Say You'll Stay (38 page)

I want to give him all of those things. “Maybe we should spend some time practicing?” I offer.

“Ahh,” he says as his fingers press against my core. “So you think I need to train?”

Zach makes circles and my eyes close. “You’re doing . . .” I start, but it feels too good to talk. “So good.”

He goes back down, only this time he doesn’t stop. His hands lift my legs as he licks and swirls his tongue against my clit. “Zach.” I moan.

He keeps going as my head tosses back and forth. Holy shit. I’m going to explode. He keeps going as I grip the sheets. I writhe and moan as he bites down, taking me over the crest. “Zach!” I yell as my orgasm rocks me. My breathing is heavy, and I swear my bones liquefy.

I look down at him and he winks. “Now what were you saying about practice?”

“I think you’re good,” I say breathlessly. “But I think I could use a go in the batter’s box.”

I push him on his back and toss my hair over my shoulder. I want to watch his face. I kiss my way down to his dick, using my tongue to circle the tip. “Pres,” he warns. I know what he likes, and it’s not when I toy with him. But it’s my favorite part. Watching him become so desperate that he is so close to losing it.

There’s something so erotic about him lying here with his hands behind his head as I pleasure him. Instead of my typical cat and mouse routine, I decide to surprise him. I open my mouth and take him deep.

“Fuck!” he yells and leans up. “Holy shit!”

I smile to myself as I bob my head. I take his length while paying extra attention to the tip. Each grunt and groan that falls from his lips spurs me on. I want to please him, show how much I love him through my body.

“Darlin’,” he pants. “Baby,” he grunts. “Stop. You have to stop.” His hips buck, forcing me to take him deeper. “I’m gonna come if you don’t stop. I want to be inside of you,” he stresses.

I pull back, and he pounces. Within a second, he has me pinned beneath him. “I love you.”

“I love you,” I say.

“Don’t ever stop,” he says as he enters me.

My eyes roll back as I feel him fill me. “I won’t,” I promise.

We make love. Sometimes it’s really sweet and slow, other moments it’s frantic. I cling to him as my second orgasm hits me like a freight train. He tells me how beautiful I am, how much he wants me, and how he needs me.

I feel more tied to him than I ever have. Today we gave each other everything we have, and there’s no way I can get that piece of myself back, even if I wanted to. My life with Zach will never be easy—both of us are too hardheaded—but it’ll be worth every tear shed. He’s where I’m meant to be.

We lie here, entwined in the sheets. “I want to talk to Logan,” he states.

“About?”

“Us.” Zach rolls over and places his hand on my hip. “You mentioned that he feels bad. I don’t want him to worry.”

I nod. “He needs that.”

“I think we all do. I think Cayden and I should get a few minutes together too.”

I place my hand on the side of his face. “Okay.” I smile. “Let’s talk to them.”

“First, I think we should make up one more time just to be sure.”

I giggle as he yanks me on top of him.

One more time is the least I can do to ensure we’re fully made up.

Zachary

I’
VE NEVER BEEN SO NERVOUS
about seeing the boys, but the last time was horrible. Watching them cry and cling to Presley like that pulverized me.

Knowing that I had a hand in them finding out that way is killing me.

They may not be mine, but they’re a part of her, which means they’re a part of me. I meant every word I said to her—I’ll be whatever they need.

“Hey guys.” I try to give them an easy smile and hope it looks that way.

“Zach!” Logan rushes over, and I open my arms. “I’m sorry I hit you,” he says immediately.

He gives me a big hug, and I hold on to his shoulders. I want him to really hear me.

“It’s water under the bridge, little man.” I hate that this kid felt torn up about it. If I saw someone yelling at my mama, they’d have to deal with the three of us boys. “I think it’s admirable the way you defended your mama. It showed real strength and courage.”

“I didn’t hurt you too bad?”

I keep my face stoic. “I had to ice my leg.” I pretend to stretch it. “But it’ll be fine.” Logan beams with pride, and I can’t help but to feel proud too.

Cayden hops down off the porch, and I wait to hear what he has to say. “Does this mean I won’t be a Benson anymore?”

Presley walks over and puts her hand on my arm. I figure she wants to take this one. “You’ll always be a part of your dad. He gave you life, his name, a home, and so much more. Your name will never change, even if someday mine does.”

If the boys weren’t here, I’d be telling her it most definitely
is
changing. Pretty soon, I’m going to make sure the entire world knows who she belongs to.

“I want you guys to know something,” I explain. “I’m always here for you. Always. If you want to talk or learn some pretty cool pranks—I’m your guy. I grew up with Trent, who did it to me, and I turned around and did it to Wyatt.”

They both laugh.

“But seriously, I care about all three of you very much.” I hesitate a little about telling them how much I love Presley. They’ve had a rough couple of days, and there’s still a right time for things. I would rather show them how much she means to me than say the words.

A man’s words are only as true as the actions that follow.

I want to teach them the things my own daddy taught me. He’s given my mother the world and treated her like she owned it. He never complains. He told us once that if she ever left him, he’d lose himself. I used to think he was out of his mind, until I lost Presley.

Presley takes my hand in hers. “I think,” she says with enthusiasm. “We should team up and race again. What do you say?”

Logan and Cayden perk up. “I don’t know,” I joke back. “I whooped you once, it was really embarrassing for you.”

“Ha!” she says in my face. “I beat you! I think your memory is going, old man.”

She wasn’t calling me old when I was making her back arch and cry out in pleasure. “Old?”

Presley’s eyes shine as she looks at me from over her shoulder. “Older than me.”

“Regardless, you’re wrong. I won, right, boys?”

“You lost, Mom. I think since Cayden is the youngest, he should be on her team,” Logan offers. I take it as a good sign that he wants to be on the winning squad.

“Sounds good to me.” I fist bump him.

“Again?” Cayden grumbles. “I get stuck with Mom
again
?”

“Hey!” Presley jeers. “I got stuck pushing you two melonheads out, you don’t see me complaining.” She turns and mumbles. “I give birth to them and they like him because he gives them a horse,” she gripes. “Insane.”

“We can hear you.” I remind her.

“I’m glad,” she taunts back.

She’s so cute when she gets like this. But while my girl was off in the big city, I was raising horses. I’ve learned a thing or two. I’m going to school her ass.

“Okay,” she says as she takes out Shortstop. “Rules are there’s a new route.”

I narrow my eyes at her. She’s up to something. “I don’t think so.”

“Are you going to deny me, Hennington?”

“You’re in trouble.”

She saunters up to me with those green eyes full of mischief. “I think.” She pats my chest. “That you’re the one in trouble, Cowboy.”

When she says my nickname, I can’t handle it. I want to throw her to the ground and make her scream it. “Presley,” I warn. “You’re going to pay for this.”

Her lips form a straight line and my body goes still. Her fingers graze across my chest. “I look forward to it.”

“I bet you do.”

We race as the boys root for me. Logan and I have our own victory dance at the end. Presley swears that, once again, she’s been cheated. And she thought she could win.

The rest of the day I spend time with the twins working on training their horses. We decide to go for a really easy ride with them both. It’s a slow, relaxing day for the four of us. The boys laugh a lot, mostly at Presley’s expense, but she doesn’t seem to mind. Each time one of them lets loose and smiles—she lights up.

She’ll give me a look every once and a while that tells me how grateful she is.

“How about we cook out at my place?” I offer when the four of us get everything settled after our ride.

“Cool!” Cayden exclaims. “We get to see where Zach lives.”

Logan looks at his mother. “Can we?”

“You know how to cook?” she challenges me.

“Men grill. Women cook.”

She removes her hair out of the clip, letting it fall around her. God, I want her. But then I see what I said registered. Her arms cross and her eyes widen. “Is that so?”

Here we go.

“Just a different choice in words,” I try to cover my slip.

“Uh huh.”

“Hey, Logan,” I call out. “Can you help me?”

Presley shifts from being a little hostile to curious.

“Sure!” He rushes over.

I walk over to her and pull her close. “Give me a few with him, okay?”

“Cayden,” she calls out. “How about we go check and see if auntie has slipped into a sugar coma. And let her know she’s coming to dinner at Zach’s.”

Logan and I walk the horses back to their stalls. “You think we can talk man to man?”

He sits on the bale of hay and nods his head. I choke back the laugh at how mature he’s trying to be. I remember being his age. Ballsy as hell and thinking I was already a man. I won’t rob the kid of that.

“I want to know if we’re cool.”

“We are,” he says. “I like you and all.”

I chuckle. “Well, that’s good.”

The thing that has been bugging me is what he overheard. “Yesterday, you overheard your mom and me fighting. I wanted to know if there was something you wanted to ask me.” If he didn’t hear anything about the baby, we’re good, but I need to make sure. It didn’t even dawn on me until we were out on our ride.

“Are you and my mom going to break up because she kept something from you?” he questions.

I feel a bit of relief that he didn’t hear all the shit that came along with that fight. “No, we’re not.”

“Are you mad that she lied?” Logan looks away with worry.

“We both kept things from each other when we were young, but it all came out. That’s why we were fighting. Both of us forgave each other.”

“She kept the truth about my dad from me.”

“You know why, right?”

These kids should’ve never had to go through this. I’m glad Presley has found a way to move on from her anger, but I haven’t come close. I look at these boys and rage fills me. They’re good kids, she’s a good woman, and he left them like this? Makes no sense to me.

He lets out a heavy breath, “I do. I’m not little though. I can take it.”

“I know you’re tough.”

“Will you promise me something, Zach?”

Logan Cayden both have Presley’s eyes. They’re identical and I find it hard to look at those boys and not offer them anything they want. “I can try.”

“Promise you won’t hurt my mom.”

That’s a promise I would do anything to keep. But these boys have had their fair share of half-truths. “I promise I’ll never intentionally hurt her. I can’t promise it’ll never happen because sometimes we make mistakes and hurt the people we love.”

“Like my daddy?”

“Yeah, dude. I don’t think he wanted to hurt you.”

He looks away and draws in a deep breath. “But it still hurts.”

“I’m sure it does.”

“Yeah.” He looks back at me.

“How about we get these horses brushed and then we can do something nice for your mom?”

Logan’s face lights up, and I feel better. He’s a good kid with a big heart.

After twenty minutes we get everything squared away. I take Logan to the field where we grab flowers for Presley. Both of us take handfuls of whatever we can reach. We walk back as he tells me all about some game he plays with his friends from Philadelphia. We talk some more about nothing, but it’s all about small steps.

“Where were you boys?” Presley asks from the top of the stairs.

Logan shows the flowers that were behind his back. “Zach and I got you these.”

She smiles the smile I remember. The one that is just for me. Her eyes fill with tears, but they’re not tears of sadness. “Thank you,” she whispers.

Presley comes down the steps, kisses Logan on the cheek, and then heads toward me. I don’t know if we’re doing the whole affection in front of the boys thing. I let her take the lead and do what she’s comfortable with.

She throws her arms around me, burying her face in my neck. I feel her tears against my skin, and I hold her close.

Her head lifts and she leans in, pressing her lips to mine. She tilts her head back after our brief kiss. “I’ll be thanking you properly later.”

I laugh and spin her around. I’m a lucky man. And I plan to make sure it stays that way.