Three Weeks Last Spring (11 page)

As he entered,
t
he rich aroma of something cooking in herbs assaulted his senses, reminding him how long it was since he last had a decent meal.
Hi
s gaze rested on
Skye’s
slightly flushed face.
He dropped a kiss on her cheek.
Instinctively
her
fingertips touched the spot.
Sh
e seemed nervous and slightly distracted, but there was no denying the answering desire in her eyes.

"Where do you want me to put this?"
Walker held up the bottle
.
"The wine…"

Walker's voice broke through Skye's thoughts.
She felt like a teenager on a first date, hardly able to string two coherent sentences together.
Her mind and body
drifted along as if on a cloud.

"Sorry…you'd better open it and let it breathe.
Dinner won't be long,"
she finally stammered
. She handed him the bottle opene
r
.
Their fingers touched and
Skye
became acutely
conscious of his very ma
le presence in the tiny space.

Under Walker's steady scrutiny, she found it hard to think—correction, hard to breathe.
Her brain had turned to mush, her cheeks flushed.
All she could think of was Walker and the way she felt when he touched her.
Trying hard to keep things light between them,
sh
e busied herself l
aying another place
at the table.

"You never did tell me
why
you decide to take your vacation in the San Juans.
A month is
a long time
, especially when you’re on your own
.
You must have a very understanding employer
."

Skye was glad of the momentary diversion to bring her wayward body under control.

"I haven't
taken
a vacation in over a year.
And as for a generous employer,
I co-own a business, so I
’m my own
boss.
My partner had no objection, so as they say, here I am."
She carried two laden plates to the table.
"As for being here on my own, I quite enjoy my own company.
I guess it comes from being an only child.
We get plenty of practice while growing up."

"But the San Juans?" he pressed.
"The islands aren't exactly known for good weather at this time of year.
I would have thought someone like you would be more at home on the beaches of the Caribbean, than the
rocky shores of these islands."

"Haven't you heard that too much sun is overrated?
Not every woman wants to parade herself on the beach for every lothario within a twent
y-mile radius to prey on her.
I happen to like the Pacific Northwest.
Besides, I have my reasons for spend
ing
my vacation here.
"

For a moment he studied her intently.
Some sixth sense warned
him
that he
’
d put
h
e
r
on the defensive
,
and
if he questioned her further, she would
clam up.
His eyes swept over her delicate features, to where the creamy skin of her throat showed through the open neck of her shirt.
He couldn't help notice her long slender ringless fingers as they played with the stem of the wine glass.
Once more his crotch overrode his brain as he wondered how it would feel if she were to run a delicate finger down the hot length of him.
His body har
dened instantly at the thought.

"What about your boyfriend?
H
e can't be too happy about you being away for this length of time?"
If he had a woman as attractive as Skye in his life, there was no way he would let her out of his sight for more
than a day, let alone a month.

For the first time in days there was silence between them.

Skye's lashes brushed her cheek.
For a brief moment a shutter closed over her face.
She pushed all the negative thoughts to the back of her mind, and
gazed
at him.
The look of concern on
hi
s
face all but melted her heart.

"There is no boyfriend."
Realiz
ing
how sad that sounded, she quickly
ins
ert
ed
some
humo
u
r
into the conversation.
"John, my
business
partner and self-appointed big brother, would have every applicant for the vacancy positively vetted given half the opportunity.
As it is, work keeps me busy.
What about you?
How does your significant other feel about you spending all your spare time
here in the San Juans fishing?"

"Like you, there
i
s no significant other, though that's not completely my choice.
I move around too much with work.
When a guy constantly calls and cancel
s, dates kind of get fed up
waiting around.
Sometimes going fishing seems a better alternative to having the phone slammed down in your ear."

A thoughtful smile curved Skye’s mouth.
"I thought you said you worked out of Seattle
."

Walker played with the napkin.
"My office is there, but like I said, I tend to travel quite a bit from city to city.
That makes it hard to maintain a relationship.
Not all women understand that a man can't always be there when they want."

Skye understood, and it hadn't bothered her, but she wasn't about to tell Walker that.

"Surely, if you met someone who really cared, it wouldn't matter to them—so long as the time you spent together was quality time.
A few weeks or months apart shouldn't be that big a hurdle, not when you've got a lifetime to look forward to.
Isn't that what love is all about?
Surmounting the obstacles and loving someone for who they are?"

"I'm sure you're right.
I've yet to meet such a paragon of virtue who'll accept me, suitcase and all.
Perhaps American woman are more demanding of their partners, wanting the best of everything—a home, a car, an endless supply of credit cards, membership of the local country club, and so on.
They're certainly more opinionated, which probably has something to do with why there are so many single women here in the States.
You Brits tend to be more stoic, or at least, you seem that way."

Walker hadn't tasted such good home cooked food in a long time.
He enjoyed the easy conversation despite the fact
he
touch
ed
a raw nerve now and again.
When he sensed the conversation was getting too heavy, he deftly changed the subject.
He raised his glass to Skye, a
nd turned up his smile a notch.

"I thought you Brits lived off baked beans and fish and chips.
I didn’t
realize
you were good cooks."

Skye laughed aloud.
"It’s a common assumption, but totally wrong.
You should thank my mother for my culinary skills.
She was determined I should acquire some housewifely attributes as well as a degree, so insisted I took a cookery course before I went off to university.
But, like all students my cash was tight.
I became very adept with a can opener.
You should have seen some of the concoctions I
and my friends came up with."

Skye raise
d her glass and sipped the wine
.
She
savo
u
red
its intense plumy
flavo
u
r
.
It made her feel relaxed and quite mellow, and combined with the
smo
u
ldering
looks Walker was giving her over the rim of his glass, the effect on her pulse rate was alarming.

Walker was only too aware of the woman si
tting opposite and the way she
made him feel when he held her in his arms.
His feelings had nothing to do with reason, and were borne of an aching need.
He wanted her every way a man could want a woman.
Until now he'd never met a woman he hadn't been able to walk away from.
But Skye was different.
She was smart, sassy, and too sexy for her own good, and seemed to have no appreciation of the effect she had on men and him in particular.
But with his life turning from sugar to shit with every passing hour having an affair would be the dumbest move he could make.
So
he’d backed off.
Or tried to.

However, the enigmatic Ms Dunbar, damn it, had crawled under his skin, like a two-day-old itch that refused to be scratched.
She was the reason why he'd taken more cold showers in the last ten days than he had since tenth grade.
And while he was thinking about it, she was also the reason his temper had been off the Richter scale all week.
From the first time he saw her he'd wanted to know what she
woul
d feel like against the hard length of him.
And now he
knew—she felt too damned good.

That was part of his problem.
His body wasn't satisfied with just holding her and tasting her honeyed kisses, it wanted more.
Hell, it ached for more and no matter how many times he reminded himself he was a grown man and not a hormonally charged
teenager, he still wanted her.

On the short drive over to the cabin he'd convinced himself that he could do whatever it took to save his company, and if that involved seducing his sexy auburn-haired tenant, then he
woul
d do so with no regrets.
He
woul
d treat it like any other job, except for one important factor—this time instead of saving the environment, he would be salvaging his business.

But having felt Skye's warm lithe body against his and drunk in her sweet kisses, he knew he couldn't go through with it.
While he wasn't sure what his feelings for the seemingly fragile woman he'd cradled in his arms in the moonlight were, he knew he wouldn't be able to live with himself or with the accompanying guilt if he used her.
If he
had
sex with her, then
it was because
she wanted him in her bed
,
as much as he wanted her.
Otherwise he
woul
d walk away and spend the next month chewing out anyone who came within a twenty mile radius of him.
That, or move to
the northernmost end of Alaska.

Walker finished the last of his wine,
and mentally ticked off all she ha
d told him about herself.
What he knew wouldn't fill the back of a postage stamp.
She worked in London.
So did a third of the population of England
,
or so he'd read.
She had a degree, and was a partner in a business.
She was obviously intelligent, but just what did she hold her degree in and what was her training?
What did her company
specializ
e
in?

For all he knew she could be a designer, since her clothes certainly weren't from the local chain store.
It was what she
hadn't
told him that intrigued him.
He couldn't help pondering about her business
and
her partner, and where they fitted into his latest assignment.
Something just didn't add up.

Skye's soft voice broke into his thoughts
.
S
he placed the coffee
tray on the table by the sofa.
"I haven't any brandy, but I do have a good malt whisky if you'd
care for one."

"That sounds great."
Walker threw another log on the fire.

For an instant
there was
a burning, faraway look in his eyes, as if he was wrestling a problem.
By the time
Skye had
poured a measure of scotch and handed him the glass, the fleeting expression that lingered moment
arily
,
had vanished.

Walker transferred the glass to his left hand, and placed it on top of the fireplace.
His right hand captured
her’
s, his thumb stroking the soft skin just below her wrist.
He
wrapped his arms around her waist,
mo
u
lding
her soft curves to the contours of his hard lean body
, and
l
owered his head
to kiss
her.

Skye's arms
wound
round his neck, her fingers burying in his thick black hair.
His first kiss was soft and teasing, his tongue tracing the soft fullness of her lips.
Sh
e moaned softly, and parted her lips
.

Walker
deepened the kiss, his lips giving her what she wordlessly sought.
He meant to take it slow and gentle, just as a man should when he kisses a woman for the second time, but the depth of Skye's response broke his resolve.
Hungrily he took all she gave and more, his tongue exploring the soft recesses of her mouth.
He lifted his mouth from hers, gazed into her eyes, and saw her answering desire.
Resting his head on the top of hers he fought for control, his pulse hammering in his ears, his breathing fast.

Skye
lowered her cheek
on
to his chest with a sigh of pleasure, her breathing almost ragged as his.
He could feel her heart thudding and felt the answering beat of
his
own.
He
watched
her
tongue as she tasted his kiss and remembered to breathe—just.
Gently he rocked her back and forth, before suddenly lifting her into his arms and carrying her to the sofa.
One kiss was not enoug
h; he had
an aching need for more, and to hell with the consequences.
H
is eyes lock
ed with hers.

H
e huskily said her name.
"
Skye?"

Walker's kiss
left Skye’s
mouth burning with fire and her senses reeling.
Her mind told her to resist, that this really wasn't a good idea.
But, her body had other ideas.
It craved more, much more.
Slowly,
sh
e ran her tongue over her warm moist lips totally unaware o
f the sensual picture she made.

She didn't need to hear his unspoken question; her body already knew the answer.
His intense blue eyes never left hers as he lowered his mouth and hungrily covered her
lips
once more.
When he released her, and eased her down on to the thi
ck cushions, she didn’t object.

Slowly and seductively his gaze slid from her face to her breasts, his hand gently outlining a firm globe through the silk of her blouse.
His touch was feather-
light and teasing. Skye's nipple hardened instantly, her body hungry with desire.
She moaned softly, as she felt the hardness of Walker's arousal pressing in
to the soft flesh of her thigh.

She heard Walker s
uck in a ragged breath
.
Slowly he lowered his head.
His lips touched the pulsing hollow at the base of her throat, as he explored the soft creamy expanse of her skin at the neck of her blouse.
She quivered beneat
h him, her body demanding more.

"Skye…
honey, look at me."

Walker's voice seemed to come from a long way off.
Skye opened her eyes.
There was an invitation in his eyes, as they gazed into hers
.

"Mm…"
Her voice was no more than a husky whisper.
She trailed her fingers up and down Walker's back and across the expanse of his shoulders, exploring every contour, committing
them
to memory.
Unable to disguise his reaction to her soft caress, she f
elt his body stiffen with need.

Walker raised himself on one elbow.
"Honey, unless you tell me to stop, I'm going t
o make love to you right here."

Skye’s
voice
was silky and full of passion.
"Walker—"

"Tell me, sweetheart, tell me what you want.
I can't make
this decision for both of us."

Skye's heart hammered in her ears.
Their
gaze
locked and she swallowed hard.
With a delicate finger, she first traced the outline of the scars on his eyebrow and chin before moving to his firm sensual lips.
Without warning his mouth captured her finger, gently sucking it, sending shivers of delight through her.
She couldn't deny her feelings for
him
any longer.
She wanted this man with every inch of her being.
His raw sensuousness took her higher and higher, until all she could think about was having him fill her body with his.
She inhaled sharply, he
r eyes never leaving his mouth.

"I…
want
…
I want you."

"Honey, that's
what I needed to hear you say."
There was a faint tremor in his voice, as though some
deep emotion had touched him.

He eased off the couch, and threw the cushions on to the rug in front of the fire, then took Skye into his arms.
He knelt in front of her and stroked the soft skin of her face, his hand trail
ing
down to the buttons of her blouse.
With slightly unsteady fingers, he first undid one button and then another, before slowly slipping
it
off h
er shoulders and down her arms.

The soft light from the fire cast
a warm glow on her creamy skin.
Walker inhaled sharply, drinking in her subtle perfume.
He longed to touch and taste her soft skin.
His lips trailed feather-light kisses down her neck and shoulders until she moaned for him.
Watching her, he outlined her full breasts through the lace of her bra before his fingertips brushed intimately over her hardening nipples.
He couldn't wait any longer to feel the soft skin of her breasts against the hardness of his chest.
Hurriedly dealing with the buttons of his shirt, he shrugged it off.

Skye
needed no encouragement.
Her fingers wove into the crisp dark curls on his chest, luxuriating in the wealth of sensations flooding her body.
Her skin burned where his lips and fingertips touched.
She couldn't get enough of him.
His hands moved down the length of her back, to the zip on her
skirt
.
His tongue lightly traced a path from her ear to the pulse at the base of her neck.
S
he
moaned softly at the sensations rippling thought her body.

Walker sucked in a breath, as his body responded instantly to the sight of Skye standing before him in nothing
but
her underwear.
God, she was beautiful, and it took every last ounce of his control not to rip the scraps of lace off her and bury himself in her soft moist folds.
The ache in his groin was almost unbearable.
Dragging in air, he tried desperately to slow the pace.
His hands slid across Skye's silken belly,
making her tremble with
desire.

Quickly discarding the rest of his clothes, he eased her down on to the cushions, one muscular leg slipping between hers.
He kissed her deeply as his hands continued their slow exploration of her body.
With passion-darkened eyes, his hands sought the fastening on the scrap of lace that passed for her bra.
The heat surged in his groin as the lace fell away and his eyes drank in the fullness of her breasts and her swollen nipples.
With one hand he fondled first one firm globe then the other,
then lowered
his head, his tongue seeking and findi
ng the taut dusky pink nipples.

Skye arched her back, her hands digging into his hair, pulling him closer, as the hard shell that she had so carefully built around her shattered into a million pieces.
Walker's warm breath seared her skin, as his lips followed the trail left by his hands.
Her body was on fire and aching for the sweet release th
at she knew only he could give.

She inhaled sharply as pleasure radiated through her.
Walker's tongue circled her nipples, teasing and sucking the hard nubs.
His hands stroked her legs and thighs, before pulling aside the lace of her thong and slipping a finger inside, seeking the core of her desire.
He stroked and teased her until she could
n
’
t
take
anymore
.

When her
fingers stroked his hard, silky erection the pleasure was explosive, and almost drove him over the edge
.

His voice was raw with passion as he whispered, "Honey—"

"D
on't you like that?"

He liked it too much—that was the problem.
Waves of pleasure throbbed through him, his bo
dy trembling with liquid fire.

"Honey, look at me."

Skye’s
eyes
told
him everything he needed to know about how she felt.
He rolled her onto her back and entered her, her warm moist folds sheathing the hard length of him like a glove.
Just when he thought he couldn't get any deeper, he felt
her
relax, welcoming him further into her body.
His body picked up the rhythm that was as old as time.
He moved slowly at first, not wishing to hurt her, but desire and passion overwhelm
ed them as they sought release.

Walker sensed the change in Skye, as her whole being flooded with desire,
and she
trembled as the first wave
s of her orgasm washed over her. H
er body arch
ed
in final surrender to his as he claimed her for his own
, t
he hot tide of
her
passion tipped him over the edge and his own powerful orgasm explod
ed
in a million fiery sensations.

Walker felt Skye's tears on his chest and swore to himself.
He'd offered her the chance to say no.
But she'd wanted him as much as he'd desired her, her passion easily a match for his own.
So why
the tears
?

He kissed the top of her head, an
d gently raised her face to his
.
What he saw there almost tore his heart in two.
Her deep blue eyes were full of longing as she looked at him, yet he could sense she was dealing with some inner turmoil.
His arm tightened around her shoulders.
With a single finger, he slowly traced the line of wetness on her cheek.

"Tears?" he said in an odd, yet gentle tone.
"I didn't hurt you did I?
You d
on’t have any regrets, do you?"

"They’re tears of happiness, not sadness.
No one has made me feel this way in a long, long time."
For a year she
ha
d convinced herself that she could never trust another man sufficiently to let him get close to her, let alone give him the gift of her body, and yet in a short space of time, this strong self-opinionated man had crept und
er her skin and into her heart.

"Well they should have.
You're beautiful and you deserve to be loved.
Hell, every woman is beautiful in her own way.
Some bastards just don't know how to make a woman feel special."