“You want Tommy to,” he reminded her. “I had to all but sit on you to not say one more time how you were retired and got bored in the summer. She’s not stupid and knew what you meant but she wasn’t jumping.”

  “What’s so wrong with wanting Tommy here with us? Ryder has to work and I could watch Tommy.”

  “You’re going to have your hands full with Sam and Dani’s son come mid-July and you know it. It fell on deaf ears.”

  “All the more reason to enjoy Tommy now,” she argued.

  He got up and kissed her on the lips. “Nice try. Let Ryder figure it out. If he isn’t asking, then we don’t have the right to do it.”

  “I don’t know that I trust Ryder right now to not blow it. You know he gets impatient and then can say things he’ll regret.”

  “I wonder who he gets that from?” he said, laughing.

  “Fine. He gets it from me,” she said. “But—”

  “No buts. Let it rest. Just like us. Let’s go rest and watch TV. I’m tired just watching Tommy run all over the place. He is just like Ryder at that age.”

  “It’s so wonderful to see, isn’t it?

  “It really is.”

  35

  So Much Was Going Well

  “Can I make a confession to you?” Marissa said, looking out over the ballroom. She’d felt a little bit like Cinderella as it was in her long black dress. She wanted to match Ryder and Tommy but refused to buy a red dress.

  “What’s that?” Ryder asked. He hadn’t taken his eyes off of her from the minute she walked out of his bathroom in the dress with the slit to mid-thigh and then slid her feet into black heeled sandals. The only red she had on was the polish on her toes.

  “I’ve never been to a wedding before.”

  “Really?” he asked. “I’ve lost track. Well, there are twelve of us and only two left. So guess I haven’t lost track. This is my tenth wedding in a few years. It’s pretty nuts.”

  “How many have you been in?” she asked.

  “I was Bryce’s best man and a groomsman in Sam’s. Bryce was Sam’s best man and Wyatt was in it too. Noah and Drake just had each other and Wyatt in theirs. Wyatt added Brock to his for obvious reasons since Jade is in the wedding too.”

  “I don’t know how you keep track,” she said. “How did Wyatt decide on who his best man would be?”

  Ryder laughed. “He flipped a coin.”

  “What? You’re joking, right?”

  “Nope. He refused to choose. I think he was torn. Adriana has Jade as the maid of honor and it would have been nice to pair her with Brock, but he’d have to go with his brothers. So when everyone was together he pulled a quarter out and told them to call it and Drake got the honors.”

  “So how would you pick between your brothers?” she asked. She shouldn’t have asked, but she wanted to know. Things were going well with her and Ryder and she was finding herself drawn into his family more and more with each visit. The more she knew about them the more comfortable she’d felt.

  She’d never be able to forget what she did to them, but they all were moving past it. Payton and Dani were absolute sweethearts when they were together and she was able to talk to them more during the pregnancies. They felt free to text or call and asked questions. They were treating her like a sister-in-law even though she didn’t have that title and may never.

  She wasn’t stupid enough to think that just because so much was going well that nine years could be wiped away.

  Though at times, it felt like it had been. Ryder and she still had some disagreements. The parenting in separate locations had its trial and errors, but it was working as well as it could.

  “Sam will be mine,” he said. “Though the joke has been he’d never have to worry about it. Sorry. Didn’t mean to say to that.”

  “It’s okay. I’ve seen your exes and I can understand that thought.”

  “Are you talking about the bimbos that Ryder liked to bring around?” Brody asked, moving over to the table and sitting down. Last night she’d met the last of the Fierce Five, the three that didn’t come to Tommy’s party. Though normally just the wedding party was at the rehearsal dinner, the Fierces did things differently and had the entire family there. She supposed it made sense because the wedding party was all family anyway.

  It was pretty daunting to be in a room full of Fierce men. Jade and Ella were the only girls and she wondered what that was like growing up. But the more she looked at the room last night, she could see it was evened out.

  Everyone was married or engaged, many had kids of their own. Ryder was the only one left at this point, but it seemed most were looking at her like she fit right in.

  She figured it had more to do with the fact they had a son. A son that was out on the dance floor having a ball with some of Adriana’s relatives that flew in.

  “Thanks for bringing that up, Brody,” Ryder said. “Leave it to you.”

  “What can I say,” Brody said, slapping Ryder on the back. “Did he tell you that he stayed at my house last summer for one of the parties? We joked Uncle Grant suggested it on purpose because Sidney was running around and Evan wasn’t sleeping much.”

  Marissa looked over at Ryder to see him smiling. “And tell her how I did with your kids.”

  “He knocked it out of the park,” Brody said. “He was on the floor playing with Sidney and her Barbies and then when Evan was fussy, he took him out of my hands and started to talk. I’m sure you know Ryder hardly ever shuts up and he finally got my son to sleep.”

  She grinned. “I guess he comes by this parenting thing naturally.”

  “He does,” Brody said, standing up. “He’s pretty darn good at it for a guy who has never been around kids much.”

  She watched Brody walk away. “I have a feeling that was one of many comments I’m going to get today about what a great guy you are.”

  “What can I say,” he said. “I am a great guy. I’m a pretty good catch.”

  “You are,” she said. She leaned in and gave him a kiss on the lips. “And I’m glad I was able to reel you back in.”

  “You know the same goes for me.”

  And she was right, Brody wasn’t the only one to come and say something to her. Aiden made his way over with his son, Anthony, and Ryder had no problem putting the boy in his lap and getting him laughing and tossing him in the air. “Has Ryder been cooking for you?” Aiden said.

  “He has. I’ve heard from many that he thought he’d be a chef but had to be the best and couldn’t compete with you.”

  “She’s a smooth one,” Aiden said.

  “She is,” Ryder agreed.

  “Ryder knows he’s welcome in my kitchen anytime for lessons.”

  “I don’t need lessons,” Ryder said.

  “I’ll remember that the next time you call or text me with questions.”

  Ryder smiled and handed Anthony back to his father. “You’re going to ruin the impression that I’m self-taught.”

  Aiden stood up. “He’s self-taught,” Aiden said, then added, “But he still comes to the master when he needs more.”

  And it didn’t stop with Aiden. For the past several weeks she’d gotten lots of texts or comments from not just Ryder’s brothers and their wives, but his cousins and their spouses too. Everyone was praising him at the same time they were picking on him.

  It seemed like in this family it went hand in hand.

  “Slow down, Tommy,” she said when her son came running by followed by Mason’s twins Jeremy and Jacob.

  Two minutes later the twin’s father joined them at the table. “I need to thank you for letting Tommy entertain the twins for us. It’s nice to just be looking for them but knowing they are somewhat safe. He’s a good kid.”

  “He is,” she agreed. “He’s never been around younger kids before, but he seems to be enjoying himself being the older cousin.”

  “We all loved being the older cousin to Ryder,” Mason said.

  “Tell me about it,” Ryder said. “It’s not that I didn’t get enough bossing around from my brothers and the four cousins in Durham, but I had to get it from the Five when they visited too.”

  “We all got it from Sam, Bryce, Noah, Drake and Wyatt.”

  “I thought Jade and Wyatt were the same age as you?” she said trying to keep it all straight.

  “They are a few months older and don’t let us forget it. Oh crap, Jacob just went in the other direction of Jeremy and Tommy didn’t see it. I better catch him.”

  “I get the feeling Mason doesn’t get to sit much,” she said. “And I can’t tell you again how lucky I think I am that I only had one. I don’t know how your family does this.”

  “A big support system,” he said. “One that you’re getting now and could have had before.”

  It wasn’t said in a mean manner and she had to accept that it wasn’t like this topic couldn’t be brought up. Instead she chose to not let her nose get out of joint. “I wouldn’t turn it down now.”

  When he threaded their fingers together and smiled, she could almost see his eyes getting a little misty. “Thank you for that.”

  “For what?”

  “For not fighting me on this or my family. They mean the world to me and I hope you understand and can see that.”

  She looked out across the floor again. “It’s hard to miss.”

  “Fill us in,” Jolene said.

  Diane looked at Ryder and Marissa sitting at a table by themselves and talking. Everyone had been over multiple times to chat with them. They’d been up and moving around and dancing too. It did her heart good to know everyone was pitching in to help Ryder out.

  “You see what I see. You know what I’ve said. They are moving along well.”

  “And they are going on vacation tomorrow for a week,” Grant said. “I think that might be telling when they come back.”

  “Why?” she asked. “They’ve spent a week together already.”

  “But that was caring for Tommy with the stress and pressure of it all. That’s in their past now,” Jolene said. “I made sure all the boys knew to put in a good word for Ryder this weekend.”

  “I told her she was overdoing it,” Gavin said. “It’s obvious what is going on. Anyone can see it.”

  “I told Diane that too,” Grant said. “Garrett and I both warned you women to cut back a little, that Marissa isn’t stupid. She can see it.”

  “Of course she can,” her sister-in-law Carolyn said. “I’d be disappointed if she didn’t. But by seeing it, it shows we support her and Tommy too. You men are missing the whole point.”

  Diane laughed. “I tried to tell Grant that and he said I was nuts.”

  “Us women need to stick together,” Jolene said. “We know what is good for our kids.”

  “You sure do,” Gavin said. “Just remember who started it all and kept it a secret.”

  Diane laughed. Jolene was never going to live it down that Gavin started it with Ella and Travis long before Jolene got the idea in her head. “It doesn’t matter who started it,” Jolene said. “All that matters is that Ryder is finding his soulmate.”

  “You might be jumping a little fast,” Garrett said. “It’s been a few months and though Grant and I talk about how Ryder seems completely different, even at work, it’s hard to push nine years in the past like nothing happened.”

  “I know my boy,” Diane said. “He’s impatient. I just worry he doesn’t say or do something stupid like what got the ball crashing on things nine years ago.”

  “He wasn’t the only one that did something stupid,” Grant said. “Just remember that.”

  “We can’t forget,” she told her husband. “But we need to forgive for us all to accept her and it looks like everyone is.”

  She looked over and saw Ryder give Marissa a kiss on the lips and pull her close to his side. Yeah, her baby was in love.

  36

  Call Me Dad

  “I can’t get over the view,” Marissa said on the fifth day of their vacation.

  “It is pretty nice,” he said. “I was lucky to get it on such short notice.”

  “How did you find it?”

  “One of our clients owns it as part of his investment properties. He said he had a recent cancellation. That is why I rushed you to make the decision.”

  She hadn’t been thrilled when it was brought up weeks ago and he asked if she could work the date out. But since she was coming up for Wyatt’s wedding on Friday afternoon it did work out well.

  “I know. I’m almost out of time though and it’s just half the year.”

  “What do you mean?” he asked. “How much time do you get off a year?” It was one thing he’d never had to worry about or consider before, not that he took advantage of it. Just the opposite. He hardly ever took a full week off. Just days here and there.

  “I get three weeks a year, but I don’t get them all at once. I have to accrue them. At this point, I’m borrowing into my time which I don’t normally do. My bosses are good and understand. They were actually happy I was going on a vacation since I’ve never done that before.”

  He knew she worked for a smaller firm and her bosses treated her well. They gave her a lot of flexibility with Tommy’s surgery and health issues, but she’d expressed concerns that she was worried they might think she was taking advantage of it.

  He wanted to tell her it didn’t matter. If they let her go, she could just move in with him and find a job, or not. He wasn’t worried in the least, but he knew damn well her back would stand up straight enough to shatter with a hammer at the lightest touch if he’d said that.

  “All I care about is if you are happy,” he said.

  “I am. I’m going to show you just how happy I am too,” she said, standing up and putting her hand out.

  Tommy was in bed sleeping and they were sitting on the balcony overlooking the ocean and sharing a glass of wine.

  He couldn’t have asked for a better vacation in his mind.

  Not only were they having a great time together but Tommy also called him Dad for the first time yesterday.

  They’d been getting ice cream after going to the waterslides and a woman behind them in line had said what a lovely family they made. She’d then leaned down to Tommy and said, “You look just like your father.”

  “Did you hear that, Ryder?” Tommy had said. “I look like you. But we know it anyway.”

  The woman had looked startled and then apologized. Marissa was quick to jump in and say that Ryder was her son’s father, but then they got their cones and moved away.

  Ryder was quiet after that and finally Tommy said, “When can I call you Dad?”

  “What?” he’d asked.

  “I asked when I can start calling you Dad.”

  “You can call me that anytime you want,” he said.

  “Oh,” Tommy said, looking confused. “Mom introduced you as Ryder and you never said to call you Dad. Mama and Papa were introduced as Grandma and Grandpa which is why I asked if I could call them that.”

  He started to wonder why he’d never brought this up before. Why Marissa didn’t either because she’d been just as shocked as him that Tommy was saying this.

  “I’d love nothing more than for you to call me Dad.”

  “Sweet,” Tommy said, giving him a hug. “Thanks, Dad.”

  And it sounded sweet coming out of his son’s mouth and Tommy hadn’t stopped saying it since. At one point Marissa had laughed and said, “Welcome to my world when all I hear is ‘Mom, Mom, Mom’ every five minutes.”

  “I welcome it,” he’d said, just like he was welcoming Marissa bringing him to the room that they were staying in together. Another thing that Tommy never even made a comment on once Marissa brought her clothes into his room weeks ago.

  He watched as Marissa sat on the bed and yanked him closer, her face right in his groin. A little giggle escaped. “Remember this,” she said.

  How could he forget? She’d never been one to get on her knees. She said if she was going to work at it and do it right, she had to be comfortable, so she’d sit on the bed or in a chair.

  He never complained. He wasn’t one to ask for a blow job. Never. Women gave him one because they thought he wanted it. Shit, he wouldn’t turn it down, but he didn’t ask either.

  With him, sex was give and take and he was more than willing to give a lot and always did.

  But he remembered every moment of every time he’d been with Marissa.

  And those memories or comments like she’d just made didn’t upset him anymore. They didn’t make him flinch in the least when she brought up the past.

  All it did was make him want to work even harder at the future.

  “I do remember,” he said. “And that you enjoyed it more than you ever wanted to let on.”

  She laughed. “I couldn’t let you know that or you’d want it all the time.”

  She’d often said things like that and now looking back it made him wonder how she was with her exes. He’d known Bryan cheated on her. It wasn’t a secret. But until she’d made the first move months ago to start their relationship again, he hadn’t realized how self-conscious she was about sex.

  She’d never displayed it with him before. And though he didn’t know a lot about her past nine years with men, he just knew she didn’t feel a connection with them.

  Matter of fact, this was the first time she was going to do this to him since they’d gotten back together. Normally they were reaching for each other so much they didn’t have time to just play.

  “I just want to be with you,” he said. “You know that.”

  “I do,” she said. They’d probably said they loved each other in the past few weeks as much as Tommy called him Dad in the last twenty-hours.

  She was reaching for the front of his shorts, unzipping and parting them, then moving them down and freeing his growing cock.

  “I love this,” she said. “How big it is. How it makes me feel.” She moved her mouth forward and ran her tongue up the length of him. “How you taste.”