Escaping the Past Read online

  He blended back into the crowd. She unfolded the note and the only thing written on it was a phone number. She slid it into her back pocket and took another sip of her beer. She pasted on a big smile for when Brody came out of the bathroom, although her heart was still pounding.

  He placed another beer in front of her and sat down on the high stool, his knee touching hers intimately before his hand reached out and lazily grazed across the sensitive skin of her thigh. She lifted the beer to her lips and regarded him from below lowered lashes.

  “Just what do you think you’re doing?” she breathed, her hand covering his under the small table.

  “It’s a lot better that you asked me what I’m doing and not what I’m thinking,” he chuckled. Heat crept up her cheeks.

  Liz and Dave made a huge commotion as they slid into the seats across from them, laughing. Liz immediately stood back up and grabbed Lou’s arm, giggling like a schoolgirl as she said dramatically, “Come on. I need to go to the lady’s room.”

  Lou shrugged at Brody and set her beer on the table. “Be right back,” she mumbled as Liz led her away. Lou saw two doors, one labeled “Pointers” and the other “Setters.” They walked into the ladies’ room and Liz turned to her with a huge smile on her face.

  “He wants to come home with me tonight,” she announced, her arms waving in excitement.

  “What are you going to do?” Lou asked, just as breathlessly.

  “Lord, girl! We’ve been dancing cheek to cheek. He smells so good.” She inhaled deeply. “I want to take him on home with me.”

  Lou thought for a moment. “Are you sure you want to make it that easy?”

  “What do you mean by easy?” Liz stopped breathing and listened intently.

  “I mean the man doesn’t value you for more than one night at a time. Do you want more than that?” Lou asked thoughtfully.

  “Of course, I do!” Liz shrieked.

  “Then make him work for it, Liz. Make him want you and then make him go on home alone. I bet he’ll be knocking on your door tomorrow wanting to spend some time with you.”

  “You think so?” Liz asked cautiously.

  “I do think so,” Lou replied.

  Liz’s eyes drew together. “What about you and Brody? Is that what you’re going to do?”

  “My situation with Brody is different. I’ve known all along it’s only temporary.” Lou turned to the mirror and applied fresh lipstick, casually. “That’s okay with me.” She pasted a fake grin on her face. “But you have a daughter with Dave and want him in your life forever. He obviously is drawn to you. Now you just need to get him to the point where he can’t do without you. Let him be into you for a while instead of you being into him.”

  Liz groaned. “But it will be so hard telling him goodnight at my door.”

  “Oh, no!” Lou laughed. “Don’t even let him take you home. You say goodnight here and then we’ll take you home. We’ll take away the temptation that way.” Lou held out her hand for a handshake. “Deal?”

  Liz gripped Lou’s hand firmly in her own. “Deal.”

  “Good. Now let’s go out there and drive him crazy just a little longer. Then you leave him panting as you drive away.” It was a nice having Liz for a friend.

  Brody and Lou danced a few more dances, Brody keeping her close by his side. He was the designated driver so he switched to Coke after that first beer.

  Lou drank lightly but still had a serious buzz when it was time to go home.

  Brody’s lips grazed her exposed shoulder. “Would you stop that?” she scolded. “We’re in public.”

  “Stop what?” His mouth trailed up the side of her neck.

  She shrugged him off playfully.

  “Can we go home now?” he mouthed against her ear. She shivered.

  “Uh huh,” she nodded.

  “Now?” he asked as his teeth gently tugged her earlobe.

  She stepped back from him slightly and took his fingertips in hers. “You go and get John and I’ll get Liz.”

  Brody pouted. “Awwww. Do I have to? Can’t we call them a cab?”

  “That would just be rude,” she replied as she marched off to find Liz. She finally found her in a dark corner, her head barely visible as she was overshadowed by Dave’s larger frame. Lou stepped close to them and coughed loudly.

  “Uh, hum,” she coughed. Then she repeated it a little louder. Liz looked up, her eyes hazed with passion. Lou could see she was almost lost.

  “Are you ready to go, Liz?”

  “Go?” Dave and Liz both said in unison. But Liz recovered quickly, her eyes meeting Lou’s with a sparkle.

  She disengaged herself from Dave’s embrace. “I do have to go, honey.” She patted his cheek softly as she stepped away from him.

  “But, I thought I would take you home.” He gave her a knowing look.

  She bent and kissed his forehead. “I wish I could, but I have to meet with a client tomorrow, first thing.” She winked at Lou. “Maybe some other time,” she threw back over her shoulder as they walked away.

  She grabbed Lou’s arm and whispered, “Did I do okay?”

  “You did great!” Lou whispered back, just as Brody caught them with John in tow.

  Brody looked over at Dave, silently stewing in the corner, and laughed out loud. “Poor fella doesn’t know what hit him.”

  Lou and Liz both laughed.

  John said, “What did I miss?”

  Liz pointed toward Dave.

  “Poor sucker should have seen that one coming,” John said with a chuckle. For good measure, he put his arm around Liz as they went out the door.

  ****

  Brody put the top down on the Jeep and Lou felt the wind blow through her hair. She removed the combs holding the hair piled on top of her head and let it fall freely over her shoulders. Brody took her hand and held it casually on the ride home. They dropped Liz off at her door and watched her until she was safely inside.

  They drove slowly under the Western Skies arch at the end of the drive, Brody taking in the sights and sounds of the night and the farm with a deep breath and a glance around the property. His eyes met Lou’s and she smiled. He knew she felt the same way about the place as he did.

  Brody drove slowly up to the house and cut the engine, hearing the creak of the gravel beneath the tires. Lou got out and met him at the front of the Jeep. She looked at him with affection and said, “Thanks so much for such a wonderful first date.” She rose on tiptoe and kissed him lightly on the lips.

  “Oh, no, you don’t. It’s not over until I walk you to your door.” He spun her around and patted her bottom. “Get a couple of bottles of water and I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”

  Brody turned to John who lingered uncomfortably. “I’m planning on sleeping in Lou’s room tonight,” he stated directly. “Do you have a problem with it?”

  “Does she?” John asked quickly.

  “I’m about to find out,” Brody answered.

  John was just drunk enough to say, “You treat her right or I’ll kick your ass.” He pointed his finger to accentuate the words.

  “If I don’t, I deserve it,” Brody replied.

  John nodded and clapped Brody on the shoulder. John went to his room to go to bed.

  Brody caught Lou bent over in front of the refrigerator and slipped in behind her, his hands gripping her hips firmly as he pulled her back against him. By her gasp, he knew she felt the swell of him against her backside.

  “I thought you were just going to walk me to my door,” she teased, giggling as he spun her around and pulled her close.

  He smiled and sighed against her neck. He loosened his hold on her and groaned, stepping away from her. Taking her fingers in his, he drew her toward the stairs. “A date is never over until I kiss a lady at her door,” he smiled at her.

  They stood outside her door in silence, Lou dancing from foot to foot while clutching a bottle of water in each hand. She had just enough beer in her system to feel loose and uninhib
ited. Stretching on tiptoe, she placed her lips against his, softly encouraging him to kiss her back. He groaned and clutched her to him, tilting his head and deepening the kiss, his tongue meeting hers.

  He broke the kiss yet still held her clutched against him and said, “You’re going to make me throw all my good intentions right out the window.”

  She smiled, slowly kissing his neck. “You had good intentions?” she asked against his skin.

  He gasped and ground out, “I started out with some,” as her lips found his earlobe and she suckled gently.

  “And if I don’t want you to have good intentions?” she whispered against his ear.

  “Then your wish is my command,” he growled, cupping her bottom and lifting her from the floor. He pulled her legs around his waist and felt her lock her ankles behind him. The bottles of water hit the floor with a loud thunk as she grabbed tightly to his shoulders. He held her bottom with one hand, turned the doorknob with the other and walked into the room.

  He groaned loudly as her teeth nibbled gently at his collarbone. “If you don’t stop that, this isn’t going to last nearly as long as I want it to.”

  “Then we’ll just have to do it again, won’t we?” she mumbled as she unbuttoned his shirt and placed her hands against his skin.

  “You bet we will.” He continued to hold her bottom in his hands, her legs around his waist as he lowered his mouth to her shirt. He tugged gently against the fabric with his teeth. “Take this off,” he murmured.

  She grabbed both ends of the top and drew it over her head, exposing her breasts to his gaze in one quick move. He hissed and said, “I watched them move with every step you took tonight, but I couldn’t touch them.” He lifted her a little higher and teased her nipple to life with his tongue. She threw her head back, clouds of hair falling over her shoulders.

  “And here I thought you would have been thinking about the thong all night.”

  He grunted, “ You wore that just for me, didn’t you?” She nodded as he slid his hands beneath her skirt and lifted it just a scant few inches to expose her bottom. When it was bunched around her waist, he walked over to the dresser. “I just have to get at least one good look at this thing.” He held her in front of the mirror and the look on his face changed from one of desire to pure lust. He watched his own hands in the mirror as they squeezed her bottom, his thumb tweaking the thong like a guitar string. His heartbeat thudded in his ears at the sight of his hands stroking her bottom in the mirror and the length of her naked back.

  “God, you are so beautiful,” he breathed as he stared at her in the mirror.

  “I am not,” she started to protest.

  “Oh, yes, you are,” he said as he set her on her feet and unbuttoned her skirt. He pulled it down her legs and she stepped out of it. She stood before him in nothing but the thong. He grabbed the material at her hips and slowly pulled those down as well. He stood up in front of her and shucked his own clothes quickly. “I’ll show you how beautiful you are.” He picked her up and set her on the bed on her knees, putting himself behind her. From this angle, she could see herself fully in the dresser mirror. She gasped and turned toward him, looking away from the mirror.

  “Oh, no, you don’t,” he mumbled against her neck, placing his arm around her waist and pulling her back against his chest. His hand cupped her breast and teased her nipple between his thumb and forefinger.

  ****

  Lou closed her eyes, trying to avoid the sight of her own naked body in the mirror.

  “Open your eyes,” he breathed against her ear. She did so and gasped at the sight of his hand as it crept down her body and tangled in the curls at the juncture of her thighs. She gasped as he found the small nub that was her center and gently coaxed it to life. Her eyes closed again as her body was awash with sensation. She leaned back against him, her head thrown back over his shoulder. He kissed the side of her neck that was exposed to his gaze, nipping gently with his teeth.

  With Brody resting on his knees, she sank down on his lap, still facing the mirror. He removed his hand from her curls and pressed it flat against her stomach, drawing her back to him. She gasped as his length slid into her. He filled her completely as she sank down on him, gripping him tightly. He began to move slowly and she rocked above him. She drew in a quick breath as his fingers stole back into her curls and teased her anew. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears as the pressure begin to build. She bit her bottom lip, reaching back to grab at his buttocks to bring him closer and faster to her.

  Through the fog of passion, she heard him say, “Open your eyes.” She did and inhaled quickly at the sight of her own passion-filled eyes as they met his in the mirror. His gaze did not waver from hers as he took another stroke, then another. Then her world exploded as she found release. She watched his face as he did the same. She leaned back against him and felt him envelop her in his arms before he lowered her to the bed, pulling her close to him, her head upon his shoulder.

  He stiffened. “Shit, Lou. I forgot to use protection. I had it in my pocket but I got carried away.”

  She patted his face gently. “It’s okay, we don’t need it.” I’m already late, she wanted to scream.

  “You took care of it?” he asked casually, obviously relieved.

  “We don’t need it,” she said again, kissing his cheek.

  “I’m glad. Because you feel so good,” he said as he squeezed her bottom.

  He laughed as she said, “I hope the second date is half as good as the first.”

  ****

  Lou woke before dawn to the slow kisses on her neck and a heaviness pressing her into the mattress. Brody spread her thighs and settled himself between them. She stretched slowly and her eyes opened to meet his.

  “What a way to wake me up,” she breathed at him as he filled her.

  “I could wake up like this every day,” he said against her skin.

  Just until you go home. Aloud, she murmured, “You make one heck of an alarm clock.”

  She sighed as he began to move. His movements were slow and languorous, drawing out the pleasure until she quaked around him and he stiffened above her.

  He rolled, taking her with him, her front pressed to his. “What time is it?” she mumbled, her face pressed against his chest.

  He groaned. “Time to get up, unfortunately. I turned the clock off a few minutes ago. I was just watching you sleep.” He brushed the hair from her forehead.

  “You’re not supposed to watch me sleep,” she scolded quietly.

  “How would you know?” he teased. “You’ve never slept with anyone before. Never woken up beside someone you care about.”

  Her heart started to pound. “You care about me?” She tried to sound playful but her heartbeat echoed in her head like a hammer knocking on wood.

  He tweaked her nose. “Of course, I do, silly. Why else would I be here?” He smacked her bottom soundly. “Better get up. Bunch of hungry men downstairs.”

  Lou groaned, trying to catch her head up with her heart. “I almost forgot Sadie is gone.” She rose and tiptoed to the bathroom. She turned on the shower and stepped beneath the spray, then felt him slide in behind her. He took the soap from her and washed her back and the rest of her body. Then he shampooed her hair, gently rubbing her scalp. He pushed her back beneath the spray and kissed her soundly.

  “Better get out before I muss you up again.” He turned her around and pushed her out. He washed himself quickly and tied a towel around his waist. He winked at her as he went out the door to go to his own room to get dressed.

  She was getting way too attached. He was only going to stay for a short time, and then he had his life and his work to return to. There was no way she was leaving the only family she had ever known, not that he had even asked. She wasn’t a city girl, and he had made it clear he didn’t want to be a country boy. He didn’t want to be embroiled in a family, even if it was his own.

  As soon as he was out of earshot, she rifled through the clothes that had
been flung on the floor the night before and pulled out the small jean miniskirt. She reached into the back pocket and retrieved the phone number Wes had slipped to her. Her heart pumped a crazy rhythm in her chest as she dialed the phone.

  A sleepy voice answered and said, “Hullo?”

  “This is Lou Smith. You wanted me to give you a call?”

  She heard him shuffle on the other end.

  “I need to meet with you. You’re in serious danger and I can help.”