"Don't be afraid," Cameron urged her softly.
"I'm not afraid. I just don't want to be sick."
"There's no choice." He looked at Jonathan for clarification. Jonathan nodded.
"Hell..." Cameron gasped.
"The Western Alliance pulled out all of their representatives. War has been declared. You'll need to take care, both of you. Whatever happens, do not perform the genetic surgery. No good will come of it."
"You fought for it. It was approved for experimentation. Jonathan--"
"I believe in it, but that's not all this war is over. The Outsiders and City Dwellers are too different now. Perhaps the men who clamored for individual freedoms are right. Perhaps not."
Tori's teeth were chattering. She was almost naked and freezing, terrified of what her cousin and her husband were talking about. War? She had spent her entire life seeking her individual rights and now 'Merica was going to war over it. She was stunned.
His hands rested on her shoulders, pulling her back against him for a brief hug. She needed to talk to him, needed time to explain all that had gone on, but she found that he was suddenly hurrying her along to the glider. There were several waiting there but she knew which one was his.
It didn't take long and they were in the glider and soaring into the black night. Each glider assumed a different course and as she watched, she saw each one vanish.
She leaned her head back against the seat then closed her eyes. "I love you, Cameron. I love you so very much. I never led you into the tunnel. It was Zaria and even she loved you in her own way. Morray killed her you know. I--"
"I never doubted you," he said. She was going to start crying. With one hand still on the wheel, he gently touched her cheek, catching a glistening teardrop as it slid downward to rest in the hollow of her neck. "To hell with Morray and all his men and the war that is coming." Cameron set the glider gently down in a small grassy clearing. He reassured her as only he could, with a hungry, very soft kiss. When they broke apart, she was breathless. "I love you," he said softly.
"How did you get into and out of the tunnel? I thought..."
"I sealed it? No, I hadn't gotten around to it. You've led me such a chase that I never had the time. But Tori, your arm?"
"It's nothing," she whispered.
"Tori..." He wrestled with a small panel behind the pilot seat, bringing out an emergency kit. "Nothing?" he asked while he took care of the wound.
"Only a flesh wound. Cameron, It's..."
"Hush,"
"Cameron...when I saw the white petal, I knew. But I was so afraid."
"It was all I could think of, all I could risk. You had to know I was there for you." He sighed then brushed his lips across her, nibbling--touching--caressing.
The warmth, his tenderness, the desire that his kiss elicited filled her. "You're my knight in shining armor, you know," she told him as she fought back more tears.
"The Phantom of the night, come to rescue his damsel in distress, the woman I love," he said. "And the woman who will bear my children, grow old with me, and share her life with mine."
She held his face between her hands then rose to kiss him. It was a long, loving kiss that sent a slow liquid heat burning within her, simmering and threatening to explode.
"I hate to intrude," Jonathan's voice chirped as it came over the communication center, "but enemy gliders are on the way and you're a little too vulnerable down there. It's going to take some fancy flying."
"Do we have to?"
"Hold tight!"
Nothing more was said. She couldn't have said anything even if she felt the inclination. He pulled back the throttle, pointing the glider into a steep climb. The force of takeoff held her immobile against the back of the seat. She closed her eyes, waiting for the sensation to stop. It didn't. Eons went by before Cameron finally settled down to a slightly less ferocious flight.
"Next time...next time can we please not defy all the laws of nature and gravity to get away? There's got to be something completely inhumane in this death ride."
"Little rebel," he said tenderly, "I've a mind to show you what I can do if things get really life threatening. This was nothing."
"You wouldn't."
"True. There are many things that I'd do to impress you. Risking your life and our unborn child's in this manner is not one of them.
Her eyes widened. "You knew?"
"And when did you plan on telling me?" he queried softly.
"I--we've been so busy. Truly, I did not mean to keep it from you. It was just that I wanted to find the right time."
"Now is a very good time, Tori."
"At first I wasn't sure then I didn't know if the babe was conceived when you were The Phantom or after we were wed."
"It wouldn't have mattered. For now I would like to love you so well you will never forget."
"Perhaps a soft feather bed in a very private out-of-the-way cabin," she told him with a slight touch of innocence.
"Ah...babe, a feather bed," he said tenderly. He touched her leg with his hand then turned the glider toward his cabin.
"Tori, your research center had been completely dismantled before I left for Reding. Morray would have found nothing of use within it, even with your help. I'm not sure how long Reding will be safe for you, but for tonight I plan to spend it with you at my cabin, uh, our cabin by the lake, reliving our memories."
~ * ~
The cabin looked to be just as she'd remembered it. But this time she was married to The Phantom. How could she be so fortunate? She didn't know. Nor did she care. She just wanted Cameron to take care of her.
After opening the door of the cabin for Tori, Cameron carried her across the threshold. When they were safely inside, he let her slide to her feet. She felt him, all of him, his arousal, his desire, and she reveled in his love for her.
This interlude would be short, she knew that. Even though Morray was dead, all hell was breaking loose in the country. It had been simmering and boiling for a very long time, and now it threatened to explode.
~ * ~
The days spent at Reding were not to her liking. Stories of the war came in daily, doing little to bolster her frayed nerves. She was terrifyingly afraid for both Cameron and Jonathan and there was nothing she could do for either of them save pray.
Issues were being decided as the Outsiders and the City Dwellers drew farther apart. The argument went much deeper than originally thought. Civil issues were at the core and she found that she and Cameron did not agree on some things. But she had concluded that although she disagreed with him on some of the political issues, she would support him. She was finally learning the fine art of compromise.
By the time Cameron came back from the first major skirmishes, Tori was ready to greet him.
When he stepped into his chamber, worn and weary, he told her how very beautiful she was and that she had found a place in his heart forever. He whispered there was nothing in this world that could compare to her ivory flesh, the lush fullness of her mouth, the scent that surrounded her reminding him of spring.
As heat flushed her cheeks, she reminded him he was learning a way with words as bold as any politician; that perhaps she should take care.
The night between them was one to remember, one she'd hold dear to her heart forever.
He was so tender, evoking sensations she'd never experienced before.
He made love to her, whispering to her all the while. Then they spoke of the war and their feelings about what was to come and how it would never separate them.
In the morning, Cameron left to join forces with the coalition. He told her to take care and that Jonathan would check in on her from time to time. He didn't think the fighting would reach her here in Reding, but if it did, she was to flee to the coast. No home was worth as much as her life.
For several months, she heard nothing. It seemed the war had slowed, few battles were fought, the Representatives intent on ending this before it could begin. All news centered aroun
d the meetings which were being held just on the eastern side of the Mountains.
Then weeks later, on one lazy summer afternoon, when the sky was bluer than she'd ever seen it, and wildflowers bloomed in a wondrous display, Tori wandered barefoot through a meadow. Looking across the meadow, she was surprised to hear the whispery landing of a glider. She turned and saw Cameron step from the vehicle. He looked the part of Dr. Cameron Savage now, walking toward her, arms outstretched.
He wore the uniform of the coalition, a physician, with the insignia and braid of a colonel. Even though he had sworn to save lives, a gun was holstered at his side. His head was bare, and his hair was dark, glistening in the sunlight, lying rakishly around the bronze-toned, well-chiseled angles of his face. He stopped walking then watched her with a tender glow in his warm amber eyes.
Her breath caught in her throat as she gazed at her husband. She was afraid to breathe, afraid if she blinked he might vanish. Once he'd been a phantom of her dreams, and now seeing him once more she remembered the hero, her knight in shining armor, a legend who was larger than life.
Then he nodded to her, a smile slowly curving across his lips, and she cried out his name, racing to him. Even as she neared him, her arms were outstretched to him, imploring him to hold her. He caught her in his strong embrace, lifting her off the ground then twirling with her in a never-ending circle until he gently set her down.
His lips touched hers in a soft caress.
"Cameron," she whispered. He held her head between his hands and stared at her as if he was trying to memorize every feature in her face. He kissed her eyes closed, her nose then her cheeks.
"I've missed you," he murmured between kisses.
"Is it done then?"
"Yes. Finally. Concessions were made on both sides. Without the concessions, we'd still be at war."
"It should not be so difficult for grown men to compromise," Tori breathed. "After all, if I can learn compromise, they certainly can." She chuckled softly then tenderly touched Cameron's face.
He slipped an arm around her, and they walked through the meadows, butterflies darting around them. It was so peaceful here, so beautiful. The sun warmed the earth.
"There will be hard times. I'm sure there will be much arguing among the Representatives." He looked down at her and pulled her to him. "But it's better than trying to kill one another, don't your think?"
"Yes," she murmured against him. "Much better than killing." He suddenly swept her off her feet and into his arms, groaning comically as he lifted her. "You've gained weight!"
She hit him on the arm, pretending her own outrage. "And it's your fault," she protested, but his eyes were simmering, and he held her close, running his fingers over the rounded curve of her stomach.
"I like you like this," he told her solemnly and kissed her lightly as he set her down once again and guided her through some over-hanging trees. A little creek rushed by, leaving a merry sound as it made its way to the ocean. The sun shone through the leaves above creating dancing shadows on the earth. Reverently, he set her on a soft mossy knoll, then moved behind her so she could lean against his chest.
Tori turned in his arms, touching his lips with the tips of her fingers. "We must never take our love for each other for granted."
"We won't, Tori. Through a hell I don't want to revisit we have found each other. Our love saved us. Even when the going seemed impossible to tolerate, our love was looking after us all the time."
"Yes, my love." She squeezed him fiercely. "I have never known such joy."
Cameron smiled. "We have lost time to make up for, and I would like to show you just how much I cherish you."
"Cherish?"
"Beyond cherish..."
She pressed her lips to his then to his eyes, closing them shut. Then she was whispering against his ear, murmuring of love and all the incredibly erotic, sexy things she was going to do to him. "I would make love to you anywhere you asked," she breathed softly.
"Anywhere?" His voice sounded wicked and his laugh assuredly so, but she reveled in the deviltry, sighed when her husband's hands found their way beneath her shirt.
"Right here? Now?"
"Now," he parroted, smiling.
She nodded her head. Suddenly she was beneath him, feeling his warmth encompassing her. Amber eyes shone with desire and love into her own. The cares of the world vanished and they became lovers once more.
A warm breeze swept around them, caressing them. There was something curious about the wind because it seemed to reassure them that life would go on, as it should.
Then he proceeded to show her most tenderly and passionately how he would cherish her forever.
~The End~
About the Author
Christine Young
[email protected]
Born in Medford, Oregon, novelist Christine Young has lived in Oregon all of her life. After graduating from Oregon State University with a BS in science, she spent another year at Southern Oregon State University working on her teaching certificate, and a few years later received her Master's degree in secondary education and counseling. Now the long, hot days of summer provide the perfect setting for creating romance. She sold her first book, Dakota's Bride, the summer of 1998 and her second book, My Angel to Kensington. Her teaching and writing careers have intertwined with raising three children. Christine's newest venture is the creation of Rogue Phoenix Press. Christine is the founder, editor and co-owner with her husband. They live in Salem, Oregon.
Other books by Christine Young
Available at Rogue Phoenix Press
Highland Honor
The first book in the Highland Series
Willfully stubborn, innocently courageous, Callie Whitcomb braves a journey through the treacherous highlands to the Macpherson castle. Callie flees from an unwanted marriage as well as her ruthless half brother. Naively she believes Colin MacPherson, the head of the clan, is loyal to her father and will give her sanctuary, protecting her from the vile plans that have been made for her.
As hard and as unyielding as the winter storms that sweep through the countryside, Colin is irresistibly drawn to the impetuous beauty who has magically appeared on his doorsteps. Despite his vows of revenge against her father, she stirs his passion as well as his sense of justice...but to love her would violate all his vows of revenge.
Highland Magic
The second book in the Highland Series
Throughout the Highlands she is known as Keely, the witch woman. She is a great healer-a woman whose dreams come true. Ian MacPherson is a man who puts honor, loyalty and duty above everything. Their lives are entwined when Ian is sent by the Scottish King to bring Keely to trial for witchcraft. He is attacked and left for dead, but Keely rescues him. When he wakes, he discovers he has no memory. As he remembers his lost past, Ian finds that his need to protect the woman who has saved his life eclipses his duty to his king and country., He is a man torn between honor and duty to his country and the woman he loves.
Highland Song
The third book in the Highland Series
With her white-gold hair and azure eyes, Lainie MacPherson is as wild and untamed as the rugged Scottish Highlands where she was raised. Lainie vowed to avenge her rape. Recklessly, she defies English laws and the man who raped her puts a bounty on her head. The man who is sent to bring her to Edinburgh sets a dangerous trap. With nothing left to live for the beautiful Scottish spy steals the sealed documents the English soldier has tempted her with.
When the exquisite temptress takes the bait and runs off with not only the forged documents but the purses of the men in the tavern, Aaron Slade vows to hunt her down and bring her to justice, never dreaming she will tame his jaded soul. When Aaron discovers the truth about the tempestuous woman who stirs his passion to the point of madness, he dares not love her, but desires her with all his soul.
Dakota's Bride
When Emma St. John received her brother's letter imploring her to escape her stepfather'
s vengeful scheme and to trust Dakota Barringer with her life, she was willing to chance it. But the handsome, brooding riverboat owner Emma found in Natchez a danger of another kind. For Emma soon found herself surrendering to an unrelenting desire.
Raised by the Sioux when his parents were killed, Dakota had been betrayed once before by a white woman. He wasn't about to trust another, especially one claiming that her stepfather, a powerful U.S. senator, had framed her as a murderess. But he couldn't let Emma's intoxicating effect on him. Now Dakota would risk his very life to protect the innocent beauty who had seduced him with her tender love.
My Angel
A BEAUTY IN BUCKSKINS
When her father decided to send her to a finishing school back East, Angela Chamberlain refused to be confined to stuffy drawing rooms. Instead, the daring spitfire who could shoot like a man and ride like the wind longed for a life of adventure and romance—and she knew exactly who could give it to her. Devil Blackmoor was a hired gun with a dangerous reputation. But Angela was willing to go to the ends of the earth to capture the handsome devil's heart.
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