“Callie, Callie!” Sean races back into the kitchen with his drawing, thrusting the piece of paper at me.
He’s drawn two people who appear to be a small child and a woman. I’m not sure, but I think the child is sitting on a swing. I crouch down and point at the child. “Is this you?”
He nods. “Yes, and that’s you.” He points at the woman. “You’re pushing me on the swing at the park. See the trees?”
I can see them now, but I had no clue what they were until he told me. “I can.” I face him. “I love this drawing, Sean.”
His smile reaches from one side of his face to the other. “It’s for you. You should put it on your fridge like Daddy does.” He gestures at their fridge. Luke has a few photos of Sean with him and his family stuck to it, along with two drawings.
I wrap Sean in a hug. “Thank you, I definitely will put it on my fridge.” A feeling I’ve never experienced is snaking its way through my body. It’s like happiness but magnified to a degree that I actually feel like I might burst. My chest feels crowded as if I can’t possibly fit all my emotions in there.
When I stand, Luke gives me a concerned look. “Are you okay?”
“Yes, why?” I reply a little hesitantly. I’m more than okay, but at the same time, I’m not sure why.
“You looked a little blank just then. Is this too much, too soon?”
“Absolutely not. I just need a moment to catch up to my emotions.” God, that sounds weird. He’ll think I’m some crazy woman soon.
Sean interrupts. “How do you catch your emotions?”
I laugh as I glance down at him. “I really don’t know, buddy, but when I figure it out, I’ll let you know.”
“Sean, can you please go and wash your hands for dinner?” Luke asks.
When we’re alone, I move close to where he stands. “I promise I’m not as loony as I sound. I was just a little overwhelmed with emotion when Sean gave me that drawing. I’ve never had much to do with kids, and I have to say they have this way of sucker-punching you with affection.”
He reaches up to run his finger down the side of my face and into my hair. “I’ll take your loony.” His mouth moves to my ear and he whisper-growls, “Especially if this no-clothes deal goes ahead.”
“You only want me for my body,” I say as he shifts away from me to open the oven.
He smirks. “Like you wouldn’t believe, baby.”
I smack his ass playfully. “You could at least pretend to be interested in my mind.”
As he places the pizza on the counter, Sean comes back, and I bite my tongue on further sexy banter.
Sean and I set the table while Luke cuts the pizza, and soon we’re all sitting around the table laughing and eating. I love the memories Luke is making with his son. Fun family dinners, breakfasts together, and orange parties are things I never experienced with my family. Conversation was stilted at best and happy times over meals were pretty much non-existent.
Once dinner is done, Luke puts Sean to bed after some protesting. Sean wanted to stay up to spend time playing with me and then he moved onto begging for time reading with me. Luke held strong and didn’t give in. I’m in awe watching the way he parents; I’m not so sure I would be as steadfast with the routine.
I’m on his couch flicking mindlessly through channels when he returns from settling Sean. “Is he asleep?” I ask as I mute the sound on the television.
Luke sits next to me and drapes his arm over the couch behind me. He lifts my legs to rest over his and places his hand on my thigh. He then meets my gaze and kisses me. Just a quick one, but it’s enough to thrill me. “He’ll be asleep in about fifteen minutes, so you have that amount of time before the clothes have to come off.”
I slip my hand under his shirt and rest my palm against his abs. “I like this new deal we have. I think we should renegotiate so it states the time leading up to no clothes must be filled with kissing. Lots and lots of kissing.”
His eyes glitter with desire. “You’re a tough negotiator Miss St James. Lucky for you I’m an easy mark.” With that, he bends his face and kisses me again.
It doesn’t take me long to succumb to Luke’s kiss. Within a few minutes, I’m straddling him, and he’s running his hands up my back under my top. The chances of us lasting fifteen minutes with clothes on are slim-to-none if I’ve got anything to do with it.
He slides his hands under my ass and pulls me closer, grinding his erection against me. “Fuck,” he rasps as he tears his lips from mine. “Fifteen minutes is a long fucking time.”
My hands are still under his shirt. I move them up to his chest. “Surely it would be okay if you didn’t have a shirt on.”
He only thinks about that for a split second. His shirt hits the ground, and my breathing picks up as I feast my eyes on his bare chest.