“I’ve missed you so much.” I said as I walked over and hugged him.
“Go on. We’ll talk when you come back down,” he said as he kissed my cheek.
I went upstairs and into the bathroom. Mason was right; I looked like a hot mess. As I was standing in front of the mirror, wiping the mascara stains from my face, Connor walked in.
“You should see him with her. He’s a natural,” Connor whispered.
“I saw that the minute he took her and she stopped crying.”
“Come here, baby,” he said as he turned me around and wrapped his arms around me.
I stood there, wrapped safely in his arms, when suddenly, something dawned on me. “Connor, the meeting with Lou!” I exclaimed.
“It’s okay. I rescheduled for later this afternoon.”
“I’m sorry. I’m a bad mother and wife.” I began to cry.
“Aw, baby. You’re not a bad mother or wife. Don’t ever say that again. You’re overwhelmed. Henry thinks that maybe you’re going through post-partum depression.”
I pushed back and looked at him in anger. “I’m not depressed, Connor.”
“I didn’t say you were depressed.”
“Yes, you did! You just said you think I have post-partum depression. Do you hear the word depression, Connor? Depressed, depression; same thing, you idiot.”
Connor rolled his eyes and walked away. I followed behind him down the stairs. When I reached the living room, Mason was sitting on the couch talking to Julia and she was cooing. Connor and I looked at each other.
“Hey, she’s happy.” I smiled as I sat down next to them.
“Of course she is. She’s with her Uncle Mason.” He smiled.
Connor sat down next me and kissed me on the head. “A kiss from an idiot,” he whispered.
“I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you later.” I smiled as I kissed the tip of his nose.
Mason looked at us and smiled. “It’s so good to see both of you again.”
“It’s good to see you too. What are you doing in New York, and why didn’t you tell me you were coming?” I asked.
“Landon got a job with a top modeling agency, and they wanted him to move here. So, here we are!”
“Where is Landon?” Connor asked.
“He had a meeting with his agent, so I decided that I’d take my chances and see if you were home.”
“Where are you and Landon living?” I asked as I reached over and took Julia from him.
“I was hoping you’d ask that!” he exclaimed. “We’ve rented a loft over on the next block.”
“That’s wonderful. That means we can see you whenever we want.” I smiled.
“We can take this little princess shopping, and we can hang out at Starbucks! He smiled as he touched Julia’s hand. God, Elle, I’m so excited!”
Connor looked at his watch. “Lou’s going to be at my office in thirty minutes. We better get going. I’ll grab the diaper bag,” Connor said.
I nodded my head and got up from the couch. “Mason, we have a meeting with Connor’s lawyer, so we have to get going. Why don’t we get together for dinner tonight?”
“That sounds great. I’ll ask Landon if we have plans. You’re not taking Julia with you, are you?” he asked.
“Yes, we are, why?”
“Leave her here with me. Please, Ellery, let me watch her,” he begged.
Connor walked up behind me. “I can’t find the diaper bag.”
“It’s over there,” Mason said as he pointed by the door.
“Ellery, hand Julia over to Mason so we can leave,” Connor said.
A wide smile spread across Mason’s face. “Give me the little princess, Ellery.”
I suddenly became nervous. I didn’t want to leave her again, but then the thought of her screaming her head off during the meeting frightened me. I kissed her on the head and handed her over to Mason, who was standing there with his arms out.
“Don’t worry, Momma; she’ll be safe with me,” Mason said.
I smiled and followed Connor to the elevator. I stopped, turned around, and looked at Mason.
“How did you get Julia to stop fussing?” I asked.
“The gas drops in the diaper bag, Elle.”
“Ah, so that’s what that little white bottle was for,” I said as I stepped in and the doors closed.
***
Denny was on the other side of town, so Connor drove the Range Rover to the office. Before we reached the building, he called his secretary, Valerie, to send someone down to park it. He pulled up to the curb, walked around, and opened my door. He grabbed my hand as we walked into the building and took the elevator up to the top floor where Connor’s office was. As we stepped off the elevator, I could see the women looking up from behind their cubicles at my husband. I could see the look and hunger in their eyes when he walked by. I proudly held my head up and smiled as I said, “Good afternoon, ladies.” Connor looked over at me and smiled.
When we reached his office, Lou and another gentleman were already sitting down and waiting. Phil came in behind us.
“Lou, thanks for meeting me,” Connor said as he shook his hand.
“Connor, I want you to meet Ben. He just joined the firm.”
As Connor shook Ben’s hand, Lou leaned over and kissed me on the cheek.
“It’s good to see you, Ellery.” He smiled.
I took a seat in between Lou and Ben as Connor walked around and sat behind his desk. Lou folded his hands.
“I’m not going to lie to you, Connor. This could get very ugly. I’ve decided we’re going after her personally for the Chicago fire. I know you didn’t want to do it, but if she wants to claim that she was temporarily insane because of the mental stress you put her through, then we’ll fight back. I’ve already alerted the district attorney’s office that we’re proceeding with this.”
“Damn it, Lou. That’s not even an option,” Connor snapped.
“We have no choice, Connor. Ashlyn is forcing your hand on this. She’s going to make sure you go down with her.”
Connor stood up, put his hands in his pockets, and turned towards the window. “This is bullshit, Lou. I need you to make this go away,” he said.
I sat there in silence as I listened to the conversation between Connor and Lou. I could tell Connor was worried, although he’d never admit it. My phone chimed and, as I pulled it from my purse, I noticed a text message from Mason.
“I’m in love with your little princess.”
I smiled, and Connor asked me if everything was okay. I nodded my head and then watched him glare at Ben. I noticed he did that quite a bit since we sat down. Lou got up from his seat and told Connor that he’d get back with him in a couple of days. As Phil walked Lou and Ben out of the office, Connor called Ben back. He turned around and started walking towards Connor. I stood up from my chair because I didn’t like the look on Connor’s face.
“Do you find my wife attractive?” he asked.
I gasped as my eyes widened. “Connor!” I exclaimed.
“Well, do you? Answer the damn question,” he said firmly.
“Um, yes, Mr. Black,” Ben answered nervously.
“Then that explains why you’ve been staring at her.”
“Connor, that’s enough!” I snapped at him.
Ben looked at me and apologized. “I’m really sorry for staring, but I feel like we’ve met before.” Suddenly, it must have hit him. “I know; you were Kyle’s girlfriend back in college.”
I looked at him, trying to figure out who he was, and then it came to me. “Ben? As in Ben Winston, Debate Club President and tech geek extraordinaire?”
“Yep, that’s me!” He laughed. “I knew you looked familiar, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.”
Just as I gave him a hug and Connor gave me a dirty look, Cassidy walked in.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I thought you were alone, Connor,” she said.
“It’s okay, Cassidy. Come on in,” he said.
; Cassidy walked over to me and gave me a hug. “Where’s my niece?”
“She’s at home with Mason. I would like you to meet Ben Winston. Ben, this is my sister-in-law, Cassidy.”
They lightly shook hands as I turned and looked at Connor. “You owe Ben an apology.”
“For what?” he asked.
“You know for what, Connor. That was rude and uncalled for.”
Connor took in a sharp breath and shook his head. “Ben, I apologize for being rude.”
“It’s okay, Mr. Black. If some dude was staring at my beautiful wife or girlfriend, I’d be upset too. Well, it was nice seeing you again, Ellery, and nice to meet you, Cassidy. Mr. Black, we’ll be in touch in a couple of days,” Ben said as he started to walk out of the office.
“Hold on. I’m leaving too. I’ll walk out with you.” Cassidy smiled.
“But, Cass—”
I walked over to Connor and put my hand over his mouth. “She thinks he’s hot. Let her go.”
“Seriously?” he mumbled.
I removed my hand from his mouth and kissed him softly. “Leave your sister alone.”
“I didn’t say anything,” he said.
“Not yet you didn’t. But you have that look.”
Connor looked at his watch. “Let’s get the hell out of here.” He smiled as he put his arm around me.
Chapter 12
Connor
We both climbed into the Range Rover, and I sat there with my hands on the wheel. I looked over at Ellery as she looked at herself in a small mirror. When she stopped looking at herself, she turned her eyes to me.
“What?” she asked.
“I can’t believe what Cassidy did in there.”
“Why? She saw a hot guy and she took advantage of the situation.”
“Oh, so you think he’s hot?”
“Yeah, he’s cute,” Ellery replied as she put on her lipstick.
“I bet you thought he was hot back in college too,” I said as I pulled out of the parking space.
“Are you jealous because I said he was hot, Mr. Black?”
“Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not jealous.”
“Yes, you are. I can tell by that look on your face.” She smiled.
“I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”
“Okay, babe, but there’s no need for you to be jealous. You know I think you’re the sexiest man alive,” she said as she stroked my cheek and gave me a small smile.
I smiled and we drove home. Ellery became impatient with the traffic because she wanted to get back to Julia. We didn’t talk about the meeting, but I could tell Ellery was upset about it. I didn’t want her involved in this at all. If I had my way, she wouldn’t know anything. I only wanted to protect me and shield her from this bullshit. She didn’t deserve to have to go through this because of my past mistakes and poor judgment.
When we arrived at the penthouse and the elevator doors opened, Ellery threw her purse on the table and walked into the living room. Mason was sitting on the floor and had Julia under her play gym. I walked over to the bar and poured myself a scotch. I pulled out my phone and sent a text message to Cassidy.
“Why did you need to see me earlier?”
“I wanted your opinion on a color for the office I’m redoing.”
“Then you should have stuck around instead of chasing after that guy.”
“Lol, Connor. Tell Ellery I’ll call her later. Bye.”
I shook my head and set my phone down on the bar. I stared across the room at Ellery as she sat on the floor and played with Julia. She looked up at me with her beautiful eyes and a small smile graced her face. Mason got up from the floor and said that he needed to go. He picked Julia up, kissed her, and then kissed Ellery goodbye. I gave him a simple wave from across the room and told him to take care. When he left, Ellery came walking over to me with Julia. I took the baby from her, kissed her head, and held her in my arms.
“I want to talk to Mason about working for us as Julia’s nanny,” Ellery said.
“What? I thought you didn’t want a nanny for Julia.”
“I didn’t at first, but did you see how he was with her? He’s a natural, and Julia seems to really like him. Plus, it’s time for me to start painting again and, with the whole Ashlyn ordeal, I’m going to need help.”
I smiled as I pushed back a strand of her blonde hair. “I’m happy you’ve decided that you needed help, and I think Mason would be perfect.”
“Good. I’ll set up lunch and discuss it with him.” She smiled.
“I thought we were having dinner with him and Landon tonight.”
“Landon told Mason they’d have to take a rain check because they have some event with the modeling agency to attend tonight.”
“Grab Julia’s diaper bag and car seat. We’re going out to dinner,” I said.
“Good, then we need to stop at the store and pick up some diapers and formula,” she said as she walked away.
***
We put Julia in the Range Rover and drove to the restaurant. As we were eating, she decided she was hungry and started to scream. Ellery instantly took her from her seat as people in the restaurant started to stare. I grabbed a bottle from the diaper bag and handed it to Ellery as fast as I could. The second the bottle hit Julia’s mouth, she stopped crying. We both let out a sigh of relief. It didn’t last long, because when Ellery went to burp her, she screamed the minute the bottle came out of her mouth. This was an upscale restaurant and the patrons weren’t happy that their quiet dinner was being interrupted by a screaming baby. I gave Ellery a look indicating that she needed to do something.
“What do you want me to do, Connor?” she growled.
“I don’t know; don’t burp her.”
“She has to be burped.”
Suddenly, Ellery looked over at the couple that was sitting at the table next to us and staring. “What? Have you never heard a baby cry before? Turn yourselves around and mind your own business.”
“Ellery!” I snapped.
“You know what? I’m over this,” she said.
Ellery got up from the table and headed out of the restaurant. I sighed and called over the waitress for the bill. As soon as she gave it to me, I threw the money on the table and walked out after her. I found her walking down the street, carrying Julia over her shoulder. I quickly caught up with her.
“You know, that was inexcusable back there,” I said.
“I know it was, and I’m sorry,” she said as she kept walking.
I lightly took ahold of her arm. “Elle, stop and look at me. I love you, no matter how much you embarrass me.” I smiled. “It’s going to take time to adjust to having to go out with a new baby. We’ll make mistakes along the way, but we’ll get it right eventually.”
Ellery laughed when I said that. “Trial and error, right?”
“That’s right, baby, trial and error,” I said as I kissed her head.
She handed Julia to me and we walked back to the Range Rover. After we stopped at the store to pick up diapers and formula, we went home.
***
After we gave Julia a bath and changed her into her pajamas, I sat on the bed and fed her a bottle while Ellery took a shower. I stared down at her as she was looking up at me. She had the same eyes as Ellery, which made me melt. This little girl was going to be my undoing, and I had a feeling she was going to take advantage of it when she was older.
“I think it’s time me and you had a talk, Julia. You’re beautiful just like your mommy and some issues are going to come up that we’re not going to see eye to eye on. The boys are going to fall all over you and they’re going to want to date you. I just want you to know that you’re never allowed to date boys. You’re Daddy’s little girl, and you always will be. I should be the only man in your life. When I pass away, then you can date.”
“Connor!” I heard Ellery snap. “Don’t talk like that, and you cannot keep her from dating boys.” Ellery laughed.
“I can try, can’
t I?” I smirked.
I put Julia over my shoulder and burped her. She laid her head down on my shoulder and fell asleep. When I got up from the bed, I walked her over to Ellery so she could kiss her goodnight. When I approached the nursery, I carefully laid Julia down in her crib so as not to disturb her. I needed her to sleep so I could spend some alone time with my wife. Ellery was sitting on the edge of the bed with a towel wrapped around her, putting lotion on her legs.
“Let me do that for you.” I smiled as I took the bottle of lotion from her hands.
“You’re a bad boy, Mr. Black.”
“I fully intend to be, Mrs. Black.”
I squirted some lotion on my hands and began rubbing her leg. I moved my hands slowly up and down, applying a light pressure with my thumbs. As I began to rub the top of her foot, she threw head back and moaned.
“That feels so good, Connor,” she said.
My hands made their way to the sole of her foot. I smiled while I watched the look on her face. Pleasuring her was the only thing I wanted to do. Moving my thumbs up to her heel, I applied more pressure as I moved my thumbs in circles. Her groans grew louder as I reached the ball of her foot and massaged it deeply.
“Oh God, Connor. I could come right now.”
“Baby, don’t say things like that, and you better not. Not yet.”
Before massaging her toes, I took them in my mouth and lightly nipped at each one. I was driving her crazy, and I loved every minute of it. I put more lotion on my hands and started on her other leg and foot. As I reached her thighs, I pushed the edge of the towel back and began rubbing small circles all the way up, focusing on her inner thigh. Ellery’s moans grew louder as she lay all the way down on the bed. Since I couldn’t take my lips not touching her skin, I leaned forward and began to kiss each area of her thigh that I massaged. Taking her towel in my hands, I undid it, and I let it fall to the sides of her, exposing her fully naked body. My hands made their way up her torso as they clasped on to her beautiful breasts, pinching and kneading her hardened nipples.
“I’m so hard, Ellery. The things you do to me,” I whispered as my lips made their way up her thigh.
I pushed her legs further apart as she lay there, open, and begging me to make her come. My mouth explored her moist skin as my tongue lightly circled around her clit. I dipped my finger inside her as she lifted her hips and moved them around as my finger played inside her. I placed my thumb on her swollen clit and began to lightly rub it as her body stiffened and she grabbed each side of the bed. As she let out a scream of pleasure, my tongue licked its way up her breast and my mouth closed itself around her hard nipple. Ellery was panting and staring at me as I stood up and took down my pants and boxers. I smiled at her as she lifted her arms above her head and crossed her wrists. I slowly climbed on top of her and clasped her wrists tightly. She gasped as my hard cock, which sat between her legs, thrust into her. I leaned my face in closer and tugged at her bottom lip with my teeth as I pounded into her over and over again.