Everyone has a Weak spot (8 page)

Alec said gleefully, “Get out your wallets, kids,” and pulled his out. Alec told War, “Watch Renaud. My money's on
him
."

Zierra sniffed disgustedly but stared fixedly through the large window into the studio. “Here he goes, ya'll!” someone called out, and War moved to the front for a clearer view. Anna leaned on his shoulder.

Renaud could be seen engrossed in conversation with Lorelei. “Watch, he's gonna hit the wall, he just cain't help it.” This was offered from someone whose money was apparently
not
on Renaud. War watched closely.

Suddenly, there was an audible groan from Renaud's backers as the young man placed both hands on Lorelei's shoulders. Then the crowd began to count, “five, four, three, two, one—ohhhh..."

Lorelei seemed to expand. She was shaking a finger at Renaud and obviously giving him a harsh dressing down. Her brow was furrowed, and she was not letting up. Renaud had put his hands on her.

So, even his nephew was one of “the guys"
.

War grinned. A red stain crept up Renaud's skin into his hairline. Zierra was smug.

“
Mais non, mes amis!
,” called Alec. As he spoke, Renaud dropped to one knee and extended a hand, palm up, toward Lorelei. She took a deep breath, stomped her foot, and turned her head away. She turned back to look at Renaud. Renaud bowed his head, exposing his neck to her. War was stunned.

“Absolutely fuckin’ masterful,” murmured Alec. Lorelei lifted a dainty foot and placed it on his shoulder and shoved. Renaud grabbed the foot and both toppled end over end, gracefully gaining their feet. They were laughing. She walked away from him, and Renaud came toward the watching group.

He entered the crowded room and said to Alec, “Hand me that CD,
ami,
and could you get Mademoiselle Rory and me some water for after."

Three of the boys present groaned.

“
No way!
!"

“I saw her yelling at you!"

“She was pissed as hell! You
touched
her, you bastard!” They were very upset with Renaud.

Renaud looked at the three boys, then he looked at Zierra. He locked eyes with her and said, “Yeah, she was yellin’ at me. She was sure pissed, no?"

He looked at Zierra for a long moment. Enunciating each word carefully, he said, “She's
God—damn—beautiful
when she's mad, ain't she?” His eyes bored into hers. He turned to leave.

War stood up and several of the boys gathered around Renaud.

War stalked up to Renaud. “What you playin’ at, boy?"

“Not a damn thing, Oncle,” Renaud told him. He went on, “I'm gonna have a beautiful woman drape herself all over me. I'm gonna teach another beautiful woman that I cain't be led around like a dog on a leash. Life is good. Excuse me."

War watched his nephew stalk to the center of the room and begin stretching. Zierra trained her gaze on Renaud and never looked away. Anna was so excited that she couldn't sit still.

War fixed his eyes on the couple in the center as the lights dimmed to a single spotlight trained on them. He'd never watched his nephew dance before a few nights ago. The opening chords to Chris Isaak's
Wicked Game
began to play.

The two dancers were pressed body-to-body—toe-to-toe, hip-to-hip, and torso against torso. When the music began, they raised their arms in unison. They slowly laced fingers over their heads. Somehow they were turning in circles in opposite directions and hadn't let go.

They stopped turning and began swaying together as one. Slowly, one at a time, they separated their fingers.

Renaud gracefully leaped away from Lorelei, spinning and turning across the room. Lorelei leaped after him dragging her hands across his shoulders and chest as she revolved around him. She pressed her front to his back and began to sway with him.

Lorelei began to turn, moving away from Renaud. She began a jump, and he met her in midair. With both hands, he grabbed her by the waist and lifted her without losing momentum.

The two completed a revolution with Renaud ending flat on his feet. He held Lorelei facing him with her body above his. She raised her arms over her head as Renaud began to lower her so that her petit and feminine body slid down against his muscled and masculine one. Her arms were around his neck when her feet finally touched the floor.

She lifted her hands and placed them on each side of his face then swirled, nimbly bounding away again.

From opposite sides of the room, the two moved toward each other, first with small jumps then finally, they met in midair in the center of the room in a hurdle-like jump. They each looped one arm around the other's waist and turned, landing on toes that allowed them to revolve together in the perfect ballerina stance.

They continued to chase one another around the floor with fluid grace. He chased her, and she leaped away. She turned to pursue him and he bounded agilely out of her reach. Their bodies stroked one another intimately throughout the dance.

As the song ended, the pair pressed together with their bodies locked. Renaud bent his head to hers, and she flowed backward till she was bent nearly double. As the lights dimmed, it was impossible to tell if they were kissing or not.

Most of those people who'd watched from the anteroom spilled out onto the floor immediately and swarmed the two. War didn't move. He was awed by the intensity and beauty of their dance. As he turned his head, he saw that Zierra hadn't moved either. He looked at her and arched an eyebrow.

Zierra's chin wobbled. She shrugged her shoulders and looked away. He held out an arm, and she scooted over and nestled against him crying softly. After a moment, he handed her a tissue from a nearby box. She wiped her eyes and blew her nose. He took a deep breath and looked at the group.

In the center of the excited throng sat Renaud and Lorelei. Neither of them spoke. Leaning against one another, they sipped their water and allowed the chatter to flow around them. Sometimes one smiled, sometimes one nodded but, War noticed, neither had much to say to the crowd. They were separate from their surroundings.

Their dance had been maddeningly intimate. Under any other circumstances, War knew he would want to rip his nephew's limbs off his body. He wasn't sure he didn't want to do that anyway.

He knew the two were not romantically involved. He'd known that before he asked Lorelei. They were bonded in some way, sure. That Legacy was vague enough that he couldn't tell if they were expected to have children together or not. Too bad for the Legacy if that's what it meant. That woman wasn't getting near anyone else's sperm.

Whoa! Rein it in boy,
War told himself.

He turned to Zierra. He waited until she turned to him. “You see that sweet li'l thing next to Renaud?” he asked her. She frowned and looked at him again. He grabbed her head and turned it.

“You see that beautiful, tiny little lady propped up against the man you once told me you love?” When she didn't respond, he gave her a rough shake and gritted,
"Do you see her?
?” finally Zierra responded with a nod.

“That's the one I want. She's mine. She just don't know it yet. Mayhap I'll need to compromise a time or two. I don't know shit about dancin’ if it ain't some kinda swing or two-step or one-step. But I'll meet her in the middle somewhere. She'll learn about what I care about. I want that woman. I'm willing to work for her."

He strode from the room. A minute later, Zierra followed him. He reached into the middle of the crowd and plucked Lorelei away from Renaud, tucking her against his side.

“Ya miss me, sugar baby?” he asked in his deep, rumbly voice. Lorelei was clearly surprised. Renaud neatly stepped around Zierra and positioned himself in front of the couple.

“Oncle War? I didn't know you knew Rory all that well,” inquired Renaud. His voice was protective and angry. He reached out to her.

“Maybe you don't know everything, hmm? Besides, I think you got your own troubles, boy.” War snapped, nodding at Zierra. She had begun to unbutton her blouse.

When Renaud turned to look at her, she told him, “We will talk, or I'll strip naked right here in front of this whole room."

Lorelei was dazed. Renaud was clearly divided. Before Renaud could work up an answer, War told them all, “You gonna strip off, little girl, do it outside. Every one of you, OUT!"

Thank God that Maria was taking little Anna home.

To his incredible satisfaction, all the young people filed out. When the room was empty, War turned back to Lorelei. She looked at him unblinking for a minute. Then she shook her head.

“Sheriff Martine, did you come to give me the report?” she asked him quietly. As she spoke, she began to wander away from him. His eyes narrowed as he moved toward her.

“I came to see you,
chéri,
” he answered, “I just brought the report with me.” He continued to advance on her.

She giggled and twirled away. “How funny that I've lived outside the law
all
this time. Since I moved here, I've had countless run-ins with the local sheriff."

He thought she might be trying to keep things light between them. Apparently she still felt incredibly self-conscious about the barbecue and the late-night phone calls.
Too bad. He didn't want things light between them. He wanted things heavy, very heavy.

War reached out and snatched her in mid-twirl. As her body met his he crossed an arm behind her and clasped her hip. With his other hand he buried his fingers in her hair and held her head in his palm.

Lowering his head to hers, he told her, “You cain't avoid the long arm of the law,
chéri.
"

He bent and brushed his lips across hers. He traced the seam of her lips with the tip of his tongue. She uttered a soft, passionate sound.

Tenderly he took her lower lip between his teeth. His tongue slid into her mouth and caressed hers with long, gentle strokes. His hand cupped her head, caressing her scalp.

Without breaking off the kiss, he swung her into his arms and carried her down the short hallway to her apartment. He put her on her feet inside the door and began kissing her face.

As he continued to kiss her mouth with increased pressure, his hands moved to her shoulders. In one move, he pulled the leotard down her arms on both sides and exposed her small breasts.

She uttered a cry of protest, as he pushed the leotard completely off of her arms. He pulled his own shirt open and dropped it to the floor.

His chest was broad and muscled, furred with black hair that tapered to his belt buckle where it disappeared. Lorelei crossed her arms over her small bosom and stared at him, wide-eyed.

“Uh, uh, uh,
chéri
. How you gonna hide such a beautiful sight from me?” He rumbled, taking her wrists in his hands and placing them on his tanned, hairy chest. “Mmmmmm,” he growled. “I just gotta have me a taste,
petit.
I'm a starvin’ man and only you can sate me."

He lowered his mouth to one breast and took a nipple into his mouth, sucking harder and harder. He nipped at it and then laved it with his expert tongue to bring it to a hard peak. Then, kissing a path from one breast to the other, he repeated the attention to her neglected breast.

As he suckled at her breasts, War unbuckled his belt and unzipped his pants. Locking eyes with her, he took one of her hands and placed it on his enormous erection. She rubbed his cock through his boxers. She didn't move her hand away, but she raised her huge eyes to his face.

“What is it
, chéri
?” He knew something was wrong. Was he moving too fast?

“I don't know what to do,” she whispered, her face flaming. “I've never ... I haven't even seen...” She trailed off, looking like a deer caught in headlights.

His indigo eyes softened and caught fire. His woman would never know another man besides him. He was to be her only one. He, and only him, would teach her about love. He felt like howling. She hadn't tried to stop him, she just didn't know what to do.

He lowered his shorts. He held his hand over hers and placed it on his cock. He wrapped her fingers around it and moved them up and down.

“Just touch me,
chéri
. I just need your touch,” he said as he lowered his mouth to hers again. He reached into her leotard and tights, under her panties and cupped her round little bottom.

“Mine,” he moaned into her mouth. “All mine!"

He squeezed her and released rhythmically as he edged his fingers closer to her moist center.

He groaned at the way she was moving her hand on his rigid length. She squeezed her small hand and moved up and down. She moved her fingers lightly over the tip.

Timidly, she reached down with her other hand, combing through the mass of black hair at his genitals. She slid her fingers under his balls causing him to groan louder. When she jerked her hand away, he caught it.

“Don't stop,
chéri
. I have never felt anything so
bon
as your fingers touching me that way."

Her lips curved in a smile as old as the Garden of Eden, and she moved her fingers back to cup him again. He was wrestling mightily for control when his police radio went off. He went still and cursed under his breath in Cajun French as he listened to the call. He was off duty, but this was a serious call.

“Oh
chéri
, I don't want to go,” he moaned. He gave each of her nipples a sucking kiss and covered her mouth with his, kissing her deeply. He growled and groaned again as he donned his shirt and zipped his pants, and tucked in his shirttails. His radio repeated the call, sounding even more insistent than before. Another quick kiss and he was gone.

Chapter 11

Hours later, War sat at his desk wrapping up his report. The call had been a convenience store holdup, and the damn fool had taken a shot at him. That had
really
pissed him off.

He had been on the brink of making love for the first time with his mate—holy shit!—his mate!

Anyway, that slimy little loser had a lot to answer for. He'd damn near killed the man. Now he had to write it up.

When he was finished, War stared speculatively across the street. He could see quite a bit through Lorelei's corner window, but he couldn't tell what she was doing.