Falling for the Jerk (Falling in Love Book 2) Read online

  Licking her dry lips, she wrapped her arm around his waist as well, tempted to place her hand on his ass, but stopping herself.

  Dale always had the ability to set a fire a blazing inside her, and now was no different. She wanted him, craved him, and without having any responsibility around her, she so wanted to give in.

  They made their way to the bar, and she watched the couples on the dance floor as they danced. She’d not been out on a date since high school, and this was the first time she had away from the kids. She trusted June and Trey to take care of her babies for her.

  Dale handed her a beer, and she accepted it, taking a small sip.

  “I’m driving tonight, baby. I want you to have fun,” he said, leaning in close to whisper against her ear so she could hear him.

  “What about you?”

  “I’m going to show you how to have fun.” He turned her so that she stood between his spread legs, and his back leaned against the bar. Everyone and everything faded away.

  For a split second she panicked. What if he proposed? She didn’t want to turn him down and spoil their date, their fun.

  “What took the smile off your face?” he asked.

  She took a deep breath, knowing it was pointless to argue with him. “I don’t want to spoil our date.”

  “I’m not going to ask you to marry me.”

  Her mouth opened, and she gasped. “You’re not?” She was shocked that he even knew what she was talking about.

  “Nope. That ring is sealed away. In fact…” He reached into his jeans pocket and pulled out the ring, showing it to her.

  “Dale?”

  “No, I’m not going to ask you again.” He placed the ring in her hand. “I want you to tell me when you’re ready. Put this on your finger when you’re ready, and you know I’m not going to be an asshole to you.” He leaned forward, pressing a kiss against her cheek. “You will marry me, Mol. You and I both know that you will as soon as I prove myself to you.”

  She held the ring in her hand and stared down at it. “I don’t have anywhere to put it.”

  “Place it on your finger until we get home, and then you can put it away.”

  Not seeing a problem with his idea, she placed the ring on her finger and saw that it was indeed a perfect fit, and it felt so … right. She fisted her hand and placed it by her side, glancing up at him. She saw the pleasure on his face at seeing the ring on her finger.

  “It looks good.”

  She couldn’t help but smile. “You have pretty good taste.”

  “I have the best kind of taste.” He took a large gulp of his soda. “Do you want to dance?”

  “Love to.”

  He took her beer and placed them back on the bar.

  “What about our drinks?”

  “I’ll order new.” He urged her onto the dance floor, and got his way as couples moved out of their way. He took her hands, pulling them around his neck, and placed his on her ass, drawing her close.

  She released a gasp. While everyone else danced to something upbeat, he took it down a notch. Her body pressed so close against him she felt the hard ridge of his cock against her stomach. The way he squeezed her ass reminded her of the times they’d fallen together, when she’d tried to resist him. He always loved it when she went over him. He’d grab her ass and urge her to take his cock.

  Her mind was consumed by their sex life.

  “I can see what you’re thinking about right now,” he said.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What am I thinking about then?” she asked.

  “About my cock being deep inside you. Your pussy always tightens when I squeeze your ass to pull you down onto me. Fuck, baby, I love your pussy, just as much as I love you.”

  She gasped as he said the words, and his lips trailed a path from her ear to her shoulder. This was how it always was with them. The moment they were alone, she lost all focus, and just felt him deep in her heart, and her core.

  Her pussy was already soaking wet, and her need for him had risen.

  “You’re what I think about every single night, Mol. Even when you’ve turned me down, and I’ve had no choice but to walk away. I think about your smile, and the way you feel in my arms. The fire that burns between us. It’s special, and I know for a fact not everyone gets to feel this, baby. You’re special to me.”

  She closed her eyes and rested her head against him, finding it hard to deny him. Every single night when the kids were in bed and the house began to settle, she’d think about Dale. She always missed him, and yearned to feel his arms around her, or his lips on her neck. She loved it when he had a day-old stubble as his kisses often left swollen red marks, but the scratchiness only seemed to enhance her arousal.

  “You never questioned Sasha and Luke.”

  “I know they’re mine, Mol. I know I’m the only guy you’ve ever been with, and I know I will only ever be the only guy you’re with.” He pressed a kiss to her cheek.

  “I’m not the only girl though.”

  “I was a fucking asshole. That doesn’t excuse my behavior. I know it doesn’t, but I hope, more than anything, that you’ll give me a chance. That you’ll forgive me.” He pressed a kiss against her lips, and she didn’t fight him.

  Gripping the back of his neck, she moaned as his tongue slid across her lips, and she felt her body melt into his. She wanted his touch more than anything else.

  His hands moved from her ass, going to her back and stroking a path back down again.

  He deepened the kiss, and she gasped his name.

  Suddenly, he pulled away and took her hand, leading her off the dance floor and out of the bar.

  “Dale?” she asked.

  He pulled out of the bar and rounded the building, pressing her up against the wall. “I love you,” he said.

  She’d never told him how she felt. Each time she went to something always got in the way, and right now she was afraid to say the words.

  “It’s only ever going to be you.” He cupped her cheek, tilting her head back, and took possession of her lips.

  Gripping his shoulders, she held him tightly, not wanting to let him go as he made her ache.

  She had to have him. “Touch me, Dale,” she said, breaking from the kiss. Not for the first time she felt reckless, and totally wanted to abandon her need to do the right thing.

  His thumb lifted her chin up, and at the same time his hand landed on her thigh. She felt him gather up the fabric of her dress, bunching it up and moving it out of his way, the tips of his fingers trailing across her thigh.

  She didn’t care that she had cellulite or that her body had changed. Dale had explored every inch of her body before, and it had driven him wild.

  His fingers teased inside her thighs, moving up to place his palm directly against her pussy. Her panties were already soaking wet, and she cried out as he touched her.

  “Fuck me, baby, all it takes is me touching you like this to make me hard.” He groaned as she pressed her hand against his dick.

  The jeans he wore didn’t hide the evidence of his arousal.

  They were around the back of the town’s only bar. She knew she should suggest that they go back to her place or even his, but right now, in this very moment, she didn’t want to be responsible. She wanted to be reckless, and feeling his hands against her pussy, and the length of his arousal, she didn’t want to stop.

  ****

  Molly always drove him wild. Feeling the heat of her pussy, Dale groaned. She’d always been fire in his arms, and even though he wanted to take her to a bed and show her how much he loved her, he didn’t have the patience. Tearing at her panties, he shoved them into his pocket and touched her pussy, sliding a finger between her slit.

  Stroking her clit, he moved his finger down to fill her pussy, feeling her tightness clench around his finger.

  “Oh, fuck, baby, you feel so fucking good.”

  She attacked his jeans, opening the buckle and sliding her h
and inside, wrapping her fingers around his length.

  Staring into her eyes, Dale lost himself. Everything faded and no longer mattered to him. All he cared about was being with her, showing her how much he loved her, and that he wouldn’t back down.

  His asshole days were over. He was here now, and intended to be the man she deserved.

  “Please, Dale,” she said, crying out his name. “I want to feel you inside me.”

  He groaned. Teasing her clit, he brought her close to orgasm, and when he knew she was on the edge, he withdrew his hand and lifted her up. She didn’t fight him as he found her entrance and began to work his length deep inside her.

  Her cunt tightened around him as he thrust all the way, holding her in his arms. Reaching between them, he stroked her clit, feeling her pussy ripple around his cock with each stroke.

  “Come for me, baby.”

  She cried out his name as her orgasm took over. The pleasure he got from feeling her release was nearly too much for him to bear. He held her throughout, and when her orgasm began to lessen, he began to fuck her, driving deeper inside her, taking her, claiming her, making her his.

  Molly Tatum was the love of his life, and he’d been losing his chance with her for way too long. He wouldn’t do this again. From the moment he first met her, he always thought she was the most beautiful girl in the world, and he even recalled as a kid saying she would belong to him.

  Now was his chance.

  No more fucking up.

  He was going to take her, make her his, and was more determined than ever before to prove to her that he was the man for her.

  Driving in deep, he groaned as his own orgasm began to build. The pleasure of her pussy was too much, and he filled her one final time, pulsing his cum deep within her.

  They were both panting, and he kissed her lips, holding her close.

  “I wasn’t going to do that tonight,” she said.

  “I don’t mind.” He pulled back a little to push the hair off her face. “I think we can both agree that we can’t seem to help ourselves with each other.”

  She nodded her head.

  Cupping her face, he kissed her again, and she held onto his shoulders. When he heard the sound of her stomach grumbling, he chuckled. “I think it’s time I fed you.”

  “I’d like that.”

  Pulling out of her pussy, he reached into his pocket, using her panties to clean off his cum as it spilled out of her.

  Neither of them said anything as they righted their clothes. Every other time they did this, Dale ended up leaving, or saying something that got him kicked out. Not tonight. He took hold of her hand and led her back toward his car.

  “Where are we going?”

  “We’re going to the diner where I know they serve better food, and I want us to have some privacy.” He helped her into the car and climbed behind the wheel.

  Once he was back on the road, he took her hand once again, determined not to lose that connection with her, or push her away.

  He wouldn’t be pushed away, not this time.

  Neither of them said a word as he drove toward the diner. It was busy, and he found one of the few available spaces.

  Once again, he helped her out of the car, and they found a quiet booth in the back of the diner.

  The waitress came to them straight away, taking their orders and offering coffee, which they both declined.

  The booth they were sitting at had only two seats, and he took her hands over the table.

  “Do you remember the last time we came here?” she asked.

  “It was our first date,” he said. “I come here every now and again, but I don’t linger.”

  “You don’t?”

  “I know this is probably going to sound completely crazy to you, but you’re the only woman I’ve ever really dated. I never put in the effort or cared about anyone else.”

  She laughed. “No, you’re lying.”

  “I’m not. I’m not denying that I’ve been with other women, Mol, but I’ve never dated anyone else.”

  “I don’t want to talk about your other women.” She tried to pull her hands away, but he wouldn’t let her.

  “I was an asshole. When you pushed me away, I should have tried harder. I am trying harder this time.”

  “Have you noticed that it has never seemed to work for us?” she asked.

  He shook his head. “Do you want the honest truth?”

  “Of course.”

  “I don’t think we’ve ever really tried.”

  She frowned. “We don’t work.”

  “No, us keeping secrets and pretending stuff didn’t happen, that has been our downfall. Constantly offering proposals and being rejected, I got tired of it, and I lashed out and slept with other women. They meant nothing and are nothing. We’ve never given us a real chance.”

  “I didn’t want to be the woman that tied you down, Dale. You were one of the hottest guys in school. Every single girl wanted you, and our date was perfect. The time we spent was the best time of my life. I didn’t intend to get pregnant.”

  “But you did, and that was my fault.”

  “It was both of our faults.” She ran fingers through her hair, and sighed. “I just wanted to do the right thing. I didn’t want you to think I was trying to tie you down, or make you pick a life with me, or even stop you living a different life.”

  “I get it. I didn’t get it before, but now I do. I’m not going anywhere. Those babies are mine, and you’re mine, Mol. You’re just being a little too stubborn to see it.” He winked at her to let her know that he was only teasing, which granted him a chuckle from her.

  “Well, half the town already knows that you’re the father. Every single day I’ve had a new person come into the bakery asking me if the rumors are true.”

  “Me, too. Every single person that has asked me, I’ve told them the truth. Yes, I’m the dad. I’m now the bad guy as well,” he said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “A lot of people in town were always curious who the father was, and not once did you give them the time of day. You told them it didn’t matter. After all this time, six long years, it’s me, the guy you’ve been seen with, who has been living his own life while you’ve been struggling to take care of his kids. The tables have turned.” He’d even gotten a sneer from the woman at the post office who normally flirted with him. She’d been muttering under her breath about useless men not dealing with their responsibilities. Dale hadn’t been angry or upset. In fact, he’d been damn happy that people knew the truth. He wasn’t the good guy in this, even when he offered to marry Molly.

  He understood why she kept turning him down. Running his thumb across the ring that now lay on her finger, he couldn’t help but admire it. Six years he’d been trying to get her to wear it, and he finally had it on her finger. He’d not won her over yet, though.

  No, he still had a long way to go.

  “I didn’t want that to happen,” Molly said. “You shouldn’t have said anything.”

  “Sasha and Luke deserve a father. Deep down, as much as it kills me to say, I know they deserve someone much better than me. I’m their dad, and I’m done being absent. I love you, and I love my babies. This time I’m going to take a real chance to prove to all three of you that I’m worth having you in your lives.” He kissed each of her hands and smiled. “You’re not going to get rid of me.”

  Chapter Four

  “What did he say after that?” June asked on Monday morning.

  “We enjoyed our meal, and he took me home.” Molly smiled as she related her date to her friend. “He came around on Sunday and spent some time with the kids because he was working all day on Saturday.”

  “How do you feel about all of this? Come on, Molly, give a woman details here. Yours and Dale’s relationship is just so…”

  “Weird?”

  “Yes, it really is. I mean, every time he looks at you, it’s like you’re the only woman in the world to him, and that is really a
mazing to watch.”

  She nibbled her lip, and June sighed.

  “You don’t see it, do you?”

  She shrugged. “I’m not trying to be a pain in the ass. After we had sex for the first time, he, erm, he … was with Chloe.”

  “What?” June yelled the word, and she winced at the sound. “Dale cheated on you?”

  “I don’t know if he cheated. We were never clear on if we were actually dating at the time. Chloe was bragging about her time with him in the girls’ locker room. It wasn’t a very nice experience at all, and I guess it kind of tore me up. The next time he asked me out, I told him no.”

  “Wow.”

  “Then I just didn’t say anything, and our time together was enough to get me pregnant. Talk about unlucky, huh? Not that I consider Sasha bad luck or anything. I love her so much. Her and Luke.”

  June rested her head on her hand. She was sitting at one of the tables in the bakery. They didn’t have any customers at the moment, but that would change in a few minutes when the lunch rush came through.

  “I just … we went to the same school, and yet I didn’t know anything about this.”

  “I’m not one to brag.”

  “Chloe’s a mega-bitch.”

  Molly chuckled. “She had her eye on Dale, and I guess she got what she wanted.” Again, she shrugged. “It’s what makes it so hard.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Every time he asks me to marry him, I want to. I want to scream from the rooftops, ‘Yes, I want you.’ I’ve loved him for a long time. Longer than before he’d noticed me, to be honest. He’s always been this incredibly sweet guy, and I think that’s what makes it so hard. Because he’s so sweet, and yet I know he’s been with other women. We’ve said some pretty nasty things to each other in the past as well.”

  “You have?” June asked.

  “Yeah, I’ve not been perfect, June. Far from it.”

  June smiled. “I can’t imagine you two arguing or you saying or doing anything bad.”

  “It’s different. I’m not the victim here, June. I’m as much to blame as Dale. Before Luke was conceived, he’d come by the house, and Sasha was in bed asleep. He asked to marry him and I gave him my usual answer, and he said something along the lines of, I’m going to stop asking, and then what are you going to do? I turned around and told him that I didn’t need his ass to help me out, so why didn’t he just go back to the whores he liked to stick his dick into.” Her cheeks heated remembering the argument they’d had. “He stormed out of the house, and I went up and looked at my baby.”