Chapter Twenty-Three

Graves

Fuck, her fear is a delicious aphrodisiac I want to drown myself in. Her pupils are blown wide, there's adrenaline coursing through her veins, and her breaths are coming in quick little pants. It’s so fucking hot, the effect I have on her body. I bet if I touched her pussy right now, it would be wet, all for me. Always for me. Only me.

She gazes up at me and what looks like relief smooths over her features. “After you, ma’am,” I say, opening the door for her.

“Shit, Nox, you about gave me a heart attack running up behind me like that,” she laughs, entering the store. The sound of my name, not Ghost's, coming from her is already injecting life into my dick. I want to hear it falling from her lips in breathy little gasps as I thrust into her.

“Sorry, I just wanted to be a gentleman. I didn’t mean to scare you.” Well I did, but she doesn’t need to know that. We move together into the store so as to not block the entrance way.

A blush flushes her cheeks, “Thank you, for opening the door. I wish I could stay and chat but I’m trying to be quick. We’ll catch up soon, yeah?” her voice is light, melodic and inquisitive. I wish she would stay. Actually, I wish I could go with her. Would it be weird to follow her? Probably. I stay rooted to my spot and nod. She gives a little wave and then takes off towards the furniture section.

Lucky for me I was already in town when she texted me back. It wasn’t hard to find her little black car, angle parked on the road just outside the department store. I do wonder why she’s here, but I will just wait her out and see for myself.

Walking the food aisles, I’m picking out non perishables so nothing will spoil in my truck when I’m wrapped up in her embrace later. Bread, pasta, soup, canned goods, crackers, and chips. Just a bunch of bullshit that won’t be money down the drain no matter how long it sits in my vehicle.

I’m so bored, standing here reading cereal boxes while I watch the check out area. Growing more and more impatient as I wait for my woman to finally finish up her shopping.

Looking across the store, I know I shouldn’t move to the kitchen appliances section, it’s parallel to the furniture section, but I do. I also know that I shouldn’t be watching her from behind the display of coffee makers, but I am. She’s struggling with getting a bookshelf into her cart. Do I go offer my assistance? It’s what your friendly neighbourhood police officer would do, so that’s what I’ll do.

Sidling up beside her, I apparently scare her for the second time today because she jumps when I ask, “Do you need some help?”

She looks up at me from beneath her lashes, back bent, comically trying to support the weight of the box. She has three books in her cart, is that where she’s been all this time? In the book aisle? I should have known.

“Where the hell have you been? I’ve been struggling with this box forever!” she breathes out, exasperated. I know she’s been trying to get a good grip on the box for a few minutes.

I was watching, admiring her tenacity, studying her problem solving skills.

“I know, I was watching,” I smirk. Her eyes shoot to mine and her body stills. Oh no, back pedal, Graves. She can’t connect me to Ghost this soon. “I didn’t know whether to come offer help or not. I didn’t want to embarrass you.”

“Well, thank you for waiting until all the feminism bled from my body and I realized I needed a big strong man to help me,” she snips with a smile pulling at her lips.

“You’re welcome,” I playfully return. I grab her books and place them into my cart. Then I grab the box from her shaking hands and lift it with ease, placing it in her now empty cart. Her features soften at the care I lend her books, I know how she values them.

“How many of these do you want?” I’m eager to show off again for her, even if it’s something as inconsequential as lifting a box for her. Women love that shit.

She seems to think it over then gently says, “Could you grab me another one, please?” She’s bashful and it’s adorable, like she wasn’t just grinding on my face yesterday, demanding that I make her cum. Such a sweet little angel in the streets and a bratty little devil in the sheets. I fucking love it.

I grab another box and put it in her cart. “How many books do you have?” I ask, already knowing the answer to this question but I want to keep her engaged with me.

“Uhhh, I have quite the collection,” she laughs. “It’s more like an obsession. I have three full shelves already and some books have taken over my night stand and coffee table.”

“I like to read too, what are these books about?” I already know they’re filthy, I recognize the author's name from some I have seen at her house. I snatch one up and start flipping through the pages, her body crashes into mine in an attempt to get the book back.

“No, Lennox, give it back!” she whines, rubbing her sexy body up and down mine as she fails to retrieve the novel. I hold it just out of her reach as I search for a dirty word. ‘Cock’ jumps out at me from the page and I gasp.

“Mallory, this is a sex book!” I whisper-shout, stuffing down the need to laugh and forcing myself to keep a straight face. She groans, her face the colour of a tomato as she dies of mortification. Unable to suppress my laugh anymore, it breaks free and I’m cracking up. Through broken chuckles I read the page out loud.

“Your body is mine, your pleasure is mine and your soul… well that’s fucking mine too.” I chance a look up at her and she’s gone stone still. Leaning against the rack of furniture boxes, she’s watching me with burning intensity. I walk up to her and crowd her space, a mere few inches separate us. Lust burns between us as I breathe the same air as her, the heat emitting from her threatens to burn me alive. One arm is braced against the shelf beside her head and the other is holding open the book as I continue to read aloud from its pages. “I grit out between hard thrusts as my cock disappears inside her. Her body is inching up the bed from the savagery I inflict upon it but she fucking loves it, loves me. Her pussy takes my dick so perfectly, welcoming it home with every sharp snap of my hips. The sound of our coupling is both arousing and obscene. The slapping sound of my balls against her ass mix with the harmony of her moans-” My words are cut off as she rips the book from my hands, closes it, and places it on the shelf next to her.

Our eyes lock and the pull between us is almost impossible to resist. I can tell she is turned on, my mind and body are so finely attuned to hers after all these months that I’d feel her in a crowded room before I saw her. She’s wet for me, not the mask. That fact alone has me ready to sink to my knees before her on this dirty floor. Her gaze travels down and lingers on my mouth, should I kiss her? Would it be too much, too soon? Time stretches between us, the seconds feeling like an eternity. No length of time will ever be enough for me when it comes to her. I’m content to just stand here gazing upon her for as long as she will allow.

A look I don’t recognize flits across her face, there for a moment and then gone in an instant. Is something wrong? Have I grossly misread this situation and fucked up any chance I have with her by coming on too strong? Was I weird? I’m spiralling in my own downward thoughts when she grabs me behind the neck and pulls my lips down to meet hers.

Oh no, this is bad. It’s good, but also so, so bad. How do I make sure I don’t kiss like her Ghost? She’s smart, too smart. She’s going to figure all this out way too soon if we get hot and heavy next to the display models of furniture. Her fingers thread through my hair at the nape of my neck and tighten. My cock springs to life as she holds me hostage against her. She licks at my lips, seeking permission to deepen our kiss. I can’t deny her anything. I open and our tongues touch as I prepare my own noose. Surely she will realize Ghost and I are one in the same, I need to throw her off the trail somehow. She moans into my mouth as she pulls me even closer to her body. Without thinking I pull her leg up to my hip and grind my cock into her cunt. Fuckin’ hell, the heat coming off her pussy is enough to melt my zipper. She wants me, bad.

The sound of a throat clearing pulls me from Mallory’s plump lips. Turning my head, I see one of the neighbourhood teen girls standing there, arms crossed, and with a disgusted look on her face. She composes her features when she realizes it’s me, the town cop and soon-to-be captain.

“Sorry, Officer Graves, I didn’t mean to interrupt but my manager needs you guys to stop. She’s getting complaints about the couple humping by the futons. Her words, not mine,” she blandly states.

I let go of Mal’s leg and step to the side, trying to keep my raging hard-on hidden somehow. I put both my hands in the front pocket of my hooded sweater and pull it down in the front. Mallory lets out a quiet little giggle, clearly pleased with herself and this awkward situation I’m in. Two can play at that game, baby.

“Sorry, Abigail. Please give Nancy my apologies. It won’t happen again,” I say, glancing at Mal who is still visibly embarrassed that we got caught making out like hormonal teenagers. “This one,” I jut my thumb at Mallory, “has a mouth like a vacuum.” Abigail laughs awkwardly and my little siren punches me in the shoulder. “Ow, hey!” I laugh out.

“You dick, don’t say that!” she spits at me, then turns to Abigail, “You saw us, I was the helpless victim.”

“Please, don’t involve me in your lovers’ quarrel. Just stop swapping spit in the store,” Abigail says then turns and leaves.

“I can’t believe you said I was a vacuum,” she grumbles.

“You laughed at my boner!” I retort.

“Yeah, I did. Sorry I kissed you. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“What? Why? Do you have a boyfriend?” Awaiting her answer has me on the edge of my seat. What will she say about me?

“Maybe? I don’t know. It’s new and we haven’t exactly had that conversation.”

“Then you’re still single, and available for me to swoop in and snatch you up,” I say. I lean down and hover my mouth above hers, leaving it up to her to move the last few inches to complete our kiss. She does, and I feel like I've won some imaginary fight against this other guy. This other man happens to be myself but that’s beside the point. She wants me here in the daylight, not some dirty secret in the night. She’s about to be torn between two men who happen to be the same person and I can’t wait to watch her squirm.

Our kiss is over far sooner then I would like but I have plans for this evening and we need to get a move on.

“Do you need to grab anything else?” I ask.

“No, this is all I came in here for.” She starts to push the cart with the two heavy shelves and is clearly struggling. Pushing her aside I take over pushing her cart to the check out as she takes mine.

Moving through the parking lot and over to the road where her car is parked, I notice something so obvious, I’m surprised she overlooked this initial detail before coming here. I know the mechanism to the back seats of her car are broken and they won’t fold down. I realized this the night I took her parents. I was worried they would somehow be able to escape me by flipping down the seats, but that was obviously unable to happen. Does she even know it’s broken? Apparently not as she opens the trunk and repeatedly tries to flip the switch. She lets out a frustrated guttural scream, cursing her parents under her breath about how they couldn’t even leave her with a functional car.

How fortunate for her that I drove my truck here today, and there’s a cover on the box so nothing will get wet. Delight twists in my stomach as I ask, “Is everything okay?”

“No, everything is not okay. The seats won’t go down, so my bookshelves won’t fit. And so I’ll have to stand here and wait until a mover can come and take them to my house. Then I’ll miss getting to the post office before it closes,” she blurts out. Damn, she’s cute when she’s worked up.

“Why don’t you run to the post office and I’ll load up your stuff and bring it up to your place?” I offer.

“I couldn’t ask you to do that, it’s so far.”

“I have nowhere else to be. It’s my day off. I’ll do it.” She chews her lip, clearly thinking it over. “Hey, I want to do it. Now go get whatever else done that you need and I’ll meet you back at your house.”

“Thank you.” She stretches up on her tiptoes and plants a kiss on my cheek. So sweet and innocent, just like her.

I pull both carts across the road to my truck and drop the tailgate. I feel her watching me from the other side of the street as I load up the heavy boxes. Moving to the cab, I put the few bags we have on the seat. She’s still standing there in the sprinkling rain, watching me. What is she thinking? Will she choose me over her masked stalker? Has she figured out we are the same person yet? I’ve been doing a real shit job of disguising my voice or the way I kiss. What does she see when she looks at me? A fling? Boyfriend material? A mistake? My heart clenches at the thought that she could regret our kiss.

“You better hurry up or I’m going to beat you back to your house!” I yell across the road. She smiles at me and gives a little wave, then climbs into the car and drives off down the road.

After I take the carts back to the store I climb into my truck and pull out my phone. Ghost is about to be very upset that his little siren kissed another man.