Chapter 20 - Alisha
Brad’s weight presses me down into the bed, and I feel his arms wrap around me as his cheek rests against mine. For a moment, both of us are still, and the only feeling I’m aware of is my body tightly bound around his.
He thrusts his hips forward gently, and I lean my head back, opening my legs even wider to invite him inside. I feel his lips brush against my ear, making goosebumps rush down my neck.
“I love you,” he whispers.
His voice is so soft, I’m not even entirely sure I heard it or if it was only what I wanted to hear.
I turn my face to his neck and say it back in a whispery rush.
I’d rather say it and feel foolish for getting it wrong than leave him hanging over that cliff alone.
Brad’s arms squeeze around me like steel cords, and I rest my head on his shoulder, feeling the deep ache inside me intensify until I’m throbbing right through my core. Fire spreads through my belly and thighs, forcing me to arch against Brad.
I’m trapped between his hard body and the mattress, not able to thrust with my hips, and I moan softly in frustration. When Brad pulls back a little, I see an unbelievably mischievous smile on his face.
“Did you want this?” he asks, rocking back and forth, making me feel his hard cock sliding slowly in and out.
“Yes,” I growl, locking my arms around his waist and thrusting wildly. “You know what I want!”
“Just wanted to be sure,” he says, bending down to kiss me. He takes his time, kneading my lips with his, teasing with his tongue, and keeping the rest of his body still as the throbbing inside me increases into raging desire.
Brad lowers his head against my shoulder and begins to move in long, slow strokes, pulling almost all the way out before thrusting in again, each stroke harder than the last. I’m beyond all sense as my body shudders with ripples of pleasure that explode deep inside me, trickling all the way to the tips of my fingers and toes.
Clinging to him, I try to get my breath back, but Brad picks up his pace, ramming me so hard and fast, I can barely keep my grip around his waist. With every thrust, the pleasure inside me builds, feeding off the wave of the last climax until I’m coming again, desperately clinging to him as my pussy spasms around his hard cock.
I feel him swelling inside me, but he pulls back and looks into my face, controlling himself at the last minute.
I’m not even sane when I look up into his blue eyes, the intimacy of the moment lancing through me like pain.
My eyes sting, and I fall into the electric blue light of his gaze, feeling safer and more loved than ever in my life.
I am home.
Brad leans down and kisses me softly, gently kneading at my lips until shudders run through me again. I give in to the waves of pleasure, thrashing against him as I grip his waist with my hands and tighten my knees against his hips.
When the spasms subside and he doesn’t move, I look up to see him wearing that maddening grin again.
“That’s it,” I mutter, wrapping one of my legs around his. I link my arm under his elbow and grab his shoulder, throwing all my weight into the move, forcing him to flip onto his back. I land on top of him, seeing his eyes open wider with surprise.
“That was unexpected,” he says.
“I’ve got a whole book full of tricks you don’t know about,” I whisper. “Just you wait and see.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” he murmurs, turning his face up to me.
I grab the back of the bed and lean down, kissing him softly as I dig my knees into his hips.
Using the end of the bed for leverage, I thrust against him in hard, short strokes, slightly changing my angle so I can feel him touching every inch of my pussy.
The aching inside intensifies again, and I lean back so I can feel his hard cock pressing at the deepest part of me, gasping at the ceiling as I grind downwards.
Brad grabs my hips, rocking gently against me, watching me pleasure myself.
When I can’t take the pressure a second longer, I let myself fall forward, grabbing the end of the bed again and thrusting wildly, pressing forward to put pressure on my clit.
Spasms begin deep inside, sending waves of pleasure through my core.
I feel Brad’s hands tighten, and his cock thickens, held tight by the pulsing deep inside me. He groans, leaning his head back and thrusting with his hips as his climax rips through him, making him writhe under me as the release floods his body.
The feeling of him so hard inside me and the sounds of his pleasure make my orgasm even more intense, and I fall against him, shuddering and gasping as the sensations crash through me, a cascade of joy fed by a great pulsing rush deep within, where the ache is finally satisfied and released.
For now.
I lay on Brad’s chest for a moment, barely aware of where I am, focused only on his breath and the warmth of his skin. As our bodies cool and my afterglow fades, I slip down beside him, feeling his arms gently wrap around me and cradle me against his chest.
Sleep creeps up, a comforting darkness that soothes me and allows me to truly rest for the first time in months.
Maybe I can allow myself to accept this, that I am safe. That I am home.
***
Several hours later, I’m awoken by Brad lightly getting out of bed. There is a slight tint of color against the walls. Dawn is very near, but not quite broken through yet.
“Where are you going?” I mutter. “What’s happening?”
“Just a patrol,” he says, leaning back over the bed to kiss me. “I won’t be too long. You rest. I’ll bring back some donuts or something, okay?”
“Okay,” I mumble, wrapping the blanket back around me. “See you soon.”
When I open my eyes a few hours later, I’m surprised to see the room full of bright light. Concerned, I grab my phone, seeing that Brad left a text a short time ago that he’d be gone just a little longer. There are also messages from Grace and Scarlett, letting me know they want to visit today.
Wouldn’t mind a few more hours in bed, but better get a move on now.
A wave of dizziness passes over me when I sit up, and I put my hand on my belly, wondering how something so small could affect me so much. I still feel bad for not immediately telling Brad. I’m excited to tell him, but nervous as well.
What if he thinks I let this happen to trap him so he can’t leave me again? What if that is more true than I’d like to admit?
Before my self-examination can get too dark, I hurry to get dressed and make some coffee and tea before the girls get here, making it to the couch right before they knock on the door.
“Alisha!” Grace says, coming in first and hugging me. “I’m so sorry. Truly, I hope I didn’t upset you—”
“It’s okay,” I answer, hugging her back. “I understand why you did it, and I couldn’t keep hiding from Brad. You were right, I really had to deal with it. I feel much better now.”
When Grace lets go, Scarlett is right there with her own hug.
“I’m sorry, too,” she says. “I didn’t realize I was stepping over the line. You shouldn’t have found out that way.”
“Don’t worry about it,” I reply. “You didn’t know. It’s really on Brad—and he’s apologized. We fully talked it out.”
Did we, though?
“I brought muffins,” Grace says, holding up a paper bag. “Shall we sit?”
“Yes,” I agree, feeling lightheaded already. I make an effort to walk straight as we head down the hall, not wanting to give away my condition.
After Grace hands out muffins, there are a few moments of silence as all of us tuck in. Once the sugar rushes through my system, my mind starts to tick over the inconsistencies in people’s stories, and I really begin to feel I’ve been left out of the loop on something.
“Hey,” I say. “Brad had to leave really early this morning, some kind of emergency. More than once, you guys have seemed to be referring to something I don’t know about, and you keep telling me how dangerous it is outside of town.
And the military presence being here—surely, they wouldn’t be here at all if it was just pack politics. ”
Grace looks at Scarlett, who just widens her eyes and shrugs. Grace sighs and looks back at me.
“I should have talked to you about this, especially after your nightmares. I thought that if you didn’t know, it might pass you by, but obviously, the ancient forces in this town have connected to you somehow.”
“Ancient forces?” I repeat. “Now you’re really freaking me out!”
Whatever I was expecting, it wasn’t this.
“Well, it is freaky,” Scarlett says. “No two ways about it. It’s not easy to explain, and the situation has been quiet. Brad was probably hoping he didn’t need to tell you.”
“Fucking hell,” I mutter impatiently. “Out with it!”
“Eccles is the home of an ancient god,” Grace says. “Just outside of town, there’s a sacred site. It’s been dormant for a long time. A while ago, Scarlett’s uncle activated the stone and released the god, trying to attain its power.”
“I’m not affiliated with him,” Scarlett says. “He tried to sacrifice me and my son on that fucking rock, just so you know whose side I’m on.”
“Jesus,” I say. “Blood sacrifice?”
“Worse,” Grace says. “Too many people died that day. The spirit was called up, but it turned on the people who summoned it, and then it just hightailed it into the hills. Isn’t that right, Scarlett?”
“Yeah,” she says, nodding. I feel like there’s something she isn’t saying, but the memory seems traumatic for her, so I don’t push.
“So, Brad might have been called out to deal with this thing?” I gasp.
“No,” Scarlett says. “There would be a full-scale alert if the spirit was on the move. There might be related information, but nothing that would put us in immediate danger.”
“Okay,” I reply, not really buying it.
Grace tactfully changes the subject, and we go on to talk about the market fair. Scarlett is aiming to meet with Gen that afternoon and visit the lower quarter to ensure a good turnout for the day, even if Eccles doesn’t end up bringing anything to the table.
The girls soon go on to their next meet, and I stretch out on the couch, trying to relax. The pregnancy is taking so much out of me, I know I won’t be able to keep it a secret much longer.
I want to know Brad is really with me, not just tied to me. We have to be able to make it on our own.
Deep down, I know that Brad would never lie to me, or try to keep us together if it wasn’t meant to be, but I still have lingering doubts. And a wound in my heart from the abuse I’ve suffered in the past.
I end up dozing a little, relaxing on the couch, and worrying about when Brad will be home. I want to ask him some questions about this spirit and find out why he didn’t tell me before.
Doesn’t he trust me? Maybe he thought I’d run away. That my fear was stronger than my love.
My nerves return in full force, waking me up completely. I groan softly, rubbing my temple to try to soothe my headache.
Here I am again, worrying about telling Brad I’m pregnant. I would love to be having Brad’s baby under different circumstances, but at the moment, I need reassurance that he trusts me and really wants me.
I’m beginning to doze again when a tremendous crash sounds at the back of the house. I get up slowly and stagger towards the sound, fear running through my veins.
It sounded like a window being shattered!
I get closer to the back room, seeing tiny shards of glass glittering like diamonds against the shag carpet. I hold myself up on the wall and stare down the hall, wondering if a tree outside came down and hit the house.
Then a dark figure steps around the corner, a shadowy outline of a man. At first, the light is all wrong, and I can barely understand what I’m seeing. When he finally turns to face me, the light falls on a cruel smile I know all too well.
Paul.