Lotus Blossom (14 page)

“Good planning.” He gave her a smug smile.

"Not true,” she yelped, stung. “You aren’t even carrying luggage.”

That’s good planning,” Dash explained as

ugh talking to a kindergartener.

“Humph.” Lotus turned her back on him when hr chuckled, stalking ahead of him out of the elevator and across the short lobby to the outer door that was opened by the doorman.

“Good day, miss.”

“Good day to you.” Lotus smiled at him, then

hurried into the waiting cab.

The ride to LaGuardia Airport was as shattering to Lotus as the one they had taken from the helipad to the apartment, but this time they had to go through a tunnel. She could feel moisture bead on her body as the cab crawled forward into the enclosed area, then ground to a halt.

“What is it, darling? Aren’t you feeling well?” Dash slid across the seat to take her in his arms. “Your face is perspiring.” He could feel his teeth snap together as fear took him. Reason told him that she couldn’t have contracted any disease, yet he could feel panic rising in him. “Did you eat something that didn’t agree with you?” He forced calm into his voice.

“No,” she whispered, turning her face to his chest. “I hate being shut in. Once, when I was small, I was playing with my brothers and cousins, and I hid in the fruit cellar in my uncle’s basement. I couldn’t get the door open, and I screamed and screamed . . .” Lotus gulped.

“And they wouldn’t let you out?” Dash felt

murderous.

“Oh, no, that wasn’t it. The door was stuck and they didn’t hear me. By the time they found me I was pretty shook up.” She raised her head to give him a wobbly smile, then saw the cement block walls of the tunnel and buried her head again “I’ll be better once we leave here.” Her muffled voice was barely audible to him as she pressed he: face into his jacket.

“Darling,” he groaned, keeping her close to him. “I should have arranged to take the helicopter He pressed his face into the ebony silkiness of her hair, inhaling the special clean odor of her. do love the sweetness of you, love.”

Lotus lifted her head, a slight tremor running through her body, then she fixed her eyes on his face. Much of her fear faded. “Silly man.”

Dash could see the haunted look fading from her eyes. It made him feel such a surge of power that perhaps she wasn’t afraid because he was with her. All his life he had looked down on machismo and men who adhered to it, and he always would, but all at once his masculine ego swelled. He wanted to protect her, stand between her and the world, be there for her, and take all the punches aimed at her. He wanted that more than anything in the world. “Nothing is going to hurt you.”

Smiling at him, Lotus sighed with relief when they left the tunnel. She ran her finger down his nose. “And are you going to be my armor?”

"Yes."

Lotus felt shaken to her shoes. She stared into his eyes, trying to read behind the good-looking mask of his face. She saw strain there, but she couldn’t really read him. Dash Colby was the original enigma, she thought. Nothing came through his skin from the inner person unless he chose to let it. Nothing penetrated unless it was his wish. How many persons ever got under his guard? she wondered. Yet, she didn’t fear him. At the moment

the only thing she really feared was losing him. not even her fear of being in an enclosed place was bigger than that. She wished she could summon all Dash’s confidence that nothing would keep them apart.

"Not too many people get to me,” Dash averred reading her mind. His lopsided grin widened when her lips parted in surprise. He touched her lips.

“You are Oriental, but you are not inscrutable. I thought I told you that.”

“Yes. We decided that you’re the inscrutable one,” Lotus shot back, a little miffed that he could

read her that way.

“Temper, temper.” He chucked her under the chin, his grip tightening when she would have pulled away from him. “No, I don’t want you out

of my arms.”

Lotus subsided, exhaling a deep breath. “I don’t want to leave.” No truer words were ever spoken, she thought. She didn’t want to leave his arms, but she had a feeling the world could get in the way. She hated the thought of it.

“Stop building ghosts and relax,” Dash said into her hair, happy to hold her and answer her desultory questions as they approached the airport.

The taxi driver had less of a problem with traffic once he left the highway to get onto the access road that led to the private plane hangars.

Lotus sat up as Dash released her as they pulled over to the curb. “My goodness, I never realized that so many people flew their own planes.”

Dash laughed. “Yes, there are quite a few, but some of those planes are corporate jets too. Many companies feel that it’s more convenient to maintain a jet for their staff than to fly them commercially. It is certainly more comfortable for them. Dash led the way, carrying her duffel bag, hurrying Lotus when she dawdled to stare out the window at a small plane taxiing up to the door of the terminal.

Dash held a door open for her with his shoulder, and she passed him to go out to the field. They hurried to the open door of a Lear jet standing by
.

“Is someone else going to fly us this time?” Lotus noticed the name Coldris Limited, Inc. on the side of the plane just before they went up the steps into the craft.

Dash signaled to an attendant to close the door. Then he turned and nodded. “I thought you might prefer to have me conversing with you on the trip.”

Lotus nodded, feeling shy with him all at once. ‘You mustn’t look at me like that in front of my family. They might bring out the shotgun.”

“Great idea,” Dash drawled, walking over to her, and lifting her jacket from her shoulders. 'Come on, darling, there’s the bell. I want to strap you in.” Dash led her to a round-backed chair with a large desk-cum-table in front of it.

“They look more like easy chairs than airplane Lotus put her head back on the overstuffed cushion and watched him strap himself in next to her.

'The idea is to be comfortable.” He lifted her hand and put her small finger into his mouth, sucking at the tip. “Are you?”

“Am I what?” Lotus said, feeling her blood heat to caldron temperature.

“Are you comfortable, darling?”

"Very,” she replied, not even realizing that the Lear jet was rising in almost vertical ascent. “It’s so private
"

"Yes, indeed. Perhaps one day we’ll take a trip to a little island I know in the Caribbean. What do you think?"

"I have to work.” Lotus felt out of breath.

"So do I. You must be able to take some time

“I’ll get one week’s vacation this year.”

“God. We should be able to do better than that.” Dash looked at her, the bridge of his nose creased in disapproval.

“I am not a plutocrat.” She lifted her chin.

“Are you censuring me, angel?”

Lotus held his look for long minutes, then she nodded, smiling. “I suppose. I don’t know why I do that to you.”

“I think you disapprove of my way of making a living.”

Lotus was about to shake her head, then she bit her lip. “Maybe that’s it. I never thought of myself as someone who disapproved of gambling, but my attitude must have changed because of my uncle. I don’t know.” She looked away from him, feeling her brow wrinkle.

“It won’t keep us apart, China Doll.”

She swiveled her head around to look at him. “Dash, it could just do that. I think we should be realistic.”

“It won’t because I won’t let it.”

“Dash, I don’t think we should pretend that we could have a long-time relationship. . .”

“And I think you should come right out and tell me if you are trying to dump me,” he said, the bones in his face pushing through the flesh an skin.

Lotus stared at him. “How can you think that-“Because that’s the way you’re talking,” he shot
back.

“I don’t mean to”—Lotus threw up her hand-— “you see. We don’t know each other well enough to really understand each other, and understanding is basic to any—” “Don’t say it,” Dash interrupted her. “Whatever it takes, however many compromises, the changes, the retreats ... I am prepared to do it.”

Mouth agape, Lotus stared at him. “You are?” “I am.”

“Dash . . . my family . . ."  Lotus took a deep breath. “They are the best people in the world, but they might not welcome you when they find out who you are.”

“Don’t tell them who I am. Introduce me as J.D. Colby. Call me J.D. They won’t make the connection, especially if you tell them that I’m one of the Boston Colbys.”

Lotus lifted her chin, looking down her nose. "Ah, yes, the fish people, don’t you know? They have a marvelous fleet of boats, the longest of which is five feet.”

"A little longer than that,” Dash told her lazily. "Not to mention the property on Cape Cod.” "Martha’s Vineyard,” Dash corrected her.

“That too.” Lotus flapped her hand at him.

“And the house on Beacon Hill,” Dash helped her.

Lotus paused, then shook her head. “I don’t think we should say that. That’s a bit much. Some-one is liable to say that they know someone on the hill and then where would we be?”

“Behind the eight ball?”

“Precisely.”

"Then we’ll just mention the fishing boats and delete Beacon Hill. Should we mention that I went to Harvard?”

My brothers would be bound to ask you

what year and if you crewed or something.” Lotus settled back in her chair letting her eyelids droop

when she felt his hand massaging her back, his mouth at her temple.

“I don’t suppose we could tell them I crewed and played football.”

“Uh-uh.” Lotus yawned. “Better to be vague about your schooling.”

“Vague it is,” Dash assured her. “Take a little nap. You had a late night.”

“Yes. Some cad was in my bed,” Lotus said and chuckled.

“I had a funny experience myself. Some sexy Eastern goddess attacked me. I tried to resist, but she overpowered me.”

“Poor baby.” Lotus snuggled under his chin, feeling so safe and warm.

When the plane began its descent for the city of Rochester a little better than an hour later, Dash hated to wake her. She felt so right in his arms. He wanted to keep her there. “She’s mine, and I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep her,” he vowed just before shaking her gently awake.

“Did I fall asleep again? I’m terrible. I never used to nap like this.” Lotus smiled sleepily when he laughed. “And don’t get too conceited about your prowess in bed.. . .” Lotus gulped and cringed when an attendant stopped at their seat. She was sure he had heard her even though his impassive expression gave her no clue.

“Sir, we’ll be taxiing up to the gate and there is a car waiting as you ordered.”

“Thank you, Jimmy.” Dash chuckled as Lotus continued to press against him even after the attendant turned away and went to the forward cabin.

Lotus wouldn’t lift her head even after the two-142

bell signal, telling them that they could unbuckle their seat belts.

“Here, let me unhook you, darling.”

“No, I am going to hide under the seat. I know he heard what I said to you.”

“No matter. We’re getting married.”

Lotus’s head shot up. “We don’t know that . . . even if we are, I don’t want people hearing me talk like that. My family would be shocked . . . well, maybe not shocked, but they would be surprised that I talk that way.”

"Families are always shocked, stunned, surprised, whatever at what their progeny do. It’s the name or the game. From what I hear it’s always white-knuckle time raising a family,” Dash told her, Kissing her on the cheek.

A baby boy with laughing eyes who looked just like Dash was pictured in her mind. Lotus caught her breath, looking up at Dash as he stood, stretching. Then he reached out a hand to help her from her seat.

"Ready, darling?” Dash inclined his head as he looked at her.

Lotus’s imagination took over again and she saw a tow-headed toddler with blue eyes like his father. He would be strong and determined, ready to ride a bike the day he learned to walk. She felt soft and warm inside as she pictured him. The bottoms of her feet tingled as she thought of feeding and caring for a baby who looked just like Dash. It was insane!

' Darling, you’re daydreaming.” He kissed her cheek, then patted her backside, urging her toward the door.

Lotus nodded, dreamily, barely taking notice as

they walked across the tarmac to the small terminal building across the field from the larger one used by commercial flight travelers. All at once she snapped alert. She was beginning to accept that it was a feasible thing to marry Dash! She tried to throw her brain into full stop, but she couldn’t stop the rosy imagery. In minutes they were in a brand-new Mercedes sedan. “My goodness. Rental cars are marvelous, aren’t they?”

“I hope you like this.” Dash leaned on the wheel and looked at her after he started the car. “I just thought of something. This is your hometown. Perhaps you should drive.”

“You would let me drive this?” Lotus grinned unbelievingly. Her brothers had fits when she drove their cars, and it took a great deal of pleading and coaxing to get them to relent.

Dash watched the play of emotions on her face. Then he opened his door and came around to her side of the car, opened it, and ushered her around to the driver’s seat. He waited while she adjusted the seat to the right height to accommodate her shorter legs. “There.” He kissed her, closed the driver’s door, and went around the car to get into the passenger seat. “The more I think of it, the better it sounds. This way you can drive and show me the sights, and I can look at everything.” Waiting for him to give her instructions or admonishments, she felt a moment’s nervousness. She looked over at him, her breath catching at the lazy intimacy of his smile.

“Well? Are we ready, darling?”

“Yes.” Lotus breathed, engaging the clutch and pressing gently on the accelerator.

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With a barely perceptible jerk the powerful car purred forward.

Lotus was delighted with the hum of the engines, the easy motion of the well-tuned mechanism under her hands. “It’s a wonderful car.”

“Do you like it, darling?”
I’m going to buy her one,
he decided. A Mercedes Sport would be more her style. The thought of buying such a car for her excited him more than anything had in a long time. Giving things to Lotus would be like getting a gift himself, he mused, watching her small strong hands grip and slide over the steering wheel. Even driving, she is the most graceful of women. She has a built-in beauty of motion.
God! I’m getting poetic about my China doll.