"We-ell, I don"t normally pick up on the road, but since you"re stuck." The driver spread his hands. "A hundred bucks each. "
"Great. Thanks, man, you"re really helping us out. "
Adam couldn"t wait to see Gretchen"s expression when she found out that in the last few minutes they"d become engaged and he"d impregnated her.
Adam tried to ignore the p.r.i.c.kle of unease at the back of his neck as the minutes ticked by. He"d handed over the cash, no mention of tickets or receipts had been made, and he wanted nothing more than to get on the friggin" bus and get out of here.
After about a quarter of an hour of small talk, an old couple tottered out of the door of the complex. Seconds later a trio of old ladies.
Within five minutes, they were swarming like so many white-haired bees back into the hive, as they congregated round the open door into the bus and one by one climbed into it, some spry, some arthritic.
Adam had taken a step toward the building to look for Gretchen when she emerged chatting to a couple of old women. One with a walking stick leaned on Gretchen"s arm as though they were relatives or old friends. He stood there blinking as she spotted him. Her other hand held a tray with two take-out coffees and a couple of Danishes.
With a significant glance at him, she said, "Oh look, Sadie and Verna. There he is. Hi, honey. "
She"d obviously come up with the same idea he had. "Hey, darling," he replied.
"I was just telling these ladies that we"re on our way to Las Vegas." She dropped her gaze and wouldn"t look at him. "To get married. "
"That"s right," he told them cheerfully. "I"m hoping we can get the King himself to marry us. "
"Oh, Elvis. How romantic. "
"Are you in the family way, honey?" asked her new friend Sadie.
"Of coursea""
"Of course she is," he said loudly, enjoying Gretchen"s sudden blush and the glare she sent him.
"How dare you make me pregnant!" Gretchen whispered in a furious undertone as they snuggled together in two high-backed padded seats near the back of the bus.
It wasn"t a popular place to sit, as it was across from the rear exit, and drafty, as one of Gretchen"s new friends had warned her. But being close to the exit held enough advantages to overlook a hurricane coming through the rear door.
Within minutes of them boarding, it became clear that their story was being whispered throughout the bus. Heads turned and they were checked out, slyly by some, and with nods and smiles by others.
Adam felt the least they could do was act out the part of eager lovers he"d forced them into. Besides, there were hours to kill until they got to Las Vegas, and the skin of Gretchen"s throat was so soft. When he kissed her there, she sighed and her curls tickled his face.
In spite of the number of hearing aids in the vicinity, and the roar of the bus engine, he wasn"t taking any chances on being overheard.
He ran his lips up the column of her throat and bit the lobe of her ear. He tried not to let her shiver of reaction arouse him as he pressed his lips to her ear. "These guys are all staying at the same hotel. When the bus pulls up, get out with them and get yourself a room. False name. Pay cash." He stuffed some bills in the pocket of her jeans.
She dropped light kisses of her own on his jaw and cheeks. "And what will you do?" she whispered as softly as he had.
"Pick up the stuff and go straight to the FBI. "
"It"s Sunday. Not open to the public. "
"I"ve got Wilks"s home number. He"ll meet me there. "
"Is he the one you knew in college?"
"Yes. "
"You trust him?"
He nodded. "That"s why I chose him. "
After a while, the glances and whispering stopped. Knitted slippers were donned, along with some of those night masks movie stars wore. He smiled. These were obviously experienced bus travelers.
"You should get some sleep," he said to Gretchen. "I"ll keep watch. "
She nodded, but her eyes stayed open. Finally she said, "Why didn"t you tell someone in Houston what you suspected? The authorities?"
"I told a company vice president I trusted." His voice sounded odd, and he dropped his head as his fingers played with the b.u.t.ton of her sweater.
"And the VP didn"t believe you?"
"I think she believed me enough to tell someone she shouldn"t have. She"s dead. "
Gretchen"s eyes went wide. "What?"
"Car accident. Hit-and-run. Terrible tragedy. These things happen. That"s when I knew I had to get out of there and fast. "
"You think it wasn"t an accident?"
"I knew her. Barbara would have started checking. She probably asked questions. Maybe she found something. All I know is two days after I met with her and told her my suspicions, she died. If she told them there was a whistle-blower, she didn"t mention me by name or I"d be dead, but it was only a matter of time until they caught up with me. I decided to get out first. "
She must have heard the guilt and pain in his voice, for she hugged him to her like a mother comforting a hurting child. "Adam, I"m so sorry. "
"The only thing I can do for her now is to bring those b.a.s.t.a.r.ds down. "
One of her blond curls tickled his nose, so he scooped it out of the way, resisting the impulse to bury his face in her hair. Maybe he just wanted to escape the memories, maybe he knew he and Gretchen didn"t have much time together, but he wanted her with a fierceness that had him shifting against the seat.
While they held each other, he kissed her ear, her hair, the curve of her throat. Based on her shallow breathing and the pulse jumping under his lips, she was similarly afflicted.
"I"m not staying in the hotel alone. I"ll come with you. Cover your back. Two headsa""
"No." His voice was sharper than he"d intended and a couple of heads turned. "No," he repeated in a softer tone. He ran a hand over her hair, enjoying the wild bounce and curla"her hair suited her. It had personality, life, and it most certainly had a mind of its own.
He"d entangled her in this mess and already caused her more than enough trouble. Now he needed to keep her safe, not because of his guilt over Barbara, although that was certainly part of it, but because he knew he wouldn"t be able to concentrate on keeping himself alive if he was also worried about Gretchen. He stared deeply into her gorgeous green eyes, realizing quite suddenly that he was no longer pretending to be a lovesick fool.
They hadn"t known each other more than forty-eight hours and yet they"d achieved an intimacy he"d never found with another woman. He supposed running for your lives together could speed up the getting-to-know-you process considerably.
He glanced away, out the window, where stars burned in the blackness of the predawn sky.
They had a few hours left before they reached Las Vegas. Then, who knew? He wanted something to take away with him, the way a knight heading for the jousting field might ask for a token of his lady"s affection and keep it near his heart. "Tell me a secret," he said.
"A secret?"
Down toward the front, somebody was snoring. He glanced up and noted how many pa.s.sengers had now slipped sleep masks over their faces, changed their shoes for slippers, snuggled under the blankets provided, and were sound asleep.
He had the impression that everyone on the bus was asleep but him, Gretchen, and presumably the driver.
"Something you"ve never told anyone. "
"Hmmm." She picked up his hand and toyed with his fingers. "Okay. I have a thing I do that"s kind of embarra.s.sing, and you can never tell anyone. "
He nodded solemnly.
"If I have to do something I"m uptight abouta"" She shot him a glance and put a hand over her eyes. "I can"t believe I"m telling you this. I have these Ben Wa b.a.l.l.s. I put them inside me and ita I don"t know, centers me, I guess. Instead of being all nervous, I"m conscious of my power as a woman. "
Oh, he was conscious of it, too. He ached to go where those Ben Wa b.a.l.l.s had been.
"Okay, my turn," she said. "How"d you lose your virginity?"
"By having s.e.x with a girl." She shot him a glare and he grinned. "Jillian MacFarlane. She was a high jumper, had these amazing legs. We were sixteen and each other"s first. I used to climb up this trellis outside her window with clematis tangled all over it. No kidding, the sight of those big purple flowers still gives me a b.o.n.e.r. "
So did being this close to Gretchen. He stroked her arm, let his hand brush her breast, and felt her shiver. The slight vibration of the bus reminded him of that foolish vibrating bed which only further tightened his groin.
"Strangest place you"ve ever done it?" he asked.
"The aquarium, in front of the piranha tank. "
"Good one. "
"Thanks. I dated a marine biologist who worked there. We snuck in one night. It was magic. How about you?"
"Back of a bus," he whispered to her, and slipped his hand under her shirt. "On the way to Las Vegas. It was dark and quiet, just the hum of the bus engine, outside the night sky and the black mountains and desert stretching for miles. "
She blinked at him and drew an unsteady breath as he unfolded the blanket from the back of his seat and spread it over them.
"Are you sleepy?" he whispered.
"No. "
"Excited?"
"Yes. "
Her jeans zipper opened soundlessly, masked by the quiet rumble of the bus engine. He stroked her belly and felt it quiver, then reached into her jeans, under her panties, and discovered that their conversation had turned her on as much as it had him.
He smiled and began to stroke her until she started making nudging motions with her hips.
"I want you inside me," she said, in case he was having trouble interpreting her body language.
Careful to remain quiet, he finessed a condom from the pack at his feet. Pulling his own jeans down to his knees he quickly prepared himself, fumbling a little under the blanket.
He turned to her and found she"d wiggled her jeans down, too. He stroked her, loving the feel of her bare skin.
Grasping her hips, he turned her away from him. "You have a beautiful a.s.s," he told her, wishing he could see it. He could touch it, though, and he did, stroking the curve of her hip and the round softness of her b.u.t.t until she started to pant. Already, in their short acquaintance, he was able to judge her arousal level by her breathing.
She arched her back, nudging back against him until he obliged her, thrusting smoothly into her, finding her hot, tight, and wet, just as he"d remembered.
"One day, I want to make love to you on something that doesn"t vibrate," he whispered.
She chuckled softly. "I like it. The motion adds a certain something. "
"Think of me as your personal Ben Wa b.a.l.l.s," he said, and began to thrust. "I"m going to relax you, and you should definitely be reminded of your female power. "
"I have power over you?" She turned her head over her shoulder to address him.
"I am your slave. "
He loved that they were fully clothed, and from the waist up perfectly respectable. Since he couldn"t see her naked torso, or caress it, he relied on his memories of how she"d looked in the cheap motel room, her skin pink and fragrant, her b.r.e.a.s.t.s pert and bouncy, the small, pointy nipples a deep rose.
If he couldn"t caress her upper body, he"d make do with the lower, and once more slipped his hand between her legs.
Even over the noise of the bus, he heard her gasp. He longed to kiss her, to plunge his tongue deep inside and suck her cries into himself. He wanted to taste and touch her everywhere, lick and pleasure her until she was limp and spent. But he couldn"t. He could, however, enjoy what they had going right now.
Bracing his palm against her pubis, he held her tight against him while he thrust, letting his fingers play over her. His middle finger found her c.l.i.t, hard and already close to bursting. He spread her own wetness over her and then held his finger on that magic spot, barely moving it, for the shuddering motion of the bus acted a bit like the vibrating bed in the motel.
Under the blanket, her hands reached back to grasp his hips. She was shuddering inside, outside; he felt his own tremors building, the flood rolling up from deep inside him, thundering through his c.o.c.k and into her. He"d wanted to wait for her, buta even as he had the thought, he felt her jerk and clutch against him, knowing his climax had triggered hers. She turned her head, their bodies still joined, and smiled at him. He smiled back and reached forward to kiss her, deep and sweet.
Reluctantly, he withdrew from her, tidied himself, and slipped into the tiny bathroom to dispose of the condom.
When he returned, she was asleep. He put an arm around her and she snuggled against his chest. "I love you," she mumbled.
He gazed down at the tumbled blond curls and dropped a kiss on top. She was asleep, of course, and not responsible for her words, but he liked the sound of them just the same.
He settled back, keeping his bag with the gun in it within easy reach, his briefcase nudging his foot. The chances that the Three Stooges would search for him on a bus tour of seniors were slim, but he couldn"t afford to sleep.
Chapter Seven.
Gretchen woke with a start. She"d been dreaming about Adam, which was likely because her head was lying on his chest, and sometime in sleep she"d turned so her nose poked into the hollow of his chest. She was literally breathing him in; no wonder she was dreaming about him. Of course, that didn"t explain why her dreams had been so erotica"or perhaps it did.
He got to her in the most elemental way.
Blinking slowly, she glanced up to find him gazing right back at her, as dark and s.e.xy as her dreams.
There was a general shifting and rustling throughout the bus. "What"s going on?" she asked, pulling herself away from the comfy warmth and gazing about with gathering wariness.