It was a relief when morning arrived, and the end of our shift came with it. Some of the others had made plans to go to a cafe for breakfast, but my aching body was crying out for a lazy day on my sofa, leading me to head home instead.
The minute the front door slammed behind me, I headed through to the bathroom, dragging my shirt over my head and tossing it onto the floor, eager for a freshen up. After a nice hot shower, I changed into some comfy sweatpants and set about satisfying my other craving... food. There wasn't much in the cupboards, having not made it to the store for a few days, spotting a box of cereal on the counter, I grabbed it, not even bothering with the bowl or milk, and crashed out across my sofa, flicking on the tv, and selecting last night's football game from my planner. Tossing a handful of dry cereal into my mouth, I crunched it down, watching my team taking a hammering with style.
"Ugh, C'mon ref!" I shouted at the screen, jolting upright in frustration as he pulled a red card and sent my team down to ten members.
The sound of the doorbell halted my torrent of profanity. I didn't even bother to pause the game, knowing that it was effectively all over now. Standing the half empty cereal box on the edge of the table, I got up to answer the door.
Lifting my arms over my head, I stretched out my muscles, plodding along the hall until I reached the door, and swung it open.
"Lacey?" I said in surprise, caught off guard by her presence.
"Hey," She smiled briefly, her eyes drifting down over my bare chest, whilst she shifted her weight slightly, then cleared her throat. "I'm sorry to just show up."
She was the last person that I'd expected, but there was no denying how much brighter I felt at her presence, especially when she looked so breathtakingly beautiful. It was a rare sight to see her in a dress, but the simple red skater one that she wore could have brought any man to his knees.
"How did you even-" I began, before realisation dawned, "Dodger." I muttered, more to myself than anything.
Lacey nodded with a small laugh and I barely managed to contain an eye roll, holding the door open and stepping back to let her inside.
"Hope I wasn't interrupting anything." She teased as she went into the living room, and picked up the cereal box..
I followed after her, resting my hand on her waist whilst I stepped around her, picking up the remote and muting the tv.
"Oh yeah, I was being so productive." I replied sarcastically, taking the cereal box from her and flopping down on the sofa.
"Looks like it." She smirked, joining me on the sofa, and turning towards the screen.
I waited for her to say something, to tell me why she was here, but instead she just stared at the tv, lost in some unknown thought.
"Why did you stop by?" I asked, bringing her attention back towards me.
Her silvery eyes fixed on me, and she tucked a stray wave of her dark hair behind her ear, pulling one leg up onto the sofa as she turned to face me.
"I didn't want to be on my own."
Her admission caught me off guard. I straightened up, turning the remote towards the television and turning it off, the colours fading out to black.
"It's pretty dumb really." She continued, "I've had much closer calls before. It's just, this time, it was so different, completely unexpected, and I can't shake it off."
It was the first time that I truly saw a trace of vulnerability in her, and I immediately wanted to help get rid of it. Lacey was anything but vulnerable. This woman had stared down death before, on numerous occasions, she had lost so much, and through it all, she had got back up and gone through it again. I reached out to her, taking hold of her hand and interlocking my fingers with hers.
"It's not dumb. And if I'm being honest, I've been trying to push it out of my head ever since we got out of that water. It terrified me."
I'd never been one to speak these kinds of things out loud, I'd always bottled them up until I could just work them out of my system. There were expectations that came with being in this line of work. Weakness had no place taking up our head space, not when we had to get up each work day, and head on out to whatever call we had, and pour one hundred-and-ten percent into getting the best outcome for everyone. Our focus couldn't be split by things that had happened before.
"I suppose it's normal though, to be scared after nearly drowning." She shrugged, trying to seem lighthearted.
"I'm sure it is," I said firmly, "But me drowning wasn't the terrifying part. It was the thought of losing you."
I felt her hand squeeze mine and her lips rose in a small smile.
"Well, you didn't lose me. You saved me."
I let out a sigh, withdrawing my hand and leaning back against the sofa, guilt creeping into my system.
"It was thanks to me that you nearly died in the first place." I groaned.
"What the hell gave you that idea?" She asked in confusion.
"If I hadn't just jumped on in, then you wouldn't have come to help, and you wouldn't have been dragged down."
"You're wrong." She said simply, "Bane, it's our job. It's what we do, and it's what we signed up for. I may not like how things went down, but I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat. You didn't make me jump in, and not to bruise your ego, but I didn't do it because of you, I did it because we are a family, and we work together."
I was temporarily struck dumb by the incredible woman in front of me. She was a rare thing in this world, and I was unbelievably lucky to have her in my life.
"What did Alex have to say?"
"Not much, just had to get a little venting in there, telling me off for not going by the rules, you know the drill." I shrugged.
She nodded, biting her lip. Her fingers brushing over my shoulder, then slowly running down my upper arm.
"All part of being a Rebel I suppose." Lacey smirked.
My body reacted to the flirtatious tone of her voice, instantly simmering with heat as I remembered our passionate moment on the roof last night, and yearned for her touch again. This woman had a hold over me, one that I should have wanted to shake off. But instead, I wanted to cave, I wanted to fall deeper under her spell, and relish in every second that I could get alone with her.
"Yeah, kinda comes with the territory." I muttered as she closed in, her intoxicating scent invading my senses and striking fire within me.
"I think I like your rebellious streak."
She climbed onto my lap, straddling my thighs and resting her arms on my shoulders, her stormy eyes boring into mine. My hands wandered of their own accord, coming to a stop on her ass. My scorching blood was rushing southwards, my cock hardening beneath her as she rocked against me, her dress rode up leaving nothing more than some thin fabric between us.
"I can't imagine why." I teased, rubbing my thumb over her bare hip, and feeling her quiver in response.
She ground against me faster and I reached up to pull her face down to mine, capturing her lips, letting my tongue slip into her mouth and pressing myself harder against her, letting her feel just how much she affected me. It was a test by now to see which of us would give in first, and with her hands roaming over my bare chest, her fingernails biting into my flesh creating a deeper urgency for more, I didn't care about caving first. Without breaking our kiss, I traced her hip bone, and let my fingers dive between her thighs, brushing against her panties, feeling the dampness of her arousal. Growling against her mouth, I bit her lip and wasted no time pushing the fabric aside, finding her slickened core, and stroking her clit. She gasped, throwing her head back, exposing her neck. My lips skimmed her throat, and stopped just above her collarbone, where I sucked hard on her sensitive skin.
"Ah, Bane, please." She moaned, bucking her hips against my hand.
I rubbed her harder, aching with the need to be inside her, she was on the edge of orgasm when I stopped. My body moved with such speed that it caught her by surprise as I rolled us, trapping her beneath me. I reached for the drawer in the coffee table, pulling out a condom, feeling her hands fumbling with the waistband of my sweatpants. I tore open the foil packet with my teeth, just as her hand closed around my hard shaft.
"Shit!" I hissed as she squeezed my throbbing cock, her soft skin against my sensitive length as she began dragging her hand up and down.
She took the condom, rolling it on and enjoying the struggle that she was causing me. I saw the rebellious look in her eye that told me she wasn't done tormenting me, but this was about to be my game. Grabbing her wrists, I pinned them above her head, one of my hands clasping them, pressing them into the cushions as I finally sank into her. There was no room for gentle here, both of us wanted this far too much. As soon as I was inside her, she lifted her hips, beginning to ride me from beneath. It was like a red flag to a bull, and I couldn't fight it any longer. Pulling back, I slammed into her, groaning with pleasure at her tight walls squeezing me. Each powerful thrust was met with her hips, her previously denied orgasm was working back up again, and I was ready to explode myself. I slid my free hand between us, finding her clit and rubbing it whilst my thrusts got faster and harder. With a loud cry, she shook beneath me, her thighs shaking against me as she was overcome by a powerful orgasm. Watching her close and her teeth bite into her lip as wave after wave of pleasure hit her, sent me spiralling into a crashing high myself, coming hard and crashing onto her body.
"So you stopped by for a booty call?" I teased rolling onto my side.
"Sometimes these things just happen." She laughed, readjusting her clothes, and getting to her feet. "I'm gonna go freshen up."
"Sure, bathroom's down the hall to the left."
She disappeared through the door, leaving me staring up at the ceiling, happy so far at how the day was panning out. The loud rumbling sound of my phone against the table started up next to me. Snatching it up, I saw the ID and swiped to accept the call.
"Hey."
"Hey, I need a favour." My father's voice rang down the line.
"What's up?" I asked, sitting up at the edge of the sofa, preparing myself for whatever was going on this time.
"Marya left Cedric last night, she's here and she hasn't left her room all morning." I could hear his concern and I knew that it must have been bad for her to leave him after all the times that we'd tried to talk her into ending things.
"Why didn't you call me last night?"
"Because you were working last night Bane. It wasn't an emergency. I wasn't going to bother you at all, but I think she needs her big brother. I'm her old man, she won't talk to me like she talks to you."
Raking my hands through my hair, I sighed. He was right, she could be a tough nut to crack, and she was always a little less forthcoming with our dad, never wanting to disappoint him.
"Alright, I'll be there in about an hour okay?"
I heard the sound of the bathroom door closing, and then Lacey's voice as she walked past the living room.
"I'm gonna grab a drink, you want something?"
"Who's that?" My father asked, his curiosity and amusement evident.
"No one." I growled into the phone, before shouting out a reply to Lacey. "No thanks, I'm good."
"There's no way you're getting away with that answer, Son. You never have a girl stay at your place."
"She didn't stay, she came by this morning."
"Even rarer. What's her name?"
My dad had a tendency to be like a dog with a bone. I knew there was going to be no shaking him off when he got his teeth in like this. It wasn't that I wanted to hide anything. I just didn't wasn't ready for the interrogation that I'd be getting about what was happening between us.
"Her name's Lacey, and she's on my Watch."
"And you two are...?"
"None of your business Dad." I groaned, rolling my eyes skywards.
"I'll take that as a yes. Well I look forward to meeting her this afternoon."
"Whoa! What do you mean this afternoon?"
Lacey's footsteps grew nearer, and then she was there, walking in the room with a glass of orange juice in her hands, catching a drip from the outside of the rim and sucking it from her fingertip.
"You're coming to lunch, and you're bringing her with you. It's about time that you had someone special in your life, and I want to meet her before you let your idiotic stubborn side fuck it up." He said firmly, making it clear that this wasn't open for debate.
"I don't know if she has plans, I'll ask okay."
"Put me on speakerphone, I'll ask myself. I have a strange feeling that you're trying to give me the slip on this."
"Can you blame me, given the situation?" I sighed.
"Bane!"
I caved at the warning and held the phone away, pressing the speaker button.
"Fine. Lacey, my father would like to speak to you. Dad, she can hear you."
I mouthed an apology to her, relieved to see an amused smile stretch across her face as she shook it off.
"How can I help you Mr Knight?" She asked kindly.
I like her already, very sweet."
"Dad, get to the point."
Lacey's carefree laughter rang out and there was a clear sigh on the other end of the line.
"I wanted to extend the invitation of joining us for lunch. Bane is coming by and his sister is here. I'd love for you to join us if you aren't busy."
The invitation caught her off guard, and her surprised expression was turned to me as she looked for my opinion on the situation. I wasn't sure how things would go, especially with Marya being in the situation that she was in. But I wasn't going to make her feel unwelcome, besides she was an incredible woman, and my dad was bound to adore her. I shrugged and nodded, letting her know that I was okay with it and the decision was hers.
"Thanks, I'd love to come to lunch." She replied.
And just like that, the rest of my day was hanging in limbo. This could go one of two ways. Either really well... or really bad.