by Milly Taiden
He laughed and motioned to his sports car with his head. That was another thing. He was rich. Like fucking loaded. She hadn’t realized how well off he’d been in the past, because he worked like his bank account depended on it. So when she found out from a news article that her man was one of the town’s most eligible bachelors with enough money to buy the whole damn state, she’d been more than a little pissed he hadn’t told her.
“I will get you all the coffee you want,” he promised, his blue eyes dancing with laughter. “Come on, we have to get going to do what we have to do.”
She might regret it later, but she’d try. Ash was the love of her life. It’d be stupid of her to ignore her feelings.
* * *
Ash watched Kari’s face pale.
“Sky diving? Are you out of your ever-loving mind?” She gasped. “The last time we did this, I was drunk and strapped to you. Why would I want to do this again?”
He laughed. “Because this time you won’t be drunk. Therefore, no getting sick when we land. And you will still be strapped to me, darling.”
She narrowed her eyes, slapping her hands on her hips. Gorgeous hips that urged him to get her naked whenever he glanced at them. “I will have you know, I am not in the mood to try that shit again. So think again, Romeo.”
He shook his head and lifted her hand to his lips. “I see you’ve gone back to your term of endearment for me. I like that. But why don’t you just do it this one time, and I promise it will be worth it.”
She nibbled on her lip and glanced at the plane. “I don’t know...”
“Come on. If you never want to do it again after this, I will never ask. I promise.”
She sighed, a look of defeat covering her features. “Fine, but if I get sick, I am not talking to you again.”
“Ouch!” He pressed her hand to his chest. “I said it will be worth it, and I mean it.”
They wore some special helmets that covered the back of their heads and ears, with microphones attached so he could talk to her on their way down. There was a small screen at the top of hers that showed her his face and vice versa. This way he could see her reaction to the drop on their way down. Last time he hadn’t thought to do it, but this time he needed to see her face. Twenty minutes later, they stood at the edge of the plane, wind howling in their ears and nearly pushing them off their feet.
“Ready?” he said into his mic.
“Yes, you crazy man. I can’t believe you talked me into this again!” she yelled with a smile, her gaze on the clouds below them.
He counted to three, and they jumped. Her scream and wide-eyed wonderment made it that much more amazing for him. He’d skydived hundreds of times but never had it been this special.
“Kari,” he screamed into his mic, knowing that the speed and wind would make it almost impossible for her to hear.
“Yes?”
He tugged on the parachute strap, and things slowed down. “I love you.”
She laughed and glanced at the tiny camera shooting her face. “I love you, too.”
They were getting closer to the ground. Showtime.
“Look over to your left side. The field by the big water tower,” he said.
“Is that...? Oh my god!”
He laughed at her scream just as they were nearing ground. He maneuvered the parachute until their feet touched the ground and dragged them forward about five feet before coming to a complete stop. He untangled them from the chute, unbuckling both and letting them separate.
She flipped around to face him, taking the helmet off and staring at him with wide eyes.
“Is that...? Is that for real?”
He nodded, looking at the rows of hay that formed the words ‘Marry Me?’ “I was stupid in the past, letting you go and not even bothering to admit my mistakes.”
He got down on one knee, watching her eyes widen even more and her lip tremble. “Will you marry me, Kari? Make me the happiest bear in this city?”
She nodded, her eyes filling with moisture. “Yes. I will.”
He jumped to his feet and hugged her tight, kissing her for all he was worth. He’d made mistakes and could understand that things with them hadn’t lasted as long as he’d hoped their last round, but now was a chance for him to make sure they both got the love that they deserved.
SEVEN
Kari held on to Ash as he carried her through her door. “You know, I can walk.”
He laughed. “I know. I love holding you. Besides, you weigh next to nothing.”
She snorted. “Yeah, right. Tell that to my doctor. According to him, I need to be working out 24/7 to get the body he thinks I need.”
He frowned and continued on to her bedroom. “Screw the doctor. You should get a new one if he’s being that much of an asshole. You’re not a junk-food eater, and you work out.”
They’d spent the entire day together today. After he’d given her the ultimate proposal while skydiving, he took her to a local fair, and they got on a bunch of rides. It was like being a teenager all over again. Only this time, she was the girl with the hot boyfriend, not the one everyone swore needed an attitude adjustment.
His cell phone went off just as he put her on the bed. She frowned, watching him reach for it. His shoulders dropped, and he answered. “Hey, what’s going on?”
She started undressing, ready to take a bath, and overheard him talk.
“Now? This can’t wait for another time?” He cursed. “Look, I don’t see how I can do that now. I’m not in the office. I’d need to get over there and put it together.”
Her heart sank. It was a Saturday, and already his job was trying to take him away. She didn’t bother saying anything, just marched into the bathroom, closing the door softly at her back.
This was what she worried about. His intense focus on the job meant she’d lose precious time with him. It wasn’t that she disliked the fact that he worked. Heck, she did too. But what annoyed her was how he didn’t seem to realize that his overworking put her in a position of feeling unwanted. Unneeded. Like he was too busy, and she was in his way.
She turned on the spray of water and pushed away the anxiety curling up her spine, robbing her of the previous happiness she’d been floating on.
“Stupid,” she mumbled, standing under the spray of warm water and sighing. She should have known it was too good to be true, that his job might continue coming between them.
“I refuse to let you call yourself names,” he said, grabbing her arm and turning her to face him.
She squinted under the water, staring at his sinful grin. “What happened? I thought for sure you’d have to leave?”
It was at that moment she realized that she she’d been expecting the worst from him, for him to do the same thing he had in the past. Guilt crept over her. How could she have done that? He’d been nothing but honest in what he’d said, in acknowledging his guilt.
He held her face with his hands. “You have so little faith in me. You think after I told you what I did that I could then go and do the opposite.”
She swallowed at the lump in her throat. “I’m sorry. I did think the worst. It was my usual reaction when it comes to you and your job.”
He pushed her back, until her back hit the tiled wall and his wet body pressed on her front. “I wouldn’t do that to you. It might have taken me a while, but I did realize you leaving was the worst thing to happen to me.”
“Why?”
“Without you, I lose my drive. I lose my reason for wanting to be a better person. I worked so hard to make myself proud, but at the same time show you I could be more than a rich guy.”
She lifted her hands up to his waist, pulling him to her and gasping at the hardness of his erection. “I didn’t realize how much of a rich guy you were. I thought you must have been struggling to be so keen on working any hour to build up the business.”
“No. I wanted you to be proud of me. I see how hard you work at making the non-profit flourish. Between you, Penny, and Julie, y
ou have made the company grow with just donations you secured. I wanted to have something like that in my life. Something I could feel good about.”
She lifted up to her toes and brushed her lips over his. “I’m proud of you, Ash. You’ve done amazing things with the company, along with your brothers. You’ve done it all while the world talks about you guys like you’re only sexy men with no brains. I know it sucks to read more articles about what you wear than what you’re doing with the company. That’s the media for you. I know better. I see your internal struggle and your success.”
His lips came crashing down over hers. A world of need opened up under her feet. She clung to him, letting her body dictate what came next. He pushed his tongue into her mouth, his aggression welcome in the heat of the moment. Gasps rushed up her throat. Water rained down over them, cooling some of the sizzle rising from her limbs.
His arm muscles bunched as he cupped both her breasts and fondled her tits. His cock pressed at her belly, searching for her slick entrance and ready to take her to new heights of passion. She’d always loved that about Ash. He wanted her, wanted her body.
His absolute desire for her big curves and wide hips sent her heart soaring. She’d known she looked great, but some men acted like she should bow down to them because she was the fat chick and needed the attention. Fuck that. Ash was a good looking sweet man who genuinely loved her body. He loved her as she was. She’d loved him the same.
He tore his lips from her. His gaze kept her rooted to the cool wall. “Let me love you, Kari.”
Oh, yes. She wanted him to love her. To take her. Hell, she’d let him do any and everything to her as long as he continued.
“I thought you already did,” she moaned, her nails scoring long red lines on his arms.
She didn’t get a chance to catch her breath before he had her flipped, her hands on the metal rod she’d had installed for her washcloths. He bit his fingers into her hips, tugging her back until his cock pressed between her cheeks. “I do love you, beautiful. But now I want to fuck your wet pussy.” He caressed a hand down her spine, shooting electricity up to her neck. “I want to feel your cunt clasping my cock with every drive. Oh, I want you moaning. Groaning. Screaming my fucking name.”
She gasped, her body winding as he pressed into her, his shaft filling her channel with his hardness. She moaned more the further he went. It was so sexy. Then, to add to her already-aroused state, he threaded his fingers through chunks of her hair and tugged, making her look over her shoulder at him. He propelled back and sank deep.
“Yes, Kari. That’s what I like to see. The glaze of pleasure in your eyes.” He reeled his hips back and thrust again.
She gasped, her eyes closing out of their own free will. “Ash...”
“Do it, baby. Say my name like that again. Like I’m a fucking god.” He moved faster. Harder. Slapping his hips into her ass.
She gripped the bar hard, almost expecting it to break, but it didn’t. Instead, her knuckles burned from how tight she held on. Ash licked the back of her shoulder and stopped for a nibble by her ear. “I can’t tell you how hot it is to watch my dick going in and out of your pussy.”
She bit her lip, water still raining over them in a warm spray. “God, Ash. I feel you deep. So deep.”
“You…,” he grunted, his drives jerking her up and closer to the cliff she’d been looking for since the last time they were together, “…say the sexiest things, love.”
She didn’t know about that. He did feel fucking huge inside her. And hot. She wanted to come, but at the same time didn’t want to stop feeling him taking her. “Shit! Ash, I’m so close.”
“Then let’s take you closer,” he rumbled by her ear. “Let’s watch that beautiful face of yours as you come.” He nibbled on her lobe. “Personally, that’s better than any porn I’ve ever watched. Your face in bliss makes me harder than a fucking rock.”
He yanked her hair back, and she whimpered. The bite of pain in her scalp wasn’t one she was used to, but for some reason it didn’t bother her. It enhanced all of it.
Releasing the bar, she slapped a hand on her chest, tweaking a nipple before sliding it down the curve of her belly, between her legs. She pressed on her clit, gasping and groaning at how good it felt. He pumped harder and curled a hand around her hip, pressing it over hers.
Though her moves on her clit had been light and barely grazing the super-sensitive bit of flesh, his fingers plucked and pressed on it with a lot more force. Molten lava heated at her core. She tensed, her muscles all but losing their ability to keep her upright.
“Ash, oh, Ash!” she screeched, her orgasm shot through her hard, taking her by surprise.
It wasn’t a slow, sweet coming like she’d had in the past. This time it felt as if a ball had broken inside her and sent pleasure skidding through her veins, stinging her from the inside, stopping her very ability to breathe.
He let go of her hair, and she dropped her head forward, watching his fingers turn to claws at her hips. They bit down on her flesh, drawing blood where every tip had embedded in her skin. She couldn’t care less. It hurt, but his cock fucking her like he never had was worth it. She choked out breaths, her pussy still grasping at his cock with the contractions from a new set of mini-orgasms ripping through her.
He roared by her ear, his claws yanked back, leaving a burning sensation on both hips as he came inside her. Spots danced before her eyes. She could barely stand, but none of that mattered. He continued filling her with his warm essence. Something about him taking her and losing control to the point that his fingers had shifted made it even more erotic. He’d scratched her hard.
He pulled out of her, hugging her back to his chest and holding her under the spray of water.
“You’re mine now, beautiful.”
She grinned and rested her head on his shoulder. “I thought I already was. Isn’t that what your proposal was all about?”
He laughed. “Yes. But now the bear wanted to claim you. The scars on your hips aren’t going anywhere. They’ll stay there forever, proof that you belong to us.”
She wasn’t fond of the “belonging” word, but she knew he meant it in the best possible way. So she’d accept being his, as long as he was hers.
* * *
EIGHT
“Wake up, babe.” Ash tugged on her blanket.
“You must be suicidal. Why would you wake me up at the crack of dawn?”
He laughed. “It’s only four. Come on, I have a surprise for you.”
She groaned. “The last time you had a surprise for me I got to jump out of a plane.”
She didn’t really mind the memory, though. He’d proposed to her. That was a lot more special than she’d ever expected from any man. She didn’t break up with Ash because she wanted to get married. She broke up with him because it didn’t appear their relationship existed in his life. At all. Now, he made a lot more time than he ever had. For the past week, he’d worked from home and made sure to stop once she stopped to spend time with her.
“Come, I’ll have breakfast and coffee, and you’re going to love it.”
She grumbled her way out of bed and took a shower. Forty-five minutes later, they were on a helicopter, being lifted into the dark sky. “At least this time I’m not expected to jump, right? Or you would have provided a parachute?”
He winked, his blue eyes bright with excitement. “Trust me here.”
She grinned. “I do. That’s the crazy part. I have to be just as insane as you to be doing whatever it is we’re doing without questioning it.”
He twined his fingers with hers. “You trust me. I’ll never break your trust.”
She did trust him. Fully. In the past, men had come and gone, though not many. But she learned that when it came to love, she needed someone who would accept her as she came. Bitchiness and all. Ash had done that. He’d never tried to curb her snark, or anything else about her personality. What he had done was laugh at some of the things she said.
/> The helicopter started to descend on a patch of land on top of a mountain she’d never been to. She could see trees surrounding the entire area, and then they were jumping out and moving out of the way. A few moments later it was quiet all around them.
She hadn’t noticed any light, but upon glancing around she saw some lanterns between the trees.
“Come on. You’ll like this, I promise.”
She sighed. “I didn’t have to climb the tree or hike, so I’m already liking it.”
He pulled her by the hand, toward the lights. Small, paper lanterns had been set up to light up a walkway between the trees. It wasn’t a long walk before she saw the opening between the trees. They came out into a large clearing by the edge of one of the mountain’s cliffs. A giant blanket with a picnic had been set up. She glanced up to meet his gaze.
“I told you you’d like it.”
She eyed the covered plates and grinned. “Like it? I love it!”
She threw herself in his arms, giving him a tight hug and only pulling back to kiss him. She ran her fingers through his hair and lowered her head to his shoulder. This was what she’d hoped for their last time together.
“Come on, sweetheart. I’ve got food, and you’re going to love it,” he said helping her down on the blanket.
She noticed the big, portable coffee container and sighed. He was right. She was going to love it all right.
He served their coffees, and she folded her legs to get more comfortable. They didn’t bother with the food just yet. He took his paper cup and sat beside her, hugging her to his side and glancing out at the dark city below them.
“I can’t tell you how sorry I am for not realizing what a dickhead I was being in the past.”
She stared out at the horizon, the orange and gold colors of the dawn lightening up the darkness out in the distance and allowing her to see everything around them. “This is such an amazing view.”