After the Storm

by Amy Knupp

  Nadia reached across the desk and grabbed her laptop from her mom’s workspace. “I assume you can take it from here? I was supposed to get back to Tessa on the marketing campaign several hours ago. I haven’t even started looking at the final materials and I’m sure she’s gone home by now.”

  “You’ll be around if I have any more questions?”

  Pausing in the doorway, Nadia said, “Of course. Staying in communication has always been our way.”

  Until recently. Until her mom had decided a man was more important than the family business.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  THE NEXT DAY AT 9:47 A.M., Nadia had yet to leave the hotel. She’d stolen an hour-long nap in her hotel room around four in the morning, but unfortunately her room was on the north end and the temperature was starting to climb to uncomfortable levels. She’d woken up in a sweat, taken a quick shower and returned to her office.

  She and Tessa, the marketing manager, had been locked away hammering out changes to the marketing materials for almost an hour. Tessa had just left, and in thirteen minutes, Nadia was expected to be at the weekly executive meeting with her mom and the other directors and managers.

  Her eyes burned and her body tensed at the thought of sitting at a table with her mother and pretending nothing was wrong.

  Screw it. She couldn’t do it. Not this time.

  For the first time ever in the four years she’d been on the management team, Nadia was going to deliberately, emphatically skip a meeting. And maybe she was being immature, but she wasn’t going to tell her mother in advance, either.

  Without giving it more thought, she shut down her laptop and closed it, grabbed her purse and left everything else behind.

  She was grateful no one saw her sneak from her office to the parking lot. She had no interest in explaining herself, not to mention no real excuse other than exhaustion, which wasn’t an abnormal state for her. Exhaustion and, okay, she could admit it, irritation.

  Just as she was about to open the door to the outside, doubt hit her. What if she missed something important? What if Tessa needed her to help her explain their last-minute changes? Shaking her head, she shut the questions down and went outside. She was too tired to say anything coherent, anyway, she told the nagging voice of guilt that persisted in trying to make her turn around.

  The sky was overcast, which added to her uncharacteristic need for refuge. She ducked her head and jogged to her car.

  A gust of wind pushed her door shut before she was ready, nearly catching her purse. It was nothing compared to the storm winds of a few weeks ago, but thank God they’d taken care of the loose roof unit last night.

  Along with the wind came a sudden downpour, and she leaned back against the headrest, telling herself the sound of the rain hitting the roof and the isolation were exactly what she needed.

  Maybe it was the fatigue and the remnants of last night’s stress, but instead of peace, she felt…alone.

  Since she’d been out of college and working with her mom, they’d rarely had disagreements. In general, the hotel had been the priority for both of them, and they worked well together. She couldn’t say why she resented her mom’s recent decisions to take time away, but she did.

  Nadia jammed her keys into the ignition, started the car and sat there leaning her head against the side window, wondering where the hell to go. She sucked at playing hooky.

  Penn would be home.

  The thought came out of nowhere, but once she had it, she couldn’t deny she wanted to see him. Maybe there was a subconscious—or not so subconscious—idea, too, that if her mom could skip out to spend time with a man, then so could she.

  She turned on the BMW’s windshield wipers and pulled out of the parking lot, heading toward Penn’s building.

  The lot was half-empty, probably due to the midmorning hour and people being at work, so she was able to park close. She glanced at her reflection in the mirror on the visor and questioned what she was doing here. She looked like, well, like she hadn’t slept for a couple of days. The shower and minimal makeup this morning hadn’t done much to disguise that. But she’d seen Penn during some low times, when he hadn’t looked his best.

  She forced herself out of the car and walked down the sidewalk toward his building, thankful the rain had stopped. When she turned the last corner, she recognized Cooper heading in her direction and her step faltered.

  “Hey, Nadia.” He gave her a knowing grin.

  “Hi, Cooper. Is Penn home?”

  “Sure is. Go on in. The door’s unlocked. He’s in his room.”

  Cooper walked on by, seeming in a hurry, and she tried to calm her nerves. Penn might not want to see her. He might still be upset from the other evening. She should have thought to pick up some cookies, but she was tired of coming up with excuses—to herself as well as to Penn—for why she kept stopping by.

  She was here because she wanted to see Penn. Maybe he needed some company as much as she did.

  When she got to the condo, she hesitated before twisting the knob and opening the door as Cooper had suggested.

  “Hello?” she said into the silence.

  She could see from here that the door to his room was mostly closed. With her heart hammering, she made her way down the hall and stood outside his room, listening. “Penn?”

  When he still didn’t respond, she pushed his door open, suspecting he was asleep. Should she have walked away at that point and let him sleep? Probably. But if she was going to start second-guessing her decisions, she had a handful to get through just from the past half hour. It was a little late for that.

  It took several seconds for her eyes to adjust to the relative darkness, but she could see enough to set her heart pumping double-time. Penn was stretched out on his back, one arm propped behind his head, one resting on his bare abdomen. Gray cutoff sweatpants sat low on his hips and covered his legs to the knee. His upper body was beautifully naked. She allowed her gaze to linger there, admiring the solidness of his pecs, the ridges of his abs.

  She moved closer and watched his face for a sign that he was faking sleep. It looked like he hadn’t shaved yesterday, and she wanted to touch the stubble on his chin. She sat on the edge of the bed, expecting him to awaken. His steady breathing continued. The sound was lulling, peaceful. Especially alluring to a girl who was seriously sleep-deprived.

  Nadia slipped her shoes off and leaned forward, bracing her weight on the mattress. He still didn’t stir. She stretched her body out against him, slid her arm across his middle and rested her head next to his shoulder.

  After the way they’d left things the last time they’d seen each other—with him walking off mad—there was a better than average chance he wouldn’t be happy to find her here. She’d deal with that when it happened. Right now she was too drowsy and too comfortable to work up much concern.

  * * *

  PENN TRIED TO LOWER HIS ARM from above his head and ran into…something. Someone. What the…?

  “Nadia?”

  With his other hand, he rubbed his blurry eyes and confirmed that Nadia was indeed draped across him.

  He’d finally broken down at close to three in the morning and taken one of the sleeping pills his doctor had given him. He wasn’t sure he’d so much as stirred after that. It was the hardest he’d slept since his back had given out. Now he was having the damnedest time waking up. An even harder time figuring out the day and time.

  Judging by the light coming through his window, it was daytime. He raised his arm again, the one on Nadia’s side, and squinted at his watch—10:22 a.m. Wednesday.

  Where was Coop and what the hell was Nadia doing here?

  Not that he was complaining.

  She’d been on his mind ever since she’d dropped him off the other night. On his mind and in his dreams. In spite of the unsettled, unhappy note they’d parted on.

  He breathed in deeply, relishing the hint of vanilla and shampoo from her hair, just inches from his nose. Shifting enough to low
er his arm, he wrapped it around her, resting his hand at her waist. Her blouse had come untucked from her skirt, and he couldn’t get enough of the silky feel of her skin. He couldn’t have stopped his body from responding if he’d wanted to.

  “Nadia, what are you doing here?” he whispered.

  She mumbled and moved slightly, curling more closely against him.

  That was a good enough answer for him. He gave in to the grogginess again and drifted back to sleep.

  The next thing Penn was aware of, God only knew how much later, was Nadia’s leg sliding over his. And then immediately after, his blood pounding southward. Her chin nuzzled his chest and he touched her golden hair. She made a sleepy, sexy sound, her eyes still shut. He’d have to be dead not to want to kiss her.

  Penn cleared his throat. “Aren’t you supposed to be at work?” he asked, his voice rough.

  She lifted her head and blinked her eyes slowly open. Mesmerizing sky-blue eyes with long sleepy lashes. He swallowed hard and fought the need to lift her more fully on top of him. Even though he felt no pain as he lay flat on his back, his body would protest any effort of the sort.

  “I wanted to see you, make sure you recovered from Monday night,” she said.

  “See me? Or sleep on top of me?”

  “Both, apparently.” The shy grin she gave him didn’t help his fight to ignore the heat that was building. “Sorry. I didn’t sleep much last night.”

  It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her she could sleep on him anytime.

  “Your back is better than the other night?”

  “It’s fine. I pushed too hard then.”

  Nadia shifted, bringing her lips an inch from him and, damn, she had a way of setting him on fire. Her lashes lowered as she glanced down at his lips. Every muscle in his body tensed as he anticipated contact.

  “I’m not going to kiss you,” she whispered. “This time you have to kiss me.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  PENN DIDN’T NEED ANY encouragement to silence the arguments in his head and take what Nadia offered.

  He drew her mouth to his, his hand at her nape. When their lips touched, everything else faded away. He became lost in the taste of her, the softness of her mouth, the heat of her tongue as it twisted with his. He touched her greedily. Her silken hair, her slender torso just beneath her ribs, her delicate jawline.

  Her knee slid to the other side of him, centering her body on his. She pulled away just enough to look him in the eyes as if having second thoughts.

  He drew her back to his mouth, hungrily, aching for more of her. All of her.

  He ran his hands down her sides, inward at the waist, flaring out over her hips. If anyone had told him three weeks ago, when he’d been in the worst pain of his life, that he’d have this sexy hourglass-shaped woman climbing on top of him, he wouldn’t have believed it for a second. Now it seemed natural to have Nadia in his bed. Natural and as necessary as air.

  He palmed her ass and drew her lower body into his, which elicited an arousing moan from her. His hands continued their journey downward, until they found the bare flesh of her thighs where her short skirt had ridden up. Her legs were firm, muscular. The hem of her skirt teased his knuckles and he trailed his hands up under it. Farther, still, beneath her satiny panties.

  Nadia’s breath caught. She fit their bodies together, making him crazy with need. He wanted her naked, every last inch.

  Trying to slow down and regain an ounce of control, he moved his hands back to her waist. She was so small, so feminine in his hands, and that unleashed an odd, primal possessiveness he didn’t know he had in him.

  She raised her upper body, strands of her hair draping over him, and pressed her hips into him. An appreciative growl came from deep in his throat. His hands roved upward and he explored the lace-covered curves of her breasts, inching his way beneath the material. With one hand, he reached behind her and released the snap. He couldn’t get enough of her.

  Nadia leaned down and they kissed again, a light, erotic teasing that left him breathless. She lifted her head and peered down at him, her lids heavy with lust. Penn ran his fingers over her jaw, pushed her hair back. Her lips curved into a lazy, sensual smile. “You’re okay, right?” she asked.

  He leaned up to reassure her with a kiss and swore under his breath as pain jabbed at him. That motion was apparently a no-go. The pull in his lower back wasn’t as bad as two nights ago but it was enough to make him stop in his tracks, so to speak.

  “You’re not okay.” Nadia seemed to snap out of lust mode and sat up quickly. “Why didn’t you say something?”

  He collapsed on the pillow and threw his head back. Closed his eyes. Wanted to hit something.

  “Because I was okay.” Damn traitorous body. “I’m fine now.”

  He nudged her gently, wanting, needing to kiss her again, feel her body on his, needing more, but Nadia’s veil of desire seemed to dissipate into thin air. She leaned in to kiss him chastely on the lips.

  In that moment, Penn knew frustration like he’d never known it before, and he figured he’d become something of an expert on it in the past few weeks. He wished for nothing more than to show this woman how much he wanted her, to lure her back to the place they’d been just moments ago, but he couldn’t even lean up enough to kiss her. He was at her mercy.

  “Come back,” he whispered to her, gently using his hand on her neck to urge her closer. She pressed her lips to his for a few gratifying seconds and he attempted to convey his need for her with that kiss.

  At first, Nadia responded. As soon as he deepened the kiss, though, she pulled away, opened her eyes, shook her head. “No. You’re not up for this yet.”

  “On the contrary, I’m very up for it, Nadia.”

  She laughed huskily at his deliberate double entendre, a sexy sound that didn’t do a thing to cool his jets.

  Her look of sympathy, however, did.

  Sympathy.

  Just what every guy wanted to see from the woman sprawled across him like a golden-haired goddess.

  “Let me up.” He couldn’t keep the frustration out of his voice and frankly he didn’t give a rat’s left nut.

  Nadia moved to the side of him and sat up, looking startled. He rolled the other way and sprang out of the bed on the opposite side. “Dammit!” He’d moved too fast, neglecting to use the care necessary to avoid more pain.

  “Penn.” The tone she used for just that single word was soothing and he could tell she was about to go into calm reasoning mode. None of which improved his temper.

  His back to her, he breathed in, eyes closed, waiting for her to say what he was sure he didn’t want to hear.

  “It’s okay. We don’t need to rush anything,” she said.

  “It’s not okay, Nadia.” His volume climbed. “Nothing is okay.”

  He went over to his closet and took a random tee down from the shelf. Pulled it over his head, ignoring the relatively minor twinge in his lower back when he stretched.

  He felt her approach him from behind. Ignored her closeness.

  She touched his shoulder lightly. “Don’t beat yourself up. I can be as patient as I need to be.”

  He jerked away from her touch and increased the space between them, searching for his sport sandals.

  Patient. Shit. When it came to sex, what guy wanted to force patience on a woman? Wouldn’t that just make for a winning personal ad: unemployed, physically challenged man seeking a woman who is beautiful, funny, intelligent and patient.

  “Patience isn’t going to do jack,” he said, managing to keep his voice under control, “when this worthless body of mine won’t do what I want it to. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a lot of nothing to do today.” He stormed out into the hallway.

  As he rounded into the kitchen, a knock sounded at the door. He turned toward it ominously, in no mood for a visit from anyone and more than ready for Nadia to hit the road, as well. She appeared at the end of the hall, having hastily straightened her clot
hing but still looking tousled and aroused. She looked from the door to him. Swearing under his breath, he went to answer it.

  “Mom?” He didn’t bother to hide his shock at the sight of her.

  “Your sister didn’t lie,” his mother said, looking him over. “You’re upright. Mobile. This is good.”

  “Uh, yeah.” He looked past his mom for Zoe, but she was alone. “What are you doing here?”

  Nadia stood off to one side, watching with interest.

  “How about ‘Welcome to my home, Mom, come on in’?” Her short red hair, slightly spiky on top, hadn’t changed for as long as he could remember. She smiled broadly and he noticed the fine lines at the corners of her eyes and around her mouth. He didn’t remember seeing those before. Of course, it’d been two and a half years since he’d been to Colorado to see her, give or take. That was the norm.

  Her showing up at his door was not.

  “Come in, Mom.” He stood back to let her enter, a black suitcase rolling behind her. He’d have to come up with a polite way to ensure she didn’t think she was staying with him—soon. “And then back to what are you doing here?”

  “Visiting.” She stood on her toes to kiss his cheek. “Taking a vacation. And yes, checking up on you.”

  “You sent Zo for that. I’m still fine. This is my friend Nadia Hamlin. Nadia, my mother, Nell Griffin.”

  The two women shook hands and sized each other up.

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Nadia said. “Welcome to San Amaro.”

  “Thank you. I’ve never been here before. I have to admit, just judging from the cab ride in, it’s gorgeous. I’m overdue for a nice, relaxing trip.”

  Penn was going to need a nice, relaxing trip as soon as his mother’s was over. “Smells like Coop left a pot of coffee. Want some, Mom?”

  “No, thank you, I’m wired enough as it is. Been up since 4:00 a.m., drinking caffeine since 4:05.” She adjusted her suitcase—large enough to stow away a Great Dane—up against the front wall.