“You’re the best mom ever.”

Her mother handed her one of the mini cupcakes from the cupcake trees near the door they’d come through. “I smuggled you one.”

Tuesday took it. “I love Ezra. I haven’t seen him in ten days. It was awful. I threw myself into all the details of this party so at least I could keep busy. I’ve only been sleeping three or four hours a night. I’ve been making a lot more inventory with the extra hours so that’s good. When he came in today it was like all my exhaustion faded away and I was recharged. Eric never made me feel that. I felt guilty.” She said it really fast, barely taking a breath, just to get it out.

“Feel better? Baby, you can tell me and you’ll feel better. Don’t you know that yet? Don’t waste your energy on guilt. What does it change? Even if Ezra is better on every level than Eric ever was or would have been, so what? Do you want Eric back so you can see if he’d fit you better now that you’ve gone through all this hardship? Eric was a lovely man, but he was soft. The Tuesday you are today wouldn’t fit him. Surviving changes you right down to your soul. You are a hundred times the woman now than you were before Eric died. Because you had to make the choice every day to keep going. Because you kept getting better even if it was way too slow for my comfort. You did it. You are hard, yes, but like a diamond is hard. You take my meaning?”

Tuesday nodded.

“Your guilt won’t make anything better. It won’t change who you are now. Be glad he makes you feel so wonderful. I’m glad for you.”

“You’re just glad to have a handsome man to jam with.”

Her mother laughed. “Men! It’s plural because I’m claiming Paddy, as well.”

“I’m not sure Dad is going to be down with that.”

“I know I’m not.” Natalie hugged Di. “You can have a kidney but not Paddy. Look all you like, though. Heaven knows I do.”

Sharon came back, calling Tuesday’s name.

“Just a second.” Tuesday reapplied her lipstick and opened the door.

“Sharon Hurley, this is my mother, Diana Easton. Mom, this is Sharon Hurley.”

Sharon hugged Di. “So nice to meet you. Ezra and Paddy have been making me jealous with all this talk of how wonderful you are.”

“What a fine job you’ve done with those boys of yours.”

Sharon laughed. “If you only knew. But they’re all okay now—that’s what counts.”

Ezra came in and his gaze flicked around the space until he finally found her. It was like the snap of a rubber band, their connection. They moved toward one another, meeting up halfway through the room.

He took her hands, kissing her knuckles. “Are you all right?”

“Are you all right? I’m so sorry about that whole mess.”

He frowned. “We sent them packing. Your dad is badass. I think I’ve also been upgraded to a name every time. No more of that boy stuff.”

“Great, you two can get matching jailhouse tattoos.” She grinned and then sobered a little. “Thank you for defending me.”

“All that stuff they said was wrong.”

She shrugged. Even if it hadn’t been, she didn’t want to give them any more of her energy. “Doesn’t matter. Come on with me to unlock the doors. It’s nearly time.”

* * *

HE LOOKED UP at her as she stood at the foot of his bed. Naked but for that necklace and the shoes.

“This is even better than I imagined it would be. Come up here.”

She did and he reached out lightning quick and pulled her under him, kissing her senseless, loving the way she opened to him immediately.

“Do you know how many times tonight a guy looked at your tits?” He kissed her ear, down her neck. “Every time I turned around. Even my brothers. They’re so spectacular I guess I shouldn’t blame them. But I wanted to punch a lot of people tonight.”

She laughed, digging her nails into his shoulders, urging him on. “You said it yourself—they’re spectacular.”

He nipped her neck and then down to her nipples. “They’re also mine.”

She hummed. “Yes. All right, that, too.”

He licked over the curve at the side of her left breast and continued down to settle between her thighs. “It’s been ten days since I’ve been here.”

“I know.”

But he didn’t elaborate. Those ten days had seemed so important and yet he still wanted her so much.

He took a lick. “Damn, you taste so good.” She did. She felt right, like sitting down in your favorite chair after a long day. He felt received by her.

He kept her spread wide as he took his time and when she came, he kept at it, pushing her into a smaller series of follow-up orgasms.

He crawled up to his knees, pausing to roll on a condom.

She nodded and that urgency ramped up between them. He was in her then. Sliding into that hot wet embrace that he seemed to feel all the way down his spine.

“Gorgeous. Perfect. My beauty.”

“Yours.”

Then there was the slide of skin on skin, a sheen of sweat easing the way. The side of her neck was salty as he licked her there, body bent over as he kept to his knees, thrusting deep, lingering and then pulling nearly all the way out before pressing in again. Over and over until it felt like a magic spell binding them together.

One hand held her wrists captive. By this point between them it was just as much to feel her struggle against him, writhing around his cock. The other held her, fingers digging into her ass and thigh hard enough to leave a mark and he loved that idea.