Midnight (McKenna Chronicles Book 1) (46 page)

“I
came in to let you know there’s Chinese food for dinner. Evan brought takeout.”
He’s careful to look me in the eye, never roaming from my face.

My
hands have a mind of their own, running from his waist over the hard planes of
his abdomen to his chest and across the width of his shoulders. “Can you spare
an extra five minutes?” Really, I have no idea what’s gotten into me, other
than him, and the fact I can’t possibly get enough.

His
eyes close again while he takes two long, deep breaths. I press against him,
body to body, his erection pressing against my stomach. He wants me and I want
him. His breathing spikes and comes out in a rush when I lower the zipper of
his pants, freeing him for my fingers.

“Just
five minutes,” I whisper, grinding my hips against him.

“Charlie,”
he pants in warning and then he’s on me, lifting and wrapping my legs around
his waist. His mouth is devouring, taking and giving.

Ripping
my panties free from my body he sinks in quickly, drinking in my moan. We
manage to remain relatively quiet, moving against the far wall where he claims
me over and over again, a swift full possession. With each thrust he rubs
against my clitoris. Constricting and clenching, the pressure builds with a
wonderful urgency. I tighten around him, warming and welcoming him home with
each wonderful moment of connection. My thighs shake as my whole body begins to
contract, throbbing and convulsing. I moan incoherently as I succumb to waves
of mindless pleasure and Colin follows.

“Oh,
fuck.” Moaning harshly against my neck, he drives forcefully one last time,
grinding into my hips as he explodes.

“Charlie,
baby,” he whispers, running his hands over my bare ass, squeezing me against
him as we pulse together.

“Mmmm.
I knew you could do it in less than five.” I smile into his cheek, searching
for his mouth which he willingly gives to me. Our lips move in symmetry, a
slow, sweet kiss. Loosening my legs before I’m ready to, I drop them to the
ground, knowing I must.

“You’re
a wicked temptation. I’ve got to learn to say no to you.” He swats my butt,
kissing me chastely before moving into the bathroom to clean up.

I
begin picking up the room and packing, waiting for Colin to finish. When he
does he looks perfect. Moving to gather me in his arms, he leans down to brush
his lips against mine lightly.

“I’ll
be out in a little while. I want to clean up and pack so I don’t have to do it
later.”

Colin
kisses me on the forehead before brushing my lips with his again. “I’ll be
waiting for you.”

My
heart leaps from his words and from his retreating backside.

I
briefly contemplate how drastically different my life is now. The changes that
have taken place in three months could become overwhelming, but somehow I’m
grounded. Colin does that. When I’m with him I forget the complexities of our
life together. The upcoming week without him, the separation, will give me time
to think things through.

Piling
my hair on top of my head to ensure it doesn’t get wet I take a quick shower,
washing and then drying in five minutes. I’m not overly excited to be in the
company of John Montgomery; I can only hope Ella didn’t join the group as well.

After
slipping into a relaxed pair of white linen pants and a light pink,
capped-sleeve T-shirt, I begin packing.

The
last thing I grab is my beach bag, riffling through it to make sure there isn’t
anything I need tomorrow. It’s been a long time since I’ve taken a commercial
flight; spoiled by traveling with Colin.

It’s
a good thing I checked. My driver’s license is tucked in the inside pocket,
along with a simple piece of white paper. The message causes my heart to stop.

He knows your
secrets
—
do you know his?

What?
So many thoughts and questions float through my mind. One of which is,
how
did this get into my bag?
What does this mean? Who knows about my past? Is
this the same person who sent the Facebook message weeks ago? Is someone trying
to tell me Colin has secrets, secrets he’s hiding from me?

I
refuse to believe a psychopath who’s following me around. Colin has always been
honest with me; he may not open up willingly all of the time, but he has never
lied. I won’t let a maniac tempt me into doubting him.

Shoving
everything but my driver’s license into my bag, I finish packing. I’ll show it
to Colin when we talk about mystery man after my trip to Michigan.

~

The
turbulence from the descending plane makes my stomach fall, and it’s preventing
me from finding the sleep I so desperately want to come. My eyes are clamped
together to ward off the sadness threatening to engulf my heart.
It’s only
six days.
I repeat this over and over but it doesn’t do any good.

I’m
stuck in last night, remembering Colin’s sweetness and his insatiable appetite
for me. We didn’t get much sleep; by the time the sun was breaking in search of
the horizon line my legs were weak and my insides quivered like Jell-O. 

This
morning was emotional. We drove together in silence to the airport, my hand
gripped in his. My heart fell into my stomach every time I looked at him. His
face was hard, his eyes focused and unreadable, and his mouth drawn in a line.

Colin
and Evan were going to fly out on the private plane and I was to head out on a
commercial flight to Michigan. We said our final goodbyes outside of the
terminal door, my black bag strung over my shoulder, the magenta bow defining
it as mine waving in the breeze.

Facing
each other, my hands on his waist, Colin looked as if he wanted to say
something but each time it appeared he was going to, nothing came. Reaching my
hand to touch his freshly shaven cheek, running my fingers over his square jaw
to touch his full lips, I said on a whisper floating in the wind, “I love you.”

He
pulled me to him so hard my breath was knocked out of my lungs, his face
pressed into my hair. Moments passed and it was time to go. Colin held my face,
his thumbs rolling over my cheekbones as he dipped his lips to mine, molding
softly and moving slowly for the briefest kiss.

An
unexpected sob escaped me as I wrenched away, hurriedly walking through the
terminal doors for fear that if I stayed another minute I wouldn’t get on the
plane. Once inside, I turned for one last look at Colin through the door. He
stood where I’d left him, hands slung into his pant pockets. His look mirrored
only half of the sorrow I felt. I lifted my hand in a wave as our eyes locked
and then he slipped back into the car, leaving me to my tears.   

For
the next six days I’ll be without him, and with my family. For just one moment
I want him to be just like everyone else so I can bring him home to meet my
parents and the rest of my family. I can’t imagine him in my simple family
home. The larger than life Mr. McPerfect McKenna doesn’t fit in small-town U.S.A.

Pushing
the thought aside, I focus on the next few days. We’re not actually going to my
childhood home, but up north to my parent’s cottage on Torch Lake. My
grandparents live there year-round, and when I was young I’d spend the entire
summer with them. Memories of that time are sweet and easy.

My
initial flight lands at Detroit Metro and then a smaller flight takes me to Traverse
City, where I’ll connect with Ali and mom.  

~

Exiting
the plane, I head to baggage pick-up to meet Ali. Her bright-blond beautiful
hair is hard to miss amongst the mulling travelers—not just because of the
color, but because she is one hundred percent drop-dead gorgeous. She has an
athlete’s body, lithe and slim with the right amount of curves to feminize her
figure. Her face is soft, with a small nose and high cheekbones. Warm eyes, a
flaming honey brown with a rim of blue lining the outer circle of her iris,
draw you in and hold you tight. Ali is everything I’m not: slim, athletic,
graceful, witty and beautiful.

Running
up behind her I wrap my arms around her waist, hugging desperately. She squeals
and we jump up and down, drawing attention to ourselves as she turns to grip me
in a huge, welcoming embrace. After a moment she pushes away, a low catcall
whistle blowing out of her full lips.

“Oh.
My. God. You are a smoking hot babe, Charlie Carter.” She’s grinning, eyes
widening as she takes in my appearance from head to toe. “I mean, listen, you
know you’re gorgeous. Something has changed, and I can’t say what it is. Holy
moly, Charlie, what have you been doing with that man?”

I
just shake my head, not knowing what to say, so I end up with. “I love him so
much, Ali.” Hiding my head in her shoulder, I cry the tears that have been
begging for release since this morning.

“Oh,
Charlie, I know you do. I could have told you that in February. Why are you so
sad? Wait; don’t answer that. Let’s get my bag and we’ll talk about this later
when we’re alone. Don’t cry, honey, everything is going to be just fine.” Those
words make me cry harder. She would say them to me when we were lost teenagers,
trying to survive in a world of pain and loss. 

Mom
is waiting for us outside of baggage claim with her eyes trained on the door,
waiting for her girls to break through the last barrier separating us from her.
She hasn’t changed, petite and slightly rounded in the hips, with short deep
brown hair and blue eyes. She’s a beautiful person, inside and out.

When
she sees us, her hands fly up to her mouth. We lunge, embracing her petite
frame in a three-way bear hug, Ali and I jumping up and down again at the
latest reunion. When I pull away, tears are staining her cheeks.

“Don’t
cry, Mom, you’re supposed to be happy to see us.”

“Oh,
Charlie, you know these are tears of joy. I’m so happy to have my girls home
with me. Wait until your daddy sees you two.” She sniffles into a tissue.

Loaded
into the car, Ali begins to tell us about her latest rotation as a resident at Georgetown
Medical Center and the completion of her third year. She hasn’t selected a
specialty yet, which she’ll need to do soon when she enters the fourth year of
the program, after this vacation. My mom’s face beams with pride. She has
encouraged Ali for a very long time to trust herself and have the confidence to
at least try to meet her lifelong dream. Ali did, thriving in her program and
through the residency experience.

I’m
thankful we don’t discuss Colin. I’m not ready to have that conversation as my
emotions are still unchecked and I don’t want to cry in front of my mom. I need
her to know I’m happy, really happy, and I fear crying will confuse her into
thinking I’m not.

The
same thrill wells in my belly when we near the cottage; it’s always been this
way. My parents had this place before Ali and I became members of the family,
but they have always said it wasn’t complete, that even their lives weren’t
complete, until they had us. Today the cottage is much the same as it was
fifteen years ago. It’s very special to me, a welcome haven for a broken heart
when I was younger, and now it’s a comfortable embrace from a long-lost friend.

As
is common with homes on a lake, the driveway hovers next to the backyard. The
front of the house faces the lake so the views are readily seen from the
picture-perfect windows lining the cabin.

The
Carter’s cottage is made from honeyed, knotty pine, peaking at the pitched
triangular roof at the front and back. Large windows line the entire perimeter
of the house, allowing the outdoors in at every angle. The front levels into a
long, flat green yard, large maple and pine trees cocooning it protectively
until the grass meets the beach and the turquoise waters of the lake begin.

My
dad and brothers meet us in the gravel drive when our car pulls in. Sammy is
the youngest—he was six when Ali and I came to the family, and now he’s
twenty-one, tall and very handsome, with almost black hair and blue eyes. So is
Ian; he’s two years older and just as cute. My sweet brothers, I love them very
much.

Sammy
gets to me first, grabbing and swinging me around like I used to do to him when
he was young. Now that he's well over six feet tall he can do the same to me.
After his fierce hug I’m passed to Ian, who has the same gregarious greeting,
and finally to my dad.

“Charlie,
girl, you look so happy,” he says, holding me out at arm's length.

I
beam at him, throwing my arms around his slim frame. My dad is a professor of
journalism at a Michigan University; he’s shorter than his sons, with dark
brown hair and circular glasses, very much a scholar. He likes old books and a
rare find. I’m pretty sure he believes Ali and I are the best rare finds he’s
come across.

“Charlie,
girl.” I smile at the endearment. “When is the last time you ate a proper
meal?”

“I
had a muffin on the plane, Dad.”

My
mom comes by, circling her arm through mine as we walk to the screen door of
the house. “You have lost weight, Charlie, are you taking care of yourself?”

I
hear the concern in her voice. “I’m fine, Mom, really. Better than I’ve ever
been.” She looks for the truth in my eyes and smiles when she finds it.
Grabbing my cheeks, she rubs her nose against mine with a smile smoothing her
worries away.

“I’ll
tell you about him later, but I don’t want you to worry. Colin is the best
thing that’s happened to me. Well, besides you and Dad.” I say it because it’s
the truth. If not for them I wouldn’t have survived childhood, and never would
have met Colin McKenna.

Mom
hugs me again and we fall into the family fold, catching up on old stories and
new ones.

~

Running
from outside by the fire, I grab my phone on the last ring. “Hi.” I’m
breathless from the run.