by Katie Dowe
He accommodated her; pushing another finger inside her he started the rhythmic movement that had her following as his fingers thrust into her slowly.
***
The combination of his fingers inside her and his mouth at her breast was so unbelievable that she was going out of her mind! “God!” she cried out sharply as he increased the pace, her body reaching and begging for the release that only he could give her. His mouth left her breast and wandered down her flat stomach, which was quivering from the emotions churning throughout her body. His mouth joined his fingers as his tongue snaked out and touched the most intimate part of her body. She exploded instantly, her body shaking and quivering with the force of the orgasm that pulled at her and lifted her up against him. He held her still with one hand and kept his mouth on her.
She was sobbing by this time, her fingers digging into his hair, clutching at the strands as the experience carried her along its wake.
***
He finally removed his fingers and came over her, hovering as he looked down at her, his muscles straining with the need to bury himself deep inside her, but he wanted to see the effect of what he'd done to her and his heart melted as he took note of the tear-brightened eyes, the parted lips and the dampness on her cheeks. Her body was still in the throes of the orgasm and as he lowered and guided his erection inside her he felt her tremors, he sank into her arms as she reached for him wordlessly, her body telling him what her heart wasn't ready to yet. She wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his neck, her lips seeking the skin, titillating him with her tongue as she moved with him in the age old tempo.
He gave and she took and took until she was winging her way yet again to a passion filled heat and volcanic destination that he'd introduced her to—that only he could! Timothy drove into her, feeling the heat and knowing that the explosion was near at hand and wishing that he could stay it but he didn't have that power, it was more than him, more than both of them and he found himself spinning out of control. He bent his head and captured her frenzied moans inside his mouth as they both reached the crashing crescendo that had them clinging to each other.
Many moments later, with her curled in his arms and sleeping with her body sprawled half on top of him he was unable to sleep. He was tired because he'd been unable to sleep much last night and with the hours of travel to get to her, not to mention the lovemaking that had taken so much out of them both. He'd spent last night at the club thinking about the next step and what exactly he was going to do about her but hadn't been able to come up with a solution. When he'd seen her name come up on the phone he'd felt his heart quicken and had been determined to accept anything she decided. But when she'd told him how she missed him and had started crying he'd felt as if his heart was breaking. He couldn't bear to hear her cry and he never wanted to do anything to make that happen. It was crazy the way he felt about her! The way he wanted to absorb the hurt and pain she suffered and keep her from ever feeling hurt and pain again. He knew it was illogical to think he would be able to shield her from what life had to offer but he was going to do his damndest to try. His hand tightened around her body and he brushed the top of her head with his lips. She was going to be his wife and he couldn't believe how happy he was.
***
“You really expect to pull off a wedding by the end of June?” His brother asked him incredulously.
“It’s actually the first of July, which will be a Sunday,” Timothy said with an indulgent smile as he watched his fiancée playing with his nieces. They'd come over for dinner a day after he'd come back to her and they'd decided on the date. It was Monday night and he'd told his brother at the office that both he and Robyn were coming for dinner and they had an announcement. It was the middle of May, which meant that they had a little over a month to plan the wedding, but he wasn't going to let anything stand in the way of making her his wife. He'd given her a stunning sapphire ring on their way to his brother’s place.
“Is there some reason why you can't wait any longer?” Malik asked him. They'd made the announcement over dinner and the little girls had screamed in excitement that their beloved uncle was marrying their beloved friend! And were even more excited to know that they would both be in the wedding party.
“You mean is she pregnant?” Timothy asked him sardonically as he sipped his drink. They'd left the dining room and were seated outside on the patio where the weather was mild and the smell of various plants permeated the air. His eyes went over to his sister-in-law who was seated with Robyn and the girls. Malik had told him that she was coming to grips with the pregnancy and things were okay between them but he wasn't so sure and she hadn't said anything much since the announcement of the impending wedding. “She isn't.”
“So why the hurry?” His brother insisted.
Timothy stared at him quizzically. “What’s your concern, brother?”
“You've been with a lot of women—”
“Robyn doesn't care about that and she's the one I'm marrying.”
“I just want you to be sure—”
“I'm in love with her and I know that because I've never been in love with anyone before. I want to marry her right now but I have to respect that I have to wait and give her the wedding she deserves. I wanted to take a leaf out of Adam’s book and fly to Vegas so that we can get married immediately but I'm going to wait.”
“Are you afraid that her ex-fiancée will come here and want her back?”
Timothy stiffened as his brother put into words his greatest fear. He knew she wanted to be with him, he also knew that there was something so combustible between them, a force so powerful that it couldn't be denied, but he feared that she was still holding onto her past and the fact that she hadn't told him the words he wanted to hear was gnawing at him.
“Trust you to try and put the brakes on my happiness,” Timothy said sardonically as he got to his feet. He ignored his brother calling his name and walked over to the woman he loved and his nieces, giving his sister-in-law a cursory look before he sat and pulled Holly onto his knee. “I was thinking that we should go to the museum this weekend. What do you think?” He posed the question to the girls but was looking at Robyn.
“Could we, Mommy?” Madison asked in excitement.
“I think we should make it a family outing,” Malik said as he walked towards them. Timothy’s head lifted and he saw the peace offering his brother was offering and he took it.
“Sounds like a good idea. What do you think, darling?” His voice was gentle as he looked at the woman seated next to Hillary.
“I would love that.”
***
“What’s wrong?” He frowned at the look on her face as soon as he came into the house. He'd thought about taking her to dinner but she'd told him that she had a patient who would be coming in late. So he'd decided to order in and just spend the night with her in bed. One look at her lovely face had him deciding otherwise and the fear nagging at him escalated. She took his hand and led him into the living room, sitting next to him and keeping her hand in his.
“Darling, you're scaring me.”
“I'm sorry,” she said wearily. “I'm not supposed to talk about a patient, it's a violation and unethical but she's so young, Timothy, and I had to tell her that the test results came back and she has cancer. She just got engaged to this wonderful man and I had to be the one to tell her that she has a terminal illness that she will never recover from.” Her hands gripped his and he felt relief coursing through his body that it wasn't something that was going to ruin his happiness. And then he felt ashamed! He pulled her into his arms and rested his chin on top of her head.
“I thought doctors weren't supposed to get emotionally involved with their patients?”
“That’s the general rule, yes,” she said with a shaky laugh. “But we're human beings with emotions so we keep bending the rules.”
He shifted and tilting her chin up he saw the tears in her dark brown eyes. “Is this something I'm going to h
ave to face each time a patient is terminal?”
“I'm afraid so. Is that something you can deal with?” she asked him tremulously.
“Can you give me a day or two to think about it?”
***
A smile creased her lips and she felt the heaviness disappearing. He always did that for her. Sean had shrugged and told her to chin up but this handsome, inexplicable, wonderful man did his best to draw the sorrow away from her and she was so grateful to him that she didn't know what to say to him. “No,” she told him with a straight face. “The answer has to be now.”
His dark blue eyes looked solemn as he stared at her. “Then my answer will have to be yes. You're right, if I'm allowed to think about it for very long I might just run the risk of letting go of my happiness, the source of my life by saying no. So, I would say that it's your way of saving me from wrecking my life. Thank you by the way.”
“You're welcome,” she said, inclining her head.
He bent his head and kissed her lips. “I happen to know one of the best oncologists in the country.”
“You know Dr. Moore?” she looked at him in awe.
“I love how impressed you are right now. Nothing I did so far ever achieved that look. Not the way I bring you to tears with my lovemaking, nor how handsome I am or my immense wealth—”
“Focus!” She interrupted him with a laugh.
“I'll give him a call tomorrow.”
Chapter 12
“I'm just telling you before the announcement comes out in the papers, Mom.” Robyn held the phone between her shoulder blade and ear as she washed the breakfast dishes. Timothy had just left and said he was going to make the announcement as soon as he reached his office and she wanted to let her mother know before it was all over the press. Fallen Oaks was a small town, but Timothy was bigger than the town itself which meant that it wouldn't only be splashed in the local papers but in national papers as well.
“Darling, you're telling me that you're engaged to ‘the Timothy McLaughlin’?” her mother asked in shock. “This man loves you and wants to marry you?”
“Mom, you don’t have to sound so incredulous!” Robyn said with a laugh. She cleaned up and took her coffee over to the counter and took a seat. She had another half hour to get ready, but she would make it. “I came to Fallen Oaks and thought that my life was over and that there was no way I was going to make it and then I met him. I don’t know how to explain it, Mom, but he's always there and has this sense of protectiveness that I've gotten used to an don't want to do without. I don’t know if that makes any senses.”
“It does, honey, but I want to ask you this: what do you feel for Sean?”
Robyn took her time in answering. She'd been with him and Malik and Hillary and the kids to the museum last Saturday and she'd had such a great time that she was actually looking forward to going places with him, being a part of the family as well as living with him as his wife. And she knew without a shadow of a doubt that she wanted to be his wife. But she still had to sort through what she felt for Sean and she needed to do it soon. “I'll never go back to him if that's what you're asking.”
“I would think not, after what he and that washed-out so-called best friend of yours did!”
“He called several times and left several messages but apart from one time when Timothy was here, I haven't spoken to him, and of course Brianna hasn't called.”
“Honey, you sound regretful. That girl wasn't and has never been your friend and you're better off without them. You're getting a hell of a second chance and you should grab it with both hands.” She paused. “Have you spoken to your father?”
Robyn sighed. “Mom, you can't keep avoiding him. I called him and told him, and he's definitely going to walk me down the aisle.”
Her mother snorted and Robyn fought a laugh. Her mother had been playing hard-to-get ever since her ex-husband had decided that he wanted her back, but Robyn knew that it was only a matter of time because her mother still had feelings for him. “I have to go honey, but we'll talk later.”
***
“This is quaint.” The voice came from the doorway and interrupted the conversation the two women were having.
“I'm sorry we're closed—” Clara began, but Robyn interrupted her.
“I know her, Clara. You may go now, I'll lock up,” Robyn said automatically.
“I'll see you in the morning, dear,” the woman said as she grabbed her purse and headed towards the door.
“What are you doing here, Brianna?” Robyn felt her skin going clammy and tremors starting. She hadn't spoken to her since she'd left for Fallen Oaks and she couldn't believe that she was here right now. She moved forward, careful to avoid contact with the woman standing there, and locked the door behind them.
“Well, I decided to take a couple of days off and come and see for myself what you're up to. How about a glass of wine for old times' sake, honey?” Brianna ran her fingers through her long, silky blonde hair in an unconsciously sexy movement. “I'm staying in this lovely little hotel in town and leaving in the morning. I just want to talk.”
Robyn stifled the urge to tell her to get the hell out of her practice and the place she'd come to think of as her own, and gave in to her innate friendliness. “Follow me.” She led the way out of the medical center and into the kitchen where she indicated for the girl to take a seat on one of the stools at the counter. She took off her lab coat and hung it on a peg before reaching for the bottle of Chianti and two glasses. She handed Brianna a glass before sitting opposite her. Her eyes wandered over the girl’s very pretty face and noticed, for the first time, the coldness of her light blue eyes as well as the mean tightness of her lips. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Oh, you of course! This place.” Her hand swept the small cozy room with the chintz curtains and the bright patterned wall paper and the pots hanging from the ceiling. “I remember how we used to talk about small towns and how we would never be caught dead in one. We loved the mall experience too much and the variations of restaurants that could indulge our taste buds.”
“I grew up when my fiancée and my former best friend screwed me over,” Robyn told her coldly, finding it difficult to get the wine past her blocked throat.
“You want me to apologize for that?” Brianna asked her spitefully. “You landed on your feet. Better than that, you landed yourself a hot billionaire! I would pretty much say Sean and I did you a favor.”
Robyn stared at her and felt the pain of losing what she'd thought was a very good relationship. “What happened to you Brianna? We were friends for a very long time, and we were good together. We did things together, studied together and vowed to work at the same hospital, and we did. You were the one who told me to go for it with Sean even though I hesitated. If you were interested in him then why did you tell me that? Why didn’t you tell me that you were interested in him? I wouldn't have even ventured to—”
“Ventured to what? Show him how interested you were?” Brianna sneered. “You would have done the noble thing and stepped back?”
“Yes!” Robyn cried, pushing away her glass. “I would have been a friend and done exactly that.”
“Is that your way of saying that I haven't been a very good friend, Robyn? That I broke the ‘girl code’? Honorable and honest Robyn. The girl that every other man in medical school wanted but couldn't get. The girl who other girls rushed to be friends with? I was always in your shadow in medical school and even when we went to the hospital to work, it was still the same. You were still the brightest and the most popular intern and the resident going places and if that wasn't bad enough, the most eligible doctor on staff was interested in you! I hated you and wanted to destroy everything you had!”
Robyn stared at Brianna’s contorted face as she pressed her clenched fists against the counter. She couldn't believe what she'd just heard! It couldn't be true! Brianna had never shown the slightest inclination that she resented her, much less that she'd hated her all those
years. It was too much and she felt as if she was being ripped in two. “I never did anything to you—”
“Except exist. I loved Sean and he chose you, so I decided to use the fact that he wasn't a very faithful person to drive a wedge between the two of you. I timed it perfectly. I knew you would be coming into the on-call room at that time because, let’s face it honey, you're nothing if not predictable. But even then, even though you caught him with his pants down and him on top of me he tried to explain it to you. I checked his phone and he hasn't stopped calling and leaving messages about how sorry he is and how he wants another chance!” She finished the wine in one gulp. “He read the engagement announcement and I saw the look on his face and knew that he was pining away for you! He doesn't love me the way he does you and if you just say the word, he would come running back to you! Do you know how humiliated that makes me feel? You came to this one pony town and landed yourself a billionaire and he's still in love with you. You self-righteous bitch! What is it going to take to get you out of his life?”
“Get out!” Robyn got to her feet and pointed to the door. She was holding onto her sanity by a very thin thread, but she refused to let Brianna see how affected she was.
“You heard her, get the hell out.” They'd been so focused on each other that they hadn't heard the front door open. They both turned to see Timothy standing in the doorway, an unreadable expression on his face.
“I was just leaving anyway,” Brianna huffed as she made her way towards the doorway. Timothy didn't move, his dark blue eyes leveled on the woman for several minutes, obviously making her very uncomfortable. “Will you let me pass?”
“I want you to check out of that hotel first thing in the morning and be gone by the time I get there to check if you're really gone.”
