Lifting the Veil (14 page)

not playing, Jack.” She let her hands skim down over her stomach, stopping just above her smooth, bare skin. “Unless you want me too?”

Her fingers dipped farther, running through her folds and swirling her clit.

Unable to wait any longer, Jack made quick haste removing his clothes until he was standing naked

by the bed. He climbed up on top, stilling her fingers. “Let me.”

He parted her folds and licked her from bottom to top. A moan escaped her lips as she reached for

his head to hold him in place. He grinned against her clit before using his teeth to nibble, his tongue to swirl, and two fingers to delve into her wet folds. She was ready for him; she wanted him. He felt her walls quiver as he continued to work her, using every moan and sigh as triggers for what she liked. She arched her back off the covers when he slid three fingers into her tight channel. She shoved against his digits, taking what she wanted, what she needed. His cock throbbed against the covers, his need

hardening with each of her moans. He circled her clit once more while increasing the pace of his fingers.

He swirled them around and found the spot he was looking for, pressing on her G-spot as he pressed down on her clit. Her walls trembled in response. Her moans grew louder as her orgasm built; she

screamed his name as he sent her over the top, giving her what she demanded. What she needed.

Her eyes slid open as he continued stroking while she came down from her high. “Damn, Soph,

you’re so fucking beautiful.”

He pulled his fingers free, sucking her juices clean before kissing a path over the roundness of her stomach and up to her breasts. He sucked the plump flesh of one into his mouth while caressing the other one. He took his time, knowing he needed a minute before he pressed home. He wouldn’t last

long between her slick folds.

***

him in her overwhelmed her. “I need you.”

“Soon.” He pressed his lips to her neck while his hands roamed free. He put her on the brink again with just his mouth.

She rolled with him and sat astride his pelvis, his jutting erection sitting between her wet folds.

“Now,” she demanded.

He chuckled, reached into the nightstand, and pulled out a condom wrapper. She closed her fingers

around his thick, long shaft, stroking him in long, even pulls. Turnabout was fair play as far as she was concerned. She licked her lips and went to move down when he grabbed her arms and hoisted her up

and directly over his cock. He rammed home, sheathing himself in her wet folds. She moaned and bit her lip as he lifted her again.

“Sorry, babe, I wouldn’t have lasted with your sweet lips wrapped around me. The first time is

going to be fast and hard. I need to be in you.” He lifted her, stroked on the condom and slid in again.

She slid down, slowly reacquainting herself with his size. The lines of his face tightened as his hands found her hips. He lifted her and slammed her back down. “I think I need to bring you up to speed.”

She chuckled as his thumb found her clit. He rubbed fast circles, applying just enough pressure to bring her to the brink again. “Oh, damn.”

“I think you’re close.” He grinned.

He sat up, holding her body against his chest as his cock throbbed. She needed him. She needed to

move. She slid up and back down, setting the rhythm her body demanded. He wrapped the fingers of

one hand in her hair; his other hand was again stroking her clit. He lifted his hips to meet hers, ramming home the need she felt. Her walls contracted around him, signaling her next orgasm was close. Every fiber of her being was alive and ready to explode. She held it off for as long as she could, savoring the feel of him inside her.

“Sophie, I’m not going to last,” he ground out between gritted teeth.

“Me either,” she said on a moan. “Oh god.” She let her head fall back. “Yes.” Her walls tightened, squeezing and taking him with her.

She clenched her eyes closed as an orgasm was torn from her. He lifted her and slammed her down

twice more as he groaned, holding her on top of himself. She felt his shaft pulsating as he shot his seed into the latex barrier.

Sophie collapsed against Jack’s chest; his heartbeat matched hers as they slowed. She placed a

tender kiss over his heart and closed her eyes. She didn’t know how long she lay like that before he kissed the top of her head. He slid her body down next to his and got up from the bed, repositioning the covers over her naked body. She made to sit up, and he leaned down and kissed her again. “Get some rest, Sophie. I’m going to get cleaned up.”

She snuggled into his covers, inhaling the fragrance that was all his. Closing her eyes, she promptly fell asleep. This time, she didn’t dream of Jack.

Sophie woke up in the field where Valerie had died. She was lying in the tall grass and she pushed
herself up. She glanced down at her clothes. She was covered in the same white dress with the intricate
design from the coven.

A man, she’d never seen before, leaned down to her and held out his hand. There was a familiarity
about him she couldn’t place. “Do I know you?”

He nodded when she laid her palm in his hand, and he helped her to stand.

“I would hope so.” His deep voice was the same one that had been talking to her, in her mind and in
her ear.

“Who are you?” she asked as she turned in place, realizing that Valerie was nowhere to be found.

“I’m Will.”

“Will?” she questioned with a smile. “You don’t have a name like Ezequiel or something I’ll have a
problem remembering and pronouncing?”

He shook his head. “We don’t really go by titles or names, but I chose it as one you would be familiar
with.”

“You’re the voice that whispers in my ear,” she said, though it was more a statement than a

question.

“Yes, Sophie, I am.” Will gestured toward a little worn-out path visible through the high grass. “I’m
your guide.”

“Guide to what?”

He shrugged. “To make sure you stay on the right path to fulfill the destiny in your chart.”

Sophie stopped walking. “What chart?”

He turned and laced his fingers behind his back. “The one you picked out before you were born.”

Her mouth parted, and she wanted to argue, but what could she really say? You’re on crack? It’s not
as if she could say that to some supreme being who had access to her head. “You care to tell me what’s
in the chart?”

He shook his head. “I’m sorry, I can’t do that. You have a lesson to learn and, if I told you all of the
secrets, you’d just have to come back.”

“Well, that bites.”

Understanding lit his eyes. “Yes, I guess that would.”

“I don’t suppose you’d care to tell me who killed Valerie?”

He shook his head. “You aren’t meant to know yet. In due time, you’ll figure that out.”

“Not even an initial?”

He chuckled and clasped her hand as they walked. “If I told you, I’d be taking away your free will.

Just know that you are on the right path. Otherwise, I would have already veered you back to it.”

“Could you be any more cryptic?”

“It’s a gift.” Will grinned. A white light started to emanate from around his body, like it was
attached and an extension of who he was. “I will help you in whatever way I can without breaking the
trust I swore to you. You just have to ask the right question.”

She slipped her fingers from his and ran them through the light, expecting to feel something, but she
felt nothing. No barrier, nothing. “And I haven’t asked the right question yet?”

He clasped his hands behind his back again. “No, you haven’t.” Will glanced around him and his
voice turned to a low whisper. “There will be others.”

“I don’t understand. Are you saying there are more like you?”

He smiled. “There are other guides, but none quite like me. You chose me to help you.”

“You’re kind of aggravating.”

His grin widened. “You used to enjoy that quality. What fun would I be otherwise?”

“If there aren’t any more guides like you, then what did you mean by ‘there will be others’?”

He nodded. “Right question.”

She waited, the silence between them growing. “Well?”

“Let me start by giving you a crash course in the afterlife. Everyone has an exit point, more than one
to be exact. When charts are written, it is normal for a soul to write in at least four exit points. We do
that so, if you’ve learned the lesson you need, you can return home.”

“You mean die?”

“You’d shed this life and return to live in God’s loving light.” He nodded. “When you searched those
dark alleys from the car, you had free will. Had you chosen to walk down those alleyways, it would have
been an exit point. You would have come home without learning the lesson you needed to learn.”

“You mean I would have died? Perfect. If I wrote that into my chart, why would I write it in before I
learned my lesson?”

He grinned. “You have a hard road ahead of you. You wrote that into your chart in the event that
you weren’t strong enough to handle what is in your future.”

She shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“You wouldn’t, not yet.” He let out a long sigh, as if he were getting aggravated; she didn’t

understand. “You have hard choices ahead of you that your soul recognizes, even if you don’t. You wrote
your chart and everything in it before coming here; so any time you feel that déjà vu feeling, it’s because
you remember including that particular incident into your chart when you wrote it.”

She gave a slow nod as if his words were somewhat making sense, but they weren’t.

“It’s like a movie you’ve already seen. You’ll remember certain scenes.”

“What in the world was I thinking?”

He shrugged. “You deliberated about your life before you descended. You can do everything you set
forth, and I will help you along the way.”

“And the others you mentioned? What did you mean?”

“Sophie, others will die. It is destined that you figure this out. If you don’t, not only will your destiny
change, but so will theirs.”

Sophie threw her hands up. “Oh great, no pressure or anything.”

He took her hands again. Warmth radiated from his palms into hers, warming her down to the

cellular level. “Many more souls need your help. It’s not time for you to come home yet. I only interfered
to keep you on your path.”

“You mean, the clairvoyance, don’t you? I wasn’t meant to have this ability.”

He shook his head. “Everyone has the ability. I just had to petition on your behalf to make you
realize it sooner than you designed.”

“What happened to my chart and free will?” she questioned, thinking she’d caught him in a trick.

“You chose this in your plan, just as an alternate avenue to get there. I wouldn’t have changed any
of your original design. I just had to make sure you had the proper tools to deal with it.”

“Can you tell me what changed?”

He shook his head and frowned. “No, I can’t. If I show you the alternate route, you may feel

cheated, or”—he shrugged—“you may try and change the outcome.” He held up his hand. “It is an

outcome you chose, just a different path to achieve it.”

Day turned to night as they stood in the field hashing out her life and what information she could
pry from him. The stars twinkled in the sky. He reached down, plucked a sunflower, and handed it to her.

“My gift to you.”

Okay, this man was definitely on crack. “A flower?”

His grin turned wicked. “Stop and smell the flowers, Sophie Masterson.” Will turned around and
started walking away. “They are for more than just decoration. They can show you the way,” he called
back over his shoulder.

He abruptly turned around and was walking backward away from her. “And take the essence I sent
in your path. It will make our communication much smoother in the future.”

“What?”

His brow raised a hitch. “The charmer gave you an essence that will help you and I communicate.

You need to take it.” He gave her a familiar smile. “It’s time to wake up, Sophie.” Will snapped his fingers
and Sophie’s eyes flew open.

She was still in Jack’s room, the covers drawn over her. Moonlight streaming through the dark

curtains offered the only light. She awoke lying against Jack’s chest, her arm resting across his body. She smiled and closed her eyes, hoping when she dreamed this time; the dream would be of Jack instead of her problems.

Jack sat at his kitchen table and ran his hand over his face while waiting for the coffee to brew. How could he have been so fucking stupid? He’d slept with Sophie. He’d made things personal when he

should have stopped things before they got out of hand. The damage was done. He’d had a taste of her sweet body and he wanted more. Jack groaned. His job was toast. Was she worth losing the only thing he’d worked his entire life to achieve? He scrubbed his face with his hands again and mumbled, “Damn.”

“I guess you aren’t a morning person?” Sophie asked as she leaned against the doorframe.

He cleared his throat and rose from his chair, making his way to the coffee pot. He poured two

mugs and handed her one. “Not really.”

She sipped the black coffee and made a sour face, her gaze assessing. “So is this the awkward