by Susan Hayes
Michelle let go of Sinjin’s wrist and propped herself up higher in the water, trying to get a better look. It looked as if the shadow was moving closer. Her passion of a moment ago was doused in a wash of ice-cold terror as the distinctive sound of howling wind reached her ears and she realized what she was looking at. An impossible storm was racing across the surface of the lake, turning the water from blue to slate gray as it churned nearer. The millpond tranquility of a moment ago was transforming into a foam-crested chop, and there were waves cresting and rolling toward them beneath the perfect summer sky.
“Sinjin!” She screamed his name and grabbed his hand with desperate strength, struggling to drag his big body with her as she lunged toward the beach. He turned toward her and sat up, bracing himself against the stony beach and stopping their movement toward the shore. He stared at her in confusion as she tugged on him again, clearly concerned by her sudden, frantic behavior.
She gestured wildly to the gathering storm. “We have to get out of the water!”
He turned back to the lake just as the full fury of the storm hit, and she lost sight of him as the waves rose up and swamped them both. A wall of water struck her and knocked her backward, pushing her under. The lake closed over her head, and she felt herself tumbling head over heels, tossed into a cold and confusing whirl of darkness and a deafening roar that filled her ears. Pain lanced through her as she was cruelly slammed into the rocky bottom. Her lungs burned and her abused body ached, but she managed to cling to consciousness and realized that if she was touching the ground, then she knew which direction the surface was. She planted her hands against the only solid thing in her universe and shoved hard, pushing herself up and out of the water.
She sucked in a lungful of air the moment she cleared the surface. Her hands frantically rubbing at her eyes, still filled with the silt and grit of the churned up lake bottom. The moment she could see again, she shielded her gaze from the glare of the sun as it struck the water, desperately looking around her for Sinjin. Fear escalated to terror as she realized he wasn’t beside her, and she staggered to her feet, ignoring the pain as she reopened yesterday’s cuts and added fresh bruises to ones barely beginning to heal. With her heart in her throat, she scanned the area, looking for him. Around her the water was calm again, but further out the strange wind and chop still lingered.
“Sinjin!” She finally spotted him, a small figure struggling in the heart of the storm. He was swimming hard toward her, but somehow he wasn’t making any headway. The wind and waves seemed to converge on him, dragging him toward the deepest part of the lake. She didn’t hesitate to go after him.
She threw herself into a dive and started swimming faster than she’d ever done before. Nothing else mattered, not her fear, not her bruised and battered body. She needed to reach Sinjin and protect him. From the moment she’d heard the wind she knew this was not a natural storm. It was Robert, lashing out in a jealous rage. This was her fault, and Michelle was determined to stop him from hurting Sinjin. She wouldn’t let him be hurt by the nightmare that she’d inadvertently dragged him into the moment they’d met.
Her arms were burning and the cold was seeping into her bones by the time she reached the edge of the storm. This far from shore the water temperature was several degrees lower, and she could already feel the effect. She was burning through what little energy reserves she had left after days of stress and too many sleepless nights. Her legs were leaden and slow as she stopped just at the point where she could feel the wind on her face and the waves were strong enough to be flecked with foam once more.
She paused there to catch her breath, trying to spot Sinjin’s dark head amongst the breakers. She couldn’t see him. She kicked hard with her tired legs, lifting herself higher out of the water for a brief moment, but all she could see was wind-whipped water. Dread filled her and settled in the pit of her stomach, colder than the black depths beneath her. Where is he? She was about to swim blindly into the chop when she spotted his head cresting the surface. He coughed hard, expelling a lungful of water before gasping for breath. He was closer than she’d hoped for, and she swam to him at a frantic speed, terrified he’d go under again before she could reach him.
It felt like an agonizing eternity to swim the short distance between them. Every stroke and kick seemed to only move her a few inches, and the waves slammed into her repeatedly. The wash of water over her face made it hard for her to breathe, but she kept going. Hang on. I’m coming. She repeated the words over and over in her mind as she swam, willing him to somehow hear her.
She didn’t even realize she’d reached him until her hand brushed his body and she grabbed hold of his arm. He turned to face her, his expression warrior-fierce, and for a moment, she thought he’d pull away. It was only when recognition came that his face softened slightly, and then his eyes widened as he realized she had swum out to him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held on tightly, trusting him to keep them afloat as she raised her head and screamed into the wind, “I won’t let go, Robert. If you want to kill him, you’ll have to drown us both!”
The wind intensified, and a voice howled around them. “No! Mine forever, Chelle.”
Michelle’s anger burned so hot she no longer felt the chill of the water around her or the vicious bite of the wind. She screamed her denial into the storm, the words pouring out of her, fueled by her fury. “I will never forgive you if you hurt him! Do you understand me? Never! So kill us both right now or let him go!”
The voice in the wind wailed in frustration, and the storm grew in strength. The waves crashed into them, and it was all she could do to keep her head above water as they were battered by the full force of the elements. The water swirled around them, and she felt as though there were hands beneath the surface, grabbing at her and trying to tear Sinjin out of her grasp. She wouldn’t let that happen.
“No, Robert! I won’t let you kill him! No!” She screamed again, her voice half smothered by another breaker that crashed over their heads. Then the storm ended abruptly, the wind stopped blowing, and the waves vanished between one heartbeat and the next. Suddenly the two of them were treading water in a perfectly calm lake, clinging to each other as they realized the threat was gone.
“Are you all right?” She loosened her arms just a little bit, afraid to let him go in case he was torn away from her again.
“I don’t think I want to go swimming again for a long time.” Sinjin coughed slightly, clearing more water from his lungs. “That was…”
“Surreal? Terrifying? Something I never want to have to go through again?” She finished his sentence for him.
“Yeah, all of the above.” He slid one arm around her and drew her body tight to his, their faces only a few inches apart. “I guess now we’re even, huh? Last night I rescued you. Today you rescued me.” He leaned in and brushed a cool kiss to her lips, and she realized how cold he must be.
“We need to get you back to dry land and warmed up.” She glanced over at the shoreline and was amazed to realize they were no more than a hundred feet from it. The distance had felt like miles when she’d swum out to him, but it would only take them a few minutes to swim back.
“Sounds good to me, and I vote we take showers from now on. At least until we figure out what the hell to do about Robert the homicidal ghost.”
They swam slowly back to shore, keeping so close together that they bumped limbs more than once on the way. As she clambered to her feet, Sinjin just shook his head and lifted her into his arms, chuckling. “I’m not so tired I can’t carry you, baby. I’m a bit tougher than that.”
He kept her in his arms all the way to his cabin, and she held onto him every step, grateful he was still alive. Whatever was happening to her, it was far more serious than they’d thought. Robert had tried to drown Sinjin today, and that realization made her sick with worry. If she stayed with him, he was going to be in danger. She remembered the feelings that had coursed through her as she’d hung onto him out ther
e in the lake. She’d been willing to die with him rather than let him go. A revelation burned brightly in the recesses of her barely healed heart, and she refused to acknowledge it, shying away from admitting that she was falling in love with him. It’s too soon. You can’t be. It’s lust, or chemistry, or something else, but it’s not love. That’s just insane thinking! Her mind whirled, and then one clarifying thought snapped everything into focus. It didn’t matter if it was love, or lust, or something else. So long as she was haunted by Robert’s ghost, anyone and everyone she cared for was going to be a potential target for his supernatural rages, and she couldn’t let that happen.
“He’s getting stronger.” Sinjin’s quiet observation pulled her out of her own dark thoughts, and she nodded, hugging him tighter.
“He nearly killed you today.” She heard the tremor in her voice and fought to rein in her emotions, not wanting him to see her come apart for the second time in twenty-four hours. “I think maybe I should—”
“Don’t even think about finishing that sentence.” He cut her off with a low growl. “You’re not going anywhere without me, and that’s the end of it.” She felt herself lifted higher, and then his mouth was on hers, stopping any argument with a thoroughness that left her breathless. All her fears and worries welled up inside her, threatening to overwhelm her control. In an effort to avoid the dark thoughts haunting her, she threw herself into his embrace. She twined her arms and legs around him and hung on tight, her kisses equal parts desperation and need.
“I thought I’d lost you,” she murmured between kisses, part of her registering the fact they’d entered the cabin, the rest of her too busy kissing him to care.
“I was starting to consider that possibility myself.” He carried her down the hall to the bathroom, setting her on the small counter as he moved to turn on the shower. As the water heated, he stripped off first his swimsuit and then hers, his lips chasing chill bumps down her throat and back again as his fingers undid the ties on her bikini.
“I heard what you said, back there in the storm.” He lifted his head to gaze into her eyes, and his hands cupped her cheeks. “No one has ever…” He trailed off and kissed her hard, lifting her back into his arms before carrying her into the shower with him. Hot water streamed down over them both, chasing away the lingering chill of the lake. His lips slanted over hers, the heat of the water mingling with the warmth of his touch as he stroked her. She drew her legs around his hips and urged him to come closer. She needed his touch to drive away the memories, and the worries. He was the only one who could keep her fear at bay, if only for just a little while.
“Sinjin.” She whispered his name. “Please, make love to me.”
His only answer was a passionate groan of assent. His hands were already guiding her as he turned her around to press her back against the cool slickness of the shower tiles. He cradled her body to his and arched his hips, letting her feel the hard shaft of his cock as it slid over her clit. Liquid need scalded her veins, hotter than the water falling around them, and she moaned into his mouth. She let her tongue tangle with his to keep herself from giving voice to feelings she wasn’t ready to acknowledge.
He finally broke their kiss to murmur, “I’m sorry, baby, but I can’t wait to be inside you. I’ll make it up to you later.”
She nodded silently, and he took her mouth in another torrid kiss as he lifted her higher, adjusting their bodies so that he could press the thick head of his cock against her entrance. He bucked his hips, slipping a bare inch inside her, and then he plunged his cock deep into her pussy. A surge of pleasure flooded her and the world fell away, leaving the two of them in a bubble of pure bliss and light, far beyond the reach of the darkness that haunted her. She rode him hard, needing him to give her more. She wanted him to take her higher, so high that nothing existed but the two of them. He answered her desperate lovemaking in kind, taking her with forceful thrusts as his lips plundered hers and their mutual cries of need blended and blurred into one voice.
The pace started fast and soon grew frantic as they lost themselves in the moment. Her teeth closed on his lower lip and he shoved her hard against tile, impaling her on his cock. There was nothing tender or sweet about their joining. It was pure sex, raw, and life affirming. She felt him withdraw, dragging the thick length of his dick along her clit for a spine tingling moment before thrusting in again. Soon she was grinding her body against his, eager for the release she could feel building. He was like a wild animal, his body claiming hers with a ferocity that stole her breath away. When her orgasm hit, it hurled her into a tempest of sensation, more intense and powerful than anything she had ever experienced.
He came a few thrusts later, her name on his lips as he drove himself deep and lost himself in his own release. Panting, he lifted his head at last and gave her a lopsided grin. “I feel a hell of a lot better now. How about you?”
Laughter bubbled up inside her, and she grinned back at him. “I feel amazing.”
“Yes, you do.” He bucked his hips once more, making her gasp as he moved deep inside her. “But much as I would love to do that again, I think we should clean up quick, before the hot water runs out.”
“Good thinking, and then I believe you promised something about making it up to me?” She schooled her expression into one of complete innocence as she reached for the soap.
“Why yes, I believe I did.” He gently lifted her off of him and set her on her feet, watching her carefully. “You okay to stand?”
She glanced up at him and grinned wider. “I’m tougher than I look. I can manage standing on my own two feet, at least for a little while.” She lifted her hands, now covered in soap suds. “Turn around, and I’ll wash your back, then you can wash mine.”
* * * *
He waited until she’d drifted off to sleep before he made the call. She was curled up like a kitten on the well-worn sofa, tucked in beneath an old afghan crafted from yarn whose colors he was certain hadn’t been in fashion for at least four decades. Lying there with one hand beneath her cheek and her blonde hair falling loose around her face, she was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. She was lovely, sweet, and braver than he could have imagined. He remembered the moment he’d realized she’d swum out to him despite the risk. The way she had latched onto him while challenging the ghost of the man who’d hunted and hurt her. She’d risked her life out there, just to save his. That was a woman worth dying for. That was a woman worth fighting for, he amended and picked up his cell phone. He needed to make this call before he gave in to the urge to assess the feelings that filled his heart as he watched her sleep. As he hit the first number on his speed dial, he focused his mind on the task at hand. He had to protect Michelle.
The phone was picked up on the second ring. “Remington here. I thought you wanted me to leave you alone to lick your wounds for another week, Sinjin.”
“I’ve got a client for us.”
“How the hell did you find a client in the middle of the forest? Are you rescuing tree nymphs now?”
“Long story, sir, but I’m serious. I’ve got a client who needs our help, badly. She’s been followed up here, and there have been two attacks, one on her, and one on me.” He winced at the long silence that preceded his boss’s next words, knowing what was coming.
“So she needs protection, and you got attacked? Do I even need to guess? How many times do I have to tell you guys? Rule number three, never get involved with a damsel in distress!”
“It’s not that simple, sir.”
“Yeah, I know. It never is when a woman’s involved. You can give me the details when you get back here, I’ll send a bird along shortly to pick up you and your new client. It’ll bring you to Sea-Tac airport. I’ll have a car waiting.”
“Thank you.” Sinjin breathed a sigh of relief.
“You don’t ask for favors lightly, so I’m taking you at your word. Get your ass back to Seattle, man. We’ve missed you.”
Sinjin grinned and was about to r
eply when Remington added, “And, Sin, if you tell anyone I said that, I’ll kick your ass.”
“Yes, sir.” He chuckled as he hung up the phone. His boss was one of the toughest men he’d ever met, but underneath all the bluster, he was a good man, and a close friend.
He sat still for a moment longer, enjoying watching Michelle sleep. Soon he’d have to wake her up and tell her it was time to pack her things. He couldn’t protect her here. It was time to take this fight to his home turf, back to Seattle, and Paladin.
Chapter 8
The helicopter arrived by late afternoon, and Michelle had climbed aboard without looking back once. She was sad to realize that her family’s cabin and the lake she’d once loved as a second home were forever tainted for her now. Thanks to Robert, it would always be a place of dark danger and bad memories, never again a place of peaceful solitude and simple joys. It was another thing that he had managed to take away from her.
It hadn’t taken her long to pack. She’d barely begun unpacking before things had all started going wrong. She’d organized a small bag of clothes and toiletries for herself and then locked the place up tight. Sinjin had promised her that they’d be back to get her vehicle and the rest of her things once this was over, and Michelle had readily agreed. Sinjin believed his friends at Paladin could help protect her, and she was desperately hoping he was right. She had to get free of Robert’s ghost and get back in control of her life. As she took her seat, she was struck by a strong sense of déjà vu. It only took her a moment to realize why this all felt so familiar. She was running away again, running away from Robert. She was so damned tired of always being on the move. Of having to always be looking over her shoulder, afraid someone was chasing her.
Sinjin stowed her bag and helped her strap in before taking the seat next to hers in the cramped space. He had to hunch over when he stood, and the interior was not made to accommodate his long legs. Once he got himself strapped in, he had reached for her hand, his fingers closing around hers gently. When she squeezed back, he’d nodded their readiness to the pilot seated in front of them. The pilot gave them a thumbs-up, his gaze falling on their joined hands. Michelle could have sworn she caught a flash of a grin behind the helmet before their pilot faced forward again and touched the controls, initiating take-off.
