Chapter 6
6
CLAIRE
P hoebe’s voice echoed in my ears. “Get out. Get help.”
I needed to push Tim out of the way. To stop him from holding my best friend by the neck and threatening us. Everything moved as if I were locked in ice, my feet stuck in cement as I continued to put one step after the other, and yet I couldn’t move forward. There was a hollowness in me as I continued to reach toward the door, to leave my best friend behind and run for help. Because none of the fighting and plans we had made had worked until now at this point. There was nothing for us.
My apartment began to grow in size, the feet between Phoebe and I growing immensely until I could no longer see her, and then she was right next to me again, our fingertips brushing as she was screaming at me to get help.
Tim didn’t have a face, just a darkness as he squeezed my best friend’s neck and shook her, that silent predator who told me that what was to come would break us. I tried to open my mouth and scream, to beg the gods for help and yet nothing came. It felt as if wet paper were in my mouth, and I tried to pull it out, globs at a time, and yet there was nothing. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t move.
And then my toes were barely touching the ground, and it felt like I was flying, my back hitting the ceiling as I tried to swim through the air to get to help. I was out of Tim’s reach, I would be safe, and I would save Phoebe. I swam through the air, doing my best to make it out, but then Tim was there, and Phoebe was on the ground, and though I couldn’t see Tim’s face, I could see his smile.
The Cheshire Cat grinned at me, eyes red slits as they glared, and then white-hot pain.
That odd sucking sound of knife sliding into flesh once, twice.
The blade cut deep, damaging something, and the warmth of blood slid down my side and through my fingers.
And I fell backward, falling, falling, until there was nothing left, just screams and echoes .
Were they my screams, or were they Phoebe’s?
I wasn’t sure. Because in the end, I tried to run for safety for us, because no matter how many times I had hit back, no matter how many times I had pushed and begged, there was nothing.
“Claire! Claire! Wake up.”
My eyes shot open at Kingston’s voice, and I realized that he was holding me, squeezing my arms to wake me up.
The echoes of my screams reverberated in my ears, and I realized I had been screaming. My throat was raw, and I swallowed hard, looking up at him.
“I screamed in your face,” I muttered, my voice breaking.
“It’s okay. I probably deserved it.”
“ I screamed in your face, ” I repeated, this time my voice slightly lower.
Kingston stared at me for an instant before giving me a slight nod and pushing my hair back from my face. Everything felt sticky, as if I were covered in sweat, but I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think.
Not with the memory of those dreams still flowing through my veins, and not with Kingston holding me.
“You’re okay now. I’ve got you. I’ve got you, Claire.”
There was such a strength in his words, and I wanted to believe him. With every ounce of my soul I wanted to believe him .
“I’m sorry. I don’t usually have that many nightmares anymore.”
Not quite a lie. Usually the dreams I couldn’t wake up from. And then I would finally turn in my sleep and find a different dream. One a little sweeter, one possibly of Kingston himself.
And that’s when I realized that I lay naked in his arms, my breasts pressed to his chest, and he was holding me.
“I can feel your heartbeat,” I whispered, wondering why that was the first thing that came to mind. My hand was on his chest, over the slight hair there, and the defined pecs I knew came from hours of working out and keeping his body toned for his job. He was all strength and muscle and part of me wanted to lean into that, to believe that it was safe.
And yet, I wasn’t sure I was allowed to.
I could not believe that I’d slept with Kingston Montgomery. And now he was holding me, both of us naked, and I’d had a bad dream in front of him.
“How often do you have these nightmares?” he asked, still playing with my hair. I didn’t move my hand, the other one off to the side so I wouldn’t be tempted to touch him.
At some point during the night Kingston had moved us to his bed. Not mine, not to another bed, but his . We had fallen asleep on top of each other on the couch after we had had the hottest sex of my life. My thighs were still sore from the way he had held onto me, pounding into me from below me. It had been the single most erotic moment of my life, and I knew that no matter how many nightmares I had, perhaps just that moment with him would be enough to push some of those scary thoughts away.
Not all of them, as was evident by my nightmare, but some.
And that had to be enough.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Kingston asked, and I pulled myself from staring at his square jawline and back up to those dark blue eyes of his. I could only see the shadows of them because of the skylight that was now illuminated thanks to the moon bouncing off the fallen snow. He was far too beautiful for his own good.
“You know what it was about. You were there.”
He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to mine. For a moment, shame coated me. Because he had been there. He had held my body as I was bleeding out and pressed onto my wound so sharp pain had stuck its jagged claws through me. And I had survived, wondering if his gaze would be the last thing I saw.
So I looked into those eyes again, and reminded myself I was here.
“I wish we had been there sooner. I hated that we weren’t. And that’s such a paltry thing to say. ”
In that instant I realized I wasn’t the only one holding shame here. Perhaps it was because we were already baring all, I felt the courage to reach out and slide my hand through his hair.
“You came. There was nothing you could have done.”
“You can say that after the fact. But not so much during. It’s not about me, anyway. This is about you.”
Kingston sat up then, and I felt the loss of his touch, his heat. But then he did the most interesting thing and pulled me onto his lap. His very hard and thick cock pressed against my backside, but we both were determined to ignore it in that instant. I hadn’t even realized I was still shaking from the dreams, and he held me close, running his hands up and down my sides.
When I didn’t say anything, he let out a low breath. “I remember running up the stairs, trying my best to get there in time. I’ve never actually seen Kane run that fast.”
“He ran for Phoebe.” It wasn’t a complaint. In fact, it brought warmth to my heart that Phoebe was so loved—so cared for.
“Yeah, he did.”
I didn’t ask who Kingston ran for. Just because I was sitting naked on his lap in this instant, didn’t make me that person. But it did remind me that he had done what he could for us .
“I just hated the fact I couldn’t do anything. I tried to push at him, to get out of that situation, and there was nothing I could do. We had all the security set up, and in the end, I stood there like a deer in headlights for too long, and then when I did fight back it wasn’t enough.”
I couldn’t believe I was saying these words at this moment, but with the sound of the cool wind through the trees as the snowstorm had finally ended, I felt as if I could just breathe. Because we were slightly in the dark, and it was Kingston.
“You did everything right. You were smart. You were careful. He bypassed our security in a way that we didn’t even think was possible.”
“Because he killed our neighbor.” My voice broke at the words, and he held me close, running his hands down my side.
“And because he crossed that line, and because he cut the power, he got in. We should have found a way to make sure that hadn’t happened.”
“It wasn’t your fault. You protected us. Throughout all those weeks while we were waiting to see what would happen, you helped.”
And I couldn’t even fight back.
“I can teach you some self-defense if you want. Crew’s better at it, because he does that on the side, but all of us are trained. If you’d rather Daisy or Jennifer so you have a woman, they can help. Especially with some of the center of mass issues. But I’ll show you a few things. I don’t want to say for next time, because there’s not going to be a next time. But I can help.”
I looked up at him then and swallowed hard.
“Really?”
“I should have mentioned it before. But both of us were very good about not talking about any of this.”
“And then there was the whole avoiding you thing.”
He frowned at me. “You ever going to tell me why?”
Not exactly. But I didn’t say that out loud. “I needed to find my footing.”
He played with the end of my hair, his fingers brushing my bare shoulder. “And did you figure that out?”
I shook my head. “No. But I’m still here.”
His cock twitched against my backside, and I swallowed hard, with reality finally settled in. We were both naked in his bed, all alone in a snowstorm, and I was sitting on his lap.
“I was wondering when you were going to realize exactly where you were sitting.”
“Oh, I knew. And I felt.”
“So you just weren’t going to say anything. You were just going to sit on my lap for the rest of the night?”
“You’re the one who put me there,” I whispered .
Kingston grinned then, his eyes brightening. I loved when his eyes brightened. “Okay, I can out you somewhere else.”
And then I was on my back, and my thighs were on his shoulders as he spread me before him. “So soft and pink.”
“Kingston,” I whispered.
“You tell me when to stop.”
“Never.” I hadn’t meant to say that word. A truth so rich in secrets I knew it would break me, but when he met my gaze, his face between my thighs, his tongue so close to my pussy, there was nothing else I could say.
In answer he hummed against me, as he began to lick and suck at my clit. My toes curled, and I gripped the bedsheets, arching my back as he continued to eat me out. His tongue laved at me, and then he speared me with one finger, two, stretching me until I knew that I wouldn’t be able to last much longer. When he curled his fingers and rubbed against that little bundle of nerves, I lost it. My hands going to my breasts to pinch my nipples as I came, riding his face with all abandon.
He went to hover over me but then I shook my head, twisting so I pushed him down on his back.
He let out a little grunt, as I laughed, I went to kneel between his legs. “Well, I see you have an agenda?” he asked, as he put his hands behind his head.
“I’m just saying. I didn’t get to do this last time. ”
“Well, take your fill. Until it’s my turn again.”
I gripped the base of his cock, my fingers not touching, and licked my lips. He groaned, and I leaned down over him, my hair covering my face, as I licked the tip of his cock.
Salty pre-come settled over my tongue, before I opened my mouth and took the head of his cock in. His whole body shuddered, one hand going to my hair, the other reaching down to play with my nipple. He must have levered himself up somewhat on the pillow, but I let him touch me, because I needed him to touch me.
I bobbed my head, flattening my tongue as I let him fully into my mouth, pressing the back of my throat. And when I swallowed, letting him further back, he moaned.
“Dear God.”
I didn’t smile or say anything, mostly because his cock was in my mouth and I knew if I pulled back, he would probably pounce on me. And while I liked the thought of that, I wanted to give him something more. So I rolled his balls in one hand and continued to bob over him, letting him go past the back of my throat and deeper, taking him all the way in. My nose nuzzled the coarse hair at the base of his cock, and I hummed against him. His whole body shook as he tried his best to stay still, his breaths coming in pants as I did my best to breathe through my nose. And then I pulled back, panting, and met his wide gaze.
“Oh my God,” he muttered.
“Did I mention I can swallow really well?” I teased.
“Well, I think we just became best friends.” Laughing, I went back to him, taking more and more of him.
I continued my pleasure, loving the little grunts that came from him, and when he stiffened, his balls tightening in my hand, he pulled me away, and kissed me again.
“As much as I want to come down that pretty throat, or on those tits of yours, I really need to be inside you.”
I nodded quickly as he went to the bedside table and pulled out condoms.
My brows raised.
“Well, this was originally supposed to be Kane’s bedroom, so we’re just not going to think about anything. Since I, you know, packed the house with him.”
I laughed, grateful that we had that taken care of, and then I was on all fours in front of him, and he was gripping my hips.
“You tell me if it’s too much.”
“I trust you,” I said, meaning every single word.
He kissed up my back, before he spread me again, and then there was nothing else. He speared me, pounding into me thrust for thrust until he was balls deep, and I was meeting him with each movement.
He pulled me up so my back was to his front, his one hand on my throat, the other on my breasts, and I continued to roll my hips against him, needing that sensation, needing him.
There was so much, and yet not enough, and I couldn’t breathe.
And when I came around him again, he pulled out of me, and twisted me so I was on my back, and he was rolling his hips into me.
I wrapped my legs around his waist, and he cupped my cheek to kiss me softly.
“I’m almost there. I’m almost there, Claire.”
“Finish. Take me.”
He smiled his wicked smile, and then he was moving, and each of us meeting gazes, and never breaking.
And when he came, his mouth parting, I knew I was in deep trouble.
So he leaned down and took my lips, and I held onto him, meeting every inch of him.
As we finally settled, able to catch our breath, Kingston held me close, and smiled against my lips.
“So I suppose we should probably shower.”
I blinked up at the odd choice of words.
“Oh? ”
“Well, it just seems like we have a very large house, and an equally large box of condoms. I think a shower could be nice.”
I just shook my head at him.
“Really? I didn’t realize that your recovery is that good.”
“Well, I’m sure there’s something I can do while we wait. Just saying.”
And I pushed all thoughts of what could happen, and what we should say to each other, out of my mind. We would deal with reality soon. For now, I would live in whatever dream this happened to be. Because it wasn’t the nightmare that had woken me up. No, it was something that could lead to a break I didn’t want to think about. But for now, it was just him, me, and whatever promises we didn’t make.
After all, we only had one night. And I would take it.