Page 29 of Dirty Girl

I avoid telling him about how she had to drag me out of the house and that she’s the only reason I didn’t just curl up and die when the loneliness became unbearable.

Our food arrives and our conversation stops so that I can pork out. I wasn’t joking when I said I eat like a pig. I sigh in appreciation as the sweetness of the pancakes melts across my tongue. And I might moan just a little when I take that first salty taste of bacon.

“Fuck, you’re sexy. The look on your face as you savor every bite has my cock so hard.” His voice is low, but I still look around the diner praying that no one heard his crass language.

“Jenson,” I whisper-shout. “You can’t say stuff like that to me here.”

He looks at me salaciously, licking his lips. “I can’t help that you get me hard.”

My panties are soaked and I squeeze my thighs together to relieve the ache that’s growing between my legs.

“I bet you’re wet right now.”

I know I’m at least thirty shades of red and I’m thanking my lucky stars the diner isn’t busy with the morning crowd. I give Jenson a dirty look, hoping it will help keep him under control. I almost laugh out loud at that one—no one controls Jenson.

The bell on the door jingles and I look up to the smiling face of Nora. With a friendly wave to Pammy—the gossip monger no doubt called my friend—Nora walks directly to our little table. The open, friendly smile that normally graces Nora’s face falls into a scowl as she glares at Jenson.

“Are you the fool that knocked up my sweet Dylan and then ran her off?”

The look on Jenson’s face as he takes Nora in is priceless. The best way to describe Nora is June Cleaver. She’s sweet-as-pie and everything about her screams harmless. Right now? I am tempted to hide the forks because she’s got murder in her eyes. Jenson clears his throat and wipes his mouth with his napkin.

“Nora!” I scold, shocked at her outburst.

“What? It’s the truth.” She focuses her scowl on me for a moment, before leveling her glare back on him. “This young man fucked up.”

I gasp, completely thrown for a loop by Nora’s vehemence. I’m about to come to Jenson’s defense when his warm hand covers mine.

“It’s okay, Dylan. She’s right,” he concedes.

I try to speak up again, but Nora cuts me off with a look. Jenson gives my hand a comforting squeeze before continuing. His piercing blue eyes are unblinking as he admits his guilt in this situation. My heart aches because he’s taking the blame in something that isn’t just his fault. I’m at fault in this, too.

“I put you in a situation that made you doubt me. In trying to protect you, I ended up hurting you. I can’t change what happened, but I can promise to not make the same mistakes again.”

Nora grunts, but Jenson doesn’t stop there. He turns his focus completely on her, as he continues. “Ma’am, thank you for taking such care with the woman I love. I promise you that I will never give Dylan a reason to doubt me again. I’ll do everything in my power to make her and my son happy.”

A blinding smile spreads across Nora’s face and she delicately wipes under her eyes with her handstitched handkerchief. I can tell that he’s won her over and I breathe a little sigh of relief. Jenson lightly squeezes my hand, drawing my attention back to him. The look of love reflecting back at me is more powerful than anything I’ve ever witnessed.

I’m so lost in the moment that I nearly jump out of my skin when Nora claps her hands together. “Great! Now that that’s settled, I have to say we’re sure going to miss our girl around here. She was a real lifesaver, what with taking on the reading circle duties at the library.”

I look back and forth between Nora and Jenson, mouth agape. I want to throttle her. We haven’t talked about my moving back yet. I assume that he’ll want me there and I’ve already decided it’s the best thing for our baby, but I don’t want to assume he’ll be ready to pick up right where we left off.

It’s only been a day since he found me and discovered I’ve kept his baby a secret from him. There is a good possibility that once it all sinks in, he won’t want me like he once did.

“Uhm… we haven’t really discussed that yet, Nora.” I try to hide the anxiety I’m feeling, but from the way Jenson’s grip tightens on my hand, I don’t succeed. I’m horrible at hiding my feelings and have the worst poker face.

“Nonsense. Of course you’ll be going home now, dear.” Her tone expresses how ridiculous the idea of me staying here is.

“Dylan, love.” Jenson’s voice breaks through my building anxiety. “I don’t want there to be any confusion between us. I fully intend to take you home with me when I leave. I’ll stay here with you until I’ve convinced you to come home. And then once you’re back where you belong, I’m going to marry you and we will raise our son together.”

My mouth gapes open. Jenson might not realize it, but he just gave me the whole world.

“Well, you gonna kiss her or not?” Pammy shouts from the counter. I snort out a laugh through happy tears.

With a cocky smirk, Jenson stands from his chair and pulls me to my feet. The kiss he gives me is toe curling. Definitely not appropriate for public, but I don’t care. I kiss him back with just as much fervor. The few patrons in the diner clap and cheer. I pull away with a blush, and huddle into Jenson’s chest. I swear I live in a constant state of embarrassment around him.

Jenson has been herefor a week helping me get ready to move back to California with him. There wasn’t much to pack since I don’t have much more than what I moved here with. In fact, it all still fits into the same large suitcase and duffle bag I had when I left. We’ve spent time with Nora and Bill during the day and at night we reconnected both in and out of bed. It’s been an emotional, yet wonderful week.

We’re standing next to Jenson’s rental car, saying our goodbyes. Nora’s arms wrap around me in a warm hug. When she pulls away, I see she’s crying.

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