries.

I’m still scared. And though I wish it wouldn’t have taken this to get her to open up to me, I’m glad she finally did. Now I know it’s not about breaking through her walls, but showing her that loving someone deeply is worth the risk of losing that love one day.