by Marie Force
They were met and driven into town by a man from Reid’s Memphis office. While he was in his meeting, Kate took a walk in a nearby park and had coffee in a restaurant on the first floor of his office building. At eleven, he called her cell phone to say he was on his way down.
He came off the elevator wearing jeans, boots, and a long brown leather coat. The suit he’d had on earlier was in a garment bag tossed over his shoulder. “Ready to go?”
She hadn’t seen that leather coat before, and he looked so dashing in it that she was robbed of speech for a moment, so she just nodded in response to his question.
Reid had the keys to the car that had delivered them from the airport, and as he held her door, he cast an anxious glance at the sky. “We need to keep an eye on the weather. There’s rain in the forecast. If the temperature drops any more, it’ll be freezing rain. I don’t like to fly in that.”
“It doesn’t feel that cold.”
He pulled the car into traffic. “I know, but the temperature can drop fast this time of year. I have to go by a couple of our construction sites before we head out to Graceland. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course not. You’re here for work.”
He drove to four sites in different parts of the city. When they reached the first one, he popped the trunk to retrieve a hard hat.
Kate stayed in the car at each stop and watched him be greeted like visiting royalty. The sites were in various stages of construction. One was going to be a high-rise apartment building, one was a shopping center, another a restaurant, and the last a hotel. At each site, Kate, the architect’s daughter, studied the renderings of the finished buildings posted outside the office trailers. The now-familiar RMD signs identified the jobs as a Reid Matthews Development.
She was getting a more complete picture today of the man she’d fallen in love with—the competent pilot, the successful businessman, the respected employer. These new traits, added to those she’d already experienced, served to deepen her respect and admiration for him. She watched him shake hands with the foreman at the hotel and remove his hard hat as he walked back to the car.
He tossed the hat into the back seat. “Sorry that took so long.”
“No problem.”
He cast another worried glance at the sky. “I’ve got to be honest with you. We might get tossed around a bit on the flight home. It’s no big deal to me, but I’d hate to scare you. We can cut our losses and leave now or stick to our plans and take our chances with the weather.”
Kate hid her disappointment at missing out on Graceland. “Whatever you think is best. You’re the pilot.”
He studied her and appeared to be making a decision that had nothing to do with Graceland or storm clouds. “I’ll tell you what. Let’s grab some lunch and go to Graceland. A promise is a promise. I’ll get you home in one piece.”
On the shuttle bus ride through gates adorned with musical notes at Graceland, Reid confessed he’d never been there before.
“Never?” Kate stared at him in amazement. “How often do you come to Memphis?”
“Almost once a week for twenty years,” he said with a sheepish grin.
“You need to learn how to live, baby,” she said, again in perfect imitation of Elvis’s accent.
They listened to Lisa Marie Presley’s voice in headphones as she showed them through the dining room, living room, Elvis’s bedroom, and that of his parents. They strolled through the music room where his grand piano was the main attraction, before they saw the King’s beloved pool table, his business office, and the famous “jungle” den. Kate loved every gaudy, over-the-top inch of the place.
The tension that had vibrated between her and Reid all day disappeared while they checked out an extensive collection of Elvis’s gold records and giggled with delight at some of his more outrageous costumes.
Kate pointed to a white jumpsuit encrusted with rhinestones. “You’d look adorable in that one,” she whispered.
“Not in this or any other lifetime.”
“Stick in the mud.” She was relieved by the return of their easy rapport, almost as if his speech the night before had never happened.
“Call me what you will, but you wouldn’t catch me dead in a getup like that.”
The tour of the house concluded in the Meditation Garden, where Elvis was buried with several of his relatives. At Elvis’s gravesite, Kate curled her hand into Reid’s.
“It’s so sad,” Reid whispered, lacing his fingers through hers. “He had everything, but look how he ended up.”
“Alone and wasted,” Kate said softly.
He glanced at her. “Don’t let that happen to you.”
“I’m hardly Elvis Presley.”
“You have the same kind of talent, and it’s going to take you to some of the same places it took him.”
His certainty astounded her. “How can you be so sure?”
He shrugged. “Call it a hunch.”
The rain began to fall harder, so they ran back inside to see the car collection. By the time they toured Elvis’s airplane, the Lisa Marie, it was pouring and considerably colder than it had been an hour earlier.
“Shit.” Reid looked up at the sky, reached for her hand, and hustled her onto a shuttle bus for the ride back to the parking lot.
The wind whipped and icy rain pinged against the windshield while they waited for the car to warm up.
“I’m not going to fly in this. Not with you.”
“Would you go if you were alone?” His confident grin told her he’d done it many times before. “We can go. I’ll be fine.”
“No, you’d be scared. I won’t do that.”
“So what’s the plan?”
“I guess we’ll have to stay.” He reached into his pocket for his cell phone and scrolled through his list of phone numbers until he found what he was looking for. “Hi, this is Reid Matthews. I’d like to book two rooms for tonight, please.” He listened, sighed, and then nodded. “That’s fine. I’ll take it. Thanks.”
“What did they say?”
“They’re sold out except for a suite with two bedrooms. That’ll have to do.” A muscle in his cheek pulsed with tension. “A convention in town has all the hotels jammed.”
He looked so upset she couldn’t resist asking, “What’s wrong?”
“I feel like I’m being tested here, Kate. I want very much to do the right thing by you, but circumstances keep getting in the way. Spending a night here with you is not a good idea.”
“Why don’t we just make the most of it, have a good time, and try not to worry too much?”
“I guess we don’t have any choice.”
His distress was so palpable that she reached over to take his hand. He surprised her when he wrapped his fingers around hers and lifted her hand to kiss the back of it. On the way to the hotel, he called his house to tell Martha they’d be staying in Memphis. She was relieved to hear he wouldn’t be flying in the bad weather.
The hotel was small but elegant, and Reid seemed to be well known to the bellmen who greeted them. Kate walked with him to the registration desk.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Matthews,” the woman at the desk said. “Welcome back.”
Reid handed her his credit card. “Thank you.”
She returned his card along with two room key cards. “You and your daughter should be very comfortable in the Presidential Suite on the sixth floor.”
When Reid cleared his throat, Kate looked down to study her boots.
“Thank you,” he said, his voice tight with strain.
Following him to the elevator, Kate could see the tension in his shoulders through the dark leather coat. Damn that woman! That was the last thing he needed to hear! His daughter! Ugh!
He said nothing in the elevator. When the doors opened on the sixth floor, he stormed out ahead of her to a room at the end of the hallway. He opened the door and held it for her. As soon as the door closed, he exploded. “Did you hear what that woman said? What she assume
d? Do you see now what I’ve been trying to tell you?”
Kate knew she needed to act quickly or lose him forever. Shedding her own coat as she went, she walked over to him and slid the leather coat off his shoulders.
He fought her. “What are you doing?”
She pushed him down into a plush upholstered chair.
“Kate—”
Straddling him, she sat on his lap and felt him instantly harden beneath her. She resisted his efforts to remove her. “I’m not your daughter,” she said in a husky whisper. “I know it, and you know it. That’s all that matters.” She wove her fingers into his hair, drew him to her, and kissed him with all the love she felt for him. At first he resisted her, but as she moved on his lap, she felt his control slip away.
“Kate, stop,” he whispered against her lips as her tongue flirted with his. “You’re starting something I can’t finish.”
“I want you, Reid. I want you the way a grown woman wants a man.”
His hands came up to circle her bottom, pulling her closer to him. “I want you, too. God help me, but I want you.”
They kissed again, and she shivered when his hands slid under her sweater to caress her fevered skin. A bolt of heat charged through her when he unhooked the front clasp of her bra and fondled her breasts. He rolled his thumbs over her nipples, and she shuddered. “Please, Reid,” she panted, bringing her lips down on his.
With a surge of power, he stood without breaking their kiss. She wrapped her arms and legs around him, her tongue tangling with his as he carried her to one of the bedrooms. When he set her down next to the big bed, her legs wanted to buckle beneath her. She reached up to unbutton his shirt, and he tugged the sweater over her head. His eyes flashed with blatant desire when he uncovered the lacy pink bra hanging open over her breasts. Easing the straps off her shoulders, he let it fall to the floor next to her sweater.
Standing half naked before a man for the first time in her life, Kate should have been self-conscious. But because it was him, and because her need for him was so great, she had no time for embarrassment. She pushed off his shirt and buried her face in the light dusting of brown chest hair. He trembled as her lips brushed his pebbled nipple while her hands skimmed over his muscular chest and stomach. When she reached the waistband of his jeans, he stopped her.
Tipping her face up, he studied her intently. “Are you sure, Kate?”
She nodded.
“I don’t have any protection.”
“I’m on the pill.”
Surprise registered on his face.
“I did it a month before I left home. Just in case.”
“I haven’t done this in a long time, so I’m safe.”
She pulled at the button of his jeans and swore he stopped breathing when she unzipped him.
With his hands on her face, he kissed her gently. “I love you, Kate. I don’t want to hurt you.”
Her heart hammered at his words of love. “I love you, too, but if you don’t make love to me right now, I think I’ll die, Reid.”
He wrapped his arms around her and bent his head to kiss her. “What have you done before?”
“Nothing.” Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment. “Much…”
Reid took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling as if to summon divine assistance. His hands moved over her back, more in a gesture of comfort than seduction. He unbuttoned her jeans and helped her out of them, leaving her only in the tiny pink panties that matched her bra.
“God, Kate,” he whispered against her neck. “You’re so beautiful.”
She pushed at his jeans, but he stopped her. “Not yet, honey.” He lifted her onto the bed and stretched out next to her.
Under the heat of his gaze, her body hummed with tension and desire. Her nipples tightened in anticipation, and the tingle between her legs became almost painful. Sensing his hesitation, she took his hand and brought it to her breast.
He groaned and shifted so he rested on top of her. Dipping his head, he grazed her nipple first with his lips and then his teeth.
Without his weight on top of her, Kate would have levitated off the bed. The sensations spiraling through her were so overwhelming they were almost unbearable. When he sucked hard on her nipple, a spasm began between her legs and rocketed through her, sending shock waves from her toes to her fingers. She cried out in surprise and fright. “What…”
Breathing hard, Reid rested his forehead on her chest.
“What happened?” she asked in a small voice.
“You had an orgasm, darlin’.”
Her cheeks burned again. “Oh. Is that normal?”
He smiled. “It’s not usually that easy for women, so I’d say you’re one lucky girl, Kate Harrington.”
Reaching for him, she brought him up to her. “I want to do everything, Reid. Show me.”
He chuckled softly. “You’re going to kill me.”
“At least you’ll die happy,” she said with a saucy smile as she pulled his mouth down to hers.
Their tongues came together in an explosive burst of passion that made them both breathless. He filled his hands with her breasts and toyed with her nipples. She tore her lips free of his and sucked in a deep breath.
He kissed her jaw, her neck, her throat, and dragged his tongue over her collarbone.
She lifted her hips, begging him for more.
Gently, he kissed the sloping curve of her breast.
Kate covered his hands on her breasts and pushed them together, asking him to focus on her nipples.
He flicked his tongue from one to the other.
She moaned and the burn between her legs again became urgent.
Moving down, he trailed his lips over her ribs and lingered at her belly, dipping his tongue into her belly button.
Kate was blinded by desire. Nothing in her life could have prepared her for this. She craved him—the feel of his soft skin, the citrus scent of his cologne, his hair tickling her belly, his tongue leaving a damp path to the tiny swatch of lace that covered her.
He nudged her legs farther apart and dusted a finger lightly along her thigh and into the gap of her panties.
Sliding his finger through her dampness, he seemed to know exactly where she needed his touch. The orgasm again took her by surprise, but this time she was too busy trying to breathe to be frightened by it. As she came down from the high, she became aware of her panties traveling over her legs. Kicking off his jeans, Reid lay on his side facing her.
Kate caressed his chest and let her eyes drift to his erection, which bobbed with anticipation. It was bigger than she’d expected it to be, and her breath hitched as she wondered how it would ever fit. A trickle of fear worked its way down her spine.
Tuning into her anxiety, Reid took her hand and wrapped it around his steely length. When she gave it a gentle squeeze, he groaned.
She let go abruptly. “I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”
“No, no,” he sighed, putting his hand over hers to show her how to stroke him.
Fascinated by the silky soft skin that covered the hardness, she watched a bead of moisture form at the tip. She dragged her thumb through the pearly fluid and felt him go rigid.
He captured her hand to stop her. “We’ll be all done before we get to the good stuff if you keep that up,” he whispered, bringing his mouth down on hers for a deep kiss. His hand traveled over her back to her bottom and between her legs to probe her dampness. “Kate…”
Unable to think of anything but the motion of his fingers, she could only feel.
“I need to prepare you, honey.” His hand hovered at her entrance. “It might hurt just a little.”
She could think only of the urgent need. “It’s okay.”
Moving slowly and with great care, he worked a finger into her. At the same time, he closed his lips over her nipple. The combination was overwhelming. So focused was she on the tugging of his mouth on her nipple that she barely noticed when he added a second finger. Her hips met the thrusts of h
is fingers in an almost involuntary motion.
She trembled violently. “Reid…”
“Does it hurt, honey?”
“No.” She rolled her head into his chest and reached for him.
He removed his fingers and shifted so he was poised between her legs. “Look at me, baby.”
She opened her eyes to find him gazing down at her.
“I love you,” he said, brushing his lips over hers.
Clutching his shoulders, she said, “I love you, too.”
He eased her legs farther apart. “Relax, honey.”
“I’m trying.”
He kissed her, a deep, passionate kiss that distracted her—momentarily—from the pressure between her legs. An instant of blinding, burning pain quickly gave way to pleasure. Oh, God, he felt so good.
Her hands coasted over his back to grip his backside.
Groaning, he flexed his hips and buried himself in her. “Okay?” he asked, holding still to give her time to adjust.
“Hmmm, oh, yeah.”
Encouraged, he kissed her and reached beneath them to anchor her hips, keeping his movements small and easy.
“Oh,” she gasped.
“What, honey? Tell me what you need.”
“More,” she pleaded, pushing hard against him.
He flexed once, twice.
That was all it took to send her spiraling into yet another orgasm.
Reid saw her through the storm and then was gripped by one of his own.
With Reid resting on top of her without crushing her, Kate knew she would never forget this. It hadn’t been at all like she’d expected. Her friends had talked about feeling let down afterward, but Kate didn’t. If anything, she was exhilarated. “Did you mean it?”
“What?” He spoke as if it took every ounce of energy he had.
“That you love me?”
He nodded against her neck.
“But you wish you didn’t?”
He withdrew from her and rolled onto his side so he could see her. “I could never be sorry for loving you. I just wish things were different.”
“Can I ask you something?”