Annihilation Road (45 page)

She couldn’t look away, mesmerized by him, mesmerized by the whip he had somehow coiled in his hand again. It seemed an extension of him.

“What kinds of things?”

“You’ll find out, baby. Some you’ll love, some not so much, but in the end, you’re going to be screaming for more. Just like last night.”

“Are you finished practicing? I want to watch you.” She touched her tongue to her lips, trying not to breathe too deep, but her breasts rose and fell in time to her rapid pulse.

He hooked his palm around the nape of her neck and slid first the handle and then the leather tails over her mounds. “It’s arousing, isn’t it?” His voice was a soft, mesmerizing velvet whisper that played over her skin like a touch. “Do you wonder what it will feel like when I wrap your tit in pure fire? When it spreads straight to your pussy? When I put my name into your skin?” Each word was a sin. A temptation. His lips moved against her jaw. Small little kisses. His teeth nipped her throat. “I can do that, you know. Burn my name into your skin with my whip. Right there on your bare little mound.” He sounded like pure sensual enticement, taking her down a dark path without using much more than his voice.

He scraped the shadowy bristles on his jaw across her breasts, a slow burn, sending darts of fire, little spears of lightning, straight to her sex. The handle of his whip was suddenly between her legs, moving, sawing back and forth in a steady assault on her senses.

“Answer me, Seychelle. Are you wondering right now what it would feel like to have me strip you naked and tie your arms up, legs wide, your body at my mercy? What would I decide to put on your skin? What would you do for me, baby? Would you take every single thing I wanted to give you? Would you say
no
?
Enough?
Would you want it all? What no other woman has ever had from me?”

She shivered, that velvet whisper slipping inside her, wrapping her up, until she knew she wanted to hear his voice asking those questions to her over and over. He was waiting. His eyes those twin blue flames she couldn’t resist. “Yes. I can’t help but wonder. It’s both alluring and terrifying.”

He cupped her cheek gently, his thumb sliding softly over her lips. “You’re not nearly there, baby. I love that you want to go there with me. Thank you for that. Been working on a new pattern for about three years now. Nowhere near satisfied yet, certainly not enough to try on you. Stay up here on the deck. You tend to be distracting. This takes concentration.”

She stuck her chin out at him. “You didn’t look like you were concentrating all that much before when I came out here. You turned and hit that mannequin precisely where you wanted to without looking.”

His gaze burned through her like two hot flames. She refused to look away, staring right back at him. A slow smile finally touched his hard mouth, nearly melting her resolve, but she wasn’t going to let him charm her. She didn’t want to stay on the porch. She wanted to watch his every move. It was sexy. It was all Savage. This was the real man. She could see inside him when he used that whip, and he knew it.

“I knew where my mark was. That’s the point of
practicing like this. I always have to know exactly what I’m doing in order to be absolutely certain I will never permanently mark you—unless, of course, we both agree to putting my name on your skin.” He threw the last out there casually.

She drew in her breath as he stepped off the porch and walked toward the mannequins, shaking out the whip as he did so. He was extraordinary. He moved with that sexy, silent, predatory gait, muscles rippling like a jungle cat’s. The way he said
permanently mark you
, as if he could do it whenever he wanted to, put his name into her skin for eternity with his whip.

His hand moved. The whip cracked, a glorious sound that moved through her like a lightning bolt, searing and cleansing. The flick of the lash was flawless, coiling around the mannequin’s breast for a long moment and then slithering off to come back to Savage at his command. Her breath caught in her lungs. Burned in her core like a hot pool of molten lava. Savage turned his head, those blue eyes, flames burning over her as if he knew what just the sound of the whip had done to her.

Seychelle touched her tongue to her lips. “That was amazing. I can’t believe you can do that, Savage. Can I look closer?” She was already moving toward the mannequin, needing to see that precise cut he’d made in the paper. Had it pierced the material beneath?

Savage wrapped his arm around her waist. “I want you to look. These are my creations, my artistry. No one else is ever going to see them. Only you.”

A little shiver went down her spine as she stood in front of one of the mannequins that faced forward. The pattern was exquisite. The whip had coiled around the mannequin’s breast, adding to the pattern he was already making. It was a beautiful top of fringe. She could barely believe he could make such a thing with a whip.

Seychelle turned away, almost running back to the porch to snatch up her bra and tank. Her body was on fire.
Weeping for his. Almost desperate. There was something really, really wrong with her to even think of going to such a dark place. If she did stay with Savage as she promised, she knew she would let him lead her straight to that whip. Fantasy was one thing, but reality was something altogether different.

She was terrified of those dark corners whispering to her in her own mind. She couldn’t let him lead her there. She fled into the house, only to find herself in the master bedroom. She looked around. It was beautiful, but again, she saw the metal rings in the posts. The drawers holding his toys. His lotions. Even the grotto had been built for a reason. This was a place for kink, for a way of life, and she was committing to living it with him.

She needed to go somewhere and really think about what she was doing before she took that next step. It wasn’t that she was afraid of Savage. She was more afraid of herself. Did she really want those things in her to come to light?

“Baby, stop.” Savage put a hand on her shoulder as she hurried down the hall toward the living room. “You’re running again. That seems to be your standard method of operation when you get scared.”

“I just need to think. Lana is picking me up. We’re meeting Doris and a couple of others for tea at the Floating Hat.”

“Think about what?” he prompted.

She wished she were in her own home. She felt trapped in his. He was everywhere. Savage. Her man. She wanted him so much, and he could sway her so easily. With his kisses. With his need of her. With the way she loved him. How could she think clearly?

“I just have to think. This is all so scary, Savage. I love you. It isn’t about that. It’s about me and whether or not I can still be me at the end of the day.”

“You’re not making any sense, baby.”

“I know I’m not.” Because she was panicking.

Savage put his arms around her. “Don’t run from us, Seychelle. We both knew it was going to get hard at some point, but we’re going to take it slow. We’ll only go as far as you want to go.”

That was the trouble. What if she wanted to go further than she should? She buried her face against his chest, conversely the only place she felt safe.

“Who else is meeting you at the Floating Hat?”

She knew he was changing the subject in order to give her space. “Eden Ravard is having tea with us as well. You remember her, right? I play cards at her home with Inez and a couple of the others when someone can’t make it. She had a seizure once.”

“Right, she’s a sweet woman.”

“I’m talking to Sabelia about teaching a few of us how to conjure up toads,” she added, just to make him smile.

“Great.” He raised his head and looked toward the door. “Lana’s here. You stay out of trouble, and think good thoughts about us, baby.” Cupping her chin in his palm, he took her mouth. His kiss was gentle. Loving. So tender he stole her heart and refused to give it back to her. She felt more lost than ever. More terrified.

Seychelle loved the Floating Hat. It was difficult to feel sad or upset when you were there. First, the little bells welcoming anyone to the tearoom were all in the shape of hats, which seemed funny since it was a tea shop. One display window held delicious-looking pastries, all tempting people to enter and choose various exotic teas to go along with the decadent desserts. The other display window on the opposite side of the door held lotions and specialty bath items in various beautifully shaped bottles and jars.

The shop smelled wonderful. Every time she inhaled, she drew fresh air into her lungs, and with it a subtle fragrance she couldn’t quite identify, but it seemed to clear her mind and make her feel so much better. One side of the shop was dedicated to the tearoom. The other was a shop where people could buy the bath or specialty items Hannah Drake Harrington, the owner, or Sabelia, her assistant, made up for them.

Seychelle had discovered the Floating Hat the very first day she’d moved into her new house. She’d walked all over Sea Haven. The sign and name of the shop had intrigued
her, and she couldn’t help going in to see what it was all about. Once she’d entered, she knew she’d always go back. She especially loved the hair and bath products.

“Seychelle,” Doris called, waving merrily. She sat at the largest table, by two windows, which gave it the illusion of being very spacious. “Lana. I’m so glad you’re joining us. Inez said you might come. Eden texted and said she was running late, but she’ll definitely join us in time for lunch. Her monthly hair appointment, you know. The hairdresser is always getting behind.”

“I was happy you invited me,” Lana returned. “This is one of my favorite places for tea. Alena usually comes in with me, but she was too busy today. That girl is always working.”

Seychelle nodded. “Her food is so delicious.” It was too, although it was almost a sacrilege to say so when everything served at the Floating Hat was so wonderful as well.

Her phone vibrated in the pocket of her jeans, and she took it out, her heart accelerating. She knew exactly who it was.
Know you’re upset, baby, but we’re a couple. We don’t walk out on each other. You made that commitment to me.

She’d already reassured him, but she didn’t know if she could keep that commitment, not when she was so confused about who she was anymore. She was willing to go so far out of her comfort zone for him to meet his needs. So far. She loved him enough to convince herself that their relationship would be worth it. It would be stronger for it, more intimate. She knew what Savage gave to his club, and she knew as he took on their pain that she would take it on for him. He loved the club members enough to do that for them. She loved him enough to take on that pain physically for him. She knew she would be strong enough.

That part was all good. She was fine with making sacrifices. That felt good. She’d done that for her parents. She did that for others when she healed them. It was the
liking
it she wasn’t so certain about. Losing herself in the pleasure-pain of it, she wasn’t okay with. Bringing those dark corners to
the forefront and owning them. Taking that responsibility. A little shiver crept down her spine. She didn’t know if she could be like Savage, respecting herself, looking at herself in the mirror and being okay with who she was.

Seychelle slipped the phone back into her pocket without answering the text. Savage was just as exciting and sexy to her when texting as he was in person. She had a tendency to give in to him—to give him whatever he wanted. Right now, she needed desperately to sort herself out.

“Seychelle, sit right here, honey. You look like you’re a hundred miles away.” Inez was already at the table. She knew everyone in Sea Haven almost from the moment they arrived. She owned the local grocery store and could ferret out information on anyone very quickly. With her was Rebecca Jetspun, a widow Seychelle often visited. Seychelle was happy to see Rebecca getting out. She tended to stay isolated in her home, although Eden had managed to coax her into playing cards and introduced her to Inez and Doris. Doris had actually gotten her to go to bingo once or twice.

“She’s been off with her fiancé,” Doris supplied.

“
Fake
fiancé,” Seychelle corrected, deliberately sounding snippy. “You know very well he’s my fake fiancé.” She held up her naked hand. “No ring on this finger.”

“It isn’t always necessary to have a ring, dear,” Rebecca said.

“That’s the truth.” Lana backed her immediately.

Lana was particularly gracious to Rebecca, as if she could sense that the woman needed a little extra drawing out. Seychelle could see that everyone tended to relax in Lana’s company. She had an extraordinary gift of making each person feel very special, as if when she spoke, she focused solely on them—and that she was truly interested in everything they had to say.

Seychelle’s phone vibrated again. She tried to resist looking at it. No one needed to look at their phone just because someone sent a text. She already knew who it was
from. There was no denying who had sent it. And he was going to start sending one after another if she didn’t answer. It was just that she didn’t know exactly what to say. With a little sigh, she pulled the offending phone from her pocket and glared down at the screen.

Baby. I’m lonely without you. You could at least text me and tell me if you’re thinking of me, because I’m thinking of you.

She tried not to smile.
I’m busy. Having tea. Go away.

Right there: that was the problem. He could twist her around his little finger with his sweet text messages. She stopped thinking about the future and started thinking about how much she loved him.

Around her, the others laughed and talked, discussing which teas were their favorites and whether they wanted to try something new and different. As a rule, each person at the table could order a pot of tea and share with the others so they could try it if they wanted. Seychelle looked up to see Lana watching her speculatively. She sent her a small smile, knowing Lana wouldn’t ask her anything in front of the others.

Inhaling to try to bring the scent of the shop into her lungs, Seychelle did her best to focus on the conversation. Doris and Inez had a lively discussion going about a new couple who had moved to Sea Haven and were doing their best to fit in. Doris thought they were “pushy” and Inez thought they were “lovely.”

“Who are they?” Seychelle asked. She felt as if she should have met the newcomers.

“They retired from the city, dear,” Inez said.

“You can’t say ‘city,’ Inez,” Doris corrected. “She’ll think you mean the Bay. They came from LA. They’re bigwigs, in movies or television. Think they’re powerful, and that when they go to a restaurant they should get a table first, whether they have a reservation or not. They’re very entitled, is what I’m trying to say.”

“I’m afraid Doris might be right, Inez,” Rebecca agreed, her voice a little timid, portraying her reluctance. “Seychelle,
Lana, their names are Logan and Ava Chutney. They bought the old Tubbs estate. I think it sold for eight million. In any case, they sent their ‘man’ in to get some items in Donna’s gift shop that Ava saw in the window. I was purchasing one of the items Ava wanted, and the man became very upset. He offered me all kinds of money for it. It was a hand-painted one-of-a-kind scarf. I was sending it to a dear friend in Seattle for her birthday. I truly didn’t want to part with it.”

Seychelle’s phone vibrated again. She pulled it out of her pocket, tempted to dunk it in the glass of water in front of her. The water was in a beautiful, hand-blown, very classy tall cylinder, with what looked like lilies floating in between the two sheets of glass, condensation making it all the more appealing. She wasn’t about to drop her cell phone into it just because Savage was being annoying.

Well, okay, Savage wasn’t annoying. It was just that he was far more tempting than the conversation. She was trying to distance herself from him so she could be normal. Feel normal. Be around normal. Live it again. She pushed at the hair tumbling around her face, wishing she were sitting on his lap and he was holding her while her head was in such a state of absolute chaos.

Baby, I can feel that you need me. My Seychelle radar is going off right in the middle of a very important meeting with Czar.

Your radar is so completely off track. U need one of those techies to work on it. I’m not thinking about U at all. I’m having the time of my life.

Liar, liar, panties are on fire, or they will be when I get you over my knees for lying.

He could text so fast. She put the phone in her pocket without replying. She was not touching that, not when her sex clenched and her panties went damp just reading his silly text. That was the problem. Right there. That was the problem. That wasn’t normal. How was anything about that normal? She’d just come from his house. In the courtyard were
mannequins with whip patterns all over them, front and back, and she’d thought it was the sexiest thing she’d ever seen. When she’d heard the sound of the whip, instead of running for her life like any intelligent human being, she’d wanted Savage to slam her up against a wall and take her right then and there. That was definitely
not
a normal reaction.

Savage was still texting. She knew because her phone vibrated several times with alarming determination. She groaned and dropped her head into her hands, trying hard to resist his pull on her. Taking a deep breath, she looked up, determined to join the conversation swirling around her. As she did, she looked out the window. Joseph Arnold was directly across the street, staring right at her.

She groaned again. Technically, she should tell Savage that Arnold was back in Sea Haven. He had no real reason for being there that she could think of, other than to stalk her. Once she was engaged to Savage, that would give him every reason to continue to drive her crazy. She needed to go to her house, shut the door and close out the world, just for a little while.

“What is it, Seychelle?” Lana asked and turned her head to look toward the street.

Fortunately, Joseph had his back to them, already walking away. Seychelle shook her head. “Nothing, really. Savage is texting me like a madman.”

Lana laughed. “Really? He’s in a meeting with Czar and Steele. It’s a big deal too. Reaper’s there as well. If they catch him . . .” She broke off as if he could get in trouble, as if anyone could make Savage do anything he didn’t want to do.

“Nonstop,” Seychelle reported, suddenly happy that Savage would put himself on the line during an important meeting just to reassure her.

Lana laughed again and shook her head. “That man has it bad for you.”

Seychelle knew he did. She loved him the same way. Love wasn’t the problem. The lifestyle was.

Sabelia took their orders for the various teas to go along
with the pastries and sandwiches being served. Her face still had very faint bruising, but the swelling was gone, and there was little evidence that she had been beaten by the man she’d picked up at the bar. She smiled at them with her usual welcoming greeting and waited patiently while the older women pored over the menu, which they’d seen countless times.

“Your voice is beautiful,” Sabelia offered a little shyly, shocking Seychelle. She’d been in the tea shop many times. Sabelia had always been unfailingly polite, but she never invited private conversation, and she didn’t make personal comments.

Seychelle gave her a genuine smile, feeling the vibrations going off steadily in her pocket. She rubbed her hand over her phone, unable to keep from touching it. She loved that Savage would keep reaching out to her even when she didn’t respond.

“Thank you, Sabelia. It’s nice to have someone appreciate my efforts. Most of the women don’t hear me. They just see those men up there playing. I’m not certain they hear them either, and they’re the best band I’ve heard in a long time.”

Sabelia laughed, and her laughter was soft and gorgeous to hear, the notes like little sparks of ruby-red glitter dancing in the air. “The band was good, but your voice is incredible. You certainly give people something to think about.”

“Thank you. Seriously. Thank you. Sometimes I need to hear that. Right now is one of those times.”

Sabelia’s smile faded as she studied Seychelle’s face. Seychelle did her best to put a happy mask on, but she had never been particularly good at hiding her true feelings. In any case, she had the feeling that Sabelia could see more than most people.

The waitress leaned down. “I’m going to bring you a very special tea, Seychelle,” Sabelia whispered. “I’ll make the blend myself. It’s very soothing. And no, I didn’t put in a toad or anything like that, if Preacher asks. And he will if you tell him.” She straightened and narrowed her eyes at Lana.

“I wouldn’t tell him just because I’m his sister,” Lana said, holding up her hands. “Don’t you remember I told you I’d help you fill his truck with toads?”

“Fill whose truck with toads?” Doris demanded.

Rebecca gave a delicate little shudder. “You wouldn’t really do that, would you?”