For the Love of Donuts

33. Beautiful Grandbabies

Tatum

As soon as my dad opened the front door, I was ready to announce that Skye and I are together, but I managed to hold back. Instead, we talked about his new obsession with pickleball. Then, I almost blurted it out again once we were in the kitchen with my mom, but she immediately shooed us away to the dining room.

And now we’re eating her delicious chicken and noodles while she tells us about Aunt Jackie’s next party. “That neighbor she didn’t like is finally moving away, so Jackie is throwing a party to celebrate.” Mama proceeds to shake her head. “The woman needs to find a better hobby.”

“Like pickleball!” Pops chimes in. “Everyone is doing it right now.”

“Oh, dear Lord. Enough about the darn pickleball, Alton!” Mama waves him off and turns her attention to me. “So, what’s new with you, baby?”

Here it is. My perfect opportunity to tell them that Skye and I are dating.

But I don’t. Even though Skye said she wanted them to know about us, she’s also been pretty quiet since we came inside, and I’m sure it’s because she’s thinking about the whole fake engagement thing . Maybe we shouldn’t tell them tonight. Maybe we should wait until she comes clean to Zoya and—

To my surprise, Skye finds my hand under the table and gives it a light squeeze, which causes me to raise an eyebrow at her. Does that mean she wants me to tell them now?

As if reading my mind, she offers a reassuring nod.

Okay, we’re doing this then.

I tap my thumb against her wrist as I look between my parents. “Well, Skye and I have actually decided to start dating.”

“Finally!” Pops exclaims with a knowing grin. “It took you kids long enough!”

“Oh, I’m so happy!” Mama gushes, clapping her hands together “You two are going to give us the most beautiful grandbabies!”

I almost choke. “Mama! It’s way too soon for you to be talking about grandbabies!”

Skye snickers beside me and I can’t even bring myself to look at her.

“Too soon?” Mama echoes with a scoff. “You’ve already known each other half your lives! What are you going to wait for? Until you’re our age?”

I widen my eyes at her. “Mama, please .”

“Gloria, leave the poor boy alone,” Pops says with an exasperated sigh. “There will be plenty of time to talk about grandbabies.”

Does Mama listen though?

Absolutely not.

“Can you believe that I saw the cutest little baby outfit on sale the other day? I should’ve grabbed it!” She proceeds to curse. “I’m sure it’s long gone by now! But don’t you worry, I’ll be on the lookout whenever I go shopping, just in case .”

I give up.

“I think that went really well,” Skye says as we walk toward the driveway. “Don’t you think so?”

I scowl at her. “Did you somehow miss the part where my mom told my dad that he needed to clear out his office so it can become a nursery for the grandchild they don’t even have yet?”

“Ooh, yet ,” she teases me, wiggling her eyebrows. “Does this mean you’re planning on getting me pregnant, Jacobs?”

“You little—” I scoop her up and ignore the way she shrieks when I spin her around. “That’s it, we’re not best friends anymore! You’re going straight to jail for what you just said, and you don’t get to pass go or collect your $200 either!”

“Nooooo!” she wails in between cackling. “Please spare me and be my best friend again!”

“Heck no!” I huff, carrying her to the car. “I feel so violated .”

“Says the guy who’s manhandling me,” she retorts, poking my back. “Be my best friend again, or I’ll help your mom set up the nursery!”

I set her down with a laugh. “You’re so evil.”

“Mmhmm,” she muses, sliding her arms around my neck. “So, will you be my best friend again, or what?”

I lean back against her car before framing her hips with my hands. “Yeah, Pink Stuff, I’ll be your best friend again.”

“Good, because you pinky-promised to kiss me after dinner.” She arches herself closer to me. “Or did you forget?”

Oh, there’s no freaking way I could forget about that.

However, movement from behind her body catches my attention, and I curse under my breath when I realize what it is. “My parents are watching us through the blinds.”

“What?” she squeaks, slipping out of my grasp. “Are you sure?”

“Yep,” I say as the blinds move again, “they’re definitely watching us. Ready to get out of here?”

She pulls her keys out and unlocks the car. “How long do you think they’ve been watching?”

“Long enough,” I grumble, opening the passenger door. “Go ahead and get in, I’ll drive.”

She hands over her keys as she gets into the car, and I close her door before going around to the driver’s side.

“They’re crazy,” I say once I’m driving away from the house. “I bet nursery colors and baby names are being discussed at this very moment.”

“Aragorn is a fabulous name.”

I catch a glimpse of her smirk, which causes me to pinch her bare upper thigh. “We are not naming our son Aragorn .”

She grabs my hand to stop me from pinching her again. “Well, it would be a weird name for a girl.”

“It’s a weird name, period.”

She rolls her eyes, but then she gets that look on her face again. The I’m-thinking-about-something-but-I-might-not-talk about-it look.

“What’s up?” I give her hand a little shake. “If you’re thinking it, I wanna hear it.”

“We’ve never really…talked about either of us having kids before.” She offers a shrug. “Do you want kids then? Maybe if none of them are named Aragorn?”

I laugh at that. “Yeah, I’d definitely want kids one day. What about you?”

“Same. I want kids too.”

“ But ?” I ask, knowing there’s something else.

“Would you—would you ever consider adopting?” She traces the lines on my hand with her fingertips, causing chills to race through me. “I know it’s not for everyone, but Dria and Trey have been so blessed with the twins, and I’ve always been open to the idea.”

I don’t hesitate for a second.

“Skye, if and when we have kids, I’m going to love them all no matter how they become part of our family.” I glance over at her, hoping she can see how serious I am. “I mean that.”

She gives me a soft smile before kissing the back of my hand. “I know you do.”

Soon we’re back at my place and watching our previously chosen heist-comedy movie.

Well, we were watching it…

My couch creaks as Skye leans back into the cushions and pulls me closer until I’m hovering over her body. I have no idea how long we’ve been making out, but I know we won’t be stopping any time soon.

Skye’s hands dip under my shirt, and I curse against her mouth when she barely grazes the outline of my abs. “Sorry,” she breathes out, yanking her hands away from my bare skin, “I didn’t—”

“Shh,” I interrupt, guiding her hands back to where they were, “you didn’t do anything wrong. I only cussed because of how good it felt to be touched like that by you.”

Her lips form a perfect “o” as she blinks at me. “So, you don’t want me to stop?”

“Heck no,” I mutter as her hands relax against my lower abdomen. “Keep going, Carson.”

And then I hear it, that little noise she made when we kissed in the grocery store parking lot. The heady sound travels through me as her hands slide up my chest and back down again, causing my heart to slam against my ribcage so hard that it feels like the freaking thing is trying to break free. But I just keep kissing Skye. I make sure to kiss every single inch of her mouth.

“Tatum,” she murmurs, letting her fingers trace the length of my spine, “do you remember what we talked about the other day?”

I brush another kiss across her lips before pulling back to look at her. “Mmm, we’ve talked about lots of things, baby.”

“True…but do you remember when we talked about hickeys ?”

She whispers the last part close to my ear, and my whole body goes tense.

“Yeah, I remember,” I manage to say, my gaze drifting to her neck. “Do you—I mean, are you asking me to—because I—”

“I want you to give me one,” she cuts in, not leaving any room for confusion. “Only if you’re okay with trying though.”

Never did I ever think we’d end up in this position.

Me on top of Skye while she’s asking for a hickey?

Dang.

My senses are going into overdrive at the thought of making her mine in that way, and yet…

“What if I’m not good at it?” I ask, my voice husky as I drag my fingers down her arm. “I might end up slobbering all over you like Ben Mauro did.”

“Hmm,” she hums, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth, “then we’ll be even since I drooled on your shirt the other night.”

I chuckle at her response. “I guess that does sound pretty fair.”

She offers a little nod, then tilts her head to the side, exposing more of her neck to me.

But I don’t start there.

Instead, I grip her chin and turn her face back toward mine, so I can lavish her mouth with long, slow kisses to build more anticipation. Then after a few moments, I let my lips move along the edge of her jaw as she squirms with impatience.

“ Tatum ,” she whines, grabbing at my shoulders, “please just—”

The second my mouth touches her neck, her begging turns into a sharp inhale, and I can’t stop myself from grinning. “Are you sure this is still what you want?”

“Yes, I’m sure,” she huffs, tugging at the back of my shirt. “Stop teasing me, Jacobs!”

Her sassy tone is the final push I need.

I bite her skin once. Twice. Then I soothe the area with my tongue and suck hard . At first, I’m worried about using too much pressure, but Skye seems to be handling it just fine because she makes my favorite sound again. And again. And again.

It’s utterly addicting.

She shudders beneath me as I continue to kiss and suck the same spot until it becomes obvious that a bruise is beginning to form. Her skin is red now and slightly swollen, which should be a good sign, but I find myself cringing at the sight.

“Does it hurt?” I study her face for any hints of discomfort. “Don’t lie to me.”

I know this is what she wanted, but it looks painful, and I don’t like being the one who hurt her. I shouldn’t have let her talk me into—

“It hurts a little bit,” she matches my hushed tone, “but not too bad. Like a good kind of sting.”

I tsk in disbelief and lean forward again, so I can blow on her angry-looking skin.

Skye hums in approval. “That’s nice.”

I do it again, watching as her eyes get hazy from the sensation, and then I place a few gentle kisses down her neck as a silent apology. “I feel bad for hurting you.”

“Tatum, you didn’t hurt me,” she says, gently rubbing my arm. “I mean, I guess you technically did , but I’m okay. It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not.” I shake my head before tearing my body away from hers, and then I’m clenching my jaw as I sit up straight. “You need to give me one. That way we’re even, and I won’t feel as guilty about it.”

She scoots closer to me, swings one of her long legs over my knees so she can sit on my lap, and then her eyes lock with mine. “I’m going to give you a hickey. But I’m not doing it because you feel bad about hurting me, I’m giving you one because I want this experience to be about both of us.” She cups my face with both of her hands and brushes her thumbs over my cheeks. “And I want to show you that it doesn’t hurt like you think it does.”

I try my best to have an open mind to what she’s telling me, but all I can do is stare at her neck. When is the redness going to start fading? And how long—

“Tate,” she murmurs, pressing soft kisses to my mouth, “relax for me, yeah?”

Her lips continue to move against mine, urging me to focus on what’s currently happening between us, and I close my eyes before fully surrendering to the moment.

Skye’s hands drop to my shoulders, and a low rumble leaves my throat when she begins to massage them. Meanwhile, my own hands find their way to her legs. I’ve never appreciated jean shorts more than I do right now. I stroke her smooth, bare skin as she kisses along my jawline, but then I’m gripping her thighs once her tongue darts out to taste my neck.

It’s such a light brush, barely even a touch at all, but I’m already moaning for more.

And frick , does she deliver.

Her teeth graze a section of my skin, tentatively at first, but then with extra force. She licks and sucks on my neck while still digging her fingers into my shoulders, and I’m struggling to keep it together as an exhilarating rush claims every part of my body. Skye was right, the process does hurt a little bit. I mean, bruises usually do, but this isn’t so bad. Especially when her breath teases my skin as she lessens some of the pain with tiny, sweet kisses.

“Well?” she asks, leaning back to look at me. “Do you believe me now?”

Do I believe her ? How could I not?

“Yeah,” I say, my voice raspy as heck. “I believe you.”

Sure, my neck is pretty sore, but I’d let her do it all over again if she wanted to.

She proceeds to smirk. “I guess you’re not too ticklish anymore, huh?”

“Nope,” I breathe out, sliding my hands up to her hips. “And I guess you don’t think hickeys are immature or overrated anymore, hmm ? So, the next time you see Amity, you can tell her that you’ve changed your mind—”

“Shut up!” she gasps, shoving my shoulder. “That’s not funny, Tatum!”

It’s a little bit funny.