THIRTY-ONE

Mia

It worries me when I get home and see a strange car parked outside the house, across the water. Jake had been at the top of the drive by the gate, but what if someone got by him? My phone is already in my hand and I’m dialling, as I shove open the door, letting out a very relieved Griffin.

My trip to town had taken a bit longer than I anticipated. My session with Rueben had run long, but in a good way, and I’d stopped for some groceries. This time without incident. No panic attacks, no blackouts, not even a tingle. That deserved a celebration, so I went to that nice little bakery on Main Street. That’s where I ran into Dr. Winters, Jordy’s OBGYN. I was surprised he even recognized me, from that brief time in the hospital, the night Ole was born. He invited me for a coffee and we had a nice chat.

“I don’t mean to pry,” I start when Jordy answers her phone. “But are you okay?”

“Mia? I’m fine. Did Jared call you to check on me?”

“No, he didn’t. It’s just that...”

“I’m with John,” she says, cutting me off. “He called after I talked to you this morning. He’s cooking for me.”

I smile at the tone in her voice, excited and yet slightly apprehensive.

“That’s great, honey. Then who is at the house looking after the baby?”

“Ole is with me. Jared’s home, why?”

“Oh.” Jordy’s answer hits me for a loop but before my imagination has a chance to run away with me Jordy continues.

“Yeah, he got off early.”

“Then whose car is in the driveway?” I finally get to the point and she starts laughing.

“Jared’s idea of adjusting to his environment.”

-

I shoot off the text, once I’ve put away the groceries and Griffin is fed. Jared doesn’t take long to respond.

The answer is so typically male, it makes me smile. I quickly type back.

I almost drop my phone when it rings in my hand. Jared’s name shows on my screen.

“Thank you for the note, and for Joe,” I jump right in, the smile obvious in my voice.

“My pleasure,” he rumbles. “What’s the stuff you want to do?”

“Pull up some more carpet.” I want to do what I can myself in the bedroom, to make it easier on Joe. He left some of his tools this morning, so I had a sturdy putty knife to scrape the glue.

“Need some help?” Jared wants to know, putting a grin on my face. “Not like I have something better to do, with Jordy and Ole gone. Maybe it’ll keep me from thinking about what my sister might be up to with Dudley Do-Right,” he adds, when he hears my hesitation.

“Isn’t Dudley Do-Right a Royal Canadian Mountie?” I snicker.

“Same difference,” he growls. “All I know he’s probably got his hands on my sister right now.”

“He’s a good man, Jared. Jordy could do so much worse,” I soothe, but it’s met with a derisive snort.

“She just had a baby, for crying out loud.” He’s worried, I can tell by the tone of his voice.

“Just about two months ago, honey. She’s fine. And besides, doesn’t that tell you all you want to know about John? Takes a pretty decent guy to be able to see beyond the dirty diapers, the baby spit, and the fatigue straining her face, to the beautiful, big-hearted prize he wins in her.”

“And Ole,” Jared adds.

“And Ole,” I quickly agree with a smile, realizing that was part of what was bugging him. Jared stands to lose his spot as number one man in Ole’s young life. I get that, but it takes a village to raise a child, and Ole will only be better off having two, strong male influences to guide him. Something I’m sure Jared understands rationally.

“So can I come over?” This time there’s vulnerability in the question and I don’t hesitate.

“Do you have a putty knife?”

“I’m sure I can dig one up. Be there in a bit.” Before I get a chance to answer, he ends the call.

-

By the time I have a pot of tea and a few easy sandwiches made, his knock sounds at the door.

“Hey,” he says gently when I open the door and step back for him to walk in. He waves a putty knife, that’s seen better days, in my face as he passes and heads straight for the kitchen. “Found one.”

I follow behind, perhaps a little disappointed that was all the greeting I would get, but then he puts the knife on the counter and turns around to face me.

“Need both hands to say hello. Missed you, Beautiful.” His deep voice is like silk over my ruffled feathers. “Come here.” Without hesitation I move straight into his arms. His hand comes up to tangle in my curls, tilting my head back. The sting of his hold instantly soothed by his mouth, soft on mine. The contrast is delicious, as he plunges his tongue deep between my lips. The kiss is forceful, demanding, but also tainted with need, and perhaps even a hint of desperation.

“Fuck, I missed you,” he repeats, his lips still against mine, before he dives face first in my neck, holding on like it’s been months since he’s last seen me, not mere days. “Thought I’d fucked it all up,” he mumbles.

I ease him back so I can look in his eyes. “You didn’t do a thing,” I reassure him. “I just need to find my balance. I want to make sure I don’t get swept away by the tide, without having my feet pointed in the right direction. Make what comes next a conscious decision and not just a result of circumstance.” He nods his understanding, his expression warm as his eyes trace my features. “For you as well,” I add gently.

“So if, say, I was hoping you’d stay the night with me, so I can wake up with you in my arms tomorrow, on my day off, I should probably let you know beforehand?” he asks, with a teasing glint in his eyes.

“I could do a sleepover.” I smile at the way his eyebrow shoots up.

“Thank Christ—I’d hate to see the one night I have the house to myself wasted.”

“We don’t want that,” I react, rolling my eyes, before I slip from his hold and change the subject. “You hungry?”

“Starving,” he says, eyeing me, but accepting the plate I hand him nonetheless.

“Your hair!” I blurt out when he takes off his ball cap and tosses it on the counter.

“Jordy buzzed it,” he says, grinning sheepishly as he runs his hand over his nearly bald head. “It’s something I used to do at the beginning of every season. A fresh start, new options open, and the possibilities endless. Seemed appropriate in more than one way this time.” I smile back, hearing the message clearly.

“I like it.”

-

“Holy shit.”

That’s Jared’s reaction when we get to my bedroom. I’m sure it’s mostly the lingering smell he’s reacting to. I’ve had the window open, with the new screen—thanks to Joe—firmly in place. I’ve even had a fan blowing to disperse the air, but as long as we have this carpet in here, we’ll never be able to get rid of the odour.

“We’re gonna have to repaint too,” Jared says, running his fingers over some of the stains I tried washing off the walls.

“I know. I think I’ll probably end up tossing everything in this room. The curtains seem to hold on to the smell, and I can even smell it on my towels and in my clothes.

“We can wash those. I’m sure a few cycles through my state-of-the art Maytag will get it out.”

I chuckle at his description of his washer. As long as it has a motor of some kind, it’s automatically a prized possession. Guys. “I’ll take you up on that.”

Two hours later, my hands are almost blistered and my knees feel like someone’s shoving splinters in my joints. But what has me toss down my putty knife and clamber to my feet are the beads of sweat on Jared’s forehead, and the way he winces with every move.

“Enough for today,” I announce, feeling all kinds of guilty I didn’t think about the state of his knee. He’s been on the ice more than he has in a year, in just the past little while, and if my healthy knees feel like this after a couple of hours, I don’t even want to think about his injured knee. “I’m getting you some ice,” I announce, already turning to leave the room to give him a chance to get to his feet, without losing his pride. I’m pretty sure that’s what held him back from opening his stubborn mouth.

I try not to notice his limp, when he finally walks in the kitchen, and try to be casual about handing him the bag of frozen corn. He sits down at the counter, and lifts his leg up on another stool to ice down his knee.

“I don’t have beer, but I have some Scotch left?” I offer.

“I have beer, and Scotch, and any other damn alcoholic beverage you could want. We’ll head over to mine.”

“Sure. Let me clean up a little first. Joe will be here at eight so I’ll have to be back here early.”

“We’ll leave him a note, or we can leave the key with the guard,” Jared orders. “No one’s getting out of bed before at least nine.” I raise an eyebrow at that, but Jared holds my gaze firmly. “Why don’t you do what you need to do, and maybe grab some stuff we can load in the washer. I’ll go drop off a key for Joe at the gate.” He tosses the frozen corn in the sink, walks up to me and tugs me close, an arm around the small of my back. “Don’t make me wait too long,” he whispers against my lips.

A spare key in hand, and Griffin at his heels, he walks out the door and I head into the bedroom, armed with a fresh stack of garbage bags.

It takes longer than I thought. I empty my dresser and closet, before hopping in the shower to rinse the lingering stench and sheen of sweat of my body. I don’t want to get dressed in smelly clothes, but the night is too cool to walk around naked, so I sniff carefully to find the least offensive shirt and sweats I can find. Ready to head over, I look at the six full garbage bags, knowing there’s no way I can carry those all over at once, but I can fit at least three in the canoe with me and paddle across. Locking up the house, I toss my keys in the little backpack I loaded up, and grab hold of the garbage bags I’m bringing. Half-carrying and half-dragging, I manage to get them around the house to the dock.

Flickering light, coming from the direction of Jared’s place, draws my gaze and my breath catches in my throat when I see the source. His house is dark, but a few candles dot the outline of the upper deck. What grabs my attention are the bright flames, licking up from the portable fire pit placed on the end of the dock. In the their orange glow I can see the unmistakable outline of a familiar body.

Jared’s waiting for me.

Jared

I have my phone out to find out what’s keeping her when I see her appear at the water’s edge. I’d hoped she might see the fire from inside and make her way over.

She stops when she spots me, and even at this distance, I can see the light of the flames play in the shine of her eyes. A slow smile spreads over her face as she resumes her path down the dock, toward her canoe. Clever girl, she tosses the garbage bags she was toting into the waiting canoe and climbs in after.

I left Griffin inside, he’d curled up in his favourite spot, while I took a quick shower and barely budged when I scrounged around to look for candles.

Watching as Mia starts slicing her paddle through the mirror surface of the water, I step off the blankets I spread out over the dock and pull off my shirt. Next are my shorts that I pulled on commando, knowing I probably wouldn’t have them on long. The air is cold, but enough heat comes from the fire to keep me comfortable. Though even without, the hot flow of blood pounding through my veins is enough to warm me from the inside out. Knowing my girl gets turned on by watching is something I’m banking on tonight.

It could be my imagination, but I swear I can hear her sharp intake of breath when I walk around the fire pit, my rigid cock jutting out unashamed. I lower myself on the edge of the dock, my feet dangling in the surprisingly warm water, and wrap my fist around my erection, slowly moving from root to tip.

She sees what I’m doing. The light clatter of her paddle on the edge of her canoe makes that clear. Floating about halfway between her dock and mine, her hungry gaze follows every move of my hand. It’s highly erotic, feeling her eyes burn me. The sheer heat ramps up the speed of my movements, when she suddenly starts paddling again, faster than before. Her tongue darts out, licking a trail across her bottom lip that glistens in the light bouncing off the water.

Just out of reach, she lays her paddle across the canoe, and lifts her arms, pulling her shirt up with it. Tossing her shirt in the back, she resumes paddling. Her breasts swaying with every move as she closes the distance. The tip of the canoe bounces against my legs, and she tosses the end of the rope to me. I quickly tie off on the dock cleat, before I wrap my hand around my dick again.

“Save some for me,” her hoarse voice sounds almost breathless, as she pulls the canoe sideways, forcing me to lift my feet on its edge. She cleverly manoeuvers her body between my legs, holding onto me with her hands braced on my thighs. I groan as she leans in to lick at the bead of precum on the head of my cock, the tip of her tongue slicking along the small slit. My ass clenches at the rasp of her touch, and goosebumps rise all over my body. I almost lose it when she sheathes me in the warm, wet heat of her mouth, working the length with lips and tongue. I’m already primed, so when she hums in the back of her throat, I can feel the vibrations run all the way down from the crown to my balls, which draw tight in warning.

“Not like this,” I rumble, as I reach down and pull her up and off my dick, straight out of the canoe. “Hang tight,” I instruct her as I scoot us back far enough, so I can get my legs under me. Before I have a chance to try lifting us both, Mia’s already on her feet, her hand reaching out to help me up. God knows I need it, because my knee is still throbbing like a son of a bitch.

I pull her toward the stack of blankets I piled up and lower myself on my back.

“Ride me,” I bite off, barely able to form a coherent word, as I watch Mia tuck her thumbs in her waistband and slowly lower her sweats down her legs. She’s beautiful, but in the soft light of the flames; she’s absolutely breathtaking. The soft slope of her breasts, the gentle swell of her belly, and the generous curve of her hips, a picture of luscious temptation as old as time. “Please...”

She grabs the hand I reach out for her and lowers herself, one knee on either side of my hips, until I can feel her slick heat settle over my groin. She leans forward, her arms bracing her beside my head, and as she lowers her mouth to kiss me, I can feel the hard peaks of her nipples brush against my chest. A deep groan escapes me when her tongue slips inside my mouth, and she rolls her hips at the same time, catching the tip of my cock at her entrance.

I don’t think I’m breathing at all while I let her kiss me, only loosely holding her hips, as she slowly takes me inside her body.

-

“Wake up.”

I feel the light brush of lips against my own and it takes me a minute to get my bearings. The weight of Mia’s body is solid against my own, both of us wrapped in the blankets I’d brought out. I must’ve fallen asleep. Mia exerted her power over my body in a slow and yet intense connection, the likes of which I’ve never experienced. She dragged every last ounce out of me, until nothing was left but bone deep satisfaction and exhaustion.

I slowly blink my eyes, only to notice the fire has burned out in the pit. Mia’s beaming face looms over me.

“Look up,” she urges, dropping her head back down to my shoulder, and placing her hand in the middle of my chest.

It’s the most awe-inspiring thing I’ve ever seen.

“My God,” I manage, pulling Mia closer as if to ground me.

“So beautiful,” she whispers, the wonder evident in her voice.

Streaks of hazy colour paint the sky, undulating like a sheet in the wind. Mist rippling from left to right across the dark expanse, like the changing of the tides, in hues from green to purple.

I’m transfixed in the ghostly glow touching my skin.

Aurora Borealis.