Page 71 of The Banned Books Club

Giving himself permission to really let go and make love to her as boldly and confidently as he craved, he kissed her as many times as he wanted—touched her, too, and entwined his limbs with hers. But the more he touched and kissed her, the more he wanted to touch and kiss her. He seemed to be chasing something elusive, something he couldn’t quite catch. It was that buildup, together with the anticipation, that made his time with Gia unlike anything he’d experienced before.

Lifting her legs over his shoulders, he licked his way up her right thigh, inhaling the musky scent of her as he went. Everything about her appealed to him, he realized. He wanted to continue to experiment and become more familiar with her body and figure out what she liked.

Eventually, he located the spot that would bring her the most pleasure. She jumped when his mouth settled there, so he knew he’d found what he was looking for, and that success brought him such an exquisite feeling. She was so engaged and responsive; it made their intimacy that much more fun.

Too bad this couldn’t last forever, he thought.

Maybe it was the fact that when it came to each other they had nothing to worry about except what happened tonight that made the sex so remarkable. Gia didn’t have to be concerned about getting into a relationship that might be difficult to escape, didn’t have to wonder whether she’d like Cormac next week, next month or next year, whether she’d hurt him in the end, or he’d hurt her. None of that played a role because they had zero expectations of each other. It had to be the absence of all the things that normally hung over her head that made it so good.

Their peculiar history made it more than a little surprising that they’d ended up in bed together, but making love with Cormac felt cathartic, as if they were dispensing with all the pain and negative feelings they’d had concerning each other in one big cataclysmic event. The emotional release added to the physical release; it was the combination that made it so powerful.

As the tension built, she tightened her legs around his hips and told herself to quit thinking. She wanted to be completely present in this moment, wanted to concentrate solely on the feel of him—his lower body pressing into hers, the muscles that stood out on his arms and shoulders as he bore the bulk of his weight to avoid crushing her, the smell of his bedding and the scent of his warm body, and especially the intense expression on his face.

When he closed his eyes, she knew he was getting close to climax and thought he might beat her there. Especially when her phone started to ring outside the room, somewhere on the stairs where Cormac had dropped her jeans after helping her peel them off. The sound caught her attention for a split second, but she resisted the distraction just long enough to achieve her release.

When she groaned, he said something unintelligible. She guessed it signified relief, especially when he stopped trying to hold back and drove into her more powerfully until his body jerked and he shuddered before slumping over.

“Wow,” he said, breathing heavily as he shifted his weight to one side.

She didn’t get the chance to respond. Her phone was ringing again. Apparently, someonereallywanted to get hold of her.

Her first thought was of her mother. This wasn’t the moment she’d been dreading, was it?

Her stomach knotted at the mere possibility. But then another thought struck her, and this one somehow seemed more imminent and therefore more likely, despite her mother’s fragile health.

Margot.

“I have to get that!” she exclaimed and climbed over Cormac as quickly as he could let her go.

“Hello?”

Margot caught her breath when she heard her sister’s voice. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t reach out toanyoneafter she ran away. She knew it could ruin what she was trying to do by leaving clues as to where she was and where she might be going. Sheldon could find out she was in Spokane and start searching from there.

But she was leaving Washington in the morning. And she’d had to use her credit card again for the room. That would probably provide him with just as much information. So the fact that she’d use a stranger’s phone at this particular time seemed worth the risk, especially since she’d blocked the number. She’d felt she had to speak to her sister. The magnitude of leaving the way she had—what it would mean for her and her children—had become overwhelming. All she could think about was her family, especially her mother.

“Hello?” she heard Gia say for the second time. “Margot, is it you?”

In a sudden panic, she hung up.

Unsure and self-conscious, she looked over at the woman whose phone she’d borrowed to make sure she wasn’t being watched too closely. The kind-faced, middle-aged brunette was still checking in and didn’t seem to be worried that Margot might run off with her phone. But Margot didn’t have much time. When she’d come to the lobby to purchase trail mix—she’d been too riddled with anxiety to eat dinner—she’d left Greydon and Matthew sleeping in the room a few doors down the hall and needed to get back as soon as possible, just in case one of them woke up.

Margot told herself she should return the phone to its owner, purchase the trail mix and stick to her original plan. But the thought that her mother might die without any word from her prompted her to call back.

When Gia answered for the second time, Margot said, “It’s me.”

“What phone are you calling from?”

“A stranger’s.”

“A stranger’s! Margot, what are you doing? Where have you been? Please tell me you’re on your way back home.”

She ducked her head so her words wouldn’t echo across the lobby. “No, I can’t ever come back. And I can’t tell you where I am. I—I just wanted to check on Mom. I need to hear that she’s okay, and I was hoping you’d tell her that...that I’m sorry and I’ll always love her.”

“Why don’t you call and tell her yourself?”

“Because it’s too late for tonight. I don’t want to wake her. And I only have this phone for a few minutes.”

“What’s happening?” Gia asked. “Why’d you leave without saying a word? Is it Sheldon? Is he really having an affair? If so, you don’t need to give up the house, the town you grew up in and associating with your family. Divorce the bastard! I’ll help you do it. You know I will.”

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