by Rita Herron
“Of course. I’ll go with you.”
He nodded, glad she’d offered since he didn’t intend to be away from her for a second. They walked around back to the toolshed and pushed open the door. The cage was silent.
Elsie’s breathing whispered behind him, and he removed the cover of the cage. The falcon made a small squawking sound, then tried to push to its feet. Although the bird wobbled, he looked stronger.
“Is he going to be okay?”
“It looks like he’s recovering. I’m going to check his bandage.” He pulled on gloves, then opened the cage and slowly bent and talked to the bird in a low voice. Elsie stood beside him, her eyes fixed on him as the falcon climbed onto his arm. He crooned to the falcon as he brought him from the cage aexamined him. The bird arched its back, its regal, statuesque form stronger now, and Deke breathed a sigh of relief.
“How do you do that?”
Deke smiled. “Practice. And a connection with the animal.” He offered her a small smile. “A lot of patience, too.”
A blush stained her cheeks as if she understood his silent comparison.
“I like watching you with them,” she said quietly. “Deke, in the woods back there. I’m still curious about that creature—it looked part animal, part man. What was it?”
His dark eyes bore into hers. “What do you think it was?”
“I don’t know.” She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, shivering. “I always thought rumors about that sort of thing were only gossip. Folklore.”
“Some things border on the paranormal,” Deke said. “We want life to be easy, to only accept what we can see and understand. But we must honor all of God’s creatures.”
He knew his intensity might scare her off. But this was who he was.
“I never believed in anything I couldn’t see,” Elsie said.
“You can’t see love, Elsie. But you do believe it exists, don’t you?”
Elsie contemplated his question. A month ago, she would have said no. Then, pain, anger and bitterness had dominated her life. But she’d seen Deke with the falcons. And his connection wasn’t exactly tangible, either.
And now that she had met Deke, she had changed.
“Elsie?”
“Yes, Deke.” She smiled, and he brushed her face with the back of his hand. “I see love in your eyes when you talk about your family, and when you handle the falcons.”
“And when I look at you,” he said softly. “You see it then, too, don’t you?”
Elsie bit down on her lip. She wanted to believe that was true so badly that her defenses cracked another notch.
“I know that I want to be with you tonight,” Elsie whispered. “That my body gets hot and tingly when you look at me like that. That I trust you.”
“And?”
She smiled. Earlier they had almost died. Then they’d run for their lives. She didn’t want to miss another opportunity to hold Deke and be close to him. “I want to make love to you.”
A hungry look darkened Deke’s dark eyes, then a sultry smile tilted his lips. Unsated hungers rose within her. A need she desperately wanted to fill.
He turned and placed the falcon inside the cage, left it food and water, then removed his gloves and took her hand. “Let’s go inside, Elsie. Then I’ll show you what love is. Even if you can’t see it, I want you to feel it.”
DEKE’S HEART WAS BEATING sfast he could barely breathe. He wanted to prove to Elsie everything she meant to him, that a man could be gentle, but loving, yet his need for her pulsed so strongly through him that he feared he couldn’t be gentle. That the wild animal and primal male inside him would come unleashed and he’d take her hard and fast and raw.
When they entered the manor, he paused to listen, then searched the entire house. Today’s call had been too close for him to let down his defenses. They had almost been killed earlier. That thought alone spiked fear and adrenaline, along with the conviction that he had to hold Elsie and make love to her. What if he’d died and never had the chance?
Elsie followed him through the house quietly, and he led her back to the bedroom. He took her hands in his and looked into her eyes. A small streak of fear still lay in the depths, but desire also flared. “It’s been an ordeal tonight. Are you sure you’re all right? You didn’t get hurt in the accident?”
“No, I’m okay.”
“The air bag?”
She smiled. “Okay, maybe I’m a little sore, but really, Deke, I’m fine.”
He pressed a soft kiss to her parted lips. “Why don’t you get a shower while I lock up downstairs.”
She nodded. “Or…you could join me when you come back up.”
Surprised by her comment, he searched her eyes to make certain she meant the offer, then leaned over and kissed her cheek, her ear, then her mouth again. “All right.”
She bit her lip, turned and headed to the bathroom with a smile. He watched her hips sway seductively, then rushed down the steps, locked all the doors, checked the windows, then grabbed two candles from the den and hurried back to her.
The furnace rumbled, the familiar squeaks and groans of the house echoing in the chilly air as she stepped into the bathroom. Still wearing her clothes, Elsie stared into the mirror. He set the candles on the vanity and lit them, then flipped off the light.
“Deke?”
He moved up behind her. “We don’t have to do this if you’ve changed your mind.” His fingers trembled as he reached up to stroke her hair away from her neck.
Emotions played on her face, evident in her reflection in the mirror. “No, I want this very much,” she whispered.
“Any time, if you want me to stop, just say so,” he whispered.
She nodded, and he kissed the nape of her neck, then slid his hands down to her waist and lifted her sweater over her head. She raised her arms and watched him undress her in the mirror, a sultry expression darkening her eyes. Next he unbuttoned her shirt slowly, planting a kiss on each inch of her delicate throat, neck and then lower until she stood wearing only a pale blue bra and jeans. His breath caught at the sight of her breasts spilling over the edges. Her winter clothes had disguised the size of her breasts and her slender abdomen. He kissed the curve of her breasts, then teased her nipples to firm peaks with his fingers through the bra. Her breath quickened as he unsnapped the garment, and it fell to the ground. She exhaled, making her chest rise and the dark tips of her nipples strain toward hi
He couldn’t stand the anticipation. He lowered his head and licked the tip of each one, then closed his mouth over her right breast and suckled her gently. Inflamed by her, his hunger grew. His sex throbbed against his jeans, and he pulled back, suckled the other breast, while his fingers trailed down to unfasten her jeans. She gripped his shoulders, her body quaking.
Raw passion made him impatient. They had to shower before he took her standing up against the cold tile wall.
Not what he wanted for the first time. Not what she deserved.
Forcing himself to withdraw slightly, he glanced up and saw the look of pleasure and anticipation in her eyes and smiled, then opened the shower door and set the spray of water. She helped him shuck her jeans, then stood in a pair of silky blue thong panties that made his chest ache. He’d never seen anything so beautiful. She mesmerized him.
He started unbuttoning his shirt, but she surprised him by taking over the task. Each time she touched him, fire rippled through him. Her breath brushed his cheek as she pushed his shirt off, and his sex surged even harder. She kissed his jaw, ran her tongue along his neck then kissed his flat nipples. Lower her tongue bath went, all the way to his belly. He sucked in a sharp breath, his pulse pounding. His body ached, and only she could assuage the pain.
He wanted to love her until she was mindless with pleasure.
Adrenaline pumping, he lifted her face gently and kissed her mouth, then shook his head. “I…we’d better get in the shower.”
A wicked smile tilted her lips, and she nodded, as if she’d
known exactly what she’d accomplished with her teasing.
He slid off his boxers, half afraid his size would frighten her, and she’d ask him to stop. Instead her eyes widened, darkening with hunger. She reached out to touch him, but he slid her hand away, and shook his head. “Not yet.”
Sinfully aroused, he caught the edges of her panties and pushed them down her slender thighs, exposing the heart of her. Her sharp intake of air pleased him, and she quivered when he kissed her belly. Her skin felt like satin, her body soft, all woman. Knowing he was about to come unraveled, he coaxed her into the shower. He took the sponge, soaped it and began to bathe her, starting with her neck, then brushing it over her arms and chest and her breasts.
“That feels wonderful,” she whispered. “I’ve…never done this before.”
He grinned. “I want to make you feel good, Elsie. Special.” He kissed one rosy hard tip. “Loved.”
She blushed faintly, but allowed him to turn her around and wash her back, her spine, then lower until his hands cupped her rear. He forgot the sponge then, simply lathered his hands and stroked them over her backside, down her legs, then parted them slightly until he bathed her essence. She moaned softly, and he turned her around to face him, knelt and stroked her from the front, wetting and soaping the dark curls that protected her femininity. Mesmerized by her womanhood, he memorized every inch of her.
Finally he delved into her folds, stroking her with his soapy fingers until she clutched his shoulders, threw her head back and groaned. The water washed the bubbles down her neck and chest and he stood, ed his head and kissed her breasts, once again suckling each one, while his fingers stroked between her thighs. Her tiny moans and erratic breathing coaxed him to continue, and his hunger built as he suckled her nipples harder, more urgently. Desire pulsed through him so intense, he thought he’d explode just from listening to her erotic sounds. But he tamped down his own need and slid one finger inside her, then another. She clutched at his arms and shoulders, hanging on as if she’d collapse if he released her.
He continued to fill her with his fingers, using his thumb to stroke the bud of her desire. Suddenly she threw her head back and cried out his name. Her body spasmed around his fingers, and he smiled, deepening the pressure, sucking her harder, pushing his fingers to the hilt as she whimpered her orgasm.
When he finally felt the tremors subsiding, he kissed her mouth, slowing his movements, until she opened her eyes and looked at him. The euphoria shining in her expression made his chest swell and his body surge with need.
“Deke—”
“Shh,” he whispered. “We’re not finished.”
She nodded. “Now I want to bathe you.”
He swallowed hard at her sultry look, his sex jutting toward her, another wave of heat assaulting him. He didn’t know how much torture he could stand, but he handed her the sponge. Their gazes locked and he memorized her face, her eyes, those tantalizing lips.
He wasn’t the same man he was when he’d met her.
Hell, he’d lost all objectivity.
But he would leave her when the time came.
Go back to his job.
It was the way it had to be.
And he’d live with it.
Chapter Sixteen
Elsie’s body tingled all over from Deke’s touch. She had never known anything so erotic. She wanted more, wanted to taste and explore him, wanted him inside her, filling her, heating her blood, loving her, making her whole again.
The strength of her emotions frightened her.
Yet it excited her at the same time.
She had to be in love with Deke. She’d never felt this intense need for another man. She couldn’t survive another day without knowing this exquisite physical pleasure.
Determined to equal his passionate exploration, she soaped the sponge, then stroked it over his arms slowly, washing each corded ripple of his chest and torso. The water and bubbles swirled in the water, washing over his dark chest hair, his flat stomach and lower to his sex where it jutted out, full and hard. She had never seen a man so large, and ached to wrap her hands around his thick length, but decided to torture him a while longer. While she washed his chest and stomach, he raked her hair over one shoulder, then watched her, the tight set to his mouth as he breathed indicating he liked her touch and didn’t want her to stop. She didn’t intend to.
S playfully, she stared at his sex blatantly for a moment, then flipped him around so she could wash his back. He surprised her by leaning forward with his hands on the wall, giving her a magnificent view of his firm, muscled back, shoulders, thighs and hips. Her breath hitched at the power in his body, yet she’d experienced his tenderness, as well, and fear faded from her thoughts. There was no room for it here, not between them.
She did as he had done, dropped the sponge, and soaped her hands instead, running them over his neck, his back, across his shoulders and down his arms, then trailing them down his spine until she reached his waist. She let them slip over his hips, but only slightly, and saw him tense, then washed his legs, savoring the feel of his muscular thighs and calves as she touched them. Finally, she ran her fingers up his legs to his waist, then soaped them again and splayed her hands over his buttocks. Her heart pulsed faster as he hissed a response that sounded almost painful.
“Elsie, you have no idea what you’re doing to me.”
A wave of uncertainty flashed over her. “I…want to please you. I know I’m not experienced, though—”
He spun around so fast she gasped. His eyes glazed with arousal, and he gripped her arms. “You may think I do this all the time, but I don’t. It’s been a long time, and even then, it wasn’t like this.” He kissed her firmly, hungrily. “It was never like this.”
“Deke—”
“Shh. All you have to do is look at me and it makes me hard. Your touch sets me on fire. It’s pure torture.” He brushed his fingers over her chin.
Her heart soared, and her mouth moved to say the words she felt in her heart, but for some reason, they lodged in her throat. He didn’t hesitate, though. He kissed her again, and she melted in his arms. Her hand slid down, the need to touch his throbbing length driving her mad, and she cupped his erection in her hand and stroked his pulsing member. He moaned in his throat, thrusting forward so they were so close the tip of him brushed against her sex. She parted her legs, wanted him closer.
He drew back slightly, then turned off the water, and reached for a towel. “I want you in the bed. Now.”
Exhilarated by his commanding voice, she nodded. She felt wanton, heathen, but she didn’t care. She wanted him to take her so badly her knees nearly buckled.
He dried himself quickly, then took the other towel and dried her, patting places no man had touched in ages. With a low growl, he lifted her in his arms and carried her to the bed, flipped down the coverlet and laid her on the sheets. Firelight flickered across his face, the edge to his eyes almost predator-like, possessive and all consuming.
She ran her hand down his chest again, then southward to his sex. “I didn’t get to finish touching you.”
“Later,” he said on a groan. Then he threw her back on the bed, climbed over her and cupped her face in his hands. His lips devoured her, his tongue sent lazy sweet licks along her neck, her nipples, then more hungrily as he suckled her breasts again. She bucked upward, aching for him to fill her now, ready to take him inside her, but he continued to torment her. Finally, when she thought he was going to enter her, he crawled between her thighs, lowered his head and tasted the of her. She cried out in protest, wanted him inside her, then felt his wet moist tongue licking her folds. She whimpered and dug her hands into his arms, unsure if she could take any more teasing. But he pushed her legs farther apart, slid his tongue inside and made suckling noises as he fed on her.
Waves of excitement crashed back and forth in her body, rising and ebbing like the tides, then finally erupting into a thousand brilliant shades of color. She trembled all over, whispering his
name, begging, pleading for him to come inside her.
When she thought she might die from not having him, he suddenly moved over her, shoved her legs wider with his knee and settled his hard length against her opening.
“Deke, please…”
His dark smile made her gasp, then he watched her eyes as he slid on a condom and slowly pushed himself inside her. She’d known he was big, had anticipated the feel of him stretching her, but nothing could have told her how erotic and mind changing having him throbbing inside her heat could be. He paused, apparently giving her body time to adjust, and she cried out again. “Please, Deke, I want you. More of you. All of you.”
His breath hissed out, then he lowered his mouth and kissed her. Wild with sensations and need, she grabbed his hips and clutched his backside, urging him to move deeper, harder, faster. He braced his hands beside her, and thrust again, then slowly withdrew, rubbing her center with the tip of his sex, teasing her again and again until the delicious sensations overwhelmed her. Her body quivered helplessly, and she bucked upward, pulling him back inside her aching center. He groaned and moved his hips in a slow circle, embedding his full length into her, then building the rhythm slowly until he gained momentum.
Sweat beaded on his chest, and his arms shook with the force as the tension built to a crescendo. Her breath rushed out in small pants, and he slapped their bodies together, thrusting in and out until their bodies became one. Faster, harder, deeper, faster, harder, deeper. Her chest was about to explode. Erotic pleasure rushed over her, another wave of spasms rippling through her. With her release, he lowered his mouth, caught her moan, then thrust one more time, burying himself so deeply that she felt the connection all the way to her bones. A connection she wanted forever.
He threw his head back, his muscles clenching, and stared into her eyes. A second later, a roar ripped from his gut as he poured himself inside her.
Deke trembled all over from the force of his release, the warmth of Elsie’s loving body below him a memory he’d savor the rest of his life. He also wanted to prolong the pleasure and hold her forever.
