Eternal (2 page)
Authors: London Saint James
We were kissing, touching, moving, and grinding
against each other’s bare skin when Cayden’s phone started again. “The Kings of
Leon” played this time as the ringtone. Cayden’s taste in music was eclectic,
like mine. I wondered what he would have set my ringtone to be if we could
actually call each other.
“Shit.” He groaned, but not in a good way. He
removed his hands from me, stretching his long beautiful body out like a
banquet for my eyes. He reached for his phone. His phone was still on the side
table; however, it was teetering dangerously close to the edge. “This better be
a matter of life and death,” he answered, irritated.
There was a long pause. Cayden rolled to his
side, leaving my body bereft.
“I know what the damn schedule is.” Cayden
looked at me, scanned my nakedness, searing me with his gaze. “Give me fifteen
minutes.” He smiled at me, his guilty crooked smile. “Make it thirty,” he amended
before he flipped his phone closed and placed it back on the table. “Now, where
was I?” He rolled back between my thighs.
If I ever had any doubt the phone call softened
Cayden’s resolve, there was absolutely no uncertainty as I felt him firmly and
assuredly slide between my inner wet crease.
“Wow.” I breathed.
Cayden flashed his wicked grin. “Thanks,” he
said with a sense of teasing smugness.
“You are welcome,” I said, smiling in return. “I
can’t believe you are actually going to stay and do this.”
He looked me straight in the eyes. “Oh…I’m going
to do this all right.”
Exactly forty-five minutes later, I was
breathless, completely relaxed, almost noodle-like while Cayden was still full
of energy. He jumped up from bed and headed to the bathroom. I saw his
reflection through the mirror when he stepped out of the shower soaking wet and
glistening, shimmering really. There are no words to describe his perfection,
but I can say I was completely absorbed. I watched Cayden dry himself with the
white fluffy towel, brush his teeth, shave, put on his deodorant, lotion,
cologne, comb his fingers through his wet hair, throw on his clothes, dump
everything into a black duffel-bag, and move with assurance and speed. In ten
minutes time he looked like eye candy, sweet delicious and oh-so mouthwatering
good. It takes me at least an hour in the bathroom before I feel ready for my
day, and I doubt I look anything close to that good.
Cayden came back to the bed, leaned down, and
kissed me deeply but with swiftness. Then he pulled back and studied me. “You
are breathtakingly beautiful. I’ve got to go, baby. I’ll call you later.”
He picked up his cell phone then picked my phone
up from the floor, placing it on the side table for me. When he turned, I threw
my pillow at him. I had good aim because I nailed him in the back of the head.
He stopped, froze, dropped his bag, and turned around to glare at me, the
corners of his mouth twitching. His eyes were filled with amusement and fire. I
started giggling.
“And what was that for?” he asked, stalking
forward like a tiger about to spring.
I scrambled, sliding across the bed, laughing.
“I wasn’t done kissing you yet.”
He bounded forward and snagged me by the ankles.
I wasn’t fast enough. He pulled me back down the bed. The mattress gave when
his weight joined me. The next thing I knew, he was straddling me with his
knees to each side of my hips and my wrist pinned up over my head, clasped in
one of his hands. I was still laughing.
A huge smile spread across his face. “So you
thought you could commit a hit and run, and I would not catch you?”
“Yep.” I giggled.
“And look at the predicament you are in now.”
“Have you ever considered you are the one in a
predicament?” I asked, trying hard not to laugh.
“Oh really?” Cayden’s one free hand started
moving up from my navel, over the span of my ribs, and traced my left
breast.
He licked his lips while he
watched my nipples peak. “It looks like I have the advantage here, Winter.”
“Yes, but now you need to consider your
predicament.”
His index finger circled my right nipple as he
asked, “I do?”
“You do.”
“And what would my predicament be?”
“Do you stay and finish kissing me like I
deserve to be kissed. Do you take advantage of my totally helpless, not to
mention my completely naked state, or do you go?” I smiled. “Now you tell me,
babe, who has the predicament here?”
Dawn broke over Cayden’s face. My cell phone
started ringing again. With one hand he grabbed it, flipped it opened, and
placed it to my ear.
“Hello,” I said, breathless.
“Sugar muffin, we need to talk,” Q said.
I imagined I was in for one of his internet,
website, tech-guru conversations.
Cayden leaned down and licked my nipple. I
squealed.
“Um, Q, I really can’t talk now. I’m getting
ready to use my tongue quite literally so I’ve got to go.”
“Ooh girl!” he screeched.
Cayden pulled the phone from my ear.
“Q, this is Cayden Cain.”
I heard Q yell on the other end of the phone.
“I’m getting ready to use my tongue as well, so
sugar muffin will need to call you back later.”
I laughed. Cayden winked at me. Q was going
crazy on the other end of the phone.
I
heard him hooting.
“I’m going to hang up now, because I have a
beautiful naked lady in my grasp, so I hope you understand,” Cayden said then
snapped my phone closed before he proceeded to kiss me breathless.
Chapter One
The Estate
Black SUVs as far as the eye could see lined the
drive.
There was quite the motorcade leaving from the
hotel. If one didn’t know better, they would think there was a head of state,
or perhaps a Columbian drug lord, leaving the Ritz today. But that’s how it
was. A huge production to do anything. Winter, the woman who lived a rather
inconspicuous life was gone, replaced by the Winter who was lying, sneaking
around, trying to dodge the paparazzi, and allowing the world to believe she
was involved with Chandler Cain. Why? So she could stay with his brother Cayden
in a world that was not her own.
Several staff came to help Melissa, one of
Cayden’s assistants, pack my clothes so we could move them to the estate, which
was secluded and located about twenty minutes outside of the city. Cayden had
gone overboard, sending Melissa on a shopping spree for me. I had more clothes
than a designer boutique.
In all of the surprise of last night with
Cayden’s unexpected disclosure to my mother and the Carlyles that he and I were
indeed a couple, I’d forgotten to scold Cayden for going overboard with his
gifts. I smiled after thinking about it. I would scold him later, in private,
while we were naked. It could wait.
I glanced over at Jayden, my huge and scary
bodyguard, wondering if he would do me a favor. “Jayden,” I said.
“Yes?”
“Do you think it would be possible to go
jogging?”
Jayden turned to look at me and actually took
off his dark sunglasses. That did surprise me. He had only removed them one
time before while within my presence. This time I noticed his eyes were the
perfect color of liquid honey.
“Jogging where?” he asked, quite serious.
“I really don’t know. I used to jog. It helps me
with stress and anxiety. If it would be possible I would like to find time to
go jogging this week.”
“Are you anxious about something?” he asked,
concerned.
I shrugged my shoulders. “I just know it is
going to be a long week for me.”
Jayden seemed to study my face, considering my
request possibly.
“I can plan a route around the estate. The bike
paths are fairly secluded.” I smiled. “But I will be joining you so I hope you
don’t mind company,” Jayden returned.
I considered his offer and knew it was probably
the best I was going to get.
“I don’t mind company, and thanks.”
All too soon, the city was a distant memory. The
car had pulled through the familiar iron gates of the estate.
After a parade of moving clothing up the stairs
and into my room, we were finally able to get the whole kit and caboodle of a
mess unpacked. Melissa was a trooper.
Of
course she would have to be.
Not only
did she work for Cayden as a sort of personal assistant, but she was the
personal assistant for one of the studio executives, Zander Harrison. She
helped me put all of my new clothes away, never giving up even though it was
actually a task. I appreciated her help.
“Winter, can I ask you something?” Melissa
inquired while folding the last of the garment bags.
“Sure,” I replied.
“I have heard Cayden talk about you before. I
mean, I would see Cayden off in a quiet corner, reading one of your latest
books, and he would speak about you as though he knew you. He talked about the
color of your eyes but….” She stopped talking, smiled, and shook her head.
“Please ask,” I prompted.
“He never actually meet you until a few weeks
ago, am I correct?”
“Yes, you are correct.”
“Amazing,” she said with a tilt of her head.
“What?”
“Cayden was right. Your eyes are the exact shade
of emeralds. How could he have known that?”
“There are a lot of things about myself and
Cayden which are hard to explain.”
“Yes, I know there must be. I have watched the
two of you. It really is quite amazing. Someday we will need to talk about all
of the things.”Melissa lifted her arm, glanced at her watch. “I’m scheduled for
a conference call to the west coast.
“I will talk with you later, Winter.”
“Thanks for all your help,” I replied.
“Anytime.”
I walked out onto my balcony were I stood with
my arms wrapped around my mid-section, watching the tops of the trees sway
within the breeze. The sun was playing through the shimmer of the branches
causing a glittering effect that each movement, each sway, enhanced. I ran my
hand over the back of the rod-iron chair. My fingers followed the carving of
the metal filigree. I took a seat and listened to the sounds of nature around
me.
In the distance was the sound of birds, a
humming
sound like a leaf blower and the
clatter
of the branches in the breeze.
It was sunny today so the warm sun felt wonderful. I closed my eyes and lifted
my face toward the sky. I saw a red hue through my eyelids. The warmth hit my
cheeks and my lips. The wind still had a crisp edge to it, but not unbearable.
Wait, red
. I knew
the color was red, which lit behind my closed lids. I pondered this for a
moment while I sat quietly. It had been sixteen years since I last saw the
color red. Recalling the last time, I felt a shudder shoot through me. No
matter how many years pass I will never forget how I felt, knowing I lost
I remembered being told the man I loved, and was
going to marry, had been killed. Everything in my world turned gray. I wanted
to die, to join him, but my life went on without him, if you want to call it a
life. For the past sixteen years, I lived a faint echo of a life and then out
of the blue, Zander,
one-time manager, agent, and friend, called me about re-writing a script. From
there, everything about my life changed. I met Cayden Cain, someone who in all
actuality should be impossible yet he exists. And somehow, someway the love I
feel for him is one in the same as the love I still feel for
as I fight against the idea, there is some kind of connection between the two
of them and me.
When I found out Cayden and his parents were
involved in the car crash that not only took the lives of his parents, nearly
killed him, and stole the life of
I almost lost my composure. And hearing the shocking news Cayden could possibly
be
ago affair between Cayden’s mother and
father, I was speechless. I still wasn’t sure what to do with that specific
information.
But as Chandler told me
about Cayden, how he flat-lined twice, and spent weeks in a coma-like state
only to wake up asking for me, I did lose it. For a moment I felt as thought I
might hyperventilate. All I thought about was the impossibility of what
while I cried tears to the floor. Cayden and I had never met until a few weeks
ago. He was a child at the time of the accident, only seven. How could he wake
with my name upon his lips? Could it really be possible that the man who is a
carbon copy of
reincarnation, or soul transfer, but I needed to consider the possibility.