by Jane Toombs
This was no time to fall in love! He’d made no promises, no commitments, and she’d always vowed never to allow herself to love a man until she could be sure they had some kind of a future together. Apparently, though, love couldn’t be contained by rules—hers or anyone else’s.
He traced her lips with his forefinger. “Still scared?”
If she told the truth, yes. But now she really had something to be afraid of. Not him, never him. Zed was the most wonderful lover she could imagine. Her. own feelings were what frightened her.
Had her cousin felt this way about Talal Zohir? Though it was difficult for her to picture butterfly Erin alighting in any one involvement long enough to becaught in the web of love, wasn’t it possible? Just because she hadn’t cared for Talal’s manner didn’t mean Erin would have had the same reaction toward him.
“Too scared to speak?” Zed asked.
In answer, she rose’ on her elbow, leaned over and brushed his lips with what she intended as a light, ephemeral kiss, a kiss not meant to be in any way arousing. But the softness of his lips under hers made her linger long enough for him to respond, and she discovered the inner coals of desire were still burning, ready to burst into flame.
As their kiss deepened, Zed shifted Karen until she lay on top of him; he relished the erotic sensation of her nakedness against his. How smooth and soft her skin was, how tempting the curves of her beautiful body, how arousing her kisses.
Once with her had been far from enough. The way she made him feel, he doubted twice would suffice, either. How many times would be enough? Setting that problem aside for the moment—with her in his arms, who wanted to think?—he eased her onto her side so he could indulge his need to tease her nipple with his tongue. Her taste was addictive. So was her scent—flowery and feminine and only hers.
She’d driven him wild earlier when her shy responses turned to heated passion. It had been all he could do to hold back until she was ready. There was nothing shy about her caresses now, and she was still making him crazy with need. No woman had ever made him feel such intense desire. He never wanted to let her go; he wanted to plunge inside her and stay there forever, rocking on the verge of completion.
Her tiny moans and the way she moved against him told him she was as eager as he. When she breathed, “Please” in his ear, he didn’t hesitate. His passion completely out of control, he took her and himself to a peak he’d never before scaled.
Even afterward he was reluctant to release her. All the old cliché phrases he’d ever heard were true, damn it. She’d gotten under his skin, into his blood; she held him in thrall with that old black magic; he’d begin the beguine with her any old time.
She reached to caress his cheek and his heart melted. What the hell was happening to him? He was uneasily aware that a four-letter word existed for the way she made him feel, but he couldn’t believe it was happening to him. Love? Get real!
They fell asleep, still entwined. He roused to daylight and reached for her, only to find she wasn’t in the bed. In the bathroom the shower was running. Triggered by visions of jumping into the shower with her, he leapt up and tried the door, but found it locked. Another time, he told himself consolingly. Another time—soon.
As he waited for her to finish, the problem of Talal slid into his mind. Preoccupied with making love to and with Karen, Zed had successfully shut him out until now. But his relationship to Talal was a problem that wouldn’t go away, a problem he had to solve.
Were they brothers? The blood match suggested they must be. Or maybe half brothers, linked by a father. Certainly not twins, as Talal insisted. How could that be when they’d been born in different countries? Impossible!
What about the tenuous link he’d been aware of from the moment he stared down at the unconscious Talal? Why had Talal said he knew Zed was real, knew he existed, no matter what they’d told him. Who were “they”?
With these questions circling in his mind, he couldn’t wait to get to the hospital so Talal could provide him with some answers. When Karen was finished he showered and dressed rapidly, finishing in an even tie with her. “Why do women take so long to get ready?” he teased.
“Because men judge us by how we look instead of by what we are,” she answered.
He grinned at her. “So far you check out in all areas. You even appeal to me grungy.”
She made a face at him, and it was all he could do not to wrap his arms around her and kiss her breathless. But that would lead to something else and they’d never get under way. He had to get to the hospital.
Mrs. Haven’s breakfast was as delicious as the day before. When they were finished, Zed told her he wasn’t sure about the room, because Danny might be discharged.
“Don’t let it worry you,” she told him. “You can let me know when you know.”
At the hospital Zed went with Karen to check out Danny and found Georgia, the nurse, playing peekaboo with him. Reassured that the boy was all right, he told Karen, “I’m going to talk to Talal.”
At ICU he learned Talal had been transferred to the men’s surgical ward. When he reached that floor, he was told Talal was no longer a patient at the hospital.
“You mean the doctor discharged him already?” Zed asked, aghast.
“I believe Mr. Zohir signed himself out against the doctor’s advice,” the ward clerk replied. “In any case, he’s not here.”
Further questioning turned up Bob, the male attendant who’d helped Talal get ready to leave. “I wheeled him down to the limo he’d booked,” Bob said. “I understood that the limo was taking him to the airport because he’d chartered a plane for New York. Dr. Longworth, the surgeon who operated on him, was mad as hell, but there was no stopping him.“ He took another look at Zed. “You his brother?” Bob asked.
Zed settled for a nod, since it was more believable than admitting he didn’t know.
Bob spread his hands. “All I can say is he didn’t leave any message for you. Or for anyone else.”
Disturbed and confused, Zed took his time returning to pediatrics. When he entered Danny’s room, Karen was sitting in the rocker holding the boy. “Da!” Danny cried.
“Hello to you, too, Tiger,” Zed said, forcing a smile for Danny.
“Well?” Karen asked. “What did Talal have to say?”
“He’s gone.” His words dropped like stones into a mine shaft.
Karen blinked. “What do you mean, gone? Did something happen to him?”
Zed shook his head. “Nothing catastrophic. He signed himself out of the hospital, hired a limo to drive him to the airport, and took a plane to New York.”
She stared at him. “He must have left you a message.”
“Nope, nothing.”
For a moment Karen looked as confused as he felt, then her expression darkened. “He ran out, didn’t he? Ran out on you and his responsibility to Danny. I didn’t like him or trust him from the moment I set eyes on him, and I was right. I’ve been right all along. He’s a weasling no-good.”
“Don’t say that!” Zed’s annoyed response surprised him, as well as obviously taking Karen aback.
She bristled. “It’s the truth. Talal can’t be trusted. I’ll lay odds he’s not staying in New. York but will be flying on home to Kholi to get well beyond our reach. He’s deliberately turned his back on both you and Danny.”
Zed tried to tamp down his irritation at Karen, telling himself she didn’t understand. “Talal wouldn’t do that,” he said as calmly as he could. “He’s not that kind of man.”
“How can you say that?” she cried. “You just met him. He may be some sort of relative of yours, but you don’t have a clue about what kind of person he is. Well, I do! He already deserted my cousin. What makes you so sure he wouldn’t do the same thing to you and Danny?”
“I can’t explain.” Zed found it impossible to keep his growing anger from creeping into his voice. “Irrational though it may seem to you, I feel in my bones that he wouldn’t behave dishonorably. It isn
’t in him to run away.”
Karen made a small disgusted sound. “Even though that’s exactly what he did.”
Zed clamped his lips shut. There was no point in trying to convince Karen that he was certain Talal would be back. How he knew this was beyond him, but he’d never felt more sure of anything in his life. In some way he didn’t yet comprehend, he and Talal were linked.
Chapter Eleven
In spite of Zed’s reluctance to argue, the dispute between Karen and Zed in Danny’s hospital room continued until the boy started to cry, upset by their raised voices. As Karen tried to soothe him, Georgia came in with a message from Dr. Nelson.
“The doctor’s tied up in surgery,” she said. “He won’t be able to get here to see Danny until late afternoon. He doesn’t want to let him go without examining him, so he asks that you please be patient.”
Karen and Zed looked at each other in dismay. It wasn’t so much that she was upset about the doctor, Karen thought. She didn’t mind waiting. What bothered her was having to hang around all day with Zed when she was so irked with him that she had the urge to slam his head against the wall in an attempt to knock some sense into it.
From the look on his face, he felt the same way about her.
Georgia went out. As Danny quieted down, Karen decided that, rather than get into another argument, she would keep her mouth shut. A silence fell, broken only by Danny’s babbling.
“Care for something to eat?” Zed asked finally.
She shook her head, not caring at the moment if she ever ate again.
“Decaf?” he. persisted.
“No, thank you,” she said coolly. “Nothing.”
She expected him to go out to get himself coffee and maybe a snack but, instead, he crossed to the window and stared out. “The side of another building isn’t the most inspiring view,” he remarked after a time.
Since no reply was required, she said nothing.
At last he turned to face her. “I think I’ll call Jade and update her,” he said.
“That’s a good idea,” she said politely. His sister certainly deserved to be caught up on what had happened, and the call would get him out of her hair for a while. She watched him leave the room.
She couldn’t understand why he defended Talal so vehemently. Why wasn’t he able to see what was so obvious to her? The man had fled to Kholi to avoid the situation. Once in Kholi, he could never be brought to account, never be forced to acknowledge his son in any way.
Sitting down in the rocker, she settled Danny onto her lap and said, “You didn’t like Talal either, did you?”
Danny gazed at her, offering her one of his sweet smiles. His bruises had begun to fade to ghastly greens and yellows, marking improvement, she knew, but it made the poor little guy look terrible. She hugged him, saying, “We don’t need that mean old Talal, anyway. We’ll get along just fine.”
“Da?” he said.
“No, that’s Zed,” she told him without thinking, only realizing after the words were out that it was true. In every way that mattered, Zed behaved like Danny’s father. Too bad he wasn’t.
When Zed returned to the room, having decided to try to act reasonably despite their marked difference of opinion, she asked, “How is your sister?”
“Swamped.”
When he didn’t elaborate, she decided he was still annoyed with her. Well, even if he couldn’t rise above his irritation and be reasonable, she could keep her cool and remain polite.
“Did Jade land the big contract?” she asked.
“Yes.”
With effort Karen refrained from scowling at him. She was determined not to react to his terseness. At the same time she was damned if she meant to let him get away with it. No way!
Keeping her tone calm and even, she said, “Then that must be what you were referring to when you said she was swamped—right?”
For the first time since coming back, he looked directly at her. “Partly. There are a few other problems.”
His dark eyes that only last night had been so tender and loving were now as hard and cold as obsidian. In order to conceal her upset at being treated like an enemy, she shifted her gaze to Danny. Refusing to be cowed, she said, “I imagine Jade was surprised to know we’d found Danny’s father.” She bit her tongue to stop herself from adding, and lost him.
“She was relieved.”
Karen shot him a speculative look. I’ll bet you didn’t even tell her Talal skipped the country, she thought, but didn’t say so.
“I hope Dr. Nelson discharges Danny today,” Zed said.
She did, too. Surely he knew that.
“Da,” Danny crowed, holding his arms up toward Zed. For a long moment she didn’t think Zed meant to respond, then he shook his head, as though throwing off his dark mood, and smiled at the boy.
“Hey, Tiger, time for our man-to-man thing—right?” As he spoke he lifted the boy from her lap, carrying him to the window. “Not much to see but, look, there’s a bird, a pigeon, landing on the windowsill. Pigeons like bread crumbs, so if we had some bread and opened the window we could feed it.”
A moment later he added, “I guess the bird knows we don’t have a handout—look, it’s flying away. That’s what birds do, you know, fly.” His tone, talking to the boy, was warm and affectionate.
She bit back the tart observation that birds weren’t the only things that flew—Talal had taken flight, as well.
As the morning dragged on, she and Zed remained in an armed truce, not resuming their argument—because, she was positive, of her forbearance. Eventually, Danny had his lunch and fell asleep.
“We haven’t eaten,” Zed said then. “He’s napping. No need for either of us to be here.”
“I’m not particularly hungry,” she responded. “And I don’t want to miss Dr. Nelson. Maybe the cafeteria—”
Zed glanced at his watch. It’s only twelve-thirty. Georgia said the doctor wouldn’t be here until late afternoon, so we have a couple of hours to kill. Believe me, the hospital cafeteria is to be avoided. If you don’t want to go far and don’t care for a lot to eat, remember we have crackers and peanut butter in our room. I bought cheese and soft drinks, too.”
She took his words as a peace offering of sorts. Besides, though she wanted to be with Danny when he was awake, being stuck in his room while he napped wasn’t appealing. And peanut butter was a favorite of hers. She’d almost opened the jar last night. “Sounds good,” she admitted.
When they left the hospital she was surprised to find the day shrouded in mist. “The sun was out when we walked over this morning,” she protested.
“This tends to be a foggy coastline,” he said. “Beautiful as it is, the Monterey peninsula isn’t high on my list of good sailing spots.”
“What places do you like the best?” she asked, glad they’d found a neutral subject.
He was describing Emerald Bay on Lake Tahoe in glowing terms when they reached Snug Haven. “Positively awesome in midsummer on a moonlit night,” he finished. “I’ll show you someday.”
Her heart leapt at the thought of spending a night anchored in a beautiful bay with the moon shining down on them. On her and Zed. With an effort she banished the image from her mind. It wasn’t likely to happen. His words meant no more than a casual acquaintance saying, “We must get together for lunch sometime.”
Except Zed wasn’t merely a casual acquaintance. At least, as far as she was concerned.
Mrs. Haven looked into the hall when they entered, and Zed spoke to her. “It looks like we’ll be staying here another night, but we may need a crib in the room.”
With her assurance the crib would be put in place whether or not they came back with Danny, they mounted the stairs. Thinking about the crib, Karen told herself she was relieved Danny would probably be playing chaperon. With this, unresolved Talal argument still smoldering between them, she certainly didn’t want to make love with Zed tonight.
In the room she discovered that Zed had hit on h
er favorite brand of saltines as well as peanut butter, plus he’d remembered to buy plastic knives to use for spreading. She smiled at him in approval as she spread a cracker with a generous serving of peanut butter while he opened an orange soft drink for her.
“This feels like an indoor picnic,” she said, sitting on the floor with her goodies and leaning up against the bed.
“Exactly my thought. A picnic lunch.” As he picked up the cheese and peeled off its wrapping, she noticed the box of arrowroot biscuits and her heart melted. He’d even thought of Danny.
He sat on the floor with his stack of cheese and crackers and his cola drink.
“Caffeine all the way,” she remarked.
He slanted her an unrepentant grin. “Warms the cockles of a man’s heart.”
“I thought that was whiskey.”
“I never said there wasn’t more than one drink capable of the warming.” His gaze softened and she felt herself being drawn into the deep, soft darkness of his eyes. “Nor did I point out there was something far more potent than caffeine or whiskey, something capable of not only warming a man’s heart but his soul, as well.”
With some difficulty she shook off her bemusement and took another bite of her cracker, telling herself she was not going to be seduced by his eyes.
“If you give me a taste of yours, you can have a taste of mine,” he said.
She shot him a look of mock reproof. “My mother taught me never to eat off anyone else’s plate.”
“Who’s got plates?” he asked, offering her a bite of his cheese and cracker without releasing it.
She leaned forward and took a bite, crumbs scattering onto the floor. “Mrs. Haven will be annoyed,” she said after she swallowed it.
“What’re a few crumbs? Overall, we’re rather neat,” he countered. “Now it’s my turn.” Grasping her hand, the one holding the remnants of her cracker, he took the rest of the cracker from her hand with his mouth, the warmth of his lips teasing her fingers.