Bound By Passion: No Desire Denied / One More Kiss / Second-Chance Seduction. Cara Summers

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СКАЧАТЬ She could barely feel her fingers on the steering wheel.

      Focus. After checking the mirror again, Nell allowed herself a sideways glance at Reid. He was texting back and forth with Duncan. Doing what needed to be done. And what she needed to do was drive to Albany. But sooner or later, they were going to have to talk about what was going on between them and what they were going to do about it.

      Just the thought of “doing something” was enough to release the floodgates again. She felt the torrid liquid heat flowing through her system, enough to make her shiver.

      “You okay?” Reid asked.

      It’s all good, she told herself. “I’m fine,” she said.

      On second thought, perhaps it was best that they didn’t talk about what was happening between them at all and just get to the doing it part. At any rate, now wasn’t the time or the place. There were much better settings.

      Once more, she checked the mirror. No sign of a gray car or any other vehicle. A glance at the GPS screen on her console told her that they were still ten miles from the outskirts of Albany. With nothing but a constantly unrolling ribbon of road in front of her, Nell increased the pressure on the gas pedal and thought of where at the castle she and Reid might have their “talk.” Or not.

      In the little fantasy she wrote about Reid all those years ago and buried in the metal box, the setting she’d chosen was in the gardens. She had to avoid the stone arch. Because the fantasies she’d spun about him had nothing to do with happy-ever-afters and everything to do with slow, teasing arousal and hot, unbridled chemistry.

      Or at least, that’s what she’d known about those things at eighteen. The gardens had always been her favorite on the castle grounds. There was one particular spot that had been her secret place—one she’d escaped to when she wanted to get away from her sisters and even Aunt Vi. She’d even plotted out the first draft of It’s All Good there.

      Little wonder her favorite place had come to mind when she’d written down her most secret and sexy narrative. There’d be moonlight, of course. A full moon over the lake and lots of stars. And the heady scent of flowers, some of which had been planted by Eleanor herself.

      With the image fully delineated in her mind, she risked a quick glance at Reid. In her current reality, he was fully dressed in his Secret Service suit, all neat and tidy except for the loosened tie. He wouldn’t need all those clothes in the garden. Not any of them, if her story line went according to plan.

      She pictured taking his shirt off, exposing that tanned skin an inch at a time. The moonlight would play over it as she ran her hand over his shoulders, testing the smooth, firm flesh and the hard muscle beneath. Then she’d draw the shirt slowly down his arms until it hung from his wrists, trapping them. Yes, that would be good, she thought. He wouldn’t be able to touch her as she began to explore his flesh with her mouth.

      Nell? That would be the only word he’d say. The same way he’d said it when he had first seen her in Piper’s apartment. It would have the same question in the tone. And this time she’d have the answer.

      “Nell, are you all right?”

      She tensed her fingers on the wheel and jerked herself back to her current reality. Then she slammed on the brakes to avoid running the red light ahead of her. “I’m fine.”

      “You seemed to be a thousand miles away.”

      Less than fifty, if she was judging the distance to the castle gardens correctly. “Just thinking.”

      “Here’s more to think about. Duncan had some luck running the plates. The gray car is registered to a Gwendolen Campbell. And she spells it the same way one of Eleanor Campbell’s older sisters did.” Reid filled her in on the family lineage Cam had told him about that morning.

      “What are the chances that two hundred years later we’d be tailed by someone who just happens to have the same name as Eleanor Campbell’s sister? Right down to the spelling?”

      “Duncan’s going to do what he can to check her out. In the meantime, he’s filling Cam in on the latest, and one of them will inform Daryl Garnett, so he’s fully briefed when we arrive at the castle.”

      As the light turned, Reid noticed that the road had widened into four lanes. They were still on the outskirts of Albany, but he could see the capital buildings in the distance to his left, and the traffic had grown heavier. To his right he noted a sign that they were approaching a hospital.

      “Well, with the CIA on our team both here and in Scotland, we ought to know more soon,” Nell said. “In the meantime, we know that Gwendolen Campbell is definitely involved in this. The question is, how involved? Who is she working with besides Deanna Lewis and the man or woman who tried to run Piper down? And who’s running the show?”

      He shot Nell a sideways glance. He couldn’t have put it better himself. Her questions were spot-on. “I should have seen she had to be a player when you first mentioned your autograph lady. Maybe the key player. More than that, we’ve been assuming that the us Deanna Lewis was talking about to Piper involved just two people, that Deanna had one partner. There could be three. But there could be more. That possibility should have occurred to me sooner.”

      “Well, if you want to play the blame game, I should have figured it out, too.” Nell changed into the right lane. “I make up plotlines. And her request for that autograph had perfect timing. Plus, she looked so normal. All I saw was a woman who wanted me to sign a book for her granddaughter. And that makes her perfect for the role of villain.”

      She took a right turn toward the hospital. “I should have seen it. I was just too focused on Piper after the attempt. I wouldn’t have even thought about the woman again if you hadn’t probed.”

      The difference was Nell had good reason for her distraction. Someone had tried to run down her sister. But Reid had only one reason for his lapse. Nell. He’d been thinking about her and wanting her ever since he’d seen her again. He couldn’t seem to get any distance or perspective. It wasn’t just the sexual attraction—although it was there, a steady burn in his blood. A strong part of his distraction was due to the fact that she’d changed in very surprising ways. He was constantly being delighted and fascinated by the way her mind worked.

      “Something’s bothering you,” Nell said.

      Then there was her talent for intuiting things about him: the way he was feeling and what he was thinking. Not even his brothers could do that.

      And if he kept wondering how she could or what she might do next to surprise him, he wasn’t going to be able to protect her.

      “No one’s following us.” She turned into the hospital parking lot. “This was a great idea. Our quick exit from the fast-food restaurant bought us some time. At the castle, Daryl Garnett is with Aunt Vi, and from what Piper and Adair say, Vi is in very good hands. So even if autograph lady or one of her partners gets annoyed that we’ve taken this detour, I think everyone should be safe for the moment.”

      “You’re the one I’m worried about. You’re distracting me from this investigation, and that puts you in danger.”

      Nell’s heart gave a little flutter, but she managed to keep her hands steady on the wheel as she drove down the line of cars and pulled into a parking space. Saying a little prayer that her voice would work, she faced him. “I can take care of myself. If it makes you feel any better, СКАЧАТЬ