by Linda Conrad
Rob Bellamy drove them through the streets of the village on the way up to the main house. Nick hadn’t planned it, but many of the islanders came out to stand by the side of the road and wave as they went by. It seemed to make Annie happy to wave back.
“I feel just like Cinderella,” she laughed.
He reached over and took her hand. “You are much more beautiful than any princess in a book.”
Her smile faded and she eased her hand from his grasp. “Why didn’t your father come to the wedding, Nick? Wasn’t there enough time for him to get here? We could’ve waited an extra day or two for him.”
“I didn’t invite him,” he told her in a voice that sounded rougher than he’d meant. “And since you didn’t invite your family, either, I think we’re even.”
She turned her head and silently stared out the window.
“It’ll be just a few more minutes without food,” he said, trying to coax her out of her silence. “I don’t want you fainting in the middle of your wedding reception.”
“We’re having a reception?”
“Well, it won’t be a huge party. But the chef has been secretly cooking up some pretty exotic dishes for the buffet. I think he wants to impress you.”
Annie smiled, but it didn’t go all the way to her eyes. “I’m already impressed by him. He’s terrifically talented. You’re lucky to have him.”
And he was beyond lucky to have her as well, he thought. But he didn’t know how to tell her that.
“A reception will be wonderful, and it’s almost as much a surprise as this carriage was,” she told him. “But you didn’t need to go to so much trouble. This was just supposed to be a fast, shotgun wedding.”
“A shotgun wedding? What’s that?”
She laughed and the sound stirred his blood again. “That’s an old American saying for a wedding where the bride is already pregnant. It’s a kind of joke about her father holding a gun to the groom’s head to be sure he doesn’t run out on the bride before they can make it legal.”
Instead of making him laugh, the idea sobered him. “I don’t see that as humorous,” he told her. “There should be nothing funny about doing your duty.”
“Oh for heaven’s sake,” she said with a chuckle. “Lighten up. We’re married. You’ve done your duty and your honor is intact.”
He didn’t want her first thought to be about responsibility when she remembered this wedding, and he was sorry the subject had come up.
Trying to change it, he said, “I’m glad you liked the carriage idea and the reception should be pleasant enough.”
He really hoped the party would be quick, moving them on their way to a surprise honeymoon trip. He couldn’t wait to get his hands on Annie once again. To sink into her warmth and slide into her open arms.
“But wait until you find out about your next surprise,” he continued with a smile. “That’ll be the best one yet.”
“Another surprise? It couldn’t be as nice as this ring was. Nothing could top that.” She held her hand out and waggled her fingers with a wide grin on her face.
Oh, yeah, he thought, fighting back the sudden yearning to kiss her senseless. Having her back in his arms was definitely going to be the best part of the whole damn day.
The food was truly fabulous, but she’d been too keyed up to do more than just taste it. Apparently, every single man, woman and child on the island had needed to drop in to pay their respects and wish the happy couple a good life. Her face was numb from smiling at everyone.
Annie was more than a little relieved when the crowds finally dispersed and she could kick off her shoes. But then it suddenly occurred to her that she didn’t know what to expect next.
Would she and Nick just settle in and be at home? She’d packed a small bag, enough to get by for tonight and tomorrow. But maybe Nick would want her to move the rest of her things into his quarters right away.
Beyond that, what else would he expect? This was their wedding night, after all.
Too embarrassed to ask him his plans, Annie sank into one of the armchairs in the dining and reception room and waited. In the back of her mind, that same low warning that Nick was pushing too hard and leaving her out of the decision making came back to taunt her.
She looked around at the rich furnishings and the expensive artwork and began to worry that this marriage didn’t have a chance in hell of lasting past their child’s birth. They were from such different backgrounds.
“I have asked a servant to pack a few of your things for the trip, Annie. I hope you don’t mind, but I knew you wouldn’t have time.” Nick’s mother had slipped beside her while she’d been daydreaming.
“Trip?” Had she missed an entire conversation?
Elizabeth slid an arm around her shoulders. “Don’t tell me Nicholas hasn’t told you about your honeymoon trip yet?”
“Honeymoon?” Annie felt like a parroting child, not quite able to keep up with the grown ups’ conversation.
Elizabeth frowned and hugged her close. “You are much too sweet and accepting, dear. If that son of mine ever ends up offending you or doing something else equally stupid, I swear…”
“I’ll be fine,” Annie protested. “I’m not some young innocent who needs protecting. I deliberately took a job that moved me a thousand miles from home so that I could prove I can take care of myself. I’m a lot stronger and tougher than my family ever gave me credit for.”
She looked up into her new mother-in-law’s concerned eyes. “I can hold my own with your son, too.” Patting Elizabeth’s arm, Annie smiled up at her. “I love him, but I will never be anyone’s doormat. Please, don’t worry.”
Elizabeth’s eyes filled with tears. “His father and I…” She shook her head and swallowed back a sob. “You and I need to have a long talk. But not tonight. Tonight is for celebrating.”
Nick appeared in the doorway from the kitchen. “The pilot is ready to leave when you are, Annie.” Then he turned to his mother. “I had Annie’s suitcases stowed on the plane. Is there anything else that we need to do before we go?”
Elizabeth straightened and folded her arms over her chest. “You need to start talking to your wife before you make all the decisions for her. In fact, you might want to ask her now if she even wishes to accompany you on this trip. I’m not sure I would if I were her.”
Nick swivelled and dropped to his knees beside her with a look of pure horror on his face. “Annie…I forgot I hadn’t told you. Dammit. I sincerely apologize. This is the surprise I mentioned before. It’s supposed to be fun for you…for both of us. I didn’t mean to…”
“Shush,” Annie whispered as she put her fingertips to his lips. “Don’t panic. I admit it would’ve been nice to be consulted about my own honeymoon trip, but let’s not start out our married lives with regret. Anything you want to do will be okay with me.”
Nick heaved a relieved sigh. “One of my college roommates owns an exclusive mountainside resort on the Mexican Riviera. The honeymoon bungalow is spectacular, with its own private pool and sauna, right at the edge of a cliff where sky meets ocean. We can dance until dawn with movie stars and royalty on the resort’s beach. Then we’ll sleep the day away in total luxury without interference from anyone, completely on our own, if that’s what we want to do. It’ll be perfect.”
Annie could see his desire to make love to her written all over Nick’s features. She knew what that look meant because she’d been having the exact same desires. The memory of their past passion was still clear and sharp in both her mind and her body after all these weeks.
But now that she was faced with their wedding night—and the expected result—she wasn’t entirely sure that she was ready to experience all those intense feelings again. Not just yet. And especially not when he’d been so overbearing about everything.
If she simply fell into his arms tonight, how would she ever be able to hold her own with him again? Making love to Nick made her too vulnerable. Too needy for more of him than he wanted
to give.
With a yellow fog of panic about to choke her, Annie came to the decision that she needed more time before she and Nick could be intimate again. Time to make herself strong enough so that she could be with him and not be destroyed by loving a man who refused to love her in return.
A few days…or weeks ought to do it.
With the decision to wait set in her mind, Annie felt much better about the trip. “The place sounds just fine, Nick.” She stood up and felt the strength returning to her body. “I’m ready to go when you are.”
Neither of them said much on the three-hour plane trip to the resort. Nick apologized several times for forgetting to tell her where they were going. The surprise trip didn’t need forgiving. The assumption that he could make all the decisions did. But Annie wasn’t sure yet how to discuss it with him.
In fact, the two of them needed to do a lot of talking. Since she’d made the decision that they should take it slow and get to know each other better before they made love again, Annie felt much more in control. That was one decision that she could make on her own.
Of course, she wanted Nick to agree with her. But she still wasn’t sure how to approach the subject. The man had been her boss up until this morning. Their relationship would have to go through a lot of changes.
When they arrived at the resort, they were driven up the side of a mountain in a golf cart. The setting sun hung out over the ocean like a great orange fireball, readying itself for a night’s dip in the cool water below.
She’d thought that Nick’s island was exotic and different. But this place, with its lush foliage and spicy Latin music filling the evening air, was beyond her imaginings.
Entering the bungalow with Nick, Annie had to catch herself before she made a foolish and naive remark about how spectacular the place was. Floor-to-ceiling picture windows looked out at the edge of the cliff toward the Pacific Ocean.
Sixty-foot pine trees, strangely shaped rocks peaking up through the surf from the ocean’s floor, and rocky paths lit by torches winding through dense foliage down to the main resort could be seen out the fantastic walls of glass. The sights were breathtaking, but she didn’t want to appear to be too unsophisticated. She had to watch herself until she figured out how to get along in his world.
She spun around to see if Nick was as stunned by the sight as she was. But he had casually wandered over to a heavily laden table, set up in front of a fireplace and loaded down with various foods.
“Are you hungry?” he asked. “This is quite a spread, but if you’re still full from the reception, I’ll ask them to take it away.”
“No,” she said, suddenly famished. She moved to the table and stared down at mounds of fresh fruit, a tall pile of cold peeled shrimp and a heaping bowl of guacamole spiked with fresh tomatoes.
She didn’t want to seem too anxious. “I could eat something,” she said offhandedly as she reached for a charred chicken wing.
Nick picked up a corn tortilla chip and popped it into his mouth. Then he frowned as he watched Annie daintily pick over the food. It wasn’t like her to be so tentative and it was starting to grate on his nerves.
“You didn’t say how you liked the bungalow and the view,” he asked as he scooped up a shrimp. “Are you happy with my choice of a honeymoon destination?”
She shrugged a shoulder and nibbled on a cheese quesadilla. “I suppose.”
Her totally uncharacteristic nonchalant attitude was more than he could take. “What the hell is the matter with you? Are you still angry about me making this decision alone?”
Annie lifted her chin and narrowed her eyes. “Why are you mad all of a sudden? Have I done something wrong?”
Frustrated, he blew out a breath. “Of course not. But you’re so quiet. It’s not like you.”
A flame of blush pink ran up her neck and reached her cheeks. “I’m trying to be more sophisticated. I want to fit into your life.”
He reached for her then and took her by the shoulders. “Don’t… Don’t try to be someone else. Christina was sophisticated and too quiet. I never knew what she was thinking. It was…difficult.”
Annie frowned and lowered her eyes.
“Hell,” he muttered, annoyed with himself now. “I didn’t mean to upset you by talking about Christina. I promise never to do it in the future.” Christina would only suffer in the comparison, he knew.
Nick steadied his voice and drew Annie to his chest. “Just be yourself, sweetheart. And always tell me exactly what you think and feel,” he whispered in her ear.
Annie was so warm in his arms that he immediately sank back into the purple haze of desire that had become his perpetual companion. He could hear her breathing change, becoming more shallow as he felt her nipples peak against his chest, burning spots right through his clothes and tantalizing him.
Suddenly, he wanted nothing more than to be here with this sensual woman. He closed his eyes and breathed in the light scents of rose water and cinnamon, the smells surrounding her that had always left him hard and aching.
He leaned back, lifted her chin and kissed her. But as their lips touched, his brain exploded with dizzying yearnings. Too long denied the erotic sensations that being with her caused inside him, he poured all the years of loneliness and grief into this one kiss.
She moaned softly against his lips as their tongues met, tangled and sought the liquid warmth of each other. Briefly, he thought he’d caught a strange sensation of belonging. Of rightness and strength.
But as soon her lush body pressed against him, burned into his thighs and more importantly leaned heavily against his groin, he blocked out everything else. The guilty pleasures he found with Annie made him forget all about promises, honor and trust.
Annie’s brain was in turmoil. She’d wanted this kiss, this closeness, more than she thought possible. Dreams of the passion they’d created together had kept her up at night. But she’d made that promise to herself to wait, and she knew it would be the smart thing to do.
Nick’s hands roamed over her back and up her sides to the underside of her breasts. A shock of electricity zinged through her veins. But the intensity of need it stirred up only served to remind her again that this was too soon.
Was he thinking of the times the two of them had shared the same way she was? Or was he remembering what he had shared with his wife so long ago? And was he wishing…?
Annie pulled back from the kiss and touched his chest. “Nick, wait, please.”
He opened his eyes but she could tell it cost him. Trying to focus on her face, he mumbled, “Wait? Why?”
“I know we’re married and this may seem silly to you, but I’m worried about us rushing into another physical relationship before we get to know each other better.”
“We’ve known each other for nearly eight months,” he began dryly and dropped his hands. “And some of that ‘knowing’ was rather intimate. We didn’t seem to have any problems in that department. What more do we need?”
“How old am I, Nick?”
“Excuse me?”
“I don’t know how old you are. And it occurs to me, you don’t know about me either.”
“I’ll be thirty next week,” he told her with some hesitation and confusion.
“A Leo? I should’ve known. I’m a Virgo, a practical romantic. I’ll be twenty-five on fifth of September.
“See?” she continued. “There are lots of things we don’t know about each other yet. For instance, do you want more children after this one? I’ve always wanted to have four kids, two boys and two girls. It just seems like a nice, round number. And I don’t know what kind of business your family runs in Alsaca. I think that might be important. I mean, what if your family is into something illegal? Not that I really think so. But…”
“Annie,” he whispered with a hint of a smile. “You’re rambling again. There’s no need to be nervous with me. I can’t say I’m terribly happy about the idea of waiting before we make love again, but I see your point. We have
our whole lives. If this is that important to you, I can’t see any reason for us to push.”
Her shoulders slumped with relief. But as soon as she thought she was home free, his mouth came down on hers in a restrained brush of lips and tongue. The sensual temptation of that nearly chaste kiss turned her into a mound of mush. Maybe she had been too hasty.
Nick pulled back and blinked. “Damn. What—” His voice cracked. “What do you want to do now?”
In desperation she forced her gaze from his beautiful face and tried to think. Through a window, she saw their private swimming pool, and another one of her promises flipped into her mind like the turning of a page.
“I want to go for a swim,” she said with a rough voice. “Please come with me.”
“Swimming?” He started to shake his head, but then apparently thought better of it. “I didn’t bring a suit.”
“But it’s our own private pool. You don’t need a suit. Just wear shorts…or maybe your underwear.”
Without a word, he grinned and raised an eyebrow.
Oh, good Lord. What had she just gotten herself into?
Ten
Nick tried to put a damper on his growing needs, but it wasn’t easy. Especially since Annie had changed into a new red two-piece swimming suit and was treading water in their lighted private pool—and gazing up at him expectantly.
Expectantly. Yes, that was a good idea. He could think about all the things he’d learned from the Internet over the past two days about a woman’s pregnancy.
He’d done the research because he wanted an idea of what to expect. And it had been fascinating, imagining the changes that would take place in Annie’s body. Fascinating and somehow arousing. Not that he needed anything more to inflame him whenever he thought about Annie—which was constantly these days.
He eased out of his shirt and pants and draped them over a deck chair. The warm summer breeze off the ocean gently caressed his skin the same way a woman’s fingers might. It stirred his blood until at last he found himself biting the inside of his cheek to keep from groaning aloud.