Vulnerable (13 page)

Michael had relaxed against her, tucking his little dark head under her chin and Elise had turned away to hide her tears, cuddling the child closer. He had wanted his mom almost immediately, but Carla had laughingly told her that she should feel honored, and if she wanted to move in with them and become their nanny, she was most welcome. Michael apparently wouldn’t let Carla out of his sight and refused to stay with anyone else and never let anyone other than his mom and dad hold him until Elise. Ross had casually dropped an arm around her shoulders and given her a gentle squeeze before drawing her away to spend time with his parents.

Andrew and Simone had two girls, twins, ready to attend school that fall, and they had no reservations about clambering onto her lap, sometimes eschewing their beloved Uncle Ross in favor of her stories and the fact that her hair was the same length and texture of their own. Simone had winked at her and drawn Andrew away for some alone time. Elise was happy to watch little Andrea and Sonja. Her sister, Cindy, was currently expecting, but she had no other nieces or nephews to lavish attention upon.

Ross’s sister, Evelyn, was probably the most reserved with her, and Elise could see the intensity in the other woman who was apparently a well-known corporate lawyer. It reminded her of Ross’s intense manner. Whereas Andrew and Scott ran the family business, a marketing company for sportswear and other household-name products, Ross and Evelyn had struck out on their own, if in different directions. Evelyn’s husband, Spencer, was also a lawyer, and they had a studious preteen son named William, who rarely lifted his head from his phone or some other electronic device. He did give Elise an awed smile when her height registered, and sat beside her at meals, and Evelyn had immediately softened in her response to Elise. William, it seemed, was known for his ability to judge people accurately.

Colleen and Bill Lassiter were a clearly happily married couple, but as different from her own parents as Elise could imagine. Where her dad believed he was the head of his household, Bill obviously deferred to his wife, who charmingly bullied her husband and her children. Even Ross went along with her suggestions and expectations, and Elise wondered if he had become so dominant because of his mother’s strong personality. Colleen didn’t actually interview her, but Elise found herself sharing quite openly with the other woman, although carefully omitting certain parts of her life. When Colleen asked how old she was, Elise saw the little flash in her eyes when she told her that her thirty-fifth birthday was just around the corner. But all Colleen did was smile widely and say that she hadn’t given up hope that Ross would marry and give her more grandchildren to spoil. Elise hoped her own noncommittal smile didn’t look as strained as it felt. Bill, who had been standing beside his wife, seemingly lost in his thoughts, surreptitiously patted her hand, and Elise held onto her smile with real effort. Colleen wouldn’t know her predicament, and lots of couples were childless, but once again Elise felt like a failure. Ross of course picked up on her mood and conducted his own form of interrogation that night in their suite.

* * * *

Elise lay back in the big tub and raised one leg to watch the bubbles pop and run along the surface of the water droplets as they fell back from her skin to join the volume of water that covered her.

“Heavy thoughts, honey?” Ross came in and began to remove his shirt. The sun at this high altitude held a surprising bite and both of them had gained a bit of color poolside. Elise watched as he stripped and idly stroked his cock. It thickened and filled, the veins prominently displayed and the head turning purple. It was her favorite color. She didn’t respond to his question, so wrapped up in her speculations, and then noted that his face had tightened with displeasure.

“What? Oh, sorry, I was just looking at your…” Elise shut her mouth. God, despite what they did together, despite the lack of sexual modesty, she couldn’t believe she nearly told him her vagrant thoughts.

Ross laughed, and his face relaxed. “Oh, Elise, never lose that sweet reserve. It’s so very opposite to when you let go.”

Elise felt her face flush even more and resolutely kept her eyes from dropping below his shoulders.

“Scrunch forward.”

She slipped ahead in the tub, bending her knees, and felt him step in behind her to sit and pull her back between his thighs. The soapy, scented water sloshed up the sides and very nearly onto the floor. His erection poked into her spine, and she shivered.

“This is the honeymoon suite you know,” Ross commented, “and they assured me the bathroom was fit for two. I guess they lied.”

Elise laughed and the water sloshed again. “I doubt the hotel expected two exceptionally tall people, Ross.”

“Well at least the bed is big enough,” he grumbled against her hair as his hands slipped around to cup her breasts, and then work her nipples. “What was with you and my mother, Elise?”

She sighed, and he pinched each tender bud, making her jump in reaction. She hurried to answer. “It was really nothing,” she began then yipped when he twisted. “Okay! She wondered how old I am and did the math and put it together with the fact that I’m getting past optimum baby-making years, and you might not give her more grandkids.”

Ross soothed her breasts and nuzzled her shoulder. “If you’re finished soaking, I want to talk to you, honey.”

Elise nodded and let him support her as she clambered to her feet, gasping as he slid a finger up her pussy and pressed a kiss on a buttock. He slapped her then, the water on her ass and his palm combining to make a loud, thwacking sound, and Elise nearly jumped over the edge to land on the cushy bathmat. She grabbed for her towel and used the move to camouflage her hand as it dipped back into the tub to cup and hurl a significant handful of sudsy water right into Ross’s face. She made her escape while he sputtered and floundered and quickly dried off so that she could get into some clothing before he took his revenge.

She had her panties halfway up her thighs before he tackled her, dripping wet, sliding against her back and undoing the towel’s work, toppling them onto the bed. Ross yanked the underwear to her knees and slipped his arm around her waist to arch her back. He pushed between her folds and sank into her to the hilt, his sac bumping against her. It was a nearly impossible angle, and she couldn’t widen her stance because of the stricture at her knees. Ross ploughed in and out, prodding at her G-spot, and Elise found herself clutching the bedspread and rocking helplessly under his onslaught. He somehow forced a hand under her belly and rubbed at her clit, urging her to let go, to join him, but she couldn’t, yet relished the heat of his climax and his unrestrained groan of release. Ross kissed the middle of her back and fell beside her. Elise stretched her spine and fought a giggle. Her tough, controlled Dom had surprised himself that time. It wasn’t important that she hadn’t made it. She was happy to do that for him, although she was certain he had wrecked another pair of panties. His next words pushed all of the tender thoughts from her head, replacing them with anxious ones.

“I found a doctor who has had remarkable success in addressing infertility issues like yours, Elise.”

Elise rolled to her side and struggled to free her legs, letting her hair screen her face. She tugged the offending scrap of lace off and dropped it to the floor, then slid off the bed to cross to the closet. She pulled one of the hospitality robes from its the hanger and wrapped up in it, seeking some reassuring warmth and ignoring the seeping of Ross’s seed as it left her barren body and coated her thighs. She was terrified and didn’t know how to hide it. Colleen hadn’t known, hadn’t criticized her, and she shouldn’t be taking it so personally, but she had hoped to have Ross in her life forever, and now he was talking about doctors and infertility, and he was so virile, and for a moment she hated him. Her thoughts crashed to a halt as his arms came around her, and he held her close.

“I shouldn’t have dropped it on you like that, honey. It just seemed to follow after my mom upsetting you.”

“She didn’t know. She didn’t mean anything by it.” Elise was proud of how her voice didn’t tremble and was almost loud enough to be normal.

“I know, Elise, but your pain is mine, and I saw how you were with the kids. You want a baby, and I want you to have mine if possible. If it isn’t, then we can adopt.”

She turned in his arms to look up at him and dared to entertain a little hope. He looked back, and she saw nothing but honesty and determination in his face, albeit mixed with compassion. She thought it was a face that love wore.

“I didn’t realize you were thinking that far ahead, Ross.”

He ran his fingertips along her jaw before replying. “I’d like us to get married and then start the process with that doctor. But first we need to go and see your family.” He walked to the dresser, and rummaged inside the top drawer, returning with a small black box nearly hidden in his big hand. Elise’s breath hitched in her throat as her magnificently naked man went to one knee in front of her and offered up an emerald-cut solitaire set in white gold.

“Elise, will you do me the honor of marrying me, becoming my wife and submissive forever?”

She brushed at the tears slipping down her face and nodded, then managed a shaky, “Yes.”

Ross slipped the ring on her finger and closed her hand within his own. “Mine,” he said in a tense, dark tone.

“Yours.”

His other hand slid between the flaps of the robe and up over her thighs. Elise stepped wide and he worked her clit with dexterity until she stood on tiptoe.

“Come for me Elise, now.”

She went over at his command and sank to her knees beside him. He lowered his forehead to hers. “I don’t leave any job undone, honey. You must know that. Let’s pack and then grab something to eat before we leave. We’re all supposed to meet in the lobby for a group picture, and I expect that ring to get noticed.”

The photographer somehow managed to get everyone in a pose that made the most of the experience, and Elise looked forward to seeing the end result. She decided that there would be a similar picture taken when she and Ross went to visit her family. It was William who noticed the ring, and Elise was nearly smothered in the excitement and attention of the rest of the family, with little Michael even gurgling at her. Colleen’s smile didn’t really reach her eyes, but Bill hugged her and said quietly that Ross had done himself proud. Elise now looked forward to sharing the news with her family, and introducing them to her future husband.

Elise surreptitiously checked her watch for what seemed like the fiftieth time. Ross and her father had disappeared earlier in the afternoon and hadn’t said where they were going. Elise hadn’t been back home in fourteen years, and only Ross’s support had given her the courage to return now. Her parents had visited, although her mom came more often, and her sisters loved to come whenever they could. They liked to shop in the big city although they would never consider moving from their small town. Both had found work in retail and never lacked for beaus. Cindy had married before Kathy, both of them choosing local men who farmed in the area. It made Elise smile to think of her sisters driving a tractor or hauling produce to market, but she had adjusted to a very different life, so they probably would as well. Cindy was presently sprawled in her dad’s chair, bemoaning the heat and suggesting she was going to give birth right then and there. With only a week left in her gestation, it was a distinct possibility, but her mom wasn’t concerned, saying that Cindy was just getting ahead of herself.

Kathy was coming after work for dinner, and the husbands would be along, too. It was to be a preceremony celebration, because Elise had decided that her second wedding would be private and include parents only, a fact that her parents had readily accepted, but had displeased Colleen. Ross, however, had faced his mother down with little effort, and his father had obviously cajoled her into accepting their oldest son’s decision, considering that she had almost given up hope he would actually marry! Hearing the story from Ross had made Elise question her original assessment of her future in-laws’ marriage. Perhaps more went on behind closed doors than was evident in public, and maybe Ross came by his behavior and interests honestly. Elise decided she didn’t want to know. She went back to looking out the window and checking the time.

“Dave and Ross went to the gas station.”

Elise whirled on her mother. “What? Terry’s station?”

Marjorie nodded solemnly. “You had to expect it, Elise. He’s your man, soon-to-be husband, and he wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he didn’t see to the man who nearly destroyed you.”

Elise rushed to the foyer and grabbed her purse, then called to Cindy, asking for her keys. They had a rental car, but Ross had the keys. Her sister obligingly told her to have a look in the side pocket of her bag as her mom came to her and put a restraining hand on her arm. Elise shook her off and then froze at the look on her mom’s face. She wanted to scream, but forced herself to talk calmly.

“Terry keeps a gun in his shop, Mom. And his brothers are never far from him. His cousins, too. What in God’s name were you and dad thinking? If they hurt him, I’ll never forgive you. I wish I had never come home!”

She pushed past her mother, ignoring the stark pain that stood in her eyes and ran to Cindy’s little car. She stabbed the keys into the ignition and revved the motor before slamming the shift into drive. She was trembling so hard that gripping the steering wheel was an effort, but she exited the driveway and turned onto the main road. The little car picked up speed as she pressed hard on the gas, and the service station came into view within minutes. Her cell began to ring with the melody assigned to Ross and she pulled over to find her phone.