A Man to Believe In (12 page)

She’d been so wrapped up in the erotic feelings she was experiencing, she hadn’t given a thought to the possibility of getting pregnant. Jake, on the other hand, had managed to control himself enough to stop when he realized he couldn’t protect her. Now she had one more reason to care for this man, one more reason to think of him as special.

Cori looked over at him. She had to smile. He looked absolutely miserable. Tenderness flooded through her.

“I think I can solve our problem,” she offered quietly, and rose to her feet, no longer self-conscious about being naked in front of him. “Don’t go away.”

She returned from the bathroom a minute later and dropped a small box on the floor, then sat down beside him.

Jake recognized the blue package immediately. He picked it up, noting the red and green ribbon and the Christmas gift tag on the front. “To Cori,” he read out loud, “just in case you decide to take my advice—you’ll be safe. Love, Marsha.” He raised a questioning
brow, wondering why in hell Marsha was buying condoms for Cori.

Shrugging her shoulders, she smiled. “Marsha thinks I should be having more … fun.” The way Cori emphasized the last word left no doubt as to her meaning.

Jake didn’t like anyone giving Cori that kind of advice. He tore off the ribbon and opened the lid, then ran his fingers over the packets, making a quick count from front to back. A strong feeling of satisfaction shot through him.

“An even dozen,” he said quietly, not bothering to hide his relief. “You haven’t been having much fun lately, have you?” She shook her head, and he watched a pink flush spread over her cheeks. He leaned forward and kissed her deeply. “Tonight, we’re going to see that you do.”

He lowered her to the rug and covered her mouth with his in a punishingly sweet kiss, wanting more than ever to bring her pleasure. Again he kissed her eyes, her cheeks, her shoulders, her breasts. His tongue licked and played over the taut skin on her stomach, then teased her red-gold triangle of curls before dipping lower.

Cori arched into him as his mouth moved over her. He pushed his hands against her thighs and she spread her legs for him in wild abandon, taking everything he was offering, accepting his gift without embarrassment. His finger took the place of his lips as he brought her closer to completion.

“That’s it, sweetheart,” he murmured, “let yourself go”

She heard his tender words of encouragement, and heat raced through her body to the center of her being. Suddenly, she shuddered uncontrollably. Her body clenched his finger as one spasm after another tore through her, leaving her weak. She felt him kiss his way up her body, and then his mouth covered hers. She wrapped her arms around him.

“I need you inside me,” she whispered into his mouth. “Now.” She reached out and patted her hand on the floor beside her until her fingers found the blue box. Her hands trembled as she tried in vain to open one of the foil packets.

Jake moved off her and took the shiny envelope, tearing it open. “You can do it next time,” he promised with a low sexy chuckle, “when you aren’t in such a hurry.”

A moment later he eased into her.

With incredible effort he held his body perfectly still, giving her body time to adjust to him. “It’s been a while for you. Are you okay?”

Her answering smile sent shivers down his spine. She clenched around his hard flesh, welcoming him. The sweet contentment he felt sheathed inside her rocked him to his soul. He whispered her name over and over and felt her move against him in a slow, steady rhythm. Her fingers dug into the small of his back as she pulled him closer.

“Slow down, sweetheart. I don’t have much control left.”

She squeezed her eyes shut. “I can’t. It feels too good. Too good.”

“Oh, Lord, here we go.” Unable to hold off the
inevitable any longer, he grasped her hips and lifted her up, plunging into her again and again. “Open your eyes, Cori. Look at me.”

He gazed down at eyes filled with passion. Her lips parted, she cried out his name. Her back arched, and she trembled beneath him as she fell over the edge a second time. Her body closed over him repeatedly.

He couldn’t hold back any longer. Finally, he let himself go, calling her name over and over, whispering words of love.

Cori finished pulling on her aqua velour warm-up suit, then sat cross-legged on one corner at the foot of the bed. Her elbow on one knee, she rested her chin in her hand and watched Jake as he slept. She knew it wasn’t polite to stare, but went ahead and did it anyway. Breaking one minor rule of etiquette was the least of her worries.

After weeks of trying to resist her attraction to Jake, she’d finally given in to it, finally broken her long-standing rule about not getting involved with a man on anything but a purely social level. Finally convinced herself she could have it all, that she could care for a man, have an intimate relationship with him, and still maintain the physical and emotional independence she’d worked so hard to acquire.

Last night she’d been so sure of her decision, but
looking at it in the cold light of day, she wasn’t so sure anymore. Being with Jake—making love with him—
had
felt like the right thing to do, the natural thing to do. She’d felt no hesitation when he’d joined his body with hers. In fact, she’d felt suddenly and completely whole for the first time in a very long time.

Which was why she was so plagued with doubts this morning.

As she looked at him, Jake rolled over onto his stomach. The covers slipped down, giving her an unobstructed view of his shoulders and back. His waist and hips, narrow in comparison, were still hidden from her, but she knew what she would find if she reached out and drew off the blue floral sheet—more muscles than she’d ever had intimate contact with in her life.

Her gaze wandered farther down to where his feet dangled off the end of the bed. She smiled. He may have wanted to be in her bed, but he certainly didn’t fit in it, she concluded. He might regret having spent the night with her when he awakened stiff and sore from sleeping on a sofa bed designed to accommodate a body only half the size of his.

Not that they’d done a heck of a lot of sleeping. She recalled the many times she’d dozed off, exhausted and content, only to be coaxed back to consciousness by warm fingers tracing lazy patterns across her back, by persuasive lips leaving moist kisses on the backs of her knees, her hips, at the base of her spine.

Each time they’d made love they’d shared secret
thoughts and desires, discovered new, exciting ways to please each other, experienced a greater sense of fulfillment than the time before. Each time, she fell a little bit more in love.

In love?
Automatically rejecting the notion that she had broken her most important rule, she slid her feet into pale pink moccasins and stood up. She retrieved her purse from the kitchen counter, then quietly let herself out the back door. If she hurried, she’d be able to run down to the bakery for fresh pecan rolls and be back before Jake woke up. And maybe the crisp morning air would clear her head and allow her to think more rationally.

She climbed into her car, secured the seat belt across her lap, and turned the key in the ignition. A click-click-click sound greeted her.

“Wonderful. Another dead battery.”

With a sigh she went back into the house to call for a tow truck. At least she didn’t have to spend time looking up the number. She had it memorized.

Through his sleep-fogged brain Jake couldn’t place the origin of the low, rumbling sound. It seemed to be coming from somewhere inside his head. He pictured a motor boat, a distant dot of speed splitting the glassy surface of a lake moments after sunrise. The noise intensified, and he decided it wasn’t coming from a dream. It was too real—and practically on top of him.

Reluctantly, he cracked one eye open, only to see a big ball of orange fur. He wondered why Cori had left
a pair of fuzzy slippers on the pillow just inches from his face.

The footwear stood up and turned around, solving the mystery.

Her big orange cat yawned.

“Hello, Max,” Jake said with a yawn of his own. He gave the friendly feline a pat on the head, then allowed himself a leisurely stretch. Every muscle in his body protested his action.

Sometime during the middle of the night he and Cori had pulled out the sofa bed and climbed in, arms and legs tangling together, sheets and blankets hastily pulled up against the cool night air, then tossed aside minutes later when the friction of bare skin against bare skin created more than enough heat to keep them warm. If he hadn’t been so distracted at the time, he might have noticed that the foam mattress beneath them had long ago degenerated to mush and insisted they stay put on the floor, hard as it was. The way the end of the bed threatened to cut off his circulation at his ankles clinched it—next time they’d sleep in his bed.

Jake drew his lips into a smile. Cori sleeping in his bed. He liked the sound of that. Turning to his side and intending to kiss her awake with the idea, he discovered he was alone. He sat up, leaned back against the bed pillows, and glanced around.

A stream of sunlight sliced across the flowery sheet covering him, telling him he’d slept far later than usual, even for a Sunday. Not in the least bit surprising, given the fact that he’d dropped off to
sleep, exhausted and depleted, shortly before sunrise.

The popcorn bowl and the empty wine bottle and glasses were no longer on the floor near the fireplace. His suitcoat was draped over the back of the rocking chair, his pants and shirt neatly folded and stacked on the seat, with his cuff links and watch nestled in the center of the pile. His shoes, toes pointed out, socks tucked into the heels, sat on the floor between the rockers. Cori had been up and about for a while, he concluded.

Linking his hands behind his head, he imagined her—in that short, silky thing he’d seen hanging on the back of the bathroom door—tiptoeing around the room tidying up, trying not to wake him, gathering his belongings together in one spot so he could find them without having to hunt around when he finally dragged himself out of bed.

It was a soothing picture, a surprisingly intimate picture, one he could grow accustomed to without any effort. Hell, he was already used to it.

Two days earlier, when he’d decided he would do whatever it took to make Cori a part of his life, he hadn’t stopped to consider the questions that logically followed on the heels of such a decision. Questions like exactly
what part
did he want her to play in his life? And for how long? This morning he knew the answers.

He wanted her as his wife.

Forever.

Jake blinked. He hadn’t been actively searching for a lifelong partner, but he didn’t doubt he’d found
her. For the first time, he’d met a woman he couldn’t imagine living without. And he didn’t intend to. Tossing the covers to the side, he swung his legs to the edge of the bed and planted his feet on the floor.

Voices, coming from outside, drew his attention. He cocked his head to one side and listened, catching the sound of Cori’s sexy, throaty chuckle. A second later it was joined by unmistakably masculine laughter.

Jake shot up and reached the rocker in two strides. Not bothering with his underwear, he snatched up his trousers and drew them on before going to the door. He squinted one eye shut and peered out the peephole while fastening his pants.

The rear-engine compartment of Cori’s Volkswagen was propped open and she was deep in conversation with a man. He could think of only one word to describe the guy: clean.

His white shirt, sporting a collar Jake would bet had been done with heavy starch, was tucked into a pair of work pants that had a knife-edge crease an army sergeant would praise. His shoes were equally impressive—shiny as a new penny. And the physique. The guy looked more like the lead dancer at Chippendale’s than a licensed tow-truck operator, as the sign on the truck parked a scant inch away from the rear bumper of Jake’s Porsche boasted.

Jake opened the door, intending to find out what was going on.

“Chill out, babe,” the guy said. “Bobby will make things primo in no time.”

Surfer talk, Jake noted, thinking it matched the
sun-bleached hair poking from beneath the guy’s snow-white cap. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Jake registered the fact that Cori must have called him to get her car started, but he was more interested in the syrupy, all-too-familiar tone of voice he was using with her. His fingers gripping the doorknob, Jake watched as the guy reached up and draped his arm around her shoulder.

Letting the door slam behind him, Jake decided he’d seen enough and marched barefoot across the cold pavement to where they stood.

“Jake Tanner, the lady’s boyfriend,” he said without waiting for Cori to introduce him, and stuck out his hand. As planned, the guy was forced to let go of Cori and shake his hand.

“Bobby Armstrong, Armstrong Emergency Towing. We go anywhere, anytime. And we don’t strong-arm you into paying a fortune for good service.” He winked, appearing to enjoy his little joke. “Know what I mean?”

Jake bit back a rude remark about where Bobby could go anytime. “Sure thing, Bobby.”

Bobby whipped his cap from his head and moved closer to the Volkswagen—and farther away from Cori, Jake noted with a small measure of satisfaction. “Alternator’s a wipe-out. I’ll have to tow her to the shop.”

Jake reached into his back pocket and pulled out his wallet. “I’ll take care of the lady’s car,” he told the mechanic. “Sorry you came out here for nothing.”

“Jake”—Cori placed her hand on Jake’s forearm to try to get his attention—“I called Bobby to—”

“Just go back into the house, Cori. I’ll handle this.”

“But—”

He cut off the rest of her sentence with a quick kiss, then turned her around and patted her on the behind before nudging her to the side. “This will take only a minute, sweetheart,” he said, and turned back to face Bobby.

Her mouth hanging open, she spun around in time to see Jake hand Bobby some money—for his trouble, she heard him say—then apply a firm pressure on Bobby’s back and guide him toward his truck.