by Joan Hohl
Shivering in the chill air, she answered nature’s call, made fast work of a washup, and quickly brushed her teeth. Practically running, she made a beeline back to the bed, slipping beneath the covers to snuggle close to Seth again.
To her disappointment, he slid out of the bed on the other side. “My turn,” he said, flashing a grin at her before striding into the bathroom. Five minutes later, he got back into the bed and snuggled up next to her.
“Damn cold out there,” he muttered, drawing her tightly against him.
“I know,” Becca agreed, catching the smell of her soap on his skin and the minty scent of her toothpaste on his breath. “Warm in here though.”
“Yeah.” He smoothed a hand down the side of her body. “Were you thinking of going back to sleep?”
“Eventually,” she said, gliding her palm down his chest, smiling when he sucked in a breath. “Did you have something else in mind?”
“Well—” he began.
“Would you like to discuss the world situation?” she interrupted to ask, managing a straight face and somber tone. “The economy?”
Thrilling her with his bark of laughter, Seth rolled on top of her. “Oh, I think we can come up with something much more interesting than that.” His smile was blatantly sexy. “And I do mean come up with.”
Feeling wonderfully wanton, Becca slid her hand farther down his torso to curl around the hard length of him. “I see…er, feel what you mean.”
Seth was laughing when he kissed her; his laughter quickly ceased, his kiss becoming gentle, coaxing, luring her into participation…as if she needed any coaxing or luring.
This time, he made slow, exquisite love to her, arousing not only her body but her emotions as well.
Murmuring his appreciation of her complete acceptance of him, Seth turned her on her side, away from him, and curled up behind her, spoon fashion. Becca sighed as he stroked her body, and drifted into a deep sleep.
It was near noon when Becca woke once more. Bright autumn sunlight streamed through the bedroom windows. Next to her, Seth yawned and stretched.
“Time to get up already?” he asked, running his fingers through his hair.
“Already?” Becca said, laughing. “It’s nearly lunchtime.”
“Humph,” he mumbled, “that must be why I’m feeling half-starved.”
Shaking her head, Becca tossed back the covers. She shivered and Seth yelped at the touch of chilly air against his bare skin. He reached for the comforter. Taking it with her, she jumped from the bed.
“I’m going to shower.” She laughed again at his pained expression. “I suggest you do the same.”
“What if I want to go back to sleep?” he called after her as she stepped into the bathroom.
“Do it in your own bed upstairs,” she called back. “I’m going to pull the sheets again after I shower and dress.”
“You changed the sheets just yesterday,” he shouted as she shut the door.
“And I’m changing them today,” she shouted back. “So take a hike upstairs.” Grinning, she turned the water on for the shower full-force. She started as the door was suddenly pushed open and Seth stuck his head inside.
“Why can’t I shower with you?” He gave her a dangerously sexy smile.
Becca didn’t bother to answer, simply because she felt he wouldn’t take a refusal anyway. “Seth, get out of my bathroom,” she ordered. “I’m freezing and I want a hot shower. Get your own shower. Oh, and on your way upstairs, turn the thermostat up on the heater.”
Heaving a heavy sigh, he pulled his head back and shut the door. But even over the sound of the shower spray she heard him call, “You don’t know what you’re missing, Becca.”
“You mean it gets better?” she yelled to be heard, nearly choking on a burst of laughter.
“Oh, do I have ‘better’waiting for you,” he yelled back, laughter in his voice. The door shut with a telling bang.
Becca was still smiling when she stepped from the shower. Her smile fled as the still cold air brushed her naked body and dripping wet hair. Wrapping one towel around her head, she grabbed another to dry her shivering body. Dry, she tossed the damp towel in the hamper and hurried into the bedroom to dress and blow-dry her hair.
By the time she had stripped the sheets from the bed and remade it, Becca could feel warm air wafting from the vents in the floor.
Dressed in jeans, a cotton knit pullover sweater and her fuzzy slippers, Becca left the bedroom, tugging the rolling hamper behind her. She went directly to the laundry room to dump the sheets into the washer before heading to the kitchen.
“What kept you?” Seth said as she entered the room. “I was about to eat without you.”
Becca raised her eyebrows at the sight of him. She wasn’t surprised to see he had fixed the coffee, as she had smelled it the moment she’d left her room. But she was surprised to see he had also fixed breakfast. Without a word, she observed his handiwork. Seth simply stood there, looking casual yet terrific in snug-fitting jeans and a dark-brown sweatshirt, a smile on his face as he watched her.
Ignoring the little flutter inside at the mere look of him, she shifted her gaze to his domestic handiwork.
There were strips of fried bacon draining on a paper-towel-covered plate. She caught the scent of cinnamon coming from the four slices of French toast cooking in a large frying pan.
The table was set for two, large glasses of water and small glasses of orange juice set at each place. She watched, bemused, as he turned to neatly flip the bread over in the pan.
“Do you cook often?” she asked, dryly. “Or is French toast and bacon your limit?”
“I’ve been a bachelor for a long time,” he said, just as dryly. “It was either learn to cook for myself, eat frozen dinners, or in restaurants every day. I decided to learn to cook.” He lifted a piece of the toast with a spatula. “Perfect, I’ll dish up. You can pour the coffee.”
Hungry, and tingling from his attention, Becca was happy to comply.
“Hmm, delicious,” she murmured with her first bite of toast. “Did your mother teach you to cook?” It seemed a natural assumption, as Becca’s mother had taught her at an early age.
“Good grief, no.” Seth laughed. “My mother is a lousy cook. Fortunately, my father can afford to pay for an excellent cook. I learned, trial and error, from a number of cookbooks.”
Becca laughed with him, then grew quiet as she devoured every morsel he had served her. After lingering over second cups of coffee, they made short shrift of cleaning up the kitchen.
“Is there someplace I can get a newspaper around here?” Seth asked as Becca started for the laundry room to switch loads.
“Yes.” She flashed a grin at him. “At the end of the driveway there’s a mailbox. The paper will be in it.” She stopped him as he headed for the door. “If you want to wait till I put on shoes, I’ll walk along with you and get some fresh air.”
“I was gonna take the car.” A smile teased his lips and his eyes.
Becca merely gave him a look. His smiled graduated into a laugh.
“Okay, we’ll walk.”
“Damn straight,” she muttered, chuckling as she bypassed the laundry room to walk to the bedroom. Along with her shoes, Becca took a lightweight jacket from the closet, just in case.
It was a cool but beautiful late September day, sunlight sparkling off myriad colors of the changing leaves of the deciduous trees on the mountains.
At the mailbox, Seth collected the paper and arched a brow at her. “How about a walk before we go back inside?”
“Okay,” Becca agreed, slipping the jacket over her shoulders. “Which direction?”
“Let’s just follow one of those side paths we passed on our way down,” he suggested. “See where they lead, if anywhere.”
“Fine.” She turned, heading back up the drive, and started as, falling into step beside her, Seth curled his long-fingered hand around hers.
Controlling her breathing pattern wi
th effort, she strolled along, as if walking hand in hand with him was an everyday occurrence. Her pulse leapt when he laced his fingers through hers.
They talked as they strolled, following where the path led them. They discussed the nice weather, the beautiful mountains, the town below, but not at any time did the conversation flow into their personal lives. Not one word was mentioned about their work, or the agreement they had struck to spend the next five days of his vacation together both in and out of bed.
They laughed at the realization that the path had meandered around in a wide circle, ending at the house, near where it had begun.
Becca, aching inside, smiling outside, loved the sound of Seth’s laughter, loved laughing with him…loved him more than she cared to acknowledge.
But, there it was, glowing like a light inside her. She loved him unconditionally, with every cell and atom in her mind and body.
And yet, as much as she was enjoying every minute of being with him, Becca had come to a hard-made decision. When Seth left at the end of that week, it would be the last she would see him.
The very idea of never seeing him again hurt badly, but loving him as she did, Becca knew she could not keep going in the role of his mistress, nor could she work so closely with him as his assistant under those circumstances. When Seth left on Saturday, he would unknowingly be taking her heart and love with him.
On the other hand, when she left the cabin, and she knew it would be soon, she would not be returning to Philadelphia, possibly not even Pennsylvania.
As they neared the house, Becca vowed to herself to live to the fullest, savor ever minute of these few remaining days with him. She was certain they would have to last her the rest of her life, for she could not foresee any other man ever taking his place in her heart.
“You’ve grown very quiet,” Seth said as they mounted the stairs to the porch. “Something wrong?”
“No.” Becca shook her head, and worked up a smile and an excuse for her silence. “I noticed that Sue’s car isn’t here, so I’ve been thinking about what to make for dinner later.”
He came to an abrupt stop at the door, a frown drawing his dark brows together. “Do you think they might have had an emergency at the clinic?”
“Oh, I never thought of that,” she said, rushing into the house and straight to the phone. “I’ll call down there and…”
“Wait a minute,” Seth said, bringing her up short with her hand on the phone’s receiver. “Sue must have been here while we were out.” He held up a piece of paper. “There’s a note on the table from her.”
“Read it, please,” she said, walking back to the table as he read aloud.
“‘Becca and Seth…although I may be wrong, I doubt it.’” Seth glanced up from the note to grin at her before reading on. “‘But I believe you two have a thing going on, the same as John and I have. So, I’ve decided to give all four of us a break. John and I will be staying at my house until Saturday. Becca, you won’t need to come in to the clinic this week, either, as I will be working there with John all week. Have fun, Sue.’”
Seth glanced up at her when he’d finished, his eyes bright with laughter. “How thoughtful of Sue,” he said, laughing aloud.
“Hmm,” Becca murmured, nodding in agreement. “But whatever will we do with all that time together?” she mused aloud, her lips quivering with laughter.
“Well, right now, you are going to go toss the sheets into the dryer.”
The look Becca gave him clearly indicated she couldn’t believe he’d said that. “I see.” Of course, she didn’t, and said so. “And what will you be doing while I busy myself with the laundry?”
“I’m going to turn down the thermostat,” he answered, in apparent seriousness.
She frowned in confusion. “Why?”
“Because I’m going to build a fire.” He pulled a broad, laughable leer. “After that, I’m going to spread the furry throw on the floor in front of it.”
Warmth and excitement begun to bloom inside Becca. As if puzzled, she fluttered her eyelashes as she repeated in all innocence, “Why?”
He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “So we can have an orgy. Or twelve.”
Becca, suppressing a shiver of expectation, leered right back at him. “Or even a dozen.”
Laughing again, he circled the table to take her in his arms. “You are something else,” he said, kissing her soundly. Turning her away, he gave her a light nudge toward the laundry room. He strode into the living room, calling back, “It won’t take be long to start a fire, so get it in gear. I’m aiming for a full baker’s dozen.” He turned to flash a smile at her.
“No kidding,” she said, flashing one right back at him. “I can’t wait.”
Ten
I t was late Saturday morning, Becca stood next to Seth beside his car. His bag was in the trunk, the driver’s-side door was open. Soon he would slide behind the wheel and drive away, out of her life.
Since Monday, the days had flown by. Becca, determined to stick to her agreement to spend the remainder of the week with him, had put everything from her mind but Seth. They cooked, took walks, talked and laughed, made near desperate love at the merest suggestion…and there were many.
She wanted to cry. She wanted to grab ahold of him and beg him not to go. She did neither of those things. Instead, she schooled her expression into one of calm composure. There would be plenty of time for crying later after he was gone.
After she was alone.
“I wish you’d come home with me, Becca,” Seth said, chasing away her troubling thoughts. “Your physical condition is back to normal.” A wisp of a smile touched his lips. “That’s obvious from the way you kept up…with our long walks, and other exercise.”
“I’m not ready to go back yet,” she said, thinking she very likely never would be.
“I know you’re not ready to go back to work,” he said. “I could tell that from the way you reacted after we were finished treating that boy. Emotionally, you appeared ready to pass out.”
“I know.” She managed a smile.
“I need you beside me…” His voice was rough, a little strained. “I need you beside me in my bed, and in the operating room.”
If he had left it at the first part, Becca might have given in, surrendered to her own need to be with him. But she wanted more, she wanted to be with him in every way, not just as his bed partner and operating-room assistant.
“I’m not ready, Seth,” she repeated, her throat thickening and her eyes stinging with tears, longing for him to stay, wishing he would go.
“Okay.” Stepping to her, Seth drew her into his arms, crushing her to him, his mouth to hers. He reluctantly released her. “Take as much time as you need, and keep in touch to let me know how you’re feeling.”
She made do with a nod. “Goodbye, Seth. I’ll…miss you. Drive safely.”
“I always do.” He smiled and slid behind the wheel. “I’ll miss you, too.” Holding her gaze for long seconds, he started the car, waved and drove away.
Tears rolling down her face, Becca watched his car until it disappeared around the curve at the end of the driveway.
He should have told her he loved her.
The thought tormented Seth all the way back to Philadelphia. Why hadn’t he? That thought always followed the first one. Of course, he knew the answer. Fear of her rejection kept him silent.
Becca had never given him the slightest hint she felt anything for him but respect for his expertise as a physician and surgeon. His lips twisted in a bitter smile. Oh, she had obviously appreciated his expertise in bed. She had been as eager for his body as he had for hers.
She had admitted she had been a long time without a man, and he was certain she had not been with a man the entire time she had spent in Africa. So her physical response to him was normal and understandable.
Becca had given him no indication whatsoever love had anything to do with their time together.
Seth sighed. Even so, he lo
nged for her to come home.
Should she have confessed, told Seth she loved him—had loved him almost since first joining his surgical team? Becca had lost count of the times she had asked herself that question. The answer that sprang to mind was always the same. Had she told him, even hinted at her feelings for him, in all probability she would have been standing in the driveway, choking on his dust as he drove hell for leather away from her.
Seth was in his thirties; apparently he didn’t want to get seriously involved with any woman. Sex, even fantastic sex, was one thing. Obviously love didn’t factor into his life, his work.
Becca didn’t keep in contact with Seth. He tried to reach her, but she didn’t answer either his calls or e-mails. What could she say to him? She knew that soon she’d have to tell him she had no intention of going back to Philadelphia, or possibly even Pennsylvania. But she kept putting it off till later.
By the end of the second week after Seth had left, Becca was certain she was pregnant. All the signs were there. Not only had she missed her period, her breasts were tender and felt a bit larger, and she was tired and sleepy most of the time.
It was time to leave the cabin. Sue, having come back to stay at the house with Becca after Seth departed, fussed over her, but at least she didn’t pry into why Becca wouldn’t take his calls.
Becca didn’t hesitate. She told Sue she was leaving that same evening over dinner. “I’ve loafed around long enough,” she said when Sue protested. “It’s time I got back into the swing.”
“You’re going back to work with Seth?” Sue asked, a hopeful note in her voice.
“First, I’m going to visit my parents in Virginia,” she said, avoiding a direct answer. “Afterward, maybe I’ll drive to Atlanta to see my sister. I’m going to call the number given to me and thank whoever answers for the use of this lovely house, but I’m going to pass on the limo. Is there anywhere I can rent a car?”
“Yes, in the city,” Sue said, smiling. “Where the hospital is located. And you’re in luck. I was planning to drive into the mall there later this week.” Her smile softened. “John’s birthday is next week and I want to get him something special. You can go with me if next week is okay for you.”