Patient Nurse (11 page)

“Yes,” he said simply. His eyes adored her face. “I will love you forever. With my heart, my soul, my very life.”

She felt the first tear before it cascaded down her pale cheek. It was followed by another, and another, silent and poignant.

“No,” he whispered, kissing them away. “No. Hush, now. Don't cry. If you want to leave so badly, I won't stop you. But we must see each other, at least…Noreen!”

Her arms were around his neck so tightly that he was afraid she was going to hurt herself. She clung, crying in agonized shudders, completely at the mercy of her emotions.

“Enamorada,”
he breathed piteously, and his lips pressed soft, tender kisses on her wet face. “Ah, don't cry. Don't. I can't bear to hear you cry like this.”

“I thought you hated me,” she sobbed.

“Yes. I had to let you think so. It would have been dishonorable to admit such feelings. I was married. In my faith, marriage is for life.”

“I know.” She rubbed her wet cheek against his. “That's why I was going to leave. I didn't want you to be stuck with me after you came to your senses. I thought you only pitied me.”

He held her close and his chest rose in a great sigh. “I loved you,” he said. “I meant every word I said. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want children with you.”

“I want them with you, too,” she confessed. “I was trying to be noble.”

“Nobility is best left to saints,” he said pointedly. He lifted his head and looked into her wet eyes. “I think we should be married as soon as possible,” he said.

“Do you?”

He nodded. “You have this tendency to run away,” he said, smiling. “Perhaps if you marry me, you will be content to stay at home.”

Her fingers toyed with the thick hair at his nape. “I could do relief work,” she murmured.

He studied her closely. “Until the babies come?”

She smiled shyly. “Until then. And after they start school. I do like my job.”

“You do it very well.”

“You didn't always think so,” she reminded him.

He made a face at her. “Drag up my ghosts to haunt me,” he accused.

She kissed his firm mouth gently. “Sorry.”

“Oh, no, I'm not so easily placated as that,” he murmured, bending to her lips. “I have to be appeased.”

“Like this?” she whispered, and kissed him with slow, insistent pleasure.

He returned the kiss with equal intensity until they were both shaken.

He lifted his head. “My heart, this kissing is a dangerous thing.” He searched her eyes. “We will be married in church,” he said. “And you will wear a white gown, and a veil. And afterward, we will have a wedding night.”

She colored delicately. “Most people think we already have, or so I've heard from Brad.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “Has he been to visit again?”

She grinned. “Just for a few minutes. And before you jump to conclusions, he's very much in love with someone at the hospital. Not me,” she added before he could speak. “We're friends. That's all we've ever been.”

“You can be friends from a safe distance from now on,” he said firmly.

“Why, you're jealous,” she accused.

“Very.” He kissed her. “And also very tired.” He chuckled, placing her back on her feet with a grimace. “Even this small weight grows heavy with the passage of time. But I promise to carry you over the threshhold after we are married.”

“I'll hold you to that,” she said, smiling with her whole heart.

He touched her face gently, savoring the love in her eyes. “I have dreamed of holding you in the darkness, in my arms. The reality of it is more than I dared hope for.” He traced her lips. “And such a gift you bring to the marriage bed. I hope to be worthy of it.”

She hid her face against his chest, embarrassed despite her years as a nurse.

He smoothed her back under his lean hands. “You aren't afraid?”

“No,” she whispered, closing her eyes. “I adore you.”

“And I, you.” He kissed her hair.

 

Their marriage was announced and planned, and all the things that had worried Noreen vanished in the euphoria of loving and being loved. Everything fell into place. The greatest surprise was the pleasure the news gave to Noreen's aunt and uncle. Aunt Mary immediately took over the preparations and planning, and by the end of the week, she had it all arranged, right down to the invitations and the cake and the reception. Noreen was in awe of her ability to organize.

Of course, there was no question of Noreen going back to work now. Her whole life seemed to suddenly center around fittings for her wedding gown and sending out invitations. She and her aunt grew close during this time, because Ramon had insisted that she move into her aunt and uncle's home now that they were engaged. He wanted, he told her, no improprieties at all to shadow their married lives, and no gossip. This amused everyone who knew him, but no one more than Noreen herself.

He carried that decision to extremes, refusing to touch her at all until the vows were spoken. He was far more rigid in his views than she'd imagined, but his tenderness with her was an everlasting source of pleasure and delight.

She blossomed in their new relationship, and so did he. The nurses teased him when he made rounds, although he noticed that Brad Donaldson was a little hesitant about approaching him once he knew Ramon and Noreen were engaged. That amused him. All the same, it was just as well that the man had stopped coming to visit Noreen. Ramon was a tolerant man, but not when it came to the woman he loved. Her friends
from now on, he assured himself, were going to be female, not male.

Ramon took Noreen out to dinner several times before the wedding, always meticulously correct in his behavior. But in his eyes smoldered such fires that she became a little wary of him.

The night before their wedding, he put an arm across her as she started to open the car door in her aunt's driveway.

“You become more nervous of me by the day,” he said softly. He eased his long fingers in between hers. “Tell me why.”

She leaned against him and his arm enfolded her to his chest. “I don't know much about men,” she confessed. “Is it going to be all right? I mean, you look at me as if you could eat me alive, and I'm not sure I'll be enough for you.”

He chuckled softly. “You'll be enough,” he assured her. “But I confess I was having fears of my own, about you.”

She looked up. “About me?”

“Innocence is daunting to me,” he told her gently. “Your body will have to be hungry enough for mine that I won't hurt you.”

She nuzzled her face against him. “It will be. That isn't what worries me at all.”

“Ah, here we have it,” he murmured against her temple. “You think I have had a succession of women in my life, hmm?”

“You were in your early thirties when you married Isadora.”

He traced her cheek and then tugged her chin up to make her look at him. “I was faithful to my wife. After
she died, there was no one.” He touched her face with loving hands. “And after you, there will never be another.”

She linked her arms around his neck and lay against him with pure delight. “We'll live happily ever after,” she murmured.

“A myth,” he whispered. “But if two people work at a marriage, it lasts.”

“Ours will last forever,” she told him.

He nodded solemnly. “Yes. I think it will.”

She kissed him tenderly, to find him rigidly controlled as he put her away from him. “Don't you like kissing me anymore?” she asked.

He laughed tautly. “I like it too much. Tomorrow night, you can reasonably expect kisses, and much more.”

“I like the ‘much more' part very much,” she whispered.

He chuckled. “So do I. And now, good night!”

“Good night.” She gave him one long, last look and got out of the car.

T
he wedding was an event, even though it wasn't a huge social one. Ramon and Noreen spoke their vows in front of a priest. In attendance were Ramon and Noreen's colleagues and friends from the hospital, and Noreen's aunt and uncle. Afterward, there was a small, but delightful reception at the Kensington's home.

Noreen went into the bedroom that had been hers to freshen up and put on her neat suit, in which she would travel with Ramon to Charleston, South Carolina, for a brief honeymoon. She stared at her face in the mirror, seeing nothing remarkable about its familiar contours. But the eyes, the big gray eyes, were full of joy.

She gave a thought to poor Isadora, who had never really known happiness. It was a shame that her life had been ended so abruptly, so tragically. Noreen thought that she would always feel some small guilt about Isa
dora's loss. If only she'd been able to make the doctor understand how desperately ill her cousin was, ask him to send an ambulance. But that wasn't to be. Somehow, she had to live with the memory and get past it, so that her own life with Ramon could begin in truth.

The door opened behind her and Mary Kensington came in, dressed in a very becoming pale blue suit with a pink silk shell beneath it. She smiled at her niece.

“Can I help?” she asked.

Noreen shook her head. She turned from the mirror. “I was thinking about Isadora,” she said sadly.

Mary's eyes clouded, but only for an instant. “Noreen, none of us can change the past,” she said quietly. “As I grow older, I'm more convinced than ever that things happen the way they're meant to. We all failed Isadora. Your uncle and I should never have gone off and left you by yourself to look after her. Neither should Ramon. Yours is the very least of the blame, because you could have died that night trying to take care of her. None of us were aware of how desperately ill you were. I hope you know that no one blames you in the least anymore.” Her face was solemn. “I wish I could tell you how bitterly your uncle and I regret the way we treated you at Isadora's funeral. I'm sure Ramon feels exactly the same.”

“You didn't know,” she replied.

Mary smiled sadly. “I didn't know a lot of things. I used you shamelessly over the years. You should have made me see how selfish I was, instead of accepting meekly whatever responsibility I placed on your shoulders.”

Noreen smiled back. “I never minded doing whatever I could for you. You gave me a home when my parents
died. You didn't have to. You could have put me in an orphanage.”

“The very idea,” Mary muttered. “That would never have happened. Family is family.”

“I was never abused or badly treated here, nevertheless,” Noreen continued.

“But you were never really happy, either. I hope you will be now, Noreen,” she said sincerely. “You and Ramon.”

Impulsively Noreen went forward and awkwardly kissed her aunt on her soft, powdered cheek. “Thank you.”

Mary hugged her warmly. “You're the only daughter I have left now,” she said a little awkwardly. “I hope you'll come and see us from time to time. Especially when the children come along,” she added, with eyes that warmed with the thought.

Noreen smiled. “We hope to have several.”

“Which will give us all something to look forward to,” Mary replied. “And now, we'd better get you back to your new husband. He's looking just a little impatient!”

 

The drive to Charleston was long, but it afforded them a privacy they could never have achieved in an airplane. Ramon stopped frequently along the way to let Noreen get out and stretch her legs, so the journey wouldn't be too tiring.

Once, they stopped to have pie and coffee, and he held her hand while she ate hers, as if he couldn't bear to let go of it.

The way he looked at her was even clearer evidence
of a love he was no longer denying. The warmth in his black eyes made her heart race like mad.

He felt her pulse increase and he smiled secretively. “And now,” he said softly, “you belong to me in every way. It is the happiest day of my life.”

“And of mine,” she agreed huskily. She searched his face with possessive eyes. “I love you.”

“I love you,
querida,
” he said quietly. “With all I am.”

She flushed a little, still shy with him despite the beautiful gold band on her left hand, above which an engagement ring of blue topaz surrounded by diamonds sparkled in the light.

Ramon, too, wore a wide gold band. It had been his own decision, but it made her happy to think that he wanted the world to know his status as much as she did.

“I hope Mosquito won't tear up too much of Aunt Mary's furniture,” she murmured. “Perhaps we should have boarded her.”

“We'd come home to find her hanging from the ceiling in a net,” he chuckled. “She'll be very happy with your aunt and uncle. They like her, too.”

She clasped his hand and looked at him with fascination. “I still can't believe it,” she said absently. “It's like having every single dream of my life come true.” She frowned. “You don't think I'm dreaming?”

He smiled indulgently. “Wait until we arrive at our destination,” he said softly. “And I'll prove to you that you're not.”

She pressed her hand into his hungrily and her eyes searched his. “I want to be as close to you as we can be,” she said shyly, dropping her gaze when she saw the fierce dark flames suddenly burning in his.

His breath sounded strained. “You take my breath away,” he whispered. “But, in all honesty,” he added huskily, “it is what I want as well, to feel you so close…” He bit back the rest of what he was going to say and finished his pie.

 

They arrived at the luxury hotel in Charleston a short time later. Neither had spoken very much in the car, in a tense and hungry atmosphere that was almost tangible.

Ramon checked them in with seeming patience and then tipped the bellboy who had carried their luggage to their suite. But no sooner was the door closed and locked behind the man than Ramon had Noreen up in his arms and headed straight for the king-size bed. He didn't even stop to turn down the covers, so hungry was he for the feel and touch and taste of her.

“Is it…too soon?” he whispered at her eager lips. “Are you tired…?”

Her long legs wrapped around his as much as her skirt permitted and her mouth gave him her answer. The nervousness she'd felt at first was completely gone, replaced by a passion so long denied on both sides that it was overwhelming.

It was explosive between them, hungry and hot and so frantic that she couldn't even think.

One minute they were fully clothed, and the next they were so close that she could feel him in every cell of her body. He savored her warm, soft nudity with his mouth, his hands, his eyes.

Her hands touched him with wonder, enjoying the feel of his warm bronzed body all along her own. He watched her with eyes that grew each second more hungry.

Slowly, then, the practiced caresses became more invasive, more drugging. He smoothed her down on the bed and his mouth found her in ways that all her imagining hadn't prepared her for. She gasped, and he laughed softly at her shock, and then increased the pressure of his mouth against her taut breasts, slowly, so slowly, drawing the hard nipples into his mouth to taste them with his tongue.

She was more than ready for him when the need became too great to prolong.

He eased over her, his arms catching his weight as he made of his entire lean body one long caress, holding her gaze all the while to watch the wonder and shock and delight in them when he began to join his body to hers.

“Is it what you expected, ¿
querida?
” he whispered as his hips moved down to hers. “Are you frightened of me, like this?”

She felt the power and strength of him against her softness with awe and just a little fear. Her hands tightened on his shoulders. She swallowed, her lips parting as he moved gently on a nervous breath.

“Does it hurt?” he persisted, his face showing the strain of his restraint for her sake.

She bit her lower lip. “It…burns,” she whispered, reddening.

“Yes. But it will ease,” he whispered back, his voice deep in the room, the silence unbroken except for the sound of their unsteady breathing. His hand moved between them and he touched her gently, anticipating her shocked momentary withdrawal.

“I'm sorry.” She laughed nervously.

“No, it is I who should be sorry, for rushing you,”
he said gently. He smiled and touched her softly, in a totally new way, so that her body clenched, but not in pain. “Yes,” he said, watching her eyes. “This is what was missing, this tension that builds sweetly, that makes your body so hungry for me that even pain is no deterrent… Ah, yes. There. And there…”

She was clutching him with her fingernails, holding on for dear life, because the pleasure he was giving her now made her moan with a new hunger. She wanted him to touch her again and again, she wanted to feel his hands seeking… Oh, there! There!

“Ramon!” she sobbed. Her hands seemed at once to be pulling him and pushing him. Her long legs wrapped without inhibition around his and she moved, lifted…

Her eyes flew open as she felt him. She was shocked, speechless, despite all the lectures and all the books she'd read. Nothing in her experience described the sensations that were throbbing along her every nerve as he moved in a slow, gentle rhythm and her body began to adjust to him. There was a slight hesitation, with a flash of pain that she barely recognized as such, and then all at once, he was completely part of her.

She absorbed him, and then lay shaking with her heartbeat, looking up into his eyes as they moved as one body in a slow, steady, sweet rhythm that all at once became desperation. She clung as a piercing, throbbing pleasure took her higher than she'd ever been in her life. She sobbed, watching his face contort as he, too, found the source of the hot pleasure and gave himself to it. They stilled for that one long second of shared pleasure and stared at each other, breathless in their staggering closeness.

“Incredible,” he breathed, his face hard with contained passion.

She searched his eyes, tense with her own need. “Yes.”

“Can you, again?” he whispered tenderly.

“I can,” she managed to say through her breathless delight. “I'm fine.” She looked down and flushed as he did the same.

“It was never like this,” he said, trying to explain the enormity of what he was feeling. “Never!”

He moved with exquisite tenderness and heard her breath catch. He smiled, and moved again, and bent to her mouth. The need was still there, but it transmuted into a slow, soft, incredibly intimate rhythm that both worked to keep from becoming frantic. He looked into her eyes as the ecstasy began to grip him, laughing with shock as he felt the glory of it wash over him in slow, dragging waves that prolonged what was already unbearable joy.

She laughed with him and then groaned and sobbed as she gave herself to the feverish heat and arched up into his waiting body, giving up her body and her heart in the same crisp, oblivious little movement.

It was like riding a rainbow, drowning in warm wine, breathing joy. She clung to him, shuddering, and clung still harder, because the ecstasy never seemed to end. Her muscles hurt from the tension, but it was too sweet to fight.

Eventually she was too exhausted to withstand the pressure, and she fell back away from him, trembling in the aftermath. His own pleasure long since achieved, he smiled down at her, having sustained her for as long as she was capable of receiving pleasure from him.

He smoothed back her damp hair with loving hands. “You were greedy,” he whispered softly, and kissed her.

“I couldn't stop,” she confessed. She laughed wickedly, secretively. “You are very sexy.”

He nibbled her lower lip. “So are you,
mi esposa.
”

“As first times go,” she said with demure pleasure, “that was unbeatable.”

“I could return the compliment.” He searched her eyes. “We are one, now, completely. Man and wife. One body. One soul.”

She touched his mouth and felt his lips purse against her fingers. “I love you so much,” she whispered huskily. “Are you sure…?”

“¡Querida!”
He sounded shocked. His mouth brushed hungrily all over her face. “How could you doubt what I feel for you now, or do you think such exquisite lovemaking is commonplace between couples?”

“Isn't it?”

He drew her close and kissed her tenderly. “It is not. We loved,” he whispered. “Look.”

His hand smoothed along her body, which was still intimately joined to his, and felt her ripple with the pleasure. “This is what it means to marry and become part of another person. It isn't the physical act of joining alone, although this is exquisite and beautiful. It is the oneness of mind, heart and soul, as well.” He looked into her eyes hungrily. “I have never known this with anyone else,” he said emphatically. “Only with you.”

She relaxed, feeling his possession of her increase. She moaned, because the pleasure came singing back. “I love you,” she said softly.

“As I love you, my heart,” he whispered, and kissed her, feeling her body warm and kindle under him. His
hand gently stilled the sensuous motion of her hips. “But now you must rest. I won't overtire you, regardless of the endless delight I find in your sweet body.”

She sighed and smiled up at him. “Spoilsport.”

“Not at all.” He chuckled, moving gently away from her. He drew her against his side and pulled the covers over them with a long, weary sigh. “Sleep, for a little while. And when you are rested, we can start again.”

Her heart jumped and he felt it under his hand. He laughed, too. “How strong it beats, for a heart that was so badly broken.”