Inevitably Yours (Imagine Ink Book 4) by Verlene Landon (25)

Those damn flowers finally stopped taunting him by greeting him each time he walked into Augusta’s kitchen. It was like seeing Jesse sitting there, staring at Augusta all moon-eyed while they shared meals.

Seeing them here, in this setting, and seeing Augusta here and happy, made him thankful she didn’t take his suggestion of burning them in the barbeque pit. She accused him of being jealous, which he denied wholeheartedly. He didn’t get jealous, but as soon as her back was turned, he had thumped a bud.

It was Erika who suggested they bring them to Melanie when they “introduced’ her to Cephina. John had never visited Melanie’s grave; he never had reason to before. But sitting here on a picnic blanket, surrounded by the people who loved her the most, he felt a twinge of loss for not having had the pleasure.

Erika, Tori, and Gus, with Cephina in her arms, were curled up on a blanket of their own right by her headstone. The men stayed back, not wanting to intrude while the ladies talked to her like she was standing right there—tearfully introducing her to Cephina, updating her on the business, and playing some awful techno song they said she would have loved.

John sat back, eavesdropping but strangely not feeling like an intruder. Melanie was loved in life and death, and Tori and Erika seemed to want Gus to love her, too. That was the unidentifiable look on Gus’ face, acceptance. She was finally accepting being accepted and stepping into her place in the Reid clan, and it was beautiful.

“Oh, my God, remember that time she dragged us to that weird karaoke bar?” Tori asked Erika.

“The one that I swore was a front for human trafficking?”

“Hell yes. I was terrified to have a drink for fear I would end up chained to a bed in some third world shit hole.”

John chuckled.

“Wait, wait, wait. Start at the beginning, Gus, you have got to hear this.” And they proceeded, at top volume, to tell Gus a story that was borderline unbelievable.

“Hahaha, it’s true, you know,” Andy said from his position beside John. “I remember that night. Erika called me in North Dakota, it must have been after midnight. She said she wanted to leave the line open in case something happened so I could call nine-one-one. I stayed up all night listening to them drunkenly belt out the standard karaoke staples, over and over, until four in the morning. Through a shitty cell phone connection, no less. By the time they stumbled to a cab, I wanted to slaughter Steve Perry in his sleep for daring to write ‘Don’t Stop Believin’.’”

“Melanie must have been an exceptional person to earn the love and loyalty of those ladies.”

It was Walker who answered, “Yes, she was. She was the parts of all of us that we didn’t embrace in ourselves.” John not only got a rare glimpse of Augusta today, he got one of Walker as well. “But she couldn’t dance for shit.” That was more like him.

Another hour and a dozen more Melanie stories and it was time to pack it in. Cephina was having none of it. She was done for the day.

“John, do you mind giving Augusta a lift back home? We promised Frank and Francis we’d bring our little angel by for a visit.”

“Of course, I don’t mind.”

Goodbye kisses and hugs were exchanged graveside and carside. Now that Augusta felt accepted, it looked like farewells were going to take forever.

Once he had her in his car, alone, it felt…right. They chatted all the way back to her place. She relayed the stories he had just heard, but he kept his mouth shut and listened like it was the first time. In a way, it was; it was more intimate when she shared with him.

They pulled in the driveway only to be greeted by a car blocking it and a familiar punk standing on the porch talking to January, who pointed to them.

Jesse. Part of him felt sorry for the kid but part of him thought he needed to be taught a lesson. Both parts agreed, he needed to be sent on his merry way with the distinct impression that his attention toward Augusta needed to stop.

This was where John’s newly hatched skill of not always being in the driver’s seat was tested. He had all but bolted out of the car and leveled the kid. Not that he was a violent man or a jealous man, as a rule, but it was a respect thing. This punk had to know they were together by now, yet he kept turning up like a bad penny.

“John,” Augusta stopped him with a touch, “if I didn’t know better, I’d say the green-eyed monster has his claws in you.” She unbuckled herself. “But, since that can’t possibly be the case, allow me to let him down gently.”

Her door had just opened when John pulled her back into the car by her wrist. After bringing his lips to her ear, he inhaled her scent—it never failed to make him hard as steel. “If I told you that was exactly the case, would you let him down not so gently?”

That must have been the right thing to say because Augusta grabbed him by his bearded cheeks and kissed him. They had shared kisses she initiated before, but this was the first time she really kissed him and took charge of it, choreographed the dance of their tongues.

And John let her.

It was a rather unexpected pleasure. She ended the kiss, leaving him drunk on her. “Since that’s the case, I’ll let him down hard, if you want.” John really liked this role reversal. It wasn’t something he ever thought to explore before, but damn if he wasn’t thinking about just that as he watched Augusta bounce up the stairs and sent the young buck packing in under a minute flat.

John relished the look of defeat on the young fellow’s face a little too much. He couldn’t resist a taunting wave to him when he exited his car and Jesse entered his.

At least he felt bad about it, a little. Jesse wasn’t a bad guy. Andy never would have allowed him to take Augusta on a date if he were. Yeah, I’m still salty about it, though.

After more than four decades on this planet and more loss than anyone should ever endure, John could say he was genuinely happy for the first time ever.

That was what he was thinking as he stepped into the now flower-free house. He was happy here, with these people he called family, and with his life in general. He had everything he wanted except Augusta begging for his cock while still reeling from an orgasm.

It won’t be long now.

0000:27.18…and counting.

“Well, don’t you just look as nervous as a long tail cat in a room full of rocking chairs,” Jan noted as she laced up her Chucks. She looked so wholesome in her denim capris and vintage Winger tee, with her hair in a ponytail. No make-up gave her an air of innocence. Then Gus’ eyes drifted to that blasted duffle bag.

“Jan.” That’s as far as Gus got before Jan shut her down this time. After her shoes were secure, Jan wrapped her arms around Gus and lingered for a moment, then she soothed the hair from her big sister’s face and walked away to grab water and a protein bar.

“It’s not open for discussion, Gus. You’re my sister, not our mother. I blindly supported you, and I ask that you do the same. Besides,” she turned with a bottle in one hand and a sparkle in her eye, “don’t you have more pressing matters to be concerned with. That sex clock is almost zeroed out.”

Jan tucked her provision in the side pocket of her bag and shouldered it. “And then it’s, brown chicken brown cow time.”

Burying her face in her hands, Augusta almost perished from embarrassment. “Stop calling it that.”

“What, sex clock? We just started calling it that, you do not even want to know the previous names,” Jan teased.

It was slightly disturbing how much January reminded her of Stacy. If she were to lay money on it, Stacy was probably the ring leader of the whole thing.

Her phone had been blowing up every hour on the hour with Stacy’s meme of choice. Mostly vulgar.

“Whatever, I never thought I’d encourage this, but get out of here and get to work. I need to get ready.” As Augusta walked her sister to the door, her phone went off yet again. I wonder what it is this time.

Jan grabbed her phone from her hand. “Oooo, it’s a sound file.” Jan pushed play and the voice of Marvin Gaye filled the room and Jan bounced around to “Let’s Get It On.” Gus snatched her phone back and shooed Jan off to work.

“Still better than the porn gif she sent me last hour,” Gus spoke to herself. It bothered her because it was inconvenient and embarrassing, but she wasn’t as mad as her reply texts indicated. It helped ease some of the tension.

John had repeatedly asked her if she needed more time. Even after she had the green light from the doctor, John worried about her comfort. She was more than ready. There was so much sexual tension between them, Tori teased she couldn’t be in the same room or risk getting knocked-up.

Even with their frank discussions about this night, John hadn’t repeated his words of love, so she refrained too. It wasn’t that he didn’t make her feel loved; he certainly did with every lingering touch and fiery gaze. Every little thing he did made her feel cherished, but she still longed to hear the words.

That was the source of her hesitation now. John took her reticence as only partial acceptance of his needs. Try as she might to soothe his troubled mind where sex was concerned, she couldn’t really do that one hundred percent without bringing up the dreaded L word.

The truth was, she felt more comfortable with that line of thinking than dealing with that awkward moment when one person says it and the other looks like a deer in headlights.

However, the drawback was, she was afraid John would still hold back. The way he had when she had been pregnant.

“Well, I just won’t let that happen, now will I?” Confident she could unleash his beast, she went to set up.

Once satisfied everything was in place, she got naked. For the first time since she had the baby, she examined herself in detail in the mirror, trying to get a good idea of what John would see.

With her belly still rounded and hips wider, she had more of a stacked appearance than before. Waif thin by nature, this wasn’t a wholly unattractive change. “Especially these bad mamas.” She grabbed her breasts and shook them at herself. She even squeezed the nipple to ensure she had pumped well enough. If not, the minute John touched her, she’d be leaking breast milk all over the place.

Gus was happy with her new body, and if John’s perma-hard-on was any indication, he was too. Satisfied with that, she turned back to the room. She did a double-check on the table for everything she thought John, and her, could want or need tonight.

One last check of the phone revealed another text from John. He said he wasn’t going to text again, maybe something’s wrong?

Something was wrong, all right, her phone was already supposed to be off and banished to the drawer. By opening the text, she had proven it wasn’t.

It felt as if there was more to the text that John held back. It felt like he wanted to type something else but changed his mind. Maybe a “you will be punished.” But she didn’t expect that much, he was holding back for her, but she was prepared to dive in head-first. All he needed was to see she was ready and willing.

Gus had no delusions that there wouldn’t be an adjustment and learning period as they found who they were sexually together, but she did hope he could find pleasure in giving up control as well.

Over the last weeks, they had been open and honest where sex was concerned. If you’re not doing it, you might as well talk about it. Their discussions ranged from mild to outrageous. They had touched on many subjects, from toys to breath play. Some topics she was more familiar with, while others she had limited experience in. And some ideas were completely new to her, but Gus was excited to explore them with John.

She climbed on at the bottom of the bed and balanced on her knees, gaze fixed on the clock.

This is it.