Calder Pride (Calder Saga 5)

He loved her. It still had the power to shake him to know exactly how much he loved her. She wrapped her legs around him when he slid between them. His mouth traveled over her while he moved deeply inside her with slow, steady strokes. Each time she shuddered, a new pleasure rippled through him, and he glimpsed the glory a man and woman could know together.

Logan stirred, conscious first of a wall of heat pressed against him. Then he breathed in the familiar fragrance of the shampoo Cat used and remembered with a sudden rush of feeling. Opening his eyes, he shifted away from her, careful not to disturb her, then frowned in surprise at the sunlight pouring into the bedroom. He threw a quick glance at the clock on the nightstand. It was after six in the morning. His mental alarm clock had failed him for the first time. Hardly surprising, considering all the strenuous nighttime activity, he thought with a rather smugly satisfied smile.

“Good morning.” The whispered greeting came from the doorway.

Logan sat bolt upright, his startled gaze locking on Quint, standing just inside the room, still dressed in his pajamas. “Good morning,” Logan echoed the soft tone, unable to remember feeling more awkward and uncomfortable than he did at that moment. “Your mom’s still asleep.”

Quint nodded, then smiled. “I guess you told her you don’t snore.”

“I did.” Hastily Logan checked to make certain Cat was fully covered, then remembered his shorts were somewhere on the floor, probably not too far from Cat’s nightgown.

“I’ll bet she was glad about that.”

“I think she was. Why don’t you run and get dressed and you can help me with morning chores?”

“Okay.” Quint turned to leave, then hesitated. “Mom might get worried if she can’t find me.”

“Wha’?” Cat lifted her head and peered over her shoulder toward the door. “Quint. It can’t be morning already.” She rolled onto her back, levering herself up on her elbows. As the covers started to slip a little too low, Logan pressed her shoulder back onto the bed.

“Careful,” he warned.

Her eyes sprang open as her cheeks took on a rather beautiful color. Logan grinned when she clutched at the sheet.

> “Quint’s going to get dressed and help me with chores. Is that all right with you?” he asked.

“It’s fine, yes. You go right ahead, Quint,” she said in a rush.

“Okay.” He glanced again at Logan. “You’re gonna get dressed now, aren’t ya?”

“I’m right behind you.” He swung his legs off the side of the bed, careful to keep the sheet tucked around his middle. “Want to have a race to see who can get dressed the fastest?”

“I bet I’ll beat you.” Quint grinned and ran for his bedroom.

Logan didn’t waste time locating his shorts and pulling them on. Cat lay in bed watching him with an all-too-contented look, much too beautiful and tousled. Walking over to her, he leaned down and gave her a long, thorough kiss.

“Good morning,” he said.

“Good morning,” she sighed.

He kissed her lightly again, then lifted his head a couple inches, eyes twinkling. “Remind me to get a lock for that door while I’m in town today.”

The corners of her mouth deepened. “And you wanted to have another child.”

“Correction—more children.”

Cat raised an eyebrow. “How many is more?”

“However many you and the Good Lord bless us with.” He grinned. A drawer slammed in Quint’s bedroom. Logan glanced briefly over his shoulder. “It sounds like I’d better get a move on if I expect to make a decent showing in this race.”

She wrapped her hands around his neck and dragged him down for another long kiss that started his pulse hammering in his neck. “The race,” she reminded him, impish laughter dancing in her eyes. “I wouldn’t want him to beat you too badly—at least, not until you get a lock for the door.”

“Witch,” he murmured, then planted a quick, hard kiss on her lips before pushing off the bed and leaving her to fetch his clothes from the spare room.

Understanding at last what bliss felt like, Cat snuggled back under the covers and savored this bottomless contentment she felt inside.

During the next two days Cat was amazed by how easily they went from being two people sharing the same house, careful to give the other plenty of space, to a man and wife doing things together and doing their best to take up the same space every chance they had. With Quint around, that wasn’t often.

With her hat pulled low to block the sun’s strong and slanting rays, Cat held one end of the board while Logan hammered the other end to a corral post. Quint stood to one side of Logan, ready to hand him the next nail. Cat smiled when she considered that even something as simple as replacing a rotting board had become a family affair.