Dearly Beloved

03 | revelations

C L A I R E
03 | revelations

Chloe and Christopher's strange behavior lingers at the back of my mind as I watch them dance with each other in the middle of the other couples on the dance floor. Chris bends his head low, whispering things in her ear, and Chloe giggles. I observe him pointing to every guest of ours and speculate that he is making fun of them to make her laugh.

Whatever he does adds a blush to her cheeks and it is all so wrong.

They are step-siblings too close in age. I had dreaded this when Alex told us that he had a daughter too who was of the same age as Chris. It has been almost two years since they left us to live with Alex and turns out I had been right.

"Hey, you okay?" Vaughn's breath warms my neck as he cages me between his body and the balustrade, his hands coming to rest on both sides of me, fingers curling around the handrail.

I move my eyes off Chris and Chloe, facing the man who is supposed to be the center of my attention tonight. Even after sixteen years, feeling him close, looking up at his face as he towers over me, makes my stomach flood with liquid heat. I beam at him, my mood lightening instantly as I sneak my hands around his waist, locking them behind him.

"I'm okay," I murmur, inhaling his citrus cologne, letting it fill my lungs as his smell heats my body. "I was just worried about Christopher. He and Chloe are behaving strange."

Vaughn sneaks a glance at them on the dance floor beneath us, a frown marking his face. "Leave them be. I warned him before not to go near Chloe and he didn't listen to me. I'm pretty sure Thea has no idea about this."

He waves a mocking finger to gesture to their closeness.

"How can you say that? We're the adults. We should be worried if our kids are messing up their lives."

"Relax, Claire." Vaughn rubs his hands up and down my bare arms, his touch soothing my nerves. "They are just kids. It's nothing serious, I'm sure. You know Christopher. He has a reputation."

"One that you fueled by teaching him how to get girls," I remind him and that makes him give me a full-toothed grin.

"It was my duty. I didn't know he'd be using his charms on his step-sister."

"Thea will have a fit."

"You know sometimes I wonder how I managed to spend sixteen years being married to you. We sure have different opinions about stuff," he teases me. "Just recalling how much Christopher was against us makes me feel so bizarre. Remember your 18th birthday?"

"I do," I answer in a hollow tone, my brother's name now a living nightmare for me.

"Chris would be so pissed but I hope he'll forgive me."

He should be the one to forgive my brother. Not my brother. Christopher Hill was nothing compared to Vaughn Jackson.

"You don't have to worry about him, He's not coming back." I try to divert him from that topic, a little harshly. "I'm more worried about Thea."

"Forget Thea," he says. "Tonight's about you and me, okay? I don't want you to ruin your mood thinking about them." He moves one hand down my arm, past my waist to cup my ass, squeezing it. I gasp at the sudden touch, the bundle of nerves between my legs starting to throb as I notice the hazy lust in his brown pupils. "Just think about me tonight. Think about what I'm gonna go to you after the party is over."

I glide my hands up his chest, the trajectory a familiar path as I curl my hands around his neck. "What do you plan to do?"

"We'll wait for the guests to leave and then, I'll carry you up to the roof..." he whispers, lips tracing my temple as he closes his eyes. "...I'll lay you down and strip your clothes off...then bury myself deep inside you. We'll fuck all night, love. Is that okay?"