SHE LOOKED GOOD standing at his sink, rinsing the pans she’d used to make breakfast. Her legs peeked out from underneath that feels-like-sin robe, while the silken tresses of her hair tumbled onto her shoulders. And, Lexy was a great cook. She’d fixed an omelette a French chef would have been proud of, and had done something fancy with the toast that had made his mouth water. He patted his stomach. As he lazed back in his chair studying her, he felt a hell of a lot better than he’d expected to feel today.
It wasn’t just the food. It was her. He’d been gravitating to Alexis for days, weeks maybe, noticing little things about her—the way her long-fingered hand went to her stomach when she was upset, how her eyes sparkled when she talked about Jamie, the slight way her shoulders stiffened when she felt challenged.
Now, at this very minute, he’d give his right arm to touch her. A line from Andrew Marvell’s poem, “To His Coy Mistress” came to mind. Had we but world enough, and time; This coyness, lady, were no crime. But it was the vision of a pink sneaker never to be worn again that prodded him to rise and start toward her. Life was short, he thought darkly. Nobody had enough time, nobody knew when his number was up. On this bright and beautiful morning, he was determined to make the most of his life.
He came up behind her. Standing close, his chin rested on the top of her head; her hair smelled like the flowers in his window box. She seemed small and slight to him, in contrast to the dynamo she usually presented to the world. And she was very still. Slowly, he placed his hands on her shoulders. She didn’t stiffen. After a moment, she leaned back into him, tilted her head to the side. Brushing away her hair, he slid the robe off her shoulders until it slipped to her arms. The beautiful slope of her neck was revealed, bisected by a thin strap of satin. He lowered his lips to the strap; then to her skin. Perfume, or some sultry lotion, filled his nostrils. She was softer, silkier than the cloth. When he increased the pressure of his lips, she sighed. Into her ear, he whispered, “Lexy.”
Her hands gripped the edge of the counter.
“Lexy,” he repeated. “Have you wanted this as long as I have?”
Still silent, still facing away from him, she nodded. He smiled against her hair and eased the robe all the way off. It tumbled to their feet in a satiny puddle. His hands glided down to encircle her waist. And like when they’d water-skied, he reveled in the soft and supple flesh under his fingers. Suddenly, he had to touch her skin, there. He sneaked his hands beneath the satin and skimmed needy fingers along bare flesh. She moaned—one sexy vibration that made him painfully hard. He didn’t hide it from her; instead, he fitted her snugly against him. “Your skin is so soft,” he breathed. His fingertips crept lower, just beneath the waistband of her tap pants. He kissed her shoulder again and closed his eyes, savoring the taste. “I want to see you.”
Exerting gentle pressure, he turned her. Eyes cloudy with desire and a face flushed with arousal greeted him. Her lips parted. He tilted her chin and stroked his hand along her throat, up and down. She leaned into his touch. With his fingertips, he traced her cheekbone, high and prominent. He kissed her eyelids shut, and brushed his lips over her nose, where a slight sprinkling of freckles had breached her clear, creamy skin. With both hands, he cupped her face and whispered, “Look at me.”
She opened her eyes, and with a single look spoke to him without any words—Kiss me, I want you too. Yes, Spence. He lowered his lips to hers.
He wasn’t prepared for the wave of emotion, the waterfall of desire that washed through him when their mouths met, melded. It was as if he’d been damming it all up—for how long?—and some invisible lever had released it. He locked his hand at her neck, angled her head and feasted on her mouth. She returned the kiss with equal hunger, her hands clutching his shoulders, much as she’d grasped his arm during the ride on the Ferris wheel. He pulled her up higher, deepening the kiss, parting her lips, letting his tongue explore her with dizzying speed. His other hand crept to her waist, then lower, curving around her hip to her bottom to mold her more snugly to him. She arched against him as if she were trying to get into his skin. His lips abandoned her mouth and journeyed back to her neck, where his teeth scraped her skin gently, until the erotic nibbling wrested a moan from deep within her.
Inching his hands under her top, he caressed her back, desperate to feel more of her. His fingertips slid along her rib cage, then skimmed the undersides of her breasts. Finally, he cradled them in his hands, glorying in the full womanly weight of her.
She mumbled something, a harshly whispered, “Spence...”
The sunlight beamed through the kitchen window, down from the skylight, reminding him where they were—that the doors to the house were open, that anyone could walk in on this newfound, precious intimacy. He cuddled her tight to him and urged softly, “Let’s go upstairs.”
Burying her face in his neck, she curled into him further.
“Lexy, let me take you upstairs.”
She shook her head.
He couldn’t believe he’d read the gesture right. His body was thrumming with need. So was hers—her skin hot, her heart beating wildly against his. “Lex?”
Again, she shook her head. He stilled. Felt her suck in a deep breath. Then she pulled back. Her eyes were dreamy with desire, but he caught something else in them—a tiny spark of regret—that hadn’t been there before. Once more, silently, she watched him as she shook her head no.
“I don’t understand.” He rubbed his hands up and down her arms and watched her shiver. “I can’t have misread your response.”
“No, you didn’t.” Her voice came out in a rasp, and incredibly sexy. “I’ve wanted you for a while.”
A spurt of anger flared in his gut. “Then why put on the breaks?”
She shook back her hair, a gesture he’d seen before—when she’d faced down Jamie, or her father. The anger inside him spiked. But with it, something in the pit of his stomach twisted into an ache.
“I can’t do this, Spence.”
“You were doin’ just fine, before you started to think about it.”
“I...I didn’t mean to lead you on.” She gave him an imploring look. “I just couldn’t resist.”
“But you had no intention of following through?”
“Not now.”
Had he heard her right? He stepped back, raked a hand through his hair. “You’ve thought about us? Together?”
“Of course,” she said, defensively. “So have you.”
“No, I mean, you’ve thought about us in terms of a time line.”
The flush on her face answered him loud and clear. “No, not exactly.”
“Then what, exactly?”
“Spence, I’m attracted to you. I’d like to explore where this might lead, but I can’t do it now. I’d be compromising my work at Guardian.”
“You wouldn’t have to. You told me once you never let personal matters affect business. You can be objective.”
“Yes, I might be able to do that. Unfortunately, other people might not see it the same way. They could think you’re sleeping with me to get the grant.”
“What?”
“I don’t think it,” she said quickly. Too quickly. “But others might.”
“Are you sure you don’t?”
This time, she hesitated, too long. “I’m sure.”
That she could even consider such a possibility bothered him, but he let it go. “Then nothing else should matter.”
She tensed. “Maybe not. But there’s too much at stake here to take the risk.”
Briefly, Spence thought about the new aircraft and Grant’s dream of an expanded base. Would he be endangering both by succumbing to his desire for this woman? He jammed his hands into the pockets of his shorts and sighed heavily. When he looked back at her, he saw that Miss Alexis had returned in full force.
“I don’t see why we can’t just delay this attraction between us. Why we can’t wait until the end of the summer to...get together.”
That made him mad—and increased his suspicion that she somehow doubted his motives. “A relationship can’t be plotted out, Alexis. It’s not lunch. You don’t write in your day planner when it would be convenient for you to...get together with me.”
“No need to be sarcastic. I only meant that maybe we could put our private life on hold for a while. Until I’ve made my decision about funding Guardian.”
His anger notched up. God, why had he been so blind? She was just like his father. All business. All cut-throat suspicion. And she expected him to fit into her schedule, her time line, just as the old man had.
Crossing his arms over his chest, he leaned back against the counter and shook his head. “No, thanks, sweetheart. I don’t plan my love life out, like you obviously do. And my body won’t be put on hold that long.”
She seemed surprised. Goddamn, did she really expect him to go along with her plan? Then he saw it—the calculated look—the narrowing of her eyes. She was plotting how to approach him, how to get what she wanted. Nothing could have doused his ardor quicker.
“Let me spell it out for you, Miss Alexis. You don’t have to worry about my intentions or about compromisin’ your business integrity. All this talk about scheduling me into your life has made going to bed with you very unappealing. I’m afraid I couldn’t perform in your time frame there, either.”
“You don’t have to be crude, Spence.”
“Hey, I don’t play in the big leagues like you do. I’m in the dark about the damn etiquette.” He angled his chin at the door. “Let yourself out, will you? I’m tired and I need some sleep.”
With that he turned and stalked to the staircase.
o0o
ALEXIS WAS SHAKING—with hurt and with unfulfilled desire—as she opened the door and stumbled out of Spence’s house, onto his beautiful front porch. The bright sunlight stung her eyes; she grasped a post and leaned her head against the hard wooden surface. How had she made such a mess of it? He’d been angry—and hurt—and she’d kept saying the wrong things, especially that slip about how their relationship might look. Because of her past. Gulping deep breaths of the morning air, she replayed the scene in her mind and analyzed it.
She’d enjoyed his kisses and caresses. Craved them. For days. And this morning, when he’d been so sad and in need of comfort, she’d completely let her guard down.
She’d spoken the truth, but she hadn’t meant to insult him. All she’d wanted was to delay taking their relationship further.
She sighed. Maybe they didn’t belong together. They were so different. Because of his father, he had complicated hang-ups about business people like her. Eventually, they would have broken up anyway.
But the driving need inside her wouldn’t go away; she could still feel the heat from his hands. Never had she been so aroused by a simple touch. Not even with Jamie’s father. When Spence had kissed her, she’d lost all rational thought. In that instant, she would have sold her soul for another kiss. It was only after he’d suggested his bedroom, that she’d regained her sanity.
Her stomach cramped. Damn, she wasn’t going to let an argument upset her.
No, you’ll just let him go, Lexy’s internal voice taunted.
“What choice do I have?” Alexis asked aloud.
March back in there. Go upstairs, crawl into his bed and forget the consequences.
Like she had with Greg. And her life had changed forever.
“I can’t do it.”
Fine, said Lexy, then let him go. Live the rest of your life wondering what might have been.
“I can’t compromise my position again. I can’t face all that shame and innuendo.”
Lexy was silent. Would she go away forever? The notion hurt.
Alexis’s gaze was drawn to the windows above her. Why was everything in life a choice? Why did it have to be so black and white?
She scowled. Just because he’d said it was over, didn’t mean it was. She let her anger rise. It loosened the knot in her stomach. Pivoting, she yanked open the screen door; it banged behind her. She did indeed march through the designer kitchen with its state-of-the-art appliances and skylights and followed the path he’d taken. She was dimly aware of a beautiful dining room to the left and a gorgeous hand-carved oak staircase ahead.
Sounds from upstairs let her know where he was. The closing of a door, the running of water. She found her way to the master suite easily.
He stood in front of the open French doors, which led to another wide spindled porch. He’d shed his shorts and cotton T-shirt and wore only navy boxers low on his hips. His arms were braced on the doorjamb and his broad back was tense, as he stared out at the lake.
Alexis was hit by a wave of desire so potent it almost leveled her. She wanted this man. And because of that, she gathered the strength to utter, “I need to talk to you.”
He whirled around, shock claiming his face. Good.
Recovering quickly, he cockily resumed his position. “I thought I made it clear I didn’t want to talk.”
“You did. But I’m not finished with you yet. If you still want to kick me out after I say my piece, then I’ll go. But I’m not giving up without a fight.” She shook back her hair. “At least, Lexy isn’t.”
His eyebrow arched. It only made him look sexier. “Fine, go ahead, then.”
“When I was twenty-two, I worked in the aerospace division of Castle Enterprises in Dallas. For a year, I managed the advertising department. I was young and naïve, and so anxious to take my brother’s place that I did everything my father told me to do.”
“I don’t see that’s changed much.”
“It has. I learned a valuable lesson. I got involved with a graphic designer—one of my employees. Greg was my age, and a real free spirit. He was bright and talented, with a great sense of humor.” She stared at Spence meaningfully. “A lot like his daughter.”
Spence watched her for a minute. His expression softened a little. “Jamie.”
“Yes.” Alexis smiled. “She even looks like him. Anyway, we had an affair, and I got pregnant. I panicked and told Greg.”
“What did he say?”
“He suggested an abortion.”
“The bastard.”
“That’s how I felt, too. I had nowhere else to turn. So I went to my father.”
“I’ll bet Daddy took the news well.”
“He was furious. Rightly so. I’d embarrassed him throughout the company by getting involved with one of the employees. People said nasty things—implied Greg had slept with me to get ahead in the company.”
“So you are suspicious of my motives.” His face darkened. “You think I’d sleep with you for a lousy million dollars?”
“No, not really. Well, maybe I did just for a little while.” She had to make him understand. “It’s hard to put my past behind me, Spence.”
He seemed to understand that. “What happened in the end?”
She shook her head. Felt twenty-two again—alone and scared; the tears threatened but she battled them back. “Dad wanted me to go away, have the baby and give her up.”
“Oh, a great alternative.”
“I refused. I told him I’d have her, and keep her.” Alexis bit her lip. “It’s the only time I’ve stood up to him in my whole life.”
“And?”
Alexis threaded her hair off her face. “He arranged for an on-paper marriage and a quick divorce.” Again she forced the tears back and willed her voice not to shake. “I think he paid Greg to cooperate, which only confirmed everybody’s suspicions.”
Spence let loose a crude expletive.
“It all worked out, eventually. Greg left and I had Jamie. Life went on. My father didn’t let me forget for a long time how much I’d disappointed him, though.”
Frowning, Spence said, “He seems to care about Jamie.”
“That’s the irony. He does. He cares about her as if she were his own child.”
Spence shook his head, the motion sharp. “I’m not sure he’s done so well by his own child, Alexis. You made a mistake when you were young. He’s had no right to punish you this long with it.” He straightened. “And it’s made you suspicious of everybody’s motives, including mine.”
“He hasn’t punished me.”
“Of course he has. He still is. He controls you with the past, manipulating your fear of disappointing him again and your fear of being used to make you do what he wants.”
“I’ve made my own choices. I’ve lived the life I’ve wanted.”
“A few minutes ago, you wanted me. I could tell. You let your fear of Daddy and company gossip stop you.”
“No, no, Spence, I let my integrity stop me. I can’t make the same mistake again. I can’t get involved with someone from work.”
“Alexis,” he said gently, “you’re thirty-five years old. It’s time to live your own life and not let the opinion of your father or his company control you.”
“You don’t understand.”
“Oh, I understand very well.”
The truth dawned on her as she studied him. “You’re being inflexible about this because of your own relationship with your father.”
He crossed his arms over his bare chest. “Maybe I am. As you say, we’re all a product of our pasts. But whatever the reason, I refuse to fade into the background of your life until you decide it’s safe to come out of the closet and tell Daddy about us—until others won’t question why I’d want to make love to you.”
“Why do you make my plan sound so seedy?”
“Because it is.”
“Can’t we compromise?”
“I never compromise.”
“Spence, please. It’s only for a little while.” She stepped closer and reached out a hand that he ignored. “I care about you.”
“I care about you too, Lexy.”
“I’ve never told another soul about what really happened with Greg. Not even Portia.”
A muscle leaped in Spence’s jaw but he didn’t say anything.
“You won’t bend on this, will you?”
He shook his head.
She shook hers. “I can’t believe it,” she muttered, then turned and left him alone.
o0o
A WEEK AFTER HER last sleepover with Max, Jamie let the cottage door bang shut behind her. It echoed through the stillness of Sunday morning like a gunshot in the woods. “Well, excuse me!” she shouted over her shoulder. She stepped out onto the deck, oblivious of the warm summer air, the crystalline sky, the soft chirp of the birds. Stalking down to the dock, she marched right to the edge and plopped down, sinking her feet in the water. Though she was in her navy and neon-yellow bathing suit with its matching net cover-up, she didn’t dare go in the water without a buddy. Staring up into the sky, she searched for fairy land or medieval castles, but they weren’t there. Hell, even the ducks had deserted her.
Another door slammed, down the lake. A deep male voice rumbled, and heavy footsteps plodded down somebody else’s deck. Then they stopped. She didn’t look over; she didn’t want to see who was out at the McPhersons’ or the Keagans’.
She was mad!
Throwing her arm over her eyes to block out the freakin’ sun, she lay down on the dock, holding perfectly still, hoping to go unnoticed or to ward off conversation.
After a few minutes she heard, “Hi, squirt.”
The nickname turned up the corners of her mouth, despite her foul mood. She squinted up at the man above her. “Hi, Jeff.”
“Want some company?”
“I’m in a pretty bad mood.”
“Join the club.”
Kicking off his shoes, he plunked down beside her and dipped his feet in the water. He looked cool, dressed in army green cargo shorts and a green and white shirt. Neither spoke for a while. “What’s got your jocks in a twist?” she finally asked.
He snorted and angled his head toward Keag’s cottage. “My father’s been acting like a cross between Godzilla and the Phantom of the Opera.” Disgust laced his voice.
Interested, Jamie sat up. “Yeah, well I bet he can’t compete with the Wicked Witch of the West I’ve been living with for the past week.”
Jeff removed his sunglasses and challenged her. “Wanna bet?”
She nodded. “Yeah.” Her spirits brightened. “You take me out waterskiing if I’ve got it worse.”
He chuckled. “What’ll you do for me?”
“Clean your boat?” She nodded to his sleek KeagCraft, docked about thirty feet away at his dad’s. Even from here she could see it was littered with empty cans and crumpled napkins and newspapers. “Did you have a wild party on there last night, Baywatch guy?”
“None of your business.” He ruffled her hair.
It felt good. Brotherly. Curious, she asked, “How old are you, Jeff?”
“Twenty-four.”
“You got a girlfriend?”
“Nah. No one special. The curse of the Keagan men.”
“Really? Geez, I read this Mary Higgins Clark book about a curse on a family. It was really wild.”
Jeff smiled. “What’s your old lady been doing?”
Raising her eyes to the sky, Jamie scowled. “Ever since last week she’s been moping around the house. She won’t smile, and when she thinks I’m busy, she runs straight to her computer and works.”
“Works? I thought you guys were on vacation.”
“We are. But Mom always works when she’s upset. Pretty lame, huh? Playing second fiddle to a business?”
“What’s she upset about?”
“I don’t know. I heard her and Portia talking late one night. She wouldn’t even tell Porsche what’s been bothering her.”
“That all?”
“No, we went to see the new Brad Pitt flick Tuesday night and she was Oscar the Grouch afterwards. We saw your dad there, by the way, with some pretty lady.”
“Hmm.”
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“Jeff?”
“Yeah?”
“I don’t really mind her bad mood. I...she’s been popping the pills like candy again.”
“Pills? What do you mean?”
“My mother has an ulcer. That’s why we came down to the lake for the summer. She had a mega-bad attack and was in the hospital.” The image of her mother, white-faced and moaning, made Jamie’s throat clog. “I’m worried she’ll have another attack.”
Reaching out, Jeff slid his arm around her and hugged her close. “Sorry, Jame. I wish I could help.”
She leaned into him for a minute—he felt safe. Then she sniffled and pulled away. “What’s going on with Keag?”
Jeff stared down at the young kid, who somehow had become special to him over the past few weeks. “Same stuff. Last Sunday, he took off for a few days on the boat without telling anybody where he was going.”
“He do that a lot?”
“Only when he’s upset big-time.” In the past, it had been mostly over fights with Judd. To Jeff s knowledge, though, they’d been getting along all right; his dad had even come to dinner with them on Father’s Day. “And he’s reading like crazy—as if he’s just been cured of blindness. He does that too, when he’s down.”
“Maybe he had a fight with his girlfriend.”
“Girlfriend?”
“The one we saw him with at the movie.”
“I’ve never known a woman to affect my father enough for him to pout about her.”
“Just like Mom.”
They were both silent. Slowly she raised her head to look at Jeff. He peered down at her. Her eyes narrowed. So did his.
“You think...you think they...” she asked.
“Nah, they don’t even like each other.” But even as Jeff denied it, he pictured his dad at the Balloon Festival...touching Alexis Castle’s shoulders when he showed her how to throw the softball, tugging her up from the blanket, and then, on the Ferris wheel, though it was dark, he could have sworn they were cuddling.
“Damn,” he said aloud.
“What?”
The bet forgotten with this new information, Jeff shook his head. “I wouldn’t have believed it, squirt, but maybe, just maybe something’s going on between them.”
Jamie stared at Jeff, then beamed him a smile. “Yeah? You think maybe we got a chance of being the Brady Bunch?”
o0o
ALEXIS PRESSED HER hand to her stomach and groaned. The pain was back in full force, burning its way through tender tissue. Well, it was her own damn fault. First, she’d allowed that man to upset her with his ultimatums and his accusations. Then, she’d stewed about it for days, like a stupid, simpering female. Plain and simple, the stress had caused her stomach to rebel.
In reaction to her horrific mood, her daughter had turned into The Bad Seed, becoming increasingly rude and obnoxious. Alexis was grateful Portia had offered to take Jamie away this weekend for the Renaissance Festival in Rochester. The annual event transformed acres of land into the Elizabethan Era, complete with jousters, strolling actors in period costumes, food and craft booths and daily shows.
Portia had arrived this morning to get Jamie, but dragged Alexis out on the deck before she left. “Honey, I don’t know what’s bothering you but whatever it is, you need to deal with it. You look sick again.”
“I’m fine. Jamie’s wearing me down, is all. It’ll be nice to have a weekend alone. I’ll rest and feel better.”
“I’m not happy about leaving you like this. If something goes wrong, promise me you’ll call Keag.”
“Keag?”
“Yeah, he’s not working. He should be around unless he takes off on his boat.”
As he’d done earlier in the week. He’d been gone two days, two hours and...oh, damn, that wasn’t getting her anywhere. She’d promised Portia, “If I need anything, I’ll get help.”
There was no way she was going to call Keag. Besides, he might not be around even if his boat was there. The image of him, snuggled up to Nancy Anderson at the movie theater the other night, gnawed at her as badly as her ulcer. And made her just as ill.
Dismissing the image, Alexis dressed and left the house to drive to Guardian. Weeks ago, she and Grant had planned a simulated flight for her to experience how a real rescue might occur. She couldn’t go up on an actual flight because FCC regulations forbade anyone without medical training to accompany the crew. Guardian’s sister plane in Syracuse would be covering any emergency calls for their helicopter in the next two hours. At least Spence wasn’t working today. Another pilot—Jack Smith, would take her up.
Now, she fidgeted in Grant’s office, waiting for the crew to prepare. Geared up in a navy flight suit, she fiddled with the zipper. How many times had she admired Spence in a similar outfit—the play of muscles across his chest and the breath of his shoulders underneath the straining navy cotton? She could still remember the feel of those shoulders, those rippling muscles beneath her hands when they’d kissed that morning.
Staring down at her coffee, she frowned. She shouldn’t be drinking caffeine. She’d become negligent with her diet this last week and it showed. But she’d taken a motion sickness pill and didn’t want to fall asleep in the craft. Standing, she tossed the half-filled cup into the trash and sauntered over to the window. She needed to finish the project, she decided. The audit should be completed soon, and the rest of the analysis she could do at home. It would feel good to walk out that door at the end of August and never come back. Good to leave the lake and never have to run into Spence and his girlfriend again.
“Alexis?”
She pivoted to see Betty in the doorway. “Are you all right?”
Alexis smiled, and nodded. People around here were so solicitous. When was the last time one of her corporate assistants asked how she was feeling? They wouldn’t dare.
“I’m fine,” she replied.
“You look a little peaked.”
Raising her hand to her cheek, she said, “I haven’t slept well.” Or eaten well. Or acted very sanely, either. It was time to get a grip. She smiled again, weakly.
“You sure you want to do this today?”
“Yes, of course. We’ve been planning it for a long time. I’m fine.”
Betty leaned against the doorjamb. “What’d you think of Jenna this week?”
Briefly, Alexis closed her eyes. She hadn’t been able to resist watching that damn soap, even after her fight with Spence. Even with the irony of the story line. Even though, every day, Jenna looked more and more like Nancy Anderson. “I think she’s foolish to stop seeing Ray.”
“Me, too. The guys don’t though. Jim says they’re oil and water and they’d never make it anyway.”
Don’t ask. “Oh? What did Spence say?”
“Keag is really angry with her. He wouldn’t even watch the show one day. He stormed out mumbling that all women were alike, or some such thing. No one knew what he was going on about.”
I do.
“Well, gotta go. Have a nice flight.”
“I will.” When Betty turned to leave, Alexis called after her. “Betty? I won’t be here much more this summer. Maybe once or twice. I wanted to thank you for making me feel so welcome.”
“We liked having you around.” She gave Alexis a knowing look. “And it wasn’t just for the money.”
“No?”
“Nah. We’ll get that second helicopter somehow.” She cocked her head. “You’re a nice woman, Alexis. Everybody thinks so. I’ll be sorry to see you go.”
Evan Redman bumped into Betty as she was leaving. “We’re ready to take off, Alexis.”
Smoothing down her flight suit, Alexis gave him a fake smile and followed him out.
Let’s get this over with; I can’t wait to forget all about Guardian Flight Base.
Liar.
o0o
SPENCE HAD FELT like spitting nails most of the week, and was just as ornery now. In the cockpit, he scanned the crystal blue horizon. He could still see Alexis, chin raised, face flushed, asking—no, demanding—that he wait a month to touch her. His hand curled into a fist. Damn it, she had more gall than a fighter pilot. Spence wouldn’t be put on the back burner for anybody, he wouldn’t allow his integrity to be questioned and he wouldn’t be sandwiched into anybody’s timetable. Not his father’s and certainly never a woman’s.
As he checked the controls a second time, he forced her from his mind. He’d done it successfully all week.
Oh, sure, buddy, so why’d you stalk out of Nancy’s house after the movie? ‘Cause when you kissed her, all you could think about was Alexis Castle. He couldn’t make love to one woman when his body was on fire for another. And it rankled him big time. He hadn’t been intimate with a woman since Miss Alexis paraded in here weeks ago.
A thought surfaced in his mind, as it had frequently over the last few days. Would it have killed you to wait? Given her past, didn’t her worries make sense? You could have been together at the end of the summer.
Sometimes he actually considered waiting for her and when he did, the anticipation spiked his temperature like heated mercury on a hot day. Damn. He didn’t want to think about that stubborn-as-a-mule woman.
If he could just get through this flight, he’d be fine. Spence had pumped Grant and found out Miss Alexis’s visits to the base were numbered. She was waiting for the audit and then she’d be gone. By Labor Day, she’d be a dim memory.
But right now she was all flesh and blood as she sauntered up to the aircraft. She stopped abruptly when she saw him. “What are you doing here?” she asked, bluntly.
God, she looked like hell, reminding him of when she had first come to the lake. Her face was pale and there were smudges underneath her eyes. The thought came to him again, Would it have killed you? “I work here,” he said carelessly. “I’m sure you remember that, Miss Alexis.”
“You’re off this week.”
“Yeah, but Grant roped me into runnin’ this flight. You’re VIP, honey, and you’re entitled to the best.”
Evan scowled at him and boosted Alexis into the cockpit. When the man reached over to secure the seat belts, Spence’s blood pressure skyrocketed. “I’ll do it, Redman. Back off.” Leaning across Alexis, Spence slammed the door in Evan’s face. Over Spence’s dead body was another man gonna touch his woman.
He tried to do up the belts quickly. But the scent of her, flowery and feminine, filled his nostrils and reminded him of how he’d nuzzled her hair the other morning, how he had tasted her skin. As he fumbled with the straps, she drew in a deep breath. The action strained her breasts against her flight suit, and his body responded. Those breasts were about the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen, ever touched. He was so close— the zipper was near level with his cheek—that smattering of freckles on her chest teased his eyeballs. He wondered crazily if what she had on underneath was as sexy as that satin outfit she’d worn when she fixed him breakfast. She had practically made him pant like a dog.
Would it have killed you?
When he drew back, she expelled a heavy breath and raised her eyes to his. Her hair was back in a tidy knot today, but it only made her look more vulnerable. Still close, he stared at her face. “You all right?”
She nodded.
He tilted up her chin. “You look sick. Did you take a motion sickness pill?”
“Of course.” She seared him with an angry look. “Don’t pretend you care, Keag. It’ll ruin your macho image.”
That burned him up. “I just don’t want you throwin’ up all over me, Miss Alexis.”
Jamming on the headset, he did his best to ignore her as he lifted off. They were in the air before he asked, “Did they tell you what we’re doing?”
She nodded. “Meeting an ambulance crew and fire truck at the south end of the thruway.”
“Yeah, a local unit set it up with off-duty personnel. They’ve even staged a fake accident so you can see how we’d function. One of the ground crew will act as the flight paramedic since we didn’t want to take too many people out of service.”
She nodded. When she didn’t say anymore, he stared ahead and tried to concentrate on how much he liked to fly. How much he loved his job. How calm his life had been before she came into it. And would be again as soon as she left.
Would it have killed you?
Veering right, the ship dipped as an unexpected gust of wind caught the tail. He heard her gasp. When he glanced over, he saw her hand clapped on her mouth.
“Spence, I...I’m sorry...the jostling...”
A quick reach behind her, and he handed her an airsickness bag.
She vomited into it. A lot.
A few minutes later, the wind rocked them a second time.
“Ohh...” She was sick again.
He remembered a line from e.e. cummings...“nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals the power of your intense fragility.” Shit!
Below him spanned an empty field. He recognized it. He’d landed there twice—no power lines, stumps, nothing dangerous. Into the headset, he barked, “Aircraft GB1 to flight base. I’m making an unexpected landing. Our guest is ill. Call the ground crew to tell them we’ll be delayed.
After relaying his coordinates, Spence landed the ship as gently as possible. When they touched down, then stopped, he shut off the motor and vaulted out of the cockpit. He dragged a bag and a blanket out of the back, which he spread on the ground, then circled around the side. He jerked open the door and was alarmed by the pallor of her face. Unsnapping the belts, he slid his hands under her and eased her out.
She resisted, albeit weakly. “Don’t.”
“Shh, let me help.”
He had her snuggled up against his chest, when she mumbled, “I might get sick all over you.” Even ill, she was sharp as a tack. It made him smile.
The blanket lay in the shade provided by the helicopter. Sinking onto it, he leaned against the ship with her in his arms, on his lap. Again, she tried to pull away.
“I’m sorry I snapped at you.” He tried to sooth her. To make her more comfortable, he tugged her hair out of the knot, and let it fall in silken waves onto his arm. Awkwardly, he fished out a cloth and water from the bag. Easing her back onto his arm, he bathed her face. Her eyes closed, and her dark lashes fluttered against her cheek. “Better?”
She nodded.
He rested his hand on her stomach. “Still sick?”
“No, it feels okay.”
“Just lay back,” he whispered. “Keep your eyes shut.” He picked up the cloth once more. “Let me take care of you.”
“Not a good idea,” she mumbled, but kept her eyes closed.
He kissed her nose. “I know, sweetheart, I know.”