Chapter 8
Janet didn’t remember much of what was happening as she was driven through back roads, escorted to the hotel room, taken the back way whenever possible and kept out of sight. She just remembered arms around her, as she was ushered out of the public eye. She caught snippets of conversation, but never enough to fully catch her attention, never enough to really shake her from the panicked numbness that had tumbled through her body.
It wasn’t until she was back in her own hotel room that she started to wake up a little more. Sounds of clinking and shifting mugs echoed from the kitchen. Before she knew it, a cup of hot, sweet tea was being pushed into her hands. She looked up and was greeted by Fang’s concerned face.
There was something almost stoic about the way that he looked at her, a stillness in his expression, but his eyes were alight with what looked very much like worry. He was worried about her- she could tell. She managed a small smile, trying to settle herself, to bring some sort of comfort to the situation, to the very challenging situation that she found herself in.
And Fang was here, pushing tea into her hands and sitting beside her. She took a deep breath and tried to settle her heart.
“Are you okay?” His voice was soft and low, with a sort of intensity that almost brought tears to Janet’s eyes.
Suddenly, all she could think about was the terror that she had felt in that moment. Had her father felt the same terror before he died? She felt a lump build in her throat and she pushed it down and out of sight, out of the way. She managed a small smile and nodded.
Fang shifted, just sitting beside her. He didn’t say another word, at least, not for the longest time. Janet was grateful for his silence and his company. The tea tasted fantastic, exotic, and she assumed it was something from South Africa that she hadn’t yet tried. It brought the warmth and feeling back into her body, flooding back into her and leaving her a little less shaken, a little less exhausted.
She shifted and Fang looked at her. He leaned in a little, then seemed to think better of it. He backed up and nodded, “I’m glad you’re alright.”
Janet didn’t want him to back away. She didn’t want him to distance himself, not now. She reached out, her hand falling to rest on top of his. She squeezed his hand softly, leaning across. She felt something shift in the air between them.
“Thank you.” She whispered. It was barely a breath, a whisper across the quiet room, but he swallowed and she knew that he had heard her.
She didn’t give him a chance to answer. She pressed her lips against his and, this time, it was something sweet and almost soft. She pushed her cup of tea to one side and moved, so that she was brushing up against his skin. She could feel him shuddering a little.
Janet didn’t care, in this moment, whether this was right or wrong. All she knew was that she needed him, and she didn’t know what else to do. Then Fang’s arms slid around her waist and she melted into him.
He kissed her in return, the soft and slow kiss building into something else, something furious and passionate and urgent. Suddenly, all the panic of the day came pouring out of her and she clutched onto him, holding him as tightly as she could.
He pulled her in close and she could feel his heartbeat pounding beneath his clothing. She shuddered, felt the sweat of his skin and the warmth burning through the fabric. Janet felt so cold that Fang was like a fire, blazing out of control, unchecked and setting her ablaze with it.
She wanted him. She needed him. Her hands were on his shirt, pulling it over his head. His hands were quickly on her skin, ripping off her clothes with little concern for them. Janet felt a thrill rise inside of her and she slithered out of the fabric, shedding it like an old skin, like the past that held her so closely.
She shook it all off until she was left only in a bra. Fang made short work of it, tearing it from her skin, kissing her passionately, until it was all that she could feel. She could barely breathe, could barely take in air, but she could feel this, feel him, beneath her skin, all over her.
Then he was pushing her back against the bed and Janet felt his hands hook around her bra and slide it from her skin. His breath was hot in her ear, “Do you want this?”
There was a choked sound to his voice, as if he too was drowning in desire. Janet nodded frantically, a thrill rising inside of her. Not only had he saved her, but he wanted to make sure that he wasn’t taking advantage of her.
But Janet had started this and she wanted it more than she had wanted anything before. The passion of their first time paled in comparison to the desire that was rising up inside of Janet. It was burning and overwhelming and she dove in head first.
She pulled him in on top of her and moaned when she felt him press against her. He was so big and the feeling of him pressing against her entrance, against the burning heat within her was almost enough to make Janet cry out. She shifted and he slid within her, filling her and overwhelming her senses.
She bit her lip, crying out and shuddering. She moaned at the pleasure rising up inside of her, gripping his skin, his shoulder. He gasped against her neck and Janet felt her head spin with pleasure and desire.
It wouldn’t be long. She could already feel the beautiful, blissful wave of ecstasy rising up inside of her, threatening to drown her, overwhelming her in the best way. It was cresting, building, entangling them both in a rush of pleasure.
Janet couldn’t take it. She moved against him, feeling him shift harder inside of her, feeling the build of need overtaking them both. It was too much.
Janet cried out as her climax hit her, shuddering through her and over her, encompassing every bit of the panic and pain that had so shadowed her day. She bit her lip, the sensations fluttering against her skin, sending ripples through them both. Fang followed soon after and they held each other tight against the tide, against the unending needs and desires that twisted around them both. Janet could barely catch her breath and, honestly, she didn’t really want to.
He was here, and he was making it all better, soothing the terror inside of her and leaving her exhausted, but happy. Exhausted, but safe. He was here and that was all that Janet needed.