* * * * *
Easing into Natalie’s bedroom was easier than she’d expected. With Natalie busy searching the spell book in the living room, it would only take a second to do what she had to do. Nona smiled in the darkness. Her granddaughter thought she didn’t know of her dabblings in gypsy magick, but she’d always known. Although they went to Mass every week, the Pasqua women had always followed the “old” traditions.
A floorboard creaked and Nona froze, listening for Natalie’s footstep. After a second, she realized the old house had settled. Walking to Natalie’s bed, she pulled the pillow up and placed a bay leaf between the pillowcase and the pillow, then laid the pillow back against the bed. She gave the goose down a pat. Tonight, her baby’s dreams would tell her which man she needed to focus her attentions on.
* * * * *
Take two tulip bulbs. With a new pin, scratch the name of one suitor on each bulb. Remembering which bulb represents which lover, plant the bulbs beside each other in a pot. Whichever one blooms first will be the one most deserving of you.
“Bullshit.” Natalie cringed at her whispered outburst. She’d been going through the journal for thirty minutes and still hadn’t found a spell to do what she wanted -- fast.
She wanted to know how to make both men hers before Valentine’s Day. She yawned and flung the book across the cushion to land in a patch of moonlight shining through the window. It had been a long day, and she really needed to go to sleep. The pale beams called to her, and she knew what she had to do before she went to bed.
She got up to stand in front of the window. For years she’d gone to the moon whenever she needed something. In New York, her nighttime rituals were impossible to perform with limited outside spaces and privacy. But, here -- she pulled the sheers back and looked into the backyard -- she could practice her magick without interruption.
Remembering the chair, she eased through the living and dining areas into the kitchen. At the door, she rummaged through the counter drawer for the needed items, then removed her nightgown and panties. The slide of the door chain sounded louder than she remembered. After slipping it free, she waited for any reaction from Nona. When none came, she stepped through into the chilly January air.
Her nipples peaked and her pussy clenched at the cold that nipped her body. She breathed deeply of the crisp night air. She loved winter nights. With a quick dash, she ran across the frost-covered ground to hide beneath the live oak tree. Here in the shadows of the old gnarly limbs and leaves, she could perform her ritual without anyone seeing her.
A concrete bench sat beneath the tree. Sweeping leaves and twigs from the surface, she used the flat area for an altar. With gentle care, she placed the single candle and box of matches she’d retrieved from the kitchen drawer, then crossed herself.
Lifting her hands to the moonlit night, she whispered the incantation she’d designed years before. “Moonlight that shines on me, hear my wish and grant my needs.”
She held her stance for a few minutes, but couldn’t stop the yawn that claimed her. A faint breeze lifted the hair around her shoulders and she closed her eyes to let her meditative trance take her. In the distance, she heard the sounds of the night -- cars on the Biloxi bridge, the train crossing two streets over, dogs barking into the night air, and someone breathing.
Her eyes opened with a snap and she whirled around. A hand covered her mouth when she would have screamed. Her heart pounded against her chest and she kicked out with her bare foot.
He laughed. “Nice try, sweets.” The raspy voice whispering in her ear sounded familiar. He pulled her closer and she realized he was as naked as she. “That’s right, don’t fight. You’ll only get hurt trying to resist me.”
A warm, wet tongue trailed down her cheek. When he reached her neck, his lips joined his tongue in a soft sucking motion against the vein that throbbed in fear and ... something else. While her mind screamed “run,” her body screamed “give in.” Desire wound its way down her neck, across her breasts, and settled in her groin. She pressed her thighs together to fight the need that swamped her senses.
He released her neck to trail back to her ear. “Hmm, you taste as good as I imagined.” The arm around her waist loosened. “Sweeter than that candy I offered you when you were seventeen.”
His hand wandered over her body. First he slid his fingers up to pinch her nipple between his forefinger and thumb, then he feathered down to twirl a finger around the curve of her navel. “You’ve grown up quite nicely. No wonder he wants you.”
Natalie moaned and shifted her hips. Whether in pleasure or an attempt to break free, she didn’t know. The more he touched her, the more her cunt grew wet and throbbed.
He laughed, the warmth of his breath puffing small clouds of mist into the cold air. His hand slipped further south and hesitated above her pubis.
The anticipation became a physical pain. Through the pressure of his fingers, she muttered, “Come on.”
He did. Long, hot fingers combed through her pussy hair to reach their destination. When he entered her cunt, he released the hand over her mouth and she heard their moans of pleasure blend together. The familiar ache grew so acute she thought she would fall, but his arms held her tight against his body. The outline of his cock pressed into her back, and she thought of Nico.
“Don’t think of him.” He plunged his fingers deeper. “Not yet. Think of me and the pleasure I’m giving you.”
Fantasy and reality blurred together, and Natalie couldn’t be sure if she were dreaming or actually letting a complete stranger take control of her body. But ... he wasn’t a stranger. She’d seen him before. The haze of desire swamped her senses.
She didn’t care. Between the cold of the night and the heat of his fingers and lips, she lost all touch with reality. One minute they were standing with him behind her, his fingers deep within her body; the next moment he stood before her in the cold night air.
He reached past her head and produced a long-stemmed rose with petals so red they looked black in the moonlight.
“It’s beautiful.” Her voice sounded like she spoke inside a tunnel.
“Like you, my dear.” He trailed the bud across her shoulders and between her breasts.
“I’m not beautiful.”
“Oh, but you are.” He smiled. His teeth flashed white in the pale light. “I know at least three males who think so.” The bud circled her breast. “Myself, Nico, and David.”
Natalie sucked her breath in at the throb between her legs. Why had he stopped what he’d been doing to her earlier? She wanted --
He continued the assault of her senses and teased her nipple to a point.
She bit her lip to keep a cry of utter need from escaping.
“Nona --”
“Can’t see or hear us.”
“Who are you?”
“I’m the answer to yours and another’s prayers.”
She shook her head. “An angel?”
He laughed and the black eyebrow rose. “Not the last time I looked in the mirror.”
“You’re ... the devil?”
The smile disappeared. He bowed. “I’m but a lowly servant.”
“Why are you here?”
“With your body ...” He stepped closer and sniffed her neck. “With your cunt, you have the ability to tempt the soul of one who needs what you can offer.”
“You have more power than I to do that.”
He shrugged. “But I’m not what he wants.”
He walked behind her and stood so close, she felt his cock against the small of her back. Again, the image of Nico surfaced, but quickly dissipated when the man’s hand circled her waist, sending tiny, threadlike shivers across her abdomen and down to her clit. Moisture eased between the folds of her pussy. If he didn’t fuck her soon, she’d go insane.
“Do you want me?” He kissed her temple.
She nodded.
“If you let me take you, then we have a pact. Do you understand?”
“Yes.�
�� Her whisper filtered into the night air.
“I can give you pleasure.” The soft petals of the rosebud caressed her clit, and she sighed. “Or I can give you pain.”
His hand covered her mouth and muffled her scream as the rose’s thorn pierced her labia above her clit. A warm trickle of blood mingled with the juices of her pussy to run down the inside of her leg.
“Whichever sensation you wish, my sweet.” He kept the thorn in place as he eased a few steps back to sit on the bench. Once situated, he pulled her onto his lap. The head of his cock pushed at the wet folds of her vagina, and she spread her legs without hesitation to take him into her body.
His ankles captured her calves, spreading her wide and more open to his control. Slowly, he worked the thorn above her clit while he speared his hips up against her body.
Her hips moved against his rhythm, forcing her cunt to widen and accept his thick mass. She’d never had a cock so large. So thick.
“That’s right ... give me what I need.” He sank deeper. “I’ll make all your desires come true.”
The thorn pulled her labia tight at the same instant his dick shoved into her. He used nature’s beauty like a clit ring, and the sensation had her squirming to get closer to the man beneath her.
“I’ll promise your lover’s cock will feel better than mine.”
She wanted to deny the pleasure she experienced at what he did to her, but couldn’t. She craved more. She wanted more. A whimper escaped between the press of his fingers.
“Shh. Don’t fight what I know you want.” He bent his head to circle her nipple with his mouth and sucked hard.
Natalie bucked with the force of her orgasm, but he held her tight with his arms, legs, mouth, and cock. Her body rocked hard against his with the contraction of her pleasure, on and on. Finally, spent, her body went limp, and he released his punishing hold, but his cock stayed buried inside her body, hard and long. She lay dazed and panting within the circle of his arms.
“My turn.” His voice growled against her ear. He swiveled, but kept his hands firmly around her waist, and pushed her chest-down over the cold concrete bench.
She tried to struggle up, but his weight held her down. “You accepted me into your body, Natalie. You have to complete the pact.” He rammed into her hard. The feeling of fullness increased with the swell of his cock.
“Oh, God, yesss ...”
“He’s not part of this bargain, sweet.” He pulled out, then surged back into her again and again. His fingers tangled into her hair, and he pulled her head back. “It’s you and me.”
One last thrust had her going over the edge for a second orgasm. This time he followed, and her scream blended with his, loud and animalistic through the cold, night air. The steam of their breaths panted fast in a white mist. Hot, scalding semen bathed her womb.
What have I done? She wanted to escape this ... thing that held her, but she didn’t have the energy.
He pulled out. The sensation of fullness evaporated, leaving her feeling ... empty. Her eyelids grew heavy. Have to get away ... But all she could do was curl up and close her eyes.
A large, calloused hand smoothed the hair from her forehead. Firm, sensuous lips kissed her cheek. Muffled words filled her mind, and she frowned, but couldn’t wake.
Sweet, Natalie. Sleep now, and I’ll make sure your wish becomes reality tomorrow.
Chapter Four
Music reverberated around the crowded room. The table vibrated beneath David’s arms with the bass as he leaned on the scarred wooden top. Cradling his beer, he watched the moisture trickle down the sides into a pool at the base. A cheer rose from the crowd when the band completed the first set to take a break. Loud conversation took the place of the rock music.
He glanced around, but didn’t see anyone who would recognize him. That was the beauty about sneaking over to New Orleans. No one knew him or his family. He could do whatever he wanted, pick up anyone he wanted.
“Whatcha havin’, hon?”
David jumped at the waitress’s question. His gaze traveled from her high-heeled sandals over long bare legs topped with a miniscule black skirt. His eyebrow rose with his smile. “Whatever you can give me.”
She hesitated over her gum-chewing and studied him closer with narrowed eyes. “Uh huh. How ’bout another beer, then?”
David felt his smile falter to be replaced by a frown. That line usually worked. The waitress walked away toward the bar. He angled his head and took a swallow of his beer. She had a nice ass with those legs, too. He could imagine them wrapped around his waist and back. “Umm.”
“You can say that again.”
David turned toward the voice. A tall man in black stood beside his table. His face lay hidden in the shadows of the dim room. Cigarette smoke curled in lazy swirls around the outline of his body. The noise level droned into a distant rumble as the man pulled out a chair and sat opposite him. The smoke followed in a cloud to hover above the stranger’s head.
David swallowed. A chill raced down his spine and settled in the base of his abdomen. “W-Who are you?” He fought to control the catch in his voice. Unexplainable fear took hold in his mind. He shook his head and looked at the number of beer bottles on the table.
“Oh, you’re not drunk ... yet.” The stranger’s mouth quirked at one corner, his eyes still shrouded by the dark. A lean, dark hand, tattooed with a greenish-black pentagram, reached out and took the bottle from David’s hand. With slow precision, the bottle lifted to the cruel slash of the man’s mouth. Firm lips covered the rim of the bottle.
David watched in fascination, not able to look away. When the man’s tongue circled inside the neck, his balls clenched. A slow throb spread to his cock and his anus quivered. He resisted the urge to adjust his jeans and settled on pulling the neck of his T-shirt away from his collarbone. The heat in the room rocketed ten more degrees.
David cleared his throat. “I asked who you were, mister.”
The bottle came down, and the stranger leaned forward. The overhead light cast jagged shadows across high cheekbones, giving the guy a haunted appearance. Black hair fell past wide shoulders and feathered above black eyebrows and eyes.
David sucked in a breath. Nico! But -- he looked closer -- not. This guy looked like an older version of his friend. A black T-shirt stretched over a muscled chest and firm abdomen. Intricate tattoos in some sort of Celtic design circled each bicep. Dark and dangerous, just like his friend, but more ... menacing.
“Like what you see?”
David sat straighter, anger and excitement coursing through every vein. “Look, you son-of-a--”
“The name’s Luke.” A long finger reached out and traced a small pattern over David’s knuckle, cutting off his words.
His cock, rock-hard, strained against the restraint of his jeans. His breath came in short, quick gasps through clenched teeth. David fought the reaction without success.
“What ... do ... you ... want?”
“The same thing you want.”
David tried to pull his hand away from the questing finger. Every caress sent tingles through his balls.
The man placed his palm flush to the back of David’s hand and prevented further movement.
Spirals of electricity raced over David’s skin and up his arm. He gasped. “Don’t.”
“Why not? You like it; I like it.” Luke shrugged. “Why not?”
David swallowed hard, closing his eyes against the glittering stare that reached into his soul and found his darkest desires. Sweat peppered his upper lip and forehead. Taking a deep, shuddering breath, he snatched his hand away from the temptation Luke offered. He’d wanted to get laid, but with someone he could control. From the look of the man in front of him, David knew who would be calling the shots.
“Get the fuck away from me, you pervert.”
Instead of anger, the man threw his head back and laughed, long and hard.
David glanced around, catching the curious stares of several patrons. He p
ushed his chair back and stood. Taking a few bills from his pocket, he threw them on the table. His hand shook, but he didn’t care. He had to get the hell out of here. He shouldn’t have come here tonight, but after spending the entire evening looking at Natalie’s legs and Nico’s ass, he’d needed some relief. But -- he looked at the stranger watching him -- this wasn’t it.
“You sure?”
David hesitated at the question, not sure he hadn’t spoken out loud. He watched the man stand with a lithe animal grace, slow and smooth. Again, he thought of a younger man he’d been lusting after since high school. “You’re not related to Nico Bui, by chance?”
A black eyebrow rose and the quirk returned. “I’m related to a lot of people.”
David shrugged. “Never mind. I’m outta here.”
Steely fingers wrapped around his wrist next to his thigh. “Not yet.” Luke stepped closer, dwarfing him by half a foot, and whispered in David’s ear.
“Imagine your wildest, darkest desire.”
A finger flicked across his crotch. David groaned. The thought of Luke’s larger frame wrapped around him surfaced.
A burst of hot air tickled his neck. “That’s only the beginning.”
He opened his eyes to find Luke’s face close to his. Black eyes stared straight into his, commanding him to relent. A knot formed in his throat at what he knew he’d do. David nodded. The guy wasn’t Nico, but the similarity was too strong. He couldn’t resist.
Luke smiled.
* * * * *
Strong hands pushed him against the wall. David grunted with the impact. Shit! What had he been thinking when he’d invited this guy home? Nico. That’s what. The need to have the one he most desired touch him, suck him ... fuck him made him sweat and pant with lust to the point he picked up a stranger.
Hard Candy Page 7