Into the Light (University of Isles #2)

18. Chapter 18

Chapter eighteen

I didn’t know what came over me, but when I heard Rain, an inexplicable urge surged within me. I longed to stride up to him and assure him everything was all right. Forgiving him tugged at me, but I also yearned for him to display a bit of humility. There was something unmistakable between us—something substantial and distinct from what I’d experienced before. It felt steady and grounded, lacking the usual whirlwind of emotions. Our connection was built on mutual respect.

If I had to describe it to someone, I’d say my love with Ash had been immediate and passionate. I loved Ash wholeheartedly, but what I had with Rain was growing. It felt like we were constructing a foundation, as though we were nurturing the roots of a flourishing tree. I wanted to explore where these roots would lead us, to witness the beautiful blossoms they might bear. Assuring that our connection wasn’t merely a result of the trauma we’d both endured was crucial. I longed to delve deeper into each other’s lives, to uncover our shared interests and differences before I could fully commit.

However, as I entered the room and saw Rain standing up to Mr. Ortiz, I realized he was venturing into forbidden territory. You never spoke disrespectfully to the boss. Yet, in that moment, my curiosity for him deepened. I hungered to unravel the intricate layers of our emotions.

I closed my eyes, my head resting on Rain’s back as he guided me through the woods. Partially because I was terrified of this stupid motorcycle, but also because it felt . . . secure.

As I drifted off into a nice lull, we pulled up to a little portion of the woods where an ATV was parked behind a large tree trunk.

Rain pulled the bike behind the tree before helping me off.

“Wait . . . you got me into this death trap but now you’re saying I have to go into that one?” I pointed to the ATV, and Rain only chuckled.

“Come on, mi pareja. I will even let you drive.” He tossed me the keys, and I caught them midair.

“How will I know what or where I’m driving to?” I asked.

“I’ll guide you.” He answered simply, which only piqued my curiosity more.

Fuck it. Tis the season for change, I may as well give this thing a try. I mounted the ATV, and Rain helped turn it on for me. He got on behind me and leaned so his chest was pressed tightly against my back.

Languidly, he placed his fingers atop mine and rested his head against the shell of my ear.

“Drive,” he demanded, and the way he spoke the word slowly, yet with a hint of a command to it, sent a shiver through my entire body. I swallowed, and I swore the cold air permeated into my lungs as I peeled out of the small clearing and drove forward.

I wouldn’t lie, this was much harder than it initially looked, because I had to dodge massive pine trees, and the deeper we got, the closer together we became.

“You are doing so good, mi pareja.” Rain praised as his hands did most of the work, navigating us through the forest.

“We are close now,” he whispered, and sure enough, a small light illuminated the porch of the world’s tiniest little cabin.

“Lift up on the brake, let go of the accelerator so we can slow down,” Rain instructed.

I did, and we came to a halt. It was far darker and cooler in this part of the forest, but the nervousness I felt through my body wasn’t just because we were in the forest.

“What is this place?” I asked, my breath catching in my throat.

“My hunting cabin,” he replied, and suddenly, everything fell into place. This was the spot where Ash was supposed to spend the night during last year’s bonfire.

“This is yours?” I asked, and he confirmed it with a nod.

“I bought it when I was a freshman, using some money my . . . dad had given me.” He paused briefly, and I sensed a deeper story there. “I needed a getaway from the Den, so I, along with a few guys, pretended it was a hideout for everyone. We even installed a septic tank in the back for plumbing and running water. And here it is.”

I gazed around in wonder. The cabin exuded a charming and rustic aura amid the towering pines. It was a humble abode, yet the fact Rain had constructed it himself made it even more endearing.

“It’s incredible,” I murmured, my admiration evident as I approached the front door.

Rain walked in front of me and unlocked the door.

“How are the lights on already?” I asked.

“I was here yesterday.” Then he pushed the door open so I could see what was inside. We stepped in, and I was pleasantly surprised at the vintage and quaint little cabin. It was literally one room with a small bathroom, but there was a small full-sized bed in the corner, two reading chairs in the other corner, and a small kitchenette.

“Wait, I love this.” I exclaimed, surprising Rain and myself.

“I have some of my rarest books here.” He motioned over to the built-in bookshelf above the chair, and I was shocked when I thumbed through some of the copies.

“Holy shit.” He had rare first editions of Agatha Christie, Stephen King, and some other authors I didn’t recognize because I liked reading about faeries ramming into each other.

“Cool, yeah?”

I paused in the center of the room. “Why’d you bring me here?” I asked, but my voice sounded softer than usual and much more timid, so much it almost reminded me of the old Ember.

He shoved his hands in his pocket, and in this light, I saw him for who he really was. He wasn’t the born leader that Ash was. He wasn’t the villain in the story everyone was demanding he become.

I took a slow step toward him before he could respond. “You’re kinda cute when you geek out over books.”

He chuckled, running his hand through his hair and avoiding eye contact with me. “I guess. I know our book tastes are different, but I’ve always been obsessed with horror and becoming published as a writer is really a dream of mine.”

He paused momentarily. “Before the accident, and now everything’s a mess.”

“But is it?” He cocked his head. “From what I overheard, give it all up. You have your own money from your dad. Mr. Ortiz will let you out—”

“No, he won’t, Ember, not until I tell him where the money went.”

The part of the conversation I’d overheard and knew immediately where the lump of cash was.

“It’s in Dansport in my house.” Rain nodded.

“It’s in my bank account. The millions of dollars that were suddenly wired into my account when I was . . . mourning.” Another silent nod.

“The night he died, I put it all in your name. I’d gotten the house for myself but in the moment, it made more sense that you’d need it. When you were sleeping, I put it all into the house.”

I-I thought Ash had gotten me the house. I could feel my chest cleave into two.

“I don’t need that money,” I whispered, and then Rain reached inside the backpack he had brought and pulled a document out.

“I know you don’t need it, but it’s yours,” he whispered, handing me the paper labeled “Last Will and Testament.”

I scanned it, not understanding most of the legal jargon until Rain came over and pointed to a highlighted section.

“Ember Solis is the designated beneficiary of the complete allocation of my estate, held within an offshore account domiciled in Switzerland, specifically identified by the account number: 08429. It is hereby affirmed that she is the exclusive recipient of the aforementioned inheritance.”

I paused, realizing what I had just read. He planned this. He knew this would happen, so there was no way someone else could have pushed him, because he wouldn’t have had time to—

“I know,” Rain whispered as if he was reading my thoughts.

“I-I found his phone.” I pulled it from my purse, and while showing him, it turned on straight to the photo of the two of us together.

Rain winced.

“Did you . . . Were there . . .” He paused, turning away from me. His hands ran through his hair, and I came behind him and wrapped my arms around his thick chest. I laid my head against his back between his broad shoulders.

“I heard your voicemails. All of them.” My voice was nothing more than a hushed whisper.

He grabbed my fingers with one hand, but didn’t turn around.

“Did you find anything else?”

I could barely say the next sentence, but I swallowed, managing to get the words out. “He sent me a text message that never went through saying he loved me.”

“Can you turn around?” I asked.

He slowly moved me so that his chest was pressed against mine.

“I didn’t realize you felt that way about me,” I whispered. “I didn’t realize you felt that way about all of this.” I gestured around the little cabin, remembering his confession about how he wanted to live in the tranquility out in the countryside.

“I hate this. I hated watching how it untangled the one person I loved, Ember. Because I loved him, too.” He stared at the photo in my hand.

“Can I take this with me? I have an IT guy who works for me, not the Cartel. He can see if there are any other pieces I can untangle.” I handed it over to him.

“Did you send yourself what you needed from it?”

“Yes.” I’d sent screenshots and voice recordings that Ash left me and that I’d left him, too.

“Are you okay? Finding this?” Rain paused and laughed for a second. “I can’t believe you actually found it and it works. Pretty fucking wild with all the weather all this time.”

“I understand,” I replied, sharing a chuckle of disbelief. “Rain, I need you to stay on the topic.”

“About what, Ember?” He took my hand and led me to one of the cozy reading chairs in the corner. Then he headed to the kitchenette and retrieved two pineapple-flavored seltzers from the small fridge.

“You like these?” I asked.

“No.” He shrugged and settled into the chair beside me. “But you do.”

I narrowed my eyes at him, recognizing that we needed to address the looming feelings between us. Rain always seemed to provide the answers I required, so his avoidance of the topic was telling.

“We really need to have this conversation,” I insisted. “We can’t keep avoiding it like we have been.”

He let out a heavy sigh. “Ember, I just don’t know where to begin. It’s . . . complicated.” He ran his hand through his hair before he popped the top of his seltzer and took a long pull.

“I want to get to know you. Aside from your love of books, what makes Rain . . . well, Rain?”

He smiled, then paused, the corners of his mouth twisting into a frown. “I don’t know, and I think that’s the problem with everything. I have spent most of my childhood and then my adult life living for Ash and making sure he was protected and at peace at home and loved. That his death has ripped a hole through the atmosphere. I don’t know how to fill it.”

I leaped out of the chair and slid onto his lap onto the chair he was now sitting, across from me. His hands pressed firmly on the curves of my hips, and our bodies melded together like we always belonged to each other—like it was the perfect puzzle piece fit.

“Start with something small,” I murmured, reaching up to play with the soft stubble growing on his chin. “Like, what is your favorite color?” I murmured.

“Why are you like this?” he asked quietly.

“Like what?”

“So . . . caring? Why does it matter to you so much, anyway? You’ll always be in love with him.”

The pang in my chest grew to a degree so insurmountable I didn’t have the words to say.

“I think that’s what I learned this last month though,” I murmured right into the shell of his ear. “I loved Ash. I will always love him, but I think there is space in my heart to move forward with the life I am living now.”

I dropped my voice even lower and then pulled away so that my hand was still on his face, and our eyes locked.

“I cannot imagine my days without you in them either, Rain. Even after all of this goes down, I don’t want to lose you,” I said, biting my lip. “But I want to figure out what happened that night. It’s important to me.”

“So do I.”

“And I don’t want to rush or label whatever this is right now. I don’t think I’m ready for that because that would mean involving the others, the initiation—”

“No,” he growled. “That will never be a thing between us.” Rain pulled my waist tighter to him.

“Mine,” he whispered in my ear. “You’re just simply . . . mine.”

He caressed my cheeks and I melted into his touch. “I like the color blue.”

I pulled back, the corners of my lips twisting into a smile. “Blue? I would’ve pegged you for a depressive gray.”

He chuckled. “No, we have more than enough of that color in Isles. Now it’s my turn.”

“Alright.” His fingers continued to trace the contours of my face.

“What do you envision yourself doing after graduation?” he inquired. “If you could choose anything.”

“I would write his story, our story, so it would be forever memorialized,” I replied, hesitating slightly after his recent confession about wanting me to be his and our mutual honesty about our feelings.

His hand never stopped moving on my face, even when I spoke of Ash. He pulled my head so I was leaning to the side, and whispered in my ear, “I think you should do that.”

“I wish,” I commented. “I know my dad has some plan for me, to marry me off to one of his buddies. We never really talked about it, but it was always just assumed.”

A low growl could be heard throughout the room.

“I’ve been through so much, Rain,” I whispered. “I guess all I want now is to live quietly in the countryside.” I paused.

“Maybe we could be neighbors in our future life.” I chuckled before his warm tanned hands swiped the hair off my forehead.

“What you’ve been through in life wrote your story. It made you stronger,” he added, but I only chuffed because that’s what I’d read constantly, but it wasn’t true.

“No,” I demanded, shifting so I was still on his lap but now my eyes fixated on him. “What I’ve been through in my life nearly wrecked me. It gave me nightmares. It stole my true identity. It made me feel deeply alone and a pain that nearly wrecked me.” He stared back at me with his deep-blue eyes.

“I was handed something that I didn’t ask for. In fact, I was desperate to live a life that was different from my parents, from Walsh’s, from Ash’s, even now, but it’s the trauma that helped me learn to live. It was in this shit that I trudged through where I learned so much about myself—my strength, my power, and the ability to overcome pain.”

A cleansing breath escaped my lips as I paused, gazing through the room’s dimly lit expanse and out into the densely wooded forest beyond the windows. “So, please don’t tell me that I’m stronger because of the hardships I’ve had to endure in this life. No, I made it through all of this because I unearthed my inner strength I had all along.”

There was an eerily quiet that passed between us before his fingers crept up to my lips. A shiver passed through my spine as his fingers traced the outline of my lips.

“The words that come out of this mouth are like being wrapped up with a good book on a cold day. You know that feeling?” I thought my heart was about to explode with how fast it was beating. Unable to string together a complete sentence, I just nodded.

“Ember?” he rasped as he brought my forehead down onto his, his thumb still circling my mouth.

“Yeah?” I could hardly talk between my heart racing a mile a minute and my lungs slowly losing breath.

“I need to kiss you, but I am trying to be respectful of your boundaries.” His finger parted my mouth, and I slowly bit down as I shifted on his lap. He was very . . . hard. His free hand wrapped around the back of my neck.

“Ugh,” he groaned, pressing our foreheads together.

In the cocoon of our shared silence, I could practically hear the thunderous rhythm of my heartbeat. His thumb continued its mesmerizing exploration of my lips, a slow, deliberate caress that sent shivers through my body. I couldn’t help but nibble softly, aching for more, as a pool of desire welled inside my core, its intensity growing with each passing second.

His strong hands gripped me by my hair, pulling me back with a confidence that exposed the vulnerable expanse of my neck. The heat of his breath, a warm whisper, teased its way up from my chin, each languid movement feeling like an exquisite form of torture. His fingers, once tenderly tracing my plush lips, now held my chin with possessive intent, guiding me down until our mouths hovered atop each other. The air around us seemed to crackle with electric tension, our locked gazes revealing a profound connection neither of us could deny.

Another pause.

“Fuck it.”

In that fraction of a moment, his lips seized mine, igniting a blaze of longing that consumed every ounce of resistance. His mouth, warm and full, felt like a seamless fit, as if it had been crafted specifically to meld with mine. Yet it wasn’t just the sensation of his lips against mine that had me surrendering so completely, but the way he moved, each calculated stroke and flick of his tongue sent me spiraling into a heady abyss of need. His assertiveness, a stark departure from his usually reserved demeanor, commanded my surrender, skillfully parting my lips and leading me deeper into the kiss.

“Like everything I’ve dreamed of,” he murmured between pants. I could only respond by letting out the smallest moan.

“Do that again and I might fucking come in my pants, mi pareja.”

I shifted again so I was straddling him and my knees were tucked in the cushion of the oversized reading chair. We were the same height from this position, but his mouth never left mine. I only responded by moving my hips in slow circles.

“Fuck.” He was the one moaning now as his hands dropped from my face and slowly caressed the sides of my body. “Every curve.”

His fingers delicately circled my tits as they heaved in my shirt. I had leggings and an oversized shirt on, but the heat between our bodies made me feel like I was sitting in a thousand-degree sauna and I needed to strip.

“Every inch.” He leaned up to whisper into the shell of my ear.

“Every dip,” he mused as his hands trailed toward my hips and landed on the curve above my ass.

“You are my perfection.” His lips traced mine as his tongue found its way back into my mouth. My hands cupped his face as if I didn’t want him to disappear. I didn’t want this kiss to stop.

I was wrapped up in every moment of it. The way his mouth was fucking mine with a fevered heat that only intensified my own.

“Are you getting wet for me, Em?” he murmured.

“Mm-hm.” Apparently I’d lost the ability to speak a coherent sentence.

“Use your mouth, Ember. Tell me, if I reach down here”—he tugged at the waistband of the leggings—“will I find your wet little cunt just waiting for me?”

“Mmmm” was the only sound I could make.

“Use your breathtaking words, Em.” His finger traced my navel, and then he opened my leggings, shifting so his hand rested against the top of my lace boy shorts.

“Yes. I’m soaking,” I cried with a need so heavy. “Please.”

It had been so long since anyone had touched me like this. The desire my body harbored for this man was insatiable. It was a primal attraction, and I found myself intensely drawn to every facet of his being.

“Stand up,” he said as he lifted me off him. I could barely hold myself up, as my knees were wobbly. It was as if his stance somehow grew larger in the last hour. “Take them off.”

My eyes followed his as he zeroed in on my pants. I shimmied out of them without thinking about it.

He watched as I stood there with no pants, my shirt hitting right above the curve of my ass.

“What?” I asked as he stood there and shoved his hands in his pocket, taking a half step backward.

“I-I’m just admiring the view,” he growled.

“Stop.” The flush of my cheeks burned.

I attempted to push down my shirt when he reached out and grabbed my wrist.

“No. Nobody, including you, touches what is now mine.”

I was a fucking puddle and desperate for more of him. I needed his touch against my throbbing cunt so desperately I would do anything.

“Take off your underwear, Em,” he demanded, and I obliged. His hand lifted the hem of my shirt, and he pointed over toward the bed.

“Walk to the edge of the bed. Turn around, face the wall, and hold the frame.” The mattress was perched atop an antique spiral frame, boasting a quartet of intricately designed spirals that curved gracefully. He gestured for me to hold onto the lower part of the bed.

I approached the bed, bending at the waist to reach the spirals, my fingers extending to grasp them.

“Spread your legs.” I obliged as his fingers made their way to my needy little cunt, desperate for more of his touch. He shoved two of his fingers inside before adding a third.

“Oh fuck.” I moaned so loudly I was convinced the animals in the forest would hear us.

His fingers were fucking me, and I bounced on them, matching his movements with my own. We were in sync with each other as his other hand caressed the cheek of my ass.

“So fucking beautiful,” he growled. I turned and his hand jerked his freed cock with frantic movements. Its size enamored me as it pulsated. It was a fucking . . . dinosaur, and the thought of it coming near my cunt sent a thrill of unease and curiosity down my spine.

“Turn around,” he demanded as he drove his three fingers into my core, using his thumb to flick at the top of my clit, sending me in a spiral.

“I’m not going to last.” I moaned as his strokes picked up in pace. It was embarrassing how quickly I would come all over his fingers, but I hadn’t been touched by anyone in almost a year, including by my own fingers, so I was so close to sinking into a deep oblivion.

More flicking.

More wetness pooled around me as he stretched me until I was enduring pain and pleasure. My hands could barely grasp the frame, as I thrust onto his hands and exploded atop of him.

“Oh my god.” I moaned, sinking deeper into my orgasm, riding out the wave as I went slack, his hands left my now very satiated cunt before I finally turned around.

His cock was still hard and there were no signs of cum anywhere on his hands, my body, or the ground, so I parted my lips and dropped to my knees.

“It’s only fair?” I murmured in what came out sounding more like a question. A smirk danced across his face as he took a few steps toward me, opening my jaw with his hands. His pleasuring hand rubbed my cum over his cock.

“Open wide, Em,” he demanded. “It’s going to hurt so you need to go really slow.”

His instructions sent an electric shock to my core, and my desperate little pussy was ready for round two. Calm down.

I opened my jaw, relaxing the back of my mouth as much as I could.

“I’m going to go slow.”

I nodded as I flicked the tip of his massive cock with my tongue, licking the combination of my wet pussy and his pre-cum off and swallowing it down whole.

“I love the taste of us.” I moaned as he pressed his cock deeper into my mouth, and I gagged.

“Holy fuck,” I mumbled through a mouthful of dick. “So big.”

Rain let out a chuckle and pressed farther into me. He was so fucking big and kept hitting the back of my throat, so I tried to open my mouth, allowing him in deeper.

“You are doing so well taking me in.” He praised as my free hand reached up to help guide him in.

Once he was finally in, he whispered, “Now, very slowly go back and forth. Don’t try to go too fast at first.”

I did as he instructed and slowly sucked on him, using my free hand to stroke the parts my mouth couldn’t get off.

“Yes, Em. Your mouth was made for me.” Fuck me. His possessiveness was all I could have ever wanted.

“Such a good girl,” he rasped, and grabbed my neck so our gazes connected but only momentarily before he looked up and slammed his cock inside my mouth.

Alternating between sucking and flicking my tongue around, I reveled in taking him in, then he let out a tormented wail as warm heat exploded in my mouth. He grasped the edge of my chin as he pulled out.

“Swallow” was all said, and with an audible gulp, I obliged.

He walked through the little door in the corner where the bathroom was, and before he shut it, he glanced back where I was still on my knees, my back against the spindles of the frame of the bed.

“Get up. Get dressed.”

The door slammed shut . . . And my heart with it.