Page 43 of Set In Stone

“Oh, god,” I breathed. I was soclose.

“Fuck, Krystina. You’re so goddamn hot. I want your orgasm. I need to feel that sweet pussy tighten aroundme.”

Circling my clit with his thumb, he picked up his pace, never breaking the connection until I began to shake. My muscles clenched beyond my will as he brought me closer to that glorious peak. He knew exactly how to please me, how to torment me with delicious pleasure, teasing me just long enough to ensure that my climax would becataclysmic.

“I’m almost there,” I panted and tightened my legs around him. I trembled, losing more of myself with every passing moment. I became desperate, the promise of release allconsuming.

“Now, angel. Give it to menow!”

With one hard thrust, he plunged deeper. My sensitive tissues rippled until I began to spasm uncontrollably, his words sending me into a heart-pounding orgasm. Colors flashed before my eyes as the rush surged throughme.

“Alex!” I cried out and unraveled around him, my body overwhelmed with the sensation of blinding white heat. I was mindless, writhing against him shamelessly as I split apart at the seams. My fingernails clawed at his back, pulling him closer. His body shuddered before he stilled. And then all at once, his cock became impossibly harder, pulsing deliciously, as his own climax poured intome.

* * *

Alexander lay next to me,mumbling in his sleep. His words were incoherent, but I knew he was dreaming again. Before long, he would begin thrashing and his skin would be covered in a cold sweat. I needed to calm him before the visions behind his eyes drove him to that point. I put my hand on the top of his head and ran my fingers through his hair. Pressing gentle kisses to his cheek, I murmured soothingwords.

“Shh, Alex. You’re okay. You’re a powerful man. You’re not a boy. It’s only a dream. I’m right here withyou.”

I continued to whisper soothing words to him until his breathing became soft and even. Shifting over onto my side, I pressed my back against his hard torso. Even though he was spooned up against me, the steady rhythm of his chest rising and falling assured me that he was sleepingpeacefully.

Thirty minutes later, I felt like I had been lying awake for hours. After this past week, I should’ve been exhausted and sleeping too. But, for the life of me, I couldn’t get my eyes to close. I glanced at the clock on the nightstand and watched as the neon red digital numbers changed to reflect five minutes after one in the morning. I suppressed agroan.

I wish I could just shut my brainoff.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t going to happen. I was too consumed with worry over Alexander. Knowing that the sandman wasn’t going to find me anytime soon, I slipped quietly from the bed, pulled on one of Alexander’s t-shirts and a pair of comfysweatpants.

I looked back down at the bed when I heard him stir. He didn’t wake, but rolled over onto his back. The arm that was cradling my head before I got up was still draped across my pillow. His chest was bare, the hard lines of his body highlighted by the moonbeams that shot through the room. In that moment, he looked so peaceful. It was a stark contrast to how he was just a little while ago. I fought the urge to reach out and touch him, but I didn’t want to risk waking him up. Instead, I padded barefoot into the kitchen to make myself a cup of decaftea.

As I waited for the kettle to boil, I searched my brain for some way to help the man I loved so much. This was the tenth night in a row that I woke to the sound of him mumbling and thrashing in his sleep. He never spoke about the contents of his dreams, but his cold sweat told me all I needed toknow.

Thankfully, tonight I was able to settle him down before he fully woke up. If he had, neither of us would be sleeping right now, as Alexander always felt too guilty about disturbing me. If he didn’t hate the mere mention of therapy so much, I may have demanded that he go on his own, without me. Forget couples therapy. We could do without. For now. At the present moment, Alexander’s healing was so much moreimportant.

I knew he was hurting and it was no wonder why he was having nightmares. When I considered all that had happened, I couldn’t even begin to imagine the magnitude of what he must be feeling. Betrayal, confusion, and anger probably only tapped the surface of his emotions. I was worried that he was reaching his breaking point, something that became apparent when I was strung up on thecross.

For the past five months, Alexander showed me many things from his world of BDSM, and each time we were brought to new and exhilarating heights. I had come to love his kinks. I craved them like a drug and I meant what I said to him tonight. He didn’t really hurt me with theflogger.

However, there was something unusual about the way he delivered his blows this time. He didn’t display his normal caution and precision, but rather seemed fraught and desperate. Alexander always made me feel cherished, his touches often bordering on worshipful. What happened tonight was not his usual behavior. And while we managed to connect in a way we never had before, it was hard to ignore the way it allbegan.

The water in the kettle began to rumble and I quickly removed it from the burner before it began to whistle. After selecting a tea bag from the canister that Vivian always kept perfectly stocked, I brought the steeping mug into Alexander’soffice.

Alexander and I kept separate offices in the penthouse, so I was rarely in here. One of the spare bedrooms had been converted for me so that I could have my own space. However, my office didn’t have what I needed. If I wanted to find a way to help him, I had to read Charlie’s interview again. The only way to do that would be to access Alexander’s harddrive.

I flipped on the stereo, making sure the volume was low enough so as not to be heard from the master bedroom. Not bothering to change the station, I left Lapsley’s “Falling Short” playing and took a seat behind Alexander’s spacious desk. Sipping my tea cautiously so I didn’t burn my tongue, I took a minute to enjoy the soothing feeling on my throat. It was feeling a little sore and I half wondered if I was coming down with a head cold. I prayed I wasn’t. If I did, Alexander’s lectures about getting more rest would go from nagging to excruciatingly painful in the blink of aneye.

I groaned at thethought.

Maybe Vivian has the medicine cabinet stocked with some vitamin Cpills.

Setting the mug of tea aside, I made a mental note to check as I woke the computer with a shake of the mouse. The screen came to life, but I frowned when it lit up. It was passwordprotected.

Damn!

I should have known better. I opened the top drawer of the desk in search of a scrap piece of paper that it might be written on. I didn’t find anything, but I did find a pack of Big Red chewing gum. I chuckled to myself as I continued to search the other drawers. Two of them were locked and I had no idea where he kept thekeys.

I blew out a breath in frustration, tapped my fingers on the desk, and tried to think of what the password might be. For all I knew, it was some long encryption that I would never be able to guess. But then again, this was his home office. Perhaps the computer security wouldn’t be so strict. I pulled the computer keyboard closer to me and typed the first thing that came to mind:Angel61193.

I smiled when the computer unlocked and the screen came into view. I found his choice of password to be endearing and my heart fluttered. My password wasSapphire32383. Like the word angel, my computer was also protected by a word that was shared between Alexander andme.

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