Prologue

PROLOGUE

TANNER

“ A re you having fun at Dylan’s house, bug?”

I hear her sigh through the phone. My daughter is only eight years old, and the attitude has already begun. “Yes, Dad. I’ve slept here a million times before. Don’t worry.”

“Humor me, Harper. Whether you’re eight or eighty, I will always worry about you.”

Another sigh. When did this start?

“We just had dinner. We’re in the playroom. Her mommy and daddy are sitting by the fireplace with drinks.” Then she adds in a whisper, “They’re very cuddly.”

I smirk. Cassandra and Trevor Knight are certainly not shy about their love. She’s much older than him and they simply don’t care. I wish I had half of their gusto.

I hate that my daughter sees a cuddly couple as abnormal. This is where I’ve damaged her.

“Please thank them for me. I’ll pick you up at about nine in the morning. ”

“No, Dad, tomorrow starts my time with Mom. She’s picking me up.”

My face falls as I realize she’s right. We’ve been divorced for well over five years, and I still struggle with the fact that I only have Harper half the time.

I rub my dark beard, one that is a little grayer than it used to be. “Oh, right. Have fun with Mommy.”

“Thanks. Does Arizona look pretty? She’s probably the prettiest bride ever.”

“The ceremony hasn’t started yet. I haven’t seen her, but I’m sure she does.” She’s a gorgeous woman.

“Does Bailey look pretty?”

“She’s a bridesmaid. I haven’t seen her yet either.” She undoubtedly looks exquisite. No woman is more beautiful or sexier than Bailey Hart. Unfortunately for me, she’s fifteen years my junior and is my daughter’s nanny. Well, she’s actually a professional softball player, but in the off-season, and during the season when her schedule permits, she doubles as our nanny.

“Okay, Dad. I gotta go. Tell Uncle Layton that I said congratulations.”

“I will. Love you, bug.”

She grits out, “Don’t call me that. It’s embarrassing. I’m not a baby anymore.”

“Love you, Harper Jayne Montgomery.”

“Love you too, Dad.”

I mimic her sass. “Don’t call me that.”

“Love you too, Daddy .”

I smile as I end the call and slip back into the groom’s dressing room. Calling Layton the groom is a bit of a stretch since they’ve been married for roughly ten months, but they did so quickly and secretly without any friends or family around. They’re finally having their big day in front of all of us today.

Layton is a retired professional baseball player, and Arizona is a professional softball player. I’m both of their agents. Her season just ended, so they can finally celebrate their union. I’m a groomsman who’s had a front-row view to witness their incredible love story. What began as a PR stunt blossomed into something truly special.

I smile as I watch the rest of Layton’s groom’s party huddled around him doing shots. It’s comprised of Layton’s foster brother, Henry, his former teammates, Cruz “Cheetah” Gonzales, Trey DePaul, Ezra Decker, and Quincy Abbott. Quincy is Arizona's brother and Layton's best man.

Cheetah smiles. “Lancaster, are you sure you want to do this? When you say I do , it will be the last decision you ever get to make for the rest of your life.”

I chuckle but otherwise keep my mouth shut. I know nothing about marriage. Mine was an epic failure.

Trey places his hand on Layton’s shoulder. “Don’t listen to him. He doesn’t know his ass from his head. When you find the right woman, it’s the greatest ride of your life. Marrying Gemma is the best decision I’ve ever made.”

I know he means that. Trey and Gemma have a perfect marriage. I’m equal parts happy for him and envious of what they share. The same goes for Layton and Arizona. They’re the real deal too. Madly in love.

Cheetah shrugs as he slaps Trey’s back. “It’s the greatest ride because you married a smart woman with a smokin’ body who writes about sex and asks you to act out the scenes. She’s a unicorn.”

Gemma DePaul is an attorney by day and romance author by night. She’s all the things Cheetah mentioned.

Trey smiles with pride while Cheetah refills the shot glasses and encourages everyone to hold theirs in the air. “Lancaster, you found a unicorn too. May all your ups and downs only occur in the bedroom.”

Everyone laughs and clinks glasses except Quincy, who simply shakes his head and grumbles, “Can we please not talk about my sister in the bedroom?”

Cheetah winks. He and Layton both say things like that in front of Quincy all the time just to mess with him.

After one last round of shots, it’s showtime.

The music starts playing and the planner is gradually connecting each of us with our bridesmaid counterpart to walk down the aisle. That’s when Bailey comes into view for the first time tonight. She’s in a tight royal-blue strapless dress. It’s ankle length with a slit up the side, showing a hint of her long, toned legs. The same ones that were wrapped around my face just a few days ago.

Her normally straight hair is wavy and pinned back on one side. Her makeup is professionally done. She’s a vision.

As we come together and I offer her my arm, I whisper, “You’re beautiful.”

A shy smile finds her lips as she looks me up and down and takes my arm. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

“You’re coming home with me tonight so I can tear that dress off you.”

“What about—”

“She’s sleeping out.”

We walk down the aisle. I couldn’t even tell you what music is playing. I’m completely besotted with the woman on my arm.

We watch on as Layton and Arizona tearfully vow to love each other forever. I did that once. Fallon and I promised forever. It turns out that forever was a little over four years. At least we produced Harper. That’s the only silver lining.

I stare at Bailey, who’s crying tears of joy as the vows are read. Could I ever do this again? If I did, it would be for Bailey. I told her we could only be casual, and she accepted that. She’s so much younger than me. She doesn’t even turn thirty until next year. She’s got too much life to live. I don’t want to hold her back, but I can’t seem to let her go. I don’t think I want to.

Layton just recited his vows. His sentence, “You’re everything I never knew I always needed,” resonates as I continue to stare at the beautiful brunette on the other side of the aisle.

The officiant eventually announces, “You may kiss the bride.”

Layton dips Arizona and kisses her in a manner that I’m happy Harper isn’t here to witness. Cheetah shouts, “Save it for tonight, big guy.”

Layton stands upright as he and Arizona smile blissfully into each other’s mouths. I love seeing my friend so happy. He’s had a hard life and deserves this.

“May I present Mr. and Mrs. Layton and Arizona Lancaster.”

Layton holds their joined hands in the air as a sea of applause erupts, and they work their way back up the aisle.

The reception immediately kicks into high gear with the music blaring and bodies on the dance floor. I watch from the wings as Bailey happily dances with her friends—Arizona, Ripley, and Gemma—as well as her twin sister, Kamryn. All of them except Gemma play on the professional softball team the Philly Anacondas.

Bailey and Kamryn are considered identical twins with their long dark hair, big chocolate-brown eyes, and stunning figures, but the two couldn’t be more different. Kamryn is brash and promiscuous. Bailey is neither of those things. She’s shy and introspective. She’s classy and kind, without a bad bone in her body. In other words, she’s perfect. Too perfect.

The faster song ends, and a slow one begins. All the couples pair off, leaving Bailey alone. She’s close friends with Ezra. I know he’ll rescue her, but I can’t stomach the thought of his hands on her gorgeous body, one I’ve spent hours worshiping.

I see him step toward her but then stop when he sees me doing the same. Despite his best efforts, he knows she prefers me to him.

I approach her from behind and run my hand down her arm. Goosebumps immediately erupt on her soft skin.

She turns in my arms and smiles. “People will talk.”

“What people? No one else is here.”

She pinches her eyebrows together. It’s unusual for me to talk like this to her.

I grab her waist and pull her body to mine. She happily wraps her arms around my neck, leans her body into mine, and we move to the sultry beat of the music.

I bend and kiss her neck.

“What’s gotten into you tonight?”

“It’s me who will be getting into you. In fact, let’s get out of here and start that process now.”

She giggles. “I’m not leaving. It’s too early. She’s one of my best friends.”

“And what am I?”

“My fuck buddy.” She painfully uses my words against me. “You’re supposed to be my secret fuck buddy, but you’re not doing a good job of hiding it tonight.”

“Half the people here know anyway.”

“And the other half?”

“I don’t care.”

She pulls her head back and gives me a questioning look. I can’t blame her. I’ve given her mixed signals since the day I met her over a year ago.

A few hours later, the bride and groom finally wave goodbye to leave for their honeymoon on the other side of the world. I grab Bailey’s hand. “Let’s get out of here.”

She pulls away. “Seriously, what’s gotten into you tonight? You’re acting weird. Have you been drinking?” She gives me an accusatory look.

“Not in hours. I’m just anxious to get you alone. It’s been a while. Is it so terrible that I miss you?”

She gives me an incredulous look. “It’s been four days.”

I look around. Not seeing anyone, I grab her face and smash my lips to hers. She yelps at first, until my tongue slips into her mouth. Giving in, she relaxes her body. Her tongue meets mine before sweeping through my mouth. I love her sweet taste.

A noise causes us to pull apart. Her chest rises and falls rapidly as she breathes, “Okay, let’s go. Now.”

I take in her appearance. Her hair is messy from my hands, and her sensual lips are swollen from our kiss. Her face is a bit red from my beard. So beautiful.

As if on cue, she licks those full lips. I imagine them wrapped around my cock. There’s nothing better than those lips wrapped around me with her innocent eyes staring up at me.

She notices my line of sight and narrows her eyes at me. “You’re thinking about me sucking your duck, aren’t you?”

Yes, she calls it a duck, not a dick, because she’s trained herself not to curse in front of Harper. She has substitute words for every dirty word in the dictionary.

I chuckle. “Why do you know that?”

“Because you’re a filthy man, Mr. Montgomery .”

Her calling me that has my half chub growing to full chub.

Her eyes find my pants and one of her eyebrows raises. “Told ya so. Let’s get out of here. I’ll see what I can do for you, Mr. Montgomery .”

I close my eyes, willing myself to not pull her into a closet, lift that sexy dress, and fuck her right here. I have to remove my jacket and drape it in front of me to cover the bulge in my pants.

A few minutes later, the valet pulls around in my brand-new Maserati MC20. He’s got a big shit-eating grin on his face as he exits the vehicle. “I kept her in a special place, sir, just like you asked. I’ve never been in a nicer car. This baby must have set you back a pretty penny.”

Yep, about a quarter of a million dollars.

I nod as I hand him a hundred-dollar bill. “Thanks for taking care of her.”

He smiles in gratitude before his eyes find Bailey and take every inch of her in. If I thought he was drooling over the car a moment ago, it doesn’t compare to what he’s doing while staring at my girl. I think the saliva is dripping from his mouth.

I clear my throat. He snaps his head to me, and I give him a nasty look.

He realizes what he’s done, drops his head, and mumbles, “Sorry,” as he walks away.

Bailey rolls her eyes as I open the passenger door for her. “Was that necessary?”

“Yes, it was. I didn’t like the way he was looking at you.”

“And how was that?”

“Like he wants to fuck you.”

She smiles playfully. “You look at me like that all the time.”

“And I want to fuck you all the time.”

She laughs as I close the door, walk around to the driver’s side, get in, set the car in gear, and peel out of there. She leans back and closes her eyes. “Hmm. I love this car. It’s such a turn-on.”

“I thought the wetness I smell pooling between your legs was because of me, not my car. ”

She squirms a bit. “Nope. It’s the car that does it for me. It’s brand new. You’re old,” she jokes.

I reach over to tickle her side, and she giggles. I love that sound.

“You’re not being very nice to me, sweet girl.”

Her eyes meet mine. “Maybe I don’t feel like being so sweet tonight.”

She’s had a few drinks, but not so many that she’s drunk. This is unusually aggressive for her though.

She reaches over and runs her hand up my thigh before rubbing it over my straining cock. After unbuckling her seatbelt, she leans over and kisses my dick through my pants. Just feeling her hot breath on me makes it leak.

Before I realize what’s happening, she unzips my pants, reaches in, and pulls out my cock. “W…what are you doing?”

“My filthy man said he wants his duck sucked.” She strokes me a few times and then licks across my tip. “I’m here to service you, Mr. Montgomery .”

While doing this in a car is a little crazy, I’m still a red-blooded man. I’m not looking a gift horse in the mouth.

She takes her time licking around the bulging head of my cock. The slow seduction is everything. It takes every ounce of willpower I have to not close my eyes and to fully give myself over to the ecstasy.

She sucks the tip past her lips and into the warm, wet confines of her mouth. I lean my head back. “Oh fuck.”

I have one hand on the wheel, and I gather her hair to watch the show with the other. I’m trying to keep one eye on the road and one on her as she bobs up and down on me.

She lets out a series of moans around me as I hit the back of her throat with every methodical, meaningful pass. I love the way she sucks my dick. It’s never rushed, like she’s just doing it to achieve the end result. She savors it and, in turn, helps me to savor it .

The car swerves a little before I straighten it out. Oh shit. Keep your eyes on the road, Montgomery, not on the sexy piece of ass with her lips wrapped around you.

Given that I’ve been hard for her all night, it doesn’t take long for that tingling sensation to shoot down my back and straight to my balls.

She clearly senses it and hastens the pace of her mouth on me. “I’m going to come in your hot little mouth, sweet girl.”

She increases the suction, and my vision temporarily blackens as I come long and hard down her throat.

After swallowing every last drop, she tucks me in and lifts her head. I turn to smile at her when she screams, “Watch out!”

My eyes take in the car stopped in front of me, but I’m going too fast. I’m going to hit it if I don’t do something. I slam on the brakes and swerve to avoid the car, but we’re headed toward a pole. I hold out my arm to attempt to protect Bailey against the inevitable crash.

I hear a crunch, and she’s thrown forward, not having her seatbelt on. I hold her as best I can, but there’s only so much I can do.

I think I must black out for a few seconds because I blink my eyes open to the sounds of sirens. I turn to Bailey who’s unconscious and slumped over.

I immediately remove my seatbelt and reach for her. “Bailey, baby, are you okay? Wake up.”

Nothing.

I lift her face and hold it in my hands. I’m frantic. “Wake up. Oh god. Please wake up.”

Pulling her lifeless body onto my lap, I continue to gently shake her. Eventually, her eyes blink a few times. She breathes, “What happened?”

I quickly scan her body with my hands and eyes. I don’t see any blood. “We crashed. Are you okay? ”

Still lifeless, she croaks out, “My head hurts, but I think I’m okay.” As if realizing why we crashed, she sucks in a breath and tears find her eyes. “I’m so sorry, Tanner. This is my fault.”

I hold her close to me. “No, it’s not.”

“Oh god, your new car.”

“I don’t care about the car. Just you. Are you sure you’re okay?”

Before she can answer, a police officer knocks on the window. “Sir, is anyone hurt?”

I lower the window. “I’m not sure. I think she hit her head. She needs to go to the hospital to get checked out.”

“Okay. Stay where you are. An ambulance will be here in a few minutes.”

I nod.

“How did this happen?”

I can’t help the small smirk as I look at Bailey and whisper, “Do you want to show him?”

She narrows her eyes at me.

I chuckle as I look back at the officer. “I swerved to avoid a car, but I couldn’t manage to avoid this pole.” I motion toward the pole now sitting in the engine of my car.

He nods in understanding. “Can you turn off the ignition, sir? The car is still running and it’s likely unsafe.”

“Let me try.”

Despite my efforts, I can’t reach it because of the damage to the car and Bailey cradled in my lap.

I look at her. “Can you reach it?”

She nods as she attempts to shift her body, but her eyes quickly widen in horror.

I look at her with concern. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”

“Tanner, I…I can’t feel my legs.”