Unnatural Relations (Lust and Lies Series, Book 1) (23 page)

She was stunned by how quickly he'd gone from compassionate to condemning. "I had
enough
nine years ago, but I have a child to protect, and if I'm forced to run again, I will." She tried to pull away from him, but he held her tighter.

"Forgive me. I didn't mean it the way it sounded. Of course you'll do whatever you must to protect Matt, but I don't want to think about you going anywhere when I've just found you. I won't let this guy or anyone else force you away from me without a fight."

"That's very sweet, but it's not your fight."

"Like hell, it's not," Kyle stated firmly then softened his words by stroking her hair. "The timing isn't right, I know, and I'm probably moving much too fast here, but I can't help it. I want you to know how I feel about you."

"I gave this a lot of thought while we were apart this week, and I came to the very logical conclusion that I had to wait awhile before saying certain things, but logic only works when I can't see your face or hold you in my arms."

"I love you, Barbara. It's as if I always have. I know I always will. You don't need to answer in any way tonight. I just wanted you to hear that at a time when you could be certain it wasn't lust making me say empty words."

It was good he didn't require an answer, for she had no idea what to say. At the moment she was too distraught over Russ's reappearance to even judge how his incredibly premature declaration made her feel.

"Now that I've said that much, I may as well finish. I told you why I never got married. I was waiting for that one special woman who would make me feel all the things love's supposed to make a person feel. I don't need any more time to know that you're that special woman and that I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

Barbara heard his words and knew they would make most women very happy, but they only served to make her uneasy. No matter how wonderful he was, it was much too soon. "Kyle, I—"

His fingers pressed to her lips. "Hush. I said I don't expect answers tonight and I meant that. But I think, especially under the circumstances, that you need to know how deep my feelings are for you, and that it doesn't have to be you against the world anymore. I want to stand with you to protect Matt. I want that maniac to know you're no longer alone and vulnerable. I've met his type before. He's really nothing but a bully, terrifying a woman and a child, and that kind tends to crawl away if he's faced with serious competition."

"That makes sense, but I would never consider marrying a man just for protection."

Again he touched her lips to silence her. "Of course not. But if you loved that man, the protection would be a nice fringe benefit, wouldn't it? So, for the moment, I want you to put everything I said into some back corner of your mind and just bring it out when you're ready to think about it. Deal?"

She couldn't help but return his smile. "Deal."

"Do you need to talk about anything else?"

She shook her head no.

"How about any other little secrets I should know, like your mother's an axe murderer or your father's the head of the Mafia?"

She wrinkled her nose at him. "Smart-ass. Not all Italians are Mafioso. It's only propaganda to keep all you WASP types in line. And no, I have no secrets left to tell. You now know every tiny detail of my life and I'd very much like to avoid any further conversation about me or my problems for the rest of the night."

"Good enough. Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but I think a change of plans is called for here. I was going to take you into the capital for a very romantic dinner followed by some very romantic dancing, but we could do that another night."

He accepted the slight twist of her mouth as her agreement. "Didn't you say there's a Chinese restaurant nearby that delivers?"

"The Chinese Garden. I could probably handle some wonton soup."

"Sounds good to me. You mentioned wanting to take a shower. How about if you go relax in a hot bath instead, with lots of bubbles if you've got them. Then put on something warm and comfortable. I'll take care of dinner."

"I'd be insane to refuse such a generous offer," she said with a laugh. "The number of the restaurant is on the board by the kitchen phone."

As she closed herself in the bathroom and turned on the water in the tub, she wondered if any other woman ever had a third date with a man like this one. When she first saw Kyle's car pull up, she was certain the evening would be a disaster because of Russ. Instead, Russ caused a change in their plans and, possibly, their entire relationship.

The best thing was that she could stop fretting over if and when and how to tell Kyle the truth and how he would react to it. They were suddenly past it and his reaction was far better than anything she had imagined it could be.

Sinking down into the bubble bath, she felt her tension float away in the steam. Kyle's romantic words replayed in her mind.
I love you, Barbara. I want to spend the rest of my life with you.
She had thought she never wanted to hear phrases like that again. With Howard, they represented a loss of independence and excruciating heartache. With Russ, they represented a twisted obsession that brought other kinds of pain.

What did those words mean coming from Kyle?

If nothing else, he had effectively distracted her from dwelling on Russ's visit. His words, his touch, his empathy had reduced the immediate threat to an annoyance that could be pushed aside.

He had assured her that she didn't need to respond tonight, but she knew her attitude toward having a man in her life had already begun to change, at least as far as Kyle Trent was concerned.

* * *

Kyle frowned at the piece of paper that had been added to the board by the phone. It only bore the name of a motel and a room number, but from what Barbara had told him, he knew where he could find Russ Latham.

If spending the night with Barbara weren't quite so important, he'd head over to that motel right now.

But, after all this time, renewing his acquaintance with Russ could wait another day or two.

* * *

"Barbara?" Kyle's voice broke into her thoughts from outside the bathroom door. "Dinner's ready whenever you are."

"I'll be right out." She could hardly believe it, but her watch showed that she'd been daydreaming for over a half hour. She hadn't even noticed how cool the water had become.

No longer certain where their evening was headed, she put on some pretty underwear, but covered it with a long,
un
sexy terry cloth robe.

Kyle gave her a light kiss as she reentered
the
living room. The first thing she noticed was that he had taken off his suit jacket and tie, and unbuttoned his shirt collar and cuffs. It took her eyes a few seconds more to adjust to the dimly lit scene he'd created. He had apparently found her stash of emergency candles and lit every one of them. In the flickering glow, she could see that he planned for them to sit on pillows on the floor and eat at the coffee table. There were a half dozen Chinese take-out containers beside two neat place settings, and the bottle of champagne he'd sent her had been opened and was propped in a bowl of ice.

"You didn't tell me you were a magician," she said with a delighted smile. "This is probably more romantic than any restaurant you could have taken me to." She stopped and heard sounds of the ocean and wind chimes in the background. "You even found my new age CD to eat Chinese food by."

"I didn't think you'd mind my foraging a little rather than interrupt your soak every couple seconds to ask for directions." He eased her into his embrace and massaged her lower back muscles. "Feel better?"

"Mmmm. That's nice," she said, relaxing against him. "Can I keep you?"

He chuckled. "That's what I'm hoping for."

She tipped her head back to explain that she hadn't meant it literally, but his lips pressed to hers before she could speak and then she forgot what she was going to say. As the kiss deepened, she felt his body changing and hers instinctively responded to its invitation.

Parting their mouths a fraction, he murmured, "Did someone just turn up the heat in here?"

"It was probably Elliot."

Kyle arched one eyebrow in question.

"Elliot is Matt's invisible friend, who he blames for anything from a missing sock to spilled milk."

"I'm pretty sure Elliot wasn't to blame this time," Kyle said with a grin, then reluctantly separated their bodies. "Evidence to the contrary, I really don't want to rush this." He held out his arm in gentlemanly fashion. "May I escort you to the table, madam?"

Hooking her arm through his, she replied, "By all means, kind sir. I'm suddenly quite famished."

Not knowing what she might like besides wonton soup, Kyle had ordered a variety of dishes. They both sampled every one without putting much of a dent into any of them. While they ate, Kyle told her how his day had gone, as he had nearly every day of that week.

She had no particular interest in the business and he didn't attempt to intrigue her with that sort of information. Instead, he told her stories about the people he'd met along the way. Always having been a student of people herself, she truly enjoyed listening to his descriptions of them and what he thought made them tick.

When she insisted she couldn't eat another bite, he unearthed the four plastic-wrapped fortune cookies that had come with their order and held them out to her. "Pick two."

She selected one. "I'll save the other one for Matt. He actually likes the taste of these things." She waited for Kyle to take one and set the other two aside before opening hers.

"What does yours say?" he asked.

"Read yours first."

His fortune made him laugh. "
You will be traveling in the future.
Well, that's true. Now yours."

She looked at the slip of paper in her hand and considered making up a prediction rather than reading what it said, but she didn't want to tell him any more lies, no matter how small. "
Confucius say, when love knocks at your door, answer it.
"

"Wise man, that Confucius."

She smirked at him. "I could have just as easily gotten yours. Then what would you have said?"

"That's easy. You probably will be traveling... with me. Where would you like to go on our honeymoon?"

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I think that question could be classified under
getting pushy
, and I distinctly remember you telling me I didn't have to give you answers tonight."

"You're absolutely right." He stood up and held out his hand to help her up. "Dance with me."

Her eyes rose to his. "Here?"

"There's enough room if we move the table."

She looked down at her robe and bare feet. "I'm not really dressed for it."

He took off his shoes and belt and pulled his shirt out of his pants. "Even?"

She giggled. Sloppy was definitely not his natural look. "Let me clean up the food first."

He stopped her from picking up his plate. "I will clear the table and move it. You pick out something slow to dance to."

She hadn't forgotten what dancing in public with him last Saturday had been like. She could only guess what dancing in private might mean. It called for nothing less than a sultry saxophone.

With the stage set and excuses eliminated, she stepped into his arms the moment he opened them to her. Instantly, she sensed the difference in his touch. He was no longer trying to comfort her or make her feel safe. In fact, the way his body felt pressed to hers was anything
but
safe.

Sometime between the second and third song her belt came untied and his hands slipped beneath the robe to stroke the bare skin of her back and trace the lace edges of her panties. Somehow the rest of his shirt buttons came undone and her fingers were free to discover the sprinkling of silky dark hairs across his firm chest and down the center of his abdomen.

The music continued to play and their bodies still swayed gently from side to side, but their feet had stopped moving some time ago. Barbara felt lightheaded, as if she were more than a little drunk. Having purposely limited her intake of champagne to two glasses, she knew it was not alcohol, but Kyle working his magic on her.

She loved the way he was taking his time to seduce all her senses. It was perfect—exactly the way it happened in romance novels—and, like one of the heroines from those books, she thought she might burn up in his arms if he didn't progress to kissing her soon. "Kyle?"

"Hmmm?"

The sound vibrated through her. "Can we quit pretending that we're dancing?"

He stopped moving completely and whispered in her ear. "This night is all for you, love. What would make you happy now?"

The question caught her off guard. He had initiated all the advances up to that moment, and she had expected him to continue to do so. "I... I'd like you to kiss me."

He smiled. "It would be my pleasure."

She hadn't thought it was possible, but within seconds he actually surpassed himself as the world's greatest kisser. Her knees were about to give out on her when he left her mouth to plant a trail of feathery kisses along her cheekbone.