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“Yeah.”

“Also, if you like something, you want more you also let me know.”

Ivy smiled as he winked at her. He kissed her then as he worked his hand under her shirt. Caressing her sides and back. This is where his experience showed. One moment she was standing and being tenderly kissed. The next, she sat on the edge of his bed with her top off. He joined her and sprinkled her collarbone with feather-like pecks before switching to open-mouth kisses.

Ivy felt lightheaded at the sensation. Deft fingers released her bra. Emmanuel guided her so she laid back on his bed.

“God you’re beautiful.” He rained kisses on each shoulder. Then trailed down to her full globes. He had played with her breast before, but this felt different. The sensations in her nipple mirrored the throbbing in her core. She moaned in satisfaction. His attention moved from one breast to the other. All while he worked her skirt and panties down off her hips.

“That feels so good,” she praised him. The sensation of him groaning around her nipple sent a sharp zip to her pulsing clit. What the hell was that?

Later, Ivy would blame her awkwardness on the torrid sensations.

“Manny.”

Emmanuel stopped immediately and looked up at her. “Yeah?” He was fully alert.

“I was thinking. Since this is my first time, and we’ve just gone through a full medical workup maybe we could go bare.”

He was shaking his head before she could finish. “Ivy. I don't think that’s a good idea. So much could go wrong.”

“Wait, no. I'm on contraception. I'm super responsible about it.”

Ivy had convinced him that it was a good idea. Her first turned out to be a first for him as well. The first time he’d ever been with a woman without a barrier between them. They had never reversed their decision. Except now… they were.

Ivy could see his jaw working. God, Emmanuel could barely look at her. The offensive box was stuffed in the bag and chucked onto the vanity.

“Yeah.” Was all he said as he powered walked into the shower.

God. Ivy felt like she’d fucked up.

After Ivy’s encounter with Emmanuel, she wasn’t sure what to do. She considered waiting for him to come out of the shower to talk things out. However, she wasn’t sure that anything she said could make things all right. When she saw a smudge on her hand, she remembered the cakes. Her trip back to the kitchen was considerably slower.

“Hey Momma,” Sage called as she munched on a carrot.

“I thought you had dinner with your grandma.”

“I did, but I came home to all this cake. I knew if I cut into one before you glazed it, I’d be in trouble. So, I’m eating this to distract myself.”

Ivy smiled and pulled Sage into a hug. She probably held on longer than she should have, but her baby gave her the best hugs.

“Momma, are you okay?”

“Of course.” Ivy pulled from the embrace. “Can’t I just give my little girl a hug?”

“Yeah. But…” Sage looked around the kitchen. “You normally only bake when you are upset.”

Seriously? Did everyone know her coping skill? And when did they pick now to point that out?

Ivy had long ago decided she’d not intentionally lie to her children. Conversely, it was her firm belief, parents shouldn’t burden their children with adult worries. Especially a child that internalised things the way Sage did. So, she found herself in a conundrum as to how to respond.

“It’s really not a big deal.” Was it a lie if she wished it to be the case?

“Sure, if you say so.” Sage shrugged and then peered at her mother. Probing. Searching for an answer. The little girl shrugged.

Well, hardly little, she was an inch shy of her mother’s height. Sage sighed and shrugged again. “Can I help you glaze?”

“Yeah, that would be nice.” The two set about working together to put the finishing touches on the cakes. Like they had done countless times before. Like her mother, Sage’s culinary skill was relegated to baking.

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