Practice Makes Perfect (17 page)

“Well, isn’t this a surprise.”

It was like being awakened from an erotic dream. Paige gave a start, and Ian frowned. They both turned to find Marla Simmons heading for the ice-cream stand.

“Hi, Marla,” Ian said.

She looked at him. “Hello, Ian.” She turned to Paige. “Hi, Paige.” When she checked out Paige’s outfit, her eyes widened. “Wow, you look diff—um, great.”

Suddenly self-conscious in the skimpy dress, Paige crossed her free arm over her chest. “Thanks.”

Marla transferred her gaze to Ian. “Out for the evening, you two?”

“Uh-huh.” He licked his cone. “And we need to get going or we’ll be late.” He took Paige by the elbow. “Nice to see you, Marla.”

The beautiful blonde’s brows knitted at the dismissal. But Ian ushered Paige away before Marla could respond. Once inside the car, he drove at a slower pace so that he could lick the cone. Paige told herself to leave it alone, but she couldn’t. “She’s your type, Ian.”

Staring ahead, he seemed distracted. “Marla?”

“Yes.”

“Maybe.”

“Did you ever call her after the IM?”

“No.” He glanced at Paige. “Did you ever talk to her about it?”

“No. I don’t like to mix business and personal stuff.”

“She’s a nice woman.”

“Fine.” Paige’s tone was clipped. She couldn’t help wondering if Ian had slept with Marla. Had he touched her with those wonderful hands, kissed her everywhere?

“What are you thinking?”

“Nothing. Let’s drop it.”

“Fine.” As they drove, he finished his cone, licked his fingers, then placed his hand on Paige’s bare knee. She jumped. “My fingers sticky?”

“No.”

He began to caress her knee. She moved her leg away.

“I thought we were dropping the subject.”

“Of Marla?” He nodded. “We are,” she said.

“Then why have you turned into the Ice Maiden?”

Paige sighed. “Why is everything so complicated with you, Ian?”

“Me? You’re the puzzle.”

“No, I’m not.”

He shook his head. “Marla and I were never intimate, Paige, if that’s what’s got you freezing up on me.”

She thought about lying, but she also remembered what Jade had said about the old Paige, so she decided to be honest. “A little, I guess. And seeing Marla reminds me of how you got me to work at the Center. It still makes me uncomfortable.”

He pulled over to the side of the road. They’d made it to the foot of Hyde Point Hill. Turning to face her, he said, “I’ll apologize again. I’m sorry I broke your trust. Please don’t let it spoil tonight. I’ve been looking forward to this.”

“Why, Ian? I don’t get it. You can have beauty queens like Marla and Missy Columbo. Debutantes like Tammi Garson.”

His face brightened. “You remember my dates’ names?”

She blushed, then closed her eyes and sighed. She could feel him lean over, his mouth at her ear.

“I want
you
, lady. No, don’t stiffen up. I don’t just mean sexually, though being near you in that little slip of a thing sends my blood pressure to the moon. I mean, I want to get to know you. I want you to be my friend. I want you in my life in every way.”

“Ian, it’s too soon to feel all that.”

He drew back, his face as serious as it got when he was studying the chart of a patient. For you, maybe. Not everybody works to the same timetable. It’s okay. I can wait for you to catch up.”

Once again she was stunned by his glib certainty, his belief that he was absolutely right. She didn’t know what to say.

“Meanwhile—” he licked his lips “—I’m going to enjoy every morsel of the meal.” Without warning he took her mouth. It was a firm possession of her lips; he explored her, nipped at her, claimed her. She was breathless when he pulled away.

He started the car again and headed up the hill. Paige reached out to place his hand back on her knee.

o0o

BY THE TIME they’d reached a semiprivate parking space on an overlook of Hyde Point Hill, it was dark. The entire valley sprawled down below in front of them, its lights twinkling in the evening. Once they were parked, Ian reached past the gearshift between them and over her lap to pull on the seat mechanism. Paige went back a few inches. “What are you doing?”

“Letting you stretch out.” Actually she was just slightly reclined, but the position thrust her breasts out at a delicious angle. His hands curled with need to touch them. He felt himself harden immediately.

All he did, though, was place that hand on her cheek. He caressed her there, then ran his knuckles up and down. “Let’s talk.”

“A-about—” She cleared her throat. In the moonlight, her eyes were glazed. “About what?”

“Anything.” His fingertips skimmed along the neckline of her dress. “I just want to get to know you better.”

“I can’t talk with your hands on me.”

His grin was smug and male. “Of course you can.”

She groaned when his fingers slid to the low armhole of her dress. They played there, rubbing sensuously back and forth on her tender skin.

“Close your eyes. Feel my touch. But tell me about Jade.”

After a doubting look, she closed her eyes. His gaze dropped to her chest, where her nipples thrust against the soft cotton. Mmm.

“She’s going to stay with me for a while. We came to terms about things.”

“Too personal to tell me, right?”

“Uh-huh.”

“I can respect that.” He let his hand glide to her waist. It kneaded the indentation there. Leaning awkwardly over the console, he kissed her eyelids. Her nose. He wanted to bathe her in every sensuous delight he could imagine. “Jewel looks just like you, Paige.”

“I know.”

“Jade doesn’t.”

“My mother and Jade were two peas in a pod. Apparently Jewel’s father looks like my dad.”

His hand went lower. When it reached her bare knee, she startled. “Shh. It’s okay.” His fingers massaged her, then inched up under her dress, slid sexily along the smooth inside of her thigh. The skin there was creamy soft. “At first I thought Jewel might be yours. But I’ve known you for four years. I would have known if you’d had a baby.”

If he hadn’t been touching her, if his body hadn’t been poised over her, he wouldn’t have felt it. But she stiffened slightly.

“Paige?”

“Of course she’s not mine.”

“You tensed, honey. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing.” She pushed at his chest. He sank back into his seat—and she followed him. There was a gleam in her eye as she leaned over his lap and pulled at the seat adjuster. Just as she had, he went back several inches. Then she leaned over him, though it was harder for her to get past the gearshift. “Relax, Ian.”

“What are you doing, lady?”

“Payback time.” She undid a few more buttons of his shirt.

“No fair, I didn’t get to touch your bare—” He didn’t finish, because he gasped when she kissed him there. His breath started to come in heavy pants as she brushed her nose back and forth on his chest. He gripped her arms when she ran her tongue the length of his sternum. “Paige...”

It only got worse. Or better, depending on how you looked at it.

Skilled doctor hands knew pulse points—at his neck and wrist. They gently examined...under his arm, around his navel...then his ear... Oh God, her tongue there made him jolt off the seat. At one point, as she kept up her torturous ministrations, she whispered, “Practice makes perfect, Ian.”

Finally her mouth closed over his. The kiss was carnal, fueled by teasing touches and a sprinkle of moonlight. The mating of their mouths was long and luscious—and completely frustrating.

They left the hill at ten minutes to eleven. When they reached her house, Ian was aroused, but he felt an odd sense of satisfaction even without the natural culmination. He drew her to him after he’d parked the car in her driveway and shut off the engine.

She came as close as she could. “Have enough to eat?”

He nipped at her neck. “For tonight.”

She sighed.

“But you know what they say about appetizers?” His gaze was tender.

Her eyes twinkled like the nighttime stars. “What?”

“They make you hungrier for the main course.”

She smiled at him

“I intend to feast, Paige. Soon.”

She gave him an arch look. “I guess I’m working up an appetite.”

“Good,” he said, and went back for one last taste.

o0o

THEY REVERTED to their teen years during the following week.

Paige hadn’t felt this high since she was Mary Ellen’s age and dating Ronny Mitchum, the father of her child. Her relationship with Ian had all the qualities of a high-school romance.

The day after their excursion to Hyde Point Hill, Ian sent flowers to her office. The staff had buzzed about it, and Paige had been embarrassed, but she’d hidden the card in her lab coat. And, like a lovesick teen, she’d sneaked it out several times a day and read it— “Thanks for the taste test. Though I’m no longer famished, I can’t wait for the banquet. Eight courses
might
be enough. Love, Ian.”

That night, he’d invited himself—and Scalpel—to dinner. Jade had cooked.

“Do you like seafood, Ian?” Jade had asked when he arrived.

“I like all food.” He answered Jade but his eyes were on Paige, who wore her tangerine tankini. “I’m a real gourmet.”

All evening, he’d devoured her with that blisteringly sexual gaze, and when it was time to leave, he’d grabbed her hand. “Walk me to my car.”

Once he’d gotten Scalpel settled in the seat, Ian had backed her into the shadows of her driveway, against the garage door, and took her mouth. “Just a sip,” he’d said against her lips. “I’ve been parched since last night.” His kiss was tender for a moment, then turned wonderfully insistent. He’d sworn ripely when he pulled away. “I’m gonna
die,
honey, before you’re ready.”

They’d had lunch together three times. Just the day before, at his place, they’d taken an hour between appointments at the clinic and gone to his condo. He’d taken Scalpel for a run while she fixed sandwiches, and when they’d returned, he swiped the plates out of her hands and lifted her onto the marble counter.

The cold stone against her bare legs and the hot brush of his hands had been unbelievably erotic.

He’d buried his face in her chest. He’d been increasing the intimacy by degrees, making her crave his touch. And she was ready for more. So she’d pushed him back and unbuttoned her blouse. His eyes had turned molten at her lacy bra, and he’d nuzzled his face into her half-exposed breasts, murmuring, “You are exquisite.”

By tonight, in their third midnight swim in the pool, she wanted even more from him. Jade had made a big deal about being
really tired
and how she and Jewel would surely
sleep like the dead
, in case Ian and Paige wanted to know that. They were standing in chest-high water when he released her bikini top and whipped it off. His big hands closed over her breasts in the moonlight, and she delighted in the sensation of the water lapping around her and his hands fondling her. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything as lovely as you are right now.”

She smiled at him. “You feel so good.”

He said only, “Touch me, Paige.”

Watching his face, she slid her hands up and down the sides of his torso. His hair was wet, slicked off his forehead, accenting every beautiful angle of his features. His bare chest glistened in the moonlight. When her fingertips flirted with the waistband of his suit, he gripped the edge of the pool; feet spread, his head thrown back, he closed his eyes and sighed.

The sigh turned into a moan when she slid her hands underneath the band and caressed his buttocks. His muscles, firm and toned, tensed.

“Do you like that?”

“Mmm.”

She grinned.

Her hands crept around front. Her knuckles grazed him, and he startled. “Ah, Paige...”

She grasped him then. He was firm and full and very hard. “Ian, you’re wonderful.” She slid her hand up and down his length. “I want to see you.”

“Paige...”

She leaned in close and nipped his ear. “I want to taste you...”

He gripped her shoulders. “Stop, honey, I can’t stand it.”

“Oh...” she pouted, “I don’t want to stop.”

Ultimately, he grabbed her hands. “I think you’ve turned into Ms. Frankenstein. And her timing is lousy.”

“Why?”

“Because when we finally do it, I want hours with you, and it’s already late.” He glanced at the house. “And I want us to be truly alone, to savor every single minute.” Taking both her arms, he wound them around his neck and pulled her close. His mouth was in her hair. “Tomorrow night, Paige. We both have the weekend off. Tell Jade you’ll be at my place. Stay through Sunday.”

“All right,” she said.

PAIGE PACED OUTSIDE the delivery room of Hyde Point Hospital like an expectant father. She tried to rationalize that it was because the about-to-be-born twins were her new patients, but she didn’t fool herself. The fact that the mother of these children was a Serenity House resident was what had brought Paige to the hospital with Ian when he’d gotten the call.

The news about Mary Ellen’s imminent delivery had come at seven o’clock tonight, just as Paige had arrived at his house. He’d been called into work today to cover for a sick partner and had seemed tired when she’d gotten there. He was still on the phone as he opened the door. He was frowning. “I understand. I’ll be right there.”

Paige waited for him to click off.

“Damn it,” he said.

“What’s the problem?”

He slid bare feet into his Dock-Siders and grabbed the keys from the table. “Mary Ellen is in labor. A month early.”

“You said she could call you if she was scared.”

“It’s more than that. Twin B’s heart rate has fallen to sixty beats. Rodney Peters is on call. He’s good, but inexperienced. He thinks he should do a C-section, but Mary Ellen and Nora want my opinion.”

“We should go.”

“We?”

“I’m the pediatrician for the babies, Ian.”

He smiled as if she’d pleased him, kissed her hard and they left without further talking; they discussed only the medical implications on the way over. Neither mentioned what this premature birth had interrupted.