Moonlight, Monsters & Magic

by Linda G. Hill

  Peace, he’d told me. Be happy. Hah. Fat chance. Fat fucking chance.

  I managed to rouse myself on Mom’s birthday to bring flowers to her grave. So she was gone, Burroughs had said. What was the point of this, then?

  “Mom. I—” Talking aloud made me feel like an idiot, but I continued. “Mom, I know you’re probably not here. I just … I just miss you so much. I have something to tell you.”

  ~~ * * * ~~

  That night, I finished off a bottle of Mom’s favorite whiskey and passed out in front of my laptop while watching a cat jump into a box on loop. I dreamed—well, remembered, since it really happened—of my mother sitting on the couch, reading her romance novels.

  It was the first I’d dreamed of her since she’d passed away. I went to her and lay my head in her lap while she stroked my hair.

  “Why do you read this crap?”

  I yelped when she pinched my ear.

  “It’s easy to joke about love stories,” she told me, smoothing my hair back again. “But one day, Jaxx, you’re going to fall in love. And I want you to run toward it, arms wide open, heart out. Don’t be afraid to fall, sweetheart. That’s how you find happiness. And son, I want you to be happy.”

  Just like that, I bolted awake. I knew what I had to do.

  ~~ * * * ~~

  The road was familiar, though I’d only been there once. More and more it felt like coming home. I navigated the SUV through the gate, my hands shaking with nerves. Jumping out, not bothering to close the door behind me, I raced to the front door. I unlocked it and threw it open.

  “Douglas Burroughs!” I hollered, flicking the switches on one by one as I ran through the rooms. “Douglas!”

  Silence. But the house did not have the same oppressive gloom it had had before.

  “Doug!” I took the stairs two at a time, heading to my—to our room, flinging the door to the side. “Douglas?”

  “It is Lord Burroughs.” My heart lurched at the sight of him. “Not—” he sneered, looking every inch the aristocrat, “Doug. What are you doing here, Jaxxon?”

  I reached out, intending to kiss him silly, but I fell through his cold, misty form and landed hard on the wall behind him instead. He sighed and crouched next to me until we were at the same level. I leaned forward; our foreheads barely touched. His scent filled my senses. I inhaled deeply, wondering if I was actually inhaling particles of him and if that was weird.

  My cheek tingled from the lightest of touches. I opened my eyes to his golden gaze. “Jaxx, why are you here?”

  Triumphantly, I fished out the ring of keys from my pocket. “Guess who’s moving in? I’m Burroughs Manor’s newest tenant.”

  “I beg your pardon?” Shock paralyzed his face. I grinned smugly. My work here was done.

  “Oh, I’m going to make you beg, for sure. For all sorts of things. Now kiss me,” I demanded, puckering up. He laughed—the sound rusty and dark, curling into my stomach—and pressed a kiss to my forehead, one I barely felt. “Aren’t you happy I’m here?”

  “Silly boy. Of course I am.”

  “Even if you don’t … physically.” I was the only one who would ever orgasm in this relationship. The thought was sobering. “I mean, I want you to, you know. Orgasm. It doesn’t seem fair.”

  In the dim light, he glowed a little more. “Jaxxon, you have made me feel more alive than, well, than when I was alive. I suppose we shall have to find a way to even things out. I quite enjoy torturing you.” The impish twinkle in his eye set my heart racing. Damn, this man was hot.

  “Oh, and wait till you hear my plans for my newest web series—”

  He silenced me then with a real kiss, one full of longing and need and hunger.

  ~*The End*~

  For all the people who disapprove of age differences.

  ~ RPL

  ~~ * * * ~~

  About the Author

  Lucinda Cox lives in Los Angeles, with her family and five houseplants. She writes about love, because love is all you need.

  Follow Lucinda on:

  Twitter: @coxwrites

  THE DOCTOR AND THE WOLF

  Chele MacCabe

  Jake Campbell knows at five years old that Ashley Jerome is his one true mate. When she leaves for medical school, he and his wolf are devastated.

  When Ashley returns to open her practice, Jake makes up mysterious ailments just to see her. On the day she falls into his arms—with the help of her best friend—Jake and Ashley immediately make their first date.

  But when the big and bads show up--what will a doctor and her wolf do?

  (m/f; heat level: smoking)

  THE DOCTOR AND THE WOLF

  “Jake? Jake Campbell is here again?” Dr. Ashley Jerome asks. She throws her chocolate-colored braid over her shoulder as she stands in the hallway of her office. “Wasn’t he just here? Last week?”

  “Two weeks,” her nurse and best friend, Phoebe, answers as she hands over his very thick chart. “I’m starting to think that he’s really klutzy or comes in just to see you.”

  “No,” Ashley answers as she opens the folder. “He played baseball in school. He was always so graceful—” Phoebe’s snort makes her look up. She can feel her face heat up. “I said that out loud, didn’t I?”

  “I remember how you always had a crush on him. I guess it hasn’t changed after all this time.” Phoebe teases.

  She shrugs and looks back down at her notes. After medical school and an internship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, she came back to her little mountain home and opened her own practice. Her three-red-light town needed more doctors since Dr. Battle and Dr. Angel retired last year.

  When Ashley heard that Jake Campbell had never married, she didn’t tell even Phoebe how her heart flipped, how she lost her breath, how she tingled all over … If she hadn’t felt that same way every time he looked at her since they were in Ms. Cook’s kindergarten class, she would have sworn she was having a heart attack.

  Even at twenty-nine years old.

  “Every time he comes in, it’s for a real medical need. I just figure he must have a lot to do up on that mountain of his.”

  Phoebe snorts again and they both giggle. “Yeah, you keep telling yourself that. Do you need me to accompany you with your patient?”

  “No—err, no. Yes, I don’t know.” Ashley trips over her words as Phoebe giggles, but Ashley manages to continue. “Just come in here; that way you can see for yourself.”

  “Fine,” Phoebe agrees. “But this means you have to let me off early, tonight’s Halloween.”

  “Do you have big plans?” Ashley asks as they walk to Exam Room 1. It’s the biggest one she has in her little practice, and she knows Phoebe put him in there. They didn’t know where else to put the six-foot-eight man.

  Phoebe answers, but Ashley can’t hear with her heart beating out of her chest. She wishes she hadn’t asked for company; then she might have wiped her sweaty palms on her scrubs without risking the chance of being teased for it later.

  Her knuckles beat out the same rhythm on the door as every other time he’s been here. The knob turns easy under her palm, and the door swings open with a slight squeak.

  Ashley’s next breath is shaky. Those silver-gray eyes that steal all the air out of the room meet her green ones. Her stomach flips, her heart beats like the drumline from the high school band, and a hot sweat breaks out all over her.

  She walks into the room but her foot hits something, making her fall forward. “Oh, sugar snaps,” is all she has time to breathe when a set of arms and the smell of cinnamon surround her.

  “Are you all right?” His deep country-boy drawl that does stuff to her surrounds her. His arms—oh his arms are nice—are around her and for the first time in forever, she feels like she’s finally come home.

  Ashley opens her eyes slowly, not wanting to lose that feeling. But meeting those eyes that are the same color as a hot afternoon before the storms start, it only grows. Deep, dark waves that
beg for her attention line his forehead. Before she knows it, her fingers are, indeed, brushing those curls aside.

  Only his left brow arches—how did she not know he could do that?—and she can feel herself falling a little more. A chuckle comes from somewhere and her hand freezes. “I—I—I—your hair is so soft—”

  He has a huge smile on his face as he straightens up to his full height with her still in his arms.

  “Oh,” she breathes as her arms link around his neck, “you’re so tall.”

  “Yes, Dr. Ashley. Six-foot-six, the last time I checked.”

  “I thought you were six-foot-eight.”

  “No, Rhys got that tall. I never did.” She can hear the chuckle in his voice. It makes her return his smile while a hot surge of need makes her want him even more.

  Dr. Jerome opens her mouth to say something when a throat being cleared somewhere behind her brings her back to reality. “Ashley,” Phoebe hisses behind her. “What are you doing?”

  His brow furrows when he hears Phoebe. She wants to hug him and tell him everything is going to be all right, when she realizes that she’s being set on her feet.

  His hands linger on her hips until she is steady. Her focus is on the buttons on his shirt until she can breathe again. “Jake,” she murmurs. Catching herself, she says, “Mr. Campbell. What brings you in today?”

  “I—I—I—” he stammers over his words. “Allergies! That’s right, I have allergies.”

  Ashley ignores Phoebe’s snort. “Oh no, when did they start?”

  “When I first saw you—I mean,” Jake flushes scarlet as he corrects himself, “a year or so ago. I can’t sleep or even eat anymore they are so bad—”

  “Oh, for fuck’s sake, you two are sounding more and more like a damned romance novel.” Phoebe stomps across the room and stands there with her hands on her hips until Ashley and Jake both meet her eyes. “Jake, do you like my friend Ashley?” He starts to say something, but she puts up her hand, interrupting him instead. “Just nod if you do.” When he finally does, his reward is a smile. “Your Doctor Ashley has been waiting and waiting for you to just ask her to go out—” Ashley opens her mouth to say something, but Phoebe continues. “Hush, I think he’s going to ask you something.”

  “Phoebe …” Ashley warns.

  “Ashley,” Jake Campbell says at the same time. When the two old friends look at him, he says, “Would you like to go grab a bite to eat?”

  “All right,” she agrees, and Phoebe walks away with a huge grin on her face.

  “I knew the boy wasn’t really sick!” Phoebe yells from the hallway.

  Ashley looks down, suddenly shy. Her breath freezes when he tilts her head back. Meeting his gaze again, she smiles. “Am I your last patient?” he whispers. She tries to say something, but words fail her. “Can I take you out, tonight?” He looks away, then meets her eyes again. “I don’t want to wait anymore.”

  “All right,” she murmurs. “Where are we going?”

  The grin that appears on his face lights up her world—and she falls even more. “Come on, I have a surprise for you.”

  “Let me get my purse.” Before she even turns around, Phoebe is there with it and a smile.

  ~~ * * * ~~

  “You know, I’ve never been up here before.”

  “Really? Not even during high school?”

  “Nah, I was always too busy studying …” her voice trails off. She looks up at the full moon. “I didn’t think there were full moons on Halloween.”

  “It happens, just not that much,” Jake answers.

  After she locked the practice’s door, he led her out to the same two-toned blue diesel truck he had in school. They picked up Chinese food on the way up to the top of Onion Mountain. It was popular back in the day. It probably still is, but since it’s Halloween, they’re the only ones up there tonight.

  Besides the full moon, the only other light is the one from the cab. It makes long shadows as they sit on the lowered tailgate, on top of a blanket that he found under his seat. He offers the fried rice and she hands him back the beef and broccoli. She glances at him out of the corner of her eye. “Were you really sick?”

  He ducks his head and her heart flips as she falls a little more. “Nah. I was trying to get up the nerve to ask you out. I guess Phoebe figured me out.”

  Her breath gets stuck as butterflies find their home in her stomach. She whispers, “I’m glad she did.”

  He grabs her hand and those warms tingles that wash over her when he’s near, dance down her spine. “Me, too,” she hears him murmur, “Can I kiss you?” She turns her head toward him, and somehow, in the dim light, his eyes—those eyes that she still dreams about … He lowers his head, and his lips touch hers with the softest of caresses.

  Her sudden inhale draws him in. His tongue parts her lips, and she opens up to let him in. The act of welcoming him into her makes parts of her tingle with a new awareness. She grabs his arms. And she tries to pull him closer when he stops kissing her to move away.

  “What—” she protests.

  “I have to stop now, if not I won’t—”

  “What if I don’t want you to stop?”

  Their eyes meet, and for a moment, everything else fades. Then, by some unspoken command, they reach for each other. Her arms go around his neck, and his settle on her hips. He pulls her onto his lap, and her knees land on either side of his hips. Before he kisses her again, his lips move against hers. “Are you sure about this?”

  “Jake Campbell, I’ve known you all my life. I know that you like to color with blue crayons over any other in the box. I know that you like to eat your dessert first, but around second grade you started saving it, taking it home with you. I know that your brother Rhys is your best friend, but you also love your sister, George, more.” She pauses, trying to see into the depths of him. “I know so many things about you, and I’ve lived a lifetime waiting for this moment.” She cups his cheeks and touches her nose to his. “You’re all I’ve ever wanted.”

  He growls as his arms tighten, pulling her even closer. His lips claim hers, and with a happy sigh of a woman who’s waited a long time for what she wants, she lets him.

  Every emotion that she’s ever felt for him comes back to her in a rush. The joy of seeing him every morning in homeroom, the sadness of beginning summer break, frustration when he didn’t make captain of the baseball team.

  Her gasp is soft as she opens under him. Years of wanting him, needing him, makes her desire so many things in this moment. His hands slide under her scrub top, the roughness of his touch makes goosebumps dance all over her.

  She ends the kiss with a smack that echoes through the trees. Those eyes of his blink several times as she grabs the bottom of her top. With a twist, it’s off and landing somewhere in the truck bed.

  His face is blank as he stares at her. Her stomach drops, and she tries to move off his lap. “Oh, sugar snaps, it’s too soon—”

  “No, it’s nothing like that,” he murmurs as he grabs her hands, preventing her from going far. “I never imagined you’d want me the way that I want you.”

  “Oh you, I think I’ve waited for this all my life. Please—can we—”

  He smiles as his hands find the buttons on his flannel shirt. She’s seen him without his shirt before, but when the flannel leaves his shoulders and slides down his arms—oh, sweet baby Jesus—she leans into him, just wanting to be close. Her eyes flutter as she inhales—him—woods with a dash of cinnamon fills her senses. A memory from long ago of hide-and-seek in the first grade … She hid behind a bookshelf, and somehow, he slid in beside her. Cuddled together, they didn’t whisper a sound, but in those several moments of being pressed up against him—

  She opens her eyes and he’s there, so impossibly close. Noses touch, then lips as they come together again. Her fingers are in his dark-as-midnight curls, and his hands wrap around her. There is a tug on her bra strap, and she has to stop her kiss. With a smile against his, she tease
s, “I see what you’re after—”

  “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted you.” He moves back, and she shimmies until her bra slides down her arms. A cold shiver begins, but he wraps his flannel shirt around her. “So much for my grand seduction. It’s getting too chilly out here—”

  “Hush,” she admonishes. “This is perfect. The woods, the takeout, me in your arms ...” She pauses and kisses him on the end of the nose. “... is everything.”

  His mouth opens, but before he can say or do anything, there is a noise, then growling behind her. Goosepimples erupt all over her body, and the hair on the back of her neck stands. Her arms tighten around him, and she knows that if she wasn’t in his arms—

  He tugs his shirt over her breasts. His growl is low as his eyes narrow in the faint light. “I want you to stand up, walk to the cab, and crawl in through the back sliding-glass window.”

  “Jake—”

  His grip tightens on her hips, and she wishes she could see. “You need to listen to me, now.” Her stomach twists, and she has to fight the urge to grab him. “Go,” he commands.

  Ashley kisses him, and for a moment she doesn’t think he’s going to let her go. But his hold relaxes. Somehow, she gets up. The growls behind her grow louder, stealing the rest of her breath. She wants to look, but she knows she needs to do what he told her.

  She creeps down the truck bed to the cab. Before she can get the window open, a black shadow moves past her. Even though everything in her wants to jump through the opening, she turns around.