“It’s a beautiful house,” she acknowledged in a small voice as she handed him back the tablet. “And Julia also mentioned it to me. Is - is that something you’d like to do? Move, that is? I mean, we’ve never discussed the idea, and I always assumed you loved this house as much as I do.”

“I do. Of course I do,” he assured her as he set the tablet to one side before taking her in his arms. “Frankly, the thought of moving out of San Francisco never really occurred to me until Nathan broached the subject earlier today. But it made me think that a house like the one in Tiburon might be better for the children. They’d have that backyard and the pool, be near their friends. It would be a wonderful opportunity for them. And for you, too, darling, to have your best friend so close by.”

Tessa nodded. “All that is true. But it would make life more complicated for you, Ian. You’d have to commute each day, and drive yourself since I doubt Simon would come all the way to Tiburon to pick you up.”

He shrugged. “That’s not a major concern. It’s a relatively short drive, and even in traffic it shouldn’t take more than half an hour each way. And I’m very capable of driving myself, darling.”

“I know.” She began to twist her fingers together, trying to fight off her unease at the direction this conversation seemed to be heading in. “But, well, you already work so hard, and don’t get to spend nearly as much time as you’d like with the children. And if you have to commute half an hour each way, that’s one less hour a day for you to spend with them. And with me.”

“It wouldn’t be ideal, but it’s far better than many families cope with. What about the house itself, Tessa? Can you see yourself living in a place like that?” he inquired.

She shrugged. “Maybe. I mean, it’s certainly beautiful. But, well, it’s awfully - white, isn’t it? White walls, white marble floors, white furniture. And I realize part of that is how it’s been staged, but it just doesn’t feel warm to me. Not like our house.”

“That could be changed very easily,” he replied with a casual wave of his hand. “Just moving our own things in would instantly change the appearance.”

“I guess.” She looked down at her lap uncertainly.

He tipped her chin up to meet his concerned gaze. “You sound anything but convinced, Tessa. What’s wrong, love?”

She blinked back tears as she stared into his eyes. “It’s just that - well, this house was the very first place that ever truly felt like home to me,” she murmured huskily. “The first real house I ever lived in. I think I fell in love with this place the second I walked through the front door on the night of our first date.” She placed a hand on his chest, her voice lowering to a whisper. “I fell in love with you in this house. And I have so many wonderful memories already of this place, Ian. This house has character, charm, warmth. I had always planned to raise our children here, and knew that they would love this house as much as I do. And the thought of selling it, of moving somewhere else - it makes me very sad.”

“Darling.” He kissed away the tears that hovered on her eyelashes. “Then there’s no possible way I’d ever consider moving. I love this house, too, you know. And I was only thinking of Gilly and Liam when I brought up the idea. But they’ll do just fine growing up in San Francisco, won’t they?”

Tessa nodded happily. “Of course they will! I mean, we don’t have a pool of our own, but we can use the hotel pool anytime we like. And we happen to own a beach house. And we have access to several hundred hotels and resorts around the world, all of which have a pool.”

“Very true. And I’ve been thinking about making some changes in the backyard, putting in a lawn and a little playhouse for Gilly. It won’t be as large as the Atwood’s place, of course, but I think it would do nicely.”

She clapped her hands together excitedly. “Oh, my God! Gilly would adore having a little playhouse! I mean, we already have the playroom downstairs, but it would be nice for them to spend more time outdoors when the weather is nice.”

Ian sipped the brandy, then offered Tessa another drink. “One thing to consider, however, is the fact that this house only has five bedrooms. If you somehow manage to persuade me one day into having more children, those rooms would fill up very quickly, and we wouldn’t have a guest room for when my parents visit. They could always stay at the hotel, of course, but they’d miss having round the clock access to the children.”

Tessa tapped a forefinger against her lips thoughtfully. “We could always add a guest suite downstairs. Almost half of the lower level has never been built out.”

He grinned. “I can almost see the wheels spinning up here.” He kissed the top of her head. “But that’s a good idea. I’ll talk to Nathan one of these days about the possibility of designing something along those lines. And now that we’ve put the subject of moving to rest, it’s time for me to collect that prize you promised me earlier today.”

“With pleasure,” she whispered, twisting herself around until she was straddling his lap. “Did you, ah, have any specific ideas about how you’d like to receive your prize?”

“Several,” murmured Ian as he began to undo the buttons of her sleeveless blue cotton blouse. He trailed a line of kisses down her throat to the tops of her breasts. “I thought we’d begin with you sucking my cock.”

“Mmm,” she groaned as he unfastened her bra, allowing her breasts to spill freely into his eagerly waiting palms. “That - that sounds like a good place to begin.”

He bent his head, sucking both of her nipples in turn. “And then,” he continued huskily, “I’d be very pleased to return the favor. To spread you out on our bed, and lick you up until you come a few times.”

Tessa gasped as his hand slid down over her belly to cup her sex. “So - so far, s-s-so good,” she stammered, grinding herself against his hand. “What next?”

Ian slowly lowered the zipper of her white denim shorts, slipping his fingers beneath the lacy band of her panties to where she was already wet and eager. “Fucking you very hard for a very long time,” he purred in her ear, thrusting two fingers as deeply inside of her as he could reach. “Or then, there’s one more idea I was entertaining.”