Forbidden Hunger (Forbidden series Book 3) Page 6

  “Dad!” Eden yells at me. “Is it true, what that man said? That Tori’s your girlfriend?”

  “Sweetheart,” I say, trying to soothe her. “The police will be here any minute. We’ll talk about it later, all right?”

  “Just answer me.” Her expression holds a mixture of anger, pain, and disbelief. “Is she or isn’t she?”

  Girlfriend is an entirely inadequate word for what I feel. “I care for Tori,” I say quietly. “Very deeply.”

  A knock sounds at the door. “Police!” a voice calls. I go to answer it, but the stricken look on my daughter’s face tells me we won’t find any easy acceptance from her.

  14

  Talking to the police takes a little while, but once Ashton explains everything – the restraining order, the divorce, the history of domestic violence – they slap cuffs on a belligerent, cursing Hopper and take him away.

  After the whole ordeal, I need a shower. And then, feeling a little like I’m heading for my own execution, I go to Eden’s room.

  Ashton comes out just as I raise my hand to knock. “Any luck?” I whisper.

  He shakes his head, looking as shaken and tired as I feel. “She’s in no mood to listen. Not to me, anyway. Maybe you’ll have better luck.”

  Steeling myself, I go in. Eden’s sitting on the bed, hugging a pillow. She doesn’t look at me.

  “Eden–”

  “I trusted you.” The hurt in her voice carves a ragged hole in my chest. “I thought of you like a sister, and you were messing around with my father behind my back. Did you make up that whole story about being evicted so you could use me to get close to him?”

  “Eden!”

  “Well? Did you?”

  “No. I’ve never lied to you, Eden.” She lets out a disgusted snort. “Except by omission, when I started to care for Ashton.”

  “So he’s Ashton to you now. How long did it take you to worm your way into his affections?”

  Pain slashes through me. I knew Eden wasn’t likely to take my relationship with Ash well, but I never expected this. “We didn’t plan this, Eden. Either of us. It just … happened.”

  “You both betrayed me!” she cries. “I never want to see you again – either of you.”

  I gather what shreds of composure I have left. “Do you want me to leave?”

  “Do what you like. Both of you. I don’t care.”

  She doesn’t look at me when I quietly make my exit. Ashton’s in the living room, nursing a drink. I tell him, “I think I need to go to a hotel for a few days.”

  “Tori–”

  “She’s devastated, Ash. In her mind, we’ve both betrayed her. The best thing we can do is give her time.”

  “Fuck.” He scrubs his hands over his face. “All right, I’ll arrange a room for you.”

  “Thank you.” I sigh. “I’d better go and pack.”

  Ashton drives me to the hotel himself, and escorts me up to my room. When we get there, I lay a hand on his cheek. “I think it’s best if we don’t see each other for a few days, until Eden calms down.”

  His face is a picture of frustration, but he nods in reluctant agreement. “For a few days.” Lifting my hand, he kisses it. “I’ll see you soon.”

  “Soon,” I echo, and pray that it isn’t a lie.

  15

  Two miserable days have passed, and Eden is still acting like I kicked her puppy. The apartment is too quiet and empty with Tori gone, and Eden’s spending most of her time in her bedroom.

  I’ve talked to Tori on the phone, but we’ve agreed not to see each other just yet, to give Eden time. The problem is, I see no signs that my daughter’s attitude is changing, that she’s even considering another point of view.

  It’s evening, and we’re sharing a tense dinner. Eden’s picking sullenly at her food, and I’m having trouble forcing mine down even though Carole’s cooking is delicious. “How are your classes going?” I ask, in a feeble attempt to make conversation.

  Eden jerks up one shoulder. She doesn’t reply, doesn’t look at me. I’ve had enough. Setting my glass down with a snap, I say, “Eden. You’re being childish.”

  “I have a right to my feelings!” she cries.

  “And so do I.”

  “You went behind my back–”

  “I fell in love, Eden. Tori and I are both adults – and so, for that matter, are you. You’re old enough to understand that this happens, that people fall in love, and sometimes it’s with someone that others don’t approve of. The world can’t always arrange itself to your liking.”

  Her eyes fill with tears. “Eden,” I say softly. “You’ve been my whole world since the day I found out you were on the way. I’ve worked hard to give you a good life, and I don’t regret a moment of it. I love you; you’ll always be important to me. But I deserve to be happy too.”

  I take my plate to the kitchen, then get my coat from the closet. “Are you going to get Tori?” Eden asks. Her voice is thick with unshed tears, but she’s stopped crying.

  “Yes.”

  She nods, but doesn’t say anything else. I kiss the top of her head and let myself out.

  Minutes later, I’m knocking on the door of Tori’s room. She opens it and her face lights up. “Ash!”

  I pull her to me and kiss her, right there in the doorway where anyone can see us. It lasts a long time. “Eden?” she says breathlessly when I finally break off.

  “Is going to have to deal with it.” I push her gently back, into the room, and latch the door after it shuts behind us.

  “Then she hasn’t–”

  “We had a talk. She’ll come around.” I pull her close again. “I love you, Tori.”

  “Ash.” She stands on tiptoe to kiss me. “I love you too.”

  “You’ve brought me more happiness than I thought was possible. I don’t want to spend another day without you by my side.” We kiss again. “I want to give you everything.”

  Her arms wind around my neck. I pick her up, hands under her ass, so she can wrap herself around me. “I wanted you from the moment I met you,” she tells me. “I never thought it could happen, and now you’re my everything.”

  The kiss starts gentle, but quickly turns heated. Our clothes come off in a frenzy, and then we’re naked on the bed, our bodies entwined. Tori runs her hands all over my chest, my abs, as if memorizing me. It feels like a lifetime since we’ve been able to touch each other.

  I palm her breast, closing my mouth over it, and she arches against me. The need to reclaim her, every inch of her, takes over. From the tips of her fingers to the tips of her toes, I worship her delicate skin, the seeming fragility that masks so much strength.

  “Tori.” I kiss my way up her body to the point where her legs meet. “You’re mine.”

  “All yours,” she agrees. “And you’re mine.” I part her thighs and lick her open. “Ash!”

  Her moans and gasps fill the room as I devour her, finally closing my mouth over her swollen nub. She grabs handfuls of my hair, holding me to her as I suck, and suck, my fingers plunging into her slick wet channel.

  I curl my fingers inside her, applying pressure to her clit with my teeth, and she cries out as she comes, her body thrashing through the orgasm. It’s not enough, not for me. There’s a hunger in me to give her all the pleasure she can stand.

  And then to give her more.

  I send her over the edge again, and then again. “You’re glorious,” I tell her. “I could eat you all night long.”

  She squirms against me. “Baby, thank you, but I need you inside me. Please.”

  Laying a last gentle kiss on her pussy, I work my way up until I’m poised over her. She reaches for me, at home with my body now, and guides me to her opening. Her eyes roll back as I push slowly inside her.

  “Ash. I missed you. So much.”

  “I missed you too.” Trying to keep the pace easy for now, I start to move, stroking slowly in and out of her. I don’t want this to end too soon.

  But the urgency bui
lds, and builds, and it’s too much for both of us. I speed up until I’m drilling into her, her nails scoring my back, her legs bent at my sides. The healthy slap of flesh against flesh fills the room, the scent of our union an intoxicating perfume.

  “Tori,” I groan. I can feel my climax building at the base of my spine. “I’m close now. Come with me.”

  I’m ready to reach down and find her clit, or ask her to bring herself, but her head snaps back and she comes, hard, gripping me like a vise. I follow her into oblivion, pouring myself into her.

  When I’m aware of my surroundings again, we’re on our sides, cuddled close together. “Hi there,” I say.

  She gives me her beautiful smile. “Hi.”

  “Let’s get cleaned up.” I give her a kiss. “And then I’m taking you home.”

  Epilogue

  Eighteen months later ...

  I’m in the practice room Ashton created for me in our new apartment. It’s not huge, since the whole apartment is smaller than our old one, but it has a barre and a mirror and works just fine for keeping me on top of my game.

  Holding the barre, I lean forward, raising one leg high in the air behind me. I’m still in that position when Ash comes into the room. In the mirror, I meet his eyes and feel a tug deep inside.

  By the time I’ve got both feet on the floor, he’s standing behind me. His hands go to my waist; they’re big enough that he can completely encircle me and touch his fingers together. “Lovely,” he says.

  The tug turns to a tingle. His voice, his eyes, tell me my man wants to play. I cover his hands with mine and lean back against him, still watching him in the mirror. “How much time do we have before our dinner guests arrive?”

  “Enough,” he says with a smile that turns my bones to water. I’m wearing my leotard but no tights; his fingers trace the elastic bands hugging the insides of my thighs. Sensation sparks through my core.

  “Ash.”

  “Right here,” he says. “In front of the mirror.”

  We’ve never done it that way. “Naughty boy,” I tell him with my best sultry smile. He slides one hand over to cup me, and my head goes back against his chest.

  I moan as he strokes me through the fabric, making me wetter and wetter. His other hand comes up to toy with my breasts, cupping first one and then the other, his thumb and fingers plucking at my nipples until they’re swollen and aching.

  When his fingers finally delve into my slickness, I’m more than ready. “Now,” I say, needing him inside me. As I always do.

  He doesn’t answer, instead tugging my leotard down, helping me work my arms out of it, undoing my bra. Now the leotard is down around my waist and all of me above it is naked. Both hands work on my breasts now, his mouth on my neck, kissing and nibbling, biting down gently on the sensitive spot where my neck and shoulder meet. And still we watch each other in the mirror.

  “Ash!” I cry when I can’t take it anymore. I’ll die if I can’t have him; that’s how it always feels.

  “Bend over,” he says in a low voice. “Brace yourself against the barre.” I suck in a breath and obey, eager to feel him.

  I hear his zipper working, and then he tugs aside my leotard, my panties, and he’s nudging at my entrance. “Ohhh,” I moan as he pushes inside me. Even now, after all this time, he’s so big, filling me up completely.

  “Look at me,” Ash commands, and I meet his eyes in the mirror. “Keep looking at me.”

  So I watch him, my gaze never wavering as he starts to move, slowly at first, then faster and faster, hitting my g-spot with every stroke. My climax barrels down on me with shocking swiftness, building and swelling and bursting, hurling me into ecstasy.

  “Tori!” I’d closed my eyes as the force of my orgasm overwhelmed me. I open them again and stare at Ashton, our gazes locked while he powers into me, hard and fast, and I come again as he finds his own release.

  “Why haven’t we done that before?” he says when he can speak.

  “I don’t know, but we need to do it again.”

  “Right now we need to shower.”

  I manage to release the barre and stand upright. “You might need to carry me.”

  “And here I was hoping you could carry me.”

  Laughing, we make our way from the room side by side, arms around each other.

  Tonight is a very special dinner. We’ve got the table set with all our best linens and china and flatware, with fresh flowers in vases. I look around at our guests, my heart full.

  Eden’s here with her boyfriend Will. He’s a dancer with the New York Ballet – and now that we’ve graduated from the Barre Institute, so are Eden and I.

  It took a little time, but once she was able to see how happy her father and I make each other, she came around, just as Ashton said she would. Now she’s happy for us.

  Ashton’s brother Hunter is here too, along with his wife Lily. She and I have hit it off, and I’m glad that my sister-in-law is also a new friend.

  Best of all, my parents are here. Ash flew them in from Michigan as a surprise, so they could join in the festivities later tonight. It’s been so wonderful spending time with them, showing them the city I’ve come to love.

  And, of course, seeing them get to know Ashton … my truest love.

  “A toast,” Hunter says, raising his glass. “To new beginnings.”

  “To new beginnings,” we all chorus, and I take a sip of my champagne, smiling at Ash. That first dinner we shared seems like a lifetime ago. I spent it wishing for things I thought I could never have: Ashton, and a life with him.

  And now look at me. At us.

  “The caterers did a fabulous job, Ash. Everything looks great.”

  He puts his arm around me. “It’s a nice spread. And a nice crowd.”

  We’re at the final event of the evening: Ashton’s reception to celebrate the grand opening of his new law firm. It’s focused on family law, with a special emphasis on pro bono and low-income clients.

  Our newer, smaller apartment is part of the transition to our more modest lifestyle. Ashton has plenty of savings and investments, so we’re not hurting. I know he loves waking up in the morning with a renewed sense of purpose.

  Eden comes up and embraces her father. “Congratulations, Dad. I’m proud of you.” I get a hug too.

  “Speech!” someone calls out. The room is filled with friends, clients, and donors, people who believed in Ash’s vision and wanted to support it. Madame Ellis, standing hand in hand with Brad, catches my eye and gives me a warm smile.

  Ashton holds up his hands, and the room falls silent. “Thank you all for coming tonight. I had no idea, that day when I went for a walk in Central Park, that my life was about to change.”

  Lisa, who’s standing with a group of clients, beams at him. She’s gone back to school, and is training to be a paralegal. When she finishes, she’ll work for Ash.

  “I believe the protections of the law are meant for everyone,” he goes on, “not just the rich and powerful. In my own small way, I intend to be a part of making sure that’s true.

  “I appreciate, more than I can say, those of you who’ve come alongside to encourage me. You’ve given time, money, and heart to this project, and without all of you it wouldn’t have happened. So thank you.”

  Everyone claps. Ashton waits for the applause to die down, then says, “I have one person in particular whom I need to acknowledge.” He turns to me, and I immediately start to choke up.

  “Tori, every day, you make my life beautiful. It’s because of you, and the light you brought into my world, that I was willing and able to reach for more, to make myself a better man than I’d been. This journey wouldn’t have happened without you.

  “I want to spend the rest of my life trying to give you as much joy as you bring me.” He goes down on one knee, pulling out a velvet box, and opens it to reveal a gorgeous diamond ring. “Will you marry me?”

  My eyes are blurred with tears. I drop to my knees, throw my arms around h
im, and hang on tight. The crowd awwws.

  “Does that mean yes?” Ashton asks me. I nod, unable to speak, and hold out my hand. He slides the ring on my finger.

  The room bursts into cheers. I look at my parents; my mother’s crying, and my father is smiling like he just won the lottery. Framing Ash’s face in my hands, I kiss him tenderly. “I love you so much,” I whisper to him. “I’m so proud of you.”

  “With you at my side, I can do anything. I love you, Tori. I’m the luckiest man in the world.”

  And I’m a fairy-tale princess who’s found her prince. I never knew life could be so perfect.

  <<<<< >>>>>

  About the Author

  In the mood for something decadent, delicious, and provocative? Meet Mia Madison, purveyor of Forbidden Fantasies Romance. Come in, sit back, and relax. The candles are lit, and the dancing shadows on the wall promise sexy, seductive tales of spine-tingling love, leading to a pleasure-drenched happy-ever-after.

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  Also by Mia Madison

  Adamo Family series

  Tempting Tonio, Kissing Kosta, Craving Carlo, Vexing Victor, Reaching Rico, Lone Wolf, Dreaming Dante, Baring Brando, Risking Romero, Leaving Lando, Final Reckoning

  The Forbidden series

  Forbidden Intern, Forbidden Heat