Leoti (10 page)

“What?” Carlton said surprised.

“Sorry friend.” Milton shrugged and tried to pass. Carlton stepped in his way. “Wait, you sure? Look again.”

“I say I ain’t seen her.”

“Son, I told you they rent from the owners,” Nathan said behind him. Carlton still couldn’t shake the feeling that Milton was lying. Except his lie wasn’t like Nathan’s reluctance due to privacy. He sensed another motive that set his inner alarm bells off.

“How about you rent me a cabin then?”

“Can’t, ain’t none.” Milton said stubbornly.

Nathan stepped out on the store steps letting the door close. “Elu has an empty cabin out there near the lake.” Nathan volunteered. “Like I said he ain’t coming down out of the mountain though for no renter. Hell I haven’t seen him in almost two weeks, but he wouldn’t mind.”

Carlton cut his eyes between them both then returned them to Nathan. “Can you rent me one of his cabins and I will square it away with him in the morning?”

Nathan shrugged his shoulders. “Sure, Milton rent him Elu’s and I’ll deal with the pipe,” he said taking the tools. “Elu been complaining that we never send renters his way.”

Milton looked at Carlton as if he would object. Was the man slow? What was his problem, Carlton wondered. Milton threw up his hands in defeat. “Follow me, I’ll do it. But you explain it to Elu!” he shouted at the old man behind Carlton.

The Cabin

Josie sat at the dinner table. The sun having set, she and Po remained patient in the darkening room. Elu said he had a surprise for her. For the past half-hour she and Po watched him walk in and out of the cabin. It dawned on her how much she craved his attention when she wasn’t his focus. Trying not to pout about it she downed the last of the wine letting the smooth berry flavor coat her tongue then go down her throat.

“Leoti?”

She lowered the glass, and licked the last of the wine from her lips. He stood in between the cabin and the night. He leaned on the inside frame of the patio door. Part of that handsome face of his was covered in shadows.

“Come with me,” he said. The request came across as if it were one syllable in a voice that was both deep and low. Over dinner she confessed that her feelings for him were strong and real. When pressed for his he evaded, and then he said he would rather show her. Was this the showing? Josie and Po both rose. She looked over to the dog who cocked his head as if to say he didn’t know the meaning of the invite either.

“Guess we better find out huh, boy?”

Po wagged his tail and stretched. She crossed the room faster than she intended, anxious nervousness left her shoving her hands deep down her front jean pockets. “What’s going on?” she asked rocking on the back of her heels once she stood before him. Elu’s hand extended and she immediately turned over hers. He lifted it to his lips and pressed a soft meaningful kiss to her knuckles. The mere brush of his lips sent tingles over her. All they had was simple touches and a few
meaningful
kisses between them. She craved more. He led her out the door. The night was cooler than she expected, but warm enough to endure. The wraparound deck, a polished oak with extended flooring, allowed for patio furniture and a man-made hot tub. The scene before her eyes was from the pages of every girl’s fantasy book.

And there it was, like some ancient natural spring circled by smoothed over stones, bubbly, steamy blue waters with a clear luminance from the lamps built into the flooring. Above it, lanterns were strung, soft yellow globes. The night air swept through the trees shaking the branches and leaves. His strong arms closed in on her as he rubbed the side of his face against hers. Josie’s eyes closed from the comfort of his touch. “Those are healing stones. They’ve been in my family for years. Will you relax for me?”

She turned in his arms, hers went around his waist. “Join me. Please. I want you to.”

“I didn’t do this for that reason. I wanted to show you how much I care.”

She pressed a single finger to his lips. He kissed it lightly and she was slow to remove it. She loved the feel of his lips. He was so much man she had to be his. If she had another life, another lover, she didn’t care. He was all she could think of.

Elu’s chest burned with conflict. She was all he wanted now. He needed her love, to protect her, to worship her. Not since he’d lost his wife had he felt such a complete connection with another soul. But he’d been dishonest. He should to tell her about the journal.

“Leoti, there’s something I need to tell you first.”

She stepped back shaking her head. “No more of this. I don’t remember much, I own my feelings, and you have been avoiding truly touching me. Let’s stop pretending we don’t both need this.”

The night sky and mountainous landscape was her backdrop. He watched her start to unbutton her blouse. He’d seen her body before, but the slow strip tease did things to the man in him he couldn’t be blamed for. When her shirt parted and the dark lace cups of her bra lifted in to view Elu sucked in an audible breath, and dropped his head shaking it in defeat. There was just so much he could stand. With her gaze fixed on his she shrugged her shirt completely off, letting it drift to a stack of forgotten fabric at her feet. And that smile of hers was like a ray of sunshine in this dark star-filled night.

“You’re beautiful.” He admitted, because she was. Her bruising blended with the even brown tone of her skin. And when she reached behind her to undo her bra he found the globes of her breasts to be flawless. Elu stood there staring. Next were her jeans. Josie eased the zipper down. She hooked her thumb inside the top rim and she worked them off her heart shaped hips until they fell to her feet. She toed out of the jeans trapped around her ankles. Eventually she kicked them aside. Lastly she removed her panty. Dared him with those beautiful long lashed eyes of hers and then turned and went to the hot tub.

Josie dipped her big toe into the water and exhaled with surprise over the warmth stirring the water. She stole another glance at him from over her shoulder. Her magnificent man, and he was hers. She’d be damn if any other woman would share in the pleasures she found with him. She gave him a come-hither wink then stepped in.

He wiped at his mouth and she knew he was thinking it over.

“I don’t want to talk about it, Elu, I’m sick of talking, if you aren’t coming in then you have to leave me because I can’t relax with you so close.”

“Po, inside.” He commanded.

Po, who watched the strip tease with as much interest as his master, turned and went back inside. Josie drifted in the bubbling water, the jet streams massaging her achy ribs and backside. She waved her hands over the heated waves, sitting in the nook of the tub. Elu reached behind his neck and drew his shirt up and over his head tossing it aside. Josie had seen his chest before, but not much else. Her breath caught in her lungs as she waited for the
else
. The tattoo near his throat was the most intriguing, but the other markings on his arms and back seemed just as important.

Flashes of him, naked, punched through her psyche. Elu was in a lake, swimming, and then gone. A deep sense of dejà vu went through her. She felt a rush from the recollection, like the thrill experienced after a rollercoaster ride. Her eyes closed and she waited for the intensity of it to pass. Tattoos? She had seen them before. Intricately snaked around each thick bicep, she’d seen him before, like this. Were they together? How was this possible? Watching him remove his pants and boxer shorts she found him too beautiful to speak. Later. She’d ask him later.

And when his manhood sprung up at her, semi-erect, thickly veined and long, she drew in her lips. A flood of warm sensations rushed down to her center. Elu’s eyes never left hers as he stalked over then lowered into the water. With such passion in his stare, she was drawn from the side of the spa tub to the center where he waited. He watched her over the steam and bubbles, his long, silky hair floating on the rippling waves. Things with Elu had such a natural flow. When his hands slipped under the water and went to the outside curve of her thighs, her hands lifted to his shoulders. Her thighs parted and his fingers went lower to pinch her butt cheeks as she wrapped her legs around the muscular circumference of his waist. And his cock was pressed between them.

“Make love to me,” she said. She kissed his lips softly. “Love me.”

Straddling him. Her breasts were crushed against his chest as his mouth covered hers. His tongue darted in and out with a tease and she groaned chasing the kiss of her dreams. He traced every part of her mouth he could reach.

“I need you,” she said within their kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and tore her mouth from his to kiss his face and neck. “So bad, Elu, so bad. Please believe me.”

His eyebrows were thick and wavy like his hair and she kissed them both. His nose strong and proud she gently brushed a kiss over it. His lips soft and full, she ran her tongue against the bottom one. He opened his mouth and guided her tongue back in, this time with less desperation, just the desire he had for her. Hearing him moan a deep hungry groan in his throat as she ran her fingers over his silky hair freed her as well. Josie rubbed her nipples over his solid chest and felt a tingling current ripple through her and capture her breath. And his cock pulsed against her. Its stalk was so long the head of his cock reached her navel. She shuddered with anticipation. Not because of the physical promise his prowess brought, but the final joining of them both. She remembered. She saw him in a lake, before the accident.
She remembered!
He was her destiny. He was in her past so he had to be part of her future. She could let go of her reservations and welcome the promise of a life filled with nothing but new experiences.

Elu floated back to the wall of the hot tub and sat so he could manage her. She uncurled her legs and positioned her knees to the side bench along the spa tub. She rose and her breasts lifted from the water, her nipples dripping, he covered one with his mouth. Rolling his tongue over the swollen areola until her nipple melted on top of it. She sucked in a rushed breath as he gently guided her into position. He pulled at her nipple until it popped free of his lips. And she shuddered all the way to her core with what he hoped was delight. His eyes looked into hers under a beautiful moon.

“Are you sure?” he asked, running a hand lovingly up and down her bruised side. The head of his dick was aimed at the entrance of her tight pussy. She responded by lowering on him slow and easy.

“Oh my God,” she breathed, taking him all in. “I’m falling in love with you,” she wheezed.

The words hurt him deeply. “You don’t know what you’re saying,” he tried to stop her.

“I know what I feel! What is it? Why do you fight me? Don’t you feel the same way?” she asked, unable to move out of their shared embrace.

“Of course, of course I do.” He touched her face. That was it. The last of his resistance broke. He let go. She put both hands on either side of his shoulders and he spread his arms out across the rocky rim of the hot tub. She began to rise and fall on his lap, loving him. Tight, wet heat gripped his cock and she moved gloriously.

Elu’s groan rumbled deep in his massive chest. The penetration stretched her in a perfectly sublime way. Too much pleasure at once had her head spinning. Moving as she did there was tightness in her side, which spread like liquid fire down her abdomen and into her pelvis. The warm waters from the jets blew kisses over her clit to ease the pain. She worked her hips to take in more of him. A gasp escaped them both. Their joining was electrifying. The lanterns above them began to sway and bob as the night wind stirred up the tree branches that reached the elevated deck. His open palms went up and down her back to soothe her.

He was so patient with his loving and she craved ravishment. But her body let her know that this union was the best one for the time being.

She dropped her head on his shoulder. He gripped both halves of her buttocks and squeezed, instructing a slower rhythm that made her feel every inch of his invading cock nice and sweetly. “More!” she wheezed.

Elu understood her command. She gripped his shoulders for strength. He drove her up and down with more force. Josie felt as if he’d rip her apart but she held on. Her head dropped back bringing her breasts upward. Elu began to suck and love on her nipples as he took her, with a working rhythm that she could enjoy as well. He sucked hard at her neck. His nails pierced her tender skin and he grunted through his lovemaking. Something unexplainable came over them both. They clung to each other, kissing and sucking on whatever skin was available to them as they shuddered through their first climax of the night. And under the cover of her protective moon, in the warm steamy waters splashing and bubbling, their love was sealed.

Cabin down the road

Carlton strolled out the open door of his cabin. He drove the roads looking for her car and realized he wouldn’t recognize her rental. He knew when she travelled she loved convertibles. The thirty or so cabins he visited were either empty or had jeeps and pickup trucks parked outside their doors.

He called her cell phone and got no answer. In the morning he’d find her. But he was a bit pissed that he had to wait. He missed his woman. If anything he should be sleeping in her arms tonight.