Heavenly Lover (19 page)

Chapter 24

Claire was alone on a Friday night, Daniel off to a dinner appointment. Best place to stave off loneliness was to go to a planetarium show.

It was a sparsely populated group this evening.

She sighed and leaned back into the velvet rocker chair as the lights dimmed and the symphony music came on. The announcer began the program. He had a voice she could listen to forever, deep and soothing, like Father’s.

Looking up at the twinkling stars, she was struck with a sense of homesickness. She was living between two worlds and not fully a part of either one. The stars reminded her of views from Heaven, which she missed. She longed for her sisters at home.

She wondered if, some day, Daniel would look up at the heavens and sense her—perhaps see a star and think of her twinkling down on him. Something wet dripped from her chin onto her collarbone and she realized then she was crying.

She felt warm hands cover her wet eyes and she tensed, ready to disappear, but settled down as she heard the familiar velvet words, warmed by his soft Brazilian accent.

“With so many angels looking down on you, how could you be sad? Don’t cry, Claire.” And then, as she was about to change form, Daniel delivered his urgent whisper, “Don’t go, Claire. Stay.”

The vibration of his voice swept down her spine, spreading out down the backs of her arms and thighs, awakening places she felt for the first time in her angel life
. I ache for him.

She fell into the fantasy of belonging in this human world. This was the man she loved, calling her to his side.
This feels real, but it can’t be.

Her body desired more. She heard his heart beating too, heard the sound of his breath as he inhaled, and the creak of the theater chair behind her as it rubbed the leather of his jacket when he moved. His long, veined fingers were moist with her tears and his heat, as they bid her closed eyes to wait, his hands resting gently against her cheeks. Two thumbs circled the arches of her ears, causing her to shiver with expectation.

She released herself to the care of these fingers, these hands that smelled of lime. His long lashes fluttered on her skin as they brushed against her temple. His warm breath and a sensual kiss to the back of her neck raised the soft hairs there.
I am entranced by this man.

The sound of his tongue as it lightly tapped the back of his teeth, to form the melody of his words, melted her.

“Don’t open your eyes, Claire. Please don’t open your eyes.”

Yes, yes I shall obey.
She nodded. Her only allegiance was to the soft voice that commanded her complete obedience. When he removed his hands from her eyes, she didn’t move.

“Yes, keep them closed.” That velvet voice again warmed her ear. She heard him move to sit beside her. Her body hummed in anticipation of where he would touch her next.

And then Daniel’s warm lips were, at last, on hers. Lime scent filled her nostrils with the sweetness and urgency of his soul. Claire could smell traces of his shampoo and soap. It was excitingly new and familiar at the same time.

His hungry lips pressed deeper into hers as she acquiesced to his heat. She was on fire. This was how she imagined a kiss would feel, smell, and taste—only more intense. Her tongue touched his as she parted her mouth, granting him access. He made a little sound deep in his throat.

Were my lips coaxed to drink this elixir, or am I willingly inhaling it? Is there a place where I end and he begins?

He withdrew again with another gentle command. “Claire, see me. Open your eyes and see me.”

When she opened her eyes, she first saw the twinkly lights moving slowly over the dome of the planetarium “night” sky. Then she saw his face, not more than a breath away.

“I see the face of my beloved,” he whispered, kissing her in the soft spot under her jaw and back up to her lips.

Yes, that is the word. Beloved.
Now she knew what the sonnets meant.
Beloved lover mine.

His eyes searched every part of her face. His lips lapped and eliminated all the evidence of her tears. A pairing of color, scent, music and emotion shimmered around them.
He has a dust effect over me.

“If your Father makes you leave at dawn, then we have the whole night together,” he murmured.

Not enough time. Oh, not nearly enough time.

His thumb and fingers came up to brush her cheek, and then dropped to elevate her chin and fully expose her mouth to him again. His long kiss and probing tongue left need on her lips.

“But when I go, it will be forever.” Her husky voice cracked. She could barely speak.

“Then this is all we have.” His eyes underscored a faint smile. She saw what the evening could hold for them both. She blushed.

“It won’t be enough,” she insisted. Her eyes filled up with tears.

“Then let’s take all we can while it is ours.” He extracted another long kiss from her willing lips. “I won’t be able to leave you tomorrow. Fair warning, okay? If one of us has to do it to save our souls, it won’t be me.”

She nodded at his confession, wondering if she would have the strength to do it either.

They stood in unison, then quietly walked the long aisle up to the top of the bowl of the planetarium, arms and hands locked together, swinging slightly. She leaned against him, not wanting to be parted from the warmth of his body or the feel of his muscles.

Outside, the real stars were triple in number. The moon was almost full. There was plenty of light on the path to his car. He wrapped his arms around her and bent to kiss her throat at the top of her collarbone. His lips nibbled the length of her neck up to her chin and then claimed her lips again.

She responded by pulling him to her. She needed to be as physically close as possible to him now. The lushness of their bodies together made her dizzy. He slid his hand under her shirt, looking into her eyes. She wanted him to look at her in the moonlight, all of her. She wanted to be touched, kissed, and claimed by this human. She wished for the first time in her life that he owned her, in every sense of the word.

“You touch me where no person has touched me before.” She delivered this as the simple fact it was.

When they arrived at his house, she felt as though the wooden structure welcomed and celebrated her. At the front door, he released his arm that had hung around her waist to find his keys and disarm the keypad. She was jealous of the attention the keys received; she wanted those fingers on her body, playing and painting the feelings on her skin like he did with his watercolor crayons on paper.

I am your canvas, Daniel. Use me to tell the story of us.

Her thoughts were full of anticipation as they ascended the stairway to his bedroom. She had no sensation of walking. He released her hand to open the bedroom doors and she free-floated into him. She would have fallen had not his large hands found her rib cage.

She pushed her breasts against the granite muscles of his chest. The place between her thighs sent out a small current of electricity, demanding attention. She pressed it against him. Her arms came up and crossed behind his neck. She inhaled him and allowed herself to be taken away again by another long kiss.

His hands drifted down to her bottom where he cupped and pushed her into his groin.

I love his need.
She exhaled as their lips parted. She explored the region at the top of his buttoned flannel shirt and kissed him there. Claire heard as well as felt a sigh emanate from his chest. Daniel turned her so that her back was to the bed.

“Wait right here a moment. Close your eyes.” He kissed them closed.

Claire could hear movement but had no idea what was going on until he commanded her to open her eyes. He had lit several white pillar candles. The fluttering of the golden flames sounded like wings of a bird in flight. There was music–the music of harps. Her eyes filled with tears as she became overcome with bliss.

“It’s an altar,” Claire whispered. Her tears flowed freely down her cheeks.

“A celebration of our love,” Daniel answered. He held her close again. “Do you trust me?”

She looked down, then up at him with a small smile and shook her head from side to side. “I want to be ruined by your love,” she said through her tears.

“Tonight you will feel what it is like to be worshiped,” he said.

She leaned into him again and wound her arms behind his neck, pulling his head down to press his lips against hers. Just before contact, she whispered, “Take me and never let me go, Daniel.”

He sat her on the edge of the bed and kneeled at her lap, removing first yellow clog and then the other The jeweled charms sparkled in the moonlight. His warm fingertips explored the length of her calves, one at a time, inside, kissing a trail up under her gown.

She looked at the curly dark hair, the top of his head in her lap, feeling his breath on her thighs, savoring his need mixed with hers. She removed her gown, tossing it to the side. He cupped her breasts in both his hands, tickling her pink nipples with his warm tongue, sucking on them. The gentle pressure caused her nipples to tighten into knots. Her breathing was uneven, rising with every touch to her body.

Claire felt she was being treated like a rare and delicate flower.

Daniel removed his shirt in one smooth movement. She looked up at his chiseled torso, which gleamed, all the muscles in his chest and upper arms moving in waves. She held her breath at the beauty that was his tanned body, offered to her.

He pulled her to standing position. They kissed again, her bare skin pressed into his hard body, as he unbuckled his pants and slid them down his thighs. She watched him step out of them. His red silk boxers lay in a heap on top. He stepped closer, pressing his body fully against hers. His muscled thighs and erection pressed against her.

“Now do you trust me?” he said as he cupped her face in his large hands.

“Yes, Daniel,” she whispered through her lips. “But you must show me what to do.” She didn’t want to disappoint him. He was a man of many past loves. “Can you show me?”

“The only thing you need to do is to love me forever.”

“And that I will.”

Taking her hand, he led her to the pillows near the headboard. He lay back and pulled her on top of him. She was still, her ear on his heart, listening, feeling every part of him as she covered him with her body. His fingers feathered over her back, down to her buttocks and then up again. He moved underneath, pressing one knee between her legs and rolling her to one side, massaging her belly, one finger tracing a path lower. He kissed her there, and then went farther down. Her fingers lazily laced through his hair as he continued to move. He stopped just inside the top of her thigh; she could feel his hot breath on her tiny opening. His thumb pressed on the button there and Claire jumped with pleasure. She looked down to see his eyes watching her intently.

Her awakening continued. Daniel was a careful lover. He didn’t rush any part of the exploration so she could feel all of what he did. He noticed what she liked, what made her smile. His fingers slid inside her wet peach, pushing aside the flesh of her lips. She experienced a little shot of pain as he separated her folds with delicate fingers she had seen caress his art. He played her body like an instrument.

As his tongue replaced his fingers and stroked the insides of her opening, Claire thought she was going to explode. She arched to his kiss, pushing her sex hard against his ravenous mouth. Her lips gasped for air as she pulled his body up to cover hers, his lips engulfing and claiming her. Confined to the hardness of his chest, her breasts arched up against him, her lower belly pressed to his maleness.

The sensations of their skin on skin was as beautiful as anything she had experienced before, and better than she had imagined. It was so natural, him on top of her, warming her with his need, ministering to her desire and strumming her heartstrings.

She smoothed her hands down his back to his rounded cheeks and squeezed them. The firmness of his flesh under her fingers, the smoothness of his lower back and the bulges of muscles at the sides of his thighs were thrilling. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she knew she would not be able to live without the feel of him on top of her. It was natural for her to press him to her, to spread her legs and grind her sex against his warm cock.

“Make me real, Daniel,” she whispered. “Make me a real woman.” Her ache for his entry was unlike any hunger she had ever experienced.

Daniel looked in her eyes as he found her entrance. “Are you completely sure?” he whispered, the space between his eyes showing a tiny frown line.

Am I sure? Could I possibly stop it even if I wasn’t?

“Yes, please, Daniel. Oh, please make me real.”

He entered her carefully, just the tip at first. As her hands pushed his buttocks down and she inhaled, he forced the full shaft into her, forever altering her. He moaned. Claire felt a sharp pain and guessed what that was. She gave herself to him, wanting him to use her as his vessel. Their lips locked deep, tongues exploring and seeking.

I am becoming real. It’s happening to me right now. I am yours. I am your woman.
Over and over again the delicious thoughts sang to her soul.
Will you love me all night, Daniel? Will you love me always like I love you?

His need grew as he penetrated deeper and deeper. Claire adjusted herself to accept him more fully with each thrust. She loved the arch in the small of his back and how it flattened each time he entered her deeper. She loved feeling the strong muscles working to bring them both the pleasure she’d thought would be forever denied her.

She’d read about love, the kind of love she now felt. The taste of his sweat pushed aside the little worrisome thoughts that attempted audience. His eyes seemed to water just a bit as she looked up at him. She felt her soul on fire as she gave herself so willingly over and over again.

The electricity brought on by contact of flesh upon flesh traveled all over her body. Her nipples were tight and hard. Her palms seared. Claire’s forehead became moist as well as the space above her breasts. He kissed her there.