23. Luke
luke
. . .
I could barely process what was happening, but it felt right. It was exactly what I needed. For so long, I yearned for this moment. I wanted her more than anything else in this world, and now that I was finally getting her, I was never letting her go.
“God, you taste so good,” I murmured against her lips as she unleashed my cock. It was so hard as it ached for her need, covered in precum as she gave it one long stroke. I grunted, pushing myself into her hand, when I suddenly realized…
“I don’t have anything.” I swore at myself for coming here unprepared. It wasn’t like I expected this to happen. “I haven’t been with anyone in a long time, and I…”
“I’m on birth control,” was all she whispered as she pushed her hips upward. Fuck. I nearly came right there and then. My cock hooked at her entrance as I straightened up on top of her, getting rid of my shirt and tossing it on the floor before. Finally, I allowed myself to slide deep inside her.
And I was home.
She was warm, and wet, and so fucking right, that I questioned my entire life. How the hell did I go so long without this? Without her?
“Luke!” she whimpered again, arching herself underneath me. Every time I thrusted back inside her, she clenched around me. Her eyes rolled back into her head as she drew in a shaky breath.
“Fuck, you feel so good. I’ve missed being inside you,” I purred, watching her take me. It was as if her pussy was created for me. “You’re so fucking pretty when you take me.” With a moment of hesitation, she looked down. Both our gazes were stuck at the spot where we connected. My hand found her throat, applying slight pressure there as I pounded myself into her. My hands trembled as much as her legs did; every muscle in my body was tense.
Lucy had always been the most beautiful woman in the world for me, but seeing her like this awoke something primal inside me.
“Tell me how much you like this cock inside you, Luce,” I demanded. The sofa squeaked beneath us as I moved on top of her, taking what was mine. All of her was mine—every breath, every whimper, every little sound she made.
“It feels so good…oh God Luke!” My name came an octave higher than she likely expected, and while I appreciated her pleasure, the last thing I wanted was for someone to hear this. I shut her up with another kiss, quickening my pace. I was dangerously close to my orgasm.
“You’re such a good girl, Luce, taking my cock like this.” She nodded frantically, and I rewarded her by applying some pressure to her clit with my thumb. That did it for her. In a matter of seconds, she began trembling violently again as pleasure struck her, and I followed closely behind, only lasting a few more thrusts before I spilled myself inside her.
“Fuck!” I grunted, lingering on top of her. My body refused to move, even after I had come, just wanting to soak in her presence, before I finally managed to plop on the sofa, pulling her into my arms. We stayed like that for a little while, enjoying the comfortable silence until she broke it.
“You’ve got a filthy mouth. I’d hate to think you kiss your mother with those lips.”
A loud laugh escaped my lips. “Well, you’re the one to blame. You bring it out of me.”
“Sure…sure. It’s always easiest to blame others.” She nudged me, smiling up at me. I tightened my embrace around her.
“Well…being in between your thighs did something primal to me. I could hardly think.” Lucy’s cheeks reddened, and she quickly looked away, biting her bottom lip. Something was on her mind. “What is it?”
“Nothing, it’s just…I’ve never experienced someone wanting to go down on me so…. enthusiastically,” she admitted. A pang of jealousy spread through me, but I fought it. I couldn’t change what had happened, but I could make sure I was the only man to be there for as long as we both lived. And I had every intention of doing that.
“Trust me when I tell you this. Being there is all I ever want to do. But…unfortunately”—I gestured around us—“we have things we’ve got to do.”
After we both recovered and got dressed, I went to get lunch from the local sandwich bar. It opened well after Lucy left, but I knew she would love it, regardless. The door opened with the usual ‘ding’ as I entered with two sandwiches and their famous mint lemonade.
“Lunch is here, sweetheart,” I called out. I expected her at the front—since she said she wanted to keep track of the inventory, but she was nowhere to be found. “Sweetheart?” I repeated, heading to the back of the store.
Luce was in the office, though she looked like she had seen a ghost. She was entirely pale, breathing heavily. I quickly dropped the paper bag with lunch on the desk, approaching her.
“Hey, what’s going on?” I asked her. Instantly, my mind was considering all the worst options. Had she gotten some bad news? Hurt herself?
“Panic…attack,” Luce managed to muster, her hands shaking as she stared at me. She reminded me of a wild animal who had just been trapped. I nodded, dragging a chair in front of her.
“Sit down. Put your head between your knees.” She did as I asked but continued to struggle to breathe. “Take deep breaths for me,” I instructed her, placing my hand on her back. It pained me to see her like this, but the best thing I could do was guide her through this. “And one more,” I repeated. Her breathing grew steadier, and her muscles relaxed beneath my hand.
“Sorry about that,” she said once she stopped shaking. I reached into the bag, handing her the lemonade. Her brows furrowed as she looked up at me. I shrugged.
“I wish I had some water, but that’s all I can give you now. You’ll love it.” As she took the first sip, I knew I was right. Her face showed it. “And there’s nothing to apologize for, Luce. But I would like to know what happened.”
“I just got overwhelmed. When I first walked in, I saw how…messy it all was, but I guess I didn’t anticipate how hard it would be until I started going through all the sticky notes. I started freaking out, thinking I couldn’t do this, and before I knew it, I was in the middle of a panic attack.”
“Do you have panic attacks a lot?” Concern etched my face, and guilt pounded inside me at the thought of her going through this countless times before without me around.
“I suppose so. They usually pop up when I’m stressed or under a lot of pressure. To be honest with you, I’m surprised the first one hasn’t happened earlier.” She rubbed her forehead. “It started when I was in college. But it’s fine…I can handle it. I always figure it out. I just…I saw the state of my mom’s office and her organizational system—or lack thereof—and it sent me into a tailspin. I’m worried I can’t do this. I’m worried I’ll fail. My mom is depending on me. This is her livelihood, and I could mess it all up.” She looked like panic was rising inside her again, so I lightly rubbed her shoulder to soothe her. “I already left her once, Luke. I can’t mess this up again. She trusts me.”
“Listen to me. If anyone can do this, it’s you,” I told her firmly. She took another sip of the lemonade, shaking her head.
“How do you know?” she asked. “I’ve only just come back. You...you don’t know me like you used to.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Luce. You may think you’ve changed a lot, but at your core, you’re still the same woman I fell in love with all those years ago. I have seen more strength from you in the last week than most people have in their pinkies. When your mom got hurt, you immediately put your life on hold to care for her. You rearranged the whole house to accommodate her needs, and now you’re running her business so it doesn’t go under.”
“Anybody would have done that for family,” she countered, further proving my point. She was stubborn, and if there was one person who wouldn’t give up on this, it was her.
“I can promise you that not everybody would have done that. Plus, I’ll be with you
every step of the way. You’re not alone. We’ll figure this out together, okay? And you can always ask your mom for help. I know you don’t want to, but she’s there to help guide you, sweetheart.”
My words seemed to calm her down. Or, at least, so I hoped. “Thank you,” she responded once my words got through to her.
“Nothing to thank me for. But, if you do want to thank me.” I reached for the bag again, handing her the sandwich I got her. “Eat. You’ll need all the strength you can get to tackling this…together.”