Page 66 of Joshua's Mistake
“It’s almost dawn. I helped you sleep.”
“How?” His admission should have made her nervous, but she trusted him.
“I blocked your dreams, made them unimportant. I thought you might have nightmares and you needed to sleep.”
“Thank you. Did you sleep?” She rolled in his embrace so she could face him.
His fingers ran through her hair, pushing it out of her face. “I did. I can direct your dreams while I sleep as long as we are connected. I hope you don’t mind my entering your aura without permission.”
While sensing auras was not one of her psi talents she did sense the hum of his presence within her. He didn’t invade, only kept the thread of their connection secure. It was as warm and comforting as being in his arms. “You always have my permission, Joshua. You may stay linked with me for as long as you wish.”
His arm wrapped around her ass and pulled her in tight so she felt his cock hard against her pelvis. A hum of excitement vibrated along the thread. “And if I say for the rest of our lives?”
She was sure her eyes must have been wide. Her heart sped up and a bubble of excitement started in her belly and spread outward. Joy and shock warred in her mind. “Is that true? Is that what you want?”
“I want you, Tessa. I want you for as long as you’ll have me. I don’t know what I would have done if you’d stayed in the spirit world and your body had died.”
She didn’t know what to say. It probably should have been something warm and fuzzy. A normal girl would have hoped he’d have stayed with her but anger at the man who’d nearly left her shattered in the world of the dead pushed to the surface. “I hope you would have gotten yourself out and killed that bastard Banta.”
He pressed his lips lightly on her nose. “I would not have let you die in vain, if that is what you are asking.”
“But I didn’t die. You saved me.”
He shook his head. “I only convinced you to save yourself.”
“I don’t see the difference.”
He was quiet and even though she could have read his thoughts through their link she waited to hear his words. Some things meant more when spoken out loud. “I love you, Tessa. You are the one woman who is meant for me. I would die for you.”
If her heart could have exploded from pure joy that would have been the moment. Her chest ached with the pressure of the expansion. It took her a moment to draw enough breath to speak. “I love you too, Joshua. I don’t know how it can be possible in such a short time, but I’ve loved you almost from the moment you walked into the room where I was chained to the table.”
The smile that spread across his handsome face was filled with so much joy she was sure she would have said anything to keep the expression there. His cock pressed harder between them. She pressed her hips forward in invitation.
“Come with me.” He pushed up off the bed and away from her.
She couldn’t help smiling back at him. She looked down at her naked body and up at his glorious form. “Where are we going?”
Joshua pulled on a pair of jeans and tossed her clothes onto the bed. “Hurry, there isn’t much time.”
“Time for what?” She had no idea what he had in mind, but in spite of her curiosity and the fact she wanted his cock buried deep inside her, she sat up and pulled on her jeans.
As soon as she was dressed he grabbed the Indian blanket off the end of the bed and a gun from the nightstand. He tucked the first under his arm and the second in the back of his jeans. Taking her hand, he tugged her out of the room, through the quiet house and out the front door.
Several men stood guard outside the house. Two were obviously FBI and three others must have come from the reservation to protect their shaman. One of the men nodded at Joshua and he acknowledged him before leading her to a jeep parked with several other vehicles.
They buckled up and he drove them into the desert.
The sun had not yet crested the earth as they made their way across the cold rock and sand.
They’d traveled two or three miles before he pulled to a stop.
She looked at the canyon and back at him. “Is that the Grand Canyon?”
He smiled and grabbed the blanket from the backseat and the gun from the consol. “No. We’re still in Nevada. The Grand Canyon is not too far off.” He pointed toward the east. Come on. Let’s get out of the jeep.”
She walked with him to a group of rocks standing twenty feet from the edge of the cliff-face that dropped off sharply. The rock walls were still in shadow as Joshua leaned against a boulder and pulled her back against his chest. His arms wrapped around her middle and she relaxed against him. His warm body and the cool desert air were the perfect complement to each other.
A sliver of sunlight shone over the horizon. Light bled onto the earth and filled the canyon with color. Orange, red and purple were the most vibrant colors, but every other hue filled the land as if it were a kaleidoscope against the rock cliffs.
