The Rana Look

by Sandra Brown

  “Can’t you relax and visit awhile longer” Trent said, catching her arm.

  “I’m sure you and Tom have a lot to talk about, so I’ll leave you alone. It was nice to meet you, Tom.”

  He stood up, shuffling his feet awkwardly. “Likewise.”

  “See you later, darling.” Trent tugged on her wrist and pulled her down for a lengthy kiss. When she straightened back up, she nodded self-consciously at Tom. After retrieving her package she went upstairs.

  Trent watched her go, a smile on his lips. He was remembering last night. His loins stirred with the memory of how good her hair felt brushing against his thighs. Once she was out of sight, he turned back to Tom, who was sitting with his big feet spread wide, staring at the floor between them.

  “Well, what do you think” Trent asked, taking a long pull on his can of beer.

  Tom twiddled his thumbs, cleared his throat, rolled his shoulders, blew out a gust of air, and finally raised his head. “I think you’re probably the cruelest, coldest, most self-centered sonofabitch I’ve ever known.”

  Trent slowly lowered the can of beer. He kept his eyes riveted on Tom as he set it on the coffee table. They stared at each other for a long moment; then Trent laughed shortly. “Any particular reason why?”

  Tom stood up and began prowling the room with a notable absence of grace. On the football field he could make impossible catches, leaping between three defenders to come up with the football. But now, he bumped into a tea table, upset a scrimshaw sculpture, and caught his toe in the corner of the rug. Finally, he made it across the obstacle course of the parlor to the window.

  “For what you’re doing to this woman,” he said in a low voice.

  “What I’m doing to this woman has brought each of us a tremendous amount of pleasure. Not that it’s any of your damn business,” Trent said tightly.

  Tom turned around abruptly, controlling his temper only a trifle more successfully than Trent. “You asked my opinion, remember? All right, you’re going to get it. I think the way you’re manipulating this woman is beneath even you, Trent.”

  “‘Even me’?”

  “Yeah, even you. I’ve seen you break dozens of female hearts. But most of the women you’ve dumped could take it. They had other interests. They had a lot of things going for them. Looks. Plenty of money. And other guys waiting in the wings. I’m not sure this woman can survive you.”

  “I hate to keep repeating you, but ‘survive’?”

  “What happens to her when you go off to summer camp?”

  “She stays here. She sure as hell can’t go and bunk with me. What happens to team wives when the married guys leave for summer camp or travel during the season? I don’t get your drift, Tom.”

  “Then I’ll be more specific. What happens to her when you return from training camp, move back into your Houston house, and resume your old lifestyle?”

  “Once the season starts, my time won’t be my own. My job will cut our time together. Don’t you think I realize that?”

  “Then you intend to go on seeing her?”

  “Yes, dammit. What did you think?”

  “You intend to make her part of your life in Houston?”

  “Yes.”

  Tom shook his head in bafflement. “And do you honestly think she’ll fit in? That she’ll feel comfortable with your circle of friends?”

  “Why shouldn’t she?”

  “Why? Aw, come on, Gamblin. I’m your best friend. You don’t have to pull this dumb act with me. Look at her,” he cried, pointing toward the stairs. “Does she look like the women you usually romance?”

  Trent went rigid with fury. His powerful hands balled into fists at his sides. “I think you’d better leave.”

  “Like hell I will. I’m not saying this to hurt your feelings. I’m only pointing out what is already so plainly obvious in order to spare her a broken heart. Believe me, my sympathies are all with her.”

  “Well, thank you very much, but she doesn’t need your sympathies. And just what is it that’s so plainly obvious to you?”

  “That you’re using this woman to salve your ego, just as you’ve used this time away to heal your shoulder. She’s just what you needed. As you said yourself, the lady adores you. It’s apparent from the way she looks at you. It would be easy for any woman to fall for you, Trent. Hell, I’m a man, and I’m straight, but do you think I’m blind? You’re handsome. You’re a hunk. You’re a superstar in the sports world, and according to all reports I’ve heard-usually from women crying their hearts out over you-you’re a superstud in bed. What woman wouldn’t fall in love with you? Any man would envy the luck you have with women, but I think you’re a real bastard for taking advantage of it with this lady.”

  Trent placed his hands on his hips and tilted his head back in a challenging stance. “And just how am I doing that, Mr. Psychology Professor?” he asked, prodding his friend where he knew it would hurt the most. Tom Tandy had majored in psychology and had even earned a doctorate. But he felt that a “dumb jock” wouldn’t have much credibility in that field, so he had given up his dream to actually practice.

  Tom, rocking on the balls of his feet in an effort to stem his anger, answered calmly. He raised his large hands and began ticking off examples on his fingers. “In the last year you’ve squired a campus queen from the University of Texas whose daddy owns practically all of downtown Fort Worth; a young widow who controls not only her late husband’s cattle empire, but the minds of the social set in West Texas; a woman who chairs a bank in Corpus Christi; and a princess whose royal father is living out the rest of his life in this country in exile. Shall I go on?”

  Trent crossed his arms on his chest. “Please do, and get to the point.”

  “The point is that in each instance, your relationship with the woman rocked along fine… as long as you were winning. You lose a football game, and zip, the love affair is off. Zilch. Finis.”

  Trent shifted uncomfortably and turned his back on Tom, ostensibly to straighten an ashtray on the coffee table. “So I get moody after a loss. So?”

  “Uh-uh. It’s more than moodiness, my friend. You have to be top dog in the relationship. The star. You don’t want your woman to outshine you in any shape, form, or fashion.

  “You’re a natural competitor on the playing field and in business, and you always play fair. You actually enjoy the challenge. But your love life is one arena where you can’t stand competition. A beautiful or famous or talented or successful woman poses a threat to your ego, especially when you’re losing football games… or suffering from a shoulder injury that might end your career.” Tom came nearer and spoke softly, almost compassionately. “Ana Ramsey poses no such threat, does she, Trent?”

  Trent spun around, his jaw grinding with anger, but Tom wasn’t intimidated. He went on undaunted. “She’s not as good-looking as you. She certainly doesn’t outdress you. She doesn’t outrank you in the finance department. I’m sure she’s talented, but you’re the unqualified star this time, aren’t you?”

  He drew a deep sigh and laid his hand on Trent ‘s shoulder. “She was just what you needed a couple of weeks ago, a woman who adored you and who accepted your every word as gospel, who thought you could do no wrong. You represented Prince Charming to her. Let’s face facts, Trent. When you came here, you were on a losing streak. You’ve used Ana to pump up your deflated ego.”

  Trent ’s anger had dissipated, because some of what Tom had said was right. He liked and respected Tom Tandy both as an athlete and as a human being. Their friendship went back for years, and he supposed that fact gave Tom the freedom to speak candidly.

  “On some points you’re right, Tom. But you’re wrong about what I feel for Ana. Initially it was just as you say; I was out for a lark. She was convenient. So why not take advantage? I had nothing better to do.” He peered straight into his friend’s eyes. “But for the first time in my life, I came to really know a woman. It sounds sappy, but I love her. I know she’s different.
That’s what I love about her.”

  Tom searched Trent ’s face for a long while, weighing his sincerity. Then his ugly features stretched into an embarrassed smile. “Then I’ve been way out of line. I hope it all works out. Friends?” he asked, sticking out his hand.

  Trent grasped it warmly and slapped Tom’s shoulder. “Friends.”

  Tom left shortly after that. Trent bounded up the stairs shouting Ana’s name. “Where’s the fire?” she asked, poking her head out the door.

  “Right here.” He backed her into the room, shut the door with a tap of his foot, wrapped her in his arms, and branded her mouth with a kiss. “I want to make love.”

  “ Trent,” she said with a light laugh, and tried to wiggle out of his embrace.

  “Now.”

  “I’m right in the middle of-”

  He kissed her again and touched her knowingly. They were so familiar with each other by now that he knew what she responded to. The fire he spoke of spread into her, and was fueled by her never-ending desire for him.

  Clothes were discarded hastily. They knelt together on the floor. His mouth kissed its way down her throat to her breasts. Her back arched over his supporting arms and her heavy hair swung free. Undisciplined, his tongue caressed her nipples until they were taut and dewy. Then he eased her back, positioned her for maximum sensation, and entered her.

  Even after it was over, he lay nestled inside her, breathing the floral scent of her hair. It was already growing dusky outside, but he could see her well enough to wonder why Tom didn’t find her as beautiful as he did. Her hair was thick and silky as it spread out behind her head on the floor. Her skin, bathed with a sheen of perspiration from their vigorous lovemaking, seemed to glow in the diminishing light.

  He stayed sheathed inside her until he was ready to love her again. This time he went slowly, savoring each precious moment, each delicious sound she made in response to his stroking.

  No other woman had ever pleased him so well. All through the evening, he proved his delight in her repeatedly and denied everything that Tom had said. Especially to himself.

  Nine

  First Rana couldn’t remember why she didn’t want to wake up. Then it came to her, and she squeezed her eyes shut again.

  Trent was leaving today.

  Rolling onto her back, she stared at the ceiling over her bed and wondered if she would be able to handle his departure with dignity. Before she could think about it long, however, there was a discreet knock on her door. She scrambled from the bed and rushed across the room to open the door a crack.

  “I wouldn’t have to come tiptoeing across the hail at six A.M.if you’d let me spend the night in your bed. But I love you anyway.” Trent leaned forward and kissed her gently. Ruby knew about their affair, but Rana had remained steadfast about their need for some privacy from each other. She had stubbornly refused to sleep with him for the entire night. “Why aren’t you dressed to run?”

  “I didn’t know you’d want to,” she whispered back.

  “I do. This is our last morning to jog together on the Galveston beach. At least for a while.” He reached behind her and patted her bottom. “Hurry. I’ll be warming up on the front lawn.”

  So he was going to pretend that today was just like any other… at least for a few hours.

  When they returned from an exhilarating workout, they drank fruit juice and ate a light breakfast in the kitchen, as had become their habit. But when they were climbing the stairs, he took her hand and pulled her into his room, closing and locking the door behind them.

  “What are you doing?” she asked.

  “Locking you in. Today we shower together.”

  That had been another intimacy she had refused him. “ Trent, you know how-”

  He laid a finger over her lips. “No arguments. Consider this your send-off to a soldier on his way to the front.”

  “But-”

  “Do you love me?”

  He asked the question with such intensity that she dared not make light of it. “Yes,” she said truthfully. “I love you, Trent.”

  “And I love you. We’ve been as intimate as a man and woman can be. I’ve touched you, kissed you, everywhere. But I want to see you in the light. Do this for me. Please.”

  He was the first-and probably would be the last- person ever to love her just as she was. Could she deny him anything on their final day together? She didn’t protest when he began removing her ugly gray sweat suit. She let him peel away one shapeless garment after another until she stood before him naked.

  Several minutes ticked by before he said anything. His eyes traveled from the crown of her head to her feet, back up, then down again with more leisure. Bewildered, he hissed a soft curse.

  “Why do you dress the way you do? You’ve got one of the most spectacular bodies I’ve ever seen. I don’t understand,” he said hoarsely, shaking his head in confusion.

  Rana wanted to weep with happiness. His compliment meant more to her than any she had ever received. Words to the same effect had been repeated to her so often that they had lost their meaning. But Trent ’s speaking of them gave those words new significance.

  If she let herself dwell on it, she would cry, and if she began, she was afraid she would never stop. This was too precious a day to waste on tears. So she closed the distance between them and, standing on tiptoe, murmured against his lips. “You’re wearing too many clothes, Mr. Gamblin.” She began working his shorts down his hips.

  Before they stepped into the shower stall, he snatched off her glasses. She reached for them reflexively, but he held them far above her head. She turned her face aside.

  “Ana, look at me.”

  She loved him, didn’t she? If he did recognize her, would it matter so much now? He would leave her in a few hours anyway. Gradually her head came around, until she was staring up at him.

  He seemed to lose himself in the swirling depths of her eyes. “Such an unusual color,” he remarked distantly, as though talking to himself. “It’s a crime for you to hide such beautiful eyes behind these tinted lenses.”

  He put the glasses on the edge of the sink, then cupped her face between his hands and dotted it with soft kisses. He kissed her closed eyelids and her cheeks, her forehead and her chin, before settling his warm, open mouth over hers and sending his tongue deep into it.

  Their shower together became a ritual of love. Lips sipped water from pulsing flesh, unashamed and uninhibited. Soapy hands explored slick skin, caressed and massaged, earned murmurs of pleasure and sighs of fulfillment. His lathered fingers moved provocatively through the silky tuft at the top of her thighs. Slippery hands made milking motions that left him gasping.

  “You make me so hard,” he rasped, bringing their bodies together. Their coupling was exquisite and seemingly timeless.

  The water from the shower turned cool long before their ardor.

  Lunch was a solemn occasion. Ruby was unnaturally glum. “Are you sure you haven’t forgotten anything?”

  “I’ve packed everything and checked the room twice, Auntie. If I’ve overlooked anything, you can send it to my house in Houston. The housekeeper will be there even if I’m not.”

  Rana said little. She was concentrating on not bursting into tears, while she idly moved the unwanted chicken salad around on her plate.

  “What time is your flight?” Ruby asked.

  “We’re scheduled to take off at four, but I’m sure media interviews will delay us. They always do.” A frown creased his brow as he watched Ana. He had expected a little show of sadness on her part, since they wouldn’t be seeing each other for three weeks. He hadn’t thought she would be this despondent.

  “Will you be interviewed on camera?” Ruby asked him.

  “Maybe. Watch the news tonight and you might see me.” Trying to lighten the mood around the dining table, he winked at his aunt. “Should I wave to you?”

  When they had dragged out lunch as long as they possibly could, all that was left to d
o was say good-bye. Trent hugged his aunt and gave her a smack on the lips. “I thank you, the coach thanks you, the team thanks you, the fans thank you.”

  She pretended to be irritated. “What are you blabbering about, you silly boy?”

  “If you hadn’t given me a quiet room to rest in and three square meals a day, I wouldn’t be in such terrific condition. All the other guys will have a much harder time at camp than I will, and I owe it all to your tender, loving care.”

  Ruby blotted her damp eyes with a hanky and mumbled that he had an open invitation to come and stay any time. He would always be welcome at her house. After his promise to call her often, she discreetly withdrew, leaving him alone in the entrance hail with Rana. He had loaded his belongings in his car before lunch. It was waiting for him at the curb.

  Without a word, he pulled Rana into his arms. She buried her face in his neck and locked her hands together at the small of his back. She wished she could gather his strength, his smell, his warmth, and cork them in a bottle to be enjoyed later whenever she needed a “fix” of Trent.

  “Are you going to tell me?” he asked softly, stroking her hair.

  “Tell you what?”

  “Why you look like someone has just run over your kitty.”

  She smiled tremulously. “Is that what I look like?”

  “Or worse.”

  “I’m sad. I hate to see you go.”

  “It’s only for three weeks.”

  It’s for a lifetime.

  “I’ll call every night.”

  For a few nights, then you’ll skip a night, and then another.

  “I’m going to miss you. So damn much.”

  Until you meet someone else.

  He tilted her head back and kissed her. Knowing that this would be the last time she ever felt his lips on hers, she poured all her love for him into that kiss.

  When he pulled back, he let his thumb glide over her lips. “Kiss me like that a few more times, and I’ll be able to fly to California under my own power.” He hugged her quickly, fiercely. “See you in three weeks.”