by P. J. Mellor
“Auntie Kinsey!” Cassie barreled into the room, a blur of blonde curls, pink hair ribbons and denim. Her little pink running shoes squeaked on the polished tile a second before she launched herself into Kinsey’s arms.
“Hey, brat, where’s your mommy? Oh! Hold still, I think I see a spot that needs kisses!” She made loud sucking noises while covering her niece’s face and neck with kisses. Cassie shrieked. She was still giggling and squirming when Karly walked into the room.
Kinsey stopped midkiss. “What’s wrong?” She let Cassie slide down and took a step toward her frowning sister.
Karly took a deep breath and smiled. “Nothing. It’s just so weird.” She straightened Cassie’s bows. “I’ve been getting hang-up calls off and on all week. Not a lot of them, maybe three or four.” She shrugged. “Ordinarily it wouldn’t get to me, but with Brad gone…”
“Caller ID blocked?” Her sister nodded. Kinsey patted Cassie’s rear end as she scampered from the room. “Thought about changing your number? You know there are advantages to having a husband who works for the phone company.”
Karly opened the refrigerator and waved a Coke at her sister. Kinsey nodded and got down two glasses. While Karly opened the cans, Kinsey put ice in the tall tumblers. The sound of fizzing filled the quiet kitchen.
“I just don’t want to worry Brad. He hates leaving us as it is,” Karly said as they sat at the bleached oak table to drink the sodas. “It’s probably nothing. If I make a big deal out of it and get the number changed, he’ll freak.”
“The caller doesn’t ever say anything, just hangs up?”
“That’s what is so weird. Sometimes I’m sure I can hear him breathing. It’s not an immediate hang-up.”
“You’re right. That’s weird. I still think you should consider changing your number. Brad would understand.” Kinsey crunched a piece of ice.
Karly swirled around her ice in the glass. “I’ll think about it. So, are you all set for your romantic weekend?”
“I’m not sure how romantic it will be, but…Karly, does it mean anything that I’ve been thinking about him almost nonstop since last weekend?” She sipped her cola, then wiped the sweat from the glass with the pad of her thumb. “It’s been a real effort to get through the seminars all week. I’m sure people think I’m brain dead.”
“Hey, even brain dead you’re still one hell of a financial analyst! Don’t sell yourself short. You’ve just been, well, sort of preoccupied lately.” Karly mopped her forehead with the tail of her shirt. “I can’t believe how hot it is, and we still have another month of school! I wish I could go to the beach. You’re so lucky.”
The knot in Kinsey’s stomach didn’t feel like luck. It was closer to terror. What if what she’d felt they shared last weekend was just an illusion? “Do you think I’m making a mistake, Karly?”
Karly’s eyes widened. “A mistake? After what you told me went on last week? Boy, you have been celibate too long! Honey, if the sex was that great, there has to be something more. Otherwise it would have lost its appeal before the weekend ended.” Her cool fingers gripped her sister’s wrist. “You deserve this, Kins. So maybe Marc isn’t Mr. Right, but maybe he is. You deserve to find out. I—what the hell is this?” She waved her sister’s left hand, the huge engagement ring from Zachary flashing with refracted light.
“Darn. I meant to take that off.” Kinsey ripped the heavy ring from her hand and stuffed it in the pocket of her sundress. At her sister’s horror-struck look, she explained, “I met with Zachary before I left and tried to give back the ring. I even told him I’d met someone else—”
“Then why is that boulder on your hand? Kins, don’t you see? You’ve actually lost ground! At least before, you hadn’t worn the thing! What made you change your mind?”
Guilt. “I didn’t. Not really.” Her shoulders slumped. “Oh, Karly, why am I such a wimp? You should have seen the hurt look on Zachary’s face when I told him I’d met someone else. I just didn’t have the energy, or the heart, to tell him no when he insisted on putting the ring on my finger.”
“And that, dear sister, is exactly how women find themselves married to the wrong guy. You have to be strong. Be honest. Respect yourself and Zach enough to end it. Now. Like I said, Marc might not be the right one, but you owe it to yourself to find out.”
Maybe Karly was right. But, then again, maybe she needed to have her head examined for even considering another weekend of sex at the beach. Although great, was it fair to Marc to prolong this…whatever it was? She glanced at her watch and stood.
“I need to hit the road or I’ll never get there before dinner.” She bent to hug her sister. “Thanks for the pep talk. I needed it.”
“No problem. Keep me posted!” Karly called to her as she slipped into her sensible, preowned Volvo station wagon. “And for goodness’ sake, keep that rock out of sight!”
Even though it was hot, Kinsey opened the moon roof and cranked up the air-conditioning for comfort. It was the closest she’d get to a convertible in the near future. With a final wave to her sister with sweating palms, she turned her car toward the beach.
Marc’s Jaguar was parked at the base of the steps. She pulled in next to it, noting the disparity of the way the cars went together. Were they like her and Marc? Was she only fooling herself by thinking they might have something more? Taking a deep breath of soothing sea air, she got out and reached for her weekend bag.
Marc met her at the top step, clad in shorts and a barbecue apron. Tan and rested looking, he made her mouth water. Still gorgeous.
As soon as she reached him, he swept her into his arms and swung her around before her feet touched the deck.
“God, I’ve missed you!” His lips were warm and achingly familiar when they brushed hers. He set her away from him, his heated gaze burning a trail through her thin, strapless sundress. His nostrils flared. “I’ll let you take your bag into the house. If I follow you I know the steaks will burn because I won’t be satisfied with a short kiss or two.”
Kinsey swallowed what felt suspiciously like disappointment. “I’ll be right back. Do you need me to set the table or make a salad or anything?”
Sun glinted off his hair when he shook his head. “Nope. All taken care of. Just put your gear away and sashay that pretty little backside back out here.” His voice lowered to a throaty growl. “I’ve missed you, woman. It was a hell of a long week.”
Kinsey nodded and stepped into the air-conditioned interior, almost running to the second floor to deposit her bag in the master bedroom. No point in playing coy. It was a fact that she would be sharing a bed with Marc tonight. And tomorrow night. And, she thought with a smile, possibly all points in between.
Beneath her bodice, her braless nipples puckered against the cotton. No doubt about it, she’d become a brazen woman, as her mother would say. And she loved every minute of it.
With a quick glance in the mirror, she hurried back to the deck. And Marc.
He was turning the steaks, the muscles in his bare back rippling with the movement. She walked up behind him and slipped her arms around his waist.
He immediately stilled. He obviously wasn’t comfortable with her familiarity. Cheeks burning, she loosened her hug and began to step back.
His warm hand trapped her arms where they were. “Don’t go,” he said in a hoarse whisper. “Don’t stop. I’ve dreamed of you touching me all week.” He pushed downward on her hand. “Keep going.”
Pulse quickening, she began her slow exploration. While her right hand skimmed the smooth expanse of rippling muscles on his warm chest beneath the bib of the apron, her left rubbed slowly back and forth just above the waistband of his khaki shorts, a finger delving beneath the waistband with each pass.
Her breasts ached with each contact against the burning plains of his back. Moisture pooled. She shifted from foot to foot, achy and restless.
At the last foray of her little finger, Marc sucked in his stomach, the invitation to delve farth
er blatant—not that she’d have resisted the urge to discover if he wore boxers or briefs.
He wore neither.
Her fingers came into contact with nothing but scorching skin and hard maleness. She and Marc both sucked in air as her fingers closed around the proof of his arousal.
Kinsey closed her eyes and stroked him. Home. She was finally home. Emotion welled within her throat. Tears stung her eyelids. After an interminable week, she was home where she belonged. With Marc.
Marc clenched his teeth and forced his attention to the sizzling steaks. He could sympathize. He was sizzling himself. Kinsey’s hand was caressing him, milking him of his resistance. He locked his knees and concentrated on the beef.
He swallowed a groan. The hard little tips of Kinsey’s breasts were poking his back. He honestly couldn’t remember being this horny as a teenager. The woman behind him turned him inside out with just a smile. What she was doing to him now was lethal.
When she began taking nibbling kisses along his spine, he fumbled for the plate, slapped the fragrant meat on it and, grabbing Kinsey by the hand, headed for the kitchen.
The platter slid along the island countertop. He didn’t wait to see if it fell to the floor. With one movement, he swept her from her feet and deposited her on the counter. He couldn’t kiss her hard or deep enough. His hands shook. He yanked at the top of her skimpy sundress and was rewarded when her full breasts tumbled into his eager palms.
His mouth latched on to a distended nipple and he suckled until he heard her whimper. Forcing deep breaths into his lungs, he buried his face between her breasts and tried to calm down.
“I’ve dreamed all week of seeing you like this,” he explained, his voice muffled by her flesh. “Just give me a minute to get some control here.”
He took a deep breath and stepped back, forcing his gaze to her face. The tenderness he saw there was a gut punch. This was quickly escalating into much more than anonymous weekends of sex play. They needed to take a step back. Regroup.
Regroup, hell. He had to have her. Now. The zipper scraped his skin as he dragged his shorts down to pool around his feet. Reaching beneath her skirt, he grabbed the string that masqueraded as panties and stripped them down her silky legs.
“I can’t wait, darlin’,” he whispered urgently against her ear. “We’ll take it slow next time. Promise.” With that, he thrust into her wet heat and sighed. Home. He was home.
“I think you missed me, too,” he said in a low voice, its intensity vying with the rolling surf outside and the echo of her own heartbeat in her ears.
Boneless; she was boneless again. How did he do it?
The stone counter felt marvelous against the heated skin of her back. She was still lying down, limp as a rag doll, trying to gather enough strength to sit up, when he gripped each ankle and placed the soles of her feet flat on the counter on either side of his hips.
He quieted her feeble attempt at protest by petting her stomach and gently kissing her swollen petals. Quivers began deep inside and she knew she’d let him do anything as long as these feelings didn’t go away.
He dragged his fingertip up one feminine lip, across and down the other. Little dabs punctuated her swollen vulva before lightly swirling up and down and all around. He gently blew against the sensitive tissue while he drew tight little circles around her opening.
Wave number two crashed over her, causing her to cry out in surprised ecstasy.
She whimpered at the cool air marking his departure, but was too wrung out to do much else. He pulled her to a sitting position and peeled her dress off over her head.
The coolness of the countertop felt slick against her hot bottom as he slid her to the edge and plunged into her again. Still limp, she could only drape her arms over his shoulders and hang on.
His breath hot against her neck, he pumped into her boneless body, the friction of his skin against hers erotically pleasant. Her eyes widened in stunned surprise when yet a third wave washed over her.
“Are you okay?” he whispered in her ear.
In response, she could only mumble and nod.
“Let’s go for a quick swim before we reheat dinner.” He lifted her from the counter and strode toward the deck. She noticed the door was still open as they walked through it. His semierect penis bumped against her hip as they went down the stairs.
The warm ocean breeze caressed her skin, the waves getting louder. Mist from the water moistened her face. The water was satin smooth and warm. Soon she was submerged to her neck, Marc’s arms securely around her at her back and knees.
His hands scooped warm saltwater over her breasts, gently scrubbing away any trace of sex. Downward they continued, rubbing the engorged folds between her legs, making her squirm with renewed want.
“Shh,” he whispered against her lips. “Relax and let the water hold you up while I love you.” He released her and she found herself floating, bobbing gently with the waves. His hands held her hipbones, anchoring her to him, hip to hip. The hard tip of his erection probed at her a second before plunging into her.
The water held her suspended while he surged in and out in lazy movements, warm saltwater following in his wake.
She stretched, luxuriating in the moment. The next moment, his thumb found her exposed nub and pressed with each thrust.
Waves of ecstasy washed over her, surprising her so much that a Gulf wave washed over her. She came up, sputtering and coughing. Marc held her, patting her back, pushing soaked strands of hair from her face.
“I’m so sorry for spoiling the moment,” she finally gasped.
In the semidarkness, his smile was white. “You didn’t,” he insisted. “We came at the same time.” He pounded her back as renewed coughs took over. “I’m more concerned with you. Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Fine,” she wheezed. “Could we please go in now and eat some dinner?”
“Absolutely.” He swept her up into his arms and strode toward shore. “We have all weekend. We need to keep up our strength.” He bent to brush her lips with his, then continued walking.
It was at that moment that her nagging suspicion became a certainty.
She loved him.
9
Kinsey laughed and ran up the steps the following weekend. “You lose! You cook dinner tonight!” Her smile slipped a bit. After dinner she had to hit the road. Marc wanted her to stay another night, but it was impossible. Besides the fact that she hadn’t packed any business clothes, she’d have to get up at the crack of dawn to make the drive from South Padre to Corpus Christi in order to be on time for her first meeting.
For the first time since being hired right after college, she resented her job. She watched Marc climb the steps. She resented anything that kept her away from Marc.
It wasn’t just the sex. The sex was great. Fantastic. But it was so much more than that.
The last two weekends, they’d shared their thoughts as well as their bodies and she felt closer to him than she’d ever felt to anyone other than her sister. Thoughts of leaving him made her heart literally hurt.
“Hey, beautiful, why the sad face? Afraid I’ll poison you with my cooking?” he teased, his hands cupping her face. His lips brushed hers. “Kinsey, I know we made a deal, but I—”
“Hush! Let’s not spoil the weekend with serious talk, okay?” Rising on tiptoe, she kissed his chin, nipped playfully at his lower lip. “I have to leave in a couple of hours.”
He scowled and allowed her to lead him into the house. “I thought you taught right here in town. Why couldn’t you stay here tonight and drive in tomorrow morning in time for school?”
Because Karly teaches kindergarten in South Padre. I have a corporate job in Corpus Christi. What would he say if she told him that? She couldn’t bear to see the accusation in his beautiful eyes. They only had one more weekend after this. It was better to enjoy it to the fullest while it was still possible.
After all, it was the deal they’d made. She’d told him bits and
pieces of her life, fusing it with Karly’s, but had purposely sidestepped most of the information he’d been willing to divulge about himself. Somehow it seemed easier that way. Plus, there would be no way for her to give in to temptation and look him up later if her stubborn heart kept insisting she loved him.
Marc walked up behind her, his arms automatically going around her bare middle. Their weekends at the beach had been spent like hedonists, naked unless they went outside their private cove. The result was a golden, all-over tan. The thought of ever wearing a bathing suit again was almost heartbreaking.
Marc rolled the tips of her breasts between his thumbs and fingers, gently plucking at them while he nibbled on her neck. “Want to watch a movie after dinner? Or do you feel like going out?”
“Marc.” She stopped his hands by laying hers on top of them and looked up at him. “I told you, I have to leave right after dinner.” She broke eye contact and stepped toward the kitchen. “I have papers to correct and, um, lesson plans.”
“Wow.” He walked over to the refrigerator and looked inside. “Kindergarten sounds a lot tougher than what I remember. Probably a good thing I’m old—I’d have never passed kindergarten. Then where would we be?”
She gave a little laugh. “It’s not like you necessarily need it for what you do.”
Her smile died when he straightened and gave her a narrow-eyed stare. “How’s that?”
Oh, no, now she’d insulted him. “I just mean, well, um, I wouldn’t think you’d necessarily need much higher education for what you do.” Why did she say that? Despite her best intentions, her mouth seemed to have a will of its own.
“Oh, really?” Marc had a fist on his hip. Yep, she’d insulted him. “Why’s that?” he asked in a low voice.
“Well, it’s not like I really know what you do—”
“That’s because you chose not to know. Remember? That was the deal.” He took a step toward her, and she stepped back, the small of her back feeling the coldness of the island’s stone countertop. “What makes you think I don’t need an education to do my job?”
