Waiting for Love (22 page)

“I won’t.”

He nuzzled her neck, placing kisses in places he knew made her crazy. “I’d be lost without you, Steph. You were the one thing that kept me going out there. Thinking about you, getting back to you…”

It was the most he’d said about the long day in the water, and she had to refrain from urging him to keep talking. Judging from the press of his erection against her belly, he wasn’t in the mood to talk. 

“I was so scared,” she said, choosing to focus on how she’d felt rather than pushing him to share more about what’d happened to him. “We’ve had so little time together, and all I could think about while we waited to hear something was whether that would be all we’d get.”

“We’re going to get so much more,” he assured her. “We’re going to get everything.”

She wanted so badly to believe him.

“Do you have to go right back to work?”

Looking up to gauge his meaning, she found his eyes blazing with heat she hadn’t seen since before the accident. She had a million and one things to do at both restaurants, but none of that was as important as him. “Not necessarily. What’s on your mind?”

He smiled as his hands moved over her back in a gentle caress, working downward until he cupped her bottom and lifted her.

Stephanie curled her legs around his waist and held on tight as he walked them into the bedroom, stopping in the hallway to press her against the wall and kiss her senseless. God, she had missed him and this. It’d only been a week, but it felt like a lifetime. 

Without breaking the kiss, he came down over her on the bed and made fast work of pushing clothes out of the way. 

“Hurry, Grant,” she whispered urgently as she squirmed under him. “I can’t wait.” He had her on the verge of exploding with only the press of his body against hers and the hot, intense kisses. 

He pulled back from her only long enough to free himself from his clothes, surging into her with a quick thrust that had her arching her back to get him deeper.

Stephanie reached the first peak seconds after he entered her, crying out with the thrill of it.

“Ah, Christ, that’s good,” he groaned, pushing hard into her to ride the wave of her climax.

She opened her eyes and saw him watching her, still hard and moving slowly inside her.

“That was quite something,” he said, brushing his lips against hers and sending a riot of sensation rippling through her that started the climb toward a second release.

“I was pent up.”

He laughed and gathered her in tight against him. “Take this off,” he said, tugging her shirt up and over her head and releasing the front clasp on her bra. “Much better,” he said as his chest hair rubbed against her nipples.

Stephanie tightened her arms around him, closed her eyes and focused on enjoying every second of their reunion. For so many hours she’d feared never seeing him again, never holding him, never making love with him, never talking to him or waking to his gorgeous face on the pillow next to hers. 

As he dug his fingers into her hips and picked up the pace, it became clear to her that she never would’ve survived losing him. Her life, too, would’ve been over—at least the life that she’d come to love almost as much as she loved him.

“Grant…”

“What, honey?”

“Love you. More than anything.”

“Me, too. Me, too.” He pushed hard into her, tipping her over the edge again. His muffled cry against her shoulder and the surge of heat within her only made the ride sweeter. Everything was sweeter when they did it together.

For a long time afterward, she held him tight and gave thanks for all they had. The rest faded away, unimportant. She had everything she needed as long as she had him.

Laura and Owen emerged from the clinic into afternoon sunshine. Her legs were rubbery beneath her, making her tighten her grip on his arm to remain standing. “I…I need to sit,” she said. Her hands were trembling, and her skin felt clammy.

Owen steered her to a bench in the middle of a small garden outside the clinic’s main door and sat next to her, seeming equally shell-shocked.

“Say something,” she said after a long period of stunned silence.

“I have no idea what to say.”

“Did that really just happen?”

“I think it did.”

Lightheaded and nauseated, Laura bent at the waist, forcing fresh air into her lungs.

He rubbed comforting circles on her back. “Are you going to be sick?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. Are you?”

Owen laughed, relieving some of the tension. “Not sure yet.”

Laura sat up straight, moving slowly in deference to the lightheadedness, and turned to him. “
How
are we going to do this? Can you tell me that?
Three babies
in one year
and
a hotel to run?” 

She knew she sounded slightly hysterical, but who wouldn’t be after Victoria confirmed that the stomach flu wasn’t the flu after all but indeed another pregnancy—and this time she was expecting
twins
? Apparently, she was six weeks along. A transvaginal ultrasound had revealed two strong heartbeats.

Owen massaged her shoulders. “First, take a deep breath.”

Gazing into his familiar gray eyes, she did as he directed.

“Now take another.” After she inhaled and exhaled a second time, he said, “Keep breathing, Princess. No matter what happens, we’ll deal with it.”

Laura hated the hysterical tension that gripped her chest, the tears that pooled in her eyes and the overwhelming need to cry that came with them. “A year ago, you were footloose and fancy free, living the good life. It was a big enough deal for you to take on Holden—and me. But this... It’s just too much. You’ll be running for your old life—”

He kissed the words off her lips. “Stop. I’m not going anywhere. And for your information, I never lived the good life until I lived with you—and Holden. It’s not too much. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted.”

“That’s not true! You never wanted any of it!”

“I had no idea how much I wanted it until I had it. Don’t you see?” With his hand on her face, he compelled her to look at him. “I didn’t know what I was missing. How could I know, growing up the way I did? I love you, I love Holden, and I’ll love our babies, too. I promise.”

“It’s too much,” she said, shaking her head as tears spilled down her face.

“It’s just enough, honey.” He cupped her cheeks and swept up the tears with his thumbs. “How lucky are we? How blessed?”

“I’ll tell you one thing, mister, you’d better get all the sex you can while I’m pregnant, because after these two are born, I’m never going near you again if you can get me pregnant this easily—and
two
of them to boot!”

Laughing, Owen dragged her up and tossed an arm around her. “Yes, you will. You can’t resist me.”

Because she couldn’t exactly deny that, she elbowed his ribs. “Watch me.” A new thought made her nauseated again. “Oh my God, what’ll I tell my dad?”

“Tell him he’s going to be a grandpa again, just a little sooner than we’d planned.”

“Since this is all your fault, why don’t
you
tell him?”

He made a distressed face that made her laugh. “Do I hafta?”

“I’d say that’s the least you can do after you knocked me up so thoroughly.”

Puffing out his chest, he said, “I did do a pretty good job, didn’t I?”

Even though she was amused by his pleasure in the earth-shattering news, she couldn’t let him see that, so she scowled at him. After this extremely unexpected development, she figured she had the right to be a bit grouchy until she wrapped her head around it.

At the car, he turned her to face him and eased her back against the sun-warmed metal. “I’ll be glad to tell your dad this awesome news,” he said, nuzzling her neck, “and I’ll make sure to tell him again how very much I love his beautiful daughter who has made me so happy. So damned happy.”

“Keep talking,” she said, bending her neck to give him better access. “Maybe I’ll forgive you before the wedding.” 

Chuckling, he held the passenger door for her. “Let’s go tell our little boy that he’s going to be a big brother.”

Laura was glad—and relieved—that Owen was so excited about the new babies. But all she could think about was nine months of nausea, three babies in one year and a hotel to run. It might take her a while to match his excitement, but she’d get there. Eventually. Or at least she hoped so.

Abby showered, blow-dried her hair and treated the site of the tattoo with antibiotic ointment. She bent and twisted to get a look at it in the mirror, frustrated all over again with herself for taking the safe route with a small tattoo on her back that no one would see unless she wanted them to.

“You’re doing a heck of a job shaking things up, girlfriend,” she whispered to her reflection. “You’re doing a
hell
of a job, I should say.” She shook her head in disgust. “You’re such a bad
ass
. Unable to hold your liquor, unable to swear respectably, unable to get a tattoo that people will actually
see
, unable to get off during sex. No wonder things didn’t work out with Grant or Cal. I bore
myself
. Why wouldn’t they be bored, too?”

She was sick to death of wanting to be different. She was fed up with wishing for something else but not knowing how to make it happen. She’d thought she found what she wanted with Cal, but that hadn’t worked either. And now here she was, right back where she started with nothing much to show for the last ten years of her life.

“Well, that’s not entirely true,” she said, thinking of the nest egg she still had from Abby’s Attic. Thinking about her adorable little store made her heart ache even more over what she’d given up for a man, so she chose not to go there. Rather, she relived the kiss on the beach with Adam for probably the hundredth time since it happened an hour ago.

That was some kiss. It was unlike any kiss she’d ever had. Maybe it was because they’d been on the beach, outside where anyone might see them, that it had been more exciting than other kisses. Maybe it was the slightly scandalous notion of taking up with her ex-boyfriend’s brother that had set her hormones abuzz. 

No, she thought. It wasn’t any of those things. It had been Adam and the way he’d looked at her as if she was something—or someone—special to him. While they’d always been friendly after knowing each other all their lives, something different had clicked between them on the ferry ride home the other day. Sitting behind him on the motorcycle had been thrilling. Walking the beach with him had been thrilling. Kissing him had been incredibly thrilling. 

She ran her fingers over her lips and couldn’t wait to kiss him again. Maybe later when he came over… For a brief instant, she wondered what Grant would have to say about Adam dating his ex. Would Grant’s objections put a damper on whatever was happening between her and Adam? They’d better not, or she’d be having some words with Grant McCarthy. After his years of indifference toward her, he had absolutely no right to interfere with anything she did, even if she did it with his brother—a thought that made her laugh nervously. 

Doing
it
with Adam McCarthy was something she’d never even considered before yesterday, and now it was all she could think about. Grant had better not get in the way of what was turning out to be the most fun she’d had with a guy in ages… Since she first got together with Cal, back when things had still been fun between them rather than strained.

Even though Adam had been awesome about helping her to bust out of her shell, Abby was well aware that he couldn’t do it for her. She had to do it herself, or it wouldn’t mean as much. 

Before she could spend any more time thinking, she grabbed her purse and phone and headed for the door. Not wanting to lose her nerve, she kept her head down as she walked through town. On the way, she passed Tiffany’s new store, Naughty & Nice, housed in the former home of Abby’s Attic. She experienced a profound wave of regret at seeing another store where hers had done so well. However, she loved Tiffany and wished her all the best with her new store.

“Abby?”

Speaking of Tiffany, she approached Abby on the sidewalk, holding a coffee in one hand and a bank deposit pouch tucked under her other arm. As always, Tiffany looked stylish and amazing in an eye-popping orange print dress that made Abby feel like a dowdy frump next to her. 

“I thought that was you! I didn’t hear you were home.”

Abby gave her a quick hug. “The store looks great, Tiffany. I hear you’ve made a tremendous success of it.”

“After a few bumpy weeks, it seems to be catching on.”

“Congratulations. I never had a doubt that you’d be great at it.”

“I’m glad you didn’t. I was filled with doubts. So how’s Cal?”

“That’s…um…over.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I hadn’t heard that either.”

Abby shrugged off the pain and disappointment. It’d been over months ago, if she were being truthful, so every day seemed to get a little easier.

“Do you have time to come in and take a look at the store?”

Even though she was anxious to get to the tattoo place, she was curious about what had become of her store. “I’d love to.”

Abby followed Tiffany into a space that in no way resembled Abby’s Attic. Where her store had been sweetness personified, Tiffany’s was all about sex—and in some cases, raunchy sex. Abby’s senses were overwhelmed by the scents, the textures, the sheer volume of choices. “It’s incredible, Tiff. Truly.”

“You really think so?”

“I do. I love it.” Abby didn’t say what she really thought—that the store brought home all the many ways she felt inadequate as a woman. She’d have no idea where to begin among the many choices Tiffany had provided for her customers. She was lost in a sea of femininity. 

“Why do you look so sad?”

Startled by Tiffany’s astute assessment, Abby forced herself to make eye contact with the other woman. “I feel out of my league in here.”

“How so?”

Abby ran her fingers over a lacy garter belt and nodded. “I’ve never been one for sexing things up.”

“Well, isn’t that too bad? A body like yours ought to be shown off.”