by Sophie Stern
“They’re sneaky that way.”
“Most shifters are.”
Jason kisses me again and this time, he takes his time. This time, he’s patient. This time, he makes it count. The last kiss was passionate and hard and fast. It was the kiss of lovers reunited after months apart, but this kiss?
This one is one for the ages.
Jason kisses me like he’s all got the time in the fucking world to just sit here and hold me, just sit here and make me feel better, just make me sit here and forget that sometimes, the world is a dark and terrible place.
For just a little while, Jason makes me feel like everything is going to be just fine.
Everything is going to be all right.
Chapter 6
Jason
“I’ve been waiting so damn long to touch you,” I whisper. My hands roam her body, caressing her soft skin. I play with her long hair before running my fingers up and down her arms and over her belly and breasts.
“I’ve missed you touching me,” she says, her voice breathless.
“What do you want me to do about it?” I ask.
“I want you to keep touching me.”
“Where?”
“Everywhere,” she says, but then she shows me that brave side of herself, shows me how bold she still is, and she takes my hand. Arielle pushes it between her legs. “But especially here.”
“Is that right?”
“Yeah,” she closes her eyes as I rub her pussy over the thin fabric of the dress. “Right there.”
“How about this?” I slide my hand under the dress and touch her soft, silky panties.
“Even better. You haven’t lost your touch, big boy.”
“I should hope not,” I chuckle. “I was only gone six months.”
“They were a long six months,” she says.
“Were you with anyone else while I was gone?” I don’t really want to ask and I won’t be mad if she says yes, but I want to know. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but a tiger can handle it.
“No,” she says. Her eyes stay closed. “I only ever wanted you, Jason.” Her hands are on my chest and I don’t want her to stop touching me. Her little hands feel so good against my body. With a heavy breath, I continue to rub her over her panties. She’s already getting wet from the petting. I can feel her soft juices on my skin even through the thin fabric.
“I wanted you, too, princess.”
“I need more,” she says.
“I’ll give you whatever you want, whatever you need.”
“You know what I need.”
“Yeah, princess, I know what you need.”
I lock her door, then I bring her over to her desk and carefully, gently lift her up so she’s sitting there.
“I’m heavier now.”
“You’re gorgeous.”
“I’m too heavy for you to be picking me up.”
“You’re light as a feather, little panda.”
She blushes, and I know I’ve got her, but I’m not going to take the time to fully enjoy her blushing. Not this time. Not today. Right now I’m more concerned with making Arielle come, with making her remember exactly why she needs me in her life. I’m going to show her exactly why she needs to keep me around.
I run my hands up and down her thighs for a moment, slowly creeping higher and higher. She shivers as I tease her, carefully playing with her skin, gently making her tingle.
Finally, I reach her panties and I tug them down over her thighs. Then I shove them in my jeans pocket.
“You’re keeping those, are you?” She asks, raising an eyebrow.
“I’m home now, baby. No more panties for you.”
“Is that right?”
“I like you wet and needy, baby. I like you ready for me.”
“I like me ready for you, too.”
She spreads her legs a little and I smile when I see her soft pussy. Her sweet folds are glistening with moisture and I realize she’s already wet for me. All it took was a little kissing and a little playing and she’s ready.
“I’m going to make you come now, little panda.”
“We’ll see,” she smiles, cocking her head to the side.
“Oh, there’s no ‘we’ll see’ about it,” I tell her. I get on my knees and now my face is aligned with her sweet pussy. I’m ready to make her come. I’m ready to make her fucking explode right in her office using only my tongue.
I lean forward and kiss her softly. Arielle groans, then covers her mouth with her hand.
“You aren’t shy, are you baby?” I kiss her again.
“I just…I just don’t want to freak out the receptionist,” she whispers.
“Maybe she deserves to be freaked out a little bit,” I say, and Arielle just chuckles. Then I lick her center, and she stops laughing. She stops giggling. She stops playing around and so do I.
I haven’t tasted her sweet body in months and I’m sure as hell not missing out on this opportunity. I want to make her come. I want to savor her sweet juices as they roll over my tongue. I want everything Arielle has to give me and then I want a little bit more.
I want more.
Arielle lets out a moan as I lick and suck on her skin. I tease her with long licks and soft nips, and soon she falls silent as her orgasm nears. I wonder how long it’s been since she came like this. I wonder how often she gets herself off these days, if she can come as hard alone as she comes with me. I wonder if she’s going to scream when the pleasure overwhelms her.
I place my lips over her clit and I suck hard and fast and quick. That’s all it takes to push sweet Arielle over the edge of pleasure. That’s all it takes to send her to the depths of her orgasm. Her entire body tenses, and then the waves wash over her.
I feel her quiver beneath my mouth and honestly, nothing has ever been as satisfying or as sexy. I love making my girl come.
I love making my sweet darling climax, love to see her completely undone.
Arielle has to have control in most aspects of her life. The type of work she does means she has to look professional at all times. She has to look like she has it completely together even when she feels like she’s falling apart. She has to be organized, diligent, and prompt.
She has to be on top of everything because each time she meets someone new, their entire world is crumbling.
She has to be their rock.
She has to be their guide.
In this moment, Arielle doesn’t have to be strong. She doesn’t have to be anyone’s rock. She doesn’t have to be in control. In this moment, all she has to do is let herself go and trust me to catch her.
She does it.
She does it beautifully.
When she’s finished coming, I rise up and stand between her legs. I wrap my arms around her and kiss her softly.
“You left me,” she whispers, and there are tears in her eyes now. “You left me, and I missed you,” she says.
“I missed you, too, princess.”
“Don’t leave me again.”
“I’m not going anywhere.”
Then together, the two of us hold each other in the silence. We hold each other while the world crashes around us. She is my anchor in the storm and I know I’m hers. We can do this.
Together, we can do anything.
Chapter 7
Arielle
A lot has changed in the last six months, but a lot has stayed the same. One thing that hasn’t changed is Jason’s mom. Petunia still has me over every week for supper. She doesn’t care if it’s rain, shine, snow, or hail. She has supper on the table at seven and I’d better be there.
Tonight I’m going with Jason. He hasn’t seen his mom yet. Apparently he was so caught off-guard finding out about our baby that the only thing he could think about was getting to me.
I wasn’t at home, so he came to my office and waited.
And I’m glad he did.
I’m glad I got to see him, glad I didn’t have to wait any longer to find out exactly what he thinks of me. I’m glad I d
idn’t have to wait to find out what he thinks of our baby.
Even more importantly, I’m glad he didn’t let me down.
Jason might not have expected to come home to a baby, but he totally stepped up. He didn’t freak out. He didn’t get mad. I have to give him credit for that because I think most people would have. Shifter or not, a baby is a pretty big step. Jason and I are going to have this link between us forever now. For the rest of our lives, we’re always going to have to think of our child. Whether our relationship suffers or flourishes, we’ll always have this little boy to put first. We’ll always be thinking of him, caring for him, wanting what’s best for him.
The fact that we’re going to go through this together, hand-in-hand, brings me peace.
The fact that he basically greeted me with a make-out session and an orgasm doesn’t hurt, either.
That man holds my heart, but he also knows my body inside and out. Even after all this time apart, he still knows exactly what it takes to get me off. He still knows exactly what it takes to make me come undone. He still knows exactly how to make me forget about everything that’s bothering me and just let go.
He knows what it takes.
When I get home from work, I walk in the house and Owl greets me with a soft purr.
“Hey there, kitty,” I wiggle my fingers at Owl, but it’s getting too hard to squat down. I feel bad about neglecting my sweet kitten because of the pregnancy, so I go sit on the couch and when she hops up on my belly, I pet her for awhile. Her soft fur feels good against my skin. It’s hard to get used to having a pet around because I’m a shifter, too. The idea of someone petting my fur is strange to me, but Owl really loves it.
And who knows?
Maybe I’ll love it when Jason pets my fur sometime. I don’t know.
Jason is going to come over in an hour and pick me up for dinner. So much has happened that I don’t know if I can really wrap my head around it all. I’m just not sure how to process it.
Before I can drive myself crazy thinking about everything that’s going on with my life, though, I manage to get off the couch, take a quick rinse, and dress myself. I keep things simple and just wear a plain blue dress. Dresses are easy these days. Even maternity jeans with the stretchy bands at the top are uncomfortable for me, so I try to stick to maternity dresses. People often tell me I dress up a lot. They don’t know that I’m just secretly lazy and don’t want to deal with shopping for a pair of jeans that don’t make my stomach hurt.
It’s all about practicality, really, but they don’t need to know that.
Even though I’m happy about our son, sometimes I still feel huge. I feel like a giant, like my body isn’t really mine. I feel like I’m growing big in all the wrong ways, that I’m getting larger and larger and that I’m never going to lose the baby weight. I know it’s shallow to think this, so I never tell anyone, but sometimes I just do not feel sexy.
When I’m with Jason, though, I feel completely hot.
I was surprised at how amazing I felt when he was going down on me. He made me come apart so perfectly. Seriously, how does he do that? He’s always been good at sex, but today was something else entirely. He played my body like a harp. He made me feel like I was a sweet, delicate princess and he was the naughty knight coming to whisk me away to a world of pleasure and intrigue.
He made me forget that I feel big.
He made me forget that sometimes I feel ugly and clumsy.
He made me forget that sometimes, the idea of anyone seeing my stretch marks and new, saggy body terrifies me.
He made me feel like none of that matters, and somehow, even without him saying it out loud, I know that it doesn’t. Not to Jason. He cares about a lot of things, but my physical appearance isn’t one of them.
By the time I’m done running a brush through my hair and putting on some lip gloss, it’s time to go. I head out to the porch and lock my front door, then sit on the rocking chair out front to wait for Jason.
He’s right on time, as usual, and I see his truck kicking up a sea of dust as he drives quickly down the gravel road. He slows and turns into my driveway, then parks next to my own vehicle.
“Hey beautiful,” he says, climbing out of the truck. He leans over the hood and whistles at me, and I blush. “You’re looking lovely tonight. Mind if I take you out?”
I should come up with some clever, sweet, or romantic comeback, but all I can do is nod. With a giggle, I stand up and grab my purse, then head down the porch steps to the truck. Jason wraps his arms around me and pulls me close, then plants a soft kiss on my lips.
Reaching up, I steal his cowboy hat and place it on my own head.
“You know, darling, I’ll be needing that back before we get there,” he says.
“Yeah,” I laugh. “But it just looks so darn good on me.”
I climb in the passenger side of the truck and we take off. We’re both quiet during the ride to his mother’s house. There’s not much to say and neither one of us feels the need to fill the air with talking, but that’s all right. One of the things I like most about Jason is that I can just be me with him.
I can just be myself.
There’s no pressure to try to fit into a mold. There’s no need for me to try to be anyone I’m not. He doesn’t need me to plan out what we’re going to say to his mom or talk about anything at all. We’re fine just being together, and that’s something I’ve missed.
It’s strange, but I often feel like everyone has to talk constantly. Whether I go to Bumble’s for my milkshake or I just take a walk down Main Street, everyone feels the need to talk. People are constantly asking me questions, even if it’s just about my day, and sometimes I feel a little overwhelmed by it all.
Isn’t that strange?
Shifters shouldn’t get so upset over things so small, yet somehow, the idea of people constantly pestering me, even if it’s not intentional, just freaks me out. I think it’s because I’ve been so stressed trying to handle everything alone. I think the idea of trying to be a single mom has finally started to get to me and it’s spilling into other aspects of my life.
Knowing that Jason is here to back me up and that he’s going to help me through everything offers me a sort of peace. I know the future isn’t going to be perfect. I know it won’t be sunshine and rainbows and cupcakes all of the time. I know that in my heart. That’s fine, but just knowing that I won’t have to deal with everything alone is a huge relief.
I feel like I was holding my breath for a very long time while I tried not to drown, and someone just pulled me from the water.
That’s what having Jason back feels like.
By the time we reach his mom’s house, the silence has calmed me. We’re holding hands when he pulls into her driveway. He stops the truck in front of her small house and turns to me, touching my cheek gently.
“What do you say, beautiful? Ready to go see my mom?”
I take off his hat and hand it back over.
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
Chapter 8
Jason
Mom and Georgia are both home when we walk inside. Their cheers of excitement fill the house and warm my soul. They’re happy I’m back. They’re happy we’re both back. The two of them are yelling and shouting greetings and crying happy tears.
“Is the baby kicking up a storm?” I murmur quietly to Arielle, but she just laughs and shakes her head. I’m surprised. I thought the noise would get to the little guy, but apparently he’s a trooper. Just like his mama.
“I can’t believe you’re finally home,” Georgia wraps her arms around me and jumps up and down. Mom wraps the two of us in her arms and we have this awkward, but wonderful group hug.
“I missed you, sis,” I tell Georgia. “I missed you, too, Ma.”
“We’re not all you missed, I’m sure,” Mom says, eyeing Arielle, who is standing quietly by the door. “I see you got your present.”
“I did,” I tell her. “It was quite the surprise.”
“I told you he’d like it,” Mom says to Arielle, who just laughs.
“You might have given me a bit of a warning that you decided to go through with the nursery idea,” she smiles. “I wasn’t expecting him to show up at my office today or to know all about our cub.” Arielle rubs her belly, but she’s giggling. I’m glad she was surprised when I came to see her. I’m glad it was a good surprise. I’m glad she didn’t make me wait weeks or months to get back in her good graces.
I’m sure the orgasm helped, but I’m still happy she forgave me.
I’m still happy she’s giving me a chance.
I sure as hell don’t deserve one and I don’t think most women would even be thinking about letting me be a part of the baby’s life, but Arielle isn’t most women. She’s always been special. She’s always been different, and I’m a dumbass for ever letting her think she was less than perfect.
“Next time I’ll be sure to warn you,” Mom says dryly, but Arielle laughs and the two of them hug.
“You guys have gotten pretty close,” I comment. I’ve never so much as brought a girl home. It’s a little weird, but a little wonderful to see that Arielle and my mother have become good friends while I’ve been away. That’s good. Arielle deserves to have friends. She deserves to have people who will look after her. She deserves to have a family.
My mom does, too.
I know she misses my dad terribly. His death was after a long, painful sickness, so it wasn’t a surprise, but that doesn’t lessen the pain. Knowing someone is going to die doesn’t take the pain away. It doesn’t lessen the hurt.
I think that’s probably part of the reason I hid my deployment from Arielle. I thought that if I told her, she’d be sad. I thought she’d be in pain and that it would hurt worse knowing the end was coming for us. I didn’t want her to worry or to be sad or lonely or scared, but the truth is that she felt those things anyway.
I should have given her a choice in our future, and I didn’t. That’s part of what hurt her the most, I think.