Mystery Man (Dream Man #1)(117)
“’Kay,” I whispered back and then my hand went to his cheek and I thought about his Mom’s visit. “And I’ll do everything I can, if you do it again, not to give up on you and be a mean, bitchy, thoughtless, selfish cow.”
His fingers slid back into my hair, he pulled my head back down and he touched my mouth to his where he murmured, “That’d be good.”
Then the touch became a short, light kiss before he again let me back an inch.
“Glad that’s done, Sweet Pea,” he whispered.
I took my hand from his face and wiped my own, agreeing, “Yeah,” but thinking “glad” was a mammoth understatement.
“Though that’s done, we’re not done talkin’,” he told me and the tone of his voice had changed.
I studied him and the look on his face had changed too. No longer gentle, it was firm.
Uh-oh.
“Um…” I mumbled, trying to find words to get out of a talk I was thinking I might not like.
“I’ll remind you you’re livin’ in Badass World,” he declared and I didn’t think this reminder boded good tidings.
“Um…” I mumbled, wondering what was next, however, although wondering, from his look and tone, not actually wanting to find out.
“And in Badass World, even when shit’s unsettled between us, you don’t meet another man on the sidewalk in front of your house and let him touch you and put his mouth on you.”
Oh boy.
“Mo told you,” I guessed.
“Another voicemail I just got.”
Shit.
“He kissed my hair,” I defended myself. “I don’t have a brother but I would guess that would be how a brother might kiss me.”
“Mitch Lawson does not feel brotherly love for you, babe,” Hawk returned.
This was true.
Shit!
“Um…”
“Gwen, you made that sweet call, you told me you were sorry and when you did, you dropped that hand and gave yourself back to me. That means you just entered Badass World for good, you did it on your own and you gotta know there are rules. You stick to those rules or bear the consequences. Understood?”
Uh-oh. He was being bossy and it was kind of making me mad.
“I didn’t throw myself at him and start making out with him on the sidewalk, Hawk.”
He ignored my reassurances. “No hands and definitely no mouth, Gwen, no man but me in the way I get you and your Dad in the way he does. No man. At all. No excuses. Yeah?”
“Hawk –”
“And you don’t jump on the back of a bike unless I’m on that bike,” he went on.
“Hawk –”
His arm at my waist and hand at my head tightened. “Babe, you need to confirm you get me.”
“God!” I exploded. “Yes, okay, I get you. Yeesh!”
The dimples popped out, he rolled me again so he was on top, his face was at my neck and his hands started sliding against the satin of Cam’s nightgown.
Mm. Guess that subject was closed.
“Hawk, I thought you were wiped,” I remarked.
“Yeah, I was, but this thing is soft and what’s under it softer, didn’t have either pressed against me when I said that so now I’m not wiped anymore,” he said against my neck.
Mm!
He touched his tongue to the skin behind my ear.
Mm!
My hands went to his back, which wasn’t soft, it was hard and that hard was the nice kind of hard so they explored.
Then he whispered, “Your sister’s out of trouble, babe, and as safe as I can make her.”
My hands stilled as it hit me.
Top secret operation according to Elvira. He’d put his top men on it. He’d gone off-line and hadn’t checked his voicemail all day. He’d been there when Ginger showed at Leo and Cam’s. He’d been following her, guessing she would come to me.
He’d spent his day, after how I treated him, going all out, likely putting himself and his boys in danger in order to give me what I wanted most in this world.
Oh my God.
His head came up and he looked down at me.
“Woulda made a deal with the devil to get my wife and daughter back.” He was still whispering and my breath stilled. “Don’t have that chance so nothin’ I can do about that. But I darkened your door, baby, and you lit up my life again so I’m not lettin’ that go.”
Oh my God.
He continued. “And Meredith is already your real Mom. You want that legal then call an attorney. But, I’m tellin’ you, it’s already there, you just need to embrace it. So, I can’t give you that ‘cause you already have it.”
Tears stung my eyes again.
“Hawk –” I whispered, my arms tightening.
Hawk kept talking. “Don’t know Freeman and because of that, I figure he’d be unreceptive to me gettin’ in his business but you want me to have a word with him about puttin’ a ring on his woman’s finger, I’ll do it.”
“Stop talking,” I begged.
He didn’t.
“Tomorrow, we’ll go to Tiffany’s and you can pick out what you want.”
I wrapped a leg around him and held on tight.
“Stop talking, Hawk.”