Page 41 of Sean

Instead of answering, she pulled away from him and shimmied out of her pants to reveal black and lacy panties. His dick hardened instantly. Her sweatshirt went next to reveal a tight pink tank top that clung to her breasts and showed off her pert nipples. The outfit was the sexiest thing he’d seen in a long time.

And then she scooted backwards onto the bed and crooked her finger at him. The simple gesture completely scrambled his brains, so he ripped his clothing off and joined her. He couldn’t ever remember being so anxious to get his hands on a woman’s body, but he forced himself to slow down and make it good for both of them. They might not have long together, but he intended to enjoy the time they had. He claimed her body again, this time slowly, making good on his promise to enjoy every inch of her. Their initial lovemaking at the cabin had been a rush of passion. Their second was a slow and sensual exploration. When Sean brought Julia to her first climax, she clutched a pillow over her face to muffle her moans of pleasure. For the second, when he joined her, they both alternated between succumbing to the sensation and trying to stay quiet.

When he woke alone, he sighed a little as his hand slid over the empty side of the bed. This was the downside of their choice to keep it a secret. He would have liked to wake up with her in his arms—but it wasn’t meant to be. Pushing the thought aside, he tossed back the covers and found his running clothes. A hard run would take the edge off until he could be alone with Julia again.

He pounded out five miles before returning to the house. Tara waved to him as she loaded her girls into the car to drive them to school. His mom and Emmy headed to the barn as he did a series of exercises in the cool morning air. He knew his dad was probably out running himself. Like Sean, he still pushed his body as he had while serving and training.

Which meant it would just be Julia and the kids inside. He might be able to steal a kiss. When he entered the kitchen, she turned to give him a dazzling smile.

“Sean, we’re making peanut butter cookies,” Amos told him.

“With chocolate chips,” Lucy added. “Do you like those?”

“Love ’em,” he said. He poured himself a cup of coffee and leaned against the counter while they mixed the dough and rolled it into round lumps.

Julia gave them each a drinking glass. “Use the bottoms of these to flatten each ball just a little. They’ll spread out more as they bake.”

“Are they going to be giant?” Amos asked.

“No, we’ll stick to normal-sized cookies. They’re easier to eat, but one of these days we’ll make a cookie as big as a pizza.”

“Really?” the kids spoke together.

“Really,” she confirmed. “I used to live near a place where you could order those along with your pizza. They’d come warm and gooey soft. So good.” She paused to help Amos peel a chunk of dough from the bottom of his glass, then guided his hand to get the right pressure.

She was so good with the kids, looking after them with a combination of sweet and strong was uniquely her. Amos and Lucy were so lucky to have her.

“Oven time. I get to do this part,” she said and waited for them to scamper back. When she had the cookies in the oven, she turned on the light and let the kids get closer so they could see the baking process. “Do you want some breakfast?” she asked him.

He hadn’t even realized how hungry he was until she spoke. “I’ll get it.” He didn’t want her to think he expected her to fuss over him. After grabbing a banana from the counter and pouring himself a bowl of cereal and milk, he sat down at the kitchen island.

“That’s not enough for you,” she said and put a plate with two slices of buttered toast on it next to him. He hadn’t even noticed her making them. She was taking care of him, too. He didn’t expect to have to fight off the urge to take her hand and run kisses up her arm to thank her. Instead, he caught her eye and winked, making her laugh.

“Almost time,” Lucy yelled. The girl’s eyes were glued on the oven’s timer as it counted down. “Four, three, two.” The buzzer sounded.

“Let’s take a look and see if they’re done,” Julia said, but her hand dropped to his thigh for just a second before she turned her attention to the kids.

While he ate, he scrolled through emails on his phone, all the while aware of Julia’s movements. For a guy who’d lived alone for years, it surprised him how much he enjoyed having people around, especially when those people were Julia, Lucy, and Amos.

He was about to set his phone aside when a text came in from Hayden Henderson, a producer he’d worked with a handful of times before. They needed a consultant for an upcoming episode of a popular TV show. The setting was an army base in South Korea in the 1980s. He’d have to do a fair amount of research since that wasn’t his usual thing, but he’d taken on similar jobs and usually enjoyed them.

“Batch two in the oven,” Julia said, distracting him for a second and reminding him that nothing about his life was currently business as usual.

His first priority was making sure she and the kids stayed safe. He knew himself well enough to know that going down the rabbit hole of research would mean he’d lose track of time for hours. And…and he wasn’t that keen to sit at his computer and do that kind of work while at the ranch. He’d been enjoying the responsibilities that Tara and his mom had slowly given him around the ranch. Working outside or with the animals fed his soul in ways he hadn’t felt in years.

Before he could overthink it, he sent back a message thanking Hayden for considering him but saying that he was unable to take on the job. Less than ten seconds later, Hayden called him.

“Hey, man, you okay?” Hayden asked.

“Yeah, fine. Just a second.” Sean went outside so he could talk without Julia or the kids as background noise. “Sorry about that. Just needed to get somewhere quiet.”

“You sure there’s nothing wrong? You never turn down work. You’re my go-to guy,” Hayden said. “Did another studio put you under contract?”

“No. Nothing like that. I’m just not taking on anything new right now,” Sean explained. “I’ve got some stuff going on that I need to focus on.”

“If someone’s offering you more money, I might be able to get—”

“Seriously. That’s not it.” Hayden had always paid well. “I need a few weeks to take care of a personal situation.”

---