Jared was just the sort of distraction she needed to help her forget this terrible night.
Two
“My name is Morgan.” The beauty gave Jared only her first name. He was surprised Morgan wanted to stay, considering how her father’s rejection must have hurt and Henry had asked her to leave. She was licking her wounds and looking for a distraction and that was fine with Jared. He could use some unadulterated fun without any pesky emotional attachments. He didn’t do serious.
His longest relationship had lasted three months. His girlfriends were short-term with a shelf life of a month. After the thrill in the bedroom was gone, it was on to the next beautiful woman. And Morgan wasn’t just beautiful. There was a fragility to her, which spoke to his masculine side. He was no hero, but he wouldn’t mind being hers for the night.
Another whiskey appeared and Jared accepted without hesitation. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Morgan.” He tipped his tumbler to hers.
Their eyes met and held for endless seconds over the rim and Jared could swear he felt his stomach turn upside down. He was the first to look away and put down his glass. “How about a dance?”
“So everyone can watch me?” Morgan inquired, taking a large gulp of whiskey. “No, thank you.”
“I’m sorry to tell you, but everyone was watching you the moment you announced to the world you were Henry Stewart’s daughter.”
A hint of a smile touched Morgan’s lips. “I can’t argue with that.” She swallowed the remainder of the whiskey and took his hand.
“You need to go easy on the whiskey,” Jared replied. “Otherwise, you’ll have a helluva hangover tomorrow.”
“I know what I’m doing.”
Jared wasn’t sure, but for some reason he felt compelled to stick around and find out.
* * *
Jared’s hand threaded through Morgan’s and a riot of sensations shot right through her belly like a fire to dry tinder. Morgan glanced up to see if Jared felt it too and he had. His eyes were dark and cloudy. Nervously, Morgan followed him onto the temporary wooden dance floor on the grass.
Jared pulled her into the center, ignoring all the openmouthed stares around them, placed his hands on her hips and began to move. Morgan wound her arms around his neck and joined in his sinuous rhythm. Jared was an excellent dancer.
“You’re pretty good at this.”
Jared flashed her a grin. “You’re not bad yourself.”
“I learned how to dance as a child.”
He smiled as he thought of a young Morgan in ballet slippers. “Did you have a dance mom making you take ballet and tap? Or was it hip-hop?”
Morgan laughed. Her childhood was a far cry from what you saw on television. She didn’t have Clair Huxtable from The Cosby Show as her mother. “Nothing as grandiose as that. I hung around backstage while my mom danced at the Tropicana in Vegas.”
“Intriguing. I’m sure there’s a story there.” He used his thumb to push up her jaw and their eyes met. Attraction and lust were in those onyx depths.
“It’s not one I plan on telling anytime soon.”
“A woman with secrets,” Jared surmised. “I like.” He pressed forward until their bodies were flush.
Incendiary sexual heat slid up Morgan’s spine. She wasn’t used to this. Usually when things between her and a man heated up, she cooled off. But not tonight. Jared wasn’t like other men she met. She dropped her nose to his chest and opened V of his tuxedo shirt. She inhaled his spicy scent. It was very intoxicating.
When he splayed his hand across her nearly bare back, Morgan stumbled, but Jared was right there, swaying them back and forth, pretending they were dancing. Morgan knew what this was—it was seduction. When his hands went lower and settled on her bottom, Morgan was shocked, but she didn’t complain.
“You want to come to my room?” Morgan didn’t know what possessed her to make such an outrageous proposition, but once it was out there, she couldn’t take it back. With Jared, she didn’t feel fearful like she did with other men. Maybe it would be okay to allow herself the one night. Maybe he could banish all the bad memories and she could finally be who she was meant to be.
Jared glanced down at her. “I don’t know, Morgan. You’ve had a lot to drink and something tells me you don’t normally operate this way.”
Morgan glanced up at him in confusion. He could tell she was new at this? Was that why he wasn’t rushing to take her up to her hotel room and have his wicked way with her? She’d already fumbled on revealing her true identity. Apparently, she couldn’t even pick up a man, either.
She pushed away from him and Jared frowned. “Morgan, what’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry to have bothered you. I was mistaken about your interest.” She walked off the dance floor. She was grateful the crowd had begun to fade so no one witnessed her second rejection of the night. Morgan made her way back to the bar.
“Morgan, wait!” With his long strides, Jared caught up to her in no time. “It’s not like that,” he said when he finally met her back at the bar where she ordered another whiskey.
“Keep them coming until I tell you to stop,” Morgan told the bartender, and slammed the entire glass down.
“Listen, Morgan. You’ve had a rough time tonight and I don’t want to add to it by being a decision you regret in the morning.”
“Then leave,” Morgan replied. “I don’t need a hero. I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time and tonight will be no different. So get lost, Jared.”
Jared stared at her for several mind-churning seconds, turned on his heel and walked off. Good riddance, Morgan thought. He was probably too perfect to be her first anyway.
* * *
Jared wanted to ring Morgan’s adorable neck. Drinking away her troubles wasn’t going to solve anything, but was she willing to listen to the voice of reason? No.
And why was he being the voice of reason? Because...he’d never taken advantage of a woman in his life and he wasn’t about to start now. Morgan was emotionally on the edge and well on her way to tying one on. Jared had been that way in his youth, but not anymore. And when he was with a woman, he wanted her to remember him when he was gone because he was nothing if not a giving lover.
He left her at the bar as she requested, but he didn’t go far. Instead, he engaged in conversation with an acquaintance near the dance floor.
“So I hear you’re working at Robinson Holdings,” the older man said. Milton Brooks sat on the board of his family’s company and often was in everyone’s business.
“Yeah, in the marketing and public relations department.”
“Your brother, Chris, has been making some big moves buying that La Shore development.”
“Yes, well, Chris has an eye for such things,” Jared said, keeping an eye on Morgan. He saw Pete Harris, an unscrupulous fellow from his and Dane’s past, talking to Morgan, and Jared didn’t like it one bit.
“He has a sharp eye, that brother of yours,” the man said. “He’s destined for big things.”
His comment caught Jared’s attention and rankled him. His older brother, Chris, was the favorite son, and it grated on Jared’s nerves to hear the man’s unabashed praise. Chris had been running Robinson Holdings since their father, Clay, unexpectedly stepped down due to a health crisis a year ago. Chris had doubled revenue and business was booming.
“Chris does seem to have the Midas touch,” Jared replied. He turned in time to catch Pete putting his hand on Morgan’s shoulder and her pushing him away. Pete wasn’t taking no for answer and was getting handsy. “If you’ll excuse me, I have some unfinished business to attend to,” Jared said, taking his leave of the older man.
He quickly strode over to where Pete now had his hands wrapped around Morgan’s waist. He caught the man by the collar and shoved him away.
“Hey...” Pete began, but stopped when he saw who
it was. “Oh, hi, Jared.” He held out his hand, but Jared glared at him, so he pulled it back. “Me and the little lady here were having a disagreement.”
Jared turned to Morgan. Her face was flushed, and looking in her eyes he could see she was genuinely frightened. “Back off or I’ll make you regret it.”
Pete held up his hands. “I’m sorry.” He quickly rushed off.
“Are you okay?” Jared asked, peering down at Morgan.
Morgan sucked in a deep breath. “Yeah, I’m okay now.” She gave him a halfhearted smile, but he noticed her hand was shaking as she put her glass down on the bar. “Thanks for the assist.”
“That’s what heroes do.” He offered her a wide grin.
“Well, thanks.” She mussed with her hair for a few minutes, running her fingers through it, something Jared would sorely like to do. Then she turned back around and motioned to the bartender for another drink.
Jared stepped forward and put his hand over her empty glass. “You’re done.”
Her eyes flashed fire at him. “Just because you helped me out of a spot doesn’t mean you get to tell me what to do.”
“It does when you aren’t capable of making good decisions. C’mon.” He clasped her by the arm and started moving across the lawn toward the hotel entrance near the beach. “I’m going to walk you to your room and leave.”
“Really?” Morgan asked mockingly as if she knew how much he wanted her and didn’t believe for a second he’d walk away. “I doubt that.” She stalked in front of him giving Jared a view of her delectable backside in her dress.
Damn her. She was not making it easy for him to walk away and do the right thing.
When they reached the bank of elevators, Morgan pressed the up button and they waited. The atmosphere was charged. When the elevator came, they both entered. It was empty and the air between them crackled with sexual tension. Morgan pressed the button for her floor and Jared went and stood on the other side of the car.
If he came any closer, he knew he would lose the control he was battling for. Need pulsed through every cell of his body. But he reminded himself Morgan wasn’t like the other women he dated who knew the score. She was acting as if she did, but there was a certain naivete about her that told him he couldn’t act on his desire.
The elevator bell chimed. They disembarked and walked the short distance to her room. Morgan fished a key from her clutch and opened the door.
“This is where I take my...” Jared never got to finish because Morgan pulled him inside and shut the door.
* * *
Morgan didn’t know what made her pull Jared into her room. She just knew she had to. She craved his touch and was desperate to know what he would taste like. And if anyone could make her forget tonight, it was Jared. When the door slammed, she suddenly found herself pushing him back against it and angling her head for a kiss. Her mouth covered his and she was surprised to find his lips were deceptively gentle, luring hers into a sensual whirlpool.
“You really shouldn’t have done that,” Jared rasped, lifting his head. Then he was drawing her closer until their lower bodies touched, pelvis to pelvis. His hands slid through the strands of her hair, then he lowered his head and took. His lips ravished hers with gentle pressure before his tongue glided into her mouth and discovered every secret she’d kept hidden with other men.
Something unraveled inside Morgan, something she’d long suppressed.
Lust.
She gave into the cascading shivers of desire by linking her arms around his neck and leaning into him. She loved the taste and feel of him. Jared’s hands were already sliding down her hips and holding her tightly against his erection. Her breasts were pushed firmly against his chest and she could feel the ridge of his muscles underneath his tuxedo.
Jared groaned and his mouth engulfed Morgan’s, further spinning her senses out of control and making her core contract with a need she’d never felt before. Whenever she got too close to a man, she clammed up, but not with Jared. First there was the dance and now this kiss. He had her under some sort of spell, so much so she was kissing him back with greedy fervor. Their tongues darted back and forth, dancing with each other in a brilliant tango Morgan never wanted to end. Jared had her entire body on fire. She wanted more, but like a cruel joke, her stomach churned.
She pushed away from Jared as quickly as she could and rushed toward the bathroom. Morgan made it in enough time to relieve her stomach of its contents. It was a horrible feeling knowing the sexy man of her dreams was on the other side of the door and she was retching because of the whiskey she’d imbibed earlier. He’d been right. She should have stopped while she was ahead and now she was going to pay the price.
Those were the last thoughts she remembered as she laid her head on the cold tile floor and passed out.
* * *
“Morgan?” Jared knocked on the bathroom door. She’d been in there a long time and there was no amount of exhaust fan noise to cover the sounds of her being sick. He’d tried to stop her from drinking too much her earlier, but she’d stubbornly refused to listen.
Jared ran his hands over his head. Fate had set the course of the night. When he’d walked Morgan to her room, he had every intention of leaving her at her door untouched. But when she’d pulled him in and kissed him, he’d lost all self-control. He wanted her with a burning ache that pulsed in his loins, even now. Jesus, he had to get the hell out of there, but first he had to make sure she was okay.
Easing the door open, he found Morgan on the floor.
“Morgan!” He rushed over and checked for a pulse.
She was okay. Just seriously inebriated. Lifting her in his arms, Jared carried her into the bedroom and laid her on the bed. She looked so youthful and innocent in that blush dress, with her jet-black hair spread out over the pillow. Since she’d just gotten sick, Jared suspected Morgan would prefer to be out of the dress as to not soil it further.
Decision made. Jared reached behind her, unzipped the dress and pulled it over her head. Morgan barely moved a muscle. She was out like a light. But Jared had to suck in a deep breath. She wasn’t wearing a bra. Her breasts were small and round, but enough for a handful. She had a flat stomach and shapely legs. A tiny scrap of material covered her femininity but did little to staunch his hunger. Quickly, he reached for the comforter and slid it over her naked yet beautiful body.
She was going to be hurting tomorrow. So he called room service. When a waiter delivered the bottled water and aspirin, Jared placed them on the nightstand, ensuring they’d be waiting for her tomorrow. Then he left the room. Once in the corridor, Jared leaned against the door and closed his eyes. He was thankful it had been him and not Pete. When she awoke the next morning, she’d know her hero, although tempted, had done the right thing.
Three
“Ugh!” Morgan clutched her pounding head as she rolled over in bed the next morning. “What time is it?” She glanced at the clock on the nightstand and saw it was nearly noon. She had slept the entire morning away. Memories from last night came flooding back. Henry’s rejection at the reception. Her throwing back whiskey after whiskey. And then there was Jared.
Oh yes, she couldn’t forget Jared.
The mysterious stranger who somehow made last night bearable. Morgan remembered their flirting, that first dance when they’d damn near dirty danced and then the amazing kiss up against her door. She glanced at the scene of the crime. When she closed her eyes, she could feel the pressure of his mouth, the glide of his lips against hers and then—the unthinkable.
She got sick. In the throes of her one and only make-out session with a hot guy, she’d ruined it by rushing off to the bathroom. But what happened afterward? She glanced at the space beside her; that side of the bed was untouched. Jared hadn’t deigned to stay the night. Why would he? Sex was probably the last thing on his mind after witnessing her self-destruction. And she’d
done it in epic proportion.
Glancing at the nightstand, she saw the bottled water and aspirin. She glanced upward and silently thanked Jared for his kindness. Swallowing two tablets, Morgan washed them down with water. He could have taken advantage in her weakened state, but he hadn’t.
He’d been her hero.
Slowly, she sat up in bed and that’s when she realized the state she was in. Naked. Lifting the covers, Morgan noted she still had on her underwear, but that didn’t mean anything. Had she gotten it wrong? Had Jared done the unthinkable? She didn’t feel any different. And wouldn’t she? If they’d had sex, she would know. She was a virgin after all.
Yeah, the last of her kind, Morgan was sure. Most twenty-five-year-olds had had sex, but then again none of them had been raised by a mother like Crystal. But that was beside the point. If nothing happened between her and Jared, that meant he’d undressed her, seen her naked and left anyway. Morgan wanted to cheer in appreciation, but was also mortified to know after seeing her naked, it had done nothing for him. Then again, she doubted Jared wanted a corpse in bed.
Throwing back the covers, Morgan headed to the bathroom. As she brushed her teeth, she determined to look at the bright side. Jared was a good guy who’d saved her from a worse fate. Who knew what could have happened if he hadn’t stepped in? When she was done, she wiped her mouth, turned on the taps for the shower and stepped in. She wanted the stench of last night off her.
She wasn’t a heavy drinker. Or at least not usually. But yesterday was not ordinary. It wasn’t every day the father you’d longed for your entire life rejected you. She had cause to drink, but Morgan vowed to never put herself in another situation like last night ever again.
When she was done, she turned off the shower and began toweling herself dry. In the closet, Morgan found her standard outfit of black jeans and a black T-shirt. She dressed like that every day to stay in the background as Dane’s assistant. She was certain she wouldn’t have a job for much longer once Dane found out what she’d done, but she was a college grad. Surely, she could find a new gig to pay the bills.
Secrets of a Fake Fiancée Page 2