“We can’t make this trip together.”
“Sure we can. I’d never disrespect you. You can trust me to be good.”
It sounded so easy for him. Guess he wasn’t battling the same out-of-nowhere blast of unexpected urge that she was. “Well it’s not you I’m worried about then. Just me. I know I shouldn’t be that kind of girl, but…I am. Just being honest here. And warning you.”
Would he pick up on other lower lying vibes traveling under the bravado of her words? Yes, she could trust him to be good, which made her want to be all the more bad. She craved hearing his southern drawl coming from his full soft lips straight into her ears because they were suckling at her ear lobe and feeling his strong tanned hands stroking her skin to sizzling instead of turning the volume button. She wanted those unbelievably cool blue eyes to allow themselves to wander around and see more of her. Her breasts, small as they were, couldn’t feel any fuller than when she imagined what it would feel like to have him touch just one. How could they be so close, in the narrow confines of her Jeep, and Lucky not be thinking the same things? She chanced a glance down his long, jean covered legs. His gorgeous, natural born manliness filled them out so well, tempting her to pull over, but his lack of response had her wondering until he spoke up.
“You don’t say that to very many people, do you?”
“What if I do?” She risked another quick look over to him as the road darkened under a canopy of trees.
“You’re funny, Trista. As much as I can tell you’ve been sizing me up, I think I’m having an even harder time figuring you out. You sound like you’re almost daring yourself to do something.” He licked his lips and then let them settle into the sexiest natural, barely open pout. She could almost taste their sweet, saltiness again.
She hadn’t expected him to be so perceptive. He’d just unknowingly forced her to own it for all it was worth but make a joke so he would have no idea how accurate he was. “Well, I’m a very daring person.”
“Again, I doubt that very seriously,” he challenged.
“Let’s not forget that I’m the one who kissed a complete stranger last night and now I’m driving out in the middle of nowhere with him. I’d call that daring.”
“But we already established that you don’t do this with just anyone.”
“We didn’t establish that—but yes, you are right.” She wasn’t playing with him. Their banter sounded humorous enough but she was being honest.
Lucky caught a flyaway ringlet and nestled it back behind her ear. It escaped the second he let his finger trace softly down her cheek. “The problem with daring is that it usually comes along with that little feeling of fear that you get in your gut when you’re trying to psyche yourself up for something.”
Ignoring his wise honesty, she pulled to her left and led the Jeep across a deserted road and into a gravel parking area. There was only one other car in the lot. The neon-lighted marquee for Sydney’s Toy Box was still lit but the shop itself was dark. She returned to her conversation with Lucky as they sat there facing each other.
“All the same, I’m just not good like you.”
“I wish you didn’t feel the need to keep making that point.” His voice lowered into a sad baritone, like old blues singers she had heard in smoky bars on the road with the guys.
Maybe she had misjudged him. Actually, that was pretty obvious on many accounts.
“Trista, I won’t lie, being with you out here like this, is very tempting. But I don’t want to be a part of anything that makes you feel even the smallest bit of fear. And you can deny it all you want, but I know it’s in there. You can’t fool me, darlin’. But, you can trust me.” His look was steely and sure.
“Then kiss me.” She reached her hand to his knee, fighting the urge to trail it up his thigh. All those initial thoughts of irritation at his presence were gone.
“We should go back,” he said.
You will not cry out here in front of him, Trista Jeane Hart. He’d hurt her feelings. Not an easy thing to do. “I’m an idiot. I’m sorry. We can head back.”
Lucky stopped her before she was able to turn the Jeep’s keys in the ignition. “Do you understand how hard it would be for me to just kiss you out here, alone, in the dark?”
His hand covering hers over his thigh pressed down hard while her ego inflated back to normal size. She felt better and worse at the same time. “Yes, I do.” This was the strangest attraction she’d ever had to fight. Her mind warned her to ignore the urge to slide her hand the few inches up and along the inside of his thigh, no matter how curious she was about that part of him. She barely knew him, but his warm hand right now, trapping hers beneath it, forcing it to stay on the bulging, tight muscle of his thigh while he spoke about restraint, was too much. It was like he was telling her not to touch him but begging her not to take her hand away. Oh hell, had she already converted him to her craziness? She hoped not. Then it occurred to her, it could be he was just that strong, and that was what she found so attractive. His thigh muscle tensed beneath their hands. She delighted in being the one to feel it first.
If she told him how badly she wanted to test his will right now, he’d probably tie her up and toss her in the back, then drive her straight home to Gramma’s where they’d be safe. It was too bad. She wasn’t afraid with Lucky and he’d shown an interest in her without making her feel dirty or cheap.
“Okay, so don’t take this the wrong way, but what kind of guy do you think I am?” He tried to play it serious but cut into a huge grin right away.
“Ha-ha. Apparently a very cute but restrained one. Let’s not forget that you’re the one who started all this last night, Mr. Let-me-just-hold-your-hand.”
“You know, for the record, I didn’t plan that. You have no idea how shocked I was when I saw you outside Slanger’s. Jaxon told me you were his personal assistant and so of course all these images of a bossy older lady who could care less about some younger guy is what I was expecting. When I saw you in your Jeep, I was—well, you looked really nice. I was trying to keep my mind out of the gutter and then your grandma—she scared the hell out of me. She’s no joke.”
She hadn’t thought of Gramma or Jaxon; she was enjoying her time with Lucky at the moment. But the mention of their names brought her back to at least some semblance of who she should be in this situation. It didn’t sound like Lucky was going to take advantage of her, no matter how okay she was with it.
“Oh, don’t let her fool you. She’s got just as big a bleeding heart as me. She’s just better at keeping it in check until she knows a person’s worth. She likes you.”
“And you, you tend to get hurt easily? You trust too soon?”
“I trust in the wrong way. I’ve got good instincts, but I tend to ignore them. I know, it’s not a very smart way to be.”
Lucky reached over and took her hand in his. Her chest heaved from the fuller breath she had to take to calm her heart rate back down, but in the next instant, she imagined hugging his hand to her breast, and kissing each of his fingertips. Would she need to encourage him or would his manly instincts come alive on their own? Her toes curled at the thought while his hand continued to unknowingly scorch hers. She’d never enjoyed being touched this much by anyone before.
“I want you to be smart with me. Don’t let me hurt you,” he said with sincerity.
“Do you plan on doing that?” She gave his hand a squeeze, faltering for a moment, and then swallowed and prepared for the truth.
“We never do. But sometimes it just happens.”
Trista nodded as she turned from him and started up the Jeep’s engine. She drove back to Gramma’s, thinking about being smart. But she wanted him, his goodness that may or may not hurt her, even in the face of their new found sensibilities.
Chapter Four
“It’s that time, Trista Jeane. Do you have all your belongings?” asked Gramma as she held a wadded up tissue in her hands.
When Trista came out of the front bathroom, she
had seen that Lucky was sitting at the dining table with Gramma, sipping the last of his coffee. His face was pensive, a sharp contrast to the bright smiles she’d quickly grown accustomed to and she hoped the reason was not that he’d been lectured. She remembered hearing about the one Jaxon had received at the end of his first visit. Jaxon had appreciated Gramma’s well-drawn lines and had assured her that he favored them equally. Trista hoped Lucky hadn’t made the same honorable promises.
“Yep, it’s that time. Thank you so much, Gramma, for everything. I love you and I’m gonna miss you.” Trista wrapped her arms around a thin but sturdy frame.
“Me too...sweet pea. Me too.” She could have cried as Gramma hugged her back and then turned to Lucky with her arms wide open. “It was nice to have you here, Lucky. Good luck with your business meeting and thank you for making the ride with Trista.”
“Yes, ma’am. Thank you, for everything,” he said as he dipped his head.
Gramma stood on her front porch and waved them off.
“So how long is this drive?” Lucky sat in the Jeep, testing out his legroom. He grunted as his boots butted up against the vehicle’s interior.
“Long.”
“Okay, and are we driving straight through?” he asked.
Trista kept her eyes on the empty road as she stumbled through an answer. “No, I uh, I have to make a stop but once we do that, we can drive all the way to the coast if you want.”
“So where’s our first stop?” He fired off another few questions.
Worried that the rounds would continue if she didn’t give him more information, she tried to explain her vagueness. “Sorry, I should have given you the itinerary. I’m on a mental vacation from planning and being managerially inclined right now.”
“Those are some big words. You seem kind of stressed. Are you okay? Want me to drive?”
She was stressed, but the depth of his voice calmed her, a little. “No, I’m fine. I think best when I’m driving. Anyway—our first stop is Oklahoma. It’s about eleven hours from here so feel free to nod off if you want. We’ll stop there for the night and probably the next day.”
Please sleep and stop asking me all these questions, she thought, but to no avail.
“So what’s in Oklahoma?” Bright eyed and bushy tailed, he seemed like he could keep at it for a while.
With one hand on the wheel and one digging into her unruly hairline, she reverted to curtness. “My momma’s grave.” It sucked switching personalities like that on him but she couldn’t afford to be soft and sweet right now.
Lucky quieted then.
An hour passed. He hadn’t drifted off to sleep yet, but instead sat there staring out the window, looking like he’d welcome conversation with just about anyone or thing. Be nicer, Trista.
“So Lucky, why didn’t you just fly out to California?”
“Uh, yeah, I don’t fly.” The subtle shake of his head sent uneven shocks through his ponytail, which made her all the more curious.
“As in you don’t like to fly or…”
“As in it scares the shit out of me, excuse my language.” His jaw tightened.
“Really? Wow, I never would have guessed that.”
“Yeah, it’s not something I go around bragging about to women I’m trying to impress. Especially not to someone like you, who I’m guessing flies pretty regularly.”
“I once was on a flight that lasted for sixteen hours. Australia is beautiful but it almost cured me from ever boarding a plane again.”
“You see, that would literally kill me.” He rubbed his palms together, his long fingers splayed wide.
“How do you know? Have you ever tried flying?”
“Once when I was seventeen. It was the first and last time Jaxon invited me to come visit him out there in California until now. He even bought me the ticket. I sat down on the plane and had a panic attack. The stewardess was so scared; she thought I was having a heart attack. They let me off and sent me to the first aid station in the airport. As soon as I was past the plane’s doors, I felt fine. Just a little bruised ego.”
“Wow, so you’ve really never flown anywhere? I won’t tell you about the time our plane was struck by lightning then.”
“Please don’t. And no, I’ve never flown anywhere. Sorry.”
“It’s okay. But wow, do you ever wonder what it is that triggered your reaction?”
“I don’t know. It’s not like I’ve had a bad experience to blame it on. It’s hard to explain but have you ever been going somewhere or doing something and out of nowhere, your entire body seizes up and you just feel like you need to get out of there?”
She knew exactly how that felt and she slowly nodded her head to answer him. Her wrist burned and she rubbed it methodically against the fabric of her dress. How had he been able to describe her unique feeling, one that she alone had fought to leave in the past? God help her if Gramma had said too much to him before they’d left. Or Jaxon, for that matter.
“Great, you think I’m a wuss now, right? Don’t worry; I’m all man down on the ground. You really are safe with me.” His hand felt warm on her shoulder.
“I believe you.” She wasn’t smiling anymore, just blinking slowly as she continued to watch the road. Lucky retired fully to his seat and let her be.
Could he sense she was holding something back? They had at least a few days ahead of them on this road trip. She wasn’t sure how much information she owed Lucky about the business she had to tend to in Oklahoma. Since she’d be going to Duketown alone, there’d have to be some explanation concerning why she’d be deserting him at their hotel the next day.
She looked over at him and admired the black western shirt he wore with red stitching detail near the collar and the way he comfortably let his right elbow hang out the open window. A vein lay slightly elevated under the skin of his bare forearm, demanding her female attention and inviting her body to heat up. There was no question of how strong those arms were or of how long he’d be able to hold a lover close to him. He must have a strong heart, too. Was he really as good a guy as he seemed?
She had to look back to the road and missed being able to stare at him as they flew down Interstate-40. She would hate to have an accident and then scare him off of traveling in general. He might never leave the state of Tennessee again.
* * * *
Lucky had caught Trista checking him out through her peripheral vision—a few times. Which turned him on like one of the glaring flood lights he’d installed over his garage back home to alert him of the more menacing nighttime critters. Each look coming from her sexy eyes and thick lashes drove him absolutely out of his mind and closer to giving up on the idea of not rushing things. She seemed to really like it when he touched her face.
God, she was beautiful.
He exhaled, fighting not to pop a glaring erection right there in front of her. But, the stirring in his body he hadn’t felt in years until Friday night at Slangers, started again on cue, as he thought about kissing Trista’s soft skin. The crotch of his jeans became a lot less comfortable the more aroused he got. Ah, hell. He took another breath and let it out, afraid she’d choose that second to check him out again. He tugged on the end of his shirt to make sure it covered his chub.
Looking away out his passenger side window, he allowed himself to enjoy the deep, swirling sensation of the beginnings of his cock bulging, just for a few seconds. He couldn’t act on it, but what harm was there in just thinking about it? Yeah, he knew the answer to that one.
Her short dress had left him fantasizing about her shapely legs. His favorite fantasy of the last thirty minutes had been the one where he’d laid his head back in her lap, cradled between her knees, her fingers in his hair, massaging his scalp, while he ran his hands up and down her calves, and then higher. For all his talk about being respectful, he’d never wanted to be with a woman more than he wanted Trista, now.
He didn’t know how long he could keep being the ultimate southern gentleman. The truth
was, he was way more red-blooded, American, country boy than he’d let on. But only where she was concerned and he did want to do right by her. He had promised. She meant something to him already.
He reached his hand over and laid it carefully on her upper thigh, slipping his upturned palm under the wrist she had just been working in a pacing pattern, up and down her leg. Her thigh muscle flexed under the soft, peach-colored fabric of her dress. His control slipped and he squeezed her wrist so hard, he worried he’d pinched her. “Sorry about that,” he said, but she just nodded.
Feeling her tense up like that made him think about their time in the dressing room and how he’d done the same when she and her little yellow measuring tape had tortured him with their touching. He’d snuck in enough pats to her hands and strokes to her cheeks and jaw that even after only a couple days, he could tell she’d gotten used to him. But when she’d laid her warm, moist hands so suddenly on his bare skin, alone in that cold dressing room, God, he’d become so sexually aroused he’d nearly chucked her little tape measure over the thin door and stripped her naked. The cockiness she’d shot at him a couple times gave him the idea she might have even satisfied a spontaneous fantasy that had just popped into mind of her kisses slowly making their way down his torso until she took him into her mouth. She’d probably missed it, but he’d pretended to catch his balance once just for the excuse of steadying himself against her curvy hips. If she didn’t know, the material of her dress was awfully thin; her body heat teased him without mercy.
Lord only knew how he’d been able to stand there with her surprisingly strong hands secured around his waist for what had felt like an eternity of the best sort of pain, her short nails digging dangerously into the skin above his hips. And Trista, she’d gone in to that dressing room seeming as confident as a peacock, another turn on for him. But somewhere between measuring his chest and his waist, she’d been affected too. Instead of firing off one of her plucky responses for him to hold still, she’d grown quiet. It had sucked, but he’d resorted to thinking about his dad and uncle bickering with each other at the shop until his erection had gone down enough to where he wouldn’t have an accident in his pants right there, inches away from her. But that gave way to questions he had about what the night to come might bring. And he would be lying to himself if he tried to ignore the annoying thoughts that came to him where she and Jaxon were concerned.
Sidewalk Flower Page 4
