A Seacat's Love (Oceanan Trilogy Book 1) (16 page)

“I don’t want your money, Rick.”

“Lynn—”

“I’m serious. Don’t insult me.” Lynn opened her office door and motioned for him to exit first. She unlocked the clinic’s main door and met his gaze. “Good luck.”

Rick kissed her on the cheek. “Thank you. I owe you one.”

“You can repay me by being careful out there. You’re a good friend. I don’t want to lose you. And I’m sure neither does Brian.”

Rick paused long enough to wink.

Rick arrived at the safe house. He went to Leonora’s room first and found her convulsing. Terror seized his heart. “No!”

He dropped the bag on the bedside table and immediately felt her forehead. She was burning hot. Rick surmised her seizures were due to the fever. Not knowing what else to do, he lifted Leonora in his arms and rushed to the bathroom. He figured that if the cool water did not kill her, her high fever would.

Rick got into the shower and turned the faucet on. Leonora’s body jolted when the water made contact with her burning flesh. Rick held her underneath the shower until her convulsions subsided. She went limp and then began to tremble because of the water’s temperature.

With her fever temporarily broken, Rick began to shake. He shook, not solely because of the temperature of the water but because he had come close to losing Leonora. Tears welled up in his eyes. Closing them, he buried his face in the curve of her neck and pulled her tighter against his quaking body.

Why does fate want to take these women from me? I won’t lose you
.

He had made a wrong choice three years ago that had cost him the life of his wife and daughter. He must live with that decision. Today, he had made the choice to leave Leonora alone, so he could seek medical help for her. If he had been any later, he would have had to live with her death, also.

The sound of Leonora telepathically murmuring his name pulled Rick’s thoughts from scenes of returning and finding her dead. He gazed down at her and saw the unfocused dullness of her eyes.

{Rick.}

“Nora,” was his groaned reply. Unable to hold back, Rick gave her a kiss born of desperation and of an all-too-real fear.

Breaking contact, his sights roamed over her soaked body. The water made her white blouse transparent. Her beautifully shaped mounds were displayed for his needy pleasures. The tips had transformed into twin hard peaks—hard like his lower body as he pinned her against the shower wall.

His hands reached for the outer side of each curve. Rick peered deep into her pale eyes and squeezed. “Leonora.”

{Rick.}

Moaning into her mouth, Rick tried to get closer by straddling her. His body eagerly drank in the feel of her. It vibrated with desire. His hands brushed her sides like a gentle wind kissing the petals of a rose.

“What’s happening?” he breathlessly soughed against her moving lips.

Leonora answered with an untamed kiss. Rick’s body pressed harder. He kissed her forehead, eyes, and cheeks. He worked his way down one side of her neck and up the other side. He stopped long enough to whisper into her ear, “Nora, I want you.”

Rick outlined her earlobe with his tongue. He traveled down to the valley between her breasts while his right hand cupped her. He fed on her delicious mound. His actions elicited a sensual moan from her kiss swollen lips. His mouth moved to the left to feast as greedily.

Over the roaring of his blood, Rick heard a cough. Reality returned with a blast. He pulled back. “We have to stop. We shouldn’t be doing this; you’re sick.”

Leonora whimpered and tried to pull him back for another kiss. Rick would not allow himself the pleasure. If he did, then all would be forgotten, and Leonora would know the touch of a human. Reluctantly, he turned the shower off.

He tugged a towel off the hanger and began to dry Leonora’s hair. “Let’s get you out of these wet clothes.” The second he said it, he regretted it.

Leonora reached for the buttons of her blouse without hesitations. Rick bit his tongue hard, hoping the pain would help keep him focused on what he had to do and not on her nakedness. Her blouse landed on the shower’s floor. Rick swallowed hard. His body pulsated with urgent need. His sights glued onto her chest and devoured her beauty. His focus dropped at the sound of a zipper. Her slim fingers parted and lowered the material past her hips. Rick received his first clear glimpse of curly dark hair.

“Okay! Let’s cover you up now,” he said in a hurry, wrapping the towel around her.

Rick waited until she stepped out of her pants to lift her into his arms and return her to the bed. He raised the blankets up to her nose and prepared to escape.

{Do not leave me, please!}

Her grip on his wrist burned. Rick panicked. He tried to pry her fingers loose. He wanted to get away from her to regain control over his passions. But the fear in her pale eyes convinced him not to.

With a sigh, he relented and sat beside her. “I’m not going anywhere, sweetheart.” He brushed her right cheek with his knuckles. “Go to sleep. You need the rest.”

{Promise.}

It was a simple word that had a profound meaning. “I promise,” he said, and he meant it.

Leonora took his hand and placed a kiss at the center of his palm. She flipped onto her side, leaned her cheek into his palm,
and closed her eyes. The fire in Rick subsided. In its place appeared a warmth that melted the ice caps into steady flowing streams.

Rick positioned his body alongside Leonora’s in the bed. He molded her backside to him and buried his face in her hair. He held her until she fell asleep.

At the detection of a steady breathing pattern, he released her. He reached for the bag on the table and prepared Leonora’s first dose, exactly the way Dr. Ranger had instructed him. Rick cleansed an area on her right arm. Mumbling a prayer, he injected the medicine into her bloodstream.

“Medication? What sort of medication?” Leonora’s voice was small and weak.

Rick entered the living room from the kitchen with two cups of tea. He placed one on the center table in front of her. He took a sip of his own and sat next to her.

“Medication I received from a friend. She happens to be the top veterinarian in these parts.”

“An animal doctor? I am no animal!” she shouted.

“Relax, I know. I had to try something. You were dying, remember?”

“So your idea of trying something is poisoning me further?”

“Of course not.” Rick scowled at her.

“Then what were you thinking?”

“I was thinking about saving your life!” His temper flared. “You were getting worse before my eyes. I couldn’t take you to the hospital. I had no choice but to trust a friend with medical knowledge close enough to your race and pray she could help.”

“Oh, really? So how well do you know this so-called doctor? Is she
really
a friend?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“That I am sick and tired of your kind using my species as guinea cats!”

“Bloody hell!” Rick placed his cup on the wooden table with a clatter. “I was not using you as a guinea
pig!
I was trying to make you feel better!”

“By killing me?”

“If I wanted you dead I would’ve stayed here and done nothing! Instead I endangered the life of my friend trying to save yours!” He pointed to her. “Everything I’ve done has been for you. I’ve sacrificed my life and my career for you. How dare you accuse me of such a thing after I’ve rattled my brains trying to get you to a safe haven so you can contact your people.”

He stood and waved his hand in the air. “But since you think that after doing all of that, I still want you dead, then perhaps you
are
better off dead. Lord knows I certainly don’t need the extra headache!” Rick stormed out of the house without a backward glance.

He drove for hours in search of a place where he could sit down and relax—a place where he could figure out what had gone wrong after he had exited the plane that fateful afternoon. It was too early for the bars to open. Therefore, he decided to drive down an isolated road and park until evening came.

Rick hoped he would not run into Blaisdale or the army. Not that it mattered to him anymore. Leonora’s words had hit a raw nerve. While he sat in his car, he seriously reconsidered all his actions and his attraction to her.

At sunset, he switched on the ignition and drove to the nearby town. He entered the first open pub he found. It was busy that evening. Ignoring the inquisitive looks from the locals, Rick sat at the bar. He scowled so severely his brows met in the middle. His thoughts were on Leonora and her accusations.

Mary would not have dared to be inconsiderate. She had always thanked him in ways that left him sexually gratified. Leonora instead charged him with attempted murder, not to mention left him more sexually frustrated each time she went near him. She was definitely not Mary.

“Hey, handsome, I’m sorry, but you can’t sit there unless you order a drink.”

Rick did not hear the woman’s voice. He noticed her because she placed a hand on his forearm. His attention rose from his folded hands. He blinked several times to clear his mind and register the woman bartender. She had corn-colored hair, emerald eyes, rosy cheeks, and scarlet-painted lips.

“I’m sorry?”

She smiled. “I said can I get you something? You look like you can use a hard drink.”

Rick missed the predatory way she scoped his form.

“When was the last time you had some?” she added seductively.

Her words had a double meaning, but Rick’s troubled mind was too distracted to pick up on it. Rubbing his tired face with both hands, he answered, “A very long time ago.”

“Well, how about a glass of whiskey on me, huh?”

That notorious blond brow of his lifted. “Are you asking if you could buy me a drink?”

Her smile broadened. “I believe so, handsome,” she replied with a hungry, daring stare.

Rick examined the woman’s face and realized this green-eyed beauty was exactly what the doctor ordered. And speaking of orders, Rick gave her his most dashing smile. “Well, in that case, I’ll be honored.”

“Great! I’ll be right back. Don’t you go and disappear on me.” She winked before hurrying off to get his drink.

Rick chuckled. “Oh, I won’t.”

He observed her while she moved from one end of the bar to the other, filling several orders at once. She seemed to know what she was doing. He also noticed her movements were not as fluid as a cat’s.

What the bloody hell is wrong with me?
He reprimanded himself.
I must be crazy to compare the two. It’s bad enough I’ve been comparing her to Mary. Besides, with what she said to me, I don’t want her near me again
. Rick slowly scanned the bartender’s shapely form.
But this one is an entirely different story. And with a body like that, it promises to be a very interesting story
.

“Here you go.” She placed a napkin on the bar and the drink on top in front of Rick.

“Thank you.”

The collar of her shirt was cut extremely low. She leaned on her forearms, giving Rick a better view of her cleavage. “You’re welcome. I sure hope you enjoy it.”

“I’m sure I will,” he answered, meeting her gaze straight on.

“My name is Rebecca. Rebecca McLean, what’s yours?”

“Did you say McLean?”

“That’s right.”

“Are you by any chance related to a Lieutenant McLean in the US Army, stationed in Arizona?”

“Well, if we’re talking about the same person, then yes, he’s my brother.”

Rick’s face lit up brighter than the sun. “Oh really.” His eyelids lowered, shielding his naughty plan.

“Do you know Trevor?”

Rick recalled the Lieutenant’s smug expression after he had closed the front gates on Rick’s face, and his sleeping features after Rick had sedated him in the corridor. “No. No, I don’t know Trevor personally. I…ah…kind of bumped into him on a military base, that’s all.”

“I see. You never did tell me your name, stranger.” Her sexy voice was accompanied by a very hot look and a better view of the goodies she offered.

“I didn’t, did I? I’m sorry. My name is Rick. Rick
McCall.”

Normally Rick did not use his real name when he set out on his little conquests, but in this case, he made an exception. He wanted her brother
Trevor
to know exactly who pleased his sister this evening, whenever she decided to recall the encounter to him.