"Maybe you could visit them as a family, see for yourself that Evan's happy. Maybe all of us could go. You, me and Brianna."
"Maybe." This woman, he thought, this delicate butterfly had spread her wings right before his eyes. He could see color all around her. Wildflowers and moonbeams. Beauty and love.
He brought his mouth to hers and felt a liquid response, her lips parting sensuously under his. Kelly Baxter was meant to be his wife. Of that, Shane Night Wind was certain.
* * *
Later that night Kelly reclined next to Shane on her bed. They were dressed for sleep, but both remained wide-awake.
"So this was your room when you were little?" he asked.
She nodded. "I've redecorated since then." But she knew it was still feminine. Grown-up frill, she supposed. The canopy over the bed draped a smooth beige fabric, the pillows down, their covers satin.
On a whitewashed dresser, she kept a collection of painted figurines. Mythical creatures – dragons and wizards, mermaids and unicorns. Shane seemed especially interested in the winged fairies. He had traced their tiny bodies with his finger, mumbling that he "should have known." Kelly didn't understand what he'd meant, but his fascination pleased her.
"We'll take this furniture with us," he said. "All of it. This can be our bedroom."
She tried to imagine her frill mixed with Shane's masculine decor – the dark rattan and solid oak cabinetry. It seemed right somehow – a blend of who they were.
She turned toward him, suddenly worried. "How can I leave my mom behind? She'll be so lonely here."
He shifted onto his side. "She can sell this place and come with us."
"And where exactly is she supposed to live?"
A mischievous grin tilted his lips. "With my dad."
Kelly bumped his shoulder and laughed. "Your dad and my mom. Granted, they're attracted to each other, but we can't expect them to live together right off the bat. They're too conservative for that."
"She can rent a room from him. That's proper enough. And she can find a job in her field. Maybe a bookkeeping position at this feline rescue I just happen to know."
She laughed again, delighted with the idea. "You've got this all figured out, don't you?"
"You bet I do. Our parents can keep the house, and we'll add on to the cabin. I can do the work myself. Besides, it's more us. An enchanted place with a rickety porch and flowers peeking through the cracks. Smoke drifting from the chimney, sage and candles burning."
The picture he painted made her think of her figurines – fairies dancing in the moonlight, wizards conjuring potions, a unicorn darting through a maze of trees. A magical cabin in West Texas. Who would have guessed.
"I love you," she said.
"I love you, too." He kissed her then, a kiss vibrating with need. A sudden gust of hunger.
She felt his muscles beneath her hands, the bunch, the flex, the unspoken language that had her lusting for more. She roamed his chest, then caught the waistband of his shorts while he lowered the straps on her nightgown and tasted a bare shoulder.
She thought she heard music, Comanche drums mixed with lilting harps and flutes – their music, their magic. Wizards and warriors and tiny ladies with wings.
He was power, she thought, and passion – a man with fire in his hair and copper melting over his skin. In his touch she felt strength and beauty, a hard male body eager for hers.
Their clothes came away easily and drifted to the floor. She slid her hand over his belly, then lower to stroke and caress, to watch his eyes shimmer, to listen to the sound of arousal purr from his chest.
They kissed, over and over, absorbing the moment, the sensations only they could create. It was glorious to be naked with him, to rub and tease, anticipate what erotic treasures came next. A fluid hand, a moist tongue, a muscular leg tangled with hers. She felt everything – every subtle movement, every pore that opened, every nerve that jumped, every sigh she breathed into his mouth.
He slipped into her without protection, arched his back and rocked her body with slow, sexy strokes. She met his dizzy rhythm, the feel of his flesh smooth and silky inside her own. They moved at a languid, dreamy pace – a gentle mating.
The music rushed back, filling her ears with splendor, her mind with flowers and feathers, warbonnets and faraway places only he could take her. He tongued her nipple and smiled. She held his head to her breast and watched him suckle, draw the peak into a moist, hungry mouth. Gripping his shoulders she raised her hips, desire swirling – its sensual voice calling her name. Teasing and begging.
"Tell me," he whispered. "Tell me what you want."
"You," was all she could say. "More of you."
He thrust deeper and gave her all that he was – his heart spilling love, his seed pouring warmth and promise into her womb. And at that moment, that incredible climactic moment when they were steeped in pleasure, liquid flames dancing between them, she knew they had become one.
* * *
Epilogue
«^
At two-and-a-half, Brianna Night Wind chattered excessively and smiled even more. Today she wore a pale lavender dress with puffy sleeves, ribbons, bows and heart-shaped buttons. A white lace petticoat peeked out from the hem, and ruffled socks flared at her ankles. Her shoes weren't scuffed – not yet, Shane thought, as she wiggled through his second attempt to straighten the barrette in her hair.
"Me bring Cougie to the church, Daddy."
"Of course you will." The barrette slipped again, and he grinned. Cougie was the toy cougar that had become her security blanket, the battered stuffed animal that followed her everywhere. She slept with Cougie at night, fed him breakfast in the morning, told him secrets and insisted he could purr. Brianna had her own form of mountain lion medicine, he thought. Her own brand of beauty and charm. She was, in his opinion, the most perfect child on earth – an angel with bright blue eyes and a generous heart. She prayed for everyone, people she knew and those she didn't.
"Where's Mommy?" she asked, shuffling her anxious feet.
"She's getting ready, too."
"Are you ready, Daddy?"
"Just about," he answered, still struggling with the barrette as Brianna's soft curls rebelled.
Shane wore a black tuxedo and stiff white shirt, but his jacket hung over a chair, and his feet were bare. Within the hour Tom McKinley and Linda Baxter would be married in a quaint little church just outside of town. Family members would each have a special role in the ceremony, including Shane's gypsy mother and her current lover.
"Mommy!" Brianna squealed as Kelly entered the nursery.
Shane lifted his gaze, his pulse suddenly tripping. A waterfall of flowers crowned her head in a spray of petals, and her dress, a shimmer of lavender silk, draped luxuriously over a swollen tummy. Kelly Night Wind was eight months pregnant, and a more beautiful woman didn't exist. She glowed like magic, a vision of maternal elegance.
He reached for Brianna and brought the child to her mother. They huddled together as a family, in the circle of each other's arms, secure and content.
Brianna patted Kelly's tummy and grinned. "Hello, baby," she said, happily greeting her unborn sibling.
As Shane and Kelly exchanged a proud smile, he searched his wife's gaze. In her eyes he saw the world they had created – their private haven of happiness – the corner of Texas where wildflowers bloomed and fairies fluttered their wings. The place where exotic cats lolled in the shade, and men and women fell hopelessly in love.
On this sunny afternoon they would celebrate a new marriage, the new life in Kelly's womb and a little girl who chased away storms. For today, Shane knew, would lead the way to forever.
* * * *
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NIGHT WIND'S WOMAN Page 18