Heated Rush - Leslie Kelly [67]
Until after what seemed like forever, they both cried out their climaxes to the stars and collapsed down to the seat of the car.
THEY WEREN’T ABLE to say their final goodbyes and get on the road until noon on Sunday. Sean would have liked nothing better than to have left at the crack of dawn and been back in Chicago by eight o’clock. Then to go straight to his hotel and make love to Annie for a good twenty-four hours.
After that, well, he honestly didn’t know. He was supposed to leave tomorrow, supposed to board a jet and fly to Hong Kong. He had a meeting on Wednesday, people were counting on him.
But leaving her…God, why did the very idea hurt so much? Personal relationships had never hurt him, aside from the odd twinge of sadness over missing his little sister. But the sharp ache inside him at the thought of exiting Annie’s life as quickly as he’d entered it was enough to double him over.
“Thank you again for your hospitality,” Sean said to Mr. Davis after he’d put Annie’s bag in the car. “It was nice meeting you all.” He grinned at Annie’s three brothers. “Next time, I’ll teach you how to play rugby.”
Jed, who still sported a black eye from yesterday’s supposedly low-contact, friendly game, nodded. “Yeah, we’re definitely due for another round.” The glare might have been threatening, but his tone held a note of respect.
The entire family had walked them to the car, Rex and Radar following the procession like a pair of royal guards. He supposed it was their own fault that the morning had dragged on so long—he and Annie hadn’t got back to the house until two in the morning and they’d overslept. So the whole family had been able to arrive in time for the big farewell scene.
“You drive safe now,” Mr. Davis said as Sean helped Annie into her seat. “Wear your…”
“I’m on it, Dad,” she said, already buckling herself in.
The look in his eye said he wouldn’t apologize for trying to keep her safe. Sean recognized it, having seen it on the face of his own father. Not just toward Moira, either. His old man had often visibly worried about Sean’s safety growing up.
That his father loved him had never been anything Sean had questioned. Any more than the certainty that Annie’s family loved her.
How they showed that love, though, was quite different. Because despite the under-the-breath comments, there had been no scenes, no pleading, no threats or demands. They didn’t like the life she’d chosen…but they weren’t about to try to force her to change it.
His father could learn something from them.
“Give us a call and let us know you made it home okay, won’t you?” Annie’s mother asked as she bent to kiss her daughter on the cheek. Then the older woman stroked Annie’s hair, and whispered something in her ear, something she obviously didn’t want to share with the men of the family. She spoke quietly, obviously relaying more than just well-wishes and love.
From his seat beside her, Sean could feel the way Annie suddenly stiffened. Whatever her mother had said, she hadn’t been expecting it.
Curious, he started the car, replied to the fresh shouts of goodbye, then drove down the long lane toward the main road. In the backseat, the cat immediately flung himself down and went to sleep. Annie, meanwhile, remained quiet, lost in thought for the first ten minutes of the ride. He let her be. If she wanted him to know what her mother had whispered, she’d tell him.
Apparently, she did. Because when they reached the highway, she finally said, “She knew.”
“What?”
“My mother. She knew you weren’t the man I’d been telling her about.” She shook her head and reached under her sunglasses to rub at the corners of her eyes. “She knew you weren’t Blake.”
Sean started to chuckle, having already realized that Mrs. Davis was a sharp one. But something about the way Annie said the name Blake gave him pause. Glancing over, seeing the quiver of her lips, and realizing she was genuinely distressed, he suddenly understood, as if a lightbulb had gone off over his thick head. “My God, there really was a Blake.