Page 13 of Forged Forever

“You know who, and she gained quite a few followers. The hockey team stepped away pretty fast, too. I didn’t have anyone.” Wiping my damp eyes, I continue. “CPS found Zander last spring. I really didn’t want to move away from you, but I had no choice. It turned out to be what I needed to live again. Mal and I set up a phone like you have here, and I video called you twice a week. I met my friends, and things were good. That’s the cliff notes version.”

“I…I have no words, Sum.” Jake shakes his head, smoothie forgotten. “It’s…horrible. How did you survive? Please come over here. I need you close.”

Getting up, I walk over and sit across his lap, wrapping an arm around his neck. “It was awful, but I’m in a good place now. Zander's amazing. I have fantastic friends, and you’re back.”

“There’s more bad, isn’t there?” I look up to meet his eyes. “You still look spooked. What happened after you got here?”

“You know me so well.” Giving him a faint smile, I lean my head on his shoulder, unable to watch his reaction to my next story. “Someone kidnapped me last year. Long story short, Jessica’s cousin, Ben, was here at my new school, and she asked him to bully me, but he found out about my settlement money and decided he deserved some of it. Ben sexually assaulted me, but didn't rape me. My friend Nick tracked us down, and Zander and my friends saved me.

“Then last summer, Ben’s dad claimed to be Lily bee’s father. A DNA test proved it, so there was a trial. He wanted my settlement money, too. It was awful having to relive everything. Zander and the guys found out all the gory details, and I saw pictures of my body after the accident for the first time. No words can describe that horror,” I tell him, my body trembling a little from the trauma. “Ray flew down here and testified for me. Ben’s dad lost the case, but the experience re-traumatized me.”

I take a deep breath, trying to steady myself as I wipe the tears from my cheeks. Just one more story. “Just before your trial last fall, Nick’s father claimed he was actually Lily’s sperm donor and set up the trial to get my money. He’s a criminal, who Nick helped put away when he was just a kid. He was into drugs, guns, and sex trafficking. Since he lost out on the money, he started stalking the guys and me through pictures. Well, mostly me, and threatened my safety. I was preparing to go into WITSEC when Nick left to go back to him to save me. He’s still there right now.”

“Sum,” Jake whispers, wetness falling gently onto my hair. We’re both crying now. I let my tears fall onto his chest, although I don’t have many. Each time I have to relive my past, fewer tears fall. I kiss him briefly on the cheek before retaking my seat. Me sitting on his lap isn’t great for his circulation right now, so I don’t want to stay long and cause issues. “Zander put feelers out shortly after he met you in Virginia, to some medical groups he knew, and it led to the research trial. You know the rest.”

“Thanks for telling me. It’s gonna take time to process all that. I’m sorry you were alone, Sum, and I’m pissed all over again at my parents for not adopting you. Well, Dad… I don’t want you anywhere near Mom. What’s with our school friends too? Bastards, all of them.”

Will comes out, needing to move Jake back to his bed. The time he spends out of bed grows longer by the week, but he still tires easily. Once he’s settled, his eyes begin to droop. Telling him I’ll visit tomorrow, I leave, both lighter and heavier from our talk.

Seb is waiting at home with a hug and pizza. He fills the bathtub for me after dinner with some herbs, and we take a relaxing soak together. “You look exhausted, Sunshine.” Seb rubs my damp shoulders with his strong fingers, trying to release my tense muscles. “Was it as bad as you thought?”

“No, actually, but it was hard. I’m worried he’s going to crack with all the crap he’s dealing with.”

“Jake's strong. He’ll get through it,” he replies confidently.

“Even I broke after the accident, Hurry.”

“True, but you were alone. Jake's had support from day one, and you're spreading out the stories, so he has time to process. Besides, he knows everything now. It’s over.”

“It’s not. I still have to tell him about us. I wouldn’t count his mom out yet, either. She’s been too quiet. How was your visit with Beth?”

“She moved into a halfway house last week and has a job as a server now. She told me she doesn’t want to see me again.”

Another problem created by Nick’s father, Patrick; getting Seb’s mom hooked on drugs after being clean for five years, as some twisted revenge on Nick. “Sorry, Hurry,” I reply, squeezing his arm in support. “Did she say why?”

“I’m a reminder of the time and place of her relapse. She thinks if I’m around, she’ll fall again. I was told not to come back.”

Turning in the warm water, I get on my knees, legs together between his, and hug him. It’s an awkward angle, but I make do. “Would it be horrible to say I hope Nick kills him?”

“Nope. I want that too. I’ve lost her again, Sunshine,” his voice wobbles against my shoulder.

My poor golden retriever. Pulling him tighter against me, my knees slip on the bottom of the tub. Flailing, I try to balance myself, my legs acting like hockey skates on smooth ice. Seb tries to grab my waist to steady me, but I’m already falling backwards. My back submerges, legs flying up into a V in the air, body sliding forward until my butt meets his groin.

I gape and cough, wiping water from my face. The splash drenched Seb’s head, causing his dark hair to plaster across his forehead, and it dumped water on the floor. As our eyes met, his head tilts back, and he bursts into joyful laughter, his shoulders shaking, and I can’t help but giggle.

When the laughter settles, and our eyes meet, we burst out laughing again. We must spend ten minutes going round after round before we finish. “I needed that,” Seb exclaims. “But if you wanted sex, all you had to do was ask Sunshine,” his wiggles his eyebrows.

Chuckling, he helps me upright before we get out and dressed, drying up the water. As we snuggle in bed with the tv on, I fall asleep quickly, mentally and emotionally wrung out, but more settled after the laughter.

Chapter 8

I wake the next morning to a hot, wet tongue between my legs. Moaning, I blink my eyes open and look down. Seb is under the bedding, so I can’t see anything. Flipping the covers down, Seb stops and smiles up at me. “Morning, Sunshine.” He looks beautiful with his droopy eyes baked with heat, stubble flushed cheeks, and mussed hair.

“Definitely a good morning,” I smile back.

Seb goes back to his ministrations, flicking his tongue over my little bud then inserting a finger inside, curving upward. I quickly get restless and start moving my hips with him. With a few taps on my g-spot, I fall over the edge. It’s a quiet and soft orgasm, my mind still waking up from sleep.

Reaching into the nightstand, I grab a condom and hand it to Seb. He smiles, quickly shucking his clothes. We haven’t had a lot of alone time to be intimate, but Seb enjoys trying a new position each time. He has me lie on my side away from him today. Lifting my leg, he slowly enters me from behind. One arm wraps under my head and around to my opposite shoulder while the other crosses my chest to massage a boob. It’s an intimate position despite our facing away from each other. Seb is slow, deep, and methodical this morning, quietly whispering decadent words of love.