The Do Over (35 page)

"Liam, it's great to
finally
meet you," her father said, folding his hands. "You have to understand that my girls are my life. I'll do anything for them. I'll cut to the chase. What are your intentions with Dani?"

Shaking her head, Dani buried her face in her hands. "Kill me now."

"Sir, it's nice to finally meet you as well. I love your daughter. My intentions are honorable. I want to get to know her and spend as much time with her as I can." As I laced my fingers with Dani's, I winked at her. "Dani is—"

"Are you having sex with her?" Her mother interrupted.

I was rendered speechless.

"If you are, I hope that you're using protection. If she were to get pregnant, what are your intentions then?"

"Way to go, Mom. I'm not sixteen. I'm twenty-eight years old. I'll answer this question. Yes, I'm having sex with him. I love him. I want to be with him. I want to take this," Dani said, motioning between us, "as far as it'll go. If I get pregnant, we'll deal with it. It's not the plan, but you know what? I would welcome it. Actually, I'd be thrilled. That's how much I love him."

"Liam, you know you don't have to marry her if she got pregnant, but I would fully expect you to assume your responsibility," her father interjected.

Dani's mom smacked her dad on the back of his head. "He most certainly will marry her if he's irresponsible enough to get her pregnant. I will not have a grandchild born out of wedlock."

Macy hadn't prepared me for this, and now I understood Dani's anxiety attack. Had it been any other woman, I might have bolted. But it was Dani, so I didn't care. They could bring it on. I wasn't sure if they were testing me or if they really meant it. I did the only thing I knew to do.

"With all due respect," I said, standing up and placing my hands on Dani's shoulders, "I love Dani with all my heart. I'm not going to make a grand declaration here because it's neither the time nor the place. But understand, without a shadow of a doubt, I know that I can't imagine my life without her. She's the one. I've known it all along. Wherever our lives lead us, I know that we'll figure it out. We belong together. Come hell or high water, she's mine, and I'm hers."

"That
wasn't
a grand declaration?" Dani whispered as our eyes met.

"No, on the day I ask you to be my wife, I'll be making a grand declaration. For now, I'm saying that you're stuck with me."

As her dad stood up, he extended his hand to me. "Welcome to the family."

Her mom came around, looking me square in the eyes. "There better be action behind those words. Talk is cheap. But I like that you took a stand. Keep it up. You might win me over." She winked and patted me on the back before she left the room.

After the Ruiz Family Inquisition was over, her parents morphed into normal people, and I liked them. The rest of the afternoon went on without a hitch.

Dani curled up next to me on the couch as we watched football and talked about boating with her dad. Her mom brought us some turkey sandwiches and about ten photo albums filled with pictures of Dani growing up. I was definitely part of the family, and it felt good.

The dessert dishes were piled in the sink as the last of my friends left. Liam blew out the candles on the table. Thanksgiving dessert at my place was a long-standing tradition with my friends. We'd gather to decompress and laugh at the lunacy that was sure to have happened during our family Thanksgivings.

I had a lot to be grateful for on this day, including good friends, my health, and most significantly, the man walking toward me. A warm glow flowed through me. I was still processing everything he'd said to my parents. His not-a-grand declaration was
grand.
I stood there, hugging the dishtowel to my chest. Wonderful didn't begin to express how his words had made me feel.
God, I love him.

As our eyes met, I bit my lower lip. He grabbed the dishtowel out of my hands and then wrapped it around my waist, pulling me into him. Tilting my chin, he lowered his mouth and teased my lower lip with his tongue. I smiled and parted my lips.

Kissing Liam was my favorite pastime. Every cell in my body tingled, leaving me wanting more. Sure enough, my heart raced, my breathing quickened, and my mind cleared itself of anything other than the man whose arms were wrapped around me.

"I finally have you all to myself," he said in a husky voice.

Pulling back from him, with a raised eyebrow, I asked, "You didn't like hanging out with my friends?"

He twirled the dishtowel in his hands. "Your friends are great, and I'm glad that you and Macy have patched things up."

"Oh, really?" I said playfully. "Are you counting on learning my dirty little secrets from her? Fat chance since she's still on probation."

He flung the towel at me, and I yelped.

"Baby, I'm your number one. We don't keep secrets. I have nothing to learn from Macy."

I'd planned on telling Liam about Rick on a number of occasions, but the timing had always felt wrong. Now was a prime example. Everything with Liam was perfect, and I didn't want to rock the boat. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that the visit with Rick was harmless. I'd be upsetting Liam for nothing at all. I had dragged him through enough post-Rick break-up shit that I didn't want to talk about him anymore. I was letting all of that go, so I could move forward with Liam.

"I have something for you," I said.

As I was leading him toward my bedroom, he wrapped his arms around me. I purred as I reclined against his chest. He buried his face in my neck, tickling me with his stubble.

With his lips against my ear, he whispered, "I have something I want to give to you, too."

A shiver coursed through my body as he pressed his growing erection against me. I forgot what I had for him. I remembered that it was special, but the overwhelming passion and desire I was feeling was all I could think of. My body craved him and throbbed in anticipation of his touch. His hands slid under my blouse and settled on my nipples. His breath against my ear tickled my senses.

He whispered, "I've wanted to touch you all day."

I whimpered as my legs stopped moving mid-way to my room. While his fingers kneaded my nipples, I panted and squirmed against his body.

"You like that?" he asked.

I nodded in response.

Still standing behind me, he unbuttoned my blouse, and it slipped to the floor. His hands reached for mine, and then he brought my fingers over my nipples.

"Baby, play with them," he mumbled in my ear.

I trembled, my legs weakening. His hands traveled along the side of my body as he lowered himself, trailing kisses down my back. I widened my stance and propped myself against the wall with one hand while keeping the other on my nipple. After he slipped off my skirt, his fingers gingerly skimmed up my legs. I moaned in pleasure as he began caressing my folds. He inserted his fingers inside of me.

"Baby, you're so wet."

He kissed along my legs and softly nipped with his teeth. I quaked at his touch. Both of my hands were now pressed against the wall. I stood on my tiptoes, closing my eyes, as I rocked against his hand. Then, he pulled away.

"What? No…don't…stop."

I was desperate for his touch. As I heard him unzip his pants and open a condom wrapper, anticipation rippled through my body.

"I'm not stopping. I'm never going to stop loving you," he said.

He teased me with his tip, rubbing it over my opening. My heart fluttered, beating uncontrollably.

"Please…Liam."

Giving me what I needed, he entered me. His arms reached around me, and his hands rested next to mine. My back arched into his chest as he rocked me into complete and total euphoria. The pressure mounted, my legs weakened, and I shattered, moaning and crying out his name.

Holding me up, he picked up his pace. With each thrust, the pressure built again. As he moved faster and harder, I couldn't hold on. He pressed me against the wall, supporting my body, as I let go. We found satisfying pleasure as we climaxed together.

"Happy Thanksgiving, baby," he panted.

I raised my hand to him, asking for a minute. "Yeah…happy…yeah."

His hands ran up the side of my highly sensitized body. I was about to pass out from the lack of blood flowing to my head. He picked me up and carried me to my room.

"I have something for you. Give me a minute while I try to remember what it is," I said.

When he set me down on the bed, my hair fanned out on the white sheets.

"You're so beautiful, baby. This is how you looked the first time I brought you home."

"Oh yeah? When you wanted to cop a feel?" I teased.

"I wanted to do a lot more than cop a feel. I had to hurry up and get the hell out of here. You've always driven me crazy."

I threw a pillow at him.

"What? You know it's true, and you love it."

Liam came to bed and dragged me into him. "Today was great. Thanks for making it special," he whispered, combing his fingers through my hair. "You're always surprising me. It was hot watching football and ESPN with you. Baby, it was a total turn-on." He kissed my neck and hugged me tightly.

"You're always turned on, not that I'm complaining," I said, squeezing his arms. "I'll watch football with you anytime, especially if that Cole Murphy guy is on
SportsCenter
."

"Cole Murphy? Baby, when I'm in bed with you, don't
ever
talk about another man. Got it?"

"I'm just teasing." I kissed his arm. "You know that I'm yours."

Liam had not been kidding in CPR class when he'd told me that he was a jealous fool. Most of the time, his alpha caveman attitude was sexy. Then, there was his exchange with Macy's brother, Marco, who had been flirting with me since high school. I didn't want Liam to interfere with how Marco and I goofed around. I really thought Marco would've matched my irritation, but instead, he'd been impressed by Liam's approach. They had formed an alliance, and I was outnumbered.

As I pulled away from him, the sheets slipped off of my body.

"Hey, where are you going?" he asked.

"I have something for you. When you're close to me, my brain goes to mush, so I need some distance, please." I waved him back before I slipped on a T-shirt.

He propped himself up on his elbows as he watched me prepare my presentation. I opened a drawer and took out a small wrapped box. I breathed in deeply. This was huge for me.

"This is for you." I extended it to him and then quickly drew it back. "I love you, Liam. No one has ever cared for me like you do. You've met my family and lived through their interrogation. And you're still here. I know that loving me isn't always easy. I have my stupid hang-ups. Moving forward, I promise you that I won't make you pay for what someone else did. I'm trusting you with my heart." I handed him the box and stepped back.

He smiled and
slowly
started to unwrap it. I realized then that watching him open gifts on Christmas would be painful. He wasn't the rip-it-open kind. He was the peeling-back-the-tape-carefully type. Before I could yank the box out of his hands and open it myself, he pulled out the key to my home.

"Like my heart, I don't share this easily. I want you to have it. I want more with you. I want more for us."

He sat up on the bed, hooking the key ring around his finger. "Do you still need your distance?" His eyes were hungry. He was ready to pounce on me.

"Wait. Don't get too close. I have to show you something else."

As I walked over to the bathroom, he sat on the edge of the bed, craning his neck.

"Um, I can't see. How about I promise to keep my hands to myself?"

"That'll work." I smiled. "On nights like tonight, I don't want you to leave." I looked into his soft eyes and smiled. I showed him the drawer I'd prepared for him. The other day, I'd cleared out my stuff and filled it with his.

"Baby, I love you," he said, dragging me into him. His hands cupped my face as his thumbs caressed me. "I love you so much."

"You're okay with all of this?" I asked coyly as our bodies swayed together.

I was relieved. He led me back to the bed. Lying down next to me, he laced his hands with mine.

"It wasn't too much? Not over the top?"

"Nope. It was just right, like you."

His lips grazed mine, sending a shiver through my body.

"Let's do more. I meant every single word that I said to your parents."

I took a huge leap of faith with him, and it couldn't have felt more right. The timing, as with everything pertaining to us, was perfect. Our individual
grand
gestures paved the way for
more
.