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“I’m just happy it wasn’t your mom,” I admit. A sister walking in I can handle, even though I suspect that Lizzie isn’t going to let us live this down anytime soon. A mom, especially Beatriz who I know to be old-fashioned, is something else entirely. I don’t want to do anything to make her not like me. There isn’t much out there that makes me nervous, but I don’t have enough experience with moms to have the first idea of how I would have handled her walking in on me naked in bed with her daughter.
Ellie nods against me, a distressed sounding moan floating up from under her tangled hair. I can’t stop the chuckle that bursts out of me. Her small hands in the middle of my chest push me away and she rolls to a sitting position, clutching the sheets against her naked breasts.
“It’s really not funny,” she exclaims. Her face is flushed with sleep and embarrassment, but the corner of her mouth twitches and I know that she wants to laugh too.
“It kind of is…” I offer, my laughter fades when I catch a flash of rosy nipple flashing at me where the fabric has slid down. It’s my turn to moan, but it’s one of unbridled wanting, not of distress. I’m never going to get my fill of this woman. She’s the perfect mix of sweet innocence and spicy wickedness all wrapped up in one neat, little package.
“What?” Ellie’s eyes follow my heated gaze and her eyes widen in mock horror. “You are so… bad!” She gasps, yanking the sheet up and covering herself again. She’s so freaking adorable, all mussed and glowing from our lovemaking. She’s perfect, Perfect for me anyway. I guess I have a thing for… well every damn thing about her. Other than when she cut herself off from me, there hasn’t been anything that I’ve discovered about Elinor Lovell that I haven’t been drawn to.
“Hey,” I sit up beside her and tug the sheet back down until her succulent mounds are bared to my gaze again, “I’m enjoying the view.” I grin confidently and her own smile breaks loose with a giggle. Licking her kiss reddened lips, she ogles my chest, her eyes trailing down to where the thin sheet does nothing to hide my rapidly growing erection.
“Me too,” She whimpers, reaching out to pluck at where the sheet is tented in my lap.
Unable to resist, I lunge for her, dragging her against me and back down into the disarray of the bed. My lips crash down over hers, tongues stroking, teeth and noses bumping in our urgency to taste each other again.
We’re interrupted by a sharp knock on the door, followed by Bea’s voice. “Be out here in five minutes!” I can’t tell if she’s angry or not. Ellie scrambles away, sighing. This is part of family life that will take some getting used to.
“We have to behave, Blake. This,” she waves a hand back and forth between us, “this isn’t something Mama will approve of us doing without…”
She lets her words trail off, but I know exactly where she was going with her statement. She was going to say without us being married. I already had that figured out about Bea. This is the kind of family where sex and marriage go hand in hand. I knew it, expected it, and I’m ready for it. I don’t care if I haven’t known Ellie for very long. She’s mine. Now that I’ve found her; now that I’ve had her there is no way that I’m going to let anything come between us. I just need to make sure that Bea knows that without ruining my chance to surprise Ellie. I don’t ever want her to think that the only reason I’m going to put a ring on her finger is because her mom expects me to.
Standing, I reach for my discarded pants from the night before and step into them, tucking my thickness into the loose fabric and tossing Ellie the flannel I dropped to the floor when I walked into her room in the early hours of the morning. She smiles happily and pulls it on before crossing to the bathroom and closing the door behind her. I pull on my t-shirt and straighten the bed covers. There’s no reason to rub anyone’s face in what we were doing while they were out, and if the military taught me anything it’s how to make a bed.
When Ellie comes out of the bathroom, she is in black leggings with a small hole in the knee under my flannel that hangs more than halfway down her thighs. She has the sleeves rolled up so just her fingers peek out, her face scrubbed and glowing and her hair is in a messy bun on top of her head. She looks relaxed and freshly fucked, but I guess there’s nothing that can be done about that at this point. Besides, if I have any say in the matter this is going to be how she looks from now on, so everyone is going to have to get used to it.
“Let’s go see everyone,” I take her hand in mine. It’s shaking. “You scared babe?” I ask kissing the top of her head before opening the door and leading her into the hall.
“Not scared exactly,” she whispers. “Just nervous.”
“Me too,” I admit. I’ve never done any of this spend time with the parental unit thing with anyone since high school. Maybe. I think about it for a second. Nope. I didn’t even do it then, and the foster families that I lived with didn’t care what I was up to as long as the police or child services didn’t get involved.
“It’ll be okay,” I offer, hoping to stop the sadness that spread to her eyes with my words. I’m pretty sure that it will. “She likes me, and she loves you…”
Ellie nods, squeezing my fingers tightly and sliding her arm around my waist as we approach the kitchen. Muffled voices reach my ears. Sounds like everyone is outside waiting for us.
I open the screen door and precede Ellie into the yard toward where everyone, John included, is sitting around the unlit fire pit. There is a pitcher of iced tea and a tray of cookies on the small table. Everyone looks happy and relaxed. I sigh with relief, tugging Ellie out from where she is hiding behind me and slinging my arm around her shoulders, pulling her close to my side.
Bea rises to her feet with a welcoming smile and gestures for us to join them as she crosses to the refreshments and pours two more glasses of tea. We sit under John’s smirking gaze. Why is he still here anyway? Lizzie giggles, staring at her twin with huge sparkling eyes and a knowing grin. I shake my head. As soon as she gets her sister alone, she is going to be like a dog with a bone. Maybe not having siblings isn’t such a bad thing after all. I bite back a chuff of laughter, knowing that Ellie won’t appreciate it right now.
Her eyes fly in my direction, glaring at my sound of humor, and shaking her head. Lizzie cracks up across from us and Ellie shakes her head at both of us.
“Whatever!” she snips at her sister. “It’s not as if I’ve never caught you in a compromising situation.” She stares hard at Lizzie as if she is willing her to remember. Lizzie’s face falls, her laughter cut short. She picks up her tea and takes a sip, her brow furrowed.
“That was a little bit mean,” I whisper, leaning toward Ellie so that only she can hear my words. Her eyes, when they come back to mine, are filled with remorse. She nods and moves to crowd onto the large chair her sister is sitting in murmuring quietly in her ear. Before long they are giggling, their heads close together. I know that she leveled the field by telling her twin about whatever it was that she walked in on. Lizzie’s cheeks flush bright pink and she presses her hands against them, eyes closed as she la
ughs. It must have been something good.
“It used to be the other way around,” Bea says, taking the now vacant seat beside me. I turn my attention to her and away from Ellie and Liz.
“How so,” I ask, eager to learn anything about Ellie that she is willing to share with me.
“Lizzie has always been the rambunctious one. Always the one to go first. First to date, first to kiss a boy. Her whole life she was running ahead, and Ellie was happy to linger, to think things over and take her time.” I nod. I can still see the shadows of that dynamic between them, and I can also see how Ellie has been lost without her sister at her side.
“Now Elinor must lead Elisabeth, and as you see, that is hard for her. She doesn’t always know what to say or to do, but she is learning.”
“It’s been hard for all of you.” I observe.
She nods thoughtfully. “Yes, but maybe because of this Elinor will finally step out of her sister’s shadow and come into her own…” Her voice is hopeful, full of love for both of her daughters. “Then I pray that with time, Elizabeth will heal from the tragedy that almost took her from us and begin to live her life again.”
