The Sparkling One

16

Katie drove back to L.A. with the comforting glow of Zach’s headlights in her rearview mirror. By the 405 freeway she’d convinced herself that her Grandfather wouldn’t take more than three weeks to get over being mad. The longest one of his rages had ever lasted had been a month. So by the time the fund-raiser was over, her life would be within a week of getting back to normal.

Great. The good news was she would be so busy over the next couple of weeks that she wouldn’t even miss talking to her mother or her sisters. Unfortunately, she didn’t believe a word of it.

She cried through the next ten miles, then got herself under control by the time they reached her exit. She’d expected Zach to keep going down toward the beach, but he surprised her by following her into her driveway, then stepping out of his car and walking up the drive.

He might be tough, mean, and determined, but he was also kind. He cupped her face.

“How you doing?” he asked.

“Okay.”

“Liar.”

She smiled. “I’ll survive.”

“Would you like me to stay?”

Stay?

He pulled her close. “I’m talking about holding you, Katie, not trying to get in your pants.”

She raised her head and looked at him. “What if I want you there?”

He sighed heavily. “All right, but only because you’re begging me.”

She laughed. “You make me crazy.”

“Then my work here is done.”

Surprisingly, he did hold her for a long time. Secure in Zach’s arms, Katie sprawled across her bed and cried her heart out. When she was finally finished, she blew her nose and looked at him.

“You were probably hoping for something more romantic,” she said.

“No. Just to be here with you.”

“Great line.”

“Not a line.”

She stared at his dark eyes and knew that she wouldn’t mind getting lost in them. When everyone she loved had turned their backs on her, he’d come through. Funny how he was the last one she would have expected that from. Sometimes he was a real bastard and sometimes he was the world’s nicest guy.

“Thank you,” she said. “For everything.”

“You’re welcome.”

They looked at each other. She waited for him to make his move and when he didn’t, she realized he wanted her to be sure. That if she’d changed her mind about wanting to make love, he wouldn’t complain. He would just hold her.

The thought nearly sent her into another crying jag, but instead of giving into tears, she moved close and kissed him.

His lips were warm, his arms strong as they came around her. Within the tender confines of his embrace she forgot her family, her pain, her loneliness-everything except being with Zach. His tenderness reached inside and gently nudged her romantic heart into wakefulness. His touch excited her body. The combination made her slip closer and press herself against him.

While she’d initiated the kissing, he quickly took over. His head angled as he licked her bottom lip. She parted for him, wanting him to excite her, pleasure her, heal her. He placed a hand on her side and gently urged her onto her back. Her long hair spread out on the pillow, and he toyed with several strands.

“How you doing?” he asked quietly.

She opened her eyes and looked at his face. Concern darkened his irises, passion thickened his voice.

“Good.”

He stroked her cheek. “Despite my reputation, I don’t travel with protection. Any condoms in this girly place?”

She smiled. “An unopened box in my nightstand.”

“I like a woman who plans ahead.”

“I’m very organized.”

“I know.”

He leaned close and pressed his mouth to hers. She wrapped her arms around him, surrendering to the sensations that flooded her. He moved his hand from her face to her stomach where his long fingers rested lightly on her sweater. His tongue slipped into her mouth and brushed against hers.

He kissed her deeply, thoroughly, erotically, until she couldn’t breathe. Slow kisses went on forever and made her bones melt. Teasing kisses that made her squirm. Passionate kisses that sucked the will right out of her and left her wanting to beg. Kisses that made her feel she’d never been kissed before. Not like this.

Slowly he moved his hand, sliding up her belly, along her rib cage, and between her breasts. She found herself touching him back. Tracing the width of his shoulders and the powerful muscles in his back.

Zach stroked her arms, returned to her stomach, then repeated the circuit. Up and over, between her breasts to her shoulder, her arm, crossing her stomach, slipping close to the apex of her thighs without actually slipping between them.

She found it difficult to keep breathing. Her skin seemed tight, and if her breasts swelled any more, she was going to spill out of her bra. She wanted to start screaming instructions. And then something amazing began to happen. The anticipation took on a life of its own.

Because she knew that eventually he would touch her in every place she wanted to be touched. As their kiss went on and his hands continued to move, she thought about him touching her breasts or between her legs and the tension grew.

When he reached for the hem of her sweater, she nearly moaned in relief. He tugged off the garment and tossed it onto the floor, then flicked open the front hook on her bra. The lace sprang free, leaving her breasts exposed to the evening air. For a second her heart stopped. She froze in anticipation. Then he touched just the tip of one finger to her hard, tight nipple.

The sensation was exquisite. She almost bit her tongue as fire shot through her. Before she could fully comprehend the feeling, he gently pinched her nipple between his thumb and forefinger. She gasped. Then his mouth was on her other breast, and she had her fingers in his hair urging him on.

“Don’t stop,” she breathed, surrendering to the wanting.

He continued to caress her until she alternately clung to the bedspread, then to him. Tension increased, impossible tension that had only one cure.

When he finally lifted his head, she wanted to cry out in protest. Fortunately he went right to work on unfastening her jeans. While she kicked off her shoes, he pulled down the zipper. Jeans, panties, and socks came off in one easy push that left her naked.

She made a halfhearted gesture toward his shirt, as if maybe she would undress him. Bless the man, he never gave her a chance. Instead he slipped between her knees and kissed her stomach. Muscles tightened in anticipation. He stroked the length of her legs, then bent low and licked the inside of her knees.

He’d done this before, she thought, already finding it difficult to think. He’d done it and done it well.

She tried to sigh, but the sound came out more like a purr. This time, when he moved slowly and deliberately, she abandoned herself to the reality that was his fingers, his mouth, and his tongue. She didn’t urge, didn’t plead, didn’t do anything but let him seduce her into sensual mindlessness that made every cell in her body stand up and applaud.

He rubbed her thighs, moving closer and closer to her waiting heat, but not quite touching her there. He licked and nibbled and sucked on her skin, moving north, always moving north, but again, not touching there.

She arched her hips slightly in invitation, her legs parted, but he ignored her. The man had his own pace and he would not be rushed.

She soon found that pace suited her just fine. Slowly, and slowly, inching up until she could feel his hot breath on the apex of her thighs. Need, want, and desire collided. She trembled and he hadn’t even touched her intimately. Not yet. But soon. Very soon.

Finally he slipped his fingers along the seam of her outer lips and gently drew them apart. The cool air contrasted with her hot skin. He put his mouth on her and gave her an openmouthed kiss that sent a scream of satisfaction racing through her body.

Katie stiffened and melted all at the same time. He licked the length of her, then found nature’s magic place and reintroduced himself.

Quick flicks and slow sucking robbed her of free will and left her gasping. He inserted one finger inside of her, touching her from below. His finger and his tongue circled in perfect harmony, once, twice…and she was lost.

The release caught her off guard, sending her flying. She found herself coming endlessly as her body shuddered, sending waves of pleasure crashing through her. Zach read her mind, or maybe just her body, continuing to touch her perfectly until there was nothing left but a gentle hum of contentment.

When it was over, he kissed his way up her body, first her stomach, then her breasts. Finally his head was level with hers. She had a feeling she looked as wiped-out and two-dimensional as a badly drawn stick figure. Zach had that expression of male superiority that claimed he’d just pleased his woman. Frankly, Katie thought he’d earned it.

“Wow,” she whispered because she didn’t have the breath left to talk any louder. “That was really-”

Words failed her. She gestured with her hand, flicking her wrist and then touching his cheek. He smiled.

“Wow works,” he said.

She stared at his face, at the lines by his eyes, and the firm set of his jaw. For the rest of her life, whatever happened, she would remember this moment, this night, this time with him. Even if she had to face him over breakfast at family Christmases for the next forty years, she couldn’t find it in herself to be sorry.

She reached for his shirt, but found she didn’t have the strength to do much more than lay there.

“Maybe you’d like to get naked,” she murmured.

“Maybe I would.”

He stood. While he unfastened his shirt, she reached in her nightstand for the promised box of condoms.

“Jumbo size?” he joked as he unfastened his trousers.

“Super colossal.”

He pulled off his trousers, then his socks. Finally his briefs joined the pile.

She studied his naked body. He had long legs, narrow hips and an impatient erection that seemed to demand her attention. He looked as good as she remembered.

She shifted onto her knees and moved to the edge of the bed. Once there, she wrapped one arm around him, drawing him close, and slipped her other arm between them so she could touch his hardness. He responded by cupping her rear and squeezing.

Something about touching him made her start to tremble. When he kissed her, she found herself frantic. He responded in kind, sucking on her tongue, cupping her breasts and teasing her nipples.

She released his penis and ran her hands up and down his chest. The contrast of cool hair and hot skin delighted her. She slipped lower to cup him, then parted her legs, wanting him inside.

“Not so fast, young lady,” he whispered.

She rolled onto one hip, then onto her back while he opened the box of condoms and pulled out a plastic packet. He ripped it open and slipped on the protection, then moved between her knees.

He deliberately pushed her knees farther apart so that he could see all of her. She looked at him looking at her. A shiver rippled through her. Being with Zach was more intimate than being with anyone else. There weren’t any secrets between them, no masks or disguises.

When he rubbed a finger against her dampness, he shifted his gaze so he could watch her reaction. She bit her lower lip and groaned. He moved again. She wanted to close her eyes, but she wanted to watch, too. She’d never watched before. At least not so obviously.

He continued to touch her, stroking faster and faster until she started breathing heavily and straining toward him. Tendrils of excitement moved through her; tension increased. She could feel herself getting wetter, swelling, needing.

Faster and faster, rubbing over and around. She pulsed her hips in time with his movements. Then she felt something thick and hard pushing into her. Even as he continued to touch her, he filled her.

She couldn’t believe the sensations he created within her. He withdrew and plunged into her again. Her release was just out of reach. She pulsed faster, her breath coming in gasps.

“Zach!”

She didn’t know what she wanted from him. Maybe that he wouldn’t stop. Maybe that this would go on forever.

Zach watched the passion flare in Katie’s eyes. He could feel the tiny shudders building inside of her. Every part of him screamed out to simply bury himself inside of her and have his way, but he couldn’t. Not yet. Not when she was so close.

So he gritted his teeth and thought about the baseball card collection he’d had when he was a kid. If he’d kept it, it would have been worth a fortune. Except then he started thinking about Katie in a baseball jersey and nothing else, and her perched on a counter while he plunged his hard, throbbing c-

Math. Times tables. Seven times seven was-

She gasped. He felt the hard knot of nerves pulse, and suddenly she contracted around him. He groaned as she milked him, making her sweet, slick body impossible to resist. He continued to touch her until the shudders stopped, then he leaned forward and dropped his hands to the bed.

In and out he pumped, feeling the pressure build and build. Her eyes locked with his. Her legs came up around his hips. Suddenly her hands were on his ass, her nails digging in as she pulled him deeper and deeper. Her head arched back and the contractions began again. This time she screamed.

It was as if her entire body conspired to send him over the edge. The pressure was unbearable and the point of no return was a heartbeat away. He squeezed back as hard as he could, waiting until the last of her contractions faded. Only then did he give in to the rush of release that exploded out of him like a bullet.

When rational thought returned, he wrapped his arms around her and shifted them both onto their sides. Katie stared at him wide-eyed and flushed.

“I’m guessing you didn’t learn that in law school,” she whispered.

He laughed. “I did. It was extra credit.”

“Where did you study? There weren’t any classes like that at UCLA.”

“Sure there were. You just have to know what they’re called.”

She smiled.

Zach kissed the tip of her nose, pulled back the covers, and waited for her to slip under them before sliding next to her. When they were settled, he turned out the lamp on the nightstand.

Katie rested her head on his shoulder. “I guess it’s your turn to sneak away in the night,” she said teasingly. “I promise not to take offense.”

“I have a seven A.M. meeting. My leaving won’t be about you.”

She sighed. “You say the sweetest things.”

He pulled her close. “I mean them.”

“I’m glad.”

While her breathing slowed, he stared into the darkness. He did mean them. In this case, if he didn’t have an early meeting, he would be content to stay in her bed and wake up with her. He could imagine a long time spent in the shower while they discovered just how limber each of them could be, followed by breakfast at her small, painted table. Surrounded by plants and candles and too many pillows, he would listen to her plans for the day and talk about his own schedule.

The concept of domestic bliss usually sent him screaming for the hills, but not this time. This time he didn’t want to walk away, and for the life of him, he couldn’t say why.

Katie watched the clock slowly ticking off the hour. She stared at the lining for Mia’s wedding gown that she’d spent most of yesterday sewing together, then back at the clock.

“Where are you?” she asked aloud, more than a little annoyed that her baby sister couldn’t be bothered to show up on time for the very first fitting of her wedding gown.

Katie paced the width of her small living room. She had a thousand and one details to take care of for the fund-raiser. There were phone calls to make, details to confirm, prizes to be picked up, and inventories to go over.

“I don’t need this,” she muttered and headed for her phone. She punched in her sister’s number, then clenched her teeth when she heard the familiar message.

“Hi! It’s me, and if you don’t know who ‘me’ is, then you probably have the wrong number. Leave a message.”

“Mia, it’s Katie. I can’t believe you didn’t show up for the very first fitting of your wedding dress.” She tightened her grip on the phone. “Dammit, Mia, I was defending you and your right to have your own life. I understand the rest of the family not talking to me, but you have no right to be mad at me.”

There was so much more she wanted to say, but what was the point? She was being given the cold shoulder. Only time would fix things. She hung up and reached for her ever-present briefcase. With the countdown to the fund-raiser beginning, she had plenty of work to keep her occupied.