by Ruth Langan
“Yeah. I think it’s a safe bet.”
“That’s good.” She nudged Lizbeth. “Did you hear that? The Yardley place will be done in time for their party. That’s a relief.”
She saw the matching frowns on both Colin’s and Lizbeth’s faces, and knew they were counting the weeks they had left. She couldn’t resist plunging the dagger a little deeper. “Summer will be here in no time. It’s a pity you’ll have to miss it, young man. There’s nothing quite like summer in Stafford. Lazy days. Hot, steamy nights.” She sighed deeply. “How my Henry used to love summer nights. He was such a romantic.”
Main Street was almost deserted as they drove home in the darkness. The old woman had lingered, talking and laughing with everyone she could think of, even the members of the band, who’d been packing up their instruments. And all the while she’d seen, out of the corner of her eye, the looks that passed between Colin and Lizbeth. Oh, she knew that look. Could still remember what it felt like to be young and in love, and desperate to be alone.
And so she’d kept them, deliberately drawing out the agony. She hoped one day they’d forgive her. But with a timid soul like Lizbeth, it sometimes took a bit of prodding to get her moving in the right direction. As for Colin St. James, she figured this extra time wouldn’t slow him down at all. Unless she’d badly misjudged that look in his eyes, he was ready to devour her young friend in one quick bite.
Oh, the thought of it had her touching a hand to her heart.
They rolled to a stop in her driveway and Colin walked around to help her out.
“Come on, Beth.” The old woman caught her neighbor’s hand. “Walk with us to the door.”
Reluctantly Lizbeth climbed down and carried the cane and shawl, while Loretta leaned on Colin’s arm. At the door the old woman paused to look up at the big, yellow moon. “Oh, look at the sky. Now isn’t that a picture?”
Colin tilted his head back. “Yes, it is. But it’s getting chilly. You’d better get inside.”
“Are you sure you two don’t want to come in for tea?”
They both shook their heads at the same moment.
Loretta opened the door and Brandi came rushing outside, meowing and weaving between their legs.
“You missed me, didn’t you, old thing?” Loretta picked up the ball of fluff and rubbed her cheek over the soft fur. “You know, Beth, it’s nice to have a pet waiting for you when you come home at night.” She turned to Colin. “I’ve tried to talk Beth into getting a kitten or a puppy. But she’s afraid she’ll no sooner lose her heart to a pet than it’ll run away like last time, and she’ll be left even lonelier than before.”
He glanced at Lizbeth. “Is that true?”
She shrugged. “I just don’t want to mourn the loss of something that’s so easy to lose.”
“And so she’d rather not love at all than risk losing,” Loretta put in dryly. She looked up almost slyly. “Well, I suppose Brandi and I should say goodnight.”
She thought she heard twin sighs of relief.
Colin leaned down to kiss her cheek. “Good night, Loretta. Thanks for being my date tonight.”
“Oh, you’re more than welcome. I was the envy of all my friends.” She turned to Lizbeth. “And I didn’t mind having you along, Beth. Though I did think it was rude of you to monopolize so much of my date’s time near the end of the evening. All that slow dancing.” She shook her head from side to side.
Lizbeth brushed her lips over the old woman’s cheek. “To make it up to you, I’ll bake you a loaf of my zucchini bread.”
“Make it two loaves and you’re forgiven.”
“You drive a hard bargain,” Lizbeth laughed. “But I’d hate to have my favorite neighbor hold a grudge. Two loaves it is.”
“You’re sure you two don’t want to come in for a while?”
Colin threw back his head and laughed before leaning close to whisper, “You are some piece of work, Loretta Mayfair.”
Her eyes glinted with laughter. “Indeed I am. It’s what my Henry always said of me. And don’t you forget it.”
“I won’t soon forget.” Colin caught Lizbeth’s hand and turned away. “Good night, Loretta.”
“Good night, you two.” She paused a beat. “Pleasant dreams.”
She stood in the doorway and watched as the lights of the truck receded. Then she nudged the door closed and, still smiling dreamily, made her way to her bed.
In the driveway of Stafford Cottage, Colin turned off the ignition before glancing at Lizbeth. “Well. Alone at last.”
“Yes.” The word was little more than a whisper.
He stepped out of the truck and walked around to open her door, loosening his tie and drawing it free before stuffing it in his pocket. Then he undid the first button of his dress shirt and took a long, deep breath of night air.
As Lizbeth stepped down he caught her hand and linked his fingers with hers. “Loretta was right. Look at that sky.”
She tilted her head. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen the moon that big.”
He grinned. “I ordered it just for you.”
She glanced over shyly. “Thank you.”
“No, Lizbeth.” His voice was low. “Thank you.”
She arched a brow in surprise. “For what?”
“For this night.” He led her toward the front door. “For allowing half the town of Stafford to watch while I held you.”
“It was nice.”
He paused with his hand on the doorknob. “Having everyone watch?”
She shook her head. “Being held.”
“I could do it again.” His smile flashed, dark, dangerous, as he led her through the doorway. “If you wouldn’t mind having no audience.”
She voice trembled, but just a little. “I wouldn’t mind.”
“Having no audience?”
She swallowed. It sounded overly loud in the silence of the house. “Being held.”
His hand halted mid way to the light switch beside the door. He turned to her. In the spill of moonlight she had the look of a frightened doe about to bolt. She was holding tightly to the nosegay of roses, as though to a lifeline.
He hesitated, then decided to choose his words carefully. “I want to hold you, Lizbeth. More than you can imagine. But I’m afraid it wouldn’t be enough.”
“I…”
He shook his head. “I’m not willing to settle for a few chaste kisses anymore. I want a whole lot more than you’re ready to give.”
Her chin came up. “How would you know what I’m ready for?”
“And if we don’t tread carefully here…” He paused. His eyes narrowed on her. “What did you say?”
“I said how would you know what I’m ready for?”
“I just thought…” He decided to start over. “Why don’t you tell me.”
“I want you to make love with me, Colin. I want you to hold me and kiss me and make me feel like—” she took in a deep breath “—like I’m special.”
“You are special, Lizbeth.” He started to touch her, then thought better about it. Not yet. There were things he needed to say. If he touched her, he’d be sidetracked. Touching her had that effect on him, wiping his mind clean of all thought except one. “You’re the finest, sweetest woman I’ve ever met. And I want, more than anything in this world, to lie with you. To love you. But I’m afraid.”
“You, Colin?” Her eyes widened in disbelief. She saw him as utterly fearless. “Afraid of what?”
“Of hurting you. Don’t you see?” He lifted a hand to her face, then quickly withdrew it. He wouldn’t touch her yet. Couldn’t. He needed a clear head. “I want you so badly, I’m not sure I can give you what you need.”
At his admission she felt a rush of adrenaline. “And what’s that?”
“I can see that you’re a woman who needs long, slow kisses, and soft, easy, civilized loving. You need to feel cherished. I’m afraid I’m so hungry I’ll devour you. And that would drive you away.”
Maybe it was the m
agic of the night. Or the dress. Or the moonlight. Maybe it was simply his honesty. Whatever it was that had taken over her usual reticence, she found the courage to set aside the nosegay on the hall table and take a step closer until their bodies were brushing. “You could never drive me away, Colin.” She lifted her hand to his cheek. Just the merest touch of her fingertips across his flesh, but she felt him flinch.
“Couldn’t I?” His strong fingers closed around her wrist, stopping the movement. His eyes were suddenly hot and fierce. His voice a hoarse whisper. “Right now, right this minute, I want to tear that dress from you and see that body that’s been tormenting me all night long. I want to devour you, inch by tantalizing inch, and take you right here on the floor like a savage.”
His honesty was stunning. It excited her to feel the unbelievable tension humming through him, where his hand was holding hers. She pressed her other hand to his heart. If possible, it was even more thunderous than hers. “If you’re hoping to frighten me, it isn’t working.”
“Then you’re a fool.” He released her wrist and took a step back, determined that one of them should be sensible.
“I am. As big a fool as you, Colin.” She stepped closer and framed his face with her hands, staring into his eyes. “I knew tonight, when I walked down those stairs and saw you watching me, waiting for me, that this was what I wanted. I saw the way you looked at me. As if I were a beautiful, desirable woman. And I found myself wanting to be.”
She lifted herself on tiptoe to brush her lips over his. Against his mouth she whispered, “You’re what I want, Colin. Only you.”
For the space of a heartbeat he stood completely motionless. Afraid to move. Afraid to breathe.
His voice deepened with feeling. “I need you to be sure, Lizbeth. I don’t want you living with regrets later.”
“I’ve never been so sure of anything in my life. When you held me tonight, and danced with me, I never wanted you to stop. I want you, Colin. I want you to hold me and love me.”
On the dance floor, he’d wanted the same thing. But when he’d managed to put a little distance between himself and Lizbeth, he’d convinced himself, on the ride home tonight, that he would take the high road. He would be cool and calm and detached enough to see her safely locked away in her room. But that was before. Before she’d touched him. And kissed him. Now that she was here, offering him everything he’d ever wanted, he realized that he wasn’t some high-minded saint. He was merely a man. With a hunger so fierce, he could hardly contain it.
He did what any man would do. His arms came around her, pressing her to the length of him, while his mouth covered hers in a kiss so hot, so hungry, she was nearly overcome with the heat.
“What you’re offering me is more than I’d ever hoped for. And I’ll try to be what you need. But be warned, Lizbeth,” he muttered against her lips. “Be warned. I’m just a man. A man with a ferocious hunger.”
He could feel her trembling even as he drew her deeper into the kiss. And knew that, for all her brave words, she was terrified of what they were about to do. What was going on here? he wondered. She was a beautiful, educated woman who had traveled the world. She had to be close to thirty. And yet she was as jumpy as a virgin. Was it possible?
The thought had him clamping down hard on his own needs. Hadn’t he sensed that this was a woman who needed tenderness? A woman who deserved easy, gentle loving? If it killed him, he’d give her what she most needed. Perhaps it was what they both needed.
Without a word, he scooped her into his arms and started up the stairs.
With a sigh, she wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her lips in the hollow of his throat. That was nearly his undoing. His steps faltered, and he had to pause to taste her lips one more time. He drank from them, long and slow and deep. Fortified, he continued up the stairs until he came to her bedroom. He nudged the door open and stepped inside.
She’d left the light on in her haste. The bed was piled high with clothes; the floor around it littered with shoes. He shot her an incredulous look. “The impossibly neat Ms. Sullivan leaves her room in shambles?”
“Only when she’s been prodded by her neighbor to be something other than bland.”
“Are you saying this is Loretta’s fault?”
She put her hand over her mouth and giggled. It was such a wonderful release of tension that she laughed again. “I’d have never had the courage to wear this dress without Loretta shaming me into it.”
“Remind me to thank her.” He turned and carried her down the hall to his own room. He kicked the door shut behind him and set her on her feet. He saw her smile fade, and cautioned himself to move slowly.
He kept his hands easy on her shoulders as he brushed his mouth over hers and allowed her to sink softly into the kiss. When he made no move to do more, she sighed and brought her arms around his waist.
“That’s nice,” he whispered against her mouth.
She lifted her head. “What is?”
He nuzzled her lips. “The way you hold me.”
Pleasure curled along her spine. And though she hadn’t intended it, she found a spot where his shirt had pulled away from his waistband and her fingers encountered warm flesh. She was jolted. But no more than he.
“That’s even nicer.” He nuzzled her cheek, her ear. “I want to touch you the same way, Lizbeth. Flesh to flesh.” His fingertips moved ever-so-gently over the exposed flesh of her back. Hearing her sigh he drew her closer and covered her mouth with his. His hands moved along her sides, until his thumbs found the swell of her breasts.
He felt her flinch, but as he continued kissing her, soothing her, stroking her, she sighed and gave herself up to the wonderful feelings spiraling through her. Even when she felt his fingers tug the zipper of her gown and slide the fabric from her shoulders, she offered no protest.
“You have the most beautiful body.”
“It’s the dress.”
“It isn’t the dress I’m looking at, Lizbeth.”
His hands cupped her breasts with such care. And as his work-worn fingers caressed her flesh, her breath caught in her throat. Her eyes darkened. Feelings she’d never even known she possessed were tumbling inside her.
“Your skin is softer than silk, Lizbeth. And your eyes are so expressive. I love watching them. Watching you.”
She could hardly speak over the dryness in her throat. “It’s so hot. Aren’t you hot?”
“Yes.” He allowed her to tug his jacket free, and then his shirt. He smiled as she drew her hands back, afraid to touch him now that he’d bared his flesh to her. “I’m still hot, Lizbeth. And I’m afraid it isn’t the clothes. It’s you. Your touch.” He caught her hand and placed it over his heart. “Feel what you do to me.”
His heart was racing even harder than hers.
His body was so beautiful. Bolder now, she splayed her hands over his chest, glorying in the freedom to touch all that smooth, tanned flesh and those rock-hard muscles. His heartbeat went from erratic to thunderous, and she felt a thrill at the knowledge that it was her touch that caused it.
“Colin, I can hardly breathe.”
He smiled. “Yeah. I know the feeling.” He brought her hand to his mouth and she felt the way his breath came in short, unsteady huffs.
He nibbled her palm, her wrist, and felt the way her pulsebeat leapt at the brush of his mouth against her skin.
She kept her hand there, loving the freedom to trace the curve of his lips, the strong, firm jaw.
He reached his hands to her hips, sliding the gown free. It drifted to the floor in a cloud of silk. He let his gaze move slowly over her.
“Why Ms. Sullivan. You’re just full of surprises, aren’t you?”
“Hmm?” She stared, puzzled.
“You really do have legs. All this time I’d been wondering just what you were hiding beneath all those long, ankle-skimming skirts, and it turns out you have these fabulous, shapely legs.”
She gave a laugh of delight. “I tried t
o tell you.”
“So you did. I need to see more of these.” He slipped a finger under the waistband of her panty hose and tugged them down before pressing her to the edge of the bed. Then, kneeling in front of her, he stripped them away and trailed his fingers upward from her ankle to her hip.
“Colin…” She started to shift away, but his hands were at her shoulders, holding her still.
“Shh. Don’t say a word. Just let me look at you.” And he did, allowing his gaze to linger over the flare of her hips, the fullness of her breasts, in a way that had the heat rushing to her cheeks.
Still kneeling, he leaned close and drew her down into his arms, pressing soft, moist kisses to her neck, her throat, where he whispered, “Some men have to make do with their fantasies. But you’re better than anything I could ever imagine. My sweet, beautiful Lizbeth. You’re everything a man could ever want.”
He brought his lips to her breast, nibbling and suckling until her sighs became little moans of pleasure.
“Colin…”
“Are you telling me you don’t want this, Lizbeth?”
For the space of a heartbeat he waited, afraid of what she might say. If she changed her mind now, he would surely die.
“Oh, Colin. I do. Please. Now.” She fisted her hands in his hair, wondering how she could have lived so long without this. Without him.
He lifted her in his arms and lay her on the bed, then quickly tossed aside the rest of his clothes, leaving them on the floor with hers. But instead of taking her, and ending this terrible need in both of them, he lay beside her and drew her close.
“Do you know how you look right now?” he whispered. Without waiting for her reply, he stroked a hand over her face. “Like an angel. The most beautiful heavenly creature, with the moonlight spilling over you, washing that incredible white skin with a hint of shine. And your hair.” He tangled his fingers in it, reveling in the silkiness. “Like spun gold.” His voice lowered, soothing, calming her ragged heartbeat. “I love the way it slips free of all its pins and simply curls, this way and that like some wild tangled vine. And your eyes.” He pressed soft butterfly kisses to her lids, and then the tip of her nose, letting her slide deeper into a river of gilded pleasure. “Sometimes, when you’re happy, they’re the color of warm honey. But other times, when you’re angry, they’d put a storm-tossed sea to shame. They reveal everything you’re feeling.”