Prohibition

Chapter 49

"I lied to Dad," Evelyn said quietly. She and Raymond were curled up on the couch, her head in his lap.

Raymond's hand slid through her loose hair, his fingertips massaging her scalp in the most tantalizing yet soothing way possible. "About what?"

"He asked me..." Evelyn blushed. "He said you'd fucked me. I told him you hadn't. I swore it, on the Bible."

"You're not afraid of going to Hell, are you?" Raymond teased.

"No." Evelyn rolled her eyes. "The Bible means nothing to me. But lying to my father does."

"You didn't lie," Raymond said softly. "We didn't fuck; we made love. There's a very big difference."

"I know." Evelyn bit her lip. "That's why I hated Dad saying it: he turned something beautiful and special into something common and vulgar—like I was just your whore."

"You know that's not true." Raymond's hand fisted in Evelyn's hair, tugging on the strands. "You're not my fucking whore, and you never will be."

"I know," Evelyn said, puzzled by the sudden venom in Raymond's tone. "I know you love me; I told Dad that." When Raymond didn't respond, she sat up, studying his face. "Is something wrong?"

"It's nothing," Raymond said shortly. Pressing a dismissive kiss to her temple, he asked, "Do you want coffee?" Then, without waiting for her to respond, he stood and shuffled over to the stove.

Blinking in surprise, a tiny prick of pain entering her heart, Evelyn stared after him. He seemed much more lethargic than usual, bent over the stove—not to mention how irritable he was. Something was definitely wrong. "Raymond?" she ventured, coming to stand behind him. Placing her hands on his shoulders, she was shocked to find how tense and tight his muscles were. "Please tell me what's wrong."

Raymond sighed, turning to face her. "I don't know," he confessed. "I've felt odd all day...sluggish, irritable, queasy. It wasn't too bad this morning, but now everything is setting my teeth on edge. And it's making me snappish, and I'm sorry."

Evelyn smiled, stretching up to kiss him. "Come here," she murmured, pulling him back towards the couch. Leading him to sit down once more, she sat behind him, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Tell me if anything I do bothers you," she murmured, kissing behind Raymond's ear as she spoke.

"So far, so good," he breathed, and she could hear the smile creeping into his voice.

"Good." Digging her thumbs into the tight muscles of his shoulders, Evelyn began to kneed away the tension. Slowly, Raymond relaxed under her touch, leaning back against her legs with a small sigh. As the tension flowed out of his shoulders, Evelyn moved on to his neck, gently massaging the stiffness from it.

"Mmm," Raymond groaned, tilting his head back to look up at her. "That feels amazing."

Evelyn smiled. "I know." Running her fingers though his hair, she asked, "Do you feel better now?"

"Much." Turning around to face her, Raymond pulled Evelyn onto his lap. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Hands sliding down his chest, she asked, "What do you want to do now?"

"Hmm..." Raymond's hands ran up her thighs, pushing her dress up to her hips. His eyes met hers, burning with enough desire to set them both ablaze. Evelyn swallowed hard, waiting to see what he would do next. "I think," he murmured, "I'll start with this..." Pressing his lips against hers, he kissed her, but did not linger for long. His lips ran up her jaw to her earlobe and then down, kissing along the column of her neck. When he reached the collar of her dress, he didn't stop. His deft fingers quickly undid the buttons, letting the dress fall down around her waist. "Mmm," he said approvingly, fingering the lacy strap of Evelyn's chemise. "I like this."