Chapter 15

There’snothing more that I want than to ditch the plan to head home today, but there’s no way I can let Mom down. Staying in a cheap motel with my husband is absolutely the only thing I want to do.

Husband.

A grin stretches my lips, and I pull Bentley’s hand to my mouth and press a kiss there. As soon as I drop our joined hands back onto my thigh, I side-eye him. Unsurprisingly, Bentley’s stare is already on me.

“You just thought it again, huh?” While he’s smirking and teasing, it’s obvious how much he loves that I can’t keep my emotions in check.

“You know it.” I angle toward him, keeping half an eye on the road, making it crystal clear that I want his lips on mine.

He leans into me with a soft chuckle, pressing his mouth to mine before easing away.

Contentment washes over me like a gentle breeze on a warm Georgia day as we draw closer to my parents’ house. I can still hardly believe it. Husband.

Our elopement may have been fast and reactive, born from the need to express how much I love him, but there are no regrets. Instead, peace settles within me. That’s what Bentley does—shares his quiet calmness and makes me feel like I’m his and I belong.

More than that, I can be myself with him.

I lean back in my seat, watching the rush of pre-Thanksgiving traffic already around us, stealing glances at Bentley beside me. It feels surreal, the fact that we’re married. I suspect it will for a long time.

A smile plays on the corner of his lips, mirroring my own. I squeeze his hand gently, wanting the physical contact for as long as possible. We’ll be jumping off the freeway in a couple of minutes. Not much farther and Mom will be on the front steps, my stepdad by her side, ready and waiting to get the Thanksgiving festivities started.

I’m trying to swallow down my frustration that we’ve had to pass motel after motel. It’s unfair on my folks to delay much longer, and it’s not like I haven’t missed them or my siblings.

“You doing okay?”

“Yeah. Just thinking I could fake a breakdown and we could show up at home tomorrow instead so you can fuck me like you mean it tonight.”

“Fuck, Sammy.” A whimper merges with his low groan. When he squeezes his cock, I shift in my seat, my own dick thickening. “You can’t say shit like that to me and expect me to say hi to your folks with a raging hard-on.”

“My cock’s just as needy,” I complain. Do I stick my bottom lip out in a pout? Damn straight I do. “And hell if I don’t feel empty.” I’m not even exaggerating. Even before we exchanged vows, need rode me hard. Now, with our combined “I dos” floating around in my brain, I’m desperate to consummate our marriage.

The exit appears up ahead, and with a huff, I flick on the blinker. Fifteen minutes till I have to keep my hands off Bentley.

“No way am I going to survive not touching you how I want.” My voice is tight as I pull off the freeway.

“New plan.”

My brows shoot high. It’s not just the gravel in Bentley’s voice that has my dick throbbing. It’s absolutely the firmness, as though he knows what the hell he’s talking about. He also hasn’t let go of his dick, so I know he’s as desperate as I am.

That may also be a contributing factor to the discomfort in my pants.

“Which is?” I’m at the traffic light at the corner of Broadbank and Fifth Street. Once I’m through this intersection, I’ll be on the main drag home, with just a couple of turns before we’re on the street we moved to when my mom remarried when I was six.

There’s plenty of traffic around, and if I look hard enough, I suspect I’ll see a few faces I know. It’s a big small town, if that makes any sense, with a few thousand people living here. And with my high school just five miles away and my reputation for being a loudmouth, it stands to reason that I didn’t exactly blend in.

“You got any spots off the beaten track around here that you used to sneak off to when on a date?”

I glance over and catch his smirk and cocked eyebrow. None of that hides the heat in his gaze. He’s deadly serious.

“It’s daytime,” I say, racking my brains about where we could hide to get each other off.

“So?”

I snort. “So, our first time as a married couple is going to be giving each other hand jobs in the back of my Buick, hoping Deputy Dimples doesn’t stumble on us. Is that what you’re saying?” I grin wide. “Sounds hella romantic to me.”

His laughter is loud, the pink in his cheeks the perfect color of sexy as he releases my hand to settle his palm on my thigh. Just an inch over and he’ll make me go cross-eyed. That or I’ll come in my pants. Both are likely, since I’m so worked up.

“So, you got somewhere in mind?”

I nod as the light turns green. “Yeah, there’s somewhere we can go.”

I see him smile and relax back in the seat. His gaze is on me when he says, “And Deputy Dimples?”

My lips twitch as I turn off the main road and head out toward the small industrial district. “Deputy Dallas Walmsley. The hottest cop in the state of Tennessee.”

“Hottest, huh?” There’s not a lick of jealousy in his tone. And rightly so. Bentley is all I can see. All I ever want to see. We have the rings to prove it.

I flick my gaze to him as I turn right. “Cop… not man. You’re the hottest in whatever state you happen to be in.”

He snorts. “Smooth.”

“I like to think so. If you end up seeing the deputy’s dimples, you’ll understand why he gets everyone in town gossiping and swooning or some shit over him.”

My smile falls when I think about the confrontation he had with Trevin.

“What’s wrong?” Concern laces Bentley’s question, and he squeezes my thigh as I slow at the intersection. There are fewer cars around now, as I’m drawing closer to the older side of the industrial area.

“Deputy Walmsley’s gay. Had a run-in a time or two with my old man. He was actually the arresting officer, you know….”

From my periphery, I see Bentley wince. “I bet that was a shit show.”

A humorless snort shoots out of me. “And some.” I crack my neck.

“So, where’s this secluded spot you’re going to get me hot and bothered in?”

And this right here is reason 4,635,248 why I love Bentley Sandford. Thinking about my sperm donor, let alone talking about him and all the ways he fucked up, always gets me down. I have no room for my old man at the best of times, and I absolutely don’t want him anywhere near what Bentley and I have.

Bentley knows this, and that he’s distracting me and giving me an out is everything.

My dick gives a valiant twinge. Hell yes, the mood hasn’t been completely destroyed.

“Just up ahead,” I answer.

Tension holds us both tight. This need is out of control. If I don’t find the spot in the next couple of minutes, maybe I’ll just hit the brakes and say screw it.

I turn right, and my relief is immediate. A couple of buildings here still appear boarded up, and at the end of the road, there’s a turn into a “community walk” parking lot that has trees and a pathway, but I’m pretty sure not a single resident has used it before.

Well, unless it’s because they’re up to no good.

“Romantic, huh?” Despite the lightness of my words, discomfort unfurls in my stomach. Bentley deserves better than a quick hand job in my car.

“Hey, don’t do that.”

I snap my attention his way, the firmness of his voice a pull I can’t ignore.

His eyebrows are drawn low, and his gaze roams my features. My shoulders sag. There’s no point in bullshitting him. He called me out for a reason.

“You deserve more than this,” I admit.

“I deserve you,” he says pointedly. “I’ll take you however and whenever I can. The where doesn’t matter.”

He releases my thigh as I come to a stop and turn off the engine. He’s quick to undo both of our seat belts.

“This is what we both signed up for, yeah?” He cups my cheek, and I instantly lean into his warm touch. He searches my gaze before saying, “And the secrecy won’t be forever.” While his tone is tentative, I appreciate that he’s not asking a question or for confirmation.

“It won’t,” I promise, responding even though he doesn’t need me to. “I love you.”

Heat flushes my cheeks. Is it really just today that I told him that for the first time? What the fuck was I thinking?

I should have told him every damn day.

“I love you too.” An uplift of his lips follows as he says, “I’ll love you even more if you climb in the back seat with me and celebrate you being my husband with us blowing our loads.”

A loud laugh escapes me, free and light. “Get your ass in the back seat,” I say with a grin just as my phone starts to ring. “Fuck.” I take a look as Bentley pauses from exiting the car. “Nuh-uh. Nothing’s going to stop me from fucking your hand.”

He smirks as he slips from the car and reenters it to sit in the back. I turn my phone to Silent. It’s Mom again. One day she’ll understand why we’re running so late.

I’m out of the car in the time it takes my heart to beat, and then I all but launch myself at Bentley. We kiss and fumble our way into each other’s jeans. Firm hands, spit-slick palms, and messy kisses, and then we’re grunting and groaning and working each other at a punishing pace.

It takes barely five minutes for my balls to tighten and for Bentley to be enclosing my cock in his lips to swallow me down. A minute later, I’m savoring his taste, licking his glans, and when I come up for air, I kiss him like I mean it.

Kiss him like he’s my husband and the one person made for me.

After we return to the front and fasten our seat belts, our breathing still choppy, faces flushed and clothes wrinkled, I blow a bubble with the spearmint gum I popped into my mouth and sigh happily.

“Feeling pretty pleased with yourself over there?” Bentley arches his brow at me as I pull away from the quiet parking lot.

“Hell yes. A stomach full of cum and a foggy brain. Life’s pretty damn perfect.” I throw him a wink before placing both hands on the wheel as I maneuver around the parked cars on the busy street we’re heading down. My heart stumbles when a sliver of sunlight catches my ring.

I turn it around with my thumb and press my lips together.

“We’ll leave them in the car,” Bentley says softly. “I thought maybe we could get necklaces or something, but I wasn’t sure how that would work in the locker room. But it’s not like we can wear jewelry at training or during games or anything.”

I glance at him as he shrugs. A shy smile plays on his lips as he casts a look my way.

“Necklaces sound good. We can just take them off before practice.” I want to wear it close to my skin. It’s cheesy as hell, but the ring makes me feel closer to him. It’s a reminder of the commitment I made to him and to myself.

“Yeah?”

“Definitely. I have a couple of old chains at Mom’s we can use.” The words help me to remove my ring and hand it over to Bentley. It’s only been on my finger for a few hours, but it already feels comfortable there.

I watch as he pulls his off before returning my attention to the road ahead. He places the rings in the glove box, and fuck if my heart doesn’t stutter when he closes the door, hiding them away.

Without a word, Bentley squeezes my thigh. I know he’s feeling this ache too.

But it’s only for a while that we need to keep up the ruse.

Seeing my childhood home in the distance, I smile. There’s barely enough space for a lawn outside, but Leroy, my stepdad, is house and garden proud. The patch of grass is immaculate. I swear, if I pulled out a ruler, each blade would be the exact same length.

A border of plants surrounds it. I have no idea what they’re called, but they’re hardy enough to grow at this time of the year.

“You ready?” I ask as I park outside the house. Making eye contact with Bentley, I smile and release a soft sigh.

“Yeah.” He trails his finger over my hand before he pulls back.

“Come on, then, before the masses descend.”

I’m only half kidding.

My two younger brothers are in high school. Unbelievably, that makes me the oldest child. The one with the smarts and wisdom to share. Yeah, most people call bullshit too.

But in a couple of days, my aunts, uncles, and cousins will be here. Plus, my two grandmas and my grandpop. It’s going to be a full house.

After grabbing our bags and locking up, we walk along the short path as Bentley says, “Leroy’s done a great job with the yard. There’ve been changes since the last time I visited.”

I glance over and smile, but Bentley’s gaze is soaking up the yard. Doing the same, I take in the few changes since the summer. Honestly, everything looks a bit dead and bland to me. With the temperatures dropping and considering the season, I think that’s normal. Not that I know shit about flowers or anything.

Bentley’s chuckle catches my attention. It takes me a beat to realize he’s laughing at me.

“What?” I quirk my brow, and my smile comes easily.

“You just think it all looks dead, don’t you?”

“Am I that easy to read?”

“You get two small lines between your brows”—he gently brushes his thumb over the location—“when you’re studying something and are confused.” He drops his hand.

“Do I now?” He nods, and I snort, saying, “In that case, it must be a pretty permanent fixture, then.”

The door swings open, and we turn and see my mom. Her smile is bright and instant.

“Get your butts in here, the pair of you, and give me some sugar.”

In a couple of steps, I wrap her up in a giant hug. Her hold is strong as she squeezes me. I soak in her warmth and inhale the same brand of flowery perfume she’s worn since I was a kid.

“Let me look at you.” Firm hands squeeze my arms with affection as I lean away, and she peers up at me. Mom’s tall for a woman at five nine, so she doesn’t need to crane her neck. “Hey, baby.” She cups my cheek. “You doing okay?”

I nod before she finishes. “I’m good.”

Studying my face, she nods back, a soft smile forming. “I can see that. You have a good drive?” she asks as she releases me and focuses on Bentley.

“We did, considering. Obviously, traffic was a nightmare. It’s why we pulled over and are so late. It didn’t help that we had to get that flat tire fixed.” What I’m saying is a load of bull, but I need to say something about why we’re so late.

“You’re here now. That’s all that matters.”

She hugs Bentley, and hummingbirds take flight in my stomach when he wraps his arms around her. When we tell her about our marriage, there’s no doubt she’s going to be pissed, but eventually she’ll understand. She adores Bentley.

Mom pulls away, and just like with me, she cups his cheek. “Have you been taking good care of yourself?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

As always, Mom rolls her eyes. “What have I told you, Bentley, about calling me Nova and not ma’am?”

A deep chuckle escapes. “That you’re too young to be anyone’s ma’am.”

“That’s right. I already have gray hairs I need to cover up. Keep calling me ma’am and wrinkles are going to appear.”

She finally steps back enough that we can file into the house and close the door.

“You don’t have a single wrinkle, Mom. Stop cruising for compliments,” I tease, though I’m not exaggerating. Mom turns forty in March next year. A couple of times she’s been carded at a bar. She lapped that shit up.

“What, me? How else am I meant to get compliments when I’m surrounded by teenagers whose heads are stuck in their screens every moment of every day.” Her tone is light, but I also know my brothers, and I don’t suspect she’s exaggerating too much.

“And I don’t count?” My stepdad’s at the stove, stirring the contents of a huge pan. He glances over his shoulder, winks at me, and shoots Mom an amused smirk.

“Let’s see how you do on our next anniversary, and I’ll let you know.” She punctuates her words with a kiss on his cheek.

When she steps back, Dad snags her by the waist, refusing to let her go. He plants a loud kiss on her lips before easing away, saying, “Honey, you don’t look any different from the day I met you. Well, maybe more beautiful.”

He means it too. He worships Mom. Loves her the way a husband should.

With a smile, I relax into my surroundings. It’s always good to be home. The warmth of the house greets me, as does the scent of chili, one of Dad’s favorite dishes to cook. “Smells good.”

Dad releases Mom, who heads to the sink, and greets me with a hug. “I knew you’d been in need of a good feed.” He pats my back. “I made sure I used lean meat too. I know you’ve got some big games coming up.”

I chuckle and stroke my hand over my flat stomach. “I appreciate it. I’m already worried about the workout when we get back to school after Thanksgiving’s feast.”

Dad laughs and shakes Bentley’s hand. “Hey, Bentley. Good to see you. Your folks doing okay?”

“Yes…” He hesitates the barest of seconds before settling on “Leroy. They’re doing well.” My lips twitch. “They’re with my mom’s parents this Thanksgiving.”

“That’s great.” He eyes our backpacks. “Why don’t you guys go drop your bags in your room and wash up?”

Room? As in singular?

Mom switches off the faucet. “About that,” she starts. “We’ve done a reshuffle, as Leroy’s finally finished the office space out back. We bought a new futon for the room, so we thought you guys could go out there. Your brother has a friend staying over, so this way you guys aren’t inundated by teenagers.”

My grin is immediate, and not for the reason my mom thinks. For the time I’m here, I get to be alone with Bentley at night. Fuck yes.

“That’s great, Mom, thanks.” I peer over at Dad, saying, “I can’t wait to see what you’ve done with your office.” Last year, he started to work from home almost full-time. Our backyard’s a decent size, and he’s been working on the shed out there over the past couple of years, making it more watertight, even going as far as fitting drywall.

“I have zero plans to work this holiday, so I won’t be bugging you guys. Feel free to make use of that lock so Malik doesn’t harass you. The kid keeps getting up at six in the morning.”

“Really?” Over the summer, I rarely saw my thirteen-year-old brother before eleven. “What’s he up to so early?”

“He’s all about streaming and making videos while he’s gaming. He’s made a gaming friend overseas, in New Zealand, I think. Apparently, it’s a great time for them to play online together.”

“And he keeps going to your office because…?”

Mom chuckles as she pours herself a glass of wine. “Malik keeps trying to claim your dad’s office as his own space. We have to keep kicking him out.”

“Does the turd not know how lucky he is to have his own bedroom all these years?” I scoff. Denzel and I ended up sharing the bigger room rather than him and Malik despite them being closer in years. My youngest brother has obstructive sleep apnea.

It was freaking terrifying when he was younger and we had no idea what was happening. Since then, he wears a device at night to help keep his airways open. It also means he gets his own bedroom.

“Come on, now, get moving. Food’s almost ready to dish up. I’ll wrangle your brothers.” Mom shoos us off, and I leave willingly, catching Bentley’s eye and indicating for him to follow me. “Be back here in twenty minutes.”

“You got it,” I call out, opening the back door and stepping out into the chilly air. At least there’s no wind. The yard is too enclosed for that. “You okay?” I side-eye Bentley as I reach the new office space and tug open the door.

“Yeah, good.” He nods and smiles as we step inside, taking in the room. “Leroy’s done a good job.” He smooths his hand over the freshly painted walls. They’re a pale gray and work really well with the white furnishings.

This may be Dad’s workspace, but Mom’s definitely decorated.

Someone’s already set up the futon too. It’s bigger than I expected. Big enough for the two of us but doesn’t leave much room on either side. “Looks like you’ll need to snuggle up so I don’t fall off the mattress.” With the door closed, I step into Bentley’s space, relishing his warmth and the very fact that I can do this.

He places his hands on my waist as we stand toe to toe. “You know how hard it is not to hold your hand or kiss you whenever I want?”

I nod. “I do. It’s a fucking nightmare.”

A gentle smile forms as he presses his lips to mine. The kiss is tender, a reminder of our feelings.

“We’ll be fine. Being out here alone is a bonus we weren’t expecting.”

My dick twinges, because of course it does. The barest thought about Bentley and being alone with him gets me going.

“Beats being on the blow-up mattress.” Which is where I’ve slept in the past when Bentley’s visited. I’ve always insisted he have my bed, while I take the floor.

“Come on, we need to wash up.”

“Let’s check out the en suite.” I drop my bag and indicate the closed door.

“There’s a bathroom in here?”

“Yeah, it was just halfway done when I left at the end of summer. It’s small, but it has a shower, sink, and toilet.”

“This visit is getting better and better.” He chuckles, his gaze meeting mine. The heat there has me swallowing hard. “You want me to flick the lock on the door?”

“Fuck yes.”

He snorts as I start stripping, dumping my clothes on the way to the small shower room. Once I’m inside, I turn the tap on and step inside as soon as it’s warm enough.

“You seriously think we’re both going to fit in there?”

I arch my brow at him as I step under the warm water. “As long as we get real close, I think we’ll be just fine.” I rake my gaze over him as he ditches his jeans and boxers. The rest of his clothing, I’m assuming, is on the floor in the office.

There’s a smattering of hair on his chest that I love rubbing my fingertips over, but it’s the trail starting just below his belly button that I love the most. “Fuck, you have a pretty cock.”

His dick twitches at my words, and I grin, snapping my attention to his face and his flushed skin.

“Tonight, I’m going to fall asleep with it buried in my ass.”

“Fuck, Sammy.” He grabs hold of his cock and squeezes. “We’ve got exactly fifteen minutes to be back in the house with your family. You can’t say shit like that unless you want to do something about this problem I have.”

I trail my gaze down his body and settle it on his dick as he lazily strokes himself. I wet my bottom lip, more than up to the challenge of getting him off quickly. At this point, I don’t even care if I don’t get off again until after. To see him release—watch him give up control and shiver in ecstasy—is pretty fucking amazing.

Just tasting him before hanging out and having to keep my hands off him is enough. For now.

So I do exactly that.