Christa’s Obsession (Obsessions #3)

Chapter Eleven

Wanda

Sitting in the sunlight, enjoying her fruit juice, Wanda did her best to set aside the concerns troubling her, hoping Christa might come to the forest. As the day dragged on, she could only surmise her wish had not been granted.

The glass sat against her lips as another thought popped into her head. Had Christa decided she wasn’t worth the trouble?

You’re being silly. A branch ran over her ankle and gave it a little tug.

Am I? I’ve waited all day and nothing has happened.

Did she sound as miffed at the thought as she felt? It was wrong, when she was the one who had turned Christa away. Did that help? Not really. Her body felt ripe. Needy.

It was unnerving when all she had to do was imagine the feeling of Christa’s silky skin sliding against hers to make her blood pump fast through her veins. Make her clit throb.

She has a job, does she not? Human responsibilities, no?

I know. I can’t think past…

Her heart slammed against her ribs at the echo of a demon shouting in the forest. His voice rebounded off branches as he called out. Fear ground her thoughts to a halt. Held her hostage as the glass slipped through her limp fingers. Peach juice soaked the front of her dress, but she didn’t feel the wetness.

They’ve come for me.

Hair flying around her pale cheeks, she searched the trees beyond the orchard, terrified of what she might see but unable to stop herself.

He’s not here to harm.

The words floated through her mind, but the panic blinded her to them. Moments later, she became cocooned within the branches of her girls. They shielded her to the outside world as they had always done.

Will they get in? Please tell me.

Shush, my love, he’s not here to harm you.

She felt enormous feet hitting the ground. It vibrated up through the soil and through the roots of her trees. The distance meant nothing with how fast the memories of what happened to her resurfaced. Wanda’s heart raced so hard she trembled violently, cowering back, working to make herself as small as possible.

We swear, he’s not here to hurt anyone, her trees whispered again while branches stroked over her trembling limbs, working to distract her. You are safe. We swear it.

The power behind the words helped as the branches continued to act as a distraction, slipping under the sleeves of her shift dress to slide over the tender swell of her breasts.

Her breath caught at the tweaks to her nipples, making her gasp and warmth gather between her thighs.

That’s it, our beloved, feel us.

Her arms relaxed at their encouragement, uncrossing to free her upper body.

Focus on us. On how your body feels when we touch you.

She could do nothing more when they knew exactly how much pressure to apply. A branch pushed up her dress to get to what it wanted. A soft leaf roamed over her swollen lips, the hood of her clit exposed as a tiny branch pierced a ripe peach, coating it with pulp and juice. It remained suspended between her thighs, the juice dripping between her folds.

Do you want to feel it touch you? Or is it just the feel of the juice trickling over your clit you want? Do you want us to tease you until you need more? Until you beg for Christa’s mouth to touch you like we cannot?

The words had as much effect on her as the trees’ touch. Already anticipating their touch, she lost focus on the muffled sounds beyond the branches. Her eyelids fluttered closed as her dress disappeared.

Soft air brushed her sensitive skin as leaves floated over her, barely touching her. They fluttered in small caresses, touching her breasts and teasing her nipples until they ached for more pressure. Her voluptuous thighs parted willingly as branches captured her hands. Her fingers curled around the smooth bark and clung on. Each touch made her think of nothing but the next one. Where would it be? If they would merely excite or give her what she craved.

“Touch me,” she begged. “Make me forget. Make me believe it’s Christa touching me.” She finished on a moan, lost to the vividness of her imagination, smelling Christa’s delicious fragrance. Could recall everything she had done to herself the night before with the hope that her trees had cast a spell to enable Christa to see and she had willingly looked.

“Did you see me, Christa?” she murmured aloud, lost to the pleasure.

A dream spell had never felt so real, and in that moment, she clung to it when soft hands touched her foot and Christa’s voice murmured, “yes.”

A hand… a real, warm hand… Wanda’s eyes fluttered open, and she gasped at the sight before her. Her hands clung to the branches.

What did you do?

What you wanted.

How?

Does it matter? She came to us.

The trees had expanded her nook and Christa sat at her feet, dressed in her fancy clothes, her hair flowing over shoulders and down her back in a black silky waterfall of curls. Her make-up was perfect and her lips looked as ripe as Wanda’s peaches. She should have looked out of place, yet inside Wanda’s tree nook, she seemed… at home .

How could that be?

She belongs to us.

The seconds ticked by as Wanda lay there. Wanda had little to no understanding about guile. She would have laughed if anyone suggested the picture she made was to entice her lover. It wouldn’t occur to her, so it didn’t.

Her surprise held her where she was, unsure what she should do or say, now she was face to face with her wish. Christa stayed as she was, silent and watchful.

Her gaze skimmed down Wanda, naked and vulnerable with the scent of her arousal and the wetness coating her thighs. She had no place to hide what she had been doing and she couldn’t decide what she should do.

You don’t need to hide. Look at how she admires your beauty.

On display, Wanda had no choice but to wait to meet Christa’s stare when it moved back up her body.

“So beautiful,” Christa purred.

Desire scented the air, and it wasn’t Wanda’s alone. Wanda understood that, except she could see something more in Christa’s eyes… yearning. Christa didn’t hide the need reflected at Wanda. In that moment, she didn’t feel vulnerable by her own nakedness; she felt empowered.

She released a tremulous breath. “You came,” she murmured softly.

Christa’s ocean blue eyes held her gaze. “I did. If you wish for me to leave, so…”

Was it wrong to ask her to stay when…

Talk to her. Explain how you feel.

“No… I want you to stay.”

We do too.

“We,” she corrected, “want you to stay.” Wanda released the branch she held and stroked it before she moved to sit up. Naked as she was, the move brought her a little closer to Christa, and she felt the warmth of her presence in her cocoon. She inhaled the sensual scent of her perfume. Both acted on her already aroused body. Her nipples tightened, making it obvious the effect Christa had on her. Wanda conjured a dress and felt her tree’s disappointment.

I can’t sit here naked—

Why not? Christa thinks you’re beautiful and you are.

Cheeks flaming with embarrassment, she noticed Christa’s shoulders droop and heard the small sigh she released. Was she disappointed I covered myself?

Yes.

Shush, I didn’t ask you.

You never asked Christa either.

“Would you like something to drink?” she asked politely, feeling more awkward than she did moments ago. What was wrong with her?

“Please.”

Her trees produced a glass of peach juice and offered it to Christa, who smiled in acceptance. “Is this made from the fruit from your orchard?” she asked, her nose wrinkling delicately as she sniffed at the rim of the glass.

“It is.”

Wanda’s breath held as she watched Christa take a sip, then groan in delight. “I’ve never tasted anything as sweet or delicious as this.” Her gaze held Wanda’s over the rim of the glass.

“I’m lucky. My tree magic allows them to yield fruit all year round.”

Christa’s lips moved into a slow, sexy smile, the ripe lips drawing Wanda’s gaze. “It also has many uses… the fruit, does it not?”

Wanda met Christa’s amused gaze. Did she mean…

Oh my.

The leaves rustled, laughing, drawing Christa’s gaze up. “Are your trees laughing?”

“They are.”

Her sculpted brows arched. “Why?”

The delightful pink of her cheeks surely had deepened at Christa’s intrigue. “Because they think they’re funny.”

Christa didn’t push, and Wanda was grateful for that when she went back to feeling uncomfortable, unsure how to start a conversation that would most likely bring back the shame.

When the silence became full of tension, Christa twirled the near empty glass in her fingers. “I can sense your disquiet. Do you wish for me to go?”

Wanda sagged, hesitating and clearly giving Christa the wrong impression that she wanted her to leave. She moved as if to rise.

“No…” Wanda took a deep breath and centered herself as Christa came back down to sitting. “No, I don’t want that at all.”

“Do you want to talk about… us?”

The hesitancy she heard undid the knots in Wanda’s belly. “I do… but first I feel I must talk a-about… about what happened to me. What they did to me.” Her skin crawled from the flash of memory that snuck in without her permission.

You are safe, our beloved.

Christa reached out with her free hand and placed it on Wanda’s knee, giving her a soft smile. “You don’t have to, I know what they did to you.”

Wanda jerked as if slapped, her eyes widening. “How?” she whispered.

“Dakata. When I went to visit him last night to talk about… us, he told me what the demons had confessed to in the hopes of surviving.”

A hand gently stroking her leg left Wanda struggling to focus on what Christa was saying.

“Unless you wish to talk to me about what happened, then I’ll willingly listen.”

Wanda sensed the truth, knew she meant it. A glass appeared in her hand and she took a drink to wet her mouth. A deep breath didn’t quell her nerves, but holding Christa’s gentle gaze did.

“I feel ashamed, sullied somehow from their touch. I didn’t want it. Their penis’s rubbing over my flesh, leaving their…”

Christa’s jaw tightened, but her touch remained gentle even when anger flashed to life in the depths of the gorgeous blue of her eyes. “How can I help? What do you need me to do? I’ll do anything you ask. Do anything to protect you so you feel safe.”

That it would be the first thing she would offer eased the dread that Christa would reject her, knowing what had happened.

She will never reject you.

Wanda believed that in her heart when the woman in front of her spoke only the truth. “I believed when I found my trees—because I am different from other dryads, who only bond fully with one tree—that they would be my entire world.”

Taking another sip of juice, Christa offered her an encouraging smile.

“My girls, we connected immediately… in all ways .” Would she understand?

The beautiful, sculpted brows rose, intrigue was what she sensed coming from Christa, nothing more. “They are your… lovers?”

She nodded, doing her best to keep from dipping her gaze. “I never believed I would have— need anything more than my girls.”