by Rhodes, Beth
“You need a nap.”
“No, I don’t,” she said through a yawn. “Okay, maybe a short one. As long as you promise me something.”
“What’s that?” He took her chin with his hand and turned her to face him, taking in the soft, sleepy look in her eyes. Eyes so dark, they were no color at all.
“Don’t do anything while I’m sleeping.”
He grinned, and in a moment of weakness, pressed a kiss to her lips. “Worried about me?”
“Maybe,” she whispered, her gaze falling to his mouth.
Need struck him. He cleared his throat and let go of her. “Let’s get settled. I might run to Sacramento while you sleep and check in on the hotel I purchased last year.”
“Trouble?” she asked, opening her door, getting out, and reaching back in for her purse. When she leaned over and looked up at him with those big brown eyes all he saw was the smooth skin of her cleavage. And the wide, innocent glance of those deep windows to her soul.
Damn. Definitely trouble.
“Shouldn’t be. They were finishing up some renovating in December. I’d like to check it out. That’s all. Do you mind?”
She shook her head.
“Good,” he said with a smile.
Zack came out on the porch in a pair of cargo short and sandals. A long john shirt covered his torso, his only nod to the chilly weather. His arms were folded over his chest, a chest that suddenly looked bigger than David remembered it.
The former soldier could do a number on him. Maria was loved here, and he had to wonder if what he was willing to give would be enough. Not for Maria, but for the rest of the family.
Zack showed them in. “I haven’t done much to decorate. Without Lena here… Well, it didn’t seem worth it.”
He opened a door in the short hallway off the foyer.
A double bed, a small dresser, and a tiny little three-quarter bathroom with a shower.
“This is fine.” David threw their bags down on the floor next to the bed. “We appreciate it.”
Well, crap. He’d arranged a hotel room with two beds, and a bar in the restaurant so he could avoid her until dark when he could be relatively certain she’d be asleep. If there was one thing he’d learned about Maria, she slept fast, hard, and deep.
Just like she came.
The thought came unbidden and with a deluge of images from their past—Maria, supple and naked beneath him, above him, around him. Sweat lightly covering the length of her body. Soft hands on his chest. Eager sounds of her desire…
This is what being back in Red Bluff did to him. Made him crazy. David cleared his throat. “I’ll be back.”
He left quickly, giving her a swift, hard kiss first.
~*~
There was nothing to do in Sacramento. The hotel was running smoothly. The renovations had been completed with little mishap. He went through the financial books, lingering when there was no reason to, then he visited the Capitol and walked for a bit before getting back on the road.
Winter months meant an early sunset, and it was just about dark when he got back. He almost passed Quinn’s—a bar just off Main Street—but, at the last minute, pulled into the parking lot. Just one drink to subdue whatever desire was still thriving inside him.
He went straight to the bartender and ordered a scotch, taking a sweet, long slug before sitting on the stool. He’d been here a time or two back in the fall. It wasn’t a family joint, but it had good vibes. And the din of conversation soothed his nerves.
Yes. David March was nervous to return to his bride.
He drank the last of the amber liquid and set the shot glass on the smooth wood surface when a finger tapped him on the shoulder.
He turned and saw the fist just seconds before it connected to his jaw. Pain exploded behind his eyes and radiated through him. He shook off the shock, standing quickly to defend himself. But he hadn’t quite regained his senses when another punch came to his gut. He bent over at his waist, gripping the stool to stay upright.
He took a deep breath.
And came up swinging, aiming for the face of Juan Rodriguez. But Juan shifted his weight and leaned left. His come-and-get-me grin stopped David.
David scowled.
He didn’t want to fight Maria’s brother.
David lifted his chin. Maybe he deserved the hit. Maybe one more would call them even. But he doubted it and dug into his pocket to pull out a ten and drop it on the bar.
“Coward?” Juan’s inquiry was backed by the speculating glares of Michael and Lucas, who had come up behind their brother.
“I’m not a coward, but I’m not going to fight you.” David’s hand went into his coat pocket and he grabbed his car keys. “You want a piece of me, fine. You got it. I’d like to get back to my wife now.” He moved past the three brothers.
But Michael gripped his arm. “Do you love her?”
“What’s between your sister and me is between your sister and me.”
The hand tightened until he felt the pulse of his arteries on the underside of his arm. But still, he remained passive, only lifting his brow in acknowledgement.
Michael, the oldest brother, was the serious one and also the most protective and dangerous. David would do well to allow him some leeway.
“I won’t hurt her.”
Michael’s gaze penetrated the nerves, and David saw Maria in his gaze, in the contours of his face, in the will behind his silence. She thought she had no backbone, wasn’t strong like her siblings, but she was wrong. She was like her brother. Hell, she’d come all the way to Vermont and approached him.
She’d not given up when he’d all but set her aside.
He had to have her, wanted her—all of her. The strong backbone, the uncertainty, and the determination. “I gotta go.”
Michael nodded and let go, apparently satisfied with what he saw in David’s eyes. David rubbed at his jaw and pierced the younger brother with a look. “I owe you.”
Juan just laughed. “Bring it on, brother. Any time.”
His escape was just that, an escape, and he didn’t mind admitting it. But it also felt a little like jumping from the frying pan into the fire. And as he entered Zack’s quiet house, he was pretty sure he was about to meet up with fire.
Zack was in his office at the very back of the house, sitting at a wall of computers, monitors, and lots of crazy looking screens. He glanced over his shoulder as David stood in the doorway.
“Wow. I’m kind of impressed.” He’d known Zack was into some serious shit.
The man shrugged, his gaze lingering on David’s face. “Yeah, ditto. The brothers finally caught up to you, didn’t they?”
“Sure did.”
“I’d say they let you off easy, though.”
“Maybe.”
Zack swiveled his chair. “No maybe about it, David. You came to town, led Maria down a road to some kind of no-going-back.” His voice hardened; his eyes shot daggers. “And you disappeared. Now, she’s pregnant, married to you, and about to leave her family.”
“Maria and I want this to work.”
Zack got up and strolled into the kitchen. Hesitantly, David followed and was offered a beer, but he shook his head.
Zack opened the fridge and replaced the bottle in the door, cracking his own and taking a swig. “Making something work. That’s not exactly a resounding endorsement for love.”
His shrug felt forced, and he just didn’t have it in him to beat this horse anymore. “We both want what’s best,” he ground out. His feelings were too new to share with anyone. He could lose it all, and then what?
“Okay.”
Wary of the agreeable tone in Zack’s voice, David sighed and turned away. “Good night, Zack.”
He was tired. It had been a really long, eventful, surprising week and a half. He might crash and not wake up until spring. He left Zack in the kitchen for the darkened bedroom off the front hall, shed his clothing to sleep in his boxers, and slid under the blanket next to Maria�
��s sleeping form. The pillow-topped mattress hugged him as he lifted his arms and crossed them under his head.
Personal promises to himself that involved no sex and keeping his distance, especially when he could hardly remember the why, were very hard to keep. Hard, being the key word. It was long minutes of doing his best not to think about her when she turned toward him. Her hand came out and rested against his abdomen. He groaned. Maria stirred next to him and securely locked her arm around his middle until she was flush against his side.
His eyes slid closed as he fought the demons inside, the ones that wanted her, ached to touch her and make her his again.
Pain, he reminded himself. Love equals pain. He could very well control his emotions. No strings. That’s what he wanted.
Her fingers curled into his chest hair, and he could feel the press of her cheek on his arm.
Married.
He’d promised her as normal a life as possible; he just hadn’t realized how hard it would be to keep his emotions out of it. She’d pulled at his heartstrings today, her honesty striking a chord with his own messed-up moral compass. She hadn’t made excuses like most people would, or been angry when her dad turned his back on her.
He covered her hand with his and linked their fingers.
Friends were there for each other, he argued with himself as he became lulled by the soft rhythm of her breathing.
Then her hand opened to his, her breathing hitched, and a puff of air warmed him. “You came back,” she said, with sexy sleep in her voice as she rose onto her elbow and secured her leg over his thighs. “You’re almost naked.”
“I sleep this way on a regular basis.”
“You mean you weren’t thinking—”
“No.”
Her fingers trailed over his exposed belly, sending those thoughts of distance straight out the window.
“You’ve been avoiding me. Why?”
Why indeed? He had a beautiful woman in his bed, one he was married to. He could have her whenever he wanted; that was the agreement. He wanted her now.
David shook his head but instead of pulling away, he drew her closer. “I don’t know, Maria. What if this doesn’t work out after all? What if we did make a mistake?”
“You mean…you have doubts?”
He frowned, not able to look her in the eye. “About you, no. You’re going to be a great mother.” He paused, as the truth struck him. “And wife—”
She cut him off with a kiss. Not the chaste touching of lips he’d managed to give since their wedding night, but a searing reminder that burned through his resolve. His hands came up and framed her face.
He should push her away, but he couldn’t.
His pulse drove him on and he took her deeper, delved into her mouth, hungry for the taste of her, as if he would starve. And she broke the kiss, even as her lips continued their adulation. Wet caresses down his neck, over his shoulder, down his arm… and then finding his nipple, she bit lightly then blew against it.
“That’s it,” David growled quietly, rolled her under him, and pinned her. He felt her laughter as her arms came around his neck. And he was kissing her again, tongue frantically touched tongue, sucking her into his mouth.
His hands reached for the edge of her tank, and in an instant, he let her go and ripped the garment over her head. She was bare, just as he wanted and needed. He lifted her and took her breast into his mouth, moaning again.
Finally. Oh God, finally. His wife. His damn, beautiful wife.
She tunneled fingers through his hair and when he took the other breast into his mouth, she clutched hard. His muscles tightened, and the delicate pain on his scalp shot tendrils of need straight south.
After one slow curl of his tongue at her nipple, he spread her legs with his knees.
“I can’t wait,” he spoke softly, his breath on her neck, his nose tucked behind her ear, and where the scent of her perfume mixed with her arousal. He smoothed his hands down her perfect body to the sweet softness of her waist and the flare of her hips, all the time remembering before. And he tugged on the waist of her pajama pants—the feel of those familiar scrubs.
Moving down her body, he placed a special kiss at her navel. She carried his child.
It was sexy as hell. He hadn’t realized…
“Ree,” he whispered as a different ache surged within him.
She answered him with a breathless sigh, and then he found the hot center of her with his mouth and her hands loosed him to grip the sheets of the bed. Her hips writhed against his face, her legs caressed his cheeks.
Her passion came so easily, so selflessly.
The honey of her desire drenched him, sent his brain into oblivion as he worked her over and drove his tongue as deeply into her as he could. He wanted to make her as crazy as she made him.
Her legs clamped around his head; her back arched. And when he rode his tongue over her clit, she shuddered against him. The sound of her release came with the sweet run of Spanish words that touched on her spice for life and made his length even harder.
He was far from done with her, though. He was going to show her this, make love to her like this for as long as he had.
David stood and took off his shorts, freeing himself of the cotton restraint. He rose over her and the weight of his erection hung low against her center. He pressed her knees aside, caressed the length of her thigh with hands that itched to feel.
Maria peered out from under heavy lids. Her breath came ragged, but she reached for him, and her fingers measured him. Her touch did him in and he took himself out of her reach with a slow shake of his head before he slid his length into her.
She moaned, and the aftershock of her orgasm squeezed him, tiny little convulsions.
“Oh, Maria.” He pushed in all the way before pulling out, just the tip of his penis teasing her entry. Every time, this crazy need for her, proving he was a fool to try to stay away.
Her hands seized his arms and her hips rose. Eyes pleaded with him.
He thrust into her—one, hard, aching thrust—and that familiar tingle started in his spine, rode his nerve endings as he came. The sensation rocked the base of his spine as his entire body tightened and shook. He barely managed to press into her a second time when his brain short-circuited, completely shut down. His body rode the orgasm with no hope of stopping or delaying it. It hit him like that well-formed snowball, right in the back, all his muscles tensing as he pumped to completion and collapsed on top of her. His lips found the soft skin of her neck, as his hand landed with the swell of her breast in his palm. He didn’t even have the strength to kiss or to brush his knuckles along its slope.
In an instant between grateful relief and a hefty dose of embarrassment that he’d come so quickly, he slept.
10
Glorious California sun streamed through the window and warmed her face. Maria stretched, feeling completely satiated and sexy. She was limber and loose without even doing her five-minute, morning yoga routine.
He’d finally come to her, and he’d made her sing—not literally, of course, she thought with a grin. She rolled over and laid a hand on the mattress beside her—empty.
But he wouldn’t have gone far so she rolled out of bed and jumped into the shower. Minutes later, she’d dressed and headed toward the kitchen to find him. The renovated kitchen had a modern feel, dark wood cabinets and brushed nickel fixtures. Two large windows shed light on the blue countertops and tan walls.
David stood, facing the counter in front of the coffee maker, and tapped his hand on the smooth surface. With soft footing, she snuck up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist.
He tensed for the briefest second that made her stop and move over to the side so she could get a better look at his face. Bruising covered his right temple. “What happened to you?”
“It was just an accident,” he answered evenly.
She took his arms and pulled him her way, catching the good side of his face with a cupped hand.
&
nbsp; He frowned, the look in his eye turning calculated and assessing.
“That is a fist mark!”
Hesitating first, with a little tilt to his head, he answered. “Yeah, just a little trouble at Quinn’s last night. No big deal.”
“You went to Quinn’s?” Without me? “When? How? What the—” But it all come pretty clear without him speaking. The hard look in his eyes. His silence.
She growled. “Mis hermanos!”
Whirling away, she came face-to-face with Zack.
“Whoa,” he said, putting his hands up. His gaze sent a question to David, but then he must have seen the bruising as well. And he grinned. “Looks worse this morning.”
“It’s not funny!” Maria wanted to hit something very badly. She clenched her fist and stomped to the fridge. There was juice, bagels, a few apples on the top shelf, not much else. But out of the blue, her stomach turned and her head floated. “Oh,” she breathed. “Oh, no.”
Slowly, she backed away from the fridge.
“What is it?” Zack frowned, looking past her into the refrigerator. “Did I leave last week’s chicken in there?”
She shook her head, but dizziness plagued her and she reached out for fear of falling over.
“Hey.” David was beside her, looking down into her face with that frown and those eyes, green, but not cold like she thought. “Maria?”
“I don’t feel so good.” She blinked free of his mesmerizing gaze, stumbled down the hall, and threw open the bathroom door. On shaky legs, she lowered herself to the floor. Her head pounded, and just the idea of opening her eyes brought another wave of nausea. She moaned.
Her muscles vibrated with a chill that shuddered through her. She leaned to the side and lay down on the shaggy, warm rug. A vague thought that Zack must have a cleaning lady flitted through her brain. She could smell cleaner.
“Maria?” David crouched next to her. His hands touched her—her arm, shoulder, and then her forehead.
“Oh, jeez,” he whispered. His skin felt so cool and when he pulled away, she reached for him to bring back the relief. He pulled on her arm and her body came partly off the floor, then he tucked an arm under her legs and another around her shoulders before standing up. “Up you go.”
