Kaleidoscope (Colorado Mountain #6)(117)

“Okay,” I breathed instantly.

“And we’re not namin’ our puppy Josephine.”

He kept powering up as I pulled my face out of his neck in order to look at him.

“What?”

He rammed in, I whimpered, he stopped so I whimpered again.

“We’re namin’ her Daisy Mae.”

I felt my eyes get wide as my legs quivered and I repeated my question from earlier, “Are you insane?”

“Nope.”

“A Rottie,” he stroked, I stopped talking, he did it again and stayed planted so I kept going, “is,” he pulled out then drove up again, I bit my lip then powered on, “a noble breed. We can’t name a noble dog Daisy Mae.”

He ground up and that felt so good my hand slid into his wet hair and fisted.

“Josephine doesn’t go with Buford,” he told me.

“So?” I asked.

Keeping one arm around me, his other hand slid over my belly, down and in.

Then his thumb hit me.

My head fell back and my entire body quivered.

“She’s Daisy Mae,” Jacob declared.

“Please move,” I whispered.

“I will, you agree she’s Daisy Mae.”

He was. He was totally insane.

Or he was intent on driving me that way.

I righted my head. “That’s not fair.”

His thumb twitched and I moaned.

“Daisy Mae,” he repeated.

“Ja—”

His thumb slid away and my eyes went wide as my arms and legs tensed around him.

“Jacob!”

“What’s our dog’s name?”

“Please move,” I begged. “And I want your thumb back. We’ll talk about this later.”

His lips came to mine, they were curved up and his eyes were dancing. There was something about having Jacob buried deep inside me, the warm waters of a pool lapping around our na**d bodies, and his eyes dancing with humor that was completely and totally amazing. A moment to remember. Forever.

Have mercy.

“Say it. Daisy Mae,” he ordered.

“Right. Okay. Whatever. We can insult her by calling her Daisy Mae.”

His smiling mouth took mine, his tongue sliding inside, as his thumb honed in and he surged out then up, again planting himself deep but this time doing it without stopping.

I forgot about Daisy Mae.

I forgot about everything.

And it would be fifteen glorious minutes before rational thought came back and it occurred to me I didn’t really care our puppy was called Daisy Mae. That was actually kind of cute.

And more, I was super happy we were putting in a pool at my place.

But I was never going to tell Jacob that I hoped it was heated.

* * *

Thirteen months later…

The door opened and I saw my dad stick his head in.

He jerked his chin up.

I grinned at him then looked across the room to see Faye, as planned, had my mother’s undivided attention.

Mom would freak if she knew what I was doing.

When my sister got married, she’d done the same thing.

Mom and Dad let their kids live their lives but when it came to their weddings, they stepped in, or I should say Mom stepped in, and demanded tradition. A church. A white or, if necessary (as I deemed it was), ivory gown. A reception line. Formal photographs. Proper speeches. And Jacob had been told in no uncertain terms that if he shoved his piece of wedding cake all over my mouth, Mom was confiscating his snowmobile.

Last, and most important, the groom didn’t see the bride before the wedding.

Therefore, I’d spent the night at Jacob and my house, Jacob spent his at Chace and Faye’s since he sold his place when he’d moved into mine six months ago.

But I had something I needed to do.

And I was going to do it.

Lifting my skirt in my hand, I hustled to the door.

Dad and Krys were outside when I got through.

Krystal was carrying a wooden box I’d dropped by Bubba’s a few days earlier. She was also smiling.

Dad was deep breathing.

“My baby girl,” he whispered.

I looked up to him, saw the bright mixed with admiration in his eyes and grinned.

“Do I look okay?” I asked, throwing out an arm.

He nodded, his throat visibly convulsing.

My grin became a smile. I wrapped my arms around him and got up on my toes to kiss his cheek.

He gave me a hug and let me go, whereupon he gave me a shaky smile so I leaned in to give him another kiss on the cheek.

After the kiss, I whispered, “Love you, Daddy.”

“Love you too, my precious baby,” he whispered back. “Also love that today I’m givin’ you to a good man who’ll see to you.”

I drew in breath.

“Or maybe I don’t love it,” Dad went on. “But at least I can live with it.”

At his words, I gave him a squeeze and another smile.

Then I turned to Krys.

She handed me the box.

I wasted no more time since I didn’t have any and ducked out the side door. Carefully, on my fabulous and fabulously expensive ivory heels, I dashed around the back of the church and went in the door on the other side.

Chace and Rich were waiting for me.