The Iron Quill by Shelena Shorts Page B

wanted to come home and start over.
    I, on the other hand, wanted to know what was going on. Where had he been, who had taken him, and on what terms had he been allowed to leave, and why wouldn’t they return his personal items?
    I had so many questions, but most importantly, I had a blinding desire to wrap myself in him and not come out.
    To pass the time, I cleaned my room,
and
the kitchen. And then I took a shower and put on a decent pair of jeans and a white tank top. Then, like an anxious puppy, I sat in the living room’s bay window, waiting for Wes to arrive.
    After thirty minutes of impatience, a champagne-colored Cadillac sedan pulled into my driveway, flanked by two black Chevy Tahoes. At first I tensed, concerned that the unfamiliar vehicles held a threat. I pulled out my cell phone, prepared to dial 911, when Wes raised himself out of the backseat.
    The sight of him strong and unharmed gave me a head rush. I jumped off the windowsill and ran out of the house, unable to contain my excitement and relief. I met him halfway up my walkway and folded myself in his outstretched arms, becoming part of him again. Our bodies pressed together like a lock and key as he held me in uninterrupted, silent bliss.
    As the moments passed, he held me tighter than he ever had, and I soaked him up, reveling in the overdue encounter. Eventually, he broke the silence.
    “Is your mom home?”
    I shook my head quickly and squeezed even tighter. With my answer, he lifted me off the ground and carried me back into the house, closing the door behind us. Inside the confines of my foyer, he backed me up against the wall and kissed me with so much urgency that I couldn’t believe how aggressive he was being. My face in his palm, then my hair tightly clasped in one hand, then his body . . . all of his body . . . pressed against me. I felt my eyes roll lazily behind my lids.
    Sensations I never knew existed swept through me, making me feel like he wasn’t close enough, only that wasn’t possible . . . unless. Desire caused my knees to buckle and my body to sink. For a moment he slid down the wall with me and when we had gone too far, he put his arms under my bottom and picked me up, pressing my back up against the wall.
    “Wes, stop!” I panted desperately.
    “I don’t think I can,” he said still kissing my neck.
    “Oh, my gosh, please, I can’t take it.”
    “Me, either,” he said still kissing.
    I pushed his chest, seriously feeling like I was going to pass out.
    My feet settled back on the floor as he buried his face in my neck.
    “Okay,” he said.
    “Okay,” I said back.
    “Okay,” he whispered again, accompanied by a small laugh.
    Feeling his chest vibrate caused me to laugh too. “What
was
that?” I asked.
    Pulling back only enough to put his forehead to mine, he said, “I don’t know.”
    “You attacked me,” I said.
    Still leaning into me, he replied unashamedly, “I know.”
    I was still laughing slightly at the surprise fit of passion. “Do it again,” I said.
    He laughed louder. “No.” Then he pulled back to reveal that perfect face and smile I had missed so much. “At least not right now. I just had to get that out of the way. I thought about being close to you every second of every day.” He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Wow, I needed that . . . I needed you.”
    I leaned back into him for another hug. Feeling his hands wrap around my waist replaced every last nook and cranny of worry in my soul with a sense of peace and joy.
    “I missed you so much,” I said.
    “I know, me too.”
    He pulled back and gazed into my eyes with what looked like pride. “You’re so perfect.”
    I smiled softly, thinking the same thing about him.
    Once our coveted reunion was satisfying enough to both of us, he got right down to business.
    “I have to go to the lab. We have to hold an emergency meeting.”
    My face must have shown concern. “It’s nothing big. Don’t worry. But we have to make sure