Devour Me (Master Chefs Series #1) (17 page)

Taryn
closed the door and looked around.  Henri’s mother had already set some flannel
pajamas on the bed along with a pair of warm, fuzzy slippers.  “A real change
of pace,” Taryn whispered as she ran her hand over the flannel.

Her
phone rang and she sat on the edge of the bed to take the call, her hand still
absentmindedly running over the flannel. “Hello.”

“Taryn,”
Errol snapped.  “Where are you?  I’ve been calling the apartment for an hour.”

“Errol,
I’m so happy you called.  It’s been such a lovely day and I wanted to share it
with you.  And tell me, how’s your meeting going?”

“We’ve
begun shooting my television show and everything is running smoothly.  Now
answer me.  Where are you?”

“I’m
out in the country learning all about dairy farming, pigeons, vineyards and
organic farming. It’s been a beautiful day and so fascinating. The air is
wonderful out here.”

“The
country?”

She
could almost hear the disdain in his voice.

“Yes. 
The region of Alsace.”

“Alsace?  Why the hell did you go all the way out there?  There are plenty of farms close to
Paris.”

“I
wasn’t doing the driving.  Henri brought me out here.”  After a long silence, Taryn
said, “Errol?  Are you still there?”

“You
went out to the country with that… hick?”

“Errol,
don’t say that. Henri’s been perfectly sweet and charming. He’s been a great
guide.  And you know, he knows a lot more about food and cooking than you give
him credit for.”

“Yeah,
I bet he does.”

Amused
by this unexpected jealous side of him, Taryn chuckled. “Errol.”

“I
honestly don’t see what’s so funny, Taryn.  If you wanted to go out to the damn
countryside, you should have told me. I would have brought you to some of the
finest, most beautiful…” 

He
stopped and Taryn could hear his exasperated breaths.

“And
where are you now?”

She
hesitated.

“Taryn,
where are you? I know you're not at home. I just called there. Where are you
staying tonight?”

“We
stopped for dinner at his parents’ house.  It’s too late to drive back to Paris, so…”

“No.”

“What
do you mean, no?”

“I
won’t have it.  I won’t have you sleeping out in some country shack with that…”

“Errol,
you're being ridiculous.” Her amusement faded as she saw just how unreasonable
he was. “It’s a perfectly beautiful home and they’ve been so welcoming. His
mother even laid out a pair of pajamas for me.”

“How
quaint.”

“I
have my own room, if that’s what you're…”

“Taryn,
I want you home, in my apartment, in my bed.”

“But
you're not even there.”

“All
the more reason!”

“Errol,
it’s late. It’s already growing dark outside. Besides, there are a few more
farms Henri would like to visit tomorrow.”

“I
don’t care, Taryn,” Errol snarled. “If you want to go out and visit farms, I’ll
take you out to visit farms.  Do you understand me?”

Taryn
inhaled deeply as she considered his demand. “Errol,” she whispered as she let
the air slowly seep out of her lungs. “I don’t understand.  What are you afraid
of?”

He
groaned and for a moment she thought he’d hang up on her.

“Do
you really think I haven’t noticed, Taryn?”

“Noticed
what?”

“The
way he looks at you; those puppy dog eyes… all country charm and boyish lust.”

“I
think you're exaggerating.”

“Really.
Are you going to tell me that he hasn’t made a single move on you since you’ve
been out there? That he hasn’t held your hand? Wrapped his arm around your
shoulder? Kissed you?”

Taryn
remained silent.  If she told him…

“You
don’t have to say anything, Taryn.  Your silence is more than enough.”

“Errol,”
she hushed. “It was a brief and innocent kiss. I told him right away I had no
intention of…”

“It
doesn’t matter what your intentions are.  Don’t you get that? If he has
intentions, he’ll do anything to change your mind. He’ll do anything to make
you think he’s the better… I bet he’s already badmouthed me, hasn’t he?”

Silence.

“Hasn’t
he!?”

Chapter 19

E
rrol tossed his phone onto the couch of his
dressing room and raked his fingers angrily through his hair. Pacing the room,
he considered his options. They’d already taped more shows than they’d
originally planned.

But
leaving now to go… where? He grabbed his phone and scrolled through his files
to find all the information he had on each student. 

“Henri,”
he muttered as he came to the young farmer’s name. “In Walbourg.”

With
the snap decision made, he grabbed his jacket and walked out.

“Errol,”
his producer called. “I wanted to go over the last bit that you did. I think
the lighting was all wrong and that thing… what was that… cow’s brain? A
riz
de veau
?  Hey, hold on. Where you going?”

“Sorry,
Danny.  I’ve got urgent business back home.”

“But,
we have a show to do.  Everybody’s here, waiting and ready.  And all the food
we…”

“Personal
emergency.  I have to get there.”

“Hey,”
Errol’s agent said as he came up to him.  “Errol, buddy, a lot of money has
been put into this production.  You can’t just up and leave when…”

“We
got more shows in the can than you’d planned. You know damn well you’ll get all
that money back and more, so save the lecture.”

“Getting
all of this together wasn’t easy, you know.”

“Don’t
give me a hard time. I have to get home.  That’s all.”

An
hour later he was on a flight home. He slept as much as he could on the flight,
though his sleep was constantly disturbed by dreams of Taryn.

The
thought of her in another man’s arms… it was enough to drive him mad. What was
she doing, right then, at that very moment? Was she with Henri?  With that
young juvenile?  Naked in his bed, against his hard, young body? Was he
touching her soft skin? Kissing her elegant neck? Watching those beautiful eyes
of hers close in ecstasy as he thrust into her?

In
a fit of rage, he got out of his seat, waking the other passengers around him. He
muttered an insincere apology and paced up and down the aisle until the flight
attendant told him to sit down and buckle up.

Moments
later they landed at Charles-de-Gaulle airport, where he quickly made
arrangements for a flight to Strasbourg. There, he rented a car and sped his
way to Walbourg. His hands gripped the steering wheel with fiery rage as he
imagined Taryn waking in Henri’s arms that morning.

Had
they made love all night? Had that damned young country virgin tried to please Taryn
the way only a real man could? Was he, at this moment, still holding her in his
arms, kissing her, arousing her, fucking her?

With
Henri’s address permanently engraved in his mind, Errol drove through the
beautiful valleys of the Vosges Mountains without even noticing them.  The
beauty of his surroundings was lost on him as he thought only of Taryn and the
night she’d spent with her novice lover.

He
pulled up in front of the little, old country house and wanted to gag. It was
so stereotypically quaint, he thought he’d vomit.  Instinctively, his gaze
swept over the windows of the second level. Which room was hers?  Better yet,
which room was Henri’s?

Just
as an older man walked out of the house and came to greet him, Errol got out of
the car and walked up the path to the house.

“
Bonjour
,”
the man said with a jovial grin plastered to his ruddy face.

“Taryn,”
was all Errol said.

The
jovial grin faded and the older man turned back to the house. Moment’s later Taryn
emerged with her lovelorn puppy nipping at her heels.

“Errol. 
My God, what are you doing here?” Though clearly surprised and shocked, she
smiled as she came up to him.

Errol
nodded a menacing greeting at Henri.  “Get in the car, Taryn.”

“You
must have traveled many hours to come out here,” Henri said.  “Why don’t you
come in for breakfast?”

“I
ate on the plane.”

“Errol,”
Taryn said, her face bright and glowing with effervescence and joy. “Henri and
I were just talking about going up to visit Chateau…”  She looked back at Henri
with a befuddled and amused grin.  “Fleckenstein, right?”

Henri
nodded. “You could join us. It’s a beautiful…”

“I
have no desire to visit anything whatsoever with you,” Errol said.

Smiling
an annoying amount of glee, Taryn came up to him and put her hand to his arm. “There
are a few farms we want to see along the way. Henri’s parents say the castle is
lovely this time of year and we could…”

“No,”
he grunted.

Her
smile faded and she reddened as she glanced at Henri then looked at Errol. “There’s
no need to…”

“Get
in the car.”

“Errol.”

“Taryn,
just get in the damn car.”

“Hey,”
Henri said as he took a step forward.

“Stay
out of this, son.  I’m taking her home.”  Errol grabbed Taryn’s wrist, turned
on his heel and dragged her out to the car.

Looking
over her shoulder she waved. “It’s all right, Henri. Thanks for everything. Please,
thank your parents for me.  I had a great time.”

“Get
in the car.” Errol opened the door and shoved her inside then slammed the door
behind her. 

“What’s
gotten into you?”

Staring
straight ahead, Errol drove off, leaving a cloud of dust to blot out the image
of Henri who stood, stunned, as he watched the car drive away.

“Errol. 
What is with you?  I was just.”

“I
told you I wouldn’t stand you staying here.”

“You’re
blowing this all out of proportion.  Henri is a classmate and he’s helping me
get familiar with…”

“I
don’t want to hear it.”

“For
crying out loud, Errol.  You can’t keep me from going where I want. I’m not
your property to do with as you will.”

“You
became mine the moment you made my home yours, you got that?”

“That’s
what you think.”

“Damn
it, Taryn.” He suddenly slammed on the brakes and turned onto a narrow dirt
road that cut through a corn field.

“What
the hell are you doing?”

Errol
shut the motor and pounced on her. In an instant, his hands and lips were all
over her, devouring her, tasting her, licking her. At first she resisted, and
tried to push him off as she clenched her jaw tight to keep him from entering
her mouth.

“Tell
me what you did with him.”

“What?”

“That
country bumpkin… that hick.”

“Nothing.”

“Did
he touch you?”  He tore open her shirt and unclipped her bra. Angry and
possessive, he grabbed her breasts.  “Did he touch you, Taryn?  Did he slip his
hand in to feel you up?”

“No.”

He
unfastened her jeans and shoved his hand down her front until his fingers
circled her sensitive nub.  “Did he?”

“Errol,
no.”

Clasping
his mouth over a nipple, he suckled then sank his teeth in.

“Ouch,
Errol.  You're hurting me.”

Sitting
back, he looked into her eyes. “You don’t know what hurt is.”  He got out of
the car and came around to open her door. With a firm grasp on her wrist, he
yanked her out of the car, slammed the door shut and pushed her up against the
car.

With
an urgency that consumed him, he pressed his body against hers and rammed her mouth
with his tongue. His hands kept busy tearing off her clothes and throwing each
item to the ground.

“Errol,
what are you…?”  Taryn’s voice was filled with the thrill of the unknown and
the fear that accompanied it.

Errol
kicked off his shoes and pulled off his pants.  “I’m showing you who you belong
to; who you belong with. I’ll not have you going off with another man, Taryn.” He
pushed down his jeans and plunged his long harden anger deep inside her, and
she moaned in response before she began swerving her hips in response, rocking
with his rhythm. It was exactly what her body craved. She clenched while Errol,
with relentless intent, pounded into her.

“Oh
Errol!” she moaned, clawing into his back. He was so hard and large, she’d
never felt so full. “I want you, more of you, please…harder. Take me harder so
I know you’re real, back into my life, and not just a dream.”

“I’m
not in your dreams, Taryn,” Errol pounded hard. “I’m very much real, as my
fucking you now is real. You're mine,” he repeated with every hard thrust. “Mine.”

Quickly,
too quickly, he spilled all his anger, jealousy and insecurities into her. Sweaty
and breathless, he leaned into her and brushed his lips across her ear, taking
her hand and lacing his fingers through hers. “You’re mine.”

Chapter 20

A
s Taryn dressed for her first night at home
with Errol, she smiled as she replayed their hour long frolic in the cornfields
of Alsace. At first, she was worried about the possibility of being seen by
strangers. She was naked and doing unspeakable things with this man out in the
open. What would French country folk think?

But
after Errol quickly spent himself, he took her again, slowly, deliciously and
with the tender hands of a man who treasured his woman.  Through his kisses,
he’d confessed his sins. “I knew the moment I saw your photo, I wanted you,
Taryn. I knew I wanted to be the first to discover you. Why do you think I
planned to meet you before you met the rest of the class? Damn it, I knew all
the young men in class would do all they could to get your attention, to
impress you.”