by Kelly Moore
She rocks backward, pushing me out of her. She’s on her knees facing me. “My turn.” She shoves me backward and I lay down with my head at the bottom of the bed. She straddles me and walks up on her knees until she’s at my knees. Leaning down, she places her mouth on my cock and I nearly buck her off the bed when she draws upward, sucking hard. I grab at her shoulders trying to push her off, but she sucks harder.
“God damn, Aedon, I don’t want to come in your mouth!” I grit out.
She takes me out of her mouth and licks her lips. “Where do you want to be?”
I direct her hips over my cock and pull her down on top of me until she is fully seated. I let out a deep moan when she starts riding me. I let her find her rhythm. When her hands go to her breast and she squeezes her nipples, I can take no more. I grab her hips and thrust deeper, roaring as I let go and take her with me.
She collapses down on top of me. My heart is beating wildly inside my chest and I can see her head moving to its rhythm on my chest. Her damp hair cools my body down. She lifts her head so her chin is on my chest and her eyes are on mine. “I don’t want to sleep with your ghost anymore.”
I drag her up my body so she’s lying beside me, facing me. “You don’t have to. I’m right here. I’m not that man anymore.” I make love to her for hours until we are both completely spent.
She rolls back, raising one arm above her head. When she catches her breath, she begins to speak softly. “You ripped my world apart. I wanted you so badly and I hated you at the same time. I know they say time heals all pain, but God, right now I’d give anything not to remember everything that happened between us.” She rolls back over, placing her hand on my chest. “This was the good part, the part that I will never forget. No man has ever made love to me like you do. I’ve felt cheated every time I even tried.” She reaches down and covers herself with the sheet like she’s trying to hide what she’s feeling.
I don’t like hearing that she’s been with other men, but I haven’t exactly been celibate either. Funny thing is, I feel the same way, except I cheated them because they weren’t Aedon. “I wish I could take all those bad memories away and leave only the shine in your mind.” I scoot to the head of the bed, sitting up. “At some point, you have to decide whether or not to let it go and see the man I am now. The man who has never quit loving you or wanting you.”
Joining me sitting, she says, “There is a dark cloud that hangs over us. Maybe not us, but me. I should have moved on a long time ago, but I never could get far away from you. I just really miss you, but I’m not able to take us on again.” She gets out of my bed and dresses.
I don’t try to stop her. I want her so fucking badly, but I want it to be on her terms. We tried my terms before and it was an epic failure. “Why do I feel like we take ten steps forward and then a hundred steps back?”
She runs her hand through her hair. “Maybe one of these days, we’ll meet in the middle.” She walks over to the bed and runs her hand through my hair. “Thanks for tonight.” She turns and walks out.
I get up and don’t bother dressing, heading back for my plate of food. My appetite is back with a vengeance, but unfortunately not for food. I force myself to eat. I know the next few days ahead of us will be crazy busy and I need the energy.
Sleep doesn’t come with her scent covering my bed and body. I take a long, hot shower, washing every place her hand touched me. I stop on the red stripes from her nails that run from my chest to my lower stomach. I deserve every ounce of pain she wants to cause me. But this doesn’t hurt. It’s a reminder that I had her, even if it was for only one night.
I throw on a pair of scrubs and head out early. The patient load is steady today. Our teams were able to rescue more people now that the rain has stopped and the winds have died down. I’ve been working several hours before Wren and Aedon walk into the tent together. Jealousy tightens my gut. I know she’s told me they’re only friends, but he gets to spend time with her, laugh with her, and just be himself with her.
I put in the last stitch and call Ander. “Do we have anything in the field I can go do?”
“Nothing has come across my board yet this morning.”
“Find me something, I need to get out of here.”
“There is a rescue going on a couple of blocks from you, but I don’t think they’re going to need you there.”
“Send me the address.”
“Are you okay, Dr. Manning?”
“I’m fine, I just need a change of venue right now.”
“Okay, I’m sending it to you now. Be careful out there, I couldn’t stand another day like yesterday.”
“Will do.” I throw my surgical hat in the laundry and change out of my dirty scrubs. Slipping out the back, I follow the address he sent me.
I spend my day helping dig in the rubble of an apartment building. Three more people were rescued.
As I’m taking a water break, I hear a voice calling for help. The sound leads me down a hole. I lift the concrete out of the way until I can see an elderly lady sitting in a chair. There is a beam over her that protected her from the floor above from falling in.
I get the attention of one of the rescue teams. I tie a rope around my waist and they lower me down to her. Miraculously, the woman survived the collapsing building completely unscathed. Her hand is tightly gripped around something – a picture.
“Who is this?” I ask her.
“This was my husband, the only man that I’ve loved.” She has tears in her eyes. “He died two years ago in this apartment. Now, this is all I have left of him.”
“He must’ve been a really good man.”
She laughs. “We spent too many years apart. He had hurt me when we were kids. I took too many years to forgive him, too many wasted years.”
I feel like Aedon should’ve found her, but it gives me hope. She ended up with him. “Let’s get you out of here. I’ll hold this for you.” I take the picture from her and put it in my pocket. Helping her up, I secure the rope around her waist and motion for them to pull her up.
By the end of the day, I’m exhausted. I head straight back to the hotel room and find Wren sitting on the floor in the hallway in front of my door. He stands when he sees me coming down the hallway.
“You okay, man? We’ve been worried sick about you. Ander said you left for a rescue hours ago.”
“I’m fine. I needed to do some physical work to let off some tension.” I unlock the door. I open it but stand in front so that he can’t come inside. “I don’t feel like talking, if that’s okay with you.”
“Sure, whatever you need. Get a good night sleep and we’ll meet for breakfast.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
I lay the key on the dresser and plop down on the bed, immediately falling sound asleep.
Chapter 15
Ashe
My phone rings, waking me. “This better be good,” I growl into the phone.
“Um, it’s noon, Dr. Manning,” Ander’s voice blares.
“Damn it.” I jump out of bed.
“It’s okay, I was calling to let you know that I’ll have your plane waiting on the tarmac at five.”
“Did I call you in my sleep to tell you I was coming back?” I ask, pulling on a pair of jeans.
“Aedon called this morning. She said things had slowed down enough that she was sending several of the rescue teams home and that you guys weren’t needed in the field anymore. Wren called me earlier, he said he’d been worried when you didn’t answer your phone. The maid let him inside and he said you were sleeping and not to wake you until now.”
“Thanks, I needed it. I’ll go check in with the two of them. I’m sure you could use some time off.”
“As soon as the three of you are back, I’m taking a week off to catch up on my sleep.”
“Take whatever you need. Nice job.”
“Thanks, Dr. Manning, but you guys deserve all the credit.”
“We couldn’t do it without you.” I hang
up and finish getting dressed. I head straight to Aedon’s room, but she’s not there. I call for a ride and head to the MASH unit. Wren is packing up some boxes.
“Sorry about breakfast.” I take a box from him.
“It’s okay, you needed your sleep.”
I look around the tent but don’t see her. “Where’s Aedon?”
“She said she wanted to stick her feet in the Pacific Ocean while she was here.”
I chuckle. “She has always loved the ocean.”
He places the box back on the table and looks down. “That makes two things she has always loved,” he says quietly and then looks up at me.
“How about you, are you in love with her?” I finally ask him.
He shifts from foot to foot. “I love her, but not like you think. I gave up on that a long time ago. She’d rather be lonely than be with any other man. As much as I would like for her to love me, I’d never have her heart the way you do.” He picks the box back up. “I suggest you’re careful with it this time. If you leave it lying on the floor again, you will never get another chance, especially with a woman like her. And you’ll have to deal with me.”
Damn, she must have told him what happened between us. I need to find her before we get on that plane. “Do you know where she went?”
“No, but that guy over there took her.” he says, pointing to one of the soldiers.
“Thanks.” I shake his hand and take off toward the soldier. I know it must have been hard for him to bow out of the picture. As my best friend, I kind of feel sorry for him because I really think he loves her as much as I do.
He drives to the edge of town where there is a bridge left standing. A boat ramp runs underneath it. White sand lines the area. Off in the distance I see her in the water, sitting near the rocks. Dark sunglasses cover her eyes and her hair shifts lazily back and forth in the sea breeze. As I get closer, I can see her white t-shirt is wet and clinging to her body. She doesn’t have a bra on and her nipples can be seen clearly through the material. Her faded cut-off blue jeans are several shades darker than normal from the saltwater soaking through them. She looks sexy as hell sitting there, lost in thought. I stand back and admire her for a few minutes before she senses me.
A small smile plays on her face. She splashes the water. “Come sit with me.”
I don’t hesitate. I remove my shoes and sit next to her in my blue jeans. “Are you enjoying yourself?”
“I’ve always been told if you touch it, it becomes part of you, part of your soul.” Her hand plays in the water.
“Is that why you’ve always loved the water?” I brush her hair off her shoulder.
“Yeah, I guess it is. This place…” She waves her hand in the air and water splashes in my face. “I’ve touched so many things since we’ve been here. I’ll take it all with me, the good and the bad.” She wipes water off my chin.
I lean back on my hands. “We’ve done a lot of good here. I just hate that I lost the kid.”
“He would’ve died either way. You know that, right?” she says, turning in my direction.
“I know. What I really want to know is if you and I have a chance? I don’t know what you’re thinking in that beautiful head of yours.”
“I don’t think I have any other choice. I can’t seem to get you out of my heart. I’m scared to love you and I’m scared not to love you.”
I see a tear escape from behind her glasses. “Are you scared to not love me because you’re afraid I may lose it again?” I brush the tear away.
“No, I’m scared to not love you because if I don’t, I’ll never love another man and my heart will always be broken.”
“Why are you scared to love me, doll?” I kiss her lips lightly.
“I don’t want to lose myself again with you. I can’t watch you fall apart.”
“You’ll never have to watch me fall apart, I promise. And, I’ll never break your heart again. I love you. I have since the day we met. I am the man that I am because of you. There has never been and never will be another woman for me.” I grab her to me, kissing her hard. I feel her nipples harden further under her shirt. Her eyes are invisible behind the sunglasses, but I can feel her intense gaze on me.
“I love you, too.” She sniffs and laughs. “Can we just go home? I can’t wait to be in your arms again.”
I stand, taking her with me. I wrap my arms around her shoulder and we walk back to the cab together. Once we are in the back, I take my shirt off and pull it over her. She snuggles into my shoulder, right where she belongs. Her hand rubs the back of my hand and I kiss the top of her head. This is my happy place, with her in my arms.
Back at the tent, I find a scrub shirt and dry pants. We work for a few hours helping to get instruments back in place. Most of the surgeries now are being sent directly to the hospital, so the majority of the remaining supplies will go back with us.
Heading back to the hotel, Aedon walks next to Wren and I fall in behind them. The two of them are always laughing and poking fun at one another. For the first time in a long time, I’m okay with it. Even though Wren professed that he loves her, I know that he has loved her enough to let her go, to let her love me.
We separately go to our rooms to pack up the few things that we brought. When I’m done, I head over to Aedon’s room to see if she needs any help. “Knock, knock,” I say, rapping my hands on the door as I walk inside.
“I’m almost ready,” she yells from the bathroom. She walks out with her hair in a high pony, rubbing lotion on her face. Her light pink top hangs loose over one shoulder. Her skinny jeans form to her sweet body. She sits on the side of the bed and slips a pair of tan sandals on, then stand and grabs her bag. A smile plays across her lips when her eyes meet mine. “What?” she asks.
“You look beautiful no matter what you wear. I love the fact you can look classy as hell and then strut out here in no bra and a t-shirt and look equally as hot.” I pull her into my arms, kissing her bare shoulder. “I can’t wait to get you back home.”
“I can’t wait to get you back home either, but if we don’t get a move on it, we’re going to miss our plane.” She swats me in the ass as she walks by me.
“That is one thing that I’ve always loved about you.” I grab her hand and pull her back into me.
“What’s that?” She puckers her lips for a kiss.
“You give as good as you get.” I smack my lips to hers and grab her ass roughly with both my hands.
She reaches behind and removes my hands. “Come on, let’s go before Wren walks in on us.” She giggles.
Wren is about to knock on the door as we open it to go out. “Ander has a cab waiting on us,” he says.
Aedon sits between us in the backseat. Her hands lay on my leg and she seems really happy, almost comfortable. We quickly make it to the tarmac. I grab my bag and hers from the trunk. Wren throws his over his shoulder.
The plane takes off and I curl up on the bottom bunk knowing we have a long flight home. A few minutes later, Aedon’s feet land on my bunk as she climbs into the one above me. Her hand dangles down for mine. I reach up and hold it. I decide that’s not enough contact with her. I climb out of bed and into the top bunk. She moves over and lays her head on my chest and a hand low on my abs. I ignore the swelling of my cock, and we both fall asleep.
Wren wakes us both up when we get close to landing. “You guys need to get buckled in,” he says, wiping his tired eyes.
We all sit and buckle ourselves into our chairs. “When we get back, I’m going to run by the office to drop off some things and make a couple phone calls. You go home and I’ll meet up with you in the morning.” I tell Aedon.
She looks at the time on her phone. “I’ll meet you at my place at midnight.”
Chapter 16
Aedon
I can’t believe we’re actually doing this. I’m terrified, yet excited at the same time. I’ve waited so long for this, I wasn’t willing to let Ashe out of my sight for one night. I want my hands a
ll over him and his rough ones on mine.
Unpacking, I put everything in its place. I jump in the shower to wash and shave my legs. Afterwards, I dig out a silky deep purple nightgown that falls mid-thigh. The lacy straps crisscross in the back. I rub my lavender lotion all over, remembering that it’s his favorite, then dry and brush out my long hair and make a quick braid to lay over my shoulder. Soft, shiny pink gloss covers my lips. I’m so engrossed in getting ready that I jump when I hear a knock on the door. Looking through the peep hole I can see Ashe standing in the hallway, nervously running his hand through his thick, dark hair.
“That was quick,” I say as I open the door.
His jaw drops to the ground when he sees me. “I didn’t want to be away from you that long.” He walks in and wraps his arms around my waist.
“Afraid I might change my mind?” I tease with him.
“Something like that.” He chuckles and trails kisses down my neck, causing an instant ache. “This is sexy, but I want it off.”
I raise my hands above my head and he yanks it off me and pushes me against the door. His hand finds the tie in my hair and slowly takes it out, freeing my hair to fall loose. His kiss on my lips becomes urgent as if his need for me is as strong as my need for him, and it can wait no longer. This is the passionate man that I’ve longed for and missed. His mouth alone sets my soul on fire.
Deepening the kiss, my hand finds his hair and tugs at it. Moaning in pleasure, he picks me up in his arms, carries me over to my leather couch, and bends me over it. He slaps my ass hard. I let out a yell of pure satisfaction knowing what’s coming next when I hear his jeans unzip. He rips his shirt off and I feel his bare chest pressed against my back. “I fucking need you now.” He rocks his hard cock up against my ass.
“Then take me,” I rasp out as his hand lands on my ass again. I push my hips into him encouraging him to take what he wants. At this moment, I would give this man anything he wants, anyway he wants.
