Her blood fizzed like she'd drunk champagne, and she acknowledged she was enjoying this way too much. It was such fun teasing and flirting with Derek. It made her realize she wasn't old after all and that Derek brought something out of her that no one else did.
"You didn't think I'd swoon at your feet just because you bared your chest, did you?"
"A guy can hope."
She couldn't let him know she'd practically dissolved into a puddle of lust a few seconds ago. "You forget I'm a nurse. I've seen plenty of male chests before. Male butts, too."
"Yeah, but weren't those butts mostly saggy and wrinkly and pale?"
"Young guys end up in the hospital, too, you know, and I get to see their butts."
"Hmm, please don't talk about other guys' butts." He rubbed his impressive pectorals. "I'm disappointed. I thought for sure you'd find this a turn on."
The movement of his fingers mesmerized her. "Uh, y-you shouldn't do that."
"Why not?" His fingers slowed as they moved over the flat discs of his nipples, and the air squeezed out of Hannah's lungs. "Does it turn you on too much?"
Her hand holding the bottle of iced tea wobbled, and cool liquid splashed onto her bare thigh. Derek jerked, his eyes sizzling, and suddenly the air between them was crackling with static.
He plucked the bottle from her hands and laid it aside. Then he bent his head over her and licked the spilt iced tea from her thigh. The heat of his tongue branded her and lit a firestorm of desire in her. He trailed his mouth up the length of her thigh like she was the last snow cone on earth, making her shiver with delight as she threaded her fingers through his hair.
And then he pushed himself upright, and his mouth was on hers, and they were kissing with wild starvation. She coasted her hands up and down his bare back, relishing the play of muscles beneath his skin as their bodies strained together. His mouth was hot and demanding, his tongue parting her lips, wanting more, and she was happy to give it to him. Some part of her brain told her this was madness, that she had to stop, but the primitive part of her body had taken over, and for once she was happy to go with it.
Derek eased her onto her back and positioned himself on top of her. Sandwiched between the warm boards of the porch and his hot body, she gave herself up to the moment and wrapped her legs around his hips. He groaned into her mouth, and when he lifted his head a fraction, his eyes were molten blue.
"This feels so right," he breathed on her.
Yes, she thought. Then everything was forgotten as he lowered his mouth to hers.
Heaven knew where their kissing might have led to, but Derek was just sliding a hand under her shirt when a grumpy grrrh sounded nearby.
Derek lifted his head. "Did you just growl at me?"
"N-no." Her skin was on fire where Derek's hand rested over her stomach.
The low-pitched snarl sounded again. They both twisted their heads to see the gray-and-white stray crouched at the edge of the porch, his tail swishing from side to side irritably. He didn't seem to approve of their antics.
"He wants the tuna," Hannah said. "I think we knocked it over." Common sense came tiptoeing back, and she eased herself from Derek's grip.
With a sigh, Derek levered himself into a sitting position. "Damn impatient animal." But he picked up the opened can of tuna and pushed it toward the cat.
The stray cautiously approached and began to eat, keeping a suspicious eye out for them.
Hannah tugged her T-shirt back into place and swiped the back of her hand across her mouth. Her lips felt swollen, and her entire body was throbbing with craving for Derek. God, if it hadn't been for the cat, what might have happened? She might have let him make love to her right here in the backyard for all her neighbors to see.
Anxiety flooded her, dousing the fire he'd lit in her. She picked up his discarded T-shirt and tossed it to him. "You should put that on."
He caught the T-shirt, his eyes narrowing on her, but he pulled it on.
"There's no one home next door," he said. "No one saw anything."
He was trying to reassure her, but it wasn't working. She had assumed she could resist Derek's charms, but the longer she spent with him, the more he became her Kryptonite.
"Derek, I-"
She was interrupted by Derek's cell phone ringing. He answered it, frowned, said a brief few words, then hung up.
"That was my grandpa's new caregiver who started today. She's already quit." He scraped his fingers through his hair and sighed. "I should get back and find out what happened."
"Of course." She'd be relieved to have time on her own to recover. "I'm sorry your grandpa's causing you so much worry." Here, she was on firmer ground. She was his friend and nothing more. "Let me know if there's anything I can do to help."
He nodded. "I'm sorry to leave you like this."
"No, it's fine. I appreciate all your help, but your granddad comes first. You should go to him. Don't worry about anything here."
"Thanks. I'll call you."
He left, and she was surprised at how hollow she felt. Even the stray had disappeared, and she was all alone in her new house.
"Why did Estella quit?" Derek asked Otto as soon as he got back to his granddad's house.
"She wouldn't stop talking to me," Otto grumbled. "All morning she was at me, asking questions about what I liked to eat or wear or do. Even when she made me lunch, she wouldn't let me eat in peace. So I told her to quit yakking, and she grabbed her purse and left."
Derek sighed in defeat. "She was only trying to be friendly."
"I don't need any friends." Otto snorted. "She's too young, anyway. If you insist on getting me a babysitter, then at least get me someone who isn't in diapers herself."
"It's not easy finding a care assistant in the first place."
"Then don't get me one. Problem solved. I can take care of myself."
No, you can't. Derek kept his mouth shut as his grandfather shuffled about the kitchen. If he left Otto alone, he was sure something would happen to the old man, and another tumble might leave no alternative but a nursing home. Otto would loathe that.
He called the agency that he'd hired Estella through and told them the situation. The sympathetic woman he spoke to said she'd send him a few suitable résumés as soon as possible.
Derek ended the call and gazed at his difficult grandfather. The sunlight streaming through the window highlighted Otto's papery cheeks. Since the accident, he hadn't been outside much, and he was beginning to look anemic. His grandfather needed a change of scenery, some sunshine to boost his vitamin D. An idea took hold in Derek's mind.
"Hey, Granddad, would you like to come with me and Hannah to the lake tomorrow?"
Otto turned to him in surprise. "Why?"
"You've been cooped up inside for too long. Thought you could use some fresh air."
"We've never gone to the lake."
We've never done anything together. But that wasn't an argument for today, if ever.
"You don't have to do anything with us," Derek said. "Hannah and I can swim, and you can sit and read a paper or something." He was making this up as he went along. He wasn't even sure if Hannah was free tomorrow, but if she was and he asked, he was sure she'd agree. He'd make out it was to help his grandpa, which it was, but it would also be great to spend an afternoon at the lake with her.
"Who's Hannah?" Otto asked, still looking wary.
"Hannah Willmett. You remember the Willmetts." Otto had never cared how much time he'd spent at the Willmetts, but he knew who they were.
"Any relation to Joe Willmett?"
"He was her grandfather." He was also the person behind Derek's business success. Without Grandpa Joe's encouragement, he shuddered to think where he'd be now.
"We played pinochle once. He cheated."
Derek shook his head. How To Lose Friends and Alienate People, by Otto Carmichael. "Yeah, well, Joe's dead now, so you don't have to mention that to Hannah. So are you coming? We'll be going in the afternoon."
"Is she a chatty Kathy, this girl of yours?"
My girl, Hannah. It had a nice ring to it. "No, she's not. She's really nice. So, you'll come?"
"I'll think about it."
If Otto didn't want to go, he would've said it straight out, so Derek was encouraged. Now, he just had to get Hannah to come too. As a health professional and caregiver, Hannah could take a look at Otto and make sure he was in okay shape. That's how he'd sell it to her, but as he picked up his phone to make the call, he found he was as excited as if he were asking her out on a real date.
Chapter Nine
The lake sat a few miles out of town, a circle of placid, blue-gray water reflecting the surrounding pine forests and distant mountains. In summer it was a popular place for picnics, swimming, and trail walks, and on a Friday afternoon there were plenty of people enjoying the warm weather, but luckily it wasn't too busy. Which was just as well because Otto hated crowds and would have demanded Derek take him back home if the picnic area had been swamped.