The Road Back to Us Page 9

  When he reaches me, he slides a palm up my neck and tangles his fingers into my hair. He fists it and gently tugs my head back. My body responds to his touch, and every negative thought disappears. The only thought on my brain is the hope that he’ll kiss me. That he’ll bruise my lips as his tongue dances with mine. I want to taste him.

  He drops his face close to mine, and the warmth of his breath tickles my skin.

  Kiss me.

  As if he can read my thoughts, he lovingly runs his nose along my cheek before slamming his lips to mine. My moan is snuffed out as he swallows it with his all-consuming kiss. When my knees buckle, he grabs my ass to hold me to him.

  The man’s mouth has a way of making me forget my own damn name.

  With a groan, he tears away from my lips to stare into my eyes. “Promise you’ll eat the bear.”

  I roll my eyes. “I’ll do nothing of the sort.”

  “Promise me or I’ll tie you to the damn cot with your old lady scarves and eat your pussy until you beg me to feed it to you,” he growls against my mouth.

  His words are so damn weird, but I’m oddly turned on.

  “Let it go, Bentley. I’m standing firm on this,” I sigh.

  I want him to kiss me again. Instead, he releases me and storms over to his rifle. He begins loading his laptop bag with the ammunition and a knife he found from the cabinet.

  “I guess we’re going to go around and around over this?” I question.

  He shrugs his shoulders. “Guess so.”

  Tears sting my eyes. I can’t believe we’re fighting over fucking food.

  “You’re going now?” A sob is caught in my throat.

  I hate that our emotions are all over the place. Why can’t things go back to the way they were this morning when we were glued to each other without a worry in the world?

  “It will be dark before too long. I need to leave soon.”

  I watch as he continues to pack up his things. He’s irritated with me, and my vision blurs with unshed tears. My lips quiver to talk it out with him, but for some stupid reason, I hold back.

  “I’ll go with you,” I tell him, a wobble in my voice. The very idea of watching him hunt some poor, innocent animal saddens me, but allowing him to go alone saddens me even more.

  He turns his head and studies me for a moment. It’s almost as if he thinks he can climb inside my brain and pull the words I’m thinking right out. If only it were that easy.

  The old me would have waited for him to come to me.

  The old me would have waited for an apology.

  The old me clearly didn’t care, but the new me does.

  I take a step toward him—an apology falling from my lips. “I’m sorry.”

  With long strides, he stalks over to me and invades me with all that is him—his scent, his presence, his strength. I expect a rough kiss or something that matches the anger rippling from him. Instead, he dips his head down to mine and presses his lips to my forehead. A second later, he rests his forehead on mine so he can stare at me.

  “Caroline, I’m sorry too. This is stupid—us fighting over food. I just can’t fucking lose you, okay? You’re everything to me, baby.” His breath tickles my skin. “I want you here, though, where it’s safe and warm. Tend to the fire. Bundle up. I don’t care what you do, but just stay here and wait for me. Please.”

  The plea is so heartfelt that I feel it down to my bones. I’ll do it because he needs this.

  “Come back to me. If you get too cold or tired, please come back. Don’t leave me to die alone in this cabin,” I beg. My tears flow freely now.

  He shoves both hands into my hair, tangling his fingers in it, and kisses me as if this is our last. His tongue makes love to mine over and over again as he conveys that he’ll never leave me. My whimpers meld with his moans, and I love the musical quality the sounds have together. The sound is love—powerful and unending.

  He finally breaks our kiss with a grunt of frustration.

  My husband doesn’t want to leave me, but he feels that it’s necessary.

  “For fuck’s sake, Care. I can’t get enough of you. All I can think about is ripping these fucking clothes off you and taking you so hard you scream loud enough to scare all the damn animals I plan on hunting away.” His hand finds my breast and he squeezes. “I want to fuck these sexy-ass titties—after I bite and bruise them with my teeth. When we finally get out of this goddamned cabin and back home, all I’m ever going to do is make love to you. There won’t be one single hole that hasn’t been filled—not one single part of your flesh that hasn’t been sucked and tasted. I want all of you, Caroline.”

  His dick is hard as stone between us now and my pussy aches to be touched again. I’ll never get enough of this dirty talking man. How I ever thought we could manage apart from each other was plain stupid. We were meant to be, through the good and the bad.

  “Come back to me and you’ll have that opportunity, B.”

  “Oh, I’ll be back, baby. Be ready too, because when I get back, I’m going to take that sweet pussy again. There’s no denying that now.”

  Standing on my toes, I kiss him once more. He eventually breaks our kiss and leaves me all alone.

  The loss is nearly crippling.

  He’s been gone for way too long. I’ve managed to tidy up the cabin by making the bed and folding the clothes I wasn’t wearing. I looked in every crevice and cranny for anything that might be of use for us. When I found a washcloth, I happily warmed some water in the pot and gave myself a much-needed sponge bath. After I cleaned myself, I dressed in my tunic minus pants or panties. My intention is to make love to Bentley the second he gets back.

  Also, while cleaning, I found a deck of cards. You would have thought I’d found a pot of gold with the squeal that came out of me. I was going crazy with boredom, so the fact I had something to take my mind off the idea that my husband has been gone for four hours had me rejoicing.

  After the millionth game of Solitaire, I find Bentley’s phone and check the time again. It’s well past six in the evening, and nightfall is quickly upon us.

  Where is he?

  I chew on my nail while trying to decide whether or not I should go look for him. He’s been gone way too long and I’m worried sick about him. I’ve just made the decision to go after him when the door opens.

  My husband.

  Blood trickling from his bottom lip.

  His hair a sopping mess.

  His jacket torn along the front.

  He looks awful.

  “What happened?” I shriek as I run over to him. Nothing appears to be broken, but he looks as if he’s in pain.

  When he just stares at me, I begin to panic. What the hell happened to him?

  Since he doesn’t move to take the clothes off, I set to undressing him. He needs to warm up quickly. I take the gun from him and set it down along with the laptop bag. It doesn’t take long for me to complete strip him. An angry gash reveals open, bloody flesh from just below his left pectoral all the way across to his right hipbone.

  With trembling hands, I guide him over to the cot. “Lie down,” I instruct tearfully.

  There’s a new pot of clean water sitting beside the fire. I got it ready so he could bathe when he got back. Once he settles on the cot, I wring the rag out and wash him.

  My God, I hope he’s okay.

  I’M A FUCKING disgrace.

  I am supposed to be the man of the house, but I couldn’t even kill her a fucking bunny to eat. Nothing. There weren’t many animals around as another storm brewed, the trees moaning in resistance against the wind, but I was determined. My shot has always been pretty good, and I knew that, if I were to see something, I could kill it.

  Unfortunately, between the cold and my hunger, my hands wouldn’t stay fucking still. The bunny and the few squirrels I did see were too difficult to shoot. I fired off a few shots and came up empty. I was pissed as hell. Then, on my way back, I fucking lost my footing and fell down an embankment.


  Along the way, a branch or rock managed to cut me right open. I’m not sure how long I lay in the snow, cursing the hand I’d been dealt, but it was long enough that I considered just going to sleep—letting the cold steal my life away.

  But the moment my eyes closed, blue eyes peered back at me. My sweet Caroline would die all alone in that cabin, and that just wasn’t going to fucking happen. I managed to pick myself up and trudge all the way back.

  I can’t believe I failed her.

  “This might hurt a bit,” she whispers before she dabs at my gash. “It’s a nasty cut, but I think you’ll survive without stitches. You’re going to need to rest though. No more hunting.”

  Not a fucking option. Instead of fighting, though, I give her a curt nod. A relieved breath exhales from her.

  I lie there thinking about how in the hell we’ll survive as she cleans my body. Somewhere along the way, I must have fallen asleep, because when I feel her washing my dick, it comes alive, waking me up in the process.

  “Down, boy. There’ll be none of that,” she chides.

  Her face is sheer determination as she washes me. I’m usually the one taking care of her, so to see the roles reversed is sort of beautiful. In the glow of the fire, a small smile curving her pink lips up, she reminds me of a fairy or an angel. Her blond hair is tucked behind her ears, and the light flickers on her face making her seem much younger—like the girl I fell in love with so long ago.

  When she finishes, she stands, and for the first time, I realize she’s not wearing any pants. My hand captures her bare thigh, and she gasps in surprise.

  “Caroline, I’m so sorry. I failed you,” I murmur, looking up at her crystal-blue eyes.

  She kneels back down onto the wood floor and runs a palm over my cheek. “Don’t talk like that, honey. You didn’t fail me. In fact, I’m so proud of you.”

  I stare at her in disbelief. The woman has lost her mind.

  “Don’t look at me like I’m crazy,” she giggles before planting a kiss on my forehead. “You braved the cold to hunt food in an effort to take care of me. You’re the best husband a woman could ask for, and I’m sorry I never told you that enough.”

  “Actually, I think that was the first time,” I chuckle. My laugh is hollow though.

  Not once has Caroline ever told me that I am a good husband. And much to my chagrin, I don’t feel like I deserve the compliment now.

  Her sapphire eyes find mine as her eyebrows pinch together. “Bentley, you are the greatest husband. I realize now that you worked hard for me. And even though, in the end, it was what tore us apart, it was always for me. I’m horrified that I gave up on you—that I didn’t put in any effort to make us work. To fight for us. But I’m here now, B. Nothing is going to tear us apart. Do you understand? Nothing. Not starvation. Not stupid Ginny. Not petty arguments. Nothing. It’s you and me, honey, against all odds. Individually, we’re amazing. But together, we’re unstoppable. I love you, and I know we’ll get through this. Together.”

  God, she’s so beautiful.

  “I need to see you. Take off your shirt,” I murmur, my voice thick with desire.

  She hesitates for a moment, probably worrying about my stupid cut, but eventually, she tugs the sweater from her body. Her full tits hang down, looking sexy as hell. Pink nipples harden under my gaze, and I lick my lips with the need to taste them.

  “I want you so badly, baby,” I tell her, “But I’m too fucking exhausted to move.”

  A wicked glint flickers in her eyes, a look I want to see more of, and she stands. I expect her to walk away from me. To go back to treating me as if she’s my nurse and I her patient. Instead, she straddles me on the cot.

  “Baby, you—”

  “Shh,” she interrupts, holding her thumb on my lips. “I’m going to take care of you.”

  When she begins inching her body down, resting on my calves, and grabs hold of my cock, I groan in pleasure.

  “You don’t have the energy to make love, but I have other plans,” she smirks.

  A loud moan rips from my throat when she takes me in her mouth. Holy fucking shit! It’s been way too goddamned long since she’s gifted me with a blow job. I may love her pussy, but her mouth? Holy fuck, her mouth is perfection.

  I can feel her tongue, rough with taste buds, running along the tender flesh of the underside of my dick. It sends curls of pleasure pulsating through my nerve endings. The top of her teeth gently scrape the top of my cock in a terrifying yet exhilarating way. A groan escapes me when her nails claw at my thighs as she bobs her head up and down in a slow, delicious pattern.

  I want her to go faster.

  And slower.

  And to freeze time as my tip slides just barely down her throat.

  “Caroline,” I hiss when I hear her gag a bit from taking me as far as she can go. God, she’s so fucking amazing.

  One of her hands leaves my thigh and gently thumbs between my balls at the base of my dick, nearly causing me to buck off the goddamned cot.

  “So sweet,” I praise as she owns me with her lips and her tongue.

  Small moans slip out of her mouth as she fucks my cock with it. I can’t look at her any longer as my climax nears and forces my eyes closed.

  “I’m coming,” I warn as my balls seize up in pleasure—my dick ramrod straight.

  She doesn’t pop off my cock like usual and finish me with her hands. No, my angel takes me deeper, as if begging me to nourish her with my orgasm.

  And I do.

  Boy, do I ever.

  “Fuck!” An animalistic growl rips from my chest as my climax bursts from me.

  Her cheeks fill, but she soon swallows it down. Holy fucking shit, she’s a good woman.

  When my dick stops throbbing, I relax, just now realizing how damn sore my muscles are. Then she flicks her tongue out and licks up the rest of my semen that managed to escape.

  “God, I fucking love you,” I tell her with a grin. “You’re so damn good at that, baby.”

  She beams at me after she slips off my softening cock and wets her lips. If I weren’t so damn tired, I’d yank her to me and shove her back on my dick, where she belongs. Life would be much simpler if Caroline stayed attached to me, her body physically connected to mine.

  “Come here, Care. I want to hold you,” I murmur.

  My eyelids are heavy; sleep is going to steal me away soon. I want her in my arms before I pass out so I know she’s safe. She grabs the blanket that was folded on the floor and stretches it out over us. Careful not to touch my cut, she snuggles in beside me, her hand resting on an uninjured part of my chest.

  “I love you too, Bentley. I’m sorry I don’t give you those enough. If I didn’t have my panties in such a wad, I could have seen how much you enjoy them. You deserve to get them more than on your birthday or our anniversary,” she tells me and flashes me a wicked grin, “I love seeing the look of awe on your face when you come simply from my mouth.”

  Smiling, I lean over and kiss the top of her head. “From now on, you’re not allowed to wear panties—we don’t need you getting them in a wad ever again. And there was nothing simple about the way your mouth made me come. It was pure fucking magic.”

  We soon fall asleep, cuddled together by the fire, my dick tenting the sheets. I know what I’ll be dreaming about.

  “You’re different with this one,” Mom smiles as she stirs the coleslaw.

  We’re celebrating Harley’s birthday with a Harrison-style cookout, and I asked Caroline to join us.

  Nervously, I run a hand through my dark hair before lifting my eyes back to her, raising an eyebrow. “I am?”

  I know I am. Harley’s already been bitching about it. My roommates say that I’m pussy-whipped. And all I can think about is her. I didn’t realize that one person could change me. Make me better.

  “Yes, Ben,” she says, her voice thick with emotion. “And you remind me so much of your father right now.”

  When she begins to cry, I w
alk over to her and hug her from behind.

  “Mom, I love her so much. Too much, even. I can’t think straight. It’s like she’s bewitched me.”

  She chuckles, and I rest my chin on her head as she sets to stirring again.

  “Son, that’s a good thing. That’s true love. And by the way her eyes always find you no matter where you are in the room, I’d say she’s crazy about you too.” She pats me on the hand I have wrapped around her middle. “Don’t let her go. True love like that only comes around once. You have to fight for it, sugar. Promise me you’ll always fight for it.”

  With one more squeeze, I promise her that I will.

  “Good morning, sleepyhead,” Caroline chirps, waking me from my slumber.

  Squinting, I attempt to remember where in the hell I am. One glance out the small window of the cabin is all it takes to remind me we’re fucked.

  “Morning, baby,” I rasp out.

  As my stomach growls loudly, I turn and find her messing around at the small table. The dream I had was so vivid. I can almost taste Mom’s barbeque and homemade baked beans.

  “I made breakfast,” she says with pride in her voice.

  It takes a moment for me to recognize she cooked the can of beans. When I go to sit up, every muscle in my body protests.

  “Can you make it to the table, or do you want to eat there on the cot?” she questions when she hears my groaning.

  I’ve managed to sit up, and I take a second to let my gaze drag across her bare legs before answering her. “I’d rather eat you out here on the cot, but if you’d prefer to spread out over the table, I can handle that too. I’m a pretty sloppy eater, though, and might need a napkin,” I chuckle as I give her a teasing, raised eyebrow.

  “You’re so bad,” she giggles as she prances over to me. She’s wearing the tunic from before, and I already feel like it’s too much clothing. I want her naked again.