The Relic (15 page)

“You should have seen me a few hours ago and you wouldn’t think that. I was cursing every which way from Sunday.”

“I don’t believe it. You’re always so even tempered,” said Vincent.

“I do,” said Magda as she sat on the chair next to the bed. “Joell can always mix it with the best of us.”

Crowe sat on the other side of the bed and kissed his wife. “Careful, my love. Don’t scare Mags. She’s going to be in the same position in a few months.”

“I’m sorry, Mags, I probably shouldn’t have said that.”

Magda took her hand. “Hey, I know it hurts. I’ve seen the videos and listened to my mother go on about it my whole life. I’ve never run away from a challenge before.”

“And there’s always an epidural,” said Vincent.

“Exactly,” said Magda, standing up. “And on that note, I think Vincent and I should go and leave you two to get some rest.”

“Thanks for coming in, peeps,” said Joell, yawning. “I guess I am a little tired. I’ve been so pumped since Leila was born, but I do need some rest so I can keep up with her.”

Vincent took Magda’s hand in his and led her toward the door. “We wouldn’t have missed it for the world. She’s our goddaughter. And besides, you helped me convince Mags here to give me a chance. I owe you for that.”

Joell blew them a kiss. “And don’t you forget it.”

Crowe hugged Joell closer. “Now go and play while you still have the chance.”

Vincent winked at Crowe. “Don’t worry. We intend to.”

“Stone!” Magda blushed, the heat creeping over her neck and over her face.

Magda took the lead and almost ran from the room.

“Don’t encourage them.”

Vince ran a finger over her cheek, pushing an errant curl behind her ear. “I love it when you blush.”

She gasped. “You did that on purpose!”

“It’s not like they don’t know what we’re doing. Given some of the wild parties that used to happen at The Mansion, you shouldn’t be embarrassed by anything either, Mags.”

She smiled, her heart melting a little. “I know. You just have that effect on me. Kind of like it’s our first time and all that.”

He cupped her face and kissed her forehead lightly. “I feel it too, Mags. This time is forever, so every day is a new experience for us both.”

She playfully punched his arm. “Geez, Stone, you’re getting mushy in your old age.”

“Are you calling me old?”

She stood on her tiptoes and whispered in his ear. “Take me home and prove to me you’re not.”

He smiled as he picked her up and carried her toward the car park. “Whatever you say.”

* * * *

As soon as they arrived home Vince locked the door and faced Magda.

She took off running, removing her jeans before leaning against the wall. “So, Stone—show us your stuff.”

He slowly walked toward her and growled.

She pulled her shirt over her head, throwing it aside. “Hurry up, Vincent. I’m dying here…”

He silenced her by kissing her soundly on the mouth. He moved his hand down to her panties and slid his fingers inside the elastic, drawing them downwards, inch by inch until they were around her ankles. She moaned as he kissed her creamy skin all the way down. He placed his hands on either side of her hips and nuzzled her soft folds, teasing her with small laps of his tongue.

“That,” she sighed. “Yes that.”

Her legs parted and her head fell backwards as she groaned. He drew back, smiling at her as she lay ready for him. He used one finger to rub back and forth to find her clitoris.

Those delicious juices flowed onto his tongue as he tasted her. He felt her muscles contract as he delved his finger inside her vagina. She was so close and he wanted her so much, but she would come several times before the night was out if he had anything to do with it. He had to make the most of it while they waited for their precious baby to be born.

He removed his fingers and replaced them with his mouth and tongue. Her breathing was so fast and loud he knew it was just a few more seconds. “Oh God…Vince…please…”

“Almost there, sweetheart.” He returned his finger to her clitoris, rubbing in light circles.

She exploded in loud shouts of joy as the spasms of her orgasm hit. “Vince! Oh God! Oh yes!”

He kissed her damp forehead, as he picked her up and carried her over to the bed. He couldn’t remember removing his jeans, but when he joined her, they were somehow gone.

He began the slow exploration of her beautiful breasts. Her dusky pink nipples stood to attention awaiting his touch, but he teased her, circling them instead with his fingers. He caught her blazing eyes staring at his face. “Are you okay?”

Her voice was husky as she whispered her breathy response. “More than okay, but I’m having all the fun. It must be your turn soon.”

“Oh sweetheart, I’m having fun. I’m loving every minute of it. I’ll have my turn soon, I promise.”

She sighed and closed her eyes when he lowered his mouth to first one, then the other breast. Her back arched and she locked her legs around his hips, rubbing against his erection.

Fuck!

Change of plan. He was going in. Lifting his hips a fraction, he teased her, sliding up and back, but the extra blood flowing through his shaft meant he couldn’t last much longer. Magda took the decision out of his hands by raising her hips and forcing his engorged tip inside. She gripped him so tightly he needed to wait a few seconds for her to adjust to his size.

“Not so fast sweetheart, we have all night. Let’s do this slow and easy.”

She gave him a wicked smile and moved again, this time moving him further inside her hot body. He smiled back and moved out a fraction. Laughing at her disappointed frown, he slid back inside again, this time to the hilt.

“Oh yeah, Vince. That feels so good.
You
feel so good.”

The low steady rhythm continued as they matched movement for movement and together fought to maintain the incredible sensation of moist skin on moist skin. Of hard body inside velvet softness. The electricity they generated sent sizzling waves from where his body joined hers through his whole torso. He kissed her again. A soft, tender kiss to match the slow rhythm. A low growl came from her throat. He held back a shout as she bucked and upped the tempo.
Oh yeah, baby!

Both the kiss and the movement of their bodies became faster and more frantic as they reached the incredible climax. He hugged her body tenderly to his and planted a kiss on her forehead, before rolling on to his back, pulling her to close to his side.

At that moment he felt a slight thump under his hand across her belly.

“I think I just felt the baby kick!”

Magda smiled. “That settles it then. It must be a boy.”

“What makes you think that?”

“It’s early, but he’s making his presence felt.”

“You think so?”

She smiled. “Absolutely. Just like his father.”

Also available from Totally Bound Publishing:

Crash and Burn

Maggie Nash

Excerpt

Chapter One

Beth jolted awake, the crumpled sheets damp and musty as she shivered in a pool of sweat. She attempted to shake off the haze of another nightmare, but the fear that had her stomach in knots was too much for her to go back to sleep. If only she could remember what the dream was about. She’d had the same one over and over since the train crash eight weeks ago. Now, home from the hospital, she’d hoped they would stop, but they hadn’t—not yet anyway.

Her doctor had told her to give it time.
Easy for him to say
. It wasn’t just the dreams. There was the concussion and the banged-up knee. Apparently bad dreams were common after any head injury, but after a severe trauma such as a train crash, they were almost a foregone conclusion.
Lucky me.

Post-traumatic stress disorder, the psych team called it.
Yeah right
. Of course it was traumatic recovering from her injuries—and stressful? Definitely. Who wouldn’t be stressed when they’d lived through an accident like that and had no memory of it? Not remembering wouldn’t have been so bad, except for the fact that part of her subconscious must remember something and it was torturing her. Why else would she be having nightmares every night?

But time—and giving a name to her fear—hadn’t stopped the feeling there was an important part of what happened that day that she needed to remember.

Something had definitely happened that day on the train, she was sure of it, and it had everything to do with how the train crashed. Why didn’t anyone else seem to know? Certainly not the hospital staff, nor the police who’d been to interview her. Or were they hiding something?

The official report said the driver had suffered a heart attack and the dead-man’s switch had malfunctioned. But if that was all there was to it, why were the detectives spending so many hours questioning her?
What aren’t they telling me?

She needed to know. If she could remember, the nightmares might stop and she could get on with her life. She threw back the covers then grabbed her stick before shuffling to the side of the bed to stand up. Her knee continued to be sore after the surgeon had repaired the damage, although the sharp pain had lessened after she stretched the stiff muscles. By the time she reached her bathroom, she’d forgotten the pain in her leg completely as her mind was elsewhere, thinking about the uncertainty of her situation.

She couldn’t afford to wallow in self-pity, there were things to do, people and places to see, starting with an appointment with an old friend that she shouldn’t miss.

* * * *

The silver-haired man sat and stared at his phone. He hesitated, taking extra time as he straightened himself in the chair. How was he going to fix the mess he’d gotten himself into?

He reached for the phone and his shaking hand punched in a long number from memory. A heavily accented voice answered on the first ring.

“Speak.”

“She’s left the hospital.”

Silence stretched the moment, sweat tracing a path down his already damp neck as he waited for a reply.

“We expected this day would come. You’ll have to watch her closely. Do you believe she knows anything?”

He dragged the crumpled handkerchief over his brow and blew out a breath before he answered.
“I don’t know for sure. According to my source inside the hospital, she has no memory of the train incident. We don’t know if this is a cover or the truth. And if it is true, we have no guarantee that she won’t get her memory back.”

“Either way, we will need to watch her.”

“Yes, of course. And if she does know something?”

“Eliminate her.”

Eliminate her? Could he do it? He didn’t know if he had the stomach for it anymore, but if it came to that, he knew someone who did—for a price.

* * * *

“Have you thought about what you’re going to do next?” Dr. Bennett pushed his wireframe glasses back from the tip of his nose in a familiar gesture. “What about your studies?”

Beth smiled at the family doctor she’d known all her life. Normally she felt comfortable discussing her future with Dr. B. He was a trusted family friend, after all. But her University course could wait. It was an Internet-based course she could pick up whenever she wanted to, and she didn’t feel quite ready for that right now. “I’m not sure what I want to do yet. I should probably think about going back to work first. The insurance payout won’t be available for months yet and my bank balance is going to run low soon.”

“Don’t worry about that. You know I’ll help you out with money anytime. You do need to get back to your usual routine as soon as possible, but you should wait for the leg to heal before you go back to work.” Dr. Bennett’s voice held genuine concern as he hauled his big frame across the floor to wrap his arms around Beth. She’d always felt safe in Dr. B’s office. As a child she’d visited him often and had fond memories of him offering her jellybean bribes. The smell of the tan leather chesterfield brought it all back to her. But she wasn’t a child with tonsillitis now. She was twenty-six years old and needed to stand on her own two feet.

“Yes, well, I don’t have a choice at the moment. My boss has hired a temp for another month. I want to make sure that not only my leg heals, but I also get my head together in that time. I want to remember what happened. I’m sure I saw something important, and I can’t move on until I find out what it is.”

And there were those other dreams. The ones involving chocolate-brown eyes and a sexy smile that had her blood warming and her skin tingling. Of course she couldn’t mention
those
, but it was a strange coincidence that they appeared the same time as the nightmares.

She moved out of the embrace and sat up straight, throwing her legs back over the side of the couch. “You know how it is when you can’t remember an important detail. You can almost see it… It sticks up over the haze just a little, but not enough to recognize it completely. It stays on your mind and drives you crazy all day until it comes to you. That’s how I feel all the time now.”

“Beth,” he said, leaning against the arm of the leather couch, “didn’t your doctor tell you that you may never recover those memories? In cases of retrograde and anterograde amnesia, it’s rare for the patient to get any of that memory back. It’s the brain’s way of coping with the pain. It doesn’t want to remember, so try not to push it. It only makes it harder if you try to force the memories. Try to relax, and if they’re going to come at all, they’ll come on their own.”