JAGGER & BBianca Stone cut her eyes to the clock located at the back of her classroom, willing it to fast-forward an hour. It read two-thirty and she was dying for it to be three-thirty, which would signal the end of her workday. The end of her workday would mean she had a total of three weeks off for Christmas and New Year's. No getting up to an alarm, no rushing to get to school in the morning, and leaving Jagger behind for eight to ten hours while she worked.This year the break was much needed because she was burnt the fuck out. She couldn't wait to sleep in and stay up late with her husband. Whether it be watching stupid Christmas movies on Netflix or between the sheets. She just wanted to spend time with him and not have to worry about anything. She didn't want to make her lunch the night before, grade papers while sucking down coffee to stay awake, or be the voice of reason when answering emails from worried or angry parents. The next three weeks were hers and hers alone.
Jagger pulled his bike into the driveway of his new-ish home. Sometimes when he walked in, he could smell the fresh paint and the hardwood floors. It still hadn't stopped giving him a sense of pride; the fact he and Bianca had managed to buy themselves a home. Neither one of them could wait until the weather cleared and they were able to get outside and do some landscaping. When they'd signed the papers, he'd held her while she'd cried and damned if he hadn't thought about crying himself. It was a purchase neither one of them were sure they would ever be able to make, but they'd saved and lucked up on a piece of land they could afford. Building the house had been a struggle, but in the end they'd gotten the majority of what they wanted. What they didn't get, they knew they could add as the years went by.He spotted her car parked beside the back deck and grinned to himself. He couldn't wait to get her out of her own head, and get her onboard with all his fun plans.Before he'd left
"You wanna split a pitcher?" Christine asked Meredith and Bianca as they were seated at their table.Two enthusiastic yesses made her laugh as she ordered."If we make it through that one, I got the next," B raised her hand. "It's been a rough few weeks."Meredith gave an unladylike snort. "Tell me about it. This close to Christmas, people get insane and unfortunately, CRISIS starts filling up," she sank into the side of the man in her life, Tyler Blackfoot, leaning in as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders."I had to shut off my phone," Christine sighed as she leaned forward and snagged a tortilla chip, dipping it in the salsa every table was given."What the fuck for?" Jagger asked as he reached forward and grabbed his own chip. "Who cares about their hair this close to Christmas? We haven't even got our shopping done yet."Three sets of eyes drilled their laser focus into him as all three women shot him a look. "What?""Sometimes I wonder how we're related," Christi
One of the awesome things about being on Christmas break was that Bianca could stay up late and watch the sets Jagger played at Wet Wanda's. Between lesson plans, grading papers and evening events at school, these past few months she'd had responsibilities that kept her away from his shows for the first time since they'd been together. They'd both been resigned to the fact that as she advanced further in her teaching career, they had different job obligations that might conflict from time to time.Bianca shifted in her seat. She still hadn't told him about the opportunity she had to possibly go and teach in New Orleans. She'd applied for the special seminar, not for a minute thinking she would be picked, but they'd sent her notification a few days ago. It would mean a week during the summer in the Big Easy, and she wasn't sure her small-town guy would go for it. She was proud of herself, and it hurt not to share in her excitement with him, but she knew when it was time to talk about
"Do you wanna come to Nashville with me today?" B spoke into her phone as she navigated morning traffic on Porter Pike, a few days later. Just because she was off work didn't mean everybody else in Warren County was, but today she had time to be patient if she needed to be. It was a nice change from the constant rush of her everyday life. Instead of getting pissed off at the asshole who had just turned in front of her, cutting her off, she let her foot off the gas and flipped him off under the dashboard. If she'd been rushed, Bianca would have laid on the horn, cursed loudly, and boldly flipped him off in plain view.There was a sigh on the other end of her line, followed by a soft curse. She could hear fingers beating on a keyboard. "Why the hell not? The muses aren't talking to me today anyway. Can you come pick me up at my office?"Jessica, Layne's wife, was an ex-actress who made her living now as a hugely successful romance writer. Lately, she'd gotten even more popular and he
"Tyler here today?" Jagger asked as he made his way into the office of Walker's Wheels. So far the only person he'd laid eyes on was the man who sat behind the desk – their boss and club president – Liam Walker. If Tyler wasn't around, this would definitely be the man he could talk to, but Tyler was famous in the club. Anyone who had a problem went to him, because he always knew the perfect thing to say.Liam held up a finger, finishing whatever it was he worked on before turning his eyes up to his employee and friend. Taking in the irritated look on Jagger's face, he frowned. "You okay? He took the wrecker out to pick up a car," Liam glanced at the clunky watch on his wrist. "Should be back anytime now though."Jagger nodded, but didn't say anything. Instead he took a seat in the chair opposite Liam. If Tyler was on his way, he didn't want to burden the person who kept the business and club running like a well-oiled machine, not to mention he didn't really want to get into this tw
"Thanks for inviting me over for cookie day!""Thanks for coming," Meredith opened her front door, ushering Bianca inside.Once she stepped in, Bianca could hear the noise from the kitchen. Between the adults and the children, it sounded like they were having a great time. "Sounds like a party."Meredith shook her head, a rueful grin on her face. "We have some margaritas, because we're all gonna need it when this is all over. We're just drinking slowly."Bianca laughed. Unlike the rest of them, she worked with kids all day; granted her students were older, but every once in a while, they could still get on her nerves."Hey!" She yelled to the group of women and children that had gathered. There were a ton of hellos shouted back, including a few "Aunt B's!" that made her heart clench. She loved these kids with everything she had. "Who wants me to help them?" Again lots of screams as she gratefully accepted a margarita and sat down at the kitchen table."So where's Jagger tod
"Who goes first?" B asked as she put her gift just outside the living room so he couldn't see it. She knew if he saw the shape, he'd know exactly what it was and she'd worked really hard to keep it a secret. The day it had been delivered, he'd almost seen it because he'd come home from work early. She'd be damned if the surprise was going to get spoiled, today of all days."You," he patted the seat next to him, motioning her over to sit beside him.She was kind of disappointed because she really wanted to give him the guitar, but she also didn't want to give away how big the gift was just yet. Seeing the excitement in his eyes, she wondered what in the hell he'd gotten her. He hadn't looked this smug since the night he'd proposed.Walking into the room, she had a seat next to him, watching as he pulled a beautiful looking bag from the gifts. He'd really upped his wrapping game since they'd gotten married, and she knew if he continued, she'd hand all the wrapping over to him in th
The temperature in the cab of the truck was downright frigid as Remy drove to Tyler's house to drop off Addie first. Tatum refused to meet his gaze and that flat out pissed him off. If she was going to give herself to another man and then have the balls to sit in front of him like this, she should at least have the decency to meet his eyes when he looked at her."Am I going to have to explain to Tyler why I'm dropping you off at one in the fucking morning?" Remy glanced in the review mirror of the truck, looking back to where Addie sat in the extended cab."No," she shook her head, looking about as tired and unhappy as he felt. "He's at the clubhouse. He and Mom had planned to stay and they took Caelin with them."Well, thank God for small favors, because the one person besides Liam he didn't want to face off with tonight, was Tyler."You're lucky I don't call him and tell him where the hell you've been. How could you let her go up there with him?" he questioned her, the irrita
Tatum's heart beat through her chest as she followed Gavin upstairs to a much quieter part of the house. Her mouth was dry – the result of her nerves, or the alcohol she'd consumed – she wasn't sure which. Her hand gripped Gavin's tightly, but she knew it wasn't because she was excited, it was because she wanted to yank on it, and stop him from leading her into the empty bedroom. Part of her wanted to put a stop to it, the other part wanted to go through with this so she could throw it in Remy's face. Those stubborn traits she'd inherited from her dad were alive and well tonight.She glanced over her shoulder, spotting Addie pulling out her phone and making a call. The worried look on her friend's face told her all she needed to know. Addie was probably calling in reinforcements and her time had suddenly become very limited."You feelin' good?" his deep voice questioned in her ear, causing her hair to stand up and goosebumps to appear on her arms. This time it was different than wh
Remy was in a piss-poor mood, had been since the night of the Christmas party and everything that had gone down with Tatum. He bit off the head of anyone foolish enough to ask if he was okay. He'd been eating lunch by himself, and overall had been a miserable fucking loner. Even right now, while everyone else was partying their asses off, his big date was being in the gym and beating the ever-loving shit out of a heavy bag. It was the only thing that seemed to calm him the last few days.Hearing his fists connect with the bag felt good, even if it was muted by the gloves he wore. His arms burned, his shoulders and back ached, his chest heaved, and sweat poured down his forehead and into his eyes; making them sting. The sting felt good though, because it distracted him from the guilt he felt for the way he'd treated Tatum. And that guilt was pressing down on him like he was trapped under a thousand-pound boulder.He'd felt every emotion on the spectrum since she'd walked out on him
Tatum's blue eyes took in the party-goers around her. In different parts of the room, she could see members of her graduating class, some kids that were now seniors, and a few college kids. God, this had never been her thing, she'd never found high school or college parties worth anything to her. She could see everything that went on at them and more, at the club parties. Plus, this was a mob mentality – everyone here went along with everyone else, and it was so boring. Nobody had any individuality. Normally, she'd have tossed the invitation in the trash can and not even thought twice about it. She would have spent the night at the club's New Year's party and have an actual good time with her friends and family.Tonight though, she was on a mission."Do you see anybody?" Addie asked as they surveyed the room.Tatum took a drink from the bottle of Strawberry Boone's Farm she carried in her hand. It was the bottom shelf stuff, guaranteed to get you loaded in the least amount of tim
Tatum had never felt anything like the all-consuming lust that blasted through her as soon as Remy grabbed her hip and pulled her deep into his body. She'd thought she had but damn, she was wrong. Her fingers grasped at his shirt, trying to ground herself in the feelings, when she felt his bare palms slip up under the hem of her dress. The sharp intake of breath, and the way he nipped at her lip indicated he'd discovered she'd worn a thong."Fuck, Tate," he moaned as he pulled his lips from hers.She almost cried as he abandoned her lips and smeared his mouth down her neck. She felt the sharp nip of his teeth down to the core of her body. It caused her nipples to tighten further against the lace of strapless bra, and before she knew what she was doing, she was rubbing up against him."Please, Rem," she gasped out when she felt one of his hands on her ass venture back over her hip, and closer to the wetness and heat she felt between her thighs."Has anybody touched you?" he grow
He knew the second she walked in, just like he'd known when she'd entered the bakery. Even seven shots of Pappy in, he could feel her, he knew she was there by the way the hair on the back of his neck stood up, the goosebumps he got on his arms and the way his dick stirred to attention. He wasn't sure what kind of hold Tatum Walker held over him, but it was strong, maybe dangerously so, like some sort of Jedi Mind Trick he'd never be able to resist. And dammit if his hand didn't shake as he took his next shot."Too much for you?" Drew asked as he noticed the slight tremble of the other man's hand.How did he tell the man sitting beside him, he was hard up for his little sister? Easy. He didn't."Nah, I'm good, but I gotta hit the head. Be back."Plan number two when plan number one didn't work? Run and hope she wouldn't follow. As much alcohol as he had consumed, he wasn't sure he could push her away this time. After all, he was only a man and he wasn't immune to the way she lo
He should have brought a date. Those were the first words Remy thought when he walked through the door of the clubhouse. It hit him like a ton of bricks, and all he wanted to do was turn around and head back to Cash and Harper's. Normally, he lived at the clubhouse, but he'd had dinner at their place tonight. He could relieve the babysitter watching Maddy, and he wouldn't have to worry about keeping his guard up.Couples were paired off, which meant anyone without a plus one would be inevitably thrown together. Looking up, he saw mistletoe was hung randomly around the room. Shit. Since he was the youngest, he seemed to be one of the few without a woman on his arm. Sure as the world turned, he'd find himself thrown toward someone tonight.Gazing around the room, he didn't see Tatum and for that he was extremely thankful. He'd been able to avoid her since the day at Harper's bakery, but it'd hadn't been easy. Not that she'd gone out of her way to be around him but they were in the sa
Remy told himself to slow down as he grasped her neck, hauling Tatum closer to him. He cautioned his lust-drunk body not to make a fool of itself. He warned his libido not to let this go too far. They were in the middle of the bakery, in the middle of downtown. Anyone could walk through that door from some dumbass off the street, to her brother, to her dad. But he couldn't stop, couldn't force his hand not to trail down her body and grasp her tight ass in his fingers. He wanted desperately to pull her lower half into his, wanted to shove his thigh between her legs and feel the heat he knew would be there. His tongue was forceful as it made its way into her mouth, testing how far she'd let him go.Turned out she'd let him go as far as he wanted to.His brain tried to warn him that this was progressing too quickly. It was getting too out of control, too fast. If he didn't watch it, he'd be picking her up and putting her ass first against the nearest wall. He was losing his mind, losi
Son of a bitch. Something in the way Tatum's gaze met his made him think he'd said those words loud enough she could hear them. But fuck, she looked amazing. Even more than she usually did. Tatum had been gorgeous for a long time, but with her hair in this new cut, she looked sexy, and almost… sophisticated. But this was Tatum. She'd never fully be a lady, not really. She didn't do dresses unless she had to, she didn't do caked on makeup, and she could hang with the guys – no matter how raunchy it got."Do you like it?" She asked again, this time looking much more unsure than when she'd started out. Very slowly, she ran her fingers through her hair, giving it a tousle.Remy cleared his throat, not sure how honest he wanted to be, but at the same time knowing he couldn't help but be honest. If he lied to her, she would know, and it would do nothing to help the situation they seemed to always find themselves in. The two of them always seemed to be either pushing or pulling at each ot