Never Far Away (The Never #2)(83)
“Hmm,” he said as he nuzzled into her neck. “My mom makes the best cheesecake.”
“Yes,” she groaned, trying to agree with him, but sounding more like she was enjoying the attention he was paying to her body. “I remember.”
“Maybe having people over to our house was a bad idea,” he said as he nibbled along her shoulder.
“Why?” She asked as she let her head fall to the side, thoroughly enjoying the feel of his mouth on her skin.
“Because all I really want to do is take you upstairs and bury myself in you.”
“Porter,” she rasped out, trying to hold back the urge to turn around and open herself up to anything he wanted to do to her.
“Yes, Baby?”
“There are two small children in your front yard,” she said and immediately felt his mouth halt. “And your mother.”
“You make a strong argument,” he said as he placed one more small kiss on her neck and stepped back from her. “But you best prepare yourself for what you’ve got coming to you later,” he said, smoldering.
“And what’s that?” She said, leaning against the island in the kitchen, very aware that she was taunting a caged tiger.
“Oh, Ella, if you have to ask, I haven’t done my job properly.” He stepped up to her again, his hard body pressed all the way up against hers, his hands braced on the counter behind her. His mouth came dangerously close to hers as he placed a kiss on the corner of her lips. “I’m going to f*ck you until you scream my name as you come,” he placed a kiss on the other side of her mouth. “And then,” he pulled back and looked her in the eyes. “I’m going to do it again.”
She swallowed the large lump that had formed in her throat and let out a pant of breath that had been caught below it. “Lucky me,” was all she could manage. He laughed out loud and shook his head.
“I think the girls from your store pulled up a second ago. You should probably come outside and say hello.” He said as he brushed away a strand of rogue hair that had escaped from her pontytail.
“I’ll be out in a minute.”
He smiled at her, knowing exactly why she needed to cool down.
“Ok,” he said and placed a kiss on her forehead before he headed back towards the door. Ella turned around and faced the cheesecake again. Contemplating for only a moment, she finally took a knife and cut out a generous slice. She put it on a plate, covered it with a bowl, and hid it in the back of the fridge, fully intending for it to be for her and Porter later that night after everyone else left to go home. It felt sneaky and sexy all at the same time. She finished up in the kitchen and went back outside to greet all their guests.
The afternoon progressed and Ella had a great time. Her and Porter’s worlds melded seamlessly as her parents chatted with Tilly. Brook and Kalli seemed to really get a long, and Porter, Patrick, and Matt guarded the grill with testosterone fueling the flames instead of propane. At one point, Ella found herself sipping sangria and just observing her life as it happened around her. Everything was more perfect than she really every thought possible.
A few more men that Porter worked with showed up throughout the day, and they all seemed nice and polite. A couple of them brought women, but they didn’t stay long, having other plans. It was nice to put faces to names that Porter had used over the last couple weeks when they talked about work. Ella spent a good portion of the afternoon talking with Brook, and eventually little Faith warmed up to her and even allowed Ella to hold her.
Ella was smitten as soon as the baby reached out for her. The baby seemed more interested in the necklace around her neck than in Ella herself, but she would take anything she could get from the precious child. Brook took advantage of the baby’s interest in someone else and asked Ella if it was ok if she got away for a moment. Ella agreed immediately, smiling at Brook.
Faith had a distinctly baby smell to her, soft, clean and powdery. Ella couldn’t help holding her nose to the crown of her head and inhaling deeply. When she opened her eyes, she saw Porter watching her and the look in his eyes was something she’d never seen before, but she knew what he was thinking because she had been thinking the same thing when he had been holding Faith. He was picturing Ella holding their baby. She gave him a smile, knowing that whatever road they were on, babies were eventually going to be traveling with them. She hugged Faith closer and pressed their noses together, talking to her in simple words, making silly faces, trying to elicit laughter from her. Ella hasn’t really known before the power a baby’s laughter or smile could hold over a person. Once you are gifted with a smile from a baby, you spent all your energy trying to recreate that perfect moment the child deemed worthy of their precious smiles and giggles. By the time Brook made it back to Faith, Ella had no ovaries left. They had exploded and left her womb aching.
The day went fabulously and the evening continued much the same way. They set up a portable crib and Faith napped in the living room of the house. Joy sat on Uncle Porter’s lap and all the adults sat around the table playing cards, sipping on various drinks. Ella was glad Brittany and Sarah came down, realizing when the new store opened she would miss seeing them constantly. They had such good heads on their shoulders, and had been integral in the success of her business when she had gone through all of her medical issues. It meant a lot to her that they viewed her as a friend as well as their boss. The fact that they came all the way to the beach to spend a holiday with her made her feel like she’d done something right in the way she ran her business.