I’LL BE WATCHING YOU Read online

  ‘Hm.’

  ‘Daddy, is something wrong – other than concern about me and the break-in? You seem distracted.’

  He caressed her arm. ‘Nothing for you to worry about. Just some old business that won’t go away.’

  Ella loved these moments alone with her father. Throughout her childhood, he had taken time for her. To talk. To listen. Showing a genuine interest in her life. She did so adore her father and had always strived to please him.

  He certainly wouldn’t be very pleased if he knew you’d had sex with Reed Conway.

  Twilight shadows fell across the backyard. The hum of night-time insects began to stir to life. During the daylight hours, sleepy Southern towns often looked old, tired and sometimes shabby. Hybrid creatures, a blend of a bygone era with touches of progress here and there. But come sundown and towns like Spring Creek took on a magical quality. Like faded beauties, faded towns appeared their best by candlelight or moonlight. Behind the closed doors of the stately old mansions, the modern houses in new neighborhoods, and the rundown homes in need of repair, people lived and loved and died. Some with dignity. Some with passion. Others with cruel intentions.

  ‘The boys are quiet tonight,’ Webb said as they approached the kennels. ‘They’re usually boisterous when they hear me coming.’

  Ella flipped the switch that turned on the lights surrounding the kennel area. All three dogs seemed to be asleep. They were stretched out on the ground just inside the fence. An oddly unnerving feeling rippled along Ella’s nerve endings.

  Webb whistled and then called out, ‘Get up, you lazy hounds.’ He pulled out a handful of treats. ‘I’ve got some goodies for you. Come on, Lee. Get up, Beau. Stonewall …’

  Webb broke into a run, unlatched the gate and hurried inside the enclosure. He tossed aside the treats he’d brought with him.

  ‘Daddy, what’s wrong?’ Ella cried out as she raced after him.

  Webb knelt down and ran his hand over the unmoving Stonewall. When Ella approached, she knew before her father said a word. Knew that her daddy’s hunting dogs – animals he dearly loved – were dead.

  20

  Regina helped Mark fill the dishwasher and clean up the kitchen after their meal. Her boss had a lovely old house that had belonged to his parents. Odd, she thought, how much at home she felt here, in this house with Mark. But then she supposed she’d feel the same way no matter where she was, as long as she was with the man she loved. He had been kind and caring since the moment she rushed into his arms after fleeing from the Carlisle home hours ago. He had listened to her rant and rave and cry. But not once had he been judgmental of her mother or Webb Porter. After she’d vented her initial frustration, she had calmed down enough to enjoy the meal with Mark, and it was while they were eating orange sherbet that he’d told her he had telephoned her mother earlier, so that she wouldn’t worry.

  ‘Would you like to sit outside in the swing for a while?’ Mark asked. ‘Since the sun has set, it should be a lot cooler.’

  She nodded and gave him a fragile smile. He took her hand in his and led her from the kitchen, through the house, and onto the side porch, which was secluded from the street and the neighboring house by a tall, white fence. They sat side by side, letting the warm night air caress their skin. Mark lifted his arm and draped it across the back of the swing. Regina scooted closer to him and laid her head on his shoulder.

  ‘I think it’s going to rain,’ he said, then leaned over and brushed his lips against hers. ‘Feeling better?’

  Regina sighed. ‘Yes, some. Thank you.’

  ‘Are you ready to go home and talk to your mother?’

  She shook her head. ‘Not tonight.’ She glanced at him in the semi-darkness, the moonlight and streetlight creating the only illumination in the dark night except for an occasional burst of heat lighting off in the distance. ‘Could I stay here with you tonight?’

  After clearing his throat, Mark swallowed hard. ‘I know you aren’t telling me that you want to sleep with me, but if you stay the night, people are bound to talk. Will you mind if my neighbors think we’re having an affair?’

  ‘I wish we were having an affair,’ Regina said. ‘I wish we could make love tonight and every night. You can’t imagine how inadequate I feel not being able to give myself to you the way any other woman could.’

  Mark kissed her again, softly, nondemanding. He didn’t touch her, and his gentle approach allowed Regina to respond without feeling threatened. She knew she was safe with Mark. He would never ask more of her than she was willing to give. She opened up to him, allowing him to ease his tongue inside her mouth and explore with leisurely tenderness. A shiver of sexual longing fluttered inside her stomach, and of their own accord, her arms lifted and her hands flattened against his chest. He deepened the kiss. She loved the feelings bursting inside her. A tightening sensation. A tingling awareness. Then suddenly Mark cupped the nape of her neck. No, don’t she cried silently. Junior had held her neck, forcing her to lie still so that he could kiss her. His breath had smelled of beer and cigarettes. He had trapped her beneath him, pinning her to the ground. And while he’d ravaged her mouth, he had rammed his hand inside her panties and …

  Regina jerked free, jumped up and gulped in deep, nervous breaths. Mark rose to his feet, but didn’t touch her.

  ‘I’m sorry, honey. What did I do that upset you?’

  ‘My neck,’ she said, between quick, harsh breaths. ‘Junior held my neck and … and … Oh, Mark!’ She swerved around and flung herself at him. ‘Hold me. Please hold me.’

  He engulfed her in his big, strong arms and pressed comforting kisses along the side of her face. ‘It’s all right, Regina. Oh, honey, it’s all right.’

  Burying her face against his chest, she clung to him, shivering, but not crying. Regina wasn’t sure how long he held her like that, but she was fully aware of his erection pressing against her. And strangely enough, the feel of his arousal didn’t frighten her.

  Because you trust Mark totally.

  Mark released her, then grasped her shoulders and said, ‘Let’s try something that will give you complete control over the situation.’

  She stared at him, puzzled by his suggestion. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘We care about each other, and I think you want me as much as I want you, but you’re not ready for us to make love. I understand and I accept the fact that I’ll have to be patient with you.’

  ‘I’m not worth—’

  He pressed his index finger over her lips. ‘Shush. Don’t ever say you’re not worth the wait. You, my sweet Regina, are well worth the wait.’ He took her hands in his and laid them on his chest. ‘Why don’t you touch me, kiss me, do whatever you want to me, and I won’t touch you unless you ask me to.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘We can start out here, in the swing, or we can go inside. It’s your call. You’re the one in charge.’

  ‘Mark?’

  ‘What, honey?’

  Regina’s voice trembled. ‘What if I don’t … can’t—’

  ‘Hey, kiss me, touch me, tickle me, strip me naked. Whatever you want. I’m putty in your hands.’

  She eyed the swing. The porch was totally secluded. Here they had complete privacy. Even though she wasn’t sure why, somehow she felt safer outside than she would in the house.

  Did she have the courage to do as Mark had requested? To take charge, be in control, do with him as she wished?

  With trembling hands, she undid the buttons on his shirt, all the way to his waist. He stood perfectly still, his arms hanging limp and his hands curled into loose fists. Regina spread apart Mark’s shirt. Her breath caught in her throat. He was stocky built, with a broad, thick chest, but she’d never realized how muscular he was. She touched him, tentatively at first, smoothing only her fingertips over his hard, masculine flesh. However, that wasn’t enough for her. She curled a lock of chest hair around an index finger, then sought out his small male nipples. When she circled one and then
the other with the tip of her finger, Mark drew in a deep breath.

  Regina glanced up, looking directly into his eyes. He smiled. She returned the smile. And without thinking, she stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the mouth. He didn’t move a muscle. She kissed him again and when he responded, she inched her tongue inside his mouth and was rewarded with a sensual moan erupting from his throat.

  Her lips moved down his neck and over his exposed shoulder blades. Mark shivered. She painted damp kisses over his chest, stopping to lave each nipple. He blew out a shuddering breath.

  ‘Would you let me see you naked?’ she asked. ‘Even if I leave on my clothes?’

  ‘If that’s what you want, yes.’

  ‘Maybe we should go inside now … to your bedroom.’

  ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘As long as I’m in charge.’

  ‘You’re in charge. I promise.’

  She took his hand and led him inside, where he indicated with a nod of his head in which direction they should go. Mark’s bedroom was magnificently masculine, but decorated with the flair and style that Regina associated with the man himself. Honey-toned paneling graced the walls of the large room, and various shades of tan, beige, brown and gold dominated the area. Bookshelves flanked the fireplace, and a trio of oil paintings of thoroughbred horses hung above the mantel.

  Tugging on his hand, she drew him across the room and over to the king-size bed with a woven straw headboard. The tan-and-brown striped spread had been turned down to reveal crisp beige linens. Moonlight streamed through the tall windows that spread across one wall.

  Regina unbuckled Mark’s belt, then undid his slacks and unzipped them. ‘Would you … please … take off your clothes?’

  Casually, as if he had all the time in the world and undressing before her was an everyday occurrence, Mark removed his shirt and tossed it on the five-foot square tufted ottoman at the foot of the bed. While Regina looked on, her gaze glued to his body, he bent down, took off his shoes and socks, and then slid his slacks down and off, placing them alongside his discarded shirt. He stood before her wearing only his navy blue boxer shorts. The bulge of his erection strained against the fly front.

  ‘Do you want me to leave these on’ – he tweaked the elastic waistband of his shorts – ‘or take them off?’

  She wanted to see all of him, every rock hard inch of his thick, stocky body. She longed to run her hands over his hair-roughened chest and arms and legs. And he would let her do whatever she wanted to do and ask nothing in return.

  ‘Please …’ She hesitated, frightened by her own bold thoughts. ‘Take them off.’

  He obeyed her request, turned his back, bent at the waist and pulled down his shorts, then kicked them aside. Regina sucked in her breath at the sight of his tight buttocks and the glimpse of his scrotum. When he straightened to his full height, he didn’t turn and face her, so she rushed to him and wrapped her arms around his naked waist. Hurriedly, as if her lips were on fire and his bare back provided the only cooling balm, she spread kisses from his shoulders to his spine. He trembled.

  Inch by slow, torturous inch, she crept her fingers over his belly and downward until she encountered his penis, which stood at full alert.

  For a split second, unbidden memories of Junior taking her hand and forcing her to touch him ceased her exploration of Mark’s body. This isn’t Junior, she reminded herself. You would never have willingly touched him. This is Mark. The man you love. The man who loves you.

  She circled his penis with her hand. He groaned. She released her hold on him. Grasping his shoulder, she turned him around, but kept her gaze on his face as she marched him backward toward the bed. With a heady feeling of power, she gave him a shove and toppled him onto the bed. He lay there, spread out, waiting for whatever she chose to do next. He didn’t move, didn’t say a word. But he gazed at her with such undeniable passion that Regina swayed toward him, drawn by the sexual undercurrent passing between them.

  Still fully clothed, she crawled into bed with him, straddling him. She covered his body with kisses, stopping only when she reached his bulging sex. She wanted to put her mouth on him, to taste, to lick, to suck.

  ‘I want to …’ she couldn’t bring herself to say the words aloud.

  ‘Do it,’ he said, his voice hoarse with desire.

  She nuzzled him with her nose first. The musky scent of him excited her, but she was unable to go further, to actually touch him with her mouth. She lifted her head, sat up and scooted away from him.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ she said. ‘I can’t.’

  ‘It’s all right,’ he told her.

  ‘I don’t know why you want me.’ She shook her head as tears gathered in her eyes. ‘I’m of no use to you. Not the way a woman should be to a man.’

  Lying there, flat on his back, Mark held out his hand to her. When she placed her hand in his, he drew her toward him, then laid her hand over his penis. She sighed. Her fingers curled around him. He encompassed her hand with his and began moving her hand up and down. Within seconds she relaxed and became one with the rhythm he set, so that when he removed his hand, she continued the caress.

  ‘I’m fixing to come, honey,’ he groaned the admission.

  Nodding her understanding, she accelerated the rhythm.

  Clutching the bedding tightly on either side of his hips, Mark groaned and jerked spasmodically as his semen jetted out, covering Regina’s hand. She watched his face, the expression akin to pain. But it wasn’t pain, it was ecstasy. Suddenly she realized that she had given him this wonderful pleasure. He lay there for quite some time, but she continued to hold on to his penis, although she could feel his erection subsiding. Still breathing raggedly, he sat up, circled her wrist and removed her hand. He scooted off the bed and took her with him, then guided her into the adjoining bathroom, where he washed her hands before cleaning himself.

  She couldn’t take her eyes off him and wondered if all women in love felt so utterly, completely insane about the man they adored.

  As Mark dried himself with a towel, he said, ‘I could give you the same pleasure, without our having sex.’

  Yes, her body screamed. Yes! She ached with the need for release. But she didn’t want to undress, to lay herself bare and vulnerable, even knowing that Mark would not invade her body.

  ‘I can’t take off my clothes,’ she said, her voice a mere whisper. ‘I’m sorry, but I just can’t.’

  He pulled her into his arms. ‘Remember, honey, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.’

  She sighed. ‘I’d like to lie in your arms and have you kiss me and … and touch me.’

  Mark scooped her up in his arms. Surprised by his sudden move, she yelped softly, but quickly adjusted and threw her arm around his neck. He laid her on the bed and came down beside her. He was a big, powerful man. But he wasn’t Junior Blalock. Mark would never hurt her. She relaxed. He kissed her and, as he deepened the kiss, he ran his hands over her body, caressing her through her clothes. The soft silk blouse, the wrinkled blue skirt, the confining panty hose. When he lifted his head and gazed into her eyes, she saw the love he felt for her.

  ‘If I do anything you don’t want me to do, tell me immediately and I’ll stop,’ he said.

  She nodded.

  ‘May I take off your panty hose?’

  ‘Just my panty hose. Nothing else.’

  ‘All right.’

  He slid his hands under her skirt, grasped the waistband of her panty hose and slowly, carefully tugged them over her hips and down her legs. After tossing aside the sheer hose, he massaged her feet. Regina shivered with apprehension. Was she ready for this?

  When Mark eased up beside her and lowered his mouth to her breast, she tensed. But the moment his lips suckled her through her blouse and bra, her femininity tightened and a wild sensation shot from her breasts to the center of her body. She whimpered as he sucked at one breast and rubbed the other with his fingers.

  Moisture flooded between
her legs. Her body clenched and unclenched. Mark unzipped her skirt. She drew in a deep breath, preparing to protest, but when he slid his hand beneath the skirt and under her panties, she simply shivered with anticipation.

  ‘Is it all right for me to touch you?’ he asked.

  Was it? Could she enjoy Mark’s erotic caresses without panicking? ‘Yes. But if I say stop, then—’

  ‘I’ll stop immediately.’

  He touched her there, in the most intimate of places. Hesitantly at first, and then more boldly. While his fingers worked magic between the swollen feminine lips, his mouth covered hers and kissed her until she was breathless.

  ‘Mark!’ she cried out, aware that release was close. So close.

  ‘Let it happen, honey. Please, just let it happen.’

  Her orgasm rocketed through her, an explosion of immense satisfaction that went on and on and on. When she bucked up against his hand, he moved his fingers harder and faster. She cried and whimpered and finally fell apart.

  When the aftershocks subsided, Mark removed his hand from her panties and pulled her into his arms. She cuddled against him, sighing his name over and over again. Regina had never known anything so wonderful. There were many ways to make love, she realized. Only with Mark could this have happened. Because she loved him. Because she trusted him. And because he didn’t ask more of her than she was capable of giving.

  ‘Thanks for getting here so quickly and for keeping it quiet.’ Webb shook hands with Frank Nelson. ‘I’d rather Carolyn didn’t know about this tonight. She’s been upset enough by the break-in. I’m afraid if she knows someone poisoned my dogs, Viola would have to give her a sedative.’

  Ella couldn’t believe this had happened. That those big, lovable hounds of her father’s were dead. They were assuming the dogs had been poisoned because there was no evidence of wounds on them anywhere.

  ‘I’ll get the dogs to Doc Hambry and tell him we need autopsies right way,’ Frank said. ‘I’ve sent Wilkes and Bankhead to inspect the kennels and go over the grounds for any evidence.’