Gotta Get Next To You (26 page)

“I’m looking forward to future field trips,”
Lee said softly.

Her mouth curved up deliciously. “Discreet
field trips?”

He leaned forward and kissed her.
“Absolutely. Now let’s forget about the world. Dance with me.”

Lee led her by the hand onto the dance floor.
There were other couples dancing, but he didn’t pay attention to
them. He held Andrea in his arms and let the rest of the world go
away. There was only the music, the way her body perfectly fit
against him, and the sweet smell of her perfume. She put both arms
around him with her hands holding his shoulders. Her head rested
against his chest. Her hips swayed in time to the music, matching
his rhythm as well.

Lee felt himself harden slowly, desire
pumping through him. He’d never been so aroused by a simple dance
before. Andrea snuggled closer, molding her pelvis against him. Lee
choked back a moan and gripped her tighter. Andrea raised her face
to him and he kissed her, this time hard. He tried to satisfy a
lifetime of hunger with the sweetness she provided. Yet a thousand
years of kissing her would never be enough. Lee knew what he’d only
suspected and feared the first time they touched. He would love her
even if it broke his heart.

“Ahem!”

A deep, gruff male voice startled them both
and broke the spell. Andrea looked over Lee’s shoulder and smiled.
Lee scowled and turned toward the source of a most unwelcome
interruption.

“What?” Lee growled.

“The song is over, that’s what. Y’all the
only ones still on the floor,” the husky man said. His bushy
eye-brows went up to his receding hairline as he glanced at Andrea.
“Hey, baby girl.”

“Poppa Ben!” Andrea let out an embarrassed
laugh. “You look wonderful.”

“For an old man, you mean. Let me get a look
at you.” Poppa Ben took a step back and put his fists on his hips.
“Pretty, just like your mama. And who is this?” He nodded to
Lee.

“Jamal Turner, meet Ben ‘Poppa Blues’
Lavergne.” Andrea went to Poppa and kissed his cheek.

Lee smiled and shook hands with him. The
older man’s grip was strong. “How ya doin’?”

“Doin’ real good for a relic.” Poppa
tightened his grip to prove his point. He stared at Lee
steadily.

“Yep, I can tell,” Lee said. He extracted his
hand and flexed it.

“Cut it out, Poppa. I’m not eighteen
anymore,” Andrea said, and pinched his arm. She turned to Lee.
“Poppa used to intimidate my dates.”

“I’m just sayin’ hello is all.” Poppa wore an
innocent expression.

“Sure you were,” Andrea quipped.

“Nice to meet you, sir. Anybody that looked
after Andrea is all right with me.” Lee grinned at him.

“There you go. I got a feelin’ we gonna be
buddies.” Joe clapped a huge hand on Lee’s shoulder that made him
rock back on his heels.

Lee blinked from the impact. “I’m really glad
to hear it.”

“Let’s sit down. Hey, Bébé, bring us some
beer,” Poppa shouted.

“On its way,” she called back.

Poppa led them back to their table and they
all sat down. They laughed and talked for a time. He was a jovial
teddy bear of a man. Yet he skillfully questioned Lee about his
job, education, and family history, all with a pleasant smile. Lee
mused that Poppa Ben would be an asset to any private detective
agency.

“How’s Charlene? Haven’t seen her in over
three months.” Poppa sipped from a mug of beer.

“I can’t believe Mama’s been here at all!”
Andrea said with a look of surprise. “She’s always saying how dull
it is in Bayou Blue.”

“Been comin’ to my place off and on for the
last couple of years at least. Guess she’s gettin’ homesick in her
old age,” Poppa said with a chuckle.

“I wouldn’t advise you to mention old age to
Charlene,” Andrea warned.

Poppa laughed heartily. “Oo-wee, she’d take
my head off! Look, I better get back to work. You two have a good
time. Not that you won’t.” He winked at them and laughed again when
Andrea blushed.

“Poppa Ben,” she muttered, and pursed her
lips.

“I remember being young and crazy in love.”
Poppa clapped his hands together. “I’m gonna have the guys play a
special dance tune just for you. Take care of our baby girl, son.
Don’t make me come lookin’ for you.” Poppa wore a mock scowl to
punctuate his pretend threat.

“No, sir. I don’t want that!” Lee held up
both hands.

“ ’Bye, sweet,” Poppa said.

He planted a kiss on Andrea’s cheek, shook
hands with Lee, and ambled off. He went to where the band leader
sat drinking at the bar and said something to him. The man gave a
thumbs-up sign to Andrea and Lee.

“Poppa is too much,” Andrea said with a smile
of warm affection.

“He seems like a good man.” Lee waved to him,
and then turned to Andrea.

“He is. Poppa Ben and Daddy were closer than
a lot of brothers. They were so much alike.” Andrea gazed across
the room at him.

Lee recognized the pang of loss in her
expression. “You were still a kid when your dad died, huh?”

Andrea nodded. “Almost ten. He was killed in
a car accident.”

“That’s rough. At least you’ve got good
memories, though.” Lee drank from his glass.

She looked at him. “And you don’t?”

He shook his head. “Nope,” he said in a
clipped tone.

“That bad, huh?”

“He was no-good dirt,” Lee said, his voice
flat.

“And your mother?”

“I used to blame her for a lot of what
happened, but she did her best. She went through a lot for us.” Lee
stared down at the table.

“Yeah, I guess there comes a time when you
have to stop blaming your parents.” Andrea leaned forward until her
arms rested on the tabletop.

“I guess you’re right,” Lee said. He reached
out and she placed her hand in his.

Without saying more, they’d reached an
understanding. Later they would talk about the past. For now, no
more needed to be said.

At that moment a long, sensuous note came
from the guitar of the bandleader. The sound seemed to reach out
and wrap itself around them. Lee and Andrea got up at the same
time. They came together without saying a word. Once again Lee
burned at every point where their bodies touched. Andrea rested her
lovely face against

his chest and held him. Lee wanted to protect
her from all harm. He rubbed her back as he pressed his lips to her
forehead. In seconds desire flooded him with such force he felt
dazed. Andrea looked up, her brown eyes gleaming.

“I’d like to leave now,” Andrea
whispered.

They stopped moving to the music. “Are you
sure?” Lee whispered. He brushed his mouth against the smooth skin
of her cheek.

“Yes.”

Poppa came over and they said good-bye. They
drove back to her apartment. The night closed around them, making
the inside of his car intimate and cozy. Jazz played softly on the
radio. The closer they came to her apartment, the more Lee’s heart
raced.

He followed her inside without hesitation. He
made no protest when she turned on the compact disc player or
dimmed the lights. Lee did not hold back when she came into his
arms with a sigh. His blood pounded wildly through his veins when
she guided his hand to her breast and kissed him. His fingers
caressed her until the nipple pebbled through the fabric of her
blouse. He moaned deep in his throat as he hardened beneath the
gentle stroke of her fingers.

Andrea used her other hand to unbutton her
blouse. Lee’s hands moved on their own, pushing sleeves down her
arms until she was free of the garment. He kissed a line down her
neck and to the soft mounds of flesh above black lace.

She pulled his shirt from his pants and ran
her finger-nails along his spine. Lee gasped at the sensation and
buried his face between her breasts. They undressed each other
slowly, savoring each moment. Lee unhooked her bra, then pulled
back to admire her full brown breasts, the nipples peaks of milk
chocolate. He leaned forward and licked them hungrily. Through a
luscious haze, he felt her hands rubbing his thighs. Andrea grasped
the bands of his briefs and pulled them down. Impatient to be near
her, Lee broke off caressing her to yank them off. He stood still
and looked at her. She wore only the black lace panties that
matched her bra. Her skin was like luminescent burnished gold in
the shadow of one small lamp. She walked toward him and caressed
the head of his erect penis. Lee groaned and pulled her to him. He
buried his face in fleecy curls of thick brown hair that smelled of
jasmine.

“Are you very sure?” Lee said hoarsely.

It was the only note of caution he could
muster. He’d reached the limit of his self-control. Still, he
gently rubbed one of her nipples with his thumb to be sure of her
answer. She did not disappoint him.

“Yes, yes, yes,” Andrea sighed between
peppering delicate kisses across his chest.

She used both hands to drive him senseless,
alternately squeezing and stroking him. Lee picked her up and
Andrea wrapped her legs around his waist. They kissed and caressed
as he carried her to the bedroom. Andrea let go long enough for him
to sit on the bed. She pushed him on his back and straddled him. He
relished the way she took control.

“Nice bedspread,” Lee mumbled between kisses.
“Get rid of it.”

“No time,” Andrea said, rocking her hips
against him until he was senseless.

Lee nipped her flesh gently as she moved
against him. “You feel so good,” he gasped.

Andrea kissed his shoulders while combing her
fingers through his hair. Lee groaned when her fingers closed
around him. Her tongue traced a fiery trail down his chest and back
up again to his neck. She stood and took off her panties with slow
deliberation, staring into his eyes as she pushed them down her
hips and thighs.

Then she disappeared into her bathroom and
came back with a square foil packet. He nodded when she held it up.
Andrea tore it open and surprised him. She knelt in front of him
and expertly fitted the condom over his penis, her fingers gently
caressing him.

“Now, please!” Lee said hoarsely, reaching
for her.

She mounted him and eased his penis inside
her. Lee cried out as she began a rocking motion that made him
forget everything else. Every nerve ending felt raw and belonged to
her. Control was the last thing he needed or wanted. He gave
himself over to her completely.

Andrea seemed to know exactly how to move.
Every few minutes she shifted her hips just right, sending him to
new heights of ecstasy. He uttered guttural shouts in a voice he
did not recognize as his own. Lee reached out and squeezed both
breasts in his hands, rubbing the nipples with his thumbs until she
cried out, too.

“Faster, baby,” Lee moaned. He strained
forward in a frantic effort to feel more of her.

Andrea lifted up and down faster, harder,
until both dripped with sweat. They crashed together, crying out
each other’s names. Lee saw and felt a white-hot flash. His world
dissolved into only one explosive moment when he strove to make the
feeling last. His orgasm seized him and he lost all reason. He
lifted them both up with one powerful thrust. Andrea screamed,
shuddered once, and then tightened around his penis. Then Lee’s
body went limp; the only sensation was Andrea’s weight on top of
him. He heard her panting as if from a distance.

After a few seconds she sat back and
carefully lifted her body. She rolled to lie beside him in one
smooth motion.

“No,” he gasped.

Lee pulled her back to stretch full length on
him, her head resting on his chest. He did not want to lose the
delicious heat radiating from her skin. It was heat they’d ignited
together. Spent and satiated, he felt the world come back. Music
drifted to them from the speakers in the living room.

“I’ve never felt this good before,” Lee
whispered in a shaky voice. Somehow he could not find words to
explain how deeply she reached inside him.

“I know. I feel it, too.” Andrea nuzzled his
skin with her lips and lifted her face to him. She wore a dreamy
smile. “And I don’t care what people say.”

“Are you sure?” Lee combed her tangled hair
with his fingers.

She settled her cheek against his chest
again. Relaxed and content, Andrea sighed. “I’m sure, Jamal.”

Lee flinched at the sound of only one of many
lies he’d told her. What had he done?

The next day, Lee was back at work and trying
to concentrate on the real reason he’d come to Bayou Blue.

Denny came into the records room. “It’s on
for Friday night,” he said, and slapped Lee on the back.
“Awright?”

Lee nodded to him. “Sure. What time you want
me there?”

“Eleven is when the party starts.” Denny
grinned. He shuffled his feet in a hip-hop dance. “We gonna get
paid some real money, man.”

“Keep it down,” Lee said. He got up from his
seat and looked down the hall.

“Ain’t nobody around, man. Relax. They all
got patients or something.” Denny chuckled and continued to
dance.

“I wasn’t asking to go to a party, Denny.
What’s up with that?” Lee frowned at him.

“We always get together. Like, you know,
combining business with pleasure.” Denny bobbed his head. “Gonna
have some fine women in the house, too.”

Lee’s eyes narrowed. He wondered if Denny was
luring him into a setup. “I’m into business, all right? I get
plenty of pleasure elsewhere.”

“It’s not like that,” Denny said. He stopped
clowning around when Lee’s expression did not change. “Okay, look,
don’t get all tense.”

“I don’t want no crap, Denny.” Lee pointed a
finger at him.

“I’m telling you it ain’t no big deal. Ty is
into serious business. Trust me.”

“Uh-huh,” Lee said with a grunt.

“The party goes on up front and we get down
to business in the back.” Denny waved a hand. “That’s all.”