CHERISH (16 page)

“Let’s just say, Ms. Henderson won’t be insulting her daughter ever again. In fact, I’m pretty sure she’s decided a one-way bus trip to as-far-away-from-you-as-possible is the best thing for her health.”

“I didn’t hit her did I?” Even when I go dark, I’m sure I wouldn’t hit a woman. But I don’t know. In this case, that bitch crossed so many lines I may just have broken the code.

“No, you didn’t hit her,” Promise says, leaning her head back to look up, her chin pushing in the center of my chest. Her face lights up. “But I did.”

I look at Northrup whose smile turns to a belly laugh.

“I see nothing.” He raises his hands, shaking his head as he leans down to right the overturned chair where Holly had been sitting. “You people are going to get me fired.”

I hold Promise tight. This whole thing is fucked up. I'm not even sure where I am with it any more.

But if there's one thing I know for certain, it's that I can't trust a word Holly says. I need to find someone who knows what's going on here, and who won't lie to me.

Or won't dare.

Beckett

We're back at the loft and I've got Promise tucked back into bed.

She knocked my damn socks off while I watched her with her mother. But afterward when we were walking out, she swayed and leaned into me.

The plan was to take her to Bruce’s for the afternoon while I went and made a surprise house call to Jeremy. But my girl needed me, some chicken soup and a nap.

The clock read almost eleven when we left the station. She’d thrown up everything I’d fed her so far. So I changed the plan, called Bruce and pushed the drop off back a few hours.

“Lay down with me.” She reaches up and snatches at my hand as I turn to walk away with the empty bowl. I fed her a spoonful of soup at a time until the rosy color came back to her beautiful cheeks.

Her eyes are flickering blue pools, set deeper than usual.

“Of course, babe. You have to rest. Try to relax.” I hold onto her hand as I set the bowl on the nightstand. Then I crawl over the covers and sit yself next to her, never releasing her hand for a second.

“No. Get under
with
me.” She turns her head around, releases my hand and pushes me back, then grabs the white duvet and lifts it, inviting me underneath.

“Babe, it’s nap time.” I can hear the hint of seductress in her voice and that is all it takes to get me off the starting block. I rein it in, but only because she needs rest.

“I know. But you’re
warm
.” She pouts and my dick is shameless. She says I have my own internal furnace. I love it. She needs me to keep her warm. I want her to need me for everything.

“Uh huh.” I can’t say no to her. Not when she gives me the lip bite, the fluttery eyes and the heavy sigh. It’s her trifecta of superpowers that she uses to get her way.

I manage to kick off my boots before I stuff my legs under the covers. The tingling tension starts in my balls, so I try to think about something else, like doing my taxes. She doesn’t need my horny ass keeping her awake.

“I still can’t believe you smacked your mother.”

“I didn’t smack my mother. I smacked someone named Holly Henderson. She is not my mother. Besides, you couldn’t to do it and she needed it.”

I gather her hair in my hands and sink down into position behind her. The mile-long tresses wind up in a messy ball in my hands, so I press my face into the strands taking a deep breath. Then I gently settle it up on the pillow so I can get my lips on her neck.

“You needed to do it just as bad. I’m so fucking proud of you. You knocked her ass right down where it should be. Didn’t buy into one more word of her bullshit. I could tell she was making ninety percent of that shit up.”

“Yeah. I don’t think Louis raped her. I don’t know
what
happened, but I’m pretty sure of that part. I’m a little relieved at least about that.” She shifts backwards and I want to engulf her inside me. I also want to have a pussy feast and relieve the ache in my dick by plunging it as deep inside her as possible. “I love laying here with you. I love being in this bed.”

I set my lips on her neck, feeling the warmth, and I close my eyes and revel in how deeply she’s rooted herself into my soul.

“You want to know something?” I whisper, then nibble my way up her neck.

“What?”

“I’d never let a woman into my bed before you.”

“Are you serious?”

“Dead. I honestly don’t even like to think about any women before you, but it’s true. If I was with a woman, it was not in my bed. Ever. With anyone.” I listen to her let out a breath and melt into me before I continue. “Something else I was saving just for you. See? I saved myself for you. At least I saved a lot of things for you and it was worth it. More than worth it. Babe, I’m sorry for everything you’ve been through and everything we’re still going through, but in spite of all that, I’ve never been this happy. Shit, not even happy, fucking joyful. Like my heart learned how to beat because of you. I’m alive and you’re the reason.”

“My mom never gave me any advice worth a darn about men. Or anything else for that matter. But I do remember one thing she used to say . . .” Promise’s voice is silk and I want my mouth on hers. Just laying here together is like a little piece of heaven.

“What’s that?” My hand brushes down the side of her hair, over her shoulder and under the duvet until I feel the sleek warmth of her skin. Sliding my fingers forward, I’m feeling her belly, thinking of what we’ve created together that rests inside her womb. She wriggles as my fingers move over her skin, tickling her.

“She said something like, when you find the right one, everything feels familiar,” she says, placing her warm palms over mine to stop the movement. “Like you’ve been there before. Like you’ve lived a life together before this one. But you left something unfinished, so you’ve both returned to finish it. That’s how you feel. From the minute I saw you at Windfield, I felt that sense of ease. I talked to
you
more in those few days than I’d talked to anyone else in a year. You just felt familiar. Like home. Not that I knew what home felt like before you, but when I finally felt that sensation, I knew. It makes me wonder if she must have loved someone once. It's a little bit sad, I guess.”

“Just in case you didn’t realize, I’m never letting you go. You’re mine and nothing will ever change that. Nothing.”

My hand snakes around until I’ve got the weight of her breast in my palm. I put her to bed naked, because that’s how I like it and so does she. She is utterly available to me and even as caveman as it sounds, I love the feeling of dominion I have over her.

She smells like fucking sex-flavored cotton candy. My tongue traces a line from her ear down to her shoulder, then I kiss my way back up.

I roll her hardening nipple between my thumb and forefinger, listening to her soft whimpers and she starts to wiggle her ass cheeks into my hard on.

Being with her makes me take inventory. There were things I didn’t even know I wanted in life before her. Like a fucking family. But now I want it more than my next breath. I can see it in my mind. Promise painting and giggling, bouncing a baby on one knee, her belly already beautifully round with another.

Then there’s me. In the kitchen, cooking and laughing and shaking my head at the wonder of her. Of them. Of us.

My family.

“You know why women like to spoon, don’t you?” She grinds the crack of her ass into my erection.

“Yeah. They like to see just how much booty wiggling it takes to give their man a hard on.”

“Who’s in charge now, big man?”

“Uh huh. I own your ass, remember?” My fingers leave her stiffening peak to feel around for the pendant I gave her.

“And I own your heart.”

“Yes, that you do, babe. That you do.”

One more booty wiggle and the charge is lit. I shift my torso and tug at my t-shirt, getting it off. Then I kick out of my jeans and boxers, leaving them under the covers.

I throw the duvet back and in one motion I’ve got her on her back as her melodic giggle floats through the high ceiling.

“This cunt is out of control. It needs some discipline.” I push back onto my heels. My hands take her knees and pull them up and apart because I want to see
all
of what’s mine.

We need the distraction right now, but I’m not sure Promise is in the mood for this kind of playtime. So I sit back, my cock already saluting at the ready as I wait for her reaction.

“Oh yeah? Bad pussy?” She juts out her plump bottom lip and I feel a drop of pre-cum dribble down my cock head.

Game on.

I lay a slap on her open folds, feeling the heat and wetness as she winces.

“Don’t worry. I’m going to show this pussy who’s boss. Then, I’m going to kiss it until it fucks my face because I want you like that. Needy and naughty. My sweet baby girl knows who takes care of her, doesn’t she?”

She nods. Her mouth drops open and a smile curves her lips when I bring my hand down again between her legs. I love the yelp she lets out, and I see the fire in her eyes.

My mouth starts to water. My neck twitches a few times but I barely notice. Her scent feels like bondage ropes around me, and I need my tongue inside of her.

Now.

“I’m going to eat that beautiful pussy until you beg me to stop.”

She opens her mouth to reply, but I’m on her. All she can do is suck in a gulp of air as I shove my tongue so deep inside. Her hips lift off the bed and she immediately rides my face.

I’ve never told her, but she’s too good for me. I know I married far up the chain of command, so far that someone should have slapped me back down. But here I am. So I intend to keep her completely satisfied, so completely satisfied that she will never even have time to think twice about her decision to marry a fuck like me. A girl like her could be on any man’s arm. Some billionaire somewhere is missing his porcelain doll. And although I may not have the coin to offer her like that, I sure as shit can make sure she knows all the other ways only I can take care of her.

Like this.

She’s as sweet and juicy as an overripe peach. I swear she tastes better every time. I slurp and swallow as her hands come down to grip the sides of my head. My fingers take control of her lush thighs, spreading her, following her manic, up-and-down, up-and-down motion with enthusiasm.

I lick and suck. Rasping my teeth over her clit until she cums with such a shudder it's like she's possessed. Quaking and shivering, she runs sweet cum into my mouth and I swallow her nectar with pride.

My balls throb. My cock demands his own just reward but I’m not done with my little girl. I want one more from her because I can feel the animal in me clawing forward. When I get my cock inside her, it’s not going to be gentle.

Hard, rough and fast. I want her soaking and moaning and ready when it happens.

I give her a few seconds to re-group, tickling her outer lips with my tongue. Then I’m face deep inside her again. My tongue wants to be everywhere. I’m winding up and down in each fold. I’ve been here so many times and it will never be enough. Her pussy is my home.

She falls over into another gushing orgasm, my name on her lips as I bite down on her clit. She practically levitates off the bed.

I pull back for a second, listening to her soft moans and admiring her dripping opening.

“Come here.” I reach for her hands, gently pulling her up as her glazed eyes barely focus.

I guide her hips up and over me as I lay down on the bed.

“Hop on. I want that pussy on my face. Show me what you need.” My hands come up and around her thighs until I’ve got two giant handfuls of ass, and I'm pulling her hips down so the masterpiece of her pussy covers my mouth.

I lick her outer lips, then flick her clit with my tongue. I want all of her at once. I want to devour her, ruin her and stick a damn flag in the ground like Neil Armstrong claiming the moon. She’s all mine. Every juicy inch. I count myself the luckiest man on earth because of it.

I settle my mouth over her clit, playing with the hard button, using the tip of my tongue until she starts to take what’s hers. I love her like this. There is nothing sexier than seeing my girl needy, knowing I’m the only one who will give her what she craves. She’s twitching, grinding down on my mouth, soaking my face until her juice is dripping down through the scruffy two-day beard that covers my jaw.

I groan right along with her. I’m pretty fucking sure I enjoy this more than she does.

She whimpers my name a few times and I stuff my tongue as far into her clutching cunt as it can reach. My name’s still on her lips. Along with some ‘Oh my Gods’ but I think I’m the one who sees Jesus. When your girl cums while calling your name and God’s in the same breath, you are as close to the holy land as mortal man can be.

Her body shudders and she drenches my mouth with her release. I gulp and breathe, taking every drop lovingly down my throat.

My hands shift up to her waist, guiding her to sit down above my head. I pull her into position, bringing her farther down, and for the moment my new favorite thing is my mouth on one of her glorious tits as it dangles over my face.