I open my eyes but hers are lowered again, only the curled eyelashes visible against her cheeks. “Routine,” she mumbles.
“Bullshit,” I counter curtly, and it has its desired effect. She lifts her gaze, flaring with irritation.
“It’s nothing.”
I tighten my fingers on her hips. “Only truth between us, Luna.”
Her eyes flit off to the side before she answers, “It was nothing. I hadn’t had a period in two months…” Her voice drifts off and my mind starts filling in the blanks.
“Pregnant?” Both fear and excitement course through my veins.
More kids had never been on the radar after we adopted Ahiga. We’d both been good with that. That doesn’t mean another kid wouldn’t be welcome. Complicated, given our ages and life choices, but welcome.
“No.” Her answer is delivered in a dull tone and she worms out of my hold, climbing out of bed. “Apparently, at forty-three, I’ve already hit my past due date,” she says over her shoulder, as she makes her way across the room. “Menopause,” is the last thing she shares before ducking inside the bathroom.
The word is laced with regret.
Luna
Even as I close the door behind me, the tears pooling in my eyes start to overflow.
Fuck.
I couldn’t look in his eyes and see the disappointment reflected back at me. Before last year this development wouldn’t have even fazed me. Our life was good—solid and more than enough—but with Ouray already withdrawing, being told I’d officially entered the world of the middle-aged had hit me hard. What if he lost what little interest he had left? I know he loves me, but he still left our bed empty for nights at a time. How would he look at me now?
I lean into the mirror, my reflection clear in the harsh light. A familiar face, but suddenly the lines and wrinkles stand out, along with the strands of silver in my otherwise blonde hair. I scan the rest of my body, still reasonably fit, thanks to a pretty strict exercise regime, but my skin is far from tight. My boobs—never my best feature—seem have dropped at least an inch, my once-perky nipples starting to point south.
The bathroom door suddenly slams open with a bang as my husband steps in, his face tight and angry. He slips behind me and glares at my reflection.
“Whatever you’re thinking, knock it the fuck off.” His hands grab my hips and yank me back against his erection.
“How would you know what I’m thinking?” I snap back, instantly on the defensive. A bad habit, I know.
“Because I fucking know you,” he growls, pressing his cock against my ass. “Feel that? Been fighting that since I first laid eyes on you. Always hard, always ready. Always so fucking eager to slide into your beautiful body. You think this’ll change? Jesus, Sprite, you could grow a bigger beard than mine and get bald on top, and you’d still fucking have me worshipping you.”
“You say that now,” I protest lamely, even as I tilt my ass in need.
“I’ll say that ’til the day I die. I fucked up, wasn’t there when you needed me to remind you.” His hand slides up to my breast until he cups the weight in his hand, thumb and index finger pinching my nipple. I gasp at the sensation and lean my head back on his shoulder. “We’re getting older, Sprite, nothing can stop that, but all I will see in every mark age leaves on your body is the beauty of all the years you’ve given me.”
My mouth falls open when the fingers of his other hand brush through my curls and find my slick core.
“So ready. Always ready for me, aren’t you?”
“Ouray, honey…”
“You think this will ever change?” Even as he asks the question, I can feel the wide crown of his cock slicking along my crease. With a harsh grunt, he thrusts inside me. “Never,” he growls, his eyes hot on mine in the mirror as he pulls back. “Never,” he repeats, surging home once again.
The heat of him filling me, every nerve ending aware of his touch, the prickle of his scruff on my shoulder, and the fierce love in his gaze consume me. Until there’s nothing—no doubt, no fear, not even a hint of uncertainty—but the knowledge I’m exactly where I belong.
When my legs are barely able to hold me up from the force of my release, and Ouray shudders behind me after finding his, he whispers against my ear.
“Never.”
5
Ouray
“Looking good, brother.”