Until Lilly Read online

  “Thanks.” I look up to see everyone watching me closely, then another beautiful woman comes in with long blonde hair, and she has a very obvious baby bump. I feel like I stepped into the world of beautiful people.

  “Liz, this is Lilly. Lilly, this is Liz, Trevor’s wife.” Now my hands are free, I reach forward and shake her hand.

  “Nice to meet you.”

  “You too. I was just coming in to see where everyone disappeared to,” Liz says, and Trevor comes back over, wrapping his arms around her waist, setting his chin on the top of her head.

  “Well, baby, you see, Lilly here is a bit of a klutz.”

  “No, I'm not.” My eyes narrow on Trevor and I hear him laugh.

  “I think Trevor is right. Who waves while holding a pie?” Nico points out my stupidity.

  “It’s polite to wave.”

  “When you’re passing someone on the street,” he says.

  “I didn’t think about it,” I mumble, looking at the ground and feeling like an idiot.

  “These guys are all big bullies,” Liz says, tilting her head back to look at her husband.

  “I think when they pick on you it means they like you,” November points out.

  “Can you watch the kids for a second? I’m gonna take Lil to the bathroom and help her get washed up,” Cash asks the room of siblings.

  “Is that what we’re calling it today?” Asher asks, and my already red face burns hotter. I feel someone watching me, and my eyes go to the kitchen to see Nico dumping out the pie, his eyes on me. I don’t know why, but I feel like he is judging every move I make.

  “Mommy, they hab a puppy!” I hear Ashlyn yell as she runs into the house right to me. Her hair is a mess, with grass and twigs sticking out of it, and dirt is covering her clothes. There is another little girl following close behind, but she has blonde hair. When Ashlyn reaches me, her arms go out for me to pick her up. “Mommy, they hab a puppy and he’s so cute!”

  “They do?”

  “Yes, and his name is Beast.”

  “Beast?” I wonder why they would name their ‘cute puppy’ that.

  “Can we get one?” she asks, giving me her best pleading face.

  “I, um...we can’t get one now.”

  “Oh.” Her bottom lip pops out, and I know what’s coming.

  “No pouting, what did we talk about?”

  “But he’s so cute,” she says, that pouty lip trembling.

  “I know, baby.” I laugh, pulling her head to my chest and kissing the top of her head.

  “You know, you can come visit Beast whenever you want.” Ashlyn lifts her head to look at November. “Plus, I'm sure July, June, and May would like you to come over and visit.” I looked at Cash, wondering if this was some kind of strange test. Who would have the name November, and then name their children after the other months of the year?”

  “Yes, those are their girls’ names,” Trevor says reading my face. “I think they’re trying to make a calendar.” He shrugs, making Asher hit him upside his head while November and Liz roll their eyes at the same time. Ashlyn wiggles, wanting down.

  “I will be out in a few minutes. You be good until then, all right?” I tell her, not yet releasing her to run off.

  “I know,” she says, completely annoyed with me. So just to annoy her more, I kiss her all over her face, making her scream with laughter.

  “See you in a few minutes.” I kiss her one last time then release her. When I stand back up, everyone is staring at me, but Cash’s eyes are so warm that my pulse starts to race.

  “Um…” I look around.

  “Let’s get you washed up,” Cash says, grabbing a bag from the couch. I would have gone anywhere with him at that point, just to get away from the strange vibe I was getting from everyone.

  “Is everything okay?” I ask as soon as the bathroom door closes.

  “More than.”

  “Oh, it just that I felt like everyone was waiting for something to happen.”

  “My ex wasn’t the easiest person,” he mumbles, closing and locking the door behind us.

  “What do you mean?” I slip off my sandals.

  “She would start fights over everything under the sun. She always made it seem like everyone was out to get her.”

  “Were they?” I mean, I don’t know this woman, but I do know women, and we have a tendency to band together.

  “Nah, my family’s not like that; even if they didn’t like her, she would never know it.

  “Oh.” That didn’t make me feel good.

  “Let’s get this off.” He starts pulling my dress up.

  “I don’t need to take my dress off to wash my legs.” I slap at his hands away.

  “You’re also going to try this on while we’re in here.” He pulls out a black bikini from the bag he brought into the bathroom with him. The same bikini he was trying to get me to buy when we were in the store.

  “I’m not!” I shake my head, pulling down the showerhead and stepping into the tub. Wrapping the bottom of my dress higher around my waist, I start to rinse off my legs.

  “Will you please try it on for me?”

  “No.” I don’t even look at him when I answer.

  “Please?” I finish washing the pudding off my legs, turn off the shower, dry off, and reach out, grabbing the suit from him and pulling the shower curtain closed. I forgot this about him. I forgot that when he wanted something, he would not stop until I did whatever he wanted.

  “You’re annoying,” I grumble, pulling my dress up over my head and hanging it over the shower rod along with my bra, but I leave on my thong. Once I have the suit on, I adjust everything, making sure nothing is popping out.

  “See?” I slide the curtain open, placing my hands on my hips.

  “Fuck me.” He brings his fist up to his mouth, biting down on it. “Yeah, you’re right; you’re not wearing that shit out there if Kenton or Sven come today.” He starts shaking his head in the negative.

  “I told you so.” My stomach drops. I’m not gross to look at, but I don’t look like I did before when we were together. My waist and hips expanded, along with my breasts. And I have stretch marks from when I was pregnant. I pull the shower closed, take off the top and the bottom, and reach for my dress. Just as it slides over the rod and into my hands, the shower curtain opens. “What are you doing?” I ask, covering my breasts in a slight panic. His eyes are dark and hungry, making me take a step back.

  “You were beautiful when we first met.” Great, I don’t need him to tell me how different I am now. I know.

  “But now, that beauty has become something straight out of a fucking pin-up calendar.”

  “What?”

  “Look at you.” His eyes roam my body from my hair to my toes. “I need to touch you so that I know you’re real—that you’re really here.” He steps into the shower and pulls the curtain closed. I can’t talk; I feel like I’m being cornered by a large predator. He takes another step towards me, making me retreat a step back, causing my back to hit the cold tile behind me. One of his hands goes to the wall above my head, the other to my waist, pulling my lower body against him.

  “What are you doing?” I breathe.

  “Gonna kiss you.” His eyes drop to my mouth and my tongue wets my bottom lip. “Jesus,” he groans right before his mouth touches mine; he nips and pulls my bottom lip making me gasp. “Open your mouth.”

  “Cash,” I whimper, unsure. His fingers on my skin pull me closer and his mouth opens over mine. His tongue touches mine and one of my hands goes to his hair. He growls, his other hand tugging my head to the side as he takes over the kiss and devours my mouth. My other hand goes to his bicep to hold on. I can feel my nipples scrape against the cotton of his t-shirt as his hand at my waist moves down to my ass. He is rock hard, and I can feel the length of him against my stomach. His mouth leaves mine and travels to my ear, biting down before kissing it, then down my neck. His hand in my hair tugs to the side, giving him more access. He lick
s over my pulse, then down to my breast. His mouth latches onto my nipple. “Oh, my God.” My head falls back against the tile. His mouth travels to my other nipple, giving it the same treatment. “Cash,” I moan, my head tilting forward to watch him.

  “Can I taste you, baby?”

  “What?” My body is on fire. He stops what he is doing, his head coming up and his hands holding my face.

  “I want to eat your pussy. Will you let me?”

  “We never did that,” I tell him, something he should know since he was there the night we had sex. We only did it once and it was perfect, until two days later when he called to tell me we couldn’t see each other anymore. “I mean, I have never done that.” His eyes went wide, then darkened.

  “That makes me very happy.” His mouth comes back down to mine; it feels like he is trying to brand me with his mouth, completely controlling mine. His hand on my face skims slowly down the side of my breast, along my side, and stops at the edge of my panties. I can feel the wetness between my thighs. My clit starts pulsing, needing attention. Teasingly, his fingers travel on the inside edge of my panties, then just below my belly button; my stomach muscles contract. My pulse speeds up, and finally his fingers slide in and over my clit, my body jumping at the contact. “Is all this for me?” he whispers. My answer is a whimper. “You’re gonna have to be quiet, baby; my family is out there,” he says softly. My body freezes—how could I have forgotten where we were? Before I can protest, he slides two fingers inside me, his mouth covering mine, and all thoughts leave my head as I moan down his throat. “That was close. Now, if you want me to eat your pussy, you’re going to have to make sure that you’re quiet, can you do that?” I shake my head, making him chuckle. “If you’re not quiet, then you will be spanked when I take you to my house and the kids go to sleep.”

  “Cash.” I feel my inner walls clench.

  “You like that, huh?” His fingers move faster inside me and I can feel an orgasm building. “You’re not allowed to come until my mouth is on you.” I want to yell at him to get to it, but he just stands there, his eyes on mine. “Jesus, you should see yourself right now.” I think he’s going to kiss me again, but instead, he nips my chin then drops to his knees, lifting my thigh to his shoulder. His fingers tug my thong to the side and his mouth is on me in an instant. I start grinding down against his tongue. I can feel my orgasm building—it’s going to be huge, life-altering. And I know I’m not going to be quiet when I come.

  “You have to stop.” I push on his head, trying to get away. “Cash, I can’t be quiet,” I whimper. He doesn’t stop; if anything, his pace increases, his tongue and fingers moving faster. “I'm going to come,” I cry as I feel myself begin to contract around his fingers. My skin lights from the inside, and a million colors explode behind my eyes. I feel like I’m going to pass out. “Cash,” I moan loudly before I catch myself and bite down on my arm. My head is back, eyes closed, and I feel my foot touch the floor as he lets my leg down from his shoulder. My legs feel wobbly, but he holds my hips until he stands so he can pull me to his chest. I don’t know how long we stand like that, but it feels like forever. All I want to do is curl up with him and go to sleep.

  “I love the way you taste, and I love the way you let go the minute my mouth is on you,” he says quietly. I can feel his hard length against my stomach, and my hand starts to move towards the button of his jeans. His hand grabs mine, stopping me. “There isn’t enough time for that. When I finally get inside you, I'm going to want to take my time and have you in my bed, not here in my brother’s shower. Though I do plan on having you in the shower…just not this one,” he says, and I can hear the smile in his voice. “We need to go out to the party; everyone is going to be wondering where we are.”

  “Oh no,” I groan, rubbing my face. Everyone is going to know what we have been up to while we’ve been in the bathroom.

  “Everyone’s outside.” He tilts my head back with both his hands at my jaw. “You’re so beautiful.” He kisses me softly on my lips then my forehead before opening the shower curtain. “You should just put the suit back on under your dress.”

  “I'm not wearing a bikini.”

  “Lil, your body is perfect, and it looks good on you. Wear the suit.”

  “I thought you said—”

  “No, I said that I didn’t want Kenton or Sven to see you in it, not that it doesn’t look good, because it does.”

  “I don’t know.” I pick my dress up from where it fell into the tub when he surprised me.

  “Baby, look at me.” My eyes go to his. “You look perfect; wear that suit.”

  “Cash.”

  “Our daughter grew inside of you. I loved your body before, and I love it even more now.”

  “Fine, I’ll wear it.” I can’t help but smile. I put the bikini bottoms back on, then the top before pulling my dress over my head. Once I'm dressed again, we head outside. Cash was right; everyone is out around the pool, and all the kids are playing out in the large grassy area where a large kids’ playhouse is set up. Then I see it—a large dog the size of a horse. One of the little girls is laying over its back while it walks around the playhouse sniffing the grass.

  “Is that Beast?” I stop, looking at Cash.

  “Yep, and the little girl on his back is July.” He laughs as we watch her try to stay on the dog’s back; he acts like he doesn’t even notice her. Cash points out each of the girls; three of them are Asher and November’s July, May, and June, and one is Hanna, who is Trevor and Liz’s Daughter.

  “So Jax is the only boy?”

  “Right now, yeah, but Liz is pregnant, and they found out a few days ago that they are having a boy.”

  “Wow.” I look around the backyard filled with people and all the kids running around. We walk around while Cash introduces me to everyone, then wander over to the grill where an older gentleman—obviously, Cash and his brothers’ dad—is standing with Asher.

  “Dad, I want you to meet Lilly. Lilly, this is my dad, James.”

  “Nice to meet you, sir.”

  “Oh no, now I gotta train another one.” He points the spatula in his hand towards me. “You call me James or Dad—preferably Dad—none of this ‘sir’ business.”

  “Okay.” I smile and laugh.

  “I feel old enough with all my grandkids running around calling me papa or grandpa. I don’t need all my pretty daughters-in-laws callin’ me sir.”

  “I'm no—”

  “Oh, how sweet!” A woman’s voice cuts me off. “You want Cash’s new pussy to call you daddy.” I look up and see a beautiful woman with short shorts, a halter-top, and shoulder-length dark brown hair. She’s tall and wearing wedge heels, making her even more towering.

  “What are you doing here, Jules?” Cash asks next to me, and I realize that this woman is his ex-wife.

  “I came to see my son.”

  “You know you’re supposed to call.”

  “Why, so you can hide this bitch away? Like I don’t know that you have been sleeping around since before we got divorced.”

  “Seriously?” Cash growls, then I feel a hand on my elbow and I'm being tugged back.

  “Mommy.” I hear Jax’s voice and look over to see Ashlyn standing with him off to the side of his mother. “This is my sister, Ashlyn.”

  “Oh no,” I whisper just as Jules’s eyes go to Jax, who is now holding Ashlyn’s hand.

  “You don’t have a sister,” Jules growls.

  “I do!” He stomps his foot. “Daddy said she’s my sister. He even said we have the same eyes, look,” he says, opening his eyes up wide.

  I take a step towards them, wanting to grab both of the kids and get them out of this situation. A hand holds me back at my elbow. I look over my shoulder and am surprised to see it’s actually Nico. I glare, and then look back at the kids. “Ashlyn, Jax, let’s go inside so Daddy can talk to Jules,” I say as Cash walks over to where the kids are, picking them both up.

  “My son isn’t going anywh
ere with you, you fucking bitch,” Jules says to me, and Ashlyn starts to cry. Then Susan and November are there, taking them both from Cash and heading inside. I look towards the yard and see Liz and Trevor taking the other kids into the house.

  “Jules, you know that I'm Jax’s granddad, and I would hate to put his mom in jail,” James says; his eyes are cold, and I don’t think he would hesitate to do what he says.

  “Oh, like you would really give a fuck,” she says leaning forward, and then looks at me. “Who the fuck are you?”

  “You need to leave, Jules. Now,” Cash says, taking a step in front of me. “Bro, take Lil inside for me.” He looks past me to Nico.

  “Sure thing.” Nico puts his arm around my shoulder and starts to lead us inside.

  “You should stay with him,” I say quietly, looking up at Nico. I don’t think he is a fan of mine, but I can tell he loves his brother, and I love—

  Wait…love him? I shake my head. No, I don’t. I care about Cash. Yes, as the father of my child. And want him to be safe, and I can tell that woman is all kinds of crazy. “Please.” I fist my hand into his shirt.

  His eyes flash something, but it’s gone before I can catch it. “All right, go on inside,” he says quietly. My stomach is in knots as I pull the door closed behind me. It’s not jealousy; it’s something else. I don’t like the way that woman spoke to her son, and I also didn’t like how she spoke to Cash and his family.

  “She is never going to change.”

  “What?” I look over at Liz.

  “When she first came forward saying she was pregnant, Cash was devastated about losing you.”

  “What?” I repeat like an idiot.

  “I mean, he didn’t say anything, but you could see it. You know?” she asks, her eyes coming to mine. I nod in understanding. I was devastated too. “But then I thought, I mean, I guess we all thought that maybe they could end up happy. Crazier things have happened, right?” She shrugs.

  “I guess,” I say, feeling like a horrible person for being ecstatic that he wasn’t happily married to her right now.

  “She was never happy, and did everything in her power to make him unhappy too.”