by Celeste, B.
My palms reach out and brush her sides, my dick begging to gain entrance inside her. She squirms as my hands make their way to her chest, playing with her nipples and palming her breasts. She moans my name in a barely-there whisper. Her ass arches back, my tip brushing against her as I groan and tighten my fingers into her fleshy hips.
“Baby, fuck,” I growl. My fingers find the moisture between her legs, dipping inside her and moving in a slow rhythm. “I need to prep you first, okay? It’s going to hurt either way, but I want it to feel good for you.”
She shifts back into me again. “I want you to feel good.”
My chuckle is deep and husky. “Oh, sweetheart. You don’t have to worry about that. My cock’s favorite place to be is inside you, no matter what hole.”
“Everett!”
I pull my fingers out and she moans again, squirming as I coat her puckered hole with her arousal. She’s soaked, which will make this easier. Positioning her in front of me, I slide my dick into her pussy to coat myself. She gasps then leans forward, biting her arm. Her ass is in the air, so fucking beautiful.
So fucking mine.
My thumb circles her tight hole as I slide in and out of her pussy. The same time I pump into her with my cock, I ease my finger into her with gentle strokes. She gasps again, wiggling to try getting used to the feeling.
“Stay still, baby.” I barely recognize my own voice as I watch myself take her in two different ways. It’s the sexiest fucking thing I’ll ever witness, the best gift she could give me besides herself—her love.
After working her over with my finger, I add a second one, quickening my pace. Her head tilts until her hair falls off her shoulder, and I’m dying to know what it feels like to be inside her ass for real.
“Are you ready for me, River?” I’ll stop if she changes her mind. We have the rest of our lives to experiment.
But she nods her head, bucking into me again and wiggling her ass. “I need you inside of me, Everett.”
Pulling out of her pussy, I reposition so my cock is at her back entrance. I hear her inhale when I first probe her, my length slick with her arousal as it slowly slides into her. She freezes, her body trying to defend itself against this intrusion, so I lean forward and start playing with her clit again until she loosens up.
“That’s it, baby,” I whisper, kissing down her back. I slide in deeper, biting back the groan of her squeezing me. This feels so damn good that I’m trying not to blow my load before giving her an orgasm.
My fingers slide into her heat again, her clit gaining my special attention, as I take myself all the way inside her.
“Oh, God,” she groans, her ass pressed against my groin.
“Do you need me to stop?” Worry etches my tone as I brush my free hand through her hair, hoping to dull her pain.
“No. Don’t you dare.”
Chuckling, I begin moving inside her. The sensation is nothing like I’ve ever felt before, and based on the sounds she’s making, it feels good for her too. I match the speed of my cock and fingers, diving into her until she’s shaking under me and repeating my name in a husky, sexy voice.
“Everett. Yes. Like that.” She moves her hips back, and the sound of our slapping skin is like music to my fucking ears. Her breathing becomes ragged, and her thighs start quivering.
“You’re so beautiful, River.” I kiss her lower back, my lips caressing one of her many scars, and I hook my fingers inside her until she’s coming, her pussy pulsing around me as I drive into her a few more times. I come hot and heavy, my free hand gripping her hips to keep her from collapsing.
When our orgasms calm down, I slowly pull out of her and tuck her into my side on top of the comforter. The soft sound of her breathing lulls my speeding heartbeat. A smile spreads on my lips.
“That was …”
She nods. “I know.”
I kiss her shoulder. “I love you, River.”
She turns around, wetness in her eyes as our hands interlock. “I love you, too. And I’m … I’m just really happy.”
Kissing her tears away, I brush my fingers through her hair. “Get used to it, Riv. We’re going to be happy for a very long time. Our story is just beginning.”
“No,” she whispers, fingers stroking what little hair rests on my chest. “It started ten years ago. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Me either, baby.
Me either.
Epilogue
The Adoption
Charlie / 13
My hands sweat profusely as I wait for Amy, my social worker, to come out of the office she’s been closed in since ten this morning. Mrs. White, the woman who works the front desk at the agency, said Amy has been talking to two very important people about me.
It’s almost noon.
I’ve been sitting in the uncomfortable floral armchair for almost an hour, and it has given me time to come up with a reasonable excuse about why I was kicked out of my last home. Amy told me I had to stop getting into trouble or I would be moved to a group home permanently until I hit eighteen.
But one of the girls I had to share a room with in my current home kept stealing my iPod. Just because I stole it doesn’t mean somebody else can. All the music I’ve grown to love is on there—it calms me down on the days I think I may never get out. And when I yanked on Jasmine’s hair after finding her red handed with the device, it was me who got in trouble.
Violence is grounds for removal.
The fight happened yesterday and now I’m here. Even though Ms. Finch, the woman in charge of the group home, never mentioned anything about me being kicked out, it had to be the reason I’m here.
My eyes go to the bulge in my right pocket where the iPod is. I itch to take it out, to let it ease my worries, but I know it won’t help right now.
I freeze when Amy’s office door opens, and her familiar face appears. The corners of her brown eyes wrinkle from the wide smile on her face, which confuses me considering the circumstances.
“Charlie!” She claps her hands together once like she’s happy to see me. There’s no way she knows about the fight or she would greet me with her usual disapproving frown.
“Um … hi?”
She chuckles over my obvious confusion and waves me to come into her office. When I walk forward, I notice a tan arm resting against one of the chairs across from her desk.
Nerves bubble inside me as I rub my lips together and stop halfway there. “It looks like you’re busy. I can wait until you’re done.”
Her features lighten. “Don’t be silly, Charlie. Come in. I promise everything is going to be fine.”
I hate when she tells me that. Nobody can promise that foster kids will be fine, because they don’t know the places they send us to. Not enough to guarantee our safety.
Despite my uncertainty, I nod and continue forward in small steps. Taking a deep breath, I walk around her ushering hand until my lips part in shock.
“River?” My voice is barely a whisper when I see my art teacher sitting next to her husband Everett. I know them both from Painter’s Choice, where River teaches an art program to foster kids.
She stands and gestures for me to take her seat, but I look at her husband nervously. I like him, but I don’t understand what’s going on.
Amy walks around her desk and takes a seat in her chair. “Sit down, Charlie. We’d all like to talk to you about something important.”
Everett stands and motions to his seat, then guides River back to the one she occupied. Taking a deep breath, I sit down and watch as River does the same next to me.
“What’s going on?”
Amy looks at River expectantly, causing me to shift with suspicious eyes at River. “I know we don’t know each other very well, but there’s something that Everett and I would like to ask you. We hope that you’ll consider it and say yes, but there’s no pressure if you decide you don’t want to. Okay?”
If it were possible, my heart would stop.
River’s ha
nd extends to me, palm up, as if she’s offering me to take it. I don’t and she doesn’t get offended. “Charlie, Everett and I would like to adopt you, to make you part of our family. We were wondering if that was okay with you. Would you like that?”
I blink.
Amy covers her mouth like she’s trying to hide a big grin, but I know she’s smiling because of her wrinkled eyes.
River wants to adopt me?
“Why?” I whisper.
River’s head tilts, her red hair falling over her shoulder. “I was your age when I was adopted by the James family. They saw something in me that they were willing to take a chance on, to love. I understand what that feels like, because I’ve seen the same thing in you. But neither of us wants to do anything you’re uncomfortable with. So, if you’ll let us, we’d love to welcome you into our family.”
Tears blur her image that I can’t blink away before they’re falling down my cheeks. She reaches out and squeezes my hand in comfort, and all I can think is to squeeze hers back.
Going to Painter’s Choice is my favorite part of the week. It’s the one place I feel safe, even if I don’t paint or draw like everyone else. River lets me listen to music or help Melanie clean up the studio. Two weeks ago, River brought in different pamphlets on music classes that the Community Center holds once a week. She told me if I was interested, to let her know and she’d help me get into one of them.
Lips wavering, I ask, “You really want me?”
River nods. “More than anything, Charlie. Our home is yours if you want it. We can get you enrolled in any school you want, in music programs, whatever will make you happy. You deserve the world. We all believe it.”
The tears don’t stop as I nod and push off the chair until I’m in her arms. She holds me tight and rubs my back and stays quiet as I use her like a human tissue.
When I pull back, I wipe my cheeks using my shirt sleeve, and turn to Everett. “Can we get donuts to celebrate?”
He chuckles. “Is that a yes then?”
“Yes.”
Amy claps. “Oh, this is wonderful!” She turns to River. “Jill has always been so invested in you, sweetie. As soon as she heard you were interested in adopting, she knew you would be a wonderful mother.”
Emotion floods River’s face as she squeezes my hand again. Everett comes over and messes up my hair, something he’s done a few times when he visits River at the studio. He would always bring everyone donuts from the café down the street, which I made sure to get at least two of every time.
Glancing at River and Everett, I take in their wide smiles and the soft tone of their eyes as they share a look. My eyes share the same blurry glaze as they turn their focus on me.
Amy sighs happily. “Let’s get started on the paperwork. Charlie, I’m so happy for you. These two are going to help you flourish like I know you can.”
Smiling, I sniff back more tears. “You’re just saying that because you’re happy I can’t get into trouble again. Like pulling Jasmine’s hair and getting yelled at by Finch.”
She deadpans. “You did what?”
I wince. I guess Ms. Finch didn’t call her after all. “Nothing. It doesn’t matter. But see? You won’t have to deal with me anymore.”
She pinches the bridge of her nose.
Everett laughs and nudges me lightly with his elbow. “Something tells me you’re going to keep us on the edge of our seats, kid.”
I grin. They have no idea.
A week after settling into River and Everett’s two-story house not far from Painter’s Choice, there’s a small barbecue to celebrate my adoption. I’m nervous to meet River’s family, because I know how much they mean to her.
What if they don’t see the same potential in me like they did her?
Rubbing my palms against my blue jeans, I peek out the back window. Everett is laughing with an older man with white hair wearing expensive clothing, and a woman dressed to the nines. Glancing down at my jeans and zip-up hoodie, I realize I may be underdressed.
“What are you looking at?”
Shoulders tensing, I glance behind me to find a tall man with dark hair and eyes watching me with a friendly smile. He doesn’t look dressed to impress like the others. Like me, he’s wearing jeans that fit his long legs and a plaid button-down that shows a white tank underneath. The first few buttons are undone, and the sleeves are rolled up to his elbows.
“Um…” My throat dries.
“You’re Charlotte, right?” His voice is deep but light, and his eyes remind me of the brown frosting on the Boston Cream donuts I love eating from Landmark Café.
“Charlie,” I murmur, brushing strands of my long blonde hair behind my ear.
He nods. “I’m Oliver. River’s brother.”
Playing with the string on my hoodie, I glance between him and the older couple outside. He shares their complexion, and I’m sure some of their features if I were closer to inspect them. “Are those your parents?”
He walks over to me and leans his shoulder against the window. “Yeah. That’s Robert and Bridgette. They’re excited to meet you.”
Tugging on my hoodie, I nudge the floor with my shoe. Looking down at them, I realize they match his. “We’re wearing the same Converse.”
He chuckles. “We have great taste.” Our eyes meet and my cheeks heat. “There’s no need to be nervous. My parents are very welcoming people, and they’re happy for River and Everett to have found you.”
“But I don’t … look like them.” I point towards my clothing. River brought me shopping and told me I could pick out whatever I wanted. I asked if we could go to thrift stores, so we spent a few days wandering around Bridgeport window shopping. My attire consists of jeans, leggings, hoodies, and t-shirts. I’m not a dress kind of girl.
He shrugs. “So?”
Swallowing, I point to his mom. “So … they wear fancy stuff. I’m not a girly girl, I don’t wear stuff like that.”
“Hey,” he comforts, “they’re going to love you, Charlie. It doesn’t matter what you wear. River will tell you the same thing. Are you comfortable?”
I don’t answer.
He kneels. “Are you?” he presses.
Taking a deep breath, I nod.
He playfully nudges me. “That’s all that matters then. Are you ready? We can go find River and Everett before we head out.”
He offers me his arm, which I look at with wide eyes. He wants to escort me? He’s twice my size, both in height and weight. I’d look like a shrimp next to him.
But I link my arm around the crook of his elbow and find myself staring up at him. Biting my lower lip, I fight off the blush as he shoots me a big smile.
I don’t usually let strangers touch me, but I don’t mind it now.
As we walk to find River, I can’t help but wonder if she found this comfort in someone so soon after her adoption.
When I find her and Everett holding hands in the kitchen, smiling lovingly at each other like they’ve known each other for ages, I feel like I find my answer.
Want to talk all things The Truth About Heartbreak? Join the spoiler group now and let’s chat!
Sneak Peek
Coming August 2nd
The Truth About Tomorrow
I’m woken when my body is pulled into a firm chest and hold my breath when the arm hooked around my midsection tightens. Listening to Ollie’s even breathing, I realize he’s sleeping. He doesn’t know he’s cuddling me right now.
Wetting my bottom lip, I debate on what to do. If he wakes up when we’re in this position, he’ll freak out. I know Ollie. Even though I don’t mind this, him holding me, I know he’ll feel differently.
Carefully trying to wiggle my way out of his grasp, I start slowly lifting his arm, only to suck in a sharp breath when it tightens around me. The same time his palm flattens against my stomach, his hips roll until something hard presses against my butt.
Oh my God.
The palm on my stomach doesn’t rest there, but ever
so slowly slides down until it’s at the hem of my pajama pants. Biting hard on my lip, I feel the heat between my legs as one of his fingers slips under the elastic. He’s still sleeping, still not realizing what he’s doing.
I tell myself to wake him up, but the need building inside me clamps my lips closed.
Ollie’s fingers dip under the waistband of my pants until they meet bare skin. I bite back a moan as he rolls his hips again, arousal fogging my judgement.
We shouldn’t be doing this.
But that doesn’t stop me from parting my legs ever so slightly as his hand moves lower. One of his fingers brushes my sex and my lips part in a silent moan. I’m wet already just from these little caresses and fist the sheets when he makes another pass.
His hips roll and a guttural groan escapes him, which only turns me on more. I can’t help but put my hand on his and guide him further down until he’s cupping me.
My legs shake as one finger enters me, his thumb playing with the bundle of nerves that seek attention. His pace is slow, matching the thrust of his hips. The thrust of his fingers paired with his erection behind me makes me pant until I’m on fire. When a second finger enters me, I gasp his name until all his movements freeze.
Oh no.
In a nanosecond, his fingers are gone and he’s out of bed like it’s on fire. “Jesus Christ. I’m so fucking sorry. I thought I was just dreaming.”
His frantic eyes search mine in the dim morning light and his hands weave through his hair as he backs farther away from me.
His lips are drawn into a flat line as torture darkens his features. “Are you … did I hurt you? Fuck, of course I hurt you. What I did—”
“Stop,” I command. Pushing the blankets away from me, I meet his eyes. “You didn’t hurt me, Ollie. I promise. I …”
