The Bronzed Hawk (22 page)

Kelly felt her heart leap in her breast as her eyes flew to the shadowy features before her. Surely his tone had held loving tenderness, but how could she be certain in the darkness? “I wish I could see your face,” she whispered breathlessly.

“Your wish is my command, Goldilocks.” Nick fumbled in his pocket, and suddenly the darkness was pierced by a narrow beam of light. Nick carefully planted the slender pocket flashlight upright in a mound of sand beside them then glanced at her, his brows arched inquiringly. “Better?”

She nodded. “I should have known you’d be prepared. Do you ever make a mistake, Nick?”

The light from the flashlight cast a halo of intimacy around the two of them, and she could now see the lines of weariness on O’Brien’s face.

His tone was grim. “It seems that I’ve made a hell of a big one somewhere along the line. Why did you leave me, Kelly? I know that you were upset last night, but I thought we had that straightened out. Then I came back from that lawyer’s office and found you’d left me without a word. If there was a problem, why couldn’t you have stayed and talked it out with me, for God’s sake?”

She shrugged, her gaze avoiding his. “I thought it best,” she said evasively. “After I decided to go, there didn’t seem any reason to drag it out any longer than necessary. Nothing you could have said would have changed my mind.”

Anger flared briefly in the depths of his eyes. “You didn’t give me the opportunity, did you? Because you knew damn well that I wouldn’t let you go without a fight. You should have realized that I’d come after you.”

“Why, Nick?” she asked softly, her eyes lifting
to meet his with an eagerness that was impossible to hide. “Why did you come after me?”

“Because you belong to me, damn it,” he said harshly, scowling at her fiercely. “You may not know it yet, but what we have is too good just to wash down the drain because you want to retain your blasted independence. There’s no way I’m going to let you go flitting around the world free as a bird, when you’ve got me chained to you. You’ve got to learn that there are compromises in every relationship.”

“I do?” Kelly asked dazedly, her eyes fixed in bewilderment on his face. Could this be the reckless, mocking Nick O’Brien, whom she doubted had ever made a compromise in his entire life, lecturing her with such sternness?

“You do,” Nick said firmly. “I know you’re afraid of making any permanent commitment to me, but you can’t run away from it forever, Kelly. I’ll try to keep the strings as loose as I can tolerate, until you get used to the idea.” He grimaced. “As you’ve probably noticed, I’m not very patient, so I can’t promise to extend that slack indefinitely.”

“I see,” Kelly said faintly, veiling her eyes with her lashes so that he wouldn’t see the joy that was shining out of them. “That’s very generous of you, Nick.”

“No, it’s not generous at all,” he said curtly. “I’m going to stick as close as a shadow to you until you see things my way.”

“That might be a little difficult. Mac’s sending me on an assignment to Antarctica next week.”

“Antarctica!” The exclamation was followed by a string of curses.

“Of course, I haven’t bought my thermal underwear yet, so I just might be open to other offers.” She looked up at him mischievously. “What alternative will you give me?”

He went suddenly still, and his eyes narrowed thoughtfully on her face. “Actually, I think I have an offer you can’t refuse, sweetheart,” he said slowly, as he shifted closer to where she sat in the sand. “Did you know that a team of Peruvian scientists has discovered a tablet with some fascinating hieroglyphics engraved on it in the mountains near the Nazca plain?” Not waiting for her to answer, he went on. “There are
some features about the lettering that are completely foreign to anything ever found on earth.”

“The Nazca plain,” Kelly breathed, her eyes sparkling with sudden interest. “Wasn’t that where they found the markings that they claim indicated a landing field for ancient astronauts?”

Nick nodded, grinning at the glowing eagerness illuminating her face. “I thought I’d get a team together and go down to see if I can find any trace of a connection between the two. If nothing else, the chance to study the tablet would make the trip worthwhile.”

Kelly smiled at the excitement glinting in his aquamarine eyes. “The origin of man on this planet,” she said softly. “The ultimate puzzle. How could you resist it?”

Nick’s smile became coaxing. “And how can you resist it? The Amazon River is teeming with man-eating piranhas. There’s the challenge of climbing the Andes, and I understand that some of the jungles of South America are still inhabited by tribes of headhunters. That should be enough to keep even you interested.” He shifted closer so that they were only inches apart. He
ended hoarsely, “As for the nights, I think that I can guarantee to keep you entertained.”

“Only at night?” she pouted, gazing up at him in mock disappointment.

“That last offer is definitely negotiable,” he assured her gravely. “You can be certain that you won’t need thermal underwear in my bedroll, sweetheart. Will you come with me?”

“I don’t see how I can turn you down,” she said, an innocent expression on her face. “You make it sound so inviting. I do have one stipulation, however.”

“Stipulation?” Nick asked warily.

Kelly nodded, looking away from him. “You’ve got to tell me that you love me,” she said in a little rush.

“I love you.”

She looked at him blankly. “Just like that?” she asked. “You were more eloquent describing the joys of the man-eating piranhas of the Amazon.”

He frowned darkly. “What the hell do you want from me, Kelly? You’ve known that I’ve been absolutely insane about you since that first
afternoon in my apartment. I’ve shown you in every way a man can that you’re the most important thing in my life. Now you want the words so that you can officially add my scalp to your collection. Well, I gave them to you, but you can’t expect me to embroider them prettily to your satisfaction.”

Was that what he thought she was doing? She could see by his face that he did, and it stunned her that he would subdue his pride to the extent of giving her such a petty victory. She felt such a rush of love for him in that moment that she felt dizzy with it.

She threw herself into his arms with a suddenness that nearly knocked him from his knees to the ground. “Oh, Nick, I love you so much,” she whispered, covering his face and throat with a hundred little frantic kisses, her arms holding him in a grip that almost robbed him of breath. “Why didn’t you tell me? How was I supposed to know that I was anything but an amusement to you?”

Surprise held Nick frozen for a moment, then his arms enfolded her in swift possession.
“Amusement!” he growled, torn between laughter and indignation. “You’ve robbed me of my freedom, put me through a hell of doubt and jealousy, you’ve even made me resort to trickery and subterfuge to keep you with me. I wouldn’t say that I’d found you amusing by any stretch of the imagination.” Then, as his hands wandered down and cupped her buttocks, he added, “Though I have to admit you have definite entertainment value, Goldilocks.”

She reached around and moved his hands firmly up to her waist. “This is supposed to be a tender declaration,” she said sternly. “Pay attention.”

“How about show-and-tell?” he suggested, nibbling at her earlobe. “I’ve always been better at that than rhetoric.”

She shook her head and drew away, sitting back on her heels. “Later,” she promised. “Now, I want to know all about the trickery and subterfuge that I’ve driven you to. I never realized that I was so irresistible, and it sounds positively fascinating.”

He gazed at her thoughtfully for an instant before deciding to humor her. “Five minutes,”
he said. “I think I can manage to keep my hands off you for that long.” He grinned at her sheepishly. “Though I should probably try to consolidate my position before I make my confession. I’m afraid I took shameless advantage of your ignorance of Spanish in Matzalea. Father Miguel had no real objection to our single status, once I’d explained the situation. The marriage was my idea. I wanted to have some means of binding you to me once we reached Acapulco, and it was the only lever that occurred to me. I had a fairly good idea that the marriage would prove valid.”

Kelly was staring at him, her mouth agape. “The marriage was your idea,” she repeated dazedly. “You wanted to marry me even then?”

He nodded, his expression amazingly loving. “I knew that I’d never want to let you go again when you told me you weren’t afraid to jump with me from the balloon. Before that, I wanted that luscious little body with a stronger passion than I’d ever known before, and I knew you amused and intrigued me enormously.” He grinned teasingly. “But how could I help falling
in love with a girl who was willing to jump out of a hot air balloon without a parachute?”

“I did trust you,” Kelly said softly, her eyes bright with tenderness. “I knew that no matter how crazy and dangerous it seemed, that I’d be safe with you.”

“You always will be,” he said gently, his expression oddly grave. “Through piranha-swarming rivers and hot air balloons, through disco brawls and marauding bandits, in sickness and in health, as long as we both shall live.”

“That’s beautiful,” Kelly said, her throat tight with tears. “I didn’t understand a word of our wedding ceremony, but I’m sure that this is much better. I wish that I could think of something equally lovely to say to you.”

“I’ll settle for your promise to love me for the next fifty years or so,” he said, “and never to leave me again. I went through hell this afternoon when I finally realized you’d gone.” A puzzled frown clouded his face. “Damn it, if you loved me, why the hell did you run away from me?”

“Because I loved you so much,” she said simply. Then, at his impatient frown, she explained,
“It’s not as illogical as it sounds. It’s pretty scary falling in love with a superman. How did I know that you wouldn’t get bored with me once the novelty wore off? You told me that once you’d found the key to a puzzle, the challenge was gone. I knew that for me it was going to be forever. I couldn’t stand it meaning less to you.”

He reached out, grasped her by the arms, and gave her a far from gentle shake. “I’ve spent my entire life fighting the prejudice that my IQ inspired in those around me,” he said grimly. “Most people are either intimidated by me or harbor an active dislike because they imagine I look down on them like some sort of god from Olympus. Even my own father couldn’t force himself to feel any affection for me. I’ll be damned if I’ll accept that kind of thick-headed thinking from you! What we’ve got together is too important to risk. We fit together in every way that could possibly matter. You’re a woman of infinite variety, and I fully expect you still to be surprising me on our golden wedding anniversary. So if I
ever
hear you give me any of that
crap about my getting bored with you, I’m warning you that I’ll slap you silly!”

Kelly stared wide-eyed into his stormy face. “I’ll remember that,” she said faintly. Then recovering quickly, she gave him a breezy grin. “It was only a temporary aberration anyway. Once I’d thought about it, I realized what an incredibly lucky man you’d be to get a prize packet like me.”

“Right,” Nick agreed, pulling her into his arms. “Now that that’s settled, let’s get down to basics. Your five minutes are up.” His lips covered hers in a kiss that was firm and sweet and dizzily persuasive. Not that persuasion was really necessary. It seemed like weeks, not hours, since Nick had made love to her, and she was as hungry for him as he was for her.

It was clear that Nick was very hungry indeed, as he tumbled her back in the sand, his body hardening in arousal as he pressed her into its grainy embrace. “I’ve been wanting you ever since I left you this morning.” He deftly unbuttoned her tunic blouse and unfastened the front closure of her lacy bra. “I’ve been starved for the
feel of you all day.” Then his lips were working teasingly at one taut nipple while his thumb caressed the other.

Kelly could feel the familiar heat flow through her as she ran her fingers through his thick hair. “Nick, we can’t,” she protested weakly. “Not here.”

Nick pressed his aroused loins to her and rubbed himself against her with a frank sensuality that caused her to give a little gasp. A jolt of pure desire shook her. “Can’t you feel how I need you, love? I’m aching to have you hold me in that sweet, tight way you have.” His teeth were nibbling and pulling her lower lip. “You said yourself that there was no chance of us being interrupted on a night like this.”

Then his lips were covering hers. Kelly’s arms slid slowly around his neck and pulled him even closer to her. Perhaps he was right. It seemed that they were alone on an alien planet, so complete was the privacy afforded by the thick blanket of mist that surrounded them. Strange that the abrasive sand beneath her body, instead of detracting from her arousal, actually increased
it, as did the cool swirl of the fog and the sound of the surf hitting the shore somewhere nearby.

Nick was tearing at the buttons of his shirt, and at last his hard chest was pressed to her swollen, sensitive breasts. The hot surge of desire that shot through her banished her last inhibitions, and she clutched him to her with the same aching frustration that she felt in him.

“Love me, Nick,” she whispered. “Please, love me.”

His only answer was the harsh, ragged rise and fall of his breath as his hands moved over her in fevered, intimate caresses. Then his lips were exploring hers once again as he fumbled blindly at the tie at her waist.

At first she didn’t notice it, so enraptured was she by the symphony being played with hands and lips. It was only after a wave washed over their supine bodies, almost completely engulfing them, that the cold shock of the water caused her to come abruptly to her senses.

“Hell’s bells!” Nick roared, rolling off her and looking around the water-soaked sand with an expression of such outraged indignation that
Kelly couldn’t suppress a giggle. “What the hell’s happening?” Another wave washed over them as if in answer, and Kelly started to laugh in earnest.