She's Got Dibs (27 page)

Her heartbeat evened and slowed. The room slowly came back into focus. “Holy shit,” she breathed.

His chuckle reverberated along her skin as he slithered up from between her legs. A heady pulse ricocheted deep within as he eased them together, hot and rigid, sating her to the brim. He braced himself on his arms, trembling above her, but didn’t move.

She blinked at the desire-laced question in his eyes. He was waiting for her.

She brought him down to her lips, began their movement slowly, welcoming him in. The strength in his arms, his passionate kisses made her forget everyone she had ever known. Nothing but his next caress, his next kiss existed, the rhythm he set her only connection to the world. His skin was warm, his lips tender, the tension in his muscles steady and hard under her hands.

A dizzying swell gathered, extended into the arches of her feet. He increased his pace. Arousal darkened his eyes. Her interior muscles clamped around him and he sharply inhaled, driving harder. A shudder wrenched his body, and she grabbed his shoulders and rode with him into oblivion, the force of her orgasm flooding her mind with bright light. And then she was floating, lingering in the thrill of his fulfillment, his lips as they held her kiss, his arms clasping her to his chest.

Long moments later, Dibs pecked her lips. “And here you doubted my promises.”

She laughed, hugging him tight.

His contented murmur tickled her neck before he rolled to the bed. “Are you hungry?”

She smiled into his eyes. “Are
you
hungry?”

“Starved.” He sat up and hefted the tray off the nightstand.

Holding the sheet to her chest, she pushed up to sit against the headboard of the bed. Dibs scooted to the other side of the tray, a blanket tucked around his waist, and filled their cups from a pot of steaming coffee.

“Yummy.” She selected a raspberry danish, and then checked both nightstands, all four walls…but came up empty. “What time is it, anyway?”

“Around nine, why?”

“What time is our flight? I don’t even know what airline we’re booked on.”

Lips pursed, he blew into his coffee before tipping the rim to his lips. “What time did you want to leave?”

Ha, ha. Like they could set their own schedule. “Very funny.” She paused, cup in hand, a swirl of steam momentarily obscuring his face. “You are kidding, right?”

“Well, seeing as how I’m the pilot, I guess we can go whenever we’re ready.”

Her coffee sloshed dangerously near the lip when she jerked forward. “You’re the pilot.”

“I flew the plane to Botswana.”

Astonishment blurted through her lips. “You flew the plane to Botswana.”

“Yes.”

“He flew the plane to Botswana.” She slapped a hand to her forehead. “Well, of
course
he did. That makes perfect sense. Why am I the least bit surprised?”

He frowned. “You okay?”

Of all the hair-brained, half-baked…
dangerous
…and he was completely missing the point! She jostled her cup and pastry back to the tray. “Oh, I’m fine. I’ve got no problem with you piloting some rubber band two-seater
halfway
across the world
. In fact, maybe you should’ve taken a quick stab at skydiving while you were at it.”

“Actually…” He grimaced.

“
What?
”

“A couple of the guys thought it might be fun to escort in the supplies. The kids get a real kick out of it.” His wide eyes failed at innocence all while the wheels spun wildly in her head.

“Fun? They thought it might be
fun
?”

He chuckled into his coffee, ruffling the surface, and she narrowed her eyes, gnashing her teeth. “I fail to see what’s so amusing.”

He sputtered and lifted his chin, laughing toward the ceiling. “I’m sorry, just that look on your face.”

“Fine.” She snatched his bathrobe off the floor and crawled from between the sheets. “So, here’s an idea,” she grumbled, dramatically flipping the sides closed and cinching the belt at her waist. “Let’s jump out of a plane, work until exhaustion sets in, and
then
buckle up behind the controls.”

“Where are you taking my bathrobe?”

“To the shower.”

“I never said you could wear my bathrobe.” He fell to the mattress, snagging the hem as she stormed past, and tugged her back to the bed. One lean, muscular thigh braced either side of her hips. His chin swept her hair over her shoulder, exposing her ear to his lips. “I don’t have to fly us if it makes you uncomfortable.”

She whipped her head around, the sincerity in his gaze a perfect match to his words, and slumped inside the circle of his arms. He had flown an entire team to Africa, volunteered his time and who knew how much money to help the people who lived there. But his generosity wasn’t in question.

One day losing his love,
maybe
. But to forge ahead without him in the world at
all
? No, no. Completely unacceptable. “I’m just scared, Dibs. I mean, my God, what if something happened to you? What if you’d never made it—”

“Hey, hey, hey.” He cupped the side of her cheek, brought their foreheads together. Affection warmed his eyes, their usual piercing edge soft with tenderness and care. “I’m right here. And I would never let anything bad happen. I promise to get us there and back in one piece, okay?”

The enthusiasm with which he fulfilled his earlier promise sprang to mind and she shook her head, grudgingly relenting. “Fine. But no more sneaking around, jumping out of aircraft behind my back.”

“Deal.” He pecked her ear before releasing her.

Fully shampooed and shaven, she entered the bedroom amid a waft of steam to find her suitcase and carry-on opened and centered on the bed. She smiled and sorted through her clothes, opting for jeans, a sheer, long-sleeved shirt and matching camisole, and her brown, zip-up vest with the fur-trimmed hood.

Dibs entered a few minutes later and crossed to the bathroom, his cell phone pressed to his ear. “Hey, it’s me.” His voice echoed against the tile. “Yes, it was fine.” He paused. “Just yesterday. Listen, I’m taking the Challenger out to Bernhamwood for a few days.” Another pause. “I know. I’ll call first.”

He notched a shoulder against the bathroom doorway and rolled his eyes. “I know, I know, you need to stop with this.” He twirled his hand. “Aha…yep…all right, I’ll talk to you later…me too. Bye.” He lowered the phone and dialed a second time. “Mother,” he said, returning the phone to his ear.

“Hey, Gerald, it’s Dibs. I’m coming out for a few days and thought I’d give you a heads-up.” He pushed up from the door jamb and disappeared. “There will be two of us. And can you have the truck at the strip before noon? Okay, thanks.” A beep from his phone, and he peeked around the threshold. “Am I keeping the shadow or not keeping the shadow?”

She flicked a wicked eyebrow. “Trim the shadow, but keep the shadow.”

He grinned and disappeared. The buzz of an electric razor started while she searched her carry-on for her cosmetic case and hairdryer. A few moments later, she trailed him into the bathroom and rested against the long counter while he ran a shaver over his face. “So, what’s the temperature in Vail this time of year?”

“About the same as here, but it might be a little colder at the house.”

“Higher elevation?” she asked.

“Yep.”

“This place on the side of a mountain?”

“Yep.”

“And it’s got its own name?”

“Yep.” He clicked off the razor and rinsed it under the tap.

“Will I be thoroughly impressed?”

“One can only hope, Rex.” He stole a kiss, strolled to the shower room, and reached behind the slate-tiled wall. Droplets rained and a bank of steam rose toward the ceiling. He grabbed the tie to his pajama pants, but then hesitated, peering at her from under his brows. A jerk of the tie, his pants collapsed to his ankles. A waggle of his brows and he stepped through the door.

Water splashed and a heavy douse hit the floor. She glanced at the shower, shook her head, and flicked on her hairdryer. Her eyes slowly retraced the path to the shower.

She leaned away from the counter, arching her back, hung onto the edge, and leaned farther still when Dibs inched into view in the doorway.

Sweet Lord!
She lowered the forgotten hairdryer.

He swayed back and forth, arms lifted, biceps bulging, scrubbing the shampoo from his hair. Water sluiced over the sculpted ridges of his chest, suds clinging to his broad shoulders, trickling down his ribbed sides, over his tight stomach, through the downy hair, running in rivulets down his legs to the floor.

He faced the water and her eyebrows skyrocketed. The sweep of his back, the defined muscles on his sides and hips, the curve of his backside, the fixed tension in his thighs…

“Mmm, mmm, mmm. Yummy,” she whispered.

She glanced at the blow dryer, switched the setting to cool, and finished her hair.

****

Dibs steered the black Hummer through a huge iron gate and onto a winding gravel lane. Tessa fell back heavily in the seat. First that flying hotel he called an airplane and now this?

Budding magnolia trees saluted them at perfect intervals, bordering each side of the road, long branches twined overhead in a canopy of pink, white, and magenta. Lush green hills rolled in every direction, marred by slabs of black earth, huge boulders thrusting skyward. She peered over her shoulder through the rear windshield. They had just passed through a gate, right? Where had it gone?

She slowly faced forward. An English Tudor manor rose in the distance, high gables and jutting turrets, a magnificent domed rotunda connected to the main building through a second story glass-encased walkway. White and green flags adorned each peak, fluttering jauntily in the breeze. An Italian pedestal fountain guarded the main entrance, three maidens dancing atop their prancing ponies.

“I thought you said this place was a chalet.”

He shrugged. “What would you call it?”

“Ah, that’s a castle.”

He eased them to a stop, put the truck in park, and popped open his door. “Okay, we’re here.”

“Should I get a map of this place before I exit the vehicle?”

“Dammit, you uncovered my evil plan.” A clever glint sparkled in his eyes. “If you don’t stay next to me, you just might get lost.”

“You’re hilarious.”

Entering through the front door, Dibs captured her hand and pulled her into a spacious seating area arranged before a natural stone fireplace. The deep cavity loomed over Tessa’s head, the protective screen cast to depict several deer leaping down the side of a steep hill. Maroon leather couches and chairs sat strategically placed atop an Asian rug, the large windows three stories overhead allowing just enough natural light to make the room seem airy, despite its dark wood interior.

“This is the welcoming room.” He gathered her to his chest, met her lips for a lingering kiss. “Welcome to Bernhamwood.”

“Why, thank you. It’s lovely to be here.”

Slipping his hand back into hers, he walked them toward the front door and to the right. The entire south wall of the wide passageway was comprised of sheeted glass, a spectacular view of Vail winking in the valley below. The stunning panorama of the mountains stole her breath, jagged peaks covered in the pristine white of virgin snow, reflecting the rays of the setting sun in an aura of brilliant gold.

A set of wide double doors came up on their right and Dibs swung the left side open. “Dining room.”

A polished mahogany table and twelve high-backed chairs occupied the space, an ornately carved fireplace along the north wall the perfect depiction of casual elegance.

At the end of the corridor, a heavy swinging door revealed a kitchen that humbled most of the chef’s stations she’d seen in Chicago’s lavish hotels. Scanning the stainless appliances, a palm smoothing over the granite-topped island, she wandered into the breakfast area—a glass-topped wrought iron table inside a deep bay of windows.

A wall of rising steam clouded the air beyond, and she pointed to the back of the house. “What’s that?”

“The pool.”

After retracing their steps through the welcoming room, Dibs led her down a short hall to a set of swinging glass doors. She stepped through and stumbled to a stop. “Wow.”

Oblong and irregularly shaped, the pool was designed with a small cove here, a little grotto there, winding throughout Roman columns and groupings of white rattan furniture. Italian blue and white tiles covered the bottom and sides, across the floor to the wall, continuing up until they merged with a cathedral ceiling.

But wait a second…She frowned. Where the pool should have ended, a clear plastic sheet gently grazed the surface of the water. She crossed to the wall-to-wall windows.

The pool continued on the other side, a massive amount of steam blanketing the air from the heated water. “Indoor-outdoor pool?”

“Yep.”

A clover-leaf sunken Jacuzzi sat on the right, another on her left. “I didn’t bring a swimming suit.”

“Why do you think I didn’t tell you about the pool?”

She tossed her elbow back and caught him in the ribs.

He grunted, covering his stomach. “Man, you should register those things as weapons.”

“My God, it’s beautiful here.” She’d never seen a bluer sky, and the air was so clear the rugged terrain appeared sharp enough to cut paper. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders, and she leaned into the wall of his chest. “A person could get lost in this view.”

“Let’s get lost together,” he whispered. “Let’s just spend the week alone and get lost.”

She rotated in his arms, and her heart tripped a beat over the steadfast devotion in his gaze. “I can’t wait.”

The stubble on his cheek tickled her palm as she guided him close and brushed her mouth across his, over and again, lightly teasing him until he crushed his lips to hers. With one step, he closed the space between them. Her back met the cold window. The zipper on her vest lowered and he slipped a hand inside. A shiver coursed her body when his warm fingers caressed her breast. She held the back of his head as he roamed over her, trailing kisses along her jaw, down the length of her throat. His other hand eased inside the back of her jeans and he shoved, bringing her flush to his hips. Heated desire pulsed between her legs. The tip of his tongue wet the tender skin under her ear, his thumb swept her nipple, and she gasped when one naughty finger wound inside the lace strap of her thong.