University Page 5

  They stopped at one of the larger hotels that had what appeared to be a decent restaurant just off the lobby. And a good thing it was because Joey wasn’t letting Will out of her sight. No way! Not even for food.

  Will laughed from his seat on the closed toilet, the sound from the other side of the glass door warming her every bit as much as the warm jets of water massaging her body in the shower.

  “What?” Joey asked though she knew he was laughing because she’d insisted that he stay in the bathroom with her while she showered. But he hadn’t protested much. If the situation weren’t so serious, he wouldn’t have agreed to it. Their encounter with the super-geeks earlier had shaken him up every bit as much as it had her. It had been in the tense lines of his face as he drove and in the anxious way he’d looked in the rearview mirror of the truck every few moments.

  “Nothing.” His voice was teasing. “I’m just out here keeping watch.”

  “You’ve seen Psycho,” Joey went on, working shampoo from the tiny hotel bottle into her hair. “You know how everything can go down when you’re in the shower and vulnerable.”

  Joey closed her eyes and dipped her head under the steaming spray to rinse the shampoo out. When she opened them she jumped at the shadow hanging over her. But it was only Will looking far too handsome as he stood in the open door of the shower.

  “Feeling vulnerable?” Will’s smile had a sensually wicked quality that made her cunt quiver. “Shall I come in here and protect you?”

  Oh, he was tempting. But she had more aches and pains in her body now than she ever did from weeks at boot camp.

  “But then you would be vulnerable too and then what would we do?” she asked coyly, watching Will’s eyes darken as they moved over her body. “And I’m a little sore.”

  The look of determination on Will’s face let her know his mind was made up to join her in the shower. He pulled his shirt over his head, the ripple of muscles catching her eye. Will dropped the shirt to the floor, worked at the fly of his pants. In seconds, he stepped in and closed the door behind him, magnificently naked. His cock stood erect and proud as he backed Joey against the cool tiled surface just under the showerhead.

  Will’s fingers tipped her chin up until her eyes met his. “Relax.”

  Pressing his mouth to hers, he savored her lips in a kiss meant to tantalize, to entice. Joey opened to him, welcomed the exploration of his tongue in her mouth as his big, strong hands slid with the water down her shoulders and over her breasts. Her nipples pebbled hard against the light grip of his hands, currents of pleasure racing through her body at his touch. Impossible as it seemed, considering all her body had been through in the last twenty-four hours, she wanted Will and she wanted him badly.

  Will moaned close to her ear as his lips journeyed down over her jaw, her throat. When his mouth found her aching nipple, began teasing it with unbearably light flicks and lashes, her fingers sank into his wet hair. Joey pulled Will against her hard. She wanted his rough passion, but he continued to play with her gently. Will’s fingers skimmed feather light over Joey’s wet hips to her thighs as his mouth moved to her other breast. Joey pushed her pussy at him when his fingers began to carefully delve into her sensitive folds.

  “Will,” Joey whispered. Ecstasy enveloped her like the steam in the small shower stall as his finger found her clit, sliding on the water and driving her insane with pleasure as it circled the hard little nub.

  Kneeling before Joey, Will pressed his mouth to her pussy. Joey clutched his shoulders, watched the water race in crazy trails down his back as his tongue slid between her folds and zeroed in on her clit. But there was a discipline to his approach, his focus solely on her pleasure. Will pulled one of her thighs over his shoulder, opening her to him more, and he loved her with his mouth, thoroughly tasting her.

  All the muscles in her aching body tensed, sensation rushing through her body like a river of desire. Will’s tongue circled her opening once, twice, then slid in and out at a leisurely pace. Joey squirmed, struggling to balance on one leg, but he held her there and tongue fucked her with deliberate delicacy until she thought she would lose her mind from how incredibly good it felt. Joey’s nails dug into Will’s shoulders as her orgasm burst through her, but he didn’t stop. Will continued on and she rode his tongue, unable to hurry him as he brought her to climax again.

  Joey struggled for breath as Will rose to his feet and turned the knobs to shut the water off. His eyes were a deep indigo and filled with desire as they locked with hers. Joey’s body was on fire with need for him. She wanted him now. Her body craved him, needed him.

  “Fuck me,” she whispered, her words echoing in the shower.

  Will’s smile was wicked, but he shook his head. “Let’s dry off.”

  Joey allowed him to pull her out of the shower stall. She stood in the bathroom on wobbly legs and let Will, dripping wet himself, dry her like a child.

  “We need to get a good night’s sleep.” Will’s voice sounded strained as he dried her thighs, her calves.

  No wonder. Joey’s gaze fastened on his erection as he stood before her. His gaze followed hers and he shook his head again, pulling her toward the bedroom.

  “Forget about it. C’mon.”

  But she didn’t want to forget about it. That erection was for her. And she wanted it.

  Will left her to go back into the bathroom and when he returned he was drying himself. Joey watched him snap on the television in their small hotel room and check the thermostat near the door. His attention was on everything but her.

  Well, he wouldn’t avoid her for long.

  Joey could’ve pulled her T-shirt back on but she climbed onto the enormous bed naked and as provocatively as she could. Pulling the covers back, she grabbed a pillow and positioned it in the center of the bed. Stretching out luxuriously on her stomach atop the sheets, she sighed in delight, spread her legs apart. She could feel Will’s eyes on her and even wiggled her ass at him for good measure. Come and get it, boy.

  It took about ten seconds before the bed dipped under Will’s weight. She shivered in delight to feel his large warm body covering hers and he planted an open-mouthed kiss on her shoulder.

  “I’ll be gentle,” he whispered in her ear even as his thighs pressed into hers, spreading them farther apart as his weight settled on her.

  Joey winced at the sting of pain as the head of his cock first pushed into her from behind, but once he filled her and began a controlled, steady rhythm, the pain totally faded. Will felt so good sliding into her, filling and stretching her. Kisses rained down on her shoulder, hair and face as his cock drove her to the brink of ecstasy once again. Joey’s hands fisted in the pillow as she neared climax and she lifted her hips to meet his thrusts, pushing at him. Will’s pace quickened, the muscles of his arms and legs turning as hard as bands of steel around her. Greedily she met him thrust for thrust until the room started spinning and her body quivered around him in orgasm.

  Will didn’t last much longer. Only a few more strokes and his weight lifted from her. Joey twisted under him so she could watch him working himself as he came, his warm semen dotting her hip, her thighs.

  Will left her only to grab the towel from the floor to wipe them both off. Climbing back onto the bed, he spooned up behind her and pulled the covers over their bodies. Joey eased back into his warmth, enjoying the strong arm across her waist and the whisper of his breath in her hair.

  “It’s so easy when I’m with you to forget all of this.”

  “It’s the same for me,” Will assured her.

  “What are we going to do, Will?”

  Will’s sigh was deep. “We should alert the authorities somehow.”

  “I’m afraid, Will.” While her body was relaxed her mind was going one hundred miles an hour. “We don’t know how far this goes. They’ll be looking for us and --”

  Will rose above her, pressing his fingers to her lips. “We don’t know how far this goes. You’re right. But we can’t let
it stop our lives. We’ll find another university, our lives will go on and --”

  “They’ll know if I try to transfer, Will.” Joey pushed his hand away and cut him off. “The new university would require transcripts from Woods. You know that.”

  “I know but you have access to unofficial transcripts from the web. If we can make a case that your life is in danger… surely exceptions can be made in such cases.”

  Her life was in danger. Joey knew it was true, but having Will say it out loud forced a cold chill down her spine. And Will was in danger too.

  Will’s arms tightened around her. “Joey, we’ll be okay. The coming days won’t be easy but we’ve got each other. We’ll work through this.”

  Joey smiled. The Will she’d always known and lusted after shining through and telling her that everything would be okay. No, he’d said we’ll be okay.

  “What?” Will smiled down at her.

  “You keep saying we’ll be okay,” Joey pointed out.

  “We will be okay.”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  Will met her gaze squarely, a corner of his mouth lifting into a half smile. “I know what you meant. And I said we deliberately. I want you with me, Joey, and not because of everything that’s happened.”

  Joey beamed at him. “Really?”

  “Really.” Will kissed her forehead, her lips. “One good thing came out of this, you know. I don’t have to work up the nerve to ask you out anymore.”

  “You assume we’re going out then?”

  Will kissed the tip of her nose. “Am I mistaken?”

  “No, but you’re a lousy date so far,” Joey teased.

  Will feigned offense. “I beg your pardon?”

  “I’m starving,” Joey pointed out. “You promised me room service.”

  “So I did.” Will brushed a kiss on her lips before reaching for the directory on the bedside table.

  Joey couldn’t remember the last time she felt such exultation or dread. Will Martin was finally in her bed, finally hers. Her heartbeat was wild and joyous in her chest as she watched him lift the phone receiver to request room service.

  But in the back of her mind she couldn’t let go of the lurking fear that they would come after them, the cult or whatever they were at Woods University.

  It was only a matter of time.

  * * *

  The next morning they awoke bright and early with plans to stop at a department store for clothes and a fast-food breakfast. Joey tightened the huge drawstring sweats about her waist as much as she could and waited for Will to come back from the vending machine in the hotel lobby. It was taking a long time. Damn him! She’d told him she hadn’t wanted him to leave her. Sure, it seemed innocent just going down the hall for a soda. But the last couple of days had left her feeling that she could trust nothing and no one. Except for Will. He shared her nightmare.

  Since they had no belongings aside from Joey’s stolen knife, she tucked it into the waistband of her sweats and left the room to see if Will was ready to go. There were a handful of people in the hotel lobby when she reached it but no Will. Had he gone out to the truck for something?

  Joey nervously made her way out to the parking lot, her eyes darting everywhere searching for signs of trouble, signs of Will. The truck was just where they left it and there was Will sitting inside behind the wheel. She could see the back of his head anyway with the truck facing the opposite direction.

  Dashing to the truck, she jerked open the passenger side door and climbed in.

  “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming out here?” she asked as she closed the door.

  But when she turned around she found it wasn’t Will in the driver’s seat next to her. It was Rafe.

  “I’m sorry, Josey.”

  Joey struggled when he pressed a white cloth over her nose and mouth, but couldn’t fight for long as blackness claimed her.

  Chapter Seven

  Joey awoke in blackness and there was no sound. Her lashes brushed the fabric tied about her eyes and fear squeezed her heart, bringing her around in a hurry. She couldn’t move her arms or her legs and she was naked. Her heart began pounding out a painful rhythm as she struggled in vain with her bonds. Immediately she thought about the ritual she’d witnessed. She was tied up the same way, spread eagle just like the girl with the red stripe in her hair.

  Oh, Jesus, she was next!

  And Will… What had they done to him? He could be dead by now. How could she have been so stupid earlier? Why didn’t they go to the police? Done something.

  The sound of a door opening and quiet footsteps, the footsteps of more than one person had her tugging furiously at the ties that held her wrists and ankles. But there was no give. And it didn’t help that her limbs were spread wide. In her mind’s eye she could see the girl with the red stripe in her hair, bound and helpless as she was now, and her terror grew.

  Joey flinched at the first hand that touched her body, the large rough palm closing over her left breast, squeezing it. Another large hand smoothed over her right thigh and moved upward until she felt dry fingers digging into her private folds. They were going to rape her before the ritual too? No! She tried to squirm away from the perverted invasion but she couldn’t, her heart racing as those invading fingers pushed up into her. Joey thrashed around as much as she could, her heart thundering in her chest, but she couldn’t stop the unwanted attack.

  Stop! I don’t want this! Get away from me! But her cries were muffled pitiful sounds behind the tight gag in her mouth.

  More hands, on her other breast and her other thigh. Joey fought against her panic and fear as her nipples were pinched and fingers shoved roughly into her vagina. She’d been trained by the military to hold her emotions in check if she were ever captured. Showing fear would fulfill the needs of her captors. If they were the followers as Rafe told her he was. But if they were the super-geeks…

  Oh, hell. What damned difference did it make? It was all repulsive!

  Control your emotions.

  I can’t take this! Oh, God, she felt like she couldn’t breathe, that her heart would explode it was beating so fast. Joey cried out, a muffled pitiful sound, when she heard a buzzing sound begin and she thought they meant to shave her when she felt the invading fingers leave her vagina. But something cold and wet was impersonally slathered between her thighs and she knew the instant before the enormous vibrator filled her, stretched her sore flesh, what the buzzing sound was. The vibrator was much bigger than the one she had, so it was nearly uncomfortable as its tremors radiated throughout her lower body. Despite her fear and loathing her clit began to ache and her cunt began to weep around the invading object. The craving that built in her loins was horrifyingly familiar. She remembered the dark lust that had come over her the night in the lab with Will and Rafe, the unnatural feelings of desire and disassociation with what was happening to her.

  Control your emotions.

  I can’t get out of this. Someone leaned across her stomach, cool fabric brushing her ribs and belly. Joey thought that the person -- hell it could be a man or a woman, she didn’t know -- meant to look at the vibrator when their fingers pulled her labia back. When a greedy mouth fastened to her clit and began licking and sucking on her, she lost it and began struggling again. She didn’t want this. They had no right!

  She hated that her body was responding to whatever evil surrounded these people, to the vibrator and person tonguing her clit for all they were worth. Another mouth closed around the toes of her left foot, a large warm tongue darting between them like a snake. A feather soft stroke at the instep of the same foot had her jerking, fighting against the tickling sensation. Yet another mouth replaced one of the hands at her breast, teeth nicking at her nipple over and over. It hurt and she wanted nothing better than to knock the shit out of the person doing it.

  So many hands and mouths were on her body now. How perverse was it that her body responded to the assault that she couldn’t see? Her unseen rapists
made no sound. Hell, she could barely hear the sound of their breathing. Who were they? Anyone could be among them. Rafe. Maria.

  Oh, please not Will. Surely they didn’t have time to do this to him. She hoped that somehow he had escaped. That he’d be safe. That maybe --

  A thunderous banging sound startled Joey and brought the attack to a halt.

  “Bowen.” The deep male voice came from her right side.

  Rafe!

  “Get the hell away from her,” he growled. “She’s mine!”

  “Brazhnik wants her ready for the ceremony,” another male voice said from further down her body.

  Brazhnik? Who the hell was that?

  “He has the other one from my lab.” Rafe’s voice was cold, sending a chill down Joey’s spine.

  She would have sent a prayer of thanks heavenward for Rafe’s arrival, for her possible salvation. But what would he do to her? She’d only bashed him over the head with a crystal vase then left him chained to the bed where he’d meant to keep her and finally finished him off by wrapping him up with an entire roll of duct tape.

  Shit.

  And the other one from my lab? Will! Oh, Jesus.

  “Get out.” Rafe’s voice was barely recognizable to her ears. She’d never heard him sound so menacing.

  Long moments of silence stretched out. Finally a voice near her head said, “Point that thing somewhere else. I’ll go.”

  More silence, painfully long silence, before she again heard the sound of footsteps and the last of the hands left her body. Her wrists and ankles burned from her struggles against the bonds and the vibrator continued humming inside her while she waited for some sign that Rafe was still in the room. Joey heard the door shut again and then what she thought was the sound of it being locked.

  Control your emotions.

  Screw that!

  Joey burst into tears, tension and fear getting the better of her, and Rafe was by her side in an instant. Gently he pulled the blindfold down her face, his deep hazel eyes the first thing she saw through her tears.