Page 111 of Shots Fired

His soft words cut me like a thousand knives, and I recoil. Not at him, of course, but at the reality I’m faced with. Mum is still looking into options for me to stay in the US, but every process takes so long. I know, some point soon, I’m going to have to talk to Janine about my job and if there’s any chance she will keep me on as a permanent member of staff, even throughout my maternity leave.

I might feel the pain, but Archer looks like I took a blade and shoved it right through his heart.

“What’s going on, Darcy?”

He slides off the bed and removes his shirt and pants in front of me. Not saying a word, I watch on, mesmerized by his beauty and forced into silence at the spinning thoughts in my head.

I truly hoped that we’d have a solution to my visa dilemma by the time I had to tell Archer. But I don’t, and suddenly, the sight of his warm eyes and concerned voice, coupled with the general overwhelm of pregnancy, slam into me.

Angrily, I swipe at my eyes. Crying about it isn’t going to change my situation.

“Come here.”

Dressed in only his boxers and me in my tiny pink sleep shorts, Archer reaches out and takes my hand in his.

I climb out of bed, loose hair that’s fallen out of my braid tickling my cheeks.

With my hand in his, Archer turns and walks us to a chair in the corner of his bedroom. He takes a seat, spreading his thighs and pulling me down onto his lap.

I sit across his body, and he interlaces our fingers together.

There’re a few seconds of silence, noise of late-night traffic faint but audible from the streets below us.

“What’s going on?” Archer asks again, pushing my braid to one side and kissing my left shoulder. “I thought that maybe something wasn’t right before I left for Dallas, and now I’m convinced of it.”

“Umm … I’m not quite sure of how to put this?” I can hear the stress in my own voice.

“You should know by now that you can say anything to me. Nothing is off-limits between us.” In contrast to mine, my boyfriend’s tone is cool and collected. He’s likely shitting himself, but he doesn’t let it show.

“Over the past few days, Mum and I have been looking into my visa options,” I begin, taking a deep breath before continuing. “You already know I was here on an employer-sponsored visa and planned to get a permanent job out here after my contract withGlideended.”

He closes his eyes, face twisted with frustration and a painful realization. “And now you’re pregnant, so getting another job won’t be easy.”

I nod once. “Just because I’m having a baby with an American doesn’t automatically allow me to stay here in the US. In fact …” I swallow down a pain I’ve never experienced in my life, one that makes me want to wail. Tears reemerge because I’m incapable of controlling them. “When my job atGlideends, I’ll have to return to the UK soon afterward, and our baby …”

“Would likely remain here as a US citizen,” Archer finishes for me, putting all the pieces together.

Instead of nodding, I gulp this time, a puking bout threatening to strike again.

Archer shakes his head slowly. “I can’t live without you, Darcy. Iwon’tlive without you by my side.” He lifts his head back up, a burning determination taking over his eyes. “I’ve fought this hard to get you, and I’m not about to give you up, not for Jack, Coach, Liam, or the fucking Atlantic Ocean. They can all go fuck themselves because I’ve found my future and she’s five feet three with honey-blonde hair and the biggest blue eyes I’ve ever seen.”

We don’t say anything more to each other as he carries me in his arms to the bed he bought especially for us and lays me down on the soft duvet.

My sleep shorts are over my knees and lying in a heap on the floor in seconds, and Archer drops to his knees, pulling my bottom half off the bed. Next, he rests my legs over his shoulders.

No more words pass between us, only the sound of his mouth and tongue as they play with my pussy, eating me with a slow intensity I know only he’s capable of delivering. And when he enters me with a single thick finger, curling it upward as he licks and sucks my clit, I move my right leg onto the bed, sliding my foot along the edge of the mattress so I can open wider for him.

“Good fucking girl,” he groans against me. “Spreading yourself without me even asking.”

I lean up on my elbows so we can make the eye contact I know he demands when we’re having sex.

He strokes my front wall again, and my jaw hangs open. I’m so wet; I can hear it.

Clearly not satisfied with my pleasure levels, Archer pushes a second finger inside my pussy, and this time, when he crooks them, I feel an involuntary release into his mouth.

“I’m thirsty for more. Give me more of your sweetness,” he demands, running a slow lick through me.

My knees shake. No, my entire body trembles from the way his mouth and fingers work me into such a frenzy. I know why he’s doing this. He wants me to forget the stresses we’re faced with since there’s nothing we can do about them right now. Instead, he wants me to bask in the comfort of his love.