Slow Burn (A Madaris Family Novel)

by Jackson, Brenda

  Skye had seen the Clintons shortly after that, along with Oprah. When she spotted George Clooney standing by the terrace talking to fellow movie actor Sterling Hamilton, she thought she’d died and gone to heaven. Later, Christy had introduced her to Sterling, who was considered a close family friend because of his friendship with Christy’s uncle Jake. Skye had also been introduced to Sterling’s beautiful wife, Colby, as well as another couple who were close friends of Jake’s—Kyle and Kimara Garwood. When they’d walked away from the couple, Skye had almost flipped when Christy had whispered to her just how many kids they had. She shook her head. Unbelievable.

  Skye smiled. She was really enjoying her friendship with Christy. Not only were they the same age, but their birthdays were just days apart. And she could tell from talking to Christy that she had a very close relationship to Slade, Blade, and Luke and simply adored her three older cousins.

  Christy checked her watch. “I wonder what’s taking Alex so long to get here.”

  Skye had wondered the same thing about Slade. “I’m sure it was pretty hectic getting from the airport. He’ll be here soon.”

  Christy smiled. “God, I hope so. I miss him so much. I wanted to go with him on this trip, but he felt it best that I stay home this time.”

  Skye nodded. Last night after she and Christy had come in from the movie—a new Denzel release the two of them had practically drooled through most of the scenes of—Christy had told Skye all about her love for her husband, a love that had lasted from the time she’d been thirteen. She’d also told Skye about her adventure two years ago when she’d gotten kidnapped.

  “I can’t wait for you to meet Alex,” Christy was saying. “He is simply wonderful.”

  Skye took a sip of her wine before she was tempted to say that she thought Slade was simply wonderful, too, when she turned and noticed what had to be one of the most gorgeous men she’d ever seen. He was standing across the room talking to Jake Madaris. It was apparent he wasn’t from this country but was from the Middle East.

  “Who is that?” she asked in a strained voice. The man was smiling at whatever Jake was saying, and his smile…oh my gosh! It was simply beautiful. He was tall and had dark piercing eyes. The color of his skin was a medium brown, and straight black hair flowed loosely around his shoulders. He was dressed in a business suit, and it was apparent the outfit cost a lot.

  Christy followed the direction of Skye’s gaze and grinned. “He’s simply gorgeous, isn’t he? Alex is handsome, but the sheikh is in a class by himself.”

  Skye’s brow rose. “The sheikh?”

  “Yes, Sheikh Rasheed Valdemon. He’s the one I was telling you about, who bought me for a million dollars from those bad guys to get me out of harm’s way.” Christy chuckled. “Of course he never had to pay the million dollars.”

  As far as Skye was concerned, it didn’t matter. She couldn’t imagine being close enough to the man to breathe the same air. Christy was right. Skye thought that Slade was an extremely good-looking man, but the sheikh took “good-looking” and gave it an all new definition.

  “Skye Barclay?”

  Skye quickly turned, wondering who on earth at this party would know her. She smiled when she saw it was Congressman Baines and his son, Senator Ryan Baines. It had been the senator who’d spoken. It then occurred to her that most of the time when the two men were together, it was the congressman and not the senator who did most of the talking. Although the senator was always friendly to her, she’d always gotten the impression—and to be honest she really didn’t know why—that he avoided her whenever he could, which really didn’t make sense. But the congressman did just the opposite. She couldn’t recall a time during any part of her childhood that he hadn’t been a part of it.

  She smiled and quickly gave the congressman a huge hug. She hadn’t seen him in quite a while.

  “Congressman Baines, how are you?” She then turned to the senator and offered him her hand. “And how are you doing, Senator Baines?”

  “I’m fine, Ms. Barclay, and you?”

  “I’m fine also.” She then introduced the two men to Christy.

  “I’m curious as to why you’re so far from home,” the senator said, looking at her curiously. “Do you know Senator Lansing?”

  Skye shook her head. “No, I just met him tonight. However, since I’m here visiting with the Madaris family over the summer, I—”

  “You’re visiting the Madaris family?” the senator asked, seemingly surprised.

  Skye smiled. “Yes, in a way.” She met the congressman’s gaze, knowing her father confided in him about a lot of things. “I’m sure my parents told you that once I discovered I was adopted, I wanted to find my biological brother.”

  The congressman nodded. “Yes, but I thought they said you had made a trip to a town near Dallas.”

  “I had. But since my brother, Vincent, was spending the summer here with his family, the invitation was also extended to me to come for the summer as well.”

  The congressman smiled. “That was very kind of his family.”

  “Hello, beautiful.”

  At that moment a very handsome man walked up and placed a kiss on Christy’s lips. Skye immediately assumed it was Christy’s husband. Introductions were made and when Christy introduced him she said, her eyes glowing with love, “I want everyone to meet the best private investigator in the entire world: Alexander Maxwell.”

  Skye couldn’t help but grin. All last night Christy had sung her husband’s praises. Skye shook the man’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Alex.”

  He smiled. “Likewise.” He was then introduced to the congressman and senator.

  “I hear you’re almost a man wonder at finding people, Alex,” Skye said jokingly. “It took the private detective I hired almost a year to find Vincent. When I’m ready to locate my biological father, I’ll make sure and give you a call.”

  Alex chuckled as he brought Christy closer to his side. “Yes, you do that. I’d be happy to take you on as a client.”

  “Hello everyone.”

  Skye swallowed. She would recognize that deep masculine voice anywhere. She turned and met Slade’s smiling eyes. “Slade. Welcome back,” she said, smiling at him and at the moment not caring who saw how glad she was to see him.

  He came to stand next to her. “Thanks. And I’m glad to be back.” He said hello to Christy and Alex, and then he glanced over at the two men he didn’t know. Skye quickly introduced him to the congressman and senator.

  Slade then glanced over at Skye. “Would you like to dance?”

  Skye stared up into what she thought was Slade’s gorgeous dark eyes. She had missed him. The time she had spent with Vincent had helped, but late at night when she’d been alone in her bed she had thought of Slade. She had hoped that he would call her, but he hadn’t. But maybe that had been a good thing, since it had given her time to think. There was a reason she and Slade had met the way they had, a purpose to why they had connected so easily, establishing first friendship and then a level of intimacy that took her breath away just thinking about it.

  “Yes, I’d like that,” she said, smiling up at him. She turned to everyone else. “Excuse us.” She then walked away with Slade toward the area where other couples were dancing.

  The moment Slade pulled Skye into his arms he leaned down and whispered, “If only you knew how much I missed you.”

  A sensuous shiver raced down Skye’s spine with his words, and she seemingly melted into him. He held her close, and at that moment she didn’t care who might be watching and assuming there was more between them than mere friendship. This was Slade, the man she loved, and a part of her wished she could tell him just how she felt.

  Slade was also having a hard time holding on to his emotions. Holding Skye this way—in their first dance together—reminded him of how wonderful it felt to hold her in his arms, whether standing or lying down. At the moment he ached to lie down somewhere with her, make love to her, claim her as the wo
man he wanted in his life for always.

  When he had walked into the party and seen her, everything and everyone else in the room had faded into a state of non-existence. His eyes had been trained solely on her. She looked radiant in the gown she was wearing, a vision of beauty that nearly had him breathless. It was slinky and sexy all rolled into one, and he couldn’t imagine any other woman wearing it. It seemed to have been made for her and her alone.

  Thinking he needed to talk to take his mind off of leaning down and kissing her right then and there, he said, “I see you aren’t the only person from Maine here tonight.”

  She smiled up at him. “No, it’s nice seeing the congressman and senator here. But then there are so many other important people here as well.” Her eyes widened. “I even saw a sheikh.”

  Slade released a soft chuckle. “That was Rasheed. He’s a close friend of the family.”

  “It seems the Madarises have a lot of friends.”

  “Yes, they do.”

  At that moment the music ended, but Slade didn’t release her, so Skye assumed they would remain on the dance floor for the next song. But then he leaned down and said, “Please come outside with me for a minute.”

  It was hard for Skye to swallow. She nodded and Slade took her hand in his and led her outside on the terrace. When they kept walking, she asked, “Where are we going?”

  He smiled down at her. “For a walk.”

  She lifted a brow. “At night?”

  Slade chuckled. “There’s a well-lit walking path on the other side of this patio.”

  “Oh.”

  She noted how beautiful the night was and that the lit trail they were following was lined with numerous bluebonnets. They kept walking, neither saying anything but both enjoying the beauty of their surroundings. She and Christy had arrived before it had gotten dark, and Skye had seen the beauty of the Whispering Pines ranch. This was definitely a working ranch, and its beauty was absolutely spellbinding.

  When they were a good distance away from the terrace, Slade stopped walking and turned to her. As though their minds were on the same page and their desires in sync, she tilted her head back the moment he leaned his down. His arms slid around her waist the same moment hers slid around his neck.

  “Skye.”

  He whispered her name in a voice that sounded achingly low, unbearably sexy, and then their mouths connected on a blissful sigh. His hand moved from her waist to settle in the small of her back and bring her body closer to the fit of him at the same time he deepened the kiss.

  Slade thought this was heaven. The sweet, succulent taste of her always amazed him, always made him greedier for more. Desire ripped through every part of him, making his already hot body even hotter. A helpless groan murmured from deep in his throat, and he continued to taste her while she was doing likewise and tasting him as she mated with his tongue, enveloping it in the wet warmth of hers.

  He finally pulled back but gathered her closer to him, breathing in deeply while holding her in his arms. God, he’d needed that, but it only made the desire in him that much keener, sharper. He looked down at her, felt the love that was overflowing in his heart almost hit a bursting point. He inhaled deeply, needing to get things in control, but that kiss had his entire body spinning.

  “You’re going back to your place tonight, right?” he asked, not sure if she’d made plans to spend another night over at Christy’s.

  She looked up at him, smiled, and leaned closer when she whispered, “No. I was hoping that I was going back to yours.” She could tell by the look that flickered in his eyes that he was surprised by her response.

  His voice was packed with desire when he reached out and touched her chin with the tip of his finger. “Baby, if that’s what you want, then that’s what you’ll get.”

  “And what if I told you that’s not all I want?” she asked with a little laugh.

  “Then I would say that your wish tonight will be my every command.”

  “And what if I were to tell you that your wish tonight will be my every command as well, Slade?”

  He chuckled softly. “Then I would say I can’t wait to leave here.”

  She shook her head, grinning. “You just got here. It’s too soon to say good night and leave.”

  He knew she was right. What she didn’t know was that the wait to get her back to his place would probably kill him. But he would wait because he knew she was worth it.

  He leaned down and kissed her lips again, thinking so what if they were missing a good party? They were doing their own brand of celebrating right here.

  “Did I tell you just how beautiful you look tonight in that dress, Diana?” Nedwyn asked as he and Diana moved around the dance floor.

  She smiled up at him, glad Marilyn had convinced her to buy it. From the moment he’d arrived to pick her up, he had let her know that he really liked her in this particular dress. “Yes, you did, several times, but you can tell me again and it won’t hurt my feelings.”

  He chuckled softly. “Okay then. Diana, I really think you’re absolutely stunning in this dress. But then I think you’re beautiful in anything that you wear.”

  A sweet shudder went through her with his words. “Ned, that’s so kind of you to say something like that.”

  “I’m not being kind; I’m being honest.”

  Diana didn’t know what to say after that other than, “Thank you.”

  Nedwyn pulled her closer to the fit of him, but decently so, since he knew that with him being the honoree, a lot of eyes were on them. Saying she looked beautiful in that dress had been an understatement. The moment he had walked into her house and seen her in it, something inside of him, something he’d held under control for a number of years, had fought to escape.

  His intense desire for her.

  He doubted she even realized what she did to him, even without trying. Whenever he was around her he was like a schoolkid around the girl he had a crush on, only what he was enduring was the wants and desires of a full-grown man. A man who didn’t need Viagra to stimulate his sexual urges. Diana being Diana was the only stimulant he needed.

  They were both given guest cottages for the weekend and would remain at Whispering Pines until Sunday afternoon. He had to fly to Savannah on Wednesday regarding some rental properties he had there, and he wanted to ask her to go with him. Would she? She’d flown to D.C. to be his escort for several functions, but they’d never actually flown anywhere together, just the two of them, mainly to avoid people speculating about their relationship. He was no longer a public servant, and he wanted to begin spending more time with the woman he loved.

  “There’s something I want to ask you about later, after the party. If you’re not too tired, would it be okay if I drop by your cottage later?”

  She gazed at him questioningly and then said, “Yes. I think Jake and Diamond put us in adjoining cottages.”

  He nodded. Jake had at his request, but he wouldn’t tell her that yet. “I’ll call you on your cell phone, and if you’re too tired for company, I’ll understand.”

  She shook her head. “I doubt I’ll be tired, so you dropping by later will be fine.”

  “Thank you.”

  They continued to dance. Diana couldn’t help wondering what Ned wanted to ask her. She would look forward to later tonight when she found out.

  CHAPTER 21

  Slade could barely hold himself in check when he and Skye stepped onto the elevator to go up to his condo. At the end of the party when most of the invited guests had left, Christy and Alex had gathered the family together to announce they were having a baby.

  Slade smiled, remembering the moment and not sure who the news affected the most, his aunt and uncle, who were thrilled at the thought of becoming grandparents again, or his three cousins—Justin, Dex, and Clayton. They’d always been overprotective toward their baby sister and the thought that Christy was having a baby had deeply touched them. At least it wasn’t a mystery anymore as to why Great-Gramma Lavern
e had been dreaming about fish.

  Slade glanced over at Skye. The hour-long drive from Whispering Pines had tested his endurance, and he had appreciated her attempt at making things easier on him by discussing a number of topics, from the recent political scandal to the movie she and Christy had seen the other night. He had heard what Skye was saying, but he hadn’t really been listening. His mind had been centered on one thing, and that was making love to her again.

  In the tight confines of his car, her scent had gotten to him and he had wanted her even more with each lung-filled breath he’d taken. And now he was as helpless as a newborn puppy. He had put up a valiant battle while at the party, but now he was quickly losing the fight. Especially when memories encroached his mind of how things had been with them the last time they’d shared a bed. And now that love had been added to the equation, it was taking all he had to retain his sanity until he got her up to his place. But as soon as the elevator door swooshed shut, sealing them inside, the question that suddenly flared through his mind was…why wait?

  It was late, almost two in the morning, the building was quiet, and other than the security doorman downstairs, there wasn’t another living soul stirring. Besides, this particular elevator was a private one that only went to certain floors. It was like having an elevator all to themselves.

  Slade turned to Skye. She saw the look and the intent in the darkness of his eyes and backed up a little and chuckled. “You’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking, are you?”

  A slow smile spread across his lips as he began removing his jacket. “Yes, I probably am,” he said, dropping the jacket to the floor. He then snatched off the tie from around his neck.

  She backed up some more. “Don’t you think we ought to wait until we get up to your place?”

  He chuckled as he tossed his tie to join his jacket on the marble floor. “You can initiate foreplay anywhere.” She probably wouldn’t be interested to know that his cousin Clayton had shared that piece of advice with him a few years ago. Nor would she be interested to hear that Clayton believed as long as you had a private spot, you could make love to your woman just about anywhere and anytime you pleased. Clayton’s philosophy was that mundane constituted boredom, but variety was the spice of life.