Dawned (Circle of the Red Scorpion Book 3) Page 5

  He is enormous; she thought as she remembered the young males in her tribe skinny dipping in the river while she hid behind a tree watching them. Had they discovered her and told others, the news would have spread through the village, and there would have been hell to pay when her father found out. Thankfully, they never saw her, and her father was none the wiser. If he had found out, she would have received a more severe punishment than being the Shaman's assistant.

  She sat up and stared at his magnificent erection. The males she’d seen at the river paled in comparison to this man. She reached out to touch it, and it twitched in reaction. Amazed, she traced a finger up the large vein to the smooth mushroom head. She heard him suck in a breath and she paused as she rolled her eyes up to meet his. She took his cock in her hand. He was too large for her to close around it completely. She stroked him, surprised that he was growing longer and thicker in her hand.

  "Careful, angel," he groaned as he watched her hand slide up and down his length, his arousal increasing with each stroke. When he felt her fingers trace around the ridges of the mushroom head and over the tip, it was nearly his undoing. He gently grabbed her hand and stopped her.

  "You have to stop.”

  "It's amazing how it moves when I touch it," she said with wonder. A drop of pre-cum oozed from the tip. She rubbed her finger across the head again.

  "Dear god, angel," he bit out, grinding his teeth. "There's only so much a man can take."

  She giggled and released him. She lay back down and boldly raised her arms up to him. "Show me the rest," she said, her voice husky with desire and seductively opened her legs in invitation.

  He bent to pick up his jeans and quickly drew a condom out of a back pocket. He ripped open the wrapper. He expertly peeled the condom over his swollen length and sank down between her thighs. He reached between them and stroked her, sliding two fingers inside, scissoring his fingers to open her more, preparing her. When he was able to add another finger, he knew she was ready. He positioned himself at her entrance and stopped.

  "Are you sure, angel? Once I start, there's no going back."

  "I want this, Broderick. I want it with you."

  He captured her lips with his, kissing her deeply, his tongue probing her mouth. He slid into her hot channel until he met her maidenhead.

  "This is going to hurt but only for a moment,” he whispered against her lips. “Then all you will feel is pleasure. I promise."

  She shook her head, her body momentarily tensed at the thought of pain then relaxed. She trusted him and knew he would not hurt her.

  He intertwined her fingers with his and surged forward, breaking through the thin barrier until he was buried to the hilt. She gave a small gasp of pain, and her nails dug into his biceps. He slowly pulled out and entered her again. He thrust in and out of her in a slow, methodical rhythm as her pleasure heightened into soft panting moans.

  He filled her over and over. The momentary pain she felt when he first entered her was quickly forgotten as each thrust increased her delicious sensations. He was so large when she first saw him she didn't think he would be able to fit inside her, but they fit perfectly. Like a key into a lock.

  Her body spasmed as an orgasm more intense than the one before detonated and she cried out as her hot pulsating pussy gripped his cock. He covered her mouth with his and swallowed her cries. He thrust into her again and again until his release rode him so hard he couldn't hold back anymore. With a throaty growl, he rode a wave of pleasure like he'd never known.

  He got to his knees and took off the used condom and set it aside. He pulled her into his arms and rolled onto his back taking Elise with him. Neither one spoke. There were no words for what they just shared. It was too overwhelming. They lay there silently knowing tonight was the only intimate night they would ever share. The thought saddened them both.

  "What time do you leave in the morning," she whispered as she lay nestled on his chest.

  "I check out at seven. I need to get back early to prepare for my case on Monday."

  "Will you be back?"

  He held her tighter and grimaced. "I don't know, angel."

  She closed her eyes, trying to fight back the tears. Her heart was breaking. "I hope you return someday, Broderick. Until then, I'll be waiting."

  Her words tore at his soul. "Oh god, you're breaking me in two," he inhaled sharply, a tight fist of pain squeezing his chest.

  She raised her head and stared down at him; tenderness filled her green eyes. "If it's meant to be, we will meet again. Our fate is in the hands of the Great Spirits." She leaned down and kissed him.

  He turned over until she was underneath him. He was hard again. He stretched out an arm and retrieved his jeans. He pulled out another condom and rolled it over his erection. He slid easily inside her. They made love slowly, savoring each moment, knowing it was all they had.

  Chapter 5

  Thirty minutes later, Broderick and Elise stood on the pathway where they parted ways earlier in the day, holding hands and taking their time, neither one wanting to be the first to break their connection.

  “You must go before your parents start to worry.”

  “I don’t want to leave you,” she said as tears gathered in her eyes. “For the first time in my life, I’m floating above the clouds, not imprisoned by them. With you, I feel no limits.”

  He was touched by her eloquent words, but he could not let them prevent him from doing what he had to do. It made him an asshole, but he had to do what made sense.

  “I know, Elise. I wish I could stay here with you, but I have to go back and handle my cases. It is important work. It’s what I was meant to do.”

  “I know that Broderick but promise me you’ll come back.” She wiped away a tear.

  Broderick tightened his jaws in frustration and guilt. “I can’t promise that, angel. Besides, your parents would never approve of me.”

  “I don’t care,” Elise argued. “It’s my life.”

  “They are your parents, and they only want what’s best for you.”

  “Marrying someone I do not love is not what’s best for me. Please, take me with you.”

  “I’m so sorry,” he said with the deepest sadness and regret. He lifted her hands to his lips. “Take care of yourself, angel. I wish you every happiness.” He let her hands go.

  Elise stared down at them and couldn’t meet his eyes. He’d taken her far from the world she’d known in the last few intimate hours, and now she was in free-fall. He was going back to his life, and all she had to look forward to was a life with Billy White Dove.

  “Goodbye, Broderick. I’ll never forget you.” She turned without another glance and ran down the path that led to her village.

  He watched her go. There was a piercing chasm of pain in his chest that grew the further away she went. He stayed until he could no longer hear her footsteps. His head was throbbing by the time he went back to the lodge to pack for his trip home. He lay down to go to sleep, but it evaded him.

  As Broderick headed for Seattle, his body on autopilot, his mind was still in the gazebo with Elise snuggled protectively in his arms. He remembered their lovemaking, and his body ached for her. He was her first, and he treasured the precious gift she gave him. The thought of another man touching what was his drove him mad with jealousy. His. Elise was his, no one else's. No doubt about it. But could he take her away from her home and the only life she'd ever known? Was it fair to allow her to turn her back on her tribal legacy? She had a choice; he did not. His legacy was more than rules or traditions. It was who he was, something he could never be separated from.

  But how was he to go back to his life when he was leaving part of his soul at the waterfall where they met and the rest in the gazebo above the lodge? He looked in the rearview mirror and nearly turned his car around but forced himself to keep going. He needed time to forget the last two days, and so did she. It was the right thing to do.

  ****<
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  Over the next six months, Broderick worked his cases tirelessly, not leaving him much time to think about her. He didn't have her phone number, and he had no way to reach her. He couldn't very well stride up to her parents' home in her village and introduce himself. He was sure that wouldn't go over too well with her over-protective father.

  He hadn’t seen Elise in months, yet the image of her lovely face did not diminish. Every time he returned to his estate outside of Kalaloch, he sought solace in the forest on his property, he saw her face, heard her gentle laughter and was assaulted by her scent. No woman had ever made such a strong impression on him. Was he a fool for not going back to Snoqualmie Falls to claim her?

  After hours of working a difficult case and feeling frustrated and alone one night, he left his penthouse condo in Seattle where he stayed most of the time during the week and went down to the parking garage. He opened the trunk of his BMW 730i to retrieve the windbreaker he wore the day he met her. He'd left it zipped up in his tote bag in the trunk, so he wouldn't have to see it or smell her scent. He put it to his nose and breathed deeply. The scent of lavender still clung to it after all those months, and it rocked his senses. For God's sake, why was he torturing himself? But even as the words came to mind, he gripped the windbreaker tightly against his chest, imagining her in his arms. He felt something crinkle in the pocket. He frowned. He put his hand inside and pulled out a folded piece of sketch paper. He held it to his nose and sniffed. Lavender.

  He put the jacket back in the trunk and closed it. He took the elevator back up to his condo still clutching the folded sketch paper in his hand. He went into the study, sat down behind his desk and unfolded the paper and gasped. It was the scene at the waterfall the morning he first saw her. Elise was nude to the waist in the splash pool with the waterfall behind her. It was a self-portrait, and it blew him away. It wasn't in the sketchbook she showed him. She must have brought it with her the night they were together. When had she drawn it? Surely, she didn’t have time to do it after she left him in the forest that morning or did she? She told him she had to help her village get ready for the Moon celebration. But did it matter? She gave him the precious gift so that he would remember her. She was aiding Fate, and he loved her for it.

  Broderick froze. God, I love her, he thought. Really love her. He’d known it from the very first moment he saw her. She was his mate. He cursed himself for waiting so long to retrieve the damned windbreaker and face reality

  The wonderful day and passionate evening he spent with her and the deep primal feelings he tried so hard to extinguish rushed over him. He loved her, and he wanted her in his life. No, he needed her. Without her, he had no life at all.

  The next day, Broderick told his boss he needed a few days off. The case he was working on got postponed for a few weeks, so he had the time. His boss, Stan Crenshaw, was surprised by his rare request for time off but approved it without asking a question. Early the next morning, he was on the road, heading toward what he hoped was his destiny.

  He waited for her in the forest near the outcropping of her secret place, hoping she would come there as she always did. His heart pounded wildly with apprehension. Had she moved on with her life? For all he knew, she could be engaged or married by now. Had he made a terrible mistake?

  When he heard her footsteps, he froze. Would she be happy to see him, or would she send him packing? The thought of her rejection alarmed him. As she grew closer, each one of her footsteps caused his heart to beat faster.

  Elise walked up the path to her secret place as she had for months. Going there did not hold the joy it once did. Broderick wouldn't be there, and the thought saddened her as it did every day since he left. She thought of never going there again but where else did she have to go? She needed distance from her father and Billy White Dove.

  She’d met Billy the next morning as promised and told him she couldn’t marry him. He was devastated and quite angry with her, but she stressed to him it wasn’t fair to either one of them to be trapped in a loveless marriage. She would never love him the way he wanted her to. He deserved better than that.

  Her father was livid when she told him about her conversation with Billy. In the days that followed, her father kept pressuring her to choose another one of the braves to marry. He told her if she did not pick one soon, he would do it for her. She had managed to put him off for the last six months with the help of her mother, but she would have to make a choice soon. It was clear Broderick Devereaux was not coming back.

  Elise reached the outcropping, her spirits low, her heart heavy. Her precious sketchbook was under one arm, and her backpack slung over her shoulder. She had another argument with her father that ended with him storming into his bedroom and slamming the door as her mother looked on helplessly.

  “I’m sorry, daughter,” her mother kissed her cheek. “I’ll try to talk some sense into him, but you must decide what you want to do. As much as I don’t want to see you go, you may have to leave the village to have the life you desire. I love you.”

  “Love you too, mama.”

  She watched her mother walk down the hall to talk to her husband. She hoped her father cooled down by the time she came back home.

  Elise sighed. This day would be like all the others; her sitting alone in her secret place wishing her handsome lover was there with her. And like every other day, he would not appear.

  It was a winter day, so she brought a thick blanket with her. The sun would take the edge off the chill in the air today but soon the ground would be covered with snow and her time up there would be limited. She stared down at the crest of the waterfall. It’s loud, churning sound and swift movement was her only comfort.

  She heard the rustle of leaves and glanced back toward the trees and saw Broderick, stepping forward with a lazy smile on his face. She blinked twice, believing her desperation to see him again was causing her to hallucinate. She stared into his sapphire blue eyes and knew she was not seeing things. He was here, really here in her secret place.

  "Hello, angel."

  She shrieked with joy as her heart expanded with love. She dropped the sketchbook and backpack and ran into his arms. She peppered his face with kisses, and he buried his face in her hair.

  "You came back," she said breathlessly.

  "I couldn't stay away. The months since I last saw you have been sheer hell. I can't be separated from you again. Never again." He sought her lips eagerly, the taste of her revived his starving senses and his jaguar leaped with joy.

  "Does that mean you’re going to take me with you?" she said against his lips.

  “Is that what you want?”

  "More than anything. Please, Broderick, take me away from here."

  "What about your parents?"

  She pulled her lips away from his as she regarded him thoughtfully. "Do you love me?"

  He stroked her cheek gently. "Yes, I love you."

  She smiled. "I love you too. With all my heart. I'm an adult. My parents can't stop me from leaving," she said with defiance.

  "Don't you want their blessing?"

  She frowned. "Yes, but I doubt my father will give it. He still wants me to marry a brave from our village. He's been pressuring me for months." Her eyes filled with tears. "If I don't leave here, he is going to choose a brave for me. If he gets his way, I’ll be married before the month is out." She looked at him desperately. "If that happens, we can never be together, Broderick. I can't live through letting another man touch me and fill me with his child. Living year after year, always wondering what it would have been like to be with you instead." Tears fell down her cheeks, and she buried her face in his chest and sobbed quietly, fearing he would leave again.

  Her words chilled him to the bone. If he had not come back for her, she would have been forced to marry. Thank god it didn’t happen already. The thought of her marrying someone else filled him with anger, and he saw red. His jaguar stirred, growling low and long in his throat. If
he didn’t take her away, he would lose her forever. He kissed the top of her head and tightened his arms around her.

  "I'm taking you to Seattle and when we get there, angel, I want you to marry me. I want us to be a family. After our honeymoon, I’ll take you home to my family estate near Kalaloch."

  Her sobbing subsided at his words, and she stared up at him with hope in her tear-filled eyes. "You want to marry me?"

  "God yes, angel. Nothing would make me happier."

  Elise shrieked with relief and utter happiness. She jumped up into his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. She covered his face with more kisses. Broderick was hers, and they would never be apart again. "I love you so much. You make me happy."

  He groaned as her crotch rubbed his cock and it began to swell. After all the cold showers and daily rounds of masturbating to take the edge off, the thought of being inside her was too much. He carried her away from the outcropping to a thicket of trees. A Madrone tree not quite as large as the one in her village, had two low hanging limbs that formed a U at the base. It was too cold to be doing this, but neither of them cared. He set her on her feet and unzipped her jeans. She quickly stepped out of them and unbuttoned her blouse but left it on. He quickly pulled off his tee shirt and slid his jeans down to his ankles. He lifted her up onto the sloping curve of the tree and opened her legs and slid between them, preparing to take her hard and quick. His desire for her burned him from the inside out.

  "Shit," he exclaimed.

  "What is it?" She asked, her hands roaming over his muscled chest.

  "Condom," he gruffly said as he bent down and retrieved one out of his jean pocket and rolled it quickly on. "Sorry."

  She laughed and placed her hands on his shoulders as he gripped her ass in his hands and thrust into her. She moaned as she took all of him. She was full to bursting, and she loved it. The trembling walls of her pussy stimulated his cock and drove him on.