Just One Week

by Alice Gaines

  “I’ll call the local suppliers and see if Emma’s placed any orders,” Kyle said. Problem solved, but they were still duplicating Mom’s work.

  “Okay, flowers,” his father said. “Who wants to take that one?”

  Alex held up his hands. “Don’t look at me.”

  “She has to have arranged for that already,” Chase said. “It’s too late to do it now.”

  “Put me down for that,” Dad said. “I’ll call the local florists.”

  “You know, Dad, this is a lot of work for no reason,” Chase said.

  “We’ll see about that,” Dad said.

  The front doorbell rang, and his father’s eyes got a wicked twinkle.

  “Reinforcements,” he said.

  When his father left the room, Alex glanced at the other two. “Any idea what he’s talking about?”

  “Not a clue,” Kyle said.

  “I hope not,” Chase added as he doodled on the pad in front of him.

  Dad returned in a minute, and he had someone with him. Liane Franklin, his personal assistant from the publishing house. She’d met the family a few times. The rest of them rose to greet her.

  “Ta-da,” Dad declared. “Help has arrived.”

  A petite redhead with intense green eyes, Liane no doubt got attention, and masculine interest, wherever she went. Kyle gave her his usual uncomplicated smile, but Chase pasted a neutral, professional expression on his face.

  “Liane,” he said.

  “Hi, Chase,” she answered.

  “You know Alex,” Dad said. “You’ve met Kyle?”

  “You bet.” Kyle vacated his chair in Liane’s favor, and they all sat again. Chase went back to doodling.

  “We’re trying to get things organized for the party,” his father explained.

  Liane’s eyebrows shot up. “Surely, you didn’t think you could wait until now.”

  “Chase thinks Mom’s already done it all,” Alex said.

  “He’s right,” Liane said.

  That got Chase’s attention, and he glanced up from his yellow pad. “I am?”

  “You’re right…some of the time,” she answered.

  Alex almost laughed but covered it with a cough. “Some of the time” left a lot of opportunity for Chase to be wrong, and that did not fit with Chase’s self-image. What would happen when Dad retired? Would Chase inherit Liane as his assistant?

  “What do you suggest?” Dad asked.

  “There’s still plenty to do.” Liane reached into her bag and produced her tablet computer. “Let’s look at the spreadsheet Emma sent me.”

  “Spreadsheets.” His father looked up toward the heavens. “My wife does spreadsheets.”

  “I’ll teach you how to do them,” Liane said.

  “Waste of time,” his father said. “Teach Chase.”

  “I know how to do spreadsheets, Dad,” Chase said.

  “Is that one in front of you?” Alex said. He shouldn’t pile on, but needling his little brother felt good. Chase normally dished it out. See if he could take it.

  “Touché.” Chase pushed the pad away from him. “Should we start assigning jobs or sit here flapping our gums?”

  The back door opened, and Mom and Michelle entered. Each carried small bags from the spa. Alex’s heart did its half-stop thing at the sight of Michelle. Her dark hair framed her face, shining with golden highlights. Her peasant blouse looked innocent enough, but it hinted at movement and curves beneath. The material appeared soft, and he could picture it under his palms. Lord, what she did to him just walking into a room.

  “There you are, Liane.” Mom went to Liane and bent to give her a hug. “Are you keeping them in line?”

  “Doing my best, Emma,” Liane answered.

  “Oh, you have my spreadsheet. Good. They’d be hopelessly lost without you,” Mom said.

  “Dad and I run a company,” Chase said. “We can organize a party.”

  “Of course, you can, dear.” Mom’s indulgent smile said exactly the opposite, and she was probably right. “I’m going to start dinner.”

  “I’ll help,” Michelle said.

  Mom gestured toward the table. “Sit. They need more help than I do.”

  Michelle did as Mom had ordered, and of course, she ended up next to Alex. This close to her, the urge to touch her became almost overwhelming. The spa must have used some kind of musky perfume or ointment on her because she smelled like sex. A crazy-assed way to think of a scent, but it must have had pheromones in it. If driving a guy nuts with perfume was their goal, they’d succeeded. Pretty soon, his reaction would get embarrassing if he didn’t get himself under control.

  “…drive into town to pick up the flowers,” Liane was saying. “How about you, Alex?”

  “Hm?” He dragged his attention back to the others.

  His father cleared his throat. “Would you like to take the SUV into town to the florist?”

  “Sure thing.” He could handle that as long as they’d already ordered the arrangements. “When?”

  “Tomorrow morning,” Liane said. “I’ll call to confirm with them today.”

  “Got it.”

  “Take Michelle. She hasn’t seen Wheeler’s Mill yet,” his father said.

  “I was there today at the spa,” Michelle said.

  “You go along, anyway,” his mother said from the counter where she was making a salad. “I don’t trust men with flowers.”

  “Happy to,” Michelle answered.

  More matchmaking. No problem. He could use the help. Besides, the more time he spent with Michelle the more opportunities to figure out exactly what was going on between them.

  “Wine, flowers, caterers,” Chase said. “What else?”

  As if to answer Chase’s question, the front doorbell rang. Kyle got up to answer it, and in a minute, he reappeared leading three men in jeans and T-shirts pushing large boxes on wheels. Sound equipment.

  “Music,” he declared. “And the PA system. Where should it go?”

  “The barn for now. I’ll show you.” His father rose and led them out the back door.

  That left them at the table with Chase and Liane. She was busy typing on her tablet, and Chase watched her every move with the same concentration Alex had on Michelle. They definitely had chemistry going on there, even if his brother would deny it.

  In the meantime, his own libido had fixed itself on the woman next to him. By any calculation, hours would pass before they could retreat to the cottage. How was he supposed to convince his body to wait that long?

  Michelle glanced up at him from under her lashes, mischief in the dark depths of her eyes. Just what he needed—a come-hither look when he was doing his best to behave himself. His mother stood only feet away. She might have put them together, but she wouldn’t appreciate him bending Michelle over the kitchen table and…

  Crap. He’d never do anything like that, so why was he thinking it?

  “I want to show you something,” Michelle said.

  “Okay.”

  She jerked her head toward the door to the front of the house. Liane glanced up from her tablet. “Chase and I can handle this for a while.”

  “Hm?” Chase said, exactly as Alex had a few minutes earlier. Definitely distracted.

  “Come on.” Michelle rose.

  Alex got up, too. He’d been commanded, more or less. “We’ll be back.”

  “Take your time,” his mother said. “Dinner won’t be for a while.”

  Feeling the way he did, Alex would have followed Michelle into a tornado and not noticed the wind. She gave him a heated smile that sent his blood pressure even higher. When she headed toward the stairs leading to the floors above—and the bedrooms—his sex almost did a happy dance in his pants. Was her mind in the same delicious gutter his was?

  He hung back to watch the swing of her buttocks as she climbed the stairs. If he’d thought her blouse was a turn-on, the motions of her skirt made him want to cover her butt with his hands and squeeze.

/>   She glanced over her shoulder and caught him staring, and she bit her lip, reminding him of the sweetness of her mouth. She had to know what that would do to him. A man could only stand so much before he had to act.

  So, he caught up to her on the tiny landing where the stairs did a turn. Heaven help him, he pushed her up against the wall and kissed her, pressing his body against hers. With a moan into his mouth, she wrapped her arms around him and answered his need with heat of her own.

  He’d never felt this sense of urgency about lovemaking in the past. As if he’d die if he couldn’t have her now. An overwhelming need to kiss every inch of her filled him, and he bent to caress her neck from her shoulder up to the spot behind her ear.

  Her fingers worked the buttons on his shirt. “I’ve wanted you all day.”

  “Outside to the cottage,” he murmured against her skin.

  “Too many people out there,” she said.

  She was right. They could close all the curtains they wanted, but Jim and the folks with the PA equipment had gone out back and might hear them.

  “Too many people in here,” he whispered.

  “We’ll be quiet.”

  “I don’t know about you, baby, but I’m not sure I can be that quiet.”

  “You’ll have to be.” She took his hand. “Come on.”

  When they got to the top of the stairs, she led him toward his room. The bed in there was smaller than the one in the cottage, but at this point, he’d be happy for any horizontal surface.

  Once they got into his room, all the mementos of his childhood stared back at him. Other than getting a bed that would hold his adult frame—barely—his mother hadn’t changed anything in here since high school. Banners from his team hung on the wall over the old desk where he’d done his homework. Or tried to. Bookshelves held his trophies for football and wrestling.

  Michelle stood and gaped at it all. “Nothing’s changed.”

  “Something has. We grew up.” He went to her and took her into an embrace. Maybe she couldn’t make love surrounded by their past. He’d wait, somehow, until the people had cleared out of the back yard and they could sneak away to the cottage. They might have to miss dinner.

  “It’s kind of wicked doing the deed here,” she said, but her smile said she wouldn’t mind one little bit. “Is that okay?”

  “Baby, I’d make love to you anytime, anywhere.” To prove his point, he kissed her again, and all the trappings of his youth disappeared. Nothing existed except this moment in time with this woman. She responded as she always did—as if he were the greatest lover in the world and she couldn’t wait to have him inside her. Nothing could get him hotter faster, and soon, he was tearing at her clothes. The blouse came off and then her bra. He sent that flying somewhere and cupped her breasts.

  When she whimpered, he pressed his lips to her ear. “Quiet, remember?”

  “Sure, sure. Just hurry,” she whispered.

  They fumbled with each other’s clothing, arms tangling, while he continued kissing her as if his life depended on it. Every brush of her knuckles against the front of his pants sent his arousal up another notch. If he didn’t get her out of her skirt in another second he’d bust the zipper of his fly, he was that hard. When he had her naked, he could reach between her legs to touch her most intimate flesh. She was already wet for him, and when he teased her hottest spot, she trembled and bit down on her lip to stifle a moan. She needed this as much as he did, and the knowledge warmed him. He’d make it good for her. He’d be inside her when she shattered, and he’d feel her orgasm all around him.

  Somehow, they got all their clothes off—even shoes—and they could stretch out on the bed. Immediately, they wrapped around each other, their limbs twined like ivy. The scent he’d detected earlier came through more clearly now—an aphrodisiac cloud that invaded his brain. She smelled good, she tasted good, and she felt even better as she moved beneath him. He was drowning, and he might never come up for air.

  As he kissed her, probing the seam of her lips with his tongue, her hands roamed over his back. Her nails scratched him. Maybe leaving marks. Who the hell cared?

  When her mouth opened, he searched for her tongue with his own. The connection sent a jolt through him, shaking him to his core. He needed to make her ready because he wouldn’t be gentle. She’d driven him too far for that.

  Shifting, he slid his hand along her inner thigh, upward toward her center. She let her legs fall apart in encouragement, and for the moment, he broke off the kiss so he could concentrate on her pleasure. Resting his head on her shoulder, he explored her with his fingers. She’d become even wetter, and her sex parted to welcome him. He stroked her from back to front, each time landing on her clit. And every time he touched her there, she let out a stifled cry. Poor baby. She’d become as excited as he was, and she had to keep quiet. He’d face the same challenge in a few minutes.

  After a moment, she reached down and stilled his hand. “Your turn.”

  What could she possibly mean by that? He didn’t need any help.

  She pushed on his shoulder, rolling him onto his back. Whatever she had in mind had better involve him getting inside her soon. But no, she gripped his shaft and scooted downward.

  “Not a good idea,” he whispered.

  “I disagree. It’s the best idea I’ve had all day,” she said. “And believe me, I’ve had ideas about you for hours now.”

  Well, shoot. He always worked to be the best lover he could, but he was a man, after all. Who could turn down an offer like that? “Okay, but stop when I tell you to.”

  “Spoilsport.”

  “I mean it,” he whispered.

  She gave him an evil chuckle. Sweet, low, and hot. Then, grasping his erection by the base, she guided the tip into her mouth.

  Holy crap. Until this moment, he’d never understood how intense a physical sensation could be. The pressure, heat, and moisture combined to produce an overload of pleasure. He wouldn’t be able to take much of this, but man…for now he lay and let her drive him quite literally out of his mind. She took more and more of him, sliding her lips down the shaft. Through a haze of arousal, he watched as she bobbed her head downward and up. The sight only made the experience more erotic, and for the life of him, he’d never forget this moment. How she’d dedicated herself to driving him past his own limits. He had to make her his. No one else could touch him so deeply.

  In the end, though, he reached a point where no amount of self-control could hold off the inevitable. He touched the side of her face. “Stop. I need to be inside you.”

  She had the good sense to do as he’d requested.

  “Condom in my jeans pocket,” he said.

  “Right.” She climbed off the bed, fished in his pants, and pulled out the square packet. After removing the condom, she returned to him and unfurled it over his erection. Thank heaven. Now he could have her.

  Instead of lying on her back to take him, she swung a leg over him. Female superior. Fine by him. In this position, he’d be able to tease her bud as she rode him.

  Grasping him again, she parted the lips of her sex with the other hand and lowered herself onto him. She let out a long “ahhhh” as she sank onto him all the way to the hilt.

  “Quiet, remember?” he said.

  “So good,” she whispered, her eyes closed in bliss. “Unbelievable.”

  He could believe it, all right. He had to. Every cell in his body felt alive, nerves stretched to the breaking point. Sending one message—that he’d climax soon with a power he’d never experienced before. He’d take her with him so he could feel the intensity of her orgasm with his.

  She’d already tipped her head back and had covered her breasts with her hands to massage them and tug at the nipples. A modern Venus hungry for him.

  He reached to where her sex had enveloped his and found her clit. Already hard, it begged for his touch. When he stroked it, her body did a little shimmy, her muscles clamping down on him. Her cry came out muffled, but
anyone outside the door would hear her, anyway. At this point, they could make as much noise as a heavy metal band, for all he cared. Nothing in the world mattered except for her orgasm, which would trigger his. He kept working her as his hips rose to thrust into her. Involuntary movements he couldn’t have stopped if he’d wanted to. He’d gone past caring about anything but the two of them and their needs.

  Now, she rocked back and forth, creating even more pressure against him. “Oh, God. Don’t stop. Alex, don’t stop.”

  Still thrusting, he rolled her clit, pressing and pressing. Sure enough, she tightened around him for long seconds and then burst into spasms. Finally, he could let loose the beast inside him, and with a few more thrusts, he climaxed. It went on and on. Wave after wave. Claiming his mind, his consciousness, his soul. He gave her everything he had until he’d emptied himself inside her. Amazing. Transcendent. And very, very human.

  Eventually, she floated down onto his chest, moaning. For a while, he could only lie there savoring the feel of her against him. Eventually, he found the strength to put his arms around her and bury his nose in her hair.

  After a bit, she sighed. A happy, satisfied sound. “Do you suppose they heard us?”

  “I have no idea.”

  “So much for being quiet, huh?” she said.

  “I don’t think I can ever be truly quiet with you.” Not about sex. Not about anything. And that wasn’t post-coital glow talking. She’d always been special to him, even before he’d noticed she had grown up. All those protective feelings intensified now. If only he could make her his, he’d keep her safe and happy for the rest of her life or die trying.

  “I guess we’d better get back,” she said, although she didn’t move a muscle.

  “Dinner. Party planning.” Discussing what they meant to each other? So far, she hadn’t indicated any feelings about him that didn’t involve sex. Maybe he’d graduated from dumb jock to stud. He still couldn’t measure up to her intellectually. And if she got the academic job, he’d have no place in her world at all.

  She finally pushed herself up and gazed down at him. “You’ll come to the cottage tonight?”

  “Try to keep me away.”

  …