DISCLAIMER: ALL HUSH HUSH CHARACTERS AND SONG BELONG TO RIGHTFUL OWNERS (NOT ME :( )
I AM SO SO SO SORRY THIS CHAPTER HAS TAKEN THIS LONG, I REALLY STRUGGLED TRYING TO BALANCE IT ALL, TO DO THE SITUATION JUSTICE. I HOPE IT MEETS YOUR APPROVAL, UP UNTIL THIS POINT OTHER THAN PROM NIGHT, THINGS HAVE BEEN MORE HOT AND HEAVY ACTION BETWEEN THEM, THE LEMONS HERE I WANTED TO DIFFERENT FEEL, ATMOSPHERE IS DIFFERENT GIVEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES SO I HOPE THAT THE TIME I TOOK IS WORTH IT...READ AND REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW PLZ!
CHAPTER
I'M NOT SORRY
"Patch, where are we going?"
"You'll see, Angel." I wasn't as prepared for this as I had wanted to be, but with Nora's mounting anxiety and my confrontation with Tristan Miller, who I wasn't at all convinced would heed my words, I needed to tell Nora how I felt. To say I was nervous about her reaction would be a gross understatement. I wanted this to be perfect but I hadn't had much time to plan it so I did the best I could and called ahead to the hotel I had taken her to on her prom night and rented the honeymoon suite with specific instructions for the room to be prepared for our arrival.
"Patch? What are we doing here?" Nora's eyes grew wide as her face lit up in recognition. Neither of us had been back to this resort since that night. "You said we needed to talk..." Her voice trailed off.
"Come on." I took her hand, helping her out of the car. "Let me grab our bags so we can check in."
"We're staying here?"
"Unless you would rather spend the night camped out in the parking lot, yes." I smirked.
"Smart-ass." She nudged me with her shoulder as I squeezed her hand.
"Better than being a dumb-ass, right?"
"You're awful." She laughed.
"Awfully sexy, awfully good, awfully..."
"Cocky." She rolled her eyes.
"I have a reason to be." I winked at her as we approached the check-in counter. "We have reservations, Cipriano."
"Oh yes, you called ahead. You're suite is ready for you." I couldn't help but notice how she gave Nora an evil look, or the way her blouse was unbuttoned two more buttons when she came back with my room receipt and leaned towards me low enough to give me a full view of her overly ample bosom. I wanted to ask her if she realized how desperate she looked. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Nora assess her and narrow her eyes at the young brunette.
"Is everything ready as I requested?" I raised a questioning eyebrow at 'Shayna', choosing to ignore her blatant attempts to get my attention. I would have slid her my number two months ago no matter who I was with, not that I'd ever spend an entire night away with any woman besides Nora. Things were different now, I pulled Nora tight to me making it clear that we were together and she should back off.
"Yes sir, the room is ready and waiting as per your instructions. "Shayna's, voice took on an edge as she glanced at my arm wrapped tightly around Nora.
"Thank-you, Shayna."
"If you need anything, anything at all, let me know Mr. Cipriano, just ask for me by name and I will make sure all of your needs are met."
"You have got to be kidding me, I am standing right here." I heard Nora mutter vehemently under her breath and I have to bite back a chuckle.
"If I need anything, Shayna, I will be sure to let the manager know. Thank you."
"Is there a reason you booked the honeymoon suite? I mean, aren't those for people on their honeymoons?" Nora raised her eyebrow at me as we waited for the elevator.
"All the other rooms were booked." I lied and avoided her eyes.
"Really. Hmm, I don't believe you, Cipriano. Nice try." She narrowed her eyes at me.
"The accommodations are nicer." I smirk at her.
"So why the sudden nostalgia and trip down memory lane with this little excursion? You said we needed to talk, most talks don't involve the honeymoon suite in the hotel where the guy took your virginity."
"Keep reminding me of taking it and we won't be leaving the elevator." I trapped her between the wall and my body after the door closed behind us. How could this woman take me from a stomach tight with anxiety to a gut burning with lust in under two seconds flat and barely a word? The thought of that night was doing wicked things to me when I needed to focus on what I was going to say. When the elevator dinged I led Nora down the hall to the door of our room, stopping to take a breath, strengthen my resolve and prepare for whatever was to come. I slid the key card in and heard the door lock click praying that things were how I had asked them to be waiting. When the door swung open Nora gasped and her hand started to shake a little as she glanced at me eyes wide before returning to the sight before her. In the honeymoon suite decorated in vibrant red, fresh brilliant white and gold accents danced the flames of more than a hundred candles in her favorite scent, on the plush carpeting was a wide path of red rose petals that led to the giant bed also sprinkled with the same petals in the middle of the room that faced the blazing fireplace. In the center of the bed was a tray containing a bucket of ice, champagne and plates of fresh fruit. There was music filling the silence between us and when Nora closed her eyes to listen I could see tears start to form as she absorbed the lyrics...
...The day we met,
Frozen I held my breath
Right from the start
I knew that I'd found a home for my heart...
... beats fast
Colors and promises
How to be brave?
How can I love when I'm afraid to fall?
But watching you stand alone
All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow
One step closer
I have died everyday waiting for you
Darling don't be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more
Time stands still
Beauty in all she is
I will be brave
I will not let anything take away
What's standing in front of me
Every breath
Every hour has come to this
One step closer
...And all along I believed I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more...
I'll love you for a thousand more...
One step closer
I gently tugged her into the room, her legs didn't seem to want to cooperate.
"Patch?" Nora's voice was a soft broken whisper. "What...What's going on?" Her eyes kept darting around the room.
"I have something I need to tell you, something I need to ask you." I swallowed hard, still not sure where or how to begin. "I didn't have anytime to really plan this, I mean I did, but...I don't know if there is such things as the right words, I'm not good at stuff like this and you were just released from the hospital, I wanted more time so I didn't screw this up, but then Tristan showed up again and we had our little talk and that made me realize I'd already waited too long, I couldn't wait anymore, I might have missed my opportunity but if I hadn't I couldn't risk..."
"Patch, what are you trying to say? I don't understand." She looked at me in total loss and confusion.
I let go of her hand and ran my fingers through my hair before walking over to the fireplace.
"I wanted to apologize." I started.
"For what?" Nora asked.
"Let me finish, I said I wanted to apologize, but then I realized I'm not sorry. Do you know what I really am? Selfish, because I've made bad choices that hurt you. If I had to do it all over again to get to this point I would, because I would rather put you through all the heartache loving me has cost you than to live the remainder of my years missing out on the possibility of having something deeper with you. I'd rather die right now than miss out on a single moment I've spent with you, but I'd also rather die than live the remainder of my years remembering how happy I was and how good I had it before I lost you to someone else, because that's who I am Nora, and I'm not going to change. There aren't enough apologies in the world to encompass all the pain I've brought you or all the ways I don't deserve you." Nora is standing there staring at me in total disbelief as I glared angrily into the fire.
"Fine, then I'm not sorry either. I'm not sorry that I met you or that I fell in love with you the second I laid eyes on you. I'm not sorry that knowing you has made me question everything I believed in about love, that in the midst of shattering my heart you managed to make me feel the most loved, to give me the most love. It was you in the moments I was fighting death that kept me alive. You've been a terrible person, you made all the wrong hurtful choices, and in all the decisions I've made this may prove to be the worst one, but I'm not sorry that I'm in love with you. I love you Patch...I lov-"
I rushed over to her, claiming her lips as mine before she could finish saying it again.
Nora barely registered that she was being guided backwards toward the bed until Patch pushed her onto her back and covered her with the top half of his body, kissing her so thoroughly that if she'd been standing, she'd have been left dizzy. She loved his mouth, the way he was kissing her with slow, deliberate kisses, as if he had all the time in the world. This wasn't the man he sometimes was who gave brief kisses, then went for the action. No, this was soft, sensual, sweet. He spent his time lingering at her lips, using his tongue to lick over hers, to draw her bottom lip into his mouth, to explore until she could barely breathe. And then he moved his lips over her jaw, down her neck and over her collarbone, eliciting chill bumps over her skin.
He ghosted his fingers down her sides and slid the lightweight material covering her up and off of her body and when he rolled his tongue over the swell of her breasts at the edge of her navy lace demi-bra, she wasn't sure she'd every felt anything so teasingly sensual since their first time, oh and he could be sensual when he wanted she shivered. Nora wanted to rip off her bra so he could ravish her nipples, but again, Patch seemed to be in no hurry. He finally slid his hand down her back to release the clasp on her bra, slowly drawing the straps down her arms.
He stared down at her, using the tip of his finger to draw circles around her nipples, making her body tremble.
"Gorgeous." He said, then bent and took one already erect bud into his mouth.
She gasped in, arching up to give him more. Her fingers threaded into his hair to hold him in place as he licked, nipped and suckled her nipples and drover her crazy with the expertise of his mouth. She shuddered when he moved his tongue down her ribs and over her belly, anticipating his next move.
"Let's get these off." He said, tugging her capris down her legs, leaving her wearing only her panties.
Again he took his time to caress and admire her body.
"You're so beautiful, Angel."
Nora reached for him, running her fingers over his torso. "And you have too many clothes on."
"I can fix that." Patch hopped off the bed, pulling his shirt off before unzipping his jeans and dropping them, revealing his magnificently sculpted body, and very impressive erection.
"Uh, wow." She said, rolling over to her side. In all these years and countless times together she'd never gotten accustom to the splendor of his Adonis body or the beauty of his package.
Patch grinned. "You're good for my ego." He climbed on the bed and rolled her onto her back. "But right now, let's worship your body. I have some orgasms to make up to you."
"I'd like to complain and say we should take care of you, but I'm all for you worshiping my body."
He laughed. "I love a woman who knows what she wants, and there's plenty of time for me later."
She knew she should be taking in what he had said, but how could she think about anything when she could focus on the gorgeous, built god, king of her orgasms who was drawing her panties down her legs, pulling her to the edge of the bed, and putting his mouth-
"Oh gawd yes, right there." Fire coursed through her veins and her words became lost as Patch pleasured her with his expert lips and tongue until she was mindless, until all she could think was climbing that mountain until she reached the peak and dove head first into the awaiting abyss of nirvana.
His tongue was sweet balm to her tortured senses. When she came, he was right there, holding her hands their fingers laced together as he took her over the edge and flying through the heavens like an angel. She arched and cried out, her entire body vibrating as Patch held tight to her hips and claimed her womanhood as his with his mouth again. He greedily drank from her until the last drop of her honey had been careful consumed before placing a tender kiss to the bundle of nerves responsible for that moment.
He kissed his way up her body. Her utterly motionless body. Nora was sure she was done for, but by the time he reached her mouth and planted a kiss on her that scorched her lips, she was convinced more than ever he had magical powers. She twined her legs around his, aware of the ever-constant erection he'd had this whole time.
She reached for him, wrapping her slender fingers around his length and thickness. His body was warm, but there he was hot and pulsing. She stroked him and squeezed, making Patch growl and grasp her wrist.
"We don't want this to be over with before its begun, Angel."
Nora smiled. "I think it's your turn."
"I could be gallant and give you some time to rest, but as I told you already I'm selfish and all I can think about is being inside of you again."
Heat ignited like a gas flame suddenly turned on high in her stomach. "I want that too."
He palmed her stomach. "You have always had an incredible body. A sarcastic attitude hidden in a sweet mouth with lips that curve in the most delicious way when you smile that makes me want to kiss you, and a laugh that makes my groin tight with need. There's never a moment that you're not right there in my mind wreaking havoc with my focus, demanding my attention."
"Tell me what you think about." In the haze of her amazing afterglow, and his mind-blowing confession (that they had still to discuss, she thought before filing that away for a little later), he made her feel brave enough to ask the questions she wanted the answers to, he always did.
"I think about the way you challenge me. You're contradictions, how sweet you are, the compassion and empathy you have towards others that can turn explosive when someone you love is hurt or wronged. I think about the way you walk, with that sassy little swing in your hips, the way you manage to dress so fucking sexy, but look totally classy. And I think about doing things like this all the time." He leaned over her and took the tip of her right nipple between his lips, rolling his tongue over it, then drawing it into his mouth to suckle.
Nora shuddered out a breath at the exquisite sensation, her body tightening in reaction. She raked her fingers through his hair, unable to do anything but watch as he once again mastered her body. Giving up control was something she'd only ever been able to do with Patch, to him she'd gladly hand herself over because he demanded nothing. He only gave to her in a way that no one understood. When they were together he drew his pleasure from giving her pleasure.
He lifted up, his gaze locked with hers. "I wanted to get you naked since we left home, I wanted to touch you, to make your body burn for me." His fingers crept low, covering her sex, taking his time to coax a response from her that only he would ever get, leaving her languid and needy as she arched against him.
Nora lifted her gaze to his, her breath hitching when she saw the hunger consuming his eyes. "I really like your hands on me."
When he finally grabbed a condom, she was more than eager to feel him inside her, to share that intimacy with him again.
He tore the wrapper open and rolled the thin silicone over him, then gently nudged her legs apart before sliding deep within her in one swift and powerful stroke.
A soft moan escaped her lips, and he captured her mouth in a searing kiss that made her quiver, inside and out. When he began to move within her, she clenched tightly around him, the sensations overwhelming. She felt like she was falling, she flailed for something to hold on to. Patch grasped her hands and lace his fingers with hers, centering her.
"Nora." His voice was but a gentle whisper in her ear.
Nora opened her eyes, and there he was, moving above her, his eyes blacker than black filled with the same hungry love and passion that racked her body with a need so intense it couldn't be put in words. She surrendered into that hunger and he fed her, leveling his hips to hit that spot deep within her that only he had ever touched, only he had ever found that wound her tighter and tighter until the coil would snap and her body would yield to her explosive orgasm.
He'd just given her one and yet here she was, poised on the edge again, and as her stomach swirled faster, Patch smirked with pride at the knowledge of what his body could do to hers.
"That's it, Angel." Patch moved his body with perfect unfaltering skill, knowing exactly what she needed from years of experience memorizing every minuscule detail of her bodies responses.
He was exactly what she needed, he always had been, that's what scared the hell out of her. No one could ever live up to Patch, no one.
Nora tensed, and he paused.
"What?" He asked tenderly, holding himself up on his hands. "Is something wrong?" His voice and face etched with concern.
They would have time to talk later, time for both of them to finish laying their cards on the table, for now she wanted to savor the fact that he had acknowledged her love, that he was at least trying to reciprocate, the rest they could work out, for now she wanted to enjoy the moment and the freedom saying those three words out loud at last had given her.
She cupped the back of his neck and pulled him down to her again. "No. Everything's right."
She kissed him, wrapping her arms around him, and he moved against her once more, taking her right back to that spot where she forgot everything except that mindless ecstasy he gave her. He grasped her hips and held her, rubbing his body against hers until it detonated with the force dynamite that left her crying out his name over and over and then louder when she felt the pulsating sensation of Patch's own explosive orgasm as his body shook within her throbbing walls that were clenching down in rhythmic waves that made it almost too tight to move and he chanted her name in a voice so sweet, so reverent she wanted to cry. She clung to him as they shuddered and he slowed his movements, when the last of both of them had ridden out the final of the waves, then they lay still, his breath warm against her neck.
They were both sweating, Patch's heart was pounding against her chest. Or maybe that was her heart, she couldn't tell. She was wrecked, physically and emotionally, tied to Patch's body, wrapped around him, within him, in ways she'd never escape from.
He kissed the side of her neck, nuzzling close to her, he didn't seem to be in any hurry to move, so she stroked his back, playing with the slightly longer curls at the base of his silky hair and just...breathed.
When he finally rolled over, he left the bed for a minute. Nora watch him, enjoying the view of his great ass. He came back a minute later and climbed into bed with her, tucking her against his chest and wrapping his arms protectively around her.
"I have every intention of repeating that between every conversation we have." His eyes twinkled with promise and mischief.
Nora laughed. "You're on." She said before their faces grew serious.
"I realized a lot of things while staying at the hospital with you, about myself, about you and about us. I've kept everyone out of my heart, even you I didn't give my all to, not in the way you deserved. I did a lot of very bad things, as we both know, Angel. I was selfish with you, I had given up all the dreams I had previous to Dabria, and I gave up my ability to make yours come true. I didn't realize or maybe I just didn't want to admit that deep deep down I still wanted those same things I had before she broke my heart. You and I have never had secrets, or so I thought, and here we were with two big one's. I've seen the look in your eyes, the way you knew I was holding something back from you after the accident, and I read you well enough to know that something has been really eating away at you, causing you to pull away from me and avoid eye contact, your body has even been tense. I see the mask you try and wear now, how I missed it before I can only blame myself for, I obviously didn't want to see it or admit it was there. I didn't want to keep the knowledge of my feelings from you, but I've been scared in so many ways Angel, it's so soon, you're still recovering and I didn't want to stress you out, in the end that's exactly what I saw I was doing, scaring you as much as myself because in all honesty, I'm terrified that you're going to think I'm telling you all of this out of fear and pity for what happened, and I'm equally as afraid of rejection or being too late. You've been waiting this whole time without my acknowledgment, keeping this huge secret that had to rip you apart inside in so many ways, and yet never once did you leave my side or stop loving me. You never once let me in on the pain I was putting you through by telling me how you felt, worried about me over yourself, sacrificing yourself for me once again. I understand why you kept it hidden, it had the potential to ruin what we had, neither of us would ever want to lose that and to be honest, I don't know how I would have handled your feelings after Dabria. I built walls so high they blinded me and not even you could penetrate them. The truth is though, Angel, I haven't been able to stay away from you from the moment you first smiled at me. You always came first, even before Dabria when I was still 'happily' engaged. She knew you would always would and you did, hell, I drove over seven hours to make it in time for your prom night so I could be your first. Nothing I have ever experienced physically or emotionally has before or after that night, come close to how it feels to be connected to you. Every time we're together it's like coming home. Even the slightest brush of your hand when we pass sends jolts of electricity ricocheting through my body. From the time you were old enough to date I effectively chased away every interested boy, I told myself it was me being a protective 'big brother' that made me do those things, now I see that's never changed and it wasn't brotherly at all, it was jealousy, pure and simple." Nora's eyes were still penetrating his, a look of disbelief and bewilderment mixed with shock and awe was written all over her face as she listened intently to all he was saying, not sure if she was hearing him correctly. "I always wanted you to have the things you dreamed about, the life you planned and wanted growing up, the house, the car, the loving husband and great kids, even as an adult I've wanted nothing less than that for you. That didn't stop my selfishness, I told you repeatedly not to settle, making myself believe it was with best intentions for you, but now I think what I was really saying is that I couldn't lose you, didn't want to lose you and that you being with anyone but me would be doing just that, settling. It wasn't fair, I practically demanded, forced you into staying with me while denying you everything you wanted and needed because I was terrified of three little words. You've been my best friend my whole life and I couldn't even tell you I loved you. You were the only person I have truly ever loved, but those walls had me saying anything to get that message across except the one's you needed most.
Patch stroked her chin as he continued.
"Then there was Tristan and we fought, it ate me alive. We'd never had a fight quite that bad. I could barely stomach another man dancing with you and here there was another man who had touched you intimately, been places with you that only I had been and it made me physically ill and filled with rage inside, I lashed out at you and I'll never forgive myself for that, you didn't deserve it. You're an adult, you have freedom, we aren't married or exclusive, hell, you watched me over and over again with other women climbing in and out of my bed when the whole time you wanted it to be only me and you forever. There I was throwing a fit like a two-year old whose favorite toy had been taken when Tristan happened, that was so unfair of me, you were kicking women out of my bed that overstayed their welcome and I explode on you for one time when you owed me nothing. There are not enough sorry's in the world, large enough apologies or words in the world to encompass how I feel about all I have done to you, all I have put you through, whether I had any idea of how you really felt in your heart of not. The fact I was so blind to have not seen that in all of this time is a testament to how much I don't deserve you. I couldn't have offered you more at the time though, and you knew that." Patch's eyes hadn't left Nora's, hoping that she would see the sincerity in his words.
"When I heard that you had been in an accident Angel, I didn't know if you were still alive when I arrived at the hospital. God, you flat lined, they had to keep restarting your heart, you were hurt so badly and all I could think was that if your life ended so would mine" Patch closed his eyes to try to collect himself, the night still painfully fresh in his mind, but then he felt the searing heat of Nora's lips against his own and when he opened his eyes and met her gaze everything faded away for that moment.
Nora stroked the area teasingly around his groin, never quite touching where she knew he needed her to. He had looked so lost, so hurt she couldn't bare it, she needed to take his mind off of that experience and things had gotten so serious suddenly. She traced the sexy V-line of his hips with her tongue then moved to place repeated nips over his inner thighs before soothing them with her lips and tongue. Each time she moved, she turned her head in such a way that the silken curls in the length of her hair lightly brushed against his groin. His groan was a cross between one of abject pleasure and torturous agony. He gritted his teeth against the intense sensations. All of this earned him a deep chuckle from Nora.
It seemed like an eternity but finally she took him in her hands, alternately stroking and squeezing. He contracted the well-defined muscles of his abdomen in anticipation when he felt her breath fan across him. Again she teased, kissing and then licking from base to tip, lingering there only long enough to flit her tongue several times. She returned to the base, taking her sweet time there for a very long moment.
Moving back up, Nora closed her lips around the tip, drawing ever so slightly in a light suckle. Patch's moans became louder, as she took as much of him in as possible. His hips gently rose and fell in unison with the movements of her head.
When he felt himself approaching the brink, he reached down, fisting his hand in her hair and pulled her away.
Nora softly kissed his neck and chin as she waited for his breathing to calm. When it did she straddled his hips, rubbing her warmth against his now fully engorged body. "I didn't say you could touch." She whispered against his lips teasingly.
"Sue me." Patch nipped her ear lob.
The rubbing of her pelvis against him was driving him insane. Rolling over, he pushed her onto her back. Pinning both of her hands above her head with his left, he used his right to drive her beyond the limits of madness.
Patch kissed her, as his hand kneaded the firmness of first one breast then the other, gently pinching the taut peaks. He stroked and massaged his way across her hips and belly. He squeezed her left thigh as he approached the apex of her body. She grunted half in pleasure, half in protest, as he caressed her. She dug her nails in the back of the hand that held hers. Her own desire already evident, he stroked her everywhere, but that one place that would push her over the edge.
Finally, he drew his finger ever so lightly across that slick nub and her body shivered in response. He returned again and again, to glide over it but never applying any pressure. Still her hips arched upwards and she felt the delicious heaviness spread deep in her belly. He eased one finger inside of her body, using another to stroke in earnest. She knew he wasn't going to stop until he had sent her into the abyss. She tore her mouth away from his. "Not fair...I stopped." Nora groaned breathlessly as she fought the growing wave.
"All's fair, Angel." Patch's voice was equally breathless and hoarse. A triumphant smile played on his lips as he kissed her on the chin. "Besides." He continued. "I want to hear you purr for me."
"I don't purr." Nora denied in a half-hearted protest. Her breaths came faster.
"Yes, you do." He captured her mouth in a deep kiss.
The movements of his hand became more intense. He increased the pressure and speed. A purr-like moan sounded in the back of her throat. He grinned. Nothing turned him on like that sound. Her hips moved to the rhythm set by his hand, until he heard the breath catch in her throat and her body stiffen only to release in a series of jolting convulsions.
Patch continued to kiss her softly until her body had settled. Only then did he release her hands.
Starting with her left knee, he kissed a path down along her inner thigh to the place his hand had been just moments before. With his lips and tongue, he again aroused her to the point of breathlessness. When he heard the purr start in her throat, then and only then did he draw that swollen, hard peak into his mouth and begin to nurse the pleasure out of it. Almost immediately, he felt her body begin to tremble, and the hips that had arched to meet him began to quake. Her nails dug into the back of his hands as he clasped her fingers in between his. He gave one more flick of his tongue and a final long, hard pull with his mouth letting his teeth glaze the over-sensitive flesh as he pulled it in. With a cry between gasp and a scream, she exploded into thousands of tiny pieces. This was all about her, not him, not this time not anymore.
Patch kissed his way up her body, stopping to gently suckle on each breast. Reaching her mouth, he joined his body to hers, very slowly, agonizingly slowly. His own body trembled with the restraining effort. Pulling her thighs high up around his waist, he began to move.
He started slowly, but when Nora locked her ankles around him and dug her nails into his sweat slicked shoulders, what little control Patch still possessed snapped. He pressed his body in and out of hers with fast, deep but rhythmic strokes. He swallowed her moans of ecstasy when he lowered his mouth to hers, his tongue duplicated the movements of his lower body.
Nora frantically clung to him as she felt the heat build once again deep in her loins. Piece by tiny piece she broke apart, her body repeatedly tightening around him, pulling him, caressing him, coaxing him. With one final long, deep and powerful thrust, he froze his body tight, his eyes squeezed shut for a second before he looked at her and both their worlds collided, a deep rumbling growl low in his chest broke free as his release tore from him. Nora screamed his name as his spasms triggered her own, his warm, life giving fluid flowed in stead jets into hers like a gun firing rapid shots continuously. That was five orgasms for her already.
The feel of that liquid warmth was almost too much, pushed her beyond the brink. Her entire being was wracked with the force of her climax and her nails had laid a path starting at his shoulders down his back and his left shoulder bore her bite mark making him hers as blood seeped from both wounds.
Patch collapsed on top of her. He was heavy, but it wasn't a weight she was ready to be free of. When he could breathe again, he raised up on his elbows and kissed her slowly, deeply on her mouth. Pulling his body from hers with a groan that elicited an answering whimper from Nora, he lifted his weight off to move to her side, drawing her into the cradle of his body.
Nuzzling her damp auburn tendrils, he asked. "Do you still think you don't purr?"
"No." She grinned mischievously. "I know I don't."
"Do I have to prove it to you?" He drew her earlobe between his lips and gave it a gentle suck then nip.
Nora reached back, taking him in her hand. "Only if you can." she smirked.
"Oh I'm sure I can." His right hand drifted down lower across her belly.
Nora woke a few hours later to the feeling of being watched, it was something she had grown accustomed to since waking in the hospital and a soft smile crossed her lips.
"I know you're awake Angel, you might as well open those pretty eyes." Patch chuckled. "Or are you still to worn out."
"Never." Nora giggled and opened her eyes to gaze up at him. God he was the most gorgeous man she had ever met and her heart skipped a beat. It was a little after midnight and he had ravished her body to the point of numbness, she doubted he was done with her and the thought had her smiling again.
"You're smiling again. Care to share what about?" Patch arched a curious eyebrow at her.
"I was just thinking about how you take care of me." She ran a finger along the line of his masculine jaw line, making him briefly close his eyes at the tingling the lightest touch from her sparked in his body.
"I haven't always, I could have done better. I hurt you and for that I am deeply sorry, not that that will ever be enough. I'd met your basic needs and when you were still under sedation I learned how to care for all of your physical needs in every way I could. It started changing me, I realized that when I cared for you it gave me a sense of purpose, of being somehow important to someone. I mean, I knew I was important to you before, but I didn't really do anything for you you couldn't do for yourself. This was different, you needed me and the thought of being needed by someone before had always scared the living shit out of me as much as it was what I needed. I wasn't ready or wanting commitment ever and yet there I was, completely committed to you. It was a battle inside me to leave you long enough to clean up each day when all I wanted to do was talk to you and hold your hand. Slowly I think my carefully built walls were crumbling without me noticing at first."
"How could you stand to be in that room all the time without going crazy? It wasn't like I was the greatest conversationalist." Nora asked. It would have drove her mad, it did the short time she stayed after they lowered her meds enough for her to wake up.
"To begin with it was just day to day mundane things like reading our favorite books or news and events that were happening, but over the days without thinking about it I started talking about those shattered dreams I had and that led to talks about what I wanted in the future and that future included you, it always has. I hadn't fully faced my fears of love and marriage or having a family, but I was getting there. Then grandma started spending more time with me asking little questions only she would know to ask to make me question the kind of love I had for you, she's known all along there was something deeper than friendship going on. She shared some of her wise words, and of course there was her famous, "follow your heart" speech. The thing is that it wasn't long after that that I knew I wanted you for myself, I wanted you and no one else. I wanted to be the one to make all of those dreams of yours a reality, I wanted to recover what I had lost, the dreams stolen from me courtesy of Dabria, and I wanted to do that with you. I also know that I can't stand to ever be without you Angel, I knew that there was a distinct possibility I was already too late and I decided then and there that if all you ever wanted from me in the future was friendship then that's what I would do, but I was never going to give up trying to prove to you that I was a changed man, that I wanted more. I want all of those things with you and I'm ready and I will fight to prove it in every way possible each and every day, even if it takes years I won't give up unless you tell me and there isn't a shadow of doubt that you mean it. I wanted to wait to tell you, I don't want you thinking that I'm saying this because I feel bad for what happened, for the accident. I do of course feel horrible you were hurt, but it opened my heart and mind by forcing me to confront things I probably never would have. That's far from pity. Looking back Angel, it has always been you, it will always be you. Can you forgive me? Can you accept my feelings, my love? Are you willing to give me a chance, us a chance, or am I too late? No matter what your answer is, or how much it hurts, I need you to be completely honest with me, don't spare my feelings or lie to me. I need and want the honest truth." His dark eyes implored her with anxiety and insecurity that never showed. Patch was the portrait of confidence and ease...on the outside.
Looking into his deep eyes Nora was stunned speechless as she studied him. That was the longest speech he had ever made, heartfelt and open and totally honest. He hadn't ever shown this level of vulnerability, it even surpassed the time he cried in front of her over Dabria. This was what she saw when he was asleep, the face of the vulnerable little boy who didn't get the love he deserved but somehow managed to give her all those things they both were missing in their home while they were growing up. His voice sounded so sincere, so scared. This is what he had been keeping from her while she believed that he had found someone else, someone he had given his all to? Nora cringed at the thought that all that worry and doubt had been for nothing. Now her grandma's cryptic remarks made sense and everything clicked into place. She thought she had seen every side there was of Patch, but not this. Now that look she hadn't been able to place, that unknown emotion in his eyes when he looked at her made sense as well. She remembered seeing it in his eyes when she first opened hers after all those weeks. He was the one she knew, the one she remembered everything with. Nora shook her head for a minute when she had a weird flash of talking to her grandpa Nick, hearing him tell her it wasn't her time, that Patch needed her. That couldn't be, he had died a long time ago. Thoughts and feelings were racing through her so fast she was barely keeping up and Patch was growing more and more nervous watching them flit across her face and in her eyes as he waited for her response. Patience had never been one of his virtues, but he was trying his hardest knowing she would need to time to take all of this in, it had taken him weeks. Well, years actually.
To begin with Nora was elated to finally hear what she had been waiting her whole life to hear, then there was doubt about how real it all was when she knew he felt responsible and guilty over her accident. There was fear of what it would do to her and to their friendship if things didn't work out, if he confessed a love more than friendship as a reflex response or a sense of duty following her accident things would never stand a chance, they could lose it all. Anger, anger that it had taken him so long to figure this all out, that it had taken her being hurt to open his eyes. Hurt, hurt over all the women she had shared him with to have the tiny bit of him he had allowed her. The emotions went on and on. Finally she broke the silence, leveling her eyes on him with a serious look that said she meant business.
"I can tell that it isn't pity, it hurts that it took this to get us here though. I can see and hear the fear you have and after the past you have I know you're afraid of rejection, especially now that you know what I went through just to be here. I'm not rejecting you, but after all that you've done and we have been through, listening to what you had to say and considering it all I think what I need most, what would be best is time. Time for both of us to adjust to this change in you and in our relationship, and most of all time for us to see that you really mean it, for you to prove to me that your words are more than just words and a knee jerk response to almost losing me. So, with that in mind I'm going to give you another year of my life, I've waited this long I can hold out one more year, but this time you have to prove you're serious about this, that you really have changed. You have to give up any and all women, no more sleeping around, no more dates, and given your history that might be harder than you think, but if you really want this, and it seems like you do, then you will do that for me, for us. I want you to take me on real dates, I haven't been courted or wined and dined, and I don't mean 'dates' like we've had in the past, I want the hearts and flowers bullshit you men hate so much, the kind of dates that say 'I want to spend my whole life loving you', not the kind that say 'I can't wait to get you home and fuck you senseless', which I'm not opposed to following a proper date if you earn it." She winked at him with a naughty look that shot through his nervous system and down to his groin before she turned serious again. "If at the end of the year you have shown that you can do that and followed my conditions then we can move forward as a couple from there however we decide to. That's the best I have to offer right now. Do you accept my terms, can you follow through under those conditions? Oh, and one other thing Patch, you better continue to prove yourself in the bedroom too." Her eyes danced at the last part to match her smirk and the eyebrow raised in challenge.
Patch hadn't actually thought she would him give a chance, he had been prepared for rejection and to fight tooth and nail for her. He knew he still had to prove himself and his intentions by following her conditions, but with the way his eyes had been opened and the love he felt he knew it wouldn't be as difficult as everyone seemed to believe it would be for him. Hell, he hadn't been with any other women since before her accident months ago. There was nothing more that he wanted more than to make this angel his own, to own her and possess her in a way only a husband could. He didn't want ownership of her life, he loved her independence, her stubbornness and her fire drove him wild, he just wanted her to still want him and only him. He wanted her to want to belong to him. His heart raced with her words and the 'challenge' of the next year.
"Deal, I accept your terms and I will meet them, I'll prove myself." He stroked her face tenderly as his words came out in a hushed promise. "I think I should start right now in fact, I believe you said I needed to prove myself in the bedroom?" He gave her the kind of smirk that made her toes curl and wetness pool, the kind that melted your clothes and set fire to your skin before he laid assault on her body once again.
When both were too spent to move they laid cuddled together. Nora fell asleep with the words of that song, the words he had spoken and the delicious memories of him worshiping her body in her mind. She fell into the kind of slumber you hoped for with a feeling of safety, not only physically, but emotionally for the first time.
Patch's mind was filled with excitement knowing that the woman curled tightly in his arms sound asleep was his, truly his in a way that no one else had ever been before. He was realistic though, there would be obstacles, they were both stubborn and there was no doubt they would have disagreements, they always had, but they had also always made up quickly, minus that last fight. He knew that his brother and her friends weren't going to be so quick to believe he was serious or could do it, they might even be mad at her for even giving him a chance after all he had put her through. But he knew that Nora was his heart and soul, the missing piece to his puzzle that he hadn't known was missing after Dabria had crushed him. He had a lot of planning to do to prove himself over the year, his goal was marriage but he wasn't going to jump to far ahead or let her know that. He needed to get through this next twelve months first. After giving her his ritual pattern of kisses and whispering his love to her he drifted off into his own peaceful slumber, for once he was truly and completely relaxed with Nora tucked as tight as possible in the safety of his protective arms.
So there she is, he came clean. What do you guys think of what Patch had to say? What about Nora's response? Any ideas for the coming year? please review review review! I had a hard time getting this chapter done after my internet was fixed so any input would be great :)