Grayson's Vow

by Mia Sheridan

  "Ah. It's good advice."

  "And you? Did you know before tonight?"

  "I think I've known for quite some time now."

  "You have?" The delighted look on his face said it all.

  We stopped next to the entrance to the maze and I turned toward him, grasping his hands in mine.

  "Here we are," I said softly, nodding my head toward the maze.

  "Yes," he said, his eyes flickering away from the maze and back to me. "Here we are."

  He moved closer to me, pulling me into his arms and whispering against my lips. "You bring me peace, little witch, and you put a fire in my blood." I smiled against his mouth.

  "But do you trust me?" I asked, placing my palm flat against his jacket, running my hand over his chest, feeling the strong beat of his heart beneath.

  "Trust you?" A crease formed between his dark brows.

  I ducked under his arm and he spun to face me. "Come find me, Grayson," I said and I ran into the maze.

  "Kira," he called, a low edge to his voice, "what are you up to now?"

  "Helping you let go of something," I said, turning a corner and then quickly turning another. I heard Grayson behind me, walking slowly as I ran. "If you can find me, I'm yours."

  "Kira," he said, and despite the distance, I heard the warning tone, "I know this maze well—there's no hiding from me here."

  Ah yes, but I knew that.

  A thrill went down my spine as I turned another corner. "Really, dragon?" I called. "We'll see. I'm waiting." I was already hopelessly lost, simultaneously feeling a small thread of fear and sympathy for what Grayson must have felt being alone in here all those years ago, but also the tingle of excitement at the knowledge that he'd find me. The shrubbery was tall and untended, and as I ran by, holding the hoops of my skirt as close to my body as possible, my long dress trailing on the ground behind me, branches seemed to reach out and grab me. The moon and stars, and the glow of the house beyond, cast the only light.

  He didn't say another word, but I heard him walking with purpose through the weeds and fallen branches, straight toward me as if he'd known where I would run. I turned one more corner and there in what seemed the middle of the maze was an old fountain in ruin and disrepair. Seeing a stone bench, I sat down and waited for Grayson to find me.

  The distant strains of music and voices from the party took a backseat in my mind as I listened intently for his footsteps, my pulse quickening, my heart thumping.

  "Where are you, little witch?" he asked, much closer now. But it didn't sound as if there was question in his voice. Yes, he knew exactly where I was. My heart rate increased.

  He turned the corner at the far end of where I sat, and my breath stuttered in my throat. In the glow of the starlight, I could see his gaze was trained on me. I stood slowly and as he started to walk toward me, I held up my hand, motioning for him to stop so I could come to him. Because I suddenly understood that sometimes it's right to meet in the middle, but sometimes, the simplest act of grace is to meet the other person where they are. That, that is love. He watched as I approached, his eyes dark and fathomless.

  As I drew nearer to him, it came to me that watching Grayson in front of the bank that day, I had fallen in love, but only in some romantic, girlish way. I had fallen in love with the idea of him. But here, in the deep, dark of the maze—where he had once been lost and frightened and alone—I reached out my hand, and I fell in love with the man. I fell in love with my husband.

  His hand in mine was solid and warm and real. And he grasped me back.

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Grayson

  The party was winding down as I made the rounds as fast as possible, stopping to chat quickly or saying goodnight to those leaving. When I spotted Charlotte chatting animatedly with José's family, I smiled and nodded at them, then asked if I could borrow Charlotte for a moment. When she stepped aside, I said, "Sorry, Charlotte, I'm retiring for the night. Will you encourage the guests to stay and enjoy the music and the food? If they ask, make Kira's and my excuses?" My wife is waiting upstairs in our bedroom.

  "Excuses? Are you sure? There's still—"

  "Yes, Charlotte, very sure." I winked at her and strode away before she could say anything else. I made it past a few guests who were deeply engaged in conversation and turned the corner to the stairs. I took them two at a time. It might have even been three.

  When I opened the door to my bedroom, Kira was sitting at the small writing desk brushing her hair, a towel tucked around her. At the sound of the door locking, she turned and smiled softly at me. The makeup she'd worn earlier had been washed from her face, her hair hung soft and long down her back. She looked beautifully innocent and just a tad shy. She stood and stepped around the chair she'd been sitting on, facing me as I approached her.

  "Hi, little witch," I murmured, stepping right up to her.

  "Hi, dragon," she breathed, reaching up to undo the bow tie knotted at my neck. Though she seemed anxious to undress me, I noticed the shaking in her hands, and when I reached up to help her, she laughed self-consciously. "I feel like a new bride." She delivered the words with a hint of humor, but her eyes were wide and vulnerable.

  "You are. That's what you are." My bride. Suddenly I felt on strange ground, too. The air in the room seemed to close around us, so only she and I existed within it.

  My hands dropped to my sides, and I let her finish with my bow tie, finally tossing it aside, and unbuttoned the top two buttons of my shirt. She leaned in and kissed the bare skin of my throat and my breath hitched at the feel of her soft, warm lips. Her tongue darted out to taste me and then she kissed the spot again, leaning back to undo the rest of my buttons. I watched her, her eyes on what she was doing with her hands. This woman is mine. No one else will ever have her, I thought, my gaze drinking in the dark shadow her lashes made on her cheeks, the way her lips were slightly parted, the bottom one fuller than the top, the very tiny beauty mark to the side of her right eyebrow, and the exact spot on her cheek where I knew her dimple would appear if she smiled.

  "You are so beautiful," I said reverently.

  Her eyes met mine, large and full of wonder, as green as grassy rolling hills in some misty, mythical land. My beautiful little witch—there was magic within her, and I wanted to bathe in its light. I'd never again look at that maze and not think about her walking toward me in the moonlight with a look of love on her face as she reached out her hand.

  She brought my jacket down my shoulders and let it fall to the floor, and then did the same with my now-unbuttoned shirt, her hands trailing down my bare biceps. "You are so beautiful," she said. Her eyes trained on mine, she loosened the towel wrapped around her and let it drop to the floor. I sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of her naked beauty, so lush and sweetly curved. Taking her face in my hands, I leaned in to kiss her, a deep moan coming up my throat. I felt weak with wanting, my cock surging fully to life within the tight confines of my pants. I kicked off my shoes, as I sucked at her bottom lip, and brought my hands down to undo my belt, tossing it aside. We continued kissing as I unbuttoned my pants and let them, along with my boxers, fall to the floor, kicking them both off and bending momentarily to remove my socks. When I, too, stood naked before her, her eyes roamed down my body, stopping on my swollen erection. Her eyes shot to mine, the flush on her cheeks deepening. "Can I touch you?"

  "Yes, God yes," I choked. "I'm yours. Please touch me." I had waited decades to feel her hands on me. Centuries. Eons.

  She reached down and took my testicles delicately in her palm, testing their weight. I groaned, forced myself to remain still while she explored. My breath came out in a ragged exhale when she gripped my length, sliding her hand from base to tip, where she used her thumb to swirl around the head. God, it felt good. "Kira," I groaned, placing my hand over hers and drawing it away. I wanted this to last.

  Her lips parted as she gazed at our linked hands, and I watched her throat move as she swallowed. I brought my thumb to it, wan
ting to feel every reaction her body had to me. I moved my thumb up and down her neck, slowly for only a moment before I cupped the back of her head and leaned in again to taste her mouth. I shuddered at the feel of her silky smooth skin against my own, relished the feel of her softness melding against my hardness. Giving. Yielding. I leaned back to look into her face, desperately needing to see what was in her expression—did this mean as much to her as it did to me? Was this new for her? Different? I didn't know the words to ask, how to pose the questions, and so I looked for answers in her eyes. I became caught in the spell of her gaze before her lashes lowered, and she took my hand to lead me to the bed.

  When she sat down on it and lay back, I moved over her, keeping my weight on one knee as my other parted her thighs. I pressed against the spot where the warmest of her heat emanated and she moaned softly.

  "Here we are," I murmured, repeating the words she'd said to me at the maze. Finally. Finally. As the word echoed in my head, it felt bigger than just the wait I'd endured to make Kira mine. It felt as if it summed up something I'd waited to feel for so very long. All my life.

  Finally you're here.

  She blinked, her eyes unfocused before her lips tipped up. "Yes," she said. "Here we are."

  Rolling my hips against hers, we both moaned, her head tipping back into the mattress. Her hands came up to my head and she raked her fingernails over my scalp causing me to moan in pleasure.

  In the past, I’d always had a set order of things I did in bed, not that I ever would have told anyone. I knew what brought women pleasure, what brought me pleasure, and what resulted in a mutually fulfilling experience. But with Kira, it all went out the window. I tried to remember what I should do first, and where I should move on from there, but it all fled my mind, so all I had to draw upon was instinct. I could only focus on the heaviness of my own arousal, the heat of her soft flesh as she moved under me. I felt unsure and unskilled as if Kira was the first woman I'd ever touched.

  I've done this before, I reassured myself, but the words felt false. I wasn't sure of anything anymore.

  Bringing my mouth to hers, I angled my head so my tongue could fully penetrate her mouth. She made a deep sound of approval, her tongue meeting my own to twist and tangle as her pelvis thrust upward onto my throbbing cock, and her soft breasts pressed against my chest. I grunted at the delicious impact and broke from her mouth, trailing my lips down her throat and licking at her hardened nipples, first one and then the other. I rubbed and bit softly and then soothed with my tongue until she went wild beneath me, gasping and pressing her body into mine.

  "Kira," I moaned. I wanted to worship her. Every secret spot, every sensitive valley, each tender curve. Flipping her over as she mewled softly, I kissed down her spine, inhaling the feminine scent of her skin, breathing her in. I licked the tiny dimples above her buttocks, feathered my lips over her ass cheeks and down to the backs of her knees and up again. I'd lost all control, surrendered completely to the dictates of my body. The sounds she made had me wild with want, desperate with love for the sweet, sexy little witch beneath me.

  "Kira," I whispered again.

  Flipping her over once more, I moved my hands over her body, stroking, shaping, molding as she arched up, offering herself to me. I leaned down and kissed the inside of one thigh as her hands again raked through my hair. "Please," she gasped as I brought my tongue to her swollen clit and licked around it, my body growing even hotter and harder at her sounds of pleasure. I couldn't take it any longer. I was going to orgasm without even being inside her, and I desperately wanted to cover her body with my own, to sink inside, to pump and thrust into her hot, slippery softness. Settling my weight on top, I rolled my pelvis over hers, my cock aching with need.

  Kira gripped my shoulders, a look of pure desperation on her face. "Please," she said again, her voice raw.

  "Yes," was all I could manage, my mouth returning to hers, our kiss wild as her hands stroked my arms, my back, my chest, seeming to be everywhere. Yes, yes, yes. Somewhere in the recesses of my muddled brain, I thought, what is this? If this is lovemaking, then I've never done it before. If this is lust, then I've only experienced the lukewarm version of it. This, this was like dancing with lightning—making love with a woman I loved. I pulled back only momentarily to look into her eyes as her hands gripped my shoulders and I entered her. She blinked up at me, her expression a delightful mixture of lust, perplexity, and impatience.

  "Kira," I murmured again, pressing myself inside her. It seemed my entire vocabulary had been reduced to that one word. Her body was warm and wet and soft, but so tight I could barely fit myself inside. I gasped out a groan, shaking for control, as I pressed just a little bit farther inside. She lifted toward me as if I were going too slowly for her, and despite my desperate need, a smile tugged at my lips.

  My God, she's enchanting.

  My God, she's mine.

  I entered her a fraction more and Kira let out a small whimper, wrapping her legs around my hips. I pressed deeper, finally sinking all the way inside her on one final thrust. Her eyes fluttered closed, her lips parting as she let out a small sigh. Her gaze met mine again as I started moving, and the intimacy of staring into her eyes while I was joined with her became almost too much to bear. Her breath was coming faster and faster, her hips meeting mine thrust for thrust, and I struggled to hold back the pleasure that swirled through my abdomen, drawing my balls up tight, prickling my skin. God, it felt so good it almost hurt.

  I vaguely heard myself whisper words to her that were not words, but merely emotions put into sound—they were disjointed, raw, and they came from the very deepest part of my heart.

  Her hands skated down my back, exploring until they came to my ass, and she gripped it as I moved inside her.

  "Faster," she moaned, and I felt the hairs prickle on my nape at the excitement of that single command. I picked up the pace, thrusting into her harder, my breath coming out in sharp exhales. I had no idea where I ended and she began. I brought my mouth to hers for one more kiss, and when she let out a small gasp and I felt her muscles begin to contract, I leaned back slightly to bear witness to her surrender. I watched with wonder, as she came undone, this woman who had resisted me so stridently, challenged me at every turn, this woman who fascinated me, tested me, pushed me to my limits, and kept me guessing. She was everything to me: my dreams, my weakness, and the person who made me want to be strong. She was the one woman who showed me I mattered, that I was wanted. That I was enough.

  "Kira," I groaned one final time, as I burst apart in a shattering climax, stars bursting before my eyes as the pleasure peaked. I sagged limply into her, my head resting in the crook of her neck as our breathing returned to normal. Her hands still ran up and down my back, and I needed her touch, shaken from what we'd just done. After a few minutes, I rolled off her and gathered her in my arms, staring blindly up at the ceiling fan above, reeling from having experienced something that made a sad mockery of every sexual encounter I'd ever had before.

  I felt strangely vulnerable, as if she held all the power. I wasn't sure what to do with these new feelings. Sex had always made me feel like the one in control. And now . . .

  "How do you feel?" she whispered.

  "Like your husband," I said instantly, a smile pulling at my lips. "How do you feel?"

  She tilted her head up to look at me, the expression on her face happy and satisfied. "Like your wife," she whispered.

  I smiled again and pulled her closer.

  Kira circled one fingertip around my nipple and I shivered, drawing her closer. She tipped her head back and looked up at me. "Is it always like that?" she asked, a teasing note in her voice.

  "No," I answered immediately. I gazed down at her, letting her see the sincerity in my eyes. "I've never experienced anything as wonderful as that. I've never experienced anything as wonderful as you." Relief and happiness flashed in her expression, and she smiled gently.

  "Will it always be like that with us?"


  I studied her vulnerable expression. Yes, I thought it would always be like that for us, because Kira was part of it—her joy, her passion, her beautiful spirit. But I thought I knew what she was really asking. She had once been shamed for something that came naturally to her. An uncomfortable feeling of jealousy threatened, and I was unwilling to bring her ex into the room, so I thought it better to make light of her question for now. I smiled and kissed her forehead. "We'll have to find out, won't we?" I turned suddenly and hovered over her, kissing her once, hard, on her mouth as I brought her arms up and pinned her hands above her head. She laughed, and then writhed beneath me, the moment turning light and flirtatious.

  I kissed her again and then let her go. "We didn't use a condom," I said, my eyes moving over her features to gauge her reaction. I'd only realized afterward that, for the first time ever, I hadn't even thought about it. Somehow, though, I wasn't very concerned. I was worried she might be, although she hadn't mentioned it either.

  She hesitated, obviously just considering it now for the first time, too. "One time is probably okay. I'll get on birth control so we don't have to think about it."

  "Okay," I said, nodding, and wondering at my lack of worry. We'd be safe from now on, but we were married. We had a home. I didn't think I was ready for kids, had never even thought about it. But it wouldn't be a tragedy either. I wanted my new wife to myself for a while, but if it did happen, we'd figure it out.

  "Need some water?" I asked, rubbing my nose along hers and then kissing the corner of her mouth.

  "Yes, please," she said.

  I stood and Kira sat up, moving back against the pillows at the headboard. I took a moment to drink her in: her mahogany hair splayed out all around her, her green eyes lazy and half closed, the expression on her face one of pure satisfaction, her naked beauty fully on display—that beautiful body I’d just been inside. Before I forgot the water and returned to bed to enjoy her again, I turned and headed for the bathroom. When I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, I was surprised to see the smile I hadn't even realized I was wearing.