Riverbend (31 page)

She pressed against him, arching her back, trying not to moan.

“You're so beautiful,” he said, his mouth at her neck. “And your skin is how I imagined it. So soft.”

And then he was inside her, thrusting slow and deep, their breath ragged in the quiet room. His hands were under her now, bringing her hips closer to him, thrusting hard. It was all she could do not to cry out as the intensity built, knowing she had to keep quiet with Alder in the other room.

“You're going to make me scream,” she whispered with a slight moan.

He moved his mouth over hers so that her screams were stifled as her climax came in shudders.

“Annie,” he whispered, his mouth hot on her neck as he exploded inside her.

He stayed inside her for a minute, brushing her lips with his before rolling over onto his back and putting his arm over his eyes.

She felt the cold come to her in an instant. Would he leave her? Would he shut down?

But he rolled to his side, resting his cheek in his hand. “Are you all right?”

She shifted so she could look at his face. “Are you going to bail on me?”

He played with a coil of her hair. “I don't know.”

The fear crept inside her. Here it was. The beginning of the end. And she'd been so happy for a moment. One brief moment of happiness. She wouldn't get another. She turned away, rolling on her back. “I knew this was coming.”

He moved so that he was over her, peering into her eyes. “But I'm going to try. For you. But it might be rough going. Will you hang in there with me?”

Happiness like a cloud moving away from the sun burst inside her. “Yes. I will.”

“Can we just take it one day at a time?”

“Isn't that the only choice any of us have?” she asked.

“I suppose.” He kissed her again before stopping abruptly. “What do we tell Alder?”

“Nothing, for now,” she said. “I can't risk him having his heart broken.”

His eyes were sad. “You don't trust me.”

“I can't risk him getting hurt until I know if you're in or not.”

“I understand.”

“Kiss me again,” she said.

And so he did. By the time the sun rose that morning, they were spent and tired, resting in one another's arms.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

A WEEK LATER,
on a Monday afternoon, Annie and Drake were at his river spot watching Alder jump from the rock, careful not to touch one another in front of the boy except for the moments he was under water. At one such point, Drake leaned over and gave her a quick kiss.

“You smell like one of those fruity drinks they serve in Hawaii,” he said.

“That sounds good.”

He reached into the cooler and pulled out a turkey sandwich wrapped in plastic and handed it to her. “Eat this?”

She took it from him and unwrapped it, taking a bite, knowing he worried about her.

“I have to go out of town this afternoon,” said Drake. “I won't be back until tomorrow afternoon.”

“Overnight? But why? Where?”

“Just some business I need to take care of.”

She felt the anxiety start, rising from her belly up to her chest. Why would he leave? What business could he possibly have? “But we'll be here alone.” She pulled the plastic wrap over the uneaten sandwich and threw it into the cooler. “You should close the cooler. Things can go bad in this heat in a matter of moments.”

“No one can get in here. You two will just have to stay put.” He took her sandwich out of the cooler and tossed it onto her lap. “Eat this.”

She didn't say anything, swallowing air despite the ache at the back of her throat, and tossed the sandwich back into the cooler.
“I'm not hungry.”

“It's nothing for you to worry over.” He closed the lid of the cooler without meeting her gaze. “Just something I have to take care of.”

“And none of my business. Is this how it is again? More secrets?” She got up from her chair, hot and angry, and waded into the river.

He followed her into the water. Alder waved to them from the rock. “You guys coming in?”

“In a minute, bud,” Drake called out to him. To her, he said, his voice low, “Don't be mad. It's not what you think.”

“What do I think exactly?”

“That I'm bailing on you.”

“I just want you to tell me the truth.”

“I always do. I always will. It's just this one time I can't. But it'll all be clear soon.”

She waded farther into the water and dove deep, letting the cool water wash over her. But it did nothing to soothe her broken nerves. He was leaving her. Maybe he'd never come back. Why had she allowed him in?

When she swam to the surface he was still standing in the same spot. “Annie. Please. You're overreacting.”

“Am I?” She pushed wet curls from her face, talking quietly so Alder wouldn't hear them. “Or is it that I shouldn't trust you?”

He shook his head, his expression both frustrated and miffed. “You can choose to trust or not. I'm the same man this afternoon as I was this morning. You can count on that.”

“If you're leaving, we should get back up to the house. It's noon already.”

Looking helpless, he turned towards the shore. “Fine. But I'm telling you, it's not what you think.”

Later, after a shower, Annie sat on the chair in her sitting room, combing through her wet hair, her mind reeling, when there was a light knock on the door. “Can I come in?” asked Drake.

“Yeah.” She remained sitting.

“Are you still mad?” he asked as he entered the room.

The truth was, she wasn't. She was scared. “No,” she said, her voice breaking. She brushed aside the tears that slid from under hot eyelids.

He knelt by her chair and took her free hand. “I'll be back by this time tomorrow. I promise. You'll both be safe here. This is why I timed my trip for your days off.”

“But I thought you couldn't go places.”

“Sweetheart, that was before. You've changed everything. That's all you need to really know.”

He said goodbye to Alder in the house and Annie walked him to his car. He held her tight for a moment. “I'll call you later, okay?”

“Okay.”

It was close to dinnertime when Sharon called Annie on her cell phone. “Is it okay if I come by?” asked Sharon.

“Drake's not here.”

“That's fine. I want to talk to you, actually. I'm like two minutes from Drake's driveway.”

“Buzz me when you get there and I'll let you in,” said Annie, stifling a sigh. She didn't feel like company. And she'd promised Alder meatball sandwiches and a movie. Maybe Sharon wouldn't stay long.

A few minutes later, Sharon sat in the kitchen, her hands fluttering atop the counter. “I need some advice.”

“Really?” Annie had a feeling she knew what was next. Mike.

Sharon turned slightly pink and looked down at her hands. “Here's the thing. I like Mike. I mean, really like him. And I think he likes me. But I don't know for sure. You see, we've spent all this time together. He's taken me to dinner and for drives and walks and everything but he has yet to kiss me. Or even hold my hand. I don't know what to do.”

“Have you thought about trying to kiss him?”

She shook her head, looking mortified. “I'm too afraid of
rejection.”

Annie cut thick slices of freshly baked French bread and, after painting them with olive oil, put them in the oven. “I don't know if it's my place to say this, but I know for a fact Mike likes you.”

“Really?”

“Really. He told me a month ago. At the party we had here.”

“Then why hasn't he tried to kiss me?”

“I don't know. Maybe he's afraid of rejection, too.”

“Maybe.”

“So you need to do it yourself.”

Sharon got up from the counter, pacing back and forth. “Do you know how long it's been since I had feelings for someone? I didn't think it was possible after I lost my husband.”

“When do you see Mike next?”

“Tonight.”

“Make your move.”

A determined look crossed her face. “Yes. Dammit, you're right. I'm going for it. Tonight.”

After Sharon left, Annie made meatballs from a mixture of ground pork and beef and sauce she had in the refrigerator from days before. After Alder gobbled down two of them, she put him to bed even though it was an hour before his usual bedtime. For once he didn't protest, greedy as he was for another chapter of
Huck Finn
. “Can I stay up as late as I want, Mom, if I'm reading?” He settled back onto the pillows, holding the book in both hands.

“Sure.” He'd fall asleep when he was tired enough. She sat on the side of the bed, playing with his hair. How had he grown so big? It felt only a day ago that he was a toddler with chubby cheeks and soft, pliable limbs. And when had he lost the baby smell? If only she could remember the exact moment.

“Mom, where did Drake go?”

“He had some business to attend to. He'll be back tomorrow.”

“Yeah, I know. I'm not worried.”

“You're not?”

“Nah. Drake Webber is the type of man who does what he says he's going to do.” He paused, thumbing the pages of the book. “And
you shouldn't worry either.”

I hope you're right
, she thought, avoiding eye contact. Why had he said this?
Did he know about them?

“Goodnight, sweetie.”

“Goodnight, Mom.”

She wandered into the front room, where
Jane Eyre
was sitting on the coffee table. But she didn't want to sit on the couch without Drake.
Maybe a glass of wine would relax me
, she thought.
Take my mind off Drake.
In the kitchen, she poured a glass from a chilled bottle of white and went to her sitting room, with
Jane
tucked under her arm. She had just managed to get lost in the story when she heard her cell phone ringing.
Drake
. She picked it up without looking at the number.

“You lonely with your boyfriend out of town?”
Marco
. Her heart thudded. Her mouth went dry.

“What do you want?” she whispered.

“You know what I want and I plan to get it. Hiding out there on rich boy's mountain isn't going to save you forever. One of these days you'll slip up and I'll be there.”

She hung up the phone, her breathing shallow and her heart pounding. “Please don't call back,” she said out loud.

The phone rang again.
Drake Webber.

“Hi.” She began to cry.

“What's happened?”

“He called.”

“Dammit.”

“He knew you were out of town.”

“How could he possibly know that?”

“I don't know. I don't know.” She sobbed, rocking back and forth. The book tumbled to the floor.

“Listen to me. I'm coming home. I'll be home in three hours if I leave now.”

“Where are you?”

“I'll tell you when I get back.” He paused; there was a shuffling sound like he had shifted the phone from one ear to the other. “You're safe at my house. Just remember that. I'll get there as fast as I can.”

At midnight, she heard Drake's key in the front door. Annie greeted him by throwing her arms around his neck. He slammed the door shut with his foot, dropped his bag, and pulled her into his arms. “I'm sorry,” he said into her hair. “I shouldn't have left you alone.”

“Why did you go, Drake? Please just tell me the truth.”

“I will.” He ran his thumbs under her eyes. “Have you been crying all night?”

“Yeah. On and off. First about you. Then Marco.”

“You shouldn't cry about me ever again.” He took her by the hand and led her down the hallway to her room, where he closed the door and locked it. He pushed her gently towards the bedroom. Once there, he took a pair of her pajamas from the drawer and tossed them to her as she perched on the side of the bed. “Put these on and get into bed.”

She stood in the middle of the room, suddenly so tired she couldn't think how to get from dressed to undressed to donning pajamas. “Come here,” he said. She went to him, standing between his legs and resting her hands on his thighs. “Lift your arms.” She did so, and he tugged off her T-shirt, kissing her collarbone and trailing up her neck until she shivered and gave him all her body weight as if she might gather enough of his strength to see a way forward. Just that. Forward momentum. Into bed. Into Drake's arms. Into another day. “Take off your shorts and put on these pajamas,” he said.