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“I fell asleep,” she whispered.
“I know, darlin’. I’m taking you to bed.”
“Bed?”
He gently kicked open the door of what appeared to be his room. Large king bed in the center with dark sheets and all wood furniture that looked to be made of tree trunks. It was hard to see in the dim light of the moon shining through the massive windows.
“My bed, if you’d like to stay.” He set her down on the comfy sheets.
“You want me to stay? But what about Gracie?”
“She’s asleep in her room, and I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you tomorrow morning.”
Her heart felt warm and calm. He wanted her to stay despite his strict rules, which she knew there would be. There always would be rules with
Tripp. But he wanted her anyway. Tonight. In his home. In his bed.
And she wanted to be there.
Cuddling with him and Gracie on the couch had felt so good it made her eyes prick with tears. Family. Tripp had a family. The uncles and Gracie and a warm home. People around to depend on. A hometown. Familiarity. Community.
They had it all.
And they had welcomed her. And now Tripp wanted her to stay, knowing what that would mean for Gracie tomorrow.
Charlotte thought of her cold studio apartment back in the city and shivered. The land of opportunity and money and corporate success—all things she was striving for. And yet she didn’t want to leave the warm bed. Tripp’s warm bed.
Maybe she could sift through her feelings in the morning. For now, she just wanted to stay.
“I have to be home early to take care of Grammy. She wakes up around eight.”
“I’ll make sure you’re home in time.”
“Okay,” she whispered. “Then I’d like to stay.”
She saw his smile in the dim light. Felt him moving in for a kiss she’d gladly accepted. His lips were firm, yet soft. And when he threaded both hands into her hair, she felt consumed by his touch. Like he needed to feel her. Like she was wanted. Like she was a part of his world.
At least for tonight.
…
Tripp’s mind swirled with heavy thoughts, all of them good and hopeful. He kissed Charlotte, her mouth molding to his so perfectly he could lie with her for a lot longer than a night. Or a week. Or a summer.
He closed his eyes, feeling her body heat melt into his. Felt her arms wrap around him and pull him closer. He rested on top of her, gently peeling his shirt off her perfect body, tasting every inch he uncovered.
The sight of her and his baby girl sleeping next to him while the movie credits scrolled across the screen had shifted something in his chest. It felt right. He’d always had family and support. He was lucky that way. But a woman, this woman, snuggled on the couch next to Gracie while a Disney movie played in the background brought an odd sense of joy he’d never felt before.
Maybe he didn’t have to choose between being a father and being a man. Maybe he could have both. Have a woman who loved Gracie and him.
A woman like Charlotte.
They slid along each other in bed, slowly getting naked but neither of them straying too far from the other. He ran his hands from her face to her breasts, down her stomach and thighs. All that gorgeous warm skin slid against his like silk. Welcoming him. He felt her hot center pressed against his cock, and he wanted to bury himself so deep, he’d never find his way out.
He reached over to his night table to grab a condom, but got sidetracked by her perfect breasts and the nipples begging for his attention.
He sucked one pouting bud hard. Her back arched off the bed, pressing her breasts further into his mouth. Like a kid with an ice cream cone, wanting to taste her all in one gulp, Tripp sucked and licked her like the dessert she was.
She gripped the sheets, her skin heating against his. She liked her nipples worked over—he’d learned that quickly—so he gave her more, paying equal attention to the other until she panted his name.
