I was so full of him.
Surrounded by him.
I’d missed him so much.
He nuzzled my ear, kissing me softly. "Ready?" he murmured, his erection throbbing inside me. He was beyond ready. But he was waiting for me.
"Yes," I sighed, moving one hand up his spine. "Please, move."
He shuddered above me. And then started to move. I shut my eyes, arching my back as he set a smooth rhythm, his hips rolling as he pushed in. It wasn't fast, but it was perfect, hitting me everywhere I needed it, the angle perfect.
He never forgot what I liked.
His breath was harsh as he kept up the rhythm, his hand clenching and releasing on my hip, his skin sweaty against mine.
He really needed to come.
But he waited until I did.
I bit down lightly on his shoulder as the orgasm hit me again, clenching down on his hard length inside me, my body stiffening under him as I rode the delicious feeling.
He made a sound in the back of his throat as he pushed in all the way, as deep as he could go.
And let go.
I felt the warmth of his orgasm, his length kicking inside me as I held him close, kissing the side of his face. It went on for a good while, his body shuddering in my hold, wracked with his pleasure.
With a heartfelt sigh, he finally relaxed on top of me. But only for a moment.
Sitting up, he chucked his pants aside and rolled me on top of him so he was taking my weight instead.
"Mmm." I rubbed my face against his chest, the crisp hair there tickling my face as I slid my foot up his calf. "That was really good."
He chuckled, moving a big hand down to cup my ass.
"Good." He slid his other hand up into my hair. "Now you can tell me how you got that bruise on your ribs. And why you were trying to hide a limp earlier."
My ribs were bruised from earlier today. I must have hit something while I was running, but like sometimes happened, I didn't feel the ache until I got home. I was really hoping he wouldn't notice.
"I had a bad fall on the stairs," I said, trying to keep my body and voice relaxed.
Ashur was quiet under me.
"Are you sure that's what you want to go with?" he prodded after a few beats.
Yup, wasn't buying it. I didn't know what to say. I knew he'd get overprotective if I said the truth and I didn't want him to worry-- A knock at the door saved me.
Ashur stiffened underneath me. "Expecting company?" he asked, his voice deliberately relaxed, just as mine had been a moment before.
"No," I murmured, sitting up. Who was it?
"Mia?" Jacob's voice came through the door. "I know you're in there."
Ashur grew still underneath me at the masculine voice.
Great.
Maybe the knock wasn't a save after all.
Chapter Six
"Just a second!" I called out, trying not to be so loud that it would wake Omari up too. I grabbed my clothes and started yanking everything on. Ashur took his sweet time, pulling on his boxers and his slacks like he had all the time in the world.
"Shirt?" I prodded, but he just gave me an unreadable look.
Fine. I went over to the door and took a deep breath as I smoothed my hair down, trying to look presentable when I felt anything but. Couldn't I have had at least a moment to enjoy the afterglow before shit hit the fan?
"Mia?"
Okay, I had to open it. I unlocked the door and opened it. Jacob was frowning as he met my eyes.
"Is everything okay?"
"Everything is fine," I said, trying a smile.
He just narrowed his eyes at me before trying to look behind me. "Do you have someone over?"
"She does," Ashur confirmed from behind me.
Wonderful.
Ashur walked up behind me, no shirt and no shoes, his hair rumpled. It was obvious what he'd just been up to. I covered my face with my hand. How embarrassing. Was this the male equivalent of marking territory?
Jacob took in Ashur's state of undress. His expression didn't change but his shoulders stiffened.
"You are?" he asked, stepping forward so I had to step back.
Why don't you come in Jacob?
Why, I'd love to, Mia.
I shook my head as I closed the door behind him.
"I'm Ashur. Mia's boyfriend."
Boyfriend. This was the first time he'd ever attached some kind of label to us. I didn't know how to feel about it considering the circumstances.
"And you are?" Ashur asked, deliberately sinking back down onto the couch, making a show of being comfortable in my place.
I mentally facepalmed this time because I didn't want to obscure my vision.
"This is Jacob," I interrupted. "My friend and neighbor."
"Ah."
I didn't know so much could be implied with just a sound like that.
"Did you need something, Jacob?" I asked, ignoring the weird dynamic going on between them. I wasn't touching that with a ten-foot pole right now.
Jacob finally turned his attention to me. "Yes, actually," he said, crossing his arms. "I wanted to know what was going on today. Why those guys were after you."
"Uh . . . "
I glanced over at Ashur who was sitting up straighter already.
"What is he talking about?" he asked.
I sighed, giving Jacob a look that he totally ignored. There was no getting out of this conversation with Ashur now.
"I don't really know," I admitted. "Someone followed me from my last job and then these other guys were waiting for me in one of the side streets." I shrugged. "I have no idea why. They didn't exactly tell me before they decided to attack."
"Attack?" Ashur repeated, getting to his feet. "You were attacked?"
"Well . . . maybe they just wanted to talk to me?" That sounded like a stretch even to me.
It was Ashur’s turn to cross his arms.
"They obviously didn't look like they just wanted to talk if you used the word attack. What happened?" he demanded.
I sighed. There was no point in holding anything back now, so I told them all I knew.
" . . . and so I called Jacob to give me a ride away," I finished. "Thank you, again," I said turning to him. "I really appreciate you dropping everything to show up."
"Of course," he said in a low voice. "I'm just worried about what you may have gotten mixed up in. Those weren't guys who just happened upon you and thought they'd take their chances. You, specifically, were their target."
I couldn't argue with that. Not when I thought the same thing.
"That part of the dome isn't exactly a place to be strolling around in," Ashur said, his voice tightly controlled. "What were you doing there alone?"
Here we went.
"Sometimes I have to go to those kinds of places because of my job," I said, trying not to be defensive. He was just worried because he cared. I couldn't lose sight of that. "It goes with the territory."
"It does," Jacob agreed.
Ashur turned to glare at him. Okay, this wasn't helping.
"How about I talk to you tomorrow, Jacob?" I said, not bothering to hide I needed him to leave right now.
He raised a brow at Ashur, but turned to me.
"Sure thing," he agreed mildly, stepping back towards the door. "Tell Omari I'm sorry he was asleep when I came over."
"He'll be sad he missed you."
He stepped out into the hall and turned to look at me. "Call me if you need me," he said, glancing behind me into the apartment. "Okay?"
"I'll be fine," I said quietly. "Goodnight."
He hesitated for a second longer, but then nodded as he stepped towards his door. "Goodnight."
I shut the door quietly and leaned my head against the jamb for a moment.
"That guy wants to be more than just your friend."
I sighed, turning to face Ashur. "No, he doesn't. But it doesn't matter what he wants," I said quietly.
He searched my face. "You're right."
"But I'm not comfortable with you going to areas that are known to be dangerous by yourself. It's an unnecessary risk."
I tamped down on the anger that surged inside me. Maybe it was unnecessary for him, but this was my job. My livelihood.
"I've had this job way longer than I've known you," I finally said, keeping my voice down with an effort. "And I need it. I need the money, especially now with Omari here."
He stepped towards me, but stopped when I didn't make a move towards him.
"You don't need to do this. Come back with me—I can take care of both of you," he said softly, his eyes imploring.
I rubbed my eyes. "I can't take that kind of risk," I said, letting my hand drop so I could look at him. "It isn't just me anymore—I have Omari to think of. I need to have a life where I know I can take care of him, no matter what happens. Take care of myself. What if things between us don't work out?"
His jaw clenched. "You don't think we'll work out?" he asked tightly.
I was suddenly utterly exhausted. This wasn't at all how I envisioned this visit going.
"That isn't what I said," I murmured. "Look, why don't we just table this for now? I missed you, and I don't want to waste the little bit of time we have together arguing. Okay?" I implored. "Please?"
He let out a breath, pushing his fingers through his hair. Finally, he nodded.
"Yeah, okay," he said, stepping closer to ease me into his arms. "You're right." He sighed. "Just . . . don't keep something like this from me again, okay?"
I nodded, pressing my face against his chest as I wrapped my arms around his waist.
"Okay," I murmured, leaning against him. "Okay."
Chapter Seven
I woke up in the morning feeling warm and relaxed. This was nice. But when I tried to roll over, I couldn't.
"You'll fall off," Ashur rumbled in his early morning voice, his arm tight around my waist. "And I have to say, this couch leaves much to be desired."
I smiled, wiggling in his hold until I could turn around to look at him. He smiled back at me, his eyes still slightly sleepy. I smoothed a hand up his bare chest. He'd only bothered to leave his boxers on.
"We could have slept on the bed," I pointed out, kissing his chin, feeling the roughness of his morning stubble.
"Hmm. But then I couldn't have done this."
I gasped as he abruptly shifted us so I was on my back and he was on top of me. I was trying to stifle my laughter as he eased my oh-so-sexy pajama bottoms down.
I wasn't laughing anymore when he slowly pushed into me, his morning erection sliding in like a dream.
I felt like I was always ready for him.
We were both quiet as Ashur thrust in and out slowly, our lips clinging as we both fought for the orgasm that suddenly felt very necessary. Everything felt extra sensitive from last night, each touch feeling like even more. He reached between us and rubbed me right where I needed it.
"Oh!"
I thrust against him as the pleasure stabbed through me, faster than I expected it to. He muttered something before pushing in past my tight, clenching grip on his length, and let out a shaky groan as he came too. Our breathing was the only sound in the quiet aftermath.
"I think I'm dead," Ashur groaned.
I snorted, sliding a hand down his back. "It's your own fault if you are."
He propped himself up on his elbows and grinned down at me. I felt another zing of interest.
Down, body. That's enough!
"Worth it," he said, his tone satisfied. He leaned down and kissed the tip of my nose. "But I think you might need to wake Omari up soon."
What? I grabbed my watch off the coffee table.
"Oh shit!"
Ashur laughed as I popped off the couch and pulled my pajama pants back up.
"This is your fault!" I said, though I felt too good to actually be mad about it. I hurried to the bedroom.
"Worth it!" he called out after me.
He was right. But still! I woke Omari up, and he bounced right out of bed, as usual. I wish I had some of his energy. While he went to the bathroom and got ready, I laid out his clothes and then mine. As soon as he was out, I ran into the bathroom and shut the door.
"I'll be out in a sec, Omari!"
A shower was definitely in order. A quick scrub later, I dressed in my usual jeans and t-shirt, throwing on my cleaned jacket on top. I still had to feed Omari and make his lunch, so I hustled out to the kitchen. But then stopped as I saw him sitting at the counter, eating pancakes.
"Here you go," Ashur said, sliding a plate onto the counter in front of me as he flipped another pancake on the griddle. "Hope you like pancakes. I figured it was a safe bet since you had the mix in your cabinet."
Aw.
I had no defense against this.
"I love pancakes," I said, sliding onto the stool next to Omari, who was demolishing his breakfast as usual. "That was really sweet of you. Though I should probably just make Omari's lunch real quick before I eat—"
"Already done," Ashur interrupted, setting Omari's lunchbox down on the counter in front of us. "He helped guide me so I could make him the kind of sandwich he likes."
"It's true," Omari said, swallowing. "Ashur even cut the crust off for me!"
I never had someone just . . . do things for me like this. I was caught completely flat-footed. I met Ashur's eyes as I settled back down onto the stool.
"Thank you," I said quietly. "Really."
His eyes warmed. "You're welcome," he said just as quietly. Then he glanced at his watch. "I just need to use the bathroom real quick, and then I have to head out."
"Can't you at least have breakfast with us?" I asked, feeling a pang in my chest.
"I can't," he said, skirting the counter. "I really wish I could."
"Aw!" Omari said, his face as crestfallen as I felt. "When will you be back?"
"Soon," Ashur promised, hugging Omari. "Eat your breakfast and don't give Mia a hard time, okay?"
Omari nodded, dutifully forking up another piece of pancake. Ashur disappeared inside for a few minutes. I hurriedly quartered an apple and wrapped each piece in a pancake. Not the most nutritious breakfast ever, but he could eat it with his hands and it was better than nothing. He was back well before we were done eating. I stood up to walk him to the door.
"I wish you could stay longer," I said in a low voice, stepping into his arms.
He hugged me tight. "Me too," he said. "But I'll be back soon. And maybe you guys could visit too?" he added hopefully.
I nodded. "Yeah. We could do that," I agreed, trying not to look as glum as I felt.
"We'll figure something out," he said, leaning down to give me a soft kiss. "I'll email you later, okay?"
"Okay."
For some complicated tech reason I didn't really understand, there was a way to get emails into the city dome from outside via satellites that were set up for that purpose, but phone calls weren't possible.
I pressed the still-warm paper bag containing his breakfast into his hands, and with one last kiss, he stepped out. I closed the door behind him, not liking the feeling of seeing him go. But life didn't stop because I felt sad. It was one of the lessons I'd learned early on.
I turned back to Omari.
"I miss Ashur," he said, giving me big eyes.
"Me too," I agreed, walking over to give him a hug. "But we'll see him again soon, okay?" I glanced at my watch. Yikes! I was constantly running against the clock! "And we need to head to school now. Come on, let's go!"
I stuffed his lunch into his backpack while he finished his breakfast. Shoes on, and then we were out the door. As I was locking the old-school component with the key—the other two automatically locked—I heard Jacob's door opening.
I glanced over to say hi, but froze as I met Ashur's eyes.
My brain simply short-circuited for a second.
What was he doing at Jacob's? Didn't he pee around me enough last ni
ght?
"Hi Ashur! Were you saying goodbye to Jacob?" Omari asked innocently.
That snapped me right back to the present.
"Yeah, Ashur," I said in a tight voice. "What were you doing at Jacob's?" I asked, trying not to show how upset I was. Omari was right there. But Ashur could tell my reaction wasn't a pleasant one.
"We had some business," he said calmly, not batting an eyelash at being caught.
They had business, did they?
"Omari, can you wait downstairs by the door?"
"But, Mia—"
"Now, please."
He let out a big, put-upon sigh, turning to go down the stairs. "Fine!" he agreed loudly. "I never get to hear anything good," he complained, muttering to himself.
I waited until he was a flight down. I'd be able to hear him when he was at the door, which meant he'd be able to hear me. I stepped close to Ashur and made sure to keep my voice down.
"Didn't you mark your territory enough last night?" I hissed.
He frowned. "What?"
"Don't play stupid! What else was the whole shirt-off, I'm-Mia's-boyfriend, grunt, I-am-Alpha thing about?"
He narrowed his eyes. "Am I not your boyfriend?"
What? I shook my head.
"Don't try to judo this back to me, buddy!" I poked him in the chest with my finger. "I don't want you harassing Jacob, okay? There's nothing going on with us!"
He met my eyes. "We had business," he said calmly.
"You know what?" I said, taking a step back. "Fine! I can't deal with this right now—Omari's going to be late to school." Turning around, I took the stairs down at a speed that was probably too fast for safety but completely necessary at that moment.
Ugh! Men!
"Come on, Omari," I said, opening the door to the street. "Let's go."
He wisely didn't say anything as we stepped outside. Probably I hadn't been as quiet as I should have been towards the end there. After about a half a block, I broke the silence.
"Ashur and I just had a disagreement about something."
"Okay." We walked a few more steps. "Can I have ice cream after school?"
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