Loving the Nurse by Piper Sullivan

Antonio

“Ilike to swing high, Daddy. Really, really high!”

Rosie bounced along the sidewalk beside me, a bright smile on her face from an hour spent at the park after a morning of arts and crafts at the community center. As much as everyone told me I needed to give my little girl some freedom, I was determined to get her involved in as many relaxing activities as possible. Like arts and crafts. And sewing. And even learning how to do makeup.

That’s how desperate I was.

“I noticed. You’re the reason my muscles stay so big, all that pushing.” I flexed and made funny faces, letting her giggles wash over me.

“I feel like I’m flying!”

Yeah, she was a miniature version of me, the same daredevil spirit that had caused many broken arms, bruised ribs and more than one broken nose. “I’m glad you had a good time at the park.”

“Next time you should swing too.”

“But then you wouldn’t get to go so high.” Her little legs weren’t strong enough to get the height she required to laugh and squeal with delight.

“Okay,” she sighed, somewhat disappointed. I heard a gasp and prepared to freak out and rush her to the ER when she started to scream. “Mr. Ollie! Mr. Ollie! Over here!”

Oliver Thompson. Augusta’s father had become one of Rosie’s favorite people in town. For some reason, his grumpy disposition amused my daughter and she was always excited to see him. With a green and white cooler in one hand and a fishing pole in the other, he lifted the fishing pole in greeting.

“Princess Rosie. How are you today?”

“I’m good. I made a crown for one of my dollies and a bracelet for Aunty Teddy. Oh, and I made something for you too,” she shouted and then leaned in with a conspiratorial grin. “It’s a surprise.”

“Sounds like you’ve had a busy day. I thought all you royals lived a life of leisure?”

She giggled. “What’s that?”

“It means you don’t do anything all day, just look pretty and eat lots of good food.”

Rosie let out another laugh. “I did lots today. How are you?”

I couldn’t help but smile at her manners. She often forgot, and I didn’t really get on her because she was still a little girl, but when she remembered it made me feel like I wasn’t screwing everything up.

Ollie sighed. “Good, good. Had a fine day at the fishing hole.” He held up the cooler with a satisfied smile. “How would you two like to attend an old-fashioned fish fry?”

“What’s that?” Rosie’s gaze bounced between me and Ollie, waiting for an explanation.

“It’s just what it sounds like, little girl. We get together and fry up some fish, and some other things that go with fish. We talk and we laugh and sometimes we dance.”

“I love dancing!” She turned to me with a devilish grin. “Can we Daddy?”

“I love a good fish fry as much as the next guy, and cooking happens to be my specialty.”

Ollie grunted. “Nothing too fancy, Antonio. It’s a fish fry, not a fish ball.”

Rosie giggled and shook her head, putting a small smile on Ollie’s face.

“Let’s stop at my place for a few things first, and then me and Rosie will walk back with you.” Ollie nodded and fell into step beside me, nodding patiently as Rosie regaled him with every detail of her day.

She didn’t even stop when we arrived home. “I’m gonna get your surprise Mr. Ollie, be back real soon!”

By the time I returned with a bag of things to contribute to the fish fry, Ollie wore a gentle smile as he watched Rosie talk to the fish inside the cooler. “She made me a lure. It’s glittery as hell and brighter than the sun, but it’s nice. Really nice.” The old man seemed touched by the gesture, and I wondered if his relationship with Rosie was his way of making things right with the world.

Inside Ollie’s brown and white ranch house, he set down his hook and took the cooler to the mudroom, Rosie on his heels. “Whatcha gonna do, Mr. Ollie?”

His footsteps stopped inside the mudroom and he turned to her. “This part isn’t meant for princesses, sorry little girl.”

“Okay.” And just like that she turned to me and climbed into a chair where she busied herself with the important work of coloring.

Ollie split the fish between us with a grunt and made his way to the grill in the backyard, where he seemed happiest. When I joined him a few minutes later with corn and potatoes for the grill, I noticed it was the first time I’d seen him wear anything but a scowl.

“You’ve got a good stash of vegetables, Ollie.”

He half-grunted, half-laughed. “My stubborn daughter keeps buying the damn things, forcing me to eat them or have her waste her money on me.” He shook his head as he made room for the vegetables on the grill. “It’s a damn trap, I tell yah.”

“Oh the horror of having someone care about your well-being.” My sarcasm was heavy and Ollie sent me a narrow eyed glare.

“Throwing my words back at me? That’s low, Chef. Really low.” We burst out laughing, knowing that Ollie had told me the same thing on multiple occasions when I complained about how overly helpful my siblings had been since I returned to Jackson’s Ridge.

“What’s so funny?” Augusta’s voice startled me, and judging by the look on his face, Ollie too. Rosie however was perched on her hip, arms casually wrapped around her neck.

“Nothing,” we answered at the same time and then burst out laughing once again.

Augusta’s green eyes narrowed before her lips curled into a grin. “Oh, that’s not suspicious. Not at all.” She rolled her eyes and took in the food on the grill, the tongs in my hands and Ollie’s. “I just stopped by to say hi, Dad, but I see you’re busy, so I’ll give you a call tomorrow.”

“No, stay! Please,” Rosie pleaded.

“You’ll stay,” Ollie insisted in a tone that brooked no argument.

Augusta’s reddish gold brows dipped low. “Are you sure? I don’t want to intrude.” I could see curiosity burning in her eyes at the scene before her, but my connection to her father wasn’t my business to tell.

“Course I’m sure,” Ollie grunted. “You can judge who makes a better fish filet.”

I laughed at her father’s indirect challenge. “There’s no contest, obviously mine is better.”

“Don’t be so sure, boy. I know all your tricks, Mr. TV Personality.” He chuckled at his sometimes nickname for me.

“I’m not on TV,” I reminded him. “Or is your memory not what it used to be?”

Ollie let out a loud bark of laughter. “You’re in my house. Augusta set up my whole TV so it’s all internet based, including your channel.” He flashed a proud smile at Augusta, who stared back in wide-eyed shock. “Pretty cool, ain’t it?”

I watched the curious play of emotions on Augusta’s face before she realized she had my full attention and turned to me. I winked, and Augusta rolled her eyes. “It was nothing, Dad. Really.”

“Sure was something to me. Got way more stuff to watch than we had in my day.”

“Who knew you had so many talents, Augusta? Maybe you can help with mine?”

“Maybe,” she shrugged. “But I’m sure one of your YouTube friends could help.”

I laughed because I wouldn’t let her out of this little corner so easily. “Why would I ask them when I have you right here?”

Augusta wasn’t happy that I pushed, and she took advantage of Rosie’s need for freedom to collect herself. She stood and put her hands on her ample hips. “Fine. When I have time I’ll come around and walk you through it.”

Just the acquiescence I needed. “We could do it now. It won’t take long to fry the fish, and those potatoes will need some time on the grill.”

“Yeah!” Ollie’s shout visibly startled Rosie and Augusta. “That’s perfect. Princess Rosie can prove she doesn’t live a life of leisure by being my chef assistant.”

“Sous chef,” I offered with a grin.

“Yeah, that’s it, you can be my sous chef.”

“’Kay!” Rosie was eager to please, more so when she felt like she was being helpful. It was normal the child psychologist said, but I had a feeling it had something to do with the time she spent with Trishelle.

“Oh, fine. Come on, then.” Augusta drove, even though my house was only three blocks away, probably hoping to speed things along or avoid three blocks worth of conversation.

“You didn’t have to do this,” I told her, my eyes glued to her ass, high in the air while she bent over to inspect my modem.

Holy hell when she turned a glare over her shoulder at me, I could picture her in that same position, only naked and telling me how she wanted to be pleased. “Don’t give me that crap after you painted me into a corner just to get me here.”

She was right, of course. “I just asked. You said yes because you secretly wanted to help me out.”

She snorted and shook her head as she stood. “Whatever you need to tell yourself, Ricci.” Augusta kept her green eyes on the television, typing in a series of letters and numbers with the remote, testing and re-testing the internet connection. “There. All done. YouTube. Netflix. Roku. Whatever your thing is, there it is.” She pointed to the screen with a small but satisfied grin.

“Thanks.”

“No problem.” She folded her arms, the move pushing her tits up and right into my line of sight. “When did you and my dad become friends?”

“A few months ago,” I shrugged. I answered her question without giving her the answer she really wanted.

“How did you meet him.”

“At the community center.” The truth, but not the whole truth.

She rolled her eyes again, but this time a small smile curved her lips into a half circle. “He loves that place.”

“It’s a good place.” Ollie helped people there, and in the process helped himself, but for some reason he didn’t want Augusta to know.

“I guess.”

“I know,” I told her as I stepped closer to her. The air between us crackled with electricity, making the hairs on my arms stand up.

“Antonio,” she whispered and put a hand to my chest, intending to give me a shove, but that never happened. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what, Augusta? Don’t touch you?” The words came out soft and I took a lock of her hair between my thumb and forefinger, and followed the crinkle of her wave all the way down to the end. “Don’t kiss you? Because I want to.”

“Right. Okay. Ready to go?” Augusta took a step back, escape written all over her pretty face, but my hands went to her hips.

“No, I’m not ready. Not yet.” I let my fingers sweep up her hips until her head was cradled in my hand, and then I brought my lips to her sweet mouth, drinking in the taste of her. My tongue swept across her lips, back and forth along the seam until she opened up and invited me in with a gasp.

She softened and leaned into the kiss, the delicious weight of her body sinking against mine had my cock standing at attention. Her soft tits pressed against my chest, the points of her nipples sharp and hard. She gasped and I deepened the kiss, savoring the taste of her, the way her tongue danced with mine.

When Augusta’s fingers tangled in my hair, I sent a prayer up to my busy schedule that I hadn’t gone in for the trim I needed, and pressed my hand into the center of her back, keeping those curves pressed tightly against me. The kiss went on and on, for long minutes. My body grew hotter by the second and I was eager to take Augusta upstairs and strip her down.

Too soon though, she pulled back with glazed over green eyes and kiss slicked lips. “That was…nice. Very nice. But we shouldn’t do it again.”

Nice? “It was a hell of a lot better than nice,” I growled at her and focused my eyes on her chest. “Your nipples think so, anyway.”

Augusta shook her head, red waves falling around her shoulders. “Antonio, this was a mistake.”

“It wasn’t. I know it and you do too. But sure Augusta, we can go.”

Her shoulders fell as the tension released and she nodded. “Good.” She turned on her heels and marched towards the front door.

“But it will happen again. You can be damn sure of that.”

Her feet froze as if they were glued to the floor and she let out a shaky breath, a sound that went straight to my cock. “Antonio,” she groaned.

I took three big steps and I was right behind her, bending down to whisper in her ear. “The next time you say my name like that, you’ll be naked and my mouth will be all over you, pulling those sounds from your sweet mouth.”

She gasped again and shook her head, probably to clear the haze of lust. “Antonio,” she whispered again, the word husky this time.

I clasped her hand with mine and smiled. “Come on, we’ve got a fish try to get to, and suddenly I’m hungry as hell.”

She looked into my eyes and let out a strangled groan before taking her hand back and slipping behind the steering wheel.

Game on, sweetheart.