Seducing the Wolf (36 page)

Moments later the curtains were shoved open, and Manning peered out at her.

Before she could say a word, he quickly opened the window and reached down to pull her inside. Even after he set her down on the floor, he kept his arms wrapped around her, crushing her against his warm body. She clung to him, burying her face in the worn softness of his T-shirt as she tried to commit his scent to memory. She wished she could remain there forever. The thought of leaving him was almost more than she could bear.

“Did I wake you up?” she asked softly.

“No. I couldn’t sleep.” He pressed his cheek against her hair for a long moment, then kissed her forehead and drew back to stare at her. The full moon outside the window cast shadows across his boyishly handsome face.

“I came to say goodbye again,” she whispered.

His nostrils flared, and his eyes glistened with unshed tears. “I wish you didn’t have to go,” he said fervently. “I wish you could stay here with your dad.”

“So do I,” Taylor whimpered.

“He’s sending you away to punish us for what happened to Micah.”

“No.” Taylor shook her head vehemently. “He wouldn’t do that.”

“Then why can’t you stay with him?” Manning’s voice was hoarse with anger and desperation. “You only have one more year left before you graduate. Why can’t he just let you stay here?”

“My mom wants me to come live with her. It was her idea.”

“Tell her you don’t wanna go,” Manning urged, stroking his hands down her hair. “Tell her you’d rather stay here for your senior year.”

“I did tell her,” Taylor reminded him. “I told both of them. But they wouldn’t listen to me. They’d already made up their minds.”

Manning stared down at her with a look of abject misery. As she felt another wave of tears coming on, he took her hand and led her over to his rumpled bed. She toed off her Converse sneakers and removed her glasses, setting them on his nightstand. Then he pulled her down with him, holding her close with his arm banded around her waist and her head laying on his broad chest.

It was the first time they’d ever lain in bed together. The first time…and the last.

“What am I gonna do without you, Tay?”

The raw agony in Manning’s voice broke her heart.

“You’re gonna be fine,” she bravely tried to reassure him. “You’re one of the most popular boys at school. You’ve already got a scholarship to Morehouse, and then after that you’ll go to MIT—”

“How can you even think that far ahead?”

“I have to. We both have to. Otherwise—” Her voice cracked, and she turned her face into his chest to smother the tears that spurted from her eyes.

Manning kissed her temple and hugged her closer.

After a long moment, she lifted her head and pressed her lips to his jaw. When he shuddered and closed his eyes, she whispered achingly, “Make love to me, Manning.”

Startled, he jerked his head back and stared at her. “Wh-What’d you say?”

She swallowed. “I want you to make love to me.”

“But…but I thought you were saving yourself for marriage.”

“I was. But I’m leaving tomorrow,” she choked out. “What if we never see each other again?”

“Don’t say that,” he whispered fiercely. “We are gonna see each other again!”

“But what if we don’t?”

He stared into her eyes for a long moment, then grabbed her face and kissed her so hard she lost her breath.

They were both panting when he pulled away and sat up, cursing softly.

“What’s wrong?”

He seemed embarrassed. “I don’t have any…”

“I do.” Taylor reached into the back pocket of her denim shorts and pulled out a foil packet. When she gave it to Manning, he eyed her questioningly.

She blushed hard. “I got it from Tru’s dresser drawer. I figured he kept a stash somewhere.”

Manning searched her face in the bright moonlight. “Are you absolutely sure this is what you want?”

“I am. You mean everything to me, Manning. I want you to be my first.” She gazed up at him, struck by a sudden fear. “Don’t you want me?”

“You know I do,” he said fervently.

“Then make love to me before I go. Please.”

He made a strangled sound in his throat. As he yanked her T-shirt over her head and unhooked her bra, she shimmied out of her shorts. When he gripped her underwear and slid it down her legs, goose bumps danced across her flesh. She watched as he pulled off his shorts and chucked them to the floor.

When she saw him fully naked for the first time, she felt a surge of panic.

“Taylor?” Sensing her anxiety, he touched her face. “Are you having second thoughts?”

“No. I wanna do it. I just…” She nervously licked her lips. “I…I don’t think you can fit.”

A ghost of a smile flickered across his face. Had she flattered him?

“Your body will stretch,” he gently explained. “But…”

She stared at him, wide-eyed. “But what?”

“It’s gonna hurt.”

“How much?”

“I’m not sure. A lot, I think.”

She gulped hard, then took a deep breath and nodded slowly. “Okay.”

He stroked her hair. “You sure?”

Again she nodded. “I trust you, Manning. And I want you.”

He made another one of those rough noises that sounded like a groan.

Laying back on the bed, she watched as he put on the condom, his hands shaking slightly. It comforted her to know that he was as nervous as she was.

Her heart thundered as he settled between her legs. Leaning down, he tenderly kissed her small breasts. She shivered with pleasure.

“You’re so beautiful, Tay,” he whispered, licking her puckered nipples. “So sweet and beautiful.”

She stopped breathing as he rose above her and slowly entered her. She felt a burning sensation as her body stretched around him. Biting her lip hard, she gripped his arms, feeling his muscles quiver as he pressed deeper into her.

Suddenly he paused, his eyes locking with hers. “I’m sorry,” he breathed.

Before she could wonder why he was apologizing, he pushed all the way inside her. The pain was searing, even worse than she’d always imagined. She cried out and squeezed her eyes shut as tears streamed down her temples.

“Taylor?” Manning whispered anxiously. “Are you okay? Does it hurt too much?”

She shook her head quickly. She could endure the pain because it was temporary. The pain of losing her brother would be with her forever.

“Do you wanna stop?”

“No,” she gasped, opening her eyes to stare up at Manning. “Don’t stop. Please…don’t stop.”

He lowered his head and kissed her tenderly. “The worst part’s over,” he murmured soothingly.

She nodded, willing her body to relax as he began moving inside her with exquisite slowness. He was infinitely gentle with her, making her feel as precious and fragile as a porcelain doll.

With their hands tightly linked, they stared at each other as a soft breeze wafted through the open window, cooling the sweat that soon gathered on their skin.

Taylor needed this so badly, needed relief from the pain and despair that had been devouring her soul since Micah’s death. In the days to come, when her grief and sorrow became too much for her, she would cherish the memory of this night. When nothing seemed right in her world, she would remember the sweet perfection of this moment…the moment she gave herself to Manning.

When it was over, he buried his damp face in her neck and whispered hoarsely, “I love you, Taylor.”

Tears spilled from her eyes. “I love you too, Manning.”

As he began sobbing quietly, her arms banded tight around him.

“Don’t ever forget me,” she pleaded tearfully.

“I won’t,” he promised fiercely. “I swear to God I won’t!”

Taylor opened her eyes, slowly surfacing from the bittersweet reverie.

Her cheeks were wet, and she tasted the salt of her own tears.

Wiping her face, she glanced self-consciously around the cabin of the plane. She was relieved that no one was looking at her.

When she took out her cell phone to check the time, she saw that Manning had sent her a text message.

I’m missing you like crazy. Come back to me.

She swallowed against the tightness in her throat, staring at what he’d written. With trembling fingers, she typed her response:
I never left…

25

T
urner Chastain was waiting for Taylor when she emerged from the airport terminal that afternoon. He was an attractive man, medium height with a walnut brown complexion, keen dark eyes and short black hair wisped with gray at the temples. Dressed casually in a white linen shirt with khaki trousers, he still looked fit enough to strap on his old Glock and chase down suspects that were half his age.

“Dad!” Taylor cried, rushing into his arms.

“There’s my baby girl!” His gravelly laugh enveloped her like his warm embrace. Stepping back, he looked her over and grinned broadly. “You look good for someone who’s coming off a nine-hour flight from Paris.”

Taylor shrugged, ignoring a pang of guilt. “I’m used to it.”

“Of course. You travel all the time. It was a direct flight, right? No layovers?”

“Right.” When Taylor had agreed to let her father pick her up from the airport, she’d had to devise a strategy to prevent him from uncovering her true whereabouts. She’d considered telling him that her connecting flight was out of Atlanta, but she knew that would have made him suspicious. In the end she’d decided that the best way to maintain her cover was to keep him from coming inside the terminal to get her. So she’d traveled with only a carry-on suitcase, eliminating the need to stop at baggage claim.

What a tangled web we weave
, she mused grimly, following her father as he rolled her luggage to the Chevrolet Tahoe parked at the busy curb.

“You’re definitely not your mother’s daughter,” Turner said with wry humor as he loaded her bag into the back. “Your mom never understood the concept of packing light. Whenever we traveled to visit family for Thanksgiving, she’d pack at least three weeks’ worth of clothes. Drove me crazy.”

Taylor grinned. “Well, I’m only staying for the weekend, so I don’t need that many outfits.”

Turner snorted. “That’s what I used to tell your mother.”

Taylor laughed, climbing into the SUV as her father got behind the wheel. He started the engine, then leaned over and affectionately kissed her forehead. “I’m glad you’re here, angel.”

She smiled at him. “Me too.”

“I wish you could stick around longer. Paris is a long way to come from for such a short stay.”

“I know, but I have to get back. I have other obligations.”

“I understand.” He winked at her. “My baby girl’s in demand.”

Taylor smiled weakly.

As they left Reagan National Airport bound for Georgetown, Turner said, “Are you hungry? I thought we could grab a late lunch before I drop you off at your mother’s.”

“That sounds good.” Taylor grinned. “I’m in the mood for a big, juicy burger.”

Turner laughed. “I know you so well, angel. A burger joint is exactly where we’re going. I told Tru to meet me there after he goes to see his commander on base. So we’re gonna surprise him.”

Taylor clapped her hands in delight. “
Yay!
”

Turner grinned teasingly. “I can’t tell whether you’re more excited about the burger or seeing your brother.”

Taylor pretended to mull it over. “Hmm. That’s a tough one.”

She and her father laughed.

“I still remember those Fridays when I picked you up early from school and took you to Fuddruckers for cheeseburgers,” Turner reminisced. “We had to keep it a secret because your mother didn’t want you eating junk food, and you weren’t allowed to have red meat more than three times a month.”

“I remember.” Taylor smiled ruefully. “She used to remind me that the women in her family had weight issues—”

“Give me a damn break,” Turner scoffed. “Your mother’s relatives are some down-home country folk with healthy curves. Nothing wrong with that.”

“I know,” Taylor agreed. “They’re all beautiful the way they are. But Mom was worried that those ‘country genes’ would catch up to me if she didn’t monitor everything I ate. She used to warn me that I wouldn’t be able to play the violin if I gained too much weight. She insisted that my appearance on stage was almost as important as how good my music sounded. Whenever I disagreed with her, she’d say to me, ‘When was the last time you saw an obese violinist?’ ”