by K. G. Reuss
“In fact, I have something I’d like you to wear to your party.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out something shiny, tossing it my way.”
Out of instinct, I caught the warm metal object in my hands. Studying it, I found that I was holding a butt plug.
“Make sure you use lube.” He sneered and waved his hand through the air. “What am I saying? You’re Butt Whore, you know how to use it.” With that, he turned and left me alone, trembling from what had just happened.
Olivia
After school I went for a run to try to clear my mind. I ran until my chest ached and my legs burned. Truth be told, I also wanted to tire myself out, so I’d be able stay asleep the entire night on the off-chance Donovan decided to pay me a visit.
Flashes of being in the bathroom earlier with Brent twisted through my mind as I puffed down the trails, making me shudder. I hated him. That much I knew. I couldn’t shake off the way his hands felt on my body or the nausea that tried to fight its way up my throat as he rubbed his fingers against me. I pushed myself harder down the trails in a vain attempt to run from my problems. Who was I kidding? I couldn’t run fast or far enough to escape them.
Running had done nothing to aide in me going to sleep. Not only was I sore, but I was still stressed as I lay in my bed later that night. I was sick and shaking from my encounter with Brent in the bathroom. He wasn’t going to stop. I knew he wouldn’t. There are only a few weeks left of school. Just hold on for a little while longer. Then we’d be done. Gone. I won’t have to look at his disgusting smug face anymore.
While the thought should’ve brought me some comfort, all it did was remind me that I needed someone. Obviously, I couldn’t protect myself. My mind immediately went to Donovan. I wanted to see him so much.
A brilliant idea sparked in my mind. Climbing out of bed, I went to my mom’s medicine cabinet and pulled out a bottle of her sleeping pills. Dropping one onto my palm, I tossed it into my mouth and swallowed it down with a glass of water.
I figured the pill would keep me asleep all night. Then I’d get to be with Donovan if my mind decided to show him to me. Giddy with excitement, I clamored back into bed and snuggled down. Within minutes, the heaviness of sleep began to take over. Closing my eyes, I sent out a silent prayer that I’d see him in my dreams.
I was walking through the forest my mind seemed to like so well. It was quiet, the only sound was the crunching of dirt and underbrush beneath my feet. I was in my white dress again, my feet still bare. I knew the twigs and small stones should’ve hurt my feet. But it was a dream, and nothing could hurt me in it if I didn’t let it.
I wandered slowly through the forest, my heartrate kicking up. Where was he? Why wasn’t he here?
Sinking down onto my bottom on the bank, I dipped my feet into the water at the warm springs we’d been to. My red hair cascaded around me, brushing the ground I sat on. I looked around sadly, my heart breaking. He wasn’t coming.
With my eyes squeezed shut tightly, I began to whisper, “Donovan, if you can hear me by some weird chance, if my brain could try to understand that I need you right now, please, just come to me. Please. I’ll do anything.”
“Anything?” Donovan’s soft voice called out to me. My eyes flew open. He was there, standing on the bank, looking down at me. His hair was a beautiful mess on his head. His hands were shoved deeply into the pockets of his jeans. A tight, black t-shirt clung to his body in a way that left me breathless. Eyes of midnight searched me worriedly, darker than I’d ever seen them, making the golden flecks more vibrant and pronounced. I scrambled to my feet and threw my arms around his neck, soft sobs racking my body.
Warm arms encircled me, pulling me tightly to his hard body.
“What’s wrong with my Livvy?” he asked softly, his lips brushing against my ear as he spoke to me. “What can I do? Tell me. I’ll do it.”
“I need you,” I managed to croak out between my muffled whimpers, my hold on him tightening.
“You have me, baby. You always have me,” he cooed, his fingers in my hair. He pulled away and tilted my chin up, regarding me carefully. “I’m sorry I’ve been absent. I knew you needed the rest. You were worn out.” He leaned down and planted a tender kiss on each of my wet eyelids. “No more tears. We’re together now.”
“We’re not,” I wiped at my eyes sadly. “We’re here. In a dream where nothing is real. I want more! I can’t live my life sleeping, hoping to catch a glimpse of you.”
“But they’re sweet dreams, Livvy—”
“They’re wicked dreams, Van!” I shouted back, my hands balling into angry fists. His eyes opened wider, surprise written on his handsome features.
“What did you call me?”
“I-I called you Van,” I replied, wondering where that had come from. A strange sensation settled over me. It was like the tingle my body felt before falling asleep—warm, delicious, familiar.
“You are in there, Livvy,” he growled before his mouth crashed into mine, his tongue tasting every facet of my mouth it could reach. I let out a soft moan, causing him to twine his fingers through my hair, knotting them impossibly deep in the silky threads. His other hand roamed over my body, his hot touch setting my blood ablaze. It coursed through my veins, crashing into my heart at astounding rates.
Before I knew it, he had me pinned to the ground with his strong body leveled over mine. Strong hands tugged at the thin material of my dress. His ragged breaths brushed against my lips. I wove my fingers through his thick hair, causing him to growl his approval.
His hot kisses moved south to the sensitive flesh of my neck, peppering my skin with fire. I whimpered beneath him, wanting more. Ready for more.
“I want you so fucking much,” his husky voice filled my ears as his hands wandered over my body, each touch igniting a new blaze within me. I shifted beneath him, so he was positioned between my legs. He ground his hardness against my heat, making me writhe with need beneath him. My hips met his, our centers rubbing against one another. My hands found his waistband. I set to work, my fingers fumbling as I tried to release him.
“I-I can’t,” he breathed out. His grinding against my core came to a halt that left me moaning with need. He rested his forehead against mine, his breath warm on my face. “I want to so fucking bad, Livvy. I-I just… we have to wait.”
“I can’t,” I half pout, half pleaded at him. A soft chuckle escaped his mouth.
“You always were impatient.” He dropped a sweet kiss onto my lips before moving off me, bringing me with him in his arms so I was lying with my head on his chest. We were silent for a long moment before I spoke.
“Donovan?”
“Livvy?” he replied affectionately, his thumb making tiny circles on my arm as he held me.
“Why doesn’t this feel like a dream?”
“What do you mean?” he’d stilled, his voice low.
“I-I can’t explain it. You say things as if we know each other. And I called you that name. When we’re together, it feels like we’ve always been together. I-I just feel like there’s more realness here than what these dreams want me to believe.”
“And if there were? Then what?”
“I don’t know,” I answered in frustration. “I think I need therapy.”
He snorted loudly, his body shaking with laughter.
“What? What are you laughing at?” I asked indignantly.
“You! You don’t need therapy, not for this at least.” He rolled over and smiled at me, melting my heart. “Trust me. You’re normal. At least as normal as someone in your unusual predicament can be.”
“And what predicament is that?”
“The predicament where you’re madly in love with a dream.”
“Or a wish,” I scoffed sadly.
“Tell you what.” He shifted and positioned himself, so he was on his elbow looking down at me. “When’s your birthday?”
“Two weeks from today.”
“Damn,” he muttered, frowning. “That
’s soon.” He shook his head and cleared his throat. “How about this? When you blow your candles out on your birthday cake, you use your wish to wish for me. How does that sound?”
“Do wishes come true if both people know what the wish is?” I watched as his lips melted into a sweet smile.
“If you want it bad enough, anything is possible, Livvy.”
“You’re optimistic.” I laughed softly.
“No, I’m just repeating something you once said to me. And you know what?”
“What?” I crinkled my brows at him, confused about what he was talking about.
“You were right. You’re always right.” His lips captured mine in a deep kiss that made my toes curl, his fingers in my hair again.
I wanted to believe so badly that I could wish him into my world. So much so that I was willing to use my eighteenth birthday wish on him, hoping it didn’t break my heart when he didn’t waltz right into my life.
Donovan
Time was passing quickly — too quickly. But I had used every minute of every day to collect the souls of women. Luckily, I was a demon and didn’t need sleep, even though I always used it for a nice escape in the past. But with the info Abe delivered, I was more than prepared to forgo any peace until I found myself in her world.
I only spent every other night with Olivia, making sure she, at least, had a decent night’s rest every couple of days. That way, I wouldn’t drain too much of her energy. But I couldn’t keep thoughts of her away. On the nights in between, I relived our moments together. I pictured us lying on the forest floor, beneath the canopy of the treetops. We watched the exotic birds as they flew above us. We held one another. We kissed. And every time we met, we took things a little too far, stopping just shy of stealing what I refused to take.
She didn’t understand why, but she seemed happy accepting what I gave. Each time we found one another, she counted down the days until her birthday, lighting a fire under me to keep working, to keep stealing.
There was only one more name on my list of souls, and I planned on getting it soon. Emily Sheldon was harder to crack than the rest. I’d been in her dreams many times but couldn’t seal the deal. Instead of trying her again right away, I stepped into a dream where I knew I’d get what I wanted. Lidia Ross was a recovering sex addict. She’d been on the wagon, going to meetings in order to suppress her desires. But in her dreams, she was as kinky as they came. Even therapy and highly qualified doctors couldn’t keep me away.
I moved through the dreamscape and soon found myself in some sort of club. In the center was a crowded bar with tables spread about — a normal looking club. It didn’t take long to figure out it wasn’t a normal club. It was a sex club. As I ventured deeper down a hallway lined with doors, I found each door had a room behind it. And each room had a clear window for onlookers. So, you could participate, or you could watch.
With steady steps I walked down the hall, peeking into each window, wondering where I’d find Lidia. I was hoping like hell that she wasn’t already in a room but rather looking for someone to take back. Luck was on my side when I came to the end of the hall and found her to be the only one watching a certain couple. Leaning against the wall, I peeked inside, wondering what she found so intriguing that nobody else did.
“I’m Donovan,” I stated flatly.
“Lidia,” she replied, not pulling her eyes away.
“You like this couple?” I asked, nodding toward the window separating us from them.
She nodded. “I do.”
“Why? What’s so interesting about them?” I was a tad confused. All the other rooms had group sex, whips, chains. But this one, it was simply a regular couple on a bed, going slow and at ease. They weren’t fucking. They were making love for the world to see.
“They’re married. They only have sex with one another,” she replied with a wish shining in her eyes.
“Why is that special to you?” Instead of watching the couple in the room, I watched her, trying to figure out the role I needed to play to get what I wanted.
She turned to look at me, and I saw sadness. “I want that. I don’t just want sex anymore. I want love. I want someone special to share that with.” She shrugged her shoulders, causing her blonde hair to bounce. “I came here hoping to find someone like me. Or at least someone to play along with the fantasy. But they all want—” She lifted her hand and motioned toward all the other rooms. “—that.”
Ahhh. She wanted pretend love, softness. That was a first for me. “I’ll play along.”
Her eyes went wide. “You will?”
I held out my hand. “Come on.”
A small smile tugged her lips as she put her hand in mine. Turning away from the couple I had to become like, I led her into an empty room. Once we were inside, I spun around, and she stepped up to me, pressing her chest against mine as our eyes met. Instead of seeing the blue ones in front of me, I saw emerald green eyes. Instead of blonde hair, I saw flaming-red curls. In my mind I finally had Olivia, and I could do anything I wanted.
My hand cupped her cheeks as I looked into her eyes. “I love you so much,” I whispered.
“I love you too,” she replied, lifting up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to my lips. I let her mouth take mine, forcing myself to remember Olivia and the way her body called to mine in her dreams.
I deepened the kiss as I walked her backward, toward the bed, my hands exploring every inch of her body. “You’re so beautiful. Once I finally have you, the devil himself won’t be able to rip us apart,” I whispered softly.
“I love you so much, Van,” she called out in a breathy moan. The use of my nickname only made the dream I was living that much more real.
I found the hem of her shirt and gently pulled it above her head, her breasts bouncing with the action. My greedy mouth moved lower, pressing kisses to her soft skin as my fingers worked her bra from her body. My lips closed around her nipple, softly sucking and flicking my tongue against it, swirling around like a tornado.
Laying her back on the bed, her back arched upward and already I found myself so lost in the dream that I didn’t want to escape. My hips started rubbing against her core, making me ache for something I so desperately wanted.
“Please, Van. I need you.”
I trailed kisses down her stomach to the waistband of her jeans, pausing only long enough to pull them from her body. After tossing them to the floor, I freed myself and pushed into her nice and deep. I had to talk myself down — already I wanted to finish. But this was Olivia in my mind, and no way was I done with her yet.
My hands held onto her thighs, lifting them up higher on my hips so I could drill deeper into her core. Gasps and moans left her lips, and I felt her twitching around me. I wanted nothing more than for her to come. I held back my own release, just to see the look of pleasure on her face.
The harder I pumped the more she called out and the tighter she squeezed. I was holding on by the skin of my teeth. As I rolled my hips forward one more time, her nails dug into my back and she called my name.
Finally, I couldn’t hold back any longer, I thrusted into her quickly with hard jerks, watching the pleasure on her face: bright green eyes locked on mine, ruby red lips parted as she whispered my name and told me she’d always love me. I spilled myself of every last drop before collapsing on top of her.
With my head resting on her chest, the sound of her heart coming to a stop yanked me from the heaven I’d created. When I opened my eyes, I found myself on top of a blonde with purple lips and fear in her shallow blue eyes.
A sob climbed its way up my chest. For a moment, I truly believed I was with Olivia once again. And seeing the dead blonde in front of me, only reminded me of what would happen to my love if Abe turned out to be wrong.
Quickly, I withdrew myself and left the woman lying alone on the bed, not bothering to cover her in any way. I needed to get away. And I really needed rest. I felt like I was breaking.
With heavy steps, I walked back through
the dreamscape and into my apartment, collapsing on the couch. I hadn’t slept in I didn’t know how long, and finally, I’d had too much. I closed my eyes and felt myself floating.
“Hey, Butt Whore,” someone shouted.
I quickly opened my eyes and looked around me. I wasn’t in my apartment. Wherever I was, a thin, white veil separated me from everything else.
“Butt Whore, why are you ignoring me?” the voice spoke again. I spun around and saw Olivia. She practically ran right by me. Quickly following behind her was some douche bag. “Come on, Butt Whore, let me see the new gift I gave you,” he called out, nearing a jog as they ran through the empty hallway.
What the fuck? What’s going on? Where am I?
I chased after them, running the length of the hallway and turning right at the end. It looked like the guy had caught up with her. He had her back against the wall. He was close enough that their chests were pressing together. Her face was ashen, and her chin trembled. Fear rolled off her so thickly I could almost touch it. “Hey!” I yelled, but neither of them looked my way. I pushed myself forward, anger surging through me as I drew closer. Having to watch as he whispered in her ear and touched places that only I could touch made the rage boil in my veins.
“That’s right, Butt Whore. Your pretty ass is going to be mine in less than a week. The countdown is on,” I heard him growl once I was close enough.
She was visibly shaking, and tears were filling her green eyes. I wanted to kill the mother fucker who thought he could lay a hand on what was mine. I jumped at him, intending to push him away from her, but my hands when right through him, causing me to fall forward and land on the floor.
