Gideon's Redemption

by Maddie Taylor

  “Ask away, bud.”

  “Cool, can I see your tattoo?”

  * * *

  “He handled that well.”

  His voice had Shannon turning from the window where she’d been watching the waning light over the Pacific. Gideon and Eli had gone swimming after dinner, and it was 9 o’clock before they finally managed to drag him away from the pool. She had taken Eli upstairs while Gideon locked up. He was half asleep before his head hit the pillow on his new bed, in his new room. Shannon had tucked him in and was heading out the door when his sleepy voice called to her. “It’s going to be okay, isn’t it, Mom?”

  She had gone back, crouching down beside his bed as she watched him struggle to keep his heavy eyelids open. “Yes, honey. Gideon is a good man and he loves you already. We are going to be fine. Sleep tight now.” Before she finished those reassurances, he was sound asleep. Leaning forward, she whispered against his forehead, “I love you, Eli.”

  Now, as Gideon entered the room, she thought of them together again after all this time. Her eyes followed him around the room as he emptied his pockets and kicked off his shoes. As his hands moved to his belt, his eyes found her and she remembered he’d asked her something. About Eli, maybe. She tried to recall, but it didn’t come to her.

  “Are you okay, babe?”

  “Yeah, it’s just… um, it’s all happened so fast, Gid.” She turned back to the window. Feeling vulnerable and at loose ends was not something she enjoyed.

  She didn’t hear him cross the room, but she felt his warmth against her back a second before his hands slid up her arms and wrapped around her. His chin came to rest on the top of her head, and she sighed at the familiar pose. Since he stood at least a head taller, she fit naturally beneath his chin.

  “It’s going to be okay, Shannon. I promise.” He brushed her long hair away from her neck and lapped at her skin where it met her shoulder. “How about a bath to help you relax?”

  “That would be nice.”

  “Would it still be nice if I joined you?”

  Leaning her head back against him, she angled her head, giving him free access. Moaning softly, she couldn’t pretend she wasn’t turned on. “I’d be disappointed if you didn’t. Join me—that is.”

  He slid a hand up her throat and cupping her chin, pulled her face up to his as he captured her lips in a scorching kiss. After several moments of tongues tangling and stroking, he growled low against her mouth. “Let’s get you in the bath before I change my mind.”

  Pulling her along by the hand, he brought her into the luxurious en suite bathroom and flipped the spigot open, adding a bit of cocoa butter bath oil he found on the vanity. “You were busy while we were in the pool.”

  “It wasn’t so much,” she murmured as the familiar scent of coconut and vanilla filled the air.

  “Go ahead and get naked, or do you need me to help?”

  He used to love undressing her, but she didn’t know if she was up for that tonight. She answered by moving her hands to her blouse and releasing the buttons. He quickly shucked his clothes and was in the tub, steadfastly watching her. As she revealed every inch of her skin, she felt shy, turning away as she released her bra and folded it neatly on the vanity top. Her shorts and panties were next. With nothing left to remove, she stood still, taking a deep steadying breath. A movement at the corner of her eye caught her attention, that’s when she saw the full length mirror on the wall opposite the tub. He’d had a 360 view of her as she stripped.

  Their eyes met in the mirror. After a few moments, he lifted his hand, beckoning her.

  “You’re as gorgeous as ever, Shannon. Come to me.”

  Gracefully, she slipped into the tub, his strong hands steadying her as he guided her between his spread legs. The warm water soothed her frayed nerves, but not enough to overcome the stimulating effects of the hard body behind her. He pulled her back against him and picked up the shower scrubby. “What about your hair?”

  “I washed it this morning,” she murmured as she twisted it up on top of her head and knotted it.

  He then began to squeeze warm, sudsy water over her shoulders and breasts. “I missed this so much, Shannon. This was one of my favorite things—bath time. Lean forward and I’ll get your back.”

  He poured bodywash into his hands and began massaging her back with his hands, the scrubby forgotten. “Your skin is still perfect.” Rinsing her with large scoops of warm water, he soon proclaimed in a husky rasp, “All done here. Now lean back and let me get your front.”

  As she relaxed against his broad chest, his slick hands slid around her sides and began soaping her belly. After a few moments, he swept lower over her hips and barely skimmed her bikini line before his hands swept slowly upward, stopping just below her breasts. He repeated this again as he spread kisses along her jaw. It was pure unadulterated torment. Her breathing became shallow and her chest began to rise and fall more rapidly. As his hands moved over her and approached her breasts again, she arched into him. When they skittered away again, she groaned, her head twisting to see him.

  “Please, Gideon, don’t tease me.”

  “Sorry, babe,” he murmured as he lowered his mouth to hers. “It’s just been so long since I had you to touch and play with, I want to savor it.”

  “I can’t bear it.”

  “Tell me what you want, Shannon.”

  “Touch me.”

  “I’m going to explore every square inch of you, I promise. Where do you want me to begin? Where do you ache for my touch?”

  “My breasts, my nipples—please, pinch them.”

  His answer was a groan into her mouth as his tongue swept inside at the same moment he cupped her full breasts. She sighed into his mouth, but as one torture ended, another had just begun. Gideon’s hands felt blissful as they slicked over her sensitive skin, rubbing and circling her trembling breasts before finally capturing the aching peaks. Gasping for air, she arched and her hands came up to the backs of his, pressing them to her, trying to assuage the ache, but he shifted, his fingers intent on tweaking and rolling her nipples, a sensation he knew she loved.

  Wrenching her mouth away, she sucked in a deep breath. “More, please.”

  “Tell me what you want, babe.”

  Groaning, it came back to her as if it were yesterday. His low voice demanding she respond. He never allowed her to lay back and take it. He required an active partner. Although he enjoyed controlling their play, he also reveled in breaking down her barriers and making her ask for what she wanted.

  “My clit, please, Gid. Touch my clit. It aches so.”

  “That’s my good girl, spread those gorgeous thighs and let me make you feel better.”

  She wrapped her legs on the outside of his and opened herself to him. She arched her hips and huffed short breaths as his hand dove below the water’s surface and found her.

  “Oh, baby, you can’t know how much I’ve craved your sweet pussy. I’ve dreamed about you, sweet dreams, but when I awoke and didn’t have you in my arms, I was desolate.”

  He circled and stroked her little bundle of nerves, driving her desire higher. His other hand pinched her nipple harder, tugging and twisting slightly as he latched his mouth onto her neck. “You’re ready to come, aren’t you, Shannon?”

  “Yes. Please!”

  “Then come for me. Come apart in my hands.”

  He pinched her nipples a bit harder, giving her the bite she needed as his fingers thrummed her clit relentlessly. She writhed against him once, twice, and then came apart in his hands, just as he’d demanded. Letting out a raspy growl, she came hard, her interior muscles clenching and spasming, seeking and searching. She rode the rhythmic ripples of her climax to its completion and then collapsed weakly against him. Lying replete in his arms, she knew it was as good as she remembered, but she still needed more.

  “Gid, I need you inside me.”

  “Greedy baby, how I love that.” He set her from him and rose from the tub. Grabbing a towe
l, he pulled her dripping from the tub and began to rub her hurriedly with the terrycloth. “Let’s dry off. I want you in my bed.”

  * * *

  Gideon didn’t know how he held it together so long. Her familiar sexy noises and having her soft curves beneath his hands once again was enough to have him coming against her back as she took her pleasure. Yet somehow, he’d held off. Now with her warm and sweet smelling, pliable after her release, he felt close to his limit. Drying her quickly, he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to his big bed, settling her in the middle. He grabbed a condom from his nightstand and holding it up, he promised sincerely, “I’m clean, babe, I swear. Still, I’m happy to get retested. Do you want me to use this?”

  She nodded. “I’m sorry, Gid, but I’m not on any birth control.”

  He briefly thought that highly unusual for a young, beautiful woman, but decided to table it for later. He couldn’t think of anything but getting inside of her. Unrolling the latex down his cock, he pushed her legs wider and settled between her thighs. “I’ll apologize up front, babe. This is going to be fast. I want you that much.”

  “I need you inside me so bad. I’ll take it fast, hard, rough or wild—anything but slow and easy right now. I don’t think I could stand it.”

  He sank into her then, but she was exquisitely tight and he had to make adjustments, making progressively deeper thrusts before she eased enough that he could settle fully inside her. She was drenched with her own arousal, the velvety softness of her sweet pussy welcoming him home. He began to thrust steadily with deep strokes. Initially, sinking into her had eased his unchecked desire, but his need to dominate and reclaim what was his surged through him. He slid his hands up her arms until he could intertwine his fingers with hers. Holding her prone and restrained by his body, he rode her harder, reestablishing their physical connection, but he realized it wasn’t enough. He demanded more than her body; he wanted her heart, her mind, and her soul, if that were possible.

  “I love you, Shannon. Never again will you leave me, do you hear? I’m reclaiming what is mine.”

  “Never again, Gideon, I’m so sorry.”

  He heard the sob in her voice and shook his head. “I don’t need apologies. I need promises and assurances.” While he stroked inexorably into her, he listened to the small grunting sound she made every time he plunged into her, reclaiming her body, demonstrating the power of his possession. “You are mine and I want to hear you acknowledge it.”

  “I’m yours, Gid, for always.”

  “Again,” he demanded riding her harder. “I need you to say it again and again, until I’m convinced. Who do you belong to, Shannon?”

  “You, I belong to you.” Tears rolled down her cheeks, her heart breaking for what she had done to him.

  “Whose body is this, to take, to love, to own?”

  “It’s yours, Gid.”

  His head dropped to her chest, and he kissed his way from one taut nipple down the inner slope of her breast to the valley between them. He kissed her there, as he continued to thrust relentlessly inside her. “Whose heart is this, baby, to take, to love, to own?”

  She sobbed again, her face wet with tears. “You have my heart, Gideon. Always and forever, it’s yours. Please forgive me.”

  “Nothing to forgive, it wasn’t your fault.” He captured her mouth, silencing further apologies as he released her hands.

  He wasn’t looking for regrets or admissions of guilt. He was looking for her submission. It was still new and raw for them both, and his pleasure-numbed brain knew it would take more scenes like this to convince him, after so many lonely, interminable nights, that what she said was true. That she was his and that this time, it was truly forever. He’d marry her quickly and establish a legal claim. In the meantime, he would take command of her luscious body, of which he’d never get his fill.

  His arms hooked beneath her knees as he opened her wider. Pressing his body forward, he trapped her knees against her chest, leaving her open and even more vulnerable beneath him. This wasn’t a sweet, gentle joining or a romantic reconciliation. No, this was a carnal possession, his body pounding relentlessly into her, thoroughly conquering every inch of what was once his.

  As her fingers threaded through his hair and clung to him tightly, he ignored the tugging pain. She was in his arms and that was all that mattered. As he felt her convulse around him, heard her cry out his name in another explosion of ecstasy, Gideon finally succumbed to his need and came violently, throwing his head back and growling as he reached his own stunning completion, “Mine!”

  Afterwards, they lay quietly, listening to the waves crashing against the shore through the open doorway. Shannon’s back spooned up against Gideon’s taller frame as she relaxed into him. His strong arms encircled her, one hand intimately cupping a breast, the thumb lazily stroking a temporarily appeased nipple.

  Reflectively, she traced her fingertips along the corded forearm that surrounded her. “I followed your career through the tabloids. You’ve done so well for yourself, honey. I’m so proud of you.”

  “I’ve been fortunate, although I would have much rather have failed miserably and had no success if I could have had you by my side.”

  She didn’t respond and a few minutes later, he felt her body shaking. Coming up on an elbow, he rolled her to her back and was appalled at the tears coursing down her cheeks. “Oh, love, I’m sorry. That was a thoughtless remark. I didn’t mean… Damn, I’m an idiot. I just meant I’d have given up everything to have you and Eli.”

  “I feel so guilty, Gid. I should have trusted you. At the very least, I should have given you a chance to explain. Then this wouldn’t have happened.”

  “I don’t know, Shannon. I was angry at first, thinking you should have given me blind trust. But if I’d been in your shoes, walking in on your lookalike with two naked men…”

  “You’d have kicked both their asses and found out it wasn’t me. I ran away, licking my wounds like a wimp. Even worse, I had absolutely no faith in you. I swallowed every lie that Reynolds spoon fed to me. That you had someone else write that hurtful letter; that you knew I was pregnant and were throwing us away without a thought. I believed that you would actually pay me off to get us out of your life.” Her voice broke and she took a shuddering breath before she continued. “I knew that was out of character, but still, I believed.” Covering her face with her hands, she wept inconsolably.

  “Don’t do this, Shannon. I forgive you. It was a clusterfuck all around. If it makes you feel better, I punched Grant in the gut and made him puke. I also rearranged Ray’s face. They both were punished for their role in this. Ray doubly so because when I fired him, he lost a hell of a lot of revenue when I did that, from both the band and me. It hit him where it hurts most, his wallet.”

  “So everyone was punished but me?”

  “Shannon, don’t you think you’ve been through enough? Having a child and raising him alone, working all hours just to make ends meet, giving up on your dreams of being a teacher? I’d say your punishment has been quite severe and prolonged.” Reaching up with one hand, he wiped away her tears with his thumb. “Besides, I forgive you. Isn’t that what counts?”

  “I don’t forgive myself, Gid.” His gentle touch was almost her undoing. Sitting up, she turned to look down at him. She felt awful and she knew she must look a mess, but she didn’t care. “Spank me, Gid.”

  “What?”

  “Please. If you punish me, it might help relieve this horrible guilt I’m feeling.”

  “I really think you’ve paid your debt, one I don’t think you owed anyway. It’s Ray’s debt and Grant’s.”

  “And mine. I ran from you, dammit! Why aren’t you mad at me? You were that day in the apartment. I thought you were going to wallop me right then.”

  “It was the heat of the moment. I was hurt, but as I said, after I had time to think about it, I realized I probably would have done the same.” He pulled her head down for a kiss. “Would a span
king make you feel better?”

  “Yes, please.”

  He sat up, leaning back against the headboard. “In that case, come over my lap, Shannon. But after this, I expect you to put all these guilty feelings behind you.”

  She quickly moved, lying over his lap, her bare bottom directly over his thighs, and she knew she was giving him an ideal target. The position was familiar, as she’d been there a time or two in the past. Gideon was a self-proclaimed ass man, making no bones about it. Combined with his dominant personality, spanking seemed to come naturally. He had introduced her to a sensual, playful kind of spanking long ago, as well as some mild BDSM, but it had usually been reserved to the bedroom. There had been a couple of episodes where Gid had taken it to the next level, taking her to task over some transgression and given her a dozen or so swats as punishment. Afterwards, she had been contrite and surprisingly relieved of her guilt, as if she had paid her dues for whatever crime and had been able to put it behind her. Of course, those had been for minor issues.

  Once, when she’d been sick with a sinus infection, she had foolishly taken only half of her medicine. When she’d relapsed a week later, Gid had found out and he’d spanked her for it. Not right away, he’d held her punishment until she’d been well on the mend and then busted her butt for real. Another time had been for leaving her doors unlocked or some such safety violation which really ticked him off. Both times, she had felt guilty for worrying him and remembered how the spanking had freed her of that feeling. An added bonus was that the lovemaking that followed had been freaking fantastic. Sex aside, she was selfishly hoping a good paddling from him now would have the same guilt-cleansing effect.

  As she lay there, anticipating the first blow, she jumped when his hand moved slowly across her bare skin.

  “Easy, babe,” his voice soothed. “These soft, round globes are shadowed in the dark of the room. This just won’t do.”

  As in the past, he was being very careful with her. Gid had told her once that he would always spanked her bare bottom so he could see the color changes and better assess her tolerance. He’d said he wanted to create a heated stinging sensation but not bruise or injure her, and he never had. He’d also said that a spanking on the bare, as he called it, was more intimate, allowing opportunities for “further assessment of her responses”. This was not entirely altruistic of him, she’d learned, for it translated into being able to watch her bare pussy for signs of arousal. Shannon had thought her fervid responses would be limited to the sensual, foreplay spankings, but they hadn’t. Both times when he had slapped her butt for real, she had gotten as hot and as wet as ever before, to her dismay and Gid’s endless delight.