Fiancé in Name Only

by Maureen Child

  He hissed in a breath, lifted his head and looked down at her, one eyebrow arched high. “You keep moving like that and we’re going to need a new condom.”

  Naturally she wriggled again, deliberately awakening a wave of fresh need. Reaching up, Kelly cupped his face in her palms and asked, “How many condoms do you have?”

  He rocked his hips against her and she gasped.

  One corner of his mouth lifted. “I’m thinking not nearly enough.”

  Was it bad that her heart did a slow roll and flip at the sight of his smile? Was it dangerous that she wanted nothing more than to stay here, like this, with Micah smiling down at her, forever? Her heart pounded painfully in her chest and her whole body trembled as he sat back onto his heels, drawing her with him, keeping their bodies locked together.

  “Oh, boy.” She said it on a sigh as she settled onto Micah’s lap. Face-to-face, their mouths only a kiss apart, Kelly was lost in the rich brown of his eyes. His body went deep. She felt him growing, thickening inside her, and she swiveled her hips, grinding her core against him to feel even more.

  He bent his head to take her nipples, one after the other, into his mouth. Kelly looked blindly around the familiar room, trying to distract herself so she wouldn’t climax as quickly this time. She wanted to draw this moment out as long as she could. So she looked at the forest-green walls, the white crown molding, the now-cold white-tiled fireplace and the chairs drawn up before it.

  She’d lived here most of her life and knew every corner of the old Victorian; yet, she’d never been more alive than she was at that moment. Never been so in tune with her surroundings, with her own body and with the man currently setting her on fire with a desire sharper, richer than she’d known ever before.

  He suckled at her as if trying to draw everything she was within him. Kelly surrendered to the moment, concentrating not on where she was but what was happening. His big hands scooped up her spine and into her hair, fingers dragging along her scalp. Kelly watched him at her breasts while that delicious tugging sensation shot through her body.

  Another first. She’d never made love like this—sitting atop a man so that every stroke of his body into hers was like a match struck. Kelly went up on her knees and slid down slowly, taking him as deep as she possibly could.

  When Micah groaned and lifted his head, staring into her eyes, she felt stronger than she ever had. She moved on him again, picking up a rhythm that tormented both of them, and every time she rocked on him, she swore she could feel him touch her heart.

  Her breath came in sharp, short puffs as she rode that crest of building pleasure again. How could she have not known all there was to feel? To experience?

  Micah’s jaw was tight as he fought for control. He looked into her eyes and dropped his hands to her hips to guide her into a faster rhythm. Bracing her hands on his broad shoulders, Kelly bit her bottom lip, tossed her hair back and stared deeply into Micah’s steady gaze. She couldn’t look away. Couldn’t stop the growing wave of sensation inside her. Sliding her hands from his shoulders, she ran the flat of her palms across the sharply defined muscles of his chest. She ran her thumbnails across his nipples and watched him shudder and grind his teeth in response and she felt...powerful. Knowing what she was doing to this strong man made her feel sexy. Desired.

  On his knees, he pushed into her and she twisted on his lap, grinding her pelvis against his, torturing them both, hurrying them along the path to a climax that would, she knew, completely shatter her. She wanted it. More than anything. She raced blindly toward it.

  “Micah,” she whispered, still scraping her nails across his nipples, still looking into his eyes. “Go faster. Go harder.”

  “You’re killing me,” he ground out, then flipped her over onto her back. Still locked inside her, he drove himself into her, again and again, harder, higher, faster until neither of them could breathe easily. He lifted her legs, draped them across his shoulders and continued his relentless claiming of her.

  Kelly shouted and fisted her hands in the duvet beneath her. The world was rocking wildly. He was so deep inside her she thought he might always be there. And she wanted that, too.

  Again and again, they moved in a frantic dance designed to end in a splintering of souls, until the world shrank down to the bed alone and nothing outside the two of them mattered. He took her hard and fast and deep and she went with him eagerly.

  Kelly called his name over and over again until it became a chant. Lifting her hands, she held on to his upper arms as he braced himself over her and dug her nails into his skin.

  “It’s coming. Come with me,” she said brokenly, voice tearing like wisps of fog in a heavy wind. The tension inside her heightened unbearably. She moved into it, trying to throw herself at the pleasure waiting for her. “Now, Micah. Please, now.”

  “Come then,” he ground out, staring into her eyes. “Let me see your eyes when I take you.”

  Her release slammed into her like a freight train. She forced her eyes to stay open. She wanted him to see what he was doing to her. What only he had ever done. She quaked and shivered and finally screamed his name in desperation.

  And, before the last of the tremors shuddered through her, he called out her name and stiffened as his body joined hers. Kelly held him as he took from her as much as he had given. Then he collapsed, bonelessly atop her, and, shattered, Kelly cradled him in her arms.

  * * *

  It was dark when Kelly woke up. She was a little stiff. A little sore. And a lot desperate for air. Micah was sound asleep on top of her. Couldn’t really blame him for being wiped out, but as good as he felt on top of her, Kelly really needed to breathe easier. Shaking her head, she said, “Micah! Micah, roll over.”

  “What?” Groggy, he lifted his head and opened his eyes. Understanding instantly, he rolled to one side, keeping an arm locked around her middle. “I fell asleep.”

  “We both did.” Taking a deep breath, she curled into his side and just managed to swallow a sigh of satisfaction. “What time is it, anyway?”

  “Who cares?” He threw one arm across his eyes.

  “Good point.”

  “Hey,” he said. “Another point for me.”

  “That wasn’t a point. That was just a figure of speech. So it’s still three to two, my favor.”

  He smiled. “So I did get a point for all of this.”

  Kelly sighed. By rights she should have given him ten, twenty, even thirty points for everything he’d made her feel. “Oh, boy, howdy.”

  “I can live with that.”

  She laughed. “Okay, so, are you hungry? I’m hungry.”

  He opened one eye. “You’re kidding.”

  “I never kid about food.” She went up on one elbow and looked down at him. Oh, my, he was great looking when he was dressed, but naked? The man was droolworthy. Kelly shook her head. If she kept going down that path, she would start something that wouldn’t get her fed.

  And if she didn’t eat soon, she wouldn’t have the strength for everything else she wanted to do with Micah. Now that was motivation. “Come on, you’ve got to be hungry, too.”

  “Not enough to move anytime soon.”

  “Really?” Kelly sat up and stretched, feeling looser and more limber than she had in years. “I’m not tired at all. In fact, I feel energized. We should have done this a long time ago.”

  He stared up at her and frowned.

  “What?”

  “Seriously?” He studied her as if she were on a slide under a microscope. “You feel great and you’re hungry. That’s all you have to say?”

  Confused, Kelly laughed. “What were you expecting?”

  Propping himself up on both elbows, Micah tipped his head to one side. “So you’re not going to say that you’ve been doing some thinking and that we should talk?”

>   “About what?”

  “About your feelings,” he said. “And how sex changes things between us and we should figure out where our relationship goes from here.”

  She would have laughed again, but he looked so serious she just couldn’t do it. Shaking her head, Kelly held up one hand. “Wait. Is that what most women do? Have sex with you and then ruin it with...talk?”

  He frowned. “Well, generally, yeah.”

  She didn’t know whether to be insulted that he’d expected her to be like every other woman he’d met in his life—or to feel bad that he had to protect himself against wily women looking to hook him into a relationship he didn’t want. So she did neither.

  Kelly smiled, bent down and planted a quick, hard kiss on his mouth. “Well, then, I’m happy to surprise you again. I came to you, remember? All of this was my idea—”

  “Well,” he said, “in my defense, I’d had the same idea—I just hadn’t approached you with it yet.”

  “Even if you had, it wouldn’t matter.” She shrugged. “We’re two adults, Micah. We can have sex—really good sex—without it meaning hearts and flowers, right?”

  Confusion shone in his eyes. “Well, yeah, it’s just—”

  “What’s wrong now?” Hadn’t she eased his mind yet?

  “Nothing,” he said, a scowl tugging at his lips. “It’s just, I’m the one who usually gives that little speech. It’s weird being on the receiving end.”

  “Another first.” Kelly took a deep breath then blew it out. “Well, I’m done talking. But I could really go for a sandwich.”

  She scooted off the bed, picked up his discarded T-shirt and pulled it over her head. God, she felt good. “You want one?”

  “Sure,” he said slowly, thoughtfully. “I could eat.”

  “Great. I’ll see you in the kitchen.” Kelly left the room and didn’t stop walking until she was downstairs. Then she paused and looked back up toward the room where she’d left him.

  She’d told him she didn’t want to talk and that was true. What she didn’t tell him was that she was starting to feel a lot more for him than she’d planned on. Maybe it was the way he was so hesitant about letting people in. Maybe it was the half smile that curved his mouth so unexpectedly. She didn’t know exactly what it was that was growing inside her, but Kelly was pretty sure that she was headed for trouble.

  * * *

  For the next few days, Micah and Kelly developed a routine that worked for both of them.

  Micah spent the mornings working, building his novel page by page while Kelly raced from one job to the next. In the afternoons, they worked together on her Halloween project.

  And every night they were together at the Victorian in Micah’s bed.

  Micah glanced over at Kelly now as she showed three kids how to roll black paint onto the plywood sheets. A reddish-gold ponytail hung down between her shoulder blades and swung like a metronome with her every movement. She wore her favorite worn jeans with the rip on the right thigh, black work boots and a faded red sweatshirt with the slogan Women Do It Better scrawled across the front. There was black paint on her cheek and a smile on her face as she listened to some long, involved story one of the kids told her.

  A sharp stab of desire hit Micah so hard, so fast he nearly lost his breath. Hell, the skies were gray and there was an icy wind sliding through the nearby canyon, and Micah felt like his insides were blazing.

  He and Kelly had thought to ease the sexual tension between them by sleeping together. Instead, they’d poured gasoline on a smoldering fire and started an inferno. Micah wanted Kelly all the time now. She was constantly on his mind. Her image, her scent, the harsh cries she made when he was inside her, pushing her over the edge.

  This had never happened to him before. He should have known, he told himself, that Kelly would be unlike any woman he’d ever met. That had to be why he found her so intriguing. It was the newness factor. Her unpredictable nature. Her ability to keep him guessing, always on his toes. Hell, she still hadn’t started that whole we should talk conversation he kept expecting. And a part of him was waiting for that shoe to drop.

  There was no one else in his life who could have gotten him to stand out in the cold putting up plywood walls for a neighborhood Halloween maze. Shaking his head, he didn’t know whether to be impressed by her or ashamed of himself.

  He emptied his mind and took a good look at what they were building. It wasn’t really a haunted house, but more of a passageway kids would have to go through to collect candy on Halloween night. Black walls, fake spiderwebs, a recording of scary sounds and voices, there were also going to be black lights to cast weird shadows and a few ghoulish mannequins to finish it all off.

  If anyone had told him a year ago that he’d be in a small town in Utah building scary Halloween stuff, he would have called them crazy. Yet, here he stood.

  “How the hell did this happen?” he muttered.

  “You said a bad word,” Jacob said, frowning up at him.

  He looked down at the little boy and sighed. For some reason, this one particular kid had adopted Micah. Apparently, since Micah had taken the kid to visit his pumpkin, that had forged a bond. At least in Jacob’s mind.

  “What?”

  “A bad word,” the boy said. “You said hell.”

  “Oh.” He rolled his eyes. Really had to watch that, he supposed. But then he wasn’t exactly accustomed to dealing with children, was he? Even when he was at Sam and Jenny’s place, Micah didn’t spend much time with their two kids. In his defense, Isaac was a baby, so the kid didn’t have much to say. And Annie, he realized suddenly, was Jacob’s age.

  Funny. He’d always told himself that he didn’t pay attention to Sam’s kids because he had no idea how to act with them. But he and Jacob got along so well that the boy had unofficially adopted him. That made him wonder if maybe he should have tried harder to get to know Sam’s daughter, Annie.

  But at the same time, Micah remembered that he didn’t like kids. He didn’t ask Jacob to hang around all the time, did he? Micah didn’t want to get close to anyone. Had, in fact, spent most of his life avoiding any kind of connection.

  And how has that worked out for you?

  He glanced at the little boy kneeling beside him and gave an inner sigh. Now he had to remember to watch his language because a child had decided the two of them were best friends.

  “Yeah, well,” Micah said finally. “I shouldn’t have said the bad word. And don’t you say it.”

  Jacob’s eyes went wide. “Oh, I won’t cuz once Jonah said damn and Mommy made him go sit in his room and he cried.”

  And the ten-year-old probably wouldn’t appreciate his little brother sharing that bit of news. Still, nodding sagely, Micah said, “Learn from your brother’s mistakes then. Now,” he added, “hold the hammer in both hands and hit the nail.”

  Micah yanked his fingers out of the way just in time, as Jacob’s aim was pretty bad. But the grin on the kid’s face was infectious. He was clearly proud of himself and loved being thought of as big enough to help like the other kids. Micah smiled at the kid and wondered again just how this had happened to him.

  “Can I do another one?” Jacob asked, turning his face up to Micah’s.

  “Sure,” he said, glancing at the bent, smashed nail. Micah would fix them later. For now, let the kid feel important. Memories of his own childhood swept through Micah’s mind in an instant. Ignored by adults, he’d taken advantage of their disinterest and learned how to become invisible. He didn’t cause trouble. Didn’t stand out for good or bad reasons. And because he’d spent every minute trying to not be seen, not once had he ever felt important. To anyone.

  Micah held out another nail and watched Jacob situate it just right. “Be careful. If you smash your fingers Kelly will get mad.”

  Jacob l
aughed delightedly. “No, she won’t. But I can be careful.”

  When his cell phone rang, Micah grabbed it from his back pocket and looked at the screen. “Can you be careful on your own?”

  “I can do it. I’m not a baby.”

  “Right. I forgot.” The phone rang again and Micah stood up. “I’ll be right back,” he told Jacob, then answered the phone as he stepped away from all the hammering and kids’ high-pitched voices. “Hey, Sam.”

  “Hey, yourself,” his agent countered. “You haven’t called to whine in a few days so I figured you were dead.”

  Reluctantly Micah laughed. “That’s not bad. Giving up the agent life to hit the stand-up circuit?”

  “I could,” Sam said. “Annie thinks I’m funny.”

  “Your daughter is three.” Micah kept walking until he was ten feet from the small crowd gathered in front of the Victorian. The breeze was stronger out here, without the big house giving any shelter. “She thinks your evil cat is funny.”

  “Sheba’s a perfectly nice cat,” Sam pointed out. “With excellent judgment. She likes everyone but you.”

  “She knows I’m a dog person,” Micah said, then frowned. Hell, he didn’t know if he was a dog person. He’d never had a pet. Not that he cared. It was just odd to suddenly realize that. But he was always traveling. How was he supposed to take care of an animal if he didn’t have a home?

  “Great, I’ll get you a puppy.”

  “Do it and die,” Micah told him, though it surprised him to realize that a puppy didn’t sound like such a bad idea. He scrubbed one hand over his face as if he could wipe away thoughts that had no business in his mind. “If you’re calling about the book, it’s still coming slowly.”

  Mostly because instead of just imagining what it might be like to have sex with Kelly, he was spending most of his free time remembering what they’d done together the night before. Hell, it was a wonder he got any work done.

  “Yeah, this isn’t about the book,” Sam said. “I’m flying out to California in a couple days. I’ve got a Friday meeting with an indie publishing house.”