Page 25 of Cyber
When we finally parted, we were both breathless. “Give me your house key, Iris.” I held out my hand expectantly.
“Why?”
“Stop asking questions and just give it to me.” I closed my fist around the cold metal before swinging myself out of the truck and heading towards her door.
“Cyber?” Maggie flicked on her lamp as I trudged up the stairs with Iris securely in my arms. “What...oh.” A knowing smile flickered across her face. “I'm glad it was good news.”
I smiled in return but didn't say a word as I headed towards Iris’ room.
“Well, that was embarrassing.” Iris turned from me the instant her feet hit the rug.
“Why?” I kicked the door shut with the heel of my boot. “What do you think is about to happen?”
“I thought we...” Her voice faltered.
Using both hands to turn her to face me, I grinned at her. “Oh, I want to, Iris, like really fucking want to, but you need to be ready.”
“I am ready.”
Capturing her wrists, I pulled her into my body, my lips curving over hers. “No, you’re not.” She wasn't ready at all. And I wasn’t that much of an asshole that I would push her past her limits. Not yet anyway. “Now grab your pjs and let's clean you up.”
She pouted. “It’s just sex, Cyber, it doesn’t have to mean anything.”
I knew all about sex not meaning anything, but with her it had to be different. It already was different. Because she was Iris, and I was me. Nothing that had happened between us had ever been normal.
“You're just going to leave me like this?”
“No, Iris.” I tightened my grip. “I'm staying tonight. I’m not going to fuck you though.” No matter how much I wanted to, I wasn't going to touch her. Because I was right about that, she wasn't ready to be intimate yet. “I just think it's about time I spent the night with you, don't you?”
13
Iris
It wasstrange being in bed with Cyber, after all that time. But what was stranger was the fact that I wasn’t freaked out at all by his half naked body stretched out next to mine. Maybe I should have been more surprised that he hadn’t tried anything on. He just lay there, his arms crossed behind his head, snoring softly.
It was me that wished something would happen. Me who wanted him to push me down onto the mattress and remind me of the woman I used to be. I hadn’t enjoyed sex in years. It was just something I had to endure to survive. But lying next to him, feeling the heat from his skin warming mine, rekindled something in me.
Violet was alive.
I was alive.
And I would get her back. I would do whatever it took to get her back, but that didn't mean I had to stop living. I wanted to feel like me again. To heal.
Huffing softly, I rolled onto my side. Sleep wouldn’t come no matter how hard I tried; I was like an elastic band that was stretched too tight.
“Why are you moving away from me?” Cyber’s hands pulled me back against him, his chest against my back as he rolled over with me. There was no sign of sleep in his voice. He had been pretending. I didn't say anything as I relaxed against him. His breath was hot on my shoulder.
“Iris?” He prompted again. And this time it wasn't his breath on my shoulder, it was his lips. It was like he couldn't help himself.
“I didn't want to disturb you.”
Moving my hair away from the back of my neck, Cyber's lips trailed up. His heavy arm came to rest over me.
“I was enjoying having you in bed with me.”
“I thought you were asleep,” I responded lamely. Truth was, I didn't know what the hell I had been thinking. Everything but Violet and getting her back was just a muddled mess in my mind.
“No.” Cyber's hand came down on my stomach, his fingers stroking over it. It was a tender caress, and one I didn't know how to respond to. “I was just enjoying you next to me,” he admitted.
