Chapter 21
GRAYSON
I t's been a week since Emmett embarked on his grand quest to find the main point of the time stream damage. We haven’t heard a damn thing from him. A week of radio silence. Prue and I have been operating in some type of new routine. She ignores me, we train, we ignore each other in the afternoon, we eat and then go to bed. She’s regressing in terms of her powers and I’m failing to hide my irritation with her.
I step out onto the porch, where Prue is waiting for me. Her red-brown hair is pulled back in a messy ponytail, and there are dark circles under her eyes.
"Ready for another thrilling day of 'Let's Teach the Time Witch'?" I ask, injecting a false cheeriness into my voice.
Prue gives a half-hearted shrug. "As I'll ever be."
We make our way to the clearing we've been using for training. The grass is trampled from our daily sessions, and Prue takes her usual spot in the center, and I circle around her, assessing.
"Okay," I say, keeping my voice calm. "Let's start with something simple. Try to feel the energy around you, like we've been practicing."
Prue closes her eyes, her brow furrowing in concentration. I watch her intently, searching for any sign of her power manifesting. Minutes tick by, and nothing happens. The frustration builds in my chest, but I force it down.
"It's okay," I say, though the words taste bitter in my mouth but I’m making a concerted effort to keep calm. "Take a deep breath and try again."
Prue's eyes snap open, a flash of irritation crossing her face. "It's not working, Grayson."
"I know," I say, struggling to keep my voice even. "But you've done this before. You stopped Cole. You froze time in that bowling alley. Your power is there, Prue. You just need to access it."
"It’s like my power is on lock down currently, I can feel it there, but it won’t let me in.” She shakes her head, her frustration mirroring my own.
We are back to square one, all the progress we made, gone, and I don’t know if it is because of the stress of what Cole is working towards, or if Emmett’s absence is a bigger roadblock than I expected, but her lack of being able to do anything ignites a spark of anger in me. And this time I can’t quite suppress it.
"You have done this before." My words are clipped as I try to reiterate my earlier sentiment.
"I know, but I can’t do it now!" Prue snaps, her voice rising.
I take a step closer to her, my patience wearing thin. "Yes, you can! You're just not trying hard enough."
As soon as the words leave my mouth, I know I've gone too far. Prue's eyes flash with annoyance which is quickly replaced by anger.
"Not trying hard enough? I've been out here every day for a week, Grayson. I'm exhausted. I'm frustrated. And you telling me I'm not trying hard enough isn't helping!"
She stands up now and walks towards me, but I don’t back down. She has to get her shit together. "Then prove me wrong," I challenge. "Show me what you can do."
Prue's jaw sets in a hard line, and for a moment, I think she might walk away. But then she focuses, her hands stiffen at her sides, her face a mask of concentration. I watch, waiting, but nothing happens.
Before I can stop myself, I reach out with my magic, pushing at her energy. "Come on, Prue," I growl. "Fight back."
I see the shock on her face as my magic hits her, dark and stormy. It wraps around her, pushing, prodding, demanding a response. Prue's eyes fly open, wide with panic. My indigo streams are wrapping around her silver ones and constricting them, my magic is seeping into her being. I can’t seem to stop myself and I urge it forward even more.
"Grayson, stop!" she cries out, but I can't. I'm too far gone, too desperate for her to access her power.
My magic pulses around her, purple and menacing. It's more than I intended, more than I've ever used on her before. I can see the fear in her eyes, and a part of me screams to stop, but I can't pull back, because I sink deeper into her, I get a sense of her power and it is intoxicating.
Prue's breathing picks up and her eyes narrow, and I feel a surge of energy. Her power rises to meet mine, pushing back against the storm of my magic. Relief floods through me for a split second before I realize she's not in control.
Prue's magic lashes out wildly, fueled by her panic and it snaps me back to the moment. I try to pull back, but our magic is fighting against each other and a wave of her energy slams into me, lifting me off my feet and throwing me backward. I hit the ground hard, pain exploding in my chest as my barely-healed ribs take the brunt of the fall.
The world spins and I gasp for breath, I’m winded. I see Prue running towards me, her face pale with shock.
"Grayson!" Her voice sounds distant, muffled. "What the hell—"
I try to sit up, but the pain in my ribs is excruciating. "It's okay," I manage to grit out. "I shouldn't have pushed you like that."
“You don’t fucking say!” she exclaims and kneels beside me. Her hands hovering uncertainly. "Do you need me to heal you?"
I shake my head slowly.
“I don’t think anything is broken. I just think my ribs are bruised again.”
It takes several agonizing minutes and a lot of help from Prue, but I finally manage to get to my feet. Prue wraps an arm around my waist, supporting me as we slowly make our way back to the cabin.
By the time we reach the porch, I'm drenched in sweat and trembling from the effort of staying upright. Prue guides me inside and towards the bathroom.
"You need to soak in the tub," she says. "It'll help with the pain."
I want to argue, to tell her I'm fine but I'm not and all my effort is going into remaining upright. I let her lead me into the bathroom, leaning heavily against the sink as she starts to run the bath.
As the tub fills, the silence between us is thick with unspoken words. I watch Prue's back as she tests the water temperature, noting the tension in her shoulders. This is my fault. I pushed her too hard, let my frustration get the better of me.
"Prue," I start, but she cuts me off.
"Don't," she says, not turning around. "Just... don't say anything right now, okay?"
I close my mouth, swallowing the apology that was on the tip of my tongue. When the tub is full, Prue finally turns to face me.
“Strip.” She demands.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m not leaving here until you’re in the tub. I don’t want to risk you slipping or drowning yourself.” She pauses and rubs her temples. “I unfortunately still need you.”
I raise an eyebrow at her, but I don’t say anything. I start to unbutton my shirt, my fingers moving slowly due to the pain in my ribs. Prue's eyes follow my movements, her cheeks flushing slightly as more of my skin is revealed. I can't help but notice the way her body reacts to me, the hitch in her breath, the tense set of her shoulders. Her eyes flick up to mine, a mix of annoyance and something else swirling in their depths.
I unzip my jeans, pushing them down and stepping out of them, leaving me in just my boxers. Prue's gaze skims over me, and then she averts her gaze, her cheeks are flushed. She's not unaffected, despite her irritation with me. I hook my thumbs into the waistband of my boxers, pausing for a moment before pulling them off. Her breath catches, and she turns away quickly, but not before I see the flush spreading down her neck.
I step into the tub, lowering myself carefully into the hot water. A hiss escapes my lips as the heat hits my bruised ribs, but I force myself to relax, leaning back against the tub. Prue is standing by the sink, her back to me, her body tense.
She moves to exit the bathroom and I don’t know what gets into me, but I call out before she can.
“Where are you going?” I ask her and lean my head against the bath.
“I’m going to leave you to your bath.” She’s tilted slightly to face me, but she’s avoiding looking directly at me.
"You should join me," I say, my voice low. Now that really came out of nowhere, but the words are out there, and I do want her to join me.
She turns to face me, her eyebrows raised. "You’ve lost your mind."
"You need to relax too, Prue," I say, holding her gaze. "It's not good for your magic, or for you."
She crosses her arms over her chest, defensive. "I can't just... turn it off, Grayson."
"I know," I say, my voice gentle but firm. "But I can help. Let me help you. Let me get you out of your head.”
“Why would I let you do that?” she asks me and now she is fully facing the bath and me. I don’t really have a good answer for her, I want her? I want her in the bath with me, I want to be out of my head too. All of it is probably true, yet I don’t see any of it.
“Let me be helpful for once.” It’s the only thing I can say. “Get in the bath.” My voice is commanding now.
She hesitates but I see the moment she decides, the slight drop of her shoulders, the release of her breath.
“This is insane.” She mutters under her breath, but she starts to undress, her movements slow and deliberate. I watch her, not even pretending not to. She’s beautiful. I watch as she throws her top down, and then her bra and then her pants. And there it is, a trail of freckles that run from under her eye, to her lip, to her breast and one on her stomach. I swallow.
She steps into the tub, her eyes on mine, and lowers herself into the water. She sits across from me, her knees drawn up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them. I reach out, my hand cupping her calf, my thumb tracing circles on her skin.
"Come here," I say, my voice low, commanding.
“What are we doing, Grayson?” she doesn’t move.
“We’re not thinking for a change.” I say and watch as she bites her bottom lip. The very lip I’d like to bite. She doesn’t move, so I shift forward, and run my hands up her thighs.
“Your hands are warm.” Her breath hitches as they move up.
“Is that good or bad?” I ask and let my hand run up the sides of her stomach.
“I kind of like them cold. This is different.” Her voice hitches on her last word.
I desperately want to kiss that freckle on her lip, but I resist the urge, instead, I focus on her body, on the way she feels against me. This is about release, not intimacy and kissing her first would be too intimate.
I reach up, my hands cupping her breasts, my thumbs brushing over her nipples. She gasps, her eyes closing as I continue to tease her, my touch gentle but firm. I lean forward, my lips finding the soft skin of her neck, kissing and sucking gently. I move up and kiss the freckle under her eye, and down her face but skip her lip. She sucks on it and I find the freckle above her left breast and kiss there. She moans softly and presses her body against mine.
One of my hands trails down her stomach, dipping between her legs. She tenses slightly, but I don't stop, my fingers finding her clit and circling it gently. She moans again, her hips moving against my hand. I move back and her eyes fling open. I speak before she can protest.
“Come here.”
This time Prue does, she moves over me in the bath and settles her knees on either side of me.
“That’s my good little witch.” I say and reposition her slightly and then I slip two fingers inside her, she instantly tightens around me. I move in and out, slowly and let my thumb circle her clit. She opens her eyes, and she’s looking at me with nothing but pure want. It makes me go harder. I stop moving my fingers and she groans in displeasure.
“Grayson.” My name coming out of her mouth almost undoes me, but this isn’t about me. This isn’t about my release.
"Ride my fingers, Prue," I demand and move my mouth against her neck. She hesitates, "Do it, my little witch." I growl.
She starts to move, her hips rising and falling as she goes up and down on my fingers. I keep them still, only circling her clit, my other pinching her nipples. I can feel her getting closer, her breath coming in quick gasps, her body tensing. I'm hard, my cock pressing against her, but I ignore it, focusing on her pleasure.
"That's it," I murmur, my voice low and commanding. “Are you in your head?” Her eyes fly open, but she doesn’t stop moving and I pick up the pace on her clit.
“No,” she gasps out.
“Show me then,” I push another finger into her and she leans a bit forward. I move my free hand and run it up her back, slowly and at the same pace that I am teasing her clit with.
"Show me,” I demand again.
“How?” she’s breathless and moving harder against me, the water the only barrier between our bodies.
“Come for me, Prudence." Four words, just four words and they undo her.
She cries out, her body convulsing as she comes, her inner muscles clenching around my fingers. I hold her as she rides out her orgasm and keep stroking her clit. When she finally stills, I pull my fingers out of her, bringing them to my lips and sucking them clean. She watches me, her eyes dark.
She moves back to her side of the bath, leans her head against it and starts to level her breathing out. I want to do more with her, I want to take her in this bath and explore every inch of her. But this wasn’t about me.
I make a move to get out of the bath.
“Grayson,” she says as I step out the bath.
“Relax, little witch.” I say and lean down, kissing the freckle above her breast. I so badly want to capture her lips, but I don’t. She sinks further into the bath and lets her red brown hair loose to fall over her shoulders. She’s stunning and I want to tell her that too but instead, I leave her in the bathroom, making my way to my room.
I close the door behind me, leaning against it for a moment before pushing off and walking towards the bed. I drop the towel, my cock hard and aching. I wrap my hand around it, stroking slowly. I think about Prue, about the way she looked riding my fingers, the sounds she made, the feel of her body against mine.
My strokes become faster, my grip tighter. I can feel the pleasure building, the tension in my body increasing. I think about her lips, about that freckle I want to kiss so badly. I think about her taste, her smell, her touch. And then I'm coming, my body convulsing as pleasure rips through me. I stroke myself through it, before collapsing onto the bed exhausted and barely satisfied, as I still want nothing more than to go in there and take more of her.
As I lie there, my breathing slowly returning to normal, I think about Prue. About the way she responded to me, the way she let me in now, even if it was just for a moment. And I know, no matter how frustrating things get, no matter how much we argue, despite everything that could go wrong, she's mine to protect. So why the hell was I directly forcing her into the danger?