He lifted his gaze up. And just about burst out laughing. On the other side of the window stood a face he knew well. One that hadn’t changed a bit in ten years. Ella Rio. The dour woman who owned and ran the motel.
“You’re kidding me,” he said, his voice full of the genuine disbelief he felt at seeing her there.
She mouthed something, her wrinkled skin flapping with the words Donovan couldn’t hear.
“I don’t think she’s kidding,” Jordynn said. “And I think she wants me to roll down the window, too.”
“I’ll do her one better,” Donovan replied.
He swung open his door and climbed out. He briefly considered pretending to be a complete stranger, but decided quickly that it was better to acknowledge the past in case she recognized them on her own.
“Hi, Ella,” he said.
She squinted up at him. “Should I know you?”
“It’s been a while, but we used to be regulars.”
The old woman’s eyes moved between him and Jordynn, then widened in recognition. “Romeo and Juliet?”
“The nickname seems a little ominous now,” Donovan said drily. “Maybe today, we’ll just be Mr. and Mrs. Smith.”
Ella’s eyes sought his ring finger, aiming a searing glare where the band ought to be. “Either you lost something, or things didn’t turn out the way I expected it would with you two.”
Jordynn—who’d climbed out and joined them—reached into her shirt and dragged out the promise ring.
“Soon-to-be Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” she amended.
“Hmph,” Ella said. “Good thing the honeymoon suite is open, then. Follow me. Before all your loitering starts bringing down the property value. And by the way, you’re not coming into one of my rooms in those filthy clothes.”
* * *
Jordynn waited with nervous anticipation as Dono borrowed the phone to call his friend Carlos and made the payment arrangements. Being at the motel was a lung-squeezing rush of buried emotion and sweet recollection. If the mountainside had been their favorite place of refuge as teens, the Rio had definitely been the equivalent for their burgeoning adulthood. With Dono’s father a perpetual bear of a man, and Jordynn’s mother dwindling away, they’d needed somewhere to be alone. Somewhere to explore their deepening love without the buzz of their everyday lives interfering.
Dono finished up on the phone, then pressed one of his hands into the small of her back. He held out a stack of tidily folded—but obviously mismatched—clothes in the other.
“Ella has generously offered to lend us these, and she’s given us permission to get changed in her office, too,” he explained, his eyes flashing with amusement, but his mouth flat. “And she offered to wash and dry our clothes, too.”
“For a fee,” the wizened woman added.
“For a fee,” Dono repeated, and the corners of his lips twitched. “Which Carlos is happy to pay.”
Jordynn fought a smile. But her amusement faded as she realized the office in question was a six-by-six square with a squat desk taking up about a quarter of the already limited space. And that Ella expected them to change together.
And the expectation makes perfect sense, Jordynn told herself as the older woman ushered them into the room. Because we’re supposed to be a hot-and-heavy couple.
It didn’t make the butterflies in her stomach calm down as Dono closed the wooden door behind them.
“We’ll make it quick and relatively painless,” he said as he handed her a big white T-shirt and a pair of puppy-print pajama pants. “Like ripping off a Band-Aid.”
But when he leaned down to unlace first one boot, then the other, the world slowed down instead of speeding up. It got worse when he straightened up and tried to whip off his own shirt, because the sleeve snagged on a loose nail on the wall, and he had to wriggle free. And there was nothing quick or painless about the responding buzz in Jordynn’s skin. Heat crept up her body slowly, making her ache all over. Yes, she’d seen him topless—more than topless—back in the show home, but there was something different about getting undressed in the tiny room while Ella waited on the other side of the door. Something different about the way, when he moved to and fro, trying to get himself loose, he brushed against her accidentally. The room seemed warmer with each passing second. The sound of his zipper coming down spiked it to sauna level.
Jordynn breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth, trying to stay calm. It had little effect. Because somehow, their escape plan had taken an illicit turn. She definitely could feel that same tingle of excitement she’d had each time they’d checked in, years earlier.
“Hey.” Dono’s amused voice just about made her jump. “Is that what we’re supposed to do?”
“Um. What?”
“Close our eyes?”
Her lids flew up. She hadn’t even realized she’d closed them. Dono was grinning at her, fully changed now into a pair of too-short pants and a too-snug dress shirt. He’d slipped his boots on again, but had left them unlaced. He should’ve looked ridiculous. Instead, he looked mouthwatering.
“Well?” he prodded.
“Yes,” Jordynn replied quickly. “Actually. Please.”
He laughed, dragged his eyes over her once more, then closed them and lifted his hands to cover his face. “Go for it.”
As swiftly as she could manage, and careful not to expose any part of her body for long, Jordynn slipped out of her own clothes and into the borrowed ones. She kept her gaze on Dono the whole time, sure he was going to help himself to a peek. But he didn’t. And instead of relief, Jordynn experienced a sharp stab of disappointment.
Shoving it down, she snagged the room key off the desk, then jangled them in Dono’s direction. “Ready?”
He closed his hand over hers, stuck his finger through the key ring and used it to pull her close. Then he dropped a long, firm kiss on her mouth. And Jordynn’s disappointment was immediately forgotten. Her body molded to his, buzzing once more as his hands slid over the badly fitted clothing. She deepened the kiss, now appreciative of the small space. And it was he who pulled away, sliding his hand down to pull away the key from her loose grip.
He held it between them, and said teasingly, “Room twenty-eight? We’re moving up in the world.”
“Honeymoon suite,” she replied, her voice shaky with desire. “I’m guessing that means a coin-operated bed and free adult films.”
Dono laughed his low, sexy laugh, then tugged her from the office back into the lobby. As they slid past Ella, she warned them to leave their muddy shoes at their room door, and he laughed harder, which made Jordynn laugh, too. She buried her face in his side, trying to cover it. But by the time they actually reached the room, Jordynn was shaking with mirth.
“There’s...nothing...funny...about...this...situation,” she gasped through her giggles.
But Dono was leaning against the stucco siding, doubled over with his own laughter. When he lifted his head, he was smiling as wide as she’d ever seen.
“You’re right,” he said, then laughed again. “Not a damned thing.”
She wiped her eyes, fighting another uncontrollable snicker. “I missed this.”
“What? The laughing at nothing together like two crazy people?”
“Exactly.”
“I did, too, honey.” His eyes raked over her, and her breath caught and her pulse raced.
“Should we go inside?” she asked.
“Mmm-hmm.”
He put his arm around her waist, jabbed the key into the knob, then eased the door open.
And in spite of Ella’s claim that this was the honeymoon suite, room twenty-eight was identical to the one where they’d spent so many evening ten years earlier. A desk, circa 1965, decorated one corner, and a plush two-person lounge chair took up another. There was no t
able in the room, but Jordynn was sure that if she opened the brown cupboard in the corner, she’d find a couple of rickety TV trays. Perfect for snacking away while watching something on the ancient set that weighed down a wooden stand across from the bed.
But in spite of the age of the room—and its antiquated decor—it was spotless. A hint of lemon and pine dusted the air, and the bedspread was as crisp as it was worn. There wasn’t a speck of dust or a smear of dirt anywhere to be seen. Jordynn remembered, then, that Ella had always boasted about the fact that she cleaned every room herself. And it looked like she still did.
“It’s kind of like coming home, isn’t it?” she asked softly.
“In a Twilight Zone kinda way,” Dono said.
Jordynn laughed. But when he flicked on the light, then closed the door and sank down onto the bed, he winced a little, reminding her of his injury.
“I should check you for a concussion,” she told him.
“I think I’m okay.”
She raised an eyebrow. “And I think I’m the expert.”
“Right,” he said. “Nurse Flannigan.”
“Care aide, actually,” she corrected. “Close your eyes and tip your head up.”
He lowered his lids. “Aha. So you change diapers instead of bandages.”
“As a matter of fact, I change both. Open your eyes and look at the light above the bed.” He complied, and when his pupils dilated normally, Jordynn let out a relieved breath. “Full name?”
“Mine or yours?” he teased. “Donovan Jason Grady. Jordynn Jean Flannigan.”
“Good enough. Do you feel nauseous? Or dizzy at all?”
“My stomach is fine,” he replied. “And my head aches, and I did feel light-headed when the chunk of house hit me, but it’s not bad now.”
“Good? Or just not bad?”
“Smack-dab in the middle.”
Jordynn put a gentle hand on his forehead—not because it would tell her anything about his state of mind, but because it made her feel better. “I think you got lucky.”
He reached up to thread his fingers with hers. “Yep. More than once. In this exact hotel.”
Heat crept up Jordynn’s cheeks. Dono might’ve been giving her a hard time, but his expression was serious. He dragged their intertwined hands to her face and traced the line of her blush with his knuckles. The action made the heat spread down her throat and into her chest.
She pulled away—because she wasn’t entirely sure she was ready for what was coming next—and moved to start up the coffeepot on the desk.
“You might not actually be concussed,” she said in a rush, “but I still think you should rest. But be careful about staying awake, too. We can look through that file and see if any of it means anything. Maybe ask Ella if the motel’s upgraded to anything that looks vaguely like the internet. And if not, then—”
“Jordynn?”
She took a breath and faced him, forcing her heart to stay calm as she met his hazel gaze. “Yes?”
“How come you gave it up?”
“Gave up what?”
“The nursing. You were working so hard to save the money for college. You had all the prerequisites.”
“It just didn’t work out that way. When things settled after—well, just after, Sasha’s uncle came to me and offered me the job at the care home. With pay almost as good as nursing and the fact that I could start right away—there was no way I could say no. I took the care aide program at the community college at night, and I worked during the day. Her uncle even paid for the program. He called it work training.”
“Sounds like things lined up perfectly.”
She heard an edge in the statement, and she bristled in spite of her effort not to. “Nothing about it was perfect. But it was the best it could be under the circumstances. I needed an excuse to stay in Ellisberg.”
“Because of me?”
The edge was still there. Jordynn stepped closer and she recognized it for what it really was—poorly veiled guilt.
“No, Dono,” she said carefully. “It wasn’t because of you. Not just, anyway.”
“Not just. That doesn’t make me feel any better.”
She sat beside him on the bed and took his hand. “When you were first gone...I was a mess. A walking disaster for a full year. I don’t even remember anything about those months. I didn’t have any direction. But I knew I didn’t want to leave the place where I grew up. I would’ve just been running away from the hurt instead of facing it. And my mom was still sick. She needed me. Taking the job at the care home was the best thing to do.”
He put his head in his hands. “I’m sorry.”
“I know.”
“If I could...”
“You did the right thing.”
His lifted his gaze, surprise evident on his face. “What?”
She went silent. She was as startled as he was. But after a few seconds, she realized she’d been leading up to the conclusion all night and into the early hours of the morning. Maybe even since the second he started to explain. The more they ran, the greater she understood what he’d gone through. The understanding had grown and grown and now...she knew.
“If you hadn’t gone, Ivan would’ve killed your dad,” she said. “He would’ve killed me. And if he’d thought you were alive, he’d would’ve come after you, too. At least three of us would’ve been dead.”
“That really should make me feel better. But it just doesn’t.”
Jordynn offered him a smile. “It’s not as though I like admitting you were right.”
Dono didn’t smile back. His face was stony, but his eyes blazed with self-directed anger.
He can’t forgive himself, Jordynn realized.
“But I can,” she said softly.
A small frown clouded his features. “You can what?”
“Forgive you.”
For several long seconds, his expression didn’t change. Not one hair’s breadth. The same disbelief stayed there, making Jordynn’s heart ache.
She cleared her throat and repeated it more firmly. “I can forgive you, Dono. I do forgive you.”
“The past—”
“Is the past. We can have ten new years. And a future with you is all I ever wanted.”
“I want to give you that,” he said fiercely.
And his face finally did change. It filled with surprise and relief. And blatant desire.
Chapter 14
Jordynn leaned in as Dono reached for her, actively seeking his attention.
He touched her face first, caressing its curves. Thumbs on cheekbones, fingers on brow, worshipping her skin. Then he tipped his head down and pressed his lips to hers. Firm and tender. Hot and insistent. He tugged the bottom one open, then plunged his tongue into her mouth, twining it with hers in a familiar, welcome dance.
In spite of the way their breaths quickened together, Jordynn noticed that Dono didn’t hurry. He didn’t push. Instead, he explored slowly, like he might never get to again.
And it might be true, she acknowledged, closing her eyes as his fingers slid to her neck. This might be our only chance.
Face.
Collarbone.
A light touch on one aching breast, then the other.
A kiss.
And back again.
Over and over, until Jordynn’s whole being was alight with desperate want.
She freed herself long enough to reach down and lift her shirt up, then off completely, and she heard Dono’s breath catch as his gaze ran over her exposed form. Heat seared each spot where his eyes landed. She shivered under the warm scrutiny.
Did she look different than she had, ten years earlier? Better? Worse? Older? Softer?
Then he spoke, his voice slow and thick with wa
nt, and his words dashed away any worry. “You are so damned beautiful. My memory didn’t do you the slightest bit of justice.”
He placed a finger on her cheek, trailed it down to her cleavage, then flattened his palm against the exact spot where her heart thundered hard against her rib cage.
“Every night, I dreamed of you. Of this. Of just touching you for one second more or holding you for one more night,” he said.
And when she met his gaze, she found another source for his slow but attentive study of her body. A silent question. Or maybe an offer to go no further.
But the last the thing she wanted was to give up this opportunity.
Not trusting her voice, and not wanting to risk breaking the spell, Jordynn nodded once. Dono let out a throaty noise—one part growl, one part sigh. Then he slid a hand under her, turned her sideways and pressed her back onto the bed. He gave her another long, deep kiss before he stood and stripped down. First went the shirt, revealing his thick, well-muscled chest and his defined abs, marred only by the angry slash of his earlier wound. Next came the jeans, and with them, his snug boxer briefs.
Jordynn’s breath stuck in her throat. She’d loved looking at him for as long as she could remember. Through every stage of their young lives together. And now...he was stunning. But he didn’t give her much time to continue with her unabashed stare. He moved back to the bed, pushing a knee between her legs to part them, then rested himself against her, unmoving.
And in spite of the fact that he was bigger, stronger and on top, there was something vulnerable about the pose. Him, completely naked. Her, protected by her jeans and bra. But when he dropped his mouth to hers, any illusion of vulnerability flew away.
He kissed her, hard and tender.
He kissed her, slow and deep.
He kissed her like she was the one and only thing that had been on his mind for the ten years they’d spent apart.
She rose to meet his amorous attention, devouring him with equal fervor. When he at last released her lips, he didn’t give her time to mourn the loss. He moved on quickly, nipping and sucking the skin along the constraining edge of her bra, then sliding the strap down to free her. He took her into his mouth—hot and oh so much of a turn-on—and Jordynn couldn’t help but cry out.
Last Chance Hero Page 17
