First Love: A Superbundle Boxed Set of Seven New Adult Romances (176 page)

Dad and I get off the phone, and I sit at my kitchen counter, staring blankly at the wall. Never in a million years would I have suspected my father kept my mother away. I wonder where she is now, and if she ever thinks about me or regrets her choices. I’ve thought about trying to find her over the years, but I’m never sure if the answers I’d find would make things better or worse. Maybe it’s time to consider it again.

I’m still trying to process Dad’s revelations when someone knocks on the door. I’m tempted not to answer it because I’m not ready to deal with the outside world. But I need to be, for Angel. She fought off Nick for me, so I can brave the world without her for a little while until she gets back. And I’ve got to trust that she’s coming back, because the alternative is unthinkable. Plus, she asked me to, and I find it hard not to do anything she asks of me.

“What?” I fling the door open harder than necessary.

“Is that any way to greet your girlfriend?” Angel gives me a slow, seductive smile that starts as a tiny grin but spreads over her face and begs me to take her into my arms.
 

So I do. I can’t get her against me fast enough. It’s been less than a day since she left, but it’s felt like forever—and the only forever I want is with her. My arms slide around her, cupping her ass and lifting her up against me. She drops her bag on the floor at our feet. “Are you staying?”

“For as long as you’ll have me,” she mumbles against my mouth as she catches my lips in an insistent kiss.

I hold her against me, using my foot to slam the door closed. Then I brace her so her back is against the door, while her legs hug my ass. There’s no doubt in my mind she can feel every inch of how much I want her. “Is this okay?” I know she’s still sore and bruised, but the surprise of having her here is doing rotten things to my self-control.

“The only thing that isn’t going to be okay is if you stop touching me,” she pants against my mouth.

“Are you sure?” I don’t want to hurt her and I don’t want to scare her, but, my God, I want to fuck the ever loving hell out of her. I’m unzipping her coat before I pause to wonder why the fuck she has a coat on. My jaw drops as I take in what I’m seeing. She’s wearing the see-through blouse she resisted trying on, but she most definitely does not have a tank top on underneath it. Or a bra.

Fuck me silly, I think I’m going to explode just from looking at her.

“Arion—take me to bed or take me right here, but please, baby, don’t make me wait.” Angel nuzzles against my neck, igniting a trail of fire with tiny kisses that shoot sensations right to my dick.

The bed will give me more options if she freaks out, so I summon what’s left of my self-control and stumble down the hallway to my bedroom. I start looking for the tie she used to tie me up last time.

“No,” she says, and I pause. “We don’t need that.”

I think she must have read my mind, which is incredibly cool but pales in comparison with the fact that she doesn’t feel like she needs that. Being extra gentle of her bruises, I lower her to the bed and start to undo the buttons of her blouse.

For the first time since she knocked on my door, she holds perfectly still, letting me work. At last, I slide it free of her shoulders, and she lets out a little sigh that I can feel all the way to my toes. I manage to contain my urgency as I remove her pants, then mine, and slip on a condom before finally lowering myself carefully over her. “Like this, Angel?” I ask, trying to give her time to be sure.

Angel turns her large eyes on me, stunning me with their very brilliance. Everything about her shimmers with life, from the sparkle in her eyes to the flush creeping across her chest. She looks like she just stepped out of a war zone, but more importantly, she looks like she knows how amazing it is she survived—and she’s not planning on wasting a moment of her life.
 

Her long arms reach up, and her fingers rake through my hair then grip the back of my head, pulling me so close that I can’t get any more near to her without being buried inside her. Which is exactly what I have in mind.

“My name is Tess, but if you like, you can call me Angel. I don’t care what you call me, as long as you get inside me and make me scream your name.”

I enter her with one thrust, and her hips rise to meet me as her head tips back, unleashing a throaty gasp.

“Again,” she demands, running her hands along my arms.

And then she does the most incredible thing as I dive as deeply into her as possible. She takes her hands and tucks them in mine so that my arms are resting on hers, and she’s completely beneath my control. Her fingers weave ours together as I gasp and start to pull back.

“Arion, I’m not broken, not anymore. I won’t go so far as to say I’m healed, but I’m getting there. Really, this is okay.” Her intense gaze encourages me, and we find a steady, matching rhythm of give and take. She moans, and I know she’s close, which is good because so am I. Pleasure and a sense of complete contentment is building to an unmaintainable crescendo within me, and when she cries my name I come undone.

Afterward, she lies beside me with her head on my chest, tracing tiny circles with her nail on my abs that threatens to get me roaring to go all over again.

“I told you I’d be back,” she whispers.

“I didn’t quite think you meant so soon, but I’m not complaining. What changed your mind?” I hold my breath, waiting for her answer.

“I got to Arizona, hugged my Mom, and she gave me some very good advice. Essentially, she said ‘focus on what matters most, and it will lead you home.’ You’re what matters most to me, so I guess that means you’re my home now.”

My heart swells with the intensity of what I feel for her, and I can’t wait another moment more to tell her. Angel lifts her head, and a sly smile starts as she nibbles lightly on her lip. As if our minds are as joined as our bodies just were, we both say, “I love you,” and then seal it with a kiss. I don’t think I’ve ever meant three words more.

A kiss isn’t enough, but I think I know something I can do to show her just how much I mean it.

Fifty One

Tess

When I wake up, Arion isn’t in bed. At first I think maybe he just went to the bathroom, but my patience begins to wear thin, so I climb out of bed to look for him. My muscles are stiff and put up a strong protest, but the pull of my heart wins.

The kitchen is deserted, but an empty red mug with white wings painted on the side rests on the counter, and a fresh K-cup rests beside it. My heart speeds up, wondering what Arion is up to.

“Morning,” Arion says from the bathroom doorway.
 

My heart speeds up even more. If he keeps this up, I’m going to register it as a contender for Nascar. His skin is damp and kissable, and I’m tempted to say coffee can wait but decide the caffeine might not be a bad idea before I drag him back to bed.

I open the lid to pop the cartridge in, and my breath catches in my throat. He’s removed the inner cartridge, and a small black jewelry box rests snuggly inside.

This is too much. I’m not ready for this, no matter how much I desperately want us to reach this point. How can I tell him I love him, but that this is too far? “Arion—”

“Trust me, please?” A patient smile is only halfway masking the mischievousness in his eyes.

I pull the box out with a pounding heart and trembling fingers. I lift the lid, holding it away from myself like I think it’s going to bite me, but it’s empty except for a tiny, folded piece of paper. I look to Arion, but he doesn’t say a word, so I slowly open his note.

I want to give you everything, but I’ll start with my heart.

I lift my head to look at him, and Arion holds out his hand. When I walk over and take it, he puts something in my palm. Slowly, I uncurl my fingers and find a keyring with three keys.
 

“I’m following up my heart with your freedom. One key goes to the bar below, the main door so you can get inside no matter what. The second goes to this door. And the third goes to your own car. I know you aren’t ready for more, and we can move at whatever pace you like. Of course, there is a ring that goes in that box, and I hope to put it on your finger someday. I gave you the box because I want you to know my intentions.”

His gift to me is beyond precious and perfect. My heart is overflowing with love as Arion takes me in his arms, and I know I won’t ever ask him to let me go again.

THE END

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT from Kelly

SPECIAL BONUS SCENE – NO ONE'S ANGEL

Kelly Walker

**

The ring box is on my pillow when I wake up, greeting me like the old friend it’s become. Stifling a yawn, I reach over and prop open the lid with my thumb.

Sure enough, there’s a tiny folded note inside, and my heart beats faster with anticipation. Even though Axel’s made this routine, constantly leaving me little notes in the box I know once held the ring that he’ll give me when he thinks I’m ready, it’s not gotten boring. Each time I open the box I can’t help but wonder if this is the time it will be a ring instead of a note. And I think that’s his plan. He wants me to always know that he’s always thinking about our future, even as he bides his time. Waiting for me, always. The notes are usually pretty exciting too.

Unfortunately, this one is a rather mundane.

Had to run to the bar, I’ll be back by six. Wear a dress.

Oh well, it’s not like every moment can be filled with sex and sweet words. He and I, we’re in it for the long haul, and we’re more than that. And I sort of like that he makes even the mundane romantic. Who am I kidding? I like everything about him.

Especially the fact that he left me coffee on the nightstand, because he knows if I can’t have him when I first wake up, then I damn sure better have coffee. A girl’s got to have her vices.

The room is bright, and I resist the urge to pull the covers over my head. First thing in the morning with the birds chirping and sunlight infiltrating the window, I can’t help missing our little apartment over the bar with its dark classy walls and lack of sunlight. At night though, cradled in Arion’s arms, I am grateful for the privacy. And switching apartments with Chelsea worked out well for her too. As an added bonus, she’s got way more stuff than us, so even though she’s staying above the bar, she’s still got a full closet of clothes here. I’m sure I can find a dress in there for tonight. The only hard part will be choosing one from the many.

So what to do with my unexpected day to myself?

It takes me less than half a second to head for my laptop. While I don’t play WarQuest as often as I used to when it was my only way to see Arion, I’ve definitely fallen right back into the swing of things, and playing has become pretty regular for me again. But today I’m thinking of doing something a little different to surprise Arion. There’s a special event going on in-game that only lasts for a few more days, and one of the encounters has a chance to drop a really cool mount. He wants it. Bad. Like “It’s black friday and there’s only one Elsa doll left on the shelves and a little girl has to have it” kind of bad. So of course it hasn’t dropped for him, and he hasn’t exactly had a ton of time to play.

If I can get that drop for him, I’ll win the cool girlfriend title for life.

I could just log in on his desktop to play, but I’m so much more comfortable curled up in Chelsea’s overstuffed living room chair, my feet tucked under me and my laptop that Arion got me in my lap. Once I’m settled, I momentarily pause with the realization that I don’t have his character set up on my laptop. It’s not a huge deal to set it up, but once I log into the game I’ll have to spend a while trying to set up and configure the UI for his character before I can even begin to try to get him his item.

Unless…

The character files are local to each computer, but my laptop and his desktop are networked and I know where the file is that controls the in game UI for each character. If I just copy his folder to my folder, it will be all set and I won’t have to waste the time. Feeling brilliant, I navigate to the right folder with a click of the mouse. I’m just about to hit “copy” when the title of another folder in the sub-menu catches my eye. “Logs.”

Curiosity burns in my chest. Arion isn’t a very private person at all, especially when it comes to me. He’s an open book. But I can’t help but wondering how far his logs go back. Typically, the logs record all data that goes across the chat screen if they’re turned on. I take a deep breath, close my eyes and pause. Should I do this?

Okay, forget that. The real question is, am I going to do this?

Apparently so, because I already am. If I come across anything that it seems like he wouldn’t want me to see, I’ll just look away. And
no!
It’s not that I don’t trust him. To be honest, I’m not even sure why I’m looking, or what I’m looking for.

The log file is gigantic, like he’s never split it, ever. So it seems like it goes back to when he first started playing, and continues through yesterday when he last logged in.

So where do I even begin?

Rather than opening it in Word, I open it up in a parser program made specifically for filtering game logs. It was made to help data crunch fight numbers, so you can improve, but I had the same program on my own computer at home before Nick smashed it, and I know it can be used to filter out conversations as well, anything you want really.

The question is, what do I want?

Maybe I should just close the file. There’s nothing I need to see. I trust him, and I don’t say that easily. After Nick, trust is something I’ve found in very short supply. In fact, Arion may be the only person aside from my Mom that I trust completely and without reservation. But it’s exactly that level of trust that makes me willing to look. Generally, I subscribe to the theory that you shouldn’t look unless you’re willing to see things that will shatter your world because nine times out of ten, you won’t like what you find. But I know Arion is devoted to me, and I have no doubts, just curiosity that now isn’t going to leave me alone until I look.

Suddenly I know exactly what I’m looking for. I hit Control + F to bring up a search box, and type in “Angel.” And there it is. All of the messages between us. From forever. Granted, yes, there are also messages that aren’t relevant to what I want, like others saying hello to me in guild chat, or Arion mentioning me when speaking to others, but the majority of it seems—at least from first glance— seems to be messages between the two of us.