Slow Burn (A Madaris Family Novel) Read online

  In the meantime…

  “Come on,” he said, holding her hand and leading her toward a wooded path.

  She straightened her bent shoulders and gazed at him, asking softly, “Where are we going?”

  “To take a walk.”

  She smiled. “Another walk?”

  “Yes. I’ve always discovered when I have a lot on my mind, walking helps.”

  She glanced down at the clipboard he had placed on a nearby table. “But I don’t want to take you away from your work.”

  A fine tremor settled in the hand holding hers. How could he explain to her that at that moment his work didn’t matter, when his work had always mattered? “Don’t worry about it. Everybody needs to take a break from work every once in a while.”

  For the next twenty minutes they walked quietly while he held her hand. To him they seemed like old friends and not two people who had just met yesterday. In retrospect, that in itself made no sense at all. It just felt right.

  They came to the end of the path, which connected to a natural stream. Skye thought it was a beautiful parcel of land that Justin and his family used often, as indicated by the picnic tables and benches as well as a tree house in one of the huge oak trees. In fact, there were two tree houses.

  Skye glanced up and studied both. Each was situated in a large oak tree, and they were about twenty feet from each other. One had definitely been built for a girl. There were frilly pink curtains in the windows, and instead of having to use your physical skill to climb up the tree, there was something akin to a spiral staircase leading to it. Skye shook her head. She had never seen such a thing before.

  Slade followed the direction of her gaze and smiled. “Justin and I built that for Justina for her fourth birthday. Those stairs were my idea. In fact, I designed the entire thing.” He chuckled. “I guess you can say it was my first project as an architect.”

  “Wow! That was some playhouse for a four-year-old.”

  “Yes, I have to admit it was at the time, but it was designed to grow with her, and from what I understand, she still gets a lot of use out of it. She’s at the age where she likes her privacy, away from her nagging brothers. Although she adores the both of them, they can get on Justina’s last nerve at times, with her being the only girl.”

  Not for the first time Skye felt a tinge of envy for anyone who had not been an only child. She used to beg her parents for other children, and they had flatly refused, saying she was all they intended to have. Now she wondered why she had been adopted in the first place. That had never been shared with her. She could only assume that one of her parents could not conceive a child. Then that would explain why they had been so adamant about not giving her a sibling. It wasn’t that they hadn’t wanted to but that they couldn’t.

  “Ready to head back?”

  Slade’s words intruded on her thoughts. “Yes, and you’re right; walking helps clear a lot off your mind.”

  “I hope you’re not worried about Vincent. I think last night proved he wants you to be a part of his life.”

  Skye smiled. “No, that’s not it.”

  “Oh.”

  Feeling she probably owed him an explanation, especially since he’d taken so much time with her today, she said, “I talked to my parents, and I just can’t figure them out at times. I know they were upset about me coming here, but I would think since I’ve told them how receptive both the Madarises and Vincent are, they would be happy for me.”

  “But you think they aren’t?”

  “Yes, I more than got that feeling after talking to them a short while ago.”

  Slade tried looking at it from her parents’ point of view and said, “Don’t be so hard on them, Skye. Maybe they’re afraid they will lose you. They’d had you all your life, and now you’re embarking on another life that doesn’t include them.”

  “But it can include them, Slade, if they let it. They have no reason to think my finding Vincent will mean my not wanting them anymore. I think they would understand, considering I’m just meeting Vincent, that quite naturally I’d want to spend time with him, and get to know him. That has nothing to do with how I feel about them. They are my parents and I love them.”

  She didn’t add that at times through the years they had been hard to love, especially her mom. Whenever she would do something not in keeping with her mother’s wishes, she would get the silent treatment until she would bend to Edith Barclay’s will. Her decision to marry Wayne had been one of those times. Skye could now admit she never loved him and had only agreed to marry him to satisfy her parents.

  “Well, take it from someone who knows, parents can be a real trip sometimes, but when push comes to shove, they have our best interests at heart and we wouldn’t trade them for the world.”

  A part of Skye knew what Slade said was true. Although the Barclays hadn’t been the warmest and most loving of parents, she believed they loved her in their own way. And as far as having her best interests at heart, she assumed that was the reason they’d been adamant about her marrying Wayne. Where she was from, some parents still practiced the art of arranging marriages for their kids, especially if they thought it would be a good match financially.

  “Skye?”

  “Yes?”

  Instead of answering her, Slade blew out a deep breath and then rubbed his hand down his face. “You know what’s happening between us is crazy, don’t you?”

  Her eyes darted nervously from Slade to the tree house’s staircase. She thought of pretending as if she didn’t know what he was talking about. But she did know. “Yes, and I thought we had decided it wouldn’t work. At least for me it won’t.”

  “Then why do you let me keep kissing you?”

  Now that was a good question, one she didn’t have an answer for. The only one she had, which she wouldn’t dare share with him, was that she enjoyed his kisses. Almost too much.

  “Skye?”

  She returned her gaze to his and decided to be truthful…a little bit. “I feel comfortable with you, Slade. I have from the first. And maybe it’s wrong to let you take such liberties, but…”

  “But what?” He leaned against the trunk of a smaller oak tree and she watched as his lips tipped into a sexy smile. “Go ahead and tell me. But what?”

  She shrugged. “I don’t know. I hope you don’t think bad things about me because I have let you kiss me a few times.”

  Three times, to be exact, he thought. And yes, he was counting and dying to take the fourth. “No, I don’t think that way at all. Friends can kiss.”

  But would they do so with the same intensity? Skye couldn’t help asking herself. “So, that could be a good reason. The reason I let you kiss me is because we’re friends.”

  “Kissing friends?”

  She studied the look in his eyes. She could see blatant desire in them and knew the truth had nothing to do with friendship, but she wasn’t ready for either of them to admit it. “Yes, kissing friends. That’s a lot safer than being kissing cousins, don’t you think?”

  He smiled. “Umm, now that’s a thought. Since you’re Vincent’s sister and I consider him my cousin, does that mean you’re my cousin as well?” His gaze then dropped to her mouth.

  She’d seen the movement of his gaze, and his focus on her lips sent a spiraling sensation through her midsection. “Technically, we aren’t cousins. Biologically, we aren’t, either. But if you want to think of me as your cousin, I don’t have a problem with it.”

  He shook his head as he eased away from the tree to take a closer step toward her. “No, I don’t want to think of you as a cousin. I like thinking of you as a friend better. A very special friend.”

  “One you like to kiss?”

  “Yes, one I like to kiss.”

  And with that said, he lowered his head and glided his tongue across her lips before staking his claim on her mouth by devouring her lips for a fourth time. The first thought that came to his mind was that each time he kissed her was better than the last. The se
cond thing was that he could spend the entire day kissing her and would never get tired. Their mouths fit perfectly. Their tongues mingled completely. And each time he mated his mouth with hers he was getting detailed knowledge of her mouth. He knew just what to do to hear that little catch in her voice, that certain sexy moan, and what to do to make her tongue grab hold to his like it was something she had to have and anything else…anyone else, for that matter…was unacceptable.

  Finally, he slowly pulled his mouth back and watched as she took her tongue, that same irresistible tongue he had feasted on, and licked her lips. Watching her made him lick his own. “Had enough?” he asked, clearing his throat.

  She laughed a little self-consciously. “Do you want the truth?”

  “Always.”

  “No.”

  That answer satisfied him. He pulled her back into his arms as raw need shot through him. Consumed him. He thrust his tongue into her mouth when she parted her lips on a sigh, and began tasting her all over again. And this time he wouldn’t let up until they both had enough. Which could very well be a long time from now.

  CHAPTER 9

  Slade sat at the dinner table, hearing what Vincent, Justina, and Christopher were saying as they filled everyone in on the happenings at school that day.

  Slade was hearing but not listening.

  His attention was focused on Skye who was sitting across the table from him. He thought about their walk earlier that day, trying to remember every little detail, especially the kisses they had shared. He would need those memories to sustain him when he was back in Houston working on all those projects that were lined up for him to do.

  “So what do you think, Slade?”

  He blinked, realizing Justin had asked him a question. “Excuse me?”

  Justin shot a knowing grin his way. “I asked what you thought of Vincent going to Maine for a few weeks this summer to visit with Skye? That would mean him altering the plans the two of you have made.”

  Slade glanced around the table and saw that Justina and Christopher had left, probably to do their homework. He hadn’t realized they were gone. Everyone was staring at him. Damn, what had he missed?

  “I’m sorry, my mind was elsewhere for a moment,” he offered as an excuse. He glanced across the table at Skye and Vincent. “You want Vincent to visit with you this summer in Maine?” he asked.

  Skye nodded, smiling. “Yes, but Lorren mentioned he’s supposed to work for you and your brother at Madaris Construction this summer as a student intern.”

  Slade leaned back in his chair. “Yes, that’s our plan.” He glanced at Vincent. “Which do you prefer doing?”

  Vincent smiled excitedly. “Both. I’ve been looking forward to spending the summer in Houston with Gramma and Grampa and everyone, and especially working for you and Blade since I want to be an architect one day. But I want to spend time with Skye as well.”

  Slade nodded. “We could possibly split the time and instead of you being in Houston the entire summer, you could be there for the first two months and then go to Maine for the last.”

  Vincent’s eyes lit up. “Could that be arranged?”

  Slade shrugged. “It will depend on whether your school agrees to it.” He turned his attention back to Skye to explain. “Vincent attends a college preparatory school where he gets college credit if he does something that relates to the field of study he intends to pursue at a college. Usually, it requires him to fulfill so many hands-on hours.”

  He gazed back at Vincent. “I suggest that you check with the guidance department at your school tomorrow.”

  Vincent nodded eagerly. “I will.”

  “And if that doesn’t work,” Skye said to everyone at the table, “I have another idea that just might.”

  “And what idea is that?” Justin asked, smiling after taking a sip of his coffee.

  “I could take a leave of absence from my job and come spend the summer in Houston.”

  Lorren lifted a surprised brow. “Can you just take off like that?”

  “Yes. My employer is real flexible. I’ve worked with them for a long time, ever since college, and I’ve put in a lot of extra hours over the years and have rarely taken time off. Besides, I had planned to take a three-month block of time off after my wedding anyway, and—”

  “You’re getting married?” Vincent asked, surprised.

  Skye glanced at him. “I was but not anymore.” And not wanting to go into any further details about her canceled wedding plans, she said, “I really don’t think taking the extra time off will be a problem. And although I would love for Vincent to see Maine, I don’t have a problem spending time in Houston. I’ve never been there before and hear it’s a nice place.”

  “It is,” Justin said, proud of the city where he was born. “And you’re willing to take a leave from your job this summer?”

  Skye smiled. “Yes, if it means getting to spend some time with Vincent. I have enough money saved where I can do it without it hurting me financially.”

  “If you get bored we could always use help at Madaris Construction,” Slade spoke up and said. “In fact, Sherri, our present accountant, will be going out on maternity leave next month, and I haven’t had time to contact a temporary agency about getting her a replacement.”

  Skye lifted a surprised brow. “Are you offering me a job for the summer?”

  Slade chuckled as he shook his head. It seemed that he was. What had he been thinking of just now, doing such a thing? But the offer was out there and he couldn’t withdraw it. If she accepted it he would try like hell to find a way not to kiss her every chance he got. He would keep their relationship in the office strictly business.

  He inhaled deeply before saying, “Yes, I am.”

  “Boy, that’s cool!” Vincent exclaimed. “Now we’ll both be working for Madaris Construction Company.”

  Skye didn’t want to get Vincent’s hopes up regarding that. “I appreciate you making the offer, but I’ll have to think about it, Slade,” she said in a voice that to his way of thinking sounded kind of breathless. Was she, too, wondering how they would keep their attraction under control if they were to work together?

  “It was just a suggestion. If Vincent’s school goes along with letting him work for us for only two months, then you won’t have to come to Houston at all,” Slade said.

  At that moment something hot spread all through him. The thought of her being in Houston, even for a short while, was almost too much to think about.

  Later that night Lorren snuggled close to her husband. Everyone had gone to bed hours ago, and she had worked on the last chapter of her book while Justin had read an article in one of his medical journals.

  Now that she had his full attention, she asked, “Wasn’t that a wonderful gesture that Skye made to offer to spend time with Vincent this summer in Houston if he can’t get away to visit her in Maine?”

  Justin wrapped his arms around his wife. “Yes, it was.”

  “And after that soccer game Vincent and Skye played after dinner, she approached me, worried about how the other family members would feel. She doesn’t want to take away any time they plan to spend with him this summer while he’s in Houston. I told her not to worry about it and that the Madaris family isn’t that way. His grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins will be glad to share him with her.” Lorren chuckled. “I think Vincent has called everyone and told them about her and they’re looking forward to meeting her. I managed to convince her there’s enough love in the Madaris family to go around, but she’ll see for herself once she meets the rest of the family.”

  Justin agreed, “Yes, she will.”

  “So, what do you think is happening between Slade and Skye?” Lorren rose up a little in bed to ask.

  Justin chuckled. “You’ve picked up on it, too, have you?”

  Lorren’s lips eased into a smile as she settled back down beside him, in his arms again. “How could I not, Justin? The sexual tension surrounding them is so thick you could a
ctually cut it with a knife. Reminds me of how things were between us in the beginning.”

  Justin nodded. “Skye’s a very pretty girl and you know the Madaris men. They do have eyes for beauty.”

  “Yes, and at least it’s Slade and not Blade. If it was Blade, then I’d be worried.”

  Justin lifted a brow. “Why’s that?” he asked, although he already knew the answer.

  Lorren rolled her eyes. “Come on now, Justin; you know Blade. He’s going through his bad-boy Clayton Madaris stage where every pretty face captures his attention, but not for long. He’s earning the reputation of being a heartbreaker. I always figured Slade would be more like you. Once he meets the woman he wants, he will pursue her with diligence.”

  “So you think his offer of summer employment to Skye is his way to do that?”

  “Yes, but I don’t think he realizes it yet. Although he might be planning to pursue her, it won’t hit him as to why he’s doing it until much later. When it comes to matters of the heart, the men in your family have a tendency to be rather slow.”

  Justin chuckled. “You think you have the men in my family figured out, don’t you?”

  She smiled up at him. “Yes, I think so.”

  Justin pulled her closer into his arms. He thought she had the men in his family figured out pretty much as well. He then remembered his conversation with Clayton that day. “I talked to Clayton earlier today. He’s concerned,” he said softly.

  “Yes, I know. Syneda’s told me. She doesn’t agree with his take on things, and neither do I. I truly believe everything about Skye is what we see and she doesn’t have an ulterior motive for seeking Vincent out. Once Clayton meets her and sees the kind of person she is and how much her relationship with Vincent truly means to her, he’ll see how wrong he is in thinking such a thing.”