Black Hollow: Reviving Love Read online

  Chapter Eight

  “Popcorn for Penny and Milk Duds for Sarah.” Asald handed each woman their treats and sat in the camping chair next to them.

  “I’m glad the Inn had extra chairs, this would have been really uncomfortable on the ground.” Penny wiggled deeper into her chair and snuggled under the blanket she borrowed off her hotel bed.

  A shimmer to her left pulled Sarah’s attention from the screen. The stranger from the other night with the scars covering his body was walking with the man from the costume shop earlier. Her mystery man had a hoodie pulled far enough forward it covered most of his face, but she still knew it was him. A moment of regret sliced through her, if she had introduced herself to the man at the shop it would have given her an excuse to speak to him again.

  Her eyes never left his back as she watched them set up their chairs nearby and head towards the impromptu snack tent. “You know what, I’m not feeling chocolate. I’m going to go get some Twizzlers.”

  “I can go if you would like?” Asald started to pull himself out of the chair.

  “I asked for the wrong thing, you shouldn’t have to go again. Besides, I know how much you want to watch this movie.”

  Asald’s dimples popped as a look of excitement crossed his face, “I haven’t heard of this one before, I can’t wait to see what a Creature from the Black Lagoon looks like? And where is this Black Lagoon?”

  Sarah chuckled as she watched Penny pat his hand as she stood to leave. He had an innocence about him that was endearing and his curiosity was near insatiable. One day she was going to get him to tell her about his childhood, he had a lot of oddities that she was dying to understand but out of respect for Penny, she didn’t pry.

  They were quite used to him interrupting movies and shows to ask hundreds of questions. If it weren’t for her being a mother she may not have had the patience.

  A group of girls dressed like fairies were heading fast for the tent too, Sarah sped up to beat the girls in line. Now that she was less than two feet from the stranger that had been consuming her thoughts she was suddenly panicked and unsure of herself.

  “I’m telling you, every time I collect teeth from that house they are all rotten. I’m tempted to stop paying for them.” The girls’ tiny gossamer wings fluttered in the breeze.

  The strange conversation from the fairies behind her helped distract her chaotic emotions.

  With only one group to go before the stranger got to the counter Sarah knew she was losing her opportunity. “Excuse me, I think I saw you at Seraphine’s this morning?” Sarah tapped lightly on the man’s shoulder.

  Both men turned, suddenly any nerve she had built up disappeared. If she had any hope of making it out of there without looking like a complete fool she would have to try to ignore the scarred man staring intently at her. “I think you were struggling with the costume choices as much as I was.” She laughed nervously. “I’m Sarah, visiting here for the first time.”

  The man from the shop reached out his hand, “My names Silver, I just moved here so that may make me a little crazier than you.” Sarah shook hands with him then looked towards the ground awkwardly.

  “This is Adam, he is letting me stay with him until I get my own place.” Sarah’s stomach squirmed, it was time to look into the eyes that have been haunting her impure thoughts for two days.

  She wasn’t disappointed, his grey eyes were staring through her and into her soul. A shiver ran down her spine, if she didn’t know better she would have thought she might have just had a small orgasm. Can you come just from a look?

  Up close the lines wove across his skin and entwined with each other beautifully.

  Whatever had happened to him must have been horrible but in her eyes, it didn’t do anything to detract from his looks. If anything, he was possibly the most gorgeous man she had ever met.

  That last thought sobered her, even with her new haircut she wasn’t attractive enough to be with him. She stared at his outstretched hand for a brief second before clearing her throat and looking back at Silver. “How silly of me, I forgot my wallet.” She turned and rushed back to her chair. She heard one of them offer to buy her snack, like a coward she chose to run and hide instead.

  Chapter Nine

  The movie was probably great, Sarah wouldn’t know. Her awareness never left Adam, she knew exactly where he was sitting and how many times he’d glanced her way. She wasn’t egotistical enough to get her hopes up but butterflies definitely fluttered in her belly.

  “Sarah do you want to go?” Sarah blinked and noticed Pascal and Toussaint had joined them at some point and all eyes were on her.

  “We’re heading over to Stoney’s bar to have a drink with Sebastian.” Pascal held his hand out to help her stand. “Join us and meet the fourth musketeer?”

  “Sure, I can’t tell you the last time I went out for fun on a Friday night that didn’t include an animated movie and pizza.”

  “And it looks like our party just got bigger.” Toussaint smiled at someone behind her.

  The hair on the back of her neck stood, she knew who was there.

  She turned slowly and smiled at Aristide who was being followed by Adam and Silver.

  Oh goody, the panty wetting torture was going to continue. She hoped it was dark enough no one would see how red her cheeks were. Sarah folded up her chair and thanked Asald as he scooped everything into one giant arm.

  “Lead the way.” Penny smiled excitedly. Sarah knew Penny was in heaven with all these men around. She was probably calculating each man’s worth and deciding who the lucky guy would be to get sucked into her machinations.

  It was a short walk to the bar and every cell in Sarah’s body was thrumming with excitement at having Adam so close. Her back was aching by the time they made it to the bar, she had been so stressed knowing he was walking behind her she had kept her posture ramrod straight.

  Stoney’s wasn’t what she expected, she had assumed the name was more about getting high. Instead, the inside was dark, the walls were stone with real fire sconces all around. In each corner, a stone gargoyle statue sat staring at the crowd. The music was loud and people were dancing in the center of the room.

  A large man in the far corner stood and waved them over, it wasn’t hard to tell he was the fourth musketeer, his muscles were equally as large as the other men’s plus the Sheriff badge might have given it away.

  Sarah was surprised at the warm hug he gave her and Penny and the terse greeting to Asald. Maybe he didn’t have to work the other night and chose to skip dinner because of Asald? How anyone could dislike him though was a mystery to her.

  As soon as drinks were ordered Pascal and Toussaint stood and pulled them out of their seats, “Let’s go ladies, there’s no time for sitting.” Pascal winked at them before dragging Sarah unwillingly towards the center of the floor. She was not surprised to see Penny dancing her way towards them, Sarah was envious of her complete confidence in herself.

  Sarah glanced towards the table and instantly regretted it, Adam was glowering their way. Every time she saw him the beauty of his scars awed her. It actually pained her to not go to him, something inside her desperately wanted to be with him. The intensity of the foreign feeling was both scary and exciting.

  Pascal’s hand wrapped around her waist and sent her spinning, she couldn’t help the giggle that slipped from her mouth. The music was loud, the dancing was good and soon Sarah was lost in the euphoria of it all and danced as if she were alone in her living room.

  Sweat rolled down her neck and slid between her breasts, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d this much fun. Breathless and holding her side where a cramp had started she yelled to Penny that she was going outside and slipped out for fresh air.

  The cold night air instantly sent chills across her skin, it felt good now but she knew soon she would be freezing.

  Taking in the much quieter atmosphere she leaned against the wall of the building and closed her eyes.

  �
�I’m not sure you should be outside by yourself, this town may look innocent but we have our share of monsters too.” Sarah shivered at the words spoken, not because of what was said but because of the mouth that said them so quietly next to her. She knew when she opened her eyes Adam would be inches from her.

  “I’m glad you’re out here to protect me.” Her eyes fluttered open and wasn’t disappointed to see he was only a foot away. It would only take her leaning off the wall to be flush with his body. Did he feel the pulsing need reverberating between them or was it only one-sided?

  “You ran off earlier, do you want to go for a walk and talk?”

  Hell freaking yes she did but saying that made her sound easy. Instead, she cocked her head to the side, “How do I know you aren’t one of the monsters?”

  “I admit I am more monster than man but you are safe with me, everyone inside will vouch for me.”

  She bit her bottom lip for a split second before deciding, “I’ll text Penny that we’re walking over to the ice cream shop and they can meet us at the gazebo in a bit.”

  Adam nodded and waited as she sent her text. He couldn’t see her screen so he missed Penny’s emoji responses of a tongue, lips, water drops and a bed. Sarah knew exactly where her friend's mind was at. She sent back a halo emoji and slipped her phone into her back pocket.

  “It looks like I’m all yours.” She knew how that sounded and decided to see how it was received. She wasn’t disappointed to see something stir in his eyes, she hoped it was desire or she was going to be an aching mess for weeks.

  She was surprised when he held out his arm and waited for her to loop her arm through his. She’d only ever seen men do that in the movies.

  Suddenly shy, she blushed as she slipped her hand into the bend of his arm. “Lead the way.”

  Chapter Ten

  Sarah became alert as they walked, Adam was constantly scanning the area and it was making her jumpy. When they approached the ice cream shop he looked through the window at everyone inside before entering. Maybe the town was more dangerous than she knew?

  As they entered everyone inside smiled and said hello to Adam. Neither had to speak a word as the giant man from this morning scooped ice creams and handed the cones to them.

  “Saraj you never cease to amaze me; how did you know I changed my mind tonight?” Adam licked the ice cream, tingling ran down Sarah’s spine.

  “Adam my friend, you must know by now I am a master of my craft. I could sense your change in moods, it felt like a cookies and cream kind of night for you.”

  Adam handed over money for both of them and led her outside. As before he scanned the area as they walked towards the gazebo.

  “So, do you know everyone in town?” Sarah sat on the bench and gazed around the square watching people pass by.

  “I’ve lived here for a very long time, we all know each other well.”

  “Why do you watch everyone so closely than? It seems like you are looking for danger?” She was surprised to see his face turn red.

  “I’m sorry, it’s an old habit, I don’t even realize I’m doing it.” He kept his eyes on his ice cream, she knew he was trying to force himself to not look around.

  She should have dropped it but she wanted to know more about it, he fascinated her and she wanted to know everything about him. “Why is it a habit if you know everyone?”

  She watched as his jaw tensed, he looked like he was warring with himself. Finally, he turned towards her and looked directly into her eyes. “I know how I look, I scare children, and adults are repulsed by me. I have learned to keep to myself when strangers are around. I don’t go out often but when I do I try to be aware of new people so I don’t bother them. You are the first outsider I have spoken to in a long time. I was so angry when you first saw me in the restaurant, I thought I was hidden. But then you looked at me and saw past my scars, I didn’t see any fear or disgust in your eyes.”

  Sarah felt the tears well in her eyes, the motherly side of her wanted to wrap him in her arms and tell him all the ways those other people were idiots. The other side of her, the woman who had escaped an abusive relationship and hadn’t had sex in years was clawing to get her hands on him. She wanted to show him exactly how gorgeous he was, she would be glad to trace every scar with her tongue and see where the lines took her.

  For the first time in a very long time, she was going to be impulsive and do something she had never done before. She grabbed her phone, sent devil horns and a bed to Penny then stood and walked to the trash can. She tossed her ice cream in and walked back to a very confused looking Adam.

  Gathering the last of her courage she stood between his legs and ran her hands through his hair. She got lost in his eyes briefly before bending down and placing kisses on his forehead, cheeks and finally his mouth. She pulled his hair, tilting his head to the side and deepened the kiss. Their tongues touched hesitantly at first then turned more eager.

  A cold drip on her leg cleared her mind. When Sarah finally pulled away she was surprised to see she was sitting on his lap and something rather large was pulsing against her thigh. Adam’s ice cream was melting, it ran down his hand and dripped on to her legs. She dug into her pocket and pulled out the old iron hotel key and waved at him. “Maybe we should go clean up?”

  Words weren’t needed, his breathing was ragged, he nodded curtly and lifted her off his lap as he stood. His clean hand reached down and entwined his fingers with hers. He tossed the last of his cone in the trash and took off towards the hotel.

  A brief second of inner doubt invaded her mind, was she insane, she didn’t know this man. She quickly tamped down those utterly boring and responsible notions and quickened her pace to keep up with him. This was really happening, mama was gonna get her freak on.

  Chapter Eleven

  For the first time in her life Sarah was not going to be the serious, mature person she always acted like. She wanted to feel carefree and live in the moment. She slid the scarf from around her neck and hung it on the outside door handle of her room. She chuckled at the expression Penny was going to have when she saw it. Her best friend had begged her for years to let loose, Sarah knew this was crazier than Penny had meant but she would still be thrilled for her.

  The only light in the room was coming from the bathroom, Sarah was grateful it wasn’t very bright, she was nervous about undressing in front of him. It only took one look at Adam for her to see him staring in the same direction, she realized he probably felt the same way if not ten times worse.

  “Do you want the light off?” She hoped he would say no. If she was finally going to get laid and by a man as gorgeous as he was she wanted to see every inch of him.

  Part of her wanted to see if the scars really were everywhere. She desperately wanted to ask how he got them but she wanted him to volunteer the information on his own.

  “No, it’s okay, I’m good with it if you are.” He glanced towards the bed nervously, it dawned on her he was probably as rusty as she was.

  She grabbed his hand and pulled him to the bed, she reached behind her and unzipped her dress. The fabric made a whispering noise as it slid down her body and pooled at her feet. She was willing to make the first move so he wouldn’t be so focused on her seeing him. His vulnerability brought out her daring side.

  Her hands shook slightly as she reached up and untucked his shirt from his jeans. She stared into his eyes as she pulled it up and over his head. His stomach muscles twitched as her hands gently brushed down his sides and around to unbutton his pants. In her peripheral vision, she could see the tiny silver lines did cover his torso but she was surprised they were flat, she couldn’t feel them.

  She finally broke eye contact to kiss down his neck to his chest and lower. She pulled his clothes down as she kneeled in front of him. Her hands stroked back up his legs and around his hips. She kissed around the throbbing cock jutting towards her till she could feel the tension and need radiating off of him. Her nails dug into his ass cheeks as she too
k him deep into her mouth. His hands tangled in her hair, the tingling of her scalp sent goosebumps across her body. It had been so long since she sucked on a man she forgot how much she enjoyed it. She loved knowing he was at her mercy, his pleasure was completely tied to her willingness to give it to him. The louder his moans were the wetter she grew, her breasts felt heavy and her nipples were painfully puckered and desperate for their own attention.

  With a feral growl, she was pulled up and against him. His mouth crushed down on hers, his need was palpable. Another growl came from him, this one sounded frustrated instead. He had been trying to unhook her bra and couldn’t get the hooks undone. She chuckled and reached back to do it for him.

  He sat on the edge of the bed and grabbed both breasts in his hands. She had always been proud of her large chest, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes letting him take his time to explore them. His hot mouth clamped on to the tight bead of her nipple, desire exploded inside her, she bucked forward and held his head to her, he better be suffocating if he broke contact.

  It didn’t take long for need to overcome her, she kicked off her shoes and pushed her underwear down. Adam stood and waited as she climbed on to the bed and laid down.

  He stood still for a few seconds looking down at her, “It’s been so long, I’m worried I won’t last very long.”

  His truthfulness was endearing, she grabbed his hand and dragged him on top of her, “I have all night, we can practice a few times.”

  For the first time since she met him he smiled, deep dimples creased his cheeks. The light returned to his eyes, she could feel the tension leaving him. She stared at him in awe, she couldn’t believe anyone ever saw anything but beauty when they saw him.

  She was going to shatter into a million pieces if he didn’t get inside her soon. She pulled his mouth down to hers and poured all of her feelings into the kiss. She wanted it to be a night they would both remember forever.