The Stranger (27 page)

I clung to her until the memories ebbed. I hated myself for the weakness, but I was glad for both her company and her silence. Words were useless. Her embrace, on the other hand, soothed the old grief and gave me the time and space I needed to regain control of my emotions.

“I’ve been looking for you all over,” I said, after a little while. “Why did you come out here?”

“I needed a break.”

“Sorry.” I gathered her hands and rubbed her cold fingers between mine. “But Summer, I don’t want you talking to Alex. He’s an asshole and he’s not safe.”

“I can handle Alex,” she said. “I put him in his place.”

“I heard about that.”

She had the grace to blush. “I guess it wasn’t up to Erickson standards, but Alex made me so mad! And that Gina witch. I swear, the things that came out of her mouth pissed me off majorly.”

“I don’t care what she said.”

“But...”

“But what?”

Summer winced. “She’s so beautiful.”

The doubt in her eyes punched me in the gut. Summer was jealous. Jealous! Part of me was profoundly flattered. The other part was stunned. Summer was jealous of Gina?

“Gina might be flashy on the outside,” I said. “But she’s empty inside. That’s why it never worked out between us.”

“But the things she said about you...”

“I’ve heard them before and, if it helped her walk away, I can deal with it. If Alex wants that sort of hollowness in his life, by all means. It doesn’t matter to me.”

Summer’s eyebrows spiked on her forehead. “Really?”

“Really.” I brought her hand to my lips and kissed her knuckles. “If you could look into my head, you’d know by the sheer amount of real estate you occupy in my brain that there can be no possible comparison. I never wanted her, whereas you, I always want you.”

Her eyes shone brighter than any lighthouse in the world. She bracketed my face with her hands, gaze filled with emotions that echoed the ones cramming my heart and squeezing my throat.

“Seth?” she said softly. “You don’t say much, but when you do, you really know how to knock it out of the ballpark.”

Were those tears welling in her eyes? “Then why the hell are you crying?”

“Because I’m so happy.” She flashed a crooked little smile. “Because I’m so afraid.”

“Afraid?” I said. “Of what?”

Her lips quivered. “Can
we
be?”

“Summer, baby.” I traced the line of her jaw with my fingertips and followed it to her chin, which I tilted slightly to ensure a touch-and-go, the smooth, brief landing of my mouth over hers. “
We
are.”

She ran her lips together as if savoring the quick brush. “Do you always know what to say?”

“Hell, no.” I removed the shawl from her shoulders and set it aside. “But sometimes, I know what to do.”

I kissed her, reacquainting myself with the full range of her flavors and rediscovering her mouth’s vital warmth. The distance and the hardship of the last few days fell away. She was here, now, and she was mine. I’d had my doubts for quite a while but, if there was a God, I thanked him.

I couldn’t wait any longer. I reached for her dress’s zipper. It whirred down her back revealing a gorgeous span of soft, creamy skin and freeing her body to my touch. I pulled down on the dress, but she clung to it.

“What if somebody comes?” she said, wide-eyed.

“Nobody’s coming.”

“Are you sure?”

“A hundred percent,” I said. “How about we make some of those new memories you promised me?”

She dropped the dress to the floor. “New memories for the lighthouse it is.”

Cream stockings encased her long legs, topped by a pair of lace garters that encircled her thighs. A lace bra cupped her breasts and matched the sexy thong she wore. Jesus. She was a goddamn work of art.

“Me, so little clothes.” She pouted playfully. “You, so many.”

“You little tyrant.” I pretended to glare but my lips turned up at the ends. “Is that a complaint I hear?”

“The least you could do is give up a piece of clothing or two.”

“Not yet.”

She rolled her eyes. “Who’s the real tyrant now?”

“I am.”

I whirled her around to face the window. I claimed her wrists, settled her palms against the glass, and kissed the nape of her neck, brushing my lips against the top of her spine. “Keep your hands on the window. Yes, that’s good.” I tapped on her heels with the tip of my shoes until she widened her stance then took a step back to admire my extraordinarily good fortune.

She looked over her shoulder and met my gaze. “What are you staring at?” She swung her hips provocatively. “A girl shouldn’t have to wait around forever to get a little satisfaction.”

“Is that so?”

“You’ve made me wait long enough.” Her smile tugged at my cock. “Get to it, Erickson.”

I was used to giving the orders around here, but for once, I wanted to comply. I stepped up to her and, wrapping my arms around her waist, nibbled at the line of her shoulder. “Do you think you can order me about?”

“You? I doubt it.” She reached back with one hand and groped between my legs. “But I might stand a chance with this part of you.”

Her hand caught my cock. Her touch launched me in a single-minded, straight trajectory. Her body swayed against mine, a slow, sinuous dance that enticed my every molecule. All the blood in my body rushed toward her fingers. I clenched my teeth and, defying my body’s urgency, pinned her between me and the half wall, and rubbed my erection against her. “
My
lighthouse.
My
rules.”

“Your lighthouse,” she said huskily. “Your rules.”

“See? You can follow some directions.”

I planted a long line of kisses down her back, then rolled down her thong and cleared it from her feet. My body didn’t allow for delays. All these days separated from her had taken a toll. I undid my pants and pressed myself against her.

“Too soon?” I asked.

“Not soon enough.”

She was tight and her body resisted the pressure, but only for a moment. The instant her muscles yielded, I slipped in. She let out a quiet moan as I advanced. Christ, she felt good. I clutched her hips and held her in place until all of me was in her. It was only then that I let out a long breath.

“Gawd.” Her voice quavered with her body.

“I know.”

If heaven existed, this was it. After the long wait, I was exactly where I wanted to be. I had to pace myself. I moved inside of her in an excruciating sequence, retreat, advance, repeat. She leaned her forehead against the window, fingers splayed on the pane, frosting the glass with her breaths. Her body rippled with my strokes, echoing the pleasure I felt and the need that propelled me.

I reached over with one hand, unclasped her bra and pitched it over my shoulder. She whimpered when I leaned over, cupped her breasts, and trapped her nipples between my fingers. A compulsive need to reach deeper in her made me thrust faster and harder. A moan purred in the back of her throat, a sound that tested my limits.

Her voice, her scent, her body’s movements, everything about her intensified the sexual creature in me. In that moment, I understood the savage forces that unleashed nature’s epic mating seasons, the primal instinct that drives a male to fuck a female and cram her full of his seed.

“Summer?”

“Whatever you do,” she rasped, “don’t you dare stop.”

Her eyes glimmered with untamed lust. Her body hummed with need. When her knees buckled under my thrusts, I wrapped my hands around her waist and shifted her over to the card table, where she landed on all fours over the map of Alaska. Standing behind her, I rearranged her legs and plunged into her again.

Jesus fucking Christ. This was so goddamn right. She felt hot like the summer sea and as torrid as the tropics. Who needed to go to Miami when the equator bisected her body exactly below her hips?

She met my charge with grit, rebounding from my strokes with quiet yelps. “Seth?” she called out. “Seth!”

I bore down on her and held her as her body went into orgasm. Her pussy squeezed, clinging to my erection. Her hair spilled like a curtain around her face. Her skin flushed, her nipples spiked and her lips glimmered, as moist as her sex. She couldn’t stop coming.

“Oh, my God, Seth, Seth, Seth!”

I kissed her back and trailed her spine with my lips. “I know, baby. I know.”

I waited for her orgasm to subside, basking in her body’s warmth, taking in her primal scent—lush jungle after the rain. As soon as her respiration evened, I started to move in her again.

She murmured faintly. “I don’t think I can do that again.”

“You can,” I said. “As long as my cock is hard, your pussy’s got come power.”

She breathed out a hoarse whimper.

I reached around and strummed her clit. “Do you want more?”

“You’re making a glutton out of me.” I caught a glimpse of green behind her lidded eyes as she pressed against me. “But what about you? I don’t want to come again without you.”

I smiled. She liked it all right. My good intentions wavered. Burrowed in her pussy all the way, with her body twitching and squeezing all around me, I almost came, but I got a hold of myself and recommitted to my mission, maintaining my body’s discipline, thrusting in and out of her at a steady pace.

“Oh, God,” she whimpered and I knew she was close to coming again. She craned her neck to look at me. “More? Are you sure?”

“More,” I said. “I wouldn’t want to make a liar out of you.”

Her brow furrowed. “A liar?”

“Seven times in a row,” I said. “Isn’t that what you said to the others?”

“Seven?” Her eyes widened.

“I like it when you brag.” I reached out, tilted her face, and kissed her with the full force of my need. “So, this time around, let’s make it eight.”

Chapter Twenty-One

The sound of a horn startled me out of my stupor. From my perch on Uncle Ben’s rumpled daybed, I looked up. My eyes followed the lighthouse’s spiral stairs to the top, where far above, the windows reflected the sunset’s orange glow. I listened to the distinctive call as it came again.

“What’s that?” I said. “Is Ericksonland under attack?”

Lying beside me on the quilt, Seth rumbled with laughter. “No, they’re not summoning warriors to the fortress’s walls, if that’s what you mean.”

“Then why the ruckus?”

“That’s the summons to the concert,” he said, stretching out in the way I imagined a bear would stretch when awakening from hibernation.

“What concert?”

“The benefit concert,” Seth explained, propping himself up on one elbow.

“You mean the festivities aren’t over?”

“No.” He reached out to play with my hair. “In fact, a lot of people would say that the best part is yet to come.”

“How so?”

“The younger Ericksons are in charge of the evening fundraisers,” Seth said. “I suppose it’s Grandma’s version of apprenticeships in philanthropy. The concert is open to the public. But I think we’re done here. I want to take you home straight to my bed.”

“From one mattress to the next.” I sighed and grinned. “Is that the kind of life you envision for me?”

“A guy can dream.” He cradled the back of my head in his big hand, strong fingers digging into my hair, lowered my face to his and kissed me.

I was completely immersed in the feel of his mouth on my lips when the metal door to the lighthouse rattled and boomed. I startled. He almost leapt out of the bed.

He groaned. “What now?”

“Open up, Seth,” Ally shouted. “I know you’re in there!”

Seth put his finger to his lips and mouthed, “She’ll go away.”

“I’m not giving up,” she said pounding some more. “I’m as stubborn as you are. So open up, bro.”

Seth looked at me.

I shrugged. “It’s your damn DNA.”

“Christ.” He huffed. “What is it about me being with you that turns people into annoying dumbasses?” He got up, buttoned his pants and straightened his rumpled clothes, before he turned the locking wheel, opened the door and faced his sister. “What do you want?”

“Can you please tell your dogs to chill?” Ally said, cocking her chin over her shoulder. “They didn’t want to let me through. They said you gave orders. They’ve got Stuart, poor thing, but I pulled Erickson rank.”

Seth stepped out and signaled to someone I couldn’t see, no doubt a member or two of the Erickson brigade. I sighed. After what happened at Star Lake, I understood Seth’s precautions. I even understood that “asset protection” was a common concept in Ericksonland. But would I ever get used to the idea of having a protective detail? Not in this lifetime.

“Is Summer with you in there?” Ally dodged Seth and peeked in the door.

I scrambled to hide my naked self behind the shawl.

“Hi, Summer.” She waved cheerfully. “Fancy finding you here.”

“Oh, hi.” I waved back, face glowing like a chunk of flaming coal.

“Are you ready?” Ally said to Seth.

“Ready for what?” Seth said.

“For the concert, silly.” She grinned. “Didn’t you hear the horn?”

“We were thinking about skipping.”

“I was afraid of that.” Ally pouted prettily. “You can’t skip, Seth, you can’t. It’s my first year organizing the concert and I have a surprise for you.”

“A surprise?”

“The headliners tonight?” She gave a little squeal. “Battle Dragons!”

Seth gaped. “You got Battle Dragons to come all the way out here?”

“They’re your favorite band.”

“Battle Dragons?” I wrapped the shawl around myself as it were a towel and padded over to the door where I joined Seth and Ally, who’d changed clothes since I’d last seen her and was now wearing blue jeans, thigh-high boots and a kickass red leather jacket.

“Battle Dragons is one of my favorite bands too,” I said.

Seth cocked an eyebrow. “I never made you for a Battle Dragons kind of girl.”

“What?” I said. “You don’t think I like angst, dark and deep?”

“It’s not that.” Seth smirked. “I had no idea you had exquisite taste in music.”

“Well, now you know,” I said. “I’ve been keeping my eye out for Battle Dragons in concert for a while, but they hardly ever tour.”

“Hell, Ally, I’m impressed,” Seth said. “You pulled some shit-hot stuff, sis.”

“I know!” Ally clapped excitedly. “I went through lots of trouble to get these guys to Alaska. I brought them here especially for you. Will you please, please come to the concert?”

“You’re an amazing sister.” I discreetly nudged Seth in the ribs. “I’m sure Seth really appreciates your hard work. Of course he’s coming.”

“Yeah, sure, of course,” he said, belatedly. “We’ll be there.”

“Yay!” She gave her brother a hug. “But hurry up, guys. The concert starts in thirty minutes.”

It wasn’t going to be easy putting myself back together after two hours of crazy intense lovemaking. I was pretty sure that Seth would be able to restore his earlier splendor with a face wash and a comb, but mine was a different story. Not that I had any complaints, but sex with Seth was a cataclysmic event. It was like being sexually mauled time and time again, like being consumed and adored at once. I’d volunteer anytime.

My hair was tangled, my makeup was all but gone, and every part of me had been ruffled, kissed, and licked beyond repair. Standing before the mirror, thankful that Uncle Ben had seen fit to install a proper bathroom in the lighthouse, I wasn’t exactly sure how I was going to make myself presentable. And then another knock on the door revealed the magnificent Robert, carrying a basket of neatly folded garments and shoes.

“Is he a mind reader?” I said, when Seth handed me a pair of skinny jeans, a fringed black top, and a pair of black booties. “Did he raid Ally’s closet again? And how on earth does he know what I want to wear?”

“I texted him and asked him to bring us a change of clothing.” Seth inspected the clothes Robert had brought for him. “Stop worrying. Robert has been taking care of us since we were kids. Ally’s closet is like a department store and Robert’s taste is impeccable.”

“Unbelievable.” I closed the bathroom door, ran the water and stepped under the shower. Maybe being an Erickson wasn’t such a terrible thing after all. Maybe the perks made up for some of the aggravation.

After the shower, I dressed quickly, fixed my hair and put on a touch of blush and mascara that I carried in my little clutch. Seth waited for me with a knit hat, gloves, and my jacket. He looked hot wearing a black leather jacket, jeans, and combat boots. My knees did that buckling thing again.

“Warm enough?” he asked, as he zipped up my jacket.

“Hot like a steaming volcano when you’re around.”

He laughed the rich cackles I treasured. “Glad to be of some use.”

He grabbed my hand and I followed him out to the causeway, up the hill and onto the ATV that waited parked by the trailhead.

“Ready?” He revved the engine and turned on the headlights.

“Full steam ahead.” I squealed as we took off.

I braced my arms around his waist and pressed my cheek against his back, inhaling his jacket’s leather scent. The sun had set and dusk gave way to a clear night with bright stars popping up by the minute. We drove past huge greenhouses and thick forest, until we arrived at a field packed with all kinds of vehicles, trucks, cars, bikes, ATVs, planes; you name it.

We made our way through the crowds streaming in. There must have been thousands of people lined up. Seth handed the ATV off to an attendant at the head of the line and led me down a set of stone-carved steps. The steps opened onto a cove, a rocky beach where the naturally graded terrain had been transformed into a rugged amphitheater.

I stopped at the top to take in the astonishing sight. Spotlights swept over the excited throng. Fire pits burned brightly to keep the crowd warm. An elaborate stage rose against the sound and the mountains’ breathtaking background.

“My grandfather loved music,” Seth said. “He built this place to share his passion with his fellow Alaskans. Come on.” The spotlights began to flicker. “The concert is about to start.”

The attendants led us to the roped-off section at the front of the mosh pit, where a whole bunch of Ericksons mingled with celebrities and notable guests.

Seth introduced me to some of the people crammed into our section, which included a lot of people from the 212th Rescue Squadron. I shook lots of hands, trying to remember names, enduring the scrutiny with as much grace as I could muster. After all, these were Seth’s friends, the men and women he’d served with.

“Seth’s girlfriend,” I heard the murmur running from one person to another.

“Not bad,” someone else said behind my back. “Her name is Summer.”

“Summer in Alaska?”

I knew what came next.

“Boy, she’s really late.”

“Or maybe supremely early.”

Laughter and then, “She’s not from around here.”

No I wasn’t. For all practical purposes, I came from a different world. And yet Alaska had grown on me. In just a few weeks, I felt like a new person. Beyond that, I was someone’s girlfriend. Oh, lord. If that wasn’t a shock in itself, I was Seth’s girlfriend. Seth Erickson. From Alaska.

Stick with the moment
,
Silva.
Don’t freak out
. I drifted toward a group front and center.

“Hi.” I greeted a hunk of a guy sitting in a wheelchair. “I’m Summer and, yes, I’ve heard all the jokes about Summer in Alaska.”

The guy laughed. “I’m Trevor and since you’re not from here, I bet you no one has bothered to tell you the truth.”

“About what?”

“About summer.” The handsome devil smirked. “Thirty-five different species of mosquitoes, all of them bigger than your thumb. That’s summer for you in Alaska.”

It was my turn to laugh. “I’ll make sure to stay away. Where are you from?”

“We come from all over Alaska,” the guy said. “I work out of the Fairbanks office. We’re with the New Mission Project, you know, the one that Seth founded? We provide health and transition services to wounded warriors returning to civilian life.”

“Of course.” Seth hadn’t mentioned a word about it, but it made perfect sense to me. He practiced his own silent brand of philanthropy.

“Hey, Summer!” Seth motioned me over. “Stop making gooey eyes with Trevor and stick with me. I know the guy’s got game, but I wouldn’t want to lose you in this crowd.”

I took my leave from Trevor and made my way back to Seth. He encased me between his body and the rope, right in front of the stage. I spotted Alex and Gina among a gaggle of dark-haired Ericksons. I made a point to wave at Seth’s cousins.

“Will Astrid come?” I asked.

“Hell, no,” Seth said. “Not her kind of gig. She claims rock gives her migraines.”

Just then, Stuart and Jer made their way to us, eyes shimmering with excitement.

“Cool, yes?” Jer said.

“Super cool!” I said.

“I told you, Ericksons know how to party.”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Here comes the star of my show,” Stuart announced with a proud smile.

Ally made her way up the stage and grabbed the mike. “Hello, Alaska!”

The crowd greeted her back with a roar.

“Welcome, everybody,” she said. “Welcome especially to all the military service members and their families who are our honored guests tonight. Whether you’re on active duty, inactive, retired or reserve, we owe you big time. We love you!”

The crowd cheered.

“I want to give a shout-out to our wounded veterans tonight, who’ve given up so much for us,” Ally said. “Tonight, we celebrate you.”

“Thank you, thank you,” the crowd chanted.

Ally smiled and motioned with her hands to tone down the noise. “This concert is dedicated to the heroes in our lives. Yeah, you know who you are. There’s mine.” She pointed at the mosh pit and the spotlight fell on Seth.

The crowd cheered. “Seth, Seth, Seth.”

My jaw dropped. All those people. They knew Seth by name.

“The little twerp.” Seth shaded his face with his hand, shrinking from the spotlight. “What the hell does she know of real heroes?”

“But you are her hero.” I planted a kiss on his cheek. “Mine too.”

He actually groaned.

“On behalf of a grateful nation,” Ally shouted. “We thank you! And now, I give you...Battle Dragons!”

The stage went dark. The spotlights went crazy. Music blasted the air, together with alarms and a real flyby, ostensibly from the nearby air force base. A military ship lit up on the water, an amphibious assault vehicle that roared onto the beach and dropped the front gate to disgorge the members of the band, already strumming their guitars.

The crowd cheered. The band stormed the stage. The music blared, a mix of metal rock infused with a complex musicality. The lead singer belted out the first verse with a passion that echoed through my veins. Just as he went into the chorus, the stage unfolded and a full orchestra and a chamber choir emerged on elevated platforms. The crowd went insane.

“What do you think?” Ally joined us, flushed and excited, wearing a headset through which she monitored the show. “I expect we should raise a good chunk of change tonight.”

“Sis,” Jer said, “you rock.”

Seth hooked his arm over Ally’s shoulder and hugged her to his side. “Thanks for doing all of this for the guys.”

The acoustics in the outdoor theater were extraordinary. I knew the lyrics to every song and I sang at the top of my lungs. Confined to the small space between Seth’s arms, I danced to my heart’s content, swaying against him, enjoying the feel of his hands encasing my hips, the subtle grind of his groin against my ass.

I was surprised when people started to leap high above the crowd throughout the amphitheater. “What’s going on?”

“Blanket toss,” Seth said. “Want to check it out?”

He led me to the edge of one of the circles, where a bunch of people held a thick hide blanket, tossing a guy who leapt up and down as if he was on a trampoline.

“Wow,” I said. “He’s going high!”