Elizabeth moaned, and her husband swallowed the sound with his mouth as she felt herself breaking apart at his long deep thrusts. Ethan Blackhawk knew just how to rip her control apart. From the moment the evening started, she didn’t have a chance.
When his wife began to shake, instead of offering her reprieve, he moved harder and faster until she shattered. The glorious feeling of her nails leaving half-moon marks in his shoulders was almost enough to make him slip and cascade after her into the abyss.
Blackhawk could see her beautiful eyes clear, and he knew she was back in control of her body and focused. It was time to throw her off balance and take her more. Carrying her to the blanket on the floor, he continued his invasion. It gave him the opportunity to just stare down at his bewitching wife. Beneath him, she lie in the moonlight, her hair spread around her like black satin. The love swamped him and overwhelmed. The amazement at his good fortune took over his heart; it still stunned him that this woman was completely his and would allow him a sweaty romp in his old tree house.
“Ethan,” she gasped.
When her body arched into him, and he found the complete length of him sliding in and touching her womb, he knew he was close to the end.
“Again, Lyzee,” he whispered, holding on until he could make her fall this time with him. All he wanted was to hear his name on her lips again and again, caught between her breathless moans.
There was a sheen of perspiration on his skin, and Elizabeth focused on the tribal art, the midnight hair and eyes and immediately thought, Indian warrior. Just that visual did it for her. Something in her tightened, and she felt herself ready to explode. Pulling his mouth down to hers, the explosion came, just as mouths met and tongues did battle. She and her warrior shattered together in an array of colors and senses.
Blackhawk lost control with the wicked kiss that his wife was using to drag him into the bliss. When she tightened around him, it did him in. This was the bliss he loved and wanted more than anything else in life. With one long slide out and one hard thrust back home, he too exploded deep within her body. All of his body quivered in release and complete satisfaction, as he joined his wife in the silent enjoyment of the glow.
Elizabeth stayed tucked beneath him. The scent of his cologne and shampoo filled her senses and gave her that feeling of home and complete relaxation. “Wow Cowboy, I won’t ever look at a tree house the same again,” she mumbled, laughing.
Blackhawk didn’t move, he just laughed hoarsely. “We need to get one for our yard. I’ll start building one immediately.”
She tucked his hair behind his ear on the one side. “I love you, Ethan.”
“I love you too, Elizabeth.” Blackhawk still didn’t look at her; his heart was clenched in his chest as he was focused back on what they were working against. He feared the killer would hurt her, and it was making him scattered and possessive. When he finally was able to look at her, his eyes must have said it all.
“What can I do to make you not have that look of fear, Ethan?” she softly whispered. Elizabeth was willing to do anything at this point to remove some of the weight off his already burdened shoulders.
“Stay inside FBI West tomorrow, and let me do the legwork on the reservation.” Blackhawk knew she wasn’t going to do it, she was too damn stubborn.
Elizabeth didn’t want to hide, but she couldn’t bear to see the look of pain on his face and the lack of focus scared her. When you lost focus you died. She was willing to give him this for now.
“I need three conditions first, Ethan.”
Hope filled him that she was actually going to be reasonable, and yet he was still wary about the conditions. “Shoot,” he said, rolling to his back and pulling her to his chest protectively.
“First, keep your brother with you in the field. I don’t want you out there alone, and it’s him or me.”
Blackhawk was going to take him regardless. It was obvious how his brother came to life when they were working on the assignment. This was an easy one. “Okay, I’ll take Callen.”
“Secondly, you suit up outside the building. You and your brother are going to have to get used to Kevlar.”
Blackhawk thought it was a bit extreme since the killer was targeting women, but if it kept her in FBI West where there were guards and security, he’d do it. “Done.”
“Lastly, you get your ass up first tomorrow and make me breakfast,” she said seriously, looking down at him. “You did promise.”
“Elizabeth Blackhawk, you got yourself a deal,” he felt his heart lighten, and he knew she was doing it for him, because now he could do his job and not be terrified.
“I’ll stay at FBI West until I can’t work the white board or files any longer, and then I need to be back in the field. I don’t know how much time that will buy you, but it’s what I can give you for now.”
“I understand,” and he did, just like he hoped she understood when he was going to try and bury her in work to keep her busy. When he rolled and pinned her to the floor he was so grateful that she just understood, why argue the last part for now. It bought him time.
“It was the sex in the tree house wasn’t it?” he asked, tickling her.
“Yeah Cowboy, that’s what did it.” She couldn’t help but laugh.
Blackhawk assisted his wife down from the tree house after they shared the sparkling cider. There was laughter and snickering across the yard back to Timothy Blackhawk’s cabin. Her hair was messed, his clothes were wrinkled and there was no doubt what had happened during their ‘walk’. This was his life, and wild and crazy Ethan didn’t care what his brother and grandfather thought about their adventure. He had his wife and she was his entire world. Now that she had agreed to work inside the FBI West building, he could finally allow some of the stress to wash away. Once inside, the cabin he tried to keep a straight face about what had just occurred, but the look on his grandfather’s face was priceless.
“Ethan Jackson Blackhawk,” said his grandfather, standing and observing how both were a wrinkled mess.
Elizabeth couldn’t help it, and she burst into laughter at the tone of his voice.
“Yes, Granddad?” he inquired, innocently.
“You were mauling her again and in the tree house no less!”
Callen Whitefox started laughing. They both loved that tree house as teen boys for just that reason. It made him smile that his brother remembered and took his wife there as his final conquest. Many times as young boys they talked about the women they would eventually find and marry, and his brother found his dream girl. Elizabeth fit into their family effortlessly and he was happy for his brother and a little envious.
No, make that a lot of envy was going on and a great deal of sexual frustration too. His heart had shitty timing, making him fall hard now and for her.
This was going to be a disaster at some point.
“I know you boys think I didn’t know what was going on up in that tree house, but I knew every time!”
Both men laughed and gave each other the masculine grin that said it all. They knew that he was well aware, and it still didn’t stop them. Some things in life superseded adult authority. Getting the girl was one of the big ones.
“I don’t know what you’re even suggesting, Granddad,” quipped Blackhawk, putting the most innocent look on his face he could muster. It wasn’t an easy task. He’d just had the most amazing sex with his wife, and that masculine satisfaction was trying to rise to the surface. He definitely felt smug and caveman-like right now.
“Hey, don’t get me included in this. I was the good kid out of the two of us. I wasn’t out luring women into that tree house!” Whitefox winked at his sister-in-law, and couldn’t breathe when she winked back.
“Only because you sucked at it,” teased his brother.
Elizabeth stepped in before the boys lost control. Immediately, she went to Timothy and gave him a kiss. “Thank you, Granddad, for inviting us over for dinner. You’ll have to come to our home next time.” She hug
ged him and started giggling again at the look on his face. She went to her brother-in-law, hugging him and kissing his cheek. “See you tomorrow, Callen.” Elizabeth walked past her husband, slapping him on the ass on her way out to the car. She could hear her brother-in-law snicker and cover it with a cough.
Blackhawk laughed, watching her leave. “Again, before you say anything Granddad, keep in mind that I have the marriage license and the fine print says explicitly that I’m permitted to chase, catch, and man handle my wife at every chance.”
Whitefox snorted at the words ‘man handle’.
Timothy grinned. “Well at least I’ll get lots of great-grandchildren out of all this mauling and chasing the poor girl around.”
“I’m planning on a brood,” he answered, going to the man and giving him a hug.
“How many are in a brood, Ethan, my boy?”
“At least seven,” he answered, laughing. “That’s my lucky number.”
“Great, seven strong warriors,” Timothy hugged his grandson back.
“Thank you, Granddad,” he whispered into his ear. “For everything you did for me all those years, and for making me the man I am today. If you didn’t teach me, I wouldn’t have been able to catch and keep my wife.”
The old man looked into his boy’s eyes and nodded, suddenly overwhelmed with emotion. “Take your beautiful wife home, and pick the leaves out of her hair,” he added laughing, and shaking his head.
“Callen meet me at FBI West tomorrow, around nine?”
He nodded, still grinning at his brother and the knowledge that his idol growing up as a kid got the girl of his dreams to follow him out to the tree house. It gave him hope of his own, and now all he needed was the missing girl to lure up there. He’d start working on that next, once he got over Elizabeth.
If that was ever possible…
Blackhawk went out to his car and started it up. Now he’d like to take his wife home and maybe maul her again.
“Ethan?” she asked from beside him.
“Yeah, baby?”
“I think I’ll help you build that tree house for our back yard,” she started laughing again.
“We’ll start working on it as soon as this assignment is done.” He backed out of the drive and did something he didn’t usually do. He revved the engine and squealed the tires, just because he felt that damn good.
* * *
It was all about setting a scene. As he carried the dead girl in and placed her in the chair before the fireplace, he wanted to make her the centerpiece of the room. Everything had to be perfect. There was no doubt that this little victim would throw everything off track for the raven and the fox. This should take them a little while to figure out, and in the meantime, he’d start planning his next kill. Tonight he had to go to his other bone sanctuary and remove some bones in order to construct his next medicine wheel. Thanks to the fox and raven, he was behind schedule and slacking on his work. The spirits demanded an offering, and he had a good one planned. He gave his victim a kiss on the forehead and left her there to be found.
It was time to see how smart the raven and the fox were, and if they would figure it out before it cost them both their lives.
~ Chapter Ten ~
Saturday one a.m.
Callen Whitefox pulled into his driveway and parked his truck. He had a good time at his granddad’s home with his brother and sister-in-law. It had been a long time since he felt such joy and happiness, and he wanted to keep the good feelings going.
Something that he couldn’t explain had led him to the bar to grab some beers, and it sat uneasily in the pit of his stomach. The part of him that was envious rose to the surface, as he watched his brother with his wife. There was such a connection between them. One that he had never had before in his life with anyone. They flowed together seamlessly, and he wanted that in the worst possible way. Not to mention the sexual connection they shared together. There was such easiness between them. The holding of hands, the looks they shared, and the teasing that both participated in together.
The one thing he wanted more than anything in life was to know one person belonged to him. What he would give to be able to feel alive with a woman of his own. It was something he never thought he could find. Now he knew it was a possibility. Going to the bar he hoped to find that connection but deep down, he knew that wasn’t going to happen, not with the women from the reservation. That road had been travelled many times before, and it always led to a dead end.
Walking in for a beer was easy; taking in the surroundings and the women that were just a constant reminder of how the reservation wasn’t what he saw in his future was the hard part. It was depressing. All he wanted was his own Elizabeth. He kept trying to convince himself that he wanted a woman like her and not her, but the woman made his body react the way his brother’s did whenever she was around.
It was hard to miss that sexual chemistry they shared, and how Ethan just came to life around her. Just observing them had made his own body tight with need and want. The same chemistry was affecting him too.
When Kaya Cheek placed the beer in front of him and told him she was getting off in a few hours, it sobered his mood and thoughts right up. As bad as he wanted to find solace, buried in a woman that night, there was no way in hell he was taking that route again. In his mind, he could pretend it was the woman he wanted, but he knew his heart wouldn’t fall for it.
Ever.
Whitefox finished his beer, tossed his money on the bar top, and walked away from a mess he had no desire to wade into again. Heading home was his best option and then a really cold shower, as he tried desperately to not be jealous of what he hadn’t found himself. Cold showers hadn’t worked yet, but maybe this one would do it, and erase Elizabeth from his mind.
Walking up the steps to his deck, he placed his key in the lock and had that brief awareness that something wasn’t right. Something felt off as he looked around at the trees lining his yard. Oh well, one too many beers had screwed with his senses. He ignored that instinct, and he pushed the door open to his home. All he wanted now was a shower and bed. Home sweet home, he thought, kicking off his boots and walking into foyer. Flicking on the lights, Callen Whitefox jumped, startled by the woman in the chair in his living room.
Her dead eyes stared at him, watching him blankly, already cold and empty. He couldn’t help but notice the look frozen on her face. It was one of terror, and that alone scared the hell out of him. She was wearing deerskin and her hair was braided to look like an American Indian woman. Now the killer was definitely screwing with him and his brother. He grabbed his shotgun by the door, and Whitefox pulled his cell phone from his pocket. There was only one person on the planet he wanted by his side now, and he dialed his number.
Ethan Blackhawk and Callen Whitefox had a big problem. Elizabeth had been right. This was definitely personal.
Ethan was lost in a dream and curled around his wife. After returning home, they showered together and had some more fun playing wicked water games in the privacy of their home. There was just no getting enough of his wife. When they collapsed into bed together, they allowed sleep to finally win and pull them both under. The sound of the cell phone wasn’t welcomed; it meant there was death waiting for them.
“Ethan, your phone,” she mumbled and then just rolled over him to grab it. Her husband was dead to the world. As she finally managed to answer it, it finally registered with her husband that she was lying across his body.
Confusion filled him. It wasn’t like her to wake him. As his eyes slowly opened, he began adjusting to the scene before him. Both of them had just gone to bed less than an hour ago and something must be wrong.
“Blackhawk,” she mumbled, half asleep, as she rubbed her eyes.
“Elizabeth, I need you.”
“Callen, what’s wrong?” she felt her heart start to pound. The sound of her brother-in-law’s voice woke her fast and she sat up.
“I need you both to come to my place now! The killer wa
s here,” he hissed urgently into the phone.
“Give me the address,” she said, hopping off the bed and grabbing her own phone to type it in for directions.
He rattled it off and there was fear in his voice. “Hurry please, Lyzee. This has me freaked out pretty bad. I’m scared.”
“Hang in there, Cal. We’re coming.” Elizabeth hung up and dropped her husband’s phone into his hand. Just the fact that the man sounded scared shitless, but to admit he was scared, meant it was big.
“Callen?”
“Killer made a house call, and we have to hustle,” she said, pulling on her jeans fast.
“Is he okay?” he asked, afraid for his brother. As he dressed quickly, a silent prayer was being said that nothing would happen to him now that he was back in his life.
Elizabeth pulled on her shirt tucking it in and looking over at her husband, she could tell that he was worried about Whitefox. It was etched in his face. “He didn’t specify what was going on, he just said hurry and that he was freaked out.”
“Then we better hurry,” he said, clipping his gun to his hip and rushing from their bedroom, his wife following right behind him. Part of him vowed to make the killer pay if anything happened to Callen Whitefox.
* * *
The killer sat watching from the trees through the scope of his rifle. It was hard to suppress the giggles, as he could see the fox’s face through the window. Apparently he had caught the man completely off guard, and he didn’t expect his little present. It gave him a great deal of satisfaction to know he had rattled his brother’s cage. Now he just had to wait it out and see if the raven would be flying in to rescue the younger brother. Once he did, he’d be ready. There was going to be a death in the family tonight once the raven arrived on the scene. Oh yeah, screwing with the brothers had been fun but now it was time to show them he meant business.
Sacred Burial Grounds (An FBI Romance Thriller (book 2)) Page 24