Native Affairs

“Hey,” he said, laughing, “slow down.” He hugged her tightly and caught Amy’s eye over A

A

“Where’s your maid?” Heath asked Amy.

“Gone for the night.”

He nodded again. There was a long silence and then Amy cleared her throat ostentatiously, saying, “Well, I guess I’ll just leave you two kids alone.”

“Where are you going?” A

“Over to Carol’s, she’s back from North Carolina.”

“Okay to give us till around midnight?” Heath asked.

“Fine. See you then.”

Amy slipped out through the patio doors and Heath held A

“You’ve lost weight,” he said sternly.

“Just a couple of pounds. What did you expect, Heath? It was hell not being able to see you or even talk to you.” She flung her arms around his neck again and he kissed her forehead.

“How did you get in here?” A

“Princess, knock off the KGB stuff, will you, please? Your dad is not Big Brother, he can’t be watching everybody.”

“He was watching me. How do you think he found out about us?” A

“I know, Amy told me, but I refuse to sneak around like a burglar just because your father has gone nuts.”

“Don’t underestimate him, Heath, he can hurt us if he wants to—he already has. We haven’t seen each other for a week!”

“Yeah, well I’m pla

“What do you mean, Heath?” A

“Never mind. We’re together now, let’s enjoy it. Come on over here and sit down with me.” He took her by the hand and led her out to the ornate living room, where he sat on the sofa and A

“Spiffy place,” he said, looking around curiously. “Must be nice to have the bucks. Does your house look like this?”

“I guess so. Not quite. My mother’s taste is not as... well, gaudy.”

“What, no gold-fringed lampshades?”

“No.” A

“Come on, Princess. We just got here and you’re worrying about that already?”

“Yes, I’m worrying about that already. I can’t think about anything else. I’m going back to school in ten days or so. What will happen then?”

“I’ll come and visit you at school.”

“Heath, don’t be ridiculous, that place is like Fort Knox. You practically have to take a blood test to show you’re a relative to get on the visitors list. I won’t be able to see you there.”

“Can’t you sneak off campus or something?”

“I can try. But if my father warns them, as he surely will, they’ll be watching me, supervising my every move. Oh, it’s all so complicated I can’t stand it.”

“We’ll work it out.”

“How? I don’t know what to do, and I’m afraid—” She stopped suddenly.

“What?” Heath said, stroking her hair.

“I’m afraid that you’ll get tired of this cloak-and-dagger routine, decide that I’m not worth it. After all, there are plenty of willing girls around and none of them have Henry Talbot for a father.”

“Oh, baby, no. Don’t think that. You’ll always be worth it, and your father isn’t going to keep us apart. I promise you that.” He turned her face up for his kiss, and it wasn’t long before they were prone on the sofa, the deprivation of the past week escalating into a hunger that neither one of than seemed able to control. Finally Heath tore himself away and sat up, pulling A

“Baby, we can’t do this,” he said breathlessly. “It’s not right, you’re just a kid...”

“Oh, and you’re Methuselah?”

“I know a lot more about life than you do, and I know you’re not ready for this.”

“Why?” A

He groaned and closed his eyes.

“Love me,” A

He didn’t move.

A

Heath moaned in response and let his head fall back in abandon. A

He was beautiful, his skin a smooth, even shade of light copper, a combination of his heritage and long hours spent in the sun. He was lean but not thin, his arms defined by long, ropy muscles, his abdomen flat, his legs long and trim.

She shuddered with skittish anticipation as he lowered himself to her again. A

He felt her reaction and said, “Easy, easy,” into her ear. Then he kissed her gently. The surprising softness of his mouth, his muscular arms binding her to him, lulled her back into his spell again. She relaxed as he twined his limbs with hers, turning her toward him and caressing her until she was eager and receptive once more. When she shifted instinctively and felt him ready against her, she pressed into him with an eager i

“So sweet,” he murmured, and she sighed, her face flushed, her brow dewed with perspiration. He stroked her until she wound her legs around his hips, begging for the bliss of total union.

“Are you sure?” he muttered, and A

“I love you, Heath. I’m sure.”

He pulled her to him tightly, then gasped as she touched him tentatively, encircling him with her fingers. He bit his lip as she trailed the fingers of her free hand over his abdomen, then stroked his thighs, sculpted with muscle. Her touch, light but probing, finally brought him to the limit of his endurance. With one swift movement he positioned her under him, looming above her, his skin hot to the touch and his body taut with tension.

“I want you,” he said hoarsely.

“I want you, too,” she whimpered, and he took her at her word, entering her in that moment.

A

“Are you all right?” he gasped, fighting the overpowering urge to sink into her again.

“I don’t know,” she said in a small voice.