Two paramedics approached the swing where they sat softly swinging. One was the woman who couldn’t seem to keep from gaping at Thor. She stared at the woman who seemed to take such a liking to her new... She looked at Thor, still trying to figure out what he was to her. A voice in her head said it quite succinctly.
He is your other half.
Emma frowned at the voice that sounded so much like the voice of Odin in her dreams. She cast a glance at the man sitting next to her and felt the rightness of those words.
Her other half.
When had she started thinking that way? And when had she become so possessive of him...and why? Was it because he risked his life to save her farm? Could she really be that shallow? She looked up at him, trying not to show what was on her mind.
Inhaling deeply, she tried to ignore his musky aroma that seemed to seep into her pores. Even the strong smell of smoke couldn’t cover up the man’s natural scent.
“You really should be seen by a doctor, you know,” she said as they sat watching the firemen run about, aiming their hoses at the barn. One truck had concentrated on wetting the roof of the house down so a stray spark wouldn’t ignite the older building. They were slowly bringing the blaze under control.
Several police cars pulled into the yard behind the fire engines, the officers strolling about asking questions of the firefighters as they took turns to rest and get drinks.
He stiffened next to her as the men, inevitably turned to indicate the two of them on the porch. He turned, his gaze piercing hers. Was that suspicion she saw in his eyes?
“I will go if you will take me but I refuse to leave you here alone. I think the Fire Marshall will find that this was no accident.”
Turning his head toward the west, he stared out over the harvested field as if he looked for something. Following his gaze, she squinted, but saw nothing.
She licked her lips, nervous. “Are you saying that someone burned my barn on purpose? Who would do such a thing?” She fisted her hands in her lap so he wouldn’t see her trembling.
Her gaze darted erratically over the floor of the porch seeing, for the first time, the muddy footprints just outside her office window. Those prints had escaped her notice before.
Her heart stammered in her chest as fear lodged in her middle.
Who would do such a thing?
The acrid tasted of bile burned her throat and she gagged. Who would want to hurt them? The question repeated itself in her mind as she tried to make sense of it.
A dim memory flashed in her mind—her mother’s face, tight with anger and her father shaking his head.
No we are not interested in selling. This farm has been in our family for generations. Her father paced, obviously agitated with the person who stood just out of sight. It’s entailed. It always has been. It will go to our son one day. He glanced over at Emma. Or it will go to one of Emma’s sons.
It wasn’t long after that overheard conversation that the accidents began to happen—little things at first. The tractor broke down and needed constant repairs. There was a fire in one of the fields close to the road. The fire was blamed on a passing motorist tossing a cigarette out the window. The barn was broken into. The well water suddenly became undrinkable and a new well needed sunk. All of these were very expensive replacements and repairs. It made sense now.
But why?
Over the next few years the accidents became more frequent. They were harmless at first, then one day, one took her mother’s life. Somehow, she had found herself in front of a robber’s unyielding bullet by doing nothing other than helping an old woman.
Her death devastated her father. Yet, he still wouldn’t sell to that unknown man who called frequently to make offer after offer. Her mother’s death only served to make him that much more determined to keep the farm. She had loved it here.
He shook his head, a frown marring his handsome face. “I don’t know who would do this. I only know that we didn’t leave anything in that barn that would have caught fire. The tractors and the combine were sufficiently cool enough.”
“You’re right, they were. We allowed them to sit for hours while we emptied the last load in the trailers and cleaned out the horses’ stalls. There was no way the heat of the exhaust could have ignited anything.” She frowned, thinking. “Besides, if it had, it would have happened long before we went to bed.”
He nodded his agreement. “You’re right. It would have happened while we were in the shower at the latest.”
Heat stole up her cheeks. The way he said that so casually, made it seem that they had showered together. She glanced back over at the muddy footprints beneath her office window.
Pointing, she asked, “Are those your footprints?”
He turned to look and swore. “No they aren’t and now we know that whoever set the fire knows that you spend time in that room.”
He stood to walk over to the window. Kneeling down, he picked up a piece of the dirt.
“Were you in there tonight?”
She nodded. “Yes, just after my shower I...” her face blazed. “Oh, my God! I was in there earlier after my shower. I—I...” She covered her face with her hands. “I forgot to bring the laundry upstairs and I was so tired, I didn’t want to carry it up to my room for fear that I would fall or drop it. I dressed in there...”
* * * *
Rage, unlike anything that Thor had ever felt before rushed through his blood. For the first time in his life, he felt that he could kill someone with his bare hands. He clenched his fists, longing for the familiar weight of Mjolnir in his hands. How he longed for his hammer so he could wreak havoc on the person who dared to watch her dress, who dared to make his woman feel unsafe in her own home.
“Go get one of the policemen wandering around out there talking with the firemen. They will want to ask questions soon enough anyway. Better to go get them, than to wait here as if we have something to fear.”
He still knelt by the muddy prints, afraid that if he stood, she would see the killing rage in his eyes and it would frighten her. No, it was better that she left him alone for a minute so he could regain control of his emotions.
The Thunder God was not known for his patience or for his leniency when crossed. No, he was known more as The Destroyer. He was easy going and loveable until crossed, then he would invariably destroy what bothered him. Whomever it was that stood outside this window earlier tonight and watched Emma dress definitely bothered him.
He knelt beside the muddy prints and clenched his teeth until he felt a muscle tick in his jaw. There would be no place the person who left those prints could hide from him once he found out who it was. The God who protected him wouldn’t be able to protect him forever. It was only a matter of time before his father discovered who the culprit was behind this. Then there would be hell to pay.
Thor pointed out the muddy tracks when she returned with a police officer. He went to his car, pulled out a disposable camera and took pictures, advising them not to touch anything until detectives had a chance to investigate. Yes, the fire had been set.
After the emergency workers left they went back into the house and stared at each other in the kitchen for a few minutes.
The last thing he wanted to do was leave her alone again. He would never forgive himself if something happened to her while he soundly slept in another room. She nervously puttered around the kitchen, pulling out the first aid kit to clean the few small burns he’d received that were already healing. She frowned when she saw the mostly healed wounds.
“These looked worse outside.”
“It was dark and you were understandably upset.”
Father, stop healing my wounds so quickly, she will know something isn’t right if they totally disappear in the next few minutes.
The burns began to burn immediately. Gritting his teeth, he was glad that his father had been able to heal him as much as he had before she’d noticed.
“Why don’t you go shower,” she said, putting the kit aw
ay. She looked down at herself and made a face. “We both need another bath.”
“Yes. Why don’t we go shower?”
She stiffened at his words and he wondered if his meaning was totally clear. He didn’t plan to leave her alone for another minute and this interminable waiting would be done with.
She licked her lips, refusing to meet his gaze. “Um...you go ahead, I’m going to stay down here and read a bit.”
“No. I’m not leaving you alone down here when someone has been spying in your windows.”
He shook his head and sighed at her suddenly wary expression.
“I hadn’t thought of that.”
No. Of course she hadn’t. She was too busy trying to get the thought of the two of them naked in the shower together out of her mind. He didn’t need his powers to tell him that. It was written all over her face.
Chapter Eight
She nervously brushed her soot-filled hair from her face. “I can’t shower with you.”
“I never said you had to shower with me. I merely stated that I would not be separated from you again.”
“And exactly what is that supposed to mean?” she snapped. “Are you just going to stand in there and watch?”
He shrugged.
Emma blew a stray strand of hair from her face. Dammit, if the man was going to take liberties, the least he could do was take liberties.
“You’re just going to stand there and watch me shower?” She crossed her arms under her breasts. “Uh, uh. I don’t think so.”
In your dreams, buddy. If you want to see me naked, you can damn well seduce me for the privilege.
She stared into his smoldering blue gaze and shivered with anticipation. Somehow, he knew exactly what was on her mind. The question is, would she allow it?
He approached her slowly, his gait not unlike an animal trainer who wanted to gain the trust of a wild animal.
She frowned. Where in the world had that analogy come from? She felt like a wild thing, all right. She felt like his prey. He moved still closer, as if stalking her, and she wondered if she could manage to get out of this if she tried. She shook her head, somehow knowing there was no way out of this. Tomorrow, she would be a woman in every sense of the word.
She trailed her tongue nervously over her lips, watching as his gaze turned more intense. Every move she made, every small action, caused his body to harden even more. Curious, she lowered her gaze to the bulge just below his waist. Her face burned with renewed embarrassment as her womb clenched and she shivered.
There was no hiding her reaction to him. He could read it on her face. Her life had always been an open book to anyone who knew her.
* * * *
Cupping her cheek in his hand, he leaned down, gently pressing his lips to hers. Her scent, her taste, was nearly enough to drive him wild. Too many lonely nights rushed back to greet him as she yielded, opening her mouth to his kiss. His tongue caressed hers, reveling in the honeyed depths of her mouth.
His eager and unruly cock jumped to attention when her fingers lightly traced the muscles of his chest. His balls ached for release as he held her close to his body, absorbing her heat, her scent. He would be ecstatic if she could just crawl inside him where he could keep her with him and safe forever.
Part of him wanted nothing more than to throw her over his shoulder, stalk to his bedroom and relieve both their needs. He groaned when her inexperienced hands played tentatively over his stomach. His muscles clenched involuntarily when her arms wrapped around his waist and she cupped his ass. He fought a smile when he realized the path of her hands mirrored his own as they followed the same path over his flesh.
She tipped her head to the side when he suckled the curve of her slender neck. Her throaty groan was nearly his undoing.
“Stop me now if you do not want this to go any further. I don’t think I’ll be able to stop if you change your mind later.”
If she didn’t stop him soon, he wouldn’t be able to let her go.
“Mmm...”
She tilted her head back and moaned when his mouth closed over the peak of her breast, suckling through the soft cotton of her pajama top. When she reached up to thrust her fingers through his hair, pulling him closer, he took it as consent.
He picked her up, encouraging her to wrap her legs around his waist. His knees nearly buckled when her moist heat settled over his rock hard cock.
Carrying her up the stairs was an exercise in restraint. His mind demanded that he make her first time perfect. But with her soft body pressed to his and her moist heat beckoning his cock, his body demanded that he make her his. His only saving grace was the knowledge that his ultimate satisfaction would come only with hers.
“Your room or mine?” he asked his mouth against her skin. He pulled his lips from hers to kiss a trail to the shell of her ear
“Mine.”
She groaned as he plunged his tongue inside the perfect shell. She shivered in his arms, tightening her legs around his waist as he carried her to her room. After closing the door, he placed her in the center of the bed. He walked to the window and closed the heavy drapes. Someone had already spied on her once this night.
When he turned, he found that she’d lit a candle. The soft glow of the flickering light cast her perfect body in a thin shadow. The curve of her hip, her full firm breasts beckoned. The sight of her sliver-blonde hair spilling across the pillow drew him to her like iron to a lodestone.
He crossed the room, determined to hold on to his control. To make this night one she would always remember with fondness, not regret.
* * * *
Emma stayed on the bed awaiting his next move. He made her nervous just standing there and staring at her like that. He looked like some huge predatory animal and she was nothing more than his prey.
Her gaze dropped from his eyes to his chest. Now, that she could stare at all day! In fact, she had on several occasions throughout the last several days. She frowned at the small red splotches that still marred its lightly tanned perfection. His well-formed pectorals danced under his skin as he moved closer. Lowering her gaze, she fixed her eyes on his tight abs. She nervously licked her lips when she noticed the top two buttons on the fly were undone, revealing a thick thatch of red-gold hair just below the waistband. Apparently, he chose not to wear the boxer shorts she’d set out for him.
God’s, he’s beautiful!
Her face heated when she noticed the gap at his waist getting wider as the now obvious bulge beneath his fly grew larger.
“You only have to tell me to leave you alone and I will,” he said. “But keep in mind that soon I will reach a place where I will not be able to stop. You must be certain this is what you want.”
She looked up sharply. Did he change his mind? Didn’t he want her anymore? She looked away, not wanting him to see the disappointment that she knew would be in her eyes.
The bed dipped as he sat beside her. Placing his hand on the rise of her hip, he brushed his hand up under the edge of her pajama top. Goose flesh rose on her skin. The warmth of his hand left a fire trailing in its wake. Her body began a slow burn for him as his hand moved slowly closer to the underside of her breast.
He leaned down to kiss her as his hand closed over her plump breast, his thumb grazing her nipple.
He kept eye contact as he slowly lowered his head. Her eyes grew round with fear or anticipation she wasn’t sure which. Was she really ready for this? She turned her head just before their lips met and he grazed her cheek with his kiss.
“Umm...shower. Remember?” She wrinkled her nose. “We both smell like smoke and burning manure. At least I do.” She pushed at his hand that still rested under her top.
“Why don’t you go into the other bathroom and I’ll shower in here?”
She hoped he’d forgotten his earlier promise to shower with her, or at least watch her shower. She shivered at the thought and frowned. The man was still a virtual stranger to her. The thought of them showering or his watching shouldn�
��t turn her on so much. Her mother would be appalled!
Her heart sank when he looked at her and grinned.
“Oh, no, sweetheart. I’m not leaving you alone for a second.”
Emma’s face blazed at her relief. She did want him to shower with her. She just didn’t want to admit it.
“I barely know you. I can’t shower while you’re in the same room with me.”
He merely grinned again and raised a sandy colored brow.
“I bet you can.”
Quick as a shot, she rolled over and jumped from the bed, running for her bathroom. She’d just reached the door when he caught up with her, scooped her up and carried her into the bathroom shrieking.
After he closed and locked the door, he set her on the floor and leaned back against her only route for escape.
“Come here,” he said, holding out his hand.
She crossed her arms under her breasts and stubbornly shook her head. She wasn’t going near him. He was not going to undress her and shower with her. She wouldn’t be able to bear the embarrassment. He would see her too skinny legs and bony hips. She was never going to undress in front of him and that was that.
He put his arm down and crossed his legs, still leaning against the door.
“I’m patient. I can wait a long, long time, Emma. You’re going to get awfully tired of standing and I don’t think the only seat in here is all that comfortable.”
His eyes still blazed with the passion they shared earlier. No doubt, because he was certain that he was still going to get her naked. Uh, uh. It so wasn’t happening.
“I’ll make a deal with you.” He stood up straighter, pushing himself away from the door.
“What kind of deal?”
“I’ll strip first and you can let your fingers explore every inch of me while I try to convince you to let me shower with you. If you still refuse in...” he glanced at his watch. “…ten minutes I’ll let you take your shower in peace.”
Thor's Hammer Page 5