Decipher (Declan Reede: The Untold Story #3) (28 page)

My own joy had little to do with my surroundings or the presents, or even what I had planned for the afternoon, and everything to do with the fact that it was my first Christmas as a father. I was still coming to terms with it on one level, but on another, I just couldn’t imagine my life ever returning to the way it was.

My existence would be hollow and meaningless without Phoebe in it. Her little smile and chatty mouth were a constant source of amusement. If I’d thought I’d loved her when the prospect of losing her had felt so real when the
Gossip Weekly
magazine hit the shelves, it was nothing compared to how I felt after being with her almost full-time for close to a month.

The fact was, I had a hell of a lot to be thankful for.

Ruby and Josh came around early for the usual gift exchange. From the moment they arrived on the doorstep before I was even fully awake, I knew the day would be a fucking barrel of laughs. What was already an awkward situation—having to sit around and make pleasantries with a man who beyond any shadow of a doubt hated me—was made even worse by the addition of a second man who would kick my arse if given even half an opportunity. I sucked it up though, for Alyssa and for Phoebe. They were the important ones.

The time came for the pre-lunch gift giving. I knew all about Alyssa’s family’s tradition; I’d even participated in it a few times when we were still in high school. They played an almost rotational game. One person would select a gift and read out the name on it. That person would open their gift and then select the next present before reading out the name on the card. It would continue in that vein until all the gifts had been opened.

Alyssa helped Phoebe out whenever it was her turn, which was often because Phoebe had been spoiled rotten by all and sundry. In addition to the few small items Alyssa and I had purchased, Ruby and Josh seemed to have bought her four or five gifts each, then there were the ones Ben and Jade had given us, and the one Mum sent over from wherever the hell she currently was. Surprisingly, there was even a gift from Dad that he’d apparently mailed directly to Ruth and Curtis. The only tense moment of the morning was when I had opened my present from Alyssa and had selected a present to hand out in return, only to realise it was for Curtis. I walked over to him and passed him the gift. As I read out the tag, he watched his hands, rather than me, no doubt mulling over everything that had happened between us lately.

When it came time for lunch, I found a spot at the far end of the table, and then positioned Alyssa on one side of me and Phoebe on the other. There was nothing I wanted more than to just ignore everyone else at the table, so being needed to cut Phoebe’s food, to help her feed herself, and to keep her entertained, gave me the perfect excuse to be a little antisocial. It also gave Alyssa the opportunity to relax and enjoy herself with her family during what was probably the last time they’d all be together before we moved to Sydney.

When Phoebe started to get fussy, I was the one who took her into our room to help her sleep.

It was a little after five before I’d finally managed to break Alyssa free from the pack. When I did, I took the hamper Ruth had prepared in one hand, and wrapped the other around Alyssa. We walked slowly through the quiet streets until we arrived at our park. I had everything else I needed tucked safely away in the backpack I was carrying. Even though she clearly wondered what we were doing, I didn’t want to ruin her Christmas surprise.

It was almost twilight when the park finally came into view. The day had been so hot that after the short walk, a light sheen of sweat clung to our bodies. The sky was filled with a haze of light grey clouds, holding the promise of an evening shower to cool things down.

My nerves were on edge, and my hand shook as it held Alyssa’s when we walked closer to our tree.

“What’s wrong, Declan?” Alyssa asked.

My behaviour must have been concerning her. I shook my head. “Nothing’s
wrong.
”

“Then what is it?” she asked, chewing her bottom lip.

“I just wanted to spend a little time alone with you,” I said. “Is that so bad?”

“Of course not, I just . . .” She gave me an odd look. “Well, you’re acting a little strange.”

I tried to laugh at her words, but it came out sounding a little choked even to my own ears. Deciding to stop trying to be casual because it was giving me away faster than showing my nerves, I turned to her. “Close your eyes,” I whispered.

She obliged, and I quickly wrapped a blindfold around her eyes.

“Declan? What’s—”

I cut her off with a kiss. Her mouth moved of its own accord against mine, needing no guidance from her sight. I stepped back when we both began to get a little breathless. Her lips were full and plump, begging to be kissed again.

I turned away and quickly began setting things up for our date. First, I set up the pop-up tent. It wasn’t big, but was closed in and would block us from prying eyes if things went the way I hoped—I needed some time alone with Alyssa. To add to the privacy, I’d set up our little picnic in the corner of the park that farthest from the houses, hidden away between the long grass around the edge of the park and the giant tree that had seen so much of the relationship Alyssa and I had shared. I laid out the picnic blanket, and set up the tea light candles. The dinner I’d organised wasn’t anything fancy—just leftovers from the massive Christmas spread as Ruth had promised.

As far as co-conspirators went, Ruth was pretty perfect. I had no doubts she knew what I was planning, and I was certain she knew that I guessed her suspicions, but we didn’t mention it—each pretending we had the other fooled.

All I’d done though was ask her to pack something small for us, but she’d gone one step further and got a few of Alyssa’s favourite foods, and then packed them all away in her nicest Tupperware. Then she began throwing together everything I would need for some privacy—especially with the photographer still hanging around. Not that I’d seen him on our walk.

Once the picnic was all set up, I guided Alyssa to her place. I helped her to the ground before dropping the blindfold away from her eyes.

“Ta-da,” I said, immensely proud of the feast I had laid out for both the senses and the stomach.

“Wow,” she breathed before smiling widely. “What’s this for?”

“It’s your Christmas present,” I said. “Some time alone, just the two of us. Unless you want me to leave, of course? It is your present, after all.”

She laughed. “Oh, well in that case, you most definitely should . . .” She paused for a beat too long for my comfort. “Stay.”

She leaned forward across the mat, kissing my lips softly before turning to the food. “Although, I really don’t think I can eat another thing after the lunch Mum put on today.”

I smiled, not upset in the least by the turn of events. If she wasn’t hungry, it gave us more time to enjoy being alone together.

“I can fix that,” I said, putting the lids back onto the containers and packing them into the hamper.

“You sure you don’t mind?” she asked. “You went to all this effort.”

“The effort wasn’t about the food, Lys,” I said.

I hoped she didn’t notice the fact that my voice wavered at the end. Even if I didn’t care about the food, it meant that things were speeding hastily toward the part of the evening I was dreading and anticipating in equal measures.

She raised her eyebrow at me, obviously not missing the quiver in my voice. A small smile crossed her face as she watched me fumble with the last of the containers.

I turned back toward her—nerves now wracking my body and causing my fingers to shake. She wrapped her hands around mine, and I watched our intertwined fingers for a moment, trying to settle my stomach.

“There was something else,” I whispered finally, not willing to meet her eyes for fear of turning chicken. I tried to continue, but the words stuck in my throat.

After a moment’s silence, Alyssa released my hands. “What is it?”

“I have something else,” I repeated. “For your Christmas present.” I reached my hand into my pocket. “Actually, now that I think of it, it’s a selfish gift. Very selfish, in fact. I hope you’ll forgive me for that.”

Her brow furrowed in confusion.

I pulled the little velvet box from my pocket and opened the lid to reveal the contents to her. A few drops of rain started to fall, but I barely noticed them. It was time. It was perfect. It was happening.

My heart was pounding as I spoke. “I want you, Alyssa. I want only you, forever. Will you be mine? Not just for Christmas, but for the rest of our lives?” I held out the diamond ring to her, once again feeling relief that I’d purchased it when funds were less restricted.

She stared at me and didn’t breathe for the longest time. The rain was coming down heavier, but the night air was warm, so I didn’t mind. Her eyes lingered on the ring for a moment, before moving to my face. She regarded me for a second before nodding.

“Yes,” she whispered.

I couldn’t help my wide grin or my sigh of relief. I didn’t know what to say, knowing nothing—not all the words in the world—could ever be as beautiful as the little affirmation she’d just issued. I let my fingers do the talking instead. I closed my eyes and leaned toward her, cupping her face softly with my hand and pulling her lips against mine. I kissed her softly at first, becoming more hungry as the seconds passed. The whole time, a new mantra ran on a loop through my head.
She said yes, she wants to be mine.

She moaned against me in encouragement as my fingers found her hand and gently slid the ring onto her finger while keeping her lips busy. She didn’t even glance at the way the ring looked against her skin before moving her hands into my hair to pull my mouth harder against hers.

It really had been too long, for both of us. I was ecstatic that she seemed to want me as much as I wanted her.

She hummed as she released my lips. Both of us were oblivious to the rain as it poured down and soaked through our clothes.

My hands caressed her arms before reaching for the buttons on her shirt. I made short work of them as I let my desire overtake reason and control. I pushed lightly against her, and she complied, falling back onto the blanket. My lips caressed the skin on her neck and collarbone as I pushed her shirt up out of my way.

The rain moistened her skin and raised small goosebumps over her stomach. Needing to have her naked beneath me—or on top of me, I wasn’t fussy—I offered her my hand and we moved into the relative privacy of the small tent, dragging the blanket with us.

I sucked one of her nipples into my mouth and ran it softly between my teeth. I trailed my mouth lower as she ran her fingers through my now wet hair, pushing it back off my face. Her skin was flushed and warm with desire, but the rain had cooled it as it landed. I worked on the button of her shorts, quickly pulling them off with a flourish. I didn’t care that we were—for all intents and purposes—still in a public place. We were hidden enough, and I needed her so badly. I hadn’t been able to taste her properly in the longest time. The sex we’d had in recent weeks was always rushed, as we hurried to finish before Phoebe woke or so that we could get a precious few moments of sleep.

Now that I had Alyssa alone, and we weren’t due back for at least another couple of hours, I was going to enjoy every second with her—and every inch of her.

My tongue circled her belly button before trailing small kisses along her stomach. I pressed my cheek against her thigh as I adjusted myself lower. I ran my nose along her inner thigh and down to her knee, before tracing the same line back with my tongue.

She muttered indecipherably as she writhed in pleasure—the sound and movement heading straight through my body to my already hard dick. It twitched against its material cage, begging to be released and allowed to return to its home between Alyssa’s legs. It would have to wait though; I wanted to taste her first. I wanted her to scream my name as I kissed her deeply. I grazed my teeth lightly along her clit, and she moaned throatily. Needing to do more, I planted a small kiss where my teeth had been seconds earlier, and her legs closed around my shoulders, wrapping me in heaven.

I ran my tongue up the length of one of her lips, circling around and running it down the other. Alyssa shuddered beneath me and clenched the picnic blanket tightly in her fists.

I pulled back from her. “Alyssa,” I whispered softly. “Can you show me how you fuck yourself?”

Her head rose off the blanket, a look of shock on her features. I wanted her to feel comfortable, but I also wanted to see her own fingers dance across her skin. It was something I hadn’t been treated to yet.

“Please,” I begged, before adding, “But only if you want to.”

She regarded me for a minute, before nodding minutely and running her hand across her stomach and over the apex of her thigh. Her finger dipped to her pussy, and then she ran it lightly across the surface. After following her movements with a hungry stare, I dipped my head and followed the trail of her finger, eliciting a sweet groan.

I raised my head slightly and watched as her finger trailed back to her clit. When it did, I licked her fingertip where it met her sweet spot. She pulled her hand back a little, permitting my tongue to take the lead, but I couldn’t allow that. Instead, I held on her hand and guided her fingers toward her entrance. A moan of delight left me as I watched her digits move in and out, slowly at first, but faster and more fluidly with every passing second. Sitting back on my haunches, I watched her pleasure herself. My cock was screaming at me to stop the madness already and bring him into the game, but I couldn’t. At least, not just yet.