Acadian Waltz (29 page)

“You should have
told me you were there, Uncle Jack.”

He came up to my
side. “I didn’t know what you were doin’ out here at first. Then I saw where
you were lookin’. Why don’t you go on over? I’m sure he’ll be just as anxious
to see you.”

“I’ve got to get
Henri ready for bed after Ms. Marie’s friends leave.”

“I’ll tell Ms.
Marie you decided to take a walk before it got dark. I can help her get Henri
ready for bed.” He nodded toward the cottage. “You go on. But don’t be keepin’
that boy up too late. I’ll be by early in the mornin’ to take him crabbin’.”

“Thanks, Uncle
Jack.” I kissed his grizzled cheek and then took off toward the cottage.

When I arrived
in the clearing in front of Jean Marc’s, I was surprised to find the cottage
blanketed in darkness. Wondering why Jean Marc had not turned on any lights, I
climbed the porch steps and pulled the screen door open. The old cypress
floorboards on the porch moaned beneath my feet as I made my way to the front
door. I lightly knocked and then tried the doorknob. The door had been left open,
and I eased my way inside.

The lights were
out in the living room and kitchen, except for a faint glow emanating from the
upstairs hall.

“Jean Marc?” I
called from the bottom of the stairs.

“Nora, I’m up
here.” I heard his voice coming from somewhere on the second floor. “Make sure
you lock the front door before you come up.”

After I secured
the deadbolt on the front door, I made my way up the stairs. I followed the
light to a door across from his bedroom. When I stepped inside, I found Jean
Marc sitting in a high back black leather chair behind an old mahogany desk.
The long desk had intricate designs of swirls and crowns carved into it.

“Hey, darlin’,”
he said, glancing up from a letter in his hand.

I slowly
approached the desk. “What are you doing?”

He dropped the
letter on top of a small pile of papers in front of him. “Just going over some
paperwork.” He watched as I traced a large swirl carved in the wood with my
fingers. “Beautiful isn’t it?” He motioned to the desk. “It was my father’s;
belonged to his grandfather, who shipped it over from France.” He ran his
fingers reverently over the edge of the desk. “I brought it from the house. I
didn’t want to take it to my office at the warehouse, it’s too grand.” He
looked up at me. “I thought you would be coming by later, but I left the front
door open just in case.”

“Uncle Jack
offered to take over bedtime duties with Henri,” I explained as I eyed the
papers on his the desk.

“I take it he
knows about us?”

I nodded. “Your
mother suspects, too.” I hesitated for a moment before I went on. “I called
John today and told him everything was off. He blames you. He always thought
you were after me.”

He rested his
hands on the top of the desk. “He was right. Male intuition.”

“God only knows
what my mother thinks by now. John called her right after I hung up on him.”

Jean Marc
knitted his dark brows. “I don’t really care what Claire or John thinks about
us.” He cast his eyes to the papers on his desk. “At least Henri will never
realize anything, and if he did, I doubt he would care.”

“Oh, you would
be surprised what he can do,” I mumbled, rubbing my hand across my forehead.

He leaned back
in his chair, observing me. “Is he recovering?”

Wanting to avoid
his intrusive gaze, I directed my eyes to his desk. “Henri’s improving,” I told
him. Desperate to change the subject, I motioned to the papers before him.
“What is all this, Jean Marc?”

He stood from
his chair. “Faxes and e-mails from several insurance companies. I took your
advice and started getting quotes on different insurance plans for the
business.” He came around the desk to my side. “I also went grocery shopping on
the way home; thought I would cook us something really great for dinner.”

I slipped my
arms about his waist. “What?”

“Chinese.”

“You can cook
Chinese?” I asked, somewhat surprised.

He nibbled at my
earlobe. “No, but I can put it in a microwave and warm it up.”

“Sounds
wonderful,” I murmured as his lips inched their way down my neck.

“For dessert, I
have something really special,” he whispered against my skin.

“Mmm. What?”

His teeth grazed
the nape of my neck. “Me.”

I leaned back
and grinned. “Well, then to hell with dinner, let’s get right to the dessert.”

“Excellent
choice.”

He picked me up
in his arms and deposited me on top of the pile of papers on his desk. His hand
went straight to the zipper on my shorts.

I glanced down
at the papers underneath me. “But this is your father’s desk.”

He stood back
from me and pulled at the buttons on his shirt. “Yeah, wouldn’t Dad be proud.”

He threw his
shirt to the floor and reached for my legs. Pulling my hips to the edge of the
desk, he quickly removed my shorts and underwear. He ran his callused hands up
and down my thighs, making my skin prickle with excitement.

I tossed my
T-shirt and bra to the floor and then began to explore the curves of his broad
chest. I kissed his neck gently at first, but then I started teasing him with
my teeth, leaving little kisses down his neck and chest until I sank my teeth
into his left nipple.

“Oh, you little…”
He reached his hands under my thighs and pulled my hips high in the air.

My body fell
back against the desk. Before I could wiggle free of his grip, his teeth began
nipping their way down my inner thigh. I reached my hands behind me and gripped
the edge of the desk as his mouth closed over my sensitive folds. I moaned with
pleasure as his tongue began to tease my flesh.

“Oh, God, Jean
Marc,” I cried out.

My back arched
and my insides ached with need as my climax drew near. Jean Marc’s tongue made
me feel as if I would explode if he did not stop. My nails dug into the edge of
the old desk, my body began to pulsate and soon I lost all sense of the world
outside his office door. I screamed when the orgasm overwhelmed me.

Relaxing on the
desk, I tried to catch my breath, and then I felt the press of a stapler
against my back. I sat up and was about to grab at the stapler, when Jean Marc
pulled my hips to his.

“Don’t get too
comfortable, darlin’. I’m just getting started.” He lowered his lips over my
right nipple and his teeth clamped down hard on my tender skin.

Then I heard the
distinct sound of his zipper being lowered on his black trousers. He wrapped my
legs about his waist as his pants and briefs fell to the floor. He stopped
teasing my right nipple and he looked into my eyes.

“It’s my turn,”
he whispered as he eased slowly inside me.

I sighed with
pleasure when he entered me. He pulled completely out and then pushed his way
into me once more. I raked my nails along his chest as he began to increase the
speed of his thrusting. Jean Marc groaned and slammed his hips harder into
mine, going deeper than before. Grabbing at the papers around me, I struggled
to raise my hips higher to satiate the frenzy taking over my body. I closed my
eyes as my climax came barreling up from my groin. He thrust again and again,
bringing me to the edge. Then, my whole body began to tremble as the orgasm
rocked every inch of me. His breath came hard and fast against my neck as he
arched his body and grunted into my neck.

I went limp
against the desk and he relaxed on top of me.

“You’re driving
me crazy,” he mumbled, catching his breath.

I giggled. “I
know the feeling.”

His body tensed.
“Damn.”

“What is it?”

He sat up and
his deep brown eyes gazed worriedly into mine. “I didn’t use a condom. I guess
I got so carried away, I forgot.”

I traced my
fingertips over the red marks on his wide chest. “I forgot, too. I guess that
means we’re both in trouble.”

His features
darkened, but his eyes shone in the light of the room. “Are we?”

I nodded. “Could
be.”

His fingers
stroked the valley between my breasts. “I’d love to get you pregnant. Then we
would have to marry right away.”

“I wouldn’t
force you to marry me if I got pregnant, Jean Marc.”

He eagerly
embraced me with his strong arms. “You wouldn’t be forcing me, Nora. You would
be saving me.”

I ran my fingers
along the outline of his wide shoulders. “Maybe we can do it once more without
the condom. What could it hurt?”

He nuzzled my
cheek. “I like the way you think, Mrs. Gaspard.”

“Jean Marc—” But
his hungry kiss silenced me, and my growing desire for him quickly swept all my
doubts away.

*     *     *

The following
morning I awoke in Jean Marc’s arms again and delighted in the feel of his warm
body next to mine. But the peace in the bedroom was soon disrupted by the
grating “beep, beep, beep” of the alarm clock next to the bed. Jean Marc rolled
away from me and shut the alarm off with a slap of his hand.

He turned back
over and wrapped me in his arms. “I don’t want to get up.”

I cuddled against
his chest. “What’s the alarm for?”

“Jack’s taking
me out to pull crab traps from the lake this morning; he wants to get an early
start.”

“Then I should
get going.” I made an attempt to get out of bed, but he only dragged me back to
his side.

“Five more
minutes,” he begged. “Better yet, I’ll cancel.”

“No. Don’t let
Uncle Jack down. I’ll be at the house when you get back.”

“It’s Sunday,
and Momma will be off to church early. You’ll be on your own with Henri.” He
sat up in bed. “Will you be all right?”

“I’ll be fine.”
I nestled back into his arms.

He pulled me
close and sighed into my hair. “About last night, I meant what I said about
marrying you.” He kissed my cheek and then he whispered, “I love you, Nora. I
always have.”

At that moment,
I knew all the animosity I thought I had harbored for Jean Marc through the
years had simply been love hiding behind my fear. There was no great flash of
light, no angelic choirs from above to signal my epiphany; there was only a
profound sense of contentment permeating my soul. Odd, how you could know
someone all your life and then, without warning, what you thought had been
friendship turns out to be love. 

I traced the
dark stubble over his chin as my heart soared with happiness. “As long as it is
a quick ceremony and there is no fancy reception, bridesmaids, or long guest
lists.” I rolled my eyes. “I can’t go through that again.”

“Here at the
house, family, close friends, and, of course, your mother.”

“She’ll hate it.
But it sounds perfect.”

He let me go and
threw his covers aside. “We need to make this official,” Jean Marc proclaimed,
jumping from the bed. He went to his chest of drawers, and after removing
something from the middle drawer, darted back to the bed.

“What is it?” I
asked as he sat down next to me.

He took my left
hand and slipped something over my third finger.

“This will have
to do until I can get you a proper ring,” he told me.

On my finger was
the gold-painted aluminum ring covered with rhinestones that I had given Jean
Marc all those years ago. The ring appeared so crude and childlike on my hand,
but the emotion it instilled in me at that moment made it the most precious
thing I had ever owned.

I lovingly
caressed the rhinestones. “You really did keep it.”

“How could I
throw it away? You made it for me.”

I leaned over
and kissed his lips. Instantly, his arms flew about me and he pulled me down on
the bed.

I pushed him
away. “What about Uncle Jack?”

“You’re right.”
He slapped my thigh. “You’d better get out of here before Jack shows up, or
else I will have to marry you with his shotgun at my back before sunset.” He
stood from the bed. “Tonight, we can make some plans.”

I climbed out of
the bed. “I like the sound of that.” I paused for a moment and reached for his
long-sleeved shirt strewn over the footboard of the sleigh bed. “Why is it when
you talk about making plans, I don’t feel sick to my stomach?” I shrugged his
white shirt over my shoulders.

“Sick? What do
you mean?” He walked to his closet by the bathroom door.

“Whenever John
talked about making plans for us, I would always get this burning feeling in my
stomach.”

He opened the
closet door. “That’s because you never really loved John, Nora. That was pretty
obvious to everyone who knows you.”

“I tried to love
him. I really did. I kept thinking he was good for me, that we would be good
together, but it wasn’t enough.”

He removed an
old pair of blue jeans from his closet. “I kept telling myself the same thing
when I was with Cynthia, hoping it would be enough to keep our marriage going.”
He tossed the jeans to the bed. “When I found out she was sleeping with someone
else, I wasn’t angry, I was relieved.” He stepped over to his chest of drawers.

“You never told
her how you felt, just like I never told John.” I eased up next to him.
“Promise from this point on we will never keep anything hidden between us.”

His body
stiffened and he turned to the chest of drawers.

“Jean Marc? What
is it?”

He opened the
top drawer, keeping his back to me as he spoke. “I’ve done things I’m not proud
of, and one day that past may catch up with me.”

“Are you talking
about the smuggling?”

He lifted a
white T-shirt from the drawer and faced me. “I’m not like my brother, Nora, but
I am not what you think.”

“I know what
you’ve done. I know you smuggled goods through the swamps to keep your family
business going. You did what you had to. I will never think any less of you
because of it.”