by Bobbi Smith
"Molly, don't, love," he protested in a guttural growl.
"Don't?" She raised up, wondering why he wanted her to stop. When he'd kissed her in that same fashion earlier, she'd been in heaven. She'd thought it would affect him the same way, too.
"No, darling, don't tease me like this."
"I'm not teasing," she told him with a slow, dangerous smile.
"You don't understand, love. We can't ...at least, not any more tonight," Dev said seriously. He assumed that since he'd just breached her innocence, it might cause her discomfort if he tried to make love to her again.
"Why not?" Molly was completely naive about such things and, so, was naturally curious.
"Because, it'll hurt" he explained as best he could. He'd never talked to a woman openly about these things before, and he wasn't quite sure he was expressing it right.
"I'm sorry..." She was suddenly remorseful. "I had no idea it hurt you...
Dev was overcome by a feeling of deep tenderness at her innocence, and he laughed gently to himself as he thought of how wonderful she was. She actually thought that making love again would hurt him, she wasn't even thinking about herself.
"No, no, no," he teased with infinite affection, slipping one hand up to tangle in the sleekness of her hair, then pulling her down for an adoring kiss. "Not me, darling. Being with you is pure heaven for me. It's you I'm worried about. You just made love for the first time, and your body's not accustomed to it. You'll be sore tomorrow."
Molly blushed a little as she realized how dumb she must have sounded to him, but he read her thoughts easily
"Don't be ashamed of your innocence, Molly," he soothed. "It's something you should be very proud of. It means a lot to me to know that I'm your first lover."
"You'll be my only lover, too," she declared fiercely, her eyes darkening with passion's intent as she met his lips again, this time in a slow, arousing exploration.
"Molly, we shouldn't."
"Dev, we should. What I'm feeling for you now is more important than anything else. This is our wedding night. I want it to be perfect."
His every protective argument refuted, Dev gave up the noble fight and surrendered to the desire he'd been trying to deny. Crushing her against him, his mouth sought hers. He began to caress her, tracing hypnotizing patterns down her silken length from the soft, swelling sides of her breasts to the gentle curves of her hips.
Molly moved restlessly against him as his knowing touch sparked her desire to a full flame. She could feel the heat of his manhood pressing hot and hard against her thigh, and it pleased her to know that he was as easily aroused as she was by their play.
Dev rolled with Molly, bringing her beneath him. He drew back to stare down at her for a moment, and then began to trail kisses down her throat to the curve of her neck. She gasped as he moved even lower, seeking out the peaks and valleys of her breasts. She clutched him nearer as his lips moved over her satiny flesh. His mouth closed over one taut, sensitive peak just as his hand sought the juncture of her thighs in an intimate caress.
Molly felt her control drifting away as he massaged her in a thrilling rhythm. She arched against his hand, enthralled by his practiced touch. Dev could tell that she was near the peak of ecstasy, and he moved over her, slipping between her thighs and positioning himself to claim her for his own.
"Yes, Dev...Please hurry, I want you so," she said in a hushed voice.
Dev slid forward, piercing the center of her love, making her his. He had been slow and careful the first time they'd made love, teaching her, taking her along with him to the heights of satisfaction. This time, however, her aggressiveness had driven him wild. It excited him that she wanted him, and he couldn't hold himself back. Swept on by rapture's promise, he thrust deep within her, seeking the glory he knew would be theirs.
Molly had been an avid student of love earlier, and she remembered his tutelage now, putting into practice all that he'd shown her. She met his rhythm without hesitation, welcoming the brand of his body upon hers. They moved as one, eagerly seeking the glory of union and the enchantment that came with desire's crest.
Ecstasy built within them, lifting them higher and higher until it exploded in a million glowing sparks of passion. Soul-stirring in its intensity, their mutual pinnacle took them to the heavens and beyond, before allowing them to fall softly back to reality.
Sated, enraptured, the lovers lay, locked together, neither willing to move apart. They nestled close, captivated by what was happening between them.
Molly lay with her head on his chest, listening to the steady thunder of his heartbeat as it slowed to a more normal pace. Dev held her near, cherishing the softness of her slender body against him. He marvelled at this thing called holy matrimony that had made them one in the eyes of God and man. It was right that it be so...it was perfect. They were meant to be together for all time, and he never wanted it to end.
"Shall we go?" Clay invited, offering her his arm after they'd descended from the train in Panama City.
"I don't suppose it would do any good to say no, would it?" Reina shot him a red-hot glare.
"None whatsoever," he replied tersely. It's all but over now. Why don't you just admit it and give it up?"
Her expression was grim as she realized that time was running out. If Clay managed to get them on a ship to California, and then her doom would be insured, her fate would be sealed. Until that happened, though, she still held out hope.
"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"
"I don't like any of this, Reina. If I'd had my way, I wouldn't have come after you in the first place. I'm just glad we're almost through. I will be one happy man when I deliver you to your father." Clay was brusque as he answered, the curtness of his tone hiding his own confusion. He didn't understand what he was feeling right now, and he didn't want to. He had a job to do. He had to take Reina home. Period.
Yet, whenever Clay thought about turning her over to her father so she could wed another man, he grew annoyed. He told himself that she didn't mean anything to him, that she was a woman just like his mother and for that very reason he couldn't let her mean anything to him. But still, the fact remained that he had only to kiss her or touch her to lose all semblance of self-control and that bothered him deeply. It was totally uncharacteristic for him to be so lacking in constraint.
For some reason Reina didn't understand, his declaration that he couldn't wait to be rid of her hurt. "Well, if you didn't want to come after me, why did you?" she challenged. "You could have just refused."
She hated him, she knew she did, and she despised herself for the weakness she had for him! Last night had been miserable for her when he'd proven to her again just how powerless she was against him. He only had to touch her, and her resolve to fight him disappeared.
"Your father can be a very persuasive man sometimes," Clay said with a harsh laugh, and he wondered again for what must have been the thousandth time if Dev was safe as Luis had promised he'd be.
"He is a master at getting people to do exactly what he wants, one way or the other," she remarked with her own bitter sadness, thinking of how his machinations had led to her current predicament.
"And his daughter grew up to be just like him," he observed sarcastically.
"That's not true!" she argued. "If I was, I wouldn't be in this fix right now."
"Oh, it's true, Reina. Just think about it. You convinced someone to help you disguise yourself as a nun. You convinced Emilie to lie for you, and you worked your wiles upon Webster so he'd help you with your grandiose plan of escape. You're your father's daughter, all right."
The comparison was a cutting one. One she didn't want to believe. She didn't want to think of herself as a manipulative, devious person. It wasn't true! Not at all! She accompanied him the rest of the way to the hotel in complete silence, troubled by the fact that he thought of her that way and not understanding why it bothered her.
As they entered the lobby and approached the desk, Clay knew what he
had to do. He could not spend another night sharing the same bed with Reina. He'd gotten no rest at all the night before in Chagres when he'd returned to their room. He'd lain wide awake by her side all night long, remembering the desire that had overwhelmed them both earlier that day and wondering at its force. It was true that he needed to keep a close watch over her, but he also needed to get some sleep.
Reina, too, had been thinking about the previous night when she'd cried herself into an exhausted sleep. She put a firm, restraining hand on Clay's arm as they neared the desk, stopping him. He looked over at her, his expression curious. This was the first time she'd willingly touched him all day.
"I want separate rooms," she demanded haughtily. "There's no longer any reason to keep up the charade of marriage, since no one knows us here."
Clay's regard turned cool as he listened to her, and then he shrugged as if it was of little importance to him. He turned to the clerk and ordered, "I'd like two connecting rooms, please."
"Yes, sir," he answered respectfully, turning the registration book for him to sign.
It annoyed her that their rooms were adjoining, but she rejoiced in the thought that at least she would have some privacy tonight and a small chance of escape.
Clay inquired about ships departing for California, and the clerk informed him that there was a ship leaving the following afternoon and that the last he'd heard, there were still vacancies. When he offered to get the tickets for them, Clay accepted, giving him the money for the fares and telling him that he would pick them up for them later when they came down for dinner.
"Miss Alvarez, Mr. Cordell... enjoy your stay."
They thanked him and, taking their keys, started upstairs. Clay unlocked Reina's room first and went in. This hotel was a vast improvement over the one in Chagres. The bedroom was spacious, very clean and quite comfortably furnished. Reina was more than pleased with her accommodations for it was located very close to the top of the stairs. All she had to do was figure out a way to sneak out without him catching her. Once she made it downstairs to the lobby, it would be simple to lose herself in the crowded town and in the process lose Clay.
Clay was paying little attention to Reina as he opened the connecting door and went into his own room. It was almost identical to hers, and he was satisfied. He strode to the window and brushed the curtain aside. The view was not the best, just what must have been the roof of the side porch and a patio below. He let the curtain drop back down and went to check on Reina.
"Are you hungry?" he asked.
"No, not at all. I'd really just like to have some privacy and rest for a while."
He regarded her suspiciously, his gaze searching her lovely features for some sign of guile. When he could detect nothing, he agreed to leave her alone. "All right. I'll be next door."
"Fine." She could hardly wait for him to get out. When he'd passed through the connecting door once more, she shut it firmly behind him. She would have locked it, too, but she discovered that he'd taken all the keys with him. To her dismay, a second later she heard the lock on her bedroom door turn from the outside. She ran to it, twisting the doorknob in an effort to make it open, but it was securely locked. In a fit of frustration, she called him every vile name she could think of, muttering under her breath about the legitimacy of his birth. The man was impossible!
Clay heard her try the door and called out to her with a low chuckle, "Enjoy your rest. We'll have a late dinner." He returned to his own room and stretched out on the bed to relax for a while.
Reina heard the satisfaction in his voice, and she stormed to the window, looking for another avenue of escape. To her complete and utter disappointment, it was a straight drop to the ground, a full two stories. Thwarted, she sat down on the side of her bed to think.
For weeks now, she had managed to keep thoughts of Nathan at bay, but trapped as she was, with nothing else to distract her, images of him flooded her mind. She remembered his kiss and touch, and she couldn't stop the quiver of revulsion that wracked her at the memory. She wondered how she would ever be able to bear his children if she couldn't even tolerate being near him.
Reina just knew that the rest of her life would be a living hell if she didn't find a way out of this mess. Again she paced to the window, searching for some way out. She'd been a tomboy in her youth and was not afraid to take a chance if it meant freedom. Even so, there was nothing even remotely close by that she could climb down. She was stuck.
There was absolutely nothing else she could do right now, so Reina lay down fully dressed and pulled the covers over her. She was tired, but she was also keyed up and really didn't expect to fall asleep. She only intended to rest for a while.
It was dark when Clay awoke to the sound of music coming from the patio below. It surprised him to find that he'd slept so soundly, and he was a little groggy when he sat up. After a moment, he left the bed and strode to the window to see what all the noise was about. There seemed to be a celebration of some kind going on, for bright, colorful hanging lamps illuminated the patio, musicians were playing lively, festive tunes and the people seemed lighthearted and carefree as they mingled and danced. It looked like it might be a good party, but he couldn't think of that. He had Reina to worry about.
At the thought of her, he immediately worried that he might have been so deeply asleep that she had managed to slip away without disturbing him. Needing to check and make sure she was still there, he hurriedly lit a lamp and opened the connecting door. Lamp in hand, he moved quietly into her room and was both relieved and pleased to find her sleeping peacefully in her bed.
Clay stared down at her in the dark, studying her, committing her beauty to his memory - her dark hair, flawless complexion, the soft curve of her mouth that just seemed to beg to be kissed. Heat stirred within him, but he fought it down. Still, his gaze would not be torn away.
He remembered the time when he'd thought her to be Sister Mary Regina and how he'd wished he'd found her before she'd taken her vows. That wish had come true for him. He had found her, and she hadn't been a nun. Reluctantly, he admitted to himself that she had been a virgin, not the wanton he'd suspected her of being, and that he'd taken her innocence.
Reminding himself of her actions, Clay tried to tell himself that it didn't matter. He told himself that though she might look like an angel while she was sleeping, when she was awake she was much closer to being the opposite.
He was tempted to wake her, but didn't. He decided to let her rest, instead. Backing from her room, he closed the connecting door, satisfied that locking the hall doors from the outside was sufficient to keep her safely captive.
Clay took a few minutes to get cleaned up, then left his room, making sure to lock his door, too. He wanted to insure that she would be there when he returned. His hunger driving him, he went downstairs to get something to eat.
Reina waited, eyes closed, until she heard the connecting door shut. Wanting to be completely safe, she hesitated longer, listening to every sound, trying to judge just where Clay was. The sound of the music kept her from being certain about his moves, but she was almost positive that the footsteps she heard in the hall were his.
Time was of the essence, so she got up without delay. It was dark, but that was fine with her. She went to the door to his room and pressed her ear against it, hoping to hear if he was still in the other room moving around. When only the vibrant strains of the music came to her, she knew she had to try. The worst that could happen would be that he would still be there, and if he was, she would tell him that she'd just waked up and was ready to eat.
With utmost caution, Reina turned the knob, and she was thrilled when it moved. An inch at a time, she drew the door slowly open. There was a lamp burning low on the nightstand, and to her complete delight, there was no sign of Clay anywhere. He was gone! She was alone!
Unable to restrain herself, she bolted for his hall door. Her moment of excitement was short-lived. It ended abruptly in defeat when she discovered that he'd out
smarted her again. He'd locked his own door from the outside, too!
Reina was so furious she was tempted to start banging on the door and screaming that she'd been kidnapped. Cool liar that Clay was, though, she was certain he would come up with a very believable tale to tell whoever came to her rescue. He'd probably tell whoever tried that she was his crazy cousin or something, she thought: angrily, and that he needed to keep her locked up for her own safekeeping.
Stalking around his room, she felt almost crazy. This was it...her last chance. She had to do something! Though she was short-tempered and about to scream in frustration, the sound of music and laughter below drew her to Clay's window. As she brushed the curtain back and saw the porch roof right outside, a slow, conspiratory smile curved her lips. She was going to make it after all!
Reina rushed back to her own room to get the small purse that held her money, and she stuffed it in the pocket of her dress. Afraid that Clay might return at any second, she ran back and unlocked the window. Bundling her skirts up, she climbed out onto the roof.
Reina stayed down low as she moved carefully toward the most secluded side. She breathed a huge sigh of relief when she saw the drain pipe attached to the corner there. Encouraged because everyone on the patio was too busy enjoying themselves to look up, she daringly hiked her skirts, got a firm grip on the pipe and maneuvered herself over the edge of the roof.
Mickey Barton, a short, wiry, ugly little man, was standing back against the building with his friend Leo Collier, drinking a cheap whiskey and watching all the dancing and celebrating, when he saw her. At first, he couldn't believe his eyes, and he blinked twice just to make sure. Once he was sure he wasn't dreaming, he stood, staring in astonishment at the sight of a pretty young woman, climbing off the porch roof onto the drain pipe.
"Leo! Look!" He grabbed his companion's arm and pointed in the right direction.
"What the...?" Leo turned and didn't say a word as they exchanged shocked looks. They automatically assumed that she was not the most virtuous of women if she was sneaking out of some man's room, and they rushed over to the drain to watch her descent.
