Dark Secrets: A Paranormal Romance Anthology

by Colleen Gleason

  Alix wasn’t shy about parting her legs for him and he stroked her thighs, experiencing their silken texture before his fingers moved to the fluff of dark curls between her legs only to discover she was slick and wet. His mouth on hers, he plunged his fingers into her waiting body and she gasped, panting with the sensual intrusion.

  Cord didn’t make her wait. He mounted her and thrust deep, her hot and wet body closing in around him. It was the most amazing sexual sensation he had ever experienced and he thrust into her, listening to her grunts of pleasure, his hands loving her up as his body did the talking. He’d never known anything like it in his life, an uncontrollable attraction to a woman he felt like he couldn’t live without. At the moment, he couldn’t even breathe without her. In this brief, passionate and stolen moment, something changed for him. She was consuming him.

  Alix’s orgasm came with swift pants and a stiffening body, and he fingered a taut nipple, working her through the spasms, prolonging the pleasure as he suckled her breasts. As she struggled to catch her breath, another one washed over her and Cord moved his hands down to her buttocks, holding her pelvis against his as he thrust hard and deep. She began to weep and gasp at the same time, grinding her hips against him, until he felt her release yet again. Unable to hold it back any longer, Cord tried to withdraw but she wouldn’t let him. When he finally climaxed, hard, she orgasmed one last time and wept with the pure pleasure of it.

  Cord couldn’t even think about the fact that he had just ejaculated inside of her, or the fact that they had had the hottest, most passionate, unprotected sex in the history of sex. All he could think about was her soft body beneath him, her hands in his hair and her lips against his neck. It was the most amazing sexual experience he’d ever had.

  He shifted so his full body weight wasn’t on top of her as their passion cooled, but he made no attempt to move off of her completely or even withdraw. He didn’t want to; he wanted to stay like that, forever, feeling her in his arms. Gently, he began to kiss her head, her cheek, her neck and shoulder. There was a good deal of growing emotion in his touch, something he didn’t yet have the words to express.

  Alix was dozing, recovering from what was inarguably the best sex of her life. As she lay there, she could feel his big body around her, in her, and she savored the sensation. It had been such a long time. But more than that, she was savoring him. Cord Trevor had, since the beginning, been attentive to the point of being overbearing. He was smart, wonderful at conversation, and had an air of wisdom about him. He seemed to have a very level head, too, which she appreciated, like he was grounded in reality and was relatively normal. Where she came from, men like that were something of an anomaly. But here she was, having sex with the guy after having only known him a couple of days and wondering, in hindsight, if it hadn’t been one big, fat mistake.

  Yes, she was attracted to him. Uncontrollably. He had made it very clear he wanted to go out with her and she wanted to go out with him. She had succumbed to his kisses, his charm, and his muscular body very easily. She’d spent a lot of years fighting off amorous men and in two days, Cord accomplished what a legion of guys in California couldn’t have. He’d gotten her into bed. Maybe that had been his goal all along and she had been blinded to it.

  Lost to her thoughts and insecurities that had dogged her for years, the squeaking hinges of a door opening jolted her. Alix’s eyes flew open and she looked at Cord, who was gazing back at her with equal shock.

  “Sean and Rose are back,” she hissed.

  Cord leapt off the bed and began to hunt down his clothes. “Christ,” he muttered. “I’m so sorry, honey. I….”

  She cut him off as she jumped onto her feet. “No apologies, please,” she whispered, grabbing her yoga pants but realized she’d left her shirt downstairs. She ran for a box half-unpacked of clothing. “Don’t ruin it.”

  He paused to look at her, pants up but unzipped. “Ruin what?”

  She shook her head, pulling another camisole over her head. “I don’t really know.” She yanked on her yoga pants. “The moment, I guess. Don’t spoil it with apologies unless you’re really sorry about it.”

  He was rather stricken with her comment as he finished zipping up his pants and threw on his shirt. He opened his mouth to question her but was precluded by the sounds of children coming up the stairs. He grabbed his shoes as Alix gestured frantically to the attached bathroom.

  “Hide in there,” she hissed.

  He bolted into the bathroom but didn’t shut the door. Instead, he hid behind it as Alix jumped back into bed and covered up. Just as she was settling in, there was a soft knock on the door.

  “Mom?”

  It was Sean’s voice. Alix tried not to sound breathless as she answered. “Come in,” she said.

  Sean opened the door with Rose standing next to him. “Hey,” he said. “Mr. Trevor’s truck is in the driveway. Is he here?”

  Alix blinked, quickly thinking of a way out of this one. Sean was sixteen but he was in that limbo between being very astute about the relationships between men and women, and still in that youngster mindset of not really caring. She was praying he didn’t smell sex in the air.

  “Uh… I don’t know,” she said. “You… you didn’t see him downstairs?”

  Sean shook his head. “No.”

  Alix sat up in bed. “Maybe… you know, that furniture we moved out to the shed,” she stumbled over her words. “That belonged to his family, I think. Did you look in the shed?”

  Sean shook his head and Rose whined, wanting to take her coat off, so he was distracted as he took her back over to her bedroom. Since the master bedroom had two doors, one that faced the main staircase and a second one that faced the back stairs, Alix hissed at Cord, who slinked out of the bathroom, shoes in hand, and slipped out of the door that faced the kitchen stairs. He blew her a kiss and disappeared down the stairs as Alix climbed out of bed.

  Alix watched him go, feelings she couldn’t describe bubbling up in her chest. By the time she went to interact with her children, confusion had the better of her.

  * * *

  Alix really wasn’t sure how she got through her next shift. All she could think about was Cord. He’d started calling her cell phone about three in the afternoon, leaving messages regarding what time he should meet her for dinner, but she didn’t call him back. They weren’t even that busy but she still didn’t call him back. She wasn’t sure what to say to him. She wasn’t sure what she felt other than excitement, hope, old fears and old anxieties. She was a mess.

  So the dinner hour came and went and she didn’t call him back and he didn’t show up. Grossly depressed, sad and confused, Alix got off shift a little after midnight and headed out to her car in the well-lit parking lot. She had her head down, watching her feet as she walked across the asphalt, approaching her BMW X5 that still had California plates on it. As she hit the unlock button on the key fob, a big figure emerged from the shadows.

  Startled, she yelped until she saw that it was Cord. Hand over her pounding heart, she gazed up at him with surprise.

  “Oh, God,” she gasped. “You scared me to death.”

  He smiled timidly. “Sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to.”

  She took a deep breath, recovering her composure. “It’s okay,” she said, eyeing him with some apprehension. “What are you doing here so late?”

  His gaze lingered on her for a moment before sighing heavily. “You didn’t return any of my calls.” He sounded so hesitant and unsure of himself. “I didn’t come for dinner because I figured you were just busy and you would have called me had you wanted me to come.”

  She was hesitant and unsure, also. “We were fairly busy,” she lied just a little. She didn’t want to tell him the truth. Then, she broke down and slouched against the car. “Look, Cord, you don’t have to keep calling me… you know, you don’t have to feel any obligation towards me because we slept together. We shouldn’t have done it and I know that, but… well, I guess it wa
s just one of those hormonal things. I don’t even know. But you don’t have to feel like you need to call me now. I’m a big girl. I can take it.”

  He looked at her, stunned. “Is that what you think?” he said, incredulous. “I’m calling you because we slept together and you think I feel obligated?”

  She hung her head. “I’m just saying you don’t have to feel obligated,” she said. “And furthermore, I don’t want you to think I’m going to be a convenience. I won’t be a bed buddy, so if you’re thinking we can just have convenient sex all the time, then don’t.”

  He just stared at her. Then, he shook his head, baffled. “Who in the hell has hurt you so badly that you think there aren’t any honorable men left in the world?”

  Her head came up, the lower lip trembling. “Look at me,” she whispered. “I know what I look like. I know what men think. I get hit on like you can’t believe, wooed by millionaires and actors and people who just want a trophy doctor on their arm. My ex-husband cheated his way through our marriage and I’ve spent the better part of my adult life convinced that every man who comes on to me is only out for himself. I’m sorry if I’ve insulted you; I really am. But in my experience, that’s just the way things are. The way they always have been. I’ve only known you two days, Cord, and we’ve already slept together, so you must think I’m pretty easy. I’m not, you know. I’ve spent a lot of years keeping myself bottled up and protected. But with you… it just happened so easily and that scares me to death. I don’t want you to feel like I’m expecting anything from you.”

  Cord learned a lot in that rambling, sniffling diatribe. He sighed heavily. “Oh… honey, no,” he murmured. “I want you to listen to me and listen very closely. I never cheated on my wife and I never played the field. Honor and integrity are important to me. Never in my life have I slept with someone after having known them a couple of days, so what happened between us earlier today was the first time that has ever happened to me. More than that, it was the single most amazing sexual experience of my life because it was with you. The day I met you, it was like the clouds opened up and this angel stepped into my midst. I can’t describe it any better than that. I don’t care if you’re a doctor or a lawyer or a worker at a burger joint. I really don’t give a damn. It’s you I’m attracted to – your quirky sense of humor, your intelligence, and the way you have of looking at me that makes my knees weak. Don’t you get it? I’m not looking for convenient sex or a trophy on my arm. I’m looking for a good woman who fills me like no one else ever has and, so far, you’re doing a pretty good job of that.”

  Alix was gazing up at him with tears streaming down her cheeks. “I just don’t know,” she whispered. “I’m so scared… I’m scared to open myself up because I can already feel it happening.”

  “Good,” he said, slowly moving towards her. “I feel something for you, too, and I want us to feel it together. I swear I won’t hurt you, Alix. Please believe me. I just want to… well, God willing, I just want to love you and treat you right. You’re such a special person and I’m sorry if no one has shown you that.”

  She sobbed softly and wiped at her nose. “I’ve heard those lines before.”

  “It’s not a line. I swear on the lives of my kids, it’s not a line. It’s the truth.”

  She looked up at him, looking so tired and frightened and pathetic. “I want to believe you,” she murmured. “I just don’t know how.”

  “Then let me show you. Will you at least give me the chance? I’ve always been a big believer that actions speak louder than words. Please… just let me show you.”

  She wiped at her wet cheeks, having difficulty looking him in the eye. He sounded so desperately sincere and she very much wanted to believe him. After several moments of deliberation, she nodded her head.

  “Okay,” she whispered. “I’m sorry I didn’t call you back for dinner.”

  He smiled faintly. “Are you hungry?”

  “A little.”

  “Let’s go get something to eat.”

  “But it’s the middle of the night.”

  “I know a few places that are open.”

  She nodded again, still seemingly sad and depressed, but when she looked at him, he swore he could see warmth. He could see she very much wanted to believe him. Cord put his arms around her and hugged her tightly, gently stoking her hair and kissing her cheek.

  “Come on.” He kissed her again. “Let’s go eat pancakes somewhere.”

  She managed a smile as she looked up again, thinking that if this man was for real, she could most definitely fall in love with him and have that love, that toe-curling love, she’d never thought she’d ever have.

  Maybe she’d been wrong, about a lot of things.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Evenshade became a house under construction.

  The restoration contractor had found rot in pretty much every part of the house so, bit by bit, floor boards and walls were being pulled up and replaced, and Alix had discovered that she needed to have the approval from the City of Danvers to do any extensive renovations because of the historical significance of the house. So every time a portion of the porch was pulled up, an inspector would show up to give it his blessing. This made for slow work, but the house was starting to come along.

  Almost a month after she and the kids had moved in, the restoration was in full swing. The contractor had basically worked from the ground up, so most of the first floor was torn up while the second floor hadn’t been touched for the most part. It had been chaotic and expensive, but the ground floor was coming along nicely. New walls, restored floors, replumbed and rewired, Alix was very happy with the work.

  Sean started school towards the end of the month. Alix had dropped him off his first day even though he had pleaded to go with Chris, Kyle and Cole in Chris’ pickup truck. Alix had to practically beg to take him and he relented, but then she had to promise that he could ride with the Trevor boys from now on. Unhappy but understanding that her son was growing up and didn’t need or want mommy driving him around, Alix had agreed.

  Additionally, Alix had worked with an agency to hire a live-in housekeeper who would watch Rose when Alix and Sean were unavailable. Her name was Hester and she was a widow who had raised three children of her own, and Rose seemed to like the woman right away. With six bedrooms upstairs, Alix put Hester in the bedroom nearest the kitchen stairs and across the hall from Rose’s bedroom. African-American, round, and with a lot of energy, Hester blended in to their household quickly and easily. Alix loved her.

  Most importantly during this time was the relationship developing between Alix and Cord. The boys, all of them, had figured out for themselves that Cord and Alix were sweet on each other and they all approved except for Cole. The youngest Trevor boy wasn’t happy in the least, so Cord and Alix were very careful with their behavior when they were around him. Cord tried to speak with his son a few times about what he was feeling, but Cole didn’t want to talk about it. On Alix’s advice, Cord stopped pressing his son. He figured Cole would talk about it when he was ready.

  At the end of the first week of school, there was a football game at Danvers High School and Alix wasn’t working so she was able to attend. Sean already seemed to be absorbed into the fraternity of popular boys at the high school thanks to the Trevor brothers and he already had a glut of friends to hang out with. Because Cord was an assistant coach with the football team, it was a given that they’d be attending all of the home games. On this warm Friday evening in late August, Alix packed up Rose and drove over to the high school to watch the game.

  Sean had gone on ahead with Cole, Cord, Chris and Kyle, so Alix parked her car in the high school parking lot and collected her blanket before locking up the car and taking Rose by the hand. They got in line with other football fans and parents, paying their seven dollars to be admitted to the stadium.

  The mercury vapor lights were blazing a brilliant white light as Alix and Rose made their way to the stands. The football team was in th
e locker room and the marching band was getting ready to take the field to play the national anthem. The stands were fairly packed because it was the first game and also because they were playing Winthrop High School, a local rival. The energy was high and the crowds were already cheering.

  Alix made her way into the stands, grinning when she saw Sean and Cole with a group of boys in lettermen jackets at the very front and center of the stands. They were screaming and yelling, and having a wonderful time. She and Rose found seats further down the stands, right in the front so they could watch all of the action, and next to where the marching band sat. As they settled in, the Danvers Falcons came roaring out onto the field to the strains of the fight song and the crowd went wild.

  Alix picked out Cord immediately, dressed in slacks and a royal blue polo shirt with a Falcons logo on it. He was jogging across the field with his linemen, gathering on the sidelines as the two teams settled in for the game. But the moment he reached the sidelines, he began scanning the crowd and spied Alix and Rose almost immediately. He waved at them and Alix waved back.

  Rose, however, saw him waving and thought he was waving her over. She had become rather enamored with him over the past few weeks, mostly because he was very sweet with her and would sit and watch cartoons when he wasn’t occupied with Alix. He even played Chutes and Ladders with her a few times. Rose really didn’t have any friends yet in her new town, so she looked at him as sort of a big playmate. She jumped up from the bench when he waved and ran off before Alix could grab her.

  For a little girl, she moved rather well and skittered down the wooden steps of the stands as Alix went in pursuit. Cord saw the little girl coming and was forced to break away from his last-minute huddle with his defensive linemen, including both Chris and Kyle, and intercepted Rose before she got trampled.

  He picked the little girl up and greeted Alix with a kiss when she walked up on them. He tried to hand Rose back but she had no interest in returning to her mother. So he took her with him as he returned to the huddle. Alix stood back from the sidelines, near the stands, waiting for Cord to turn her child back over to her, but that didn’t happen until almost three minutes into the game. Rose still had no interest in returning to her mother but it was necessary.