The Pleasures of Summer (36 page)

‘So spank me.’ She couldn’t help wanting to provoke him, but Flynn resisted the challenge.

‘First I’m going to wash you.’

True to his word, Flynn ushered her into the shower and turned it on. A torrent of water flooded them and Summer gasped. Flynn eased the pressure of the water
and poured a dollop of shampoo into his hand. ‘Turn around; I don’t want to get soap in your eyes.’

She stood with her back to him as he massaged the shampoo into her scalp, working the tips of his fingers in a circular motion. He rinsed and repeated the pleasurable head massage before turning her and moving downwards.

With a damp washcloth, he tended to her arms and legs before turning his attention to her torso. Dispensing with the cloth, he used his bare hands to massage the suds into her breasts. She didn’t know how much more of this she could take. She wanted his mouth on her.

As if he could read her thoughts, he dropped his head and placed a tender kiss on her left breast. The slow water torture continued as he soaped the cloth again and washed between her thighs. She squirmed beneath his touch and received a sharp tap and a caution to behave.

He was touching her but it wasn’t the kind of touch she craved. Flynn turned off the water and, grabbing a large towel, dried her off and covered her naked body with a robe, before drying himself roughly.

Outside in the pebble garden, a cool breeze drifted in from the loch, but the steam rising from the bath water was tempting. She slipped off her robe and stepped into the pool, followed by Flynn. The temperature was perfect. They sat in silence. Around them, the air was cold, but somehow that made her feel more alive.

‘The Japanese have an expression:
Hadaka no Tsukiai
,’ Flynn said. ‘It means “naked relationship” or “naked communication” because when we are naked, the barriers between us are gone and we are all the same.’

Summer nodded. She supposed that it did make sense,
but there were certain things that she wasn’t prepared to communicate with anyone, especially Flynn.

‘You were sad last night and this morning. Do you want to tell me what’s up with you?’

Bugger. There were times she felt that Flynn could see right through her. He had gotten her alone and naked and now he was going to interrogate her. ‘Nothing,’ she said. ‘I’m fine.’

Flynn snorted. ‘It must be worse than I thought. When a woman says that nothing is wrong, a man is usually in big trouble. You’re angry about being taken to the croft?’

‘No, I loved –’ She closed her mouth. She didn’t want to acknowledge how much her time at the croft had meant to her. They had never spoken about having feelings for each other. Flynn would probably run a mile if she told him that she loved him.

The physical bond between them would break when they parted. It could never be anything more than that.

Flynn was waiting for a response, but she had none to give him. His eyes narrowed. ‘I could always torture you,’ he reminded her.

‘Really? What did you have in mind?’

‘Well, let’s see, we could try Nyotaimori.’

Summer looked blankly at him.

‘Body sushi,’ he explained. ‘Eating food off a naked body.’

She flushed at the idea. It was tempting.

‘Or Shibari,’ he continued. ‘But I seem to remember that you liked being tied up.’

Summer giggled. ‘You’re so thoughtful. Anything else you learned in Japan?’

Flynn leaned back against the edge of the pool. ‘Well there is this thing with live eels …’

It took a moment for the penny to drop. ‘Flynn Grant! That is … Oh, you are so horrible.’

She stood up and splashed, sending a small tsunami in his direction. He moved more quickly than she expected and launched himself at her, so that they both ended up beneath the water. They surfaced again in a cloud of steam and spray and he took her mouth in a searing kiss that left her breathless.

‘I think that bath time is over,’ he announced in a husky tone that sent a shiver down her spine, despite the heat of the water. He clambered out and offered her his hand. The shock of cool air made her nipples peak, a sight that wasn’t lost on Flynn. The look he gave her was one of pure hunger. ‘You better run.’

Ignoring the damp robe, she raced for the house, with Flynn in pursuit. She shrieked as she hurried through the kitchen and into the safety of the bedroom where she threw herself onto the bed. Panting, she waited for Flynn to follow.

‘I have something for you,’ he said.

The orchid was beautiful. Its petals invited her touch. The centre was tinged with a flush of pink.

Flynn tucked the flower into her hair. ‘It reminds me of you,’ he said as he caressed her face before taking another kiss. ‘The creaminess of your flesh and the pink at the centre, but it could never be as beautiful as you are.’

Niall rang him early in the morning. As soon as he heard the Tardis ringtone, he took the phone outside. Niall talked, and Flynn realized he had lost his enthusiasm for the job he was offering.

‘What the fuck is wrong with you?’

‘Nothing.’ Flynn laughed, but it was forced. He should be over the moon. A new job. One that involved travel, danger and a chance for some real action. Except that it would mean leaving Summer.

‘I thought you’d be pleased,’ Niall said. ‘You were the one who was moaning about the babysitting assignment.’

‘Who’s replacing me here?’ He mentally ran through Niall’s list of operatives. Summer needed a professional, not some retired guy that she would chop into mincemeat. And please not Andy McTavish. He was a charmer with an eye for the women. The thought of Summer alone in a safe house with someone else made him want to kill.

‘Jamie McEntaggart.’ It took Flynn a moment to place the name, and when he did, he choked.

‘Are you crazy? That old fart. He can’t do the job anymore.’ Fuck, even Andy McTavish would be better than that old codger. He must be at least fifty.

‘Fug, tell me the truth. Has anything happened that was out of the ordinary? Have there been any more attacks?’ Niall’s voice was deadly serious.

‘No, nothing. It’s been quiet.’

‘Then I’m pulling you out and putting Jamie in. This is an urgent rescue job and I need you on the team.’

Flynn gripped the phone and said nothing. It was the sort of job he lived for, but everything in him rebelled at the thought of leaving Summer.

Niall’s voice changed. ‘Oh, has the brat beaten the Dom? Andy and I had a bet that she’d have you in love with her before the month was out.’

He choked. ‘In love? With that spoilt wee brat? Are you kidding me? Never going to happen.’ The bastards had been betting on him. He wanted to smash something. Preferably their faces. ‘I just don’t like leaving a job half done.’

His boss laughed. ‘Are you sure? There’s a lot of money riding on this, and there are a couple of days left before it falls due.’

‘Get me out of here and keep your nose out of my business,’ Flynn growled. He wasn’t sure what was between him and Summer, but it was their business. The thought of Niall and Andy and god-knows-who-else betting on them made him see red.

‘Okay, I’m sending a chopper to pick you up in about twenty minutes. You’ll go wheels up as soon as you get to Glasgow.’ Niall hung up before Flynn could protest.

Damn it. Flynn closed the phone and went indoors to pack. What the hell was he going to say to Summer?

Summer waited until she heard the front door slam before she emerged from her secluded corner of the conservatory. Whoever said that the truth hurt wasn’t joking. She
had never been so unprepared for the words she had overheard. Each one was like a knife in her heart. Everything that happened between them had been a lie. Spoilt wee bitch, he had called her. How noble of him to want to finish the job, even when he couldn’t wait to see the back of her. How much he must have laughed while he pretended to care for her. How distasteful it must have been for him to fuck her.

And she had confided in him. Told him her deepest fears, her darkest passions, while he had played her like a fool. Encouraging her to believe that she was special, that he cared for her. She had almost begun to hope that they had a future together. It didn’t matter that he wasn’t rich. She didn’t care if he hadn’t got two pennies to rub together.

She had believed that he was an honourable man, but Flynn was worse than Adam. Much worse. At least Adam had wanted her for her money and her connections. She could understand that. Her dad often said that everything boiled down to sex or money.

How had she not seen it before? Flynn was just like her dad. They both compartmentalized their lives to the nth degree. Flynn would love her one day and hop on a plane the next without giving her a second thought. She would never know when she would see him again. Just like her father. She couldn’t do that again, not with him.

She had to get out of here. As she crossed the hall she spotted the telephone. With shaking fingers, she dialled Molly’s number. It was early, Molly was probably still in bed. ‘Come on, please, answer the bloody phone,’ she muttered.

‘Yo?’ a sleepy voice answered.

Summer closed her eyes. What was with the yo? Did Molly have to trend everything? ‘It’s me. Stop yo-ing.’

‘Summer, is it really you? Where have you been? You’ve been gone for weeks and –’

‘It’s a long story. I’m stuck in Scotland and I need you to come and get me. The place is called Turlochmor. It’s in the arse end of nowhere, so you’ll have to look it up on sat-nav. Please, Molls.’

‘Oh my god, are you in trouble?’

Summer bit down on her lower lip. It was good to hear a friendly voice, but she couldn’t talk for long. If Flynn suspected that she would leave the moment he was gone, she would be in big trouble. ‘I can’t talk. I’ll be …’ She paused. She had no idea how big Turlochmor was or what was in the town. ‘I’ll be at the post office in Turlochmor at 3 p.m. tomorrow.’ Everywhere had a post office; it couldn’t be hard to find it.

‘Don’t worry. Of course I’ll come.’

Shaky with relief, Summer replaced the receiver and hurried up the stairs to her room.

Twenty minutes later, the sound of a helicopter landing almost blew in the windows. Summer was used to choppers – her father used them all the time and she’d flown in her share – but this one was loud and mean-looking. It landed beside the house, the wind from rotors flattening the grasses in the pebble garden.

She debated staying in her room, but that would be admitting she cared. Besides, a tiny part of her hungered for one more glimpse of Flynn, even if he was walking –
no, make that flying – away from her. She joined the family in front of the house.

The door of the chopper opened and a red-haired man clambered out. Once he was on the ground, he lifted his suitcase out carefully.

Flynn emerged from the house, his battered rucksack over his shoulder, and approached the other man.

Summer couldn’t hear what he was saying through the noise of the chopper, but Flynn brought him over to her. ‘Summer, this is Jamie McEntaggart, your new bodyguard. For god’s sake, don’t give him the sort of grief you gave me.’

Grief. She had given him grief. In that moment, Summer hated Flynn.

Flynn embraced his mother. Morag clung to him, tears running down her face. ‘Please son, be careful. Don’t take any risks.’

Then he punched David on the shoulder. ‘Look after everyone. And don’t get married until I get back. You’re too young to rush into things.’

David shoved his hand away. ‘For fuck’s sake, Flynn, I’m not a baby. You’re not in charge of me and you don’t know what’s best for everyone.’

Lorna threw herself into his arms. Flynn allowed her to weep hysterically for a few moments, and then pushed her over towards David.

He moved towards Summer. She took an instinctive step back. She didn’t recognize this mood of Flynn’s but she could see it was dangerous. He hesitated, then said, ‘We’ll talk when I get back.’ He gave her one last look before turning and hopping into the helicopter. He was in
it no more than a minute before it took off and headed upwards.

Summer stared at it as it got smaller and smaller, until it vanished altogether.

Morag dried her eyes, blew her nose and straightened her shoulders. The shocked mother was gone, and the gracious hostess was back. She inclined her head to the new bodyguard. ‘Come along, Mr McEntaggart, we’ll sort out some sleeping accommodation for you.’