Lancelot's Lady (16 page)

He kissed her lips hard, drawing out a moan of ecstasy. Then his mouth fastened on her shoulder and his tongue licked a line across the tiny beads of water that settled on her collarbone.

"
I want to taste every inch of you,
"
he said hoarsely.

She shivered.

Before she could say a word, a movement at the far end of the pool caught Rhianna
'
s eye. She blinked, uncertain if she was imagining it.

She wasn
'
t.

"
Snake!
"
she screamed.

Chapter 16

A gray-black snake slithered across the surface of the water and moved slowly toward them.

"
Get out of the water!
"
Rhianna shrieked. Swimming to the shallows, she glanced over her shoulder.
"
Hurry up! Why aren
'
t you moving?
"

Jonathan snorted.
"
It
'
s an anhinga.
"

When she glared at him, he added,
"
A bird.
"

A raspy croaking erupted from the anhinga.

Crouching in the shallow water, Rhianna tried to ignore the heat rising in her cheeks. She
'
d nearly climbed out of the pool. Naked. In front of him.

"
A bird,
"
she said hesitantly.

"
An anhinga is similar to a cormorant,
"
Jonathan explained, wading toward her.
"
It has an elongated neck. When they swim, that
'
s all you see. Locals call it the snakebird.
"

"
Seems fitting to me,
"
Rhianna said with a scowl.

"
There are anhingas in Florida, you know.
"

"
I don
'
t get outside much.
"

"
Why is that?
"

"
I like to stick close to home. In case I
'
m needed.
"

The anhinga raised its long, thin yellow beak and stared at them. Then, with a raucous croak, the bird swam toward the rocks, where it waddled ashore and spread its wings, standing motionless.

"
What
'
s it doing?
"
she asked.

"
Drying his wings.
"

"
Oh.
"

"
They
'
re also called water turkeys.
"

"
Somehow I don
'
t think he
'
ll go too good with stuffing and mashed potatoes.
"

Jonathan chuckled.
"
You
'
re probably right.
"

"
How come you know so much about them?
"

"
Marvin
'
s a walking encyclopedia.
"

She frowned.
"
Marvin?
"

"
Mr. Atkinson.
"

The anhinga let out a loud squawk.

"
They
'
re sure noisy,
"
she said.

"
In Brazil they
'
re called devil birds.
"

"
Grea
t,
"
she muttered.
"
We were swimming near that thing.
"

A smile tugged on the corners of Jonathan
'
s mouth.
"
We were doing more than swimming.
"

Heat surged through her and she looked away.

Damn! Her robe and clothes were out of reach―too far to casually strol
l up to them without Jonathan seeing every inch of her nakedness.

"
What
'
s wrong?
"
he asked, stepping from the water.

She swallowed hard.
"
I need you to look away.
"

"
Oh, right. You
'
re naked.
"
He turned, his boxers clinging like a second skin.

"
I thought I
'
d be alone.
"

It
'
s what Rhianna had wanted. At first. Now she wanted nothing more than to feel his lips caress hers.

Did Jonathan feel the same?

In the glow of a rising sun, she studied his back. Jonathan looked like a cover model for People Magazine
'
s Top 10 Sexiest Men, a magazine she
'
d discovered on Mrs. Fletcher
'
s bookshelf. There was a difference, though, between flipping pages and staring at photos of gorgeous hunks and having one in the flesh only a few feet away.

A tremor raced up her spine.

Get a grip, Rhianna.

She blew out a slow breath and moved toward the rocky edge of the pool. She tugged the robe from the tree and watched as Jonathan leaned down to wipe the sand from his feet before slipping on his sandals.

Rhianna tried not to stare. It wasn
'
t easy.

~ * ~

Jonathan gave her time to dress. He could afford to be a gentleman. He
'
d gotten what he wanted. The kiss. He did everything to convince himself that was
all
he wanted, but he
'
d be a fool not to admit that if Rhianna hadn
'
t stopped things, he would have taken far more than he had.

"
Okay,
"
Rhianna said behind him.
"
I
'
m dressed.
"

"
That was fast,
"
he said, turning to face her.

With the robe tightly cinched around her small waist, Rhianna held a bundle of white in her hands and looked at him nervously.

Was she naked under the robe?

Don
'
t think about that.

He stared at her, his desire mounting.

"
I think we should go,
"
she murmured.

"
We should,
"
he agreed.

She turned away and made for the path to the house.

"
Wait up,
"
he called after her.
"
I
'
ve got the f
lashlight. I should go―
"

Suddenly, Rhianna stumbled, crying out in pain.

Jonathan rushed to her side.
"
Are you okay?
"

"
I think I broke my ankle.
"

"
Let me take a look.
"

He handed her the flashlight, then knelt on the ground, easing her foot into his lap. Th
ere was already some swelling. His fingers gently prodded around the ankle bone.

She hissed in a breath.

"
Sorry,
"
he said.

"
What
'
s the verdict? Will I live?
"

He smiled.
"
It
'
s not broken, so you
'
re in luck.
"

She tried to take a step and let out a yelp.

"
Here,
"
he said, scooping her up in his arms.

"
What are you doing? Put me down.
"

"
You need to stay off that foot.
"

"
But
―
"

"
No buts. Unless you want to land on yours.
"

"
Ha ha,
"
she said dryly.

"
Put your arm around my neck.
"

She hesitated.

"
I won
'
t bite.
"
He sighed.
"
I promise.
"

When she did as he suggested, he grinned.
"
Now isn
'
t that better?
"
It sure felt good to him.

"
Yea
h. Thanks.
"

"
No problem.
"
He chuckled.
"
I
'
d say any time, but I think you have enough bad karma.
"

Rhianna looked away.
"
It does seem so, doesn
'
t it?
"

He laughed, then headed down the path. A few yards in, he veered off the trodden grass and followed a sandy path.

"
Where are you going?
"
she demanded.
"
This isn
'
t the way to the house.
"

"
Trust me. We need to get some ice on that ankle right away. I have ice in my studio.
"

"
Well, there
'
s ice in the house too.
"

He let out a huff.
"
Are you going to argue with everything I say?
"

Rhianna clamped her mouth shut.

When they reached the small cabin, Jonathan nudged the door open and strode to the sofa. Carefully easing Rhianna onto the cushions, he paused, his attention caught by her pouting lips.

God, he wanted to kiss them.

Ice, damn it! Get the ice.

But all the ice in the world couldn
'
t cool the fire that was burning inside him.

~ * ~

When he released her, Rhianna bit her bottom lip and struggled to remain calm. She lost the battle.

Oh my God! What the heck is wrong w
ith me?

Her pulse raced and a thin bead of sweat broke out on her forehead as she thought of the kiss in the pool. She
'
d responded in a way she
'
d never done before―carelessly, wantonly. She hadn
'
t pushed Jonathan away like she had the handful of men who
'
d
tried to get close to her in the past. Why?

Because she wanted him.

It was the only answer that made sense.

If the anhinga hadn
'
t made noise in the pool, God only knows what would have happened. The bird had definitely dampened the mood, and she suspected she wasn
'
t the only one unraveled by what had occurred. Jonathan had been uneasy too. It would explain their frivolous conversation about water turkeys and devil birds.

Now here she was, sitting on his sofa, alone with the man. No other distractions
―except his hands on her ankle, his bare, tanned chest with its seductive contours and a smile that turned her into a molten mass of yearning.

How was she supposed to act now?

Jonathan took charge of the situation.

"
Are you comfortable?
"
he asked.

She nodd
ed, wondering if he regretted kissing her.

"
You don
'
t look so good.
"

"
Thanks,
"
she muttered.

He gave her a grim look, then grabbed a pillow from the armchair and tucked it under her foot.
"
Keep it elevated. It
'
ll help relieve the swelling.
"

"
What are you, Dr. Tyler M.D.?
"
she said wryly.

"
I
'
ve learned to deal with small accidents.
"
He strode toward the kitchen and tugged open the freezer door.
"
I pretty much have to out here. The closest doctor is almost an hour away.
"
He popped ice from the tray onto a towel and rolled it carefully.

Returning to her side, he placed the makeshift icepack over her ankle.
"
This should help numb the pain.
"