by Sahara Kelly
His finger on her lips stayed her words. “If you’re thinking what I think you’re thinking, then don’t. Gimme a minute and I’ll jump your bones and return the favor you just did for me. We’re both adults, Cory. We’re honest enough to admit that there’s something special here between us—something that falls into the I-can’t-stop-lusting-after-you category.”
He eased away from the wall and studied the bit that he’d hit with his head. “You’re stuck with me. I intend to make love to you, no perfume, no bordello visions, nothing but us. Are we clear on that?”
Cory nodded and cleared her throat. “Okay. Clear.”
“Good. So all we have to do is decide when.” He tapped and pulled and tugged, finally discovering a small patch of paneling that moved in and out when he pressed it. “I could go for it right now. But—knowing you—I won’t get a minute’s peace until we’ve explored that passage.” He grinned. “Right?”
She wrinkled her nose. “You know me too well.”
“So, let’s do this.” He crossed the room and peered into the opening. “We know how it opens. We don’t know where it leads.”
“Or if it leads anywhere. Things have changed a lot in two hundred years. Buildings fell down, got rebuilt—hell, I don’t have to tell you that.”
“True. But—and correct me if I’m wrong here—we got whooshed back in time for a reason. You said so.”
“Yes.”
“And this was about the only thing we didn’t know existed, right?”
“Well, there were those blonde twins…” Cory snickered.
“Never mind them.” Louis turned away hurriedly and grabbed a flashlight from his stash next to the bed. “Let’s see what we’ve got here.”
Cory peered over his shoulder as he moved into the darkness of a very small passageway. She closed the distance between them, liking the heat that radiated from his body.
And his scent. And the way his hair moved against his neck. And his unique eyes.
Face it girl. You’re lost in this man.
She sighed.
“You okay?” Louis didn’t wait for an answer, but was shining his light down a set of rickety steps. “These look sturdy enough, but be careful. Wait for me to test them first.”
“Yessir, boss.”
“Smart ass.” He chuckled, but Cory noticed he placed his feet carefully and held on to the smooth wooden baluster that led downward.
She followed, doing as he’d told her and stepping cautiously onto old wooden stairs that looked worn down with time and the passage of many feet. “I’m thinking this would have been a convenient servant’s entrance…”
Her voice was muffled by the close quarters of the walls and ceiling. Louis was stooping slightly and he grunted as they reached the bottom of the stairs. “That tall black dude must have had a helluva time getting through here.”
“Baptiste. Yeah. He was Claudine’s lover, I’m guessing.”
“Ya think?” She felt him laugh silently. “Babe, it couldn’t have been clearer if they’d painted a picture for us.”
She opened her mouth to answer when Louis spoke again, an odd note in his voice. “And speaking of painting pictures…”
*~~*~~*
She took his breath away.
Her face, a pale oval in the brightness of his flashlight, the rest of her in shadows—just as they’d seen her in the past.
Just as she’d been painted.
“Oh my God…” Cory’s whisper said it all. She was as stunned as Louis was.
The painting stood against one wall of the small space they found themselves in. There was a door leading somewhere, but it was barred and bolted, the rust thick on what had once been shiny metal. Louis doubted he or anyone else could get through it now. And it was absolutely impossible that anyone had used it for many years.
No, this room had probably been untouched since the painting was hidden—maybe two hundred odd years before.
“Hello Claudine.” He stared at her once more. Green eyes twinkled back at him, the artist having captured the ethereal beauty and combined it with her grace and charm. It was a pretty good-sized oil on canvas, and Louis noted the delicate tracery of the frame even through the small damages that came from time and neglect.
“It’s amazing.” Cory moved closer. “This is in damn good shape considering its age.” She extended one arm almost reverently. “It’s her. So much her.”
“Yeah.” Louis exhaled through his teeth. This had been one helluva day and finding Claudine’s portrait had just about put the cap on it.
“Louis…it shouldn’t stay here…can we…” Cory paused.
He shrugged. “Sure. Gimme a hand.” Tired though he was, Louis shouldered the portrait and they carefully made their way back up the narrow staircase, Cory holding the flashlight this time and making sure he handled the frame and its valuable contents with caution.
By the time they reached his room, he was sweating. “I’m real thankful Claudine ran a bordello not a music school. I’d have hated to lug a piano up those stairs.” He flashed an aggrieved look at Cory.
“Oh stop complaining. Look. It was worth it…” And she placed the portrait under the light. “She was so lovely, wasn’t she?”
There was a wistful note in Cory’s voice that Louis caught immediately. He stood behind her and slid his arms around her waist. “Almost as lovely as her descendant.” He rested his chin on Cory’s shoulder, ducking his head so they could stare at the painting together.
The hair was coiled elegantly, just as they’d seen it, and the laughter was trapped forever in her green eyes by the talented hand of an unknown artist. Faint shadows of lace appeared around her chest and shoulders, but she’d been painted as the focus of a light—most of what surrounded her was in shadow.
“She was so in love.” Cory stared at her ancestor. “I wonder what happened?”
Louis wondered too. “Given the times in which they lived, babe, she sure picked the wrong man to fall in love with.”
“And it sounded as though they’d already had a child too.”
Louis nodded. “Etienne, right?”
“Yep. I think I’ve heard that name someplace before. Probably way back in the family tree. It’s odd…”
“What’s odd Cory?” Louis rubbed his chin against her hair, loving the way it tangled in the stubble that had emerged on his chin over the last few eventful hours.
“Seeing my family history. I mean really seeing it, you know?”
He chuckled and tightened his arms. “It could have been stranger still. You could have been a descendant of those twins.”
She elbowed him—and not gently. “Will you forget about those two, for Chrissakes?”
“It won’t be easy.”
Cory turned in his embrace and stared at him for a long moment, humor and exhaustion mingling in her eyes. “Ah shit. I want to fuck you, Louis. Drive the memories of those two blonde hookers right out of your mind. But right now I’m so damn tired I reckon I’ve forgotten how.”
Louis soooo wanted to offer to refresh her memory. But even as the thought started, his body began to ache. He knew he had reached his limit as well. “So here’s what we’re gonna do.” He released her and closed up the paneling, latching the little catch that secured it.
She watched him warily, raising one eyebrow as he slipped out of his shirt and jeans. “Take your clothes off.”
“Pardon?”
“We’re going to sleep. And that’s all. To sleep.”
Her hands went to her shorts button. “Perchance to dream?”
“Huh?”
“Never mind. I guess you don’t get to read much Shakespeare.” Her top tangled in her hair and she swore.
Louis stepped to her side and freed her. “Sweetheart, you’re rambling.”
She yawned, a jaw-cracking gape that treated him to a glimpse of her tonsils. “Yeah. Sorry.”
He pulled her onto the bed and pushed the covers back. The fan was circulating air abo
ve them thanks to the ultimate miracle—returned electricity. It wasn’t cool by any means, but it was bearable.
The distant rumble of thunder sounded outside as Louis clicked off the light and snuggled Cory down next to him, spooning himself into her back.
“Louis—”
“Go to sleep.”
“I didn’t brush my teeth.”
“Me neither. I won’t tell if you won’t.” He found one rounded breast encased in the soft cotton of her bra and cupped it.
She sighed and settled herself. “That’s nice.”
“Mmm hmm.” They were asleep within moments.
Across the room, Claudine’s portrait kept watch through the night.
*~~*~~*
The scent of coffee and a soft rattling sound combined to drag Cory from a sound sleep. She opened her eyes and yawned.
“Mornin’ chile.”
The words were whispered, but made her jump all the same. “Holy shit.”
Sitting on the floor, cross-legged by the bed, was Zulee. “‘Bout time you opened dem eyes o’yourn.” She picked up a mug and held it out. “Here.”
“Uhh…” Cory’s wits refused to gather themselves and she wondered if she should pinch herself. Automatically she took the mug, finding it hot to her touch.
Nope. This isn’t a vision or a dream. It’s fucking real.
“How…where…”
“I allus bring de mistress of Love Alley her morning drink, chile.” Zulee sat back, her necklaces clattering a little against each other with the noise that had woken Cory.
“But I’m not…he should…” She glanced over at Louis, still deeply asleep.
“No matter.” Zulee dismissed Louis. “Master needs de rest.” She stared across the room. “You found her, den.”
Cory shifted and sipped the coffee, almost purring as the strong and fragrant liquid slid down her throat. “God, this is good.” She sipped some more. “Yeah. We found her last night down the bottom of a passageway.”
“You done good.” Zulee nodded in approval. “You de right one.”
“For what?”
“For what needs to be done.”
Cory rolled her eyes. “That’s a huge help.” She glanced at the portrait. “She’s…she’s spoken to me, Zulee. A couple of times. I’ve heard her voice, you know?”
Somehow, Cory knew that she didn’t have to explain her gift to this unusual little woman. That Zulee would understand when she spoke of hearing a voice that had been silent for close on two hundred years.
“What she tell you?” Zulee looked interested.
Cory thought. “Something about helping her find her love. About being happy at last. It’s…muddled.”
Zulee nodded. “You gonna do it?”
“Do what? If I knew what to do I’d do it. It’s frickin’ frustrating, this whole damn thing. I’m getting all these messages from beyond and from the tarot and the Ouija board and none of them make fucking sense.”
Cory angrily shoved a thick lock of hair back over her shoulder and finished her coffee. “If you know what the hell I’m supposed to do then I wish you’d just tell me. I’m going nuts with all this shit.”
Zulee grinned. “You gotta listen wit’ de heart, chile. She’s tellin’ you what to do. You jus’ ain’t listenin’ right.”
“Oh thanks a lot.” Cory sighed.
“You here for a reason. He here for a reason.” Zulee nodded at Louis who slumbered on, snoring a little, undisturbed by the conversation going on next to him. “All de pieces of de puzzle here for a reason.”
“Okay. I’ll buy that. I’ve seen enough to know there’s a reason for most things, even though we don’t know it at the time.”
“So let Claudine talk to you some more, chère.” Zulee’s lined face cracked into a smile. “Dat woman got stories to tell…whooeeee.” She fanned herself. “But dere’s one big story dat needs de end written to it.” Leaning over, she tapped Cory’s chest. “In here, you got de answer.”
“I do?”
“Sure t’ing, chile. An’ you and him’s gonna find it together.” Her eyes drifted to Louis and she chuckled. “Looks like he’s already dreamin’ of doing somet’ing together wit’ you.”
Cory followed her gaze and noticed a quite delectable morning stiffy growing steadily between Louis’s legs. “Probably dreaming about blonde twins.” She put the mug back down on the tray sharply.
“Dose gals were…” Zulee stopped herself. “Never you min’ ‘bout dem.” She waved her hand dismissively. “It’s de here an’ now you got to deal wit’. Use your brains an’ your heart. An’ him.” She licked her lips. “If’n I had a few o’ my years back…”
Something possessive raised its head within Cory. “Uh uh. He’s mine.”
Zulee grinned. “Yes he is, chère. Dat’s good you know it.” She stood. “Listen to Claudine. She got more to tell if’n you listen.”
“But…”
“He gonna wake up soon. I go now. You t’ink ‘bout what I said, chile.” And quietly, with a last rattle of her wooden beads, Zulee slipped from the room.
Cory sighed. This was all too much for her. She needed answers, a shower and she absolutely needed to pee. This last was accomplished before anything else, making Cory a great deal more comfortable as she crept back into the master bedroom.
Louis—in that wonderful way men have—slept like the proverbial log, sprawled every which way, snuffling at regular intervals and generally ignoring the world around him.
He was hard now and Cory noticed a tiny smile on his lips as his eyelids flickered. Yep. Definitely the twins.
She paused by Claudine’s painting. There hadn’t been enough light last night to get a good look at it but now, as the sun rose outside, she could see it clearly.
The emerald green eyes were clear and brilliant, shining from a face that had the complexion of fresh cream. The lips were a natural rosy shade, with a slight gleam—perhaps from some old-fashioned salve or maybe just from Claudine licking them before sitting for the painting.
For the first time Cory noticed her jewelry. Pearl droplets hung from her earlobes, tiny points of light, emphasizing the nascent sheen of Claudine’s skin. Around her neck was a fine silver chain ending in an ornate pendant.
Again, the skill of the artist was evident, since although this was a sizeable piece, it had faded into the background when placed beneath the face dominating the portrait.
Cory took a closer look at it. There were pearls—intertwined in vines of some sort—a delicate tracery of silver stems flowering into tiny diamonds at their tips. And in the center there was a silver oval with markings or engravings on it.
She leaned in for a closer look as a snort from behind her told her that Louis was waking up.
Absently she glanced at him. “Hey, you got a magnifying glass?”
*~~*~~*
Louis struggled back from the mists of sleep, pushing away dreams of women in corsets, lace sheets and blonde twins doing decadent things to his body.
He surfaced in time to hear a question that struck terror into his soul. He lifted the covers and glanced down. Whew. Okay fella. She isn’t asking about you. His morning erection stood proudly away from his briefs. She wasn’t going to need any kind of magnifying glass to find that.
With a sigh of relief he shoved himself up onto the pillows. “Huh?” It was the best he could do right at that moment.
“A magnifying glass. There’s something I want to take a closer look at.” She was sitting close to the painting.
“Uhh…”
“Oh never mind. It’ll wait.” She waved a hand to her side of the bed. “There’s coffee over there on the floor.”
“Mmmpf.”
His head was foggy, his brains not quite making it to first gear yet and she was too damn bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for his comfort. He staggered to the bathroom, double-checked to make sure that time travel hadn’t actually shrunk anything and ended up sitting on the unmade bed with a blesse
d cup of coffee in his hand as Cory continued to peer at the portrait.
“So.” He sipped, letting the warm brew finish waking him up. “What ya got?”
Cory stretched, doing lovely things to her body. Who needed fancy underwear? The simple cotton briefs and bra were a miracle of delight all by themselves. Louis’s cock agreed wholeheartedly.
“Dunno. A clue maybe. It’s all so…frustrating, ya know?”
Louis, who was beginning to feel a healthy dose of frustration of his own, agreed. “Yeah. Anything I can do?”
She turned and looked at him.
He looked back.
And that was all it took. The heat between them blossomed and filled the room, sending a flush to Cory’s cheeks and sweat to the back of Louis’s neck. He put down his coffee.
“Come here.” He held out his hand to her and she willingly moved to him, putting her palm against his. He tugged her closer and leaned forward, pressing his lips to the soft skin above her navel. “Cory…”
She sighed as he gently nipped her then licked the spot, slipping one hand around her to find her warm bottom beneath its cotton covering. It felt right, comfortable, familiar and arousing.
She was making that little noise he loved—a sort-of sighing whisper in back of her throat—that told him she was there with him, leaning into his mouth as he found new places to kiss and lick and nibble.
He held her, bending her arm behind her, keeping her between his outspread thighs, standing before him and resting her free hand on his shoulder. He could smell her body, warm and womanly, sweetening with her particular spice as he ran his tongue beneath her breasts.
She giggled as he hit a ticklish spot and sighed once more as he moved on. Her buttock was flexing within his grasp now, her muscles responding as he aroused her. Louis found the elastic of her panties with his teeth and tugged on it, finally giving up. “Take these off.”
He released her arm, shuddering with the force of his need as she immediately slid the white cotton to the floor and kicked it away. Her pussy hair gleamed dark in the sunshine, darker than the silky skin surrounding it but lighter than the hair falling down her spine. Fascinated, Louis stroked it gently, riffling his fingertips through it until they brushed the swollen lips beneath and she bit back a cry.