'I'll talk to Julian,' Jeannie said. 'Sam is taking me to visit him after dinner this evening. I'll make Julian understand how much I love Sam.'
'He wants only your happiness.'
'Sam makes me happy.'
'Has he mentioned marriage?' Marta looked at Jeannie.
'No.'
'I see.'
'Come back and sit down.' Jeannie patted the sofa cushion beside her. 'I want to hear about every Howell School child. Give me details on progress and setbacks. How is Cassie Mills? And little Justin Walker? And Missy Suddath? Her mother hasn't taken her out of school, has she?'
'That crazy woman!' Marta sat down beside Jeannie. 'She comes inside the school every day when she brings Missy, and looks around to make sure you aren't there. We've told her that you are no longer working at the school.'
'I want you to continue allowing her some leeway,' Jeannie said. 'I know Danette has joined the Righteous Light Church and thinks I'm a witch, but I don't want Missy to suffer for her mother's ignorance.'
'I've told the staff how you feel and given them instructions to make allowances for Danette Suddath's odd behavior, but I'm telling you, the woman is unbalanced.'
'I wish I could help Danette, but she would never allow me near her. The most we can do is take care of Missy.'
The front door opened, and Sam Dundee stepped into the living room. Jeannie and Marta looked up at him, Jeannie smiling as Marta patted her on the knee.
'There's a beautiful little secluded garden at the back of the house,' Sam said. 'How would you like to have supper out there?'
'My son's ex-wife loved the garden,' Marta said. 'I think it was the main reason they bought this house.'
'Well, it's something to see.' Sam sat down in the Chippendale armchair to the right of the sofa. 'I can see where a woman might find it a selling point when buying a house.'
'I think supper in the garden is a lovely idea.' Jeannie hoped Marta saw the significance in Sam's suggestion of a romantic supper in a secluded garden. She wanted Julian and Marta to understand why she loved Sam, why she was happy to be carrying his child.
'Well, I need to stop by school and check on things.' Marta hugged Jeannie, then stood. 'I've neglected my job the last few days.'
Standing, Sam walked Marta to the door. She turned to him when he stepped outside with her.
'I'll see y'all at the hospital later this evening,' Marta said, and walked down the stone sidewalk. She stopped abruptly, turned around and looked Sam in the eye. 'She's in love with you, you know. Please, don't hurt her.' Marta rushed to her car, got inside and backed into the street.
Sam watched her drive away, his back to the porch. He heard Jeannie as she approached him, her cane tapping on the wooden porch and steps.
'You musn't let what she said bother you.' Jeannie laid her hand on Sam's back.
'How can I not worry?'
'No matter what happens, you'll never hurt me.'
He turned, looked at her and closed his eyes, the pain inside him shattering in its intensity. How could she trust him so completely, love him so unselfishly, when he'd made no lasting commitment to her? How could he tell her he loved her, when he wasn't sure he was capable of truly loving a woman the way Jeannie deserved to be loved?
'Show me the garden in the backyard.' Bracing herself with her cane, she held out her other hand, inviting his touch.
If he touched her, she'd know exactly how he felt. She'd sense his confusion and uncertainty. And she would feel the desperate need burning inside him.
He took her hand in his and led her around the house to the backyard. All the while they walked—slowly, to accommodate her hampered gait—he allowed her to understand how he felt.
She realized he was unaware of how far he'd come in trusting his innermost thoughts and emotions to her. He'd gone from fighting the tiniest link to full acceptance of their joining. As always, she sensed his protectiveness and his possessiveness. A raging hunger. An overwhelming sexual desire. A deep, unrestrained need. And a sweet, tender caring. Gratitude. Unworthiness. Uncertainty. And fear. She picked up on every delicate nuance of his emotions. But she could not connect to the depths of his heart, to that place where the truth of his feelings lay buried so completely that it was a secret, even to Sam.
The garden wrapped around the back of the cottage like an emerald shawl of dense foliage and lush shade. Opening the wrought-iron gate, they entered beneath a clematis-covered arch and walked down a stone pathway leading to a fully enclosed piece of paradise. A concrete table and benches had been placed in the corner of a climbing-rosebush arbor.
'This
'You're beautiful.' Sam slipped his arm around her waist, urging her to turn.
She went into his arms, knowing what he wanted, admitting to herself that she wanted the same. He wrapped her in his embrace; she snuggled close, loving the feel of his powerful arms holding her.
'Jeannie?'
He heard her as clearly as if she'd spoken the words aloud. And the moment he took her lips in an all- consuming kiss of possession, he felt the wild, uncontrollable need within him come alive within Jeannie, too.
Slow and easy, he told himself. Don't frighten her. Don't hurt her.
'It's all right,' she said, reaching out to slide first one side of his jacket and then the other off his shoulders.
He let the expensive silk jacket fall to the ground, to rest atop a tiny sculptured shrub. He grabbed her by the waist to support her. She dropped her cane on the stone path. Restraining himself, just barely controlling his need to take her like the savage he was, Sam allowed her to undress him. She whipped off his tie and flung it into the air. Unbuttoning his shirt seemed to take forever. She threw it down beside his jacket, then unbuckled his belt.
Sam sucked in a deep breath. His arousal throbbed painfully. Every muscle in his body strained; every nerve screamed.
'Oh, Sam…' Swaying from the force of the sensations she received from his body, she grabbed his forearms.
'You're in charge, angel. We'll do this your way, but I don't think you'll last much longer.'
Gulping air, she smiled at him. Perspiration coated her flushed face. She unzipped his slacks and pulled them down his hips. When they hit the ground, Sam kicked them aside. She tugged on his briefs. Taking one hand from her waist, he assisted her in removing the last strip of his clothing.
He stood there, his big body hard, his sex pulsating with life. He felt her longing, knew she was unraveling by slow degrees, just as he was. The passion grew stronger and stronger, becoming raw and uncivilized as it developed.
'Please, Sam,' she said aloud.
He pulled her green cotton sweater over her head, loosening her hair. Sliding the pins from her hair, he let it fall free. With shaky fingers, he unlatched the hook on her bra, removed the silken garment and cupped her naked breasts in his hands.
She shivered from head to toe. If he didn't take her soon, she was going to explode. Her sex throbbed painfully. She needed release, needed Sam inside her, giving her all of himself.
'Soon, sweet angel.' He kissed each nipple in turn, feeling the spiraling tension in her breasts as it gripped her femininity. She was on fire; he was on fire. Together they would burn themselves out, dissolving into ashes of completion.
Unzipping her slacks, he watched her face. He wanted to kiss her. She was alive in every fiber of her body, on fire with a heat that seared him as completely as it did her. Holding her by the hips, he knelt and slid her green- and-white-striped slacks and beige silk panties down her legs.
He kissed her stomach, burying his face in her warm, soft flesh. He felt her closing off, shutting him out of her
