Page 12 of Calamity Rayne Knocked Up

“Shit.”

I opened the file with the scripted letter I used to fire the last seven candidates for the job. With a quick copy and paste, we were good to go.

“Dear Mr. Davis,” I read, making minor adjustments to personalize the text. “Unfortunately, despite our shared efforts and expectations, the deadline was not met. I understand that unforeseen circumstances can sometimes affect our ability to meet obligations, and I appreciate the effort you put forth in attempting to complete the task. However, meeting deadlines is a crucial part of success. Yada, yada, yada, and send.”

I stood to stretch my legs and groaned at the uneasy feeling that always came with firing an employee.

My phone pinged, and I opened a text from Hale. He was in California at the moment, which was why he hadn’t gone to the doctor’s with me.

Good morning,baby. How was theappointment?

I quickly typed out a reply.

Appointment was fine.They want to update some labs and run some tests. When are you getting home?

He’d been gonefor three days, and three days without Hale was usually my limit.

I should be walkingthrough the door around ten tonight. Wait up for me?

Always.

I attacheda little heart emoji and a kiss and slipped my phone back on my desk. A pile of work waited for me, and it was going to be a late night. Cuing up the latest resume submissions, I started searching for Davis’s replacement.

I worked well beyond five that day but figured it didn’t necessarily count as overworking myself because Hale wasn’t aroundto give me grief about working beyond my pay grade. When I heard him pull up, I shut my laptop and pretended I’d been watching a movie.

I didn’t know why I hid my overtime from him. Or maybe I did. It was just something I made a habit of doing to avoid more confrontations between him and Remington.

I must have been more exhausted than I thought because the next thing I knew, the sound of Hale entering the bedroom woke me up. For real. From sleep. Maybe I was developing narcolepsy. I made a mental note to add that to tomorrow’s Google list.

The soft creak of the door pulled me from sleep. Peeking through my lashes, my body soft and tucked deep within the covers, I watched Hale’s shadowed silhouette quietly creep into the dark room. Rather than say something to let him know I was awake, I took a moment to simply watch him.

He set his suitcase by the closet and loosened his tie. The lethargy of his motions told me it had been a long day for him. Once he stripped away his clothes, he climbed into bed. His hand slid slowly up my body, tracing the curve of my thigh to the jut of my hip.

“You asleep, baby?”

I moaned softly and rolled to my back, blinking up at him through the dim glow cast by the television. My hand cupped his jaw where stubble had grown. “I missed you.”

Rather than kiss me, he pressed his forehead to mine and shut his eyes, giving our emotional connection a chance to entwine once more. “It’s good to be home.”

After Care Beats Foreplay Every Time

Ilifted my arms over my head as he removed my shirt, kissing his way down my throat to my breasts. Warm hands framed my ribs. He awakened my body with delicate nips and licks. As he moved over me, my knees bracketed his hips and his hard erection weighed heavily on my stomach. I reached between us to stroke him slowly.

The moment my hand tightened around his flesh, he groaned against the curve of my throat. “Yes.” His shoulders trembled as his breath quickened. “There’s nothing better than feeling your hands on me.”

Nudging his shoulder, I eased him onto his back and straddled his hips. “It’s my turn to take care of you.”

His chest expanded on a deep inhalation as my hands combed slowly over his muscular shoulders. He was so beautiful that at times I still struggled to understand how he was mine.

Curling my hands around his thick length, I stroked him slowly and guided him inside of my body. Slowly, I lowered over him and we both moaned. That first tight stretch after a few days apart always felt incredible.

His hands cupped my hips as he guided me into a slow canter. Our languid pace escalated the pleasure, allowing us the quiet space to feel every delicious tremor and tingle. The hunger he stirred inside of me built slowly, until it consumed me, controlling my need for more.

“Fuck, Rayne,” he breathed, his fingers digging into my hips. “Your body fits mine perfectly.”

Leaning forward, balancing my weight over his relaxed body, my hips rose and fell in a seductive rhythm. He pulled me closer, his hand dragging to the center of my back and pressing me low so he could trap my nipple between his lips.

A low moan escaped my throat in a needy plea as my body tightened around him. Hisfist moved to my hair, and suddenly, he took control. His torso rippled in a wave of chiseled muscle as he lifted his upper body off the bed, holding me by the hair as he sucked my nipples and pumped his hips hard.

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