Perfect Picture [The ShadowDance Club 7] (Siren Publishing Classic) (21 page)

Turning in his arms she laid her cheek against his chest and just breathed him in. “Thank you,” was all she managed to get out before she felt the tears start to fall.

Noah had simply said, “You’re welcome,
cara
.” And then picked her up and made his way up the winding stairway and down the hall to their room. By the time he’d set her on her feet beside the bed her eyelids had starting to drift closed but with every touch…every brush of his warm hands over her bare skin as he stripped her was setting every nerve ending in her body on fire. She hadn’t had any morning sickness, and despite the fatigue she’d been battling, her libido seemed to be soaring. She remembered listening to her friends discussing the side benefits of pregnancy hormones, but hadn’t really considered they were telling the truth until the past couple of weeks.

Lainy moved her fingers to the buttons on Noah’s shirt and began exposing his muscular chest and kissing each new inch as it came into view. “Please…,” was all she managed to get out before she reached his belt and heard his deep growl and he stilled her hands with his own.

“
Cara
, I wanted you to rest, but I can see now you are not going to do that without being thoroughly fucked are you?” Noah knew that Lainy loved his crude words because he could literally smell her arousal as her honey flooded the soft folds of her sex. Reaching between her legs he circled his fingers through the slick lips of her labia. “Oh my sweet little sub, you are dripping wet at the thought of me pounding into you, aren’t you? There is nothing sexier and nothing that pleases me more than knowing you are ready for me.”

* * * *

Kissing Noah had always been an almost orgasmic experience in itself and this afternoon was certainly no exception. His kisses had set the stage and then when he’d spoken against her ear she’d almost come. And now that he was seducing her mouth with his tongue she wasn’t sure she was going to be able to hold back her release, but, proving again that he knew her body as well as she knew it herself, he pulled back just as she’d been ready to let go. “No, love, not yet. I want to be inside you when you release all that pressure building up between those beautiful thighs.” She must have had a surprised expression, because he laughed out loud before continuing. “Oh, my sweet
cara
I have known all afternoon just how needy your pussy was feeling. Even when you don’t know I’m watching you, I’m with you. Even when my hands aren’t moving over the softness of your beautiful skin, I am touching you—all you have to do is stop and
feel me
because I am a part of you just as you are a part of me.”

Lainy felt her pussy pulsing and before she could take her next breath Noah had turned her bending her over the edge of the bed and rained heated swats over her ass, alternating sides and intensity until the burning left by his palm turned to a consuming need that was almost more than she could stand. Just when she’d been ready to beg, he thrust himself inside her. She hadn’t even realized he’d finished opening his pants because she’d been so lost in his words and how the pain seemed to magically change from hot to sweet. The feel of his cock head pressing against her cervix and the corona massaging the walls of her channel had her breath catching as she screamed out her release. Clenching her fists in the coverlet on the bed, Lainy was floating in the afterglow of a mind-shattering orgasm but the steady slide of Noah’s cock in and out was quickly bringing her body back up in preparation for another free fall into bliss.

“Ilaina, tell me just how it feels. Do you relish feeling the power of our joining? Do you know how beautiful you are all bent over where I can watch as my cock slides in so deep inside you that I can barely tell where you end and I begin? And seeing my cock emerge from inside your sweet body coated with your slick honey and framed by my handprints covering your beautiful ass is a turn on that I can barely grasp. Knowing your body desires mine as much as I crave yours pulls my soul deeper into love with each stroke.” Lainy felt her body starting to come apart once again and just as she opened her mouth to scream his name he shouted, “Come with me
cara
.”

Noah had tilted his hips and reached under her to pinch her clit firmly between his fingers at the exact moment he’d commanded her release and she was lost. His shout of release sent her even higher and the fireworks she saw behind her tightly clenched eyes were a wonder in themselves. Noah had given her every imaginable type of orgasm during the past six months, but nothing had compared to this. As her mind was rocketing through space there was a part of her that was convinced if they lived together for a hundred years, Noah would make every day better than the one before.

Noah had no idea how he’d managed to stay on his feet. The power of his release had nearly blown apart every fiber of his being. Leaning over Ilaina with his cock still buried inside her and his arm beneath her, he felt a sense of satisfaction settle over him like a well-worn quilt. When he’d finally gotten his breathing under control he managed to get them both into the shower. Once they’d cleaned up, he’d tucked Ilaina against him and they’d enjoyed a short nap wrapped in each other’s arms.

When he woke up before she did, he leaned down and kissed her slightly rounded belly and whispered, “Be nice to your sweet mama you two, she is the light of my life.”

He hadn’t planned to mention her grandmother’s words and didn’t realize she was awake until he looked up and saw her watching him. She looked deeply into his eyes and asked, “
Shimasani
or Mitch?”

“Níyol,” was all he’d said before he saw the tears in her eyes. “
Cara?
Talk to me my love.” His heart felt like it was in a vice. He couldn’t imagine what on earth had put those tears in her dark eyes.

“I’m just overcome with joy. I’ve had so many blessings in my life that it seems almost selfish to be given yet another. To have you as the father of one child was a gift straight from the Great Spirit. But to be given two children is just…” He hadn’t let her finish before he’d silenced her with his kiss. She deserved every blessing she’d ever been given and he planned to spend the rest of his life making sure she understood just how much.

It was almost three hours later when Noah escorted a much more rested Ilaina through the doors of the Climax Medical Center. Making their way to the large waiting room was slow going because it seemed that most every member of their small community was present. There were pink and blue balloons everywhere and everyone seemed to chattering a mile a minute.

Looking down at Ilaina he just chuckled at her wide-eyed stare. “Too late to change your mind now, my love.” He really had just been kidding and certainly hadn’t wanted to trigger her tears. And when she seemed to take a step back from the crowd in fear, he turned her so she was facing him. “Baby, what’s this about? These are your friends.” Christ the fear was coming off her in waves and he had no idea why. Just then he looked up and saw Mitch standing directly behind Ilaina and saw him nod to the side. Stepping back into the hall with Ilaina he let Mitch lead them down the long corridor to a much smaller and more private waiting area.

Noticing how visibly pale she was, Noah settled her on the sofa before taking her trembling hand in his. Mitch sat down on the other side of Ilaina and looked at her for several seconds before speaking. “Ilaina, I have a distinct advantage here because I’m able to hear your fears, but honey, your husband is baffled and very worried about you. Would you like some help explaining this?”

Noah was baffled alright, and Mitch might have thought he was helping, but
not so much
. Deciding to keep quiet and see where this led, he just kept her hand in his and waited. She stared at Mitch for long seconds before she nodded her head slowly.

“Okay, as I’m sure Noah has taught you, shaking and nodding are not ordinarily acceptable answers, but I’m going to make an exception right now because I know right where your head is and I want this put to rest quickly.” Mitch smiled at Ilaina and Noah noticed that Mitch had his hand gently wrapped around her wrist. Knowing the former SEAL was monitoring his wife’s heart rate was oddly comforting. “Now, you spent several years having to constantly be on guard in crowds because there were always people sending you craziness, am I getting it about right?” When she nodded again, he smiled and continued, “If I say anything that’s off-base, please don’t hesitate to stop me, alright?” Again she nodded and Noah suddenly wished he could hear what Mitch was listening to so intently.

“I know you don’t understand why this has happened today of all days, but I’ve worked with a lot of victims who have experienced various types of trauma over the years, sweetness and I’ve seen an huge range of triggers for fears someone thought had been laid to rest. And pregnancy hormones amplify a lot of feelings, so you’ll have to be extra diligent to allow your Dom to shelter and protect you. You can trust Noah to keep you safe, Ilaina. And you have a whole community of people out there who will step between you and danger without ever even blinking. You aren’t alone anymore, but it will take a bit for your heart to catch up to your mind. Don’t expect it to happen overnight and don’t think this will be the last time you’ll face this. But I promise you it will be much easier next time.” Noah watched as Mitch’s eyes never left Elaina’s face while he waited for her to process his words.

“How did you know?” Ilaina’s words were so softly spoken that at first Noah wasn’t sure he’d heard correctly, but when Mitch smiled he knew she had actually spoken the words.

“Well, to be honest, some of it just stood to reason because I’ve been working with victims for a long time and some things are just predictable, particularly when you add that little hormone cocktail you’ll be basking in for the next few months. Congratulations, by the way. They are going to be amazing children and I’m so glad we’ll all have each other for support when our own children are driving us mad.”

Clay Red Cloud burst in the room at that moment and pulled Ilaina to her feet and twirled her around in his arms before setting her feet back on the floor. “Come on Aunt Lainy. You have a new nephew and he’s
wailing
to meet you.” Noah saw his wife sway a bit and knew she was likely dizzy from being spun around so quickly so he stood and wrapped his arm around her shoulders and started to lead her out of the room but she turned back to Mitch and wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tight.

“Thank you very much Mitch. I appreciate your help more than you know and I’ll be sure to tell Rissa what a lucky woman she is.”

“You do that sweetness. Bryant and I both keep telling her that same thing, but maybe she’ll listen to
you
.” Mitch chuckled before turning her back to Noah. “Now, you need to go meet your new nephew. And don’t be afraid to open your heart Ilaina, because there are a lot of people who will happily walk through the fire with you.”

* * * *

Noah leaned against the wall of the Lamonts’ large family room watching the scene playing out before him. It had been six weeks since the chaos surrounding the births of Alexa Kathleen Lamont, Matthew Saul Bartell, and James Lane Red Cloud. The decision to combine their christenings had been a blessing for Noah because he’d been able to take close to a thousand pictures in just a few hours rather than spreading it out over several days. The babies had cooperated—hell, he’d even gained the cooperation of all three of the Lamont triplets
at the same time
something their parents assured him was unheard of—but the most photogenic woman in the room was still his sweet
cara
.

Watching as Ilaina rocked her nephew as he rested on her rapidly growing belly, Noah thought back over the time he’d spent over the past couple of weeks training former FBI agents Derek Lake and Joe Rivera. The two would be leaving soon on a mission with ShadowDance’s second female operative, former special prosecutor, Brianna Francis. Teaching the two male agents to take passable photos had been easy, teaching them how to interact as if they were a couple had proven to be much more difficult.

When a tip had come in about Brianna’s younger sister Tiffani who had been kidnapped from the University of Texas campus almost two years ago, Brianna had pushed for the FBI to investigate. They had stonewalled her so she’d called the Lamonts. Alex had already been recruiting former SEALS Lake and Rivera, and when they’d heard about Brianna being put off by the agency they were currently working for they hadn’t hesitated to walk away.

Noah had watched as the three of them fought their almost magnetic attraction to one another and wondered how long they would continue to try to fool themselves. He couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped at the thought about how pointless it was to fight fate.

Raising the camera he’d been holding and zooming in on Ilaina as she leaned down to kiss Jamie’s forehead Noah was overwhelmed with a sense of love for her and the children she carried. When she looked up and caught his eye, the sweet smile that spread over her face was perfect and he’d been grateful his camera had been ready to capture the moment.

When Ilaina stood and walked over to return the baby to his mother, Noah glanced at the shot he’d just taken. What he saw almost dropped him to his knees. The light had danced through the floor to ceiling windows and highlighted Ilaina in a way that made her appear to have angel wings.
Another perfect picture…