Hide My Soul: A Romantic Suspense Thriller Novel (Hide Me Series Book 4) (3 page)

Katerina looked around the table at all the people she loved the most in the world, joy filling her very being. The restaurant was divine, the company amazing, and tomorrow was her wedding day. A day she'd never dared to let herself think about before. A day she had sometimes never thought would come. Marrying West was a dream come true. She let her gaze follow his profile as the words from the people around the table washed over her.

He was strong, incredibly handsome, true to his word, thoughtful, and kind. And he was all hers. They'd gone through hell together and come out the back side, whole, and with their relationship still intact. With anyone other than West, that would be a miracle. With West though, it was just a side effect of who he was. Steadfast. True. Faithful.

Katerina's eyes flicked to Brody, West's brother, and again she was surprised by how much they looked alike but how different they were. Brody sat on West's left, and Jordan sat on the other side of Brody. Brody and Jordan were sharing a laugh as Blaise looked on in amusement.

"C'mon, Jordan," Brody said. "What are you doing with that guy?" Brody pointed his chin at Blaise, his voice booming across the crowded restaurant. "You should be with me!" he teased, winking at Blaise, and Katerina wasn't sure if he was joking or not.

Blaise snorted a laugh and picked up his beer. "You couldn't handle her, Bro," he said, putting a tough edge on the last word. Blaise's eyes glittered, and he never looked away from Brody once, like Brody would disappear with Jordan if Blaise so much as blinked.

Katerina leaned over to West. "What's going on?" she whispered, suddenly scared there was going to be a scene.

"They're always like that," West whispered back. "Don't worry. Brody doesn't mean anything by it. He idolizes Blaise."

Katerina sat back in her chair, relieved.  Her eyes traveled to the other side of the table where Agnes and Sam, West's father, were huddled together, talking about California's history during the gold rush. Katerina couldn't think of anything more boring to talk about, but Sam and Agnes seemed enthralled by their conversation.

Brody turned his blue eyes, so much like West's, on Katerina and addressed her in a voice that made her wince. People on the next island could probably hear him.

"So Katerina, you finally tamed my wild brother - got him to settle down with just one woman. Good for you. That couldn't have been easy."

Katerina's eyes widened and she peeked at West. Wild? Settle down? She hadn't known West had been a playboy before they met.

West's laughter boomed across the table, and Blaise laughed too. Jordan seemed as lost as Katerina.

"The only wild child around here is you, Brody!" West countered. "Don't go giving Kat the wrong idea about me."

Katerina felt her heart return to a normal speed in her chest. So Brody was just teasing. West didn't seem like the type to have ever been
too
wild.

"Don't you have a girlfriend, Brody?" Katerina asked.

Brody sat back and shrugged. "I'm between girlfriends right now," he said.

"Which probably means he has five or six at the moment," West said, not without fondness.

Sam turned away from Agnes for a moment and addressed Katerina. "Ignore them sweetheart. I've got something I wanted to ask you, and I hope you don't feel pressured by it."

Katerina smiled at him. He was such a sweet man. Katerina could tell where West got his thoughtfulness and integrity from. She saw West shift in his chair from the corner of her eye and glanced at him. He looked anxious. She glanced back at Sam, but didn't know what was making West react that way. She knew Sam had been having bouts of dementia over the last few years, but he'd been perfectly lucid every time she'd talked to him, and he didn't seem to be having any problems now.

She took West's hand and encouraged his father to ask his question. "I won't feel pressured, what is it?"

He held up a finger as if he were about to teach class. After a moment, he spoke. "I know that West has told you about my ... condition. It doesn't seem bad right now, and the doctor has assured me I have at least five years before it gets bad. I was wondering, well..." Sam dropped his finger and wrung his hands together, then pushed the words out. "I was wondering if you and West were planning on having any kids anytime soon. I'd love to meet my grandkids while I still know who they are."

A skinny tear slid out of one eye and traversed its way down Sam's face. Katerina's heart broke in two for her future father-in-law.

West squeezed her hand and she smiled at him gratefully. She looked back to Sam. "We haven't really talked about it," she told him weakly.

"So you're not against it? You want kids someday?" he asked hopefully.

"I'm not against it at all. I do want kids." She looked at West thoughtfully, surprised suddenly that the only conversation she'd ever had with him about children was how to protect themselves from pregnancy in the moment. She didn't know if he wanted kids or not, or if he did, how many. It felt irresponsible to her to never have asked him.

"That's wonderful," Sam crowed. "I'll hang in there. I'll do everything my doctor says to keep my brain in the here and now. I know West wants kids. He used to tell me when he was little that he was going to have ten kids, all boys."

Katerina laughed abruptly at the image that came to mind. Her, with a never-ending pregnant belly and a pack of mischievous boys at her feet. Her eyes swung back to West. He was smiling at her gently. "I don't want ten anymore," he told her.

"Nine?" she asked and he chuckled.

She ran her thumb lightly over the back of his hand. "Want to start with two?" she asked softly.

"Two sounds good," he responded with a lopsided smile, his deep voice rumbling deliciously. Katerina felt a shiver of desire go through her.
Hers, he was all hers, soon to be her husband. And if they wanted to have children, there was nothing stopping them. Not money issues, not dangerous killers, not hounding press. They were in charge of the rest of their lives.

The people at the table began talking again as Katerina and West gazed at each other, sending secret messages of love and commitment back and forth.

Jordan waved one more time as Katerina disappeared into the elevator with West, then turned to Blaise. "She's going to come get me at ten in the morning. We're getting our hair done and then we'll get my dress, then have lunch and meet you guys at the wedding site later."

Blaise reached for her hand and threaded their fingers together. "But tonight you're all mine," he said with a sly grin.

Jordan smiled cautiously back. She'd been a little disappointed on the airplane when Blaise had shot down the idea of the mile high club. But she'd also been a little relieved. Of course she didn't want him to lose his job, and she also wanted their first time to be something special, and she wasn't sure if being banged in a tiny toilet would have been.

Blaise pulled her to the back of the hotel lobby and she followed willingly. She could hear the waves pounding on the shoreline outside, and they sounded lovely. Maybe they could find a beach cabana and do a little making out before heading upstairs to finally consummate this relationship.

The doctor had been amazed at Blaise's progress and had cleared him for all physical activity, even for returning to work. Jordan shuddered when she thought about that. She loved the idea that Blaise was a cop, that his very job definition made him a badass, but she hated the idea of him actually being on the streets and being shot at. Look at what had already happened. A bullet in his chest.

Blaise pulled her out the back door and her thoughts broke up and were carried away by the tropical breeze on her face. The temperature was perfectly lovely, and the night air smelled of salt and flowers. The ocean undulated a mere twenty feet away down the sandy beach. She lifted her face to the wind and took a deep breath, feeling joy spread through her soul. She was so lucky to be here in Hawaii, and with Blaise.

Blaise stopped walking and she ran into him abruptly. He folded her into his arms and lowered his mouth to hers for a soft kiss, their first one in the Hawaiian breezes. It felt good, and she didn't know what to pay the most attention to - the feeling of his lips on hers, the brush of his stubble on her cheeks, the tall length of his body pressed against her, or the sweet trade winds kissing them both, lifting her hair and cooling their bodies.

She closed her eyes as Blaise plunged a hand into her tresses and drew her in closer, making her breath catch in her throat. The passion in his kiss was overflowing, sending throbs of need and want and
yes
through her body, all the way to her toes and back. She melted into his embrace, all thoughts pushed away for the moment.

Blaise finally pulled away and Jordan sagged against him. She had no strength or breath left. She was completely under his spell. She opened her eyes and saw his face, bathed in moonlight, a knowing and satisfied expression  on it.

"Wow," she breathed and he chuckled softly, then kissed her again, a chaste kiss that made her feel loved and special.

Blaise began to walk again, pulling her towards the sand. She caught up with him, striding close enough to rub elbows and hips with him, then looked up at the moon. "Is it a full moon?" she asked, gazing at the white orb suspended over the water. Pleasant sights and sounds were coming at her from all sides.

"Almost. Tomorrow is the full moon," Blaise said.

"How can you tell?"

"I always know when the full moon is. I track it."

Surprise shot through Jordan. "Why?"

Blaise shrugged but didn't say anything for a few moments. When he spoke, she could hear the mischievousness in his tone. "Because I'm a werewolf."

Before Jordan could laugh, Blaise stopped again and pulled her around to face him. His mouth fell on hers with more passion than before. Their tongues tangled together deliciously. Jordan felt him nipping at her lips and heat rushed to her core. God, she wanted him! He was driving her crazy! She couldn't believe she'd managed to hold him back for almost three weeks and now she was the one who was suffering.

His lips traced a sizzling trail down her chin to her collarbone where he nipped her again, causing soft thrills to shoot straight to her breasts and her sex.

She moaned at the sensation, "Are you going to eat me?" she asked, trying to tease back.

"Yes," he replied. "You're my dinner, my dessert, and my breakfast."

Jordan whimpered as his hands circled her waist and dropped to her ass, squeezing lightly.
What were they doing out here on the beach? They needed a bed!

She broke apart from him and tried to pull him back to the hotel. He stood tall and firm and no amount of pulling would get him to move.

"Blaise," she said, her voice low and needy, "Take me back to our room, now."

"Let's walk a little more," he said, his voice light, his eyes flashing in the moonlight.

Jordan pouted. "You don't want  me." She knew she was being ridiculous but she hated not getting her way.

Blaise laughed, his voice mingling with the waves. He pulled her to him and spoke low in her ear. "I want you. I want you like I want to draw my next breath, like I want to stay alive, like I want food and water. I want you like I've never wanted another woman in my life."

Jordan gasped at his words. Hot, burning need ran through her. Her sex throbbed and a tiny thrill shot through her clit, making her knees give way slightly. She burned to get his hands down there, his tongue, his cock, anything that would give her the release she was looking for. Or maybe he could just say more things like that. More things that made her feel like the most beautiful woman in the world.

"Come on you big caveman, you can have me already, back at the room. Why won't you go?" Jordan panted, trying not to whine.

Blaise kicked off his shoes and took a step backwards into the sand. "Because the wanting feels good. And because when I finally take you, you're not going to be able to handle it. I want to give you a little time to prepare yourself."

Jordan kicked out of her heels and giggled. "Is that a promise?"

"Yes," Blaise replied simply.

Jordan raised an eyebrow and her heartbeat kicked up a notch. She hadn't had sex with a man in way too long. Almost two years. Maybe she
wouldn't
be able to handle it.

"Let's leave our shoes here and walk a little ways," Blaise said, putting their shoes in a neat line under a sea grape bush.

"Fine," Jordan muttered, ready to lead where he followed, but not wanting him to know that. She could wait if he could. Even though all it would take for her was the tiniest bit of friction ...

The warm sand flowed over Jordan's toes as they walked. Jordan closed her eyes and smiled blindly at the moon as Blaise led her to the waterline. The sand became cooler, then stopped flowing, then packed hard and wet under her feet. An incoming wave swirled around her ankles. Blaise's pant cuffs were getting wet, but he walked on, not seeming to notice.

They walked in silence, holding hands, for a lover's age. The beach seemed endless and perfect. Blaise stopped and looked around, then began unbuttoning his shirt. "Want to swim?" he asked, laying his shirt out on the dry sand.

Jordan looked around too. The lights and hotels had stopped in a line long before. The beach was secluded, a large rock blocking them on one side, and the empty beach stretching out on the other. They seemed to be completely alone, the twinkling lights of the city only a mirage or part of a dream.

She eyed the water nervously. "Haven't you ever read Jaws?"

"I watched the movie," Blaise said, dropping his pants to reveal a sculpted abdomen divided only by dark boxers.

"This is how it starts," Jordan said, eyeing his muscular legs and back in appreciation. If only he'd take those boxers off so she could get a look at the goods. He made no move to do so and she tried to convince him to stay on shore. "She goes swimming at night alone, and the shark comes up and eats her."

Blaise looked out over the water. "I don't think there's a lot of sharks here."

Jordan was about to say
there's sharks everywhere
, but then she wondered why she was arguing. She was about to get one thing that she wanted. Less clothes on the both of them. And maybe Blaise would get a surprise or two.

She stripped her dress over her head while Blaise was still turned away from her, then shed her bra and underwear in a flash. She walked past him, and heard his breath intake, a smile of satisfaction on her face.

"If a shark eats me, you won't get to," she called over her shoulder, then plunged into the waves, being careful to keep her hair above the water. She was putting on a bit of a show, but didn't want to actually swim. The water was warm, almost like a bath tub.

But the warm wetness felt so good on her naked body. It surrounded her like a skilled lover, reaching all her private places at once, lapping at her nipples, caressing her sex. Jordan lifted her feet off the bottom and treaded water, drinking in the feeling. The moonlight sparkled off the waves, making it seem as if she were swimming in jewels.

Strong arms surrounded her from behind, circling her waist, brushing the bottoms of her breasts. Jordan smiled and whirled around in the water, placing her hands on Blaise's broad shoulders and wrapping her legs around his torso.

She gasped as she felt something steely and rock hard between them, pushing at her. "Is that what I think it is?" she gasped, looking into Blaise's eyes.

"I don't know, you better check it out," he said, his face stoic and gorgeous.

Jordan tightened her grip on Blaise with her legs, even as his hands stole around to her ass to hold her up. She shivered and her eyes widened in surprise as one of his fingers grazed her anus. Had he meant to do that? He grinned and she still didn't know.

She looked down, but could see nothing except swirling water. She reached one hand beneath the waves, stealing it down slowly through silky wetness, till it met something unmistakable, something completely unclothed. Jordan blinked and licked her bottom lip. It was what she thought it was, and it was huge! No wonder he was confident.

Jordan dropped her other hand to him and grasped his cock tightly, her hands exploring, kneading, squeezing. Blaise tilted his head back and moaned, and Jordan stroked him relentlessly, glad to be the one in control for the first time since they'd gotten on the airplane.

Jordan ran her fingers up and down his length, then rubbed him again, creating a sultry rhythm that she knew he wouldn't be able to resist. She wanted to see him. Wanted to taste him. Wanted him inside her, every inch of him - but for now, she would take this, this sensual moment that belonged just to the two of them and nature herself.

Blaise moaned again and shifted backwards, causing water to slosh around them. He began stepping towards shore. Jordan opened her mouth to protest but Blaise fixed her with a stare that stopped her cold. She wasn't in charge anymore.

Blaise took her mouth again, harder this time, with urgency, as she stroked him the same way. He carried her out of the water and onto the sand and she lost her grip on him as he had to hoist her higher. She let out a whine of protest but the ocean winds carried it away.

Blaise bent and deposited her gently on his clothes, being careful not to stir up any sand. Jordan watched him through slitted eyes, wondering where this fun little incident was going. Nowhere? Or all the way, right here on the beach?

She knew what she wanted.