Page 12 of A Step Too Close
“What is happening right now?” Levi asks.
“Macie is pregnant,” I say.
“May as well tell her then,” Levi laughs.
“Wait,” Macie says.
“He’s made it a goal to knock me up,” I say with a shrug. Macie squeals and hugs me tightly before looking at Levi.
“Hop to it, buddy. I need a baby bump buddy,” she says.
“Trying as hard as I can,” he says with a grin.
“Very… Very hard. Trust me,” I say, and Wilder curls his face up in a grimace.
“Let’s go get some food,” Levi laughs.
Chapter Five
Arden
I am on theverge of a panic attack, pacing the bathroom. Everything is hitting me all at once, and I feel like I cannot breathe. Everyone is out there waiting on me so we can tell them we got married, but I might actually barf. Paranoia and every “what if?” situation possible is flooding my brain all at once, and I can’t make it stop. I just need one fucking second of a reprieve to be able to slow down my thinking before it spirals into something darker, but I can’t. I can’t catch myself, and I need help. I have never wanted help in these moments before, but I need it. I need help out of the dark, so I pick up my phone and send a quick text to Levi.
Help
On my way. Breathe!
That is the most annoyingly helpful thing he says to me. Like, of course, I need to fucking breathe… but I’m not. I’m not breathing. I am holding my breath, terrified of what might happen if I let myself feel this panic. The door to the master bathroom opens and I instantly start crying. He shuts and locks the door before lifting me up to sit me on the counter. When he wraps me in a tight hug, I disappear in his arms.
“Breathe with me, Arden. Focus on my breathing,” he encourages, rubbing my back. I sniffle and nod as I try as hard as I can to only focus on the rise and fall of his chest. I synchronize my breathing with his, so I rapidly calm down and my body relaxes. He holds me for a little longer before pulling back and wiping my face.
“Thank you,” I say.
“It was all you, baby. I just kept you company,” he says. “What’s going on?”
“Every bad thing that could possibly happen is playing through my head and I can’t make it stop,” I say.
“Do you regret it?” he asks.
“No. Not at all.”
“Then fuck what anyone else thinks, baby,” he tells me. “We’ve got each other, and we will weather every single storm together, yeah?”
“Yeah,” I sniff.
Levi kisses and picks me up from the counter before taking me out of the bathroom. When he sets me down, I smile.
“What?” he asks.
“Fuck me,” I say. “Fast and hard, because we don’t have much time.”
Levi nearly rips my shorts off getting them down. When I step out of my panties, he pushes me back onto the bed and brings my legs to his shoulders. He takes a second to pull his cock out before slamming it into me as he covers my mouth. I scream against his hand as he proceeds to fuck me as hard as he can, chasing down his orgasm like our lives depend on it. He leans in and practically folds me in half and pushes even deeper. We both start to come together and I am shaking as he drains his cock deep inside of me.
“Fuck,” I pant. “Holy fuck.”
“You good?” he laughs as he leans down to kiss me.
“You, sir, are so goddamn brutal, and I love it. No matter where we are, Imma need you to fuck me like that every time I get paranoid or panic.”
