The Free Page 20
“Yeah, Will,” Judith chimes in, kissing Wild’s head. “Stop looking at Eve’s tits.”
“I, uh, I wasn’t—”
“Who’s looking at my wife’s tits?” Atticus growls as he enters his parents’ dining room with Abel, Evan, and Vic.
Will scowls, leaning back in his chair directly across from mine at the table. “I’m just saying, she doesn’t give any warning before she whips it out.”
“Dad,” Evan states with a chuckle. “It’s just a boob.”
Atticus leans down and kisses my head before running his fingertip along Wild’s cheek. Wild pops off my nipple to gaze up at his father, his green eyes gleaming with delight.
“You’re distracting him,” I chide, trying to get Wild to latch back on.
“And you’re distracting Will with your nipple,” Judith offers, not helpfully.
“I’m leaving.” Will pouts but makes no moves to actually leave.
Susan enters the dining room with her famous lasagna. It effectively distracts everyone from my breasts and Wild goes back to nursing. He tugs on my hair, his green eyes locked with mine.
He’s so precious.
I sometimes stare at him for hours.
Atticus teases me, but I catch him staring at him too.
Not long after we came back home, Atticus had his family over. I wore a white dress and Atticus wore a suit. In front of his family, we vowed our love to each other. At the end, we exchanged rings to bind our promises. It felt just like when Monica and Chandler got married. Two friends who were inseparable and in love. Atticus tells me not to believe everything I see on television, but I believe in them.
“So, Eve,” Abel says as he scoops some lasagna onto his plate. “Susan tells me you’re making great progress.”
I beam at him. “I’m reading The Boxcar Children.”
“Impressive. Good stories?”
“The best. I’ve been writing too, but I’m not that good at it.”
Susan waves off my comment. “Nonsense, hon. Your handwriting is beautiful. I’m impressed you’ve come this far in such a short time. Truly brilliant.”
“She never compliments me like that,” Judith grumbles, nudging me with her shoulder.
I can’t help but bask in her praise. I didn’t think Susan would want to help me, but when she overheard me asking Atticus about it, she offered to teach me. It’s a good thing too because her handwriting is legible unlike Atticus’s. His is messy. Every day she comes over to help with Wild and give me lessons. Sometimes she takes him for a walk or into town to give us some time alone. I never knew my grandparents, but I’m thankful Wild will know his.
When Wild is done suckling, he starts wiggling and crying. Evan hops out of his chair and rushes over to take him. They’re sweet. Wild’s eyes light up when he sees Evan and Evan acts like a proud big brother. I happily pass off the chunky baby to his cousin and then add some parmesan cheese to the lasagna Atticus put on my plate.
I’m happy.
Every day I wake up with that realization.
I love my life. How I wake up to a warm house and don’t have to start a fire to get it that way. That I can microwave food and eat it within minutes. Coffee. Peanut butter. M&Ms. There are so many foods I just don’t know how I lived without. As a result, I’ve gained weight. You can’t see my bones protruding anymore, which Atticus says is a good thing.
“I arrested Joey,” Will says around a mouthful of lasagna.
Judith laughs. “Good.”
Joey—the guy she’d been seeing last year—had been with other women besides her. It really broke her heart. I couldn’t understand how someone would want to break Judith’s heart. She’s my best friend besides Atticus. Now she’s seeing a guy who works at the post office. Ben. She calls him boring all the time, but she gets a silly smile on her face when she says it. Boring is better than horrible Joey, who can’t keep his cock in one woman. Ben looks at Judith like she’s the only woman in the world.
“Where’s Ben?” Atticus asks, mimicking my thoughts.
“Fishing with his dad. He’ll be back tomorrow.”
They continue to babble and I find my stare locked on Evan. He smiles at Wild, stroking his fingers through his hair. It makes me hope that Wild will be a big brother one day and look at his siblings like Evan looks at him.
“We’re going to take Wild out to Reed and Devon’s in a few weeks,” Atticus says, earning the attention of everyone.
“W-What? Why?” Susan cries out. “You can’t take my baby boy away!”
“Ma,” Atticus grumbles. “Only for a visit. We’ll be gone a week tops.”
Susan frowns. “I still don’t think it’s safe out there.”
“Can I come?” Evan asks. “I’ve never been and you all talk so fondly of it. I could help with Wild too.”
“No,” Will snaps. “You have class.”
“Dad,” Evan grumbles. “I can talk to my professors. I’ll get the work done.”
“He can come,” Atticus says. “We don’t mind. I know Reed and Devon’s kids will love to see someone new.”
Will scowls but finally gives in. “Your grades better not suffer. You have a scholarship to a college I can in no way afford to pay for if you suddenly lose it.”
“I promise,” Evan says, grinning. “Did you hear that, little buddy? I get to come too.”
The rest of dinner goes like the usual Sunday night dinners we have at Atticus’s parents. Loud. Chaotic. Fun. We always finish with one of Susan’s homemade desserts. Tonight, it’s my favorite of hers. Peach cobbler.
After dinner, Susan steals Wild and cuddles him since she won’t see him for a whole week. I help Judith with the dishes while Atticus and the guys sit on the porch talking. Once we’re finished, I check on Wild, who’s sleeping on his grandma’s chest and then look for my husband. I pull on my coat and then find him with the others.
They all exchange smirks before heading back inside, leaving the two of us alone.
“Hey, beautiful,” he says, grinning.
“Hey, handsome.”
“Want to go for a walk?”
The air is crisp and cold, but I look forward to an evening walk with him. I offer my hand and he takes it. We walk behind the house and into the woods. It’s quiet and calm. When we’re hidden beyond the cover of the trees, he presses me against a big tree and kisses me hard.
“I missed you,” he murmurs between kisses.
A giggle bubbles up my chest. “You were outside for five minutes.”
“Twenty. And I can still miss you. Sometimes I can have you in my arms and still miss you.”
“You’re weird.”
“You like it.”
He trails kisses to my neck and gets me worked up with his mouth. My body floods with heat, the fire to have him burning at uncontrollable levels. I rake my fingers through his hair, undoing his neat man-bun and making it crazy, just the way I like it. He groans, his breath hot against my neck, when I tug at his golden strands.
“Are you really going to do this with your parents’ house so close by?” I murmur, amused at his ravenous nature tonight.
“If they thought I was making them another grandbaby, I’m sure they’d approve.”
With those words, he starts unbuttoning my jeans. His long fingers slide between my lips and find my clit. Whatever apprehension I may have had, melts away as he brings me pleasure. The air is nippy, but my body is flooded with heat. He pushes my jeans and panties down to my knees and then works his fingers faster. I bite on my lip, trying to hold back a loud moan. He brings me close to orgasm and then slides past my clit to push inside me.
“Asshole,” I grumble.
He laughs and nips my neck. “I just needed to feel how wet you were.” His finger probes inside me, looking to bring me pleasure there, too. He finds the spot that makes my toes curl, and works it in a lazy, teasing way. He drives me insane.
“Just do it,” I beg. “Make me come.”
“So bossy.”
�
�Now.”
“Really fucking bossy.”
“Atticus…”
He laughs but obeys. His finger expertly brings me over the cliff of bliss. When he’s done, he pulls out his finger, grabs my hips, and twists me around.
“Hold on to the tree, woman.” He works at his belt behind me.
“Who’s bossy now?”
“Keep it up with that mouth and I’ll have to fill it.”
My cheeks burn hot. When we moved back home, he told me about blow jobs. I didn’t know this was a thing. But seeing the way the big, powerful man submitted to me the moment my mouth was on his cock, I became a big fan of the activity.
“I think you’d rather fuck me against the tree,” I taunt. He loves it when I talk dirty.
“Eve,” he growls, pressing his hard cock against the crack of my ass. “You’re going to scream for that comment.”
I smile as he pushes the head of his cock into my slick opening and then bucks his hips hard. I do scream. He stretches me and fills me in the most maddening way. My nails claw at the bark and I whine, pushing my ass against him. His fingers dig into my hips as he begins a hard, powerful thrusting cadence.
From his position behind me, it almost hurts. I like it, though. When he loses himself to the moment and handles me too roughly. Atticus says I like poking the bear. Mostly, I like when the bear pokes me.
“This,” he snarls against my ear as he cups my pussy, “is mine. Always will be.” Then his fingers are sliding between the lips, massaging the throbbing clit again.
Too much.
Too much pleasure.
My legs tremble, too weak to hold myself up any longer. He senses it and locks an arm around me, never skipping a beat with his wild thrusting. The fingers at my clit continue their torturous rhythm. When he brings me to climax, stars glitter in front of me and I let loose a throaty scream. His heat gushes inside me, hot and claiming. It makes me hope again and again we’ll have more babies. Like Reed and Devon. I want a big family like Atticus’s. I don’t want Wild to be the only child. I know how lonely it feels and don’t wish that for him.
Atticus pulls out and his hot cum runs down my thighs. He takes care of me and pulls my clothes back up and into place. Once we’re both decent, he pulls me against him, kissing my hair.
“I can’t get enough of you, Eve. I don’t think I ever will.”
I smile and close my eyes as I inhale him. Atticus is everything to me. He befriended me when I was younger and looked out for me. Brought me fruit and tried to get me to talk. When I got hurt, I went to them, knowing full well Atticus was there. It was him I needed. He’s all I’ll ever need.
I was born wild, but caged and abused.
And with him, I was freed. He broke the chains around my heart and took it for his own. Rather than feel trapped or mistreated, I felt loved. He always made me feel that way. Now, more so than ever.
“Always yours,” I whisper. “You ready to get our boy and go home?”
“Yes, ma’am. I’m not done loving you. It might take all night.”
I hope it takes forever.
One week later…
Eyes.
I feel them on me.
Staring.
I jolt awake and squint against the morning sun streaming in through Reed and Devon’s guest room. Atticus is gone—probably off with Reed. I’m apparently being watched by two little Jamison boys.
They’re not watching me because they think I’m interesting. They’re watching because they’re trying to sneak off with my baby.
Wild squeals with delight at seeing them.
Rowdy has been inching Wild down the bed away from me while Ronan keeps watch. I blink away my sleep and give them my mean stare.
“What are you doing?”
“We gonna play with Wild,” Ronan says. “Rowdy’s big. He watch him.” Then, the two-year-old gives me a silly, toothy grin.
“He needs to eat first. I can feed him and then come with you two.”
Ronan huffs. “No girls.”
I roll my eyes. From what Devon says, they’re not a fan of their new little sister Raegan.
“Tough shit,” I grumble, sitting up.
“No, you tough shit,” Ronan sasses back.
Rowdy giggles. “Ronan! Daddy’ll whip your butt!”
“And Eve!” he argues. “Eve said shit!”
“You said shit twice.” I arch a brow at him to argue with me.
“So did you,” Ronan says, sticking out his tongue.
“Can Evan come instead?” Rowdy asks, giving me a smile that reminds me of Devon’s.
As if on cue, a sleepy Evan walks into the room in his boxers. The kid is skinny. It’ll do him some good to be out here with us for a while. Between Reed and Atticus, they’ll put him to work and put some muscle on him.
“Boys meeting and I’m not allowed.” I pout, making Evan chuckle.
He saunters in and scoops up Wild. “Hear that, little buddy? We get to play with the boys.”
“He hasn’t eaten yet,” I grumble. “Or had a diaper change.”
Evan makes a face and hands him back. “Fine. But as soon as you take care of all that, we’ll be back. Come on, boys, let’s go get bacon.”
At the word bacon, BB hops up from the corner of the room and chases after them.
“These kids love you, Wild,” I tell my son as I change his diaper. “They’ll look after you like a big brother should. Every one of them.”
Wild’s green eyes bore into me. For such a small little thing, he gives such serious, adult like glares. I pull down my shirt and latch him to my breast. He suckles and watches me, his fingers grabbing at my hair. The boy is a hair puller and if you’re not careful, he’ll rip a whole handful out. I stroke my fingers through his dark hair and admire him. Mornings are my favorites. Just like when he was in the womb, I tell him all the things I want him to know.
“You’re strong, Wild. Just like your daddy. Sweet and kind and loving. You’re going to grow up to be a good man.”
Wild’s chin moves with each gulp of milk.
“And one day, you’ll fall in love too. One day you’ll have a family of your own. Be good to them. Love them with your whole heart, unapologetically so.”
The floorboard creaks, stealing both mine and Wild’s attention. In the doorway stands the man I love. Strong. Powerful. Good.
“We were just talking about you,” I say with a smile.
“Don’t let me interrupt.” He smirks. “Go on. Continue on about how goddamn hot I am.”
I roll my eyes. “I’ll tell you how hot you are later.”
Wild pulls off my nipple and tries to roll out of my arms toward the sound of his daddy’s voice. Atticus melts and a goofy grin spreads over his face. He walks over to the bed and stretches out beside us. Wild lets loose a happy squeal when his father pulls him to him.
Time stops, freezing this moment for us. My son tugs at Atticus’s hair and beard, making him playfully cry out in faux pain. Wild gets a thrill over hurting his daddy and giggles like crazy.
I thought nothing could be better than Friends or peanut butter or coffee.
I was wrong.
The End
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Listen on Spotify here.
“Wildest Ones” by Zayde Wolf
“Love is Mystical” by Cold War Kids
“Daddy Issues” by The Neighbourhood
“Love on the Brain” by Cold War Kids and Bishop Briggs
“Born to be Wild” by Steppenwolf
“Bad at Love” by Halsey
“Not Afraid Anymore” by Halsey
“Where is My Mind?” by Pixies
“Glycerine” by Bush
“Judith” by A Perfect Circle
“Girls Go Wild” by LP
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Thank you to my husband…you see the day in and day out of EVERYTHING. You’re my rock, my cheerleader, and shoulder to lean on. Love you bunches,
honey!
I am so thankful for all my wild ones. Without you guys, writing would be a lot less fun. You cheered me on and supported me through The Wild, and I know you’ll continue to do that with whatever story I take on next because you’re all badasses like that. Don’t ever change. Be strong and fiery and brave!
Big thanks to Robyn Crawford and Eden Books for giving books like The Free a home. In case anyone doesn’t know what “home” means, it means a place where you feel safe to be you, feel loved unconditionally, and can thrive without judgment or hate. I’m proud to be a part of the Eden Books community. Eden Books has given me a home when no other place would. And that will never be forgotten.
A huge thank you to my Krazy for K Webster’s Books reader group. You all are insanely supportive and I can’t thank you enough.
A gigantic thank you to those who always help me out behind the scenes. Elizabeth Clinton, Ella Stewart, Misty Walker, Holly Sparks, Jillian Ruize, Gina Behrends, and Wendy Rinebold—you ladies are my rock!
Thank you so much to Misty Walker for encouraging me through The Wild and cheering me on through The Free. Your friendship is invaluable. Irreplaceable. Incredible. I love you more than you’ll ever know.
A big thank you to my author friends who have given me your friendship and your support. You have no idea how much that means to me.
Thank you to all of my blogger friends both big and small that go above and beyond to always share my stuff. You all rock! #AllBlogsMatter
Emily A. Lawrence, thank you SO much for editing this book. You rock!!
Thank you, Stacey Blake, for making this book gorgeous! You’re a star and I love you bunches!
A big thanks to Nicole Blanchard with Indie Sage PR for holding my hand every step of the way during the wildest legs of my journey. Your friendship, support, and steadiness has helped me get through some tough times. I’m so thankful for you!
Lastly but certainly not least of all, thank you to all of the wonderful readers out there who are willing to hear my story and enjoy my characters like I do. It means the world to me!