Gritting her teeth in frustration, Vanessa swallowed the words forming on her tongue. How had the weather conspired against her so that she couldn’t get away from this man? What was it about Joshua that forced her to be inexorably linked to him?
“What am I going to do?”
“You’ll stay here until the weather clears.”
“I don’t want to stay here.”
“You don’t have much of a choice,” he countered.
Vanessa noticed the beginnings of a smile inching his sensuous mouth upward. She was irked by his obvious amusement at her not being able to escape him.
“You like this, don’t you?” she accused.
He arched a pale eyebrow. “You want me to lie and say I don’t?”
She gave him a hostile glare before turning and making her way to the expansive windows lining the living room wall. She opened the dark gray drapes and tried to see beyond the wall of torrential rain which fell in a slanting pattern and obliterated everything in sight. It was the beginning of May and the beginning of the rainy season.
Crossing the room and standing behind Vanessa, Joshua placed both hands on her shoulders. His touch was impersonal, comforting.
“There’s not much we can do until the rain stops,” he said softly, his breath sweeping sensuously over the back of her neck. “I’m going to have to postpone a business meeting until the travel ban is lifted.”
Vanessa felt properly chastised. Here she was worrying about going on a shopping spree when Joshua was probably responsible for millions of dollars for his German-based investment company.
Her shoulders rose and fell as she sighed. “I suppose we’re going to have to wait it out.”
He turned her around to face him. The top of her head was level with his nose. His gaze moved with agonizing slowness over her face, and lingered on her mouth.
“What do you want to do to pass the time?”
Her eyes widened. “What can we do?”
“We can swim—”
“Not,” she interrupted, putting up a hand. “It’s because of water that we’re having this discussion.”
He nodded, giving her an easy smile. “You’re right about that. Well, there’s racquetball or billiards.”
Vanessa’s eyes glowed with anticipation. It had been a long time since she’d enjoyed a game of billiards. But she didn’t want Joshua to know that she played the game—very, very well.
“I’ve always wanted to learn how to shoot pool.” There was just enough longing in her voice to appeal to his machismo.
“I’ll teach you if you’ll join me in a game of racquetball.”
She extended her right hand. “You’ve got yourself a deal.”
Ignoring her proffered hand, he lowered his head and pressed his lips to hers, caressing her mouth more than kissing it. “Deal,” he whispered, staring down into her surprised gaze.
It was the second time Joshua had kissed her, and both times it had been a brushings of the lips rather than a joining of mouths. The feathery touch of his firm mouth tantalized and frustrated her. What she wanted was a forceful domination of his mouth, so that she would lose herself in his kiss. She wanted, as well as needed, him to assuage the dormant feelings racing along her nerve endings.
Her fingers curled into tight fists as she backed away from him. His expression was closed but the deepening green of his eyes reflected the passions he was unable to conceal, and she knew Joshua wasn’t as unaffected by the kiss as he appeared.
He hooked his thumbs in the waistband of his jeans, and his expression softened as he watched Vanessa compose herself. She squared her shoulders, tilted her chin, and crossed her arms under her breasts. She gave him a slow smile, and he was lost—spellbound.
“Every time you do that you take my breath away,” he confessed, his voice dropping to a velvety whisper.
Her smiled faded. “Do what?” She couldn’t stop the tremor in her own voice.
Joshua moved closer. “Smile.”
Her mouth dropped slightly, giving him the advantage he sought as he swept her into the circle of his embrace. His hands, locked around her waist, brought her close until her middle was fused to his.
His head dipped, and when he settled his mouth over hers it was no gentle brushing of lips but a total possession that robbed Vanessa of her breath. Her knees buckled, and he tightened his hold on her until the lean, hard lines of his body burned her through her clothing.
He kissed her slowly, his lips moving and tasting every inch of her mouth, and Vanessa rose on tiptoe, returning the kiss as dormant fires blazed to life. Her hands cradled his lean cheeks and Joshua lifted her effortlessly from the floor until her head was level with his.
His tongue eased into her mouth, caressing, tasting, and coaxing, until she moaned with passion summoned from somewhere she didn’t know existed. Her moans became whimpers as his breathing deepened.
She pressed her body closer, wanting Joshua to absorb her into himself. Memories of every man she’d ever known faded when a warming shiver of desire coiled at her center, threatening to explode. The strength of his arms was so male, so protective; she wound her own arms around his neck, clinging to him and marveling at how safe he made her feel.
Joshua kissed Vanessa with a hunger that belied his outward self-control, and it was only now that he had tasted her mouth that he realized that he wanted more—much more.
The heated blood rushing through his body pooled in his groin, and he knew with the hardening of his flesh that he had lost control. What was it about Vanessa Blanchard that caused him to lose himself in her sexy smile and scented body? How could she turn him on so easily?
“Joshua,” Vanessa murmured. She repeated his name once more before he reacted.
“What is it?” he breathed into her open mouth.
“Someone’s at the door.”
He eased his hold on her body and lowered her on bare feet to the carpeted floor without freeing her from his embrace. His mouth hovered above hers as he struggled to regulate his rapid, labored breathing.
Closing his eyes against her stunned expression, he buried his face against her warm throat. “It’s probably our breakfast. But what I want to eat is definitely not on that serving cart.”
Not trusting herself to remain in his arms, Vanessa pushed against his chest. “I need to eat what’s on that cart, so you’d better answer the door.”
“Don’t go away.” Reluctantly he released her, making his way to the door while she groped for a chair in the dining area. Her nerves were screaming as if thousands of tiny insects had descended on her bare flesh. Closing her eyes, she bit down on her trembling lower lip. He’d done what she wanted him to do. He’d kissed her. But now she wanted more than his kisses.
Don’t go away. Where would she go, even if she could escape him?
She suddenly realized that she wasn’t as frightened of Joshua as she was of herself. She knew what he wanted, and she also wanted it. But could she sleep with him, a stranger, then walk away unaffected? Could she take off her clothes and lie with a man who reminded her of what she should feel as a woman, as a female?
Yes! screamed a voice within her, while another voice calmly said no.
How had she gotten herself into this dilemma? More importantly, how was she going to extricate herself?
Chapter 8
Vanessa stared at the waiter as he set the table with china, cutlery, and serving dishes, while Joshua watched her. She felt the heat of his gaze, and she refused to look at him. She didn’t want him to see that her feelings for him were intensifying, and that she was caught up in her own conflicting emotions. A delicate, slender thread had formed between them when they exchanged the passionate kiss, and she was swathed in an invisible warmth of desire that she wanted to hold on to.
Even in the silence she could still hear his soft voice that seemed to come from deep within his chest. The sound was a rich, honeyed, controlled baritone that mesmerized her. She found that listening to Joshua
speak was almost as sensuous as his touch. If she took his breath away when she smiled, then he made her heart stop when he touched her.
Joshua signed the receipt the waiter handed him and thanked him for the quick service. He waited until the man left the suite before he sat down opposite Vanessa.
He smiled, noticing her mouth was swollen from his kiss. Vanessa Blanchard hadn’t held back, eliciting from him a rush of heated desire that made him want to strip the clothes from her body and take her on the carpeted floor; his desire for her had forced him to forsake his self-control, though he hadn’t wanted to make love to her, but mate.
No, he would not take her on the floor like a rutting beast after a female in heat, but in a bed, and with all the tenderness and passion she would expect from a lover.
“Shall I serve you?” he asked quietly.
Vanessa’s head came up and she met his gaze for the first time since they’d shared the kiss. His mesmerizing eyes were now a deep, verdant green. “Please.”
She watched as he uncovered a large dish, her gaze fixed on his hands. Faint blue veins showed through brown flesh dusted with a sprinkling of short, gold hair. His long fingers were beautifully tapered and well-groomed, and were capable of uncanny strength. She’d felt the strength in those hands when they’d tightened around her waist and lifted her effortlessly off her feet.
Her gaze moved up, searching Joshua’s composed features for remnants of passion. Nothing in his expression revealed that only minutes before his mouth had demanded she respond to his kiss, his body had hardened with lust, and his breathing had deepened with a shuddering desire.
Vanessa had known of the strong passion within herself, but it was only now, for the first time in a very long time, that she recognize her own needs; it was her own driving need for Joshua Kirkland that shocked her, because she knew there had been something special about him from the very first time she saw him; a special quality that would not permit her to resist the expert seduction he had openly admitted.
Since she’d moved to Santa Fe there had never seemed enough time for romance in her busy schedule. There hadn’t even been enough time for a vacation—until now—and the realization swept over her that if she didn’t flee room 2204 as soon as the rains stopped she would wind up in Joshua’s arms again, and in his bed.
He flashed a slow, mysterious smile, handing her a plate filled with fluffy scrambled eggs, slices of crisp bacon, baked ham, and potatoes with onion and peppers. She took the plate, murmuring her thanks.
She had momentarily forgotten about the person or persons who had ransacked her room at La Mérida, because sitting across the table from Joshua and eating in silence while the rains slashed the earth with fury had made her feel secure and very safe. She didn’t know what it was about her dining partner, but something within him transmitted wordlessly that she would have nothing to fear as long as he offered his protection.
Joshua was not put off by Vanessa’s silence. He hadn’t expected her to be talkative or animated. He’d kissed her, something she hadn’t expected him to do, and he knew she’d surprised herself when she kissed him back. Her knees had given way, and if he hadn’t tightened his grip on her body she would’ve fallen to the floor. That position would’ve been disastrous for both of them, because he would have been tempted to take her on the floor even if she protested.
He was stronger than she was, and he could overpower her at any time, but what he wanted to do was court her, seduce her, then have her come to him without guilt or remorse. He wanted her to want him as much as he wanted her.
He did not fool himself into believing his wanting Vanessa had anything to do with getting information from her. That he could do without sleeping with her. With a syringe filled with sodium amytal he could prove conclusively whether she was involved with the sale of classified military components.
He could get what he wanted from Vanessa Blanchard without drugging her, though, and having her offer up her body to him would be an added bonus.
Vanessa held out her cup for Joshua to refill it from a pot of excellently brewed coffee. After being in Mexico for three days she had come to look forward to and savor the rich, strong, Mexican blends. She was on her second cup, while Joshua hadn’t drunk his first. She remembered he’d declined the waiter’s offer of coffee after their dinner at La Mérida.
“Don’t you like the coffee?” she asked, her midnight gaze fixed on his attractive mouth.
He looked at her as if photographing her with his eyes. “I grew up drinking coffee with milk and sugar added to it after it was brewed. Then it was reheated and served hot.” Studying her bemused expression, Joshua continued, “I began drinking coffee as a child. I loved the smell of it brewing, and the taste even more. My mother used to dilute a portion with a lot of milk and sweeten it with sugar.”
She smiled at him. “How old were you when you began drinking coffee?”
He shrugged a broad shoulder under his T-shirt. “Six, maybe seven.”
Vanessa shook her head. “You were young. I didn’t start drinking it until I was in college.”
She met Joshua’s direct stare with one of her own, enthralled with the tenderness of his expression. It was the first time since she’d met him that he appeared truly passionate, with all of his emotions on the surface. “What other addictions do you have?” she questioned softly.
Joshua hesitated, measuring her for a moment; she was becoming an addiction. He wanted to see her, touch her. There was something about Vanessa Blanchard that reached out and called out to him that she was to become a part of him and a part of his life.
“You,” he replied in a deep, soothing, hypnotic whisper.
Vanessa felt her pulse race, and it throbbed noticeably in her throat. A flicker of apprehension coursed through her before she managed a relaxed smile. “You’re kidding, aren’t you?”
“No, I’m not,” Joshua answered. “When you smile, something inside of me…” He paused, unable to come up with an apt description of his emotions. “Your smile is very erotic,” he said instead.
She arched an eyebrow. “Erotic?”
He cocked his head at an angle, studying her intently. “If not erotic, then sensual. It reminds me of a sunrise.”
Vanessa laughed, the soft, haunting sound floating up from her chest. “What a strange metaphor.”
“A very fitting metaphor,” he countered. “Your smile lights up and transforms your entire face.”
She sobered, staring at Joshua and becoming increasingly uneasy under his scrutiny. His seduction had become so subtle, almost invisible, that she found herself snared in his web, though she was fully aware of his intent.
What hidden, invisible powers did he possess that made her want to take off her clothes and lie with him? It’s been too long, she told herself. The last man she’d found herself attracted to was Kenneth, but even he hadn’t affected her the way Joshua Kirkland did.
Joshua was quiet, subtle, yet something told her that he was also dangerous. He wasn’t dangerous in the menacing sense, because she felt very safe with him, but no-nonsense dangerous. She knew instinctively that a relationship with him would be intense, satisfying, and above all else honest.
“I think of you as a throwback to another time, when knights rescued damsels in distress.”
Joshua merely nodded at her assessment of him. What Vanessa didn’t know was that she would need rescuing once she was charged with espionage, or conspiracy to commit espionage.
Placing an elbow on the table, he leaned forward, a slight smile touching his mouth. “Are you a damsel in distress?” he questioned, knowing she would never openly admit to the dangerous game she had elected to play. Spies were usually greedy, guarded and deceitful, not candid.
Vanessa smiled again, the gesture lighting up her eyes. “I’m certain I’ll be, after you trounce me in billiards and racquetball.”
“How competitive are you?”
Her eyes narrowed as she wrinkled her nose. “Very. Why
?”
“So am I,” he admitted. “And because we both are, then I’m also at risk of having to be rescued.”
Raising her cup to her mouth, Vanessa took another sip of coffee. “We’ll see,” she said in a quiet voice. “We’ll see.”
Vanessa leaned against the pool table in the hotel’s gaming room watching Joshua chalk the tip of a cue stick, a slight smile softening her mouth. He had patiently explained the rules of the game while she waited just as patiently to begin play.
What she didn’t disclose was that her father, who had become a skilled amateur pool player, taught her the game before she was tall enough to see over the table. She’d stood on a stool and watched Mason Blanchard as he drove ball after ball into the pockets.
When she and Joshua entered the gaming room she had been surprised that they weren’t the only ones taking advantage of a half dozen or more billiard tables set up in the expansive space. Seeing her questioning expression, Joshua had explained that the hotel catered exclusively to the business traveler. All of the rooms were suites, with efficiency kitchens, and twenty-four-hour services that included room service, concierge, valet parking, a heliport, limousine service, and free car wash. Each executive suite featured a sauna or Jacuzzi, while his in the Clarion Suites had both. He then hinted that she would probably utilize both after their strenuous game of racquetball. She’d thanked him with a facetious smile, while pondering the intimacy of using the bathroom adjoining his bedroom again.
The sound of a Ping-Pong ball pouncing off paddles and the distinctive clacking of pool balls being hit resounded throughout the room. Vanessa glanced around, realizing she was the only woman present. Either the businessmen who had checked into the Clarion Reforma elected not to travel with their significant others, or the women did not see the value in getting up before dawn to engage in table games.
Putting aside the chalk, Joshua beckoned to Vanessa. “Come here,” he ordered softly. She straightened from her leaning position and moved over to him. “Stand in front of me and I’ll show you how to hold the cue stick.”
Vows Page 8
