Bewitching You(32)

“Love him and he’ll love you back,” Penny whispered.

A painful spasm erupted at her temple, and nausea swamped her. This was an awful episode, possibly the worst yet. She leaned over and vomited into the pail she’d set by the bed just in case, then wiped her mouth with a tissue and carefully lay back down.

“Mom?” Laura stuck her head through the door. Her curly blonde locks fell off her shoulders. “Do you need anything?” she asked softly.

Such a sweet girl.

The pain was too overwhelming to answer. It was best to rest as still as possible.

Laura sat down on the bed and took Penny’s hand. “Mom, should I take you to the hospital? I’m worried.”

Penny closed her eyes. The throbbing was relentless.

Her daughter’s mind spun into panicky overdrive, but Penny was too weak to block it out. Too weak to make everything better.

Through the pounding at her temples she heard Laura pick up the telephone.

“Herbert, hello. Yes, this is Laura. Laura Good... Can you come over?”

Penny wasn’t sure if it was thoughts or speech. Her mind was blurring. Nothing was clear.

“I need your help. There’s something wrong with my mother.”





Chapter Fourteen



Sofia shut the door behind Elijah. The room was silent except for the pattering rain on the wood-paneled house, the ticking of the grandfather clock, and Gray’s unavoidable presence behind her.

“Why didn’t you go?” she asked, still holding onto the door handle. “You had the perfect opportunity.”

He didn’t answer, forcing Sofia to face him. His damp white t-shirt clung to his every muscle, and his chest rose up and down with each steadied breath. His eyes were darker than ever with dusk settling upon the house.

Her attraction to him was undeniable. Her love for him was heart-and-soul-consuming, to say the least. But at what cost?

“What do you want from me?” she asked. “Sex? For as long as this thing will last?” She mimicked the words he’d said while they were on the lake. Eye-opening words that made her question every second she’d spent with him. “Maybe I failed to mention this before but I’m not—”

“Do you feel this?” He gestured between them. “Or is it only in my head?”

She didn’t respond, afraid she understood exactly what he spoke of. The bond that drew them together. The one she’d been fighting off and on for the past couple of days. It grew stronger with every passing moment.

“I need you, Sofia. I can’t leave here.”

She fisted her clammy hands. “Of course you can leave. Whenever you want. In fact, why don’t you leave now?” She attempted to turn the doorknob, but it wouldn’t budge, ice-cold under her fingertips.

What was going on?

Swiftly, he was on her, backing her against the door. His thigh pressed between her legs, and his hands braced against the door on either side of her head. “You won’t get rid of me that easily.”

Sofia gulped and felt his mouth against hers. She parted her lips for him, and he pulled her bottom lip through his teeth, teasingly. A battle roared inside her. He couldn’t simply take control of her. She wouldn’t allow it.

“Back up,” she said with force, surprising herself.

“You’re kidding.” His husky voice rumbled against her lips.

“No. Back up.”

He did. Slowly.

“It’s not only in your head,” she admitted. “I feel this too.” She repeated the same gesture he’d made moments ago.

He let out a breath, sounding much like relief. “Then let’s go upstairs and quench it. Let’s make love until we’re both satisfied.”

“That’s just it, Gray. What if I don’t want it to go away? What if it hurts me that you do want it to go away?”

“Not go away. Just tame it. I ache for you, Sofia, ever since the first time I walked in this door. Being with you, getting to know you, has stirred something in me. And it’s not letting up.”

Where was a white flag when she needed one?

Focus. She’d give him what he wanted, but she’d do it her way. Besides, she wanted him too. The inner depths of her yearned for him. His kiss, his touch, his rough voice when he whispered in her ear.

He followed as she walked into the kitchen, watching her with those sensual, predator eyes, waiting for her next move. She leaned against the butcher block and bumped her butt against the edge a few times. Pretty sturdy. This could work.

“Take off your clothes,” she said. “They’re dripping all over the floor.”

His lips turned up into a slight grin. “Yes, ma’am.”

The man wasn’t an imbecile, obviously. He yanked his t-shirt over his head and flung it at her. She spoke too soon. Biting back a smartass remark, Sofia laid the damp shirt across the back of a chair, then turned to close the window curtains.

Gray nudged up beside her, throwing his jeans over another chair. Which meant...?

She sneaked a peek from the corner of her eye.

Oh yeah, he was naked and his manly component was wide awake, standing at attention.

His lips brushed against her ear. “Ready for my next order, ma’am.”

“Er, um, why don’t you stand over there?” She pointed over to the kitchen sink.

“Will I be washing your dishes?”

She shook her head. Boy, did he know how to rattle her.

He chuckled quietly as he made his way to the sink. Sofia’s heart sped. She’d never seen this side of his body before. Broad shoulders curved down into a lean waist and lower to his nicely shaped butt. Not too big. Not too small.

Was this man perfect in every way?

The ache Gray mentioned earlier settled deep in her belly, forcing Sofia to hope this thing wouldn’t end any time soon. Despite her fear.

~ * ~

Gray felt much better now that at least he had his clothes off. He’d always been comfortable in his own skin. He worked hard biking and lifting weights, keeping his body in shape, and at this moment, it was paying off. The blush on Sofia’s face assured him his ache would be quenched soon. He leaned against the counter with his hands behind his head and waited for her next order.

Service with a smile was his motto tonight.

True, Gray didn’t usually take orders very well, but this was different. His point was proven when she stood in front of him, sultry blue eyes staring up through her thick eyelashes.

“Now, take off my clothes.”

He inhaled sharply. Thank God he wasn’t on a horse and buggy in the rain right now with the creepy Amish guy. He’d had no intention of leaving Sofia. Not until this overwhelming urge to touch her and to love her subsided. If it ever did.

Hell, he didn’t know what the future held, but as he slipped her shirt over her head, he couldn’t imagine it would be possible to stop the momentum of this relationship. He removed the rest of her clothing and waited for the next command, hoping it would be a good one. His cock was growing impatient.

She backed up against the butcher block. “Can you lift me up here?”

Ah, her demands were becoming questions. Was her confidence diminishing? She had a problem with that, didn’t she? Lord knew why. She was a beautiful woman.

“Anything you want,” he said, and boosted her up by the waist.

Once his hands were on her warm skin, it was difficult to let go. He slid them up to her breasts and caressed her soft, plump flesh. “I can’t decide which I love more, your breasts or your ass.”

She cradled his jaw and edged it up to meet her eyes. “Fuck me.” Her voice was so low and heated, it took a moment to grasp what she’d said.

Then it hit him…deep down in his groin.

She leaned back on her hands and spread her legs for him, all the while daring him with her eyes. The confidence was returning. Damn, he liked that.

Gray ran his hands back down to her waist and jerked her forward to the edge of the butcher block. If she wanted to be f*cked, that was what he’d do.

She gasped but quickly gained composure, clasping onto his shoulders and bracing her legs around him. “You’re such a bully.”

He chuckled. “Would you rather I carry you upstairs and make slow, gentle love to you?”

She shook her head. “I want it hard and I want it here.”

His balls tightened. “Are you wet for me?” Gray slid a finger inside her and brought it out to lick. “Just right.”

Her legs trembled against his hips. “What are you waiting for, then?”

Without further delay, Gray grabbed his pulsing erection and guided it into her, driving in until he backed up against her innermost walls.

Her hands clenched down on his shoulders. “Again.”

He withdrew halfway and thrust in once more.

She bit into her bottom lip and closed her eyes. “Faster.”