Epilogue
Six months later . . .
My breaths are calculated with the speed of my adrenaline. My focus is razor-sharp and my skin is slicked with sweat. I can’t lose. I won’t lose, because I have once before.
I straighten, squaring my shoulders, getting ready to take down my target.
Then it’s all sand, volleyball, and crushing Adam fucking Sullevan no matter what.
He and Rix have the opening shot, and Adam slams it over the net. Rhett lunges to punt it up as I run and leap, hitting it back to them. After a lot of physiotherapy for my gunshot wound last summer, and being near insufferably fussed over by Rhett, it feels good to put my arm and shoulder back into action.
“Nice hit, little bird.”
“Praise me later.”
The ball is back to us, and this time I’m the buffer. I get to watch Rhett’s impeccable body stretch out and slam a powerful hit. Adam and Rix try to save, but ultimately, they lose momentum, and the ball hits the sand.
I cheer and double high-five with Rhett, but even though this is only our first score, I squeal as he hooks a firm arm around my waist and lifts me so my legs circle around him. We’re both wearing sunglasses, and he looks sexy as hell in his.
“How would you like me to praise you, Mrs Kaiser?”
I don’t think the sparks in me will ever subside at hearing him call me that. Especially when it’s dipped in such suggestion it shoots straight to my core.
“I don’t think you need instruction,” I say.
“I rather like it when you demand though.”
Rix hollers, “Are we settling this before lunch? I’m getting hungry.”
The volleyball showdown is the result of a few rounds of cocktails, a lot of power play, and a metaphorical gauntlet thrown between me and Adam when the reminder came up that he beat Rhett and me in California last year and I challenged him to a rematch.
Rhett and I are in Hawaii for our honeymoon. The tagalongs Rix and Adam booked a trip out with us, swearing we’d hardly see them. We’ve only been here a week and have seen them more than they promised. Neither of us mind though. It’s actually been nice to have them with us.
Our wedding was as grand as I could suffer. My mom wouldn’t take my request for “small” into consideration. When I said we might just elope, you’d think I’d suggested getting married at a circus. Which might have actually been more appealing.
It was front-page news everywhere, and we couldn’t understand why people were so invested, even more so than the bride and groom. We’re just two ordinary people. We have a wild story behind us, but the entirety of it will never be known to them. They will never know “America’s Darlings” are still creatures of the underworld. Despite my reluctance to all the fuss and flamboyance at first, the wedding was a thing of fairy tales.
Riley, my best friend from six long years of university together, flew in from New York for the wedding as a surprise, and seeing her was such a burst of light. I told her everything that had happened to me, which was her first demand after seeing wild clips and stories of my kidnap then rescue in the press, and plenty of other stuff I’m sure was completely made up. It was one long, heavy, exhausting night. Allie was there for it too, and I was glad she could take over some of the explaining at times. We cried and laughed, and I got to hear about how her internship was going at Keithlington. Which also meant I heard a lot about Nolan Flynn. How their rivalry in the classroom has become even more intense in the workplace. She wants the job at the end of her year-long internship so badly that I’m not above working some shady shit through Xoid if need be to help her get it.
Allie has been working tirelessly to get the charges off Liam, and they might have been with us here too if Liam wasn’t under house arrest. It’s far better than prison. They think they might have something on him for the murder of the shit-face lawyer who tried to buy Allie. It’s all speculation, but they’re fighting her hard, and it’s her own family’s law firm she’s up against. It’s the last cloud of burden from what we all went through, but we’re staying confident Allie will succeed through the painstakingly slow trial.
Silas has been elusive about Kenna despite Rhett’s pestering. We haven’t gotten a chance to really speak to her since she was taken in by him. Rhett wouldn’t have stopped trying if she hadn’t told us herself she wanted nothing to do with us—in very colorful words. She’s safe with Silas for now, but last we saw, she was reluctant to be there, and I imagine all this time she’s been crafting her plan to leave him too eventually. To be on her own, since she trusts no one. Xoid is keeping tabs on her as best we can, because if she runs, we won’t be able to let her disappear until Rhett gets to say his peace and apologize to her. I know the past with her will always tear him apart.
I glance over the beach as Adam pushes Rix’s chest with a disgruntled expression. Rix is grinning at whatever he said, and the contrast between them is a regular thing to witness. What’s fairly new is how Rix grabs Adam’s wrist as he tries to walk off and pulls him back. They kiss, and I look away then to give them privacy. We all knew something’s been hot-and-cold with them for many months. It still is hot-and-cold, but they don’t try to hide it anymore.
“How about we ditch this game and head back to our villa?” Rhett suggests, enticing me with a kiss to my jaw, then a bite to my neck when I tighten around him.
“We need to beat him, or we’ll never get to live it down,” I protest, but he’s making a very persuasive case.
“You’ll never live it down. Your competitive streak is sexy.”
“You’ll suffer my complaining, so we,” I say, pecking his cheek and uncrossing my legs.
Except when I turn back to the net, Rix and Adam have turned more heated, and the sun isn’t what flushes my skin. They don’t even regard us as they break away but remain close. Rix says something in Adam’s ear that causes him to playfully punch Rix’s chest before they walk off.
“Do we win by forfeit?” Rhett mutters.
I’m still slack-jawed they just left us like that, but I’m also not complaining.
“They did say they’d hardly interfere with our honeymoon,” I say, turning back to Rhett. Circling behind him, I reach for his shoulders, and he naturally bends for me to climb his back.
We have three more weeks of getting to sunbathe, relax, and enjoy our time alone away from work.
Xoid is thriving, and I’ve enjoyed more than anything getting to be a part of what Rhett built. But I’ve started to make something of my own now, with the school I wanted to open well under construction. I should be able to announce an opening date for the new term this year.
My life is split by two contrasting desires, but I like to think it keeps me balanced.
Rhett walks the whole way back to our private villa carrying me on his back. When we’re inside I moan at the cool lick of the air conditioning. In the bedroom, I squeal when Rhett twists and throws me off him and I land on the plush mattress.
He’s upon me a second later, and I giggle at the tickling assault of his lips on my neck.
“We’re both too sandy, and we’ll regret it later if we get it under the covers,” I say, but I don’t have much more to protest if he disregards that warning.
“Hmm,” he says, then he flicks his tongue over my serpent earring. “Then you have three seconds to get this pretty little ass into the bathroom before I’m coming for it.”
My pussy flutters at the thought. Rhett doesn’t move off me, so I hook a leg around his hip and push his chest, flipping our position.
Before I head for a shower I reach behind myself, pulling at the red string of my bikini top. Then I pull the tie around my neck. Rhett drinks me in with wild eyes as the material falls away.
I wasn’t kidding about the sand, and it clearly got into every crevice with how gritty my skin is with it.
I slip off Rhett, and he props himself up on his elbows to watch me. I walk backward toward the open glass doors leading out to our private pool.
“You’ll have to catch me first, Agent Kaiser,” I say.
When I pull the ties of my bikini bottoms, they fall to the floor. Rhett all but launches off the bed, and I yelp, running out and jumping into the pool. I immediately swim as fast as I can, but I don’t get far before the splash of him follows mine. He’s too fast, grabbing my ankle before I can even reach the other side of the pool.
Rhett hooks me around the waist and pushes us to the surface. I barely get a breath in before his lips steal my next. Between the heated kiss and clamping myself around him he floats us to the side of the pool, where he presses into me against the pool wall so I feel his hard cock against my core.
This end of the pool is shallow enough for Rhett to stand easily. When he does, his large hands grip my waist, and I gasp, clutching the ledge as he pushes me out of the water.
He doesn’t waste a second before hooking my legs over his shoulders and cupping my ass, bringing his mouth to my pussy. I throw my head back with a moan, fingers threading through his hair.
“Fuck, yes, yes.” I quickly chase an orgasm, so turned on by the open air and the wildness unleashed between us on this holiday.
“So responsive,” Rhett growls, feasting on me like he’s been starved all day.
I can’t explain the need that turns me more feral for this man every damn day. I lean back on one hand while my hips undulate, trying to take more from his mouth as it sucks and licks right where I need it.
“Greedy fucking girl,” Rhett growls, his hands slapping my ass, and I moan louder. “Get inside.”
I tense with a pleasurably sharp gasp when his teeth nip my clit before he pushes away, only to hoist himself out of the water. It doesn’t matter how many times I get to watch him do that, it steals my fucking soul every time. Especially when he’s naked.
Rhett takes my hand, leading me through the house and into the elaborate bathroom. The sunken bath is already filled with bubbles and rose petals, and my heart melts at the beauty of it. Champagne and chocolate-covered strawberries have my mouth watering. Then I notice two other things that almost make me blush as I glance at him.
His eyes merely sparkle, and he steps into the water before helping me in. The tub has a wraparound ledge like a hot tub, so we’re able to sit above the depth of the water. Rhett hands me one of the champagne flutes and then lifts the other.
“You’re having a drink with me?” I ask.
“Yes, baby.”
My brow pinches. I wouldn’t have minded if he didn’t; if he never had a drink again. But this is so much more than that. He feels safe here. We’re both entirely safe here, and that overwhelms me.
“To my fearless, smart, utterly stunning wife. To my absolute world. I might have had to trek through hell to reach you, but you were worth every step,” he says, clinking his glass against mine.
My laugh is partially a sob of utter joy.
“To my insane, reckless, sexy as hell husband. Hell, heaven, and every place in between, I’m trekking it with you until the very end.”
We drink, and the light in his smile steals my breath.
Rhett takes my champagne and sets it behind me.
“Open,” he says, then he takes a long drink of his own before curving a hand over my nape.
I do as he asks, and my head tips back at his touch. The champagne is still cool as it passes from his mouth to mine, and I moan after I swallow, and he kisses me deeply.
“Again,” he murmurs huskily.
I open, but this time chocolate hits my tastebuds, and my lips close around the strawberry. We don’t break eye contact as I bite, and my body tightens with the hunger in his stare as he leans over me. When he pulls it away, his teeth bite at the rest, plucking the stem.
His hand encircles my throat. “Swallow.”
I do, and a low, deep sound of satisfaction leaves his throat with his darkening gaze. Then he kisses me hard. Our tongues, teeth, and mouth clash feverishly, and I’m aching for release.
Rhett pulls out of the kiss with a groan. “Turn around, knees on the ledge, and brace your hands on the side.”
I turn giddy as fuck at the dominance overcoming him. He has a plan for right now, and my sight trails again to the small vibrator and lubricant beside the strawberries.
“Do you trust me?” he asks, planting a kiss on my shoulder.
My “yes” turns into a moan with his fingers sliding over my ass and down through my slick pussy. I’m only underwater up to mid-thigh positioned like this. Rhett slips two fingers into me, and I push my ass out to him, trying to meet his slow, torturous strokes for more.
“I feel you, baby,” he says thickly, pulling out and replacing his fingers with his cock. “Fucking incredible.”
He fucks me to the sound of our mixed pleasure for a while, until I feel his fingers again, teasing around my ass. I can’t help but tense up with a nervous inhale when one slips inside.
“Relax, little bird.”
He thrusts slow as he works his finger at that same pace. I start getting the sense he’s restraining himself from unleashing what he wants to unleash on me. I listen to him, easing down onto my forearms.
“Fuuuuck,” he growls. “I’m going to add another. You’re made for me, baby. Take all of me.”
I want to please him, and I want this. It’s been on my mind several times, and he’s done this before, but we’ve not been all the way to having his cock in my ass, and I know that’s where we’re heading.
“Such a good, good girl,” he says as my back curves, and I feel so deliriously full with his cock and fingers.
Pleasure starts to build rapidly, and I push back, chasing the orgasm.
“Come on my fingers and my cock,” he demands, picking up pace. I’m surprised when my release soars without him needing to touch my clit.
I cry out with the pleasure rocking through me, unlike any other orgasm. So full. So, so full, and I don’t want him to stop as I tremble against the cool tile floor.
I vaguely hear the cap of the lubricant again, but I feel it drip over my ass.
“I don’t know if I can,” I say. The thought starts to creep through me with doubt when it’s more than two fingers.
“I think you can,” he murmurs over my shoulder.
Buzzing fills my ears, and I barely register the toy until I jolt forward at the sensation of it against my overstimulated clit.
“Rhett,” I whimper. God, it’s both a torture I need a break from and a bliss I don’t want to stop for a second.
He slides over my apex. Back and forth. Until the sensitivity starts to subside form my last orgasm and I’m ready to start chasing another. Then I feel his cock teasing my ass.
“Keep relaxed for me. Let me in, baby.”
Shit,I want him to fuck me there so badly it feels both wrong and so right.
His head pushes in, and I breathe out. The sensations of the vibrator and his breach are dizzying. I want so much more, but my mind is spinning.
“So tight,” Rhett says, his voice strained.
I know he wants to drive into me and fuck my ass senseless, but he’s being patient for me. I focus on the vibrations and on my next inhale as I push back deeply.
“Fucking hell.”Rhett’s breath blows down my spine. “Easy, little bird. I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You won’t. Please fuck my ass, Rhett.”
His fingers tighten on my hip. “You’re going to make me explode with that demand alone.”
The burn is lessening, and the stimulation against my clit is already building my next orgasm. Rhett pulls out then back in. The next time he does, he pauses.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“The sight of my cock buried in your ass is about to make me come. Give me a damn second for sanity.”
“I feel so full,” I moan, laying my cheek against the tile.
“Good though?”
“Yes, very.”
“You never cease to amaze me.” He leans over to kiss my neck, then my cheek, then my ear.
“Please,” I whisper, needing him to move.
“I’m going to fuck you now, and I’m not stopping until neither of us remember our goddamn names. Keep this on your clit, baby.”
I push up again, bracing on the one hand and taking the toy from him between my legs. Rhett gives a few shallow thrusts to allow me to adjust, then he lets go. I become mindless to the pleasure, knowing when he’s through with me I’ll be boneless too. I didn’t expect to enjoy this as much as I do, but with him pounding into my ass, this won’t be the last time we do this.
“Harder,” I say. I can’t explain my feral need for him to ruin me.
“If I fuck you any harder, you won’t be able to walk to dinner tonight,” he growls.
“We’ll order it to us.”
“Christ, Ana.” Rhett shifts his stance, and his grip shifts to my thighs, making me fuck him back.
I curve my hand more until the vibrator slips inside my pussy. The change of sensation is new, and it immediately pushes me over the edge. Rhett hisses too, then he follows his release with deep, endless growls of pleasure that begin to match his slow, deep thrusts as he spills himself into me.
Pulling the toy out, I can barely turn it off as I’m vibrating more than it.
Rhett is still inside me, panting as much as I am, because that was the most world-rocking orgasm I think either of us have found in each other—which is an impressive bar to reach.
“I love you, Anastasia Kaiser,” Rhett says, finally pulling out, and I shudder at the emptiness. “Fuck, I love you more I thought possible.”
I let him hook an arm around my waist and help me up. I’m completely spent and sore and gloriously high. When he pulls me, I’m floating, until we’re lying in the tub with my back against his front.
“I think I want to do that again,” I murmur sleepily.
Rhett runs tender hands up my thighs. “We have all the time in the world, baby.”
We do. My soul is found, and my heart is home. With Rhett, life seems too short, but also so long and prosperous. I don’t plan to take a moment for granted when we’ve seen behind the broken parts of ourselves and loved each other through it all. We’ve glimpsed inside the wicked with each other and survived it hand in hand.
For us there’s no hiding behind darkness anymore. Whatever comes next, I have everything I need and all I’ve ever wanted in Rhett Kaiser.
The end of Rhett and Ana’s story, but maybe not fully goodbye…