The After of Us (Judge Me Not #4)(38)

When Lily adds in a contemplative nod, Emma squeezes harder. Now, we’re both trying hard as hell not to laugh. How stinking cute is this kid?

“Yes,” Lily says, at last. “I think I can give you my in-put, Daddy.”

“Thanks, Lil.”

I show her the storyboards with the brownie, holding them up against the ones I drew without the silly chocolate character. “Which ones do you like best, sweetheart?” I ask.

More contemplation, more chin tapping, and finally an answer. “I like the brownie.”

Emma pumps her fist in victory since she called it. “Yes!”

I roll my eyes. “Women,” I mutter.

But truthfully, these are my girls and I wouldn’t trade them for the world.

My little girl is well aware she has me wrapped around her finger, so she knows I won’t deny her when she asks out of the blue, “Can we go get ice cream?”

“Sure,” I reply.

See, I’m a pushover. And, yeah, okay, I spoil my kid. But she deserves it. Lily’s a pretty good little girl. She accepts her life here in Harmony Creek, and rarely, if ever, asks about her old life, including her mother.

I sigh as I think about Cassie. Shit. I know if I intend to keep Lily—and I do—I need to reach out to my ex-girlfriend and have her sign full custody over to me. Otherwise, she could come back into our lives and cause trouble. I sure as hell don’t need trouble, not when everything has been going so well.

Emma, picking up on my worry, whispers, “Is everything okay?”

I watch as she sits on the floor to help Lily put on her sneakers. Do I see a future with Emma in my life and Lily’s?

Yeah, I think I do.

Smiling, I lean down and kiss Emma lightly on the lips. “Everything is awesome, babe.”





Emma



On a hot July day, Will decides to move into the apartment above the garage at Chase’s place. It’s not a totally out-of-the-blue decision. He’s already checked into other options, including viewing a neighboring apartment at my complex. In the end, though, he’s chosen to stay at the farmhouse, for Lily’s sake. She loves her cousins dearly, and Will claims he can’t bear to separate them a mere month and a half after Lily’s mother abandoned her.

“She needs stability,” Will tells me at the end of moving day as we discuss his decision.

We’re finishing up in his new living room, having just installed a window air conditioner to cool things down.

As I swipe away sweat from my forehead, I say, “I know, Will. You made the right decision.” I gesture around the loft. “It’s really nice up here.”

“It is,” he agrees, glancing around himself. “Just a little on the warm side.”

I laugh and make a production of fanning myself. “Yeah, you could say that.”

Turning the A/C unit on high, he strolls over to me. “There.” Wrapping his arms around me, he says, “It should cool down in here in no time at all.”

“Uh, not if you keep pressing up against me like that,” I reply, a little on the breathy side…and not from the heat.

Will discarded his T-shirt hours ago, claiming it was too hot. Now, with his bare chest pressed to my cotton tee-clad torso, I am heating up far beyond what the now-cooling room was doing to me a few minutes ago.

I’ve spent the whole day sneaking peeks at a partially clothed Will. Working for Chase, engaging in lots of physical labor, has left him tanned, tight, and more toned than ever.

I sigh, and he nuzzles his nose against my neck. “Maybe that’s my intention,” he whispers against my skin.

“Mmm, Will.”

I run my hands up his back, his muscles flexing and tensing beneath my touch. He lets out a shiver. “Emma…”

With my lips brushing over his, I tell him, “I think we should move this to the bedroom.”

Pulling back, he raises a brow. “You’re sure?”

I nod. “Yes. I think it’s time.”

I’m happy we slowed things down after our frenzied beginning, but I’m ready now to pick up where we left off. Only this time we’ll be building our physical relationship on a strong foundation, one comprised of friendship and genuine caring.

Though the living room was cooling rapidly, I find it’s warm and muggy in the bedroom. I like it, however. I want nothing more than to have Will’s hot, sweaty skin pressed to mine. It makes this need feel more urgent.

And urgent is what we are. We kiss and grope and shed our clothes in no time.

And then we’re lying on the bed.

“You taste salty,” I whisper as I lick and kiss along Will’s chest and abs.

“Just, whatever you do, don’t stop what you’re doing right the hell now,” he rasps. “Please.”

I know the feeling. Now that we’re starting back down this road, I couldn’t stop if I wanted to.

Moving farther and farther down Will’s body, I find him hard and ready. When I take his swollen cock in my mouth, he arches and groans. It’s not just salt I taste now, it’s the essence of what makes Will male.

While I do sinful things to this man with my mouth and my tongue, he shifts my body till my sex is positioned above his head. And then he lifts up and flicks his tongue over my clit, leaving me mumbling from around his shaft, “OhmyGodWillyes.”