“I’ve never known this urgency before. I looked up, only a few short days ago, and saw you for the first time. Something almost magical happened at that moment. Oh yes, I know you don’t believe in magic. But I do.”
“Philip, I don’t need flowery words.”
She lacked belief in far more than magic and knights in shining armor. She didn’t believe in her own appeal, and she didn’t trust his words. He couldn't blame her. She'd believed once and paid for it.
He changed his mind. If the bastard who hurt her so badly ever did show up in Boisdemer, beheading wasn’t out of the question after all.
He put away the sparking rage that burned in him on her behalf. It had no place here. She faced him with such a troubled expression, he bent to place a gentle kiss on her furrowed brow.
“Mon cherie, I know. Perhaps I need the flowery words.” He knew the thoughts in her head. She wanted to keep things simple. She thought this would be an uncomplicated vacation fling. He didn’t doubt that her heart held far more for him than she wanted to admit. He didn’t need to hear her tell him right now. He was a patient man. At least when it came to getting her to see the sweet light of reason.
But he’d run out of patience waiting to have her.
Moving quickly, he scooped her into his arms, laughing when she screamed and threw her arms around his neck as if to save herself from being dropped.
She wasn’t heavy, and it wasn’t very far to his bedroom.
The sound of the door slamming still reverberated in the room when he stopped before the bed and slowly lowered her feet to the floor. There was light enough left in the day that he didn’t bother with the bedside lamp. Instead, he ran his hands through her hair, cupped her head, and drew her into his kiss.
He had already become addicted to the taste of her, the hot sultry flavor he knew his body could never live without again. Slowly, ever so slowly, he explored her mouth. Her hands grabbed his wrists and held on even as her tongue met and danced with his. Sensuous, erotic, the wet glide ignited tiny sparks in his blood. Her arms moved up to twine around his neck, and he complied with her unspoken request for more. His hands smoothed down her back to her bottom and pulled her closer.
He knew the strength left her knees as he continued tasting her. Not sure of his own strength, he weaned his lips from hers to sit on the edge of the bed then gently pulled her to stand between his legs.
Without speaking, he tugged her T-shirt out of her shorts. The flesh of her belly was warm and soft and smooth. Loving the touch of her under his hands, he caressed her. Then stripped the shirt from her completely.
She gasped, and he couldn’t help but smile. “I’m trying so damn hard to be gentle, cherie. But I want you so bloody badly.”
“You don’t have to be gentle. It’s not like this is my first time.”
He knew differently. He took a moment to admire the plain cotton bra that supported and concealed her pretty breasts. He found the simple garment more alluring than the finest lace. But it had to go. Reaching behind her, he released the catch in one smooth move.
Her naked breasts captivated him, prettily plump with delectable pink nipples. Unable to resist, he opened his mouth and drew one in. It pebbled and elongated, inviting him to have more. He was lost.
“Philip!”
Her fingers combed through his hair, holding him close. Her moans told him how much she liked his actions. His hands shaped her bottom then, in one fluid move, stripped the shorts and panties down her legs. Not willing to give her a moment to think, he slipped to his knees and set his mouth on her.
* * * *
“Oh God.” Catharine sucked in a deep breath as his lips nuzzled her pussy. She wasn’t prepared for the storm of sensations that raged through her. Her knees buckled for a second time, and she trusted him to keep her from falling. The vibration of his laugh made her belly clench and her nipples tighten to hard buds.
Then he lifted her, only to place her on her back on the bed. Gasping, Catharine tried to find something to hang on to, but there was only his mouth, open, rubbing back and forth across her mound, and his tongue, darting out, tasting, driving her higher, driving her wild. Sobbing, fighting to control the arousal that drenched her inside and out, she realized there could be no control. Still, she fought, her head tossing back and forth on the bedspread, her breaths coming in short shallow chops and filled with tiny high-pitched cries of pleasure.
“Let go, Kate. You’re safe with me. Let me have you. Give me your release.”
Torn between two desires, to fight and to surrender, she opened her eyes and stared down at the man watching her with passion-filled eyes from between her legs. She hovered, could sense herself almost pulling back.
Then he sucked her clit into his mouth.
Reality shattered, as she exploded into a starburst of fireworks, the heat so intense that every muscle in her body instantly melted, every atom flew wild. On and on, wave after wave of rapture washed through her, stealing her breath and her strength and her reason.
Slowly, she became vaguely aware that he’d left her. As tiny shivers wracked her body, sounds penetrated. Clothes dropping to the floor. A drawer opened, then closed. And the tear of plastic.
The bed dipped and she opened her eyes, her gaze locking with his as he touched his condom-covered cock to her pussy and began to push inside her.
She couldn’t believe how tight she was. For one heartbeat, she wondered if there would be pain, as there had been that first time. But then her flesh eased slightly. She could feel every single inch of him, full and hot and hard, sliding into her. It was the most delicious sensation in the world.
“You feel so good around me, my Kate.”
“Philip.” She spread her legs wider for him, and then wrapped them around his ass. Her arms encircled his neck. She wanted his mouth on hers. Such a gentleman, he seemed reluctant to kiss her after having tasted her intimate flesh. But when she insisted, he devoured her.
She tasted them both on his lips, and wondered how the flavor could be so compelling. Tilting her hips, she gave him everything, even the parts of herself she’d sought to hold back. Her will to do so had been shattered. In and out, she absorbed him, and used her inner muscles to clench at his cock, to try and keep him her prisoner. He grunted, his eyes closing for just a moment, and she smiled because she knew her flexing battered at his control as surely as his lips and tongue had battered hers.
His rhythm changed, now a hard and fast thrust. Her smile faded as the fire built anew. It was no longer a question of making him lose control. No contest here, only mutual pleasure. She thought she wouldn’t be able to come a second time, the first one had been so huge. But the friction of his movements stimulated not only her clit, but some spot inside her, some undiscovered place that wanted to wrap itself around the head of his penis and hold on forever.
“Yes!” To climb and peak and soar all in a heartbeat was more spectacular than she could have imagined. She had no choice but to hold on to him while her orgasm reigned and he continued to pound into her. He went rigid, groaning long and deep as his own release swamped him. Laying there, his sated weight pressing her deeper into the bed, she knew she had been changed. Forever.
* * * *
The room had fallen gradually to darkness, but Philip didn’t want to turn on a light. That meant he’d have to move and he’d much rather stay put with Catharine cradled in his arms. His Kate. He insisted on calling her that simply because no one else did.
He never would have thought he could care so much for someone so soon. It seemed as if she had been made for him. He loved her, a first for him. He could admit to himself that part of her appeal lay in the excellent mother she was. Having grown up basically without one himself, maternal qualities in a woman appealed to him. But then she appealed to him on every level. And now that he’d made love to her, nothing seemed more important than that he keep her here, with him.
Not just for the rest of the night, but for the rest of his l
ife.
He didn’t need to have second sight to know, however, that if he told her he loved her, asked her to marry him, she’d not only refuse, she’d run as far and as fast as she could.
She didn’t believe in magic, or knights in shining armor, or happily-ever-after.
If she’d loved and lost when she’d been older, things might have been different for them. Perhaps she would have been open to even the possibility of love at first sight. But she’d been seduced, and then deserted when she'd been little more than a child. How frightening it must have been, facing her pregnancy on her own. No wonder she had told Jamie there were no such things as knights in shining armor.
So, no—as much as he longed to tell her he loved her, he needed to find another way. He needed to show her, not tell her.
He thought of all that she’d revealed—her heart and her hopes and her dreams—and realized he had the perfect way to show her how much he loved her. He could so easily help her make her dream come true.
“What time is it?”
Her sleepy voice whispered softly against his chest. He turned to look at the bedside clock. “Just after eleven. Will you stay the night with me?”
She stretched, and he caressed her back. When she yawned, he bit back one of his own.
“I want to. I really do. But I don’t want Jamie waking up in the morning without me being there.”
“I understand.” He moved, and laid her on her back. Leaning down, he kissed her, a gentle, cherishing kiss. “Will you let me love you again?”
There was enough light for him to see her frown. She didn’t think of it as making love. But she would.
“Yes,” she said at last. “I want you again.”
And that would have to be enough. For now.
Chapter 14
Of all the things Hannah thought she might experience as she slid into her September years, falling in love had never been one of them.
When she thought of herself at all, she considered herself a grandmother and a mother. Those came first. She identified herself as a widow, when the occasion arose, and as a manager. She’d not, for a long time, thought of herself as a woman, and never once as a woman in love.
She should have known better than to believe she could have a pure and simple fling. How did other people manage to have sex and keep their hearts separate? Hannah had no idea, because she sure hadn’t.
She hadn’t meant to fall in love with Alex. That had been a mistake. She wasn’t deluding herself into believing that Alex could be in love with her. She wasn’t the sort of woman who inspired love. She could be called attractive, but not beautiful. Yes, he seemed to enjoy her company. He’d been thrilled that she’d spent an entire night in his bed. But he didn’t seem to want to be seen with her outside the resort.
That realization was tough to swallow. Being on vacation, she wanted to see a little of the country she was visiting, but every time she brought the subject up, he changed it. The only reason she could think of for him to do that would be embarrassment. Used to being seen with glamorous women—a man like Alex would likely draw them like flies—he didn’t want to be seen with her.
At first she thought he might actually be married. But the woman who ran the dress boutique assured her that he had, indeed, been widowed, and had no wife now. At first she’d refused to make any comment on Alex at all, stating quite emphatically that the policy of the resort forbade invasion of a guest’s privacy. Then, apparently sensing Hannah’s distress, she had taken pity on her and confirmed Alex’s marital status.
As she examined herself in the mirror, Hannah avoided looking herself in the eye. She’d become too emotional over him and this entire situation. And she’d given entirely too much of her time to the handsome scoundrel.
Well, today, Saturday, would be different. They’d had been in this country since last Sunday, and by damn, she would see some of it. And she would begin by spending the morning with Catharine and Jamie.
Hannah didn’t tell Alex of her plans.
Since Catharine knew the area well enough, they headed out for a fast-food breakfast first. Then, after breakfast they were going to meet up with Philip. If Hannah had her way—and if she liked this young man, prince or no—she would leave her family in his care while she took the rental car and explored the countryside.
She supposed it would be too much to hope, that she could in the course of the day fall out of love with Alex Cross. But perhaps she could put her feelings in perspective. In all likelihood, he thought of her as an entertaining interlude. Maybe she could learn to think of him the same way.
* * * *
Catharine wished she’d had a chance to warn him.
Her mother had been bright and cheery and seemed determined to spend time with them today. It wasn’t until they had left the resort, on their way to breakfast that she realized she seemed to be upset. Catharine thought that perhaps she and Alex had had a disagreement of some sort.
Her mother and Alex had been practically inseparable since their first full day in Boisdemer. Today was day six. There may have been a moment or two when she worried about her mom spending so much time with the man. But then she would remind herself that Mom didn’t need her daughter looking after her.
If at times it seemed as if her worries about her mother echoed back as worries about herself, she dismissed them immediately. She could certainly take care of herself. She was having a fun fling with Philip. There could be no future in it, and she had known that going in. She had chosen to indulge in this personal sexual odyssey. Although she might miss him a little when she flew home, mostly, she was certain, she would think back on this time fondly.
Swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat, she turned now to look at her mother, whose gaze seemed everywhere as they neared the farm.
“You’re not going to give him the third degree or anything like that, are you, Mom?”
Her mother laughed. “Of course not. Why would I? I’ve never been a hypocrite, sweetheart, and that seems too nasty a habit to pick up at my age. Yes, it will be nice to meet this young man who’s spent so much time with you and Jamie. But I really just want to see how well my grandson can ride a horse.”
“I’m real good, Grandma. Philip says I’m a natural.”
“I thought so too, sweetheart, when I took you riding in the spring. You’re going to enjoy those riding lessons come fall.”
“Mother!” Catharine, still trying to figure out how she'd pay for the lessons, let alone get Jamie to them every week, had been avoiding saying anything that sounded like a promise.
“Catharine, you will let me provide this small thing for my grandson, won’t you?”
“But mom…”
“You need to stop trying to do every little thing by yourself, Catharine Marie. It’s a very annoying habit that loses any resemblance to virtue after a time.”
She knew her mother was right. Becoming self-reliant had been a necessity when Jamie had been born. She’d worked long and hard to ensure she was the best mother she knew how to be. There had been times when she’d been tired, and oh, how easy it would have been to give in, to let mom or Pam lend a hand every time they offered. But in the end, she’d denied herself and focused on doing everything for her son. Maybe the time had come to give way, just a bit.
“Jamie, thank your Grandmother. She’s going to get you those riding lessons when we get home.”
“Thanks Grandma, you’re the greatest! Just wait until I tell Philip!”
Catharine didn’t, as compelled, look at her mother to see how that statement flew. Instead, she put her attention on the road, and tried to convince herself that everything was fine.
* * * *
“Guess what?”
The sound of running feet had told Philip who was heading for him at breakneck speed. Turning, he caught Jamie in mid leap, tossing him high then catching him and setting him on his hip.
“What?”
“I get to have riding lessons because Grandma s
aid so and mom’s other name is Marie.”
Laughing, he looked over at the two women walking toward him.
“Marie, is it? Your grandmother must have been serious.”
“Uh huh. Her voice got all quiet, the way Mom’s does when she is really, really serious. And I get to have riding lessons. My Grandma’s the best.”
Philip’s eyes met those of Jamie’s grandmother’s. He’d hoped to have the chance to meet the woman. Smiling now, he read a message in Mrs. Jones’ eyes that delighted him. He got the immediate impression that she’d be an ally.
His Kate was being stubborn, and he could use all the help he could get. At the moment, though, she seemed oblivious to the signals he and her mother exchanged.
“You don’t have to worry,” Catharine said on the heels of performing the introductions. “Mom promised she wasn’t gong to give you the third degree.”
“Third degree?” He repeated this new expression he didn’t know.
“It means to interrogate,” Catharine replied.
“It’s a shame,” her mother interjected. ”But I left all my torture devices back at the resort.”
“I’m very pleased to hear that, Mrs. Jones.” Philip knew where his Kate got her smart-ass from at least.
“Oh, call me Hannah, Your Highness.”
“Only if you call me Philip.”
“Philip it is.”
A sparkle in her eyes promised mischief later. For now, she turned to Jamie.
“So, where is this horse with the silly name I’ve been hearing about all week?”
“You can take your grandmother to the barn, Jamie, and tell Andre you’re here. He’ll saddle Francois and bring him back to the paddock.”
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