Timothy

by Katie Dowe

  “Timothy—”

  “Don’t!” He turned back to look at her. “I need time and I'm sure you do as well. Let’s go.”

  ***

  “Are you going to continue nursing that drink for the rest of the night?” A deep voice drawled at his elbow.

  Timothy turned his head to snarl at the person for interrupting his painful thoughts but smiled grimly as he saw who was lounging there. Liam Moses was a billionaire collector of fine arts and beautiful women and was a connoisseur of both. His family had been in that business for hundreds of years and had passed down their expertise to the heir of the vast Moses empire: the tall and darkly handsome man lounging against the counter of the bar. Their collections had been displayed in museums all over the world and private homes as well. Their families had also been members of the Elite Club for generations, since the opening of the club, and were also generous benefactors. Liam had befriended Timothy who was basically an outsider and the friendship had grown throughout the years. Both men ran in the same circles but Liam was old money and carried with him the arrogance of that fact. Even so, Timothy liked him and considered him to be a very good friend.

  “I thought you were in Monte Carlo?” he drawled, a slow smile lighting his face.

  “There are these modern contraptions they call planes and I own two of them.” Liam took the stool next to his and lifting his hand imperiously he had a bartender coming over with his drink. Timothy had often been amused by the way his friend did things. He didn't wait in lines and expected to be obeyed without question. Liam hadn't had to struggle to achieve anything and didn't know what it was like to be poor, but he wasn't without a heart to those who were and sat on several committees that helped the downtrodden. “You look like you're experiencing woman trouble. Who is she?’

  “Does it have to be the fairer sex?”

  “Ah,” Liam’s grey eyes studied him. “Since the beginning of time my friend. It began with the first woman in the Bible, the lovely Eve who persuaded her husband to partake of the forbidden fruit.”

  “You're waxing religious now? I had no idea you even knew what a Bible looks like,” Timothy said with a laugh.

  “Catholic school upbringing,” he said with a grimace. “Now, tell me what has you drowning your sorrows in expensive bourbon my friend, and let me see if I can fix it. I'm heading to my yacht two hours from now and there are women of every description on board, you can have your pick, except one very curvaceous blonde that I have my eyes on.”

  “No thanks,” Timothy said with a rueful laugh. “I'm afraid I never had the stomach for groupies.”

  Liam stared at him quizzically. “The aloof and unavailable Timothy bitten by the bug.”

  “What bug?”

  “The one affecting most of our club members. What’s it called? Ah! The love bug! Adam was the latest to go down by it and to my extreme disgust I saw him last week and he's saying something about going to Europe with his wife for an extended honeymoon! Granted, Amber is a lovely girl, as are all the others, but I'm tempted to change clubs in fear of being affected. But I really don't think that will ever happen to me.”

  “Your arrogance will be your downfall one day,” Timothy told him dryly.

  “So, who is she?”

  “A doctor.”

  “You landed yourself a doctor! Good for you, man, or is it? Why aren' you with her now?”

  “It’s complicated and she was engaged before.”

  “So?”

  Timothy looked at the man and laughed at his careless expression. “She was in love with him.”

  “Oh come on, Timothy! I've seen how women fall over themselves to be with you, except the ones that are falling over themselves to be with me. The point I'm trying to make here is this: you have the power to make women fall for you, man, use it on her.”

  “It’s not that simple when your heart's on the line.”

  “I think that's the more reason for you to fight. Go to her man, and talk her or make love or do both or you could take me up on my offer and come on the yacht and party with me and several dozens of beautiful women and join me in running away from this bug that insists on infecting the men of the Elite Club.”

  “You're an ass,” Timothy said mildly, his eyes twinkling in mirth.

  “An ass that got you out of the doldrums,” Liam finished his drink and got to his feet in one graceful motion. He clasped Timothy on the shoulder. “I reserve the right to be best man, not Adam.”

  “I'll bear that in mind.”

  “There's still an open invitation for the party. It will be a week of it.”

  “Unlike you, I do work for a living.”

  “So do I, but mine isn't sitting cooped up in an executive office, my friend.” With a wolfish grin he was gone.

  ***

  Robyn hadn't slept at all last night. Timothy had taken her home in silence and had left her at the door without so much as a goodnight kiss and she hadn't done what she'd wanted to do—reassure him that she was over Sean or on the way to being over him. She hadn't done that because she wasn't exactly over him. She still had feelings for him and she knew that Timothy knew that as well. He was very intuitive and he'd felt it when she was telling the story. She couldn't tell him that she was entirely over Sean because that would mean lying to him and she didn't want to do that. He deserved better because ever since she got there he'd been here for her in every way and she couldn't lie to him and tell him that she was over someone when clearly she wasn't.

  Sean had called her several times before and she hadn't taken the calls. Brianna hadn't called her once. But she'd never felt the way she felt when Timothy made love to her. The passion, the heat, was something that she'd never experienced before in her life. It was sizzling and overwhelming and when she was in his arms, when he was inside her, she could not think or feel anything but him. With Sean it had been passionate and sweet but with Timothy it was heady and hot and explosive. The very thought of him had her skin going clammy and she wondered if it was his expertise as a lover or something else. She was an expert on the human body and knew about endocrines. She also knew about the neurohormones: oxytocin and vasopressin presented in the male and female bodies during the sexual act. She knew all about that and had read up on it, but there was nothing to fully explain why just a simple touch of his mouth on hers sent her spinning off into a flaming vortex that threatened to consume both of them. Her scientific mind kept telling her that it would fizzle and die eventually because there was no way something like that could be maintained for a long time. But she missed him! God, she missed him so much that it was interrupting her day. She'd woken up late that morning, feeling as if she'd been battered and pummeled by a heavy hand and now she was seated at the counter nursing a cup of coffee that had gotten cool because she couldn't stop thinking about him. She might not be in love with him right now but she was in something because she couldn't stop thinking about him, not since last night and certainly not since this morning. She missed feeling his powerful arms around her body and she wanted to feel them around her again. So call him! The voice sounded inside her head. What if he's still angry? What if he isn't? He can't be angry at you forever.

  Pushing away the cup she reached for the phone and dialed his number before she changed her mind. She closed her eyes as he answered on the second ring. “Robyn?” His deep voice sounded so cool and impersonal that she didn't recognize it at first but she was so happy to hear it that she didn't care!

  “You want me to apologize? Is that it? You want me to tell you I'm sorry for having a past, Timothy? I never pegged you for being a hypocrite but that's what you are! You also have a past and I never judged you for having one! You told me you want to spend the rest of your life with me and all the rest but it's on your terms. I opened up to you and you bailed because you couldn't handle what I had to say.”

  “Are you done?” His voice was soft and menacing and sent a shiver up her spine.

  “For now.”

  “I did
n't ‘bail’ as you so eloquently put it, Robyn. I simply told you that I needed time to process what I know you're feeling. I've never told a woman I'm in love with her before and I'm vulnerable. You still have feelings for that creep and I'm giving you the time to sort through those feelings. The more you continue to talk to him, the more those feelings will materialize and I cannot be a part of that. It hurts too much. So I'm staying away for the time being.”

  “No!” Robyn cried, feeling panic coming over her. “You can't do that to me, to us! I need you, Timothy—”

  “And I love you,” he told her quietly. “I didn't expect you to say the words right now but I also can't be with you while you think about him. I'm sorry.”

  “I think about you!” She cried helplessly. “I couldn't sleep last night because I wanted to be in your arms, I wanted to feel you next to me. I didn't sleep Timothy, and it wasn't because I was thinking of Sean, it was because you left and I didn't hear from you. I'm tired and I feel as if I've been hit by a truck and I haven't eaten. You've been away from me for a night and I feel this way—” She broke off and bit her lip. “Please, I need to see you. Don’t do this! I—” She hung up the phone and put her head on her arms, feeling tears starting. She almost didn't answer when he called back but she did.

  “What?” she asked raggedly.

  “I'm several hundred miles away, Robyn, and your tears are tearing at my heart,” he said hoarsely. “What’s worse is that I won't get to be there until late this afternoon so I want you to promise me something.”

  “What's that?” she whispered.

  “Stop crying right now. I'm susceptible to your grief and if I know that you're still crying it's going to tear me up. I'm heading out right now but I won’t get there for several hours. Please stop crying and go and get some rest and eat something. Baby, I'm sorry that I put you through this and I promise no matter what I will never do that again. Will you eat something?”

  Robyn had to swallow several times to remove the clog from her throat before she could respond. “Yes,” she whispered hoarsely.

  “And will you try and get some sleep?”

  “I promise.”

  “Christ, darling! I missed you so much but I'm coming home, coming back to you and nothing will ever keep us apart again.”

  Robyn hung up the phone and smiled in spite of her tears. She might not acknowledge to herself that she loved him but she already knew that she did. How could she not

  Chapter 11

  She met him in the doorway five hours later, after he'd told her he was on his way home. She'd gone through on her promise to eat something and had slept for three hours, after which she'd taken a long fragrant bath and put on something sexy—a slinky black silk lounge robe that fit her body like a second skin and was so thin that it showed her flawless skin. Her hair was loose around her face and brushed back from her face. There were still slight traces of fatigue around her dark brown eyes but apart from that she was breathtaking and that was what he thought as soon as she opened the door to admit him. He'd been impatient to get to her and swore that no matter what they faced he was never going to stay away from her again.

  “Hi,” she whispered.

  “Hi.” His voice was hoarse as he looked down at her.

  “I'd like it very much if you would come in and take me into your arms. I did as I promised and ate something as well got some sleep but to feel all the way better I need to feel you against me.”

  He came inside immediately and slammed the door shut behind him. His arms reached for her and she came into them, her eyes closing as he wrapped his arms around her petite frame. She buried her head on his chest and breathed in the scent of his spicy cologne, her body trembling a little bit. Timothy kissed the top of her head, his hands trembling slightly as he ran his fingers up and down her back. He did that for a few minutes before he lifted her into his arms and bore her to her bedroom where he placed her onto the bed, standing there looking down at her before taking off his clothes and climbing in next to her. “Interesting outfit,” he murmured as he continued to study her body, visible through the material. “I can see everything and that you're not wearing panties.”

  “It’s new. I ordered it online,” she whispered.

  “When?”

  “A few days ago.”

  “I see.” He used one hand to pass over her small breasts, feeling the nipples respond to his touch.

  She reached up and clasped his hands in hers. “We should talk.”

  “Darling, if you wanted us to talk, you shouldn't have greeted me wearing this.” He tried pulling his hands away but she held on tight.

  “We have all night.”

  He sighed impatiently and stretching full length on the bed he pulled her into his arms. “Do I even want to hear what you have to say?”

  “I think you do and even so I want you to listen. I want to clear the air between us.”

  “As long as you don't tell me you're going back to him,” he told her firmly.

  “I will never tell you that.”

  “Then let’s get this over with.”

  She struggled out of his arms and turned so that she could sit facing him. Her eyes wandered over the broad expanse of his chest with the springy light brown hairs lying flat and tapering down to the v over his flat stomach—her eyes flew back up to his face and saw the knowing smile there indicating that he knew what was going through her mind. “Are you sure you want to talk?”

  She closed her eyes to steady her thoughts and nodded firmly.

  “Then proceed darling, before I change my mind and change yours as well,” he warned her.

  “I told you that I was dazzled by Sean, and I was. He was everything I wasn't and that was the added attraction. I was studious, intent on my studies and far too serious about them. He was never like that. He wasn't completely dedicated the way I was and found time to have fun. I was afraid to because I was always thinking about some medical journals I hadn't read or labs that I needed to complete or a patient who needed my diagnosis, someone I had to fix and I could never completely relax.

  He forced me to do that. There was a ‘doctor’s lounge that was near to the hospital where the hospital staff would hang out and he took me there to unwind and I was forced to do so. Brianna would come along with us and we would actually have fun. So eventually I learned to balance work and play and actually liked it.” She put a hand on his flat stomach and almost smiled when his muscles contracted in response to her touch. She splayed her fingers over his taut stomach and gloried in the warmth of his flesh.

  “If you don’t get on with it, love, I'm not going to make it,” he warned her tersely.

  She started to move her hand but he stopped her by placing his large one over it.

  “I was broken when I saw them together on top of what I was going through and I couldn't handle it. When I came here I thought my life was over and then I met you.” Her fingers shifted beneath his. “I swore that I would never let anyone do that to me again but you came into my life and something inside me responded to you and I found myself letting my guard down and I was scared. But even though I was, I didn't want to let you go because I couldn't. The more time I spent with you, the more I wanted to be with you. I couldn't bear to lose you, Timothy,” she said achingly, her eyes filling up with tears. “I might be confused about what I feel for you but I know without a doubt that I want to be with you and not just right now, but for always.”

  ***

  He studied her face for a moment before lifting her small hand and pulling her closer to him. “That’s good enough for now because I can't bear to be away from you either.” He lifted the hand and brought it to his lips, kissing the palm and sending shivers up and down her body. “I'm restoring this really ancient church that's been around for several hundred years and which will finally be ready the end of June. I figured that it was fitting if we were the first people to get married there.”

  She tilted her head and looked at him. “An ancient churc
h in a small town? I would say it’s perfect.”

  “Are we done talking now?”

  “Yes. Why?” she teased.

  “Because I have this burning need to wrap my body around yours, to bury myself inside you so deep and never come back out. You see, I've had these feelings since I first met you and they've only grown stronger. Care to indulge a starving man, love?’

  “As a fellow starving person who couldn't think of anything or anyone but you, I insist that we do something about it.” She started to pull the robe over her head and he stopped her.

  “I think I should do that.” He peeled it off her slowly, his touch lingering, his fingers driving through the strands of her hair that he'd disturbed and taking the time to let his touch wander lightly over her skin slowly, starting with her cheeks and heading to her lips, where he used a finger to trace the outline of her lips. He had the whole seduction thing planned, a slow foreplay before the final culmination of him driving himself deep inside her but she caught his finger in her mouth and pulled at it, her tongue and teeth sending shards of fire straight through his loins. His mind became fuzzy and for a moment he forgot his objective. “Stop!” he told her with a shaky laugh as he pulled his finger out of her mouth. “You're spoiling it.”

  “Spoiling what?” She put a hand on his chest and felt the pounding of his heart against her palm.

  “The whole seduction scene,” he told her hoarsely. He was hard and aching and thinking that maybe he wouldn't be able to do it after all.

  But she shifted and lay down against the mound of pillows, her glorious curves all there for him to see and feel. “Let’s try this again.” His fingers trailed down her neck and then to her throat, lingering at the hollow there before tracing the outline of her hardened nipples, shuddering as her body arched restlessly.

  “Timothy,” she moaned.

  “Hush darling.” His head bent and he touched a tongue to a pebble like nipple, feeling her body jerk. His mouth took possession of the nipple, sucking it inside his mouth with a force that had her digging her nails into his thick hair. One hand reached between her legs and nudged them apart so that he could gain access to the core of her. He passed his fingers through the triangle of curls, brushing the protruding flesh before dipping into her wet warmth. He eased a finger in and heard her gasp as her body lifted towards him. “Please!”