Chapter Four of Kerry's Raine

Chapter Four

She woke to the feeling of something tickling her nose. She brushed it away and snuggled back into the pillow that was so comfortable it lured her back to sleep. The tickling sensation returned and with it came the rumble of a laugh under her ear. Opening her eyes wide she moved her head to see Raine looking down at her, a smile on his face as the light of dawn began to warm the sky.

“Wake up sleepy head, it’s time for me to get to work.” He traced her lips with the ends of a lock of her hair, tickling her lips with it and making her smile, her eyes soft from sleep.

“You stayed all night? Here with me?”

“Well, I didn’t go home and then sneak back that’s for sure.” His smile was gentle, happy as he tickled the end of her nose once again with her hair. “Now let’s get you inside shall we?”

She shrieked as the hammock lurched, sure that she was going to fall. She didn’t fall though for somehow he managed to wrap her in his arms and stand up all at the same time, their outdoor bed swinging crazily in the aftermath of such swift motion. Misha poked her head out of the small barn and then went back inside, snorting at being disturbed so early in the morning.

“You don’t have to carry me you know.” She smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, closing her eyes as she tried to pretend that daylight wasn’t coming.

“Oh yes I do, I think there’s a rule somewhere about if you sleep with a woman outdoors you have to carry her to her own bed in the morning.”

“I imagine that’s why most people that go camping are so cranky when they get home huh? They don’t get to follow all of the rules?” More of his deep laughter, she loved the feel of it against her body and she buried her face in his neck for a moment, inhaling the scent of his skin as he managed to still hang on to her and open the door at the same time.

“Shower, coffee, or back to bed? He asked her, tipping his head to brush his lips across her hair.

“Can I have all of the above?” He was putting her down slowly, her body pressed to his as he lowered her to the floor but he didn’t try anything else. He was sweet but, she was going to have to make some sort of move soon, she wanted his hands on her and not just in a friendly and sweet manner.

“How about this, I make coffee while you shower and then if you want you can go to bed.”

“How about, you bring me coffee in the tub while I take a bath?” Standing on her tip toes she pulled his head down and kissed him slowly, her lips brushing against his as his breath caught and the thought of bringing her coffee while she was in her tub and covered with nothing but bubbles.

“Far too tempting my dear, I have a lot of work to do and I am betting that would be distracting.” He whispered against her mouth, gasping out loud as she began to suck gently on his lower lip, long slow pulls that were answered by the throbbing in his groin.

“Distracting is good, isn’t it?” Letting go of his lips she spoke softly and looked up at him, her eyes large and dark in the pre-dawn light. “It’s only four-thirty, surely you can stay longer.”

“I shouldn’t, but I will make you that coffee you’re wanting, then I have to leave.” Picking her up he walked down the hallway to her bedroom, still holding her against him, more than half afraid that if he let her go she wouldn’t get this close to him again. She was sleepy yet and he wanted her, but he wanted to be sure that she wanted him too, the indecision was coming close to killing him.

“Fine then, no coffee in the bathtub for me after all, how about that coffee in bed then?”

 “You drive an impossible bargain.”

“I drive a good bargain, you need to say yes.” Her breath was hot on his neck and he lowered her to the floor before she kissed him there, if she did the coffee wasn’t going to get made at all.

“All right, coffee in bed for one sweet and spoiled romance writer.” Smiling he ran his fingers down the side of her face, then he turned abruptly and went to the kitchen, leaving her to her shower while he went to find where exactly she kept the makings for coffee.

It didn’t take him long, she kept things where he thought they made sense being, and while he waited for the coffee to brew he took several deep breaths and wondered why she was so friendly now, while she hadn’t been that way last night. The sky was beginning to color with the peach and gold of a clear day when he brought her cup of coffee to the bedroom, half expecting her to be in the bathroom still but she wasn’t there she was in an old baggy shirt that trailed down her legs and apparently nothing else, sitting at her computer typing away with her wet hair piled up on her head in one of those clips she tended to use on it that looked torturous to him.

“Coffee here for you working lady, I hope it’s strong enough.” He set the mug of steaming brew next to her on the left hand side of the desk, knowing that once she started writing for the day dragging her away from her computer was next to impossible and he couldn’t help but smile at the smile and nod she gave him in her absentminded reply.

“I’ll be back later to rake the hay, maybe I’ll get it baled tonight too.” He kissed the top of her head, enjoying the smell of her shampoo as it teased his senses.

He was out the door and headed for his truck when he heard her calling him. As he turned she literally threw herself off the deck and into his arms, wrapping her legs around his waist as he stumbled backwards. One of his arms wrapped around her waist to hold her in place and the other moved up her back to catch the back of her neck and bring her mouth down to his in a heated open mouthed kiss that left him moaning into her mouth and wanting more as her tongue danced against his.

When they finally broke apart and he set her back down on the steps of the deck he was struggling for air, to his delight she appeared to be even more floored that she was as affected as he was. They stood there, his hands on her hips and hers on his shoulders, matching looks of shock and need on their faces.

“Good morning.” She finally said, smiling and blushing at the same time.

“Indeed, that should keep me going all day.” Wiggling his eyebrows and grinning he had her laughing again, her eyes bright as delight showed in them.

“I have something else for you to keep going.” She pressed a CD that he hadn’t noticed her carrying into his hand, to his surprise it had her face on the cover and the title ‘Need’ stood out in what looked to be her handwriting.

“What’s this?”

“One of my latest projects, after you listen to it, why don’t you tell me if you think anyone would buy it?” Winking she turned and walked away, heading back to her writing he was sure, pausing to look over at him as she stood in the doorway for a moment. “I was working on this, and the title track was inspired after you, ah, walked in on me that one day last year.”

With a laugh she closed the door and left him standing there holding a CD and remembering the incident she was referring to. She had known he was there? The thought of that had him totally confused as he thought back over that afternoon, wondering how he could have missed her seeing him. Summer had sent him over after she hadn’t heard from Kerry in a couple of days and he had gotten no response when he had knocked on the door so he had let himself in with the spare key she kept clipped to Misha’s halter, after walking through the house calling her name over the incredibly loud music that was playing he had caught sight of her in her computer chair. She had been kicked back in the chair, eyes closed, shirt half open, thighs spread out to the edges of the chair and her right hand had been busy beneath the waistband of her pants.

He got into his truck and started it, the memory of watching her, even though he had been sure she hadn’t seen him was still running through his mind as he put the CD in the player in his truck. Her voice came echoing out of the speakers, low, sultry and mesmerizing as the images of her face as she had reached her orgasm rolled in his brain.

“Need

I do

Never a question

What I crave from you”

Was the opening stanza on the CD and he came near to stopping the truck right then, instantly hard, harder than he had been holding her all night long with her body pressed up against his. He looked at his rear view mirror and then he did stop, for there she was, watching him out the window and he was sure that she was laughing.  Fine, he thought, a smile on his lips and an idea forming in his head, two can play this little game.

“Need

Filling, taking, belonging

To be one breath of what you need

That emotion bathed with longing "

“I know that feeling” He whispered to himself as he listened to the next to the last stanza in that poem, knowing that the rest of them would have more of an effect on him than he wanted them too. Would people buy this? Oh, he was sure there were going to be a lot of people out there that would be quoting her poetry as well as the words of her novels before long. Not that he was partial to her or anything of course, he grinned as he thought it. 

Damn, he had known that he would never have her to himself but this? This was something that had to make you think, wonder who she was trying to prove what to anyhow. Or maybe she was just trying to make the most of all that she was, all of her talent, and he knew that had to be the reason once he got over the jealous thought that other men would be able to hear her voice like this.

Then the next poem began and he knew that he would be listening to this all day, at least until he brought the smaller equipment over to finish up the haying that needed to be done at her place anyhow. He knew he was going to be doing nothing but think of her anyway, not after holding her all night.

“Breathe

Just once for me alone

Let this air between us be

The only thing that separates us

The only thing left between us”

Damn, it was going to be a longer day than he had thought.

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