Always His (Crazed Devotion #1) (26 page)

We’ve become quite comfortable in our new life. Even if I tried I couldn’t remember the days before Ryker came back to me. It now felt as if he’d been with us always.

The adoption was finalized last week, and Victoria now shares Ryker’s last name too. I felt complete now in a way I wasn’t sure I would ever feel again after Ryker left all those years ago.

I leaned forward and placed my hands on the shower wall. Ryker gripped my hips, and his thrusts only grew more aggressive. My body tensed as my lower stomach tightened. I was so close, and by the deep moans that fell from Ryker’s lips, I knew he was right with me.

“Come on, baby,” he coaxed. My body lurched forward with each thrust as he slammed into me over and over. “I’m so close, Nic, god damn, I’m right there.” A ripple of pleasure consumed me as I tensed around his cock and he let out one very deep growl. “Oh yeah.”

We both remained frozen as we rode out the pleasure. His fingers dug into my hips as he held my body tightly against his.

When he released his hold, I slowly stood and turned to face him. His satisfied grin only made me laugh.

“What?” he asked as he curled his arms around me, holding me close.

“You just have that silly grin on your face,” I said as I arched my neck, then kissed his jaw.

“That look is one of delirium, sweetheart. You kind of make me lose my mind.” He dipped his head and began kissing along my neck. “It’s almost impossible not to wear this look when I’m near you.”

He stepped back and got out of the shower, then grabbed a towel from the rack and turned to face me. “Let’s get you dried off,” he said as his eyes scanned my wet, naked body.

Chills engulfed me as I stepped out, and the warmth of the towel covered me.

I’d been waiting for the right time to tell him the news, but Ryker had a way of making me lose my thoughts. With one heated look from him, I was a mess of hormones and practically begging for the pleasure he brought each time he touched me. But as he led me toward our bedroom, I turned to face him before it could lead to more.

“I need to tell you something.”

A look of concern covered his features immediately.

“Actually more like show you something,” I continued as I walked around the edge of the bed and pulled a plastic baggie out of the second drawer. As I turned back around and began to walk toward him, his gaze dropped to my hands and he swallowed hard.

“What is that?” he asked as I held it out in front of me.

“Here.” I thrust it forward, and he lifted his hand to accept it. He turned it over, and a smile tugged at the edge of his lips. “Yeah?” he whispered.

When he looked back at me, I nodded.

“A baby,” he said, almost in disbelief. And I nodded once more. His gaze fell to my stomach, and he pressed his palm against the spot that held our child. “I didn’t think there was anything else you could give me that would make me happier than I already was. But I was wrong.” He tugged at the towel that covered me, and I released it to let it pool at my feet.

Ryker fell to his knees before me and pressed a kiss just below my belly button.

“Our child,” he said before he kissed me once more. “Something tells me our little girl is gonna be rooting for a sister.” His eyes glistened with tears of joy as he smiled. “I love you,” he said as he stood back up and wrapped me in his arms. “You’ve given me so much, Nic.” He cupped my cheek with his strong hand and tilted my head upward. “Thank you.”

He pressed his lips to mine in a sweet kiss just before he rested his forehead against mine. “Always mine.”

His words made my heart constrict and my stomach flutter. He was right, I would always be his.

“I got the key to your place, and the movers should be here on Friday,” I explained to Ben. “Nicole is going to let them in.”

“I really appreciate all you’ve done. Both of you.” He was still in Germany for a couple more weeks, which made it hard for him to get himself settled here. So offering our help came easy. I would soon have one of my best friends here in Arab, and everything else in my life had begun to fall into place.

“And congratulations,” he added. “You sure work fast,” he said with a chuckle.

“Yeah, that’s what Luke said too. I talked to him last night. He sounds like he’s doing okay. Have you talked to him?”

“A couple days ago,” Ben replied. “Did he tell you who else is in Jacksonville with him?”

“No.” Now my curiosity was piqued.

“Bear,” Ben said. I could sense his smile. Bear, or Wade as most know him, was an old friend. He was one of the first guys I met in the Marines. We lost touch after I got shipped off to Germany, but knowing Luke had found him made me feel a little better about him not having me and Ben near.

“That’s great,” I replied. “You know we’re gonna have to plan a trip to Jacksonville once you get here and settled.”

“Yeah, that’s what I told Luke.”

Ben and I talked for a while before I let him go and gathered my things.

Nicole and Tori had gone with Elle and Liz for a girls’ day out, and I had stopped at the deli in town for a quick bite. When Ben called, I’d lost track of time and knew Nicole would most likely beat me home.

I tossed my garbage into the trash and had turned around to leave when I stopped in my tracks. Tyler was just outside being pushed in a wheelchair by a girl with reddish hair. She looked around our age.

I hadn’t seen Tyler since his accident, and I wasn’t sure how an encounter between us would play out. I contemplated staying inside to avoid him, but when they approached the entrance of the deli, I knew it was no longer an option.

Once they entered, Tyler’s gaze immediately locked on mine, and I offered a slight nod.

“Tyler,” I said, trying not to sound as off kilter as I felt. “How’ve you been?”

He looked down at his legs, and I instantly felt like an ass for asking. I thought for sure I’d only triggered an argument I was hoping to avoid, but when he looked up at me with a smile, I felt myself relax just a bit.

“I’m getting by, but this one here doesn’t let me sit around feeling sorry for myself.” He tilted his head and looked back at the girl. “You remember Regan, from school?” he asked, looking back at me. “She was a year younger than us.”

I vaguely remembered her, but she ran with a different crowd. I knew there was something familiar about her, though.

“She was my nurse at the hospital,” Tyler said with a wag of his eyebrows, and I chuckled. That explained why I felt there was a familiarity about her.

I never imagined standing in a deli having a civil conversation with Tyler, but it felt nice.

“Well, you take care,” I said as I stepped to the side and allowed them to continue to enter.

Just as I was about to exit, Tyler said, “Hey, Ryker.”

I turned back to face him, and he wore a serious expression unlike the relaxed one he’d had only moments ago.

“Take care of her.”

I knew he was talking about Victoria.

“I know you will. I just needed to say it,” he added.

“I definitely will,” I replied. “She’s a great kid. Thank you for letting me be a part of her life.”

A flash of emotion crossed his face as he nodded.

I would be forever grateful that he allowed me to adopt Tori. He just wasn’t in the right place to be a father, and I’m blessed for being able to step in and take the role. Never in my life would I allow a day to go by that Tori didn’t know how much I loved her. It was a strange feeling knowing that one of my biggest enemies for years was responsible for the joy I felt each time that sweet girl looked at me as if I hung the moon.

I know Tyler and I would never share a beer over a football game, or hell, even be considered friends. But now a peace had settled between us, and I found myself wishing for him to one day find the happiness I had found.

Everything had fallen into place. I had a gorgeous wife, a beautiful daughter, and a precious baby on the way.

Life was good.

FOREVER DEVOTED

Book 2 in the Crazed Devotion Series

I
tossed my cell phone in my bag and chose to ignore the seventh message I’d received in the last hour.

Benjamin Matthew Keaton was a dedicated man. Stubborn and irritating, but so damn dedicated. I had shared one night with him months ago, and most think it was a night of random sex, but they truly had no idea. It was so much more, and that is what freaked me out the most.

Yes, that was what we’d planned, yet it had taken a whole different turn. Of course there was some play involved, but mostly we talked.

And it scared the shit out of me. I wasn’t ready for the intensity of that man, but he had other ideas.

In fact he’d spent the last hour explaining to me why he and I “were meant to be.” His words, not mine. And I’d spent the last hour ignoring the knot his words had caused to form in my stomach.

The vibration in my purse told me he hadn’t yet given up.

Curiosity got the best of me, and again I found myself digging through my purse to find my phone.

Ben: Don’t lie to yourself, wildcat, you know you’ve thought about how good you and I would be together. How I make your heart race and how that heat forms deep within your stomach when you picture us.

His cocky arrogance only made me toss my phone into my purse once more.

I gathered my bag and keys and pushed open my car door in irritation. What the hell was wrong with him? He was thousands of miles away. What did he expect me to do?

The moment I stepped in to Lucy’s, I zoned in on my best friend and sister. They had no idea they were about to get an earful. Nicole for giving Ben my number—I know she had a hand in it—and Elle for giving me shit about avoiding him. What the hell did she know? She wasn’t the one that felt like her stomach bottomed out every time he brought up the intense connection he felt when we were together. I was feeling unsteady, and they just so happened to be in my line of fire.

“Men are so damn frustrating,” I blurted out as I dropped down on the barstool across from them.

“Is it the man, or the woman he’s chasing that’s frustrating?” Elle chirped, entirely too happily.

I narrowed my eyes at her, and she laughed. “Yep, that’s what I thought. It’s the woman.”