Chapter Thirteen
Gibson
Another week passed, and nothing out of the ordinary happened. Lee’s bathroom was completed, so Paddy’s crew went on to replace the kitchen which Gibson told Lee would mean another couple of weeks without water.
“You’re sure it’s okay I stay in your house?”
Was she fucking insane?
“Yeah, Lee. I’m sure.”
That was a pretty massive understatement, and he knew he’d have to talk to her about the whole fuck-buddy deal and how that had changed. She hadn’t used the term again, and surely she knew that by now they were involved in a pretty fucking serious relationship?
“I don’t want to cramp your style,” she said quietly.
“Like having you here. You’re not cramping anything. Promise.” A thought hit him, and he didn’t like it, but he had to get it out there, so he asked, “Unless you want to move? We can talk to Jonah, make them wait with the kitchen.”
“I like being here, Gibson,” she said and looked away. “If you’re okay with it, I don’t need to move back to the cabin.”
His shoulders relaxed, and he grinned.
“Then don’t,” he said, and meant ever but decided it was too soon to spring that on her, so he added casually, “You said you wanted to build something? Want to do that while I get some work done?”
“Yes!” she squealed. “I’ve been thinking about a birdhouse.”
He blinked. He’d meant something simple. Like sanding down a piece of a plank and calling it a cutting board.
“A birdhouse?”
“Just a small one, but pretty. A small opening and a few windows. I could nail it on a bigger piece of wood with an edge, and we could put bird seed there.”
“Not exactly easy to do, babe,” he said slowly.
“Oh, don’t be so negative,” she grinned. “I’m sure I can put something together. I don’t like saws, though, so it would be great if you could help me cutting the bits and bobs I need.”
Bits and bobs? And she didn’t like saws, what the hell did that mean? Any saw? Or electrical ones only? Jigsaws?
“I’ll go and make a drawing.”
He watched her disappear and sighed, resigned to the fact that he’d probably end the day with something hanging in his backyard that would make him shudder every time he saw it.
The drawing she came up with wasn’t half bad, to his surprise. With some small adjustments, she might pull it off, he thought. Or not.
His phone started ringing just as he’d given her the sides of the house and shown her where the drill was. Apparently, the windows would be round on account of the design being “art deco,” and he didn’t argue with her about it because drilling a few holes and calling them windows was a hell of a lot easier than trying to make square windows.
He put the pieces he’d been on his way to cut out for her roof and picked his phone up.
“I’ll be back, babe,” he said.
“Don’t take too long, I’ll need the pieces of wood for the roof soon.”
Soon? She hadn’t even started doing the windows, let alone the so-called door, and then she had to nail the whole thing together. The phones stopped ringing, and he looked down at it, grinned when he saw whose call he missed and moved away with a wave of his hand.
Leaning on a tree just outside the workshop and with the sun on his face, he called his youngest son back.
“Hey, Dad,” Andy said, and Gibson’s smile softened.
He missed his boys.
Andrew had just started college when Gib moved back to Wilhelmine, and like his brothers, he’d stayed in Chicago. He had what Gibson felt must be the most boring job on the entire planet, working as a junior accountant in a mid-size company, although the boy seemed happy enough, so he didn’t share his opinion.
“Hey, Andy,” Gibson murmured and watched Lee try to maneuver the drill in a way that made his smile widen.
They chatted a while about Andy’s job, Gib’s last visit to Chicago and the dinner they’d had, and how summer was coming to an end soon.
“I was thinking I’d come out this weekend,” Andy said. “Take a day off, stay until Monday night.”
Gibson straightened and wondered why the hell he hadn’t thought about that possibility.
“If it’s okay?” Andy probed, sensing that something was off.
“Of course, don’t be an idiot,” Gibson muttered. “You’re always welcome.”
There was a short pause while Gibson tried to figure out how to tell his boy about Lee. He should have told them when they met in Chicago, but he’d… He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t said anything and felt like an idiot for chickening out.
“Dad?”
“What?”
“You got plans already?”
“There’s someone staying here,” Gibson started, looked toward the skies and wondered how a man was supposed to share with his grown-up son that he’d fallen in love for the first time in his fifty-five years, which meant Andrew’s mother had never gotten that.
“Who?”
“A friend,” he stalled.
“Okay, I’ll just bunk on the couch.”
Shit. Okay. Here goes, Gibson thought.
“Gib, where are you?” Lee called out, and he lowered the phone without thinking.
“Out here, babe,” he yelled.
Then he winced, and he did this because he heard his sons startled laughter over the phone and put it back to his ear.
“A friend.”
“Yeah.”
Andy was not letting him off the hook and kept quiet, waiting for an explanation about this friend who was staying with him. He was also chuckling in a way that sounded suspiciously like a snicker.
“Gibson, I’m waiting,” Lee called out, a little louder and with a decided snap in her voice.
“A friend?” Andy prompted him.
Before he could explain, Lee lost her patience, leaned out through the door and shouted, “Gibson Ward you promised to bring me wood, and I need to get my hands on it.”
Jesus.
“Dad?” Andy said in a voice full of laughter. “I think that after the call to the others, which by the way is scheduled for T minus now, we’ll all visit this weekend.”
“Shit,” Gibson muttered, but couldn’t hold the grin out of his voice.
“I’ll text you. We’ll get a car, so you don’t have to pick us up at the airport.”
“Okay,” Gibson said. “Andy…” he trailed off, feeling like a fucking teenager bringing a date home for the first time.
“Yeah,” his boy pushed when he didn’t continue.
“She means something,” Gibson murmured, hoping his son would understand what that meant.
“Better bring her that wood then,” Andy said calmly. “I’ll call Cal and Parks. See you in a couple of days.”
They said their goodbyes and Gibson took a second to collect his thoughts. Okay. Now he’d told his boys about Lee. Which meant that now he just had to figure out how to share their existence with her.
She walked out of the workshop with a huge grin on her face.
“I got the pieces together!” she said proudly. “Can you cut the roof for me please?”
He knew he was stalling but decided to tell her that night instead because the sun was shining, and he wanted to spend a sweet afternoon working with Lee by his side. After dinner and some wine, he’d talk about his boys.
Then he went to his workshop and pretended to sand down a couple of shelves while he watched his woman build a crooked, butt ugly birdhouse. When it was done, they hung it in a tree in his yard. The look on her face told him he hadn’t managed to hide from her what he thought about the piece of shit she’d created, so he pulled her upstairs and consoled her by fucking her hard until she came. Twice.
***
Dinner and wine were swiftly replaced with bar-food and beers because Paddy and Mac stopped by and told them they’d gather at Oak that night. Lee clapped her hands and reached for her purse before he could protest, and off they went. A gazillion chicken wings later he watched her and Jenny giggling about something and sighed.
“What’s wrong, Gib?” Paddy asked.
“I might have fucked up just a little bit,” he admitted.
“Okay.”
“My boys are coming out this weekend.”
“All three? That’s great.”
“Yeah. Except I haven’t told Lee about them.”
Paddy, Mac, and Joke froze and stared at him.
“You haven’t told her you have three sons?” Joke asked slowly.
Gibson shook his head and watched Lee get up on her toes and whisper something in Jenny’s ear. The taller woman turned to look down at Lee, and her face was soft in a way she rarely showed anyone. Then she grinned and said something which made Lee threw her head back and laugh, and his eyes softened. Lee had been good for him but damned if she hadn’t made an even bigger difference in Jenny.
“Why?” Paddy asked, and he turned to look at his friends.
“I forgot,” he murmured, feeling like an idiot.
“You forgot?” Paddy echoed.
“It’s not like they’re here all the time,” Gibson muttered.
“Gibson,” Paddy said, and it was a command to not shit them or himself.
It should have pissed him off, but as usual, Paddy was fucking annoyingly right.
“Not sure she wants you to know so keep quiet about it, but she can’t have children.” He watched their faces soften, and went on, “She’s fine with it. Dealt with it already as a teenager, lived with the knowledge most her life. Still felt weird, bragging about my boys. So, I didn’t tell her, and yeah. Then I forgot.”
Paddy put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed, and Joke muttered a soft, “Shit.”
They stood in silence and watched the women who were making their way toward them.
“You should probably tell her before they arrive,” Mac murmured, with humor in his voice. “They look a lot like you, so she might suspect something when they show up on your doorstep.”
“Fuck you,” Gibson grunted, trying to come up with a good way out of the ridiculous situation he’d managed get himself into, solely due to his own stupidity.
***
Charlene
“You should have seen him,” I told Jenny. “He was so cute, standing there trying to hide how badly he wanted to throw my birdhouse in the fireplace.”
Jenny laughed with me and put an arm around my shoulders.
“This is so great, Lee. Gibson, the pussy-whipped softie.”
“Yeah, he got over it quickly enough,” I admitted with a grimace that turned into a grin. “Babe,” I said, imitating his low, gravelly voice. “We’ll hang that thing because you put an effort into making it, but I’m giving you fair warning. It’s going up in the back and also not close to the porch.”
She barked out more laughter, and I went on, “You’re also doing another one. Under my supervision and without delay. Can’t have the whole backyard full of dead birds.”
“Dead birds?” Jenny squealed.
“That’s what I asked,” I shared, and went on, again in my fake-Gibson voice, “Babe. Any bird stumbling over that is gonna have a massive coronary. They’ll drop out of the skies like snowflakes in the winter.”
She reared back, we watched each other a beat, and then laughter erupted again. Loudly, and happily.
I got up on my toes and whispered in her ear, “I pretended to be sad, which meant he had to comfort me. For the rest of the afternoon.”
Jenny looked down at me, and snapped, “You have got to stop bragging, girl. It isn’t attractive.”
I leaned back and laughed with her, loving the way her face had turned happy. She’d shared some of her past, and in doing that she’d also shared about the group of men and why they did what they did. Corrinne had been her friend, and when she was killed, it had hurt too much, so Jenny had pulled back. Hadn’t felt ready to invest the time and hadn’t dared to get close to anyone in the years that had passed since Mac’s wife and son were buried.
Well, she had me now, and I was not letting go of this woman. We worked together in the diner and hung out in the free time we had. I’d tried to make her do yoga with me which she’d hated. She’d taken me running which I’d hated just as much. We both loved skiing though, so we’d already started making plans for the winter. And while we were hanging out together, we talked about small things and big, and through all that, about who we were.
“I love him, Jenny,” I said quietly.
I had to tell someone, and I couldn’t tell him. It was too much, too soon. But I knew I loved Gibson Ward in a way I’d never get over it, and I had to share this, or my head would explode. So, I told Jenny, knowing she’d get what it meant that I shared that piece of me with her and that she’d handle the knowledge with care. Handle me with care.
“I know, sweetie,” she said simply. “How could you not?”
I felt my eyes burn because she got it. She didn’t tell me I was crazy, how it was too soon, or that I should forget it. And she was right. How could I not fall head over heels in love with all that was Gibson?
“Does he know?” she asked softly.
“No.”
“I think he loves you, Lee,” she said and raised a hand when I wanted to protest. “I’m not saying it to make you feel good. You know I wouldn’t do that.” She held my eyes until I nodded, which was immediately because I did know that. “I think he does, but I don’t know if he knows that he does.”
I thought about her words for a while and nodded slowly again.
“What are you going to do?” she asked.
“Keep doing what we do now,” I said. “I’m not going to push him, but I’m not stepping back either. I love what we have, the way we have it right now, so I’ll keep enjoying it. If it lasts, it lasts. If not, I’ll find a way to deal.”
“God, you’re strong,” she murmured.
“Don’t have any other options, do I?”
“Where you are now, no. But you came here, a little wary and bruised, and you still had the guts to take a chance again. To let yourself grow. We all see it, sweetie. You’re becoming more you each day, and in the middle of that you’re taking a guy like Gib on. That’s strong.”
I thought about that too.
“Thank you, Jenny,” I whispered. “For everything. If I’m changing, then you’re a part of why.”
“Jesus fucking Christ, Lee,” she said hoarsely. “You’re gonna make me cry in the middle of Oak, and I’m not even drunk. I’ll never live this down.”
I stepped in closer and started laughing as we hugged, and she chuckled, but before we stepped back, she murmured in my hair, “You’re welcome, Lee, and right back at ya.”
Then she grinned her usual shit-eating grin and pursed her mouth.
“How about we go over and torment the men for a while?”
“Best idea I’ve heard in a long time,” I quipped, and we turned, but Jenny held me back.
“Gib looks uncomfortable,” she murmured, and I nodded.
“He thinks he’s hiding it, but he got a phone call earlier today. Not sure what it was about, but he’s been a bit weird since.”
“You haven’t asked him?”
“No,” I replied, and mumbled, “He’ll tell me when he feels like telling me.”
She sighed and put a hand on her hip.
“Lee, for Christ’s sake. Go ask him.”
Our gazes held, and I knew she was right. Staying quiet and adjusting to my man had gotten me… Bob. I wasn’t going to do that again so yeah. I should go ask him.
“You know what? I think I’ll just go and ask Gib what crawled up his ass,” I said haughtily.
“You do that. I think I’ll just tag along to listen when you do,” she said just a haughtily, and I couldn’t hold back a small giggle.
Gibson straightened when I reached him and watched me warily.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Got shit to tell you,” he murmured, looked around and was about to steer me away from the others when Joke suddenly spoke up.
“Think you should tell her here, man.” He was grinning widely, and I relaxed a little. If Joke looked like that then whatever was on Gib’s mind couldn’t be too bad. “We’ll protect you from her,” he added, and I bugged my eyes out at him which made his grin turn into a smile.
Gibson sighed and pulled a hand through his hair.
“We’ll have visitors this weekend,” he mumbled.
I knew immediately what, and who, he was talking about and felt laughter bubble up my throat. No wonder he looked so uncomfortable.
“Great, honey, who’s coming?” I asked innocently.
He mumbled something which I couldn’t hear, so I raised my brows in a silent question.
“Got three sons, babe,” he said quietly, and added quickly, “Probably should have told you that a while back.”
Someone snorted out laughter next to us, and his face darkened.
“That would have been good,” I said. “Why didn’t you?”
He mumbled something unintelligible again, and I was about to ask him to clarify when Paddy cut in.
“It slipped his mind, Lee. A totally natural thing to happen to a father of three fine young men.”
I blinked and looked at a grinning Paddy and then back at a squirming Gibson.
“You forgot about your sons?”
“I didn’t forget,” he said tersely. “Didn’t want you to feel…” he stopped speaking and caressed my cheek with the back of his hand. “You know why.”
Oh, God. That was actually incredibly sweet of him. Stupid, but very, very sweet.
“And yeah, then I forgot,” he added with a rueful twist of his mouth.
“Baby,” I said gently. “I told you. I’m good. I can’t have children. It’s not a secret, and it’s not something I feel bad about. There was no need to hide your boys from me.”
“Honey,” he said and reached for me.
“Also,” I added, with a little more strength. “I actually already knew about your sons, but since you didn’t bring them up, I didn’t either.”
He reared back and stared at me.
“You knew about my boys?”
“Gibson, really?” I said exasperatedly. “Jenny told me about them the second time we met, and half the town have added details in the past weeks. But seriously? Even if no one had said anything, don’t you think it would have tipped me off that you have a room full of bunk beds, where the drawers contain stacks of jeans you’ll never fit your tush into?”
His lips twitched.
“My what?”
“Tush.”
“Babe. I don’t have a tush.”
“It’s a nice tush.”
“It isn’t a tush, Lee. It’s an ass or a butt.”
“Or a tush,” I added sweetly and laughed up into his face.
“See, you’re laughing at me now, but you won’t for long.”
His grin had turned wicked, which I liked, but I also got a feeling he was suddenly laughing at me.
“What?” I asked suspiciously.
“I was on the phone with my youngest son, Andy, when you were assembling the sorry looking birdhouse now gracing my backyard.”
“Okay.”
“Remember what you called out?” he asked.
“I asked for you to come,” I replied.
“And bring what?” he retorted.
Oh, God. I remembered what I’d asked for, and the way it would have sounded. Gibson saw it on my face and looked around on our friends.
“She yelled loudly that I had promised her wood and that she had to get her hands on it.”
I thought the laughter would never stop and leaned my face into Gibson’s chest to hide my own. God what a stupid thing to have said.
“We good, babe?” he asked into my neck.
“Yeah.”
“Sorry I didn’t tell you about the boys.”
“It was dumb but sweet. I get it.”
He squeezed me tighter and put his mouth close to my ear.
Then he whispered, “Since we’re talking about tushes, babe. Tonight, we’ll add something to that collection of toys you have.”
***
Gibson
“That’s right, baby,” he murmured and moved his fingertip in and out.
She was on her knees in front of him, leaning her chest on the bed and had her arms stretched out to hold on to the headboard. Then he added another squirt of lube and moved his finger to spread it, before reaching behind him to grab a surprise he’d gotten for her.
“I’m a big man, Lee,” he said. “Can’t just take your ass, so we have to work up to it.”
He pushed the soft toy gently against her, and murmured, “We’ll start with this.”
Then he pushed the tip inside and paused.
“Okay?”
“Yes,” she whispered hoarsely and pushed back against him.
He moved back a little and slapped her butt, not hard but enough to sting a little. She squirmed but a soft sound came over her lips, and he grinned. Something to remember, but right then he had other plans.
“Easy baby,” he said. “Nothing’s been up there, and we need to go slow. This isn’t big, but it’ll still sting, and I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Please,” she whimpered, and he could see on her knuckles that she was holding on hard.
“Relax, Lee. Just breathe and relax, and I’ll make it good for you.”
“Okay,” she said on an exhale.
He pushed a little harder, and pulled out a bit, then in again, and out. His cock was bouncing against her behind, heavy and aching but he didn’t dare touch it. He was on the edge already and had no intention of coming all over her back. At least, not yet.
She started making soft keening sounds when he worked the toy further and further into her until it was buried to the hilt. He let his hands skim over her behind then, watching her move her hips impatiently. Then he slid two fingers inside her and felt exactly how turned on she was.
“Jesus baby. So wet. So turned on, aren’t you?”
“Please Gibson,” she moaned. “Make me come. I need…”
He hadn’t meant to, but her wet, warm pussy was right in front of his cock, and before he could stop himself he pushed the tip inside. She made a soft mewling sound he knew meant she liked what he was giving her, and then she whispered, “More.”
He slid in a little further, rocking gently.
“More.”
He kept going until he was buried all the way, watching her mouth open on a shaky breath as he did.
“Okay, baby?”
“So full,” she groaned. “So good.” She turned her head, and their eyes met. Her lids were heavy, her cheeks were flushed, and he knew she was more than a little okay. Then she whispered, “Fuck me, Gib.”
That’s when his control snapped, and he started thrusting into her, hard and deep. She arched back and met his thrusts, moaning louder with each of them until she was quivering. He groaned and knew he was too close to hold back much longer, so he reached around her and put two fingers on her clit, circling gently.
“Come for me, sweetheart,” he murmured. “Love watching you come. Love hearing how good I make you feel. Let me hear it, Lee.”
She turned her head a little to the side and pressed back at him, and then it hit her. He felt her pussy spasm and watched her turn her head back into the pillow and scream as she came. He felt like laughing and howling with pride at the same time. She’d said she wasn’t a screamer, but he’d given her that.
Nothing could have stopped his own orgasm, and he arched back, tilted his head to the ceiling and with a near shout of his own, he ground into her, coming so hard it was borderline painful, and he had to close his eyes as he shook with it.
When it left him, he immediately pulled out, put a hand on her hip and murmured, “Relax baby. This is gonna sting some.” Then he gently pulled the toy out and heard her exhale hoarsely. “Okay?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she whispered, and he pushed her to her side.
“I’ll clean you up,” he murmured and pulled a sheet over her.
Then he got a warm washcloth and cared for his woman after what probably was the best sex he’d had in his whole goddamned life. Curving his big frame behind her and holding her small body against his as they slipped into sleep, he vowed that if anyone did anything to harm her, he’d fucking kill them.