A Cursed All Hallows' Eve

  “Are you serious?” she asked.

  “I want you to be well rested before I put more on you. Please. Do this one last thing for me. Go home. Try to sleep, and I will call Luca when I am ready.”

  “Fine.”

  Chapter Five

  She stumbled from the car as soon as it stopped in her driveway, and ran to enter her house. A wave of nausea hit her once she walked inside, and she cursed privately at her own body. Refusing to bend over the feeling even a little bit, she forced her legs to move her to the stairs.

  Before she knew it, a haze of black had covered over her sight. She felt sure she’d fall and was powerless to stop it. Warm, strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her into a thick, hard body. Suddenly, she felt herself being scooped up into Luca's arms . A momentary break in the haze found her gaze catching his worry-crinkled eyes looking down at her. She tried to give him a smile of reassurance, but was unsure if her face obeyed. Allowing herself to be overcome for a moment longer, she closed her eyes and gave into the comfort, the feeling of safety she inexplicably received from this man.

  She felt him start to move up the stairs, relaxing into the additional pressure he put around her as he took each step at a slow and steady pace. She felt wrapped in protection. His chest pressed out against her with each intake of his breath, soothing her further with its pulsing regularity. For the time being, she would acknowledge she wanted nothing more than to stay at home and allow this man to care for her. It had been a long time since she allowed someone to do such a thing, but his care was as familiar to her as her Mammie’s and Poppie’s had been. Could it be this magic he spoke of?

  Hushing her doubts, she let the idea of such hocus pocus wash over her again.

  She had spent years writing about magic as fiction, the abracadabra stuff wielding impossible feats. It would take her some time to adjust to the reality of it all despite the light shows she had been privy to last night. Yet, in the small amount of time this sorcerer had somehow enchanted her. With his wizardry, he had cast a spell over her, breaking down her walls and her inhibitions. Feeling his grip loosen, she peered between cracked eyelids to find herself being lowered gently onto her bed.

  When she felt his hand feather over her cheek, she kept her eyes closed, relishing in the sensation. The same large, comforting hand trailed over the curve of her shoulder and then down the length of her arm.

  He finally stopped his caress to lay his palm full over her hand resting upon her hip. Her insides tightened, wanting more, wanting him to touch her longer and in more places. Instead, he gave an indiscernible huff and pushed off the bed.

  The minute he disappeared she felt cross and tired again. She just wanted to will her body to sleep where little physical activity would be required of her for a while. Work would just have to wait. Life was happening now.

  She had many fond memories of times spent at this church. To think it was a place for worship and magic filled her with a bit of wonder with all she knew of Wiccan practices, except, to her knowledge, they didn’t have the powers like her grandfather. She wondered if he could will objects to move and stuff.

  “Do you need anything before you take a nap, Kamillia?”

  “No,” she snapped, not angry this time because he offered to help her, but indignant because he stood so far away in the doorway. His hand had been so close to her center just moments ago, leaving her wet with longing. She wanted to curl up against him with his arms wrapped around her and forget the whole world existed. Instead, she shook off her unfounded anger. She followed suit by shaking her head to clear it of the absurd thoughts that had wormed their way in just because he had held her.

  If this magic exists, which I have seen, he is using it to change how I feel! Damn him! He is not going to get away with this. Apparently I have this magic stuff from my parents, too.

  Stifling the rapid rise and fall of her breast, she found fault in her feeble explanation. Shit! If I accuse him, I will not only have to admit to myself the existence of his magic, but I would embarrass myself with the admission of wanting him. Kamillia, her limbs heavy with fatigue, scooted to the edge of the bed. With the determination built of her frustration, she rose to her feet on a slow roll. Amazed at the way his closeness silenced her, she felt her lips part slightly, begging to be kissed.

  “Kamillia, it is not a sign of weakness to allow me to help you after all you have been through. In fact,” He brought his hands to rest against her upper arms. “It would be wise of you to rest. I know you are going to need it once we reach our destination. I am as much in the dark as you as to what we have been called to do there, but I know you need to get some sleep. A power nap. No work, if that is where you were heading.”

  They stood connected by his touch, staring at each other for minutes or hours, she cared not which. She wondered, yet again, why on Earth did she felt such an utter need for this man besides the obvious. She backed down onto the bed in a quiet resignation quite unlike her. If she felt conquered, at least, she was no longer angry.

  “Fine. I will try to sleep, but I make no promises.”

  “Thank you. Listen, once we have some time, and you can focus more, I will begin to teach you to find the positive energy within yourself, no matter how you feel. This you can use to re-energize yourself. I am going to need you fighting strong, soon, like you were last night when I first met you.”

  His words touched her as she realized he had recognized the woman she really was despite everything that had happened to her in the hours since he had knocked on her door as her would be rescuer.

  ***

  Walking to sit in a chair in her room, he gave himself a moment to shake off the fire she had ignited within him. Luckily, he had thrown on a sweatshirt when he got in the car this morning to ward of the small chill, or the hardness the heat between them had created would have been distractingly obvious. He clenched his fists as he curled his arms up and threw his head back, wondering how the hell he’d pulled his body off of that bed, how he’d not kissed her, not trapped her… He groaned in response to the blood pumping through his erection. The damn jeans were a vice of mortal men meant only to torture.

  With a deep breath burning his lungs, he opened his eyes to her open closet full of clothes. The smell of her had grown so strong it invaded him. He couldn’t believe he had to protect this woman, teach her magic alongside her grandfather, an intimate job regardless, and fight with her against yet-to-be-named negative forces. And, if this was not enough, he had to do all of this without pulling her against him and touching her, without stripping her naked and... His nails biting into his palms gave him pause enough to find his fists pressing against each other and pulled against his chest. This had moved his sweatshirt just enough he could see his large manhood presenting itself. Shut the hell up! You cannot fuck her! Ever!

  Deadening himself to nothing more than a robot, a guard dog maybe, instead of a living and breathing, needy man, he would be forced to restrain his desires as he sat there watching her. Yet, when he breathed in deeply, the scent of her overwhelmed him: a light floral fragrance mixed with just a hint of vanilla. Holding his breath not an option, the smell became like a lifeline to him. It seemed necessary to his survival somehow. Intimate and soothing, at the same time it made him feel lucky to be a man. Luca guessed it possible, from whatever time he had once lived, someone or something had smelled the same; and his body only reacted in a habitual way to the scent. He tried to look away from her. At the floor, the wall, anywhere except at her supple form lying on the bed.

  When could avoid it no more, he turned his attention back to her form on the bed. This time her cheeks flushed a bright red. He watched as she pushed herself up, rolling off the bed in the flamboyant way that cries out one’s level of exhaustion.

  “Why are you getting up?”

  The trembling inside him grew raw and primal, the result of an unsatisfied need. He watched her body move. He was grateful he had not forced himself to turn away this time, though, becau
se when she rose her body began to wobble.

  Luca caught her around her waist, pulling her to him. A low growl of disapproval escaped from his throat as he picked her up in his arms. When she lay her head against his chest, her dazed half-closed eyes, he growled again, only more feral this time, in response to his baser desires.

  “I am sorry. Give me a moment,” she begged. “You don’t mind holding me, right?” She giggled then, and he was struck hard by her flirting.

  “I don’t. But I shouldn’t. Please, be serious. You need to lie back down and rest.”

  “You need to rest, too?”

  “Why would you say that?”

  “All of those muscles in your chest are so tight,” she said, following with another giggle as if she were drunk from lack of sleep.

  He watched as she arched her eyebrows in response to his.

  “Sorry, it just struck me as funny.”

  “Maybe they tightened for another reason,” he mumbled under his breath.

  “What? Why?”

  Now she perks up! He felt her breath on his face.

  “Never mind.” I can’t fuckin’ tell you.

  He gently laid her on the bed again. He knew he could get used to this if the situation had a different outcome than him leaving. Stop! Get your arms out from under her, and move away from the girl.

  Before he had pulled his arms all the way out from under her, she pleaded, “Just stay here, okay. I’m sure we have a couple of hours yet before we have to leave to meet my grandfather at the church, and you could use the sleep.”

  She trailed hand over his neck, down over his chest, and then dropped it to her lap.

  Still bent over her, he looked up to meet her gaze as he began to ease his hands from her body. For an instant too long, their lips were poised less than an inch apart, breaths mixing. Luca remained unsure exactly which one of them bridged the distance, or if they sort of gravitated simultaneously toward each other like magnets, as a brief brush of their lips meeting rippled a need through his body. Before he had time to let his brain catch up to stop him, he covered her mouth with such force he pushed her head back against the pillow.

  Her back arched, pressing her beaded nipples to poke against his chest, and he found himself greedily laying the rest of his body over hers. Her untapped energy poured into him as their bodies connected.

  She brought her hands back up to curve around his neck, and parted her lips to allow him in. Her tongue touched and tangled with his as she shifted underneath him, allowing his hips to fall between her thighs. When his hardness met her mound, even through clothing remained a barrier, a brief ripple of static electricity shocked him. He pushed against it, moving her further into the mattress until the springs halted their movement and the pressure to his groin increased. Easing his arms under her back, he pulled her chest tightly to his. Luca, feeling completely breathless, started as his brain finally caught up and sent out a word of caution.

  By then, her hands had roamed over his back, over his hips, and landed firmly on his ass. The way her fingers explored his stiff back muscles sent an irrefutable response to his cock. It hardened and pressed further into her clothing protected opening, demanding. Again, déjà vu overwhelmed his senses.

  She wormed her fingers in between their bodies, tickling along the edge of his shaft before returning to his backside. When he ground himself into her body in response, his erection pulsed with heat where her hand had ventured for the briefest moment.

  He found her breasts, cupping them in his large hands and squeezing the globes with the force of his own need to have her. Her nipples felt like daggers digging into the palms of his hands, and he rubbed over the danger of them. Heavy handed, he trailed down over her ribs and stomach until he found the edge of her shirt. The warm, soft skin of her stomach met his heavy caress, and she arched her back in response. He moved the tips of his fingers upward, shoveling her clothing aside until his digits slipped under the lace of her bra, pushing it away to release her breasts into his eager hands.

  Kamillia exhaled heavily into his mouth. His own breath catching on a hitch when she slid the palms of her hands to his sides, and forced his hips up. He reluctantly pushed up off of her, and slid to rest on the mattress at her side.

  “I am sorry. I was hurting you!” A wash of guilt further tightened his lungs.

  “No, no, you didn’t hurt me. I was…”

  “What? You were what?”

  Her hand landed heavily on his hardened member and he flinched slightly.

  “Going for that.” The flush in her cheeks reddened, making her even more radiant.

  He flopped back, flattening himself against the mattress, trying to resist taking her with the force his body demanded. A tiny bit of remorse had set in, bringing with it a dreaded piece of reality. He knew this was wrong. It was unfair to her. She didn’t even know who he was yet. Shouldn’t she know everything before he allowed her to make such a decision?

  Reluctantly, he forced himself to grasp her hand and pry it off of his cock. The twitching of his swollen member proved painful this time, in many senses of the word.

  “This should not be happening. I apologize for taking advantage of your weakened state to satisfy my own urges. Please, forgive me,” he offered in a strangled voice.

  “Forgive you? You mean, for wanting me?”

  “Yes, it isn’t right. I have a job here to do.”

  “So?”

  “So, I cannot become involved with the person I am sent to protect.”

  “Is that an agency policy or something?”

  “Something like that.” He brushed his hands over his face, and turned on his side to face her. “I am sorry I didn’t control myself better. I apologize for wanting you so badly.”

  “That isn’t something to apologize for. I want you, too.”

  “You can’t,” he warned with a vehement excitement.

  “Why not?”

  “Because, you don’t even really know who I am.”

  “I thought that was what we were trying to do, get to know each other better.” Her light laugh caused a physical ache in his chest.

  Why can't this just be simple? Why can't I just be a man who desperately wants this woman? His gaze followed the outline of her body, and although he did not touch her, the blaze of her skin still warmed his palms.

  Muscles strained to remain motionless.

  “That is not what I mean,” he argued. “There are things you have the right to know about me first, before you make a decision like this. I am not like normal men.”

  “And, that is why I want you,” she rebutted.

  “You don’t understand.”

  “And, at this moment, I don’t care to!”

  She pushed her body against his, sending him flat on his back with the surprise move. Kamillia straddled him. Her legs hugged tight around his hips, and the parts of their bodies seeking union were molded to each other once more. She trailed her hands up under his shirt, caressing his pecs.

  A tortured groan escaped from his lips, and. he caught her wrists in his grasp with the last ounce of self-control he had. Despite how natural it all felt, he could not let it happen.

  “I can’t let you do this.”

  “Shut up, Luca.” Her smile was crooked. “I am a big girl, and I will take my chances. You can tell me everything when you are ready. It does not affect this moment, this act, or how much I need you right now.”

  She yanked her hands from his, her lightening quick fingers finding the button on his jeans.

  “If you open that, I can no longer protect you, Kamillia.”

  “Protect me from the Mastema, or from you?”

  “Kamillia!” he bellowed out, curling his hands into fists at his side when she started undoing the zipper.

  She jumped at the height of his tone, frowning briefly, only to smile devilishly a second later “From you. I will take my chances.”

  Lifting his hips up slightly, she ripped his jeans and boxers down to onl
y the top of his thighs before she grasped him in her hands. For the first time in his life, he felt helpless, without a will of his own. In turn, she appeared frozen once she touched him, and the shock of her magic touch lifted his hips off the bed. She rode the slight movement, never letting go of him.

  She slid her hand slowly up his shaft, her grip compressing over the veins as she moved closer to his tip. An energy, stronger than any he had ever experienced before, washed over him as the warm wetness of her mouth settled over his throbbing tip. His stomach muscles tightened against the intensity of it. Then, what was thought to be new, her touch, sunk into the native part of his being and felt familiar. He relaxed into the naturalness of the moment.

  Luca reached down, moving by a blind urge. He grasped the tussled shirt she wore and pulled it off over her head. Once her bra was gone, she continued to work his cock up and down with her fingers, and he sat up to suckle her breasts. Even the taste of her, he seemed to already know. He let his tongue circle each rose-colored nub in its turn, before taking as much of one of her breasts into his mouth as he could. He flattened his hands on the silky smooth skin of her back, forcing her against him. She moved her hands moved as best she could with them stuck in between their bodies, tormenting him until he had an overwhelming need to be inside of her. There was no other thought left in his head.

  Overwhelmed, moving on instinct alone, he lifted her, his palms under her arms, in one swift motion causing her hands to glide up over the head of his cock and tearing a deep groan from where his stomach clenched up. She stood, wobbly, on the mattress before him with all teasing gone from her face. Her face glowed with her own pleasure, matching the raging look in her eyes. She never broke her stare as he sat up to brace her, watching as she slipped her fingertips into the waistband of her pants, gliding them and her panties down her long, smooth legs. He found himself eye level with the tiny patch of hair at the apex of her thighs. It took him only a few swift kicks to relieve his own body of his remaining clothing.

  ***