Page 143 of Rival
“Darlin’!” Griffin shouts, running up behind me. Squealing as he lifts me in the air, my hold on Mason slips free and I gasp as Griffin does his best to run away. I lift my head and snicker at Mason’s scowl. He looks as if someone just stole his candy.
“What the fuck, you bastard!” he hollers. My view of him disappears when Griffin spins, palming my ass in a taunting way.
“Just need a minute with our lady love before the other two catch up!” Lowering his voice, he asks me, “Think we’ve got enough time for a quickie?”
With a giggle, I smack at him to let me down. He releases a loud, dramatic sigh, but he does settle me back on my feet.
“Where are Blake and Jax?” Mason asks, taking his time as he walks over to us. As soon as he’s at my side, he yanks me away from Griffin, bends me over his arm, and kisses the life out of me.
I moan into Mason’s mouth when Griffin gives my butt a pinch. “They’re comin’. That girl saw somethin’ and wanted to check it out. Jax stayed to explore with her.”
Freeing me from the kiss, I’m hefted upright, and I can’t help but touch my swollen lips with a smile. Mason looks proud of his work, but we all jerk our heads around when we hear Blakely screeching in joy.
“Puppy!”
My mouth falls open in shock as our little girl dragsnota puppy, but a full grown, probably ten-year-old, shaggy golden retriever behind her. My eyes fly up to Jaxon who’s covering his mouth to hide his massive grin.
He must be able to tell we’re all getting ready to start arguing, but he’s rapidly shaking his head.
“Baby girl, we can’t have another dog at the farm.” Mason was gentle with his attempt to stay firm as he squats down on her level, ready to reason with her.
Blakely stops dead in her tracks, cocks her head to the side to stare her father down as if he’s an idiot. “He’s not yours. He’s mine!” Then she puffs out her chest and grins broadly. “I take care of him, Daddy!”
Nothing but the sound of crickets surrounds us as we all silently wait to see the happy tears or a meltdown, which are fully dependent on Mason’s next words. I hold no blame on her, especially considering the number of animals I’ve brought home over the years. The dog seems as if he’s had a rough go of it. He’s sitting calmly next to my daughter’s side, tongue hanging out on one side, fur matted with weeds and those sticky briars you can pick up in the woods.
Groaning, Mason drops his chin in surrender, then peeks at his beaming girl. “What’s his name?”
“Freakin’ knew it,” Griffin whispers to me and Jaxon bursts out laughing.
He joins us as we watch Mason talking to Blakely and whispers, “Sorry about the dog. There wasnogoing back the moment he gave her a kiss. She’s also got some shit stuck in her hair we’ll need to pick out tonight.”
“I’m gonna name him Daddy.”
That has all of us surprised and ending our side conversation. “Baby, don’t you think he might need a different name?” I ask. “You’ve already got three of them.”
“Yeah, I know. But I want four. So, he can be Daddy too,” she says, jabbing her finger at the dog.
Griffin hasn’t stopped laughing, mumbling, “Jesus fuckin’ Christ. That’s not gonna get confusin’.”
Smacking the back of my hand against his stomach, I narrow my eyes at him. “Language! And we’ll figure it out. Now, weweregoing to head to the bluff, but I think since we’ve got Daddy now, he might need to head back to the barn for a good hosing off.” Tugging on my daughter’s pigtail, I grin down at her dirt-smudged face. “Maybe you ought to be hosed off too. Whatcha think?”
“Hose!” she screams, then races toward the house withDaddybarking and running behind her.
I feel Jaxon move in behind me just before his teeth nip at my ear. Hands slip around my waist, and he yanks me hard against him, his hardness very,veryobvious.
“You know, I think little Blakely needs a brother.” He grinds against me subtly, just in case our fast-retreating daughter with Mason andDaddyin tow, decides to turn around.
Griffin watches until Blakely is definitely far enough to not see anything, then spins around and forces me to step back into Jaxon. “Daddy here has got a point. I think it should be my turn, though. We need some happy attitudes around here after dealin’ with Mason and our very opinionated child.”
“Hmm.” I touch my lips as I think it through, then shrug. “I kind of like being able to bend over to tie my shoes. Plus, if you put a little boy in me, with the size of you two, I’ll probably turn into a house!”
Growling, Jaxon digs his teeth into my shoulder with warning. “I think you were sexy as fuck pregnant. Come on, what do you think?”
“Still sexy now, but I’m gonna have to agree. Mason doesn’t get a chance at this one.”
Giggling, I shake my head at them, then moan when they try to tug my dress off. “Nope,” I tease, wiggling my way out from between them. A few steps away, I turn back with a grin. “Now, this lady love wants no part in getting knocked up by two country boys determined to lay her out in the field.” I raise a brow at their disappointed looks and take another few steps back. “But…”
“But what, darlin’?” Griffin asks, his interest piqued.
