Page 80 of The Absence of You
We’ve seen nothing of Colin or Melissa Banks, but the longer time goes on, the more chance there is that he’ll act on his threat. I meant what I said to Grayson, I really don’t care, but I know he won’t forgive himself if he doesn’t at least try to prevent it. I’ve been more worried about Colin going to the police over Grayson assaulting him than anything happening to me, but there’s been radio silence on that front too.
It's not like we’ve spent every minute watching, but as far as any of us know, Colin’s car hasn’t left the driveway. Maybe he’s still recovering or maybe he’s building up to ruin me in a spectacular way, but it definitely feels like the calm before the storm.
I’d been worried about how Joseph might react to seeing Grayson and his father fighting. No one would have been surprised if it had been triggering for him, but I needn’t have worried; I guess he’d seen more than a few fights in prison over the years. As it was, Grayson and Joseph hit it off straight away. Hating their respective fathers wasn’t exactly a healthy thing to bond over, but they certainly have plenty of common ground. Once they’d been introduced, I think it made Grayson realise there would be very real consequences if he were to continue to let his anger towards his father grow, and Joseph was desperate to make sure Grayson doesn’t lose his freedom in the same way he did. He seems to be as invested in taking Colin down as we are.
The two of them are currently deep in conversation about computers, the majority of which is going way over my head.
The bit of the conversation I have understood is that Joseph has a friend, a guy he met in prison who was there on some kind of charge for hacking. They were cell mates for a few months before he was acquitted for lack of evidence. They’re still in touch, and apparently, he owes Joseph a favour.
Joseph leaves the room to make a call, and when he returns, the two of them are back to plotting something. Grayson is talking animatedly to him and when he catches me watching them, he shoots me a big grin. It’s the first time I’ve seen him smile properly in a long time and it fills me with hope.
Leaving the two of them to it, I head to the kitchen to make some drinks and by the time I get back, it seems the two of them have come up with something.
They tell me they have a plan that will take Grayson’s dad out of commission and even better, ease some of the guilt that has been eating Grayson up inside for years.
I’m just drifting off when there’s a light knock at my bedroom door. I reach over to my bedside table and flick on my lamp as the door slowly opens. Grayson pokes his head through and, seeing me awake, he heads in, quietly shutting it behind him. He’s dressed for bed in just a low-slung pair of grey pyjama pants that showcase his abs in a way that should be illegal.
“I can’t sleep. Can I lie with you for a while?”
“Of course.” I lift the blanket so he can slide in beside me. He climbs in and wraps his arms around me, and I snuggle into his bare chest. We fall into a comfortable silence, and I take a minute enjoying our closeness. How had it taken us so long to get back to this? So much wasted time has passed, but I push it out of my head and twist around in his arms so I can see him properly.
“Are you okay?” I ask, searching his face for the truth. He’s been much happier since this afternoon, but he can’t sleep so there must be something on his mind still.
“There’s so much riding on tomorrow. I keep thinking of what could go wrong.” There’s no point trying to tell him it’ll definitely work out as he’d planned, but maybe I can put his mind at rest another way.
“You’re right. It might not go as we want it to. But you know I’ll still love you whatever?”
Grayson goes to speak, but I put my finger on his lips and then replace it with my mouth. I feel him smile before he kisses me back. I’ve had enough of talking. It’s all we’ve done for days. We need a distraction.
I tease his mouth open gently with my tongue as he teases me back, gently stroking, and probing, and tasting each other, until he suddenly grabs my upper arms and flips us so I’m on my back. He hovers above me, resting his weight on his forearms at either side of my head, so as not to crush me beneath him. He dips his head down so his forehead is resting against mine, his beautiful eyes never breaking contact. I bite my bottom lip and watch as his pupils dilate, his familiar sky-blue irises darkening with need.
“Fuck, if you knew what doing that does to me,” he says gruffly. Before I can respond, he slides his thumb across my bottom lip, and I dart my tongue out to lick it. He groans like he’s in pain and slides down my body until he’s resting between my parted thighs. He stills, and I prop myself up on my elbows to see what’s made him stop, only to see him inhaling my scent. I blush.
“Grayson,” I squeak, dropping back onto the bed and flinging my arm over my eyes. I swear he actually growls at me.
“Look at me,” I ignore him, keeping my eyes covered, completely mortified, “I mean it Lia, look how much I want you.” I reluctantly remove my arm and look back down at him where he’s licking his lips, before yanking my sleep shorts down and finding me bare underneath. His expression goes from hungry to ravenous before he leans down and licks hard up my slit, from opening to clit, and back down again. He repeats it several times until I’m soaked from more than just his saliva. The visual is filthy, and I nearly come just from watching him. I clutch the bedsheets at my sides as he repeats the motion again and again. Then he’s spreading my legs out further and sliding a finger into my heat. He adds a second finger and crooks them, easily finding my most sensitive spot on my inner walls, and my back arches in response. He repeats the action while simultaneously concentrating his talented mouth on my nub of nerves, swirling round and round. I’m so close, and I can’t make my mind up if it’s too much or if I want more. My body takes over and the next second I’m grinding down onto his face chasing my climax, my hands gripping the back of his head as he chuckles,
“You like that baby?” He flattens his tongue and laps at my pussy more softly this time. My orgasm continues to build until he suddenly withdraws his fingers. He parts my folds and sucks gently on my clit. I instantly explode,
“Jesus. Fuck. Grayson!” I scream out his name before he clamps his hand over my mouth. Dee’s house is huge, but even so, there’s no way either of us want my potential dad, or anyone else for that matter, hearing us. As the waves of pleasure start to subside, Grayson eases back, a proud grin etched on his face, his chin glistening with my arousal. I should be embarrassed, but fuck if it doesn’t make me feel even hotter for him right now.
“I need you,” I whisper. “Please.” Grayson quickly pulls off his pants and tosses them onto the floor, before moving back to hover over me. He leans down to kiss me quickly on the lips,
“You never have to beg me. I’m yours. I will always be yours,” And with that, he slides his long length into me in a firm, smooth action. The fit is tight at first, but as he begins to move inside me I stretch perfectly to accommodate him. He starts to move faster, but he never takes his eyes off mine, making love to me like our bodies were made for each other, like we’re two halves of the same being.
Minutes later, his shoulders bunch, and he adjusts his position. The extra pressure on my clit sets off my second orgasm, and as I tighten around him, he curses under his breath and his whole body tenses. He bucks into me one last time, and I’m flooded with his wet heat.
The orgasm he’d given me earlier with his mouth was mind-blowing, but this right now is something else entirely. It feels like a claiming, one that I never want to end.
Chapter Sixty-One
GRAYSON
“So you think it’s possible?” I ask, for probably the third time.
“We’ve been over this. It’s more than possible. I’m confident we can do this, and not only that, he’ll never be able to prove it was you.” I’ve been on the phone to Joe’s contact for the last hour. He must owe Joe a pretty big favour to be so willing to help me, and I’m thanking God for whatever that was. I thought I was pretty adept, but this guy is on another level. He has years of experience and some serious skills, and he’s willing to put them to use to take down my father. I’m aware I’ll owe Joseph and his friend big after this but I’ll make it my life’s mission to repay them.
“He will definitely know it was me.” I state.
