Chapter 38

Emma

“M ommy’s okay,” I assured Ash for what felt like the hundredth time. From the moment I slid into the van, she latched herself onto me and she refused to let go. “I promise. How are you?”

She shook her head, eyes still brimmed with tears. “Mommy, I was so scared.”

Of course she was. Mark was a madman who didn’t give a damn who he hurt. “I know but you survived it baby. You survived it because you’re strong. So strong.” I held her close, squeezing her tight until she felt safe, and the adrenaline left her body. Once we got back to Slate’s home she slept deeply in my arms, and I sat there on the sofa and watched my baby as she slept, feeling sorrow that my choices had impacted her so severely.

We all pay for our parents’ sins, but I hated that she had to pay such a steep price for my sins and my bad choices. But that was all behind me. I dropped a kiss on the top of her head and sat there for I don’t know how long and watched her sleep. I hoped she dreamed of butterflies and unicorns and fairy princesses instead of what happened to her today.

The garage door slid open and down again. Minutes later, Slate appeared in front of me looking exhausted and dirty. “Hey.”

“Hey,” I whispered. “Want me to get her to bed?” His expression was full of hope, and I couldn’t turn him down.

“Yes, please.” I smiled up at him when he drew closer and reached for Ash, holding her close like she was as precious to him as she was to me. “Thanks.” I followed Slate up to Ash’s room and watched as he removed her shoes and her top layer of clothes before he tucked her into bed. “You’re getting pretty good at that.”

His lips curled up at the corners. “Thanks.”

“I need to wash the day away,” I said on a sigh and made my way to our bedroom and the bathroom attached to it. I slipped off my clothes and turned on the shower.

“Want some help?”

Whether it was the relief that everything was over, or just the aftereffects of the adrenaline, my nipples beaded instantly at his words. How could I be turned on after everything that happened today? I should be exhausted and rethinking all of my life choices, but my body was on fire and lust pumped through my veins. “I wouldn’t say no.” I stepped under the hot spray of the shower and smiled when Slate’s naked body wrapped around mine.

“Fuck, you feel so good Emma.” His big hands slid up and down my arms before one palm flattened on my lower belly. “So fucking good.”

My head fell back against his shoulder and a soft sigh escaped when his hands slid up my torso to cup my tits.

“Fuck, Emma.” His breath was hot on my neck while his strong hands massaged my tits and pinched my nipples, over and over, teasing me until a shaky breath escaped.

“Please, Slate.” I rolled my hips, letting my ass come flush against his long, thick cock, teasing him until he pinched my nipples even harder. “Need you. Now.” I spun around to face him, cupping his jaws. “Thank you, Slate.”

His jaw clenched and his gaze darkened. “I don’t want your thanks, Emma.”

I smiled. He wasn’t a man who did the right thing expecting something in return, he did it just because he was a good man. “Too bad, you have it anyway.” I pressed my lips to his and then across his jaw line, feeling the scratch of his beard while my hands roamed the hard planes of his body. My lips landed on his pecs and then right over his heart, down his chest. I continued the trail down his body until I dropped down before him with his cock in my hand, hot and throbbing. “That and so much more,” I whispered before I wrapped my lips around the head of his cock.

“Ah, fuck Emma. Babe.” His hips pushed forward and one hand and then the other sifted through mine, kneading my scalp.

I wanted to watch him but the sounds he made were intoxicating enough that I kept my eyes closed and worked his cock, owned it and made it mine. My hands gripped his thighs as I took him deeper and deeper until he hit the back of my throat. Up and down I worked his cock, slathering it in moisture that dripped down his length and hit his balls.

“Emma, fuck.” His voice was strained and his grip on my hair tightened. “Yes.”

His legs trembled beneath my hands, and I smiled around him, taking him deep again and again.

“Emma,” he gasped and pulled me away from him, tugging my hair until I got to my feet. “Need that pussy. Now.”

“Yes.” I was hungry for Slate. Desperate to bond with him again and I fixed my lips to his and kissed him greedily. Sitting there while Mark lost his shit and threatened me and my baby girl, had brought everything into clear focus. Nothing in this life was promised and the best thing I could do was grab on to the good things with both hands and enjoy every second of it while I could.

Slate pulled back breathlessly and spun me around, placing my palms against the shower wall. “Show me that pretty pink pussy,” he said as one hand slid down my back and settled between my legs, teasing my clit and my opening. “So fucking wet for me.”

“Yes.” I arched my back to give him better access and Slate rewarded me with two fingers plunging deep inside of me. “So good.” I pushed back against his finger, fucking them as my orgasm rocketed to the surface.

“That’s right, Emma, come for me.” He pumped harder and deeper into me, whispering dirty nothings in my ear until I clamped around his fingers and his name fell from my lips.

“Slate, oh fuck, yes!” The orgasm was fast and powerful, and I smacked my hands against the wall and pushed back against his fingers. “Slate.”

“So fucking good,” he growled in my ear, quickly slipping his fingers from my body before he filled me with his cock. “Yes,” he hissed out and pushed his hips forward, sinking as deep as he could with a shudder.

My back arched and he sank a little deeper. “Slate, yes. More. Please.”

His hands found my tits again and he squeezed hard, fucking me hard and fast like a man possessed by his own desire. The low grunts and growls he released sent a shiver down my spine. My core tightened with every stroke until I was so full and so breathless I was ready to explode. “So good, baby.”

The way the endearment slipped from his lips brought a smile to my face. This is it. This is everything, I thought to myself as I let go and put my trust in the man who had stolen my heart. “Slate, I’m—” The next words were cut off by an orgasm so wild and powerful that my legs buckled but his strong hands held me up while his hips continued to pump, prolonging my pleasure while he chased his down. “Oh fuck! Yes, Slate. Yes!” His cock speared my body like it was machine-powered, hitting that special spot over and over so I never came down from the carnal high.

The water turned cold, but Slate wasn’t deterred. He was a man on a mission, pumping his hips furiously while his fingertips dug into my hips. There would be bruising tomorrow, and it would serve as a reminder of this moment. His cock swelled within me, dragging against the exposed nerves of my inner walls before he exploded. “Ah, Emma. Fuck baby.” His hips pushed against me as he poured every drop of his orgasm into my body.

I don’t know how long we stood in the shower as cold water pelted us and our ragged breaths returned to normal. Slate’s lips dotted my skin with soft kisses until finally we separated and left the shower. “You’ve wrecked me, Emma.”

I smile shyly at his sweet words. “You’ve helped me reclaim who I used to be, and I couldn’t love you more for that.”

He froze with two oversized bath towels in his hands, his blue gaze fixed on me in an unrecognizable expression. “Say it again.” The command comes out gruff and slightly vulnerable.

I smiled and stood a little taller as I faced him and met his gaze head on. “I love you Slate.”

He opened his mouth, but I wasn’t done yet.

“I know I said it before, but it bears repeating. You not only gave me the greatest gift of my life, Ashlyn, but you’ve given me back something I thought I would never possess again. My self-worth. You showed me that I was strong and that I could stand on my own and that’s what I want.”

“To stand on your own?” His dark brows arched in confusion.

“Yeah. I love you and I want to be with you because I want to, not because I need to. I want to wake up every fucking day and choose to be here with you, in your life and at your side. I didn’t choose to love you but I’m choosing to be with you because I love you.” My heart pounded as I waited for him to say something, hopefully to return the sentiment.

“Emma,” he began slowly, almost hesitantly. “I’ve spent most of the past six years searching for you. Every blonde pixie I came across I gave her a second look hoping she was you. It wasn’t just the sex that night, but fuck that shit was incredible.” His lips curled into a teasing smile. “But there was something there between us that night, some spark that was like a high I’ve been chasing for years, and I didn’t experience again until you.”

I closed the short distance between us. “Slate.”

“I never thought I was the settling down type until you and Ash but now I can see our life, our future laid out so fucking clearly and it’s all I want.” He dropped a kiss to that spot on my forehead that made it hard to think for a full minute. “Sunday morning breakfasts. Cheering on Ash in whatever she chooses to do. Holding other babies. Loving you. Fucking you. Growing old with you.”

“Slate.” I pushed up on my toes and kissed him softly. Slowly. Sweetly. “That sounds absolutely perfect.”

His broad shoulders relaxed. “We should probably seal this promise with a fuck.”

I laughed. “Don’t you mean seal it with a kiss?”

“Hell no,” he punctuated the words with a shake of his head. “You and me babe? We make our own rules. Live good. Love hard. Seal our promises with a good hard fuck.”

There was only one thing to say to that. “Yes, please.”