The sex had been that good. I’d been closer to God last night than I’d been in my entire life and I was pretty sure at some point my soul had briefly left my body.
“Going somewhere?”
I spun around, still only half in my jeans.
She was propped up on one elbow with her hair a mess around her head. Her breasts were on full display with the sheet pulled up to roughly her waist. Her eyes were heavy with sleep and there was a contented smile on her face. My ego was immediately boosted seeing her so beautifully wrecked. Her eyes dropped to my chest.
I pointed at her. “Don’t,” I whispered. “Do not look at me like that. We slept through the whole night. Becca is up. The kids are up. I can hear them.”
She blinked. The smile slipped. I watched realization dawn. Her eyes went wide. She sat up, her breasts demanding my attention once again. I was not going to be derailed by the sight of a naked Summer even if every instinct was screaming at me to get back in that bed and let Becca find us both. I would deal with the consequences.
“Where’s your shirt?” she whispered urgently, already moving.
“I don’t know,” I whispered back.
She was out of the bed in one motion, which I caught in my peripheral vision and immediately regretted looking at. She yanked on the shirt she’d had on the night before and dropped to her knees, reaching under the bed with both arms.
The shirt did not cover her ass, and with my pants only halfway on, I seriously considered dropping to my knees and taking her from behind.
“Got it.” She surfaced with the green henley balled up in her fist and threw it at me.
I caught it and pulled it over my head. It was inside out. I didn’t care.
“Your shoes,” she said and then she tossed them out the window. She looked back at me. “Hurry!”
“Mom!” The voice had us both freezing as if that would make us invisible. River, I thought. “Can we have the cereal with the marshmallows?”
Becca’s voice floated up from somewhere toward the kitchen. “No, and stop asking.”
“Summer!” Becca’s voice carried up the stairs. “Coffee’s ready. You’re sleeping in.”
Summer pointed at the window. The message was clear. I gave her a quick kiss. I got my first leg out with considerably more grace than the night before. Summer was right behind me, pushing me out the window. I fell on my knees, wincing as the wood connected with my poor abused kneecaps.
“Sorry,” she said on a laugh.
“See you later,” I said.
I turned and went for the lattice. My knees screamed at me from the second I grabbed the top rail, and somewhere near the bottom a piece of the lattice gave way entirely with a crack thatseemed very loud in the quiet morning. I dropped the last two feet and landed on the grass in my bare feet, shoes in hand.
I walked quickly across the yard toward the property line. It was a cool morning but the lack of clouds promised it was going to be a hot day.
I walked into the house and felt like an absolute idiot in the best way. I was falling in love with her again. No. That wasn’t right either. I didn’t think I’d ever stopped. I’d just gotten very good at ignoring it.
Last night had wrecked me. Completely and thoroughly and I was grateful for every second of it.
CHAPTER 33
SUMMER
The coffee was the best I had ever tasted in my entire life. It was perfect. Rich and smooth and perfect. I closed my eyes and just appreciated the hell out of it.
“You’re being weird about the coffee,” Becca said.
“This is exceptional coffee.”
“It’s the same coffee we always buy.”
“It tastes different today,” I said. “It tastes incredible. Like manna from heaven.”