Chapter Six

Gentry

Officer Daniels is a younger kid with a brush cut and shaky hand. I'm surprised they sent him out for a possible break-in call considering they have plenty of men down at the station with more experience. It must be the time of night.

"So, you're okay, ma'am?" He looks toward Kelly as though he hasn't known me all his damn life.

She nods and brushes her long hair back behind her ears. "Yes. I'm totally good. Who called you?"

"That's confidential, ma'am. Do you know this man?" He nods toward me and then at Kelly.

"We go back ten—"

"Not from you, Gentry. I need to hear it from the lady."

Kelly laughs under her breath and links into my arm, snuggling against me as though she belongs to me.

I like this.

"Yeah, Gentry and I go way back. If a guy named John made the call, he's the one who broke into my house. He's my ex-husband and he won't leave me alone. I was seeing him everywhere out in California, and I had a feeling he'd follow me out here. Gentry came in to help me."

Officer Daniels tips back his head then makes a note in his pad. "Got it. Well, I'll let the guys at the station know you're okay. I'd recommend a restraining order against your ex."

"Yeah, it's next on my list." Her tone is depleted, anxiety ridden, and fatigued. It's now that the reality of why she's here comes back to the front of my mind.

Her mother just passed away. I'm sure she's got so much going through her head between cleaning out the house, managing arrangements, and that asshole.

What am I doing? I don't want to be the mistake she makes while she's messed up in the head. I want her for good.

In the time that I've been contemplating all of life's possibilities, the officer has made his way down the steps and toward the truck. I'm sure he's said his goodbyes and probably thinks I'm rude for not responding, but my brain is stuck. I've waited a decade to hold this woman in my arms again.

Am I setting myself up for failure? Am I headed for another ten years of feeling like I've lost the one thing that made sense?

I glance toward Kelly and lean against the porch post with my arms crossed over my chest. She's gorgeous out here under the moonlight . Too gorgeous. She's always been too damn gorgeous. It's why I am where I am. Well, that and apparently, I have the emotional capabilities of an android.

"You okay?" She narrows her brows and steps toward me, leaning against my chest with a soft smile.

My cock stiffens and I reciprocate her touch, holding her firm against my chest as though I'm never letting go.

"Do you think we're moving too fast?" I need her to confirm we're not.

Her brows narrow and she leans up from my chest, looking up at me with what I guess is confusion. "Maybe. I don't know anything about you anymore. I mean… what have you been doing since the military?"

That isn't what I was hoping to hear. I guess I was hoping for a blind ‘move faster.'

"I work a security firm with my brothers in town. We just started it this year. Spent a lot of time traveling after the military, but glad to be here now. I love the mountains. What about you?"

"I'm an auditor in San Diego."

I nod, a little shocked to hear her trajectory. "Really? Wouldn't have seen you working with numbers. I thought I remember you talking about wanting to start some bed-and-breakfast place."

She scoffs. "Oh, yeah right. That's not practical. I have bills and they don't stop while you try and live your dreams."

"Yeah, but you also have to live your life. You can't be so practical that you forget to do what you love. The way you talked about that B&B, it sounded like you had put a lot of thought into it. Do you not want that anymore?"

"It's been ten years, Gentry." She crosses her arms in front of her chest and stares toward me as though I've lost my mind. Maybe I have. It has been ten years. She could be happy auditing. She could love it in San Diego… which is why this is going to hurt.

I step back, guarding my heart from more damage. "Yeah, of course. A decade. You're a different person now. I know that."

She swallows hard and twists her hair to the side of her shoulder. "I do still want the B&B." She pulls her phone from her back pocket and scrolls before facing the screen toward me. "I have all these decorating ideas."

A bubble of heat and warmth swells its way up my throat. I'm not sure why it makes me so unbelievably happy that she has the same dreams she did ten years ago, but it does. Maybe it's the confirmation I needed that I still know pieces of her.

She looks away. "Anyway, I can barely afford my one bedroom in California. I could never make it work."

"So come back here. We'll figure it out together." The words slip from my lips before I think through the repercussions or how insane I sound saying them.

"What? That's crazy." She laughs. "Besides—"

"Besides nothing." I growl under my breath and step toward her, blocking her into the corner of the porch and against the wall. "Stay."

She bites back a smile and lifts her gaze to mine. "Yeah, this isn't wildly impulsive or anything. I can't stay, Gentry. We don't know each other, not really. Plus, I have rent, a job, and a life in California. I can't throw it all away on a whim. Not to mention that my mother just died. I'm not in any position to be making major life decisions. I'm pretty sure the internet has warned me about that."

I know I'm not thinking straight, but being this close to her, it's hard to imagine separating again.

She glances away. "Maybe this was a bad idea. You should go."

"No." My tone is low and graveled.

"Cute, but move." Her eyes roll. "Clearly, we're both acting like crazy people tonight. Move please so I can scrub you from my brain for good this time."

She shifts to the side, but I block her. I'm not sure why the fuck I'm blocking her, but I can't walk away from this again. My body won't let me.

"Tell me you don't want to come back to Rugged Mountain. Tell me you don't want the small-town life with the little B&B. Tell me you don't want a house full of kids with me. Tell me you don't want that, and I'll leave. I'll walk away and you'll never hear from me again. Promise."

"You want kids?" She stares up at me through long lashes.

"I want kids with you. "

"What? What are you even saying, Gentry?"

I nod as her gaze softens. "I want a life with you, Kelly. The whole thing. A home, your dreams, a family. I want to be here to hold you right now, to wipe away your tears, to make life easier. My only caveat is that it's for good."

" For good?" Her tone is soft as the light on the porch flickers.

I land my hand on her chin and raise her gaze upward. "I mean you're mine. The second I come in that tight little pussy, you belong to me. I won't let you go, princess. Not ever. So, I need you to be sure of what you want because I'm not fucking around."

"You're not kidding… are you?" She's a bit breathless as she speaks.

I shake my head. "No. Tell me you belong to me, and I'll make all your dreams come true. If it's the B&B or going back to California, whatever it is, we'll figure it out."

My brothers will be fine without me… or they won't. Either way, the thought of living without Kelly for a second longer is too much to bear.

"You'll get sick of me and you'll regret changing your life. You need time to think—"

"All I've had is time to think. We don't have to think about this. We can do what feels right."

She glances away and back again. "And then what?"

"Then, I make your dreams come true."

"And what do you get from this scenario?"

I laugh, and lean into her forehead, kissing her gently. "I get everything I've ever wanted."

Her brows narrow. "So let me get this straight. I rub you right and you make my dreams come true… like a genie?" She bites back a grin.

"Yeah," I laugh. "I guess that's what I'm saying. You on board, or do I have to go back in my lamp?"

Her hand lands on my cock and she strokes me back to life. "No. Please don't go back in your lamp. I need a kiss."

"Is that an official wish?"

She nods and tips up onto her toes, brushing her soft mouth against mine as her hand stays firm on my dick. "I have another wish too."

"What's that, princess?"

"I want you to take me back in the house and make me yours."

Heat washes over me as my heart swells. "Wish number two, granted," I say, lifting her from the ground.

"How many do I get?" She narrows her brows and laughs. "This isn't one of those three wish deals, is it? I'm going to need ten at least."

"Oh, this is one of those infinity wish situations. You keep rubbing me, I'll keep making your wishes come true."

"And you won't expect me to eventually wish for your freedom?" She giggles. "I've seen the genie movies. Eventually, they all want their freedom."

"Nope." I push the door open and step inside the cabin. "No freedom for me. I want to be locked up with you for eternity." I kick the door closed behind me and carry my little princess back to the bedroom. "I do have a few wishes of my own, though."

She lands on the bed and stares up at me with the tiniest of grins as though she's desperate for me to wish for something naughty.

"Yeah? I don't think that's how this works. Genies don't get wishes."

"Not true. Genies get three wishes to use for themselves. Look it up."

Laughter ensues as I crawl onto the bed, straddling her beneath me.

"That's not true."

"It is. I'll prove it."

"How?"

"Strip down for me, princess."

Her eyes meet mine with hooded lids as she strips the thin fabric of her gown off her curved frame. I'm not sure if this is a wish coming true or if she is as desperate to get naked as I am.

I stare down at her thick frame, admiring her soft skin, her gentle curves, the way her tits stand hard and needy. Her hips grind upward against my jeans and the scent from her little, bare pussy sweeps against me.

Fuck!

I grip her hips and she squeaks. "Okay, your wishes do come true."

"Told you. You ready for another one?"

She nods.

"Okay. I wish you were grinding that little pussy against my face." I drag a line of kisses against her throat, her shoulder, her nipples, her stomach, and finally her thick thighs. I love that there's weight to her. I love that I can grab her ass and squeeze. I love the squish of her thighs against my cheeks as I dive into her mound, and I love the thick lips of her pussy as they grind against me for relief.

I've thought about this place dozens and dozens of times over the years, but here with my tongue rolling over her clit as she squeals and moans, I know this is where I'm meant to be. And now, I have to make it official.