Page 15 of Elemental Love
“With his coloring, he burns easily so he wears a hat and plenty of sunscreen. You noticed an awful lot about him from such a short meeting.”
Evrain gave her a sharp look. “How long have you been trying to get us in the same place, Grandma?”
“He has the prettiest blue eyes too. A perfect contrast to his lashes, which are just a shade darker than his hair.”
“Grandma…” Evrain’s voice rumbled low with warning.
“He’s intelligent too, and curious. He may not have had your expensive education, but Dominic has a sharp mind.”
Evrain pushed his chair back and moved to stand behind Agatha. He massaged her shoulders gently, and she moaned with pleasure.
“You’re incorrigible. My own grandmother trying to set me up. Still, I don’t think it’s going to happen. If I were his type, he would have stayed to eat. Is he even gay? Oh my God, you didn’t ask him that, did you?”
“Yes, he’s gay, and how I know is none of your business. Dominic’s an innocent compared to you. I don’t think he knowswhat he wants yet. It’s up to you to show him what you have to offer.”
Evrain walked across to the fire and stared into the flames. “And what’s that? I doubt a warlock is that high on his list of potential boyfriends.”
“Oh, Evrain. Have a little faith. Court him gently.”
“This is not the 1940s, Grandma.”
“You could learn some manners. Curb that assertiveness. Wine and dine him some. He has an apartment above the diner in town. I promised him some ointment for his back but he left so quickly he forgot to take it. You can take it with you and call on him.”
“Considering that there was barely repressed panic all over his face from one brief meeting, I’m not sure that showing up at his door is going to go down all that well.”
Agatha pressed a small tin into his hand with a knowing smile. “You won’t know until you try, now, will you?”
Chapter five
Hornbeam Cottage sat on the very edge of Hood River, clinging to the vestiges of civilization while reaching for the wilderness. Dominic could stand in the garden and feel like he had a foot in both camps. He fancied that the structure, built almost entirely from locally sourced natural materials, had its heart firmly fixed in the wild. He may have begun to tame the extensive gardens but around the borders nature constantly fought back. If he looked away, Gaia’s fingers went to work claiming back the fertile soil.
Part of the reason the place felt so remote was the lack of access for vehicles. When he drove, Dominic had to park his van almost a quarter of a mile away where the tarmac ended, then follow the narrow track that led to Agatha’s rickety gate. Trees bent over the track, reaching for one another, forming a leafy tunnel. Dominic imagined himself as a character in a fairy tale as he walked its length, sunlight dappling the ground. When itrained, as it did often, the pleasant stroll became a muddy slog and the real world impinged on his daydreams.
Tonight, he was thankful that the rain held off. After retreating from Agatha’s hospitality with unseemly haste, bordering on rudeness, he half jogged along the track. Part of the way back to civilization, he stopped and bent over, hands braced on his thighs, gasping for air. He’d been holding his breath without even realizing it. His heart was pounding and a sensation of mild panic urged him to run. Agatha was a little kooky and she definitely dabbled in things Dominic chose not to ask questions about, but she’d never given him cause to be afraid. Her cabin had an air of calm benevolence about it that he loved—but tonight that had changed.
The wooded lane seemed unusually quiet. Around him the leaves rustled in the breeze, but that was it. No birdsong, no small mammals scurrying through the undergrowth, just an eerie silence and the wind ruffling his hair. Dominic took a couple of cleansing deep breaths. He closed his eyes and all he could see was Evrain Brookes’ handsome face. Dominic shook his head but the image didn’t shift. Glossy black hair, pale skin and those weirdly magnetic green eyes haunted him. Evrain’s looks were striking but there was something else about him that called to Dominic, a siren call of assertive confidence. Seeing him sat in Aggie’s kitchen chair, long legs outstretched, slender fingers gripping his mug, Dominic had felt the urge to drop to his knees at the man’s feet.
“Shit, shit, shit, what the hell’s wrong with me?” He continued at a steadier pace and soon covered the remainder of the distance to his truck. It was a relief to reach the enclosed space of the cab. He clambered inside, locked the doors then rested his head on the steering wheel for a few minutes. He couldn’t recall ever being so struck by one man before. How could less than ten minutes in one person’s presence have affected him sodramatically? His dick ached. His hands shook. A small part of him wanted to head straight back to the cabin, the rest was far too scared.
“Idiot.” A man like Evrain Brookes was hardly going to take the slightest bit of notice of his grandmother’s gardener.
Dominic got his key into the ignition on the third attempt. He did a ropey three-point turn, narrowly avoiding the compact car parked behind him, which he guessed had to be Evrain’s. It was fortunate that he’d driven the same route many times before because when he reached home he couldn’t recall the journey at all. He parked in front of the diner in his usual spot, locked the truck then walked around the side of the building to the fire-escape steps. He had his own private entrance to the apartment on the first floor of the building. There was another staircase through the back of the diner but he didn’t feel like making small talk with the regulars, or with Annie, the owner and his landlord.
Dominic’s apartment was more spacious than it appeared from the outside. It stretched the full length of the upper floor of the building and had originally been designed as a vacation let for tourists. Annie had done a lovely job of making the place homey with some small touches of luxury. The rugs, pictures and knick-knacks in the lounge-diner were all purchased from local craftspeople. The kitchen was modern and sleek while the single large bedroom had been decorated to attract young couples. There was even a four-poster bed that had come from a grand house sale somewhere in Colorado.
Annie had gotten fed up of the constant round of cleaning and laundry that a rental property required. It was too much alongside her busy workload running the diner and she had decided that a longer term let would suit her better. Dominic was a regular customer and she’d overheard him talking about how his lease was running out. She’d offered the apartment to him on the spot and traded part of the rent for gardening services.He provided and maintained all the hanging baskets and pots that decorated the front of the diner, which proved to be great promotion for both his business and Annie’s. It was a great deal all round, and Dominic took care of the place well. It was his sanctuary.
He crossed the threshold, then pulled the door firmly closed behind him. The sense of calm that usually enveloped him inside his home was absent. He sighed, bending to unlace his work boots. He pulled them off and put them on the piece of newspaper laid next to the front door. He’d get round to cleaning them later, but for now, he needed a shower.
Dominic emptied his pockets onto the kitchen counter. Keys, a few dollars in change, a small wad of tissue with some seeds snugly wrapped inside it and a clean handkerchief made a small pile. He padded into his bedroom, pausing to turn on a lamp that stood on his chest of drawers. He lowered the blinds, shutting out the darkness. Rolling his shoulders, he scanned the room. Something seemed off, but he couldn’t work out what it was. Everything was in the same place he’d left it early that morning. Feeling utterly childish, he bent to look under the bed. Apart from a few scary dust bunnies there was nothing there.
“Jesus, Dom. Next you’ll be checking the closet for the bogeyman.” He laughed at his own nerves, trying to shake off the prickling sensation that had gooseflesh popping up on his arms. He pulled off his clothes, throwing the whole lot into the hamper just inside the door of his en-suite bathroom. He felt so hot—it was a relief to be naked in the cool room. Feeling a little giddy, he retreated to the bed, sat on the edge of the mattress and grimaced at the intense heat that enveloped his groin and painful erection.
“Absinthe, adder’s tongue, agrimony, allspice, aloe…” he recited a long list of herbs. “Fennel, fenugreek, feverfew…” Dominic groaned. It wasn’t working. Normally, recitingalphabetical lists took his mind away from his body and softened his errant dick. In the privacy of his home, he could have taken advantage of his hand and jacked off some frustration, but he just didn’t fancy it. He shook his head.Since when is a bit of manual relief not an attractive option?He was already at ‘f’—usually he got to dock and boredom set in, but not today. Evrain Brookes haunted his thoughts.
Dominic took a shower, the water as cold as he could bear it, needles stinging his skin. He sluiced away soap and shampoo and rested his forehead against the tiles. His rebellious body still resisted all attempts to cool its ardor. He rubbed himself down roughly with a towel then stalked naked into the bedroom, annoyed at his own lack of control. He lay down on the narrow bed and wrapped his hand around his cock with little enthusiasm. The velvety sheath slid easily beneath his hand he was so slick with pre-cum, but he forced himself to move slowly. His eyes closed and his thoughts drifted.
The lightest of touches tickled Dominic’s bare shoulder. He twitched, shrugging it away, and carried on tormenting himself with featherlight strokes to his hypersensitive shaft. A minute or two later, the sensation returned, so light Dominic wasn’t sure if it was real or his imagination. He continued to pet himself gently but opened his eyes to identify the source of irritation—probably a stray feather sticking out of his pillow. He blinked. He was seeing things. A slender green tendril curled over his upper arm—it seemed to be growing out of the wooden headboard. Leaves sprouted from the shoot and he recognized the distinctive shape as oak.
