His Virgin Wife: The Wedding in White / Caught in the Crossfire / The Virgin's Secret Marriage. Diana Palmer

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      “I said I’m sorry,” Vivian said tightly.

      “Did you? It didn’t sound very much like it,” Whit said and moved away from her.

      Vivian’s teeth clamped shut almost audibly, and she grasped her evening bag as if she’d like to rip it apart.

      “Which play are we going to see?” Natalie asked quickly, trying to recover what was left of the evening.

      “Arsenic and Old Lace,” Mack said. “The Billings community college drama classes are presenting it. I’ve heard that they are pretty good.”

      “Medicine Ridge College has a strong drama department of its own, doesn’t it, Natalie?” Whit asked conversationally. “I took a class in dramatic arts, but I was always nervous in front of an audience.”

      “So was I,” Natalie agreed. “It takes someone with less inhibitions than I have.”

      “I had the lead in my senior play,” Vivian said coldly.

      “And you were wonderful,” Natalie said with a smile. “Even old Professor Blake raved about your portrayal of Stella.”

      “Stella?” Whit asked.

      “In Williams’s play A Streetcar Named Desire,” Natalie offered.

      “One of my favorites,” Whit said, turning to Vivian. “And you played the lead. You never told me that!”

      Vivian’s face lit up magically, and for the next few minutes, she regaled Whit with memories of her one stellar performance. In the front seat, Natalie and Mack exchanged sly smiles. With any luck, Natalie’s inspiration could have saved the evening.

      The play was hilarious, even if Natalie did find herself involuntarily comparing the performances with those of Cary Grant and Raymond Massey in the old motion picture. She chided herself for that. The actors in the play might be amateurs, but they were very good and the audience reacted to them with hysterical laughter.

      Afterward, they went to a nightclub for a late supper. Natalie and Mack ordered steak and a salad, while Whit and Vivian managed to pick the most expensive dishes on the menu.

      There was dancing on the small floor with a live band, a Friday night special performance, and Natalie found herself in Mack’s arms as soon as she finished the last spoonful of her dessert.

      “This is worth waiting all day for,” he murmured in her ear as he held her close on the dance floor. “I knew this dress would feel wonderful under my hands.”

      She snuggled closer. “I thought Viv was going to ask how I could afford it,” she said with a sigh. She closed her eyes and smiled. “You really shouldn’t have paid for it, you know.”

      “Yes, I should have.” He made a turn, and her body was pushed even closer to his. She felt his body react with stunning urgency to the brush of hers. She faltered and almost fell.

      “Sorry,” she said shakily.

      He only laughed, the sound rueful and faintly amused as they continued across the floor. “It’s an unavoidable consequence lately with you,” he murmured. “Don’t worry. No one will notice. We’re alone here.”

      She glanced past his chest at the dozen or so other couples moving lazily to the music and she laughed, too. “So I see.”

      “Just don’t do anything reckless,” he said softly. “With very little effort, we could become the scandal of the county.”

      She felt his lips at her forehead and smiled. “Think so?”

      One lean hand was at the back of her head, teasing around her nape and her ears in a sensual exploration that made her tingle all over. “Do you remember what I told you the night of the wreck?” he asked huskily.

      “You told me a lot of things,” she hedged.

      “I told you that, when you were old enough, I’d teach you everything you need to know about men.” His hand slid to her waist and pulled her gently closer. “You’re old enough, Nat.”

      She stiffened. “You stop that,” she whispered urgently, embarrassed by his blatant capability.

      “Sorry. It doesn’t work that way. I’d need a cold shower, and that isn’t going to happen here.” His cheek brushed against hers and his lips touched just the corner of her mouth. “We could drop Vivian and the professor off at my house first,” he said under his breath.

      Her heart ran wild. “And then what?”

      His lips traced her earlobe. “We could do what we did that night. I’ve spent years dreaming about how it felt.”

      Her knees threatened to collapse. “Mack Killain,” she groaned. “Will you please stop?”

      “You can’t stop an avalanche with words,” he whispered roughly. “You burn in me like a fever. I can’t eat, sleep, think, work, because you’re between me and every single thing I do.”

      She swallowed. “It’s just an ache,” she said firmly. “Once you satisfied it, where would we be?”

      He drew back a little and looked into her eyes evenly. “I don’t think it can be satisfied,” he said through his teeth.

      She stood very still, like a doe in the glare of bright headlights, looking at him.

      “And you still don’t know what it feels like,” he said gruffly, in a tone that was just short of accusation. “You like being kissed and touched, but you don’t know what desire is.”

      She averted her eyes. “You’re the one who always pulls back,” she said huskily.

      His arm contracted roughly, pinning her to him. “I have to,” he said impatiently. “You have no idea what it would be like if I didn’t.”

      “I’m twenty-two,” she reminded him. “Almost twenty-three. No woman reaches that age today, even in a small town, without knowing something about relationships.”

      “I’m talking about physical relationships. They aren’t something you have and walk away from. They’re addictive.” He drew in a harsh breath as the music began to wind down. “They’re dangerous. A little light lovemaking is one thing. What I’d do to you in a bed is something else entirely.”

      The tone, as much as the content, made her uneasy. She stared at him, frowning. “I don’t understand.”

      He groaned. “I know. That’s what’s killing me!”

      “You’re not being rational,” she murmured.

      The hand at her waist contracted and moved her in a rough, quick motion against the rock-solid thrust of his body. He watched her blush with malicious pleasure. “How rational does that feel to you?” he asked outrageously.

      She forced her eyes to his drawn face. “It isn’t rational at all. But you keep trying to save me from anything deep and intimate. It has to happen someday,” she said.

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