Chapter Nineteen
The street showed no sign of life. Empty driveways, no streetlights, nothing but front porch lights shined in the darkness. Powerful gusts of thick, hot air rocked Cade’s SUV parked in Ella’s driveway. Black clouds rolled in signaling a dangerous change in temperature.
Droplets of rain splattered on Cade’s head as he picked up the clothes hanging on the hooks from the back of his car. “We’ve got to get this inside before the bottom falls out of the sky.”
Jason gathered an armful of shopping bags. “Come inside and visit. Mom said she’d be home by midnight. It’s still early.”
“She might not want company.” Would she want to see him tonight? She had a challenging day. No doubt it had been a rough night with Garrett. Did she like company when she was upset? Would she rather be alone?
Kyle grabbed the last bags of clothes out of the back and closed it. “When she gets home, if she’s worn out, you can go. If not, we can hang out.” Kyle followed Cade and Jason to the front door and out from under the light rain.
Jason jostled the bags and pushed his key into the door. “It’s unlocked. Did we lock the front door when we left?”
“Yes,” Kyle said.
“Stand back.” Cade stepped forward and Jason moved aside. “I’ll check the house.”
Cade peeked through the window. The lights in the living room that he’d turned off before they left were on.
“Stay here. If you hear anything strange, call the police.” He opened the front door and slipped inside the house. He considered calling Jimmy, his head of security, to come over as backup. Instead, he carefully made his way to the living room. He hadn’t been on security detail in ten years, but the process was so ingrained he automatically followed normal procedure.
A new sense of urgency consumed him. An armed criminal could be inside. He slowly breathed in and found the calm he needed to thoroughly check the house and keep his family—his Ella and boys—safe.
He set the wardrobe bags on the couch. Only the slightest crinkling sound came from the plastic.
Footsteps from the kitchen area grew louder.
Shit. He quickly moved into the shadows and pressed his back against the wall. A soft scraping of something against fabric caught his attention.
Burglars? Fuck.
Someone was coming right toward him. He inhaled. He should have called Jimmy for backup. He had one chance for a surprise.
Closer. Closer. Closer.
He stepped out, ready to knock the person out, and…
“Ahh,” Ella screamed.
“Fuck.” Cade changed his punch into a grab and hauled her into his arms. “You scared the crap out of me.” Relief washed over him. You’re safe. You’re safe. “I thought someone broke into your house. Thank God, you’re all right.” He squeezed her tightly against his chest. “What are you doing with your door unlocked?”
“Cade,” she mumbled against his chest. “Can’t breathe.”
“Shit. Sorry.” He loosened his hold on her.
“You scared me.” She panted against him. “Don’t ever do that again.”
He held her shoulders, leaned back, and scanned her sweet, sexy body. Her beautiful brown hair billowed down her back. The dark-blue T-shirt made her look like a college student. A college student without a bra. Mmm. Are you wearing panties?
His entire body jerked to attention. He was ready to find out.
“Are you listening to me?” Ella glared at him.
He tried to stifle his amusement but failed. She was adorable angry. He liked her fierce glare. He liked it a lot. A lesser man would be terrified of her. “Every word,” he said. “You’re tough.” Except when dealing with wildlife.
She tilted her head and bit her bottom lip, seemingly bemused. “Where are my boys?”
“Jason. Kyle,” he shouted. “It’s all clear. It was your mother.” He couldn’t keep his eyes off her. “Gosh, you’re beautiful.”
She gazed down. Crimson filled her neck and cheeks.
Are you blushing on your belly? Your pussy?
“Cade,” she whispered. “Being friends isn’t going to work.”
“What? Why?” I can’t make you fall in love with me unless we spend time together.
“I’m going to date Garrett.”
Shit. “Then date me too. ”
Her chin stayed down but her gaze lifted. “I’d like that. I know it’s different, and we’ve talked—”
Jason and Kyle ran into the living room, dropped the shopping bags on the floor, and swooped in on Ella with a big hug. “Mom, we thought someone found the extra key and broke in. We’re so glad you’re safe,” Jason said.
“What are you doing home so early?” Kyle asked.
“I’ve been home for a half hour,” she said. “I was doing laundry.”
They all looked behind Ella. A white laundry basket was on its side with the once folded clothes scattered on the floor near it.
“Sorry,” Cade said. He hadn’t heard it fall, he’d been so focused on keeping the boys safe. He left Ella to her boys and walked over to the basket. He sucked at folding clothes. He turned the basket right side up and tried to salvage the folded pieces as he gathered them from the floor. “Where do you want this?”
“My, um, bedroom,” Ella said. “Don’t worry about folding anything.”
He carried the basket over to the couch and placed the wardrobe bags over it as he blocked her view. “I’ll take care of this.”
“Thanks, Cade,” she said.
“My pleasure.”
“Mom, are you up for seeing what we did today?” Kyle asked. “Cade, meet us in the living room.”
Cade looked over his shoulder. “I’ll fix the lock in her bedroom and wait for y’all on the couch.” He resumed his trek into her bedroom, a place he hadn’t been inside but the boys had pointed out.
He pushed open the door and stepped into the pastel-yellow bedroom. There wasn’t much in the large space. A white, metal queen-size bed with a green comforter and sheets stood out as the only truly feminine pieces in the house. It didn’t belong with the beautifully crafted wooden dresser and armoire in the room. Did you change the bed to start over?
A platinum-framed photo of Ella and Greg at the beach sat on the dresser. He put the laundry basket on the bed and picked up the frame. Engraved in some kind of Celtic calligraphy was a note for Ella at the bottom.
“To my lover, my wife, the mother of my children, the most beautiful woman in the world—Always think of me like this when I’m gone.”
He set the frame down. Greg understood what he had with Ella. No matter what her feelings were for Garrett, they wouldn’t be anything close to how she loved her husband.
He picked up the frame again and looked at the picture in more detail. She had a carefree glint in her eyes, like she did in the woods when she ran off to the guest cabin alone. He hadn’t seen it since. He wanted to see that expression on her face all the time for the rest of his life.
Greg’s eyes in the photo were more of a gray than a true blue like hers and the boys. There was a happy but calculating look to them. Kyle had that same look when he talked about his mother or mathematics. He’d researched Greg online during dinner. The man was a genius on multiple subjects, not just one. Kyle had understated his father’s intelligence. The boys took after their father but held their mother’s heart and determination.
Maddie told him about the last few years of Greg’s illness. All the money he’d accumulated, millions from the banking industry, had been “given away” but really stolen by his parents and by those who knew about the man’s diminished mental capacity. Ella was left with tons of medical bills, the house, and nothing else. She had a small account in her name that funded the startup costs for her business, but almost all her profits, which have been substantial, were taken away to pay for the medical bills.
He set the frame down again and walked back into the living room to retrieve the rest of the clothes he bought her.
By the time he finished fixing her lock and putting her clothes and shoes away, he had a knot the size of Texas in his stomach. His Ella had a bare closet, empty dresser, and a jewelry case marked “for emergencies” that was darn near void. She didn’t have enough money to give her daughter a backyard wedding let alone the extravagant one Colleen had been lobbying the boys for.
Ella didn’t have enough money to buy herself a decent wardrobe, and he had ruined every nice thing Josie bought her. No more ripping clothes off her until they were married. She needed every piece of clothing he had bought her tonight and more.
The windows rattled. Low rumbles of thunder sounded in the distance. He trudged into the living room and sat down on the couch. Buying her a few clothes and items for the house wasn’t enough. She needed real help. Everything from food to utilities to finding her the best land for her business. He was on it.
“Hey,” Ella whispered behind him.
“Hey,” he said. “How are you doing?”
She walked around the leather couch and sat down next to him.
“Thanks for helping the boys with the house. I really appreciate it. I’ll give you back the furniture when I sell the place, and I’ll pay you back for the appliances then too.”
“I don’t want anything back. Keep it all.”
“I can’t. No matter how much the boys love the Jeeps, they can’t keep them. It’s too much.”
He faced her. His blood boiled. I’m taking care of you whether you like it or not. “They are gifts. I gave them because I wanted to. I don’t expect anything in return. Kyle and Jason are great kids, and they deserve a break. I make plenty of money. Everything was freely given, Ella. Don’t mention it again.”
She rose to her feet and glared down at him. Her red face and pursed, pink lips turned him on. She was so sexy when she was worked up. “It is too much. I’m not being beholden to anyone and the gifts are extravagant. A gift is a free pizza or a movie, maybe a game. Cars are not on that list. You’re taking this stuff back, and that’s the end of it.”
Cade stood up. “The hell I am.” He cupped the back of her neck and kissed her. He hadn’t planned to kiss her, but it had been too long since they touched. Too long since they made love.
Her lips parted on a gasp. He thrust his tongue between her teeth and tasted her, danced with her, devoured her mouth. He slid his free hand around her back and pulled her against his chest. “You’re not giving anything back to me. You’re accepting it all.” He crushed his lips to her. Damn, she tasted of minty goodness.
She curled her arms around his neck as she returned his kiss. Hands, lips, bodies pressed together. “Bedroom,” she whispered.
His feet and heartbeat raced to see how quickly they could get into the bedroom. He had to slow down and follow Pappy’s rules. “Ella.”
“I don’t want the kids to hear me scream at the top of my lungs at you,” she whispered between kisses. She ran her right leg up and down his outer thigh.
Were they going to argue or make love? Either way he’d enjoy it. He slid his hands to her ass and lifted her up. She wrapped her lean legs around his waist.
“Hurry, please,” she whispered.
He strode to her bedroom and locked the door. “Ella, damn it. I want to take things slow with you.” No, he didn’t but he needed to follow his father’s advice. Love shouldn’t be this much hard work, but his father often said loving someone was the best kind of work. Getting through tough times made the easy times that much sweeter.
Her sexy mood shifted. Her eyes shot icicle daggers at him.
“Listen up, Cade.” She unwound her legs from his waist.
He helped her down but firmly held her hand. You’re not running away from me. “I’m listening.” He proudly stopped a smile from forming on his lips. Damn, you’re sexy.
“I am not accepting your gifts. None of them. Well, the painting, and the landscaping I will, but only because I think the boys helped. But nothing else. You don’t know me. With Garrett here, I don’t have time for any games.”
“I do know you, and I’m not playing games. I’ve done that with other women. I don’t want a relationship with someone I have to dance around. The gifts are just that—gifts. Don’t worry about them. Don’t think you owe me. You don’t.”
She huffed.
“Yes, I give better gifts than most, but I can afford them. I’ll say it again—I don’t expect anything in return.” He tugged her into his arms. “I know you had a hard day. Let me hold you. You don’t have to be strong all the time. Let me help you get your house sold. Let me help you and the boys get through the move. You don’t have to do it on your own.”
“I can’t accept the gifts,” she said. “I can’t deal with owing another person anything.”
“Sweetie, if you didn’t want to see me again, I still wouldn’t want anything back. It’s all yours.” Along with my heart and soul and body, especially my body.
“Why didn’t you call me this week?” she mumbled.
“I should have. The conference schedule made it near impossible to call you at a decent hour. This week was not one of my best.” Understatement of the year.
Nikki double checked the companies who messed up the deliveries to Ella. The vendors had the correct addresses and account numbers, but somewhere between the order and the deliveries, the addresses got changed. A royal screw up. Even today had a screw up with the dress Josie picked out and sent to Ella’s work but never arrived.
“You can call me anytime,” she whispered. Her sweet, lithe body leaned into him.
“I’ll take you up on that.” He glided his hands up and down her back. No bra. No panties. None were in her drawers until he filled them with his purchases from the mall. “I missed you.”
“Did you?”
“I did.”
Her hands slid around his waist and pulled his dress shirt from his pants.
“Slow down. I’ll attack you, if you get to my skin,” he said. Her fingers met the heat of his flesh. He fought the desire to get into her and tried to follow his father’s sage advice. Attempting to stop his instincts wasn’t working. He wanted what he wanted, and he wanted her.
“I thought you didn’t take things slow,” she said in her husky, Zen voice.
“I don’t. But I’m trying to.”
“Maybe I want fast.” She tilted her chin up and locked onto his gaze as she slid her hands down his suit pants and squeezed his ass.
His hips jerked forward.
“El-la,” he warned.
She removed her hands and backed out of his embrace. “Fine.” She turned around. “You know where the exit is.”
“Oh, screw it.” He wasn’t replaying the first night at the cabin. She needed him, and he needed her. They had more than sex to keep them glued to each other. He unbuttoned his cuffs and pulled his shirt and undershirt off. “You want my cock inside you?” His voice lowered.
With her back to him, she barely nodded in an affirmative motion.
He emptied his pants pockets and set everything on top of the armoire. Garrett made love to her in this room.
“Did you have sex with Garrett this evening?” He unbuttoned his suit pants.
She straightened her back into a stiff rod.
“It’s okay.” He unzipped his pants. “You’re not going to want him soon enough.” He stepped out of his shoes and pants. “You’re mine, not his.”
Her breath hitched, and her arms wrapped around her ribs.
He placed his hand at her waist.
“Drop your arms.” He was going to make certain she knew who owned her body, and it sure as hell wasn’t Garrett Winthrop. He was going to blow her mind tonight. He was good at a lot of things, and sex was probably number one on the list. Maybe it was a tie between business and sex. He gently guided her around until she faced him, and her butt hit the edge of the bed.
With her gaze downcast and a pink flush to her cheeks, she dropped her hands to her side, obeying him.
“Um. Cade?” Her succulent lips taunted him.
Those sexy lips were his tonight.
“Ella, do you really want this?”
She nodded and gazed up at him through watery eyes.
“I need this. I need…” she hesitated. “…You.”
She paused again.
She seemed to want to say more, but what? His confidence waned.
“If I start, I won’t be gentle,” he said.
“I don’t want gentle. Tonight with Garrett.” She closed her eyes. “I missed Greg. I missed you. I kept thinking of you. How you make me feel…” She exhaled. “…Alive.”
A deep, gratifying rumble started in his chest and filtered out his mouth. He’d never made a sound of that nature before. The confidence he lost after meeting Garrett came roaring back to life. His skin tingled with electricity. He skimmed his fingers down her delicate cheek to her mouth. “I can do that.” He traced the seam of her supple lips.
She parted them on a moan.
“We’re sleeping in tomorrow,” he said.
She opened her dreamy eyes. “We can’t. The kids.”
“We can.” He dragged his fingers from her lips down her neck over her breast. “The boys invited me to stay.” Kind of.
“Jason will go ballistic if he suspects.” She arched her back and pressed her breast into his hand.
She didn’t say he couldn’t stay, or she didn’t want him to. “Jason will never know.”
“Cade, please.”
Was she begging for him to make love to her? To kiss her? To say he’d leave? He lowered to his knees.
“Take off your T-shirt.”
She panted softly as she revealed porcelain skin shaved free of hair. He offered up a silent prayer of thanks as she dropped the T-shirt to the area rug. Her sweet, ginger scent filled his nose. He knelt on one knee, curled his hands around her calves, and slid them up the back of her thighs. So lean and strong.
She moaned.
“You want me to lick your pussy?” He brushed his lips against her belly.
Silence.
“My shy Ella,” he cooed. “Touch me if you want me to lick you.”
She reached down, weaved her hands through his hair, and widened her stance.
“Did Garrett do this to you?” He had to know. It was killing him to know details.
“I…um. I don’t remember if he did,” she rasped.
He smiled. “You remember me doing this.”
She swallowed. “Yes.”
“And you want more.” He pressed a soft kiss to her navel.
“Yes.”
He lifted her right leg over his shoulder. “Sweetie, I have three hundred and sixty-one more fantasies all starring you.” He dipped his head and licked between her legs. Her honey cream flowed onto his tongue. A silent orgasm wouldn’t do. He needed to hear her orgasms.
Her legs trembled. He slid one hand up her back and the other pulled her left leg over his shoulder.
“Cade,” she gasped.
He leisurely lapped the cream between her thighs and set the stage to dip in and take the spotlight at the main event.
“De-li-cious.” He tapped her clit with the tip of his tongue between each syllable.
She gripped the back of his hair and pulled.
He jerked his head back. “No, ma’am. I’m choosing when you come.”
Her pelvis froze. “Yes, sir.”
He kissed the top slit. “That’s good, sweetie.” He dragged his lips up and down along her fold. A rush of cream slipped from her pussy. “Ready for my cock?” He circled her clit over and over with his tongue.
She whimpered.
He shifted into a squat and lifted her. He sucked on her clit as he guided her onto the bed, but kept her ass off the edge.
Luscious juices flowed from her pussy onto his tongue. His cock ached to get inside her. To feel her orgasm squeeze him. To cum inside her.
She trembled and gripped his hair. “I can’t stop.”
“Come for me,” he whispered against her plump clit.
She curled her legs around his head, blocked his peripheral view, and ground against his face.
His heart soared with joy. I made you come. I made you lose control. With some work, you’re going to fall in love with me. I’ll have your body, heart, and soul for the rest of my life.
“Cade,” she cried out, shuddering in his hold.
Her scent increased his desire. He rubbed his face in her pussy, feasted on her as her clit throbbed, and her pussy walls closed in on his tongue.
“Need a minute to breathe.” She panted. “It’s too much.”
“No.” He had a plan in place to make her fall in love with him, and multiple orgasms were paramount to making it happen.
He got back to the real business of making memories. Every time she walked into her room, she would remember him feasting on her. If Garrett even tried to do this, her mind would go to him instead, and stay there. “I need more,” he murmured against her clit. “Knees up. Arms overhead.”
She followed his orders and lifted her knees to the sides of her chest. Her pussy opened.
He dipped the tip of his tongue into her sex, pulled down his boxers, and freed his aching cock.
“It’s sensitive. I can’t…”
In and out he dipped the tip of his tongue. He mercilessly teased her overstimulated clit with the light graze of his teeth. A ripple of pleasure from her channel flowed around his tongue with a burst of pure, heated pussy cream—the precursor to a monster orgasm for her. This one would be around his cock.
He cupped the junction at her inner thighs and held her hips down as he rose to his full height. His cock aligned with her pussy. Every basic instinct in his bones screamed at him to fuck her and make her his wife.
Beads of cum that should have been inside her dripped from the tip of his cock. He rotated his hips and her wet pussy squeezed around his rod as it disappeared into her center. In and out. In and out. He thrust and retreated from her tight pussy. He ground against her swollen clit. “Mine. Mine.” You’re going to forget loving anyone but me.
Her blue eyes opened, and her chest bowed up. Her lips parted. “I’m coming.”
The tremors of another pussy orgasm rippled around his cock, a bigger one. The explosion was seconds away. Her walls clamped down around him in hard, breaking waves.
He plunged into her pussy and slid her to the opposite edge of the mattress as he climbed onto the bed. Her legs splayed with his as he dropped into a wide legged push-up.
Lightning flashed. Thunder roared and shook the house. The lamp lights flickered. Her hips bucked and drove his cock deeper. He dipped his lips to her clavicle and licked upward to her ear while her pussy rippling channel squeezed his throbbing rod. Over and over, he repeated the dipping pushup. His climax rose. She felt too good around him. Close to losing it, he squeezed his lids shut and continued to suppress his desire to come. Determined to bring her to the space where she flew apart, lost her mind, screamed, writhed, and gave him her pleasure, he pressed on.
A sheen of sweat covered his chest and back. He dipped down into his pushup, nipped at her neck and earlobe. He glided over her big breasts.
“Oh shit. I’m… Yeeeess!” She writhed underneath him and screamed his name over and over.
His balls clenched so tightly he was sure they were going to burst. Then it came. His ecstasy rushed out in pure triumph. Mine.
She bit down on his neck, not too hard, but it muffled her wild cries of bliss.
He loved it. Loved her. Loved making love to her. Loved the way he lost control. Loved the way she did too.
She released his shoulder, and dropped her head to the bed. She panted for air. “Wow doesn’t really describe how incredible that was.”
“Yeah,” he said. If I weren’t sterile we would have made a baby or two. He dropped down to his elbows and kissed her lips. There is no one else for me, but you.
“Mmm,” she mumbled in a sweet satisfied voice. “Hold me.”
He shifted to his side and pulled her into his chest. “Tired?”
“Yeah.” She snuggled closer to him.
“Rest, sweetie.”
“I missed you,” she mumbled as her breathing slowed into the steady rhythm of sleep.
The first real sleepover at her house, and he wasn’t prepared. No clothes. No toothbrush. Remedying the situation, he slipped out of bed and called the head of his security team Jimmy.
Jimmy answered on the second ring.
“Hey, it’s Cade.”
“What do you need?”
“Clothes, sneakers and a toothbrush brought to Ella’s house.” I’m claiming a drawer and leaving a toothbrush.
“Got it. When do you need it?”
“Half-hour. Any more information from Nikki about the delivery mistakes?”
“Not yet, but we’re looking into it. I’m checking into Felicity’s part. Nikki says she’s capable of simple tasks, but I think your assistant is an idiot.”
“She’s not the sharpest tool in the shed, but she tries.” He never should have hired her, even with her stellar recommendations. He slipped into his suit pants.
“I’m heading over now,” Jimmy said. “Did you know Jerry Wynn is in town?”
“Since when?”
“Since last night. His mom died. The funeral is Monday.”
“Damn. Mae Wynn was a good woman. What happened?”
“Murdered,” Jimmy said. “They found her this morning. No one is talking.”
“I guess I’ll go and see him Monday.” Cade unlocked the bedroom door and quietly strode through the dark house to the front door. He looked out the window for Jimmy.
The storm had passed, but leaves were scattered across the lawn. The flowers they planted had taken a beating, but looked like they would survive.
“Cut the lights when you get here. I don’t want to wake the boys.”
“Never thought I’d see the day,” Jimmy said. “Cade Daniel Jackson is in love.”
“Shut up, and get over here, old man.” He hung up. Garrett Winthrop. Jerry Wynn. Strange deliveries, and even stranger non-deliveries.
The black SUV driving down the street cut the headlights and pulled up into the driveway. Jimmy hopped out of the car and jogged to the door.
Cade opened the door and Jimmy handed him a black backpack.
“Thanks. I think I’d like Jason and Kyle to get the company’s advanced bodyguard training. It would be a good skill for them.” Maybe they wouldn’t have been so nervous tonight if they had a protocol to follow.
“You know their uncle trained them when they were kids,” Jimmy said.
They played him earlier when they acted nervous or had they? The way they huddled with Ella behind him when Garrett had strode quickly toward him hadn’t seemed fake. The blank looks seemed more like they’d been in shock or possibly fear, not for themselves as much as for their mom. “I didn’t know that. I’d still like them trained in our system. Did you pull Kyle and Jason’s SAT’s?”
“Perfect scores from both of them when they took it in the third grade.
“Damn. I shouldn’t worry so much about them taking the final for Mrs. Kellen on Wednesday.
Jimmy chuckled. “Yeah. They could have skipped high school. I asked Josie why the boys didn’t get transferred out of Mrs. Kellen’s class. Josie said Ella tried and brought other parents along with her for backup. It got ugly. So ugly Josie wouldn’t elaborate.”
“That doesn’t sound like Josie.” I had no problem scheduling the boys to take the final in front of me and the principal. I’ll take pictures of their answers in case there are problems.
“I know. You should talk to her.”
“I will. Thanks,” Cade whispered. “I’ll touch base tomorrow.”
Jimmy nodded and headed back to his car.
Cade locked the door and walked back into the bedroom. Ella’s boys were two geniuses like their father and uncle, but they had a lot of growing up to do. He’d help them navigate the waters of life like Pappy did for him.
In the bedroom, the light from the lamp shined enough light to see her eyes flutter open. He set his bag down on the floor near the armoire. “It’s just me.”
“Come back to bed.” She closed her eyes again. “I want you to stay.”
He took off his pants and climbed into bed.
She cuddled up against him exactly where he wanted her to be.
Home.