Chesapeake Blue
Page 51
She glanced toward the windows. "No, it isn't."
"I mean rain's coming." He turned his head to look out at the sky. "Storm's blowing in. Your car windows up?"
Why the hell was he asking about her car windows when she'd just had a life-altering experience? "Yes."
"Good."
She stared at the ceiling. "I should go, before it rains."
"Uh-uh." He wrapped her close, then rolled over with her. "You should stay, and we'll listen to the rain when we make love again."
"Again?"
"Mmm. Did you know you have this little dimple right at the base of your spine?" He skimmed his finger there as he opened his eyes, and saw her face. "Something wrong?"
"I don't know. Is there?"
He caught her head in his hands, and considered. "I know that face. You're mildly peeved and working toward seriously pissed. What's wrong? Was I too rough?"
"No."
"Not rough enough, what? Hey." He gave her head a little shake. "Tell me what's wrong, Dru."
"Nothing. Nothing. You're an incredible lover. I've never been with anyone as thorough or exciting."
"Then what is it?" he demanded as she pulled away and sat up.
"I said it's nothing." She could hear the testiness of her own voice. God, she thought, she'd whine in a minute. The first threatening rumble of thunder seemed the perfect accent to her mood. "You might say something about me. Even the standard, 'Oh baby, that was amazing.'"
"Oh baby, that was amazing." He might have laughed, but he saw the glint in her eye wasn't just temper.
"Hold on." He had to move fast to grab her before she could scoot off the bed. And to avoid a tussle, just rolled on top of her again to keep her in place. "Just what happened between you and that guy you were engaged to?"
"That's hardly relevant now."
"It is when you've just plopped him down in bed with us."
She opened her mouth, prepared to strike out with a sharp, damning reply. And sighed instead. "You're right. You're absolutely right. And I'm absolutely stupid. Let me up. I can't carry on any sort of conversation this way."
He eased back so she could shift. And said nothing when she tugged the sheet up over her br**sts, though he recognized the gesture as a lifting of the shield.
She tried to gather her thoughts as thunder rolled again and lightning shuddered through the dark. "He cheated on me, and as he claimed to love me, his reason was the fact that I was unimaginative in bed."
"Were you taking yoga back then?" When she merely stared, coolly, Seth shook his head. "Sugar, if you bought that line, you are stupid."
"I was going to marry him. We'd ordered the invitations. I'd had my first fitting for the wedding dress. Then I find out he's been romping between the sheets—ones I bought, for your information—with a lawyer."
Wind blew in a gust through the windows, and lightning slashed behind it. But he didn't look away from her. He didn't rush over to shut the windows against the oncoming rain.
"And he expected me to understand his reasoning," she went on. "He expected me to go through with the wedding because it was just sex, which was something I wasn't particularly skilled at." Prick, Seth thought. The kind of prick that gave regular guys a bad name. "And do you figure a guy who'd go shopping for wedding invitations with one woman and sneak around with another is worth one minute of your time?"
"Hardly, or I wouldn't have walked out on him, causing myself and my family considerable embarrassment. I'm not thinking of him. I'm thinking of me."
She was wrong about that, but he let it go. "Do you want me to tell you what it was like being with you?
It was magic." He leaned forward to touch his lips to hers. "Magic." When he took her hand, she looked down at the way they joined. Then sighing, looked toward the windows. "It's raining." she said softly.
"Stay with me awhile." He brought their joined hands to his lips. "We'll listen to it." IT WAS still raining when she rose. The soft, steady patter after the storm turned the room into a cozy nest, one she wished she could wallow in.
"Stay the night. I'll even run out early and hunt up something decent for breakfast."
"I can't." It seemed so intimate, so romantic to talk to him in the dark that her first reaction was disappointment when he turned on the light. The second was shock as she realized she was in full view of the windows. "For heaven sake." She scrambled with her underwear toward the bathroom.
"Yeah, like there's anyone out there at this time of night, in the rain." Unconcerned with modesty, he got up and, comfortably naked, followed her. He managed to stop the door from slamming in his face. "Look at it this way, you'll only have to walk downstairs to go to work in the morning."
"I don't have any clothes. Any fresh clothes," she added when he gestured to the shirt still in a heap on the bedroom floor. "Only a man could suggest I go to work in the morning wearing the same thing I wore yesterday. Would you mind getting that shirt for me?"
He obliged her, but that didn't mean he couldn't stall. "Bring extra clothes tomorrow. I'll pick up some supplies. We'll have dinner. I can cook," he claimed when she lifted an eyebrow. "Adequately. Or we could hang at your place, and you could fix dinner."
"I don't cook, even adequately."
"We can go out, then come back here. Or your place," he added, easing his arms around her. "I don't care where. A planned date, instead of our usual impromptu."
"This wasn't a date." She wiggled away to button her shirt.
"This was sex.
"Excuse me. We had food, alcoholic beverages, conversation and sex. That, baby, is a date." She could feel her lips quiver into a smile. "Damn. You got me."
"Exactly." He caught her around the waist again when she moved by him, drew her back against him.
"Have dinner with me, go to bed with me, wake up with me."
"All right, but we'll have to eat after eight. I have a yoga class tomorrow."
"You're just saying that to torment me. But since we're on the subject, can you actually hook your heel behind your head?"
"I mean rain's coming." He turned his head to look out at the sky. "Storm's blowing in. Your car windows up?"
Why the hell was he asking about her car windows when she'd just had a life-altering experience? "Yes."
"Good."
She stared at the ceiling. "I should go, before it rains."
"Uh-uh." He wrapped her close, then rolled over with her. "You should stay, and we'll listen to the rain when we make love again."
"Again?"
"Mmm. Did you know you have this little dimple right at the base of your spine?" He skimmed his finger there as he opened his eyes, and saw her face. "Something wrong?"
"I don't know. Is there?"
He caught her head in his hands, and considered. "I know that face. You're mildly peeved and working toward seriously pissed. What's wrong? Was I too rough?"
"No."
"Not rough enough, what? Hey." He gave her head a little shake. "Tell me what's wrong, Dru."
"Nothing. Nothing. You're an incredible lover. I've never been with anyone as thorough or exciting."
"Then what is it?" he demanded as she pulled away and sat up.
"I said it's nothing." She could hear the testiness of her own voice. God, she thought, she'd whine in a minute. The first threatening rumble of thunder seemed the perfect accent to her mood. "You might say something about me. Even the standard, 'Oh baby, that was amazing.'"
"Oh baby, that was amazing." He might have laughed, but he saw the glint in her eye wasn't just temper.
"Hold on." He had to move fast to grab her before she could scoot off the bed. And to avoid a tussle, just rolled on top of her again to keep her in place. "Just what happened between you and that guy you were engaged to?"
"That's hardly relevant now."
"It is when you've just plopped him down in bed with us."
She opened her mouth, prepared to strike out with a sharp, damning reply. And sighed instead. "You're right. You're absolutely right. And I'm absolutely stupid. Let me up. I can't carry on any sort of conversation this way."
He eased back so she could shift. And said nothing when she tugged the sheet up over her br**sts, though he recognized the gesture as a lifting of the shield.
She tried to gather her thoughts as thunder rolled again and lightning shuddered through the dark. "He cheated on me, and as he claimed to love me, his reason was the fact that I was unimaginative in bed."
"Were you taking yoga back then?" When she merely stared, coolly, Seth shook his head. "Sugar, if you bought that line, you are stupid."
"I was going to marry him. We'd ordered the invitations. I'd had my first fitting for the wedding dress. Then I find out he's been romping between the sheets—ones I bought, for your information—with a lawyer."
Wind blew in a gust through the windows, and lightning slashed behind it. But he didn't look away from her. He didn't rush over to shut the windows against the oncoming rain.
"And he expected me to understand his reasoning," she went on. "He expected me to go through with the wedding because it was just sex, which was something I wasn't particularly skilled at." Prick, Seth thought. The kind of prick that gave regular guys a bad name. "And do you figure a guy who'd go shopping for wedding invitations with one woman and sneak around with another is worth one minute of your time?"
"Hardly, or I wouldn't have walked out on him, causing myself and my family considerable embarrassment. I'm not thinking of him. I'm thinking of me."
She was wrong about that, but he let it go. "Do you want me to tell you what it was like being with you?
It was magic." He leaned forward to touch his lips to hers. "Magic." When he took her hand, she looked down at the way they joined. Then sighing, looked toward the windows. "It's raining." she said softly.
"Stay with me awhile." He brought their joined hands to his lips. "We'll listen to it." IT WAS still raining when she rose. The soft, steady patter after the storm turned the room into a cozy nest, one she wished she could wallow in.
"Stay the night. I'll even run out early and hunt up something decent for breakfast."
"I can't." It seemed so intimate, so romantic to talk to him in the dark that her first reaction was disappointment when he turned on the light. The second was shock as she realized she was in full view of the windows. "For heaven sake." She scrambled with her underwear toward the bathroom.
"Yeah, like there's anyone out there at this time of night, in the rain." Unconcerned with modesty, he got up and, comfortably naked, followed her. He managed to stop the door from slamming in his face. "Look at it this way, you'll only have to walk downstairs to go to work in the morning."
"I don't have any clothes. Any fresh clothes," she added when he gestured to the shirt still in a heap on the bedroom floor. "Only a man could suggest I go to work in the morning wearing the same thing I wore yesterday. Would you mind getting that shirt for me?"
He obliged her, but that didn't mean he couldn't stall. "Bring extra clothes tomorrow. I'll pick up some supplies. We'll have dinner. I can cook," he claimed when she lifted an eyebrow. "Adequately. Or we could hang at your place, and you could fix dinner."
"I don't cook, even adequately."
"We can go out, then come back here. Or your place," he added, easing his arms around her. "I don't care where. A planned date, instead of our usual impromptu."
"This wasn't a date." She wiggled away to button her shirt.
"This was sex.
"Excuse me. We had food, alcoholic beverages, conversation and sex. That, baby, is a date." She could feel her lips quiver into a smile. "Damn. You got me."
"Exactly." He caught her around the waist again when she moved by him, drew her back against him.
"Have dinner with me, go to bed with me, wake up with me."
"All right, but we'll have to eat after eight. I have a yoga class tomorrow."
"You're just saying that to torment me. But since we're on the subject, can you actually hook your heel behind your head?"
