A Woman Worth Fighting For

by Eunice Hart

  Before long, the thoughts grew crowded at the forefront of her mind and she shoved them aside. Overthinking never did anyone any good.

  “You look like you’ve got a lot on your mind,” Peter observed, looking at her with concern. “Are you okay?”

  She wondered if she should tell him what she’d been thinking about. It would be nice to have the conversation with him, at least once.

  “Yeah,” she told him, flashing a smile. “I’m fine.”

  “Good.” He pulled her into his arms. “Because I need you to be in the perfect mood for what I’m going to do to you in there.”

  He always knew the right words to make her weak in the knees.

  The house was beautiful on the inside, but Peter hadn’t brought her here to give her a tour of the place. He whisked her towards the stairs, and they hurried up to the master bedroom. Adele’s eyes widened as she gazed around. Was this a bedroom or a tennis court with a bed and curtains in it? It was super large and filled with antique-looking furniture that gleamed in the soft light from the ceiling overhead. Looking around the room made Adele gush in awe. This was no ordinary house. It was pretty much a palace. She could definitely imagine sleeping in here, next to him, and waking up beside him.

  Except she’d probably have to worry about Aneko poisoning her morning coffee or something.

  “You do have something on your mind,” Peter said. “You don’t have to tell me what it is. Luckily, I’ve got the perfect solution for whatever is troubling you.”

  “Sex?” She rolled her eyes at him. “You really think that’s a problem solver?”

  “You seem to really crave it, so yeah,” he pointed out.

  Touché. As if trying to make a point, he walked up to her and placed both hands on her waist, keeping them there for a second before sliding them down to her butt. Adele gasped as he gave it a squeeze, kneading her cheeks in his hands. He pulled her gown up her thighs, his fingers trailing a path along her flesh as he did, and Adele felt a shiver of anticipation. She held on to his shoulders as he finally reached the apex of her thighs and began rubbing her through her panties. Adele felt tendrils of pleasure shoot up into her body as he massaged her clit.

  “Peter –”

  “Shh,” he said, leaning down to give her a kiss. His fingers moved some more, then he yanked her panties aside to get better access. Adele moaned as he slipped two fingers inside her and began to pump, his fingers stroking her inner walls. They were long and tough, and each time he pushed them up inside her, she felt the pleasure build up inside her. His thumb stroked her clit, intensifying the sensation. If he kept this up...

  “Oh, Peter…”

  “I’m not stopping until you come,” he told her, looking intently into his eyes. When he spoke again, his tone was authoritative, commanding. “Come for me, Adele.”

  She was more than willing. With a sharp cry, that filled the bedroom, she came, her juices squirting onto Peter’s hand and the front of his pants, creating squishy sounds as he continued to finger her. Her body convulsed and she leaned more heavily against him in a bid to steady herself. Peter withdrew his fingers and brought them to his mouth.

  “Feeling better?” he asked, licking her juices off his fingers.

  Adele smiled, but said nothing. Peter smirked and led her to the bed, laying her on her back and pulling all her clothes off her. She shivered with anticipation as he divested himself of his own clothing and knelt between her thighs, his cock already long and rigid. He positioned himself against her entrance and shoved home.

  She nearly screamed at the suddenness with which he filled her. It took her only a few seconds to get accustomed to the size of his cock. Peter began to move, timing his strokes, spreading her legs wide apart enough for him to go as deep as possible. A sudden thought occurred to Adele and she suddenly placed her hand on his chest to get him to quit stroking.

  “Peter, stop.”

  He paused, mid-thrust, his expression betraying his sudden concern. “What’s wrong? I’m not hurting you, am I?”

  “No.” She smiled at him. “I want to ride you.”

  If he was surprised by her sudden request, he didn’t show it. Without another word, Peter rolled off her onto his back, his expression eager. Adele straddled his hips, her pussy hovering right over his cock. She slowly sank onto him, a low moan escaping her lips as he filled her. For a few seconds, she remained as she was, trying to get used to this new position, then began to ride him, rocking heavily against his cock. Both Peter and Adele moaned in unison, his hands on her hips, one of her hands splayed across his chest and the other fondling hers.

  “Oh, yes, baby,” Peter grunted, looking like he was fighting back his release. “God, who would’ve known you could ride like this?”

  She felt a rush of pride as his words washed over her, and rode harder, faster, making sure to grind her clit against his crotch. She clenched her inner walls around his cock, smirking when his face scrunched up in pleasure. She could feel her next orgasm hovering near, but she wanted to see who would outlast the other. She clenched his cock again and he shot her a dirty look.

  “I know what you’re trying to do,” he growled. “Two can play at that game.”

  With that, he pressed his thumb against her clit, rubbing the swollen nub until Adele thought she might die of ecstasy. Her orgasm came faster than she’d anticipated, and soon she was crying her pleasure as she came all over his cock, her nails digging into his chest.

  “Yes, girl,” Peter said still rubbing her clit. “Don’t stop.”

  Suddenly, he flipped them over so that he was back on top of her and resumed his strokes, going deeper and deeper until she thought she might die of pleasure. He pounded harder than ever into her, his breaths growing shallower, and she knew he was about to come. Adele clenched her walls around him a final time and his eyes gave a flutter, his mouth hanging open as he came, spilling his warm seed inside her. He gave a last pump and collapsed on top of her, breathing heavily.

  “You’re amazing,” he told her.

  Adele couldn’t help grinning. “You keep telling me positive things.”

  Peter kissed her. “That’s because they’re all true.”

  His words filled her with a surge of confidence. At the same time, she felt her strength wane. Peter rolled off her and she curled up next to him, placing her head on his chest. He felt hard and warm and his heartbeat had a steady rhythm to it, and she found herself growing even more relaxed.

  “I love you Peter,” she told him, giving his chest a rub.

  His smile was the last thing she saw before she drifted into unconsciousness.

  She could have slept for days, but a familiar buzz jerked her awake. Adele got into a sitting position and looked around. She was still in Peter’s bedroom, completely naked, though he’d put a blanket over.

  That was when she saw him. Standing at the edge of the bed. Frowning at her phone.

  Oh, no. It didn’t take long for Adele to put two and two together. He’d obviously just turned on her phone, for reasons she wasn’t quite sure about. Naturally, Josh had called. And now one of the things she’d been trying to avoid had happened.

  His gaze flickered off the phone screen onto her face and his frown deepened. “Adele, who is this person? And why does he keep phoning you?”

  Adele let out a sigh. She was going to have to explain at some point. “It’s Josh.”

  Peter’s face contorted all at once into different expressions she couldn’t quite place, but she recognized a few. For a moment, he looked like he wasn’t sure he’d heard correctly. Then he looked confused. Then he looked angry.

  “What the fuck?” he snapped. “Is this why you’ve been keeping your phone off all this time?”

  Adele nodded. “But it’s not what you think,” she added before he could get any madder. “I think he must’ve gotten my phone number from the staff. He’s been trying to get through to me because of what happened the other day, but I haven’t been picking his calls
. I don’t intend to anytime soon.”

  Peter still looked mad. “You want me to take care of him?”

  “No!” she exclaimed. As much as she detested Josh, the thought of using Peter’s privilege to get him thrown behind bars didn’t quite sit well with her. “I’d rather just shut him out of my life and move on.”

  Move on. The words sounded like a joke to her. Because till this day, Adele didn’t think she had moved on. Not from everything Josh had done to her. As much as she trusted Peter, she sometimes couldn’t help wondering whether this relationship wouldn’t just blow up in her face like her last had. It was because of this that Aneko had managed to get into her head so easily. Move on? Those two words had never sounded so impossible.

  Peter’s jaw clenched, but he seemed to consider her words. “Fine,” he said, handing her phone back to her. “But if anything happens, don’t hesitate to let me know. I’d prefer if you told me what was on your mind.”

  Including the recent thoughts, she was having about marriage? Did he wanted her to tell him about that?

  “Sure,” she told him, pulling her lips back in a smile.

  He stared at her for a moment, then climbed onto the bed and kissed her on the lips. “I love you, too. Now, we should get going. Aneko should be arriving in the next hour or so, and I’m sure you don’t want to be here when –”

  The distant sound of a door being shut reached their ears from downstairs. Adele and Peter stared at each other; eyes wide.

  “She’s an hour early,” he muttered. “Shit.”

  A minute and twenty seconds later, they were both heading down the stairs, fully clothed. Aneko was waiting for them at the bottom, hands on her hips. Adele thought she saw anger flash in the woman’s eyes, but when she drew closer, Aneko was smiling.

  “Hello, brother!” she said with a cheerfulness any idiot could tell was false. “And…Miss Creampied.”

  “Kincaid,” Adele corrected with the same forced cheerfulness.

  “Ah, my bad.” Aneko gave a shrug. “Though, given the present situation, I think it’s pretty accurate. I hope you had fun?”

  Adele wanted more than anything to launch herself at the other woman, but she wasn’t going to let her anger get the best of her. Not today. Maintaining her smile, she replied, “As a matter of fact, I did.”

  “I want to assume you were careful, but knowing you…anyway, I hope you’ve considered my offer?”

  The memory of Aneko snatching the necklace off Adele’s neck filled her head immediately and she bit back the urge to scream at the woman. Beside her, Peter shifted uncomfortably.

  “Aneko, that’s enough,” he said. “Adele has somewhere she needs to be right now.”

  Aneko pouted. “But I was just starting to enjoy our conversation.”

  “No more,” he replied with an air of finality. He brought his hand to the small of Adele’s back. “Let’s go.”

  Adele was nothing if not obliging. They had just gotten to the bottom of the stairs when Aneko said, “Why don’t you come over for dinner sometime? Maybe Saturday?”

  “She’s not interested,” Peter snapped.

  “Saturday sounds fine,” Adele said. He shot her an incredulous look, but she ignored him. She was already growing tired of having to avoid Aneko. At some point, she was going to have to confront the woman, show her she wasn’t as weak as she thought she was. Maybe that time was now…or, well, Saturday.

  Aneko looked genuinely taken aback by her boldness, but she quickly covered it up with a wider grin. “Marvelous. I’ll be seeing you at eight, then? Maybe all three of us can talk about my proposal?”

  For a moment, the world proposal sent a shiver of panic down Adele’s spine. Then she realized what Aneko was talking about and her panic turned to annoyance. She clenched her jaw, contemplating saying something nasty about the woman and deciding it would be akin to compliment. Before she could come up with anything, though, Peter spoke again.

  “I said, that’s enough,” he growled. “Let’s go, Adele.”

  She let him lead her out of the house and open the door for her to get into the Porsche, feeling his sister’s eyes on her the whole time. As the car pulled further away from the mansion, she couldn’t help wondering if she hadn’t just made the biggest mistake of her life.

  *****

  “You just made the biggest mistake of your life,” Betty told her. “That woman is going to eat you up like an appetizer. Like a big, yummy appetizer.”

  “Thanks,” Adele said. “How much deeper are you going to dig that hole for me?”

  They sat together in the bedroom a few mornings later, Adele leaning against the headboard and stroking the cat in her lap, Betty drinking orange juice straight out of the carton. Adele had decided to take the day off work and had filled her in on everything that happened that day, from the calls from Josh, through the sex with Peter, to their unfortunate run-in with Aneko. She’d been hoping for some great advice from Betty, but now she wasn’t so sure if Betty’s pessimism was what she needed to hear right now.

  “I think you should cancel,” her friend suggested. “Fake an illness or something. Anything to get out of having to go there. You can get Peter to back you up so it’s convincing enough for whatshername.”

  That sounded like a great plan to Adele. Except… “That would only make me look more like a chicken. I have to go. I have to show that woman she can’t keep messing with me. I need to stand up to her.”

  “Honey, you don’t have to do anything.” Betty took a sip and frowned at the carton.

  “That’s what Peter said.” Adele snorted. “You don’t know Aneko like I do.”

  “And you think you know her better than her brother does?”

  Adele said nothing. She felt a sudden urge to throw up but suppressed it.

  Great. Now she was getting urges to throw up because of her anxiety. What was next, diarrhea?

  “You quite literally agreed to dine with the devil herself,” Betty pointed out. “That isn’t bound to turn out great, trust me.”

  This time, Adele opened her mouth to reply, but just then the urge to throw up came again. She shot to her feet, causing Muffin to spring out of her lap, and rushed for the bathroom, emptying the contents of her stomach into the sink.

  Betty appeared behind her. “Hey, are you okay?”

  “I don’t think so,” Adele admitted. This wasn’t her anxiety acting up. This was something else.

  “Are you down with something? Should I call Peter?”

  Peter…

  Suddenly a thought occurred to her and her eyes widened. She had only a moment to think, Oh, shit, before she threw up in the sink again.

  Chapter 10

  Always Wear a Pretty Dress When Going to the Slaughterhouse

  Days went by without Peter seeing Adele or hearing the sound of her voice, because now he couldn’t seem to talk to her without feeling like Aneko was watching over his shoulder. When he could, he sent a text, sometimes telling her how much he loved and missed her, but mostly trying hard to convince her not to come to dinner with Aneko. Naturally, Adele didn’t listen. Peter couldn’t believe it. Couldn’t she see that Aneko must have something nasty set in store for her?

  As the days passed, he kept an eye on Aneko so he could find out whatever she had in mind regarding Adele, but Aneko acted pretty normal for the rest of the week. She didn’t even bring up Adele in a discussion with him, which was a huge shock. He figured she was playing games with him. If she was, it was working perfectly, because Peter could feel himself slowly losing his mind trying to figure out what in the world was going on.

  By Saturday morning, he couldn’t take it anymore.

  They sat across the table from each other, the only sounds coming from their forks and knives as they ate. Every now and then, Peter caught Aneko staring at him, but she looked away before he could say anything. Eventually, he got tired of playing this game. He let his fork clatter loudly onto his plate, causing her to glance up at him.
>
  “I know you’ve got something planned.”

  “Peter, it’s bad manners to talk while eating,” Aneko said with a smirk, shoving eggs into her mouth. “Finish your breakfast, dear.”

  “I’m not hungry anymore.” He pushed his plate away. He continued to stare at his sister, his jaw clenched. “I want to talk to you about Adele.”

  For a second, the smile on Aneko’s face faded, but then it was back again. “Interesting. What could you possibly have to say about that woman that I don’t already know?”

  Peter couldn’t help noticing how she’d said that woman, like Adele was just some random commoner she’d stumbled upon once. Peter felt his annoyance rise, but he managed to stop it before it spiraled out of control. Losing his cool in front of his sister never did him any good. If anything, it only gave her the upper hand.

  “I just need you to call off the dinner,” he told her. “I don’t want you and Adele interacting any more than absolutely necessary.”

  “She already agreed to come. Why not ask her to cancel?”

  “Because she’s too stubborn to listen to me.”

  His sister flashed him an amused look. “And I’m not?”

  Fair enough. Peter couldn’t seem to shake the feeling that something big and disastrous was going to happen soon. Whatever it was, if he couldn’t convince Adele not to run headfirst into the flames, the least he could do was try to convince his sister to put them out first, so his girlfriend didn’t get burned. But Aneko didn’t sound like she was going to budge anytime soon. If anything, she was just going to add fuel to the flames.

  It annoyed him when his sister got like this, but Peter knew there was little he could do. Even if he kicked her out of his house for trying to wreck his relationship, she would find a way to do it. Once Aneko set her mind to something, stopping her was damn near impossible. And now she had her eyes on Adele, who was just as stubborn. All he could do to stop her was to try and appeal to her mind, let her see that what she was doing was nothing more but evil. But how was he supposed to do that when she was being so close-minded?