And while Duncan Hugo was still out there somewhere, police all over the state were looking for him, and I had a feeling his freedom was coming to an end soon.
“More kids,” Knox rasped.
“What?” I asked, pulling back from his mouth.
He pistoned his hips forward and buried himself to the hilt. “I want more kids.”
I felt the clutch and pull of my muscles around him and knew I was going to come any second.
“What?” I repeated dumbly.
“Way would make a great big sister,” he said. With a wolfish grin, he hooked his fingers in the neck of my dress and yanked it and my bra down, exposing my breasts. He dipped his head, his mouth hovering an inch above my straining nipple. “You up for it?”
He wanted kids. He wanted a family with me and Waylay. My heart was close to exploding. And so was my vagina.
“Y-Yes,” I managed.
“Good.” He looked smug, victorious, and so damn sexy as he lowered his mouth to my breast.
I bowed back and let him plunder me right over the edge.
I was still in the midst of an earth-shattering orgasm when he stilled at the end of me and held. A guttural groan wrenched free as I felt the first hot pulse of his release deep inside me.
“Love you, Naomi,” he murmured, his lips worshiping my bare skin.
“I l—” But he was clamping a hand over my mouth even as he continued to glide in and out of me like he was trying to savor every second of our closeness.
“Not yet, baby.”
It had been a week since the incident, since his first “I love you,” and he still wouldn’t let me say it back. “Soon?” I asked.
“Soon,” he promised.
I was the luckiest woman in the world.
Knox left the den first, claiming he had something he needed to see to. I was still trying to fix my hair and dress and hoping it wasn’t a rock-climbing wall or a hot air balloon when I walked out of the room and ran right into Liza, who was perched on a floral upholstered chair I’d unearthed in the basement and moved into the foyer.
“You scared me!”
“I’ve been thinking,” she said without preamble. “This house is too big for one old woman.”
My fingers gave up on my hair. “You’re not thinking of selling, are you?” I couldn’t imagine this house without her. I couldn’t imagine her without this house.
“Nah. Too many memories. Too much history. Thinkin’ about moving back into the cottage.”
“Oh?” I felt my eyebrows wing up. I didn’t know what to say to that. I’d always assumed that Waylay and I would move back into the cottage at some point. Now I wondered if this was Liza’s way of evicting us.
“This place needs a family in it. A big messy one. Bonfires and babies. Smartassed teenagers. Dogs.”
“Well, it’s already got dogs,” I pointed out.
She nodded briskly. “Yep. So it’s settled then.”
“What’s settled?”
“I take the cottage. You and Knox and Waylay live here.”
My mouth dropped open while my brain began to run through a dozen new furniture placement ideas.
“Um. I…I don’t know what to say, Liza.”
“Ain’t nothing to say. Already talked to Knox about it this week.”
“What did he say?”
She looked at me as if I’d just asked her to give up red meat. “What the hell do you think he said?” she asked, sounding disgruntled. “He’s out there throwing your girl the best damn party this town’s ever seen, ain’t he? He’s already planning the wedding, ain’t he?”
I nodded. Unable to speak. First Waylay’s party. Then the discussion on kids. Now, the house of my dreams. I felt like Knox had asked me to write down a list of everything I’d wanted and set about making it all happen.
Liza reached out and gave my hand a squeeze. “Good talk. Imma go see if we can cut into those cakes yet.”
I was still staring at the chair she vacated when Stef appeared in the hallway.
“Waylay needs you, Witty,” he said.
I snapped out of my daze. “Okay. Where is she?”
He hooked his thumb in the direction of the backyard. “Out back. You okay?” he asked with a knowing grin.
I shook my head. “Knox just snuck me away for a quickie, told me he wants to have more kids with me, and then Liza gave us this house.”
Stef let out a low whistle. “Sounds like you could use a drink.”
“Or seven.”