Battered and Bruised, But not Broken

by Piper Kay

  Hunter doesn’t speak a word the entire time we undress, nor does he when we enter the shower. I don’t like it when he feels inadequate, which is clearly written in the worry lines on his face. He leans against the shower wall, buried deep inside his own mind, which isn’t a good place for him to be. But I know what he needs to help him through this.

  Grabbing the bath sponge, I squirt body wash on it, working it into a lather and start scrubbing his stomach with it. He relaxes a bit and releases the death grip his arms are in against his chest, allowing me to work my way up.

  “Relax, baby,” I whisper to him.

  “What if she doesn’t like me?” he asks, chewing on the inside of his mouth.

  I lean up, kissing him. “Quit chewing on your mouth. You’re gonna make it bleed.”

  He stops.

  “Why does it matter what she thinks? This meet and greet isn’t for us, it’s for Granny.”

  “She’s your mom, Ell, how can you not care what she thinks?”

  “I stopped caring the day she decided to stay with my dad after he damn near killed me.” I can feel the anger raging inside when I think back to that fateful day.

  “Um Ell, you’re scrubbing a little hard.”

  “Oh shit, sorry.” Ya, rubbing his balls raw wasn’t part of my plan.

  I finish soaping his front before telling him to turn around. Fuck, he’s sexy as hell covered in suds. Kneading his ass, I push up against it so he can feel how hard this is making me.

  Groaning he mumbles, “I don’t think we have time for this.”

  Shit, I know he’s right, but when I reach around his front, he’s hard as hell too. “Okay, get under the spray and wash your hair.” Once he works up a good lather, I kneel in front of him and take his balls into my hand, rubbing circles on them with my thumb.

  “Fuck, Ell.”

  I have a mission in mind and if my mom arrives early, well, then she can fucking wait. Replacing my thumb with my tongue, I gently suck each one in turn before licking my way up his shaft. He groans and I know I have him right where I want him.

  Licking across the slit, I suck the head in, taking him to the back of my throat in one draw. He shudders, the water’s running down my face so I’m unable to look up and watch his reactions. His hands are at his side so I guide one to the back of my head, pushing it back and forth to let him know what I want him to do. His other hand joins in and before long, he’s fucking my mouth.

  “God, babe, you always know what I need,” he says, grabbing a handful of my hair and pulling it. Just the way I like it.

  Bracing myself, I grip his thigh while my other hand grabs hold of my throbbing cock. Sucking Hunter’s cock is a major turn on for me. I stroke myself in tune with his thrusts, fearing I’ll reach the finish line before he does so I take it down a notch.

  “You have no idea how hot it is to watch me fuck your mouth while you’re jacking off,” he informs me.

  Argh, this is killing me. Between sucking his dick and whacking it, I’m ready to explode. His grip tightens in my hair and I moan.

  “Oh God, Ell, fuck when you moan, it…uh…fuck...gonna come,” he yells, filling the back of my throat and forcing my impending release to coat the shower floor.

  Swallowing, I regain my composure and stand using the shower walls for balance.

  Hunter grabs the back of my neck forcing our lips together. When we break apart, he leans his forehead against mine trying to catch his breath. My heart is racing. “I love you, Elliott.”

  “I love you too, Hunter,”

  We hear the doorbell then. “Oh fuck.” I laugh, but Hunter freezes. “It’s okay, babe, trust me,” I tell him, scrubbing as quickly as I can.

  We dry and dress with the speed of light, before Granny yells down, “Boys.”

  “Coming, Granny,” I respond before looking at Hunter and announcing, “Showtime.”

  I take his hand in mine and we rush up the stairs to the kitchen. He’s so damn nervous and I feel horribly for him. I squeeze his hand and kiss the tip of his nose whispering, “It’ll be alright.”

  He nods, agreeing before we head into the living room. There’s no mistaking Rose is my mom. We share the same blond, curly locks, except hers has streaks of grey now. My hazel eyes are clearly another gene she’s passed along, but she looks tired, almost frail, however, she perks up when our eyes meet.

  “Hello Elliott,” she says, extending her arms out to me.

  For some reason, I feel like a child and run into them, hugging her as though my life depends on it. I feel something wet hit my cheek and when I pull back, I notice she’s crying.

  “Sorry, dorky mom moment,” she says, wiping away the tears and making me smile.

  “Mom, I want you to meet someone.” I look over at Granny who’s beaming from ear to ear. Grabbing Hunter’s hand, I pull him over to my mom. “Mom, this is my boyfriend, Hunter.” A look of shock briefly crosses her face before she smiles.

  Hunter forces a shaky hand forward. “N-Nice to meet you, ma’am,” he nervously stutters.

  “Ma’am?” she asks, laughing. “You’re in my mother’s house, dating my son, so I think you could at least call me Rose, son.” And then she draws him into a tight hug, whispering something in his ear that only he can hear.

  Granny grips my shoulder, very pleased with how this is unfolding, as am I.

  When Hunter turns around, he gives me a look that says, “What the hell was that?”

  I cover my mouth to stifle a giggle and shrug.

  “Alright, that’s enough goofing off. I’ve got a roast in the oven and I know you boys must be starved after moving Hunter today,” Granny says.

  Fuck Granny, way to open the flood gates. I cover my face with my hands, peeking through my fingers at Hunter who’s frozen in place. He looks like he’s going to vomit. I walk over to him, rubbing my hand in circles on his back. “Sorry, babe, one of the many ‘Granny’ perks is her bluntness. Better get used to it fast.”

  My mom and Granny damn near bust a gut laughing at that. I thought they were tucked away in the kitchen and couldn’t hear us. My face flushes and the heat from it makes me sweat. Rose seems to be handling the entire situation far better than I anticipated.

  “Come on, Hunter, sit down while I help Momma with dinner. Tell me all about the man my son is clearly smitten with.” She winks at me.

  Holy hell, this is going to be the most embarrassing, yet, most liberating night of my life. Never in a million years did I think my mother was going to be this accepting of not only my life, but of the man I’ve chosen to share it with. Hunter keeps the details to a minimum when telling my mother about himself, which I appreciate. His past is just that– his past. He’s shared it with me and it isn’t up to anyone else to accept it. I know the real Hunter and that’s all that matters.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Three years later…

  Elliott

  Much has happened since the night of the infamous meet & greet. Two years after Hunter started with Globo-tech, he was promoted to supervisor for the physical building security team and I became supervisor for the online security department. The night of his promotion, he’s determined we needed to celebrate by returning to the place where we’d first met– Morph. I thought it was an odd request, but I’d do anything to make him happy.

  We go inside and the place is hopping. We manage to find a table in the corner where he leaves me to head to the bar for drinks. Much to my surprise, he returns with the same drinks we had that first night, a beer for him and a mai-tai for me. After tossing those back, Hunter takes me by the hand pulling me onto the dance floor. While we’re dancing, I notice Security watching us which makes me extremely uncomfortable.

  The music is so loud, I have to place my lips against Hunter’s ears so he can hear me, “Babe, don’t look now, but security’s watching us.”

  “Meh, fuck ‘em,’” he says, pulling me tighter to him.

  I’m not sure if it’s the grinding against ea
ch another, the vibration of the bass reverberating through my body or the fact that others are watching us, but I’m horny as hell and the massive erection Hunter’s sporting lets me know he’s in the same boat.

  He glides his tongue up the side of my neck and I damn near shoot my load. “Babe, let’s re-live that first night we met,” he purrs.

  Fuck…me…

  I nod as he takes me by the hand, leading me down the hallway to the same private room we’d sex in, but there’s no one there to unlock the door as they had the first time. I look around, spotting security at the neck of the hallway not letting anyone else back.

  Nerves strike me, but before I can say anything, Hunter closes the door behind us. He reaches down, rubbing his palm against my crotch, spurring me back to life. I toss my head back moaning, “Fuck, babe.”

  His lips meet my neck, his fingers find their way under my t-shirt, ripping it up and off, so he can kiss his way down my torso. He wastes no time unzipping my jeans and freeing my cock to stroke it.

  “Hun,” I say, finally looking down at him. “You look so fucking... Wait, what? Huh?”

  Hunter is down on one knee, smiling up at me. He opens his palm where a beautiful silver wedding band sits, “Elliott, will you marry me?”

  Oh, my fucking God, my heart is racing, my hands are shaking and tears well up in my eyes. Is this for real or am I dreaming?

  “Uh Earth to Ell, I asked you a question?”

  “Oh my God, babe, seriously?” I can’t believe this is happening.

  “Yes, seriously and you’re making me very nervous right now.” He blushes.

  “Fuck, sorry. Yes. Yes, Hunter, I’ll marry you.”

  He slips the band on my finger and jumps up, squeezing me so tightly I squeal as he pushes the air from me.

  “Oops, sorry, babe,” he says, “Let’s go home and celebrate where it’s less, seedy.”

  Laughing, I agree, while tucking myself in and zipping up. We walk out hand in hand to a room full of applause. The DJ stops playing to announce our engagement to the roaring crowd. I look at Hunter who’s grinning like a big dog and all I can do is jump on him and wrap my legs around his waist like a spider monkey.

  The crowd goes wild, laughing and hollering, “Get a room,” which we didn’t need to be told twice.

  We have a great room waiting for us at home. We exit, shooting so many high-fives walking through the parting crowd that my hand is stinging by the time we get to the car.

  I barely remember the drive home, I only remember mauling Hunter on the way to the basement. As he unlocks and opens the door, I pin him against the frame. Ripping his pants down and sucking his cock before he could step inside. I grab both his ass cheeks, thrusting him back and forth. He’s immobilized, completely at my mercy and what a joyful fucking mercy it is. Sucking Hunter is an art I’ve perfected over the years we’ve been together and I know this won’t take long.

  “Babe…the…neighbors,” he mumbles, weaving his fingers through my hair.

  I know neither of us gives a flying fuck about the neighbors. Hell, they can watch for all I care. My only goal is showing my man, my fiancé how much I love him.

  We announce our engagement to Granny and my mom during next Sunday’s dinner, both of them start crying before jumping up and hugging us. Being the girls that they are, they immediately start talking about venues and dates, so I had to put the kibosh on that and remind them we can’t do it in the state of Texas. Their faces fall and take a little piece of my heart with them.

  Hunter squeezes my knee. “Hey babe, I know we haven’t talked much about this, but I have an idea.” His words are met with silence and three sets of eyes are glued on him. “Neither of us have been out of the state, neither of us have seen the ocean. How about a destination wedding?”

  “Oh my God, that’s brilliant,” I tell him.

  He beams, Hunter still has trouble digesting compliments, but he’s getting better at it. “What did you have in mind?” This reminds me of the old EF Hutton commercials, ‘when EF Hutton talks, everyone listens’ as we all stare at him.

  “How about Hawaii?”

  My turn to squeal and I jump in his lap, palming his face and kissing it all over.

  Granny clears her throat. “Boys, save that for your room.”

  Embarrassed, I slide back into my seat.

  “Um,” my mom starts, “I don’t think Granny and I can go.”

  My face falls and my bubble bursts. They’re our family now, our only family and we need them to share this monumental day with us.

  Hunter squeezes my knee and nods, somehow knowing what he’s hinting at, I speak the words aloud, “Destination wedding for four,” I announce. “We can’t get married without our favorite gals there. Hunter and I have made wise choices with our money and we’ll pay for everything, but keep it low key for four please,” I tell them.

  “Son, I can’t let you guys do that,” my mom says.

  “Awe hell, can it, Rose,” Granny spits, “these boys want to do something nice for us then let them. It’ll be the first time any of us have left Texas let alone seen the ocean. Let’s do it.”

  “Fuck it,” my mom says, shocking the hell out of all of us.

  I thought Granny was gonna smack her, but instead she lifts her glass proposing a toast. “To my boys,” Granny says.

  My mother chimes in, “To our boys.”

  We clink our iced tea glasses together.

  “Well, you boys let us know what you need help with. I dabble a little on the internet and could probably find my way around and help with arrangements if you want,” Granny tells us.

  “I have a friend who owns a tux rental shop if you want me to set an appointment I can. Oh shoot, do you have a date in mind?” my mom asks.

  “We hadn’t gotten that far. Ell, do you have a favorite date in mind?” Hunter asks me.

  “I do, but I’m afraid you’ll think it’s goofy.” I blush.

  Hunter takes my hand in his. “Baby, I would never think that. I don’t care when we get married, only that we do. So, you pick the date.”

  Here goes nothing. “How about Halloween?”

  “Halloween, it is,” they chime in unison.

  That gives us six months to plan and execute this private shin-dig for four.

  Epilogue

  Elliot

  The next couple of months pass by in a whirlwind, Mom and Granny are like a tsunami blowing through the wedding hoopla. They want to surprise us with the venue so I toss my credit card over and let them have at it. Both seem to be overly excited and it makes us happy to let them have free rein. Before we know it, we’ve purchased our outfits and are on a plane to Kona.

  We arrive the day before the wedding and the hotel alone is stunning. Our room has a clear view of the ocean. I stroll over to the lanai and open the doors, taking it all in and feeling well out of my element. Hunter strolls up behind me, sliding his arms around my waist.

  “What’s wrong, babe?”

  “I can’t believe this is happening.”

  “Are you having second thoughts?” I feel him stiffen behind me.

  “Hell no. I never thought I’d ever be this happy and now look at us. We’re in a gorgeous hotel, out of Texas, seeing the ocean for the first time and are about to be married. It’s a culmination of all my dreams coming true,” I tell him.

  He turns me around to face him, cupping my face in his hands. “You, Elliott, you are my dream come true.” Hunter wipes the tear from my cheek with his lips before consuming my mouth. Tasting my tears on him makes my heart flutter.

  We unpack and change for dinner, meeting Mom and Granny in the hotel restaurant. The hotel manager greets us to go over the itinerary for the wedding and the events that are part of the package we’d purchased for our ten-day stay. Mom and Granny really outdid themselves, including as much as they could in the package so no one would have to worry about paying out of pocket for anything more than souvenirs.

  The wedding takes
place the next day at Sunset Cove, ironically at sunset. I truly believe Granny and Mom are living vicariously through Hunter and I and I’m glad we can give them that. After dinner, Mom asks if she and I can take a walk while Hunter and Granny wait for us in the bar. I’m afraid Granny will corrupt my poor Hunter, but something in my mom’s voice tells me she needs my undivided attention, so we take a walk along the beach.

  We kick off our flip flops and carry them, enjoying the warm sand between our toes as we walk. The sun had set, and the moonlight reflecting off the water is chillingly beautiful.

  “Elliott,” she starts, taking my free hand in hers. “I know I’ve never said this before, which is one of many things I’ll spend the rest of my life apologizing for, but I’m proud of you. Proud of the man you’ve become, proud of you staying true to yourself and proud of the choices you’ve made. You’re a far better person than I could ever hope to be.”

  “Mom,” I say, but she puts her hand up to stop me before I can say more.

  “I should’ve stopped your father. I should’ve left him the first time he raised his hand to me. I should’ve… I should’ve done a lot of things better than I did and for that, I’m sorry. You stood up for yourself, but I was a coward. I know that’s no excuse for my behavior and I’ve failed you as a mother.”

  I’m an emotional wreck, between getting married and my mom telling me this, I’ve turned into a blubbering idiot.

  “I finally left your father.”

  I stop mid-step and stare at her. “Huh?”

  “When he found out why I was spending so much time at Granny’s he flipped out and took his last swing at me. I called the cops and had him arrested.”

  “Way to go, Mom!” I cheer, but her face says far more than her words so I draw her into my arms. “Sorry, Mom.”

  She laughs. “No need to apologize, I know it’s the best thing for me and something I should’ve done a long time ago. Then he never would have hurt you. I love you, baby boy.”

  My voice is lost to tears, my words barely audible, “I love you too, Mom.”