Accelerated Passion (16 page)

Which, of course, he didn’t.

It was just a fling.

So why did it feel like more? Or perhaps that was just her.

“I don’t think…” he said breathlessly as he pressed his mouth to her temple. “I’ve ever come so hard.”

“I hope that’s a good thing.”

“Yeah, I’d say so.” He chuckled. “I think you knew that would be the case, though, teasing me like that.”

“I aim to please.”

He captured her face in his hands and stared into her eyes. “You more than please. You make me happy. Very happy.”

He kissed her. A long, intimate kiss that maybe held the promise of a future, a hint there could be a chance for them.

Frankie snuggled against him, happy to be cocooned in his arms and have her slick flesh pressed to his.

She couldn’t let herself hope for a long-term relationship with Dean Cudditch. He wasn’t that type of man. She’d known from the start about his lothario ways, that he could charm women into bed with just a smile.

Yet here she was, sitting on his cock, kissing him and wondering if they had a future together.

When Frankie woke, she was alone. She cracked open her eyes as she spread her arms and legs over the sheet, hoping to find some lingering body heat left behind by Dean.

Daylight splintered around the edges of the curtains, and the sound of water splashing caught her attention.

Slipping from the bed, she spotted her robe bundled on the floor. After dragging it on, she headed to Dean’s ensuite.

The scent of rich and spicy shower gel filtered toward her as she paused in the doorway.

Through the glass shower door, she could see his ass, a fraction paler than the rest of his body. He was humming, some repetitive tune she didn’t recognize, as he lathered his underarms.

She smiled, enjoying the view and seeing him happy. Should she join him? No, she’d nip back to her own room and get ready for the day.

After showering and pulling on black, three-quarter lengths and a T-shirt with
Johnnie Walker
written on it, Frankie piled her hair high. She brushed her teeth then headed down the stairs.

The house was quiet, most of the mechanics making the most of a lie-in after a busy week at the circuit. However, as she headed toward the kitchen, the sound of muted conversation reached her.

She stepped in. “Good morning.”

Dean and Enrique sat at the huge table. Enrique tucking into a huge bowl of cereal while Dean nursed a mug of what was likely to be tea.

“Hello, Frankie,” Enrique said, sitting straighter and beaming her way. “How are you this morning?”

“Good, thanks. You?”

“Happy to have a day off.” He scooped in another mouthful of cereal and kept his attention on her.

“Hi,” Frankie directed at Dean, trying not to let her gaze linger as long as she wanted it to.

“Frankie,” he said, giving a slight nod and his expression unchanging.

“So what are you doing?” Enrique said.

“Er…making a cup of tea?” Frankie flicked the switch on the kettle. “Anyone else want one?”

“Nah, I’m good,” Dean said.

“I did not mean what you are doing now.” Enrique laughed. “I mean today? Have you got plans? Any more culture you want to experience? Places you want to visit.”

“No, not really.” She reached for a mug then dropped a tea bag into it. She glanced at Dean. He looked sexy as hell. He hadn’t shaved for a few days now, and his dense stubble added to the brooding way he studied her.

As she reached for the milk, a shiver of longing snaked up her spine. She should have joined him in the shower earlier. Perhaps then she wouldn’t feel the desperate need to strip naked and demand he take her across the kitchen table.

“Well, in that case,” Enrique said. “We should hang out.” He clattered his spoon into his now empty bowl and pushed it aside.

“Hang out?” Frankie turned to him. “What do you mean?”

“We could go for lunch, see a movie.”

“Well, I don’t know. I…” Again, she glanced at Dean.

He was staring at Enrique. He’d pulled his eyebrows together, and a crease had plowed its way over his forehead.

“
Si
, there is a nice village a few miles from here. Looks like an oil painting or a scene from a kid’s movie. We could go there for a walk.”

“But…” Frankie had no intention with spending the day with Enrique.

“There’s a bridge and an old church, romantic cafes,” he went on. “And—”

“Romantic cafes?” Frankie repeated.

Enrique stood and gestured out of the window. “The sunshine will be perfect to sit outside and eat. We should make the most of it. Go soon.”

The kettle came to the boil, its rumble swirling around Frankie’s brain the same way this awkward conversation with Enrique was.

“Come on. Say yes. We will have fun together.” Enrique stepped closer to her, his arms spread wide, palms up and a hopeful smile on his face.

“I’m really not sure.” She looked between him and Dean.

Dean had sat back in his chair. Arms folded over his chest, knuckles pressing at his biceps, causing them to bulge. His scowl had deepened, and his eyes were now thin slits.

“What is there to think about?” Enrique’s grin widened, He was clearly oblivious to Dean’s darkening glare behind him. “Me and you. It is all good.” He flicked his hand between them.

“Thank you, Enrique, but, no. I don’t think so,” Frankie said firmly.

“I won’t take no. Say yes. Come on.” He stepped closer.

Frankie turned to the counter and tipped water into her mug, hoping that would give him the hint that she really wasn’t interested.

“Frankie.” Enrique was right behind her. She could feel his body heat and smell his strong aftershave. “Go and get your shoes on. Our day of adventure starts in ten minutes.”

“Enrique, I—” She turned.

“The lady said no.” Dean’s deep voice rolled around the kitchen.

Enrique turned and smiled at Dean, but he didn’t appear as confident as usual. “But—”

“No buts. No means no.” The sounds of the legs of Dean’s chair scraping on the tiles screeched through the air. He stood and shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans. Glared at Enrique.

Frankie sucked in a breath. She’d seen Dean in a host of moods, including furious after she’d messed with his pre-race ritual, but this blackness, this tense body language that reminded her of a cobra about to strike, that was new.

Enrique swallowed and stepped away from her, toward the door. “I was just asking her out.” He shrugged, going for nonchalance but not quite succeeding. “Can’t blame a guy for trying.”

“Yeah, well, don’t.” Dean moved nearer to him. “Try, that is.”

“Why not?”

“Because she doesn’t want to go out with you.”

“How do you—?”

“Enrique, I like you. Really, I do. You’re a great mechanic and a great guy,” Frankie said, stepping between the two men. “But there will never be anything romantic between us. I’m sorry.”

He frowned. “But how do you know? We should give it a try. You are a beautiful woman. I would treat you well.”

“Frankie is busy today.” Dean pressed his hand over her shoulder, his fingers firm but gentle.

“I am?” God, his touch. It was like fire and made her want to melt against him.

“Yes.” He set his attention on her. “I need you to help me out with something.”

“But it is her day off,” Enrique said.

Dean shifted his attention to Enrique. “And what’s it to you?”

“Well, I—”

“What do you need help with?” Frankie asked Dean.

“I need to run over some of the changes you’ve talked about making in the future, to the electrics. Get my head around it.”

Frankie couldn’t remember mentioning any electrical changes, but she nodded anyway. “Okay.”

Enrique looked between them and frowned. He opened his mouth to speak then appeared to think better of it and shut it again.

“So go drink your tea, Frankie,” Dean said. “Then we’ll head to the track so we can log on there.”

Frankie had no idea what Dean had planned for the day, if anything at all. Perhaps he just didn’t want her to spend time with Enrique, and, after her amorous young suitor left, there wouldn’t be a plan.

She picked up her tea, took a sip, then placed it down.

“Have fun working on your day off,” Enrique said, his tone one of frustration. “I won’t be working.”

“You have a nice day, too,” Frankie called as he left the kitchen. She turned to Dean.

He was right behind her.

“I think you scared him.”

“So what.” He curled his hands around her waist and pulled her near.

“Dean…” She glanced at the doorway.

“There’s one thing you should know,” he said, his lips hovering over hers.

“What’s that?”

“I don’t share.”

“You don’t share?”

“No. When I’m with a woman, I don’t share. I don’t take kindly to other blokes asking her out, giving appreciative, lingering looks, or acting as though they stand a chance.”

Wow, that sounded an awful lot like jealousy sprinkled with a good coating of possessiveness. Did Dean really think of her as his now?

“I’m not interested in Enrique.”

“I’m glad to hear it.” He swept his lips over hers and slid his hands up her back to her hold her head.

She locked her fingers behind his neck and pulled him closer. To heck with it. She couldn’t resist being in his arms. There was something about his dark mood when he’d thought another man might steal her away for the day that struck a chord in Frankie. Damn it, she liked being his. That was something she couldn’t deny.

“Mmm…” he said, his breath warm on her cheeks. “I thought you might have joined me in the shower earlier.”

“I had to get back to my room.”

“I wish you’d stayed.” He peppered kisses down her neck.

She tipped her head and fluttered her eyes shut. The scrape of his stubble combined with the heat of his kisses was an erotic combination. 

“Dean…”

“What?”

“Someone might come in.”

“They might not, and then I’d be a fool for not doing this when I have the chance.” He slipped his hands to her ass and gave it a squeeze, tugging her up against him.

A hardening in his groin pressed against her stomach. Damn, the man was insatiable.

Not that she was any better. She’d quite happily get hot and carnal with him right now. In fact…

Suddenly, he snapped away and turned to the window. He pushed his hand over his hair and walked forward several paces, a little stiffly.

“Morning all.” Paul wandered barefoot into the kitchen. He had on jeans but no top, and his hair was messy.

“Er, hi,” Frankie managed, her heart thudding. She touched her lips, which were still tingling from the hot, hard kisses she’d just received.

“Kettle boiled?” Paul asked then stifled a yawn.

“Yes, not long ago.” Frankie flicked the switch down again.

Paul hesitated and looked between them. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Dean said, resting his palm flat on the window frame and staring out at the pool. He kept his back to the room.

“Everything all right?” Paul directed the question at Frankie.

God, does he think we’ve been arguing again?
Nothing could be further from the truth or more far removed from what they’d really been doing.

“Fine, Paul.” She picked up her tea and checked her hair was still in a reasonable state.

“Sure?” he asked quietly.

She nodded. “Perfect. In fact, I’m off out for the day, so I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Oh, okay. Well, have a nice time. You’ll find me here, by the pool, doing absolutely bloody nothing.”

Half an hour later, she sat in Dean’s Porsche as they crawled through city traffic.

“So where are we going?” she asked. “Please tell me now.”

“I’m afraid I had another appointment today, so we’re a little restricted, but no reason why you can’t come along, too.”

“Appointment. That doesn’t sound like fun.” She looked at the clear blue sky and hoped it wouldn’t keep them indoors for too long.

“It will be fun, I promise.” He reached over and squeezed her knee. “Can you row?”

“Row? As in a boat?”

He laughed. “Yes, as in a boat.”

“Er, a bit, I suppose. Not to Olympic standard, though.”

“Good.”

“You have an appointment on a rowing boat?” Now she was really confused.

He shrugged. “It’s what Henri wants to do today. There’s a lake just north of here. You can hire out little boats by the day. I took him once before, and he loved it.”

“Henri?” Had she heard him right? Was he really going out for the day with his son and taking her along, too? Were they ready for this? It felt like a big step.

“Hey, don’t look so worried. I’m allowed to have friends as well. Besides, he’ll love you.”

She looked out at the street and studied a small bakery with cakes in the window.

“And I could use your help,” he said. “He’s insisting on bringing his damn puppy.” He laughed. “I’m pretty sure one or the other of them will get a dunking so having another adult around will be useful.”

“But…what about his mother?”

“Bridget?” He glanced at her, a look of confusion on his face. “What’s it to do with her?”

“Does she mind you introducing other women into Henri’s life?”

“I never have before, so I guess we’ll find out.” He pointed ahead. “Look, there’s a deli. We’ll go and stock up for our picnic. It’s going to be a great day, I can tell.”

A swirl of anticipation went through her as she watched his big hands on the steering wheel expertly maneuvering the car into a parking spot. She was going to meet Henri. He’d never introduced another woman to his son before. Was it foolish to think that meant something?

Stop it, Frankie. It’s a day out, boating on a lake with a picnic, nothing more.

But could it be?

He turned to her and smiled. “Shall we go shop?”

“Yes, and we’d better get some sausages for the puppy, too.”

They collected Henri from a smart suburban house with a balustrade around the front porch and a balcony with huge flower tubs hanging over the sides. The ivy and the red flowers hung several feet down and caught in the slight breeze. The roof was wooden, and a curved path led from the pavement to the front door.