13. Zack

ZACK

I wake up,a little confused, at first, as to where I am. It takes a minute for my eyes to adjust to the room, remembering I"m in my own bed and that Courtney is curled up next to me. We"ve rolled onto our sides, with me spooned around her sexy body. I slide my hand up from her belly and cup her breast. Her nipples are already hardened peaks.

"Mhmm, good morning, sweetheart," I whisper into her ear as her ass rubs against my cock. There are only two very thin layers of fabric between us, layers that won"t be hard to shed before I can sink back inside her perfect body.

"Mornin"." She sighs as I slide my hand down and under the elastic of her panties. I find her wet and ready for me. "Zack," she says on a gasp as I push two fingers inside her pussy. Courtney rolls toward me, and I capture her mouth in a searing kiss. My tongue tangles with hers as I slide my fingers in and out of her center and rub circles with my thumb around her clit.

I break the kiss, not wanting to miss her falling with just the touch of my hand. "That"s it, beautiful. Come for me," I whisper into her skin. I add more pressure to her clit and switch my movements to a come-hither motion, finding her G-spot. It isn"t long before she falls over the edge.

"What a way to wake up," Courtney says a few minutes later.

"I agree. Best morning ever." I press a kiss to her lips. "How about some breakfast?"

"Yes, I"m starving."

"Do you want to go out or stay in and cook?" I ask.

"I"m fine with either."

"How about a shower, and then we can go out? I think there"s a place not far with a big weekend brunch."

"Perfect. Will you shower with me?"

"Of course, let"s go."

It"s amazing how easily we are able to adjust to being together, from the ease of showering together to getting ready for the day. I picked up a weekend bag from Courtney to bring to my house earlier in the week since she was coming home with me last night and wouldn"t be able to bring it to the rink with her. I watch as she gets ready while I brush my teeth, my eyes falling to the bathroom counter where her stuff is all laid out. I like seeing it like that, her in my space, our things intermixed. My mind flips forward—months, maybe years down the road—and I can picture every morning just like this one, nights just like last night, where we fall asleep wrapped up in each other. The ease that has come from this relationship has made me believe in love and happily ever after once again.

We find the restaurant, and thankfully, the wait for a table isn"t super long. We are shown to one that"s tucked along the windows. The sun is shining bright, and the sky is nice and blue today without a cloud in it.

"Welcome. Can I interest either of you in our bottomless mimosas today?"

"Not for me. Sweetheart, do you want one?" I ask Courtney.

"No, thank you, but I will take a glass of your fresh-squeezed orange juice," she tells the server.

"I"ll have the same, please."

"Did you want larges for those?" she asks.

"Yes, please," I answer for both of us.

"Perfect, I"ll get those right out to you. If you want to head up to the buffet, you"ll find all of our signature dishes. There"s also a made-to-order egg station, waffles, and pancakes."

"Yum, I"m so hungry, and all of that sounds amazing," Courtney says.

As soon as our server leaves the table, we head to the buffet, both filling our plates full with all they have to offer. When we make it back to our table, our server has dropped off our drinks.

"Oh my god," Courtney moans after swallowing a bite. "I think this is the best eggs Benedict I"ve ever had. Want to try a bite?" She offers me her fork with a bite on the end.

"I"m tempted, but I"ll have to pass. I"m not a fan of hollandaise sauce."

She pops the bite into her mouth, and I"ve never been more jealous of a fork in my life. We take our time enjoying the kid-free breakfast and one another"s company.

"What should we go do now?" I ask as we walk out to the parking lot, hand in hand.

"I"m open to whatever you want to do. The only thing I had on my calendar for today was spending it with you," Courtney says. I stop us in front of my truck and pull her into a kiss. I keep it tame since we are in public.

"Do you want to go shopping?" I ask.

"We can. Is there something that you need?"

"No, I just want to take you. Spoil you today. Maybe stop at a lingerie store and buy something for tonight." I lean in and kiss her neck, just below her ear.

"Hmm," she hums. "I like that idea. If you"re a good boy, I"ll even let you in the dressing room while I try things on."

I step back and drag her over to the passenger door, opening it as soon as the locks click.

Courtney laughs. "Someone"s in a hurry."

"The thought of you modeling lingerie? Yes please." I help her up into the truck. I quickly make my way around the front and hop into the driver"s seat. I pull out and drive straight to the large mall filled with all sorts of stores.

We walk around the busy mall, checking out stores as they call to us. "We should go get pedicures," Courtney suggests as we walk past a nail place.

"If that"s what you want to do, we can," I tell her. It isn"t something I"d normally do, but today is all about new beginnings, so what the hell.

We walk into the salon and are greeted by one of the workers who leads us to two empty large massage chairs. He starts filling the basins with water and instructs us to take a seat and get comfortable. Another employee brings over a few books filled with color options for Courtney to pick from. She mulls over all the color options, finally picking a bright pink one.

"What pedicure would you like?" the lady asks. She hands me a laminated piece of paper with all their options explained.

"We"ll both do the ultimate," I tell her, picking the most expensive option on the menu.

"I"d have been fine with a basic," Courtney says once the employee walks away.

"Let me spoil you today," I tell her.

"Thank you," she concedes and smiles at me.

Two employees return with a tray filled with different products. I"m assuming they"re the different things they"ll use for our pedicures. I lower my feet into the hot water and suck in a quick breath as I adjust to the temperature of the water.

"Aw, is it too hot for you?" Courtney teases. She has no issues lowering her feet into the basin of her chair.

"I like my skin, thank-you-very-much."

"Don"t be a baby. How ticklish are your feet?" she asks, a grin on her face.

"Oh shit," I groan as the lady adds something to the water. Courtney is full-on giggling next to me as I look distraught.

"You"ll be fine. I"ll hold your hand, if needed," she offers through her laughter.

"Woman." I try to sound harsh, but it comes out pretty weak. "I"ll get you later," I warn.

"Promise?"

I don"t answer her with spoken words, but the way I devour her with my eyes tells her how much of a promise I"ve just made.

The next hour passes with a lot of squirming. I didn"t realize how ticklish my feet were until I got this pedicure. The massage portion feels great, but I could have done without the scrubby thing they used on the bottom of my feet. I had a hard time not giggling like a freaking schoolgirl.

Courtney gets her toes painted and even a design added to her big toes. While she waits for the paint to fully dry, I take care of paying. Once she can put her shoes back on, we head back into the mall. We slowly make our way in and out of more stores. I"ve realized just how much Courtney loves to stop and smell candles as she looks at things. I swear she"s stopped to smell them in every store that has them. "Do you want that one?" I ask.

"No, I never burn them. I"m always afraid I"ll forget about it or that Jax would accidentally get hurt by them. I just love stopping to smell them," she says.

"My mom has those little wax melting pots in her house. Says they are safer than an open flame."

"I"ve seen them, but they just have never been within my budget." I hate that she"s always had to pinch her pennies. It really brings into perspective how lucky I am, which isn"t something I like to take for granted.

We finally make it into one of the department stores, and over to the lingerie department. Courtney looks all through the racks, and I just stand back and observe her. Memorizing what items she"s drawn to. She holds up a few items for my reaction. "I like whatever you will feel the most comfortable and sexy in."

"What"s your favorite color?"

"On you?" I ask for clarification.

"Sure," she says as she looks through a rack of bras.

"Any color of the rainbow," I say.

Her eyes flick to mine. "Ha ha, very funny."

"I"m serious. Whatever color you have on at the moment is my favorite."

She grabs a few things, and I snag another few, and we go in search of a dressing room. "Shh, you have to stay quiet," she warns as we enter the little room and close the door. I take a seat on the only chair and get ready for the show.

"Close your eyes," Courtney instructs as she strips out of her clothes.

"That wasn"t part of the deal," I whine.

"Do it, or I"ll make you wait outside," she warns.

I try to fight it, but eventually close my eyes. With my eyes closed, my other senses intensify, and I can hear every movement she makes, every rustle of fabric as she removes clothes and puts others on.

"Okay, open," she says, and I do just that. My eyes fly open, and I take her in, standing a few feet from me. The little nighty she put on first is like wrapping paper. She"s all tied up with a bow for me to remove to get my prize. "What do you think?" she asks, and I realize my silence has her worried.

I immediately get to my feet and close the distance between us to pull her into my arms. "You made me speechless. I thought I was looking at a gift," I tell her. "Anything you put on will be gorgeous, just like you." I bring my lips to hers and do my best to keep it light. I break our connection. "What"s next?" I say before stepping back and taking a seat on the chair.

Courtney tries on the other things, having me close my eyes with each one until she has it on and can show me. Nothing she tries on looks bad. It"s like it was all made to showcase her in the best possible ways. She picks out her favorite pieces, and we head back out into the store. I need some new dress shoes, so after a quick stop in the men"s shoe department, we check out and head back into the mall.

"Are you hungry?" Courtney asks as we walk past the food court.

"Not really, are you?"

"No, brunch was so much. I just wasn"t sure about you since it"s been a few hours already."

"I"ll be good until dinner," I assure her. "Are you ready to get out of here?"

"I think so. We"ve walked the entire mall, so unless you want to go back and look at something, I"m good."

We head for my truck, and on our way, her phone rings. "Hello," she says as she puts the phone to her ear.

I look over to make sure everything is okay, and the smile that lights up her face answers my question.

"Wow, that sounds so fun! I miss you, too," she says, and I figure she"s talking to Jax.

We find the truck, and after helping Courtney get into the passenger side, I hop into the driver"s side. She"s put the call on speaker, so I can now hear everything Jax is telling her about his day with Ryan.

"We went mini golfing again, and I beat Uncle Ryan big time, Mommy. Then, we went out for ice cream, and then we went to Target, and he let me pick out any toy I wanted."

"Wow, sounds like Uncle Ryan is spoiling you big time."

"Damn straight," he says in the background. "Best perk of being the favorite uncle."

"What else do the two of you have planned for today?" Courtney asks.

"We"re picking up takeout and then having a movie night," Ryan answers.

"Fun!" Courtney says.

"Mommy, are you with Zack?" Jax asks.

She looks up at me, and I give her a slight nod. "Yes, honey," she says.

"I like him, Mommy."

"I like him, too," she says with a huge smile.

"Gotta go, love you!" Jax calls out before the call ends.

"Love you, too," Courtney says to the phone, even though the call has already ended.

"Well, that went well," I muse.

"Guess it did." She chuckles. "Now, where were we?"

"Headed back to my place. Unless you wanted to stop somewhere else?" I ask before I pull out of the parking spot.

"Not that I can think of."

We"re lyingon the couch, supposedly watching the movie playing, but I don"t think either of us are paying any attention to it. My attention is fully on Courtney as she fidgets next to me as we"re spread out on the couch.

"What"s wrong?"

Courtney rolls so she"s facing me as we lie on the couch. "Just thinking about everything. Us, the boys, my meeting with Erin this week."

"What"s bothering you the most?" I tuck a lock of hair behind her ear, hoping my touch will help calm her mind.

"Probably the meeting with Erin. It"s the whole unknown that comes with that."

"I can understand how that could be stressful."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Anything, sweetheart."

"Did you and Emerson ever fight over your custody agreement, or was it all easygoing?"

"For the most part, it was easy. We were young when we had him. We tried for a couple of years, but we just weren"t meant to be together as a couple. I was playing in another state, and it was hard for me to get back here to see them often. She wanted to stay here where she had family to help. That"s when I hired Erin and had her draw up everything. We went back and forth a few times, hammering out all the little details, before we were both happy with everything. Once I signed here, we made a few changes to it, but nothing major. And now that Sawyer is a little older, we kind of let him lead things. When I"m home and available, he comes here as much as possible. In the offseason, I have him a lot more. I pay for all of his hockey stuff, as well as child support."

"I don"t think Chad ever really wanted to have kids. He was always so absent and didn"t ever deal with Jax when he was a baby. Chad hated when he"d cry or make a lot of noise. I got really acquainted with taking him to the park or the mall play places because they were free and, in the summer, air-conditioned. I"m just so stumped as to why he"s all of a sudden fighting so hard for custody."

"Probably to hurt you. He knows that the last thing you would give up is Jax. Asshole people use their kids as pawns, especially in custody battles. I"m sorry you"re going through this, but just know I"ll be right here every step of the way. However you need me to be."

"I can"t thank you enough for all you"ve done already."

"Now, what else was on your mind? You said us. What about us?"

"The past twenty-four hours have felt like such a fairy tale. How do we leave this bubble tomorrow and live outside of it?"

"Why do we need to leave the bubble?" I ask, honestly wanting to know her reasoning.

"How can we not? I can"t pawn my kid off on my brother all the time. Sawyer will be back, and we"ve both got work. The list of reasons goes on."

"Honey, that"s just our lives. We can still be us with all of that going on. I love spending time with Jax. If that means I come to your place because that"s where he"s most comfortable, then so be it. If he"d be okay here, then hell, we can set up one of the guest rooms for him. I know we said we"d take things slow, but I don"t know if I can go slow after this weekend. I want to be with you. No, scratch that. I need to be with you like I need air to breathe."

"I"m not ready to move in together, if that"s what you"re hinting at."

"I wasn"t, but it isn"t a bad idea." I pause, letting my words sink in. "When you"re ready." I laugh when she pokes me in the ribs. "You are so easy to rile up."

"I should have known you"d be a jokester."

"All jokes aside, I don"t think we should hide our relationship. Let it be out in the open. We can tell the boys. I"m not against us doing things apart. I"ll need to spend time with Sawyer, as you need time with Jax, but I"d also like to try to incorporate that time together. Would you be okay with that?"

"Are you sure you"re real?" Courtney asks.

"Does this feel fake to you?" I lean in and kiss her, pulling her flush against me. My cock swells in the basketball shorts I changed into after dinner and presses into her abdomen.

"Definitely not fake," she says against my lips once we break apart.

Courtney pulls in a deep breath, slowly letting it out before she replies, "Yes." That"s the only answer I needed to hear. I haul us both up off the couch and carry her down the hall to the bedroom, where I strip us both bare and show her just how good we can be together.