"What makes you think I want anything else from you except a hot roll in the hay? Joshua, why don"t you just shut up now and kiss me," she demanded.
His eyes flared and he did. It was as if the brief conversation had unleashed something wild inside him. Still kissing her he shrugged out of the tuxedo jacket and removed his shoulder holster and gun.
He then once again wrapped her in his arms and as his fingers worked to lower the zipper at the back of her dress, hers unfastened his shirt b.u.t.tons.
She wanted to feel the expanse of muscled chest that had taunted her since she"d seen it naked when he"d been on his way to the shower. She wanted to curl her fingers into the dark springy hair that decorated the center of his broad chest.
When her dress zipper was lowered, he slid the garment off her shoulders and it fell to the floor, leaving her clad in her bra, her pantyhose and panties.
He ripped the tie from around his neck and finished unb.u.t.toning his shirt. He shrugged it off, exposing the naked chest that had caused so many fantasies in her mind.
He grabbed his wallet from his back pocket and removed a foil wrapper. He placed it on the nightstand, then reached for her once again.
Within seconds the rest of their clothes quickly joined her dress on the floor and when they were both naked, they fell together on the double bed, a tangle of arms and legs and hunger.
As his mouth took possession of hers, his hands covered her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, filling her with a heat that burned all thought from her head.
His mouth left hers and trailed down her neck and across her collarbone, causing sweet sensations of pleasure to shiver through her. She raked her hands down his warm, smooth back, loving the play of muscles beneath the skin.
The golden dusk of twilight filtered through her bedroom curtains and played on his features with a soft illumination. He raised his head to look at her, his eyes gleaming with a breathtaking intensity.
Her heart thundered and desire crashed inside her as he dipped his head and took one of her nipples in his mouth. She gripped the back of his head, his hair thick and soft beneath her fingers.
Mindless pleasure swept through her as he nipped and licked at her breast and she wanted to give him the same kind of mindless pleasure.
She ran her hand down the hard expanse of his chest, over the washboard muscles of his stomach then curled her fingers around the hard length of him. He moaned, a deep low growl that only increased her need for him.
For the next few minutes they explored each other"s body, touching and tasting as the tension in Savannah spiked higher and higher.
It seemed that he could indulge in the foreplay forever, but it didn"t take long for her to feel as if she might explode if he didn"t take her completely.
"Joshua," she moaned his name. "Make love to me."
He turned over on his side and grabbed the condom from the nightstand. She took it from him, ripped open the package then rolled it onto him. By the time she was finished, he was trembling with his own need.
As he moved on top of her, she opened her legs to welcome him. He entered her, filling her up and at the same time his mouth took hers in a breathless kiss.
For a long moment neither of them moved. He ended the kiss and held her gaze as he moved his hips, withdrawing slightly, then stroking back into her.
The primitive yearning that had possessed her during their foreplay now exploded into something bigger, something so intense she felt as if at any moment she might fragment into a million little pieces.
She met his hips thrust for thrust in a rhythm that grew more frenzied. Her senses were filled with him, his scent, his touch and the sound of his rapid breaths and low moans. His features were taut, lips pulled tight and eyes smoky as he moved faster and faster.
Her release crashed through her and she clung to him, half-crying, half-laughing as waves of sensation washed over her. It was as if he"d only waited for her before allowing himself to let go. He stiffened against her, crying out her name as he shuddered, then collapsed on top of her.
As they waited for normal breathing to resume, for heartbeats to slow, she stroked her hands down his back, loving the feel of his warm skin. She was grateful he didn"t immediately jump out of the bed, eager to be away from her now that they"d sated themselves.
He finally rolled to her side, but gathered her in his arms. "That was amazing," he said.
She smiled and placed her hand on the side of his face where she could feel the faint stubble of whiskers. "I think I"ve wanted to do this from the minute you took off your shirt and offered to scrub my back in your shower."
He didn"t give her a responding smile, but instead a frown furrowed his forehead. She could almost see the wheels turning in his head and she sighed impatiently. "Honestly, Joshua, if you"re worried that somehow I"m going to get all mushy and romantic on you, don"t."
A flash of relief shone from his eyes. She propped herself up on one elbow, vaguely irritated. "Other women might think you"re all that, but this was just a hormone call as far as I"m concerned."
He propped himself up on his elbow, his face mere inches from hers. "Do you get these hormone calls often?"
She knew he was really asking about past relationships. "It"s been over a year since I"ve been with anyone."
"Why is that?" He reached out and swept a curl away from her eyes.
He confused her. He"d been so intent in making sure she understood this meant nothing to him. Yet he was exhibiting a gentleness that pulled her toward him and a curiosity about her that seemed in direct conflict to his earlier words.
"I don"t know. Relationships aren"t a priority for me." There was no way she intended to confess to him that relationships had always been difficult for her, that she"d never found a man who loved her, flaws and all. "What about you? Did you leave a trail of broken hearts back in New York?"
"Not me. I tried to make sure hearts didn"t get involved."
Somehow that didn"t surprise her. "It must have been rough growing up without a mother," she said, changing the subject.
The shadows that had momentarily drifted across his eyes lifted and he shrugged. "It"s hard to miss what you never knew. I was just a baby when she was killed. I have no memories of her at all."
"And they never found out who killed her?"
"I think it"s the only unsolved homicide that"s ever happened in Cotter Creek," he replied.
"Sometimes I wish I had less memories of my mother," she said drily.
"I gather from little things you"ve said about her that she was difficult."
She smiled ruefully. "There are some people who are just not cut out to be parents. My mother and father were two of those people. Sometimes I think it would have been easier to be raised by a pack of wolves."
"Is that why you left Scottsdale?"
"I left because it was time for me to leave. It was time for me to figure out who I was separate from my parents." Funny, they"d spent the entire week together but this was the first real conversation of substance they"d shared.
"I can understand that." Once again a darkness filled his eyes. "That was why I decided to head to New York, because I needed to know who I was aside from being a member of the West family."
She wanted to ask him more, wanted to know about the thoughts that caused those shadows, but knew she had no right. This night was supposed to mean nothing and that meant she had no ownership of his inner thoughts.
"When are you going to let me interview you for my column?" she asked.
He grinned. "You never give up, do you?"
She curled her fingers into his chest hair. "I just think you"d be an interesting subject."
"Trust me, it would be the most boring interview you"ve ever conducted."
She sighed. "So, what happens now in our investigation?"
He sat up and swiped a hand through his hair. "We need to find out what happened to the land, if it was sold, if it went to heirs, whatever."
"What made you think of it? How did you put it all together?" She sat up, too, clutching the sheet to her chest.
"Sheila Wadsworth. I had a brief conversation with her at the reception and something just clicked in my head." He swung his legs over the side of the bed and reached for his slacks. "I"ll be right back." He held his pants in front of him as he left the room and a moment later she heard the click of the bathroom door.
She lay back against her pillow and closed her eyes, for a moment allowing herself to replay each and every kiss, each and every caress they had shared. It had been more than amazing. And it didn"t mean anything. She couldn"t allow it to mean anything.
You"d better get used to being alone, Savannah Marie. You don"t have many a.s.sets to offer a man.
"Thanks, Mother," Savannah said softly and forcefully shoved her mother"s words to the back of her head. She suddenly remembered Joshua"s words when they had arrived at the wedding.
He"d said that somebody had done a number on her. Of course, he was right. For as long as she could remember, her mother had pointed out all her flaws, both physical and character ones.
The main reason Savannah had left Scottsdale was to figure out who she was and what she had to offer to other people without the constant negativity from her parents. She"d needed to get away from the constant hurt that her parents could inflict on her.
She opened her eyes as she heard the bathroom door open. Joshua came back into the bedroom clad in his slacks. "You want to get dressed and I"ll take you back to the party?" he asked as he grabbed his shirt from the floor. "It will probably go on until the wee hours of the morning."
There was a part of her that wanted to go back to the party. It would be fun to get Joshua out on the dance floor with her, fun to drink too much champagne and laugh with him. But, there was another part of her that wanted to remain in the bed that smelled of him, that retained his warmth.
"No, I think I"ll stay right here," she replied. She wanted to just stay in bed and savor the memory of their lovemaking. "Besides, I imagine it won"t be long before Winnie gets home."
"What are your plans for tomorrow?" He fastened his c.u.mmerbund around his waist, then reached for the bow tie.
"Most Sundays I just hang around here. Take the day off, Joshua." Once again she sat up. "In fact, I was going to talk to you about this bodyguarding business. Nothing has happened to make us think I"m in any danger since that shooting at the newspaper office. Maybe that really didn"t have anything to do with me. Maybe you playing bodyguard is just a waste of your time."
He frowned and put on his holster. "Next week we"re going to start asking some questions that might make somebody uncomfortable. I"d feel better if we just leave things the way they are for now, at least until we know more about what"s going on."
She wasn"t sure why, but she was pleased that he didn"t want to take the easy out that she had offered him. Although she certainly wasn"t going to get all silly over him, she was glad to have him by her side.
"You know, Sheila Wadsworth has been not-so-subtly indicating to me that she would love to be interviewed for my column. Maybe I should call her tomorrow and set up a time for Monday. If anyone knows who owns those places now, she"d know."
"Great idea. You have a piece of paper and a pen? I"m going to be in and out tomorrow and I"ll give you my cell phone number and you can call and let me know what you"ve set up for Monday."
She reached into her nightstand and pulled out a small notepad and pen. He took them from her, wrote his number, then placed it on the nightstand. He grabbed his shoulder holster and gun and put them on, then pulled on his tux jacket. "Sure you don"t want to go back to the reception?"
She snuggled back beneath the sheets. "Sure you don"t want to stay here?"
His eyes flashed with heat. "Don"t tempt me."
Oh, but she wanted to tempt him. She"d love nothing more than to invite him back into her bed and make love with him until the sun came up in the morning. But, her desire for that frightened her just a little bit.
"Get back to the party and I"ll call you tomorrow," she said.
When he left he seemed to take all the energy in the room with him. Night was falling outside the window and she almost wished she"d gotten up and returned to the party with him.
She could imagine the tent lit against the darkness, laughter spilling out as the band played and people danced and celebrated the joy of Clay and Libby"s union. But, making love with Joshua had shaken her up more than she cared to admit.
By nature she was cautious, especially when it came to s.e.x. Jumping into bed with Joshua after knowing him only a little over a week had definitely been out of character for her. But, the enforced closeness that they had shared over the past week and a half had built up not only an intense desire but also a strange sense of intimacy.
She rolled over on her side as a small wave of irritation niggled at her. It was definitely egotistical of him to worry that somehow by going to bed with her she"d expect something more from him. Why didn"t he worry about wanting something more from her?
He was probably accustomed to women throwing themselves at him, but she didn"t intend to be one of the lovesick ma.s.ses who wished Joshua West could commit.
She sighed and closed her eyes and within minutes fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.
She had no idea what awakened her, whether it was a noise in the room or something else. But, the moment sleep fell away she sensed that she was no longer alone in the room.
Suddenly the blanket was yanked over her head and a weight fell on top of her. Any fogginess of residual sleep fell away. Claustrophobia closed her throat as she fought to be released from the coc.o.o.n of blankets that held her captive.
"Hey," she cried, wondering if Joshua had returned and was playing some kind of a sick joke on her. "This isn"t funny."
Her heart hammered as she increased her efforts to get free. Whoever held the blankets held them tight, keeping her captive and unable to see what was going on. "Let me up," she cried, kicking her feet and flailing her arms in an effort to get free.
The first blow caught her in the stomach, a vicious punch that knocked the air from her lungs and a.s.sured her that whatever was happening certainly wasn"t a joke.
Frantically she kicked out and fought, her throat closing as terror possessed her. As terrifying as the blow to her midsection had been, equally as horrifying was her inability to see her attacker.
A second punch to the stomach forced a rising nausea. When another blow struck her hip, she gave up all efforts to get free of the blankets and instead rolled onto her side and pulled herself into a fetal ball in order to protect herself from the blows that rained down on her.
A hit to her jaw stunned her and stars swam in her head. Tears filled her eyes as she realized she was about to get beaten to death in her own bed. With a cry of rage, she renewed her fight to free herself from the blankets.
She managed to get a leg free and kicked wildly. She connected with something and heard a sharp moan. Sobbing, she kicked again and again.
"Savannah. Are you home, dear?" Winnie"s voice came from the downstairs.
Savannah froze. Oh, G.o.d. No. Fear for her elderly landlady sizzled through her. "Winnie! Run! Run, Winnie," she screamed.
As she frantically fought the blankets, she heard the thud of footsteps racing down the stairs, then Winnie"s high-pitched scream.
Chapter 9.
It had been a huge mistake. As Joshua drove back toward the West ranch, the weight of his mistake hung heavy in his heart.
He"d been on a slow simmer where Savannah was concerned. He had no idea why she"d affected him so intensely, but someplace in the back of his mind he"d hoped that by sating his desire for her once, it would be done and over.
Unfortunately, it hadn"t worked out that way. Rather than being done, just thinking about what they"d just shared made him want to share it again. He"d been so tempted to forget returning to the reception and instead crawl back into bed with her.
At least he didn"t have to worry about her getting emotionally involved. She seemed less inclined to form a commitment with anyone than he did.
In fact, she"d made it pretty clear to him that he"d been nothing but a booty call. It was an odd feeling for him and one he was surprised to discover didn"t feel altogether terrific.