After
Murphy gripped Tessa’s hips, pounding into her as she wrapped one arm around his neck, meeting him thrust for thrust. Her other arm still had her wrap on it, so he made sure he didn’t touch it. She might be mostly healed, but he’d be damned if he hurt her at all.
Over the past few weeks, they’d learned to take special care when they made love, but their enthusiasm and vigor hadn’t waned a bit.
Hence why they were fucking on the bathroom counter right next to the place where they’d seen each other naked, felt each other naked, for the first time. He hadn’t been able to keep his hands off her, and there was nothing better in the morning after a shower than having Tessa squeeze his dick with her pussy.
Seriously.
Nothing. Better.
Tessa arched her back again, and since her nipples were right there, he sucked one into his mouth, biting down gently. Her legs tightened around his waist, and he knew she was on the verge of coming, so he increased his speed and let go of her hip with one hand to flick her clit with his thumb.
“Murphy!” Her whole body shuddered as she came around his cock, and he sped up again, sweat pouring down his back. When his balls tightened, he grunted, the release flowing through him as he came hard inside her, filling her up.
Sweating and panting, he leaned forward and cupped the back of her head so he could steal a hard kiss. “Good fucking morning.”
She licked her lips, her eyes dark. “I think we need another shower since we didn’t use a condom and now I’m all sticky.”
“I like you sticky,” he teased.
“Oh, yes, you’d rather me smear you all over my body so everyone knows I’m yours like some caveman.”
He grinned widely. “Sometimes, I’m crude, what can I say?”
“Sometimes?” she said softly, fluttering her eyelashes.
He shrugged and pulled out of her slowly, handing over a washcloth as he did. “All the time. But, Tessa baby, do you see the scratch marks and welts all over my back and shoulders? I’m pretty sure you mark me up more than I do you.”
She shrugged though he saw the blush on her cheeks. “What can I say? You make me lose my mind.”
He kissed her then, needing her taste. “That’s what I like to hear.”
“And now we’re going to be late, you know, because we do need another shower. I can’t go over to Liz and Owen’s covered in your man juice.”
Murphy threw his head back and laughed. “Man juice?”
Tessa winked and then swayed her hips on the way to the shower. His dick stood at attention once again, watching her ass move from side to side. He figured they were going to be even later for the family BBQ that afternoon.
Oh well, it wasn’t as if it was the first time.
Tessa let out a sharp giggle when he followed her, pressing her to the tile, and Murphy fell that much more in love. Damn, he loved this woman and everything she made him feel.
He wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Owen gave Murphy a knowing look as he and Tessa walked over to his brother’s house a good forty minutes late. Considering the flushed look on each of the women’s faces in the room, however, Murphy figured he and Tessa hadn’t been the only ones taking advantage of a lazy morning.
Blake and Liz were both nearing their due dates and were comparing pregnancy cravings, and Murphy just had to smile. He couldn’t wait for more Gallaghers to be brought into the world, and honestly, he couldn’t wait for one—or four—of his own.
Once he and Tessa were married next spring, the two of them were going to start trying for children. Since he’d gone through so much chemo in his life, though, they knew it might not happen, so they were also looking into adoption. Knowing them, they’d probably end up doing both, and that would be just fine with him. He couldn’t wait to see Tessa as a mother, and knew that her parents were aching to be grandparents.
Maya, Jake, and Border were huddled on the love seat, grinning at one another as their son Noah played with Rowan on the floor in front of them. He’d never thought Jake would find his happily ever after with not one, but two people, but he knew that they’d found the perfect people for each other even if it seemed unconventional to some.
Graham sat next to Blake and fed her from his plate, his attention and care to her funny and heartwarming to see. Murphy knew his brother had gone through hell twice over in his life, and having Blake pregnant with his child had to be a lot on him, but he couldn’t wait to see Graham with an infant in his arms once again. He was already a fantastic dad to Rowan, and Murphy knew Graham only got better with age—like most of the Gallaghers.
Owen came back into the house from the back deck where he’d been setting up the grill for the rest of the meal, and Murphy had to hold back a smile. His brother had clearly been running his hands through his hair over and over again as he went through all his mental lists. Murphy had a feeling Owen would have to loosen up a bit as a dad, and Liz would help him along. After all, no amount of lists could ever prepare you for fatherhood—at least Murphy assumed.
Tessa leaned into him then, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “What are you thinking about over here?” she asked, her voice low.
Murphy kissed her forehead and sighed. “Just how much our family has changed over the past few years.” He looked around at each brother once more and smiled. “We’re better off with all of you. I mean, we were doing okay before, but with you guys? You made us better men.”
Her eyes brightened, and she kissed his jaw. “I do love the Gallagher brothers. Y’all were sexy before, but now with children and wedding bands on your fingers? Oh, boy.”
He narrowed his eyes. “I hope you only mean one Gallagher in particular.”
The love of his life laughed, and he melted at the sound. She’d been laughing more and more since the accident, and was now finally back to her old self, though he even loved quiet Tessa. He loved all of her moods.
“You’re my favorite Gallagher, Murphy. I promise.”
“Damn straight, I am. And I can’t wait for you to be a Gallagher, too.” He brought up her ring finger with her engagement ring and kissed the sapphire they’d gone with instead of a diamond. “Love you, Tessa.”
“Love you, too, Murph.”
He held her close and laughed at something Jake said, sinking into the couch and knowing that today was one of those perfect days he would never forget. Nothing particularly amazing had happened, and yet it was perfect.
He had his family, his woman, and his future.
And after everything he’d lost and feared he could never have, he knew that he’d found the one thing he’d been missing all along.
Hope.