Spirit of Seduction (4 page)

“Becky. It was about Becky.” She held a hand
over her heart. “I tried to pick up on the negative energy
surrounding us but…I must be rusty. I’m sorry. Whoever that was
must have been at the cemetery.”

“Yup. Are you okay?” He scrubbed a hand over
his face. A fierce protectiveness stormed through him.

“Fine.” The tremble in her voice was
unmistakable. “We should call the police.”

“And tell them what? That someone rammed us
because we’re trying to contact my dead sister?” He leaned his head
back against the seat. “I’m sorry. I probably called them three
times a day for the first couple weeks after the murder. You could
say I wore out my welcome with the local cops. But you’re right. I
ought to report it. I don’t think it’ll do any good though. I’m
going to check out the damage first. Stay here.” He grabbed his .45
from under the seat then got out of the truck and strode to the
back. The tailgate was dented but not as badly as he’d
anticipated.

He headed back and climbed inside the cab.
“Could be worse.” He pulled out his phone and hit the number he’d
memorized weeks earlier. “Detective Walters, please.”

As predicted, the detective told him all he
could do was write up a report.

“Thanks, Detective. I’ll submit it to my
insurance company.” He hung up then rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“Thanks for nothing.”

“Well?” she said.

“They’ll make a hit and run report, which
will sit in a computer file until hell freezes over. I told you it
wouldn’t do any good. It’s a four-person department here. Nothing
like Raleigh’s police force.” He pounded a fist onto the steering
wheel. “I’m taking you to my place.”

“Your
place? Why not Raleigh?”

“I’m not letting you out of my sight. I
failed to protect my sister, but God help me, I refuse to take the
same chance with you.”

She started to protest but he touched a
finger to her lips. “Have you ever lost anyone you loved?”

Her neck quivered with a swallow and he
wanted to kiss the spot. She didn’t answer for a long moment. “My
mother. Well, she’s not dead but she’s gone from my life.”

“If she’s still alive then you have a chance
to mend things with her.” He started the ignition. “You never know
when someone will be ripped out of your life for good.”

She didn’t answer.

“I’ll sleep on the couch and you can have my
room.”

She hesitated, pursing her lips. “I don’t
know, Ryan.”

“
This isn’t open for
discussion. I’ve drawn you into this and now you’re a target. I
plan to keep you safe.”

As much as Emily wanted to argue with Ryan,
insist he take her home, she knew he was right. She’d been smart to
stay away from all things supernatural recently. She’d only been
involved with this case a few hours and already she was in trouble.
Although she’d actually been in danger since Ryan had imagined her
in danger in his vision. Panic drummed through her. Her mother’s
words played in her head.

“Ain’t no escaping the gifts God has given
you.”

She hadn’t wanted her powers then and she
still didn’t. How foolish she’d been to believe that she could hide
from her abilities. The very thing she’d feared the most was
happening again. She wished to God she could have avoided becoming
a target again, but even if she’d turned down Ryan’s plea for help,
she’d have been drawn into the fray somehow. The die had already
been cast.

Ryan turned in to a driveway in front of a
two story house with a white picket fence around it. He took her
inside and turned on a few lights, never releasing her hand. The
contact felt reassuring but she knew he was no match for the strong
supernatural presence she’d felt as they’d approached Becky’s
grave.

The large open hallway was partially painted
off white and the banister and stairs had been stripped but not yet
refinished. The dark wood floors were scratched and worn but she
imagined Ryan would eventually take care of them as well.

“Sorry, it’s still a work in progress.”
Leading her through each room, he pointed out all the things he
planned to finish or redo. “It has real good bones.”

“I see that.” Aside from the obvious antique
features like arches, dentil molding and stained glass windows, the
place had a warmth to it she found comforting. Maybe it just
reminded her of Ryan. “It’ll be lovely when you’re finished.”

He stopped walking and scratched his head.
“I’m unclear on something. You think someone didn’t want you to
communicate with Becky and that’s why they tried to frighten you
away at the cemetery, right? And it was the same person who
rear-ended us as we left.”

“Mm hmm.”

“How did they know we were there?”

She wrinkled her forehead in concentration.
“One way someone could have known we were there is if they set up
sort of…” She searched for the right words. “Like a force-field or
a psychic sentry if you will. I felt something blocking me from
sensing the energy at Becky’s house but that wall grew stronger at
her grave.”

“So whoever killed her had their own psychic
powers?”

She frowned. “Not necessarily. They might
have had someone else cast a spell for them.”

“Spells and psychic force-fields and ghosts.
I can’t believe we’re talking about this stuff and I actually think
it could all be real.”

Could be?
How could he still have doubts? If he did, wasn’t
he in effect accusing her of being a shyster again? “It
is
real,
Ryan.”

He shook his head then continued his tour.
When they reached the kitchen, he tipped his chin at the bistro
table. “Have a seat. I’ll make us something to eat.” He opened the
fridge, grabbed a beer and popped it open. “Want one?”

She tried to brush aside her annoyance as he
pulled items out to set on the counter. Her stomach lurched at the
notion of food. “Nothing for me, I’m not hungry. And I don’t
appreciate your insinuation that I’m making this up.”

He stopped what he was doing and closed the
distance between them. Crouching in front of her, he held onto the
sides of the chair, gating her in. His rock-hard forearms pushed
against her thighs and her temperature spiked. His eyes were soft
and compassionate. “No, darlin’, I never said you were faking. This
is new to me and I find it hard to reconcile it with everything
I’ve ever known to be reality. I’m not doubting you, I swear.” He
cupped her cheek and God help her, she leaned into his touch.

She stared into those mesmerizing blue eyes
and let desire banish off her irritation. “Okay, I believe
you.”

He gave her a smile. “Good, now maybe you
can eat something. When was the last time you ate? You have to keep
up your strength, for Becky…and for me.”

How was she supposed to think with him so
close that his manly scent was all around her, intoxicating her?
She could see only his ruggedly handsome face—the small scar above
his left eye, the chiseled jaw and cheekbones. “I-I ate something
for lunch, a salad or a sandwich. I don’t remember. It feels like
weeks ago rather than hours.”

He pressed a kiss to her cheek, his whiskers
deliciously scratching her skin. “Amazing how quickly things can
change.” His gaze dropped to her lips and hovered there. The spot
tingled under his stare.

She could hardly breathe for the sensual
hunger coursing through her. She’d wanted Ryan for so long.
Although he’d drawn her back into the supernatural world where
she’d sworn she’d never return, for some reason she felt safe with
him. More than that, being with him made her aware of herself as a
woman—a woman with needs that she’d kept at bay for far too long.
She squashed all her objections to kissing him again before they
could take root.

He hooked a hand around her neck and drew
her to him. She shut her eyes and gave up control to her libido and
her heart. Then his mouth was on hers—plundering and mastering as
if she belonged to no one but him. He tasted of beer, and
desire.

Suddenly breaking contact, he stood and
pulled her up and into his arms. He whispered her name like a
prayer.

Her head was dizzy with arousal as he weaved
his fingers into her hair and held her possessively against him for
another scorching kiss. He explored her mouth, then kissed his way
along her neck to her collarbone.

She caught her bottom lip between her teeth,
holding back a sigh as Ryan peeled her blouse off her shoulder then
grazed his tongue over her skin. Moisture pooled between her
legs.

Ryan lifted his shirt over his head and
tossed it away revealing smooth, tan skin that had been kissed by
the sun. “I want to make love to you.”

His simple yet powerful declaration drew a
sigh from her. The notion of losing herself in him—doing what felt
good without dwelling upon the consequences—was overpowering. To
hell with the fact that he’d unwittingly drawn her back into the
occult world. Something about being with Ryan felt more than right.
She treated herself to the breathtaking view of his bare washboard
chest and his broad shoulders then reached out to touch him with
trembling hands.

She plowed her fingers into his hair. “I
want you, too.”

He backed her against the wall and held her
arms over her head, pinning her to the spot as he licked the
sensitive skin on the underside of her arm then tracked his finger
after.

Quivers of longing racked her body as he
pressed his mouth to her neck, biting, sucking, kissing. He traced
the shell of her ear with his tongue and she gasped at the
sensations rushing through her.

Ryan untucked her shirt then slid his hands
under her shirt, skimming up her sides, raising goose bumps
wherever he touched. Pure delight streaked through her.

A totally masculine growl vibrated in his
chest as he undressed her above the waist. His gaze scorched her
naked skin. “I knew you’d be this beautiful.”

She clenched her teeth, hardly able to bear
the pleasure when he cupped one breast and drew the other into his
mouth. He licked circles around the tight, needy point, teasing and
tantalizing her.

She arched her back, urging him on. God, she
practically came unglued when he finally sucked the peak into his
mouth. He raked his teeth over her sensitive flesh and she dug her
fingernails into his shoulders.

She rocked against him, felt the hard
evidence of his arousal press into her abdomen. He moved his hand
between her thighs, rubbing along the fabric of her pants, the
erotic friction pushing her libido into overdrive. There was way
too much material separating them. She unsnapped her jeans and
shimmied out of them.

Ryan broke contact and skimmed his admiring
gaze over her in nothing but her lacy black panties. Her nipples
tingled under his scrutiny and her heart thudded double time. She’d
never yearned for a man’s touch as she did for his.

He let out a low groan as she traced the
hard ridge of his arousal through his jeans. She wanted him inside
her, filling her, satisfying the demanding hunger taking her over.
“I need you, Ryan.”

He stripped off his pants in seconds. His
legs were just as roped with muscle as she’d suspected, not an inch
of fat. He took a condom out of his wallet and tore it open. His
impressive size gave her pause. She wondered if she could handle
all of him. She swallowed back the trepidation as she watched him
sheath himself.

Her craving for Ryan consumed all her
doubts. He took a step closer, his eyes honing in on her mouth with
unabashed savage lust. Hooking his thumbs under the elastic of her
panties, he slid them down her legs ever so slowly, as if he
unwrapped a fragile piece of rare china rather than a woman.

She stepped out of them then molded her body
to his.

“I want you so much.” His voice was low and
husky, laced with carnal intent. He cupped her mound and her breath
locked in her chest. Sliding his hand between her thighs, he
stroked her as she rocked against him, taking all the pleasure he
offered.

Her sex clenched in anticipation. But she
didn’t have to wait long. Ryan slipped a finger inside her, testing
her readiness. And Lord, was she ready.

She hooked one leg around his hips and he
pushed into her, hissing out a breath. He filled her, inch by
glorious inch. She tightened around him, her intimate muscles
already climbing toward the precipice of pleasure.

Something fell off the wall nearby—a small
decorative mirror—and crashed to the floor, but neither she nor
Ryan paid it much heed.

His thrusts created the most heavenly
friction as he drove deeper, pounding her against the wall. She
wrapped her other leg around his hip, giving him greater access for
the deepest penetration.

Nothing had ever felt like this—so primal
and natural, almost elemental. Her orgasm hit with a new ferocity,
flooding her body with the ecstasy she’d waited for her whole life.
She dug her fingernails into his shoulders as she quivered with
wave after wave of bliss.

The strain of holding back was evident on
Ryan’s flushed face. Once her orgasm had leveled off, he let go and
hissed his release. Muscles corded on his neck as he shuddered and
emptied himself inside her with a few purposeful thrusts.

Breathing heavily, he captured her stare,
then her mouth for a devastating kiss. She eased her feet back to
the floor, and her head back down to earth.

“I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.” He
pressed a kiss to her sweat-damp forehead.

“Me, too.” She could feel his heart pounding
as fast as hers.

He kissed her face and neck lovingly,
reverently. But within minutes the deep furrow returned to his
brow. He stepped back, breaking their contact then picked up her
clothes from the floor and handed them to her before disposing of
the condom.