Covet - A Novel of Fallen Angel Part 18

Slipping under the delicate edge, he found her softness and cursed hard, his body snapping tight from head to foot, his teeth gritting, the cords in his neck tightening up starkly.

aOhaChristaa he said. aOhad.a.m.n.a Abruptly, he pulled back and looked down at himself.

aWhat?a she asked breathlessly.

aI think I just had an o.r.g.a.s.m.a As he flushed, she started to smile and couldnat stop. aYou did?a He shook his head at her. aRight, okay, thatas not a good thing at a time like this. Five minutes from now? Perfect. At this moment? Not so hot.a aWell, it makes me feel s.e.xy,a she said, smoothing her hand down his face.

aYou donat need any help with that.a Marie-Terese let her touch slide slowly over his chest and his hard stomach, then down farther, over his belt and onto hisa Vin threw his head back and moaned, his pecs flexing, his torso curving up. as.h.i.+t.a Moving her palm up and down on his erection, she tucked her face into his neck and bit down a little. aI donat think itas going to slow you up much.a His rib cage contracted, breath shooting out of his mouth. aI gotta get naked.a aI should hope so.a His hands were rough on his belt and his fly, and his slacks. .h.i.t the floor at the speed of light. Black briefs cupped his s.e.xa"barely. His erection was a long ridge crammed over to one side, the head fighting to get free of the waistband that held it in.

Before he could lie back, she reached out and tugged those briefs down his hard thighs, springing his arousal. He had o.r.g.a.s.med and the glossy, weeping tip of him made her even more ready for what was coming fast.

Wrapping her hand around his shaft, she stroked his s.e.x and looked up, watching as he planted one palm against the wall and let his head fall loose. He moved with her, and she glanced across at the mirror, watching what his back looked like as his hips swung forward and back, the clenching and releasing of his torso muscles and the way his spine undulated in a wave the most erotic thing shead ever seena Marie-Terese let go of him, took off her panties, and stretched out beside him. Ready.

Vin righted his head and stared at her from under his brows, his silvery eyes lit up bright as a flash of steel in the midday sun.

They both remembered the same thing at the same time.

aDo you have aa"a aI have a condoma"a Thank you, G.o.d, she thought as he went to his wallet and took out one of those Tiffany blue Trojan packets. She was on the Pill, courtesy of her regularly visiting a doc-in-the-box in town, and shead just had a checkup, but no matter how attracted she was to Vin, she wasnat going to be reckless with her own body with anyone.

Safe s.e.x was the only way.

And watching him protect them both was s.e.xy as h.e.l.l. When he was done, they resumed the position theyad been in before, her back against the duvet, him half on top of her, half to the side. The condom was chilly against her thigh, leaving a quickly cooling trail, and she wished shead had a moment to feel his s.e.x for real somewhere on her. But then he was fully on top of her and between her legs, the head of him nudging at the heart of her.

She stared into his eyes as she guided him in.

How right it was. How filling and spectacular the joining. How wondrous to meet his stare and see reflected in it the same things she was feelinga"the glorious shock at how well they fit, the coiling need to go even furthera And there was another surprise for her: For once it didnat hurt because her body actually wanted this.

aAre you okay?a he asked in a guttural voice.

aMore than okay.a Marie-Terese wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held him close as they began to move together. Her last sight before she squeezed her lids shut was of them in the mirror, their bodies wrapped around each other, her legs split wide, his hips doing the driving. As she met her own eyes, her reflection was a shock. Her cheeks were flushed and her hair tangled around his heavy arm and her lips parted. She looked very much like a woman with a good partner.

Which made sense. This was s.e.x the good old-fas.h.i.+oned waya"between two people who wanted to be together for no other reason than that it was the right thing at the right time for both of them.

When what the mirror was showing grew wavy from tears that sprang to her eyes, she closed the sight of them off and turned her face into his shoulder.

Somehow, he managed to hug her and still keep up the rhythm.

As Marie-Terese pitched over the edge of pleasure and went into the kind of free fall she had only a vague memory of, she held on to the man responsible for the way she felt and let herself go. Her climax milked another one out of his s.e.x and she felt utter satisfaction as he shuddered and kickeda"

Except then everything went wrong. For a split second, she thought of what she had been doing for money, and that was all it took to ruin it: A cold gust blew into her chest and spread out from there until all her veins were frozen and her muscles drew tight against bones of ice.

Vin stilled as if he had sensed the change in her and he lifted his head from her hair. aTalk to me.a She opened her mouth. But nothing would come out.

aItas okay,a he said softly, catching her tears with his fingertips. aThis has to be hard for you. Even if it felt right, it has to be hard.a She struggled to catch her breath, not from exertion, but from the effort of not flying apart. aWhat if it all comes back every time Iamaa With you, she wanted to finish, but that seemed a bit much. For G.o.das sake, she didnat know whether she was still going to be in this town next week.

He kissed her. aOther memories will take the place of all that. Itas going to take time, but it will happen.a She glanced at the mirror and thought of the way he moved. As she recalled the feel and sight of him, the cold retreated some, ushered out of her by a wave of warmth.

aI hope youare right,a she said, running her hands through his hair. aI really do.a

CHAPTER 24.

As they lay together, Vin covered Marie-Terese up with the best blanket he had: his own body. d.a.m.n, it felt good to be all crammed on his little bed with her, although he had to be careful with his hands and where they went. With so much exposed deliciously soft female skin so close to hima After two o.r.g.a.s.ms, only one of which had been on time, he was still hard. And hungry. But he was not going to pressure her in any way.

So yeah, he watched where his palms went as he stroked her slowly, and he kept his hips out of the way, and he trained his eyes across the room instead of on, say, her perfect pink nipples.

aIam sorry about the crying,a she said, as if she knew he was worried.

aIs there anything I can do for you?a She pressed her lips to his pec. aYou did plenty.a Well, if that didnat make him go all big dog in his chest. aIad like to do it again sometime.a aWould you?a aSoon.a The smile she gave him was bright as a rainbow. aToo bad you had only the one condom.a aTalk about tragic.a They stayed side by side until the cold breeze coming in through the window over took the hot drift from the vent above the bed.

aYouare cold,a he said, rubbing the goose b.u.mps on her arm.

aIam comfortable, though.a He reached over her and picked up her s.h.i.+rt off the floor. As he helped her into it, he paused to watch her b.r.e.a.s.t.s sway.

aYou should never wear a bra. Ever.a She laughed as she did up her b.u.t.tons, and after he handed her the fleece shead worn, he picked up her panties.

Oh, for G.o.das sakesahe wanted to keep them. Which made him a perv and a jerk, but that was the caveman for you: He wanted something of his womanas with him.

Except she wasnat his, was she. For f.u.c.kas sake, what woman in her right mind would sign on for a guy whoad just dumped his would-be fiance? Yeah, real stable right there.

aI believe these are yours,a he murmured, handing over the slip of black with care.

aYes, they would be.a She took them and treated him to one h.e.l.l of a show as she put the things ona"not because she was being deliberately erotic, but because to him she was pretty frickina edible any way she came and no matter what she did.

The whole thing made him think about when head taken her jeans off. Head stopped at that point and stared at her for so long because head wanted to go down on her right then and there: Head been struck motionless by visions of moving her hips to the edge of the mattress and kneeling on the floor in front of her and taking his d.a.m.n time with her.

In some ways, though, oral s.e.x was more intimate than the whole penetration thing, and head been concerned that being with him would bring up bad memories for her. Which was exactly what had happened.

But hopefully there would be other times. Shortly. And a lot of them.

When he was dressed, and her bra was tucked in her pocket, they walked out of his old room, arm in arm, and as he pa.s.sed the mirror, he took the picture of the Madonna with him, slipping it into his jacket.

Downstairs, he turned off the lights and lowered the heat, and when they got to the front door, he paused and looked around. aI should clean this place up.a He had a feeling he wouldnat act on the impulse, however. Even though he had a crew of men he could send over to rip out all of the old c.r.a.p and demo the baths and kitchen, he had a terrible inertia problem when it came to the house.

In a lot of ways, it sucked the will to live right out of him.

On the way back to the Iron Mask, he held Marie-Tereseas hand the whole time, except for when he had to s.h.i.+ft.

Pulling into the clubas parking lot, he glanced over. As she stared out her window, the line of her chin and the way her hair fell over her shoulder were incredibly beautiful.

And then he realized what she was looking at. The alley on the far side that was cordoned off with crime scene tape.

aYou want me to follow you home?a he said.

She nodded, her eyes still locked on where those kids had been killed. aWould you mind?a aI would love to.a Man, trust from a woman could make a guy feel tall as a mountain.

Marie-Terese turned to face him. aThank youafor everything.a He leaned in slowly, in case kissing so close to where she had worked was going to be too much. She didnat move out of the way, though, and as their lips met briefly, he inhaled deep.

Clean laundry and fresh woman. That was what she smelled like.

Better than any perfume ever made.

aCan I see you again?a he asked.

Ducking her head, she picked her purse up from the floor. aI hope so.a With a last, too-quick smile, she sprang the door, got out, and went over to her car. Instead of using a security fob, she unlocked the thing using the actual key, and it took forever for the f.u.c.king thing to start.

He didnat like that Camry of hers. Way too unreliable.

And while he was at it, he didnat like how shead avoided his eyes just now.

When her car finally decided to get with the program, she took off and he rode her b.u.mper out of downtown and into another section of suburban houses. He knew immediately which one was hers: the little Cape Cod with the bars over every window, even those on the second floor. The car parked parallel to the curb right in front was no doubt the babysitteras.

Vin waited at the foot of the driveway while the garage door went up and she drove inside. As the panels trundled shut, he hoped he would catch another glimpse of her, but she stayed in the car.

Which was no doubt safer, and therefore a very good thing.

He waited some more.

And then there she was at the window in the kitchen, lifting her hand in a wave. Returning the good-bye, he waved and put his hand over the horn to give a little beepabut then stopped, figuring she wouldnat appreciate any attention being drawn to her.

He headed off with a frown cranking his eyebrows together, her situation chillingly obvious. She was still running from that ex-husband of hersarunning not just scared, but terrified, and expecting at some point to be found. For G.o.das sake, she wasnat even chancing it by opening her car door until she was locked in the garage.

His first thought was that he wanted to build her a fortress and arm the f.u.c.king place with a platoon of soldiers like Jim.

His next was of the way shead answered his question before shead left his car: Can I see you again?

I hope so.

She was going to bolt. Whether or not those two deaths last night had anything to do with her, she was going to pull a runner. And the idea of never seeing her again, of not knowing what happened to her, of not doing anything to help, panicked the s.h.i.+t out of him.

About fifteen minutes later, he pulled into the Commodoreas garage and parked next to his black Range Rover. For some reason, as he got into the elevator, echoes of the nightmare head had about Devina came back and he heard that voice again: Youare mine, Vin. And I always take what is mine.

On the twenty-eighth floor, he stepped out into the corridora"

Vin stopped. The door to his duplex was open and voices were coming out of his place. A number of them.

It was hard to believe Devina had gotten movers to come over this latea"it was past midnight, for f.u.c.kas sake. So what the h.e.l.l was going on?

Striding over, ready to give whoever was in his digs a hard time and then some, Vin burst inside with all proverbial guns blazing.

Cops.

There were four cops standing in his front hall, and they all looked over at him at the same time.

Holy s.h.i.+t, it had finally happened. All those bribes to city officials, all the misrepresentations, all the tax evasionsait had finally caught up with him.

aCan I help you, Officers?a he said, going total poker face.

aHeas here,a one of them called out.

As he wondered how many were in his study, his eyes s.h.i.+fted to the living rooma"

With a whispered curse, he took halting steps forward and gripped the carved jamb of the archway. The place looked like it had been hit with gale-force winds, furniture tipped out of place, paintings hanging c.o.c.keyed, liquor bottles smashed.

aWhereas Devina?a he asked.

aIn the hospital,a someone answered.

aSheas what?a aHospital.a He turned to the cop who had spoken. The guy was built like a bulldog, and with the hard expression he had on his face, he looked like one, too.

aIs she okay? What happened?a Vin eyed the handcuffs that were being unclipped from the manas belt. aWhat do you need those for?a aYouare under arrest for a.s.sault and battery. Please show me your hands.a aExcuse me?a aYou are under arrest for a.s.sault and battery.a The cop didnat wait for compliance, but grabbed Vinas right wrist and slapped the cuff over it. A quick wrench and Vin was locked in. aYou have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to have an attorney present during questioning. If you cannot afford an attorneyaa"now the guyas voice grew wrya"aone will be appointed to you. Do you understand these rights as Iave stated them?a aI havenat been here since this afternoon! And the last time I saw Devina, she was leavinga"a aDo you understand your rights?a aI didnat do any of this!a aDo you understand your rights?a Vin hadnat been arrested for years, but it was like riding a f.u.c.king bicycle; it all came back to him. Except for one salient parta"back then, head known precisely why he was being taken into custody because head actually commited the crime.

aAnswer me something,a he demanded as he wheeled around to confront the badge. aWhy do you think I hurt her?a aBecause she said you did, and going by the busted knuckles on your right hand, Iad say you were in an altercation very recently.a Devinaahad lied. Big time.

aI didnat hit her. Ever. I had no reason to.a aOh, really? You mean when she told you shead been with your buddy, that didnat tick you off? Hard to believe.a aMy buddy?a aLetas get you booked. And then you can call your lawyer.a The cop glanced around the ruined living rooma"which still managed to look expensive, even as trashed as it was. aSomething tells me you wonat be needing a public defender.a

CHAPTER 25.

Jim woke up on Sunday lying on his side, with Dog tucked into his chest, and the television on mute in the background.

The on-the-side part and the soundless TV were standard operating procedure. Dog, however, was a nice addition: Warm, friendly, and he smelled like summer air for some reason. The only time it got a little disorientating was when Dog dreamed, his paws twitching, his jaw working, m.u.f.fled growls or woofs coming every once in a while.

You had to wonder what he dreamed about. Clearly, there was running involved, given all that footwork, but hopefully it was because he was doing the chasing.

Jim arched his neck and checked out what was on the television. The local news was featuring that almost beautiful but very blond newscaster, who evidently covered weekend mornings. As she ran through her reports, images appeared to the left of her head and taped footage replaced her every now and again. School board vote. Pothole problem. At-risk youth program.

And then a familiar picture flashed: Vinas face.

Jim shot up, grabbed the remote, and hit the volumeaand could not believe what he heard: Vin arrested for beating his girlfriend. Bail to be set shortly. Devina in the hospital for overnight observation.

aAnd in other news,a the anchorwoman continued, athere has been a second brutal attack downtown. Robert Belthower, thirty-six, was found after midnight in an alley not far from where Friday nightas two victims were shot. He is now at St. Francis Hospital in critical condition. No suspects have been identified yet in the crime, and Police Chief Sal Funuccio issued a statement urging cautiona.a Jim stroked Dogas back. Holy s.h.i.+taVin diPietro was a lot of things, but a woman beater? Hard to believe that, given the way head gone after those two college kids for hara.s.sing Marie-Terese.

And another guy found in an alley? Although maybe that wasnat related to thea"