Fame & Consequences

by Reese A. Stephens

  “Please. I just want to feel you.”

  He groans. “Baby, you can’t say stuff like that. It’s impossible for me to resist you.” His forehead hits the pillow by my head and he turns to kiss behind my ear and neck. “I want you so badly.” He shifts his hips pressing himself against me.

  I gasp. “Eli, touch me.”

  He looks down at me. “You sure?” I nod vigorously. “Where?”

  I open my mouth, but I can’t say anything. I’m too embarrassed, which is dumb, I’m marrying him, but still this is so new for me. I just take his hand and place it on my breast. “Here.” I don’t recognize the soft breathy tone of my voice.

  His warm, large hand covers me fully at first. It’s almost like he’s afraid to move, but after a few seconds, that seem like an eternity, he starts to move, squeezing lightly at first. As his hand moves on me, his hips begin to buck against me and his mouth sucks and kisses at my neck. My body is over heated, my breathing is ragged and probably sounds completely unsexy, but I can’t help the noises or moans I’m making.

  “Elijah,” I cry out. He doesn’t stop. His lips travel towards my mouth. “Elijah,” I call again as his lips meet mine muffling my cries.

  Pulling back slightly, he stares down at me. I try to tell him, there's so much pressure everywhere, like I’m going to explode, but I can’t get anything else to come out of my mouth. His fingertips wrap around my nipple through my shirt and I arch my back, crying out as my entire being is overtaken by a flood of sensations I’ve never felt before. It’s like my whole body is convulsing, exploding in the best of ways. I sag against my bed, breathing heavily, trying desperately to gather my thoughts, my wits. I'm inside out. A chuckle makes me open my eyes to find Elijah hovering over me with a curious expression on his mirth filled face.

  “Was that your first orgasm?”

  “What?” I really don’t understand what he’s said.

  He sits up and pulls me to sit up with him. “You just had an orgasm. Was it your first one?”

  My face burns hot, and I cover it with my hands, which are clammy so I let them drop to the bed and my head to my bent knees. “Yes,” I mumble.

  He tilts my head up, looking adorable with his head cocked to the side and a bemused proud smile on his mouth. “It was beautiful.”

  I scrunch my face up. “I’ve never felt anything like that before.” I pause. He looks smug. “That was a dumb thing to say. I just mean, it was so much. So much more than I ever imagined.”

  “You're okay now, right? No guilt?”

  I love that he cares so much for me and really does know me so well. I shake my head. “No. This wasn’t some cheap thing. We love each other.”

  He takes my hand kissing it. “More than my life.” He presses a kiss to my lips then says, “It was good for me too.”

  I look at him wide eyed for a few seconds. “You mean …” I point to his pants. “You?”

  “Yes, I came in my pants.” I cover my face and squeal at his crassness as he chuckles. “I really need to change. You want to go for a treadmill run with me?” He stands up, wincing as he adjusts his pants.

  “Yeah. I’ll get dressed.” He knows I won’t be running. I’m not a fan, but I’ll do yoga while he runs. He likes it that way, anyway. He’s fallen off that thing a few times when I’ve been in downward dog.

  “See ya in ten.” He winks. I turn to mush when he winks at me. I think he knows this because he does it a lot.

  About ten minutes later, Elijah and I are both in the exercise room. Carter and Jared are both exercising as well, but keep giving me the side eye. I will be forever mortified if they heard me. Elijah doesn’t seem to notice them at all. He has his headphones in, singing along to the music. I shake off the negative feelings and sink down into Sukhasana. I deepen my breathing, tuning out Elijah’s singing, not that it’s bad, I just need to center myself. The thumping noise of the treadmill actually helps me. I’m almost to the point of releasing all thought when I hear a snicker behind me. I ignore it.

  “Elijah … Elijah … Oh Mylanta,” Carter moans out. He and Jared dissolve into a fit of childish giggles. I gasp, turning to round on him.

  “Were you listening at the door?” My face is hot and blood red.

  Elijah, startled by my abrupt mood, pulls the headphones from his ears. “What’s wrong?”

  “They heard us.” Traitorous tears fill my eyes and I turn and dart out the door.

  “Morons.” Elijah chastises.

  I don’t stop to listen to the rest of his tirade as I run up the stairs and into my room, slamming the door behind me. I’m so completely embarrassed. What was supposed to be an intimate time between my fiancé and me turned into ridiculous fodder for my stupid brother and even more stupid best friend. I ignore the light tapping on my door as I sink down to the floor and lean against the side of my bed. Of course, my non-answer doesn’t stop the person from coming in. I expect it to be Elijah, but I’m surprised to find it’s my brother.

  “What do you want?”

  He sits down on the floor beside me, leaning against my bed. “Sorry.”

  “Did one of you listen outside the door?” I bury my face in my knees.

  “Uh, no. We were in the kitchen. Actually, at first, we thought you were hurt. But as we started for the stairs … yeah, you obviously weren’t hurt.”

  Hot tears sting my face. “I’m so embarrassed.”

  He rubs my back. “Don’t be. What you and your future husband do is between the two of you. Carter shouldn’t have done that, and I shouldn’t have laughed.”

  Sheepishly, I peek at my brother. “We didn’t have sex.”

  He snorts. “I don’t want to know.”

  I turn to him fully. “Seriously, I want to wait until our wedding. We just got a little carried away. It’s …” I’m not sure how I want to word this, but this is my brother. He helped give me my first ever sex talk. Now that I think about it, that may have been more awkward than this. “Since I woke up from my accident, the second time, I feel like I need to take chances. Life is so short. I could have died. I had a stalker, and there have been death threats. What am I waiting for? Am I going to let an ages old code of ethics hold me back from showing the man I love, how much I truly love him? I just don’t know what to do. I’m so confused.”

  “You need to decide what you want. Don’t let fear rule you. Consider why you made these commitments all those years ago, and why you’ve stuck to them. Decide what your boundaries are. Be true to yourself, sweetpea. The rest doesn’t matter. And Elijah knows how much you love him even if you decide you really do want to wait until your wedding night.”

  My brother can be a pain in my butt and hyper at times, but since he’s taken on the role of my bodyguard, it doesn’t come out as much, not that I really miss the constant picking, but this tender side of him is the best and reminds me how much I need and love my big brother and makes me miss his twin. My brothers have always been there for me. Even through my stupid phase.

  “I know. Thank you.” I turn and wrap my arms around him tightly. “I love you. I’m so glad you are here with me.”

  He blows a raspberry on my cheek. “I’m glad I’m here too. I love you.” He stands. “You wanna come back and finish exercises? Car and I are done.”

  “I will. Can you do a favor for me?”

  “Sure can. What’s up?”

  “I’d like to make a nice dinner for tonight. If I give you a list, will you and Carter go get all the ingredients?”

  “Absolutely! You know I can’t resist your cooking.” I grab a notebook and jot down everything I need and hand it to Jared. “Yes! Apple pie! Now that’s love.”

  He hurries out the door, and I follow behind him. I glare at Carter as I pass him. He mouths sorry, but I just shrug my shoulders and keep on moving. I’m not ready to forgive him yet. After Elijah and I exercise, we curl up on the sofa and watch a movie. I love the times when it’s just us.

  ~*~

  The week
passes in a blur, and before I know it, we are at the watering hole on my grandparent’s farm and I’m standing in front of Elijah vowing to stand with him through thick and thin, and until death we part. When the pastor says you may kiss the bride. Elijah waggles his eyebrows at me, cups my cheek, and pulls me into a kiss much too intimate for public display. My face flames red at the cat calls and whistles.

  Elijah pulls away, winking at me. “I love you.”

  “I love you too, husband.”

  His face splits in a grin. “I really like that. You ready, wife?” He motions with his head, to the isle.

  I nod, and he leads me down the makeshift aisle that spring has wonderfully decided to decorate with flowering trees and wildflowers on the ground. It’s so heavenly looking. At the end is a small donkey drawn carriage. Yes, Carter’s idea of having Charlie carry me down the aisle came true in a way. Pops hooked him up to a small two-person carriage and thankfully the old mule didn’t mind pulling us.

  Liam turns from the driver’s seat. “All set?”

  “Yep,” I tell him.

  Elijah wraps his arm around my shoulders and pulls me into a kiss as our family and very close friends clap, cheer, and throw bird seed at us. We spend the rest of the evening filling our bellies with delicious food and dancing the night away. My grandparents really went all out. My Grandpa Bill and Cliff built a dance floor in the back yard, and Elijah hired a local catering company to come out and decorate, as well as supply the food. Around the dance floor there are four poles which look like trees whose branches wind together connecting the posts to form a square where lights and a white gauzy material wrap around them, lighting the space. Gran has coordinated the decorating with spring flowers, lace, burlap, and galvanized metals, making up the country chic style I love so much. It’s so perfect. It’s like a fairy tale come true.

  Elijah pulls me into his arms, pressing his cheek to mine as we dance to a slower song. “I can’t wait to get to the honeymoon part.”

  I chuckle. “You’re such a guy.”

  He pulls back, smirking at me. “And you don’t want to be alone with me in a cabin in the middle of Canada surrounded by nothing but snow and trees?”

  “Of course, I do, but I want to enjoy the snow with you too.”

  He sighs seemingly put out. “Fine, I suppose I can suffer through dancing a little longer.” I giggle as he pulls me closer, kissing me deeper and again more than appropriate in front of company, but I can’t bring myself to care.

  We dance for what seems like hours, taking turns with whoever comes to ask for a dance. One of my favorites is him dancing with his niece, Sadie. She’s four, with the brightest red curly hair I’d ever seen, and the thickest Irish accent I’ve ever heard. Talking to her and his family from Ireland really brings out Elijah’s roots. I absolutely love it.

  I dance with his brothers, dad, and grandfather. Elijah’s dad isn’t anything like I expected. Elijah always talks of him as a serious man who works nonstop, but I saw a different side of him when we were dancing. He actually reminds me a lot of his son. They have the same quick wit and caring heart.

  “Finally,” Elijah breathes against my neck as he pulls me back into his arms.

  “Your dance with Sadie was adorable.”

  He chuckles. “She’s a talker. She told me I married a princess. I agreed.”

  “As long as you’re my prince.”

  “I can live with that.”

  “I love you, Mrs. Stone.”

  I cup my husband’s cheek. “And I love you, Mr. Stone.”

  We kiss again. One thing I know for certain is that Elijah and I may have had to face the consequences of fame this past year, but it didn’t break us, it only made us stronger. We both know that we can persevere through anything life throws at us. Even if we face more hardships, we’ll be ready. We’ll stand together stronger and better for having gone through this experience. I’m excited to start this new chapter of our lives together.

  Author Note

  Thank you guys for reading Fame and Consequences. I hope you’ve enjoyed Sophie and Elijah’s story. If you can take a couple of minutes to leave me a review on Amazon, I would appreciate it so much. As an Indie Author reviews help us be seen on Amazon.

  Be sure to follow me on social media for updates on my upcoming appearances and releases. Be on the lookout later this year for The Reluctant Prince, my first paranormal book.

  I’ve also taken part in an anthology to support childhood Leukemia which should also be out later this year. It will have a spin off from The Oak Grove Suspense Series, following Jon Miller. He is Ryan’s Marine friend, who flies a helicopter and helped him rescue Shayla and Dylan.

  Thank you for your support, I couldn’t do any of this without you!

  Until next time,

  Reese

  About the Author

  Reese Stephens was born in the Appalachian Mountains, but was raised all over the East Coast. Since getting married Reese has settled back into her Appalachian roots, and currently lives on a small farm with her husband and three children. She has a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Education, and is currently homeschooling her three school aged children. She considers herself a naturalist. She loves learning about and using natural remedies and essential oils to keep her family and herself healthy.

  Writing was something Reese never thought much of, until she and her family went through several traumatic events. A friend advised her to keep a journal, but she just couldn’t put into words how she felt, so she turned to the world of creative writing. It didn’t take long for her to discover her passion there.

  Reese is a multi-genre author who writes crime suspense, sweet romances, and paranormal fiction. Fame and Consequences is her first story in the sweet romance genre. It was a story she had started a few years ago, that she was excited to finish and share with her fans. Her first paranormal fiction, entitled The Reluctant Prince, is expected to be released, Fall 2018. If you enjoy Crime Suspense, check out her completed series, The Oak Grove Suspense.

  Follow Reese on her social media contacts, to be kept up to date on her writing journey.

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  Other Works of Fiction

  By

  Reese A. Stephens

  Vengeance


  Book 1 in the Oak Grove Suspense Series

  When Dr. Shayla Thorn moves back to her home town of Oak Grove, she is determined that this will be a new start for her and her son. But when Dylan’s father insists on righting the wrongs of their past, she’s torn between what she knows is right and what her heart wants. But the one thing she never expected was for her life to be thrown into utter chaos. Ryan Jacobs, former FBI agent and lead detective for Oak Grove and its surrounding areas, is determined to win Shayla’s heart and make up for the mistakes they made in the past. He won’t take no for an answer, but everything begins to unravel when he is called to the scene of a brutal crime almost identical to a slew of murders he solved long ago. It doesn’t take long for the pair to give into what their hearts want, but when an old nemesis seeks revenge on Ryan, everyone's life is in danger. Will Ryan find the culprit in time to save the love of his life or will she fall victim to a vicious killer's vengeance?

  Available on Paperback and eBook

  Penance

  Book 2 in the Oak Grove Suspense Series

  Judson Hardenbergh's life was perfect, that is until tragedy changed the course of his life. When a fire claims his family, he gives up on everything. Will moving back to his home town of Oak Grove save him from himself or drive him into deeper despair? For Ryan Jacobs, Oak Grove’s Chief of Police, it’s been smooth sailing since the abduction and murders that plagued the town, and almost cost him his family. Though Mathis is still at large, Ryan is confident that he’ll be able to catch him before he strikes again. When one of Ryan’s high school friends, Judson Hardenbergh, is accused of murder, he must jump into action and determine if ‘Jud’ is capable of committing this horrible crime. What he finds is that this case is more complicated than he imagined and that penance comes in many forms.

  Available on Paperback and eBook

  Retribution