Come Back for Me (Arrowood Brothers #1)(73)

Hadley runs over and wraps her arms around my legs. “Good job, Mommy!”

“Congratulations,” Connor says and then he kisses my cheek before retreating quickly.

I don’t know why he’s being weird, but I’m going to assume it’s because his brother is sitting here.

“It’s a day of a lot of great news.”

“What else?”

I hold up my finger, asking him to give me a minute. This last part I don’t want Hadley here for. Regardless of how great she seems to be taking everything, I’d rather not say it like this. She knows I’m divorcing who she’s always known as her father, but she doesn’t need to know all the details.

I look down at Hadley. “Did you finish all your homework?”

“Yup.”

“And did you do your chores?”

“Yes.”

Of course, the one day she’s on top of her life is the day I need her to have something else to do for a minute or two. I look to Connor for a little help.

He puts his hand on her shoulders. “Why don’t you show my brother the tree house?”

Her eyes widen, and she turns her smile to Declan. “Do you want to see it?”

He looks over at Connor and tries to match her enthusiasm, but it looks almost painful. “Uhh, sure.”

Clearly, he isn’t a kid guy, and if I didn’t want to tell Connor about my news from Sydney, I would follow Hadley and Declan out to the tree house just to watch the man climb it in his expensive-looking suit.

Connor grins. “Oh, you’ll love it, Dec. You can climb a tree again and hopefully not fall out.”

“Great. It sounds like a ton of fun.”

“Take your time with him, Hadley. He’s old, and it’s probably going to be hard for him to move quickly,” Connor says with a laugh.

Declan glares at him. “I’ll show you old.”

“You could try, but you might break a hip. If you’re hurt, I’m not coming to help you.”

There’s a teasing edge to his voice, but then there’s an undercurrent of something else. Almost like he’s angry at him, which I don’t understand. Declan has been really nice since he’s been here. I hope to meet the rest of his brothers soon, and that one day, they’ll accept Hadley and me. Since she is their niece.

That thought sobers me.

She’s gained an entire family. Where before it was Kevin and me, now she has Connor and his entire family.

“I won’t be gone too long, but then again, you don’t need all that much time anyway,” Declan says as he claps him on the back. “You were always a finish-too-fast kind of guy.”

Now I can’t hold back, I burst out laughing.

“See?” Declan’s voice dances with mirth. “Even Ellie knows it.”

“Oh, no. I didn’t say anything,” I defend quickly.

“Hadley, make sure you have a tea party up there. Declan loves talking to and playing with dolls.”

“Okay!” she says with all the joy that she can muster.

The two of them head out of the house, and before I can say a word, Connor hauls me into his arms and gives me the hottest, most intense kiss he’s ever given me. He isn’t normally this aggressive, but it feels as though something else is driving him.

I hold on to him and give it back, pouring myself into it. Last night, I had plans for something very similar to this. I wanted to give myself to him—at least give as much as I could.

His mouth is warm and soft against mine, and I want more. My lips part, and we both move at the same time. With my back against the wall and his strong body pressing against me, I’m trapped in the best way.

My fingers move up his arms to the back of his neck, and he deepens the kiss. His hands move down my body and then hook under my thighs, lifting me off the floor.

Instinctually, I wrap my legs around his waist as he carries me.

“Connor,” I say breathlessly.

“God, you drive me crazy. I want you so bad.”

“I need you.”

And I do. I need him, and I need us, and I don’t care that it isn’t like I planned. Nothing in my life ever goes that way anyway. If it had, I wouldn’t be in this man’s arms at all, which would be a sin.

“Ellie,” he murmurs and then brings his lips back to me. “My beautiful angel.”

We kiss continuously—each one bleeding into the next and causing my lips to plump under the assault. I want it to go on forever. Minutes go by, and I swear that I want to rip my clothes off and take him now.

I don’t even know if I’m breathing since what exists in this world is Connor and his perfect mouth on mine.

He pushes me higher against the wall, using his thighs as leverage to hold me up, and then his hands are on my breasts. I moan, head falling back as he touches me.

I know I had something to say to him, but I can’t remember.

Something big.

Something about . . .

“I’m divorced,” I say the words, knowing I need to get them out while I remember my name.

His hands stop and he watches me. “You’re . . .”

“Divorced. As of today.”

“That means . . .” He pauses.

“That means that you and I, well, I’m hoping it means that what we were just doing here can be something we do when we’re not trying to steal a few minutes.”