by Langston, K.
Maddie’s eyes widened at her words tossed back to her from years ago. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pulling me in for a hug.
“Thank you. You’re the bestest friend a girl could have,” I patted her back and hugged her tighter.
“You too sweetie.”
When we arrived at Archer’s, he went to his office to finalize our travel plans for the following morning while I went upstairs to get ready for bed. I had no idea what to expect with this trip into his past. And that made me very nervous. I wanted to know more about her. I wanted to know what happened between them, and if the insecurity in my gut was from the fact that they were still married after all of this time. Was he truly ready to let her go?
With a tank top and a pair of cotton panties on, I crawled into his big comfy bed with my eReader. I was just getting to the good stuff when his sexy voice broke the silence.
“Now that is something I could definitely get used to,” Propped up against the doorway, he gave me a lazy grin.
“Oh yeah, what’s that?” Archer sauntered into the room, each step perfectly calculated, bringing him to the foot of the bed.
He stared down at me, a pleased smile tugging one corner of his mouth. “You look good in my bed.”
“This is a really nice bed,” I sunk down further beneath the duvet.
Keeping his eyes locked with mine he crawled up the bed, slowly, methodically. With both hands resting on each side of my thighs, I inhaled his scent. “What cha readin’?” he asked before his mouth found the column of my neck. The air stalled in my lungs, making it impossible to speak. “I asked you a question, sweetheart.” He continued his kisses down my throat, tugging at the scoop of my tank to look inside.
His heavy green eyes shot to mine, a lone brow raised in question. “Romance novel,”
“Interesting, what’s it about?”
“Cookin’,” I teased.
“Oh, she’s got jokes.” He brought his mouth back to the spot just below my ear and my thighs clenched in agony.
“They’re about to make love,” I breathed.
Archer’s kisses stopped abruptly. Pulling back, he looked deep into my eyes and smiled. “Say it,”
“What?”
“You know what you want. Say it,”
Setting my device on the bedside table, I reached up and cradled his tense jaw. “Make love to me,”
“With fuckin’ pleasure baby,”
He kissed me slowly, slipping his tongue in and out of my mouth as he eased me down further. Crawling beneath the duvet, he pulled my tank over my head before pressing our hot bodies together. He angled my head this way and that while he made sweet love to my mouth. I hiked one leg over his thigh, seeking more.
“Archer please,” I begged against his mouth.
“This is what you wanted, slow and sweet,” He rolled on top of me, grinding his hard cock against me, pushing a soft moan from my mouth.
The passion in his eyes warmed my heart, seeping down into the depths of my soul. I would do anything and give up everything for him to look at me like this forever.
“What’s going through that pretty little head of yours?”
Lifting my hands to his rough face, I looked into his remarkable green eyes. “How much I love you and how nothing will ever change that.” I reached up to kiss him but he beat me to it. My hands fell away from his face, taking up residence on his back as he kissed me deep into the pillow. It wasn’t rough. It wasn’t forceful. It was tender and gentle, conveying his strong love and reassurance.
I fell apart the moment he was inside of me. Emotions screamed throughout my body while his deliberate strokes began to stoke an everlasting fire.
Love.
I felt it pouring off of him with every kiss, every touch, and every look.
“Ah fuck baby, I love that face. Let me see it again.” I writhed beneath him, my body completely limp and pliant to his insistent thrusts. His mouth settled mere inches above mine as he eased more of his weight on top of me. With his hands cradling both of the sides of my head, the intensity of our intimacy peeked and my back bowed from the bed, nails clawing at this tight skin.
“That’s it baby.” Archer moved faster. “One more time,”
I shook my head from side to side. It was too much and not enough, so much more than I ever imagined.
“Yes, baby,”
Thrust…thrust…
“I love you,”
Thrust…thrust…thrust…
“So fuckin’ much,”
Archer’s strangled moan brought my wayward eyes back to his. Sweat dotted his bunched brows, and I could see the myriad of emotions play out on his face.
It was primal.
It was fierce.
It was love.
Forgiveness is a virtue of the brave.
~Indria Gandhi
I collapsed on top of her. The side of my sweaty face rested on her heaving chest while I battled for air. I could hear her heart thundering inside her chest, thumping against my ear. It matched the beat of mine.
Raising my head, I found her sated brown eyes. “Making love is underrated.”
She laughed, her face glowing with love and happiness, giving me a sense of peace and belonging that I hadn’t had in a long fucking time.
It was just after two, and we’d yet to fall asleep. Our legs and feet were tangled beneath the sheet while her finger drew lazy circles around the center of my chest. Sometimes she would trace the ink along my shoulders and arms, but mostly she explored the landscape in front of her. The top of her foot worried the bottom of mine and the intimate connection made me fall for her a little more.
Was that even fucking possible?
“What’s your middle name?” she asked.
I chuckled, pressing her hand to my chest. “You gotta promise not to laugh.”
Her eyes lit up and she smothered a smile. “I won’t laugh. Promise,”
I straightened my mouth into a serious line and deepened my voice. “My real name is not Archer.”
Her head perked up and her body stiffened. “What?”
“It’s Archibald Thatcher Brooks.”
Katherine cupped her mouth, fielding a chuckle. The sound was like a familiar song and only my heart knew the lyrics. I wanted to put it on repeat. “Sorry, that’s a mouthful and so not you.”
“Yeah, I know. It was my grandfather’s name. They called him Archie. When I came along, they didn’t want any confusion, so my grandma came up with Archer.”
Katherine rested her chin on her folded arm, resuming her earlier position.
“What’s yours?”
“Elaine,”
“I like that. Katherine Elaine. It’s beautiful,” she smiled, dragging her finger across my neck.
After a while, her face turned serious and she stopped moving her finger once more. “How’d your parent’s die?”
“Car accident,”
She released a small gasp and her face fell in remorse. “I’m so sorry,”
I shrugged. “I was young. I don’t remember any of it. I had a good childhood and my grandparents gave me plenty of love,” I smiled at her. “You remind me a lot of my grandmother.”
Her face beamed. “Really?”
Cupping her face, I looked deep into her eyes. “Yes, she was a damn good woman. Sweet and perfect. Just like you. She would have loved you very much,” I kissed her lips.
We laid there in silence for a while longer. Her head pressed to my chest and her even breath feathering my skin. I closed my tired eyes, bathing in her heat.
“Tell me about Megan.”
My blood went from warm and calm to ice cold in seconds. Her name alone elicited so much fucking anger and resentment that I could hardly see straight. Reluctantly, I slid from beneath Katherine’s comforting body to sit on the edge of the bed.
I could feel her shift behind me. “How long were you married?”
“Three years,”
“How’d you meet?”
&nbs
p; I cut my eyes over my shoulder. “Is that really important?”
Her long black hair covered each breast but her pink nipples were peeking out between the wavy locks, angel wings teasing me. I cursed my weeping cock and pushed from the bed.
“Not really,” she mumbled.
With the sheet draped across her waist, she sat cross legged in the center of the mattress. Her innocence was as endearing as the black cross tattooed on the inside of her wrist. “I wanna know everything about you. I wanna know everything you’ve been through that’s made you the man I love today.” she finished with nothing but love and acceptance shining in her eyes.
I pulled on a pair of briefs and ran a nervous hand through my hair. Fuck, I was not looking forward to seeing her. If I got this worked up over answering a few questions, then what fucking mess would I be when I saw her again? I had to get my shit together. I had to show her I was over this shit.
Hell, was I?
Fuck!!!
I gritted my teeth to keep from screaming it though the room. I took several steady breaths as I paced back and forth at the foot of the bed, stopping once to snag a peppermint from my stash.
Katherine waited patiently. “I don’t wanna walk into this blind, Archer. I need to know you’re over her. Your happiness is far more important than what she did to you. Even after you divorce her, you must find a way to forgive her before you can truly move on.”
“Forgive her? You’re jokin’ right?”
She lifted her chin. “No, it’s the only way.”
“Bullshit,”
“Baby, I’m just being real with you. When you choose not to forgive, you allow someone else control over your life.”
“I love you, but that’s the biggest crock of shit I’ve ever heard. There are some things that are just unfuckingforgivable.”
“Then tell me,”
Sliding a hand down my face, I inhaled a sharp breath.
Fuck it.
“She betrayed me. She deceived me in ways I never thought possible. Imagine loving someone so much that you would do anything or be anything to make them happy, only to find out that the only reason they married you was for your money. She never loved me. Our marriage was a lie. Tell me how the fuck you forgive someone for that?”
Katherine got to her knees, scooting to the foot of the bed where I’d stopped pacing. Her tiny cotton panties rested low on her hips and her dark hair was a wild mess around her. She reached out and cupped my cheeks, sincerity strong in her eyes. “I will never hurt you, and I will never betray you. Never. But until you forgive her, you’ll never be truly mine. I want all of you- remember?”
Shit, she’s right.
And she fucking knows it. “Has it ever occurred to you that maybe this happened for a reason?” she asked.
“Having my heart ripped out and losing half my fortune happened for a fuckin’ reason? Please, enlighten me.”
“If all that hadn’t have happened, you wouldn’t be here now…with me. This is fate, baby.”
“I don’t believe in fate. To give something like that so much control over us is impossible for me to do. I believe in us. I believe in you. Fuck fate.”
I didn’t give her a chance to respond before I took her mouth.
Then I took her again before we fell asleep in each other’s arms, but not before one last thought sliced through my head.
Could I ever forgive her?
We claimed our luggage at LAS, and then made our way out front. Dry humid air invaded my lungs and heated my skin as we stepped outside. The limo I’d requested was parked at the curb.
“Sir,” Our driver greeted, extending his hand.
“Good to see ya again, Parker. Glad you could be here on such short notice.”
“Anything for my best clients. I’m all yours for as long as you need me,” he smiled, opening the door.
“Very good. Parker this is Ms. Vaughn.”
“Afternoon ma’am,” Parker lifted his fedora. “Please, allow me.” He took our bags and began loading them into the car.
After I helped her into the car, I walked to the back. “I want privacy once we get on the road. Gimme a heads up ten minutes out?” I demanded, slipping a couple of bills into his hand.
“Absolutely sir,”
I climbed into the car. She was sitting on the opposite bench, facing me and looking around in complete awe of the luxurious interior. “This is so nice, Archer. I’ve never ridden in a limo before.”
I smiled, my mind toying with countless possibilities. The car was set into motion along with my wicked plan. “Baby,” She stopped her wondering eyes, swinging them back to mine. “I wanna see you,”
Biting her bottom lip, she squirmed in her seat, shaking her head no. Did she think I was kidding?
“He can’t see anything and he knows better. Show me. Show me what’s mine. Show me what you have waiting for me between those gorgeous fuckin’ thighs.” She was wearing some gauzy looking skirt, a loose fitting tank top and per my request, no fucking panties. It was all I could think about since we left the house this morning.
Her face flushed. “Archer,” she pleaded.
“Lift the fuckin’ skirt and show me.” I leaned forward, clasping my hands in front of me. I was ready to pounce, but I maintained control. “Now,” Her chest rose and fell, searching for air and courage. Sucking in a steely breath, she fisted the material and pulled it up, revealing her closed legs one painful inch at a time. “Look at me.” Blinking twice, her dark eyes held mine. I swear my demands were like some kind of switch, flipping her to life every damn time. “Show the world to me,”
Lifting her chin, she gave me a small smile and then placed her hands on top of her shaking knees. Her nails scraped up and down and the sight of goose bumps rippling across her skin urged me to take her, mark her. Own every last part of her and never give it back. Those goose bumps belonged to me. I put them there. I gave them to her. I was teetering between human and animal, on the verge of losing my goddamn mind.
She spread her legs slowly, tucking her chin to her chest and anchoring me with a seductive gaze from beneath her lashes. A part of me I would never get back was sitting five feet away… with her legs spread wide, awaiting my next command. I’ve licked from a silver spoon and I’ve drank from a golden cup, but nothing, and I mean nothing, compared to the divine woman sitting across from me.
My angel.
My goddess.
My saving fucking grace.
Lost in my silent revelry, I had no time to prepare for what happened next. She moved her hand between her legs, dragging her fingers through her wet flesh.
My entire body tensed with overpowering need. “What do you think you doing?” I growled.
“I need you, Archer. Please,” Grinding her ass into the seat, she massaged her pink hungry pussy, never taking her eyes off of me.
Relaxing back, I spread my legs in invitation. “Well then come and get it,”
She began to crawl across the floor. My girl, the woman I loved more than fucking life itself, crawled across the goddamn floor to me. Spreading my legs wider, I squeezed my cock.
Fuck.
When her nails raked down my jeans, I jerked up in my seat to grab the back of her neck. “You’re fuckin’ killin’ me.” I confessed against her lips before plunging my tongue to the back of her throat.
Her warm palms found my cheeks and her sharp nails scraped across the back of my neck. We drank from one another as if our lives depended on it. As if we would never drink again. How did I get here? To the point where one did not exist without the other?
Pushing on my chest, Katherine climbed onto my lap and hitched up her skirt to bunch around her waist. Eager hands fumbled to unbuckle my belt while passion and desire painted her beautiful face. She rescued my cock from the confines of his tortured hell.
With her tiny hand wrapped around the solid length she centered herself and fell with a heated gasp. “Yes,” she cried.
My cock begged to be deep
er, to connect to the very heart of her. If home is where the heart is, then she is my fucking refuge. No matter where I went or what I did, this was where I belonged. The one place I could always come back to.
My home was her… with her, beside her, inside of her.
Always.
I was born with an enormous need for affection,
and a terrible need to give it.
~Audrey Hepburn
My mind, my body, my soul….they were all so full, bursting, overflowing with every kind of emotion conceivable. I felt high. I’d never done drugs in my life, but I was pretty sure this is what it felt like. And I would do anything to get my next fix. I’d been reduced to crawling across the floor to please this man for crying out loud. But that’s what he did to me, connected with me on such a level, only he and I could comprehend. He demanded every dark part of me, and he loved me all the more because of it.
My thoughts scattered like marbles when his strong fingers dug deep into the skin of my thighs. “You know how I want it. Move those fuckin’ hips.”
I began to move, grinding and bouncing up and down, taking him in deeper and deeper with every bounce. Vibrating with electricity and tingling with the never ending currents of desire, passion and love.
The bombardment of it all shattered me, sent me flying in a million different directions. I came hard and fast, chanting his name over and over and over.
“Fuck,” Fascinated and high on the lusty fumes, I watched his face scrunch tight as deep groans escaped his parted lips. With one arm banded around my waist, he brought my forehead to his shoulder with his other hand, coming deep inside of me. My lungs screamed for air.
“We will be arriving at your destination in approximately ten minutes, Mr. Brooks.” Parker’s voice breached our heavy breathing.
Seizing the sides of my face, Archer pulled my lips to his. “Do you know how hot you look when you’ve been thoroughly fucked?”
“’Bout as good as you do,” I murmured against his lips and he smiled. It was a glorious smile, one I would remember for as I long as I live, one that belonged to only me.