Page 124 of Animal's Reformation
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Three months later
Tangerine, then amethystemblazoned a sky broken by long trails of clouds. The sun, now a fiery orange ball, sank low behind the craggy mountain peaks.
The carnival’s colored lights blinked in the encroaching darkness, and a warm breeze carried the tantalizing scent of freshly spun cotton candy.
“Can I go on the Ferris wheel with Paisley and Hope?” Lucy asked, pointing at a large wheel studded with yellow, blue, and green lights in the distance.
“Yeah, but you gotta hold on tight,” Animal said.
Lucy reached for Olivia’s hand, and a warm glow spread through Olivia as the three of them—Lucy in the middle—walked toward the entrance of the carnival.
“I used to love the roller coaster when I was a kid,” Olivia said.
“I want to go on that too, Dad.”
“Okay, but you gotta ride with us,” Animal replied.
“I’ve never been to a carnival before,” Lucy said, her eyes widening the closer they got to the flashing neon sign.
“You’re going to love it,” Olivia said. “I think they’re all about the same.”
The traveling carnival materialized in the same open field for the same three weeks every summer. During the day, the booths and tents looked a little worn and rusty patches were evident on some of the rides, but at night, everything was magical.
When they entered under the large archway, Lucy broke away from them and ran over to one of the booths where Paisley and Hope were trying to fish a prize out of a gigantic bowl. Olivia saw Cherri and Addie huddled together, talking while their husbands, Jax and Chas leaned against the counter watching their daughters.
As they walked toward the group, Animal’s arm settled around her waist, and she moved closer to him until she could feel the heat of his body seeping into hers. When they reached the booth, Animal bumped fists with Jax and Chas, and Olivia crossed over to the two old ladies.
“Have you been here long?” Olivia asked Addie.
“Just about an hour.” Addie looked over at the three giggling girls. “Lucy’s come such a long way since she moved in with Animal.”
Olivia beamed. “Yes, she has.”
“So has Animal—he doesn’t have that befuddled look on his face all the time,” Cherri said.
Olivia laughed. “He’s finally gotten comfortable in the daddy role.” She looked over at him and a shiver ran through her. “He’s such a wonderful person.”
“And he’s totally in love with you. To be honest, Animal was one of the last guys in the MC who I thought would be in a relationship. In the years that I’ve been around the club, I’ve noticed that when one of these guys falls, he goes down big time.” Addie giggled. “I remember how hard Chas fought his attraction to me, and he was downright pissed about it.”
“Jax was the same, but I have to admit that I wasn’t the easiest one to catch,” Cherri added.
“And now you’re both happily married with families. When I first met Animal, I fought it and thought he was the last man I wanted to be with, but it turns out he was the one guy I couldn’t live without.” She glanced over at him again and found him watching her with hooded eyes that were alight with desire. Her body hummed as memories of late nights spent tangled up with him flashed through her mind. Reluctantly, she dragged her gaze away from his and back to the old ladies.
“I got a stuffed animal!” Lucy cried as she clapped her hands.
“Choose the doggie,” Paisley said.
As Olivia watched Lucy decide between the small spotted dog or the white one with tiny hearts all over it, Animal came behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He pulled her back against the hard line of his body.
“Did I tell you how sexy you look tonight?”
The warmth of his breath on her skin made the prickle of electricity dance along her spine, sparking low in her belly. “Yeah, but you can tell it to me again.”
“You look fucking hot, baby.” Animal buried his face against her neck, lips nuzzling slowly … tantalizingly up to her ear.
Arousal surged through her senses and she wanted to drag him behind one of the outlying tents and throw herself at him. She wriggled closer against him, and a low growl rumbled from his chest.
