Fade to Black (9 page)

Lily turned around when Leo ran into the
room. She already knew the look he’d have on his face. The one where he’d look
all cute and forlorn and she wouldn’t be able to resist him. He’d perfected the
look over the years.

“
Pleaseeeeee
…”

“Fine, hurry up.
Devlin’s going to be here soon.”

“Hey, Mom.”
Leo reached out and grabbed her hand. “You know I love you, right?”

“Yes, bub, I know you do.” She was
wondering where Leo was headed with this conversation.

“And, well, Dev seems pretty cool.” Leo was
looking down at the toe of his shoe.

“He is.” She was trying to prod him along
so he would say whatever was on his mind.

“So, I was thinking…”

“Uh oh.”

“Mom.”
He rolled his eyes. “So, I was thinking it’d be pretty cool if you two wanted
to hang out some more.” He twisted his fingers as he continued, “I don’t want
you to think I don’t like having him around. ‘Cuz he can be fun.”

Lily’s heart clutched in
her chest.
There were times she hated Deke for never
being there for
Leo,
and this was one of those times.
While she was happy Leo liked Devlin, she wished he wasn’t lacking in the father
figure department.

Crouching down, she looked her son in the
eye and said, “You know you can talk to me about anything.” She waited for him
to nod. “If I have new friends and you don’t like them, it’s okay to tell me.
It’s you and me, kid. We’re a team. We both like them or they’re out.”

Leo smiled. “I know, Mom. And I do like
Devlin, and not just because he’s already seen the new Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtle movie.”

“I know, Leo, I know.” She wrapped him in
her arms. “Come on, let’s find your Shellraiser.”

~^~

Lily sat next to Devlin as they drove away
from Leo. She didn’t want to turn around to wave at him, and was doing
everything she could to stare straight ahead. She already missed him and was
nervous about being alone with Devlin.

“Turn around already.”

“What?”

“You know you want to.”

She pushed the button to roll her window
down. Sticking her head out, she was excited to see Leo still standing there
watching her go. She placed a finger to the tip of her nose and smiled when he
did the same. With a final wave before they went around the corner, she tried
to relax and concentrate on what she wanted for once.

“Better?”

“Yes. Sorry. I know I need to let him do
this more often. I’ve always been the one who’s been there for him. What if
something were to happen? And before you say anything, I know, stuff happens,
and he’s a boy. But I still worry.”

“To me, that’s a sign of a good mom.”

“I try. I try.” She shook her head. “I know
I’m not perfect, and I could be better on a lot of things, but he knows I love
him. At least he has that.”

“That’s a lot more than some kids have.”

“True.” It broke her heart to think of all
of the children out there who were abused and neglected.

They drove in silence for a few miles
before she asked, “Tell me about the charities you work with.”

Devlin glanced over at Lily and said, “For
me it’s the kids, it’s all about the kids. All the charities know I have a soft
spot for them and I’m constantly approached for donations, which I have no
problem with. Most of them, I make sure my name is kept out of it. I don’t give
for publicity. I only put my name on something if it is going to help them.”

“That’s a really great attitude to have,
Devlin.” She smiled at him.

“Here’s one I can never get away from.” He
laughed.
“The Chicago Special Olympics Polar Plunge.
Damn that water is so cold it takes your breath away, but to see the community
come together to help out such a great organization, I have to do it.”

“What about adults? Do you do anything for
the adults?” Her head tilted to the side, studying him.

“It’s not public knowledge, but I’ve
started a struggling actor’s fund. If I can help one actor not freeze to death
because they didn’t have enough money to keep their electricity turned on, then
it all would be worth it.”

Lily placed her hand on his arm. “You’re a
good man, Devlin Cross.”

He smiled over at her, “I try,
I
try.”

“You succeed very well.”

~^~

Devlin ran through everything in his head
as they drove down the lane toward the secluded cabin on the lake. He’d spent
considerable amount of time up there the day before while Lily was working at
the gallery. He wanted everything perfect. He had gained information from Dory
and Leo about everything Lily liked to do and eat when she actually got away
and relaxed.

The two-story cabin had a large, open
living area on the first floor and a large bedroom on the second. At the sight
of the huge balcony with large doors, which opened up to face the lake, he knew
with the full moon and cloudless sky tonight would make for a wonderful night
to leave them open while they slept.

He heard her gasp and quickly looked over;
he relaxed when he saw the excitement on her face. “You like?”

“Like?
I
love it! It’s so beautiful.”

He pulled up and turned the engine off, the
sounds of nature silenced for a moment before they started back up. Seeing her
wide-eyed happiness warmed his heart. “Ready?”

“Oh yeah, this is going to be great.” She
opened her car door and strode toward the back patio, he assumed to get a
closer look at the lake. It didn’t bother him that she went to the lake first
instead of getting settled. This whole day and night was about her, and someone
else taking care of her for a change. Hell, he’d even made sure he had all of
the right ingredients to make her every meal. She wouldn’t have to lift a
finger for anything.

Opening the front door, he quickly took
their bags upstairs and placed them on
the floor next
to the dresser. He looked around
and saw everything was as he’d left it. Taking the stairs down two at a time,
he went to the back doors, unlocked them, and opened up the wall of windows.
Hearing him, Lily turned around and smiled at him, her beauty all but knocking
the air out of him. The sun shined off of her red hair, and the green of her
eyes matched the leaves on the trees. She was so full of life and seemed to be
soaking up everything nature had, making her more vibrant than usual.

“Would you like to see the inside?” He
prided himself that he was able to keep his voice level.

“Yes, I want to see everything.”

“Come on.” He gestured for her to walk
inside. “Your castle awaits you.”

“Why, thank you, kind sir.”

When she was next to him, he grabbed her and
dipped her, bringing his lips as close as possible without touching.
“Anything for you, my lady.”

“Anything?” she asked breathlessly.

“Anything.”
Without closing his eyes, he closed the distance, capturing her lips. His
fingers gently dug into her shoulder and waist, bringing her closer to him. The
feel of her warmth against him was more than he could take. He’d wanted to
wait, but once he had a taste of her, there was no going back.

Standing up, he never let go of her and
never broke eye contact, he moved her backwards until she was up against the
breakfast bar. Hoisting her up so she was sitting on it, he let his hands roam
free. When she moaned and her eyes fluttered shut while she moved closer to him,
wrapping her legs around his waist, he knew she wanted more, and he was right
there with her.

With her hands under his shirt, he couldn’t
help but think he might be in Heaven. He almost whimpered like a schoolboy when
her hands left his skin, but when he felt them working the buttons on his shirt,
he realized he shouldn’t have worried. Her fingers fumbled as she whimpered. He
couldn’t help it; he smiled knowing she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
Grabbing his shirt he ripped it open and buttons flew everywhere. He was
rewarded with her hands gripping his chest.

He shrugged out of his shirt and brought
his hands under hers, lifting it up and over her head, momentarily breaking
their kiss. They stared at each other, their chests heaving, trying to catch
their breath. The intensity of desire was something he’d never felt before.

“I want you so much.” Her husky whisper
reached his ears. “I need you now.”

She leapt off the counter and into his
arms, tackling him backwards onto the couch. His breath whooshed out of his
lungs as she landed on top of him. She took the opportunity to remove his belt
and
pants quicker than he thought was
possible. When
she grasped his cock in her delicate artist’s hands, working him, he knew he
wasn’t going to be able to wait long before he was going to have to be deep
inside of her.

Running her teeth against the tip of his
cock, he knew he had to take control or else he was going to lose it. Reaching
down, he grabbed her by the upper arms and hoisted her up along his body until
his mouth could capture hers again. He rolled her over on the couch and took
his time undressing her and devouring her body from head to toe, tasting
everything. She’d whimper, moan, squirm, and beg for him to take her over the
edge, but he was single-minded in his approach to making sure she was
worshiped. When she finally came, his cock throbbed, wanting its own release.
Once she sighed and relaxed, he slid up her body and gently entered her. He
felt her walls quiver around him as she adjusted to having him inside of her.
Slowly moving back and forth, he brought her around until she started matching
him thrust for thrust, getting tighter and tighter before they both finally
went over the edge.

~^~

Lily sat back on the lounge chair wrapped
in a blanket, watching the sun setting over the fire Devlin had built in the
pit outside. It wasn’t too cold out, but since they’d taken a shower together
and all of the hot water had run out, she ended up chilled to the bone. She
smiled to herself; it had been so worth it.

Devlin had spent the rest of the daylight
hours catering to her every whim. They’d taken a hike around the lake, but
ended up stopping about halfway around at a particularly beautiful spot,
thoroughly enjoying its beauty and each other. She had a hard time walking back
on her shaky legs, but wouldn’t change anything. Now he was in the kitchen
cooking
her a
wonderful meal by the smell of it. She
couldn’t remember the last time she’d been able to relax. Every once in a while
her mom ears still tried to pick up on where Leo was and what he was doing
before she remembered she was there alone with Devlin.

She looked into the kitchen where he stood
with a serious look on his face, a towel thrown over his shoulder and steam
coming up from the pots and pans on the stove. He must have felt her looking at
him because he glanced up and a huge smile spread across his face. There was
nothing she could do about it, she had to smile back. She was happier than
she’d been in a long time.

~^~

Hayden slapped at another mosquito, which
buzzed around her ear. Grumbling to herself about the filthy things biting her
and leaving marks on her perfect skin, she trudged through the forest back to
where she had left her car. It didn’t take a genius, and she was one, to figure
out what the whore and Devlin were planning to do. This was the perfect time to
put the first action of her plan into motion.

It took some time and effort, but Hayden
had come as close as she could to Leo. She had to hurry and she couldn’t put as
much of the poison as she wanted to in his food, but she was hoping it would be
enough to kill him. And if the other boy died too, oh, well. Some collateral
damage to get what belonged to her wouldn’t upset her.

Finally making it to her car, she leaned on
it and took a long swig of warm water from the bottle she carried. Checking her
watch, she knew it was only a matter of time before the excitement was going to
begin. She had to get away from here. She couldn’t be near when everything went
down. Getting into her car, she needed to head back to the home she’d rented
for the summer. An airtight alibi was a must.

After she checked to make sure her lipstick
was just right, she pulled out and drove away while humming to herself. Her
mind was bursting with plans of what she was going to do if the brat died and
what she would do if he managed to survive. Thinking about every different
scenario that might happen made the drive go quickly. Once she was inside the
rental, she used an app on her phone to adjust her house in the hills around
Los Angeles so her neighbors would think she was home.

Everything was perfect. Pouring herself a
glass of Devlin’s favorite wine, she crossed to look out the French doors that led
to a deck overlooking the turbulent ocean. A storm was coming in and she
couldn’t be more thrilled. Keeping the house dark and quiet so no one knew she
was here was tiring. She stood there for hours watching the storm and building her
endurance. It was always about building endurance. Hours after she wanted to
collapse and go to sleep, she still stood there, watching the storm, waiting
for Devlin.