Treading Water

by Marie Force

  They dined on one exquisite course after another. The musicians kept up a quiet tempo while they ate the delicious food and enjoyed the exceptional wine. After they shared a chocolate soufflé for dessert, Jack held out his hand to her.

  He escorted her to the small dance floor at the front of the room and pulled her close as the musicians swung into a different tune. One of them stepped to the microphone and to sing “The Way You Look Tonight.”

  “Jack,” she gasped when she heard the familiar song.

  “I wanted to be sure you’d remember all our first times,” he whispered, brushing his lips over hers.

  The band played one love song after another as they danced close together. After a while she looked up to study his handsome face.

  “What is it?”

  “Just admiring the view.”

  He smiled. “Happy?”

  “Mmmm.” She rested her face against his chest. His heart beat against her cheek as she played with the hair that curled above his collar.

  “Let’s get some air,” he said, leading her off the dance floor with a wave of thanks to the musicians.

  Jack dropped his tuxedo jacket over her shoulders, and they leaned on the rail to watch the water rush by below as the sleek yacht sluiced through the vast lake.

  “I can’t believe you did this, Jack. I’m overwhelmed.” She reached for him and could tell she surprised him with a deep, searching kiss.

  His hands moved with tantalizing slowness on her back under the jacket he’d put around her.

  Her skin tingled from his touch.

  The kiss went on forever, or so it seemed, before he pulled back to kiss her cheeks, her forehead, and the end of her nose. “I can’t get enough of you,” he said, his voice hoarse as he kissed her again. “I need you so much, Andi. Tell me you’ll give us a chance.”

  “I want to so badly. More than anything.”

  “But?”

  “I’m so afraid of getting hurt again. It nearly killed me once before. I don’t know if I’d survive it again—not when it’s so much bigger this time.”

  Jack leaned his forehead against hers. “As much as I wish I could offer you guarantees, that’s one thing I don’t have to give. All I can do is tell you again how much I love you and how much I want to be with you—if you’ll have me. That’s all I’ve got right now.”

  She reached up to caress his face. “It’s far more than I’ve ever had before.”

  He reached for her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm.

  A tremble rippled through Andi. She’d never wanted anything more than she wanted him.

  “There’s a very cozy stateroom down below that’s ours for the evening.” Tilting his head in invitation, he extended a hand.

  Aware that she was agreeing to far more than a few hours in a cozy stateroom, Andi met his gaze and sealed her fate by wrapping her fingers around his.

  He led her down a small flight of stairs and through a narrow hallway. The moment he closed the cabin door behind him, he reached for her.

  Their kiss quickly became urgent.

  She pushed his tuxedo jacket off her shoulders, and it fell to the floor. Reaching for his collar, she removed the bow tie and went to work on the onyx studs lining his shirt.

  He unzipped her dress. With a soft flutter, it billowed into a cloud at her feet. “Oh my God,” he whispered, gawking at the ivory lace corset that boosted her full breasts to overflowing.

  Pushing his shirt aside, Andi rested her hands on his hips and pressed her lips to his chest. Flicking her tongue over his nipple, she was thrilled by the deep groan that rumbled through him.

  He surprised her when he filled his hands with her bottom, lifted her off her feet, and devoured her mouth.

  Andi wrapped her arms and legs around him and pushed her core tight against his erection.

  Their tongues mated frantically.

  “Andi,” he gasped. “I want you so badly.”

  “I’m yours, Jack. Take me.”

  He eased her down to the bed and fumbled with the corset. “How do I get you out of this damned thing?”

  Laughing at him, she rolled over so she was facedown, showing him the clasp on the back.

  He unhooked her, his lips worshiping each new bit of soft skin as he uncovered it. When she would’ve turned over, he held her still. “Wait.”

  Her heart pounded with desire and anticipation as he unzipped his pants and let them fall to the floor.

  He reached for the pins in her hair and tugged at them to free her curls. Bringing a handful of her hair to his face, he took a long deep breath. “You smell like heaven, Andi.” He moved her hair to one side to leave hot, wet kisses on her neck.

  Under him, Andi squirmed with impatience.

  “Relax, honey,” he whispered. “We’ve got all night.”

  “I need you, Jack. I’ve missed you so much.”

  He kissed her cheek, her neck, her shoulder, the middle of her back. “I missed you, too. So very much.” He ran his hands over her bottom, and her breath got caught in her throat. Lifting her to her hands and knees, he moved behind her.

  He held her open with his fingers, tormenting her with his tongue until her legs shook and her heart raced.

  As she teetered on the edge, he drove himself into her and sent her flying.

  Holding her hips still and pumping into her, he rode wave after wave of her orgasm. “Do you like it this way?” he asked, sounding breathless.

  Out of her mind and unable to form a single coherent thought, she said, “Mmm.”

  Increasing the pace, he reached around to stroke her to another shattering climax and then cried out with his own.

  Without losing their connection, they fell into a heaving pile on the bed. For a long time, they were quiet as they struggled to catch their breath.

  “Jack?”

  His cheek pressed to her back, he muttered, “Hmm?”

  “What made you decide to do this? To come here?”

  He withdrew from her and shifted onto his back. “You’ll laugh if I tell you.”

  She turned so she could see him in the faint light. “Now you have to tell me.”

  “Well, first, my mother gave me a not-so-subtle kick in the ass and told me I’d be an idiot to let you go,” he admitted with a sheepish grin.

  “Remind me to thank her someday.”

  “And I missed you so much after you left. I never want to feel that way again.”

  “I was sick with missing you.”

  “Why am I secretly glad to hear that?” he asked with a smile.

  “Ha! So you’ve wined and dined me and somehow managed to get me back in bed. What’s your next move, Romeo?” She crooked her elbow and propped her head on her hand.

  Trailing a finger between her breasts, he said, “I won’t divulge my plan, except to say it seems to be working quite well so far.” He ducked when she swatted at him.

  She scooted over so she was on top of him and pinned him down. “I want some answers, mister. Tell me how you knew my dress and shoe sizes.”

  He flipped them so he was back on top. “I’ll answer three questions and not one more.”

  “How did you know my shoe and dress sizes?”

  “That’s two.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Fine! How did you know my shoe size?” When he nibbled on her neck and ear, she pushed him back. “Stop trying to change the subject.”

  “Okay, busybody, if you must know, Quinn called Jen.”

  “Jen was in on this and didn’t tell me? I’ll kill her!”

  “She didn’t know why I wanted to know.”

  “But she knew you were coming?”

  “Is that your second question?”

  “Jaaaaack!”

  He laughed. “Yes, she knew I was coming, but Quinn swore her to secrecy.”

  “I’ll still kill her.”

  He kissed the end of her nose. “No, you won’t. It was fun to surprise you, and you had a good time.”

  “T
hat’s true, but I get one more question,” she reminded him when he tried to kiss her more seriously.

  “What’s that?” he asked against her lips.

  With her hands on his shoulders, she held him off because this one mattered. “What happens now?”

  “I have a few ideas, but we don’t need to talk about it right now, do we?” he asked as he cupped her breasts and ran his thumbs over her nipples.

  She shuddered with pleasure. “I suppose it can wait.”

  Chapter 12

  Andi dragged herself out of a sound sleep to go home in the middle of the night, since she knew her mother wouldn’t approve of an all-nighter. I’m thirty-seven years old and still worried about my mother’s approval, she thought as they rode the elevator to her top-floor apartment. Andi hadn’t mentioned her mother’s disapproval to Jack and didn’t plan to.

  She hugged him at her front door. “Thank you for the most amazing evening.”

  “It was entirely my pleasure. I’ll see you at your office later this morning after my meeting with David. Will you be able to leave around noon for the game?”

  She stifled a yawn. “Mmm, but I’ll probably fall asleep in the third inning.”

  “Go get some rest. I’ll see you in few hours,” he said with one last kiss.

  Jack let the car go so he could walk the short distance to the hotel. Even though it was still dark, the sky was shot with the first traces of sunrise. After the evening with Andi, he was more convinced than ever that they had a future together if they could figure out a way to make it happen.

  Back at the hotel, he managed a few hours of sleep before his meeting with David Johnson. Waiting in the conference room, Jack stretched out the kinks of the nearly sleepless night.

  A burst of energy preceded David into the room.

  Jack stood to shake hands with the youthful-looking man with the bright red hair who presided over Infinity.

  “It’s such a pleasure to finally meet you, Jack.”

  “Likewise,” Jack said, withstanding the scrutiny of one of Andi’s closest friends. “I’m sorry I’ve been unable to get out here to meet you before now.”

  “We’ve enjoyed working with your team. They’ve done an outstanding job of capturing just what we were looking for in the Newport property.”

  “I’m glad you’re pleased with it.”

  “I don’t know if Jamie told you that I once had secret ambitions to be an architect myself, but when the family business called…” David shrugged and smiled.

  “Ah, that explains why the CEO himself is involved with the building plans.”

  “I’ve overseen the design of all the properties we’ve built since I took over the helm. It’s my way of having my cake and eating it, too, if you will.”

  “Maybe we could put you to work on some of our projects.”

  “Don’t tempt me,” David said with a chuckle as they rolled out the latest plans for the hotel.

  Jack pointed out the recent updates, most of which had been made to appease the coastal resources council. “We should be set now with the coastal requirements, but we’ll know for sure next week. If everything goes according to plan and the weather cooperates, we should be on schedule to open a year from December.”

  “That’s good. I wanted a winter opening, so we could work out any kinks before the high season. I particularly like the new veranda on the south side. I can’t wait to see it finished.” David rolled up the plans. “Andi and her team were very impressed with Newport.”

  Jack sat down across from him. “We enjoyed having them.”

  David leaned forward to rest his arms on the table. “Jack, may I be frank?”

  “Of course.”

  “I know you didn’t come to Chicago to show me these plans.”

  “Guilty as charged.”

  “Andi hasn’t said much about what’s going on, but I’ve heard a few rumors. Let me just say this—Andi and Eric mean a lot to me. They’re family.” He signed the word “family,” to make it clear he spent a lot of time with the boy.

  “I appreciate your concern, and I’m aware of what she’s been through. I hope it makes you feel better to know I love her.”

  “It does. She deserves some happiness. That bastard she was married to left some serious wreckage behind. I don’t want to see her hurt like that again.”

  “I’ll never hurt her intentionally, David. I can promise you that.”

  “I guess that’ll have to be good enough.”

  Jen was away from her desk when Jack arrived at Andi’s office. Through the open door, he could see her working at her desk, lost in concentration as she pored over fabric swatches. He watched her smother a yawn and then cleared his throat to let her know he was there.

  “Hey,” she said, welcoming him with a warm smile.

  “Am I disturbing you?”

  “Please come disturb me.” She got up to close the door. “How do you manage to look so good with no sleep? I’m a wreck.”

  He sat and drew her onto his lap. “If that’s what you look like when you’re a wreck, I can’t wait to get you really tired.”

  Today she wore a fashionable black pantsuit with a fuchsia silk blouse. She’d left her hair down the way he liked it. When he put his arms around her, she rested her head on his shoulder.

  “I couldn’t wait to see you this morning,” she whispered in his ear.

  “Me either.” He kissed her forehead. “I just had an interesting conversation with your friend David.”

  She raised her head to look at him. “Interesting how?”

  “He more or less asked my intentions.”

  Groaning, she said, “I’m sorry. He’s very protective. We go back to college, and he and his wife Lauren were so good to me after Alec left.”

  “I’m glad you have someone like him looking out for you. I like him.”

  “I thought you would. You two have a lot in common.” She paused, dropped her eyes, and added, “So what are your intentions?”

  He raised her chin to compel her to look at him. “I’ll tell you the same thing I told him. I love you, and I’ll never hurt you on purpose.”

  “When will we see each other?”

  “Weekends, holidays, whenever we can. For now.”

  “For now?”

  “Let’s just take it a week at a time and see how it goes, okay?”

  “I suppose that’ll work. For now.” She pressed her lips to his. “When do you have to leave?”

  “Tomorrow afternoon.”

  “So soon?”

  “I want to stay longer, but Jill’s playing in a big lacrosse tournament this week, and I need be there. I missed too much last year.”

  She stood up and went over to her desk to check her calendar. “What about next weekend?”

  They went back and forth and ended up at Columbus Day—the weekend of Quinn’s wedding.

  “Why don’t you and Eric come with us?”

  “Are you sure she won’t mind?”

  “I’m positive.”

  “What about the girls?”

  “I’ll talk to them before you come. Don’t worry. We’ll take the boat, since I gave Quinn the Block Island house for the wedding.”

  “You’re a good guy, Jack Harrington.” Andi returned to his lap. “But now that you’ve come and swept me off my feet, how am I supposed to live without you for almost a month?”

  “I was just wondering the same thing.” He checked his watch and found it was five after noon. “We need to leave soon to see a boy about a ballgame.”

  She got up, straightened her desk, and shut off her computer.

  He took her briefcase and put his arm around her. “There’s a defect in my suite I wanted to bring to your attention,” he said in a serious tone. “It’s something the chief decorator should probably tend to personally.”

  She laughed. “You’re shameless.”

  “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He held her close during the elevator ride to the fifte
enth floor. “Ever done it in an elevator?”

  “Shameful.”

  Flashing her a dirty grin, he pulled off his tie and released his top button.

  The elevator doors opened, and he led her to his suite where they spent an hour checking the “defects” before the game.

  After the game and dinner, they rode the elevator to Andi’s apartment. Eric was asleep on Jack’s shoulder, clutching a new Cubs pennant in one hand, his baseball glove in the other. Jack helped Andi undress the boy and get him into bed.

  “Whew,” she said as they tiptoed out of Eric’s room and closed the door halfway. “He’s done for.”

  Jack yawned and followed her to the living room. “I know how he feels.”

  “He had a wonderful time, Jack. Thanks again for getting the tickets.”

  “I loved it when he crawled into my lap at the game. He’s adorable.”

  “I’ve decided to keep him.”

  Jack stretched out on the sofa and invited her to join him. “Are you still upset about your mom? She seemed pretty pissed.”

  Andi snuggled into his embrace. “I’m disappointed. It’s not like her to be so rude.”

  “She’s worried about you. I can understand that.”

  “It’s funny, really, because she loved Alec, and look at how that worked out.”

  “She doesn’t want you hurt like that again.”

  “This is different.” She turned to face him. “It’s different.”

  With his hands on her face, he kissed her gently, a charge of excitement coursing through him as it did every time he touched her. It was different. He felt it, too. “Are you sure your mother is staying at her sister’s?”

  “Yep.”

  He worked his way free of the sofa, held out a hand to help her up, and swept her into his arms. “Which way to your room?”

  She laughed and pointed the way.

  Chapter 13

  A few days before Andi and Eric arrived for Quinn’s wedding, Jack asked the girls if he could talk to them after dinner.

  “What’s up, Dad?” Jill plopped down next to him on the sofa. She looked more like a woman than a girl these days, and his heart ached at the thought that this time next year, she’d be in college. He wasn’t ready.