Eternal Oath

by Jewel Quinlan

  It felt like he’d stepped over a great chasm. And he had. The choices they made tonight would translate into memories that would last them until they died. The awareness heightened his every sense.

  As before, the contact of their lips caused flames of desire to spring up in his belly. He would never tire of kissing her. Their lips and tongues met in a sensual dance matched in passion. He wasn’t taking advantage of her at all. They joined together by mutual consent, both old enough to know what they wanted. But the feelings blazed as if newly forged.

  Falk slid his hands beneath her robe and stroked her back, marveling at the soft skin and the contours he found there. He reclined onto the couch again, pulling her with him, and slid his hands lower, kneading the skin and wondering at the narrowness of her waist before continuing on. She gasped in his mouth as his hands cupped the roundness of her buttocks. But instead of pulling away, she arched her pelvis into him, making them both aware of his aching erection stretching between them.

  Unable to resist, he dug his fingertips into her round flesh, grinding her against him, as he trailed his lips down her cheek to her neck. God, there was so much soft skin open to his senses. He couldn’t get enough. She moaned as he nipped the flesh of her collarbone in his excitement.

  “Sorry,” he whispered.

  “No, no. It’s fine….” She pulled his shirt up, trying to get closer to him.

  He yanked it over his head in one quick motion, happy to comply. And then her mouth was on his shoulders and neck. He laid his head back and closed his eyes, enjoying her as she took control. She moved lower to his chest, her bare breasts sliding against his lower abdomen. A spike of lust made him push at Linda’s robe, trying to get it off as she continued her journey lower to his stomach.

  Her lips trailed the flesh at the top of his waistband. She wound up on top of him, naked, because he had flung her robe to some far corner of the room. He couldn’t get enough of the sight of her. Her brown hair cascaded to the side, and the curves of her butt shown just behind. She peeked up at him from where she kissed the flesh of his belly and the eroticism of eye contact had him grabbing her, pulling her up and under him so she was on her back on the couch.

  She responded to his movements as though she could read his mind. Her arms extended up to him as he moved to cover her body with his own, and they kissed once again, tongues thrusting deep. Her skin felt wonderful against his, the heat of it made his heart pound with need. He ran a hand down her side to her hip and then inward to her thighs. At the same time, his hips dug between her legs and she parted for him so he could nestle there.

  She gasped as his hand stroked first the outer flesh then moved upward toward her moist heat. He slid the fingers of one hand into the hair at the back of her neck and kissed her deeply while his other hand explored the curls covering her most sacred parts. The heat and wetness there made him feel like a weak, stark-raving madman. All he wanted to do was drive himself into her until he was lost.

  But he would not.

  With Linda, he would control himself. Together, they would reach heights he never could by himself, and he would not give in until it was achieved.

  Linda writhed in ecstasy as he teased her tender flesh with his fingers. She grasped at his back and moaned as he took his time exploring every slick fold. He had imagined this moment for so long it filled him with wonder. Reality was far better than his dreams had ever been. With every touch his passion grew as did the certainty that what they did couldn’t be more right.

  “Oh God, Falk!” Linda gasped out. “I don’t think I can take much more.”

  He kissed her neck. “Yes, you can.”

  He slid his fingers into her, loving the way she thrust her pelvis up in response. A low squeal sounded at the back of her throat, almost inaudible but so erotic to his ears he had to see if he could elicit more. He panted with his own need, but the fullness of Linda’s beauty and her every reaction filled him as if they were his own.

  She grasped at the flannel pants he wore, tugged at them, trying to get them off. When that didn’t work, her fingers sought his erection through the fabric, stroking him up and down as best she could. Her clumsy, inexperienced motions made him even hotter, and he had to bite back a moan of his own.

  Linda tried to slip her hand underneath the waistband of his pants but couldn’t. They were too big for him and he’d tied them up well with a double knot. Had he known what would happen this evening he wouldn’t have been so thorough. He tried to undo them himself, but the knot wouldn’t budge.

  He looked at Linda. She was ready; he could tell. He wanted to scream at the uncooperative cord beneath his hand. Instead, his brain kicked in, and he leaped up. As he stood, his sight filled with the creaminess of her body in the firelight and her passionate expression. It made him damn the disruption the pants caused.

  “Be right back,” he told her as he headed to the kitchen. There he grabbed a knife from the butcher block and stabbed at the knot. There was no contest. The cord sliced in two at once, freeing him, and he removed the garment.

  On his way back to Linda, he noticed his wallet on the dining table. He grabbed it and removed the condom he kept there out of habit, grateful for the friend’s advice he’d followed.

  He ripped it open and smoothed it over his length as he knelt over Linda on the couch. She reached for him, a pleased expression in her eyes, and it made him feel good to know she liked what she saw.

  “Are you sure you want to?” he asked her once more as he lowered his body on top of hers.

  “Yes.” She didn’t hesitate.

  He settled between her legs and kissed her. She spread easily for him, and the tip of his member soon found the opening of her heat. He pressed against it the barest bit, moving the head of his erection into her opening. The warmth there beckoned him in a way that could not be resisted. But he clenched his teeth and willed himself to have more control.

  He pushed in a little more then pulled back. Once again then back. So delicious and tight. But he didn’t want to force his way in.

  She writhed and moaned beneath him, her hands frantic as she kissed his shoulders and neck, urging him on.

  He continued inward even farther and met resistance, as he had expected. She was a virgin. He hesitated, not knowing how to make it easier for her. How could he make it less painful?

  “Please, Falk, keep going,” she gasped.

  And he did.

  Unable to resist her any longer, he plunged his full length into her and paused there, buried, panting. She flinched a little at his intrusion, and he waited to make sure she was okay, feeling bad he’d forged ahead without a second thought. Although he felt a grand sense of pleasure, knowing he was her first, he cursed himself for it all the same.

  “Are you all right?” He looked down at her, and his trepidation lessened as he noticed her eyes were wide with wonder.

  “Yes. I’m fine. No, it’s more than that.” She smiled at him. “I’m wonderful. This is just as it should be, better than I thought. We belong together, Falk.”

  At her words, he felt himself glow in response, the truth resonating within him.

  “Yes. Forever.” He lowered his head to kiss her once more.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Linda floated, buoyant, on a feeling that could not be defined. It was so good she couldn’t think of a word in the English language to describe it. Her body ached and yet felt like a languid pool of molten pleasure. So much so, she had the random thought this much happiness had to be illegal.

  Her consciousness drifted to waking whether she wanted it to or not due to the sunshine streaming in the windows. Her face pressed to Falk’s chest, she was wrapped around him in a way she thought only whores achieved. The thought brought a wicked smile to her face. They had done all the things and more she’d imagined. First on the couch and then on the rug in front of the fire and then they’d experimented with the arm chair off to the side….

 
Neither of them had wanted to stop. He’d plunged and plunged into her until she’d reached a height she never knew existed, one that drove her to cry out in helpless pleasure and then collapse in worn-out bliss. Falk had found his own release in the midst of hers, and later they curled up together, exhausted, to sleep. She could hear Falk’s heartbeat beneath her ear, and she tightened her arm around his torso, not wanting to break the spell.

  But it was broken for her.

  A vision sucked her in. The force of it made her feel woozy as she was thrust into an unfamiliar scene. Dark and gray with so much motion she didn’t know for several seconds what she saw.

  When she figured it out, she reached her hands out in an effort to try and make it stop. Then, realizing the futility of her motion, she pressed them to her mouth and cried.

  It was Grace.

  Someone held her face under water, but Linda couldn’t see who. Bubbles left Grace’s mouth as she tried to scream and twist out of the murderer’s grasp, but she couldn’t. And then, she ran out of bubbles…. Less than a minute ticked by as her lungs burned for oxygen, Linda could feel it, and then Grace finally had to breathe in. But she took in water and choked and spasmed. Another pause, and then another round of Grace inhaling water, choking, and spasming.

  Linda was held there, trapped, to watch every horrific moment until Grace went still and her eyes turned into lifeless, staring orbs.

  Helpless, Linda shook her head. “No, no, no, no….” she chanted, increasing the volume, sure the last one came out as a scream, but no sound reached her ears.

  Then, she woke.

  The scent of food drifted to her nostrils, and she lifted her head to see where it came from. Falk was in the kitchen, shirtless but wearing the flannel pants once again, and wielding a spatula. Something sizzled and popped on the stove before him. After stirring it, he glanced in her direction. When he saw she was awake, a smile lit his face and he tucked a strand of hair behind his ear.

  “Morning beautiful.”

  She smiled in response. “What are you making? It smells wonderful.” Hunger rumbled through her at the enticing scents, reminding her of just how many calories she had burned with Falk not hours before.

  “You’re in luck. I found a can of corned beef hash and some powdered eggs.”

  She sat up and gave a satisfied sigh as she stretched her arms over her head, not caring that the blanket fell from her and exposed her breasts. The memory of Falk kissing them last night was sufficient to remove the last shreds of her self-consciousness. But then her dreamy feeling dissipated as she realized what lay ahead of them. She resolutely stood and wrapped herself in her discarded robe from last night, the fabric chilled from lying on the floor.

  She moved to the kitchen and noticed Falk watching her.

  He shook his head, his expression solemn. “Hey now. There’s time for worrying later. Right now it’s just me and you and breakfast. Okay?”

  The tension in her face dissipated, and her spirits lifted at his words. Trust Falk to live in the moment. For once, she would do things his way. “All right.” She went and sat at the table.

  Linda didn’t know how most virgins’ encounter with their first man went. But she felt lucky hers was Falk, someone she knew and loved. Their meal together was filled with hand holding, meaningful looks, and feeding each other forkfuls of food. It would seem childish to a lot of people, but every single moment held meaning and magic for her.

  How could she have thought she loved Falk before? What she felt then paled in comparison to what she felt now. Her heart was so full she wasn’t sure it would be able to contain all the emotion beaming from her. Judging from what she could read off Falk, and she was good at reading him, he felt the same way. That knowledge alone threatened to make her love go supernova and the analogy almost made her laugh.

  “What’s so funny?” he asked.

  “Nothing. Just, I love you so much,” Linda said.

  “I love you, too.”

  The energy of their words resonated between them like a physical force, and a few moments passed before they resumed their breakfast, reluctant to look away from each other.

  Seriousness returned to Falk after breakfast, and together, they hurried in their preparations to leave. Twenty minutes later, they had both rinsed off in the shower and dressed once again in their own clothes, fresh out of the dryer. Then they packed food and water for the trail ahead of them.

  “Do you think the Swendens will mind if we take all this?” Linda gestured to the bag full of food.

  “Given the circumstances, I think they’ll be glad their place helped us,” Falk said. “Besides, I’m planning to restock everything we—”

  A shout came from outside. “We have you surrounded! Come out the front door and we may let you live.”

  Panic rose in a thick cloud between them.

  Falk grabbed her arm and pulled her down in a crouch. “They don’t know where in the house we are. We need to check every side before we make a run for it.”

  Linda nodded. They couldn’t stay here. They would be sitting ducks. Falk handed her a bag of supplies and a kitchen knife and then picked up similar items himself.

  “I’m going to check the front door and the sides. You go and check the back.”

  “Okay.” Her heart pounded in her ears.

  Falk squeezed her hand, and they separated, both in motion at once.

  Linda sprinted to the master bedroom at the back of the house. Trembling, she crept toward the curtains and nudged them the barest bit aside so she could see out. There appeared to be no one guarding the back of the house she noted with relief. She turned to go and get Falk, but just when she reached him, all hell broke loose.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Falk had barely glanced out through a window to check the side of the house when the ones near him exploded with a crash. He ducked to shield himself from the flying glass. By the time he lifted his arms away from shielding his eyes, Andrew stood over him holding a gun, his face a mask of rabid aggression. Falk froze and the butt of a gun jabbed toward his face.

  ***

  Linda flew on an erratic path through the forest, leaping over bushes and dodging trees. She had no idea what direction she headed in and didn’t care because someone was hot on her heels. Whether it was Jensen, Andrew, or someone else completely, she couldn’t say. Couldn’t take the half second to look back because if she stumbled and fell, it would all be over. She just knew she had to get away however she could.

  Hot tears flowed out of the corners of her eyes. Falk was still back there. She’d left him. With each step she took, remorse grew in her chest. She’d come out of the bedroom to tell him the back was clear as she heard the crash. When she reached the living room, Andrew stood over Falk, striking him with something. Falk had crumpled under the impact. A high-pitched scream had left her lips, and when Andrew had swiveled to look at her, her instincts kicked in. She ran.

  As she’d burst out the back door, it had smacked into whoever guarded it. But she didn’t see them, just heard a muffled, “Oof!” as she’d fled.

  Falk’s okay, he’s okay, he’s okay, she chanted to herself. But what if he wasn’t? What if they were stabbing or shooting him to death right at this moment? Without him, she was nothing. Her life would be over. Better to stop and let her pursuer nab her….

  But no. That’s not what Falk would have wanted for her. He would have instructed her to keep running and to never give up, no matter what happened to him. He’d insisted on it yesterday. The thought made her tears increase and blurred the forest in front of her. The toe of her shoe caught on something in the dirt. She fell and skidded about a foot before coming to a stop, her palms bleeding. But she leaped up and continued running, the smell of damp earth and blood filling her nostrils. It sounded like her pursuer had slowed; they were farther back than before. Time to change direction and throw them off.

  Linda zigzagged a few times, wishing she could do
something to step where she wouldn’t leave an obvious mark, but there was no chance at this speed. Her adrenaline spike waned, her breaths coming in ragged gasps. She wouldn’t be able to keep this up much longer. Being an experienced runner, she knew, no matter how strong her will, once she hit the wall her body would cease to cooperate as it almost had before when they’d fled from the house. Being forced to walk would be a death sentence. She tried to harness her breathing and steady her heart as she went.

  Darting to the side again, she hopped up a boulder spill in another effort to obscure her trail. As she descended down the other side, she glimpsed the lake through the trees, and a small red car gliding along on the narrow road bordering its shores.

  ***

  Falk jolted awake to blackness. Something covered his head. He lay on something hard and moving. The back of a truck, he realized, as the sound of the engine and crunch of dirt beneath the tires registered in his brain. His hands were tied behind his back, and a massive ache throbbed through his head.

  Where was Linda?

  He tried moving his legs and body to determine if she was with him in the truck bed but soon gave up. The truck moved fast over the rough road, and Falk smacked his sore head a couple of times as it bounced him around. After a temporary fading of consciousness, he stuck with doing his best to brace himself against the movement.

  His heart beat faster as he tried to figure out what the hell to do.

  A wave of nausea washed through him, and he fought it back. Was that blood trickling across his cheek? How badly had Andrew hurt him? Would he bleed out? But then he forced the wetness of it out of his mind and focused back on his predicament.

  His hands. He had to get them untied.

  He tried to tug them apart, but nothing gave. The tight bonds were giving his fingers the pinprick sensation from having the circulation cut off. Nevertheless, he curled his fingers toward his palms to see if he could feel what restrained him. His search soon revealed plastic zip ties, the kind villains used in movies. Three held his wrists together.