Surrender (16 page)

“Ashton, please…”

Netherland’s breathless plea only made Ashton’s mouth continue to work its magic over her. Moments later, he let two fingers slip inside of her, to test the hot, moist heat of her body. She was ready for him.

Ashton’s breathing was harsh and deep when he moved in place over Netherland’s body and kissed her again, opening her thighs wide for him. Lifting his head he gazed down into her eyes. “I love you, Netherland,” he whispered as his hands went to her hips to hold her in place. He then entered her, slow. And just as he had told her, her body automatically stretched and expanded to accommodate him. It was a tight fit nonetheless. He sucked in deep when he couldn’t go any farther within her. He was nested to the hilt.

“I didn’t think it would work,” Netherland whispered, feeling the fullness of him buried deep inside of her.

He smiled down at her. “I told you it would. Now I will give you my sons.”

“Sons?”

His lips tilted into a smile. “Yes, three of them. You’re going to have triplets, Netherland.”

Not waiting for her reaction to his announcement, he took her mouth in his the moment his body began moving inside of her, slowly, carefully easing in and out. His nostrils flared as the musky scent of their mating began filling the air. A low, strangled groan
caught in Ashton’s throat when Netherland wrapped her legs around him, drawing him even deeper into her body. He picked up the pace of their mating, thrusting his tongue in and out of her mouth with the same rhythm as his body was pumping in and out of her. He swallowed her groan when he felt her body begin climaxing beneath him. A guttural groan was ripped from his chest as the pleasure that racked her body filtered to his, making his body explode with the violent force of his release that spilled forth like a tidal wave, a flash flood, deep within her womb, stripping the very essence of his soul. For him nothing had ever felt so complete, so right and so perfect.

The heaving beating of Ashton’s heart matched Netherland’s, and the sheer magic of what they had just shared made contentment settle over her as the last ripple of passion overtook them. Dazed, she looked up into his eyes and whispered the one Cherokee word he had taught her that day.

“Wa-Do.” Which meant thank you.

O
ver and over, all through the night and the morning after, Ashton made love to Netherland, releasing all the love and desire that had been building between them from the first time they met.

And still he wanted more.

It was as if once he had tasted the essence of her passion, he couldn’t get enough. It was close to noon, and they still hadn’t gotten out of bed. She lay pinned beneath him as he moved his body in and out of hers, increasing the tempo with each and every soft moan she made. Locking her hands over her head, he rode her to sweet oblivion with every ounce of energy he owned while animalistic growls of pleasure rose in his chest and were ripped from his throat.

Netherland wrapped her legs around Ashton, tight, sealing their bodies, binding them as one. Jagged streaks of pleasure washed over her as they mated over and over, nearly driving her to the brink of insanity as he continued to withdraw and plunge deeper and deeper inside of her.

And then it happened, for the umpteenth time, they climaxed together, spilling into each other. Instinctively she spread her legs wide in response, lifted her hips to receive all he was giving, drawing him farther into her body and the very essence of her being. She opened her eyes and looked up at him and saw the taut lines etched on his face as they both spun out of control while he flooded her womb with his seed.

Finally, without caring that they hadn’t eaten a meal since the evening before, they fell into an exhausted sleep, warm, comfortable and satiated in each other’s arms.

Netherland, whose body still hummed with the aftershocks of their marathon lovemaking, suddenly came awake when she remembered something. She rose up on her elbow to look down at Ashton. “Triplets? You were teasing last night, weren’t you?”

Ashton slowly opened his eyes and gazed up at her. “No, I wasn’t teasing. You will have triplets.”

“But—but that’s not possible.”

Ashton smiled lazily. “Anything is possible, Netherland.”

Pushing one hand through her hair, Netherland lay
back in bed as she absorbed Ashton’s words. She then looked at the man lying beside her. “Sons? So they will be boys?”

“Yes.”

“And you saw this in one of your visions?”

“Yes.” Rolling to the side, Ashton grabbed a pillow and jammed it beneath his head. “Does giving birth to more than one baby at a time bother you?”

“Only a man could ask a question like that,” she said with a quiet laugh. “But to be quite honest with you, no, it doesn’t bother me. For so long I thought I couldn’t give birth to any baby, so to know that I’ll have three is like hitting the jackpot.”

“You’re happy about it then?” he asked quietly.

Netherland smiled up at him, filled with emotion as she fought back tears. “Yes, I’m happy about it. I feel truly blessed.”

Ashton ran a hand up and down her arm in long, soothing strokes. “So do I. But I’m also feeling hungry. How about if we get up, get dressed and get something to eat?”

“All right. What’s after that?”

A devastating grin touched his face. “After that I’m sure we’ll think of something to keep us occupied.”

“And you’re sure everything is okay, Nettie?”

Netherland paused in her conversation with her brother to glance across the room at Ashton. He was looking out of the window. Silhouetted in the dazzling rays from the sun, he appeared more mystical than
man. Dressed in a pair of faded jeans and Western-style boots, and with the top portion of him bare, he showed off a powerful set of shoulders, a broad and muscular back and coal-black hair that was sensually mussed and hung loosely about his shoulders. As if he felt her eyes on him, he turned and slid his gaze over her in one slow sweep, reminding her of what they had been doing for the past three days.

“Nettie?”

She sighed as Rome pulled her back into their phone conversation. “Yes, Rome, everything is okay. They couldn’t be better. Ashton and I married each other a few nights ago the Indian way, but we plan to make things perfectly legal when I get back and can make the necessary arrangements.”

She glanced back over at Ashton, the man she now considered her husband, her mate, in every sense of the word. Her pulse quickened. He was still looking at her with that
I want you again
look in his eyes.

“I hate that I won’t get to see you before I leave tomorrow,” her brother was saying.

“Me, too, but I’m sure you’ll be back to Houston soon, right?” she asked, smiling.

“Yes. Jada and I have agreed to continue to see each other. I have more leave time coming up next month, and I plan on taking it. I’ve even invited her to come out and visit me at Camp Pendleton. She’s never been to California before.”

“Do you think she’ll do it?”

“I’m hoping she will although she hasn’t agreed one
way or the other. I won’t rush her into anything. I’ve agreed for us to take things slow, Nettie. I want her to see that all men aren’t like her ex-husband. He hurt her.”

“I know. I’m glad you’ve been there for her these past two weeks. She’s been the happiest I’ve seen her since coming to work for me.”

“And I want her to stay happy. I love her, Nettie. I didn’t think after losing Kimmy that I’d ever love anyone ever again, but I do love her. And I can’t wait for the folks to meet her. I just know Mom is going to like her.”

Netherland smiled. There was no doubt she would. Their mother was someone who saw goodness in everyone and had a soft spot for everybody. “I hope you can get back for my wedding. It won’t be anything elaborate. Just a gathering of a few friends and family in another month or so.”

“I’m going to try my damnedest to make it back for that. You can’t marry a second time without your brothers present.”

A few moments later Netherland ended the phone conversation with her brother.

“I take it everything is still running smoothly without you,” Ashton said in reference to her conversation with Rome and her earlier conversation with Rainey. He walked over to her.

“If they weren’t running smoothly, would you take me back?” she asked him, smiling.

“No. I have seven days with you, Netherland. I’ve only used three. I have four left.”

Netherland sighed. “Who’s counting?”

Ashton grinned. “I am. I want to spend every moment that I can with you, sweetheart.”

“And I with you,” she said, not imagining it any other way. But she knew when reality set in there would be another way. She must not forget she shared him with the United States Marine Corps. “So, what do we have planned for this evening?”

When he gave her a sensuous look that spoke volumes and guaranteed earth-shaking passion, she quickly said, “Besides that.”

Ashton laughed. “Getting bored?”

Netherland reached out and wrapped her arms around his waist, pulling him closer to her. She smiled up at him. “No, just getting to the point where I can walk again.”

Rome glanced across the table at Jada. “Thanks for dinner. You really didn’t have to go to the trouble.”

“It wasn’t any trouble, Rome. It was something I wanted to do and with this being your last night in Houston I wanted to make it special.”

“Just being able to spend time with you makes it special, Jada.”

She smiled at his compliment. “Thanks, Rome.”

Rome watched her struggle to eat and knew that, like him, she didn’t have much of an appetite. He was really going to miss her. A part of him wanted to cross the room, pick her up in his arms and take her into the bedroom and make love to her just to show
her how much he cared. But he knew he had to stick with his plan of moving slow with her. She needed sweetness and comfort. Friendship. She needed for them to share a relationship that wasn’t just physical.

“I checked in with my superiors at Camp Pendleton today,” he said when silence surrounded the table. “I can get another leave in two weeks. That’s a whole week earlier than what I had figured on.”

Her smile widened. “I’ll look forward to seeing you again, Rome.” She took another bite of her food before adding, “And I thought about your invitation to come visit you in California. I think I’d really like that.”

A huge smile shone on Rome’s face. “I’d like that, too.”

Anthony Roberts’s eyes grew cold as he looked at the man who faced him on the other side of the glass booth. “You’re stalling, Billy. What news do you have for me? And I want to hear all of it.”

Billy tried not to tremble with the look and the harsh words Tony was giving him. After all, there was a thick piece of glass separating them, and guards were posted all around. There was nothing Tony could do but stew at the news he was about to deliver. “Jada found somebody else, man. A soldier boy.”

A hard, furious look came into Tony’s eyes, making him appear very dangerous even while he sat behind prison walls. “Are you sure?”

Billy swallowed. Maybe he should not have said anything.

When tense moments passed and Billy didn’t answer, Tony raised his voice and with a vicious curse, he rammed his fist on the counter in front of him. “Answer me, Billy. Are you sure?”

Before Billy could respond, one of the prison guards came over. “What’s going on here?” he asked.

“Somebody in the family died,” Tony said curtly to the guard in way of explanation so the man could move on and get out of his business. The guard glanced at Tony and then at Billy before moving on.

Tony lowered his voice but the anger was still there when he asked Billy for the third time, “Are you sure?”

Billy leaned back in his chair. “Yeah, I’m sure. In fact, I’m positive. I’ve been watching her for the past few weeks just like you told me to do. The guy’s been hanging around a lot and has been staying at her place real late at night.”

Billy crossed his arms over his chest. A part of him was glad Jada had found somebody else. Tony had never treated her with any type of dignity and respect anyhow. It served him right. But the look in Tony’s eyes made him shiver. There was a crazed look in them.

“Jada made a mistake, Billy. A costly mistake. Nobody two-times Anthony Roberts and gets away with it. Nobody. And she’s gonna pay. Boy, is she gonna pay.”

The next day Tony had another visitor, one he had summoned. It was one of the guys he used to hang around with when he had his freedom. Lamar
Stokes was someone who would do just about anything for a price.

“Look, man, I want everything laid out just like I’m asking. I need to blow this place as soon as I can. I got personal business to take care of. You hook me up right, and I’ll throw another thousand in for old times’ sake.”

Lamar looked hard at Tony. “Why should I trust you, man? What assurance do I have you gonna deliver, and that I’m gonna get my bread? Cash ain’t easy for a man in your position to lay his hands on.”

Tony smiled to hide his frown. “Yeah, but I ran into some dough right before I got put in this joint. I stashed it away so the feds couldn’t touch it. I’m gonna pay up, man, you have my word on it.”

“I don’t take nobody’s word on nothin’.”

“Okay, man, that’s cool. I’ll just have my cousin Billy lay an advance on you. You’ll get the rest as soon as I get out of here. Just make sure everything goes down the way I want. Deal?”

Lamar rubbed his chin. Word on the street had it that Tony had come into some cheese and before he’d had the chance to blow it all, he’d gotten busted for knocking around his old lady. So there was a good chance he did have some bread stashed away somewhere. “If you cross me, Tony, there ain’t no place big enough in this city for you to hide. Remember that.”

Tony leaned back in his chair, relaxed. “Hey, I’ll remember.”