The flush on her cheeks deepened when he slipped a hand inside her shorts, finding the soft fluff between her legs. She arched into his caress, her breathing ragged.
He'd been teasing earlier. He had every intention of giving her a quick kiss and then getting some business done while she was in the shower. But Hattie was smarter than he was. Clearly a kiss wasn't enough.
He ripped at the zipper on her shorts, jerking it down and removing those and her panties in one quick maneuver. Seconds later, he had her beneath him as he settled between her legs. Hearing her chant his name in soft whispers went straight to his gut. Somewhere deep in the recesses of his brain he realized this was dangerous. This mindless, desperate urge to take her. But he couldn't stop. Didn't want to.
He entered her a bare inch and hesitated, his body racked with tremors. Her eyes fluttered shut. He touched her cheek. "Look at me, Hattie."
She complied, her eyes cloudy and unfocused. He went an inch deeper, and they groaned in unison. She panted, her chest rising and falling rapidly, but she held his gaze.
Struggling for almost nonexistent control, he stroked her cheekbone. "We have to deal with this."
Her head moved slowly in a gesture that could have been agreement or denial. "You talk too much." She grabbed a handful of his hair, pulling his head down for a kiss. "Just get on with it."
The breathless demand snapped his feeble efforts to maintain any kind of sanity. If she wanted it, he'd give it to her. No questions asked. He drove deeper into the hot, tight warmth of her, wanting desperately to make it last longer, but realizing with a sort of incredulous despair that he was losing the battle.
He gritted his teeth, holding back the scalding rush of pleasure. But Hattie's sudden cry and his own body defeated him. He surged harder, blindly emptying himself until he felt blackness close in around him.
A long time later he rolled off of her and flopped onto his back on the plush carpet, staring at the ceiling fan rotating overhead. He felt Hattie's fingers twine with his, and heard her voice, filled with unmistakable amusement. "Now I really need a shower."
He laughed, stung by chagrin at his emotionally reckless behavior but filled with a deep, boneless contentment. He glanced at his watch and swore. "I have to make two quick calls. But I won't be long, I promise."
She leaned over to kiss him. "It's okay, Luc. Really."
"And was it okay that I took you like a wild man?"
"You were pretty intense."
Remorse rode him for not even fully undressing her. "What can I say? You're a temptress."
She looked down at her rumpled clothes and rolled her eyes. "Oh, yeah … that's it."
He stood up, and she followed suit as they each adjusted their clothing. Though he wanted nothing more than to drag her into the bedroom, he resisted the urge. Unless he knew for sure that Hattie was falling for him, he'd be well-advised to rein in his sexual enthusiasm.
But he couldn't resist the urge to woo her. "Why don't we go somewhere fancy for dinner? We can talk about your situation, maybe dance a little … "
Her expression was difficult to read. "That would be nice."
"And we can relax by the pool this afternoon. I'll get Marcel to serve us lunch out there."
"Sure."
He watched her turn toward the bedroom. "I could join you in the shower," he said, consigning his phone calls to the devil.
Hattie shook her head. "Do what you have to do. We've got plenty of time."
Luc let her go for the moment. She was his, body and soul. Perhaps she didn't know it yet, but he would fight dirty if he had to. He wouldn't lose her … . Not again.
Hattie stepped under the strong, stinging spray of the shower and luxuriated in the hot, steamy flow of water. It was amazing what twenty-four hours of deprivation could accomplish. She would never have made it on that TV survivor show. Never mind eating bugs; she would have begged to be voted off after the second day just so she could be clean again.
She dried off with one of the inn's sinfully thick towels. A nap sounded appealing, but she wasn't prepared to give up a day of sunbathing. Donning a robe, she returned to the bedroom and rummaged in her suitcase for the only swimsuit she had not yet worn. It wasn't at all skimpy by today's standards, but the shiny gold fabric clung to her body like a second skin. When Luc appeared in the doorway, his jaw actually dropped. "Tell me you're not wearing that thing outside our room."
She grinned, and then summoned a pout. "I thought you would love it."
He strode toward her. "Love it, hell. When a suit looks like that on a woman, the designer's only motivation is to drive men insane." He skimmed his hands over her body. "Good Lord. It feels like you're naked." He smoothed her bottom. "Are you sure you want to go to the pool? It's nice and quiet and cool up here in our room."
Though the coaxing note in his voice made her knees weak, Hattie held him at arm's length. "I want to go home with at least a semblance of a tan. So I refuse to be distracted by your masculine charms."
He lifted an eyebrow. "You think I'm charming?"
"I think I've made that pretty obvious this week."
He laughed, and for a brief second, she wondered if he felt anything more for her than lust. His actions seemed to indicate affection, but nothing he had said in any context contradicted his earlier plan to make their marriage temporary.
She wanted so badly to say the words swelling in her heart, but she chickened out. It was still too soon.
When Luc's cell phone rang she headed for the door. "You get that if you want to. I'll be out at the pool."
The concern in his words when he spoke with the caller stopped Hattie dead in her tracks.
The conversation was brief. Luc hung up, his expression serious.
Her skin chilled. "What's wrong?"
"The baby's running a temperature."
Hattie sank onto the sofa. "How bad?"
"A hundred and three. It's probably just a virus. They're on the way to a pediatrician right now. Ana wasn't unduly concerned, but she was sure you'd want to know."
"I do. Of course."
Luc eyed her. "What are you thinking?"
She winced, feeling ungrateful for all he had done. "Do you mind if we go home? I need to be with her … to make sure she's okay."
He nodded. "I thought as much. Start packing, and I'll see what kind of flights I can find."
Seventeen
It was almost midnight when they made it back to Atlanta and drove from the airport to the house. Leo was on hand to pick them up since they didn't have a car. He and Luc sat in the front. Hattie in the back.
Leo looked over his shoulder. "How was Key West?"
"Very nice," she replied, refusing to be baited.
The two brothers chuckled in unison. Hattie pretended a sudden interest in the passing scenery.
Leo helped unload the luggage into the foyer, shook Luc's hand and kissed Hattie on the cheek. "Let me know how Deedee is. I'll be at the office in the morning."
As he drove off, Hattie yawned. Ana met them in the hallway, not waiting to be asked for an update. "She's sleeping. The doctor says it's a bad ear infection. She may need surgery to have tubes put in."
Tears sprang to Hattie's eyes, a reaction to fatigue and the thought of having her small baby put to sleep.
Luc put his arm around her. "We'll deal with that when the time comes. Thank you, Ana. Hattie and I will take it from here. You go get some rest."
"If you're sure. I wrote down her medication schedule on the nightstand in her room and the two bottles are there, too." In the nursery, Hattie approached the crib on tiptoe. But Deedee was sleeping peacefully, her bottom in the air as she crouched in a ball on the mattress.
Luc touched Hattie's arm. "I'll bring our bags up. Why don't you get ready for bed?"
Hattie couldn't resist stroking the baby's back. "She still feels so hot."
"The antibiotic will take a while to kick in. We can set the alarm and give her ibuprofen during the night. Go on," he urged. "You're weaving on your feet."
"Okay." Hattie took a quick shower and changed into a nightgown that was pretty but not overtly sexy. Now that they were home, her thoughts were in turmoil. She hated that she felt like an insecure teenager again, wondering if a boy liked her. Everything had seemed so simple, so natural out on the island.