Page 32 of Natalie's Nighthawk

“Graham?”

“Yeah Chickadee?” He continued to absently stroke her back with one hand as his thumb caressed circles on her cheek.

“Will you … will you come upstairs with me?”

His hands stilled, stunned by the question. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. But … I don’t know how … far,” she stopped, unable to find the words again.

He tilted her face up so he could look into her eyes. “I understand. We can just hold each other if you want. Just let me hold you,” he whispered, wanting nothing more than to keep this woman in his arms.

“Okay.”

Together they stood. Graham turned the switch off the fireplace before heading up the stairs to her bedroom. Suddenly nervous, he didn’t want to screw this up. He didn’t want to take things too far that he scared her. The horror she lived through … not knowing if she was going to live or die, not knowing if she was going to be raped, that would have left scars. Maddie’s warning played in his head.She’sgotherscars,bothinside and out.He definitely didn’t want to add to them.

The bedspread was a mixture of muted purples and grays and suited her. It wasn’t a large room, the king-size bed taking up most of the space, but it was cozy. A large dresser sat to one side; picture frames littering the top, a small armchair beside it. At the foot of the bed a long cedar chest showed off the exquisite scroll pattern carved into the front. A door to the left of the bed led to the closet and bathroom.

The wall the bed was pushed up against was painted a purple color. Plum, he thought it was called. The rest of the walls were gray. It was lovely, and it was her.

“I don’t know why I’m so nervous. I’ve wanted this since I was twelve,” she admitted to him as she crossed the room to the dresser to switch on a small lamp.

“You wanted this,” he indicated the bed, “at twelve?”

She laughed. “Well, maybe notthat. But I wanted to be near you. I wanted you to notice me … just once.” He’d had no idea; her confession stunned him. He’d been so completely focused on his sports and which girl he could get next, that he hadn’t recognized what he’d been missing. At least, not until that day at the lake. That afternoon was exactly what he’d been lacking, what he’d spent his senior year searching for, though he hadn’t known what that was at that time. Talking with her, sharing things he hadn’t shared with anyone; she’d been a soothing balm. In that one afternoon, she had centered him.

“I definitely notice you now,” he teased. “I’m sorry, I never realized before.”

“We were too young.”

“But not anymore.” Unable to tear his gaze away, he was captured by her intoxicating eyes. He lost himself in the tenderness he saw. So beautiful, yet, with a hint of vulnerability. He needed to remember that and tamp down his needs, to keep them from taking control.

Taking a deep breath, he turned to the picture frames on her dresser, searching for something to distract himself from his longing. “This is a nice picture of you and Maddie, when was it taken?”

She moved to his side, her shoulder brushing against his arm, which did nothing to calm his desire.

“That was just after our college graduation.” A huge smile lit her face as she glanced at the photo. “Maddie worked so hard to overcome her injury and still graduate. A year late, but I was so proud of her. We celebrated together.” She laughed, reminiscing about that day.

Smiling down at her, he asked, “What is that laugh for?”

“Um … we celebrated a little too hard. Had a little too much to drink and broke into our neighbor’s pool.”

He groaned, picturing where this story was going. “You went skinny dipping, didn’t you?” The image in his mind went straight to his groin. A naked Natalie … wet and sleek as she skimmed through the water.

She grinned again. “Yup. Almost got caught too. We thought the neighbors were away, but they came back early.” She laughed again. “I’ll never forget trying to help a tipsy Maddie back over to our side of the fence while trying to grab our clothes and Maddie’s prosthetic at the same time. She was hopping across the yard while I urged her to go faster by waving her leg around like a lunatic. We never laughed so hard.”

He chuckled. “Sounds like quite a memory.” He turned to face her and pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear to better see the smile he loved to look at so much. “Wish I had been there.” He winked.

“I bet.” She placed her hands on his chest. “God, these are … wow!” He grinned and couldn’t resist flexing a tad. She threw her head back and laughed, a melodious sound that shot straight to his heart. “Show off.”

She then grasped the bottom of his shirt, her pupils turning stormy. “Can I …?” she whispered. He nodded and helped her pull the shirt up and over his head, then her hands were on his chest again, exploring, feeling the hard texture of his muscles. She moved them slowly downward, examining his abs with her fingers. He sucked in a breath, his muscles twitching as her hands moved over them. “How many of these do you have?”

“Enough,” he was luxuriating in the feel of her hands on his skin. He bent his knees slightly ?she was so tiny?and kissed her hungrily. Tongue sliding against silken tongue. He wanted to fall into her, drink her in, breathe in her intoxicating scent, commit every moment to memory. He couldn’t get enough of his chickadee.

He slid his hands down her back to the hem of her sweatshirt, asking the same question, “Can I?” She nodded. He wasted no time in stripping her of the oversized clothing. He placed his hands on her hips and drew her closer to him. Her breasts covered only in a bit of lace pressed against him. She went up on her tiptoes to resume their kiss, and he met her halfway, their lips meeting, igniting a fire between them, the blaze hot and intense.

Breaking the kiss, he looked at her. He stroked her collarbone, needing to touch her as she had him. Sweeping his fingers across her shoulder, he pushed her bra strap away until it fell down her arm. He leaned forward and placed his lips at the indentation before sliding his lips up her throat to her ear.

“You are so beautiful,” he whispered.

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