Ghosts of Averoigne: A Paranormal Menage Romance (Chronicles of the Hallowed Order Book 1)

by Krista Wolf

  “Okay, okay,” Kara surrendered. She put her hands up. “I get the picture.”

  “I could let you stay here,” she said. “In the building. Heat’s off, though. It’s on a timer.”

  Kara shuddered violently.

  “Your only other choice would be The Donnelly,” the librarian shrugged. She pointed into the wind. “It’s not too far in that direction, just across the road. If they’re not filled up they might have a bed for you.”

  It took only five minutes, but it seemed like an hour.

  Together, holding hands, Kara and Jeremy slogged across the snow. The crossed through the knee-deep drifts of the parking lot, past the lower expanse of the semi-plowed road. During their trek, the wind ripped at them. It found every exposed nook and cranny, sending icy chills beneath their clothing wherever it could.

  It was Jeremy who saw it first; a small light in the distance, muted yellow. They pushed on toward it, knowing that if it wasn’t their target they’d have to surely turn back. They couldn’t risk losing their rapidly disappearing footprints.

  Kara didn’t relish the thought of backtracking to the library, of sleeping on the cold hard floor. But the light grew brighter and an outline formed. Her frozen body warmed with relief as a sign came into view:

  The Donnelly

  Bed & Breakfast

  Crashing through the front doors of the old building, they looked like a pair of snow-monsters. Every surface of their bodies was covered in sleet and ice. The other guests, sitting comfortably in the living area, rushed to take their coats. They were given towels to dry off, and told to stand by the fire. They were even handed hot mugs of steaming coffee.

  Arriving there like that, actually making it through the storm? It was Kara’s favorite part of the whole damned trip.

  Their hosts, a charming old couple wearing matching Christmas sweaters, informed them there was a single vacancy left. “But it’s a little pricey,” the woman leaned in confidentially, “because it’s the honeymoon suite.”

  Of course it is, Kara laughed inwardly.

  Jeremy pulled out a thick wad of bills — large enough that it actually seemed to alarm the old couple — and paid. He turned to Kara and shrugged.

  “The honeymoon suite,” he chuckled. “Xiomara would shit.”

  “Yeah,” she agreed. “But I think that’s what I like most about it.”

  It was about then, as they thawed themselves before the roaring fire, that they realized they were absolutely famished. Since breakfast they’d subsisted on nothing but stale candy bars and reconstituted hot chocolate.

  Food was brought out to them — leftovers from the hosts’ own dinner. They tore into it as politely as possible, then spent another hour just sitting around, listening to the other guests. Jeremy probed a few times, asking questions about the Averoigne, but no one really had anything interesting to say. Not even the Donnelly’s, if that’s who these people actually were.

  In the end their retired to their room, which was a cozy master suite at the very top of the house. A small wood-burning stove sat in one corner. It was already stoked and running. Windows looked out over three different directions, all of them giving an identical view of the swirling darkness.

  “Comfy,” said Jeremy.

  Kara didn’t reply. She walked straight past him, into a quaint little bathroom, and turned on the shower.

  “OH MY GOD…”

  The water was hot. Scalding hot. Just the way she loved it.

  Jeremy looked semi-alarmed. “What?”

  “I haven’t had a hot shower in days.” She began stripping off her still-damp clothes and handing them to Jeremy, completely oblivious of his gaping stare. “Hang these by the stove?” she asked.

  “Uh, sure.”

  Kara was down to her underwear by the time she pulled the shower curtain back. She took that off also and held it at arm’s length through the open doorway.

  “These too.”

  Thirty-Two

  The shower was nothing short of orgasmic.

  Kara spent twenty minutes standing beneath the super-heated spray, not caring whether she drained the little hotel’s entire hot water tank. She could feel the cold leaving her body, replaced by a spreading warmth that seeped into her very bones. It made her happy. Ecstatic, even. By the time she stepped out of the stall she was sighing with pleasure and totally re-energized.

  And beneath the steam… Kara’s mind wandered.

  Initially her thoughts were of Logan. She wondered if he were worried about them, of whether or not they’d been caught out in the storm. None of their phones had any service. There was no way to access their messages or voice-mails at all.

  But as the water ran in hot streams down her naked body… her thoughts turned to Jeremy.

  They had a long history together — one filled with more good memories than bad. Still, Kara hadn’t given him a chance to tell her what really happened between them. Right now, she wasn’t sure it even mattered anymore. Those things that were so important back then seemed suddenly inconsequential. Especially when compared with the here and now.

  And then there was the kiss…

  Kara’s mind kept returning to the kiss they shared in the hotel lounge. It had been so sudden, so unexpected. But at the same time, so enjoyable. For a brief shining instant they’d been back at the Manor house together, rolling around in the gardens. Kissing each other again and again, passionately, beneath the sun and the moon and the—

  The hot water finally started to run out. Kara killed the shower right away and began toweling off.

  Yes, their time together had been fun. More than fun.

  Lots more.

  Warmed to the core, Kara stepped back into the honeymoon suite wearing nothing but a towel. Jeremy was sitting on the bed, apparently going over some of the materials they’d surreptitiously “checked out” from their stint at the library.

  “Oh, sorry.”

  He spun around like a gentleman, setting his back to her as she made her way over to the stove. Kara dropped the towel and slipped on her panties, which were warm and dry. The felt absolutely magnificent against her ass. She grabbed her undershirt and slipped that on too.

  “You can turn around now,” she said with a smile. Jeremy’s face was already red. He was actually blushing! He was also doing his level best to pretend not to notice she still had no pants on.

  He’s so cute.

  “I— I’ll take the couch,” he stammered. “Obviously.”

  Kara sauntered over to her ex-lover. She stood before him, her toned legs slightly apart, hands on her hips.

  “Really?”

  Jeremy looked up. Their eyes met, and something passed between them. It was voiceless. A closeness and familiarity that needed no exchange of words.

  Kara straddled his legs on the bed. Settled the full weight of her body into his lap.

  Jeremy swallowed hard. “You sure about this?”

  Not totally, her mind registered. But sure, why not?

  It was something she’d decided in the shower. While she was happy. Hell, Kara was still happy. Happy and safe and warmed to the core, sitting on Jeremy’s lap in their cozy little room.

  “Well this is the honeymoon suite,” she told him. Her hair was still damp. It brushed his face wetly as she bent down to kiss his neck. “I’m thinking we should probably take advantage of that…”

  Her lips planted a series of sweet little kisses against his warm skin. Three kisses. Four kisses. Five…

  She could feel him stiffen beneath her touch, and then ultimately, relax. It was always that way. He usually took a minute to warm up, to get out of what she jokingly called ‘Jeremy mode’.

  This time it didn’t take long at all. He pulled her downward, against him, and Kara could feel the growing bulge between his legs. It pressed upward, against her ass as his hands went to her waist. They slid down, past the curve of her hips…

  “Honeymoon, eh?” he asked slyly. “So you’ll be my wife ton
ight. Is that it?”

  Kara giggled. “Sure. If you’ll be my husband.”

  She kissed his cheek, his chin, his lips… all the places she used to love so much about him. And Jeremy kissed her back. He flopped onto the bed, pulling Kara on top of him. Her hands went to his face, holding his stubbled cheeks. She gasped, swooning as his tongue slid into her mouth.

  They were undressed in seconds. Fully naked, skin to skin, everything changed. They writhed over the surface of the bed, rolling left and right as their hands and mouths explored each other’s bodies for the first time in ages.

  In the back of her mind, Kara listened for the little voice — the one that always told her she shouldn’t be doing this. Apparently it had taken the night off.

  Good.

  Eventually she allowed her tongue to trace downward, over the wide swell of his chest. Tasting him. Remembering him. She inhaled his familiar scent, kissed her way even further down while recalling every firm ridge of his ripped stomach.

  “You’re still a virgin, right?” Jeremy joked.

  “Oh yeah. Of course.” Kara’s voice took on a sing-songy innocence. “I’ve been saving myself for you. After all, this is our wedding night.”

  He sucked in a quick breath as she took him into her mouth. Even there she remembered him. The slight curve of his long cock. How big the head was. How perfectly it fit past her lips, nestled snugly against the roof of her mouth.

  “For a virgin,” he croaked, “you sure know how to…” He gasped as she went all the way down on him, giving up the rest of the roleplay. “Oh fuck…”

  Kara slowed down, took her time. She enjoyed blowing him, and wanted him to enjoy it. For some strange reason, their hard, crazy day had driven them close again. At least in her mind.

  “Mmmmmm…”

  She groaned as she slurped him, making smacking noises as she tickled Jeremy’s balls against the flat of her tongue. He’d been hard since before her lips had even touched him, but right now his dick was like diamond.

  Kara kissed her way up, then carefully positioned her body over his. She was already soaked. Dripping with anticipation. His cock was an iron rod as she took it in one hand. It felt incredible as she rubbed the tip up and down a few times, through the warm outer furrow of her glistening sex.

  “Are you ready Mr. Manning?”

  She squatted over him, grinning as she sank down. Her smile twisted into an expression of blissful agony as he drove achingly deep inside of her.

  “OHHH…”

  It took her a moment to adjust. To savor the feel of something so big, buried so deep it felt like it was jutting up against the inside of her belly.

  He looked up at her. Kara growled, grinding down on him.

  “Do you remember this?”

  Jeremy’s face was drawn with a far-away ecstasy. His eyes were glazed as he nodded.

  “Me too.”

  Slowly, she began to ride him. Up and down, in and out, her pussy clamped tightly around him as they made the most of every stroke. His hands were on her thighs, supporting her, but there was no doubt at all as to which one of them was in control. Kara was taking exactly what she needed from him. Giving Jeremy only what was left over in return.

  Was it always this way? She tried to recall. Always this deep? This incredibly intense?

  Bits and pieces came back, subtle moves and invisible nuances lovers always seem to forget when they’ve been apart. Kara welcomed them all. They fell back into an old, familiar rhythm, drawing even more pleasure from each other’s reactions. Jeremy was tactile; his hands and fingertips loved to touch. Kara was visual; she loved watching the muscles of his arms and chest and stomach, straining just beneath his skin as he thrust himself inside her from beneath.

  She was doing most of the work, and a sweat broke out on Kara’s forehead. It didn’t matter. Between her shower and the stove and the warmth of his throbbing cock, she couldn’t get enough heat anyway. Not after being outside. Not after their trek through the storm.

  I needed this.

  She didn’t even know why. After what she’d had with Logan, she should’ve been sated. Maybe it was closure. Maybe—

  I’ve wanted this…

  Kara sped up. In truth, she saw no reason to hold back. She began fucking him hard, almost with a desperate vengeance. Some of it was frustration, but most of it was to make up for lost time. She moaned as she rode the full length of Jeremy’s cock, hands splayed beneath her, pressing and pulling his body in order to get him as far inside her as she could. Again, this was all about her. At least for now.

  “Fuck, Jeremy…” she gasped. “Oh… oh fuck.”

  The rest of the world disappeared as she felt the first rumblings of her impending orgasm. In response, Kara ground her clit flat against the top of her lover’s lower abdomen. The friction set her off, and she began coming and coming. This time she bit her own lip to keep from crying out as her nails dug deep into the flesh of Jeremy’s chest.

  “OHHHH FUUUUUCK…”

  She saw stars. Literal stars. Kara’s climax took over her physical body as she exploded against him, bucking wildly through an earth-shattering orgasm. The pleasure crashed over her in waves, each one more glorious than the last. When they finally subsided she was left breathless and panting, staring down at the bright pink marks she’d left on Jeremy’s chest.

  Her hair had fallen down around her face, but Jeremy brushed it back. He kept a hand on the side of her cheek as he unloaded inside her.

  Oh God…

  Kara’s eyes flared as Jeremy’s face went tight. She smiled down at him as he kept on coming, kept gushing a steady stream of his hot seed somewhere deep in her belly.

  They stayed like that for a while, glued to each other, saying nothing. The storm howled, just outside. The heat from the stove felt good against her back, contrasted with the warmth of being filled from the inside with Jeremy’s cream. She rolled off him, dripping come across his thighs like a glistening strand of tiny pearls.

  Kara glanced to the window, where the storm howled just outside. Ice had accumulated on the outer panes of glass, forming patterns that were beautiful and intricate. She’d never felt so satiated. So peaceful.

  So nested away.

  “I don’t know Mrs. Manning,” Jeremy growled, stretching his body. “Seems to me like you might’ve done that before.”

  Kara turned to face him on her pillow. She reached down and gave his balls a playful squeeze.

  “Why Mr. Manning,” she purred contentedly. “Are you calling me a liar?”

  Thirty-Three

  He took her once more, in the dead of night…

  And Kara spread her legs for him.

  The first time had been for her. She’d acted wantonly, selfishly, taking whatever it was that she needed. Impaling herself on Jeremy was like slaking a thirst, the fulfillment of a long-sought release. It was something their kiss had only reminded her of, but something which Kara now realized she’d wanted since he left.

  This time though, it was all for him.

  Jeremy pushed her thighs apart, spreading her open beneath the sheets. He was tremendously hard — both in body and in spirit — and Kara welcomed him warmly in the darkness, locking her legs around his back in a lazy half-sleep.

  She gasped only when he first entered her. The rest was all soft kisses and whimpering. Kara gave her body over to him fully this time around, allowing her mind to soar to those half-conscious places where delirium was almost a drug. It felt incredible just to be beneath him again. To be crushed by his weight. To feel the rhythmic pounding of his cock driving relentlessly in and out of her.

  It was a union they’d shared often, but not for a long, long time. It felt good to revisit it. Somehow right.

  Kara had no idea how long it lasted. However it was, it was just long enough. Eventually his grunts grew shorter, his thrusts more frantic, and then Jeremy was spending himself inside her. His whole body stiffened and Kara drew him in deeper, clawing at his ass wi
th both hands.

  Jeremy’s warm seed was still leaking out of her as she fell blissfully back asleep.

  The next morning dawned big and bright. Totally clear.

  The storm was over.

  They were up quickly, and got ready without words. Kara scored them a couple of coffees and some pastry from the kitchen downstairs, while Jeremy flagged down a snow-plow driver just long enough to bribe him into bringing them to the Averoigne.

  A half hour later they were in the hotel’s big lobby, well before the morning breakfast rush. They decided to head back to their rooms briefly. To clean up a bit, and put on some fresh clothes.

  “Honeymoon’s over?” Jeremy sighed. He grinned sheepishly

  “Yeah. I guess so.”

  Kara watched as he climbed his way up the grand staircase. When he turned the corner and was out of sight, she slipped into the side corridor… and headed down to Logan’s room.

  Maybe he’s not alone…

  The thought actually hadn’t occurred to her until now. Kara paused awkwardly in front of the door to room 120, her knuckles hovering against the wood.

  What if he’s with the blonde girl?

  She knocked anyway. Nothing.

  What if—

  Again she pushed the inner voice away. Logan owed her nothing. Even less after last night. Still…

  The door opened and Logan was there, shirtless and groggy. He coughed noisily. Rubbed at his eyes.

  “Hey…” he finally groaned. “Where’d you come from?”

  He looked unusually exhausted. Kara saw the beginnings of dark circles under his eyes, as if he’d been up all night.

  “Sorry,” she explained. “We got stuck at the library when the storm came back.” She tried glancing into his room. Logan still hadn’t opened the door more than a crack.

  “So you stayed there?”

  Yes, she almost lied. “No. We, uh, we managed to find another hotel within walking distance. Some little bed and breakfast.”

  Logan’s mouth curled into a smirk. “Sounds cozy.”