Vivid (30 page)

"No. No, it doesn't." He'd
answered without thought, then realized he meant it. He didn't care if she was
rich as an ancient Egyptian queen. He just wanted to make love to her.

"Then if it doesn't bother you, I
will let you pay my bill."

The awkward silence fell between them
again and Vivid turned back to their surroundings, glad for the distraction of
the wind and the rustling response of the grasses nearby. Aided by the sliver
of the moon above, she could see the shadowy outlines of trees off in the dark
distance across the wide open field. The gazebo seemed so isolated, she felt as
though she and Nate were the only people in the world.

The temperature had dropped a few degrees,
so she pulled the cape closer against the chill. "What are the winters
like here?" she asked.

"Fierce, cold. Think a California
girl like you can survive?"

"I believe so."

He chuckled.

Vivid was about to take offense; she'd
heard that smug chuckle before. "You don't think I'm capable?"

The softness of his reply deflated her
temper. "I think you're very capable."

She shivered then, but couldn't be certain
whether it originated from the wind or from her attraction to his volatile
nearness.

"If you're cold, we can head back
inside," he offered.

"I'd like to stay for a few moments
more, if we could."

"Then take this," he said as he
held out his coat for her.

"What will you wear?" she asked,
looking up at him in the darkness.

“Lancaster, for once, no questions, just
accept the offer graciously."

Vivid nodded, smiled, and undid the frogs
at the neck of her cape. Raising her arms, she held the silk cape behind her
head and the night winds lifted it like a sail. Despite the cool temperature,
she enjoyed the caress of the air blowing across her shoulders and throat.
"I love this Michigan of yours, Nate. The trees, the wind..."

She turned and looked over at him.
Although shadows masked his eyes, the intensity she sensed made her pause and
slowly drop her arms. "Is something wrong?"

In response he moved closer and very
slowly traced a finger across her smooth cheek. Vivid went stock-still under
his caress, her heart beating fast.

"Why are you doing this to me?"
he asked in a soft voice.

Mesmerized, Vivid could only swallow as he
continued to speak. "You make me want to take you hunting and fishing...berry
picking and snowshoeing..."

"I'd like to do those things with you..."

"I know you would, that's what scares
me so..."

His thumb moved gently over her lips and
he leaned down and kissed her with a heat that branded her as his own. Vivid
stepped closer to better feel his lips on hers, and as though it was what he
was waiting for, he slid his arm about her waist and eased her against his hard
body. The kiss deepened. Vivid ran a hand over the strength of his shoulder.
When his tongue slid seductively between her parted lips she began to tremble.

He kissed her neck, making her sigh and melt
as he brushed his lips over the scented hollow of her throat. She had no
alternative but to let her head drop back and ride the wave of sensations as
his hands moved to tease her breasts. The nipples tightened beneath his toying
fingers, budding against the emerald satin in anticipation.

Under the night wind, Nate bared her as he
slid her dress down below her breasts. With his tongue he boldly circled her
trembling nipples. The deep rustling of the trees muffled her gasp as he gently
bit each bud, then suckled wantonly. He feasted, teased, filled his hands with
her hips and brought her closer. His tongue was lightning and his hands,
sliding her gown slowly over her hips, were brewing the storm.

Nate's manhood throbbed with need for her.
Her beautiful dark-tipped breasts and the sensual warmth awaiting his exploring
hands beneath the luxurious satin gown were driving him to the edge. Her skin
was hot and soft; her mouth, as he sought her lips again, a temptation no man
could resist. Her kisses could sustain a man for a lifetime, and that was how
long Nate wanted to make love to her, for a lifetime.

Vivid thought she could live forever on
just his kiss. She didn't care that her dress, now rucked up past her thighs,
had probably sustained irreparable harm from being crushed in his large hands.
She didn't care because those large hands were warmly cupping the thin material
of her drawers, seducing her, stroking her, making her arch.

"Let's take these off..."

Vivid offered no protest as he slid her
drawers from her legs. She felt wanton, brazen, standing in the wind with her
dress held aside, naked but for her stockings and high-heeled shoes; she felt
only heat as his strong hands caressed her. She couldn't help herself, she
parted her legs to give him more access to all that made her female, and as a
reward he slowly sank to his knees and kissed her bared thigh.

"Here's something else they didn't
teach you in medical school..."

The soft, initial tribute of his love for
her made her eyes widen and her legs instinctively close. "Nate, what are
you doing?''

Smiling, he looked up at her and said,
"Don't you ever stop asking questions?''

Vivid tried to speak but the urge to do so
soon vanished under the spell of his hands lazily preparing her for his feast.

"Just relax," he coaxed with
both his soft voice and his touch. "Consider this as an extension of your
medical education..."

When he bent to her again, his devotions
were so delicate, his expertise so masterful, she fought to maintain her calm
but lost the battle very early in the campaign.

Before she knew it, sensations she had
never experienced before grabbed her being and left her shattered in the night.
The wind masked the sound of her screaming his name.

When Vivid finally came back to herself,
he was standing over her chuckling smugly, like a conceited male.

"Still cold?" he asked.

He'd left her warmer than she could ever
remember. "Where in the world does a man learn something like that?"
she asked.

Nate shook his head and responded
playfully, "Woman, are you still asking questions? I thought I'd cured you
of that just a minute ago."

Vivid's cheeks burned from the memories of
his "cure." "It's because it's all so...new."

"I understand."

"Then help me to understand what
we're doing, you and I."

He looked down into her eyes and said
softly, "I wish I knew, Lancaster. I'm still trying to figure out why
you're even here."

Vivid looked out into the night; she
didn't know why she was there, either. Her mother, Francesca, was a strong
believer in fate. Had the fates brought her here to the wilds of Michigan for
the sole purpose of meeting this one man? "Abigail says I'm the pillar of
fire in your great-grandfather's dream."

She turned to gauge his reaction.

He said nothing in reply. Instead he
brought her back into the circle of his arms and she met his kiss willingly.

A few passionate moments later, he
whispered against her ear, "We should get back. Gail's going to start to
worry."

Vivid knew he was right, but being there
with him was more appealing than seeking her bed. The remnants of this latest
encounter still had her senses throbbing. She still wanted to know where men
learned to do...
that.
She felt swollen everywhere. "I don't want to
go in."

"We have to, otherwise..." He
lowered his mouth to hers and spent a few silent moments nibbling sensually on
the sultry treat of her bottom lip.

"Otherwise...what?" Vivid asked.
She'd learned her lessons of love well and showed him so by licking softly at
the edges of his masterful mouth.

"Quit tempting me," he warned in
a tone thick with need.

"You should talk..."

Several more moments passed, heated with
kisses, caresses, and Vivid's soft cries. Her breasts were bared again, her
dress lifted, and he once again knelt to make her lush, open, and his. She
didn't believe it possible, but she screamed even louder the second time.

T
hey took the train home early the next morning. Nate spent most of
his time enjoying the company of his daughter, but every now and then, he'd
turn to Vivid with a look that scalded her from the roots of her hair to her
toes.

When they arrived in Niles, Vivid was
amazed at the amount of goods Nate and the porters unloaded from the boxcar.
She couldn't resist teasing him by saying, "And you were critical of the
number of purchases I made? Look at all this."

The pile of farm implements, tools, and
bolts of cloth were only the tip of the mountain. A good portion of the items
were boxed and crated. "Where do you keep the tame animals?" she
asked.

He hadn't been able to resist her smile
the day he met her at that very station over a month ago, and he certainly
wasn't able to resist it now. "Go make yourself useful. See if the livery
man brought around our buggy like he was supposed to."

Then he favored her with another one of
those heated looks. "I'll take care of the rest of your questions
later."

She gave him a sultry little smile, then
left to do as he'd asked.

When Nate turned the horses onto the tract
that led to the Grove, all the weariness of the journey vanished. Vivid spied
the little log cabin she now called home; she drank in the familiar sight of
the trees and surrounding
flora and
realized that she'd become
very much attached to this place in the short while she'd been here. She also
realized she couldn't imagine living anywhere else.

Nate halted the team beside the Grayson
house. Magic immediately hopped down from the wagon and ran straight for the
barn to see if queen cat Cleopatra had given birth when they were away, while
the adults began unloading the supplies and luggage.

Nate was handing down bags of seed to
Vivid, and Gail was leaning on her cane overseeing the process when Eli rode
up. Vivid noticed Nate had turned his back on his cousin's arrival, appearing
to concentrate instead on maneuvering the items that still needed to be handled.

"Welcome back," Eli called as he
strolled up to the wagon. "Need some help?"

Nate and Eli eyed each other, then Nate
nodded a terse agreement and they all went to work.

With Eli's help the unloading went
swiftly. There were farm implements, dry goods for the store, an anvil for the
blacksmith, and numerous other items Nate had promised to bring back for
several Grove residents.

When the wagon was nearly empty, Gail
headed toward the house, announcing dinner would be ready in less than an hour.

The last crates on the wagon belonged to
Vivid. They contained precious new medical books she could hardly wait to read.
When they were unearthed she eyed them eagerly. "Eli, those crates on your
left are mine. Can you push them this way?"

Eli, standing in the wagon bed, turned to
where she pointed and bent to shove the crates to one side.

Nate barked, "Leave them be. I can
handle them."

Eli stiffened in response. He turned to
his cousin, and for a moment Vivid was sure an argument would ensue. Instead,
Eli simply shrugged and said through gritted teeth, "Whatever you say,
Nate. How about I take this churn in to Mother?"

Nate nodded. Eli inclined his head
respectfully to Vivid, picked up the churn, and headed toward the house.

“Had I known my crates were going to make the
two of you fight, I’d have gotten them myself," Vivid said after Eli left.
When he didn't respond to her thinly veiled condemnation of his manners, she
asked, “The two of you haven't always disliked each other, have you?"

Nate slid her largest crate over to the
lip of the wagon bed. "No. We were closer than brothers growing up."

"Then what changed between you?"

He looked at her a moment, then went back
to moving her two other crates. "Some things are better left alone,
Lancaster." He placed the two smaller crates atop the larger one, picked
them all up, and without uttering another word, headed across the meadow to her
house.

Once inside, he set the crates down where
she directed, then turned to leave. As he reached the door, Vivid said,
"Thank you for the holiday."

"You're welcome. Don't forget about
dinner."

And he was gone.

About an hour after Nate's departure,
Magic came over to announce that dinner was ready. Vivid, in the process of
unpacking, had forgotten all about the meal. In truth, she didn't want to go,
not now when she could feel the new books calling her. However, she stood and
dusted the sawdust from her black skirt. She'd made a promise to Gail, and
Vivid always tried to keep her word.

To her pleasure, Eli had stayed to join
the meal.