Drive Me Crazy (18 page)

“Blink,” he whispered, nuzzling her ear. “It’s like taking a photograph. Have you ever seen anything so sexy?”

Her teeth worried her bottom lip as she studied their reflection, then slowly let her eyes drift closed. He pinched her nipples, drawing the tips out under the pressure. Her eyes shot open and a wicked smile played on her lips.

She drew her arms up over head, her body swaying to a rhythm more intoxicating than any he’d ever heard. His pulse quickened and he explored every pose his naughty mind could come up with. If his cock weren’t so hard and throbbing, he’d be tempted to play her body all night, until she begged for release. That would be something to watch.

Sliding one hand up her torso to her delicate neck, and the other to the thin strip of hair between her legs, he caught sight of his own image. He’d been so caught up in enjoying her exquisite sexiness he’d missed the crazed look in his eyes, the flare of his nostrils, the sheen of sweat on his skin.

Now, with one hand at the base of her throat and the fingers of the other spreading the slick folds of her sex, he had only one thought.
Mine
.

A primal instinct, a deep possession, a thought so out of place he threw it away. And yet it returned like a memory.

Chapter Fourteen

“Where are we?” Jaime sat up with a start, trying to orient herself in the darkness. The car had barely stopped, but she couldn’t imagine they were in Yellowstone already. “How long was I asleep?”

“You’ve been snoring since I turned south.”

“No, no, no.” She slapped her leg with each word. “We’re going west. Yellowstone, Boise, Oregon.” Her heart pounded. She’d known better than to drift off. But with so little sleeping going on in bed this trip, she couldn’t help it.

“I got tired of driving into a sunset while you slept through it. Besides, I don’t think they have views like this in Boise.” He grinned and climbed out of the car.

She looked out his window and smiled in wonder. The majestic Mormon Temple rose high, stretching for the heavens. She scrambled out of the car and joined Xavier to stare up at the massive building. The lights streaming upwards lit the architecture, literally highlighting the severe structure topped with playful spires.

Xavier motioned toward the building. “You don’t think
this
is spooky?”

She shook her head. “I always looked forward to driving into Salt Lake and seeing it. I guess if you drive across the country often enough, a massive building reaching out from the mountains begins to seem comforting. Though, now that you mention it, the dramatic lighting reminds me of telling ghost stories to my brothers in the dark while I shined a flashlight on my face.”

He tilted his head, the lights of the building brightening his puzzled expression. “I like how the architecture plays with being both forbidding and welcoming.”

It warmed her to know he not only listened to her suggestion, but he appreciated it the way she’d hoped he would. If only she had an idea of his agenda. When she’d nodded off, they’d been headed for Yellowstone. “Care to let me in on your new plan?”

“I’m trying to decide between the ground and the trunk of the car.”

“I’m not following you.” Even if she wanted to, he could never talk her into it. Not on a city street.

“It’s too dark for me to hand hold.” He stepped back to the car and pulled out his camera bag. He set it on the trunk and started pulling out the little black bags that held his toys.

Apparently, she was the only one with sex on the brain. Checking her watch, she wondered what kind of hotel they’d be able to find after midnight. She’d had a nap, so they could get back in the car and head…where?

Across Nevada? She couldn’t think of a single thing to use as an excuse to stay another day. Even Lake Tahoe was out of the way. They were twelve hours from her mother’s house. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to try and lift the heaviness in her chest. She wanted more time, but she couldn’t make any argument for it. She’d spent the better part of a week telling him to take her home.

“This is making me nervous.”

Jaime opened her eyes to find Xavier lying on the sidewalk, his camera angled up at the temple. The bizarre positions he perched in with the hopes of finding a better shot always made her grin. “It’s certainly strange.”

He moved the camera to shoot her a glare, then turned his attention back to his architecture obsession. “I see what I want, but I’m not capturing it. It’s right there, but I can’t figure out how to make it work.”

She knew the feeling.

“Maybe it will be better with a timer and tripod.” Xavier sprung up as if he hadn’t been awake since before dawn.

“Do you ever sleep?” Jaime leaned against the car and he glanced at her.

“I slept the whole way here. Don’t touch the car.”

“Okay.” She stepped away and turned on her phone. Taking pictures with a phone would always be good enough for her.

“Sorry, I have to keep the car still to keep the camera still.” He maneuvered his tripod, which reminded her of the pop beads her brothers had played with as kids. She’d seen him attach the thing to tree branches and out windows. He always wound up cursing at the thing, like he was doing now.

“What’s the plan after you get your shot, Mr. Full-Of-Surprises? We’re only twelve hours from Medford. Or I know where the Holiday Motel is here.” She steeled herself against his response.

He stepped back from the car without answering her. The camera clicked and he stared at it intently, like he was using a Jedi mind trick to make it do what he wanted. It clicked again and he picked it up, examining his results.

“Xav, really? You’re going to ignore me?”

“I’m ignoring all references to heading to Medford. I told you we’d be there in plenty of time and we won’t be staying in motels.” He set the camera in the tripod again, repeating the click-stare-click procedure. Twice.

She tapped her toe, but in flip-flops it didn’t make a sound. There was nothing to distract her from wondering whether he turned south to prolong their time together or to photograph architecture. She cleared her throat and he cursed, but with the way he fiddled with the camera, she knew changing lenses caused his creative missives, not her. Usually she didn’t mind waiting for him, but it was dark and the streets had an eerie quiet to them.

“Can I help?” She couldn’t imagine with what, but she’d never been good at standing around.

“Can you stand still?” he asked without looking at her.

“I’m sorry, but usually there is something for me to do or look at so I don’t notice how long this takes.”

“That comment is begging for a lesson in patience.”

She wanted to beg him to tell her what he had on the agenda. Would she be lunching with her family tomorrow, well, today? Or having some Utah adventure?

“I need you to stand over here.” He took her hand, his warmth doing nothing to calm her frustrations, instead firing new ones.

Just fabulous, she was turned on and he only had eyes for his camera. “I need you to tell me what we’re doing. I fell asleep headed in one direction and woke up in another state.”

He led her in front of the camera, then turned his attention back to it.

“Really?” They had a staring match while the camera went through its click-pause-click routine. His smile sparkled in the dim light as he examined the display and adjusted it again.

“You are the most infuriating man I have ever met.”

“You like it.” He stepped to her and took her hands in his.

“I really don’t.” But being this close to him was pretty fabulous, even if he was annoying.

“We need to be perfectly still.” He leaned forward, his lips touching hers.

So she was a prop? Jaime stayed motionless as the camera cycled, then dropped her shoulder and rammed him. Hard. Having so many brothers really did come in handy for a few things.

He staggered back and rubbed at his chest as he returned to the camera. “You’re going to pay for that.”

“You want to talk punishments? You threw my itinerary out a window, dragged me from state to state without so much as a thought to my opinions, and decided on this southbound detour without even mentioning it to me. So if either of us is in the wrong here, it’s clearly you. Give me the keys.” She held out her hand.

Xavier’s laughter bellowed and echoed on the quiet streets. “This is perfect. You put your leg out.”

“The photo? I just gave you a laundry list of complaints and you’re focused on a picture? Don’t get too attached to it. You have to delete it. No one can see a picture of us kissing.”

“Look.” He turned the camera display towards her. “It’s my best one yet, though I think it’s you that makes it, not skill on my part.”

Walking over to him, she tried not to stomp like a toddler. The way he ignored her protests annoyed her, and then evaporated when she saw the shot. They were a simple silhouette in front of the lights streaming up the building, turned vivid purple and blue by some magic he’d done with the exposure. Their hands interlaced, only their lips touching, and the cheeky way she’d lifted one leg did look amazing.

And no one would know it was her. She might even be able to keep it as a tangible memento of the trip. Except she didn’t need any reminders. She’d wear the mark on her heart for the rest of her life.

“Am I forgiven?” He packed up the camera bag with military precision.

“One good portrait doesn’t make up for driving to another state without telling me.”

He slid the bag behind his seat. “The Mormon Temple is the only thing you mentioned you wanted to see when you weren’t trying to manipulate me into doing what you want. I saw a sign in Casper, and since you were asleep I didn’t want to wake you.”

“You came here for me? Come on. And don’t you dare say Casper the ghost made you do it. Don’t blame this on ghosts or Wyoming.” Her anger melted away knowing he had considered her feelings, but she didn’t want him to know that. She wanted to be wherever he was, for as long as she could, but she didn’t want to just be along for the ride.

He shrugged his shoulders. “You don’t like the surprise?”

It was her turn to stare blankly at him.

“Fine, I won’t take you to a different state without telling you first.
Ça va?
”

“Without
asking
me, Xavier. Respect me enough to ask.”

He placed a hand on his chest and stepped to her. “I have nothing but respect for you, J’aime.”
He fished the keys from his pocket and held them out to her. “Grand Canyon or Las Vegas. You decide.”

She grabbed the keys and smiled wide. Now she was in the driver’s seat.

“I’m a runner, not a climber.” Xavier leaned his back against the red sandstone canyon wall, straightening his legs so his feet braced on the other side. He didn’t look down, not wanting to see how deep the slot canyon went.

“You could have hiked around with the rest of our tour peeps.”

“I wasn’t going to let you do this alone.”

“The guide said he’d do it with me.”

Oh yeah, he’d seen the man’s intent with that one. No way in hell he’d let anyone else into a tight spot with Jaime. “I thought it might make for some good shots.”

“You haven’t even taken out the camera.”

“I’ve been trying to stay alive.” His muscles ached from the strain. He looked around Jaime, seeing another curve in their path.

“Give it to me then.”

He pulled the camera from the backpack the guide had told him to put on backwards. He still wasn’t sure the guy wasn’t trying to make him look daft in front of Jaime.

“Stay there.” Jaime looped the camera around her neck and turned, bracing one foot on either side of the canyon as she headed toward the bend.

“How does this not hurt your feet?” And legs, and arms. He’d been pretty confident in his physique this morning, but somehow muscle definition didn’t equal strength when maneuvering in a narrow space.

“I taught rock climbing at a gym and a couple of summer camps. It’s not that it feels great, I just know to use my legs. You keep trying to use your arms. If you’d listen to me, you wouldn’t need to whine.”

“I haven’t complained nearly as much as you have about the haunted places.”

She leaned back against the wall, bracing with her feet, and pointed the camera at him. “Say cheese.”

He laughed as she fired off a few shots. He turned and made his way toward her as she continued to play photographer.

“These would be so much better if you weren’t wearing a shirt. Or pants.”

He perched next to her and leaned in for a kiss. It used to be that kissing was a precursor to sex, but with Jaime he seemed to do it with no ulterior motive.

“We can do Las Vegas too, if you want.” She grinned and looped the camera strap over his head.

“Where did that come from? This morning you threatened to strand me in Utah and drive yourself home.”

She rolled her eyes. “You booked another package deal while I was in the shower. It felt, oh, what’s your favorite word again? That’s right, manipulative.”

“You left me alone at a Holiday Motel breakfast buffet. What did you expect me to do? Make another waffle?” He snapped a shot of their booted feet against the red and cream striped sandstone. Hopefully she wouldn’t get blisters from hiking in new shoes.