Life After Love: Part 3

SERENA

Birds, roosters, and the entire animal kingdom managed to wake me up. It wasn't the usual sound of my alarm clock, but since I crashed at Daniel's farmhouse last night after the party, I had no choice but to deal with it. Rubbing my eyes awake, I moaned as I sat up and looked for my favorite pair of slippers. Again, nowhere to be found considering this wasn't my house and all of my belongings were in the trunk of my car and in storage. I needed to find a place to live as soon as possible. There was no way I was going to get any sleep with all these farm animals around.

"Did I wake you?" Daniel inquired, and I turned to face him. Big mistake since his towel was the only thing keeping him from being completely naked. I cursed, remembering my damn vibrator was also in storage.

"Your damn farm animals woke me up. And where are you going so early?" I commented in an obviously grouchy mood as I watched him put on some boxer briefs and shorts.

"It's almost noon. And we're all heading to the beach soon. You can come if you want. Or stay here and relax. Just make sure you keep the windows closed. Big Mike likes to fly into the house unexpectedly," Daniel relayed, referring to the rooster who liked to peck at him and I raised an eyebrow at him as he grinned.

"It's your place. I can leave," I reminded him as I got up and headed towards the bathroom.

"Hey, you have just as much of a say in this house as I do. We're still married, remember?" he mentioned, poking his head into the bathroom as I began to undress and turn on the water in the shower.

"Unfortunately," I answered with a teasing grin and he shook his head at me.

"I'm going to pick up Jesse and then I'll come pick you up when you're finished getting ready." he proposed and at the sound of Jesse's name, my ears perked up and I decided to test just how much of a threshold Daniel had built in my absence.

"We can pick her up together. Just get my bags from my car and I'll get dressed quickly," I suggested in the nicest way as possible.

"Serena. You're going to be nice right?"

"I'm always nice, Daniel," I said, smirking as I let the warm water wash over my skin.

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The ride to Sylvan Beach was awkward to say the least. Daniel had kept the conversation short and polite. Which wasn't like him at all. Something was bugging him. And since I hadn't done much to piss him off today, I knew the culprit had to be Jesse.

As we pulled into a parking space in the parking lot of Sylvan Beach, Jesse stormed out of the car before Daniel had the chance to open the door for her. I raised an eyebrow at their obvious tension, and for the first time, I realized how everyone else must've felt whenever Daniel and I argued around them.

"Hey, talk to me," I urged, taking his hand in mine as he finished unloading our beach gear from the back of his truck. He sighed and sat on the edge while he looked away. Whatever was going on, it was bringing his mood down.

"Jesse found out we're still married. She seems to think that's going to affect our partnership," he explained and I rolled my eyes. Obviously Jesse couldn't put her personal feelings aside to make this business thrive. I didn't trust her, and it wasn't because I was jealous. I had nothing to be jealous of. The only thing she had over me was her slender figure, while I was slowly swelling up like a water balloon every week.

"I could buy her out of her contract if you want. No more headaches," I offered and he turned to smirk at me. "What?"

"You know exactly what. You're being nice. And that's not like you at all," he claimed as he got up and closed the trunk of his truck. "Which means you're up to something, preciosa," he added and leaned in to kiss me on the cheek. I was growing real tired of all these cheek kisses. When was he going to push me up against this truck and kiss me until I couldn't breathe?

"You caught me. I wanted to talk to you about me moving into our old place," I lied, well partially anyway. I did need a place to live by the end of the day.

"By yourself?" he baited, waiting for me to offer him the answer he'd been wanting to hear about my relationship status with Kyle.

"Yes. At least until I find something else. I can't stay at your farmhouse. Those animals will drive me nuts," I replied and his grin slowly spread across his lips as he began to lift up our beach chairs and I held onto the umbrellas and the coolers full of snacks and beverages as we headed down the dock towards the beach.

"I don't know how I feel about you being out there all alone," Daniel admitted as we crossed the warm sand and found a good spot not too far from the waves.

"Who says I need to be?" I tempted and he almost dropped the beach chair on his foot when he realized what I was asking for.

"Are you sure? We're finally getting along and—" he started and I stopped him by putting a finger over his lips as he placed his hands at my hips, steadying me against him. The heat emanating from his body only made me want him more. My hormones were on overdrive today and I wasn't sure how long I would last without getting what I needed.

"I've been thinking about that tongue of yours in between my legs all day. Mamma's hungry," I warned him suggestively, whispering the words so only he would hear them in the middle of the crowded beach. Daniel swallowed hard and tried not to laugh as he buried his face into my neck.

"You tell me this now?" he said in agony, while his fingers dipped into my curls and tugged at my hair lightly, pulling me closer to him.

"Hey, I wasn't sure if you and Jesse were—" I began and stopped when she passed by us and quickly looked away.

"We're not. I promise you we're not," Daniel stressed but pulled away from me to plant the beach chairs and umbrellas into the sand so we could sit down in the shade. He sat down and pulled me in between his legs, allowing me to snuggle into his bare chest. Placing a kiss on my shoulder, he continued up my neck, behind my ear, and finally taking my earlobe into his mouth and nibbling as his pierced tongue rolled against my skin, sending shivers down my spine. I was going to lose my mind if he didn't plow me in the next five seconds.

"Close your eyes," he ordered and I obeyed as his hands kept still at my stomach, "and imagine my tongue running up your inner thigh, my hands reaching for your breasts, tugging and twisting at your nipples as soon as I bury my tongue inside of you. You jump, arching your back, pressing your clit closer and closer to my lips..." His erotic words trailed off and when he cleared his throat and touched my arm slightly, I opened my eyes to see the older couple in front of us waving. We both smiled and waved back at them.

They owned the antique store in town where I found most of the pieces my clients wanted in their newly renovated homes. I would've gone over there to see if they had added anything new to their collection if I wasn't so turned on, and if Daniel could afford any movement on my part.

"Don't move. Please, don't move," he moaned into my ear and I rubbed my cheek against his as I teased him and pushed my behind against him. He growled into my shoulder and took a small nibble, making me wish we had stayed home instead.

"Ya'll are going to get arrested if ya'll don't calm down," Marley scolded as she finally joined us and planted her chair and umbrella next to Daniel's. Michael wasn't too far behind. I noticed he had brought a friend with him, a very cute female friend with long blonde beach waves and tanned skin who's cheeks must've been hurting from all the smiling she was doing as Michael talked to her. Marley looked heavily annoyed and I could see why. Michael was playing a game he had no business starting and he had no idea what kind of opponent he had chosen.

Two could definitely play at this game, and Marley usually won.