Wanted: One Groom

by Pat Ballard

  Hanna was paralyzed with desire as she rode with her legs wrapped around Matt and her head snuggled close against his shoulder. Her arms tightened around him, pulling him as close as she could. She’d never known anything could be this arousing. Her whole body tingled with sexual desire, and she desperately wanted to make love to Matt Corbett.

  She was sorry when they reached Rockwell Place and Matt pulled the big bike slowly into the garage.

  Not wanting the night to end, neither of them was in any hurry to move from their position. Slowly, Matt removed their helmets, then wrapped his arms tightly around Hanna and gently kissed her neck through her hair. His breath was hot as he found her bare skin and started placing feather kisses on her neck, working his way up her chin to lips that were parted and waiting for his. Her tongue timidly touched his, causing him to moan into her mouth.

  Hanna had never wanted anything more than she wanted Matt Corbett at this moment, but slowly he ended the kiss and gazed down at her through passion-clouded eyes.

  When he spoke, he voice was hoarse and sounded like a stranger. “Hanna, you’re driving me crazy. If you don’t want to be my wife for real, we’d better call it a night.”

  Hanna fell across the bed in her room. What was happening to her? She was acting like a teenager. She knew she should be a lot more cautious about her feelings for Matt, but it felt so good to feel good. She was playing with fire, but she had never been this aroused before, and, if the truth be known, she didn’t want to stop what was going on. She moved her hands across the chenille bedspread and giggled at the tickling sensation that ran up her arms.

  Overcome with the urge to hear the song that Matt had sung to her earlier, Hanna sprang from the bed and went to the closet. Soon she came out with the Best of Matt Corbett CD. In seconds, his voice was crooning from her stereo as she lay back across her bed, a faint smile playing on her lips. How she loved his voice.

  Weariness from her busy day settled over Hanna. She drifted into blissful sleep, and didn’t hear the soft knock on her door.

  As Matt knocked on Hanna’s door it opened slightly, and he realized it hadn’t been totally closed. That’s probably why he could hear the music when he walked past. He knocked again, quietly, and pushed the door open enough to glance into the room. He could see Hanna on her bed, and realized she was asleep. He also realized the music he’d heard in the hallway was one of his songs.

  He approached the bed and looked down at Hanna. She lay on her side with her hands tucked under her chin like a child. Her right thumb and forefinger loosely clasped the ring on her left hand, as if she had gone to sleep touching it. His mother’s ring. He had been hesitant to give it to Hanna at first, but now he knew she was the only woman he would ever want to wear it.

  Warm pleasure engulfed him, just knowing she had gone to sleep listening to his voice and touching the ring he had given her. Could she be growing to care for him? He knew she was suspicious that he had just married her for her money, and he couldn’t tell her different yet, but soon she would know that her money was the least thing he wanted or needed from her. Soon.

  Longing to stay and watch her sleep, but knowing he couldn’t take the chance of her waking up and catching him there, he turned to leave the room. His eyes caught sight of something familiar standing just inside the partially open closet door. Glancing back at Hanna to make sure she was still asleep, he moved close to the closet and found, looking back at him, a life size poster of himself he remembered from the years he had been a rock star.

  Back in his room, pleasure flooded through Matt. Surely Hanna must care a little for him to have his tapes and a poster of him in her closet. But that poster went back for at least twelve or fifteen years, so she must have been a fan.

  Smiling with pleasure, and exploring all the possibilities of what this new discovery meant, Matt soon drifted into a deep sleep.

  The next morning, before going down for breakfast, Hanna slipped her long silk robe over her matching nightgown. No use to dress before she went down. She was the only one in the dining room for breakfast these days. So she was surprised to find Matt standing in front of her grandmother’s portrait, sipping his coffee as he viewed the painting.

  “That’s Grandmother Rockwell,” Hanna said softly. “I don’t think Grandfather ever really got over losing her.” A new shyness suddenly overcame her. She had dreamed about Matt all night, and the soft memories still lingered in her eyes. And here she was in front of him with nothing on but her negligee.

  “She looks like you,” Matt said, turning to face Hanna, and looking appreciatively at her apparel, before continuing. “Are your actions as much like hers as your looks are?”

  “According to Grandfather, I’m her clone.” Hanna couldn’t keep the pride from her voice.

  “Then I can see how it would be impossible to get over losing her.” Matt said, looking back at the portrait.

  Hanna was trying to comprehend Matt’s statement when her mother breezed into the room.

  “Good morning, Matt. Hanna. It’s good to see you both here together. There’s something I need to discuss with you.

  “I think I’m going to take a small vacation. I haven’t left this house in years, and now that you’re married and everything has started to settle down, I think I deserve to get away and pamper myself a little. I’ve made reservations, and I’ll be leaving for Europe day after tomorrow.”

  “Why, Mother, I think that’s great!” Hanna exclaimed. “You should have done this a long time ago.”

  “Well, yes. Yes, I should have,” Mary agreed, with a big smile across her face.

  Hanna was always surprised at how pretty her mother was when she genuinely smiled.

  “Oh, and one more thing. I’ll be taking Henri with me. I don’t want to travel alone. One can never be too careful these days.” And she breezed from the room, just as she had breezed in.

  Hanna’s eyes locked with Matt’s, both of them remembering Houston’s revelation that Henri and her mother had been lovers for years.

  “Yes. Yes,” Matt said speculatively, tapping his pursed lips with his forefinger. “One can never be too careful these days.”

  Hanna’s laugh pealed out, but she cautioned Matt to be quiet. It wouldn’t do for her mother to guess they knew her secret.

  They had barely contained themselves when Mary came back into the room. “Has either of you seen Will? I need to tell him about my plans.”

  “I haven’t seen him in days,” Hanna said, realizing she hadn’t seen Will since the morning Matt called him down in her defense.

  “No,” Matt answered. “I don’t see much of Will these days.” And he winked at Hanna, knowing they shared the same thought.

  “Well, if you see him, tell him to find me. I really must talk to him.” And she was gone again.

  Pouring herself a cup of coffee, Hanna spoke hestitantly, without turning to face Matt. “About yesterday—I just want to—I just think you should know—I—”

  Before she could say any more, she felt Matt’s hands on her shoulders, turning her to face him.

  “I know. I had a wonderful time, too,” he said, taking her coffee cup and placing it back beside the pot before wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close.

  “Matt,” she tried to protest.

  “Yes, Hanna?” he answered, and started feather-kissing the sides of her mouth and down her neck.

  “Matt!” Hanna tried to protest again. Someone was going to walk in on them.

  “Yes, Hanna,” Matt answered again, covering her lips in a deep, devouring kiss.

  The feel of his cool, firm lips was driving Hanna mad. Her entire body seemed to have gone limp, and she had to wrap her arms around him just to remain standing. She timidly offered her tongue for his to play with, and was again struck with the pleasure that crashed through her, shattering all her intentions of telling Matt they needed to cool it.

  She felt him tug at the sash at her waist only moments before his hands slipped
inside the robe. The plunging neckline of the gown made it easy for Matt to slip his hand inside and capture a bare breast. Her gasp at his touch gave him further access into her mouth with his exploring tongue, as his thumb started working its magic on her peak.

  “Oh my word!” the shocked voice exclaimed.

  Jumping back as if they both had been caught in a criminal act, Matt and Hanna whirled to stare guiltily at Mary Rockwell.

  “Mother! We thought you were gone.” Hanna couldn’t believe how dazed her voice sounded. Neither could she believe the big smile that spread across her mother’s face.

  “I laid my sunglasses on the table, right here, and forgot them. Sorry—you kids carry on.” She waved good-bye as she left the room with the big grin still on her face.

  Hanna had hurriedly tied her sash back around her waist. She sat down at the long dining room table, knees too weak to hold her up.

  Matt brought her coffee to her, and sat down beside her.

  “You’re beautiful, you know that?” His eyes were a warm glow as he held her gaze.

  Hanna’s throat still ached from the passion they had just shared. “You almost make me believe it,” she whispered.

  “You will believe it before I’m finished.” Matt’s words were a promise.

  “Mr. Corbett, you have a phone call,” the housekeeper spoke from the doorway.

  “Thanks, I’ll take it in my room,” Matt answered. He leaned over and kissed Hanna softly on the lips before he left the room.

  Too full of confused emotions to eat her morning bagel, Hanna sat for a long time and sipped her coffee, trying to sort out what was happening with her and Matt. But not coming up with any answers, and realizing her coffee was cold, she decided to go to her room and get dressed.

  She was passing Matt’s partially closed door when she heard him say, “Oh, I’ll get the money from her. I’ve about got her convinced. I can tell she’s getting ready to give in.”

  Too shocked to think, Hanna ran to her room. So it was the money he was after!

  How stupid of her to even believe someone like Matt Corbett could actually be interested in her. What a fool she was. What a fool she had made of herself. And how much further would she have been willing to go, if she hadn’t heard that conversation?

  She had to get out of the house. She quickly showered, threw on some slacks and a loose-fitting top, and headed for the gazebo. She always went to the gazebo when she was troubled and needed to work things out.

  She sank down on the bench that faced the little waterfall and, leaning her head against a post, closed her eyes. What was she going to do? She was hopelessly in love with Matt Corbett, her husband, who was only playing games with her to get her money.

  She never knew that there was actual pain that came with heartache, but she was so hurt to find out the truth about Matt that her chest actually ached.

  Why did she keep making herself miserable for other people? She’d married Matt to save the house and estate for Will and her mother. Now her mother was off to Europe with her lover, Henri, as happy as a lark, and Will? Well, Will was somewhere doing whatever he pleased, that was for sure. And Matt. Matt had gotten what he wanted. He’d saved his hide from the IRS. But now, it seemed he wanted more. He wanted money from her. It seemed she, Hanna, was the only one still miserable here.

  “Well, that’s about to come to an end,” she stated aloud, startling a little bird that had landed on the step of the gazebo near her.

  With a sudden clarity, Hanna made up her mind to turn her life around. She would do a few things that she had always wanted to do.

  “Which are?” The thought came softly. Hanna thought for a moment, then answered herself aloud. “Which are, sell this house, for one thing. I’ll travel abroad, and maybe even live abroad. I’ll be footloose and fancy free, to do whatever I want to do. And go when and wherever I want to go. I may even take on a host of lovers to purge Matt Corbett from my soul forever.”

  Hoping the new plans would make her feel better, Hanna was disappointed when she realized the dead weight was still resting in the pit of her stomach as she walked slowly back to the house.

  Chapter 6

  “Are you sure you want to do this, Hanna?” Houston Couch had a worried look on his usually composed face.

  “Yes. I’m tired of being used. I’m tired of living my life for other people who don’t even appreciate what I’m doing. I want to sell the house. Surely there’s no clause in Grandfather’s will that says I can’t sell the house, is there?” The thought brought sudden fear to Hanna.

  “No. The house became totally yours in the first phase of the will. You can do with it as you please. Phase three of the will deals with the monetary aspects of your inheritance. But I can’t believe you really want to sell your home. You’ve spent your life there. All your childhood memories are wrapped around that house and land. It’s your home, Hanna.”

  “That’s just the point, Houston. Can’t you understand? I’ve lived my entire life in one place. I never even got to travel. Dad died when I was too young to enjoy traveling. And Grandfather was only too content to sit at home and smoke his pipe and reminisce about Grandmother. He didn’t want to leave the house with all its memories, and he sure wasn’t going to turn over any extra money to Mother for traveling, not even for me. So all I’ve ever known is Rockwell Place. I just want to get away for a while. I want to be free to go and come when I want to.”

  “What about your mother and Will? What will they do for a home? I thought this was the whole purpose for your spontaneous wedding. To save the house so they would have a place to live. You don’t have to sell your home in order to travel, Hanna. You have money.”

  “Houston, do you know what my mother is getting ready to do? She’s getting ready, even as we speak, to go to Europe with Henri. She says she needs to get away for a while. And of course, in her words, she needs to take Henri because she might need him.”

  Houston came to full attention now. “That’s very interesting,” he admitted.

  “And who knows where Will is. I haven’t seen him in over two weeks. He got angry with Matt for taking up for me, and we haven’t seen him since. And I told you what I heard Matt say about getting the money from me. So why should I care what happens to these people?

  “Yes, Mother and Will couldn’t keep still until I agreed to get married so their future would be intact, but now look at them. I’m the only one stuck with the house, and they’re out running around living life to the fullest. So why should I care what happens to them? They don’t give a damn about me.”

  “You care what happens to them, because you are a caring person. You’ve convinced yourself that you don’t care, but I’m afraid if you make this decision to sell Rockwell Place, you’re going to regret it the rest of your life,” Houston argued. “And about Matt. You didn’t actually hear him call your name. What if he was talking about getting the money from someone else? What if you’re mistaken?”

  “I’m not mistaken. I know he was talking about me. I just felt it. Houston, I am putting the house on the market, so find a Realtor.”

  Hanna’s mind was made up.

  “Did she give you the money?” Dave asked when Matt came through the door.

  “Of course she did. I told you I had her eating out of the palm of my hand,” Matt said with a cocky twitch of his eyebrow.

  “You lucky dog. We should all have a rich aunt. Where was she when your manager got you in financial trouble? Why didn’t you go to her then, instead of getting married to a stranger?”

  “Dave, I guess I have too much pride to ask my mother’s favorite sister for money when I’m in trouble, but this is different. This is an investment for her. If this album does good, she’ll make a lot of money off the backer’s percentage I’m giving her, so I don’t feel bad about asking her to do this. Especially after all the good vibes we’ve gotten from these songs. I’m actually doing my aunt a big favor by getting her involved in my future. That is, if things g
o like they seem to be headed. I hope to hell I’m not going to be the cause of her losing money. But I did explain all of the ramifications of this gamble to her.”

  “I do believe we’re on to something big, friend. I’m just glad I’m a part of this. This is going to be one of the major career comebacks of the decade. I can hardly wait to see your fans’ reaction.” Dave’s eyes were alight with excitement.

  “Do you think my fans will accept me as a country artist? They were rock fans, you know.” A tinge of doubt sounded in Matt’s voice.

  “Hey, now, don’t go get cold feet on me. Sure, they’ll accept you. They’re all older now, and a lot of them have probably switched to country music anyway. And besides that, this new country sound is a lot like the rock sound a few years ago. You wrote these songs, so they still sound like you, they just have a country twist. The whole world is going to love you. You’re going to be the next Garth Brooks!” Dave’s reassuring words restored Matt’s confidence, and he grinned.

  “Thanks, Dave. I’m glad I have at least one fan.”

  Several days later, Hanna was sitting on the deck with her morning coffee when Will burst through the sliding glass door leading from the dining room.

  “Just what the hell is going on here?” he shouted, bearing down on Hanna.

  Startled, Hanna almost dropped her coffee mug.

  “What are you talking about, Will?” she asked innocently, knowing he must have spotted the “For Sale” sign in front of the house.

  “You know damn well what I’m talking about! Who put the sign out front? And why?” Hanna had seen Will lose his temper before, but this time, he really looked out of control.