The Surrogate Husband Read online

  Without a word, he removed the belt, but before she could reach for him, he pulled out of her, lifted her up and set her on all fours. He grasped her hips possessively and took her.

  She clawed at the sheets and let the exquisite pleasure carry her away. Glancing at him over her shoulder, she delighted in the expression of ecstasy on his face—his pinched eyebrows, clenched jaw, and the pure concentration etched upon his face. But the pull of emotions felt raw, something she’d never wanted to experience again after Richard. No, she had to be imagining that part. Of course she was.

  Dex moved harder and faster. Muscles in his neck corded as he growled his satisfaction, then he collapsed over her and held her against him.

  She tightened, milked every last bit of delight from his flesh.

  “Oh yes, that feels good.” His voice was a masculine rumble. He kissed her back and shoulders so tenderly.

  She wanted to stay in bed with him all day, make love until they could no longer stay awake.

  Someone knocked on the door, and they both stilled.

  “Hello?” Niki called. “Are you two coming to lunch, or should I send a parachute down the chimney with provisions?”

  “She’s nothing if not sarcastic,” Lucy whispered. She sat up and cleared her throat. “Um, yeah. We were…unpacking. Be there in a few.”

  “Uh huh. I’ll tell them you…got hung up.” Niki’s footsteps retreated down the hall.

  Dex tugged on her arm. “Or tied up.”

  “Shh.” She lay down and tried to catch her breath.

  “We’re being a convincing newlywed couple.” He hauled her against him, tempting her to forgo lunch and everything else the family had planned for the day.

  But they couldn’t. Aside from the fact everyone was expecting them, she refused to allow herself to forget their mission.

  It was good sex, period. She knew better than to even think about anything more. She couldn’t step into the trap of emotions. Animals had been known to chew off a leg to free themselves. She wouldn’t put that sort of desperation past herself.

  She had to remember this was all pretend.

  …

  An hour later, Lucy plucked a small bunch of grapes from the fruit platter instead of indulging in one of the heavier pastries that had been laid out for dessert. She’d had a nervous stomach on and off since Dex had picked her up early that morning. Even though she kept telling herself they could pull off the ruse, she could hardly sit still.

  If Aunt Bev found them out, it would break her heart. And now they’d enlisted almost the entire family to go along with the subterfuge, since nearly all of them lived locally, saw Lucy regularly, and knew she wasn’t really married.

  “Can we go swimming now?” Logan asked her.

  She glanced at Elena, his mother, seated on the other side of the table. “You’ll have to do that with your mom or dad.”

  Aunt Bev pushed herself up with much effort and rubbed her palms together. “I have lots planned for us. I’d like you all to change into swimsuits or clothes you don’t mind getting wet.”

  Dex took Lucy’s hand and nodded reassuringly. Was he that attuned to her emotions, or was he merely playing his role superbly? It didn’t really matter. As long as Bev didn’t make them venture into the pool, she’d be fine.

  They followed the crowd up the stairs where they split off to their own rooms. As soon as she’d stripped down to her bra and panties, she felt Dex’s gaze on her, coaxing her libido back to life. It didn’t take a lot of convincing. Much as she’d resolved not to sleep with him again, her body had other ideas.

  Tendrils of desire spread through her like a fast-growing vine. She shook her head, trying to clear it, and grabbed a bathing suit, then stepped behind a tri-fold dressing screen that she immediately realized was nothing more than decoration. The sheer white fabric hid little.

  He chuckled. “You’re killing me, you know.”

  She quickly changed into her bikini. “Sorry. Wasn’t my intention.”

  Dex took her hand and pulled her out from behind the screen. “Why are you hiding from me?”

  She folded her arms over her chest. “We agreed to that one time, Dex.” Not that she wasn’t tempted to make it more than that, but she refused to allow herself to get too used to him.

  Shaking his head, he came closer. “That was your idea. I never signed off on it.” He covered her mouth with his and treated her to a strawberry-flavored kiss. His hands felt so natural on her skin, as if they belonged there. Much as she ought to break away, she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

  “Give me the weekend,” he said against her mouth.

  Temptation didn’t begin to describe the feelings racing through her. Passion, lust, desire.

  “How about a full-body massage later?” The wicked glint in his eyes undid her. His gaze fell to her lips. “I promise you won’t regret it.”

  Closing her eyes, she savored the feeling of his hands roaming up and down her sides. How the hell was she supposed to resist him, especially now that she’d experienced the magic of his touch? “You drive a hard bargain. Just once more. And I mean that.”

  There was a knock at the door. “Quit it, you guys.” Niki again. “I know you’re newlyweds and all, but this is a family reunion.”

  Lucy resolved to talk to her later about the repeated interruptions. “We’ll be right down.”

  Dex pressed his cheek to hers, scratching her skin with the roughness of his. “The more I have of you, the more I want.”

  She felt the same way, which made her lungs compress in trepidation. What if Dex changed his mind and wasn’t on-board to go back to the way things were after this? She extricated herself and turned her back to him. “We should get down there.”

  Ignoring his groan of protest, she plucked a pair of shorts from the dresser, then went into the closet to put them on and find matching sandals.

  When she came out, he was in his swim trunks. “I vote that as long as I’m playing your husband, I should have conjugal rights,” he said.

  She slipped her sunglasses on top of her head. “Conjugal rights, huh?”

  Grinning, he came closer and wrapped his hands around her waist. “Sure. For while we’re here. What happens in Lake Okeechobee stays in Lake Okeechobee.”

  An unwelcome shiver of desire raced up her spine. But she had to remain firmly in control. She disengaged herself, then grabbed two towels and held them against her chest. “All I’ve agreed to is a full-body rub.”

  He let out an exaggerated sigh. “Fine.”

  They joined the others on the back porch a few minutes later.

  Logan was hopping around like a kernel of popcorn in a pan of hot oil. In his Batman swimsuit and matching water wings, he was the cutest thing she’d ever seen.

  He tugged on the bottom of Lucy’s shorts and gestured toward the pool. “Remember I’m going to teach you to swim, okay? Don’t be scared.”

  Dex lifted him into the air. “Lucy doesn’t want to swim today, but how would you like to teach me?”

  The child frowned for a few seconds, then the corners of his lips lifted in a smile. “All right.”

  Aunt Bev and the older couple who ran the inn stood at a table packed with a bunch of brightly colored gift bags. “Mr. and Mrs. Swann have been kind enough to help me put together some activities and competitions for all you young folks.”

  Lucy had to chuckle at Bev’s inclusion of her mother’s generation as young folks.

  “First up we have the slide-a-thon.” She gestured over her shoulder at the long sheet of plastic that had been set up on the back lawn with soaker hoses on either side that extended almost to the chain link fence bordering the lake.

  “We’re going to get full of mud,” Lucy whispered to Dex.

  He shrugged. “I’m game.”

  Which surprised her, since his shirts were always whiter than white, and he never had a hair out of place.

  They all teamed up with their partners. Of course, she was pa
ired with her fake husband. Each couple ran the slippery path until they fell down and slid the rest of the way while Aunt Bev and Trisha’s mom worked the stopwatch.

  Bev judged the event and, not surprisingly, Logan and his partner, Niki, won not only for speed, but also in large part because Logan lost his drawers along the way and provided extra entertainment.

  Bev presented them each with a prize—a hand-held video game for Logan and a gift card for Niki, which happened to be for her favorite mall store.

  Hmm. Maybe the games were all going to be fixed.

  It seemed that Aunt Bev was orchestrating things before they’d even begun, which wasn’t out of character for her. Lucy thought back to the year they’d lived with Bev. She’d taken Lucy and Niki to the grocery store with her. After refusing Niki’s request for bubble gum, she’d loaded the bags and the children into her station wagon, then casually asked Niki for a piece of gum. Being only seven, and not very stealthy, Niki had pulled out the pack she’d lifted from the store and offered a piece to Aunt Bev, only to be marched tear-faced back into the store to apologize and hand over her allowance money. It was then Lucy realized that Aunt Bev had patiently waited until they’d left the store to enact her plan for Niki’s undoing.

  Lucy wondered if there’d be any tests for her and Dex, an event aimed at determining if they were indeed living in wedded bliss. But what sort of game could possibly trip them up?

  Mr. Swann monkeyed with water hoses as they all waited for the next event.

  Patrice, Trisha’s mother, stood up and read the instructions for round two. “Since this is a wedding weekend for our dear Trisha and Alan, this game is called Catch the Bouquet.” She gestured at a basket full of fake flower bundles. “Mr. Swann will push the bouquets around the tennis court and the grass around it using only a high-pressure garden hose. Each team must retrieve their bouquet as soon as they can.”

  “That sounds way too easy,” Uncle Alan said.

  Aunt Bev and Patrice exchanged mischievous grins.

  Patrice held up a finger. “However, you will be tied to your partner by one ankle and one wrist.”

  Dex leaned close to Lucy’s ear. “We’re going to do a variation on that theme sometime soon. In private.”

  She playfully smacked his arm, but a familiar pleasant ache took root low in her belly. Wow. The man kept surprising her. Who knew her quiet CPA had it in him? There was way more to Dex than she’d realized, which might make it even tougher to end the physical part of their relationship. She swallowed hard.

  “The winner,” Patrice continued, “will be the couple who returns their bouquet most intact.”

  Since the game was too dangerous for Logan, who had no one his size, Aunt Bev let him judge.

  Alan and Trisha went first, falling about half a dozen times. When they finally managed to get the bouquet, it resembled a ripped-up dishrag. Jonathan and Elena were up next and did pretty well, but Lucy was confident she and Dex could do better.

  Her mom and Jack failed miserably as did Niki and Trisha’s younger brother, Kyle.

  Finally, she and Dex were up. By this time, the tennis court was completely soaked, but she didn’t let that bother her.

  “Follow my lead,” Dex told her as Uncle Alan tied them together.

  She bristled. “Maybe you should follow mine.”

  Uncle Alan snickered as he bound her left hand to Dex’s right. “Behave, lovebirds.”

  She stuck out her tongue at him then did the same to Dex.

  “Is that any way to treat your husband?” Bev asked her.

  Mr. Swann turned on the hose and the bouquet flew across the pavement. Dex took off without her and they both immediately crashed to the ground.

  Offering a hand, he braced himself on the fence then pulled her up with him. “Let me lead with my free foot. It’s going to go a lot better if one of us sets the pace and the direction.”

  She set her un-tethered hand on her waist. “What you’re saying is that the only way we can win is if you’re in charge.”

  Instead of denying it, he merely shrugged. Glancing at the others, he pulled her closer and lowered his voice. “Someone has to be the leader in a situation like this. A team has one captain, not two.”

  She’d never seen this side of him before, the part that had to take charge. Maybe he was more controlling than she’d realized. Should have figured. Another reason to nip their conjugal visits in the bud.

  “The hose sprung a leak,” Mr. Swann said. “I’ll have another one on here in a minute, folks.”

  Lucy nodded. As they waited, a long-buried memory surfaced in her head. She had a couple school friends at her house for a sleepover when they’d decided to play team hide-and-seek with some of the neighborhood kids. At first, her dad had remained seated on their front stoop, merely observing the game. But when he’d pulled Lucy aside and insisted each team needed a captain, things had gone downhill fast.

  He’d suggested that since it was her birthday, she captain one team. When she’d resisted, he called her a coward, the ultimate insult in his book. So she relented.

  Then he’d coached and prodded her until instead of a friendly neighborhood game, the match became a ruthless, military-style exercise in capturing the opponents. While trying to please her father, she’d lost two friends and earned a reputation in the neighborhood for being a bully, even though the real bully was her dad.

  “So are you going to follow my lead?”

  Dex’s voice jarred her out of the memory.

  She squared her shoulders. “What if I don’t want to?”

  He shrugged. “Then you decide which we way we go. Doesn’t matter to me. But one of us needs to.”

  She was poised to argue with him when she realized he’d offered to turn over control to her. “Wait, what?”

  “If you want to run the show, go for it. It’s not that important.”

  She released the breath she’d been holding, and with it, most of the tension from between her shoulders. “O-okay, then. Follow my lead.” She nodded at Mr. Swann, as he signaled that the new hose was ready to go.

  In the end, they logged the longest time to get the bouquet and got it in the worst condition. “I want to change partners,” she announced jokingly as her aunt awarded prizes to Jonathan and Elena.

  Aunt Bev eyed her. “Haven’t you already chosen your partner for life, dear?”

  Lucy gulped. Every time she confirmed the lie to Aunt Bev, a part of her wanted to curl up and die.

  Dex took her hand and brought it to his lips. “Of course she has.”

  Bless him for saving her from saying it. How did he know she’d needed him to step in just at that moment? As if he sensed exactly where her psychological scar-tissue was, and how to gently skim past it.

  “The next game I’ve planned is croquet.” Aunt Bev pointed to a set of brightly colored mallets and balls. “And this is one I can participate in and so can Logan.”

  Logan shook his fists enthusiastically. “I want to be Lucy’s partner.”

  Lucy considered telling him this game didn’t have partners, but when she saw the excitement on his angelic face, she couldn’t bring herself to let him down. “Absolutely,” she said.

  Bev took a few shaky steps toward the first wicket. “I may need a partner as well. I don’t think I can hit the ball and hold my cane at the same time.”

  Dex picked up a blue mallet and strode to her side. “I’ll be your caddy.”

  Her expression was priceless. She smiled wide, and her cheeks bloomed a rosy pink. “As long as that’s okay with your wife. We’d hate to make her jealous.”

  At Lucy’s nod, Bev moved into place and took her mallet from Dex as she handed over her cane. But when she teetered, he stood behind her and helped her make the shot.

  It took only half an hour for Bev to beat everyone. After, Dex helped her back up to the porch.

  “You’ve got my approval,” she told him. Then, she winked at Lucy. “I wouldn’t mind waking up to him
every morning.”

  Now Lucy blushed.

  Aunt Bev waved them all over then told them about the next event, which she’d made up. She read from a paper. “You all know the tradition of the groom carrying the bride across the threshold, right?”

  Several people answered at once. “Yes.”

  Mrs. Swann took wads of white tulle out of a shopping bag then came around to each woman and used bobby pins to secure the fabric to their hair.

  Once all the ladies were done up with mock bridal veils, Bev went on. “This event is based on that tradition. But with a catch. In this game, each groom must swim across the pool bearing his bride on his back. The first couple to swim two laps wins.”

  Lucy shook her head and backed away. “I can’t,” she whispered.

  Dex pulled her against him and spoke next to her ear. “I’ll keep you safe. I promise.”

  Bev narrowed her eyes. “Is everything all right, Lucy?”

  Her cheeks grew warm. She didn’t want to admit her secret fear of water and spoil Aunt Bev’s obvious joy. “I’m okay. I’m just not the fastest swimmer.”

  She shrugged. “Let your husband help you. If you trust him, he’ll get you safely across. That’s the point of this game. You do trust him, don’t you? That’s the cornerstone of a good marriage. But it’s up to you.”

  Dex was her casual friend and her accountant, not her real husband. How was she supposed to put her life in his hands?

  He squeezed her hand, and her mom gave her an encouraging smile, but as she glanced at the water, the memory of nearly drowning filled her mind. Nausea threatened, and her head felt as if it was going to explode. No, she couldn’t.

  “Come on everyone,” Bev said. “Let’s get started. Lucy, Dex. Are you ready?”

  She seemed hell-bent on having everyone participate. Perhaps this was the test to see if they were really the couple they were pretending to be. Aunt Bev clapped her hands like a school principal. Or a drill sergeant. “Everyone to the pool.”

  Lucy’s tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth.