The Second Covenant

To say I was excited that they were coming home from college tomorrow was a vast understatement. I was so happy that my face hurt from smiling so much. I waved to old Mr. Brody as I crossed the street, he was seventy four and still ran his little barbershop, well, he sat out front of the shop and policed the younger kids that ran all over the place. I was on my last minute Halloween candy shopping spree, the Pharmacy puts the big bags on sale three days before Halloween, everything half off.

I walked in grabbed my little basket, and went to town. Chocolate, suckers, two bags of every kind they sold. The Danver’s house gets a flood of trick-or-treaters every year. Last year my mother had nearly run out of candy so this year we were overstocking. I had to set down my basket as I reached up on my toes for a bag of Milky Way mini’s, okay I got three, one for me, and almost got them when a voice behind me spoke and turned my blood cold. “Well, well, well. Look who it is.” My heart was pounding as I turned and faced the demon who preyed on my nightmares.

Taylor Hodges was a good looking guy, tall, athletic, with those boy next door good looks that made young girls sigh over him.
To bad he was a monster.
A rapist.

I managed to keep my voice normal, disdainful and my smile firmly in place. “Taylor. I’d say nice to see you, but…well, it’s not.” His lips curled in a sneer and he took a step towards me, for a moment, just one, I had a flash back, I felt terror and panic claw at me. But I choked it down and stood still, met his cold blue eyes and raised a brow icily. “Aw baby don’t be like that. I moved back, didn’t you hear?” It was on the tip of my tongue to tell him to get the fuck away from me, but someone beat me to it.
The most gorgeous someone I’d ever seen in my life. “She‘s not a baby.” He grinned at me, flashing perfect white teeth, his smile turned the ice in my veins to lava so quick I was steaming. He was taller than Taylor , six four, older, more muscular in a very male way.

His hair was so blonde it was silver, pulled back in a pony tail at his nape, a few pieces to short to be held touched his cheek, his forehead. I looked into his eyes and felt my knees quiver. They were almost neon blue, the same color as some huskies have, startling against the light almond gold tan of his skin. He was wearing jeans, a black t-shirt and a fitted, expensive looking coat that brushed his thighs.

I looked down at his feet and let my own lips twitch, he was wearing Harley Davidson biker boots. The kind with those sexy buckles on them. I could tell from the tightness around his eyes that he knew something was wrong, and was trying to help me, strangely I wanted him to. I didn’t know him and I desperately wanted to curl up under his strong arms and let him shield me from Taylor ’s disgusting presence. “I was wondering where you’d gone off to.” I purred and a flame lit in his eyes, just for me. And he was not acting. He grabbed my hand and gave me a twirl, right into his arms and dipped me over, like we were doing the Tango or something.

It made me laugh and his grin turned positively wicked. “Here I am.” He pulled me up and I realized that he had strategically pulled me away from Taylor , away from the wall of candy and under his arm, just like I’d wanted. I looked up at him and forgot why I’d been afraid in the first place. “Have I told you, you are the most gorgeous man I’ve ever seen?” His eyes were laughing, sparkling with it, I’d never seen anyone with such expressive eyes. He made a low hmm noise that raised the hair on my arms. “Not today.” His gaze strayed to my mouth and I had the most amazing urge to raise up on my toes and kiss him.

His arm tightened on me and I put my hand on his chest, on his rock hard, oh my god, chest. Right over his heart and grinned, the heat he was putting off was astounding. “I was going to say the same thing to you.”

I was often told by Aunt Kate and my mom that I took after my grandmother in looks. I had long, naturally curled hair, big mahogany black curls that just cascaded perfectly no matter what I did, thank you grams, I had my father’s nearly black eyes and my mother’s alabaster skin. My amazingly average, but perky breasts that had made an appearance as soon as I hit 9th grade, people always told me I looked like a gypsy. I wasn’t the type to stand and spend hours in front of a mirror, I wore little to no make up most days and was just fine.

I consider myself classically pretty, but this guy and the way he was looking at me, made me feel like a first rate babe. I felt like I was going to fall over, the only thing keeping me up was his strong arms. Quick, say something witty!

“That I’m the most gorgeous man you’ve ever seen?” I teased and he laughed. I have never had an orgasm from a guy’s laughter, but I came rather close. “Minx.” He said, his voice lowering intimately. “Do you guys want me to leave so you can find a room?”

I was jerked back to reality with a sharp, unpleasant tug. I looked away from my rescuer, to the Devil and gave him a nonplussed look. “Not a bad idea.” The thinly veiled hate in his eyes made a shiver race up my spine, my handsome hunk rubbed my back like he’d felt it. “Please tell me you didn’t date this guy.” He said and I shuddered. “I would rather date a three hundred year old corpse.” Taylor turned bright red. “That’s disgusting.” He spat and I nodded. “So are you. Stay away from me Taylor .” He sneered at me and stupidly dismissed the man who held me so protectively. “And if I don’t?”

My guy let his arms fall from around me, took one step forward and grabbed Taylor by the throat. Lifted him clean up off the ground and held him there like a rag doll. With one freaking arm.
Whoa.
Yummy.

He held him there and Taylor stared with wide frightened eyes, he wasn’t used to being the prey and not the predator. “If you don’t I’ll break you in half. Got it?” Taylor ’s face was starting to turn red from the lack of air, but he nodded and the hand around his throat opened. Taylor hit the floor with a smack and coughed, gasping for air. I just managed not to gape, but my hunky savior bent, totally at ease and got my basket, reached up and snagged three bags of the chocolate I wanted and slid his arm around my waist. I stepped over Taylor like the trash he was and couldn’t help the huge grin on my face.

I paid for my stuff and let the strange man who made me feel so safe walk with me to my car. His arm never left my waist. I told myself it was just in case Taylor happened to come out and see us. Ha. Yeah right. At my car, my shiny fire engine red BMW, I turned and looked up at the God beside me. “Thank you.” I couldn’t think of anything else to say. What could I say? He dipped his head and shoved his hands in his pockets.
“I take it there’s some not nice history between you two?” The question that was in his voice was not one I wanted to ever answer.

I looked down at the ground and inhaled deeply before looking back up, a weak smile on my face as I sighed. “You could say that. I’m Cherish.” I held my hand out to him, and instead of shaking it, he turned my palm and brushed his mouth across the inside of my wrist, those neon eyes never leaving mine. “I was going to call you Red Riding Hood, but Cherish is just fine.” Red Riding Hood? Oh, yeah, I was wearing my lipstick red, knee length coat, it had a hood. We were flirting I realized and tried to be suave. “You can call me that if you don’t mind being the Big Bad Wolf.”

His smile was slow, achingly slow, his lashes lowered to half mast and I’m pretty sure my heart skipped a beat, or four. “I am the Big Bad Wolf, but you can call me Druex when we’re in public.” We stared at each other for a long time, just looking, memorizing. The wind blew a few strands of his silver hair across his eyes and I reached up to brush them back, behind his ear. You know when fire gets so hot, it turns blue? That’s what it was like just then, looking into his eyes. Like looking into blue fire. My hand lingered on his jaw, the strong angle fitting perfectly against my palm. I was about to say something, but my cell phone blared Witchy Woman. I let my hand fall and I dug the little box out of my pocket. “Hi mom.”

I stared into Druex’s eyes while I um hummed and half listened to my mom. “I’ll be home soon, bye.” I hung up and shook my head to get a grip on my suddenly raging hormones. “I have to go.” He nodded once, then looked beyond me. “One thing before you go?”
“Sure.”

He gave me no warning, just bent, shaped his mouth to mine and stole my soul. Not literally, but it felt like I was being burned from the mouth down. I softened almost instantly, kissed him back and the fire raged higher. Our mouths fit like they were made for this and this alone. He made a sound in his throat and cradled the back of my skull with one hand, wrapped his other arm around my waist. His tongue slid like rough velvet against the seam of my lips and I opened to him on a whimper, slipping both my hands up into his hair, his thick, thick silky hair.

He tasted like coffee, and peppermints. And something else, something darker, wilder. Our bodies were molded together from chest to thigh, every inch of his hard body imprinted on mine. Dear god. When he lifted his lips and pressed his brow to mine, I was panting for air, shivering inside my winter coat. “Taylor was standing there, wasn’t he?” I said, my voice was breathy, sexy. “Yes.” Damn. “Is he now?”
“Don’t care.” And then we were kissing again. It was good. To good, I never wanted to stop. But we did and when our eyes met, my toes curled up in my boots. “I would have kissed you even if he hadn’t been there.”
“Thank god.” I said dreamily and he grinned, one of those guy smiles that lets you know you’ve pleased them in a very male way. “I’ll see you again Cherish, real soon.”

I drove on auto pilot the whole way home, touching my lips now and again, wondering if they had melted off yet, because they were burning. Burning for more. But when the pleasure faded, and I remembered who was now back in Ipswich , my thoughts turned dark. And angry.