Chapter Seventeen

BRIAN

Two Weeks Later

Standing outside of the emergency entrance at NHC, back pressed against the door of my Jeep and arms crossed, I turned my head toward the driver’s side window where Sir was hanging out and let him sniff and lick the side of my face when he started whining.

“Getting impatient myself,” I told him, then reached up, scratched behind his ear, and turned back to look at the sliding doors.

Syd got the job she’d interviewed for. Her schedule at the hospital ended up being four ten-hour days, and even though I thought that was plenty of time for her to be working every week, she didn’t agree and told Nate she’d stay on a day at Whitecaps.

She was dead set on helping him out any way she could.

I thought that was sweet. I also thought it was unnecessary and knew Nate could figure shit out without her, but I kept that opinion to myself.

I figured as long as the day Syd helped out didn’t end up being a Sunday, I could agree to it. I wanted my day off to coincide with hers, and I wasn’t shy about telling her that.

She didn’t argue and kept that day clear. She wanted Sundays with me, too.

Life was fucking good.

Had my girl, who was holding true to her word and healing me just by being who she was, giving me so much good I didn’t have the space to feel anything besides what she was putting out.

Her light and her sweet and that fire that burned inside her when she loved. I’d never felt anything like that.

Never felt anything like her.

Syd handed me her heart and pressed her lips to my chest, whispering promises to mine.

She made sure I woke up hearing that accident wasn’t my fault and I went to bed believing it a little bit more.

She said she would love me loudly, and she did. Every second.

Sydney Whittaker was my fucking dream. Soft and Wild and mine.

Life wasn’t just good.

It was perfect.

Waking up to her sexy little body sprawled across my chest and feeling her press back against me at night, ass to cock, my arm over her waist holding her there and hers keeping pressure on top of mine, locking us together.

Fucking heaven.

We’d talk for hours. We’d fuck for hours.

I fell in love with Wild’s voice in my ear. Now I had her in my arms while she was giving it to me, and I was out of my fucking mind lost for this girl. There was no turning back.

I’d be anything she needed. I’d be everything she needed.

And I’d spend the rest of my fucking life making her happy.

She said it was her turn to heal me but I wasn’t done healing her.

Not even close. Not until she had it all.

And after tonight, hopefully she’d be one step closer to getting it.

I pushed off the Jeep as the emergency room doors slid open and Syd walked out, wearing light blue hospital scrubs that hid her curves more than the outfits she normally strutted her softness around in, plain white sneakers, and her ID badge clipped to her front pocket. Her hair was pulled back out of her face and she had a black and pink Adidas backpack slung over her shoulder.

She looked tired but perked up when she spotted us, a look of surprise washing over her, holding for a second then slowly morphing into the dimpled smile she was always giving me as she quickly made her way down the sidewalk.

“Trouble, what in the world?” She paused to stand on her toes and gave me a brief kiss. “What are you doing here?”

A chunk of red had fallen out of her ponytail. I tucked it behind her ear and rubbed her cheek with my thumb.

She wasn’t wearing any makeup. I could see every freckle and mole and the natural flush of her cheeks she’d claimed was an unfortunate side effect of being a redhead.

Assholes paid money to stare at beauty like this and I had it in my hands.

“Wanted to show you something. Thought we could go for a drive, then come back here and get your car.” I slid her book bag off her shoulder and tipped my head at the Jeep. “Sir’s been going fuckin’ nuts waiting for you.”

Syd smiled bigger. She gave me another quick kiss before moving in front of the window, where she started petting and kissing Sir.

“Sweet boy, did you have fun today at work?” She scratched behind his ears and let him sniff her face.

Syd was referring to Wax.

I’d been taking Sir to work with me so he wouldn’t have to stay crated all day and hadn’t run into any issues so far. In fact, kids got a kick out of him when they came into the shop. Happy kids meant happy parents.

And happy parents bought a lot of shit.

Sir turned out to be a smart business investment.

“Good day?” I asked.

She shrugged, replying, “Busy day. I barely got to sit down. Made the time go by fast, though.” She turned to look at me. “So, what did you want to show me?”

I nudged her hip gently with my hand.

“It’s a surprise. Get in so we can get going. I want you to see it before dark.”

With wide eyes full of interest, she walked around the Jeep.

“I love surprises,” she said.

“Know that, babe.”

I tossed her book bag in the back and climbed in the driver’s seat, taking a hold of Sir and holding him out for Syd to take after she got in and buckled.

“Tell me what it is, sugar bear, and I’ll give you some peanut butter when we get home,” she whispered against the top of his head as I pulled away from the hospital.

I breathed a laugh, shot her a quick glance, and asked, “You really want to know? I can tell you.”

She sat up tall in the seat and shook her head, fighting a grin.

“Nope. Surprise me. I want to be wowed.”

I smiled at the road.

Fuck yeah. I’d wow her. She had no idea this was coming.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled up in front of the house I signed the papers for an hour ago, parked in the driveway, and cut the engine.

Syd sat forward in her seat and peered through the windshield.

“Is this where your sister lives?” she asked, looking around. “It looks empty.”

“That’s ’cause it is empty. Come on.”

I grabbed the leash from the backseat, stepped out, and met Syd around on her side.

She looked from the house to me.

“What’s going on? Why are we here?”

I attached the leash to Sir’s collar and took him from her, letting him down so he could sniff around the yard. Reaching into my back pocket, I produced a set of keys and pressed them into Syd’s hand.

“Go in and check it out, Wild,” I told her.

Her eyes moved between the keys and my face.

“What?”

“The house, babe. Go check it out for me.”

She tilted her head, blinked up at me, then asked, “Why would I do that?”

I smiled.

So fucking cute.

Bending down, I kissed her while Sir was tugging on the leash.

“’Cause I’m renting it for us, and if you hate it, I need to know. Ink is still wet on the contract. Got time to back out if I have to.”

She gasped against my lips.

“What?” she whispered, pulling back and staring up at me as her hand lightly held on to my hip. “You got us a house?”

“Yep.”

“You…you want me to move in with you?” She leaned closer. “Really?”

“Yeah, Wild, really,” I replied, almost laughing at her shock because I thought where this shit was going between us was pretty damn obvious. “Want a lot of things with you and living together is one of them. Needed our own space and figured the way we’re moving, I’ll be giving you kids sooner rather than later and I want us to be settled somewhere before that happens. Somewhere you want us to be. You don’t like it, I’ll back out. You do? We have an option to buy down the road when we’re ready.” I swatted her left ass cheek and tipped my chin at the house. “So go check it out.”

She stared at me, mouth hanging open and eyes blinking rapidly.

“You want us to live together?” she repeated, leaning even closer and higher when she rolled up on her toes to stress, “For real?”

“Jesus Christ,” I muttered. “We’re together every night, Syd. Practically live together already, babe. I’m just making it so we’re living together someplace that’s ours.”

She fell back on her heels. Her eyes were watering fast and her lip started quivering.

Syd cried every time I did something for her. No matter what it was.

The first night I made the hot chocolate she liked and surprised her with it while she was waiting for me in bed, it took an hour for her to calm enough to actually drink it.

She couldn’t believe I remembered. I made her suck my dick for thinking I’d forget.

And by “made,” I mean she liked it so much her first orgasm hit with my cock down her throat and her fingers between her legs.

I had to reheat her drink twice that night.

Grabbing my face, Syd declared through a trembling voice, “You are way too sweet, Brian Savage.” She tipped her chin up. “Way too sweet.”

“Only to you,” I replied, looking at the house then back at her, asking, “You gonna go check it out or do you hate it?”

“I’m gonna go check it out.”

Fighting a smile, I bent to take her mouth, murmuring, “Good.”

She wrapped her arms around my neck, smashed her tits against my ribs, and took the kiss harder, sucking on my tongue and moaning a little before pulling away breathless, steadying herself then spinning around and taking off toward the house in a sprint.

I moved closer to the grass so Sir could do his business, watching my girl climb the stairs and step up onto the porch.

She walked the length of it slowly, taking everything in while running her hand along the railing, made it to the end, and stopped in front of the white wooden glider the previous owners had left behind and I kept there knowing Syd would like having a place to sit. She studied it like she was studying a piece of art in a museum, taking her time to appreciate it. After several minutes she turned her head to look at me and gave me a smile I felt all the way in my fucking gut.

Then she blew me a kiss and spun around, walked the length again and stopping at the front door, slid the key into the lock, opened it, and stepped inside, giving me one last look and a cute wave before she disappeared.

I breathed deep and turned to Sir.

“Think she’ll like the rest of it?” I asked.

He found a blade of grass he liked and took a piss on it.

I kept Sir in the yard for close to ten minutes then led him to the house, pushed the door open, and moved inside, letting him off the leash so he could roam around now that he’d done his business and I trusted he’d be good to go for a while.

He took off down the hallway, slid into a wall, shook it off, then disappeared into one of the three bedrooms.

“Syd?” I called out, dropping the leash by the door. After not getting a response, I moved through the empty house in the direction of the kitchen.

The house was a rancher-style home with three bedrooms, a kitchen, a living room, and two bathrooms all on one level. The basement was unfinished with a roughed-in powder room.

It wasn’t much compared to what I owned with Jamie or even Tori’s place. You could probably fit five of these houses in the one I was moving out of, but it had a porch, a fenced-in yard for Sir that was decent sized, enough bedrooms for expanding, and it was close to both of our jobs.

I could live here and be really fucking happy with Syd. I could live in a gutter and be happy with her, but if she didn’t like it, I’d find someplace else.

Whatever she wanted.

The slider was open when I walked around the corner and entered the kitchen. I stepped outside onto the small deck and saw Syd standing at the railing, looking out at the yard.

She turned when she heard my footsteps, leaned back against the railing with her hands stretched out and gripping onto it behind her, bent her knee, and planted her foot on a spindle all while staring at me, eyes hard and mouth pulled into a frown.

Fuck.

I halted a few feet away and scrubbed at my face with both hands.

“Fuck. You don’t like it,” I guessed, letting my arms drop and clenching my jaw through a tight inhale.

I thought this was it. I thought for sure I knew what she’d want.

“What don’t you like?” I asked, stepping closer. “Is it shit I can fix? Or is it everything? The layout? Location? Would you rather have…”

My voice trailed off when Syd blinded me with a smile, pushed off from the railing, and charged at me like she was always doing lately, leaping into the air when she was close enough and I could catch her, hands on her hips then sliding to her ass, pulling her higher and nearer as she wrapped her arms around my neck and her legs around my waist.

“I love it!” she squealed, pressing kisses all over my face.

“Yeah?” I asked in a tight voice.

I needed to be sure.

“Yes! Everything about it. God…everything, Brian! Especially the bedrooms and the yard and the porch. And the kitchen and the cute little living room. Oh, and the basement. I don’t even care that it’s not finished. It has so much potential, Trouble. We could turn it into a big game room or another TV area. My creative juices are flowing like crazy. I can’t wait to decorate! And did you see the size of the master bath? It’s huge!”

It wasn’t. It was a standard-size master bath, but Syd was excited.

I breathed a sigh of relief and kissed the corner of her mouth.

“Glad to know you approve. And thanks a fucking lot for making me worry.” I nipped at her bottom lip. “Think I need my dick sucked for that.”

She perked up, straightened her spine, and lifted an intrigued brow.

“Feel like christening the place? I could blow you in every room for good juju and then let you fuck me in our giant bathroom so you can watch my tits in the mirror.”

My groin tightened.

Christ, her fucking mouth.

Syd must’ve felt my reaction ’cause she rotated her hips and bared down on me.

“That feels like a yes,” she teased, her voice dripping sex. “Wanna get started?”

“In a minute.”

“In a minute?” She felt my forehead and examined me closely. “Are you feeling okay? Do we need to go back to the hospital?”

I shook her hand off.

She moved it back to my neck and squeezed me there.

“Brian Savage doesn’t want sex, I’m shocked.”

“Want it,” I said, pulling her hips closer until she felt my proof pressing hard between her legs.

She moaned and tried coming in for a kiss.

I had shit to clarify first and she was feeling greedy so I didn’t stall.

“Know where this is going, don’t you?” I asked, dipping to avoid her mouth and pressing my lips to her jaw so she could speak.

“Where what’s going?” she questioned back.

“Wouldn’t be buying us a house if I didn’t plan on giving you my last name, babe.”

I felt her pulse jump against my lips as I moved down her neck and sucked there.

“I…” She swallowed thickly and started breathing heavier. “We have to wait a year,” she said, sounding quiet and sad, tilting her head back and offering me her throat. “I won’t be legally divorced until it’s been a year.”

“Know that, and straight up, Wild, I fuckin’ hate it,” I growled. “Takes everything in me not to find that motherfucker and beat the shit outta him just for doing you like he did, add to that the fact he gets to have ties to you that I don’t get to have until some fuckin’ judge says I can…”

I felt my muscles lock in anger.

Wild moved her hands to the back of my head, pressed her lips to my ear, and softly admitted, “I know, honey. I hate it, too.”

I kissed the spot just above her collarbone, then leaned back to look into her eyes.

“Shit keeps me up at night. Never wanted something this much before and I’m gonna be a miserable fuckin’ prick waiting for it.”

She touched my cheek. Her eyes were calming.

“We can be miserable fucking pricks together,” she said on a smile, then let it soften, moved her other hand to my opposite cheek, dipped closer, looking serious now, and added, “I was married for six years and it never felt like this. Not even when it was good. Not even when it was great and I wanted it more than anything, because it wasn’t right. It wasn’t us. You and me. I’ve never wanted something this much before either and I never will, which is why I’m saying yes to this now, yes to this in a year, because I know my answer won’t change no matter when you ask me.”

My breath caught.

Fuck.

I slid my hand up her back to her neck and curled my fingers there.

“Syd,” I murmured.

“And I promise you, Brian Savage, the day I’m legally divorced is the day we’re getting hitched. I will not wait any longer than that,” she stated firmly. “I’ll sign those papers, free myself completely of Marcus, and then I’m signing my life over to you.”

My muscles locked again but not in anger this time.

Fuck that year. Wild was mine. Now and always.

On a growl that shook the earth, I pulled Syd down and took her mouth, her tongue, and her breath, my hand on her neck moving up, twisting in her hair and gripping while my other hand stayed on her ass and held her weight.

Her hands were all over me, working down my neck to my shoulders to between us, where she tugged at my shirt.

“Please,” she whispered. “Brian…take me.”

I spun us and moved my girl inside, shutting the door and rushing through the kitchen in the direction of the master bedroom.

“You gonna give me that greedy pussy?” I asked, digging my fingers into her ass and kneading her flesh.

She moaned inside our kiss, sucked in a breath like she was startled, then murmured, “The dog.”

Fuck that. I was taking her. He’d be fine.

I turned my head, allowing her lips to move to my cheek, and called out, “Sir!” as we stepped into the living room.

Seconds later he came galloping down the hallway, leash in his mouth and dragging it behind him.

Syd leaned away and turned to look at him.

Sir whipped the leash around playfully while growling like it was putting up a fight, released it out of his mouth, stepped back, dropped down on his front legs, and wagged his tail excitedly. Then he waited a few seconds and pounced on it again.

“Sir Duke, that is not a chew toy,” Syd reprimanded him in a stern voice, calling him by his full name. She glanced around the empty room, then sighed, looking back at him to add, “But I guess it’s all you have to keep you occupied for the next fifteen minutes.”

I glared at her profile.

“Double that, babe.”

She turned to look at me, flushed cheeks and eyes burning as she pulled that fat bottom lip into her mouth and started sucking on it.

Christ. She wanted it. So fucking greedy.

“You keep looking at me like that and I’m not making it to the bathroom,” I warned her.

She released her lip and shrugged innocently.

“I can’t help it. I’m so wet, I can feel it dripping down to my…you know.” Her eyes widened and she shifted in my arms. “You could probably fuck me there without lube if you wanted.”

I groaned. “Jesus Christ. Don’t say shit like that to me.”

“Why not?” She giggled.

I started moving us through the living room again, passing Sir, who was hanging by the front door, and headed down the hallway.

“Because I’ll fucking do it.”

“And that’s a problem?”

“It is if I wanna make good on lasting thirty minutes.”

Syd gave me a look of understanding, nodded once, then watched over my shoulder.

“Is he okay playing while we go do you know what?” she asked, tilting her head to the side so I could kiss her neck.

“Nothing for him to get into and he can’t get out. He’ll be fine,” I told her, crossing into the bedroom and making for the master bath.

“You sure? What about the basement steps? Those are pretty steep.”

“He’s a dog, babe. Not a baby. He can handle steps.”

I stepped inside the bathroom, flicked the light on, closed the door behind us so Sir wouldn’t see that as an open invitation to cock-block me, and let Syd slide down my body.

She stood between me and the vanity, looking up nervously.

“You sure?” she asked again.

I cocked my head.

“Would you rather he join us in here so you can keep an eye on him while I’m buried inside you?”

She jerked back.

“Uh…no, that would be weird,” she replied quickly. “Not to mention traumatizing for him, I’d imagine. You fuck dirty.”

I smirked, reached back over my shoulder, fisted my shirt, and tugged it off.

“Fuck you sweet, too,” I told her, dropping my shirt and reaching for hers.

“Sometimes,” she murmured through a smile. She lifted her arms over her head so I could get her top off.

I tossed it next to mine then tugged the drawstring on her pants loose, causing them to drop and bunch at her ankles as she made quick work of her bra.

I stared at her tits when she freed them.

Full and sitting high on her chest, her rose-colored nipples the perfect size for my mouth.

“Fuck.” I squeezed my cock through my shorts, then explained further, “Think you get a bit of both every time, Wild. Hard for me not to give you sweet when you’re giving it and even harder not to dirty you up when you’re begging for it.” I lifted my eyes to hers. “Know you’re getting both now.”

Syd kicked off her shoes and stepped out of her pants. Panties came next, then with a coy smile, she stepped closer, reached for my shorts, and popped the button, asking, “Why am I getting both now?”

She lowered the zipper.

I moaned when her fingers brushed my cock.

“Mentioned letting me take your ass. Means you’re already feeling dirty tonight so that’s what you’ll be getting.” My shorts slid down my legs. I dropped my head back, eyes closing when she wrapped her hand around me and started stroking. “Syd.”

“And the sweet?” she asked, sounding playful.

I tipped my head down and held her eyes.

“Said you’d marry me,” I reminded her. “Can’t imagine not making love to you right now after hearing that.”

Her hand stilled.

I moved in, forcing my girl to lose her hold on me.

“Gonna do that now. You good with that?” I asked, gripping the backs of her legs and lifting.

“Yes,” she answered, nodding quickly while squeezing my neck. “I’m good with that.”

I sat her on the edge of the vanity, spread her legs wide, and stared between her face and her cunt.

“Still dripping?” I slid my finger through her pussy to test. Moisture trickled onto my palm. “Fuck.”

She grabbed my face and kissed me, slow and deep, shaking when I added a second.

“God,” she moaned.

I bent down and gave her a long lick, tasting her in my throat.

She cried out and reached for me but I was already standing, fisting the base of my cock and stepping into her, then her head fell back and her eyes rolled closed as I pushed in that first inch.

Crazy.

Beautiful.

Mine.

“Brian.” Syd’s voice vibrated up my spine.

I slid in farther, slowly stretching her, her pussy drawing me in with tight little pulses until I was fully seated and my balls ached with the need to pound us both toward madness.

I fought it and gripped her hips.

This was our sweet. Paced and rhythmed. I wouldn’t be desperate yet.

“Eyes, babe.”

Immediately, Syd tilted her head down and blinked at me.

When I had her, I started thrusting slowly. Deliberately. Her desire dripped to my balls. She’d never been this wet.

I’d never felt this lost.

“Fuck, Wild…keep watching me,” I told her. My voice was strained. “Keep looking at me like that. Always like that.”

“Always.”

She gasped when I started circling her clit with my thumb.

I pulled her hips so she was hanging over the edge of the vanity, slid my hands to the backs of her knees, and opened her up, spreading her legs wider and pressing them closer to her chest.

She whimpered and bit her lip as I drove in deeper, bottoming out each time.

“You like that,” I stated, knowing she did as I watched my cock move inside the tightest pussy I’d ever fucked. “God…tell me. Tell me you like it.”

“I like it,” she breathed.

“Is this what your greedy little cunt wants? My cock filling it? Fucking it?”

“Brian,” she gasped.

Her pussy clenched.

I sucked in a breath. “Damn,” I groaned, gripped her hips again, and lifted my eyes, catching hers still on me, glowing like she was lit from within and burning with that fire she had behind her love.

Love for me she was promising forever.

Forever.

Fuck.

I was the luckiest motherfucker alive.

I kept our pace, building it slow while I toyed with her clit until she moved her legs higher up my back and pushed her chest out, begging for my mouth.

“Suck them. Brian…please, suck them.”

Gripping the edge of the vanity, I leaned in and circled her tight nipple with my tongue. I couldn’t stop my hips from thrusting faster as I sucked hard, drawing the peak into my mouth.

She cried out, legs shaking against my sides and tensing against my back.

She was close, her orgasm right there. I could feel it humming beneath her skin.

I moved my thumb furiously over her clit to get her there as my other hand kept her anchored down, then on a gasp, she came and fell back against the mirror, taking me with her, squeezing my dick so goddamned hard I felt it in my spine.

“Wild,” I whispered between her tits.

Her back arched and her voice caught.

I leaned away, fucking her through it, and watched those fat lips part and her features go slack.

She came down as beautifully as she’d climbed, head rolling to the side and eyes fluttering, those hot little moans rolling off her tongue.

I pulled out and tugged on her hips.

Syd slid off the vanity with a gasp, startled by the movement.

“Turn around and lean forward,” I growled, stroking my wet dick.

She looked from my hand to my face with heavy eyes, filled with heat. She nodded quickly, then did as I directed and spun around, braced her hands on either side of the sink, and bent forward, jutting her ass out and spreading her legs.

“You came all over me,” I said, my lips against her ear as I stepped up behind her.

She met my gaze in the mirror, swallowed, then nodded.

“You’re gonna do it again,” I promised, gliding my hands up her stomach to her tits, squeezing them and tugging on her nipples. “Aren’t you?”

Her head rolled back and hit my shoulder.

“Yes,” she whispered.

Fisting her ponytail with one hand, I slid my other up her back and tilted her forward at the angle I needed, lined up at her heat, and drove in, hitting bottom in one hard thrust.

“Oh, God!” she cried, her head snapping back when I pulled.

Then I started really moving, pleasure gripping me between my hips as I beat into her from behind.

I wasn’t going to last. I was already close to coming when Syd went tight around me and now she was swollen and shaking and so fucking wet I could hear it.

Wild heard it, too. Her cheeks pinked and she bit her lip in shame.

I slid my hand around her waist and between her legs as I kept pounding hard. I pressed my lips to her cheek.

“Don’t,” I said, watching her eyes lift in the mirror. “Nothing sexier than hearing you, Wild. Nothing, you got me? Give me this.” I rubbed her clit with the palm of my hand.

She gasped, closed her eyes, and pressed back, taking it deeper.

Our noises filled the bathroom, hers and mine. The squelching of our bodies and the slapping of skin, moans and incoherent words that broke apart before they left our tongues.

I fucked her until my legs burned. I became sloppy and clumsy with my thrusts, rutting at a maddening pace.

Syd loved it. She begged for more. For harder. For dirty, and I gave it.

I squeezed her tits harshly and slapped them.

I slid my cock between her lips and asked if she liked the taste of her pussy.

I told her I’d take her ass and I did, sliding two fingers inside while I bucked into her from behind.

Syd took it all. No hesitation. No shame.

She held my eyes in the mirror and got off on everything I was giving.

“Brian…oh, fuck, Brian,” she groaned, and trembled in my arms.

My orgasm chased hers and seconds later I dropped my head to her back, cursed, and shot off deep.

I kept my arms around her. I never wanted to let go.

“One year,” I said hoarsely when I had breath in my lungs again. My lips moved over her skin. “One fucking year.”

Syd reached back and held me. She knew I needed it.

“It’ll be here before we know it,” she soothed.

I closed my eyes.

We didn’t move until Sir started clawing and whining at the door. After we cleaned up and dressed, Syd scooped him up and we both went looking for his leash.

We found it in the kitchen. The little bastard had chewed it in half.

I smiled and pulled my girl close as she quietly scolded the clueless puppy for his wrongdoing.

He could’ve chewed a hole in the wall and I wouldn’t have cared. Not that day.

Syd loved the house and was taking my name in a year.

Let the countdown begin.