The Summer House (16 page)

“No. You were a perfect gentleman.”

“I really screwed up that night, didn’t I?”

“Yes. You were a perfect gentleman.”

“I wanted to kiss you. And this is sort of like a first date.”

And last, she thought. But it was probably for the best. Kyle only did no-strings-attached. The one time she’d done strings-attached it had resulted in romantic meltdown. She would be stupid to even think about
it again, especially with this man. Unfortunately, he was the only man she would ever want.

“I could kiss you now,” he suggested. “To make up for the last time.”

“Isn’t that sort of like closing the barn door after the cows got loose and partied all night in the pasture? Because we already—you know.”

“Yeah,” he said. “I definitely know.”

The words, combined with the smoldering look in his eyes and the gravel-and-whiskey sexy tone of his voice, made her throb in places she didn’t know she had.

His gaze skimmed over her face. “But if you’d rather I didn’t—”

Yes, she wanted him to kiss her. All day she’d brushed up against him, playfully touched his arm, but never felt she had the right to take his hand and hold it, have him put his arm around her and nestle her against his side. All the things a couple did. And no, she didn’t want him to kiss her. Kissing would lead them to places it would be a mistake to go.

In the end, she couldn’t deny herself one last time. “Kiss me,” she said.

Slowly he leaned down and captured her mouth with his own. The first wonderful, soft, tender touch drove everything from her mind—right, wrong. Beginning, end. Past, future. There was only now, this moment. She forgot about everything but feeling and remembering.

His lips moved over hers for what could have been hours or minutes. She wasn’t sure and she didn’t care. Because she was perfectly content with his mouth loving hers, the warmth of his body invading her own. Every moment spent with Kyle made her happy. Kiss
ing him was the icing on the cake. Making love would be even better icing.

Then he traced her bottom lip with his tongue and she opened to him. He dipped inside, taking what she offered without hesitation. With a thoroughness that thrilled her, he stroked and explored the recesses of her mouth. She’d begun to breathe faster and she heard his quick intake of air.

Suddenly he had one arm around her waist, pulling her next to his hard body. His hand tunneled into her hair at the nape of her neck, his palm curving against the back of her head to make the contact of their mouths more secure. She slid her hands up and over his chest, and looped her arms around his neck. Her breasts were pressed to his chest, soft to hard, female to male, and she reveled in the glorious differences between a man and a woman.

The words welled up inside her, clamoring to be heard, but she wouldn’t spoil this last time. She would do everything but say she loved him to show him the truth of what she felt.

She pulled her mouth from his and let her eyelids drift open so she could see his face. “My place or yours?”

He glanced at the open doorway beside them. “Yours,” he said quickly.

He took her hand and led her through the opening then shut them inside. Looking down at her, he grinned suddenly. And wickedly. “We could play Goldilocks and the three bears.”

“As in who’s been doing the wild thing in my bed?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m not sure I could ever look my parents in the
eye again. And before anything, we need to wash the sand off. I’m afraid I’ve got sand in places sand was never meant to be.”

“That gives me an idea.”

He took her upstairs and into the bathroom between the two bedrooms. There was a tub, separate shower and vanity with two sinks and a mirror above that took up one wall. The tile floor sported several throw rugs. Kyle reached into the shower and turned on the water.

“This will warm you right up,” he promised.

“I forgot all about being cold.”

“Good.” His lips curved upward in a pleased smile. “But just in case—”

He reached over and pulled her T-shirt from the waistband of her shorts, then slid it up and over her head. Next he unhooked the closure on her pants, tugged the zipper down and she wiggled them off her hips until she stepped out of them. She stood there in bra and panties, wishing she’d splurged on a matching set at the mall lingerie store.

When he reached behind her, she shook her head. “You have too many clothes on. Let’s keep this even.”

He yanked the hem of his shirt up and off. “Don’t have to ask me twice.”

The next thing she knew he’d removed shorts and briefs in one fluid movement and stood naked in front of her. She didn’t have to imagine that he wanted her; the evidence of his desire for her was right there. She took him in her hand and his eyes drifted closed as he sucked in a breath. He was a beautiful man, she thought, all taut muscles, flat stomach and long, powerful legs.

With her fingers she explored him, marveling at the soft and hard textures. If anatomy class in nursing school had been this hands-on she would have aced it. She moved up and down over him until he shuddered and curved his fingers around her wrist to stop her.

“Any more and I’ll embarrass myself,” he warned.

She met his gaze. “Are you ready to wash the sand off your feet?”

“I’ll follow you anywhere,” he said, his voice hoarse.

She let him go and turned for him to unhook her bra and slide her panties down her legs. When she opened the shower door, semitransparent with steam, clouds of white billowed into the room. She stepped in first with him behind her and the warm water slithered over her head, face and shoulders. Kyle moved in front of her, blocking the spray so it wouldn’t hit her in the face.

The stall was spacious, with a shelf for shampoo and other toiletries.

“My feet aren’t sandy anymore,” she said.

“Let’s take care of all those places sand isn’t supposed to be. It’s the least a gentleman can do.”

He reached for the bar of soap and rubbed it between his hands until he’d worked up a luxurious lather. Then he put his palms on her shoulders and worked his way down to her breasts, cupping her as his thumbs brushed her already taut nipples. Electricity shot through her body from the touch, sensitizing every cell, every square inch of skin, every nerve ending.

Before she recovered from the sensory shock, he slid his soapy hand over her slick abdomen and into
the triangle of curls between her legs. Slipping one finger inside her, he found the nub at the apex of her femininity and lavished his attention on the single spot.

She gripped his broad shoulders, savoring the sleek muscles beneath her fingers, while she concentrated on standing. As the rhythm of his hand picked up speed so did her breathing. Tension grew within her and she held her breath expectantly. Her chest felt tight, and she struggled to draw in air. The skin on her body tightened until the center of her being shattered. Shock waves consumed her and she braced her forehead against his chest. Kyle folded her in his arms and absorbed her shudders until finally she was still.

She let out a long breath and lifted her head, meeting his heated gaze. “Unbelievable. Amazing. Outstanding,” she whispered.

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Water from the showerhead continued to cascade down on them and his dark hair, plastered against his forehead, looked black. She could feel his tension, the way his arms shook as he held her. Her own desire flared to life again. She’d never experienced this intense need before, the yearning to pleasure him.

Slipping her arms around his neck, she pressed her bare breasts against his chest and heard him suck in a breath. He cupped her bottom and pressed her to his hardness.

“I want you,” he breathed into her wet hair.

“You’ve got me.”

She clung to him, and he curved his hands around her thighs and raised her, settling her on his hardness. Slowly she took him into her, finally feeling complete. She couldn’t imagine anything more wonderful
than feeling the man she loved inside her, of being one body—if not one heart.

The muscles in his shoulders and arms bunched as he lifted her again and again, creating the friction to bring him release. Her own yearning intensified. Her breathing grew harsh, just like his. Her heart hammered, just like his. Then her consciousness exploded into golden light as beams of pleasure rippled through her. A moment later, he stilled her and his body tensed as he wrapped his arms around her and groaned out his satisfaction.

He held on to her as her legs slid down and her feet touched solid ground. With one arm still around her, he reached around with the other and shut the water off. Then he opened the door and grabbed a towel from the bar nearby, wrapping her in it before taking the other and securing it around his waist.

After they stepped out of the stall, he cupped her face in his hands, tipping it up until their gazes met. “Cassie, I have to tell you something—”

There was a noise downstairs. “Hey? Anybody here?”

“Ohmigod. That sounds like my brother,” she said. She reached over and shut the door leading to the hall. “Quick. We have to get dressed.”

“That would help,” he said grimly. “But when the you-know-what hits the fan, I’m going to need more than clothes.”

T
hey both had their shorts on and Cassie was just pulling a shirt over her head when Dan knocked.

“Cassie? You in there?”

“Just a second,” she said. Then she whispered, “What are we going to do?”

Kyle knew they had to come out sometime and it was going to get ugly. Dan would have to be an idiot not to realize that his best friend had just made love with his sister in the shower. This was the worst possible way for him to find out about them. So much for breaking the news gently.

“Sis, what are you doing in there? Mom said the painting’s not finished. She said you could use help—”

Cassie opened the door. “Hey, big brother.”

Dan’s gaze skimmed over Cassie, Kyle, their wet hair and her bra still on the floor. In a frenzy to dress,
she’d left it there. Her T-shirt clung to her wet skin, leaving very little to the imagination. Kyle didn’t have to imagine; he’d just seen every inch of her beautiful, creamy skin moments ago. It was a sight he would always remember.

There wasn’t a snowball’s chance in hell he would ever see it again. This was a breach of friendship her brother would never forgive.

“Well, this is awkward,” Cassie said, standing between him and her brother.

Dan was about his own height but more powerfully built. In his football days, he’d been a defensive lineman to Kyle’s quarterback position. His short, light-brown hair was windblown. He must have had the top down on his sports car during the drive up. The jeans and black T-shirt he wore said he hadn’t come straight from the office. The icy look in his blue eyes said Kyle was going straight to hell. Yeah, it was going to take more than putting on clothes to smooth this over.

“Give us a minute, Dan,” Cassie said, running her fingers through her still-wet hair. “You’re going to love this story.”

“Yeah?” Dan never looked away from Kyle. “When pigs fly. We need to talk,
buddy.
” Then he was gone and his footsteps echoed as he stomped down the stairs.

Cassie stared up at him, her blue eyes huge. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look like that.”

“I did. Once.”

“When the dog was put to sleep?”

Kyle shook his head. “When Stacey Jamison stood him up and he found out she’d eloped.”

“Uh-oh. I remember. He wasn’t fit to be around
for a long time.” She stared at the empty doorway for several moments. “But I don’t get it. Why is he so ticked off about this?”

“You’re his sister.”

“And your point would be?” she asked, tilting her head as she looked up at him. “We’re unattached, over twenty-one and consenting. What’s the problem?”

“You’re his
baby
sister.”

“Ah,” she said, nodding. “So it’s a guy thing.”

“A definite guy thing.”

“Well, I’m going to make it a chick thing,” she said, heading for the door.

“Wait.” Kyle put a hand on her slender shoulder to stop her. He bent down and retrieved her lacy bra from the floor. “You might want to put this on or it could be more of a chick thing than you bargained for.”

“Good point,” she said, taking it from him. Her cheeks were pink and he didn’t think it was from the shower.

“Give me a couple minutes with your brother, will you, Cass? I think I should talk to him alone.”

“Man to man.” She nodded, then put a hand on his arm. “Kyle? This guy thing, it’s not the sort of guy thing where he would hit you, is it?”

“It would be easier if he did.”

Then he grabbed his shirt off the floor and left her, pulling it over his head as he walked down the stairs. Dan was pacing back and forth in the living room, dodging paint cans, drop cloths and furniture.

When he saw Kyle, he stopped and glared as he braced his feet wide apart and rested his hands on his hips. “I thought you were my friend.”

“I thought you were mine.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

Kyle walked across the room and sat in one of the oak swivel stools in front of the bar, deliberately assuming a nonthreatening position. Cassie had told him friends listen to each other. Friendship was a two-way street. Kyle’s only mistake had been thinking he could hang out with her on that street and keep things status quo. Now that his feelings for her were clear, he knew strictly friendship wasn’t possible. But maybe Dan would hear him out and understand. Yeah, and maybe he’d flap his arms and fly.

Kyle ran his fingers through his hair. “I expect you to hear me out with an open mind.”

Dan let out a bark of laughter, but the angry look in his eyes said he wasn’t the slightest bit amused. He stood several feet away and looked as if he were having difficulty controlling his temper.

“If you found your sister Amy and me like I found you and Cassie, would you hear me out with an open mind? Or would you beat the crap out of me first and ask questions later?”

“I like to think I would trust you to do your damnedest not to hurt my sister.”

“You never specifically told me to stay away from her.”

“That was a long time ago, Dan. I’m not that immature jerk anymore.”

“Now you’re just a jerk.” He let out a long breath and rubbed the back of his neck. “For God’s sake, Kyle, Cassie got dumped on not that long ago. How could you stoop so low? Taking advantage of her vulnerability.”

“That’s not the way it happened. If you’ll let me explain—”

“What? Is there a reasonable explanation for stabbing your best friend in the back?”

“I didn’t do anything to you. This is between your sister and me. Our choice.”

“Not while I’m around.” He took a step closer, eyes blazing. “I know how you operate with women. Cassie has always had a crush on you. Everyone knows it. You’re here. She’s here on the rebound. You make your move—you’re the slime of the earth, Stratton.”

“Yeah?” Kyle went from irritation to anger in the blink of an eye. “Slime? What is it they say about birds of a feather? Or the pot calling the kettle black? Who do I give a heads-up to about you,
buddy?
Whose brother do I have to warn to watch his sister with you?”

“If all else fails, cloud the issue. Fall back on the tricks of the lawyer trade.”

“There’s no issue to cloud. If you’d just shut up and listen to me.”

Dan crossed his arms over his chest. “Okay. I’m listening.”

“Cassie’s special. I would never deliberately hurt her. But ever since that double date, when you talked me into going out with her—”

“I saw the way you looked at her. As if she was the cherry on the sundae. I could kick myself for ever setting you up with my sister, thinking I could trust you.”

“Why didn’t you tell me Cassie had broken her engagement and was moving back from Phoenix?”
A flicker of guilt crossed Dan’s face and Kyle knew. “You never trusted me, did you?”

“Obviously with good reason. I told you then and I’ll say it again now—you’re not the kind of guy I want for Cassie. You’re just like your old man. You’ll leave her and break her heart.”

“What?”

Kyle hadn’t noticed Cassie come down the stairs. From the surprised look on Dan’s face, he hadn’t seen her, either.

“Cassie, I—”

She walked over to her brother. “You told Kyle to stay away from me?”

“Look, Cass, you have to understand. You don’t know how guys think.”

“Thank goodness. Because from where I’m standing, you think like an idiot. How could you do that to me? To your best friend? Do you have any idea what a mess you’ve caused?”

“Mess? Me?” he asked. “He slept with you. I was trying to prevent you being hurt. How is this my fault?”

“I’m not talking about now, you—you—” She glared at him, then huffed out a breath. “See what you’ve done? I’m so darn mad I can’t think of a name bad enough to call you.”

Kyle knew how deeply Dan loved Cassie, but Kyle had been on the receiving end of the look she was giving him now and it was going to take a lot more than humor to untie the knot in her temper.

She put her hands on her hips. “I’d like to beat some sense into you. But I’m a nurse sworn to help patients get better. It wouldn’t look good if I
drummed up business. So I’m going to leave until I can look at you without wanting to clobber you.”

She turned on her heel and walked out, slamming the door behind her.

Kyle slid off his bar stool and started to go after her, but Dan grabbed his arm.

“We’re not finished.”

Kyle yanked his arm away and looked the other man in the eye. “We were finished a long time ago. Friends don’t judge. They listen, try to help, try to understand. They trust each other. I thought you were my best friend, the one who was always there and never let me down.” He laughed and the sound was bitter. “Boy, was I wrong. You stopped being my friend when you didn’t trust me enough to do the right thing. Bottom line—friends don’t give friends ultimatums.”

A flicker of what might have been regret crossed Dan’s face. “What are your intentions toward my sister?”

“That’s none of your damn business.” Kyle opened the door. “I’m going to find her and make sure she’s okay. Then I plan to talk to her. What I’ve got to say is between Cassie and me. If she wants you to know, she’ll tell you.”

He slammed the inside door then the outside one and jogged down the duplex steps. He remembered telling Cassie he’d lost a lot in his life. He’d also argued a lot of cases in court, and mostly he’d won. But a future without Cassie was staring him in the face. This was the most important argument he’d ever had to make. And no one, not even her brother, was going to keep him from telling her how he felt. If he
had to add her to the list of what he’d lost, so be it.

But this time if he went down, he’d do it fighting.

Cassie sat on Kyle’s couch and fretted. It seemed she’d been waiting for hours. She hopped up and started to pace. What if he didn’t come back? What if Dan had ruined everything? What if—before she could borrow more trouble, the door opened and Kyle walked in.

She rushed to meet him. “Where the heck have you been?”

He put his hands on her arms. “Me? Where were you? I looked everywhere.”

“Not quite. I’ve been here almost the whole time. I figured, after Dan got finished beating you up, you might need a nurse.” She inspected him then met his gaze, hoping for a sign he’d been searching for her out of something more than friendship. “You don’t look any the worse for wear. So either you took him out with one blow or used words to settle your differences.”

“Don’t ever do that to me again.” He tugged her against him.

“What did I do?”

“You disappeared. I was worried,” he said, tightening his arms around her.

She took courage from his pounding heart and tender touch. This might be her last chance to tell Kyle how she felt. If he didn’t share her feelings, she would find a way to live with it. But by God she wouldn’t have to live with the regret of “if only.”

“I have a confession to make.” She pulled back enough to see his face. “I wanted to walk my anger and frustration off on the beach. But I didn’t. I waited
here because I was afraid you’d leave before I could talk to you.”

His body tensed just before he dropped his arms and stepped away from her. “Obviously you agree with your brother. You think I’m a chip off the old block, the-fruit-doesn’t-fall-far-from-the-tree kind of guy.”

“What the heck does that mean?”

“You thought I’d walk out on you.” There was a look of such stark hopelessness on his face her heart nearly cracked in two.

This was no time to go soft. She had things to say. “Don’t put words in my mouth, Kyle. I don’t—”

“Dan’s right about one thing.” He walked away from her into the kitchen, putting the bar between them. “I’m not good enough for you.”

“My brother doesn’t think anyone is good enough. It’s one of the things I love most about him. Although while I was waiting here for you, he came over and we had a talk about the fine line between concern and interference.”

Kyle ran his fingers through his hair. “If he wasn’t concerned, he wouldn’t have interfered. He was right to be worried about me.”

“Now you listen to me,” she said. She stood on the other side of the bar and pointed at him. “You’re a good, kind man. A shallow person wouldn’t have taken a step back to evaluate his life. A selfish man wouldn’t volunteer legal advice to women who can’t pay. A less admirable guy wouldn’t have backed away from something or someone he wanted just because his friend asked.”

She was hoping he’d wanted her. He folded his arms over his chest. So much for open body language.

“What did you mean before when you said Dan had gotten us in a mess?” he asked.

Here goes, she thought. If he hadn’t been attracted to her on their one and only date, if he didn’t want her now, she was going to look like the world’s biggest fool. So be it. She might as well go for broke.

“What mess? If my brother had kept his big mouth shut and let nature take its course after he fixed us up, we wouldn’t have wasted so many years. In Phoenix, I wouldn’t have settled for a man who probably sensed I was settling and cheated on me with my friend.
That
mess.”

“I had a lot of time to think while I was walking from one end of Carpinteria to the other looking for you.”

Her heart swelled with hope. Would he have done that if he didn’t care just a little?

“Yes?” she asked, nudging him to go on. “What did you think about?”

“I think when Dan warned me away from you he did me a favor.”

“Why?” She could barely get the word out past the lump in her throat. So much for hope. She felt as if he’d stuck a pin in her heart, deflating it like a party balloon.

“I was in a bad place back then. Just a jerk who only wanted one thing. I was confused and sex was easy. But relationships scared the hell out of me. I didn’t want to do it wrong over and over like my folks, so I wouldn’t do it at all. I was too young and stupid to appreciate you. Eventually I’d have messed up and ruined any chance we might have had. That’s assuming I have any chance with you now.”

Her gaze snapped up to his. Suddenly hope was
inflating her heart, which began to pound so hard it hurt. “Do you want a chance?” Before he could answer, she asked, “You don’t have to be like your folks. Patterns can be broken. I don’t believe this is a DNA thing. If two people love each other and commit to staying together, they make it work. Come hell or high water, they’ll do whatever it takes.”