Oberon Boxed Set (Books 1-3) Welcome to Oberon

by P. G. Forte

  He looked surprised at the question for all of a second. And then he smiled – that wicked, slow smile he did so well. “Well, Greco, I’m kinda surprised you have to ask,” he drawled, taking his eyes off the road just long enough for her to see the heat that shimmered in their depths. “I guess I’m gonna have to take you home and show you.”

  “Well, I guess you will,” Lucy said, as she sat back in her seat and closed her eyes. She could feel the blood begin to thrum in her veins. God she needed that – she needed him – so much. “Dan?” she asked after a moment, opening her eyes and turning to look at him.

  “Yeah, babe?”

  “Do you think you could show me... a whole lot of that?”

  This time, his whole face lit up when he smiled at her. “Yeah, babe, I plan to. All night long.”

  * * * *

  “Here,” Nick said, coming into their bedroom with a tray in his hands. “I made you some soup.”

  Scout looked up from the book she’d been reading. “Oh. Thanks, but... I’m not sick you know, Nick. Just pregnant”

  He sat on the edge of the bed and looked at her sternly. “I know. But you’ve had a rough day and you still look a little rocky. So eat the soup. I’ve got some pasta cooking, too.”

  “Nick!” Scout stared at him, appalled, “I’m gonna be the size of an elephant if you keep feeding me like this.”

  “Good,” he said, pushing the bowl into her hands. “I like elephants. They’re some of my favorite animals.”

  Scout sighed, and sipped at the minestrone he’d made her. It was delicious, as usual. She leaned back against the pillows and smiled at him. “I’m so glad we’re home. You don’t mind too much that we cut our weekend short, do you?”

  Nick shook his head. “As long as you and the baby are all right, I don’t care where we are.”

  “I really wanted to make our first Valentine’s Day memorable,” she said, frowning as she thought about it.

  “Oh, it was that, all right.” Nick said, watching as she dipped her spoon back into the soup. He couldn’t believe how close he’d come to losing her today. And their baby. An icy chill ran down his spine. Jesus. She positively attracted maniacs. He wondered how many more of them he’d have to kill to keep her safe?

  He thought again about the surprise he’d seen in the other man’s eyes today. Surprise, and then fear when he realized it wasn’t going to matter that he’d dropped the knife and let her go, just as he’d been told to do.

  Nick felt a small twinge of regret about that. But nothing approaching remorse. And nothing like the way he knew he’d be feeling right now if things had gone the other way.

  “I can’t believe I may have to spend the next six weeks in bed,” Scout said as she pushed the soup aside.

  He moved the tray to the night table, and patted her knee. “Oh, it won’t be so bad, hon. I’m sure I can find some ways to keep you entertained.” He was surprised by the sudden tears that sprang to her eyes.

  “I don’t need to be entertained, Nick. I just need you to be here and, and to love me.”

  Nick removed the napkin from the tray he’d brought her, and gently wiped her eyes. Eyes he loved, and had missed for too long. “Well, then, I guess we both have everything we need. Because you know I do, Jen. I always will.”

  “I know,” Scout said, smiling as she opened her arms to him. She was his own true love, and heaven was in her smile. Her words had the power to heal his wounded soul. “I love you, too.”

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  * * * *

  Chapter Thirty Nine

  * * * *

  It was taking too long. Ryan watched as Siobhan worked on his dog. Slowly, methodically, silently, until he thought he might explode.

  He’d cleaned up all the glass and blood and water in the other room – hoping to give her space and time to work. Hoping also to spare her from dwelling overmuch on what had gone on there. Not that she would ever forget it entirely, of course. Probably every time she walked through the room she’d remember. He wondered how she would stand it?

  “Is she going to be all right?” he asked, unable to contain himself any longer.

  Siobhan looked up, startled. “Yes,” she answered, in a voice that was clipped and constricted. “Yes, of course. She’ll be fine.”

  “Okay. Good,” he said, sighing with relief. Fine. Fine was good wasn’t it? Except... oh, shit. Fine was also what she’d said about her own dog, too. Right before— “Siobhan? When you say fine... what exactly do you mean?”

  “What?” She looked up again, frowning this time, and then she must have gotten his meaning, because her eyes grew wide and for a just moment she failed to veil the deep pain that always seemed to lurk there. She laid her hand on his wrist. “Oh, no, Ryan, really, it’s not as bad as it looks. I mean, I think her leg will probably give her a little bit of trouble for a while, but she should make a full recovery, honestly. She’s okay. I promise.”

  “And what about you?” he couldn’t help asking. “Will you be fine, too?”

  A ghost of her old smile appeared for just an instant. “Oh, well, you know... I’ll live,” she answered, ducking her head and concentrating on the dog once more.

  But that didn’t really answer the question, he thought. And from the look on her face, he wasn’t even sure she’d meant it as a good thing.

  She’d been wounded. Hurt in ways that were far worse than he had ever been, or ever really understood. Only time would tell if she could heal herself. And in the meantime— what could he do for her? How could he help her tonight, when he was all but overcome with his own needs?

  The need to love her, to make love with her, was an ache that had him almost on his knees in front of her. The need to touch her, to taste her, to lose himself within her and then to find himself again – in her arms, in her eyes, in her soul – was all he could think about.

  But what of her needs? From the looks of her, he thought it a lot more likely that all she really needed tonight was shelter and peace. She looked like someone who’d gotten lost in a storm, and he had no idea how to light her way home.

  I love you, she’d told him earlier today, and it still seemed a miracle she should feel that way, but this afternoon had been a lifetime ago.

  Not his life. Nor hers, thank God. But a life, just the same.

  Her husband. No matter how crazy he’d been, she must have loved him once, or thought she did.

  Ryan watched the way the light touched her hair, watched her quick, gentle hands as she worked; healing his dog’s wounds, making things better. More than anything else, he wanted to do that for her, as well. He longed to make things right for her somehow. And tonight, that was probably the one thing he couldn’t hope to accomplish.

  Siobhan could feel Ryan brooding. She felt his eyes on her, tracking her every movement, as she worked, but she couldn’t fathom his thoughts.

  What must he think of her, after the events of today? After the things she’d said, and done, and tried to do?

  It was strange to think how little had really been changed. Her daughters were dead, Tim was dead, and she had been made insane by grief and rage. Same as yesterday, and the day before – and all the ten years before that.

  And one more thing had not been changed, as well. She was still weighed down by the knowledge that the wounds she bore were too great a burden to inflict on Ryan, or on anyone she cared about. Her shredded, twisted, wreck of a heart was no gift to offer any man. Least of all to someone who radiated health and stability. And who’d probably give them to her, if he could. If she asked him to. He’d do it out of pity, if nothing else.

  But oh lord, it wasn’t his pity she wanted.

  “Do you think you can help me get her into one of the pens?” she asked. And then she glanced around the room. It was too cold here. This room had been the scene of too much death and destruction today. “On second thought, can you carry her up to my apartment, Ryan? I think I’ll set her up in there tonight, by the stove. It’ll be war
mer for her.”

  She watched as he hoisted the dog effortlessly into his arms, without a single word. For just an instant, she wished it was she, he cradled there. But she quickly buried the thought, sending it back to the depths where it belonged.

  Ryan helped her settle his dog on the floor in front of her fire. But working that closely with her, close enough that he could smell her fragrance, and feel the warmth of her skin, was playing havoc with his self-control.

  He closed his eyes in an attempt to get a grip on his senses.

  “You must be tired,” she said.

  He nodded. He was tired. Too tired to speak, at any rate.

  “You don’t want anything to eat, I guess. Do you?”

  He shook his head. No, there was only one thing he was hungering for right now, and if he couldn’t have that—

  He opened his eyes, and tried to smile as he said, “I guess I should go home now, huh? And let you get some rest?”

  She looked away, laughing slightly as she said, “Well, yeah, I guess. It’s not like I need you to stay and protect me from anything, anymore.”

  He nodded, and headed for the door, his footsteps sounded loud on the hardwood floor, his heart grew heavier and more reluctant with every step he took. He could feel her trailing along almost noiselessly at his back; ready to lock the door behind him, and maybe to draw the chain as well.

  So that he wouldn’t even be able to batter his way back in without splintering something in the process. His heart, perhaps.

  He pulled open the door and paused there, breathing in the cool, damp air. The rain had stopped, but the night was moonless. Dark, foggy and still. Empty and gray. Just like his life. Like his future. Like his soul.

  He turned to say good night, and found he couldn’t. He couldn’t make himself say the words, he couldn’t make himself leave.

  “I can’t,” he said, startling both of them.

  She looked up, frowning, lost in confusion. “What?”

  “I can’t leave, Siobhan,” he repeated, his eyes awash suddenly, with tears and with longing as he pleaded with her. “Please. Don’t make me go. I need you. I want to stay, Siobhan. I need to be with you tonight.”

  She didn’t answer, she couldn’t, she merely lifted her arms and allowed him to sweep her off her feet.

  He carried her back across the room. Holding her so tightly, she could barely breathe. Not that she would have found it easy to do so, anyway. Her heart was swollen with need, it seemed to fill her entire chest, leaving no space for anything else.

  And then they were in her room. She heard the soft, sibilant sound of the shells and starfish as her curtain swung closed behind them. He laid her down gently on the bed and she felt herself adrift, floating on a sea of desire. Lost. Drowning. With only his arms around her to keep her anchored. With only the love shining in his eyes to keep her sane.

  Their clothes seemed to dissolve at the touch of his hand. And still she couldn’t breathe. She felt him moving over her, against her, and then within her. Felt him touching her, claiming her, joining himself with her. And yet—

  “I love you, Siobhan,” she heard him say – over and over again, as if, having found the words at last, he now could not stop saying them. “Oh, God, I love you. So much, so much.”

  And then, finally, she began to cry. Sobs welled up from somewhere deep inside, someplace where she’d been dead. From the very center of her soul – a place where she had not believed she could ever feel anything again.

  “Oh, no. No, shh,” he murmured, staring at her stricken, wiping the tears from her face. “Honey, please. If it upsets you, I’ll stop. I promise. I don’t want to make you cry. I—”

  He started to lift himself away from her, but she grabbed hold of him.

  “No! Oh, Ryan, no. Don’t go,” she begged. “It’s not that, I swear.”

  “Then what is it, honey? What’s wrong?”

  How to make him understand? How to tell him how it had been. “It’s just that... it’s been so long, you see. I waited so, so long for you – for this. It’s been so dark. And I’ve been so cold. And so... so lonely.”

  It had felt like endless winter in her soul. It had felt like midnight there, forever. It had been raining for years on her heart, the sky above so dark and dismal, and she still didn’t know, even now, if it would ever, ever stop.

  “No.” He shook his head, and kissed her gently. “Oh, no, baby, no. I’m here. You don’t ever have to be lonely now. I promise.”

  She clutched him tighter as he continued to touch her, to gentle her with kisses, on her shoulder, her face, her neck. “And I didn’t think... I didn’t think it would ever happen. That I’d ever get another chance. I thought my heart would just stay broken forever.”

  “Shh,” he whispered, lifting his head at last, and even in the depths of her night she could see that his eyes were as bright, and as full of promise as the sky at daybreak. “Shh, it’s all right, Siobhan. It’s all right. You have mine.”

  “What?” She stared at him, as the darkness lifted. As he smiled, and the love in his eyes struck her soul with light.

  “My heart. It’s yours, Siobhan. It has been for some time now. All yours, for however long you want it.”

  He bent his head to kiss her once again and she reached for him. “Always,” she whispered. She held him close, and felt the clouds depart. “Oh, Ryan, I’ll want it for always.”

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  * * * *

  Epilogue

  * * * *

  It’s been three weeks, Ryan thought sadly. He watched as Siobhan returned from walking his dog on the beach. Three weeks, and she still hasn’t healed. He could see it in her eyes, he could feel it in his heart, and at last he’d reached a decision.

  It was a painful decision, but he knew it to be the right one.

  “Hey, what’s up?” Siobhan asked as they climbed the steps to the porch. She smiled at him and there was sunlight in her gaze, but there were still a few shadows left there, too.

  “I’m going back to work,” he told her, straightening away from the post he’d been leaning against. He kissed her cheek and then ran his hand down her back, just for the sheer pleasure of touching her. He tried hard to hide the disappointment that welled up inside, when he felt her weight shift ever so subtly away from him. “I’ve been to the doctor, and he gave me a clean bill of health, so—”

  “Oh. Ryan, that’s wonderful,” Siobhan said, as she hurriedly bent to remove the leash from the dog’s collar. “But does that mean you-”

  “Won’t be around as much anymore? Yep, I’m afraid so.”

  Only two days earlier, they’d fought about that. She’d complained he was crowding her, said she needed more space. He knew her husband’s obsession with her was weighing on her mind, along with the anger and the hatred she could not quite bring herself to part with. But a cold wind had blown through his soul at the thought of those feelings attaching themselves to him. As they very well could do.

  Because she was right, he was obsessed with her. Probably every bit as much as her husband had been. He doubted it was healthy, and he doubted even more that he could make himself stop. But unlike her husband, he loved her enough to walk away. To let her go, if that’s what she needed.

  Only for a while, of course, and not too far. But enough, at least, to let her catch her breath and regain her footing.

  She’d been thrown off course by the events of the last month. Knocked off her feet—just as badly as he had been. The only difference was that he’d recovered from it, perhaps. While she hadn’t. Not yet.

  She would, though. He had no doubts but that she’d pull herself together. She was a survivor, and she’d been through worse than this. And once she got her feet back under her, he was pretty sure she’d come after him.

  She loved him. He had no doubt of that. And when she came to him, it would mean she knew it too. He just had to be patient for a little while longer.

  Of course, it would help if she foun
d her daughters soon.

  He’d gone over the events of the last ten years with her, again and again. And, although Siobhan still had her doubts about it, Ryan was now almost certain that the girls were still alive. Too many of the tricks Tim had played on her could not have been accomplished if they’d been dead; and if he had not maintained at least some kind of contact with them.

  Ryan had a pretty good hunch that the girls would eventually be found with relatives. But it seemed their father had gone by a slew of different aliases. Figuring out who he really was might take some time.

  They’d get to the bottom of it though, eventually. And then all Siobhan’s ghosts would finally be laid to rest, and nothing would stand in their way. But in the meantime—

  “I was wondering if you could do me a favor?” he asked, as she straightened up again. “Could you keep my dog for me? I won’t have time to care for her, and I really don’t have room for her either, in my apartment. Besides, I think maybe she likes it better here.”

  Maybe? Ryan laughed inwardly at the absurdity of that. Try definitely. And, the good Lord knew, he felt the same way, himself.

  Siobhan frowned, and turned to look back out at the ocean. “I don’t know, Ryan. I’m not at my most nurturing right now. I’m not sure I’m the right person to do that.”

  “Oh, sure you are.” Catching her chin on the edge of his hand, he turned her face back toward him, and kissed her quickly, before she could protest any more. “You’re exactly the right person, Siobhan. You just don’t know it yet.”

  He hurried down the porch steps, stopping just briefly to pat the dog. “Bye girl. Take care of her for me,” he whispered and then he straightened up.

  Siobhan was watching him, an odd, speculative look gleaming in her eyes. It wouldn’t be long before she caught her breath. And then... he knew she wouldn’t let him down. She’d show up at his door again, as she had once before. When she was finally ready to stop running.