Get it over with, Jordan, she told herself sternly. Then you can get the rest of your clothes in Luke's car and get back where you belong. The sooner the better.
She brightened at the thought. Luke could even make her forget the horror of Norton, she was sure of it. Certainly he'd be grateful to her for returning his car after he'd abandoned it at her place last night in his blitzed state.
She grinned at the memory. He had to be in love with her if he couldn't stand the sight of her.
She threw open the door and beamed at Norton. “Norton! Hello! Nice to see you."
Norton pushed back his wavy brown hair, straightened his fur-lined collar and generally gave new meaning to the word “poser.” That was what she'd always hated about him, she suddenly remembered. It was so irritating.
"Hello, Jordan,” he answered finally, as if he thought she'd hang around indefinitely and wait for a response. “I just want to tell you that you didn't have to go that far. You could have simply called."
Now what was he talking about? Jordan peered at his pupils and checked for suspicious dilation, just in case Norton was on drugs. Then she saw the newspaper in his hands.
"What's this?"
He smirked at her. “Jordan, Jordan. You don't need to be coy with me. I know you want me."
She wanted him, all right. She wanted him gone. She grabbed the paper, since that seemed to be her only hope of an explanation.
"Oh, how sweet!” She beamed at the picture of her and Luke, fighting at the party last night. With a little write-up in the gossip column. He was scowling and dragging her out the door. She sighed and melted.
"Not that,” Norton interrupted. He flipped to another section and handed it back to her.
"Oh. Oh!” Jordan stared, amazed. Then she had to sit down. With a thud, on the floor. Her legs just wouldn't hold her up another second.
A picture of her in Luke's arms, the two of them gazing into each other's eyes. She recognized it as one Wendy had taken for the painting. It accompanied an engagement announcement.
An engagement announcement.
Jordan sat there, shocked, clutching the paper. He loved her, all right. He really did. He'd sent this in before last night. Before she'd told him she loved him. Then a smile broke over her face. Why, the sneaky rat, he'd done this on purpose, without telling her. He'd planned to make the engagement a real one all along.
She'd just known he had latent criminal tendencies. All he'd needed was a little encouragement. A little push in the right direction. She'd just known he could be an outlaw if he just had the chance.
Abruptly, she bounded to her feet again. “Thanks, Norton, I wanted a copy for our scrapbook. I'm getting married, by the way. To Luke. Isn't he handsome?” She held up the picture, forgetting that Norton had already seen it.
"Now, Jordan, you know it's me you want to marry,” the unbelievably thick-skinned cover boy simpered.
An insurance broker, of all things. Imagine. As if, she mocked inwardly.
Jordan shook her head in disbelief. “No, Norton, never in a million years.” Then she shut the door in his face and searched out the rest of her things. She didn't want to spend the rest of her life in Luke's tee shirts—although she could imagine worse fates.
A quick peek through the peephole showed Norton taking up what appeared to be permanent residence on her doorstep. Great. She grabbed her canvas tote and hopped out the side window, a tactical maneuver she had considerable experience with. She then ran for Luke's car.
"And where were you when I needed you, huh, Luke?” Jordan muttered under her breath. “You told me you'd deal with Norton.” It was his job, after all. He swore to protect her from her brothers’ horror dates.
Well, she'd escaped anyway, and she had the car, which was what she'd come for. Mission accomplished, more or less. She headed for home—figuring that from now on home would be wherever Luke was—singing “I'll Be Home For Christmas."
Back at his place, she had a sudden uncontrollable urge to make a snow angel. Or two. She did, in sweeping movements that covered her with a frosty dusting from head to toe and left her breathless and laughing. Then she ran along the snow, making letters around the angels to spell out a message with her footprints.
"Jordan loves Luke,” she chanted, laughing. Jordan loved Luke, and Luke loved Jordan.
She burst into the house and shook the snow off, then dropped her coat and boots on the foyer floor and ran to the bedroom. “Luke!” She called out, forgetting that she'd left in the first place because he needed his sleep. She skidded to a halt at the sight of the empty bed. Oh. He was awake. “Luke?"
No answer. She frowned. Where was he? She checked the hot tub, but he wasn't there, either. The rest of the house was just as empty.
"Luke?” Her voice sounded uncertain and small. As small as she felt all of a sudden. Where could he have gone, without his car?
A note. Get a brain, Jordan, he must have left a note, she lectured herself and promptly searched for one. But he hadn't left a note.
Okay, so he'd gone out for something. A paper, a Danish, a smaller black hat so they would match from now on. He'd be back. He must have just stepped out for a minute, because otherwise of course he would have left her a note.
A horrible thought struck her. Maybe something had happened. A family emergency, for instance. Aunt Cora wasn't well.
Jordan hesitated, then grabbed for the rolodex by the phone. She searched out Wendy's number and punched the buttons in a fever of anxiety. “Wendy?” she inquired when a woman picked up on the other end. “This is Jordan."
"Jordan, hello! What a surprise. I didn't expect to hear from you. I need you and Luke today, if you have time. I'm almost done with the picture."
Well, that didn't sound much like a family emergency. Jordan frowned. “Actually, I'm calling because I can't find Luke. Is he there?"
"No,” Wendy replied, sounding surprised. “I haven't seen him."
"Oh.” Crushing disappointment hit. “Well, it's probably nothing. I'm sure he'll be right back. Thanks anyway, and I'll let you know if we can come to finish the picture."
"All right, I'll expect a call."
Well, at least Wendy had sounded warm and welcoming. Suddenly Jordan felt distinctly unwelcome. A new sensation for her. Maybe love made a person unexpectedly sensitive. Maybe Luke didn't want her there after all.
No, that was ridiculous. Of course he did, he'd said so. Luke always said what he meant. She just wasn't used to being in love yet, but she'd adjust.
Meanwhile, she could dig out her mermaid costume, break the other shell off and give Luke something to think about the next time he made snide remarks about her topless dress. She'd just threaten him with real topless-ness and he'd cave in to anything else.
Laughing at the thought, she bounded off to play mermaid and lay in wait for an unsuspecting gunslinger. She'd give new meaning to the phrase wet dreams, she thought wickedly. She couldn't wait.
Half an hour later, she'd waited long enough. Incredible as it seemed, Luke really had disappeared. She peeled out of the rubber tail section and left it in the bathroom, then dressed and got back in his car. Maybe he'd had a business call. Maybe he had to go in to the office. On impulse, she drove to his office and tried the door.
Ah, success at last. It was open. Grinning in delighted anticipation at surprising him, she pushed his private door open and peered around the corner.
What she saw wiped the smile right off her face.
Luke lay with his head down on the desk and for a horrible moment she thought he was dead.
"Luke!” She dropped the keys and ran to his side, but stopped when he raised his head and stared through her in a way she'd never seen him look before.
"Luke?” Uncertain now, she hesitated, biting her lip. “I didn't know where you'd gone,” she offered lamely. “I thought you might be here. I came to see...” Her voice trailed off in confusion.
He was staring at her as if he hated her, she realized wi
th a chill. “Why are you looking at me like that?” To her horror, her voice actually quavered.
"Get out,” he said in a flat, cold voice that didn't sound like Luke at all.
She must have heard wrong, Jordan thought, stunned. “What?"
"Get out.” He turned away and started sorting through a pile of papers on his desk.
She'd stumbled into a B-rated horror movie, she thought wildly. That was it. That was the only possible explanation. Aliens from another planet had invaded and taken over Luke's body. The real Luke would never do this. Never.
"No.” She stalked over to him and pushed back his chair, making him look at her, even though it did give her the willies. He could give a person pneumonia, just looking at someone that icily. She refused to be intimidated. Luke loved her. There was a rational explanation for this temporary insanity.
She put her nose to his and demanded, “Who are you and what have you done with my fiancé?"
Ha, that surprised the alien being. It hesitated, and the hesitation proved fatal.
Jordan leaped onto the chair and threw her arms around Luke's neck. “Luke! Oh, I'm so relieved.” She rained kisses over his face and then ripped open his shirt to continue on his wonderful bared chest. “What a nightmare,” she continued, in between kisses. “It was just like the pod people. I thought a pod had gotten you."
Luke sighed heavily. “Jordan, what are you talking about?"
She sat upright and blinked at him. “You know, like “Invasion of the Body Snatchers". The pod people."
He considered her thoughtfully. “That's fiction."
"Yes, well, sometimes the line between fiction and reality gets a little thin. You should know that better than anyone. Look what happened in our case.” She laid her head on his shoulder and cuddled contentedly with him, thankful once more for his accommodating chair.
Luke slowly raised one hand to the shock of white hair that stuck out in all directions. “What exactly did happen in our case, Jordan?” he inquired cautiously.
"Don't be ridiculous. You said it yourself—happy endings are for real life, not stories,” Jordan reminded him pointedly. “In our case, what happened was we came up with a brilliant idea that didn't take reality into consideration. That's the usual problem with brilliant ideas, you know. It happens to me all the time. Anyway, instead of pretending to be engaged, we really did get engaged. I know it's real, because I saw the picture in the paper, and if you can't believe the newspapers, well, what can you believe?"
Luke absorbed her disjointed explanation in silence. “So you saw it in the paper and now you're here?"
"No, Norton saw it in the paper. Luke, don't you ever pay attention when I'm talking?"
"You didn't mention Norton."
"Oh. Right. My subconscious must have tried to block out the horror of the experience. Happens all the time with Norton. Well, I couldn't sleep and I didn't want to wake you up, so I went to get your car.” Jordan stopped short. “You do remember about your car, don't you? From last night?"
Luke eyed her guardedly. “Not really, no. Did you wreck it?"
She smiled brilliantly at him. “Would you still love me if I did?"
He nodded slowly. “I think, Jordan, I would still love you no matter what you did."
"Oh, good, because I do an awful lot of things that will probably drive you nuts a lot of the time,” she confided. “But I didn't wreck your car. I took it away from you because you really shouldn't have been driving last night. You were pickled, Luke,” Jordan informed him solemnly.
"Yes, I do remember that much,” he agreed.
"So I made you take a taxi with me and we cabbed it the rest of the night, so your car was still at my place, which is how Norton caught me.” Jordan stopped there to glare fiercely at him. “You were supposed to defend me from Norton,” she informed him, stabbing him in the chest with one pointed finger as she delivered the accusation. “You weren't there. I had to jump out the window and run for my life. But I stole his newspaper first, and that's how I saw the picture."
Luke took that in and tried to make sense of it all, but failed to form the bits and pieces into a coherent whole.
"And I knew you loved me already, because you couldn't stand the sight of me and you said so."
That made absolutely no sense, and Luke didn't even try to understand it.
"When I saw that you'd sent an announcement to the paper with one of Wendy's pictures, then I knew you were a sneaky, lowdown rat and the only man I could ever love,” Jordan continued blithely.
That didn't make any sense, either. Luke was beginning to think that with her, nothing ever would.
"Anyway, I got some clothes and the car. Then I went back home, but you weren't there. I waited for you in the tub, but I was starting to turn into a raisin, so I left my tail on the floor for later and called Wendy."
This was amazing—absolutely the most bizarre and baffling excuse for an explanation he'd ever heard. A tail? No, he didn't even want to know. He really didn't. He wouldn't even ask.
"Wendy needs us, by the way. To finish the picture. She said she's almost done and we're supposed to call her. But nothing was wrong with Aunt Cora and she didn't know where you were, so I came here."
"Aunt Cora didn't know where I was?"
"Well, I assume she didn't, but I didn't ask her, I asked Wendy. Luke, really, would you try to pay attention?” Jordan sat up to give him a disgusted look. “And why are you working?” she went on, with a sharp gesture at the files on his desk. “Look at you, you never let up. You need a vacation. I think we should go to the Bahamas. I didn't get to have any fun the last time I was there because of Mitchell the sadistic dentist. You remember Mitchell, right?"
Luke nodded. “Yes, I remember Mitchell the sadistic dentist."
"Well, he ruined my trip to the Bahamas. I got a sunburn,” she informed Luke with a sorrowful face at the memory. “But I'm getting off the point."
Luke was very relieved to hear that there was a point to this.
"You need me, Luke,” Jordan informed him in earnest. “Without me, you'd just dry up and turn into a file folder one day."
"I thought I was going to turn into a pod person,” he offered hesitantly.
"No, I only thought that because of the way you looked at me.” Remembering that, she stopped short and shuddered. “Luke, please don't ever look at me like that again. It was horrible. I got frostbite from it. It scared me. I might be traumatized by the experience.” She experimentally huddled into his chest in a traumatized ball.
A slow warmth began building somewhere inside him and expanded to spread through his whole being. Jordan was here. Back with him ... where she belonged. And he wasn't ever going to let her get away again. Luke's arms closed around her in an endless, bone-crushing hug.
"I'm sorry,” he murmured against her wild hair. “How can we cure your trauma?"
She considered that for a moment. “Well, since you ask ... I've been having this fantasy involving your chair.” She tipped her face up to grin at him, dimples curving sweetly.
"Oh?"
"Yes.” Jordan touched her lips to his in a butterfly caress as she finished pushing his shirt away to bare his chest for her turn at ravishment. When she was done with him, she vowed, he'd never doubt her love again. She slid down, trailing her teeth against his chest and heard satisfying gasps and groans as Luke responded to her as he always did—violently.
She kissed his hard belly as she slipped down to kneel by the chair and reached for his pants. “Don't try to stop me,” she warned him teasingly.
"Jordan, I couldn't stop you to save my soul,” he groaned, and buried his fingers in her hair to tug her closer.
Jordan took that as a sign that she wasn't going to get much more time to play with him. She undressed him quickly, then assaulted his hardness with soft lips.
"Jordan. Jordan.” Her name was both plea and shout as Luke hauled her up and tore at her clothing. She laughed against his lips as she helped,
and then he yanked her onto his lap again.
Everything about him was intoxicating—the crinkly texture of his hair, the smoothness of his skin. The exhilarating male scent that was uniquely Luke filled her senses and fired her soul. She wanted to be part of him. She wanted him to be part of her. She wanted to be so close that she'd forget what separateness felt like, forget the momentary fear that she'd be split apart from him forever.
They melded two bodies into one, two hearts and minds meshed, hands clasped. They came together in an ancient joining and knew the wild, sweet bond of mutual love.
After a while, she stirred and kissed his chest again. “We should get dressed,” she murmured. “What if somebody caught us naked in your chair?"
Luke tipped her pointed chin up to kiss her with lingering thoroughness. “They'd think I was the luckiest man alive,” he answered quietly. “And they'd be right."
Now there was an answer guaranteed to chase away the evil pod being's chill. Jordan hugged him fiercely, feeling warm all the way through again, and thoroughly loved. Then she smiled up at him, flashing deep dimples. “Let's go home."
Luke traced the dents with his fingertip. “That sounds like a very good idea to me."
Jordan lingered for just another long moment in his lap, then leaped up to dress in record time, even for her. It was downright chilly in December to run around in the buff. She paused to mention to Luke that he might keep his office a little warmer in the future, in case they suddenly needed the chair again, but got distracted by the magnificent sight of a naked Luke standing beside her in all his male glory. She dropped back into the chair to watch him dress.
His body was so wonderful to look at. Raw and rugged, big and bold, all long slashing lines and molded muscular curves. Looking at him made her long to be a sculptor, to capture the wonder and beauty forever.
Luke saw her staring at him and stopped in the middle of buttoning his shirt. “Jordan?” He waved a hand in front of her face as if testing her eyes for motion response.
She gave him an innocent gamine grin. “Yes?"
"What are you doing?"
Yule Be Mine Page 15