A MATTER OF TRUST (16 page)

Maddy glanced at him sharply. “So she’s done this before… when you were there with other women, I mean?”

He reached across the seat and squeezed her hand. “I’ve never brought another woman to Malone’s, you’re the first. Somehow Angela found out I eat there a couple of times a week and started showing up. At first she tried to pass it off as coincidence but after a while she gave up the pretense. Sometimes she came with another man, no doubt hoping to make me jealous, but most times she came alone.”

“Did she ask to sit with you or did she just go ahead and join you knowing you’d be too much of a gentleman to tell her to go away?”

Chase snorted. “I was hardly a gentleman. The first few times it happened, I was as polite as I could be and told her I preferred to dine alone, but she doesn’t take rejection easily and sat down anyway. Travis knew the trouble I was having with her and sent one of his waitresses over to tell me my table was ready and I simply got up and left her sitting there. After that, the hostess ignored Angela’s insistence that I was expecting her and seated her at a different table. She caught the hint, but it was pretty creepy having her stare at me the entire time I was trying to eat. Even when my family was there, she’d come in and watch me.”

“So why didn’t you do anything about it?”

“What could I do? She wasn’t causing any trouble and I honestly thought she’d get over her obsession with me once she realized I wasn’t interested.”

“Maybe now that she knows we’re engaged she’ll stop hounding you.”

“Maybe,” he said, but there was very little conviction in his voice or his mind.

Chase pulled up to the house and waited for the garage door to open then eased the Lexus inside and killed the engine. He turned to her, his breath catching in this throat when she smiled back at him. How had he managed to acquire the love of this incredible woman? He felt unworthy and yet he’d fight for the right to keep it because without Maddy’s love there would be nothing but an empty, bleak existence to look forward to. Chase lifted his hand and gently stroked the side of her face.

“I’m sorry you got caught in the middle of this.”

“Don’t be, it’s not your fault.” Maddy turned her head, pressing her lips to his palm before offering him a bright smile. “Hey, I wanted a little adventure when I set out on my own and I found it. To tell the truth, it felt good to let loose for once. I’ve always been the shy, quiet one who never spoke back to her parents and did everything she was told. I was afraid to say what I was thinking because I was too concerned about what other people thought of me, but keeping everything bottled up starts to eat at you, you know? Anyway, when I saw Angela draped all over you and heard what she said, it was like a dam breaking inside of me and I guess I kind of lost it.”

“Kind of?”

Maddy’s heart melted at his teasing grin. “Okay, so I nearly went ballistic. The point is I’m not sorry it happened because I learned something about myself. I learned I’m not afraid to fight for what I want anymore.”

“And what is it you want, Maddy?”

“You, Chase. I want you.”

****

A low moan vibrated deep in his chest as he flipped the latch on her seat belt and pulled her into his arms. Nothing had ever felt so good or so right as Chase drew her closer, her body conforming so perfectly to his while the heady taste of her filled his mouth. Maddy’s soft, feminine scent surrounded him, aroused him as no other woman ever had before or ever would again. The need to bury himself inside her warmth was suddenly so overpowering it would have taken super human strength to resist it, and that was something Chase definitely didn’t have when it came to Maddy.

A month ago, he would have cut out his own tongue before he admitted any woman could bring him to his knees like this, but now it simply didn’t matter. She was his, she belonged to him, as surely as he belonged to her and if that was considered a weakness then it was a cross he was happy to bear.

“Let’s go inside,” he whispered, not altogether surprised to find his voice was nearly gone.

Maddy watched him fumble with his seat belt, a soft smile curving her lips. She felt decidedly wicked this evening, seeing how his hands shook and knowing how much he wanted her. She reached over and unlatched his belt then moved her hand between his thighs and curled her fingers around him intimately. She loved touching him, loved the way his big body trembled with desire and the way his eyes glazed over as if the pleasure was almost too much to endure. Maddy knew how he felt. Chase had taken her to that place and she wanted to go there again. Just the thought of cradling him between her legs while he drove into her made her moist.

Chase let out a groan of sheer agony as the bulge in his pants grew rock hard under Maddy’s gentle massaging, his discomfort bordering on pain as it strained against the zipper. She was breathing almost has heavily as he was, the rise and fall of her chest as erotic as the stroking of her hand. He wanted to reach up and touch the beaded tips of her breasts, to feel them harden beneath his palm and hear the soft mewling sound roll in the back of her throat as it always did when he fondled her. But he couldn’t. He didn’t dare touch her, not when he was so close to losing control.

“Maddy,” he gritted, “baby, we need to go inside.”

“No,” she rasped. “I want you. Here. Now.”

He swallowed hard, his throat constricting. “In the…car?”

She squeezed the rigid length of him. “On the hood.”

He groaned again, his eyelids closing for a moment before snapping back open when she drew away from him and opened the door. He made a grab for her, but she scurried out of the car with a seductive laugh and closed the door behind her. Air hissed from his lungs when Maddy positioned herself in front of the car then shimmied out of her panties, giving him a brief glimpse of the black lace garter that held up her hose before she dropped the hemline of her dress and crooked her finger at him. Chase nearly fell out of the car in his haste to get to her, his heart hammering against his rib cage so hard he could almost hear them cracking under the pressure.

Maddy laughed and twisted away from him when he made a lunge for her. “Come and get me,” she taunted, hiking her dress up as she backed towards the car.

Chase growled, reaching her just as the back of her legs hit the front fender. He gripped her around the waist and hoisted her onto the hood, ignoring her half-hearted protest when he pushed her onto her back and spread her legs. God, but she was a sight with her moist folds open to him like the petals of a dew kissed flower. He leaned down and flicked his tongue over her swollen nub then suckled it gently, delighting in the way her body instantly went rigid then convulsed uncontrollably for several minutes before going completely limp.

“Chase,” she croaked, “Chase, I need…I need…”

“I know, sweetheart,” he said softly, already reaching for the buckle on his belt.

Maddy held her breath as he guided himself to her opening. She should have felt indecent lying there spread eagled before him, but she couldn’t think of anything at the moment except how much she needed to have him inside of her. His first thrust was hard and deep, the force of it jarring her body back several inches. Chase gripped her hips and pulled her back into place then slammed himself into her again, ruthlessly impaling her with quick stabbing motions, each powerful thrust driving him deeper and deeper until her world shattered into a million pieces and sent her mind and body soaring into the heavens.

Maddy arched her back, the waves of pleasure so powerful it wracked her body with spasms so violent she wondered how Chase managed to keep her from tumbling off of the hood. When it was over she reached for him, sighing contentedly when he drew her up against the solidness of his chest. Maybe it was the sudden change of positions that made him climax, or maybe it was simply that he’d reached the point of no return. Whatever it was, he came in a heated rush, an animalistic growl tearing from his throat as his seed shot up inside of her. His head fell forward and he slumped against her for quite some time before he regained enough strength to move.

“I love you,” he whispered hoarsely, feathering kisses across her face. “With all my heart and soul, I love you.”

Maddy kept her eyes closed, her skin tingling everywhere his lips touched her. “Take me to bed,” she whispered back. “I want to fall asleep while I can still feel you inside of me.”

Chase captured her mouth for one last kiss then eased himself out of her and pulled up his pants. Maddy’s arms curled around his neck when he leaned down to lift her up and he couldn’t resist the urge to kiss her again before carrying her inside. She was half asleep before he even finished undressing her and she’d totally succumbed to the land of dreams by the time he slipped between the sheets and drew her into his arms.

The evening should have ended in disaster, what with Lydia’s grilling and then the appearance of Angela, instead it had ended with the most mind-blowing sex he’d ever had with the woman he loved more than life itself. Yes, he thought with a contented sigh, everything was going to work out beautifully.

Chapter 10

Chase woke the next morning, instantly aware that something was wrong. Maddy was curled up next him, the heat radiating off her body causing small beads of moisture to form on her skin. He smoothed back the damp curls from her forehead, a worried frown forming when her eyelids fluttered open for a few seconds before closing again.

His stomach knotted and for the first time in his life Chase felt an overwhelming sense of panic. It’s just a little fever, he tried to convince himself as he threw back the covers and scrambled to get dressed. He’d take her to the doctor, get a prescription for whatever bug was ravaging her body, and then he’d take care of her until she was well again.

He made a quick call to his office to let them know he wouldn’t be in that day as he’d planned then phoned his own doctor and all but bullied the nurse into squeezing Maddy in for an appointment within the hour. Frantically gathering up a clean pair of panties, shorts, and a cool summer top, Chase returned to Maddy and gently shook her shoulder.

“Wake up, honey, we need to get you dressed.”

Maddy moaned, feeling as if she’d been drugged. “Chase?” Her hand went to her throat. It felt like she’d swallowed sand and she had to force down what little saliva her mouth produced. “Water,” she croaked, trying to sit up.

Chase eased her back down. “Wait here, I’ll get it for you.” After a quick jaunt to the bathroom, he returned with a glass of water and helped her sit up, holding the glass to her lips while she sipped. “I’ve already got an appointment for you with my doctor. We have just enough time to get you dressed and make the drive into town.”

“You’ve always got everything under control, don’t you?” She tipped her head back and smiled weakly. “Well…not always.”

He chuckled, remembering just how out of control he was the night before. “You’re one hell of a woman, you know that Madysen Sawyer?”

“Right now I barely feel human.”

He pressed a kiss to her forehead, alarmed at how much hotter it felt against his lips than it had against his palm. Chase helped her sit up, his chest clenching at how fragile she looked as she obediently lifted her arms so he could pull her top on. He was falling to pieces and he knew it. Even worse, he had to question how he was ever going to handle it if Maddy got seriously ill or, God forbid, was injured. Thinking of that jalopy she drove didn’t help matters either but that was a problem he’d resolve as soon as she was better.

Maddy braced her hands against his shoulders and stepped into the shorts he held out for her, smiling to herself when his big hands fought to get the button fastened. He was doing his level best to look as if he had it all together but the lines in his forehead and slight downward tilt of his lips gave him away. It warmed her heart to know he was concerned about her even though she was certain it was nothing more than a touch of the flu. She declined his offer to make her some toast, knowing it would only make her scratchy throat feel even worse, and opted instead for a glass of juice.

Once they were on their way, Maddy leaned back against the seat and closed her eyes. “I’m sorry to make you miss work, especially since this was supposed to be your first day back.”

“Don’t worry about it. They’ve managed to get along without me for a month, one more day won’t make much difference.”

She opened her eyes and turned her head, her heart swelling in her chest as it always did when she looked at him. “Why do you want to marry me?”

He cast a puzzled glance at her then turned his eyes back to the road. “I thought that was pretty obvious. I love you, Maddy.”

“I’ve been nothing but trouble since the day you met me.”

Chase nodded. “True, you've certainly turned life upside down, but I think maybe it needed a little shaking up. I’d grown pretty complacent, moving through each day without giving much thought about the future. You changed all that, Maddy. You jump start my heart every morning and I can’t wait to see what surprises are in store for me, and when I make love to you, it’s like…like everything was in black and white before and suddenly it’s in full color. I feel everything with such a sharp intenseness now and…” Chase laughed at himself. “I’m sorry, I’m rambling.”