by Sian Ceinwen
Heather winced, “I’m afraid that Harrison’s been doing that enough for the both of us, lately.”
Neither Gabriel nor Ariana replied to that, and they continued on to the ballroom for the party. As the doors opened and Gabriel walked into the room, everyone in there cheered, and they were greeted by a whole host of people.
Heather searched the room to find Harrison, terrified that she might see him with someone else, as unlikely as she knew that was. A group of people moved slightly on the dance floor, and she saw him. He was sitting at the bar on the other side of the room, drinking from a tumbler of whisky. Heather felt an immense sense of relief when she saw that he was alone.
Still, she needed to talk to him, needed to know that he hadn’t done what he’d been accused of doing. Heather strode across the room with purpose, brushing off the people who were welcoming her as she did so. Even Sebastian tried to get her attention as she passed him dancing with a blonde woman she vaguely recognized from some TV drama, but she just shook her head at him and kept walking.
Harrison noticed her when she was still about twenty feet away from him. He looked worse than she’d ever seen him look. It was clear that he was several drinks into the evening’s festivities.
“Hi, angel. Why don’t you pull up a stool and drink away your sorrows with me?” He gave her a wry grin, then turned to the bartender, “Can you get a rum and Coke for the most beautiful woman in the world?”
The bartender nodded and started making her drink. Heather frowned, unlike Ariana, she didn’t have a go-to drink, so it took her a moment to realize why he’d chosen this one. Her expression cleared as she realized why he’d chosen it for her.
“Yes, angel, it’s what you were drinking the weekend we last had sex,” he told her, not appearing to care about the bartender hearing as he handed Heather the drink, “I can’t pretend that I don’t hope that it’ll happen again, tonight.”
“So, you didn’t bring someone else with you, then?” she asked him, taking a sip of the drink she’d been given.
“What the fuck?” He looked surprised, “No, I wouldn’t. Why would you think that?”
Heather was unsurprised by how relieved his confirmation made her. She should have known that it was a load of bull, but it had touched something deep inside her when she’d been faced with the idea of it.
“The reporters outside told me that Seb had brought someone with him and asked if I was jealous. When I told them that pigs would fly before I’d get jealous over a girl with Sebastian, somebody else said that you’d brought a girl with you, too.”
Harrison frowned for a second, then laughed, “Ally. I came with Hayden and Ally, she mostly avoided The Gauntlet, and it wouldn’t have been obvious that she was with him, not me.”
“Oh, and it’s a much better story if she’s here with you instead of him, too. The guy seemed very pleased to be able to tell me you’d brought someone with you,” she rolled her eyes.
“How did that make you feel, angel?” He raised an eyebrow at her.
She laughed, “What are you, Harrison? My therapist?”
“No, just your curious ex-fiancé who is desperately hoping that you still care,” he gave her a sad smile.
“Yes, Harrison,” she sighed before admitting, “I felt more jealous than I’ve ever felt in my life. I thought I might literally die if you were here with someone else.”
Heather felt bad because she knew that this conversation was giving Harrison hope, she knew that because it was giving her hope, too.
“Heather York, you are the only woman I want. You are the only woman I will ever want.”
Harrison stood up from his stool and took the single step needed to bring him close enough to her that she could see the golden flecks in his irises as she looked up at him from where she sat. He reached his hand out and softly brushed her bottom lip with his thumb. Her breath caught in her throat, and she felt the ache between her thighs that she hadn’t felt for so long.
He lowered his head to hers slowly, giving her time to respond. She knew that she should stop this, but she didn’t want to. It was exhausting to fight against the desire to be with him just because it was the right thing to do.
So, she let him continue on his path until his lips met hers. He tasted of whisky and something that she just attributed to him in her brain. His scent was intoxicating, more so than the alcohol she had been drinking.
His hand made its way to the back of her head, and he held her hair, tilting her head up to gain better access to her mouth. She parted her lips, allowing his tongue to slip inside. Heather had missed this so much; she stood up while they kissed and slipped her arms around him, underneath his tuxedo’s jacket.
His hands dropped to her waist, and he pulled her hard against him. It had happened, she was finally home. Heather could feel his growing erection pressing against her and longed to have it in her mouth. She had missed him so much. Finally, their kiss ended, and he put his forehead against hers, breathing as heavily as she was.
“I’ve missed you, angel,” he said, pulling his head back to look into her eyes.
Every single one of her senses was on fire, being here and in his arms, “I’ve missed you, too, Harrison.”
Heather felt his entire body tense, and he closed his eyes before turning his head away. She had almost forgotten why she had called off their wedding. It was a reminder of how tense it had been living with him for those months after the drugging.
Harrison started to pull away from her, but she held her arms around him tighter; she needed this, to be in his arms right now. So, she begged him, “Please don’t.”
“What do you want from me, angel?” he asked her.
“I want to be here. With you. Right now. Just…stay here.”
The tension eased out of his body as he put his arms back around her and kissed the top of her head softly. Heather didn’t know how long they stood there, just being with one another. It felt as though her heart was having a soothing balm applied to it. Being home was simply the most wonderful feeling, and she was exultant in it.
“We should be social.” Heather wanted to stay there all night but knew that they couldn’t, and she sighed.
“Being social is the worst,” he said with a laugh as he dropped his arms from around her waist. She pulled her own arms out from under his jacket and stepped back from him.
“We still need to talk, Harrison,” she warned him.
“I know,” he gave her a warm smile, “but it’s a start. Finish your drink, angel.”
“Evil man,” she said with a laugh as she picked up the drink and took another sip.
Harrison grabbed his own drink, then reached his free hand out toward hers. She joined hands with him, and they turned to face the room together. The party appeared to be in full swing, and their interlude seemed to have gone all but unnoticed by anyone else here; however, she spotted Ally and Hayden standing on the other side of the room and looking at them. Ally was smiling at her, and Heather smiled back.
They made their way over to their friends, and by the time they’d reached them, Sebastian had appeared next to them.
“Hi, darling,” Heather smiled at Ally. Normally she would give her a hug, but she didn’t want to let go of Harrison’s hand.
“Hey, lady. You seem like you’re having a good time,” Ally smiled back at her.
Heather glanced up at Harrison before looking back at her friend, “Better than I expected to have.”
“I get the feeling that our love affair might be over,” Sebastian said with a dramatic sigh, and everyone laughed.
“Sorry, Seb,” Harrison told him, “but I really hope so.”
“Ah, well, we’ll always have Galena,” he told Heather, giving her a wink.
“It was fun while it lasted, darling,” she grinned at him.
They talked for a while before Harrison asked Heather if she wanted to dance. They spent the next few hours dancing and talki
ng with their friends. It felt so familiar and strangely as though nothing had changed between them.
At the back of her brain, she knew that their relationship wasn’t magically fixed, but she also felt so good right now that she didn’t care. They cheered for Gabriel together as speeches were made celebrating him. Heather drank too much, but it was all around one of the best nights of her life.
As the party was winding down, Harrison was standing behind her, his arms around her and his head resting on hers as they watched the partygoers beginning to leave the ballroom. Heather didn’t think that there had been a time at all this night that he hadn’t been touching her somehow.
“Where to, now?” he asked her in a husky voice.
It was a good question. Heather knew that she wanted him in bed with her tonight. She needed it, but which bed? She didn’t want to go back to Hayden’s with him, and for some reason, she also didn’t want him to come to the temporary living arrangement that she called home right now. Their apartment was an option, but she didn’t feel emotionally ready to return there.
The answer was fairly obvious, “Well, I mean, we are in a hotel…” she trailed off.
That was all Harrison needed to hear. He dropped his arms from around her, took her hand in his, and led her over to Gabriel and Ariana.
“We’re leaving,” he informed them. “Happy birthday, Gabriel. The party has been awesome!”
“It certainly seems like you’ve been having a good time,” Gabriel smirked at him.
Heather stepped forward and put her free arm around Gabriel to give him a hug, “Happy thirtieth birthday, darling.”
“Thanks, Heather. It’s nice to see you two together.”
Heather cringed slightly, “There’s still a lot to work out, but,” she looked up at Harrison and smiled at him as she repeated his words from earlier, “it’s a start.”
They left the ballroom and headed to the lobby of the hotel, where Harrison booked them into the fanciest room that was available. Once the elevator arrived on their floor, they followed the signs to their room, and Harrison opened the door, walking into the room with Heather following behind him.
The air in the room crackled with tension as Harrison walked to the middle of a living area, then turned to face Heather, “Shall we talk now, angel?”
She shook her head. They needed to have a conversation, but not now. Now, she needed him inside of her.
“Come here, then.”
Heather walked over to him; it was a path that she had walked a thousand times before. The path from any given place that led her to Harrison. When she was standing in front of him, he put his arms around her and claimed her lips with his, then took her hand once again and let her to the bedroom.
“On the bed, angel,” he said, the lust he was feeling, evident in his tone of his voice.
Heather obliged, climbing on to the bed and lying with her head on the pillows. Harrison stared at her for what felt like hours, and she could feel herself getting wet. She’d been on edge all evening from his nearness, and she hadn’t had this for so many months.
Eventually, while still looking at her, he removed his tuxedo jacket, folded it neatly, and placed it on a dresser nearby. Then, he undid the buttons of his shirt, removed that, and placed it carefully on top of the jacket. Heather groaned as she saw his muscled chest in the flesh; she longed to touch him.
He removed his shoes and socks, placing them next to the dresser, and Heather bit her lip as he turned back to her, caught her gaze again, and unbuttoned his pants. This strip show that he was giving her was driving her crazy. She wanted him now.
Harrison swiftly pulled off both his pants and underwear, placing them with the rest of his clothes. The reality of Harrison standing naked in front of her, with his cock on display was enough to make Heather lick her lips in delight.
He climbed onto the bed and placed himself near her lips, “Is this what you want, angel?”
She nodded with a moan as she took him in her mouth. Holy fuck, she had missed this so much. He thrust his hips back and forth as she sucked him, and she reveled in the feeling of giving him a blow job, again.
All too soon, he pulled his erection out her mouth, and she pouted, “I won’t last very long if you keep doing that, angel,” he said with a laugh.
Harrison pushed her dress up over her hips and ever so slowly pulled her red, lace panties down and slid them off over her ankles. He pushed her knees apart, and she was exposed for his viewing pleasure.
He traced her innermost part with one finger and groaned, “I can’t wait to taste you. I’ve missed you so fucking much.”
Then he put his head between her legs and traced the same line with his tongue before setting to work on her clit. Heather thought that she might explode, and it wasn’t long until she was coming under his ministrations.
Normally, Harrison would take his time and spend as long as he could teasing her, but there was nothing normal about this night. They had been apart for too long—the need to be joined together in the most sacred way possible was too urgent. He held himself over her for only long enough to tell her, “I love you, angel,” before he gave them the thing that they had both needed all night by pressing himself into her.
When they were finished, Heather was tired from the drink and the sex. She felt satiated and drifted off to sleep in Harrison’s arms. It was many hours later that she woke, crying, from a nightmare of him having sex with Maddy.
“Angel, what’s wrong?” he pulled her tighter to him as she cried, and she took some shaky breaths to try and calm herself down.
Heather had become so used to this nightly ritual of waking from her nightmares, that it was odd to have him with her for comfort. She rolled over to face him, barely able to see his face in the dark bedroom with only the moonlight coming through the window to brighten the room.
“I had a nightmare,” she told him.
“About what?” he asked her, though she felt he probably already knew.
Heather just shook her head at him.
“About what, angel?” he asked again, rubbing her back with one of his hands.
“About you and Maddy,” she cringed as she said it, knowing that this would hurt him.
“How often do you have nightmares like this?”
“Every night,” she confessed.
“Oh, angel…” he didn’t say anything more, just pulled her tighter to him and kissed her.
Chapter 23
THE FINAL HURDLE
HEATHER WAS SITTING ON Zoe’s sofa, her legs tucked underneath her the way she usually did and was rubbing the skin on her ring finger as they talked.
“So, you’ve been having sex again?” Zoe asked her.
“Yes, we have,” Heather confirmed.
They’d seen each other twice since Gabriel’s birthday party, and each time, they had spent a good portion of those visits in bed together.
“What was it that prompted you to take that step?”
“I think it was just realizing how terrifying the idea of him being with someone else really was to me. This journalist asked me how I felt about Harrison taking another woman to Gabriel’s birthday party, and I thought I would die,” Zoe smiled at Heather’s dramatics, “I realized that all of my reasons for splitting up were still there, but my desire to be with him was stronger than those reasons.”
“How has it felt being with him again, physically?”
“Absolutely perfect,” Heather smiled, “I was worried that I would be tormented with images of him and Maddy together if we tried having sex, but I’ve never been able to focus on anything but Harrison when we’re in bed together, anyway.”
“Have the nightmares decreased or stopped?” Zoe asked her.
“No,” Heather’s eyes were downcast as she admitted it, “I’m still having them every night. Harrison’s been great about it.”
“So, he’s been with you when you’ve had them?”
&nbs
p; “Yeah, they’re still happening nightly, so every night we’ve been together, I’ve had one. I’m going crazy, Zoe. Harrison’s so understanding and wonderful, but it’s been months of this shit, now. I’m tired, physically, and emotionally, of dealing with this night after night,” Heather sighed.
Zoe wrote something in her notepad, then put both it and her pen down on the table next to her chair.
“I’m going to suggest something, Heather,” Zoe looked thoughtful, “have you considered talking to Maddy about what happened?”
“No.”
Heather was partially answering the question, but also partially resisting the idea.
“Hear me out. You’ve said several times to me that you believe Harrison remembers more than he says he does. For whatever reason, he doesn’t seem able to tell you any more than he has. This whole time, you’ve had the pictures in your head and told yourself stories about what exactly happened that night.
“Maddy is another source of truth that you could seek out. If finding that out is what you need to truly get past this and stop the nightmares, would it not be worth having the conversation with her?”
Heather frowned as she thought about what Zoe was suggesting. On the one hand, it did make sense; on the other hand, she was absolutely terrified about what Maddy might tell her.
“I’m scared,” Heather admitted, “what if she tells me something that makes me stop loving Harrison?”
The thought of being told something that could break her love for Harrison was almost too much for Heather to bear. She realized that the unknown element of the truth of what happened that night was the monster under her bed that had been scaring her for months.
“Do you really think there is something she could tell you that might cause that to happen?” Zoe asked.
“No. I’m still scared, though.”
Zoe smiled at her, “Most people would be. The unknown is scary. Is it worse than what you know right now, though? The daily nightmares don’t seem to be easing off; I’m just suggesting that this might be something that is worth a try.”