DESTINED AFFECTION

EIGHT

Lauren watched the eddies swirl and splash around her feet as she circled her legs in the clear blue water. Those churning currents echoed the turmoil in her depths, as if she were poised to break into a million bright, sparkling droplets and fly away on the wind. She clutched the edge of the pool so tightly her knuckles turned white. What's happening to me?

"Mom! Watch me, Mom," Kyle called.

Dutifully, Lauren raised her head and smiled as her daughter cannon balled into the deep end of the pool. Terry had taught Kyle to swim as an infant, and she was as comfortable in water as she was in air. Lauren nodded encouragingly when Kyle broke through the surface and looked expectantly in her mother's direction, but her mind was elsewhere. She turned her head a fraction and glanced back toward the house. Camila still stood beneath the maple, the ladder upright by her side, one arm hooked over a rung. She was incredibly attractive standing there, looking directly at her. Looking at me like I'm the only one here.

  Quickly, Lauren turned away. Her heart pounded, and she still sensed the faint pressure of Camila's body against her back. As Camila's chest had brushed fleetingly against her, she had felt the unmistakable impression of nipples hardening beneath soft fabric. Camila's, and her own. She closed her eyes, shivering. The rush of arousal that had accompanied that brief contact was overwhelming. It was the last thing she had expected to feel. The furthest thing from her desires. She had neither sought nor welcomed the excitement, but her body had embraced it as naturally as the next breath. She was stunned, horrified, and completely undone. I don't want this. I don't.



* * * * *

Mechanically, Camila carried the ladder and tools back to the garage and stowed them away. She pulled down the door and then stood by the corner of the building to look out over the wide rectangular yard. A split-rail fence, nearly obscured by rhododendrons and small shrubs, ran along the opposite side and rear, isolating the property from the view of neighbors. A wooden picnic table sat under the huge maple tree, and lawn chairs were scattered about nearby A long expanse of grass ran down the gently sloping rear of the property, and a swimming pool occupied a portion of that area. The pool was currently the center of activity, with most of the children in it, and a fair number of their parents sitting nearby and observing.

But only one person captured Camila's attention.

It was as if no one existed for her except Lauren. The pull that drew her to Lauren had been present since the first moment they had met, and although she didn't understand it, the feeling was too overpowering to deny. She wanted to be sitting there in the sun beside her, watching the children swim, talking of nothing and everything. She wanted the hand that curled around the damp tiled edge of the pool to be resting on her thigh, the way it had done so briefly in the car. Lightly, casually, confidently—as if she were Lauren's own.

Camila made her way across the yard and settled down at the picnic table, straddling the bench sideways, her right arm stretched out along the slatted tabletop. From where she sat, she could see Lauren in profile and imagined the faint perspiration dewed on her skin. She could still smell her, rich and tantalizing. She could still feel her, warm and strong as she gently rested against her body.

Involuntarily, her nipples tightened as they had done at that first startling contact, and ached. Her fingers trembled as they lay against the rain-grayed wood. Her stomach tightened with urgency and need, and she hungered for something she had never known. Watching Lauren lightly stroke the hair from her daughter's forehead, Camila wanted to rest her head in Lauren's lap and feel those tender fingers soothe her sorrows. She wanted to lie with her in the dark, in the aftermath of passion, and confess all her secrets.

This is impossible. For so many reasons. Then why don't I want the feelings to stop?

But she knew why. She watched as Lauren lifted her hand again to brush stray strands of hair from her cheek. The unconscious movement was both gentle and sure. Somehow she knew Lauren's hands would feel the same on her skin. And she wanted that, and all that would follow.



* * * * *

Phyllis intercepted Ally on her way out of the house with another tray of appetizers. "Quite the party, my dear."

"Having fun?"

"Scads." Phyllis, who was dressed for the occasion in loose tan cotton slacks, a brightly colored embroidered blouse, and an enormous straw farmer's hat, surveyed the crowd. "I notice there's an interesting-looking newcomer, too."

Ally followed Phyllis's gaze and saw Camila seated at the picnic table, gazing toward the pool where Lauren sat with her legs in the water. Camila's face was a study in desire. "Phew. Hot out, isn't it?"

"Mmm. She seems to be enchanted by Lauren."

"Uh,.." Lord, this is Lauren's mother-in-law!

"That wouldn't be...Camila, would it?"

"How did you know that?" Ally turned surprised eyes to Phyllis.

"Two reasons." Phyllis reached over and snagged a cream cheese-covered celery stick. "Kyle hasn't stopped talking about her since the day she got her head cracked, and every time her name is mentioned, Lauren gets cranky." Plus, Lauren hasn't been sleeping well, and that young woman over there looks hungry to the bone.