Paranormal Nights

by CJ Ellisson

  “In what way?”

  She blushed. “You know.”

  He laughed his deep throaty laugh. “I don’t know. Care to elaborate?”

  His throaty laugh and teasing made her all happy inside. “Um, maybe later.”

  “I’ll take you up on that. I’d better let you go or else I’m going to lose my resolve to honor your resolve. You’re making me horny as hell.”

  Chérie laughed. “Save it. I think we’ll have plenty of time for exploration.”

  “That’s a certainty if I have my way.”

  They lingered in silence a little longer. Chérie felt happier than she’d felt in a long time. She fingered the strap of her bag, wanting to caress Cam’s skin instead. He murmured sexy goodnights in her ear. She did the same. She slid into her car and headed for home, content with her life for the first time ever - even though she no longer had a job.

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Saturday morning, completely stoked, Cam grabbed his gear from the floor, zipped out the apartment, stuck the new key in the new door lock, cranked it until he heard the deadbolt, and headed for the Land Rover. In no time at all, he arrived at Chérie’s.

  “Nice digs,” he said to her as she emerged from the house, a happy bounce to her step. Her stately old home radiated warm, appealing character. Surrounded by green spaciousness, he could see why she loved living up here.

  “Thank you. Would you like to come in for a moment?”

  “We should go. Can I take a rain check on that?” Cam smiled warmly at her. His eyes swept the length of her luscious body.

  “Sure.” She glanced at her apparel. “I didn’t know where we’d go for your surprise so I dressed casual.”

  He looked at her, nodded and smiled. “You look great. Good enough to eat.” He winked.

  She smiled and licked her lips. Glanced at his mouth. Glanced into his eyes. Back to the lips.

  Signal met and received, Ms. Manhattan. If there was one thing he knew well, it was body cues. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed, letting his hands roam up her sexy back before pulling away slightly. Again her eyes flicked to his lips and back. I hear you, I hear you, he thought with a smile. He tilted his head and brushed his lips against hers. “Mmm.”

  “Mmm,” she echoed.

  His tongue reached out to taste hers. They nibbled each other hesitantly as if getting used to the other’s lips. She gently nipped at his lower lip. He teased with his tongue, inviting hers into adventurous exploration, sucking, pressing, entwining, committing to the kiss like he stepped off the trail into the primeval forest. He reluctantly withdrew, allowing his lips to trail along her delicate jaw. He opened his mouth slightly and ran his teeth along her alluring neck.

  “Ah, jeez, that’s so hot.” She dug her blunt fingernails into his shoulders. Even that turned him on.

  When he leaned away from her, she delighted him with her beautiful smile.

  “Is this the surprise?”

  “No,” he said, grinning widely, insta-hard as a rock. He hoped it wasn’t obvious but come on…he didn’t lack an inch in length or girth in the love tool department. It was kind of hard to hide. “You, uh…you do things to me, Ms. Manhattan,” he said, giving her his most sincere gaze. He wanted her to know he wasn’t only interested in sex…but, he sure as hell wanted sex with her. He grew hungrier by the second.

  Her gaze slid to his hips and her eyes widened slightly. “Here, let me help.” She placed a warm hand along the bulge in his britches and stroked.

  He hissed. His fingers grasped her upper arms. “You’re not exactly helping, Ms. Manhattan. We’d best get going or else….”

  “Or what?” she asked, a seductive smile on her pretty face.

  Oh, I’m liking this, Cam thought. I’m liking this a whole lot. “Or you’ll have to give me a tour of your house. Maybe the bedroom.”

  “Maybe after your surprise, I might do that.”

  “Right,” he said, giving his pants a yank. “The surprise. Have everything you need?”

  “One sec.” She dashed into the house and came back with a cloth bag, filled to the brim. “Layers,” she said, holding up the bag. “And water.”

  “Good call,” he said, taking the bag from her. He strode to the truck, placed it in the back, and stepped to the side door. “M’lady,” he said, opening the door for her.

  “Kind sir,” she said with a small curtsey. She climbed in and he gently shut the door behind her.

  “How many acres do you have?” he asked her as they sped away.

  “Oh, about five. There’s state land to the north. Trust land to the south. Neither can be developed. It’s unheard of to have this much space around this part of Seattle but I got lucky.” She frowned slightly. “Except there’s no replacing my uncle.”

  “Were you close?”

  “Closer than me and my mom and dad, that’s for sure.” She stared out the window. “Yeah, we were close. He had a lot of integrity. You kind of remind me of him. He loved to explore the woods and the waterways. He loved adventure.”

  “Sounds like I’d like him.”

  “Yeah. You would.” She turned to look at him.

  He took his eyes off the road for a minute, glanced at her and instantly flushed with pleasure at her warm gaze.

  “So,” she began, kind of hesitant. “Last night I forgot to ask you…did you know I stopped by? Did you get the flower I left?”

  “Yep, I did. Thank you. It meant a lot to me. I even floated it in a jar of water.”

  “A jar?” she said, with a giggle.

  “Hey, I’m a guy. What can I say? I cleaned out a jar of strawberry jam, just for the occasion. That’s my favorite. That should tell you something.”

  “It tells me you like the same jam as I do. But thank you. I’m glad you liked it.” She paused and stared out the side window. “Anyway, when I stood at your door, it sounded like you had on some kind of horror show. Did you leave the TV on?”

  “Uhhhh.” Think, genius, think. He thrummed the steering wheel. “If I’d have known you were there I would have….”

  “You were inside, huh?”

  “Busted. Me and Mano - he’s one of my closest friends - he performed some sort of purification ritual to get out the…er, the…. Ah, hell. I knew this would happen.” He blew out his breath.

  “You knew what would happen?”

  “When Mano suggested we do some kind of ritual I didn’t want to do. Besides the fact I believe in the here and now, I had a feeling you’d stop by. I thought you’d hear Mano in there doing his thing and think you’d met some sort of nut case. Or, I thought you’d hear something and, uh, think I stood you up for….”

  “You mean I’d think you were in there with another girl?”

  Cam’s face grew hot. “Yeah, something like that.”

  “Is that a possibility? Do I need to wonder?”

  “No! I told you, I’m interested in you. No others.”

  “Good answer.” She smiled. “What were you doing?”

  “Don’t laugh, but Mano said he got rid of a demon.”

  Chérie shivered and rubbed her shoulders.

  “Yeah, he said Britt is covered with them and she lodged one inside me or some shit like that.”

  “That sounds creepy.”

  “It sounds whacked, is what it sounds. But the room sure seemed brighter than when I walked in. Actually, it seemed a lot brighter.”

  Chérie nodded. “I’ve heard those things can work.”

  “You have?” Incredulous, Cam’s eyebrows flew up.

  “Yeah. Sure.” She shrugged. “There’s more to life than meets the eyes.”

  “Okay.” He hadn’t expected such a response.

  “So what were the horror show sounds?”

  Cam shrugged. “Haven’t a clue. Are you sure that’s what you heard?”

  “Yeah, I’m certain. That’s why I thought you left the TV on.” She shivered again. “I wonder if I heard the demon. Wouldn’t that be horrid
? I have been hearing voices.”

  Cam’s face grew concerned. A strong, strange protective surge pushed through him. “Don’t say that. Mano actually thinks you scared the demon away.”

  “Ha!” she blurted. “That’s me, aerobics instructor and demon buster. I don’t think so.”

  “Mano’s been training with his elders since childhood. He considers himself some sort of spirit tracker in training. He’s a good guy, really. He’s been my closest friend since childhood. Him and his brother Kai.”

  “I hope to meet them someday.”

  Again he flicked his gaze at her and again her delightful smile greeted him. “So you’re not ready to commit me?”

  “I don’t have my doctoral degree in psychiatry yet.”

  “Thank goodness for that,” he said with a chuckle. “Otherwise?”

  “You’d be busted.” She reached for his hand. “So what kind of ritual did you do?” She brought his hand to her mouth and kissed the back of it.

  She lightly gripped the outside of his hand, not touching the place where Mano made his mark with the dagger. Her touch both soothed and stimulated. “Oh, he called it a blood ritual.” Having said that, he cringed. Glanced at her out of the corner of his eye for signs of reaction. Didn’t find any, at least not that he could tell.

  “Sounds dangerous.”

  “It wasn’t. Okay, it was. Well, I mean, here I am. I mean, here we are. And my apartment is all clean. Fresh as a daisy.” His finger disappeared into her warm, wet mouth.

  “Mm hmm,” she murmured. She sucked on his finger, slowly drawing it in and out of her mouth. She withdrew it with a lip-smacking pop. “And then what happened?”

  “What happened when? I’m having trouble concentrating.”

  “Don’t be silly,” she said, gently nipping his fingertip with her teeth, eyes closed. Her fingers kneaded and massaged his fingers.

  “I…I can’t say I’ve ever had such a compelling hand massage.”

  “Have you ever had a hand massage?”

  “Now I have.”

  When she discovered the barely healed slice in his hand, she gasped. She extended the hand and examined the clean cut. “That looks wicked. Did you cut yourself cleaning up?”

  “Uh yeah. You could say that.” He winced again. Again checked for signs of reaction. Nope, she seems to be cool.

  “Are you two blood brothers now or something like that?”

  “That’s what he joked. But that wasn’t the purpose.”

  “But the ritual served that purpose?” She frowned.

  “Uh, yeah,” he said cautiously. “Maybe. Mano has all kinds of crazy ideas.”

  “Does it hurt?”

  “No.” Like all the time.

  She narrowed her eyes at him. “Let me help you forget the non-pain. So tell me what happened next.” She sucked his entire index finger into her mouth, stroking it with her tongue.

  “Uh…” Cam tried hard to focus on the road ahead. Between her mouth and his cock straining inside his Levis, he had trouble keeping it together. “To tell the truth, I passed out. I got sick as a dog and boom! Out cold.”

  “I’m sorry.” She took his middle finger into her mouth and stroked it delicately with her tongue.

  He almost closed his eyes. His cock throbbed. Focus, dipshit, focus on the road ahead.

  She drew in his index finger, along with the middle one and gave it a pull with her mouth.

  “Dang it. What are you doing to me, woman?”

  “Don’t you like it?” She reached for a paper napkin jammed in the console and wiped off his fingers.

  “I like it a little too much. It gives me wicked, carnal ideas.” He pulled up to a stoplight and regarded her. “You weren’t like this last time I saw you. Don’t get me wrong - I like it. I’m a little surprised, though.”

  “Yeah,” Chérie said, turning away. “I…It’s sort of a habit. I think that’s all the guy wants and I sort of check out.”

  “I don’t want you checked out. I want the real you.” The light turned green and he stepped on the gas.

  “I don’t know who the real me is.” She almost looked sad.

  Cam veered into a turn-out along the road and slammed on the brakes. “Hey.”

  “What?”

  “I mean it. I want the real you. I don’t want you to guess what I want or give me what you think I want. I want you to do things, say things, and feel things because they’re what you want. Clear?”

  She studied him. Bit her lip. Sighed. “Clear. I don’t know how to behave around you. I’ve been a robot with the guys I’ve dated.”

  He tapped her nose with his fingertip. “Human. I want to explore a real relationship with a real human.”

  “Good. That’s what I want, too. Bear with me if I stumble around a little.”

  “I think we’ll both have to feel our way along.” He laughed. “And not only that way.”

  “But that way, too, right?”

  “Oh, definitely, Ms. Manhattan. I can’t think of anything I’d like more than to be inside you. But only if it’s what you want,” he quickly amended.

  “Good. I want that, too.”

  He gave her the sweetest smile. “Goddamn it woman, what are you doing to me?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You make me feel things. New things.”

  “Good things?”

  “Most def.” He flipped the turn signal on and headed for the eastbound highway.

  “I feel things with you, too. That’s why I want to take this slow. I don’t want to do this the way I’m used to with a guy. This one…you…you feel special to me. I feel as if I know you. And not in a biological family kind of way,” she said defiantly.

  “I’m sorry I ever said that. I know what you mean. I feel it, too.”

  “You do?”

  “Yep,” Cam said.

  “Good because I’d hate to think this was all a fantasy. It’s like I’m starting to awaken to something.”

  Yes! You can do it!

  The voice inside her head actually cheered. She laughed.

  “What?”

  “My angel is cheering for me.”

  “Your inner wisdom self?”

  “Whatever it is. I swear I heard a cheer.”

  “This must be significant for you. Hearing that makes me feel real good, Chérie. I’d like to make a positive difference in your life. You seem to be doing the same with me as well.”

  They conversed easily as they zipped along. The city gave way to outer suburbia. Suburbia gave way to mountains and trees. Cam got off the highway and took a few twists and turns. He cut a sharp left onto a long dirt driveway splitting the trees like a jagged gash. They barreled along the road until he came to a stop in front of a cabin.

  A tall, good looking man stepped from the house. “Hey, Cam!”

  “Hey, Josiah. This is the young woman I told you about. This is Chérie. Chérie, Josiah.”

  “Pleased to meet you, Josiah.” She extended her hand.

  “Likewise, Chérie. I hear you’re going to head out on the river with my long time buddy.”

  “Am I?” Chérie beamed.

  “That’s what I heard. Come on around back. That’s where he stores his kayaks.”

  The trio wandered around to a shed behind the house. Chérie practically skipped, she seemed so happy. She grabbed Cam’s non-injured hand and gave it a squeeze.

  “I take it you like the surprise?” Cam asked.

  “Like it? I love it! I love water! Besides getting away from my dysfunctional family, one of the best things I ever did was move to the Pacific Northwest. Water, water, everywhere.”

  “Have you ever kayaked before?”

  “Not really. I’ve done some canoeing and I tried one at a kayak demo day but never really took one out on the water. Oh, Cam, this is the best surprise anyone’s ever given me!”

  Cam chuckled. “So I did the right thing, huh?”

  “The surprise? Yes!”

&nbs
p; “There’s an easy six mile paddle up ahead. Further ahead it gets hairy.”

  “Don’t mind me,” Josiah said, amicably. He unlocked the shed and hefted a sleek blue kayak off of its stand.

  “Do you need minding?” Cam asked.

  “Nope. I felt kind of left out of the conversation,” he said, with a chuckle.

  “Liar. Here, let me get that,” Cam said. “This one’s mine,” he said to Chérie.

  “Oh. It looks pretty sleek.”

  “Yeah, I use it for freestyle.”

  “You do tricks and stuff?”

  Cam beamed at her. “Yep, I’ll show you a few.”

  “Great! I’d love that. So which will be my boat?”

  “I’ve got a little play boat in the shed.”

  “For your other girlfriends?”

  “Nah. Just you.” He winked at her before disappearing into the shed. When he emerged he carried a red kayak. “See? I had it made to match your hair.”

  “Why, thank you,” she said.

  “I’ll leave you to it,” Josiah said. “Lock up before you go.”

  “Will do,” Cam said, shaking the man’s hand. He winced slightly before noticing Chérie staring at him.

  When Josiah left, she said, “It hurts, doesn’t it?”

  “A little, yes.”

  “Let me see it.”

  He gave her his hand.

  She regarded it thoughtfully, delicately fingering the dark red slash. “I’m imagining your hand all healed,” she said. Her eyes met his.

  “Thank you,” he said, looking deeply into her breathtaking eyes. Something about those eyes…they had a quality like staring into infinite space, reminding him of images taken from the Hubble telescope.

  She closed them for a moment, moving her fingertip back and forth along his skin, as light as a feather. “There,” she finally said, nodding her head.

  “So, this is a skill of yours?” The wound actually did feel better.

  “Oh, gosh, no. It’s a game I play. When my cats get injured - I have two cats. They’re always getting into trouble - I use touch to soothe them. I don’t have a ton of money so avoid the vets when I can.”

  “Does it help?”

  “It seems to. They rebound in a jiffy.”

  Cam regarded his hand. The cut appeared less red. Some of the inflammation seemed to be gone. He flexed his fingers and opened and closed his hand. “Well, look at that. I can bend it with no pain,” he said with a smile. Inwardly, he added, Holy fuck. What the hell did she do? Same as with his friend, Mano, this kind of stuff freaked him the hell out. “I’ll get the rest of the gear out of the shed. We’re going to be heading on that trail, right there.” He indicated the way. “I’m going to show you my playground,” he said with a wink.