Medium Rare: (Intermix)

by Meg Benjamin

  Deirdre shook her head slowly. “Evan, you disappoint me. I thought you were made of sterner stuff.”

  He dropped his hand. “I don’t want to bother her,” he lied. “She probably needs her rest.”

  “Oh guts up, Evan.” Deirdre grinned. “Rose told me some of what happened in that house. Not much, but some. At least the two of us are talking about the woo-woo stuff now instead of pretending it doesn’t exist like I did before.”

  Evan blinked at her. Deirdre rested her hand on his arm. “You’re a hero, Evan. You saved my life, and Rose’s, too. Now you need to do what heroes do.”

  “And that would be?”

  Deirdre’s smile broadened. “Oh come on, Evan! You can’t be that dim. Go get the heroine, of course.”

  She leaned across the seat and kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you for saving me. Now get in there and do your stuff.” She reached over and opened the door, stepping out gracefully.

  He blew out a long breath. Time to do what heroes do. Assuming, of course, that the heroine felt like cooperating.

  ***

  Rose gazed around her empty house. No Helen, no Lenore. As long as her mother had been there, she’d been able to forget how really empty the house felt. But as soon as she’d left, the house had seemed hollow.

  She wondered if she’d failed to do something she was supposed to do as part of the whole demon-stopping process. Because Skag was still gone, too.

  She wasn’t sure how she knew exactly, but she couldn’t feel his presence anymore, as if some humming white noise had ceased to function in the background. She’d never really noticed before how big Grandma Caroline’s house was. And how vacant.

  Rose grimaced. Once upon a time, empty had been a nice idea. After all, she’d moved into the house in the first place to be on her own.

  Maybe she’d buy a dog. Large and black with lots of teeth to remind her of Helen.

  She sighed again. No, she wouldn’t. There was only one Helen, and she’d gone back to wherever it was she’d come from in the first place. After saving Evan’s life.

  From the depths of the house she heard a faint buzzing. She really should get that doorbell fixed. Of course now that she’d lost Skag, thus putting Locators, Ltd. out of business, she wasn’t sure she could afford to have anybody fix anything.

  She walked to the front door and peeked through the glass. Evan stood on her front porch. The corners of her mouth edged up. Evan struck her a first-rate cure for loneliness.

  When she opened the door, he had the grace to look mildly embarrassed. “Hi. I meant to get here before this, honest. I just . . . so how’s your mom?”

  “She’s fine. She left the hospital today—even though they wanted her to stay.”

  “Can I come in?”

  “Sure.” She stepped back. A puff of warm air slid by her face as he walked by—almost like wings. “Lenore?” she whispered, but nothing materialized.

  He stood in the middle of the living room, glancing around. “Something’s different.”

  She shrugged. “I took the shutters down. I figured the birds weren’t coming back.” Or maybe she was hoping they would come back if the shutters were gone. One bird, anyway.

  He shook his head. “No. It’s something else.” He gazed around the room, his frown deepening. “It’s empty.”

  A small pain started to throb somewhere around her right temple. Of course Evan would feel it, too. After a moment, she nodded. “I came home and suddenly everything was normal. And not in a good way.”

  He frowned. “What about Skag?”

  “He’s not here. I haven’t seen him since I came back. And I don’t feel him anymore. I’m not sure why.”

  “Do you think he’ll come back?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe not.” She rubbed her temples again. Ridiculous! She couldn’t be missing Skag, for pity’s sake. He was a first-class pain in the ass.

  Evan watched her for a moment, forehead furrowing. “So what does that mean for you? Do you go back to being a librarian again?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know exactly. I’ll have to find a job somewhere.”

  Deep in the house she heard a vague clicking sound. Like claws on wood.

  “Did you hear that?” she whispered.

  His brow furrowed again. “Hear what?”

  She shook her head. “Nothing, I guess.”

  “Is this where I’m supposed to say I love you whether you have magical powers or not?”

  Rose whirled to stare at him. His expression didn’t look teasing at all. In fact, he looked absolutely serious.

  “Because I do,” he said softly. “Love you, that is.”

  All the breath left her body in a single whoosh. At the same time, her heart rate accelerated alarmingly. She wondered if love was supposed to feel like a coronary. “You do?”

  He nodded, frowning ferociously, as if he were in pain. Apparently, love hurt a lot.

  She sat down abruptly on Grandma Caroline’s overstuffed couch, feeling the plush against the back of her knees. “Well, okay then. What happens now?”

  The couch dipped slightly as he slid in beside her. “I’m not sure. I’ve never done this before. Could you give me a hint?”

  “Well, kissing would be good.” She turned toward him.

  “Glad to, Rosie,” he murmured.

  Warm hands grasped her waist, pulling her closer, then warm lips captured hers.

  Oh, this was very, very nice. Not exactly a solution to her problems, but nice all the same.

  He tasted of coffee and something sweet. Maybe essence of Evan. She opened her mouth, her tongue sliding along his, her hands reaching up to touch the planes of his chest.

  Then his hands cupped her breasts and she forgot how to breathe for a moment.

  He rested his forehead against hers. “I want to make love to you, Rosie.”

  “Here?” Her lips curved up again. “Now?”

  He nodded. “Right here. Right now.”

  His body pressed hers, and she let him ease her down flat against the couch cushions. At least Grandma’s furniture was roomy, even if it hadn’t exactly been designed for this purpose. She slipped her hands beneath the edge of his shirt, feeling the warmth of his skin against her palms as she touched him.

  Evan opened the zipper of her jeans and then began to pull them down her legs, a man with a plan. She helped, kicking them somewhere toward the middle of the room. His fingers fumbled with the buttons on her shirt, and she helped again.

  He ran his tongue along the side of her throat, in a thin line that made her pulse hammer. She wondered if he could feel the beats.

  The weight of his erection pressed against her, his jeans rasping against her bare thighs as he pulled down the zipper. She helped him push them off, then his shirt. His lips pressed against her collarbone, her breast, her heart. Surely, he could feel it pounding.

  “Ah, Rosie,” he whispered. “My Rose.”

  Rose closed her eyes, trying to will her pulse rate to slow down. “I’d sort of like to slow down, but I’m not doing real well with the waiting part.”

  She heard his chuckle, and then he reached for his jeans on the floor, pulling out a condom. “We can take it at whatever speed you want, ma’am. I’m totally at your command here.”

  “Great,” she muttered.

  She stared up at him, then took the condom from his hand, unrolling it slowly over his shaft, then running her hand up his length, watching his amber eyes darken.

  “Um, Rosie,” he gasped. “That may not be the best idea.”

  “My wish, your command, remember?” She ran her hands up his body, the line of his hips, the ridges of his abdomen. All Evan. All hers.

  He dropped his hands to her thighs, running his fingers across her sex, then spreading her further before he slid slowly into her bod
y.

  Her brain promptly ceased to function altogether.

  The pressure of pleasure built as he drove deep inside her, slowly, slowly, one heavy stroke after another. And then he stopped, holding himself hard within her, staring down, his burning amber gaze holding hers. “This is it, Rosie,” he rasped. “You and me. No backing out. No pretending. No lies. The two of us. We’re a team. Got it?”

  “Got it.” She brought her heels to his buttocks and pushed. “Now move, damn it!”

  Evan laughed, throwing his head back so that she could see the line of his throat. Then he looked down at her again. “Love you, Rose,” he murmured, thrusting deep inside once again as her body arched in response.

  She wanted to answer him, to tell him yes, she loved him, too. But all of a sudden the pressure inside her rose to shove everything else aside—she couldn’t get the words out. And then the first wave ripped through her, driving her up to meet another and another after that. Even then she tried to form her mouth into something that resembled a word, but all she could do was gasp, and then whimper.

  She hoped he knew what that meant. Right then, it was the best she could do.

  Not that Evan himself seemed too articulate just then. “Rose,” he groaned, “ah, Rosie.”

  He surged deep again and she rose to meet him. Her female Riordan ancestors might be whirling in their respective tombs, but Rose didn’t care. A man had finally invaded the Riordan house. Her man had finally invaded the Riordan house. And all was right with the world.

  She dug her nails into his shoulders, riding him to the crest again, up and up into an explosion of pleasure. “Evan,” she cried. “Great God almighty!”

  Evan groaned something that wasn’t exactly a word, then slumped down finally to cradle her against his chest as he closed his eyes.

  “God, Rosie,” he murmured. “I missed you.”

  She snuggled closer. “It’s only been a couple of days.”

  “A couple of days is too long, believe me.”

  Her lips curved again as she gazed up at him. “Show me.”

  They spent a very enjoyable couple of hours on the living room couch. Rose wasn’t sure exactly how long, having lost most of what passed for rational thought somewhere around her fourth orgasm. The warmth of his body pressed against hers as the warm cage of his biceps clamped around her. Safe, safe, safe. The words danced through her mind.

  Claws clicked across the kitchen floor.

  She started, feeling Evan’s arms tighten.

  “What the hell was that?” he muttered.

  She craned her neck to see around the edge of the couch. Something whimpered on the far side of the room where the shadows stretched in the corner.

  “Helen?”

  More whimpers, but still nothing visible. The shadows seemed to tremble and then grow larger.

  “Oh, terrific.” She sighed, turning back to him. “Now we get the ghosts of your spirit animals to keep us company.”

  ***

  Evan blinked at her. “My spirit animals? Hey, you’re the one they came to first.”

  “But you’re the one they followed at Bradford’s.” She pushed herself up on one elbow to look at him. “Somehow you must have called them back, and they came. They’re yours.”

  Evan pursed his lips, regarding her through narrowed eyes, then blew out a breath. “Damn. I hate it when that happens.”

  “What happens?”

  “When you’re both woo-woo and right.” He turned toward the darkened corner. “Where is she? I can’t see her.”

  “She’s not here yet. But I think she wants to come back. Maybe you can call her.”

  Evan raised an eyebrow, but what the hell? Weirder things had happened, some within the last couple of days. “Okay, Helen, if you’re there, come on out. It’s okay. You can come back to us.”

  He peered into the corner. The darkness seemed to coalesce slowly, swirling into a dark lump as he watched. Two glowing orange globes appeared in the midst of it.

  “Come on, Helen. Pull yourself together. You know you want to.”

  The black lump resolved itself into a more defined shape, long legs, feet the size of dinner plates, two pointed ears emerging from a flat head, then a blunt muzzle, opening to show jagged ranges of teeth and a lolling pink tongue.

  Helen blinked at them for a moment before joyfully galumphing across the room to run her tongue across his face.

  Her breath was still unspeakable. Evan suspected it now included dead wolf. He reached out to scratch her ears. “Welcome back, dog.”

  Rose reached across to throw her arms around Helen’s neck. “Oh, I missed you, you silly thing. Don’t ever wander off again.” Helen regarded her soulfully, but didn’t lick her face.

  Lucky Rose.

  Rose tucked herself back into the hollow of his arm again. “If Helen came back, maybe Lenore can come back, too. Try it, Evan. Please.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “How exactly do I do that?”

  “Try calling her.”

  “Calling her.” He sighed. “Rosie . . .”

  “Please, Evan.”

  He cleared his throat. “Come here, Lenore,” he muttered.

  Rose rubbed her hand along his arm. “Come on, Evan. Indulge me. Sound like you mean it.”

  He took a deep breath. If he looked like an idiot, at least it was for a small audience. “Lenore,” he intoned, “come here. Now.”

  From the hall he heard a rustling. The air in the room seemed to whirl around them for a moment.

  “Try it again.”

  “Come on, Lenore,” he called, “join us.”

  The air was suddenly in motion, as if a wind had blown through the window. Evan felt a breeze pushing his hair back. And then a black cloud descended from the ceiling, resolving itself into wings, talons, a long beak and two bright black eyes. Lenore settled gracefully onto the coffee table, considering them both.

  “Moron,” she said.

  He grinned. “I’m glad to see you, too, Lenore. Well, well, we all made it out. Think of that. Go somewhere and play, kids.”

  Helen and Lenore ignored him, settling easily onto the floor near the fireplace.

  He turned back to Rose. “Now can we get back to what we were doing earlier?” He feathered a line of kisses along the soft skin at the side of her throat.

  She leaned against him, all warm, soft female, and his loins turned to granite again. Apparently, she was the ultimate aphrodisiac. “Ah, Rosie.” His hands moved to cup her breasts.

  “Quite touching,” a voice said from the general vicinity of the fireplace. “I wouldn’t intrude, you understand, if it weren’t a matter of some urgency.”

  Chapter 30

  Rose scrambled upright, fumbling for the afghan that was spread across the back of the couch. Evan sat up, too, moving in front of her quickly as he pulled on his pants. As a shield, he wasn’t much good, given that he wasn’t clothed himself. But at least it gave her time to slip her shirt on and button most of the buttons.

  A cloaked figure floated in front of the fireplace, its hands resting on a tall staff held in front of its body. The staff looked almost like the one Evan had carried through Bradford’s house, except that it seemed to glow.

  Evan looked around for Helen and Lenore. The dog was chewing desultorily on a chair cushion. Lenore sat on an end table preening her feathers. So much for spirit guardians. “Who are you and what do you want?”

  “Oh, for the love of heaven, Delwin, use your brain! Assuming you can get enough blood there from the rest of your body.” The figure pushed the cloak back to reveal white hair and a short beard. And a hauntingly familiar face.

  He blinked. “Obi-Wan?”

  Obi-Wan shrugged. “I don’t have the voice yet, but the appearance is easy enough.”

  The voice was still Addison. He
found the combination mildly disconcerting.

  Rose sighed. “Welcome back, Skag. I assume you’re in one piece, relatively speaking.”

  “In much better shape than the demon, at any rate.” Obi-Wan gave them a smile that was far from benevolent. Definitely disconcerting.

  “Where have you been, anyway?” She arranged the afghan more securely across her lap. “I thought you’d left.”

  “You missed me? How touching.” Skag spun the lightsaber in a quick circle, like a baton twirler. Helen grumbled at him.

  “Yes, I missed you,” she snapped. “Now answer the question. Why did it take you so long to come back?”

  Skag leaned on the lightsaber again, narrowing his eyes at Evan. “Like the animals, I had to wait until Delwin here walked back through the door. I’m apparently dependent on the two of you now, since you were both instrumental in bringing down the demon. You are, in fact, a team.”

  Evan’s mouth slipped into a grin. There were definitely worse things he could be.

  “Is the demon gone for good then?” Rose ran her hands along her arms, as if she was feeling chilly.

  He fought the impulse to pull her close again.

  Skag frowned. “He’ll never be entirely destroyed. Any more than I will. But I trust he won’t have the strength to try again soon. Using a calling ghost requires a great deal of psychic energy. Meanwhile”—Skag’s smile became more Obi-Wanish—“we’re back in business.”

  Evan gave his head a quick shake, hoping Skag might disappear. He didn’t. “We?”

  “Yes.” The smile this time was definitely gloating. “Welcome to the firm, Delwin. You’ll be a tremendous asset now that your powers have developed fully.”

  “My powers?” Evan’s jaw hardened. “I don’t recall acquiring any powers. And why the hell can I see you now?”

  Skag rolled his eyes. “One doesn’t always acquire powers knowingly, Delwin, but one should accept them when they appear. Seeing me is part of who you truly are.”

  “What if Evan doesn’t want new powers? For that matter, what if I don’t?” Rose’s chin rose to a dangerous level—she looked very much like the portrait of her grandmother in the study.