Slow Burn (A Madaris Family Novel)

by Jackson, Brenda

  “Well, I do. I love you very much. I didn’t realize how much until we were separated these past three days. My wanting desperately to get back here to you was more than just wanting to sleep with you. It was about loving you. I think I’ve loved you since the moment I first opened Justin’s door to find you standing there.”

  “And I believe that’s when I fell in love with you, too. There were so many things about you that were so unlike Wayne. I didn’t know a caliber of man like you existed. You have completely and irrevocably captured my heart, Slade Madaris.”

  He leaned down and captured her lips with his as the wet heat of their mouths fused together, igniting every kind of nerve in their bodies. Their tongues tangled; they mated in the most intense form possible, sending erotic sensations all through the both of them.

  Slade pulled his mouth back slightly and whispered against her moist lips, “I love you and will always love you until the last breath leaves my body,” in a deep voice filled with love and passion.

  The look in his eyes and the words he’d spoken made Skye’s insides quiver. During a time in her life when her parents had practically written her off, and the only person she thought she had was a newfound brother, Slade had provided her a beacon of hope for a better and brighter future, one filled with his love. She couldn’t stop the tears that came into her eyes, and he leaned down, cupped her face in his hands, and kissed the tears away.

  And then he was kissing her again, letting her feel the power and depth of his love. Then he pulled back and stared down at her as he lowered the bottom part of his body, gently pressing forward, entering her, going deeper, and filling her completely as he joined their bodies as one. And when he had gone to the hilt, a storm of emotions ripped into him. This was the woman his heart had chosen, the woman he would love for all eternity.

  And then he began making love to her, his thrusts powerful, driving her deeper and deeper into the firm mattress. She screamed out his name as she began climaxing. Her body shuddered and quivered beneath his, triggering his own powerful, explosive release.

  “Skye!”

  And then moments later he was kissing her again. This time his kiss was gentle, tender, and filled with love, and Skye felt it all the way to her toes, but especially the tingling sensation that settled in her stomach. He was still embedded inside of her, and she tightened her arms around him, savoring the feel of their bodies still joined.

  She closed her eyes as sensations continued to rack her body and she wondered if Slade’s prediction would be correct and she wouldn’t be able to walk in the morning.

  Skye glanced over at Slade across the breakfast table. “Will your mom be upset that you skipped church and won’t be coming to dinner today?”

  Slade smiled at her. Although it was past lunchtime, they were just eating breakfast. After they took a bath together in his oversized Jacuzzi tub, he had shared one of his bathrobes with her, and they’d been satisfied with cereal and milk.

  “Mom and Dad spent the night at Whispering Pines,” he said. “Uncle Jake has several guest cottages, and instead of making the long drive back to Houston, most of the family spent the night there.”

  Skye nodded, then smiled brightly. “So what would you like to do today?”

  At the look he gave her, she shook her head and quickly said, “Besides that. I can barely walk this morning.”

  He chuckled. “You asked for it. Over and over again.”

  She blushed because she had. In fact, she had been the one to awaken first this morning with a burning desire to mate with him. All she had to do was wake him up, let him know her interest, and then the heat was on. “You shouldn’t make it so good,” she said teasingly.

  “Baby, for you that’s the only way I intend to make it.” He glanced at his watch. “What time do you expect Vincent back?”

  “This afternoon. He’ll be spending the night over at Dex’s place, since I understand his grandparents are hitting the road again.”

  Slade grinned. “I want to be like Uncle Jonathan and Aunt Marilyn when I grow up. They use their time as retirees to full advantage and enjoy putting their motor home on the road.”

  Skye thought of her own parents. She had called them several more times over the past few weeks, and each time Helen had delivered the same message to her. They would not talk to her until she agreed to their terms. They were treating her like a naughty child being punished instead of the twenty-six-year-old woman that she was.

  And when she had checked her cell phone after her bath with Slade, she saw that Wayne had called. She had no idea what he wanted but had no intentions of calling him back to find out. She had called her parents to make sure they were okay and that he hadn’t been calling about them. Again Helen had answered the phone and said Skye’s parents would not talk to her.

  “What are you thinking about?”

  She glanced over at Slade. “My parents. They still won’t accept my calls.”

  The sadness in her voice caused a pain to rip through his heart. He couldn’t imagine any parents deliberately treating their child the way Skye’s parents were treating her. He thought of his own parents. He and his brothers had done a lot of things in their lifetime that their parents hadn’t approved of, and of course they had let their sons know it. But at no time had his parents ever turned their backs on them. It was the strangest thing he ever heard of. Parents, at least the ones he knew, weren’t usually that hard on their kids, especially when they were Skye’s age. Her parents were treating her like a child instead of the adult she was.

  He stood and slowly walked over to her and pinned her with his gaze. “Tell me, sweetheart. What can I do to make you happy?”

  Skye blinked back tears. In all her twenty-six years, no one had ever asked her that before, and only a man like Slade would be asking her that now. “You made me happy last night when you told me that you loved me, Slade,” she said softly, looking up into his eyes. “Because now I know that if my parents never come around and talk to me again, at least I have you and your love. And that means so much to me. I love you so much.”

  “And I love you, too. For always.” And then he bent his head down to kiss her, pulling her out of the chair and sweeping her off her feet and into his arms in the process.

  When he broke out of the kiss she said, “Slade, I can walk.”

  He grinned down at her. “Yes, but barely. That’s why I made sure you took a hot-tub bath instead of the shower. I’m taking care of you from now on.”

  “Oh, Slade.” She laid her head on his chest when he cuddled her in his arms to carry her into the bedroom. Sunlight was streaming in through the window when he placed her on the bed. Fighting the intense desire raging through him, he gently took off his robe that she was wearing, leaving her completely bare. He then pulled back the covers. “Come on, get under this. I’m going to hold you for a while.”

  She slipped her naked body beneath the covers; then he removed his own robe and got underneath the covers with her. He gathered her into his arms and held her. Entwining their limbs, his arms bracketed her, holding her close. They were skin to skin, heart to heart, his naked chest to her bare shoulder blades. He fought to ignore his aroused shaft that was resting against her backside, and every time he breathed, he picked up her scent and it had his nostrils flaring. He loved her. He wanted her. But now more than anything he just needed to hold her.

  Within minutes he heard her even breathing and knew she had drifted off to sleep, and he continued to hold her even while she slept.

  CHAPTER 23

  “With all due respect, sir, you might be who you claim, but unless I hear from Ms. Barclay, I cannot grant you entrance to her home without her permission.”

  His lips curling angrily, Wayne glared at the doorman. “In that case I’ll try reaching her again on her cell phone.”

  “Thank you, sir, and if she is your fiancée as you claim, then I’m sure you understand that I take my job of keeping her, as well as everyone else in this bu
ilding, safe very seriously.”

  Wayne angrily walked away to sit on the sofa in the lobby while he tried to reach Skye again on her cell phone. He had left three messages since Sunday, and she had not called him back. When he saw her again he intended to make certain things absolutely clear with her. First, whether she wanted it or not, the wedding was back on, so she could bank on the Christmas wedding like he had announced to his family before leaving Maine for this god-awful place. The air here was humid. The weather unbearably hot. Renting a car at the airport and getting on that interstate had been almost suicidal. Why would someone want to live here? Skye would pay dearly for what she was putting him through. He’d had enough of her nonsense.

  His insides quivered at the phone call he’d received Sunday morning. The caller was angry and had threatened to cut off his money supply if he didn’t get Skye back in line, and he had too many gambling debts not to follow orders. He needed money. Plenty of it. It would take Skye’s trust as well as his own, along with any extra income he could make on the side, to continue to live the lifestyle he was accustomed to. Yes, Skye had pissed him off and he was determined to let her know it.

  He glanced up when two people walked into the building. He recognized Skye immediately and could only assume the lanky teenager walking by her side was the brother she had traveled to this horrific state to visit. Neither of them glanced his way as they headed toward the elevator.

  He stood immediately. “Skye?”

  She turned toward the sound of his voice and stared at him. Surprise was etched all over her face as he walked over to her. “Wayne? What are you doing in Houston?”

  He pasted a smile on his face, although her question made him even more pissed. “You act like you’re not happy to see your fiancé, sweetheart.”

  He noted the lifting of the boy’s brows. He turned to Skye and said, “I thought you weren’t getting married.”

  She smiled up at Vincent and said, “I’m not.”

  Wayne chuckled, leveling a cool stare. “Of course you are. We’re getting married on Christmas Day. How could you forget?”

  She glared at him. “Easily. What are you doing here, Wayne?” she asked him again.

  “We need to talk.” Then glancing at the kid, then back at her, Wayne said, “Privately.”

  “We have nothing to say.”

  “I think we do.”

  “Ms. Barclay,” the security doorman said, coming to stand beside her and Vincent. “If this man is bothering you, I can escort him out of the building.”

  Skye smiled up at the doorman. “That won’t be necessary, Ron. He’s leaving.”

  She then turned her attention back to Wayne. “Good-bye, Wayne, and have a safe trip back to Maine.”

  Skye touched Vincent’s arm, and the two of them then walked off toward the bank of elevators, leaving Wayne standing there, staring at them.

  Wayne sat in an area of the parking lot waiting for Skye to return. He had watched her leave with her brother over an hour ago, and, thinking she was taking the kid home, decided to sit and wait for her to come back.

  There was no way he could go back to Maine until she understood just where he stood and that there would be a Christmas wedding. He had made the necessary phone calls and warnings had been put in place. He was to use whatever means necessary to get Skye to cooperate…and he would.

  He watched as her car pulled into the same parking space it had been in earlier. She got out and had begun walking toward the entrance to her condo when he got out of his car and called after her, “Skye?”

  She stopped and turned around at the sound of his voice, saw him, and then turned back around and quickly began walking toward the entrance door.

  Rage ripped through him and he called out to her and said, “If you care about your brother’s welfare, I suggest you don’t walk away from me, Skye.”

  She stopped, turned around, and met him with anger flaring in her eyes. “What did you say?”

  He slowly began walking toward her. “You heard what I said, and I meant every word. All I have to do is make a call and that brother of yours is history.”

  Skye stared at him, not believing what she was hearing. She had determined a while ago that Wayne was ruthless, but she refused to believe he could be capable of doing bodily harm to anyone.

  He evidently read her thoughts. “I wouldn’t chance it if I were you. I have too much to lose by not marrying you. I wouldn’t harm your brother personally, but I know of others who will upon my orders. They will fix it so he’ll never be heard of again, and you wouldn’t be able to prove a single thing. If you want to think I’m bluffing, then take a chance, go ahead and try me. It’s your brother’s life we’re talking about.”

  Skye took a step back and stared at Wayne. She saw the cold look in his eyes, his entire stony face. “You’re crazy,” she said softly. “You’re really crazy.”

  He shook his head and chuckled. The sound was just as cold as the look in his eyes. Both sent shivers down her spine. “Not crazy, Skye. Desperate. And just so we understand each other, someone is paying me a lot of money to keep you under control, and I intend to do it. I stand to lose too much if I don’t, so don’t think for one minute that I’m not telling you the truth. Unless you do what I say, then I can’t be held responsible for the kid’s untimely accident. And trust me, there will be an accident.”

  He then crossed his arms over his chest. “And if that doesn’t get your attention, then that new so-called boyfriend of yours might be next.”

  At the surprised look on her face he said, “Oh yeah, I know about him, too. Get rid of him, Skye. You have forty-eight hours to return to Maine and start planning our wedding or you’ll be sorry. And just so you’ll know I’m serious, maybe your friend will tell you about what almost happened to him tonight. Trust me, that was a warning. We’re going after the kid next and then your friend again.”

  Again? Skye shook her head as she continued to back up. “No, Wayne, I refuse to believe this. You might be capable of some things, but not that.”

  “That just goes to show that you really don’t know me, doesn’t it? You will marry me and we will have a long and wonderful life together. Forty-eight hours, Skye. That’s all the time you have. Call me to let me know what plane you’re taking and I’ll pick you up from the airport.”

  Skye then watched as he turned and walked back toward the car he had gotten out of.

  “Ms. Barclay? Are you all right?”

  She turned around and saw Ron. No, she wasn’t okay. “Do you know if Mr. Madaris has come home yet?” Slade had left the office early for a business meeting downtown.

  The older man shook his head. “No, ma’am. He hasn’t arrived.”

  “Thank you.”

  She quickly headed inside and pulled her phone out of her purse as she headed for the elevator. She had turned it off earlier when she kept getting calls from Wayne, not knowing that he was here in Houston. She sucked in a deep breath when she saw she’d missed a call ten minutes ago from Slade. She quickly punched the button to redial the number.

  “Hello?”

  Remembering what Wayne had said, she quickly asked, “Slade, are you okay?”

  “Yes, I’m okay, but my truck’s not. I’m having it towed.”

  Panic thickened her throat and she had a hard time swallowing. “What happened?” she asked, stepping off the elevator.

  “Someone ran me off the road. Probably some teenager out driving recklessly when he should be home doing homework. I hit the curb and blew a tire. Nothing major.”

  She almost dropped the phone out of her hand as Wayne’s threats rang loud and clear in her ears: “Trust me, that was a warning. We’re going after the kid next and then your friend again.”

  Her head started spinning. How did Wayne know about Slade? Was he having her watched? Then she suddenly recalled something he’d said: “Someone is paying me a lot of money to keep you under control and I intend to do it.”

  Chills ran down
her spine. Who was this someone he was talking about? Would her parents go that far to control her that they would harm Vincent or Slade? And if so, why?

  “Skye, are you all right? I tried calling you because Vincent called me, upset, saying some man was at the condo claiming he was your fiancé. What’s going on, Skye?”

  A lone tear fell from her eye as she opened the door to her condo. She knew what she had to do. She didn’t understand any of it, but she knew more than anything she could not and would not let anything happen to Vincent and Slade.

  She inhaled deeply and tried to keep her voice from breaking up when she said, “I’m leaving Houston, Slade, and returning to Maine. I have to go start packing.”

  “Why? Has something happened to your parents?”

  “No.”

  “Then why are you leaving?”

  She closed her eyes and leaned back against the door. “I’ve decided to marry Wayne after all.” Then without giving Slade a chance to ask her anything, she clicked off the phone.

  Skye had hoped to be packed and gone before Slade got home, but she had no such luck. She knew it was him by the insistent knocking at the door. He had called twice, but she hadn’t answered the phone.

  “Open up, Skye. I know you’re in there, so let me in and tell me what the hell is going on.”

  Inhaling deeply, she moved toward the door. She took another deep breath before opening it. Then there he stood, his features a mixture of irritation and anger. “What do you mean you’re marrying that guy after all?”

  Skye swallowed. “I have to marry him, Slade.”

  He stepped around her and came into the condo. “Why do you have to marry him? You told me that you and that guy were history. You also told me just yesterday that you were in love with me. What the hell is going on here, Skye?”

  She tried to hold herself together when she said, “I was wrong about us. My place is back in Augusta.”