Saving Forever - Part 3 (2 page)

Chapter 2

“You have a lovely home.” She pretended to glance around as he flipped a few lights on. The house was modern, completely different than the house in New Zealand. It was a decent size for New York with warm colors, hard wood and leather – typical for a guy pad. She didn’t really care about the details at the moment; she was more interested in him and thoughts of what they would be doing shortly and what he could do to her insides. She shivered and ran her tongue over her lips.

“Really?” He raised an eyebrow and cocked his head slightly to the side. “It’s a pretty basic, open concept. I bought it when I first moved here as a temporary place and never got around to moving.” He strode back to her and wrapped his arms around her waist, placing his hands on her derriere and pulling her tightly into him.

She could feel his arousal as he pressed against her. It only aided in throwing all concentration out the window – except for what they were about to do. How long had it been? Nearly forever? She planned on creating this hot, magnetic feeling between the two of them a lot more often.

His lips found her neck and his hot breath stroked her skin. Her eyes closed and she felt her jaw drop slightly as a moan slipped over her lips. Where were they right now? The living room? Kitchen? She swallowed and tried to focus as Elijah’s hands pressed and teased her breasts until they ached with need. They wanted his mouth and tongue against them as well. Her fingers tried to bury themselves into his soft, short hair. They curled into fists and she loved the feeling of his hair caressing between them.

A warm hand slid over her dress along her leg. When his fingers traced a trail of fire on her inner thigh, she bit her lip to keep from crying out. She realized they weren’t going to make it to the bedroom. At least not for this round.

Elijah’s lips brushed hers in a sensual, teasing kiss. His hand trailed up the side of her leg under her dress. His head pulled back suddenly when his hand reached her hip bone. “No knickers?” he whispered.

She giggled, despite the intensity of the moment. “Knickers?”

He grinned wickedly. “Sorry, panties? Good thing I didn’t know this during dinner. I’d have never made it.”

Not planned on purpose, but the thrill of exhilaration it shot through her blood made her gasp. She forced his head close to hers and pressed her lips hard against his. His tongue forced its way through her lips and she wrestled it with the same determination as him. Their movements grew frenzied. She stepped back slowly and pressed a hand against his chest to stop him from recovering the distance. She needed to use both her hands. “Don’t move.” It was a breathless order. His hard chest muscles quivered under her touch, but he stayed where he was, his arms at his sides. She noticed his hands clench and unclench.

She ran her teeth over her lower lip and slowly reached for the buttons on his shirt. She undid them, working her way down. Her cool hands absorbed the heat from his chest as she ran them inside his shirt. She looked up at him.

His eyes met hers and did not look away. They burned with his desire, showing her exactly how much he wanted her. She smiled, knowing the silly fleeting power over him she felt was only in her imagination, but it gave her a sexual high she had never had before.

He continued to watch her as his hands slipped under her dress and his fingers traced up on her outer thigh to her hip bone and followed the curve in. She shivered and it took every ounce of concentration not to throw her head back and close her eyes.

Elijah’s fingers curled around her hip and tugged her ever-so-slightly closer to him. She flowed into him, all liquid and burning desire. Hungry, she kissed him before reaching down to squeeze his pressing arousal. Its hardness and strength begged to be set free.

She became consumed by the pleasure of his lips against hers and his fingers brushing her skin. He wrapped his arms around her waist and his hands spread across her bottom again, this time lifting her. Her legs found their way around him and locked themselves at the ankles. With each step he took, she could feel his arousal pressing against the thin material separating them. Ripples of desire tore through her.

He paused a moment, his hand reaching for something behind her. A swoosh noise sounded in her ears and a second later the room danced with flickering lights behind her closed eyelids.

Warmth pressed against her bottom. It sent a flush of heat through her.

The same moment she realized he had turned on his fireplace, he set her down and pulled her to the floor. A beautiful, soft carpet tickled her skin. He sat up and shrugged out of his shirt. The reflection of light from the fire against his skin caught Charity’s eye. She was mesmerized.
He’s gorgeous
. One of those bodies you only saw in the movies with thousands of women drooling over him.
And he’s mine.

She gently pushed his upper body down and straddled him. Her hands spread across his lower rib cage and she watched her hands against his skin. Her right pointer finger traced ink. “You got a new tattoo.” She slid down his body, purposely pressing her center against his erection. She bent down and ran her tongue over the new word.
Trust
. He tasted delicious.

Elijah’s hands slipped behind his head so he could watch her. He grinned sensually. “That I did.” He shivered. “That feels good,” he whispered.

The raw need in his voice created a hotter fire inside her. She ran her fingers eagerly over his skin toward his belt. His breath caught as she undid his belt and slowly pulled his zipper down. Her fingers traced a circle around his belly button, his strong abdominal muscles tightening as she trailed a line lower and found her way under the elastic of his boxer-briefs.

Her hand enclosed around him and squeezed. He moaned and when he gripped her hips, she slid her hand up a couple of inches, and then back down. She felt his nails dig in to the crest of her hip.

His hips arced toward her. He grabbed the hem of her dress and pulled it up. It forced her to move her hand away from him but she straightened and let him take it off her. Her hair lifted and fell over her face and shoulders. She reached and ran her fingers through it to pull it back. His hot breath travelled up near her breasts as he pulled her tighter against him. She sat straddling him in only her lace bra.

His hands trailed up her back and undid her bra. He slowly tugged it off.

“Take your pants off.” She shifted off of him and stretched out beside him, the flames warming her. She had no idea if it came from inside her or from the fireplace.

He obeyed and laid down beside her. She ran a hand from his neck to his chest as he tucked her hair behind her ear. “Are you aching for it as bad as I am?”

She wasn’t thinking anymore; primal need was taking control, but she knew that. “For you – yes.”

Gripping her hip, he slid inside her a couple of inches. She dug her nails into his shoulder and draped her leg high over his hip. He forced himself fully into her as his lips met hers. A guttural desire vibrated against her throat. “Please don’t stop,” she begged.

He didn’t. He moved inside her again and again. She rolled onto her back and he stayed pressed against her, his hips moving in a frenzied motion. He pinned her to the ground as pleasure built into a screaming ball of desire begging to burst inside of her.

He must have known how close she was. He slowed his rhythm and slid out torturously slow, and then slid in the same way. He repeated and Charity’s eyes flared open. “Again,” she demanded.

Teeth bared, he did as she asked until every muscle inside of her exploded. Her body trembled and her hips arced high against his. She gasped and panted, unable to stop. She shivered and sighed. “Wow,” she said. “Wow.” She smiled wickedly at him. “Your turn.”

His eyes burned with a primitive hunger. He rotated his hips sliding in and out of her. He entered her faster, pounding hard against her. His pace grew fast and primal. When he came he clung to her, his heart drumming fast against her with nearly the same manic pace as hers. He finally collapsed against her, his face pressed into her hair.

They lay panting and tangled in each other. Elijah finally moved to lie beside her. He grabbed her leg and wrapped it around his hip. She rested her head on his chest. “You’re freakin’ amazing in bed,” he said, twirling a strand of her hair between his fingers.

Charity could hear the smile in his voice. She curled her hips against him and rubbed her leg against his skin. “I don’t believe we made it to the bed. Maybe next time?”

“Absolutely.”

Her finger lightly traced his new tattoo. “When did you get this?” Her body was excited, but her mind worried about the meaning behind the word.
Trust.

“After the funeral, before I flew home.” He sat up and reached over her, pulling a soft blanket off the back of the couch and spreading it over them. He laid back down, bending his arm to rest his head against his hand so he could watch her.

She froze inside when he mentioned the funeral. She hadn’t stayed for it and they were eventually going to have to talk about it.
Not now,
she silently begged. Elijah’s elbow lightly brushed her breast and sent a shiver of longing through her again. Her nipple hardened as if trying to get closer to him.

The fire’s flames made wavy shadows across his face and chest. “Why did you leave?”

‘Cause your mom told me to get the heck out of Dodge.
She rolled onto her back and pulled the soft blanket under her armpits, covering her breasts, embarrassed they didn’t have the decency to hide their desire for him.
Here we go.
She stared at the ceiling, too embarrassed to look into his eyes. “It... It felt… I… I just thought I shouldn’t be there. I didn’t want to cause any problems.”

Elijah sat up, confusion written across his face. “You weren’t the cause of any problems. You just left. Why didn’t you come and talk to me?” He leaned over so she had to look him in the eye. “You didn’t even say goodbye. Or call or text me when you knew I was back.”

Neither did you.
She knew going further with this conversation wouldn’t end well. She lifted her head to press her lips against his, her eyes closing in anticipation. In between kisses she whispered, “It’s not important now.” She let her head fall back slowly and opened her eyes when cool air brushed by her wet lips instead of Elijah’s sultry ones.

Elijah stayed in his position. “It is important. To me. Why’d you run away?”

Chapter 3

Charity stiffened. “I didn’t run.”

He snorted, so quietly Charity almost missed it. “You left. For no reason. You did a runner.”

“I did not! How would you like being the stranger amongst friends and family at a tragic point in their life? It’s not easy.”

“I do it almost every day.” His eyebrows pressed together as his forehead wrinkled slightly. It was a very sexy look and he probably had no idea. “I step into a patient’s room and have to tell them terrible news. Their sixteen-year-old son has leukemia. Or tell another family they lost their sister. I get what it felt like. I’m the stranger who tells families disappointing news. I can’t run away from it.”

“You’re a doctor.” His simple matter-of-fact comparison frustrated her. “I wanted to offer you support and whatever else, but I didn’t know what to do.”
Your mother could scare a ferocious lion.

“Was it because of the birds? Were you frightened they weren’t going to work out? They—”

“I didn’t leave because of the freakin’ birds!”
Did I?
Why did she sound so defensive? Or was it anger, like she was trying to blame him? The birds were her stupid idea. How she ever thought releasing those funny-looking little things that couldn’t fly onto his mother’s billion-dollar property was a good idea. Like it would make his mother think Charity was worthy of her son/ She shook her head. Beyond dumb. And during his father’s funeral. Or had Charity’s intentions been pure and somehow she had twisted them?

Elijah sat up, his arms crossing his lean, muscular chest. Whatever moment they had just shared, evaporated. “They were a huge success, you know? Everyone loved the idea and the conservation people have kept in touch, too. They’ve spotted nests. Even my mother admitted that it had been a fantastic idea.” He stood, stepping into his boxer-briefs. “It’s something my father would have loved. He was all about the little guy.” Elijah walked over to the kitchen.

She heard the fridge door open. Elijah poured a glass of liquid. She couldn’t turn her head to look at him. It would be easier to pick her things up and leave.

A cool wetness touched her shoulder. Elijah offered her a glass filled with clear liquid.

“It’s water.” He drank from a glass in his other hand. “Seems I’ve built up quite a thirst. I’m guessing you did too?” He winked as he sat down beside her, and then tilted his head.  “What’s wrong?”

She took the glass and shook her head, intentionally not answering him, but completely confused on how a guy’s brain worked. “You just said…” She waved her hand and took a gulp of the refreshingly cool water. “Never mind.”

He rested his hand on the curve of her hip, his thumb tracing back and forth over the blanket. “I don’t know why you left New Zealand and I’ll admit I was ticked.” He kissed and nibbled her ear. “But I believe you’re making up for it now.”

She laughed and swatted his shoulder playfully. “You’re such a guy!”

“And you’re such a woman.” He pointed at her and chuckled. “But you, you’re especially hard to figure out. Maybe that’s why I can’t get you off my mind.” He took a long drink and then watched her, his face hiding all of his thoughts. He finally spoke, his voice soft: “It doesn’t matter anymore why you left. It matters that you came back.” He set his glass down on the floor near the fireplace and stretched out beside her, pressing his body against hers. He kissed her bare shoulder. “I’m glad you did.”

“So am I.” There were a million things she wanted to say, but had no idea how.

“Want to go to bed?” He pretended to pout, letting his stubble rub lightly against the skin of her shoulder. “I’m feeling a bit hurt and think you have some more making up to do.”

She shook her head but couldn’t hold back a smile. Would their physical attraction ever be sated? She didn’t think so. Her hips rotated without conscious thought. “Where’s your room?”

His face lit and he scooped her up in his arms. “Right this way.” He carried her past the fireplace, down the hall toward the back of the house. He used his elbow to switch the light on.

Charity blinked, the lights were bright compared to the low firelight. It was a wonderfully large room with a king-size bed and matching dark-wood dresser set. Neutral beige paint covered the walls and the steel-grey bedding matched perfectly. The room reminded her of his parents’ place in New Zealand.

Elijah surveyed the room. “Bed made, check. No knicks on the floor, check. Beautiful naked woman in my arms, check.” He winked at her and moved toward the bed. “Dropping her on the mattress… priceless.” In one fluid motion he held on the blanket wrapped around Charity and unrolled her.

She hit the mattress and landed on her back. Oddly, she didn’t mind that she lay naked on his bed with the lights on to show every imperfection. She stretched and arched her back while Elijah watched, his mouth slightly open and his eyes burning. He strode around the bed to where her feet dangled at the edge. He bent down and lifted her leg gently by the ankle. “Delicious,” he murmured and kissed her ankle, moving up her calf.

His lips found their way to her thigh and left a blazing trail as his tongue darted in and out of his mouth.

Charity moaned. Inside her head, she begged him to bring his mouth toward her center. His fingers found their way and brushed against her wetness. They found a rhythm that her hips fought to keep up with. His tongue traced her Caduceus tattoo and a guttural need escaped his lips.

His mouth moved to her breast and trapped her nipple inside. As he sucked hard, his fingers increased the speed of their rhythm. When his lips imprisoned her other breast, she inhaled sharply and shut her eyes tight. Ripples of pent-up desire erupted from the power of his hands. As the spasms of pleasure spread, she cried out his name.

He answered her by kissing her mouth. There was no tenderness in it, only raw desire that needed to be sated. Charity felt his need. With rough hands, she pulled at his boxer-briefs. Their tongues still battling, he slid toward the edge of the bed to remove them all the way.

Charity did not resist when he flipped her onto her hands and knees. He kissed her back and pulled her hips close to where he stood. He mounted her in the most primitive of ways, his erection burying deep inside her wetness and sliding out and in again at an accelerated pace. She felt him lengthen and as he exploded inside of her, he collapsed against her.  Both of their bodies were hot and wet with sweat.

Neither of them spoke. The only sounds were their panting. Eventually, their rapid heart rates slowed to normal rhythms.

Elijah rolled onto his back, taking Charity into his arms so her head cradled against his shoulder and chest. She snuggled close against him, her leg wrapping around his hips. He arched his neck and then dropped his head back against the sheets. “Merry Christmas,” he murmured.

She sighed, unbelievably happy for the first time in a very, very long time. She hadn’t realized something inside her had been missing. She’d been content, but at this moment she didn’t think she’d ever felt this good. “Mmm’ry Christmas to you,’oo,” she slurred. She knew she sounded drunk but didn’t care. She could feel herself drifting off and didn’t have the strength to fight it.

She half-woke when Elijah shifted and moved her so her head rested on a pillow. They’d been lying sideways on the bed. He covered her with the duvet and then curved against her back to spoon her. “I have to go to work in a few hours…”

He whispered more into her ear, but sleep clouded her hearing. She reminded herself to ask him in the morning what he had said.