Stroke of Love (10 page)

She breathed heavily against his lips, her eyes searching for more answers. Sage’s heart ached. He pushed himself up to a sitting position and leaned his elbows on his knees, then rested his forehead in his palm.
I’m doing the right thing.
Kate drew herself up next to him, worry coming off of her in waves. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close.

“You okay?” he asked.

“Mm-hm.”

Bullshit
. He drew her chin toward him, pinning her with his gaze. “This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, Kate. I want to take you into your cabin and make love to you until you forget your name. Hell, until I forget my name, which if those kisses were any indication, wouldn’t take very long at all, but I’m not willing to chance you thinking anything bad about me.”

“Okay.” Her voice was a shaky thread.

“If we were in New York, I’d want to take you out, get to know you. Here…” He looked around. “I don’t know. You’re so…” He drew his eyebrows together, feeling completely inept at stringing words together. “I have a feeling you’re anything but a fling, Kate, and I want you to know that. To feel it. But here? How do I show you that?”

Her eyes searched his, and Sage read the disappointment in them and in her body language as she pulled away.

“It’s not you. Jesus, you’re gorgeous, and your kisses are like heaven. You’re…” He smiled, unable to lie. “You’re frustrating and strong, and soft and feminine and, Kate, I might be making the biggest mistake of my life by stopping us here. Now. You might wake up tomorrow and want nothing more to do with me, but I have to do what feels right. I’m willing to chance it.”

She turned to face him, her knees brushing his legs, causing his chest to constrict. She placed her palm on his cheek and closed her eyes, a sigh slipping from her lips. When she opened her eyes, the worry was gone.

“I’ve been wanting to do that,” she whispered. “Not just the kiss, but to touch your cheek.”

He covered her hand with his and pressed it to his cheek, unable to find a single word to fill the silence. They sat together for a long time, her body tucked beneath his arm, her head on his shoulder, and Sage was in no rush to break their connection. Eventually they made their way to Kate’s hut. When they reached the door, Sage forced himself not to go inside.

Kate opened the screen door and stood inside her room with the door open, their hands still clasped, the threshold of the door a barrier between them. “You can come in.”

He was rooted to the porch. If he took one step inside, he knew he wouldn’t leave. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it, then did the safe thing and pulled her to him. On the porch. Cheek to cheek, chest to chest.

He kissed her deeply, feeling his resolve chipping away with each stroke of her tongue. She pressed her hips to his. It would be so easy. Three steps and they’d be across the floor. Two more and they’d have reached her bed. Then he could touch her, fall into her warmth, and love her until they were both too exhausted to think. She made a sexy little moan, and it brought him back to his senses.

He pulled back again. “Kate.” He kissed her again. “I can’t.”
Jesus. What guy would turn her away like this?

She bit her lower lip and looked up at him through her thick lashes.

“Jesus, I want to carry you to that bed and make love to you right now. This second. But damn it, Kate. I want you to know what kind of person I am before we come together. I can’t be close to you knowing that you think I’m someone I’m not.” He kissed her dimple. God, he’d wanted to do that since he first saw her.

She nodded. “Okay.” Her voice was barely a whisper.

“Okay.” He kissed her again, then opened the screen door for her and closed it after she was inside. She pressed her hand against the screen and he did the same. If he didn’t go now, he was going to walk right through that door. He blew her a kiss and turned away.

With each step as he walked away, he told himself he was doing the right thing. He turned back at the bottom of the steps. Kate stood inside, her hand still pressed to the screen. He blew her another kiss, then took his leave, feeling like he had just found the person he never wanted to be without and knowing just how crazy of a thought that was.

KATE AWOKE THE next morning filled with adrenaline. Despite the drinking. Despite the fact that Sage had turned her down.
Again
. Everything he had said and done the night before had waylaid any worries she’d had about him. She danced to the radio as she showered and dressed, feeling as if new life had been breathed into her lungs. She touched her lips, remembering the feel of his, the sensuous way he’d kissed her and the way she’d lain in bed craving his touch for hours after he’d gone.

She turned off the radio and met Luce at the mess hall for breakfast.

“Press comes in today.” Luce took a long sip of her coffee.

“Mm-hmm.” Kate’s heart slammed against her chest as she eyed the door. Nervous and excited about seeing Sage again. She had no idea how she was supposed to act around him.

“You okay?” Luce asked.

“What?” Kate twisted the ends of her hair.

“What is going on with you? You’re off in la-la land. Am I missing something?”

“What? No.” She sighed, wishing Sage would come through the door. “I heard you. Press comes in today. The celebs might even be up before noon.”

“They have strict orders to be up and ready by nine. Camera and makeup crew should be here by ten.” Luce touched Kate’s hand across the table. “A watched pot never boils.”

She drew her eyes from the doorway. “I know. I know.”
Oh shit
. “You know?”

“Now I do.” She arched a brow. “Spill.”

“Nothing happened.” She leaned across the table and whispered, “Again.”

“Nothing?”

“Well, we kissed. Oh my God, did we kiss, but not…you know. He got all chivalrous on me. He’s so…He just wants to do the right thing, I guess. I’m so freaking nervous. I mean,
ugh
. How am I supposed to act? You know what I mean?”

“Yeah, I know, and you’re about to find out.” Luce nodded toward Sage as he walked into the mess hall with Clayton. Clayton’s eyes were puffy, his walk sluggish—evidence of a night spent awake—in stark contrast to the serious look on Sage’s face as he scanned the room and headed directly over to Kate and Luce. Penelope and Cassidy were right behind them.

Sage leaned down and kissed Kate’s cheek. “Good morning.”

Momentarily stunned by his openness, Kate stammered, “Um…uh…hi.” She felt her cheeks flush, and when he rested his hand on her shoulder, her eyes shifted to Penelope, catching the virtual daggers being tossed her way.
Great
.

“Do you mind if I join you after I get coffee?” he asked.

“We’ve got a seat right there with your name on it.” Luce pointed to the chair beside Kate’s.

He squeezed her shoulder. “Be right back. Can I get you anything?”

Still unable to speak, Kate slid a pleading look to Luce.

“We’re good. Thanks,” Luce said. She watched Sage walk away and then snapped her attention back to Kate. “Jesus, I’ve never seen you like this.”

“I know,” she said in a harsh whisper. “It’s like he sucks my brain cells away. I’m so embarrassed.”

“Well, get your shit together before he comes back. Seriously, Kate, and, by the way, you are the cat’s meow right now, causing man-envy from the pretties over there.” She lifted her chin toward the celebs.

“Great, so they think I’m an easy lay.”
Just what I need, a reputation I can’t even live up to.

“Do you really care? You know the truth, and that handsome man knows the truth. Besides me, who else matters?”

Kate glanced at the celebs, feeling a sliver of pleasure tingle her nerves at being the woman Sage chose to be with. With that thought, she pulled her shoulders back and let out a long breath.

Sage sat beside her and draped his arm over the back of her chair, sending another shiver through Kate’s body. His biceps stretched the sleeves of his T-shirt to the shredding point, the outline of his pecs and abs evident beneath the thin cotton. Kate wanted to reach out and touch his chest. She wanted to feel the beat of her heart against his again.

“What’s on our Punta Palacia plate today, mentor?” He sipped his coffee and smiled at Kate.

She hadn’t experienced a racing pulse or fluttering belly from a guy since she was in college and her sophomore crush asked her out. Her crush had been exterminated in the first twenty minutes of their date, when he’d cornered her in the elevator on their way downstairs and groped her. She didn’t know what she’d expected, but something more than being groped before they’d even had a conversation, that was for sure. Now, with Sage, she had a hard time pushing the desires that she’d been suppressing from coming forward. She
wanted
to be groped. Hell, she wanted so much more. She couldn’t look at his lips without remembering the taste of them or the feel of them against her neck.

She forced herself to speak like a normal, not lust-driven, person. “Press arrives today, so there’ll be a bit of mania around them, of course.”

“Press. Hm.” Sage took a drink of his coffee. “Any chance I can avoid that?”

“Don’t you want to be in the papers? You’re doing the most work of all of them here. It would be really good publicity for you,” Luce added.

“I didn’t even let my PR rep know I was coming here, Luce. The last thing I want is to be pressured into taking trips for press purposes. That’s when people become jaded. Doing things because they have to rather than because they want to.” He slid his hand from the back of Kate’s chair to her shoulder and gently rubbed his hand across her back. “I would really like to avoid ever becoming that person.”

Luce tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and glanced at Kate. Kate knew Luce’s heart was melting as quickly as her own was. The feel of his fingers against her back was comforting and electrifying at the same time.

“Sure, um. When I have their schedule, I’ll let you know, and you can sort of maneuver around where they’re gonna be.” Kate nearly sighed aloud when his entire hand rounded her shoulder and pulled her close. When his lips touched her temple, the sigh broke free.

“Thank you,” he said softly.

THE TOWN HADN’T felt quite so small before the press moved in. Sage did his best to avoid them, but it seemed that they were everywhere. They filtered through the town and invaded the school and the compound. He needed a break. Between the heat and the stress of their presence, he wished there was a cave he could hide in. And as he watched the craziness come to life, he realized that while he loved the idea of helping developing nations and villages like Punta Palacia, he wanted to do so without the hype or the recognition.

He returned to the mess hall a few hours after lunch, figuring he’d missed the worst of the press, and grabbed two bottles of cold water. Sylvia was in the kitchen making corn tortillas.

“Hi, Sylvia. Are you getting any peace?”

She shook her head. Her apron was covered with powder, and her large, capable hands worked the dough with practiced skill. “It happens every time,” she said. “They think they own the place.” She shook her head again.

“Yeah. I’m sorry you have to go through this. They’ll be gone soon.”

He turned to leave and ran smack into Penelope’s chest.
Damn it
. Last night she hadn’t taken his refusal to come into her room very well. She’d been downright pissed, and she hadn’t tried to hide the fact, calling him a coward and accusing him of being less than a man.

He steeled himself for her wrath. “Sorry, Penelope. I didn’t realize you were there.”

The clicking of cameras sounded from the doorway.

“For Christ’s sake.” He masked his anger and plastered a fake smile on his lips as he made his way out the door. He wasn’t on their list of celebrities to photograph or interview, and as they followed him, snapping picture after picture, he grew angrier by the second.

“Mr. Remington,” someone called after him. “Care to give us a statement?”

Sage stopped and turned back around. “Yes, actually. I’d love to, but only if you will then keep me off your radar. I’m not here for the press, and I’d like to make it through the day without having to dodge cameras.” He knew they’d take the bait. Everyone wanted what they couldn’t have, and because Sage kept his press contact to a minimum, he was their van Gogh.

“You’ve got it.” A short, red-haired man held a microphone at the ready. Two other men and a woman had pen and paper in hand.

Sage pulled his shoulders back and looked into one of the cameras with a serious stare. “The people of Punta Palacia have been gracious enough to invite and accept us into their community. We’re fortunate to have the honor of being here, under the generous tutelage of people like Kate Paletto and Caleb Forman, who have given years of their lives to help the community without the promise of anything more than a place to rest their bodies at night. Those are the people who deserve to be recognized for their efforts.” He turned on his heel and stalked away.

Luce caught up to him at the edge of the road—not that he had any idea where he was going, but he had to get away from the story-hungry leeches behind him.

“You know you’re going to have a shit storm to deal with one way or another, right?”

“Why? For telling the truth?” He walked at a quick pace.

“You never give impromptu interviews. You’re a million miles from home without your PR rep guiding you on what to say, and you just gave them what you thought was a simple, honest statement.” Luce shook her head. “They’ll either clip it and post it with a picture of you scowling and make it appear that you don’t appreciate being here, or they’ll slap a photo of you and Penelope on the front page with the headline
Sage and Penny, the New Humanitarian Couple!
”

Sage shot her an angry look. When they reached the town, he kept going. “Don’t you have to handle your people or something?”

Luce laughed. “They have enough handlers today. Besides, I gave them my spiel earlier this morning and advised the makeup and clothing teams of what was appropriate. Penelope can fuck this up all on her own, and I’m not Clayton or Cassidy’s rep, so whatever they do, they can deal with. I’ll deal with Penelope’s mess once I see what hits the fan.” She hurried to keep up with him. “Where are you heading, anyway?”