He shook his head, his disgusted expression suggesting he was operating under great restraint. “Listen, Boo. Nobody coerces me into doing anything. You understand?”
“Y-yes.”
“Good. Then if I said I’d do it, I will.” He paused, his eyes narrowing. “Unless you aren’t interested?”
“Oh, no. I am.”
“Good.” He stuffed the clipboard into a bag and jerked the zipper closed. “Then we’ll start tomorrow.”
She stared up at him, a mixture of terror, excitement and gratitude bubbling through her at the realization that he was really going to teach her to drive. “Okay.”
He scowled, suddenly appearing annoyed all over again. “Stop looking at me that way.”
“What way?”
“Like you’ve suddenly decided I’m some sort of model citizen. I’m not. It’s just...in my business, the more people who drive, the better, okay?”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“Good. Now if you don’t mind, I want to get this stuff loaded in the car.” Hefting a pair of the bulky equipment satchels, he started to turn away.
Norah hesitated, but there was something she had to say. She reached out and laid her hand on his bare arm. “Eli, wait.”
He froze at her touch. She felt the muscle tense beneath her fingertips. Surprised, her eyes flew to his face as he swiveled around. Just for an instant she would have sworn he looked almost...wary.
“What?” He took a step sideways away from her reach.
She slowly dropped her hand. “I just wanted to say...thank you.”
He shrugged, his impatience obvious. “I told you. It’s no big deal.”
“It is to me.”
“Yeah, well...I’m glad you’re pleased. But now I’ve got to go.” Once more he started away, then stopped after only a few yards. “Hey, Boo?” he said gruffly.
“Yes?”
His gaze flickered over her body, his expression impossible to read.
“Your thighs are getting sunburned. Maybe you’d better go stand in the shade until it’s time to go.”
With that, he turned and tramped away.
“Are you finally ready?”
Norah glanced over at Eli and nodded. “I think so.”
“Good. Just relax. You’re doing fine. It’s only taken us, what?” He consulted his watch. “Half an hour to get through the basics? And now you know where everything is, right? Ignition, stick shift, brake, clutch. Accelerator and turn indicator.”
She nodded again, looking from one item to the next as he reeled them off. She tried to ignore the way her stomach was churning.
“Okay. So what we’re going to do now is go a little way along the driveway. See how nice and straight it is? There’s nothing to it. You just put in the clutch, shift from neutral to first, let the clutch out nice and slow while you give it a little gas—and go.”
She felt a spurt of full-blown panic. She swallowed hard. “Where should I stop?”
He considered. “How about by the bench?”
The bench sat just short of the south gate. To Norah it seemed miles away. “That far?”
“Yeah.” He nodded. “That far.”
“Okay.” She took a deep breath.
She wanted so much to be good at this. For her sake, of course, but also for Eli’s. He’d been tense and untallcative ever since yesterday, making her more certain than ever that no matter what he said, he was doing this mainly because Joe had coerced him into it. She didn’t want to be more of a bother than she already was.
Besides, was it too much to ask that, just once, something might come to her easily? Was it selfish to want to succeed at something that everyone else did so unthinkingly? Was it wrong that she wanted to please him?
“Come on, Boo. You going to do it or not?”
The terse question jarred her back to the present. She glanced at Eli out of the corner of her eye. Casually dressed in jeans, sneakers and a striped gray tank, he appeared impossibly handsome with the early evening sun gilding the hair that feathered his forearms and warming the taut, smooth skin of his shoulders. She gave an involuntary sigh, aware of a growing weakness in her knees.
Which was just what she didn’t need. “Yes. Yes, I am.”
She exhaled, trying to calm her panicky nerves and her unsteady hormones and remember exactly what he’d told her to do. She put one foot on the brake and the other on the clutch, reached to her right and gripped the gearshift in her hand, moving it from neutral to first.
Then she grasped the steering wheel and slowly let out the clutch at the same time she moved her other foot from the brake to the accelerator.
Nothing happened.
Biting her lip, she stared at the dashboard in consternation, trying to decide what she possibly could have forgotten. When nothing came to mind, she glanced over at Eli. “I don’t understand,” she said faintly.
He gave her a long, unreadable look, then suddenly leaned over, so close she could see the faint shadow of the beard on his lean cheeks. Her heart skipped a beat, and she had a sudden, ridiculous urge to reach out and see if his face felt smooth or prickly. She gripped the steering wheel tighter.
“Put in the clutch.”
“Wh-what?”
“Put in the clutch,” he repeated impatiently.
Perplexed, she did as he said. “But I had it in before,” she protested, her eyes drawn to the silky patch of skin behind his ear. For some reason, she was suddenly starting to feel uncomfortably warm.
“Yeah. But it helps if the car’s turned on,” he said drily. He turned the key in the ignition, and the engine purred to life.
Embarrassment scorched her. Oh! What was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she seem to get the simplest things right? And why, oh why, did she keep having such inappropriate thoughts and improper urges? “I’m sorry.”
A scowl pulled his golden brows together. “Don’t start that again.” Sitting back, he reached out and caught her right hand in his, then placed it back on the stick shift. “Try it again.”
The warmth of his palm galvanized her far more than his words. “All right.”
Mercifully he took back his hand. Gripping the wheel, she again went through the routine. Clutch in, shift into first, apply gas, ease out the clutch and—
The car gave a jerk, lurched forward, jerked a second time and died.
Afraid to look at him, she tried again. Clutch in, transmission in neutral, turn on the car, shift to first, up on the clutch and down on the accelerator and—it worked! With only a minor quiver, the car started to roll down the drive.
“Oh!” Norah gave a little gasp. It was going so fast! Not only that, but it was picking up speed and she was barely even touching the accelerator!
Certain something was wrong, she jerked her foot back to the brake and smashed it down.
“What the—!” Eli yelped, throwing out a hand to keep from hitting the dashboard as the ’Vette slammed to a stop, rocking on its suspension. The engine coughed, gave a protesting shudder and died.
Norah slumped against the soft leather seat, her heart pounding.
The sudden silence was deafening.
“Maybe I better buckle up,” Eli said finally. Suiting action to words, he took his time, as if he needed to catch his breath. Not until he was securely strapped in did he look over at her. “You want to tell me what that was all about?”
“I’m sorry,” she said miserably. “We were going so fast... I thought something was wrong.”
“Ah.”
“But it wasn’t...was it?”
“Nope.”
She waited for him to say something more. Something scathing, the way her grandfather always had when she failed at some task he’d given her.
Instead, he sighed. “I guess I should’ve warned you. It’s been so long since I learned to drive, I’ve forgotten what it’s like.”
Who did he think he was kidding? Norah doubted he’d ever been afraid of anything in his life. Nor was it likely h
e’d ever failed at something as elementary as driving. She shook her head. “It’s hopeless.”
“No, it’s not. The hardest part to get is the shifting and you did that like a pro. Just do what you did before, only this time, try to relax.”
Norah blinked as she realized he’d given her a compliment. Heartened, she took a deep breath and sat up a little straighter. Maybe...maybe she could do this after all.
Once more she went through the sequence. To her surprise, except for a slight shimmy, everything meshed on the very first try. Almost before she knew it, the car was flying down the drive.
Exhilaration swept through her. Fast on its heels came terror as she saw how close she was to the trees and rhododendrons that lined one side of the drive.
“Relax,” Eli said, as if reading her mind.
“But...we’re almost to the bench. Shouldn’t I stop?”
“No. Now that you’re moving, you might as well keep on going. Go on out the gate and take a right on the road.”
“But I can’t!” she said frantically. “I don’t know what I’m doing. What if I run into somebody?”
“You won’t.”
“But—”
“Boo, trust me.”
She opened her mouth to protest, then shut it again as she realized that she did. “Okay.”
Concentrating fiercely, she drove carefully through the open gate, craning her neck in both directions as they approached the main road. When she was absolutely certain there wasn’t another vehicle in sight, she took a deep breath and twisted the wheel to the right.
The tires squealed as the car pitched sharply.
“Easy.” Eli shot out his hand and straightened the wheel.
“Oh! I’m sorry. I told you—”
“Look,” he said sharply. “Would you just relax? You’re doing fine. We’re headed away from town, so there won’t be much traffic. Give it a little gas, and when the speedometer hits fifteen, pop the clutch and shift into second.”
“But we’re already going so fast—”
“Ten is not fast. You ever see the movie Top Gun?”
She shook her head.
“It figures. I’ll explain later, but for now, just repeat after me—‘I have a need for speed.”’
She shot a glance at him, momentarily forgetting her fear in favor of amazement. “What?”
“Speed up.”
She swallowed but did as he said.
“Now shift. Good Accelerate some more. Shift to third—all right! You’ve got it. Now all you’ve got to do is try to enjoy it.”
She sent him a quick, questioning look.
“It’s sort of like dancing,” he tried to explain. “If you pay attention, there’s a kind of rhythm...” He shrugged, feeling foolish.
Norah, however, looked thoughtful as she turned her attention back to the road. And over the next few miles, the tension slowly seemed to seep from her posture. As it did, her driving rapidly improved. Not even an oncoming hay truck shook her newfound composure.
So why, Eli wondered, his gaze fixed on the road, did he feel so edgy? So...claustrophobic?
He rolled his shoulders, uncomfortable with the answer that sprang instantly to mind.
It was her. Norah. Somehow, some way, she was getting to him. Maybe it was the faint, exotic smell of her fragrance, so at odds with her demeanor. Or that trusting look she’d sent him a little while ago. Or how much even the simplest stuff seemed to mean to her.
Whatever it was, it was stupid. After all, she was still just plain little Bunny-Boo.
Wasn’t she?
Yanking his gaze from the road, he glanced over, watching through narrowed eyes as she slowed and down-shifted for an approaching curve. Despite her pulled-back hair and her flower-sprigged granny dress, he had to admit she didn’t seem nearly as plain as she had only a few weeks ago. She had pretty hands, for one thing, with tapering fingers and pale, oval nails. And her profile was surprisingly pure and delicate, like one of those old-fashioned cameos. And she did have the most incredible complexion.
Still, none of that was enough to account for the fact that all of a sudden his body felt too big for his skin.
Or was it?
No. But his recent discovery of what was under that granny dress was, he suddenly realized, as he found himself thinking about high, round breasts and long, slender thighs.
Damn. He shifted in his seat. Whatever the problem was, it was time to get back to the business at hand.
He reached out and adjusted the vent, hoping some fresh air would help clear his head as he checked out the road up ahead. “Okay. See the old pump house there? Slow down, pull in and we’ll turn around.”
“All right.” She switched on the turn indicator, clearly pleased that she’d remembered it without being told, slowed and downshifted, then turned gently where he’d indicated.
“Good girl. Now put in the clutch and bring it to a stop.”
Again, she followed directions, even remembering to shift into neutral and pull on the parking brake before she sat back in her seat.
“Way to go,” Eli said.
His comment was rewarded with a tremulous smile. “I.. I did it,” she said in disbelief.
“Yeah. It won’t be long before you’ll have your license.”
“Oh.” She bit her lip, then gave an odd little laugh that ended with a hiccup.
Eli stared at her uneasily. “What’s the matter?”
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
To his horror, a single tear rolled down her cheek and dropped into her lap. “Hey, Boo. Come on. You’re supposed to be happy.”
“I...I am. I didn’t think I could do it, but I d-did.” She swallowed hard and dashed away the tear, clearly struggling for composure. “I can’t believe it.”
Afterward, Eli wasn’t quite sure how it happened. He undid his seat belt and reached over, intending to do nothing more than give her a pat of comfort.
Instead, as if it had a mind of its own, his hand skimmed slowly along the glossy skin of her upper arm, across the top of her shoulder, and around the downy nape of her neck to gently cradle the back of her head. “Don’t cry. Please.”
She tipped her head back, her gray eyes awash with unshed tears as she looked up at him. Her lips parted. “Oh, Eli,” she whispered.
Desire slashed through him, sharp and unexpected.
With a groan he gave in to temptation.
Seven
This was what he needed, what he wanted, what he’d been hankering for, Eli thought, as his mouth met Norah’s. Boo murmuring his name as her hands tangled uncertainly in his hair Boo shivering at his lightest touch. Boo, her mouth warm, wet, pliant beneath his.
On some level he knew it was crazy. He’d always had his choice of women, and he was always in control. But now he was on the verge of losing it—with his own wife. His own temporary, scared little rabbit wife.
His only consolation was that she seemed to be in even worse shape than he was. “Oh, Eli,” she murmured breathlessly between kisses. “Don’t stop. Please, please, don’t stop.”
Her fervent entreaties were like gasoline tossed on a wild fire.
He reached out and blindly switched off the car engine. Then he released her seat belt, leaned down and brushed her skirt aside, searching until he found the seat release. He pushed the seat as far back as it would go, straightened and gripped her by the elbow. “Boo,” he said hoarsely. “Come here.”
“What?”
“Climb over the console.”
Her eyes widened. She didn’t hesitate, however. Twisting around, she clutched his shoulder for balance as she began to move from her half of the car to his. Still not quite able to believe what he was doing, he nevertheless reached over to help, lifting her up and settling her across his lap.
Her eyes widened even more as she straddled him, the skirt of her dress belling out around her. “Oh.” For the first tune she looked uncertain, her gaze seeking his as she splayed her hands against his
chest for balance.
“What?”
“You’re so warm,” she said breathlessly. “And your thighs are so...hard.”
Achingly aware of her inexperience, he fought the urge to pull her closer, press himself against her and point out that his thighs weren’t the only part of him that was hard. He settled for cradling her face between his hands instead. “Yeah? Well, you feel soft. Here...” He stroked her cheek with his thumb. “And here.” He dipped his head and sealed her mouth with his once more.
He could taste her inexperience on his lips, just as he could feel it in the tentative touch of her hands as she slowly slid them up his chest to clutch his shoulders. Yet he had to admit she learned fast, the same way she had with the car. It wasn’t long before she twined her arms around his neck, anchored her fingers in his hair and began to experiment, slanting her mouth against his, kissing the corners of his lips, shyly tasting him with her tongue.
His control began to fray. He held on as long as he could. But when she nipped his bottom lip, he lost the battle to stay still under her increasingly provocative assault.
Making a low sound in his throat, he thrust his hands into her hair, sending bobby pins flying and a cascade of silken tresses tumbling as he slowly rocked against her. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, rubbed his cheek against the soft, fragrant locks and pressed an openmouthed kiss to her throat. She shifted restlessly, and he made another little involuntary sound as he realized that the only thing between her and his denim clad lap were her panties.
The thought had no more formed in his mind than his hands were diving under her skirt, skating up her bare thighs. Her skin was smooth and satiny, even softer than he’d imagined. “Aw, Boo. Talk about hiding your light under a bushel...” He slid his fingers under the thin elastic of her panty legs and gripped her cool, firm little bottom in his hands, unable to remember when he’d ever felt so turned on.
“Oh!” Clearly shocked by such an intimate touch, she shivered beneath his hands, rocking up on her knees in reaction.
“Eli!”
“Shh. Easy. It’s all right, baby,” he whispered against her ear, stroking the hollow at the base of her spine with his thumbs.
The Notorious Groom (Desire) Page 11