Chapter 65 65
She tied the bandage a little too tightly, and he hissed in pain. “You should be,” she said, her tone fierce but softening as she touched his arm. “You scared me half to death.”
He caught her wrist gently, their eyes locking. “I didn’t want to leave you. I had to. Reese—”
“Forgive me, Stefan, but I don’t care about Reese right now,” she said, wiping her tears and cutting him off. “I care that you’re here. That you’re alive.”
She pressed her forehead against his good shoulder and let out a shaky breath. For a moment, the world went quiet.
Stefan hesitated, then slid his hand up to the back of her neck, fingers threading through her hair. “I’m here,” he murmured. “I made it back to you.”
“Sure, I'm glad,” she whispered, lifting her head. “But it's gonna take more than that to make up for leaving us.”
He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her — slow, deep, aching with everything he couldn’t say. When he pulled back, her tears had smeared against his skin.
“I'm sorry,” he told her, “Tell me how I can make it right,”
“I don't know so don't ask me, but for starters,” she said, voice shaking, “Don’t ever do that to me again,”
“I won't,” he murmured,
Then she rested her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat — proof that she wasn't dreaming this time and he’d actually come home.
For now, that was enough.
___________
Later that night, Stefan stared at Alana's back as they lay together in bed.
He wanted to hold her, but he couldn't lie on his injured shoulder, and when he lay on his good side, he couldn't touch her.
“Are you really going sleep that way?” he asked, knowing by her breathing she was still awake, “I want to hold you, Alana, but I can't,”
There was silence for a few seconds before she spoke, and when she did, it was simply to say, “Go to bed, Stefan.”
Go to bed? For the entire week he'd been gone, all he'd wanted to do was be with her, and every night he'd dreamt of holding her close. He'd have her by his side whether the devil liked it or not.
He turned to his uninjured side and almost groaned in pain when he felt the sting in his injured shoulder, but he didn't mind much. In seconds he was by her side, right behind her with her soft, curvy backside against his semi hard erection.
She stiffened but didn't turn around, and Stefan couldn't help but notice that she didn't try to move away and grinned.
“You should be lying on your back,” Alana told him, “You could hurt your shoulder that way,”
“Not until you turn around and face me,” he told her stubbornly, “There's no way I'm going to let you go to bed when you are clearly still upset. I'm sorry. What do I need to do to make things right between us again?”
That was the thing, Alana thought helplessly. Just him being back home made things right. She was too relieved that he was safe to want anything else, but she didn't want him to think he could do things like these in the future and make it okay just by saying sorry.
She turned to face him, “Your friend… Reese. Were you able to get him out safely?”
Stefan nodded, “Yeah. He was badly hurt, but he's recovering,” he inched closer and kissed her forehead, and she almost moaned as his lips caressed her skin, reminding her of how much she'd missed his touch. “I'm sorry that I —”
“It's okay. You don't have to apologise any more,” she interrupted, then gently pushed him backwards so he was lying on his back again.
She straddled him, careful not to hurt his shoulder, and purposely rubbed herself against him. She was playing dirty, but she didn't care as long as she got what she wanted, and now she wanted him to give her his word.
“I understand that you had to help your friend, and maybe I shouldn't have tried to stop you, but you have to promise me right now, Stefan, that you're done with that life. I thought I could do this alone. Just Juliana and I, and maybe I could if I tried but I don't want to anymore, and I don't want to have to. I need you. I love you and I don't want to lose you. So promise me right now Stefan, that won't do it again. You once told me that you wanted me to trust you and you wanted me to tell you when I did…”
She moved seductively against him again and he groaned, “Alana….”
“... I trust you now, Stefan,” she continued, keeping eye contact with him, “and I trust that you'll keep your word if you give it to me right now. Promise me that you're done with that life,”
Her hair fell in a curtain over her shoulder as she straddled his body with her own. His approval of her taking control like this was evident in his straining arousal. The idea of her covering him with her softness and telling him how much she wanted him tested the bounds of his discipline and control.
He loved her even more in that moment if it were possible and wanted to give her whatever she wanted. Whatever it was, “I promise,” he said, “I give you my word,”
She kissed him then. He gave in to the sinful urge to possess that delectable mouth and he returned her kiss in full measure. His tongue stroked over her lips, coaxing and enticing her to let him in. She gave a breathy sigh and parted her mouth, allowing his tongue to push inside.
She tentatively stroked her tongue over his. One quick brush against the tip of his and then she retreated, but as he deepened the kiss, she came back and soon she was exploring his mouth in the same manner he was exploring hers.
When she finally broke away, she was panting. Her cheeks were colored and her eyes glowed. She had the look of someone who’d drunk a little too much. And she looked up at him with such an expression that his entire body raged with arousal and sharp lust.
She touched his lip and then touched hers, her finger lingering over her bottom one that was swollen from the force and longevity of their kiss. Then she smiled and something melted inside him.