The Bachelor Pact (56 page)

Lance angled his head to peer down at her, his eyes grave. "Let's just say she wanted more than I was willing to give."

"Like you thought I did?"

His gaze darkened; then a low chuckle reverberated from his chest. "Not quite. She wanted a baby and wanted me to well, er... you know."

Sophie's mouth gaped open. "You're kidding."

He raised his hand in a pledge-type pose. "The gospel. Brought a little plastic cup with her."

Sophie laughed. "Okay, you win."

"Win what?"

"The worst-date contest."

Lance laughed, too, and they actually talked a few minutes, sharing the worst parts of their catastrophic evenings.

"Let me take you home," Lance suggested as they finished their coffee.

Sophie hesitated. She was enjoying their camaraderie too much. "That's not necessary, Lance. I'm a big girl; I'll call a cab—"

"I'm well aware of that," Lance said in a gruff voice. "But I'm still taking you home. My Blazer's down the street. We can discuss the renovations, since we didn't get a chance to earlier."

Of course, work. Nothing personal
. "Right." She stood and he lowered his hand to the small of her back, sending a delicious tingle up her spine.

They left the coffee and chocolate scents and chatter behind, only to be engulfed in the fresh fragrances of summer flowers and the sounds of Savannah tourists and the river in the background. The nearly full moon spilled soft light on the sidewalks, the Spanish moss draping the giant live oaks in the small parks creating canopies of privacy as they strolled back to his car. The simple sound of Lance's footsteps on the pavement and his breath in the quiet of the evening stirred her heart to an irregular beat. When she climbed into his Blazer, she couldn't help but notice he'd cleaned the inside.

For another woman.

A surge of jealousy snaked through her. Why couldn't the two of them be together? Why couldn't Lance love her?

He steered the truck away from the downtown area and she savored the short ride. She just hoped she didn't arrive home and find Lucy having sex with her date....

* * *

Lucy had ditched her date after the second dance, claiming she'd spotted her old boyfriend on the dance floor and she didn't want trouble. Not that she hadn't been having fun, but she had something else she needed to do tonight while Sophie and Lance weren't around.

She was going to concoct a potion to help Sophie in the romance department.

Granted, Sophie had all the proper elements—sex appeal in spades, wit, intelligence—but she had obviously failed with Lance and that Dalton man because she wasn't putting out the right vibes. Lucy had a cure for that, although she was admittedly grateful Lance hadn't decided to pursue her sister.

Lucy wanted her sister to be happy; she really did. But Sophie harbored such a crush on Lance Summers that it worried her.

He was the wrong man for her sister. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong.

Sophie didn't need marriage. She needed someone fun-loving, exciting. A man able to tear her out of her self-imposed prison of responsibility and order and show her how to live. Lance was too solemn, too intense, too tight, unable to loosen up. Lucy hadn't once seen him smile since he'd been working at her sister's. Not like his brother, Reid.

She desperately wanted to see that yumlicious man again.

Opening up her
Charms and Talismans
book, she found the perfect recipe, a spell to keep Sophie from making mistakes in love. Unearthing her caftan from her suitcase, she put it on, then draped beads around her head just as she'd seen a voodoo priestess do at a festival she'd attended in Vegas. Then she took a small piece of parchment paper, and with the Dove's Blood Ink she'd bought at the magic shop on her way home, drew the configuration of letters shown in the book. Next she blew on the parchment paper to dry the ink, then folded it and slipped it inside Sophie's day purse so she'd have it with her most of the time. The final step—she sprinkled Jinx Removing Salt all around the house, making certain to put it by all the windows and doors.

When she finished, she decided to add a spell to stir sexual desires and help Sophie find new sex partners. A new lover would be the quickest cure for her Lance lust. She hung the talisman over Sophie's front doorway. The charm was supposed to open up hearts at first meeting, allowing love to shine through or making the person want to go to bed with you. The smiling goddess on the talisman denoted the goddess of lust, passion and sensuality. Perfect.

She opened some incense, but a noise sounded at the door. Voices.

Sophie's and a man's? Not Jeremy's.

She sneaked to the window and peeked out, surprised to see Lance on the doorstep with her sister. Thank goodness they hadn't arrived home when she'd been sprinkling the salts around or the charm wouldn't work.

Now all she had to do was gather pebbles and arrange them around a pink candle, then burn it every night for seven minutes at sunset and Sophie would have all the new lovers she could handle. Then she wouldn't need to pine over Lance Summers.

And Lucy wouldn't have to worry about her sister getting married and leaving her alone....

* * *

Lance stood on the front porch of Sophie's house, wondering if she'd bought his earlier story about dropping in the coffee shop to complain about the dating service. When he had passed the shop and seen her with the other guy, he'd had a total out-of-body, freak jealousy attack and followed her in, hoping to get rid of her date for her.

Now he was just damn mesmerized by her sultry presence. Although they'd already talked for over an hour, and he had developed a good understanding of Sophie's plans for the house he still hesitated, reluctant to leave less the good doctor show up to make up for running out on her by administering some mouth-to-mouth. "So you're going to keep the wood flooring?"

"Of course. In fact I want to strip away all the carpet," Sophie said.

He wanted to strip her, Lance thought, his gaze dropping to the low-necked slinky black dress she'd worn for her date. "And have them refinished?"

"That, too." Sophie's green eyes sparkled beneath the moonlight as he inched closer to her. Her back was pressed against the wood molding of the doorway, her delicate face angled upward so she could look into his eyes. Her mouth drew him, made him ache.

"I want the whitewashed look for the kitchen floors," she said.

"And Victorian accessories throughout."

"Absolutely."

He lowered his head toward her. "Craftsmanship is important to you?"

Her voice grew softer. "Only the best."

"It sounds as if you know exactly what you want."

A small smile curved Sophie's lips, triggering sensations inside him. "I do. Things that will last forever," she whispered. "But I'm not sure I can afford everything I want."

His chest squeezed as he feathered a strand of hair away from her cheek. "Cost too high?"

Sophie nodded and licked her lips. "I'm afraid so."

He cupped the base of her head in his hand, his entire body tightening at the way her breath whispered out. Hunger, denial, and need bolted through him. He forgot they were talking about her house and furniture and flooring. The cost of wanting her was too high.

The price of not having her was even more painful.

Unable to control his tortured body's response to the flutter of desire in her eyes, he lowered his mouth and claimed her. The first touch of her lips sent fire burning through his belly; the second had his body hard and throbbing. And when she threaded her fingers in his hair and answered with a slow thrust of her tongue, he pressed her against the wall and kissed her as if his thirst would never be quenched. She dragged her hands over his shoulders and down his back, kneading his muscles with fingertips that urged him to deepen the torture. And he did.

Reason was forgotten.

He gently trailed kisses along her jaw, then up her neck to the sensitive shell of her ear, and lower. Unbearable need pulsed through him. She tasted like fire and sin, and sultry promises that turned his senses inside out with want. His hands tiptoed across her shoulders and down her torso, the pressure of her breasts against his chest intensely erotic. He wanted to touch her there, too, to taste her sweetness and hear her cry out his name as he suckled her. Another sip at her neck and he licked his way down to the curve of her breasts, but suddenly the porch light sprang on.

Seconds later the door burst open. "Sophie!" Lucy's head flounced through the opening. "Oh, my gosh, I didn't mean to interrupt. I heard voices and wanted to make sure that pervert wasn't back."

Lance stiffened, lowering his hands in front of him to hide his erection, while Sophie ran her hands through her hair trying to tame the wild ends. The gesture simply enticed him more.

Then Lucy's words rang through his sex-starved brain.
The pervert?
So Sophie hadn't informed her sister that he'd been arrested?

"Lucy," Sophie said in a warning voice. "Uh, there wasn't a pervert—"

"There was, too. I saw him, and called the police."

"You called the police?" Lance said.

"Yes, of course. What did you expect me to do, let him stalk us?"

"He wasn't a stalker," Sophie said.

Lance's anger cropped back. "You had me arrested?"

"You're the pervert," Lucy said.

"I'm not a pervert," Lance said tightly, "or a stalker." But before Sophie he was a legendary sleeper—eight to ten hours a night.

"It was a misunderstanding," Sophie said, trying to play peacemaker. "Lucy, Lance was watching the house because he was worried about us with the door missing."

Lucy wrinkled her nose. "Sophie and I can take care of ourselves. We don't need a man; for goodness' sake, we grew up in Vegas."

Sophie gently pushed her sister's arm, urging her back inside. "Lucy, that's enough."

Lance backed away. For some reason Sophie's sister didn't seem to like him.

What had he done to make her disapprove of him?

* * *

"What are you doing home so early? I expected you and loverboy to tie one on." Sophie closed the door, instantly annoyed at the sight of Lucy's things strewn across the den. Knowing her attempts to teach Lucy to be a neatnik were futile, she bit her tongue, more important issues rising to the surface.

Like Lucy's rotten timing. Why had she interrupted her and Lance? And why had she been so hostile?

"I started feeling guilty about leaving you with Jeremy, and decided to come home so we could spend some time together."

Guilt tugged at Sophie for being irritated. Lucy was in town for only the week. If she could give up a man, which was rare for Lucy, in exchange for time with her sister, Sophie shouldn't complain.

She threw her arm around Lucy's shoulders and they walked to the den. "Sorry, I didn't mean to snap. I was just surprised."

"And disappointed because I interrupted you two getting it on." Lucy gave her a curious look. "What exactly
is
going on between you Lance?"

Sophie dropped onto the sofa, perplexed herself. "I... I'm not sure."

"You were making out?"

Sophie shrugged. "He kissed me."

"I saw that."

Sophie narrowed her eyes. "You interrupted on purpose?"

Lucy winced. "No, I did hear a noise; then I opened the door and saw you." She toyed with the pillow on the sofa. "Are things moving forward with you two?"

"I don't know," Sophie said, miserable. "One minute we were talking about the renovations; the next we were tangled together in a lip-lock."

"He's a good kisser?"

Sophie pressed her fingers to her temple. "The best."

"You're in love with him, aren't you?"

Sophie groaned and dropped her head into her hands. "I'm trying not to be. After all, he did trick himself out of that date with me. And he's given me no reason to think he wants a relationship."

"Then stick to Maddie's rules." Lucy twirled a strand of hair around one finger. "What was rule number five?"

"Make sure his teeth are sunk in; then reel him in."

"His teeth aren't sunk yet?"

"They only nibbled at the surface."

"So it was a good thing I interrupted. You indulged in some foreplay, but it's way too soon to consummate."

Sophie moaned again. She desperately had wanted to consummate things. "Right."

Lucy patted her back sympathetically. "How'd you end up together, anyway? I thought you and Jeremy were having coffee."

"We did." Sophie explained about his emergency. "But I have to admit that I was grateful when he left, Lucy. Jeremy is—"

"Boring."

Sophie laughed. "Dreadfully so."

"Sorry, Soph." Lucy clasped Sophie's hand, a wicked gleam in her eyes that Sophie didn't quite understand. "We'll do better for you next time."

"What do you have up your sleeve, Lucy?"

Lucy feigned innocence. "Nothing. But you're going to accept dates from that singles service for the show, right?"

"Did you have to remind me?"

Lucy squeezed her arm. "Who knows, you might just meet Mr. Right from one of the listings."

"And if I don't?"

"Then you'll have fun." Lucy pulled her into a hug. "After all, we don't need a man, Soph. We have each other. Together we're invincible, remember?"

Sophie hugged her. "Of course I do, silly. We'll always have each other no matter what."

Lucy nodded. "And no man will ever come between us."

Sophie heard traces of the fear she and Lucy had lived with as children. Deseree had let the men in her lives do exactly that, replace her time and feelings for her children. But Sophie and Lucy had vowed never to fall into that trap.

"No, Lucy, no man will ever come between us."

* * *

Emotions ping-ponged in Lance's head as he left Sophie's. He hated the fact that Lucy didn't like him, but adrenaline still surged through him from the steamy kiss he'd shared with Sophie. He had wanted more. Sophie had wanted more.

He wouldn't sleep tonight for dreaming about having more.

Perspiration beaded on his forehead, and he cranked down his window to let some cool air inside. But the temperature had risen to the high eighties and the air felt sultry. Just as Sophie's touch had.