“Oh,” he loosened his hold, “sorry. Are you okay?”
“I’m just a little tired. I drove straight here.” I put my hand out to Hilary. “How about we make a date to dance together in a little bit? How does that sound?”
“You can still dance?”
“Yep. Can you?”
She giggled. “You’re silly. No, you’re crazy beautiful.”
Bending down, I cupped her face and kissed her forehead. “You, my darling, are amazingly beautiful, just like your mommy.”
“Really?” she asked, her eyes wide.
I nodded.
“Oh, daddy said I could open presents. Will you watch me?”
“Yes,” I laced my fingers tight with Riston’s and lifted his hand, “we will, Hilary.”
Hilary ran off towards her mound of presents just as Eric walked up to us. He glanced at our joined hands and smiled. “Looks like I have to move over and let the team leader have his spot back, huh?” He put his hands up fast. “I’m fine with that. More than fine with it to be exact.”
A slow smile moved over Riston’s face. “Good.”
“Aren’t you glad I forced you to get out of bed and shower today?”
Riston growled and hugged me to him. “Yes and I’m sure Karri is even happier about that considering I’m hanging on her at the moment.”
I poked him in the stomach and realized just how much weight he’d lost. “Riston, when is the last time you ate something?”
He glanced at Amber. “Umm?”
Rolling her eyes, she put her hand on her hip. “Yesterday morning. I forced you to eat an apple.”
“Great, I gain weight while my husband loses it. Wonderful, why is it I’m not liking this set up much?” I asked, running my hand up his side, under the black tee shirt he wore. By my guess, he’d lost at least ten pounds, maybe a bit more. He was still solid muscle he just wasn’t taking care of himself like he should be.
Riston ran his hand over my hip and I waited for him to comment on my swollen abdomen but he stopped just shy of touching it. “You haven’t gain any weight, Kars and you still need to.”
Amber laughed so hard that she sounded like a seal barking and I joined her. Eric and Riston just stood there trying to figure out what was so funny. I met Riston’s gaze and smiled. “Honey, you need to look a little harder or put your glasses back on.”
“I’ll have you know,” his gaze fell to my breasts, “hello.”
Amber and I only laughed harder.
“Kars, did you, umm, is it me or are your,” he glanced at Eric, “chunga-chungas bigger?”
“On that note, I’m turning around to watch my daughter who is now ripping open the huge box that Karri brought and ignoring you.” He chuckled. “Don’t fall in, sweetheart. I don’t think we’ll find you again.”
Hilary’s mouth opened wide but no sound came out. She looked up at me and narrowed her gaze. Eric glanced back at me. “Why is my daughter giving you the evil eye?”
I didn’t have to answer, Hilary did. “This better mean what I think it means.”
“What did you get her?” Riston asked.
“We got her some new toys.”
Hilary yanked on the side of box and I sent my magik out and over the yard to help her get it. It fell away and she stood there staring at two white wooden doll cradles, two matching highchairs, a doll stroller for two and another wrapped box.”
Amber drew in a sharp breath and covered her mouth. Eric went to her side quickly. “Amber, what’s wrong? Are you feeling okay?”
Nodding, she glanced at me and I smiled. Tears filled her eyes.
“What’s in this one?” Hilary asked, lifting the smaller, still wrapped box.
“That’s from Uncle Riston.”
Riston ran his hand up my spine slowly. “It is?” he whispered in my ear.
“Mmmhmm.”
“Funny, I could have sworn that I got her a bike.”
Reaching up, I took hold of his chin and focused his attention on Hilary just as she finished opening the second box. She screamed and Eric jumped. Amber held tight to him and patted his hand. Hilary held up one lifelike baby doll dressed in pink and another dressed in blue.”
“Damn, Eric, we should have thought to get her dolls. She looks like she might pass out,” Riston said, laughing softly.
A muffled cry came from Amber and Eric put his arm around her. “I think maybe we should avoid them. Amber looks like she might pass out too. I never knew a toy could cause such an uproar.”
I stared out at Hilary and motioned to the small box. “There’s one more thing in there.”
Hilary bent down, cradling the dolls like a new mommy and gasped. She lifted a diaper bag and held it out for all to see. Embroidered on the side was ‘World’s Greatest Big Cousin.’
Eric chuckled. “Aww, Karri that was a great gift. She’s been after Riston about getting cousins since she met you. The dolls will keep her happy. Thanks.”
I didn’t comment. Rather, I looked out at Hilary and smiled. She held the dolls close to her and hugged them tight. “Will you teach me how to change diapers, Aunt Karri?”
I snorted. “Sweetheart, we’re going to need Amber to show us that. You need to practice being a big cousin and I need to practice being a mommy. We better hurry. We’ve only got about four months to get it right. They tell me that since I’m having twins they might come earlier than normal.”
“Oh, shit,” Eric said, turning to stare at Riston.
I did the same. Riston stood there like a statue, his breathing was sporadic at best. When he didn’t move or comment I backed up a bit worried that he wasn’t as excited as I was. I looked away and swallowed hard. “I’m going to rest for a bit. I’ll stop back by later today.”
“Karri, wait,” Amber said, coming to me quickly. “Are you serious? Twins? A boy and a girl?”
As I went to take a step I felt Riston’s power wrap around me tight. He looked at me then stared at the sky. It was then I realized what he was doing--blinking back tears. He didn’t want to cry in front of anyone let alone one of his men. It was the alpha in him.
Putting my hand out to him, I smiled. “RJ, I’m tired. Take me home for a little bit and sit with me just until I fall asleep. Please.”
He nodded and drew in his lower lip. Eric glanced at me and winked. He knew what I was doing. Riston walked slowly, almost robot-like to me. He took my hand and followed me into the side yard. When we were far enough from the party to not be seen or heard, he stopped me and pulled me to him.
“Kars? We’re ... ? I’m ... ?”
“We’re pregnant, Riston. Well, I’m pregnant anyway, but yes, we’re having babies.”
“Babies,” he said, sounding as though he were trying to comprehend the entire thing. “I’m going to be a daddy.” He stared at me and something moved over his face. Before I knew what was going on, he had me swept up in his arms and cradled to his chest.
“Riston, put me down. You’re going to hurt yourself.”
“Honey, talk to my niece. I’ve picked up a car for her. You’re like holding a feather.” The shit ass grin he gave me made me laugh. He turned us in a circle fast, leaving me clutching hold of him. “Karri.”
Doing my best to suppress my newfound fit of the giggles, I stared up at him. “Yes?”
A lone tear fell down his cheek and my breath caught as I leaned up and kissed it away. “Are you happy, Riston? Please tell me that you’re not upset.”
“I just found out that my mate, the one and only woman I have ever loved in my life didn’t divorce me and trade me in for a vampire. And that she not only still loves me after I was being the biggest jackass in the world but is carrying my babies in her--our babies. Happy doesn’t even begin to cover it, Kars. No. It doesn’t even scratch the surface.”
Holding me even closer to him, Riston kissed my forehead. “Karri, I fell apart without you. I thought I could make it. I thought that since I only really had you as my mate a few days that I could go on. Bu
t I couldn’t.” He shook slightly and that made me cry for him. “I love you so much that it hurts inside. It fucking hurts, Kars. Why?”
“I don’t know, Riston but it hurts me to be without you too.”
“Marry me,” he said fast.
Confused, I arched a brow. “RJ, darling, umm, we are still married.”
“I know that. I mean marry me like humans do. Walk down the isle and meet me at the end. I want to write in the sky that you’re my wife. I want the world to know.”
“Great, my husband is crazier than me. Riston, we’re already....”
He grinned. “You can dress like a ballerina. Just like you told me you wanted to when you were little.”
“Sold. Okay, what’s the date?” I asked, laughing softly.
“The sooner the better. Can I still write it in the sky?”
“Only if you promise to write RJ and Kars forever.”
* * * *
“Riston?” I clung tight to him as he opened the door to his bedroom. I’d already spent most of the time goose necking around to see everything in his house. While it was still the house I remember him living in it had been updated over the years. I wanted to see more of it. Riston seemed to have other plans. “What are you doing?”
Instantly, his magik was around me, caressing me and making me feel as though he were touching me everywhere. It ran over my nipples that were now extremely sensitive and I arched my back.
Riston stood me up and yanked his tee shirt over his head. The moment I spotted his bare upper body my pussy quivered. It wanted him as much as I did, maybe more. Denying it the pleasures that Riston offered had been difficult to say the least. As he began to remove his boots and then his jeans, I knew it wouldn’t be long before I had him in me again.
He stilled, right before pushing his jeans all the way down. “Kars, I need you to tell me now if I can’t make love to you. If it will hurt the babies at all, tell me now. I’ll also need you to call Eric and your men if I can’t,” he said, his voice sounding strained.
“Why? I don’t want a room full of men in here with us.”
A thin sheen of sweat broke out on Riston’s brow as he pushed his pants down and then off. He took hold of his cock and only stroked it once before it was hard. He gripped it tight and stared at me. “Kars, I’m serious. If I’ll hurt you or the babies in any way I need to know. I’ll need to be chained until the urge to be in you passes.”
My eyes widened. I didn’t hesitate. Pulling my blouse over my head, I exposed my naked breasts to him. My nipples had darkened slightly and they had been filling a D-cup easily. I watched as Riston licked his lips, fixated on my breasts. A tiny tick began in his jaw and it was then I knew what was going on. The alpha in him had been denied its mate--RJ had been denied me, someone created to love him and be able to handle his sexual appetite far too long.
A sickening thought occurred to me. He’d mentioned once that after his sexual buttons were turned back on by his mate that he required sex multiple times a day. I’d been gone for fourteen weeks, who or what had he done that entire time?
He came at me and I put my hand up stopping him. “Riston?”
“Kars, hon,” he put his hands out to his sides and claws shot from them, “I can’t hold back from a full shift if I have to wait much longer.”
I stared down at his clawed hands and took a tiny step back. “Riston, have you been with other women since I’ve been gone. I need to know.”
“What? Why in the hell are you asking me that?” His eyes swirled to an ice blue and I couldn’t help but gasp. “Have you been with other men? Is that it, Karri?”
He came at me fast, lifted me off my feet and had me laying on the bed before I could even blink. He clawed the skirt free of me, leaving it in tiny shreds. Hooking a finger nail under the thin scrape of red material I called panties, Riston cut them free of me. “Have you, Karri?”
Lifting my legs, he somehow managed to get them up high without so much as grazing me with his deadly claws. My heart beat madly in my chest as he climbed over me in all his naked glory. The ice blue eyes he stared out at me from were the wolf’s. I knew that and accepted it.
“Have you?” he asked, pressing the head of his cock to my wet entrance. His eyes flickered and his body stiffened. “Karri,” his voice suddenly sounded more like his own, “call for help.”
Reaching up, I cupped his face and shook my head. “No, Riston. I won’t call anyone to stop my husband from loving me. I won’t break and the babies will be fine.”
“Kar-ri, call for ... help,” he bit out.
Having enough of his attempts at saving me from himself, I let my magik rise fast. It sought his out. Closing my eyes, I concentrated on loosening the natural hold on my sexual power as well. The minute I felt it slip free, Riston thrust into me with a growl that seemed to shake the house.
His massive cock spread my channel taunt and filled me to the brink of pain. No part of me cared or worried. I had the power over him. I knew that now. Even when the beast was sharing his command, I still had the reigns because I controlled me--what he wanted. My greatest weapon with Riston like this was sex and I knew it.
Wrapping my legs around his waist, I clung to him as he began to drill into me with the strength of ten men. The sexual energy I was releasing began to run over us slowly, caressing, seeking out pleasure points and stimulating them. The moment it found my clit I cried out under Riston as I took all that he had to offer.
I felt it then, Riston’s power creeping up and wrapping me in a coating of protection, paying extra attention to my womb. As far out of control as he appeared to be, my RJ was still in, still making sure the people he loved were safe.
“That’s it. Right there, Riston. Right there.” Tipping my head back, I gave into the pleasure that was building, causing my toes to tingle and the sensation to move slowly up my legs. They quivered in its wake and the moment it moved through my abdomen I cried out. The orgasm was too strong, too powerful, too perfect. My pussy clenched Riston’s cock in a death grip, pulling him back into me each time he tried to exit.
“I’m coming. Yes, there.”
Our breathing was all over the place. Mine came in fast pants with each thrust he made. As his cock began to swell I felt the tension in his body easing. The added filling in my pussy of Riston now rubbing against my G-spot left me clawing at his back and gritting my teeth.
“Uhh, Karri,” he whispered as come shot forth from him, filling me. Riston held tight there, continuing to fill me. The longer his orgasm the more he seemed to regain control of himself.
I closed my eyes as yet another wave of pleasure washed over me. The minute I felt Riston’s fingers tracing the side of my face I knew he was back. His claws were gone. “Mmm, thank you.”
“Did I hurt you or the babies?”
Smiling, I peeked out to find him with nothing short of concern etched all over his face. “Riston, I’m fine. They’re fine. It’s safe for us to be together and I felt you making extra sure of that.”
“Gods, Kars, I couldn’t help myself. I’ve spent months trying to sleep every moment I can to control the urge but when I saw you....”
“You spent months denying that kind of pull?”
He let out a soft sigh. “It was that or show up on your doorstep and fuck the living hell out of you, honey. I didn’t think you’d appreciate that too much.”
“Why me? Why not some other woman?” I asked, staring up at him. “I woke up your sexual desires but when I left ... I ... I thought you were throwing me out of your life to find someone else to fill them, Riston.”
“No, gods no. I didn’t throw you out, Karri. I chased you away with my inability to keep my temper under control. I’d never felt anything like that before. Seeing him kiss you on that stage, even knowing it had to be done for effect, I couldn’t handle it. Then to hear that the two of you ... to hear that was too much. I couldn’t deal with that and temporality lost my mind. The minute you told me that you loved
me I started to pull into myself.” He kissed the tip of my nose. “Turns out, I’d challenged the entire fucking bar full of supernaturals to a fight to the death.”
My eyes widened. “You did what?”
Riston blushed and I couldn’t help but laugh. He nodded his head. “Yep. I went so crazy at the idea of you breaking our bond and leaving me that I decided to take on everything in there. I knew I couldn’t live without you and I was hoping one of them would end it for me.”
Hearing that hurt but I didn’t comment. I knew what it was like to feel that desperate so I didn’t have room to lecture. “So, what made you fight instead of taking what they could dish out? I get the feeling that the only way one of them was going to win was if you laid down and let them kill you.”
His lips found mine and the kiss he gave me made my toes curl. The feel of his cock twitching within me made me smile, reminding me that we were one. “Mmm,” he pulled back a bit, “I fought back because Eric reminded me that you are Jack and Victoria’s daughter.”
“And?” I asked, unsure how that would change his mind.
A sly grin moved over his face. “And, Jack was stubborn as hell but Victoria knew how to deal with that. He’d piss her off but she’d always bring him back to his senses. No matter what Dumbass, macho thing he did or said, she’d set him in his place and they’d be fine.” He kissed me again. “Eric told me that you were genetically prone to dealing with someone like me and that while you too could be stubborn, you were in love with my sorry ass.”
I cupped his ass cheeks and licked my lips. “Nothing sorry about this, baby.”
Riston chuckled. “Eric also pointed out that you’d managed to forgive me for everything that had happened growing up and if you could do that then there was at least a snowball’s chance in hell that you’d forgive me again. I punched him the face and told him that he didn’t know his ass from a hole in the ground.” He shrugged. “I guess I owe him an apology.”
I laughed even though the nagging question of him being with other women was still weighing heavily on me.
I should have let them call him. I shouldn’t have hid it all from him. I deserve to find out that he moved on without me. I deserve ...
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