by Blaire Edens
“Wait,” she said, stopping him in the hallway.
“We both know what’s going to happen, Maeve.”
She smiled. “There’s something I want to say first.”
“Well, for God’s sake, hurry up.”
“I’m still in love with you.” She was taking a big chance but she couldn’t, wouldn’t, deny it any longer. “I want this to be more than just physical.”
He pressed her against the wall, his hands on her shoulder, his green eyes looking deeply into hers. “I can accept that.”
His lips branded hers and she kissed him back. They tore at each other’s clothes, ripping pulling, demanding. Standing only in her bra and panties, Campbell wedged his leg in between hers and she rubbed against him, desperate for release.
“Ummm, love makes you pretty excited, huh?” he whispered against her throat. “I don’t think we’re going to make it to the bedroom. Do you?”
Maeve moaned in response.
He reached around and unhooked her bra. He took one nipple in his mouth and massaged the other between his thumb and forefinger. He moved down her stomach, licking and kissing until her whole body felt as if it would melt with pleasure. He ran his tongue along the elastic of her panties making her moan.
“You ready for me?” he asked, his voice deep and husky.
“Mmmmm” was all she could manage.
He shimmied her panties off and she stepped out of them. He shucked out of his boxer shorts and tossed them aside.
“I can’t wait to make you scream,” he said. He ran his finger along the outside of her labia, barely brushing her clit with the tip. “I’ve waited a long time for you to come to me and I plan to take full advantage of this.”
He grabbed her ass and lifted her up like she weighed no more than a penny. With her back against the wall and her legs around his waist, he thrust into her. He fit inside her perfectly and she loved the cool feel of the wall against her back with the heat of Campbell touching every inch of her front.
His skin was warm and smooth. She ran her fingers along the muscles of his shoulders, feeling the strength in them.
He nibbled her neck as he drove into her. She pulled his lips back up to hers and he shoved his tongue into her mouth, taking every ounce of self-control she had. She locked her legs behind him. “Harder,” she demanded.
Campbell obliged. “I want to hear you scream my name,” he said into my ear. “So loud they can hear it in Tennessee.” He thrust into her as deeply as he could and looked into her eyes. “I love you, Maeve, and I intend to spend the rest of my life proving it.”
“Prove it now,” she teased.
“Ask and you shall receive.”
He moved his hips from side to side, brushing against her clit with every deep stroke. She tilted her head to the side and closed her eyes, abandoning everything but the sensations coursing through her body.
“Oh, God,” she moaned.
“Say my name,” Campbell said. “I won’t let you come until you do.”
The thrill of having Campbell in control of her body sent a delicious thrill through her. She loved a man in charge.
He slowed down, pulled out and she felt like she was going to explode with the frustrations. He took his tongue and licked a straight line from her neck, between her breasts, and all the way down to her pubic bone. “Mmmm,” he said, inserting his finger into her. “I’ve never seen you this wet.”
She couldn’t take it another second. “Take me to bed, Campbell Hyatt.”
His wolf-like smile made her even hotter. He led her down the hallway and into his bedroom.
She lay on the bed and he stood over her. “You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen,” he said. “I want to make love to you every day for the rest of your life.”
“Let’s see what you can do, then.”
He climbed on top of her and slowly entered her. She moved against him, feeling the wave inside her building slowly until she couldn’t hold back another minute. “Make me come, Campbell. Make me come right now.”
He drove into her and rubbed his finger along her clit. She fell into rhythm with him until she was floating, flying, in another world entirely. She shook with the intensity of the orgasm, shivering with pleasure.
When Campbell found his release, he fell beside her and pulled her into his arms. He covered them with a cotton quilt. “You’re never going back to Atlanta.”
“With incentive like this, I might just stay.”
CHAPTER NINE
Thank God Mama’s candelabra was there. Maybe I can finally leave this place. I’ll miss the wind, the smell of the snow, the way the fall air tastes like applesauce. But I’m ready. I’ve been ready for a long time.
Maeve will make sure everyone knows it wasn’t me.
My only crime was love.
*****
When Maeve and Campbell got back to Granny’s cabin, Granny wasted no time. “No secret what y’all have been up to,” she said with a mischievous grin. Instead of knitting she was making corn shuck dolls. Her basket overflowed with corn husks, pieces of felt and scraps of yarn. “I’m not too old to remember some things.”
Maeve felt her face flush. “We, well, we—”
“You’re both grown. You certainly don’t owe me an explanation but I do think you should have been doing more of that of sooner.”
Campbell laughed. “You’re right as usual,” he said.
Maeve took the tiny scrap of paper and showed it to her grandmother. “We figured it out. We solved the mystery.”
The old woman held the paper under the light and examined it. “That’s amazing. Like holding a piece of the past.”
Campbell and Maeve explained the details to Granny and she listened intently, asking several questions.
“You know you’re going to have use that legal mind of yours to clear her name. Get her conviction overturned. It’s the only thing that will set her spirit free.”
Over the next few days, Maeve worked feverishly assembling all the documents she’d copied into a motion. Even though the verdict was over a century old, she had compelling proof that Delphine had been wrongly convicted and hanged.
When she presented them to the judge a couple of months later, he agreed.
“Maeve McMahan, you’ve done an outstanding job of researching this case and bringing it to a conclusion that will clear the name of a wrongly accused woman. My hope is that it will give her spirit rest.”
With one signature, it was done. Finished.
Campbell took Maeve and Granny, whose leg was now healed, out to the Steakhouse for a celebration supper.
“The only thing left to do is tell Delphine,” Maeve said. “I’d like for you both to go with me.”
Granny shook her head. “This is something you and Campbell need to do. Just the two of you.”
Campbell looked across the table and nodded. “She’s right. Delphine is my grandmother and she’s the reason we’re back together.”
“I told you this boy had more sense than all the others put together,” Granny said.
EPILOGUE
The snow was falling softly, coating the trees with spun sugar in the soft light of the morning. They’d driven past the barriers that closed the road to traffic. Campbell was confident in his ability to drive the Explorer in any kind of weather. Maeve had never been to Roan Mountain in the snow. She’d always dreamed of seeing it blanketed in white and now, she was getting that chance.
Campbell backed the vehicle into a spot and killed the engine. “Ready to do this?”
Maeve nodded. She pulled down the wool beanie Granny had knitted for her and grabbed the candelabra. She’d polished it until it shone like new. “Ready.”
They sat on the bench and waited for Delphine. The snow fell quietly and it was beautiful to watch the tiny flakes float down into a smooth carpet. She held Campbell’s gloved hand in hers and watched the balsam tree. In her mind, she concentrated on the image of Delphine.
“Yo
u brought it,” Delphine said. “Can I hold it?”
Maeve rose slowly and walked toward her. “We found the note and I talked to a judge for you. He’s overturned your conviction.”
Delphine took the candelabra in her hand and Maeve felt the whisper of a touch. “I’m no longer convicted?”
Maeve shook her head. “The Court recognizes their error. Your record is clear.”
The woman smiled. It was peaceful, serene. While the snow piled up on the arms of the candelabra, none of it touched Delphine’s hair or her dress. She looked over Maeve’s shoulder. “Campbell,” she said.
He rose, his eyes wide.
“Take care of this. It belonged to my mother and it should stay in the family.” She held the silver piece out to him and he walked toward it. “Take care of her, too.”
“I will,” he said. He reached out and took the family heirloom.
Maeve wished she could hug Delphine, show her how much her story had changed her life. “Thank you, Delphine, for choosing me.”
The ghost smiled. “Thank you for not giving up. I’m ready to go now,” she said, turning to look out over the snow-covered mountains. “It’s time.”
Maeve and Campbell watched as Delphine faded, like a photo exposed to too much sun, layer upon layer of detail disappearing into a gauzy mist. When she was gone, Campbell turned to Maeve. “You did an important thing.”
She looked up at him, his green eyes twinkling the in blue-white light. “I love you, Campbell.”
“I love you, too,” he said and kissed her forehead. “Will you make sure this candelabra goes to our first daughter?”
“Are you asking me to marry you?”
“If you’ll have me.”
“Yes!” She placed her palms on his cheeks and kissed him.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Erin Hayes: Without you I would have never finished this book. That’s the honest truth. Until you and I started sprints, I was convinced I was going to have to bow out of this collection. You encouraged, supported and forced me to keep my fingers on the keyboard every single night until I had something. I adore you and your work. Thanks for being such dependable week-night date. Let’s do that again soon.
My beta readers: Y’all took something that was pretty rough and gave me great suggestions. This wouldn’t be the same book without each of you.
Chief: Thanks for the Civil War brainstorming session. You’ll never know how much I appreciate your timing. It was spot-on.
BICers: Y’all are the real deal. I admire each of you for your smarts, your compassionate hearts and your kick-ass production schedule.
Mama: Thanks for keeping the food warm and the iced tea cold. Again. You’re right, ghosts never move UNDER doors.
Dorinda: You always make me laugh when the world gets too crazy.
And to the man who once told me I had the heart of a lion, I will always be grateful.
Once again, I’m the most blessed girl in the whole world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Blaire Edens lives in the mountains of North Carolina right down the road from a farm that’s been in her family since 1790. When she’s not plotting, she’s busy knitting, running, or listening to theBlues. Blaire loves iced tea with mint, hand-stitched quilts, and yarn stores. She refuses to eat anything that mixes chocolate and peanut butter or apple and cinnamon. She’s generally nice to her mother, tries to remember not to smack her bubble gum, and only speeds when no one’s looking.
An award-winning author, she’s an active member of Romance Writers of America and previously served as the President of South Carolina Writers Workshop.
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