Zeke
The sun hasn’t come up yet.
Part of me fears that it may stay night forever.
I sigh and lean against the railing as my eyes scan over the still expanse of the swamp. Although silence hangs in the early morning air, I sense that we’re not alone out here on the edge of the shadow-kissed swamp.
“You feel it too?” Miss Penny asks from beside me. I hadn’t noticed her materialize, but I’m not particularly surprised. After all, she’s not the only ghost who haunts this place.
“Yes, ma’am,” I nod, barely taking my eyes off the swaying limbs of the cypress trees. “He’s out there.”
“Amos is one tough bastard,” she huffs. I think that she’s being a bit too charitable in her assessment. “Has the sorry excuse for a husband caved?”
A sick feeling blossoms inside of me as I tip my head again. “Almost. I don’t know if he can hold Amos back. I don’t know if he even wants to.”
Miss Penny clicks her tongue in a disapproving noise. “What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know.” I sigh. It’s the truth, but it’s not good enough. Even though the selfish side of me longs for Julia to stay in Hahnville, I understand that her leaving will keep her safe. Amos is persistent, but he’s also weaker than he’s ever been. I doubt he’ll be able to follow her all the way to New York.
But she hasn’t left.
Amos made sure of that.
I try not to dwell on the sounds I’d heard emanating from the house last night. It had been so hard to linger at the edge of the swamp through those moans, but I hadn’t wanted to leave Julia entirely alone, not with Amos.
The image of them together in my mind has me seeing red.
“Calm down, son,” Miss Penny advises. Her tone is practical, but there’s an edge of sympathy there too. “There’s still time.”
“Amos won’t let her leave,” I counter. “What am I supposed to do?”
“Tell her the truth?” the shade of the old woman suggests.
It’s a preposterous idea. The second I go to Julia raving like a madman about demons in the swamp, she’ll write me off entirely. Even though she’s seen things she clearly can’t explain, I don’t know if she’s ready for all of the grisly details.
As if picking up on my thoughts, Miss Penny adds, “The whole truth.”
“You know I can’t do that,” I huff.
“Well, you’ve got to do something or else we’ll lose her. And if Amos takes Julia, who knows what that will do to his power, especially now that his attachment to the Gregory line has been severed.”
She’s right. I’ve got to do something.
My mind made up, I turn toward the house and squint up at the bedroom window. It’s still dark, and I imagine that the occupants are still asleep.
“Good luck,” Miss Penny intones.
I don’t have time to reply before she fades away into the gray swirl of the dawn.
Left with no choice, I silently slip inside the house and away from Amos’s prying eyes.
Everything feels muted at this early hour. The hallway is shrouded in darkness, and the only noise comes from the hum of the air conditioning as it struggles against the cloying heat of the marsh. I creep up the stairs, my feet making no sound as I reach the landing and survey the second floor.
I find the master bedroom easily, but I pause before opening the door.
Invading Julia’s privacy like this is wrong. But she’s in more danger than she knows, and if this is the only way I can save her, then I have no choice.
Steeling myself, I step into the bedroom.
I notice Jake first. He’s lying on the side of the bed closest to the door, his form crumpled beneath a mass of blankets. By the sound of his snores, it would take a blast from a small nuclear bomb to rouse him.
Julia, however, is partially awake.
Her eyes, heavy with sleep, find mine in the semi-darkness. I brace myself for her to scream at my sudden intrusion, but instead, a soft, exhausted smile spreads across her face.
“Zeke?” she whispers, her voice threaded with slumber.
“It’s me,” I confirm. I cross quietly to her and kneel beside the bed so that our faces are level. We can talk more quietly this way, and hopefully we won’t wake up Jake.
Her smile widens, and something within me flutters as my gaze fixes on the delicate curve of her mouth. I can’t help but remember how her lips felt on mine, or the heat of her body against mine as we kissed.
Julia reaches out a tentative hand, her fingers ghosting over my cheek. “What are you doing here, Zeke?” she asks, her voice husky and low.
“I….” My voice trails off as her manicured nails gently trace the line of my mouth. What am I supposed to tell her? That she’s in danger from a demon that haunts the swamp? That her husband is slowly, but surely, crumbling beneath the weight of hell’s promise? That I think she’s the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen?
It turns out that I don’t need to say anything at all.
Before I can stop her, Julia leans forward and presses her lips gently against my own. It’s a sweet kiss, full of hope. Who am I to deny her that?
Her hand weaves into my hair, her fingers massaging into my scalp. I want to touch her. I need to touch her. But it’s taking all of my energy just to focus on the joining of our lips.
Sensing my hesitation, Julia pulls back and regards me almost sadly. “I wish you visited me in more than just my dreams,” she confesses.
Her dreams?
A thrill runs through me as I realize what she means. How many times have I visited her in the dark hours of the night? Has she imagined my mouth on her, my hands teasing and my hips against hers? Just the thought of it makes my cock start to stiffen, pushing uncomfortably against the confines of my trousers.
And she thinks this is a dream too, I realize. And in a dream, anything is possible.
A wicked thought overtakes me as my eyes slide over to Jake. If Amos could do it, why can’t I?
It’s a strange but quick process, but once it’s complete, I’m like a new man.
I roll over, and Julia starts at the sudden movement beside her.
“Jake?” she asks, though her tone is gilded with doubt. When I don’t answer, she asks in a smaller, more astonished, voice, “Zeke?”
I grin lazily at her.
“How is this possible?” she gasps as she reaches out to cup my face for a second time. The sensation of skin against skin is overwhelming, and I melt beneath her touch. In that instant, I know that I want to make her feel just as good.
“It’s not.” I feel bad about the white lie, but I don’t know how else to explain it. “It’s just a dream.”
Her face crumples into a petulant frown, and I almost laugh at how comically disappointed she looks.
“If this is just a dream, then it won’t matter if I do this,” Julia whispers before closing the distance between us.
The sweet slide of her lips against mine is dizzying. I can’t remember the last time I’d felt so alive. Finally able to touch her, I reach out and pull her close, taking the opportunity to run my hands over the smooth curves of her body. To my delight, I realize that she’s mostly naked under the blanket, with only a thin pair of panties to protect her modesty.
One of my hands drifts upward to find the soft peak of her breast, and she mewls against my mouth as I roll her nipple between my fingers. Her hips jerk against mine, grinding against my hardening length.
Without breaking the kiss, I kick off my pants, freeing myself from the confines of the fabric. My cock brushes against Julia’s belly, and we both groan at the sensation.
If this is the only night I get with Julia, I want her to know how much she means to me. I want her to understand how amazing she is, how she deserves to be cherished.
I pull back from her lips and trail a path of hot kisses down the sleek column of her neck. I pause for a moment to nip at one of her breasts before continuing my journey south.
When I finally reach my destination, my breath hitches in my throat as I realize how wet she is. She’s soaked through her thong, and now I can’t wait to taste her. She lifts her hips to allow me to slide her panties down her legs, and then I dive in.
The sounds I coax from her lips are like heaven. I work my tongue against her slick heat, savoring the way her thighs clamp around me as her hips buck wildly in pleasure. The taste of her is exquisite. I drink from her eagerly, sending her careening toward the edge of ecstasy.
Her mouth opens in a small, silent gasp as she comes hard on my face, but I give her no time to rest.
Nearly undone from the anticipation alone, I move back up to capture her lips in a searing kiss. At the same time, I finally wrap a hand around my cock and guide myself to her core. I sigh heavily as I run my length against her slick folds, relishing the feel of her.
Julia moans with need beneath me, shifting her hips in an effort to increase the friction.
“Patience, sweetheart,” I caution with a chuckle, and she pouts again. I decide that this is my favorite expression on her, and I wish that there were some way I could enjoy this side of her every single day.
But I’m not the kind of man to keep a lady waiting, so I dutifully position myself at her entrance before sliding inside in one smooth, torturous stroke.
Julia shudders, lost in the sensation. It’s all I can do not to lose it right then and there. I take a few deep breaths as she adjusts around me. Her skin is like silk against mine, squeezing me in all the right places.
Finally, when I get myself under control again, I pull out slowly. The way her inner walls massage my cock is almost blinding in intensity, but I try to stifle the sensation so I don’t disappoint her. I focus instead on pushing back in, relishing the wanton moans that spill out from her delicate lips as I spear her, again and again, on my length.
I know I’m not going to last as long as she deserves, so I decide to speed up the process. I reach down between us with one hand and find the hooded bud of her clit. When she cries out at my ministrations, I swallow them up with a kiss.
Her muscles flutter around me, and I know she’s close. It only takes a few more powerful strokes for her to tumble over the edge. She clenches around me, ushering in my own orgasm as her pussy greedily claims the full length of my cock.
Lights explode behind my eyes, and I collapse on top of her, my chest heaving against her breasts as I struggle to come down. Not wanting to crush her, I roll to the side, though I keep my arms wrapped around her in a protective embrace.
It’s almost light out now. In the tenuous glow of the dawn, Julia stares up at me through half-lidded eyes. A satisfied smile stretches across her face, and in that moment, it’s my dearest wish to be able to lie here with her every day.
The desire wells within me so ferociously that I’m unable to stop myself from blurting out, “I love you.”
Julia’s mouth parts in surprise, and I immediately want to disappear. How could I have said something so stupid?
“Who are you?” Julia whispers. Her eyes search mine as though the answers are hidden there instead of in our hearts. “Are you Jake? Or Zeke?”
Blood roars through my ears. “Which do you want me to be?” I ask softly, knowing that my very being might come crashing down with her answer.
A tear wells in the corner of her eye. “I don’t know,” she replies, clearly torn. “Is this even real?”
I reach up and brush the tear away.
“It’s only a dream,” I assure her. “It’s only a dream.”