In Broad Daylight (16 page)

and for however long this lasted, she was going to glory in it.

She moaned as he pressed kiss after kiss to her face, to her throat. To the breasts that

throbbed each time his lips left their mark.

Quickly, Brenda started to take off his clothes as well. In her urgency to divest him, she

was aware of a button plinking down on the coffee table as it resisted her movements,

falling off instead of finding its way out of the buttonhole.

"Sorry," she murmured, her mouth against his skin as she pushed the shirt off his

shoulders.

Dax drew her head up, took possession of her mouth. "I have a sister who sews," he

assured her, his words echoing against her mouth.

She heard the eagerness in his voice, felt the gentleness in his hands. Her body vibrated

with anticipation even as her mind, what there was of it, cautioned her that there was only

disappointment in the wings.

She knew that from experience, even as her body urged her on. Even as her core

moistened to receive him.

Lovemaking with Wade had never been this exciting, but it had had its spark. Still, he was

always finished with the journey just as she was beginning to climb up the summit. She'd

never once gotten to that pinnacle she'd so often heard described.

She tried to brace herself for the letdown, even as part of her prayed that she was

wrong.

They were on the floor now, where Dax had laid her down, their limbs tangled. He'd

completely ignited her, his fingers deftly playing her body, finding secret places and

making them his.

Her breath caught in her throat. Strumming lightly along her thighs, his lips assaulting

hers, his fingers delved into the most intimate part of her. Brenda felt herself tightening

like a bow. Softly, he stroked her, his movement evoking responses throughout her whole

body.

She gripped his shoulders to anchor herself. And suddenly, there were stars zooming

through her head, nestling in her bloodstream. Arching madly against his hand, her body

taking on a mind of its own as it sought the center of the pleasure he'd created, she cried

out as a climax took hold of her.

Desperately, she tried to hold onto the moment, afraid of letting it go. Afraid of never

feeling its wondrous effects again.

Her eyes flew open as she felt his warm breath along her stomach. The next moment, his

fingers had given way to his tongue. Indescribable sensations appeared. A cry echoed

silently in her throat, trapped there.

Waiting.

And then it came, taking her prisoner, throwing her upward. Her fingers dug into his flesh

until she was spent. Stunned, shaken, wrapped up in a rosy hue she'd never felt before, she

tried to focus. To savor.

When she looked, he'd slid his body up over hers until his face was level with hers. There

was an enigmatic smile on his lips. And a look in his eyes that she couldn't fathom either.

The next moment, he was parting her legs and driving himself into her. And then there

was no more room for thoughts, no more room for anything except the delicious sensations

battering her body.

She pushed her hips up, sealing herself to him, to the tempo that he had set for them.

She kept up as best she could and then she was scrambling toward something again, a

sensation that beckoned to her as the urgency of his body directed her toward it.

It burst over her, cocooning her in its richness. In that moment she realized that she had

finally gained the summit.

That they had reached it together.

His body lost its tension and relaxed against hers. She welcomed the weight, welcomed

the feeling of being one with him in ways she couldn't begin to describe. The peace was

overwhelming, in sharp contrast to her heart which she was certain was going to burst out

of her chest at any moment.

And then she felt his mouth curving against her neck. He was smiling, she realized, and

the sensation was wonderful.

After a beat, Dax raised his head and looked at her. He combed his fingers through her

hair, moving it from her face. They were both damp with each other's perspiration. For

some reason, he found that incredibly sexy.

Just as he found her.

The smile on his lips rose into his eyes. "Did I tell you I like your apartment?"

Laughter bubbled up inside of her, giddy laughter that had no rhyme or reason but felt

wonderful as it filled her. "No, you didn't mention that."

The smile softened, growing into something more. "I like your apartment."

Brenda could feel herself weakening again. Wanting him again even as exhaustion

threatened to claim her. "Good. Me, too."

Her lips puckered as she uttered the last word. It was too much of an invitation for him

to resist. Dax brought his mouth down to hers. And felt the process beginning again.

He stayed the night.

Each time he had attempted to leave, she'd turn into him, or murmur his name, or the

light scent she wore would somehow find its way into his senses, into his head and he was

caught fast.

They made love twice and then he did something he'd never done before. He watched her

sleep.

Something was going on and he didn't understand what or why. He didn't like going along

for rides when he didn't have control of the wheel, and yet, he couldn't find it in his heart

to leave. Not yet.

He was still searching for his lost resolve when he finally fell asleep.

The sound of the1812 Overture,muted, burrowed its way into his sleep and dragged him up

to the surface. Opening his eyes, it took Dax a moment to realize that he wasn't in his own

bed, wasn't sitting in an awkward, cramped position at a stakeout.

He was lying beside Brenda.

The next moment, the fact penetrated that his cell phone was ringing. He turned toward

the nightstand on his side, where he'd had the presence of mind to place his phone when

he finally realized that he wasn't going home for the night.

The dark blue object, with both its ring and vibrate options on, inched its way to the edge

of the stand. He grabbed it just in time. "Cavanaugh."

Beside him, he could feel Brenda rousing. He glanced in her direction. Her sheet dipped on

one side, exposing a breast. He felt desire taking root again, hard.

In his ear, he heard his partner's voice say, "I think you'd better get down here, Dax, and

bring the teacher with you."

He sat up, combing his fingers through his hair as if that could somehow bring order to

his still-sleeping brain. Morning had pushed its way into the room. His mind was a step

behind.

"Come again? Why?"

"Because the kidnapper just called and he won't talk to anyone here but her. He said he'd

call back and then hung up. TheTylersare about ready to leap out of their skins."

Definitely trying to getTyler's goat, Dax thought. He scrubbed his hand over his face.

"Did he say when he'd call back?"

"No, but I think you'd better get here fast. If he calls, he might not give us a third

chance. No telling what this loony's going to do."

"Right."

Nathan terminated the call on the other end. Turning, Dax looked at Brenda again. His

reaction was no less intense than it had been a moment ago. She looked better with sleep

still in her eyes and her hair tousled about her head than most women looked in full

makeup, walking out of a beauty salon.

The pull was getting stronger rather than weaker. As if he'd just whetted his appetite

rather than sated it. This wasn't business as usual for him and he didn't know what to

make of it, but he had no time to explore it. They had to get going.

"That was Nathan. The kidnapper called theTylersthis morning."

Her eyes were on his face, as if she was waiting for him to tell her something terrible.

"So I gathered."

Sitting up, she had the sheet tucked around her breasts. He struggled with the very

strong desire to tug it away.

"He won't talk to anyone but you."

Dax saw a smattering of a smile curve her lips and felt an unreasonable desire to taste it.

To see if it was as sweet as it appeared. Damn it, what the hell was going on with him?

"I always did attract the wrong kind of men," she murmured, getting up, the sheet

wrapped around her like a Roman toga.

As he watched her gather up her clothes and go into the bathroom, he couldn't help

wondering if she included him in that group.

«^»

"Tylermust be madder than hell," Brenda commented. Around them, the world was just

beginning to wake up. Morning traffic on the streets was still at a minimum as they sped

from her apartment to theTylermansion.

Dax took a sharp left, beating out the light a breadth before it turned red. "That's

probably the idea, to get at him. To get under his skin."

Brenda frowned. The window on her side was down an inch and the wind was sneaking into

the space, whipping her hair around. She combed it back with her fingers. "You'd think

kidnapping his daughter would accomplish that."

He knew what she was saying, that the man's love for Annie should have made everything

else pale in comparison. But to a man like Simon Tyler, power was everything. It was the

rock that his ego, his sense of self-worth was founded on. To strip him of it was the

ultimate insult. Being powerless far outweighed the taking of his money or even of his

daughter.

Brenda shifted in her seat. In the ten minutes that it had taken to get from her bedroom

to the car, she'd managed to put in a call to the academy and had left a message with

Matthew that she wouldn't be in today. Harwood kept several substitute teachers on call.

The school was scheduled to be reopened, but she doubted that all the children would be

back so soon.

She looked at Dax, wondering if any headway had been made that he hadn't mentioned.

"Has anything turned up on those two people who were at the school?"

He shook his head. "The names they gave Harwood were fake, so was the address and

phone number where they could be reached. So far, all the tips we've had come in after

those sketches of yours were shown on TV have led nowhere."

She ran her hands along her arms. The chill she felt came from within and refused to

abate. "Doesn't mean we won't get a valid one."

"No, it doesn't." He spared her a glance. It was another balmy day. "You cold?"

She shook her head. It wasn't the kind of cold that an extra blanket or a sweater could

combat. "Just thinking about Annie being scared, not knowing what was going to happen to

her." With all her heart, she wished she could somehow hold the little girl, comfort her.

"Annie's very bright for her age. She's probably thought of where this is all going."

Annie was only six. He didn't know much about kids, but that was something he would have

thought more typical of an adult reaction. "That's giving her a lot of credit, isn't it? I

know that people think kids have this natural intuition, but—"

He didn't understand, Brenda thought. "Annie tested near genius level when she came into

the school. Her score was one point higher than mine."

She saw Dax give her a curious look.

The last part had just slipped out. She wouldn't have said anything if she hadn't been so

preoccupied, hadn't felt so confused and guilty. Not just about failing Annie, but about

last night as well. The lovemaking had been wonderful, beyond anything she would have

imagined possible.

For the first time in her life, she'd felt that wild surge, that wondrous X-factor that had

eluded her all this time. Until now. The one that was ultimately responsible for attracting a

woman to a man and vice versa with an electricity that sizzled. But she was carrying

another man's child and though she'd never been in love with Wade, she had loved him in

her own fashion. There was no denying that she felt a degree of disloyalty to him for

making love with someone else. Wade had been dead only a little more than three months.

What was worse, she knew that she shouldn't have let things go this far without telling

Dax that she was pregnant. She knew why she'd kept silent about it. Because she was

afraid. Afraid that if she said anything, it would have destroyed all chances of there ever

being anything between them.

Still, what made her think that there was anything between them now except that

incredible interlude that they'd shared? He hadn't exactly been proclaiming his undying

love to her last night. Men and women made love all the time without feeling love, she had

to remember that. Just because she'd felt the earth move last night didn't mean that he

had.

Last night had just been last night and today was today. She had to gain the proper

perspective on that, the one she knew in her heart that Dax undoubtedly had to have had.

So, she was a brain on top of a beauty. Well, he'd already suspected as much. This was a

first for him, Dax thought. The women he usually made love to usually had an IQ slightly

larger than their dress size. Maybe that's what had been missing all these years. Maybe

that was what pulled him back.

The road opened up and he pressed down on the gas. "You're awfully quiet all of a sudden.

Is this something geniuses do?"

She flushed. It hadn't been her intention to let him know her genius level. Men were