At His Mercy Page 4

  Uh, no. Her SUV was gone. The guest parking lot was empty except for a bells-and-whistles pickup that hadn't been there when she'd pulled in last night. So much for Donovan taking her keys by mistake.

  Son of a bitch. What he'd done was take her vehicle, and she had a good idea where she'd find it. If he thought for a minute she was going to let him pay for last night by buying her a new tire—

  "Hey, Ms. Kimball."

  Hearing her name, she turned to see an older man coming around the corner of the house and waving her down. He wore a ball cap and overalls, and was as wiry as Wayne, who from the resemblance had to be his son.

  "I'm Wayne's dad, Ken Barrett. I tried to catch you at breakfast."

  "I slept in. Yesterday was a long one." And God she hoped he didn’t know where she’d spent the night. "I don't suppose Danport has a cab? Looks like I'm going to need one."

  "Fred Shine at Shine's Auto gives folks a ride when they need one. But with Nova leaving you his truck, I'd say your all set."

  Wait a minute. What? "His truck?"

  "Yes'm. I've got the keys for you right here," he said, digging into his pocket and offering her the fob. "He said for you to come on down to the Pit when you were ready and you two could switch out."

  Her mind raced. She needed a shower and a change of clothes. But first she needed to get her hands on her SUV. "Would it be all right if I do the switching out then return for my things? I'll be happy to pay you for a second night."

  "Stay as long as you need. We've got three empty rooms and no reservations. We don't book up fully till summer with family reunions and all."

  "Thank you so much," she said, heading for Donovan's truck and using the fob to unlock the door. "I'll be out of your hair as soon as I can. I don't want to wear out my welcome."

  "Like I said, Ms. Kimball. Stay as long as you'd like." Ken hooked his thumbs in the bib of his overalls and rocked back on his heels. "Any friend of Donovan True's is a friend of Danport's. And mine."

  Chapter Eight

  Donovan was standing behind the desk in The Swamp Pit's office, opening the mail he hadn't made it through yesterday, when the door flew open and Lise burst through.

  She was wearing the same clothes he’d stripped her out of last night, and her face was washed clean of makeup, her hair caught at her nape in a band. She was scattered and flustered. She was gorgeous.

  She was also mad as hell. "What did you do with my SUV?"

  It was less of a question and more of a demand, and her fury punctuated each word. He'd been expecting gratitude, maybe a smile and another slow dance. Not … this.

  "It's at Fred Shine's. He's having to get the tire in from Hattiesburg. It'll be here around two, so you should be on your way by three."

  "Did you pay for it?" she asked, still standing inside the door, still furious, her arms crossed tightly over her chest.

  Was that what this was about? He'd stepped on her independent toes or something? "I did, but only because it was a special order. Feel free to pay me back."

  "Count on it." Seconds clicked, as did her mental gears. Then her gaze dropped from his, a frown drawing her arched brows together. "Or I will as soon as I can get to an ATM. I wasn't expecting to stop until New Orleans and used most of my cash on the room I didn’t use."

  He knew she had credit cards. He'd seen them last night at the bar when she'd offered to pay for her drink. He knew, too, that the Barretts had no problem accepting credit card payments, and yet she'd paid cash.

  All he could think was Lise wanted to keep her flight from Atlanta off the grid. He didn't like the implications.

  He circled the desk, coming nearer but staying out of contact range. He'd let her close the distance when she was ready. If she ever was.

  The uneasiness tripping down his spine left him doubting.

  "Will your ex be watching for activity on your accounts? Does he have those kind of connections?"

  She nodded, toying with the strap of the bag hooked over her shoulder. "Knowing Mark, he reported my SUV stolen the minute he realized I was gone."

  Christ. "He'd do that? Have you arrested?"

  She looked at him then, her expression having gone nearly blank. Even so, emotion seethed in the air around her, thick and palpable and panicked. "He does what he has to to hold onto what's his."

  Donovan jammed a fist to his hip, rubbed his other hand over his forehead. This was the fiction he wrote about. The fiction of television, of movies. And yet, no fiction could ever be as strange, as real, as the truth.

  He took in her vulnerability, weighed it against the taste of last night that still lingered, and swore he’d do what it took to make sure she was safe. "Will he look for you in New Orleans?"

  "Sooner or later, sure. But I'll be okay there. My brother's not a fan."

  Her brother wasn't the only one. Breathing deeply, he curled his fingers over the edge of the desk and leaned back. "Forget the ATM. Write me a check. I'll cash it and hold it as long as you need me to."

  The bluster left her and she collapsed into the corner of the big leather sofa where he'd spent more than a few nights. Seeing her shattered lit a protective fire in his gut, but he stayed put, waiting.

  Her voice, when it finally came, was barely a whisper and a broken one at that. "Why? Why would you do that for me?"

  The fire burned hotter. "Because I'd like to help you out."

  "In exchange for sex?"

  "No, Lise," he said, pushing straight from the desk. "Not in exchange for sex."

  She stared at him. Studied him. "Then I don't get it. You don't even know me."

  Had no one ever done anything nice for her before? "Maybe that's why. Maybe I'd like to get to know you."

  "Because of the sex."

  "Criminy, Lise! What the hell did your ex do to you?"

  He hadn't meant to yell, and immediately regretted it. He didn't want to run her off the way the bastard she'd left obviously had.

  But as he watched, the remnants of bravado holding her up fell away. Tears welled to redden her eyes, and she dropped her gaze from his. She didn't move. She just sat there. Silent. Shaking. Crying, and not wanting him to see.

  He didn't have to see. Or hear. From the moment she'd burst into the office, he'd known something more than his replacing her tire was eating at her. And her questions made it pretty clear what it was.

  "Your ex. He turned your sex life into a joke, didn't he?"

  "Not a joke," she said, shaking her head. "There wasn't anything funny about it."

  Bad choice of words. He walked to the door, shut it. "Tell me."

  She shrugged, twisted the fabric of her skirt. "What's to tell? We had sex when he wanted something. End of story."

  Fucking ass. To do that to this woman? To manipulate her with something she so obviously loved? "That shouldn't have happened. To you. To any woman. But especially to you. I'm sorry."

  "No," she said, inhaling deeply, blowing out the breath before going on. "I'm the one who owes you an apology. You're not Mark."

  "You’re damn right. I'm not." He moved away from the door and sat beside her, reaching for her hand. "The tire isn't about the sex, Lise. It's about seeing you safe on the road."

  "I know."

  "Even if I don't want you to go."

  "What?" she asked, her head coming up, her confused gaze finding his.

  He hadn't meant to say it, but he realized he meant every word. He wasn't ready to let her walk out of his life. Not yet. Not now. "I don't want you to go."

  "I have to—"

  "No you don't."

  "My brother—"

  The idea came out of nowhere. "Cook for me here."

  "What?"

  "I know steaks and burgers won’t be much of a challenge, but I'll only be here another six months. Stay, and we can go to New Orleans together."

  She got to her feet, turned and looked back. "Wait. You're not making any sense. Why would you go to New Orleans?"

  "Because I live there."
He stood, walked to her. "And because you'll be there."

  "You live there?" She blinked, blinked again, shook her head. "Why didn't you tell me?"

  "I just did."

  "I don't know. I just … don't know," she said, her fingers coming up to press the deep crevice between her brows.

  She was close. So close. He tempted her further. "A day at a time, Lise. That's all I'm asking for. I want to know you better. Twenty-four hours isn't enough."

  She laughed softly. "It hasn't even been twenty-four hours. It's barely been twelve."

  "The best twelve I've spent in a very long time. Maybe the best I've spent in forever."

  "You're just saying that to get in my pants."

  "No, Lise." He cupped her face. "If I want to get in your pants, I won't play mind games or word games. I won't play games at all."

  "What will you do?" she asked shakily, wetting her lips and catching the lower with the edge of her teeth.

  He smiled then. He knew that he had her. Knew he was the one at her mercy. "Why don't you let me show you?"

  Chapter Nine

  From the corner swing on the side porch of the Barrett's Bed & Breakfast, Lise watched Donovan load his boxes of belongings into his pickup's bed. He'd lived two years with fewer personal items than she'd brought with her from Atlanta.

  Granted, she'd packed up her life, and he'd needed nothing but T-shirts, jeans, and his laptop for writing. But it was hard to believe she'd lived in Danport for six months with so little when she'd lived in her other life with so much.

  Oh, but this life was so much better. Here she had the only things that mattered. Here she had love and respect, a partnership and passion.

  Here she had Donovan True.

  And now they were finally making the trip to New Orleans. He was returning to the home he'd been away from two years, and she was going with him. Her unexpected layover was coming to an end. It was time to begin the rest of her life.

  Of their life.

  Donovan slammed the truck's tail gate, bringing her back to the moment. He dusted his hands together and headed for the porch. When he caught her watching him, he slowed his steps, his smile both wicked and sweet.

  He leaned against the railing in front of her, his hands in his pockets, his feet crossed at the ankle. "You talk to your brother?"

  Still clutching her phone, she nodded, wondering how he could make her want him by doing nothing at all. "The chef he hired still has six months on his contract, so I'll have that time to learn the ropes and everything."

  "Anything more from your ex?"

  "I think Mark got the message when Rich kicked him out of the restaurant for the third time. Not a word since the last incident, and that's been what? Four months now?"

  "Another four and he'll be out of your life for good."

  They both knew the damage Mark had caused her would be a long time in fading away, but the end of their legal bond couldn't come soon enough. Neither could saying goodbye to Danport.

  As much as she was going to miss what she'd shared here with Donovan, it was time to see how their relationship fared in the real world. She was ready.

  She stood, moving against him, weaving their thighs, pressing her hips to his, looping her arms around his neck and rubbing her breasts against his very hard chest. "Tell me one more time about your bed."

  He nuzzled his mouth to the edge of hers, his beard stubble scratching. She shivered in response, shivered again when he ran both palms down her back to her bottom and squeezed.

  "If you’ll get your pretty ass behind the wheel, we’ll be there in less than two hours. You can see it for yourself."

  She threaded her fingers into his hair, felt the pulse of his erection against her thigh. "Two hours is too long."

  "I think you can wait." He whispered the words into her ear, teething her earlobe, sucking at the skin of her neck.

  This time the shivers had her panties growing damp. What had she ever done without Donovan True in her life? "You don’t know me very well, do you?"

  He pulled back, his gaze tender as it held onto hers. "Good thing I’ve got the rest of my life to figure you out."

  A lifetime with this man would never be enough. She smiled, her lips against his as she whispered, "Baby, you are so going to need it."

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  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine