by TL Reeve
Needed more.
As if sensing the building frustration within her, he flipped their position, putting her up on her knees before he filled her again. His strokes were long and hard, rubbing against the sensitive patch of tissue within her. Each drag of his cock touched her in all the right places. She grabbed at the pillows, burying her face in them as soft moans of pleasure passed her lips. Dexter reached around her and placed his middle finger to her clit and pressed down. Brittney bucked. Her whole body went taut and, as he milked the little nub, she went wild.
She couldn’t explain what it felt like, but it was as if a million sparks of electricity snapped across her skin leaving her sensitized from the inside out. Rolling her hips to meet Dexter’s thrusts, she glanced back at him. A snarl tore across his face. A fine sheen of perspiration covered his skin and to her, he looked like a sex God, having his way with her. Her eyes rolled and her legs shook with tension. As much as she said she didn’t need this, she had, with every fiber of her being.
She would tell herself later it was to blow off steam, but she knew the truth. They were meant for each other. She could no longer deny their chemistry, even if she’d tried to keep part of herself locked away from him. Dexter had a way of breaking cages and doors and locks. He’d broken all of hers, anyway. She whimpered his name and grabbed his thigh. The rough chuckle rumbling in his chest, sent a thrill down her spine, however, what destroyed her was when he bent over her, his chest touching Brittney’s back as he powered into her, with short, hard, pumps of his hips.
Brittney bowed her head forward. The anticipation and bliss swirled together within her filling her with a sense of urgency and an overwhelming need to beg him to give her the nudge she needed to find her release. Dexter’s breath brushed against the shell of her ear. The little noises he made only severed to turn her on more. He pushed down on her clit and made a slow circle as he groaned. The cacophony of sensation coalescing within her snapped and her breath hitched.
“I love you,” Dexter whispered as her climax ripped through her.
Her eyes went wide as did her mouth. She trembled and shook in his arms. He loved her. Loved her. He couldn't. Not so soon. Not like this. They'd barely known each other. The only connection between them was Rai and even so, their son wasn't a good enough reason to go headlong into a situation neither of them knew would work. Yet, as she collapsed onto Dexter's bed, his big body cuddled to hers, she couldn't come up with a rational reason why they couldn't. All of the same emotions Dexter had the minute he saw her, had been the same ones running through her. Sure, she'd been frightened at first. Telling him about the son he didn't know he had, made everything more difficult.
Nonetheless, here they were, picking up where they left off. They were both two completely different people now, she understood that, but they were also the same, just older. She closed her eyes and concentrated on catching her breath. She wasn't sure if she was supposed to say anything back or leave it as it was. The fact her experience level came from two men she trusted, didn't help either. She never put her heart into it. Never found someone she could fall in love with or get her heartbroken. She'd stayed to herself to protect Rai and, sometimes, she wondered if she hadn't kept herself apart because she hoped Dexter was the one.
“You don’t have to say it, you know,” Dexter said, allying her fears. “I wanted you to understand where I’m coming from.
She nodded. “I want to say it.”
“When you’re ready.” He kissed her shoulder. “For now, you and I should get some rest. The thunderstorm out there is rocking. I’m betting we’re in for one hell of a night.”
Brittney rolled over in his arms. “Dexter?”
He peered down at her with a self-satisfying grin and desire. “Yes?”
“I want to say it. I think. But, I need a little more time.” Saying those three words during sex, sometimes muddied the waters. She wanted to say it when they were not on the verge of coming.
“I know.” He kissed her forehead.
“You sound awfully confident.” She snuggled closer to him.
“I am.” He sighed. “It’s one of those things I’ve come to understand over the years.”
“Maybe I’ve done the same over the years,” she murmured with a yawn.
“Sleep, princess.” He wrapped his arms around her. “We’ll talk about it later.”
Brittney’s eyes fluttered closed and she yawned again. Yes, sleep was what she needed. The last few weeks were exhausting, if she planned on being any good to her team she needed to be in top form. As she drifted off, a little smile formed on her lips. Dexter loved her, didn’t that beat all.
Brittney snapped awake with the first tornado warning siren. She'd installed it on all of their computers when she bought them. It was easier in a loud situation to hear that particular sound than something basic like knocking on a door or a bird singing. The siren went off again and she was scrambling out of bed. Two seconds later, the fire alarm went off announcing the storm just west of Tulsa. It wasn't a tornado yet, but it would be, she knew it.
She scrambled to find her clothes then slipped them on while Dexter got dressed as well. When the stepped out of his room, Lars and Shiro were already at the table, both appeared a bit bleary-eyed. Wylder lay on the couch covered up by a sleeping bag as she rubbed her eyes. Oz was already in the kitchen making coffee for them as well. The storms on radar blew up on twenty minutes before the first siren went off. Oklahoma was taking the first hits of the evening.
Brittney grabbed her phone and called Tulsa’s NWS and alerted them to the coming storm. Thankfully, they’d already gotten a heads up from one of the teams who followed Sanders. After she hung up with them, she grabbed the cup of coffee Oz brought her and took a sip. Things were about to get crazy, she only hoped everyone would stay safe.
Chapter 11
The storms arrive... Ahead of schedule...
Dexter turned on the television. Brittney hadn’t told him to, but it helped. As she watched the storms move across the state, she could check in with the areas already affected by the devastation. Lars also routed a call from Sanders to his computer so they could listen in while they waited. Brittney hated waiting. The anticipation, the growing fear of what would come next could drive her crazy. Already the photos of what happened in Oklahoma were pouring in and the tornado touched down only a half-hour beforehand.
It wasn’t pretty.
She'd have to see the line of destruction before she could say what the size was, but due to the severity of the storms, it would be big. The radar from Lars' computer popped on screen and Brittney sucked in a breath. It was time to go. The storm was arriving a hell of a lot quicker than they expected.
“Gather everything. It’s time to go,” she announced, then headed off to find Dexter.
“Mom?” Rai... She knew he'd want to go, but this time, it was too risky. Nighttime tornadoes were tricky enough, having them wrapped in the rain made them almost impossible to spot until they were right on top of everyone.
“Hey,” Brittney whispered. “I need you to stay with your dad. I know you want to come with us, but this is going to extra dangerous.”
“What about you?” her son hedged.
“I’ll be safe, I promise. However, I can’t worry about you and do my job. Trust me when I say tonight is not going to be a fun night.” She squeezed his shoulder then tugged him into a hug. “I love you so much. I’m so proud of you. Protect your dad. Do what he tells you as well.”
Rai frowned but nodded. “I will. Be careful.”
Brittney gave a shaky grin. “Always.” She left her son’s side then continue searching for Dexter. She found him sitting in his office listening to the fire radio. Already Dallas had reported a large tornado had touched down and was thrashing the city. “Dexter?”
He glanced up from the radio and inhaled. “Sorry, I guess I zoned out a little. What’s going on?”
“I have to go now,” she said, “it’s time.”
<
br /> He stood then and crossed to her. “I won’t tell you to be safe. I won’t even tell you not to do anything dangerous.”
She laughed. “I can’t promise I would have done either of those things anyway.”
He smirked. “Figured as much.”
“Rai is staying behind with you. With the weather as it is, he’s safer here,” she said. “Take care of our son.”
Dexter grunted. “Always. He’s my number one priority.”
“Good.” Relief flooded her.
“You should know though, when the storm has passed, I have to go to work. I’ll be taking him with me.”
She shrugged. “It might be a good experience for him.”
“I thought the same thing.” Dexter walked her out to her waiting team.
“I’ll have my phone with me and the radio. If anything should happen, I’ll call you. I’ll try to give you a heads up when and if the tornado comes this way.”
“Go,” Dexter said, shooing her out of the house. “If you don’t leave now, you’ll be kicking your own ass for being so slow.”
“Obviously.” She kissed his cheek then ran out the door into the rain. Her, Shiro and Wylder were in one vehicle while Lars and Oz were in the other. They were going to backtrack and intercept the storm as it crossed into the county.
She got in behind Shiro and opened her laptop, watching the loop as it crossed into Edwards county. The tail of it started to hook as it came into Real County. The power was in the tail, if they could get into the right position, they’d see the tornado before it touched down. She glanced up as they turned left onto the main thoroughfare out of town. Brittney nibbled on her bottom lip before picking up the mic for the CB radio.
“Updates need to come every five minutes now,” she said, “it's too close. Remember, this will probably be rain-wrapped, plus were at another disadvantage, it's happening at night.”
“We have rotation in Waco going east,” Lars said. “Looks like the debris field is significant.”
“Sanders is closer, he can intercept,” she replied. “What's the situation with the NWS and the local news stations?”
“All are broadcasting the weather,” Wylder said. “Looks like they’ve been going for the last forty-five minutes. They’ve been broadcasting about Waco for about thirty minutes, which should be enough time to give everyone a fighting chance.”
A small part of her wanted to do a giddy dance, however, she’d wait until the whole event had passed and she’d received word zero lives had been lost. Then and only then would she celebrate. “Good, they’re taking it seriously.”
“We’re about twenty minutes from intercept with the main cell of the storm,” Shiro said. “Fuck this one is nasty.”
It was then she noticed they’d slowed down. The rain came down in sheets and the wind blew from south to north, pushing their SUV around on the road. Lightning cracked, illuminating the night sky. A niggle of awareness caused the short hairs on the back of her neck to stand on end. It’d happened a few times during her time as a storm chaser. She learned after the first couple of times to never ignore it.
“Shiro, I need to call Dexter,” she said, trying to hide the nervous edge to her voice.
“You feel it too?” Shiro used the rearview mirror to look at her.
“Yes. This isn’t the storm we predicted, it’s worse.”
His hands tightened on the wheel as he nodded. “Yeah, figured as much.”
She grabbed her phone and placed the call to Dexter. He answered on the first ring, and she had to take a deep breath to gather herself. “I need you to do me a favor.”
“Sure,” Dexter said. “Are you okay?”
She would be when the storm passed. “Yes—for now. Look, can you use the fire radio to do an all-call for Tarpley?” She scrubbed her face. She probably sounded like a newbie. “You know, to tell everyone to go to ground now?”
“Fuck,” Dexter snarled. “Already?”
She sighed. “We’re getting rocked. The wind pushing this tail into Bandera County is rough. We’re already watching the skies. I need everyone who can get to their basement or safe room to do so now.”
Dexter grunted. “On it.”
She sagged into her seat. “Thank you.”
“Is it true what I heard about Waco?”
She tucked her bottom lip between her teeth and nodded. “Yeah. The debris field is big according to Lars. We’ll be stopping soon to get an update from Sanders.”
Dexter let out a low whistle. “Be safe. Come back to me.”
Her breath hitched. “I will. Protect Rai.”
“Always.”
She hung up with Dexter then checked the reflectivity in the storm. They weren’t in the perfect condition for a tornado yet, but it didn’t mean anything. They could still pop up out of nowhere. She switched her radar to Waco, and she closed her eyes. From what she could interpret from the data it was worse than they’d realize, however, until the sun came up several hours from then, she wouldn’t know how catastrophic the damage really was.
The CB popped and Sander’s voice filled the interior of the vehicle. “We’re safe, shit’s a mess.”
“How big?” Brittney hedged.
“At least an EF3 could be bigger when daylight breaks. We’re helping move some trees out of the roads so we can get into town and check it out. So far injuries are minimal, and the number of trapped people is almost non-existent.”
“What are the spirits like?” It seemed like a stupid question, but she was trying to gauge how people felt having more time to prepare and to get to their safe place when the tornado hit.
“Thankful,” Sander said. “I haven’t heard a negative comment yet.”
“Good.” She glanced up at the sign as they passed by it. They were getting closer to their intercept point. “I owe you coffee if we make it out unscathed tonight.”
Sanders laughed. “You’re on. Stay safe.”
“I will. We’re almost to our destination. I’ll update when I can.”
“10-4,” Sanders replied. “God speed.”
Shiro pulled off to the side of the road and turned on his flashers while she grabbed her laptop and umbrella. From where they were, they'd have the best vantage of seeing the storm rolling in. She hoped Dexter giving everyone a heads up about the storm would mean fewer people on the road. As she got out, lightning cracked again while the first pebble of hail tinked off the SUV.
“Lars,” she yelled. “Tell me what you’ve got.”
“It's coming. From the radar, there is already rotation on the ground about three miles west of us, but it's weak. It should pass us about five miles north of where we are now.”
Brittney glanced toward Edwards County as another strike of lightning brightened the sky. There. She saw it. The cone was slender almost in the shape of a whip. It moved quickly across the terrain.” “Tornado on the ground!” She pointed in the direction of where Lars had said it would be. “Call it in.”
“On it,” Oz said jumping back into the truck he’d shared with Lars.
“What do you want to do next,” Shiro shouted over the thrashing winds.
“Give it another minute. I know it’s coming,” she said. “I can’t pinpoint it yet.”
She peeked over at Lars' data and glanced back at her radar. The two fronts were meeting. She could feel it in the air. In the beginning, when she heard her teacher say the air felt ionized and then the pressure built, she thought it was something the professors were supposed to say to freak everyone out. Later, when she'd been out in the field and experienced her first tornado, she understood what she was told. The air did change in ways she couldn't explain.
“Rotation on the radar,” Lars yelled. “We need to go now.”
She jumped back into the SUV along with Wylder and Shiro. Two seconds later, she spotted the change in the inbound and outbound winds on the reflect radar along with a small blue dot of debris. “Debris. Keep a lookout.”
Shiro turned the veh
icle around and headed back to Tarpley. The one thing she'd insisted they'd all have for their vehicles if they were working together was bulletproof glass, to keep hail from cracking their windshield or the back window. Having cracks obscured their lines of sight. Plus, replacing windshields every three days sometimes, was hard on the wallet. It might cost a pretty penny in the beginning, but it was worth it.
“Damn the wind is getting pushy.” The SUV drifted to the left before Shiro got it righted and back into their lane.
“It'll only get stronger from here on out.” She peered up over her laptop and glanced at Wylder who glanced between the front windshield and passenger window, her gaze tracking the horizon as Brittney had trained her.
“It’s funky out there,” Wylder mumbled.
“What do you mean?” Brittney prodded.
“Well, its—”
The SUV fishtailed then spun on the highway. Brittney glanced out the window. A yelp of surprise lodged in her throat as the funnel of clouds spun around them with its inky tendrils. They were in the middle of a pop-up tornado. She grabbed onto the handle above her head and braced herself as best as she could while their vehicle continued to spin out of control. In the distance, she could hear Lars yelling at her, but she'd been powerless to do anything but hold on for the ride and hope they made it through unscathed.
As the tornado continued its path of destruction, it flung them toward the ditch on the opposite side of the road, sending them into a roll. They flipped over once then hit the embankment coming to an abrupt stop. Brittney groaned as her shoulder hit the window and her hip hit the armrest. Her heart hammered and the sickening swirl of dizziness had her sucking in deep breaths so not to puke up her dinner.
“Shiro? Wylder? Talk to me. Are you guys okay?” Brittney glanced down at her feet and found Spike sprawled out, wide-eyed and shaking. “Poor boy. It’s okay, it’s over now.”