Nobody's Dream (78 page)

Don’t think of that time. Live in the moment.

Wanting to show she was ready to try harder to do just that, her hand brushed across Luke’s T-shirt. His muscular chest—honed by hard work rather than barbells in a weight room—might be hard as steel, but her subconscious had led her to use it as her pillow while she slept.

Raising herself onto her elbow, she traced her fingertip down the center of his chest, avoiding his pecs and nipples. She paused just above his naval and retraced her path. Above his heart, the steady beat made her realize this had been the drumbeat heard in her dream.

Solid, strong, steady.

Luke.

How long had she slept with her ear over his beating heart? She leaned over and placed a kiss on the spot, feeling the beat reverberate against her tingling lips.

“Mornin’, darlin’.”

She pulled away and stared into Luke’s sleepy eyes. Is this what was meant by bedroom eyes? Her heart fluttered as the smoke returned to his smoky-gray eyes. “How long have you been awake?”

He grinned. “Long enough. Don’t stop on my account.”

She drew her hand away from him. “I…I think I was finished.”

“You sure?”

She was not sure of anything anymore.

“I think so.”

“Well, ain’t that a shame?”

“I am sor—”

His fingers pressed over her lips cutting off her apology. “Don’t apologize for everything all the time, or I’ll take you over my knee.” Her eyes widened, and she started to pull away until he grinned and she realized it was just an American expression.

He moved his hand up to brush a strand of her hair away from her cheek. “You allowed me to touch you last night. Waking up to find you touching me, well, do you have any idea how incredibly happy that makes me feel?” He did not wait for a response. “But I don’t want to hear you ever regret anything that happens between us.”

“I am—” She almost did it again, but caught herself. “I am going to work on it.”

“Good girl. And for future reference, the best way to wake me up that I can think of—well, at this point in our relationship—is with a kiss wherever you want to leave one.” He framed her face and leaned toward her to place three chaste kisses on her mouth. When he released his hold on her, she retreated to a more comfortable distance, bringing her fingers to her tingling lips. Her heart pounded, but she knew this to be the result of arousal, not fear.

“We’re just going to keep taking baby steps.” He touched the tip of her nose and grinned. “This is going to be a nice, leisurely trail ride, darlin’, not the Kentucky Derby. We have the rest of our lives to wake up in each other’s arms, to explore what each of us enjoys, to deepen our relationship in ways we can’t even imagine right now.”

Her heart swelled at his words. How had she found a man so…? She kept coming back to the word “patient.” That he was joyful about every little crumb she meted out, even though he had to be incredibly frustrated, enchanted her even more.

Cassie leaned over and placed a lingering kiss on his lips, breathless when she put some distance between them again. “Thank you, Luke. Now I think we should go see what our last day in my homeland holds for us.”

*     *     *

When they ventured out of the bedroom, Cassie was surprised to find the house filled with children’s voices and the smells of wonderful foods wafting through the front room. How long had she and Luke been in bed?

She started toward the kitchen when Luke steered her toward the living room. Perhaps he wanted to visit with Eduardo’s children first. Cassie came to a standstill when she saw the portrait she had given her parents at last night’s reception hanging over their mantle.

“Your dad asked me to help him hang it last night while you were in the bathroom. He is proud of his daughter’s talent and wants to be sure every visitor to his home sees it.”

She blinked back the tears. Would they never stop? “Thank you.”

“Tía
Casandra, why do you cry?” Eduardo had instructed his oldest son to speak English around Luke as a show of hospitality.

“Lalo, it is because I am so very happy.” He shook his head and went back to playing a game with the others.

“Now, I need coffee and you need breakfast.”

Hand in hand, they entered the kitchen where
Mamá
set down the soup ladle and crossed the room to give them both hugs. After pouring two mugs of strong, black coffee, they decided to share a seat at the opposite end from where Susana nursed Quenti so
Mamá
could sit when ready. No one seemed to want to move to the larger dining room table. The kitchen was cozy.

Quenti must have been feeding for a while because now he only sporadically chomped on Susana’s nipple to squeeze out a little more. Cassie smiled, thinking of Kitty and her three babies all demanding her milk at the same time. Well, only two could suckle at their
mamá’s
breasts at a time, but she pumped in between to always have some on hand.

Cassie looked up to see Luke wearing a sappy smile, and although he was not looking at Susana and Quenti, she just knew that was why. Susana had not covered herself in front of him as American women might. But he didn’t seem embarrassed or horrified at the natural sight either.

What would it be like…

Don’t think about a baby, Cassie
.

Only baby
steps
, as Luke had said.

Like sitting on Luke’s lap now. She found herself wanting to touch him, be held by him, just be closer together physically. Intimacy. He played with her hair and rubbed her back, innocent touches that just melted more of the ice away from her heart.

Eduardo entered the room and placed a kiss first on Susana’s smiling upturned face and then on the crown of her newest nephew’s head. Only then did he look across the room at Luke and Cassie.

“How are you two doing this morning?”

Eduardo relaxed visibly when she smiled at him. “Wonderful. I hope you are not suffering any ill effects from the excitement last night.”

“I would do it all again to protect my family.” Cassie noticed bandages on his knuckles, but when asked he assured her Susana was just overreacting.

Luke had refused to let her treat his hands, but now she wished she had insisted, too. She met his gaze. “Next time, you will listen to me and let me take care of you, too.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He grinned and she was not sure if he was serious or not. She hoped there would be no next time. The thought of seeing him or Eduardo hurt again made her ill.

“Lucas, you showed me last night I have nothing to worry about with you watching over my little sister.”

“You did not seem so worried when you let me marry him in May. When were you going to tell me you were worried about him?” She grinned and Eduardo smiled.

“I did not worry he would hurt you. Just that he might be too…gentle to be able to stand up against a threat.” Funny, but Eduardo’s fighting had surprised her more so than Luke’s. While a nonviolent man, Luke had a protective streak as tall as the mountain peaks outside her home.

“You first encountered Luke at a time when he was physically healing.” She smiled up at her husband. “But he played American football in college. I never doubted he would be able to tackle someone who threatened me.”

He kissed her on the bridge of her nose. “Thanks, but I’m afraid I played quarterback, Sweet Pea. My job was to call the plays, throw passes, run the ball—basically take the lead on offense. The defensive-line guys were bigger. They did all the tackling.”

Eduardo said, “Well, you called the play last night to perfection. Even found a way to alert Cassie to prepare for our barging in to rescue her. Pretty impressive, if you want my opinion.”

Luke’s eyes narrowed. “Cassie deserves some credit, too. She might have had her own playbook, but if not for her quick thinking, she could’ve been seriously injured.”

Cassie shuddered, remembering Pedro’s knife at her throat. “Let us speak about something more pleasant on this morning after my wedding.” She turned to
Mamá
. “How is
Papá
? He landed a few blows himself.”

Mamá
grinned, pride in her man evident. “A little stiff, but he insisted on going with Eduardo to talk with the authorities.”

“Pedro and Luis, the bastards, will rot in jail.” Cassie glanced up to see
Papá
in the doorway. She had assumed he was still in bed recovering from the ordeal. “Diego will join them,
if
he survives his wounds. Already another woman has come forward to file charges against them. I am sure if they show their faces on Lima news reports, others will as well.”

That any other woman had suffered at the hands of these beasts broke Cassie’s heart. Slipping off Luke’s lap, Cassie reached for her husband’s hand but he was already rising to give up their seat for
Papá
. “Here. Sit.”

Watching how gingerly he walked, Cassie’s heart broke. She met him halfway and let him lean on her arm. Despite his stiffness, though, a spark of renewed life and purpose stirred within his spirit today.

She had been estranged from him for so many years without being able to tell him why. Last night, after they had returned home, she was able to share with her family for the first time what Pedro and his friends had done to her. Having told Kitty, then Luke, made it easier to repeat the words, as did knowing the attackers no longer held any power over her.

Seeing
Papá
kicking Pedro in the kidneys showed her that, in his own way, he had come after her and defended her, despite his age and weakened state.

Once settled into the seat, he continued to hold onto her hand. When his cloudy green eyes met hers, she detected a shimmer of tears. “I am sorry,
mi hija
, to have promised you to a
bastardo
like Pedro. He…”

Tears shimmered in her eyes, too, as she bent to kiss him and hug his neck. Luke’s hand rested on the small of her back. “Pedro is a snake,
Papá
. He hid his evilness from everyone, even me. Do not blame yourself. I do not blame you.” She truly had forgiven her father already, knowing in her heart he could not have known what Pedro was really like. Now she also knew that
Papá
and Eduardo would have defended her back then, if only she had told them. Pedro’s privileged upbringing had made him into a coldhearted beast.

Papá
turned to Luke who leaned against the sink. “Casandra, you have chosen a better man than any I would have found for you here in Peru.”

“Thank you, sir. I sure am glad she found me, too.”

Cassie did not think he meant finding him in the snow after the avalanche either. She grinned at him and went to his side, welcoming his arms around her, holding her tight.

Papá
broke into their moment. “Thank you for returning home so that I could see you once more, Casandra.”

She cast her gaze on her
papá
. She hoped this would not be the last time she would see him.

“Actually, sir, we’re thinking about returning at Christmas. I want to see this place where wife grew up when it’s not so darned cold.”

Everyone laughed and she saw a light in
Papá
’s eyes at the thought she would be back in barely five months.

Luke turned to her. “I want my own private tour of Machu Picchu, too. Your spirituality intrigues me, and seeing the root of some of it should be fascinating.”

“Christmas is definitely a more pleasant time to visit there, especially for someone who hates the cold as much as you do.”

Luke bent to kiss her sweetly on the lips.

She no longer dreaded the thought of returning to her homeland, knowing the men who had tried to kill her spirit would no longer be a threat to her.

“Thank you for coming here with me. I do not think I could have done so without you by my side.”

“Darlin’, I plan to be by your side for the rest of our lives.”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

A
dam waited for Megan to answer his call. He checked the door to the hallway to make sure Karla couldn’t overhear, but she was nursing the babies one more time before they left. Cassie was with her so he decided now was the best time to make the call. Getting Karla to agree to go out had been a challenge, but he and Luke somehow managed to pull it off.