by Melody Anne
“It’s better than good,” he said, kissing her again.
She looked confused for a moment, then giggled as she threw her leg over him, obviously feeling as great a need as he did to have their skin touching in every possible place.
“Make love to me, Owen,” she said, the words music to his ears.
He didn’t even attempt to fight it as he gently pushed her over and began worshiping her body. He never would have enough of her, and he prayed she’d never get enough of him. They’d come out the other side of this together.
His heart thudded as he kissed her slowly, then trailed his lips down her throat, sucking on her skin, enjoying the little gasps she let out. The taste of her nipple took his breath away, and he sucked the pink skin deep in his mouth.
She clutched his head, holding him tight against her breast, and he sucked harder as he pressed his hips forward, trying to feel a bit of relief.
“You taste so good,” he murmured against her chest before kissing his way across to the other side. He tasted and nibbled until she was pleading for mercy. She pulled on his hair, and he kissed his way back up her throat, finally bringing his lips back to hers.
His hunger grew as he devoured her mouth, capturing the moans escaping her. He wanted to taste all of her, though, so he trailed his lips back down her body, feeling the shake of her stomach as his tongue circled her belly button before his mouth descended.
He spread her legs wide and gazed at her beauty before leaning forward and tasting her, sweeping his tongue along her heat, the scent of her sending his body into a frenzy of need.
He plunged his tongue deep inside, making her body arch off the bed as she groaned. He moved his lips up and sucked her swollen flesh while pushing his fingers into her slick heat. She screamed as her body went rigid before it came apart, trembles racking her frame.
He slowed the sweep of his tongue along her flesh, and she shook in his arms. He was now ready to claim her as his. He moved back up her body, but she smiled at him, her skin flushed.
Then she pushed him over. “My turn,” she whispered against his neck before her lips moved lower and she ran her tongue along his chest, flicking his hard nipples. It was his body arching off the bed now.
She dipped her tongue into his belly button while her hands whispered across his arousal, then swept underneath, her nails scraping along his flesh. Then she pulled him into her hot mouth and sucked hard.
He was on fire and trying desperately not to come, and she moved her head up and down, taking him deeper with each pass. She hummed against him as her hand gripped him and rubbed up and down, his erection slick with her spit.
He felt himself completely losing control.
“You win,” he cried out as he reached down and pulled her off him, flipping her over and pressing her into the mattress with his body.
“What do I win?” she panted.
“You drive me crazy,” he answered before stopping their conversation by plunging his tongue into her mouth as he surged forward, burying himself in her hot folds.
He didn’t want to move slowly. He wanted to take her with as much passion as he felt for her every minute of the day. He gripped her hips and buried himself in her over and over again. She rose up, meeting him with each thrust as their mouths tangled and their bodies heated to unbearable levels.
Their bodies grew slick with sweat as they moved as one. He pulled back in time to see her eyes open when her orgasm ripped through her. She looked dazed as her mouth opened in pleasure.
He let go, releasing inside her, looking deep in her eyes. It was the most beautiful sight he’d ever witnessed.
“I’ll never get enough of you,” he promised her as the last of his pleasure ebbed from him.
He collapsed on the bed, holding her close to him as he gained control over his breathing.
“I’m afraid I won’t ever have enough of you, either,” she admitted. The words filled him with unbelievable joy.
When they could move again, he carried her to the bathroom, and they showered together, then took their time helping each other dry off. It took a while before they made their way downstairs to the kitchen. Eden’s stomach rumbled, making Owen laugh.
“I guess we can’t survive on sex alone,” he said.
“I’m starving,” she told him. Then her smile faded as she remembered what her father had always said to her when she’d say that. He’d always told her, You’re not starving; children in Africa are starving. Instead of letting it make her sad, she felt a smile lift her lips. “I mean, I’m hungry.”
“Are you okay?” Owen asked as he came to her side and pulled her into his arms.
“There are times I miss my dad so much I feel as if I can’t breathe,” she said. “He used to always get on me if I said I was starving, pointing out I had no clue what it was like to truly go hungry. Some days I forget he’s gone. I mean, I know he’s gone, but there are moments, even days, where I experience real joy, and then something will trigger the fact that he’s gone, and it brings the pain right back to the surface. I don’t know how people ever get over this.”
He rubbed her back as he said a quick prayer that his parents were okay. He wasn’t sure how he’d handle losing them, or any of his siblings . . . or Eden. He squeezed her a little tighter.
“I think people get through it because they don’t lose everyone on the same day, so they always have someone to share their grief, and to keep leaning on. I think we also get through it knowing the loss isn’t forever, that we get to see them again someday.”
She let out a shaky sob before pulling herself together. He watched the strength come back into her expression. “What if there isn’t another side?” she asked.
“I choose to believe there is,” he answered. “Otherwise, what’s the point of living? If we’re only here for a short time, why should we love the way we love? Why should we trust? If losing someone is too painful to bear, we couldn’t survive as a species. I’d much rather believe there’s something after this earthly life.”
“I just wish I knew for sure. I wish . . .” She trailed off and he held her.
“He’s going to always be with you. In your memories, in your thoughts, in your prayers. And when you have kids, remember that a piece of him will be in them, too. They might have his eyes, or his hair, or his smile. They might have his laugh. You have the same nose as your dad, and when you roll your eyes, you’re his spitting image.”
She laughed as she pulled back, her eyes still sparkling with tears, but there was joy in them as well. She was more beautiful than she’d ever been.
“Thank you, Owen. I truly needed to hear that. It’s the best thing anyone has said to me since I lost him,” she said. She leaned in and kissed him. “Now I need to have a baby.”
She turned away as she walked to the fridge, and Owen felt his heart thump so hard he was surprised it didn’t rip right out of his chest. He wanted to grab her, haul her back to the bedroom, and tell her that her wish was his command. If she wanted a baby, he’d damn well be the person giving it to her.
He knew she’d just been making a joke. But maybe she hadn’t. He had to force himself not to scare the living hell out of her by pursuing that line of thought. She turned from the fridge and looked at him in disgust, and he worried she’d been reading his mind.
“How do you live like this?” she asked.
He was confused. “What do you mean?” He slowly walked to her.
“You have a case of beer, a tub of expired butter, and a loaf of bread with mold growing on it.”
He looked at the contents of his fridge and gave a shrug. “I don’t like to cook. I either act pathetic enough for one of my siblings to feed me—or usually their wives, since my brothers don’t care if I starve—or I go to the diner,” he said, as if that was perfectly normal.
“People need to have the basics at home,” she said.
He pointed to the door of the fridge. “I have coffee creamer. I’m not a heathen.”
/> She laughed at that as she pulled the creamer out, double-checking the expiration date just to be sure he wasn’t going to poison her. Of course he’d never do that—not intentionally, at least.
“I’ll take you to breakfast,” he said.
She looked pointedly down at his T-shirt that she was wearing. “I might get arrested if I go out like this.”
“You definitely can’t go out like that, or I’ll be fighting off the entire town as all the men try to take you away from me.”
She laughed again. “I’m going to snoop through your bookshelves while you run to the store and get groceries; then we can make breakfast like two normal human beings,” she said.
He looked at her blankly for a moment. “You want me to go shopping?”
She laughed again, this time the sound definitely filled with joy. “You’ve been on your own a long time, and shopping is a necessity. How have you survived so far?”
“I just explained that,” he told her. It was pretty simple. “I eat at other houses or diners.”
“What about when you didn’t live near your family?” For the first time, she said this without looking hurt, without adding “when you left me.”
“Takeout and delivery,” he said, as if that was no big deal.
“You’re terrible,” she told him with a laugh. “I like to eat at home. Now go and find us food, or there will be no more sleepovers.” The main thing he got from those last sentences was that there would indeed be more sleepovers. He’d give her the moon if that’s what it would take to keep her at his side.
“Yes, ma’am,” he told her with a salute. He’d go to Antarctica if it ensured she would stay with him . . . forever. Her laughter followed him all the way up the stairs as he threw on a pair of sweats and his favorite raggedy jogging sweatshirt.
He was whistling as he slipped from the house.
Today was going to be a great day. And each new day would get better. As long as he knew he could come home to Eden, he knew he could face anything.
Owen got to the store with no clue what to buy. He sweet-talked a clerk into helping him and ended up with pastries, bread, eggs, sausage, lunch meat, and a variety of snack foods. He figured he’d have Eden help him out with the dinner items. He threw in a couple of bottles of whipped cream, planning on using that in the bedroom. He had to stop that train of thought immediately or risk embarrassing himself and the young clerk helping him.
Owen’s drive back had him grinning just as widely as his drive there. The shopping had taken him longer than he’d wanted, and he was sure Eden was starving . . . um . . . very hungry right about now, but she’d sent a novice to do her bidding. Maybe she’d found some crackers or something to take the edge off her appetite until he got back. He had no idea if he had anything edible in the pantry, but he was sure he at least had some peanuts or pretzels, something that went well with beer.
As Owen turned off the main road toward his house, his gut clenched. He knew something was wrong—something was very wrong. He floored the gas pedal as he wound his way down the drive. He had a sudden urgency to get to Eden. How could he have forgotten for even a few minutes that someone was out to get her?
When he turned the final bend in the road, his heart nearly stopped in his chest. He slammed on his brakes, jumped from his truck, and circled his house, looking for a way inside.
His entire wraparound deck was engulfed in flames, the fire licking its way up the walls. And from the devastating circle of fire, he had no doubt this wasn’t an accidental burn. This was arson.
“Eden!” he yelled at the top of his lungs, praying she was already outside of the house. He lapped the entire structure, his eyes going everywhere. He called it in while running in a circle. He hung up and called out her name over and over. He was about to jump through the flames when he heard her voice.
He looked around, then realized her voice was coming from up high. He arched his neck and found her on the roof of the house, her expression frightened and furious.
“Someone lit your house on fire!” she yelled. “I’m sorry.”
He looked up at her incredulously, his heart completely stalled as he choked on fear. The flames were reaching for her, and he couldn’t even put a ladder against the house. If he had a fire truck, he could save her, but he feared they weren’t going to get there in time. He didn’t even have a damn fire blanket so he could rush through the flames to get to her.
He was going to run through them, no matter what. He prepared to do just that. He had to find the best place possible so he didn’t burn up and do her no good at all.
“Forget about my damn house,” he called. “I’m going to get to you!” His voice was panicked, not assuring. He was normally good at his job. But this wasn’t a job. This was the woman he loved, and her life was in mortal danger.
“I’m going to jump into your pool,” she called down. “By the time I realized the place was on fire, it was surrounded. The air constantly smells like smoke with the wildfire going, so that didn’t alert me. It was the heat. I was reading.”
Owen had a hard time keeping up with her. How could she have a rational conversation with him when she was shouting from his damn roof? He wanted to kiss her and strangle her at the same time.
He looked over to his pool, which was only eight feet at the deep end. He then looked at the height she was jumping from. With his tall ceilings, she was the equivalent of three stories up. It was doable but risky. She had to jump just right. It might be her only chance.
“You’re aging me right now, baby. You have to jump from the right side of the house, fling your body out, and aim for the middle of the pool.” He tried to sound encouraging, but fear was choking him.
“I was on the swim team. I know how to jump into water,” she said. He finally heard a trace of fear in her voice. She was desperately trying to hide it, for his sake. The fear encouraged him. She knew to be careful, knew this wasn’t just a walk in the park.
A sudden loud bang sounded, and Owen watched in horror as his front porch collapsed. The fire was inside the house. This had to happen now.
“You need to jump, Eden. I’m right here,” he said as he stood next to the pool. He couldn’t remember ever having felt this much fear, this much helplessness, not even when flames were nipping at his feet, circling him, surrounding him from every direction. That was his life. This was hers.
“I got this,” she said with a slight wobble to her voice. She stepped back out of his view for a moment. Then he watched as she launched herself from the roof. He didn’t take a single breath as she headed toward the pool feetfirst. For one moment it looked as if she wasn’t going to make it, as if she’d land on the pavement. He quickly moved, holding out his arms to do his best to catch her. He’d take the impact to save her.
But she did make it, flying over the top of him, making a perfect arrow into the pool. Another loud crash happened as his roof began collapsing. He didn’t care. He dove into the pool and swam to her, pulling her into his arms as she emerged from the water, coughing.
“Are you okay? Does anything feel broken?” he asked as he rubbed his hands along her entire body while dragging them to the shallow end of the pool. Thank goodness he had cement separating the house from the pool, or they’d be surrounded in this thing, too.
“I’m cold but fine,” she told him, her teeth chattering.
He walked to the steps, lifting her in his arms as he carried her out. He took her to his truck and set her inside, giving her body another examination.
“I’m fine, Owen. I promise.” She turned and looked at his house. “But your house . . .” Tears fell down her face.
“The house doesn’t matter. It’s just wood and plaster. We’ll build a new one together,” he told her. He jumped up in the cab with her and pulled her close as they heard the sound of sirens in the distance.
Whoever had come close to taking her life had seriously screwed up this time. They’d come for her too many times. Owen wouldn’t sleep
until they were behind bars.
Chapter Thirty-Four
The next few hours were an utter blur for Eden. The fire department came, and she sat back as she watched Owen help his crew put out the flames engulfing his house. There was about as much left as there’d been of her own place. It was heartbreaking.
Yes, she’d been terrified as she’d made her way onto the roof of his house, knowing it was her only chance of getting free. But she’d also been grateful Owen wasn’t trapped in there with her. To watch him die would be unbearable.
But she was okay, and he was okay. She tried telling herself it was just a house. But both of them had lost everything within a week. Who could be this savage? Who wanted them dead this badly? Would they ever figure it out?
By the time it was over, all Eden wanted to do was be alone, go somewhere and have a little bit of time to think. She wasn’t sure anything could make it better, but she needed some time.
Owen came to check on her, and the worry in his eyes wasn’t helping her stay calm. She shivered in fear. He pulled her close.
“I’m sorry,” he said for the hundredth time.
“This isn’t your fault. Please quit apologizing, and please don’t worry about me,” she said. She kissed him to take any sting from her words. He didn’t seem appeased. “I’m going to town. I want to change and look over my papers,” she added.
“I’ll come with you,” he told her.
She smiled as she cupped his cheek. “No. You stay here. We’ll meet up in a couple of hours.” He looked as if he was going to argue with her. “Please. I need this.”
At those words he looked utterly defeated. “Only a couple of hours?” he questioned.
“Only a couple of hours,” she promised.
He walked her to her car, and she kept her composure as she started it and drove away, looking back at him; he looked like a lost puppy while he watched her leave. She didn’t allow herself to so much as tremble until she was around the corner.
That’s when she pulled her car over and took some deep breaths. She was a strong person, but she just wasn’t sure how much more of this she was going to be able to manage. She shook her head as she pushed away that thought. She’d take whatever she needed to, because she wouldn’t let this person get the best of her.