Page 91 of Teasing

He’s leaning against the vanity, watching me. “We could have lost her today.”

And the fact he sayswebreaks me more than I knew words ever could.

“But we didn’t.” I step into him and run my palms down his chest and tug at his black football pants. “Come on. You need to get in the shower.”

He lets me pull his pants down his legs and steps out of them and his boxers, then kicks off his socks and stands in front of me. “Shower with me, Em.”

As if I’d ever tell him no when he needed something.

I strip out of my clothes and follow him into the shower, then push Mav under the water and grab his shampoo. “Turn around.”

He quirks an eyebrow but does as I ask as I lift on my toes.

The minty fresh scent of his shampoo billows around us as I wash his hair, then run his body wash over his exhausted muscles. “Feels fucking good, baby.”

I watch his muscles physically relax in front of my eyes.

The first time I’m betting they have since early this morning.

The suds glide down his body and hopefully wash away some of this hellish day.

The fear. The stress. The anger.

It’s all there because I feel it too.

Mav lathers his hands and runs them over my body. Down my ribs, tracing my tattoo. “You ever going to tell me what this means?”

I wrap my arms around his neck and let him block the spray. “It meansbroken looks different on everyone.”

“You’re not broken, baby.” Maverick presses me against the wall and presses his mouth to my neck. “You’re the strongest woman I’ve ever met, and I’m so fucking in love with you.”

“Thank God. Because I realized something today.” I trace the lines of his face, committing them to memory in case one dayI can’t ... “You own my heart. You and Rosie. I’m yours. Only yours... if you’ll have me.”

His eyes darken, and his pupils blow wide.

“I need you, Em.”

“Then take me, Mav. I’m on the pill. I’m clean. And I need you too.”

He doesn’t wait for more, just lifts me against the wall and wraps my legs around his hips. His cock kisses my entrance, pulling a beautiful moan from both of us before he buries himself deep inside me, and we both take what we need.

And hours later, when we’re lying in bed with Rosie asleep between us, something just clicks, and for the first time in a long time, I don’t feel as broken.

EMMIE

My father likes to give advice on his lucid days.

But those words are so much more than advice.

They’re echoes of battles he’s already fought,

guiding me down a path, in hopes I’ll walk without the scars that haunt his dreams.

—Emmie’s Secret Thoughts

“Are you sure you’re up for this?” I ask Maverick as he pulls into the parking lot in front of Sugar Hill Assisted Living. It’s the first time he’s meeting Dad. He asked if he could come last week. I think after everything with Rosie, he’s still feeling protective of all of us. More so than normal, and that’s already pretty protective.

“I should have met him already, Em.” He pulls a bag from the back seat. “And I got him something.”

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