Courting Trouble (The Texas Two-Step Series, Book 3) (14 page)

She grabbed him and dragged him down the hall. Her four-poster beckoned like a neon sign. Not bothering to switch off the bedside lamp, they climbed onto the bed. Alec pulled her T-shirt over her head, then helped slide off her pants. The coolness of the sheets contrasted sharply with the heat in her body.

She pulled off his sweatshirt, noting once more how fine his broad shoulders and chest were as they tapered down in a vee to his hips. As she bent to help remove his pants, he stopped her. "Right now, I'm going to finish your massage. Lie on your stomach."

It took all her will power. She wasn't sure she could wait. But Diedra did as he asked.

As if he had all the time in the world, he meticulously rubbed her back, thighs and even the soles of her feet. His hands were gentle and knowledgeable as he worked out the stress in her tired muscles. She thought she'd found nirvana. Next he turned her to face him.

"Now, I plan to kiss every square inch of your body, Imp. Starting here." He kissed the tip of her nose.

"Not every inch..." Her heart pounded, each beat saying, Yes, Yes, Yes.

"Want to bet?" He proceeded to kiss her neck. She leaned forward to return the kisses but he shook his head.

He took her hands in his and moved them over her head. "Grab hold of the headboard and don't let go until I say you can. I plan to take my time and I want you to enjoy every moment. It's going to be better than the last time. I promise."

Oh, heavens. He promised better? How could it be better? She grabbed the cool wooden slats, willing to let Alec work his magic. Thrills of anticipation danced in her abdomen.

She tried to reach for him, but he kissed her upper arms, paying special attention to her elbows before he blazed his way to her fingertips, taking each one into his mouth and sucking, and replacing each hand on a slat afterward. Every one of his movements was slow, tantalizing, designed to drive her mad with desire. And he knew exactly what he was doing.

He worked his way back up her arms and buried his face in her underarm, making her giggle.

He was the most shameless man she'd ever met and she adored him.

As he lowered his lips to her breasts, all she could see was the top of his curly black hair. When his tongue caressed her tightened nipple, she burned deep inside. She tightened her hold on the headboard, afraid that if she let go she'd melt off the bed.

But Alec's phone was ringing. Was Jeff finally calling?

Alec answered the call. He placed his hand over the receiver and whispered, "I'm sorry, Diedra. I want you so badly it hurts. But we've got to go. It's Sarah. Jeff rented a boat in the gulf and I'm afraid he's heading for Mexico."

Reality hit her like a snowball on a sweltering day. She slid out of the bed. Within minutes, she was dressed, packed and ready to leave.

* * *

Alec always thought Dallas's night-time skyline was breathtaking. Numerous skyscrapers twinkled, much like an overly enthusiastic neighborhood decked out in Christmas lights. Soon, though, that view was lost as they headed for Corpus Christi in Diedra's car.

Alec couldn't believe it. This was where getting involved with a woman led a man. Since his car was still sitting at the airport, Diedra had insisted they take her vehicle. That wasn't the only thing she had insisted on, either.

She was driving.

He glared at her.

The car swerved around a truck. Alec squeezed his eyes shut and pounded on an imaginary brake.

She wasn't an awful driver. She merely did things he didn't expect, like come to a complete stop at railroad crossings even when there wasn't a train within miles. She'd driven a school bus once, she said, and insisted those safety rules were good enough to continue using.

"You can open your eyes now," she said.

He inched his lids open and saw that it was indeed safe. Tall lamp posts glowed orange, illuminating the four lane highway. They were heading in the correct direction. He glanced over at the speedometer.

Maybe safe wasn't the exactly the best choice of words.

"Could you slow down just a little?"

His voice cracked, but she didn't seem to notice. "I'm traveling at the speed of the traffic."

She had the audacity to say that after passing three cars? "It would make me more comfortable if you were within twenty miles of the speed limit. As an attorney, I'd feel much better."

Diedra let up a little on the accelerator. Alec did his best to send her a thankful smile, but it was a bit difficult to do while clenching his teeth. It would help if she'd choose one lane instead of driving down the middle stripe.

"Has Jeff ever driven a boat before?" she asked.

She was really good at diversionary tactics, but for once, he was relieved by the distraction.

It was outrageous that Jeff had left for the Gulf of Mexico without a word. What would his clients think? What was Alec to think? Jeff appeared to be on the run, and Alec couldn't help but suspect the worst.

He fought back a cringe as he imagined the impact on his law practice if his cousin was involved in a criminal activity such as kidnapping. The media would slaughter him. His clients would probably drop him and he'd go broke.

The only silver lining in Sarah's news had been that a woman was seen with Jeff when he chartered the boat. Sarah hadn't been able to get a description of the woman, but it could be Meagan, unharmed.

"As far as I know, the largest boat he's ever piloted was a Jet Ski back about ten years ago. I suspect he hired a captain."

"What do you think we should do?"

"Sarah said he mentioned Mexico to the boat rental company. We need to charter our own boat and go after him."

Without warning, Diedra pulled the car to the shoulder of the road and hopped out. She crossed behind the car to swing open the passenger door.

"What are you doing?"

"You drive. I've lost all heart."

He got out to switch seats, too. He was relieved he'd now be doing the driving, but he was worried about Diedra as well. Who could fathom where her thoughts had taken her?

And somehow, he felt responsible.

He settled in the driver's seat and cautiously rejoined the highway traffic. Diedra remained silent. He wasn't used to that from her. Usually she had some wise crack to make. "Are you going to tell me what's bothering you?"

She shrugged. "You were right. I should have waited at home for news. I'm just slowing you down."

"How do you figure that?"

"If I weren't here, you'd be able to catch a flight, rent a plane even, and find them right away. As it stands, who knows when we'll find them? If we ever do."

"So, you want to give up? Is that it? You go only so far and then you say, 'Never mind?'" He couldn't believe he was now arguing with her to keep her near. Only a short time earlier, he'd begged her to stay and wait. Maybe it would be faster without her, but once he found them, what could he say or do? He needed her, and he saw a strong likelihood that her presence would be absolutely necessary. "I doubt they'll do much traveling by night, anyway. Meagan might need you."

Diedra dragged her glance away from her contemplation of her knees. She tightened her lips and nodded. "You're right. I'm being silly. Carry on, McDuff."

"That's my girl." The words slipped out before he'd considered them. Was she his girl? He'd put off thinking about their relationship, put it off until they could find Meagan and Jeff. But he hadn't expected it to take so long to find them.

Long? He bit back a bitter laugh. It hadn't been long, only a matter of days. He'd merely expected a little distance and time in order to sort it all out.

The first time they made love, he could feel pretty blameless about. After all, she'd seduced him. And she'd done a very good job of it. Alec grinned.

But earlier, he'd done his best to get her into that big bed of hers. What kind of guy was he? He'd never thought of himself as the type who had a double standard about women. But a double standard wasn't the problem with Diedra.

It was her.

She was different. Unique. Did she frighten him? No, that wasn't it. The problem was what she was capable of doing without even trying. She was a walking catastrophe.

Since that was the case, why did he want so much to be with her? Had he done the unthinkable? The one thing he'd sworn to himself he would never do?

Years spent handling messy divorces had convinced him of one thing. Never, ever, fall in love with an inappropriate woman. That kind of woman ruined careers, destroyed lifestyles.

Alec was too much like his own father to allow that to happen to himself. Dad had left as soon as Mom had become inappropriate, and remarried a woman who fit into the lifestyle and career he wanted.

Alec had no intention of doing it that way. He never wanted to hurt a woman as his mother had been hurt. He had decided long ago that, if he ever decided to get involved, it would be with the right kind of woman to start with.

But by that standard, almost any woman would be a better choice for him than Diedra. The foremost thing he'd always said he wanted was a woman who wouldn't be his responsibility. A woman who could look after herself.

Diedra, however, certainly needed someone to protect her. Despite her years and experience, she was hopelessly naive. She was wrong for him in so many ways. And right for him in so many others, he had to admit. What would life be like with her?

Every day would be a surprise, he was sure. He'd laugh and feel good about himself, relax a little and not worry so much over appearances. He'd probably even touch people now and then, which didn't seem so awful.

But when he tried to think about practicalities, the illusion shattered.

He could envision what it would be like if he brought an important client home for dinner. He could almost hear Diedra saying, "I'm so sorry I knocked out all your teeth, Mr. Siebert. It's just that I'm a little accident prone."

She was completely out of control. Control? Hell, she could jeopardize everything he'd ever worked for.

But—could she be worth it?

He shot a glance at her out of the corner of his eye. She was busy texting with Heather, arranging for her to open the herb shop the next morning.

Diedra looked worried. And sweet. And sexy. She looked like the best damn thing that had ever happened to him.

Alec shook his head, as if shaking it could push his thoughts in the direction he wanted them to go. Maybe it was already too late. It looked like he'd gone way beyond the involvement stage. He had a feeling he was waist-deep in trouble. Still, rushing headlong into mayhem did hold a certain appeal, like bungee jumping. He'd just never been one to take risks.

The night-time highway seemed very dark. Too dark. He glanced more carefully at the road before him. Something was wrong. He looked more closely at his headlights. They grew dimmer, and then went out completely.

He carefully pulled to the side of the road, thankful for the full moon. Whenever he traveled with Diedra, he seemed to spend more time stopping than moving forward. He leaned his arms on the steering wheel, thoroughly frustrated.

"I'm worried about Meagan," Diedra whispered. The moonlight highlighted the tear slipping from her eye.

Alec knew he had weaknesses. One of his biggest was women who cried. He could withstand almost anything but that.

Placing a comforting arm about her shoulders, he wondered what he could do to help. His stomach grumbled. Maybe she was hungry, too? They'd never stopped to eat.

"How about finding a restaurant?"

Diedra mumbled, "I'm fine now. Really. We're in a hurry."

"We are, but not in so much of a hurry that you can't eat something. I'll check the fuses and see if I can get the headlights back on. Then we'll stop at the first fast-food joint we see."

As he leaned down to deliver a swift kiss to her lips, his knee brushed against the fuse panel.

All at once the car headlights glowed again, as bright as ever.

"Kissing you always makes things seem better, have you noticed? Like these lights coming back on. Maybe kissing is the cure for your bad luck."

He didn't really think so, of course. One of the fuses was probably loose, and his knee had jarred it back into making a good connection. That's all it was. But if he could, he wanted to help make her feel as though it wasn't all her fault to start with.

And, who knows, maybe it was true that she was getting some good luck instead of bad. Kissing her sure made him feel like his luck had changed for the better.

Diedra grinned, the biggest, winningest smile. Yes, he was definitely feeling lucky.

She whispered, "Shut up and kiss me again."

So he did.

She was so soft, and yet firm in all the right places. Man, how he wished he could make love to her properly. He'd made a good start on it. A vision of her, with that heated blush on her skin, sprang to mind and he groaned in frustration.

Kissing her again now was a big mistake. Hell, touching her in any way was a mistake. It made him want her so badly. He hungered to head to the nearest hotel rather continuing their search.