Page 90 of Until Ace

With her last visit, my mother said all that needed to be said between us.

From time to time, I feel a little pang of longing for my sister, but then I remember what she was like in all the years before. One moment of humanity can’t eradicate all the hurt she delivered.

My dad still lives with his head buried in the sand, and I decided to leave him right there.

I don’t need them. In fact, I don’t even want them. There’s no way I will let them have even the slightest possibility of marring my happiness.

I have Beverly, Ida, and the rest of the girls.

I have Mia, and with her comes CeCe, who’s becoming a good friend.

I have Ken, who took one look at me once I went back to work, burst into tears, and hugged me before giving me that promotion I’d been asking for.

But most importantly, I have Ace.

Who I now realize I’ve failed to give the last piece of me, when he’s given me all of himself.

“Tonight, we celebrate,” he says, bringing me back to our conversation.

I close my eyes at the sound of his voice and smile.

He liked me saying I’m his woman.

No, he didn't just like it.

He cherished it.

God.

How is it possible I'm so lucky after all this time?

How is it possible that after all the misery, I found my future standing in my elderly neighbor's kitchen?

“Ace,” I whisper as my way of letting him know how much I like the fact that my calling myself his woman meant so much to him.

The feel of Ace, of him buried deep inside me, of his hands squeezing and then gliding over my heated skin, of his lips whispering over my breasts, then up to my neck, and then right behind my ear has me on the edge of insanity.

“Ace,” I whimper.

His only response is to tease my over-sensitive skin even more.

“Ace.” My whisper is a plea.

Do I want him to stop? Never.

Do I want him to continue? If he does, I will go crazy.

“Ace… Ace,” I chant desperately.

“I’ve got you, baby.”

My skin absorbs his voice. His breath, labored with his thrusts, brands it.

I moan his name as he hits the perfect spot inside me.

“Right here, Mandy,” he assures me. “I’m right here.”

And right then, he surges back in more forcefully, making my breath hitch.