She breathed hard into my mouth, her lips unable to kiss me back due to how I felt inside her. Her hands moved to my biceps and gripped me. "Liam..."
I loved it when she said my name like that. My lips slowly caressed hers while I started to move inside her. It felt so good, and I forgot how wonderful it felt to be inside her. She was the only woman I gave myself to in this intimate way, and she would be the only one.
I wanted to make this last as long as possible but I knew it would be difficult. Not being inside her for three months made my threshold dangerously low. And being madly in love with her caused me to spiral out of control. Our heated bodies writhed as we moved together. She rocked her hips from below, anchoring to me with every thrust. She broke our kiss and stared up at me while I moved inside her, her hair falling back and her mouth gaping open. One hand moved to my a.s.s and she gripped me tightly.
"Oh..." Her face flushed as I made her crumble. It was the quickest o.r.g.a.s.m I ever gave her. Clearly, she was just as desperate for me as I was for her. She moaned loud, practically screaming. I continued my pace, wanting her to feel as good as she made me feel. I wanted her to know how much I loved her, to feel the connection I felt in my soul.
She bit her lip when she was through, moaning as she winded down. Watching her face glow in the color of pleasure made me shake with antic.i.p.ation. I missed making love to her every night, and feeling the connection with her erased my pain. Our hearts melded into one, and our minds became linked. She was my everything, and I was even more to her. With a final breath, I released inside her, moaning loudly while I filled her the way I used to every night.
When I was finished I stayed on top of her and didn"t pull out. The sweat fell from my body and dripped onto her. The valley between her b.r.e.a.s.t.s was wet, and I leaned down and licked it away. Not wanting to be separated from her, I held her close to me then lay on my side, still staying inside her. Not having her for so long made me determined to make up for lost time.
She caught her breath then stared at me in the darkness. Then she found my hand and interlocked her fingers with mine. "Without you, I am strong. I can do things I never thought possible. No longer am I scared. No longer do I fear anyone. But together, we are uncrushable."
My eyes softened while our hands were combined. I lay my head on the pillow and stared at her face, seeing her look back at me. I was exhausted from the day but I didn"t want to close my eyes. I didn"t want to lose a second of this time. I could stare at her forever.
When the sun finally crested the horizon, my eyes grew heavy and I let myself fall asleep. But I knew she was still looking at me, watching me rest.
Chapter Ten.
Keira Everything was right between Liam and I. All the pain and suffering we"d been through was in the past. He finally forgave me for everything, absolving me of my sins. And he trusted me again.
Living with him made me realize just how compatible we were together. We had silent routines in the mornings and the evenings. I always took care of the dishes and the kitchen, and he always took out the garbage and did the laundry. Our duties were divided evenly but never said.
We finished the semester and enjoyed our break from school. Liam wasn"t going back, but I was soon. I was still waiting for my acceptance into the credential program. I hoped they would pick me. Being a teacher was my greatest dream. Not only did I love it, but I knew the kids would love me too.
"Where are you going?" Liam said as he walked downstairs shirtless. The water drops were still on his chest because he just stepped out of the shower.
"Um...now I can"t remember." I shouldered my purse but didn"t move. I was too memorized by the perfection in front of me.
He smirked, a tint coming into his cheeks. "You were just about to leave." He hooked his arm around my waist and leaned close to me. His natural scent moved into my nose, making me think dirty things.
"Oh yeah..."
"I love the effect I have on you."
"That makes two of us."
He kissed my forehead. "It"s nice to be l.u.s.ted after but loved at the same time."
"And I do love you."
"I know." He dropped his hand. "So, what are you up to?"
I stopped staring at his chest. "I"m going to swing by the house and get the mail."
"Okay. Hurry back." He patted my a.s.s then gave me a quick kiss.
"Well, you make it impossible for me to leave..."
"I"m all yours when you get home."
I turned around and got a good look of his backside before I walked out.
When I arrived at the house, Scotty was watching a basketball game on TV.
"Who"s winning?" I asked.
"The Clippers."
"Cool." I walked to the counter and collected the mail. Most of it was junk.
Scotty turned off the TV then came to me. "How"s it going?"
"Good." I couldn"t stop smiling. Liam and I were perfect.
"Cool." He shifted his weight and ran his fingers through his hair.
I eyed him, knowing something wasn"t right. "Something on your mind?"
He sighed. "Actually, yeah..."
I put the mail down. "What"s up?"
He walked to the house phone and pointed to the blinking light on the machine. "You have a message."
"Oh."
"I think you should listen to it." He hit the b.u.t.ton then stood back.
"Hey, Keira. It"s Mr. Vick." He was my lawyer. He prosecuted Finn and put him in jail. And he took care of my parents" will and gave me the deed to the house. "Sorry I"m calling out of the blue but there"s something I need to discuss with you. Give me a call." He hung up and the beep sounded.
I felt my ears pound with circulating blood. For some reason, I felt nervous. I hadn"t spoken to him in over a year. What did he want to say to me? What else needed to be said?
I looked at Scotty and he had the same concern in his eyes.
"Call him," he said.
"What does he want?"
He shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine."
My past was something I put behind me. I didn"t like thinking about Finn and all the pain he put me through. Dwelling on all the suffering would just make it more unbearable. I was free of him forever. My life was put back together. "I"ll call him later."
Scotty grabbed my arm. "Call him now."
"Why? What do you think he"s gong to say?"
"I don"t know. But I"d rather know now instead of letting my imagination run wild with me."
I wanted to avoid it as much as possible. "Okay."
He picked up the phone and handed it to me.
I sighed then dialed the number. Hopefully he wouldn"t answer.
"Vick"s Law Offices," a woman answered.
"Hi, this is Keira Strately...is Mr. Vick available?"
"Are you returning his call?"
"Yes," I answered.
She put me on hold then transferred me.
Mr. Vick picked up the phone. "Keira, how are you?"
"Well. You?"
"Busy, but good. Thanks for calling me back."
"Sure. What"s up?" I looked at Scotty while I stayed on the phone. His arms were across his chest and he stood still.
"I hate to be the one to tell you this, but I got a call from San Diego Central Jail the other day..."
I didn"t like where this was going.
"It seems that Finn was released on probation."
The words echoed in my ears. They repeated indefinitely, replaying in my mind. Sweat appeared out of nowhere and drenched my hands and forehead. My heart was pumping so much I thought it might give out. My worst nightmare was becoming a reality. I never thought he would get out of jail so quickly. I knew it would happen eventually, but a little over a year seemed too soon. "How can they let him out? He was convicted of attempted manslaughter."
He sighed into the phone. "I"m sorry, Keira. As you know, jails are already overpopulated. Judges are trying to reinstate less serious criminals back into society. Every year, San Diego Central Jail receives sixty-nine thousand more inmates...they just cut some of them loose."
This couldn"t be happening. Finn was already on the streets.
"Keira, he"s on parole so someone is always checking on him. He won"t come near you."
My worst nightmare was seeing him on my doorstep, this time his intention to kill. "I hope you"re right..."
"Is there anything I can do?"
"No...but thank you for calling."
"I thought you had the right to know. Take care, Keira."
"Yeah..." I hung up and dropped the phone.
"What did he say?" Scotty demanded.
I could barely get the words out. "Finn"s out of jail..."
Scotty"s eyes widened but he didn"t react in any other noticeable way. "They let that lunatic out?"
I nodded, unable to speak.
"f.u.c.k. So, the justice system is officially worthless?"
I was still processing the truth.
He paced in front of me before he finally stopped. "Well, you live with Liam now, so even if he does come here, he won"t find you. You shouldn"t have to worry about anything."
"Yeah, you"re right." If Finn wanted to find me he would have a hard time. But what are the odds he would try something? If he did, he would just go back to jail, and this time for a longer sentence. I"d never been to jail but it didn"t sound like a vacation.
"Tell Liam."
I didn"t want to...
"Keira," he pressed.
"He"ll get mad."
"Either tell him or I will."
Why is this happening? "But we"re happy... Why can"t we have no drama in our lives for once?"
His eyes softened. "I"m sorry, Keira. But this is how it needs to be."
"I know..."
He put his arm around my shoulder and held me close. "It"ll be alright. I promise."
"Are you scared he"ll come to the house?"
"I"m not scared of anything," he said seriously. "If he wants to come here, I"ll deal with him. And I"ll deal with him good." He rubbed my back then stepped away. "Remember, you said you weren"t going to live in fear anymore."
"I know...I"m not. It"s just taking me a while to process this. It"s just so soon."
"It"s definitely not fair."
I grabbed the mail from the counter and sighed, knowing I needed to go home to Liam and tell him the truth.
When I got home, Liam was working out in the bas.e.m.e.nt. Wanting to stall as long as possible, I stayed upstairs and watched TV on the couch. Normally, I would go down there and train with him, but I wanted to avoid him at the moment. When his muscles were pumped with blood and he was in an aggressive mood, it wasn"t the best time to give him bad news.