“Earth to Dallas,” Patrick said, slapping Dallas’s arm hard enough that he almost head-butted the bar.
“What did you do that for?”
“I thought you were meant to be looking after the bar. Those two guys down there need a drink.”
With a disgruntled sigh, Dallas straightened and poured two pints of lager. Laura was due back this afternoon, and this shift couldn’t end soon enough. He’d hoped the pub would be busy, but there was way too much time to think.
Laura would be with that man. Dallas’s hand tightened on the beer handle, and he had to force himself to loosen his grip. This jealousy wasn’t him. Since Maria, he’d made a point of strictly casual. Laura Drummond was the feline disturbing his neat rows of pigeons.
The minutes crawled to the end of his shift, but finally he handed over bar duties to one of his long-time barmaids. He checked his phone and scowled.
“Aw, has Blondie given you the heave-ho?” Patrick said.
“None of your business.” His phone rang and his pulse did a bump and grind. A glance at the screen had his heart plummeting. Not Laura. The real estate agent. “Hello.”
“Ah, Mr. O’Grady. I have good news for you. The previous tenants have moved out earlier than expected. Would you like to take possession this week?”
“That would be great,” Dallas said. “Do I pick up the keys from you?”
“Yes, you can come by the office any time tomorrow afternoon.”
“Thanks,” Dallas said. “I’ll drop by before five.”
“What was that about?” Patrick asked.
“Are you still here?”
Patrick grinned and waggled his finger. “Someone is testy. If I didn’t know better I’d say you were frustrated, yet that couldn’t be right. Is Ms. Blondie putting out?”
Anger flared in him. “Don’t talk about her like that.”
Patrick’s smirk fell away to reveal concern. “What’s your problem?”
“I have a few things on my mind.”
“Keys to what?”
Dallas hesitated. “I’ve signed a lease on a rental property.”
“Oh, is that all? You’re turning out to be quite the tycoon with your rental portfolio.”
Patrick thought he’d purchased another property as an investment. Well, maybe that was best. The last thing he wanted was for his brothers to pop in for an inconvenient visit.
“Fancy going out for a pizza?” Patrick asked.
“Thanks, but not tonight. I’m knackered.”
“We’ll get take away pizza,” Patrick said. “You’ll be tucked up in your lonely bed in time to get a good sleep and slap the cranky on the head.”
Aware his arguments would heighten his brother’s determination, he surrendered. “Sounds good. Let’s go.” He led the way up the stairs to his apartment, frustration nipping his butt. He’d seen Laura since their weekend interlude, he’d spoken on the phone and exchanged texts, but the enforced physical break was making him antsy. Normally, a dry spell wouldn’t bother him. This was different, like an insidious yearning deep in his gut. He didn’t just want her. He craved her, which told him he’d fallen way deeper than he’d intended.
Between the proverbial rock and a damn ugly nightmare place.
Their families…it didn’t seem fair the woman he wanted was the one who’d create chaos with his parents and brothers. His father hated the Drummonds with the same passion as his grandfather.
“You order the pizza,” Dallas told his brother. “I need to text someone.”
His brother’s brows rose, and it was easy to see the nosy in his brother’s expression. “Blondie?”
Dallas sighed. “Yeah. She’s been away for the weekend.”
“Why didn’t you say so? I’ll clear out and give you lovebirds privacy.”
“No, it’s okay. We’re meeting tomorrow night.” All night, he told himself. They’d sleep together after making love, so he could feed his Laura fix.
“Who is she? Why the mystery? You usually tell me about your women. Wait, you haven’t hooked up with Maria again? I heard she was back in town.”
“Maria, no. She’s not blonde. It’s someone else, and I can’t talk about her.”
“Sounds serious.”
“Yeah.”
The ringtone of Dallas’s cell phone made him glance at the screen. A smile burst to life. “I’ll take this while you order the pizza. Do you want a beer?”
“Sure.”
“There’s some in the fridge. Grab one for me too.” He felt his brother’s curiosity buffeting him as he answered his phone and walked into his bedroom. He shut the door after him to guarantee privacy. “Hey.”
“Have I caught you at a bad time?” Laura’s voice was a cool balm to his ruffled composure.
“My younger brother decided I needed cheering up and he’s staying for pizza.”
“I can ring back.”
“No, I have a few minutes. How was the wedding?”
“Everything went without a hitch, and I’m now officially at the top of the list to fire off next.”
He laughed at the horror lacing her dry voice, but it wasn’t a joke. He knew Mrs. Drummond, knew the extent of her determined manner even though he’d never spoken to her in person. “And the dress was as ugly as you remembered?”
“Worse,” she said. “I spoke to James. I’ve arranged a meeting with him and his boyfriend later in the week. I wondered if you’d go with me.”
“Me?”
“Yeah. I’m not interested in anyone but you. If you can’t handle that we shouldn’t go any further. I thought about you the entire weekend and decided it was best if I told you upfront so you know where the lines are drawn.”
Dallas was silent for a moment, equal parts admiring and horrified. But damn it, wasn’t he thinking the same way? “What if James talks?”
“I don’t think he will. We spent time together this weekend to appease my mother, his parents. I told him there was someone else. Besides, it will set his boyfriend’s mind at rest and make him realize I’m honest when I say I’m not interested in James. And a purely personal reason—I want to introduce you to someone as my boyfriend. Does that sound stupid?”
God, she was brave, so brave. She was risking a lot for him, for them, and he owed her the same level of loyalty. “As long as you think he’ll keep his mouth shut.”
“He’s a lawyer. We’ll engage him as our lawyer and pay him a dollar or something.”
Dallas laughed at her ingenuity. “I missed you.”
“I was a good girl, Dallas. I behaved myself, even through the long, lonely nights, and now I have the worst case of sexual frustration. You’re going to fix it, you hear?”
His laughter rang out this time. “I hear, sweetheart. I have good news. The real estate agent rang to say I can collect the keys since the tenants moved out sooner than expected. Can you meet me tomorrow night?”
“Yes.” She never hesitated, and it warmed him through. “I have another temp job tomorrow and won’t finish work until five. Do you want me to meet you at the house?”
“Yeah, that sounds good. I’ll sort dinner.”
“I missed you, Dallas. I can’t wait until tomorrow.”
Dallas walked out of his bedroom with a smile on his face.
“Ah, that looks better,” Patrick said.
“Do you have any plans for tomorrow night?”
“Not so far,” his brother said. “Why?”
“Will you cover at the bar for me? I’ll owe you. Please.”
“I can’t wait to meet this woman. She has you twisted in knots.”
Some of the happiness in Dallas dispersed. Patrick would assume it was lust knots. Dallas knew better. He and Laura walked a rock-studded trail, yet he didn’t consider turning off the dangerous path. He accepted a bottle of beer from his brother. “It’s mutual.”
“Are you worried I’ll win her over with my charm?” Patrick asked.
“No.”
“Then why aren’t you giving me details?”
“Because it’s new, and I want to keep her to myself.”
“She knows about your bossy nature? That you live and breathe work?”
Dallas smiled. “Yeah.”
“And she’s okay with you bossing her around?”
“Yeah.” And didn’t that beat all. A Drummond willing to submit to an O’Grady. “Sometimes.”
Anticipation crept through her like a tiger stalking prey. During the morning, she’d been calm enough. Excited about seeing Dallas—yes—but it had felt like waiting for a special treat. This was ten times worse. Her nipples rubbed against the sexy bit-of-nothing bra she’d donned that morning, driving her to distraction every time she shifted positions. Lower, something swelled and jumped around her stomach, making it difficult to eat while her panties were damp with her arousal.
For once, her pleasure in working at a real job hadn’t offered enough distraction, and during the latter half of the day, she’d become a chronic clock watcher. Finally, finally, five o’clock ticked around and she packed up for the day.
The drive to Dallas’s house seemed to take ages due to the traffic. While she’d wanted to speed through the streets, commonsense meant she crawled at the speed limit. Talking to Dallas on the phone was a poor substitute for the real thing.
She pulled up in his new driveway, grabbed her overnight bag, her handbag and phone. The front door opened as she reached it and she fell into his arms, mouth upturned for his kiss.
Laughing because she misdirected and kissed his chin, she drew back and dropped everything on the floor. Dallas shut the door, and she pressed against him.
Their second kiss was perfect. Hungry. Hot and deep, tongues searching. Her softness against his hard chest. Only the need to breathe parted them, and he pressed his forehead against hers, gasping for air.
“If it wasn’t so damn cold again tonight, I’d nail you against the wall right now.” His voice was husky with need. “I lit the fire a couple of hours ago. Come into the warm.”
Laura let him lead her into the lounge, which was as toasty-warm as he promised. A fire crackled in the wood burner, but the rest of the room was bare apart from a large mattress, already covered with sheets and a warm duvet. Her lips quivered at the condoms sitting in a pile by the wall.
“I figured we needed a little comfort,” he said. “The rest of the furniture will have to wait. I thought you might like to help me pick it out. We’ll see what we have in common.”
“I have nil experience in furniture shopping. Sounds fun.”
Dallas placed her bags by the wall. “Are you hungry?”
“Yes.” She almost laughed at his clear disappointment and gave him points for acting the gentleman. She shrugged out of her coat and tossed it on the floor. Then she kept undressing until she stood in front of him dressed in lingerie. “Hungry for you. If I don’t get to touch you, have you inside me in the next few seconds, I’m going to scream.”
Dallas exploded into a frenzy of movement while she dispensed with the last of her garments. He grabbed her hand and dragged her to the mattress. His mouth sought hers as they fell together in a tangle of limbs.
His hard body pressing her down, the crisp sheets at her back had her twisting, squirming. His hands roamed, fingers plucked at her nipples and she cried out at the blaze of pleasure.
“Now,” she urged him. “Please now.”
Eyes wild, he reached for a condom and made quick work of rolling it on. He rose over her, roughly parting her legs with his knee. Desperate for the pleasure she knew awaited, she lifted her hips in invitation, her heart hammering in her ears.
“Please, Dallas. I need you so much. I ache—”
He cut off her pleas with his mouth and pushed inside her with a single, hard stroke. She groaned against his mouth, her fingers gripping his shoulders.
“I wanted to go slow, to savor this.” He shook his head, grunted when she bit into his biceps. And he started to move—hard, uncompromising strokes into her needy flesh. Laura squeezed her eyes shut and held him as he pummeled her body. The low level hum of desire she’d experienced during the day flared to life, burning her with its heat.
Blissful happiness roared in her ears, zipped through her body and crashed over her in a combination of pleasure-pain that had soft, needy sounds rippling from her throat. He plunged into her for two more strokes and stilled, a fierce shudder racking his body.
Gradually, they quieted, content with lazy kisses and caresses and low murmurs.
“I missed you,” he whispered. “I didn’t expect to feel this longing. I don’t understand it, but I can’t walk away. Even though—”
She pressed her fingers over his mouth, halting his words. “I know. I understand. We both know this is crazy, but I don’t want to turn my back either. I can’t. We’re going to enjoy this between us, and we’re not going to mention the reasons we shouldn’t spend time together. Agreed?”
He kissed her palm. “Agreed.”
He ditched the condom. In the corner of the room, the fire crackled and a log shifted, sending a shower of sparks up the chimney. Dallas tugged back the covers, and they cuddled, snatching kisses in cozy warmth.
“How was the new job?”
“I wasn’t a model employee today. I’m going to do better tomorrow, but you jumped into my mind and refused to move. A day has never seemed so long.”
“My day went about the same.”
“I thought you were working tonight,” she said.
“I asked Patrick to cover for me.”
“Did he ask questions?”
“Hell yeah. I think he’s worried I’ve hooked up with my ex.”
“Did things end badly between you?”
“You could say that. Maria messed me up, but despite what Patrick thinks, I’m not stupid enough to go back for more of the same.”
“Glad to hear it.” She paused and decided that, given their backgrounds, nothing but scrupulous honesty would work. “I know you’re older than me and have had lovers, but I can’t help feeling jealous. I don’t like to think of you with other women.”
“I’m not happy about you and James.”
“Exactly why you should come to dinner to meet him. Imagine how James’s boyfriend must feel knowing that James considered marrying me.”
“I would’ve kicked James’s prissy ass, packed my bags and told him to fuck off.”
Laura chuckled. “Me too.”
“Okay, I’ll go for dinner with you. Meet James.”
Laura squeezed his hand in silent gratitude. “I’ll ring James and make arrangements. He said they’ll fit in with me. When’s your next day off?”
“I can do Wednesday.”
“Okay, I’ll ring James in a moment. I’m too comfortable to move right now.”
“And you’re too busy,” he said, twisting to reach for another condom.
Laura had told him to dress for comfort, which to him meant jeans. In deference to the occasion, he’d gone with his best pair, a cream shirt and boots. Now he was nervous and second guessing himself, wondering if he should have dressed in black trousers. He grabbed his truck keys before he turned girlie and tried another outfit.
“Who put the chili powder in your boxer-briefs?” Patrick asked.
“Aren’t you meant to be working the bar?”
“It’s quiet at the moment. Gloria will ring if she needs help. Will you be back tonight?”
Dallas spat out a curse but it was only a momentary release of his frustration and angst. “No, I’m having a sleepover. See you later.” He grabbed his wallet, thrust his arms into his leather jacket and left before he committed the cardinal sin of asking his brother’s opinion of his attire.
Laura was waiting with the doorman when he pulled up. She smiled at the elderly man and ran out to climb into the passenger side of his truck.
“Laura, next time wait for me to open your door. It’s part of my job description.”
“Oh. Okay. Do you need directions to James’s house?”
“What’s the street? I’ll plug it into the GPS.”
Twenty minutes later, he drove down the Cape Hill Street and pulled up outside number one hundred and one.
James answered the door, doing a double take when he recognized Dallas. To his credit, he didn’t refuse him entry.
“James, I believe you know Dallas O’Grady,” Laura said.
“I do,” James said, extending his hand.
Dallas let out his breath in a slow stream and accepted the offer of friendship. “James is the same age as Quinn,” he said to Laura. “They were in the same class.”
Aware of another man standing in the doorway, Dallas glanced in that direction.
“This is my boyfriend, Steven,” James said, nodding at both Dallas and Laura.
“Hi Steven,” Laura said, and she gave him a swift, friendly hug.
“I’m pleased to meet you,” Dallas said, “but I’m not hugging either of you.”
There was a moment of stunned silence before Steven laughed, a low, hearty chuckle that soon had them laughing together in a release of tension.
“Are you frightened you’ll catch gay cooties?” Laugh crinkles at the corners of James’s eyes told Dallas he wasn’t upset.
“I don’t hug people I don’t know,” Dallas said. “Give it a week or two and you might surprise one out of me.”
“Come into the lounge,” Steven said. “It’s much warmer in there.”
James dispensed beers for Dallas and Steven while James and Laura went for a glass of wine. Dallas was also pleased to see that if he’d gone with his second instinct to wear his good trousers, he would’ve been out of place. Even Laura wore a pair of faded jeans along with a cream polo neck jumper.
Laura took a place on a leather two-seater, and Dallas sat beside her. James dropped into a chair while Steven stood in front of the fire, his broad shoulders tense even though his face wore a smile.
“I take it your families don’t know about your friendship,” James said. “I would have heard the fallout by now.”
“No, we’re taking things slowly,” Laura said.
“Secrets have a way of sneaking back to bite in the bum,” James said.
“We know that.” Dallas reached for Laura’s hand, lacing their fingers together. “Sometimes the heart doesn’t choose wisely, but that doesn’t mean it’s wrong.”
“Hear hear,” Steven said. “How come your families wouldn’t approve?”
“It’s a long story,” Laura said. “But basically—correct me if I’m wrong—Dallas, two of our ancestors came over to the Otago goldfields and staked a claim. So the story goes, one of them found a big nugget of gold and cut the other one out.” She glanced at Dallas. “Is that right?”
He nodded. “My family would say your family stole it since you have a flash house and they don’t.”
“What do you say?” James asked.
“I say it happened generations ago and it’s silly letting the past interfere with what Laura and I have.”
“I hope things work out between you,” James said.
“But?” Dallas asked.
James shrugged and cast an apologetic glance at Laura before he answered. “Laura’s mother won’t approve, and the rest of the family will take their cue from her.”
“We know,” Laura said. “But honestly, it’s time things were done differently in our family. Mother doesn’t have the right to direct my life.”
“So you’re with Dallas to punish your mother,” Steven said.
“No. I would never drag Dallas into my personal battles. Our meeting was a fluke, and things went from there. Dallas is the man I always wished I’d meet.” Laura’s voice was firm and decisive. “If it comes to a confrontation, I’ll be the one facing my mother and the rest of my family. Not Dallas.”
“And if they give you an ultimatum? Withdraw their support?” Steven asked, his face intent on Laura.
Dallas wanted to protest the personal questions, except he’d like to know the answers. And he received the impression Steven was subtly asking the same questions of James. Dallas pretended a casual ease he didn’t feel.
“There lies the sticky point. My parents still give me an allowance. They pay for the apartment where I live. I’ve started working for a temp agency, and I’m searching for a full time job. I’m trying to save money and live entirely on my earnings. When I decided I wanted more independence, I made a budget, and I’m managing to stick to my self-imposed allowance.”
“That’s very forward-thinking of you.”
“I might be young, but I’m not stupid. I know my parents. They’ll make threats. I wanted to prepare myself.”
Pride swelled in Dallas, and he smiled at her. “I didn’t realize.”
“There’s no reason you should,” Laura said. “Millions of people live on a restricted income and budget. If they can do it, so can I. It’s no point talking the talk if I don’t walk the walk.” She winked at him when James groaned.
Across the room, Steven chuckled. “I was prepared to hate you, but instead you’ve charmed the socks off me. If James needs a female date for a function, and Dallas is agreeable, then I’m onside too. What do you think, Dallas?”
“I’ll need details of each event, and Laura will have to pay a forfeit.” Judging by Laura’s widening eyes, his expression had morphed into big, bad wolf.
“Dallas.” Delicate color crept into her cheeks. She wriggled as if she were feeling the prickles of a good spanking. He wanted to laugh, to tell her this was the start and there were lots of other devious ways to exact sensual punishment.
“Forfeit?” Steven asked.
James’s gaze went from Dallas to Laura and back. “Oh,” he said. “Did you know Steven plays rugby for the local fifteen? He’s good.”
“What sort of forfeit?” Steven repeated, his gaze filling with speculation. “Are you talking about sex?”
“Yes, he’s talking about sex,” James said.
“Oh, maybe Dallas and I should have a chat,” Steven said.
Laura chuckled, and the humor spread, setting the tone for the rest of the visit. When they said their goodbyes and walked out to his vehicle, Dallas wrapped his arm around Laura’s waist and whistled a few bars of a chart-topping hit.
This was how it felt after acing a test.