Page 73 of The Puck Chase

He drinks it in one gulp, his eyes dancing up to the stars, and his next words hurt more than anything else. “They have granted my father a parole hearing, that’s why Jasper came to see me, it’s why he calls me every day,” he sighs, and the shock isn’t enough to make me forget how I pretend not to see when he rejects his brother’s call.

“Parole? You’ve got to be fucking kidding me? He’s a murderer,” I shout in outrage, but Daemon only shrugs.

“Powerful men always come out on top.”

After that, a sickening silence settles between us, there’s not another word to be spoken about it. When we finally head inside, strip off and climb into bed, I worship him. My mouth covers every inch of his body, lapping at his cock until he releases down my throat, and then flipping him over and dipping my tongue between his cheeks, until he is hard once more. Only then do I ride him, sliding onto his cock and showing him with my body how fucking perfect we are for one another, and just praying he believes me.

I wrap him in my arms when we are done and he drifts off to sleep easily, all of his demons being held at bay. I wish I could join him. I wish I could live with the suffering he has endured and be fucking okay with it, but it’s not right. None of this is fucking right. It’s why I slip out of bed in the early hours of the morning, knowing I will find David still working in his office, and when I push inside, he frowns at the sight of me.

“Arch? What’s wrong son?” He asks, already rounding his desk, and he catches me as my legs almost give out, guiding us both to the sofa, with nothing but worry in his stare.

“I need your help, David. Daemon needs your help.”

And then I cry in my stepfather’s arms as I tell him everything.

When I wake early the next morning, it takes me a few seconds to remember where I am, the light pouring in from the windows is almost blinding. Though when I turn over, I find Archer sleeping soundly beside me, the top of his brow set into a frown, as if something is bothering him, even while he sleeps. I know last night was a lot, and I still can’t believe I told him everything about my past. He now knows stuff I have never told anyone, not even Josh, and instead of running for the hills, he held me tighter than ever.

I don’t want to bother him, he must be exhausted, a fact only more evident when I sit up and he doesn’t even stir. I contemplate going back to sleep, but I am already wide awake and desperate for coffee. So, slipping out of bed silently, I pull onsome sweats and head downstairs quietly, trying to find my way back to the kitchen in this ridiculous house.

When I finally reach it, I find Archer’s mom already sitting at the counter, staring out of the window with her own cup of coffee in hand, completely lost in thought. She doesn’t look as made up as she did yesterday, her face now bare of makeup and her hair is not done, but still looks beautiful in her cream dressing gown and matching slippers. I almost smile as I see her, so like Archer in every way. She whirls toward me when I step inside, her eyes instantly filling with tears, before she tries to hide them with a smile, but it isn’t the same smile I got yesterday. No, this one is filled with sadness and pity, one that I have seen countless times before from many different people, which can only mean one thing.

“Archer told you,” I say by way of greeting, and her shoulders instantly slump, as if relieved, but I can also see the panic in her stare.

“I overheard him talking with my husband last night,” she replies honestly, and I nod while looking to the floor, but I still hear her push off her stool and move toward me.

When she reaches me, I meet her stare, watching as one of her hands comes up slowly, as if searching for permission, before it gently finds my cheek. “I knew my son had found someone special, the moment he walked through the door when he was home for Thanksgiving,” she starts, and that funny, unfamiliar feeling is back in my stomach again. “He’s always been wild, he thrives on chaos,” she adds with a soft smile, before releasing my cheek and taking my arm to guide me towards the counter. “But I think you might know something about that,” she laughs knowingly, grabbing a cup and pouring me some coffee, gesturing towards the cream and sugar, but I shake my head. Then she sits beside me, turning towards me completely, and I should feel awkward and uncomfortable,I mean, I barely even know her, but for some reason she radiates comfort. “Yet recently, I’ve seen something in him, a change, like he’s more grounded, more focused, truly happy,” she sighs wistfully, like it’s all she’s ever wanted, and my throat thickens with emotion at the clear love she has for her children. Especially when her hand closes around mine and she adds, “You’re important to my son, Daemon, which makes you important to this family, and I don’t want you to worry about anything, you’re safe here.”

Tears burn the back of my eyes, and I swallow down the lump in my throat, taking a deep swig of my coffee to try and chase it away, but it doesn’t work. No one has ever offered me such kindness, without wanting anything in return, and I now see where Archer gets his big heart from.

“He’s important to me too,” I finally respond, and she eyes me over her coffee with a knowing smirk.

“I know, Sweet Boy, I know.”

We share the rest of our coffees in silence and by the time the rest of the house starts to stir, we are standing side by side and flipping pancakes. Aurora is first, her smiling stare still filled with so much innocence, and Everest is quick on her heels, watching her quietly, and when she moves, he follows her like a magnet. I watch them closely, but Aurora doesn’t seem to notice, and when Everest finally looks my way and sees me staring, his glare hardens. I offer him a smirk, knowing that look in his eyes better than he might think, and focusing back on the breakfast I’m making.

When Archer finally appears, he still looks tired, but when he finds me cooking with his mom, he smiles softly, erasing the distance between us in three strides. His lips find mine before I can stop him, and for once the heat inside of me has nothing to do with his presence, but the watchful stares I can feel upon us.For some reason, being watched by his family isn’t as erotic as I normally find voyeurism to be.

“Morning, baby,” he mumbles against my mouth, and as I pull back, I see no pity in his eyes about everything he heard last night. Instead, there is something else entirely, something I’m not sure I’m ready to hear, let alone feel.

“Morning,” I grunt back, pointedly glaring at him as if to say not in front of your family, but all he does is toss me a wink as he steals a strawberry from the chopping board and pulls away.

“Morning Mom,” he drops a kiss to her head, before moving to Aurora and ruffling her head. “Are we all set for the big night?” he asks, and his mom sighs as she passes me the spatula, once again picking up her phone.

“The caterers are already running late, one of the rides is currently broken, and the florist somehow mixed up red and white hydrangeas for roses.” It’s clear she is stressed that everything is not going to plan, but I watch as all three of her children share a conspiring look.

“Kat has already called in another catering company to help them, an engineer is on the way for the ride, and roses will look just as beautiful,” David purrs, as he strides into the kitchen, still dressed in last night’s suit. He heads straight for his wife, “Tonight is going to be perfect, my love, I promise,” he tells her, and the way she just melts into him is a sight to behold.

It’s clear how much they love each other, a foreign concept to me given how I grew up, but watching not just them, but Archer’s dad and his wife too, well, it’s really something. It’s clear they all have a great relationship with one another, despite the divorce, and I can’t help but wonder what my life would have been like if I grew up in a family like theirs.

When David turns his focus on me, I see something sharp and lethal in his stare, like he knows something I don’t. “Good morning, Daemon, did you sleep okay?” he asks, and I nodstiffly, flicking my stare between him and Archer, the latter watching me carefully.

“Yes, thank you,” I reply, still looking between them, and when I don’t elaborate any further, he smiles with a quick nod.

“Well all right then.” He drops another kiss to Claire’s head. “I need to shower and head into the office for a couple of hours,” he tells her, and she instantly narrows her eyes, as he pulls away.

“You’re not supposed to be working this week, remember? I thought you weren’t back in court until next week?” she scolds him, giving him that look that I presume wives give their husbands, and he smiles grimly.

“It’s just a new prospective client, it won’t take long,” he assures her, before turning towards Archer. “Arch, a word,” he adds, nodding his head toward the door, and Archer looks at me with a soft smile, before slipping off the stool and following his stepfather out of the room.

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