“Did you send me after your phone so you could call the bed breaker?” Xavier scrubbed at his teeth and faced the mirror, trying hard to ignore how domestic this felt. He didn’t play house. He didn’t take turns getting ready for bed or listen to half of phone conversations.
“You’re making a joke, but she actually did break my bed once.”
He paused with his toothbrush between his teeth and turned towards the bedroom. “Go on.”
“You don’t want to know.”
Jaime tucked her knees beneath her, the old-fashioned cotton nightgown hiding everything from the neckline down. And somehow, she made it irresistibly sexy. He spit out the toothpaste and rinsed his brush. “You can’t just put something like that out there and not expect to reel me in. How did she break your bed? Were you in it?”
“Actually, yes.” Jaime giggled and he started to wonder if he’d been completely wrong about her bland carnal experiences.
“Go on.” He wiped his face with a hand towel and avoided the mirror. He might not be comfortable being so relaxed and domestic with Jaime, but it didn’t change the truth. She set him at ease, even from his own apprehensions.
“I don’t kiss and tell.” She pulled the strands of her thick, dark hair over one shoulder.
“Sometimes a little bragging is good for the soul.” He noticed she’d moved the box of condoms to the nightstand as he neared the round bed.
“You want me to tell her what we, you know, do?”
“You know,” he teased, “this bed alone is worth mentioning.”
“She was after details.” Jaime slid her hand against the satin sheets.
“And what did you tell her?”
“Nothing. Either time.” She began to braid her hair, mesmerizing him with her nimble fingers.
“It’s a wonder you’re still friends.” He eased onto the bed, hoping Jaime would keep talking until he figured out how to do this banter before bedtime. He’d never had a sleepover-type of relationship, never wanted to deal with the mess of it.
“When Carla can’t get me to spill, she tries to tickle it out of me.”
“Not as kinky as I was hoping.” Yet the image still had him smiling.
She shook her head and abandoned her braid. “We were rolling around pretty good, and it was a dorm bed. They’re barely held together anyway. She decided to try this body slam move right out of TV wrestling. There was this loud crack and the whole thing splintered apart. It wouldn’t have been so bad, except I had the top bunk.”
“I see where this is going.”
Her cheeks pinked as she began to giggle. “We crashed onto the bottom bunk, and when it broke I hit the wall and she hit the floor. It hurt, but at that point we couldn’t stop laughing. Apparently laughing and moaning sound the same.”
“You’re kidding.”
“At least through the cement walls of the dorm, because the next thing we know, the RA is opening our door and people are peering in to see what we were doing. And we’re lying there in our underwear.”
He slapped his hand against the mattress. “See, start the story with hot girls in their underwear.”
She smacked his shoulder. “Don’t be a perv. After half the floor found us that way there were crazy rumors that we were lesbians, so every guy she dated asked her to do a threesome. Even my boyfriend asked about it.”
He didn’t know what to make of the story since she was still laughing. “Did you?”
She rolled her eyes. “What do you think?” The laughter stilled as she stared up at him, her dark eyes glistening.
“I never know what to make of you, J’aime.”
“I am the most predictable person on the planet.”
“Not to me.”
She touched his face and her features softened. “Thank you. But I have to disappoint you here, no ménage romps for me. I struggle with the moral ramifications of sleeping with a boyfriend. This affair with you is as exotic as my narrow mind can handle.”
“You’re very open-minded.” He needed to get this conversation back to the light side. Somehow, he’d moved it into the personal.
“Not about sex.” She laughed again, but this held none of the ringing playfulness of before. “Commitment and intimacy go together for me. I’ve never managed to sleep with a man I wouldn’t have married, until you.”
“Why wouldn’t you marry me?” And who was using his voice to say that?
“You drive me crazy, and I do the same for you. Plus we live on different continents, and I doubt you usually date high school teachers, Mr. CFO. Besides, have you ever pictured yourself married with kids, concerned about whether restaurants have a children’s menu and if the babysitter will be on time for date nights?”
“Never.” Though as she’d said the words, he’d seen it, clear as crystal, and God help him, it looked like fun.
She reached out and turned off the bedside lamp. “That’s where I’m going in life. I want to build the kind of family I only got to view from the sidelines.”
The ridiculous urge to argue that he could give her what she wanted and more was tamed by her soft kiss. Yes, this. He wanted this.
“I think we should get an early start for Yellowstone tomorrow.” She whispered the words as her kiss moved to his neck.
“No Rushmore Caves?”
“We’ll find plenty to see in Montana. And on the way through Oregon, there are fossil beds we can visit. Plus, Crater Lake.” She inched her kisses south every time she paused. Made it damned hard to think.
“I’ve seen Crater Lake. And I know what you are doing.” Not that certain parts of him seemed to care so long as she kept doing it.
“I hope so.”
“You’re trying to use sex to manipulate me into doing what you want.” Except before, she always wanted to go straight home.
She leaned her body against his, easing them back against the mattress. “No, I’m just distracting you from hunting out-of-the-way photo-ops.”
Confusion twisted through his thoughts. Instead of wasting time trying to unravel her intentions, he opted to chase his. As time crawled towards midnight, enjoying the decadent bed filled his mind. And the mirror, sweet mercy, the mirror.
He slid his hands up her smooth thighs, pushing the cotton out of his way. He squeezed her bare ass in both hands and she gasped as he tightened his grip.
“Do you trust me, J’aime?” he whispered, his lips a breath away from hers.
“Intimately.” She darted out her tongue and licked his bottom lip.
The yellowed street lamps filtered dim light through the lace curtains, casting everything in a romantic glow. But romance would never work between them. Their futures were thousands of miles in opposite directions. They only had the now.
He pulled the cotton nightgown from her body and tossed it to the floor along with his towel. The smooth satin sheets slid off the edge of the bed with little effort, dropping to the floor and leaving them a blank canvas on which to play.
“I want to show you something.” He sat up and held out a hand to her.
Jaime leaned back against the remaining pillows. “I can see it from here.”
He couldn’t help but smile. “I want you to show me something.”
“Gladly.” She began to slide her curvy legs apart.
He gripped her soft thigh. “I’m not so easily distracted, J’aime.”
She rose to her knees beside him. “Part of you certainly is.”
“I want you to see how beautiful you are.” He slipped behind her, snaking one arm around her bare middle. With his free hand, he turned her cheek toward the mirror, feeling the heat of her blush.
Her eyes seemed impossibly wide as she stared at the reflection. He threaded his fingers in her hair, the lingering dampness from her shower earlier held the strands together as he undid her braid. A few strands fell off her shoulder and curled around her bare breast. He couldn’t have created a more erotic pose if he’d tried.
In the mirror her hungry gaze
met his. She reached an arm up and curled her fingers around his neck. Lust surged through him when she pulled his mouth to hers. The soft and playful kiss he’d grown fond of was replaced by a hungry, demanding swirl of lips and tongue. Before, Jaime’s eyelids would flutter closed when their lips touched, but now her attention remained fixed on the mirror.
The sensual undercurrent threatened to pull him under his own passion. Only her soft moans kept him focused on her pleasure. He wrapped his hands around her waist and moved up her ribcage until he cupped the weight of her breasts. He squeezed, hard enough for her to gasp and allow him to escape the heated kiss he couldn’t find the strength to break.
“Blink,” he whispered, nuzzling her ear. “It’s like taking a photograph. Have you ever seen anything so sexy?”
Her teeth worried her bottom lip as she studied their reflection, then slowly let her eyes drift closed. He pinched her nipples, drawing the tips out under the pressure. Her eyes shot open and a wicked smile played on her lips.
She drew her arms up over head, her body swaying to a rhythm more intoxicating than any he’d ever heard. His pulse quickened and he explored every pose his naughty mind could come up with. If his cock weren’t so hard and throbbing, he’d be tempted to play her body all night, until she begged for release. That would be something to watch.
Sliding one hand up her torso to her delicate neck, and the other to the thin strip of hair between her legs, he caught sight of his own image. He’d been so caught up in enjoying her exquisite sexiness he’d missed the crazed look in his eyes, the flare of his nostrils, the sheen of sweat on his skin.
Now, with one hand at the base of her throat and the fingers of the other spreading the slick folds of her sex, he had only one thought. Mine.
A primal instinct, a deep possession, a thought so out of place he threw it away. And yet it returned like a memory.
Chapter Fourteen
“Where are we?” Jaime sat up with a start, trying to orient herself in the darkness. The car had barely stopped, but she couldn’t imagine they were in Yellowstone already. “How long was I asleep?”
“You’ve been snoring since I turned south.”
“No, no, no.” She slapped her leg with each word. “We’re going west. Yellowstone, Boise, Oregon.” Her heart pounded. She’d known better than to drift off. But with so little sleeping going on in bed this trip, she couldn’t help it.
“I got tired of driving into a sunset while you slept through it. Besides, I don’t think they have views like this in Boise.” He grinned and climbed out of the car.
She looked out his window and smiled in wonder. The majestic Mormon Temple rose high, stretching for the heavens. She scrambled out of the car and joined Xavier to stare up at the massive building. The lights streaming upwards lit the architecture, literally highlighting the severe structure topped with playful spires.
Xavier motioned toward the building. “You don’t think this is spooky?”
She shook her head. “I always looked forward to driving into Salt Lake and seeing it. I guess if you drive across the country often enough, a massive building reaching out from the mountains begins to seem comforting. Though, now that you mention it, the dramatic lighting reminds me of telling ghost stories to my brothers in the dark while I shined a flashlight on my face.”
He tilted his head, the lights of the building brightening his puzzled expression. “I like how the architecture plays with being both forbidding and welcoming.”
It warmed her to know he not only listened to her suggestion, but he appreciated it the way she’d hoped he would. If only she had an idea of his agenda. When she’d nodded off, they’d been headed for Yellowstone. “Care to let me in on your new plan?”
“I’m trying to decide between the ground and the trunk of the car.”
“I’m not following you.” Even if she wanted to, he could never talk her into it. Not on a city street.
“It’s too dark for me to hand hold.” He stepped back to the car and pulled out his camera bag. He set it on the trunk and started pulling out the little black bags that held his toys.
Apparently, she was the only one with sex on the brain. Checking her watch, she wondered what kind of hotel they’d be able to find after midnight. She’d had a nap, so they could get back in the car and head…where?
Across Nevada? She couldn’t think of a single thing to use as an excuse to stay another day. Even Lake Tahoe was out of the way. They were twelve hours from her mother’s house. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to try and lift the heaviness in her chest. She wanted more time, but she couldn’t make any argument for it. She’d spent the better part of a week telling him to take her home.
“This is making me nervous.”
Jaime opened her eyes to find Xavier lying on the sidewalk, his camera angled up at the temple. The bizarre positions he perched in with the hopes of finding a better shot always made her grin. “It’s certainly strange.”
He moved the camera to shoot her a glare, then turned his attention back to his architecture obsession. “I see what I want, but I’m not capturing it. It’s right there, but I can’t figure out how to make it work.”
She knew the feeling.
“Maybe it will be better with a timer and tripod.” Xavier sprung up as if he hadn’t been awake since before dawn.
“Do you ever sleep?” Jaime leaned against the car and he glanced at her.
“I slept the whole way here. Don’t touch the car.”
“Okay.” She stepped away and turned on her phone. Taking pictures with a phone would always be good enough for her.
“Sorry, I have to keep the car still to keep the camera still.” He maneuvered his tripod, which reminded her of the pop beads her brothers had played with as kids. She’d seen him attach the thing to tree branches and out windows. He always wound up cursing at the thing, like he was doing now.
“What’s the plan after you get your shot, Mr. Full-Of-Surprises? We’re only twelve hours from Medford. Or I know where the Holiday Motel is here.” She steeled herself against his response.
He stepped back from the car without answering her. The camera clicked and he stared at it intently, like he was using a Jedi mind trick to make it do what he wanted. It clicked again and he picked it up, examining his results.
“Xav, really? You’re going to ignore me?”
“I’m ignoring all references to heading to Medford. I told you we’d be there in plenty of time and we won’t be staying in motels.” He set the camera in the tripod again, repeating the click-stare-click procedure. Twice.
She tapped her toe, but in flip-flops it didn’t make a sound. There was nothing to distract her from wondering whether he turned south to prolong their time together or to photograph architecture. She cleared her throat and he cursed, but with the way he fiddled with the camera, she knew changing lenses caused his creative missives, not her. Usually she didn’t mind waiting for him, but it was dark and the streets had an eerie quiet to them.
“Can I help?” She couldn’t imagine with what, but she’d never been good at standing around.
“Can you stand still?” he asked without looking at her.
“I’m sorry, but usually there is something for me to do or look at so I don’t notice how long this takes.”
“That comment is begging for a lesson in patience.”
She wanted to beg him to tell her what he had on the agenda. Would she be lunching with her family tomorrow, well, today? Or having some Utah adventure?
“I need you to stand over here.” He took her hand, his warmth doing nothing to calm her frustrations, instead firing new ones.
Just fabulous, she was turned on and he only had eyes for his camera. “I need you to tell me what we’re doing. I fell asleep headed in one direction and woke up in another state.”
He led her in front of the camera, then turned his attention back to it.
“Really?” They had a staring match while the camera went through
its click-pause-click routine. His smile sparkled in the dim light as he examined the display and adjusted it again.
“You are the most infuriating man I have ever met.”
“You like it.” He stepped to her and took her hands in his.
“I really don’t.” But being this close to him was pretty fabulous, even if he was annoying.
“We need to be perfectly still.” He leaned forward, his lips touching hers.
So she was a prop? Jaime stayed motionless as the camera cycled, then dropped her shoulder and rammed him. Hard. Having so many brothers really did come in handy for a few things.
He staggered back and rubbed at his chest as he returned to the camera. “You’re going to pay for that.”
“You want to talk punishments? You threw my itinerary out a window, dragged me from state to state without so much as a thought to my opinions, and decided on this southbound detour without even mentioning it to me. So if either of us is in the wrong here, it’s clearly you. Give me the keys.” She held out her hand.
Xavier’s laughter bellowed and echoed on the quiet streets. “This is perfect. You put your leg out.”
“The photo? I just gave you a laundry list of complaints and you’re focused on a picture? Don’t get too attached to it. You have to delete it. No one can see a picture of us kissing.”
“Look.” He turned the camera display towards her. “It’s my best one yet, though I think it’s you that makes it, not skill on my part.”
Walking over to him, she tried not to stomp like a toddler. The way he ignored her protests annoyed her, and then evaporated when she saw the shot. They were a simple silhouette in front of the lights streaming up the building, turned vivid purple and blue by some magic he’d done with the exposure. Their hands interlaced, only their lips touching, and the cheeky way she’d lifted one leg did look amazing.
And no one would know it was her. She might even be able to keep it as a tangible memento of the trip. Except she didn’t need any reminders. She’d wear the mark on her heart for the rest of her life.
“Am I forgiven?” He packed up the camera bag with military precision.
Drive Me Crazy Page 13
