Epilogue

"I knew I'd find you two out here." I'm situated under a tree, back to the trunk, a blanket beneath me, and a few things I'd need are in reaching distance. A burp rag, my ever-present mug of water, a diaper, and wipes. We're back where it all started. Okay, not the bar or the ranch. We're at the cabin. It didn't take much to talk Lawson into coming up here for the weekend. I'd just finished the macrame swing I'd been working on for most of my pregnancy, and this is technically the last week of my maternity leave. Even though Lawson doesn't want me to work at all, I still want to. We did settle on part-time, and I'd bring Jasmine to work with me. We'd trade off if a patient came in, or we'd take her up to the house where Catherine can watch both of her grandbabies. She was over the moon, as was I. The only person still grumbling is my soon-to-be husband. Standing my ground and getting the wedding of my dreams while our little girl walks down the aisle throwing flowers with her ring-bearer cousin, Case, is what I want, and the rest I couldn"t care less about. The wedding could be out in the woods, in the barn, or off the front steps of Catherine and Russell's house. All I care about is a few of the details. The rest can fall where they land.

"How'd you know that?" I tease. The top of my dress is down. Jasmine is nursing, eyes closed, hand on my breast. Lawson's eyes flare with heat like they do every time I nurse our baby. Truth be told, it makes him ravenous, and holding him off until being cleared from the obstetrician meant a lot of foreplay. Lawson is ready for me to be pregnant again already, and while I love that he loves me any way he can have me, I also want to enjoy Jasmine for a little while. Another plus to breastfeeding is there's a good chance it could delay fertility as well.

"Jasmine done?" I nod. Lawson is in a pair of jeans, button undone in his usual fashion. When Jasmine woke up from her nap, he was still asleep. He's been up with me through every feeding since the very beginning. I nursed, he changed her diaper, then made sure she was asleep before putting her back in the bassinet in our bedroom. While I get to nap during the day, he's working on the ranch. Today, I could give him a little reprieve, plus the weather is gorgeous, warm and sunny for a fall day.

"Yeah." I gulp when he runs his hand down his stomach, hooking his thumb in the waistband of his jeans. His arm flexes, muscles pulling in his corded abdomen, and my hormones are in high gear remembering yesterday. Before my appointment with the doctor and us heading up here, I used my mouth on him. My ass was facing his head, his thumb on my clit, and he pinched me at the exact same time he came down the back of my throat. Today, though, today is the day I'm officially cleared. I can see by the look in his eyes that he's tired of waiting, and so am I.

"I'll put her in the swing." A swing he no doubt made sure could never fall. I'm actually surprised he didn't demand putting concrete poles in the ground. He probably knew I'd castrate him if he ruined the beauty and nature out here. I go to fix my top when he says, "Don't you dare. It's been too long." Last night, after settling in, eating dinner, and getting Jasmine ready for her evening routine, I was out like a light. I'm not sure when he had the time to hang her swing, but when we walked out here, I noticed it was up, and it made me fall in love with Lawson the man and the father even more. Our girl is snuggled to his bare chest, exactly how she likes it, and he places a kiss on the crown of her head, melting my insides even more. This man of mine has so many pieces of me I'm not sure where he ends and I begin.

"I'll do one better." I pull the ribbon on my other side, baring myself to his view. I wiggle myself out of the dress, leaving me in a pair of control top panties. My after-baby body hasn't been easy to embrace. Lawson, on the other hand, is just as obsessed with me as when I was pregnant. He really does the most in every way.

"Fuck me, you're so damn beautiful, Juniper." His hand is on the bassinet swing, steadying it for a moment before moving back to me. His jeans are off, and he's dropping to his knees in front of my spread thighs. "I wish you'd get rid of these. I want your body exactly how it is. None of this trying-to-suck-you-in shit. Your stomach may have marks on it now, but it's proof you held our daughter, and I love you for who you are, not your body." Lawson's fingers go to the waistband, pulling them down my legs and tossing them away. My dress had a built-in bra, so that didn't bother me. There's just something about wanting to bounce back to what you once were. "You keep putting them on, I'll keep taking them off, and then I'll light the fuckers on fire."

"I don't care what you do as long as you don't make me wait anymore." I'm relenting. They are kind of uncomfortable and dig in your sides at the worst of times. "Fine, I'll quit wearing them. No use in wasting money for you to destroy them."

His big hands grab me firmly by the back of my thighs, pulling me down until I'm flat on my back. He slides the underside of his cock along my wet slit. My head tips back as I undulate beneath him, and he comes down on his hands on either side of my head.

"Goddamn, I love watching your milk slide from your nipples," he says, his head dipping, tongue dragging along the same path as my breast milk. He's always watching, always waiting, and the minute he sees Jasmine is done nursing, he's there. Sweeping his thumb along my nipple, bringing it to his mouth, and tasting me in a completely different way. I never knew how erotic it would feel or look. I'm so focused on his tongue and mouth moving from one nipple to the other, my milk slowly stopping, only to feel the head of his cock slide inside me.

"Lawson." Pure decadence, the sensation overwhelms me. My eyes close and I let him do whatever he wants to my body. I'm not prepared for all these feelings, a rasp of his tongue against my skin, the soft velvet contradicting his hard length slowly gliding in and out of my pussy. He's slowly working me up, too slowly. My hands grip his biceps, my nails digging into his skin, leaving half crescent moon shapes in their wake.

"Next time I have you to myself, I'm going to suck on each nipple until you can't take any more, and you know I don't give one single fuck if your milk pours down your chest." He thrusts inside in one swift movement and with a slight swivel of his hips and the way he's talking, I'm not going to last much longer. What a shame that is because I'm absolutely loving everything he's doing to my body. "Yeah, my baby likes that. I can feel the way you tighten your pretty cunt around my dick."

"Harder." The wail of need tears from my lips a little louder than I'd like. I'm not ready for Jasmine to wake up because her parents are fucking like rabbits.

"Gonna come inside you, Juniper. My cum only ever belongs inside of you, now and forever." My eyes open, watching his bright blue eyes looking at where we"re connected after he had his way with my breasts. He's completely infatuated, and with the grip he has on my shoulders, holding me deep in his grasp, I'm unable to hold back. Lawson naked, the sun beating on our naked bodies, watching each muscle move with every movement, it's all I can take.

"Yes, come in me." This time, my voice is strong and steady, demanding what I want.

"Hell yes." He"s fucking his cock harder, faster, deeper inside me, and when he feels me come, only then does he let go, and I feel each jet of cum fill my core. "Love you, Juniper. By god, do I love you."

"I love you, too," I yawn. He stays planted inside of me, both of us relishing in the moment of us being connected, forever.

I hope you enjoyed Lawson and Juniper's story and will consider leaving a review.

His to Own Bonus Scene

Coming next is His to Claim, JW and Maeve's book and releases July 14th!

Prologue

Maeve

One Month Earlier

"What did I get myself into now?" I mumble the words under my breath as the hostess leads me to the table. I'm on a date, I can't believe I pulled the trigger. An online dating app lured me in late one night after hearing what JW had to say to his brothers. Yeah, let's just say it set tonight in motion. I never thought dropping off cinnamon rolls to the big lug along with a few other sweet treats to the Johnson ladies would result in me leaving the ranch as fast as my feet could take me.

"Here's your table, can I get you a drink while you wait?" I pull my chair out. The palm of my hands are slick with sweat and I rub them down the fabric of my high waisted wide leg turquoise pants. I paired the outfit with a pair of woven straw wedges and a floral thin strapped blouse. The best part of these pants is you can dress them up or down. A band tee with a pair of chucks and you're good to go.

"Yes, an Aperol Sprits. Please and thank you," I take my seat. The steakhouse here in Arrowleaf is excellent, they have great food and great drinks. They also have amazing desserts if I do say so myself. Whisked Away supplies them with desserts on a daily basis. Yesterday it was chocolate cake, chocolate on chocolate stored in the fridge because there is nothing better than a cold piece of cake on a hot summer day. Today's special is cheesecake, three flavors, cherry, chocolate marble, and of course plain.

"You're welcome, would you like a water as well too?" I nod in response, my thoughts a million miles away from where they should be. Replaying the reason I'm here in the first place. His words have set in my stomach like a lead weight, making me feel like all of the random orders, slight touches, or looks that had me flushing from my cheeks to my chest. One sentence took it all away, "She's pretty, makes great cinnamon rolls, but she's too innocent for me." All of my hopes and dreams of being JW Johnson's went out like a light. I left the cinnamon rolls and other pastries on the counter and quietly left the ranch. That was two weeks ago and also when I took the plunge to create an online dating profile.

You see, Tully, Birdie, and Juni may know how I feel about him, but they don't know how JW feels about me. I didn't say a word, girl code is one thing. Family is another entirely. Believe me, I understand the concept entirely. I'm close to my parents and siblings, we have Sunday dinners, have a massive group text where we all check-in daily. My two older sisters worry than our mom and dad do. They're currently tracking my location and are making sure I send them a text right away if the vibe feels off. I'm what you call an oops baby, Michelle is thirteen years older than me, and Madison is fifteen years older than me. They know what's going on, our parents do not. My sisters may be protective, dad is next level, and mom has no problem showing her claws when necessary.

"Hello there, you must be Maeve. I'm Clayton," my date says, drawing me out of my stupor. I stand up to greet him, my chair pushing back and only by sheer luck does it not slide back into another table. While I once thought it was cool the chairs were on rollers, I'm now second guessing the idea entirely with my almost mishap.

"Hi, I am. It's a pleasure to meet you," Blonde hair, brown eyes, a clean-shaven face, and a smile. Clayton is the exact opposite of JW in every way possible. Polo shirt to JW's usual cotton shirt, khakis compared to jeans, and loafers whereas the object of my unwanted affection where's boots. I'm already re-thinking this whole date thing when we shake hands.

I take my hand back, slyly rubbing my hand on my pants yet again. Clayton isn't giving off creep vibes. He's just not doing anything for me.

"Hi, I'm Debbie and I'll be your server tonight," the waitress says as she places my water and Aperol Spritz on the table. Thankfully breaking the awkward silence between Clayton and myself.

"Thank you," I say.

"What can I get for you?" She's looking at Clayton, giving me ample time to drink some liquid courage. Michelle and Madison gave me a few pointers to keep the conversation flowing, each of them married with kids yet living vicariously through their baby sisters. All their advice has gone out the window now that we're face to face.

"A cosmo," my eyes meet Debbie's. She has a straight poker face meanwhile I'm having to swallow my sip of drink as fast as possible in fear I'll choke. JW would never order a fruity type of drink, he's a beer drinker through and through. The Johnson brothers have the same taste when it comes to alcohol. Only Trey likes to dabble in the hard stuff and pull the others in with him on a bet.

"Of course, I'll be right back with your order. The menus are on the table, today's chef special is mini crab cakes, cowboy lobster bisque, and bison flank steak." My mouth waters at cowboy lobster bisque along with their wedge salad. I could also eat my weight in their warm bread lathered in butter.

"So, Maeve, tell me about yourself," Clayton picks up the conversation once Debbie leaves the table. The only problem is, we've done the small talk via the dating app, he knows I'm a baker. I know he's a real estate agent, lives a few towns over, and is looking for a wife to settle down with. Yep, the app is nothing if not thorough.

"You know I'm a baker, own a bakery, and enjoy coming up with new desserts. I have two older sisters and I've grown up here in Arrowleaf," small talk is not my forte. I'm more of a sit back and observe type of person, a lot can be said with little to no words. It's others that feel they need to disturb the comfortable quietness with talking.

"Any chance you'd be willing to move away?" I slide my drink toward me, something tells me I'm going to need more than one to get through this dinner.

"Nope, I'll never leave Arrowleaf. This is my home, my business is here, and so is my family." My lips wrap around the cute straw Prime Cuts uses with every drink. Their attention to detail, good food, and excellent service makes the restaurant one of the busiest in our town.

"Interesting," Clayton says something else. I nod my head at appropriate times meanwhile my gaze is caught on the man who just walked through the door of Prime Cuts. Is Mercury in Gatorade or something? He's tall, built from his time on the ranch and farriering horses. Arm muscles that are literal porn and my god his back. I've only seen him in a tight fitted cotton shirt, I can't even imagine him without one. Okay, fine, I can, and I have. I'm sure it doesn't do him any justice either.

Tonight, JW is wearing a pearl snap button down shirt, jeans, boots, and a black cowboy hat. A far cry from what the man who's currently yammering about real estate booming around our state and how he's selling more property than ever. Clayton doesn't have my attention at all, my eyes are solely focused on a certain cowboy, and when our gazes clash, it's not me the shies away this time, it's none other than JW. I lose his deep sky-blue eyes and while I try to shut down what I've felt for the big jerk, the task seems impossible. It's clear, Clayton won't be the one to help keep my mind away from JW. I'm not sure anyone can.

"Excuse me Clayton, I'll be right back. I've got to use the restroom," I go to stand up, Clayton does similar. He has manners, seems like a nice guy, minus the fact he's not JW, he'd be perfect for someone who isn't me.

"Of course," I grab my purse, knowing I'll be making a phone call to my sisters. I'm going to need them to help me escape this farce of a date and these damn feelings I have for JW Johnson.