Her Photographer Phoenix_A Paranormal Romance

by Alice Summerfield

  “No, I don’t.”

  “He’s fine,” inserted Everett. He shot her an odd look. “Don’t you want to tag any more of the chicks?”

  “If not, we could go help the observations team,” suggested Marc, with a brief look towards the group in question. It was Marissa’s team in the research outpost that afternoon.

  If Ahmed had been able to make the journey, Ellis would have had four teams with three members each. Because Ahmed was absent from their group, the numbers were uneven. The upshot of that was that there were three research teams with three members each and one research team that only had two official members, namely Ellis and Everett.

  For reasons of their own, though, Benton and Marc had attached themselves to Ellis’ team. Benton seemed happy with the arrangement, but Ellis suspected that if it had been up to Marc, they would have attached themselves to Marissa’s team. Ellis rarely saw one without the other these days.

  “Yes, let’s tag as many of the chicks as we can manage before we go back,” said Ellis.

  The chicks would only be on the islands for a few months, and there were so many of them on any given island that her teams never managed to tag more than a fraction of them before they fledged and flew away.

  They tagged several more chicks, and when they finally left the lake at sunset, Ellis went straight to the tent that was currently serving as her lab to finish processing and safely packing away the eggshells that they had collected. While she worked, Ellis tried not to think about the fact that she would be leaving the camp in the morning, probably without Benton. He was getting paid to film the firebirds, not to tag along with her research group.

  It was something of a camp tradition to have a cookout with the last of the supplies. Then everyone left behind in camp would eat whatever bits and pieces were left and as well as the MREs, while Ellis made a run into the village of Luel for the next food shipment.

  Ellis wished that she could send some of her research assistants into Luel to claim the food shipment for her, but Captain Renau wouldn’t release her shipment to anyone but her. It was a policy that ensured safe delivery to the purchasing party, but it was also a policy that necessarily took time away from however much time she could dedicate to the firebirds on any given trip.

  And this year, it also cut into her time with Benton.

  They had talked about a lot of things, but not what they were going to do once the chicks fledged and it was time to leave the island. Ellis had assumed that they would make it work somehow, especially after she had begun to feel Benton like a bond mate should, but she hadn’t really had a chance to get a definite answer out of him.

  And Benton was human. What if he didn’t feel the same connection with her that she did with him? What if humans couldn’t be bound by or even feel a dragon’s soul bond? What if he wanted them to go their separate ways? What if he didn’t want her anymore?

  Had she done anything that might have made him stop wanting her?

  They were already living together and in a tent no less, which naturally removed a lot of the feminine mystique. That was bad luck for Ellis, because she’d never had much feminine mystique to begin with, but it hadn’t seemed to put him off.

  She was the one that had taken sex off the table. But only temporarily! She hadn’t meant it to be forever! At the time, he had seemed to understand, and nothing had seemed to really change between them, except for their sudden and terrible sexual drought. But maybe he had gotten tired of waiting? Or maybe he hadn’t really understood at all. Maybe Benton had lost all interest in her when she had decided to take a step back and put her professional reputation first?

  She wanted to say that he wouldn’t do that, because he was her soul mate. Of everyone in the world, he was supposed to understand her best of all, but she just didn’t know. And Ellis didn’t want to part with Benton tomorrow without first being sure where they stood with each other.

  Well, she didn’t want to part with him at all, but if she had to be apart from Benton for any length of time – or to be more specific, roughly a week – then she didn’t want them to part on uncertain terms. Ellis wanted to be as close to Benton as possible before she left in the morning.

  But first, there was a feast to enjoy. And by no coincidence, it fell on a day when there were at least two competent cooks in the camp to prepare it. Ellis regretted nothing. The feast was wonderful! Everyone talked and laughed around the big table in the mess tent, including Ellis. For Ellis, though, the highlight of the night was Benton.

  He sat next to her, so close that his thigh pressed all along the length of hers. From his plate, Benton passed choice bits to Ellis – things that he knew that she would like – and Ellis returned the favor with tidbits from her own plate. They had key lime pie for desert – premade, pre-packed, and saved for just such an occasion – and tiny bottles of liquor.

  For once, Marissa and Marc disappeared into the night before she and Benton did. They didn’t even finish their pieces of pie.

  Smirking, Ellis dropped her hand under the table to catch Benton’s hand. She squeezed it, and when she had Benton’s attention, gave him a meaningful look.

  Benton grinned.

  They were the next to slip away, leaving while everyone else howled with laughter at Everett’s story about tummy troubles on a plane. They were outside, but still standing in the diffused light from the mess tent, when Benton used his grip on Ellis’ hand to reel her back into him for a quick kiss. He kissed her mouth with lips that tasted tart and sweet like the pie and a tongue that was still slightly cold from it, making Ellis moan softly into his mouth.

  Key lime pie was her favorite!

  Ellis pressed closer to him, eagerly licking into his mouth, and Benton’s lips curved against hers. He was smiling.

  Pushing Benton away, Ellis shot him a challenging look then turned tail and ran. Excitement thrummed through her, echoing the pounding of Benton’s footsteps as he chased after her, and she was giggling breathlessly.

  Ellis never giggled – except for Benton. He always made her laugh.

  She might have outrun him – if she’d wanted to and if she hadn’t lost precious moments navigating the zippers on their tent – but she didn’t. Ellis yelped as a strong arm caught her around the middle, pulling her back against a hard and lean body.

  “Got you,” murmured Benton against the shell of her ear, and then pressed a kiss behind it.

  “Ben – the scorpions –” began Ellis, and then yelped when Benton Hwong swept her off her feet. She fell against his hard chest, one of his arms behind her back and the other under her knees.

  Shouldering his way through the tent’s half unzipped opening, Benton put Ellis on her feet long enough to let him zip up their tent. While he was doing that, Ellis helpfully flicked on the electric lantern and yanked her shirt up and over her head, leaving herself in her bra.

  The nights were too warm on Keris Island for Ellis to feel cold without her shirt, but she did feel nervous – right up until Benton turned around and got an eyeful of her. He stilled, the laughter draining out of his face and his eyes darkening.

  Looking at him looking at her, Ellis felt about ten feet tall – in the good way.

  Benton grabbed her hips, a brief press of his warm fingertips against the bare flesh of her waist, and then Ellis was pulled off of her feet again as Benton slung her over his shoulder.

  Ellis yelped, high and delighted, and clutched at his strong back, then she yelped again when his hand lightly swatted her rump.

  “People are going to get the wrong idea,” warned Benton.

  “Or the right one,” retorted Ellis, made bold by her happiness – and possibly all the blood pounding in her head. Then she pinched the rounded curve of his rump for good measure. Turn about was fair play, after all.

  Under her, Benton startled, and Ellis giggled.

  “If we had a real bed, I’d drop you on it,” warned Benton in dire tones, even as he set Ellis gently on her feet next to their blow up
mattress.

  Grabbing his shirt in his two hands, Benton quickly pulled it up and over his head, revealing acres of lickable man-flesh to Ellis’ eager gaze. She admired his rippling abs and let her gaze linger on his amazing pecs. In fact, she was still drooling over his pecs, when first one then the other began to twitch – rhythmically. Benton was making them dance for her.

  Laughing, Ellis fell against Benton, her hands finding the warm skin of his waist. Benton’s arms wrapped around her too, and Ellis shivered as he lightly trailed his fingers up the line of her spine. She was still shivering and laughing when Benton leaned down to catch her mouth with his.

  No one had ever kissed her like Benton did – slow and deep and with a smile lingering at the corners of his mouth. Ellis was still smiling too, but somehow their mouths still fit together well enough for Benton to kiss her and suck her lower lip between his. Moaning, Ellis stretched up on her toes, dragging her hands up the length of his magnificent torso to wrap her arms around Benton’s shoulders.

  They kissed for what felt like a good long while, hands roaming and stroking and occasionally tugging before they parted long enough to kick off their boots and socks.

  Benton reached for her and then paused, his hand hovering over the dip of her hip.

  “Is this still pinned for later?” he asked, his voice low.

  “I changed my mind?” offered Ellis, and Benton grinned before he helpfully peeled Ellis’ pants down her legs, taking her underwear with them.

  Dressed solely in her bra, Ellis was painfully aware that she had been camping for the last few months and that waxing only lasted so long.

  “You’re beautiful,” said Benton hoarsely, and Ellis blinked.

  Was he kidding? Ellis wondered. Love can’t make you that blind, can it?

  But looking into Benton’s face, Ellis realized that he didn’t know that she wasn’t at her best. He really did think that she was beautiful just the way that she was right now.

  An impossibly tender feeling filled her heart, and Ellis smiled at her mate, something that he took as an invitation to kiss her. To be fair, she was always up for kissing him.

  Benton’s hand found one of Ellis’ breasts, gently squeezing and kneading it through the fabric of her bra, and Ellis gasped into his mouth.

  She stroked her hands down his impossibly amazing chest, dipping a finger into his belly button and then finding Benton’s treasure trail. Ellis trailed her fingers along that, grabbing onto his belt with one hand and cupping him through his pants with her other.

  Benton gasped and then quietly groaned; breaking their kiss, as Ellis gently squeezed then stroked his erection.

  Benton’s pants came off pretty quickly after that.

  And then Ellis was on her back on the bed with Benton’s head between her thighs, her hand pressed to her mouth as he licked her open.

  Ellis was wet and aching for him and so, so close, when Benton abruptly stopped licking her. She only had a moment to be outraged though, because then Benton was there, looming over her as he guided his erection to her entrance.

  Catching her mouth with his, Benton pushed into Ellis, and her hips rose to meet him. Benton sank into Ellis in one smooth stroke, his body coming to rest flush against hers. The length and thickness of his member was a delicious stretch, one that made Ellis moan softly.

  Greedily, Benton kissed her, swallowing the sound down. And then he kept kissing her, keeping Ellis quiet as he began to rock into her. That felt even better.

  Ellis clung to him, her arms around his shoulders and her heels digging into the blowup mattress as she rose to meet each of Benton’s thrusts. His every thrust made her gasp – Benton felt so good moving inside of her – and there was a delicious sort of tension building in her belly. Sweat gathered at the back of her knees and the bends of her elbows, and when she licked her lower lip, Ellis tasted salt.

  Benton made a small noise then, his gaze fixed on her mouth, and Ellis’ lips curved up into a wicked smile.

  Above her, Benton’s hair glowed in the low light, making it look like his head was ringed in fire. His blue eyes glowed electric, like the heart of a flame, like –

  Lightning, thought Ellis, her mouth falling open in a silent cry as the tension in her belly abruptly snapped. Orgasm lashed through her, and she clenched hard around Benton.

  A few more uncoordinated thrusts on his part, and then he pulled out of her. His hand pulling hard along the length of his cock, Benton followed her into orgasm, gasping and shuddering as he came all over her belly.

  Afterwards, Benton lay against her, heavy and lax and perfect. Eventually, he sighed and rolled off of Ellis.

  “Let me get you a cloth,” he said, pushing himself to his feet with a grunt.

  When they were cleaned up and comfortable, they curled up together again.

  “I’m going to miss you,” murmured Ellis into the comfortable silence that settled between them.

  “I know,” said Benton. His arms tightened around her. “I’ll miss you too. But it won’t be for long, will it?”

  “No. But what about the others? The average age is really young this year, and I can’t help but worry that something will happen to them the moment that I let them out of my sight.”

  “Don’t worry about them,” said Benton firmly. “While you’re gone, I’ll… keep an eye on your assistants.”

  Ellis laughed. “You? But you don’t like being responsible for anything but your camera equipment.”

  “I wouldn’t mind being responsible for your happiness,” said Benton quietly.

  Ellis turned to look up at him, only to find that Benton was already looking down at her. His expression – and the light in his brilliantly blue eyes – was very soft.

  Ellis hadn’t thought that she could love him more, but in that moment, she discovered that she could. Her heart melted. Leaning up, Ellis kissed him softly.

  “I love you,” admitted Ellis between kisses and felt Benton’s body jolt against hers.

  He kissed her fiercely. “I love you too!”

  One thing led to another, and Ellis soon rolled on top of him, the better to kiss him just the way that she wanted. Benton didn’t seem to mind, not so long as she loved him.

  “Want to go again? Let me show you how much I love you?” asked Ellis between languid kisses, and Benton laughed, his voice drowning out the gentle patter of rain against the tent’s fabric.

  Chapter 10 – Benton

  Benton saw Ellis off with a kiss and a promise.

  “Don’t worry,” he said again. “I’ll keep an eye on things here.”

  In the time that they had come to know each other, Benton had come to realize that Ellis cared about almost everything – her silly research assistants, those annoying birds nesting on the lake, and even the waste and trash produced by her campsite. Everything was being bagged so that it could later be carried out. There was absolutely no way that she wasn’t going to worry about what was happening back at the camp while she was away, but Benton hoped that she might worry less with his promise to look after things for her.

  Ellis nodded, smiled, and kissed him again, saying, “I love you.”

  Benton nearly dragged her back to bed on the spot.

  Instead, he pulled her close and kissed her smiling mouth, saying between kisses, “And I love you too.” Nuzzling into the side of her neck, he added hopefully, “We probably have time for a quickie.”

  Ellis laughed.

  “The bed’s a bit saggy from last night,” said Ellis wryly. “We’d have to pump it up first. And what if the others claim all the good MRE flavors? C’mon! Let’s go eat breakfast!”

  Benton nearly groaned, but he still let her lead him out of their tent to face the day – and breakfast. At least whatever was packed in the MREs was designed to be edible, which was more than he could say for about half of the meals that he had eaten since coming to this camp.

  Ellis and the rest of her group – Everett, Kris, Donovan, and Talman – lef
t right after breakfast. Benton was sorry to see them go.

  Seven days, thought Benton grimly, as he watched them go, and then she’ll be back.

  It was going to be interminable.

  And during that time, he had promised to lookout for her research group.

  That left him with something of a problem. Namely: how did one look out for a bunch of eighteen and twenty-one year olds? At those ages, he had thought that he had figured it all out. In their position, he wouldn’t have appreciated any interference from the weird old guy who was banging the boss. And yet, he had promised.

  What a foolish promise to make, thought Benton unhappily. But given the opportunity, he would have done it again. It had made Ellis so happy.

  Benton was still wrestling with his problem when he, Marc, and the morning research group went down to the lake for a morning of bird watching.

  “You look tired,” said Landon, interrupting Benton’s thoughts. His grin was lecherous.

  All told, Benton and Ellis hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before Ellis left to go into Luel. Benton found that he really didn’t mind, not when he had such sweet memories to make up for it, but there was no way in hell that he was going to talk to this chucklehead about it.

  Benton shot Landon an unfriendly look.

  Unfortunately, Landon was not only immature, he was also potentially made of Teflon. Benton’s dirty look slid right off of him.

  Chucklehead, thought Benton again, annoyed.

  With roughly half the group gone to pick up supplies from the village Luel, there were only two research groups in camp and gathering data on the lake at the moment – a morning team and an afternoon team.

  Benton wasn’t looking forward to spending the morning with Marissa, Cameron, and Landon. Marissa seemed normal enough, and she and Marc seemed to gravitate towards each other more often than not, but Cameron was an eighteen year old hothead, and at twenty-two, Landon talked too much.

  But he had promised to keep an eye on things, so Benton kept half an eye on the research group as he went about his own business.