His Girl Friday (15 page)

"Someone. .might come looking for you," she whispered, but it was no real protest.

"If anyone does, I'l kil him," he said shortly. He had the blouse unbuttoned and out of her belted jeans. She was wearing a bra, and he groaned with pure impatience as he half lifted her, reaching around to unfasten it. "I hate these things," he muttered.

She stiffened as he moved to strip the blouse and bra away. "Cabe, you can't. .!" she exclaimed.

"Yes, I can," he bit off, bending his head to her breasts.

The protests left, along with most of her breath and sanity as she felt the warm, moist pres ure of his mouth taking the swollen tip inside. Her hands clenched beside her head and she moaned softly, arching faintly toward the sweet ferocity of his mouth.

His free hand moved to her nape, slid into her hair and held her, while the other made exciting lit le forays down to her belt and slowly under it, onto her flat bel y. She gasped, and he lifted his head to look into her shocked, apprehensive eyes.

"Al right," he whispered when he saw the uncertainty in her face. He drew his hand out of her jeans and smoothed it up over her breasts. "We'l save that for a time ' when we can lock a door."

"I gues . . what we're doing is pret y old hat to you,'l she said nervously.

His brows jerked together and then relaxed as he searched her eyes. "Dani," he began deeply, "it never felt like this with anyone else." The words came with obvious! difficulty. He looked down at his hand, where it was gently stroking one firm, perfect breast and making her body tremble. "It was never this exciting to touch a woman intimately, to watch her reactions." His eyes went back to hers. "I'm capable right now," he whispered. "And I've', barely touched you." Capable had connotations, but she stared up at him blankly.

"You don't understand, do you?" he asked gently. Holding her eyes, he moved so that his forearms caught his [ weight. "Don't panic. I'm just going to show you something." Then he shifted, levering himself onto her body so that his hips and thighs pres ed completely over hers.

Her eyes grew wide and shocked as she felt him intimately, and her lips parted.

"Capable," he whispered. His hands tangled in her hair and his eyes darkened and grew fiery with need as he bent toward her mouth. "Until this happens, a man isn't capable of intimacy with a woman, didn't you know. . ?"

His mouth covered hers and she shivered at the stark realization of what she was inviting. Age-old fears stiffened her, made her afraid.

"Shhhh," he breathed against her lips. "I'm not going to hurt you, lit le one. It's al right," His slow, calm voice soothed her. Lit le by lit le, her body relaxed. His mouth warmed hers while he lifted just I enough to get his shirt unbuttoned. Then he lowered his body again and she felt the springy hair on bis chest rubbing abrasively against the delicate skin of her breasts. A sound worked its way out of her mouth and into his, something that sounded alien and unfamiliar to her ears. His mouth slid down to her ear. "You're shaking like a leaf," he breathed, nibbling the earlobe. His hand slid Along her thigh, gently cares ing. "Yes, you want me," he breathed . "And I want you."

She bit his shoulder through the thin fabric of his shirt and a sob muffled against it. "Cabe," she whispered achingly.

"Oh, God, I want you!" he groaned as his mouth worked its way back to hers. "I want a bed, and you in it, and the door locked and bolted.. " She opened her mouth for him, drowning in the sweet in ardor that was making hel ish demands on her untried body. She didn't understand the urge to bite, but he didn't lecm to mind her teeth sliding against his broad shoulder, her lips on what she could reach of his broad, hairy chest. He even encouraged her, lifting himself so that she could reach the sensitive nipple on his own chest, her lips inexpert but fervent as she kis ed him there.

He shuddered and groaned, grappling for her hand. He bent and kis ed her hungrily, sliding her hand down his powerful body until it reached the core of his masculinity. He opened her fingers and pres ed them against him. But her shocked struggle to draw her hand away brought him to his senses. He hadn't realized how far things had gone until then. And this just wasn't the place for what they were working toward. Damn circumstances! He didn't know how he was going to go on like this, with his conscience giving him hel every time he touched her and his body giving him hel every time he had to let her go. The situation was becoming impossible. With a faint groan, he released her hand and rolled aw from her. After a minute, he dragged himself into a sit ing position. He was shivering faintly, and the hand that reached for his cigaret es trembled.

She sat up and got back into her things, curious to notice that he didn't even look her way. His back was razor straight and he was scowling. Maybe he was frustrated, she thought, a lit le embarras ed at her own headlong response.

His dark, wavy hair was mussed from her fingers, and his shirt was rumpled where it had been bunched to one side while they were making love. He looked sensuous and she sighed with lingering appreciation. At least he'd stopped before things got too much out of hand, but he looked different suddenly—withdrawn and brooding. He drew in a steadying breath and smoked his cigaret e, in silence, not looking at her or saying a word to her until the silence became frankly uncomfortable. The fishing poles were stil lying in their place, and Danet a stared at them blankly, wondering if anything had taken the bait. Abstractedly he watched the sailboats far in the distance while he smoked his cigaret e. "I'l be thirty-seven in a few months," he said. "Funny, I never thought about get ing older. I was so busy building up my busines and making money that time slipped away from me. I'm rich as hel , but I've got nothing. I go home to an empty apartment and an empty life. Until Christmas there was an occasional diversion. Since Christmas—" his eyes darkened as he looked a| her "—there's been nothing at al ." He lifted the cigaret e!

to his lips and searched her quiet face. "Celibacy hasn't even been that difficult. I take Karol out and I can't touch her. She doesn't appeal to me because she isn't you. And I didn't even know it until a few days ago when I kis ed herin my office and it was your mouth I tasted, your body I was imagining in my arms." He smiled at her faint surprise.

"So now you know, don't you? I've been putting up a front for four months. Now the wal s are down." The smile faded and his eyes began to narrow, to brighten with emotion.

"I want you. By God, I do, and you want me. Except for your puritan morals and my conscience, we'd be lovers by now. It can't go on like this, Dan," he said final y "We've got to decide what we're going to do."

So that was what was bothering him. He had a conscience and he couldn't bring himself to seduce her unles she was wil ing. But he didn't want commitment, either. Why should that surprise her, she wondered miserably, When he'd been saying it for two years? Her eyes lowered to the chest she'd stroked so hungrily, visible where his shirt was stil unbuttoned. She hated being so vulnerable, and having him know it. She sighed as she drew up her knees mid rested her chin on them to follow his gaze out over the lake.

"Maybe it would be bet er for both of us if I go to work somewhere else," she said quietly, grit ing her teeth in case he agreed with her. She didn't want to leave, but she wasn't cut out for an affair.

That wasn't the answer he'd expected. His head turned mil he glared at her. She wanted him, he knew she did. He'd expected her to give in by now, but she was stubborn.

"Do you think leaving is going to solve anything?" he , asked. He lifted the cigaret e to his lips with a sharp, angry movement of his hand. "I want you, damn it!" Her body stiffened. "Cabe, I'm not modern.. " she began.

He saw the words in her mind and exploded with frustrated desire. Any other woman would have fal en into his arms. But this stubborn lit le virgin was going to deny herself and him, and for what? Wel , if she was holding out for a wedding ring, he'd soon disabuse her of that fantasy. Just being around his father and Cynthia had distorted his perspective al over again. Love didn't last. If it did, his father could never have remarried!

"You're so damned bristly with hang-ups," he said harshly, glaring at her. "No sex before marriage, no al owances for human emotion. You're the ice maiden, al right. But we aren't living in the Dark Ages. It's permis able for a woman to sleep with a man she cares for. My God,Dani, don't you know what century this is?" She felt her own temper let ing go. She stood. "Yes, I know. And don't read me any lectures on the advantages of the modern world, either. Birth control was supposed to give women sexual freedom, but al I see it doing is giving men another excuse to stay single. Why marry anybody when you can sleep with whoever you please? And if you get pregnant, there are plenty of 'modern' alternatives to the problem. .!"

That remark stung him. He stood, too, towering over her. "If you got pregnant by me, I'd stand by you. Befsides, I'd be careful to protect you to start off with."

"Wel , it could happen anyway," she shot back. "No birth control measure is absolute, not even the Pil . Anew men can afford to be careles , they can't get pregnant!" His angry eyes shimmered like blue fires. "How did pregnancy get into this conversation?"

"It goes with sex," she returned with uncharacteristic sarcasm. His whole at itude infuriated her. "Didn't you know?" He stood looking down at her with conflicting emotions. She looked different when she bristled. Her gray eye lost their softnes and began to take on the sheen of polished silver. Her exquisite complexion pinkened an glowed. Her body tautened, rippled with movement. He wanted to grab her and throw her down on the pier and have her. . His body betrayed him. Infuriated at it and at her, he iturned away to button his shirt. "Wel , don't expect any proposals of marriage from me," he said coldly, because she'd backed him into a corner and he felt trapped. "I want you, but not that much."

"Great, because marriage to a man like you is the last thing in the world I want!" she returned furiously. Later, When she remembered what he'd said, it would hurt like mad. But right now she was too upset to care.

"That delights me." He reached down and swung up his hi!, slamming it on his head. "Get the poles, if you don't mind," he muttered as he picked up the cooler and the basket.

"We can eat at home."

"That suits me fine." She picked up the poles. "In fact, I' m not hungry.. " She noticed as she pulled the poles up that her line tightened. With a frown, she put his down and jerked on hers. On the end of the line was a big bas , wriggling furiously. "Wel , what do you know," she exclaimed wi h a grin. "I caught a fish!" She glanced down at his own line. "Your worms are al gone," she said with mock sympathy. "Gee, that's too bad."

He glared at her. "It wasn't the worm that caught that bas ," he said shortly. "He probably heard you expounding your archaic theories about sex and laughed himself to death."

"Why, you.. !" She let fly with the bas , knocking his hat off and giving him a hard swipe on one lean cheek with the wet fish. He took the fish string away from her with a curt jerk of his hand, angrily wiping his face on his sleeve before he picked up his hat and stuck it back on his head. "Hit me with a fish, wil you?" he growled, glaring at her as he moved forward.

She backed up. "You deserved it," she said. Her low lip was trembling and unshed tears glistened in her eye "You philanderer!" The tears slowed him down, but only physical y. "That's bet er than being an icy lit le prude," he returned. She turned away, shakily, and picked up the fishing poles. He didn't even spare her a glance. He was shocked at her behavior and even more shocked at his own. Things had been developing so sweetly between them, and al of a sudden they were enemies. He didn't even realize bow it had happened. He'd wanted her so badly, but he couldn't give her what she wanted in return. He wasn't going to marry her just for the brief pleasure her body could give him. If only she hadn't started talking about get ing pregnant. He almost groaned out loud at the thought of somebody else's child in her body. It would happen one day, because she was pret y and sweet and other men would want her. Ben already did. He felt sick at the memory of Ben looking at her. With a furious curse, he turned and stomped off toward the pickup, leaving her to follow or not. It was the first real argument they'd ever had, unles she counted the day she'd told him what she thought of him.; He was fuming, and it showed even in the way he drove the'

truck back to Eugene's ranch.

"I'd bet er go back to my apartment," she said stiffly.

"No, ma'am," he returned curtly as he parked the truck. "The whole idea of having you here was for your own protection until I could have a private detective go over your place and find out who broke into it, and why. Dad and I have been working on that since late yesterday. He had aj cal in to your cousin Jenny first thing this morning, as^ wel ." He turned to glare at her. "You'l stay until tomorrow at least." He smiled, but it was more a cold twist of his f lips. "I'm sure I can trust you not to at ack in my sleep." She glared at him coldly and got out of the truck.

For the rest of the day, she ignored him. She helped Cynthia in the kitchen by scaling and fil eting the bas while Eugene and Cabe locked themselves in the study with busines . Later Cabe went out to the garage where Nicky was feeding his own pets and Norman. His mind was in revolt and his body stil ached for the taste of Danet a he'd hid that morning.

Nicky looked up as his half brother came into the game room, a pret y male anole on his hand.

"I thought you and Dani had gone fishing," he remarked to the older man, stil a lit le shy with him. Cabe shrugged, smoking his cigaret e quietly. "She caught a bas . I gues it wil be on the supper menu. What's that thing?"

"It's an anole," Nicky told him. "Anolis Carolinensis. they're cal ed 'new world chameleons.' They change color and they're very tame. Want to hold him?1'

Cabe shuddered. "I'm not a lizard lover."

'Technical y, I gues they are reptiles," Nicky replied as he returned the tiny thing to its cage. "Doesn't he look just like a miniature crocodile?" he mused. "But Norman is the neatest guy. ."