The Keepers

by Rae Rivers

  Water dripped everywhere, but the mess went ignored.

  He stopped halfway to the bed to shove her up against the wall, kissing her senseless. She caught a glimpse of them in the mirror behind him, bodies entwined, breathless, and trapped against the wall by solid heat and sexiness.

  A flicker of common sense tugged at her, wedging itself between them and she broke away, just an inch, trying to let her senses take root. But all she wanted was him. Now. Here. Nothing else.

  “Wait. Ethan, stop,” she groaned when he tried to kiss her again. Her husky voice sounded foreign. He gave her a slow, heated stare before lowering his gaze to her breasts, devouring her. He’d never looked at her like that before. Pure desire. Possessive. Like she would be his.

  Only his.

  “This,” she murmured. “Are you sure?”

  He placed a palm against the wall to steady himself, shoulders rising and falling as he dragged in a few deep breaths. He lacked his usual self-control and composure. Wild eyes, ruffled hair. A side of him she’d never seen.

  “Hell, yes,” he breathed. “But if you’re not, Jen, you need to tell me now, because any more of this and I won’t be able to stop.”

  The coarseness of his voice rumbled through her, so sexy, but that damn flicker of common sense wouldn’t relent. “We’re friends. We live together. This is wrong. It’s a complication we don’t need.”

  “Complicated can feel good. So damn good that nothing else matters. I feel it and I bet you do too.”

  “It’s still wrong.”

  “It still feels good.” He pressed closer, his gaze never unwavering from hers. “Right now, we’re in this crazy city and probably the most hunted couple in Ameera. I need you, I need to forget, and I suspect beneath all the protest bullshit, you feel the same way too.”

  He nibbled the corner of her mouth and she sighed into him, not caring when she felt the last of her resolve slip away. Her shiver brought a smirk to his lips, triggering that dimple she found so irresistible.

  “Deny it,” he whispered, edging forward until his mouth was an inch from hers. “I dare you. Deny it and I’ll back away.”

  “Ethan …”

  But she’d didn’t push him away. Or deny it.

  CHAPTER THIRTY SEVEN

  Ethan grinned.

  Hot arousal chased the brief moment of victory when her gaze lowered to his lips. He ached to ravish her, to kiss her until she was senseless and breathless and pliable to anything he wanted from her.

  He wanted her. Naked. Exposed. Vulnerable. Writhing and groaning as she gave herself to him, took everything he offered.

  He clutched her waist with both hands, her body pinned to the wall by his. He looked at her mouth, hungering for her, knowing it would take a lot to back away. Thank God she hadn’t asked him to.

  So he kissed her.

  When she immediately relaxed in his arms and tangled her fingers in his hair, he devoured her. Hard and hot and demanding. There was no gentleness, no holding back, and he kissed her until they were panting and shaking, heat and desire burning between them.

  He broke away, just enough to meet her gaze, questioning, but she moved her hand behind his neck, applying soft pressure, all the answer he needed.

  Grinning, he seated her on the drawers beside them and settled himself between her legs. His hips ground against hers in delicious torment that extracted a soft moan from her. He left a trail of kisses along her jaw, her neck, her earlobe. Inhaling, he took a deep breath of her incredible, womanly scent.

  He leaned back to look at her, feasting on her feminine beauty. Flawless, tanned skin, still damp and warm from the shower. Nipples puckered with arousal. Flat stomach and curvy hips.

  When he ran the back of his fingers across her body to cup a full breast, she released a breathy sigh and arched her back. His abdomen tightened in anticipation. He caught her nipple between his fingers, offering leisurely strokes, and then traced the movements with his mouth.

  “Oh God,” she groaned, dropping her head back against the wall, her eyes closed. Her heartbeat raced and her body trembled. “I’m quivering like an aroused teen.”

  He lifted his head, grinning. “But with so much more experience and energy.”

  She visibly gulped, her eyes widening. “Wow, this could be fun.”

  “Guaranteed.”

  Smiling, she cupped his head within her palms and brought his mouth back to hers. She ran her fingers across his chest, over his muscles, down to his waist. She unhooked his towel, grinning when it fell to the floor, and then her mouth was on his.

  Her hands brushed across his abdomen, triggering a jerk from him. He groaned when her fingers closed around his length.

  Everything around him disappeared. All he saw was her. All he wanted was her.

  Fierce, avid hunger.

  She grabbed his hips with an impatient jerk. He backed away, leaving her panting on the drawers, but couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. So beautiful.

  He reached for their rucksack on the floor and withdrew a foil packet. When he returned to her, she lowered her gaze, taking her fill, and smiled a heated, sexy smirk that took his breath away.

  “I was wrong about your female fans,” she said, her voice husky, dreamy. “It’s not about the money.”

  He grinned and nibbled her lip. “Trust me, it’s definitely not about the money.”

  She laughed, a beautiful lyrical sound that echoed through the room. “Oh, this is so wrong, but feels so damn good.”

  “And when it’s over, we’ll do it again. And again,” he whispered between soft kisses. “Especially once you’ve had the advantage the other women haven’t.”

  “What’s that?”

  He grinned. “You’ll be the only woman to know what it’s like, really like, to be in my bed.”

  Her breath caught and she lifted her head, the meaning behind his words surprising her. Just as he’d intended. “You’ve been holding back with them?”

  “Of course.” With a mammoth effort that had grown increasingly frustrating over time. But he’d done it. Reigned in his strength and power, despite the overwhelming urge to let go. He’d had no choice. Anything less and he would’ve hurt them. No woman he’d ever bedded had matched his strength.

  But Jenna would and he couldn’t wait to have her. Alone, together, they could let go, using their inner strength and speed with a freedom they’d never had before.

  His cock pulsed at the thought. Hell, yeah.

  A small smile lit up her face and she slid her arms around his neck. “So I’m your first?”

  He couldn’t answer, the thought making him restless. Instead, he kissed her again.

  “I’ve never been with a Keeper either,” she whispered between kisses.

  Damn, just when he thought he couldn’t be more aroused.

  He grunted, sounding like an uncaged beast, and caught her hips. “Shall we find out what we’ve been missing?”

  She shivered, her tongue darting out to mingle with his. Another kiss, another sigh. “Yes,” she breathed heavily. “Now.”

  Heat and desire and a wanting like he’d never experienced before engulfed him. He pressed forward, using his hips to spread her thighs, relishing in the feel of her naked flesh against his.

  “Are you sure?” he asked, sliding a hand into her hair. “Last chance to stop this, Jen. Last chance.”

  Her elbows came up to rest on either side of his shoulders, her fingers toying with his hair. “Do you want to stop?”

  “Not on your life.”

  She smiled. “So don’t.”

  A deep-throated growl emerged from the back of his throat and he clenched his fist, gathering a mound of hair with it, drawing her head back to expose the long line of her throat. He kissed her neck, tasting, nipping, licking, working his way across her jaw until he found her mouth again.

  His other hand grazed the skin along her thigh and dipped between her legs and he was all too aware of how close he was to claiming her a
s his.

  She dropped her head back, releasing a soft sigh, and gripped the side of the drawers with both hands. The movement exposed her breasts, exposed her. He untangled his fingers from her hair to cup a breast with one hand whilst stroking her with the other. Slow, leisurely strokes that extracted soft murmurs of pleasure that sent his libido into overdrive.

  She was so wet and ready and he had to employ every ounce of willpower he had not to grab her hips and plunge into her. But he held back, torn between the urge to ravish her and savour her.

  He upped his strokes and sucked a nipple into his mouth, grinning when she gasped. He felt the shivers increase, the build of tension, that moment before everything exploded into pure pleasure.

  He lifted his head, wanting to watch her while it happened.

  She released a soft groan as the climax rolled through her, her body shuddering from the ripples of pleasure. Her eyes were closed, her face a mixture of surprise and ecstasy, a vulnerable beauty he’d never seen in her.

  Still quivering from the aftermaths of her fierce climax, she lifted her head, all wild eyes and breathless. She reached for him, her expression clouded with longing.

  Screw the waiting. He knew what she wanted. Hell, he wanted it more.

  With a possessive, caveman-like grunt, he gathered her in his arms. He placed her on the bed and leaned back to revel in the beauty of the woman sprawled out in front of him.

  Fuck, yeah.

  He tore open the foil packet, quickly sheathing himself, his cock pulsing beneath his fingers. He pressed his hips forward, nestling between her legs, and groaned when her wetness enveloped him. She gave a soft, impatient murmur of encouragement.

  So he thrust.

  Her head dropped back and she released a long, husky moan. His fingers laced with hers and he drew her arms up above her head, pressing her hands into the sheet. She was trapped beneath him, around him, at his mercy. Writhing and longing and breathless. She’d never looked more exquisite.

  He thrust again, the movement extracting a soft gasp from her that he swallowed with another kiss. This time, the kiss was slower, evenly matched with the rhythm of his hips.

  She shifted, drawing him in deeper. They moved together, a moment where only they existed. Frozen in time, when nothing else mattered. Only them, here, now. Absolute ecstasy.

  Her fingers gripped his, her nails digging into his skin, her heart pounding against his. She tore her mouth away from his, gasping as pleasure rippled through her, the breathy cry of her climax triggering his own. He came with a force so powerful that a burst of energy surged through him. A gush of air rushed through the room, dislodging a lamp that crashed to the floor.

  She groaned his name as she gave herself over to the wave of sensations, fuelled by the energy that had unleashed within him. She’d felt it too and she clung to him, her eyes squeezed shut, her fingers curled around his.

  Total surrender.

  When it was over, they were left exhausted, panting. Overwhelmed by the sheer force of the moment. There’d been pleasure, an avalanche of incredible sensations that had rocked his world. But above that, there’d been something else. He’d felt her. Connected with her. Lowered his guard enough to let go in a way he’d never thought possible.

  His magic was sacred, treasured, a part of him he’d never shared with another woman before. But he’d let go. With her.

  Releasing her hand, breathing heavily, he touched a finger to her chin, needing to look at her. Her body trembled beneath his and he wanted her all over again.

  They should shower, get dressed, and formulate a plan to get them the hell home. Hazel would be fuming. The storm would’ve relented and by now; she’d have unleashed a full hunt for them.

  “Ethan,” she whispered, burying her face into his neck. She left soft kisses across his skin, his jaw, until her mouth claimed his. Her lips were soft, her breathing heavy, and when he lifted his head to look at her, all he saw were eyes filled with desire, questioning, searching.

  Yes. They should shower, get dressed, and formulate a plan.

  Later.

  CHAPTER THIRTY EIGHT

  Ethan awoke, instinctively knowing she wasn’t beside him.

  He sat upright, searching for her, surprised he’d dozed off. He’d relented – to the sex and the sleep. Despite knowing they had time for neither.

  But damn, he hadn’t been able to resist Jenna. Not anymore. Sex with her had been something else. The freedom of letting go with a woman who matched his strength and speed had been sensational. A level of pleasure he’d never thought possible.

  The thought made him instantly hard. Again.

  The air felt cold, the room mostly in darkness. Jenna sat on the floor in front of the couch, her features lit by the flickering glow of candlelight. She’d gathered her hair into a messy knot at the nape of her neck. Her brows were furrowed as she paged through a small book. She wore his shirt, the sleeves rolled up, and socks.

  The woman who’d crept under his skin.

  That thought alone should make him uneasy, but dammit, he liked her and they were in this crappy city with death nipping at their heels and life was too goddamn short for pussyfooting around.

  Now that he’d tasted her, he only wanted more. No matter who – or what – she was. When she’d told him, all he’d felt was a blind rage that had threatened to consume him.

  But something inside him had altered when he’d found her at Hazel’s mercy.

  Watching Hazel slice her open, knowing that at any moment, she could plunge the knife into Jenna’s heart, killing her, had paled everything else – his anger, Jenna’s confession, her motives for coming to Ameera, and their fight.

  At that moment, none of it had mattered. Only Jenna. Because despite her secrecy, he believed they were on the same side, fighting for the same thing. Her love for Kate was real, a bond he understood all too well. It wasn’t something a Keeper could forge and that bond would prevail over everything else. Even her demons.

  He simply had to remind her of that.

  The fact that she’d kept it from him still smarted, but he’d mastered the art of keeping his agitation in check. Now wasn’t the time to be at loggerheads anyway. And it had nothing to do with the sex. Okay, maybe a little. But in truth, the only way they’d get out of Ameera alive was if they relied on each other.

  He tugged on jeans and went to her. The floor felt icy beneath his feet and he grabbed a blanket, discarded on the floor. Her eyes lit up when she saw him approaching but did nothing to hide the worry on her features. Covering her shoulders with the blanket, he crouched behind her and pulled her into his arms. He couldn’t resist, needing to hold her again before allowing reality to take its roots. The warmth of her eased the chill but did little to ease the angst brewing in his gut.

  She breathed in quietly and leaned into him, seemingly needing the feel of him just as much as he needed her.

  He kissed her head, allowing the stillness to take its beat. “Did you get some sleep?”

  “Yes.”

  “Any bad dreams again?” He’d known she’d been having them, had often heard her pacing around the house at night back home. She’d always evaded his questions, like she so often did when he nudged too close.

  “Surprisingly, no. First time in ages I didn’t dream at all.”

  “You were exhausted. It was a rough night.”

  “No, stud muffin, the dreams are usually worse when I’m tired.” She tilted her head toward his, a smile playing on her lips. “I think I have you to thank.”

  Her admission surprised him, sparking a rush of manly satisfaction. He smiled and kissed her cheek. “If sex keeps the monsters at bay, then I’m all for another round.”

  She laughed, the sound easy and light. “I bet you are.” Sobering, she leaned into him and sighed. “To be honest, I’ve never slept beside anyone before.”

  “You’ve had other lovers.” He would’ve known if she hadn’t.

  “Yes, but none that made me wan
t to stay.”

  Another admission that surprised him. But this time, the satisfaction gave way to something else. A protectiveness he’d always felt for her, one that had magnified in the last few hours. His throat tightened. Adjusting his arms around her, he pressed his face into her hair and breathed her in. She was so beautiful, so quiet, unlike the fierce warrior who’d kicked ass a few hours ago. Her walls were down, first time he’d ever seen her without them, and he knew it wouldn’t be long before they returned.

  “I’m glad you stayed,” he whispered, kissing her temple.

  “How did you find me last night?” she asked softly.

  “I followed Axel, which led me to you.”

  “You risked your life to help me.”

  “Because I protect what’s mine, Jenna. Always.”

  She tensed, a reaction he’d expected. “That’s a pretty loaded statement.”

  “Just stating it like it is.”

  “I’m not a woman who can be owned. You know that, right?

  “Of course.”

  “And the sex doesn’t change anything.”

  “Oh, it changes everything.”

  “Ethan –”

  When she turned her head to look up at him, he flashed her a wild grin and kissed the groove between her brows. “Relax, I’m not about to plant a flagpost and start demanding ownership rights.” Sensing he was pressing a panic button, he decided to change the subject. “What are you reading?”

  Her expression fell. “My father’s journal. He kept it hidden behind a loose brick in the living room. I found it after you left last night. Fortunately, Hazel never saw it in my back pocket.”

  Her father.

  He looked at the book, a reminder that she’d once had family and a life here. A life he knew nothing about. The thought stirred a fresh bout of anger and for a moment, all he could do was stare at it.