Deborah Camp (36 page)

“Well, that’s not so bad.”

Theodore chuckled. “Honey, you ain’t seen nothing yet.” He growled low and crawled onto the bed. “It’s bad, Regina. Really bad. Oh, it’s something terrible to behold! You’re going to just hate it.”

She giggled. “You don’t mean it.”

His teeth nipped gently at her bare shoulder. “You make me hard, Regina.”

“Theo!” She slapped at him, thinking she should be appalled, but not feeling that way. “Hush your mouth!”

“That first day in the office, you left me aching and stiff.”

“Shhh.” She whimpered as his mouth covered hers and his tongue skimmed across her lips and then darted inside like a bee after nectar.

“And ever since, oh, sweet lady, you’ve left me in such misery. But we’re both going to end our suffering tonight. We’re going to heal up tonight, Regina.” His mouth seduced and cajoled.

With trembling fingers, Regina tugged at the strings of her chemise. The garment loosened and Theo pulled it down to expose her breasts. He kissed them, nuzzled the tender undersides and then took one swollen nipple in his hot, hot mouth. Clutching his shoulders, Regina squeezed her eyes shut in ecstasy. His tongue stroked and rubbed like soft sandpaper against the sensitive nub, and she heard herself making breathy sounds.

Theodore loved her soft purring. He loved her taste. He loved the way her body responded to his. Love. Love. A word so seldom used by him and so easily equated with her. He removed his last garment and pressed himself against her. He knew he’d shocked her, brought her back to the moment, but he was so glad to be free of restrictions. He caught her hand and introduced her to his most masculine body part. She tensed, her fingers quivered, and then she touched him, light as feathers.

“It’s so hot!” she said.

Theo saw that she was staring up at the ceiling and he laughed. “What are you looking at?”

“N-nothing.”

“Look at me.”

Her gaze found his.

“No. Look at what’s in your hand. You won’t go to hell for looking at it.”

“I … well …” She angled her chin lower and sneaked a peek. “Oh!”

“Oh, what?”

“It’s big.”

“Thank you. Every man likes to hear that. Of course, I also know you have no one to compare me with, so I shouldn’t take too much pride in that.”

She stroked him, then laughed when it bobbed up as if wanting more. “It moves by itself!”

He grimaced. “It has a life of its own.”

“Does it? How odd!”

“Don’t go feeling superior, Regina. You have a few parts of your own that are beyond your control.” He dropped his gaze to her rosy-centered breasts.

She caressed his cheek, feeling the rasp of new whiskers. “You’re right. Why did you send me away the other night, but then decide you want me tonight? How am I different to you?”

“You’re not different. I just didn’t want you to come to me out of gratitude or because you wanted to make amends. I wanted you to want me. Only me.” He kissed her again, demanding a response and getting it.

He felt her body quicken and her hands explored and sent him to the edge of control. He teetered there before drawing himself up and pushing aside her hand. “Wait. Help me with these …” He fumbled with her undergarments and was ever so glad when she sprang from the bed to undress. She turned her back on him and shimmied out of the white cotton chemise and full underpants. Slowly, she faced him again, her arms crossed in front, her thighs pressed together.

One word summed it up for him. “Beautiful.”

She smiled. “I’m glad you think I am.”

He took her hands and uncrossed her arms, holding them out from her sides as he admired the whole work of art. With a fire in his belly and a
lusting in his heart, he swept her into his arms again and kissed her breathless. She lay beneath him, panting, pliant, her thighs parted, her lips glistening pink from the kisses. Theo tongued her nipples and she groaned and bent her knees. Then he felt her heels climb up the back of his calves and hook behind his thighs.

“Theodore … I want … oh, I don’t know what … but I want.” Her sweet murmurings made perfect sense to him.

Steadying himself, he braced for a smooth, flowing entry. She issued one sharp cry before he smothered it with his mouth, taking the sound into him, absorbing that spasm of pain, then surging through it. She trembled, but he felt her slippery warmth and knew he could bring her joy, make her writhe with that extreme pleasure every human craved.

It seemed to Regina that he filled up all her empty, lonely places. Her body, inside and out, hugged him, welcomed him, gathered him in. For a moment she had felt a sharp, burning pain, but then it was gone. Swift as a river, he had taken her far from that pain and swept her into a whorl of desire. It was a river of fire. It was an estuary of discovery. She floated, she sank beneath the waves, she skipped across whitecaps as he moved like a tide inside her—in and out, in and out.

“Oh … oh … oh!” Discoveries. Sweet discoveries. They came like rain. So many. With eyes closed and her body flowing into him, with him, through him, she went somewhere beyond this earth, and he went with her to a quiet, desperate, exploding place. Colors blasted her eyelids and her body tensed and convulsed and then fell limp.

She held him close like a treasure and made furrows through his hair with her fingernails. Kissing the top of his head, she loved the very sight of
him sprawled across her, and she loved the way he made her feel.

Adored. For once, she finally knew how it felt. To be adored.

“Oh, Theo, you’ve given me something so precious,” she whispered against his silky, clean-smelling hair.

He hugged her around the waist, his arms strong and sheltering. “You’re mine now, Regina Rose. All mine.”

S
itting sideways in the saddle with her arms wrapped around Theodore’s neck, Regina nosed the underside of his jaw. He dipped his head and kissed her full on the mouth, and Regina was glad for the cover of the night. His big horse set a lazy pace back to her home, giving them plenty of time to spoon. She nipped lightly on his earlobe, then ran the tip of her tongue down the side of his neck. She’d never been so bold with a man, but there had never been a man like Theodore Dane before in her life, either!

“You’ve turned into a wild rose, darlin’,” he said, his voice ragged around the edges. “My Wild Irish Rose.” He bent closer to examine her sudden frown. “Now don’t go getting all bothered by that, Regina. I mean to compliment you.”

“You don’t think I’m … well, bawdy after what I let happen tonight?”

“What
you
let happen?” he repeated, smiling.

“I know in my heart you wouldn’t have pursued if I hadn’t given you the come-hither sign.”

“Honey, what happened tonight was out of our control.” He made a grand sweep of his hand. “It was written in the stars.”

She giggled, liking the heavenly scheme. “What a romantic!” She sighed, snuggling against him.
“It is romantic, isn’t it? My champion is taking me home on his black steed after a night of passion.”

It was his turn to laugh. “You’re not too uncomfortable?”

“No, not at all. I could ride like this all night.” She pressed her nose in the crook of his neck. “You smell so good, Theodore.” She licked a patch of skin, and he trembled. “I should feel naughty, but I don’t. I feel so good. Better than I’ve ever felt!” She tipped back her head and smiled into his sparkling blue eyes. Placing one hand at the back of his head, she brought his mouth to hers and the fire of his kiss sparked her passion anew.

Theo reined Diablo to a stop, then he caressed Regina’s hair, her back, the sides of her breasts. His tongue mated with hers and his tortured moan filled her head and made her heart beat faster. When his mouth finally left hers, he looked up at the sky for a few moments and Regina was certain he had sent up a prayer of thanks. For her? Sweet sentiment thickened her throat. She traced his eyebrows with her fingertips, then his cheekbones and the wavy line of his upper lip. His gaze met hers and in his eyes she saw a myriad of emotions—wonder, desire, awe, and adoration.

“I’ve got to get you home,” he said, laughing a little. “I’ve never made love sitting on a horse, but I’m sorely tempted just now. That proves I’m a desperate man bewitched by a temptress.” He ran a hand over her hair. “A golden-haired temptress with silvery eyes.” Catching the reins again, he kneed the horse, and Diablo moved along the edge of the road toward the two houses, both dark in this hour before dawn.

Theo stopped Diablo again a few yards from Regina’s house. He helped her slide down out of the saddle first, then he joined her. They walked, hand in hand, along the road, leaving the horse behind
them. Theo’s thumb fanned the palm of her hand and the simplicity of that caress made her feel loved. She sent him a sidelong glance and caught him watching her with such a beatific smile that it brought tears to her eyes.

“You make me so happy.”

He lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. “It’s the same with me.”

“When will I see you again?” she asked.

“In a few hours. I’ll come over for breakfast.” He glanced back at Diablo. “Maybe I’ll just hang around out here for a few hours and then come calling.”

She smiled. “Go home and get some rest.”

“No breakfast?”

“I’ll have something ready about seven or eight. If you stop by then, you’re welcome to share it.”

“Just you and me?”

“And Lu and Annie,” she added, laughing when he scowled.

“I want you all alone—all to myself.”

“I’m afraid not here. My door is never locked. The women come and go as they please.”

“No privacy.”

“None,” she agreed. “If I suddenly start locking them out, everyone will know what’s going on.”

“And that would be horrible?”

She cleared her throat, suddenly uneasy. “It wouldn’t be a very good example. I might be … well, shunned.” She looked at him, hoping he’d understand. “Theo, I’m not ashamed of what I did, but you have to see that I—”

He pulled her to him and his mouth molded to hers. “I don’t want to be your downfall,” he whispered against her lips. “Why do you think I’m sneaking back here with you? But eventually people will notice that something’s going on between us. Will you be ready for that?”

“Yes, by then I will. But this is all so new…. I don’t want to answer a bunch of questions yet.”

His mouth claimed hers again and his tongue moved sensuously along the inside of her cheeks. He cupped her buttocks and pressed against her. She felt the ridge of him through the layers of her clothing and she slipped a hand down between their bodies. She rubbed the heel of her hand against him and he groaned. His tongue drove deeper. She rubbed again. He flung back his head and hissed in a breath.

“Oh, God,” he moaned, then he took her by the shoulders and spun her around to face the house. “Go on. Go.”

She turned to kiss his cheek, then darted for the house. He caught up with her at the porch steps and gave her another drugging kiss. Regina glanced around.

“Theo, someone might see us!”

He patted her backside. “Then go inside! Who’s stopping you?” But he stole one more kiss before she could escape.

A few hours later, Regina opened the back door, fully expecting to find Theodore standing there, but it was Mrs. Nation who greeted her.

“Good morning, Regina!” She sniffed. “Fresh bread?”

“Cinnamon rolls.”
To impress Theodore
, she thought, stepping back to let Mrs. Nation come in. “Won’t you have one?”

“No, thanks, dear. We just finished up breakfast. Only five misfortunates showed up this morning for a meal.”

“I should have come over to help, but I—”

Mrs. Nation patted her arm. “No need. We handled it fine. Go ahead and have your breakfast.”

Regina sat with Mrs. Nation at the table. As
usual, Mrs. Nation was the essence of prim order, dressed in white, a cameo pinned to her high collar. Not a hair out of place, no finery or cosmetics in sight. And yet she wasn’t plain, Regina thought. Her
character
was so colorful, she needed no other adornment.

“I think I’ll wait for Lu to join me for breakfast,” Regina said. “She’s upstairs. Annie’s caught a sniffle and Lu is making her stay in bed today.”

“Nothing serious, I hope.”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“I have news for you, Regina.”

“Oh? Good news, I hope.”

“Yes, very good news.” Mrs. Nation’s smile was infectious. “I’m leaving next week on another speaking tour.”

“Next week?” Dismay dampened Regina’s high spirits. “But Mrs. Nation, your work here … the boardinghouse is flourishing and the soup kitchen is—”

“Yes, yes, dear, but these speaking engagements are bringing in money for our cause. The last one brought in enough to relieve us of several financial burdens, and when I return from this one we’ll take care of some others. Mr. Tattershall and Bea Dane have arranged for me to speak at the W.C.T.U. convention in Wichita, and then I’m traveling to Lawrence again and a few other Kansas towns. Each stop will allow me the opportunity to gather more support and close more saloons. Regina, why are you frowning?”

“I’m being selfish,” Regina confessed, ridding herself of the scowl. “Life is much easier for me when you’re here, Mrs. Nation. I worry so when you’re gone and I’m left in charge.”

“But I trust you, Regina. You’ve done a fine job running this place.”

“Thank you, but no one can offer the comfort
and support that you can, Mrs. Nation. Women come here to be influenced by you. Not by me.”

“They come here for peace and quiet while they sort out their problems,” Mrs. Nation corrected Regina. “I provide a place for them, but I don’t have to be here for them. You fill in for me quite nicely.”

Regina wrestled with worry. Mrs. Nation seemed to be doing exactly what Regina had been fearing she’d do—she was turning her energies on her “hatchet crusade” rather than on the boardinghouse.

“I think we’ll get more community support now,” Regina said, although she couldn’t make herself believe that. Not after last night’s meeting.