Rhys (Secrets Book 1) Read online

  Now.

  She reaches down to push my boxer briefs away, but I stop her. “Not so fast, babe. If those come off, it’ll all be over way too soon. If you knew how long I’ve craved you, yearned for you…” I gaze up into her whiskey eyes and see them alight with the flames of the same desire I’m feeling. “If those come off, I’ll devour what’s mine. If they stay on, I’ll savor you.”

  Sliding down her body, I softly spread her legs open, placing tiny succulent kisses along the inside of her right thigh. She’s a vision, her pussy glistening with her desire for me. If there was any question of her wanting me before, there isn’t any now.

  “I’m practically on fire, Rhys.”

  If she thinks she’s on fire now, she’s about to explode. Lifting her left leg, I rest it on my shoulder while lightly nudging her right one to spread a little wider for me. My lips never stop their journey of kisses north. Using both hands, I gently open her lips, exposing her throbbing clit to me. “You’re exquisite. If you could see what I see right now…” There are no words. “Damn, baby.” Sweeping down, I flick my tongue swiftly across her clit. The instant my tongue makes contact, she comes apart around me. Her back arches, her hands frantically pull my hair, and oh my, her moans.

  Her moans.

  All I’ve done is swept my tongue across her clit—once. “Mm, baby, you taste like honey.” One taste of her and I know she’s ruined me for life. Taking one finger, I thrust into her opening while my tongue continues licking her up and down, from her clit to her opening. Her moans are triggering mine, and she must like the vibrations because she presses the back of my head farther into her. A second finger joins the one stroking her, and my tongue laps up her juices, stopping to suck her clit into my mouth. That’s all it takes for her to detonate.

  “God, yes…don’t stop.” I suck her clit into my mouth a little harder, my tongue swirling around and around, her screams of pleasure going on and on. “Yes, Rhys—yes.” My fingers don’t let up their stroking her in and out while I continue sucking her. Her back arches again, arms thrashing at her sides, fingers clenching the sheets. She’s wild.

  Like I always knew she’d be.

  With my free hand, I hastily push down my boxers, and while she’s still moaning with her release, I replace my fingers with my cock. Not holding anything back, I push into her completely. With my fingers now pressing on her clit, my mouth meets hers, swallowing her cries of pleasure. Her hips meet mine, circling with each stroke in a rhythm only we know, the walls of her pussy squeezing my cock with each stroke out.

  “I can’t last much longer, baby.”

  Her hips start to rotate in the opposite direction while I thrust into her, faster and faster.

  “Let go, Rhys. Come apart for me.”

  Her words and the motion of her hips send me into oblivion. My fingers still stroking her clit cause her to have another orgasm with me, and it’s out of this world, unlike anything I’ve experienced before. She’s completely undone me.

  She owns me.

  Her screams wake me from a sound sleep hours later. She’s having a nightmare. Her legs are kicking out, and she’s yelling words I’m unable to make out.

  “Baby, wake up,” I whisper near her ear while running a soothing hand up and down her back. Not wanting to startle her further, I keep whispering the same thing over and over again. “Baby, wake up. You’re safe.”

  It takes several terrifying minutes for her to come fully awake. Whomever she was dreaming about has frightened her speechless. She’s clutching at me hard, her nails leaving indentations in my arms.

  “Rhys?” she questions, her eyes still cloudy with the sheen of sleep.

  “Shh, yes it’s me, baby. You’re okay. You were having a nightmare.”

  She’s trembling in my arms, but her breathing has evened out. I’d bet money she was dreaming about Rob and whatever horrible things he did to her. The talk we had earlier tonight must’ve triggered the nightmare. If her merely mentioning him brings out a response like this, I don’t want to find out what it’ll do to her when she actually tells me what he did.

  “Would you like some water?”

  “Actually, yes please.”

  All I can offer her is the comfort of my arms, and what I normally like after waking from my horrors: a cold drink.

  Leaving her alone on the bed doesn’t feel right. It’s good there’s a stocked minibar in the room because if I had to leave, I don’t know if I could. When I walk back into the bedroom, she’s lying there, silently crying. She looks broken. My wild tiger is nowhere to be found, and it fucking kills me to see her this way.

  “Sit up, take a drink, and let me hold you.”

  She sits up and scoots over on the bed, making room for me to crawl back in. I proceed to do exactly what I promised, holding her until her tears dry up and her breathing returns to normal. Neither of us utters a word.

  As the dawn begins to chase the moon away, we both drift back to sleep. I’m still holding her, and she’s still holding me.

  “If you don’t want to talk about it, we don’t have to. I’m merely saying we have a bit of a drive ahead of us, and we both have stories to tell.”

  It’s barely past noon and we’re on the road home. After a late checkout from out hotel, we grabbed a quick bite to eat before heading out of the city. I’d have loved to spend another day or two strictly exploring Averill, but our real-life problems beckon.

  “Where did I leave off? I didn’t explain who Smith is, right?”

  Her trusting me with more of her strings, her secrets, threw me off course, and then…and then. Finally knowing what it feels like to be inside Averill makes me want to pound on my chest and roar. Yes, it’s moronic, but that doesn’t stop me from feeling this way. She’s finally mine in every way humanly possible. I know her heart is mine, even if she doesn’t want to admit it.

  “We, uh…got sidetracked.”

  “We made love, Averill.”

  If I say it enough, she’ll believe it and start seeing it the same way I do. We didn’t merely have sex; we made love.

  “Shit.” She turns around as far as her seatbelt will let her, facing me almost fully, and smacks me hard across the chest. “Dammit, Rhys. We didn’t use a condom. What the hell were you thinking? Why didn’t we use a condom?” The blush on her face isn’t from embarrassment, it’s from anger, and it makes me feel about an inch tall.

  “Fuck, I’m sorry.” I truly am; I’ve never forgotten. “It’s a nonissue for me. You can trust me when I say I’m clean—I was tested less than two months ago. It’s been at least four months since I’ve had sex, and I never go without. I’ve never forgotten. Ever.”

  It’s the honest truth. The only excuse I have is that I was out of my mind with lust for her. I just didn’t think about it.

  “It’s not an issue of my not trusting you, it’s an issue of this being something we should have discussed beforehand. No use beating a dead horse now.” She turns back around and stares out the window. “I’m clean too.” She continues staring out the window and I don’t say another word, because I feel like she’s not done speaking yet. This discussion is far from over. I had planned to fill the silence with telling her about Smith, but her dismissal when she turned fully away tells me I shouldn’t. It’s a solid ten minutes before she speaks again.

  “Alix and I always used protection. There was never a time when we didn’t. No matter how out of his mind he was, we never forgot. The night I found him dead in our apartment, I was late getting home from work. I’d had a doctor’s appointment that morning.” Glancing her way, I see the tears streaming down her face. I remember now that I read online about her live-in boyfriend being found dead in her apartment, but I hadn’t made the connection yet that it had been Alix. Taking one hand off the wheel, I reach for hers and thread our fingers together, silently urging her to go on.

  “Even though we had always been so careful, I was pregnant. I was excited to tell him. Walking into the apartment, I
noticed the door unlocked but thought nothing of it. Typical Alix behavior. He was slumped over on the couch, and from the looks of things, he had overdosed. I lost it. I was screaming so loud, the neighbors came running in. It was actually a neighbor who ended up calling the police.”

  She stops for a moment, lost in the memory.

  “I think there are a few tissues in the glove box.” Other than offering her one and holding her hand, I’m clueless as to what to do. Want to scare a guy shitless? Start crying. Female tears are my undoing. Last night I only knew what to do because I figured she’d like the only thing I do after waking from a nightmare, but this? Clue-fucking-less. She reaches forward and opens it to find them.

  “Rob was still in the picture, at least where Alix was concerned. He had never touched me, I think mainly because Alix enforced my so-called rules. While he was alive, Rob wasn’t brave enough to cross him, but with Alix gone, I knew it was only a matter of time before he’d act. His eyes were evil, had never seemed right to me. Twenty-seven days, Rhys, that’s how long Alix was in the ground before Rob brutally raped me. Without going into the gory details, I will say this: I got away. My baby wasn’t as lucky, but his hurting me led me back to you…eventually. It’s been a couple of years of running to different cities, but I’m here.”

  Squeezing her hand, I bring it to my lips and kiss her knuckles. As soon as I see an exit sign, I’m pulling over. She needs to be held. Her life after she left me was horrifying. No wonder she’s not exactly the untamed tiger she once was. She’s experienced horrors no one should ever have to live through.

  “You’re safe with me. You’ll always be safe with me. Now I understand why you’re skittish, why you’re afraid of men in general. With knowing what I’ve done in the past, I want you to know I’d never hurt you, or another woman. I’ll explain more fully later, but the reason Smith is such a threat is because I took him down for what he did to a woman.” Lifting her hand, I again kiss her knuckles to reassure her, and kiss them one more time to reassure myself. “I treasure you.”

  It’s the honest truth. Since the day on the playground when she stole an extra pack of Reese’s Pieces, she stole a piece of my heart. She’s owned me since I was eight years old. Brant may have been my best friend, but Averill was always my other best friend. She was the one I’d lean on when my life went truly bad. When I had a problem I knew Brant would call me a pussy for, I’d run to her. She’s always been there. Even when she wasn’t, I knew someday we’d find our way back to each other.

  I see an exit sign and merge into the slow lane, preparing to get off the highway. I need to hold my girl. She needs to be reassured of how safe she is with me. I pull Mystique into the first parking lot off the exit. Without saying a word, I turn the ignition off, exit the car, and am opening her door and pulling her into my arms within a few seconds.

  “I needed to feel you in my arms.”

  She continues to cry as I continue to hold her.

  Making another silent vow to her, I vow to hunt Rob down and make him pay for what he’s done to her. He will pay for what she’s lost. He killed her baby. Her spirit. Took away her courage. Her strong will. She’s clawing her way back to the surface, and watching her do it is a beautiful thing. She may consider me moving her in a setback, but I see it as a huge step forward in fighting for the future she truly wants. Besides wanting his last name, I also need to know if she’s in contact with her family. When she ran away, did she ever go back?

  I run my hands up and down her back, soothing her, and her silent cries stop after a few minutes. She shifts in my arms, her hands gentle on my cheeks, her gaze catching mine.

  “Thank you, Rhys. For everything.”

  “You never have to thank me for being here for you. For treasuring you.” For loving you.

  Her hands reach up to caress my face, gently pulling my head down to meet her seeking lips, and she kisses me. It starts off soft but soon combusts. Her tongue duels with mine, the taste of the orange juice she drank mingling with my coffee. Reaching down, I grasp her hips and push her back against Mystique, completely taking over the kiss.

  “I want you again, but unless you care to be taken in the back seat of a car in broad daylight, we need to stop.”

  She bites her bottom lip, gazing up at me with mischief in her eyes. “I’m wearing leggings, which can easily be pushed down, and you only need to unzip. We could stay standing against the car and I bet no one would notice.”

  “What about protection? You do realize we’re just off the exit, right?”

  “Stop talking and get inside me already, Rhys, either against the car or in the back seat—your choice.” She’s not waiting for me to make a decision, has already pulled her leggings down enough to grant me access. Fuck me, she’s not wearing any panties.

  Unzipping my jeans, I quickly but carefully pull my cock out. With our clothing still mostly covering us, it’ll be a tight fit. If I turn her around, it’ll be easier, but then people would know what was going on. Instead, if we stay facing each other, we simply look like we’re making out—heavily, but hey, at least it won’t raise too many flags.

  Pushing her even harder against Mystique, I lift her leg a tiny bit, placing it on my thigh. It’s all the room I needed to push inside her.

  “This isn’t going to last, baby. I hope you like it hard and fast.”

  Instead of answering me with words, she adjusts her leg, granting me more access, her hips meeting me thrust for thrust. Her moans are met with my lips, my tongue seeking hers. My finger finds her clit, gently massaging it in a circular motion, quickly finding a rhythm. I want her to be as far gone as I am. She pulls her mouth away from mine.

  “I’m there…oh God, I’m there. Harder.”

  My lips find hers again, my cock sliding out of her wet walls and slamming back in, harder like she asked. If I thrust any harder, we’ll leave a dent in the car door. Her moans are swallowed by my kisses, and she bites down on my lip as her orgasms hits. I grab both of her hips and slam into her one last time, grunting out my own release. Her pussy is contracting around my cock, squeezing every last drop of cum from me.

  Her teeth release my lip and she kisses me with fervor, her hands twining in my hair, gently pulling my head closer. As if we could be any closer. Kissing her back with as much passion, we stay entangled until we can form words again.

  “Um…did you know we’re in a church parking lot?”

  Of all the places to pull into, I manage to find a church parking lot.

  “Well I guess now we both have something to confess on Sunday.” What else can I say? I’m not going to apologize for it because I’m for damn sure not sorry I did it. When I pulled off the exit, my main concern was holding her. It’s not as if I intended to have sex against the car.

  Pulling out of her, I help her fix her clothing before taking care of myself. Her car door is hanging open, truly showing how much of a hurry I was in to get her in my arms. She gets back in and is settled before I walk around to my side.

  Starting the engine, I turn to look at her. “I meant what I said before, I treasure you.”

  “I didn’t mean what I said last night, when I said I could love you.” She pauses for a moment and in that moment, my heart breaks. Shatters into a million pieces. “There’s no could about it. I love you, Rhys Nathanial Gallhagar. Who cares about us only being back in each other’s lives for a short time? Our hearts have known each other for twenty years.”

  Those words put my heart back together again.

  It’s all I can do not to tell her I love her back, but I’m waiting until she knows the whole truth, everything about Smith, because she may change her mind about loving me, and it’ll shatter my heart all over again. It’s better this way.

  The next hour of the drive back is spent in silence; it’s not until we stop for drinks that either of us speaks again. After grabbing a couple bottles of water and gassing Mystique up, we’re back on the highway.

  “Smith is a murderer an
d a rapist.” There’s no easy way to tell her what and who he is. Blunt is the way to go. She has to know how dangerous he is.

  Her gasp of surprise is her only response, and I continue on.

  “The night of the concert, after I left you, is when I met him. Mikey, the guy I used to work with the most, picked me up, as you know. We had to do a favor for the boss and help this Smith guy with a job. Normally when I’m called in, it’s to break people, to torture them by breaking bones to gather money or information. I wrongly assumed that’s what I’d be doing for Smith.”

  Glancing over at her, I see her looking dead ahead at the traffic in front of us. Her posture hasn’t changed, but she’s holding herself rigid, enraptured by my story.

  “We met him at a rendezvous point and he took us from there. We ended up at what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse in Indianapolis. The smell alone was horrendous. Did I mention when I met Smith, I instantly disliked him? His eyes were dead. He screamed pure evil. Something about him seemed…off. On the walk inside the warehouse, he finally informed us what we were there for. He wanted me to break the limbs of the guy inside, gather intel. He’d already tried everything he could think of, including raping the man’s wife. He boasted about raping her, found pleasure in it. And the warehouse? His playground.”

  Chancing another quick glance at her, I see she’s in the same position, but now her hands are clenched into fists. Good, I want her to be angry about Smith. She needs to know how dangerous he is.

  “When we entered the room, the man inside was a breath away from being dead. All it took was one look at Mikey for him to know I wasn’t going to be helping Smith in any way, shape, or form. The moment he spoke of rape, his fate was sealed. I knew it, Mikey knew it, Smith was the only one who didn’t. After a few words, Mikey had Smith’s arms bound behind him and I took care of him. By the end of it, we’d left him for dead in his own warehouse, bound in the chains he’d had the man in, the keys slightly out of reach.