Trust Me on This

  “Hell, it’s worth a shot,” Harry said.

  Alec stood up. “I’ll call him.”

  “No,” Dennie said, and they all stared again. “Look, am I part of this or not?”

  “Of course you are, dear,” Victoria said. “Alec’s just not used to hearing women say no in a bedroom.”

  “Aunt Vic—” Alec said, and Dennie cut him off.

  “I met with Bond this afternoon,” she said. “He likes me. He thinks I’m a gold digger out to get Alec’s money. He’ll believe me if I tell him I’m going for the house too.” She looked up at Alec. “And it’ll be a lot easier for me to confuse him than it would be for you. He’s not going to be staring down your shirt.”

  Alec glared at her. “He’s not going to be staring down yours either.”

  “Yes, he is,” Harry said, and when Alec transferred his glare over, Harry shrugged and said, “She’s right. She’s our best bet.”

  “You had to wear that dress, didn’t you?” Alec said bitterly.

  Dennie nodded. “This dress clouds men’s minds.”

  “Well, it’s certainly working on Alec,” Victoria said, and Alec gave up.

  “Call him,” he told Dennie, and when there was no answer in Bond’s room, he said, “We’ll have to try the bar. Get the wire, Harry.”

  “Which I will tape on her,” Victoria said to Alec.

  “Fine,” Alec said, and thought, But I’ll take it off her.

  Alec found Bond in the bar without letting Bond see him, and ten minutes later, Dennie sat down a few seats away and waited for Bond to spot her.

  It didn’t take long.

  “Dennie!” He slid onto the stool next to her. “Where’s Alec?”

  “He went up to bed,” Dennie said sadly. “He likes to get plenty of rest. He sleeps a lot. And he’s so awfully disappointed about not being able to get the house.” She peered up at him woefully through her lashes. “I am too. I know it’s money-grubbing of me, but I really want that house too.”

  “Aw, honey,” Bond said, and slipped his arm around her.

  Dennie leaned on him a little and looked up at him, her eyes huge with sorrow. “I don’t want to marry Alec if all he owns is a bunch of land. He might never build a house. Men change their minds sometimes, you know?”

  “Only the rotten ones,” Bond said nobly, and Dennie refrained from rolling her eyes and went back to gold digging.

  “I wanted to look out my bedroom window and see the ocean,” she said, her breath catching on a little sob. “Just like a rich person. And now I never will.”

  Bond patted her shoulder, letting his hand slide a little as he patted. “Why, honey, you can do that if your Alec buys the property. He’s crazy about you. He’ll build you that house. Now you cheer up. Here let me get you another drink.” Bond signaled the bartender without letting go of Dennie.

  In the back room, Alec shook his head. “She’s overplaying it.”

  “He thinks she’s drunk,” Harry said. “She’s doing okay.”

  “Shhhh,” Victoria said.

  Dennie sipped her drink and tried to ignore the way Bond’s arm was slipping down her back. She pantomimed fighting back another loud sob. “I just wanted to lie there in my bed and listen to the ocean pounding and pounding. You know? Just like it was pounding on my body.”

  “Really?” Bond said, stopping with his drink halfway to his mouth.

  “Really,” Dennie breathed.

  * * *

  In the back room, Alec said, “Oh, come on,” and Harry and Victoria both shushed him.

  Dennie looked deep into Bond’s eyes and dropped her voice to confide in him. “I sleep naked, you know? In the nude. Totally. And I could just feel the way those ocean breezes would just kind of stroke all over my skin, you know?” She ran her hand lightly down her arm. “Stroking and stroking.”

  “Stroking,” Bond said, moving his hand up and down her waist.

  “Stroking,” Dennie said. “And the way my heart would just pound with the surf. Stroking and pounding. You know?”

  “Yes,” Bond said. “I know.” His hand crept around her rib cage to settle tentatively under her breast.

  “In fact, just thinking about it makes my heart pound,” Dennie said. “Here.” She pulled his arm from around her, curled his hand into a fist, and pressed it against the swell of her left breast. “Can’t you hear it pounding? Can’t you feel it?”

  “God, yes,” Bond said, his voice suddenly husky.

  * * *

  In the back room, Alec glared at the recorder. “What is she doing? What does she mean, can he feel it?”

  “Quiet,” Harry said.

  “You know, she’s very good at this,” Victoria said.

  “The hell she is,” Alec said, and then winced when Victoria raised her eyebrows at him. “Sorry, Aunt Vic.”

  Bond was practically breathing down her cleavage, and it was taking all Dennie’s strength to keep his fingers curled tightly in her fist. “I can feel it too,” she said, breathing deeply against him. Then she shoved his hand away and turned her back to him. “But it’ll never happen now. There’s no house. No surf. No pounding. He’ll never build it.”

  “Wait.” Bond put his hand on her shoulder. “Wait. Maybe there’s something I could do—”

  Dennie swung around to him again and pressed against him. “Could you? Oh, could you? I would be so grateful. So terribly, terribly grateful. This is just so important to me. I mean, having my own house and the pounding and all.” She wet her lips and cast a glance around the bar before she turned back to him, putting her hand on his knee and dropping her voice. “You see, Alec is a dear, dear, dear man, and I do love him, I do, but sometimes he’s not … well …”

  “What?” Alec said in the back room.

  What?” Bond said at the bar.

  “Well,” Dennie said, letting her voice rise. She put up her hand between them, as if to stop him from interrupting. “Now I don’t want you to get the wrong idea, because Alec is a dear, dear man and I just love him to pieces, but he works so hard at making all that lovely money that sometimes, well, sometimes he’s just a little …” She let her hand flop over to dangle limply from her wrist. “If you know what I mean.”

  * * *

  “What does she mean?” Alec said, scowling.

  “I know what you mean,” Bond said.

  “A little uninterested,” Dennie finished.

  “I’m going to kill her,” Alec said. He heard Harry snort, and he looked down. Harry was laughing.

  “I like this woman,” Victoria said.

  “That’s it,” Alec said, and started for the door.

  “Not yet,” Harry said, and Alec stopped at the door.

  “Oh, hell!” he said, audibly grinding his teeth and stomped back to the recorder.

  “That’s a shame about Alec,” Bond said, leaning closer until he was plastered against Dennie. “Is there anything I could do to … help?”

  “I wish there were,” Dennie said, trying to keep from falling off her stool. He was practically in her cleavage, and his weight was making her slide backward. “But since you can’t guarantee us a house …”

  “Well, I might be able to do that,” Bond said, moving closer and breathing heavier.

  “I’ll be damned,” Harry said.

  “I don’t believe it,” Alec said. “He fell for that line?”

  “I don’t suppose the line is all he fell for,” Victoria said. “That red dress is probably doing some of the talking.”

  Alec glared at her. “Have we got enough yet?”

  Bond’s arm was back around Dennie now, his hand creeping up to her breast. “You’re wonderful,” Dennie said to him. “I just don’t know how to thank you enough.”

  “Well, I think we could find a way,” Bond said. “You know I’ve got to make a few phone calls on this, since it’s such a special deal, just for you. And we don’t want anybody else to know that you’re getting … well, something extra.” He leered a
t her as his hand moved over her breast, and Dennie fought back the urge to kick him. “Why don’t you just come back to my room with me and”—he ran his free hand up her waist—“and we’ll talk about it. And then maybe I’ll make those calls.”

  “Oh, Brian,” Dennie said.

  “Oh, brother,” Alec said. “That’s it. She’s out of there.” He was out the door before Harry could stop him.

  “Just the two of us,” Bond was saying into her neck. “To cement the deal.”

  Dennie tried to figure out how to slide away from him without seeming to. One of his arms was wrapped around her, his hand clamped on her breast, the other was sliding down her waist to her hip, and his head was buried in her neck where he was doing something wet with his tongue that even Walter would have been ashamed of.

  She had to distract him. “Well, I’ll certainly never forget that kiss you gave me,” she began as she tried to disentangle herself, “but—”

  Immediately, Bond fastened his mouth on hers and did a repeat of the oyster kiss with extra saliva.

  Dennie wrenched her mouth away, trying not to spit. “But I think Alec would just be real upset if we—”

  Bond pulled her back to him. “Alec’s asleep.” He bent to her neck again, and Dennie looked past his head to the doorway.

  Alec was there, glaring at her.

  “Brian, stop it,” she said, trying to shove him away. “He’s here.”

  “What?” Bond’s head came up groggily. “Who?”

  “Alec!” Dennie shoved him harder. “He’s over there in the doorway. I don’t think he’s seen us yet, but—”

  Bond let go of her so fast, she almost fell off the stool.

  Chapter 8

  “Dennie!” Alec came over wearing his best doofus grin. “Honey, I’ve been looking all over for you.”

  “Well, I’ve been right here. And Alec …” Dennie leaned toward him as he took the stool on the other side of her. “Brian says he thinks he can guarantee us a house, after all.”

  “Uh …” Bond frowned. “I said maybe …”

  Alec put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him. “Brian, that’s terrific. If you can guarantee my little girl a house, you’ve got a deal.”

  “Well—” Bond said.

  “And we’d be so grateful,” Dennie said, smiling at him. “I’d be so grateful. On account of the pounding, you know? And the stroking.”

  “Right,” Bond said, and Alec pinched her to let her know she was going too far. “Of course, I’ll have to make a few calls …”

  “Great!” Alec slid off his stool and pulled Dennie with him. “Dennie and I’ll go up to my room and wait. You’ve got the number?”

  “Uh, yeah, but—”

  “Oh, Brian,” Dennie said, and pulled away from Alec to throw her arms around him. “I just can’t tell you how warm this makes me feel.”

  Bond looked down at her, suddenly breathing a lot heavier, and Alec grabbed her arm. “She is a grateful little thing,” he told Bond as he pulled her away and stepped in front of her. He let his voice drop when she was behind him. “Why when I gave her that diamond, you know what she did?”

  “What?” Bond said.

  “Well.” Alec wiggled his eyebrows. “All I can tell you is that we used up an industrial-size can of hot fudge and four cans of whipped cream. The maid never did get that mattress clean.”

  “Alec!” Dennie said, pretending to be scandalized. Then she winked at Bond.

  “Whipped cream,” Bond said. “Damn.”

  Alec stepped even closer and dropped his voice another notch. “Imagine what she’ll do for a house, huh?” He dug his elbow sharply into Bond’s ribs, laughing his snort laugh, and Bond laughed along after he got his breath back from the dig. “Now you call us when you’re done phoning your people.”

  “You sure I won’t be interrupting anything?” Bond asked archly.

  “Hey, what could be more important than this?” Alec said, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Dennie let her hand flop over limply at her wrist.

  Bond slapped him on the back. “Can’t think of a thing.”

  “Great,” Alec said, and towed Dennie toward the door. “What in the hell were you doing?” he asked her when the elevator doors were closed behind them.

  “What do you mean?” Dennie said. “I did exactly what you told me to do. I convinced him to guarantee us the house.”

  “You were supposed to cry on him,” Alec said. “Not have sex with him in the bar.”

  Dennie rolled her eyes at him. “Alec, men don’t do things for women who cry on them. They do things for women they think they’re going to get into bed.” She crossed her arms and leaned back against the wall of the elevator. “You know that. You’re just jealous.”

  “Jealous? Me? Jealous? Don’t flatter yourself.” Alec jammed his hands in his pockets and leaned against the opposite wall. “Do not flatter yourself.”

  “Is Harry upset with me?” Dennie asked.

  “Harry thinks you should be in the movies,” Alec snarled.

  “Is Victoria upset?”

  “She’s going to nominate you for woman of the year.”

  “Well, see.” Dennie shrugged. “The only one who’s upset is you. And the only reason you’d have to be upset—”

  The elevator doors opened, and Alec stormed out.

  “—is because you’re jealous.” Dennie spread her hands out. “It’s obvious.” Then she let both hands go limp at the wrist as the elevator doors began to close.

  Alec stuck his hand in the doors to hold them open. “Very funny. You’re getting off here, too, dummy.”

  “Not with you in this mood.” Dennie punched the button for her floor. “You can handle it from here.”

  “Oh, no.” Alec shoved the doors open and yanked her out into the hall.

  “Hey!” she said.

  “If he asks to talk to you, you’re going to be there.” Alec propelled her down the hall in front of him. He unlocked the door to his room and motioned her inside. “Strictly business.”

  “It better be,” Dennie said, and went in.

  The first thing Dennie did was wash her neck off, rinse her mouth out, and remove the wire.

  “Is it possible for spit to be corrosive?” she asked Alec, as she came out of the bathroom. “I think I’m breaking out in hives from him.”

  “It’s your own fault.” Alec was stretched out on the bed, his hands behind his head, and he looked better than any man had a right to. His shoulders alone were enough to make a woman dizzy. “You were the one who leaned over and asked him to pound you,” Alec said.

  “I can’t believe he fell for that.” Dennie sat on the edge of the bed and kicked off her shoes, trying to think of other things besides jumping Alec. The thought was futile; sometime in the afternoon, she’d definitely decided to jump him, and not even the nauseating Bond had changed her mind. “I mean, while I was saying all that stuff, it sounded stupid, but he just ate it up.” She rolled her eyes at him. “Men,” she said, and thought, Jump me.

  “Hey, wait a minute.” Alec sat up. “I’m a man. I thought it was stupid.”

  “Yes, well, we all know your problem with pounding.” Dennie let her hand flop over at the wrist.

  “Stop that.” Alec grabbed her wrist and held her tight, and Dennie held her breath. “That makes me nervous.”

  “Well, you have many other fine qualities.” Dennie batted her eyes at him. “Some women aren’t interested in erections. I’m not one of them, but I’m sure someday you’ll find a lovely girl—”

  “If you’re looking for an erection, I’m pretty damn sure Bond has one right now.” Alec reached for the phone with his other hand. “I could call him—”

  “Don’t even joke about it.” Dennie stuck her chin out and leaned a little closer. “I’ll never French-kiss again as it is. The thought of him naked and throbbing could put me off sex forever.” She smiled at him, her shoulder almost touching his. “Then you and I would be
perfect for each other.”

  “That’s it.” Alec pulled her to him, rolling over to pin her beneath him on the bed, and Dennie rolled with him, laughing as he landed on top of her, his weight finally relieving her need to touch him while it kicked that need into high gear. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer as she arched into him, and he stopped. “Hello?” he said. “I just attacked you. You planning on fighting back?”

  “Why would I fight back?” Dennie whispered, moving against him. “The only reason that I sat on your bed was so you’d grab me.” She smiled up at him and saw his eyes go dark. He took a deep breath, and she slid against him again, running her hands hard down his back as she said, “I was hoping you could cure my new aversion to French-kissing.”

  “It’ll be a sacrifice,” he said, and licked into her mouth while his hips bore down on hers. Dennie closed her eyes and shuddered under him, wrapping her legs around him while she sucked his tongue into her. Alec rocked against her, and she yanked his shirt from the back of his pants so she could rake her nails down his naked back, loving the way he tensed under her hands. She felt his hand pull at the neck of her dress and then roughly slide the purple lace from her breast, and then his mouth was on her throat and then on her breast, and she pulled his head hard against her while he sucked and rocked her into more heat than she’d ever known possible.

  When the phone rang, he didn’t hear it at first, for which she was achingly glad. Then it rang again and he looked up. “Oh, hell,” he said, and kissed her breast, and then her neck, and then her mouth, hard and deep, before he pulled back from her. The phone rang again. “It’s Bond.”

  Not now, Dennie thought but she caught her breath and said, “Answer it. I’ll still be here. Finish the job.”

  “I’m getting tired of the job,” Alec said, but he kissed her again and then rolled off her to sit on the side of the bed and pick up the phone. “Brian? What’s the good word?”

  Dennie sat up behind him, listening to him babble to Bond like a moron while he set his trap, and she slowed her breathing to normal. Alec was amazing. She pulled her dress over her head and threw it on the floor in front of him, pleased to hear him stutter a little into the phone as he saw it fall. She pressed against his back, and she felt his muscles tense under her weight and the scrape of the lace of her bra against his skin. Then she reached around him and unbuttoned his shirt, feeling how hard the muscles in his back were against her aching breasts while her fingers trailed down his chest, tangling in his hair. She stripped off his shirt when she had it unbuttoned. Alec never stopped talking to Bond, but he helped her by pulling his hands out of the sleeves. His hands were shaking, and she was glad because hers were too. She began to kiss her way down his vertebrae, tickling each one with her tongue as she went. By the time she reached his waistband, every muscle in his back stood out in sharp relief.