by Ann Cory
In the course of a day the world had gone in reverse. And then out of nowhere it rushed forward, too fast for her, as if she were part of a book flipping back and forth through time. Her head spun. This morning when she climbed in the cab she had a different perspective on things. Not sure what to expect, she envisioned the riverboat as a chance to escape but knew she’d have to face everything again in a couple days. Alone. Her days and nights were repeats of one another, going around in a constant circle, never letting her off to take a moment and enjoy life.
With Reinaldo back in the picture she had purpose again, a solid reason to get up the next morning and do more than just put in time. Adventure waited right outside her door. She didn’t need to sit in her isolation tank beating herself up about things she couldn’t control. All this time she’d been waiting for someone to take her by the hand and reintroduce her to it and somehow Reinaldo knew too. She couldn’t lose him just when everything started to fall in place. Her second chance included him and she didn’t want to waste another minute.
Chapter Six
Reinaldo expected the water to be cooler despite the humidity throughout the day. While the temperature of the water was tolerable, his full stomach and the glass of wine reduced his speed and strength. The flashlight he’d grabbed did little to illuminate the water or anything that lived in it. He took a gulp of air and sank below the water, using the paddlewheel as a ladder to climb down.
To keep him going, he thought of Madeline and the paddlewheel he’d made for her. Crimson stains on her flawless ass, her body bucking under each smack. Her little squeals were magic and kept him fully aroused. He wanted things perfect and so far the night had lived up to that. But now he had to wrestle with a problem he hadn’t counted on. How could he expect Maddy to be safe with him if he couldn’t fix things and take care of her?
Not used to holding his breath for long, he pushed back up to fill his lungs with more air. Under the water again he moved quickly, his eyes uncomfortable being open in the murky nothingness. He ran his hands along the bottom wooden slats of the paddlewheel, careful to not get any fingers stuck. Just as he was ready to grab air again, his hand came across something. With the flashlight he could faintly make out a couple broken limbs from a tree that had snapped and become stuck in the rudder. If he could free them they’d be on their way.
Reinaldo retreated to the surface for a third gasp of air and worked on removing the debris. He was thrilled the paddlewheel itself hadn’t broken, considering the sizable cost it would take to repair. Soon all would be well. The need to take a breath came to him in a violent wave and he started upward when something solid moved against his leg. His mind screamed alligator and he gasped, swallowing water. Fear took over any attempt to stay calm and he kicked his legs hard toward the surface.
Blindly he reached around for the edge of the boat and came up, gasping for air, smacking his forehead hard against wood. Dazed, he flailed his arms around hoping to grip something, anything to keep him afloat, before his eyelids became too heavy to keep open.
* * * * *
Lee’s shouts from above cut short all thoughts. Madeline leaned over the rail and stared into a big pool of nothing. The river she’d found so beautiful and peaceful now transformed into a dangerous mass. Her voice cracked as she called out to him. “Reinaldo? Can you hear me?”
Dead silence. Her entire body trembled, a cold sweat sweeping over her skin, mingling with her inner cold. Knots in her stomach tightened until she doubled over in pain. She couldn’t lose another loved one. Not after her mom. Not when things were finally going right.
Lee’s footsteps drew near. He approached her and knelt down, forcing her to look at him. “You hang in there, Miss Chase. Reinaldo is a tough cookie. Don’t give up on him. I’m going in.”
Madeline appreciated his comforting words, though she’d already accepted her world of darkness and despair. It followed her everywhere. Why should the Mississippi Twilight be any different? The black hole she crawled out from offered its own sense of security, welcoming her back with its icy clutches. She’d been kidding herself to think she deserved anything else.
With her fingers she traced his last kiss on her cheek, tattooed forever, a final reminder of how few precious moments really existed.
She watched Lee disappear as he dove into the water, and struggled to get up, staring helplessly until he resurfaced. Just then Marcus joined her side, a large flashlight in his hand.
“What’s he doing? Did he find Reinaldo?”
Madeline turned and broke down, her mind a wreck. “I-I don’t know. He jumped in. What am I supposed to do?”
He patted her shoulder, his eyes searching the water. “Why don’t you wait with my wife? She’s on the second floor with Lee’s wife. She’s due to have a baby next week. Maybe it will help.”
“I can’t,” she sobbed. “I can’t leave here without knowing how he is.”
Moments later, Lee waved his arms in the air and hollered. Marcus shone the light on him.
“What’s taking so long? Do you see him?”
“I need you to give me a hand pulling him out,” Lee shouted. “I think he hit his head.”
Blood drained from Madeline’s face. Hit his head? She turned and sank to the floor, knees propped against her chest. Please be okay. Please be okay.
Voices interrupted her sobs. Through soaked eyelashes she watched the men drag Reinaldo away from the side of the boat and across the floor, leaving a watery trail. Fists clenched tight she banged the sides of her head, cursing inwardly. Had she declined the invitation, he might still be alive. Was a little happiness worth a life? Her gaze fell on Marcus as he slapped Reinaldo’s cheeks, muttering a string of words she couldn’t hear over her pounding heart. Scared didn’t come close to describing her feelings at the moment. Everything moved in slow motion around her. Even the stars had dimmed their lights, changing the black velvet into a raging sea of darkness, ready to consume her once she heard the terrible truth. Clumsily she crawled over and watched his eyes for movement.
In words barely above a whisper, she asked, “Do you think he swallowed too much water?”
Lee rubbed the back of his neck roughly, water dripping from the ends of his hair. “I’ve no idea. Luckily he managed to wrap his arm around a small piece of rope attached to the boat. Otherwise I’m afraid he would have drowned. I’m going to do CPR, unless you want to.”
Madeline slid closer to Reinaldo. “Yes, I want to. I want my lips to be the last ones on his.”
With the heel of her hand, she found the place between his nipples, compressing to the count of thirty. She pinched his nose, tilted his head and rested her mouth over his damp lips, blowing every ounce of love she had into him. Her second breath into him ended in a frustrating sob. Again she compressed his chest, silently pleading for him to wake up from a sleep she feared would last forever.
Marcus held his wrist and felt for a pulse, his voice shaky, “Come on, man, your lady is here waiting for you. Don’t even think about leaving her after all you’ve done to bring her here.”
Lee paced, cursing himself and everything around him. Determined to breathe life back into him, Madeline summoned up the deepest of her emotions and readied her mouth over his again when he turned his head and coughed up water. With her hands on either side of his face she looked into his eyes, thrilled to see the light still there. Using the cuffs of her robe she patted his face dry.
“My love, you’re going to be okay.”
“Hey beautiful. You want to be on top this time?”
Shocked he could joke she sat back on her heels and crossed her arms. “I hate you so much right now. Do you hear me? Don’t even speak to me.”
He coughed a few times and then reached for her, a sly smile forming. “I can’t think of anything more romantic out of those lips right now.”
His voice sounded raspy but she didn’t care. All that mattered was he hadn’t left her. Madeline bent over him and smothered him with kisses
. “I’m so happy you’re okay. You worried me. Don’t ever do that again. Do you hear me?”
He shook his head. “I don’t plan to make it a habit—that’s for sure.”
Marcus knelt beside her and let out a deep sigh. “What happened out there?”
“It looks like some recently cut trees somehow got tangled in the paddlewheel, enough to snap them in two and shut it down.”
“You got lucky, man.”
He nodded. “No kidding. I pulled the limbs out so the Twilight is okay to run again. Some damn thing knocked into me, probably a tree limb, and I panicked. The face of an alligator with its jaws wide, ready to snap me in two jumped into my mind and I lost it after that.”
Madeline shuddered. “You realize I’m going to have nightmares.”
A frown marred his brow. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have said that. Really it was too dark and murky to see anything and I couldn’t handle having my eyes open for long. I’m almost positive it was a tree limb, would make more sense. In my effort to get away I misjudged my distance and smacked my head on the boat. Stupid really.”
Slipping her fingers through his hair, she didn’t come across any blood but could feel somewhat of a knot. “I don’t see a cut but you’ll probably have a bump in the morning.”
He looked up and smiled. “Thank you, everyone, for rescuing me.”
Lee left and returned with a few lanterns, bringing a soft glow where they were. He gestured to Marcus and they headed up the stairs. “We’ll leave you two alone. See you in the morning. Be prepared for a hearty breakfast.”
Madeline scooted in closer to Reinaldo and cradled his head in her lap. She sighed in relief and ran her fingers through his damp hair.
With his left hand he took hold of her wrist, bringing it to his mouth. Shivers raced through her body as he left tender kisses along her skin. “This is nice, being together right here underneath the stars.”
She glanced up, happy to see the stars back in place. The sky calm. “This is what you get for scaring me.”
His lopsided grin charmed her, as always. “I guess maybe I should hit my head more often.”
Madeline put her finger to his lips. “Hush. I meant it when I said I hate you.”
He double-blinked. “Are you serious? Why?”
“Because you got me to fall for you all over again and then you tried to leave me. My poor heart can’t take that.”
A sheepish grin replaced the pout. “Sorry to disappoint, but you’re stuck with me for a long, long time.” He pushed up and turned to his side, tugging on the sash of her robe. “You’re all I thought about when I was down there, underwater. Your provocative bottom streaked red from the paddles. Raspberry lips screwed up in a seductive moan. My only concern was getting back to you.”
All the knots in her stomach finally loosened. “There will be no more leaving each other, not you, not me. We belong together.”
“I couldn’t agree more.”
He reached inside her robe and grazed his knuckles along her breasts, stopping at a nipple and circling it with his thumb. Madeline had every intention of resisting but he knew her weakness. Between his fingers he fondled the nub until it hardened. And just like that, her hunger pangs returned, the ones that only sex could nourish.
“You should get some rest after knocking your head like that.”
His lips drew near her breasts. The thought of his tongue flicking her nipple brought a flood of wetness between her thighs.
“Trust me it’s fine. Probably knocked more sense into me. So there really is a future for us?”
Madeline gasped as he pinched her nipple tight and moistened it with his tongue. “I don’t want to lose you again. You’re my rock. I’ve been out of place for a while now, unsure of where to call home. I know now more than ever that it’s with you.”
The moon bathed them in a sensual glow and made his eyes sparkle.
“Those words are music to my ears, love.”
Her breath hitched at the way her body responded to his touch, making it difficult to talk. “But please, from here on out you don’t need to prove anything to me, okay? You’re all I need.”
Reinaldo paused and their gazes locked. “I believe you.”
He pulled her sash out from her robe and eased her body down to the floor, kneeling between her legs.
She narrowed her eyes. “What do you think you’re doing?”
In a slow, languid motion he wrapped the sash around her wrists. The way he looked at her struck a match inside her pussy. She could never deny him, not in a million years.
Lovingly he suckled her neck, his cock hardening against her belly.
“Your master is planning his next trip.”
Madeline groaned as his lips descended to her breasts and savored her nipples, teasing them with his teeth.
She sucked in her breath, her face warm. “Where to?”
His tongue smoothed down her belly and flickered at her clit.
“South.”
Madeline stared into his smoldering eyes. “Can I come?”
He smiled. “I’d love you to come, but only when I say you can.”
Her pussy clenched at his seductive words. “Then I’m at your mercy, master.”
“I like the sound of that,” he growled.
Again his tongue flickered at her clit and then ran along the seam of her slit. Heat curled inside her. She could never get enough of him, not in a million years. Reinaldo had always known what she needed and what she craved. She’d never been left wanting. Never been left unsatisfied. He made sure to pleasure her above all else. Even as her master he balanced an aggressive touch with gentle strokes.
His lips latched tight around her clit and when he suckled it drew the very breath from her lungs.
“Yes,” she whimpered.
The warm breeze thrilled her nipples and made them peak. How she’d gone so long without him, she didn’t know. For the first time in years she had clarity. Knew where she was headed, and it wouldn’t be alone. Days and nights would have new purpose. Her man had returned.
Faster he manipulated her clit. She couldn’t wait to be filled up by his thick cock.
“I want you inside me,” she keened. “Deep inside me. Please.”
Madeline moaned as he slid two fingers inside her dewy folds and opened her up.
He lifted his head from her pussy, a glossy sheen reflected in the moonlight above his upper lip. He gave her a wicked grin.
“You’ll have my cock later. Right now I’m going to make you come harder than the last time, Maddy. Harder than ever. When you know you can’t hold back, I want you to let it all go.”
She nodded and watched his mouth hungrily devour her pussy. Her entire body shook. When she didn’t think she could take any more, he gave her a long, slow lick. Such exquisite torture. He switched off. First with his fingers, then with his mouth. All the while she writhed and thrashed, her mind on sensory overload.
“That’s it,” he prompted. “You like the way I fuck you with my fingers, don’t you?”
“Yes,” she sobbed.
“And you like it when I eat you out, don’t you?”
Damn him. He knew very well that she loved to hear his dirty, sweet words. “Yes, oh god yes,” she whispered.
“‘Cause I’m going to fuck you good with my fingers and mouth until you flood my tongue with your liquid heat.”
A shudder went through her. He meant it too. He wouldn’t let up until she’d spilled all her juices.
Again he assaulted her pussy with his fingers, lips and mouth. She ached for his cock in her pussy, in her mouth, in her ass. And she ached for the release swirling around in the depths of her core.
Madeline rocked her hips in time with his rhythm. His hot breath against her cool, damp sex sent ripples of goose bumps along her skin.
“Mm, yes,” she gasped. “You’re so good to me.”
He drove his tongue deep between her folds and she cried out.
“Come for me, Ma
ddy. Let me taste you.”
Heat climbed her body from her toes. Her pulse thundered fast. There was no way to hold back and she didn’t want to.
The sweet explosion came and she bucked against his mouth.
At the same time he pinched her clit and a series of spasms rocketed through her. She could feel her pussy clench and unclench his fingers. He dragged his tongue along her slit, lapping up all evidence of her mind-numbing orgasm.
“You’ve always tasted so good. There’s nothing sweeter than your cream.”
He brought her in close to him and kissed her with his moist, warm lips. She savored the tang of her juices still heavy on his mouth.
Madeline sighed. “I think you should consider more trips south.”
“I plan to, though there are plenty of places to explore up north as well,” he teased, his fingers soft against her nipples. “But I’m not looking for any solo adventures. I want my lady right beside me.”
She snuggled tight against his body. “I’d go anywhere with you.”
“Think of all the history we’ll discover.”
Madeline let her fingertips trail along the corded muscles of his forearm. “My favorite part of history is when we met.”
His lips grazed her shoulder. “Mine too.”
She looked up at the stars that watched over them and the Mississippi Twilight. Wherever the future took them, she was in good hands. Skilled, strong, masterful hands of the man she loved.
About the Author
Erotic romance author Ann Cory invites you to sample her literary offerings in hope of leaving you with an acquired taste for sophisticated reading.
Ann welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and e-mail address on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
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