His Favorite Mistake (Baby Its Cold Out)

by Mary Eason

  He wondered just what she would say if he told her that, he knew every inch of her body by heart. He grinned, knowing the answer already. She would be embarrassed. She would look at him with that painfully embarrassed expression on her face. The way she looked when anything remotely intimate passed between them. She was still clinging to her illusion of a marriage. Her heart was telling her what she felt for Brody was happening too soon.

  Like it or not, Cade stood between them like an impenetrable wall. There was something about their marriage that Reyna still didn’t trust him with.

  If Reyna found out he’d requested the drug screen, there was little doubt in his mind that she would hate him for not trusting her. In his heart, Brody knew he didn’t have a choice. He had to know the truth and she wouldn’t tell him.

  There had been so many accusations made about her by both Cade and later on, by Cade’s father. Brody needed to confirm for himself what he knew with every fiber of his being. He now knew her better than anyone else on earth, including her husband. There was no possible way on earth that Reyna James was involved with drugs. Once he had the answer in his hands, he did not intend to let her know what he had done. He dared not because he couldn’t risk losing her.

  Reyna slept fitfully throughout most of the day, waking only for brief moments of time. Each time, she called out for him. She needed him and for the moment, just being near her, close enough to touch her, to reassure himself that she was okay, was enough.

  * * * *

  When Reyna woke again, the room around her was dark, but the lights of Denver flickered through the open curtains illuminating the room.

  Brody stood next to the window, turning when he heard her move.

  “You’ve come back to me. How are you feeling?” He stepped closer, looking down at her. When he smiled, she looked away; uncertain of the emotions he no longer tried to hide from her.

  “I feel so much better. My headache is finally gone. What time is it?” she asked a little shyly. She didn’t understand this change in him. They weren’t lovers, but they were far more than friends.

  “It’s late, almost midnight. You’ve been asleep most of the day. I’m glad you’re feeling better.” He reached out to touch her face, tucking a straying lock of hair back behind her ear. She was becoming all too familiar with a gesture. It spoke volumes about the intimate level their relationship had moved to.

  “I know, I guess I was tired.” Reyna could think of only one thing at that moment and that was escape. She needed to get away from him and those eyes that saw too much to understand this change in him. “I…I think I’ll take a bath now.” She sat up a little too quickly. The room around her began to sway uneasily forcing her back down, her hand going to her head automatically.

  “Take it easy. Just sit still for a moment. Why don’t you let me run the bath for you while you relax for a moment?” She wanted to protest but she couldn’t say a single thing.

  When he returned, he quietly picked her up ignoring her futile protest as he carried her into the bathroom.

  “Reyna, there’s no need to be embarrassed. Let me help you.”

  All of a sudden, Reyna was remembering all too clearly, what had happened the last time she’d been in this room. Brody had undressed her then and had helped her into the ice-cold water. She couldn’t even bear to think of that moment. To remember how she must have looked to him.

  “No. No, Brody I can do the rest on my own. Please. I, let me do this on my own.” She saw the way his eyes narrowed and knew he didn’t trust her but he reluctantly he gave in, leaving the room.

  Reyna sank down into the warm water with a cry of sheer satisfaction. She closed her eyes and let the warmth of the water seep into her chilled skin. She washed her hair and felt so much better just having done that small task. The effort had left her drained. She leaned her head back against the tub, unable to lift her arms. She looked up and saw him watching her from the doorway. She knew exactly what he intended to do and she was powerless to stop him. Brody came slowly over to her, his eyes never leaving hers. He pulled the plug from the drain before gently wiping away her tears. Then Brody reached for her as the water left the tub and held her in his lap gently drying her, before helping her into one of his tee shirts. He took the towel and dried her hair tossing it onto a growing heap near the tub.

  “You should go back to bed.” She shook her head. She didn’t want to leave him. She just wanted to be near him. She didn’t want to miss a moment of being with him.

  “No. The last place I want to go is back to bed.” She stopped when she saw him smile. “I’ve spent too much time in bed already.”

  “Okay. Then come with me. We’ll watch a movie together.”

  Reyna sat leaning against him on the sofa, sipping hot soup from a cup, while wrapped in a blanket and was happier than she had ever thought possible. The movie was an old classic something both of them had seen a dozen or more times. She listened as Brody told her about his trip to New York.

  Reyna awoke as the final credits of the movie rolled across the screen. She was lying with her head in Brody’s lap and he had just kissed the nape of her neck, before scooping her up in his arms carrying her into the bedroom.

  He put her in bed and pulled the covers over her. She didn’t want to let him go.

  “Stay with me, Brody. I don’t want you to go. Please, will you stay with me tonight?” Reyna held her breath wondering what had possessed her to ask him that. She thought at first, he would refuse, but then he turned out the lights and she heard the soft whisper as he undressed and lay beside her, drawing her into his arms.

  She could feel the way his heart raced. She’d never felt closer to him than at this moment. She’d never wanted him more. Her arms circled his body and he grew tense.

  “Go to sleep, okay? You’re tired, and I don’t want to do something I’ll spend the rest of the night hating myself for.” He turned her in his arms so he could look into her eyes and she saw the control he was holding onto. “I want you, Reyna, and I know that you want me. Not like this. Not when you’re still sick. I want all of you. Your body, your mind, your emotions. All of you.” He settled her back against him, his hand gently stroking down her arm and she was content just to be near him, knowing he wanted her. Now nothing else on earth mattered much. Not Cade, not the pain of the past. Not the truth that she would only be a passing fantasy for Brody. Nothing mattered but the man holding her close.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “We’re still going to Aspen, aren’t we, Brody?” Reyna watched him across the small dining room table and remembered. She’d awakened that morning feeling almost back to normal, in spite of being incredibly weak. It was late and she was surprised to find Brody still sleeping beside her. She still couldn’t believe he’d left the meeting in New York simply because of her. He had flown through three time zones and spent several sleepless nights watching out for her. He deserved to sleep in.

  She turned to watch him while he slept. His handsome face softened in sleep, making him look much younger than his thirty-five years. Reyna reached out to touch his chin. She could feel the rough stubble of his beard. Her eyes slipped over his bare chest. Her fingers trailed softly across the wide expanse. She could feel the silkiness of the sparse dark hair there. She wanted to reach out and kiss him. She wanted to be back in his arms.

  A strong hand wrapped around her wrist stilling her fingers. “What do you think you’re doing?” Her eyes flew to his. He sounded very angry. She tried to pull her hand free of his but he merely lifted it to his lips kissing her palm slowly, his touch sending little shivers of pleasure down her spine, awakening a need buried inside of her. She needed more of him. He watched her closely with nothing remotely akin to anger in his eyes. Brody wanted her almost as much as she wanted him.

  There could be no hiding the truth from him now. He could see everything, all the desire reflected in her eyes. He had to know how much she’d waited for this moment.

  He moved closer,
his hand reaching up to clasp the side of her face. That long slow smile did terrible things to her nerves, sent color rushing over her body. She heard him laugh, it sounded almost as sexy as that smile. He kissed her slowly, seductively and she clung to him, responding eagerly to his expert touch. He coaxed her lips apart and the tip of his tongue explored the softness of her mouth.

  Brody gathered her close, his hands running over her body. Even through the thin tee shirt, she could feel the slight tremor in them. He slipped his hand under her shirt stroking her thigh. Then slowly, maddeningly he stroked upward, touching every part of her. His thumb stroked across her belly upward to her ribcage before caressing her breasts. They hardened beneath his touch. She’d never felt this way before. Not even with Cade.

  Brody whispered something to her, but she couldn’t understand over the racing beat of both their hearts. His lips left hers, trailing kisses along the pounding pulse in her throat before touching her ear.

  “Open your eyes, love. I want to see your eyes when I make love to you.”

  She did as he asked. The desire in Brody’s eyes turned them to a midnight blue. It took her breath away. Slowly, he lifted the shirt as a treacherous thought raced through her mind. How could she keep from betraying how much she loved him if she went through with this? This might be commonplace for Brody, but she’d only been with one other man in her life and that had turned out disastrous. With Brody, she’d been waiting for this moment for so long. Even before Cade’s death. Would he guess how she felt about him once he’d made love to her? Would he hate her for it?

  That thought washed over her like a cold breeze. Her voice was unrecognizable when she reached out to stop him. “No. Brody, please. I…I can’t do this. I can’t.”

  “It’s okay. I should have realized it’s too soon. I’m rushing you. I’m sorry, I don’t want to rush you, I just want you so badly. It’s hard to be close to you and not… It’s okay. I’ll wait for you until you are ready. We have all the time in the world.”

  He turned her in his arms looking down at her, his thumbs brushing away her tears.

  “I don’t want you to have any doubts. When we make love, I want all of you. You understand?”

  She did. He didn’t want her to have any regrets. He didn’t want any either. She accepted him as her friend, even though she couldn’t trust herself not to reveal the truth to him. She wanted him to be her lover. One day, as they both knew, nothing on earth would stop that from coming true.

  “Now, unless you can think of a way to eat with an empty refrigerator, one of us is going to have to leave this bed, and I think that someone should be me, don’t you? Why don’t you just relax for a while? I’m going to take a shower.” He kissed her on her cheek before getting out of bed.

  Too late, Reyna remembered he was naked. She’d begged him to stay with her. She watched him walk across the room every bit the confident male, not at all embarrassed. Brody had many lovers in the past. He knew one day, they would be lovers as well. It was there in everything about his relaxed, assured manner.

  One day soon, the decision would be taken from her. Brody was patient, but he was also used to getting what he wanted. He wanted her. Brody would take her and they both knew that nothing, no barrier she might put in his way, would stop that moment from happening.

  He turned and caught her eyes on his body and he smiled that slow, maddening smile. Reyna looked away as embarrassed color she couldn’t control touched her body. He laughed confidently.

  “Want to join me?” Startled, her gaze went back to his face and he laughed again. “Forget I said that. That’s much too tempting and far too dangerous to think about right now.”

  He closed the door. She heard the sound of the shower running. She could breathe again.

  Reyna got out of bed. She needed to put as much space as possible between herself and the man in the next room before she gave into her love for him and went after him.

  Now, sitting across from him at the tiny dining room table, she was even more aware of him, of everything about him than ever before. The fresh smell of his skin. The sound of his breath. The way his smile made her weak all over.

  “Is that what you want? To go to Aspen?” She did. She had from the moment he’d told her about the house.

  Brody bought the house six months earlier on an impulse. That intrigued her all the more. Brody wasn’t an impulsive person for the most part. In business, he weighed every decision very carefully before committing to anything. The very fact he had been driving home from spending a long weekend in Aspen, had simply stumbled across the house, and put a deposit on it the very same day amazed her. When Brody had first told her the story, Reyna couldn’t resist asking him what it had been about the house that made him fall in love with it just like that.

  “I don’t know. I guess it was just the potential I saw there. It’s nothing special, just an old farmhouse that’s been restored, but when I look at it, I see families gathering around a huge Christmas tree in the great room. I see turkey dinners, Santa Claus, babies, the whole nine yards. I guess that doesn’t make much sense, does it? I see the house as it should be. Full of love and family.”

  Reyna did understand. Only too well, in fact. That was one of the things they had in common. Neither had come from a traditional family environment. It made them both wonder what they’d missed. Brody rarely talked about his dreams for the future. She’d never heard him mention kids before. He would be a wonderful father. Picturing him with the unknown woman who would someday be his wife was more painful than Reyna could bear to think about.

  She smiled across at him, nodding. She could see his resistance give way.

  “I’ll talk to Doctor Stephens. We’ll go if he gives you the okay. Otherwise, he’ll never forgive me if I take you against his orders.”

  The drive to the small Aspen town closest to Brody’s house took most of the day. They left the city Thanksgiving morning soon after the parade ended taking the ruck. The storm that struck Denver hadn’t lasted long. The roads were almost cleared, but traffic was nonexistent.

  It was a cold, clear, fall day when they arrived at the house just outside of town. They hadn’t planned to have a Thanksgiving dinner, but they’d picked up something bordering on traditional Thanksgiving at a restaurant along the way.

  From the moment she walked in the door, Reyna knew the house was going to be everything she’d expected it to be. She could definitely see Brody in each room of the house.

  The house was a two-story, log cabin that had been decorated beautifully in rustic mountain décor.

  After they carried in the makeshift dinner and their bags, Brody gave her a quick tour of the house, ending up back in the huge kitchen dominated by the gray stone fireplace. “It’s beautiful, Brody. I love it.”

  She was aware of him watching her as he showed her through the room. He was looking for her reaction. When she turned to him, her eyes shining with happiness, something came and went in his expression so quickly that it left her uncertain.

  They spent the afternoon sitting by the fire in the great room, playing cards. Outside, a light powdery snow fell. The restaurant had one lonely fruit pie left. They made that their dinner eating pie and drinking coffee while listening to CDs.

  On several different occasions, Reyna caught Brody watching her closely. She was almost certain something was bothering him. She finally found the courage to ask him what it was. She held her breath, dreading his answer more than anything else at that moment.

  What would she do if he told her it was time for him to move on with his life? If he no longer wanted her to be a part of it? Fear tightened deep in the pit of her stomach. How could she ever be able to survive without him?

  He stood and walked nervously away from her, over to the window before running an unconscious hand through his hair. Brody was nervous? She’d never seen him nervous before.

  “Reyna, I need to ask you something very personal. It’s something I need to hear from you now, while
I’m still thinking clearly. Before we…before we make love. There’s no easy way to ask you this that won’t embarrass you, so I’ll just ask it. Are you using birth control? I know since Cade’s death there hasn’t been anyone in your life so…” He stopped and looked cautiously at her. “I think we should discuss this now, while I’m still thinking somewhat reasonably.”

  Reyna released the breath she had been holding inside, her shocked eyes meeting his only briefly before looking anywhere but at him. How could she possibly tell him the truth that she had never used birth control. Cade hadn’t like using a condom. She’d considered birth control but after a few weeks of marriage, there hadn’t been the need anymore. Cade had lost interest in her.

  “Please, don’t be embarrassed. Just tell me.” At the gentle pleading in his voice, she shook her head unable to say the words aloud. He closed the space between them touching her cheek gently.

  “I thought not, but I needed to know for certain.” He sounded strangely relieved. As if a weight had been lifted. She didn’t understand.

  Reyna was beginning to feel the effects of being so ill. By early evening, she couldn’t keep her eyes open any longer. Brody stood and pulled her up with him. “Bedtime for you I think. Come on, I’ll walk you up to your room.” He was being so careful with her again. Not mentioning the hunger they both couldn’t deny; he was waiting for her to come to him when she was ready.

  Outside her bedroom door, Brody kissed her gently. “I’ll see you in the morning, okay? If you need me, just call out. Sleep well.”

  * * * *

  Brody watched as she closed the door softly before returning to the great room. It felt empty without her. He cleared away the remains of the pie and poured more coffee. Outside, tiny flakes of snow were still falling. There hadn’t been enough to make the roads hazardous but it had made the day seem even more special.