Calamity Jena (Invertary 4)

He moved against her in a slow rhythm at odds with the frenzy of their lovemaking. He wanted to know every inch of her. He wanted to possess her. To be possessed by her. To have them merge into one.

Gasps. Sighs. A pant. A moan. Muscles strained. Fingers clenched. Tongues tasted. He was in a spiralling freefall. Clinging to Jena as though she could save his life, his heart.

With a shuddering cry, Jena arched into him. Her head against the wall, her eyes closed. In the dim light from the window, Matt revelled in her flushed cheeks and swollen lips.

“Matt.” His name was a gasp. “Matt.”

He kept moving. He wanted more. He wanted all of her. He felt it. The force of her climax as it crashed through her and into him. With a growl, Matt followed. The two of them tumbling together, into bliss.

Jena was limp in his arms. Her breathing heavy, her heart pounding hard against Matt’s chest. He felt a smile curve his lips as he watched her. Holding her tight lest she slide to the floor.

Soul mate.

The words reverberated through him.

Slowly, languorously, her eyes opened. She licked her lips as she looked up at him, dazed and sated.

Yeah. She was his soul mate. And he was never letting her go.

“This is definitely a relationship,” he told her. He was firm. Serious. He wanted there to be no doubt.

Jena smiled widely as she blinked up at him. Her chest began to shake, and with a giggle she snuggled into him. With a shake of his head, Matt carried his giddy woman up the stairs. Tomorrow, he’d explain that he was never letting her leave him. But first, he really wanted to get her in a shower that had hot water. With a slow, wicked grin, Matt kicked open the bathroom door. The heaviness he’d been carrying around for years was gone. He’d found the purpose he was looking for. He’d found it in Jena.

He’d found it in his soul mate.

37

“So I take it you’re not looking for a job in the city anymore?” Josh said to Matt. There was a wicked gleam in his eye.

It’d been a week since the funeral and life was back to normal in Invertary. Well, as normal as it ever got. November had hit and the temperature had plummeted. Even the stoic Scots who wore their shorts at the first sign of sun had packed them away for the winter. Matt had slipped into an easy rhythm with Jena. One where he picked her up every day after his shift finished and took her back to his place. He wasn’t sure if she’d noticed they were living together, and he didn’t want to ruin the peace by bringing it up. Apart from a lingering sadness from the loss of his dad, all was good with the world.

Josh elbowed him in the ribs to get his attention. “So you’re staying put in Invertary, then?”

“Aye, I’m staying put.” All Matt wanted to do was have a nice, quiet breakfast with his mates. Unfortunately, he’d forgotten those mates came with their dodgy senses of humour.

“Guess there’s plenty of excitement in Invertary for you after all,” Josh said.

Matt glared at him as Mitch, Harry and Lake started to chuckle.

“Okay, Josh, spit it out, what are you getting at?” Matt sat back and folded his arms.

Josh grinned with glee. “Seems like your life has taken an unexpected turn. One you weren’t exactly keen on. What did you say again? Harry, help me out here.”

“I think his exact words were: ‘I’m not looking for a woman; I have enough trouble without one.’”

Mitch cleared his throat before he grinned. “Yeah, weren’t you the first to laugh when Lake got engaged to Kirsty?”

“That’s a good point.” Matt turned to Lake. “When are you getting married, anyway? Is it ever going to happen?”

“Don’t change the subject,” Josh said. “You can’t get away with this. You’re the one who told us we were nuts letting women walk all over us. You laughed at the L word. You mocked my wedding ceremonies.”

“To be fair,” Matt said. “You did have two.”

“Not the point.” Josh folded his arms over his Breakfast Club T-shirt. “The point is you’ve fallen and you’re in just as deep as the rest of us.”

“You’re desperate to sing na-na-na-na-na, like a little girl, aren’t you?” Matt said.

“What do you mean, rest of us?” Mitch said. “I haven’t succumbed to this mating frenzy you guys are in. I don’t plan to, either. There’s no way I’m giving up my single life. While you guys are here, cosying up to your one and only woman, I’ll be going out with a different one every night.” Mitch grinned widely. “Idiots.”