The sound of her body moving registers before the heat of her presses closer. “Iris,” I warn.
Slowly, she pushes up her body until she’s kneeling in front of me on the couch. I stay painfully still as she lifts her leg and rests it by my hip. The moment her weight falls into my lap, I groan at her heat.
My wife boldly straddles my lap and rakes her fingertips through my hair. My head, heavy with want, falls back. My cock twitches in my jeans and the slight grind my Wildflower gives tells me she felt it…and liked it. Wants it.
My hands ignore my mental protests and grip her hips, pulling her tighter against me.
“What are you doing to me?” I whisper, hypnotized by those bright, hazel eyes.
Iris leans her weight into me, chest to chest, and runs her hands down until she holds my neck.
“This wasn’t the plan,” she whispers against my lips, reality staying at bay outside this protective bubble we’ve created.
“I wasn’t supposed to want you,” I grunt, digging my fingers deeper, feeling the warmth of her body through the leggings she wears that have been my constant torment all day.
“Last thing I wanted.”
“We should keep this,” I cough to cover the moan from her lips at my neck. “I don’t want to fuck this up.”
I get those eyes, piercing my soul. “Ellis Michaels, you are a good man. An amazing and loving father. And while I thought it was the last thing I wanted, I’m so happy it was you.”
“I haven’t felt this…since–” I fight swallowing around my closing airway.
“I’ve never…felt this. And it’s scary as hell.”
Fuck, it is.
I glide my hands up, my fingers catching the hem of her silk blouse until finally, I touch soft, bare skin.
“Olive loves you,” I reason. “If I fuck this up, we can’t lose you. She can’t lose someone else.”
She wraps her arms around my neck and holds me. My hands travel over her bare back as I exhale at the feel of not fighting this anymore.
Desire. Companionship. Peace.
Holding this woman in my arms, the weight of grief I’ve lied to friends, hell, to myself, and been pretending hasn’t suffocated me every morning I woke and looked over to my right in fear that I’d see Gillian’s cold frame there…that weight evaporates.
Is it wrong to hope for this?
Chapter Six
IRIS
His heartbeat, strong, sings its song, and mine responds in kind.
How the hell did this happen?
Just imagining Raven in my place right now shoots embers of jealousy I’ve never felt. Fate’s a tricky bitch, but right now, I’m kissing her feet in gratitude. This rugged, broken man and his bright-eyed little girl snuck in like thieves and stole my heart.
Outside this little bubble of ours, life is a mess. But in here, I feel safe. I feel supported. I feel…love.
Slowly, we pull back, remaining close. “We’re in this together, right?”
Those dark green eyes search mine until the shadow drops. “Yeah, wife.” His full lips twitch upward. “We’re in this together.”
Desperate to feel those lips again, I eliminate the space and press my lips to his. He inhales sharply, and something wild and delicious unleashes.
Immediately, Ellis deepens the kiss. Wild. Free.
