“Rick and I have agreed to date for the next six weeks and really get to know each other.”
“Without having sex?”
“Yes, without having sex.”
“My Lord! That gorgeous hunk of a man at your disposal and you’re going to let him go to waste while you’re dating? I swear if there wasn’t such a strong family resemblance, I’d think they switched babies at the hospital and you aren’t really any blood kin to me.”
“Rick and I are trying to do the right thing, for both of us. And for Darcie. Rick and I have very little in common. Once we get to know each other, we could be totally incompatible.”
“That’s the trouble with young people today. They do too much thinking and talking about things none of us are meant to understand. Love is one of those things. You don’t fall in love because it’s the right thing to do. It just happens. Like getting struck by lightning. And take my word for it, truly great sex is a rare gift to be treasured. It can be the strongest bond between a man and a woman.”
“You may be right, Aunt Birdie. But I’m not going to risk ruining three lives without being absolutely sure Rick and I can build a future together.”
At precisely one o’clock on Sunday afternoon, Rick and Darcie appeared at Lori Lee’s front door. Darcie wore her church clothes, a cute little black-and-white checkered dress, accented with a red leather belt. Rick, who confessed he didn’t own a suit, wore a pair of khaki slacks, a blue button-down shirt, without a tie, and a navy blue sport coat. He still looked as if he needed a shave and a haircut, but those deficiencies in his appearance only added to his aura of masculine beauty.
Lori Lee’s dark purple crepe coatdress clung softly to her curves when she opened the front door and invited her guests into her home.
“Please, come in. Dinner is almost ready. I’m so glad y’all could come.”
Tyke came bounding into the foyer, sniffing their Sunday afternoon company. Lori Lee cautioned him to behave himself, but when Darcie knelt to pet him, Tyke licked her in the face.
Darcie giggled. “He gave me a kiss.” When she hugged him, he licked her again. “I think he likes me.”
“I think he does,” Lori Lee said. “Come on into the living room. Tyke will follow us. Believe me, he thinks he’s the boss around here.”
Darcie looked up adoringly at Lori Lee. “Daddy says that we’re going to be dating you, and that means we’re going to be spending a lot of time together.”
Smiling at Darcie, Lori Lee took the child’s hand. “That’s right, sweetheart, if it’s all right with you.”
“Oh, it’s fine with me,” Darcie said. “You’re exactly who I picked out for me and Daddy. The first time I saw you, I knew you were the one for us.”
“Now, Darcie, I told you that Lori Lee and I are just dating. That’s all,” Rick reminded his daughter.
“Yeah, I know. But people always have to go out on a few dates before they get married, don’t they?”
Lori Lee glared at Rick, her blue eyes questioning him. He shrugged his shoulders as if saying, What am I supposed to do with her?
“Well, Darcie, would you and your father like to look around a bit or watch some television or listen to some CDs while I put dinner on the table?” Lori Lee asked.
“I’d like to help you,” Darcie said. “Trey and Mark help Aunt Eve. They set the table and she lets them put stuff in the dishwasher after they eat. She lets me help, too, when I stay with them.”
“Darcie, Lori Lee isn’t used to having a little girl handle her china and crystal and—”
“I’d love to have your help,” Lori Lee said, then glanced at Rick. “And for your information, Mr. Warrick, we aren’t having our meal in the dining room and I’m not using china and crystal. I thought it would be more cozy in the kitchen, just the three of us.”
“In that case, maybe Darcie and I both can help,” Rick said.
After washing their hands, the three of them set the table with Lori Lee’s sunny yellow everyday earthenware, simple shiny stainless flatware and glasses decorated with a tiny yellow and white daisy design. Sitting in the center of the oak table, a small bouquet of yellow roses and white daisies caught Darcie’s eye and she asked if yellow roses were Lori Lee’s favorite flower. She said yes, and saw the sad look in Rick’s eyes.
Someday, maybe, Lori Lee thought, she would show Rick the single yellow rose she had pressed in her favorite book of poetry. The rose he’d thought she wouldn’t want.
Darcie asked to say grace before they ate. Then, during the meal of crisp, tender pork chops, fried potatoes, corn on the cob and lima beans, she was very careful to remember her manners, except when it came to talking with her mouth full of food. Darcie’s exuberant chatter amazed Rick. Usually she was shy around other people, a magpie only around him.
Tyke wandered around the table, looking up at the humans pleadingly, as if to say, I’m starving, although his plump little body denied the accusation. Lori Lee dropped a bite of meat into the dog’s open mouth.
“I’ve spoiled him shamelessly,” she admitted. “Deanie says I love him too much and that he has me trained instead of the other way around.”
“Maybe she’s right,” Rick said. “But I think a little pampering is a good thing. I figure its better to be loved too much than not enough.”
Lori Lee sensed that he was talking about himself, and the long, lonely years of neglect he’d endured as a young boy.
“You love me too much, don’t you, Daddy? ’Cause I’m your bestest girl.” Darcie’s smile beamed brightly as she gazed worshipfully at her father.
“You bet, sweetie,” he said.
The look of love in Rick’s eyes when he spoke to his daughter was almost more than Lori Lee could bear to see. She envied both father and child. If Darcie was hers, she would love her too much, just the way Rick did. And despite her uncertainty concerning her feelings for Rick, she couldn’t help wondering how it would feel to have such a passionate man truly love her too much.
After lunch, Lori Lee tied a bright yellow apron around Darcie, the hem hitting her ankles, then put on a matching apron.
Once again Rick marveled at the unbelievable resemblance between Lori Lee and Darcie. Even he, if he didn’t know better, would think them mother and daughter. A hot, searing pain ripped through him at the thought of how much he wished Darcie was Lori Lee’s child.
The three of them cleared the table, loaded the dishwasher and scrubbed the pots and pans. Then after cleanup duty, Lori Lee brought out some games she kept at the studio for days when the students had parties. She allowed Darcie to choose her favorite, which was Clue. Rick thought the game might be a little too advanced for his daughter, but she proved him wrong when she won two of the four games they played.
Since it was a sunny day, Lori Lee suggested a romp in the backyard for Tyke while Darcie performed her recently perfected baton routine for her father.
Rick and Lori Lee sat on the back steps, Lori Lee’s tape player providing the musical accompaniment for Darcie’s high-stepping dance number. The child gloried in the attention she received. Tears of happiness gathered in her eyes when the two adults applauded enthusiastically, Rick cheering and Lori Lee repeating the word perfect over and over again.
Later in the day, they popped popcorn and watched a video. Darcie’s favorite, Beauty and the Beast.
“May I lie on the floor?” Darcie asked. “I like to watch TV propped up on pillows.”
Before Rick could protest, Lori Lee tossed three pillows off the sofa onto the floor. After building a nest for her and Tyke, Darcie waited eagerly for the movie to begin. Lori Lee prepared the VCR, then sat on the crimson-and-cream pinstriped sofa. Still standing, Rick nodded at the sofa, asking permission to join her. She patted the cushion beside her, issuing Rick an invitation.
Sitting, he draped his arm over the sofa back, directly behind Lori Lee. All the while his daughter watched the movie, he watched the woman at his side. From time to time, Lori Lee would glance at him and s
mile, but for the most part, she concentrated on the movie and on exchanging comments about the story with Darcie.
“You know a lot about kids, don’t you?” Rick wondered why a woman who obviously adored children didn’t have any of her own. He knew she’d been married for five years, certainly long enough to have started a family.
“I work with children, remember?”
“Yeah, I know, but it’s more than that.” He could not resist the temptation to touch her. Just a simple, nonsexual touch. A light brush of his fingertips over her cheek. “You’d make a wonderful mother.”
For a few timeless seconds, Lori Lee couldn’t breathe. She felt as if some giant foot was pressing down on her chest. “Thank you,” she finally managed to say.
He realized he’d said something wrong, but he couldn’t figure out exactly what. Was it possible that she really didn’t want a child of her own?
He decided changing the subject was the best course of action. “Tell me a little bit about this recital deal that’s coming up in a couple of weeks.”
“Aren’t you interested in the movie?” she asked.
“Is that your way of telling me to be quiet so you can enjoy Beauty and the Beast?”
“It’s my favorite fairy tale, too. This tape happens to belong to me. It’s my personal copy.”
When the movie ended, Lori Lee was snuggled against Rick, his arm draped around her shoulders. Rick hit the rewind button on the remote control, then glanced down at Darcie and Tyke.
“Take a look,” he said. “Our little beauty has fallen asleep.”
Darcie lay with her head nestled on one of the pillows and her body curled into a ball. Tyke slept contentedly at her side.
“Does she often take late-afternoon naps?” Lori Lee asked.
“No, not usually. But she was so excited about our big date with you that she woke me up at five o’clock this morning.”
“Should we let her sleep awhile?”
“Yeah, don’t wake her yet. Let her get a little nap,” Rick suggested. “You and I could talk—” he caressed Lori Lee’s neck “—or kiss—” he brushed her lips with his “—or go in the kitchen and find out just how sturdy that oak table is.”
“You’re shameless.” Lori Lee giggled softly, slapping at Rick’s grasping hands. “No sex. Remember our agreement.”
He nuzzled her neck. “It’s been only a few days and I’m already dying to be inside you again, honey.” He whispered the words against her warm flesh.
Lori Lee tried to get up off the sofa, but Rick dragged her down onto his lap. She struggled for a few minutes, then gave in and put her arms around his neck.
“Behave yourself,” she warned him.
He undulated his hips gently, just enough so that his obvious arousal rubbed against her buttocks. Gasping, she tried to get up again. “Sit still, baby. I promise I won’t let things get out of hand. I know my little girl is right over there.” He nodded toward Darcie.
“Rick?”
“What?” God, how he’d longed to hold her in his arms, feel the sweetness of her lush body close to him. But this wasn’t going to be enough to satisfy him. He needed to make love to her. Today. Tonight. Tomorrow. And the day after that, and the day after that.
He heard Lori Lee’s voice, but he didn’t understand what she was saying. All he could do was feel and want and need.
She slapped his shoulder. “Rick! You aren’t listening to me.”
“Sorry, honey, what did you say?”
“I asked you if Powell Goodman has been to see you.”
“He picked up his ’Vette the other morning. I haven’t seen him since. Why?”
“The whole town knows about us,” she said.
“Yeah, I know. Eve told me that you and I are definitely the talk of Tuscumbia.”
“Powell has been saying some pretty stupid things.” Lori Lee laid her head on Rick’s shoulder. “He’s made some threats.”
“Yeah, what kind of threats?” Rick asked.
“Just don’t get into a fight with him. Okay? He carries a lot of weight in this part of the state, and if he wanted to, he could cause problems for you.”
. “Let him.” Rick squeezed her hip. “If he thinks he’s going to scare me away from you, then he’d better think again. I won. He lost. He’d better get use to the idea that you belong to me now.”
“I do not belong to you. I don’t belong to anyone except myself.”
“That’s a bunch of feminist garbage and you know it,” he told her. “If my daughter wasn’t here, I’d show you just how completely you belong to me.” When she opened her mouth to protest, he kissed her quickly, then said, “And it works both ways, Lori Lee. I belong to you, too.”
“What am I going to do with you, Rick Warrick? You are the most irritating, infuriating man I’ve ever known.”
“You’re going to let me really kiss you, and you’re going to love it.” He lowered his lips to hers. “And while I’m kissing you, you’re going to remember what it was like upstairs in that big brass bed of yours, and you’re going to ache with wanting me just like I’m already aching.”
She accepted the onslaught of his kisses, needing more but willing to take this little slice of paradise he offered. The kiss grew hot and wild. Only the sound of Darcie Warrick’s voice brought them to their senses.
“Does this mean what I think it means?” Darcie rubbed her sleepy eyes. Smiling, she gazed up at her father and the woman in his arms.
Tyke roused, lifting his head, sniffing the air.
“Oh, my goodness,” Lori Lee moaned as she rested her forehead against Rick’s.
Rick eased Lori Lee off his lap and quickly crossed his legs. “What—” he cleared his throat “—what do you think this means?”
“That y‘all are in love. On television and in the movies people kiss the way y’all did when they’re in love.”
“Well, I’ll tell you, kiddo,” Rick said. “That kiss means that Lori Lee and I like each other an awful lot and we’re going to have more dates.”
“Aren’t y’all in love?” Darcie asked.
“Not exactly,” Rick said.
“Why would you kiss Lori Lee like that if you don’t love her?”
Rick looked to Lori Lee for help, but she simply smiled and shrugged, as if to say, “You’re on your own in answering this one.
Darcie had asked him a damn good question, Rick thought, but one he couldn’t truthfully answer. Not for his six-year-old daughter. She wasn’t quite old enough for the birds-and-bees discussion. So how did he explain a passionate kiss without mentioning sex?
“Well, Darcie, you see, I...that is, we...Lori Lee and I...” He looked pleadingly at Lori Lee.
She patted her lap, then held open her arms. Darcie rushed across the room, crawled onto Lori Lee’s lap and gazed up at her. Following hurriedly, Tyke jumped up on the sofa and rooted his nose against Lori Lee’s thigh. She petted him affectionately, murmuring softly to him.
“Grown-ups who like each other enjoy kissing and hugging each other,” Lori Lee explained. “I like your father very much and he likes me, but we don’t know each other well enough to be in love.”
“That’s funny,” Darcie said. “Because Aunt Eve told me that she and Uncle Tommy fell in love at first sight.”
Rick chuckled, then cleared his throat and put a somber look on his face when Lori Lee glared at him.
“Eve and Tommy were very young and they’d never been in love before,” Lori Lee said. “But your daddy and I are older and we’ve both been married to other people, so neither of us wants to rush into anything and make a mistake.”
“Are you and Daddy going to hug and kiss each other every time you have a date?”
“Yes, we probably will,” Lori Lee admitted.
“Good,” Darcie said. “My daddy’s a pretty great guy, you know, so I figure if you keep on hugging and kissing him the way you were doing today, then you’ll fall in love with him in no time.”
&n
bsp; An hour later, after Rick and Darcie had left, Lori Lee went over every detail of their first “date.” She considered the whole afternoon a success. Rick and his daughter had seemed right at home with her and Tyke, and she had enjoyed their company immensely. Despite being denied the pleasure of having sex with Rick, Lori Lee felt warmly content.
And she’d agreed to a second date with the Warrick family. Rick had invited her to go to McDonald’s for supper with them after Darcie’s next twirler class.
Eight
“You know I’m on your side.” Deanie Webber reclined on the brocade chaise longue in Lori Lee’s bedroom. She dangled her brown suede flats on the tips of her toes, then dropped the shoes to the floor. “I’m all for your dating Rick. As a matter of fact, I’m all for your having a raging affair with the man.”
Rummaging through her closet, Lori Lee tossed out a pair of rumpled jeans and a faded, plaid flannel shirt. “I know there’s a but in there somewhere. You didn’t stop by at seven o’clock on a Saturday morning just to wish me well.”
“You’re my best friend,” Deanie said. “I don’t want to see you get hurt. I remember what a basket case you were right after your divorce from Tory. I know you. You don’t do anything by half measures.”
Lori Lee removed a pair of dingy tennis shoes from the back of her closet. “Saving these shows it pays to keep old stuff instead of throwing it away.”
“Stop trying to change the subject.”
“Is that what I’m doing?” Lori Lee asked as she slipped out of her robe. “I thought I was getting ready for a date with Rick.”
Deanie watched while Lori Lee put on the ragged jeans and oversize flannel shirt. “What kind of date does a woman have that requires her to dress like a bum and be ready at such an ungodly hour?”
“If it’s such an ungodly hour, what are you doing up and over here giving me advice?”
“I’m on my way to an early-bird sale at the mall, so I decided this would be the perfect time to stop by and have a little talk with you.”
Lori Lee sat on the edge of her bed, pulled on some heavy cotton socks and eased her feet into a ten-year-old pair of tennis shoes. “If you’re here to warn me that Rick Warrick is probably going to break my heart, don’t bother. I’m well aware of his reputation with women. We haven’t made any commitments to each other. All we’re doing is testing the waters, to see if we’re suitable for each other.”
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