He’s wearing black jeans and a bright red button-up dress shirt that offsets his black hair and blue eyes. But in typical rocker style, his shirt is untucked, sleeves rolled up to expose his gloriously tattooed forearms, and the top button hangs open, giving a tease of his inked-up neck and impressive build. My mouth waters, and the dessert table suddenly loses its appeal to my intense hunger for him.
He blinks a few times then continues toward me but stops about a foot away. His eyes move from my face to my feet and back. “Holy shit, baby. I’ve never seen you in a dress and I gotta say . . .” He whistles through his teeth. His eyes fix on mine, and the blue flares with desire. His tongue slides against his lower lip. “You look good enough to eat.”
A tremor of arousal shoots through my body and pools between my legs. “That sounds good. How much time do we have?”
He hooks me around my waist and pulls my body flush with his. His lips find my ear and he nips gently. His warm breath dances against my flesh, raising goose bumps down my arms. “Not nearly enough time for all I want to do. I have a feeling once I get down there I’ll never want to stop.”
I gasp and drop my head to the side while he covers my neck with kisses and runs his nose along my exposed shoulders and clavicle, breathing me in. My head swims with the spice of his cologne and the clean smell of his skin.
His fingertips trace the bust line of my strapless dress. “Have I ever told you how good you look in black?” His tongue skates up the side of my neck.
Incapable of words, my eyes drift close. “Mm-hm.”
He chuckles in my ear, so deep and full of promise that my legs tremble.
“You like that?” He tucks my hair behind my shoulder and repeats it on the other side.
I grip his biceps to stay upright.
His hot peppermint breath is at my ear. “Answer me.”
“Yes.”
“Atta girl.” His hands move over the curves of my body now filled out thanks to his insistence that I eat and go with him to train at the gym a few days a week. He grabs both hands full of my ass and squeezes. “I’m happy to have everyone over, but I’m looking forward to sending them home.”
His words clear the fog. I blink. Yes, people are coming over. “We better stop or we may never answer the door.”
He pulls back, and holding my hand, he steps away and gives me another long appreciative glance. “Shit, Gia. Where the hell did you get this dress?” He lingers at my platform pumps. “And those shoes?” His free hand adjusts his jeans. “They’re doing fucked-up things to my body.”
“Good fucked-up?” I spin slowly, ducking under his arm to keep my hand in his. “Or bad fucked-up?”
He lifts his pierced eyebrow and flashes a crooked grin. “All kinds of good.”
I barely have to lift up on my toes to brush a tentative kiss against his perfect lips. “Good.”
His hand darts into my hair and fists seconds before he covers my mouth with his. Passion hits as it always does, and we’re clawing at each other, nipping, drinking, and in a frenzy to get closer.
The doorbell rings and he rips his lips from mine. Our eyes lock, chests heaving, hearts racing against the other.
“I’ll get it.” He kisses the tip of my nose and gives me a second to steady myself on my shoes. “You good?”
“Yeah.” I smooth my hands over my dress.
He winks and turns to answer the door.
“Merry Christmas!” Raven’s voice comes from behind Rex along with the sound of back-pounding guy hugs. “Oh my gosh! Your tree is awesome.”
Rex smiles at me.
I move across the room to meet them, and Raven swallows me in a hug. Jonah’s next, but he limits his hug to the one arm variety since his other enormous arm is cradling Sadie.
“Aww, look at her.” I tweak the tiny red bow that’s wrapped around a sprout of shiny black hair. “She looks like a little Christmas angel.”
“Yeah, well, she’s all yours. I’ve been holding her so much I miss holding my wife.” He gently places Sadie into my open arms and kisses her tiny hand. “You be good for your Aunt Gia, princess. Daddy here needs some momma time.” He gives me a chin lift and moves to his wife.
I hold the tiny baby to my chest. “Hey, pretty girl. You’re getting so big.” Not comfortable negotiating the slick concrete floors in my heels, I move to the couch. “There we go. We’ll be safer here. Auntie Gia’s a mess in heels.” I slide my finger into her hand and she grips my finger tight. “Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere.” She coos and I kiss the tiny dimple on her cheek. “You’re okay. I’m here.”
The feeling of eyes on me lifts my head to find Rex staring. He’s not far from the couch, totally ignoring Jonah and Raven, his gaze boring into mine.
“You okay?” I mouth the words meant only for him.
He blinks and nods then comes to me, dropping into the space next to me on the couch. He leans in. “Watching you over here, it makes me think you’re going to be an amazing mother.”
My breath catches in my throat. I pull back to see his face, and there’s nothing but love and pride reflecting from his eyes. “I’m not mother material. I’d just screw a kid up.”
Before I finish talking, he’s shaking his head. “You’re going to make a fantastic mother when the time comes.” He runs his fingers over Sadie’s tiny baby head. “I hope our kids have your red hair.”
“Rex”—my pulse rockets in my ears—“I’m not ready.” Just a month ago I was in a coma from a drug overdose after I shacked up in a house full of bikers. If anything screams do not reproduce, it’s that.
“I’m not either. Fuck knows I’ve got a lot of shit to work through before I could even consider fatherhood.” He hooks his fingers beneath my chin. “But make no mistake, Gia McIntyre, I’m going to make you my wife.”
Heat floods my cheeks. “Or am I going to make you my husband?”
“Either way, I’m happy.”
“Merry Christmas, mo’fos!” We look up to see Blake, Layla, Axelle, and Killian strolling through the door.
Layla’s eyes find me and she shuffles over to us. “Hey, Rex.”
He kisses my head and stands to give Layla a hug. “No baby yet, huh?”
She rolls her eyes and waves him off. “Ugh . . . No.”
Blake fist bumps Rex. “I keep tellin’ her the more we”—he looks over his shoulder at Axelle and Killian, who’ve made their way to the desserts with Raven and Jonah—“have sex, the better chance she has of going into labor, but she says four times a day is enough.”
Layla slaps Blake’s stomach. “Oh my gosh, Blake, TMI.”
“Mouse, baby, everyone knows sex induces labor. It’s in every pregnancy book I’ve read.”
“I realize that, Snake, but we’re already doing plenty of that and it’s not helping.”
Blake snags her and pulls her to him, his hands going to her belly and his lips to hers. “You call me Snake again, I’ll throw you down right here and induce something else altogether.”
Sadie squeals and gets the attention of the room.
“Ha! You hear that, Slade?” Blake’s grinning wide. “Your wife and your daughter find me fucking hilarious.”
“Blake! Language.” When will Layla learn a guy like Blake might change his colors, but they’ll never fade?
He throws his arms out to his sides. “What’d I do?”
I laugh and look at Rex to find his eyes on me.
A slow smile curls his lips.
People come and go throughout the night. Even Emma stopped by to say Merry Christmas, stating that she’d planned on staying for a short time, but when Rex introduced her to Caleb, they hit it off and spent most the night talking.
Looking around the room, I swallow back the lump that forms in my throat. We came from nothing and here we are with more than anyone deserves. So much that a lifetime would never be enough time to enjoy it.