Love's Road Home (7 page)

Beth blew out a deep breath and rolled first her neck and then her bare shoulders back and forth. It was as if she were preparing for the Olympics of miniature golf she was so serious. But Tom was content to watch her graceful movements. It didn’t matter how long it took her to make her shot.

Finally she was ready. She aligned her ball just so with the hole. She looked back and forth between the cup and the ball a few times. And then she swung.

Hole in one.

He couldn’t believe it. She’d beat him by hitting a hole in one.

Beth shouted and screamed and jumped up and down, apparently not caring if other players thought she was nuts. "Oh, my God! Did you see that? I got a hole in one! That was so awesome!" She was magnificent in her excitement, and she continued her ravings as she happily pranced toward Tom.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you! That was so much fun! Thanks for bringing me here. It was great!" She threw her arms around Tom, enveloping him in a big hug.

Caught off guard by her exuberance, Tom quickly wrapped his arms around Beth, holding her close as she squeezed him tightly. She tilted her head back, saying teasingly, "I beat you fair and square. Now you owe me an ice cream."

Tom looked into her twinkling blue eyes, and then his gaze slid down to her smiling lips. Such luscious lips. He’d been thinking about this ever since they were interrupted in
Jacksonville
. He wasn’t going to miss the opportunity again.

He moved one hand up to cradle the nape of her neck. He looked into her eyes one last time so that she’d clearly know his intentions. When Tom didn’t see any obvious discomfort in her gaze, he finally did what he’d been dying to do since he’d laid eyes on Beth.

He kissed her.

Chapter Four

Beth closed her eyes and let herself enjoy Tom’s mouth moving over hers. Why fight it anymore? She had as much right to feel wanted as anybody else did. And Tom obviously wanted her. His lips tenderly sipped at hers while his hands caressed her neck and back. Like she’d thought before, he had lots of talent in those body parts.

She tightened her arms around his neck, sinking her fingers into his short, thick hair. His tongue pressed against the seam of her lips and she gladly opened to allow him entrance. He tasted of man with a hint of steak sauce thrown in. And, oh boy, he could really make her forget her problems.

"
Ooooo
, baby." "That’s right, get it on." "Can I get some of that when you’re done with him, toots?" Loud whistles, grunts, and smooching noises accompanied the vulgar comments being shouted at Beth and Tom.

They jumped apart, staring at each other and breathing heavily. Beth tore her gaze from Tom’s and glanced toward the group of teenage boys who had interrupted their kiss. The teenagers were still looking at the two of them, perhaps wondering if the intimate show they’d seen was going to be continued.

Tom, too, looked at the boys but then easily dismissed them. "C’mon,
Bethany
. Let’s head out. I owe you an ice cream cone anyway."

They turned in their golf clubs and walked to the snack bar, holding hands all the while. It was amazing how fast she was getting used to this, how comfortable she was becoming with his touch. It was like they’d known each other far longer than a few days.

"You said you liked chocolate, right?"

Beth nodded absently in answer to Tom’s question, still lost in her thoughts. She waited until he handed her a cone top-heavy with ice cream, then moved toward a nearby picnic table. He followed behind her with an equally large strawberry cone of his own.

They sat eating their frozen treats in silence for a while. Then Tom spoke.

"I don’t regret what happened. I hope you don’t either. And I’m still sticking to what I said before—we can take one day at a time. I don’t expect to jump into a serious relationship right away. You said you didn’t want that."

Beth listened as Tom spoke, slowly licking her ice cream and absorbing his words.

"But I haven’t felt this attracted to a woman in a long time, and I’m hoping you’ll give me—us—a chance to see where things can go. We can spend time together during the tour, and afterward who knows. Do you think we can do that? No pressure?" His hopeful expression didn’t detract from his masculinity in the slightest.

Beth continued to lick her ice cream, noticing how Tom’s eyes narrowed and focused on her tongue’s movements. She gave an extra long stroke from the rim of the cone to the top of the dessert, just to see his reaction.

He lifted his darkened gaze to hers, accusing, "You’re doing that on purpose. You want to drive me crazy."

Beth smiled. "Maybe. But it’s no more than you’re doing to me. And in answer to your question, yes. I’d like to spend more time with you." She figured it wouldn’t hurt to have some fun over the next few weeks. She already knew nothing permanent could come of a relationship with Tom, but who said a short-term affair was out of the question? Maybe some commitment-free sex would help relieve her stress.

Tom smiled back at her, and they finished their desserts in comfortable silence. They leisurely strolled back to the truck, once again holding hands. Tom unlocked the vehicle and helped Beth inside, closing the door after her. But when he got behind the wheel, he didn’t start the engine. Instead he just sat there, staring through the windshield, hands gripping the wheel so tightly that his knuckles were white. He sat there so long, so still, it made Beth nervous.

"Tom, what’s wrong? Are you all right? Can I do anything to help?" Beth had no clue what was going on in his mind, and she was worried. She laid a hand on his arm, gently shaking it to gain his attention.

•

Tom jumped at
Bethany
’s touch. He didn’t realize he’d put himself so deep into a trance that he’d blocked out her presence. Of course, her presence was why he’d needed to meditate in the first place.

He put a hand over Beth’s where it rested on his bare forearm. He could feel her touch all the way down to his toes. Instead of patting her hand, reassuring her that he was all right, he began caressing it. Running his fingers over her smooth skin and finally entwining their fingers together. He lifted her hand to his mouth and gave it a soft kiss.

"I’m okay, Beth. I just blocked out way too much that time."

She narrowed her eyes, still looking unsure. "‘That time?’ What do you mean? This happens to you a lot?" Her grip tightened around his hand, out of worry or fear he wasn’t sure.

"Don’t worry, it’s nothing serious. It’s not a medical condition or anything. It’s just something I picked up in yoga class," he explained.

"You take yoga classes? And you drink milk with dinner, too. Are you a fitness nut or something?"
Bethany
looked a little uncomfortable at the thought.

"God, no," he said. "The yoga is something I did back in college. A girl I liked was into that stuff, and I kind of joined in order to impress her. Stupid, huh?"

She gave an exaggerated nod. "Oh, yeah. Pretty lame. I wouldn’t have expected you to do something like that. She must have been really special."

Tom thought he detected a bit of jealousy in Beth’s tone, and it encouraged him. He lifted her hand for another quick kiss, then said, "Actually, she wasn’t all that great. We ended up going on a couple of dates but that was it. The chemistry just wasn’t there between us. After the first couple weeks of yoga we weren’t together anymore, but I found I really liked the sessions. Even though I never took another yoga class after that, I still use a few of the techniques I learned then."

"And that’s what you were doing before? A yoga exercise?"

Tom nodded. "Yeah. I guess you can call it quasi-meditating. I’ve sort of trained myself to block out the environment when I need to really focus on something. In college I used it to study during our neighbors’ loud parties, and I’ve been able to use it when I’m writing lyrics and music, too. It helps me to stay in control of myself, stay on task."

Beth wore a look of bewilderment. "So why do it now? What was distracting you so much that you felt you had to zone out to la-la land?"

She honestly had no clue how alluring she was, how hard he was trying to stick to his word. No pressure, no rushing their relationship. That’s what he’d told her, and that’s what he intended to do. But she was waiting for an answer, and he figured he might as well lay it on the line.

"You were distracting me. I had to meditate in order to keep my hands off you."

•

Beth’s jaw dropped open in astonishment, and her hand went lax within Tom’s grip. He couldn’t be serious. "What the hell are you talking about? Didn’t we just agree to spend time together, get to know each other?"

"Yeah, but we agreed to take it slow. I have no right to pressure you, and I didn’t want to push you into a lot of physical stuff right off the bat."

Beth couldn’t believe the integrity of the man. Or it could be stupidity. She wasn’t quite sure yet. "Well, I certainly didn’t plan to have sex with you tonight, for Christ’s sake, but a few more kisses wouldn’t frighten me. Going slow does not require that you put yourself into a catatonic state!"

Tom looked at her with a doubtful expression. "So I can kiss you again? You won’t be offended? Or feel pressured?"

She actually wished at that moment that Tom wasn’t such a nice guy. She was going to bash his head in if he didn’t stop pussyfooting around.

"You’d better kiss me. And after all this discussion about it, it better be good!"

Tom grinned and stretched over the center console of the truck. "I’ll do my best."

He cupped her chin in his wide hand, his grin fading away as he stared into her eyes. Beth waited with anticipation. Finally he dropped his liquid chocolate gaze to her lips and slowly lowered his mouth to hers.

It was even better than it’d been before. Beth closed her eyes in ecstasy as Tom’s lips gently moved over hers. She enjoyed his easy pace for a few moments but soon wanted more. She eagerly opened to him, thrusting her tongue into his mouth, wanting to explore every bit of him.

He was absolutely the best kisser she’d ever encountered in her life. Not that she’d kissed all that many guys, but the few she’d let go that far had nothing on Tom. He was amazing, bringing her blood to a raging boil with every swipe of his tongue inside her mouth, every nip of his perfect teeth on her swollen lips.

Tom pulled back, breathing heavily. "Are you okay?"

Beth nodded shakily, panting. "I’m great."

She pulled his head back down to hers, digging her fingers into his hair. She placed soft kisses over his stubbly chin and cheeks, caressing his scalp all the while. Then she zeroed in on his gorgeous mouth again, desperate for the feel of his kiss.

Tom groaned deep in his chest and roughly pulled her over the center console and onto his lap. He fumbled under the seat for levers, finally succeeding in sliding his seat all the way back and into a reclining position. Beth readjusted her long legs, folding them up behind her so that she straddled Tom’s hips on the narrow seat. It wasn’t exactly a comfortable position, but she was willing to endure it if it meant continuing to kiss him.

She leaned over him, smoothing her fingers over the masculine contours of his chest. Firm yet not overly muscular. Perfect. But she needed to feel him without the interference of a cloth barrier. Grabbing the hem of his polo shirt, Beth tugged it up under his armpits. She could see a light dusting of dark hair in the center of his chest, extending outward to sprinkle around his small male nipples. Using the dim lights of the parking lot to guide her, she leaned down to suck on one. It sprang to erectness beneath her tongue.

Tom let out another groan, entwining his long fingers into her hair, pressing her tighter against his chest. She caressed his other nipple, using her fingertips to draw circles around it and gently tug on its tip. Apparently she’d found a very sensitive area. She switched the positions of her hand and mouth, wanting to give each nub equal attention.