LUCAS Read online

  Wave after wave ripped through her, taking him over the edge with her.

  Exhausted, she dropped her head onto his shoulder, gasping for breath. They stayed that way for a moment, before her brain kicked in and she realized she was laid out on top of him. Again! What was that, the third time in a matter of a few days?

  He chuckled and tightened his hold so she couldn’t wiggle off. He didn’t even bother opening his eyes. He knew she was scowling at him.

  Finally, she huffed out a breath and relaxed. If he was comfortable being crushed so be it.

  A few minutes later he loosened his hold. “I’m going to run you a hot bath. I don’t want you to be overly sore and I could tell, you’re not accustomed to a man my size.”

  When she opened her mouth to protest, he swallowed her words with a kiss. Still dazed, he helped her from the bed and led her to the bath.

  Who was this man? She watched as he added scented bath salts to the water and tested the temperature. Like a gallant knight of old, he helped her into the steaming water. Once she was settled, he wet a washcloth and gently washed her back.

  Gazing at her in his tub was like seeing her naked for the first time all over again. His breath hitched as he gently washed her. Kensie’s skin was incredibly soft and so milky she almost glowed in the candlelight.

  He finished her back and began washing her shoulders and arms. Her lashes lifted and he found himself falling into those dark chocolate pools. The impact was profound. He felt like the Grinch when his heart grew three sizes. No one had eyes like hers. All she had to do was look at him and she brought him to his knees.

  “Why are you doing this?” Kensie asked in a small voice.

  Lucas set the washcloth aside and framed her upturned face with his dripping hands. “I love you with all my heart. Words can only hold so much weight so I’m showing you with my actions. By making gentle, passionate, love to you and now while I’m caring for you.”

  He couldn’t stop himself from brushing her mouth gently with his. He had to taste her again.

  When she was able to speak, she gently clasped his wrist. “I believe you, Lucas, and truth be told I’m falling in love with you, too.” Her lashes fell to conceal her eyes from him and then she raised them again. “I just don’t know what to do now. I’ve never been in love before.”

  “Well, darlin’, that makes two of us. I think we will just have to wing it. Now, let me care for my mate.”

  He took up the cloth again and wrung water over her shoulders, then kneaded them with his strong fingers, working every knot and sore muscle until she was a relaxed noodle.

  She sat with her eyes closed thinking about the evening. Lucas was an incredible lover. Mind-blowing, incredible. He gave her the kind of pleasure most women only dream about.

  Now he was creating a sense of total commitment with his ministrations. Humming softly, he became totally engrossed in the task of washing and massaging her aches away. The man had mad skills, that’s for sure.

  Once finished, he helped her stand and dried her as thoroughly as he bathed her. Then he led her back to the bed and snuggled her close. He’d meant what he said, he wanted to wake up to her in his bed.

  Chapter 16

  Lucas woke to a soft warm body snuggled against his side and a wild head of red hair on his chest. He couldn’t have been happier. He kissed the top of her head lightly so he wouldn’t wake her. For the next twenty minutes he watched her sleep. He could have watched her for hours.

  Mewling like a kitten, she yawned and stretched. Then stiffened, her face was lying on the scratchy hair of his chest. Her leg was thrown over his like a wanton woman. Fudge sticks! Slowly she withdrew her leg, and then lifted her cheek from his chest. Glancing up, her brown eyes clashed with his blue ones. Shiznit, he was awake. She tried to move to her side of the bed, but he tightened his arm.

  Lucas chuckled. “Don’t even think about it. Stay right where you are.”

  “My arm is asleep. I need to move so I can get some blood flowing.”

  He relented and let her go. “I certainly don’t want to be the cause of you losing an arm,” he said grinning.

  She looked at him oddly while she gave her arm a good shake and clenched and unclenched her fist to wake it up.

  “After we have coffee and get a little breakfast, I’ll write out the ritual so you can learn the sacred words and ceremony. There are quite a few things to memorize and I thought that would be easiest for you.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate that. I’ll study it and then ask you any questions I may have.”

  She left the bed to shower and by the time she came out to dress, he was gone. On closer examination, she spotted a note on her pillow.

  Mon Amour,

  Meet me in the kitchen. I’ll be thinking of you until you join me.

  Every minute without you is pure torture. Please don’t make me wait too long.

  I love you,

  Lucas

  Her breath hitched in her chest. Lordy, she was falling hard for this man. Please, let everything he said about shifters and their eternal bond be true. She was already too far gone to survive a break up with Lucas.

  She should talk to Krystal later; maybe she could verify the things he’d said. That would go a long way in calming her fears.

  Sure enough, he was in the kitchen frying bacon. The instant she entered the room, he set aside his spatula and swept her into his arms. “Would you like a cup of coffee?” he murmured against her lips.

  “I’d love one, thank you.”

  He let her go and poured her a cup, adding exactly the right amount of cream and sugar. He handed the coffee to her and watched her take a sip. Her answering smile told him everything he needed to know; he’d gotten it right.

  “How did you know how I like my coffee?”

  “I’ve been watching you in the dining room and I guessed a little,” he grinned.

  “I salute your attention to detail, Mr. Le Beau.” Kensie made an attempt at a real salute. She was pretty sure she didn’t do it right when he laughed.

  He finished the bacon and filled two plates with scrambled eggs, the bacon, and toast. Setting a plate in front of Kensie, he joined her.

  “This looks wonderful, thank you for making me breakfast. I know you did this as a gift for me since we could have eaten in the dining room.”

  “I’m pleased you noticed. I hope it tastes as good as it looks. My mother was a stickler for each of us boys learning to cook.”

  “I like her already,” Kensie laughed.

  *****

  As they finished breakfast, Lucas received an urgent message he was needed in the far pasture. Something about the bull he just purchased. He kissed her silly and gave her a sheet of paper with the ritual described and written out in sequence, then ran out the door.

  Kensie carefully read through the ritual. This is fascinating.

  She was sipping her second cup of coffee when Mariel ran in from the commercial kitchen. Between breathy pants she said, “You have an urgent phone call.”

  Kensie followed her back to the public side of the building wondering what the hospital wanted now.

  “Hello? This is Dr. Brown.”

  “Dr. Brown, you have a patient who needs you at the Mayo Clinic. The situation is urgent.”

  “Dr. Anderson, we’ve already been through this. I’m not responsible for your patients.”

  “This isn’t ‘MY’ patient, she’s that designer woman’s friend.”

  “Oh, what’s the issue?”

  “No idea. I haven’t seen her. I’m simply the messenger. All I know is they need you to drive back as quickly as you can. I was told they would take care of her until you arrive.”

  “Tell them, I’m on my way.” Kensie hung up without bothering with the niceties of a goodbye. That asshat Anderson didn’t deserve niceties.

  She ran for her cabin. Time was of the essence, she needed to pack and get on the road, fast. Ten minutes later she placed her suitcases in t
he trunk. The problem was, Jojo wasn’t at the cabin or the barn. Roy hadn’t seen her so she must still be with her date from last night. Her only option was to leave a note.

  With her pen poised above the blank white sheet of paper she struggled with how to compose the message. She hated running off, Jojo was going to be so disappointed, but this was a real emergency.

  Finally satisfied with her message, she lit out for her car. Thank God for fuzz busters and GPS. She was going to need both.

  *****

  Lucas couldn’t concentrate on the issue with his bull. His mind was elsewhere. So was his heart. They were both back at the main house with a beautiful redheaded woman. Goddess, he missed her already.

  Topping the ridge he got a bird’s eye view of the problem. His bull was belly deep. Stupid beast decided a wallow in the mud was a good idea.

  Easing up beside Joe, Lucas saw he already had a rope on him. Like a pro, Lucas swung his lasso and hit the mark. Between him and the ranch foreman, they should be able to pull the animal to safety.

  Attaching the other end to his saddle, he commanded Elvis to pull the rope tight. On the count of three both horses gave it their all. The bull lowed and snorted, shaking his massive head once he was free. Lucas hoped the bull was smart enough to learn his lesson or he and Joe might be out here again tomorrow.

  Turning to his foreman, he frowned. “Where’s Hank?”

  “He’s in the south pasture with the other men rounding up the heifers you wanted bred by Romeo.” Joe tilted his head toward the bull looking broodingly at them.

  “That’s right. I forgot that was this morning.”

  “Thanks for coming, boss. I tried, but I couldn’t budge him on my own.”

  “It’s a good thing you found him before the scavengers did. He would have been easy pickings.” Lucas studied the area for a moment. “Have the men fence off this low spot. Every time it rains, this low spot is going to be a hazard. I can’t chance Romeo, or any other cattle, getting stuck in there.”

  Joe wiped his brow and adjusted his hat. “I’ll get them on that first thing.”

  Lucas’s head snapped around. His focus was directed toward the main house. Something was wrong. He felt the tenuous bond with Kensie pulling thin.

  What the hell?

  Lucas spun Elvis around and lit out like he was on fire. “I have to go,” he yelled as he went.

  The only thing that could cause that was distance, and a lot of it. Did she leave? Why would she up and disappear when things seemed so good? What happened?

  Desperation made him kick Elvis into high gear a little harder than was necessary. “Sorry, boy. I didn’t mean to do that.”

  The closer he got to the main house the tighter his chest got. A fist the size of Mount Rushmore was crushing his heart. His pulse began to pound, sweat dampened his palms, and damn it all to hell, his eyes stung from unshed tears.

  Elvis skidded to a stop in front of his stall. Lucas gave the stallion a loving pat as he dismounted and handed the reins to Roy. “Give him a good rubdown and some extra grain. He earned it.”

  Lucas knew he couldn’t stay in the barn. If he did, he’d make a complete ass of himself in front of his hired hands. He made for the smaller side door, ignoring the looks Roy gave him. Hitting the door with a hard smack, he started running. Even though all his senses told him Kensie was long gone, he had to check her cabin.

  The cabin wasn’t exactly empty. Jojo was there. He knocked once and was ready to use his key when the door opened. Jojo stared at him, a look of shock mixed with heartbreak on her face. She sniffled and held a sheet of paper out to him.

  Jojo and Lucas,

  The Mayo clinic called. There is an emergency with one of my celebrity patients. I’m so sorry, but I had to leave immediately.

  I promise, I’ll come right back when this is handled.

  Jojo, please don’t cry. I never would have left under any other circumstance. Baby, I promise, I’ll be back in a day or two. I’ll even take another week off and stay longer. Heck, I might just hand in my notice.

  Lucas, please believe me, this has nothing to do with what is going on between us. I love you, and I have every intention of getting my butt back to you. Take care of Jojo for me.

  Love,

  Kensie

  His mind screeched to a halt. She said she loved him. Even put the words in writing. Those three words made her leaving a trillion times easier to take. He would have to hold onto her declaration and promise when the pain of the separation from his mate became really bad. And it would. Separation was bad enough, twelve hundred miles would be excruciating.

  Raking his fingers through his hair, he focused on Jojo. “Are you going to be okay? She said she’s coming back. She’ll be back here with us in no time at all.”

  He tried to keep his voice easy going and sure. By the expression on her face, he wasn’t sure he came off that way.

  Jojo sighed. “She’s made promises like that before. When it comes to the hospital, all bets are off.” She shrugged, wiping her eyes. “I learned to accept her workaholic lifestyle a long time ago. For your sake, I truly hope she comes back.”

  “I’ll call her and keep tabs on her timetable. As soon as I know what’s going on and when she plans to head back, I’ll let you know.” Lucas tipped his hat and walked out the door.

  Walking at a fast clip to the main house, he went looking for Krystal. He badly needed some advice and a plan. If Krystal couldn’t help him, he’d call his parents, they’d know what to do.

  “Krystal? Are you home?” Lucas called as he closed the back door of the main house.

  “I’m in the office,” she called back.

  She took one look at him and knew something was wrong. “Cher, what is it?”

  He scrubbed his fingers through his hair, leaving tufts sticking up, here and there, haphazardly. “Kensie.” He took a deep breath and dropped into the seat across the desk from Krystal. “She took off for Minnesota. She received an emergency phone call. Something about one of her patients. She left a note saying she only planned to go back and take care of that one person and then return. What do you think? Do I need to be worried?”

  Krystal frowned. “You went over the ritual, right?”

  “Yeah, sort of. I wrote the entire thing out for her so she could study it. I swear, I didn’t read her wrong. She’s taking accepting me very seriously.” His frustration manifested in dramatic hand gestures. “I just got a really bad feeling about this sudden emergency. Something about this smells fishy.”

  “I apologize if I’m being too personal, but has she shown an interest in you as a man?” she asked with a knowing gleam in her eyes.

  Lucas blushed, actually red eared, red faced blushed. “You could say that.”

  “And she still took off for Minnesota? How is that possible? I thought the attraction and need to be together was so strong the mates couldn’t be apart. At least they didn’t want to be.” Her voice rose an octave, surprised Kensie could effectively ignore her destined mate.

  “I’m as stumped as you are, cuz. From what Cade, Simon, and Stefan told me, once you find your mate, it’s nearly impossible to stay away from them. She’s putting twelve hundred miles between us.”

  Krystal nodded in agreement, frowning as she paused for a moment. “Julia said the same thing about Thomas. Do you think humans are affected differently than shifters? Maybe their reaction isn’t as intense?”

  “Not according to Cade and Simon. Stefan had a bit more trouble with El but that was because of her trauma back in college.” Suddenly he shot from his chair. “Do you think something unspeakable happened to Kensie and she’s afraid to tell me?”

  “Not that I know of, I know their parents died when Jojo was still a child and Kensie herself was only eighteen. She barely retained custody of Jojo because of her age. I’m sure you’ve noticed, Kensie can be rather tenacious. No one was taking Jojo away from her and living to tell the tale. In the end, the court granted her full
custody.”

  Lucas scrubbed is jaw in thought. “So, she raised an eight year old and supported them both while getting an education?”

  “Yeah. It took two years longer than normal for her to graduate because she was working full time, but somehow she managed to earn her degree and raise a child. And if you ask me, Jojo turned out to be an outstanding young woman.”

  He flopped into the chair again stunned. “No wonder she’s clueless. She said she had strong feelings for me, but didn’t know if what she was feeling was love. She’s spent so many years being responsible for Jojo and building her career, she shut off her emotions to everyone and everything, except Jojo.”

  “I think you’re right.”

  Something akin to fear skittered across his face. “So, what do I do? Do I try to be patient? Should I follow her to Minnesota and support her while she handles this emergency?”

  Krystal stared off into space as she considered his options. “For now, I think you should stay here. Show her you trust her. If you follow her, I’m afraid it won’t end well.”

  “But what about the pain she’s going to feel from the separation?” Lucas countered.

  “I don’t think she’s going to feel the pain the way you do. Julia and I talked about Thomas, and what happened when he left town. We discussed about what she went through, she said he didn’t seem to be in pain at all.”

  Lucas sighed, relieved and sat back in his chair. “That’s a relief. I don’t handle it well when she’s in pain.”

  *****

  Twenty-six hours! She had been gone for over a day, and she only just reached Rochester. This was going to kill him, he was sure of it. Sure, he’d talked to Kensie every few hours. Her reassurances over the phone weren’t enough. He needed to touch her, to hold her and kiss her. And the pain! How had Julia withstood this torture?