“Not a stitch,” he answered.
I pictured him naked. The thought made me hot. I wondered if he was feeling the same thing. Suddenly, I wished I had agreed to meet him at his place. Sex with Don was better than anything I’d known before. And I’d rather have real sex than virtual.
“Don, I’m going to bed now. I wouldn’t want to get you all worked up and then withdraw.”
“Chicken.”
“What did you say?” I asked. “Did you call me a chicken?”
He made a barnyard chicken call into the phone. I imagined him doing the strut around his living room.
Naked, of course.
* * *
I won’t say that skinny woman clinging to Shane didn’t shake my confidence. She did. And the other women who seemed to materialize in front of him took their place in line to push that confidence aside. They were all beautiful, young, and thin. But three drinks later and hours until the sun made an appearance wiped them from my memory. I didn’t even remember Ella Francis existed. She’d disappeared from the crowd and hadn’t been seen again.
Sometime during the night the furniture was moved and dancing broke out. Band members joined and an impromptu jam session ensued. Shane joined them for a while. Then he came to me, holding me and dancing with me several times. Unfortunately, he was often pulled away by the many women vying for his attention. I loved being in his arms, but I could see I had to share whether I liked it or not.
“Don’t mind them,” Jordan said next to me when I was watching Shane dance with another woman.
I glanced at him, but said nothing.
“Shane’s always been like that, a magnet for the ladies. But he never takes advantage.”
I looked at him then, both curious and surprised at the comment.
“I don’t know why,” he went on. “They throw themselves at him like dancing fairies. But you’re the first woman he’s ever brought with him. So you must be very special.”
“We haven’t—” I was cut off by someone calling Jordan to the phone. He smiled, apologized, and walked toward the cell phone being held in the air.
How could I be anyone special, I asked myself. Shane and I had only met a few weeks ago. And he didn’t know that I’d told him lies and was pretending to be someone I wasn’t.
When the crowd thinned out, we found seats near the balcony and looked out on the night. Daybreak would come soon. Shane’s arm was along the back of the chair and he held me close to him. We talked quietly for a while, then fell silent. It was a moment I’d want to remember forever. I was happy, yet there was something bothering me. I didn’t want to bring it up. I wasn’t sure the timing was right. Actually, I was sure the timing was wrong.
“Tired?” he asked. His head turned and he kissed my temple.
“I’m not used to such long days.”
Shane stood up and pulled me with him. “Come on, I’ll walk you to your room.”
The sun was coming up when Shane and I reached my door. His room was across the hall. I slipped the electronic key in the lock. The soft click disengaged the mechanism. Pushing the door open, I took Shane’s hand, pulling him inside behind me. I wasn’t ready for the night to end even though the sun was already painting the sky.
“Are you sure?” he asked, after the door closed and locked.
“Very sure,” I said, pushing aside pulsing questions that filled my head.
“I didn’t bring you here for this,” he said.
I kissed him lightly on the mouth. “I know,” I replied. My voice held the emotion I felt and that the kiss intensified. It had only been a light touching of our lips, but the promise it held was enough to have me yearning for much more.
Boldly I pushed my hands under the sweater he wore. His skin was already damp. I lifted up on my toes and kissed him again. This time he joined me. Our mouths melded as if we were meant to be together. That out of the billions of souls on earth, the two of us had been put there by design. Destined for each other, destined to share in the one true purpose of life.
Shane found the zipper on my dress and pulled it down.
“I’m not thin,” I told him. Ella Francis came to mind as his hands touched my bare back. “I have mounds and curves.”
“And don’t I know it,” he breathed. “I’m planning to find each and every one of them.”
He moved me back toward the bed. Slowly, piece by piece, we undressed each other, sharing kisses and finding areas of pleasure on each other. Shane made me feel special. He seemed to revel in my size, not tease me about it. I wasn’t self-conscious with him. I was proud of the way he looked at me, his eyes dark with a hunger that made me think I was the only one in the world capable of satisfying it.
His hands were smooth as he caressed every inch of me. My body hummed with need and anticipation. I panted, unable to keep myself from the physical expression of the hunger I felt for our joining. I wanted him more than I thought possible.
Lying on the bed, I pulled him toward me. I wanted to be covered by him, joined with him. I wanted to feel his body inside mine with a strength so potent it wiped away any inhibitions I held. Shane must have felt the same. Grabbing his pants, he pulled out a condom and cracked the foil pouch. After protecting us, his knee spread my legs and he entered me.
A short sound of pleasure emitted from my throat. My body gained comfort with the invasion of his. He moved inside me, causing a profound joy to spread like fire as it rushed through me. I wrapped my legs around him as he dug into me. Harder and faster he stroked me. I could do nothing except breathe and match his pace.
The world seemed to recede at that moment. Nothing mattered except the pleasure I felt and how I could make him feel. My hands stroked his shoulders, my fingers raked over his skin. It was fire hot. Yet Shane’s body pumped into mine, taking me time and again, until I thought I’d explode from spontaneous combustion. Yet I went on. Shane went on.
This was going to kill me, I thought, but I wanted it, wanted more and more and more. I wanted our connection, our lovemaking to go on forever. My body writhed beneath his, accepting his weight, accepting the pleasure code he knew and I was finding with each joining. My breath came in short gasps. Shane gathered my butt cheeks and held them, plunging deep into me, driving my physical enjoyment up several notches. If I thought I was going to die before, this was really going to kill me.
“Shane!” I shouted his name, unable to do anything else. I wanted to tell him how good I felt, how good he made me feel, but I was incapable of speech.
And then I felt it coming, the wave of sensation so powerful that the threat of explosion was imminent. The wave grew and grew, taking me up with it. I surrendered to it, allowing it to take me as far and high and it wanted. Finally it crested and for an eon I was weightless, suspended as pure energy, on some plane of pleasure that found every hill and valley of my body and stroked it into a fiery life. Sound had no existence in that place. It was completely quiet and open only to feelings.
Then it was over. We crashed back to earth, breathing heavily. Shane held me, hugged me close to him as if he was unwilling to end the moment. Both of us panted, sucking in air as if we’d been in a vacuum and just returned to an atmosphere.
“Damn,” he said. His hands rubbed lovingly over my curves, making me feel warm and wanting him again. “Any longer and I’d be dead.”
Chapter 16
The kitchen is the hub of most homes, and for the three of us, vacation made no difference. The smell of coffee wafted through the air. Frying bacon had my stomach juices churning. The mixture of aromas pulled me toward the kitchen and the opulent smell of a good breakfast. As I stepped off the last rung and took a step toward the hub of activity, I heard whispered voices. Lila and Jack were talking, but they weren’t using normal inside voices. I strained to hear what they were saying, thinking it was probably about me, but the sound was too low.
Making enough noise to alert them of my presence, I walked into the kitchen. Going straight to the coffeepot, I poured a c
up, adding cream and sugar.
“What’s up?” I asked.
“I have an idea,” Lila announced. “I think we should have a party.”
Jack took a huge intake of air and held it for several seconds before exhaling. She looked up at me. “That’s a wonderful idea,” she said. “We could invite a lot of those Howard men.”
“Is that what you two were discussing before I walked in?”
Jack dropped her head, covering her surprise by drinking from the cup in front of her.
“Yes,” Lila said, doing the opposite of Jack. The single word was strongly delivered. She lifted her chin, ready to take anything I had to confront them with.
I had nothing. I couldn’t hear what they’d been discussing before I came in. My head was throbbing. Sleep had eluded me last night. I’d warned Don about getting excited, but the same was true of me. They wanted a party, and all I could think of was being in bed with him.
“We could invite some of the men we’ve met, too,” Lila suggested, her voice lifting positively at the end.
My attention snapped back to her. “Does that include—”
She was nodding before I finished the comment. “Him, too. After all, Don’s been nice to us. It would be rude to have a party and exclude him.” She paused, giving me a stoic look. “And if there is nothing between you two, what difference does it make? But if there is something, then it’s time you dealt with it.”
She was right, of course. But her comment sounded like another challenge. Don had issued one challenge after another. And I felt like I’d failed all of them. I had no choice. It didn’t matter if I agreed or refused Lila’s suggestion. Neither answer was the right one.
“I do think having a party is a good idea. Meeting people in social settings gives us the chance to test them out, so to speak. We can determine if their personalities mesh with ours. I’m sure there are people looking for something to do after the sun sets. A party seems like the right venue.”
A look passed between Lila and Jack that had me curious, but I didn’t pursue a reason for it. I was sure they were setting me up. But I was clued into the game. And I was ready for it.
I hoped.
“So you’re in?” Lila asked.
“Only so far. I don’t want to invite Don.”
“Why not?” Jack asked.
“He doesn’t fit the profile. If this party is for us to observe the wealthy men on the island, we already know Don is not one of them.”
“Ever think it’s time you gave up on this plan?” Jack asked, her voice low and dragging as if she were whispering a secret that everyone knew.
The look I gave her could shut down the sun. “Have you forgotten that your entire life savings is tied up in this venture?”
“No, I have not,” Jack challenged. After a moment she dropped her shoulders. “Amber, the plan doesn’t seem to be working.”
I looked from Jack to Lila. I knew Lila was seeing a guy who made furniture for a living and Jack was only just back from a weekend with a member of the band. Granted, he did know one superstar, but I still think he only wanted to get into Jack’s panties. And by all accounts of her conversation upon returning, it had worked.
“Well, maybe what we need is a new plan.”
* * *
The place was dressed for a party. Jack and Lila had outdone themselves, taking care of all the details. My contribution was a portion of the guest list. I was sure they had used Don as the other source. Sitting in front of the makeup mirror in my room, putting the final touches on my face, I could hear the caterers downstairs. They’d been there for an hour setting up tables, building pyramids of fruits and fresh vegetables, and God knew what else.
Standing up, I checked the hem of my dress. It was royal blue, sleeveless, backless, and stopped at the knee. The fabric had metallic silver threads running through it, causing the hem to swish when I walked. I loved the way it felt.
As I twisted around to leave the room, I got a glimpse of the driveway and immediately saw the logo of the St. Romaine on a van parked there. Anger flashed through me. I should have known there was something funky going on when Jack and Lila agreed to ride point on the party.
“All you have to do is provide a guest list.” I imitated Jack’s words. The tone of her voice should have been a warning. But it wasn’t. I’d made myself clear that I did not want Don Randall invited. So what to my wondering eyes should appear but the black Adonis and his staff of uniformed caterers.
Leaving the window, I marched down the hall and into Jack’s room.
“I didn’t invite him,” she said the moment I slammed her door shut. She stood in front of the bathroom mirror combing her hair.
“Not technically,” I said. “You just made it possible for him to be here.”
“I didn’t.”
“Then it had to be Lila. Or both of you in cahoots.”
As if on cue Lila pushed the door open and came in. Jack came out of the bathroom and the two stood together as if each needed to be support for the other.
“It was me,” Lila said. I could see she was planning to take all the blame, but Jack’s surprised glance spoke the truth.
“I suppose there was no other caterer on the island except the St. Romaine?” I said.
“No,” Lila said, shaking her head. “They were just the best.” She looked peeved for a moment.
“You said yourself, the food was good there. And we want to keep our guests happy. According to your plan, we’re top of the line. What better way to reinforce that than to use the best available?”
“Now you want to use the plan,” I said. “A week ago the plan wasn’t working.” I pointedly stared at Jack.
She took a step forward. “Amber, it’s going to be fine. Don probably won’t even be here.”
“Wrong.” I interrupted anything further she might want to say. “He’s already downstairs.”
“He’s probably just checking things. You know how meticulous he is about details.” Lila’s voice was hesitant. She was making it up as she went along and I knew it.
I suddenly relaxed. “You know what?” I said. “It doesn’t matter. I can ignore him.” Sure, we were great in bed, I thought, but whenever we decided to talk, we ended up arguing and unlike fiction, our arguments did not turn me on. Except for our life in bed, two more incompatible people didn’t exist on the planet. Tonight I would show Don Randall how little his presence meant to me.
“Come on, ladies.” I started for the door. The two of them parted, assuming I’d walk through them. And I would have. “We have guests coming.”
I opened the door. The long hallway loomed in from of me. “I hope you’re ready,” I said, glancing over my shoulder. “There very likely will be a storm tonight.”
Straightening my shoulders, I led the trio down the stairs. It was time to make sure everything was all right and to welcome our guests. Lila and Jack hung back when we entered the main room. Don stood in the center talking to one of the caterers. He was facing the doorway and I walked directly to him.
Magically, the caterer left as I came face-to-face with him. “Are you here as a guest or part of the staff?”
He flashed that disarming smile I’d come to know. My insides wanted to melt, but I forced them to freeze in place.
“Both,” he said.
“May I see your invitation?”
I held my hand out. Invitations had been Lila’s idea. She thought it made the party more elegant and gave it an exclusive feel. Not that there would be gate crashers on the Vineyard.
Don took his time. His hand went into his inside pocket and out came a black envelope. I recognized it immediately as identical to the ones we’d sent out. I even recognized Jack’s handwriting. Behind me I heard her gasp, but I didn’t turn to look at her.
Don pulled the invitation free of its sleeve and placed it in my hand.
“Thank you,” I said, irritated that Jack had invited him. “Enjoy yourself.” I turned to leave.
&n
bsp; “Shall I save a dance for you? Maybe the last dance?”
He stopped my exit. Over my shoulder, I raked my eyes over him, then walked away.
The rooms filled immediately. Before I knew it there were people everywhere. Lila was smiling into the eyes of the man whose lap she’d been sitting on the night I’d spent with Don. Jack had made it her job to answer the door. I saw her go up on her toes and kiss one of the arriving guests. It was Shane Massey, the man she’d spent the weekend with.
So much for this party, unless it was for me to find a man. Obviously, the two of them had made their choices.
I didn’t look for Don, but it seemed there was an invisible string that connected to us. I knew where he was by some form of personal radar.
“Amber!”
I turned as someone called my name rather loudly. Dr. Wilson Loring held a glass of champagne as he approached me.
“I’ve been looking for you.”
I raised my eyebrows inquiring the reason.
“Let’s dance,” he said. Taking my arm without giving me time to agree or refuse, he led me toward the ballroom. Handing his glass to a passing waiter, he turned me into his arms. Surprisingly, the doctor was a good dancer and I found myself smiling and accepting a second dance with him. I hoped Don was looking, hoped he saw me having a good time. And hoped it was eating him alive. I didn’t have to fake it. I was enjoying myself. And as my consumption of the expensive champagne we’d ordered grew, so did my joy. I danced with everyone. The music got into my body, down to the marrow of my bones, and I let it sing to me.
My arms were in the air and my hips were swaying from side to side. I sang to the music and partner after partner joined me on the floor. It seemed like every man we invited came. But I wasn’t counting. I was too busy rubbing my body against whoever was with me.
My dress was drenched and my throat parched after the notes to the last song ended. I headed for the bar and something more to keep my high on.
“Pushing it a little hard, aren’t you?”
I didn’t have to look to know it was Don speaking. Even through the fog of my brain, I recognized his voice. And it still had the ability to get inside me.
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