Chapter 8

Ivy

A fter a quick shower, I go to the bedroom where my princess is sleeping. Lilly's still sleeping soundly and that pleases me greatly that she's able to sleep in peace. I apply lotion to my legs and secure my hair into a ponytail. I was just about to pull back the covers when Gideon opens the door, shirtless, showing off his ample abs and tattoos.

He says, "Make sure Lilly is secure in here. You're sleeping with me tonight."

I don't offer a rebuttal – didn't have time to, not that I would have. I just check Lilly's sleeping position and then leave the room quietly. I slowly walk toward Gideon's bedroom – the room that used to be our bedroom – and step inside. I hear the shower going in the bathroom. I reluctantly sit on the bed, remembering all those nights we spent making love in this bed – making this house a home. I wonder if we could ever get back to that place, or if he even wants to. After what I did to betray him, I think not.

He just wants me.

He comes walking out of the bathroom naked, his slender yet muscular body dripping with desire. He didn't even take the time to dry off completely before coming out, his manhood pointed due north while his eyes stayed glued to me.

"You may as well take that lil' gown on off, sweetheart, before I tear it to shreds."

Yeah, like I said…he just wants me.

I stand up, pull the gown over my head and he mutters as his eyes land on my breasts.

"Get on the bed," he tells me.

I obey his command and lie down. He crawls over me and leaves a kiss on my lips. He traces my lips with his tongue and takes a dip into my mouth with it, consuming my moans while savoring my tongue. I feel it whipping my throat as he goes all in. His body is cool since he just got out of the shower, and that's a good thing because I'm hot and writhing. He just took me in the kitchen after dinner, but I'm aching for more. I miss him. I need more.

He travels to my neck, grazing his teeth there as he sucks on my skin, causing my body to tremble. He then lowers to my breasts. I feel his hot mouth on my nipple, sucking and flicking his tongue before pulling them, teasing with his teeth and opening his mouth wide, trying to consume them.

"Gideon," I utter, feeling all kinds of sensations run through me.

He's relentless as he devours me, sending me into another realm of pleasure I haven't felt in so long. My body sings his glory. I'm in awe with what he's able to accomplish – with what he makes me feel.

He drags his tongue across my stomach and settles between my legs. Pleasure rips through me as he holds me steady, twirling, devouring me until I scream his name and cry out for mercy. I need air – need to breathe and I cannot do that with the assault that this man has on me. All I can do is take it. I try to grab his hair, but he's relentless as he tortures me. He moans and moans some more before finally stopping. He crawls back up to me, settles between my thighs and in one smooth thrust, he's buried deep inside of me. We're so connected – he's so deep, we've become one in every sense of the expression. And then he tunnels his tongue into my mouth, kissing me with deep strokes while stroking me below, rocking the bed with every upward slam into me.

The feeling is immeasurable. I miss him so much and just when I think about saying that out loud, he pulls his mouth away from mine and whispers in my ear, "You're so damn addictive, girl. You know that? What did I ever do without this? Mmm…"

"Gideon," I whisper when I feel the pressure building inside of me same as before in the kitchen. It's potent. It's strong. It threatens to tear me apart if I don't release it.

He says, "Don't hold back, sweetheart. Let it all out for me."

He's steadily pumping into me like his life depends on it. I claw at his back, gripping him tight while he burrows deep into me with his girthy rod, rearranging my walls and groaning when he goes deeper.

My muscles grip him, squeeze him when the first waves crash through me, causing my back to arch off the bed.

"Oh, baby, that's it. Oh…"

More strokes and I'm screaming his name to the ceiling as my body convulses. It doesn't belong to me any longer. It's his. It has always been his.

"Ivy, oh…" he groans softly.

I love to hear his soft groans. It turns me on so much, I feel my body releasing yet again, along with his.

He collapses on top of me and stays there for a while, just panting. We both rest this way, catching our breaths after catching up on lovemaking – if that's what you call this. After all, we are still married – I'm just not sure that the love is still there – especially on his end of things.

He rolls off of me. He doesn't get up, run to the bathroom or anything. He just lies here, staring up at the ceiling for a while, then repositions on his side so that he's looking directly at me.

He says, "Ivy."

"Yes," I answer but I'm too ashamed to look at him.

He whistles and says, "Over here."

I look at him, fighting back tears. I'm an emotional mess, thinking about how we used to be to what we are now.

He says, "If I could go back and do it all over again, I would've spent more time trying to convince Gage not to do something so incredibly stupid."

"Well, you can't change the past, Gideon. All you can do is keep moving forward."

He sits up, wraps his hand around my neck, takes a hard kiss from my lips, and says, "Yeah. You're right."

He gets up off the bed and walks to the bathroom while I lie here filled with emotions. I don't know what's happening between us. I just hope we're on good enough terms to be parents for our sweet Lilly.