Memories of Paradise Read online

“Yes, darlin’, everything.” He slowly lowered his head until their lips met.

  White lightning arced through her just the same as when Gunter had kissed her. Heat pooled low in her middle. When his hand slid down over her shoulder and settled over her nipple, his fingers squeezing and tugging it through the material of the blouse she borrowed and her bra, she gasped. Clay took advantage of her opened mouth and thrust his tongue inside to plunder.

  Her head spun and her knees grew weak. What was it about these men that made her lose her mind, her sense of propriety and her very morals when they touched her?

  Impatiently, Riana turned her head, breaking their kiss, and tugged at his shirt, pulling it over his head. She couldn’t wait to feel his smooth skin beneath her fingers. She wanted to run her hands over his muscled chest, her fingers skimming lightly over his flat, male nipples.

  Clay did the same with her blouse. It was as though he was as impatient as she was to unwrap the unexpected gift he found standing before him.

  Something inside her screamed at her to stop. It wasn’t right for her to make love with two men in such a short amount of time. She ignored the annoying, inner-voice that attempted to end the most pleasurable day she may ever have in her life. She would pay the consequences for her actions later, but now…now she would enjoy every minute of her fall from grace.

  When Clay’s shaking fingers moved to the waistband of her jeans, she also reached for the button on his. They both fumbled with the fastenings for a moment before they laughed and each removed their own clothing.

  “I don’t know what the hell I’m doing, but I can’t seem to stop myself,” she said breathlessly as she removed her jeans, panties and bra. “Whatever happens here today, I’ll deal with the repercussions some other day. Right now, I can only think of what it will feel like to have you inside me.”

  “I feel the same way, baby.” Clay pressed a quick kiss to her lips before moving down to suckle the tips of her breasts. First one, then the other alternately disappeared into the warm moist recesses of his mouth.

  Riana gasped when his hand skimmed down over her stomach and his fingers slid into her wet slit to circle her clit. There was no waiting this time. This time she came quickly her body tightening until she jerked beneath his experienced hand with a scream.

  “Please.” She moaned when he would have tried to make her come again. “I’m not sure we have a lot of time.” She wasn’t sure and she wanted to make love to this man before she left this town. “Please make love with me.”

  “I intend to do just that,” Clay said on a growl that sounded as though he was more animal than man.

  Before she knew it, Riana was on her stomach, her ass sticking in the air.

  “Have you ever taken a man here?” he asked, his finger lightly tracing the ring of her anus.

  Only in my nightmares. “No. I mean I don’t think so. Not since before Holly was born, anyway.”

  “Then it’s going to hurt a bit, but when Gunter and I take you together one of us will be in your tight pussy, and the other will be pounding this beautiful ass of yours.”

  “Together? What?” What in the hell was he talking about?

  “Shh…don’t worry about that now.” He reached into the bedside table and pulled out a small sample bottle of baby oil. “Now I know why Gemma and her men insist on putting these in the rooms.” He chuckled.

  “Gemma and her men?” What was he talking about? She rose up on her elbows to better look at him.

  “We do things differently here in Paradise.” He grinned, showing her an adorable dimple. “If you stay long enough, you’ll see that a lot of our families aren’t couples with children, but triads.” He poured a bit of the cool oil on her anus.

  “Triads?”

  “No more questions, baby,” Clay said as he inserted first one, then two fingers into her ass. “Now isn’t the time for questions.”

  Riana closed her eyes and exhaled roughly. “Please.” She wasn’t sure what she asked for, but she wanted it just the same.

  When he thrust two fingers from his other hand into her vagina and circled her clit with his thumb, she came suddenly and screamed. How could anything that seemed so wrong, feel so right?

  “Are you ready for me, baby?”

  “Yes. God yes.” She widened her legs, making room for him to move closer. “I want this. I want you.”

  Chapter Twenty-three

  Clay stared down at the woman he loved, the woman the fates decreed would be his mate, and thanked the gods for bringing her to him. To them.

  Slowly, he moved up between her legs, his thighs nearly touching the backs of hers. With the rest of the baby oil left in the small bottle, he covered his cock, rubbing the oil onto him. He leaned closer, pressing the head of his cock against her back hole. Gently, he surged forward, attempting to seat himself into her tight ass.

  “Jesus, you’re tight, baby.” He panted above her as the head of his cock squeezed into her. She felt so tight with her muscles clamping around him like a silken fist. “Breathe. Remember to breathe and bear down as I press into you, darlin’.”

  She groaned. “It burns.”

  “It’s going to burn for a minute. After that, it will feel good. I promise.” He hoped what he told her was the truth. Ruthlessly, Clay forged forward, pressing his cock deeper and deeper into her ass.

  After what seemed an eternity, his thighs rested against her ass cheeks. Reaching around her, he slid his fingers through her moist heat, his finger circling her clit, hesitating for a moment when she sucked in a sharp breath.

  “Don’t stop now that it’s finally starting to feel good.” She turned to give him a mock glare. “I’m sure we don’t have much time. Don’t you think you should keep it moving?”

  Clay almost sighed with relief to know that he wasn’t hurting her, but bringing her pleasure instead. At her urging, he slowly pulled out before thrusting in again, smiling when Riana again sucked in a deep breath, an expression of bliss on her face.

  “I never thought this could feel so good.” A blush started in her torso and made its way to her face even as she moved against him. “I’ve read about it…of course, but…aiiee!” She screamed when she came, her inner muscles squeezing and milking him until he couldn’t stand it any longer and he joined her. A low growl escaped his throat as she shuddered beneath him.

  He fell forward, landing on his elbows so he wouldn’t crush her. He leaned down and kissed her back, his tongue tracing a trail from one shoulder blade to the other.

  Riana panted beneath him, her body covered with a thin sheen of perspiration. Brushing aside her damp hair, he kissed the back of her neck. “I love the way you fall apart in my arms. I love the little noises you make when I fuck you. I love the way you bite your lip when you’re nervous, but most of all, I love you.” Leaning forward, he pressed a kiss to the back of her neck. “And though I know you won’t believe it, Gunter loves you.”

  “Right.” Her laugh was breathless. She still hadn’t fully recovered from her orgasm. “Like I’m going to believe you two could just fall in love at the drop of a hat.” She slid out from under him and rolled onto her side to look at him. “I’m a big girl now, Clay. You don’t have to tell me the pretty words to make me feel better. I’m a woman with a woman’s needs and an adult’s sense of responsibility.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “I’m mature enough to take responsibility for my actions. I wanted you so I had sex with you. It was something we both wanted, consensual.” She shrugged. “We don’t need more of a commitment than that.”

  How could she dismiss him—dismiss them—so easily? Did she feel nothing for them when they could barely stand to be near her without touching her, loving her? Even now, his fingers practically itched to touch her, to smooth over her silky flesh as he brought her to one orgasm after another.

  Clay brought a hand to his chest, his heart almost aching at the thought that she didn’t feel the same. Still, how could she? She wasn’t one of them and wasn’t pr
ivy to the information they had only just learned a few years ago themselves.

  “It’s not just pretty words, Riana.” He moved to stand when she got out of bed and threw his clothes at him.

  “Get dressed. I’ll be surprised if Gunter and Holly aren’t just outside the door.” She gathered her clothes and ran for the bathroom. “I have to take a shower again.”

  The bathroom door closed behind her and Clay made his way to the bathroom in his room. He needed to shower again as well. As much as he wanted to have her scent locked to him, it wouldn’t do to walk around town that way—especially around her daughter.

  Ten minutes later, he was showered, dressed, and ready to go. He sat on the bed in Riana’s room waiting for her to make an appearance when Gunter and Holly arrived.

  “Where’s Mom?” Holly plopped down on the sofa against the wall. She sighed when she saw the closed bathroom door. “She’s showering again, isn’t she?” Before Clay could answer, the girl shook her head. “She showers a lot when she gets her feelings. It will take a couple of weeks for her to go back to normal.”

  Why does it sound like our angel has been sexually abused? Clay looked at Gunter, his fists clenching at his sides.

  If she was a young female in Paradise prior to Adam taking over, she was most likely abused repeatedly. Gunter sat down, put his head in his hands, and scrubbed his face. We should have been there for her.

  Yes, they should have been there. However, Clay had been serving as a Ranger and Gunter had been helping Adam make plans to take control of Paradise. Perhaps we should concentrate on protecting her now that she’s returned. If she even was a shifter from Paradise.

  “Mom!” Holly stood and trotted over to her mother when the bathroom door opened. “We’re safe here…for now.”

  “I—I know, sweetheart.” She hugged Holly and kissed her on the forehead. “I do feel safe here. I wish we could stay.”

  Clay looked at the bag of pastries they’d gotten at the diner along with the glass of chocolate milk and three cups of coffee. “Why don’t we get moving and eat breakfast on the way to Mason?” If they stayed here in this room, with her scent surrounding them, both of them would have a difficult time staying away from her, daughter or no.

  Chapter Twenty-four

  Riana frowned on their way back to the lodge. Mason wasn’t what she expected at all. She’d expected to get the same feelings of déjà vu there that she’d gotten in Paradise, but she hadn’t.

  “It looks like we’re going to get back in time to take you to Spring Fest,” Gunter said from the front seat.

  “Spring fest?” Holly asked, leaning forward in her seat.

  “It’s a carnival we have every spring to celebrate the return of the sun and rebirth of the growing season.” Clay turned to face them with a smile. “The entire town will be there most of the day and half of the evening.”

  “Can we go?” Holly practically bounced in her seat.

  Riana tried not to smile at her antics. It had been years since she took her daughter anywhere even resembling a carnival or amusement park.

  “Can we, Mom?”

  “I suppose,” Riana said with a sigh, pretending that she didn’t really want to go. What else could she do? For the last several years, she had been less than fair with her daughter, dragging her from one town to the next on little more than a whim. “It’s about time you got to have some fun for a change.” She squeezed her daughter’s hand.

  Since the men insisted on paying for their new wardrobes, she would use some of the money she should have spent on making a few of her daughter’s dreams come true today.

  “Awesome!” Holly continued to bounce up and down. “I’ve never been to a carnival before.”

  “Then it’s good that this is your first.” Clay grinned back at them. “It’s the largest carnival I’ve ever been to and I’ve been all over the world. It will stay in town for three days, but today is the day when everyone from the town will attend. The…mayor will be there with his family to welcome all of the newcomers to Paradise.”

  “Do you get a lot of newcomers?” Riana shifted her gaze from Gunter to Clay.

  “Not a lot, but we’ve had several over the last year. We might even see the other woman from the plane there, depending on the speed of her recovery.”

  The two men looked at each other. It was almost as though they could speak to each other without words.

  Riana had heard about things like that—how people who knew each other well could seem to communicate without speaking. She’d always wondered what it would be like to know someone like that, to be such good friends with somebody where she would know what they were thinking just by a look or expression.

  Not long after they turned onto the road that led to Paradise, Riana felt strange. Her heart raced and her palms began to sweat. She wiped her hands on her jean-clad thighs and studied her daughter. Holly didn’t look the least uncomfortable, yet here she sat, fear gripping her as though monsters lurked in the woods waiting to devour them.

  She took a deep breath and looked at the two men in the front seat and realized that they felt nothing either. Was she the only one?

  Riana stared out through the window and tried to see what evil lurked in the forest, but could see nothing. If Holly felt nothing and the men didn’t react, perhaps this thing she felt was nothing more than her imagination.

  Perhaps she should just ignore what she felt. Ever since she’d met the two men, she had the feeling of being cocooned in safety as though someone took a thick blanket of protection and wrapped it around her. Even with the feeling of evil bearing down on the SUV, she wasn’t terrified as she thought she should be.

  A glance at Holly had her wondering how many more times her daughter would go with her when she got her feelings. In a few years, Holly would be an adult. A few years after that, she could have a career, or be married. Then what?

  She stared down at the town gathered in a large field. Carnival rides and snack stands peppered several acres while the townsfolk and probably half of Mason socialized.

  Paradise certainly appeared as though it could live up to its name. She returned her gaze to the two men in the front seat and wondered if they were as serious about her staying as they claimed.

  Not once since she woke up all those years ago had she felt this safe. Not once had she ever felt the desire to stay in a town when her instincts screamed at her to run. If she didn’t want to leave Holly somewhere and never see her daughter again, perhaps it was time she settled down and grew some roots.

  Closing her eyes, Riana wondered if she could stay here. Even if the two men would have her—and it was a decadent thought. Would the townsfolk welcome a threesome relationship as the men claimed they would?

  Riana wrung her hands as she sat silently making her decision. Mason was larger than Paradise. Perhaps, if she could find someone to design a website for her, she could stay here and sell her potions and lotions via the internet.

  Shaking her head, Riana wondered if she was even sane anymore or if she should have herself committed before she made a horrible mistake that would harm Holly. What was she thinking? Could she really stay in this town and have an affair with two men at the same time? Did she really have the guts for that? After running from some invisible terror all of these years, she would have to say no. Yet, the idea appealed to her.

  She supposed it didn’t hurt that she literally burned for the two men in the front seat. Whatever was wrong with her, Riana felt it on a visceral level and she didn’t know how to make it stop.

  Gunter parked the SUV in the field next to the carnival. They had to walk a bit because the carnival was apparently a huge deal. If she had to guess, Riana would say that a good portion of the residents of both towns were here having a blast.

  Riana slid out of the backseat when Clay opened her door. The scent of the carnival hit her like a thick wall of sounds and smells. The sickening sweet aroma of cotton candy reached her and had her wrinkling her nose. Othe
r smells such as popcorn and Italian sausage with peppers and onions had her closing her eyes with something akin to bliss.

  She’d always loved the smell of a fair. She smiled as she envisioned a tall man with a redheaded woman at his side. There were three girls with them…well, four including her. They stood near a small carnival, with the scent of sausage and pastries surrounding them. The three little girls laughed. One of them looked up at her and smiled. “What do you want—” Riana saw the little girl say a name. She was sure the girl said a name, but there was no volume. It was as though someone or something muted the girl’s voice. What name had she been about to say? Whatever it had been, it wasn’t Riana.

  Holly bounced up to her, her face alight with happiness. “Can we get something to eat and then go on a few rides?”

  It was too difficult and possibly too painful to ignore the pleading expression on her daughter’s face in the shadow of that familiar, yet painful, scene. It would do little good to remind Holly that they had eaten in Mason. Besides, she could feel her own stomach growling at the tantalizing aroma of carnival food. She had always loved carnival food when she went to one with her family her mom and dad had always—

  “Damn!” Riana stopped walking and closed her eyes. She’d gotten another memory and lost it before she had a chance to learn anything of value. What was it about this town that made her remember things—or think she had remembered things? She was almost certain she had never been here before. She was from back east. There was no way a girl from Montana could end up in a ditch in Maine with no memory of how she got there.

  People bustled by her as she stood still, staring at nothing in particular.

  “What’s wrong?” Gunter asked as he grasped her elbow. “Are you okay?”

  “Yes.” She nodded and looked around before adding. “I think I’ve had a memory.” She shook her head. “That’s not entirely true. I’ve had two memories just since we got to the carnival. I think they’re my childhood memories.” What else could they be?