Annabelle smiled and cuddled into his arms and allowed him to carry her to bed.
Chapter Eight
The man was driving her crazy. Her nerves were frazzled and she was at her wit’s end. Mike Sloan didn’t know the meaning of the word discreet. He’d visited the library every day this week. People were starting to notice. Soon they would start asking questions. And Annabelle didn’t have any ready answers.
Just thinking about last weekend brought a blush to her face. She’d had no idea that people really made love that many times and in so many ways. Annabelle didn’t think she’d ever be able to look at Mike’s kitchen table as just a place to eat. It would forever be the site of one of her most erotic experiences.
The entire weekend was filled with sensual memories. But it had been so much more than that. Mike had been a tender and considerate lover. He’d also been wild, bringing out a side of her that she hadn’t known was there. There was a part of her that reveled in his loss of control when he just had to have her. She understood those urges, because he made her feel the same way.
In spite of the amazing lovemaking, it was the quiet times that had meant even more. She’d slept most of Saturday away after he’d carried her back to bed. When she’d finally awakened, the sun had been sinking in the sky and Mike was lying next to her . . .
• • •
Propped up on one arm, he ran his free hand through her hair that trailed down over the covers. “Hey, sleepyhead.”
“How long was I out?” The room was shadowed, but there was still some light outside.
“It’s almost time for dinner.” He smoothed a lock of her hair away from her face. He looked handsome as ever, but it was the expression on his face that made her want to weep. He was watching her as if there was nowhere else he wanted to be and nothing else he would rather be doing. As if she was the most important thing in the world. He made her feel cherished.
“I ran you a bath.” He motioned to the bathroom. “You could probably use a long soak.”
His thoughtfulness made her feel special. “Thank you.”
He nodded and levered himself off the bed. “Come downstairs when you’re finished. I’ve got steaks marinating for supper.”
“You’re not joining me?”
He grinned but shook his head. “Baby, you’ve got to be sore. If I take a bath with you, I’ll end up balls deep inside you again.”
He words were blunt and sexual and sent a shiver of longing through her, but he was right. She was sore. “I won’t be long.”
He dropped a kiss on her forehead and left her alone in the big bed. She rolled out and stretched, feeling rested but stiff. The master bathroom was gorgeous. She’d already used the shower, but now she had the chance to try the tub.
It was oversized, plenty big enough for two. She slipped off Mike’s shirt and slid into the steaming water. It was heaven. Mike had even lit several candles and placed a glass of wine on the wide rim of the tub. It was pure decadence. Annabelle leaned back, content to just loll about in the water and sip her wine.
When her fingers started to prune, she had a quick wash before she pulled the plug and climbed out. After drying off, she slipped into a clean shirt Mike had left for her. The man had thought of everything.
Wanting to join him, she quickly tidied the room, grabbed her glass of wine and went to find him. He wasn’t in the kitchen, but she could see him through the patio door. She slid it open and a wall of heat hit her. It felt wonderful on her skin. She tipped her face up to catch the dying rays of the sun.
“Hey, baby. Feel better?” He was in front of a large stainless steel grill. Steaks sizzled and the smell made her stomach growl.
“I feel great. Hungry. Can I do anything to help?”
“Potatoes are in the microwave and the salad is in the fridge. You can bring them out if you want. I thought we’d eat outside.”
“Sounds good to me.” She went inside and topped up her wine before she started poking around the cupboards. She found a large tray before she checked on the potatoes. They were done, so she loaded the potatoes, salad, butter, dressing and everything else they needed on the tray.
It was such a domestic scene. Mike was cooking on the patio and she was puttering around the kitchen. She could get used to this.
Mike’s house was secluded and there were no neighbors within sight. It was just the two of them surrounded by trees. Birds sang and chirped while bees buzzed around the flowers that grew in large tubs on the deck. It was beautiful and relaxing.
They sat at a wooden patio table and polished off a huge supper. Food had never tasted so delicious. Annabelle suspected it had a lot to do with the company. They lingered over coffee, chatting easily, sometimes falling into a comfortable silence.
After the dishes were cleared away, Mike took her on a tour of his home. She loved all the wood and the simple lines. It was typically male, without much to make it cozy, but the potential was there. Annabelle could envision plants, throw pillows, and a comfortable chair or two. It was all too easy to picture herself there as well. That thought worried her, but she was in too mellow a mood to let it take hold in her mind.
They finished the tour in the living room and ended up curled up on the sofa watching an old movie on television. It was a romantic comedy. She laughed at parts, but there were poignant moments that brought tears to her eyes.
Mike hadn’t asked her what was wrong or commented in any way. He’d simply wrapped his arm more securely around her and pulled her onto his lap. Annabelle had never been so content in her life and it scared her . . .
• • •
Sighing, she shoved the memory away and shuffled the papers on her desk for the tenth time. When it was obvious she wasn’t going to get anything done, Annabelle pushed her chair away from her desk.
She rubbed her temples to try to stop the pounding in her head. It didn’t help much. Sleep hadn’t come easy this week and her days had been stressful. Mike had kept her on edge. She just didn’t know when he was going to show up or what he was going to do next.
He had promised her that they would keep their affair a secret, but that was proving to be impossible. Mike had arrived up at the library first thing Monday morning with coffee and muffins from Sammy Joe’s Bakery. The coffee had two sugars, just the way she liked it, and the muffin had been oatmeal raisin, her favorite. He’d delivered it along with a long, lingering kiss before heading off to work, whistling all the way out the door.
On Tuesday a bouquet of wildflowers had found their way onto her desk. There had been no card, but she hadn’t needed one. Several people at work had noticed the flowers and teased her about her secret admirer.
Wednesday afternoon Mike had dropped by with a small bar of imported chocolate, a weakness of hers that she’d admitted to last weekend. He’d shut the door to her office and made himself right at home. He’d taken a seat, pulled her down onto his lap and fed her pieces of chocolate until the wrapper was empty. Then he’d kissed her senseless, announced that the chocolate was delicious, and left her bemused and on a sugar high for the rest of the day.
Thursday at lunchtime, he’d dropped by with a huge garden salad from her favorite deli—extra cheese and tomatoes and no onions—iced tea with lemon in a large take-out cup, and a warm oatmeal cookie to round out the meal. He’d delivered it with a flourish and a kiss and then was gone again. He’d passed Mrs. Casey on the way out and had just smiled and said hello. Annabelle had been so flustered she hid in her office, away from the woman’s knowing gaze.
Now it was Friday and she was on pins and needles, not knowing what was going to happen next. They’d made no plans for this weekend. She didn’t know if she should ask him to come over to her apartment after he got off work or if she should wait to see if he asked her back to his place. She had no idea what the rules were when it came to dating.
She tilted her head back and rested it against the comfort of her chair. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and tried to rel
ease the tension. Having an affair was more stressful than she’d anticipated.
Annabelle was not a deceptive person by nature and keeping a secret of this magnitude was more difficult than she’d thought it would be. She rubbed at the knot in her stomach. Concentrating on taking one deep breath after another, she finally felt the tension of the week begin to melt away. It was late Friday afternoon. Whatever else happened, she was finished with work for the week and had two whole days off to rest and relax. She’d take a hot bath, eat something healthy and have a good night’s sleep. That was the plan.
Having that settled made her feel better. She was just about to open her eyes when the atmosphere in the room changed. She hadn’t heard a sound but knew she was no longer alone. She’d become so in tune with Mike she knew it was him standing next to her chair.
His warm breath feathered over her skin just before his lips touched hers. The kiss was tender, his lips firm and warm against hers. She yielded completely to his caress. He took the unspoken invitation and deepened the kiss. Annabelle could hear nothing but the deep and heavy sound of their breathing. She could feel nothing but the warm press of his lips over hers. She could taste only Mike, hot and masculine with a tinge of coffee. It was heavenly.
A door slammed in the distance. Annabelle jerked away and her gaze flew from Mike to her office door. It was shut. She closed her eyes and sent up a prayer of thanks. When she looked back at Mike, he was scowling.
“What’s wrong?” He certainly wasn’t looking like a man who’d just enjoyed a kiss.
“Why would anything be wrong?” Mike leaned against the corner of her desk, crossed his arms over his chest and glared at her.
Annabelle wasn’t quite sure how to respond to him. Could Mike be in a bad mood and still kiss her the way he just had? “Did you have a good day? Did everything go all right on the new job site?” She wanted to touch him, to reassure him that everything was fine, but she didn’t feel that she had the right to do so. Not with him glaring at her. She gripped the arms of her chair to keep from reaching out.
Mike stared at her for a long moment, as if he was looking for something in her face. Whatever he was searching for, she wasn’t sure if he had found it or not. He unlocked his arms from over his chest and gave a deep sigh. He rubbed his left hand over the back of his neck. He looked tired.
Annabelle couldn’t resist the urge to soothe him any longer. She reached out and took his right hand in hers. She wanted to fix whatever was wrong, but not knowing what it was, she did the only thing she could. She offered comfort instead.
“It’s been a long week. How about I cook us supper and we relax?” Annabelle waited for his reply, unable to believe she was being so bold, but her uncertainty had vanished. He needed her, and if he wanted to be with her she wasn’t going to waste a moment of their time together.
Mike’s lips tilted up at the corners until he was smiling at her. Some of the fatigue and worry that had plagued him only seconds before vanished. “I’d like that.” Raising her fingers to his lips, he kissed them before releasing her. He pushed away from her desk, dug into his front pocket and pulled out a key. He dangled it from his fingers and held it out to her.
“What’s that?” She eyed the plain silver-colored key with curiosity.
“Go ahead,” he encouraged.
She wrapped her fingers around the shiny key. Mike seemed pleased when she took it. She closed her hand around it, gripping it so tight the sharp edges dug into her hand. This had to be a key to Mike’s house.
“I’ve got to go back to work for an hour or so, but you can go out to the house when you’re ready.” His eyes went dark and his voice was husky as he spoke. “Pack a bag for the weekend.”
He seemed to be waiting for a reply so she nodded her acceptance. “Okay,” she replied, swallowing back the lump in her throat. She’d planned to make dinner at her place, but Mike obviously had other ideas. And it was probably for the best. His home was isolated. She lived in an apartment. There was more of a chance of people seeing them together if they went to her place.
Mike leaned down and kissed her again. It was very different from the first one. This was a kiss of possession. Mike devoured her, his mouth claiming hers. It felt as though he was trying to brand her with his touch.
Throwing herself into the moment, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back, making no effort to hide the volatile emotions churning inside her. The hot and carnal caress went on so long Annabelle began to get light-headed.
She gripped him even tighter when he yanked her out of her chair and banded his arms around her waist. She clutched his hair in one hand to hold him close. He squeezed her so hard she couldn’t take a breath. When he boldly thrust his tongue into her mouth, she decided that breathing was overrated.
Mike was the one who finally found the strength to tear himself away. “Later,” he gasped. “We’ll finish this later.” He planted one last brief kiss on her lips before he stormed out of her office. He flung the door wide with such force it bounced off the wall before swinging shut again.
Annabelle stood glued to the spot. A pain shot through her right hand. She looked down at her clenched fist, the one that held the key Mike had given her. She forced her fingers open until she could see the key in her palm. It was such a small, relatively inexpensive item. But it meant so much. Mike trusted her with the key to his home.
She warned herself not to read too much into the gesture. They hadn’t been seeing one another for very long. Things were still new and exciting, and their affair was private. She had no idea how long their relationship would last, but she was more hopeful than she’d been when it started.
Annabelle knew she was grinning like an idiot but she couldn’t stop herself. She gave a little shriek and spun around in a circle. She danced all the way to her purse and carefully tucked her treasure inside. Mike was obviously in this affair for the long term. She’d already known that he cared about her. This was showing her just how much. It wasn’t a declaration of love, but it was more than enough for now.
She practically floated back to her desk. In less than ten minutes, she finished the last of the paperwork and dealt with the remaining emails in her in-box. She spent another five minutes making a list of the food and clothes she would need for the next two days.
At exactly quitting time, she shut down her computer, gathered her sweater and purse and left the office. She turned off the lights and locked the door behind her.
Sedately, she walked out to the front desk and informed her part-timer that she was leaving for the weekend. As soon as the front door of the library closed behind her, she hurried to her car. She had a lot to do and not much time in which to do it.
Chapter Nine
Mike was grateful to be home. The tension headache he’d been fighting all day pounded against his skull like a jackhammer. He put his truck in park, turned off the ignition and rubbed his hands over his face. He stared at the house but made no move to go inside.
It had been a long, frustrating week. The closer he tried to get to Annabelle the more she pulled away. Not physically. No, physically she gave him everything he could ever want. She was completely uninhibited in their lovemaking. He had no complaints in that department.
But emotionally—well, that was another matter altogether.
When they were alone, Annabelle was a warm, giving woman. She was constantly touching him, small caring gestures, like stroking his hand or playing with his hair. He didn’t think she was aware of her actions half the time. But unconscious or not, Annabelle showed her emotions in a physical manner. She gave of her affection generously and without thought.
When they were in public, everything was different. Annabelle treated him with an offhanded courtesy that made him grind his teeth until his head ached. She acted as if they were no more than acquaintances who barely knew each other. She smiled and chatted but she held herself physically separate from him. And it hurt. He wanted so much more from her than a grea
t time in bed.
He laughed, but the sound held no humor. Mike was well aware of the fact that most of his single male buddies would think he was out of his mind. After all, he had a beautiful, giving, sensual woman who wanted a hot affair with no strings attached. Most men would get down on their knees and give thanks.
But Annabelle wasn’t just any woman. She was special, and he was greedy. He wanted it all.
Mike prided himself on his patience, but he freely admitted he was quickly reaching the end of his rope with Annabelle. He had no idea why she insisted on keeping their relationship a secret.
It had occurred to him that she might be ashamed to be seen with him. After all, he was a rough-looking, hardworking man. He could wear a suit when need be, but he was more at home on a construction site. Annabelle Lee Murphy, on the other hand, was every inch a lady. But he’d quickly dismissed that thought after spending time with her. She was such a down-to-earth, caring person, and she held nothing of herself back from him when they were alone together.
He knew she was a private person. He could understand not wanting people in your business, but she took it to a whole other level.
Yes, he knew she lacked confidence in herself as a woman, but he’d hoped that everything he’d said and done would have reassured her he was serious about her, about them.
Whatever her reason, he hoped that her reservations and her need for secrecy would be gone soon. It had only been a week, but already he was tired of skulking around. He wanted everyone to know that this lady was his. Mike admitted that the situation left him feeling insecure. He didn’t like it and, damn it, he was going to change it.
Filled with a new determination, Mike collected the items perched on the other seat and climbed out of the truck. Using his hip, he slammed the door shut. He was suddenly in a hurry to get inside.
Uncovering Annabelle Page 10
