by Tina Donahue
Every part of his being wanted to punish her mother and Bauchmann for what they’d done to her, to make things right for Toni, to offer her back all the years she’d lost.
This isn’t about my past, she’d said their first morning at his house. It’s about here and now. You and me. Having some fun. Then I take off. No harm done. You go back to your life. I go back to mine.
A nomadic existence with no real future.
You’re actually going to let her go back to that daredevil stuff? Em had asked only weeks ago.
Zach’s belly ached at the thought of Toni on such a heartbreakingly lonely journey. With what he’d found out, he knew it wasn’t necessary any longer. She had options because of the trust fund set up by her father, one she hadn’t known about. But what if after telling her, she decided to give the money to Belle and Lucky, going back to them, leaving here?
Even if she agreed to remain in Indulgence, what then? Would they still live together with her working at his shop and sleeping with him every chance they had? Would she burrow more deeply into his heart than she’d already managed to do? Would they build a life together? Would she someday get pregnant?
Did he want that?
Did he love her?
The answer came effortlessly, solace washing over him.
Even so, he sat frozen, staring at his computer screen, not knowing which decision to make, except for the obvious one. He couldn’t tell Toni he’d found out about her past. She’d never forgive him for looking into it. She’d resent such an invasion of her privacy.
She’d surely wonder if his knowledge of what she’d lost was the sole reason he wanted her to stay. Toni’s pride wouldn’t allow her to accept his concern about what she’d been through. Only his love would convince her otherwise.
He swallowed hard. To reveal his heart now was more than Zach could handle. Sure, Toni liked him and enjoyed having sex, but what if it didn’t run deeper for her than that? What if Bauchmann coming into her life kept Toni from trusting or loving any guy, including him?
A faint rattling sound captured his attention. Staring at the door to the bay area, he saw the knob turn.
Zach’s heart banged into his throat. A second before Toni stepped into his office, he clicked on his computer’s desktop icon, bringing it up, leaving only the bar at the bottom of the screen that displayed no more than the first two words of Anunciata’s report.
Looking from it to Toni, Zach lost track of any greeting he’d planned to say. The ends of her hair touched her pale cheeks, throat, neck. Her tank top and cutoffs no longer seemed funky to him, but shabby, the colors faded from too many washings.
He recalled her cheerleading uniform and the stylish clothes she’d worn in her other school photos. An image of the kind of house she’d grown up in—where her mother and Joe had lived until recently—flashed in his mind.
Profile still to him, she closed the door, glancing over as Zach left his chair and went to her, his heart pounding…his soul kneeling to her.
Toni’s lips parted at his hands cupping her face, his thumbs stroking her cheeks. Her lids slid down as he brushed his mouth over hers with respect and love.
On a breathy sigh smelling faintly of beer and pepperoni, she slumped against him, her arms slipping over his shoulders, wreathing his neck, her tongue gliding into his mouth before he could do the same to her.
Tenderness receded quickly, replaced by hunger Zach couldn’t contain. His hands went to the back of Toni’s head, fingers pushing through her hair, keeping her to him as he suckled her tongue.
Hips grinding, she rubbed her mound against his stiff cock and fisted her hands in his tee, pulling it up.
By the time he broke free of their kiss, she had the shirt past the center of his back. Pressing his face to her throat, he inhaled deeply of her lavender scent, so female, so comforting, it told Zach he’d found the right woman and his way home.
Overcome with longing, he spoke in a strained, anguished voice. “I don’t think I can wait to have you.”
Toni’s hands moved up and down his bare back, her nails raking his skin, sending lush sensations of warmth, comfort and desire coursing through Zach. Although she kept her pitch low, mischief filled her voice. “Then don’t.”
He tried to be reasonable, to maintain some measure of control. “Tourists are still on the street. They might hear.”
“Then you’re going to have to be very quiet.” She snuggled closer, giving him a love bite on the corner of his neck. At his muffled groan, she said, “If you think you can.”
Cupping her ass, Zach pulled her into him. Mouth to her ear, he growled, “You have no idea what I can do, sweetheart.”
“Oh yeah?” In a voice even throatier and laced with sass, she said, “Show me.”
Fevered, Zach kissed her as he hadn’t before, holding nothing back. Not lust, need or a desire to love and protect her that was so fierce it eclipsed anything he’d ever experienced.
It also stopped him from declaring himself. He had no idea how to begin, fearful of her reaction, terrified she might leave to claim her inheritance and return to Belle and Lucky. If he thought this out and made the moment special, he might be able to convince her that she’d have a good future at his side. He’d never abandon her.
He drove his tongue deeper into her mouth, wordlessly claiming her, gratified at her response. She clung to him as his body demanded, allowing him to take what he willed.
Finished for the moment, he ended their kiss. The sound of his huffing breaths mingled with Toni’s and the muffled conversations of tourists on the street.
Eyes still glazed, she glanced from the closed blinds to him, her lips puffy from the savageness of his kiss, her skin rosy with expectation.
Excitement at taking her in here, with strangers just outside, battled with Zach’s yearning to keep her safe, to cherish her as she deserved. Reaching out, he stroked her baby soft cheek with his knuckles.
Toni turned her face into his hand, licking his wrist.
One of the tourists laughed.
Zach started at the unexpected sound. Toni seemed not to notice it, lifting her eyes to his. In them, he saw strength, courage and the ability to yield, a powerful combination that would bring any man to his knees.
Closing her eyes briefly, she swallowed, then whispered, “We can use your desk.” She took his hand to lead him to it.
Remembering what was on his computer, he held back. Toni looked over. Zach inclined his head to the sofa and spoke in an equally low voice. “It’s softer.”
Wickedness glittered in her eyes. “For who?”
His grin felt so damn good, young and foolish. Leaning in to her, Zach said, “Not you, that’s for fucking sure. You’re going to get it harder than you’ve ever imagined.”
Using his body, he forced her toward the sofa. The moment the back of her legs hit the cushions, vinyl crackled in protest. Instinctively, Toni turned her head to the side. Zach swooped down, latching his mouth onto her neck, lapping her sweet skin with his tongue, while suckling lightly.
Her knees bumped into his. She fisted her fingers into his tee and moaned.
“Damn,” a female said, her voice muffled by the door’s glass. “I forgot to get cigarettes at the diner.”
“Take one of mine,” a male voice said.
Stepping back, Zach pried Toni’s hands from his shirt.
She complained immediately, her voice a whisper. “No. Don’t stop.”
“I’m not.” He turned her around. Cheek pressed to hers, he snaked his arms around her waist, his fingers working the button and zipper on her cutoffs.
She whimpered.
Zach trailed his fingers over the gentle swell of her tummy, not yet reaching her mound. An indistinct sound escaped her, sounding hungered and wild. Fighting for control, he murmured, “Did you wear panties tonight?”
Mewling, Toni shook her head.
His balls liked that so much, they started to hurt. His cock wasn’t any better, every n
erve ending firing at the brush of her body against his.
Hastily, Zach pushed her cutoffs past the flare of her hips and thighs. The garment hit the red-and-black checkered linoleum with an abbreviated smack.
Up the street, a horn blared.
“Is that Steph?” a female voice asked.
Another woman answered, “Think so. Hey, Steph!” she hollered.
Footfalls slapped against the concrete walkway, indicating another group approached, their murmurs and laughter deeper, rougher, surely a group of guys.
Zach curled his hand over Toni’s mound. His fingers combed through her dark curls, reaching her slick vaginal lips, touching her erect nub.
The back of Toni’s head hit Zach’s shoulder. She went to her toes, her hands clamping on his arms—whether to pull them away or to keep them on her, he didn’t know.
The front door rattled slightly from someone’s weight against it.
Mouth to Toni’s ear, Zach continued working her clit. He whispered, “Put your hands on the arm of the sofa, bend over and keep quiet.”
Tension stiffened her body. Her fingers dug into his forearms.
“Now,” he ordered in a lowered voice, his strokes deliberately slow and maddening.
“Crap, she doesn’t see us,” the female from before said. “We better get her or we’ll have to walk to that bar.”
“Need a ride, ladies?” a male voice asked.
“Maybe,” one of the females cooed.
The group struck up a conversation, no more than a few feet from where Zach and Toni stood.
Mouth to her shoulder, she tried to muffle her whimpers.
Not wanting her to come too quickly, Zach withdrew his fingers from her clit. “Bend over,” he whispered again.
On a shuddering breath, she released his arms, her hands dropping down. Using his shoulder, Toni braced herself as she stepped out of her cutoffs. Freed, she edged to the side, grasping the sofa’s arm, bending over, presenting her body to him.
An indescribable gift.
Emotion constricted Zach’s throat. He caressed the tattoo on her buttocks, a reminder of what she’d been through. Pained at the thought, he couldn’t help but marvel at the courage it took her to survive. She adopted people who’d thankfully loved her, doing all she could to help them out, to pay them back for caring when most others in her situation would have whined about their lousy luck.
Toni was the finest woman he’d ever known. Having her want him, even if it proved to be only for sex, humbled Zach.
He unbuttoned his jeans and lowered the fly, pushing his clothes down, pressing his naked flesh to hers.
Her resultant sigh told him how much she liked it and craved him. He prayed it wasn’t only for a few more nights.
Carefully, he entered her, a groan forming in the base of his throat as he filled Toni to capacity, the base of his cock flush against her body. Heat swept through him, prickling his skin. A rush of air poured from Toni, followed by a weak mew.
Desperate for closeness, a connection nothing could break, Zach draped his torso over hers. Mouth to her shoulder, he brushed his lips on Toni’s smooth skin, leaving a trail of kisses ending at her neck. With his cheek nuzzling hers, he wrapped one arm around her waist while his other hand settled on her mound, his fingers dipping over the side.
She wiggled, her body moving into his, bringing them even closer.
A sense of his world being right at last…fully complete…filled Zach. He squeezed his lids, trying to clear moisture from his eyes. Tonight wasn’t about the past any longer. He hoped it would be the first step toward their future.
Foregoing his own pleasure, he tended to Toni’s clit.
Her back arched, her ass bucking against him.
The horn from earlier blared again. This time, others joined it, most likely bored teenagers making noise to celebrate their existence, their claim to all the tomorrows. A few voices joined in, shouting their approval at the clamor. Footfalls hurried past the front door, the sounds receding as they moved up the street.
What continued outside became no more than static. Painstakingly, Zach focused on Toni’s happiness, attuned to her body’s needs, listening to her breathing. How it accelerated and hitched with his every touch.
At the peak of her climax, she curled her fingers into the vinyl, her nails clawing it, her guttural moans pleasing Zach beyond reason. Her sheath’s powerful contractions pulled him deeper, urging him to complete the act.
Easing back, he plunged into her, repeating his actions, gaining speed, his brash thrusts meant to bring them nearer so neither of them knew where the other began or ended.
Until they came as one, breathed as one, loved as one.
Chapter Fourteen
For Toni, morning came too quickly for a variety of reasons. One less day remained of her promised month and of all the things she wanted to do today, work wasn’t in the equation.
Slumped in the passenger seat of Zach’s pickup, with it stopped at a red light, she asked, “Are you sure we have to go to the shop?”
He didn’t answer. Looking over, she saw he’d draped his arms over the steering wheel, head bent to it. She asked again. He grunted, “Uh-huh.”
She muttered, “Fuck.”
“Oh shit, not for a little while. Please.”
Toni managed a laugh until her lusty yawn stole it, depleting what little energy remained.
Last night had really been something. After screwing like two delinquents in Zach’s office, they’d gone into the bays. The retiree who owned the Lincoln Town Car would never know what had happened in his vehicle’s backseat…by then, she’d been barefoot, her toes leaving no marks on the car’s headrests and ceiling.
Next, she and Zach had moved to a silver Hyundai Sonata in need of new brake pads. With tourists still milling on the sidewalks just beyond the metal doors, she’d rested her palms on the car’s sleek bumper, spread her legs and lifted her ass, struggling not to moan as Zach plowed into her.
The man had been insatiable. When they reached his house and fell into her bed well past three a.m., he’d held her to him, his arms surrounding her through the remainder of the night, giving Toni a measure of contentment she’d rarely known. At the time convincing her that she might have a chance to remain in town, maybe make her home here, perhaps with him.
Her heart beat erratically at the thought. She couldn’t catch her breath. Last night, the possibility of a future with Zach seemed reasonable, even attainable. Right now, doubt returned, telling Toni to approach the subject carefully. Not to dump too much on him at once.
When the time proved right, she’d ask for a permanent position first, even offering to move out of his place and find her own if that’s what he wanted. They’d date. They’d surely continue having sex. He might even learn to love her.
Sucking her lower lip, she looked up. “Light’s green.”
Zach swore, lifted his head and drove through the deserted intersection. “Did I give you my key to the shop?”
“Twenty minutes ago while we finished the second pot of coffee.”
He ran his hand down his face and rotated his shoulders in an obvious attempt to shake off fatigue. “Do you know how to open the bay doors?”
“I flick the switch?”
Not answering, he made a left turn, heading into the historic area of Indulgence. “You’ll be okay while I’m gone?”
She’d die without him. What had happened between them last night convinced Toni of that.
Her heart beat even harder. She cleared her throat, fighting to control her emotions, straining to keep her tone casual. “Depends.” Closing her eyes, she let her legs sag outward. The air-conditioning blew on her weary groin. “Where did you say you were going?”
“The bank to deposit receipts, then to an auto supply warehouse for parts we’ll need today. I forgot about it last night.”
Blindly, she patted his thigh and settled her fingers on his impressive bulge, comforted by his body’s strengt
h and heat. “You were busy. I forgive you.”
He offered a weak laugh, then fell silent.
Consumed with her own thoughts, what might prove to be her foolish plan, Toni said nothing more.
At the shop, Zach wrapped his fingers around her wrist before she exited the vehicle’s cab. Thumb stroking the side of her hand, he said, “Don’t kill yourself in there. Let Angel or Robbie do the heavy lifting.”
Amused at his suggestion, she murmured, “I’m tired, not infirm. People will talk if you start treating me like a girl.”
“Woman,” he corrected, his gaze traveling her features, settling on her mouth. “An unbelievably beautiful woman.”
Surprise made her stare. Shyness followed, causing her to blush. So many feelings ground through Toni, she found it impossible to ask if she could stay, if they might have a chance together. Could be it was gratitude for a great night of sex that caused him to say such a thing. Maybe he was just being nice.
He squeezed her wrist gently, ending the moment, and brought back his hand.
Suppressing a sigh at her lost opportunity, Toni hauled her saddlebag off the cab’s floor.
“I shouldn’t be more than an hour,” he said, adding, “a couple at most.”
“A couple? How far is the auto parts place?”
“A good drive. I’ll see you in a bit.”
“Wait.” She held the cab’s door open. “Do you want me to take the receipts to the bank? I can walk them over there. It’s not too far.” That way, he’d be able to return a bit sooner so they could speak. This time, she’d force herself to do so.
Zach shook his head. “Go inside. Let Angel handle the invoices and payments at my desk when clients come in. He knows what to do.”
Toni watched him drive down the street. A few blocks up, someone waved as he passed. From this distance, the figure sort of resembled Em.
Inside his office, Toni placed Zach’s key on his desk, then went into the bathroom to change into her overalls and rehearse her I’d-like-to-stay-here speech. It refused to come. His remembered words kept crowding it out, replaying in her mind.