by Francis Ray
“Rooster didn’t want to clean up the kitchen.”
Duncan’s Dodge Ram passed at a sedate 30 miles an hour. Billy honked the horn twice. Cynthia waved.
When the taillights were a faint glow, Duncan picked Raven up and headed for the stairs.
“I need to clean up the kitchen,” Raven protested, pushing ineffectively against his chest.
“The kitchen can wait; I can’t.” He dropped a quick kiss on her lips.
“Since you put it that way.” Circling her arms around his neck, she nibbled his earlobe.
Duncan increased his pace up the stairs, elbowed open his bedroom door, then kicked it closed. He didn’t stop until he was by the bed. He placed her on her feet. “I want this night to be as special as you are.”
“Each time you touch me, hold me, is special.”
“I want to show you something.” Stepping behind her, he turned her toward the door. “Look over the door.”
Emotions clogged her throat. Hieroglyphics. The symbol for a man bent over as if in pain or misery, then, joined by a woman, standing tall, proud.
“I couldn’t bring myself to carve him alone again. No matter where you are, you’ll be here.”
Taking his hand, she placed it over her heart. “And you’ll be here.”
“Raven.” Tonight was for her. He wanted to love her with every breath, every touch. Tonight and in the morning would be all they had left.
He found he was a selfish man after all. He wanted to imprint his body, his taste, on her so that she would want no other man, crave no other man, need no other man.
Stepping behind her, he grasped the zipper and slowly drew it down, letting need and anticipation build for both of them. His hand trembled, his groin thickened, on seeing the elegant curve of her back, the tiny scraps of lace for her black bra and panties.
She wore the decadent perfume again. He leaned in closer, sniffed, and then pressed his lips against the curve of her shoulder.
“Duncan.” His name trembled from her lips.
Using both hands, he slid the material off her shoulders. It slithered down, momentarily stopped at her hips, then pooled around her feet. She was perfection. And for the time being, she was his.
One arm slid around her waist, the other across her breasts, bringing her back against him. Her eyes closed, she leaned back against him. His were open and fixed on the mirror across the room.
Would the memory of this moment haunt him or please him as it pleased him now? Only time held the answer.
He was a man used to the harshness of life, the capriciousness of nature, yet here he was, holding a woman who, with her touch, her warmth, the gift of her body, gave him more pleasure than he ever thought possible. It was impossible not to give in return.
His hand moved to cup her breast through the lace of her bra. His other hand slid to cup her woman’s softness. His mouth pressed kisses along the curve of her neck, the slope of her shoulder.
Her hips pressed against him, her nipples hardened. Releasing the bra, he placed her on the bed, coming down on top of her, holding himself aloft with his hands. His tongue swirled around one nipple, then the other, alternately teasing and arousing her.
Her hands and arms reached for him to bring him closer, but he evaded her efforts until she moved restlessly beneath him. Hard and aching, he settled himself against her dampness. Her hips lifted, asking for more.
He intended to give it to her. With one sweep her panties were gone and he was there, his mouth hot and insistent.
Shock gave way to pleasure as she cried out. Quickly sheathing himself, he thrust into her again and again until she clamped her legs around him, meeting thrust for incredible thrust. The ride was fast and furious. She went over first. He quickly followed.
Raven slowly opened her eyes, staring up into those of the man she’d die loving. Over his shoulder, she saw the drawings. If tonight and the morning were all the time they had left together, she was going to make the most of it.
She pushed against his chest until he was on his back and she was on top. “My turn.”
Her kisses started on his mouth, but as they did, she rubbed her breasts against him; her leg rubbed against his manhood. By the time she swirled her tongue in the dip of his navel, he’d reached his breaking point.
He reached for another condom. She took it from his hand. “Allow me.”
“Hurry.”
She held the warm, rigid shaft in her hand, then tore the package and rolled the condom on. The instant she completed the task, he pulled her on top, guiding her. Twin sighs of delight mingled. She splayed her hands on his chest, leaned over to kiss him, moving her hips as she did, creating fissions of pleasure.
The need built to move faster. Her back arched. He clamped his hands on her waist and surged into her waiting heat again and again until both were reaching for completion. His shout of pleasure echoed hers.
She curved her arms around his neck, kissed his mouth, and drifted to sleep.
He didn’t go to sleep. Duncan’s eyes remained on the drawing and accepted what he had not been able to being himself to carve.
Him. Alone. Forever.
Tomorrow night and all those long nights afterward, he would sleep in this bed alone and want a woman he could never have. Her dream and her life were in Santa Fe.
Raven woke up in Duncan’s arms. As usual, she was sprawled atop him with one arm across his chest, her leg thrown across his as if trying to bind him to her. Even in her sleep, she never let herself forget their time was limited.
He felt it, too.
The almost desperate way he held her meant he was awake as well. Holding her, wanting her, but not enough to trust those feelings would last a lifetime no matter what fate threw at them.
He’d fight to leave his mark on the land, but he wouldn’t fight for her.
“Raven.”
Like her, he could feel the change in her body, from being relaxed in sleep to being tense.
“Honey.”
She lifted her head, ready to berate him for not wanting to fight for them and saw the bleakness in his eyes. Emotions swamped her, bringing a quick rush of tears she said she wouldn’t shed. He was doing this for her; he didn’t want her hurt. Somewhere along the way, he’d switched from trying to protect himself to protecting her.
Hoping against hope he didn’t see the sheen of moisture in her eyes, she kissed him, trying to convey the love that she could never confess. He felt bad enough. Her emotions under control, Raven lifted her head, doing her best to give him the smile he needed to see.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning,” he said, his eyes quietly studying hers, his hand sweeping lazily up and down her back.
“How about we hit the shower together?” she said, hoping to distract him.
“You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, the most courageous. No matter what, I’m glad you came, honored you let me love you,” he said softly.
Raven’s heart thumped in her chest; her breath caught on his last two words—“love you.”
Then she realized, as he scooped her up in his arms and headed for the shower, that those two words were all he could give her. He was setting her free.
Duncan checked under Buddy’s hood for the second and last time that morning to ensure himself that the Jeep would make the trip back to Santa Fe without incident. Even as he checked the new battery connections, it ran through his mind that if the Jeep had problems, Raven would stay.
He slammed the hood. She was scheduled to report to work on Monday, two weeks before the students were to report. “Everything looks good.”
“Thank you, Duncan.” She smiled up at him. “I could have made it without the new battery.”
“I don’t want you stranded someplace,” he said. “You stop for gas before it gets to a quarter of a tank. You don’t drive at night.”
“I won’t.” Her hand briefly touched his chest, before she turned to the men standing to one side to say
good-bye. She gave each man a hug until only Ramon, Rooster, and Billy were left. “I’ll never forget you.”
“Don’t make yourself no stranger,” Rooster said, awkwardly patting her. “I’ll take good care of your slow cooker and the boss.”
She blinked a few times. “I know you will. Good-bye.”
Billy stepped forward as Rooster went inside the house and Ramon headed toward the barn. “Without your help, I never would have had a chance with Cynthia.”
“If it’s to be, it would have happened.” She hugged him. “I know you’ll do well in law school.”
“One more week here, then I go home to spend time with my parents.” He grinned. “Cynthia is coming with me for a few days.”
“Enjoy life and each other. Good-bye.”
“Bye, Raven.” Billy ran to catch up with Ramon. They entered the barn together.
She turned to Duncan, remembered the first time she’d seen him, the stoic, unbending stance, the standoffish attitude. They were gone. Misery was in the stiff way he held himself, his beautiful eyes.
“I won’t say good-bye.”
He jerked her to him, holding her tight. She held him just as tightly. “God, I’m going to miss you.”
“I want you to miss me.” Her mouth sought his, tasting, savoring, for what might be the last time. She took his face in her hands. “Miss me enough that you’ll come to Santa Fe and bring me back home to you.”
“Raven—”
Trembling fingers on his lips stopped his words. “Search your heart, Duncan; then trust what you feel. I’ll wait for as long as there are stars in the sky.” Briefly replacing her lips with her hand, she got in the Jeep, started the engine, and drove away.
She didn’t look back. If she had, she would have seen Duncan fall to one knee, his head bowed, the exact way he had carved the man in his bedroom.
Somehow Raven made the drive back to Santa Fe. Duncan’s calls every evening while she was on the road to check on her and make sure she was safe for the night helped. She was safely back and miserable.
Turning into a residential development, Raven slowed down, then eventually stopped. Vehicles—five to be exact—were either in Ruth Grayson’s driveway or parked in front.
Raven’s hands curled around the steering wheel. Today was Sunday. Ruth and her children always got together for brunch or an early dinner on Sunday.
She shouldn’t have come, but she desperately needed to talk to someone. Her mother loved her, but instinctively Raven knew she wouldn’t understand. Her philosophy on life was that she had no philosophy. She didn’t worry over anything, took each day as it came, with no expectations. That way, she said, she was always pleasantly surprised when something good happened. If it wasn’t good, she’d shrug and say that was life.
The honk of a car horn made Raven jump and brought her out of her musing. Waving her hand in apology, she pulled behind a Maserati, Sierra’s “off-duty” car. The other truck and cars would belong to Ruth’s four sons. Of course, their wives were with them. Raven had heard Faith say that none of the Graysons, their cousins the Falcons, or their extended family of the Taggarts, ever went far without each other or slept apart.
Raven envied them. That was the kind of togetherness she had dreamed of. She wanted to go to sleep in the arms of the man she loved, wake up the same way. If she didn’t figure out a way, she was doomed never to fulfill her dream.
Her eyes briefly closed. Loving Duncan had altered her dream. She wanted the stability and permanence she’d always searched for, with him. She might gain tenure, but it wouldn’t mean as much. She wanted to establish roots on the Double D, not in Santa Fe.
Duncan called on her cell phone every day while she was on the road, called her each night. He cared, but he didn’t trust what they felt for each other to last.
“Raven.”
Raven jerked her head up and around. “Hello, Sierra.”
Eyes as sharp as her husband’s studied Raven; then Sierra opened the door of the Jeep. “Come on inside. Mama will be glad to see you.”
Raven shook her head. “This is family time. I forgot.”
“You know Mama will be glad to see you, and you can give her and Blade a firsthand report on the caves.”
It hit Raven that she hadn’t sent Blade a report after their visit, hadn’t spoken with Ruth in over two weeks. Raven could offer no excuse that was acceptable: she’d been caught up with Duncan. Ruth might not mind, but Blade was an exacting man. Excuses didn’t cut it with him.
“I owe Blade an apology for not keeping him informed.” Raven reached for the door. “I’d rather talk to him about it in person.”
Sierra sighed. “You’re going to disappoint Mama. She’s been excited all weekend that you’re returning. She’s proud of you. I’m almost jealous.”
Raven looked at the self-assured, successful woman and couldn’t imagine her jealous of anyone. She had a career she excelled in, a close-knit family, and a man who would walk through fire for her.
“Then there’s Faith, who’ll want to hear all about Duncan,” Sierra continued. “His mother will be just as anxious.”
That got Raven’s attention. “Duncan’s mother is here?”
“Arrived unexpectedly yesterday afternoon.” Sierra stared at Raven. “Did she know you were going to the Double D to authenticate the caves?”
“I don’t know,” Raven said, a bit distracted by the knowledge his mother was inside. “Duncan mentioned the caves to his mother; she was the one who told Ruth.”
“Hmmm.”
Raven frowned up at Sierra. “What?”
“Nothing.” Sierra released the door. “If you don’t want to come inside and say hello to the people who care about you, helped you in your career, and asked nothing in return, it’s your decision.”
“You’ve twisted what I said,” Raven said, hurt that Sierra thought she was so shallow.
Sierra folded her arms. “Then perhaps you’ll tell me again why you won’t go inside.”
Because I’m close to tearing up again. She glanced away. When she looked back around, Sierra was headed up the walk. Strange, Raven hadn’t thought Sierra was the kind of woman to give up without an answer. She was known to be as tenacious as her mother and her oldest brother, Luke.
The recessed front door in the courtyard opened. Blade, devilishly handsome and casually dressed in light-colored slacks and a beige shirt, stepped out into the enclosed courtyard filled with flowering plants in colorful pots. He glanced at Raven, then back at Sierra.
Raven switched off the engine, sure he’d want to speak with her about her negligence in reporting after he was so generous to fund her research and then go to the extra expense of putting in the surveillance equipment.
Again, she was surprised. Without another glance in her direction, they went back inside the house. The door closed after them.
There was nothing to keep her. She could leave, but inside were people she cared about and respected, who would think less of her if she did.
Grabbing her satchel purse, she got out of the Jeep and went to the door. It opened before she rang the doorbell.
Ruth Grayson, regal and beautiful, in a soft yellow blouse and slim skirt that one of her doting children had probably purchased for her since she didn’t like to shop, enveloped Raven in a hug. “Raven, I’m so glad you stopped by. I was coming to hurry you along, but Sierra said you’d be in shortly.”
Raven jerked her gaze to Sierra, who was standing in front of Blade, his arm around her waist. It seemed Sierra could be as devious as her billionaire husband.
“Raven, it’s so good to see you again,” Faith said, coming forward to catch both of Raven’s hands in hers. “You certainly made an impression on my big brother. Not an easy task, I can tell you.”
“Welcome back, Raven,” Duncan’s mother, Mrs. Stella McBride, said. “Duncan said there isn’t one thing you can’t do.”
She knew one. Get him to promise me forever. She swallowed. Swallowed a
gain.
Faith, as much of a nurturer as her love-smitten husband, Brandon, glanced toward her mother. “You won’t believe this. Mother and I just got off the phone with him. He couldn’t get you on your cell and wanted me to try. I was just about to call the number he gave me when Sierra said you were outside. He’ll be so relieved. I’ve never heard him sound so worried.”
Withdrawing her hands, Raven swallowed again but knew this time she wouldn’t be able to keep the tears at bay. “I have to go,” she managed, turning blindly toward the door.
“What’s the matter?” Faith asked, her pretty, round face creased with a frown.
“Raven, why don’t we go out back for a bit?” Not giving Raven a chance to object, Ruth curved her arm around Raven and went through the patio doors.
Luke Grayson caught Sierra’s hand. “They don’t need your help.”
“I think they do,” Sierra said. She looked at Catherine. “Sometimes a man needs a reality check or a swift kick.”
“Or a woman, like I did,” Catherine said. “Let her go, Luke.”
“You know she’ll ferret out the information anyway,” Pierce, the fourth son and financial planner, said.
“Don’t mind him, Sierra,” Sabra said, her perfect brows arched at her husband, who had just spoken. “Pierce needed both, as I recall.”
Pierce looked abashed. Brandon laughed.
“Brandon,” Sierra said. “You needed my help, just as Pierce and Morgan did.”
Brandon straightened. His gaze went outside where Raven sat between his mother and his mother-in-law, Mrs. McBride. His wife had pulled up a nearby chair. “You think there’s something going on between Raven and Duncan?”
“I know it,” Sierra said. “And as usual, men have to make things complicated.”
Blade laughed easily. “I, for one, am glad you were there to help me get it right.”
“Don’t encourage her,” Morgan Grayson, the second son and a lawyer, said.
“If Raven and Duncan need help to realize they love each other, I say if Sierra can help she should,” Phoenix, Morgan’s wife, said quietly. “Who among us isn’t happier than we were before we found the one person we’d love through eternity?”
