Shrouded in Darkness

by H. D. Thomson

  Oh, God. No. She didn’t want him here. Not now. She was too raw, too frightened, too everything. And too sober. Without the haze of alcohol, her senses and emotions were far too heightened. She was terrified of who he was, what he was hiding, but most importantly, the power he had over her. She still hadn’t recovered from witnessing his break down.

  The rustle of sheets, the sigh of Jake’s breath whispered from behind. At the touch of his palm, warm against her bare shoulder, she stiffened.

  “Jake...” Margot didn’t think she had the willpower to say no.

  “I tried, but I couldn’t stay away. You smell so good...” His breath touched the nape of her neck, warming her exposed skin and ruffling the fine hairs at the nape of her neck. He nipped at the lobe of her ear, then used his mouth to burn a hot and seductive path along the slope of her neck.

  Margot shuddered and closed her eyes against the hunger. Her veins burned with it, her stomach ached with it. Desire raged through her body. The way Jake’s body cupped her from behind, the way his skin seared through the thin silk of her gown chipped away at her resolve.

  “Jake—I—”

  “Don’t, Margot.” He urged her on her back with gentle hands and pressed a finger against her lips. “Don’t tell me to go. I need you tonight. I need you like I’ve never needed anyone in my life.”

  She looked up. The night, thick, black and total hid his profile from view, but she heard the desperation in his voice. How could she turn him away when she would be denying not just him but herself?

  “Why?” Her throat tightened, making speech difficult at best. “Why are you doing this to me, Jake?”

  Jake cupped her cheek and caressed the line of her jaw with the pad of his thumb. “When it comes to you, I have no control.” His deep voice sounded emotionally charged. “I can’t stay away. I know I should—for the both of us. I—” He inhaled sharply. “I’m sorry Margot. I just can’t leave you alone.”

  His words and their honesty touched her like nothing else could. “Then don’t.”

  Jake caught her parted lips with his mouth and slid over her, covering her body with the hot, hard length of him. Then raking his fingers through her hair, he anchored her head against the pillow and opened her lips wider with his mouth and tongue. Margot clutched at his shoulders, digging her fingers into the naked flesh of his muscles. His kiss deepened, took and devoured until she was a mindless mass of sensations, unable to deny him or herself.

  Sweet heaven. He tasted wonderful. Pure sin and pure pleasure. The desperation, wildness in his touch excited her that much more. Margot couldn’t get enough of his mouth, his tongue, his hands. Oh, Lord, those hands of his touched her in places that made her hunger for him that much more. She wanted him, all of him, around her and in her.

  ###

  Jake dragged in a breath of air. Lust. But far more than that. His feelings were involved, deep feelings of love and devotion. For Margot, he’d do anything, be anyone. He’d protect her, even from herself or die trying.

  Easing her legs apart with his knees, Jake sank back on his heels and tugged roughly at her gown with shaking hands, drawing it up over her hips. She arched, freeing the fabric and helping him pull the garment from her body. Jake tossed it aside. He needed to touch every naked, satin inch of her, to feel her legs wrapped around his hips, to hear her cry out as he moved inside of her.

  He couldn’t see her. Though, he could hear her shallow little pants, the rustle of sheets as she moved restlessly against the bed. He wanted to see her in the light, see her dilated eyes and her ivory skin flush with desire.

  Clasping her knees, Jake drew them further apart. They quivered beneath his fingers as she tried to close them, but he wouldn’t have it. He wanted Margot vulnerable, open to him. He wanted her complete surrender.

  “Jake. I don’t think—”

  “Sssh... For once don’t think,” he whispered. “Just feel. Let me make you feel.”

  When her muscles relaxed beneath his hands, Jake slid his fingers over the silken flesh of her inner thighs, inching his thumbs up higher and higher, inch by slow inch, until he reached the apex of her legs. Then he stroked her with his thumbs. She was wet, ready for him.

  Damn it. Sweat formed on his brow as he fought the urge to take her right then and there. Control. He needed control. Not a quick tumble. Granted, his body screamed for it, but he wanted the moment to go on and on. He wanted tonight branded into Margot’s thoughts. He wanted her to think of no other man but him. Only him.

  Mindful of his rough jaw against her skin, he followed the same path across her inner thighs with his lips. When he reached the juncture of her legs, he touched her clitoris with the tip of his tongue, a light, fleeting caress, but he soon grew bolder and took her with his mouth.

  She gasped and shifted against the bed. Encouraged by her excitement, Jake didn’t stop the pressure of his tongue or mouth as he slid his hands over her hips and belly until they covered her breasts. He molded them beneath his palms, grazing his fingers again and again over her hardened nipples.

  She clasped his head between both hands and drew him deeper against her as she arched against his mouth and cried out. Jake’s own excitement turned hot with hunger as she came against his mouth.

  He didn’t give her any time to recover, but rose up and slid deep into her, clutching her butt with both hands and pulling her to him. Groaning, she wrapped her legs and arms around his body.

  One thrust and Jake thought he’d come right then and there. She was hot and tight and...perfect. She squirmed beneath him, trying to set the pace, but he grasped her hips and slowly drew out, then back in, using short, deliberate thrusts to tease, to tempt again and again. Then he drove deep, once, twice. When he sensed her nearing the edge, he paused deep inside.

  “Jake, please—”

  Her nails bit into his shoulders and her legs tightened around his hips.

  “It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you.”

  “But I—want—I want—”

  Margot used her body to try to throw him to the side and take over, but he dug his knees and elbows into the mattress, holding her tight against his body. He caught her mouth, delving deep. She matched him with equal passion, twining her fingers into his hair to hold his head steady as she mated with his tongue.

  Jake broke the kiss, nipped at her bottom lip, and ran his tongue gently, ever so softly over the same spot. With some primitive urge goading him, Jake found the pulse above her collarbone and suckled, marking her as his.

  Margot was no one else’s. She had to see that. She had to see that he loved her. Yes. He loved her, loved her more than any other woman in his life.

  Drawing her legs from around his waist, he slid them up over his shoulders. He grabbed the extra pillow and nudged it under her bottom while rising to his knees, impaling himself deeper inside of her.

  “Oh—” She gasped.

  “Am I deep enough now?”

  “Yes—” She said between hard, ragged breaths. “Oh, yes.”

  Grasping her hips, he withdrew and plunged into the warm, tightness of her. “You feel so damn good.”

  He closed his eyes and grappled for self-control. She was so feminine. He loved the curves beneath his hands, the long, length of her legs, and the way she responded to his every touch.

  Jaw clenched, Jake quickened his pace—each thrust deliberate as he moved faster and harder. He stroked her hips and waist, urging her on. “Come for me, baby. That’s it. Feel the rush.”

  Beneath his hands her body tensed, grinding against his hips as she arched off the mattress. Her cry of release broke the night. Jesus. Jake lost it then. Heart pounding, he clutched at her hips, his own bucking and straining above her as he came inside her. He shuddered. His climax went on and on, draining the life out of him. Careful of Margot’s legs, he eased gently down beside her and curved an arm around her, drawing her snuggly against his chest.

  “I didn’t hurt you, did I?” Jake stroked her damp hair from her
brow.

  “Hurt? Never that.” She laughed, a deep husky, even sultry sound. “But I’m weak, all wobbly. If I got up right now, I’d embarrass myself and land flat on my face.”

  Smiling, Jake glided a thumb tenderly along her jaw line. He tightened his free arm and drew her soft curves even closer to his length.

  “You’re not the only one. With you I’ve never... I mean it was more than hot sex.” He cleared his throat. He’d never been good at explaining his feelings. “It was beautiful. You’re beautiful.”

  “Beautiful?” she asked, a smile in her voice. “I like the sound of that. Keep the compliments going, and I just might let you stay the night.”

  With Margot cuddled in the circle of his arms, her cheek against his shoulder and his mouth by her brow, Jake closed his eyes. Her scent drifted to him in the darkness. She smelled of him. He smiled once again and drifted into an exhausted sleep.

  ###

  Margot woke to something soft stroking her cheek. She wrinkled her nose and pushed it aside. Another gentle swipe brushed at her mouth. She opened her eyes and found Marmaduke hunched inches from her face. As she opened her mouth, he decided then and there to rub up against her face and present her with a mouthful of cat hair.

  “Yuck.” She rubbed her mouth with the back of her hand and pulled him up against her stomach. “I don’t exactly like eating cat hair. And what are you doing up? It’s too early yet, stupid. You’re going to have to wait for breakfast.”

  The sun hadn’t yet risen over the horizon, but moonlight now seeped into the room and thrust the furniture into varying shades of gray. Lifting her head from her pillow, Margot looked to the empty space beside her and slipped her free hand over the cool sheets.

  No. Not again. Jake had left before sunrise.

  Margot let go of the cat, who scrambled off the bed and disappeared into the hall.

  She knew he’d been with her most of the night, having woken up a few times with Jake’s leg over her own and an arm curved around her waist. But now he was gone to God knew where.

  So he’d left. Margot told herself she shouldn’t be hurt by it. Otherwise, that would mean she was vulnerable—a weakness she’d promised never to allow herself after Malcolm.

  Margot laughed harshly. Who was she fooling? Last night had been pure heaven. Everything about Jake left her wanting more—his hot, naked skin against her own, the urgent need of his lips and hands, the warmth of his breath against her brow.

  Sighing, she threw off the covers. Sleep was impossible. There was no point even trying. Margot slipped from bed, crossed the cold floor on bare feet and snatched her thick housecoat draped over the bedroom chair. Shrugging into its sleeves, she tied the belt snuggly around her middle, and walked over to the window to pull the curtain aside.

  The lab, a thick, dark shadow, sat stooped in front of an outcropping of aspen and Ponderosa pine. A light appeared in the window, throwing a shallow glow over the once gray snow.

  Margot stiffened, clutching the curtain between her fingers. So that’s where he’d gone.

  “Who are you, Jake? You’ve got so many secrets,” she whispered, her breath misting the glass’s frigid pane. “What are you hiding?”

  The barn and the light from within beckoned. Her answers were down there. Answers she planned on learning today.

  ###

  Malcolm sat in the back of the squad car and burned. Behind his back, the metal handcuffs bit into his wrists. He stared out the window over the manicured lawn of the Georgian styled brick house. His house.

  Movement at the corner of his vision made him turn. The neighbor, Harry or Henry—some stupid name that started with an H—walked across the opposite side of the street with his prized golden retriever. His gray, fake hair flopped with each stride. It couldn’t be anything else but a sick attempt at a hair transplant, because the guy had been bald as a bat months before.

  Back ramrod straight, Malcolm glared through the closed window. He couldn’t miss—no one could—the way Harry or Henry rubbernecked to get a look at who sat inside the cop car. After all, it wasn’t every day someone saw the police parked in front of a house in the neighborhood. This was probably the most excitement anyone had seen in a while.

  Humiliation crept up Malcolm’s neck and burned into his face.

  He knew exactly who’d done this to him. A stupid kid could even figure this one out.

  Jake.

  Rage surged and mixed with humiliation. Malcolm didn’t want to think of how he’d driven up his driveway to find several cops sniffing through his house. The crack cocaine on the dining room table, the semi-automatic rifles, all unlicensed, tasted like bile against his throat. He’d underestimated Jake. For some reason, he hadn’t thought Jake had it in him to lower himself beyond his sick ethics and frame him. He’d made it so easy and so simple for Jake to do it.

  He never intended to underestimate Jake again. He’d made two huge mistakes—Carl and now Jake. Well, he’d taken care of Carl, and as far as Jake, he’d fix him just as good. If Jake wanted to play with the big boys, then he was in for a surprise. Jake might have won this scrimmage, but it was far from over between them.

  Malcolm twisted his wrists against the handcuffs, which tightened and dug deeper into his flesh. What other things had he missed?

  Or who?

  Margot. Hell. Could Jake somehow have involved her? Malcolm mashed his teeth together. She could very well be another threat. What if she had a hand in this whole stinking mess? Maybe she’d been the one to put Jake up to it. It was possible. Hell knew, she could get down and fling dirt like the worst of them.

  Well, they were both in for a surprise if they thought this was over.

  Chapter 14

  After scrambling into pair of jeans, a thick woolen sweater and socks, Margot raced downstairs, rammed her feet into a pair of boots and grabbed her jacket. Outside, she turned up her collar and stuffed her hands into the big pockets of her down jacket—anything to ward off the icy air snapping at her exposed skin. Snowdrifts and patches of ice hampered her way to the lab. By the time she reached the building, her breath came out in rapid, cloud-like puffs.

  Margot opened the door, stepped quickly inside and shut it tight against the cold. The lab’s sterile light glared off the lab equipment and furniture.

  No sign of Jake.

  Or anyone.

  But the computer was on. Frowning, she walked over to the desk and sat down. The chair’s warmth penetrated through the fabric of her jeans. Jake must have been here just recently, though, in this chair, working on the computer.

  Margot jiggled the mouse. Formulas. They all looked so innocent, but she knew they were deadly. She scrolled down the screen. Nothing made sense. But she didn’t know anything when it came to science. The subject in college had never been something she’d aspired to. She’d never had the logic or the patience to understand. But right this second, she desperately wanted to make sense of everything in front of her.

  The information displayed on the monitor held the key to Johnny’s murder, maybe even Carl’s. Could all three, Jake, Malcolm, and Carl, be linked together? Carl might not have been the smartest person, but some way, some how he could have become unknowingly involved. It was just too much of a coincidence otherwise. But she didn’t understand the link with Carl. He’d mentioned a secret Whatever it was, it had to be of grave importance, something serious enough to be murdered for.

  A footstep, soft but unmistakable, sounded from behind. Margot pivoted, swinging the chair around 180 degrees.

  “Jake?”

  The place remained deathly still. The hum of the refrigerator in the back and the computer’s hard drive were the only sounds that permeated the room. She clutched the chair’s armrests with rigid fingers.

  “Johnny?”

  Nothing.

  The door to the lab remained closed. But she could feel something or someone in the room with her.

  She waited, while her heart crashed against her ribs. Her bre
athing became quick and shallow. Frozen in the chair, she waited longer. Seconds passed. Then minutes. Still nothing.

  “Johnny? Is that you?”

  Clamping down on her fear, Margot searched the room, not only with her eyes, but all her senses. She felt something or some type of presence.

  “Fine,” she told the empty room with bravado. “Have it your way.”

  Margot forced herself to turn around and face the monitor. The hairs on the back of her nape rose. She gripped the armrests even harder. Something was behind her.

  She was afraid to look. Afraid to see what or who. But the need to know was too powerful.

  A crash resounded through the barn. Frigid air rushed into the room. She swung wildly round in her chair. The lab door gaped open, having banged against the wall. Someone must have rushed outside.

  “What the—”

  Margot stumbled to her feet, raced toward the threshold, and hit a foot against a metal trashcan. Paper tumbled from the basket and kicked up into the air.

  She stepped outside and squinted against the sun as its rays crested over the horizon and bounced off the snow. Nothing. No one. Just a bunch of barren trees.

  God. Was she going crazy? Was she finally hallucinating? Closing her eyes, she rubbed the bridge of her nose with a thumb and forefinger, mentally shaking her head.

  She opened her eyes and began to lower her arm, but stilled. She’d almost missed it. An imprint in the snow. A footprint. And they weren’t hers. They were much larger. After closing the lab door, she followed cautiously up the embankment toward the house.

  She plodded through snow as thick as the silence around her. Every now and then she looked over her shoulder to check if someone followed her. She was still spooked, fearful of what or who might be out here with her. When she reached the steps to the porch, the footprints abruptly disappeared. She’d shoveled off the steps and veranda after the last storm, too impatient to wait for the local teenager she’d hired to come and shovel after each snowfall.