Promise (34 page)

"I thought he was that actor…the one in that
new spy movie, I can't think of his name," said the other. I knew
whom she talked about. There was a slight resemblance, but Tristan
was much more attractive.

"Oh, maybe you're right. I don't know who
that girl is. She's pretty, but, man, he could have
anyone
.
I don't get it. But
love
that dress!"

I blushed, though no one even knew I was in
there.

"Lucky girl, huh? Did you see how his muscles
rippled under his shirt?" She sighed.

Ha! If she only knew the real power….

"I think I'd come at first touch."

They giggled like school girls. I opened the
stall door then and strode out to the sinks, where they both stood,
staring at me with their mouths hanging open and their faces beet
red.

"Only a certain kind of woman can handle a
man like that," I said with full confidence.

No, that didn't really happen. But I imagined
it and wished I'd had the chutzpah to actually do it. Instead, the
butterflies transformed into fish flopping sickeningly in my
stomach. I stood in the stall until they left, taking deep, calming
breaths, grateful that freesia-infused freshener permeated the
air.

The door opened again and I felt the extreme
goodness flow into the bathroom.

"Alexis?" an unfamiliar female voice asked.
An Amadis protector, sounding alarmed.

"I'm fine," I said from the stall. The door
hissed closed.

I washed my hands while giving my reflection
a silent pep-talk. It didn't work.

"You've been awfully quiet and you hardly ate
a thing," Tristan said once we were in the car and headed for the
highway.

"I know. I'm sorry. I ruined your special
surprise."

He laughed. "That was
not
my surprise.
I thought maybe we should eat while we had the chance. We have a
long drive ahead of us."

"Where are we going?" I asked once again.

"You'll see." He put his hand on my thigh
where the skirt had ridden up and squeezed gently. I fought back a
shudder. He let his hand rest there, absent-mindedly rubbing his
fingers back and forth as he drove. The electric currents shot
through me like his touch was new again. The shudder won. He looked
at me with concern. "You're not okay."

I thought about what he would want to hear,
what I should say to him as his new wife. So I gave him the partial
truth. "Every time you touch me, it's like it's the first
time."

He grinned my favorite, most stunning smile.
That was a good one
. He moved his hand to caress the inside
of my wrist and forearm. "You mean like this?"

Goosebumps rose. He moved his hand to my neck
and stroked around my jaw line, down my neck and along my collar
bone. I shuddered again. He grinned again.

"You're making me crazy," I said giddily.

"Good. You've been driving me insane all
evening." His foot pressed harder on the gas pedal. I didn't even
want to know how fast we were going. "I'll get us there as fast as
I can."

We drove in silence for a while, the road
fairly dark and empty across Alligator Alley, the stretch of
highway connecting southern Florida's east and west coasts. I
wondered if we were going to Miami. It wasn't long—less than half
the time it should have been—before we approached the lights of the
city. He drove a little slower with the added traffic, until we hit
US-1 and headed south. I realized we were going to the Keys.

"It's an awfully long drive for just one
night," I said. I'd checked into going to Key West for after our
fake wedding and knew it was nearly a six-hour drive. Of course,
Miami was over two hours and it took him less than one.

"Not when I'm driving." He grinned in the
lights of the dash. "And we can stay as long as we want. We did it,
my love. And with no problems. The sooner they know that, the
better. It may prevent them from attacking unnecessarily."

"That wasn't the plan."

"It's the best solution I see now. As long as
they
don't
know, we're essentially sending an invitation." A
moment passed and he changed his tone. "Listen, this isn't what I
want to discuss on our wedding night. This is a happy time for us.
Let's see how we feel, check in with the others and we'll play it
by ear, okay? You're done with summer classes and the semester
doesn't start for a few weeks."

"I'm pretty sure I'm not packed for more than
a night or two."

"No, but that's okay. I really don't plan on
you wearing many clothes anyway." He grinned again. And the
butterflies, which had been subdued for a while, flew around
excitedly.

We rode in silence again. I couldn't pull my
mind away from the night ahead and almost regretted saving my first
time for my wedding night. I felt too nervous to enjoy what should
have been the best night of my life.

"Your silence concerns me," Tristan finally
said.

"I'm sorry. I'm just…" I couldn't say it.
"…ready to be wherever we're going."

He glanced at me. "Too much hesitation.
That's not what you're really thinking."

I debated whether to just come out with it or
push through it. I'd told him I trusted him. In fact, I'd just
vowed tonight to trust him. I thought in silence for a while. What
I ended up blurting out was not
exactly
what I'd been
thinking.

"Tristan, when was the last time you were
with a woman?"

He looked at me in shock and let off the gas.
I thought at first he'd slowed down out of surprise, but then he
made a turn off the highway. And he still hadn't answered me.

"You're not going to tell me," I muttered.
"It's not like I ever thought I was the first. You've been around
for…a long time."

"This is another subject we shouldn't be
discussing tonight."

"I'm just curious."

"Why are you suddenly curious on our wedding
night?" He sounded angry and his jaw muscle twitched.

He turned the car into a private driveway
ending at a large house. The moon reflected on the water behind it
and bounced off the house's metal roof. He parked. I didn't move.
All I could see in the darkness was a two-story house with the
front door on the second level and stairs and a deck in front of
it. I stared out the window at the lattice that wrapped around the
ground level.

Tristan turned to glare at me and I finally
looked at him.

"I know you don't like talking about your
past and I'm sorry I made you angry. It's just...I'm just…nervous,"
I finally admitted.

His face softened and he sighed heavily.

"Not for over twenty-something years and only
when it was necessary. That was my old life, before… I hate that's
how it is for us, but it is." He watched me for a reaction and I
gave it.

"So, at least it's not the blind leading the
blind," I blurted.

He laughed, apparently caught off guard. "You
are so…different."

"That's what I've been told." I scowled.

He leaned over and kissed me, then murmured,
"I have
never
made
love
."

"That makes me happy to know I'm your first
in that way." The butterflies only strengthened, though, and I
sighed. "But it's not helping with the nerves. I seriously don't
know what to do."

He gave me a strange look. "Who
are
you and what have you done with my Lexi?"

"Huh?"

"How many times have you started something
with me and wanted to finish it?" His eyes danced playfully as his
hand caressed my face and neck.

I smiled sheepishly. "A lot."

"So why the nerves now?"

"Because I know it's actually going to happen
and I've had way too much time to think about it."

"Ah. Maybe you need to stop thinking then."
He leaned over and kissed me again. "You know more than you think
you do. You certainly know how to turn me on."

He brushed his lips against my neck and up to
my ear. I shivered.

"That's you turning me on," I breathed.

"Good. That's how it starts, by the way." He
kissed my lips before I could retort. "Stay here, I'll be right
back."

He jumped out of the car and was up the
stairs and at the front door so quickly, I was sure he flashed. He
opened the door, pressed a code into the alarm system just inside,
and flipped on a couple lights. I knew he flashed back down to me
because he stood inside the doorway and then instantly he stood
right next to me. I laughed as he bent over the car door and
scooped me out, carrying me up the stairs and inside.

"The tradition is you carry me over our
own
threshold," I said as he set me on my feet in the small
foyer. The smell of fresh paint and lumber told me the house was
either new or recently remodeled.

"This is. Well, yours anyway." He took my
hand and pulled me through a doorway into a fabulous kitchen open
to a dining area and family room. He put his arms around me from
behind and nuzzled his face against my ear. "My wedding gift to
you."

He nodded at a small pile of papers on the
counter with keys on top.

"
What
?" Then I came back to reality.
"You mean while we're here. This little trip, right?"

"Well, that, too. But I mean the house. It's
yours."

"Tristan," I gasped. "A
house
? Are you
crazy
?"

He grinned and kissed my temple. "Thank you
for being my wife."

I shook my head. "This isn't right. I didn't
even have time to get you anything yet and you got a
house
?
You can't give this to me."

"Will you please stop being difficult on this
night of all nights? Just relax and enjoy it, okay?"

I turned around and stared at him in
disbelief. He cupped his hands around my face.

"Think of it as an investment for our future.
I just had to put it in your name for tax reasons…among others.
Okay?"

I relaxed and smiled, knowing this was his
area of expertise.

"
Ours
, then," I said.

"If you prefer…" He gave me a quick kiss.
"Stay here while I get our bags and then I'll show you my favorite
room."

It took him longer than I expected. I walked
around the island kitchen with its smooth granite countertops and
into the family room, admiring the perfection throughout.
Everything was exactly the way I'd design and decorate it myself,
if I had any talent at all. Sand-colored walls, sun-bleached wood
floors and furniture, fabrics in cerulean blue, coral, aqua and
shell-pink—the feeling of the beach brought indoors. A wall of
sliding glass doors led out to a screened-in balcony. The darkness
swallowed anything beyond except the water still reflecting the
moon.

"Sorry," Tristan said, appearing in the
kitchen. "I had to get an update."

I looked at him expectantly.

"We're fine. We can just enjoy ourselves. So,
what do you think so far?"

I walked over to him and stood on my toes to
kiss him. "It's perfect!"

He let out a sigh of relief and smiled.
"Good. Come on."

He took my hand and led me across the family
room and through a door leading into a large bedroom suite. A big
bed faced a small sitting area with a chaise lounge and more
sliding glass doors. Everything was white except for splashes of
jewel-tone colors, primarily amethyst, my favorite. It felt like a
tropical island.

"I call it the Caribbean room," he said.

"I love it!"

"I hoped you would." He beamed, reminding me
of a little kid proudly showing off his artwork.

"Oh! Tristan…did you
design
this
house?"

His grin widened.

I stared at him in disbelief. "You're
amazing
!"

"
You
are amazing,
ma lykita
,"
he said, taking me into his arms. "And for some reason I still
don't understand, you are mine."

I placed my hands on the sides of his face,
tilting it down toward me, and gazed into his sparkling eyes. "You
don't need to understand. Just
know
."

I pulled his face down to me and pressed my
lips to his. The passion, pent up for the last several weeks, rose
quickly in both of us. Our lips moved together longingly, kissing
and tugging. Our hands caressed each other's faces and necks. I
pushed my fingers through his hair and pulled him closer,
separating my lips and welcoming his tangy-sweet taste on my
tongue. I slid my hands down his strong neck, over his broad
shoulders and along his hard chest.

As we kissed more fervently, his hand moved
down my back, sliding between the bodice and the skirt and resting
against the small of my back. His other hand caressed my neck and
slid down slowly along the plane of my chest and back up. His mouth
traveled over my chin and down my throat. I arched my back, lifting
my chest against his lips. His mouth was warm and wet on my skin.
His hand felt along the straps, up and around the collar.

"How do I get this thing off you?" he
murmured desperately.

I smiled. "It's complicated."

I unhooked the choker and pulled my arms
through the straps and then brought his hand to the hidden zipper
in the back. The bodice fell to the floor. He cupped my breasts in
his hands and my nipples hardened as he kissed and licked,
electricity surging everywhere he touched me, rippling across my
skin. He rolled one tip with his thumb, while taking the other into
his mouth, suckling and pulling it into a hard nub. My lower body
squeezed as if there were a direct line from my breasts to my
groin.

I frantically pulled his shirt off and my
skirt fell next. He lifted me up and I pressed against him, running
my lips and tongue along his smooth neck, tasting, kissing,
sucking. He carried me over to the bed and gently lay me down.

"You are dangerously beautiful," he murmured,
appraising me as he slid off his slacks.