by Thorn, Lacey
“You love him?” Again it was Griff who spoke while everyone else remained silent around them. “You can put Dad in the past and love another man?”
“Oh, Griff. I’ll always love your father. Always. But even he wouldn’t expect me to give up on a second chance for happiness. I’m still alive and it’s time I started appreciating that and living.” She wanted nothing more than to wrap her baby boy in her arms and hold him close. But the boy was gone and in his place was a man who was struggling to deal with a woman she’d kept hidden from him.
A nurse stepped out and called out for the family of Caesar Davis. Catherine went to step forward when Griff grabbed her arm and stopped her. “This is what you want? You choose him?”
“I choose life and everything that it still holds for me.” With that she pulled her arm away and followed the nurse to where Roman was, with Jack right behind her.
“You okay?” Katie stepped away from Ben and went to Griff.
“Are you okay with this?” he demanded, looking from her to Gil and back again.
“She’s found a chance at happiness again, Griff. How can we deny her that?” Katie asked softly.
“I don’t know how to deal with this. I don’t know if I can accept this or not. She’s Mom.” His eyes pleaded with Katie to understand. “She’s Mom.”
“She’s also a woman, Griff. You have to let her be that as well.” Katie hurt for her brother, but she believed that her mother deserved every ounce of happiness that came her way.
Griff shook his head and turned and walked away without looking back at any of them. Katie started to follow, but Gil’s voiced stopped her.
“Let him go. He needs some time alone right now. He’ll be okay eventually.” Gil pulled his wife closer to his chest and held her tightly. “He just needs to be alone right now to think and deal.”
“You think he’ll ever accept mom with another man?” Katie asked and Gil heaved a weary sigh.
“Maybe. You never know what the future will bring.” Gil looked down at the woman in his arms and felt the truth of those words in his very soul. He might not have been so understanding either before he found Moira and learned how love changed everything. Doug would feel a need to let Roman know what would happen if he hurt their mother and Gil and Damon would be right there with him. Hell, even Katie would. But love had opened all of their eyes lately and they couldn’t want any less for their mother. Griff would find that out for himself someday. Maybe someday soon.
* * * * *
Catherine felt her heart stop when she stepped around the curtain encasing the bed where Roman rested in the emergency room. He had an oxygen mask on and an IV attached to his left arm, as well as other hospital paraphernalia that recorded different things. Her strong warrior lay as still as death and the beep and hiss of machines surrounded them.
She went to the bed and took his right hand in hers, squeezing it and bringing it to her lips. The smell of smoke was so strong that it almost overpowered her but Catherine refused to let go. She stroked her fingers through his hair and almost sobbed when she felt the singed ends. The doctor had been happy to tell them that Roman would pull through. He had inhaled a lot of smoke and his throat would be raw and sore for a few days. He might have some headaches, but all in all he had been lucky. They had reached him before the flames did any damage to him. Just the thought made Catherine shudder in fright.
“Rin…” Roman was trying to pull the mask away from his face. His grey eyes were open and the most beautiful sight that she had seen in a long time.
She eased his hand away from the mask, making sure it was back on securely. “I’m right here, Roman.” She brushed his face with her fingers, needing to feel him, to touch him. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“So sorry…” he murmured under the mask, his eyes opening and closing as he struggled to speak. She could hear the rasp in his voice and k his throat must be hurting. “No choose…okay…”
“Shhh…” Catherine leaned close and kissed his jaw letting her tears bathe his tender skin. “I’m the one who’s sorry. But that’s all over now, Roman. I promise you that it’s all over.”
He looked up at her with pain in his eyes and it hit her how he might take her words. “No. No, Roman. I mean that the hiding is over. I told everyone that we’ve been dating. I told them that I loved you and was ready to grab life with you and hang on.” She leaned close again and kissed his cheek. “No more hiding, Roman. So you better be ready to show the world that you’re mine from this moment on.”
She felt his smile before she eased back to see it. “Was always ready,” he murmured and pulled his hand from hers to reach up and trace the tear tracks on her cheeks. “Love you, Rin.” Harsh coughs racked his body and left him panting for air. The nurse came in and said that they were ready to move Roman into a room now. Catherine knew he didn’t want to stay, but she also knew that it was what was best for him. When he was in his room and settling in for the night, she would be there with him. She’d never walk away from him again.
Jack found them together when he entered the room later. He had sweet talked the nurse into letting him in after visiting hours. He wanted to see Roman again and make sure that he was okay. He had slipped away earlier to identify Michelle down in the morgue. He had seen too much death in his life and he was sick and tired of it.
“Hey,” the hoarse croak came from the bed and had Jack glancing over to see Rin curled up asleep with Roman. They looked so natural together with an aura of happiness radiating around them for everyone to see. He wanted that for himself.
“Hey, yourself.”
“I’m sorry, Jack. I’m so sorry.” Roman stated softly.
“You have nothing to be sorry for. You did everything that you could and you almost died as well.” Jack blew out a harsh breath and sat gingerly in the chair by the bed. He was feeling too antsy to sit, but needed to be close so that he could whisper and not disturb Rin.
“You’re leaving?” It was uncanny the way his best friend could read him like a book. It was a skill that they shared when it came to one another.
“Yeah. I need to make sure of what I think before I say anything. I don’t want to say anything to her until I know.”
“So you really think that Ally is your brother’s daughter?” Roman asked.
“She has the Madigan eyes. The shape of her face. There is so much there that makes me believe. But I have to make sure that I’m seeing fact and not just what I want to see.”
And that meant that Jack was going away for a while. He’d come to say goodbye to Roman and let him know that he’d be gone for a bit.
“How long you planning on being gone?” Roman questioned Jack.
“As long it takes to find out what I need to know.” Jack stated.
“And if she is your niece?”
“Then I’m going to come back and tell her. I hope that she’ll be happy but either way I’ll be her family. We all will. And I’ll do everything in my power to make up for not being there when he died.” Jack’s expression was fierce with his determination to make amends for that.
“Will you tell her about her dad? About his gift and why the two of you weren’t in contact at the time?”
“I don’t know. I’ll have to see what is what first. I’ll keep in touch. Call me if you need anything.” He stood up from the chair and walked the few inches closer to the hospital bed. “I’ll leave Chetan in charge ’til you’re up and ready to come back in.”
“I’ll be back soon,” Roman vowed.
“Take your time,” Jack nodded toward where Rin was curled against him. “Enjoy the newness of not having to hide. Enjoy being with the woman you love.”
“It’ll be you some day,” Roman said and Jack couldn’t hide the need for just that, not from someone who knew him so well. He had loved once and lost out on so much when he had discovered that Moira’s mother was dead. Only Moira’s will had kept her alive for him to find when he returned to the states from too many year
s spent trying to die. And he would have hunted for her years earlier had he even known she existed, but Moira’s grandmother had done her best to keep Moira hidden. So he had taken every impossible mission that he could, even the ones that no one expected him to come back from. He had wanted to die, to join the woman he loved, but someone had been watching over him. He liked to think that it was her, keeping him alive for their daughter. He remembered it like it was yesterday, could still see the face of the girl he first lost his heart to. He didn’t think that he would ever find someone to love like that again.
“Yeah,” he agreed, but he felt sure Roman heard the doubt loud and clear. “Someday maybe it will be me.”
* * * * *
Shep slipped into Blake’s house through the front door and sat in the darkness of the living room, absorbing the silence. He had waited a few minutes before following Griff to make sure that he was okay. The two men had talked a lot on nights that started with a full bottle of Wild Turkey and ended in a drunken haze. Gil had nodded at him as he left and he realized that the older brother wasn’t as clueless as he thought.
Maybe they all knew just how close Griff had been to his father and the things the man had shared with his youngest son. Shep had heard it all. About how Mick Daniels had pressed Griff to keep an eye on his mother and make sure that she was safe and no one took advantage of her. The man had spoken of love and fidelity and expressed how it was forever when you were with the right woman. But then Mick had never planned to die and leave Catherine. What man ever did?
What Griff had to realize was that his father was gone and his mom was a grown woman who didn’t need his protection. But Griff had made a promise to his father and Shep knew that honor and trust meant a lot to Griff. It would be hard for him to accept his mom’s new love, even though he liked Roman, which Shep knew that Griff did. A promise was a promise, especially when it was made to a dead father. Shep shook his head and let the day’s weariness settle in his frame. Griff would have to deal with it in his own way. All Shep could do was be there as a friend.
A noise caught his attention and he looked up to see Ally heading toward him wearing one of Blake’s t-shirts. Her long black hair hung in waves around her and she had the look of a well-fucked woman. She also had the look of a woman in love. Shep felt a slight twinge of regret but let it go. Blake deserved a woman who would love him and Shep would have to accept that there would be no more threesomes for them.
Ally sat on the couch next to him and placed her hand on his thigh. There was compassion in her eyes and all he longed for was passion. He tried to shake the feeling off but her hand began gently rubbing his thigh and his cock answered with a definite “hell yeah”.
“Are you okay?” she asked him and he realized that she had known what he would find when they got to Michelle’s house. For the first time he really thought about what it must be like to see things that you didn’t want to. To have no choice.
“I’m fine. Roman’s in the hospital.” He leaned his head back and tried to get his cock under control. It wasn’t happening.
“Is Catherine with him?” The voice was soft and sweet and the hand was still torturing him. Where the fuck was Blake? It hit him what she said and he closed his eyes for a moment. It appeared that Ally did see everything. Even he hadn’t known that Catherine and Roman were seeing each other until tonight’s ER confession.
“Yep, she’s with him. Probably stay the night as well.” His eyes snapped open when he felt her hand move up his thigh. What the hell was she doing?
“Griff didn’t take it well.” It was a statement, not a question. The woman was batting a thousand but he was done with the questions. He had to get out of there before he did something that he would regret.
“Look, Ally, I appreciate your concern but I should probably be heading out.” He went to get up and Ally leaned over and straddled him, placing her bare pussy over the hard ridge under his jeans.
“We heard you come in, Shep. I know that you are feeling lonely. So much has happened. So much has changed.” Her eyes were a deep dark green and Shep could feel the heat of her cunt where she rubbed against him. “But not everything has to.”
His gaze locked with hers. “What are you saying?”
“Blake and I are getting married.”
“Congratulations,” was what made it past his lips when all he wanted to do was demand what the fuck she was doing on his cock, then.
“I know the type of relationship that you and Blake often share, Shep. There’s no reason for it to stop.” Her eyes were clear and bright.
Shep caught his breath. “What are you saying, Ally?”
“She’s trying to tell you to bring your sorry ass into the bedroom,” Blake appeared in the doorway. He was naked and had one hand wrapped around his dick stroking it from root to tip. Shep almost laughed when he saw Ally’s gaze focus on it and heard the small moan as she licked her lips.
“I thought that you were going to let me do this?” she asked, never taking her gaze off Blake’s erection. She ground her pussy down against Shep and this time it was his moan that escaped.
“You were taking too long, woman. Just tell the man that you want to fuck him and get your ass back into the bedroom.” Blake’s gaze was centered on her pussy and where it rubbed blatantly against Shep.
Shep stood with Ally and she wrapped her legs around him, her arms around his neck, while he headed them toward where Blake stood.
“Sure you’re okay with this?” he asked Blake. His cock was screaming just to accept what was offered and fuck her. But his head was telling him to make sure that his friend was really okay before anything happened.
“Ally and I talked about it earlier,” Blake nodded and turned to lead the way to the bedroom. “We both agree that we’d like our relationship with you to continue if you want it to.”
Hell yeah he wanted it to. “You sure?” he looked down at the woman filling his arms, needing to hear that she was okay with it from her own lips although her body was already sending its own response if the dampness on his jeans was any indication.
“Yes, Shep. I’m sure. I mean, Blake’s not getting any younger and I’m still in my twenties.” Ally’s giggle was cut short by the sound of Blake’s hand slapping her bare ass. She moaned and ground harder against Shep.
“Wench,” Blake grunted and settled himself crosswise on the bed on his back. “Get down and bring that sweet pussy over here to me.”
Ally eased away from Shep and turned to head to the bed and Blake. When Shep just stood there watching she turned back. “Do you need some help with those clothes, Shep, or are you just planning to watch this time?” She grabbed the hem of the shirt still on her body and slowly lifted it over her head and let it drop to the floor. Her breasts were high and firm, her nipples already hard points begging for his lips and tongue. How the hell had he gotten so lucky? His buddy may have found the love of his life, but he was still willing to share her with Shep. And she wanted it as well. He was a lucky man indeed.
His hands began making quick work of his clothes and Ally laughed at his impatience to be naked. She turned, giving him a great shot of her tight ass before getting on the bed and taking Blake’s cock in her mouth. He watched Blake wrap his hands in her hair and help guide her up and down his length. Finally Shep was naked, his dick screaming to get inside the hot clasp of her pussy. She had her ass up high in the air and he could see the cream glistening on her thighs and slit.
He looked at Blake asked the question with his eyes. Blake nodded and tossed him a condom, which he caught easily and tore open. He had to chuckle when he saw that it was ribbed. Ally would like that. Shep stepped up and stood behind where she was kneeling on the edge of the bed. He palmed her ass in his hands and with one smooth stroke placed his dick where it was screaming to go. She felt like heaven wrapped around his cock and he groaned in pleasure at the clasp of her wet heat. Her moan joined his and he pulled all the way out enjoying the sight of her juices glistening
on the thin sheath covering his shaft before he plunged it back home inside her.
“Such a tight, sweet pussy Ally,” Shep grunted as he rode in and out of her. “I could fuck this forever.”
“Ummm…” she offered around the thick cock filling her mouth. Her checks were taut from the fierce suction she was applying to Blake’s erection and from the look of pure pleasure on Blake’s face, he was enjoying every hard pull.
Shep covered his fingers in her juice and used them to manipulate her anus, making it slick and wet before he worked one thick finger inside. She was tight and Shep shuddered with the desire to take her there. Blake had been the one to work his cock inside her ass the last time. Shep wanted to be the one to fill it this time. He worked a second finger in with the first and began scissoring them to prepare her.
“You want to take us both like this again Ally? A cock buried in each of these hot little holes, fucking you, giving you pleasure?” Shep slipped a third finger in and thrust hard spearing her on his hand.
“Ohhh…” Ally moaned and he could see her face look up at Blake. Some silent communication past between the couple and Blake pulled his cock out of her mouth. “Get up here and sit on my cock,” he said to Ally, grabbing a condom from the pile on the table before turning to Shep. “Lube’s in the top drawer in the table.” Shep knew where the lube was, where it always was. But Blake’s words told him exactly where his cock would be going. He was going to get his chance to fuck that sweet little ass already making its way up to Blake’s cock. Fuck. The way she felt around his fingers he wasn’t going to last long.
He grabbed the tub and squirted a generous amount on his fingers, preparing to work it into her tight pink pucker. She was lifting her ass high enough to place Blake’s cock at her entrance and Shep had a great view as she slid slowly down the length of his friend’s erection. He heard Blake’s groan, followed by Ally’s, and felt a glimmer of jealousy when she leaned forward and the two shared a passionate kiss.