Shed some Light

by Amber Naralim

  She pulled away from him suddenly, leaving him confused, reeling. Charlie took a few steps up the stairs, turning to look at him. She breathed heavily, her chest heaving. Shane loved the look on her face. Her cheeks were rosy, her hair tumbling over her shoulders. Her smile took his breath away. “Well?” she asked. “Aren't you coming?” Charlie took off into the house. She left the door hanging wide open.

  Shane chuckled, trotting up the steps. He caught up to her in the hall. Shane grabbed her from behind. She spun in his arms with a joyous laughter. He pressed her against the wall, kissed her again. Charlie pulled at his vest.

  She pushed it open to his shoulders as he laid kisses on her face, her neck. He took his arms away from her just long enough to pull the vest off. It dropped to the floor. His hand slid under her heavy sweater, over her side. His fingers were cold against her skin. His touch made her laugh out loud. Her whole body trembled with nervousness and passion.

  “If you keep this up, we won't make it to the bedroom.” Charlie giggled.

  “Maybe that is what I was going for,” he told her with a twinkle in his eye.

  Again, she laughed at him. Charlie looked him in the eye. Let her hands glide down his chest, his stomach. She took the hem of his red shirt and pulled it up over his broad chest. Shane reached down, dragging it the rest of the way off his arms. He balled it up, tossing it behind him. Charlie took him in, his broad shoulders, his muscular arms, and his chiseled chest. Charlie laid her hand against his chest, his soft hair showing through her fingertips. She bit her bottom lip, as her eyes roved over him. Charlie kissed his chest. She laid an open-mouthed line of kisses down the center of his stomach that made him sigh.

  Both of them looked up when they heard footsteps on the stairs. “Oh, good gracious!” Ellie cried pointing back up the stairs. “Room!” Charlie laid her forehead against Shane’s chest and laughed. Ellie came down the steps two at a time, rushing past them making a face. Her tongue stuck out in mock disgust. “It's like walking in on your parents,” she mumbled with conviction.

  Laughing, they waited for her to go into the kitchen before Charlie looked up at his smiling face. She took his hand. Charlie jerked her head toward the steps. Shane let her pull him to them. They practically ran down the upstairs hall. Reese chuckled to himself when he saw them pass. Charlie shut the door behind them and turned, leaning against it. Shane stared into her face.

  “Where were we?” Charlie asked with a breathless look. Her cheeks still rosy with a blush that had not gone away.

  That was all the invitation he needed. Shane closed the distance between them with two quick steps. Pulling her back into his arms, he laid a line of kisses over the side of her cheek. He buried his face in her neck. Her hair tickled him. Shane breathed against her.

  “It's been so long. I don't know if I remember what goes where,” he said chuckling.

  Charlie sighed with the pleasure of it. “Don't worry, I'm told it's like riding a bike,” she assured him.

  “Really? Because I don't really remember pedals at all,” Shane joked. She laughed. His lame jokes helped calm and charm her at the same time.

  She laid her head back against the door. Charlie yanked at her orange sweater. The buttons came loose easy. She pulled it open revealing the cream-colored shirt beneath, with its bright orange and yellow geometric shapes for decoration.

  Shane's hand slid over it. His fingertips brushing over her stomach, her large breasts. She drew her long sweater over her shoulders and let it slide down her arms dropping to the floor. He dragged her away from the door and spun them in the direction of the bed. Charlie fumbled at the buttons on his jeans. Her hand slid between them and the skin at his hip.

  Charlie smiled at him, biting her bottom lip as he sank down to his knees in front of her. He pushed up on the shirt, kissed her stomach. Charlie had just a split second of self-consciousness before he stopped and pulled back. Shane looked up at her, his eyes shining with surprise and concern. “What happened to you?” he breathed, blinking at her.

  She swallowed hard, drawing away from him. Charlie took a few steps back, sitting down on the edge of the bed. Shane shook his head. Her stomach was covered in scars, dozens of them. He got up off his knees, crossing the floor to her. Shane leaned up against the poster and stared down at her.

  Charlie tried to smile, but the tears stung her eyes anyway. She fought to catch her breath. She licked her lips. “Charlie,” his voice was a soft whisper. She let her head fall back against her shoulders. Charlie reached up, lacing her fingers behind her neck. Her hair made a silky cushion. She blinked at the tears in her eyes.

  “It was my ex-husband,” Charlie blurted out. “He was violent. He used to get drunk and beat me up. And when I tried to leave him, he attacked me,” she whispered. “He stabbed me, tried- he-um- he tried to kill me.” Charlie closed her eyes. She didn’t want to see the look of pity in his. “He almost did.” Charlie stared at the floor. “I was in intensive care for three weeks. When I woke up my mother was there.” Charlie laughed, but it came out more as a choking sob. “She was there... to convince me to go back to him,” she said looking up into Shane’s soft eyes.

  “God,” Shane whispered, shaking his head.

  “I ran. I gave up everything. I just disappeared. I don't know how, but Vincent showed up at my door. I hadn't seen him since I was a kid. He hadn't aged. He hadn't changed at all. Vincent told me what he was, and I don't think I really believed him, even with him still looking so young,” she explained.

  “I asked him to stay, and he did. For a while, it was great. Finally having a friend after so many years alone. He helped me set up my practice, bought me a house. I loved having him there. And then one night… James came knocking on my door with a baseball bat.” Charlie sniffed. The memories were still so raw, after all these years. Charlie could still feel the fear. Taste the adrenaline at the back of her throat. “I made a mistake, you see. I used my maiden name to register for a license to operate a practice. James was a cop. So when my name popped up on his little computer, he came to pay me a visit. To finish what he started.” Charlie nodded, swallowed. Letting her hands fall back to her sides.

  “He burst through the door, smacked me around. I tripped over the carpet, or something and I rolled over. He had the bat raised over his head. I'll never forget the look in his eyes,” Charlie told him. “Then suddenly, this black thing slammed into him. I barely saw it, and I was staring right at them. All I could hear was this high pitched screaming.” Charlie looked up at Shane, her eyes glittering with a mixture of sorrow and retribution. “Vincent ripped him apart,” she said. “H-He saved my life.”

  Shane swallowed. That story let him deal with the pet a tiny bit more. Just looking at her, Shane had known she had seen some glimpse of hell. Now he knew what that was. He took a few steps until he was standing in front of her. Shane dropped down to his knees, laying his hands on her thighs. He smiled at her, eye to eye.

  “I knew you were a survivor,” he said. Shane laid a gentle kiss on her cheek. Charlie turned her head and kissed him, just a bare brush of lips. Charlie blinked at the tears in her eyes. “Before, I thought you were beautiful, sweet, and loving,” he whispered to her. “Now, I think you're amazing too.” That made her smile, made her eyes dance. “And now I get why you're okay with the Wonder Twins.” That was his pet name for Vincent and Reese.

  She touched his cheek. Let her hand slide over the line of his scruffy jaw. Charlie leaned in and kissed him again. Just like that, the spark ignited. She wanted him. Now she knew he wanted her. That passion did not go away even after letting him in on her biggest secret. If anything, it grew. Shane pushed in on her and she lay back against the bed slowly.

  His body against hers was a reassuring weight. His skin was like silk. Charlie took in a deep breath and held it. She leaned up, grabbing at the hem of her shirt. Charlie ripped it off quick, expecting pain to flare. She unhooked her bra. Let it slide down over her shoulders and lay back slowly.
Her body trembled as he stared down at her.

  The scars started just below her breastbone. Long, angry marks drawn across her stomach, some vertical, others horizontal lines of shiny pink scar tissue. Shane took in a deep breath. Charlie bit her lip, worried that he would find her disgusting. If the scars bothered him, he didn't show it. Shane gave her the most gentle smile. That smile, the look in his eyes made all of the fear melt away.

  Shane ran his hand through her hair. He bent over her, laid a chaste kiss between her breasts. “You are the most awe inspiring thing, you know that,” he breathed against her skin. Charlie smiled, blinking the tears from her eyes.

  Healing. That's what she needed. That is what he gave her. He pulled her jeans down over her large thighs. She watched him slide out of his. Charlie stared at his body as he came toward her, his tattoos, his hips. He had a few scars of his own. Shane pressed his body against hers, cupping his hands under her hips, turning them up.

  He kissed her breast, closing his mouth over her nipple. Shane rolled it like a piece of candy. Charlie cried out. Her eyes opened wide as he slid inside of her. She gathered him in her arms, held him against her. Shane pulled back by inches to stare down at her. He blinked at her suddenly dizzy.

  Shane caught her gaze and held it. Her body trembled, her lips quivering. She bit down on it taking a deep breath. Charlie threw her head back, crying out her pleasure. With her so close, Shane felt as though he had conquered something. She surprised him with her passion. He could feel her desire, her need. There were emotions in her dreamy eyes that raged and crashed like a storm. She rolled her hips against him, her back arched, hands in her hair. She tasted like honey and milk, so very sweet.

  Her skin was soft, like running your hands over warm velvet. He breathed her in and swooned on the scent of honeysuckle. Shane laid a gentle kiss on her wet lips. Passionate, and yet slow and gentle. He didn't think the two could coexist in an act like this. His mouth moved over her throat. Shane laid gentle, open-mouthed kisses over her chest, over her full breasts.

  Her body tightened around him. Charlie laid her head back, hair fanning out around her like a dark corona. Her hand closed over the back of his neck. Charlie dug in, her nails biting gently into his skin. She could feel that spine-tingling rush begin to break over her. That wave crashed into her.

  Making love to her reminded Shane of dancing. He felt as though he were spinning around and around the room until he was so dizzy, so full of ecstasy that he couldn't take it anymore. His body was so full of that intense pleasure. Another rush of delight and it was over. He let go, that one last wave of pleasure so strong that his spine bowed with it. He collapsed against her. His body shuddering, Shane pushed up on his arms and stared down at her.

  Her eyes shined with adoration. She smiled, running her hand through his short hair. Charlie stared into his handsome face. He laid a kiss on her mouth. She smiled and traced her hand down over his ass, giving it a smack. He laughed at her.

  Breathing heavy, Shane rolled, falling back against the bed next to her. He wondered if he was ever going to recover from the gunshot wounds. He couldn't get enough air. Charlie rolled onto her side resting her head on her palm, her elbow on the pillow. Shane took her hand. He laced his fingers between hers. He stared into her face. Finally, Charlie smiled.

  “So, is the part where we get all defensive and try to avoid each other in the halls?” Charlie asked giving him a playful look.

  Shane swallowed and shook his head. “No,” he said. “This is the part where I spend the rest of my life getting to know you, because every time I look at you, Charlie. I swear I see something new.” He smiled at her. “If everything that has happened has taught me one thing, it's to hold on to something beautiful, and not let go.”

  Charlie smiled shyly and laughed at him. “Wow. I would never have pegged you for the romantic type,” she said.

  Shane put his finger to his lips and shushed her. “You can't tell anyone or my reputation, shot to hell.” He nodded. She laughed at him. Charlie bit her bottom lip and laid her head down on his chest, her arm sliding across his stomach.

  “Good,” she said. “Because I think I like you.”

  Chapter 11

  Edward puffed up his cheeks blowing all the air out of his lungs. The place was small. Some dark hole in the wall of a bar that surprisingly was rather full of people. So many people made him reconsider. This was the first time he left the safe house since they got to it. His small conversation and walk with Anna earlier in the day left him an emotional wreck.

  He needed a drink. He needed to sit at the bar and be surrounded by people. Edward craved normalcy like a starving man craves food. The music was loud, slightly jarring. He gave the place a once over heading toward the bar. With a nod of his head at the bartender, Edward ordered a whiskey sour. The woman looked old, too old to be wearing biker chic. Her skin looked like worn leather. Her thin hair pulled back and clipped to her head.

  She poured his drink and gave it to him with a flirty smile that made him feel awkward and creeped out. Edward took a sip turning sideways to look down the bar. Music, two TVs, one showed hockey, the other some news program. Edward did his best to ignore both as he nursed his drink. He had one hell of a headache. A stabbing pain in his right eye radiated down his neck into his shoulder. Edward drained the last of his glass and ordered another one.

  His mind swirled. Not just Ellie and her pets, he spent most of the day thinking about Anna. She was the reason he finally after so many months decided to risk the town. Edward felt like a coward watching her sit in the living room staring blindly out the window. The first month or so together had been great. Her body, once it healed provided a perfect distraction from his problems with his little sister. His fear of what came next. It made this new life almost bearable.

  Edward was in love with her. Hell, he figured that out lying in bed next to her that first night. He would have been perfectly happy spending the rest of his life with her. That is until he found out it was only going to last a year. He just couldn't do that to her. Edward loved her. He had to end it before she fell for him.

  It was much harder to stay away from her than he had anticipated. She did things to him that he just couldn't resist. Knowing that his life was over made him insanely lonely. All Edward wanted to do was lose himself in her. The surest way to make him want something was to tell him he couldn't have it. And oh did Edward want her.

  His emotions had spun so far out of his control he was barely holding on. But it was more than that. Whatever Bennet had done to him, his body was on fire. His senses were alive. Edward just couldn't wrap his head around the fact that he could feel so robust, so energetic when his life was slowly draining away from him.

  Edward lifted the glass to his lips and swallowed the rest of the burning amber liquid down. It scorched his throat. Its warmth curled inside his chest. He set the empty glass back down on the blond oak of the bar. The last drops splashing up onto his hand. He raised two fingers to the bartender, signaling that he wanted yet another.

  “Looks like you're on a mission,” her sultry voice said.

  Edward turned his head and looked straight into a sexy heart shaped face. She had wide cheekbones and a long tapered nose. High arched brows drew him into glassy greyish-blue eyes. Made all the more luminous by the dark eye makeup she wore. She let her mouth fall open and ran a wet tongue over luscious, pouting red lips. They shimmered in the dull golden light. She had wildly red hair. So dark that it had obviously come out of a bottle, but her pale skin helped her pull it off.

  She gave him a smile that he was sure wolves give to sheep, leaning forward, her back arching ever so slightly. It called attention to her large breasts and voluptuous curves. She came out tonight all vamped up. The many rings on her fingers caught the light. Four wide metal bracelets clicked and clinked against one another with her every movement. Long drippy earrings sparkled and danced around the sides of her titillating face.

  Her indigo jeans we
re painted on. They hugged her wide hips, disappearing into a pair of calf-high leather boots. They were a silvery gray color and ruched up around her legs with wide buckles for decoration. Her shirt hung from one shoulder, spilling a filmy blue fabric down her form. The shirt looked delicate, fitting close to her skin. It shimmered and sparkled with beads and sequins. Every tiny movement made her glint and gleam.

  “How bout I buy you a drink, help you along with it,” she said.

  Edward opened his mouth to tell her no thanks. That he really should be getting back. What he said instead was, “Sure, why not.”

  Edward didn't want love, no. That didn't mean he didn't mind the company of another. So long as it didn't last past the night. Something told him this one wasn't looking for anything more than a wild romp. That he could certainly oblige. He always was a sucker for a red head, fake or not. Edward let his head fall forward a touch, his eyes danced over her appreciatively. Taking her in, he savored every curve.

  Accepting the invitation, she sat down on the stool next to his and nodded at the bartender. Then she turned that hungry gaze on him. “I have certainly not seen you here before.”

  Edward gave his head a shake. “No. No, you haven't.” He lifted his glass to her, tilting it and his chin toward her in thanks.

  “It's a shame because you unquestionably add to the ambiance,” she said with a raised brow. “Oh well, you're here now aren't you.”

  “That I am,” Edward said, taking a long drink of the searing liquid. He flashed her a smirk, his thin lips pulling up on one side. Edward was pleasantly surprised by the fact that he was beginning to feel the buzz washing warmth over him. The tip of his nose began to tingle ever so slightly. Drunk as he was getting he couldn't help but be slightly annoyed at himself as he listened to her drone on.