Pretty Baby

by Pretty Baby (NCP) (lit)

“I didn’t … I didn’t hurt your feelings, did I? I didn’t mean to.”

  “Oh, no,” he said, slowly making his way into the little hutch that was protected from prying eyes, and far away from the father Shadoe had been afraid of waking up with sounds of passion.

  Julita’s eyes widened as he entered. The sheet came up a little higher, and she felt herself pushing back away from him. His closeness … his dizzying closeness was doing things to her. She tried to quell the hammering of her heart, and the flush of heat that swirled like a tiny tornado deep within her groin. She felt confused by his presence, thinking she’d die if he touched her, yet knowing she’d die if he didn’t.

  “Are you afraid of me, Julita?”

  “I … I seem to be,” she said, trying to keep her voice from trembling.

  He reached out to stroke her arm. “I won’t hurt you. I would never....”

  “I … I know.”

  “Just tell me,” he said, his voice soft. “Do you want me here, or do you want me to go?”

  When she hesitated, he started to move. She reached out, grabbing his arm. “No … don’t go.”

  “But if my presence....”

  “No, it … doesn’t.”

  “You know I won’t do anything you don’t want me to,” he whispered, while stroking her cheek. He felt the beast inside him scratching to come out. His hand lowered to the sheet, his eyes savoring the uncovering of the round, luscious breasts Lucretia had tried so hard to hide. He felt his mouth tingle. He looked back up at her, delving deeply into her violet eyes. “I’ll go slow....” he whispered, almost as if he were begging her. He knew he was lying again. With her beneath him there was no way he could go slow. If he were in his right mind he’d stay away. She was too young, too innocent. Pulling his hand back, he said, “Maybe I should go....”

  “N-no!” she whispered. “I just don’t know how to … I’m willing … I just don’t....”

  There it was … the word he’d been waiting to hear. Willing. It was invitation enough for him. He leaned forward placing his hand on the back of her neck and drew her to him, covering her full lips with his own. He drew her closer and closer until she lay between him and the mattress. His kiss sent her stomach into a wild swirl, and she responded with a surrendering sigh, melting into his arms. It would have taken one small move to mount her, to feel her beneath him while he parted her legs and whispered her name, but he held back.

  Even when her arms went around him, he pulled back begrudgingly, all the things he knew was wrong with what he was doing playing and replaying in his mind. But he couldn’t escape those violet eyes. They made him do things he might not otherwise. Like tug on his shirt, then his trousers, his arousal straining to be released. His hands moved faster until he was finally undressed and sinking down onto the mattress beside her. With his heart pounding, he pulled the sheet over him, and their bodies melded together, burning for release.

  He lifted himself over her and planted a tantalizing kiss at the hollow of her neck. Then his lips made a hot, burning trail downward, climbing each mountainous breast, seeking the tantalizing buds that had swollen to their fullest. Once he was there, he cupped her breasts in his hands and covered each nipple with his mouth and suckled like a starving man. His hunger caused a deep growl to escape his throat as his lips scoured her body, bringing her to a fevered pitch. She arched her body against him, feeling sensations she had never felt before. His lips opened and drew on her flesh while he held her captive, imprisoned in the web of his arousal. Flesh against flesh, man against woman, his shaft pressed against her abdomen, large and heavy. First it excited her, then frightened her. It was as if her body were half ice and half flame.

  All at once she felt his fingers on her thigh. While he sought the center of her soul, he whispered calming words to her, sensing her nervousness. She felt him open her up. Gentle, like the petals of a flower. Then his fingers began to caress her, playing as if he’d found a new toy. She gasped, her desire shimmering upward until she felt an exploding release. She opened her eyes to see the tiny stars she felt had fallen around her, but only found his lovely silhouette hovering above her.

  He was potent, dangerous. A schoolgirl hero, a movie idol, the man who had filled her most ardent fantasies. She felt a thrill spiral through her, and submitted to the probing hands that lifted her knees, opening her wider. Then she felt his shaft gently press against the tiny bud just inside her. His hardness electrified her, causing her to twitch and jerk, the flames of ecstasy attacking her again.

  “Are you ready, Julita?” he whispered.

  “Yes,” she answered, her breath coming in gasps, her heart throbbing out a pitter-patter of erotic pleasure.

  She felt his cock enter her, then plunge deeper, causing a moan to escape her lips. She clung to him, her legs surrounding him, wanting … urging him closer. And then the pain came, swift and harsh. She sucked in a breath.

  “It won’t hurt again,” he whispered in her ear. “Just once, then it’s over.”

  As soon as he’d said it the beast within him surged forward and his plunges became hard and fast, taking her upward to an elusive plateau. With each plunge she moaned loudly, her voice almost rising to an erotic scream. He clamped his hand over her mouth, his thoughts of Garret just behind the wall, and plunged … over and over into an erotic feast of pleasure he’d never known before. She was tight, God, so tight. But she opened to him, enclosing his shaft in her velvety softness. Her sweet, sensual surrender melted against him, her fragrant breath coming to him in long silky moans against his face.

  All at once the point of no return was there, sweeping both up into its heavenly sphere. Their bodies jerked, rolled, and slapped against each other. Their breath panted, their skin sweated, etching their faces into determined passion. Together they rode the swirls of lust that locked their bodies together until they crashed into waves of hot, burning release. And then came a shower of scorching passion, deeply satisfied, spreading through them. Shadoe stiffened as his lusty fountain spewed within her, then at last he slumped over her, savoring the warmth of satisfaction.

  He held her gently for long moments. Then she spoke very low, still catching her breath. “You really are a flashy beast.”

  He laughed softly, then lifted his head and looked at her. “And you’re a woman … and what a woman.”

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Shadoe felt like a worm sneaking out of the basement while Julita was asleep, but he didn’t want Garret to catch him in the basement again, it might make him start asking questions. He didn’t want to go another round with him like he had on the ridge. The old man was sharp, and one false move would give it all away.

  Later, again filling the picnic basket with the enormous breakfast order he had sent for, he made his way back down to the basement, and the three of them were enjoying the inn’s famous Southern Country Breakfast of hearty biscuits, gravy with crumbled sausage, eggs, potatoes, and three kinds of breakfast meats.

  “You know,” Garret began, while shoveling the food in, “I’m going to repay you for all this, don’t you? Hell you must’ve spent a lot of money on all this.”

  Shadoe almost strangled on the food in his mouth. “No, no,” he said, coughing with a napkin pressed against his mouth. His guilt immediately brought up visions of his night with Julita. He knew if Garret had any idea what had gone on between them, this conversation wouldn’t be taking place. “I don’t expect to be paid back. In these situations I’m always reimbursed by the department. It’s not anything you should worry about.”

  “But it seems unfair. Me with all my money, and you having to foot the bill on all of this.”

  “Garret,” Shadoe said, finally clearing his throat and finding his voice. “You shouldn’t worry about it, it’s taken care of, okay?”

  Garret shrugged, but continued eating. “Sure, whatever you say.” After consuming the food in short order, Garret took a deep breath, pushed his empty plate away, threw his napkin down, then lit a cig
arette to have with his coffee. “You know, with all that makeup and stuff you’ve got stashed away, I’d love to be able to get out of this chair and scare the hell out Lucretia. It’d serve her right. She’d lose what little mind she’s got left.”

  Shadoe’s eyes fell to Garret’s legs. “How much can you feel? You know, if we could swing it, I’d love to take you to a specialist and see what difference a little therapy would make on those legs.”

  “Hell, there’s nothing wrong with my legs. It’s my back that’s the problem.”

  Shadoe’s brows lifted in surprise. “So you’re saying if we get the back straightened out, then the legs would be okay?”

  “I assume so. They’d be weak at first … I mean, I haven’t walked on them for … what … eighteen years. The only time I’ve come close to getting up on these legs again was the other night when Lucretia pulled me up out of my chair. I fell, but not before I took a couple of steps in her direction.”

  “A couple of steps?” Shadoe said, looking at Garret with surprise. “Where the hell was I? I didn’t see that.”

  “You probably had your beady eyes on my naked daughter,” Garret rasped, his voice low while he slid his eyes toward Julita who sat in a far corner eating. “I’m sure you would’ve loved seeing me go down on my skinny ass….” His words stopped abruptly and his eyes shifted toward Shadoe, meeting them with intensity. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

  Shadoe smiled. “I sure as hell am. How is your back? Any pain? Can you move around all right?”

  “My back is fine. I haven’t had pain in my back for years.”

  Shadoe’s face slowly stretched into a happy smile. “Why, old man, you’re not paralyzed, just damned lazy. Put that coffee down and let’s get you up on your feet.”

  Garret smiled as he placed the cup in the saucer. “Now you’re talkin’.”

  Shadoe folded the footrests away, then jumped up and began tugging on Garret. “Did it ever occur to you that Lucretia might have known that? Hell, maybe that’s why she wanted to keep you weak. She must have know you weren’t completely paralyzed.”

  Garret felt his frail body being lifted like a sack of potatoes in Shadoe’s arms. He tried to help, but couldn’t do much. “Damned bitch. I tell you, Shadoe if I ever get my hands on that woman I’ll strangle the life out of her!”

  “I’ve got you now. Try to take a step. By the way, how much do you remember about that night? Did the doctor...?”

  “That damned doctor … letting her intimidate him,” he began, while trying to move his legs. “I could hear them talking. I think they were outside the room. I don’t know, maybe the door was open or something. I had been sedated, and they must have been far enough away to keep me from hearing everything, but I distinctly remember him trying to get her to approve surgery. He tried to make it clear that it might not be necessary, but he needed to examine me, take tests to know for sure. I don’t know all of it, but I remember he mentioned a walker, and a cane … yeah, that’s it. A cane. He said I’d eventually be using a cane.”

  “And the mysterious Ms. Van Dare knew all along she wasn’t about to let you be examined, or have surgery. She didn’t want you out of that wheelchair.”

  “Yeah, she knew, that damned bitch knew. I remember trying to say something. My mouth moved, but nothing came out. I even struggled to get up, but I couldn’t move a muscle. I think it was then that I got the idea in my mind that the paralysis had taken hold and there was no hope.”

  “God, your whole life wasted.”

  “Yeah,” Garret said, a menacing look on his face as his fiery eyes pierced the ceiling to the upper floors. “But I’ll get my revenge if I have to crawl to do it.”

  “Why not walk?”

  Garret looked at Shadoe as if he’d lost his mind. “Sure, make fun of an old....”

  “Garret, you’ve been standing alone for several seconds.”

  Garret looked down at himself, but the minute he realized he was standing on his own, he tumbled back into his chair.

  Shadoe knelt down in front of him. “You know what did it? Your anger at Lucretia. Whatever you do, don’t get in a forgiving mood when you think about her. Stay mad, and someday you’ll be walking again. Now, how about letting me look your legs over?”

  “Only if you don’t start lusting after me.”

  Shadoe snickered. “Sorry, but your daughter’s already stolen my heart.” Shadoe was sorry the minute he’d said it. His hands stalled and he looked up into Garret’s heated stare.

  The two men’s eyes met and held, a long silence stretching between them until Garret said, “Yeah? Which one?”

  The silence became charged with memories of the night on the ridge hanging between them. Shadoe knew he could smooth it over, but he stayed silent, tired of pretending he didn’t feel something for Julita. Besides it would be better if it was out in the open. They needed to deal with the problem and reason it out. But with someone as stubborn as Garret Van Dare, it wouldn’t be easy. He’d never met a man so set in his ways.

  Garret watched Shadoe as he gently pushed up his pants legs. The man was one of the good guys, no doubt about that, so why wasn’t he happy about Shadoe's infatuation with Julita? After all, the man had literally saved his life … or what was left of it. And now Shadoe wanted his daughter. His eyes stabbed Shadoe critically while he still felt around on his legs. Dark skinned, Indian heritage. Handsome devil, though. Good guy … as good as they come. Payment of his daughter for his freedom? Wasn't that what Indians did? Trade? If this was what Shadoe had in mind … the price was too damned high!

  “God, your legs are skin and bones.”

  “What the hell did you expect? Betty Grable? Oh, sorry,” he said sarcastically, “you’re too friggin’ young to remember her.”

  “I’ve heard of Betty Grable. Great lookin’ dame. Some legs.” He looked back down at Garret’s legs, feeling around on them. “You’re not going very far on these, though. We’ll just have to build you up.”

  Something drove Garret as he observed the dark-skinned savage rubbing his legs. He knew he was being unfair, but he couldn’t stop himself. “You’re really into this touchy, feely stuff, aren’t you? Julita’s not enough for you. Now you’re after her old man. That it?”

  Shadoe jerked his head upward, and looked at Garret with a frown. “What the hell is wrong with you? I’m straight as an arrow….”

  Garret couldn’t stop himself, and barreled on. “Yeah, you’d know a lot about arrows, wouldn’t you?”

  “What the hell does that mean? I’d much rather be feeling around on Ju--”

  “Leave my daughter alone, you savage.” Garret was fuming. He knew he shouldn’t say anything with Julita around, but he couldn’t seem to keep his mouth shut. He leaned forward, trying to keep his voice down. “I thought we went through this on the ridge. She’s off limits!”

  Shadoe didn’t know why, but for some reason Garret was gunning for a fight. Ordinarily he might try to defend his relationship with Julita, but he’d only heard one thing … savage. He’d heard it before, many times. His anger sprang to life, and his tone was low and threatening. “Are you saying you resent my heritage?”

  Garret suddenly realized what he was doing, and lowered his head. “No ... yes … hell, I don’t know.”

  “Come on, Garret, just say it. I’ll get you out of this goddamned basement no matter how you feel about me.” He indicated toward the outside. “But in that world out there you’re going to be walking around again one day. Will you resent me then? If I try to see Julita … if we fall in love … how would you feel about that?”

  “Fall in love?” Garret yelled, then looked hard at Shadoe. “Have you had your hands on my daughter? Touched her?”

  “You know who you sound like? That bitch upstairs!”

  “Stay away from her,” he snarled, “do you hear?”

  Shadoe looked at him with pain in his eyes. “Yes, I hear.” His eyes lowered sadly, his anger draining way, turning
to hurt. Why couldn’t he stay mad at the old man? Instead he felt like he’d been shot in the heart with an arrow. Hell, why should he be surprised? Bigotry had become part of his life. He’d faced it before, and he’d face it again. In most cases he’d learned to live with it, but sometimes it reared its ugly head in the strangest places. This was one of those places. Except for his obsession with his daughter, Garret seemed like such a right kind of guy, he never thought he’d hear it coming from him.

  The silence in the basement was strained while Shadoe pulled the pants back down over his legs. “We’ll … we’ll have to build up those legs. Tomorrow we’ll start an exercise regimen. We’ll get you up on your feet again, you should....” His words faded as his eyes drifted up to Garret and saw the old man looking at him, his hands crossed in his lap, his permanent scowl back in place. Somehow he knew there would be no tomorrow, and found himself wanting to apologize. But for what? His Indian heritage? He wasn’t ashamed of his heritage, and he certainly wouldn’t apologize for it. Besides, a man apologized for things he could help, things he could’ve have done differently, not those things he had no control over.

  “Garret, would you rather me bow out now? There’s another way we can play this, you know. I could contact the local PD, have you out of here in a matter of hours.”

  “Now he tells me,” Garret retorted.

  His eyes flickered at the smart retort. “You knew it, you old bastard. Why didn’t you say something? No, you didn’t want to play it by the book, because you wanted that witch upstairs to pay for what she’s done to you and Julita. It didn’t matter what my heritage was as long as your stomach stayed full and you knew you’d eventually get out of this goddamned basement. Right? What suddenly changed your mind? Me and Julita? Can’t stand the thought of a half-breed savage touching your daughter, much less joining the family. Sure, I’m good enough to feed you and help you scare the pants off Lucretia, but not quite good enough when it comes to your daughter. Am I right?”

  “Keep you voice down, you bastard. Where’s Julita?”