Devil Moon (28 page)

"I don't know about that, Doug." Phil jiggled coins in his pocket, betraying his nervousness over the marriage issue. "I was a pretty lousy husband the first time around. Maddie probably deserves better. Somebody with more class and fewer faults."

"You're selling yourself short, boy. Class isn't about good manners and fancy clothes. Class is about integrity, learning from your mistakes, and treating people right." McCall lifted a shaggy eyebrow. "Why, Phil, you're about the classiest guy I know. Yeah, you dress like a bum and your language is right out of the locker room, but you're showing those boys of yours what it means to be a man. That prissy assistant principal of mine could do a lot worse than you."

Phil left McCall's office wondering. Could he make a real life with Maddie? He'd been afraid to think that far ahead. But he knew he wanted more. More than being a part time dad to her child and a part time man in her life. Dammit, he loved the woman. Why shouldn't he have it all? The wife, the child, the home, the happiness? Maybe it was time to make the big play.

* * *

Maddie sat at her desk on the Thursday before Thanksgiving talking on the phone with her mother. "Mom, I'd love to see you and Daddy for Thanksgiving. I just thought you always went to Aunt Agatha's."

Amanda Harris' classy Bostonian accent sang through the phone lines. "We do, but she's still recovering from her hip replacement and really, darling, we want to see you."

Maddie heard her father in the background. "Give me the phone, for God's sake,….Maddie?!"

"Yes, Daddy, I'm here."

"What the hell is going on with you?" Thirty years in Boston hadn't done much to tame his Ozark twang.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean your Grammy Harris has been popping up telling me to get my ass to Arkansas. Says you need me."

Oh great, Grammy meddling from the great beyond.

Maddie heard her parents arguing.

Amanda hissed, "Do you want people to think you're crazy talking to ghosts?"

"Hell, Amanda, half of Boston already thinks I'm crazy and the other half thinks you are for staying married to me. But I do want to know what is going on with our little girl. Maddie, your mother and I will be there next Wednesday for Thanksgiving."

"But…"

"See if you can find that cornbread dressing recipe your Grammy used to make. I'm sick to death of these la-de-dah oyster stuffings I've had to eat all these years at the Woodbridge shindigs. Oh, yeah, and find a jug of that good corn liquor from old man Finn."

Probably Wade's father or a rotten uncle. Maddie ran her fingers through her hair. "I think he's passed on." She sighed, resigned. "It'll be good to see you and Mother."

Beau's voice held a raspy tenderness. "I've missed you, baby. We'll see you next week."

Maddie hung up and covered her face with her hands. The thought of wrestling a turkey made her ill. The thought of telling her parents about her tangled life made her want to crawl into a hole. Damn that Grammy for ratting on her.

She heard a knock and Phil let himself in. Much as she tried to resist, that warm feeling came over her as she surveyed his mismatched clothes. How could such a bad dresser look so good to her?

"Hey, cupcake. What do you say we take off and grab some grub and go to the mall? Maybe do some shopping?"

Maddie blinked her tired eyes. "Did I hear you right? You want to go shopping? What for? Fishing tackle?"

"No, smartass, not fishing tackle. Clothes. I'm tired of looking like a bum and you need to quit cramming into those stuffy suits. It just ain't working anymore, sweetheart. We both need a new look. And I figured you'd be some help picking out shirts for me that don't have beer cans or naked ladies on them."

As they took on the mall, a fresh surge of energy gave Maddie her second wind. She'd been itching to see Phil in good clothes. He had such a wonderful physique and her eyes glowed when he stepped out of the dressing room in a sharp tan shirt and well-cut navy blazer over creased slacks.

He turned in front of the mirror, giving her a killer grin. "Not bad, huh?"

She ran her hands down his lapel, getting it just right. "Coach, you'll have those high school girls swooning at your feet."

He captured her hands. "Yeah, what about the assistant principal?"

She looked straight into his milk chocolate eyes. "She even liked you in your sweats." But she really liked him totally naked in the moonlight. Oh, God, such wicked images. She must have transmitted her thoughts because his gaze traveled to her lips and she could almost taste him.

"I'm not going to tell you how handsome you look because it will go to your head and you're cocky enough." Lord, she wanted to drag his mouth down to hers.

His eyes responded with smoldering fire. "Come on, let's go get you decked out and then we can blow this joint."

He pushed through the maternity racks, pulling clothes he thought looked good. She rolled her eyes at many of his selections, but she let him nudge her toward softer clothes than she usually wore. He sat in a chair and teased her when she modeled the clothes for him. And when they had finished their shopping and had their arms loaded with packages, she couldn't resist standing on tiptoes and kissing him smack on the lips.

As they walked out of the maternity section, they were unaware of being watched by a pair of jealous green eyes. Pam had come to the mall to buy a new Thanksgiving tablecloth. She planned on knocking Phil out with a real homey, come-to-Mama Thanksgiving feast. Seeing him with the assistant principal was like getting punched in the stomach. She'd have to drill Melissa about the two. Bet the little smart mouth had been holding out on her. Then she'd figure out a way to get rid of the holier-than-thou school bitch.

Chapter Seventeen

Give a man a free hand and he'll run it all over you.

Grammy's old truck jostled Maddie on the long front seat. They hit a pothole and took a good bounce.

Phil stretched a steadying hand on her. "I think this jalopy could use some new shocks. I'll take her in next week."

It seemed as natural as rain for him to take over a responsibility that she normally assumed. Gazing at his profile, she enjoyed the play of passing lights crossing his features. She could feel it, the bubble of happiness in her chest. Being with Phil calmed her, lifted her, fulfilled her. She'd been fighting it, but, suddenly asked herself…
why
? Why fight this emotion that felt so good, so right? Phil had proven time and again he was no Thomas Smithton. They were as different as sand and butter, as rose petals and stink weed. Lord, she was waxing poetic—albeit, badly—but poetry, nonetheless. It must be love.

There…she'd admitted it. That wasn't really so hard, was it? Of course, she wasn't ready to tell Phil. He hadn't mentioned the "L" word, either. She would have remembered that. So far, Melissa remained the only person who had openly earned that declaration from him. Whether he loved Maddie or not was not the issue at the moment. Madeleine Harris had to face the fact; she'd fallen in love with Phil Wilcox.

She waited for the terror, the trepidation, the need to flee. Time ticked by as they passed a Grandy's, Burger King, and Arby's, but no panic attack clutched her gut. Joy filled her instead. A quiet, sure, grateful happiness that made her want to crawl onto Phil's lap and make love to his teasing mouth. She wanted his arms wrapped around her and his burly chest tickling her face.

Suddenly, she felt a thump. A thump right under her belly button.

She gasped.

Phil turned his head. "What's the matter?"

Maddie couldn't contain a smile. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I think the baby just kicked."

Phil grinned, warm as a teddy bear.

Throwing caution to the wind, breaking the seatbelt law, she undid her buckle and slid next to him. "Take this next right."

"That leads up the hill to your house. Your car is still at school."

"If anyone asks, we'll say the battery died." Her voice rasped low, full of unspoken meaning. "Take me home, Phil."

He glanced down at her briefly, made the turn, and then lifted his arm and pulled her next to his ribcage. His hand rested on the side of her swelling belly.

They didn't utter a word as the truck ascended the mountain road, away from the city lights, toward her snug lake cabin. Country music filled the cab, throbbing out songs about lovers from Little Rock, Austin, and Baton Rouge. Phil's scent overtook Maddie's senses; her blood pulsed to the crooning tunes of George Strait and Garth Brooks. She closed her eyes and gave into it, allowing the swaying truck, heartbreak music, and solid man to stoke the fires of passion that simmered just below the surface.

Each turn of the road caused them to rub against each other and soon her hand found its way onto that chest she loved. Small circular caresses tickled her fingertips as they passed across the material covering the skin she longed to explore. She felt him take a shuddering breath and couldn't help smiling. She pulled her legs up onto the bench and tucked herself even deeper against him, gaining greater access to his shoulders, chest, and flat stomach. Needing to feel the real texture of him, her fingers crept to the edges of his shirt, pulling it out of the confines of his belt. Soon the life force under his skin filled the nerves of her fingers and palm, all of his heat moving up her arm, spreading to every fiber of her body.

"God, woman, if we don't get to your house soon, I'm going to have to pull over."

"Do you want me to stop?" she asked, making a long trail with a finger down his abdomen.

"No way. I just want you to know, you're going to get yours when I can take my hands off this steering wheel."

"I'm counting on it." She began raining small kisses along the side of his ribcage, bringing forth a loud, male groan.

Finally, the truck came to a screeching halt and she realized they'd made it up her long driveway while she'd been nibbling around his belly button. Two large hands grabbed her upper arms, spun her around and pulled her up to meet his hungry mouth. His tongue stroked and tasted as his hand cupped her breast, sending molten liquid between her legs.

This time the groan that filled the cab was female, definitely female.

Growing rapture and the promise of ecstasy was suddenly interrupted by a scratching and barking at the driver's side window. Lucifer, on patrol.

Maddie leaned her forehead onto Phil's chest, took a deep breath and sat up.

She straightened her clothes. "He's a very good watchdog."

"Swell."

"Do you want to come in?"

"Do you want me to come in?"

"If you don't, I think I'll die."

He grinned. "Well, we can't have that."

He opened the car door, forcing Lucifer back. He greeted and patted the black sentinel. Maddie hopped from her side. She dug through her purse for keys while chatting to Lucifer, who seemed to understand every word she said.

Phil took the key out of her hand as they reached the door, unlocked it, but didn't open it. Instead he turned around and faced her. "This is your last chance to bail out. You can still send me away. Once I step inside, I'm taking you straight to your bed. No cups of tea and polite conversation. I'll slip you between the sheets and the talk might get dirty."

Maddie's legs turned to jelly and she said in a breathy voice, "Sounds good to me."

The next thing she knew, Phil scooped her up and carried her across the dark house and into her bedroom.
Oh my, the big lug could be romantic.
He kicked the door closed in Lucifer's face. A canine whimper echoed from the hall. Poor doggy. Once Phil laid her on the soft bed, began unbuttoning her blouse and nuzzling her aching breasts with his hot mouth, she didn't think about the mundane details of life.

Yes, that feels marvelous. The Dream Man has returned
.

Clothes shed like falling leaves and soon the sensations of cool sheets and warm skin enveloped Maddie in a world she'd only imagined. Sensations piled on sensation. Tangy male scents mingled with the lavender potpourri. Phil's fingers explored the curves of her back and hips, smoothed the tender inner thighs.
Good heavens, who knew the back of knees could be so erotic?

His mouth nibbled her ear lobe. "You're the classiest babe I've even known. You even smell like a million bucks."

"I thought you were going to talk dirty."

"Something about you makes me want to clean up my act. I'll just have to let my actions speak louder than words."

His mouth found hers again, spinning coherent thoughts from her mind all together.
Tumble me, tease me, take me.

She melted and trembled. Carefully built walls around her heart cracked and crumbled.
Oh my God, I love him, I love him so much it hurts.

As his hand made circular motions over her stomach and inched lower and lower, she opened for him, wanting him, wet for him.

"Please, Phil…"