is slick. Summer Hill ain’t never seen nothin’ like it. It’s New York in Virginia—with some Texas thrown in.” With his laughter drifting into the dark, Frank went into the house.
Chapter 8
Terri didn’t want to be awake. She wanted to snuggle back under the covers and stay there. It was Sunday and it must be very early because she didn’t hear a single motor on the lake.
She got up, went to the bathroom, then, yawning, started to get back into bed. The clock said it was ten fifteen, but that couldn’t be right. She never slept late. Besides, Nate was supposed to be at the Hartmans’ at eleven. He must have already gone. Odd that she didn’t hear him.
She was nearly back to sleep when she realized that he hadn’t left. There was no way he could have slipped out of the house quietly enough that she hadn’t heard him. By the end of the party he’d been grilling food. If he hadn’t taken a shower last night, he needed one this morning, which meant that he had to get up now!
She threw back the covers and, barefoot, ran past the kitchen and down the hall to Nate’s room.
He hadn’t drawn his curtains so no light came in. Nate was still in bed, on his stomach, and the blanket across his waist bared his broad, naked back.
For a moment, all she could do was stare. How very much she’d like to touch him! She’d like to pull off her clothes and get on top of him. Feel the warmth of him, the heat, her bare breasts against his nude skin. She’d like to kiss his neck, then move down his spine.
Turning, she took a step out of the room. She couldn’t do this to herself. She had to get control. Maybe if she got dressed and went out in her boat, she could calm down.
But what about Nate? If he slept through the brunch, they’d ask questions—which could lead to finding out where he lived.
“Oh hell!” she muttered. When she was back in his room, she did her best not to look at Nate’s bare skin. She grabbed a pillow and threw it at the back of his head. “Get up! You’re going to be late.”
Turning away from him, she went to his closet and slid the door open. “I bet you haven’t even thought about what you’re going to wear.” She spoke so loudly that she was close to shouting. “It’s supposed to be hot today so maybe you can get away with no jacket.” She pulled out a white short-sleeved shirt and held it out. “No. Too informal. You’d look like a salesman.”
She pulled out a light blue long-sleeved cotton shirt. “This one will do.” As she tossed it on the end of the bed, she looked at him.
He’d rolled over and put a pillow behind his head, but his eyes weren’t fully open. His naked chest was exposed. She threw another pillow at him, but he caught it before it hit his face.
“Late for what?” he mumbled.
“Brunch. Remember that? At the mayor’s house?”
With a groan, Nate shook his head. “I think I broke a toe last night. Or maybe it was an ankle.”
Terri was going through hangers of Nate’s trousers and stopped at a black pair with a crisp crease down the front. “Nothing on you is broken and you can’t get out of this. You have to take a shower. You smell like beer and smoke.”
That made Nate give a snort of laughter and he threw back the cover. The only thing he had on was a pair of blue boxers.
Terri watched him walk into the bathroom. Legs! Was every part of him big and strong and hard? It wasn’t until Nate disappeared around the doorway that she let out her breath.
“There are no towels in here.”
“Look under the sink.”
“I used all of them last night when the Wilson kid got sick. Elaine put them in the washer and later I stuck them in the dryer.” Nate looked around the door. “Could you get me a couple? Please?” He went back into the bathroom and turned on the shower.
Terri took off running down the hall. She and Nate had had to adjust to each other’s laundry. She’d learned to search his pockets. “You washed this paper and I can’t read it,” he’d complained. “It’s the model number off that broken pump that’s under cabin sixty-two. Now I’ll have to slide back under there in that filth