Forever After All by Kaylee Ryan

Chapter 3

Rip

No way in hell can I have her in my bed and not hold her. It’s physically impossible. She leans into my side, and I can feel her body relax. Fuck me, but this is more than I ever expected tonight, but I’ll be damned if I’m not going to enjoy every second of my time with her.

“What do you want to watch?” My fingers tap the button on the remote, scrolling mindlessly through the channels.

“Meh, I don’t really watch much television. My nose is usually buried in a book, or I’m working.”

“Yeah? At the law firm close to school, right?” I pretend like I don’t already know the exact details of the last five years, not only has she worked at the big city law firm, she’s worked at a coffee shop just off of campus. When Laramie talks about McKenna, I soak up every morsel of information like a sponge. I told myself it was because she was a childhood friend, my sister's best, but lying here with her in my arms, I know that was just an excuse. One I told myself to feel better about needing to know about her life away from me.

“A coffee shop just off campus. I was part-time at the law firm, so I did both. I didn’t get many hours at the coffee shop, but it was extra cash.” I feel her shoulders shrug. “I usually picked up a few shifts on the weekends.”

“All work and no play?” I hit the power button to turn off the TV and toss the remote onto the nightstand. There’s nothing more interesting than the woman in my arms.

“Pretty much.” She laughs. “I worked hard to keep my grades up to be accepted to law school. I took a full course load of classes each semester. Add in work and time for studying, and there’s not much time for play. Then when law school actually started, it was even more studying.”

“Surely the men in Massachusetts were beating down your door,” I tease her. There’s a knot in my gut thinking about some hoity-toity lawyer type swooping her off her feet. Not that I can be pissed. I’ve never told her that I think she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.

“Yeah, not really. I’m a country girl through and through. It’s all Ivy league sweater vest types, and that’s just not my thing.” Her nose scrunches up, and I wrangle with the idea of pressing my lips there.

The tension in my gut releases. “You can take the girl out of the country,” I say, making her smile.

She shifts so that she’s lying on her side, and I do the same. “I don’t really fit in there, not like I do here. Everyone is so uptight, and it’s just not me. However, their law program is outstanding, and my education was important. I wanted to be the best lawyer that I can be.”

“You’re happy to be home?” I know the answer. I heard her talking to Laramie about it earlier, but I want her to tell me too. I need to hear her say it. Something primal in me needs to hear her say she’s home to stay.

“Yes,” she agrees. “I’ve missed this place so much. The people,” she whispers, looking up at me. “Anyway, Gramps is ready to retire. Although, I hope I can work side by side with him for a little while at least.”

“You’re going to be a kickass attorney,” I say, tucking some loose strands of hair behind her ear.

“You think so?” A lazy smile tilts her lips.

“I know so.”

“What makes you so sure?” There’s a vulnerability in her voice that I didn’t expect.

“Come on now. You know my wife wouldn’t be anything but kickass in everything she does.”

“Stop.” She giggles, swatting at my arm playfully.

I grab her hand and lace her fingers with mine. “Real talk, McKenna, you’re amazing.” From the way her eyes widen, we both know I’m no longer talking about her career choice.

She opens her mouth to speak, but no words fill the air between us. Our eyes are locked in this intense stare that has me feeling all kinds of things that I wasn’t prepared to feel. I’ve always had a thing for her, but this is on another level.

Want. Need. Desire. Longing.

Her hand breaks away from mine, and she reaches up to run her fingers through my hair. “It’s long.” She smiles.

“Yeah.”

“What made you grow it out?”

“It just kind of happened, really. I needed a haircut, but I was working on the house, and between that and running the farm during the day, I just didn’t have time. It started to grow, and I decided to just let it stay long.”

“Let me guess, chicks dig it?”

“Not sure. There’s only one I’m worried about.”

“Oh.” Her demeanor changes. “I didn’t realize you were seeing someone.”

“I’m not.” Reaching out, I place my hand on the small of her back and pull her closer. “There is someone,” I say, my voice sounding husky even to my own ears. I know I should stop now. I shouldn’t be touching her like this, but I can’t. Not when she’s here in my house. In my bed. In my arms. I know that she’s been drinking, and I’m not trying to take advantage of her, but damn, she feels good lying next to me.

“Rip.” My name rolling off her tongue is the sweetest sound I’ve ever heard. Her voice is filled with desire, and I have no choice but to assume that her desire is for me.

“How drunk are you, McKenna?” I ask.

“Buzzed.”

“Do you know where you are?”

“Yes.”

“Tell me.”

“I’m at your house.”

“Whose bed are you in?”

“Yours.”

Resting my palm against her cheek, I gently trace her bottom lip with my thumb. “Can I kiss you, McKenna?”

“You want to kiss me?”

I lean in a little closer. Our mouths are now barely a breath apart. “More than anything.”

“Am I dreaming?” she asks as her eyes flutter closed. Her tongue sneaks out and wets her lips.

“Open your eyes, beautiful.” I wait as her eyes slowly open. “This isn’t a dream, but you’re a damn dream come true.” Tired of wasting time, I close the breath’s distance and press my lips to hers.

Her lips are subtle and soft, just as they were earlier. I didn’t have the time to appreciate them then, but now I do, and I plan to do just that. I want to appreciate the hell out of her. I could kiss her for hours and be perfectly content. Her hand grips my arm as if she’s worried I’ll pull away. Not a chance. I need more.

Cautiously, I trace her lips with my tongue, asking for entrance. She gives me what I want when she opens for me, her taste exploding on my tongue.

I need her closer.

My hand returns to the small of her back. Applying light pressure, I mold our bodies together. There isn’t a part of her that’s not touching a part of me. I don’t know how many times I’ve imagined us in this very situation, in my bed. I’m fucking twenty-five years old, and this woman has me feeling like I’m a randy teenager all over again.

I deepen the kiss and realize McKenna is the only woman in the world that could have me feeling this way.

Out of control.

Fueled by lust.

It’s all McKenna, and I want to soak up every second of this experience with her. My hand slides under her shirt. My shirt. I allow my fingers to trace the silky-smooth skin of her back, and my tongue lazily explores her mouth. Neither of us is in a hurry. I’m not sure what she’s thinking, but for me, I want time to slow down. I want to stop it, right here at this moment, with the beautiful, intoxicating woman in my arms.

In my bed.

Her phone ringing from my nightstand has me ending the kiss and pulling back. “You need to get that?” I ask her.

She pulls in a deep breath as if she needs to work harder to breathe. I know the feeling. “Yeah, I should see who it is.”

Reluctantly, I pull away from her, reaching over to the nightstand and handing her the phone. I see my sister's face smiling at me, and I bite back a groan. If Laramie pulls her away from me right now, I’m going to be pissed.

“Hey,” McKenna answers, clearing her throat. “Yeah, I’m here. I’m… uh… in Rip’s room. We’re watching a movie.” She’s quiet as her face turns red. “I’ll see you in the morning, Lara.” She shakes her head, ending the call.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah. She was just checking to see if I was here. I guess they went to the kitchen for food and didn’t see me on the couch.”

“I would never have you sleep on the couch. You’ll sleep here in my bed. I’ll take the couch in my office.”

“I can sleep on the couch, Rip. It’s fine.” Her eyes roam over my body and if I wasn’t already hard as stone, I would be now.

“My bed’s more comfortable.” I smirk.

“You want to share?” Her eyes widen. “I mean, I could have gone home.”

“With you? Absolutely. And you are exactly where you’re supposed to be.” My words cause a light blush to coat her cheeks. “Here, I’ll plug that in for you.” Holding my hand out for her phone, she gives it to me. Rolling over, I fumble with the cord to plug it in and turn off the lamp, bathing the room in darkness. Rolling back over, I reach for her, and she comes willingly into my arms.

“You good?”

“Yeah.” She settles into my chest, and I can’t help but think about how right this feels. This is where she belongs.

“How many women have had the opportunity to try out this more comfortable mattress?” she asks into the silence of the room. There’s a hesitancy in her voice as if she’s afraid of the answer. She shouldn’t be.

“Just you.”

I feel her lift her head from my chest. I wish I could see her big brown eyes. “Come on now. I’m a big girl. I can handle it.”

“Just you, McKenna. This is my home. I don’t bring women here.”

“Oh.” I feel her start to move away, but I hold tight, keeping my arms around her. “I should go….” Her voice trails off.

“You should lie back down.” I hold my breath, waiting to see what she’ll do. When she finally lies back down, I can feel the stiffness in her body, and that just won’t do. “They’re not you, McKenna.”

“I don’t understand.”

“This is my home. I’ve spent countless hours renovating this place. It’s special to me.”

“It’s beautiful.”

You’re beautiful.“I don’t share this part of my life with just anyone.”

“So you’re telling me that I made the cut?”

“No. What I’m telling you is that you’re the one and only. At least when it comes to this room and this bed. You’re it.” I can’t stop the word vomit from spewing from my mouth. I’m sure I’ve said too much. I’m sure she’s going to have questions, and I don’t know how to answer them. She’s been home less than forty-eight hours, and here I am staking my claim. I’ve stayed silent all these years, not wanting to scare her away, and now here I am laying all of my cards on the table. I wanted her to follow her dreams and then come home. That’s why I’ve kept my desire for her all to myself. I could never live with myself if I held her back in any way.

She’s quiet, and I know she’s trying to work out the meaning of my words in her head. I probably shouldn’t have said anything, but I couldn’t seem to stop myself. However, my feelings are not new to me, but to her, I’m sure they’re a shock. I’ve done a good job—at least I think I have—of hiding what she does to me. My control slipped when she climbed into my bed.

“Rip?”

“Yeah, baby?” The term of endearment seems to have her finally relaxing again in my arms.

“Will you kiss me?”

“My fucking pleasure,” I mutter, before searching for her lips in the dark of the room. Our lips mold together as if they were two pieces to a puzzle. She shifts, and I pull her on top of me.

I get lost in her kiss. My hands roam her body, sliding again under the oversized T-shirt she’s wearing. Her skin is so damn soft, and I moan from the feel under my fingertips.

My cock is hard as steel. Even through the shorts I’m wearing, I can feel the heat of her. I want nothing more than to strip her bare and bury myself inside her. I want to make her mine. However, I know it’s not the right time. Not yet. I’ve blindsided her, and she’s been drinking. I want us both sober the first time I feel her from the inside.

I know that McKenna Dawson is my forever. My hope is that I have a chance to prove that to her. That’s not tonight, though. I swore years ago I would always do right by her. Blue balls be damned. I won’t push her for more.

One day soon, if I have my way, I’ll be able to make her my wife for real, and we’ll get our forever after all.

I smile against her lips as I remember her words at our first wedding all those years ago. We were just kids, but I knew then that McKenna would change my life. I just didn’t know how.

I lose track of time as we make out like teenagers. It’s sometime in the middle of the night that I wrap my body around hers, and we fall into a deep sleep. In fact, it’s safe to say it’s the best night of sleep I’ve had in my entire life, and it was a mere few hours at best.