Familiar Strangers

by Standifer, Allie

  “But why do I want her more than any woman I’ve ever met?” His low voice rang tense with unanswered questions.

  Regin was attractive, but not the most beautiful woman he’d seen. Regin was intelligent, but not unusually so. He thought over the limited time they spent together. Her thirst for life, her laughter at the world, and the way her lips lingered in a smile instead of quickly fading away.

  She had the strangest logic of anyone Galen had ever met. She could talk him into believing the sky was green and the grass blue. He was fascinated by everything about her. No other woman had been able to grab and hold his attention the way she did without even trying. If she knew the effect she had on him, no doubt she’d conjure up another personality to rid herself of his interest.

  Regin was a strong independent woman who relied on no one for things she could do herself.

  Galen admired that in her and always had. It was one of the things that had made him fall in love with her all those years ago.

  His dark head jolted up.

  “Whoa.” Galen stopped himself quickly, glancing around to make sure no one else was in the room to overhear his nervous breakdown. “Where the hell had those thoughts come from?” He’d met Regin only a few days ago and, yeah, maybe he knew about her more than he should, but there was no way he was in love with her. “No way possible and I can just forget I’ve ever had that thought.”

  A small voice whispered in his head. “You know her. You’ve known her for many lifetimes. She’s in your head, your soul. The very blood that beats in your veins speaks her name. How else do you explain the knowledge you have of her? How her eyes light with laughter, sparkle with tears, and the drowsy look on her face right after you make love? She is your heart.”

  But like any good male, Galen ignored his inner voice and concentrated on what he did know.

  His job was to protect and that’s just what he would do. If Galen could persuade Regin into a few rounds of meaningless sex then so much the better, but there was no way in hell he was falling in love with this one woman tornado.

  Galen turned back to the window, ignoring the soft whisper in his head. It warned him that it was too late; that his heart was already hers.

  A grown woman who wore Snoopy band aids, danced in the rain, and thought fairies lived in his woods had caught him in her spell.

  Chapter Thirteen

  It was the same as always. Regin was alone in the night. She could hear the wind dance through the trees and the scattering leaves as they fell. It should have been a peaceful scene, but terror clogged her throat. She sensed his presence before she saw him. It was like a heavy blackness weighing the very air down. He was close this time, closer than before.

  Suddenly the path was in front of her and looked as it had years before. Regin ran, even knowing it would lead right into his trap. Her actions were terror driven, leaving no room for reason. Her footsteps sounded heavy on the dry concrete, echoing out into the stillness of the night.

  He was closer. Regin could feel him behind her, close enough to reach out and touch. His voice whispered in her ear, “I found you, Regin. I’ll always find you.”

  She felt the whisper of the material against her throat before he tightened it and squeezed.

  “No, no, not again,” she struggled, pulling against the ribbon cutting off her precious oxygen supply. It wouldn’t save her. It never did.

  “God, please not again,” she whispered into the darkness.

  Her voice, still caught in the throes of the nightmare, came out strangled and raw. She tried to scream, but it came out a pitiful whimper. Her body twitched, fighting for the breath it could no longer grasp.

  ****

  Galen had his arms firmly around Regin before his eyes opened. He’d known this would happen after last night. He’d stayed by her side, sitting quietly in a chair by the bed content to watch her sleep. He grabbed her and held her tightly in his arms, brushing soft kisses across her hair, and face murmuring comforting nonsense. Gently, he rubbed her back, holding her secure within the safety of his arms. Galen pulled Regin’s body closer and tried to ease the convulsions wracking her body.

  The ragged sound of her wheezing forced Galen to his knees. Regin was choking, grabbing her throat, digging her nails into her flesh as she tried to pull the invisible barrier away.

  Galen grabbed her and held her tight in his arms, brushing soft kisses across her hair and face. He continued until Regin turned her face to his, seeking his warm lips with her own.

  ****

  Regin felt the whisper of soft lips press against her own and moaned with desire. The feel of Galen so close and warm against her body drove the last of the nightmare away. She needed him. In this moment at this time, Galen Matthews was the only thing that could keep her warm and sane.

  He was so close and safe. Galen wouldn’t let anyone hurt her. He would protect her from the nightmares. If anyone could beat back her demons, it was him.

  Regin knew it was foolish, but she wanted to take something for herself before she was forced to flee again. Galen was offering her shelter from her fear, and Regin knew she was too much of a coward to refuse. She didn’t know what tomorrow might hold. She didn’t know if she’d be alive next month. But this time, she swore, she was going to take for herself and damn the consequences.

  Regin leaned the last few inches separating them and licked his lower lip. When Galen didn’t draw back, she bit his lip, drawing it slowly into the heat of her mouth and losing herself in his taste and texture. Regin wanted to swallow him whole, to absorb everything that made him strong and safe.

  Tonight he would be hers for as long as the darkness lasted.

  ****

  “Regin, no.” Galen tried to pull out of her arms, but the feel of her body against his almost naked flesh sent rockets through him.

  His mind flashed on another time, another place. Lying naked by the water with only the moonlight to clothe them and soft salt winds to caress his passion-heated skin. His knees pushing apart her legs. His aching erection searching her center, desperate to join with her. Breathy moans and whispers rose on flower scented wind. Mouths devoured, tongues twined, bodies surged, and souls joined as they floated back from the heavens entwined within the other’s arms, replete and happy.

  As quickly as it had come, the vision was gone, leaving Galen gasping for breath as he looked into Regin’s eyes. He shook his head to clear it.

  He was going to make love to her. They had denied themselves for too long. He rained kisses along her jaw and down her neck. Nuzzling the place where he knew her pulse would beat strong and fast in time with his.

  Galen pulled back, needing to look into her eyes, to see the passion in them, to know she wanted this as much as he. To know that, come tomorrow, it wouldn’t be a mistake in her eyes.

  Regin opened her vibrant green eyes and whispered, “Please, Galen, make love to me.” She reached a hand behind his head, running her long fingers through his hair and gripping tightly so she could drag his lips down to meet her eager hot mouth.

  Galen was lost. Their clothes came off in a rush of passion and desire. Buttons flew across the room and the sound of material rending sounded over their heavy breathing.

  He kissed Regin until he couldn’t breathe, then kissed her again. Leaving her mouth with a tiny nip on her plump bottom lip, he trailed kisses down her soft neck to her generous breasts. He suckled one, taking the darkened nipple into the heat of his mouth drawing it to the root then gently biting down hard enough to have her moaning from desire but not pain. He cradled the weight of one breast in his hand while nibbling on the sweetness of the other. Instinct guided him. He knew exactly how and where to touch her.

  He moved his dark callused hand down the slope of her stomach, marveling at the silky texture of her skin, to the swell of her hips and finally rested at the dark curled haven of her desire.

  Gavin brought his mouth back to Regin’s, his tongue insistently, demanding her compliance. His finger
separated her dew-wet lips and his heart lurched when he discovered how ready she was for him. Gently he slid one finger to further test her readiness, he almost stopped breathing at the feel of her warm, wet, satin tightness. She was ready and he simply couldn’t wait any longer to be inside her, surrounded by her body’s own honey. Galen continued to nibble along her neck; one hand stroking her breast as he carefully moved between her parted thighs. He reached down to guide himself into Regin’s moist heat. His penis jerked at the first touch of her body. He wanted so badly to lose himself inside her and never stop, but he couldn’t. She was so damn tight and he didn’t want to risk hurting her.

  Gently, he eased the tip into her, whispering soothing words against her delicate ear. Her body stiffened and she gasped. He tried desperately to regain control before thrusting all the way inside. He counted to ten, then twenty and was on his way to thirty when he felt her inner walls relax and allow him entrance.

  That was all it took.

  “You can take me, Regin. Trust me.” He panted as he pushed himself into her, inch by inch. “That’s it, baby. Take it all.” He was not a small man and he reveled in the fact that she could take all of him. Once seated to the hilt, her muscles started to contract and grasp onto him. Galen pulled out slowly, enjoying the friction as her body resisted releasing him. His was ready to explode at the feel of her tightening around him. Being with Regin completed a part of him he never knew was missing.

  Eager bodies clasped, leaving the noise of flesh hitting flesh to echo over the sounds of rain hitting glass. The only other noise was the sound of Regin’s breathy cries and Galen’s moans.

  When release came, it didn’t flow up as Galen expected, but exploded body, sending waves of every inch of his flesh. ragged sighs echoing his.

  For one night, there over and through his pleasure coursing over He could hear Regin’s was no right or wrong.

  No demons in the shadows. There were only two people giving in to a passion stronger than the barriers holding them apart.

  They touched as if they had come together many times before. He knew where to trace his fingers to make her shake with desire. Regin knew exactly how to press her teeth against the tautness of his hard chest to draw out the greatest amount of his pleasure.

  They made love throughout the night never really sleeping, forcing the night to hold out against the coming dawn. Neither wanted to break the magic spell that brought them together. For now, it was enough to speak with their bodies, to hear with their hearts, and whisper unspoken promises with their souls.

  ****

  The stillness of the morning woke Regin. The driving rain had slackened off to a soft drizzle and the wind no longer pounded against the glass. The storm had finally moved on.

  A soft grunt and the tightening of a heavy arm draped around her waist made Regin’s heart lurch. When she opened her eyes, she wanted to groan in misery, but made herself keep silent. The arm was tanned, muscular, and attached to the naked body of Galen Matthews.

  Regin allowed herself a minute to gaze at Galen’s sleeping face. He seemed softer, not so guarded and imposing. A half smile curved his soft lips and she couldn’t help but smile in return. Hoping Galen’s smile meant he was dreaming of her or maybe of everything they had done in this bed last night.

  He was lying on his stomach, one arm holding her tightly to his side, the other curled under the pillow beneath his head. Galen’s legs were tangled with hers, giving greater credit to what Regin’s mind was beginning to accept. Everything from the night before came flooding back. The glass slicing her skin, Galen’s heated kiss, the power going out, and the face she’d seen staring back at her. The face she thought she knew. The face of the man who had sworn to seek his revenge no matter how long he waited. Thoughts of Shawn Townsend made Regin ease her bruised and battered body away from the safety of Galen’s protection. She didn’t want to leave him. He was everything she needed right now but, because she recognized the need, she had to leave. Regin never let herself get attached to someone so much that she actually needed them. Galen was becoming too important, too quickly.

  Gathering her clothes over her arm, waving at Annie to stay put, Regin silently left the room and tiptoed down the stairs, stopping briefly to dress before quietly letting herself out the kitchen door.

  She had been right about the weather. The sky no longer looked as if it had sprung from the bowels of hell, the wind had died down so that it merely tugged on her hair instead of trying to rip it out as she walked the storm tossed beach. The waves churned against the shore, but without the strength they’d held the past few days.

  Fate was dying out.

  The thought should have made Regin happy, but it didn’t. There was something missing. Something she couldn’t let rest until she knew what it was. Of course, there was the matter of having sex with a virtually unknown neighbor. Not that sex covered what had happened in Galen’s bedroom. It had been explosive.

  Regin had been like a stick of dynamite and Galen the spark that lit the fuse. Never in all her years had she reacted to a man the way she had last night.

  Regin knew she could blame it on the stress of her injury, the shock of the face in the window, or any number of things and she’d probably get away with it. But she wouldn’t lie to herself.

  She’d known exactly what would happen when she kissed Galen last night. Regin had wanted him with a single-mindedness that would scare her under normal circumstances, but not then and not there.

  At that moment, Galen was the one thing she had been sure of. And Regin had given him the same. They had filled a need in each other.

  Waves chased her up the beach, lapping gently at her shoes. Regin’s eyes drifted across the water while her mind tried to grasp the vague sense of unease peppering her.

  It wasn’t what happened with Galen last night, she was sure of that. It was something or someone else.

  Townsend. That was it.

  Townsend was the connection to the vague feeling of unrest trailing her. Why had she thought she’d seen his face in the storm last night? What was her brain trying to tell her? Because there was no way Townsend was here on Galen’s island. “It’s not possible. The man is locked up in a maximum security prison for the rest of his life,” she quietly assured herself.

  It must have been the stress of the last few days combined with being cooped up in the same house with the sexiest man she’d ever met. Her brain naturally blew a fuse and voila she imagined her worst nightmare in the flesh.

  Feeling better and determined to ignore the nagging feelings still pestering her, Regin considered her next problem.

  “How in the world am I going to face Galen?”

  Regin wished, not for the first time, she was the type of woman sex meant little to. But she wasn’t and it did. Regin couldn’t separate her body and emotions while engaged in such an intimate act. Being with Galen, holding him inside her, meant something more than a release of sexual tension.

  Galen meant something to her, something she wasn’t willing to put into words, not yet. Not when she was still so unsure of what was happening and why.

  “Why does he feel so right in my arms?” One question followed the next as Regin’s brain tumbled over answers. “Why does he seem so familiar to me?” She felt connected to Galen in a way she’d never experienced before. Everything about him had been intimate, from the way he touched her, to his taste, and the feel of his strong body moving in hers. Regin was not a woman to care easily. She didn’t let others touch her life where it mattered. She was content with her life as it was it. No one got too close. No one could get hurt.

  But Galen was getting close and she didn’t know how to stop it.

  The gray sky was swirling with lighter clouds pushed across the sky by warm ocean breezes. Regin searched the clouds and looked for signs of more rain. Nothing came behind the small pale ones.

  Regin felt the pain in her chest knowing that, with the passing of the storm, her time with Galen was over. It sho
uldn’t hurt, but it did. Logic wasn’t having any effect on her emotions. All of her other senses were too overwhelmed.

  She knew Galen by scent. Knew there would be a small scar above his right nipple from a fall in the water when he was eight. Regin was willing to bet her next book that he would have three moles on his left arm shaped in a pyramid. It felt like she was reliving a memory, but whose? She’d never seen Galen Matthews until that night in Killeen.

  “What the hell is happening to me? What is he doing to my life?” she threw the question to the waves that lapped at her feet.

  Regin stumbled over a washed up piece of driftwood and sank into the damp sand. The truth was there. It was time to bring it to light even if only in her mind.

  The undisclosed truth she kept hidden from everyone. The threat Damon wasn’t aware of. The risk Regin buried so deep within herself it never saw daylight.

  There was no choice now. After the night she’d spent in Galen’s arms, the choice had been taken from both of them. If Regin didn’t leave Galen and his island, he wouldn’t live long enough to regret it.

  Townsend had made sure Regin knew he followed her; where she lived, who she came in contact with, and how intimate the friendship became. No matter where Regin ran or how deeply she hid, Townsend found ways to let her know he hadn’t forgotten her. Warning her when he thought Regin was getting too close to someone.

  The letters arrived from different states around the country. Never the same city; no clues to follow and no leads to chase.

  Regin’s mind knew Townsend was locked behind steel bars, being guarded by men with guns, but her heart fluttered with each letter. Her nightmare would never be over. When Townsend got out, he was coming for her and no one and nothing could stop him. She watched storm debris float in the water, not focusing on the damage inflicted by the hurricane, but by the threats hovering over her head night and day. If Townsend ever caught Regin with a lover, the man would die. After all these years, she knew it was more than a boastful threat. It was a promise.