43. Aiyana

Chapter forty-three

Aiyana

Sunday, December 24, 2023

T here's an unbelievably annoying rooster crowing sound blaring from somewhere near me. I smack my hand around, searching for the offending noise, but a large, warm, and calloused hand wraps around mine, bringing my fingers to his lips and pressing a kiss. His other hand must've silenced the noise because the horrendous screeching has stopped.

"Good morning, little viper," he whispers.

I finally pry my eyes open to be able to look up at Kas, lying bare-chested in my bed, looking snug as ever.

"Don't you ever sleep in your own bed?" I ask him, but there's no bite to my words.

"Not if I can help it." He shoots me a cocky smirk but works to unwind me from his body, standing and getting dressed in last night's clothes. "Kat said she'll be over early to help you pack for the next couple of days." My head is spinning, and I can't remember what it was I agreed to do today. He smirks again. "It's Christmas Eve, little viper. We're going to Alice's family home."

Realization floods my mind. "Oh shit, yes, I didn't forget." I sit up, feeling a little nauseous until I look down and see that Kas changed me into one of my sleep shirts, and one of the ugliest braids I've ever seen in my life is now hanging over my shoulder. My stomach swarms with butterflies. I push the thoughts away, shaking them from my mind quickly and sending a jolt of pain down the base of my skull. "I'm actually packed already. My bag's in the closet." I do my best to beam up at him.

"Bag or bags, plural?" he replies, a smirk plastered on his gorgeous face. "We both know you've never packed just a single bag for anything in your life."

I shrug. "Okay, bags," I tell him, drawing out the "s." "Asshole," I mutter half-heartedly.

He smiles, now fully dressed, and presses a kiss to the tip of my nose. "I've got to finish some stuff at my place. I'll be back to pick you guys up in a few hours."

***

I'm still a little bummed that we didn't get to spend the holidays with my family this year, but Ale's family has been so welcoming, and it's been really nice to get to hang out with Rose and her wife. Charlie is super sweet, while Rose is definitely a little socially awkward, though she holds herself with some serious confidence and blazes through life. Charlie is all about the banter. She's witty and boisterous—everything I love in a woman. Their love is timeless, and Ale's pursuit of Kat makes even more sense now that I've met his family. His parents, Gloria and Angelo, are madly in love, as are his siblings and their wives, Dante and Arielle and Rose and Charlie.

They give me the same warm feeling I get when I watch my own parents interact, but in the last few years, it's been different. Mom's always on high alert, waiting for the shoe to drop and Dad to wind up in the hospital, which he does pretty frequently.

I just hope this cruise helps cut through some of that tension they've been feeling.

When it's time for everyone to go to bed, Kat and Ale help the kids make a pillow fort and opt to sleep in the living room with them. Kas and I head up to the third floor of the brownstone home, where the guest rooms are located. The house isn't huge when you consider how many people grew up in it, but there are six bedrooms. They had the first-floor office converted into a room when Gloria's multiple sclerosis symptoms started becoming more cumbersome, so they're down there. The second floor consists of three rooms, and the top floor has the other two rooms where Kas and I will be staying. Separately.

At least, we're supposed to be.

The rooms are small, with a full-size bed in each and a small nightstand on the side closest to the door. The furniture is eclectic—random pieces acquired over time, likely from friends, family, garage sales, and the like.

The mattress in my room sits on an old metal frame with textured cream-colored paint. The metal bars wind together like grape vines on the headboard, and the bedspread is a deep eggplant purple with little gold beads embroidered into it.

The walls are covered in textured wallpaper, and there's residue on the legs of the nightstand where a child likely placed stickers that have since been scraped off. I smile at the thought of a young Alessandro running around this house with his siblings.

After unmaking the bed, I slip into the over-the-top Christmas pajamas Gloria left on everyone's beds. Apparently, that's a tradition for them too. So many traditions.

My family has tons of our own, but they're all embedded in our culture and rely heavily on what we're told is expected of us from our ancestors. I've never minded. Our traditions are what keep our culture alive in a world that was literally created to dismantle our entire society so many years ago.

I was so lost in my thoughts, I didn't hear Kas enter, his hands slipping around my waist as he hugs me tightly to his chest from behind, my back flush with his front.

He breathes me in. "You smell like snickerdoodle cookies." He laughs in my ear, his warm breath coasting over the skin, sending goosebumps down my arms.

I snort. "That's probably because I ate half a dozen of them."

His chest rumbles with repressed laughter, the sound gently shaking me from where our skin is connected. "I wonder if you taste like snickerdoodles now too…" He trails off, fingers winding in my hair as he adjusts the angle of my mouth for better purchase. His tongue swipes along my lower lip. "Mm, sweet like sugar," he says, and then his tongue dips into my mouth, his erection growing against my back. My head swims with need as an ache grows between my thighs.

He trails his hands down my waist, releasing my mouth as he slides his deft fingers toward where I need them. "Can I stay with you tonight?" he asks, and I nod, figuring no one will be coming up here anyway, not with Kat and Ale sleeping downstairs.

Spinning me around, he grips my ass, pressing me into his growing length, and a moan slips past my lips.

His hand shoots out to cover my mouth. Smirking, he tells me, "You'll have to be a good girl and come quietly tonight. Can you do that for me?"

I nod vigorously, and he chuckles again. "Suddenly so eager to do what I say. Who would've thought my cock would be the magic wand I needed to get you to agree to something?" He laughs before picking me up and hauling me against the wall with a gentle thud.

His hand comes between my legs, slipping the pajama pants down my thighs as he pulls my panties to the side. He pulls himself out of his pants, stroking the thick length of his swollen cock, squeezing the tip, and cum leaks out. I lick my lips, wanting to taste it.

Kas catches the motion and clamps his hand back down on my mouth before plunging into me.

My head snaps back to the wall, back arching my hips into him as he plows into me relentlessly. I wrap my arms around his neck, legs clamped around his waist, squeezing as I hold on for dear life. I bounce myself up and down his length, heat searing through me, and I know I won't last another minute. This man drives me fucking wild.

"Such a good girl," he groans into my ear, swapping his pace to slow down a bit, swirling his hips and hitting that spot that makes my eyes roll. The walls of my pussy are clamping down on him as he plunges in and out of me, taking him to the hilt and back all the way out again.

The pressure feels so good. I think I might implode with the sensations. My orgasm hits me out of nowhere, coming faster than I ever thought possible, his hand keeping my moans and screams to a minimum. 1 And when I finish, my pussy lips swollen and aching, he gives one last deep thrust into me. His jaw goes slack, eyes clenching shut as he turns rigid, pumping his hot cum into me.

We stand here for a while, our foreheads pressed together as we slow our breathing, and my tight core begins to relax. My gaze is cast downward at his chest; the viper tattoo seemingly stares at me, acting as a reminder of how much I really do mean to Kas, even if I'm just pretending it's only about sex.

A few more moments pass before he gently lifts me off of him and sets me on my feet, swatting my ass. "I'll go grab a washcloth and be right back," he says as he heads downstairs toward the bathroom. He returns a minute later with two washcloths, coming over to me and pressing the warm, wet one between my legs first, cleansing me, and then patting my sensitive skin dry with the second cloth. My cheeks flame at the sweet sentiment.

"Now get into bed because I'm fucking exhausted. Those kids wore my ass out today."

I release a long yawn and crawl under the sheets. Kas gets in behind me and drags me on top of his chest, pressing a kiss to my head. "Goodnight, my little viper, and Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Kas." I yawn, quickly falling asleep in his arms.

1. Collide – Justine Skye (ft. Tyga)