Begin Again (11 page)

“Dylan, she
’s great. Abby and Joey are, too. I can’t believe how much he looks like Violet and you and your brother,” Stacy said. After Mark had attacked her, they got extremely close. She was one of his best friends. Her opinion mattered to him. “I can’t wait to get to know them all better.”

He wrapped his arms around her and gave her a squeeze.

“Get your hands off of my wife, ass,” Dustin said from behind them. His brother had always been fine with the close relationship they had, even if he did like to give him shit.

“Fuck off, she’s mine
,” Dylan retorted.

“Dylan
, watch your mouth around the little ears,” his mom scolded from the kitchen. Rolling his eyes at his brother, he made his way around saying good-bye to everyone.

He ran home quick
ly to throw some clothes in a bag. Maybe he was being presumptuous, but he wanted to be prepared just in case. He stuffed a condom in his wallet and the rest in his bag. Again, he was being overconfident, but before they’d never been able to go long without being all over each other. They had amazing sexual chemistry before, and that wasn’t the type of thing to go away easily. Locking up his house, he headed out to his truck.

Once he arrived,
he got out of his truck and walked up to her front door. He knocked but heard nothing. Her car was in the driveway, so he knew she was there. He checked the door and found it unlocked. Opening it, he stepped inside, calling out for Journey. He heard nothing and started to panic. He hustled down the hall and froze at the sight before him. Joey and she were lying in her bed, sound asleep. Her arm was wrapped protectively around him. They were both so beautiful that it took his breath away.

As he stepped towards them
, Joey’s eyes blinked open, heavy with sleep. He sat down on the bed and stroked his boy’s chubby little arm while he slowly woke up. His hand reached Journey’s leg, trying to wake her as gently as possible.

“Journey, wake up, sweetheart.”

He knew the moment she awoke because her body tensed right before it sprang upright. With a hand to her chest, she glared at him. “What the heck, Dylan? Were you trying to give me a heart attack?” In the meantime, Joey was now sitting up in between them.

“I’m sorry, baby.
When I got here no one answered and you left the door unlocked. I kind of panicked when the house was silent and seemed to be empty. I came in here and found you both sleeping.” He held out his hands to Joey, who crawled to him. Pulling him onto his lap, Dylan snuggled him close to his body. He kissed his head and looked back up at Journey.

“I came in here to check on him and climbed in
to cuddle with him for a minute,” Journey said. “I didn’t even realize I fell asleep. I can’t believe I left the door unlocked. I’m sorry if I caused you to worry. Why don’t you take him into the living room? I’ll be out in a minute.”

He took Joey out into the living room and sat down with him on the floor in front of his toys.
Dylan laughed when Joey grabbed his toy hammer and started pounding on his dump truck. The kid had a short attention span and moved from one toy to the next, happily chattering away.

Journey joined them a few minutes later.
He knew he was staring, but she looked incredible. She was wearing a pair of black knit shorts and a white and maroon University of Alabama t-shirt that was tight across her breasts. She had her hair up in a high ponytail. Sitting down across from him, she gave them both a smile. Joey went to her, giving her a kiss, and then went back to his toys.

“The longest he’s sat here and played by himself was thirty minutes.
Abby and I like to time him and the amount of time keeps getting longer and longer. As you can tell, his attention span is pretty short. Sometimes he’ll sit and watch a whole episode of Spongebob with Abby, but it’s rare.”

She was amazing.
She was raising two kids by herself and they all seemed so happy. He wondered if he’d even fit in the picture with them. Yes, he was Joey’s dad, but he just met him. He just wanted to be a part of their lives. He’d take whatever Journey was willing to give him.

“Do you want to see some more pictures?
I’ve got some home movies, too.” She was already up and walking over to her bookcase.

“Yeah
, I’d love to. How about later we order some takeout?” He might be overstepping, but maybe forcing his way in was the way to go.

“That would be great.” She handed him a photo album.
“Start with this and I’ll find the DVD.”

Joey came and sat in his lap as he started flipping through pictures.
Some were the same that he had, but there were several he didn’t. One thing he knew for sure was that she made a gorgeous pregnant woman. Her hips were a little wider, her tits were larger, and she had this glow about her. He’d heard his mom talk about Stacy and Bellamy glowing when they were pregnant and both women were beautiful.

There were pictures of Journey in the h
ospital with some sort of strap on her belly. Smiling, he got to a picture of Joey in his momma’s arms, Abby sitting next to her, and Nan hugging them all. Journey looked tired, but was smiling down at their son. As much as he wanted to see all of this stuff, it was still killing him inside that he’d missed it. He continued looking through the pictures, talking to Joey as he did.

“Okay
, I found it,” Journey said as she hurried back into the room. “Do you want to watch it now or later?”

“I’ll take it with me if that’s okay?” He wanted to
watch it alone.

She s
et it on the coffee table and came to sit next to him, telling him about the pictures he was looking at. One by one she went through each picture with him, laughing, smiling, and telling him little things about Joey. Even looking at Abby in the pictures, it was easy to see the progression of the little girl he saw now. She went from a little girl who didn’t look like she smiled much to a girl who was so bubbly and happy now.

“How about I order some dinner?
Does Chinese sound good?” he asked as he stood up, handing Joey to Journey.

“That sounds good.
I’ll take sweet and sour chicken.” He could get used to her smiling at him like that. It was relaxed and natural and made her look so goddamned pretty.

After he ordered their dinner he went back into the living room.

Chapter Nine

After they finished eating, Journey was picking up the garbage while Dylan got Joey ready for his bath. She couldn’t believe how much she was enjoying spending time with him. He was very sweet and so wonderful with Joey. As she cleaned up the kitchen, she could hear Dylan talking to Joey in the living room.

This is what she had wanted all along.
Even if they never would have stayed together, she wanted Dylan to be there for Joey. It was obvious that he wanted that, too. It all felt so normal and domestic. Now all they needed was Abby and it would be perfect. Shaking her head, she got those thoughts out of her head. She wasn’t about to get her hopes up. Oh sure, she knew that he wouldn’t leave Joey now that he knew about him, but he had left her once. She was going to protect her heart at all costs. She couldn’t afford to have him break it again.

She grabbed
her Kindle and went out into the living room. Dylan had Joey down to his diaper and her little boy had that crazy look in his eye before he started doing something naughty. Joey looked at Dylan and then at her before he ripped his diaper off and started running. Laughing, Dylan got up, chasing after him. Joey’s belly laugh echoed through the house. She set her Kindle down and ran after them.

Journey was curled up on the couch reading when Dylan came out after
putting Joey to bed. He sat down on the couch next to her. His scent was woodsy and wrapped around her like a blanket. She felt an ache start to build deep inside her. She hadn’t had sex since him because she never really had time before. Zach was supposed to be her first since Dylan, but him bailing made her realize that it was probably a good thing that they never did. Masturbating was her only way for release, which was nice, but not the same as the feel of a man.

She took a deep breath and s
et her Kindle down. “Did he fight you at all?”

“Not at all, he passed right out.
I know I keep saying it, but thank you for this. I meant to ask you, what do you want to do about child support? Do we need to get that set up through a lawyer?”

She couldn’t believe he was bringing that up.
She hadn’t asked him for anything, she didn’t need anything from him. Journey just wanted him to be in his son’s life. “I don’t need or want your money, Dylan. That’s not why I wanted to find you.”

“I know, Journey.
I can look at those kids and at your place and I know you’re doing fine, but I want to contribute. I want to help you.”

Well, okay
, she’d admit that she may have jumped to conclusions, but so many people made assumptions about her. She just figured that Dylan was, too.

“Okay. I’m sorry, Dylan.
” She had to quit being so defensive when it came to her babies.

“Journey, can I ask you a question without you getting mad?” She nodded her head, but was afraid of what he was going to ask.
“How did it happen? We were always careful.”

She couldn’t get mad at question like that
. “Well, I’m guessing it was the night after we went on that dinner cruise.”

He must’ve remembered it because his eyes got all dark and intense, which caused that ache to return.
“Ahhh…the shower. I loved that thing.”

She couldn’t help but laugh.
After the first time, they used it all of the time. “Yes, you did.”

“I know it wasn’t smart pulling out, but you were on the pill, right?”

She had been on the pill since she was sixteen and never missed one. “I guess it was just one of those freak incidents. I know it wasn’t something planned, but I don’t regret it. I can’t imagine my life without him in it.”

“Baby, I know it wasn’t.
I may have only known him for a week, but I don’t regret it either.”

Journey didn’t think
; she just threw her arms around Dylan, hugging him tight. “Thank you for that. You don’t know what it means to me to hear you say that.”

Her arms were still around his neck, but she pulled away to look Dylan in the eye.
She felt his hand cup her cheek, causing her heart to start beating faster and harder in her chest. “Kiss me,” she whispered, her voice sounding breathless.

He didn’t
need to be asked twice. His other hand came up and he pulled her face down to meet his. The kiss was soft and gentle. His lips barely grazing hers, she tried to deepen the kiss, but he wouldn’t let her. Why that turned her on when he took control, she’d never know. She let her hands drift up to his hair, gripping it hard with her fingers. She swore he growled at her before he deepened the kiss. His tongue licked at the seam of her lips, his breath hot against them. Shivers slid down her spine as she opened her mouth and stroked her tongue against his.

She felt his hand slide up t
o her pony tail. He gripped it, holding her immobile as he assaulted her mouth with his. The man could kiss, because one simple kiss from him and she turned into a quivering ball of need. In a mere second, with her lips melding with his, he had her up and straddling his lap. The feel of his erection between them had Journey grinding against him, eliciting a moan from both of them. She should stop him before it got out of hand, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. It had been too long, and as much as she was going to keep it from him, she still loved him, even though he hurt her. Did that make her an idiot? Possibly, but she’d worry about that another time.

Dylan’s hands slid into the back of her shorts
, gripping her ass in an almost punishing grip. Pulling her harder against him, she gave a little swivel to her hips. She felt moisture start to coat her pussy. She grabbed his t-shirt and pulled it up enough to shove her hands under it and touch his muscular chest. Two years ago he’d been more bulky, but now he was much leaner. She raked her nails lightly down his chest and felt his cock pulse beneath her.

He broke the kiss, but only to let his lips slide down to her neck.
She knew she was panting and moaning, but at any second she was going to come. Journey felt one of his hands slide around to the front—sliding it down the front of her shorts. She should feel embarrassed with how wet she was, but she couldn’t muster up the power to do so.

“Oh god, baby
, you’re so wet for me. Do you want my fingers inside you?”

She felt her pussy clench at his words.
Journey had never been into the dirty talk before him. He could have her close to orgasm just with his words.

“Yes-s-s,” she stuttered out.
He slid one finger inside her and she stifled the cry that left her lips by burying her face in Dylan’s neck.

“Jesus, baby.
You’re so fucking tight.” She ground her pussy against his hand, knowing it was going to be covered in her juices.

He pumped his finger in and out of her a few times before he added another finger. He turned his hand so he could tap the spot inside of her that caused her entire body to
shudder against his. Between his fingers inside of her and his heel against her clit, Journey came quick and hard. Biting into his neck to keep quiet, she ground her pelvis down against him as she shook with the force of her orgasm. As it faded away, Journey’s body drooped against Dylan’s. She whimpered when he pulled his fingers out of her. He was covered in her juices, but he didn’t seem to care.

She held his eyes as he lifted his hand, brought it to his mouth
, and started licking her off of him. It was the sexiest thing she’d ever seen, especially when he closed his eyes and moaned. Not even thinking, Journey grabbed his hand, brought it to her mouth, and sucked one finger in. She could taste herself and moaned around his finger.

“I need to be inside you now, baby.” Dylan picked her up and she immediately wrapped her legs around his waist.

Neither of them spoke as they entered her bedroom.
He laid her down, following her. Pulling his face to hers, she kissed him with everything she had. His tongue entered her mouth, dueling with hers. Grabbing his shirt, she started pulling it up, breaking the kiss only for him to finish pulling it over his head. The moonlight shining in the window allowed Journey to catch a glimpse of his gorgeous chest before he was back on her. He slid her shirt up just above her bra and pulled the cups down.

“Damn
, baby, your tits are even better than before.” She couldn’t help but watch as his mouth lowered and he sucked a nipple into his mouth. Journey had heard that breast feeding could toughen up your nipples to where they weren’t as sensitive, but that certainly wasn’t the case now. She whimpered as he bit just enough to cause a slight tingling of pain and then ravishing it with his tongue. He switched breasts and she started squirming underneath him.

Reaching down
, she undid his shorts and shoved her hand down until it wrapped around his cock. She’d never forgotten how beautiful it was; long and thick and so very hard for her. He groaned around her breast as she pumped it slowly, letting her hand slide down to the base and back up to the tip that was already leaking pre-come. Rubbing her thumb across the tip collecting the salty fluid and bringing it to her mouth, she made a big show of slowly licking it off of her thumb.

Dylan’s growl made her womb clench.
She pulled the thumb from her mouth and before she could bring her hand back down, he was ripping the shirt up and over her head, followed by her bra. In seconds they were both naked and his lips were back on hers. They were frantic for each other, rolling across her bed in a tangle of arms and legs. He quickly grabbed his jeans and she heard the sound of a condom wrapper being torn open as her pulse hammered.

He was back on top of her, between her legs.
“Baby, this is gonna be quick because I need to be inside of you.”

“Oh
, please hurry,” she moaned as he lined up his cock with her entrance and thrust inside of her in one stroke. She felt stuffed full, but she loved it. He stayed buried inside her and stroked her cheek. The tenderness made her want to cry.

“You’re so beautiful, Journey.” He pulled almost all of the way out and thrust back in.
He reached down between them and pinched her clit between his finger and thumb. With each pinch her pussy clenched around him. She felt that familiar ache that started deep inside of her. He reached down and threw her leg over his shoulder, opening her wider to him.

He leaned down
, kissing her so tenderly that it stole her breath. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, deepening the kiss. His thrusts increased, and her orgasm was so close she could taste it. They were practically one body; they were so close together—lips to lips, chest to chest and him buried completely inside of her. His lips were still touching her, but he whispered, “Are you close, baby? I’m about to come.”

That seemed to set her right off.
Her eyes closed tightly as her back bowed off of the bed. Dylan silenced her with his mouth. His thrusts became faster and harder as she felt him swell inside of her before he let out a long lengthy groan while he was buried balls deep inside her. They were both panting for breath. Her heart started to finally slow. She blew out a shaky breath and opened her eyes to look at him. He gave her that breathtaking smile of his and leaned down, kissing her lips sweetly.

He somehow managed to roll to his back
, still buried inside her, stroking her back gently and almost lulling her to sleep. They stayed like that for a few minutes before he pulled out of her, causing her to whimper.

“I’m going to take care of this really quick.
I’ll be right back.” He kissed her quick and then climbed out of the bed.

She watched his muscled backside
as he grabbed his boxer briefs off of the floor, sliding them up his lean legs. When he left the room, Journey rolled over onto her stomach, smiling into her pillow. It was just as hot now as it was then with him. He could make her body sing so easily. She waited for regret to consume her, but it didn’t, and that scared her a little. Journey told him she wanted to go slow, but she didn’t know if she could do it now.

She turned at the sound of his footsteps as he came back into the bedroom.
Scanning his body from head to toe, she’d never seen a more perfect male form. When they had been together before, he was more heavily muscled than now. Either way, it made her drool. The bulge of his cock was mouthwatering.

The bed dipped as he climbed in with her.
He pulled her to him, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. “You doing okay, baby?” He brushed his lips across hers.

“Yes
,” she whispered.

“What time does Joey get up?” He wrapped his arm around Journey.
She settled into him, inhaling his masculine sent.

“Umm…usually around six or so.
Are you, um— are you staying the night?” Journey really wanted him to.

“If that’s okay with you
, I’d like to.”

Dylan turned her so her back was to him and smiled when he kissed her shoulder
. Her eyes grew heavy immediately. As she drifted to sleep, she couldn’t help but think that today was the best day ever.