Belle and Valentine (8 page)

“Why?” he said in answer to her declaration.

She frowned and faced him. He sat behind his desk as cool as a cucumber, like he couldn’t feel the stirrings in her stomach and the whirl in her mind. Of course he couldn’t, but it felt to her like the whole world should, it was so strong.

“You know why.” She drew up a chair and dropped into it. “Sam, I can’t do this. To tell you the truth, I want Fane like I’ve never wanted another man. I just don’t see a future with us.”

She waited for Sam to respond, but he watched her with those eyes that were the reason she thought of him as an old soul. He seemed to say, “go on, I’m listening,” even if he didn’t articulate it.

“If I’m honest with myself, I loved him, even back before I left Aves. I want to let go, but I can’t do that here. I have to move away, and this time, no matter what happens, I’m going to stay gone.” She raised her chin and straightened her back.

Sam rose from his seat and came around the desk to sit on the side of it. “He will come for you this time.”

She blinked. “What do you mean?”

Instead of answering her question directly, he posed a new one of his own. “Do you know why I let Fane date you?”

Zuria’s hand flew to her hip. “What do you mean
let
?”

One side of her brother’s mouth quirked higher—his version of a smile. “The only reason I let him date you,” he repeated stubbornly, “is because I knew you were different to him than any of the others.”

Zuria had no words for this ridiculous statement.

“I knew once Fane got you, he would do everything in his power to keep you.”

Zuria surged to her feet and scraped her chair back. “You’re crazy, Sam. Can I borrow the money or not?”

“Of course.”

****

A few hours later, Zuria stood inside the building where she would catch the bus out of town. Of course when service hadn’t been cut, the place had been used as a stop. Now it housed a Laundromat, but the bus still stopped outside. She had another hour’s wait after having refused Sam’s offer to drive her to Charlotte or at least to wait until morning. She had refused both suggestions, wanting to leave before she could change her mind or Fane could find out her plans.

The Laundromat was open late for the bus and maybe those who didn’t want to wash clothes during the day. One of the few places open at this hour except for the bar, the Laundromat was empty. A dryer whirred in the back, and Zuria assumed whoever set it going would come back before long.

She shifted her suitcase’s position with the toe of her sandal and started when the roar of a motorcycle engine sounded above the dryer. Her throat dried, and she pressed a hand to her chest in an effort to calm her racing heart. He wasn’t coming there. He was just passing through.

A broad, black tire with silver spikes rolled into view and then a muscled thigh encased in black jeans. She licked her lips. The glass door opened, and Fane stepped inside. He glanced around and then pinned his gaze on her. She quaked and chided herself for it, raising her chin.

“Why are you here, Fane?”

He looked down at her suitcases, and a furrow appeared between his brows. “I didn’t think of that.”

She blinked. “What are you talking about?”

He grinned at her, and her heart skipped a beat. Damn the man.

“I had this vision of us riding off down the highway. It didn’t include clunky luggage. I should have known better. One of them is probably your makeup bag.”

“Haha, funny.” She rolled her eyes. “Wait, you said… Why would we ride off down the highway together?” The question came out breathless.

He moved closer. She resisted stepping back, but her nipples hardened as if he’d touched her. “Because this time, you’re not leaving Aves without me. Where you go, I’m going.”

Sam’s words came flooding back to her befuddled brain.
“He will come for you.”
They sounded like a line from a romance movie, stuff she didn’t even watch, but the impact was probably far worse. Her knees turned to jelly. Her only defense was anger.

“Oh so you’re going to leave Sam high and dry just before a move and right after he had that collapse?”

“Isn’t that what you’re doing?”

Her teeth snapped together so fast they hurt.

“You’re his business partner,” she tried again. “Your place is—”

He closed the space between them in a long stride and placed a large hand behind her neck to pull her to him. She fell against his chest, her hands coming up in front of her automatically. “Don’t presume to tell me where my place is, Zuria.”

“I—”

His beautiful gaze burned into hers, sapping her of any strength she had left. “I let you go because I thought I was just this country small town boy who didn’t know anything. You had a better opportunity in that guy.”

She made a small noise of protest. Funny how she’d thought she was headed for something bigger and better, and even now, she had decided to leave because she wanted to start over, and that meant anywhere but Aves.

“This time,” Fane said, stroking a thumb over her cheek, “when you leave, take the guy who loves you.”

“The…guy…who…” she squeaked, breath in short supply.

Fane grasped her around the waist and hoisted her to the top of a washing machine. He pressed between her legs and held her tight for a moment before raising his head and looking into her eyes.

“I’m going to explain this to you once, and then if it doesn’t satisfy you, we’ll figure something else out to fix it.”

She started to ask what he was talking about, but he laid a finger over her lips.

“I was stupid not to tell you I was going to do everything I could to charm that old lady, including eating her dry pot roast.”

“Widow Wilkes?”

He nodded. “Still cooking at her age—badly. Anyway, I knew Dixie Ann would be there. I also knew I’d tell her about us and that I love you.”

Zuria gaped. “You didn’t.”

“I tried. She dumped wine down my shirt. Her grandmother insisted I let Dixie Ann wash my shirt for me. What a disaster, especially when you called to tell me about Sam. I know what you thought, Zuria, but nothing more than what I told you happened. Except, of course, that I got Widow Wilkes to agree to let us use her building. It wasn’t all that hard, actually.”

Zuria wasn’t sure what to think. “But Dixie Ann came in to the shop all happy like she’d conquered you.”

“Maybe she thought she had. Look what you thought afterward. She was probably convinced you would refuse to ever see me again. What she didn’t know was how stubborn I am and how I was determined to keep you. I’m not the boy I once was. I’m a man who knows what he wants and goes after it. I’m still a country small-town guy, and you belong to me, Zuria.”

“Don’t I get a say in this?” He was killing her with all these confessions.

His hand crept beneath her blouse, and the pad of one thumb brushed her nipple. She had a choice all right—to fall into his arms and beg him to take her.

“Tell me you don’t want me,” he said.

She captured his hand and pushed it away, her eyelids heavy. “Want is not the same as love.”

“Then I will be patient. I’ll show you how I feel and wait until you come to feel the same.”

“Fane, I don’t think—”

Air breaks squeaked outside, and Zuria looked through the picture window to see the bus pull up. Her heart skittered in her chest. She wanted Fane. To leave him after he had declared his love was preposterous, but what if it was just words to get her to stay? Fane left a line of broken hearts in his wake even when they were young, but no one had ever claimed he lied to them and made promises he didn’t intend to keep. No one had said Fane told them he loved them.

She looked back at Fane. “What are you really saying?”

He didn’t hesitate or seem unsure. “I’m saying I love you, Zuria Belle, and I want to be with you, whether it’s here in Aves or any place else.”

With his hands resting on her thighs, she couldn’t think straight. This was crazy. She couldn’t let Fane leave Sam behind. Sam loved Aves. He wouldn’t in a million years think of leaving, and why should he? He had found success here, and so had Fane.

“I can’t let you leave Aves or the coffee shop. I know how you love it. You’ve never dreamed of moving to the city, and I think you don’t like the thought of it now.”

She gave him a push, and he stepped back to let her drop down from the washing machine. Unfortunately, he didn’t move enough for her body not to brush his on the descent. A shuffle toward the door brought her closer to her bags and farther from him, but the pain in her stomach said it was the wrong move.

Fane moved up behind her and caressed her arms. “If it will help, I’ll take you to see Widow Wilkes. I think she has enough sense to tell you what really happened.”

“It won’t help,” she said.

She felt his disappointment and turned to face him.

“Nothing will help how much I love you, Fane.”

His eyes widened, and she smiled.

“I’m going to stay…with you.”

He jerked her off her feet and into his embrace to crush her mouth in a hungry, all-consuming kiss. Zuria wrapped her arms around his neck, parted her lips, and pushed her tongue into his mouth. At the same time, she opened her heart and let the fear, doubt, and foolish decisions melt away for good.

Chapter Seven

“Ready?” Fane said, grinning at her across the cab of his truck.

Zuria swallowed and curled her fingers around the steering wheel. “We’re going to get in to trouble for this, Fane.”

“Who’s to see? Nobody’s around, and look miles of windy, muddy road to enjoy.”

She peered through the windshield. “This is why you always came in to town after it rained with your truck covered from top to bottom with mud. It was no accident.”

He winked.

Excitement built in Zuria’s gut. She threw the truck into gear and slammed her foot down on the gas pedal. They jerked forward, but soon she and Fane were tearing along the dirt road, splashing mud and water all over the place.

“Wipers,” Fane called out, and she hit the switch to put the wipers into high gear.

She took a bend in the road so sharp, it felt like they went airborne on one side. Zuria screamed in delight, and Fane encouraged her to drive faster when the road straightened. She did and
whooped
again.

“That’s my girl!” His eyes shown with pride, and she laughed.

“You’re a bad influence, Fane Valentine.”

“That’s the goal.”

The siren and flashing lights made them both curse, and Zuria pulled to stop. “Oh no!”

“Calm down, little rabbit.” He unbuckled himself and her. “Come on. Switch with me. He won’t be able to see through that back window.”

“Neither can we, or we would have seen him coming,” she worried. “I was driving. I don’t want you to get into trouble.”

He raised her in her seat whether she liked it or not and slid beneath her. Zuria tumbled quickly to the passenger seat and buckled up, but doing so was ridiculous at this point. A knock on the window brought both their attentions to the officer standing there, and Fane hit the power button to lower the window.

“Morning, officer,” he said, a cheerful tone to his voice. Zuria suppressed a moan and tugged on her shirt, one of Fane’s.

Mirrored glasses lowered to reveal a gaze with no amusement whatsoever. “Don’t ‘morning, officer’ me, Fane Valentine. I got you again on reckless driving, and…” The man’s gaze lowered to first Fane’s jeans, which were unbuttoned, and then shifted to her. She wore no pants at all, and she tugged at the shirt to try to cover her bare legs. Anyone could figure out what they had been doing before the speeding. Zuria hid her face behind a hand and moaned, figuring the whole town would hear about their escapades before the end of the day.

“Sorry, officer,” Fane said, still calm, and not sounding sorry in the least. “It won’t happen again.”

“The next time I catch you out here, I’m hauling you in. Is that clear?” the officer asked Fane.

“Yes, sir.” Fane saluted, and the policeman frowned.

Zuria felt the angry gaze slide to her. “And Ms. Belle?”

She started. Damn, he knew who she was. “Yes, officer?” She tried to infuse her own voice with as much respect as she could since Fane had none.

“Don’t give up,” he said, and walked back to his cruiser. Zuria looked at Fane, and he shook his head, annoyance now replacing the amusement.

“I think he just insinuated that I should keep trying to make you better man, Fane.”

“I wasn’t aware you were trying,” he grumbled, and she chuckled.

“You never know.”

“Who was driving, little rabbit?”

She smacked his arm. “Shut up. Let’s go before he changes his mind and comes back.”

Fane sobered and eyed her. “I like that shirt.”

She smoothed the material. “Thanks. I borrowed it from a friend.”

“I like you out of it.” He reached a hand toward her, but she smacked it away.

“I let you do dirty things to me in this truck, Fane, but I’m not going to repeat it today—not after being pulled over.”

“Dirty things, huh?”

“Yeah,” she said, remembering how he had made her body sing. Damn, too late, she wanted a repeat, even if it wasn’t in the truck. They had been seeing each other a few weeks now, and her life had never been more exciting. The cop had thought she would be a good influence on Fane, but she loved how he helped her to let go and just live life to the fullest.

Fane started the truck. “I’ve got more where that came from.”

“We’ll see about that,” she teased, and Fane, who had learned nothing from being pulled over by the cops, sped home like the hounds of hell were on their trail.

By the time they reached Fane’s front porch, Zuria’s sex pulsed with desire. Fane couldn’t keep his hands off of her, and he’d refused to hand over her jeans and shoes, so she had to dart on bare toes and holding down the shirt she wore up to his house. Not that she showed off anything because his shirt fit her like a minidress, but it was the principle of the matter.

At his door, Fane took his time unlocking the door. She grabbed for the keys, but he laughed and held them away. She reached for them again, and he thrust a hand between her legs while she was distracted. Her pussy grew moister than it already was.