Last Night (24 page)

"
See what you've done to me.
"
He shoved he
r
hand down to his crotch. Beneath his jeans he
was
rigid and throbbing slightly, his maleness a promise and a threat.

His hand slipped between her thighs, touching her intimately. Her breath stalled in her throat and for a second she indulged herself, closing her eyes and letting his talented fingers gently caress he
r
wi
t
h expert precision.

"Look at me, darlin
'
,
"
he drawled, and she realized that he
'
d taken over.

She gripped his wrist and pulled his hand away
"
You
'
re in no condition to be giving orders."

"
You wanna take charge? Great. You're just my type.
"

"
Anything in a bra is your type.
"

"
Right…
Your Honor.
"

She ignored his teasing and reached for his belt buckle with trembling fingers. After fumbling with it for a second she managed to unhook it and yank down his zipper. The white fabric of his Joe Boxers and its familiar message,
"
Just Say Yo
"
stood out in the moonlight. She pressed her
lips to his bur
geoning erection, which was battling to be freed, and blew a hot current of breath through the fabric.
"
Yo.
"
She smiled to herself.
"
Yo.
"

Rob moaned, but she ignored him, slipping her hand under the waistband of his shorts and homing in on his shaft. Thick and hot and amazingly hard, it still felt unexpectedl
y soft. She squeezed tight, mov
ing her wrist up and down. Quickly glancing up at Rob, she saw that his face was contorted. He seemed to be in more pain than when the
mokes
hit him. She stopped, but didn
'
t let go. It simply felt too good to hold him.

"
For Christ
'
s sake, don
'
t stop now,
"
Rob said, the words coming from deep in his chest.

That was all she needed to hear. She moved her lips over him, still amazed at the silkiness of the
sur
face that belied the
pulsing strength within. With
her tongue she exp
lored every inch. Somehow she
peeled his clothes to his knees, driven by the insistent call of her own
body. The moist heat between
her thighs demanded release in a way that she
'
d never experienced before.

She held him in one hand, nuzzling the sensitive
s
pot between her thighs with the rounded head of
his erection. Slowly she eased over him, sheathing him a half inch at a time, opening herself to accept him.

Rob groaned loudly.
"
What is this? Cruel and unusual punishment?
"

"
You
'
re too big,
"
she said, teasing him.

"
No way.
"
His hands covered her hips, bringing her down on the iron heat of his sex.

He arched upward, thrusting deep inside her, then burrowed even farther. A shaft of exquisite pain shot right through her, and she paused for a moment to savor the bittersweet sensation. Instinctively she rocked slightly as she rode him, her head falling forward so she could watch him. Suddenly they were one, moving like dancers hearing a silent tango.

His eyes were squeezed shut and his teeth clamped down on his lower lip—despite the cut— while his powerful chest pumped up and down. That she could do this to him amazed her. And filled her with an overwhelming sense of power.

Within seconds her body contracted in a convulsion of pleasure so profound that she arched backward as an uncontrollable shudder racked her body. She gasped for air and flung her head from side to side. Above, the glittering stars in the swath of black sky seemed to be winking at her.

Rob tightened his grip on her hips and she felt him release. She gently lowered herself downward, careful not to collapse on top of him and hurt him.

She eased him onto his side, not letting their bodies part yet.

His intense eyes, now dilated until the blue was a mere shimmer around the ebony pupils, gazed at her with awe.

"You were absolutely right,
"
she whispered. "I'm the one. The only woman for you."

21

T
he morning sunshine splashed through the windows, making the kitchen cheery. Usually this perked her up, but not today. Dana was so worried about Rob that nothing could make her feel better. After they'd made love she
'
d coaxed him into bed. They
'
d fallen asleep just as the first rays of sunshine backlit Koko Head. She
'
d awakened a short time later, but Rob was still in a deep sleep.

What if he had internal injuries? she asked herself. How selfishly she
'
d behaved, forcing herself on him. She should have channeled that energy into convincing him to see a doctor.
"
Great,
"
she muttered. She barely had enough Kona beans for half a pot of coffee. Well, she'd have just half a cup and , save the rest for Rob.

"
Mornin.
"

His unexpected appearance startled her, but not t as much as the way h
e looked. His lip was swollen
and a livid bruise covered his jaw.
"
How do you
feel?
"

He gingerly moved to the table and pulled out a chair.
"
Like I
'
ve been run over by a Mack truck. Twice.
"

"
Coffee will make you feel better.
"
Inane conversation, but she had no idea what else to say. She
'
d behaved so wantonly last night, so irresponsibly considering Rob
'
s physical condition, that she was racked by spasms of guilt.

What had gotten into her?

She handed him the mug of coffee and tried to ignore the fact that he was wearing only Joe Boxers, which enhanced his masculinity and reminded her of last night. He w
as sitting now and grinning, to
tally relaxed, looking for all the world as if he
'
d spent countless nights with her.

"
I
'
d better shower.
"
Rob sipped his coffee, then added,
"
I want to be ready for Big Daddy. You don
'
t happen to have a shirt around here that I could wear, do you? Mine
'
s ruined.
"

"
A friend left some clothes behind." She doubted if they would fit Rob, but it was worth a try. "Let
'
s take a look.
"

They went into the guest room and opened the closet. She found the things an old boyfriend had left. Rob grabbed a shirt and waved it in front of her.

"Jesus H. Christ, I ask you, is it possible to wear too wild a shirt in Hawaii? I didn
'
t think so. Well, I was wrong. This one needs a battery pack.
"

Dana didn
'
t comment on the backhanded attack,
secretly pleased at his ill-concealed jealousy. Of course, the shirt didn
'
t come close to fitting Rob.

"
Try
the T-shirt,
"
she said.

In the frigid depths of his eyes she recognized anger. What could she say? There had been other men in her life.
Had.
That was the important word. After last night she couldn
'
t imagine being with any other man.

Rob jerked the T-shirt out of her hand. The back was plastered with vibrant Day-Glo flowers and the front had hot-orange letters that read the
big
kahuna
.
Grimacing in pain, Rob shrugged into it. The T-shirt stretched taut across his powerful torso, conforming to the muscular contours of his chest.

"It's better than nothing,
"
Dana said.

"
I look like fifty pounds
of shit stuffed into a ten-
pound sack,
"
Rob said, arms belligerently crossed over his chest. "You and this guy are pretty cozy, huh?
"

He fired the question at her with an attempt at a teasing tone, but she was getting to know him. When Rob was threatened, he resorted to sarcasm and became annoyingly domineering. Not knowing how to defuse the situation, she shrugged.

"Get rid of him.
"

"I was planning to date both of you,
"
she tried to joke.

"No, you weren
'
t. Sleeping with one man is hard enough for you. Two would be impossible. Besides, last night we made a commitment.
"

"
Really?
"
There was a hint of arrogance to his
tone that sparked her temper.
"
Did I miss something?
"

"
I didn
'
t see you pulling out a condom before you jumped on my bones.
"

"
I don
'
t know what got into me. I've never—
"

He slipped his arm around her shoulders and gave her a gentle hug. "I
'
ll bet you practice safe sex like a religion, but last night you got carried away.
"

Boy, had she! Why had she been so stupid? This was the nineties. Safe sex
should be
a religion. "I won
'
t let it happen again.
"

"Yes, you will. I have no intention of using a condom. It
'
s like taking a shower with your raincoat on. I love the way you feel—hot and wet.
"
He grinned. "And real tight.
"

She squeezed her eyes shut, not believing they were talking about this. She'd never discussed sex with a man. She slowly opened her eyes and looked into his. "It
'
s not safe.
"

"
Don
'
t worry. I
'
ve been careful. I don
'
t intend to make love to anyone else but you, and I know you
'
re not going to bed with another man.
"
His look was so intense it sent a tremor through her. "We've made a commitment, haven
'
t we?
"

She nodded slowly, taken aback by his practical approach. Somehow she
'
d always associated com
mitments with roses and champagne, not frank discussions of safe sex in a brightly lit room. Perhaps this was better, a more direct, honest approach. Dealing with Rob Tagett would be a challenge. No
doubt about it. He wasn
'
t like any man that she knew.

I
'
m the one. The only one.

Somehow she
'
d known this even before she
'
d made love to him. Maybe she'd realized how she felt that afternoon on the beach. That's why she
'
d made love to him—and made a commitment.

He swung her into his arms and bent down to kiss her. He stopped as she brushed her finger across his swollen lip. They hugged, and she permitted herself to revel in the safety of being held, to savor the bone-deep warmth of his powerful body. And to realize she was no longer alone.

"
Dana, I really care for you. I
'
ve been waiting for a chance to be with
you since the night we met…
years ago. The more time we spend together, the more sure I am that you were worth the wait.
"

She honestly didn
'
t know what to say. She'd been hoping that he would tell her that he loved her, but maybe it was too soon. Could she say those words herself? No. Not yet. But she didn't doubt Rob cared about her. Last night he
'
d risked his life for her. Didn
'
t actions speak louder than words?

They stood in the bedroom for a few minutes, cuddling each other, but not talking. She wished that they could spare the time to really get to know each other without all the problems she had. Why couldn
'
t this have happened six months ago when her life had been simpler?

After a few minutes Rob said,
"
I
'
d better get in the shower.
"

"I
'
m going next door and tell Lillian that I'm back. I can see the street from her house. I'll run home if Big Daddy shows up.
"

Rob disappeared into the guest bath, and Dana checked her image in the hall mirror. She looked about the same, but she felt different. She
'
d suffered a severe psychological trauma and kept it hidden for so long that her suppressed emotions threatened to overwhelm her. Wrapping her arms around herself, she struggled to make sense of what had happened last night.

A crucial part of her, which she hadn
'
t quite known was lost, had been found. Making love to Rob, taking charge, h
ad given her a measure of self-
control. But it went beyond that. Her response to him revealed a part of her psyche that she
'
d never explored: her willingness to trust a man enough to truly care about him. Until now she
'
d been able to go only so far before pulling back.

Last night she
'
d vaulted over that hurdle. Now she had an all-consuming need to discover everything about Rob. Ever
y
thing. Oh, Lordy, she hadn
'
t, had she? She hadn
'
t fallen totally for Rob Tagett?

She tried to keep her mind on Lillian
'
s problems, not on Rob, as she walked up to her friend's home. Would the daughter help her mother stay in the home she loved? Dana wondered. She pressed the bell and a woman in her mid-forties opened the door, greeting Dana with a challenging glare.

"Hi. I
'
m Dana Hamilton.
"
She waved her hand
toward her house.
"
I liv
e next door. You must be Lillian
'
s daughter.
"

"Yeah, I
'
m Fran Martin.
"
She spoke with a three-
pack-a-day rasp.
"
So you're the hoity-toity judge who
'
s filled Ma
'
s head with crazy ideas about livin
'
alone.
"

Fran
'
s hostility was so unexpected that for a moment it left Dana speechless. Didn
'
t she care one iota about her mother? Maybe not. Fran never visited and rarely called. So why the sudden appearance?

"Ma's moving to the Twin Palms nursing home. They
'
ll take care of her.
"

"
Have you visited the facility?
"
Dana asked, keeping her tone light. Alienating this woman further wasn
'
t going to help Lillian.

"
Of course. It's very nice.
"

Dana doubted that Fran knew or cared about how the Twin Palms rated. Many facilities did nothing more than warehouse the elderly. Dana had never been inside the Twin Palms, but judging from the exterior—with paint so old the building appeared to be molting—it wasn
'
t the best facility in Honolulu.

"
Is Lillian home?
"
Dana asked, deciding to speak with her before confronting Fran.

"
She
'
s sleeping.
"

"At this hour? She
'
s usually out in the garden by now.
"

"Ma
'
s not feelin
'
so good.
"

"Have you called a doctor?
"

"Nah. It
'
s nuthin
'
.
"

"
Maybe I
'
d better take a look at her." Dana barged in before Fran could object. "Lillian,
"
she called.

"Dana?
"
The voice was weak. "That you?
"

She walked into the bedroom and saw the drapes were drawn against the brilliant sun. Lillian was in bed, her face almost as pale as the pillow.