Australian Outback Kings / The Cattle King's Mistress / The Playboy King's Wife / The Pleasure King's Bride (30 page)

“Are you sure it'll be all right?”

He laughed. “If you mean…will people take one look at us and know we've been making love…so what? I'm in the mood to trumpet it to the whole world.”

Making love
… Such wonderful, warming words! She thought fleetingly of Janice Findlay's remark about “feeling horny.” Making love was something very different, and suddenly, like Tommy, she didn't care if the whole world knew. Though they didn't have to be told.

“Don't you dare brag, Tommy King!” she cautioned.

His eyebrows rose. “Are you asking me to hide what I feel for you?”

She flushed all over with pleasure. “No. I just meant…”

“What's private to us is private to us,” he interpreted, touching his finger to her nose with tender indulgence. “Don't worry, Samantha. I'm not a crass playboy who parades his prowess with women. And what I have with you, my darling, belongs to me. No one else.”

Sam sighed contentedly. His darling. She knew they should be getting dressed, getting back to the marquee, but when he kissed her, she just wanted to kiss him back, revelling in belonging to him like this, feeling securely wrapped in his warm strength, their naked bodies rubbing together, nothing coming between them.

It was Tommy who stopped it, growing aroused again and warning her, “If you don't want to be back on that bed…”

“We'd best get into our clothes,” she finished with reluctant resignation.

“And tempt me not,” he added wickedly.

She laughed and broke away, delighted she
could
tempt him. Her whole body tingled with the pleasure of his lustful watching as she busied herself, trying to look like a bridesmaid again. It felt very intimate, dressing themselves in full view of each other. Like a husband and wife, she thought, though they were only lovers, as yet.

Fortunately the beautician had left her an array of cosmetics so she could do a fair job of repairing her make-up. The only option with her hair was to brush it out, but since Tommy stood behind her, avidly running his fingers through the riot of curls, she didn't mind at all how it looked. He loved her hair, loved
her
… So what did anything else matter?

They left the house, hand in hand, and the night sky was full of brilliant stars. Sam had never felt so happy in her life. It was as though this night was made especially for her and Tommy, and even the sky was twinkling in celebration of their coming together.

As they strolled down the lawn, rollicking music was pumping out of the marquee, the guests were clearly getting boisterous, and Sam decided she and Tommy wouldn't have been missed at all. “What time is it?” she asked, realising the party mood had definitely elevated since they'd been gone.

He checked his watch. “Half an hour to go before Miranda and Nathan take their leave.” He grinned at her. “We'll make the last show, no problem.”

The reception was due to end at 1:00 a.m. Tomorrow morning there would be a big buffet breakfast, after which Miranda and Nathan would fly off to their honeymoon and the guests would make their way home.

Tommy squeezed her hand. “I want you to stay on here with me tomorrow. Will you?” His dark eyes simmered with promises yet to be spoken.

“Yes,” she answered simply, discarding her earlier decision to fly home with her family.

They smiled at each other, their new understanding putting a golden glow around her heart.

“Well, well, look who's here, Greggie! Your little sister with her hair all tumbled, and Tommy the tomcat wearing a satisfied smile,” came the slurred and sexily suggestive voice of Janice Findlay.

It jerked Sam's gaze towards the clump of trees some ten metres from the marquee. From amongst the shadows Tommy's ex-lover lurched from a clinch with Greg, her black dress sagging over one shoulder, baring even more of her cleavage.

“Oh! Hi, Sam!” Greg acknowledged sheepishly, catching Janice around the waist to support her against him.

Tommy exhaled between his teeth but held his tongue, choosing to avoid any altercation. He quickened his pace, pulling Sam with him, intent on not getting involved with the necking couple. Sam dragged her feet, disturbed by her brother's attachment to Tommy's ex-lover.

“Go and get us a bottle of champagne, Greggie, darling,” Janice urged. “Let's have our little orgy in style.”

She patted his face indulgently, making Sam cringe inwardly, then gave him a shove towards the entrance to the marquee.

“Orgy and bubbly,” he said, beaming at Sam and Tommy as he rambled off to do Janice's bidding.

“He's drunk,” Sam whispered in some concern.

“So's she,” Tommy muttered back.

“Should we do something?”

“Like what? They're both over the age of consent.”

“Not so hot to trot now, Tommy?” Janice jeered, staggering towards them.

“She'll fall,” Sam worried, stopping their progress towards the marquee.

“Got her, didn't you?” Janice went on. “Get 'em all. Snap o' your fingers. Fall like ninepins for a guy like you.”

Tommy heaved an exasperated sigh. “Why don't you take better care of yourself, Janice?”

She laughed derisively. “You don't care. Left me knocked up and don't give a damn! Won't even give me time of day.”

Shock punched into Sam's heart, smashing the golden glow to smithereens.

“I beg your pardon,” Tommy bit out tersely.

“Preggers. Bun in the oven,” Janice elaborated, jabbing an accusing finger at him. “Your little bastard, Tommy King.”

Was it true? Sam darted a pleading glance at Tommy, willing it to be a spiteful lie.

“Oh, no it's not!” came his swift and vehement denial. “Don't think you can tie that on me, Janice, because I won't wear it. I took better care of you than you did yourself.”

“Slipped up then, didn't you?”

“Not a chance.”

Janice turned her drunken venom on Sam. “See what a sleaze he is? Bet he's got little bastards he won't own up to all around the Outback. Probably planted one in you tonight.”

“That's enough!” The words cracked from Tommy like a bullwhip.

Janice rocked back and forward on her feet, her eyes rolling out of any steady focus.

Sam stood chilled to the bone, not knowing what to believe and too frightened to think about what any of this meant.

“I'd advise you to think very soberly about being sued for slander if you repeat what you've just said to anyone else,” Tommy threatened, his voice as hard and cold as steel.

Janice's eyes narrowed on him. “I'm gonna slap a paternity suit on you.”

“If you expect to gain anything from this, you're badly mistaken. What you need is some help before you make everything worse for yourself.”

“If you're telling me to get an abortion…”

“I'm telling you you need counselling to get your life straightened out. You're off your head with alcohol half the time and don't know what you're doing.”

“Do so!” Her chin went up and her face took on a smug look of animal cunning. “You got
her.
” She sneered at Sam. “I got her brother. And maybe I'll load him with your child. How do you like them apples?”

“You reveal yourself for what you are, Janice,” Tommy answered with biting distaste. “Nothing but a lying bitch!”

It turned her ugly. “Well, you didn't mind lying with me, lover. And Greg Connelly's lining up for it.” She sliced a look of contempt at Sam. “Neither of them are any better than me, so take that on board, little sister.”

“Got the bubbly!” Greg called triumphantly, drawing their attention. He was waving the bottle over his head as he ambled towards them. “Glasses, too,” he added, holding them up like trophies.

“What a good boy you are!” Janice drooled sickeningly. Then tossing a venomous, “Stuff, you two!” at Tommy and Sam, she swayed her way over to Greg, threw her arms around his waist and fondled him back to the cover of the trees, giggling and teasing in a pointed demonstration of how on top of the game she was.

“I'm Greg's big sister, not his little one,” Sam corrected anxiously. “I should stop this before he gets into trouble.”

“Leave them be! He won't thank you for it,” Tommy answered tersely.

“But…”

“He's a man.” Angry eyes shot daggers into hers. “Haven't you learnt anything?”

It took Sam's breath away. However faulty her judgment about men might have been in the past, was this fair comment when her brother was being manipulated into a possible scandal? A very female rage started burning, Janice's snide words beating through her brain—
neither of them are any better than me
.

It was Tommy who had started this, blithely falling into an ill-judged affair with Janice Findlay, seeking satisfaction without caring about consequences. Her eyes blazed back into his as her own fierce resentments erupted.

“Am I supposed to respect a man who blinds himself to what he's taking on for the sake of a bit of easy sex?”

His face stiffened. “You respect his right to make his own choices.”

“So how do you like your choice now, Tommy? What if Janice is pregnant to you?”

“She's not.”

“How can you be sure?”

“You heard her!” he flung back impatiently. “This is nothing but a malicious tit for tat because I chose to be with you rather than pick up with her again.”

Could the whole nasty encounter be dismissed so easily?

Tommy dropped her hand and grabbed her upper arms. Sam thought he was going to shake her, but his fingers merely pressed urgently into her soft flesh. “Are you going to let her win?” he demanded. “Can't you see it's what she wants…to spoil what there is between us?”

Sam sucked in a deep breath. Doubts were swirling through her mind. A new beginning, a new beginning, she recited frantically, trying to hold on to what she had felt before Janice had injected her poison. Tommy was hers now. A dream come true. But was it ever possible to be free of past actions? They had such long tentacles, and the longest one of all would be a child Tommy had fathered with another woman.

Anguished by the possibility, she asked again, “How can you be sure she's not pregnant to you?”

He huffed his vexation with the question. “It's been over three months since I was last with her. Why wait until today to deliver the news?”

Sam frowned. The timing did seem wrong.

“Janice was peeved by my earlier brush-off and determined to do maximum damage to us,” Tommy argued, anger still pumping from him. “It's as simple as that, Samantha.”

Was it?

“If she's in an alcoholic fog half the time, maybe she didn't realise her condition until very recently,” Sam reasoned. “She could have thought today might be a good day to approach you on it.”

“My brother's wedding day?” Tommy reminded her, his voice laced with acid scepticism.

“She might have wanted to test how approachable you were,” Sam argued, thinking it couldn't be an easy thing to tell a man who'd dumped you he was the father of an unplanned child.

And Tommy had cut Janice dead.

Wouldn't that give rise to vengeful impulses?

“You're worrying over nothing,” he insisted dismissively. “Apart from the time factor, I always used protection with Janice. With every woman I've ever been with, in fact.”

Not with me!
The memory sliced straight through his argument with devastating force. He hadn't used protection with her. Hadn't thought of it. Neither of them had.

“There's absolutely no chance she's pregnant to me. I swear it, Samantha.”

But how could she believe him? Might there not have been a time with Janice when he hadn't stopped to think? When he, too, was the worse for drink after a party?

“Now put it out of your mind,” he commanded. “It's not worth another thought, I promise you.” He released her arms and drew her into a hug at his side, walking her forward towards the entrance to the marquee. “Time we made our appearance and checked in with Nathan and Miranda,” he said with determined authority.

That, at least, was true.

Sam let herself be carried along with him but it felt as though the stars had winked out and a dark cloud had settled over their future together.

Tommy hadn't used protection tonight
.

Was that a first with him…because he was with her? Because it was different from his usual playboy affairs? Because she was the one woman he really wanted to spend his life with?

Sam wanted to believe it.

She wanted to believe Janice was lying.

But what if she wasn't?

CHAPTER ELEVEN

S
HE WASN'T CONVINCED
.

Tommy knew it and cursed himself for being all kinds of a fool. He could feel fine little tremors running through Samantha's body and her submission to his lead, to the closeness he pressed on her with his hug, had nothing to do with wanting to be with him, more the aftermath of shock.

Janice's malevolent spite had broken the intimate understanding between them.

No, damn it!
He
had. For having the monumental stupidity to get involved with Janice Findlay in the first place. And not being kinder to her today. The urge to protect and pursue what was developing between him and Samantha had overriden a more tactful rejection, but he sure as hell was reaping the consequences now.

Then to have lashed back at Samantha about respecting a man's choice…utter madness! In the light of what had happened tonight—how he felt with her—
he
couldn't respect any of his previous choices, so why should she? Especially his affair with Janice.

Though she wasn't—couldn't be—pregnant to him. He didn't have to give that a second thought. But how was he going to get the doubt out of Samantha's head?