Mission: Seduction (7 page)

10

K
ELLY
WAS
HOT
for Rafe in the worst kind of way. The island was small, but the drive back to the resort seemed to be taking hours rather than minutes. His promise to satisfy her need had turned her inside out.

Rafe pulled the Jeep into the circular driveway and stopped.

Kelly shivered with anticipation.

And then she nearly tripped over her feet at the sexy smile he gave her as he helped her out of the car.

Pulling her into his arms, Rafe cradled the back of her neck with his hand. She didn't wait for him to take control. Standing on tiptoe, she kissed him.

Using her tongue, she ran it across his lips. His mouth opened with a groan, and power surged through her.

He wanted her every bit as much as she did him.

Tugging his hand, she led him up the front steps. And she kept walking backward until her butt hit the door. Their lips never separated, instead their kiss deepened.

When the door opened suddenly they jumped apart. “Oh, darling, it's you! I thought I heard something,” her mother's sweeping voice said from the foyer.

What is she doing in Fiji? In my house!

Kelly stared, stunned. Rafe had to hold on to her shoulders so that she didn't almost fall over.

“She's always been a bit of a klutz away from her surfboard,” her mother noted in her most pleasant voice.

“I think she's incredible,” Rafe said. His declaration held a soft warning for her mother to back off. Not many men acted that way toward her mother, who had an ethereal beauty and a strange kind of power that drew people, especially men, to her.

Chalk one up for the marine. Kelly loved his protectiveness. It would be nice for once to have someone on her side.

“Mom, what are you doing here?” Kelly asked as she motioned for her mother to back up so they could enter the mansion.

“I took your advice, Kels. I'm on vacation. I didn't even tell the housekeeper where I was headed. And you'll be proud. I packed my own bag, and I only brought one. Though, I'm probably going to have to buy a few things while I'm here.”

Her mother followed them into the main living area.

“When I said that about getting away, I meant for you to take your girlfriends and go to a spa in Northern California or something.”

Why did her mother have to be here? Now? Talk about a cold shower without the water.

“You're Kelly's mother?” Rafe asked.

“Yes,” her mother said, looking skeptically at Rafe. “And I suppose you're the marine she's been telling me about.”

“I better be the marine,” Rafe teased. “She's so beautiful that I've had to beat the men off with a stick just to get a few minutes alone with her. I apologize for my rudeness earlier. I'm a bit protective of—of my friends.”

He cleared his throat.

“Well, isn't Kelly a lucky lady to have such a wonderful—friend.” Her mother smiled knowingly.

Kelly grinned.

“It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am.” Rafe held out his hand while keeping Kelly tucked under his other arm.

Her mother shook his hand and then turned her attention back to her daughter. “I've been to every spa in California, darling. I decided that Fiji would be a nice change. And I doubt your father will think to look for me here.”

That was a lie. When her dad got home, he'd call Kelly and Mimi to find out if they knew where their mother was. He knew his daughters were terrible liars. Okay, Kelly
usually
was. But lying to Rafe was killing her—every time she tried to tell him, something or someone intervened.

Part of her wondered if these were signs that she was to wait a little longer before admitting the truth.

“How did you two meet?” her mother asked.

Kelly scoffed and tried to wave away the question. The last thing she needed was for Rafe to mention Mimi.

Catching Rafe's attention, she drew him to one of the overstuffed sectionals. “There's a party tonight at the Bay Breeze. Adrien's band is playing, and they're actually pretty good. I promised him I'd be there. Would you like to go?” she asked. “With me?” she quickly added, as if he didn't know.

“I'm always up for a good band.” Rafe leaned over and kissed her forehead. “I'll let you two catch up. I will see you this evening, Kelly.”

As much as she hated to see him go, she was almost giddy with relief that her mother hadn't ruined everything. The door closed behind him and she blew out a breath against her teeth.

Focusing her attention back to the matter at hand, she leveled a gaze at the woman across the room. “Mom, we have one rule. You call before you show up. It's the only rule you and I have, unlike the seven thousand, six hundred and seventy that you have with Mimi.”

“Darling, I arrived at the airport and walked up to the first counter I saw. They had two flights taking off within the hour. One was coming here and the other to someplace in the Middle East. I thought this might be safer.”

Ha!
What a tall tale that was. Her mother could survive anywhere. People always went out of their way to help her. In spite of her modeling days being over, her fashion and makeup lines were extremely popular and meant she was still recognized around the world.

As much as she loved her mother and really didn't mind the drama that came with her, Kelly really didn't want her screwing things up with her marine.

“Mom, this thing with Rafe is very new, and if you wreck it for me, I will never forgive you,” she told her honestly. “I know you're peeved at Dad, but you have to lay low while you're here. No twenty questions or mind games. Rafe doesn't like that sort of thing.” Or in her mother's case, five hundred questions.

“Lovely daughter of mine, you are beginning to make me feel unwanted.” Her mother poured herself a fruit-juicy-looking drink, probably a mimosa given the time of day. Her mother always combined her liquor with fruit, believing the antioxidants in the fruit counteracted the potentially disastrous effects of the alcohol. It must work because her mother drank like a fish and yet looked fabulous.

Kelly took a deep breath. “It's not that. He's special. I've never met anyone like him. And I don't want him dragged into our family melodrama. You wouldn't mean to do it, but you always do. I wish you and dad would grow up. It's dumb that you guys don't talk the way normal people do.”

Her mother shrugged. “Normal? Kelly, do you know one single family who is normal? There's no such thing. I realize you girls didn't have the traditional childhood. You were obsessed with surfing and your sister with modeling, but your father and I have never done anything but encourage you.

“And as for this situation that's going on with your father, I think he might be in one of those idiotic midlife crises. He lost the twenty pounds he gained after retiring. Bought a new red Viper, and then he took off on one of his trips. We had three different events to attend and—poof—he was just gone.”

Her mother sipped her drink.

“Are you on your meds?” Kelly and Mimi didn't beat around the bush when it came to their mother combining pills and alcohol. Most of the time it only made her more mellow, but if she drank too much, then she could go anywhere from suicidal to the happiest woman on earth—and everywhere in between. That's all Kelly needed—to have her mother running around half out of her mind.

“Yes. The doctor just changed them. I'm allowed two cocktails a day. So shush and answer my question.”

Kelly had to think about it for a minute.

“Normal to me is where people communicate about their needs and wants. As far as I know, you and Dad have never discussed his little trips. He comes back, you give him one of your eyebrow twitches with the single tear running down your cheek, and then he runs out and buys you a Mercedes or an apartment in Paris. And then you two are blissful peas in a pod until he does it again.”

Her mother sat daintily on the nearest sofa and patted the seat beside her. Kelly went along with her mother's request.

“We aren't like most couples, I'll grant you that. But what we have is okay for us. Only this time, I promise, it's different. I'm not so sure he plans on coming home.”

The slight catch in her mother's voice bothered Kelly. “What did you do, Mom?”

“Why do you always assume it's me that is at fault?” her mother admonished. She stared down at her glittery pink fingernail polish.

That was her mother's biggest tell. If she was upset or had done something wrong, she couldn't look a person in the eye. Kelly had the same problem, but lately she'd surprised herself. Though she fully intended to tell Rafe the truth, the universe kept conspiring against her.

“Please tell me you didn't use some supermodel dude to try and make Dad jealous. What are you—twelve?”

“Watch your tongue, young lady, I am your mother. And this time I didn't do it on purpose. I haven't done that in years. You know as well as I do that I never did anything with that other man. I only wanted to get your father's attention. And you were seven—how can you even remember that?”

Her dad had been a basket case. That was how she remembered. He'd hired a private detective to follow her mother. Kelly had been privy to more than one conversation between her father and the detective since she'd often gone with her dad to his work. The hospital was close to the ocean, and when he had breaks he took her surfing.

“I was there. It was hard to miss. Call him, Mom. Ask him where he is. You are too
old
to play games.”

“I thought we agreed never to use that word,
old,
” her mother complained. “And for the record, it was the tabloids that made something out of nothing. We weren't even on the same coast and it was a picture from ten years ago when we were doing that vodka campaign.” Her mother's hand flitted.

“Whatever happened with Dad, fix it. Pick up the phone and...be adult about it.” Kelly was tired of being the grown-up in the family. Her sister acted like a teenager half the time, and her parents like spoiled children. They were all good people but had the emotional depth of self-involved tweens at a slumber party. “And stay out of my way with Rafe. I don't want my family to scare him off.”

I'll probably do just fine with that all on my own.

“Certainly,” her mother said, “Rafe seems like a lovely young man. The way he spoke up for you, well, honey, you deserve a man like him. He is someone who will always have your best interests at heart. And I know that from only meeting him for a few minutes. After all those jerks you dated, who just wanted to take from you, it's about time.”

Kelly couldn't believe that her mother remembered the marine's name. Unfortunately, Kelly didn't really deserve Rafe. Though, yes, she had replied to his letters with only the best intentions because Mimi never would. As much as Kelly was supportive in the beginning, the bare truth was that the letters became as important to her as they were to him.

She'd taken an act of altruism and behaved as selfishly as the rest of her family. He was such a good person through and through, and she was nothing more than plain, old deceitful. If she told him what had happened, then she would know one way or the other if he could forgive her.

“Oh, no! There's some odd notion in that brain of yours and it doesn't bode well. Tell me everything.”

“You have enough problems, Mom, you don't need mine.” There was a part of Kelly that wanted to spill it so that someone besides Adrien knew what was going on with her. The other part was too ashamed.

“Why don't I try your problems on for a change? You're always complaining about my narcissism. It might be nice to put your needs before mine for once.” Her mother winked.

Kelly put a hand on her mother's forehead to check for a fever. “Are you sick? Or on drugs other than those you have a prescription for?”

Her mother smirked and swatted at her hand. “Behave yourself, and tell me what's happening.”

Kelly grabbed a cushion and squeezed it tight.

And then she told her mother everything.

* * *

R
AFE
COULDN
'
T
BELIEVE
he hadn't made the connection that Kelly and Mimi's mom was Raina, one of the most famous supermodels of all time. Rafe's dad used to say she was the only woman he'd leave his wife for, and it had been a running family joke. His mom would say Raina was more than welcome to pick up the socks he left all over the house and cook his breakfast at five in the morning.

Then his dad would take her in his arms and kiss her so passionately that Rafe and his brother would make gagging sounds.

Rafe couldn't think about his parents without getting all choked up. It had been three years since their passing. His mom had had stomach cancer, which took her quickly. His dad had died a month later due to a heart attack. The one saving grace was that his parents had been around to see Rafe straighten himself out. He'd given them hell as a teen, so rebellious, and for absolutely no reason.

His mother always blamed it on hormones, but there was no excuse for his behavior back then other than sheer stupidity. His parents provided him a good life. They never had a lot of money, but there was a roof over his head and he always knew he was loved.

He couldn't imagine what Kelly's life had been like growing up with a supermodel for a mom and another one for a sister. Of course, neither woman compared to Kelly's natural beauty.

The woman was a combination of qualities he'd never seen before. Despite his being scared of the snakes, she'd stayed calm and never made fun of his phobia. Her only concern had been for him.

He also couldn't ignore the kissing. Rafe had dated many women in the past, but none of them had lips like Kelly's. The type that sent shivers, the good kind, through his entire body.