His Ordinary Kiss (His Kiss Book 2) Read online

  * * *

  I TOSSED MY DUFFEL BAG in the backseat, and we hit the road to Pennsylvania in Trevor’s Mom’s Honda.

  “I can’t believe we’re driving eleven hours,” I griped, kicking off my sandals and propping my feet up on the dashboard. “Why couldn’t we fly?”

  “I don’t like small cramped spaces.” Trevor hit the preset to change the radio station.

  “You were in the Marines,” I reminded him. “You lived in Germany. You certainly didn’t get there by boat.”

  “Who says?” he asked playfully, sending me a sideways glance.

  I just raised an eyebrow.

  “I don’t like to fly if I don’t have to,” he amended. “Is that okay, my queen?”

  I poked his thigh. “I guess if I have to be stuck in a car for eleven hours with somebody, I could do worse than you. At least you’re pretty.”

  He flexed a bicep. “Look at me all you want, baby. I’m yours.”

  I sat silently for a minute, watching the highway flicker past. “That’s weird, isn’t it?”

  “What?”

  “Acknowledging out loud that we’re dating.”

  He smiled, his eyes on the road ahead of us. “Yeah. A little. But it’s also kind of amazing.”

  I kind of agreed.

  We made good time. By dark, we were somewhere in West Virginia. I’d never in my life set foot in this state; I’d never been further north than North Carolina.

  “Can we stop?” I asked.

  Trevor looked at me, his face lit by the dashboard. “You gotta pee?”

  “No. I’ve never been to West Virginia before. I want to stop and step out of the car. Add it to my list of states.”

  Trevor grinned. “I keep a list of states, too. I’ve been to forty-three.”

  I was pretty sure I went googly-eyed. “I’m so jealous.”

  “I love to travel,” he went on. “My favorite part of the military.”

  “I had no idea.”

  After a google search, we found a nearby park and lake easily accessible by the interstate. It would be nicer than just stopping at a rest area, and give us something pretty to look at, despite the fact it was almost full dark.

  Trevor parked in a lot off the main road, and we climbed up the path suggested by the signs. It was a little after nine, so the park was still open, but it was late enough on a Friday that we passed no one.

  We trudged up a hill and emerged on the banks of a lake beneath a half moon.

  “Looks like we’ve got it all to ourselves,” Trevor remarked. He bowed deeply, sweeping a hand out to encompass the lake and the woods beyond. “West Virginia, my lady.”

  I laughed and skipped to the edge of the lake, kicking off my shoes before I splashed into the water. “Oh my God!” I screeched, bouncing right back out. “It’s freezing! In July!”

  Trevor looked around. “It might be spring fed. Could keep the temp low. Wanna go sit over there?” He pointed out a weathered picnic table under a drooping tree with huge leaves.

  We settled on the table top, propping our feet on the benches and looked out over the lake.

  “Mom and Dad got a dog,” Trevor said.

  “I thought they didn’t like pets?”

  “I think it’s empty nest syndrome.” He grinned.

  “I’d be sad if you moved out of my house, too.” I winked.

  He used an elbow to shove me gently, playfully.

  “It feels so normal between us,” I said. “But it’s not. Something feels off. Different.”

  “But not bad different.” Trevor gazed out over the water, the moonlight reflecting in his eyes. He turned to look at me, his gaze drifting to my tank top. “We want each other. It adds a whole new dimension to our friendship.”

  My breath came faster under his appraisal. “I dream about you almost every night.”

  “Good dreams?” His lips quirked into a half-smile.

  “Very good dreams.” I slid from the picnic table and glanced around, even though I already knew we were alone. I reached under my blue jean skirt with both hands and gently peeled my panties off.

  “What are you doing?” Trevor asked, voice husky.

  I stepped out of my underwear and tossed them in his lap, then reached behind me to untie my halter top. I let the straps dangle and pushed the fabric down, exposing my breasts to the humid evening air.

  “Ves. You’re killing me.”

  “You’re right,” I told him, smiling sweetly as I pushed him down on the table. I climbed on top of him, my skirt riding up as I shoved his shorts down and exposed his hard cock. “I want you. All the time.”

  I rested my weight on top of him, my wetness sliding over his thickness. I rocked, tightening my legs.

  “This is beyond hot,” Trevor said, dropping his head to the table top.

  I readjusted my angle, leaning forward until he slid neatly inside me. He filled me completely, stretching me like no other man. He bottomed out, and I moaned at the pain and pleasure of it.

  I kissed him and sat back up with him inside me. I used my thigh muscles to move up and down, taking and retreating the entire length of him.

  “You’re gonna drive me crazy.” He gripped my hips with both hands, anchoring me.

  “Good.” I moved faster, throwing my head back to the sky. There was something primeval about having sex under a blanket of stars.

  Trevor sat up and snaked his arms around me. I squealed as he stood, our bodies still connected, and laid me down on soft grass. I didn’t mind as he took over all the work, his hands pushing my knees open wider as his body moved in mine.

  I felt the beginnings of my completion and caught his eye. We stared at each other, the look on his face as intense as the orgasm building where he pumped into me, stretching me, filling me. As I came, he leaned forward and caught my moans with a kiss.

  Caught up in my orgasm, Trevor had his own.

  In the moments after, he leaned forward, his hands on either side of me as he kissed me senseless. I cradled his face, my fingers dancing across the rough stubble that had grown since his shave that morning.

  “I love you,” he whispered.

  I stilled.

  “Ves.” He shook his head, amused. “Come on. We’ve been friends since we were kids. I’ve been in love with you since we were teenagers. You can’t tell me honestly you didn’t feel the same way.”

  He slid a palm up my torso and cupped my breast. His cock had softened, but he moved his hips against me and it still felt perfect inside.

  I put my hands on his chest to push him away. Just enough to look into his eyes. “I’m not ready for that.”

  “Not ready for me to love you or for you to say it?”

  “To say it.” I rested my palms on his thighs. “You can love me. Even if I don’t know why you ever would.”

  Trevor rolled to cuddle me against him, my back to his front. The silky smooth feel of his naked skin on mine was comforting.

  “Because you are the most amazing woman I’ve ever known,” he said, his breath brushing over my ear. “I can’t talk to anyone the way I talk to you. I want you near me all the time. I want to smell you and feel your skin. I want to make you laugh, and I want to laugh at the funny things you say.”

  “I’m not funny,” I protested.

  He chuckled. “You are. It’s one of the things I love about you.” He paused, tightening his arm around my waist. When he spoke again, his voice was quieter, more subdued. “I know you’re scared. And I understand why. But I’m never going to be like your dad, Ves. And you’re not broken because of the way he hurt you. We’ll do this together.”

  I didn’t trust myself to speak around the tears, so I just nodded.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  “Trevor!”

  I shut the passenger door and watched in amusement as a tall, lithe girl with shining, hip-length auburn hair burst through the open doorway of the farmhouse and hustled full speed across the yard. Trevor caught her up in a hug and twirled he
r, laughing.

  “Cuz! How ya doin’?” Trevor placed the girl back on her feet and stepped back to look at her. “You’re too skinny. Isn’t that fiancé of yours feeding you?”

  “He does nothing but feed me,” the girl responded, gripping her nonexistent belly fat. “I’ve never eaten so well in my life since he moved in.”

  I drew up behind Trevor, feeling like a third wheel. I assumed by the resemblance between this girl and Trevor’s mother, and the way he’d addressed her as “cuz,” that this was his cousin, Addy. Eventually, he’d get around to introducing me.

  “The house looks great,” Trevor said, gazing up at the A-framed farmhouse. “Did you guys just paint?”

  “We did. But that’s not nearly as interesting as the woman waiting so patiently behind you.” Addy flicked her eyes to me and back.

  “Oh! Shit, yeah. Addy, this is my girlfriend, Vespers.” Trevor put an arm around my shoulders and tugged me forward. “Vespers, this is Addy. Her dad was my mom’s brother.”

  “It’s great to meet you.” I took her hand and shook, pleased by her firm grip. This was a girl comfortable in her skin and at peace with herself. “I’m sorry about your dad.”

  Addy nodded. “Thanks. It’s been over five years, but it still feels like just yesterday.” She clapped her hands. “Well, come in! I’ll show you guys where you’re sleeping. Festivities start bright and early tomorrow. I’m sure you want to get a good night’s rest.”

  As she said it, I realized I was exhausted. This week had been long and tiring. I couldn’t wrap my head around the fact I’d only known I was pregnant for five days, and in that time, everything I knew was turned upside down. I lost my job and got a new one. Trevor was introducing me as his “girlfriend.” And I was in the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania about to meet the entire LaBarre clan, knowing a new little LaBarre was resting peacefully in my abdomen.

  Life takes such strange turns.

  * * *

  MOONLIGHT SPLASHED THROUGH THE CURTAINS, arcing across the bed. Trevor lay beside me, his palm sliding over my skin. His fingertips moved upwards, tickling my ear lobes.

  “Vines,” he murmured. “I remember when you had these done. I’ve never asked why.”

  I touched my ear. The vines were tiny and delicate, an ethereal green that climbed my lobes as if they truly grew from my skin. “In Celtic lore, vines represent connection,” I told him, closing my eyes as he continued tracing the tattoo. “Vines don’t require anything but a place to grow. They’re hardy. They accept where their seeds begin and grow up from there. I guess I love that concept. We can’t choose where we begin, but we can choose where we go and what we do about it.”

  “Yeah. I agree with that.” He cupped my neck. “Why a dragon?”

  I shifted to my side so I could see his face in the dim light. As he traced the intricate lines of the dragon’s scales, I answered, “For strength.”

  “You’re the strongest person I know.”

  I smiled. “Thanks. The dragon is a nod to my heritage, and… let’s call it sympathetic magick. What you associate yourself with is what you bring into your life.”

  “So associate with a dragon and bring fire-breathing hell upon everyone around you?” Trevor joked.

  I punched him in the chest, laughing at his over-the-top Oompf.

  “No, you dork. A dragon is intelligent and brave. They’re loyal to a fault. They know what they want, and they protect it at all costs.”

  “Sounds a lot like a girl I know.” Trevor leaned in to kiss my forehead. He slid the strap of my tank top down, the fabric falling away from my right breast. “What is this symbol?”

  “Namaste,” I said quietly, my breath catching in my throat as he traced the curving edges of the tattoo. “It’s a greeting that means ‘I bow to the divine within you.’”

  “Why here?” He pressed into the soft flesh of my breast.

  “By my heart.” I put my hand over his as if I were about to speak the Pledge of Allegiance. “To remind me that no matter what happens in my life, divinity lives within me. Not outside of me.”

  “You’ve never spoken of your religious beliefs with me,” Trevor murmured.

  “I don’t know that I’d call it religion.” I shrugged. “More like recognition that there’s something bigger than me, and I believe it’s more a part of me than of the world. Religion on a cellular level.”

  Trevor nodded, moving farther down my torso. He lifted my tank top, exposing my lower abdomen and the intricately colored Eye of Horus that rested there. “I know this symbol. The Egyptian All-Seeing Eye. Right?”

  “You’re so worldly,” I teased.

  “Any reason? Or just because you like it?”

  “It reminds me to be vigilant.”

  Trevor went silent for a moment before he said, “Because of your dad?”

  My stomach seized at the mention, the Eye of Horus jumping on my skin. “Yeah.”

  “You’ve never told me what happened.” Trevor slid his palm further down, bypassing the owl tattooed on my thigh to where an angry scar decorated my kneecap. “Did he do this?”

  I nodded.

  “And this?” He pulled my tank top up higher, exposing the thin scar above my belly button.

  I nodded again, not trusting myself to speak, to put to words that my father had stabbed me when I was eight because he wanted to see if I’d survive.

  Trevor’s face hardened. “The tiny round scars on your back.”

  “Cigarette burns,” I murmured.

  Trevor cupped my face and kissed me, soft and sweet. “I’m so sorry, Ves.”

  I nestled into his arms, burying my face in his chest.

  “I love everything about you.” Trevor’s deep molasses voice rumbled through me. “Your scars. Your tattoos. Your piercings. I know you don’t feel strong, Ves, but you are. I’m proud to know you. You’re so unapologetically you.”

  I tightened my arms around him. His spicy scent surrounded me. His warmth infused me until the specter of my dad fled and the only thing that mattered was me and Trevor. The way the moonlight glittered in his gray eyes as he gently removed my clothes, taking his time as his gaze devoured every inch of me. The way his palms smoothed over my abdomen, and his hot lips deepened our kisses until we were a frenzy of need.

  And then, nothing existed in the world except his weight on top of me, the hushed slide of his skin against mine, and the hot, heavy feeling of him inside me, our emotions made physical.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  I awoke groggily in the pre-dawn twilight. I rolled over, a clumsy hand searching for my cell phone on the bedside stand. The illuminated screen told me it was just after six in the morning.

  Trevor wasn’t beside me.

  I sat up and stretched. Less than six hours sleep did not leave me feeling well rested, but if he was up and about, I was following suit. Addy had told us the night before that the reunion would start bright and early.

  I agonized for a brief few minutes over my wardrobe for the day. I didn’t know much about Trevor’s extended family. His parents were awesome and had always accepted me and my quirks without comment. But I wasn’t sure what to expect from these people. Would they all be as welcoming as Addy?

  I finally settled on a batik sundress in shades of brown and blue. It fell to my ankles in a ragged handkerchief hem and tied at the waist. Some gold strappy sandals completed the look. I tied back my dreads, nodded at my reflection, and left in search of Trevor.

  The upstairs was dark and quiet. I tiptoed so as not to wake anyone still sleeping; I wasn’t entirely sure how many people were staying at the farmhouse for the weekend.

  I descended the steps and headed for the sound of voices in the kitchen. Light spilled from the open doorway. I smelled coffee brewing, and my stomach rumbled in delight.

  But before I got to the doorway, I heard Addy’s husky voice say, “We lost a couple wolves that day.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that,” Trevor said, his voice low. “W
hy didn’t you call me?”

  “You were in Germany. So was your mom. What could you guys have done for us? I’m in charge of the pack now, Trev. It’s my responsibility.”

  “Does she always shoulder this stuff by herself?” Trevor asked.

  A melodic male voice answered, “Always. She’s stubborn.”

  “It’s a curse with the women in our pack,” Trevor said with a chuckle.

  I leaned against the wall outside the kitchen doorway, confused. What the hell were they talking about? Losing wolves? Being a pack?

  “It sounds like we’re lucky your clan was there to help us,” Trevor went on. “Thank you for that.”

  “No thanks necessary,” the other man spoke again. “I was wrapped around her finger the moment I found her naked on the side of the road.”

  Addy laughed. “Stop telling that story. That was the beginning of it,” she said, amusement leaving her voice. “The Hansen pack had me. I was gone for two days, and of course no recollection of what happened. Obviously they didn’t know they had the LaBarre kikua, or I would have been assassinated.”

  “If the battle was won, then what’s the issue now?”

  “Not all of them left our territory,” Addy growled.

  “There have been three attempts on Addy’s life in the past two weeks,” the man added.

  “Shit. Why didn’t you tell me what was going on? Jesus, Ad. You may be kikua, but you can ask for help.”

  I was officially confused beyond confused. Someone was trying to kill Addy? Sweet, pretty Addy? And what the hell did it mean she was kikua?

  “Do you have any idea why they’re so set on destroying you?” Trevor asked. “That’s an intense vendetta, especially considering how many of their own number they lost in the battle.”

  “They don’t believe in a matriarchal pack,” Addy said snidely. “Their kikua is some old geezer who thinks a man should be in charge. I’m apparently ‘too young and pretty.’”

  “And female,” the man added.

  “I’ve given this a lot of thought, Trev. I think it’s time for me to step down and the real heir to take my place as kikua.”