by Dorie Graham
“Erin…ah, sweet…oh, Erin.” He moaned her name over and over as she savored the taste of him, his scent heavy in her nostrils.
Her own need grew with his. She rose and the heat in his eyes nearly consumed her. With one movement she pulled her dress over her head, then dropped it on the floor. He took her mouth, kissing her with a force that left her senseless or so full of sensation she couldn’t tell the difference.
She pressed against him. And he pulled the straps of her slip over her arms until the silky garment floated into a puddle around her feet. She yanked off his shirt and he stepped out of his pants.
“Come with me,” she said, smiling at her double meaning, and took his hand to pull him into her bedroom.
He hit the mattress beside her and they divested each other of their remaining clothes between kisses and strokes and sighs of pleasure. She pulled back to admire him as he lay naked before her, his torso sculpted, his stomach cut, his erection full and his gaze heavy with desire. He opened his arms and she went to him, kissing him again as the same sweet longing filled her.
Then he stilled and she pushed back to look at him. “Jack?”
“I wasn’t thinking we’d end up doing this again. I meant to take things slow, give you a chance to get to know me.”
“You don’t want to do this?” She stared at him, frowning. Of course he wanted her. His urgency curled around her.
“I have never wanted anyone or anything the way I want you now.”
“Good.” She shifted so his cock rested against her clit. She moved sensuously. “I want you, too.”
“Wait.”
“It feels so good, Jack.”
“Wait.” He gripped her shoulders. “Do you have protection?”
She rolled off him. “Damn.”
A sound of torment ripped from him. She reached over to pat him. “It’s okay. Look in that box on the nightstand.” She dropped her head into her hands. “I just can’t believe I forgot.”
“I nearly did, too.” A rustling sounded as he dug in the box.
A moment later his warmth covered her back and his hands cupped her breasts. He pulled her against him and she closed her eyes as he teased her nipples into hard peaks. When she could wait no longer, she turned to him and pushed him down onto the pillows. “No more playing around. It’s time we got serious here.”
“No argument from me.” His gaze darkened and his fingers found her swollen sex. He parted her and then he slipped inside her.
She sighed with relief as he filled and stretched her, his hardness stroking her clit as he moved inside her. Then she was on her back beneath him and he was thrusting with an abandon that had her moaning and holding on as the sensations swept through her, his pleasure and her own coiling through her.
Deep, then deeper he drove into her, and still she urged him on, encouraging him with her body and her words, until the heat claimed her and she lost herself to the collage of feelings sweeping over her. Her sex throbbed, her clit burned and a feeling of wonder filled her as again her climax took her and she cried out with the intensity of it, barely aware he continued to stroke into her. Then he gripped her close and shuddered. The power of his orgasm crashed over her until she lay stunned, with him collapsed on top of her.
She closed her eyes and floated. His heart beating so close to hers, it seemed they beat in sync. Suddenly he pushed away from her. “Which way to the bathroom?”
“There.” She pointed, frowning as he swerved into the adjoining bathroom.
She stared up at the ceiling, unease filling her. Please don’t let him be getting ill. She calmed her rising panic, forcing herself to take long breaths and count. For endless moments it seemed she lay there, losing track, then starting over again.
Twenty-four…twenty-five…twenty-six…
After a while she gave up and padded to the door. The shower splashed on and she hesitated. Did that mean he was all right? Still, he’d left so abruptly.
Something was wrong.
She turned to leave and the door opened. Jack stood in the opening, steam swirling around him. “Hi. I was just coming to get you.”
His warmth and desire again reached out to her as he pulled her toward the pulsing water. “I was worried about you,” she said. “You left so quickly. Is everything okay?”
Light shone in his eyes. He moved her under the warm spray. “Everything is absolutely fine.” He wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her ear. “What could I possibly complain about when I have you?”
His body pressed into hers and the steam and the heat enfolded them. She brushed aside her worries as his mouth took hers in a kiss that started them again on that journey to bliss.
For now, all that mattered was being with Jack.
CLASSICAL MUSIC SOUNDED from a hidden speaker as green-aproned servers skirted among the crowded tables. Erin sipped her iced tea and tamped down on her impatience. She’d hardly arrived and she couldn’t wait for this lunch to be over.
She needed to get to Jack’s.
Besides promising him she’d come by his condo with some of the design workups she’d put together for him, she had to figure out what was wrong between them. Not that the goodbye kiss he’d given her left any doubt that he’d been thrilled with their lovemaking and couldn’t wait to have her back in his arms and in his bed.
She had a feeling that something was wrong. She’d questioned him again about his abrupt departure from bed, but he’d insisted he’d been fine. He’d certainly seemed more than fine when he’d made love to her for over an hour in the shower.
“What are you going to have?” Tess drew Erin’s attention to the present. Tess glanced over the menu, her eyes sparkling. “They have a new salad. I think I’ll have that.”
“And?” Maggie looked questioningly at her, her eyelids slightly drooping.
Erin had been distressed to see the physical evidence of Maggie’s decline, but she kept her expression light so as not to spoil their lunch.
“And sweet tea with lemon.” Smiling, Tess set aside her menu.
“That’s it?” Erin stared at her sister in disbelief as her own stomach growled.
“That’s it.” Tess’s fingers tapped over the slick cover of the menu.
“Are you dieting?” Maggie asked.
“Don’t feel like ordering more. Shall we start with the guest list?”
Maggie blinked, staring at her a moment, then she looked to Erin and shrugged. “Okay, but I’m starved. How about you, Erin?”
“I’m pretty hungry,” Erin said. She’d been eating like a horse the past few days, but her stomach rumbled again and her mouth watered as she glanced over the assortment of entrées. “I’m not sure. I can’t decide between the blackened snapper or the roast beef and garlic potatoes.”
Maggie smiled. “Get them both. You can always take some home for later.”
Both? She never double ordered off the menu. That was Tess’s thing. Yet she couldn’t seem to fill her belly lately. It seemed no matter what she ate she was hungry again in a few short hours. “Maybe I will order them both, so I can snack on one later.”
“That’s the spirit.” Maggie patted her leg. “I’m with you.” She turned to Tess. “Are you sure you’re feeling okay, dear?”
“I’m feeling just fine,” Tess said.
“But you’re not eating.”
“Yes I am. I’m eating salad.”
“Since when is salad food? I’m going to have to speak with Mason about this. Is the man starving you?” Maggie frowned.
“Salad is food and this doesn’t have anything to do with Mason. In fact, that man has learned how to order large in a big way. He doesn’t always take to-go boxes either.”
That seemed to satisfy Maggie to some extent. Their waitress arrived shortly and took their order. After she’d gone, Tess pulled out a pen and pad of paper. “Let’s start with the guest list.”
“Let’s keep it small,” Maggie said. “Nikki made me promise we wouldn’t go overboar
d.”
“Here’s what I have so far.” Tess turned the notebook toward their mother, who leaned over the page with her.
Erin folded her arms. It was nice that Tess had wanted to include her, but Tess and Maggie could pull this together without her help. From their long, wavy red hair to their fiery tempers the two were a matched pair.
As usual, Erin felt the odd man out.
Their food came and for a short while she lost herself in the fresh vegetables, spicy fish and tender beef. Her taste buds came alive with each bite. When had food tasted so good?
“Sweetie, do you want dessert?” Maggie asked. “You seem to have a healthy appetite today.”
Erin’s gaze swung from her nearly empty plate to her mother and her sister. A feeling of unease crept over her. “I just—”
“Who is he?” Tess asked.
“Don’t press her.” With a frown Maggie shooed Tess back.
A buzzing sounded in Erin’s ears. “What do you mean? Who is who?”
“Who is he?” Tess asked again, her gaze dropping to the remains of both of Erin’s entrées.
Erin frowned. How could she have eaten so much? Strange as it seemed, she wasn’t bursting at the seams, though. She just felt…content. The hunger that had been gnawing at her for the last couple of days had at last abated.
“Tess, you know she doesn’t like to talk about those things,” Maggie scolded.
“I don’t like to talk about what things?” Erin asked. “So I was hungry, and yes, I do think I’ll order dessert.” She flipped through the menu that stood on the table. “That chocolate-fudge brownie looks good. I think I’ll try that.”
“Ah, yes, chocolate always hits the spot for me.” Maggie pulled the menu toward her, then frowned and handed it to Tess. “Will you please pick for me, sweetie?” She waved her hand in front of her face. “I, uh, forgot my glasses.”
Erin’s stomach tightened, but Tess didn’t miss a beat. “I say three chocolate-fudge brownies. There, does that make you feel better?”
“Much,” Maggie said with a grateful smile.
“There’s the nursery calling,” Tess said and pulled her cell phone from her purse, its musical ring clamoring over the myriad conversations around them. Frowning, she turned aside to speak to the caller.
Their server took their dessert orders. Tess bit her lip as she put away her phone. “I’m afraid I’m going to have to take mine to go.”
“Oh, dear, is everything all right?” Maggie asked.
“Evan is going home sick. I have to get to the nursery. We have a big shipment coming in. I’m sorry to cut things short.”
“It’s okay, honey. You do what you have to. Maybe Erin can drive me home to save you some time.”
Erin straightened. “Whatever you need.”
“We can tie up a few of these shower details while we wait for those desserts.” Maggie whipped out the notepad and they ran through a list of options with quick efficiency, so they had the shower planned by the time the brownies arrived.
“You two are the best.” Tess rose, then hugged first her mother and then her sister. “I’d be dead meat without you.”
“No you wouldn’t, dear, but it’s sweet of you to say so,” Maggie said. “You tell Mason I want to see more of the both of you. Nothing would please me more than if we were planning a double wedding.”
Tess’s eyes rounded. “I’m not giving him any ideas. The man has already been mooning about tying me down and making an honest woman of me.”
Maggie nearly jumped out of her seat. “Mason asked you to marry him? Why didn’t you say so? Now you have to go without giving us all the details.”
“We’re as good as married now. And besides, we’ve already got our hands full with Nikki’s wedding plans. Enough.” She held up her hand when their mother would have said more. “I have to run. Poor Evan is miserable. We’ll talk later.”
She picked up her purse and turned to Erin. “Thanks for taking Mom home. You call me. We’ll do another girls’ night.”
As she moved away, weaving a path between the tables, a feeling of desolation stole over Erin, but she shook it off. Why would she be upset over Tess and Mason possibly tying the knot? It shouldn’t bother her any more than Nikki’s impending nuptials.
And why would that upset her? She was happy for her sisters. Truly happy.
Besides, she had Jack waiting for her. It wasn’t as if her life was devoid of joy or anything. So she hadn’t inherited the McClellan gift. If Jack had been sick last night, he’d hid it well. His continued health gave her hope that she could have a normal relationship with a man. If that meant bending her rules of professionalism a bit, then so be it.
“You ready, hon?” Maggie’s soft voice brought Erin out of her reverie.
“Sure.” She gathered her purse. “Let’s go.”
Maggie took her arm and Erin guided her out of the restaurant. Her throat tightened as her mother leaned heavily on her arm. Maggie had always been so free-spirited and independent. Now her fingers dug into Erin’s arm in a grip that conveyed that, in spite of her calm demeanor, Maggie was afraid.
The realization filled Erin with sorrow. Outside, Maggie barely blinked at the bright sunlight. Erin’s concerns over Jack could wait. For once, her mother needed her. And Erin meant to be there for her.
9
TWENTY MINUTES LATER Maggie turned to Erin from the passenger seat, a knowing smile on her face. “So you have a new young man.”
Surprise rippled through Erin. “There are no secrets in this family.”
“No, not normally. You couldn’t have kept it a secret if you had wanted to, sweetheart. If your voracious appetite wasn’t a dead giveaway, then that light in your eyes would have done it. You have moments when you are positively glowing. Now why would you want to keep such a thing a secret?”
Erin turned in to her aunt Sophie’s driveway. “There is someone. I’d just rather keep it private.”
“Is everything okay?”
“Of course. Why would there be anything to worry about?” Surely whatever Jack was keeping from her couldn’t be any worse than her not telling him she was Typhoid Mary.
“Are you sure? You seem…a little off.”
“I’m just adjusting to my new place and revamping my business.”
“I hear that’s going well.”
Erin braced herself for the same lecture she’d heard from both Nikki and Tess on her giving up feng shui. “It has been. Very well, in fact. I’ve just signed a new client.”
“Oh, I see.” Her mother’s sideways glance sent apprehension skittering up her spine, though she made no comment about the feng shui.
“You see what?” Why had she thought that she could keep anything from Maggie? The woman was a walking lie detector.
Maggie’s shoulders shifted in a slight shrug. “You have mixed emotions about this young man. Guilt. What are you feeling guilty about? Something to do with your work.” Her eyebrows lifted. “He’s a client.”
Busted. “How is it that you always know these things?”
“Sweetie, you are so easy to read. One of the easiest. You have the ability, too.”
“I don’t think so. I’m not like you.”
“I suppose that’s true. We have never been much alike, and the gift manifests differently in each of us. Plus you and your sisters are a whole new generation. But you still have the gift, and part of that is the empathic nature,” Maggie said. “You feel it with your young man. You feel what he feels. It bonds you in a way you can’t escape.”
“Maybe.”
“Certainly it does.” Maggie lifted her purse strap to her shoulder. “Do you want to come inside? Thomas has made some adjustments to my studio. Nothing like you would have done, hon, and I think we could do more with the lighting. It still isn’t right. Maybe you could tell me your opinion?”
“I have some lights I got in the other day that aren’t going to work for what I had in mind. Maybe we can do something with th
ose.”
“Great, sweetie, now call that young man and let him know I’ll keep you just a few short minutes. I’ll meet you inside.”
“No, it’s okay. It’ll be fine. I’ll get there when I get there.”
“You sure?”
“Absolutely.” Erin followed her mother up the walk.
Out of the blue, memories of classmates’ teasing flowed over Erin. Maggie’s constant shuffling from man to man hadn’t escaped their notice. In spite of the agony, Erin had endured. She loved her mother and she meant to help her in any way possible.
As they ascended the stairs leading to the wide wraparound porch, Maggie missed a step, stumbling against Erin. She clutched the rail and grabbed Maggie’s arm to stabilize her. Her heart raced. “Are you okay?”
Maggie nodded, her mouth set in a firm line. “I’m sorry, dear, that was clumsy of me. I just…I didn’t see the damn thing.”
Erin took a deep breath. “It’s okay.”
“No. It isn’t.” Maggie stopped halfway up the stairs. “I’ve got the good sense not to drive myself around anymore, but there is no reason why I can’t walk up a flight of stairs on my own.”
“But, Maggie—”
“Don’t ‘but Maggie’ me. I will not have everyone coddling me. This is exactly why I didn’t want to tell all of you.”
“Now wait a minute. I was not coddling you. You nearly fell. I caught you. Thank God we didn’t both go tumbling down these stairs.”
All the fight seemed to drain from her mother. She ran her hand across her eyes. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It gets a little frustrating at times.”
Erin’s throat tightened. “Of course it does. It’s perfectly understandable. But you have got to cut yourself some slack. You’re going through an adjustment period.” Her voice faltered and she stopped.
Maggie wrapped her arm around her. “It’ll be okay, pumpkin. I’m not sure how, but somehow, some way, this is all going to work out just fine.”