WindSwept Narrows: #13 Charity, Faith & Hope

by Diroll-Nichols, Karen

  Dominic laughed as he came out of the bathroom. Faith was balanced on the edge of the bed, beautifully naked, and staring down at him from her height, grateful for vaulted ceilings and skylights.

  “What are you doing?”

  “Getting a feel for what it’s like to be taller than you,” she announced, squealing happily when his arm swept out to catch her behind the knees, toppling her to her back. She liked the playful gleam in his eyes as he stalked closer, trapping her in place.

  “I think I prefer you like this…” he ran his tongue over her belly, watching her suck in a breath at the gesture.

  “Belly up submissive?” She teased her wolf.

  “Oh…I think there’s a lot more to this wolf thing that needs to be explored,” he teased, dragging his tongue lower and tasting her. He didn’t think it was possible to want her again so quickly but he also wasn’t sure the wanting would ever be satisfied. He liked the sweet mews and the way her hands clenched the sheets when he found the tender spots. He moved to her side, his palm up and stroking lightly over her face. “Tell me I didn’t hurt you…Faith, you should have said something…”

  “Too old to bed a virgin?” She rolled to face him, hooking her foot on his hip and reaching up to brush dark hair from his ear. “I have to admit that orgasms with you are much…incredibly…nicer…than by myself. I’m not sure talking about why a girl isn’t interested in getting involved enough for sex matters at this point. I never met a guy who…made my belly all warm and melty…until you, Dominic…is that so bad?”

  “Melty, huh?” He kissed her softly, drawing his tongue down her throat, tasting the cooling flavor that was Faith. “But you’re okay….”

  “Hmm…” She took his hand and placed it over her belly, his fingertips barely touching the pale amber coils. “I think I might have to test and see…it’s muscles…I’m sure they need lots of practice…”

  “It might be a bit tender,” he whispered even as his body gave a lurch of approval at the sultry, seductive voice woven around her words.

  “I know you’d never hurt me, Dominic, not intentionally. It might be tender…but it feels so very good…” She breathed, a gulp catching in her chest as he kissed along her throat and onto one breast, his palm capturing the round firmness even as his thumb raked over the nipple. “Oh, my….”

  “Alright?” He asked softly, his hot breath teasing her even more.

  “Very alright,” Faith’s head bobbed quickly, not wanting him to stop what he was doing, her breathing ragged. Every time his fingertips stroked whisper-light over her nipples, her throat clenched involuntarily. Along with other things...those tender bits that didn’t seem to mind the idea of another go.

  She felt him trace those fingers lower, and then all of a sudden, there was warm heat pulling at her breast. A quick glance revealed him suckling at her, before her head fell back to her to the surface of the bed. She wasn’t sure how much she could handle and still breathe. He had graduated from soft suckling, to small nips and hard sucking pulls - and when Faith had gone from ragged breaths to moaning for more, his mouth trailed a hot path to her lips.

  She heard the sound of the nightstand drawer opening in between the fencing match their tongues were doing. Her hands were wrapped tightly in the hair on his head, her body writhing petulantly for more. She listened to his low, sexy whisper.

  “Trust me?” Dominic swallowed up the tiny response, his hands sliding possessively, heavily along her body, pulling her to the edge of the bed before urging her to her stomach. His palms slid beneath her, cupping her breasts and nudging her to her knees.

  He took a moment to admire the full, swollen lips he could see, his fingers moist with her wetness and spreading those sexy lower lips, dipping inside and stroking over the alert feminine nub. Her body reacted to him, to this new position by thrusting back against him and he felt every part of him burst with desire.

  Faith felt him guiding that hard shaft along the swollen lips, coating himself and teasing that part of her that was suddenly very, very alive with need. She pushed her palms to the bed, her knees widening a little more as she shoved her behind toward him, feeling for all the world like his wolf mate.

  A husky gasp broke free when she felt him find her entrance and ever so slowly begin to ease himself inside her once more. Tender…not enough to stop him, she thought, a low whimper of need breaking from inside her when his thumb returned to strum over one of her nipples.

  He gently eased himself back and forth, his hands moving to hold tightly to her hips, stopping her from thrusting back to quickly.

  Faith wanted more and squeezed her inner muscles around his shaft. Dominic gripped her hips firmly and groaned, involuntarily jerking himself deeper into her wet cavern. She rotated her hips, experimenting with this new position, these new feelings and decided she liked it.

  Faith loved his responses and continued squeezing herself around him, causing the pressure in her belly to build again. It wasn’t very long before she had him thrusting in long strokes into her, his pelvis slapping forcefully against her. Dominic caressed and stroked over the firm globes of her behind, watching himself move inside her, calling out roughly against her.

  She felt safe with him and allowed the restrictions to her movement enhance her pleasure. The pressure in her belly and thighs and tight core came to a shuddering peak until Faith came again with whimpering, long pulses. Her muscles tightened around the hard male shaft, pushing him over the edge with an almost agonized grunt.

  For long moments he stayed pressed against her, breathing heavily. Then remembering how heavy he was, Dominic withdrew from her, causing Faith to whimper as he slid against her oversensitive, cooling flesh, taping the light switch out on his return from the bathroom.

  Dominic possessively repositioned her, pulling the thick blankets over them both and urging her to curl back into him. He reached up and pulled the covered band from her hair, setting the long, silken strands free and resting his cheek against her head.

  “Now…I feel like a male alpha wolf,” he whispered sexily in her ear, watching the corner of her mouth lift as she twined her fingers in his and drifted off to sleep in his arms.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Dominic groaned aloud. Only this time it wasn’t in pleasure or even anticipation of pleasure. It was in protest to the hard palm that had clapped down on his side when he tried pulling her back into bed shortly after six in the morning. He opened one eye and watched a naked fury sweeping through the large bedroom, gathering clothing and the band he’d pulled from her hair.

  Now and then she shot him a glare.

  “How is this my fault?” He finally managed to ask in-between dark mutterings, instinctively knowing that laughing right now wouldn’t be a smart male move.

  “I should have gone home!” She declared loudly. “Now I have to go to work in the same clothes…I hate being late…I really hate explaining…”

  “Want me to call Mac and tell him why you were late?” Dominic barely ducked the shoe she picked up and threw at him before she disappeared into the bathroom, the door bouncing strongly against the jamb.

  He had pulled his jeans on, coming out of the second bathroom as she whirled past with one arm in her jacket, keys dangling from her hand and a slice of cold pizza in the other palm.

  “I’ll look for you at lunch!” He called out loudly, laughing at the snarling growl she returned before that door was slammed shut behind her.

  He made a mental note to make sure he had really good hinges on his doors before heading to the shower. He cast a wistful gaze at the rumpled sheets, memories of Faith rushing through him. Another mental note as he turned the heat up on the shower was to make damn sure they never ran out of protection. Sex had been good before, but with Faith, he felt his body begin to think about it with a mere glimmer of their first night together.

  Faith slid into her seat and began the power up procedures. She didn’t work with the type of people who would even notice her cloth
ing she decided a couple hours later. She’d run to the cafeteria on her break and returned with a large smoothie, delving into her work and ignoring the really nice feelings inside her.

  Faith sat at a table near the windows, staring aimlessly into the brilliant blue of the Sound out in the distance. A clear blue sky above released all the colors into the shimmering waters below them. A few brave sailboats drifted in the mid-February breeze. Her chin was resting on her palm when Charity waved a hand before her eyes.

  “Lost in thoughts?” She asked, leaning on the chair next to her, deciding not to mention the man stalking her from behind.

  “Hmm…we have determined that I am not food,” Faith said with a contented sigh.

  “But you are deliciously tasty and worth nibbling on,” Dominic whispered hotly in her ear, laughing at the heat that filled her cheeks and the suddenly distracted look on Charity’s face. He offered a wink and pulled a chair to her side, taking a sample of her sandwich. “I hear you’re moving up in the world?”

  “Yep…the fireflies have formed a community of memories that are returning and I’m accepting the position in Public Relations for the resort,” Charity told them with a grin.

  “Congratulations!” Faith was up and hugging her tightly. “You’re so good at that stuff. Not that being a waitress is bad, we’ve both enjoyed that from time to time. I’m sure Mia will miss you…”

  “I’ll find her some good replacements. She’s still short people…” Charity waved and went off to work.

  “How come you’re not eating?” Dominic finished her sandwich, watching her take a couple grapes and eat them.

  “I bought a big smoothie at break,” she told him, feeling a little shy for some weird reason.

  “Anyone comment on your clothes?” He teased, relieved at the little smile on her lips. “How about bringing some clothes to my place this evening…it’s a huge walk-in closet with plenty of room. We can shop around for a dresser for your things, Faith,” he met the large blue eyes brimming with curiosity unvoiced. “Something?”

  “I’m trying to figure you out, Dominic…you’ve changed…and yet…”

  “I don’t think so,” he sobered, taking her hand and rubbing his thumb over the soft back. “I think I wised up on a few issues. I think I maybe evolved some. But basically inside I’m still me, Faith.”

  “I suppose it would be…efficient…to have some things at your place,” she admitted, chewing on her lip in thought.

  “Efficient would be you move in with me,” he said simply, prepared for the wild look in her eyes. “It just makes sense.”

  “I remember you telling me I would drive you insane in a week if you ever had to spend any length of time with me,” she blurted out, pulling her hand back and sitting upright.

  “Like I said…I’ve evolved. I was wrong. I’ve done a great deal of thinking the last six months, Faith,” Dominic leaned on the table, his hands clasp as he spoke. He didn’t want her withdrawing from him. He didn’t want the idiot things he’d said to her to affect them now. “I think I was where other people believed I belonged,” he saw her blink, her head tipped as she listened. “In other words, professors, mentors…business associates. All had an opinion of what and where I should be, but they based that on their own preferences. And for a long time, I simply went with the flow. Then you danced into my life.”

  He remembered a week after her parents’ death when she came to his office for the first time, ear piece in place and music rocking out as she moved from the elevator to his office door. She wore a bright red and white sundress that day and a pair of flat ballet slippers. Her hair had been a golden blond that time and her skin dotted with freckles and sun-kissed.

  She didn’t behave like other grieving kids he’d met through his practice. She was neither in a hurry to get her hands on her inheritance, nor was she giving a pretend show of sorrow. Then she explained about celebrating their life. Over fifty years of laughter and fun, not one day of sadness and death. She had mourned them and would miss them, but she had years of memories to pick from that over shadowed that pain of one day.

  “And you honestly believe…moving in…”

  “I know I like you close,” he admitted softly. “I know I’ve never felt better than I do right now, Faith…and I’m smart enough to know that it’s because of us.”

  “It’s a very big apartment,” she admitted reluctantly, feeling her heart melting.

  “Almost eighteen hundred square feet,” he agreed, lifting a grape and offering it to her. She opened her mouth and pursed her lips as she chewed.

  “We could partition off part of it for a little computer area by the patio doors…”

  “We could,” he agreed, unaware of the grin breaking out on his face. “We can shop around for a nice computer desk and back them against one another.”

  “I don’t have much stuff,” she continued, accepting another grape from him, watching him pop a few into his mouth. “That definitely means we’re a couple, doesn’t it?”

  Dominic lifted one brow high. “I think last night cemented that idea, Faith,” he chuckled at the flush of color in her cheeks. “I gotta get back…have a few people coming in for interviews for an admin.” He kissed her lightly. “Just pack some clothes for now. I’ll arrange to get the other things boxed and moved for you later this week, alright?” She nodded. “I’ll see you tonight,” he promised, striding out of the cafeteria, hands shoving his suit jacket to the sides and sunk into his pockets.

  Dominic left the employee entrance a little after four, gazing out over the Sound at the gold and red streaks marking a cold sunset in the distance. He had opened the door on his car when he stopped, his hand up and rubbing the back of his neck.

  Six months ago he would have shrugged it off. His gaze swept the parking lot, landing on Faith’s car near the fence to the housing units. He looked up toward her apartment door, his hands slamming the car door as he crossed the concrete toward the gated area. He could see light coming from her unit and was ready to turn and go back to his car when the chilling scream pierced the twilight. He felt his blood run cold and fierce at the same time.

  Dominic had his phone out, security already tapped in when he gave his orders curtly. His fingers were clenched around the wire at the gate when the uniformed guards came towards him, quickly opening the gate and following the man who took the stairs three at a time to the top floor.

  “Faith!” He yelled at the top of his lungs, bursting into the room at the same time a darkly dressed something shoved him against the wall, breaking into a run with the uniforms chasing him toward the back of the apartment units. He heard shouting and yelling. Dominic hit the light switch, his gaze sweeping the room.

  “Faith!” Her name broke from his lips in anguish, crossing the room and dropping to his knees at the side of the crumpled figure, her knees drawn up high and arms out to cover her head. He wasn’t prepared for the harsh recoil when he touched the arm she had wrapped around her face, or the stark, wailing scream.

  “No!”

  “Faith…honey…it’s me…it’s alright…he’s gone…” He gently tried again, his insides boiling with rage at the wide eyes filled with tears he saw the instant before she launched herself from the floor and into his arms. He barely had time to brace himself before wrapping her tightly against him, one hand behind her back, the other stroking over her head as she sobbed into his shirt. There weren’t words inside his head at the moment, so he just held her. He stood up, carrying her against him to sit on the sofa, his gaze falling to the brilliantly patterned carpet bag sitting, filled, by the front door ready to go.

  “I…call…you have to call…” she sucked in air, willing herself to think. She was safe now. “Call Charity…someone wants her…they thought…I was…” She shuddered against him, accepting the white square he pulled from his pocket with a watery smile. “Thank you.”

  Faith stayed on his lap, her head down and eyes closed. She jumped visibly when the voices came fr
om outside.

  “It’s alright, Faith…it’s just the guards,” Dominic had his phone out when she settled back against him, nodding at the guards when they eased the door open.

  “Sorry, sir…he got through the gate when a couple were coming home,” the man clipped the required recorder to his lapel and looked at Dominic. “We need to talk to her, Mr. Matthews.” Doug Gail had checked on the man who had called in to them. He had full security clearance and ranked up there with the owners, so he had his best manners out at the moment.

  “I know,” Dominic put his hand beneath her chin. “Faith?”

  “I’m okay,” she said firmly, inhaling raggedly and straightening up. “Please…call Charity. You have to tell her,” she slid to the sofa, accepting his nod as he got up and went to the side, speaking into the phone.

  Dominic returned to sit next to her, relieved when she leaned into him. “They’re on their way here…they were just at the main entrance.”

  “Can you tell me what happened, Miss Morrison?” The guard stood patiently.

  “I came in from work about four…I packed some things to take with me and when I opened the door to leave…” She stared toward the door, eyes suddenly wide and another shudder racing through her at the memory. “He shoved it open…pushed me back into the apartment…” She barely saw Charity and Nico come in from outside. “He hit me a couple times with his palm…” She touched the side of her face, eyes barely blinking as she stared. “I fell and he…he said for me to listen and listen good…” Her hand went to her ribs with a visible wince, vaguely aware of pictures being taken as she spoke. “He said I need to get smart and…and sell the hotels to the right people…”

  Nico moved quietly closer, the black bag he carried set on the sofa before he sat on her other side.