Playing for Keeps, Page 52

Page 52

 

  "Oh f**k," he ground out as she clamped down tightly around him and squeezed unmercifully, leaving him gasping for breath and pounding into her without any finesse or reason. He was barely aware of her nails digging into his ass or her little blunt teeth biting into his shoulder as she screamed her release. His release came on him so damn hard and fast that he couldn't hold back his roar of ecstasy as Haley squeezed him dry.

  He collapsed against her, careful to keep most of his weight off her and to the side. He pressed a kiss to her damp shoulder.

  "Just so you know," she said, panting just as hard as he was, "the next time you try to leave me. I'm going to kick your ass. "

  Jason had to bury his face against her shoulder to stop himself from laughing out loud. She was just so damn cute.

  "Stop laughing at me! I'm a threat, damn it!"

  Jason pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.

  "No, you're my sweet little grasshopper. "

  Epilogue

  Ten years later. . . . .

  "But, Dad, we're going to starve!" Cole complained, again, as he sagged to the ground, doing his best to look like he was dying. Of course eight year old Elizabeth and five year old Joshua copied their older brother, dropping to the ground right beside Jason's feet and doing their best to out pout the other.

  Jason chuckled as he added more burgers and chicken to the large stainless steel grill he'd bought and set up yesterday.

  "Don't you love us, daddy?" Elizabeth asked, adding just the right amount of lip trembling while Joshua over did it. Jason sighed, throwing more hot dogs onto the grill. He was going to have to work on looking pathetic with his youngest son again it seemed. An amateur pout like that could mean the difference between Haley feeling sorry for all of them and baking some delicious treat to shut them the hell up or her rolling her eyes and ignoring them.

  "I so hungie, daddy," Joshua said, using the baby voice that he knew his parents were suckers for.

  Jason looked down at his children and did his best not to laugh at their over exaggerated pouts. They were so damn cute, but that was to be expected since they were his kids. All three of them took after him in height, dark hair and appetite, but they all had their mother's beautiful emerald eyes, cute little noses and the ability to brighten up a room with their smiles.

  Pursing his lips in indecision, he looked around their large backyard for his little grasshopper. When he didn't find her among their guests he stepped back and craned his neck to look through the kitchen's double glass sliding doors. He spotted his parents, a few cousins and uncles but no little grasshopper.

  When he looked back at his kids he wasn't too shocked to find them already back on their feet, looking ready to pounce. They knew the drill after all.

  "Take this plate," he said, grabbing a plate off the large picnic table he had set up as his work station, "and go hide. Make sure you share, because if I hear any whining I'm not doing this again. " He threw another cautious look over his shoulder before loading up the plate with three large barbeque chicken legs.

  "After you're done make sure you get rid of the evidence and, Cole," he said, looking over his shoulder at his oldest son who was licking his lips hungrily, "make sure your brother and sister remember to wash up this time. "

  The last time they snuck food at a party, Cole innocently denied eating the double chocolate birthday cake. Haley would have probably bought the story if Elizabeth and Joshua hadn't been covered from head to toe in chocolate frosting. Then again he wouldn't have been caught if the kids hadn't rated his ass out.

  He handed the large plate to Cole. "Pick a better spot this time," Jason warned his son.

  Cole nodded. "Can we have some-"

  "Jason Bradford!" his mother said, drawing their attention towards the house. They all swallowed noticeably when they spotted Haley standing next to his mother with her arms crossed over her chest and her cute little brows arched.

  "Please tell me you're not already sneaking food," his little grasshopper said on a tired sigh.

  "No, of course not--run kids! Run!" Jason yelled even as Cole took off towards the woods with his brother and sister hot on his heels.

  His mother let out a long suffering sigh as she walked over to the table and picked up the small box of baby wipes and three juice boxes from one of the large coolers and headed for the woods.

  Jason gave Haley the grin that still got him out of parking tickets and unlimited free samples at the grocery store. Haley simply stared at him, pushing her glasses back up her nose with one finger.

  "I love you?" Jason said, trying not to laugh as Haley tried to look stern and failed miserably.

  "They're my cupcakes, you greedy bastards!" they heard his father yell from the kitchen.

  Haley's lips twitched as she said, "Between you, the kids, and your father, I don't think there will be enough food for everyone. "

  "But they were starving, my little grasshopper. The poor things were barely able to move from hunger," he said, trying to look and sound innocent as he shifted closer to the grill so that she wouldn't see the plate of chicken bones he forgot to hide.

  "Those poor things conned Mitch out the two plates of peanut butter cup bars that Mary made, twenty minutes ago," Haley informed him, chuckling.

  "They what?" he yelled, causing everyone around them to jump. He ignored them as he turned a glare in the direction his children headed off to. The sense of betrayal hit hard. Not only had they conned the soft hearted Mitch out of delicious baked goods that were meant for him, but they failed to give him his customary cut of the action, fifty percent.

  "Yup," Haley said, walking past him to grab a cold soda from the cooler. She rolled her eyes when she spotted the chicken bones and perched her cute little ass on the end of the picnic table. "As soon as he walked in and put the baby down they hit him with 'I love you, Uncle Mitch' and hugs and he was a goner. "

  Jason's glare shifted to his best friend who was lounging in a chair with his wife, Mary, Haley's best friend, on his lap while their baby played in the sandbox close by as their two oldest children ran around with the other kids playing tag.

  Ten years ago Mitch would have simply taunted and teased the kids with the baked goods until someone hit him upside the head and made him share, but that all changed when Haley asked the bastard to do her a favor. Back then Mary was a struggling single parent of a newborn and was barely getting by on less than an hour of sleep a night.

  As a favor to Haley, after much manipulation on Haley's part, Mitch reluctantly volunteered to run some food, formula and diapers over to Mary's small apartment. Mary had opened the door with messy hair, dried spit up on her clothes, looking exhausted and holding a screaming baby girl and Mitch fell hard.

  Almost overnight the old Mitch was gone and the new soft hearted family oriented man appeared. He started spending all his free time helping Mary, making sure she got enough rest, and taking care of little Tabitha much to everyone's shock. Everyone knew that Mary had fallen equally as hard for him, but she held back, too afraid to end up hurt again. It took some time but Mitch eventually wore her down and within a year they were married and expecting their second child.

  "Did no one try and stop him?" Jason demanded, turning his attention back on his little grasshopper, who was helping Brad's son, Aaron make up a plate of food.

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