Real Romance (14 page)

He was sure that she'd be angry, that she'd discount him as a worthless fraud. But instead, she burst out laughing.

"Oh, David, I'm so glad."

"Glad? That I'm not well-read or—"

"David," she said, patting his chest, "I like you just the way you are." The fact that he wasn't into pretentious modern literature made him even more attractive than she'd found him to begin with. And to think, at one time she'd compared him to that unmentionable man now in New York.

David sighed and hugged her tighter. "Well, I'm glad that little mix-up with Cecil didn't do any lasting damage."

Marie wriggled out of his grasp and sat bolt upright in bed, clutching the blankets to her chest. "What mix-up? What are you talking about?"

"Well, I might as well tell you," he said, reaching over to massage her arm. "Now that we have an understanding."

She scooted over on the bed and withdrew from his reach.

"Hey," he said, his hand suspended in the darkness.

"David, tell me the truth. The whole truth, this time, about you and Cecil."

"Huh?"

"David," she said sternly, as if she were scolding a child.

"It's nothing," he said quickly. "Nothing, I swear. I didn't know the guy from Adam when I walked into the cafe looking for you. And then we got to making conversation. He, oh, brought me my coffee. I asked if he knew you, but he... what I mean is, he told me he had a way... that literary types liked him."

Marie humphed, but he continued. "Then he offered—I swear, I didn't ask—some recommendations on things I could read, an approach I could take to get a women like you interested."

"Like me, specifically?" she asked, crossing her arms in front of her.

"Holy cow... I mean, oh, boy. I mean, no, absolutely not."

She narrowed her eyes and wished she had her glasses.

"You don't think," he said, "I would have actually mentioned you by name? That I was interested, I mean? But I was. Boy, oh, boy, was I. From the moment you walked into my—"

"David," she said, unfolding her arms and crawling back over to him, "you can stop babbling now. I forgive you."

He lay there, feeling a little stunned, as she perched like a lioness and clambered on top of him.

"But I—" he said, as she began to tug down the sheet, "I just wanted a chance to explain."

"Don't worry," she said, stripping him naked on the bed. "I understand. It was natural. You figured since he was my boyfriend he'd—"

David reached up and put his hands on her shoulders. "Boyfriend?"

Marie settled her bare derriere on his thighs. "Didn't you know?" she asked innocently.

"I—uh—boyfriend? No way! When I asked you..."

"Guilty," she said, feeling anything but. "I guess we've both told our fair share of little white lies."

She looked down and spread her hands on his beautifully solid chest. He was without a doubt the handsomest man she'd known.

"Forgive me?" she asked, wriggling sensually.

"Oh, God, Marie," he said, grabbing her hips, "anything. Anything at all."

Chapter Thirteen

Marie found her glasses in the living room and stumbled to the kitchen, tracking the appetizing scent of frying bacon. She walked to the threshold, set her glasses on her nose and paused.

Mmm.
A blond Adonis was standing shirtless at her kitchen stove cooking up a breakfast that smelled divine.

He turned and smiled in her direction.

"Morning, wild thing. I was starting to wonder when you'd stumble out of bed."

She felt a warm sweep of color suffuse her face.

"Was I really that... wild?" she asked, tightening her robe and sidestepping to the coffeepot.

"Oh, baby," David said, coming over and drawing her into a bear hug. "Yes." He gave her a mischievous grin. "So," he said, leaning forward and giving her a hard smack on the lips, "what's your pleasure?"

"Why, David Lake," she said, looking up into his beautiful blue eyes and feeling as if she were drowning all over again, "I believe you know the answer to that."

"Yes, darling," he said, reaching behind her and playfully squeezing heir rump. "But what would you like for breakfast?"

"I... uh, coffee first," she said, still feeling foggy. Next time—and to look at him now there would certainly be a next time—she wanted to be as clear as day.

David motioned for her to sit at the breakfast table and brought her a cup of coffee. Black, just how she liked it.

"How did you know?"

"Manly intuition."

"No, I mean about the coffee," she said, hiding her blush behind her mug.

"I remembered from our coffee date."

Marie raised her brow.

"The endlessly clanking spoon."

"Oh," she said, with a giggle. She felt unnervingly silly. Like some wayward teenager who'd gotten away with doing something naughty in her parents' bed. She laughed out loud, realizing that was precisely what she'd done.

David walked over and set a plate of bacon, scrambled eggs, and toasted English muffins in front of her.

Marie brought her hands to her brilliant cheeks.

"Oh my, I don't think I've ever been cooked for before."

"Sweetheart," David said, leaning over and kissing her forehead. "Get used to it."

"But, wait! Oh my goodness..." Marie jumped to her feet, nearly upsetting the table.

"David! What time is it? I can't believe it, but I almost forgot I have to go to work!"

What couldn't she believe, Marie asked herself? That the most unforgettable man in her life had made her forget all about things like mundane responsibilities?

"Slow down there, honey," he said, pushing her back down into her chair. "Enjoy your meal. You won't be going to work or anywhere else today. Or so says local radio station WCVX."

She dropped back into her seat with a questioning look.

"Snow, Marie. The most beautiful snowfall I've seen in years. While we were heating things up last night—"

She didn't wait to hear the rest, dropping her napkin and running to the front door.

"Gracious," she said, throwing it wide. "A winter wonderland!"

A blanket of white covered the ground and delicate icicles hung from the trees, catching the color of the morning sky.

"Wanna play?" David asked, stealing up behind her and nuzzling her neck.

After breakfast they put on their coats and headed outside, and fortunately, David was the right size for Mark's old snow gear. They threw snowballs, raced circles around the big oak tree, and made snow angels on the ground when they were too tired to run anymore.

"My!" Marie said, panting as she ran back into the house. "Next time I face off against Mark and Johnny in a snowball fight, remind me to put you on my team."

"You got it," David said, laughing and peeling off his wet outer clothing. "Where shall I put these?"

"Here"—she took them—"in the dryer."

"Hmm, "David said, sneaking up behind her as she bent over the lint trap. "I've got some other parts that need warming up too."

"David Lake! Are you always this bad?" she asked without turning.

David reached forward and cupped her breasts in his hands. "Only with you."

Marie forgot all about loading the dryer and chased him back into the bedroom, where they stripped in record time and engaged in another hour-long sexual romp.

"Well!" she said, throwing herself belly down on the bed. "Now, what do we do for the rest of the afternoon?"

"How about Monopoly?" he asked, running a trailing finger down her back.

"Monopoly?" she asked with a giggle. "Are you serious?"

"Well, I like it, don't you? Sometimes when Deb and I were snowbound in Asheville, it was the only way we had to entertain ourselves."

Actually, when Marie thought about it, she and her brothers and sisters had spent an awful lot of time playing that game during the dreary winters.

"I get to be the banker!" Marie screeched, springing off the mattress and grabbing for her robe.

Hours later, they settled back in front of a blazing fire and sipped their hot cocoa.

"Today's been like a dream," Marie said.

"Yes," David answered. "Too bad the snow's melting."

She sighed heavily and rested her head against his arm. "Well, I suppose for both of us, duty calls. Your shop will be open tomorrow and so will mine."

"Uh-oh," David said, setting down his mug. "Are we getting to the part where you tell me it's time to go home?"

"Not on your life," she said, tightening her hand around his arm.

In fact, Marie realized with stunning clarity, she never wanted David to go home. Though it had been only twenty-four hours since the fiancé charade began, she was starting to realize that she didn't want to give it up. Not just the fabulous sexual attraction between them, but the other ways they related as well. David was easy to talk to, and fun-loving in a way that reminded her of her younger brothers. She'd never laughed so much with Paul, or—heaven knows—Cecil. With those two, she'd always felt as if they were observing her, just waiting somehow for the inevitable moment when she would slip up.

David, on the other hand, didn't seem to have a judgmental bone in his body. He took her for who she was and seemed to love every bit of it. What, oh what, had she done to deserve him?

"You're being awfully quiet," David said, bringing his feathery breath to her cheek.

"I was just thinking," she said into the firelight. "That other than our both hating
Silence In The Trees..."

David chuckled.

"You and I seem to have a lot in common."

"Yeah," he said, lightly kissing her hair. "And who knows? It's only the beginning."

A beginning without an end, Marie found herself hoping.

"For example, I bet you like oldies... classic rock. Seventies and eighties, mostly."

Her eyes widened behind her glasses. "Amazing! David, how did you—"

He threw his head back with a laugh. "Studied your CD collection earlier," he said with a stealthy grin. "While you were sleeping."

She shook her head and sipped from her cocoa.

"My point is," David continued. "I like that music, too. You and I must have twenty duplicate CDs."

"Really?"

David stopped talking and seemed to scrutinize her for a moment.

"What? What's wrong?" she asked, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

"You have the cutest little mustache."

"Mustache?" She touched a finger to her upper lip.

"Made out of cocoa, right—there."

He leaned over and gave her a sweeping kiss.

"David," she said, pressing back on his chest, "if you start that all over again, I'll never get you to leave."

"That's precisely what I'm counting on." And he kissed her again.

"So, how was your extended holiday?" Caroline asked, as David bounced into the shop the next morning.

"Dandy," he said, sweeping her into his arms and swirling her across the floor. "Just dandy!"

"Uh-oh," Caroline said, breaking free and shaking out her hemline. "Something tells me that you saw Marie. And that you two shared more than turkey."

"Yeah!" David said, catching an unsuspecting Caroline off guard with an exuberant high-five.

"So, what does this mean?" Caroline asked, steadying a hand on her hip. "Is today going to be one of those wedding planner days?"

David gave a hearty laugh as Caroline blew out an exasperated breath.

"Look, with the holiday rush upon us, I can't afford to give you any more time off."

"Not even," David asked, giving her a pleading smile, "for my honeymoon?"

Marie was dreamily thumbing through a bridal magazine in the employee lounge when Joanne walked over and tapped her on the shoulder.

"If you're looking for me," she said, "I think I'm a little old—
and experienced,
"she added with a whisper, "—to be wearing white."

She looked up in surprise and then her eyes darted to Joanne's finger.

The elderly woman proudly stuck out her left hand to display a glittering solitaire.

"Oh, Joanne!" Marie said, springing to her feet and wrapping the other woman in her arms. "I can hardly believe it! After all this time... Chad?" she asked.

Joanne's cheeks turned a dusty rose.

"Took me home to meet his children. His children, Marie! Over Thanksgiving. It turned out that his grandson and I both like the Grateful Dead. I think that clinched the deal."