The Devil's Daughter (27 page)

“No,” she moaned.

“More?” he whispered even as he slid his finger back inside. “More of that?”

“Yes,” she rasped. “More.”

He slid out again, then slid in two fingers. She arched again. More, would she ever get enough? Jed pushed into her deeper, his mouth pressing soft kisses against the inside of her thigh.

“I, oh, I. . .” Lucy arched again, pressing herself into his hand, toward his mouth. She could feel herself teetering on an edge she couldn’t even begin to describe. But the second Jed’s lips found her, she spiraled off that edge and crashed into a fire so deep, so hot, she was sure she’d died and gone to. . .heaven.

Jed pressed his hand against her gently, easing her through the fire.

“Let it go,” he murmured. “That’s it.”

Her fingers tightened in his hair, holding on for dear life – fearing she’d never make it back to him. But back she came as Jed slid back up her body, pressing himself against her, keeping them skin to skin.

“I. . .” Lucy swallowed a huge gulp of air, then pulled him down for a long, slow kiss. “That was. . .”

Jed grinned wickedly and kissed her again. “That was nothin’.”

He rained more kisses over her face and neck, nibbled her ear, then kissed her neck right below her earlobe. That deep ache started again, low in her belly.

No. She’d never survive another one. She couldn’t.

He wouldn’t.

“Hold on,” he moaned in her ear.

“Again?” She wanted to whimper, but was already reaching for him, arching against his touch.

“Oh yeah,” he chuckled softly. “At least once more.”

He settled over her, his eyes fixed on her, his hands set on either side of her head, keeping his weight from crushing her.

He pushed against her once, then slipped just inside. Lucy lifted herself off the blanket – that couldn’t be it – she needed a helluva lot more than that.

Jed smiled, pulled out, then slid in again – a little farther. The vein on his forehead throbbed, his teeth ground together, but he never took his eyes away from hers.

“Jed,” she whispered, reaching to touch him. His body tensed as she trailed her fingers across his chest and down his belly. “Can I. . .”

“God yes.”

She slid her hand between them, and tentatively ran her fingers around him. A low growl started in his throat. Interesting. She closed her fingers around him and squeezed ever so gently, then moved her hand over the length of him, until his growl ripped free and he pushed all the way into her, then stilled, watching, waiting.

He was inside her, and it was better than heaven could possibly be.

Lucy couldn’t stand the stillness. She shifted beneath him, reached her arms around and pulled him closer. Her hips moved in small circles. She had to have more, had to find that cliff again.

Jed moved slowly. With long purposeful strokes, he slid in and out until Lucy was right back there, teetering, and crying out his name. He moved one hand beneath her backside and lifted, at the same time pushing into her until they’d become one.

Lucy gasped, crashed into the fire again, and gave in to whatever forces were coming to claim her. There was no way in Heaven or Hell a mortal could survive such a thing twice.

“Lucy,” Jed breathed out her name as his whole body went rigid. A second later, the arm supporting him gave out. Before he crushed her, he swept her up and rolled so she lay on top of him.

She settled tight against him, afraid he’d pull away. They lay that way for long minutes, Jed pulsing inside her, and Lucy counting his heart beats as they thundered beneath her ear.

He reached for the blanket and began to tuck it in around her.

“Jed?” she whispered against his chest.

“Hmm?”

“Leave the blanket. I’ve never been so hot in all my life.”

Laughter rumbled in his chest. “Thank God, ‘cuz I’m about to burst into flames here.”

She couldn’t stop touching him. His chest had the most amazing feel to it, with its smooth skin, rough hair and tight nipples.

“Is it always like this?” she asked, then wished she hadn’t.

“I imagine it will be with you,” he whispered back, as his fingers drew circles over her back. “Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No.” She kissed the underside of his chin. “I’m fine.”

“Fine?” His fingers stopped and before she could protest, he had her on her back again and was grinning down at her. “What we did here was more than just fine.”

She started to laugh, but he caught her mouth against his and kissed her until she couldn’t breathe.

“Say it.” He kissed her jaw, then her collar bone. “Say it was more than fine.”

“And if I don’t?” Lucy squirmed beneath him. “What then?”

Jed’s fingers trailed a line from one breast to the other. “Then we’re going to have to keep going until you do.”

She wound her fingers through his hair and finally found enough breath to answer him.

“Oh, but it
was
fine, Jed. Most certainly fine.”

His hands were already touching her everywhere, stoking the fire deep inside her and making her reach for him again. As she closed her hand around him, squeezing gently, he pressed his face into her neck and sighed.

“Anything more than
fine
is gonna kill me,” he moaned.

 o0o

Morning sun peeked in beneath the door and through the cracks in the lean-to when Jed woke up the next morning – alone.

Damn – he’d rather hoped for a little ‘fine-ness’ to get him started. The horses nickered on the other side of the barn.

“Yeah, okay,” he muttered. “Gimme a minute.”

He could have spent the whole night loving Lucy and it wouldn’t have been nearly enough. For a girl who had such limited experience, it didn’t take her long to figure things out.

Jed grunted and pushed himself to his feet. He’d only drive himself crazy lying there thinking about her. Besides, he had the rest of his life to get his fill of her, if that was even possible.

He dressed quickly, threw some oats to the horses, then grabbed the buckets and headed outside. The animals would have to wait for water – he needed to kiss his wife first.

Low, harsh voices whispered near the house. What the. . .

“I have to do this,” Lucy was saying.

“No you don’t,” came Berta’s furious response. “And I’m not about to let you--”

Jed stormed toward them. “Let her what?”

Both women started, their faces red with anger. Lucy was the first to recover. Her smile was big, but not real.

“Good morning.” She kissed his cheek and indicated a nearby chair. “Berta made coffee.”

Jed didn’t move. “Let you what?” he repeated.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” Lucy tried to wave it away.

“Lucy.” He held her arm until she looked up at him. “It’s not nothing.”

Her mouth opened, but Berta’s voice came first.

“She thinks she’s ready to make a pie all by herself.” She cleared her throat, then lifted her chin, as if daring him to argue. “And I was just saying that I wasn’t about to let her ruin perfectly good pastry.”

Jed’s blood began to simmer. “Lucy doesn’t ruin things. And you’ll watch how you speak to her.”

Berta looked crushed, and Lucy couldn’t have looked guiltier. Something wasn’t right – and it had nothing to do with pastry.

He looked down at Lucy, who seemed less agitated than she’d been a minute ago.

“Really,” she said. “It’s just silliness. Nothing to worry about.”

He didn’t believe that for a second, but he didn’t want to accuse Lucy of lying in front of her mother. He hesitated, then spoke pointedly, first to Lucy. “I’ll be back for the coffee and a proper good morning.” Then to Berta, “Let her make whatever the hell she wants.”

Berta nodded stiffly but kept silent. Women. Maybe it was a good thing she spent most of her time in the house with Maggie. Seemed no one in Lucy’s family treated her right.

He walked to the creek, filled the buckets and went back to tend the horses. When they’d been fed and watered, he let them loose in the corral. They wouldn’t be needed today. As he closed the gate, the creaking of a wagon started toward the house.

“Good to see you up and dressed, Caine.” Dwight grinned.

“’Mornin’, Dwight.” Jed stood by the first pile of lumber until Dwight had set the brake on the wagon. “Just gonna go grab us some coffee. Be right back.”

“Want it stacked in the same place?” Dwight asked, nodding toward the far corner of the yard.

“Yup.” Jed left the other man to start unloading while he hurried back toward the fire, and the tension between mother and daughter.

The two women had dragged the table out of the cabin and were now stooped over it, both up to their elbows in a bowl of dough.

“Lucy.”

She whirled to face him, sending pieces of dough flying. Flour dusted her nose and chin, and her apron was covered in splotches of gooey pastry.

“A quick word please?” He pointed toward the barn, letting her scurry off ahead of him, and leaving Berta to look after them with a troubled expression.

Once inside, Lucy turned to face him.

“What is--”

Jed swallowed her last words with the kiss he’d been aching to give her since he opened his eyes. He held her face in his hands and dragged the kiss on until she melted against him, her doughy hands fisted in his shirt.

“
That’s
how you should say good morning to me,” he breathed against her flushed cheek.

“But--”

“No buts.” He kissed her again, nipped at her lip, and brushed the flour from her face.

“No buts,” she repeated, her voice soft and whispery.

“Good.” He held her an arm’s length away and grinned. “Now get back over there and make that damned pie. Hell, make beans again if that’s what you want.”

Her smile warmed him through.

“Just promise me one thing,” he added, taking a large step back.

“What’s that?”

“As long as Berta’s here, let her make the coffee.”

Lucy lunged at him, but he ducked out the door.

“Berta won’t be here forever,” she called after him. “If you think my coffee’s been bad up ‘til now. . .”

Jed laughed as he filled mugs for himself and Dwight. He hated to tell her he was almost getting used to the swill she called coffee.

Almost.

Lucy leaned back against the cabin door and exhaled slowly. Berta sat slumped in a chair, her face buried in her hands.

“You can’t do this,” she said, her voice a mixture of anger and anguish.

Maggie murmured in her sleep, but didn’t wake.

“I have to.” Lucy walked to the window and stood staring out after Jed. “There’s no other way.”

“Yes, there is.” Berta lifted her reddened face. “Finish this. That man loves you, and he’ll do anything for you.”

“I know.” It was what she had planned. It was what she needed. And now she had to walk away from her dream.

Berta watched her for long minutes. “You can always fall in love again. . .after. . .with someone else.” Her voice cracked and shook. “There are plenty of men out there who’d be happy. . .”

Lucy whirled on her. “I don’t want plenty of other men. I want Jed.”

“And you can still have him,” Berta pleaded. “At least the most important part of him.”

Lucy pulled out the other chair and sat next to her. “I don’t want
part
of Jed. I want all of him.”

“But you can’t have all of him. It’s impossible.” Berta’s voice broke on a sob. “Please, Lucy, don’t do this.”

“I have to.” She had to stay strong. If she started crying again, she might never stop, and she might never have the strength to do this. “You said it yourself – Jed doesn’t deserve to go to Hell.”

“I don’t care what I said,” Berta cried. “I can’t lose you again. Not now.”

Lucy cast a quick glance at the sleeping Maggie, then took her mother’s hands in hers. “You want me to be happy, isn’t that what you said?”

Berta nodded miserably.

“I’ve
been
happy.” The warmth in Lucy’s heart spread through her veins until her whole body basked in it. “For the first time in my life, I’ve learned what it’s like to be happy, to love someone and to be loved. And it’s. . .it’s. . .”

There were no words to describe it.

“I want you to stay here and keep being happy,” Berta mumbled. “Is that so wrong?”

“It’s not wrong, Berta,” Lucy smiled. “It’s just not possible.”

“Of course it’s possible.” She yanked her hands away from Lucy and swiped them across her eyes. “All you have to do is finish this – take his soul, Lucy. Please. Take Maggie’s. Take the baby’s.”