37. Cute Couple

37

CUTE COUPLE

“ T his is my room,” Shiloh said hours later. “Sloane painted it for me and then we hung up things and decorated it together.”

Sloane smiled as Shiloh showed her room off to Tiffani. She knew it was modest compared to the two rooms that Tiffani had, but for Shiloh it was the best thing ever.

She didn’t want Shiloh to feel as if she didn’t measure up or have enough, but there was only so much she could provide her sister.

“I like the puffy rainbows and clouds,” Tiffani said, moving over and reaching up to touch some of it on the wall.

“Sloane made that for me,” Shiloh said.

“She did?” Tiffani asked. “Those are pretty.”

“Thank you,” Sloane said. “I like to make things when I’ve got time.”

“Can you show me how to do it?” Tiffani asked.

“I can,” she said. “Shiloh likes doing crafts. We’ve set up a craft room in the other bedroom. Shiloh can show it to you if you want while I finish packing. ”

She’d thought the crafts were a good way for the two of them to spend time and bond together. Shiloh’s bedroom wasn’t big enough to store it all so Sloane gave up some of her office in the spare room for the storage and a little table, but most times they moved everything to the dining room table.

She heard the giggles in the room next door and then grabbed the clothes Shiloh picked out for tomorrow and went to her room to pack her things and get their bathroom items.

Dane had told her to keep things at his house, but she didn’t feel right doing that knowing the kids could see them.

She didn’t think it was her way of putting the brakes on but more like making sure he was ready to deal with more questions.

“We are ready,” Shiloh said as the two girls came out of the room and ran down the stairs in front of her.

Dane and Tyler had stayed downstairs and were in the living room. Tyler was talking about the rock wall on the swing set that Royce had built. She was positive the one in Dane’s backyard would have some work done to it soon.

“What’s for dinner tonight?” Tiffani asked. “I’m hungry.”

They’d had snacks and lunch at Chloe and Royce’s, then cake and ice cream. It hadn’t been that long, but the kids hadn’t sat still once.

Sloane looked at her watch and saw it was six. She’d checked in with the salon twice today. She didn’t normally take a full Saturday off, but she wanted to be there for Dane and meet the rest of his family.

She hardly took time for herself, and though it felt as if she was taking a lot of time off lately to deal with personal matters, she’d already reminded herself as the owner of the business, she could do that .

She’d even decided to offer Heather a management position and give her more pay.

Heather would still be working with clients more than anything, but she’d be opening or closing more so that Sloane could have a bit of a break. In time she might give Heather the task of scheduling the girls too. Once their schedules were set monthly, then appointments could be filled. She tried to keep people on the same days so that regulars could make those appointments, but it didn’t always work that way.

“Me too,” Shiloh said.

She was going to joke about the fact Shiloh ate a ton and couldn’t be hungry unless she had a hollow leg but didn’t want to embarrass the child with a silly joke.

It’s not like Shiloh had gained more than a few pounds so maybe she was going through a growth spurt as Dane suggested.

“What do you want to eat?” Sloane asked. “I can cook dinner, depending on what Dane has in the house.”

The kids were all looking back and forth as if no one wanted to be the one to make a suggestion. “Shiloh has never had tacos,” Tyler said. “Can we have tacos? I was talking about them because I love them.”

“Tacos do sound good,” Dane said. “Why don’t we stop at the store on the way home and get everything we need? Shiloh should get to experience tacos, don’t you think, Sloane?”

“Sure,” she said. She wished she’d known that. Or that Shiloh felt she could tell her those things.

They’d get there.

At ten that night, the kids were all asleep and had been for a few hours. Shiloh usually went to bed a little later than Tiffani and Tyler because sometimes Sloane had to run back to the shop at eight to close up, but after all the activity today, even Shiloh was rubbing her eyes and yawning before eight.

“That was a long day,” Dane said. “I’m beat.”

“Me too,” she said. “The kids all had fun and got along.”

“They did,” he said. “The house is locked up and we can go to bed.”

“Gladly,” she said.

They walked up the stairs together as quietly as they could. But Dane’s room was at the other end of the hall from where the kids were sleeping. Everyone’s doors were shut and they’d shut theirs too.

After Dane closed his door, she went over and locked it. They only did that when they were going to fool around but would unlock it when they were done and leave it open a crack. This way the kids could push it open if they were needed.

“Guess you aren’t too tired, are you?” he asked.

“No,” she said. “I feel like we don’t get as much time as either one of us wants. Not that I’m complaining.”

The last thing she wanted was for him to feel bad that he didn’t have the time for her.

It was more on her than him half the time.

Though now that she was spending the night with the kids here, it might give them more time in the future and she’d just take Shiloh with her to the spa when needed, like she was tomorrow when she left and Dane’s kids would stay here.

“I know,” he said. “I don’t feel that way. I think we are making it work the best we can. I have to tell you, Tiffani is going to throw a fit when you leave tomorrow and bring Shiloh to the spa with you.”

“Why?” she asked. The two of them were undressing. It didn’t always feel as if they had to rush to get to this point like they had months ago.

“Because she wants to go too,” he said. “Tiffani said it’d be a lot of fun to spend the day there. Shiloh told her she only really sat in the office and colored. How long are you working?”

“Just a few hours,” she said. “I’ve got to get some paperwork done.”

“Do you mind letting Shiloh stay here then? You close at one.”

“I’ll be done by noon,” she said. She would have stayed to close at one, but there was no reason to with Kaitlyn there.

“Then let your sister stay here and play with Tiffani. Do it for me. Otherwise I’m going to have my hands full with her that Shiloh is doing something fun and she’s stuck with Tyler.”

“I suppose when you put it that way,” she said, laughing at the grin on his face.

They were both naked and she moved into his arms.

He hugged her tight and then picked her up, she wrapped her legs around his waist.

“You know I love you, right?” he said.

“I do,” she said. “I feel the same way. We even heard a bunch of people commenting on it today too.”

She found it funny that the Fierces all came up to her at different times to say what a cute couple they made. That they seemed so in love.

“Lots of nosy women there,” he said.

“No more talk of that,” she said. He was moving toward the bed. “I got a nifty little shot in the arm at the doctor’s office a few weeks ago if you want to pass on the condoms. I should be good to go. ”

“I’d love to pass on them,” he said. “Only if you’re sure.”

“I’m sure,” she said. “I wouldn’t have said it, let alone done it, if I wasn’t.”

Rather than put her down on the bed, Dane’s hands came around her ass and spread her wider on his hips, found her wet heat and then nudged his way into her.

They stood there like that, him fully inside and not moving. Just letting them each feel the other skin-to-skin for the first time.

He turned and sat on the edge of the bed, her legs still wrapped around him, but now they both had a better perch.

The gravity of her hips off the bed though pulled her down and forced her to lift up, in the process of moving forward and back on him.

“Do that again,” he said.

“I hadn’t planned on that move but glad it found me.”

“Just like we found each other,” he said, his mouth crushing hers.

She loved they always kissed so much when they were together.

For some reason it just meant a little more to her. To take that time and give her something she enjoyed.

Their hips were moving forward and back, their tongues dueling even faster.

It kept her quiet knowing the kids were in the house but far enough away.

Dane’s hands went to her hips and had a firm grip on them, his fingers almost biting into her, and she was fine with that. It just let her know how much he was aroused.

Their skin was slapping against each other and working up a sweat, but the minute she started to come she forgot all about any of that.

He stood up and thrust into her harder and deeper and all she could do was hang on and take it, telling herself there was nowhere else in the world she’d rather be than in his arms.