Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
BLAKELY
Dear Diary,
I’m not quite a small-town girl…but I could get used to this. To him.
With Aston’s arm around my waist, we walked down the block toward the other businesses.
“A few of these are new, like I said, so I don’t know exactly where everything is.”
I looked up at him, knowing that he would make sure that I didn’t run into poles or trip over a curb. That was odd to think that I trusted him so completely, but maybe again, I was trusting whatever this was in our relationship to begin with. Because if this went wrong, it was going to damage so many things, and yet it was hard for me to even contemplate that, since I was doing my best not to think about it at all.
“Maybe we should have gone to the welcome center and picked up one of those maps.”
He leaned down and kissed the tip of my nose as we turned the corner.
“Maybe. Although I don’t think I’ve ever gotten a map from the welcome center.”
“I’m sure that one of you Cages has the town all drawn up somewhere. Complete with a color-coded guide.”
I looked up at the closest store and froze, my jaw dropping, and Aston groaned.
“Really? Who named this one?” I asked as I looked at the adorable coffee shop, complete with the beautifully scripted sign of the name of the place.
“I have no idea. It’s apparently changed hands since I’ve last been here.”
With a laugh, I pulled him into the Caged Bean, and couldn’t help but look around, elation sliding through me.
I hadn’t known how today was going to go. After all, I should’ve been at work. I should have been working with my team, going through paperwork, but as most of my team was off today for their own reasons, I had somehow found myself on a weekend trip with a man that could be considered my boyfriend. However, it wasn’t as if we used those labels.
A man that, if we broke up, it wouldn’t only damage my heart, but it could damage the relationship he was making with his sisters, and my relationship with a business that I was falling in love with .
Me making these choices was probably the worst thing I could be doing, and yet, here I was, continuing to make these choices.
“You must be a Cage,” an older woman with short black hair, full-sleeve tattoos, and a nose piercing said as she came forward. “I’m Melody, the manager here.” She held out her hand to me, and I shook it, before she did the same with Aston.
“Yes, I am a Cage, how could you tell?” Aston asked, his voice deep.
The other woman laughed, as others turned to look at the tableau in front of them. “You all look the same. But I don’t think I’ve met you.”
“Aston Cage, this is Blakely.”
The other woman grinned at me. “It’s nice to meet you, both of you. And welcome to my establishment.”
“I have to ask, did you come up with the name?” I asked, laughter in my tone.
Once again Aston groaned.
Melody gave a good-natured laugh. “Of course I did. You don’t think the Cages came up with all of these names, do you?”
“Honestly, I was pretty sure my dad did most of it,” Aston said dryly.
Melody waved him off, before gesturing toward the bar. There was an actual bar with stools in a coffee shop along with small tables scattered around. It was quite cute in here, with black and wood furnishings and embellishments. It looked a little rustic, a little modern, and yet welcoming at the same time. It wasn’t soft, but the aromas of coffee and sugar and other flavorings made my mouth water.
“Your dad did some, but this one was all me.” She winked. “Honestly, I really enjoyed trying to think of something ridiculous. But your name helps.”
“I feel like I should be offended by that,” Aston said as he helped me onto my stool.
“Don’t be, it’d be worse if your name didn’t allow for so many cute little titles.”
“I can’t wait to learn them all,” I said, sort of enjoying the way that Aston looked slightly uncomfortable. Mostly because the man was always so rigid and focused. When I had seen him in those comfortable jeans and flannel, I had nearly come on the spot. He was so damn sexy, and different than what he usually looked like. Don’t get me wrong, I loved looking at him in the suit, because he looked fantastic in one. But in jeans? It was just a new level. And now watching him learn to relax around people he didn’t know and wasn’t trying to work with, was an all-new level of appreciation.
“We just opened in the past six months, but we’ve been doing good. Your brother, Hudson, has been wonderful. He painted that mural back there.”
My eyes widened as I looked over at the back wall at the beautiful abstract photo that looked as if it was a tree reaching for the sky, and yet possibly a woman weeping. I couldn’t quite tell and I had a feeling if I studied it for hours, I would see more and more details that stood out .
“I didn’t know he was a painter,” I whispered, and Aston cleared his throat.
“He is now. He was always good at it, but I’m glad he has time to breathe up here and settle into it.”
“He’s doing good work. Though I think he’s working on a project up at the resort.”
Aston nodded, as I turned my attention to look at the menu. “Yes, and I’m glad one of us is here now to work in person.”
“You guys take care of the town, and you’re not tyrants.”
A man with dark hair and a big beard snorted behind us, and I turned. “Sure. The prodigal son arrives, and the world is going to bow down at the Cage’s feet.”
“Weston,” Melody said with a sigh. “Stop being a grump.”
The other man grinned, and it brightened up his face completely. At first, I thought he had been an older man, slouching and annoyed with the world, but instead, he was much younger, his eyes bright, and with a humor there that I wouldn’t have expected from that gruff introduction.
“I can’t help it. It’s just my nature.”
“Weston here is our local mechanic. He makes sure everything around here is up and running. Which is no small feat during winter.”
“It’s what I do. Thanks for the coffee, Melody. And it’s nice to meet you, Blakely.” He glared over my shoulder. “Aston. ”
Aston narrowed his gaze at the other man. “I wasn’t aware we actually were introduced.”
Weston just winked, though his eyes weren’t filled with humor. “I’ll bring the twins by a little later?” he asked.
“Of course. Now get to work. And I’m going to introduce this Cage to what he’s been missing.”
Weston grunted, and headed out, as everyone else went back to their coffees, and I finally took a look at the menu.
“You have an iced coffee tasting?” I asked, as I clapped my hands in front of me. “We just had a very large pasta lunch, and yet, I’m going to need this.”
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen an iced coffee tasting,” Aston said softly beside me.
“They’re not that uncommon at smaller places. You’re not going to see something like this at a chain, of course, as soon as they hear about it and figure they can make money, they’ll hop right on the train and ruin it,” Melody grumbled.
“So you don’t want the Caged Bean to be a nationwide phenomenon that spreads the name all over the country?” Aston asked, and I bumped his side with my elbow.
“You know who can make that happen,” I said with a laugh.
Aston gave me a look, and I blinked innocently up at him.
Melody however, just shook her head. “No, thank you. I’m sure the Cages are spreading enough around.” There was something in her tone though that worried me, but I couldn’t tell exactly what she meant by that.
Aston’s laughter cooled ever so slightly, but then he cleared his throat. “So we just pick our favorite four?”
“Yes, sir. Now have fun.”
“Oh, I’m sure we will,” I said softly, as I looked down at the options. “So what are we going to have?”
“And you want to share something with me?” he asked, his voice a purr.
I swallowed hard, aware we were in public. “If you’d like.”
“Let’s share something, and then head up to the lake.” Again, his tone. This felt like a whole new side of Aston. Like he was trying. Trying what, I didn’t know, but I was so in over my head.
I cleared my throat and went through the options with Aston, both of us keeping it light, trying to breathe.
In the end we had a toffee nut latte, a Belgian waffle latte, a lucky latte that had actual Lucky Charms inside it, and a strawberry and rose flavored latte that tasted much better than it sounded. After we left the place and said our goodbyes, we walked back to the car, and I felt beyond full.
“I have way too much energy now, thanks to all that caffeine, and I probably shouldn’t have had the breadsticks and then a tray of coffees.”
Aston kissed the top of my head, and my stomach fluttered. “Well, looks like we’re going to have to work that off.”
I blinked up at him. “Is that the line you’re going with?” I asked, although something did tighten deep inside.
“It’s not a line. It’s a promise.”
And then he pressed his lips down to mine, right where everyone could see, and I felt claimed, needed.
I took a step back, my breathing quickening. “Show me your house? We can look at the rest of the town and the lake later.”
And with that, promise sizzling between us, we practically ran to his SUV.
I might’ve been able to notice the beautiful architecture, the trees and path around the lake. But my pussy throbbed, and I pressed my thighs together, trying to focus, and yet nothing was calming.
“I’ll show you the area, the trees, the resort, everything later.”
“I’m okay with that.”
“Good.”
And then he dragged me inside, the door slamming behind us. His lips were on mine, and I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think.
“The luggage is in the car,” I whispered.
“It’s in the garage, safe from bears.”
I paused. “What?”
“Don’t worry. I’m going to be the only one pawing you tonight.”
That he could have such humor in a time like this surprised me. Again, a whole new side of Aston. And it worried me, because I was getting to know different facets of him that made me want him even more .
And that meant there would be no going back soon.
But then his hands were on my shirt, pulling it over my head, and I couldn’t think about anything else but him and his touch.
He pulled me into his bedroom, and I would probably notice the decor later. I didn’t even know what color the walls were, because all I could do was look at the color of Aston’s eyes. The deep blue pools of them bringing me in as we stripped each other.
Soon we were naked, hands roaming all over one another. He gripped my ass and spread my cheeks, his cock hard and thick against my stomach as he rocked.
“You’re so beautiful,” he growled.
“I can’t think straight,” I whispered, my mind going a thousand different places.
“Then don’t think.”
Again his lips were on mine, nibbling slowly, and then more. But there was something I needed to do, something I hadn’t done since that first night. I slid to my knees and he groaned.
“Is the carpet soft enough?” he asked, and I hadn’t even realized it was carpet below my knees as I gripped the base of his shaft.
“I’m fine, let me take care of you.”
“Only this once, only until I can’t think.”
“My mind is already blurry,” I whispered, and then I took him deep into my mouth. He wrapped my hair around his fist, and I lapped my tongue around the tip, playing with the slit at the edge. It was salty, the fluid bursting on my tongue .
“You on your knees, my cock sliding between your lips? The hottest fucking thing I’ve ever seen.”
I looked up at him then, widening my jaw so I could take him in deeper. He groaned, and then gripped my hair hard enough to keep me still.
“Are you ready?” he asked, his voice low.
In answer I hummed against his dick, and he smiled. That wicked smile that nearly sent me over the edge and yet I was the one gripping him. I slid one hand between my legs, sliding over my clit. I was already so wet, that little bud swollen just from his kisses.
I pulled away suddenly, needing to catch my breath, and he frowned down at me, worrying his gaze.
“Are you okay?” His voice was like a shot of warmth directly to my core. How could a voice do that?
“Yes, I just needed a moment.”
And then I was back at it, my head bobbing as I slid over his cock, needing him, needing this slight control in a situation that I never had control of.
When his balls tightened in my hand, he pulled away suddenly, it was all I could do not to gasp. He was somehow on his knees, his hand around my waist, and then he was rolling us, him taking the brunt of the action. My back hit the carpet, and it was indeed soft, as his lips trailed over mine, and then down my neck. Hands on my breasts he plucked at my nipples, and then kissed between them, underneath the globes, and then slid his mouth over the tips.
“So beautiful.” His voice was a caress, just like his hands. He continued to trail kisses down my skin, gently, a little more, to the point that it was all I could do just to breathe.
And then his mouth was on me, his tongue sliding between my lips. When his tongue lapped against my clit, I arched up, the sensation far too much. My toes curled, the arches of my feet aching.
“That’s it, that’s it,” he groaned against my pussy, and then I was coming, riding his face as he continued to eat me out. As reality started to clash back down, warmth in my extremities as my legs literally twitched, I found myself lifted into the air. I hadn’t even realized he had stood.
“Aston!”
“Mine,” he claimed. And then my hands were on the wall, and he was sliding into me.
I gasped, the intrusion hard, sudden, and everything that I needed.
“That’s it, take me.”
I pressed back into him, meeting him thrust for thrust as he pounded into me, and both of us gasped into each other. With one hand on my hip, he slid the other up to my breast, cupping one and then the other, and then his hand went to my neck, keeping me in place. It was the most erotic image I had ever seen as I turned to look into the mirror. He was so strong, so big, it was all I could do not to fall in his arms. And yet I trusted him to keep me steady.
And then he pulled out, and I turned in his arms, wrapping my own around his neck. He lifted me, and then I was on him again, his cock even deeper this time .
“Aston!”
“That’s it, take all of me.”
“Always.”
I nearly came again, but before I could, I was on my back and he was lapping at me again. This time the orgasm hit full force, and I wrapped my thighs around his neck, needing it to stop, needing it to begin, needing it to continue. It was a circle of time and I never knew where I was. When we were on our sides again, he slid behind me, his cock between my thighs as he gently lifted my leg up. He cradled me in this position, his body so big—and yet it felt like the safest place in the world.
“Tell me when to stop,” he whispered, a sheer need and desperation mixed with worry in his tone.
Tears slid down my face but had nothing to do with pain. And everything to do with him.
“Don’t stop.”
And then he took my mouth and worked in and out of me. It wasn’t hard; it wasn’t fast. He was taking sweet time with me, sweet care. As if I were the most precious thing in the world. And when he finally came, I followed him, his hand between my legs, his mouth on mine.
After, I lay in his arms, nearly ready to shiver, but then he was gone. Bereft, I looked up at him, wondering why he hadn’t said a damn thing, only then he was back again, a warm cloth in his hands.
“Let me take care of you,” he whispered again, and I was lost.
And the man I was falling in love with, far too fast, far too deep, took care of us both, and then held me, as I finally came down from whatever high we had each taken each other to. It felt like the same exhilaration from our first dance. The right high that felt as if the world was ready to burst around us. Yet the fall had come far too hard the first time.
It might break me. Or maybe it was exactly what I needed.