“Jenessa is fortunate.”
“So are you.” He reached for cheese and crackers. “You have Jon and the slow cooker.”
“There is that.” They carried their full plates to the circle of friends. Jazz music played in the background. Suzanna straightened. “Isn’t that the pianist at the Pirate’s Cove?”
“Got it in one. His first CD.” Eric leaned forward. “Sam’s a friend. Actually I’m here because he suspected Jim Bishop of making a move on the hospital’s huge trust fund.”
Caleb put his plate on a small table and added Suzanna’s. “Shall we dance?”
She rose and moved into his arms. “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” played. They’d danced to the piece at the Pirate’s Cove. She circled his neck with her arms. What she’d felt that night returned. Desire and a need for the man slowly encompassed her. Her senses were filled with his scent, the slow murmur of his voice, the feel of his skin beneath her hands and above all, the press of their bodies.
A game of pool began with bets placed and a rapid elimination of friends from the field. In the end Jenessa and Jeff battled for honors. Suzanna cheered for her friend. Caleb took Jeff as his champion.
As the clock neared midnight, Jenessa herded them upstairs to the living room to watch the fireworks. The wide French doors framed the display of color bursting against the dark sky.
The clock began to chime. Suzanna turned from the French doors and gazed into Caleb’s eyes. The others chanted the count down. The final barrage began. Her lips met Caleb’s. For an instant beneath the passion, she sensed a promise.
“Happy New Year,” he whispered.
“And to you.” His blue eyes repeated the promise she had sensed. A conflagration flamed her body.
“No.” Caleb pulled his phone out. “Winstone speaking.” His expression turned to laughter. He handed Suzanna the phone. “The call is for you.”
“Happy New Year,” Jon said. “I called you. It went to voice mail.”
“Sorry. I left my phone at home. Happy New Year to you. Are you all right?”
“I’m great. See you tomorrow. I’ll call for a pick up.”
She chuckled and returned the phone to Caleb. He clasped her hand. “Ready to go?”
“I believe so.” Together, they joined the exodus.
* * *
Caleb helped Suzanna with her coat. As they walked to the car, their fingers twined. His heart beat in a staccato rhythm. How would this evening end? He hoped to show her how much he cared. Care was a mild description of his feelings. He wanted her. He needed her. He loved her. On the night he’d asked her to be his mistress, his feelings had been the same. His demand had been wrong. Being around her friends had shown him how love and marriage intertwined. Spending time with Suzanna and Jon had provided him with a picture of family togetherness. He wanted that forever.
Still he had to convince her to take a chance. She responded to his kisses. Her body fit his perfectly. If he told her of his love would the friendship end because she couldn’t believe?
In the car, he switched the radio to his favorite classical station. She leaned back and closed her eyes. He failed to find words for he feared saying the wrong ones. He pulled into the driveway of her house, rounded the car to open her door. With hands clasped, they walked to the porch. At the door, he took the key and turned it in the lock. He bent his head. Their mouths met. Tongues tangled. The kiss continued until he needed to gulp a breath.
She looked up. “Would you like to come in?”
“Yes.” His voice sounded raspy. Damn, he feared breaking the forming connection. Once inside, they moved beyond the moment. Desire roared through every cell in his body. He reached for the door.
She unbuttoned her coat. “Stay.”
In that word, he heard promises he’d hoped would come to pass. He hung their coats on the hall tree. He gathered her into his arms. Their lips touched, gently brushing and then with open mouths, seeking. He pulled her against him. His hands slid from her waist to cup her rear pulling her flush against his body. Desire built until he thought he would explode. One of his hands slid behind her legs. As the kiss continued, he felt her growing dampness. She moved restlessly against him. He growled and remembered he had brought protection.
He broke the kiss. “Let’s not finish before we begin.”
Her smile raised his desire to the boiling point. “Come with me.” She clasped his hand and led him upstairs.
The moment they reached her bedroom, he halted just beyond the door. The bed had been turned down. Had she planned this? Though large, the bed wasn’t as huge as his California king.
Deftly, she slid his jacket from his shoulders and began unbuttoning his skirt. Her lips brushed cross the exposed skin. Each time he reached for her, she danced out of reach.
“Suzanna.” His voice sounded so deep and needy.
“I’m unwrapping my present.” She pulled his shirt off and circled around him. Standing behind him, she reached around to unbuckle his belt.
“In my pocket. Protection.”
She halted, searched and tossed the packets on the bed. As his slacks and briefs slid over his hips, he swallowed. She touched him, and his cock responded. “I need you,” he growled.
“Sit on the bed and wait.”
Caleb kicked off the rest of his clothes and sat on the edge of the bed. He looked up. His breath caught in his throat. Suzanna stood a distance away. She pulled hr top over her head and posed for a second. Her bra was as green as her eyes. Then she shimmied out of the slacks and his eyes moved from her chest to the green bikini.
Slowly, she walked toward him. He wanted to toss her on the bed, but he restrained himself. Then he rose and deftly removed her bra.
Her mouth met his and he pulled her close. As the kiss deepened, he lowered her to the bed, slid her bikini down and followed her. He knelt between her legs and sheathed himself. With one swift movement, he entered and paused.
She was his. The look of love in her eyes made him want to cheer.
That was his last thought as the quest for fulfillment consumed him. Her soft sounds, the scent of her and the aroma of passion filled the air. He hovered on the brink. She called his name and tightened around him.
“Suzanna,” he shouted and erupted. “You are beautiful. I…”
Her mouth covered his. The kiss cut off his confession. He gathered her close and drifted in the afterglow of desire.
* * *
Suzanna snuggled against Caleb. She felt content and loved but a trace of distrust remained. What words had she cut off by her kiss? There were things she wanted to ask and say. She hesitated to crawl onto the limb of commitment and risk falling for a second time when the branch broke.
He tightened his hold and kissed her. “I’ll be right back.”
Moments later he returned with a warm washcloth. After cleaning her, he slid back to her side. ‘I think we need to talk. There are things I must say.”
“Not yet.” She covered his mouth with her fingers. “Talk may be overrated.” She stroked his chest and teased his nipples into hardness. His lips met hers and the kiss filled her with a need for him.
She kissed her way over his chest and paused to feather her tongue over a spot that made him growl. Her mouth reached his pecs. The feel of his growing erection pressed against the belly and filled her with a powerful desire for him to fill her. She continued her way over his belly. She kissed the head of his cock and ran her tongue over the length. His guttural sounds spurred her.
“Enough,” he growled. “Condom.”
“Are you sure?”
“I want to be inside and fly with you,” he said.
She reached for the last packet and tore it open. Slowly, she sheathed him, relishing his changing expressions and his sounds.
Her body responded. She straddled his hips. She lowered herself and felt his fullness fill her. She bent to kiss him. He stroked her breasts and then grasped her hips. As she rocked, the burn began. Though s
he wanted to cry her love, she refrained. Her body took fire and she soared.
He pulled her against his chest. She fell into a dreamless sleep.
When she woke, she and Caleb were curled together in a tangle of legs and arms. She kissed him and slid out of bed. She crossed to the bathroom and turned on the shower.
Moments later, Caleb joined her. He kissed her. She slid her arms around his neck and moved against him. He moved her back. “This is as far as we go. I have no more protection with me.”
She stepped back. “Neither do I.” She stepped out, grabbed a towel and handed him one.
After they dressed, she made breakfast. She glanced at the clock. Nearly ten. How had they slept so late? Just as they finished breakfast, Jon called for a ride.
Caleb finished his coffee. “I’m on my way home. I’ll see you later for dinner and then to take Jon to the pool.”
She walked with him to the door and reached for her jacket. Time to bring her brother home.
Chapter 12
The week after New Year’s Eve passed quickly. Caleb spent every evening with Suzanna and Jon. Though he and Suzanna had little more than stolen moments, rather than frustration, he felt a growing closeness and a sense of family he’d never had before. Being with them deepened his love for Suzanna. Soon, he would ask her to marry him. How would she answer?
Dr. Joe had returned. While the office hours remained busy, sharing the workload remained perfect. For the first time in years, he felt content. His decision to return to Eastlake had been right.
As he sat in his office recording a note on his last patient of the day, his cell phone chimed. He looked at the number and frowned. His parents had returned. He braced for a lecture.
“Hello, Mother.”
“Caleb, you will arrive here for dinner at six.”
“What if I have plans?”
“Cancel them.”
Her sharp command raised a desire to refuse but he needed to face both his parents. He needed to know about the phone call for his father and put to rest her desire for his marriage to Regina.
The phone chimed a second time. “Hello.”
“Art here. I’ve made arrangements for Jon to become a member of the swim team. I’ve asked his sister to come this evening to fill out forms.”
“That’s great. I’ll call her.” Though he would rather be with Suzanna and Jon, tonight he could finalize family problems.
Since New Year’s Eve, he and Suzanna’s friendship had deepened. Tonight after this dinner, he would tell Suzanna of his love and slip the amethyst ring on her finger.
He called her cell. “Art called me about the swim team. I can’t take Jon tonight. A parental demand for my presence happened. I’ll see you later this evening.”
“Will you be all right? I know how they stress you.”
The concern in her voice heartened him. “I’ll survive.”
He hung up and made another decision. Time for them to make their relationship public. After he proposed, they would have dinner at the Pirate’s Cove.
At six, suitably dressed for dinner at home, he parked in the driveway. He slid from the car and straightened his tie and adjusted his cuffs. Wearing casual clothes wasn’t tolerated at a Winstone dinner table. He strode to the front door and rang the bell.
Cecelia took his coat. “She’s in the living room.”
She. For a moment, he wanted to grab his coat and leave. Was Regina waiting to pounce? He crossed the threshold and saw his mother standing near the fireplace.
She walked toward him. “I wanted to speak to you before the others arrive.”
Her words acted like yeast leavening his tension. “Say what you want.”
“You will marry Regina.”
“I will not. I’m an adult and make my own decisions. I can’t take on her problems.”
“What do you mean?”
“Her killing three people, her drinking problems and her promiscuous sexual behavior.”
“What’s wrong with you? Jim has no child but her. You will be his heir. Think of how much she will bring to the family. I know what’s best for you. After all, you’re not…”
“Margaret, shut up,” Caleb’s father said. “You will not speak about that.”
His mother’s face turned burgundy. “I believe it’s time and one of the reasons he must marry Regina Bishop.”
“I said not now.” Mr. Winstone walked to the bar and fixed a drink. “Son, what will you have?”
“Whatever you are.” Caleb accepted and sipped bourbon. “Something did happen when I came by on Christmas Day to raid the wine cellar. I took a phone message for you.”
“Was it important? You should have called.”
“More like puzzling. Here goes. Tell Mr. Winstone he needs to send no more money. She’s dead. How long has Karen Sleigh been blackmailing you?”
His mother laughed. “Not blackmail but payment for a service rendered.”
“Margaret!”
“I won’t keep quiet. Caleb, she was your mother.”
Her words struck like a sword in his gut. “What are you talking about?”
His mother moved closer. “After Warren’s birth, I wanted no more pregnancies. Morning sickness, growing fat, experiencing pain weren’t for me. Your father wanted a spare, so he found a woman willing to have his child for money. I agreed to accept you provided she left the area and never tried to see you.”
Caleb set his glass on the bar with a thud. If he remained here another moment, he would be sick. The small amount of bourbon he’d drunk threatened to spew. He walked to the door. “I’m leaving.
“Son,” his father called. “I want…”
The urge to punch someone or something warred with nausea. With his father’s summons echoing, he left the house.
* * *
The next day, Suzanna stood in the nurses’ station listening to the night nurses’ report. Caleb arrived to make rounds. Unlike most days, he didn’t wait for her. His slumped posture made her wonder what troubled him. He looked like he hadn’t slept. As soon as report ended, she scurried down the hall to find him. When she did, she herded him into her office and closed the door. “What is wrong?”
He shrugged. “Just something I don’t want to talk about.”
“Come to dinner tonight. We can talk. Jon has a lot to tell you about the swim team.”
He shook his head. “I need to think about what I learned yesterday. When I get my head straight, I’ll let you know.” He opened the door.
She watched him walk away. He looked like Atlas with the weight of the world on his back. Her curiosity rose like a non-stop elevator in a skyscraper. What had happened?
That evening, she and Jon ate leftovers. After they finished, he grabbed his practice gear and walked to the porch. Suzanna followed with the walker. She drove him to the Community Center.
At the door to the locker room, he paused. “I wish Caleb would return my calls. I have so much to tell him.”
“He’s busy. His parents returned from Europe and he needs to spend time with them.” Though she doubted that was the reason, she prayed Jon would ask no more questions.
“You don’t have to come for me. Chuck’s mom will bring me home and she says we can start sharing the duty. You could check my school work before I send it. I did a lot today.”
“Will do.”
Not long after she returned home, the doorbell rang. She grinned. Maybe Caleb had solved what troubled him. She opened the door. An older fur-clad woman with steel-gray hair stood on the porch.
“Can I help you?” Suzanna asked.
“I’m Margaret Winstone and I have some things to tell you.”
The woman’s dark eyes glittered with anger and hatred. “Would you like to come in?”
“I’m not standing in the cold to deliver my message.”
Though Suzanna tried to stop her, Mrs. Winstone pushed past her and peered into the living room. “You seem to live very well. Caleb has outdone himself in esta
blishing his love nest.”
Suzanna faced the woman. “Caleb has nothing to do with the house. Just what do you want?”
“I want you to stop accepting support from Caleb and to leave town.”
“Since Caleb has never given me a cent and I have an excellent job, why would I consider either option?”
“Your job can end. I’m not without influence in this town. If you decide to continue your relationship with Caleb after he marries Regina, he can set you up elsewhere.”
A slow burn began. Suzanna shoved her hands behind her back before the desire to attack this woman took over. “Shouldn’t marrying this Regina be Caleb’s decision?”
“He has no choice. She’s carrying his child.”
“So you say. But that’s a lie.”
“Lie or truth, he will do what I want him to do.”
Suzanna shook her head. This woman had no concern for her son, only for what she wanted. The anger bubbling inside rose closer to the surface. “I think you’d better leave.”
Mrs. Winstone turned toward the door. “You will stay away from Caleb. I understand you have a crippled brother to care for and that your father was a thief.”
Suzanna drew a deep breath. “He was my step-father. My father died in the Middle East as a hero.”
“Then your brother will suffer if the news about his father’s thefts is spread. Also, I can see you lose your job at the hospital. I know one Board member. Leave Caleb alone and make your plans to leave town.” She pulled on her coat and stalked to the door. “Just make sure you obey. Caleb must marry Regina to dilute the bad blood he brings to his future children.” She closed the door with a firm click.
Suzanna released s silent scream. Caleb’s mother was insane. Why would she say her son had bad blood? Why was she so intent on him marrying Regina? Suzanna slumped on the couch and shivered. That woman could ruin her life and Jon’s. Money talked, and rumors were like virulent viruses spreading rapidly.
She bit her lower lip to keep from crying. She didn’t want to leave Eastlake, her friends, her brother’s new life, Caleb. If he was the price she had to pay, she would. Once more love lay in shattered fragments. This time the fault was hers.
The Leo-Aquarius Connection Page 15
