Dreams: Part One (21 page)

“So you sold your pride and joy?“

Colby laughed softly and walked over to sink down beside her. “Don’t look so sad. It was a long time ago.“

“And now you drive a Jeep?“

“I like to take it off-roading. A man’s taste changes as he gets older.“ Colby leaned over her, easing her back onto the pillows and caging her with his hands. “Take you, for instance. I’m not sure I would have had the brains or the sense to properly appreciate you when I was nineteen. But now…“ He kissed her slowly, deeply, giving her time to respond.

“And now?“ she whispered huskily when he finally freed her mouth.

“Now I’m a lot older and wiser. And boy, do I appreciate you----“

Colby bent his head to kiss her again, and when she opened her mouth for him he slid his knee between her thighs.

Diana’s hand curved around his buttocks, urging him more tightly against her softness and she lifted her hips against his.

“I love the way you get so hot, so fast for me, honey. You make me crazy.“

“I’m the one who goes crazy,“ she whispered, guiding his head down to her breasts. She was already unbuttoning her shirt for him, freeing herself of her peach-colored bra. “You make me ache all over, do you know that, Colby?“

And then she was offering her breasts to him, demanding and pleading for his intimate attention. Colby felt his already taut body ignite. The knowledge that she needed him, wanted him, would give herself to him whenever he turned to her was almost too much to handle. The growing realization that he had only to touch her to know she was his sent flames roaring through him.

He gently sucked one sweet, tight nipple between his teeth and simultaneously reached down to unfasten his jeans and then hers. Together they slithered out of the restricting clothing and then they were clinging to each other.

When Diana reached down to stroke the hardened length of his manhood, Colby nearly lost his self-control. She had a way of pushing him to the edge, and he loved it.

“Here,“ he muttered, scrabbling about in the night-stand drawer for the little foil packet. “You put it on.“

“Me?“

“Yeah, you. Ill just lie here and go out of my mind.“

She laughed softly and knelt beside him. Colby knew he’d made a serious error the minute he realized what a long production she was going to make out of the simple action. But the delicious sensations she created as she worked carefully and gently over him almost made up for the agony of waiting.

Almost.

The instant she was done, Diana sat back and examined her handiwork with satisfaction. “A perfect fit. Not bad, if I do say so myself.“

Colby grinned, his teeth set as he struggled for self-control. “Come here and finish the job, you little witch.“

She raised her brows mockingly. “I thought the job was finished.“

“It’s just started.“ He pulled her across his thighs, his hands clenching luxuriously into her hips. “Now show me just how perfect the fit really is.“

Her eyes were bold and sensuous as she grasped him gently and began to ease him into her softness. He saw the glittering excitement in her, and it fed the flames of his own fire.

When she hesitated a little, teasing him unmercifully, Colby gave a soft, warning exclamation and then pulled her down abruptly, sinking himself to the hilt.

Diana bit back a gasp of excitement, and her head tipped back. She moved on him, setting the rhythm.

She guided his hands to where she wanted him to touch her and finally her whole body tightened.

When her lips parted, Colby quickly pulled her head down to his and stopped the delicious little screams with his mouth. He loved her beautiful cries of sensual surrender, but he knew she would be embarrassed later if she thought Brandon and Robyn had overheard.

Then he was exploding with her, gritting his teeth to stifle his own shout of satisfaction.

Together they drifted for a timeless moment. Colby kept his arms wrapped tightly around her, listening to her soft breathing and waiting for his body to glide back to normal.

“Now that’s how I want every quarrel between us to end,“ he stated finally.

Diana stretched. “I’ve always heard you’re not supposed to use sex to settle an argument.“

“We settled it before we got into bed.“

“Settled it?“ Diana propped herself up on her elbows and glowered down at him. “That’s what you call informing me that you’re not mad any longer, and therefore the fight is hereby declared over?“

“Hey, I apologized, didn’t I? Sort of?“

“You admitted you might have been a teeny-weeny bit out of line, but that’s all.“

He touched the tip of her nose with his forefinger. “I’ll let you in on a little secret, sweetheart. That kind of admission is more than most people ever get out of me.“

“Not used to admitting you might have overreacted, huh?“

“No. Because I generally don’t overreact. Fulbrook Corners and Margaret Fulbrook in particular are two of the few things on earth that can make me overreact.“

“So why are you here in Fulbrook Corners?“

“I wish to hell you’d stop asking me that question.“ Brandon’s sense of satisfaction and well-being began to fade rapidly. “I’ve told you a dozen times why I’m here. Let’s talk about something else before I get angry all over again.“

She crossed her arms, leaning on his broad chest. “What would you like to talk about?“

“The fact that you didn’t trust me to protect you from whoever is playing those pranks on you,“ he said coolly. “I think it’s time you learned to trust me, Diana.“

“I do trust you,“ she said seriously. “I wouldn’t be sleeping with you if I didn’t.“

He shook his head. “When we argued earlier today, your immediate reaction was to pack and leave. That’s not the kind of trust I had in mind.“

“I thought things were over between us,“ she said stiffly.

“Well, they aren’t,“ he growled.

“Trust works both ways, you know,“ she said quietly. “If you want me to trust you, I’ve got a right to expect trust in return.“

Colby was silent for a long moment. “Just because I lost my temper with you today doesn’t mean I don’t trust you.“

“Doesn’t it?“

“No.“

“Colby, I don’t want to argue any more today. I’ve had enough.“

He was instantly remorseful. “I know, baby, I know.“ He stroked her hair soothingly for a moment, but he was far from satisfied.

He knew now just how deeply ingrained her sense of independence and self-control were. When it came to dealing with men, she always went on the assumption that the male of the species could not be relied upon. So she’d learned how to take care of herself.

But it had become overwhelmingly important to get her to admit that he could take care of her.

Colby wondered how he was going to break through the last of her barriers. And he wondered if Diana realized how fast his own barriers were crumbling.

“What are you thinking, Colby?“ Diana asked a long time later.

“You’re supposed to be asleep.“ He cuddled her closer as she lay in the curve of his arm.

“So are you. What’s keeping you awake?“

“I’m thinking about those damned pranks some idiot played on you.“

“Any new ideas?“

“No, but I think I’ll go out to Gil Thorp’s place tomorrow. Eddy was no help, but Gil might have picked up a rumor or two. He used to be good at getting information.“ Colby grinned wryly in the darkness, remembering.

“Who’s Gil Thorp?“

“He used to be the sheriff around here twenty years ago. He and I had what you might call an adversarial business relationship.“

“What does that mean?“

“It means that every time I was conducting a little business out on River Road after midnight, Gil Thorp felt duty-bound to try to put a stop to it. Gil also didn’t like the way I drove through town at twice the speed limit, or the way I got into fights, or the way I used to hang out with Eddy Spooner.“

Diana shifted against him. “You don’t sound as if you particularly dislike him.“

“I don’t dislike him. I told you, we had an adversarial relationship, but Thorp always played fair, unlike several other folks around here. And sometimes, after he’d interrupted a race and sent everyone home, he’d make me sit in that beat-up old patrol car of his and we’d talk. He had a way of getting me to tell him things I had never told anyone else.

It was Gil who suggested I join the army.“

“He became the closest thing to a father figure you ever had, is that it?“

“It wasn’t exactly a close relationship, but he was there from time to time when I needed someone to tell me I’d gone too far or steer me clear of the kind of trouble that might have landed me in jail. One way or another, I probably owe Gil.“

“Have you kept in touch?“

“Some. Christmas cards. A letter once in a while. Like I said, it wasn’t really a close relationship. But he wasn’t a half-bad cop, all things considered. He had a way of getting information. Ill check with him tomorrow.“

“Colby?“

“Hmm?“

“One thing still doesn’t make sense about those pranks.“

“What?“

“The fact that they’ve been played against me, not you.“

He stroked her arm. “Honey, I’ve told you, anyone who knows me would be able to figure out in a hurry that one of the fastest ways to get at me would be through you.“

“I’m not so sure about that.“

She didn’t credit herself with enough power, he realized as he bent his head to kiss her. The woman was his weak spot, and she didn’t even realize it. Maybe it was just as well. Women could be the very devil when they sensed they had real power over a man.

Colby wondered if he was becoming a weak spot for the self-controlled little amazon he held in his arms.

Diana found herself at loose ends the next morning. Colby had taken the Jeep to go out to the Thorp ranch. Brandon and Robyn had gone on another hike, this time leaving Specter behind.

By eleven o’clock, Diana was worrying about the resumes she had planned to get in the mail that week.

“What do you say we walk over to the cottage, pick them up and take them into the post office, Specter?“

Specter was stretched out on the porch enjoying the morning sunlight. He didn’t look overly enthusiastic about the prospect of a walk, but he obligingly got to his feet.

Fifteen minutes later Diana opened the door of her cottage with some trepidation. She acknowledged to herself that she was a little afraid of finding that another prank had been played in her absence.

“Colby probably would not approve of us coming back here alone,“ she informed the dog. “He seems to be very big on playing bodyguard these days.“

Specter grunted, obviously unconcerned with Colby’s approval. He bounded straight into the house without any sign of concern and headed for the kitchen. Diana walked in behind him and found the dog nosing around the cupboard where his biscuits were kept.

She fed him two crunchy tidbits and then went into the living room to stuff a few resumes and covering letters into envelopes. Half an hour later she was ready.

“Okay, boy, let’s run these into town. If I don’t find a good job by September, I’ll be back at C and Y.“

The trip into town was uneventful. Diana sent the resumes off with a silent prayer for good luck and headed her compact car back across the bridge toward Aunt Jesse’s place. It was getting close to lunchtime. Brandon and Robyn would be hungry, and Colby might be back from visiting Gil Thorp.

She drove into the yard and parked the car. Specter jumped out and trotted toward Brandon who was sitting alone on the porch.

“I was wondering where you were,“ Brandon said cheerfully. “Figured you’d probably gone into town.“

“You were right. Where are Robyn and Colby?“

“Dad hasn’t come back yet. And Robyn took a book and went off into the woods to read again. Said she wanted to be alone for a while.“ Brandon looked at Diana. “She’s not real happy with the idea of waiting a little while longer before we make up our minds about marriage, you know. And she’s bored. Said she wants me to take her back to Portland.“

“That might be a good idea under the circumstances,“ Diana said quietly.

Then it hit her that Robyn was gone again, vanished into the woods with a book. Robyn had never been around during the periods when an intruder had been rearranging things in Diana’s cottage.

And the angry young woman could conceivably believe she had a motive to get even with Diana.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought, too,“ Brandon was saying. “I told her I’d drive her back tomorrow.“ He got out of his chair. “You want some lunch?“

“Sounds good, but I think I’ll wait,“ Diana said quickly. “I want to run back to my cottage for a few minutes. Uh, Brandon?“

“Yeah?“ He was opening the screen door.

“Do you happen to know if Robyn is still reading
Shock Value!“
As soon as she had asked the question, Diana would have given a fortune to be able to call back the words. Brandon was as bright as his father at times.

Brandon slowly turned to look at her, wariness and concern in his dark eyes. “That’s the book she took with her a little while ago.“

Diana tried to pass it off lightly. “One of these days, I’m going to have to finish that book myself. Colby is getting impatient. I keep telling him that it’s his fault it scares me to death, but I know he doesn’t think that’s much of an excuse. I’ll be back in a few minutes, Brandon. If you’re making tuna, make enough for me.“

Brandon walked to the edge of the porch. “Why aren’t you taking the car if you’re in a hurry, Diana?“

“The walk will do me good.“ She started down the steps.

“Diana, wait! I’ll come with you.“

She whirled to face him. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea, Brandon.“

He gave her a keen glance. “I want to know, too. I have a right to know if Robyn’s the one.“

Diana stared at him helplessly. “Brandon, I’m just going to pick up a few items I left behind last night. There’s no need for you to come along.“