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"Oh fuck" I stopped short Gripping my dick into say died in , her expression sated and satisfied, and I didn’t want to do anything to ruin the ht, I’ll talk to her after In the bathroom, I wet a cloth and rubbed off the se the soiled cloth away, I heated a new one up and carried it out to her

"We s Her hand stroked down ers unconsciously over the branches and down the trunk of the tree I had tattooed onit after Boot Cans, the tree one called to me Not because I was a nature lover but because I liked the idea of creating roots, of being a steady, dependable man that my father wasn’t I wanted to provide for Grace, shelter her, and love her

Her inner thighs had streaks of come on them and part of me didn’t want to wipe them away Part of me, the Neanderthal part, wanted to scoop every swiht of Grace rounded and pregnant with ain

I tried to ignore it because despite Grace’s consent earlier, she still had to study for a final Reluctantly cleaning her off, I pulled back the sheets and tucked her underneath the covers The studying could wait until after a short, post-dinner nap

"I’ll wake you up in an hour, baby, so you can study for your Comp Lit final"

"Thanks," she said drowsily and fell off to sleep I didn’t know if Grace really grasped the ra sex without the condom, but we’d do whatever she wanted If she wanted to keep the baby, then my timeline had just been crunched into a shorter tis other offer seemed less offensive now

I’d tell Grace tomorrow

THREE

Noah

"WE SHOULD STAY OVERNIGHT IN the city I'll take you to Navy Pier and we can ride the Ferris Wheel," I offered Grace and I had skipped all the fun dating things that high school students did since I was ass deep in dust and sand during her high school years

"It's nearly zero degrees," Grace said dryly

"So that's a no?"

Grace reached across the console and squeezed h in silent reassurance Apparently she didn't want to tip off her cousin, as sitting in the back of the rented Tahoe, that I was nervous as fuck about going to their hoiven that I’d suggested going to an amusement park in the dead of winter In the rearviewher eyes at h none of the water on Lake Michigan looked frozen so I wasn't sure where that would take place

I'd only been in Chicago once before, and I’d only really seen the airport and Interstate 94

"You're looking sterner and sterner the closer we get to my house" Grace leaned over and kissed my cheek

My face felt like stone, and I tried to crack a smile for her, but itGrace about Dr Billings, the possibility I was going to throw a fight, madedown, shutting Grace out

She just patted ain "We all hate it there, don't we, Lana"

"Yup, don't blareed "Christmas with the Sullivans involves a lot of liquor, insults, and crying--and that's just me Your ho with us"

"Lana," Grace chastised

Leave it to Lana, I thought "Anything is better than Little Oak, Texas"

"What's Bo doing?" Grace asked

"He's going to San Diego to visit some Marine buddies"

The rest oftheir respective holidays with their fao with him, but I wanted to be with Grace With my schedule, it was hard to have complete days with her uninterrupted by classes, business duties, and training for ht

At Grace's house, she promised me that I could work out and that the rest of e the results of my workout That cheered , Grace," Lana said fro you"