Until the Lightning Strikes: Happily Ever Alpha World

by Christensen, Elle

  I found a space and parked, then pulled the key from the ignition before turning in my seat. Wrapping one hand around the back of her neck, I brought her face close and kissed her deeply. It took an incredible amount of self-control, but I tore my lips from hers before I gave in and took her right there in my car. “We’ll start with that,” I declared, breathing heavily. Rachel’s expression was dazed as she stared up at me, then a slow smile spread across her alluring face.

  She tucked some of her hair behind her ear and beamed at me. “I think I like your plan.” Just then, her stomach growled, and we both burst out laughing. Damn, I loved her.

  The thought wasn’t shocking to me; I’d seen it coming the moment we met. However, I gave myself a stern warning to not let it slip out until she was ready to hear it.

  “Time to feed you.” She turned to her door and reached for the handle, but I put my hand over hers, staying the action. “Let me,” I requested softly. A look of surprise crossed her face, but her blue eyes glittered with happiness. I quickly exited the car and jogged around to help her out as well. I was prepared to keep a firm grip on her hand so she wouldn’t tug it away, but it turned out to be unnecessary. Rachel made no attempt to let go; she even moved in closer to my side. I wanted to pump my fist in the air, but that seemed juvenile and ridiculous, so I just grinned with satisfaction. This was progress.

  9

  Rachel

  When we entered La Trattoria, it looked exactly as I remembered. The decor looked classy and expensive, full of gleaming wood, cream accents, and Italian landscapes on the walls. Yet, despite the posh interior, the place always felt homey. It was a family business—the owners were an older Italian couple with six kids who’d practically grown up in the restaurant.

  Antonio, the oldest of the six, whom Rosa and I had gone to high school with, was manning the host station. When he spotted me, his face broke into a grin, and he hurried around the podium to grab me up in a bear hug. Vaguely, I heard Liam growl, before Antonio was shoved, none too delicately, away from me. “Hands off my woman,” Liam snarled. I elbowed Liam in the ribs and heat suffused my face as I burned with embarrassment, though it didn’t completely eclipse the streak of giddiness I found at him referring to me as “his woman.”

  My friend just laughed and held his hands up in surrender as he took several steps back. “Sorry, man,” he said, amusement flickering in his dark eyes. He flipped one of his hands around and waved it, showing off a silver band on his left ring finger. “I should have known better. I’m just as possessive of my wife.” His face broke into a wide grin. “In fact, she’d probably have my balls in a vice grip if she’d seen that.”

  I felt Liam’s body relax next to me and I rolled my eyes in exasperation. “Enough of this display of testosterone, I’m hungry.” An unexpected shiver raced through my body when I felt Liam’s warm breath on my ear as he whispered, “So am I.” His tone was smooth and seductive, making it clear that he wasn’t talking about food.

  “Right this way,” Antonio directed as he grabbed two menus and started weaving through tables. I trailed mutely behind him, not sure I trusted my voice to say anything, especially when I heard Liam’s deep, warm chuckle. How did he always manage to turn me into a puddle of desire?

  When we were seated and left alone, my mind focused on the menu and trying to decide what to order. As distracting as Liam could be, I wasn’t kidding when I said I was hungry. I’d been in classes all day and hadn’t had time for lunch.

  “See anything you like,” I asked absently.

  “Absolutely,” Liam replied strongly. “But, I assume you are referring to what’s on the restaurant’s menu?” His tone was flirtatious, and I glanced up to see him unabashedly ogling me from across the booth. My skin tingled wherever his brown eyes touched, and I flushed with warmth. I’d never had anyone look at me the way Liam did. Like he was captivated by me and didn’t even notice anyone else around him. It was a heady feeling, and I reveled in it.

  The waiter shuffled up to our table and the sexual tension dissipated. The mood between us became easy and fun. We talked all through dinner, getting to know each other. I wanted to know everything about Liam and he never once seemed annoyed by my endless questions about him and his life. The only time he showed any sign of frustration was when I deflected his own questions about my childhood and my parents. I did tell him about growing up with Rosa and her family, as well as my goals and ambitions for the future.

  The atmosphere changed abruptly when I mentioned leaving after I graduated. Liam’s mood seemed to plummet, and I was incredibly grateful that the waiter arrived at that moment with the check. Liam handed the guy some cash and told him to keep the change. Then he stood and held out a hand to me, helping me scoot out of the booth and get to my feet.

  He didn’t say anything as he led me out to his Jeep and assisted me into my seat. And he remained quiet throughout the drive, though he did hold my hand and his thumb moved back and forth on my skin.

  “Are you okay?” I finally asked.

  It seemed almost like he’d forgotten I was even there because his head jerked in my direction. It was dark in the car, but the moonlight allowed me to see most of his face. His brooding expression lightened and his lips curved into a small smile. “Yeah, baby. I’m fine.” Then he turned back to the road and gave my hand a soft squeeze. “Just have a lot on my mind.”

  I tucked some hair behind my ear and took a deep breath. “If you need to do other things, you can just take me home,” I offered. I held my breath while I waited for his answer, wishing fervently for him to say no.

  “No,” he stated unequivocally. I was flooded with relief and exhaled quickly. It had only been about ten minutes when we pulled onto a gravel drive that let up to a large, bungalow-inspired house on at least two acres of land. It was absolutely beautiful, and I fell in love with it at first sight. It had a stately, classically detailed entrance portico on four white, tapered columns below a second floor and then a clerestory dormer with three windows above that. The front door was painted dark red with a beveled window in the top and two long, narrow windows on either side. Flanking the entrance were two large picture windows. Then the house expanded on both sides outside the portico with more large windows. The porch walls were cream ship lap while the rest of the house was a pretty gray-blue, all accented by the same detailed white as the columns.

  On the brick porch were two rocking love-seats, one on each side, and they beckoned to me. I pictured what it would be like to cuddle up on one of those with Liam as we watched our kids play in the vast yard. I wondered how many of the four windows on the second floor were rooms meant for children. Did he have a studio in there? Would he teach each little one how to paint or sculpt, or carve? I wasn’t sure where all of the images in my head came from, but once they were there, I knew it would be hard to let them go.

  Liam pulled around and put the car in park in front of an attached four-car, side-oriented garage at the back of the house and twisted his upper body toward me. “I’m sorry,” he apologized. “I didn’t mean to get so distracted. You have my full attention from now on.” I searched his face and found nothing but sincerity in his expression. My stomach fluttered when he reached out and tucked my hair behind my ear before letting his fingers trail across my cheek and lips. “How about a tour?”

  I nodded eagerly because my voice was still caught in my throat from the tender moment. My eyes were glued to him as he made his way over to open my door. Once I was out of the Jeep, he grabbed my back from the back before hitting the remote lock. Then he took my hand and led me to a side entrance and unlocked it before gesturing for me to go in ahead of him.

  We stepped into a mud/laundry room, and Liam removed his shoes before kneeling down to unzip my boots and steady me as I stepped out of them. “No shoes, remember?” he smirked. Then he led me into a hallway that ended at a huge great room that included a fireplace, an open kitchen separated by a long island, and dining nook. The inside was a
s amazing as the outside, cream and different shades of blue, mixed with rich brown and splashes of red. I simply stood there and stared in awe. If I could have designed and built my own house, it would have looked much like Liam’s. But what I loved most was that it felt like a home, warm and inviting.

  Liam’s body heat seeped into my back as he slipped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on the crown of my head. “What do you think?” he asked softly. There was a vulnerability in his tone that surprised me as if my approval meant a lot to him.

  “It’s perfect,” I whispered almost reverently.

  He kissed my head, then stepped to my side and picked up my hand. “C’mon.” We walked the whole house, and I think my eyes just got bigger and rounder with every room we saw. There were five bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, a study, theatre room, an outdoor living room with another fireplace which led out to a massive veranda, and a finished basement that sat empty. “I figured this could be a playroom for kids someday,” he murmured as we ascended the stairs back to the foyer at the front.

  The butterflies in my stomach were going wild and crazy because I knew there was only one last place to show me. Liam let me go long enough to grab my bag from the laundry room. Then he put a hand on the small of my back and guided me down a hallway to the right of the foyer and into a master suite. It was every bit as big, gorgeous and yet cozy as the rest of the house. But my eyes were locked on the huge bed on the far wall, and the flutters in my tummy became a nervous tingling all over my body.

  “Baby,” Liam called. I whipped around to see him leaning against the door frame of what I assumed was a closet, because he’d dropped my bag just inside the dark room behind him. He watched me with an unreadable expression, and I just stood there silently and tucked my hair behind my ear before fidgeting with the hem of my dress. “Why are you so nervous?” he asked as he began to approach me. “Do you remember what I promised you?”

  I nodded and tried to think of a way to voice my current thoughts. I licked my lips and his gaze shot to my mouth, his brown eyes darkening with hunger. He tried to shut it down, and that’s when I found my voice. “Slow,” I croaked. He shut his eyes tight, and I could tell he was trying to reign himself in. I cleared my throat and wrapped my fingers as far as they would go around his bicep. When he looked at me again, I stepped in close enough to feel the heat radiating off his body. “I don’t want slow,” I explained, my voice clearer but still raspy from the strain of the desire pulsing with every beat of my heart. I’d finally chosen to run straight into the storm and risk being struck by lightning in hopes that I would find a rainbow waiting for me when the clouds cleared.

  Liam didn’t react right away, and I started to wonder if he’d changed his mind, but then threw that theory out because I could easily see the hunger in his dark gaze. It seemed like an eternity before he placed his hands on my hips, then slowly glided them up my sides to rest on the underside of my breasts. “You need to be sure,” he said resolutely as his eyes explored my face. “If you give yourself to me tonight, let me take your cherry and be the first man to sink inside your heaven, there will be no going back.” He searched my expression as though making sure I understood his words. “As it is, I don’t think I could let you go right now, but once I take you, you are mine. Do you understand?” I nodded, overwhelmed by emotion and shaking with need. “So think hard about your decision, baby”—he yanked me in tight, the evidence of much he wanted me pushing into my stomach—“And do it fast.”

  My palms flattened on his chest, and I savored the feel of his racing heartbeat for a moment before drifting up to delve my fingers into his unruly locks. The truth I was coming to accept was that I wanted to be his. I wanted to give him every part of me, even if it meant disaster in the end. Because while he was demanding everything, it hadn’t escaped my notice that he hadn’t promised the same to me. “Did you mean what you said earlier?” My gaze dropped to his beard when I asked the question. My confidence had slipped for a moment, and I felt vulnerable as I waited for his answer.

  “About you being my boom?” I bobbed my head once. “Rachel, look at me.” I was surprised at the lack of command in his voice. Instead, it was a gentle request. My stars this man made me weak in the knees, pretty soon I would be nothing but a quivering, boneless mass. I summoned all my courage and did as he asked. His chocolate brown orbs were filled with affection, and it felt like a sweet caress on my skin. The jagged edges of lust liquified into molten lava. I felt the burn from my head to my toes, but most especially, in my core, where I was aching and empty. If Liam answered the way I hoped he would, I was going to take the leap and hope that I was enough, that he wouldn’t leave me behind when he found something better, something more addicting. I wanted to believe that he would never be like my parents.

  Liam wrapped his hands around my neck and used his thumbs to lift my face. “Yes. I meant it. The moment I saw you, it was like being struck by lightning, then the thunder boomed, and I knew. I knew it was you and not the storm raging outside. You’re my boom, baby.”

  There was no thought involved in what I blurted out next.

  “Fuck me,” I begged in a whisper.

  10

  Liam

  Rachel’s eyes grew into saucers, and she looked utterly shocked, her mouth forming a cute little O, then she slapped a hand over it. While her words had ignited a raging inferno inside me, I worried over the expression on her face. “Babe? What is it?”

  She shook her head and the corners of her eye crinkled with amusement when she giggled. She actually fucking giggled.

  “Not exactly the response you’re looking for from a girl after she asks you to have sex with her,” I replied dryly.

  She removed her hand from her mouth and said, “It’s just that”—she broke off to laugh a little harder—“I’ve never done that before.”

  “I should fucking hope not,” I growled, assuming she meant asking for sex.

  “No. I meant that I’ve never—um—used words like that.”

  When I thought about it for a moment, I realized I’d never heard her curse. In fact, there had been many times when she’d used odd phrases that had struck me as adorable. My head tilted to the side as I studied her. “What made you say them now?”

  Her face flushed to deep crimson and one of her hands moved toward her head. I caught it before she reached her hair and kissed her fingers before returning it to its spot on the back of my neck. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about, baby,” I told her gently.

  She ducked her head and rested her forehead on my chest. “I don’t know why I said it. I wasn’t thinking—it just…came out.”

  Hugging her fiercely close, I lifted her off her feet and brought her up so that our faces were level. “I thought it was hot as hell. And the fact that you said it without thinking, that it came from pure want…Fuck, I can’t even describe what that does to me.” Slowly, I lowered her down to her feet, making sure her body stayed in contact with mine, the whole way. She gasped when the hard bulge in my pants pressed between her legs.

  I took a deep breath and reigned myself in just enough so I could make sure we were one hundred percent on the same page. “Before we go any further, I need you to answer my earlier question, baby,” I urged, clenching my jaw as I fought the need to say fuck it and do everything to her that I’d been dreaming about.

  She seemed to know what I was asking because she gazed up at me with her clear blue eyes. Though there was still some lingering reservation lurking in their depths, they were determined and sure. “Yes. I know that by giving you my body, I’m giving you all of me.” Her sweet voice filled me with such happiness, and if I hadn’t already known I loved her, it would have hit me right then, which scared the fuck out of me, not the fact that I loved her, but that she’s still been talking about leaving after school. That was never going to fucking happen.

  “No more talk of leaving,” he ordered.

  She watched me with a heavy gaze for a mom
ent, then inclined her head in agreement. “No more talk of leaving.” Her words lifted a ten-ton weight off of my chest I blew out a breath I hadn’t even realized I’d been holding.

  “Liam?” Her beautiful face was tilted up, and it was filled with raw need. I raised an eyebrow in silent question. “Fuck me,” she demanded.

  The last shred of my control snapped, and I couldn’t hold back anymore. I crushed my mouth over hers, and it turned wild immediately. Bending my knees, I grabbed the backs of her thighs and lifted her so that her legs wrapped around my waist. My hands slid up to grab her ass, and I froze. Life started moving in slow motion. Rachel pulled back and frowned at me, but I couldn’t speak over the loud thumping of my heart. Then, it was like time had stopped, and suddenly it was rushing to catch up, and we were moving on fast forward.

  I had her flat on her back on the bed in seconds, and I didn’t fucking care if she liked her dress, I grabbed the neckline and tore it straight down the middle. She yelped with surprise, but when I quickly glanced up to check on her, she was staring at me with dark, hungry eyes. With the fabric clutched in my hands at my sides, I stared at Rachel’s gorgeous pussy. The dark curly hair was neatly trimmed, enough that I could see how plump her southern lips were. She was pink and dripping with arousal, making my mouth water. When I managed to tear my gaze away, it drifted up her body, taking in her round hips, her small waist, and flat stomach, and finally to her generous tits, spilling out of the blue, lace bra attempting to contain them. Her body had haunted me because I’d only gotten the fastest glimpse when she’d dropped that sheet, and I wondered if it had been as perfect as I remembered.

  It was even fucking better. Like a magnet, my focus was once again pulled to the juncture between her thick thighs. All night…all night she hadn’t— My head whipped up and I glared at Rachel. “You didn’t wear panties tonight?” My teeth clenched. “At all?”