The sudden assault on her sensitized nerve endings made her stumble as she recalled the warmth of his body, the strength of his arms and the taste of his lips. Fine goose bumps covered her arms and the moisture that gathered in her erogenous zones had nothing to whatsoever to do with the hard pounding rhythm of her run. It had everything to do with her desire for John, a desire that had to be denied. Only a crazy woman would allow herself to embark on a path that would lead directly to heartbreak and Nina Whitney was far from crazy. She was practical to the point of being stoic. She didn’t believe in playacting, fantasy or tilting at windmills in search of impossible dreams and John Flores was the most impossible dream she could conceive of at the moment. Life, as far as she was concerned, was what it was and there was no reason to pretend like happily-ever-after was in any way attainable.
Nina lost count of how many times she circled the track. She wasn’t timing herself, she was just running until she felt right again, until all the aftershocks of John’s kisses were gone, until she couldn’t remember his scent, his taste or his touch. Her body was pleasantly heated now and covered with perspiration. She felt loose and relaxed, like an animal racing across some African plain. She had no idea how much she resembled a cheetah, her long legs and perfect form slicing thorough the lifting fog. She finally began to slow down in preparation for an end to the run. Breathing easily, Nina continued to slow her pace until she was walking, a long, loose-limbed stride that carried her into the stretches she always performed to prevent muscle injury. She gathered her sweats to go inside the building and shower, and then decided to go straight home and have a long hot bubble bath instead. Sniffing her arm, she made a face. My, that’s tangy! I need to get in the tub fast.
***
John stared dolefully into the refrigerator, looking for something to eat, anything at all. He was hungry a lot these days, as his full appetite had finally returned. For a long time after the liver disease struck him he had a problem with eating. He had no real desire to eat and often the mere thought of food simply turned his stomach. He lost quite a bit of weight during the onset of the illness and since the surgery, he’d just about returned to his proper size. During his recuperation from the surgery he’d become interested in food again, due in large part to Nina. She made sure he always had something delicious to eat, something other than the tasteless hospital fare. She knew exactly what he liked to eat and brought it to him, everything from omelets and home fries for breakfast to grilled salmon and risotto for dinner. A sudden awareness hit John like a sledgehammer and he abruptly closed the refrigerator door.
He stopped foraging and went into the living room of his temporary university housing to sit down and think about what had just occurred to him. No one, other than his parents, had ever shown John the care and consideration Nina had given him before and during his convalescence. She’d taken it upon herself to intercede on his behalf with his brother Adam, which led to his getting the partial liver transplant. She made sure he was comfortable and catered to his every whim while he was in the hospital. Even now, while they were finishing the book she’d been hired to ghostwrite, she saw to it that he took his anti-rejection medication, that he followed a proper diet and got enough rest. The fact that she did it like a drill sergeant notwithstanding, there was real caring in everything she did for him.
John slumped down on the moderately comfortable, boringly neutral couch that came with the apartment and drummed his fingers restlessly on his thighs. It was perfectly natural for him to start seeing Nina in a different light after all the things she’d done for him. It was the Florence Nightingale effect, when patients fell in love with their caregivers out of misplaced gratitude, that’s all it was. He was having feelings for Nina because she’d taken care of him, not because he was really attracted to her as a woman. He nodded emphatically. That had to be it. He stood up and walked around the oatmeal colored room with its dull accessories and nodded again. Then he frowned.
The fact that John now found her sexy and beautiful wasn’t part of that phenomena; that was something else. He’d never told her this but he once got a look at her while she was running and he’d never gotten it out of his mind. Even now, the memory could make his pulse quicken . He’d been scheduled to meet with her to go over some notes and decided to pick her up from the track where he knew she spent a lot of time. He could see her making her graceful way around the oval clad in what he thought was a bikini at first, until he realized it was the type of track clothes worn by serious runners like Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Gail Devers. The first sight of her made him stop in midstride and stare, totally transfixed by what he beheld.
He’d never imagined the body that lurked under her clothing, but Miss Parker was nothing short of amazing. She had the taut, muscled body of an Olympic runner with a high firm butt, slender taut thighs, a flat stomach with a feminine equivalent of a six pack, and arms that looked like sculpture, they were so firm and toned. She looked like an exquisite carving brought to life and she moved around the track with a sensual grace he wouldn’t have believed possible before witnessing her. Her hair was pulled back in a businesslike knot with a scarf on it and her fascinating eyes had been obscured by big shades, but she was undoubtedly the sexiest thing he’d ever seen.
And her appeal continued to grow, especially last night when she’d danced all over the place in that skimpy purple dress. She’d looked so exciting and smelled so delightful he simply had to claim her and he did so without any thought of consequence. Only the fact that she’d slipped away from him while Adam and Alicia were leaving had prevented him from taking his attraction to the next level. He raised one eyebrow as he suddenly realized why he was so restless and out of sorts and decided to do something about it. His new family was having a cookout today, a chance for everyone to relax and relive the beautiful wedding. His brother Adonis, commonly called Donnie, and his bride Angelique were holding it at the old Palmer Park home they now occupied and everyone who’d participated in the wedding was going, along with both sets of families. John was invited, of course, and he intended to go, but he also intended for Nina to accompany him and not disappear the way she had last night. He reached into his pocket to make sure he had his keys and headed for the door. He had a few questions and he knew where to get the answers.
***
Nina opened her door and looked into John’s broad chest. Redirecting her gaze up to his eyes she glared at him. “What do you want?”
Her nasty tone would have made a lesser man cower, but John wasn’t listening to her; he was too busy looking at her outfit. She’d apparently just bathed as he skin still glowed with the moisture and sweet fragrance of a languorous bubble bath. John’s eyes warmed with appreciation at the short cotton robe she was wearing. It was tailored but feminine in a soft peach color trimmed in white. It wrapped around her slender waist and was secured with a white tie belt. Her feet were covered in dainty matching peach slippers and John had a fierce urge to see her toes. I’ll bet they’re just as sexy as the rest of her, he thought with a smile he prudently hid from Nina. He was snapped out of his reverie by a poke of Nina’s index finger in his chest.
“I asked you what you want,” she reminded him tartly.
Rubbing the spot she’d poked with one hand and grasping her finger with the other, John shook off his daydream to answer her.
“I’m here to interrogate you,” he answered. “You left me last night and I want to know why.”
Nina raised one perfectly arched brow at the look of determination on John’s face. He gave every appearance of being totally sincere. “I’m not about to stand here and let you grill me while I’m half naked. Sit down,” she said as she pulled her hand away and showed him inside. “I’ll be back in a minute.”
John looked around Nina’s accommodations with interest. She’d been living at an extended-stay hotel since they came to Ann Arbor. The generic furnishings weren’t any more welcoming than his temporary home. He was going to have to look for a perma
nent residence soon; he couldn’t keep living as a guest in his own world. He was going to be living in Ann Arbor permanently and he needed to buy a house. Nina, on the other hand….
“Miss Parker!”
Nina emerged from the bedroom and gave John an assessing look. “You don’t seem to be on fire and there’s nothing else I can think of to justify your bellowing at me like that. I think we need to have your meds checked.”
He almost forgot what he was about to say once he got a good look at Nina, who was wearing a stylish denim skirt and a long-sleeved silk sweater with a deeply scooped neck. The sweater was a warm shade of red that brought out the golden tones of her chestnut complexion and it was snug enough to show what he knew for a fact was her perfect, sexy body. The skirt fit her as if it were custom made and displayed her amazing legs to their best advantage. Her hair was slicked back into a high, medium-length ponytail. Nina had an array of hairpieces, which she employed on many occasions, something John discovered earlier. He thought they were cute and admired the fact that she didn’t try to pretend her hair had suddenly grown several inches.
He continued his scrutiny of her appearance. She was wearing her gold hoop earrings and the bracelet he’d given her that spring. Nina had arranged to have breakfast sent to him one morning soon after he’d found out Big Benny was his biological father. She’d always seemed to know when he needed some extra TLC and she always gave it to him without hesitation. The bracelet was his way of saying thank you. John smiled as he continued to gaze at Nina. She smelled wonderful, as always. Her soft feminine perfume was arousing yet subtle and it drove him crazy.
Nina walked closer to him and waved her hand in front of his face. “Have you added catatonia to your other charms? Snap out of it,” she advised. “Why were you yelling my name?”
John shook his head to clear the unexpected carnal images that sprang forth when Nina came into the room. “Ahh, um, I forget. You look wonderful, by the way. And you smell fantastic. Are you coming with me?”
Most women look coy or bashful or at least pleased when given a compliment, but Nina never changed expression, nor did she acknowledge his tribute. “John, we’ve got to work on those communication skills. Come with you where?” she asked with a frown.
John was so engrossed with looking at her legs and her slender feet he almost missed her question. Her toes were once again hidden from his view in her chic little flats, but he was convinced the hidden digits were adorable. When she repeated her question with increased irritation he made himself answer.
“Are you coming with me to my brother’s house? You know there’s a cookout this afternoon for both families and the bridal party, and we may as well go together.”
Nina’s expression did change a little after that remark; she flushed so slightly that even the keenest observer would have missed it. “You may as well get going, then, because I’m not attending.”
John finally stopped letting his eyes rove all over her delightful prettiness and sat up straight on the uncomfortable loveseat. Nina turned away from him and went over to the table where her laptop computer was set up. She sat down and started fiddling with the keyboard, and then she moved some papers around. It was obvious she was trying to look busy, but she wasn’t fooling John.
“You’re not going? Why not, Nina? You’re part of the wedding party, or did you forget that? Don’t you like my family? They like you, they think you’re something else,” he said with persuasive charm.
Nina gave a short laugh that held no amusement whatsoever. “I’m sure they do think I’m something else. I cussed your new sister-in-law out for old and new when I told her you were sick, I’m sure no one’s forgotten that. And as for me being in the wedding, I think it was just a polite gesture of some kind,” she said with a sneer.
John looked at her more closely. He could tell at once she was just acting out because she was uncomfortable with a new situation. “Miss Parker, no one knows what you said to Alicia because the only person she discussed it with was Adam and he’s the most close-mouthed person I’ve ever met. What you said and how you said it was perfectly understandable given the situation. I think the only person who finds your actions reprehensible is you and you’re going to have to give yourself permission to forgive yourself so you can forget about it.” He spoke softly and in a warm, reassuring manner but his words had the opposite effect on Nina.
“I’m going to tell you this once and I expect we won’t have to have this conversation again. Don’t psychoanalyze me, ever. Don’t try to crawl inside my head and tell me what I’m thinking or how I should be feeling because I’m not one of your patients. I’m not one of your case studies and I’m not some freak in a mental sideshow, do I make myself clear?”
John’s lips tightened for a second, but he nodded to acknowledge Nina’s outburst. “I apologize if I was out of line. It’s an occupational hazard, one I try very hard to avoid. I hope you can forgive me,” he said quietly.
Nina looked out the window before responding to John’s words. She finally opened her mouth and was stunned when her stomach growled long and loud. She covered her mouth with one hand and her cheeks flamed up, just in time for another rumbling signal of hunger.
Relieved, John burst into laughter. “Well that explains it; you’re starving, poor child. C’mon, chica, you know there’s going to be a ton of food, the people are pleasant and it’s a beautiful day. Let’s go have some fun.”
Nina looked out the window again. The last part was true, at least. The morning fog had dissipated when the sun rose and it was a perfect early fall day with a bright blue sky and brilliant sunshine. She just didn’t know if she was up to an afternoon of close proximity with John and his teeming mass of loving relatives.
“I have a lot of work to do, John. I’m at a critical part of the writing and I need to concentrate.”
“You can’t concentrate on an empty stomach,” he pointed out. “In fact, I’ll take you to that coffee place you like and get you a muffin and a cup of whatever that foamy crap is you like to drink. That’ll hold you until we get to Detroit. Just say yes, Miss Parker. Say yes.”
“No.”
The single word, spoke in a forbidding voice devoid of any feeling, usually made people scurry to get away from her, but John was made of tougher stuff than that. He stood up and walked over to Nina, putting his hand on her shoulder and giving it a slight squeeze. “It’s okay, I understand. I’m just not ready for a lot of Paris Deveraux’s questions, I guess.
“Excuse me?”
John elaborated. “Paris is going to be there and I guess she’s going to be doing some preliminary research for the big interview,” he said resignedly. “I like Paris and she seems very professional and all, but, you know…” his voice trailed off.
Nina surprised herself when she touched the hand that was still on her shoulder. “Okay, fine, I’ll go.”
Chapter 4
John looked over at his companion once again as he drove. Although he was very happy she’d decided to come with him to the cookout, he was less pleased with her attire. Her abrupt decision to accompany him was so unexpected he experienced a dizzy rush of happiness that no doubt accounted for the incredibly stupid thing he said next. After Nina rose from her seat at the table to get her purse, John ambushed her with a hug. He loved the way she felt in his arms, especially when she wasn’t trying to wriggle away from him. Reluctantly releasing her, he watched her walk across the room for a moment before he put both of his feet into his mouth at once.
“So as soon as you change, we’ll be on our way.” No sooner had the words escaped than John realized what a huge mistake he’d made. Nina had turned around slowly and looked at him as though he’d just announced he was from another plant.
“I’m sorry, I don’t believe I heard you correctly. Care to try again?” she’d said in a dangerously calm tone of voice.
In that moment, the Latin influence of the Puerto Rican heritage with which he’d been raised manifested itsel
f. Instead of backing down, John crossed his arms and looked at Nina intently. “I said once you change your clothes we’d leave. You’re not seriously going to wear that skirt outdoors, are you?”
Nina had looked down at the offending garment and back up at John. “What’s wrong with this skirt?”
“It’s too short, Nina. You can’t be walking around like that. It’s like swinging fresh meat in front of a cage full of hungry beasts. I don’t want anyone looking at those beautiful legs of yours but me. Go put on something else.”
Now as they sped along the expressway that led to Detroit, John cast a chagrined glance at the “something else” Nina had changed into. It was another skirt; a pleated one with a fitted yoke in the classic Burberry plaid and it was even shorter than the controversial denim one. She’d also put on delicate loafers with Burberry plaid on the vamp and when she came out of the bedroom she looked so delectably cute it was hard to fault her choice of outfits. Of course, she also looked truculent enough to put John’s eye out if he messed with her so he held up his hands in supplication and they left in total silence.
As they neared the city, an overwhelming feeling of utter stupidity seized John. Why in the world had he tried to tell Nina Whitney, of all people, what to wear and how to wear it? What business was it of his if she chose to put those stupendous legs of hers on display? Why am I tripping? She’s not my woman but I’m acting like I own her. What am I getting myself into? His jumbled thoughts turned his handsome face into a frowning mask, something his companion was happy to point out.
“John, you’re looking awfully petulant,” Nina said cheerfully. “Anyone would think you hadn’t gotten your way, that you hadn’t manipulated me into coming to this little shindig. What seems to be the problem?” she teased.
Taking a deep breath, John looked over at Nina and as always the deep dimples that framed her pretty smile knocked him out. Taken feature by feature, she was perfectly ordinary. She had smooth, flawless skin, a small, nicely shaped nose, eyes that were almost too small due to their slight slant, full lips and a slender neck that just missed being too long. There wasn’t one thing about her face that screamed for attention, but each feature combined to make her beautiful, at least in his eyes. And not in the tarted-up, overly painted way of a model or actress; hers was a natural beauty that would last forever. When he’d finally come fully awake after the transplant surgery, Nina’s was the first face he saw and he could still remember the thrill of relief that coursed through him when her features came into view. He smiled at the memory and earned a poke in the side form Nina.
A Fool for You (The Cochran/Deveraux Series Book 7) Page 3