His blue eyes shone in the early afternoon sun that streamed through her bedroom window. His gaze left a trail of heat down her body. God, he made her feel sexy, hot. How did he do that? Her shirt was first, tossed into the corner with wild abandon, followed by her bra and pants. He was so efficient, she didn’t feel the cool air on her skin. Naked skin to skin, she moaned. Frantic, needy, she rubbed against him. There was only the raging fire of his skin on hers.
Her hands were quick as they sought buttons and waistbands to divest him of the barriers between them. All the while he murmured erotic things along her flesh, what he would do to her, how he would love her. Every promise, every word, sent her spinning into pleasure. She couldn’t speak, she could only show him.
A whimper escaped her lips and she ran her fingertips over his arms. His mouth captured hers again, and he thrust his tongue inside to twist around hers. She moaned and tangled her hands in his hair to hold him closer. God, she needed him now. Right now.
Naked, they fell backwards on the bed, her legs wrapped around his waist. He tore his lips from hers and kissed her neck. She shivered, mindless, lost. His hands gripped her upper thighs and spread them until his hard length was nestled near her core. Finally. She squirmed and he tightened his grip to hold her still. “I’ll never make it if you torture me like that.”
“Just do it. Just give it to me,” she demanded as she shifted and thrust upwards.
“I want to take this slow.” He hummed as he kissed the valley between her breasts. They were magic over her heated flesh. Her nails dug into his skin, urging him on. When his lips closed over one nipple, her breath caught. When his teeth scraped the sensitive flesh there, she couldn’t breathe at all. He took his sweet time and gave each of her breasts his special attention until she panted.
His mouth traveled lower and his tongue traced a trail over her hipbone, to the border of the hair that hid her now throbbing entrance. Slow, excruciatingly slow, his touch sent her higher than she’d ever been. She melted, dissolved in the pleasure he gave her. With his fingers dug into the soft flesh of her thighs, she couldn’t arch or move when his hot breath stung her erect nub that ached for him. She cried out. She begged him. “Please, Ben. Please.” Her head tossed back and forth, but he didn’t move.
She opened her eyes to find him staring at her. His erotic smile made her groan and his voice was like velvet on her skin. “I like it when you beg. Beg me again.”
Her voice cracked. “Please. Ben, please.” It was a whisper of desperation and the smile dropped from his face.
“What do you want, Kiera? Tell me. I want to hear it.”
Heat rushed to her face, but she was so lost that the earlier shyness disappeared. “I want you to touch me, love me.”
“You want my tongue on you?” He stared into her face, tension stretched the skin on his cheeks.
“Yes.” She hissed out. “I do.”
“You want me inside you?”
“Yes.” She arched her back, frustrated by the restraint of his hands, longing for completion.
“Say please.” His wicked smile only made her hotter.
“Please. Please. Please.” Her body tensed and thrust with every word she said.
He gave it all to her. With a satisfied growl, he claimed her aching nub with his mouth and her orgasm ripped through her like a tornado. Tears leaked from her eyes as he gave her no respite, but brought her to the brink again and again. By the third time, she chanted his name and her hands gripped his head to hold him tight between her legs.
Then, he stood up and yanked her to the edge of the bed. But she wanted to please him. She scrambled to turn her body, her face thrust towards his erection. She took him into her mouth and slid her tongue over the ridges. He pulled her hair, but she kept her mouth locked on him until his hips jerked, pressing him to the back of her throat. She hummed her approval, happy that she drove him near the brink as he did her.
“Kiera.” His tone was hoarse with need. “I want to be inside you, not your mouth.”
She backed away slowly and as soon as her mouth broke contact, she was flat on her back, her hands held over her head. His mouth collided with hers and as his tongue possessed her just as he thrust his penis into her waiting channel. They moaned in unison as he slid home.
For a moment, he stayed deep inside and didn’t move. She loved the sensation of him connected to her this way. She lifted her legs to wrap around his hips and held onto him as his mouth moved over hers.
Her hands clasped his face and she pulled away from him. “I love you,” she whispered and gave him soft kisses on his cheeks and nose.
“I love you, too.” His gaze held hers as his hips reared back and surged forward. Her eyes rolled back in her head as intense pleasure washed everything else away. Faster, he pinned her body beneath his and she arched up as he thrust deeper. Pressure built. Heat exploded and her muscles contracted in a firestorm of convulsions.
His release slammed inside her, and she screamed with pleasure. His hoarse shout rang in her ears, and she jerked in response as one last shudder rippled through her body. Their breaths mingled, and he kissed her temple as he slid a strand of hair away from her eyes. There were tears on her cheeks she didn’t remember crying and he kissed them away.
The tenderness of his touch and the longing in his eyes warmed her heart. He did love her. She didn’t know what it was and hadn’t experienced it before, but when he touched her like that, she felt loved.
“Is that what’s called ‘afternoon delight’?” She tried to lighten the mood.
He smiled. How the hell could his smile be so sensuous? She just knew she was wet again. He was still embedded inside her and he flexed his hips just a little, which made her groan. “Yes. This is what’s called ‘afternoon delight’.”
It surprised her that Ben began to harden again. She met his glance with a silent question. “I can’t get enough of you.”
“Really?” It seemed amazing. He wanted her. He loved her. And he showed her all the things she hadn’t believed possible before.
“Really.” His lips brushed hers. “I want to stay here and make love to you all day and all night.”
She sighed. “That sounds wonderful.”
By the time he was done with her, night had fallen and Kiera was sore in places she hadn’t known could get sore.
When he dropped off to sleep, Kiera slid out of the bed to take a shower. Millions of thought flitted through her mind. The danger of Gavin McBride seemed far away. Her mother’s imminent surgery and impending marriage seemed distant. The forefront of her thoughts was on Ben.
At that moment, as the needles of water pricked her skin and shampoo dripped from her hair, her mind spun. The answer was clear. Where ever he went, she would go. Home was where Ben was for her now.
She rinsed her hair and counted the days they’d known each other. In less than two weeks, he’d turned her world upside down. Amazing.
A smile crossed her face and she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror. Softer, lighter, more feminine, she was almost beautiful. Was that what Ben saw? She didn’t know much about marriage or family or how to love, but she was going to enjoy being taught.
A crash sounded from the living room.
With a towel wrapped around her, she started out of the bathroom. Ben stood at the bedroom door and placed a finger to his lips. He indicated she get dressed. By the noise, Kiera knew someone was in her living room.
She looked up when she was clothed and found Ben had pulled her shotgun out from under the bed. Her eyebrows rose and he shrugged. He’d been prepared. She was too scared to be offended and too relieved he had a weapon to protest.
The noises in the other room got louder. Kiera fumbled with her cell phone that she always left on her bedside table. She dialed 911.
She gave the operator her address and situation, then nodded at Ben. He cocked a shell into the chamber. The sound in the living room stopped.
“Kiera McConnel!” G
avin McBride’s voice shouted. “You’re dead. Do you hear me? You and that freak you’re fucking are dead!”
More noise and then the front door slammed.
Then, she smelled it. Smoke.
Gavin set the house on fire.
“Ben!” she shouted. He touched the door and jerked his hand back. He handed her the shotgun and yanked on a pair of jeans and crammed his feet into his shoes. He picked up the chair to her vanity and smashed her bedroom window.
Just as she was going to climb out of the window, a bullet slammed into the frame. Gavin’s maniacal laughter reached her ears. “You’ll die in fire, you bitch!” he screamed and another bullet breezed by her cheek. Ben yanked her back.
When he started forward, she pushed him away from the window as another bullet careened into the wall behind them. “The bathroom!” she yelled.
The fire in the living room roared through the bedroom door. The bathroom was filled with smoke, and Kiera broke the window with a towel around her hand. She tore her clothes and cut her hands as she heaved her body out the window with Ben right behind her. She landed on her stomach and Ben collapsed on top of her.
“The box, Ben. Where’s the box?”
He dangled the box. “I got the shotgun, too. Where’s the negatives?”
She grinned at him. “Right here.” She patted the back pocket of her jeans.
An explosion sounded to the north of them. Gavin hadn’t given up and the police and fire trucks hadn’t yet arrived.
Ben hauled her to her feet and they ran. He led them into the trees and circled back to the house. Gavin was hot on their heels and fired shots that hit tree trunks so close the wood splintered in their faces.
They broke out of the trees, and two Sheriff’s jeeps were waiting with their lights swirling in the night. Relief flooded her body, but in her moment of relaxation, she stumbled. Ben sped past her and then stopped to yank her to her feet. Just as she stood, an intense, ramming pain hit her shoulder and her body jerked. Ben almost lost his footing as the impact made him stagger. Blood poured down her arm and she gazed up at Ben, his face a mask of shock in the weird blue and red lights. Then, her arm went numb and she slid into darkness. The last thing she heard was Ben calling her name.
*
“Kiera!” No! This couldn’t be happening. Ben’s heart plummeted as Kiera’s eyes drifted shut and her body slumped against his.
Everything else disappeared. Shots rang out. A small arms war broke around him, but all he could focus on was Kiera’s breath. Was she still breathing? His hand pressed on the wound that seems too big. Blood covered his hands and fear paralyzed him.
He gazed around and caught Sheriff Jeremy Covey’s eye. “Help. Please.”
Jeremy knelt beside him. “It’s okay, Ben. We’re here.”
“She can’t die. She can’t,” he pleaded with the other man. His dark face seemed like death itself, and Ben gripped Kiera to him tighter.
“She won’t.” A flurry of activity surrounded Ben, but he didn’t look up from Kiera’s face. Jeremy sounded so sure but Ben had never been so frightened in his life. Every nightmarish scenario that had flitted through his mind when Kiera set herself up as the target was happening. Right now. She was dying in his arms.
“Let her go, Ben.” Jeremy’s voice was soft.
“No.”
“We have to try and save her. Let her go.”
Ben raised his gaze to Jeremy’s. What he saw in that man’s face was determination, resolve. Jeremy wouldn’t let Kiera die.
He relinquished his hold on her and suddenly, the world spun. Dizzy and disoriented, the lights and noise filtered through a misty haze. Ben couldn’t make out words or faces very well. He was vaguely aware of being helped to an ambulance and a face mask slapped on his face.
Two deep breaths and the world stopped spinning. A few more and the haze dissipated. He coughed violently and his lungs ached from the spasms.
Kiera was taken to the clinic in Willow Creek, and Ben thought she would be flown to San Francisco for sure. He was arguing with a nurse to make sure he was on the helicopter flight.
“I’m sorry, sir. Only family is allowed to fly with a patient.”
“I am her family. I’m going to be her husband. Damn it! Make this happen.” He pounded his fist on the nurse’s desk.
A hand gripped his shoulder. “I’ll take care of this, Marion.” Jeremy led Ben away from the nurse’s station. “She’s not going to San Francisco, Ben.”
“She was shot. They can’t fix that here.” Ben argued.
“It was a flesh wound. It bled a lot, but not enough to be serious. She passed out because of the smoke inhalation. She’s fine, and she’s awake.”
“Why didn’t you say so? Where the hell is she?” He jerked away from Jeremy.
“I’ll show you if you’ll stop being an asshole.”
Ben stopped dead in his tracks. Then, he ran hand through his hair. He needed to be with Kiera not arguing with some damn nurse. “I’m sorry.”
“Believe it or not, I understand.” Jeremy clapped him on the shoulder.
“Right. How is Amanda?”
Jeremy’s lips tightened. “She’s making me crazy. She’s wearing a soft cast, she’s been kidnapped, bruised, and she wants to go out and get a damn story.”
“She wants to clear her sister.”
Jeremy nodded. “Gavin is dead. There’s nothing to link him to Beth’s death except Doc McConnel’s letters and that photograph.”
“So, it’s still up in the air?”
“I’m afraid so.”
As they walked down the hall, Ben sped faster to reach Kiera. He had to see for himself that she was alright. He’d never put her at risk again. He’d find some desk job, or maybe write a book about something normal. He wasn’t going to expose her to ghosts and demons and things that go bump in the night. His heart couldn’t take it.
She was sitting up, her blonde hair stuck out in tufts and her face was pale, but she was alive. He strode to her bed and took her in his arms. “I was so afraid I’d lost you.”
Her smile lit the room. “It was just a flesh wound.”
“Very funny.”
“Oh, come on. It wasn’t that bad.”
“Yes, it was.” He glowered at her. “And it’s never going to happen again.
Her eyes narrowed. “What does that mean?”
“I quit. I’m not going to chase legends anymore. It’s too risky. I never realized how risky until now.” He said it firmly. He meant it. He loved what he did, but he couldn’t bear to have Kiera take risks with him.
“Don’t be stupid. I’ve already made up my mind about that,” she said, leaned back on her pillow and shut her eyes. “Wherever you go, I’ll go. We’ll be a team. You need a skeptic in your line of work.” She sighed.
“No. I’m not going to let you do that. It’s too dangerous. It’s—”
“—what you do. Don’t argue with me.” She sighed. “I’m tired. Don’t leave, okay?” And she fell asleep on him.
He wanted to shout at her. He wanted to shake her, a reaction she often inspired in him. His control was shattered. He did none of those things. He groaned and dropped his head on her forehead.
“Well, now that you’re where you need to be, I’m going to write my reports.” Jeremy smirked as he left the room.
“Say hello to Amanda, Sheriff.” Ben prodded and earned a venomous glance from the man.
With a gentle hand, he swept Kiera’s hair away from her face. She smiled and murmured something in her sleep as she gripped his hand and tucked it between hers.
He sat like that for the rest of the night.
Ben fell asleep beside Kiera and was awoken by the night nurse at about four in the morning.
“Sir, you’ll have to get off the bed. I have to take her vitals.” She bustled around him as he stumbled to a chair in the corner. He didn’t even know how he ended up on the bed with her.
He watched as the nurse woke her and too
k her vital signs. The woman tucked her sheets in and fluffed her pillow. “She’s doing fine. Are you her husband?”
“I will be.”
The nurse gave him a radiant smile. “Lucky girl.”
“I hope she thinks so.”
“Is your name Ben?” She asked as she washed her hands.
“Ben Harmon.”
“Ah. Well, then I’d say she does think so. I was here when she came in. Your name was all she said.” She left the room.
For a long time, Ben sat and stared at Kiera as she slept. He had always believed he wasn’t capable of the kind of love he’d seen in his parents. His mom and dad loved each other passionately, even after forty years. At thirty-four, he’d given up on ever having that kind of connection with a woman.
Kiera changed all of that. Her childhood had been a series of painful experiences, yet she was strong and giving. His childhood had been difficult and cold, yet he’d become affectionate with Kiera.
They needed each other.
But he wasn’t as sure of her as he should be. Oh, she enjoyed sex with him and told him she loved him, but when he’d mentioned marriage, she hadn’t said anything. Maybe she didn’t want to get married. It wasn’t like she’d seen a happy marriage growing up.
“It’s hard to sleep when you’re muttering.” She still had her eyes closed.
“Was I muttering? Never mind. Go back to sleep.” He shifted in his chair. What an idiot. He needed to watch his step better.
“To answer your questions,” she went on as if he hadn’t spoken, “I didn’t say anything about the marriage comments by you and your sister because you haven’t asked me.”
He cleared his throat. “I didn’t what?”
Her eyes flew open, and she glared at him. “I may not have seen a happy marriage, but I’ve seen a proper proposal. You haven’t asked me. And I’m not going to say another word about marriage until I’m asked.”
He bit his lip to keep from smiling. He was about to ask her properly, but she’d closed her eyes and gone back to sleep.
At four in the morning, Ben was on his cell phone waking up his mother. He needed an expert.
Legend Hunter Page 26