Harbor Nights (23 page)

Joanna placed both her palms on Karl's chest and pushed him over. She knew he went willingly because there was no way she could physically dominate him. She straddled his hips and wiggled.

Karl groaned and closed his eyes. “Oh, Joanna, you might not want to do that.”

“What? This?” She wiggled a little more and watched as Karl's hips arched off the bed. “Why?” She leaned down and teased his mouth with the tip of her tongue. Her nipples brushed against the silky hair on his chest, and the head of his penis nudged at her opening. “Don't you like this?”

She wiggled back and felt him slip an inch or two inside her. Karl's eyes opened as his hands grasped her hips. “What do you think?” Karl's voice was a low growl, and his breathing was fast.

She sat back farther and took him all the way in. Karl stopped breathing as she arched her back and closed her eyes. It felt so good. So right. She bit her lower lip and prayed she wasn't about to embarrass herself. Weren't women supposed to last for more than two seconds?

Karl's fingers trembled against her hipbones. “You have to move, Jo.”

She was afraid to move. If she breathed too deeply, she was going to climax. “Can't.” She was in a hell of a predicament. Her whole body was screaming at her to move, while her heart was telling her to slow down, to make this first time with Karl special.

“Why?”

“Too close.” She squeezed her eyes tighter and felt herself squeeze the entire length of Karl tighter.

“Good, at least I'm not alone.” Karl thrust his hips upward, and she went over the edge.

Someone shouted, and she could only pray it had been Karl because ladies certainly didn't shout during a vigorous round of lovemaking. Then again, ladies weren't supposed to make love vigorously, and they surely weren't supposed to be on top.

She fell face first into the pillow next to Karl's and silently giggled as she realized she wasn't a lady after all.

 

 

Karl lay in bed, loving the feel of Joanna curled up beside him. He especially loved the fact that she was naked and warm beneath the sheets. Tantalizing fingers were tracing some imaginary pattern across his chest. For the first time in his life he wanted to ask, “So, was it good for you?” He needed to know it had been not just good for Joanna but great. Their lovemaking had not only been perfect for him, but it had also knocked his socks off and blown a hole right out of the top of his head. He'd never experienced anything like that in his life. That didn't just fascinate him; it also scared him spitless.

What in the world was he going to do about Joanna Stevens? Handcuffing her to his bed for the next twenty years wasn't an option. He really wasn't sure if she was ready to start a long-term, seriously committed relationship. The amazing part of all of this was that he was. He was in love with Joanna—he not only wanted her in his bed every night, but he also wanted to wake up with her in his arms every morning.

Statistics indicated that more than half of his lifetime was over. Spending half a lifetime with Joanna wasn't going to be enough. He was running short on time.

His fingers toyed with the ends of her silky brown hair. In the late afternoon light, some of the strands of hair were golden blond, some were a dark shade of brown, and a few were gray. He liked the gray the best. It matched his.

“Want to tell me about your ex-husband?” He refused to even think that it was jealousy tugging at his heart. He didn't want to think about the man Joanna had spent most of her life with and who had fathered her child. But he needed to know. He needed to know what, rather who, had taught Joanna to fear.

“Vince?”

“How many ex-husbands do you have?” He chuckled at the thought. He was in love with a woman he didn't know very much about.

Joanna yanked a chest hair. “One.”

“Ouch.” He grabbed her fingers and brought them up to his mouth. “Stop that.” He kissed the tip of each finger before releasing her hand.

“What do you want to know?” Joanna snuggled closer.

“Whatever you want to tell me.”

“We were high school sweethearts who got married at twenty and were parents by the time we were both twenty-one. We were young and in love and too stupid to realize life wasn't a storybook.”

“I knew you had Norah when you were young, but hearing it makes me realize you were nothing more than a kid yourself.” He couldn't imagine becoming a father at twenty-one. Who would want to? There was a whole world out there ready to be explored.

“Oh, we were young, but Norah was, and is, the best thing that ever happened to me. We bought a little house in a quiet neighborhood. Vince worked with his father at the local gas station, and I took care of Norah and the house.”

“So what went wrong in Norman Rockwellville?”

“We almost lost Norah during the delivery. Labor lasted too long, and there were all kinds of complications.” Joanna's fingers stilled for a moment. “But she made it. At five pounds, three ounces, she was on the small side, but she was healthy.”

“And you? How healthy were you?” He could hear the emotion in her voice, and he knew that delivering Norah hadn't been easy.

“I made it.” Joanna's fingers trembled against his chest. “When Norah was two months old, I had to have a complete hysterectomy.”

He placed his hand over top of hers and squeezed. “I'm sorry.” He had the feeling Joanna might have liked to have more children. “How did Vince handle that?”

“At first, he was very supportive. He helped around the house when he could. Took Norah for walks in her stroller and even changed a diaper or two.”

“And later?”

“Vince wanted a son. You know, the stupid belief that a man needs a son to pass the family name to. Vince worked with his father, and he was fully expecting to take over the garage when his dad retired. He did too. Vince is a very gifted mechanic.” Joanna turned her hand over and threaded her fingers through his. “Vince just wanted a son to pass the business on to.”

“He blamed you for not giving him that son, didn't he?” He stomach turned at the thought.

“It was my fault, Karl. I couldn't have any more children, while he could still father them.”

“That's bullshit, and you know it.” He reached down and cupped her chin. He forced her to look at him. The sheen of tears in her eyes tore at his heart. “The man should have gotten down on his knees and given thanks that he still had you and a healthy daughter.”

“At first he did, Karl.” She reached up and tenderly stroked his jaw. “As the years went by, the resentment grew and ate at him. All his friends started their families, and it seemed every one of them had boys. Lots of little boys, which we would never have. Vince took over the business from his father when he got sick and eventually died. Vince started to drink about then.”

He'd known it. “So when did he start to hit you, Joanna? Before Norah was in high school? College?”

She cringed. “She was around fifteen or so. Vince came home from the bar drunk, and one thing led to another. Next thing I knew, I was telling my daughter I'd accidently run into a door.”

“And she believed you.” He could see it all in his mind. Joanna proudly standing by her man because she felt as if she had let him down by not giving him a son. It was the typical pattern for abuse. Blame the woman.

“She was fifteen, and I became an expert at hiding the truth. I fell down the basement stairs. I tripped over the back porch step. Norah started calling me ‘Klutzy the clown' after Krusty the Clown on
The Simpsons.
”

“Why did you stay with him?” He'd dealt with abuse and knew all the reasons.

“I loved him.” Joanna glanced away. “Stupid reason, but there it is. Ninety-nine percent of the time, he was a good man, a good provider. He never touched Norah.”

“So why did you divorce him? What changed?”

“Norah graduated from college and had a job at a local newspaper and her own apartment in town. One night, she stopped by unexpectedly and saw her father smack me. She attacked her father, and Vince turned and hit her.” A tear rolled down Joanna's cheek and fell onto his chest. “Norah was knocked over by the blow.”

He reached out and captured a second tear on his fingertip. “What did you do?” He had to keep reminding himself to breathe. Joanna and Norah were fine. They were both safe and fine now.

Joanna gave him a funny little smile and said softly, “I picked up one of my good table lamps and whacked him in the head.” She shrugged as if the whole incident weren't important.

Because Karl was holding Joanna in his arms, he could chuckle about it now. “Good for you.”

“Yeah, well he knew never to lay a finger on Norah,” Joanna said. “Vince pushed me back, and I ended up with a cracked collarbone. Norah was on the phone to the police before the stars stopped swimming in my head, and that was the end of everything.”

“Did you press charges?”

“Darn straight I did. I loved that lamp.” She teasingly kissed his chest before wiping her eyes with the sheet. “You know what my biggest regret is?”

“What?” He wanted her to say something about not having a heavier lamp.

“That Norah had to suffer because of my stupidity. Norah received a blow from the one man in her life she should have trusted to keep her safe—her father. With that one blow, Vince destroyed Norah's trust in men.”

“I can imagine.” He pulled Joanna closer and silently vowed he would make Vince Stevens pay for what he had done to both Joanna and Norah.

“Oh, you should have seen her before that night, Karl. Norah laughed all the time, she was outgoing, and she'd never met a stranger. She could have had a date every night of the week if she wanted to, and most nights she did.” Joanna laughed at the memories. “I couldn't keep her boyfriends straight.”

“Norah seems to be handling it well.”

“Oh, she is just starting to date again. I think Ned Porter has a lot to do with it. Ned's the first guy she has gone out with in two years.”

Vince Stevens had a lot to answer for in life. “Ned's a good guy, Joanna. He won't hurt her.”

“I know that.” Joanna worried her lower lip. “Do you know why I agreed to have lunch with you that first time?”

“I'm irresistible?”

“You are that.” Joanna reached up and quickly kissed him. “But the truth is, I went out with you to show Norah life goes on. That all men aren't the same as her father, and that I wasn't afraid any longer.”

“So?” He didn't like the thoughts that were spinning through his mind. “You thought I was safe or something?” Great, he was a teach my daughter a lesson date.

“You were the total opposite of safe. I knew you could be dangerous, but I couldn't resist your laid-back charm or your ponytail.” Joanna sat up, bringing the sheet along with her. “But something went wrong.”

“What went wrong?” He sat up, not caring that the sheet no longer covered him. Joanna was prim and proper enough for the both of them. How in the hell had the afternoon turned from perfection to this?

Joanna's teeth worried her lower lip, and there was a slight tremble in the hand that was clutching the sheet to her breasts. “I fell in love with you.”

He opened his mouth to argue, to tell her that they could work out whatever problems she was imagining, when her words registered. “Oh, Joanna, now you really have to marry me.”

“What?” Joanna screeched.

He tugged the sheet away from her breasts and grinned. “What kind of example would it be for Norah if we just lived together?”

Joanna was still sputtering when he laid her flat on her back and began kissing his way to heaven.

Norah was watching one of the forensic crime shows on the television and enjoying a cup of tea when her mother finally left her bedroom and joined her on the couch.

“So, how was the hiking,” Joanna curled her feet up under her and added, “and Ned?”

She'd known her mother would get around to asking about Ned. “Hard and fine.” She placed her empty cup onto the coffee table, grabbed the remote, and turned off the TV. The surfeit of autopsy tables currently being aired on television had killed the shock value. Now all the shows seemed interchangeable and depressing.

“Whoever thinks hiking for the weekend is relaxing is crazy. I'm exhausted, and I ache in places I didn't even know I had.” Soaking in a tub filled with hot water and bubbles for half an hour had relieved most of the aches.

“Did you get to see the trees?”

“Yes, Mom, I saw trees and then more trees, and when I was tired of looking at them, Ned pointed out more trees.” She had to chuckle at how naive she had been before hiking up that mountain. She really had expected to see huge patches of the forest gone. Harvested by the big lumber corporations and bulldozed into oblivion.

“Ned wasn't upset about the article, was he?”

“Of course he was, but instead of yelling and ranting like the lobster fishermen did, he proved his point by making me climb a mountain.” As wonderful as the weekend had been, a few photos with aerial views would have proven his point nicely. Then they could have spent Saturday night in his bed instead of rolling around naked in the great outdoors. She had an insect bite in a place that she would be arrested for scratching in public.

“The exercise and fresh air will do you good.” Her mother settled herself more comfortably.

Usually by this time of night, her mother was in her pajamas and ready for bed. Tonight, she was in a pair of jeans and a blouse. She knew her mother had taken a shower because she had heard the water running. It was almost like her mother was planning on going out again. “Well, the next time Ned wants to take someone hiking up into the clouds, I'll volunteer you.”

Joanna chuckled. “Not in this lifetime, sweetheart. I don't do tents, bugs, or squatting behind bushes.”

Camping wasn't quite that bad, but she didn't think her mother would appreciate a play-by-play description of everything that had transpired. Some things a daughter just didn't share with her mother. “It had its good moments, and for some reason, food just tastes better cooked over an open fire. Even the instant coffee was great.”

“That's nice.” Her mother seemed preoccupied and nervous. “I got to tour Karl's workshop today.”

“So you said.” When her mother had come home about an hour ago, all she'd talked about was Karl this and Karl that. “Mom, can I ask you a question?”

“Sure, anything.” Joanna was sitting here trying to figure out a way to tell her daughter she was about to leave again. Karl was waiting for her and Zsa Zsa to return to his house for the night. If Karl had had his way, she wouldn't even have gotten to come home to pick up the things she would need in the morning. As it was, she'd had a difficult time explaining to him why he shouldn't drive her home and talk to Norah with her.

“You and Karl are getting pretty serious, aren't you?”

“Yes.” She didn't think now was the time to tell Norah that Karl had asked her to marry him and that she had said yes. Her daughter was just beginning to get used to the idea of her and Karl dating. Marriage was in their future, but she wasn't sure if it was going to happen as fast as Karl was planning. “What do you think of Karl?”

“He's great, but more importantly, he makes you happy.” Norah grinned at her. “You either used a really good soap in that shower, or you're glowing.”

She tried not to blush. “Maybe the water was a little too hot.” She knew exactly what had put the glow in her cheeks.

Norah snorted. “Try another one, Mom.”

She decided to change the subject. “So you don't have a problem with me dating Karl?”

“Nope.” Norah pulled her feet up onto the couch and wrapped her arms around her knees. “You have a problem with me dating Ned?”

“Nope.” She was so thrilled that her daughter was getting back into dating that she really didn't care who she was going out with. But if she had to chose someone for Norah, Ned Porter would definitely be at the top of her list.

“So how do you look at a man, Mom, and know he would never hurt you? Never turn on you like Dad did?”

“You can't, sweetheart.” Joanna felt like crying. It was her fault that her daughter carried this weight. If she had left Vince after the first time he had hit her, Norah never would have known. Her daughter never would have had that trust between a father and a daughter shattered. The trust between a man and a woman. “People change, Norah. When we were first married, your father never even raised his voice at me, let alone his hand.”

“So what changed?”

There was no way she was telling her daughter that her father resented that she was born a girl instead of a boy. That he resented the fact that his wife couldn't give him any more children. That she couldn't give him that son he so desperately wanted. Vince and Norah had never been as close and as loving as most fathers and daughters. It hadn't been Norah's fault; she had tried. Vince had just never appreciated what he did have because he was too busy regretting what he couldn't have.

“Life, I guess. In hindsight, your father had all the signs of being a potentially abusive husband from the beginning. He had been raised in a house where the man's word was law. Your grandmother was a shadow of a woman, and she probably had been abused herself.”

“Just because a person comes from an abusive home doesn't mean they will become abusive themselves.”

“You're right. It doesn't always happen like that.” Joanna wanted to take the pain out of Norah's voice. She wanted a magic pill or magic words that would make everything better. It wasn't going to happen. “Your father never became abusive unless he was drinking and drinking heavily.”

The last couple of years of their marriage, Vince had been drunk a lot, but over time, she had become an expert on avoiding him and the arguments.

“How do you have the strength to go into another relationship, Mom? Aren't you afraid?”

“No, I'm not afraid, Norah. You have to have faith and love.”

“And do you have faith in Karl?”

“Yes, and I'm also in love with him.” She studied her daughter's reaction, wondering how much she should tell about their relationship and about Karl's proposal.

Norah grinned. “Does he know?”

“He does now.” She felt like a teenager discussing her boyfriend with her best friend. Norah was not just her daughter; she was also her best friend. Women over forty shouldn't be giddy, but she was. Love did strange things to people.

“What would you do if Karl changed and became like Dad?”

“Not all men are violent and abusive, sweetie. Only a small percentage are, and I know now that I have the strength to walk away from any relationship that turns abusive.” She reached out and squeezed her daughter's hand. “Thanks to you.”

“I didn't do anything.”

“You did more than you realize.” She gave her daughter a smile that contained every ounce of love she felt. “You have that same strength too, Norah. If you look deep enough inside, you will see that strength and not be afraid.”

“And if a man ever raised his hand to me?”

“Pray you have ugly table lamps that you won't regret bashing over his head.”

Norah laughed just like Joanna had known she would. “Mom, one of these days, I'm going to go on eBay and see if I can't locate a lamp just like the one you destroyed. I'll buy it for your Christmas present.”

“I won't need it with Karl.” She had never been more certain of anything in her life. “Speaking of Karl, I've got to get going.” Joanna stood up and nervously smoothed out her top.

“Go where?” Norah knew her mother had been up to something.

“Karl's.” Her mother headed into her bedroom and walked back out with a packed tote bag and a dress on a hanger. “I wrote his home phone number and his cell phone number down and put them by the phone in the kitchen, just in case you need to reach me.”

“You're going to Karl's now?”

“Yes.” Her mother scooped up Zsa Zsa. “I work until five tomorrow; I'll be home sometime after that.” Joanna headed for the front door. “Good night.”

Norah slowly got to her feet and stared at the door her mother had just closed behind her. She wondered whether she should run after her mother, demand that she get back into the house, and then ground her or should she just laugh? This role reversal was the pits.

Her mother was a mature woman who was old enough to make her own decisions. Her mother had obviously chosen to spend the night with Karl. She wasn't even going to think about what they would be doing.

And she had turned down Ned's invitation to spend the night at his place because she didn't want her mother thinking about what they would be doing. Well, if her mother was old enough to make her own decisions on where she would be spending the night, so was she.

Norah smiled the entire time as she climbed the stairs, threw some stuff into a bag, and headed for Ned's.

Fifteen minutes later, she was petting Flipper and taking her bag out of the backseat when Ned stepped off his front porch. “Norah?” Flipper had been her welcoming committee.

“You were expecting someone else?” Now that she was here, she felt a little foolish. Maybe she should have called first to see if the invitation was still open.

A bare chested, barefooted Ned took the bag out of her hand. His worn jeans were tight, low on the hips, and incredibly sexy. “I thought you were staying at your place tonight.”

She closed the door and tried not to blush at being so forward. “You changed your mind?”

Ned leaned down and kissed her. “Never.”

She grinned. “Good.” Ned's hair was still damp from his shower. He smelled like soap, and he hadn't bothered to shave. “I've missed you,” she called over her shoulder as she followed Flipper and walked toward his house.

“I dropped you off two hours ago.” Ned held the screen door open for her and his dog. “A long two hours.” Ned shut and locked the front door behind them. “What took you so long?” He dropped her overnight bag and tugged her into his arms.

She laughed as he swung her up and headed for the stairs. “Um-m-m . . . Ned?” She nuzzled his stubbled jaw as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hung on for dear life. “My pajamas are in that bag.”

“You're not going to need them.” Ned took the steps two at a time and carried her straight into his bedroom.

Norah kept her arms locked around his neck as he lowered her to his bed. Her mouth teased his as she felt the softness of his mattress take their weight. Now this was more like it. While she had loved their night on the ground, there was something to be said for a Posturepedic and clean sheets.

Ned gave her lower lip a gentle, playful nip. “I've got to go shave.” He tried removing his weight from on top of her.

She wasn't letting him up. “No, you don't.” Her lips nibbled their way across his stubbled jaw. “I like you just the way you are.” She kicked off her sandals and wrapped her legs around his thighs.

Ned groaned as his hips nestled their way between her thighs. “You're a dangerous woman, Norah.”

The thickness of his arousal pressed against her center and caused moist heat to gather there. “Are you complaining?” Her hands stroked down the smooth, warm skin of his back, and her fingers tunneled their way under the waistband of his jeans.

Ned's hips jerked against her as he arched his back and moaned, “Never.”

Her lips pressed against his chest as her fingers moved around and tugged at the snap on his jeans. “Know what else was in that bag?” She didn't want Ned to leave her, but sometimes in life, you don't get what you want. They needed that protection.

Ned tugged her tank top over her head. “I have some up here.” His mouth skimmed down her throat as his fingers released the front clasp of her bra.

The gentle tugging of his lips on her nipple nearly sent her over the edge. She tried to pull Ned back up into the cradle of her thighs. Their difference in heights was proving to be a challenge, one she was determined to conquer. She arched her back as Ned took her hard nipple into his mouth more fully. “Get them.”

“Them?” Ned chuckled as he released her bud. “You might be giving me more credit than I deserve.”

Her fingers finally released the stubborn snap. “I think you will rise to the occasion.” She trailed a fingernail down the metal zipper and grinned as he instinctively jerked against her hand.

Ned retaliated by pulling away from her while removing her shorts and panties in one downward swipe. He opened the drawer on the nightstand and took out a box.

She chuckled as Ned dumped the entire box out and then triumphantly held up a gold foil packet. “Think you're special, don't you?” The grin on his face stole its way into her heart. She knew Ned was special, very special.

“Nope.” Ned removed his jeans and underwear. “But I do happen to know you're one very special lady.”

“I am?” In the pale light coming in from the hallway, she watched as he rolled on the condom. Ned was a physically large man, and every inch of him was in proportion to his height and the breadth of his shoulders.