The commotion stopped as soon as we walked in. Eve went straight to the stove, took the pan out of her husband's hand and put it on a stand next to the sink. A single green bean flew through the air landing in one of the plates Jack had set on the table. Eve jerked her head to look at her daughter whose face expressed perfect innocence.
"Nick, you haven't met our youngest," Noah said.
The girl offered me her hand "I'm-"
Jack stuck his head out of the fridge to cut her off.
"Moon," he said.
"Princess," Skye said immediately after him.
"Alexandra," the girl mumbled with a resigned expression which said that she was all too familiar with this manner of introduction. "I am Moon Princess Alexandra."
"I'm Nick Woods," I said and shook her hand smiling widely at the silly name.
She perked up. "You're Nicholas Woods? The Nicholas Woods?"
I looked inquiringly from her to Skye, who shrugged.
"I may have talked about you when I came back from New York."
Alexandra's eyeroll made it clear it was an understatement. I was spared any embarrassment when Eve announced that we were going to have dinner outside, and she assigned tasks with heartwarming efficiency.
During dinner, I found out the origin of the Walker children's names.
"My maiden name is Montoya," Eve said. "Noah promised my brother that he would get to name our first child."
One mystery solved. Inigo Walker might well be Inigo Montoya if ever chose to take his mother's name.
"Do you fence?" I asked him.
Jack threw me an annoyed look. "No. But I am looking for a six-fingered man to take care of my father who kept his promise to my idiot uncle."
"And Skye?" I asked Eve.
"She hasn't told you? We asked Jack to pick a name for his baby sister."
"Unlike my uncle, who was fifteen when he was asked, I was only four."
"Oh, yes, because you did so much better when you were seven and you picked mine," Alexandra said.
"Well, Skye seemed to work fine for this one," he said, nudging Skye with his elbow. "Moon sounded just right."
"So, Princess was your contribution?" I asked Skye.
She shrugged. "I was three. I'm pretty sure my other suggestions were Choo-Choo and Orange."
"Actually, my favorite suggestion was Mowgli," Noah said.
"My theory was that they didn't go for that because of the alliteration. Moon Mowgli Walker sounds just wrong," said Jack.
"We're all grateful that we have real names, too," Alexandra said. "Joan is the only one who goes by her crazy name."
Skye shrugged again. "I kind of like it now. It saved me a lot of explaining when it comes to some of my quirks. And it's a fun way to break the ice when I meet someone new."
"I'm still rooting for her to marry someone with a surname like Netson," Alexandra said.
For a moment, I was confused and I looked from her to Skye.
"Skye Net…" Skye said. "From Terminator?"
"SkyNet's on," Alexandra said.
That sounded almost as funny as Skye Walker. Dinner continued in the same easy-going atmosphere. I offered to help clearing up the table, but Skye took the plates from my hands and piled them on top of the stack Jack was carrying.
"You're here to relax, Woods," she said. "Let me show you the lavender fields."
I followed her and we walked for a few minutes in silence. I never felt so much like a tourist. My city shoes were not appropriate for the country road we took up the hill behind the Walkers' house.
"It's not the perfect time of day to see them, but they're gorgeous," Skye said before we reached the top.
Fields of purple flowers stretched in endless rows. The sunset added a lot of red to their shade.
"I'd like to see them in the morning," I said.
"Oh, yeah. They are perfect in the morning."
"Thank you. For all of this," I said.
"Don't mention it."
From most people, that was just a polite answer to being thanked. From Skye, I took it as a request not to mention it again. For all the things we shared, emotions were always out of discussion.
Chapter 17 - Magnolia Grove
After the week I had spent in LA tracking down the murder, my body was accustomed to the time zone and I woke up at six as I always did. Noah and Eve were in the kitchen.
"Good morning," I said.
"Morning, Nick. Do you want breakfast? A coffee?" Noah asked.
"Just the coffee. Thank you."
Eve poured me a cup. I took a sip, not expecting much. The taste was amazing. Better than the best gourmet coffee I used on my French press. Now it made sense why Skye was so unhappy with the coffee at our station.
"This is delicious."
"Glad you like it," Noah said. "Are you sure you don't want any breakfast?"
I shook my head. "No. I want to go to the lavender fields."
They smiled and they didn't offer to accompany me. It was unnerving to have so much freedom. These people accepted me without knowing me. I walked up the hill with the coffee mug in hand. At the top, I sat on a rock and looked over the purple valley. The sounds and the smells took over my senses. I closed my eyes and I let go of everything that wasn't that perfect moment.
When I got back, I took the mug back to the kitchen. I washed it and placed it next to the others. I saw that Noah was going to the Zen Garden near the patio where we had dinner. They allowed me free reign in the house and the gardens, but I couldn't help feeling like a trespasser. Spending time with Noah would make me feel less of an intruder. Not to mention I wanted to know more about Skye's father for reasons I could not discuss with him.
I passed in front of an open window on my way to the Zen Garden. Instinctively, I looked inside. Skye sat in a lotus position in the middle of the room. The only sound were the wood chimes at her window. I knew I shouldn't keep looking, but I was mesmerized. She seemed just as tense as always, but her features were relaxed into a serene smile. I was a massive jerk, but I took advantage of the moment to stare at her to my heart's content. I memorized the curve of her breast under the white tank top. I licked my lips at the sight of the nipples poking through the fabric. I kept watching her even when a part of me hardened in response to the beautiful body that thrummed with life and energy.
Noah Walker clasped my shoulder friendly but firmly. I started and stepped away from the window. I hadn't even heard him approach. We didn't speak until we got to the Zen Garden.
"I'm sorry about that. I don't know much about meditation, but I guess it was a breach of etiquette to look at her while she's doing it," I said.
I wondered if he was going to press the point. I was certain that both Noah and Eve were aware of the sexual nature of my relationship with their daughter.
"Don't worry," he said.
We walked in silence for a while. It looked like the Walkers didn't handle serious discussions well. All those nights Skye sought refuge in my bed, she never talked about the horrors of her mission. At the time, I thought it was because she obeyed the letter of the police regulations for undercover work. She broke those rules to sneak out of the area where she was supposed to stay. She broke them so that she could be with me. But she never talked about her feelings or about her fears. She just used my body to make herself feel better and I was happy to oblige.
And there I was, with her father, waiting for him to find the courage to ask what he wanted to know.
"Does she like what she does?" he asked suddenly.
My first thought was about what his daughter did to me and how much she enjoyed doing it. I was sure he hadn't meant that.
"You mean police work?"
"Yes," Noah said. "We don't talk about it because she thinks we wouldn't understand. Besides, she's stubborn enough to tell us the opposite of the truth if we ask her directly."
"She is extraordinary," I answered. "I only worked with her when we were both undercover, but I read about her
work in LAPD and they are very happy with her."
I was happy with her. I had happy moments and happy endings all the time. The Walkers might be the cool parents everyone dreams of having and they were a few years younger than me, but they would not appreciate to know such details or my most intimate thoughts about their daughter.
"We don't know much about her undercover operations. She talked about working with you on that tourist murders in New York."
I nodded. "She was the one to break the case. You should be very proud of her."
Noah gave me an odd look.
"We are very proud of her. She is an exceptional woman and we support her in whatever she does. Did you think we don't approve of her choice to join the Police?"
I shrugged. From everything Skye said, she felt they were on her side, and believed in her even if they didn't understand what she did or why she was doing it.
"She knows you love her. She probably doesn't tell you details about her work and you don't really know what a tremendous impact her actions have on other people's lives."
"You're right," Noah said and bent down to center a rock in a series of concentric circles in the sand.
We walked towards a patio where cushions surrounded a low table that prepared for a tea ceremony.
"We don't know details, but we know her well. It was clear from the start that she chose a career in which she helped people. So, I know she does her duty and she does it well, but does she like what she does? Sometimes when she comes here she is spent. Burned out."
I nodded again. I could see how coming to this place would help her regenerate the light inside her. I didn't like the thought of Skye being burned out. She was so young. It took me decades to end up in places of despair that might require such a retreat from the world.
"That's why she brought you here," Eve said.
She had come out of the house with a tea pot, a jar of honey and three cups on a tray. She sat down next to Noah. He poured the tea in the cups and added honey to his. Eve added a teaspoon of honey to hers. I waited for them to speak, but they seemed completely engrossed in the ritual.
"Why?" I asked.
They looked at me surprised.
"Because you are burned out, too. Skye talked about you when she came back from New York. She respects you more than anyone else on the force. We never heard her so excited as she was when she talked about working with you."
"She didn't get into details about the case, but we read the papers," Noah said. "It meant a lot to her that you saved her when that crazy girl tried to kill her."
What had Skye told her parents? I hadn't saved Skye. I had been blind to Anna's insanity. I was too late to prevent Skye from being drugged and tied up. Maybe she had told them a version of events they could handle. The only way I had been there for Skye was during her second mission, when she came to my house for sex. No, she couldn't tell them about that. She probably didn't tell them the full horror of what she had been through in her other New York mission.
My week in Magnolia Grove was the best I felt in decades. With one caveat. My lust for Skye grew from hour to hour. She never made a move to show me she felt the same, and my frustration was sometimes surpassed by my embarrassment. I was a good enough liar to hide the intensity of my desire from the Walkers, but I was sure that everyone knew.
Chapter 18 - Skye's apartment
Skye drove me back to LA. I hadn't booked a flight and we hadn't talked about where she was taking me. A hotel close to the airport seemed like a good idea.
She hadn't touched me even by accident since we got in the car. I had to get to a hotel and take care of this energy I was holding back.
I had no idea where we were when she stopped the car in front of a residential building.
"I live here. Do you want to come up to-"
"Yes," I interrupted her.
To hell with it. I'd been around her for a week without being able to touch her. I wasn't supposed to expect sex, but I didn't want to hold back any longer. I kissed her in the elevator, and she answered with equal passion. Neither of us cared that we weren't alone.
The week at Magnolia Grove had recharged my batteries in more ways than one. Spiritually, I was in a much better place than I had been in a long time. Physically, I was filled to the brim with lust. She had to reap the benefits of my newly revigorated mind and body.
We stumbled out of the elevator still groping each other.
"What number?" I asked between kisses.
"That way," she said pointing to a door.
We kissed like a couple of teenagers outside her door while she groped blindly in her bag for her keys. I was hard and dying for release. The need to be inside her was so strong, I wanted to fuck her right there in the public hallway. I managed to rip myself from her embrace. I took a step back.
"Get the keys," I said, and pushed her away when she tried to kiss me again.
She groaned in frustration, but she did it. The moment the door was closed between us, we started kissing again. Our mouths devoured each other while our hands unbuttoned, unzipped and in some cases torn apart our clothes. She had a nice couch in the middle of her living room. I made her kneel on it and penetrated her hard from behind. I had wanted to bend her over every damn table in Magnolia Grove. She propped her chest against the back of the couch and offered me the resistance I needed to inflict the grueling pace dictated by my lust. Her pussy clamped around me and she came, squeezing my cock to the point of pain. I didn't stop. I didn't even slow down. I kept up the pace, more violent than ever before in our encounters, and I fought back my own climax over and over again. Her second orgasm was less violent, but it took longer to subside. She couldn't control herself any more, her abused inner muscles loosened, but I kept going hard and heavy until I exploded in an orgasm that left me weak at the knees.
I got out of her and let myself drop on the couch next to her kneeling body. She pressed her palm over her pussy and some final tremors coursed through her.
Half an hour later, we were back on the couch. We had showered and changed in fresh clothes. I was wearing another of Noah's t-shirts which Skye had appropriated underhandedly. It was nice to have the confirmation that her invitation to her apartment was premeditated, not a spur of the moment decision.
"You're wasting your time," I said when she crawled onto my lap.
"What?" she asked feigning innocence.
"Ten years ago I could have given you what you're asking for."
"Ten years ago, I was fifteen. What would you give a fifteen year old virgin, Nick?"
She said it in a suggestive, vicious tone, as if she tried to hurt me. She made it clear she was too young for me. How did she expect me to react to those words? To fall over myself explaining I meant I'd be ten years younger but she'd be the same age? Even in my thirties I was too old and too jaded for someone like her.
Ten years earlier, I wouldn't have had the self-restraint I had now. If I met her when I was thirty-four I would have made her mine. I would have started my seduction the moment we stepped in that house together, and she would belong to me in a dark and unhealthy way. Forty-four year old me was content waiting for the right time.
After two days and two nights sex marathon, I learned when her sleep was the deepest. I had to leave while she was asleep or I'd say something I regretted. I thought about leaving her a note. Something to let her know I cared about her. But I couldn't trust myself to find the right words that would let her know I cared about her but not the depth of my affection.
I still hadn't even booked a flight home. I just went to the airport, bought a ticket for the first plane to New York and I stayed there, immersing myself in the ocean of humanity hurrying to or from their flights.
I wondered if she would hate me for leaving or if she cared about it at all. She was finally at peace here. How could I expect her to leave this place of light and lavender to be with me?
Chapter 19 - New York without Skye
My cell rang. It was unusual fo
r Skye to call me during working hours. The same obsessive thoughts came crashing over me. She was calling me to tell me she's dating, or in love, or getting married. I caught another glimpse of Katherine's unguarded smile, and for a split second I pictured Skye smiling like that at the thought of another man.
"Woods" I couldn't mask the pain in my voice when I answered the phone.
"Hey. I hope I didn't call in a bad moment."
"No. It's ok."
"I…"
'Just say it already. Rip my heart out, but at least do it quickly.'
"Everything ok?" I asked.
"Yeah, sure. My parents ask about you a lot. They really liked you."
"I liked them, too. Tell them I said hi."
"I don’t think I will. They seem to think you're God's gift to police work. It's quite unnerving."
"Whose fault is that? You're the one who told them how amazing I am."
"I did, didn't I?"
Her mock sigh amused me. I liked the Walkers and meeting them had explained quite a few things about Skye. Almost everything really. Everything except the darkness. I couldn't afford to think about her or her family as anything that had to do with my life. It would hurt all the more when she took it all away for good.
"Why did you call?" I asked.
The long breath she took warned me that something big and unpleasant was coming.
"I'm going undercover again. Not sure how long it will take, but I won't be able to call you for a while."
That was both better and worse than what I had prepared myself for. It occurred to me that she didn't have to tell me that she wasn't going to call me for a while. She didn't owe me anything. The very fact that she needed to tell me made me hope again. It told me that she didn't call me because she wanted my opinion or because something in her life happened. The need was inside her and it was constant. I could picture her fighting it, and sometimes it got too intense and she reached for the phone.
"How dangerous is it?"
"Oh, pfff," she said. "It's not. It can literally not get any less dangerous than this. I'll be a librarian."
Haunting Woods (Under Covers Book 2) Page 7
