Carnal Vengeance (21 page)

"Whatever you'd like. Let me rephrase that. Whatever you can tell without bringing up your intimate encounters with the opposite sex."

"Well, hell. That wipes out half my life story!" He gave her another wink that could have meant he was joking or it was the complete truth. "Okay, let's see. I grew up in a relatively seedy area of Washington, D.C., along with four brothers and sisters. Nancy and Patty are older, Gary and Jill, younger. That made me the middle child, but I was the smartest and best-looking, so I never suffered for it."

He ignored her groan. "With my old man, that made six of us in a two-bedroom, one-bath apartment. You can't imagine how strange it seemed when I moved out and had a bathroom all to myself. Every once in a while I still expect somebody to bang on the door when I'm taking a shower."

Holly angled her head at him. "What about your mother?"

David shrugged. If she had a heart at all, this next truth would win him a few points. "She took off right after she dropped number five in seven years. We never heard from her again." Bingo. Her heart was in her eyes.

"How awful."

He raised his brows in surprise. "Not really. We learned to make do. Sometimes I think we had a closer-knit family because we had to help each other. Dad did the best he could, under the circumstances. His job in the factory never earned enough to take care of five kids, but we managed with welfare, and as soon as I was old enough, I got a job as a paperboy for
The Washington Herald.

"It didn't get really tough until Dad was laid off when I was in tenth grade. I skipped the rest of that school year to take a full-time job working at a deli, besides keeping up my paper route. The other kids earned a little money too, but I wouldn't let any of them quit school."

Holly frowned. "What do you mean,
you
wouldn't let them. What about your father?"

Again David shrugged. "I don't know. It just sort of happened. One day, he was in charge of the family and the next day, I was. Like I said, he did his best, and eventually he found another job, I went back to school."

"What about your sisters and brother?"

He couldn't help but grin over her interview technique. Fire the next question the instant the last one is answered. "Nancy and Patty got married. Gary went to refrigeration school and Jill became a paralegal. I'm the only one that liked school well enough to go for a college degree."

"How did you manage that?"

He didn't even try to hide his pride. "Fortunately, schoolwork came easy to me. Between being a paperboy for ten years and maintaining a straight 'A' average through high school, I won the Newsboy Scholarship. Since I couldn't afford room and board, I chose George Washington University, not far from where we lived. You'll never guess what I majored in."

"Girls?"

"Smartass. Look, the traffic's finally let up a little. Why don't you use the bathroom while we're still parked? It takes a little improvising to get around in there anyway, but I bet it's damn near impossible when we're moving."

He saw the flush on Holly's cheeks as she tried to get out of her seat. His arm instantly formed a barricade across the space in front of her.

"Do you always embarrass so easily?"

She sighed loudly and glared at his hand. "No. I don't."

He raised his arm and smiled at her back as she moved away. It didn't make sense, but the realization that he could so easily fracture her composure and she knew it, made him feel rather cocky.

He had hoped his sad but true tale would put another crack in her barrier, and it looked like he'd accomplished that much. But it had also served the purpose of reminding him of his vows where women were concerned. Vows that Holly could make him forget for a few hours if he let her.

Women had their perks and he enjoyed them whenever the opportunity arose. But developing feelings for them, forming relationships, even friendships, were completely out of the question. No woman would ever have the chance to do to him what his mother had done to his old man. No woman would ever leave him with a broken heart and a brood of children. He'd take what they had to offer and go on to the next one when they got too possessive.

As soon as she was buckled back into her seat, he eased the motorhome onto the highway again.

Holly thought they had been making some progress toward friendship but now she wasn't so sure.

Something had changed in the minutes she had been away and she wanted to quickly recapture whatever ground had been lost. "Are you and your family still close?"

He seemed surprised that she wanted to know more about him, but he replied without hesitation. "Not in real miles. We're spread all over the country now... but inside"—he paused to tap his temple—"that won't ever change. There was this one time, a dress-up high school dance. My two older sisters were certain they would die if they couldn't attend. Dad and I pooled our money. We only had enough for one dress. Now you know, most girls would have fought tooth and nail to be the one to get a new dress. Not my two. Nancy wore the dress for the first half of the dance, then turned it over to Patty for the second half. That way they both had a night to remember.

"The only problem was, Patty was about four inches shorter and ten pounds heavier than Nancy, so we got a dress size in between. It didn't fit either one of them perfectly, but the rest of us convinced them they both looked like movie stars. Luckily, everyone at the dance was too preoccupied with their own appearance to notice the switch, or at least they had the decency not to mention it."

He related a few more family stories and moved on to anecdotes about Harry Abbott, the sports writer who had taken him under his wing, until he had her laughing along with him. When she accused him of making them up, the tales became even more outrageous.

When was the last time she had laughed so much?
Jerry.
The answer sobered her slightly but she didn't let the realization ruin the fun she was having.

There
were
similarities between the two. They were both extremely handsome, self-centered men who went through women faster than toilet tissue, they both teased mercilessly and made her laugh, and they could both kiss like the devil. Only this one couldn't take her to hell, because she no longer had childish fantasies about falling in love.

There were also great differences. Where Jerry cared about no one but himself, David obviously loved his family and his friend, Harry. Jerry never had to work to get what he wanted. David had known hard times and had struggled to overcome the odds without feeling sorry for himself. Where Jerry had carried out an elaborate farce for his own pleasure, David had been blunt about his intentions and brutally honest about his subsequent disinterest.

And thank heaven for that fact. The way she had responded to his kiss was not only mindless but dangerous. She would never be able to keep him at arm's length as she did Philip. With David, her own passion could be her undoing... again. Yes, it was definitely a good thing he wasn't interested in that sort of relationship with her.

As a friend, she would be free to notice the way his smile showed off straight, white teeth, or that his hair hadn't been trimmed in some time. If he caught her staring he wouldn't be driven by a primitive need to pull her against his hard body and—

"Hey! Here I thought you were enthralled by my stories and all the time you were off in another world."

She tried to look indignant. "I heard every word you said. You're very funny."

"So? Answer my last question."

Once again heat flushed her cheeks, but this time it was too dark for him to see it. "All right. Maybe I drifted a little." Suddenly she noticed the line of traffic had come to a complete stop. "Where are we?"

"Florida City. According to the map, from here, we can take U.S. One all the way down to Key West."

The tollbooth worker took the money from David and asked, "Where're you headed?"

"As far as we can go," David replied.

"I'm afraid that won't be but about twenty-nine miles. Then you'll reach the roadblock. Curfew went into effect at eight o'clock and all traffic into the Keys is being turned back until sunrise tomorrow."

"But I'm a reporter sent to cover the story."

"The police aren't making any exceptions."

"The roads are that dangerous?"

The man laughed. "It's hard to say what's the most dangerous, trees across the roads, downed power lines, the looters, or the displaced snakes and gators. Regardless, you'll have to wait till tomorrow. But I can tell you one thing right now—there's nothing left to see."

Holly tapped David's arm. "Ask him if there's a motel near here."

David motioned for her to be patient. "Is there a campground anywhere near here?"

The man gave him simple directions to one close by, but added, "The power hasn't been restored in this area yet, and the water's not safe to drink, so be careful. Oh, and you may as well be prepared for a pretty steep price—
if
they have any spaces available. Everything around here filled up hours ago."

As they pulled away from the tollbooth, Holly said, "You didn't ask him about a motel." David didn't bother to answer her with words. His eyes showed that he had no more patience for that discussion.

The campsites on the grounds the man had directed them to were all rented, but for a mere $100 they were given permission to park on the property without any hookups. They could use the facilities, however. Just don't drink the water, and be sure to use lots of insect repellent. The mosquitoes were worse than usual after a storm.

David paid the owner and drove to a vacant space of grass barely large enough to fit the motorhome. He got the generator going a few minutes later, then went to "visit the facilities".

While he was gone, Holly inventoried the contents of the refrigerator and cabinets. It had been quite a while since she'd eaten, but she didn't want to be fussing with things if he wanted to go right to sleep. By the time David returned, Holly had set out cold cuts, bread, and condiments on the counter and was making a sandwich.

"That guy wasn't kidding about the mosquitoes. I just met a couple in the men's room that were big enough to shake hands with. I hope that's for me," he said, grinning at the sandwich.

She handed it to him on a paper plate. "Only because you asked so politely," she returned, and proceeded to make another for herself. "I owe you a proper thank you," she said when she joined him at the little table.

"I'd prefer an improper one."

"I'm serious."

"You're always serious."

She grimaced. "Now I forgot what I was going to say."

"Thank you, David, for—"

"Oh. Yes. For not leaving me stranded. I'm not much good at winging it. I... tend to work better in an organized, well-planned situation. Anyway, I appreciate your letting me stay here with you."

His eyes twinkled mischievously. "We still haven't talked about your payment, have we?"

"Don't you ever think of anything else?"

"Don't you? I didn't say a single lascivious word. Admit it, Holly. You're earthy, too."

"And you're incorrigible."

"I know, but I've thought of a payment that won't cost you much at all."

She refused to be baited again.

"You have to get on that bed with me."

She stopped in midchew for a split second then continued eating. She was not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing her blush again.

"And watch a movie."

Her eyebrows lifted a notch. The smug expression on his face warned her she hadn't heard all of it.

"If I lay down now, without unwinding, I wouldn't be able to fall asleep, no matter how tired I am. The television and VCR are built into the wall at the foot of the bed, and there's a whole library of movies in the headboard. Oh, and one more thing, I get to pick the movie."

Totally exasperated with his game, she threw her hands in the air. "All right. Spit it out. What triple X-rated film are you going to make me suffer through?"

His smile was so big, it crinkled the corners of his eyes. "Because the movies are all VHS, they're pretty old but there are a couple classics. How about
Star Trek IV
? Earthy enough for you?"

He'd done it to her again. "The one with the whales? I remember that one. Yes. I accept your terms."

"Somehow I knew you'd say that."

* * *

"You have the most beautiful breasts, baby. I could spend all night loving them."

Rachel whimpered as her nipples reacted to the flattery and expert suckling. A sharp spear of pleasure cut through her. She opened her eyes so that she could see the talented hands molding her flesh into two mounds and watch the tongue circling and teasing each peak. If she didn't climax soon, she would surely die. "Please," she begged. "Finish it."

Erica knew precisely what words to say and what actions to perform to bring Rachel to a point of desperate, near-mindless need. She liked to be kept hanging on the edge, wet and wanting, and so aroused that nothing mattered but the intense pulsing between her legs. When Erica was in a particularly spiteful mood, like now, she could drag it out for hours, until she was administering more torture than pleasure.