Desert Rain (24 page)

At last Holly lifted her head and sighed, letting the heat of her pleasure flow over his
lips. You still taste like sage and rain and lightning, she said. Blindly Lincs lips
sought hers again. She laughed softly, eluding him. You promised, Holly said.

He took a ragged breath.

Is it too late to plead insanity? he asked almost roughly.

Much too late.

Her mouth shifted to his shoulder. She put her teeth against the resilient muscles, biting
with just enough force to arouse rather than to hurt.

It was another of the many things Holly had learned from Linc. It gave her intense
pleasure to use what he had taught her, giving back the joy of his teaching.

Her hands smoothed down the line of his arms, cherishing each hard shift of muscle under
his skin, the steel beneath the silk. In slow motion her hands moved over his chest.

Your strength fascinates me, Holly said. Things that I cant budge, you lift casually.
Strength to make orbreakaworld...

Her eyes darkened, a shadow of her own vulnerability. So different from me, she whispered.
Linc heard the thread of fear in her voice and thought she was remembering their first
time together. I would never have hurt you if I had known, he said.

I know that. Do you really? he asked urgently. Yes. But for a moment just now you looked
almost . . . afraid. Yes. Why? Listen to me, Linc, Holly whispered. Listen to what my
touch tells you.

Her fingertips found his flat nipples. She bent down and licked him with teasing strokes.
His flesh gathered into tiny, hard points. When she caught one nipple between her teeth,
his breath came in sharply.

Different, she said huskily, but alike again. Youre sensitive there, too. Do you feel hot
wires all the way to the pit of your stomach when I do this?

She sucked on his nipple with lips and tongue, giving back the caresses he had given to
her so many times before.

When Linc could bear it no more, his hands closed like a vise on her cheeks, forcing her
to look at him. His eyes were smoky with desire. He searched her face for long moments.

Then he took her mouth in a kiss that was all the more overwhelming for its restraint.

Does that answer your question? he asked.

Yes, she said. But I have so many more questions. Will you let me ask them in my own way?
And will you listen, really listen, with all of your heart?

Holly saw uneasiness grow beneath the desire in Lincs eyes. It was as though he had
finally sensed just how much was at risk.

Body and mind and soul.

Breath held, she waited for his answer.

Slowly Linc released his hold on Holly.

If I had known what I was getting into, he said, or rather, what Iwasnt getting into, Id
never have promised.

She blinked, not understanding at first.

When she did, she laughed against his chest. Then she bit him with great care.

Youre killing me, he said hoarsely.

I dont think so.

I do!

Your heart is beating quite nicely, she said. I can feel it beneath my tongue.

She slid down Lincs body, catching his chest hair between her fingers and lips.

He breathed a soft curse.

I like your hair, Holly said huskily, but Ive already said that, havent I? Rough and soft
at the same time, springy, it tickles almost as nicely as your tongue.

Her fingertips traced the muscles of his torso to the edge of the towel.

Linc couldnt contain the shudder that went through him any more than he could control the
blunt arousal that leaped subtly with each heartbeat.

Different again, Holly said. So powerful . . .

His breathing shortened as her tongue found and teased his navel, stabbing lightly.

But were alike here, she murmured. Sensitive.

She followed the line of dark hair from Lincs navel to the edge of the towel.

He waited with breath held. Then he let out a ragged sigh when Holly left the towel in
place.

The mattress shifted as she moved to the foot of the bed.

Ill get even, you know, Linc said huskily. I ache from head to heels.

Ten toes, she said, laughter in her voice. Thats the same for both of us.

She nibbled reflectively on his big toe.

That tickles, he said. Tickling definitely wasnt part of my promise.

Smiling, Holly relented. She caught his foot in her hand and rubbed up to his ankle,
knowing that a firm touch wouldnt tickle him.

I like your feet, she said. Strong. But then, all of you is strong. A strength you take
for granted.

Lincs calf flexed against her kneading fingers. He wasnt protesting her touch. He was
enjoying it. Looking at himself through her eyes as she outlined and tested each muscle
made him understand his own

strength for the first time.

It also made Linc painfully aware of the precise area where he was most different from
Holly. It was the one difference she seemed to be avoiding.

It was also the only difference that really mattered to him at the moment.

Holly shifted again. Putting a knee on either side of Lincs legs, she removed the clip
that held her hair in place.

Do you like the feel of my hair on your bare skin? she asked, guessing the answer but
needing to hear it anyway.

You know I do.

You never told me, not in words.

There are so many things we havent said in words,Holly thought uneasily.

Shaking her head, she bent over and let the silky black mass of her hair tumble across his
legs.

Linc drew in a swift, hissing breath.

Now I really know how much you like it, she said, shivering in response. I like knowing,
Linc.

The towel barely covered half of his long, muscular thighs. She turned her head and bit
him just above one knee. She liked the feel of his strength beneath her teeth, against her
tongue.

He made a throttled sound.

Another place where were alike and yet different, Holly said. Your thighs are so hard when
you tense them, so powerful even when youre relaxed.

Im not relaxed now, Linc said through his teeth.

She looked at the towel tented over his blunt arousal and smiled slowly.

I like that, too, she whispered.

Her hands moved upward, following the clean line of his legs beneath the towel. She
separated the folds of cloth until he wore only the black fall of her hair across him.

Then she straightened slowly, letting her hair move over his changed flesh in a long,
silky caress. God . . . Linc said, his voice gritty. Different, Holly murmured. She traced
the outline of his arousal with a fingertip.

He shuddered heavily.

Why are all the words to describe our differences either clinical or crude? she asked
softly. Why arent there any words to equal your beauty?

His only answer was a groan that was also her name.

Youre beautiful to me, Holly said. As beautiful as I am to you. But there are no words . .
.

Her hands moved up the hard curve of Lincs thighs until she surrounded him. Slowly, she
bent down.

Listen, she whispered.

With gentle care, she tasted all of his masculine textures as he had often tasted her own
femininity.

Lincs breath came in with a harsh sound, caught in his throat, and stayed knotted there.

Holly sensed the elemental hunger that exploded through him. She felt it in the heat of
his flesh, the violence of his pulse, and the shudders of raw need that tore through his
strength.

Then she heard her name in the long rush of his breath.

Am I hurting you? she asked.

His answer was a groan and a movement of his hips that silently pleaded for more, not
less, of her loving.

Yes, she whispered. Id like that, too.

The differences that made Linc male fascinated and compelled Holly. She couldnt explore
them enough. The soft heat of her mouth surrounded him with sultry, intimate caresses.

His body corded. He cried out wordlessly, telling her of the intense pleasure she was
giving him.

An answering storm of desire broke over Holly, nearly overwhelming her. She moved up Lincs
body like a cloud over a mountain, covering him with moist warmth.

With exquisite slowness, she began to join herself to him. Together they shared the fierce
lightning that lanced through him when he was first kissed by flesh even hotter and more
sultry than her mouth.

For a timeless moment Holly held both of them in that first instant of contact, unmoving,
suspended in the still center of a passionate storm. Then she blended her body totally
with Lincs, matching the urgent rhythms of his need with her own, letting the storm break
over both of them until neither knew who was cloud and who was mountain, for both were
fused by lightning into an ecstatic whole.

When the last, distant tremor of the sensual storm finally faded between them, Holly
stirred against Lincs chest.

I love you, she said softly. She sought his luminous eyes beneath the dense shadows of his
lashes.

Do you finally believe that now? she asked. I love you.

His eyes shut. His fingers closed around her chin so tightly that she cried out in
surprise and protest.

Linc

Dont talk about love.

His voice was low, deadly.

Fear engulfed Holly. Her fear was all the more terrible because she had allowed herself to
believe that Linc had accepted her love in the passionate certainty of their storm.

She tried to speak, couldnt, and tried again. Finally she forced words through a throat
that was tight with fear.

Thats like telling me not to breathe, she said.

Tears rained silently down her cheeks onto his hand.

Loving you is the most She gasped and stopped speaking as Linc jerked his hand away.

Holly watched him lift his fingers to his lips, tasting her tears as though not able to
believe in them, either.

Why wont you believe me? she asked despairingly. If I were just plain Holly, would you let
me talk about love?

Lincs face changed. For the first time he showed the grief and regret that were like
knives turning in his soul.

It was no less painful for her.

Thats it, isnt it? she asked in a raw whisper. Im not Holly to you anymore. You never call
menin‡.

His eyelids flinched but he said not one word.

What am I, Linc? she continued relentlessly. What horrible thing have I done that you wont
even let me say the word love?

Linc closed his eyes, shutting her out. Theres no point in talking about it, he said. You
cant change what you are. And what is that? A beautiful, selfish woman. Selfish? Because I
wont shrug off my responsibilities and break my contract with Roger? Yes.

Lincs tone was like his certainty, unshakable.

No, Holly countered, her voice flattened by despair. Quitting wouldnt change anything.

The hell it he began.

Id still be beautiful, she said over his words. And deep inside, youd still distrust and
hate me for that, wouldnt you?

Beyond the window lightning arched invisibly and thunder muttered among clouds. The drapes
swelled into the room, twisting sinuously in the wind.

Holly shivered, but it wasnt the tropical storm that chilled her. Slowly Linc opened his
eyes. I . . . dont hate you, he said. I dont believe you.

Holly, he whispered.

Just as you dont believe I love you. She laughed oddly. In time, we may both be right.

Quit your job.

No.

Does turning on every man in sight matter that much to you? Linc asked roughly. Isnt what
we just had enough to satisfy you?

I dont give a damn about turning on any man but you. Hollys voice was so soft, so
absolutely certain, that even Linc had to admit she believed her words. Then quit
modeling, he said. And prove how selfish I am. Again her voice was soft, certain. Whats
that supposed to mean? he demanded. Selfish people make others pay for their pleasures,
right? Linc nodded curtly.

Being with you is the greatest pleasure Ive ever known, Holly said. Replacing me would
cost Roger a year of advertising time and millions of dollars. Why should he be the one to
pay for my pleasures?

Lincs face went cold.

Thats a lovely way of twisting words to suit your purposes, he said. But I shouldnt
complain if Roger gets the benefit of your talents. Hes certainly given youand methe
benefit of his.

What do you mean? she asked. Linc smiled. The bitter curve of his lips chilled her.
Suddenly she was certain that she didnt want to understand Lincs meaning. But it was too
late. He was already talking, breaking apart her world.

Its quite simple, he said. In the five days I wasnt with you, Roger taught you more about
making love than most women learn in a lifetime.

Holly went white.

Not that Im complaining, Linc said with a shrug. Youve stayed in my bed while Im here.
What more can I ask of a beautiful woman?

Holly retreated from Linc until his hands caught her, held her with careless strength.
Dont do this to me, she whispered, feeling herself breaking. Let me go. One of his
eyebrows lifted in cool inquiry. Why? he asked. Is Roger finally getting impatient?

Ive never been Rogers lover.

Hollys voice was thin, patient, as distant as an echo.

Linc can break my world,she told herself wildly,but not me.

Not me!

I wont break, not even for him.

I said I wasnt complaining, he repeated.

Damn you, she whispered savagely. If Ive pleased you in bed, congratulate yourself. Youre
one hell of a teacher.

She watched disbelief cross Lincs face and felt the same knives of regret and rage turning
in her that she had sensed earlier in him.

I came to you a virgin, she said, something you didnt believe until too late. I can hardly
come to you each time a virgin, and you wont believe in my love.

Her laugh sounded like a sob.

You told me to trust you, Linc. And I did. Twice. You have yet to trust me, really trust
me, once.

Holly, he began.

No words followed, nothing but an agonizing silence.

Tell me that you trust me, she coaxed. Tell me that you love me. Just a little, Linc. Just
a beginning.

Breath held, aching, she watched his eyes, his lips, the shadows of emotion tightening his
face into harsh planes.

She heard all her worst fears confirmed in his silence. When she spoke, her voice was
terribly controlled, almost gentle.

Never mind, Linc. It doesnt matter anymore.

His hands tightened on her arms. He sensed her despair and anger as clearly as he felt the
emotional storm seething just beneath his own control.

Holly, dont do this, he said, echoing her earlier plea. Do what? Tell the truth? What
truth is that? Love? he asked, his voice like a whip.

This truth, Holly said. Somewhere deep in your mind youre certain that loving a beautiful
woman means destroying yourself. Given that, I cant blame you for not loving me. Youre
strong. You want to survive.

Again Lincs eyelids flinched, an involuntary reaction to his pain.

And to hers.

But I do blame you, Holly said distinctly, for taking revenge on me for something I never
did, never would do, nevercould do to you.

She paused, listening to the thunder outside as though it was another voice. Then she
looked at Linc. A last flicker of hope moved in her eyes when she saw his turmoil. It isnt
revenge, he said finally. You dont trust me, so you cant love me. It might as well be
revenge. I dont blame you for what my mother and stepmother did.

No, you simply think that Im like them because Im beautiful. I thought that I could change
your feelings.

Linc looked away, unable to bear seeing his pain reflected in Hollys golden eyes.

She laughed sadly.

I was very young, wasnt I? she whispered. I didnt realize that I might learn to hate
before you learned to love. But I wont stay around that long, because hating you would
destroy me. There would be nothing left.

Thunder curled through the room, sound without meaning.

Holly listened. Then she looked at Linc with eyes that no longer asked to be loved.

I thought I could teach you about love, she said. But you were the teacher. You taught me
about hate.

No, he said, his voice rough with pain.

His hands rubbed over her chilled flesh, trying to bring back warmth. She neither moved
closer to him nor pulled away.

It was as though he didnt exist anymore.

I dont hate you, Linc said. I never meant to hurt you.

Holly moved to get off the bed.