The Whisperers: A Three Book Box Set Read online

  She had no intention of sharing her wealth aside from the gifts she chose to lavish on those who pleased her. She was generous and her lovers benefited in many ways, but she’d never take one to wed. No indeed, she would never share control of her fortune.

  Deidre watched as the man dressed. He crossed the room, kissed her gently, and left without a word. She wandered out of the lavish bedroom and down the hall to her private study.

  Once seated at her desk she turned on her laptop and accessed a file. Jed, Jesse, and Jake Nash were the last of their line. If they died without producing heirs the Nash line would be no more. That’s exactly what she wanted – their lineage to come to an end. Once they were gone, Sara could be at peace.

  Deidre found it amazing that she could desire that so strongly. There was nothing in the completion of the goal for her. Well, there was the satisfaction of revenge. And she was a woman who understood the meaning of the phrase “revenge is a dish best served cold.”

  While others might rush out in passion, seeking revenge in haste, Deidre knew that to be successful, revenge had to be thoroughly considered and planned. It required timing and finesse. Hot-blooded action only diminished the chances of success and she was not a woman who tolerated failure.

  A cold and calculating smile appeared on her face as she studied the images of the men displayed. Yes, there would be great satisfaction for her in the revenge. And she’d take glee in seeing the expression on Jed Nash’s face when he discovered the truth of his father’s death – and the cause of his own demise.

  Chapter Six

  Mik hopped out of the cab of the truck and hefted several of the bags in the back up and over the side. Jed turned off the engine and got out to help her carry the groceries into the house.

  “Oh shit!” Mik stopped at the back door and looked over her shoulder at him in dismay. “I locked the door.”

  “So unlock it.”

  “I don’t have a key.”

  Jed blew out his breath. “That’s my brother, a stickler for details. Hold on.”

  He set down the grocery bags and went back to the truck. When he returned he found the correct key on the key-ring and unlocked the door.

  Mik put the bags she carried on the small kitchen table and turned to face Jed as he placed the rest of the bags on the table. “Least I can do is offer you a beer,” she said. “I appreciate you running me by the store.”

  “Sure,” Jed agreed. “Let me help you get this stuff put away.”

  It was clear that Jed knew the kitchen. Within minutes, all of the supplies were put away and she was pulling two beers from the six-pack. She twisted the first open and a geyser of beer hit her chest.

  Mik yelped, holding the foaming beer away from her as she headed for the sink. Behind her, Jed chuckled. She held the beer over the sink, turning to face him. “Yeah, yuk it up. You can open the other one.”

  “I think I’ll wait,” he said with a smile that faded as his eyes moved from her face to her chest.

  The white tank top she wore was emblazoned with the words “if it can’t be done in the saddle it ain’t worth doin’.” Thanks to the beer, the black lettering was the only part of it that wasn’t damn near transparent.

  “Oops.” She refused to be embarrassed. So what, she had breasts. Surely, he’d seen breasts before. “Guess I should get out of this.”

  Jed was hanging onto his determination not to get involved with Mik until she uttered those words. Then reason fled, leaving in its wake a searing hunger that had his body in motion before his mind could protest.

  Mik’s backside pressed against the cabinet and the beer in her hand dropped, making a loud clunk in the sink as he walked up to her. Jed put his hands on the counter on either side of her, trapping her between his arms; the motion bringing his face more in line with hers as he leaned forward.

  “You and me got a problem, Mikayla Morgan.”

  “Do we now?” Her eyes met his and held. “And what might that be, Jed Nash?”

  “This.”

  At the same moment the word came from his lips, he reached behind her with his left arm and pulled her against him. Her breath came out in a small rush a moment before his lips closed on hers.

  Jed’s arm tightened around her as she pressed into him, not only accepting the kiss but returning it with enough passion to have everything but the feel and taste of her flee his mind.

  It was a lusty battle of tongues and teeth, hands gripping and roving, bodies straining into one another. Jed growled in protest when she pushed back from him. “I tend to be blunt, Jed and I’m not for shit at playing games so I’m gonna be straight up. You affect me like a drug and right now there’s nothing I want more than to get you out of those clothes and inside me. But—“

  She raised both hands and pressed them against his chest when he moved to pull her back to him. “But—I work for you and as much as I want you, having you could make the working relationship difficult.”

  “No problem. You’re fired.”

  “But—“she kept the pressure on his chest, looking up at him. “Aw, fuck it. Fine.”

  With that, her hands fisted in his shirt and yanked him to her. And in that moment civility vanished.

  There was nothing gentle in his lips as they staked a claim on hers. Teeth nipped and tongues clashed, breath coming fast and hard. He gave no care to the damage to her clothing as he pulled, tug, and tore anything that barred his hands from her flesh. His hand moved between her legs, meeting with swollen folds and a wetness that clearly spelled her desire.

  She was no less impatient. Her hands were sure and strong as they stripped his shirt off then started on his jeans. By the time his Levi’s were bunched around his knees he was past the point of caring about anything except sinking deep inside the liquid silk between her legs that was becoming more wet with each stroke of his fingers.

  Pressure built inside her, the herald of release. Mik tore free from Jed’s mouth as his fingers stroked inside her faster. Her fingers dug into the top of his shoulders, her breath a series of pants. She was so close.

  “Let it go, baby.”

  His lusty croon was all that was needed to send her tumbling over the edge. Her sex clenched to the accompaniment of a low throaty moan she made no attempt to silence.

  “In me,” she panted before the climax could subside.

  The smile Jed flashed her was all the time it took for him to lift her up, supporting her with his hands firmly gripping her ass. Mik wound her legs around him and in one fluid motion, he slid inside.

  A quick “ahh” went along with the momentary flash of pain. It had been a good while she’d had a man and it took her body a few seconds to begin to adjust to the sensation of being so full.

  A few seconds was all she allowed. Hanging onto his shoulders, she bucked against him, the motion driving him deeper. Jed’s breath hissed, his eyes locked onto hers and everything around them vanished.

  She couldn’t explain it any other way. Not that it mattered. All that mattered was the feel of him inside her and the hard driving rhythm of his body. She met him stroke for stroke, feeling sensation build to the point of madness.

  “Now,” she groaned. “Now, now, now.”

  Almost before the last two words were out of her mouth, an orgasm ripped through her. Not flowed, flowered, or blossomed. Ripped. Raw and primal, its force had her throwing back her head and screaming.

  On and on, one wave after another pounded her. She welcomed it, wanted it, and gave herself completely to it. When at last he slowed his pace she lifted her head to look at him and was met with a look hot enough to have her tightening around him in anticipation of the promise of his eyes.

  Jed worked his feet out of his boots with her still wound around him, then stepped out of his jeans and carried her into the den. Mik hung on as he sat down on the couch, the position impaling her fully on his erection.

  She grinned and urged him onto his back. The moment he was prone she braced her hands on his
chest and started a rhythm of her own. Slow at first then faster as his eyes darkened and his hands tightened on her thighs.

  It was unwise and possibly unsafe to indulge in unprotected sex but that was something she’d deal with if the need arose. Now there was only him and the tension building inside both of them. She could feel him getting close and it drove her higher. So high that safety was the most remote thought from her mind.

  She felt him getting close; saw it in his eyes and that shoved her over the edge. A freefall of overwhelming sensation claimed her as she rode out the storm. When at last reason returned she lay down on him, feeling the rapid beat of his heart and the sweat damp skin hot against her own.

  Jed’s arms circled her, holding her tight despite the heat, his lips gently pressing against her forehead. For several minutes neither of them moved.

  Finally, Mik sat up, slinging her hair back over her shoulders. Jed looked up at her, his hands moving to trace along the underside of her breasts. “So, do we still have a problem?” she asked.

  “More than we started with.”

  “More?” She ran her hands over the swell of his chest and down his abdomen to the point their bodies met. The tip of his penis peeked from beneath her, swelling to full erection before she even touched it.

  “Much more.”

  “Such as?”

  Jed sat suddenly, wrapping his arms around her and swinging his legs around so his feet were on the floor. Mik felt him throb beneath her. Damn if Jed wasn’t something. Most men needed a bit longer to get back in the saddle. She rose up a little and reached between her legs to guide him in, but he stopped her.

  “I know what you are.”

  Fear shot through her with a near sickening force, bringing a sudden rush of heat to her skin. How could he know? Her parents had assured her that no one could detect it unless they also possessed power. She’d always assumed she was safe.

  A sudden thought helped restore a measure of calm, slow her racing heart. “Unemployed?” she asked in what she hoped was a teasing tone.

  “A Whisperer.”

  Relief flooded through her so strong she almost sagged. “I guess it takes one to know one.”

  His brow furrowed a bit. “I guess so.”

  “And?” She had a feeling there was more.

  He looked away for a moment, a clear sign he was uncomfortable. That intrigued her. “And?” She asked again, this time a bit more gently, trying to give out a soothing vibration.

  His head jerked back to face her, his eyes hard and suspicious. “What did you just do?”

  Mik was taken aback by the fierceness in his eyes. “What’re you talking about? I just asked—“

  “No, you did more than that. I felt it.”

  Nothing could have surprised her more. Not simply that he’d felt the vibration she sent but that he didn’t really realize what he was. People who could communicate with animals were a rare breed, but those who sensed power in others were even rarer. And normally those people possessed power beyond communication with animals.

  “I thought about soothing you so that you wouldn’t be uncomfortable.”

  “How did you make me feel that?”

  “I—“Mik realized that she had no explanation. She’d never been taught or learned how the power worked, she just accepted that it did. “I have no idea. I just… think it.”

  “Like this?”

  She gasped as a sizzling streak of desire ripped through her. Every nerve ending in her body became instantly alive. Her breasts and vagina burned with need. It took a couple of seconds to control the sensation and then her eyes narrowed. “I guess the question needs to go back to you. How did you do that?”

  “Just thought it.”

  Mik had never known anyone who could project in that way. Normally she was immune to such things unless she opened herself to it. Maybe her guard had just been down. “Try it again.”

  “Huh?”

  “Try again.”

  She closed herself mentally, imagining a shield around herself that would deflect anything trying to penetrate. This time she felt a kind of energy flow over the surface of her skin but nothing happened inside her.

  Jed blinked in what she read as surprise. “You didn’t feel it?”

  “Just a surface thing – energy on my skin.”

  Jed was not just surprised but excited. He’d always been able to project things like desire, humor, anger, or calm to people, much in the same way he did with animals. It was a talent that’d served him well. To meet someone who could block the energy was not just amazing but also gave him the first kernel of hope he’d had that there might be a woman he could have an honest relationship with. Someone who wouldn’t be affected by whatever errant desires he projected.

  “What are you?” he asked.

  Mik stared at him for a long time. She’d learned at an early age to be cautious. Most people were not very open-minded and some were positively threatened by what they didn’t understand. Only two people knew her secret. Her sisters. And she would’ve kept it from them if they hadn’t possessed power of their own.

  She almost opened her mouth with a ready lie, but stopped and blew out her breath. “My step-parents claimed that I was a natural witch. Someone born with power.”

  “Step parents?”

  “Yeah. I was adopted.”

  “What about your birth parents?”

  “Never knew anything about them.”

  “Ever try to find out?”

  “Yep, but it was a dead end. Private adoption and no records. My parents – step-parents wouldn’t talk about it. They just said I was theirs in every way that mattered.”

  “But it’s clear you got the ability somehow.”

  Her hands played up and down the skin of his abdomen. “ I suppose. What about you?”

  “It’s the Nash curse.”

  Her eyes widened and her hands paused. “Curse?”

  “Good a word as any. There hasn’t been a Nash man in—well in the last couple hundred years who’s not possessed some measure of ability. And not one that’s had a happy marriage. Every wife, without exception, has either gone insane, killed herself or killed her husband.”

  “And you think it’s because of your abilities?”

  “Like I said, ever Nash man has some degree of abilities. We were told by my father that we were Whisperers. “

  “In the truest sense, it seems.” Mik gnawed her bottom lip for a moment. “What about the women?”

  “What women?”

  “Your relatives. Nash women.”

  “Hasn’t been a female born in the family in two hundred years.”

  “What?”

  “Not one.”

  “Now that’s just plain strange.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  “Still,” she said. “That doesn’t mean your abilities are a curse.”

  “Then what would you call it?”

  “Well… I don’t know.”

  Jed covered her hands with his where they rested on his chest. “You’re the first woman I’ve known who could block me.”

  She smiled down at him. “Considering my current position I wasn’t too successful.”

  Jed chuckled. “Baby this had nothing to do with my abilities. I was feeding off what I felt coming from you.”

  Mik laughed. “Yeah, there is that.”

  Jed ran his hands up her arms to her shoulders and back down, feeling the firm tension of muscle beneath the soft skin. “I think we should try a little experiment. You game?”

  “That depends on what you have in mind.”

  “Lower your shields and I’ll do the same. Let’s see just how far we can take this thing.”

  Mik hesitated for a split second. If she let him feel all the desire that was coursing through her, he was likely to blow a testicle. And she wasn’t sure she wanted to discover that his desire paled next to hers. She might not have the world’s biggest ego but she didn’t think she could take discovering that h
e didn’t want her nearly as much as she wanted him.

  But then maybe that was the smart thing to do. If he didn’t feel as passionately about her then she could chalk what happened between them up to a one-night thing and move on.

  “I’m not sure I’m all that comfortable letting you know the extent of my desire,” she admitted.

  “Then I’ll go first,” he said with conviction.

  Before she could protest or argue she was hit by a blast of hunger so strong it nearly took her breath. Waves of desire rolled over and through her with enough power and heat to have perspiration break out on her skin and her heartbeat accelerate.

  She couldn’t contain the moan that escaped her lips.

  “Give it to me, Mikayla,” he urged hoarsely.

  Before she could chicken out, she lowered her defenses completely. She saw his eyes widen and a look of surprise come on his face a moment before his breath whooshed out and he pulled her down to him.

  “Let’s see how long this fire can burn,” he breathed against her lips before claiming her in a kiss that was near brutal in its need.

  There was no resisting. The fire in her mind burned as hot as that which claimed her body. With abandon, she gave herself to the need.

  Chapter Seven

  Mik woke to the smell of coffee. She opened one eye. Where the hell was she? Then she remembered. On the sofa in the lake house. Naked and feeling wonderfully satisfied and a bit sensitive from a night of sex that surpassed anything she’d ever dreamed of.

  She closed her eyes, stretched and smiled. The smile disappeared as fast as it had come. What the hell was she doing? She’d been on the ranch for less than a month and was in bed with Jed? That wasn’t like her. Not at all. Not only had she broken all her own rules about moving too fast with men, she’d revealed her secret to him.