Worlds Apart (2 page)

But when the big guy she was
playing started yelling and brandishing his cue, Clive saw his
chance. Judging from the crowd's reaction, he didn't think she was
in danger, but the distraction helped settle his erection, and he
figured a stranger might calm down the bully. And damned if it
didn't work out better than he hoped.

She’s a Flatlander,
warned
the voice in his head.
She doesn’t know what you are.
He
quashed the voice, and once their pool games were over and she was
in his arms on the dance floor, it was silenced for good. There was
no room for anything beyond his intention to urge her into
bed.

There was little doubt of that.
She seemed as hungry as he was for companionship. Despite her
flirting, she wouldn't cross a particular line of chaste behavior
around her friends. He could accept that. She wasn't a whore, she
was just a nice girl who lived and worked with these people, and he
knew to treat her with respect. But he hoped she knew the
restraints came off once he got her alone.

That happened sooner than he
expected. About ten-thirty, they moved into a slow number and he
pulled her into a tight hold, watching her face. She didn't move
away when his arms loosened. She swayed against him, pressing into
him with deliberate movements.

He bent to whisper in her ear.
“Uncle, uncle. Have mercy, Tina.”

She laughed, tilting her head to
look up at him. “I don't want to hurry things, but I have to work
tomorrow. This can't be a late night for me.”

A rush of disappointment left him
dizzy. He had hoped for several hours with her. This was a woman
who deserved thoughtful, intense, and varied loving, and he'd been
making some very specific plans. Now it sounded like they were
heading for a quickie and goodnight.

Damn.

Still, he'd be a fool not to take
what she offered. “Well then,” he said, still swaying with her. “I
have a room upstairs. Perhaps we can dance there.”

“Which room? I'll meet you there
in a few minutes.”

For a wild moment, he thought she
was going to skip out and have a laugh with her friends at his
expense. But her eyes were dreamy as she smiled at him. Maybe she
just didn't want to be seen leaving with him, which was kind of
silly. He was aware there was a betting pool going around and she
had to know about it, too.

“Room six,” he said.

She nodded and stepped away,
giving his hand a quick squeeze. “Grab our drinks. I'll be up in
five minutes.”

~~

It was a new moon tonight. Clive
stared at the clouds for a moment before closing the blinds on his
room’s window.
Nothing to worry about,
he said to the voice
in his head. If his warning system had a retort, it faded under the
knock on the door.

His desire rose at the sight of
her. He watched her place her coat and purse on the corner chair,
warring against his conflicting needs. He wanted her
now
,
fast and hard. But he also wanted to explore every inch of her, to
build her pleasure bit by bit as he tasted her deepest places, to
watch her eyes as she came beneath him. Would he have
time?

She stayed by the chair and looked
him over, her lips curving upward in a smile of pleased
anticipation. He took her hands and pulled her toward him, losing
himself in her eyes. She tugged her hands free and reached up to
caress his face, her fingers a feather of warmth against his skin.
His guard crumbled under her touch, and when she brushed her thumbs
over his lips, he grabbed her, and crushed his mouth into
hers.

That kiss undid him as if she'd
pulled a string that held him together. The feel of her, her smell,
her
essence
surrounded him, filling him with their matching
passion. Thought vanished along with their clothes. Every flick of
her tongue claimed him. Every touch of her hands sliced him open by
her simple act of giving.

She'd been quite clear that this
night was for fun. Yet when he looked at her now, her aura pulsed
with a braided mix of deep compassion and giving. She gave of
herself with every caress, a tiny flow from her soul to his,
igniting more than passion in him. Did she know she was doing it?
Why would she give so much to a stranger? She didn't know her
danger, what he was. He knew he should stop her, try to bring this
back to a fun night of inconsequential sex. But his need for human
connection won out, and he fell back on the bed, pulling her onto
him.

She settled herself on top of him
and began a slow track across his chest, soft nibbles that sent
shivers into his stomach and down every nerve in his groin. He
squeezed her bottom, enjoying its round perfection. Her teeth on
his nipple invited him to squeeze harder, but as she glided to the
other nipple, he moaned and slid his hands up to her
head.

Her hair was soft and its waves
tangled in his fingers. He sensed her willingness to follow his
lead. He moaned again in agonized indecision, then tightened his
hold on her head and lifted it, to lose himself in her
lips.

His soul had never been touched
like this. He had no resistance. Her kiss was hard, but her arms
slid around him with gentle regard. He gave in, pushing her onto
her back. Rolling with her, he took control of her mouth and lifted
her leg.

He knew he was rushing, that she
might protest or mock him later. But he growled deep in his throat
as he buried himself in her, reveling in her gasp. She lifted her
hips to guide him deeper, her damp tightness raising his throbbing
nerves to jangling pain. It was impossible to be gentle. He thrust
hard, over and over, lost in her as he pressed. She stiffened at
the same moment she took his ear lobe into her mouth, her probing
tongue softening her shout of pleasure.

When he felt her breathe again, he
rose up to look into her eyes. He pulled back, pausing before
pushing hard into her, then again as his climax reached her
innermost curves. He thrust again, before forcing all his weight
onto those few inches of heaven, and trembled with the swells of
his release.

He lay gasping into her neck. She
wrapped her legs around him and released her grip on his bottom,
sliding her hands up his back in a soft caress. Their breathing
slowed and she turned her head, meeting his lips with a deep kiss.
Her tenderness broke his heart with longing to experience it
again.

But he had nothing to offer her in
return. He could give her pleasure for this one night, and he would
do that to the best of his ability.

It would never be
enough.

He rolled off her, his legs
entwined with hers, and slipped an arm under her head. With his
other hand, he cupped a breast, and smiled. “I went a little fast,
I'm afraid,” he said as he rubbed her nipple between his
fingers.

She drew closer, her hand tracing
along his spine. “I was in a hurry, myself,” she admitted. A
mischievous grin dashed across her face. “Maybe now that we've
gotten that out of the way, we can take a little more time.” Her
lips were soft, her kiss as gentle as his.

“You read my mind,” he murmured.
He tugged on her nipple and felt her shiver.

“I'll try to take my time.” She
pressed closer. “But you're not making it easy.”

He kissed her for an answer, a
long, gentle exploration as he pinched her nipple between his
fingers. She grew warmer against him, her fingers stroking down his
butt, sending throbs of desire through him. He stretched beside
her, pulled her arm away and pinned it to the bed behind her. He
held her still as his mouth tasted the nipple he'd been pinching.
It was hard against his tongue and she moaned, pulling away even as
her legs tightened around his.

He'd make sure she was patient,
whether she wanted to be or not.

Chapter 3

Footsteps in the hallway woke Tina
to the darkness of early morning. Clive slept beside her, his
breath passing softly along the top of her head. His hand covered
hers in a warm grip atop her stomach.

He had indeed made up for
Portland.

Wonder if there’s time for
more.
But the thought vanished as hunger made itself savagely
apparent. Her light dinner the evening before, followed by more
alcohol than she should have had, left her shaking with low blood
sugar.

She reached to nudge the clock in
her direction. Six a.m. Good. The kitchen was open and she could
present herself for Eddie’s breakfast special in in a few quick
minutes.

She moved the blankets and tried
to slide out without waking Clive. No such luck, though. He grabbed
her hand as she sat up. She smiled down at him, but pulled away.
“I've got to work this morning. And I'm starving. Blood sugar's
crashed. Gotta have breakfast.”

He sat up and pressed his hand
into her back. “I have an orange,” he said, before jumping to his
feet on the other side of the bed. He grabbed his backpack from its
perch against the wall. Tina watched him, pulling the blanket
around her shoulders. He dug around the bag for several seconds,
and eventually produced the orange, scattering clothing in his
haste. He ripped the fruit in half, peeled it quickly, and handed
it to her. She popped two sections into her mouth while he peeled
the other half.

He shook his head as she tore into
the second piece. “This won't do,” he said. “That should hold you
for a few minutes. Why don't you hop in the shower and I'll dig up
some food? I can't send you away when you're practically fainting.
Does this place have room service?”

The orange was already raising her
blood sugar, and she decided his plan was perfect. She rarely hung
around after a night with a guy, but this one had her radar
buzzing. It was sweet of him to take care of her like this.
Besides, he’d looked kind of cute standing naked in the cold room,
peeling an orange for her.

“Steak and eggs,” she told him as
she stood up, letting the blanket fall back to the bed. “Over easy.
With country potatoes and whole grain toast. And
coffee!”

She left him to it and dashed into
the bathroom.

~~

He was setting the food on the
room’s bistro table when Tina emerged. Her shaking had stopped, but
hunger still gnawed at her, so she just slipped on her jeans and
sweater and joined him at the table. She didn’t bother to talk for
the first few minutes and neither did he.

Half the eggs and potatoes seemed
to settle them both, and Clive refilled their coffee cups. He
regarded her as he took a sip. “So where do you work?” he asked. “I
hope I haven't made you late.”

She cut her steak. “No, I'm fine.
Office hours don't start until nine. As long as I'm there by then,
my nurse won't yell at me.”

“Your nurse? Are you a
doctor?”

“A general practitioner. One of
two in town.”

“Now that surprises me.” He leaned
back in his chair.

“What surprises you?”

“I would expect a woman like you
to be in the city. Working in a hospital or something.”

“A woman like me?” She couldn’t
decide whether to be amused or insulted. “What do you mean by
that?”

He laughed and shook his head.
“You like a good time. You'll never convince me otherwise.” He
pointed his fork at her in mock sternness. “You're missing out on
all the clubs in the city.”

She sipped her coffee, glad he
could see that part of her. She wondered how long he would be in
town. “You've only seen part of the picture. I do like a good
time.” She reached across the table to brush a soft caress on his
arm. “But this town is a great place to live.”

She squeezed his hand and nabbed
another piece of toast as she continued. “Portland's not far.
Things get too dry around here, I like to spend a couple days up
there.”

It was too bad they hadn’t had a
chance to try some of the things she went to Portland for. Tina had
a feeling Clive would be good at them.

“Okay.” He sounded a little
relieved at her explanation. “So I didn't rob you of your grocery
money when I barged into your game last night? You seemed so
anxious to win it back, I was a little concerned.”

“Oh, brother.” She laughed. “Not
my
grocery money. Mike's.”

He looked confused. “But he got
his money. That was the deal.”

“That's the problem,” Tina said.
“Mike's a good guy. He would never have hit me, not in a million
years. He loves his family, and he’s a hard worker. But he likes to
gamble. Has a real hard time controlling it. He tries, but every
couple of weeks, he's back downstairs losing his paycheck. So the
regulars have a sort of system. Whatever we win from him, we turn
over to his wife.” She shrugged. “Not everybody turns it over. They
figure they won fair and square, they should keep it. But some of
us give it back.” She grinned at Clive over her cup.

He slapped his forehead. “So when
I gave him his money back, he proceeded to lose it
again?”

She nodded. “I can practically
guarantee it. So I wanted to win some extra, to cover
it.”