She lifted herself to kiss his bare chest and relished his taut moan. “Not so fast,” Luke whispered. “Let’s make this last.”
But she couldn’t hold back, and neither could he. Their movements quickened, and then, in a moment of utter joy, they fused, purifying like ore into gold. Jane arched against him and shudders racked them both.
A shout burst from his throat, primal and joyous. “Unbelievable,” he managed to say, and sank down, squeezing against her in the narrow space.
Jane lay cocooned in his embrace. She could see now that she’d craved this moment since she caught sight of him at the hospital. But once wasn’t enough. Not nearly enough.
“Exactly how tired are you?” she whispered.
“Allow me to demonstrate,” he murmured, and proceeded to rise to new heights. In every sense.
“DID YOU KNOW that when you get aroused, your irises turn purple?” Jane asked afterward as they lay gazing into each other’s eyes.
Deliciously sated, Luke inhaled the scent of her perfume tinged with antiseptic. “How can you tell in this light?”
“I have great night vision.”
Shifting position, he discovered she was cutting off the blood flow in his leg. Much as he hated to disturb this peaceful moment, they ought to get moving. “Your place or mine?”
She sighed. “If one of us leaves the other’s house in the morning, somebody’ll see. It’ll be all over the neighborhood.”
“We could sleep in until really late.”
“What about collecting the girls?”
He’d forgotten about them. How was that possible? A function of the one-track male libido, he supposed. “You suppose they might sleep late, too?”
“Not a chance.” She wriggled from his grasp. Wincing, Luke untangled his legs and let her up.
What a lovely picture she made, gloriously nude, hair haloing her face, eyes shining with slaked lust. Luke sure hoped it was slaked, because he couldn’t do much more about it for a while.
At least an hour. By then, unfortunately, she’d be gone.
He refused to be satisfied with just a few stolen moments. They needed to work out a way to spend more time together, especially on those rare occasions when the girls weren’t home.
“Maybe we ought to let the neighbors wag their jaws and get used to us,” he suggested.
“You may not feel that way after you’ve lived here longer,” Jane warned. “I don’t mean that they rule my life or anything.”
“Don’t they?” He didn’t intend to needle her. Still, Luke objected to the repressive power of gossip.
Jane retrieved her panties from where they’d dropped. The woman sure had great taste in underwear, he reflected as she slipped them into place.
“Having a baby on my own isn’t exactly old-fashioned behavior, is it? I’ll do what feels right to me, gossip be damned,” she said. “But folks have long memories and it’s a close-knit community.”
Luke scooped up his T-shirt. “Why would I worry about people’s long memories? It’s not as if I’m going to be around here forever.”
With her dress halfway on, Jane paused. From her startled expression, he gathered he’d said the wrong thing. Did she expect him to stay here permanently? That had never been Luke’s plan.
“You sound as if you’re already planning your next career move,” Jane said edgily.
“Of course I am. Sean’s only going to be gone for a year.” Luke pulled on the T-shirt. “That doesn’t mean you and I have to lose contact.”
“What about Zoey? She’s making friends and getting comfortable at a school,” she said. “And you seemed all gung ho about this Annie Raft clinic. Who’s going to run that?”
He had to admit, he hadn’t worked out all the logistics. “I’m not planning to flee the moment the clock strikes midnight. But I never intended to run the clinic myself. My goal is to help get it off the ground organizationally and financially. Of course I’ll donate my time as long as I’m in the area.”
“Until you take off for a better job halfway across the country.” Her dress zippered up, Jane searched around the floor for something.
He didn’t see why she was worrying about an event so far in the future. “There are a lot of outstanding hospitals within a two-hour radius of here. But tonight belongs to us, so let’s ignore the tongue-wagging neighbors. You and I should maximize every minute we can spend together.”
She stared at him as if he’d insulted her. “Maximize our time? How romantic!”
“Jane, why are we fighting?”
“Because…because I should have known better!” she flared. “Because you’re acting like your old self again.”
“And that’s bad?”
She plopped onto a chair and pulled on her stockings. “Oh, shoot.”
“What?”
“I ripped them.” She yanked them off and stuck them in her purse. Careful not to leave them in the trash where a curious employee might spot them, Luke mused.
“You’re my best friend,” he said. “And my lover. I want to keep it that way.”
“And I want to go home.” She stuck her feet into her shoes and headed for the exit.
He accompanied her out. Not until he was alone in his car, trailing her back to Harmony Circle, did Luke realize he’d forgotten the champagne.
Well, he didn’t feel much like celebrating anymore, anyway.
JANE COULDN’T BELIEVE she’d made the same mistake all over again. Tumbled for Luke, only to discover that he was still the same love-’em-and-leave-’em type he’d been in med school.
Okay, maybe that was unfair. He’d proposed they remain lovers. But only until a better job beckoned.
Jane deserved more. Not that she expected him to promise her forever after one night. But she’d assumed—foolishly, she could see now—that there were good reasons for him staying here. The girls’ circle of friends, the proposed clinic, the way he enjoyed the neighborhood…
Long-distance relationships didn’t foster intimacy. So what if he wanted to remain her now-and-then lover? She needed a man she could count on, not some guy who blew into town when it suited his schedule.
At home, she laid her new dress over a chair to take to the dry cleaner’s. After tossing her panty hose in the trash, she pulled on her favorite baggy T-shirt and stared at her image in the mirror.
The hair still looked great. And so, she concluded defiantly, did she.
You are a special person. Tonight you wowed a bunch of guys in a bar and performed surgery that saved a baby’s life. You ripped the pants off Luke Van Dam and experienced moments of nirvana.
And now, back to reality.
“What did I expect, anyway?” she asked Stopgap, who sat panting at her feet. “True love, from Luke? He wouldn’t know it if it bit him. Which isn’t a bad idea. How’d you like to take a nip out of him tomorrow?”
The spaniel had nothing to say on the subject.
The worst part, Jane mused as she went downstairs for ice cream, was that she couldn’t stay angry at the man. What a thrill it had been, to feel his desire for her overwhelm his self-control. For a few incredibly sweet moments, she’d swept him away. He’d done the same for her. She’d climaxed twice and one of those might have been a double.
Yet at some level, she should have seen this coming. Luke had always gone slip-sliding out of the picture whenever a relationship grew intense. True, he’d stuck by Pauline when she got pregnant, but that had been for Zoey’s sake. What was wrong with the man?
“Mocha chocolate. Vanilla bean. Praline caramel.” Jane read the labels in the freezer. “Since it’s my birthday, I’ll have all three.”
She tossed a few doggie treats into Stopgap’s bowl and ate at the table with her feet propped on a chair. Delicious. This was almost the best part of the evening.
Not quite. Oh, heck. Not even nearly quite.
What she ought to do, Jane concluded, was to take the lemons life handed her and make a lemon meringue pie. She’d be
en on a collision course with her own weakness for Luke ever since he turned up in Brea, and maybe, subconsciously, before that. Now that she’d gone the distance with him and discovered that it led nowhere, she could move on.
Could, should and would.
She’d always longed to establish a real home, the kind she’d missed out on growing up. The kind that came with two loving parents and at least one child. Passion ought to be part of that, but if her libido insisted on being hung up on Luke, she’d teach it a lesson by finding another man who’d suit her just as well. A man who’d stick around, even if that meant searching for someone whose quiet passion would thrill her in a different way.
The hell with it! The problem with thinking so much was that it distracted her from the ice cream.
Jane scooped out another serving and settled back to indulge.
Chapter Twelve
From the moment Luke awoke on Saturday morning, he couldn’t stop thinking about Jane. About how incredibly right it had felt to be inside her. About their quarrel, which they should have been able to resolve like reasonable adults.
He wished more than ever that they’d spent the night together. He’d have loved to see the morning light on her face. Why did she have to be so stubborn?
Around eight o’clock, he collected the girls from Sherry’s house. Zoey was bubbling over with energy, so he suggested a swim at the pool, where she played with friends while Tina splashed around with Luke.
A couple of attractive women lounging poolside offered to share their sunscreen and made a fuss over the baby, while sneaking glances at Luke. His own gaze kept straying toward the sidewalk in the hope that Jane might appear.
Now, after lunch, the girls were spending some quiet time. He’d left Zoey reading a picture book in her room while Tina napped in her bassinet. Luke valued the chance to check his e-mail without interruption.
Today, this father business had been going smoothly. Thank goodness he got the occasional break from the ongoing drama.
The phone rang.
Although he’d finished his stint on call, Luke braced for the possibility of an emergency. Instead, he heard his ex-wife’s gleeful voice saying his name as glasses clinked somewhere near her.
She was in Las Vegas, he recalled. Probably having a late breakfast after last night’s performance. He glanced at his watch. A very late breakfast.
“Luke!” she repeated, and giggled.
Those weren’t juice glasses, he surmised. Very likely, she’d never even gone to bed last night. “What’s going on, Pauline?”
“Izzy got a contact.” At least, that’s what he thought she said, but it made no sense.
“What?”
“Hold on.” She moved to a quieter area where the background noise faded. “A2Zee got a recording contract.”
“Congratulations.” A2Zee was the band cofounded by her boyfriend, Jason Zuniga. He’d joined his initial Z to a fellow guitarist’s A, for Allenby or Alanon or something.
“We’ve been celebrating all night.” She snorted. “And guess what? This morning, we got married.”
Luke took a moment to absorb the news. His ex-wife was now Jason’s. Well, good for them. But what was this going to mean to Zoey? Pauline still hadn’t bothered to visit. How could she think intermittent phone conversations were enough for a seven-year-old? “Zoey’s missed you.”
“I’ll come see her next week.”
“She isn’t a toy that you can ignore when you get bored with her,” he snapped.
“You were the one who insisted she stay with you!” Before he could react to this unfair barb, Pauline went on. “Jason and I deserve a few days to ourselves. It’s our honeymoon.”
Luke turned at a noise from the hall. It was Zoey. In this small cottage, she couldn’t have helped overhearing his end of the conversation. “Is that Mom?”
He nodded. “Your daughter’s here,” he informed his ex-wife. “I’ll let you tell her the news.” He handed over the phone.
For the next few minutes, Zoey listened and pleaded. “I miss you, Mommy,” and “How soon is soon?”
The pain in her voice tore at Luke. Tina apparently picked up on it, too, because she started wailing for reassurance. He scooped the squalling infant from the bassinet. So much for a break from the drama.
Zoey was now in tears. “I have to be your flower girl. Get married again!” she sobbed to her mother. A moment later, lip quivering, his daughter thrust the phone at Luke.
He took it grimly. “Yes?”
“I can’t deal with her tantrum,” Pauline told him. “I haven’t even called my mother yet.”
“That wasn’t a tantrum. It was an honest reaction.”
Against his shoulder and close to the phone, Tina let out a shriek. “Jeez, my ear!” Pauline griped. “Is that the baby you rescued? She’s got a set of lungs on her. Well, I’ve got to go. Kiss Zoey for me.”
He hung up, too angry to answer. The sight of his daughter’s stricken face wrenched at Luke even harder. He wished he could fix this for her, but that was beyond him.
“Your mom loves you,” he told her in a weak attempt at reassurance. Sure she does, in her own selfish way.
“I want to be her flower girl,” the little girl whimpered. “I hate Jason. Why can’t she marry you?”
“We tried and it didn’t work.” Tina, whose wriggling had subsided, emitted a large grunt. Uh-oh. “I’m sorry. Diaper duty.”
“You always put her first,” Zoey complained. “I hate her.”
“You don’t mean that.”
She glared at him.
“We’ll talk in a minute.” Luke felt her fury follow him out of the room.
Handling two children was tough enough under normal circumstances. He hadn’t considered how he’d manage if either faced a crisis.
From the front of the house, he registered the scrape of the door. “Zoey! Where are you going?”
“To help Jane garden. It’s Saturday. I promised.” The door slammed behind her.
Luke cursed under his breath. This might be a safe neighborhood, but he’d have preferred to take her next door himself. Instead, he had to finish changing Tina.
Afterward, he called Jane. “She’s here,” his neighbor confirmed. “We’re out in the yard. She said you were okay with this.”
“Did she mention her mother?”
“We’re having that discussion right now” was the wry response. “This is a tough one.”
“It sure is,” he admitted. “I suppose the upside is that Pauline probably won’t object to her staying with me permanently, but this is terribly hard on Zoey.”
“Stay calm. She’ll take her cue from you,” Jane replied. “Listen, as soon as we finish planting lettuce, we’ll wash up. Why don’t you come over. I’m sure she’d like to show you what we’ve been doing.”
“We’ll be there.”
As he clicked off, he noted that she hadn’t said a word about last night. Well, he wasn’t going to let their relationship deteriorate the way it had ten years ago. They’d find the right balance for them both.
The phone rang. He thought she was calling back to ask him something else, until he checked the display.
Delilah Lincoln. A few days earlier, the social worker had called to discuss starting the home-study process, but that wasn’t scheduled for several weeks.
“Sorry to bother you on the weekend, Doctor,” she said after they exchanged hellos.
“Is everything all right?”
“There’s a problem with Mrs. Raft.”
Luke gritted his teeth. Although Annie’s mother had threatened to hire a lawyer, he’d heard nothing further about that.
His gaze flew to the little girl, who, freshly changed, was rolling on the carpet with her teddy bear. No way would he betray Annie’s trust by turning her over to that woman.
Yet if a judge had ruled against him, he might have no choice. “What’s happened?” he asked, and waited impatiently for her to tell him.
; ZOEY TROMPED into the house behind Jane. “I can’t wait to eat the lettuce.”
“We just sowed the seeds,” Jane pointed out. “The plants won’t be big enough to eat for a couple of months. Gardening takes patience.”
“I hate patience.”
“You hate everything today.” She’d listened to a litany of complaints from the grumpy child.
Zoey shook her head. “I don’t hate you.”
“I’m glad of that.”
From his resting place on the floor, Stopgap whined.
“Or you,” Zoey assured him.
They went into the bathroom, with the dog padding behind. As she waited while the girl washed her face and hands, Jane’s thoughts turned to Pauline’s marriage. Apparently the woman hadn’t given a second thought to how her daughter might feel about being excluded from the ceremony.
As a physician, Jane understood that not all women fully adjusted to motherhood, especially after an unplanned pregnancy. But if she had a little girl like this, she’d battle demons and ogres before she let anything separate them. Or hurt her daughter the way Zoey obviously was now.
The doorbell rang. “That’s probably your dad. I’ll get it. You okay here on your own?”
The little girl nodded. Stopgap let out a sharp bark, as if agreeing.
Jane found Luke on the porch. The sheer physicality of the man slammed into her as she took in the warmth of his gaze and the strength of his arms holding the baby against one shoulder.
She’d vowed to seek satisfaction elsewhere. How exactly was she supposed to do that when just being around him shredded her resistance?
“Is Zoey holding up okay?” he asked.
She moved aside to let him in. “She’s crabby but otherwise intact.”
He stepped into the living room. “I feel awful for her. There ought to be something I can do. Instead, I wasn’t even there for her, because I had to take care of Tina.”
“It goes with the territory,” Jane said, although she had to admit she’d never actually been in that situation.
“It’s rotten timing all around. But I can’t blame that. I’m their dad. I have to do what’s best for my children.” Luke seemed to be muttering as much to himself as to Jane.
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