Image of Me

by M. G. Morgan

He crushed his lips to mine, his hands tangling in my hair. His mouth moved lower over my jaw down to my neck, his teeth grazing against the soft skin. It drew a sigh and a soft moan for me. Matt took that as a sign, pressing his body tight to mine.

  “Tell me you want this, Kat? Tell me you need me the way I need you?”

  “I want you.” Three little words and I was lost. Three little words to seal my fate and I said them with a smile on my face as my heart skipped a beat.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  He moved us quickly away from the door and over towards the bed. My calves brushed against the edge of it before Matt pushed me onto my back. I gasped as he climbed over me, his mouth finding mine once more. Our kiss was deep, his tongue coaxing my lips open until he could plunge inside me. I wrapped my arms around his neck, my legs automatically lifting to allow him to lie against me.

  We moved together, both of us still fully clothed. Matt’s hands roamed my body, sliding down past my neck to my shoulders. He shifted again, his hands finding my ribcage and the edge of my t-shirt. The second his hands slipped underneath the thin layer of material I sighed. His hands scorched across my skin, drawing little gasps from my lips.

  His hands moved lower, his fingers digging into my hips as he lifted me and slowly worked my jeans and panties down until he could discard them. He pressed his fingers against me, moving slowly his dark gaze watching my face closely. I arched against him, pushing my hips upwards into his touch. It was like electricity pouring through me. Every touch stole my breath.

  I balled my fists into the satin covers hoping that it would keep anchored. He pushed against me, his fingers working my body sending me higher. My body sang for him, he could play me like he played his guitar, perfect and passionate.

  My skin ran cold and then hot as he continued to pleasure me. I was sure that at any second I would simply explode. The feelings he evoked in me had to go somewhere, I couldn’t hold them inside me any longer.

  I cried out, Matt’s hand covered my lips stifling my scream of pleasure. Colour exploded behind my eyes, it ran in streamers of light as I bucked and heaved against him. My skin fizzled and popped with sensation.

  I lay on the bed, my breathing ragged. Matt moved up and over me. How he had managed to discard his clothes so quickly was beyond me. I was just glad that he had. He pushed into me, inch by satisfying inch. When he was buried inside me he rolled us both until I was the one on top. He pulled my t-shirt off, unclipping my bra and tossing them both onto the floor.

  It wasn’t something I was used to and for a moment I felt self conscious. But Matt rolled his hips thrusting himself up into me. He gripped my waist, moving me with him and within seconds my eyes rolled back in my head. He filled me so completely. I dug my fingers into his chest as we moved together. My moans spurring him on.

  Sweat glistened on his tan skin. Matt flipped us again, until he was poised above me. His growl of need reverberating in my ears as he buried himself inside me until there was nowhere else to go. His movements had become fierce, fuelled by the feel of my body around his.

  “Kat, I love you.” His words came out as a hoarse growl before he swopped over me and kissed me. His teeth grazing against my lips. I came with him then. His body growing hard inside mine as he climaxed. We held each other as the pleasure poured over us.

  Spent we lay in each other’s arms. My breathing slowly returning to normal.

  Matt propped himself up on his elbow, staring down the line of my body. His fingers played idly along the curve of my breast, drawing little shivers from me until finally I had to catch his fingers in my hand.

  “It tickles.” I smiled lazily up at him as I stretched out. My body felt sated, content and something else. It wasn’t like the last time we had sex. There had been something much more primal this time. We knew each other’s secrets, our flaws laid bare. This time there had been nowhere to hide. And a part of me knew that loving Matt would bring pain.

  We both knew it.

  “What are we going to do now?” I didn’t want to ask the question but it hung between us. I didn’t want to ruin the moment but there was no other way. We both needed some idea as to where all of this was leading us…

  “I won’t lie to you. I want to see my son… If it is my son…”

  I sat up and pulled the blankets around my naked body. “What do you mean if?”

  “It’s Angela… I can’t trust her, I never could. I find it strange that she suddenly comes out of the woodwork when I hit it big… Where was my son all those years when I was nothing?”

  “But surely she wouldn’t lie about this? Not when it’s so easy to get a DNA test?”

  “I think she’s counting on my guilt and my need to prove that I’m not my father to get her through this. I asked her about a test, that’s when she freaked out. Threw all sorts of accusations at me. Swore I’d never see him if I pressed the issue.”

  Matt lay back on the bed and pressed his hands to his face. As though by covering his eyes he could blot out the world and his problems. I ran my hand over his arm. Sometimes all a person needed was a gentle reminder that they weren’t as alone as they thought they were.

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I need to contact my attorney, find out what he can do… And if that fails…” Matt shrugged. “I can’t turn my back on him, not if there is a chance that he’s mine. I won’t be my father.”

  I nodded. “You’re not your father. You’re nothing like him.”

  Matt smiled and gripped my hand in his. “One thing I know, if I have you… It makes everything else manageable. I didn’t ask for this life, all I wanted to do was make music. But loving you… That’s like breathing. It’s a part of me.” He dropped his gaze. “I think its always been you, I just didn’t know it…”

  Leaning in over him I pressed my lips to his. “I know what you mean. I love you too. I never thought I’d be able to say that to anyone. I’ve never let anyone in, until you…”

  Matt caught me in his arms and drew me down beside him, his body curling around mine protectively. Closing my eyes I let sleep drift over me. Tomorrow would come all to soon and it would bring its own problems.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  The room was still dark when I opened my eyes and stared around at my surroundings. For a moment I was confused, until it all came rushing back to me. Rolling over in the bed I pressed my hand into the empty space where Matt should have been. The bed was cold as though he hadn’t been in it for a while.

  I sat up and stared around, I couldn’t hear anything and the light wasn’t on in the bathroom. Climbing from the bed I grabbed the dressing gown that was hung on the back of the door. My feet padded softly across the heavy carpet. Pulling the door open I stared out into the hall. The dim glow of the lights in the main area of the pent house suite drew me forward. But there was still no sign of Matt.

  I made my way to Emma’s door and carefully opened it, peering into the darkness I could see her buried beneath the covers and breathing heavily.

  The sound of a door clicking shut had me hurrying back to the living area. Matt crept across the floor. I watched him for a second before he caught sight of me. He jumped and then grinned before sauntering over to me.

  “What are you doing up?”

  “I could ask you the same thing. Where were you?”

  He shrugged and took my hand leading me back to the bedroom. “I needed to some air. I do my best thinking at night and I had this fantastic idea for a new song. I wanted to try and work out some of the kinks and walking has always helped.”

  He ushered me back into the bed before slowly stripping off his own clothes. Naked he climbed back into the bed and slid closer to me. His hands where cold and I shivered as he pressed himself to me.

  “You weren’t worried were you?”

  “Well what was I supposed to think? I woke up and you were gone. Of course I worry.” I smiled at him softening my words. My heart slowed to a normal beat as we cuddled together, his
breath hot on the back of my neck.

  He brushed my hair back from face and gently kissed my neck. It didn’t hurt as much as it had earlier. Part of me couldn’t help but wonder where Craigsdale had run off to. Knowing him he wouldn’t stop, he would keep coming back until he succeeded or I stopped him for good. But how I could do that, I had no idea.

  Closing my eyes I did my best to block the thoughts from my mind. The last thing I needed was more nightmares. With Matt curled around me I let my mind wander to happier thoughts until finally I fell back into a deep sleep.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Matt’s hand stroking softly against the skin of my neck woke me. Light filtered in through the half shut curtains, bathing the room in a soft pinkish glow. I rolled over and stared up at him. The look of anger was back in his eyes as soon as he caught sight of the bruising on my neck and face.

  “Is it really that bad?” My hand automatically went to my throat tracing the burning line where Craigsdale’s hands had wrapped around my throat.

  “He deserves to die for what he did to you, Kat… He can’t keep getting away with this kind of stuff.”

  “I know.” I sighed and sat up, my hands automatically pulling the covers up around my frame.

  “What he did to Emma… You saw her… She’s in bits but she’s still going. If I was her and…” I stopped and swallowed hard. “I’m not sure I could be as strong as she is.”

  “You are.”

  I shook my head. “No, I’m not. I was lucky. I didn’t think so at the time, but I got away. She didn’t. But she needs help and she needs closure. I’m just not sure how I can help her. She’s so afraid that no one will believe her. But her life is not mine, she just needs to realise that. Her parents will believe her… Mine were blind. They didn’t want to think that something so awful had happened to their daughter. It was easier to think that I was lying. They didn’t have to feel the pain that way…”

  “Then why don’t you contact her parents? Get them to come out here. I’m sure they have to be worried about her, where she is? Kids don’t just run away and no one cares… Well the loved ones don’t anyway.”

  Matt’s voice was filled with regret as he spoke those final words. Knowing that his father never loved him hurt. It cut him to the core, I could see it reflected in him every time he had to talk about his father.

  The sound of banging on the door made us both jump.

  “What the hell?” Matt hopped out of the bed and started pulling his clothes on.

  I followed him dragging them on as the banging continued. I made it out into the hall and Emma poked her head out from her room. She stared at me with large frightened eyes. I knew what was worrying her but I didn’t have time to soothe her.

  “Police, open up!”

  My heart leapt into my throat choking off my air. What the hell was going on? Why were the police here? It brought back memories of when I was arrested. There weren’t interested in the pleas of a young girl. I was guilty and that was it…

  I stood frozen as Matt pulled the door open and stared out at them. Two police officers grabbed him roughly moving him backwards into the room. Several more poured inside and began combing through the room. One of them handed a warrant to me but my mind had slowed to a crawl. I wanted to ask what was happening? Why were they here? But I couldn’t. I couldn’t even open my mouth.

  “What are you doing? What the hell is going on?” Matt struggled in the police officer’s grip.

  “Matthew Henley, we are arresting you on suspicion of attempted murder, anything you say…” Their words blurred one into the other as the tried to cuff Matt.

  He struggled harder, jerking free of their grip and running for me. “Kat, it’s not true. Whatever they’re trying to pin on me I didn’t do it! I swear it! You know me, Kat, you know me!”

  They tackled him to the ground, pushing his face down into the thick carpet until his words became muffled. Finally everything clicked back into place. It was like the world suddenly fell back into focus.

  “What are you talking about? Matt hasn’t hurt anyone, never mind attempted murder! Attempted murder of who?”

  They dragged Matt to his feet but that didn’t stop him from fighting. “I haven’t done anything wrong. It’s a mistake.”

  “Matt, I’ll fix this… It has to be a mistake.”

  “No mistake, Miss?” The tall police officer blocked my view of Matt as they bundled him from the room.

  “Miss Faulkner, Mr Henley’s media representation.”

  “Well, Miss Faulkner, Mr Henley is wanted on suspicion of attempted murder.”

  “Who? Who did he try to murder, he was with me last night?” I flapped the warrant around in front of me.

  “A Mr Jacob Craigsdale…”

  The sound of his name froze the blood in my veins. It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be possible. There was no way Matt would do that. He had been with me… Except for… The memory of the empty bed surfaced in my mind like a traitor.

  “He couldn’t… He wouldn’t, not Jacob Craigsdale, there has to be some mistake?”

  “Nope. He’s in the ICU, extreme head trauma. No one is sure if he’ll pull through or not. All of this could very quickly become a homicide.”

  I didn’t know what to say. I watched the police officers drag Matt to the elevator. His face as they pulled him inside, it wasn’t the face of a man who would commit murder. It wasn’t possible, there had to be a mistake made. Matt was innocent, he had to be.

  The police officer moved away as they continued to comb through the room. I was vaguely aware of them as they moved around me. And still I stayed frozen. Craigsdale was in the ICU. A part of me felt a type of satisfaction. The man who had haunted my nightmares for years had finally got what was coming to him. But even that was tainted. I didn’t want all of this to come at the expense of Matt.

  I trusted him… But I couldn’t shake the niggling doubt that crept inside my mind and planted the seed. Matt had gone out last night while I slept… He said he loved me and the anger in his eyes when he had seen what Craigsdale had done to me… I couldn’t shake the look in his eyes from the night before when he had saved me.

  If he loved me, how far had he allowed that love to push him? Was I a fool to trust him? I just didn’t know anymore. I was completely and utterly torn. Loving Matt was pleasure and pain, it just seemed to be more pain than pleasure…