Tangled Bliss (3 page)

Chapter Three

By the Earth mother, yes!
The thought flashed through
Chelsea’s mind. She needed his body next to hers. Even more, she needed to run
her hands over him and feel the heat of his hunger. She wrapped her arms around
his shoulders.

“I need this, baby. When you called me, I wanted to come
straight to you. The thoughts that raged through my mind tortured me. I tried
to focus on my duty, but it almost made me insane.” His fingers threaded
through her hair and tightened for a moment.

The slight tug at her hair drew a gasp from her. She nipped
at his lips. His hand guided her lips back to his.

He carried her over to the island in the center of the
kitchen. As soon as he put her on the marble countertop, he stepped back. She
reached for him, not wanting to lose the warmth of his embrace.

He resisted her tugging hands. Frustration and irritation
brought a frown to her face. She wanted him against her. His fingers began
working at her button down shirt. She approved, but his clothes needed to go.
Her excitement rose higher as she thought of touching. She began peeling him
out his uniform shirt.

She unfastened the last of the buttons of his shirt that she
could reach. With an impatient groan, she pulled it out of his pants. When the
garment slid free his arms, she ran her fingers over the broad expanse of his
chest. He pulled her hands away for a moment so that he could slip her shirt
off.

“You’re so damn sexy. I want you naked, sweetheart.” He ran
his hands down her arms and swept them inward to unhook her bra with sure
fingers.

She squirmed closer. “If you get naked, too, I’m in.”

He chuckled. “I’m definitely getting out of these clothes.
First, your jeans and boots though.”

He untied and loosened the laces on her work boots before
pulling them off along with her socks. The boots landed with a loud thud when
he tossed them away. That more than anything showed her the intensity of his
desire.

Whenever he spent the night with her, he folded his clothes
as he took them off. The almost obsessive behavior didn’t involve other areas
of his life. She thought habit more than anything lay behind the tendency. It
made her wonder about those years he omitted in their talks.

“You wear too many damn clothes, sweetheart.” He skimmed his
hands up her jean-covered thighs.

She grinned. That frustration was all too familiar. “I’ll
remember that next time I’m dressing for work.”

He unbuttoned and unzipped her jeans. He didn’t have to urge
her to lift her hips. When he began pushing the fabric down, she raised her
hips from the counter to let him take the clothing. She lowered herself down
onto the marble once the clothing was down her legs. A hissing breath escaped
her when the cool stone touched her heated skin. The contrast enhanced the
desire flaring through her.

His hands went to the pants of his uniform. He removed his
belt first, putting that and his service weapon on the table. His fingers flew
over the button and zipper before pushing the pants down his legs. He stepped
out of them and moved straight to her. She opened her arms and widened her legs
to make a place for him.

His hands gripped her waist, pulling her to the edge of the
countertop. The scare might be part of it, but she needed his cock pushing into
her and his arms holding her close. He placed a condom on the counter next to
her.

His head dipped. He pressed open mouthed kisses to her
shoulder and neck. She tilted her head to give him room to move. He drew his
tongue over her skin, tracing a trail over her chest.

Her nipples tightened when his lips drew closer. She vividly
recalled the intense sensation of his lips and teeth teasing those stiff peaks.
The memory left her wet and even more excited. She wanted him to do that.

“I want to lick and taste here until you’re pleading with
me. I have to touch you though.” He scraped his teeth over one stiff peak.

“If you’re not satisfied with what you accomplished the
first time, we can do it again. I’m always ready.” Chelsea cupped his cheek
before she turned her attention back to exploring him.

His hand traced circles over the skin of her stomach. She
wriggled and tried to get closer to him. Her fingertips danced across his
chest. When she came to his nipples, she scraped her nails across them before
tugging at the two flat nubs. He hissed. His hand rose to mold over her breast at
the same time as his mouth covered other peak.

His tongue traced around the stiffened bud. She arched her
back, pressing into the warmth of his mouth. A soft moan tore from her lips
when he began sucking. His hand squeezed. The fingers of his second hand teased
the neglected mound before it once again trailed down her stomach.

He sucked at her nipple, drawing on it. With each moan he
drew from her, his tongue swept across a little harder. His mouth and teeth
worked over her flesh. She twisted and writhed underneath his touch. His palm
skimmed over her pussy. She stiffened when his fingers pushed between the lips.

“So wet, baby.” His hand stilled before moving again.

Her attention centered on those fingers. They moved closer
to the swollen nub. Her body tensed in expectation of a touch on her clit. She
craved that with every breath she took.

His fingers circled the sensitive flesh before drawing back.
The light pressure pushed her arousal higher. His fingers traced in slow rings,
but he avoided the aching nub of her clit. The teasing touch trailed downward.
He trailed around her entrance before dipping two fingertips inside.

She gripped his shoulders even though she itched to slide
her hand between her thighs and relieve the building ache. He’d pull her hand
away before she could do more than add to her torment.

“I’m not going to let you come until I’m inside you,
Chelsea.” He slowly curled his finger inside her, stroking the sensitive
tissue.

His slick fingers once more trailed upward to her clit. He
circled the hardened bud, but this time the tips flicked across it. She gasped
and arched. His teeth grazed her nipple. She shuddered. The man drew so much
feeling from her. Her throat tightened and her breath rasped against the raw
tissue. Her nails sank into his shoulders.

“I need you, Alex.” She tugged on his hair to pull his lips
away from her breast before he made her come from that contact. Her body burned
with every brush or lick, so damn sensitive now it wouldn’t take much to put
her right over the edge.

He lifted his head and took the final step forward. With
quick movements, he rolled on the condom. His cock brushed her inner thigh. His
lips pressed to hers, before he spread kisses over her cheek and chin. The
rounded head of his shaft eased over the lips of her pussy.

She licked her lips. Her fingers threaded through his hair.
She tugged him forward for a kiss. Her lips sealed across his. She wanted the
connection with him.

He rocked his hips forward. His cock slid into her. She
moaned against his lips. She pulled him tighter to her. Her legs wrapped around
his hips. His tongue thrust against her lips, swept inside. The kiss deepened,
became a claiming. She nipped and sucked at his lower lip.

One of his hands slipped beneath her buttocks and pulled her
closer. His hips surged forward. She moaned. She wanted to his hands everywhere
and the weight of his body on her. Her nails dug into his back. She rocked into
the thrusts. His chest brushed against her hardened nipples.

A little more.
The words tore through her mind. A
strangled moan escaped her lips. His eyes had darkened to almost black. The
hunger flared. The strength of his grip and the almost out of control plunge of
his hips showed the intensity of his desire. The knowledge of her effect on him
enflamed her.

Her inner muscles clenched around his cock. A groan tore
from him. His hips punched forward and he drove into her harder, faster. He
pulled her tighter to him. His tongue thrust deep into her mouth as if he
couldn’t get enough of her.

The climax rose, edging closer. Her breath rasped in her
throat. She lifted into his strokes wanting more. The change in angle caused
his cock to hit a sensitive area within her. Pleasure burst through her. Her
eyes slammed shut. She tore her mouth away from his and drew in a desperate
gasp. Her body stiffened. Sensation sizzled through her nerve endings.

 He continued thrusting against her. His cheek brushed
against hers. Tension tightened his muscles beneath her hands. Bliss shimmered
through her with every movement of his body, the afterglow extended. The hand
on her ass tightened. He thrust forward. His head tipped back as the ecstasy
took him. He came with a shout. The muscles in his neck flexed. His hips
continued to rock as if trying to hold onto the feeling.

When his breathing calmed, he leaned close and dropped a
kiss on her forehead. He stepped back for a moment to take care of the condom,
but came right back and eased between her thighs again. His arms wrapped around
her, pulling her close. He stood there with his arms around her. The physical
closeness comforted her, but she wished for a deeper relationship.

A knot of anxiety built in her stomach whenever she thought
about the lack of certainty about him and his place in her life. She wanted him
there. Now, it was his choice. He had to be ready to share his full life with
her. Not just the parts he thought she needed to know.

“I needed that, baby. After learning that fucker got into
your house, I wanted to come straight to you.” Alex’s fingers trailed down her
back. “Having to stay away tore at me.”

“I needed to feel you, too. I was so scared,” she admitted.

When she’d found that package, a sense vulnerability rose
leaving her feeling naked and exposed. The stalker had gotten into her home.
The one place that should be her haven. How could she ever look at it in the
same way again?

“We’ll find this person. You just have to give us time.”
Alex dropped a kiss on top of her head. “You want to go take a shower with me?”

“A shower sounds wonderful. Then we have to talk about a few
things, maybe also think about what we’re going to eat.” She’d need a few
things to at least get her over the next few days.

“We’ll be busy for a little while then, but first, let’s
make the shower a long one.” Alex helped her down from the countertop and led
her to his bedroom and the master bath.

Chapter Four

Alex got out of his car and headed for the white building
located in the center of the flower fields. The smaller field office stood to
the right of the large cool prep building where they trimmed the flowers before
shipping. He saw a delivery van in front of the big doors so someone must be
picking up an order.

He was a little early to pick up Chelsea, but he could wait
in the office for her. Although it depended on who was in the building, he
might be able to ask if there had been any gifts. If it was just her brother,
they could talk at will. Unfortunately, that wasn’t likely. He could, at least,
ask about her day.

Gallagher wanted to keep the details of the attacks on
Chelsea as quiet as possible. Alex agreed with the call. They didn’t want to
chance any copycat incidents to confuse the issue. It wasn’t going to be easy
to catch the stalker even without some other person making problems.

It had been two days since she’d moved in with him. Her
house had been cleaned and was now odor free. Chelsea wouldn’t be going home
though. She was staying with him until they caught this person. If he had his
way, she wouldn’t move out when the stalking ended.

The attraction between them was too strong to walk away
from. It felt right. The connection made him feel as if he finally had a place
to belong. He’d been looking for that for a long time. His instincts told him
to hold onto her. That’s what he’d do. He had the tenacity to keep pushing for
a life with her. Especially since he knew she felt something for him.

Chelsea had doubts because he hadn’t been open about his
past. He’d been so focused on her and building a relationship that he hadn’t
realized she wasn’t satisfied.  Now that he knew about it, he would find a way
to make her happy.

Thankfully, she was in the same house with him and wouldn’t
be going anywhere soon. With the danger she faced, she’d learn what he’d done
in the past. He hoped it didn’t scare her. With any luck, she knew him well enough
to see that he wasn’t a monster.

After he opened the door to the office, he looked around the
light gray walled room. A thin, blond man walked past him without saying word,
carrying what looked like a computer bag and a square box. A young red haired
woman, Gina Dysart, sat behind a desk. Caleb, Chelsea’s brother, stood slightly
bent over the corner of another desk. He studied something on one of the
monitors. A man who Alex had seen before, but never met sat in the desk chair
pointing something out to Caleb.

“Hi, Alex, Chels is still out in the fields with a couple of
other people, but she shouldn’t be too much longer.” Caleb looked up when the
door closed behind Alex. A smile crossed the other man’s face.

Alex appreciated Caleb telling him she wasn’t alone. He’d
had nightmares over her coming to work. She spent most of her time out in the
fields. She touched the plants, healed them, and encouraged their growth. She
was also most vulnerable there. He knew before this happened she’d walked
through the fields alone while working.

“No worries. I’m early.” Alex shrugged. “Everything good
here today?”

“You know this place. Routine as usual. If we’re not
planting, we’re tending or harvesting. The latter today,” Caleb said before he
glanced back at the monitor. “This is Dean, by the way. You’ve seen him, but I
don’t think you’ve met him. The man who just left was Jeremy. He’s always in
and out. He works in the office.”

Which meant that Jeremy didn’t have a strong affinity to the
plants. The people with a pull to plants worked with them in a direct capacity.

Alex nodded to the man sitting at the desk near Caleb. “Nice
to meet you.”

Alex walked past the first desk and found a spare chair. He
settled in to wait. His muscles loosened a little and the tension in his
shoulders and neck eased. He’d see Chelsea soon. If he was with her, he could
handle almost anything.

After a moment, he pulled his phone from his pocket. He
brought up his email. He began checking for updates on some searches. His
fellow officers were trying to narrow down who could have been behind the
attacks on Chelsea. One of the gifts she’d been sent while not rare had been
personalized for her.

The glass figurine stood on a glass base. Her name and a
poem were etched there. They hoped to discover where the figurine was purchased
and who paid for it. If they couldn’t discover the identity there, they also
searched for places where the etching might have been done.

Whoever bought the little sculpture didn’t know Chelsea
well. They sent her a representation of something she found almost abhorrent.
The fairies and elves of myth.

A winged fairy perched atop a grouping of flowers situated
on top of the base. Chelsea didn’t like the cutesy depictions, even if the
fairies of legend had been inspired by the Aelfir at one point.

A loud boom echoed in the small office. The building
shuddered. Pictures dropped from the wall and crashed to the floor. Books and
supplies fell to the ground.

Alex’s attention jerked away from the information on the
small screen of his phone. He jumped to his feet and ran for the door even as
he noted the damage. A shelf tore free from the bracket holding it the wall. It
crashed into one of the desks. Luckily, Gina had scrambled away from it. Light
streamed in through boards which had torn free from their support on the wall.

He pulled his gun before he ripped the door open. At the
moment, that weapon might do more good than the blade at his waist. He had no
idea what had hit the building.

Could it be some sort of magical creature?
To stop
that, he’d need more than a gun. He doubted it. A creature wouldn’t stop at one
bump. Still, if necessary, he had his blade. The Aelfir fire imbued within the
dagger would handle any magical enemy.

As he left the office, Alex’s eyes swept over the area,
searching for the source of that impact. He saw the delivery van rolling toward
the fields. He sprinted for the vehicle.

It glanced off a parked car, changing directions slightly
and continued on. From the way the van moved, he suspected the stalker had aimed
it and jumped out before it hit.

Alex needed to stop it before it rolled into the fields. Not
simply because it would damage the plants, but because that would mean more
work for Chelsea. And a late night for him waiting while she did her work. He
knew his woman. She wouldn’t leave if the plants were harmed.

He ran up to the driver’s side and found the sliding door
open. He jumped in and stomped on the break forcing it to a halt. He jammed on
the emergency break to prevent it from rolling anywhere else and stepped down
from the van. When he turned away from the vehicle, he saw Chelsea standing on
the road.

A man came from the prep building. He stopped and then began
looking around the lot. He started yelling as he ran across the yard. Alex
didn’t pay much attention to him. His attention locked on Chelsea.

She stared at him, her mouth agape. Her wide eyes and that
stunned look told him that she’d guessed what he’d hidden from her. He’d run
faster than a normal Aelfir could. Fuck. He didn’t want her to find out this
way.

His speed was above normal, even for Aelfir. His agility,
strength and reflexes had been honed and enhanced. During his training, his
magic had heightened those abilities as well as others to aid in his new role
as a Hunter.

Alex took a deep breath. It could be worse. She watched him.
Her eyes looked twice their normal size. He could live with that shocked
expression. Especially when he considered the alternative. She could have a
look of revulsion or fear on her face.

Some people in their society considered those who hunted at
best brutal killers necessary for the Aelfir to continue and at worst monsters.
Not Chelsea. They’d talked. She didn’t think that way. Still, doubts nudged at
the back of his mind.
What was in her head?

She walked over to him. Her eyes moved over his face. “Are
you alright? We saw the truck hit the building, but we were too far away to do
anything.”

“The only thing that it damaged was the building. Some of
the shelving along that wall fell, I think. No one was hit by it.” He reached
for her hand. How would she react?

She took his hand and squeezed just a little. A little of
the tense uncertainty eased. She hadn’t pulled back from him. That had to be
promising, although he had to make some sort of explanation.

“We’ll talk a little later?” She continued looking up at
him.

“Yes, first we have to notify the police and get through the
reports.” Alex shifted his shoulders and rolled his head a little. Did the
stalker think Chelsea was in the building or was the runaway van meant to scare
him?

“Did it just roll and hit the office?” Chelsea glanced at
the van and then back to him.

The crash hadn’t been an accident. That truck had been over
by the other building. The corner where the van hit didn’t face the prep area.
In fact, it was on the opposite side. That meant someone had circled the office
and then directed the van toward it.

“No, I saw it parked by the prep building, probably waiting
to be loaded, when I drove up.” Alex stared at the damn van. “Did any of you
see someone running away or perhaps a vehicle leaving?”

“No, but they wouldn’t have to. They could have gone through
the fields behind the office and straight to our main buildings. It wouldn’t
take long and wouldn’t be all that strange for someone to cut through there as
long as they were careful of the plants.” Chelsea shrugged. “That’s how we send
messages sometimes, especially if someone hasn’t responded to the first email
or voice mail.”

“And you don’t have any cameras?” Alex thought the answer
would be no. He hadn’t seen any out here.

“There’s one at the gates. Also, there are some inside the
prep building and the larger offices, but not on the field office, the area
around it or the fields.” Chelsea looked around the area. “There’s never been a
need for them.”

Well, there’s a need now.
Alex kept the thought to
himself. He wouldn’t take his frustration out on her.

“We’ve called the police, Alex. They’re on the way. You’re
fast.” Caleb strolled up to them.

“Yeah, keeping in shape sort of goes hand in hand with being
a police officer.” At least, it did in Alden Glen.

Officers had to pass a fitness test every year. At times,
Alden Glen police dealt with more than normal crime. They were the first ones
to discover any supernatural trouble in the city. While it depended on the type
of trouble, Hunters might be called in to deal with it, but until that
happened, the officers needed to keep people safe.

Chelsea’s eyes swept over his chest. A small smile curved
her lips. He saw the sensual heat in those eyes. He enjoyed the appreciation in
her gaze, but they couldn’t do anything about it right now.

Everyone waited for the police to arrive. The van driver
screamed to know who had taken his vehicle. His hands waved wildly. No one
answered him even as he continued demanding answers.

Alex let him rant. He understood the man’s anger. Alex
wished that he could shout that way, as well. His anger boiled and hadn’t
lessened a bit. The only thing that helped him retain his sanity was Chelsea.
He kept her beside him even through the interviews by his fellow officers.