And Caleb covered her with his body, gathered her thighs in his grip, and probed at her entrance…

Finally.

Carlotta Buckley was about to become his after weeks and months of waiting and hoping and wanting. His—now and always.

He drove his cock inside her in one smooth stroke, pushing past clamping, fluttering muscles so tight with need.

The head of his dick scraped her soft, silken walls, and he groaned low in his chest. Jesus! There was no way he was going to last long, especially when she gasped and moved with him, urging him deeper. He slid all the way down into her. Like fucking molasses. She gripped him as he withdrew, then shoved his way inside her again. If anything, she was more snug, her body even more poised on the edge. So goddamn perfect.

“We’re going to come together, Lottie. I can feel you, baby. I know you’re close. But you wait for me, you hear?”

She threw her head back with a whimper. But she nodded. God, Carlotta in the throes and impaled on his cock was even more beautiful than he’d imagined. Sensual. Sexual. Womanly. She fucking glowed, and he wanted the chance to do this to her every day for the rest of their lives.

“That’s good,” he praised, picking up his pace. “So good…”

Every movement tingled up his spine. Blood surged through his body as he pumped her deeper, faster, harder. Hell, she was going to blow the top of his head off. That snug little pussy clamped down on him again. She moaned once more, cried out his name.

Caleb was done for.

He adjusted her thighs into the crooks of his elbows and slammed his mouth over hers. She whimpered again as he kissed her. Her tongue danced an uninhibited tango with his as he pounded her cunt, one deep stroke after the next. Then that unmistakable thrill zipped down his spine. Tingles brewed in his balls. His cock blazed with need, and he felt everything rising up inside him.

“Now, Lottie. Come!”

She surrendered the rigid hold she’d held over her body, and her flesh gripped him unmercifully before pulsing all around him, stroking his cock. His eyes closed as the ecstasy steamrolled him, and he groaned as he spilled deep inside her, feeling her buck and jolt, yet somehow moving with him as she screamed.

After a long, hazy moment, the orgasm subsided, and he felt Lottie’s mouth still under his. The passionate fucking gave way to a deep kiss of reverence. Then he lifted his head.

“You’re mine now.”

“Yours.” She smiled up at him, tears shimmering in her eyes. “I feel so…cherished and beautiful. Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me, Lottie. Love me.”

She pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “I do. I think I always have. I know I always will.”

Chapter 7

Christmas Eve

Carlotta stomped on her breaks in front of Gordon’s house, and the car came to a shuddering halt as the morning sun streamed through the windshield. She had long ago ceased thinking of this as their house. Her time here in this prison had passed. As she looked out the window at the wide, perfectly manicured lawn and big beige front door, a thousand unhappy memories assaulted her. How had she lived here, so stifled, for so long?

“You don’t have to do this,” Caleb said beside her from the passenger’s seat. “If you choose not to, it won’t change who you are, my opinion of you, or what happens next with us.”

She turned to him. Other than her children, he was the brightest spot in her life. She had awakened this morning with a smile, wrapped in his arms. Slowly, he had caressed her well-loved body, arousing it, then filling it again. And she thanked God for giving her this man and this second chance at a happy future.

“Thank you, querido. But I need this. For me.”

He peered up at the house and through the window. “I don’t see a tree up. Are you sure he’s going to be home?”

“Gordon does not like Christmas trees. In his opinion, they are silly and messy, even artificial ones.”

And she thought about all the years that she did without or made do with an artificial tabletop shrub wrapped with tinsel and a few bulbs for the children’s sake. Since leaving Gordon, she had put up a lavish tree for herself each year, just because she could. And the huge, beautiful tree that she and Caleb had decorated in Hunter and Kata’s new house would take everyone’s breath away. It had certainly stolen hers…along with the deep kisses of passion Caleb had given her as they decorated.

“Gordon will be here,” she added. “He does not work on Christmas Eve and does not speak to his brother, which is the last of his family.”

“Definitely a miserable prick,” Caleb commented.

His face asked how she could have stayed married to such a jerk for so long. Carlotta knew that if she had to do it all again, she would find some other way to support her children. Go back to school, pound the pavement for a better job. She might have taken the help that Eduardo’s parents had offered after his death. Then she’d been too scared and proud and worried that his wealthy, influential family would take the children from her. Those fears had largely been in her head, and because she had been too frightened to ask questions, she had withdrawn into herself—and made an easy mark for Gordon.

No more stalling. She wanted to start this holiday season with a lighter load, a brighter future. Time to jettison the past.

“I will be back shortly.” She opened the car door.

Before she could step out, Caleb put a firm hand on her arm. “So long as we understand one another. You do not go in the house and allow him to shut the door behind you. You don’t place yourself at his dubious mercy.”

Carlotta nodded. They had talked about how to keep this confrontation safe. He didn’t like that she needed to do this, but he respected it. She leaned forward to kiss him. “He will not lay a hand on me. I will not allow him to put me in a vulnerable position. I will be back in two minutes.”

He nodded, the strong angles of his face tight. “And I’ll be watching.”

With a little smile, she stepped from the car and shut the door behind her. Yes, she might have been motivated to do this eventually, but Caleb…wonderful, solid Caleb, had given her the strength to both see that she needed to exorcise this part of her past and the will to do it.

Up the long curved walkway, Carlotta found her stomach tangling into knots. The familiar hollow feeling emptied out her chest. One foot in front of the other. Breathing was difficult as she knocked on the door.

Gordon answered a minute later in a pair of slouchy sweat pants and a dingy undershirt. His grouch expression morphed into something curious, almost gloating, when he caught sight of her.

Leaning against the portal, he smirked. “Seen the error of your ways finally? Did Kata’s father-in-law see how worthless you are, too? Did he kick you to the curb? Aww, and on Christmas Eve.”

“No, Gordon. For once, you are not dictating the conversation. I am, and you will listen to me. I never want to see you again. Stop calling my place of work. If you happen to see me in public, ignore me. I will do the same to you. Nothing that comes out of your vile mouth is of interest to me. You have never respected me in the past, but I am demanding you to respect these wishes.”

“Why? For the sake of our fabulous years of marriage?” he sneered.

“I would like to say because you are a decent human being with a heart, but since I know better, I will instead tell you that you no longer have the power to hurt me. Once, I may have been made of glass and you might have broken me into little pieces at will. Now, I refuse to let you crush me. You will never see my shards again.”

“Pretty speech, bitch. But I don’t believe it. You’re still the same pathetic woman who hobbled around my kitchen and clung to me the second I walked in the door every night.” He glared. “So, did that big asshole you were with when I last saw you tell you how much he values you and what a beautiful woman you are so that he could fuck you? Did you believe him? Are you feeling all strong and mighty now that he pumped you up to pump his way inside you, you stupid whore?”

His contempt angered Carlotta, but it didn’t hurt her. Gordon was like a child lashing out because someone else wanted the toy he had cast aside. He couldn’t hurt her, not ever again. “No. Caleb knows how to love. He knows how to be a true partner. He would never tear me down to build himself up. Of course, I am certain that was simply your way of compensating for your very tiny penis. But I no longer care. I will not say good-bye, Gordon. I wish you nothing well. Instead, I think I will leave you with a very cheerful fuck off.”

She had never uttered that word in her life, and saying it now felt so damn good. So freeing. She smiled as she turned to leave.

Gordon grabbed her by the arm and yanked her back. With a terrible snarl and wide, maniacal eyes, he curled his arm around the front of his body, like he meant to backhand her across the face. Fear surged. Carlotta tried to tug herself free, but could not budge his grip. Instead, she kicked, hitting him in the shin, earning a nasty curse from him. But he gripped her tighter.

“Take your hand off of her right this fucking second or I’ll do this world a favor and take you out,” Caleb growled behind her.

Instantly, Gordon let go. Then he shoved her away, smirking when she stumbled.

Caleb caught her, then turned her to face him. The familiar comfort of his blue eyes, his searching gaze full of concern, set her at ease. “I am fine.”

He kissed her forehead. “Go to the car, Lottie.”

“Let us go together. I have nothing more to say to this scum.”

“I do.” His jaw tightened. “Wait in the car.”

“But I have said my piece.”

“I haven’t. Gordon and I need to be crystal clear, baby. Go on.”

Careful, she mouthed to him. He nodded and sent her off with a guiding hand at the small of her back.

Carlotta did not like leaving Caleb with Gordon. Not that she thought her man incapable of defending himself against the weasel. More that she worried Caleb would not see Gordon’s sneaky manipulation until it was too late. But he had respected her need to speak her mind. She could allow him no less.

In the car, she waited, wringing her hands, watching with an unblinking gaze. They exchanged some low, heated words—nothing she could hear. Suddenly, Gordon paled and stepped back. Caleb smiled, gave him the one-fingered salute, and marched back to the car.

When he hopped in, she stared, mouth agape. “What did you say to him?”

Caleb just grinned, supremely satisfied. “Let’s just say he understands now that if he bothers you again he’ll have a sniper, two SEALs, a former Army Ranger, and a former CIA operative willing to end his miserable life and hide the body so it will never be identified. I might have described just a bit how that could happen. Just for a minute. Nothing too over the top.”

Carlotta thought she should probably be horrified or maybe even angry that it had taken Caleb’s threat to make Gordon understand. But she wasn’t going to change the little bastard. The important thing was that she had changed herself. And even when she had not let Caleb hold her hand for every part of this journey, he had been with her in spirit, showing her from the beginning what a true man should be.

“You really are a wicked, wonderful man.”

Later that evening, Caleb sneaked a kiss as Carlotta put the last of the accessories in place. For the last two hours, she’d been running from room to room, checking drapes, fluffing pillows, straightening out area rugs, flipping on lights…

“It looks perfect, baby. You’ve done a terrific job. Come have a glass of wine and enjoy how great the house looks before everyone arrives.”

Earlier in the day, Tyler, Deke, Jack, and Logan, who had just gotten leave, brought over all Hunter and Kata’s furniture, setting it perfectly in place. Carlotta had packed a few of their clothes and essentials into boxes and brought them over as well. Kata and Hunter would no doubt move the rest out of their old apartment. But everything in the house now looked fresh and organized and like something out of a magazine—a far cry from the house they’d walked into a few weeks ago.

“Everything you did to the house, querido, made it a much better place to live. I merely added color.”

“Along with a lot of love.”

He hugged her tight as Logan shoved open the front door, holding Tara’s hand. They both looked around the house with big smiles, stopping in front of the towering Christmas tree decorated entirely in red and gold, a shimmering jewel in an otherwise sleek great room.

Caleb approached his younger son and clapped him on the back. “Good to see you.”

“Hey, Dad.” He turned, and they bumped shoulders.

Then Caleb broke away and leaned over to Tara. As always, she was such a tiny thing, and he was careful as he wrapped her in a gentle hug.

“Everything looks great,” Logan’s wife said with a wondrous smile. “Hi, Carlotta.”

She bustled forward, looking sexy as hell in a black V-neck sweater with gold flecks, a short black skirt that showed off those legs he’d become addicted to getting between. It hugged her luscious ass…and damn, he’d better stop this train of thought or he’d be sporting a hard-on when the party started.