Going Going Gone (16 page)

Her breathing came in desperate, deep gasps. God, it was wonderful and crazy and she couldn’t imagine ever feeling so damned high on what Eli did to her body. He was her drug.

“I’m coming,” she gulped, and fixed her gaze on his face again. In a burst of ecstasy, she came with soul shattering intensity, convulsing around his cock as he continued to plunge into her.

Moments later, Eli followed, with one last slamming thrust. He collapsed over her, his arms tightening around her body. For a long moment he didn’t speak. Nell could hear the quick, strong beat of his heart.

“Oh, we needed that,” he said against her collarbone. “We need that more often.”

Nell laughed and stroked his back. “Yes, my darling, we do.”

“Nell, wake up.”

She didn’t want to open her eyes, much less wake up. The warmth under the thick comforter was too heavenly to give up, even if Eli’s naked body wasn’t snuggled next to hers. The sheets felt good against her bare flesh. She pulled the blankets to her chin and turned on her side, curling her body into a ball.

“Come on. You need to see this.”

“Mm mm.” She was too tired to even form words. She and Eli had stayed up well past three in the morning and nothing, short of a nuclear explosion, would persuade her to give up the comfort and sleep she’d been enjoying.

A cold jolt of air smacked her as Eli pulled the comforter off her body. She made a grab for it, but Eli already had her in his arms, lifting her right out of bed and setting her on her feet.

She smacked his chest. “You’re cruel.”

Eli snickered. “You’ll forgive me. I have breakfast ready but before we eat, you need to look outside.” He curved an arm around her waist and guided her across the room to the window. Soft light flooded the room when he pulled back the curtains.

Nell sucked in her breath. A world of white greeted her. A thick blanket of snow covered everything, and more still drifted from the sky.

“What the . . . When did this start?” There must have been three feet on the ground with no indication of it slowing in the near future.

“Not sure. I didn’t notice it until this morning.”

“How the heck are we going to get out of here?” Nell pressed her palm to the cold pane of glass.

“Well, I don’t think we are. Not today, anyway. Radio says this is going to keep coming down for the rest of the day. Maybe another foot at least. And this cabin isn’t exactly high on the list of the road crew’s priorities.”

“So, we’re snowed in.”

“Completely.”

Nell turned from the window and faced him. “How long? I have so much to do.” The muscles in her shoulders tightened and she bit her lip. This little vacation was supposed to relieve stress, not build it.

Yet with Eli’s arms around her, the tension that had gathered in the pit of her stomach faded. “A day. Maybe two.” He brushed his lips over her forehead. “Relax. Go look in your bag. Then come downstairs for breakfast.” He kissed her once more, this time gently on the lips before releasing her and walking out of the room.

Nell threw a final glare out the window at the heavy veil of white flakes that fell from the sky, then turned to her overnight bag. She tossed it on the bed and unzipped it. Last night she hadn’t bothered looking inside. She and Eli hardly required pajamas.

A grin spread across her face as she picked up her sketch pad and pencils from the top of the folded clothing. How they got there, she had no idea. Maybe Jill snuck them in while she wasn’t looking, probably at Eli’s request.

“Clever man.”

Quickly she put on her robe and, with pad and pencils in hand, joined Eli for breakfast. “Was this your idea?” She held up the pad.

Eli shrugged, a half smile teasing his lips. “I didn’t want you to get bored and antsy so I thought maybe that would help convince you to stay a little longer than we’d planned.”

“I think Mother Nature has that taken care of.” Nell set the pad on the table by the couch and sauntered over to the kitchen where Eli poured coffee.
Damn.
The man was still naked. Maybe instead of sketching clothes, she’d draw him.

“Mother Nature’s the perfect accomplice.” Eli set the mugs on the table in the kitchen and turned to grab Nell by the waist. “You have too many clothes on.”

“Oh, do I? Usually I don’t have breakfast—or any other meal—in the nude. But maybe I could give it a try this morning.”

She stepped out of Eli’s hold and seductively untied the belt of the robe, then slowly eased it from her shoulders. How incredible it was to be able to stand in front of him and be comfortable without a stitch of clothing, despite the scars the accident had left behind. There was nothing in his gaze but love and desire, so strong she felt it almost as deeply as a physical touch.

“Perfect,” he murmured. His eyes met hers and he smiled gently. “Almost.”

Nell laughed and put her hands on her hips. “Almost?”

“Almost. You’re missing one thing.” Eli returned to the kitchen and took something from the counter.

Nell watched him curiously as he came to her. Love and desire still burned in his gaze, along with something else. Something incredible. She saw forever. When he knelt before her, a pounding beat began in her heart, so strong it seemed to echo in the room. She pressed her hand against her chest to try to slow it.

Eli revealed what he had in his hand. A small, black velvet box that he opened. The diamond glittered up at her through the tears gathering hot and thick in her eyes.

He took her left hand in his. “We made a mess of things in the beginning. Me by being a complete jackass and making your life miserable, and you by not telling me who you were when you came back to town. I’ll never forgive myself for what I did, but I understand why you needed to be secretive. Whatever brought us to this point, the good and bad, well . . . I can’t say I wish it never happened because then things might not have turned out like this.”

Eli paused and pressed his lips against her fingers. “I know it sounds cliché, but everything happens for a reason. Now all I want is to spend the rest of my life with you, with all the love we’ve found. Nell, will you marry me?”

Hot tears spilled down her cheeks, but Nell couldn’t hold in the smile. Eli lifted the ring from the box, gazing at her expectantly. Here they were, an unlikely pair, stark naked, and surrounded by an enormous blizzard, but this was pure heaven.

There was no place on earth she would rather be than in this moment. She swiped the tears with the back of her hand and nodded. “I can’t imagine loving anyone as much as I love you, Eli Knight. I don’t care about what happened in high school. Not anymore. I didn’t know you until the night of the fireman’s auction.”

She caressed his cheek, her thumb brushing against his smile. “That’s when we really first met. It didn’t take me long before I knew, in my heart, you were the man I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. I want nothing else but to marry you.”

Eli took her hand and gently slid the ring on, then kissed her fingers. “Thank you.”

“Stand up.” Nell pulled him to his feet and wrapped her arms around him, pressing her mouth against his in a quick, hard kiss. “God, I hope this storm lasts a week.”

Because she had everything in the world, right there in her arms. And no matter where they began, this was where they belonged.

If you liked
Going Going Gone
,

check out this other book from Cerian Hebert:

No Going Back

Lillianne is beautiful, smart and perfect. That’s the exact way she wants the world to see her. The first thing Lily learned after her mom fell ill was to put on a good face. But she has a dirty secret. One that makes it almost impossible to look at herself in the mirror every day.

Valience has always been on the right side of Heaven’s grace. Until he broke the rule and found himself forsaken. His crimes against humanity finally coming back to haunt him. Cast down to live among those he use to be hired to kill.

Ashamed, fallen and ruined. Will Lily and Valience find the redemption they yearn for in the arms of one another or is falling in love the forgiveness they no longer deserve?

Available from Amazon and Soul Mate Publishing.

www.soulmatepublishing.com

Biography

It’s all about the romance. Since the age of twelve, Cerian has believed this and has wanted nothing more to write stories with a Happily Ever After. Countless notebooks are filled with her stories written over the years while she’s worked jobs like cleaning stalls in New York to booking cruises in Maine. Currently she’s happily settled in southwestern New Hampshire with her husband, four children, two cats and a dog, working for a well-known children’s magazine company. In her spare time she’s busy weaving stories and continuing to pursue her dreams.
You can find out more about Cerian by visiting her website
www.cerianhebert.com
.