“Arnold, I-”
Her words came to an abrupt halt midway up her throat as Arnold’s lips suddenly touched the corner of her mouth.
Oh no. Not again.
He had no idea how badly she wanted to kiss him. She wanted to seal the deal and give herself to him in every way, but she knew she couldn’t do that until she knew the truth. They couldn’t take this any further until she was certain he wasn’t being manipulated by his bear. It would devastate her if it turned out to be just that......she couldn’t handle it.
“What was that for?” She asked in a small whisper when he pulled away.
“I don’t know,” Arnold answered truthfully. “I reckon I just felt like doing it.”
It was her turn to say ‘oh’, and her cheeks became hotter than the sun. What was she supposed to do about this?
“Was it okay?” Arnold asked suddenly.
“W-what?” Natalie stared at him. What did he mean ‘was it okay’? Of course it was okay. It was beyond okay. All she’d ever wanted was to feel his lips on her in every way possible. Oh, Urseth, did she ever want to feel those lips.....
Oh no. She shouldn’t have thought about that. Damn it all to hell, she should not have thought about Arnold’s mouth on her in any form. The heat radiating through her thighs and the wetness collecting between her legs was not missed by Arnold Goult. He sucked in a sharp breath and she knew she’d made the worst mistake possible.
“Natty...”
“I’m sorry,” she stammered frantically as she squirmed against him. “I didn’t mean to....”
“Damn it, woman. You’re making this mighty hard for me.”
“Hard for you?!” Natalie squeaked. “Oh, please. You have no idea the hell I’ve been going through just to stay away from you. You make this unbelievably difficult for me.”
She wasn’t sure why she was so mad all of a sudden, but she knew she needed to put distance between them, again, before Arnold lost whatever small bit of sanity he had left. It had to be torture for him just to hold it together around her.
“Don’t,” Arnold stated in that husky smoother-than-honey voice as she tried to roll away from him. His muscular arms wrapped tighter around her and he all but crushed her against his chest. “Don’t run away from me again.”
“Arnold,” she said sharply. “You need to let me go or else something is going to happen we’ll both regret. Do you understand that? You may think this is all fine and dandy now, but wait until next week. I’m not too fond of being hated again, so please....”
“No.”
“Arnold....”
“I don’t want you to go.”
“But I need to go. This isn’t going to end well for either of us. I only seem so appealing because of my bear. You know that, don’t you? You’re not stupid. You were fine a week ago and still despised me. Look how much that has changed in a few short days. Don’t let the illusion fool you.”
It hurt to say it. She didn’t want to say it at all, but she knew it was for the best. Arnold needed someone to open his eyes, at least metaphorically, before he made a huge mistake. No matter how much she wanted him, she couldn’t have him. She could never have him.
“Nothing’s fooling me,” he promised as he rolled her over and pinned her against the mattress with his hard body. “I know what I’m doing. I know what I’m thinking. I know what I’m feeling right now, too: YOU.”
“Arnold, we can’t do-”
“Shut up and kiss me, Natty,” he demanded gently as he nuzzled his nose against her smooth cheek. “Just kiss me.”
Oh, god. She wanted to. She wanted to kiss him more than anything else in the world, but what would happen when he realized the truth? What happened when he came back to his senses?
Kiss him! Her bear squealed in delight. Kiss him now and see!
“Oh, screw it.” Natalie whispered exasperatedly as she lifted her head enough to close the distance between their mouths. As their lips connected her world turned upside down, topsy-turvy, and promised never to be the same again. Fireworks went off, bells chimed, and Heaven’s choir began to sing. It was a kiss that every movie depicted but never got quite right. It was beyond everything Natalie had ever dreamed.
Arnold’s mouth was intensely dominant and gentle at the same time. The way he possessed her lips as if he’d owned them for his entire life terrified her and excited her simultaneously. Her fingers immediately found their way into his tousled locks and Natalie released a groan of surprise as their teeth collided.
Oh, he’s wonderful. It was a thought that repeated itself over and over in her mind as Arnold’s hips wormed their way between hers. Her knees willingly fell apart for him and her body screamed for him to come closer. How would he get closer? He was already as close as humanly possible, yet she couldn’t sate the hunger her bear felt for his flesh. She clawed her nails down his arms and gripped the backs of his elbows. Her legs tightened around his waist as he suckled at her bottom lip.
“Don’t.....” She panted, pulling back and causing him to tug at her lip. Oh god. Wrong move! She whimpered with need as she gazed into his useless eyes. Oh, if only he could see her. She wished he could.
“Don’t what?” He asked breathlessly.
Natalie sucked her pulsating bottom lip between her teeth and frowned. What was she going to say? She had him right where she wanted him. They could easily be making love in a matter of seconds and oh, Urseth, she wanted that. She wanted to feel Arnold inside her. She wanted him to take what had always been his.
“We should stop,” she whispered. It killed her to say that. She shouldn’t have kissed him in the first place but every person had a limit. He’d been pushing her towards hers for years. It felt like her heart was shattering into tiny pieces all over again as she released the grip she had on his arms. “Arnold, this isn’t right.”
“Don’t be crazy.” Arnold mumbled as his lips found her neck. He kissed her skin in a manner that could’ve been mistaken for a servant worshipping his goddess. The way his lips, tongue, and teeth devoured every inch of her neck and shoulder made Natalie wonder what else he was capable of making her feel if he was so skilled with a simple area of her body.
“Oh, god,” she whined, writhing beneath him. “Arnold, p-please.....we can’t.”
“We can,” he reassured her as his hand snaked up her shirt and cupped an aching breast. “I know you want to, Natty. I can smell you. God, you’re sweeter than honeysuckle....”
Being sweeter than honeysuckle was sort of a big deal.
“Of course I want to,” she admitted as tears blurred her vision. “But this isn’t real. This isn’t what your heart wants.”
And it was with that thought that she mustered all her strength and shoved him off. She quickly stood from the bed on wobbly legs and stumbled backwards, clutching a hand over her aching chest. She was stupid to come back here, again, thinking things would turn out differently. She needed to stay away from him for a full week before things would go back to normal. Stupid! STUPID!
The tears fell freely as she sniffed and shook her head. Arnold was leaning back on his haunches, his eyes searching darkness for her as a pained expression clouded his handsome face.
“Why won’t you believe me?” He asked in a lower voice. “Natalie, I’m sorry for everything I’ve ever done to you. Don’t you get that? Can’t you see that I ain’t doin’ this just cause my bear wants yours? I. Want. You. I was stupid for not seeing it sooner....and the funny thing is,” he sighed and his shoulders slumped significantly. “Now I can’t see anything but I know what you make me feel.”
“I don’t make you feel anything,” Natalie scoffed. “My bear makes you feel. She’s what you want-not me. I’m sorry.” She turned quickly and fled from his house. She promised herself she wouldn’t come back.
Thirteen
Today sucked. Louisa didn’t like it at all and for many reasons. It took every ounce of courage she had to get out of bed and dress herself. She thanked Lorcan and P
resley for allowing her to stay with them before she headed off to Mr. and Mrs. Bamey’s to get ready for work.
Work. Why was she going back to that place? He would be there. She knew for a fact he would, yet she was still determined to show up for her shift. How stupid could she possibly be?
Her boots, or Presley’s boots, sank into the knee high snow and made a loud cruuuunch with each step. Lorcan had offered to drive her to his parents’ house, but she politely declined. She needed some time to think.
I still can’t believe he did that.
Ursithropes weren’t supposed to do things like that. They weren’t supposed to hurt the people they cared about. HA.
Greg doesn’t care about me. It was a conclusion she’d made during the early hours of the morning. What a restless night of sleeping it was, but her mind was plagued with thoughts of him, and that stupid kiss replayed in her mind like a bad call made by a referee. Yes, she’d watched enough games with Mr. Bamey to understand such things now...and it sucked. Everything literally sucked and she wished she could crawl into bed and remain there for as long as it took to feel happy again.
I will never be happy again. Was that true? Had she really put so much of herself into Greg Kress that life after him would be impossible? No! She was a Xiong. She was her father’s daughter and she was not weak. Greg or no Greg, she would move forward. She would keep going as she always had. This wouldn’t bring her down.
“We can’t leave the body here.”
What? Louisa’s sensitive ears picked up on a conversation that wasn’t meant to be heard by human ears. It was probably a bad thing she wasn’t human, huh? Even as her mind screamed at her to turn and walk the other way, Louisa found herself trekking through the snowy landscape of Kadenburg’s woods. She was nearly a mile in when the voices became louder and she realized she’d stumbled upon the site of something terrible.
The scent of blood hit her nostrils and made her feel ill. It was dead blood. She could remember that smell all too well. Her village was overwhelmed with that smell on the night Breslin Connor attacked. Dead blood only came from a person whose heart no longer had the capability of beating. What had she gotten herself into?
“Damn it, Harold.” A male’s voice hissed.
“What do ya want me to do, Carl? You’re the moron who keeps dropping her feet! Pick her up, damn it.”
Louisa stayed hidden from the view of two heavy men, definitely human, carefully trudged through the snow with a petite body in tow. It was distinctly female. She wore a bright pink coat that was covered with crimson. The sight caused Louisa’s stomach to churn. Human blood.
She was definitely dead and Louisa’s mind began to race with questions she already knew the answers to. The two men carrying her body had killed her and now they were trying to cover up their horrid deed.
I can’t let them get away with this. Louisa nodded to herself as she took a careful step backwards and broke out into a dead run. She was quite fast. Perhaps she wasn’t as fast as Lorcan Bamey or Dimitri Fridolf, but her legs could carry her when it was needed. Presley had once complimented her on her speed as well.
Who am I going to tell? She wondered as she broke free from the woods and stomped her feet against the pavement of the main road. Do I go to the sheriff?
The sheriff was at the top of the list of ‘people we don’t talk to’ according to Presley. He was still hunting for Rutley and no one wanted to put Dimitri in more danger. If Sheriff Holter got hold of either one of them, they would be in a lot of trouble. It wasn’t a risk she was willing to take.
“Well I have to tell somebody.” She huffed in frustration.
Maybe she needed to approach the elders. Davey Berdine would know what to do, wouldn’t he? Of course! She took off in the direction opposite of the Bamey house then. She didn’t have time to think of work, or that idiot-head Greg Kress. She needed to get to the Berdine residence as quickly as possible and report what she’d seen. A girl in a pink coat was dead and her killers needed to be brought to justice.
———————————
It had been a long time since Presley dreamed about Liam. She hadn’t seen him since the day her uncle Arnold was attacked and she was beginning to fear he would never return. Was it weird she actually missed a dead person invading her dreams?
A lot of things were weird about her life, she supposed, but seeing Liam made her happy. He was still a kind and gentle soul in spite of his circumstance and she took comfort in his presence.
The weather was drastically different in her dreams. Bright sunshine and warm breezes greeted her as she carefully stepped over the soft earth of her favorite field. How many times had she been here? Too many times to count. She hadn’t visited since her return, but she would soon. Right now she needed to keep dreaming until she found him.
He was around. She could feel him. There was a certain sensation of utter calmness when Liam was about and Presley knew she was closing in on him as complete serenity overcame her.
“I knew you would find me again.”
She smiled broadly and turned around to see him standing there, but he wasn’t alone. Liam Bamey was holding something in his massive arms and it only took a few seconds for Presley to realize it was a baby. Why did he have a baby?
“I’ve been waiting to do this,” Liam explained as he lifted his brown eyes, so much like Lorcan’s, and gazed at her. “I wasn’t sure when the right time would be....but I think you’re ready.”
“Ready for what?” Presley inquired as she pushed a few strands of blonde hair away from her eyes. Another breeze swept through and caught the bottom of her dress. She could feel the hot wind as it licked at her knees.
“To meet him,” Liam nodded. He took a few steps towards her and Presley felt an odd tug at her chest. Why was Liam bringing her a baby? “It’s okay, Pretzerella.”
Her eyes fell upon the baby then and she wasn’t sure she’d seen a being more perfect before. Its chubby little cheeks and button nose melted her heart. She couldn’t help but to wonder if her baby would look just like this when he was born.
“Pretz?” Liam said softly. She lifted her eyes to meet his. “This is your baby.”
The sky darkened with her emotions as Presley furrowed her eyebrows. “I beg your pardon?” She instinctively moved a hand to rest against her stomach protectively.
“No, no,” Liam shook his head. “Not the baby you are having with Lorcan......”
And then it clicked. The baby Liam held in his arms was in the Great Beyond. Of course.
“Oh my god....”
“Pretz,” Liam’s voice took on a pleading tone as he stepped even closer. He searched her face as he frowned. “I’m not doing this to hurt you....please don’t think that. I just thought you would want to meet him. I’ve been watching your dreams since our last chat and he comes up often. I know you miss him.”
“Of course I miss..him,” she swallowed hard. “I was going to have another little boy?”
“Uhhh...” Liam blinked and gently rocked the waking baby in his arms. “Yeah, we’ll go with that.”
Presley paid him no further mind as her eyes landed on the baby again. His little eyes opened and she was more than thrilled to see the green color of his hues. He reminded her of her uncle Arnold. He was beautiful.
“I don’t understand,” she confessed softly. “You’ve been hiding from me for weeks, Liam. When you decide to come back you bring the son I lost. Why?”
“Because he wanted to meet you too,” Liam gave her a sad smile. “He misses you.”
That was a little insane. How on earth did an infant, who was barely developed when she lost him, know what he missed? She blinked back her rapidly developing tears as a nervous laugh escaped her lips.
“That’s not possible.”
“But shifting into a friggin’ bear is?” Liam countered. “I was just doing the kid a favor and I thought you would be happy. Did I make a mistake?”
“No,” Presley said quickl
y as her eyes moved back to the little boy gazing intently at her. Her heart swelled with happiness and ached with sadness at the same time. It had taken her a while, and still was, to convince herself everything happened for a reason. Losing him had been devastating. “You didn’t make a mistake. I’m sorry. You just took me by surprise. A little warning would’ve been nice.”
“Me? Warn? Never,” Liam smiled gently as he offered the small infant to her. “I’m sorry I’ve been hiding from you. I didn’t mean to do that at all. I had to sort some things out before I could come back.”
“Sort what out?” Presley asked as she very carefully accepted the baby into her arms. He was so teeny tiny. He was perfect.
“Things are beginning to happen in Kadenburg, Pretz. I mean, things have been happening but they’re about to get so much worse.”
“I don’t understand,” she whispered as she rocked the small boy from side to side in her arms. “I mean, I’m a little afraid to ask how they can get worse.”
“For some reason I don’t think I have to tell you,” Liam murmured as he reached out to fix the blanket that was tightly wrapped around the baby. “He’s a cute kid, Pretz.”
She felt a pang of sadness around her heart as she gazed into the baby’s beautiful green eyes once more. She hated that he was a missed opportunity.
“Hi there,” she said softly. “I’m your mama.”
Was it weird to be in this place, holding a son she could never touch in reality? In a way she was grateful for the opportunity to meet him. He was still her flesh and blood no matter what.
“Presley, I need to talk about something important with you.” Liam said in a gentle voice as he reached out to touch her elbow. She lifted her head to meet his warm brown gaze and a part of her wondered if getting to see the child in her arms was Liam’s way of breaking terrible news to her. Was he trying to soften the blow?
“What is it?”
“Well, you probably ain’t gonna like it,” Liam said as he scrunched up his nose. Presley was often fascinated how the Bamey men could make the most horrible faces and still look so handsome. Liam resembled Lorcan so much when he made such a face. He shook his head slowly and sighed. “You need to be ready for what’s gonna happen in the next few months.”
Kadenburg Revealed (The Kadenburg Shifters Series, Book 4) Page 10