Parker’s Price (15 page)

Parker continued to stare at him as the surge of desire fired her bloodstream. Slowly, comprehension dawned. Her brows drew together. “You’re the one who decided to switch back to being platonic.”

“I. Was. Being. Considerate.” His expression was tense and grim as he gathered the hem of her pullover sweater and whipped it over her head. Cool air, then the heat of his callused palm ran over her breasts. Parker sucked in a breath. Her fingers found his shoulders and dug in. “I didn’t…ask you…to…be considerate,” she whispered brokenly.

With an incoherent sound, he yanked her to him, banding an arm across the small of her back, flattening her breasts against his covered chest and letting his belt buckle dig into her tummy. He ran a hard, trembling hand down her naked spine, pushing her closer as if she couldn’t already feel the buttons marching down his shirt. His hand reached the jeans-clad curve of her buttocks, cupped, then squeezed. Parker gasped and went on her tiptoes, wanting to better align her body with his.

“Next time,” he growled as he lifted her a little and rubbed himself against her, “wear a dress.”

Oh, God.

Parker’s eyes drifted closed. She’d been missing this for two weeks. It had felt like an eternity. Her body felt heavy and warm and ready to melt all over him. She could hear his breathing, as shallow as hers. She could feel his heart pound, as fast as hers. But where he was hard with desire, she was oh, so soft.

He tightened his arm and lifted her clear off her feet. She expected to feel the hard, cool surface of his desk beneath her back, but he set her back on her feet and dropped himself into his own chair. He reached for the fastenings of her jeans. Parker braced her hands on the desk behind her as he stripped her of her remaining garments, jeans and thong, shoes and socks.

Two fingers plunged inside her. Parker cried out, her back arching.

“You’re ready for me.” His voice was low and raw, filled with harsh satisfaction. Parker could only nod, and that was enough.

He quickly freed himself, pulled her to him, making her straddle him, and sheathed himself in her in one powerful stroke.

Their ragged groans of relief mingled. He buried his lips in her throat, whispered an apology and began to move. It was wild and just a little violent, but not painful. He burned her, consumed her, but he didn’t hurt her. Parker wrapped her arms around his neck and held on, her frantic pace matching his.

It didn’t last, couldn’t last. They came together, their passion exploding brilliantly, leaving them weak in the aftermath. Parker desperately clung to him as he did the same.

Parker opened her eyes and lifted her head. And blinked at the dizzying scenery on the other side of the window.
Oh, God.
They were in his office. She gasped, her wild eyes darting around the room. They stopped at the door. And there were still people working on the other side of that door. There were people
directly
outside the door.

Parker quickly unwound her arms, started to push up on her knees and froze. Hot wetness trickled down her thighs. She told herself to breathe, reminded herself she was on the pill.

The male arms around her tightened. “Don’t move,” he murmured. “I told Katie to leave and to take my sister with her.”

She drew a blank and stopped, confusion overtaking the need to escape and hide. “Sister?”

He lifted his head from her neck. “The redhead who made you jealous. That was Lisa, my other sister.”

“I wasn’t jealous,” she denied hotly, even as she was betrayed by the heat in her cheeks.

He gently brushed her damp hair from her face. “Liar,” he chided softly.

She planted her hands on his shoulders and pushed until there was a foot of space between them. Dean merely lowered his head to her chest and tugged at her nipple with his lips. Of their own volition, her fingers tunneled into his hair and curled into fists. Fresh desire kindled, and she had to bite down on her lower lip to keep from making a sound. He took her deeper into his mouth.

“Stop it,” she gasped, even as her hands drew him closer. “I…I can’t think.”

He teased her with the smooth edges of his teeth, then released her nipple only to press a trail of kisses up her chest and neck. “Good. I don’t want you to think,” he murmured between kisses. “You come up with stupid notions when you do.” He nipped the tender skin on the underside of her jaw. “Like moving out.”

“It’s not stupid,” she managed to say as she tried to arch away from him.

He caught her hair and used it to force her to meet his glittering eyes. “Like hell it’s not.”

“Staying with you was only temporary. The authorities have Renata behind bars and Katie has my place back in order. There’s no reason for me to continue staying with you.”

“There’s every reason.” He slowly released her hair. His hand trembled as he cupped her shoulder, ran down her back. His voice lowered, roughened. “I want you to stay.”

Knowing she’d be unable to deny him while his eyes compelled her to give in, she closed her eyes and shook her head.

“Why?” he asked hoarsely.

She shook her head again, but added, “I’m done taking advantage of you. We were put in extraordinary circumstances, but now that’s over. I have to leave.” She took a breath and tried to ignore the odd sense of panic. “If you still want to…date me after today, we can do that.”

“Date,” he echoed tightly, his face going grim. “Dinner and a movie once or twice a week? And if I’m a good boy, you’ll let me spend the night?”

Her stomach knotted. “Don’t do this.”

His hands tightened on her waist. “Don’t do what? Don’t get pissed because you want to take three steps back? Because you want to run away again?”

She laid a hand against the side of his face, wanting to soothe him and failing. “I’m not running away,” she whispered.

“Then what the hell do you call it?”

“Caution.” The word popped out before she could stop herself, but she didn’t take it back. It was the truth. She was already too involved with him. If she stayed with him any longer, she wasn’t sure if she would be able to leave once he ended things. And it would be he who would end things, not her. She knew that now and accepted it, even as the mere thought of it made her ache inside.

His features softened and he brushed her lips with his. “Cowardice.”

For a second, she wondered if he and Gordon had compared notes. Then she simply shook her head and pushed at his chest. “I want to get dressed.”

He ignored her demand and said gently, “I’m not your father. I’m not the guy who got your sister pregnant.” Another brush of his lips on hers. “I won’t leave you, Parker.”

The ache in her chest intensified and she had to close her eyes to keep back the tears. His expression and his tone were so sincere, but she couldn’t allow herself to hope because it would only make it all the more painful later on.

She smiled sadly. “You don’t know that.”

“Yes, I do know that,” he countered with a quiet intensity. “I’ve known it since I first laid eyes on you.” A shadow of wry amusement touched his lips. “Do you think I make a habit of kidnapping women to make them spend time with me?”

“You probably never had to before. Women probably throw themselves at you.” Parker’s throat constricted, but she forced herself to continue. “Months from now, weeks, maybe even days, you could get bored and change your mind. Then you’d be in the awkward position of trying to kick me out.”

His face stiffened under her hand. He didn’t move, but she could feel the sudden distance between them as if a chasm had opened up between them.

“You think I’m that shallow.”

“No!” she cried out.

“You don’t think too highly of men. Your mother and your sister are single parents because the men they got involved with left them, so I’ll probably leave you, too, because that’s what men do.” The hands at her waist dropped away and she suddenly felt adrift, lost. His lips twisted bitterly. “If you don’t trust me by now, I don’t know what else I can do.”

His words sounded so remarkably final. Panic was a million tiny wings beating against her chest from within.

“It’s not like that,” she whispered urgently. “I
do
trust you.”

“Really?” Skepticism heavily laced that single word. “Tell me why you really came to see me.”

Her lashes started to lower.

“No, damn it,” he snapped harshly. “I want you to look at me while you say the words.”

Her breath stopped in her lungs. He wanted more than the words, he wanted something she’d never given another man, and she wasn’t sure if she could give it to him. Earlier, she’d thought she was ready to take that leap. She’d pushed forward before reality could make her reconsider. But the scene she’d witnessed had been like a bucket of icy water. Mistake or not, she didn’t want to be so vulnerable that seeing him with another woman would make her want to curl up in a dark room.

She searched his face, but his expression remained inscrutable. Unable to bear it any longer, she separated their bodies and scrambled to her feet. Dean neither helped nor hindered.

Dean strangled the arms of his chair as Parker snatched up her jeans and pulled them on. She was leaving him. He’d miscalculated and pushed her too far, too fast. He should’ve waited a little longer; he shouldn’t have been so greedy; he should’ve realized she wasn’t ready; he shouldn’t have panicked at the thought of her moving out. The self-recriminations pressed on his chest, making it difficult to draw breath, and twisted his gut.

The lower half of her slim body clothed, she crossed her arms over her chest and frantically looked around.

“Your sweater’s hanging off the plant in the corner,” he said tonelessly as he zipped himself up.

At the sound of his voice, she went rigid for a brief moment. Hope burgeoned inside him, then died when she only hurried across the room to retrieve her garment. The dread inside him felt heavier than lead.

Dean rose stiffly to his feet and turned to look out the window, knowing he couldn’t watch her leave. Even so, the muscles across his shoulders tensed and the hands he clasped behind his back gripped each other tightly. He listened to the soft sounds of Parker dressing and waited with a kind of masochistic anticipation for the sound of the door opening and closing behind her.

Dean closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, bracing himself.

A sob, quickly muffled, came from behind him.

He froze for a split second. He spun around, saw her standing in front of the door, one hand curled around the door knob, the other pressed to her mouth, and was across the room in an instant. She whirled around just before he reached her and threw herself at him. His arms closed around her with stunning force, but she didn’t complain, only burrowed in deeper, as if she wanted to wrap herself with him. Her body shook in his arms and she mumbled incoherently as her hot tears dampened his shirt.

One hand stroking her hair, he murmured soothing sounds and words even as he lowered his head. She managed to take several shuddering breaths, not deep ones because he couldn’t make himself loosen his hold, and wiped at the tears trailing down her cheeks.

“I couldn’t do it,” she said, voice raw. “I can’t leave.” She dropped her head to his chest and rolled her forehead against him. Her voice went even lower, barely a whisper. “The thought of never seeing you again terrifies me.” Her hands clutched at him with desperate strength. “More than the possibility of you leaving me later on.”

“Good,” he said with fierce delight, and took her mouth with a ferocious kiss. When he lifted his head, she had no breath left and was clinging to him weakly. The fierceness faded from his expression as he looked down at her. “I love you, too.”

The bride was radiant. Tiny, white flowers adorned upswept, dark hair; champagne-colored satin flowed over slim curves; and a wide smile stretched rose-tinted lips, making her look youthful.

Brenda leaned in close to the woman standing next to her. “Mom looks amazing.”

Unable to form coherent words, Parker could only nod and smile as she watched her mother glide down the aisle as if she were floating on air. Kelly reached the altar, kissed both her bridesmaids before handing her bouquet of creamy calla lilies to Parker, and took the hand of her groom. As she turned to face the altar, Parker caught the best man’s eyes, saw the heated promise in them and wondered how long it would be before she could drag him into the nearest dark corner.

The ceremony was short and sweet, and the newlyweds’ first kiss was long enough to embarrass the bride’s daughters and make the four-year-old flower girl giggle. Red-faced, Brenda grabbed her daughter and clapped a hand over her mouth.

Husband and wife started back down the aisle. The best man and maid of honor followed.

“I’ve never seen my mom happier,” Parker said softly, her eyes on the couple.

“Same with Gordon,” said Dean. Dryly, he added, “He loves telling people he’s the younger man.”

She laughed softly. “You know, he’s my stepfather now. Aren’t you going to feel awkward sharing my bed with him around?”

“Which is why I offered him early retirement. He and your mom are spending the next two years trotting the globe. First stop is London, England.”

Parker came to an abrupt stop. Concerned, Dean grasped her waist and pulled her to him. He waved at Brenda and her escort to cut in front of them.

“Parker?”

Tears filled her eyes. “Thank you.”

Concern vanished, replaced with an arrogant, self-satisfied smile. “Am I your hero now?”

“No,” she replied, blinking away the tears. “You did it because you don’t want a man who might feel obligated to protect my virtue hanging around.” She slid her hands up the lapels of his tuxedo, curled her fingers into them and tugged his head down. “But I wouldn’t have you any other way.”

She whisked a kiss across his lips, then danced out of his reach when he tried to deepen it. He caught her and hauled her against his side, but he didn’t try to kiss her. They walked through the double doors and out into the bright May sun.

“Tease,” he growled for her ears only.

“It’s my mom’s wedding day. Besides, your father’s watching us like a hawk.”

“He’s looking for a baby bump.”

She flushed. “Oh.”

“I swear, that man was actually upset when I told him Savannah isn’t my daughter.”

“Oh,” she repeated, this time with amusement.

“He and my sisters will get off my back if you just let me tell them we’re engaged.”

“I never said yes,” she reminded him. “You just came home one day, announced we were getting married and shoved the engagement ring on my finger.”

“If I asked you properly, you might’ve said no. I went with the safer strategy.”

“True. I would’ve done it to torment you, but only for a few days. Can’t have you taking me for granted.” She rested her head against his chest. “You can tell the families in a few more weeks.” She sighed. “I like keeping it between us. Nothing else in our lives is secret from our families…or your admin assistant or my admin assistant or your employees or my former neighbors. Did I leave anyone out?”

He dropped a kiss on her forehead. “Since we had to cut our last trip short, Jay said the island’s ours for the next two weeks.”

“Two weeks? Did he really?”

His eyes gleamed, the color darkening to midnight, and his voice roughened. “I figure that’s how long we’ll need to do everything we missed the first time. And since you didn’t get to finish what you started, we’ll start off with the hammock.”

“I did
not
molest you while I was asleep.”

He put his mouth to her ear. “You did last night.”