Shadows and Ruins

by Denise A. Agnew

  brushed the inside of his thigh. He gasped and his hips moved. "Shit."

  Emma almost reached for his cock but held back. "Does that mean it feels good?"

  His voice deepened, his eyes blazing with renewed desire. "You know it does." He

  licked his lips. "Tell me more about you."

  She hesitated. What could she tell him that wouldn't ruin things? "Such as?"

  One of his eyebrows quirked upward. "The usual. Your family. Things like that."

  She flinched. Literally. "My family is…interesting. They come from good Kansas

  stock. Some of my ancestors on my father's side were from Northern Ireland around

  Belfast. They left Ireland in the eighteen forties. They were farmers. On my mother's

  side they're mostly from Sweden and some from Scotland."

  "Ah, so the Swedish sort of explains the beautiful blonde hair."

  Still amazed she could blush after everything they'd done together, she decided to

  be bolder, to enjoy whatever time they had together. She allowed her hand to drift up to

  his knee, enjoying the bone and sinew as he shifted his leg. She scooted down into the

  water until their groins were closer—her calves came up over his thighs. The hair-

  roughened surface made her groan softly. Swirling bubbles tantalized as they danced

  and played around her body like live creatures, the water enchanted and promising

  sensual tortures almost too wonderful to imagine.

  "Tell me more," he said, coaxing.

  She didn't want him to know what she'd experienced as a child. Most of the time

  when she told people, the pity and empathy they saw did nothing to soothe her. "I

  don't know if I can."

  He frowned but his hands continued to explore. His fingers traced over her inner

  thigh, and her belly filled with screaming longing. God, the man knew just where to

  touch and stroke her. "Why are you afraid to tell me about yourself?"

  "I'm out of practice revealing myself. I haven't told anyone much about myself for

  years."

  "Now's the time. We've been as intimate as two people can get."

  He laughed, and the soft sound removed her concerns. A few seconds later, she felt

  his hand caress her knee, and she shivered with growing delight. "You're damned

  mysterious, you know that."

  She stared into the depths of his gaze. "Me?"

  He allowed both his hands to slip along her calves with gentle attention. "Don't be

  insulted."

  "I don't think you believed that the first day you saw me."

  He grunted and leaned his head back against the tub. Wet tendrils of hair clung to

  his cheek and she almost crawled up his body to brush it away.

  "I watched you with binoculars for a while."

  She sucked in a gasp. "Really?"

  "Yeah. And when I watched you, dislike didn't come into it. Other than hating

  myself."

  "You hated yourself for being a peeping Tom?"

  "No, because my cock went hard as a rock while I was watching you." He licked his

  lips. "Your cute little ass was sticking in the air while you were digging. My eyes were

  glued to your ass, believe me."

  Her mouth opened in disbelief, but her body reacted with fierce need and desire for

  these amazing sensations to continue, for his simmering hot glances, assertive touches

  and ego-boosting words never to stop.

  His grin was lopsided. "You look shocked."

  "I am. I didn't think you liked me that day and here you're saying the first day you

  met me you wanted to get into my pants?"

  "Yeah. Why is that so surprising?"

  "The way you were growling at me."

  Shane shrugged. "Yeah, well, I was a fool."

  He leaned forward, picked her up by the waist and hauled her over onto his body.

  As she straddled his waist, his cock felt incredibly aggressive, a blade that promised

  conquering, a strong erection that could plunder and take and give mind-blowing

  pleasure. His hands clamped around her waist, his cock planted hot and hard against

  her pussy. Shane's eyes blazed with incomparable need.

  "What do you want from me, Emma?" he asked suddenly.

  "Total honesty."

  "I can't give it to you. Not where the agency is concerned. There are classified

  things—"

  She put her finger to his lips. "Is there anything you can tell me that's real?

  Anything honest?"

  For a long time he stared at her as the water swished and bubbled, swirled like a

  whirlpool along their bodies in a sensual dance that promised everything. "Yeah, I can.

  You mean so much to me, Emma. And right now, I can't wait to fuck you."

  She blushed, her body hot with the arousal building relentlessly inside. She didn't

  shock easily, but his statement did things to her she couldn't deny. He pulled her

  toward him, until her hips pushed down into his, her breasts mashed along the hard

  wall of his chest. He stuffed his fingers in her hair and drew her near. He licked her

  earlobe and she shivered as hot, thick cream pooled between her legs.

  He whispered into her ear. "Do you hear me? I want to fuck you so deep you'll

  forget any other man you've been with." He reached between them with one hand and

  pinched an erect nipple. "I want to kiss you, hold you, talk with you…and yeah, I even

  want to protect you. I'm feeling fucking possessive, and I don't like it."

  Whoa. Her cheeks filled with heat, and her hands dug into his broad shoulders and

  shivers of wildfire delight shook her body. Her adrenaline went higher, her breathing

  growing faster, shallower.

  He drew back to look into her eyes, and she saw the truth. Everything he'd just said

  was true, whether she liked it or not.

  But she did like. So very, very much.

  His breathing echoed hers, the anger in his eyes equaled by the fire she saw

  glowing within him. His cock, smooth, hard and hot, made her clit throb. She pulsed

  with a sweet desire to slide back and forth along his long, steel length. He pinched her

  nipple again and she wriggled on his lap as pleasure zinged through her body in a wild

  wave.

  He lifted her by the waist one more time, his powerful arms raising her high, and

  before she could do more than gasp in surprise, he lowered her slowly down over his

  cock. She moaned as the burgeoning length eased into her wet passage. Then he filled

  her quickly with a single deep thrust.

  "Oh, my God." She gasped out the words and threw her head back, aroused

  beyond anything she'd known.

  She kept her yes closed, but he pressed upward with his hips and her eyes came

  open again. "Ease up, Emma."

  She rose upward on her knees a bit, and before she could guess what he had in

  mind, he jammed upward with a hammering stroke.

  She cried out as pleasure streaked through her body. "Oh, yes!"

  Words were unnecessary after that as he did exactly what he said he wanted to

  earlier. His hips rotated, thrust, fucked her high and deep with increasing movements.

  She joined in the battle as she gazed into his inflamed eyes, his expression fierce as he

  plowed her. A snarl ripped through her throat as she rode him, taking everything he

  wanted to give her and returning more. She danced upon him with a fervor and

  strength she didn't know she possessed. As the violence of their movements sloshed

  water over the tub, she heard their moans echoing as a strong c
ounterpoint to the

  roiling water and the steam rising upward from the surface. Her breaths panted from

  between her lips, her excitement roaring to the surface in a mindless inferno.

  Shane gritted his teeth as his cock slid effortlessly through her soaked channel as he

  fucked her for all he was worth. He'd never felt this way about a woman before, his

  emotions a screaming mixture of frustration and sexual hunger. He powered into her,

  relentless thrusts caressing her pussy without mercy. He paused only long enough to

  hit the switch to shut off the whirlpool action so he could see their hips colliding.

  Heaven seared him as he watched his cock moving rapidly in and out of her pussy with

  mind-bending thrusts. He shook, he shuddered.

  Oh, man. Shit. Fuck. His head was going to blow off.

  He took in the sight of all that beautiful femininity riding his cock and gritted his

  teeth.

  Before ecstasy took him away, he saw pleasure infuse her pretty face. Her eyes

  closed, her head fell back and her pussy rippled around him. She screamed, the high-

  pitched wail of fulfillment driving him to the edge.

  With his last stroke, his body jerked, twitched, and cum spurted out of him with

  blast after blast. Growls ripped from his throat as he came apart at the seams and filled

  her with his cum. As she sighed and slipped down into his arms, he buried his face in

  her hair and realized she'd bewitched him, body and soul.

  He didn't think he'd ever recover.

  * * * * *

  As they dried with towels after rinsing in the shower, Emma wondered at Shane's

  quietness. The wild lovemaking seemed to have silenced them both.

  Speechless, she followed him as he left the bathroom. When he slid onto the

  comforter and held out his hand, she went to him. He gathered her into his arms as he

  lay back. Some relief encompassed her heart. She cuddled into his strong arms, her

  body still cooling from their lovemaking.

  "I suppose you'll leave Gambit Creek when this is all over," he said suddenly.

  Surprised, she tilted her head up to look at him. "What?"

  "After this is over you'll go back to hightailing it around the country and you'll be

  looking for a new job."

  She nodded, doubts intruding on the quickly fading glow in her heart. "Of course

  I'll look for another job."

  What was he implying? That she was too much of a distraction? Her heart, which

  had filled with ecstasy while making love, began to sink. It was cold in the real world

  and now she felt the chill.

  "What are we going to do, Shane?"

  "About what?"

  "About…this. Us. We barely know each other."

  He grinned and the heat in his eyes made her simmer with excitement, despite her

  doubts. "I'd say we just learned a lot, wouldn't you?"

  The twinkling in his eyes gave testimony that he didn't understand her seriousness.

  All her inhibitions flooded back with painful intensity, reminding her of the past. No

  roots, no ties. No love. Emotions burst through her like thunder, taking her by surprise,

  splitting her in half. The urge to turn away, to run came full upon her.

  Run.

  Emma gazed at Shane and thought about what she'd leave behind. His tender,

  sweet caresses. The heated, burning passion in his kisses. His concern and his

  protection.

  None of it was enough if he didn't love her.

  It seemed only yesterday they'd first met at the dig. She recalled his pointed

  arrogance and pushiness, and her scathing assessment of him as a cowboy. Yet even

  from the beginning, their physical attraction had burned at the center, needing only a

  small step to explode.

  No one in his or her right mind fell in love so quickly.

  She'd do well to remember that.

  Real and fresh as a wound, the pain stripped her raw. One action could protect her

  and only one action.

  "Maybe I should go back to Denver now," she said.

  "What?"

  "I'm in the way. With me gone, you can concentrate on catching the thieves."

  "I didn't mean you should go back yet. If you're with me, I'll know you're safe."

  Shane scrutinized her like a precious parchment inscribed with all the elixirs and

  potions to cure a thousand needs. He tilted her chin up and tasted her with kisses that

  left her breathless. When he pulled back, the cocky curve of his lips promised more

  heated lovemaking.

  But love?

  No. He couldn't be in love. He might lust for her, might care for her, but he'd told

  her to go. Maybe not right now, but eventually.

  Shane frowned. "You look awfully serious."

  "I am."

  "And?"

  She struggled upright and out of his arms. Watching confusion play over his

  features, she said, "Maybe if I abandon the site the violence will stop."

  As he sat up, his brow furrowed. Despite his scowl, she resisted the temptation to

  reach out to him.

  "What are you talking about?" The husky flavor of his voice edged with

  remembered desire. "I thought you wanted to complete this excavation above

  everything else. Now you've completely changed your mind?"

  She closed her eyes, afraid to see his expression.

  "Obviously the violence, the ransacking of the site and Grant's disappearance are

  linked. He might be humiliated, or he might resent what happened, but I'd think he

  would have turned up by now. Something happened to him."

  "Another reason why you need protection. Besides, what's that have to do with

  what's happened between us?"

  "We…" Emma shook her head and opened her eyes, unable to define the mixture of

  feelings bombarding her. Should she throw caution aside, declare her love with no

  reservations and see where fate led her? Leave him despite the burning hole it would

  carve in her heart? "Maybe we should cool things down. I'll move into the hotel while

  the police investigation is going on."

  Her voice sounded breathless even to her own ears. Like a diaphanous thread. She

  hated the vulnerability growing within her at the touch of his hand. He could snare her

  like a spider caught creatures within its web.

  At first she wasn't certain she saw the subtle change in his eyes. A touch of anger?

  Or fear? Sometimes the two could be the same, inseparable one from the other.

  She stood, ready to retreat to the bathroom where she wouldn't have to see the

  expression on his face. Before she could leave, he moved across the bed and stood

  beside her. He drew her into his arms so that she had no choice but to endure hard

  muscles and sexual curves urgent against her.

  "Don't do this, Emma. Don't shut me out now." As he brushed her hair from her

  forehead, he kissed the soft skin.

  Gently she disengaged herself from his arms. Freedom remained paramount in her

  life and obviously Shane felt the same. He'd already led a life of adventure and constant

  mobility. Why would he want someone in his life who was always on the move?

  If she didn't love him then she couldn't be hurt, and he'd warned her before they

  made love. He could harm her. Well, he'd hurt her all right. But not the way he

  thought…not with physical violence. Essentially he was an innocent bystander. A man

  who had taken what he wanted from her and she'd let him. She'd allowed herself to<
br />
  become emotionally involved.

  Moments passed with the slowness of molasses as Shane looked down on her.

  When she didn't speak, he cupped her face in his hands. "By backing away you're

  saying what we shared didn't mean anything to you."

  She closed her eyes, fighting the urge to throw herself back in his arms. "It does

  mean something to me." Trembling with an overflow of emotions that strangled her,

  she left his touch again and moved to pick up her clothes. She didn't dare look at his

  face. "We had a good time."

  He reached for his underwear and jeans and pulled them on. "Had a good time?"

  He watched her as she dressed. "Maybe I had you figured wrong. I thought you cared

  about me."

  "I do," she whispered as slipped into her underwear. "I care enough that I don't

  want to make your life more complicated. I can't—"

  "You can't do what?" he asked harshly. "Emma, I told you about myself. I made

  love to you. Now you're telling me you want to leave and pretend this never

  happened? Is that it?"

  Solemn, she waited, not saying anything as she donned her jeans and shirt.

  Shane sighed. "I don't understand. Did I do something wrong?"

  She shook her head. "No. It's me."

  He clasped her shoulders again and forced her to look at him. His eyes burned with

  an intensity she'd never seen in a man's face before. "That's a fucking line people use

  when they want to dump someone, Emma. Tell me what's wrong. Maybe I can help."

  The intensity of his gaze pulled her forward, begging her to tell him everything. But

  she couldn't—wouldn't tell him she loved him and risk the rejection. So she remained

  silent, staring at him, feeling the tears come. She had never cried this much in the

  previous thirty years. This week held the record.

  He released her arms and she saw a dismal shadow cover his eyes, deepening and

  darkening. His cheeks paled, as if taken by a sudden illness. "I see. Well, thanks for

  letting me know what you really think of me. I guess I did have you figured wrong."

  Confusion welled deep in Shane's heart and another emotion he'd never

  experienced. Pure anguish. How could she toss him aside like a rotten side of beef?

  She'd been so loving, so sweet, so full of passion. Following his pain came deep anger.

  The desire to lash out rose in him and threatened to send him out of the room. What the