Page 50 of Watching Ames

I parked in the driveway, Alex’s form blocking me from pulling into the garage, and shut off the engine. It felt as if Alex’s eyes were boring into mine through the windshield even though I knew the garage light must be blinding him, making it impossible to see my face. I held his gaze for a few moments anyway, trying to maintain a semblance of self-control, but my impatience won out as I fumbled the handle in my rush to exit the car.

“I thought we might play a game, sweetheart,” Alex’s words rang out as I climbed out of my car, his voice deeper and raspier than usual. Goosebumps prickled the skin of my arms, as I took a step toward him, feet stopping when Alex let out a tsk-ing sound at my approach. “I would keep your head start while you have it, Ames.”

“Head start?” I failed to keep the excitement from my voice as I asked, mind already putting together the pieces of a familiar scene from my childhood.

Even though the light spilling out of the house made it difficult to see his features, I could hear the smile in Alex’s voice at my eagerness as he explained, “You see, the last time I chased you, it was a rigged game. I took it easy on you, let you escape to give you a choice. And when you boxed yourself in our bedroom after, well, it was just too short for me. But it was too short for you too, wasn’t it sweetheart? I think you liked the chase, liked me chasing you down like a predator, like the big bad in your story. So I thought we’d have some fun tonight.”

“What kind of fun?”

“Have you ever played manhunt?”

“Yes.” By now I was breathless, anticipation and fear warring in a delicious mix that only Alex had successfully been able to pull out of me. “We used to play as kids. It was reverse hide-and-seek. Everyone but the seeker would run. If the seeker caught you, you lost. If you made it back to home base, you were safe.”

“Exactly. If you make it back to the garage, you’re safe.”

“What happens if you catch me?”

“What I’ve wanted to do to you every time you ran from me.” He threw something in my direction, and I looked down to find my tennis shoes bouncing at my feet. My heart rate spiked even higher, knowing that Alex really wasn’t playing around this time. This wasn’t a fun chase to get my blood pumping before fucking me in our bed. This was a hunt, and even though I craved the subtle threat in his words, I was also much too competitive to allow him to take me without effort.

I threw aside my trusty combat boots, knowing they were too heavy for an all-out sprint through the woods, and laced up the sneakers, double-knotting the laces. After I stood, I pulled my hair into a ponytail, making sure it was out of my face, facing back toward Alex with steel in my spine and fire burning through my veins.

“One…” Alex began, but I was already sprinting around the back of the house, making sure I was out of sight before veering to the left, through the thickest part of the trees that lined either side of the house. I was suddenly thankful for the exploratory hikes Bex and I had been taking through the area, keeping an eye out for the markers we’d been tying around the trunks to keep us from straying too far from the house.

It was a full moon, the dim light trickling in just enough through the trees to allow me to see a few feet in front of me as I ran. I wasn’t sure how long of a head start Alex planned on giving me, but after thirty seconds of running, I slowed just a bit, trying to lighten my footfalls so I could hear if he came in my direction. My heart raced so quickly in my chest that I could barely hear anything over the blood rushing in my ears, but other than the occasional whisper of leaves brushing against each other in the wind, I couldn’t hear anything.

That, of course, didn’t mean anything. During our workout sessions, Dev had told me enough about his training in the military - the same training he extended to Alex when they began working together - that I knew Alex could likely follow me without making much sound. So I kept running, turning at the right markers as I reached the halfway point in the path. Just as I caught sight of the marker that started the curve back toward the house, I heard the crack of a branch behind me.

It wasn’t the slight snap of a small animal but rather that of a predator, and my body somehow knew what was coming, hair standing up on the back of my neck while my inner muscles tightened in excitement. Still unwilling to give up too easily, I tried to keep a steady pace on the path, keeping my face forward despite the overwhelming urge to see how close Alex was behind me.

After a few seconds, I took a sharp right, sprinting as I abandoned the path and cut toward what I hoped was the backyard. Small branches whipped in my face, tangling in my hair and pulling at my clothes. I heard Alex’s quick footfalls behind me and pushed myself harder, emerging from the woods and scrambling over the short fence that surrounded the yard. Knowing Alex would expect me to cut across the yard to the garage, I took a roundabout route, turning back toward the woods on the east side of the property in the hopes I could lose him among the trees.

I heard Alex’s quiet curse behind me as I veered away from him, gaining a few steps ahead when he realized I was heading back toward the forest. Once I was back within the copse of trees, I paused for a moment, catching my breath as I waited to see if Alex found me. I heard the crunching of leaves closer to the fence line, a couple dozen yards behind me, and took my chance, running back toward the front of the house. As the trees thinned, I caught sight of the garage, the light shining like a beacon. I let out a whoop of success as I got closer, about to pass back out of the forest and onto the lawn when I felt an arm loop around my waist, stopping my momentum.

“Got you, sweetheart.”

Alex’s sweet words were offset by his menacing voice, a low growl that sent shivers down my spine. I tried to fight out of his embrace, but he only chuckled darkly as both of his arms wrapped around my flailing limbs. He melded my back to his chest, pressing his hips forward so I could feel how hard the chase had made him. I couldn’t help the whimper that escaped my throat at the feeling of him behind me, the sound causing Alex to drop me the few short feet to the ground, his hands stopping my fall as he caught me around the hips.

He lowered me the last few inches to my knees, ripping the clothes off my body as I trembled with anticipation. There had been an unexpected cold front the past few days, meaning we had a short stint of fall-like weather in the middle of August. The cool air bit at my skin, pebbling my nipples to hard points as Alex finally pulled my leggings off my feet.

I felt him take a step back from me, hearing the soft sound of fabric brushing against his skin before falling to the forest floor. I considered making another run for it, but Alex whipped out a hand and grabbed my hair before I could even get to my feet.

“While I would love to chase you all night, sweetheart, I think we’re both more than ready.” He ran his fingers through my folds, the obscene amount of wetness between my legs dripping easily onto his fingers to prove his point. “And since I caught you, I plan to take full advantage.” His voice sounded so dark, the trees blocking out most of the moonlight so I could barely see the outline of his body where he stood behind me. The slice of fear at being unable to see his face only made me that much more turned on, and I lowered my upper body while canting my hips up, giving him easier access as he settled in behind me.

When I didn’t feel him after a few moments, I writhed in place, needing some sort of friction on my skin. “Alex -”

My begging was cut off when Alex’s hands found my skin, fingers spanning my hips in a tight grip that was sure to leave bruises tomorrow. He slammed into me in one brutal thrust, the surprise of it making me scream out as I contracted around him. Whereas he usually gave me a few moments to adjust, Alex immediately pulled back out and pressed into me at a punishing pace, one that matched so perfectly with the chase he had given me earlier.

My hands and knees dug into the dirt as he fucked me from behind, the small rocks and branches scraping at the soft skin. I loved the primal way it made me feel, knowing that I’d be marked with scratches and bruises and dirt when we were finished. Alex didn’t say anything behind me, only let out harsh growls and groans as he pumped into me, occasionally punctuated by the sound of my name in his hoarse voice.

It was endless, no clocks or light or sounds other than the snap of branches and crunch of leaves beneath our bodies giving me any indication of the time that passed as Alex took control of my body in the best way. I felt my orgasm rise from deep inside me, growing with such slow-burning intensity that I knew it would wreck me. I got closer to the peak, feeling Alex chase me there as his thrusts sped up, pulling my hair as he leaned over to rasp in my ear.

“Are you going to scream for me? Milk my cock to show me how much you like how I chase you down? How I’ll keep chasing you down, if you ever try to leave me? You -” he punctuated his words with a harsh thrust, the smack of his hips against my ass resonating through the air as I moaned. “Are.” Another thrust, this one even harder, deeper. “Mine.” A final thrust sent me spiraling over the edge, back bowing with pleasure.

I screamed my orgasm out, clenching around him just like he told me I would, as Alex wrapped his hand tight on my hip, holding me in place as he came. His free hand, the one not gripping my hair to bare my throat, moved between my legs, rubbing my clit in soft circles as he slowed his thrusts, extending my orgasm until I was limp underneath him.

As we both collapsed to the ground, Alex pulling my dirt-stained, sated body on top of his, I whispered one word before closing my eyes. “Yours.”

Chapter25

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