28. Epilogue
Epilogue
The view outside became a blur of fluffy clouds, tinted by a dismal gray color that would encourage turbulence as our journey progressed.
I focused on the lovechild of water droplets and dry air, twirling strands of hair between my fingers, searching for the perfect one to pull out.
Mercer’s sexy, robotic voice cut through the atmosphere and filled the cabin, bouncing off the walls of the small jet. “Don’t pull that out. You’ve been doing so well.”
I had. My patches were sprouting new hair, thanks to my remission period.
Until now, Mercer hadn’t spoken to me all morning, and it wasn’t because he couldn’t.
He just didn’t want to.
He didn’t want me here.
He’d told me that when he first brought this trip up a week ago.
“Nervous flyer?” The robotic voice boomed again.
His finger moved to my leg and drew circles.
As usual, I felt nothing.
I had no idea he was even touching me until I looked down the sleeve of his impeccable suit.
“No,” I said with a smile and a heavy swallow of my nerves as I forced my hand from my hair.
His head tilted to the side, dark hair falling into those perfect blue eyes, probably obstructing his view as he scanned my face for the lie...
And, despite his dark hair invading his view, he found it.
“Liar,” his lips moved soundlessly before settling in a sardonic smile. “You didn’t have to come, you know?”
I watched his finger move around his keypad with sad eyes and my deflated self-esteem. “Yeah...maybe I shouldn’t have.”
Maybe I should have stayed with Trix and Ethan...and Trouble, where I actually felt wanted.
Sucking in a breath, the air around me felt shallow, like my lungs couldn’t get enough of it.
The gray clouds called to me again, the lightning in the distance catching my eye and pulling me away from his fingers as they moved.
“But I’m glad you did. I’m glad you braved the flight for me. It would be so lonely down in Georgia without you.”
“I thought you didn’t want me to come?”
I knew he didn’t. At first, he refused to tolerate even the idea of it and refused to tell me why.
That did nothing but invite a flurry of cruel thoughts into my head.
He only caved slightly, giving my argument wiggle room after a chat with Ethan.
Something flashed in his eyes, softening his icy stare as his eyes dropped to my lips, staying there, fixed there, on me, while his fingers moved again.
The tiny speaker on his lapel sounded words again. “At first, I didn’t.” Finding my stare, he continued. “I was terrified to travel with someone again after what happened last time.”
“Mercer...”
“I was afraid that something would happen to you, and if I get the new job, I wouldn’t be there to protect you.”
“I don’t need you to monitor me constantly.”
“No, but I need that. I need to know you’re okay at all times.”
“That’s going to interfere with your work.”
“No, it won’t. I won’t be taking this job unless I can keep you with me.”
“I don’t think any hospital is going to agree to that.”
“It’s not a regular hospital.”
He’d already told me that. He’d told me that he’d applied for a job in Georgia after a conversation with Trix about converting half of the house into a medical facility had gone south. Following recent events and the awful thing that happened to me, she only wanted family at the home. He understood...and, after little thought, agreed. That sent him digging only god knew where for places he could put his skills to use, and he found a rehabilitation center for victims of the most awful crimes. For the girls like Chandelle, who were taken against their will, and the boys, too. Sold for their bodies and organs.
“How did you even find this place?” I glanced down at the unmovable armrest between us, hating its presence as turbulence rocked the plane.
I swallowed my fear or tried to, and closed my eyes to stop the tears from falling.
I fucking hated flying.
Almost as much as I hated the idea of three or four days a week without seeing Mercer, only hearing a robotic voice on calls he’d probably fall asleep on after working such long hours.
A tender squeeze along my hip encouraged my eyes to open, finding Mercer closer to me. His suit welcomed my tears as he pulled me into him, his arms and scent wrapping around me.
Hearing only the storm, I hid my ears against his chest and arms.
“I am a nervous flyer.”
He didn’t reply but kissed my head, leaving his lips to dwell where dozens of new hairs lightly stabbed into them.
Minutes trickled away, the journey getting shorter.
He tipped my chin, angling his own until his lips brushed mine.
“You didn’t tell me how you found the place.”
“I have my ways.” His lips moved in a way that convinced me that was what he said.
“Damiano?” A vile taste filled my mouth, settling around the name, and it seeped into the cabin, invading Mercer’s senses as his whole body tensed. He slipped away from me, straightening himself and the suit I’d creased.
“No. Another acquaintance.”
“That acquaintance have a name?”
“Karma.” The word—or name—sounded cold in the cybernetic tone.
“Don’t be cryptic.”
Mercer’s lips hiked. “Believe it or not, that’s his actual name. Harrison Karma.”
“I bet he was bullied in school.”
“Well, maybe that’s what makes him so unhinged these days.”
The roughness from the worsening weather rocked the plane, and I literally groaned in terror, squeezing the leather armrest and Mercer’s shoulder until my fingertips turned white.
Calmly, he sat, his fingers drawing patterns on my skin until the turbulence passed.
With the plane steady, his seat belt was unfastened, along with my own, and I was settled in his lap.
“You need new friends.”
“Damiano was not my friend. And he should never have touched you. I should have been more cautious. I knew who he was.”
“I don’t blame you.”
“I blame me. It’s on my list of reasons why I’ll never be good enough for you.”
“You’ve got a list, too? Interesting.” Pushing out a laugh, I hoped to lighten the mood.
He humored me with a smile, this one sexy and much less satirical.
“I love you,” he said with actual words, trusting me to hear his real voice.
And just like every other rare time he did that, it made my heart leap in my chest.
My fingers moved over his stubble and the golden glow of his cheeks, and I smiled. “That’s on my list. My list of reasons why you are good enough for me. There’s no one else I’d rather be with.”
“Me, either.”
My heart almost burst.
“So, I guess we’ll need a place out here.”
He nodded.
“And will this new place have paints?”
“So many walls for you to decorate. So many colors.”
“Well, in that case, I love you, too.” I placed a kiss on his lips, breaking off when the plane shook again, dropping slightly in height. That heart that almost burst definitely plummeted, and I scanned the floor, seeing nothing but Mercer’s legs rock as he tried to comfort me.
I shook with terror as my words fumbled to get out of my mouth with a stammer. “Maybe we should buckle up...just in case.”
I expected to be placed in my seat, his long fingers fastening my belt before doing his own, but his fingers only moved on the keypad.
“Feebee, if this plane goes down, a seat belt is unlikely to save you.”
I saw him through a widened view.
“Lie, Mercer. At least lie.”
“I won’t ever lie to you again. But I have every faith in this pilot. He was trained by the best. His family and mine go way back.”
“But the lightning –”
“Won’t damage the plane. It’s built to withstand that kind of thing.”
“Are you sure?”
“I promise you.”
Feeling lighter, I relaxed slightly, trying my best to ignore the next shake of turbulence.
“I’m going to do something. It’ll help take your mind off things.” He stood from his chair, turning to place me in it. The leather was still warm from his body. It was comforting.
“You’re not gonna drug me, right?” I had to ask because it wouldn’t be the first time.
“No.” The sardonic smile was back. “We’re about to join the mile-high club, baby.”
Mercer positioned himself between my legs, careful fingers popping the button on the jeans he’d helped me into this morning.
“You know what...” He typed quickly. “You’d be better on the floor. I want you to feel the vibrations.”
One arm sunk under my legs, the other slinking around my back. He laid me down on a red carpet and pulled off my ankle booties. The lower half of my clothing followed, the jeans were tossed to the side. He kept my underwear in his hand, admiring the lacy thong with the same hunger in his eyes that he had this morning when he insisted I needed help getting dressed.
The look on his face told me I wasn’t getting them back, and the fact that he stuffed them into his pocket emphasized that.
He parted my thighs, and I laughed. His expression changed, and he froze, his gaze on me narrowed.
“Parted thighs for the mile-high.” I laughed again, confident he understood my whacky humor after the months we’d spent together.
With a smile on his face, he widened my legs, letting a chill lick at my pussy before his tongue made contact. He leaned over me, careful with my head, as he pulled off my sweater, leaving me in nothing but a lace bra for a single second. His fingers, skilled in everything they did, disappeared behind me and unclipped the bra, removing it on his first attempt.
I lay fully naked before him.
“What if someone comes in here?” I asked, feeling exposed.
He shook his head, descending on me and placing a single kiss on my lips as a way of shutting me up. His tongue teased the seam of my mouth, requesting access, and I opened for him. Enjoying the feel of his tongue against mine and his hands on my body, fingers digging into the flesh in a way that had my nipples pebbling beneath his touch, made me wish I could wrap my legs around him, do more for him during our intimate moments.
I appreciated that he didn’t share those feelings or voice them, at least, always making me feel like I was enough in the moment.
His mouth left mine, peppering kisses down my throat to my breasts. Sucking one nipple between lush lips, he tweaked the other between dexterous fingers.
My back inched off the floor, and we moaned together.
Through a lazy gaze, I watched him move down my body, his mouth leaving a trail over my naked skin until he settled between my legs, fully clothed.
A power imbalance.
“Take off your clothes, too.” I tugged at the shoulder of his jacket.
“Patience,” he mouthed, showing no patience when he refused to wait for a reply.
The first lick of his tongue was like electricity against my skin, sending little sparks through every last nerve ending.
His arms went beneath me, lifting me into his desired position.
His tongue lapped at me again, flattening against my pussy as he licked from slit to clit. He dipped inside me, massaging my inner walls.
A rumble of turbulence distracted me from the moment and blocked my senses from the scent of sex, the sight of Mercer, and what he was doing between my legs, which caused intense tingles.
Fingers tapped along my waistline, and my hand met his there, our fingers slinking together and locking.
I looked down at him. His eyes were on me, fully determined to rid me of all my apprehensive thoughts.
His fingers squeezed mine, telling me he wasn’t letting go until I felt safe.
His incredible tongue slid into the depths of my pussy. He hummed slightly, and vibrations coursed throughout me. His nose ground into my engorged clit as his slow tongue fucking became faster and faster.
The plane rumbled again with the thunder in the distance. I squeezed his fingers.
His eyes were on my face when I looked down at him—only moving to caress my body with his gaze.
My body moved with the continuing vibrations, and he moaned over the image of me spread out for him.
I ached, growing wetter and wetter around his tongue.
His pace continued, his nose rubbing my clit harder as he used his mouth to fuck me.
His fingers pressed into my skin, rocking my hips against his face.
My free hand moved to his head, and my fingers tangled around his hair, pushing his face harder against my pussy, desperate to get him deeper inside me.
My internal walls clamped around his tongue, and my pussy pulsed as I came like I’d never come before.
He didn’t stop, his tongue still moving inside me, his hands still rocking me as I trembled. He drank down my taste, leaving me with a sweet kiss on my pussy that made everything inside me tingle.
Looking up at me, he licked his lips, glossed with my arousal.
“Mercer...”
He froze.
“You’re not part of the mile-high club.”
His image was so positively savage, wasting no time to strip off his clothes.
His expensive jacket was tossed to the floor, something falling out of his pocket as it landed. Whatever it was got covered quickly by the shirt that revealed his ink to me.
I smiled, feeling over the designs like it was my first time seeing them. He was a work of art.
He kicked off his pants and settled on me, his fingers brushing my hair from where it was sticking to my sweaty cheeks. His other hand rubbed the head of his cock against my soaking wet entrance, all the way to my clit, because he knew how it drove me wild.
Our scent filled the cabin as precum oozed from the tip, sliding between my pussy lips.
Angling us close, skin to sweat-glistened skin, he pushed inside me. My arms wrapped around his neck.
“Welcome to the mile-high club, baby.”
I was already breathing hard when her body welcomed me inside. God, the things I wanted to tell her about how fucking amazing she felt when her tight cunt stretched around my cock. How her cum felt dripping down my balls as I edged deeper inside her. How badly I wanted to fill her with my cum and watch as her cheeks turned pink with embarrassment over the stains we’d leave on this carpet.
But talking was still hard for me. That, for me, was where embarrassment lay.
My mouth was for one thing, mostly. Kissing my girl.
My tongue slid between her lips, hers waiting to go to war with me for dominance. I smiled through our kiss, relaxing a little for her to lead.
It was important for her to feel like she had some control. And I couldn’t deny finding this side of her sexy as fuck.
We kissed deep and long. My hands held her legs up on my hips as I pushed myself fully inside her. She groped her pert little tits, making me jealous of her touch. Making me harder than ever and aching like fuck.
Nipping at her neck, I made my way down her body with sensual kisses. I let her play with one breast, keeping my eyes on her fingers as they circled her nipple while I sucked the other into my mouth. I rocked my hips, starting slow because I was close. Too close to move too fast and risk all this being over in seconds. I moaned, long and hard, like the slow thrust filling her cunt, watching as she put her nipple between her fingertips and pulled and twisted them. It sent a shiver running down my spine and tingles through my body. I found myself sucking her harder, bruising her perfect nipple with a kiss.
She moaned, her back arching for more.
My tongue swirled again, and another sound fell from her mouth.
She was close, too, and that drove me closer.
I wanted this to last, but my hips were rocking subconsciously faster when I finally pulled my mouth away from her and looked down to where we were joined.
“More,” she begged, biting her full lower lip. “Please...harder.”
Her cunt tightened around me, gripping my cock as it pistoned with great force in and out of her, pounding hard and deep. She took all of me like such a good fucking girl as my heavy balls slapped against her on each thrust. I was forcing almost my entire cock into her.
Her pussy begged for it as much as her mouth.
Turbulence rocked the plane, and my eyes flicked to Feebee’s face, lost in the moment, oblivious to anything but us.
“Oh, god,” she cried out.
Her delicate body convulsed with the vibrations, and I felt her pussy strangle my fucking shaft as it drowned in her orgasm while still rutted inside her.
Her tits caught my eye again. The vibrations of the plane and me fucking her, causing them to bounce.
“I’m gonna...” her words slipped into an inaudible moan.
She came again instantly.
Her cunt leaked around me, and my cock slipped in and out with such ease, the feeling fucking incredible.
My knees weakened as I fucked her hard and deep, slamming into her to the hilt. Her wet cunt, still contracting around me and gushing, pulled the orgasm from my body. A loud moan left me, her name somewhere inside it, and I blew, shot after shot of hot cum filling her up.
My lips moved back to hers, our sweaty bodies slapping together as I pulled her up, slumping on my weak knees. She was still impaled on my cock, and I was still rocking her against me because I was still leaking out inside her. Our combined juices trailed from her body, leaving a mess on my thighs.
Soft lips kissed my neck, and then pretty eyes looked up at me. My fingers spread on her back, pressing her body tighter against mine.
“It worked.” She smiled. “I don’t even feel scared anymore.”.
Good, because I needed to get her used to the flights. Though, I wasn’t opposed to doing this every trip.
“We need to get you cleaned up for your interview. All your clothes are probably wrinkled now.” She leaned back and grabbed my shirt, her fingers still shaking when she attempted to straighten it out on my seat. Reaching for my jacket next, a small box that was meant to be buried deep in the pocket stole her attention.
Fuck! That thought, and so many others, ran wild in my head.
This wasn’t how I’d envisioned this moment.
We had no artwork surrounding us. I’d planned a visit to a gallery. Planned to wait until she told me which of the paintings were her favorite. I’d planned to be down on one knee, not on both of them, while up in the air with my cock inside her and cum dribbling out.
Fuck!
“Is it for me?”
I lost sight of her by blinking so damn much because, really, who else could it possibly be for? The only other woman I ever saw outside of work was Nonna.
I focused on her and softened my stare, trying to convey the message that I wanted it to be special...and it worked.
“Probably not how you planned this, but this is kinda special. Unique.”
A silent laugh crept out, and I popped the lid, revealing a twinkling diamond set in the center of a white gold band.
I took it between my fingers, admiring the design—a Heart, because regardless of where hers came from, it belonged to me, and mine belonged to her.
Inside the band an engraved message was just barely visible to the naked eye. Two words. Cuore Mio.
“Are you going to ask me?”
My eyes met hers before scanning the cabin for my keypad.
Small fingers barricaded my face, keeping my gaze on her.
“I’d like your real voice.”
That thought came again...fuck.
“I know it’s a lot of words. But it’s just us. And I love it when you talk to me.”
Moving my eyes to the ring, I considered it...and gave in. I wanted to give her everything, so how could I refuse her first request.
Her twinkling eyes sparkled with hope and her rosy cheeks were round with a smile she couldn’t hide when I looked back at her face.
I paused for a minute, taking her in. The entire beauty of my future wife.
I braved the words, half of the anxiety of proposing gone, as I knew she was excited about this. I could see all her happiness plastered on her face.
I did that...I made her smile and forget her fear.
And she did the same for me.
I smiled and tried to voice the words as correctly as possible. “Will you marry me, Feebee? Will you be cuore mio forever?”
“Yes.” The rapid nodding of her head caused tears to fall.
Wiping them away with the back of her hand, she realized she was still ringless, and I was still waiting to slide it past her pink nail polish and onto her finger, where it would forever stay.
“Oh, shoot. I’m sorry!”
Spreading her fingers out between us, I held her hand to steady the tremble and slid the ring onto her finger.
“Forever,” she whispered.
I agreed with a smile, pulling her in and melding our bodies together as our lips met once more.
This was the start of our forever.