“What things do you want?” she asked, the color high in her cheeks.
“You,” he said. “I want you.”
Under his thumb, he felt her pulse scramble. “You okay with that?”
She swallowed hard, but didn’t look away. “I’m more than okay with that. The job’s not finished, though. I don’t want it standing between us, if something goes wrong. I want to give you your dream for that land.”
“Nothing’s going to go wrong,” Bobby said. “I hired an incredibly competent woman for the job. She has it all under control.”
“You really believe that, don’t you?” she said, still looking surprised, even after all his reassurances. “It still amazes me.”
“Jenna, your father is a fool if he can’t see how talented you are.”
“I think I’m finally beginning to believe that,” she said. “You’ve given me that.”
“So what about what I said?” Bobby asked. “Did you really want to see that movie tonight?”
“Hmm? Sitting in a dark theater holding hands and eating popcorn, when we could be someplace more private doing far more fascinating things? Tough call.”
“And?”
Her eyes shone. “It’s really my choice?”
“Of course.”
“And you don’t think it’s going to interfere with our business relationship? You can keep the two things totally separate.”
“Sweetheart, I’ve wanted you for weeks now, and I haven’t let it get in the way, have I?”
“Not that I’ve noticed,” she admitted.
“Well, then?” He studied her intently. “Or aren’t you sure how you feel about me?”
“Oh, I’m sure,” she said emphatically. “You make my knees weak, which means that getting up and walking out of here just now could be problematic.”
Bobby slapped some money on the table and stood up in one smooth motion. He scooped her into his arms before she could utter a protest and headed for the door. Outside, he gazed into her eyes. “I take it that was a yes. I don’t want to get our signals crossed.”
“Yes,” she said, laughing. “Even if you are crazy. Are you sure you have any business being behind the wheel of a car just now? You seem a little reckless. And word of this is bound to get back to Trinity Harbor.”
“We’re miles away, and Fredericksburg is a big town now. There wasn’t a soul we knew in that restaurant. As for being reckless, trust me, I am not about to risk getting a ticket on the way home. I won’t do anything that’s likely to keep us from getting there in record time.”
It required all of his concentration to keep his promise and resist pressing the accelerator to the floor as they sped through the gathering darkness back toward Trinity Harbor. He swerved into his driveway at the same careless angle he had the last time they’d been this close to making love. This time, though, nothing was going to stand in their way. Fate wouldn’t be that cruel a second time.
Luckily he’d cleaned the house and changed the sheets earlier, all the while telling himself he was not anticipating this precise outcome to the evening.
He would have scooped Jenna into his arms again, but she was already out of the car and striding toward the front door before he had a chance to reach her. Her eagerness inflamed him. It was proof that she was just as desperate for this as he was.
Even so, he warned himself to go slow, not to tear her clothes off the instant the door was closed behind them. He promised himself that he was going to make this night special, that it was going to be memorable. He intended to savor every sweet moment of it.
Unfortunately, all of his good intentions fled when Jenna reached past him, shoving the door shut with a slam. Her gaze clashed with his.
“How far away is your bedroom?”
“Down the hall,” he told her.
“Too far,” she said, fumbling with the buttons of his shirt. Her knuckles skimmed across his bare chest, then drifted lower and lower as she parted his shirt, then tugged it from the waistband of his jeans.
This was a whole new side of her, Bobby concluded, watching the confidence stir to life in her expression as her caresses turned increasingly daring.
“Are you trying to destroy me?” he murmured, when she released the snap of his jeans.
Her fingers stilled. “Is that what I’m doing?”
“Seems like it to me,” he said with a shudder as she skimmed a nail along his zipper. He was already hard as a rock, and he hadn’t laid a hand on her yet.
“Want me to slow down?” she inquired, regarding him with a seductive expression.
“Absolutely not. Just let me know when it’s my turn.”
“Your turn?”
“To drive you over the top.”
She had renewed her exploration, but at his words, she paused again. “Good point. This is something we should be doing together.”
“Hey, I’m liberated,” he said. “You can have your way with me first.”
She gave him a sassy grin that made his heart flip over.
“I don’t think so,” she said. She grabbed the ends of his tie. “Let’s find that bedroom of yours.”
When they crossed the threshold, Bobby plopped down on the end of the bed and regarded her expectantly. “Okay, kid, let’s see what you’ve got.”
For an instant she looked taken aback, and then she laughed. “You should know better than to dare me, Spencer.”
“Is that what I was doing?” he inquired innocently.
“You know it was. You’re thinking that I don’t have the confidence it takes to strip right here in front of you.”
“Well?” he challenged.
Her gaze locked with his and her fingers slid under the edge of her blouse. She stripped it over her head in a gesture so smooth, it looked as if she’d had years of practice. Her jeans hit the floor next, leaving her standing before him in her bra and panties which were barely there. Both scraps of lace vanished in the blink of an eye and his breath lodged in his throat.
“You’re…” He was at a loss for words. “I don’t know what to say.”
She grinned. “About my body or about the way I shed my clothes?”
He laughed. “Either one.” He shook his head. “I don’t get it. You’re like another woman all of a sudden.” An amazingly, unexpectedly provocative woman.
“Do you want an explanation, or do you want me to crawl into that bed with you?”
“No contest,” he said, reaching for her. “We can get back to the rest later.”
She relinquished control to him at last, moving into his arms, opening herself to his touches. Her responsiveness was another eye-opener. She came alive for him, arching toward him, moaning when his mouth covered her breast, writhing restlessly when his fingers dove deep inside her. Her skin was on fire and slick with perspiration that made each touch a sensuous journey.
Bobby looked into her eyes and tried to find the vulnerable Jenna who’d come to Trinity Harbor months ago in search of self-respect. There was no evidence of her in this woman who was sharing herself with complete abandon and confidence. Had he given her that? Had she changed so much?
Whatever the cause, the transformation was both remarkable and alluring. He wanted her more than ever, wanted to see that bright spark in her eyes forever, wanted her hands on him, her body seeking his. Most of all he couldn’t wait for this, to sink deep inside her, to be surrounded by her heat and taken over the top by the welcoming shudders of her body.
He drove himself deep, felt her muscles clenching to claim him, her fingers digging into his hips, holding him tight as heat and hunger and sensation hit a wicked peak. Then violent shudders were rocking them both, their breath coming in gasps, her cries muffled against his shoulder. Her name, his, their shouts came in unison as the world went spinning.
Bobby wasn’t sure he’d ever be able to move again, wasn’t sure he’d want to.
The night had been full of surprises. Oh, not the fact that they’d ended up in bed. But the revelation of just how muc
h Jenna had to give, of how eager she was to take. Also, it was a shock to discover that he never wanted to leave this bed, this room, this woman.
When had the last of his defenses crumbled so completely? When had he gone and fallen in love with her?
Once he accepted the reality of his feelings, he could think of a dozen times along the way when he’d been on the verge, but he’d been too blind—too terrified—to see the emotion for what it was. Now that he had, there was only one thing left to do. He had to take the final leap of faith into the future.
He gazed into her eyes. “Marry me,” he said before he could stop himself.
Jenna stared at him, looking more pleased than stunned. “You know something, Bobby? You’re kind of slow out of the gate, but once you decide on something, you don’t waste a lot of time, do you?”
He grinned. “Last time I waited, I lost. I don’t intend to take that chance again. Some things are just too valuable to risk.” His gaze locked with hers. “You haven’t answered me yet.”
“Oh? I thought I had. Must have been my imagination.”
He regarded her with puzzlement. “Your imagination?”
She grinned. “I’ve been saying yes to you since the night you stood up to my father in my behalf. I’ve just been keeping it to myself until you caught up.”
24
Frances moved faster than a scared rabbit. King spent two whole days chasing her from one end of Trinity Harbor to another. He always seemed to arrive just as she’d ducked out another door. He was pretty sure she was deliberately trying to exasperate him.
When he spotted her in the back at church on Sunday morning, he began pushing his way through the congregation trying to reach her before she could make yet another escape. Unfortunately, one of the drawbacks to being a Spencer was that everyone had something to say to him. King rudely cut short most of the greetings and kept moving, but by the time he hit the front steps of the church, Frances had vanished yet again.
“Looking for someone?” Anna-Louise inquired, her eyes dancing with merriment.
“What did you do? Stash her in your office? The fool woman can’t move that fast.”
“Maybe she’s highly motivated,” the pastor suggested.
“To do what? Drive me crazy?”
Anna-Louise’s grin spread. “Is that what she’s doing?”
“Well, of course she is. She’s avoiding me, and I don’t like it one bit.”
“Any idea why she might be doing that?”
“Because we had a silly little disagreement.”
“Over?”
“None of your business, young woman. You don’t get to poke your nose into my personal life.”
Anna-Louise laughed out loud at that. “Unlike you?”
“What the devil’s that supposed to mean?”
“King, you’re the all-time champ of meddlers. Just look at the manipulating you did to get Daisy and Walker together. And you’ve been working in the wings to see that Bobby ends up with Jenna. They might not know about that, but I do.”
“I don’t know what you know or think you know, but those two needed a good shove.”
“Well, it worked. I suppose you can take some pride in that.”
King stopped searching the crowd for signs of Frances and stared at Anna-Louise. “What do you mean, it worked?”
She chuckled. “Don’t tell me I know something you don’t know.”
“Just spit it out, woman. I don’t have all day.”
“Is Bobby coming to Cedar Hill today for dinner?”
“He hasn’t said he isn’t. What’s that got to do with anything?”
“Ask him what’s going on. It’s not my news to share.”
King’s annoyance faded as he realized what Anna-Louise was keeping from him. “They’re getting married?” he speculated, keeping a close eye on her reaction. She never even blinked. Damn, but she’d make a good poker player. Too bad she didn’t care for gambling.
“I didn’t say a word,” she reminded him piously.
“Well, hallelujah!” he said, making the leap all on his own. “It’s about time. Now, if I could just find that blasted female, my day would be complete.”
Anna-Louise shook her head. “Calling Frances a blasted female is no way to win her heart.”
“Coming from me, that’s a term of endearment.”
She sighed heavily. “Yes, I imagine it is. Check the choir room. I believe she was going to hide out in there until you left the premises.”
King delivered a smacking kiss to the minister’s cheek. “Thank you. You won’t regret this.”
“I’d better not,” she warned as he took off for the choir room.
He found Frances sitting on a chair in a corner, her expression downcast. The last members of the choir were straggling out. They gave King a knowing grin and closed the door behind them.
His heart thumped unsteadily. “So,” he said finally. “About time you decided to come home.”
She finally looked up and met his gaze. King’s mouth gaped. “Frances? What have you done to yourself?”
A spark of pure fury lit her eyes. “I might have known you’d say something unflattering right off,” she snapped. “I don’t know why I ever thought there was a kind or decent bone in your body.”
She would have rushed past him, but King blocked her path. He took her shoulders in both hands. “Now, don’t go getting all stirred up. You just took me by surprise. Let me take another look.”
Her hair had been cut in a totally new style that made her eyes look bigger. Once almost totally white, it had been tinted to a soft blond shade.
But that was the least of the changes. She’d done something to her face. It seemed less lined, more radiant. And she’d trimmed off maybe twenty pounds, shedding the round figure that he’d totally approved of.
“You through looking yet?” she asked, her tone cranky.
“Why did you go and do all this?” he asked, bewildered.
“Why does any woman fix herself up?” she retorted. “For a man, though I can see it was a waste of effort.”
He stared at her. “You did this for me?”
“Of course I did!”
“But why? I liked you just the way you were.”
She regarded him sadly, her shoulders slumped in defeat. “Not enough.”
“Enough for what?”
“Marriage, you idiot!” She hit him with her purse. “Wake up and smell the roses, King Spencer. Neither one of us is getting any younger. I, for one, do not intend to spend the rest of my life alone. If I’m not good enough to suit you, then I’ll find someone who’s not too old and decrepit to want a little excitement in his life.”
“Frances, excitement to you is a night at bingo. At least that’s what you led me to believe.”
“Well, I want more, dammit.”
“Don’t curse in God’s house,” he scolded.
“Well, you drove me to it,” she defended herself. “I think He’ll understand. I’m sure you exasperate Him all the time. Now let me go.”
“I will not. We need to talk about this.”
“I think you’ve said quite enough for one day. Call me in a week…or maybe a month. Maybe by then you’ll have figured out why I find you so infuriating. If you haven’t, don’t bother calling.”
She stormed past him then, leaving the room in a swirl of some new scent. King stared after her in bemusement. What on earth had gotten into her? Frances had always been the most sensible woman he’d ever known, just like Daisy.
He halted in his tracks. That was it. Daisy had walked the straight and narrow until the day she’d gotten it into her head she was going to get herself a family by hook or crook. She’d latched onto Tommy and Walker for dear life, reason be damned. Now Frances was acting the same way.
She’d all but said he was the one she wanted, and he’d pretty much thrown it back in her face…again. No wonder she was furious. If his family found out about this—if Anna-Louise found out about it
—he’d be hearing about it till he took his dying breath.
There was still time to fix it. It had been a very long time since he’d courted Mary Margaret, but, if he put his mind to it, he could still remember what it took to stir a woman’s blood, even one as stubborn as Frances.
But first things first. He needed to get out to Cedar Hill and get a fix on what was going on with Bobby and Jenna. Once he had the two of them settled, he could get to work on winning Frances’s heart. Knowing how she liked him to pay for his mistakes, it was likely to take him quite a while to jump through enough hoops to satisfy her.
Bobby chewed on a fried chicken leg and ignored his father’s speculative glances. Beside him Jenna was daintily cutting her chicken from the bone and taking tiny bites. The conversation had been lagging for some time now, ever since Tucker had dared to ask his father if he’d ever caught up with Frances. King’s terse reply had pretty much silenced all of them, and sent the housekeeper scurrying back to the kitchen.
“How come everybody’s so quiet?” Darcy asked eventually.
Tommy shot her a knowing look. “Grown-up stuff. The minute we leave the table, they’ll be talking their heads off.”
“Then let’s go,” she said at once. “This is boring.”
Jenna frowned at her. “Not till you finish your dinner, young lady.”
“Oh, let them go,” King said. “Darcy nailed it. This is pretty dull, the way things stand. And Tommy’s right, too. There are things we need to get into that shouldn’t be said in front of children.”
“All the more reason to keep them here, if you ask me,” Tucker said.
“Nobody asked you,” King shot back. “Darcy, Tommy and J.C., you kids stop in the kitchen and ask Mrs. Wingate to give you some pie. You can eat it on the porch.”
Tommy didn’t wait around for permission from Daisy or Walker. He was out of his chair like a shot, with J.C. on his heels. Darcy cast a quick look at Jenna, who sighed and nodded.
“Now, then,” King said when they were gone. “Will somebody tell me what’s going on around here?”
“Going on?” Bobby inquired innocently. “We’re just having a pleasant Sunday dinner, like always.”
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