“Okay.” She raised her hands in surrender. “So it’s a no-brainer.”
~*~
Dani danced with Haley in front of the portable stage while Ryan’s rendition of Bon Jovi’s Livin’ on a Prayer filled the high school gymnasium. Halfway through the energetic song, she ran out of steam and stopped to sway to the music.
“Why’d you quit dancing?” Haley hollered above the din. “Are you okay?”
“I’m tired.” Dani swallowed, forcing her wince into a smile. “And my throat’s a little sore.”
“Don’t lie. It’s not just a little sore, is it?”
No, it felt as if she’d swallowed a razor blade.
“I’ll be fine,” she said, hoping she spoke the truth—actually praying.
All week she’d been exhausted, and during the last two days her sore throat had grown progressively worse. She didn’t even want to think about what it could mean.
She should’ve told her dad this afternoon, but he would’ve made her stay home, and that was the last thing she’d wanted. If she was falling out of remission, tonight might be her last chance for Ryan to kiss her....and whatever else she could convince him to do.
When the Bon Jovi tune faded, he smiled directly at her and spoke to the audience eagerly awaiting the next selection.
“In the last few days,” he said, “the band has worked overtime learning this next song so I could sing it for my girlfriend tonight.”
“Did you hear that?” Haley bounced on her toes next to her. “He called you his girlfriend!”
He stared at Dani and continued, “Believe it or not, this piece is something her father, Nick Riverá, composed. I hope he doesn’t mind us borrowing it. But it’s about time someone shared his tremendous talent, since he never has.”
Her mouth dropped open as Ryan sang a cappella, “I have a little secret the whole world seems to know except....heeeer.” He winked at Dani as Mike, the drummer, held the cymbal and tapped out a metallic rhythm as a lead-in to the up-beat music. “I’d crawl a thousand miles for one of Dani’s smiles. They always chase my blues away. I want to shout and sing, ‘cause she’s my everything, and sweeter than crème brûlée....”
She couldn’t believe her dad had written such an amazing song about her. The lyrics were a bit lame, but the melody was awesome.
“Go ahead,” Haley yelled to Dani, “now tell me Ryan’s not crazy about you.”
Okay, so he evidently cared as much as she did. More than ever, she wanted to make love with him. She turned to Haley and cupped her hands around her friend’s ear. “When the dance is over, I’m not stayin’ overnight at your house.”
“Where are you goin’? Home?”
“Eventually.” Dani smiled. “Tell your dad I don’t feel well and decided not to stay.”
It wouldn’t be a lie. She and Ryan would simply be stopping for a little while before he took her home.
CHAPTER 14
The string of zeros on the proposals had Sam’s head spinning. Of course, the three glasses of wine with dinner didn’t help. On her own, it would take two lifetimes to make what the toy company was offering.
Evidently her friends at work were right about pride being her downfall. Nick had served her a large portion of financial independence on a silver platter, and the words to thank him stuck in her throat simply because she hated admitting he’d been right. She did need his help.
The only motive in his meddling really had been to make things easier for her. If that wasn’t the case, the very last thing he would’ve done was give her a way to pay the bills on her own.
Swallowing hard, she forced herself to verbally acknowledge the unwelcome truth to herself and try to confess to him how wrong and unfair she’d been. However, despite having the best of intentions, she couldn’t quite spit out an apology but, instead, settled for expressing her gratitude.
“Thank you,” she whispered, laying her hand over his on the table. “It might not seem like it, but I really do appreciate what you’ve done.”
The soft strains of Nat King Cole’s When I Fall In Love ended on the stereo and a few moments later, Luther Vandross’s deep, rich voice filled the air. Always and forever—each moment with you....
Nick stood and held his hand out to her. “Dance with me?”
The romantic song never failed to give her goose bumps, and now was no different. Still, she hesitated.
“Please,” he coaxed, looking sexier than any man had a right to in a pair of faded jeans and a snow-white polo shirt.
She reluctantly rose and stepped into his arms, enveloped by the light woodsy scent of his aftershave.
Pulling her close, he swayed to the music, crooning the romantic lyrics in her ear. He’d always been a talented dancer, and unlike a lot of men, he sincerely enjoyed it. She’d loved teasing him that his natural rhythm came from his Latino genes.
He maneuvered her through the wide archway into the open floor space in the living room. He released and twirled her before drawing her back tightly against himself, even closer than before. The stiff shaft under his fly pressed into her stomach, leaving no doubt how much he wanted her.
Dipping his head, he nibbled softly on her throat. “Lie to me, cariño,” he whispered. “Tell me you’ve missed this as much as I have.”
She didn’t have to lie. Before she could answer, though, his mouth settled over hers in a deep, shivery kiss. She wound her arms around his neck and welcomed his tongue with her own. Her breath mingled with his, growing faster and keeping time with his breathing until they were panting in unison into each other’s mouths.
He ripped his lips away from hers and rained soft kisses over her face and down her neck. “Sammy, pleeease, I need you.”
His hands slid south past her waist and cupped her bottom, lifting her against himself, while her legs inexorably spread wide and wrapped around his hips. He continued moving slowly around the room to the music, kissing her while grinding his erection into her. It felt so good she couldn’t keep herself from rocking in counterpoint....and moaning.
The next thing she knew, he lowered her onto sofa bed and tumbled down on top of her. In only seconds, she allowed him to strip her while she yanked on his belt buckle and tore open his fly. One by one, he tossed the pieces clothing across the room—first her tank top, capris, and panties, followed by his polo shirt, jeans, and boxer briefs.
Instead of penetrating her hard and fast as she’d hoped, he sucked one of her nipples and gently pinched its mate, making her even more frantic. She gasped as the fingers on his other hand slid between her legs into her slippery passage. He proceeded to stroke her into a frenzy, faster and faster while she squirmed and writhed beneath him, pinned down by his weight.
“Please, Nicky,” she sobbed, unable to contain her tears, “leave me a little self-respect tonight.”
His hand stilled between her thighs as he pulled back slightly. “What’s wrong? Don’t you want me?”
“Yes, I want you.” She swiped at the tears streaming from her eyes toward her ears.
“Then what’s the problem?”
For once, she had to tell him how he made her feel. “I need you to make love to me, Nick, not humiliate me. Don’t you understand how”—she swallowed hard—“how ashamed I am when you make me so desperate I-I’ll do about any—”
“But I’ve never asked you to do anything you don’t enjoy, have I?” His brow furrowed.
“No. But you make me feel like....” She turned away, unable to say it.
“What?”
“I feel like a cheap slut when you insist on teasing me until I beg.”
He rolled off her and sat up. “I don’t believe this.” He laughed without a trace of amusement. “You have to be the only woman in the world who believes there’s such a thing as too much foreplay.”
She knew he wouldn’t understand.
He turned and caressed her cheek. “Querida, desire is a part of sex. Any person with half an ego enjoys knowing he can arouse his p
artner.” He tipped her face toward him and stared into her eyes. “Be honest. Doesn’t it make you feel incredible that I want you so much I ache?”
“Of course it does.” She never would’ve dressed the provocative way she had if it didn’t give her a thrill when he lusted after her. “I don’t know.” She shrugged. “Maybe if you didn’t laugh whenever you manage to make me plead, it wouldn’t feel so degrading. The more frantic and frustrated you get me, the happier you seem.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t help feeling good when you want me so much.”
“So why can’t you make love to me right then? Why do I have to grovel, first? It seems as if you get sadistic pleasure from the power you hold over me.”
“No.” He shook his head vehemently. “I’ve never meant to humiliate or dominate you, Sammy. I swear. I simply want to be sure you’re ready in case I....” His eyes closed and the muscles in his throat visibly convulsed. “I-I’m always so close to the edge with you,” he rasped, “I’m never certain I can hold out.”
The master of multiple orgasms was afraid of disappointing her?
“If that’s the case, you should understand how I feel. I don’t want to lose it two seconds after you’re inside me, either. Think about it, Nick. How much satisfaction would a mountain climber get if a helicopter dropped him off at the summit? I want to enjoy the journey.”
He released a soft, injured snort. “Next, you’ll tell me you don’t like coming four or five times when we make love.”
“That’s my point. You don’t make love to me. More often than not, you turn sex into an Olympic event. It should be about intimacy, not how many times you can make me climax. And when you insist on making me beg for sex, all I hear in my head is my aunt screaming ‘whore’ and ‘slut.’”
Silently, he stared down at her as if he might be digesting what she’d said. The wounded look in his eyes suggested she’d stomped on his ego and perhaps he was too choked up to respond. After a full thirty seconds, he finally spoke. “Why didn’t”—he cleared the hoarseness from his voice and began again. “Why didn’t you ever mention any of this before?”
“I tried. But I didn’t know how to tell you without hurting you.”
“So instead, you let me think I was being considerate and making you happy in bed for fourteen years, when all along you hated having sex with me?”
“I didn’t hate it. I loved going to bed with you. You gave me more pleasure than any woman could hope for. I just didn’t enjoy feeling like your cheap sex puppet in the process. The way you yanked my strings and made me grovel was mortifying.”
“Is this why you keep calling me a puppet master and accusing me of trying to control you?”
“It’s probably part of it. You have to admit you have a habit of taking over every aspect of my life, Nick.”
“Only to help. I’ve never tried to hurt you or dictate to you.” Wrapping his arms around her, he pressed his lips to her temple and stroked her back. “I’m sorry, Sammy. The only thing I’ve ever wanted was to make you happy.”
She could believe it now. If he truly wanted to dominate her, he never would’ve worked so hard to help her business succeed.
“I needed to be sure you were satisfied. I never wanted you to regret making love to me instead of my brother, or letting me talk you into marriage.”
“Nick, I was the one who seduced you. I told you that night you were the only one I wanted to be with.”
“Right. But you also said it was because you were scared, and I had enough experience to keep from hurting you.”
“Do you think, if I’d wanted Justin even the tiniest bit, I would’ve told him no? The only reason I ever agreed to go out with your brother was because I didn’t believe I stood a chance with you. You were almost twenty-one and had more girls chasing you than any guy I knew.”
Heat infused her cheeks as she recalled how excited she’d become when she’d accidently witnessed him having sex and her intense shame when she failed to tear herself away.
For two years afterward, Sam had woken up several times a month, mortified by disgraceful dreams in which Nick plastered her naked back against the refrigerator and wrapped her legs around his waist. The reality of his lovemaking on the night she graduated had been ten times more incredible than any fantasy she’d ever had.
He released a soft snort. “All of this time, I thought you simply wanted me to rid you of your virginity.”
“Well, I did. But only because I was eager for you to make love to me.”
“If you really wanted me, then why’d you continue dating my brother for another three weeks?”
“Because after that night, you wouldn’t even look at me.”
He dropped his head back on the sofa and closed his eyes. “I felt like scum, Sam. It wasn’t like I’d gotten carried away with my brother’s girlfriend just once. I made love to you four freaking times that night. And if you hadn’t had to go home before your aunt woke up, it would’ve been five or six times.”
“You think I wasn’t ashamed, too? For years, Aunt Caroline lectured me about how a lady should conduct herself and the sinful acts I should avoid at any cost. I think begging the no-good hooligan next door to make me come umpteen times was probably at the top of her list of depraved behavior.”
Nick turned and fingered a tendril tickling her face. “I used to despise her for how she treated you. Now, I mostly feel sorry for her, because I realize how warped she was. I hate that she made you feel ashamed of something so natural and beautiful.”
“Intellectually, I know it’s healthy and right for women to enjoy sex.” Sam shrugged. “But my brainwashed psyche isn’t totally convinced. Sometimes, I feel like a pervert when you make me so eager. The night we conceived Dani, I went home feeling dirty for enjoying what we did together. Then all I could think about afterward was how much I wanted to climb out my window, crawl back into your bed, and do it all over again. Every time you remind me of how little resistance I’ve always had for you, I feel cheap.”
“That’s not my intention. I just can’t believe how lucky I am to be with such a sexy woman who enjoys making love so much.”
“That’s just it. It’s only you who’s ever excited me that way. But sometimes you insinuate that you think I’m eager for any man.”
“I don’t believe that. I guess I’m simply afraid you’ll find someone else who can please you better than I can. Someone like Chase.”
She knew he was asking for reassurance that she and Adam weren’t lovers, but she wasn’t ready to forgive him quite that much yet. Especially when she felt just as insecure about the women he’d been with since their divorce. Maybe even more.
“When you didn’t end it with Justin right away, I assumed you were really in love with him. You never broke up with my brother until you realized I’d gotten you pregnant.”
“I didn’t know how to tell him I wanted you instead. And after you acted so cool toward me....” She swallowed hard, clearing the thickness from her throat. “I’ve always wanted you, Nick—even before I saw you having that afternoon quickie. To be honest, I wonder if my aunt was right. Maybe after watching you have sex, I subconsciously hoped you’d see me dancing in that bikini, and you would make love to me.”
“Now you tell me this.” He rolled his eyes. “You might like to know the memory of that dance got me through many lonely nights this last year.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her. “If you get my drift.”
“Lonely?” She glanced at him sideways. “What about all those hot babes in L.A. you were going to screw?”
He turned her face toward him and locked his gaze with hers. “I talk a good game, querida. I was angry at you and got so far as taking a Laker’s cheerleader out once, but when I took her home, I couldn’t follow through. I may not be the most devout Catholic, but I still consider you my wife.”
Was he actually saying he hadn’t been with anyone else since they were married fifteen years ago? “Lots of men cheat on their wives.”
/> “Not this man.”
“I can’t believe it. All those months, while you played the clubs after we were married, I tortured myself, picturing you with those tramps who hung around the band.”
“But you never said a word or acted even slightly jealous.”
“Of course not. I’d ruined so much in your life I didn’t feel like I had a right to expect you to be faithful.” She’d always felt, as long as he respected her enough to hide his indiscretions, she should be content.
“And I thought you didn’t give a damn if I fooled around.” Nick shook his head. “But I never did. After every gig, I came straight home to make love to you.”
She released a deep sigh at the irony of it all. “And one of my friends said you probably did that simply to throw off my suspicion.” She narrowed her gaze at him. “What about at the end of our marriage when we weren’t sleeping together? Are you saying you actually were working that late?”
“No.” His mouth curled in a sheepish smile. “I admit I stayed out so you would think I was fooling around. But I couldn’t. I only wanted you, Sammy.”
“If that’s the case,”—she smiled, suddenly filled with hope—“do you think you could make love to me now?”
“Try and stop me.” He leapt up, helped her to her feet, and, before she could blink twice, he lowered the couch’s back, turning it into a bed.
“Wait.” She pressed her hand against his chest. “Can you trust me to know when I’m ready for the main event and not tease me to the point that I claw the skin off your back?”
“Could you do that anyway?” He grinned. “It kind of turns me on.” He took her hand and stared into her eyes. “Seriously, from now on, I promise to let you set the pace. Or, at least, I’ll try.” He brushed a strand of hair back from her face and shrugged. “I guess this conversation was kind of a buzzkill, huh?”
He had to be kidding. Making Nick understand her secret shame had liberated her. And after learning he’d remained faithful to her all this time, she wanted him more than ever.
The Great Bedroom War Page 22