In Love by Design (The Adventures of Anabel Axelrod) (41 page)

I text
ed back:
You are dead meat, Genghis.

Putting my phone aside,
I pressed send on Mia’s phone.

The number r
ang twice and went to voice mail. The recorded message was a husky female voice that sounded like she recently did a shot of Southern Comfort. “Hi, you’ve reached Veronica and I can’t come to the phone right now. If you leave your name and number, I’ll be sure and call you back just as soon as I can. Thank you!”

I hand Mia back
her phone and said, “If this number calls you back and I’m around, please give me the phone, but don’t ever pick up and talk, okay?”

Mia nod
ded, her eyes intent on my face. “Okay.”

“Do you
feel like reading, Protégé?”

She smile
d. “Always.”

“
Cool. Oh yeah, I have one thing to say about being your mentor.” I figured I’d better start how I meant to go on with this little spitfire, too. “Call it your first rule.”

“What?
Tell me!” she responded enthusiastically, sitting up straighter.

“Do not contact me before ten in the morning unless it
’s a dire emergency. By dire, I mean near death or dead.”

“Oh,” Mia mutter
ed, eyeing me balefully.

I
fell back on the pillows and grinned in return. “Now name your poison.” I lowered my voice, “Don’t tell anyone, but I have a Kindle loaded with zombie, romance, and how-to books or “A Game of Thrones” in paperback. Book one.”

I’
d decided an escape from reality for a while was the new plan. I have no idea what Mr. Tricky and Veronica were doing, but at this particular moment in time, I didn’t give a flying fuck.

“Kindle, please. I’ve read all of George R.R. Martin.” Mia punche
d a few pillows and got situated next to me on the bed.

By next to me,
I mean Mia had scooted past the middle of the huge bed and aligned her pillows flush to mine. Our shoulders almost touched. As long as the word almost was in that sentence and her clothes stay on, I was okay with Mia needing a little human contact and wanting to snuggle in. She probably missed her sisters.

Cozily warm in our pillows and covers, the room
went quiet as Mia and I become absorbed in our books. That’s the last thing I remembered until I was being dragged up from the depths of a deep sleep by the tingly pleasure party taking place between my legs. Unconsciously, I was moving my hips and pressing my thighs tightly together against the arousing swollenness in my cha-cha region.

Disoriented,
I moaned in pleasure to feel my breasts being fondled under my shirt. Unless Mia has very large man hands, Luke was home and wrapped around me.

His face
was buried in my neck, but I heard his nuzzling, “I love you, Anabel.”

Sleepily
I smiled, but started to fall back under, even while mumbling, “You’d better.”

I
was so tired and only hazily aware of Luke’s chuckle, and then his voice was at my ear, “Are you begging me to be inside you,” the fondling hands squeezed my nipples and an invading thigh spread my legs from behind, and slid slowly along me, “so that you can tell me everything you hate about me, Princess?”

But
then again, I was never that tired. It made me happy to have a hard thigh between my legs to rub against. I pushed back, rubbing my butt on something long and hard that was also trying to increase my happiness while murmuring, “Mmm, yes please, I really want that.”

The words
barely passed my lips before Luke lifted the shirt over my head. His hands were everywhere on my body, warming my skin and causing shivering tingles wherever they dipped and delved.

Luke
reached up and switched the bedside lamp on. His warmth was no longer behind me and shading my eyes from the glare, I rolled over to see where he’d gone.

My Dark Prince
was leaning back on pillows in the middle of the bed. His boyish grin was big and his erection was even bigger, and luckily for me, not boyish at all.

He
was lazily reclining, all sculpted muscles and gleaming skin, and so darkly masculine against the white bedding that my hot rush of desire was actually painful. I could clearly see the ink on his chest, the blue
A
vibrant against his brown skin and the black intertwining scrollwork even more beautiful than I recalled. The tattoo hiked up his hotness to off the charts. I could hardly believe that anything could make him look tougher or more attractive in my eyes, but it did.

Luke’s
smile slowly disappeared under my reverent gaze and he urged softly, “Come here, Anabel, and sit on me, so that I can see you.”

Pushing the hair off my face
, I let the covers drop. I opened the bedside drawer and grabbed a couple of condoms. On my knees, I walked across the bed to where Luke waited.

Opening the condom, I
leaned over to smooth it down on him. If this stuck my ass up in the air at a pert angle and dangled my breast like ripe fruit for the picking, I cannot be blamed because I needed to take my time for safety reasons. I needed to make sure the condom fit his penis perfectly, pulling here and adjusting there.

On a growl,
Luke finally sat forward and lifted me up onto him, so that I was straddling his perfection.

He
smiled slowly up at my startled face and I smiled happily back while wondering, not for the first time, how I got so lucky to have this incredible man choose me as his girlfriend. He was so intelligent, so talented, and so incredibly fucking hot that he could have any woman in the Universe.

I
was off worshiping at the altar of my war-god, so Luke startled me again when his hands at my waist lifted me higher until my breasts were in his face. He tortured me with long sucking, licking kisses and short, hard sucking kisses, rubbing his face over me the whole time and murmuring words of praise. When I couldn’t take it any longer and I was shaking with need, I begged for him to stop and be inside me, so that I could tell him everything I hated about him, but did he listen?

No, he d
idn’t. He lifted me even higher, and even though he repeated himself and did the same exact kissing thing, this new location receiving his close attention caused me to shake and beg for him to never stop, or I would hate him.

When I
couldn’t stop myself from screaming, Luke slid me down his body and kissed my lips hungrily, letting go of my waist to embrace me in his arms. His tricky tongue entered my mouth at the same time his talented cock entered my vagina, and I know there’s nothing I love more in the Universe than this feeling of being filled by Luke Drake.

So,
as he rocked slowly inside me and filled me with love, I told him this absolute truth.

He
groaned my name softly and thrust harder, as I told him that he’s my man, my home, my life, and my world. He gentled, worshiping me with loving kisses, when I said I trusted him, knew him, believed in him, and loved all of him; the good, the bad, and especially, the ugly.

Luke
didn’t miss a stroke in his loving when I told him the only thing I hated about him was his friend named Veronica.

Instead, he
hugged me close and rolled with me on the bed while his deep laughter rang out and he rasped, “Jesus Christ, you’re amazing! Ronnie’s a transvestite that tells me where the big game is when I’m in town.”

“
Whatever, Handsome, but I hate not knowing why you’re out doing this when I’m waiting here! Dammit, Luke, the truth never scares me!” I cried out, panting for breath.

He soothe
d me, “Shhh, I know, I know, nothing scares you, tough girl.”

But then I
was moaning his name in delight. I didn’t care if the big game meant illegally playing poker for huge sums of money or illegally hunting protected African wildlife on the brink of extinction, or even that it was 5:17 in the fucking morning because Luke was on top and has hooked my knees over his elbows. My boyfriend’s bringing it home by hitting that magic spot again that has me climaxing so ecstatically hard that I imploded tightly around him. He shouted out his pleasure while I saw stars in my head, Sparky lit up in a burst of dazzling brilliance, and I swore the ringing in my ears was fireworks exploding around us.

“Anabel.”

Something was shaking me and I pulled my shoulder away, muttering, “I said not before ten o’clock.”

I hear
d a snort and burrowed into my hard pillow, swatting at the annoying sound.

“Anabel,
wake up. It’s Jack Banner on the phone.”

I re
sponded to the command in Luke’s voice and opened my eyes. The bedroom lamp was still on and the clock said its 5:55 AM. I was staring into Luke’s face from a few inches away, but not comprehending. We were lying on our sides entwined on the bed and the hard pillow I was trying to disappear into was Luke’s shoulder.

Dazedly, I cannot seem to get it together until I hear Luke say into his phone, “Jack, hang on. I’m having a hard time waking up Anabel.” He smirk
ed at something Jack said, but only replied, “Give me a second before I ask her.”

When I open
ed my mouth to ask what was going on, Luke stared hard into my face and brought a finger up to his lips to shush me. He nodded when I closed my mouth and he arched a brow. I blinked and then nodded back.

Luke touche
d his phone and his voice was serious. “You’re on speaker, Jack. Are you awake now, Anabel? Jack’s calling and needs to know if you’ve ever heard of the name Richard Webster?”

Luke
shook his head no. Even confused, I went along and replied, “What the hell? Jack, if this is your idea of payback for my midnight call, bring it on, buddy! We’re officially tangling!”

Luke smile
d in approval, but his eyes were coldly assessing while he listened intently for Jack’s response. I instinctively cuddled closer and Luke tightened his arms.

Jack snap
ped, “This is a serious call, Junior.”

“Well
Geez, okay then. What was the name again?”

Jack bit out, “Richard Webster.”

Over the years, I’ve found the best method to pry any info out of Chief Jack was to goad him over the edge. It’s not pretty, but it worked.

“Let me think.
Hmm, I’ve heard of a Daniel Webster, a Noah Webster, and that little black kid named Webster. He was on that TV show about fifteen years ago where he was adopted by that white couple, and remember Punky Brewster…”

Luke’s
head was shaking and he was grinning, as Jack exploded, “Dammit, you little smart ass, I have a Wisconsin Chief of Police calling me at home! He’s asking me if I can give him a little help questioning one of my locals on a murder case!” He shouted louder, “Do you know why this is, Junior?”

“Umm, because he’s
a Chief and all good chiefs delegate their work?” I quipped, even as Luke and I exchange worried glances. Well, I was worried and Luke’s grin was gone. His face was hard and showed nothing. He’ was squeezing my hand, though, and my heart was sinking to my toes at where this conversation was leading.

Jack
’s voice lowered, as he tried to control his temper, but it quickly rose again and after about the fourth word, he was shouting when he said, “Because the last number dialed from the murder victim’s phone last night has been identified as belonging to the cell phone of one Anabel Axelrod of Northfield, Minnesota, the biggest pain in my ass!”

“Wow Jack, th
at is mean, even for you!” I exclaimed, my voice full of hurt. On my dignity, I stated, “I don’t know any Punky Brewster and I’m sorry if he’s dead. I can’t answer why my phone was dialed. I certainly didn’t talk to anyone from Wisconsin last night. Now can I go back to sleep or do you want to yell at me some more, Chief Bully Banner?”

There
was silence for a few seconds on the other end of the speaker phone, and then Jack sighed loudly. “Ah, Junior, don’t be pissed. You know I didn’t mean you’re really the biggest pain.” Jack deadpanned, “I’m sure Larry Devens beats you hands down as a bigger pain in my ass.”

I snort
ed at this, but for Luke’s sake, replied dryly, “Thanks, Jack, it’s good to know the town drunk bugs you more than me.”

Jack grunt
ed his version of a belly laugh and Luke was silently laughing now, too, but his voice only reflected concern when he asked, “Jack, do we have anything to worry about where this murder is concerned? Could it have anything to do with Ron Hansen coming after Anabel?”

“What? Nah!” Jack immediately assure
d Luke. “From what the Chief said, it’s a crime of passion, a fight between lovers or something. The victim was gay and there was a knife, lots of blood, the whole nine yards. No, don’t worry. Wisconsin’s just following up on everything and I’ll let them know it was a wrong number or a misdial. Whatever.”

“Okay, that’s good to know,” Luke replied.

“Poor guy,” I murmured, and then yawned loudly. “Bye, Jack.”