Space in His Heart (10 page)

His smile didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Guess
it depends on whose team you’re on.”

“Does your agency represent actors?” Caryn
interjected.

Appreciating the distraction, Jessica nodded
enthusiastically. “Oh, sure. We have a division in L.A. that
handles quite a few big names. Are you an actress?”

“I’d like to be. Right now I’m a hair
stylist, but I go on a lot of auditions. I worked for Disney for
several years.”

Jessica brightened. “Disney used to be a big
client of our firm. What department were you in?”

Caryn beamed. “I played Cinderella and Snow
White.”

Cinderella and Snow White.
Dear God,
she was a living, breathing fairy-tale princess. “What a—a
wonderful experience that must have been.”

Caryn laughed and let her head touch Deke’s
shoulder in a comfortable, intimate gesture. “I think he’s heard
about it a little too often.”

“Not at all. It must be every little girl’s
dream come true.” No condescension. No mocking
her
determination or enthusiasm, Jessica noticed.

Maybe he loved this blond beauty. The thought
formed a little black hole in the pit of her stomach. Not because
she cared, but because he needed to be seen with movie stars and
celebrities, not princess hair stylists.

For the rest of the evening, she avoided Deke
and his ravishing date and enjoyed dinner with a group from the
Public Affairs department. Afterward, she leaned against a wall in
the living room, half watching the college football game and also
listening to the conversations around her. Two women seated on the
sofa whispered heatedly.

“Well, it doesn’t seem to matter what they do
this time,” a woman Jessica recognized from administration
whispered. “Price won’t even talk about a delay in this
launch.”

“Probably has something to do with the
funding,” the other offered.

“I don’t know. Pat D seems to think it’s more
than that.” Jessica knew that Pat D referred to Pat DiMensini,
Colonel Price’s secretary. “But Safety and Logistics isn’t coughing
up the inspection logs with their usual speed.” As in most
companies, the assistants were the best informed.

One of the women glanced in Jessica’s
direction, smiling awkwardly. Without a word, Jessica decided to
find the powder room and slipped down a hallway off the dining
room.

Closing the bathroom door behind her, an
exhausted sigh escaped. Running a hand through her hair, she
wondered again about the reliability of the information she had
given to
Newsweek
. Information she had offered with
certainty.

She rubbed her temples to ward away the first
beat of a headache and decided to thank Stuart and Wendy and say
good night. Tugging the door open, her breath caught in her throat
as Deke blocked her way.

“Oh! Excuse me.”

“I want to talk to you.” He put a hand on the
wall, effectively blocking her. Swallowing hard, she stopped and
stared up at him.

“What is it?”

“Don’t you ever pull a stunt like you did
today again.” His voice was low and menacing. “Is that clear?”

The doorknob of the bathroom pressed into her
back. She considered feigning ignorance but knew it would never
work.

“Yes.” The intensity of his stare caused a
shudder of intimidation to threaten her stability. She refused to
give into it. “That’s clear, Commander.”

“We will agree before I do any interviews and
you will not spring surprises on me in public.” He paused and she
felt his gaze travel over her face and settle on her mouth. “Or
private, for that matter.”

Every nerve in her body fought the war of
needing to escape and wanting to move closer. The scent of him, the
sheer masculinity of him, drew her like a magnet.

“No more surprises. I promise.” She heard the
strain in her voice. “Only if you promise that you’ll unload your
resentment and help with this assignment.”

“I don’t have a choice.” He moved an inch
closer to her. “I just hope you can handle complications as they
arise.”

Handle complications? She couldn’t
breathe.

“Can you?”

Heat shot through her at the demand in his
voice. “It depends on what kind of complications you mean.”

He refused to move, refused to give her a
reprieve from his proximity. “The kind you cause. Public relations
complications.”

“They’re my specialty,” she said, gently
tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, aware that his hand was
centimeters from her face. “I’m not worried about complications,
Commander. Just follow my suggestions and you’ll be very good at
PR.”

An unexpected and devilish grin slowly broke
his serious expression. His knuckles lightly grazed her cheek. “I’m
good at everything, sweetheart.”

The hallway closed in on her, tight and
airless.

She managed to find her voice. “Regardless of
the complications, I plan to be successful.” She tilted her head
up. One inch, one tiny inch, and their lips would touch.

His navy blue eyes flashed like the
electrical current that zapped between them. “But you need me to
succeed.”

She took a single breath. “As soon as I
succeed, I’ll be out of your life. Think of it that way.”

“Excellent motivation,” he whispered and
dropped his arm, freeing her. “Good night.” He kept his gaze steady
on her face, then stepped back. “Jessica.”

Her senses seared at the sound of her first
name on his lips and the touch of their shoulders as she
passed.

“Good night. Deke.”

* * *

As Caryn turned the key of her apartment
door, a sinking sensation rolled through Deke and he willed it
away. Her inviting look matched the warm hand she’d kept on his
thigh all the way home from the party. The door opened and he saw
her cat jump off the sofa, making room for them to start a long
session of grappling before moving into the bedroom.

“It’s pretty late, Caryn,” he said, pausing
at the door. “I don’t want to wake your roommates.”

She turned, disappointment making her eyes
even wider. “It’s okay, Deke. They’re asleep.”

She reached one hand around his neck then
pulled him closer to her mouth. Instinctively, he bent and kissed
her, liking the sweet taste and responding immediately to the
pressure of her feminine curves against him.

He let the excitement grow for a minute
longer, then squeezed his eyes shut. Desire stirred and the release
would have been welcome.

“Caryn, you are sexy as hell and I know
you’re not teasing me,” he whispered into the blond silk over her
ear.

She cooed and moved her hips into a painful
sweet spot. Her intentions were clear and it wouldn’t be the first
time he’d taken what she’d offered. But the looks he got all night
from her were clear and she’d gone past just giving her body. Caryn
really wanted to give him her heart.

And he just wasn’t the one to take it.

He eased out of her tangled arms and hair and
planted a platonic kiss on her forehead. “I’ve got to hit the OPF
early again tomorrow,” he whispered. “I better not get too attached
to how good this feels.”

To her credit, she didn’t push. Just ran a
finger over his lips and requested that he call her.

Ten minutes later, his Corvette slowed as it
passed the blue and white house on Sea Park Road where Jessica
lived. It was pitch-black inside. He studied the darkened windows
and thought of how she’d sauntered out to the patio in those white
pants and clingy yellow top. Long legs and inviting curves. Her
hair shining in the party light and her eyes glistening when she
caught his gaze. Until he cornered her in the hall.

He couldn’t stay away from her. As much as he
had wanted to ditch the party, he’d gone anyway. As much as he had
wanted to avoid her all night, he’d sought her out. Good God, she
was trouble.

His body betrayed him with a sudden response
at the memory of how close they had stood. How easy it would have
been to follow the powerful instincts that rocked him during their
little debate in the hallway.

He threw the ’vette into second gear before
his musings got too graphic. He shifted in his seat and let the
house disappear into the rearview mirror. With a wry smile, he
realized that just the fantasy of kissing her had more impact on
him than Caryn’s very real and impassioned demands.

Chapter Eight

Jessica made her early morning appointment at
the North airstrip of Cape Canaveral with a few minutes to spare.
She parked next to a beat-up Jeep loaded down with lighting
equipment and various cameras, knowing it must belong to the
photographer she’d hired from Orlando, Ron Cooper. Stuart had
recommended a NASA photographer, but she wanted somebody who worked
with celebrities. These weren’t going to be traditional NASA
headshots. She wanted an artist who could find that perfect angle
that made his subject look a cut above the common man.

Ron looked up to the sky after they’d
introduced themselves. “We better do this fast. The light’s
perfect.”

“Have you met the Commander?” Jessica asked,
glancing at the plane across the airstrip with one man already in
the back of the open cockpit and several others milling about or
working on the plane.

“Not the friendliest guy in the world, is
he?” Ron screwed up his face in mild distaste.

Jessica shrugged. “He’s not crazy about the
Top Gun role, but I’ll talk to him. Your job is to make him look
earth-shatteringly sexy. I’ll see you over there.”

She flipped her leather bag over her shoulder
and started toward the plane. Leaning back on its landing gear, the
T-38 looked like a slick white cat up on its hind legs, ready to
pounce.

Standing next to it in a dark blue NASA
flight suit, Deke called to one of the crewmembers on the other
side of the tanker. “Hey, Jack, have you checked the
harnesses?”

As Jessica approached, he knelt on the ground
and pulled hard at a pin near the landing gear with a slight grunt.
He never looked at her.

“Let’s make this fast, okay?” He yanked at
the metal bars between the tires and the plane. “I don’t like to be
late.” He still hadn’t turned to her, but she knew when she was
being addressed.

“And good morning to you, Commander
Stockard.” She reached his side and he slowly stood to his full
height and looked down at her, the sapphire flight suit deepening
the color of his eyes. Jeez. How did he manage it at six in the
morning? The earth-shatteringly sexy part wasn’t going to be much
of a challenge for the photographer.

“You said I have thirty minutes,” she said
when he couldn’t even be bothered with a greeting. “I’m taking
it.”

He ran his hand through his thick hair and
squinted at her. “What exactly do you need me to do?”

“Just do what you’re doing. We’ll get some
candids. Then I’m going to have you pose.”

“Pose?” he barked the word. “I’m trying to
get a supersonic jet in the air without mishap. I don’t have time
to pose.”

Jeff Clark looked out from the rear cockpit
and gave a quick wave. “Hey, Jessica. Don’t let him scare you. He’s
a bear before a flight.”

“Oh, nerves at work?” she asked.

Deke glared at her. “No. Brains at work.” He
went back to the landing gear.

Perhaps a softer tack would work with him.
“How long will all these other people be here?”

“Everybody but the crew chief will
leave—including you and your cameraman—before we fire up the
engines and taxi out. Why?”

“Well, we can do the posed shots when they’re
gone, if you’d feel more comfortable. How does that sound?”

He yanked the bar again, forcefully. “It
sounds stupid, like everything about this stunt. I don’t care if
they’re here, just make it fast.” He looked over at a few guys
comparing notes on a clipboard. “Okay, yeah. We’ll wait until they
leave.”

While Ron set up his equipment, Jessica
imagined the stunning photos they’d get as she watched Deke climb
in and out of the plane, studying the gauges of the cockpit,
talking softly to Jeff, and delivering instructions in a calm voice
to the rest of the ground crew.

When Ron started snapping, Deke glanced up
from his inspections, but then ignored them as he completed his
routine. Finally, he stepped back and gazed up at the sky,
apparently judging the conditions.

She took a chance and interrupted his
reverie. “Can I ask you a question?”

He looked down her, still squinting.
“What?”

“Can you explain what you’re doing? I’d like
to be able to write accurate photo captions.”

He looked intently at her for a minute, then
indicated the back of the plane with a tilt of his head. “I’m going
to check the intakes and exhaust.” He walked around the aircraft
and gestured for her to follow, pointing at oversized metal rings
that resembled the inside of a vacuum cleaner to Jessica’s
untrained eye. Ron snapped away.

“Isn’t she a beauty?” An unexpected
tenderness crept into Deke’s tone. “This is one of my favorite
planes. I guess because it’s a trainer. You always love the one you
learn on.”
Click
.

He stepped forward under the wing and bent
down on one knee. “C’mere,” he said, holding out his hand.

When he gently guided her next to him, he
patted the side of the plane. “See the way the fuselage is
curved?”

The magic of the curve was lost on her, but
not the pure pleasure of being tucked under a plane holding his
hand. Her heart quickened as she searched for a response better
than, “Uh huh.” None came.

“This is one of the most elegant machines
ever built. This angle is my personal favorite.” He placed her hand
on the white metal, covering her fingers with his as he glided her
palm over the contour, as sensuously as a caress. “Feel that
slide?”