A Wicked Beginning (53 page)

I looked up at them, made a sweeping gesture with my arm, and willed them away from the temple. Nothing happened. They still persisted in flinging themselves against the roof. I scrunched up my face, balled up my fists, and tried again. Again, nothing… I tried getting really relaxed. Nothing…I started to get angry. “You little fucks,” I yelled, the way Cam would have said it. I tried to blow them to smithereens. I only managed to maim a few of them and make the rest of them furious. Now they flung themselves at the roof with a fury. I heard cracks and creaks as the tiles began to give way.
Boy, when it got right down to it, the best I could do was clean house,
I thought gloomily, looking around at the sparkling room. My eyes began to fill with tears.
Here we go,
I thought.
More water works. I’m certainly good at this.
I wept and stormed around the room, stomping my feet, waving my arms, screaming and crying. I allowed the full force of my tears and rage to push through me like water off of Niagra Falls. The ta-ak’tiyani began to howl, their shrieks and screams adding to the chaos. And then I began to laugh. Tears of laughter streamed down my cheeks, and I yowled with laughter. The ta-ak’tiyani became quiet then. They peered at me, bewildered. “Yeah, I have no clue either,” I said to them, through fits of laughter. At last, the tears of hilarity stopped, and I slumped to the floor, exhausted. I lay on the polished wood, looking up at the demonic creatures examining me, their eye orbs blinking in bewilderment.

I had a lot of weather in me, like Cam said. I could be wind and water, blowing and gusting. I could be a tornado of emotion, a tempest of tears. But when all that weather passed, when the storm of my fury had done its damage, wreaked its havoc, I was left with an exquisite calm, like a mother rocking, rocking, rocking her infant child to sleep. As I lay there, I knew myself to be the Mother of All Existence. I could will things to life and make them go away. Exhale them into being and inhale them into breath. I was an amazing woman, or woman-like being, as Kayden would have called me. I was a galaxy dancer.

I considered the evil forms scrutinizing me. I realized I didn’t want them
gone
gone. I may want to play with them again someday. Test myself against them. See how I was doing at a certain point in time. Surely I had endless points in time in which to play…I may as well keep it interesting. “Until next time,” I called up to them. “Bye-bye.” I watched them surge backwards, their bodies being sucked into the great vacuum out of non-existence…for now.

A squeaking sound, like wheels in need of oil, accompanied by the rattle of dishes sounded from the hallway. “Is anybody there?” I called.

“Are you ready for breakfast, chère? I thought you might be hungry.” Kayden appeared around the corner with a stainless steel cart, laden with stainless steel covered dishes. He pushed it into the center of the room, manifested two chairs and a table, and gestured to me. “Sit.”

“That’s not how I want to redecorate this room.” I sauntered over to the table. “You don’t get to just envision and create whatever
you
want. We have to do it together.”

“I wouldn’t have it any other way, mon amour,” Kayden replied. “Now eat, it’s getting cold.”

He held the chair out for me, gently pushed it behind me, and then draped a cloth napkin over my lap. “Have you had a good night?”

“It’s been productive. And you?”

“Same. Here…” he said, pouring us each a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice. His eyes glittered with joy. “I’m happy to see you looking so refreshed.”

“We have things to discuss,” I commented with a smile, gazing at his handsome face and sparkling gold eyes with affection.

“No doubt we will always have things to discuss, chère. But first, I propose a toast.” He flattened his shirt in his usual manner, pressing the cloth across his luscious abs with his palms and fingers.

I wanted to touch those muscular abs. Watching him, I licked my lips, and delighted in the sensations in my nether region and the quickening of my breath. “To what shall we toast?”

“To endless change and discovery…” he proposed, flicking his fingers towards my hips, sending a stream of erotic energy snaking up my spine.

“Oh, God,” I gasped, convulsing. “Kayden…!” Once I had recovered from the erotic blast, I added, “And to open hearts, creative imaginations, adventure…and to weather.” I proffered my glass, and accented the gesture by blowing a swirl of rippling ecstasy breath towards Kayden’s pelvis.

“Chère,” he uttered, shuddering. Once he had resumed equilibrium, he resumed the toast. “To hearts, minds, adventure…and to weather,” Kayden agreed, tapping his glass to mine.

Chapter 48 – Chérie

“So, tell me what you see, babe,” Cam said to me, his palm cupping my neck, his warm thumb pushing up and down.

“I say, we boogie down the boulder garden over to there…” I pointed to a big spruce tree alongside the bank of the river. “…drop over that ledge there…” I pointed down river to where the water cascaded over a shelf. “…and then eddy out downstream there. Then we do it again.”

“What do we do about these dumb fucks?” He pointed to Figment, my lynx, and Fergitaboutit, his star dreamling. Even though their size difference was as extreme as a dachshund and a Great Dane, the two big cats were wrestling in the grass, visible only to Cam and me.

“They’ll follow along,” I said. “Or not...but they’ll know how to find us since they live here…” I tapped both of our chests.”…when they’re not out here, exploring.” I waved my arm at our surroundings.

“Yeah, alright. What do we about this dumb fuck?” he asked, pressing my hand to his erection. “He can’t seem to get enough of you.”

“I hope he never does.” I swept my palm up and down his zipper, watching him suck in his breath. “I could take care of that, you know. One for the road and all…” I began to slowly unzip his pants.

“You could…” he uttered, watching me with heat in his eyes. “I imagine we’ve got a little time before…” His words trailed off when I took him in my mouth and started licking and sucking.

“This is just foreplay,” I said, pulling away from him.

He gave a heartfelt, joyous laugh. We hadn’t been able to keep our hands off of one another for days, ever since he came down from the mountain, safe, whole, healed, and looking years younger than when he’d gone up there.

After he climaxed, with howling full-bodied release, I zipped him up and took his face in my hands. We kissed, a spit-swapping mega-fest, moaning and groaning into each other’s mouths. “We’re never going to make it down stream,” I whispered.

“People are waiting...” he whispered back.

“I know…if it wasn’t for them, I’d say to hell with our fun run.”

“Me, too,” he said, leaning in for one more succulent, tongue twirling lip smack. He tore himself away from me with a shudder, adjusting his pants. “I’m already ready for you…again.”

“And again and again and again, I hope. I’m insatiable.”

“Me, too.” He started to lock lips with me again, and then wrenched himself away. “Fuck. I don’t want to stop.”

“We can continue later…I’m sure we’ll find the time and place.”

“Yeah. Alright.” He grazed his teeth up and down my neck. “After you, hot stuff…you take the lead this time.”

“Really?”

“Damn straight. I want to watch you.”

“Well, what a change. You always take the lead in our outdoor adventures.” I laughed, got into my kayak, and pushed off the edge. “Here we go!” I called to him.

We spent the better part of the next two hours cartwheeling, flat-wheeling, surfing, and performing other freestyle moves down the swiftly moving water.

When we got to where the rapids eased up and the water flowed at a gentle pace, I reached out to take Cam’s hand. “You ready for this?”

“Hell, yeah. I’ve never been more ready for anything in my life, babe. I want you…now and forevermore…in this life and the next and the next and the next.”

“I thought you didn’t believe in stuff like that?”

“It doesn’t matter what I believe. It matters what’s in my heart and intentions. What’s in my heart is
you
; what’s in my intentions is to share a life with you and be your man of integrity.”

“Just one life?” I teased. “Do I get to be your woman of weather?”

“Unless you plan on becoming someone different in this lifetime, I wouldn’t have it any other way. That’s who you are, babe. Among other things…”

“Yeah, like what about the fact that I’m the ka, and I still haven’t remembered all my skills? Things might get messy. And, it’s essential that I spend time with Kayden.”

“Fabio, right.” Cam frowned. “I’ll just have to deal, won’t I? I know I’m not signing up for the Hallmark plan. We haven’t even figured out living arrangements and all. Can’t say I’ll be thrilled if I’m living with you, and he drops into the yard. Or, watching you two twirl in the air out under the elm tree isn’t going to make my day. But then, since I’m the bearer of the star dreamling, I don’t know what’s in store for me either. Life could get even more interesting. I’m sure we can sort all this out.” He brought my hand to his lips and kissed it. When the current started to pick up ahead, tumbling along a boulder field, he released it so we could both focus on the water. “I’m your Earth guy, remember? I don’t ever see you doing this with Fabio.” He deftly maneuvered through the rocks, skimming a lateral wave, and dodging some pushy water. “Stay away from that one,” he yelled to me.

“Got it,” I yelled back, taking a different route.

When we reached the SnoqYak River Club, we rinsed off our gear and hauled it back to the Land Rover. We peeled off our dry suits and grabbed the respective bags we had packed. “See ya on the other side,” I called, disappearing into the women’s changing area. After a quick shower, I dressed in a soft apricot linen dress that draped down to mid-thigh. I arranged turquoise beads around my neck and added turquoise earrings. A dab of lip gloss, and I congratulated my appearance in the mirror.

Making my way to the other side of the building in my bare feet, my heart filled looking out at the small gathering of friends. There, in a half circle flanked by the woods and a majestic mountain backdrop, were Jayze, Zuri, Cam’s counselor, James, Mark Meyers, Charley Wolf-Rider, and Lightning Rod. Mano and Severe stood in the center. When Severe saw me, she ran to me with her tail wagging.
Welcome, ka. This is a happy day.

“Yes, it is.” I patted her furry head. When I reached Mano, I turned to each person, beaming at our small circle of friends. “Welcome, everyone. Thank you for honoring us with your presence.” They all murmured their joy at being here. “Where’s Cam?”

“He had to get something out of the car. He’ll be right back,” Mano said.

I looked up to see Cam striding towards the circle, clutching something in his hands. He wore clean Levis, a blue, long sleeved fitted shirt with French cuffs, burnished leather boots, and a captivating smile. His thick blond hair was glossy and wavy, tucked behind his ears.

When he reached the circle, he handed the package to Mano. Then, he took my hands, leaned forward, and whispered in my ear. “I hope this is quick. My libido is hot for you…again.”

I laughed and playfully pushed him away.

“Cool it, kids,” advised Mano.

“Shall we?” I said. Since this wasn’t a bona fide wedding, we’d asked Mano to officiate. As the official Spirit Tracker of Cam’s star dreamling, we figured he’d be more than qualified to oversee our commitment to one another.

“We shall,” Mano replied. He was wearing a pair of loose fitting yoga pants and a black t-shirt with light purple “Primal Man” artwork on the front. His gold hoops sparkled in the sunlight, and his red silk braid gleamed. He turned his 6’5” frame to greet the gathering. “Friends, we have assembled here to bear witness to the commitment of the ka’kriyayaga and the vessel of the star dreamling. All they ask is that you share the elation they feel in honoring their commitment to one another.” He raised his hands to the sky. “Sacred Grandmothers and Grandfathers… We ask that you honor us with your presence and bless the ka and Cam throughout time.” A gentle breeze blew through the circle, no doubt signaling their presence.

Mano turned to face us. He nodded.

I took Cam’s hands in mine. They were warm and sweaty, and he gripped mine tightly. Was he nervous? This guy who could soar off a 12 foot drop in his tiny boat, scale granite walls, and skitter through wind and current in his ocean kayak…this same guy was nervous? I grinned at him and began speaking. “Cam, you are my Earth. With you, I get to experience the powers and pleasures of being on this planet. With you, I get to experience raging rivers inside and out. I get to play on granite walls, climb mountains, and explore seas. I have found you again and again throughout time and incarnation, and I intend to keep finding you. In this lifetime, as in all lifetimes, we shall play, learn, grow, and love together. That is my commitment to you…especially the love part.” I gave him a radiant smile.

Cam gulped. His face flushed. “Chérie, you are my Heaven on Earth. My beautiful galaxy dancer…you inspire me to be a better man…” He paused. “I rehearsed this a thousand times, babe, but I can’t do this. Sorry…”