A crack of lightning shot through the air close by, quickly followed by a loud roar of thunder. Valerie cried out in surprise, clutching her chest and closing her eyes. The air was electrified by the proximity of the strike, the hairs on his arms standing up. "The worst of the storm is almost here," he said, "but do not be frightened."
She closed her eyes and nodded, taking a deep breath. "It just startled me. I’m fine." Raj didn’t believe a word she said, but he wouldn’t push the issue. After a moment, she opened her eyes and returned to sorting through her box. "These are here in case we lose power. It tends to happen when the weather is bad, so I like to be prepared."
As if by fateful cue, the rain began falling harder on the roof. It was coming down in buckets, the wind starting to howl through tiny cracks in the doors and windows. The shutters rattled against the sills. This was a fierce storm, indeed.
Valerie shivered and tugged on the sweater she’d carried out with her. "Well, this may be a very long, boring day. I hope you’re not looking for much excitement. We could watch a movie unless the power goes out. If it does, I started a puzzle a few days ago. We could work on that."
Why his mistress felt the need to entertain him, he did not know. "I am happy to be in your company, Mistress." And he meant it. It was very pleasant to be around Valerie once he found useful ways to pass his time here. He liked doing things for her. When she smiled, the gold in her eyes seemed to flicker as brightly as the light flashing off his golden cuffs. They had glimmered with desire after he kissed her. He could only imagine how beautiful they would be if she allowed him to pleasure her. There was nothing quite as exquisite as watching a woman come undone. And for a woman as beautiful as Valerie, the pleasure was doubly his. His body tensed at the mere thought of her passionate cries echoing through the small cottage.
"I’m not that interesting, I assure you."
"In that, Mistress, you are very wrong. If given leave to, I could spend hours simply listening to your melodic voice or exploring the soft contours of your body." Valerie gasped softly, but she didn’t shy away or divert her gaze from his. "I have a great deal of interest in many things about you, do not doubt it."
The spark was there. He could see the glint of attraction in her eyes as she looked at him. She wanted him, but she was afraid to have him. Something had made her push him away before. He would have to coax the tiny flame into a raging fire before she would give in to her desires.
"Raj, I—" She started to speak but was interrupted by another loud crack of lighting. In an instant the house went dark and the buzz of electronic devices quieted. The only light came from the fire.
He wanted to know what she’d been about to say, but the weather’s poorly timed interruption saw to it that she would never finish her thought. She immediately turned away, seeking out the flashlight on the table.
"Just perfect. I need to call the power company and report the outage," she said. "It will be awhile before they can fix it, though. We’ll probably have to fire up the generator to get things going again."
Raj wished that he could snap his fingers and handle the situation, but restoring the power was a big task. One that would require a wish. He could fix it, but she would have to ask him to.
She returned from the kitchen and looked down at her cell phone with irritation, wrinkling her nose. "Well, it’s worse than I thought. Power is out on the mainland, too. We will definitely be at the bottom of the priority list for this."
"I can fix it," Raj offered. She seemed to get uncomfortable every time he broached the subject, but he wanted her to know what he was capable of. "I can restore power to the island. To the whole area if that’s what you want. I can even repair the power lines so they don’t go out as easily. But you would have to wish for it."
Valerie’s grip on her flashlight tightened, and with it, so did her mouth. The full, pink lips flattened into a hard line of concern. She was holding back what she wanted to say, but Raj already knew before she spoke. She didn’t believe him. "There’s no need for that. I just have to go out and start the generator." She turned away from him, retrieving her hooded jacket from the hook on the wall.
"I shall go with you."
"You don’t have a coat, Raj. Before, it was sprinkling, but now the weather is too bad."
Raj certainly wasn’t going to let that stop him. He envisioned a coat similar to hers but in blue, and with a snap, he was wearing it.
"I’ll be right back," she said, leaning down to get a flashlight but stopping when Raj snatched it off the table.
"I said I shall go with you. I am properly attired now."
Valerie’s gaze ran over him from head to foot. Then she reached out and touched the jacket as though it was some magic illusion that wasn’t real. Her fingers glided over the slick, waterproof fabric. The touch of her hand moving over the hard muscles of his bicep made him painfully aware of her physical presence and the conversation they hadn’t finished. But now was not the time.
“How did...?” A loud crack of thunder shook the cottage and she pulled her hand away. "Never mind. Right now, I want to get the power back on, but we need to talk about..." She bent down to grab another flashlight and gestured at his coat with it, "...this...when we get back. Let’s go."
Raj followed her out of the house and across the island to a small outbuilding. He was amazed that Valerie’s small frame was able to withstand the weather. The wind and rain were punishing them. The waves were crashing hard against the rocks and, in some places, starting to wash up far higher than the usual waterline. She could be swept away by the storm, and yet she charged across the island as though it was a gentle May shower.
She unlocked the door, and they both stepped inside. Valerie turned on a large lantern that illuminated the whole room, including the rusty old generator in front of them.
Valerie slipped out of her coat and laid it across a wooden crate. Approaching the monstrous machine, she pushed up her sleeves and eyed it with dread. She reached out and flipped a metal switch on the control panel, but nothing happened. She didn’t seem concerned, waiting patiently for a few minutes. "It’s too cold to start. I’ve got to preheat the engine first, then prime the fuel lines." After about five minutes she compressed a bulb on the side. Then, finally, she turned the key and punched a large red button.
Nothing happened. She did it again and this time was rewarded with a loud, clanking sound, then nothing. Valerie growled low in her throat as she pressed the bulb again, forcing fuel through the system, but her third attempt to start it was a failure as well.
This was going to take a little magical assistance. Raj slipped out of his own coat and started to approach the machine. He stopped when he noticed the furious red tinting her skin and the tight balls of her fists. His quiet, reserved mistress was about to blow.
"Stupid, old piece of crap!" she yelled, kicking at the machine with her boot. "Just leave me out here with a rusty, unreliable power source! Put in solar panels for the lighthouse, but for the keeper, who cares? She’s just a sad, miserable woman waiting to die anyway! I wish they wouldn’t be so cheap and would replace this thing."
Raj felt his whole body light up with excitement and power. She’d said “wish.” Finally. The roaring flame in his gut surged out of him, enveloping the tiny room in bright light like a bomb detonating. When it faded and their eyes adjusted to the suddenly dim room, the old generator was gone and in its place was a brand-new, top-of-the-line generator.
"What the hell?" Valerie exclaimed, stumbling backward from the sudden change. After a moment, she reached out and touched the new generator as she had with Raj’s coat. She examined the controls, her head shaking slowly in disbelief as her fingertips glided along the shiny, red paint. "This is real. It’s really real."
"Of course it is. Turn it on."
She turned the key and pressed the start button on the control panel. With a loud roar, the generator started right up. The overhead light kicked on. Power had been restored.
Valerie circled around slowly and looked at Raj. The words had been stolen from her, despite the fact that her mouth was open and ready to speak. "Did you do this?" she finally asked with a quiver to her voice.
"I did. Your wish is my command, Mistress. You now have two wishes remaining."
Chapter Four
Not once since Raj washed up on her island had Valerie considered that he might be telling her the truth. He was confused, disturbed, injured somehow. That had to be the answer, because there was no such thing as a genie. There was no such thing as magic or sorcerers. Men did not live inside gold necklaces.
That knowledge had been what got her through the last day. It had allowed her to reason away breakfast and laundry. The coat and the fire. But this… Valerie couldn’t reason away this.
Raj was a genie. He wasn’t crazy. The beautiful, mysterious man that haunted her dreams was an ancient, powerful being focused on granting her every desire.
So, what exactly was she going to do about it?
She was going to start by getting the hell out of this shed.
Without thinking, she bolted from the building and charged into the rain leaving her coat and her flashlight. She didn’t care. The wind whipped her wet hair across her face, making her stumble on the rocks. She was almost to the house when her toe caught a ridge and she smacked down onto the wet stone. She scraped her knees and palms, but even that sharp pain wouldn’t slow her down. Crawling back to her feet, she shoved her hair out of her eyes and ran the last distance to the door.
By the time she made it inside, her wet hair had started to get icy. She was soaked through her clothes to her goose-bumped flesh. Her lungs burned, and her face was screaming from the cold. It took a few minutes inside next the fire before she thawed out enough to feel the aftereffects of her fall. The rocks hadn’t been kind. When she brought her hands up to inspect them, the palms were raw and bloody, tiny bits of stone wedged into her skin. Her knee hurt worse, but she couldn’t bear to check it yet.
She was still looking at her palms when Raj finally came inside. He was calm, not rushing despite the cold. He had left his coat behind as well and was as wet as she was. It didn’t seem to bother him, though. He was born of fire, right? Isn’t that what he’d said? She’d dismissed it, along with everything else, but how else could a man lie naked on the freezing rocks and not be cold?
Raj frowned when he saw the blood on her hands. He moved slowly toward her, probably worried she would spook again, but Valerie didn’t move. With a banged-up knee, she wouldn’t get far, even if she had somewhere to go.
His blue eyes gazed into hers, his presence suddenly as calming to her nerves as chamomile tea. Heat stirred inside her as he got closer. At first, the feeling chased away the bone-deep chill, but then it started to build into something more. Something wanton. Was he doing that to her on purpose, or did his mere presence light a fire in her belly?
He held his hand out to hers. "May I?" he asked.
Valerie had no idea what he was going to do, but she was in no condition to argue with him. She nodded softly, sending drops of water from her hair to the wooden floor.
Holding her hand palm up in his left hand, he touched her skin with the index finger of his right. The heat of his touch drew a sharp hiss as he made contact with her raw, bloody skin, but the warmth grew until her whole hand felt like it had been plunged into a hot bath. When he pulled away, her injury was gone. He did the same with her other hand, and this time his gaze didn’t leave hers.
He was so beautiful. Valerie hadn’t really allowed herself to appreciate his perfection because it came with a mentally unstable price tag. But now when he touched her, she couldn’t help it. His dark hair was wet and dripping, falling in his eyes. His soaked black T-shirt clung to every ridge of his chest as his breathing caused it to rise and fall.
When she forced herself to look away, she saw that both her hands were now healed. She swallowed hard. There was no more denying this. "Thank you," she said, her voice little more than a whisper.
He responded with a crooked, embarrassed smile. People must not thank him very often for what he did. "You are most welcome. But what of your leg?"
Valerie had forgotten her leg hurt as she lost herself in the depths of Raj’s eyes, but looking down, she could see the blood soaking through her favorite jeans. "Oh," she said, not sure what to do next.
"I shall care for you." Raj reached for her, and before she knew what was happening, she was in Raj’s arms. He lifted her like she weighed no more than a feather, carrying her down the hallway to her bedroom. He set her down on the edge of her bed. "We need to get you out of these wet clothes."
"I can—" she started, but with a snap of his fingers, she was wearing nothing more than a dry pair of panties and a fitted T-shirt she often slept in. She gasped at the sudden exposure, but the look of unadulterated desire on Raj’s face silenced her.
He knelt slowly in front of her, letting his palms glide leisurely up her legs to her skinned and bruising knees. He cupped one in each hand, the heat once again building until he pulled away and revealed fresh, creamy skin.
"Perfect," he whispered, but Valerie realized he wasn’t admiring his handiwork. He was looking at her. Like he was set to devour her. No man had ever looked at her that way before. His hands traveled up her thighs, stopping as his fingertips brushed the scalloped, lace edge of her panties. "May I?" he asked again.
Valerie’s heart was pounding dangerously in her chest, but she didn’t care. She wanted this, wanted him. If it killed her, at least she would’ve died while in the process of finally living. She licked her lips, watching his gaze drop to her mouth. "Yes," she said.
A smile curled Raj’s lips. His rough fingertips hooked around the edge of her panties, slipping them over her hips and down her legs. She thought at first he might snap them away, but there was something to be said for the seductive quality of him undressing her slowly.
He lifted the edge of her T-shirt, pulling it over her head. Her breath was ragged in her chest as he threw it aside and let his gaze roam fully over her bare skin. Her breasts tightened under his scrutiny, her nipples drawing up into hard peaks. Raj leaned in to taste one but paused when Valerie hissed in surprise. His freezing-wet clothes were pressed against her legs.
"My apologies," he said, pulling away. He snapped his fingers, and his own wet clothing disappeared. In an instant, he was as naked as he was when she’d first found him. He wore only the gold cuffs at his wrists.
She watched the cuffs as he reached for her knees and gently eased them open. He nestled between them and leaned into her again, this time her bare skin coming into contact with his own searing heat. "Much better," Valerie said with a smile. She couldn’t wait to have his whole body covering hers.
Raj smiled back at her, his eyes focused on hers through his dark lashes as he took one nipple into his mouth. The moist, wet heat enveloped her, eliciting a sharp cry from deep in her throat. Her brought her hands to his head, and laced her fingers through the damp strands of his hair to tug him closer.
He took his time with her body, kneading and teasing one breast, then the other, with his tongue and teeth and hands. By the time he pulled away from her, she was squirming and panting in his arms. Each touch was like dumping gasoline on the flame inside her. The blaze roared with a throbbing, aching need.
"Tell me what you desire," he whispered, his lips grazing over the inner curve of her breast.
She didn’t know what to tell him. She wanted everything. Anything. Just as long as he was touching her.
Valerie didn’t speak, but Raj seemed to know exactly what she wanted. He pressed against her shoulder, pushing her back until she was lying across the comforter. He planted a searing kiss in the valley between her breasts, then leisurely made his way down her body. He left no inch of her unexplored between his mouth and his hands.
When his lips hesitated just at her pubic bone, she squeezed her eyes shut. She was overwhelmed with anticipati
on and nervousness. Need and anxiety. His hot breath teased her sex, his palms pressing her thighs farther and farther apart. At that point, Valerie simply ceased to breathe. Her chest tightened as she waited for his touch.
The first flick of his tongue across her aching flesh sent her back arching off the bed. A strangled cry escaped her throat, cut off by another as his mouth moved over her. The sensations shooting through her body were amazing. Within seconds he had her quivering and on the verge of losing it. She felt one finger, then two, slip inside of her.
Valerie’s inner muscles clenched around the invasion. Her body yearned for more, for the rest of him, but he wasn’t about to stop what he was doing. His tongue furiously worked against her sensitive nub as his fingers pumped rhythmically into her. It was a combination she wouldn’t withstand. With a cry, her release came over her. The pleasurable shock waves pulsed through her body, making her gasp and thrash against his hand.
It wasn’t until she collapsed, still and panting against the mattress, that he relented in his pleasurable assault. Valerie watched him through fluttering eyelids as he stood.
She’d seen him naked and aroused before, but it was different this time. On the beach it had been a startling and embarrassing moment. Now, the heat was rushing to her cheeks for a different reason. She pushed herself up to a seated position, placing herself perfectly at eye level with his arousal. Her powerful orgasm had left Valerie feeling brazen. She wrapped her fingers around the length of him and squeezed gently.
Raj groaned and closed his eyes. "What are you doing?" he asked.
Valerie arched an eyebrow. "What does it look like I’m doing?" she replied before taking the tip of him into her mouth.
"Mistress, please," he said, his voice a combination of painful restraint and sharp need. "It is my duty to pleasure you."
His protests were silenced as Valerie took him deep into her mouth, caressing every inch of him with the glide of her tongue. She drew down the length and back, flicking her tongue across the tip as she looked into his eyes. "I find this pleasurable," she said.
Sexy In A Bottle: A More Than Men Novella Page 4
