Where We Meet Again

by Wilson, A. M.

  I tug out my phone from my clutch and send Kiersten a text telling her who I’m with and that I’m safe. I wish her a happy evening with Rhett, then tuck my phone away again. I would turn it off, except Evelyn is out of town. I need to remain accessible. I just hope Nathan doesn’t contact me.

  Law’s rage seems to expand within the confines of his truck. Enclosed inside, he fires the engine and cranks the heat. Within seconds, the windows fog, and I regain some feeling in my cold, numb fingertips.

  Silence stretches as seconds turn to minutes, but Law doesn’t speak.

  “He’s not a bad guy. We were drunk.”

  Painfully slow, Law turns his head my direction. “Did he touch you?”

  The question confuses me. Didn’t he see him kissing me? “He kissed me–ˮ

  “Did he touch you?” This time Law looks pointedly at my body. My heart squeezes painfully in my chest at the thoughts he must have going through his head.

  “No, nothing like that. He only kissed me.” I leave out the part of him touching the skin of my ribs and shoving his thigh between mine. I don’t need Law flipping out. Even though he shouldn’t have done it, Nathan was drunk. He’s not a bad guy, and he didn’t intend to hurt me. If Law hadn’t shown up, I firmly believe he wouldn’t have gone any further than he did.

  Law shoves a restless hand through his hair. “Good. I wasn’t looking forward to going back in the cold to break his fucking fingers.”

  “Thank you. I can call a cab so you can get back inside.”

  He snorts. “No and no.”

  “What about your date?”

  He drums his fingertips on the steering wheel. “She wasn’t my date. I met her here.”

  The response set fire to my blood. “Oh, you’re doing that often now?”

  “What?”

  I draw his coat tighter around me and fold my arms over my chest. “What about the blond a couple weeks ago?”

  His nostrils flare. He leans forward and swipes a piece of dust off his dash.

  “Exactly. So yeah, I’m going to call a cab.”

  “They’re all you,” he mutters beneath his breath.

  “Excuse me?” The hand I reach into my clutch freezes at his words. I withdraw it and toss my clutch on the dash.

  “They’re all you! Every single one. I can’t get rid of you. And believe me, I’ve tried. I’ve tried to let go of everything I remember about you. The taste of you won’t leave me, and when I close my eyes, I hear you moaning my name.”

  I snort. “So you fuck other women to get rid of me? Nice. I’m going to go.”

  He snatches my wrist, halting my exit. “I don’t pretend to be a saint, but since you and I… I didn’t fuck any of them. Hell, I haven’t even kissed one. I sit across from them and pick apart the things that remind me of you. I give up, Cami. If I can’t get rid of you, then I have to have you.”

  “I don’t believe that’s solely your choice to make.” Even as I try to push him away, my heart races from his words. Do I dare to hope he means what he said? What are the odds this will end up like every other time he’s kissed me or touched me?

  His arm hooks me around the waist and drags me across the full bench seat until I’m firmly in his lap. His other arm barricades me in.

  “I never again, in my life, want to watch you kiss another man. Those lips are mine. This pussy…” His hand drops to cup me between my legs. “…is mine. You have always been mine. From that very first day I told you I was in love with you until now. Mine.”

  He crushes our lips together, fingers digging into my back to pull me close. It isn’t enough. Even with my breasts smashed against his chest, I don’t feel close enough. I drop my hands to the hem of my skirt, hike the fabric up so high it rides straight over my ass and settles around my waist, and rise onto my knees. Law slides to the side on the bench seat. I lift one leg to let him under and lower myself down to straddle his lap.

  Desperate to feel him, I slip my hands beneath the hem of his dark button-down shirt, then up over the soft hair on his chest.

  He breaks the kiss. Our chests rise and fall together as we catch our breaths. One hand steadies me at my hip, while his other drops to my exposed thigh. He runs his hand up to the crease of my groin and rubs his thumb along my fabric-covered clit. I jerk in his lap.

  “Your body responds like that because it’s mine.” Another swipe, another jerk, and the wetness soaks my thong. His hand keeps moving, this time in. He slips his index finger between the fabric and my pussy and runs it along the string. The material slips from where it’s nestled between my cheeks, eliciting a moan from me.

  His other hand releases my hip, and he squeezes it between us. His index finger appears in front of my face. “Suck,” he commands.

  I open my mouth without hesitation, and he slips the digit inside. I stroke it with my tongue, licking, sucking, and teasing the edge with my teeth.

  Law groans and flexes his hips so his hard erection connects with me. “I bet you give fantastic head,” he growls, his darkened eyes steady on mine.

  I shrug with a coy smile and pause my ministrations to his finger. “I wouldn’t know. I’ve never done it.”

  His head falls back against the seat, and his eyes drift closed. “Fuck yeah, baby. That’s mine too.”

  Once satisfied with my sucking, he removes the wet finger from my mouth and returns it between my legs. Where he still holds my thong away from my body, he rubs the wetness against my other hole. The unfamiliar sensation bounces me in his lap, and his responding smirk is the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.

  “That’s going to be mine too. Start you slow, but you’ll learn to love it.”

  “I don’t know, Law.” A low moan replaces the uncertainty in my tone as he rubs the spot again.

  “I need to fuck you. Do you trust me?”

  “You’re going to do it now?” I yelp and start moving to get off his lap.

  He lets go of the fabric of my panties with a snap and clamps an arm around my waist. The other hand prods more insistently and creates a sensation that becomes more arousing by the second.

  “Not going to fuck you here.” To punctuate the location, he presses deeply against my asshole. “Fuck you here.” He shifts his hand, slipping easily through the wetness to glide his pinky and ring finger inside me. At the same time they fill me, his index finger slips in my ass to the first knuckle.

  “Oh, my god,” I breathe, dropping my forehead against his shoulder.

  All his fingers move, pumping slowly in and out of both holes. The sensation is nothing like I’ve ever felt before.

  “I’m going to die if you stop.”

  “I won’t stop. Get ready, because you’re about to take my cock.”

  My legs shake as I rock my hips on his hand. The movement comes instinctually, and I can’t stop it.

  Not that I want to. I absolutely do not want to.

  He works himself free with his other hand, then moves it to my waist. The pressure of his touch urges me to lift. He sinks lower in the seat, slides his two little fingers out of my pussy, and positions his cock below me.

  “Reach down and put me in you, baby. Hurry.”

  I line him up, and without waiting for him, I sink myself down on his hard cock.

  “Jesus, fuck, you feel good. Ride me. I want to watch you take me.”

  His words spur me on. I’ve never done this before, but this is Law. If I had any insecurities, the look of unadulterated bliss on his face completely wipes them away.

  With his cock in my pussy and his finger filling my ass, I ride him.

  The fogged windows give the illusion of privacy, but even if they were wide open, I’m so far beyond caring. The feel of his warm flesh beneath me, filling me, his free hand touching me, keeps my attention completely.

  Our breathing increases, the sound of our skin slapping together grows louder, and then I’m reaching the precipice, clenching around his finger and cock, and riding the tidal wave of an orgasm like I’v
e never felt in my life.

  He gives that to me, letting me come down before he takes over. Powering into me, he slips his finger from my hole, and the loss of fullness nearly sends me over the edge again. A few more pumps and he stills, planted to the root, his dick throbbing, and the deep sensation throws me into another orgasm.

  His mouth takes mine, softer this time, and our breathing slows together. When he pulls away, he runs his thumb down the side of my cheek. “Why are you so incredible?”

  The question flatters me and warms me. In answer, I lean in and suck gently at his neck.

  His fingers flex into my hips. “Keep that up, and I’m going to fuck you again.”

  My head shoots up. “What’s wrong with that?”

  “Nothing. I’d rather get you home first, but I won’t make it there if you don’t keep your mouth to yourself.”

  I crawl off, fix my thong, tug my skirt down, and buckle up.

  Law’s response isn’t verbal either. He throws the truck into drive.

  I reciprocate by giving my very first blow job the entire way to his house, not caring that first bit that he tastes like me.

  19

  The incessant ringing of my phone won’t stop, pulling me from a fantastic dream. I throw a hand out toward my nightstand, slapping things out of the way in a sloppy attempt to locate my phone.

  Something clatters loudly to the floor. The ringing stops, and I sigh. Thank you, universe. I dive my head back beneath my pillows.

  The last two days were something out of a dream. I didn’t know two people could make love so many times and in so many ways. Other than coming up for food, we spent the weekend naked in his bed, in the house he built himself just outside the city limits.

  Not just any house, but a dream house. Brand new, cool, and modern, and his amazing taste filters through every room. I always knew Law had a thing for architecture, but witnessing something he created is just short of incredible.

  Somewhere during a sustenance break, he gave me a grand tour. He showed me the outdoor shower and sauna (that we had sex in), a hot tub beneath a retractable awning (that we also had sex in), and the master walk-in, stone shower with a built-in bench seat that was long enough for Law to lie down and still had enough room for me to sit.

  He also shared he moved to Arrow Creek for work, but not as an exterminator. That was a temporary job he picked up to help a friend. Day to day, he works as a general contractor at his own business. He won a bid to build a new strip mall beginning in the spring, and he wanted to come early to get the lay of the land and a place to live.

  My phone starts up again, crushing my opportunity to relive the weekend.

  The pillow comes off and flies across the room. I tear the blankets off my body next and push into a sitting position.

  “I’m up! I’m freaking up!”

  Good thing Evelyn isn’t home. She’d think I’ve gone crazy yelling at nobody in my room.

  I find my phone pushed to the other side of my nightstand.

  Nathan calling…

  I groan and rub my eyes, setting the phone back down as memories of the other night flash through my mind. Why is he calling so early in the morning?

  I don’t even know what time it is. I turn the phone over again.

  9: 47 a. m.

  Okay, so it’s not the crack of dawn, but still early after a weekend of zero sleep.

  I should probably get up now that I’m awake. But I was having such a pleasant dream. Law and me naked, his hands and mouth doing delicious things to my body that he’s been the only one to do.

  The ringing starts again.

  Something’s wrong. Nathan feels bad for the other night, I’m sure, and probably wants to apologize, but he wouldn’t keep calling me for that. He knows me well enough to know that calling me repeatedly when I don’t want to answer would only piss me off.

  No. Something is wrong. Acid crawls up my throat and my stomach churns as I pick up my phone and hit the green button with a trembling finger.

  “Nathan.” His name scrapes out of my throat.

  “Cami.” One word serves as the crack that crumbles my entire world. So much raw pain riddles my name, it’s nearly palpable.

  “What is it? Tell me what’s going on.” Years of emergency training sets me into motion. I strip down and tug on my jeans before he can answer.

  “You need to get in your car and meet me at the hospital.” His words are measured and concise, but it’s the weight of what isn’t said that causes my arms to shake.

  I pull the phone away from my head and tug a sweatshirt on before bringing it back. “What happened, Nathan? Who is it?”

  Socks. Keys. Wallet. Shoes. I sprint down the hall, and he still hasn’t answered me. I just hit the foyer when I ask again. “Who is it?” I hold my keys at my side, dangling from my index finger. Ragged breaths echo around the small space as I wait for him to get it over with.

  “Cami–ˮ

  The calm slips and I screech. “Who is it?”

  “It’s Evelyn.”

  Two seconds flat, the door’s ripped open. I clear the stairs and fire the engine of my car to life.

  Nathan must hear it, and it knocks him out of whatever daze he’s in. “You need to drive careful. The snow last night left a lot of frozen areas on the road. Power’s out all across town.”

  “You need to tell me what happened right now.”

  “Picked up a shift. A call came through right before I called you. I’m in the ambulance right now. Single car accident. Hit a patch of black ice. I don’t know who got the information, but they shared it was Evelyn.”

  Depressing the gas pedal, all I see is a blur of white. The trees, buildings, power lines all blend into a snowy canvas. The only thing on my mind is getting to Evelyn as quickly as possible. “Where is she?”

  “It’ll be faster if you meet me at the hospital.”

  “Nathan, I swear to god if you don’t tell me where she is I will never speak to you again.”

  He rattles off an intersection five miles away from where I am.

  “Cami,” he begins, but says no more as if he stops himself from sharing too much.

  “Please.” My voice breaks on that one word, and I feel not an ounce of shame for it. “What more do you know?”

  “It just… it’s bad. I can’t stop you from coming. Prepare yourself. I want you to focus on getting there safe. You can’t do anything for Evelyn if you get hurt on the way.”

  “I don’t care about anything other than getting to her.” With each word, my chest tightens until I choke on a shuddering breath.

  “Breathe, Cami. We’re two minutes out.”

  The whoop of a siren sounds nearby. I’m close too. Snow blows across the road, inhibiting my view to near impossibility. The fight against the tears fails the closer I get to the scene. My heart pummels my ribs to the tune of a boxer working his punching bag. I can feel it without even placing a hand on my chest.

  Nathan’s radio crackles and beeps across the phone line. I strain my ears as the first glimpse of flashing red and blue comes into view.

  Vehicle is upside down. Reporting one DOA, over.

  I hyperventilate. There isn’t enough oxygen in the world to slow my spastic diaphragm. My lungs ache and burn in their quest to supply my body with air. A strangled sound leaves my throat. One hand tears from the steering wheel, and I claw at my neck.

  The sound of a door slamming comes over the phone. I forgot we’re still connected.

  “Talk to me. I see you. Slow down, honey. You’re here.”

  I have enough mind to slow the car down gently and not plow through the people working the scene. As soon as it stops moving, I slam the shifter in park and throw my door open. My body lurches faster than I can get my feet out, and I tumble out into the snow.

  Wind whips my ears, and the entire world paints a frosty white scene. In my haste to leave, I’d forgotten a jacket, but the cold hardly registers. I crawl through the snow on my elbows and kne
es around my door, then push myself to my feet. Agony rips through my chest. A black body bag lays zipped in the snow, the shape showing it’s filled.

  “Evelyn!” I scream, slipping across snow and ice to find her. Refusing to believe the possibility that she’s the body in the bag, my eyes dart around frantically, scanning the face of every person nearby. Several seconds pass before I realize I don’t even see the accident site, so I search for the car.

  That’s when I find it.

  Two twisted beams of metal, a hole in the middle where a vehicle tore through the guardrail.

  “No!”

  I lunge for that hole, terrified of what I’ll find. Or what I won’t find. One body has been located, so where are the rest? Where’s my little girl? The one who turned my life upside down and gave me a new reason to live?

  I’ve nearly cleared the road to the other side when strong arms band around my torso, trapping my arms at my sides, and haul me back into a hard chest.

  “Please, let me go. Please!” I plead. My arms wrap up and clutch the ones that hold me steady.

  “You have to let them do their jobs. There’s nothing you can do. Let them do their jobs, and they’ll get Evelyn.” Nathan holds me tight, his forehead presses against my temple and his lips are at my ear. He sways us back and forth while he murmurs to me, his voice steady and strong.

  My eyes remain wild, darting around at every source of movement, but the fight leaks out of my body. I clutch Nathan like a lifeline. Tears run a torrent down my cheeks. His warmth seeps into me, replacing the numbness, and making me painfully aware of all the areas that are freezing and exposed.

  The shivers come next as I watch rescuers go down into the ravine. I can’t take it much longer.

  “Bring me closer. I need to see what’s going on.”

  “You have to let them work.”

  “I’ll stay out of their way. I just need to see. Please.”

  Without releasing me, Nathan walks us closer. I can’t tell if he is holding me for support or to keep me from throwing myself over the side of the road, and frankly, I don’t care. In that moment, I’d let him do just about anything so long as he gets me closer to Evelyn.