Page 167 of Unexpected Redemption

“Dammit, Lettie. Stop trying to get me hard. They were only about ten minutes away last I checked.”

Batting her lashes at me, she goes in for the kill. “Oh my, my, my. I’msovery sorry.Pleaseforgive me.”

Feigning anger, I grumble under my breath while dropping my hands under her ass to scoop her up. She clings to me, thighs surrounding my waist and arms over my shoulders.

Walking her to the couch, I force a scowl. “You’re also in another sundress. Why are you torturing me?” I drop onto the couch, keeping her on top of me.

As soon as she finds her balance, she starts pulsing her hips over me. “Did I ever tell you how much I love straddling you like this?”

“Your body has told me many times.” I grab her hips to stop her grinding. “Please don’t tease me. I want you so fucking bad.”

“Nice manners, babe. Am I rubbing off on you? Perhaps it’s a sexual transmitted condition.”

He chuckles. “Being a brat isn’t helping me resist you.”

“Fine,” she rolls her eyes. “We can hug like virgins until they get here. Keep your hands in the green zone, sir. Don’t get too familiar.”

Despite her verbal agreement, she caresses my shoulders and tugs me close, joining our mouths for a sensual kiss. Those damn hips of hers resume grinding.

Fuck. She’s killing me.

My dick swells, digging into the back of my zipper.

I break the kiss before I text Jonesy to tell him to take the long way.

After pulling away from her addictive lips, I ask, “You sure we should tell them about the baby tonight? We can wait if you’re unsure.”

She nibbles her lip, eyes thoughtful. “I want to tell them. No secrets.”

“Whatever you want.” I grin at her, then go in for a quick peck.

“Iwanta quickie before they get here. Can we? One touch of my clit, and I’ll probably come. How fast can you be?”

Unfortunately, my phone chirps with the perimeter alarm, which means our guests have arrived.

“Notthatfast, sweetness.”

“Fudge.”

Lettie saidshe was expecting guilt and tension from Stella. Judging by the murderous looks I’m receiving from the little spitfire, Lettie grossly underestimated Stella’s reaction.

I regret cooking steak for dinner. Something that didn’t require a knife might have been a safer bet. Should’ve gone with soup. No bread or rolls because even a butter knife feels risky.

Ah, hindsight.

On the other end of the spectrum, Freya’s as excited as can be. Sheooh’dandahh’dover Lettie’s collar for a solid five minutes after they finally stopped hugging.

My sugar bear is doing her best to ignore the hostility brewing under Stella’s facade, but she knows it’s there. And we haven’t even told her about the baby yet.

Time to quash this shit.

After clearing the table, I catch her eyes. “Stella, can I talk to you for a minute?” I tip my head toward the living room.

She doesn’t have a chance to respond before Lettie tries to smooth things over. “Babe, it’s okay. You don’t?—”

“It’s fine, sweetness. Just a little chat to clear the air.” I look back at Stella. “Unless you’d rather not. Don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

If my read on Stella is correct, she’ll pick up the underlying challenge and capitulate.

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