Julia blushed. “I don’t know if we can possibly top last night.” She looked around the room. “I’m curious why we’re staying here tonight and not the cabin? Aren’t you worried some of your people might wander in here for a drink and see us?”
“Not a bit.” He shook his head. “Taking you to dinner is expected, and the choices are limited. I didn’t want to chance it at the cabin in case we get snow. While being stranded there with you is very appealing, it might present problems neither of us wants to deal with.”
“You know, Charles should have signed the divorce papers by the time I get back.”
“Yes.” His grip on her hand tightened. “Another reason I don’t want you to be delayed. You need to be there in case there’s a problem. I don’t know the bastard, but from what you tell me, he’s going to go to the mat on this. I’d like to keep you locked away until it’s a done deal, but I know you have other responsibilities. The twins, for example. And I don’t want anything to go wrong to delay this one more day.”
Julia nodded her head slowly. “I’ve been checking my messages. Harry texted me Charles still wasn’t back from his trip, but he was supposed to be back today. Harry called the other attorney and demanded a firm appointment for tomorrow morning. If things go well, by the time I get off the plane, Harry should be at the courthouse filing the papers.” She didn’t want to let him know how worried she was, tell him about the feeling of unease tickling at her like the rake of the claws of a beast. Damn Charles to hell, anyway.
Luke’s deep brown eyes captured hers and held her gaze. “I wish I could promise you everything will be fine, but you’re a strong woman, Julia. You’ll survive whatever happens.”
She exhaled a long breath. “I didn’t use to be, you know. I let Charles bully me for years so he thinks he can get away with it now.” She leaned forward and smiled. “Somehow I lost myself along the way, but you’re helping me find the real me.”
“A warm, smart, funny, wonderful woman,” he told her. “You know you can call me whenever it gets rough, right?”
“Yes.” She smiled at him. “But this is my mess. I want it over and done with and not slopping over onto you. The next time we’re together, I want it to be without any strings still dangling.”
“It will be,” he promised her. “I have faith. We couldn’t have something this good happen to us and then lose it for some stupid reason.”
The musical duo started their first set of the evening and Luke wordlessly led Julia to the dance floor. She allowed him to pull her body in close to his and tuck their clasped hands against his chest. They moved slowly to the rhythm, his arousal hard against her, nudging at her, calling her senses to come out and play. Resting her head against his shoulder, she was filled with an incredible sense of déjà vu.
“I can’t believe how hard I am,” he whispered in her ear. “By every law of nature, I should be dead by now.”
“I love it.” He couldn’t know what a sense of new power it gave her.
They barely moved, shuffling their feet in place to the notes of the soft ballad until it ended.
“Hungry?” Luke led her back to their table.
Julia shook her head. It sounded like a repeat of their first night. She was hungry all right, but not for food. “No. Thanks.”
They looked hard at each other for a long moment; then Luke nodded and signaled for the check.
They rode the elevator in electric silence, and at her door she gave Luke the key card to open the room. He flipped the light switch and the two bedside lamps poured their golden color into the bedroom.
“Let me just look at you.” Luke ran his gaze over her. “Feast my eyes on you. I want to memorize every single inch of your body.” One piece at a time, he peeled away her clothes, not kissing her or touching her in any other way, just absorbing her with his eyes. When she stood completely naked, he took a step back and carefully looked at every inch of her body. His hands flexed and naked desire flared in his eyes.
“God, you take my breath away,” he told her. “You are so gorgeous.”
“You must have a distorted view of me.” Her voice trembled. “My body certainly shows the wear and tear of motherhood.”
He shook his head. “Only to give you a warmer, richer look.” In an instant, he divested himself of his own clothes and stood before her, just as naked.
Now it was Julia’s turn to look, to devour him with her eyes, storing up memories to take home with her. For whatever reason—maybe because she didn’t trust good luck—she sensed something disastrous was about to happen. She wanted something to hang on to. When she fell asleep, she would dream of his strong chest with its crisp, curling hair, the flat brown nipples on his chest. Of his hot, hard erection and its remembered presence in her body She wanted this for a lifetime. Would fate be so cruel as to jerk it away from her?
Then there was no more time for thinking. They were kissing, deep, voracious, carnal kisses, where their tongues did an erotic dance and probed every inner recess of their mouths. Luke guided her to the bed, pausing only to reach down and rip away the covers. Lying side by side, they fused their mouths together, hands reaching for each other.
Luke tore his mouth away, trailed kisses along her cheek, then grasped both of her hands in one of his and stretched them back above her head.
“Tonight, my love, I’m going to
