Stranger in my Arms

by Rochelle Alers

  “Moira, this is my very good friend, Merrick Grayslake. Merrick, Moira Morgan.”

  Moira extended a limp wrist. “It’s nice meeting you, Merrick.”

  He nodded, reaching for her fingers. “It’s nice meeting you, too.”

  Moira shifted a leather book bag from one shoulder to the other. “I’m going to head up to my room and take siesta.” She knew she was staring at Merrick longer than what would be termed polite, but he was drop-dead gorgeous. Reluctantly, she shifted her gaze to Alex. “I’ll talk to you Saturday.”

  “Okay.”

  Alex looped her arm through Merrick’s. Never had she been so glad to see someone. But she had to admit that he wasn’t just someone. He was the man with whom she’d fallen in love.

  “When did you get in?”

  “I came in on the red-eye a little after three.”

  “You must be exhausted. Come on up to my room. We’ll take siesta together.”

  Merrick followed Alex as she led him down a narrow hallway to a stone staircase that led to the second story. He was exhausted, having spent a restless two days deciding whether he should go to Mexico. But he also wanted to tell Alex that taking siesta together wasn’t a very good idea.

  Talking to Alex had only served to increase his longing for her. She hadn’t given him her address and he knew he would never ask her for it; however, his dilemma was solved when he received the packet with the postcards. She’d indicated her return address and that presented the opportunity he needed to come and tell her what lay in his heart.

  “The accommodations here are simple but comfortable,” Alex explained as she opened the door to her room. “Bienvenido.”

  He stepped into the room, not seeing any of the furnishings. Reaching for Alex, he slipped the straps to her backpack off her shoulders, letting it slide to the floor, and closed the heavy oaken door with his foot. Lifting her off her feet, he crossed the room and sat her on the twin-size bed, his body following hers down. Flames of desire darkened his eyes; the silver had disappeared, and in its place was a shocking dark topaz blue.

  Alex moved over and straddled Merrick’s lap, her hands cradling his face, her fingertips tracing the contours of his cheekbones and jaw. “Why did you come, Merrick?”

  “Isn’t it obvious, sweetheart?”

  Her gaze fused with his. “No. I’ve never been one to make assumptions.”

  Merrick closed his eyes, a thick fringe of lashes brushing the ridge of sculpted cheekbones. A knowing smile parted his lips. “I lied when I told you that I liked you.” She gasped. He opened his eyes, meeting her questioning gaze. “The truth is I love you, Alexandra Cole. I kept telling myself that I wanted you as a friend, that we could be friends, but it just didn’t work.”

  Her heart pounding a runaway rhythm thundered under her breasts as a rush of giddiness swept over Alex. He loved her! He loved her and she had fallen in love with him! But it was something she wouldn’t tell him—not yet.

  Biting down on her lower lip, she attempted to bring her fragile emotions into some semblance of order. She closed her eyes against his intense stare. “You love me, but your timing’s wrong.”

  “What’s wrong with it?”

  “I have another four months before I return to the States. Long-distance relationships usually don’t work.”

  “We’ll make it work, Ali. I didn’t wait thirty-five years for someone like you to come into my life to concern myself with a few months or miles.”

  A frown furrowed her forehead. “Do you realize how far it is between Mexico City and the East Coast of the United States?”

  He smiled. “I know exactly how far it is. But distance doesn’t matter if I have you here.” Merrick placed his left hand over his heart.

  A flood of tears shimmered in her gold eyes. “Don’t do this to me, Merrick.”

  Burying his head against the side of her neck, he breathed a kiss under her ear. “Do what, baby?”

  “Don’t make me want you so much.”

  “Is that such a bad thing?”

  She sniffled. “It is when I can’t have you whenever I want you.” Her hands curled into tight fists on his back.

  Raising his head, Merrick saw her tortured expression. “Alexandra, please look at me.” She opened her eyes. “I’m not going to put any pressure on you. We’ll see each other whenever it’s convenient for you.”

  “You don’t mind waiting until June?”

  “No. You’re more than worth the wait.”

  Blinking through tears, she smiled at him. “Thank you, Merrick, for making it easier for me.”

  “Do you realize how easy it is for me to love you?”

  Resting her head on his shoulder, she exhaled a soft sigh.

  “When you get to know me better you may change your mind.”

  “I doubt that,” Merrick said.

  “I’ve been known to go from nice girl into bitch mode in one point two seconds.”

  “That’s your problem, not mine, because I don’t argue or fight with women. So, if you go off, then don’t count on me to entertain your tantrum.”

  Sitting up straighter, she stared directly at him. There was no trace of laughter or teasing in his solemn expression. “What would you do?”

  “Walk away until you come to your senses. And stop trying to scare me off, because it’s too late. I’m in this for the duration.”

  Alex’s delicate jaw dropped before she recovered quickly. “What is your definition of duration?”

  “Perpetuity.”

  “You can’t be talking about marriage?” The query tumbled from her lips.

  Merrick saw the rapidly beating pulse in Alex’s throat. His gaze lowered to her heaving bosom under a simple white cotton blouse. Not only had he shocked her with his surprise visit, but his declaration that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her had shaken the very foundation of her privileged existence.

  There was a beat of silence before he said in an eerily quiet voice, “You mentioned the word, Ali, not me.”

  A rush of color suffused her cinnamon-brown face. “I’m not going to marry you, Merrick Grayslake, so you can forget about duration and perpetuity. I’ve spent the past ten years with my life in flux wherein I’ve studied, traveled and partied like a girl gone wild.

  “My last year of high school I told my parents I wanted to put off going to college for a year because I needed a break from the books. My mother issued an ultimatum, go to college or get a job and move out of her house. And there was no job available to an eighteen-year-old that would pay me enough to afford me the lifestyle to which I’d become accustomed.

  “Bowing to pressure, I applied to the Rhode Island School of Design. They accepted me and I enrolled as a liberal arts major with a concentration in art and architectural history in their five-year degree program. Unfortunately I had an affair with one of my instructors in my sophomore year and…”

  “What happened, Ali?” Merrick asked when she closed her eyes at the same time her words trailed off.

  She opened her eyes. “I gave him my love and my innocence. Whenever I mentioned marriage he’d avoided talking about it before finally admitting he wasn’t the marrying kind. That all changed when my parents came up to visit me. He did a one-eighty when he realized I was one of those Coles. He waited a week, then proposed, but at twenty-two I wasn’t so in love that I didn’t know that he was after my money. Once I told him that I wouldn’t have control of my trust fund until my twenty-fifth birthday he dropped me like hot garbage.

  “I graduated, secured a part-time position with a Boca Raton art gallery and during my free time partied like there was no tomorrow. I dated a lot of men but I refused to sleep with any of them. I saw them as someone with whom to pass the time. Then I met someone I believed was different from the others. We dated for five months.

  “After this liaison I took a long hard look at myself, reassessing my life and what I wanted for me, not my parents, my brothers or my sister. I made the deci
sion to return to school, and this time study abroad. Being on my own forced me to depend on Alexandra for everything, and I loved it.” Her gold-brown eyes filled with a gentleness that made her appear angelic. “Like any normal woman I want marriage and children, but that can’t happen now.”

  Merrick’s arm tightened around her waist. “Are you finished with your soliloquy, Ali?” he asked in a soft voice she had to strain her ears to hear.

  She blushed furiously. “Yes, I am.”

  “I’ve heard you and I remember everything you’ve ever told me. And I’ve told you that I would never pressure you to do what you don’t want to do. There’s no reason why we can’t enjoy each other without marriage and children becoming part of the equation. And if we go from being friends to lovers, then I’ll accept full responsibility for making certain you don’t get pregnant.”

  Alex combed her fingers through her hair, holding the wayward curls off her forehead. She appreciated the fact that Merrick Grayslake hadn’t tried to change her; he accepted her flaws and imperfections that permitted her to be Alex. Could she, she wondered, offer Merrick her heart? Would he be worthy of the love she’d guarded jealously since ending her first liaison?

  Could she sleep with him and not want more?

  Yes, whispered the silent voice in her head.

  “I know I’ve been doing a lot of talking—”

  “That you have,” Merrick agreed, interrupting her.

  Her hands came down and she hugged him. “Please don’t interrupt me or I’ll lose my nerve.”

  A small smile played at the corners of Merrick’s mouth as he gave her a lazily seductive look. “Okay, baby.”

  “Do—do you think it’s possible for us to stop being friends?”

  Merrick’s smile faded as he held his breath. “What do you want?”

  “I want us to become lovers.”

  A powerful relief shook Merrick as his chest swelled with a peace he hadn’t thought possible. Angling his head, he touched his mouth to Alex’s, increasing the pressure until her lips parted while his hands explored the curve of her waist and hips.

  “Get your clothes and books and pack a bag.”

  “Where am I going?” she asked between soft nibbling kisses.

  “We’re going to my hotel. There’s no way two of us can sleep in this kiddie bed.”

  She laughed. “It’s big enough for me.”

  “But I’m taller and bigger than you.” He kissed the top of her head. “Let’s go, querida.”

  Chapter 9

  Alex walked over to the large window and opened it. Stepping out onto the balcony, she looked down onto a courtyard with a flowing fountain. A round table with two cushioned chairs near the wrought-iron enclosure provided the perfect setting for an early-morning breakfast or a late-night dinner.

  Merrick had checked into a room at the Four Seasons Hotel containing all the amenities for work and relaxation. The spacious room was furnished with a king-size bed, desk, love seat, coffee table, flat-screen television, private bar and wireless high-speed Internet access. The full marble bathroom featured a garden tub, separate shower and water closet.

  She felt the heat from his body as he came up behind her. Her slender hands covered the arms wrapped around her waist. “This place is spectacular. Do you always stay in upscale hotels?”

  Merrick kissed the side of her neck. “Yes. There was a time when all I could afford was seedy motels. The one time I woke with bedbug bites I vowed to sleep in my car rather than check in to another flophouse.”

  Turning slightly, she stared at him over her shoulder. “How long are you staying?”

  “I’m checking out Monday.”

  Merrick wanted to tell Alex that he was scheduled to meet with a former supervisor at CIA headquarters in Langley, Virginia, to discuss the possibility of his returning to the Agency. He’d spent two years as a virtual recluse, but now he looked forward to reconnecting with the Agency and those whom at one time he’d regarded as his extended family.

  “That gives us three days together.”

  “Four nights and three days,” he corrected.

  Closing her eyes, Alex leaned against the solid wall of his chest. She was certain Merrick felt the flutters from her heart, her tightening stomach muscles. “I’m going out Saturday night, but I don’t know whether you’d want to come with me.”

  “Am I invited?”

  She opened her eyes as a mischievous grin twisted her mouth. “You are if you don’t mind viewing an art exhibit.”

  “Ali,” he groaned. “What’s up with you staring at paintings of dead people?”

  “Are you going with me? If not, then I’ll ask someone else.”

  Merrick’s hands went to her flat belly. “That’s not going to happen.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “I don’t intend to share you with other men.”

  “Don’t tell me you’re jealous,” she teased.

  Splaying his fingers over her belly, Merrick pulled her closer. “No, Ali. I’m crazy.”

  Alex went completely still, her face clouding with uneasiness. His cold tone set alarm bells clanging within her, and she was suddenly anxious to put some distance between her and the man holding her to his heart. A warning voice whispered in her head that Merrick Grayslake was dangerous, that he would be a formidable opponent when confronted or crossed, that as a former CIA operative he’d probably committed unspeakable acts.

  “Does this mean you’re coming with me?”

  “Yes, it does.”

  Merrick’s fingers inched down Alex’s blouse, easing the hem from the waistband of her slacks. He heard her soft inhalation of breath as he searched lower, under the delicate material of her panties. This time she gasped aloud when his hand cupped her mound. A knowing smile parted his lips as moisture bathed his fingertips.

  Alex was ready for him, and he’d been ready for her. Unknowingly he had been the first time he saw her arguing with a man who hadn’t wanted to let her go. Now he understood why the frustrated man had taken the risk and crashed a private event to see her.

  Merrick found Alexandra Cole an anomaly. Assertive and confident, she spoke her mind. He’d come to admire her tenacity, her ambition and her friendly outgoing personality. But she was also hot-tempered and stubborn, negative psychological characteristics that did not detract from her overall strengths.

  She wanted to complete her graduate studies, and he’d promised to support her during this endeavor. However, like most women, she wanted marriage and children—two things he was unable to offer her at this time in his life. What he would offer Alex was his love and protection. These were more than he’d been willing to give the women in his past.

  His free arm tightened around her waist as he lifted her and backed off the balcony and reentered the bedroom. His hand still sandwiched between her thighs, Merrick sat down on the bed, bringing Alex to sit on his lap.

  He pressed his mouth to the nape of her neck. “Are you ready to take siesta with me?”

  Alex couldn’t respond because she’d bitten down on her lower lip when the slight flutters grew stronger as Merrick’s fingers worked their magic. She nodded like someone under the effects of a powerful narcotic.

  “Yes-s-s.” Her affirmation came out slurred as a long-forgotten passion rose quickly to engulf her in flames that refused to burn out.

  Closing her eyes, Alex let her senses take over. It was as if she were viewing what was to take place between her and Merrick as a spectator rather than a participant. His fingers were deft, unfaltering when he released the tiny buttons on her blouse from their fastenings. She heard his breathing deepen as he viewed her breasts in a sheer white lace bra; his breathing became more labored with each article of clothing he removed.

  She opened her eyes to find him kneeling over her, eyes shimmering like streaks of lightning, the nostrils of his aquiline nose flaring from the effort it took to control his respiration. No man had ever stared at her naked body wit
h an expression mirroring awe and reverence. The heat pulsing between her legs spread throughout her body.

  Merrick did not want to believe that clothes had artfully concealed a petite body so lushly curved that he feared spilling his passion before he joined his body with Alex’s. High, firm breasts he’d only glimpsed on New Year’s Eve were ardently displayed as they rose and fell over a narrow rib cage flaring out to a pair of rounded hips. Everything about her—the rich brown color that was evenly distributed over her body, the large gold-brown eyes that stared trustingly at him and the black shiny curls that were as wayward as the woman who claimed them—held him enthralled in a labyrinth of love and desire from which he never wanted to escape.

  Moving off the bed, he removed his jacket and shirt, leaving them on the padded bench at the foot of the bed. His shoes, socks, slacks and underwear followed until he was completely naked. His footsteps were silent on the carpeted floor as he crossed the room, entered the bathroom and removed a condom from a small toiletry bag. He returned to the bedroom and slipped into bed with Alex, who’d turned on her side to face the window.

  “Can you please close the window and pull the drapes?” Alex doubted whether the hotel guests across the courtyard could see into the room, but she’d never been one for public displays of affection.

  Merrick kissed her shoulder. “Sure.”

  Her gaze narrowed when she saw the thin, pale scar running along the left side of his back. He’d told her that he had retired from the CIA, and she wondered if it was an injury that had ended his career, forcing him into early retirement.

  Extending her arms, she smiled as Merrick made his way back to the bed. There was enough light coming through the opening in the patterned peach-and-gold draperies to make out his face, but not the other small scars on his body.

  “Veo las huellas de mi amor, querido,” she whispered as he took her into his arms.