She reveled in the feel of his body invading hers, rejoiced in the merging of their flesh into one again. She lifted her knees and he slipped deeper. Lowering his body to cover hers, he kissed her again, and again. His hips jerked to hers and she breathed her acceptance into his mouth. He began moving in her, quick thrusts that became longer glides as their rhythms matched and became one. Everything but him disappeared as her body pulled him deeper and deeper. She could stay in this place forever, in his arms, his body moving strongly and sweetly in hers. She didn’t want it to end, but it was not to be.
Ryder gathered her close, cupping her head. His breath was ragged in her ear as his lips traveled up and down her neck, trailing kisses. Her name was a rough whisper, torn from him as his passion drew near. The wonderful rhythm faltered. His hand snaked between them. The pleasure inside her sparked and ignited, lifting to his. Her body quivered. Her sheath gripped his iron flesh as she grabbed for the beckoning pleasure and let it seize her.
Sensation shivered through her, again and again, as he slammed into her. He rose up over her, driving into her with enough force to touch her womb. Scalding heat flooded into her as his seed spilled from him. Her body pulsed, pulling it deeper, wanting its gift.
He groaned, a low sound of such complete male satisfaction that laughter welled up in her. She might have laughed had she been able to draw a deep enough breath, only she couldn’t. He’d come down on her, limp and heavy. He moaned again, calling softly on his gods and struggling to slide off her. She rolled with him and they settled thigh-to-thigh, holding each other. His lips brushed her forehead, then her eyes.
“When I crashed here, I thought you were a demon.” His voice was so low, she had to listen intently for fear she’d miss a word.
“It’s all pretty hazy. I thought you were going to keep me alive just to torture me.” He smiled. “And so you have.”
She smiled, too, knowing his meaning. “You crave this torture. Do not seek to mislead me. You will come every time I offer it to you.”
His smile widened. “You’ve got that right, angel.” He kissed her, a light touching of his lips to hers. His gaze met hers. The smile faded.
“I don’t know what to say to you, Saba. Did you offer yourself to me now thinking it payment for killing the Xenturan? Did you want me just for myself?” He licked his lips and she sensed his hesitance.
“I don’t want you to feel you need to continue this if you don’t want it just for itself. What I want is more than that.”
Saba’s chest hurt. Surely he couldn’t mean to walk away from what they brought to each other, could he?
“I could have chosen any man in the village, Ryder Vaughan. I could have chosen Tyree and been headwoman and the wife of the headman. A very powerful person to the Ramalho. But I didn’t. I choose no one—until you came. Does that not tell you anything?”
He held her tighter for a moment. “It does. But I would have this out in the open. I would have it said so you know. I don’t want you to think I stay with you because I’ve no place else to go on this world.”
“You may go anywhere you choose on this world. There are far-off lands and others who may be more like your own people.” It would kill her if he left. She would simply shrivel up and die.
“Perhaps some day the Ramalho will seek them, but not for a long time. I love you, Saba. Will you marry me, or do whatever your people do to partner with me?”
She stared at him.
“Blink, angel. It’s bad for your eyes to get dry.”
She blinked, and blinked again as tears flooded her eyes. She thought she nodded but wasn’t sure. His arms tightened around her so much, she couldn’t breathe.
“Is that a yes?” His voice was breathless in her ear.
She could manage a few words, if she tried. “Yes. I love you, too.”
Epilogue
In the first season of Wae after the time of the errol
Ryder straightened, stretching his back muscles. The piece of toweling tucked in his waistband was already wet and dirty, but he wiped his face and neck with it anyway. He’d known digging this trench was going to be nasty, hot work.
A group of the younger boys were running about and making nuisances of themselves. He yelled at them and they snapped to attention as he ordered told them to go fill the drinking bucket and bring it back without spilling the water. They scampered off, seeming pleased to be able to help the men with their project.
Tyree stopped digging and leaned on his shovel. He flipped his thumb in the direction of the disappearing youths.
“It’s hard for me to fathom you’re going to have one of those soon.”
Ryder grinned. “Me, too. She tricked me into it, you know.”
“Of course. That’s what they do. They bat their eyes at a man, wiggle their hips, and the next thing you know, they are having babies, it’s morning and you’re digging irritation ditches.”
Ryder laughed. “That’s irrigation ditches, my friend.”
“No. I said what I meant, outsider. I hope the next idea you come up with does not require digging.”
“I’m afraid it might, headman. Once the water starts to flow to the gardens, the women will howl until we extend the system to every hut, and add reservoirs.”
“I will plug my ears. Here comes Saba. Perhaps you should look busy so you don’t need to plug yours.” Tyree started digging again. Ryder followed suit.
The men had become friends. Ryder suspected it was as surprising to Tyree as it was to him. Tyree acknowledged Ryder as his equal. Ryder gave Tyree the respect due him. He had to work hard at not treading on the headman’s toes some days, but in the long run, the welfare of the Ramalho was what mattered most to both of them. They always agreed on that.
And, respected or not, Ryder would always be the stranger who fell from the sky. It was the way of things. His life was good. He had what he wanted.
The woman he loved. A child coming. A mission.
He watched Saba walking toward him. If he looked closely, he could see her belly had begun to round slightly. It wasn’t too obvious when she was wearing her work tunic.
She laughed at him at night, when he’d slip beneath the blankets and talk to their child. Yet she never called him foolish.
She stopped several feet away from him. “Are you about finished for today?”
Tyree growled. Ryder glanced at him.
“I don’t think so, no. I suppose I can’t run off and leave our headman on his own. He’ll get off track and the ditch will have turns it’s not supposed to have.”
Saba shrugged. “That’s too bad. The Lys traders have come. There is a piece of cloth Jennica covets. They would let her have it for twelve bottles of dark malt. If she had any, that is.”
Tyree growled again and threw one last shovelful of dirt onto the cart before stomping off. Saba turned to Ryder and smiled.
“Are you finished for the day now?”
Ryder shoveled the obligatory last bit of dirt for the day out of the trench. “I guess I am.”
“I have something for you.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a gold chain. “It’s for your medallion.”
His throat felt tight. She’d never once said a word about the gold coin he’d drilled a hole through to string on a braided leather cord and wear around his neck. He draped the chain across his hand. It was well crafted.
“You got this from the Lys?”
“Yes.”
“What did you trade for it?”
“All the wine I had left. It’s a good thing the berry harvest will be huge this year.”
He took a deep breath. “All the wine?”
Saba grinned. “Not, not all.” She patted her stomach. “There is enough for you, and I kept one bottle of the black morning berry so we can celebrate the birth of our daughter.”
Gods, she was wonderful. “Thank you, angel. I don’t know what to say.”
“Say you will go bathe and be fast about it. I’m very tired. I
need to lie down.”
“You do, do you?” He put his arm around her and they fell into step, his strides shortened to match hers.
“Oh, yes. I think I’ll need to rest all afternoon, while it’s so hot. I think you will need to massage my back and my legs. Perhaps even more of me. Perhaps you will finally tell me how you came to have that gold coin.”
Ryder pulled her closer.
“It all started with an invitation to a card game on a planet called…”
THE END
About the author….
Best selling author Rayne Forrest lives in scenic western Maryland, where she was born and raised. Her many novels, ranging from futuristic settings to romantic suspense have earned stellar reviews from the toughest critics in the industry—her readers.
When not at her computer, she enjoys working in her garden, crafting, bowling, and reading romance and science fiction. Rayne enjoys classic rock and New Age music. She is a member of the Romance Writers of America, and a two-time EPPIE finalist.
Rayne is a member of the Romance Writers of America (PAN). If you'd like to learn more about Rayne, visit her website at www.rayneforrest.com, and her blog at http://twentysixkeys.wordpress.com.
Science Fiction Novels by Rayne Forrest
A Hero’s Bargain
Across Time
Futuristic Novels by Rayne Forrest
Step Into Time
Paranormal Novels by Rayne Forrest
Skipping Heaven
Contemporary Novels by Rayne Forrest
One Summer
Skipping Heaven
By Rayne Forrest
What if you were a ghost and didn’t know it?
Daniel Woods is passing through the timeless and mysterious Appalachian Mountains on his way to Kentucky and his inheritance. A misstep tumbles him and his horse down the side of a mountain. Battered and bruised, they come upon a small homestead and help in the form of the lovely Justine Noakes. Daniel finds himself inexplicably attracted to Justine - and determined not to embarrass himself by acting on impulse.
Justine recognizes the blue-eyed trouble that just led his horse into her settled world is something she never bargained for. Irresistibly drawn to him, Justine has a problem. She needs to come up with a way to get Daniel to stay in her mountain aerie. The only way that can happen is if Daniel accepts his new reality.
What Justine knows, and Daniel must discover, is that sometimes heaven is found in unexpected places.
* * *
EXCERPT
They reached the barn and she darted to the corral, slipping between the rails and clapping her hands. Lady trotted to her then followed her into the barn. The mare was steady and he had quickly had her harnessed to the little buckboard. Daniel placed his foot on the wagon step, preparing to swing up onto the seat when Justine placed her hand on his arm. He froze, looking down at her.
“Thank you again for doing this,” she said quietly, smiling.
Impulse seized him. He put his boot back on the ground and pulled her into his arms. He caught a quick glance at her eyes before her eyelids closed and she rose on her toes to meet him halfway.
He was not trespassing.
He meant the kiss to be gentle. He meant the kiss to be soft and tender.
He meant the kiss to be something to lure her closer to him and suddenly it didn’t need to be. Suddenly she was as eager for the kiss as he was.
Suddenly she was the one in control of everything but the kiss.
Daniel grabbed what little wits he had left and slanted his mouth across hers. Her trembling lips opened under his as her arms came up around his neck. He moved his lips on hers then swept his tongue over her lower lip, a slow, lazy stroke that made her hold him tighter. A small moan escaped her and it was all the encouragement he needed.
He backed her into Lady’s stall, pulling her down to the clean straw. She clung to him without protest. He rolled her beneath him, never taking his lips from hers, feasting on her as she feasted on him.
She moaned again when he flexed his hips to hers, digging her fingers into his shoulders. He flicked his tongue to hers and she responded in kind. The heat in his groin spread, coiling in his belly. His cock swelled, filling with unbridled anticipation.
He cupped her breast, feeling the hard peak of her nipple through the thin cotton of her shift and bodice. She arched up to him, pulling her mouth from his and sucking in a great lungful of air. He sobered immediately.
God, he couldn’t take her here in the straw, on the ground, in a livestock barn. She deserved clean sheets and a soft bed, a man fresh from his bath, not a restless night spent sweating in the grip of barely recalled dreams.
He rose up and blinked her into focus. She met his gaze without pretense.
“I don’t want you to stop.”
What they said about Skipping Heaven…
5 Angels and a Recommended Read from Fallen Angel Reviews - This is an interesting amalgam of genres, including both historical and paranormal elements. I’ve read several of Ms. Forrest’s books, and this, despite its brief length, is my favorite so far. The plot is simple, and yet complex; sweet, and yet sinfully erotic; happily ever after, and yet bittersweet. The writing is exquisite, depicting for us the everyday life of a simpler time and place, while, at the same time, preparing us for more serious events to come. I became caught up in the lives of Daniel and Justine, who seemed like real people. The love scenes between the two are sensual and moderately explicit, and very emotionally satisfying. In my opinion, this is a story that transcends genre. It doesn’t matter if you prefer to read historical romance, science fiction, or fantasy, you will find Skipping Heaven irresistible.
5 Blue Ribbons from Romance Junkies Reviews…SKIPPING HEAVEN is the most beautiful love story I have read in a long time. Rayne Forrest draws her readers in from the first page and has them glued to their seats throughout this heart-warming romance. I laughed at the antics and went through a box of tissues at the end. Ms. Forrest pens a romantic tale with vivid imagery, captivating characters and passion hot enough to singe your fingers. Justine and Daniel are characters that will leave you spellbound. They are fun, sweet, sassy and sensual. This is the first story I have read by Ms. Forrest, but it definitely will not be my last. I look forward to reading all of her work.
4.5 Stars from eCata Romance - Rayne Forrest did an excellent job with Skipping Heaven. She carefully unfolds little hints that things are not as they should be and then zings you with the twist. Daniel and Justine had wonderfully passionate love scenes that were poignant and tender. They made a wonderful couple and seemed to be made for each other. All this combined with an intriguing plot makes this story one you won’t want to miss.
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