The Princess and the Pauper (9 page)

In the distance she heard the loud whine of an engine. She stopped short, ears straining. The whine grew into a dull roar.
Jesse!
she thought with jubilation.

Quickly she ran to the entrance. The roar intensified, filling the night. April glanced across the road to her parents’ imposing manor house, afraid they would somehow guess what was going on. A headlight pierced the night and Jesse pulled to a thundering stop. As soon as he cut the engine, deep silence closed in around them.

He sat on the motorcycle long moments. April wasn’t sure whether to risk being seen by her parents and go out and meet him, or wait in the shadows. She chose the latter and remained standing near the archway to the park, her heart thudding heavily in her chest.

Jesse climbed off the motorcycle, slamming down the kickstand. He was wearing worn jeans, a black shirt and his leather jacket. Irrational fear suddenly seized April and she stepped back, one hand at her throat. She was dimly aware that tonight was some kind of turning point; the wheels she’d set in motion were spinning her into a dangerous, unknown future.

Jesse strode through the archway and stopped five feet in front of her. “So who are you hiding from?”

April drew a quiet breath. He would never understand her fears. “My parents.”

He snorted. “Maybe I should leave.”

“No.” April glanced around. “Could we go to the center of the park?”

He hesitated, as if weighing his choices. Reluctantly, it seemed to April, he inclined his head. “Lead the way.”

They walked side by side, a circumspect distance between them. At the clearing, Jesse stopped short. The shrubbery, thick with summer leaves and rustling in the night breeze, surrounded them. Only the faintest moon glow shone onto the dry grass.

“Okay,” he said, stretching his arms over his head as if his back ached. “You wanted to talk. Talk.”

April sighed inwardly. Why did he always have to make things so difficult? “You changed shifts at the mill,” she remarked. “You’re on days now.”

“Was that what you want to talk about?” he asked softly in a mocking tone.

April glared at him. She was standing to one side, letting the moonlight dapple one bare shoulder. She’d specifically worn this pale blue wraparound sundress to impress him – she knew it looked good on her. Her long black hair hung straight and covered most of her bare back. Now, under Jesse’s stripping scrutiny, she couldn’t help but wrap her arms protectively around her waist, spoiling the effect. He could make her feel so ill at ease.

“No. I… just wanted you to—”

“What?” he demanded, when she broke off.

“I don’t know!”

“Kiss you?” She could see him smile; his teeth were flash of white. “Again?”

“No!”

“Really. His tone was flat. “Then what do you want?”

“Look, Jesse. I guess I like meeting you, okay? I’ve wanted to see you again.” April felt her lips tighten. “That’s all.”

She didn’t move for the longest time. Finally, he heaved a deep sigh and removed his jacket, tossing it onto the ground. Then he ran his fingers through sweat-dampened hair and shook his head. “I shouldn’t be here.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t want to be here with you!”

He’s lying
, April suddenly realized, her pulse leaping. She slid him a look.
He does want to be here! Otherwise he wouldn’t have come at all.
Half afraid he might bolt if she came too close, she tentatively walked up next to him. She tipped her chin to look into his shadowed eyes.

He watched her closely, but she couldn’t read his expression in the gloom. All she wanted him to do was take her into his arms and assuage that sweet, secret ache that pulsed deep inside her.

“I’m not thinking straight,” he said, his gaze holding hers.

A strand of April’s ebony hair wisped upward, falling across his bare arm. In a voice she scarcely recognized as her own, she said, “I know we only have a few weeks, but I want to see you again. I’m tired of chasing you.”

“Then stop.”

“Why can’t I see you?” April asked.

“Because it’s a big waste of time. It’ll go nowhere.”

“How do you know? You
are
afraid of me!”

“Damn right!” he said.

April laughed, and the sound rippled through the sultry air. She doubted Jesse Cawthorne was afraid of anything. She’d just wanted a reaction from him. “You’re a liar,” she said, grinning. “Jesse…”

She made the mistake of placing a hand on his arm. His muscles hardened. It was like an electric shock burning through her. April jerked back, eyes wide.

Before she realized it, his hand was cupping the curve of her jaw, his knuckles grazing her cheek in an incredibly thrilling way. The pad of his thumb touched her dry lips and her heartbeat thudded hard and painfully.

April’s lips parted automatically in fear and excitement. He swore softly, but it only added to her heightened awareness. When his thumb dipped into her mouth, she tasted its saltiness with the tip of her tongue.

He groaned and slid his hands into her hair, then leaned over her, his blond head bending toward hers. The softness of his mouth belied the urgency of his kiss. He crushed her to him.

April knees buckled. It wasn’t long before she felt the soft sheepskin lining of his jacket against her bare back, the hard tingle of jean clad legs as he bore her to the ground. Jesse’s mouth claimed hers with the possessiveness that made her head roar.

“April,” he murmured. “April…”

She thrilled to his voice. It was a heady sensation, knowing she affected him the way she did. She kissed him back as wildly as he kissed her. Twisting her body, she strained to be closer to him.

His tongue thrust between her teeth. Shock slid down her spine like lightning, touching the most feminine part of herself, leaving it throbbing. Her arms around his waist, she moaned weakly. His shirt had come off and she slid her hands experimentally over the taut muscles of his back, discovering the silky hollow at the base of his spine.

Somehow her dress became unwound. Dimly April was aware that she was completely bare beneath him except for the thin barrier of her panties. Her head reeled. She hadn’t counted on this!

“Jesse…” she murmured in a shaken voice.

His tongue was tracing the curve of her jaw. She could smell a spicy cologne mixed with his own powerful masculine scent. Involuntarily she inhaled deeply, and his lips moved perilously downward until they closed over the dusty peak of one dark nipple.

Sensations burst inside her like flames. April’s eyes flew open. She buried her hands in his thick, blond hair, intending to pull him away, but she was powerless.

“Jesse…” she gasped.

“If you want me to stop, I’ll stop,” he said in a strained voice.

She tried to form words. She couldn’t. He lifted his head, studying her face through eyes that smoldered. April moved her head slowly back and forth. She didn’t know what she was saying; it could have been no, or it could have been yes.

Jesse’s hand cupped her breast. He kneaded the soft flesh, his head bending once more to suckle it. Hot, wet, warmth filled April’s senses. She moved sinuously beneath him and wanted him so much that she throbbed with longing.

His skin was damp with sweat. With quick, lithe movements he unbuckled his belt and removed his jeans. He then lowered himself to her, resting his smooth chest on her bare breasts. He regarded her in his silent, unnerving way, and April met his gaze. She slid one hand around his neck and brought his mouth back to hers.

Somehow she slipped into a world of pure sensation. One moment they were kissing, the next they were both naked, entwined in each other’s limbs, poised on the brink of an experience April wasn’t quite ready for.

“We’re okay, Princess?” Jesse asked softly. She heard his voice from a long way away. She tried to blot it out. She knew that if she thought too hard, she would realize the consequences of what they were about to do. She didn’t want to know.

“We’re okay?” he asked again.

She didn’t know what he wanted to hear. She didn’t care. “Yes,” she whispered, dragging his mouth to hers, her hands around the back of his neck, holding him tight.

She felt the hard, masculine part of him against her quivering skin, but wasn’t prepared for his thrust of possession. Sharp pain stabbed through her and she cried out, reality washing over her in a cold wave.

“Shh. I’m sorry,” he murmured. “You sure we’re okay? I’m—”

“Yes, please!” she whispered urgently. “Please—”

Then he began to move inside her, slowly, cautiously. April stiffened, prepared for another painful assault, but the pain never materialized. Instead she was swept away on a flood of wondrous sensation. Her pulse pounded. She could hear his labored breathing, and her own shaking breaths.

“Jesse…”

His hips ground against hers. April held him tightly, wanting to pull him closer, closer yet. She smelled his warm musky scent and a building, pounding wave of desire pushed against her. Unconsciously she strained upward, arching, reaching. Twisting, she heard his moan of torment just as ripples of pure pleasure overwhelmed her. She cried out in ecstasy as Jesse reached his own peak.

Through a haze of sensual feelings April drifted back to earth. She was damp with sweat and stunned by the moment. She heard his ragged breathing, felt the pounding of his pulse. Pressing her lips hard against the taut, brown column of his throat, she smiled. “I love you,” she whispered in wonder.

Jesse didn’t respond.

Chapter Five

J
esse stood in the foyer of the Hollis’s opulent home and kept his gaze trained on Peter Hollis’s face. April’s father couldn’t hide his surprise and worry. His dark brows arched skyward and he said in a subdued voice, “I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name the first time.”

“Jesse Cawthorne.”

April’s hand slid around the crook of his elbow. Protectively, Jesse thought darkly. “Jesse’s brother, Jordan, graduated with me last spring,” she told her father.

“Why don’t you both come with me to the back deck? Would you like something to drink, Jesse? Iced tea or a Coke?”

Hollis couldn’t have disapproved more if April had brought home a terrorist, Jesse decided. The man’s back was stone stiff, his expression caught somewhere between horror and shock.

“Iced tea, thank you.”

“I’ll get it,” April said brightly. She squeezed his arm. “Don’t worry,” she said into his ear a trifle breathlessly. “Everything’s fine.”

“Is it?”

She shook her head and held a finger to her lips, obviously unwilling to let him spoil her optimism. While April went for the drinks, Jesse stepped from the air-conditioned manor house into the sweltering August afternoon. Heat shimmered in the air. Nothing else moved.

“So you’re the mysterious boyfriend with the motorcycle,” Hollis said, smiling faintly. He settled into a chair at the glass-topped table. Jesse perched on the edge of the chaise lounge.

“That’s right.”

“I don’t like my daughter riding on a motorcycle, but she doesn’t seem to listen to me anymore.”

Jesse didn’t answer. Wary, he kept his eyes on April’s father. These last few weeks with April had escalated into something he hadn’t bargained on. He’d known getting involved with her meant disaster, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. She was an enigma; a beautiful, sexy temptress with an impish sense of humor and a warm, sensual nature. When he was with her they made love. When he was alone, he tormented himself with images of her long limbs and soft smiles. When he was at work he wondered what in the hell he should do.

The days had been idyllic. But he had a premonition of impending doom.

April appeared at that moment, balancing a tray of drinks. Her black hair was bound into a knot at the base of her neck. She wore jean shorts and a green tank top, and she shot him a quick smile, but it trembled nervously on her lips.

What I wouldn’t do for a beer
, Jesse thought as he accepted the glass.

“I’m sure April told you she’s leaving for college in a few weeks,” Peter Hollis said. “What are your plans?”

“Dad,” April protested. “Give him a break.”

“I don’t really know,” Jesse answered, holding his resentment in check.

“How old are you?” Hollis asked.

“Dad!” April whirled on him, eyes huge with anger and hurt.

“Twenty-five.”

“Isn’t it time you decided to do something with your life?”

Jesse got to his feet. Carefully he set down his iced tea on the table. “Yes, I suppose it is. Thanks for the tea. I can show myself out.” He walked off.

“Jesse!” April ran after him, her sandals slapping against the tile floor.

He didn’t wait for her to catch up. He strode in cold fury out the front door and down the steps to the gate. She caught him as he was switching on the ignition of his motorcycle.

“You can’t just leave. My mother hasn’t even met you yet!”

“You think her reaction’s going to be any different?”

April’s eyes simmered with blue-green fire. In that moment, with the sun beating down on her, her eyes narrowed and glaring furiously at him through long, sooty lashes, Jesse was consumed with tenderness for this spoiled Windsor Estates girl. He reached out and pulled her to him.