Chapter 31
31
Cate
I stare at the bottom of the empty pharmacy bag, and my gaze pivots to the prescription prenatal vitamins on the counter. “This isn’t mine,” I whisper as if needing to verify I’m seeing what’s right in front of my eyes.
Taking a breath doesn’t help calm the anxiety riddling through my brain, though. So I hold the bag to my mouth and breathe in and out. In and out. In. Out. But it’s not going to solve my problem.
I jump up from the toilet and run into the bedroom, grabbing the tote bag and plopping it on the mattress. It’s packed full, so I start to unload it, tossing my purse, the book I had planned to read this weekend, the brush I haven’t used once since arriving, and the empty water bottle on the bed.
Hair clip.
Perfume.
Bag of Cheetos to help my monthly cravings that hit out of nowhere.
Gum.
Ah!
I fish my pill container from the bottom of the tote, eagerly opening it in hopes that I imagined destroying the packet two days ago instead of it really happening. Fresh from the shower with slippery hands is not a good combination for a foil packet when you bust multiple pills out accidentally while trying to catch it. Me and hazy pre-coffee mornings don’t mix.
The new prescription wasn’t just backup.
Clicking it open, I stare at the empty plastic container, my heart instantly sinking to the pit of my stomach.
All I needed was one active pill to bridge the gap until I could retrieve my correct prescription. Just one . . . But there are none. Okay, don’t freak out, Cate. I took it yesterday, so I’ll just get it transferred to Deer Lake, and I’ll be fine. A good plan is in place. It’ll be okay.
If it’s all so fine, why do I sound like I’m trying to convince myself?
In through the nose. Out through the mouth. They’re open twenty-four hours, so I can call the pharmacy now and get it going. That way, I can relax and pick it up later.
I brush my teeth while I’m on hold, and rinse right when a human finally answers the call. “Hi, I was there yesterday to pick up my prescription . . .”
Breathing becomes easier by the time I hang up. Deer Lake Pharmacy opens at nine. Shane and I can cruise over and pick it up anytime today. No need to worry him when it’s taken care of. All is good.
I tiptoe back across the hall to the other bedroom, where I left Shane sleeping thirty minutes ago. I got up to freshen my breath, brush my hair, which I’ve forgotten to do again, and take my pill while hydrating from the sex we had last night. Stopping, I press my hands to my heating cheeks, blushing just thinking about it. It was overwhelming with the thoughts in my head racing toward a goal I’ve craved for so long, an elusive orgasm that I wouldn’t be giving myself. My body was full, filled with so much of him—the emotion, his body, the pleasure—devouring me whole and leaving me in awe. Even my heart beats as if it were his, and his were mine.
We were one.
I’ve never felt more at peace than during our connection, body and soul.
Breathing has become easier this morning. Whatever troubles I had been carrying vanished under his ministrations. I’m making it my mission to do the same for him.
The inner muscles of my thighs and the stretch in my center feel so good, like exercise that pushed me to hit new goals. The ache is there, but Shane is the reward.
I open the door and am greeted by eyes that brighten even in the low light of early morning. “Good morning, my wife.” He flips the covers open for me.
I giggle because I’m that far gone for him and happy to play along. “Good morning, my husband.” It’s not a lie, but it feels bigger in the moment than I expected as if I hadn’t tried it on prior, and it doesn’t quite fit. I strip off the sweatshirt I had thrown on and climb back into his arms again. My back to his chest.
Pushing my hair away from my neck, he plants a kiss there. “How are you?” he whispers. His breath coats my shoulder, sending shivers down my spine. This is what I want—a slow and easy morning. I don’t want to jump into the deep end just yet.
I turn in his arms, lifting on my elbow to get a better view of him. The sexy hair is not disappointing, his eyes like sleep could still pull him back in with lids hanging a little lower. Running a hand over his neck and higher, I tap my fingertips lightly across the lips I’m anxious to kiss. “Can I ask you something?”
“Anything.”
“Without judgment?”
“Hm.” Concern wrinkles his forehead, and his hand lowers to rest on my hip. “I won’t judge, but you have me worried.”
“Don’t be. Last night . . . this place . . . it’s all been magical. I just always imagined my husband would be someone I exchanged vows with. To me, our relationship started over yesterday, so it’s hard for my mind to wrap around that we’re married.”
His fingers brush around the shell of my ear, then grace the side of my face so gently it’s barely felt. “I’m not upset, and I’m not judging you. It makes sense. When I say it to you, I’m able to voice what I’ve felt for a while now. A dream. A wish. My future wrapped in a second chance.”
“ Shane .” My heart squeezes, flooding with even more love than I could possibly explain. I lean forward and kiss him, the emotion so big that I can’t reason through being rational right now.
He says, “It will come in time for you. I don’t expect you to say it when you don’t feel it. Not just because I did.”
“I love you. I know that and can say it without any terms or conditions.” I grin, feeling closer than I ever thought imaginable to this man, and I imagined a lot. “Unlike how you got me here in a forced proximity situation, hoping to trap me here as a hostage and have your way with me.” God, why am I suddenly turned on? “It worked just like in my favorite books.”
Narrowing his eyes, he angles his head as he studies the words coming from my mouth. “I have no clue what you’re talking about, Cat.”
“Sorry, I got lost in our storyline. Forced proximity is one of my favorite tropes.”
“We’re still talking about books, right?”
I shrug my free shoulder. “Or in life. Like now.”
“Your favorite books are about kidnapping and forced proximity?”
I wave him off. “It’s hard to explain.” My gaze deviates to the window where the curtains are still open from yesterday, giving me a view of the beginnings of the early morning light. “It’s romantic, and the characters fall in love—oh, forget it. Just trust me.”
“I’m going to have to on this one.” He rolls onto his back, his arm still tucked under my neck. “I don’t even know what we were talking about anymore.”
“It’s okay.” I laugh. “It’s been worked out.”
His hand rubs over my bare hip under the covers. “How are you feeling after last night?”
“So good.”
Falling back again, he stares up at the ceiling with a chuckle. “I caught that when all of Deer Lake heard you screaming my name.”
I mimic him and lie on my back as well. “Scream might be exaggerating a little.” I look over to see him putting his hands up in surrender. The smirk on his face has me rubbing my thighs together. Sooner is better than later for that next hit of bliss.
“I just call it how I hear it,” he teases, “and calling me god is a little formal. I’m also good with your highness, your majesty, my king, lord of the stage?—”
“Lord of the stage?” My eyebrows shoot to the heavens above as a fit of laughter catches hold of me. “I know you’re not even joking.”
“I never joke about sex.” Rolling onto his side again, he runs a finger down my chest and between my breasts. “Speaking of . . . I was asking about your body.” The joking ends, and the air stills in reaction. I don’t make a move, and I’m not sure if I should even take a breath. Shane props up on his elbow, cupping my face when he leans forward. “Are you okay? I wanted to go slow for y?—”
I meet him, a breath left between us. “It was perfect. Perfect for us.”
His eyes reflect mine, confidence widening his pupils as he takes me in. No words are said. None need to be. We stare into each other’s eyes, silently saying everything we feel.
His gaze dips to my mouth, and he licks his lips, still caressing my cheek. His strong hand is gentle when he pulls me to him. Our lips meet in a tender kiss. I tilt to get closer as I part my mouth, enticing him to take anything he wants of me. Again .
The slip of his tongue has me welcoming him into the depths he’s exploring. It’s as if he touches it, it’s his forever. I return the favor, wanting to own as much of him as I can.
A push and pull that I find so incredibly sexy, neither of us wanting to win or lose. We just want to be in the arena together.
I slide my hand up his neck and weave my fingers into his hair. Pulling him closer as if our mouths attached isn’t enough. It’s not. “I want you inside me.”
“Thought you’d never ask.” He has no qualms about pushing me onto my back as he slides through the covers.
“I didn’t. It was a command.”
“So fucking sexy, baby.” He kisses me. It’s a formidable embrace as he settles between my legs. The tip of his cock presses against my entrance, and he leans forward, blue eyes alight with anticipation.
My fingertips play over his ribs before I grip his shoulders. “So fucking sexy.”
His growl sends a shiver through me for just a moment, and he steals a breath before I have time to release it. “I’ll be gentle.”
“I’m not sure I want that.” I try for confident, but the lightest of chuckles rumbles from his chest as he leans down to kiss my neck, working his cock inside me inch by glorious inch.
A thrust has me shoving the back of my head into the pillow and groaning, a mixture of heaven and hell coming together. I want it all with him, so I embrace the stretch, the burn, and the fullness of his cock as it fills me by wrapping my arms around him and taking what feels so much like mine already. “Yes, babe,” I purr, letting my senses take over. Feel. Touch. So good. The scent of him and us coming together is a potent aphrodisiac and driving me for more. “So good.”
His hips thrust, and I meet him each time with a push of my own, enveloping him as he engulfs my soul. My thoughts swim in him as he plunders my body on his own accord. His back and shoulders are taut, and the feel of hills and mountains of muscles makes me even wetter for him. The sound of our connection grows louder, intermingling with uncontrollable moans of pleasure. “Lord of the stage, you hurt so good.”
His entire body stills. I don’t think he’s even breathing until he says, “Oh fuck me, you did not go there.” His hips slam into mine as he pins my arms above my head. “You like that, baby?”
“I fucking love it.”
The word ignites a fire burning in his sky-blue eyes. His jaw ticks as he grinds against me. “ Fuuck , baby. You feel so fucking good.”
Swiveling my hips, I pull back, empty without him all the way in me. I thrust and take, pull and give to him, wanting him to feel how he makes me feel. Amazing.
Balanced on one hand, he squeezes my breast and then lowers to take my nipple into his mouth. Swirling his tongue, he then flicks it, which was already hard for him. The sensation shoots straight to my core, and the coiling begins.
Shifting to the other, he doesn’t leave that breast out. But when he slides his hand over my belly and lower, my vagina clenches around him, causing his mouth to open in the slightest of gasps. When his eyes shoot to mine, he says, “Do it again.”
I squeeze and slide, taking him in and not releasing. “Again,” he demands, slipping his fingers around our connection and then upward to bring the slickness to my clit. He does what he did to my breasts, teasing and then flicking. My nerve endings are live wires under his stroke, every touch shooting through my veins.
It’s so hard to embrace him when I want to fall into my own orgasm. His thrusting gets wild and unpredictable, too much of everything dancing between my head and every part of my body.
One pinch of my clit sends me tremoring into a release, triggering him to fall with me. My hips still move, grasping for every inch of him until he’s pumping inside me. The unrelenting drive eases, allowing me to disappear into the bliss, happily floating in the aftermath.
My breathing is too harsh, but I reluctantly come to my senses. Seeing him spent and the sweat glistening on his tan skin make me grateful I did. He’s beautiful and makes me feel the same.
When he finally opens his eyes, he looks over at me and smiles. “Did I ever tell you how I used to fantasize about fucking you?”
Already grinning, I reply, “No.”
“Those fantasies pale compared to the real thing.” He closes his eyes again, and his breath is still uneven. “You’re fucking incredible, baby.”
I reach between us, slip my hand in his, and close my eyes. “So are you, husband.”