Stowaway (8 page)

“Is that good?” she asked, suddenly breathless as she got lost in his deep, dark eyes.

At his slow nod, she secured the knot. Her fingers lingered, her arms around his neck. Then she slid her hands over his shoulders. He straightened and her fingertips skimmed down his chest. It felt deliciously warm. Not feverish, just manly warm. And manly hard.

Lamanto’s good hand dropped to her waist, steadying them both. After another long, tension-filled minute, he took a step backward. His voice sounded rough to her ears.

“That helps, thanks.”

Keri studied him. His hair was mussed, his face still chalky. He had a two-day growth of beard. Normally, his dark good looks wouldn’t have appealed to her at all. So why did touching him make her heart pound and put her senses on high alert? Was she so desperate for male attention? It had been a long time since she’d allowed any man as close as Lamanto had gotten in less than twenty-four hours.

“What’s the verdict?” he asked, studying her just as intently.

“I think you’ll live.” She dodged the real question and gave him a quick grin before turning to the refrigerator. Better to ignore the sudden raging of hormones. “I’ll get some biscuits made.”

They shared a quiet dinner, keeping the conversation general. She learned he enjoyed science fiction and action movies while she leaned toward lighthearted romantic comedies. Neither of them had much time for television, but he liked sports and silly sitcoms while she preferred crime-solving dramas. They both found reality shows totally annoying.

“Packaged cookies are the best I can offer for dessert,” Keri said as she cleared the table and poured them both a cup of coffee.

“I never met a cookie I didn’t like,” he said, taking several when she put a bag on the table.

“Can you whip up cookies as well as biscuits?” she asked.

“Not as well as my pop. How ’bout you?”

“Pies happen to be my specialty. My only specialty, I might add.”

He moaned around a mouthful of cookie, and then said, “I love pie. All kinds of pie. And pastries. Just about any kind of pastry.”

“Me too, unfortunately,” she said, patting her hip.

“What’s unfortunate about a love of the finer things in life?” he asked.

“Most of the finer foods come with big calories. And they aren’t exactly health food.”

His gaze traveled over her slowly but not offensively. It caused a little quiver of reaction so she sat down again.

“You don’t look like you have a weight issue,” he said with just enough sincerity to be believed. “You’re not one of those health food nuts, are you?”

“I’m a nurse. I know what’s healthy. I eat my fruits and vegetables.”

“And pastries?” he teased, his eyes glittering as they locked with hers.

Keri found herself smiling back at him. “I’m especially fond of hot apple pie, and it happens to be among my specialties.”

He closed his eyes and groaned again. “Please tell me you brought some apples with you.”

Keri couldn’t help but laugh at his silliness. “I didn’t, but there’s a small orchard at the back of the property. If the weather improves, I can go collect enough for a couple pies.”

“You have everything else you need?”

Keri’s smile faltered a little when she thought of the staples she’d packed. She nodded, feeling another wave of grief. She hadn’t baked a pie in more than two years. Taking a big swallow of coffee, she swallowed tears with it. Then a bite of cookie kept her mouth too full to speak.

Lamanto’s next question was low and soft. “Want to tell me what brought the sadness into your eyes?”

She swallowed hard and gave him a quick smile. “I lost my mom a couple years ago. It’s still hard sometimes.”

“Mom and apple pie go together. It’s the American way.”

She nodded. In her case, they really did.

“I guess me and my pop have done a lot of bonding in the kitchen too,” he continued, allowing her time to recover her composure. “He loves to cook. I love to eat.”

His tone brought the smile back to her lips. “My mom has a plaque in the kitchen that says, ‘The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.’ My brother Jack says I’ll never find my way since I’m such a lousy cook.”

Lamanto gave her a deep, dimpled grin. Her stomach fluttered. She hadn’t known her stomach could flutter.

“And what do you say to him?”

“That a scalpel is much more efficient.”

He chuckled and the sound warmed her.

“You and your brother are pretty close?”

“You mean despite the sibling rivalry and constant bickering?”

He grinned and nodded.

“We’re close, but he’s gotten so damned overprotective, it’s driving me crazy.”

“Since the accident?” he asked.

That he’d heard about the accident shouldn’t have surprised her. It remained high on the list of town gossip. The community suffered from a serious lack of newsworthy issues. She wondered if he’d heard a complete rundown on her medical history.

“Yes. He and Dad babied me bad enough before the wreck. Since then, it’s gotten ridiculous and suffocating.”

“That’s the reason for your solitary vacation plans?”

“Mostly,” she hedged, not ready to discuss her burning need for answers. “How about you? Any siblings?”

He accepted the change of subject without hesitation. “Four sisters, two older and two younger. Liz and Maria are happily married with a couple rug rats each. The twins, Sonia and Sophie, are seniors in college this year.”

“So you’re the middle child and only boy. Wow, I’m sure the psychoanalysts would have fun with that.”

He gave a long suffering sigh. “Save me from the shrinks.”

She hid a grin but teased, “Sounds like a man with experience.”

“Department policy. It sucks, but it’s part of the regs. Regulations,” he clarified.

Keri understood all too well. She’d suffered through endless sessions with the hospital psychologist. They wouldn’t let her return to work until her surgeons and therapist had released her.

After a few minutes of silence, Lamanto redirected the conversation. “So you think a man’s heart is better accessed with a scalpel than food?”

“You doubt it?”

He rose from the table, carrying his coffee mug to the sink. “I’ll wait until I taste the pie before I comment on that one.”

“Wise choice.” She joined him at the sink and gently nudged him aside. “You’re no help with dishes. Go put another log on the fire and check the box of books I brought. You might find something that appeals to you.”

She did the dishes and joined him in the living room a few minutes later. He’d propped himself in her dad’s favorite recliner and turned the lamp shade for optimal light. He’d started reading a thriller by one of her favorite authors. She picked up the book she’d started earlier and they spent the next couple hours reading in companionable silence.

When her eyes grew tired and her concentration waned, she excused herself and headed to the shower. It felt strange to strip and bathe with a stranger so close, yet she didn’t feel threatened. Her instincts rarely failed her and he wasn’t the type to accost women. He might charm, sweet-talk and seduce, but he didn’t need to take advantage. Despite his misguided suspicions and actions, he seemed a polite, decent guy.

Once she’d finished and dressed in some clean sweats, she found fresh clothes for him in the bedroom and reentered the living room. He’d stopped reading to put logs on the fire again.

“Your turn in the bathroom,” she said, handing him clothes. “Do you need help? You shouldn’t get that arm wet.”

“No. I’ll be fine. I’ll make do with a quick wash, and I can take the couch tonight.”

She started to argue, but he waved off any discussion.

“I slept too much today. I’ll probably be restless, so I might as well keep an eye on the fire.”

“You’re sure?” Bed did sound good to her. She couldn’t believe how weary she still felt.

“Positive.”

“Then go ahead and get cleaned up so I can check your arm before I go to bed.”

When he returned, bare-chested and with sweatpants riding low on his hips, Keri drew a fortifying breath before touching him. He smelled of soap and warm, sexy male. She checked his stitches, pleased to see how well they’d healed.

After helping him into a shirt, she slipped the sling around his neck as he knelt. Her hormones scrambled when they touched. Having him close created a sensory overload in her body. She went to bed to escape it, but the scent of him lingered there too. It should have annoyed her, but it comforted.

The thought of succumbing to the attraction zinging between them did annoy her. Heat suffused her body and had her kicking off the blanket. She blamed the feminine weakness on fatigue, reminding herself that it would take more than a few hours’ sleep to ease the bone-deep tiredness she’d been experiencing lately.

Sometime during the night, she woke, chilled to the bone. She pulled the blankets over her but couldn’t stop shivering. Then a masculine arm circled her waist, drawing her flush against a warm male body. Keri snuggled closer to the heat of him, tangling her legs with his and tucking her hands between them. Heat chased away the chills. Warm and safe, she slept.

Chapter Six

The thin bedroom curtains couldn’t dim the brilliance of the sunlight the following morning. Keri woke alone in the bed but not chilled. She frowned, trying to decide if the warm male body had been a figment of her imagination or if Lamanto had shared the bed. Either way, it suited her to wake up alone. Neither of them needed the additional temptation.

Her breasts tingled and her nipples puckered against the soft fabric of the sweatshirt. She crossed her arms over her chest and lectured herself about how much safer it was to wake up alone. Her body refused to accept the argument, so she tossed aside the covers and headed to the bathroom. Frigid water on her face quickly doused the lingering arousal.

As she ran a damp comb through her hair, the smell of coffee improved her mood. She followed the smell into the kitchen. Lamanto stood at the sink, awkwardly trying to stir something in a bowl.

“What’s that?”

“Pancake batter. I made a mess putting it together, but it’s almost ready.”

She didn’t care about spilled flour or broken egg shells. The thought of homemade pancakes wiped all other thought from her mind. Her stomach growled.

“I love pancakes, but I didn’t bring syrup.”

“There’s butter and brown sugar.”

Keri didn’t argue. She got a griddle out of the cupboard and lit a fire under it. They worked in harmony, making small talk as they cooked. Lamanto commented on the brilliance of the sun on the snow-covered terrain around the cabin. She told him the sun would likely melt the remaining snow.

“And tomorrow you can gather apples?” he teased, flashing her a smile and a wink.

Laughing, she teased back, “An army travels on its stomach?”

“Something like that.”

The day passed in much with same manner as the previous day with less sleeping and more reading. Their meals got a little more interesting with his suggestions and help. Keri found herself laughing more than she’d done in a very long time. She decided to forget everything but enjoying time with an attractive, attentive man. Never mind that circumstances forced him to be attentive.

When it came time for bed, they repeated the previous evening’s routine. Tension sizzled as they touched, heat suffused her each time his dark, dangerous eyes locked her in his gaze. Arousal throbbed between them, a strong, sure entity they silently agreed to ignore. She went to bed alone, hot and restless. Much later, when the bed had cooled, a hot male body drove away the chill. Lamanto didn’t take any liberties. He just pulled her close and drove away the cold.

The next morning, she woke alone again but totally aroused. Every inch of her body yearned for masculine attention. Her skin tingled, toes curled and a low ache settled in the pit of her stomach. She hadn’t felt this way since before the wreck changed her life, so it wasn’t a bad thing. Just bad timing and the wrong man.

The day didn’t start in as congenial a mood. She assumed Lamanto suffered with a similar malady. Mounting sexual tension made them both a little edgy and withdrawn. It would be a huge mistake to get involved in a more intimate relationship and they both knew it.

They settled for cold cereal, toast and minimal conversation. After breakfast, Keri announced her intention to collect apples for pie.

“Most of the snow’s melted,” said Lamanto as he moved to the kitchen window, “but it’ll be wet and muddy.”

“I have boots.”

“You think it’s safe to go out alone?” he asked, looking across the heavily wooded field behind the cabin.

“Not much in these woods except deer, raccoon and other small critters. They won’t bother me if I don’t bother them.”

“Someone stole the gas from your truck.”

“Sneaking around in the dark of night,” she said in disgust. “Those type of cowards usually hide in the light of day.”

Nick didn’t argue with her reasoning, but he followed her when she left the cabin. Armed with the sheriff’s gun and cloaked in a dark, hooded sweatshirt, he crept from snow-laden bushes to clusters of small trees in order to stay close yet out of sight. Feeling far from physically fit, he hoped to use the element of surprise should anyone or anything threaten her.

He frowned at the thought of anyone hurting his Keri. His frown deepened as he realized he thought of her as his. That was just stupid. She hadn’t done or said anything to suggest she cared about him, yet he found himself caring more for her each day. He enjoyed spending time with her even when neither of them spoke, and he’d didn’t get comfortable with many women. He liked her spirited independence and self-sufficiency even though it also irritated him. He enjoyed sparring with her and appreciated her sense of humor.

Most of his life, he’d felt the need to perform for women. The ones he dated expected him to be the macho cop or the charming playboy. Nobody cared much what he wanted. To be fair, he probably owed that to never letting them get close to the person behind the badge and the charm.

Keri saw through both and moved beyond them. Her smiles made him happy. Holding her through the night made him even happier. And hornier, but he needed to get a grip on the sexual stuff or she’d throw him out on his ear.