He leaned forward to return the kiss. “Then you’re welcome.” When he pulled back, his eyes were shadowed. “You know I would protect you with my life.”
She nodded slowly. Somehow, she’d always known that, and it was that knowledge that had brought her to him when she and Cameron were in danger.
Eli turned and walked out of the kitchen, his tread slow on the stairs. A lot about Eli was coming clear, even about her own relationship with him. She laughed at the irony. When she’d first met him and he’d assumed she was a wild party girl, playing on his assumptions had been the exact behavior that would draw out the worst in him. Given what had happened to Kacey and their unborn child, she now understood his fear for Chloe and his harsh judgment of Gwen.
She opened the cupboard to put back the bottle of Tylenol and saw a tub of the same liniment they’d used earlier. Grabbing it, she climbed the stairs. A rumble of thunder heralded the storm drawing nearer.
Eli lay face down across his wide bed, still wearing his boots. She turned on the lamp on his nightstand.
“Eli, you need help.”
“Go away.” His voice was muffled.
“I’m not going away. Take off your shirt.”
“No. It hurts to move.”
“I bet it does. I found a tub of the liniment. The pain will ease once I’ve rubbed some more on those bruises.” She set the tin on his dresser and bent to grip one boot. It came off with a couple of good tugs. She set the boot down and pulled off the other. “Sit up.”
“I said go away.”
“Don’t make me use my teacher voice. Sit up, Eli.”
“Teacher voice, my ass.”
“We may get to your ass if it has a bruise on it, but for now I’ll start with your back.”
“Ha. The teacher said ‘ass.’”
“Eli—”
“Okay, okay.” With a groan, he turned over, then took a deep breath and sat up. Moving carefully, he rose and crossed to the dresser where he pulled flannel pants from a drawer. Without saying a word, he went into the bathroom. Deciding that if the liniment got onto the bedding it would be easier to wash the sheets than his quilt, Gwen pulled back the covers and fluffed the pillow.
Eli spoke from behind her. “Well, darlin’, planning to join me?”
Gwen slowly straightened as she took in the bloom of multicolored bruises covering his torso. A wide purple abrasion started at his hip and disappeared under the elastic waistband of the dark plaid pants. “I’ll give you a pass for being a jerk, but you need to work on that.” When he sighed, she ordered, “Lie down, Eli. We’ll get this over with and I’ll leave you alone.”
He lay face down once again, head on the pillow, arms raised above his head. Gwen pried the lid off the tin, then scooped pale green balm onto her fingers. She warmed it in her hands, and the pungent aroma filled the air. She rubbed the balm firmly into the long muscles of his back, then more lightly over the contusions.
“You need to roll over so I can take care of the bruises on your chest.” When he didn’t move, she touched his shoulder. “You fall asleep, cowboy?”
“More like comatose,” he muttered, but he rolled over. He lay with his eyes closed as Gwen went to work, rubbing with steady pressure. Even relaxed, his chest and abdominal muscles remained well defined. She rubbed, letting her fingers glide through his chest hair, down, along the ridge of muscle at his hip. She told herself the curl of desire rising low in her belly was entirely inappropriate.
“You’ve got magic fingers.”
She paused, then resumed rubbing. “Yeah, that’s me, magic fingers.” She glanced surreptitiously at Eli’s face and, seeing his eyes closed, gave in to the pleasure of looking at him. Though he was a far cry from conventionally handsome, there was something about his looks that worked for her. The tousled dark hair, the winged eyebrows, the hard edge of his jaw. And she really liked his shoulders, wide with thick muscles that projected strength. Her gaze rose to his face again to find his eyes open, glittering dangerously.
The air charged, like the buildup to an electric storm.
“Your breathing changed, got deeper.”
Yeah, because touching you is getting me hot. “Aah, must be the fumes from the liniment. I think I’m done with it.” She set down the container. “One more thing and I’ll let you sleep.” Gently, she lifted the hair off his forehead to inspect the scrape there. As she bent closer, she caught the deepening of his breath.
She beat a hasty retreat to the bathroom and, once out of sight, took a moment to steady herself, to try to regain her equilibrium. The tension between them was growing more volatile.
All that was needed was a spark and there’d be an explosion.
Chapter Eighteen
Pulling open drawers, she searched until she found a washcloth and bandages, then returned to the bedroom. The room felt stuffy, so she set her first aid items on the nightstand and crossed to open the window. A flash of lightning split the night sky, and the cool breeze that billowed the curtains smelled of rain.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, she used the damp cloth to carefully wash away the dried blood. With the wound clean, she pressed a bandage firmly in place. She tried for a friendly smile. “I think you’ll do, cowboy.”
“You’re not going to kiss it and make it better?”
She couldn’t read his expression to tell if he was joking, but figured a quick peck and she’d be out of there. She brushed back his hair and bent to press a soft kiss next to the bandage. She drew back and her gaze latched on to his. He reached up a hand to cup the back of her neck and guide her back to him. Their lips touched and the spark flashed.
Warm, hard, persuasive, his lips moved across hers and all she wanted was more of him. With her hands braced on his shoulders, she gave in to the temptation and parted her lips. His tongue slid across hers in a sensuous dance. He slid one hand under the hem of her sweatshirt, then up to palm her breast through the silk of her bra. One finger slid under the cup to graze slowly across her nipple until it peaked in response. She stifled a groan, breaking the kiss.
Even as his hands continued to move across her breasts, his gaze held hers. “Did you know your eyes glow golden when I kiss you? When you’re aroused?”
She shook her head, and he raised his head to nip at her chin. He gripped her waist, tugging her onto the bed until she was lying next to him, her body flush against his. “Gwendolyn.”
Head resting on his shoulder, she raised her gaze to find him studying her with familiar intensity. “What?”
“Will you stay with me tonight?”
She was fooling herself if the thought of spending the night with Eli hadn’t crossed her mind. God knew she found him desirable in so many ways beyond the physical. Her heart thudded as he watched her, waiting, but not pressuring. Before she could convince herself otherwise, she propped herself up on an elbow to cast light kisses along his shoulder and up his neck to the hollow under his jaw where bristly whiskers scratched against her skin. She whispered in his ear, “Yes.”
His breath left him in a whoosh, making her realize he’d been holding it. He turned his head to kiss her, long and thorough. She gave in to the compulsion to run her hands over the warm skin of his chest, though mindful of the bruises.
“Let’s get rid of this.” He pulled down the zipper of her hoodie and tugged it off, then lifted the hem of her shirt. She sat up and he pulled it over her head.
“Ah, baby.” His gaze feasted on her breasts contained by a silky bra of teal green. She lay back and he moved over her, bending his head to press warm kisses along the silky edge, then sliding his tongue under the fabric to find her nipple.
Gwen unhooked the front clasp of her bra. The sleek material gave way, allowing her breasts to spill free.
He reached up to cup them firmly, mouth finding one tight bud, thumb rubbing across the other.
Gwen shifted to give him better access, and he let out a groan. She rose to her elbows, bringing her hips more tightly against his. “Am I hur
ting you?”
“You’re killing me.” He shifted his mouth from one breast to the other. “Don’t stop.”
She gave herself to the heady sensation of Eli sucking her breasts. Warmth spread through her, an electric coil low in her belly glowing hotter and hotter.
Eli eased back, lifting her shoulders to pull off the bra, then began to unfasten her jeans, pushing the material down past her hips. She took a minute to wiggle free, then reached for the waistband of his pants. He gave a hiss when her hand grazed the bruise on his hip, and she stilled her movements. “Can you do this?”
“I think I’d die if you stopped now.”
He grinned crookedly, then rose from the bed to rid himself of the remainder of his clothing. He ranged over her, strong arms supporting his torso. She ran her hands along the bunched muscles of his biceps, then lightly across his rib cage, then lower, lower, until she found him. Velvet over steel, she closed her hand firmly around his erection. He held still as she stroked the rigid hardness, touching and caressing while his breathing turned ragged.
Gwen gave up fighting against the swelling wave of emotion. Coming together now seemed an inevitable outcome to the tension that had always flared between them. All the time she’d known Eli, her response to him had been anything but neutral. They had argued, circled each other like forbidden lovers, pitting wills every time they were in the same room, but ultimately the pull had been too strong. She focused on his compelling face, made more roguish by the white of the bandage on his forehead, the slash of dark eyebrows, the intensity of flint-gray eyes.
The storm outside moved closer, thunder rumbling across the valley.
He settled between her thighs, long fingers reaching down to slide and caress, building the want to a fever pitch.
He held his position, studying her face with such focus she wondered what he saw there. Then he dipped his head to bring his mouth to hers, his tongue seeking entrance as he drove his hips forward. Her moan of response was muted by his mouth on hers. He moved inside her, slowly at first, as though savoring the sensation, then more quickly. Tension built as, over and over, he pulled out and thrust again. She grasped his buttocks to bring him tighter, legs locked around his to pull him more deeply into her. The feeling was so exquisite the coil inside her tightened, flashing hotter, ready to burst. She gripped him closer and felt herself spiraling toward completion. He surged forward to meet her need, then uttered an oath and stilled, eyes closed. “Don’t move, honey.”
“Eli?” She nearly vibrated with urgency.
The arms he braced on either side of her shook. Her body hummed on the edge, and she gave an involuntary movement that had him groaning deep in his throat. “God, darlin’. Don’t move. Condom. In my nightstand.”
“Oh no.”
He surged forward to reach for the drawer pull, the movement so delicious Gwen couldn’t help the reflexive reaction, the upward tilt of her pelvis that brought him in even deeper. It was the final push she needed and she was coming apart, riding into the oblivion of sensation, crying out his name.
His response was instinctive. He rocketed back, then forward again, grinding out a hoarse cry as he climaxed.
Breath shuddering, he rested his forehead against hers as they lay firmly locked together. God, he felt good. Him deep inside, the weight of his body, the warmth of his skin against hers. Despite the potential consequences, she couldn’t deny the feeling of rightness making love with Eli gave her.
They lay like that long enough for her to start drifting. Then he lifted his head and kissed her, bringing up his hands to frame her face. “Look at me, sweetheart.”
She hadn’t wanted him to see the raw emotion on her face, that she knew would be reflected in her eyes. He brushed a thumb along her cheekbone and she finally met his gaze. There was turbulence there, a tumult she hadn’t expected.
“Gwendolyn, will you marry me?” His question caught her so off guard she stared at him in stunned disbelief. He watched her mutely, and she knew the words that would make her secret fantasy a reality weren’t going to come. He didn’t love her, and while lately it seemed he no longer disliked her, his proposal was simply the result of his overdeveloped sense of responsibility.
Her emotions tumbled through her like a kaleidoscope, forming and reforming into different patterns as she tried to sort through them, to make sense of her own feelings. What finally developed into an overarching truth was she loved Elijah MacElvoy, and if he had said three simple words in accompaniment of his proposal, her answer would have been “yes” without hesitation. But she would be no one’s burden or responsibility.
“Eli, you don’t have to propose. Even if I did get pregnant, we don’t have to get married.”
“Yes, we do.” The fingers of one hand threaded into her hair while he traced her face with the other. “I want to marry you. Soon, and not only because of what just happened. I’ve been thinking about this for a while. We could keep Cameron, be his parents. Both of you like it here.”
“That’s not why you proposed.”
The curtains billowed and the pattering of rain filled the air as thunder rumbled.
He rolled them over, still joined together, pulling her with him so she lay on top of him. If the bruises were causing him pain, he showed no sign. He drew his brows down in a frown. “I don’t know if it would have been the right thing for either of us in the long run, but I do know that if I’d married Kacey when she first wanted me to, she wouldn’t have been out partying, wouldn’t have been driving drunk, and she and our baby wouldn’t be dead.”
“Eli, I’m not a partier. I rarely drink, and when I do, I don’t drink to excess. And if I ever do get pregnant, I wouldn’t drink at all.”
He was silent for a long moment. “I believe you. But you could get pregnant, you could be pregnant now, and I won’t take any chances that something could happen to you. As we saw tonight, you’re already at risk. And getting married solves the issue of what’s going to happen with Cameron. I want to be married soon.”
“No. We’ll work out what to do about Cameron, but us having sex once isn’t a good enough reason to get married.”
He gave her an enigmatic look, eyes hooded. “You think this won’t happen again? Do you think now that I’ve had you, that we’ve had each other, that once will be enough? It will happen again, Gwendolyn. We’re too good together not to.”
To prove his point he moved inside her, and she caught her breath.
“You don’t fight fair.”
“I’m not fighting with you, Gwen. I’m making love to you.”
A knot of need formed in the pit of her belly, and she knew without a doubt that staying away from Eli had become a heck of a lot more complicated. “Even if we do make love again—”
“We’re making love now,” he said the words roughly, and she could feel him swelling, growing harder.
She didn’t allow her voice to reveal her emotions. “Then we use protection.”
“Why do you think it is that we didn’t use protection the first time?”
She frowned. “We forgot.”
“Have you ever forgotten before?”
“No, but you have.” It was so erotic, having a practical conversation about sex, at the same time being hyperaware that they were actually having sex.
His eyes glittered as he withdrew slightly, then thrust in. “It was different with Kacey. I didn’t forget. She told me she was on birth control pills and I believed her.” The strain around his words gave away the building tension. “But other than that one time when she said she was protected, I’ve never forgotten to use a condom.”
“Your point, Eli?”
“My point is that I lost control with you.” He moved more powerfully inside her. “You do that to me, Gwendolyn.” He shifted, lips hovering over her breast. “Seems to me you lost control, too.”
She was shaking her head in denial, not sure if it was about his statement or the intoxicating sensation of him growing hard inside her, fi
lling her, stretching her. He pulled one nipple deep into his mouth, worked it with his tongue, then moved to the other, making that coil of need swell. He broke away and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Marry me, Gwenny. We can make this work. You do something to me and I’m beginning to think I can’t live without you.”
Gwen drew in a shuddering breath, struggling to order her thoughts. “No, Eli. We need to think about Cameron. He’s already had to deal with Justin and Chloe’s dysfunctional marriage. He’s gone through so much, and I don’t want to hurt him.”
After a long moment of silence, he said, “We’ll talk tomorrow.”
“You need to give me time to think about it.”
“You are a stubborn woman, Gwendolyn Ballard.” Despite the tinge of frustration in his tone, he traced a finger from her nose, across her lips, and down over her chin, trailing lightly until he got to her breasts, where he changed direction to lightly circle one, then the other nipple still wet from his mouth. His grin flashed at her quickly indrawn breath that she released on a shaky sigh when he ducked his head and followed his fingers with his tongue. “You have beautiful breasts.”
“I think your single-mindedness beats out my stubbornness, Elijah MacElvoy.”
He gave the tip of her nipple a kiss, then reached out a long arm and opened the drawer of his nightstand, pulling out a small packet. “Single-mindedness has its benefits, because I’ve got you right where I want you.”
Since she was right where she wanted to be too, she couldn’t argue.
Chapter Nineteen
Max sat in the motel room in a pisser of a mood. Nothing was going right. When he got his hands on that woman, he’d teach her some respect. Give her a little payback for all the trouble she caused. He probed the gap in his gum where his front tooth used to be. It hurt to hell and back. Who’d have thought she’d fight like that?
The plan had been simple. They’d been watching her all afternoon and the perfect opportunity had presented itself when she’d left the cowboy dude and headed to the truck alone. Grab the woman, who couldn’t weigh much more than a buck twenty, gag her so she couldn’t scream and bring the cavalry to her rescue, and throw her in the rear seat of the truck. All Dwayne had to do was keep her tied up while Max drove to the cabin.
Dead Giveaway Page 17