Drawing Blood (29 page)

She heard Archie trying to talk to him, and her heart swelled in her chest. She should really pinch herself: this all seemed to perfect.

“Your fatigues are not soiled. What’s the malfunction here?”

Abigail laughed, sitting up. She heard Archie chattering back. She must be growing up. All of a sudden men who were good with children were absolutely irresistible to her.

She unbuttoned the bodice of her housedress, sliding it off her arms and standing to let it hit the floor. Her slip was old, her knickers worse. The brassiere was a terrible nude-coloured one that everyone’s mother had owned at some point. She was horrified that David had very nearly seen her in them. She kicked it all under the bed and pulled on a different shift: a black one. It wasn’t fancy but at least it wasn’t worn transparent.

She climbed back under the covers. Archie had stopped squawking, and she heard David walk down the hall and past her door.

She frowned, sitting up. Her heart dropped. He was leaving. He changed his mind; this family thing wasn’t for him at all –

He came back through the door, discreetly putting something on the nightstand before standing next to the bed and pulling his undershirt off over his head.

She got to her knees on the edge of the bed, doubt gone. Her hands traced over his skin. He was strong, she could feel it. He looked so much better with meat on him. The scrawny body she’d stitched up was merely a memory, only recognizable by the scar on his right shoulder. He caught her face in his hands again, pressing his mouth to hers, hot and tender with need. When his hands slid to her waist she was glad she’d changed: this slip was silky and it brushed coolly against her with his touch. He seemed to like how she felt under it; he kept running his hands over her.

She dropped her hands to his waist, unbuckling his belt and pulling it open, then unbuttoning his trousers. He kept rubbing her as she did it, and she pushed his pants down off his waist. When David pulled her closer she could feel how ready he was for her.

She untangled herself from him and sat on her heels, hooking her fingers in to the waistband of his shorts. He had his hands on hers, but he wasn’t stopping her. He was looking at her instead.

Abigail let go of his underwear and pulled the slip off over her head. Her skin immediately broke out with gooseflesh, but as his eyes ran over her she was warming in another way.

“Abby,” he whispered. “My God Abby …”

She pulled his underwear downward a bit before he took over. He stood in front of her, hard and wanting. She gave him the same once over; he was gorgeous and absolutely perfect.

She touched the scar on this thigh. She had closed this. At her touch his erection kicked, and she jumped. She would have laughed but he grasped her by the forearms and jerked her against him. As her bare flesh hit his she gave a gasp against his mouth. His hands were so strong holding her, and she wasn’t sure how she ended up on her back again but his weight on her was perfect.

He kissed her throat, collarbone, and lowered himself to kiss her breasts next. She writhed at that touch—she hadn’t known she was still so sensitive. His lips traced down her stomach and around her belly button. Her legs fell open to allow his shoulders room. Then his lips and tongue found the source of her warmth. She gave a soft moan. He quickened the motion, and she had to close her eyes. It would have been too much if she didn’t want him as much as she did.

The orgasm was intense perfection, and she regretted having to keep quiet as the waves of pleasure roared through every inch of her. He continued the motion through her aftershocks until she begged him softly to stop.

David reached for whatever he had put on the night stand. It must have been a condom. She’d used them with James because they weren’t ready for a child. All she knew for sure was that James could go for hours with one on …

Shut up,
Abigail scolded herself while David sat on the edge of the bed to roll on the prophylactic. When it was in place he slid them both back under the covers, cuddling up next to her to kiss her again. As spent as she was she wanted more of him. His hand slid low, one finger entering her as the most erotic request for permission she’d ever known. She moved her hips downward, drawing him inside as her “yes.” He moaned before rolling on to her.

Her body admitted him smooth and slick, earning her a second wonderfully soft moan. His lovemaking was as thorough and unintimidating as his kiss had been. She knew he was feeling her out, trying to learn what she needed. She made sure to let him know when it felt good, and it all felt absolutely wonderful.

Her next orgasm was the kind that she felt coming for what seemed like forever, and she knew nothing would stop it from happening. As it crested she gave a cry, not too loud, and David continued his steady rhythm to carry her through it. She wasn’t sure if it lasted for an impossibly long time or if it was actually two or three strung together.

With the third one David also climaxed, their bodies churning against each other in unison as her body milked at his. He shuddered as he lay in her arms after, still joined, her fingers playing through the hair on the back of his head.

Abigail knew no regret as David whispered her name in exhausted bliss; she was too limp and tired for it.

Chapter Forty-Nine

Elliot

Monday morning came far too early. Sleeping in the spare room was one thing, but the nightmares ensured he didn’t get more than two hours of sleep over the entire weekend.

Well, flashbacks: not nightmares. The battle memories were bad enough, but his sudden recollections about Abigail had him a lot more worried.

David was right, she still looked fantastic. When her eyes had met his, her look of shock was like a cut. He made his face stay stiff; he couldn’t let her know that at the mere sight of her he was remembering everything about her body and what they’d done. It may have been brief, but it had been thorough and he could recall every detail, which he had for most of the night, when he wasn’t dreaming about bodies melting with flame. That didn’t help his guilt at all.

Now Elliot was certainly too tired for Theodore Thoureux, sitting across the desk from him, signing a cheque sizeable enough that he had no choice but to be polite and attentive. The man’s wife sat next to him, like a polished gemstone, all glossy blonde hair and bright blue eyes, lips are red as rubies. She had a way of looking at him that made him incredibly uncomfortable. He’d never seen woman that looked like a “man eater,” but this one might be close. Her smile was a little too private, too knowing.

Janet’s father was bustling around the room pouring out snifters of brandy for everyone.  He placed a glass in front of Theodore and Elliot, and handed Evelyn Thoureux hers with a kind smile. She thanked him, but her eyes flicked back to Elliot as she took a sip.

He rubbed his neck as the check was pushed across the desk to him, and he rose to shake Thoureux’s hand. They all toasted their impending business relationship with many muttered words of mutual appreciation. The business and brandy done, Elliot and Carl showed Thoureux and his wife to the door with more hand shaking and ass-kissing. Carl went so far as to walk them to their car. Elliot figured the door was good enough. When he turned back for the office it was hard not to notice Dale Edwards and his crew of hangers-on watching the parking lot. They were watching the Thoureuxs, and they were laughing and clearly sharing a secret.

Usually Elliot would let it go. But he found now that secrets that were allowed to sit usually just got worse.  He joined them at the window, asking to be let in on the joke.

The silent stares they exchanged gave him pause. Maybe he didn’t want to know …

“Not much, sir.” Greg MacKenzie had clicked back in to military mode. Elliot suspected his voice might have been a bit too sharp addressing them.

“Appreciating Mrs. Thoureux’s wardrobe?”

“Well there’s that, sir. And … I’m afraid we might have been remiss with Cleary the last time we went out to the Legion.”

Elliot waited. The four men were uncomfortable enough that Dale Edwards was fast to jump in. “We didn’t know the Thoureuxs would end up being clients.”

“What are you talking about?”

Dale cleared his throat. “We let him … uhh … we let him take Mrs. Thoureux home that night without telling him what she was. Or who she was.”

Elliot’s head started to pound. “David and Evelyn Thoureux?”

Dale nodded. “She took a liking to him. We didn’t tell him -”

“What she was,” Elliot finished. “And what is she?”

Greg’s turn now. “A uniform chaser, sir. She’s at the Legion every weekend hunting young army meat. Usually it’s just one night, but she ah … she took quite a liking to Cleary, apparently.”

Elliot pointed out the window. “He’s one of the richest property developers in this city.”

Dale nodded quickly. “Yes sir.”

“And you are all employed by a building company. And if that man ever found out that half this company had slept with his wife -”

“I never slept with her. I’m not her type.”

“You’re missing the point, Edwards.”

“Yes … sir.” Even the guy that hadn’t been recruited was calling him sir now.

“I will talk to Cleary and ensure that this stops. And from now on that woman is off-limits to anyone working here interested in keeping their jobs, right? Three quarters of our employees are veterans.”

“Yes sir,” they all muttered in unison. At least they had the sense to appear embarrassed.

He went back to his office, shutting the door and rubbing his temples. His main problem was still his home life, clearly. But the lack of sleep was going to make everything else impossible to deal with on a day like this.

His phone rang and he said pointedly, “Hello,” almost too loud.

The receptionist waited, then responded. “Uhh … Mr. Murphy, sir. The plumber at the River Run development has hit a problem. He needs you to go out there and tell him what to do. I … I could send someone else if you’d prefer.”

He shook his head then realized she couldn’t see him. “No. No, I’ll go. Thanks, Rose.” A drive might be good for his head.

The door opened and Cleary walked in, all smiles and good cheer. Then his face dropped when he saw Elliot.

“You all right, Murphy?”

“Are you still meeting with this Evelyn woman you met at the Legion?”

That wasn’t what he had been expecting, clearly. He blinked a couple times. “What?”

“That’s the woman you picked up at the Legion, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. How … how’d you know her name?”

“She’s Theodore Thoureux’s wife.”

He let that sink in. Cleary was quick today. “No, she … she can’t be.”

“She is. They were just here. Edwards and MacKenzie and Clarence tell me she goes after soldiers pretty much every weekend.”

David paled and sat down. “Shit. Ah, shit. I didn’t know, Murphy. I swear to God.”

“No, I believe you. The guys told me they never mentioned who she was, they thought it’d be funny, I guess. Like it was your … initiation or something.”

Now David was rubbing his forehead. “I haven’t seen her in a while, if that helps.”

“Not really. But it ends, right?”

He nodded eagerly, standing back up. “That’s what I came in here to tell you. I’m … I’m with someone now.”

Elliot was a bit surprised. He assumed David had skipped Sunday night supper with him and Janet because of he was anticipating crushing awkwardness, and he would have been right.

“Well, that’s good news. Is it anyone I know?” David looked up at him, and Elliot saw it then. But he waited for David to say it first.

“It’s … it’s Abby.”

The room was quiet as Elliot processed the information. “Abigail?”

David nodded, taking a deep breath. “After you and Janet left it … I don’t know. It’s like it was always supposed to be. It’s like … I belong there.”

Elliot knew his chest felt tight, and he felt guilty about that. He had no claim on Abigail, he never had. He’d made love to her knowing full well David was falling for her. And he had just as much emotional claim to the boy as David. David loved the boy’s mother: David had more emotional right to be a part of their little family.

As soon as he’d seen the child, he of course had known it was his. He recognized the hair colour and the eyes immediately. He had seen enough of his own baby photos to know Archie was his doppelganger at that age. Elliot had also felt an inexplicable draw to take care of the toddler. He knew that was his responsibility and he wanted to help. He didn’t dare tell Janet, but he also knew it was up to Abigail to decide if he had a place in Archie’s life. Although, why he should have no say whatsoever was a mystery …

No, it wasn’t. He was married and had other people depending on him. She could ask and it would be up to him to answer.

He came back to David, and he was able to give him a smile. “That’s great, David. As long as you’re happy. And Abigail, too.”

“I … I think she is. I was there all weekend. And … it fit, Elliot. It was like a place just for me, you know? I’ve never had a place before.”

Elliot had no way to respond. He had to be glad for Cleary. “That’s good, David. It’s a big … responsibility. But if you … if you love her-”

“I do.”

“Then good.” He cleared his throat. “I have to head out to River Run, I gotta go. But let’s talk later?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Elliot left the office not sure how to feel about anything anymore. But maybe that was from the lack of sleep.