out my bastard of an old man had broken his word to me. It had taken nearly the entire drive from the bar to her place to get it under control, but I did it. I had every intention of getting to the bottom of things and tracking that miserable fuck down as soon as I knew my woman was good. But for now, it was all about her.
“You know, you don’t have to hover over me,” she grumbled as I stood beside her, watching to make sure she drank the entire glass of water I’d poured for her. “I’m feeling better, so you can go now.” She’d always been the worst patient in the world. She didn’t get sick often, but the few times she did, she snapped at anyone who tried to help her in any way. Too independent and prideful for her own good, she’d been convinced she didn’t need anyone’s help.
“Not till your ass is in bed and I know you won’t be getting out of it.”
She threw daggers with her eyes, but the fierceness in her expression had the opposite effect of what she was going for, making my dick stand at attention. She was just so goddamn cute when she was pissed off and surly.
Ignoring the look and trying to hide the reaction my body was having to it, I asked, “What about Brant? You need me to go pick him up or anything?”
She shook her head, reaching up to rub her temples like she was fighting off a headache. “No. Thank you. He’s having a sleepover with Caro tonight since I was supposed to work so late.”
It suddenly felt as if someone had shoved a white-hot poker right through my gut. She’d said the words with such apathy, like it was nothing, because for her, it wasn’t. This was just how things were for her. She had to work a job that took her away from her son most nights because it was the only way she could take care of him. And it was all my fault.
But I’d be damned if I wasn’t going to fix it.
“Come on, sunshine. Let’s get you to bed.” I gently put my hand to the small of her back and began guiding her from the kitchen. The slight shiver I felt go through her at my touch made me want to dig my fingers deeper into her skin, slide my arm around her waist, and pull her soft body against mine while I feasted on her mouth.
I didn’t do any of those things. It was so goddamn hard not to, my body was shaking with the exertion of keeping myself in check, but thank God, I managed.
I knew her exhaustion was winning out and she really didn’t feel well when she didn’t fight me, but instead, let me lead her through the house to her bedroom, a space that was so goddamn small her bed took up almost every inch, leaving no room for anything but a rickety nightstand and a cheap dresser.
“Can you turn around, please,” she asked, her voice small and weary. I did as asked, giving her my back as she began fumbling with her clothes. I realized a second later that there was a mirror hanging on the wall I was facing, giving me a partial view of what was happening behind me.
A decent man would have averted his eyes, but no matter how many times I told myself to look away, I couldn’t rip my eyes from Shane’s body reflected in the glass. She sat on the edge of the bed, pulling her boots off one at a time and dropping them carelessly to the floor, but it was when she stood up, her hands moving to the waistband of her jeans, that my breathing started to accelerate.
Her hips were rounder than they’d been when we were younger, her ass fuller. Carrying our baby had changed her body in many ways, and all of them were fucking spectacular. She bent, sliding those pants down her legs, revealing the mouthwatering globes of her ass cheeks encased in a scrap of delicate pink lace and the creamy skin on her soft, shapely thighs. Christ, I loved her body, always had. I hadn’t thought it possible, but she was even better than I remembered, and there wasn’t a single inch of her that I hadn’t committed to memory. Before I left, I’d known her body better than I had my own. Now, I’d have