Page 13 of Shining Pearls
Steeling my resolve, I turned to face my husband. At the precise moment I moved, he angled toward me. We grinned at each other over still being so in sync with each other––even after all of our forced time apart.
Alex reached out to run the back of his fingers gently along my cheek. “I love you so much. Can you ever forgive me?”
Rather than verbally answering, I leaned forward to press my lips against his. We scooted together and wrapped our arms around each other as we kissed.
Glorious happiness surged through me over being back in my husband’s embrace. His warmth chased away my hurt feelings, as well as the constant fears that had lived deep in my gut for the last year.
“Claire, I can’t believe it’s really you,” he murmured before he pressed his lips near my ear. “It’s always only been you for me, my wonderful wife.”
I longed to believe his marvelous words, even though a sliver of doubt coiled around my brain and stubbornly refused to leave. Shoving my insecurities down, I leaned up to pull the long, gray tee shirt I liked to sleep in over my head before tossing it aside.
Alex gazed at my breasts in the pale moonlight streaming in through the slats in our blinds. He reverently reached out to touch me as if I were a fragile piece of porcelain.
“I won’t break.” I gave him a sly grin to give him permission to love me vigorously.
“You’re a goddess,” he whispered before lowering his mouth to my chest.
It had been so long since I’d had my husband’s attention on my body that I’d almost forgotten what a fantastic lover he was. Well, I could only assume he was, since I’d never been with anyone else. But I couldn’t imagine it got any better than this.
Suddenly, the harsh realization flooded my system. Alex had been with someone else.Was he comparing me to her now? Was she a better lover than me?
I froze, feeling raging insecurity. Alex noticed the moment I stopped writhing beneath him, and lifted his head. “Is it too much, too soon? We can take things slow if you need to.”
While I appreciated his thoughtful offer, my mind was preoccupied with one concern. Unable to keep from asking any longer, even though I sensed he would only say what he thought I wanted to hear, I looked into Alex’s eyes and said, “Did you like having sex with her more than you enjoy being with me?”
Alex scooted up to look directly into my eyes. His hand brushed my hair back away from my face. “Oh, sweetheart, how could you even think such a thing? You are my wife. Nothing could ever come close to the life-affirming thrill of making love with you.”
His words sounded sincere, but I still had doubts. “But she was new and different. I’m just the same old person you’ve been with a million times.”
Alex found my hand with his and interlaced our fingers. He dropped kisses down on my face to enunciate his words. “We share an intimacy that can’t be matched. I love you and only you. You are the only one for me. You always have been, and you always will be. I am yours––body, mind, and soul.”
He lifted our locked hands and pressed my hand over his heart. It was pounding rapidly as if it was trying to beat its way out of his chest. After pressing his lips down onto mine, he said, “This heart beats for you, and only you, Claire.”
I ached to believe him, and I needed to have him inside me. I pulled at his underwear, and he yanked mine down. We faced each other in a full-body, naked embrace that made me tingle with anticipation from head to toe. Wrapping one leg around him, I reached down to guide him in.
“Wait!” His word startled me and made me freeze in place, staring at him with wide eyes. He’d never before stopped the action when we were this close before. “You haven’t been able to take your birth control pills. I need to put on a condom.”
When he turned to the bedside table to retrieve a box of rubbers, bile rose in my throat. He had purchased these condoms to use with another woman.
“No. Get rid of those,” I snapped. I didn’t want to see the box or know how many of them had been used. The realization that this probably wasn’t their first box of them was revolting. I guess I should be glad he had protected himself in this way, but the tangible reminder of his affair was too much for me to handle right now.
When I continued glaring at the offending box, Alex tossed them across the room. We stayed frozen like that for a long moment, both of us breathing heavily.
“We can wait until your pills have a chance to work back into your system,” Alex offered gallantly. His jawline flexed as he strained with the effort of holding back.
His tip was teasing my opening, and I wanted nothing more than for him to slide into me. It had been so long.Well, for me anyway.
Jumping in with both feet, I revealed, “I want to have another child. I thought about it the whole time I was in captivity. Hannah has brought so much joy into our lives. How could I not want more of that?”
Alex’s eyes widened in surprise at my words. We had fought about this the night before my disappearance, and I had been vehement that I didn’t want any more children.
“Are you sure? Don’t do this just for me. I’m perfectly happy with you, Hannah, and Pepper as my family. In fact, I’m the luckiest man alive to have you three girls in my life.”
I smiled over his inclusion of our devoted dog and his perfect words. He always seemed to know just what to say to make me feel better.
“I’m sure.” My voice was filled with confidence, and I backed up my words with action by reaching down to guide my husband’s magnificent cock inside me.
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