by Terri Lane
“I couldn’t stand to see what I’d done to you, I had to get away.” His whole body was shaking under the stress, gone was the confident asshole that took control of these hallways, and in his place was a raw, more honest version of himself. It touched my heart to see him falling apart over me, it made me want to do the same.
“To Texas?” I still didn’t know what direction his life had taken, I guess I stopped asking when it became obvious that no one wanted to tell me anything. But now I felt like I needed to know absolutely everything.
“No, I didn’t do college, I couldn’t. Not when I destroyed your dreams. No, I threw myself into investing instead. Earning money seemed easier than facing my feelings.”
“So why did you buy this place?” I still needed to know that, it had been bugging me for ages. There had to be a reason, and I was pretty sure that it was linked to me.
“Do you really want to know?” His face flushed, he could barely meet my eyes. That only served to pique my interest even further.
“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t.” Of course I had to act like I was blasé, I wasn’t that uncool.
“I looked you up, I did some research.” Humiliation burned off his tongue as he spoke. “It took me ten years to finally feel ready to face you again, and I found out that you still worked here. I felt terrible, because of how responsible I felt, so I decided to buy the place to try and make your life easier.” He sighed deeply and stood up, moving his eyes away from me. “I guess I just wasn’t thinking about how hard it was going to be to see you again. I didn’t know how to act, which is why I’ve been such a confusing asshole.”
I nodded slowly, trying to drink all that in. It was all so much, all too hard to digest all in one go. Adam Martin came back for me. Yes, it was ten years too late, but at the same time maybe it was right. Maybe the fates had intervened at the perfect moment, just when we were both finally ready to see each other again.
“I love you,” he stunned me by continuing, almost as if he was following on with that conversation we started in his car, before everything shifted. “I always have, I just didn’t want to ruin your life again. I did it once with the car crash, and now I’ve done it again by impregnating you. Oh God, I’m such an idiot. Why couldn’t I just... just leave you alone? Your life was perfectly fine without me in it.”
I clutched my hands protectively to my stomach and stared defiantly at him. “This baby hasn’t ruined my life, it’s a blessing. Yes, it’s a shock, but in all this mess we’ve created a life. You say you love me, well I love you too, and what better way to move forwards with that than to have a baby? And I will be perfectly honest with you, my life was far from perfect without you in it. I’ve been miserable ever since the first day you left me behind.”
“But, I’m still too scared.” He shook his head, his whole body trembling. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to make this work. How can I ever be good enough for you?”
“Adam Martin, you have always been good enough for me.”
He didn’t look up at me, it was almost as if he couldn’t stand to see me. He genuinely thought that he wasn’t good enough, that I deserved more. How could he not see that he was out of my league, that he was always the one that could do better?
“Jenna, I... I’m no good. I’m not a good person.”
“Why not?” I crossed my arms across my chest and stared him down. “Come on, you might as well tell me everything now.”
“I don’t know, I don’t feel worthy. I have all this money that I don’t deserve, I get female attention that I definitely haven’t earned, I took advantage of you in that hotel room, complicating your life in a way that you really didn’t need. I’m just a bad person all round.”
“Bad? Adam you’re everything. If you’d stayed after the car crash you would’ve seen that. I still wanted to give everything to be yours, it killed me that you were no longer here. Losing you was far worse than having to give up running, why can’t you see that? All I’ve ever wanted was you.”
Still he said nothing. Still he continued on his downward spiral into utter despair.
*
18th October 2016
I couldn’t take it any longer. Adam and his madness was tearing us apart, as it already had for a decade. Well, not anymore. He might not think that he was good enough for me, but I did. I grabbed hold of his shirt and I yanked him close to me, before pressing my lips up against his.
“Don’t be an idiot,” I murmured happily against his lips. “I love you, and I always have.”
The tight metal coil wormed its way through my system, knotting me into a sexual frustration frenzy. I clawed at Adam’s shirt, trying to make my inner feelings clear, and luckily, he seemed to sense exactly what I needed.
As he stepped back and slid his tee shirt up over his head, there was a serene smile on his face, one that showed he was finally relaxed enough to accept all of this. Thank God!
“Come on, you too,” he nodded at my clothing, which was suddenly a huge irritation. So with a wicked grin I flicked my dress off over my head. I no longer had any body hang ups around Adam, I knew that he wanted me, he’d finally made me feel like his equal, which was absolutely wonderful. “God you’re beautiful.”
He unhooked my bra, and we both watched as the material floated to the ground, revealing my excited, erect nipples that were begging for some attention. Then Adam pressed me back against the wall, rendering me totally helpless to him, and he moved his mouth down to claim my breasts for his own. His tongue flickered all over them, his teeth grazed my nipples, and the unexpected sensations that were flooding my body were almost too much to bear.
All I wanted to do was hold him, I needed to taste him, I had the strong desire to explore his body in a way that I hadn’t ever done before, and if I was going to make that happen I needed to do it now before he commanded every inch of me once more.
I slid my hands down his strong, muscular body, my heart dancing and flapping in my chest, and as I soon as I was near enough to dip into his underwear, a loud, explosive groan fell past his lips.
Oh... my... God. As my fingers curled around his thick, throbbing cock, and I slowly moved my hands up and down his shaft, a deep pulsating desperation screamed in my panties. I wanted him, I needed him, but first...
I sank down to the ground, my head positioned perfectly between his thighs, and I gently traced my lips over random areas of Adam’s body, just to tease him. My mouth connected with his stomach, his legs, his balls... and eventually I ran a few gentle kisses over his length.
“Oh fuck, Jenna,” Adam cried out. “You have no idea what you’re doing to me.”
I inhaled deeply, enjoying his extremely masculine scent, my whole body lighting up on fire. I needed more, he had me begging for him, so as I slid my mouth in closer, my heart was thundering painfully in my chest.
I wrapped my lips right around him, and moved my mouth all over him, taking Adam as far to the back of my throat as I could manage. It wasn’t easy, he was absolutely huge, but he felt good between my lips. He tasted sweet and salty, I liked the way his thighs tensed and his body shuddered, I enjoyed making Adam wild.
His fingers knotted into my hair and soon he’d lost so much control that he had my head pinned back against the wall, leaving me just enough room to snake my tongue all over him. Even now, as I was giving him the pleasure, he still had all the control! I liked that quality about Adam, it boiled and soaked my panties all in one go. I’d never felt so horny!
Eventually, Adam slid himself out of my mouth, and he hooked his hands under my armpits to pull me into a standing position. Then he pressed my hot sticky body up against the cold wall, and he grabbed hold of one of my legs to pull it out, leaving my foot pressed backwards.
“I love you,” he muttered as he nudged my legs further apart. “And I’m so glad you feel the same way. We’re going to have a baby now, we have a real future, and I can’t wait for it.”
This time as he slid into me, it
wasn’t so hot and passionate. There was a real romance, a deep tenderness there, which somehow made it feel even more incredible.
Adam rested his forehead up against mine, allowing me to stare deep into his eyes as he thrust in and out of me. Along with the deep desire, I could see a true love behind his gaze, and that made my chest swell and expand with love.
I’d been wrong every time in my life I thought I was happy before... this was true happiness.
“I love you too,” I gasped as the pressure built. “And I’m forever yours.”
The bliss pooled in my stomach, the electrical buzzing was rocking through my system, my brain was swimming with dizziness. And the waves of pleasure cascaded over me, taking me to a place that I hadn’t been before. I’d had an intense orgasm the last time me and Adam had sex, but it was nothing like this.
This was full of future, full of love, and I couldn’t wait to see where that took us.
As we both fell apart, panting and breathless, I sent Adam a happy smile. We were finally on the same page, after ten years of being all over the place. Now that we’d made it back together that time didn’t feel wasted, it felt like we’d needed that time to grow, to find ourselves, and now we were finally ready for a commitment.
“I’m going to make you my wife,” Adam promised me with a serious glint in his eye. “I’m going to whisk you away, take you somewhere special, and make an honest woman out of you.”
“That’s all I’ve ever wanted,” I replied honestly. “I love you, and I would love to be your wife... just let me get dressed first. Then you can officially make me forever yours.”
As he smirked at my joke, my soul filled with joy. This was it, forever more. I was going to have a baby with Adam Martin, and while it hadn’t happened in the most traditional way possible, it was still perfect for us.
Finally, I had everything that I ever wanted, and that settled a comfortable happy sensation in the pit of my stomach. One that I’d spent half my life searching for.
THE END
= Bonus Book 4 of 20 =
Forbidden Love
Book 1: Taboo Attraction
A sliver of unease moved down my spine. The full moon was rising and we were technically in their territory. Of course, the northern Washington half of Gifford Pinchot Forest had been flooded with Hunters. The wolves were more occupied with driving them out than nipping at our heels for inching into their running ground.
“We have a good five of them unawares,” Damien whispered. I had seven fighters with me, left of the ten I started out with. We'd decided to take the bull by the horns and do some hunting ourselves. Just like the wolves, the vampires weren't going to sit back and let the Hunters eradicate or drive us out of the region.
“We're in position,” Jeffers said. We were all in communication via earpieces. Since we had to spread out to cover a good bit of ground, it only made sense to go on our little hunting excursion with modern devices.
“Fine, everyone close in,” I said. I had a Hunter in my sights. I was high up on the limb of a fir tree and the human was stationary on the ground. It was a stupid move on that Hunter's part. I took one step into thin air and flew for a fraction of a second. The Hunter hit the ground with a muffled thud as I landed on him. I was quick to grasp his chin and snap his neck.
“One down, who needs help?” I taunted the team as I stepped over the fallen Hunter.
“I've got two more Hunters closing in on my position,” Damien replied. I moved swiftly through the tall pines. The ground was hardened by a layer of frost, but I couldn't feel the cold. Damien was just a short distance left of where I had been. I caught his scent in the air as I neared him and took to the trees. Two Hunters moved in swiftly just ahead of the tree I was hiding in. I scanned the area for Damien and found him even higher up on the tree next to mine. We made brief eye contact. His glowed a feral green as he readied for the kill. Like wraiths, we both swooped down into the path of the Hunters. They were quicker than the last one I handled. Dressed in deer hunting garb, they rose their rifles, aiming for our chests. Damien chuckled. The sound was dark and made even more menacing by my echoed hiss.
I noted the impulse of movement in the Hunter's neck, even before his finger could pull the trigger. I snatched the rifle from his hands, then swung the stock end at his temple. Beside me I knew Damien had engaged the other Hunter. But any distraction would only lead to my death. The Hunter was stunned for a second; I used that to deliver another blow. He staggered back which gave me enough time to turn the gun around and pull the trigger. The Hunter went down, clutching his chest. I spared no glance for the dead.
Damien had just killed the other Hunter. She was slumped against the base of a tree; her head was turned at an unnatural angle.
“I'm sick of this…” Damien said. “It's as if every human in Washington and Oregon is out to get us.”
“Don't complain, we haven't had a Hunter uprising like this since the turn of the twentieth century,” I said. “It's just fun.” I smirked at Damien, who rolled his eyes. He ran a hand through his silver blond hair then tested the air for any sign of more Hunters nearing.
“It will stop being fun when they start eliminating us,” he muttered.
“Team, how do we fare?” I asked. All six vampires checked in, we hadn't taken anymore losses for the time being.
“Should we regroup?” Jeffers asked.
“No, they're still crawling around we don't want to chance being cornered,” I said. “Continue combing through the area.” Damien and I stayed together as we made our way forward.
“I heard the wolves are losing a lot. Perhaps the Hunters could be our allies,” Damien chuckled.
“It's only natural. These people were originally animal hunters. They'd have better instinct tracking wolves than us,” Jeffers responded.
“Let's not get distracted,” I said. I glanced at Damien and pointed up. He nodded then we split up to take higher advantage. Our count for the night was twelve Hunters dead. I wanted to reach the quota of at least twenty. The last we heard from my father, two hundred Hunters had moved into Pinchot Forest. An entire town's worth had moved into the northwest region. They'd come from Canada and the northeast. There were a thousand Hunters surveying the forests of Washington and Oregon, at least.
Thankfully, my coven lived in Portland among the humans, so we were harder to track and kill than those covens in less populated areas. There were several covens in the northwest region. My family led most of them and my father headed the Prime Coven, which oversaw all covens in the region. In only two more centuries time, I'd be leading Prime Coven.
The treetops began to sway with a strong wind. With it came the scent of Hunters and a lot of them.
“Be on alert,” I said. My nostrils flared as I also caught the scent of wolves. The instinct to hunt down a vampire's existence-long foe was strong. But I was forced to ignore it to handle the moment's true enemy.
“There are ten Hunters incoming, they look elite compared to what we've just faced. Twelve wolves are tearing in from behind us,” Jeffers reported. I could already hear the wolves as they ran through the forest. The mongrels would certainly make the Hunters' jobs easier.
“Damned dogs,” Damien murmured.
“Make a band between the Hunters and the wolves. We'll watch from above to see what effect the wolves will have on them,” I said. One by one, my fighters appeared in the trees around Damien and myself. We watched down below as the black combat gear clad Hunters encountered the pack of wolves.
*
“They look like a SEAL team rather than Hunters,” I muttered.
The wolves had engaged the Hunters. Bullets were quicker than teeth and claws, so it was inevitable that three wolves were killed almost immediately. They were at a disadvantage just like that. I almost felt bad for them. The wolves killed by knocking their opponent down and going for the throat. They moved in packs because this fighting style caused vulnerability.
“They will all die, ou
tnumbered as they are,” I said.
“After the Hunters are done with the wolves, they will look up,” Damien said. I glanced around at my seven.
“Engage,” I said. One by one, we dropped from the trees. We targeted the Hunters. They were surprised of course, but they must've known we were near. The wolves growled and snarled at our presence. But there wasn't much time for complaining. We went right into action. Dodging the shots of rifles and taking the Hunters down methodically. We suffered no losses, but the wolves lost two more. At the sound of renewed snarling, I turned back to see one of them had shifted back to human form.
“You wait until after our slaughter before swooping in?” he asked. Shocked at his vehemence and his beauty, I remained briefly silent.
“A slaughter would require the death of all your wolves,” I answered.
“Don't waste your time speaking to it Sophie. Let us continue,” Damien said. I nodded and my vampires took to the trees once more. I held back for a second, taking in the features of the indignant wolf. He was physically imposing, not lean, and seemingly delicate as a vampire. He was tall and filled out with muscle. His black hair was long and lush; it hung loose down to his shoulder blades. His features were beautifully masculine, again, not like the cold angular features of a vampire. Though he had a strong jaw, and intent brow, there was a warmth and culture to his high cheekbones, full lips, hazel eyes, and tan skin.
Before I could jump up into the nearest tree, I heard the hard footsteps of a group of Hunters nearing us.
“Sophie!” Damien yelled. I jumped up just as the first shot flew by my ear. Inexplicably, my chest filled with anxiety at the thought of the wolf taking the shot instead. I hung from the lowest branch and saw that he'd successfully shifted back and was regrouping his pack. It appeared as though he were the alpha.
