A single tear trickled down her cheek as she contemplated going back to her normal life, the life she had before there was John. The book was almost finished; she couldn’t drag the project out forever. And when the book was done, her contract was up and back she’d go to California to get another assignment from her publisher and that would be that. Life would go on almost like it had before. Almost, but not quite. Her life would be bleak and empty for a while because she wouldn’t have John in it anymore, but loneliness was something she knew well. She’d had a lifetime of it. The tears were falling freely now, and Nina was disgusted with herself for being such a wimp. It was true though, that old saying about “you can’t miss what you never had.” But she would know what wasn’t there because she’d had a little taste of John and she knew very well what she’d be missing. It was what she’d missed for most of her life and would never have again.
Just before she abandoned herself to a torrent of tears, her cell phone rang. She knew it was John because she’d programmed the phone to a certain ring when he called. Hastily she wiped her eyes and cleared her throat so she’d sound normal when she answered. “Yes, what is it?” she said in her usual deadpan voice. Despite her angst she smiled upon hearing his voice. “I’m working, of course. What are you doing that you have the leisure to call me during a work day?”
John laughed, “What if I told you I was in the middle of a lecture and I was overwhelmed with the urge to hear your voice?”
“I’d say you were lying because you’re not in a lecture right now. You don’t have another class until two,” she said dryly.
“Miss Parker, my highly efficient superhuman colleague, you need to check your watch. Not only is it three o’clock, but I just gave them a five-minute break so I could hear your voice. Now you have to eat your words, woman.”
Nina gasped and looked at her wristwatch as well as the digital clock on the bedside table. John was right; somehow the time had slipped away from her. For once she was at a loss for words. A soft “Ohh” was all she could say.
John loved her reaction. “Ha! I seem to have rendered you speechless! I’d say that calls for a celebration. How about dinner at Paoli’s tonight?”
“That sounds wonderful. What time should I be ready?”
“I’ll pick you up at seven, so you might want to reset your watch now. Don’t be late or I’ll leave without you.”
“And who’s going to laugh at your lame jokes and admire your manly beauty if not me?” She could have cheerfully bitten her tongue off for that comment about his beauty but John apparently didn’t hear it.
“Listen, chica, my class is coming back. I’ll see you tonight. Take care, baby.”
Nina ended the call and once again her eyes filled with tears. In a ridiculously short period of time John had become as essential to her as breathing but he wasn’t hers to keep, he never could be. If he knew the truth about me, he’d drop me like a bad habit. He’d never get involved with someone like me, never in this world.
Chapter 6
John was in the middle of getting dressed when his cell phone rang. He depressed the talk button impatiently and said hello, then smiled widely as he recognized the voice on the other end. It was his old friend Abe Gold, checking up on him from L.A.
“Abe! It’s good to hear your voice. How’s the family?” John asked.
“Everyone’s fine and sends their love. I hadn’t heard from you in a while and thought I’d better make sure you were staying out of trouble,” Abe answered with his usual dry humor.
“Abe, life couldn’t be any better,” John said honestly. “I feel great, the medication is doing its job, I’m enjoying getting to know my new family and the job is working out well.” He took a deep breath and smiled again. “And I’m falling in love.” He braced himself for Abe’s reaction.
“Don’t tell me, let me guess. I’m assuming you’re smitten with your Miss Parker, right?” Abe knew who Nina was, having met her when he came to Michigan to attend John’s liver transplant. “She’s a lovely woman, but are you sure you’re not confusing gratitude with affection, John?” Abe’s concern for John was evident in his voice and was indicative of their long friendship.
“I thought about that, Abe, but I’m afraid this is the real thing,” John said with a short laugh. “This isn’t some crush on an angelic caretaker because Nina is the total opposite of angelic in behavior. She’s stubborn, sarcastic, and bossy,” he admitted. He checked his goatee in the mirror as he spoke. Conversation with an old friend notwithstanding, he had to make sure he looked his best for Nina.
Abe’s voice was full of doubt when he asked the inevitable question. “You’re sure this isn’t some misplaced devotion? You’re not making her sound very, um appealing.”
John cradled his smartphone under his chin and laughed again while he buttoned his shirt. “Appealing doesn’t begin to describe her, Abe. She’s sweet and funny and underneath all the bricks and mortar of her carefully constructed façade, she’s the most adorable and loving woman in the world. She may fool a lot of people with that act, but she’s not fooling me,” he said confidently.
“I hope you know what you’re doing, John.”
He got serious as he answered his friend. “I know exactly what I’m doing, Abe. I’m falling in love with a beautiful, complicated woman who exhibits the classic symptoms of a woman who’s hiding something. There’s something in her past she doesn’t want anyone to know, I’d bet my medical license on it.” John was silent for a moment as he tried to apply cologne while balancing the phone. Giving up, he added, “All I have to do is get her to trust me enough to tell me what it is and we can live happily ever after.”
“Is that all? Sounds easy enough,” Abe said dryly. “Just watch your back, John. I wouldn’t want to see you get hurt.”
John smiled as he buckled his belt and stepped into his Cole-Haan loafers. “Then you have nothing to worry about, Abe. I don’t know much, yet, but I know Nina would never hurt me. Not for anything in this world.”
***
Despite his cavalier and confident words to Abe, John wasn’t completely devoid of anticipation. He was trying hard not to let it show, but he was as nervous as a sixteen-year-old on his first date. Dating Nina was everything he knew it would be. She was a constant delight to him; her sharp acerbic wit combined with a feminine charm very few people got to see. She was smart, engaging and hilarious and he knew for a fact that she had his back come hell or high water. That alone made Nina different. He’d dated a lot of women in his life, but there was no one who had gone or would go to the lengths Nina had for him. There was nothing she wouldn’t do for him and he knew it. In the relatively brief time they’d known each other she’d become a part of him. He couldn’t read an article or hear a news report without wondering what Nina’s take on it would be. If he saw a preview for a new movie he thought she’d like, he’d automatically make a note to get tickets. It delighted him to think up ways to please her; he was sickeningly eager to see that lovely dimpled smile of hers. And when he could make her laugh, his day was made. Nina was by far the most satisfying woman he’d ever been involved with.
In addition to being lively and interesting, she was passionate beyond belief. When he first met her, John thought she was dry and asexual and he’d never enjoyed being so very wrong about something. It had never occurred to him that Nina would be affectionate, but she was enticingly so. They seemed to always be touching each other, either holding hands or hugging or kissing like their hope of salvation depended on each other’s lips. The nights they stayed in and watched television were like sweet torture. She would be curled up next to him, or they would be reclined on the sofa with her resting on his chest and their legs entwined. And the way she kissed him drove him crazy. There was nothing in the world to compare to it.
John took a deep breath as he maneuvered the car through the streets of Ann Arbor to pick up Nina for their date. He was feeling the familiar stirring in his loins that never went aw
ay when he thought about her. Right now he wanted nothing more than to unite with her completely, to make exquisitely passionate love to her until she knew how much he loved her. Whoa. Where did that come from? What am I thinking, I can’t tell her that, not yet. He laughed at the futility of his protest; anytime you tried that hard to conceal your feelings from someone it was a foregone conclusion they would become glaringly obvious. Sooner or later he was going to spill everything to Nina. How she’d react to it was another story entirely, but he knew a declaration of passion was on its way.
The mere thought of her consumed him and turned him into a mass of unfulfilled desire. He wanted to make love to her so badly it was a physical ache, but one he didn’t know if he could relieve. It had been almost two years since John had been physically intimate with a woman. When his illness first manifested itself, before it had been properly diagnosed, John had a gradual lessening of physical desire combined with a general listlessness and lack of energy. As the disease ran its course, sex was driven completely from his mind. Daily living was challenging enough; the very notion of intimacy was out of the question. After the surgery, though, as he recovered and regained his strength, his normal stamina returned and with it his normal male desires. And each moment he spent with Nina served to increase those desires into a longing so keen it was like a knife piercing his soul.
When Nina opened her door, John got a head rush just looking at her. She looked incredibly lovely in a chocolate brown dress made of some kind of soft knit material. It had a high neckline and long sleeves, and it was rather long, stopping below her knees. Her hair was different; it was loose around her pretty face in an artlessly styled coif that served to emphasize her features. Her only jewelry, besides the thick gold bracelet he’d given her earlier in the year, was a pair of earrings that consisted of smoky topaz set in yellow gold, five delicately graduated stones that swayed with every movement of her head. Her legs looked fantastic as always, especially since she was wearing high heels for change, a pair of strappy mules made of leather embossed to look like snakeskin.
John took a deep breath as he beheld Nina looking like something delicious to eat. “Miss Parker, you look nothing short of amazing. Turn around and let me see the whole effect.”
Nina didn’t move, she just smiled and said John looked equally handsome. “I like that suit, John. And I like you in those band-collared shirts. You look very debonair,” she said softly. “What’s that in your hand?”
John presented her with a box of Godiva truffles. He knew chocolate was a favorite of hers and he’d yet to meet a woman who could resist a truffle. Sure enough, Nina’s eyes glittered like the topazes in her ears when she saw the box. “John, I know it’ll spoil my appetite, but I must have a piece,” she confessed. She took the box from him and turned to put it on the table so she could inspect its bounty.
“Nina! I know you weren’t planning to go out of here in that!” John’s voice boomed so loudly it made Nina drop the box, which luckily landed on the table.
She tried to look guileless, as though she didn’t know what he meant, but when John’s expression didn’t change, she put her back to him so he could see the dress in its entire splendor. The front of the dress was demure, but the back was nonexistent. It was obvious that she wasn’t wearing a bra or anything close to it because the fit of the dress wouldn’t allow it. Nina tried not to laugh but she couldn’t help a kittenish smile, the look on John’s face was too priceless.
“Now, sweetie, don’t look like that.” She removed a truffle and held the box out to John. “Want one?” she asked provocatively before putting the piece in her mouth. John still hadn’t spoken; he was watching her intently as she tasted the chocolate. He could tell from the look of bliss on her face exactly when her tongue pushed through the creamy shell to find the even creamier ganache filling that awaited her. At that moment he pulled her into his arms and covered her mouth with his. The surprise made her lips part just enough to allow him access and he seized the opportunity, sliding his tongue in to join hers in an orgy of sensation, their tongues mating in a molten chocolate bliss. They shared the candy and the kiss while John took advantage of the low back of the dress. His hands stroked and fondled Nina’s willing flesh until she was weak from the dual assault.
When it was finally over, John was the first to speak. He didn’t release Nina from his embrace, he continued to stroke her and murmured into her hair, “I think I’ve lost my appetite for food.”
Nina stretched against John’s body, wrapping her arms around his neck as she planted one more luscious kiss on his lips. “Is that your charmingly discreet way of saying we should go to bed?”
“Yes, it is, Miss Parker.”
“Then let’s go. Bring the candy,” Nina whispered.
Holding hands like childhood sweethearts, John and Nina went into the bedroom. It was pretty standard hotel room fare, with a generic looking bedspread that matched the curtains and carpet, and the ubiquitous quasi-oil painting over the bed. Bedside tables flanked the head of the bed, and Nina had left one lamp lit, as was her custom. The only personal, inviting note in the room was the beautiful vase of flowers sent by John. They looked at the bed and each other and it was then Nina’s knees began shaking.
John, however, showed no signs of nervousness. He set the infamous box of truffles on the bed, and turned Nina so that she was in front of him. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her cheek, her hair and the tempting nape of her neck. “Are you sure you want to do this, baby?” Nina pressed her body against John’s warmth and slid her hands around so they were grasping John’s hips.
“Yes, John, I am.”
They were facing the mirror over the dresser and even to her critical eye they looked incredibly sexy. She stifled a giggle, which made John raise his eyes to hers in the mirror. “What’s so funny? This isn’t a good time to start laughing, trust me,” he growled and traced the outline of her ear with his tongue.
“Look at us, we look pretty hot,” Nina told him.
They looked beautiful together, both of them radiating sensuality and desire, John’s eyes heavy with lust and Nina’s blossoming nipples standing in sharp relief against the supple knit of the dress. John said something in Spanish and cupped Nina’s breasts in his big warm hands while he started kissing down her back.
Nina gasped and started to tremble as John parted the opening of the dress and began to slide it down her shoulders to gain more access to her warm, taut skin. “John,” she breathed, “oh, John…”
John slid the dress of her body and made a sound of pleasure as it puddled around her feet to reveal her fantastic form, wearing nothing but a leopard print thong. He put his hands on her trembling shoulders and slid them down her arms, then scooped her up and put her in the center of the bed. It was his turn to undress, and he kicked of his shoes while he stripped off his sport coat, then his shirt. He reached into the pocket of his pants to retrieve the condoms he carried with him, then unbuckled his belt and began removing his slacks. When he was completely naked, he joined Nina on the bed.
“Damn, you’re beautiful,” he breathed as he reached for her. Their lips met and tongues mingled until John uttered a loud “ouch”. Nina’s stiletto heel had poked him in the calf.
“Sorry,” Nina mumbled and John gave a brief laugh.
“My fault, baby, I should have taken them off but they look so hot on you, I just forgot.”
The lethal shoes cast aside, John began to explore Nina’s body with his lips as his hands began to remove the delicate thong encasing her femininity. He captured a nipple in his mouth and the hot sensation that coursed through his body made him respond with mindless excitement.
“Ouch! Hey, that’s attached to me,” Nina laughingly protested.
“Sorry, baby, I’m just a little too overwhelmed to take it slow, but I’ll try,” he promised. The thong successfully removed, they lay in a warm embrace and kissed softly and slowly to allow the loving to begin in earnest. Now John took
his time and stroked Nina’s breasts, following each stroke with a moist caress of his tongue, gently pulling the nipple into his mouth and feasting on its ripe bud until Nina cried out again, this time with satisfaction. While he was paying tribute to her small, perfect breasts, his fingers were fondling the center of her womanhood, preparing her for what was to come next.
His long fingers sought and found her vaginal opening, moist with the response to his loving. He slipped one finger in, then two, while his thumb massaged her hot juicy pearl, finding it throbbing and ready. He continued to apply his mouth to her breast, sucking and gently nipping the hard, aroused nipple while he increased the erotic pleasure to her clitoris, massaging her until the sudden spurt of warm liquid told him she was about to explode in an orgasm.
Nina was crying John’s name over and over, one hand clenching his broad shoulder while the other hand hung on to his thick braid for dear life. She was feeling things she never knew existed; she was being taken to paradise in John’s arms. Just when she thought the trip was over, John moved over her body and took control of it in a way she’d only read about in Cosmo and Essence. When he was finally able to stop ministering to her breasts, John began kissing his way down her body. He stopped at her navel and she learned for the very first time it wasn’t just a punctuation mark in the middle of her tummy; it was a full-fledged erogenous zone.
“John,” she moaned, “John what are you doing to me?” At least that’s what she meant to say. The sound that actually came out was a low, moaning purr. Her eyes flew open when she realized his ultimate destination. She’d read about “it” but she’d never experienced the art of love in this manner. She had no idea there were so many nerve endings there and no idea how John’s talented tongue was finding them all, but she felt as though she were splintering into billions of tiny planets each in orbit around a great pulsing sun called John. The sensation built in her until she could feel herself levitating off the bed into a spiral of passion that would surely drive her mad if it didn’t stop. “JOHN!”
A Fool for You (The Cochran/Deveraux Series Book 7) Page 6
