by Francis Ray
“So talk.”
If he told her, she’d start thinking about marriage. It wasn’t going to happen. “Just trying to figure out something in my head.” He kissed her, then got to his feet with her in his arms. “You want to go for a walk?”
“If you make it worth my while.” Her head lowered, her mouth teased his, nipping, sucking, until he palmed the back of her head and kept her mouth on his. Then, with his other arm, he slowly let her slide down the front of his body, the friction highly charged and erotic.
He gathered the dress in his hands, the urge to peel it off her body throbbing with every beat of his heart. If he did, if he saw her in her lingerie, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to leave without making her his. Once he took that irrevocable step, he somehow knew it would change everything for him.
His hands unclamped, his mouth nuzzled her neck, kissed her fragrant skin, skin that was softer than velvet. Skylar might be the one thing in his life that made him second-guess himself.
His head lifted. “I’ll be back in an hour.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Resisting the urge to kiss her again, he left. He’d willingly crossed another line. Skylar Dupree pulled at emotions he’d thought long buried. The need to see her happy overruled his own credo of self-preservation. She was important to him. He was in danger of losing something more important than his life … his heart.
* * *
Skylar was waiting on the bottom stair when Rio returned. She’d been too excited to wait in her room. She jumped up and hurried to him. “I promise to be good until we’re out of sight.”
“There are cameras everywhere.”
“And you know exactly where they are to avoid them.” She batted her eyelashes at him. “Don’t you?”
Rio opened the door. “Let’s go.”
Her hands behind her back to keep them out of trouble, she walked through the door and waited for Rio. She practically skipped down the steps, waving and speaking to his men as they passed. None of the men she’d seen was under five foot eleven. Some were broad, some lean, but she knew each was skilled or Rio wouldn’t have had him on his team.
“Everything all right?”
“Yes.” He headed down a paved path past the compound.
She glanced over. “You know you’re tempting me.”
He kept walking. The path widened.
“Oh, my!” Skylar palmed her face, then grabbed Rio’s hand and pulled him toward the small lake. Two swans and their goslings swam on the placid water. She leaned against Rio. “Did you know swans mate for life?” She didn’t expect an answer. “If only people could be that same way.”
His arm went around her. “Your parents?”
She nodded. “I always thought their love was forever. I … I think—” She hesitated.
“What?”
She straightened and gazed up at him. “That they might still love each other, but each is too proud and too stubborn to admit it. They’d rather be miserable than risk being vulnerable.”
“So what makes you so courageous?”
She glanced toward the swans. She wasn’t sure how he’d react.
His finger and thumb turned her face toward his. “I’m waiting.”
And he didn’t like waiting or asking a question twice. “You. It was you.”
Lines she’d never seen before formed across his smooth forehead. His hand lowered. “How?”
He certainly liked answers. She just hoped he liked hers. “I thought you needed me. I saw you with Blade and Shane and their wives. You were walking by yourself. You seemed not to need anyone or anything.”
“You felt sorry for me,” he said, words devoid of warmth.
“Only a fool would feel sorry for you, and I’m not one,” she came back. “Seeing you gave me the courage to finally stop looking and test the waters, so to speak. I had some bad moments because, if you weren’t interested, not only would I make a fool of myself, but you’d have every right to have Blade fire me for sexual harassment. And I really like my job.”
“Yet you went after me anyway,” he said as if trying to understand.
She curved her arms around his neck. “You snapped out Ms. Dupree once too often and it ticked me off. I was determined you’d call me Skylar.”
“You risked a lot.”
“But look what I gained.”
“Skylar.” His mouth took hers. He savored her taste, the swipe of her tongue against his, the little sounds in the back of her throat. Each time they kissed was more exciting than the last. Each time tempting him to strip them both naked and make love to her until time faded away.
His head lifted.
“No,” Skylar protested, trying to pull his mouth back to hers.
He grabbed her hand. “Let’s go.”
She stepped back. “Why?”
“It’s going to rain,” he answered and watched her face light up.
“Really?” She looked up at the clear sky.
“Really. Come on.” He started walking and felt her resistance. She was still looking upward with her free hand cupped as if waiting to catch raindrops. “You’re going to get wet.”
She threw her free arm around his neck and grinned up at him. “Haven’t you ever wanted to walk in the rain with someone special?”
He lifted a brow at the silliness of the question.
She wrinkled her nose. “I forgot. Well, I have, and you can’t tell me that you haven’t seen other couples walking in the rain and enjoying it.”
“They had umbrellas.”
Her eyes narrowed. “We’re really are going to have to work on your romantic side.”
Overhead, blue sky had turned to gray. “You have two more days of deliveries. You don’t want to be sick.”
She looked up at the sky again. “I’m stronger and healthier than that. I’m from Boston, remember, and I know you’ve been in the rain, probably with little more than what you have on now.”
He had. “Why do you say that?”
She sent him a droll look. “Rio.” She said his name with a mixture of annoyance and affection. “You said you were in the army. I’m thinking Army Rangers. Your men are military, too.”
Thunder rumbled in the distance. “You think?”
“I know. It stands to reason Shane and Blade were in the same unit. My uncle said bonds are formed for life in combat.” She briefly scanned the sky. “You’d want men as quick thinking, as skilled, and as resourceful as you. Although I’m not sure that’s possible. There’s only one you. In any case, when you stopped the Jeep the other day, they didn’t hesitate to come out with guns drawn.”
He’d always known she was smart. “You’re going to get soaked. Jeans are a bear to get off when they’re wet.”
She pressed against him. “You could always help.”
His heart pounded. He’d liked the idea more than he wanted to admit of sliding those jeans down her long legs, his lips following. “You’ll track water from the front door to your room.”
“I’ll mop it up.”
“That’s a lot to mop.”
“It will be wor—” She laughed as the first raindrops hit her, then lifted both hands and smiled at him. “It’s raining.”
Skylar embraced life. He realized that at times, he had just gone through the motions.
She caught his hand, then rose onto her tiptoes to kiss him as the rain began to come down harder. “Thank you.”
“You didn’t give me a choice.”
“We both know that’s not completely true.” She leaned her head back for a moment. “Kiss me, Rio.”
He pulled her closer with the first word she uttered. By the time Rio came out, his tongue was searching the sweet recesses of her mouth. She wrapped her long legs around him and kissed him until he wasn’t quite steady. With the rain beating down on them, her wrapped around him, his mind was centered only on one thing—pleasing his woman.
His woman. The thought caught him off guard, shocked him, but not enough to rel
ease the woman who had come to mean so much to him.
Thunder rumbled again. He lifted his head. Her eyes slowly opened. She looked a little dazed with the rain running over her face. It didn’t seem to matter to her. He knew why—because she was with him. Just as it didn’t matter to him because he was with her. He swung her up in his arms and began to walk slowly back to the castle.
She kissed the side of his neck and snuggled closer. “Nice.”
They hadn’t made it to the cameras yet. Sierra had wanted some privacy for her and Blade. Rio kept walking. The men who had met Skylar liked her even before she started feeding them. In the military, you learned to size people up quickly or you suffered the consequences.
“Please put me down.”
He set her on her feet. As soon as he did, she took his hand and stared up at him, rain drizzling over her face. “How much farther before your men can see us?”
“About ten yards.”
“Since I’m not as good as you, just give my hand a little squeeze and I’ll let it go.” She started walking before he could answer.
Despite the rain, he felt the warmth of her small hand in his, the trust. Walking in the rain wasn’t so bad after all.
* * *
Rio was a resourceful man, Skylar thought as she stepped out of the shower twenty minutes later. When they’d walked in the front door, there had been large bath towels waiting for them to dry off. He’d radioed ahead.
Skylar grinned wickedly as she slipped on her gossamer-thin lingerie. Although he’d declined to help her pull off her jeans, he had agreed to meet her for dinner later on that evening.
Skylar quickly dressed and went to the kitchen, thinking she’d like to nibble on Rio. The refrigerator and freezer were as well stocked as she’d imagined. She decided on shrimp and chicken quesadillas, mini peach trifles, and nonalcoholic sangria. Finished preparing, she placed everything on the cart and rolled it into the great room by the fireplace.
She stared at the rug in front and decided it wouldn’t be right for her and Rio to roll around on Blade and Sierra’s rug or pull the cushions off the sofa. But they could sit on the floor with their backs to the sofa so they faced the fireplace. With the lights dimmed, it would be just as romantic.
She heard the front door open and felt her heart leap. In seconds, Rio was walking in, his intense eyes on her. “If I kiss you, the food will get cold.” Her voice trembled. There was no sense hoping he hadn’t heard it. She just hoped he didn’t guess how deeply she loved him. “I thought we’d sit on the floor with our backs to the sofa and enjoy the fire and each other.”
“The floor?”
“Do you mind?” It had sounded like a good idea to her, but with Rio looking at her she wasn’t sure.
He glanced from the floor to her. “You need a pillow or something?”
She relaxed. He’d been concerned about her. “Told you I’m tough. Have a seat and I’ll fix our plates.”
He sank gracefully to the floor and stretched out his long legs.
Skylar quickly put their food and drinks on a tray and handed it to Rio. She picked up the control to start the fireplace and dimmed the lights. Finished, she sat as close to him as possible, took the tray, and placed it in her lap. “You get everything done?”
“Yes.”
She gave him his glass. “Chicken and shrimp quesadillas, and a surprise dessert.”
He picked up a quesadilla and offered her a bite. “First and last.”
Smiling, she bit into his quesadilla, then picked up her own. He was learning.
“Where did you learn to cook?” he asked once he’d swallowed.
“My mother and my grandmothers.” She sipped her drink. “Being a good hostess meant also being a great cook, knowing how to arrange flowers, proper etiquette, and too many other things to count.”
He placed his food on his plate. “Sounds as if they wanted you to marry in their circle.”
She looked him in the eyes. “They also wanted me to be a lawyer and stay in Boston. I did neither. I’m my own woman and I make my own decisions. You should know that.”
“You can trace your family on both sides to before Lincoln was president,” he persisted.
And he was an orphan. “And some of them we’d rather forget. Like Grandfather Carrington always said, every man or woman has to make his or her own mark, stand on his or her own two feet. Family can be a help or a hindrance.” She nodded toward his plate. “You need me to feed you?”
He picked up his quesadilla. They ate in silence. Skylar sensed there had been a shift in their relationship, but she wasn’t sure if it was good or bad.
She didn’t try to fill the silence as they finished their meal and ate dessert. She placed everything back on the cart. If he was thinking of dumping her, she might as well do something she had longed to do almost from the first.
She sat in his lap, put her arms around his neck, and rested her head against his broad shoulder. A second later his arms closed around her. She was so relieved she trembled.
“You all right?”
She didn’t even think of evading. “You were thinking of dumping me.”
His hand tunneled though her hair. “Most people can’t read me.”
I love you. “I’ve been watching and studying you for two years. Remember.”
“Still.”
“Don’t worry. It’s not all the time,” she admitted truthfully. “You can be pretty intimidating.”
His lips brushed against her hair. “Apparently not intimidating enough.”
“You shouldn’t be so tempting. I’ve seen you send woman after woman running.”
“Not you.”
Her head angled up, she kissed him. “Told you, Boston-tough. Plus, as I said, I was ready to do a little touching.”
“So you did.” His head angled down and their lips met. His phone rang. Quickly he sat her up and answered. “Rio.”
“Intruder. Section four.”
“I’m on my way. Yellow alert. Code Red Sky.” He came to his feet with her. “Someone is coming to stay with you. I need to go.”
She clutched his hand, then released it. “Be careful.”
Touching her face, he was gone.
Chapter 10
One of Rio’s men was there before he reached the front door. Rio jumped in the golf cart waiting for him, and the driver took off.
“Skylar, we should go back inside,” Jason suggested.
Skylar continued to stare at the fading lights of the golf cart until Jason stepped in front of her and gently urged her back inside, then closed the door. Her gaze shot to the man in his early thirties dressed completely in black, with broad shoulders, a square jaw, and light eyes. Beneath his lightweight jacket was a .45 pistol in a shoulder holster.
His expression didn’t change. “Boss won’t be happy to learn I didn’t take good care of you.”
She tunneled her hand though her hair. If anyone was seriously after her or the auction pieces, standing with the front door wide open in bright light wasn’t smart. But she was worried about Rio. What if there was someone else out there his men hadn’t detected?
“The boss can take care of himself,” Jason said as if reading her mind, his Georgian drawl thick. “Why don’t we go into the kitchen. I’ll fix you a cup of coffee.”
He was trying, but nothing would help until she knew if there was real danger or just someone trying to sneak onto the property. “I’m fine, thank you. How long does it take to get to section four?”
“Four minutes. Conner would have already run his ID if he had any on. He’s also sent someone to the road to see if he had a vehicle or motorbike. Or someone could have dropped him off.”
Skylar glanced at her watch. She was usually patient. But not with Rio possibly being in harm’s way. Instinctively, she was aware he’d put himself in front of his men if there was any real danger.
And he’d want her safe when he did. She had to be as brave as he was. “How about I make the coffee
?”
“I’d appreciate it.”
In the kitchen, Skylar made coffee she had no intention of drinking, but she needed to keep busy. Jason had probably accepted for the same reason. She handed him a steaming mug just as his radio went off.
Her eyes widened.
“All clear. Yellow alert canceled.” Rio’s voice came through loud and clear.
Skylar’s cell phone rang seconds later. “Rio.”
“It was a reporter. Back in twenty. Bye.”
She almost sagged with relief. “Jason, how about some food to go with that coffee.”
“You cooking?”
Skylar playfully held up her hands. “With my own two.”
“Thanks. Don’t mind if I do.” Jason took a seat at the table, but his back was to the wall and he could see the back kitchen door and the hallway. The alert might be over, but clearly Jason wasn’t letting his guard down.
* * *
Rio was two minutes later than he’d expected when he stepped out of the converted golf cart; it had halogen headlights and four-wheel drive, and was capable of reaching sixty miles an hour. He bounded up the steps, punched in the code, and opened the front door.
Jason stood slightly in front of Skylar, but she quickly stepped around him. She was smiling. Her hands were clasped to keep her out of trouble, her hazel eyes twinkling. Rio felt the warmth of her smile all the way to his soul.
“I’ll be going. ’Night, boss. ’Night, Skylar, and thanks for the coffee and food.” Jason closed the door behind him.
Skylar was running the instant the door closed. Rio caught her to him, taking the lips she offered.
“You all right?” he asked, his arms still wrapped around her trim waist.
“I am now.” She sighed and rested her head against his chest briefly before lifting her head again. “I admit I wasn’t too steady until you called.”
He palmed her face. “There was never any danger and, if there had been, I would have taken care of it.”
“And I know that here.” She pointed to her head. “But here…” She touched her heart. “… is a different matter altogether.”