Chapter Sixteen
L orelei rubbed her eyes as she walked downstairs, lured by the delicious scents of bacon and eggs. For the first couple of months at Noble Vale, she craved sweet and salty and would’ve begged for any of it. Dr. Birsha, however, kept her on a strict diet of bland healthy foods.
When she walked into the kitchen, she was surprised to see Cross at the stove. Beside him was a plate lined with paper towels where he placed the strips of bacon once they were done. Her mouth watered. He turned slightly to glance at her.
“Morning, Sweetheart,” he murmured. “Come here and give me a kiss.”
She walked over and went up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. He turned his head quickly and placed a soft kiss on her lips. A wicked little smile lit up his face.
“Did you sleep all right?”
Lorelei nodded.
“I liked having you in my arms,” he said. “By the way, we have to remove those stitches.”
He finished up the bacon, plated it, and then turned off the stove. Then he picked her up and sat her on the island. His hand gripped the back of her neck, holding onto her as she melted into the kiss. This man. Right here. She never wanted to let him go.
When the kiss ended, he held up a plate with bacon and pancakes. “You like syrup?”
She nodded, eyes wide. It had been a long time since she had pancakes, so when he added some syrup, she pointed that she wanted more. He grinned and obliged. They ate right there, with her sitting on the counter and him right next to her.
When she was full, she sat her plate down and mimed writing. Cross nodded and put down his plate. He left the kitchen but returned a moment later with not only the notebook and pen, but small scissors that had a very pointed tip. As he handed them over, he shifted her shirt over and made quick work of the neat line of stitches on her shoulder blade. While he was doing that, she wrote down the memory she had about her grandmother.
“You know, I never put much stock in believing the paranormal,” he said as he tossed the suture strings into the trash. “Movie magic, mostly, until I met Vivi Wence. When your fake dad told me you had a healing gift, I didn’t even blink. So, if anything is going to make sense it’d be a power passed down through your family.”
Once they’d cleaned up the breakfast dishes, they headed upstairs. Cross pulled her into his arms and walked backward into the bathroom.
“We should conserve water,” he said, a devilish smile curling up the sides of his mouth.
Her heart rate sped up as excitement ran through her body. She stood docilely, amused as he slowly undressed her. She raised her arms and her pajama top came off, then placed her hands on his shoulders to steady herself as she stepped out of the bottoms. It occurred to her that she should feel embarrassed to be naked in front of him, but recognizing the hunger in Cross’s gaze only made her feel sexy. Seductive. Her remaining bruises were almost gone, and he placed a kiss on each one before standing and shedding his sweatpants and t-shirt.
He started the rain shower, then pulled her into the stall. In seconds, steam rose, turning the atmosphere thick and moist. Water poured over them, keeping them warm. Cross spread his fingers in her hair and twined his fingers through the strands.
“Are you sore?” he asked in that deep sexy voice that sent shivers dancing across her skin. He slid a hand between her thighs and through her slit to press inside her pussy.
Her eyes rolled back in her head with pleasure. She wanted more of last night. Wanted his touches. His kisses. Wanted to soar into the heavens under his tender caresses. Cross smirked, as if reading her mind, then banded an arm around her waist, pulling her into his body. He bent his head to claim her mouth in a deep, hungry kiss. Raw passion flared between them. Were they two halves of a whole? Two souls so deeply intertwined they couldn’t be separated?
“I want you to wrap that pretty mouth around my cock,” he said.
Although she wasn’t well versed in all things sexual, she did know what a blowjob was. Once, her best friend brought a porn magazine to school and they had snickered all during lunch. She remembered seeing women on their knees, sucking on the guy’s penis. It had looked odd, but now, staring down at Cross’s, she was eager to try.
“Kneel,” he ordered.
She obeyed, hesitant at first to grasp him. He waited patiently, which gave her the courage to wrap her hand around him.
“You won’t hurt me,” he said. “Taste me first.”
A bead of fluid appeared at the hole so she did as he instructed. Her tongue darted out, capturing the small drop, and savored the slight saltiness of it. She licked it again, concluding she liked how he tasted.
“Now, slide me into your mouth and be careful of your teeth.”
She covered her teeth with her lips and slid them down his shaft.
“Relax the muscles in the back of your throat.”
She couldn’t fit it all in her mouth because he was rather large, but managed a few inches. She swallowed around the head and then eased back, only to move forward once more. Cross placed a hand on her head, guiding her, and this let her maintain a steady rhythm. By the moans coming from him, he seemed to like what she was doing. Moment by moment, he pushed more in her mouth. Her eyes watered whenever he went a little too deep. When he activated her gag response, Cross pulled all the way out then helped her to stand.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured. His hands cradled her face, and his thumbs wiped the tears from her eyes, despite the overhead shower that had pretty much erased them.
There wasn’t a need for him to feel that way because she loved making him feel good. Hot water sluiced over them, filling the shower with steam. Cross stood before her like a Greek god, a devilish grin on his face as he spun her around.
“Put your hands against the tile and spread your legs,” he breathed into her ear.
Lorelei obeyed, wondering what he planned. Cross took the soap and lathered the bar up before sliding his hands over her body, starting at her shoulders and caressing his way down. Over her collarbone, reaching her breasts. Rolling the hard little buds between his thumb and fingers created this pulsing need deep in her pussy, and she squirmed. Why did her nipples make her want him inside her?
The slick soap padded the rest of his way over her hips and between her thighs. The first slide of his searching fingers found her clit, and he rubbed little circles over it. Pleasure burst through her. A desperate hunger emerged and she arched her body into the caress, wanting more.
As he drove her wild, she wasn’t aware of what Cross intended until his free hand slipped down her crack and he touched her back hole. It took her out of the high, not sure what he was doing. Suddenly, his pinky finger slipped into her rosette, and the burn caused her to pull away. Since she was pressed against the wall, she wasn’t able to go far.
“It’s okay,” Cross said. “Relax your body. I’m not going to hurt you.”
The sensation was odd. She never thought someone playing with her anus would be sensual, but the more he teased the hole, the more she relaxed. Being stimulated at both ends was mind-blowing, and she was strung so tight she didn’t know how much more he could take.
Somehow, he must have read her body language. Cross nipped at her earlobe. “I’ve got you, Sweetheart.”
He withdrew from her body, pulled her hips out a little more until her ass protruded. Then she felt him. His cock lined up with her pussy and he slid home. Every single nerve exploded with pleasure.
“Hold on,” he said. “I’m going to fuck you hard.”
Withdrawing until only the tip remained, he pushed forward again, setting off a rapid pace as he pounded into her. It didn’t take long to make her shiver with need. She balanced on the edge of a sharp needle. Behind her, Cross grunted each time he buried himself in her body. Too much. It was too much to contain. One swipe of his finger across her clit and she detonated into an orgasm so hard she thought she might’ve passed out.
“Fuck,” Cross muttered. “You’re so fucking tight. You’re gonna make me come. I’m going to fill you up. Mine. All mine.”
One last thrust and he let out a guttural noise as he wrapped himself around her. She could feel his cock jerking inside as he found his own release. His forehead rested on top of her head as his ragged breathing slowly returned to normal, matching her own. Then he reached once more between her thighs and touched his cum leaking from her body.
“Shit,” he said. “I’ve come in you twice. Oh, well. If you fall pregnant, it’ll be okay.”
Lorelei stiffened and spun. She opened her mouth to tell him that couldn’t happen, but the words just wouldn’t come out. They wouldn’t be forced or coerced into sound, and it maddened her so much tears filled her eyes. Why?
Why?
She was safe now. Cared for. Why couldn’t she talk?
Cross frowned. “It’s okay...”
She shook her head and tried to mime what she was thinking, but he just watched her in confusion. Frustrated, she pretended to write and he nodded.
“Okay, let’s get you dried off so you can write.”
He turned off the shower and reached for a towel, using it on her and wrapping it around her body before grabbing one for him. It didn’t take long for both to pull on comfortable clothes, then she grabbed her notebook and pen.
“I can’t get pregnant.”
His gaze shot to hers, and she could see the question in them.
“He took it,” she continued. “Birsha wanted to figure out how I was able to heal everyone, so he hit me. Each beating became harder and harsher, but he thought I was being stubborn. When he didn’t get answers, he decided to do something more radical. He took some organs out because he wondered if I could regrow them. I couldn’t, of course. I can’t heal myself, but he kept trying again and again. One of them was my uterus. If you stay with me, I will never be able to bear you a child.”
Shame overtook her and she hung her head. A finger slid under her chin and lifted her head. She didn’t know what she expected to see, but instead, all she saw was tenderness and compassion.
“I don’t care about that,” he said softly. “I never even gave kids a second thought. You saw where I grew up. The unwanted siblings I managed to accrue. For years I was president of a motorcycle club and that type of life didn’t exactly promote child-friendly situations. Believe me, it’s you I want, Lorelei. Just you.”
Tears filled her eyes once more from his tenderness. His understanding. Yes, he was a big, tattooed, scary-looking biker, but to her he was a lifeline. He was her friend. Her lover. She couldn’t imagine any life without him.
****
L orelei didn’t know her eyes could go so wide, but the rows of yarn amazed her. Every color. Every texture. She spun in a circle trying to take it all in, unable to concentrate on any of it. Carrying her shopping basket, she walked slowly up and down the aisles. The craft store was two levels, and Cross had shooed her upstairs telling her to take her time.
One by one, she picked up each bundle and felt the weight and fiber. Worsted yarn, bulky yarn. She really had no idea if she could even knit. The memory of her grandmother and what she said made her want to try. Since she didn’t know anything about yarn, she went with her intuition, choosing what felt right.
Suddenly, something itched at her skin. A sliver of ice slowly crept down her spine and she looked around trying to identify the cause. Two other women were nearby, but they were engrossed in their own world. Still, the feeling of being watched lingered. Unnerved, she hurried to another aisle, resting in front of the endcap. Flashbacks where she hid at the end of her bed at Noble Vale crashed through her mind, and she didn’t feel the desire to shop anymore. The basket held several skeins and a couple pairs of needles, so she figured that would have to do. There was an overwhelming urge to find Cross, so she walked to the stairs and hurried down them, frantically looking around for him. Her heart pounded and her hands grew clammy. Panic clawed its way up her throat, ready to close off her breathing. A hand came down on her shoulder, and she spun, half falling until strong arms caught her.
“Lorelei, it’s me!”
Cross’s deep voice penetrated through the haze of terror, and she blinked as his face swam into view.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
Turning her head slightly, she saw they had drawn a few curious glances.
“Lorelei?”
She turned back to him and nodded, bending to pick up her shopping basket. The sinister stare from earlier was gone, replaced with an ominous foreboding that something bad was going to happen. Once she had picked up her merchandise, he took hold of her hand and led her to the registers.