“That one was dead on. I’m only about halfway through, so I haven’t talked to many people about it. Did my chart say what I’m writing about?”
“I assume it’s a scientific work on Mars.”
His laughter was triumphant. “Finally, I have a secret you don’t already know about. It’s science fiction about a colony on Mars. It’ll be fun to see how close I come to what it’s actually like once we get there.”
“That’s a wonderful idea.”
“I hope none of the colonists are sociopaths, but I needed a villain, so my fictional colony has one. Plus there’s a little bit of romance.”
“Just a little bit?”
He squeezed her hand. “Now that I know a sappy woman is going to read it, maybe I’ll put in more.”
“Oh, right. That reminds me that I suggested this walk so we could discuss my flaws, so here’s another one. I’m attracted to drama.”
“You secretly want to be a movie star?”
“God, no. Maybe when I was fifteen, but not now. I mean I’m attracted to personal drama. In high school I was a horrible drama queen.”
“So that’s what all the screeching in the halls was about?”
“Wait a minute. I did not screech. That was Linda. I prefer a classy wail to a nails-on-the-chalkboard screech. But I’m working on toning down the wailing. I’m guessing you’re not into drama, so I’m giving you fair warning.”
“I consider myself warned.” He glanced over at her. “What usually sets off this wailing?”
“Oh, it can be anything. Drama queens can make mountains out of molehills and Mt. Everest out of Disneyland’s Matterhorn. I recognize that I have a problem, but I haven’t totally fixed myself.”
“Good to know.”
“Also, it’s not surprising that I was ready to get right into the sex while we were kissing, despite our previous discussion that we should take it slow.”
“Because I’m so hot?” Laughter rippled in his voice.
“Granted that you’re hot, but I’ve been known to use sex to avoid actual intimacy, which as I mentioned before scares the bejeezus out of me.” The sound of rushing water told her they were nearing the waterfall.
“Are you saying that if I want to know the real you, we can’t have sex?”
“I wouldn’t go that far.”
“Thank God.”
“But your instincts were right about holding off tonight.”
“And here I was cursing myself for being an idiot. I have the woman of my dreams asking me to take her to bed, and I waffle. You do realize that if anybody finds out about that, I’ll have to turn in my man card.”
“Nobody’s going to find out.” The sound of water had grown much louder, and as they rounded a curve in the path, she had her first glimpse of the waterfall. “Look at that! I love the way they’ve subtly lit the water so it’s pretty but not gaudy.”
“Yeah, I’ve only been out here during the day.” He gazed upward at the cascade that tumbled down a good twenty feet to a pool below. “I’m glad I suggested this.”
“Me, too. I know that’s artificial rock, but whoever designed it did a great job of making it look natural.”
“There’s a patch of grass over there. We could lie on our backs and stargaze.” He smiled at her. “How’s that for sappy?”
“I like it.” She surveyed the patch of grass, which looked soft and inviting. “Do you think we’ll make out?”
He leaned over and gave her a whisper of a kiss. “Yes,” he murmured against her mouth. “I think we will.”
Chapter Seven
Darcie felt like a wild creature of the night as she stretched out on the fragrant grass and looked up at the black sky with its sprinkling of stars and a crescent moon. The rumble of the waterfall nearby added to the illusion.
A spotlight sweeping across her view did not. “Ugh. Too bad about the spotlight.”
“I realize this isn’t prime stargazing territory.” Nolan reached for her hand and brought it to his lips. “The view’s much better if you go out on the water or up in the hills.”
“We could do that.”
“We could.” He brushed his mouth over the tips of her fingers. “But it sounds like a lot of work.”
“It does.” And his lips teasing her fingers was incredibly erotic as they lay side-by-side with a cool breeze wafting over them. She didn’t want to go anywhere. Lying here with Nolan was good enough for her.
“Can you see Mars?”
She studied the sky and found the speck of red light. “I can. And I’ll admit that it’s a little scary thinking of you taking a rocket up there and spending months on the surface. It’s so far away.”
His breath warmed the palm of her hand. “Don’t you want to come along?”
“Wow, I don’t know. Maybe.” She shivered in delight as he traced circles on her palm with his tongue. “Will people be able to have sex on Mars?”
“I assume so. They do in my book.”
“Really? You have sex in your book?”
“Well, duh. I want it to sell.”
That made her laugh. “Have you written that part yet?”
“I’m working up to it. The characters have to get to know each other first.”
“You’re just saying that to tease me.”
“I’m not, I swear. I want the sex to be believable, and if they haven’t laid the groundwork for it, then it won’t be.”
She sighed and let her body go limp. “That’s nice, Nolan. I’m glad you’re writing it that way. So what do you see up there? Of course you can pick out Mars. You probably do that automatically. But what else can you point out? I mean besides the obvious, like the North Star and the Big Dipper, and the Little Dipper, and Orion. Tell me something I don’t already know.”
“I can’t.” He ran his tongue between her fingers.
That was even more erotic than the circles on her palm. His tongue in the crease of her fingers could easily be interpreted as something else. But they were lying out in the grass where anyone could come by. Although she’d asked about making out, it was probably too risky.
So she should keep her cool and maintain the thread of their conversation. “Don’t be silly. You know way more than I do about what’s up in the sky. You could point out a few obscure things and impress me.”
“I could if I had on my glasses.”
“You don’t?” She turned her head, and sure enough, he’d taken them off. “How can you stargaze without your glasses?”
His smile flashed white in the darkness, which made him look like a rake. “I’m not here for the stars.”
“Oh.” Her heartbeat sped up.
“Somebody mentioned making out.”
“Somebody’s turned chicken. What if people come along?”
He rolled to his side and gazed at her. “You’ve never made out when people might come along?”
“Not for years.”
“But you used to, before you had your own place and your own bed, right?”
“Yeah, but I’m older now. I don’t –”
“Pretend we’re eighteen again. Roll toward me, and I’ll remind you how it’s done.”
“You’re insane.” But she turned on her side, facing him. “We’re not eighteen. We don’t have to do this. We have two perfectly good hotel rooms standing empty at this very moment.”
“Yes, we do, but if we make out on the grass, we’ll have a built-in braking system. It’s not like finding ourselves in a hotel room with a king-sized bed and a condom in my pocket. That was too much, too soon. This is just . . . play.”
“And if any hotel guests stroll down that path to look at the waterfall, what then?”
“They’ll see a couple kissing and fondling, nothing they haven’t noticed in the shadows on other occasions. They’ll realize we’ve claimed this spot and walk on by. They won’t look. People don’t. Maybe we’ll inspire them to go back to their room and make sweet love to each other.”
Her laughter,
soft and breathless, revealed how deeply he’d aroused her with that speech. “So making out on the grass . . .” She paused to take a quick gulp of air. “It’s performing a public service?”
“It could be.” He cupped her cheek and rubbed his thumb over her bottom lip. “We’ll never know, because we’ll be too involved with each other to notice the reaction.”
“I still say you’re crazy.”
“Probably.” He slipped an arm around her waist and scooted closer. “Come on, Darcie. Get crazy with me.”
As his mouth found hers, she knew he was right. Making out in the grass was exactly what they should be doing. It felt incredibly exciting to be lying here pulsing with sexual urges that wouldn’t be completely satisfied. They didn’t have total privacy to do whatever they liked, and that would force them to take baby steps and build the anticipation for what would come later, all in good time.
His kiss was deeper than before and far more suggestive. His tongue probed with an urgency that had been missing earlier. He cradled her face in one large hand and his thumb teased the corner of her mouth as he drew back long enough to murmur his request. “Wider, Darcie. Let me in.”
She slackened her jaw and he invaded. There was no other word for it. She moaned and wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders, holding on for all she was worth. He kissed her with a thoroughness that made her quiver.
As her heart pounded and moisture gathered between her thighs, he began unbuttoning her blouse. Slowly he worked his way down the row of buttons while continuing a kiss that made her dizzy. She’d never wanted someone so desperately and yet known she couldn’t have him. Her body clenched.
He pulled the blouse out of her waistband and brushed the material aside. Cool air touched her hot skin. She hadn’t dressed for this kind of seduction, so he’d have to deal with the back clasp of her bra. She wondered if he’d have trouble with it. He didn’t. Slipping a hand behind her back, he flipped the catch with practiced ease.
And then . . . then his big hand cupped her sensitive breast and she gasped at the pleasure of it. He couldn’t know how intensely she experienced touch, and tonight, when she couldn’t have all that she craved, the force of her desire stunned her. This single contact of skin on skin ignited the flame of an impending climax.
His groan of pleasure rose deep in his chest and vibrated through their kiss. Suspending that heated kiss, he gulped in air. “Darcie, you have no idea . . .” He leaned his forehead against hers, his breathing ragged. “I wish I could see you.” His fingers flexed.
Her womb contracted in response. “We could go back.”
“No. This is . . . for the best. But I have to . . . I need . . .” Sliding down, he pushed her bra aside and held her breast in readiness for his mouth.
When his lips closed over her nipple and he began to suck, she gripped his shirt and squeezed her eyes shut. She was caught in a whirlpool of sensation that would probably shock him. She’d imagined that making out on the grass would be a tame thing. How wrong she’d been.
First he’d aroused her mind and then he’d aroused her senses. Now she was in the full flood of passion, responding to his touch, needing to give herself to him, yet unable to . . . to . . .oh, she was lost . . . she was . . . coming . . .
Her body arched of its own accord, and at the last minute she swallowed her cry of release and collapsed on the grass, panting.
He lifted his head and gazed down at her in wonder. “Darcie?”
She dragged in a breath. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that, but I couldn’t . . . couldn’t stop . . .”
“Sorry?” He rained kisses on her face. “Sorry? You are the most responsive woman I’ve ever touched, and you’re sorry?”
“I know you just wanted to . . . to make out. You didn’t expect . . . that.”
“No, but I love that it happened.” He gathered her close. “Ah, Darcie, it’s going to take all the control I have to walk you back to your room and leave you there, but that’s what I’m going to do.”
“You can come in. We can –”
“And we will, but not tonight. Taking it slow with you is a challenge, but I’m determined to do the best I can because I want to get this right. I might not be able to hold out much longer, but I can leave you at your door and go back to my room . . . this once.”
Despite being dazed by her climax, she recognized that this was a point of honor for him. If they didn’t make love tonight, then they would have exercised the kind of restraint that he admired, the kind that would lead to a lasting relationship. She wanted that as much or more than he did.
As she started to tell him that, she heard voices on the path. “Nolan. We’re about to have company and I’m not decent.”
“Sit up and I’ll fasten your bra while you button your blouse. We’ll work fast.”
The threat of an approaching audience galvanized her, and she pushed herself upright and began working on her buttons. By the time the strolling couple rounded the curve, she and Nolan sat facing each other cross-legged as if they’d simply been talking and enjoying the music of the waterfall.
Nolan was once again wearing his glasses. “Nice night,” he called out.
“Beautiful,” the woman answered. “You picked a good spot.”
“We think so.” He reached for Darcie’s hand and gave it a squeeze.
She was grateful for the dim light because she must look thoroughly kissed, not to mention sexually satisfied, at least on a superficial level. She yearned for full body contact with Nolan, but intellectually and emotionally she agreed with his decision. If she didn’t agree physically, too bad. She could postpone short-term pleasure for a long-term reward.
Once the couple had turned back toward the hotel, Nolan stood and helped her up. Then he gathered her into his arms and nestled her head against his shoulder. “Thank you for the most memorable stargazing experience I’ve ever had.”
Her voice was muffled against his shirt. “I don’t think you gazed at a single star.”
He drew back and held her by the shoulders as he smiled into her eyes. “Yes, I did. She’s right in front of me.”
Her heart swelled, but she didn’t trust this feeling. Not yet. “I’m not a star, but thank you for saying that. Maybe you should be a poet instead of a sci-fi novelist.”
He looked down at her and shook his head as he continued to smile. “I think you missed telling me about one of your failings.”
“I’m sure I missed telling you about a whole bunch of them, but what springs to mind?”
“That you don’t really believe you’re awesome.”
Her chest tightened. It was a direct hit, but she wasn’t willing to show it. “I kind of do.”
“Maybe a little, but not enough.” Leaning forward, he feathered a kiss on her lips. “But that’s okay. I plan to show you that you deserve every wonderful thing that comes your way.”
She gazed up at him as unfamiliar emotions swirled through her, but one thought kept surfacing, and she figured he should hear it. “I think you might be one of them.”
“That would be great, wouldn’t it?”
“Yes. Yes, it would.” She actually had no doubt that he was a wonderful gift that had come her way. She couldn’t remember being happier as they walked hand-in-hand back to the hotel. She’d halfway fallen in love with him just reading his chart. It wouldn’t take long to fall the rest of the way.
Because he was an inventive and considerate man, he proposed that they use her key to go in a side door and avoid the lobby. True to his word, he walked her to her door but refused to come in. She made a half-hearted attempt to change his mind, but she was so damned impressed with his resolve that she didn’t try very hard.
Once she was inside her room, she leaned against the closed door and willed him to come back and knock. He didn’t, of course, because he was a man of his word. She hadn’t met as many of those as she would have liked, but a flyer advertising Space Expo had brought her to Nolan Bradbury.
After taking a long, hot shower, she put on the plush hotel bathrobe, settled into the desk chair, and turned on her computer. She had more research to do, and she wouldn’t sleep well until she did it.
She’d been working for about thirty minutes when her phone chimed with an incoming text. Her adrenaline level spiked. Maybe Nolan couldn’t sleep either. Maybe he’d changed his mind and wondered if she was still awake.
Nobility was fine, but it was after midnight. Officially they were into a new day, so perhaps his code wouldn’t be violated if they got together now, after the calendar had changed over. She was perfectly willing to split hairs if he was.
The text was simple. If you’re up, call me.
She wasted no time doing that. Although she wanted to believe his urgency was sexual, would love to think that, in fact, her intuition told her otherwise. She sensed it in his message. Something was wrong.
He answered immediately. “I hope I didn’t wake you.”
“No. I was working.”
He blew out a breath. “I debated bothering you with this, but you . . . you know things, and I don’t understand what’s going on.”
Her throat constricted with fear. “What’s happened?”
“This morning I found a note on the lectern.” He described it and told her he’d thought it was a joke, maybe having something to do with the rivalry between his team and Sterling’s.
“That’s reasonable, and probably harmless.” She said it only because she wanted it to be so. But it wasn’t harmless. She could feel the menace threatening him.
“I thought so, too. Then I came back to my room tonight. Someone had been here.”
“A maid?”
“Not a maid. Someone who didn’t belong in this room, someone who’d managed to get a key.”
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