Defy the World Tomatoes (29 page)

He braced his weight on his arms and lay still. He was big, but her muscles contracted around him, welcoming him as he eased deeper still. He couldn’t recall the names of most of the women he’d slept with over the years, but he’d never found such an amazing fit. It was like coming home and, glorying in it, he withdrew only an inch, then reclaimed the full length of her.

She reached for a pillow to muffle her moans, but she felt every sweet stroke clear to her toes and out to the tips of her fingers. “You feel so good,” she murmured breathlessly.

Jeremy licked his lips, tasted her, and withdrew a little farther before again plunging deep. He longed to make the magic last all night, but when she bucked beneath him, he was lost. He swallowed the scream that would have brought the neighbors running and, had he died right there, it would have been worth it.

When he could again breathe deeply enough to focus his eyes, he lay collapsed upon the bed and Christy Joy was gently combing his chest hair. He caught her hand and drew it to his lips. “Let’s catch a flight to Las Vegas and get married tonight.”

She hugged him with her whole body. “That’s a great idea, but Monarch Bay doesn’t have an airport.”

“Oh yeah,” he mumbled. “I don’t think I can stand and walk anyway.”

With their limbs so closely entwined, she didn’t even want to move. “I’m so glad we didn’t wait,” she whispered.

“I’ve waited since that first morning I walked by your shop and saw you standing outside.”

“I noticed you too, but I thought you were just lonely.”

He wound his fingers in her curls and pressed her cheek against his chest. “I didn’t realize I was until I saw you.”

Christy Joy bit her lip in a futile attempt to hold back her tears, but they splashed on his chest before she could catch them. “I’m sorry, but everything has happened so fast, and yet, not nearly fast enough.”

Jeremy squeezed her tight. “Wait a minute, I’m sure I proposed to you a moment ago, and you didn’t give me an answer.”

She ran her hand over the smooth skin of his hip and down his hairy thigh. “Right now, I doubt either of us is thinking clearly.”

Jeremy pulled himself up slightly. “Is that a no?”

“No. I want to wake up in your arms and tell you then.”

He settled back down beside her. “Sounds promising.”

“Sure is,” she murmured, and she fell asleep imagining them as a family with Twink, but it was J. Lyle’s angry frown that cursed her dreams.

Chapter Sixteen

Saturday morning, Darcy drove up to Ridgecrest to check the Peaveys’ yard for storm damage. Both Charlotte and Michelle greeted her warmly and after a brief tour of the yard, Darcy assured them no previously unforeseen work would have to be done in preparation for the wedding.

When Darcy returned to her truck, she glanced up the hill toward Griffin’s home. She could also justify running a quick survey of his property, but at present, she couldn’t face another of his righteous tirades.

“Artistic temperament, my ass,” she grumbled under her breath.

Her mood was still dark when she entered the shop, but Christy Joy greeted her with an ecstatic smile. “Did you just win the lottery?” Darcy asked.

“Better than that. Come on upstairs with me for a minute.” She promptly led the way at a bouncy jog.

Darcy followed with a slow, deliberate step. By the time she reached the top of the stairs, her partner was already in her living room waiting for her.

As Darcy entered, Christy Joy giggled and held out her left hand. “What do you think of this pretty ring?”

Darcy gaped at the impressive heart-shaped diamond. “I’m too dazzled to think. I assume Jeremy is the man?”

“Oh, indeed he is. Last night, we spent what was easily the best night of my life together. And this morning, as soon as the jewelry stores opened, he left to buy me an engagement ring.”

Darcy tried to be happy for her best friend, but it was a challenge with her own heart aching. “I’ve always liked Jeremy, but he’s never struck me as the impulsive sort.”

“No, he certainly isn’t, so I took it upon myself to inspire him.”

“Good for you. Do you love him?”

Christy Joy shrugged. “What’s not to love?”

“That’s not what I asked.”

Christy Joy twisted the gorgeous ring on her finger. “Yes, I do. He’s everything J. Lyle isn’t. Look, Darcy, Jeremy is so sweet, and I decided to go for it the way you did with Griffin. Hasn’t that tactic worked out well for you?”

Darcy didn’t know where to begin on that one, but she hadn’t forgotten that Griffin had sworn her to secrecy where he was concerned. “I went for it all right, but mind-blowing sex doesn’t send everybody to the altar. I’m real happy for you two, though. Have you set a date?”

“No, but we both want it to be soon.”

“Wonderful, then you can practice on your own wedding bouquet before you make one for Michelle Peavey.”

Christy Joy laughed as they went back downstairs. “I thought of that too. Now, with the sun shining, let’s hope we make some money today.”

“Amen to that, sister,” Darcy replied, and with her smile firmly fixed in place, she went out to the nursery and got to work.

The tree trimmer arrived before noon, and the crew Griffin had hired to repair the roof swiftly followed. Darcy was still trying to decide what to do about the potting shed when the carpenter she’d meant to call for an estimate parked in back.

He greeted her with a cheerful smile. “Mr. Moore asked me to fix up the shed better than new and send him the bill.”

“I’d planned to call you too, but thanks for coming so soon. We’ve emptied the shed, but if anything is still in your way, just let me know.”

As the carpenter got to work, Darcy toyed with the possibility that Griffin was sending all the help to please her rather than merely to maintain his property, but she quickly dismissed the view as delusional. She stayed out in the nursery rather than mope in her office, but the pretty sunshine failed to raise her spirits.

The day crept by and while she hadn’t been dating before she met Griffin, spending a Saturday night alone now was a discouraging prospect. She had a couple of frozen entrées in her freezer, but neither held any appeal. She made some microwave popcorn instead, and sorted through her collection of DVDs for something humorous and grabbed “Galaxy Quest”, a hilarious Star Trek spoof staring Tim Allen and Sigourney Weaver.

She’d just settled down on her sofa with the bowl of popcorn balanced on her stomach when the doorbell rang. Annoyed by the interruption, she turned down the sound on her television, set the popcorn aside and answered the door.

Griffin was standing on the steps, dressed in gray slacks and navy blue blazer. His maroon tie matched the narrow stripe in his white shirt. A mere hint of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “I thought I’d stop by before leaving for Paris.”

Darcy stepped aside to invite him in, but decided for once to keep her mouth shut and let him bury himself. That she looked frazzled after a day of work while he looked so damn cool was unfair, but then nothing had ever been equal between them.

Griffin studied her implacable expression a long moment and then reached into his coat pocket and withdrew a passport. “If you’ll promise to remain at the hotel while I play the private concert, then you’ll need this.”

Darcy quickly brushed her salty hands on her overalls, took the passport and opened it to find the photograph she’d submitted. “This should have been sent to me. How did you get hold of it?”

Griffin walked over to the coffee table and grabbed a handful of popcorn. “Does it matter? I have to be at the airport in San Francisco by midnight, and you either want to go with me or you don’t.”

Darcy understood why he would insist upon her remaining in the hotel, but she was disappointed he couldn’t trust her to behave herself around Lyman Vaughn. “You can’t treat me like a pet Yorkie and toss me a dog toy when you go out.”

“Of course not. I didn’t plan to lock you in our suite. You could go shopping, tour the Louvre, entertain yourself however you please. Just don’t argue with me about attending the concert, and don’t say what I want to hear now, if you intend to do exactly as you please once we’ve arrived in Paris.”

She licked her lips and glanced up at him. “Why do you want me to go along? As I recall, you take sedatives for a flight, so you won’t need my company on the plane. If we won’t be together in Paris either, then what’s the point?”

“The flight’s in the middle of the night, so you’ll probably be sound asleep too,” he stressed. “As for Paris, I didn’t plan to just fly over and then catch the return flight home. It won’t take more than a few hours to plan and give a concert for Monsieur Jordan, whether or not he turns out to be Lyman Vaughn. Then we can do whatever we please together.”

“Would you recognize Vaughn on sight, or does he frequently change his appearance?”

“I’ve not met the man, but he looks the same in all the surveillance photos I’ve seen. He’s in his fifties, five foot ten, one hundred seventy pounds, silver hair, green eyes. He favors finely tailored suits, and if he passed by you on the street, you’d probably assume he was an attorney or businessman on his way to an important meeting.”

“He has no distinguishing marks, no mole on his cheek, or a tarantula tattooed on his neck?”

“No, what did you expect, that he’d be seven feet tall with flaming red hair?”

“No, I suppose it’s only movie villains whose looks are extraordinary.” Darcy focused on her pink socks. “Still, you don’t really need me along when you could find agreeable company in Paris without much effort.”

“Without any effort at all,” he countered smoothly, “but she wouldn’t be you.”

Darcy risked a peek at his smile, and her knees turned to butter cream. “Would that matter?”

“Yes. I’m sorry about the way I blew up at you yesterday. I know you meant well, and we’ll just have to hope no harm was done.”

The threat of unexpected tears stung her eyes, and she quickly blinked them away and turned her passport in her hands. She hadn’t had time to go shopping, but she might be able to get by with the few good things she already owned and add to her wardrobe in Paris.

Of course, when Griffin planned to walk into a lion’s den, being concerned about her clothes was ludicrous. Then again, if she somehow managed to stay with him, he might be injured protecting her. She would never forgive herself if he suffered even the slightest harm because of her.

“Okay,” she agreed softly. “Give me a minute to call Christy Joy. Then I’ll toss a few things in a bag and be ready to go.”

“You might want to shower.”

She looked down at her rumpled overalls. “Do you honestly believe I’m too great an idiot to come up with that on my own?”

“No, I was teasing you, Darcy.”

Unconvinced of that, she left the room without responding, but she’d meant to take a shower and wash her hair right after calling her partner. Only Christy Joy didn’t answer. She might be out with Jeremy, or the pair could be having too good a time to come to the telephone. Either way, Darcy was forced to record a hastily conceived message, but she was amazed not to feel a crushing guilt for leaving the country on such short notice.

When had her priorities taken this alarming shift? No answer appeared while she showered and, once out, she hurriedly towel-dried her hair and dressed in her black Levi’s, boots and black sweater. While she usually went without earrings, she put on small gold hoops which went nicely with her diamond note. She returned to the living room pulling a wheeled travel bag filled with lacy lingerie and little else.

Griffin was watching Galaxy Quest and laughing between bites of popcorn. She was surprised a man as sophisticated as he would enjoy it as much as she did.

“Just stop the movie and we can watch it when we get home,” she suggested.

“Great, I don’t want to guess how it ends.” Griffin rose from the sofa with an easy stretch, carried the now empty popcorn bowl into the kitchen, and set it in the sink. “You ought to leave a few lights on to discourage burglars.”

“Right, like I’ve got any valuables to steal,” Darcy shot right back at him.

He came forward to take her bag. “All right, I know you’re capable of running your own life. Just tell me to shut up if you like.”

“I think I just did.” Darcy grabbed her trench coat from the closet and caught a quick glimpse of herself in the mirror by the door. With her gamin hairstyle and black apparel, she might pass for a French girl. If she just kept her mouth shut, which, as always, would be the greatest challenge.

She nearly snorted on that one, and had to quickly take a deep breath. She checked to make certain her passport and keys were in her coat pocket, and then with a few lights burning, she followed Griffin out the door.

Darcy had flown since childhood with her parents, but they’d never traveled first class. She was surprised to discover there was so much room between the wide seats that a man of Griffin’s size could stretch out and be comfortable. She would be able to curl up as though she were still on her own couch.

While the plane was taxiing out on the runway, Griffin pulled a vial of pills from his pants pocket and asked the stewardess for a glass of water. “I hate to do this, but the alternative is too ugly to contemplate.”

“You couldn’t be ugly if you tried,” Darcy scolded.

“That’s just it, I refuse to try.” He swallowed a couple of pills, finished the water, then requested pillows and blankets for them both.

He was already yawning by the time they had the pillows comfortably tucked beneath their heads and the blankets stretched across their laps. He reached for Darcy’s hand, laced her fingers in his, then brought them to his lips.

“You know what I love best about you?” he murmured.

“I didn’t think you loved me at all,” she responded, but she sat forward eager to hear it. Unfortunately, before he could answer, his lashes fluttered, his eyes closed, and he was sound asleep.

“It’s Sleeping Beauty who’s supposed to be lost in dreamland,” she whispered, “not the handsome prince.”

She closed her eyes as the engines roared in take-off, but once the flight was underway, the couple seated across the aisle kept her awake. Their voices were low and teasing and, while she couldn’t catch their exact words, it was plain they were lovers bent on enjoying every minute of their trip. She envied them and patted Griffin’s hand.

She wondered if he’d been about to say that he loved her eyes, or maybe just her lacy lingerie. She refused to push the thought any further, however, when by the time he awoke, he’d undoubtedly have forgotten he ever mentioned the word love.

He’d raised the armrest between their seats and pulled her hand into his lap the way he had the one time they’d gone to the movies. The first time, she corrected mentally. Then afterwards she’d seen him almost jump the poor clerk from the Song and Dance music store. Now she understood why he’d been so quick to not only expect, but ward off an assault. She shook her head. What else was he hiding? She’d expected so damn little of him then, and yet amazingly he’d kept pursuing her.

Maybe beauty really was in the eye of the beholder. Either that, or the pumpkin pie spice, which she’d packed, was even more potent than George had promised. Whatever the reason, Griffin really cared for her, and she was scared to death she might lose him.

The stewardess paused beside Griffin. “May I bring you anything?” she whispered.

It was a long flight, and Darcy wished she could sleep too. “Some hot tea?”

The stewardess returned with a small silver teapot filled with hot water and a fancy assortment of teas. Darcy thanked her, slid her hand from Griffin’s to select orange spice and took several of the delicate sugar cookies being offered.