ALASKAN FIRE

by Alaskan Fire (NCP) (lit)

  Jess jumped when there was a sharp knock on the door. Sam stood there fresh from a shower, his golden skin glowing with good health. He had changed into a casual black sweatshirt and jeans and looked relaxed and handsome.

  “Come on, Lois--chow up,” his brilliant eyes appraising Jess' slender body.

  “Don’t call me Lois.” Jess softened the words with a grin as she closed the cabin door behind her. “There is no lock on my door,” she commented, following Sam along the narrow passage way.

  “There are no locks on anyone’s door. They are not used to lady reporters on board ship but, don’t worry, I’m sure no one will bother you, particularly when you are wearing your bad tempered face,” Sam said dryly, as he stood back to let her pass into the huge eating area. Jess hesitated as she went to squeeze past him, his closeness making her dizzy with longing. Sam sensed it because he caught her arm and pressed his hard thighs and hips into her soft body as she leant against the wall.

  “Besides,” he whispered his eyes on her startled, half-opened mouth. “If any member of the crew as much as touches you, I will personally annihilate them. As far as they are concerned you are my woman,” he murmured and Jess thought for a moment he was going to kiss her there and then. She glanced at the crowd of seamen in the eatery area, many of them staring curiously at them.

  “I can look after myself. I don’t need your strong-arm tactics to protect me,” she hissed at him as she stepped into the dining room.

  Sam didn’t reply as he smoothly directed her towards the captain’s table. The American captain and his crew, numbering about one hundred, were a rough-and-ready group but treated both Jess and Sam courteously enough. There was a great deal of interest in the story and Jess enjoyed herself as they spent a leisurely time over the meal, talking to the captain and many members of the crew.

  Around ten o’clock Sam suggested he and Jess should turn in. Jess colored slightly as Sam’s arm curled possessively around her waist as they left the dining room together.

  “You can stop the play acting now,” she said as they stopped outside her cabin.

  Ignoring her comment, he said “Sleep well, Jess. Remember, I’m only next door if you need me.”

  Jess banged the cabin door shut after her. He really was incorrigible, she fumed taking off her clothes and showering in the tiny shower alcove. The cabin was stiflingly hot now, and she was sure there must be something wrong with the heating system. She was suffocating.

  Jess turned off the light and lay on top of the bed wearing her thinnest lace nightdress. Even that was hot on her. She listened to the comforting sounds of the engine deep within the bowels of the ship and was lulled by the gentle roll of the icebreaker as it ploughed its way through the dark sea. Exhausted by the long day, Jess slipped into a deep, dreamless sleep.

  She had no idea at what time she awoke but it was to find she was frozen stiff with icy air surrounding her. She shivered violently as she rolled off the bed and staggered towards the door. Her brain didn’t seem to be functioning and her body was numb with cold.

  She fell back across the bed with an agonized cry as her muscles suddenly cramped and her body continued to shake. Then strong arms lifted her and she glimpsed Sam’s anxious face before she lost consciousness.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Jess stirred and then stilled with shock. Her head rested in the hollow of Sam’s neck. Her body, in the flimsy nightdress, was cradled hard against his bare chest, her legs intertwined with his. Her heart raced as she tilted her head to look up into his face.

  The light of a grey dawn filtered through a misty porthole into the tiny cabin and she could see the outline of Sam’s features. They were lying on her narrow, single bed, cocooned in a wad of warm blankets. His arms grasped Jess tightly as he slept.

  What had happened, Jess wondered in bewilderment? She moved her arm and felt something on her head only to discover it was her woolen hat. Sam stirred in his sleep and subconsciously tightened his grip so she was pressed even closer to him. She studied the hollow at the base of his throat. She had wanted to touch him there so often in the past few weeks, to taste the softness of his golden skin and inhale his clean smell.

  Slowly Jess leaned more closely to him and closing her eyes, pressed her lips against his skin. Her breasts swelled against the hard wall of Sam’s chest and a desire she had never before experienced curled downward over her stomach and to her very core.

  She sensed by Sam’s sudden stillness that he was awake. Her eyes were full of longing as she stared into his face, ghostly in the dim light. His hand stroked her hair with exquisite tenderness. “If you don’t want me to make love to you, Jess, you have just made a big mistake. A big mistake,” he murmured, his voice husky as his mouth covered hers, tasting her full lips. Jess received his caresses, welcoming the sweet invasion of his tongue. Her arms crept around his waist as she deepened the kiss.

  “Sam! Oh, Sam, I want you so,” she sighed, as his lips pressed softly against her eyelids and the curve of her jaw and then the creaminess of her long neck. Sam pushed the blankets aside and the air in the cabin was warm and welcoming as he carefully removed the skimpy nightdress from her shoulders revealing her full white breasts.

  “You are so beautiful,” he whispered, his hands stroking her swollen softness. He gently pulled the nightdress over her thighs so she lay naked before him, her skin gleaming like ivory.

  “Please, make love to me,” Jess pleaded, her body quivering under his appraising scrutiny.

  Sam could hear a voice in his head shouting at him--don’t do this--don’t do this! He groaned. He wanted her so much! For the first time in my life I’ve fallen in love, he thought his mind registering the shock as he analyzed his feelings. I’ve fallen in love with a beautiful, spirited ice maiden who still has hang ups about her rotten boyfriend. But right now she wants me.

  Jess shivered with passion as Sam’s lips caressed the round curve of her navel. Slowly his mouth closed over one hard nipple drawing it deeply into his warm mouth as he suckled her. Jess moaned pressing him closer. He teased and sucked her breasts while his hand caressed the secret core of her womanhood. Jess' hips moved instinctively against him.

  “I have waited a life time for this moment, Jess,” Sam said as he removed his black briefs and knelt over her, parting her slender thighs. “You are exquisite. I want to bury myself inside you,” he murmured, as he entered her with one strong thrust.

  Jess was ready for him. She moved against him unashamedly wanting to feel the vigorous driving force of him. He was so, so different than Tom. She wasn’t afraid of him -- this was the man she loved and he was making love to her, she thought, as she moaned aloud meeting his powerful strokes with a pagan rhythm of her own as their passion rose. Her climax came suddenly and she cried out, tears of joy trickling down her cheeks. Sam groaned as he reached his own pinnacle and lay panting against her, his head buried in her neck.

  Jess stroked his strong, golden shoulders as her heartbeat began to slow. She was right. Sam’s lovemaking had been everything she thought it would be and more. His sensual expertise had triggered a shuddering response from her and taken her to heights of passion she had never known. She felt stupidly grateful to him as if she should thank him over and over again.

  Sam lifted his head and looked down at her, his eyes shining in the light as the sun rose, its rays filtering into the cabin. “Hey, what’s this?” he said, his finger brushing away her tears.

  “Don’t tell me you have regrets already, my sweet,” he continued, kissing her mouth.

  It isn’t going to last, Jess thought. When we get back to Australia it will end, if not before. He has what he wants from me and I will be an embarrassment to him when we get home. Still, I shall enjoy him while I can, she decided as she gave him a watery smile. While we are here, he is mine, she thought covertly.

  Sam lay back on the pillows pulling her into the crook of his arm so he could still see her face. “Cat got your tongue?” he asked, his ex
pression puzzled.

  Jess chose to deliberately misunderstand him. “What happened to me last night? I thought I was going to die. I’ve never been so cold,” she said, swiftly hiding her vulnerability to him. I need control, she thought. Sam must never know how much I care about him. If he can use me for sex, then I shall use him in return.

  “The ship’s heating broke down and I went to check on what was going on. The whole cabin area was freezing and I checked to make sure you were okay.” Sam placed a kiss in the dusky shadow between her breasts and Jess pressed closer to him.

  “Thank God I did,” Sam went on, his voice husky. “I don’t know how you managed it. You must have been deeply asleep and as the temperature dropped, hypothermia set in. I knew I had to warm you slowly and I wrapped us in your sleeping bag and covered us with blankets. Eventually you stopped shaking and drifted into a normal sleep pattern. The heating came back on a couple of hours later fortunately, just before you woke, and they seem to have the adjustment right this time. You were very lucky, sweetheart.”

  Jess tentatively outlined the shape of his lips with one small finger. “You saved my life, Sam. Thank you,” she said huskily, her lips melting against his. Her heart hammered as he caressed her breasts, and she lifted her hips so she could feel his arousal pressing into her stomach.

  “Jess, we can’t do this.” Sam said, with a wry smile. “I have no protection with me. We are playing with fire.”

  Jess swallowed, embarrassed by her forwardness. She drew back awkwardly and then smiled tremulously at Sam to hide her disappointment. “Well, thank you, anyway. I enjoyed having sex with you,” she said brightly, successfully controlling the blush of color that threatened under Sam’s discerning gaze.

  “I’m glad to hear it. I aim to please. However, I’d better keep my distance until I can provide you with adequate protection,” His tone was even and when Jess shot him a glance, his expression was bland.

  Thank goodness she can’t read my mind, he thought. He should never have lost control and made love to her without using protection and yet…his heart soared as he thought of Jess conceiving his baby. Perhaps she was already pregnant? He consciously had to hide his joy as his hand smoothed over her flat stomach. He was being totally selfish and irresponsible placing them in a terrible situation. But right now he didn’t care.

  “What makes you think we will make love again?” Jess replied her head on one side, an innocent look on her face.

  “Come on, Jess! We are red hot for each other. I could take you right now and you would let me but unless you are on the pill, which I assume you are not or you would have told me, you are in danger of conceiving my baby. I hope you’re not already pregnant.”

  Jess bit back the sudden response that sprang to her lips. I want your baby. I hope I’m having your baby right now, she had almost said, knowing how ridiculous and irresponsible it would seem to Sam. The last thing he would want would be the embarrassment of his latest star reporter expecting his child. But you are still mine, Sam, while we are here, she thought, sensing Sam’s mind and body drawing away from her.

  She clasped her hands behind his neck pulling him close to her again. “Perhaps it may be a good idea to sort out this little problem quickly.” she said, with a provocative look.

  “You are a gorgeous, tantalizing, beautiful witch,” he said, giving her a hard kiss. “But it will be more sensible if I leave you now. I should be shot for making love to you and putting you in jeopardy but do you realize how hard you made it for me to resist you?” His expression softened as his hands trailed again across her stomach and captured her breasts. His fingers gently massaged her pointed nipples and he bent his head, his mouth once again laving and caressing them.

  Surges of desire leapt through her body and her need for him made her want to scream. “I wanted you very badly,” she admitted, relief washing over her now she could at least be truthful about that.

  Sam smiled at her, almost a triumphant look fleetingly crossing his face. “Come on, sweetheart. We’d better get up or I won’t be able to resist making love to you again.”

  He stood up in the tiny cabin and Jess stared at his magnificent body in the growing light, his beautifully honed muscles rippling as he pulled on his clothes. This superb man who she had only previously fantasized about, the powerful body which had given her more pleasure than she could ever have possibly imagined…

  “Jess! Stop dreaming. We have work to do.” Sam’s amused voice jolted Jess from her sensual thoughts. She pulled the sheet over her head to hide her embarrassment. Her eyes flew open as she heard him laughing and he leaned over her slowly pulled the sheet down from her face.

  “You’re a funny little thing, Jess,” he murmured, his eyes holding hers. “I think we may enjoy the next few days,” he said, pressing several kisses on her soft mouth. She drew a deep breath as Sam quietly closed the door behind him.

  Yes, he probably will enjoy himself, she thought ruefully. He had broken down the physical barriers and would no doubt enjoy this sexual interlude as long as it didn’t present any difficulties when they arrived home. As for me, Jess mused. He only has to look at me and I melt. I love him. I will always love him.

  Later, when Jess joined Sam at breakfast, she had a fair indication of how the next few days might be. He exposed her to the full force of his sensuality as he constantly touched her, his lips caressing her cheek, an arm around her waist, his fingers threading through hers in a lovers' handclasp. His attitude was teasing as he openly flirted with her and Jess blossomed and responded to him, her face reflecting her happiness.

  Within a couple of hours the icebreaker reached Markson where they were transferred to a tug to take them ashore. Sam continued to film from the deck while supplies were unloaded on to the smaller boat and Jess cheerfully assisted Sam by off-loading their equipment and baggage. The sun was once again shining brightly, although the air was bitterly cold.

  “The Chief should be waiting for us,” Sam said as they stood together on the slightly rolling boat taking them into shore. “You meet him and I’ll film you from here,” he said.

  Jess turned to him, her eyes soaking in the sight of him as she realized he was lost to her already, concentrating solely on the work at hand. “Sam, will you make love to me tonight?” she blurted out impulsively, instantly wishing she could retract the words. Whatever must he think of her? So forward and so stupid not caring about contraceptives.

  Sam turned to her, a tender expression on his face. His warm hands held her cold face. “My love, I intend to make love to every single inch of your exquisite body--trust me,” he whispered, his mouth covering hers in an explosive kiss. She nestled into the shelter of his arms as they turned and watched the approaching shoreline. I’m so happy, Jess thought. He may not love me but I know he wants me.

  The rest of the day ran away from Jess in a rush of activity. She met with Chief Notaki who, as Sam said, was waiting for them on the dock. He was accompanied by three of the tribal elders and the six of them sat inside the huge warehouse at the dockside discussing the problems encountered by the Inuits in their fight against the huge mining conglomerate Ortos, owned by Kevin Harris.

  Jess questioned the Chief at length about the promises made by Harris, which he appeared to have broken by ignoring the contract to protect a large part of the Inuit’s land. Land they relied upon for their livelihood. Sam was strangely quiet and left most of the talking to Jess. It was agreed they would film the main part of the interview with the Chief in the warehouse and the next day, the Chief would accompany them to the mining area to complete the filming.

  The interview with Chief Notaki took until after lunch and then Sam spent the afternoon filming the tribal members in their village. Jess saw yet another side of Sam as he encouraged the shy people to relax in front of the camera, The children especially took to him, eventually clinging to his legs and climbing all over him. Jess acted as his assistant, carting the bags, tripods and equipment around. She knew
when he was in his work mode, Sam would drive her as hard as he drove himself and she was aching and exhausted when at last, the lack of light and freezing temperature prevented Sam from filming any longer.

  Jess wondered where they were staying that night and was delighted when Chief Notaki drove them ten kilometers into the wilderness to a beautiful rustic cabin. He explained this was one of the wilderness lodges and was heavily booked in the tourist season. One of the villagers had lit the fire some hours earlier and the cabin was delightfully warm. Chief Notaki also arranged for food stocks including two magnificent King Salmon steaks that they could cook on the small gas cooker for their dinner that evening. Bidding them goodnight, Chief Notaki drove away leaving them alone.

  “I can’t believe this place, Sam,” Jess said excitedly, peering into the kitchen and tiny adjoining dining area. There was only one bedroom containing a large double bed, she noted with a certain amount of satisfaction.

  Sam removed his heavy outer clothes and sat on the lounge in front of the roaring fire. Jess saw the strain in his face and dark shadows under his eyes. I guess I’m not the only one who feels tired, she thought. She wondered if Sam meant what he’d said about making love to her. He had been quiet all day and completely withdrawn.

  Jess removed her anorak, boots and outer trousers leaving on her warm leggings and long jumper. She hesitated and then with a small shrug of her shoulders, knelt between Sam’s knees and leaning into him rested her face against his chest, her arms encircling his waist. With her heart in her mouth, she thought for a moment he wasn’t going to touch her. Then she felt his hands on her hair cradling her to him. His lips pressed a gentle kiss on her forehead and she closed her eyes in ecstasy. The only sound was the comforting crackling of the wood fire.

  “Why didn’t you marry Tom?” The question hung in the air and Jess thought she had imagined it. Astonished, she looked into Sam’s grim face.