by Kate Stewart
I sat at the edge of the bed, feeling terrible about ruining the dinner party I knew his mother had worked so hard on. She’d been planning this for weeks, and though I had been out with Heidi a few times and we quickly became close, I was excited to get to know the rest of his family.
The last few months with Rhys had been the exact opposite of our first months. I’d refused to peek around the corner, dreading the next disaster, and because of that they’d been the best months of my life. I was certain with my new love there would always be something there that threatened to shake us, but I was more certain I would refuse to let it get in the way. I heard Bryce calling for me from downstairs and my heart squeezed. I knew my appearance would only frighten him.
It’s just an allergy attack, Vi.
Rhys walked in a few minutes later, carefully balancing two plates of food, two plastic glasses, and a hand full of movies as his arm cradled a bottle of wine.
“They are going to watch Bryce and you and I get another picnic in bed,” he said, setting the plates on the nightstand next to me and sliding off his shoes. He walked over to me, stripped my dress off, and gasped at the rash on my back. “Oh, man, this is...bad.” I nodded, embarrassed, then quickly got under the covers. He pulled me to him and kissed me gently.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered. I nodded again, still a bit emotional from him seeing me this way. But he loved me and it showed now more than ever. I felt sick and took two of the Benadryl he offered. He quickly handed me the movies to choose from.
I sifted through them. “How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days, Steel Magnolias, Cider House Rules...Rhys, these are all chick movies.”
His smile was devastating. “I know. I told them to hand me the cheesy love ones,” he said, putting our plates on pillows and setting mine in front of me.
“This is awesome. Thank you so much,” I said, my voice shaky.
“This is us. Good or bad. Butt ugly or not,” he said as he deadpanned, “I may have to brown bag your head and get you from behind tonight.”
“NOT FUNNY!” I said, offended, as he laughed. He cupped my face and pulled my swollen lips to his. I couldn’t help but laugh with him.
He pulled back as he chuckled. “Told you I can be a prick.”
I walked through the market picking up various items to cook for Rhys tonight. We had the house to ourselves and I wanted to do something special for him. The last few months had been amazing, and though my skills were rusty, there was no time like the present to remedy that. I smiled when I found the aisle that carried his favorite bath salt. I reached for it when I heard a voice behind me.
“Predictable.”
I didn’t bother to turn and look at the source of the voice. No good would come of it.
“What do you want,” I hissed.
“Nothing,” she said passively. “I just thought I would come over and see how the happy couple is doing.”
“Ask Rhys,” I said, facing her head on and gasping at the sight of her. The whole left side of her face was purple and swollen. Her lips were busted and I saw a small amount of dried blood in the corner.
She completely ignored my reaction to her. I had no doubt her condition was a direct result of her sick fetish. “So tell me something,” she said, trailing her pointer on the box of salt I was holding in my hand. “Do you think you satisfy him?” Her eyes were icy as she tried to regard me calmly, though there was nothing but contempt in the air between us.
I ignored her question and stepped past her. She gripped my arm painfully, forcing me to confront her.
“Sandra, I won’t let you do this or anything for that matter. No matter how hard you try, you’ll never come between us. Whatever you’re thinking, give it up. We are too strong and you won’t succeed,” I said confidently.
“I’m well aware you’re the woman he wants. What I can’t figure out is why,” she said, studying me.
“Maybe because I’m nothing like you,” I said, ripping my arm away.
“Maybe, and maybe you are just better at playing the game.”
“And just what the hell is that supposed to mean?” I asked, taking an intrusive step toward her.
She smiled at my irritation. “Oh, come on, Violet. We both know you came after me. You found out about Alex and me and went after Rhys. He may not have figured it out, but I have. I took your family away so you—”
“No, Sandra, you gave me my family. It was never a game for me. I’m not a sick bitch like you. I don’t thrive on other’s misery. I didn’t have to play with his emotions to get him to love me. I didn’t have to manipulate my way into anyone’s life. I won your game without ever picking up the dice. Deal with it. I’m nothing like you.” I watched her wheels turn at my admission. “By the way, I heard through Alex’s parents that he moved to Atlanta with his best friend Chris. Sorry for your loss.”
I smiled as she stood speechless. “I’ve got to get going now, Sandra. I have to go home to cook dinner for my Dom. You know how it is, supper and reruns before I let him tie me up and fuck me. And don’t worry, Sandra, whatever he practiced on you, I can assure you he perfected on me.” I smiled sweetly as I handed her the bath salts.
“Looks like you could use this more than us. Take care.” I walked out of that store, certain we would cross paths again one day. But no matter what, I’d be ready for her.
I drove my route home, loving the way fall crept in on the heels of summer so subtly. I reveled in the crisp feeling of the season’s air as I rolled down my window and welcomed it, a smile on my face. It’s arrival brought the realization of how much had changed since I’d last taken notice.
A year ago, I was completely miserable, unable to please a husband who no longer loved me and left me unfulfilled. And close to becoming another divorcee who sat on a shrink’s couch and whined about her husband’s inadequacies.
I stepped out, hurt, afraid, insecure, and scared.
The bravest thing I ever did was take a chance and step out of my comfort zone to experience what I knew I was missing. The smartest thing I ever did was go with my instinct about Rhys and force him to give me another chance. The hardest thing I’d ever done was ride out the aftermath of my failed marriage, hoping for a silver lining.
I now lived in that silver lining.
I had been crazy to think I could replace my reality and live in a fantasy with something else. Rhys tried to keep his from me. He’d wanted to protect me, to keep as much of the fantasy as possible just as I’d needed to be disillusioned. Because, in the end, that’s all there is...reality.
My knight in shining armor was a sex-crazed, ex-Dom that carried a diaper bag. But he was also a smart, sensitive, and sexy man who loved me. I wasn’t the damsel in distress I had led myself to believe. I was worth more and capable of much more than I imagined. Rhys helped me embrace it, while Alex tried to rob me of it. In the end, I realized the people I surrounded myself with determined the quality of my life.
I loved my reality. I loved my silver lining. I smiled hearing the ping, knowing the source of my message.
RHYS: Pussy here, NOW!
My mind raced at the ever-changing possibilities that awaited me.
VIOLET: On my way. Don’t I get a color?
RHYS: GOLD.
My chest squeezed as I turned into our drive and stared at the porch—our porch. In a few billion steps, I would be in his arms, where I belonged. I’d just sold my house and made his my permanent residence at his urging and I couldn’t imagine it any other way. Rhys was home, as he promised he’d be. Bryce was my world.
It may have taken me a year to get here, to this place where I felt safe and happy and sated all at the same time without feeling guilty or afraid it would end. Deep down I knew I deserved it, that the bad realities that had come to pass would help me to appreciate the good. And that’s exactly what I intended to do as long as I was living...be thankful.
For the first time in my life, I was truly in love...alive...and awake.
I had waited for her at the
door after I’d just lit the house with every candle I could find. I was nervous, a feeling I hadn’t felt in years because of a woman. I was the one who intimidated and slightly manipulated my way into their psyche. This whole year had been a new experience for me and I was fine with that. But on this night in particular, I really wanted that control back. I was used to it, taking calculated risks with partners when in reality I already knew what the outcome would be. In this case, I was screwed.
Doms don’t often propose.
“Four bedrooms three and a half baths, hardwoods throughout, vaulted ceilings with crown molding, a state of the art kitchen, and as you can see, plenty of living space downstairs as well as a bonus room upstairs.” I walked through the house, pointing out various selling points. I looked amongst the crowded room and found a few of the couples attending the open house had wandered on their own to tour the home. I quickly took inventory of the few whose attention I still had and froze when I saw a pair of familiar eyes. I couldn’t help my smile as I continued on to the study with the remaining interested parties, minus one Dom who looked at me with expectancy.
“What year is this home?” a lady in what looked like her late sixties asked innocently as I stared at the man behind her who hadn’t taken his eyes off me. My heartbeat spiked as I gazed back at him, growing hotter with each passing second. His stare was filled with hunger and his posture let me know he had every intention of getting his fill. The air thickened as I took in his perfect appearance. His thick black hair was combed back immaculately. His black suit fit him too well, and I wasn’t alone in appraising him. A few of the wives spent an enormous amount of effort trying to conceal their obvious lust. His full lips turned up only slightly as I licked my own lips and my sex began to pulse. I took my bottom lip with my teeth as I smiled at him, curious about his intention. His answer was in his eyes undressing me, fucking me as his blazing eyes stared at my lips then my throat, letting them glide down to my rising, rapidly moving chest then further down and back up, achingly slow.
“Umm, I’m sorry. It was built in ’97,” I said, trying my best to regain my ability to concentrate on the questions flying at me.
I felt my phone vibrate and checked the text quickly.
RHYS: You have 97 seconds to take off your panties.
“No,” I said firmly and indirectly to the man behind the lady questioning me. “I’m sorry. It’s ’99 and the roof was replaced just last year.” I averted my gaze to the younger couple staring through the family room window to the backyard. I felt him close behind me, my arousal growing with his proximity. I was wet, soaked, and had to squeeze my thighs together at the discomfort. I felt the burn start in my neck, the heat rising to my cheeks as I continued to try to keep it together.
“There’s plenty of room for a pool and garden as well as an additional half acre—” My phone vibrated again, cutting into my train of thought.
RHYS: Sixty seconds.
“No!” I said quickly, confusing everyone around me. “I’m sorry. Where was I?”
I felt my pocket vibrate again and instead of looking at the screen, I excused myself to address Rhys briefly as he grinned at my frustration. I closed the short distance between us as he leaned in and whispered to me, his breath hot on my skin.
“Twenty seconds, Violet, or I take your pretty pink pussy in front of all of these fine, interested buyers.”
“This is not funny. I’m at work,” I whispered.
His eyes hardened as he leaned in close and whispered firmly, “And I’m not laughing. Ten seconds, Violet, or I’ll do it myself.”
I excused myself to the restroom in a near sprint to keep his threat at bay. Seconds later, I was out of the bathroom with my panties in hand and stuffed them in Rhys’s suit jacket pocket on my way back out to the group. Less than a minute later, my pocket vibrated. I looked at him, shaking my head no firmly as he took a step toward me. I quickly looked at my phone.
RHYS: I’m going to need to fuck my pretty pussy within the next two minutes. Make it happen.
I groaned out loud in frustration as I read the text. Was he fucking serious? I had a house full of people; there was no way I could clear them out that quickly. I texted back as I showcased the kitchen.
VIOLET: Rhys, this is my JOB!
RHYS: I’m priority. One minute.
“And over here we have the dining room,” I said, already hot at the thought his cock would be inside me in seconds. There was no denying him; he would make sure of it. I was soaked with thoughts of him filling me. I was also panicking and needed a plan.
“Okay, if everyone will step upstairs and have a look around, I will be up shortly.” I saw Rhys smirk and grew furious with the position I was being put in.
“Can I ask a question about the flooring?” the oldest woman of the group asked as she thoroughly inspected the wood for scratches.
“Actually, if everyone could head upstairs, I will answer all your questions,” I answered quickly, ushering the way to the second floor.
She hmphed and continued her questioning. “I just wanted to —”
“Upstairs! Everyone upstairs!” They all looked at me surprised at my insistence and quickly moved upstairs as Rhys approached me from behind, sliding my skirt up inch by inch as I watched the last of them ascend the steps.
“Rhys,” I snapped as I whirled on him. He picked me up, quickly wrapping my legs around him, his engorged cock pulsing against my wet center and walked me toward the wall. As soon as my back hit the hard surface, he cupped my breast roughly and all my words fell away.
“Tell me you need it,” he grunted, releasing his cock from his pants and sliding his thickness along my wet center, making it impossible for me to catch my breath. He pinned my arms above my head and commanded my attention, sliding himself back and forth against my soaked clit. I heard the shuffle of the people above us and quickly tried to free myself from his grip.
“Rhys, not right here,” I pleaded as I glanced behind me at the empty stairwell.
“Right here, right now,” he answered as he pushed inside me completely in one thrust and I moaned involuntarily. His face strained as he said, “Perfect.”
“Oh God, Rhys, please.” My protest diminished and turned into a plea at the feel of him.
“Tell”—thrust—“me”—thrust—“you”—thrust—“need”—thrust, thrust, thrust—“my”—thrust—“cock”—thrust—“Violet.”
I gripped his hips with my thighs in answer and clinched my sex tightly, watching the heat in his eyes amplify at the feel of me. I leaned in and bit his bottom lip hard as he punished me, my blouse catching on the snags of the hard surface of the wall. Letting go of my arms, he pumped into me hard and fast, my back resting on the wall as he pulled our bodies away slightly so we were joined at an angle and I could feel every hard inch of him.
“If you won’t tell me, Violet, your body will. It always does. Do you feel how well we fit?” He lifted my shirt, sliding his thumb over my nipple then pinching hard as he drove into me, gripping my hip with his other hand and squeezing hard. “Do you feel how much I want you? Answer me,” he demanded.
“Yes, Rhys. Oh, God, I—” I lost the ability to breathe as he thrust in harder, slamming my back against the wall.
“Don’t ever try to deny me; it’s pointless,” he bit out as I tilted my head back. I bit my bottom lip in an attempt to stifle my moan. “Eyes on mine as I fuck my pretty pussy,” he ordered, his hands on my hips digging in deeper, grinding his thickness into me. Our connection grew more intense as we watched our reaction to each other, mouths parted, our need undeniable. His eyes told me what his body reiterated with each movement, and what I knew without a doubt: I belonged to him.
“Fuck me,” I urged as I reveled in the feel of him moving my hips hard and fast in perfect rhythm.
“Mrs. Volz?” I heard the call from above. It was that same damned woman. “Mrs. Volz?”
Rhys sped up and gripped my throat hard as I clinched around him. I bu
rst, taking quick breaths as he fed on my reaction. “I’m coming!” I gasped out in reply to her as he worked me, his hunger washing over me. He licked my nipple then trailed lower to bite the swell of my breast as he continued to rip into me relentlessly. When I felt him thickening in anticipation of his release, he let my legs down and pushed me to my knees. I looked up at him just as his thick, coated tip brushed my lips. “Rhys, I need your cock.” I took his orgasm as he stroked my face tenderly. When I had taken all of it, he pulled me from my knees and swatted me playfully on the butt. “Way to be the good little wife,” he teased.
I raised a brow at his smug smile. “I’ll let you get away with that once,” I said, turning toward the stairs. “And, Rhys, please go pick up our sons. Apparently, I have to work later than expected.”
I turned back to smile at him as he watched me climb up the stairs. His grin was unmistakable as he whispered, “I love you,” our thoughts the same.
This was happy.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank my sexy stalkers Stacy Hahn, Anne Morillo , Cindy Gordanier, Lina Linalove, Jessica Berthelot, Jessica Call, Julie Kerchkof, Daisy Zorman, Suzie Motlz Wilson, Heather Orgeron, Nadine Rowe, Janette Marooquin, Kina CoachBag Mar. Ladies, thank you so much for your amazing support and endless pimping. I love you!
Yamara, Cathy, Missy, Beatriz, Daisy, Danielle, Beverly, SueB, Christy B, Toni Thompson, Christy, Lisa, Patty, Allison, Kelli, Robert, Michelle, Christina, you are the reason other bloggers and readers gave me a chance. Thank you so much for all your support and love for the series!
To all the bloggers: Rockstars of Romance, Love Between the Sheets, Natasha’s a Book Junkie, Panty Dropping Book Blog, Forever Reading, Books Beyond Fifty Shades, Cover to Cover, Three Chicks, Readers Candy, Crazy Daizy, Headtripping Books, Just Booked, Dawn’s Book Buzz, Hooked on Books, Short and Sassy Book Blog, The REAL Housewives of Romance, Luscious Literature, Romance Vault, The Lovely Books, BCS Reviews, and so many more. Please forgive me if I forgot you.
