“What would you like me to call you then?” He asked, his voice never wavering as he carried me through the house as though I weighed nothing.
“My name.” I wept, not understanding why it was so hard for him to just call me by my given name. It wasn’t hard to remember.
“I could always call you Snuggles.” He chuckled lightly as he climbed into bed with me in his arms, easing me down beside him.
Weakly I batted my hand at him in an attempt to hit him, pulling more laughter from his lips.
“It’s not funny, Luka. Everything’s gone. I have nothing. My house is gone, Devon is gone. Everything is gone.” I cried even harder.
Luka’s arms pinned me in close, his arms folding around me protectively.
“We’ll fix it, Waffles.”
I giggled despite the crushing pain in my chest. He was an ass when he wanted to be and annoying as shit, but he made me feel something that no one had ever made me feel before, safe.
“I see you like Waffles. I think that one will stick.” His chest rumbled with humor.
“I don’t want it.” I cried, sniffling back tears.
“But it’s my special name for you.” He teasingly pouted.
“I want a better one.” I sobbed like a toddler being told to eat her vegetables.
“How about Bumper Butt on account that you like to but your butt against me at night.” He suggested.
Shaking my head against his chest he groaned and moved on to the next one.
“What do you think of Tiger?”
I shook my head again.
“Only Sam calls me that.” I felt him stiffen slightly beneath me.
“Where is Sam?” He asked hesitantly.
“She’s home with Anthony.” I whispered, just saying her name hurt my heart.
Relaxing beneath me Luka continued to rattle off pet names, all of which I declined.
“How about I call you Panda and you can call me Mack Daddy Sexy Pants.” He suggested, leaving me staring up at him as though he had grown a third head.
“How about you let me cry in peace and you just hold me.” I suggested lightly, huffing against his chest.
I knew what he was doing and he was doing a damn good job of it, almost too good of a job. My tears had dried up and the hollowness in my heart only ached marginally.
Luka, AKA Mack Daddy Sexy Pants, held me close, chasing away the demons of the night. My heart still ached over losing my home, all the memories of my childhood and my life, but the pain of Devon’s betrayal had dulled to an annoying roar instead of the heart splitting pain I had experienced earlier.
I hadn’t been in love with Devon; there were no misguided feelings on that front. I did however feel betrayed. I felt as though he had intentionally led me astray when he should have manned up and said how he felt in the beginning.
I knew the moment his eyes landed on Emily, battered and bruised, whatever we had was going to end. I didn’t, however, expect for him to be in bed with the woman less than a week later.
I think that was the part that hurt the worst. He couldn’t handle my job and the fact that I had a battered woman in my home needing help. But he could handle jumping into a relationship with the very same battered woman and not even tell me about it, let alone tell me that what we had was over.
It made me wonder about my taste in men. It was obvious I was a lousy judge of character. That knowledge combined with the fact I was snuggled up against a perfectly good stranger who may or may not be an intruder didn’t bode well for me.
“What are you thinking about?” Luka asked, pulling me from my self-doubt.
“Nothing.” I replied, my finger tracing the path of the wing tattooed on his peck, its twin lay pressed against my cheek.
“Nothing sure looks like a lot of something if your face is any indication.” He replied.
I relaxed my features as his hand gently stroked my head.
“Tonight I found out that my house in Florida was burned to the ground. It was the only place I had ever lived. It was where all of my memories were, my home. Then I called my almost boyfriend to let him know and found out he was in bed with another woman. To say it was a rough night is an understatement.”
Luka’s hand hesitated, resting at the back of my head. Not letting his pause deter me, I surged on.
“I wasn’t sad about Devon. I mean I already knew we were over. What upset me was the woman he was with. The betrayal. The fact that she was the reason my house was burnt down to start with and why I had to leave my home and come all the way out here to middle of nowhere Nevada.” I sniffled back the tears that threatened to reemerge.
“So, you don’t have land here?” He asked slightly confused.
“I do. You’re actually in my house right now.” I gently jabbed at him with my finger.
“You mean my house.” He corrected, giving my hair a gentle yank.
“We’ll see what the lawyers say. God, I hope I don’t run into this issue anywhere else.” I sighed.
“Why would you run into more issues?” He asked with interest.
“I buy land for investment, a little here and there. I own land in Montana, Alaska, Arizona, and Texas as well.” I sighed in exhaustion.
Placing a chaste kiss to my crown, Luka lifted me from his chest. I whined in protest only to be met with a deep hearty chuckle.
“Easy Panda, I’m just rolling you over so I can snuggle your bum.” He said, easing me on my side behind him.
True to his word, he snuggled in close to me, his body wrapping around mine protectively, with an arm slung over my waist. I could feel his hot breath along the back of my neck. A tingling sensation took up residence in my nether region. With each exhale of breath on the back of my neck the tingling grew in sensation, refusing to be ignored. Soon the tingles gave way to deep-seated need.
I wanted so badly to rock my hips back against Luka, to feel him pressed against me. I wanted his hand between my legs. I craved his lips, his mouth, and his cock. I wanted it all. I wanted him in any and every way he would let me have him.
I could feel the heat from his hand just inches above where I wanted it to be. His hand lay resting against the flat plains of my stomach just below my navel, just not far enough south.
I knew I didn’t know this man. He could be a serial killer. But I needed him. I needed the comfort that only he could provide, and the release. I needed to feel again. I wanted him to wash away the pain I felt in my heart and between my legs with his touch.
Whimpering I rocked my hips back against him. No reaction. Rocking my hips back against him a second time, his hand moved to pin my waist in place. A deep growl resonated deep in his chest sending shivers of delight down my spine. I whimpered in protest.
“You’re hurting, Panda. I get it. But I can’t. Not like this.”
“Please.” I begged the sensation between my legs becoming more than I could stand.
“I won’t touch you.” He promised through gritted teeth.
“Just kiss me.” I begged, willing to take whatever he would provide.
I felt his teeth lock on my neck sinking into the tender flesh. An electric current of arousal shot through my body at the sensation. His hand held tightly to my hip, his fingers sinking into the delicate flesh.
He wouldn’t touch me but he didn’t say I couldn’t touch myself.
Gliding my hand down between my legs I guided them between my slick folds. Gasping at the contact, I felt his teeth sink deeper into my flesh.
“Yes.” I hissed out as I fingered myself.
Reaching behind me I tangled my fingers in his thick hair pulling him close. I could feel his cock, rock hard, pressed against my ass.
“Luka.” I moaned out his name receiving a growl in return.
Not once had his teeth let up on me, instead they bit down harder, marking me, testing the limits of my pain threshold, further exciting me.
All of the emotional turmoil coupled with the presence of Luka and his mouth and hand on
me brought me to completion. My orgasm rushed over me like a tidal wave, knocking the wind out of my sails as I crashed back down to earth. Only then did he release me. Pulling my hand from the waistband of my pants he brought my fingers to his lips.
With great care he sucked them, one by one, into his hot wet mouth. I moaned in bliss at the sensation.
“You’re delicious.” He replied after licking my fingers clean.
"Perhaps I should call you cupcake, because you’re just as sweet if not better.”
I could only moan in response.
Tucking me back in against him, my eyes drifted closed. I was comfortable, sated, and safe.
Chapter fourteen
I woke to the bright morning sun spilling through the drawn curtains. Like the night before I had slept deep and peacefully. Not wanting to look too deeply into the fact that both nights Luka had been by my side, I shoved the thoughts down.
Dragging my arms above my head I stretched them to capacity, waking my body from the last dregs of sleep. Flashes of the night before flitted through my mind, causing my cheeks to flush with embarrassment. I had broken down in front of a stranger, and then begged him to sleep with me.
I could still feel the mark he had left, the pressure of his teeth digging into my flesh. My core flamed to life at the memory, causing me to flush deeper. Covering my face with my hands I inhaled deeply, drawing on every ounce of strength I had left in me to face him. I could do this. I turned to my side expecting to find Luka lying beside me, only to be met by an empty mattress.
The covers had been drawn up tight as though he was never there, much like the morning before. I couldn’t hide the disappointment in finding him gone. As embarrassed as I was about my actions the previous night, I longed for the comfort of his presence. There was something about him that drew me in like a moth to a flame.
Ironically, unlike the day before, there was no delicious aroma of freshly cooked food wafting through the air. The house instead felt empty, much like the shell of my heart. Closing my eyes, I searched for any sound of life, a sign that Luka was in the house. My ears were met with stone silence.
Ambling from the bed I shuffled out of the bedroom, intent on finding him. I wanted to talk to him about the house. He said he would contact his lawyer and have the situation handled. Now that I was, in fact, homeless, I needed to square away the paperwork on the house here. I needed to know if I was indeed the true owner or if Luka was right and I was an intruder. I felt the stress of the situation like a band across my chest constricting the rise and fall of my chest.
There was no way I could handle being homeless. I couldn’t take another blow, knocking me down any lower than I already was. I didn’t think there was anywhere lower to go during my drive out here, but Devon had already proved that wrong. The surety I felt in my ownership of the house had gone out the window along with everything else I once felt true.
As expected, both the living room and kitchen were empty. There was no sign of Luka. Like the cold mattress beside me when I woke, the house held the same chill. It was a chill that was felt deep inside my bones.
Sometime before I had risen Luka had left. There was no note, no sign of him or where he had gone. It wasn’t like he was required to tell me his every move. I wasn’t his wife, hell, I wasn’t even his girlfriend. No, I was his roommate, even that was a stretch. We were two strangers shoved together in this house, both of us claiming ownership. I wasn’t sure if he had a job to go to or what his circumstances were, further reminding me that I knew next to nothing about the man.
The house was stifling. I paced the floors, wearing a track deep into the hardwood floors, not knowing what to do with myself. I was never one to just lounge around. Since as far as I could remember I had always been going and doing, my body and mind always in a state of perpetual motion.
I needed to get out of the house. I needed to be doing something, anything. While I had been sleeping, Luka had taken care of my bags. They no longer sat by the door in the foyer, instead the items had been brought to the bedroom and unpacked. All of my clothes hung neatly in the closet beside Luka’s. My products lined the counter along with his.
To an outsider looking in it looked as though they belonged there, co-existing together. I had no idea how he had found the time to do it all, much less without waking me, but somehow he had. I wasn’t sure how I felt about it, afraid of what the future might hold. A part of me delighted in seeing our things together while a small voice in the back of my mind screamed out a warning, reminding me that I knew nothing about this man. Thoughts of Bob Davidson flashed through my mind, sending a chill down my spine.
-
I didn’t know the condition of Luka’s state of affairs, but mine was rather bleak. I was homeless and if the messages on my phone were to be believed, I was also jobless.
Sam had blown up my phone with text messages. Messages I had finally sat down to read. Shame ate at my heart for making her worry. It was never my intention. I only wanted to save her. Save her from being dragged into this cluster fuck of a mess I had landed myself in.
From what I gathered from Sam's text, Bob had gone down to the office and told Director Shields what I had done. He told her about Emily leaving and me helping her to get away. What he didn’t tell her was that fact that he had nearly beat her to a bloody pulp but helping her wasn't why I was fired. I was fired for not using the proper channels.
Everyone at the office knew about Bob, they knew he was a time bomb with a short fuse. They knew every detail of the abuse he had put his wife through. But that didn't matter. What mattered was that I took the situation into my own hands. That coupled with the fact that I had effectively missed a full week of work with the three-day no-call no-show in place. I was considered a quit. They wouldn't fire me, allowing me to claim unemployment. No, they gave me the rope to hang myself with.
I wanted to call Sam. I wanted to tell her everything. But I knew she wouldn't be able to stay out of it. I knew that once she found out what happened she would jump in to defend me, taking on Bob herself.
I couldn't let that happen. I needed to hold it in, just a little longer. I needed to take care of this myself, though I had no idea how.
My stomach churned at the thought of calling Devon for an update. He had said both he and Emily were in giving statements the other day. Why the police needed his statement I'll never know and in truth, I just didn't care as long as the situation was handled.
Unable to do anything but sit and wait, I shot off a message to Sam letting her know I was okay and that I missed her.
Almost immediately Sam replied, sending me a slew of questions. I knew she didn't understand what was going on.
Sam: Where are you? Can I come see you? I miss your face.
Me: I needed a break. Things didn't go so well between me and Devon.
Sam: Was it because of the Emily thing? Bob said he found her car in front of your house.
Closing my eyes, I inhaled deeply gathering the strength I would need to get through this. Thoughts of Emily and Devon in bed together made my blood boil.
Me: Something like that.
It was the closest to the truth I could manage to answer.
Sam: You'll find someone amazing, someone who will knock your socks off. Don't let the Devon Erickson’s of the world break you down.
Me: I'm over Devon, no worries there. I just needed an escape.
Sam: If you're over Devon then come home. I miss you.
I could feel the tears burning behind my lids. If only it were that easy.
Me: My house burnt to the ground. Remember?
Sam: I know babes and I'm so sorry about that. I know it hurts. Just know I'm always here for you and you know you are always welcome to move in with me.
I smiled through the tears that leaked down my face.
Me: I love you babes. I'll be home soon enough.
Unable to stand being cooped up any longer, I slid my shoes on and stepped out of the house. The bright
Nevada sunshine was nearly blinding as it reflected off the sandy desert. Digging around in my car I pulled out my ball cap and sunglasses. The two combined shielded enough of the sun away to allow me to take in the breathtaking beauty that surrounded me.
Chapter fifteen
The sun was high in the sky lighting up miles of desert all around. The beauty called to me, beckoning me to explore.
There was more to the desert than I saw through the windshield of my car. Small shrubs grew littering the arid desert floor; small lizards scampered about, dashing from one shrub to the next.
There was more to the desert than the flat plains I had first encountered. There were dips, valleys, ridges and crests, betraying the first glance appearance. Cacti dotted along the path I traveled, some of which housed birds of various sizes who drilled tirelessly at the meaty flesh of the prickly succulent.
I walked along, trying to clear my mind of the madness that had become my life. A lone Joshua tree called to me. Slumping down against the wooly trunk of the slender tree I let my legs fall out in front of me.
I took solace in this lone tree, standing like a flag against the high desert sun. Drawing my knees against my chest I sunk my head down. I surrendered the stress of my situation to the open desert, releasing the pent-up emotions I held so close to my heart.
Silent tears trickled down my face. I refused to allow Bob Davidson to rule my life. I may be homeless, jobless, and have lost my boyfriend but he wasn’t going to break me. I refused to allow him to rule my life as he had done Emily’s.
A soft whimpering pulled me from my self-pity. Looking up I came eye-to-eye with a long muzzle of a medium sized dog. She was slender, with slanted eyes, a trim reddish colored body, and a long bushy tail. The dog studied me in turn, her head tilting slightly to the side as if assessing me.
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