Need coiled in her womb, spiraling tighter as their intense, grinding pace increased. Slick with her arousal, he slid a finger into her ass, stroking in time with his cock. Her head dropped against his neck, and she clung to his shoulders, desperate for something to hold to as everything within and around her threatened to fly apart.
Eli gasped against her ear. “I can’t hold back. You’re killing me.”
The need in his voice was enough to push her over the edge. Tremors shook her while her release battered her body with waves of pleasure. Somehow, he managed to continue plunging into her despite the fact she was practically a vise around his shaft.
His body stiffened for a moment then slumped against her as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer than was comfortable. She didn’t care. For a few minutes, she wanted to pretend this was where she belonged.
Chapter Seven
Once they’d finally caught their breath, Eli leaned back then eased her off him and laid her against the pillows. “Don’t move.”
Oh, Meaghan wanted to move. She wanted to move right on out of this room before things went any further, but she was completely boneless. As soon as she got her strength back, she needed to get out of here. Eli made her want things she couldn’t have. Eli made her want him.
He returned from the bathroom. He’d disposed of the condom and carried a wet washcloth.
She shifted on the bed and motioned loosely at the damp fabric. “You don’t need to do that.”
“I know.” He sat at the edge of the bed. “I’d like to, though.”
He gently cleaned her before tossing aside the cloth, lying down next to her and pulling the covers over them.
Panic settled over her as completely as the blankets. She rolled toward the other side of the bed, but he wrapped his arms around her, halting her movement.
“I know you’re ready to make your big escape,” he murmured. “But will you stay a little longer?”
Her resolve weakened at his quiet words, and she relaxed against the mattress. Well, relaxed wasn’t the right word. She stopped moving away from him, though. Staring at the ceiling, she tried to figure out the right thing to say.
She gave up trying to come up with something when he turned her to face him. All coherent thought fled from her mind.
He stroked the hair off her forehead, holding her captive with those impossibly blue eyes. He squinted and looked closer. “You did get hurt.”
Apparently, her makeup had worn off, but then, she hadn’t counted on vigorous sex.
He gently turned her head toward the light on the bedside table then back. “Did you have that looked at?”
“It’s fine. I didn’t even notice it was there until yesterday.”
He frowned. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have been following you so closely.”
She shrugged. “I shouldn’t have braked suddenly. It’ll heal.”
“Although…” He traced the line of her lips. “If I hadn’t run into you, I wouldn’t be in bed with you, right now.”
“About that. I should go. I’ve got to do a lot of clean up and sorting work on your friends’ pictures this weekend…” Her words drifted to a stop at the determined look on his face.
“I’d really like to get to know you better. What can I do to convince you to see me again?”
She stiffened in his arms. “For sex…or dating?
“What’s your problem with dating?” He frowned as if a horrible thought had occurred to him. “Are you involved with someone else?”
“What? No!” She sighed and rubbed her hand over her face. She smelled like him—part spicy cologne and part warm male. It made it almost impossible to focus, but the expression on his face brought her back to the present.
She took a deep breath. “Look. I like you. If I was someone who could actually have a relationship and date like a normal person, I’d seriously consider going out with you.”
Now, he just looked confused. “Then why can’t you? Are you in the witness protection program? Joining a cult? Taking a vow of misery?”
“I’m just not…relationshipable.”
His eyebrows rose, and he seemed to be trying really hard not to smile.
“Relationshipable? That’s not even a word. Or a thing.”
She blew out an exasperated breath. “You’re just going to have to trust me that it is.”
“You’re just going to have to trust me that I’m going to keep trying to convince you that it’s not. And that you are. Or something. I don’t even know. But I’m going to do it. Whatever it is.”
A laugh escaped, but she tried to remain firm. “Does this mean that you’re going to stalk me?”
“No…it just means that when I see you, I won’t waste any opportunities to convince you that you are relationship-able.”
A lump rose in her throat, but she swallowed it down, reminding herself of all the reasons this amazing guy wasn’t meant for her. Blinking rapidly, she forced a smile. “Shut up, and kiss me.”
Eli wasn’t stupid enough to think he’d talked her into anything, but he also wouldn’t turn down any opening she gave him.
He leaned over her and pressed his lips to her forehead near her bruise. He trailed his lips over her temple, along her jaw line, refusing to be hurried even when she tried to guide his mouth where she wanted it. He detoured to her ear, tugging on her lobe with his teeth. “Anywhere you want me to,” he breathed.
She inhaled sharply, her nipples brushing against his chest, then turned her head, her mouth grazing his. He captured her lips and delved inside—tasting her and committing the feel of her body to memory. He wanted to believe he’d convince her to give him a chance, but there was the very real possibility she wouldn’t. Not that he wouldn’t try.
His cock began to stiffen against her hip, and she rocked against him, the caress of her smooth skin hardening him further. He’d just come, but already, he was desperate to be buried inside her again. She just had that effect on him.
He shifted to lie between her splayed legs and played with her nipples, twisting and tugging at them until she rhythmically lifted her hips and tried to pull him more fully on top of her. Ignoring her nearly silent demands, he pressed kisses down her sternum and lower over her belly. Her stomach muscles trembled and jumped as her circled her bellybutton with his tongue.
“You’re killing me, Boy Scout,” she breathed.
He nipped at her abdomen. “I plan to make sure you go happy.”
“Always the gentleman.”
At least, that’s what he assumed she said. The last word became a groan as he dipped his head and licked along her cleft, carefully avoiding her clit. He wanted to draw this out, but the way she squirmed and his cock ached, he wasn’t sure how long it would actually be.
Pushing her thighs wide open, he parted her lips, baring her sweet cunt to his gaze and his tongue. She lifted her hips, rhythmically pushing against his tongue, her whimpers demanding more. Her entire body quivered as she strained toward her release.
“Eli, please.”
Maybe it was because she used his name. Maybe it was because he wanted to see if she’d scream it when she came. Maybe he really did just want to give her a night she wouldn’t forget. But he sucked her clit between his lips and flicked his tongue across it until she screamed, clawing at his head and pulling him closer until she finally stiffened and fell limp against the mattress. He was sure he’d never seen anything more beautiful.
When she finally stirred, he prowled up her body, his cock throbbing for entrance. Sheathing himself in another condom, he hovered above her, his hands on either side of her head.
“You’re not planning on more torture, are you?” she asked, her voice raspy from shrieking.
He shook his head. “Just waiting until I know you’re completely with me.”
A breathless laugh escaped her. “I don’t think I could be more with you if I tried.” She canted her hips, offering him access. She gripped his waist and urged him forwar
d. “Don’t make me wait.”
As if he could deny her anything.
Pushing forward, he slid slowly through her swollen channel. Her body grasped at him like nothing he’d ever experienced. Guiding her legs around his hips, he shafted her deeper, harder as if he could imprint himself on her memory.
She clung to him, straining against him as his orgasm built. A tingling sensation started at the base of his skull, but he tried to ignore it. He wasn’t ready for this to end. He wanted to stay buried inside her as long as possible. But the tingling grew, and it started creeping down his spine. He wouldn’t be able to hold off very long. She just felt too good. Her arms around him, her nails digging into his skin, her cunt rippling around his cock. It was too much, and he was too close.
He slipped his hand between their bodies and found her clit. She writhed at his touch, crying out when he pinched then stroked it. Almost instantly, she shattered around him, and the pleasure that had been skating along his spine pooled at the small of his back before exploding though his body in a white-hot rush as he thrust into her impossibly tight pussy.
Finally, the tremors slowed and eventually stopped. He kept his hand where it was, gently stroking her as he waited for her to open her eyes. It took a while, but she slowly blinked them open as if waking from a particularly satisfying dream. Wanting to remember this moment, he couldn’t bring himself to look away. Eventually he had to. He didn’t want to be that creepy guy she never wanted to see again.
Eli rolled to the side of the bed and disposed of his condom before moving back to gather Meaghan in his arms. She knew she should just get up now, get dressed and take off, but she couldn’t bring herself to leave the warmth of his embrace. She’d go…just not yet. Instead, she scooted closer and laid her head on his chest. He stroked her hair, and she listened to the sound of his heartbeat slow and return to its usual rhythm. Frowning, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt so content. Didn’t it just figure it was all due to a guy she couldn’t have?
“What are you thinking so hard about?” His voice rumbled through her head.
She trailed her fingers through the sprinkling of light brown hair that covered his chest. “Who says I’m thinking?”
“I can practically hear the whirring of gears.” He briefly rubbed her scalp with his fingertips.
“I’m thinking you should do that again, but use two hands this time?”
He chuckled but complied, gently massaging her head with the pads of his fingers, dragging a contented moan from her lips. Sliding his hands through her hair, he worked the area at the base of her neck, and she melted against him with loud groan.
“It’s nice to be appreciated.” She heard the smile in his voice.
“You keep doing that, and I’ll keep appreciating,” she said on a yawn. She needed to stay awake—at least until he drifted off. Sneaking out would be easier if she didn’t have to wake from a dead sleep to do it.
His hands slowed in her hair, and one eventually dropped to the mattress. She waited a few more minutes to be safe then started to ease away from him. The hand that was still in her hair tightened briefly, and he stirred. “Where are you going?”
She pressed a kiss to his chest. “Just to the bathroom.”
“Hurry back,” he murmured.
She made a noise. It might have sounded like consent since he relaxed and let his fingers slip from her head. Trying not to jostle him, she slid from the bed then looked back at him. His eyes were closed, and his breathing had deepened considerably. He looked as if he were just about asleep. The sheet draped low over his hips, and the bedside lamp spread a warm glow across his body that made her want to crawl back into bed with him. Instead, she scooped up her dress and ducked into the bathroom.
Meaghan slipped her dress over her head, contorting until she could close the zipper. Frowning at her reflection in the mirror, she tried to smooth down her extreme case of bed head. There was nothing to be done for the whisker burns on her neck and cleavage. She looked as if she’d been doing exactly what she’d been doing. She straightened her shoulders. Who cared? She was a grown ass woman, and it wasn’t as if sex was anything to be ashamed of.
She stayed in the bathroom for a few more minutes, hoping Eli was asleep before finally sticking her head around the corner. He’d shifted, and the sheet had crept lower, revealing the swirls of the darker blond hair that trailed from his navel downward. As much as she wanted to be long gone before he woke up, she couldn’t quite bring herself to leave him yet.
Her hair would comb out and her whisker burns would fade. She wanted something more tangible to remember this night—something to remember Eli by.
Before she talked herself out of it, she squatted down and carefully unzipped her camera case. Lifting the camera from the protective padding, she hit the power button and disabled the flash. As quickly and quietly as she could, she snapped several shots of Eli sleeping, looking gorgeous and sated.
Slinging her camera over her shoulder, she darted closer to the bed and grabbed her shoes. Her underwear were nowhere in sight. She supposed she could waste more time searching for them or she could leave him with a reminder, too. After scooping up the camera bag, she carefully opened the door then shut it just as carefully behind her. She didn’t stop to put on her shoes until she was in the elevator, heading to the ground floor.
The parking lot was as deserted as the lobby had been when she hurried to her sister’s car. As she pulled out onto the street, she couldn’t help but wonder if she was making a huge mistake by running out on Eli. He was sexy, funny, amazing in bed and she actually really liked him. He’d turned out to be far more than a warm body to release her sexual frustrations. And he’d seemed to like her, too.
Sighing, she turned the car toward home and headed out of town.
No, this was the right choice. There was no way someone like Eli would understand the spells and magic portion of her life. There was part of her that wanted to give him a chance, but there was a bigger part that didn’t want to see the look of distrust in his eyes when she told him. It would hurt way worse if they got to know each other better. She was wiser to cut her losses and walk away now.
Chapter Eight
Bright sunlight and insistent meowing woke Meaghan far earlier than she cared to be conscious. Cracking open her eyes against the glare of the sun, she quickly shut them again. Rolling over, she squinted at the clock. It was already four-thirty in the afternoon—way later than she’d thought. It still felt too early to wake up after getting in at six o’clock in the morning. She rubbed her hand over her face and groaned. The warm scent of Eli’s skin still clung to her fingers.
Forcing herself to sit up, she noticed every ache in her body—reminders of everything she and Eli had done last night. Warmth spread through her middle as she remembered how he’d held her down and fucked her, staring into her eyes until she’d had to look away, sure she would drown. Absently petting the kitten that had climbed into her lap, she told herself for what had to be the thousandth time that taking the coward’s way out with Eli was the smartest thing she could have done. Just because they’d had amazing sex didn’t mean they were meant to have anything more than that.
After a quick shower, she fed the kitten, made herself a bowl of mac and cheese and booted up her laptop. She needed to stop thinking about Eli and get those pictures uploaded so she could sort through them and start the editing process. This wedding would be a special kind of hell. The bride had made it clear that even the candid shots needed to edited so not only the bridal party looked good, but so did all of the guests. And between Meaghan and Toby’s memory cards, there were well over eight hundred pictures to sift through. This would be a long day.
Four hours later, she’d made it though the ceremony pictures and had started on the post-service portraits. She squinted at the shot of the bride and groom with their master and mistress of ceremonies—the bride’s aunt and uncle. There was a weird, almost smoky-looking smudge next to the un
cle’s pant leg.
Meaghan zoomed in on the anomaly. Every once in a while, she’d see orbs in photographs. Sometimes, they were obviously dust mites, and sometimes, they were spirit orbs, but this was something she’d never seen. Leaning closer, she squinted at it. She supposed it could just be a trick of the light. Whatever it was, she was pretty sure she could edit it out. She clicked to the next picture—a shot of the bride’s entire family. The uncle was in an entirely different position in this one, but the grayish smudge was there, stretching from floor to upper thigh. If anything, it seemed a little more solid in this shot.
The weird smudge was nowhere to be seen in shots of the groom’s family. In fact, as she slowly made her way through the remainder of the photos, she all but forgot about it. Then in the darker, candid reception shots, she saw it again. In the low light, there was no mistaking what it was. The smudge had coalesced into the shape of a little girl. A ghostly apparition of a little girl.
Meaghan’s breath caught in her throat, and goose bumps erupted over her skin. She’d only ever seen ghosts once, and that had been with the help of her sister who was more medium than witch. Positive she was seeing photographic evidence of a spirit, Meaghan zoomed in closer, focusing on the child’s face. With sudden horrible comprehension, she realized the child looked familiar. Very familiar. With trembling hands, she minimized the picture and opened a tab on the internet and Googled missing West Michigan children.
Rows and rows of missing children popped up on her screen, and as she scrolled through them, her entire body began to shake. She stopped when she came to a photo she’d seen the other day on one of the flyers at the garage—Ava Catherine Billings. Missing from her front yard since September of the previous year with no leads other than her abductor was thought to be driving a tan or gold car. Meaghan’s stomach dropped from her body and didn’t stop until it hit the basement below.
Elemental Enchantment Page 5
