For the most part, she was keeping herself busy with correspondence school to finish her degree in nursing. It would only work for another year before she would have to be near a hospital to complete her studies, but we’d figure all that out when the time came. It was a sacrifice she’d made to be with me, and I’d thrown out my Beretta so she wouldn’t have to look again at the only gun she’d ever fired again.
The Barrett was still with me, but I took it far away from the cabin to shoot it. The noise made Lia kind of panicky, and Freyja didn’t care much for it either. I set a target up about a mile away, and though the trek out there was a long one through the trees and snow, it was worth the effort to give her a little peace.
Lia had her scars from the whole ordeal, and I didn’t begrudge her those. She’d done things she never thought she’d have to do, seen shit she never wanted to see, and she knew far more than she ever wanted to know. There was no way I could erase those thoughts from her memory any more than I could erase what happened to me in the desert.
As much as I’d hated the thought, I told her she didn’t have to stay with me—not if it was too painful—but she just told me to shut up, and I wasn’t about to push the issue.
I needed her.
Maybe we needed each other.
I hoped so.
There was only one other thing still lingering in my mind—I still didn’t know why my parents ditched me in the first place. I still had the address of the cemetery where they were buried, but I hadn’t gone there. Maybe in the spring, we could take a trip to Ohio and see their graves, but I wasn’t sure what kind of information I’d really get from that. It would be a good excuse to see Jonathan, though, and maybe get an update on the war in Chicago.
Maybe I’d just leave it alone.
Lia shivered again, and I lifted her up and lowered her into the hot tub before ditching my towel and climbing in myself. Freyja went up the small step stool beside the spa and put her paws on the edge, but she didn’t like the water and wouldn’t come in. She did like to sniff at the bubbles and watch us fuck, though.
Perverted thing.
I’d been thinking about fucking since I walked outside, so I didn’t waste any time getting rid of the damn bikini and pulling Lia on top of me. I slowly lowered her down on my cock, and that feeling of peace, love, and home washed over me along with the bubbling heat of the water. Lia moaned softly against my neck, and for a while, I stayed inside of her but didn’t move.
It was a feeling that made me think Lia might be right—maybe there was a God, and maybe He did care.
Lia’s lips found mine, and her fingers ran over my chest and stomach. I kissed her deeply as I started raising her body up and down over my cock. She moaned into my mouth, and her thighs clenched around mine as we moved slowly.
I’d fuck her hard later.
She liked it that way.
For now, we needed the peace.
I kissed her neck and shoulders, then moved down to take a wet, hard nipple between my lips to suck at it. Lia gasped and arched her back, causing my cock to slide deeper inside of her. Her hands moved to my shoulders, and she gripped them tightly.
“You feel so good,” I moaned against her skin. “Warm like the water.”
My hand moved around the globe of her ass, seeking her backdoor with one finger. She tensed as I ran my fingertip around it and then cried out as my finger penetrated her along with the motion of my cock.
“Evan…oh, fuck…Evan!”
“You know I still want that ass,” I reminded her as I kept up the motion with my finger. She moaned again as I added another finger. I pulled her down against me hard, ground my hips upward, and felt her come apart with my cock and my fingers.
“Jesus,” she whispered against my shoulder through panting breaths. “You’re trying to break me, aren’t you?”
“I just want you,” I replied, “every way I can possibly have you.”
She leaned back, and I looked up at her flushed face. Her eyes focused on the spot where her hand rested on my chest, and she nodded her head.
“Do it,” she said.
“Now?”
She nodded.
I didn’t need to be told twice.
In one swift motion, I stood up, taking her with me. Holding her like a child, I climbed carefully out of the tub. Freyja followed us inside and whined briefly as I shut the bedroom door before she could enter.
“Poor pup,” Lia remarked.
“Whatever,” I said with a smile. “She’s a pervert. I want you to myself for this.”
Lowering Lia to the floor beside the bed, I tossed a couple of logs on the fire before grabbing a towel from the bathroom. I dried both of us off a bit so the bed wouldn’t end up all wet, then leaned down to kiss Lia’s lips, run my tongue across hers, and revel in the feeling of her mouth on mine.
Her hands came up my sides, and I dropped the towel to take her face in my hands and kiss her more deeply. My tongue explored and tasted as her fingers explored my back, shoulders, and arms. My hand brushed over the quarter she still wore around her neck—a constant symbol of our first encounter. My eyes moved to her face, but she was looking at her hand wrapped around my forearm.
“I love your arms,” she whispered. “You make me feel safe.”
“I’ll always keep you safe,” I swore to her. “I’ll never, ever put you near danger again.”
I kissed her, took both her hands in mine, and led her over to the bed. She got in hesitantly.
“Get in the middle,” I instructed as I crawled in behind her. “Get on your knees and spread those beautiful legs.”
She grinned as I winked at her, then did as I said.
“Beautiful,” I murmured. I tossed a bottle of lube beside her before moving up between her legs, pushing them a little farther apart with my knees.
“We’re going to do this slow, okay?”
“Yes,” Lia breathed out the word as she settled on her hands and knees.
I placed my hand between her shoulder blades.
“Down farther,” I said. “Put your arms down on the bed.”
She did so, which further angled her ass up to me.
“God, you’re beautiful,” I said quietly. I ran my fingers down her back and over her butt, feeling the softness of her skin. My cock bobbed and strained like it knew exactly what was coming.
Lia looked over her shoulder at me.
“I love you, Evan.”
“I love you, too, baby.”
Watching her body below me, I ran my hands up and down her sides, pausing to cup her breasts as I leaned forward and kissed the middle of her back. I pulled at her nipples a bit, then leaned back and grabbed the bottle of lube. I spread some on my fingers, my cock, and around her ass.
Lia’s cheeks clenched.
“That’s cold!”
“Sorry, baby.” I rubbed a bit more between my fingers to warm it up, then used them around the rim of her ass again. “Better?”
“Much.”
With one hand circling around to tease her clit, I used the other one to gently insert a finger in her. Since I’d already had two in her while we were in the hot tub, there was little resistance from her body and Lia remained relaxed below me. I went with a second finger, moving them slowly inside of her for a minute before pulling out, wrapping my hand around my shaft, and guiding it into place.
Slowly, I pushed forward until the head of my cock slid past her sphincter.
Lia gasped.
“You okay?” I asked quickly.
“Yes.” Her voice was breathless.
“You sure?” It was taking all my willpower not to push in farther. The tightness of her ass around the head of my cock felt glorious.