Anytime Darlin' (19 page)

Her mother shouldn’t even be in this horrible situation. Janice was convinced she’d been duped by William Franz. He was off somewhere in Asia, while her mother was stuck in a cell. Just like she herself had been duped by Jake. She knew why he’d come by that night. It didn’t take a genius to figure it out. She’d seen his truck parked across the street from her house. She knew Jake well enough to guess he’d come by because he was pissed off about something and he wanted to screw somebody. But he’d apparently thought better of it and driven off. The next thing she knew, he was standing on her front porch. Her heart had pounded. Despite her anger, she’d still wanted him. Despite what he did, she still wanted him. That made it even harder to forgive him.

Janice tried to put Jake out of her mind. She had a schedule to make, census figures to pull together for the administration, and staff evaluation forms to fill out. But no matter how she tried, listening to talk of Mike’s wedding ate at her. After all this time, Jake’s rejection still ate at her. Maybe he’d get in a car accident while he was here in Denver and end up in her ICU. Or maybe the entire wedding party could come down with food poisoning. She almost laughed aloud at the thought. She doubted she’d ever have the opportunity to mess anything up for the great Jake McKenna. Janice had to admit it was just plain pathetic that the mere thought of him brought back all the old feelings. Maybe someday, if she met someone else, someone who could wipe the memories of Jake right out of her mind, she’d be able to put him behind her once and for all. Unfortunately, it hadn’t happened yet.

Devlin followed Jake to the room. He shifted her bags and swiped the key card. She was perfectly capable of carrying her bags herself, but he insisted. As he opened the door, she stepped around to hold it for him and gaped. He’d reserved a suite.

“What did you do, Jake? This is the most beautiful hotel room I’ve ever been in.”

“Well,” he said with a grin and a shrug, “I figured we could use the space.”

“Oh my God!” she exclaimed, peeking into the bedroom. Devlin sat on the king-sized, super soft bed and began bouncing up and down. Her own movement caught her eye, and she glanced up at the ceiling.

“A mirror?” she cried and began to giggle. “Jake, there’s a mirror on the ceiling.”

Jake set her bags down on a luggage rack and joined her on the bed. His bounce flipped her onto her back. He loomed over her with a big grin.

“Just thought it might be fun.” He leaned over to kiss her. Suddenly Devlin remembered her dresses and pushed him away “I almost forgot. I need to hang my clothes to get the wrinkles out.”

Jake lay back on the bed, his hands behind his head. . Devlin tackled the hanging bag first. Out came a backless emerald green silk cocktail dress. It was covered with a delicate, very elegant pattern of Japanese fans.

“Did you paint that?” Jake rose to his feet. He held the material in his hands. Just like the bridesmaid dresses, the fans were not painted on, but rather, color had been removed to make the design.

“How do you do this?” Jake asked. “It’s like looking at a shadow.”

Devlin spread the dress over her palm, explaining, “I use a dilute bleach solution to fade the fabric. I have to be careful. If the bleach is too strong, it not only ruins the design, it ruins the silk. I have to admit, though, sometimes my mistakes can be very interesting.”

She pulled out a turquoise blouse with a much paler blue pattern of roses.

“This was a mistake. I spilled some bleach, here.” She pointed to a rosette in the very center of the back, which was just perceptibly lighter than the others. “I didn’t want to throw the silk away, so I had to use a stronger solution. I think it turned out rather well.”

Devlin blushed at her words. Jake took the blouse from her and hung it up. He ran a hand through her hair, teasing the curls, mussing them around her face.

“You should be proud of what you do,” he said. “I am. Beth showed me the dresses you designed for her. I know nothing about women’s clothes, but I know something beautiful when I see it.”

Jake rubbed the back of his fingers along her cheekbone. Devlin closed her eyes and covered his hand with hers exactly as she had four and half years ago, the day she told him she loved him. Just then, her stomach growled, and she laughed.

“I need to finish hanging this stuff up,” she said. “And then I need something to eat. I’m starving.”

“So am I,” answered Jake, his voice a whisper as he reached for her.

“Jake McKenna!” she exclaimed. “You are a very, very bad man.”

“Always have been.” He leaned over to nibble on her neck.

He swept Devlin up in his arms.

“Where are we going?”

Jake looked down at her, grinning. “You need a bath.”

Devlin smacked her palms against his hard chest.

“What do you mean I need a bath? Are you saying I smell?”

“Yes.” He bit her earlobe, inhaling deep. “You smell like I just fucked you, and that reminds me I’m ready to do it again.”

“Oh, God, you’re insatiable.” Devlin laughed, her body shaking against his. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tilting her head and biting his earlobe in reply.

“Ow!” Jake yelped, whipping her around into the bathroom. “You know, I can play rough too.”

“I’m counting on it.” Jake set her on her feet. “Whoa!” she exclaimed, gazing around the bathroom, stunned. “This is the Honeymoon Suite, isn’t it?”

Jake laughed as he turned the big handle and water splashed into the oversized whirlpool tub.

“You like big things, don’t you?” he asked wickedly.

Devlin looked into his face, her eyes on fire.

“Yeah,” she answered. “You’ve figured me out at last, Jake McKenna. I’m quite fond of big things.”

* * * *

Dev sat between Jake’s legs, leaning back against his hard chest as he squeezed more body wash into his hands. He’d turned her into melted butter. His hands roamed her breasts, kneading her nipples, pinching them into peaks. His lips slid along the curve of her shoulder. Jake moaned, the sound a low rumble in his chest, and she felt his erection press rock hard against her back. If she’d been capable of movement, Devlin would have climbed on him, but Jake’s big, calloused hands were working all the kinks out of her muscles. He had her so relaxed, she was immobile. Devlin drowsed against him.

She felt more than heard Jake say something. It sounded like, “Stand up.”

“Hmmm?” she murmured, half asleep.

“Stand up,” he repeated, his voice hoarse.

Devlin reluctantly rose from the tub, hot water running down her skin. She started to turn toward Jake, but he reached up and grabbed her hips to stop her.

“Close your eyes,” he commanded.

She did so without a word, her breath quickening.

She felt him slowly run his hands up along her legs, from her ankles to the top of her thighs and back down again. His touch startled her. It was almost delicate. Goose bumps formed in the wake of his fingers. A groan escaped Devlin’s lips.

“Shhhh,” whispered Jake. “Just feel.”

Suddenly his hands were on her bottom, kneading her, running his fingers along the cleft between her buttocks.

“God, you are so beautiful,” he said.

Her knees grew weak. She reached out to the side, searching for something to steady herself, but there was nothing. Except for Jake. He slid his thumb inside her, all the way inside her. With one hand on her hip to support her, he slid his thumb in and out, again gentle, delicate, so delicate Devlin was tempted to scream. She held it inside, concentrating on his every movement.

It sounded as if Jake had risen to his knees behind her. She could feel his mouth on her back, kissing her scar, nipping at her bottom, his thumb still moving rhythmically inside her. Jake pressed his chest against her while he wrapped his other arm around her belly, his hand sinking lower until he found her clit. Devlin’s breath came in ragged gasps. She rubbed herself against his fingers, seeking her release.

“Don’t move,” he said, his breathing as ragged as hers. “Let me do it for you.”

Oh God,
Devlin thought. She wondered what Jake McKenna had in store for her. Just then Jake bit down on her hip, holding her in place, his thumb still moving in and out of her, his fingers rubbing circles around her swollen nub. Devlin was strung so tight, she would have fallen without his support. Jake seemed to feel her climax building despite the fact that she held herself perfectly still. He moved his fingers faster, pressed harder.

Devlin’s control vanished. “Jake,” she cried out, and she came helplessly against his fingers. Without any awareness whatsoever, she found herself turned around, her legs spread. Jake had his mouth on her, his tongue pressed inside her, catching her tremors. Within seconds, she came again and then again. Devlin begged Jake to stop. It was indeed possible, she decided from a far-off place, to die of an overdose of pleasure.

Jake lowered her into the water, guiding her onto his erect penis. Devlin’s eyes flew open just as his closed. She whispered his name in a low voice, and he groaned deep in his throat. Devlin pressed her mouth to his full lips and thrust her tongue inside, meeting each thrust of his cock with a thrust of her tongue. She rubbed her nipples against his chest as he began to pound into her, out of control now. She held on, reveling in his wildness, in the contrast between what he’d just done to her and what he was doing to her now.

“Come again for me, baby,” Jake mumbled against her mouth. “Come for me.”

“Yes,” Devlin answered him, and she did, his words kicking her into another orgasm. She rode him shamelessly, feeling his thrusts deepen. He slanted his mouth over hers, and she swallowed his groan as he thrust into her one last time. Jake pressed against her chest. Devlin felt his heat spurt inside her. Heart pounding, she knew nothing. For a time, it seemed they were both senseless. The cooling water finally roused them.

“Food,” mumbled Devlin, leaning her weak head against Jake’s shoulder.

Jake began to laugh heartily, bouncing Devlin up and down.

“Double chocolate milkshake? Grilled cheese sandwich? French fries?” he asked, still laughing as he climbed out of the tub and helped Devlin into an oversize bath towel.

“All three. And make the milkshake chunky. And lots of those little bottles of ketchup.”

Jake pulled her close and kissed her. Wrapping his own towel around his waist, he sauntered out of the bathroom. Devlin sighed. Jake was so much man. There were so many pieces of him that Devlin was unfamiliar with, his life, his career, his plans, his relationships over the past four years. Yet on another level, a deeper level, she felt as if she knew everything about him that mattered. She had loved him for years, first the idea of him, now the reality. But she was afraid to say the words aloud. She would be devastated if he didn’t reciprocate. Yet she had to ask herself, how could Jake possibly make love to her with such passion, such selflessness, such abandon, if he didn’t care? He’d been making love to her practically every moment since she exited the ramp at the airport. She stood still for a minute, pondering her options, listening to his voice talking on the phone to room service.

Devlin shook her head. She decided to ignore her own musings. She needed to pee, get a drink of water, put some food in her stomach, and dress for the cocktail party. In that order. For now she’d simply enjoy every single moment she had with Jake. She’d worry about the rest of it when the weekend was over. If she survived it, that is.

* * * *

Jake hung up the phone and pressed his palms against his thighs to stop them from shaking. He’d just had the most powerful orgasm of his life. He’d come, twice now, inside the woman he loved. It suddenly occurred to him that he hadn’t used a condom either time. The thought of putting on a condom had never even entered his mind. He’d always been careful. It didn’t matter to him if a woman claimed to be on birth control pills. Jake always wore a condom. He didn’t want any accidental McKennas running around. Until now. He wouldn’t mind an accidental McKenna with Devlin.

He wondered if she was on the Pill, then dismissed the thought from his head. He doubted it. He’d heard from Mary that she and Jason had broken up nearly two years ago. It had bothered him when Mary first told him Devlin and Jason were living together. He couldn’t bear the thought of another man bedding down with her at night and waking up with her in the morning. Touching her intimately, knowing her as Jake did now. But, Jake reminded himself, he didn’t have the right to object. If he had been with her then, they might not be here, together, in this time and place. Mary was right. Devlin had needed her space. And so had he.

The problem was, Jake didn’t want his space anymore, unless Devlin shared it with him. He wondered about the internship in France. Mary didn’t bother to disguise her pride in Dev’s achievements. Devlin had done well for herself. He knew she was one of two applicants chosen.

He didn’t want to ask her to give it up, but he hated the thought of being apart for two years. He could visit her, but he couldn’t live there with her. He was responsible for a lot of people and projects, and he wasn’t prepared to make such a drastic move.

Besides, what would he do in Paris? He was a country boy. He had a cabin to build, and his father needed his help with calving as much as ever. Jake had the money to take time off, but he loathed the idea of idling in Paris with nothing to do, aside from drive Devlin crazy. He chuckled as he imagined how annoying he would be.

Jake felt a chill. He turned the air-conditioning down, grabbing the two plush terrycloth bathrobes from the closet. He headed to the bathroom to see if Devlin was finished so he could have a turn. He hadn’t taken a piss all day, and he felt like he could use a drink. He stopped at the minibar and reached for a bottle of orange juice. He downed it in one swallow.

“Dev,” he called, “you want anything to drink?”

“Oh yeah,” she said, opening the bathroom door, holding the oversized towel around her. “Hey, it’s cold out here.”

“I just turned down the air. You want orange juice? Apple juice? Pop? Perrier?”