The Courtship of Dani Page 10

  When at last the music stopped it took a moment for her to realize that they were no longer dancing. She lifted her head and looked up at him in dreamy confusion, and Jason smiled. "Time to go, sweetheart," he said softly.

  Blinking, Dani looked around, she was surprised to see that the restaurant was almost deserted and that they were the only ones left on the dance floor. The band members were packing their instruments and the waiters were hovering on the sidelines, trying busily not to look directly at them.

  "Oh...yes." Dani stepped back, suddenly flustered, and would have moved out of Jason's embrace but he neatly forestalled her by keeping one arm firmly curved about her waist as he turned and led her toward their table. Calmly, with an economy of motion, he gathered up Dani's shawl and purse and escorted her out.

  On the drive home they were both silent. A remnant of the dreamy lethargy still clung to Dani, and she stared out the window, dazed. She wondered at how quickly he had quieted her nerves, at how easily he had gotten her to let down her guard. At how very right it had felt to be held in his arms. If she weren't careful he could ease her into an affair before she knew it, she thought bemusedly, and was then promptly amazed at how little concern the idea aroused in her.

  Without warning Jason reached over, picked up Dani's hand and laced their fingers together firmly. She turned her head to look at him, and her throat tightened as she studied his strong profile, the silvery glow of his pale hair in the dim light. His gaze was riveted to the road, but his hold on her never slackened. Their joined hands lay on his thigh, his rough palm warm and dry against hers, and heat from the point of contact flowed up Dani's arm and suffused her entire body. Drawing a deep breath, she leaned her head back against the seat and closed her eyes. If you don't watch yourself, Danielle Edwards, you 're going to be in over your head before you know it.

  As they approached her door Dani's stomach tied itself into a hard knot, for regardless of his assurances to the contrary, she couldn't quite believe that Jason had abandoned all thought of seduction. If he pressed, she wasn't at all sure she could resist him. A part of her didn't even want to resist, she admitted to herself. Love, she was learning, had a way of overriding scruples and caution and common sense. Love created its own need, demanded fulfillment, physical expression. To give in to it would be madness, but no matter what her mind told her, Dani's body still burned with desire, and her heart ached with longing to know his love, his possession.

  With hands that trembled slightly, Dani unlocked her door. Dropping the key back into her tiny purse, she turned back to Jason with an uncertain smile. She was filled with conflicting emotions. She wanted to invite him in, yet she knew how foolish that would be. But oh, how she hated to see the night end. "Well, good night, Jason. I had a lovely evening," she said, hating the trite words but unable to think of anything else to say.

  "I have theater tickets for Saturday night. Will you go with me?"

  "Yes, I'd like that."

  They looked at each other, while around them the heavy silence seemed to throb. Another weak smile trembled on Dani's lips. "Well, good night."

  "Good night." But he made no move to leave. He just stood there studying her, his dark eyes intent. A hint of a smile hovered around his mouth, and he lifted a hand to the pounding pulse in her throat. It leaped uncontrollably at his touch, and the smile blossomed on his face. With slow deliberation, Jason slipped his hand around her neck and hauled her to him.

  His head began a purposeful descent, and Dani's lungs ceased to function, her eyes going wide as fiery excitement streaked through her. This was what she had been waiting for, longing for, all evening. Helplessly her lids fluttered shut and her lips parted. Her soft sigh was lost in his mouth as his warm lips settled over hers, and when his arms enclosed her she melted against him.

  The tension that had been building since he first asked her out found its release in the ardent embrace. Going up on tiptoes, Dani wound her arms around his neck and kissed him with all the hunger and passion that love had imbued.

  Jason groaned and deepened the kiss. With slow, evocative thrusts his tongue imitated that more intimate union, while his hips undulated gently against her in a matching rhythm, and Dani shivered violently as shock wave after shock wave of desire rippled through her.

  The heat of his body was like a magnet, drawing her irresistibly. A raw, naked need began building in her, and Dani pressed closer, impatient with the thin barrier of clothing that separated them, wanting desperately to mold their flesh together, to absorb and be absorbed until they were one. Her fingers were buried deep in the thick blond hair at his nape, clutching his head, pressing him to her, while Jason's hands swept over her, deftly seeking out every hollow and curve.

  The intimate embrace went on and on, until finally Jason lifted his head. Eyes still closed, Dani moaned in protest as her mouth sought blindly to renew the kiss. Jason's hands slipped up over her back and grasped her shoulders. With gentle pressure he eased her away. Dani lifted heavy eyelids and looked at him in confusion, and he smiled tenderly.

  "Jason...?"

  "Sssh." His big hand cupped the back of her head and he pulled her to him again, pressing her cheek tightly against his chest. She could hear the thunder of his heart, feel the heaving of his chest as he sucked air into his lungs in deep, ragged gulps. "Don't say anything . Give me a minute."

  The tremors that shook his body told her more plainly than words that he was Fighting for control just as she was, and Dani knew a moment of shocked surprise. For several minutes they held each other quietly, while hearts slowed and breathing gradually became less labored.

  Then Jason released a long sigh and gently set her away from him. His smile was rueful and his eyes still held remnants of passion, but there was humor there, too. "You are one potent package, Ms. Edwards," he said huskily. "So I'm really going to say good night now, before I forget all my good intentions."

  He dropped a hard kiss on Dani's mouth then turned and strode away toward the elevator.

  Dani watched him go, her blue eyes wide and bemused, still glazed with passion. Why had he stopped? Surely he must have known that he could have picked her up and carried her into the bedroom, and she wouldn't have uttered a word of protest. The elevator arrived, and with one last wink in her direction Jason stepped inside. As the doors closed behind him, Dani shook her head dazedly. Why?

  ❧

  It was something she asked herself over and over in the days that followed. For, to her utter astonishment and secret delight, Jason proceeded to court her with all the gallantry of an age long past.

  He took her dining and dancing, to plays, concerts, the opera. They went to art exhibits, museums, the planetarium, all the interesting places, which typically, as a native, Dani rarely thought of visiting. Once Jason even showed up at her apartment with a bicycle built for two strapped to the back of his Jaguar. After driving them to the outskirts of town, he parked his car, dumped a wicker basket into the bicycle's carryall, and they proceeded to pedal into the country for a picnic.

  Jason was not in the least inhibited about publicly showing his feelings, and word of their budding relationship spread through the Stratter-Lite offices like wildfire. Dani could not help but be amused by the marked change the news made in Sam Engle's attitude toward her. The work had been going well, and she had slowly earned his grudging respect, but now he practically broke his neck to be nice to her. And, of course, Bruce Hadley followed his lead like a faithful shadow.

  Jason and Dani were together almost every night. On those few occasions when they weren't he always called her, and they talked of everything and anything, both behaving like teenagers, drawing out the conversation just for the sheer pleasure of hearing the other's voice. Finally, at twenty-eight, Dani was experiencing the giddy delight of first love.

  It was a marvelous, magical time for Dani. She felt cherished and adored, and as the dry sand of the desert absorbs rain, her lovelorn soul soaked up all the attention Jason lavished o
n her.

  Jason was such a big, rugged man, so unrelentingly tough and formidable in business that he surprised her with his tenderness and sensitivity, his capacity for affection. Once he had set his sights on her, Dani had expected him to push for an affair. Instead he wooed her with patience and loving words, with a gentle touch and warm, caressing looks that made her in-sides melt. He showered her with flowers and candy and perfume and let her know in a thousand different ways that she was special to him, but never once did he step out of line.

  At night when they parted he held her in his arms and kissed her passionately, but always with a rigid control that allowed him to pull back before things got out of hand.

  Dani was flattered and grateful... and thoroughly frustrated. She was also going quietly out of her mind trying to figure out exactly what it was he wanted from her.

  Chapter 8

  Dani's whole body was on fire with need. Her breasts felt swollen, the sensitive tips hard and aching, and there was an insistent throbbing deep within her feminine core.

  She strained closer to Jason and plunged her fingers into his thick pelt of pale hair. It flowed against her skin like warm silk as she gripped his head tightly and returned his kiss with fervent, passionate hunger. Jason's body jerked, and his arms tightened convulsively around her. Dani whimpered softly into his mouth, a tiny, desperate little sound of aching pleasure and longing that sent a shudder rippling through him.

  Then Jason's hands were gripping her shoulders. Slowly, he lifted his head and their clinging lips parted. For a moment Dani remained perfectly still, her head thrown back, eyes closed, lips parted and wet. Her breasts heaved with each labored breath and the pulse in her throat fluttered wildly. Finally her heavy lids flickered and lifted and she gazed up at him with eyes still glazed with passion.

  Jason smiled and touched his forefinger to her flushed cheek, then to her kiss-swollen lips. "I hate to say good-night, but I'd better while I still can," he said huskily. He tucked a curling tendril of hair behind her ear and trailed his fingertips down the side of her neck and across her shoulder, a look of intense pleasure flaring in his eyes when she shivered delicately. "There's an antique auto show at the Astrohall tomorrow. Would you like to go? We could spend a few hours there, then have dinner at Tony's."

  "Oh, Jason, I'm sorry. I can't." Dani said with a look of genuine regret. "My parents are expecting me tomorrow. Every month or so they like to get the whole family together for Sunday dinner."

  "Sounds like fun." He gave her a long, intent look then said pointedly, "I'd like to meet your parents."

  Dani bit her bottom lip and returned the look doubtfully. "Jason, I would ask you to come with me, but I don't really think you'd enjoy it. My folks are very simple people. They're not used to... well... to entertaining someone like you."

  "Aren't you forgetting my background? I came from dirt poor beginnings, Dani. I certainly wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth. I promise you I won't look down my nose at your family or make them feel uncomfortable."

  "Oh, no, I didn't mean that!" Dani said in a rush, appalled at her lack of tact. "I know that you're not a snob, it's just—"

  "Good. I'm glad to hear it. In that case, there's no reason why I shouldn't go with you tomorrow, is there? Unless, of course, you think your parents would object."

  "No, that's no problem," Dani said faintly, dazed by the way he had outmaneuvered her.

  "Great. I think it's time I met your family, don't you?" Without waiting for an answer, he bent and pressed a firm kiss on her mouth. "I'll pick you up about eleven tomorrow morning. Okay?"

  "Okay." The kiss had set Dani's blood to pounding again, and she answered automatically. As she watched him stride away toward the elevator she stared after him, feeling thoroughly confused... and more than a little apprehensive.

  ❧

  Her apprehension eased somewhat the next morning when they arrived at the Edwards' home, a modest brick house in a neat but unpretentious neighborhood on the southwest side of Houston.

  Dani had called her parents the first thing that morning to tell them that she was bringing a friend with her, and Sophie and Joe Edwards had been delighted. They both greeted Jason warmly and did their best to make him feel welcome, though Dani caught the raised-brow look that passed between them when they saw the Jaguar parked in the drive.

  Chad made no secret of his admiration, either for the man or his car. With his usual insouciance he eyed Jason from head to toe, grinned, and pumped his hand. Then, catching sight of the wicked-looking machine, he whistled between his teeth and crowed, "Man! Will you get a load of those wheels!" and took off at a lope to inspect it.

  Her sister's greeting was much less enthusiastic. Charlene and her husband arrived a few moments after Dani and Jason. Bill Fairchild was a painfully shy young man, and typically, he shook Jason's hand, mumbled a few words then promptly retreated. Holding her month-old baby daughter, Becky, cradled in her arms, Charlene looked at Jason coolly, and after acknowledging the introduction with a crisply polite "hello," excused herself and disappeared into one of the bedrooms, using the excuse that she had to put the baby down for her nap.

  It seemed strange to Dani to see Jason sitting in her parents' tiny living room. He appeared perfectly relaxed in the shabby but comfortable overstuffed chair, and he was talking amiably with the others, doing his best to put everyone at ease. Yet he seemed out of place. He was so big. So vital. And though he had dressed casually, there was simply no mistaking the quality of his tailored dark brown slacks and coffee-colored silk sport shirt, or the hand-sewn cordovan loafers he wore. Even more obvious was that indefinable aura of power about him.

  Sophie served coffee and for a while they all sat and talked. When Charlene reappeared she and Sophie went into the kitchen to finish the preparations for dinner. After a few minutes, when the men's conversation turned to baseball and the Astros' chances for the pennant, Dani followed them.

  "May I help?" she asked as she stepped through the swinging door.

  Charlene looked up from slicing tomatoes and her eyes slid over Dani. "Mother and I have everything under control. Besides, you know you're useless in the kitchen."

  Dani pretended not to notice the cool derision in her younger sister's voice. "Oh, but surely there is something I could do to help."

  "Of course there is dear," Sophie assured her kindly. "Why don't you set the table." Jabbing the air with the wooden spoon, she pointed to a maple hutch on the far side of the kitchen. "Since we have company, why don't you use that lovely lace tablecloth you gave me."

  "Too bad we don't have any fancy silver and china to go with it," Charlene said snidely. "But then they would look a little silly on the kitchen table, wouldn't they. I hope you told your rich friend that we don't have a dining room, that he'll have to eat in the kitchen with we peons."

  "Now, Charlene, behave yourself," Sophie admonished mildly. "Mr. St. Clair seems like a very nice man. I'm sure he won't mind."

  Dani flicked the tablecloth over the round table and smoothed it out, not bothering to acknowledge her sister's sniping. Nothing she ever said or did pleased Charlene, and Dani had learned long ago to simply let all the little digs and biting remarks slide off her. For some unknown reason, almost from the time she was able to talk, Charlene had resented her.

  Soon dinner was ready. When they were all seated Sophie served it family style, heaping the huge table with steaming platters and bowls filled with fried chicken, mashed potatoes, fresh corn and green beans, salad, gravy and biscuits. Large tumblers of ice tea sat before each plate and two apple pies were cooling on the counter. It was a simple, homey meal, the kind Dani had grown up with, but as she glanced at Jason out of the corner of her eye she wondered what he thought. It was certainly a far cry from the type of thing he'd grown used to.

  But Jason sniffed appreciatively of the delicious aromas wafting from the array of dishes and sent his hostess a beaming smile. "I think I've died and gone to heaven," he declar
ed, heaping his plate high with food from the bowls that were being passed around. "I haven't had a good home-cooked meal like this since the last time I visited my folks in Arizona." He took a bite of fried chicken and closed his eyes in ecstasy while he chewed. When he opened them he looked at Sophie again and winked. "Mrs. Edwards, if you weren't already married, I swear I think I'd run off with you," he growled teasingly in that rough-textured voice.

  To Dani's surprise a blush tinted her mother's plump cheeks and she fluttered like a young girl, patting her gray curls and looking at him with sparkling eyes. "Oh, please, call me Sophie. And really, you're being too kind," she demurred coyly. "The biscuits are a little heavy and the chicken is a mite too brown. Perhaps the next time you come I can do better."

  Steam rose as Jason broke open a biscuit and slathered it with butter. "Why, Sophie, if these were any lighter they'd float away."

  Watching her mother preen under Jason's lavish praise, Dani bit back a smile. So... he has that effect on older women, too, she thought with amusement. Jason was a tough, formidable man, but when he chose to turn on the charm it was nothing short of devastating.

  During the meal conversation flowed freely around the table. Though Dani's father was a quiet, reserved man, he seemed to take a liking to Jason and talked to him at length about his business interests and the state of the economy. Chad asked dozens of questions about the Jaguar, while Sophie plied Jason with more food and wangled information about his family. Even Bill overcame his shyness enough to put in a comment occasionally. The only person at the table who didn't join in was Charlene.