Chapter 24 - Alisha
The ride home is a blur. I’m vaguely aware of Grace and Scarlett talking to me, expressing their relief that I’m okay. We seem to be walking through crowds of soldiers and pack members. Noises and colors swirl around me in a disorienting wave.
The only thing I’m truly aware of is Brad’s strong arms around me as he carries me back to the truck. When we get in, he still doesn’t let go of me as Grace drives. I sink against Brad’s chest, feeling his heartbeat and the warm rush of his breath.
Safe. Finally safe now.
Images of the fight pound in my head, but they are disjointed, like pages randomly torn from a book. I know that Paul died, and it was somehow my doing. I remember connecting to the plants on a cellular level, and I could see the life force of all nature connected around me.
I remember running out into the circle to stop Paul, not even thinking of my own safety. A great power rose inside me, and I threw it at him with all of my strength. After that, images fall together like pieces of a shattered stained glass window.
The movement of the truck lulls me, and I doze against Brad’s chest. I’m not really aware of time passing, but I hear a brief exchange between Grace and Brad, making me realize that she’s dropping us off at home and then taking the truck so she can take the others to town.
“Tell them I’ll call in soon,” Brad says, holding on to me tightly as he gets out of the truck.
“Don’t worry about it,” Shawn says. “We’ve got your back. You can come in tomorrow and do the alpha part. For now, just look after your mate.”
I feel Brad’s arms tighten around me as he thanks his friend, then takes me inside. The cool, dark room soothes me immediately, and Brad puts me down on the couch.
“Alisha,” he says. “Are you alright? You haven’t said a word all this time.”
“I’m okay,” I mumble. “Just…tired.”
“Wait right here,” he says, standing over me for a second as if he’s afraid I’ll disappear. He practically bolts to the kitchen and returns seconds later with some pastries and iced tea.
He helps me sit up and puts a croissant in my hand. At first, I’m not sure I can eat it, but I take a bite to please him. Immediately, my mind clears, and I realize I desperately need nourishment.
It’s not just for the baby, either. The magic drained me.
I munch through a couple more pastries, taking big gulps of iced tea. When I’m finally done, I look up to see Brad staring at me.
“Are you okay?” I mumble through a mouthful of cookie. “You’re staring at me like I’m about to disappear.”
“You’re saying that like it just didn’t happen,” he answers a little sternly.
“From my perspective, you did disappear. Then, when I finally get to you, you’re in more danger than I could have imagined.
Not just your ex, but the damn snake as well!
I thought it was all over for everybody, but it just gave Grace a sly look and slithered away. ”
“Why Grace?” I ask softly.
Brad shakes his head. “No idea. She didn’t do anything in the fight, if that’s what you’re thinking. Nothing that would draw the snake’s attention to her, anyway. She was coming out to help you, but she sure as hell didn’t shoot lightning bolts from her eyes or anything.”
I chuckle at the mental image. “So, everyone’s okay, though? And Paul, he’s dead?”
“Yeah,” Brad answers. “He’s dead. There wasn’t much left of him once your magic was done. Just a mashed-up corpse.”
“Wow,” I whisper. “I never knew I had that much power.”
“I did,” Brad says, and I look up at him with surprise.
“You always knew I was a witch?”
“No, that’s not what I meant,” he says. “I just always knew you were special. That there was something wonderful about you.”
His words make warm tingles run through me, and I reach out to draw him close, kissing him.
“I almost lost you, Alisha,” he whispers through our kisses.
“For the second time. And I swear to God, I will never let it happen again. I don’t deserve to be forgiven for leaving you all those years ago, and I know that.
Just give me the chance to make it up to you.
All I want is you, for the rest of my life. ”
His words touch me, and tears spring to my eyes as I stroke his face.
“You know, when Paul was making me walk through the woods, and then when things got really bad out at the circle, all I could think about was that there was one place I’d always felt safe—and only one place.”
Brad pulls back a little, his face showing the beginnings of disappointment.
“It’s right here,” I say, touching him on the chest. “In your arms. I was so close to dying, and scared out of my mind, and all I wanted was to be in your arms.”
Brad reaches for me, and our lips meet in a deep, passionate kiss. He pushes me back onto the couch, and I stop him.
“Wait.”
“Of course,” he says. “You’re tired and hurt. Not the time to make out. Are you badly injured?”
“No,” I answer with surprise. “He gave me a nasty wound on the shoulder, but it looks healed now. Something to do with the magic, I guess. Also, for the record, I always want to make out with you, but there are some things I need to say.”
“Yes, my love?” he says, gently brushing my hair off my cheek.
“I have never loved anyone, or anything, as much as I love you,” I whisper. “After you left, I had to push my memories of you into a dark corner of my mind just to survive. And then, when I saw you again, I had to fight it, because I knew I wouldn’t survive a second time.”
“Oh, my love—”
“No, let me finish. I believe that it was fate that brought us together, and no matter where I went or what I did, I was always going to find myself running to you.”
“And I’ll always be here, my arms wide open, ready for you,” he answers, smiling.
“Okay, one last revelation,” I say. “I’m not sure how to say this.”
“Just tell me,” Brad says. “You can’t shock me.”
“I bet I can,” I laugh. “Fine, I’ll just do it without ceremony. Brad, I’m pregnant.”
He stares at me so hard and for so long, I start to worry that I might have accidentally turned him to stone.
“Wh-what?” he mumbles.
“I’m having your baby, Brad.”
He stares at me a second longer, then launches himself at me, hugging me tight and covering my face with kisses.
“Alisha!” he says, his voice shaky. “I can’t believe this. I never thought I could be as happy as I am right now!”
“Then let’s try for a new high,” I reply, pulling him towards me.
When our lips touch this time, there is even more heat between us. Brad grabs my shoulders and pulls me close, and I wrap my arms around his waist to press my body against his. As the kiss deepens, I feel his big hands starting to roam all over me, making my skin sing with desire.
I lean back a little to pull my ruined shirt over my head, and Brad’s eyes fall straight to my breasts. He leans forward and puts an arm around my waist, pulling me towards him as he teases my nipples with his tongue and squeezes my breasts with his other hand.
I arch into him, feeling the aching inside me intensify as I’m pinned between his strong arm and hard body.
He takes his time teasing each nipple with his tongue and gentle nips from his teeth until both of my nipples are so hard they hurt, and the throbbing between my legs is so powerful, it begins to obliterate all my other senses.
“Hmm,” he mutters, licking a trail down my breastbone. “It seems there’s another part of your body screaming for my attention.”
Before I can answer, he rubs between my legs, just a light touch across the outside of my pants. My hips buck up and down as my entire body responds, begging for more.
Brad hooks his fingers over the waistbands of my pants and underwear and tugs them slowly down my thighs. I wriggle, trying desperately to help him. He kneels on the floor right in front of me, running his fingers gently along the inside of my thighs.
I lean my head back on the couch, closing my eyes as sensations race through my body. My nipples are aching as heat races through my blood, the throbbing of my pussy like a siren that screams above all my other senses.
Brad slowly sinks down, his tongue circling my clit. I cry out, covering my face as he hooks my knees and drags me closer to his mouth. I feel his hot tongue trace downwards in a firm line, then I hear a soft groan as he leans in to devour my pussy.
The pleasure is so intense that for a moment, I completely lose track of everything. The sensations raging through me overcome my other senses, and all I am aware of is Brad’s hands on my thighs holding me still, his lips digging into my slick folds as his tongue laps deep inside my pussy.
Slowly, Brad moves his tongue back to my clit, teasing me with the softest of touches with the tip. I’m moaning desperately when he wraps his lips around it and sucks hard, teasing my pussy with his finger at the same time.
Moaning and bucking under him, the pleasure explodes inside and races through me, my climax shuddering from my core right out to my fingers. Brad works his finger slowly in and out of my pussy, sucking on my clit and teasing me into another orgasm, one even more powerful than the first.
As the sensations subside, I lie there, shivering as my mind returns to me. When I open my eyes, Brad is staring at me, his eyes full of love and wonder.
“You’re so beautiful,” he says. The look in his eyes and the sincerity of his words are like an embrace to my heart, and I lean forward, kissing him gently.
Brad’s arms wrap around me, and he picks me up, spreading me out on the floor.
He kneels above me, slowly pulling his shirt over his head and revealing his lithe, hard body.
When his hands move to his belt, my eyes follow, and seeing his huge, hard cock slip free from his pants makes the ache inside me begin to build again.
He covers my body with his, kissing me gently, then deeper.
His hands stroke my hair, my arms, my shoulders.
Brad leans back just a little and reaches between us, and then I feel his cock, huge and hard, pressing up against my aching pussy.
I grab his shoulders and squirm, trying to pull our bodies together, and with a small smile, he thrusts forward, his cock slamming into me in one quick move.
I lean my head back, wrapping my legs around his waist and rocking my hips forward to feel his cock reaching to the deepest part of me.
Brad shudders, moaning softly, his arms trembling as he fights to hold himself up.
When I open my eyes and look straight into his, I know that we are wholly and completely connected, seeing into the depths of each other’s souls just as we touch the deepest parts of each other’s bodies.
Brad starts to thrust, long and slow, letting me feel every inch of him as he pulls out, then slowly slides back in.
I keep looking into his eyes, feeling the point of every thrust in my body and soul.
We keep contact for as long as we can, but when my body begins to shiver and pulse, Brad groans with need and thrusts harder and faster in response.
I hold tightly to his arms as he holds himself above me, slamming his cock into me hard and fast. I can barely keep my legs wrapped around his waist as the shivers run through me, making my deep inner muscles spasm as another orgasm rolls through me.
I’m clinging to him, caught in my own climax when Brad cries out, his cock swelling inside me, impossibly hard, reaching every last inch of me until a scream bursts out of my throat. I’m still screaming and clinging to him as he thrusts into me one more time, and his cock blows deep inside me.
My body spasms and shudders for a while longer as Brad relaxes against me, holding me gently until the aftershocks of my orgasm fade. When my breathing returns to normal, he slips over beside me. I curl into his chest, feeling his big, strong arms go around me and hold me tight.
I know, without a doubt, I am in the safest place in the world.