by Lori Wilde
“Showtime,” Amanda murmured with a smile.
Megan didn’t have the chance to let Chase into the house because before she could even stand, three women were by the door, welcoming him. Chase looked startled when he walked in, but within a couple of seconds, he looked practically horrified.
“Am I the only man here?” he growled to Megan when he finally made it across the room.
“I’m afraid so. But don’t worry. We have plenty of volunteers,” she said.
And every one of those volunteers—with the exception of Amanda—was looking at Chase as if he were a half-price silk blouse at a one-day-only sale. Megan knew even she was staring at him.
But who could blame them? Freshly showered and shaved, smelling like a clean healthy male and looking like a movie star, Chase Barrett was enough to get any female heart racing.
Not surprisingly, he was offered almost any and every chair in the room. Janet even offered to let him have her seat, and of course, she’d be happy to sit in his lap. But Chase just said thanks and sat on the ottoman by Megan’s chair. A silly schoolgirl thrill ran through her when he chose to be near her, and Megan mentally berated herself on being so petty. This wasn’t a game she was playing. Unlike most of the women in the room, she wasn’t interested in having wild, crazy sex with Chase simply so she could brag to her friends.
She was interested in love, commitment, and family. She glanced at him briefly, but when his dark-blue gaze met her own, her pulse fluttered, her breathing grew shallow, and she forced herself to look away.
Okay, she wouldn’t mind a little of that wild sex being thrown in as a bonus. But that wasn’t her main goal. Her main goal was to show him she could make him happy. Truly happy. For life. Not just during one afternoon of frantic, yeehaw, ride ‘em cowboy sex.
Chase waved one hand in front of her face, and Megan jumped.
“You okay in there, Megan?” Chase teased. “You have a funny look on your face.”
Oh, she’d just bet she did. “I’m fine,” she said, cringing when her voice came out way too breathless and far too squeaky.
“So how’s it going?” he asked.
Immediately, several of the women launched into a description to bring Chase up-to-date. Almost all of them were surprised to learn that at some point, they’d volunteered to head up a particular task. But thankfully, they all took their job assignments in good stride. Even Janet said it wouldn’t be the first time she couldn’t remember what she’d promised to do.
“I promised my first husband I’d love him forever, and look how that turned out,” she said with a laugh.
“Love needs care to make it flourish,” Amanda said.
Pretty much everyone’s expression made it clear they disagreed with Amanda, but since she was the minister’s wife and a really nice lady in her own right, no one made a comment. Personally, Megan thought Amanda was right. Love did need care and attention. But now was not the time, and this was not the crowd, to open the question up for debate.
“Anyway, we’re now down to finding items for the auction,” Megan said. “Earl has volunteered to let us use his big party tent to have the auction in. Nathan’s donating a laptop. But we need a lot of other items as well so we can make enough money.”
“I talked to my sister last night, and she’s willing to help,” Amanda said. “She owns a bed and breakfast in San Antonio and is willing to donate a room for two for a weekend.”
Megan smiled. “That’s wonderful.”
“If you’re married,” Janet said with a snort. “What if one of us single women wants to bid? What about tossing in someone to escort us on this trip if we win?” She scanned the room as if considering what to say next, but Megan knew without a doubt that Janet had this all planned out. “What about if the winning bidder so chooses, then Chase will be her escort for the weekend?”
Megan expected Amanda to protest, but instead, she seemed delighted by the idea. “I’m sure my sister will donate an extra room if that happens.”
“Whoa, whoa. Hold on here a minute,” Chase said. “I’m not going to be a gigolo prize in the auction.”
“Of course not, dear,” Amanda said. “The prize is the free hotel room near the River Walk in San Antonio. You’d only be the escort if the winner decides she wants one. And then naturally, you’d request the separate room, but this way, the lady could enjoy the trip in the company of a man she could trust.”
It all sounded so tame and reasonable coming from Amanda, but the hot looks several of the women were directing at Chase made it clear the last thing they would want on the trip was a man they could trust.
“I still don’t like it,” Chase muttered. “But okay, just so long as everyone’s clear about this up front. I’m not a stud service.” He glanced at Amanda. “Pardon my language.”
She smiled. “No problem.”
Megan bit back her own smile and made a mental note to check the latest balance on her savings account. There was no way she was going to let Janet Defries win that prize. If anyone was going away for a romantic weekend with Chase, it was going to be her.
Chase was halfway home when he pulled off to the side of the road, hooked a U-turn, and headed back to Megan’s house. This carnival-auction thing was getting out of hand. Now he was one of the prizes. And no way would he believe for a second that one of the single women in town wasn’t going to win. He’d seen the way they’d looked at him. When one woman looked at you that way, it was nice. When ten looked at you with hunger in their eyes, it was downright scary.
Everyone was gone by the time he pulled back into Megan’s driveway. No doubt they’d scattered as soon as he’d left. After slamming his truck into Park, he sprinted to her front door and rapped loudly. A couple of seconds later, the light in the living room came on, and Megan opened the door.
“Don’t you ask who it is before you fling open your front door in the middle of the night...” His gaze dropped and scanned her body. “Wearing hardly any clothes,” he barely managed to say.
Because she was wearing hardly any clothes, or at least, she looked that way. She had on a short pink nightie that clung to her every curve. Backlit as she was from the light inside the house, Chase now knew he wouldn’t have to guess the next time he wanted to picture Megan naked.
“Oops.” She dashed toward the back of the house.
Chase came inside and shut the door behind him. He could only hope Megan was putting on a long, thick terry cloth robe. But when she came back out from her bedroom, she actually had on a flowered, silky robe that came to the top of her knees. It wasn’t a whole lot better than the nightie, but it was at least something.
“Why are you here?” she asked.
He’d been staring at her robe, his blood pounding hot and heavy through his body as he remembered what she’d looked like seconds ago, but at her question, he yanked his gaze back to her face. What had she asked? Oh, yeah, why was he here.
“I’m not having sex with those women so you can build a playground in the park,” he told her.
Rather than being upset, Megan laughed and curled up on the couch. “No one is asking you to do that, Chase.”
“Janet wants me to. And so do those other women.” He flopped down next to her on the couch, making certain he left plenty of room between them.
“All you have to say is no, and if you really don’t want to go, I’ll talk to Amanda, and we’ll change the prize.”
This was more like it. This was the sane, responsible Megan he knew. “Well, okay then.”
She laughed again, and the soft sound floated around him. “You know, the easy solution is to have me place the winning bid on the weekend package,” Megan said. “That way, you won’t have to feel like a gigolo.”
Her suggestion sounded reasonable enough, but it sure didn’t feel that way to him. Going away to a bed and breakfast on the River Walk with Megan while all this flirting stuff was going on between them didn’t feel reasonable at all.
It sounded hot�
��and dangerous.
“I’m not sure that would be a good idea,” he said.
“Are you afraid I’ll seduce you?”
“No.” That wasn’t the problem at all. At the moment, thinking about her in that nightie, he was afraid he’d try to seduce her. But the carnival was weeks away. Maybe by that time, Megan would come to her senses about them, and their friendship could return to normal.
She sat tucked in the corner of the couch, watching him. Waiting for him to say more.
He scrubbed his face with his hands, feeling as cornered as a calf in a roping competition. “Okay, fine. If your committee insists on auctioning this weekend trip, then you’d better be the one to win it. I’ll give you money so you—”
“I have money saved. I can pay for it myself.” The day he did that was the day he’d hang up his saddle and build himself a pine box. “No way are you paying, Megan. I am. I’ll buy this trip to San Antonio.”
“But don’t you think Janet and the other women will be annoyed when they find out you bought the trip yourself?”
Boy, this was more complicated than figuring out a mutt’s parentage. “Fine. I’ll give you the money, and you buy the trip. Just make certain you don’t lose.”
Her smile was downright blissful. “Sounds like a great idea, and I promise, I won’t lose.”
“But we’re going to have separate rooms. We’re going as friends, because that’s what we are and have always been. Say it with me...friends.”
“Friends.” She said the word slowly, but with a sexual overtone that made his heart race fast and furious.
Chase blew out an aggravated breath. He wanted whatever was going on here to stop. He wanted his life to get back to normal.
He wanted the old Megan back. He didn’t want to picture her naked, didn’t want to think about either of them seducing the other, didn’t want to lose her friendship.
But he also was having no luck getting the image of her in that nightie out of his head.
“I want to talk to you about what’s been going on,” he finally said. “This whole thing with you and me. It can’t work.”
Her expression was innocent, but he could see the pulse beating wildly in her neck. She was far from calm.
“What thing would that be?” she asked.
Okay, so that was the way she planned on playing this. Fine.
“You’ve been flirting with me.”
She blinked. “I have?”
“You know you have. You’ve never flirted with me before.”
She nibbled on her bottom lip, and Chase barely bit back a groan. Did she know she was turning him on? Did she really mean to drive him wild?
Apparently, since she continued nibbling on her bottom lip for a good ten seconds. Finally, he couldn’t stand it anymore.
“Megan, do you want to have sex with me? Is that what this is about? You’re lonely. I’m convenient.”
Even in the muted light of the cozy living room, he could clearly see the blush that climbed her face. But she never looked away from him. She kept her gaze locked on his face.
“What would you do if I said yes?”
Chase felt like someone sucker-punched him in the gut. The breath in his lungs seemed to whoosh out of his body.
“You seriously want to have sex with me?” he finally managed to ask when he remembered how to talk. He hadn’t expected her to be so blunt.
“Among other things.” Her voice was even softer than before, and he had to strain to hear her clearly. “But not because I’m lonely. And not because you’re convenient.”
“I see.” But he didn’t at all. He didn’t understand any of this. “Mind if I ask why now? Why after all these years? Is it because of your clock?”
“Clock?”
He waved one hand. “You know. Your biological clock. Is this about having babies?”
She smiled at his comment. “No, my biological clock has nothing to do with this.”
“Then what does? What’s got you acting this way?”
She remained silent for so long that he wondered for a second if she intended on answering him. Finally, she said, “Maybe I’m tired of not going after what I want in life.” She drew in a deep breath, then added, “Going after the man I want in my life.”
All sorts of emotions roared through Chase. For starters, he was flattered that he meant so much to her. Then he was annoyed that she was ruining the only successful relationship he’d ever had with a woman. And finally, he was undeniably turned on.
But one conclusion was unavoidable. He needed to talk her out of this.
“We’re good friends, Megan. Sex would ruin everything. Getting involved on any personal level would destroy the friendship we’ve had for twenty years.”
“How do you know that? What if it makes everything better?”
How could she be so naive? She knew about his past, how his dad had bailed on the family one winter morning simply because he’d decided he was in love with a waitress from the local diner. She also knew about each one of his failed relationships, just as he knew about hers. They’d both tried several times to make love last, and it had disappeared quicker than a sinner on Sunday morning.
Those times, when what they thought was love turned out to be hormones, they’d moved on. Wiser. A little sadder. But not brokenhearted.
But this time, when the relationship ended, he’d lose his best friend. The woman he’d grown up with. The one true friend who had shared his life.
The price was just too high.
“It won’t make everything better,” he muttered. “You and I both know it won’t. And then what will happen? Will we still be friends?”
“Of course.”
“I can’t help thinking you’ll end up hating me.”
He shifted closer to her on the couch. “I’ve tried, but love doesn’t last. It didn’t last for my parents. It doesn’t last for me. You’ve had relationships, too. They didn’t last.”
Her green eyes sparkled with conviction when she said, “It could be different for us. We could be one of the lucky couples. One of the couples who finds true and lasting love.”
Her soft voice enticed him to believe, but he couldn’t let her fool herself this way. She deserved better. “It won’t work, Megan.”
“Because you’re a heartbreaker.”
Turning his head, he studied her. “Maybe. That’s what the ladies in this town tell me.”
She leaned toward him, the motion making the top of the robe open a tiny bit. Although Chase knew she didn’t mean the action to be seductive, it was. He could now see just a sliver of her pink nightie. He stared at that small patch of cloth for a moment, trying not to think about the soft skin underneath. When his gaze finally met hers again, he felt the look clear to his soul.
“You don’t always have to be a heartbreaker. You don’t have to break my heart,” she said.
Chase shut his eyes and leaned back against the couch. Megan was set on this, and it looked as if she was going to remain set on this until he proved her wrong.
Trent and Nathan’s suggestion surfaced in his mind. Was that really the way to handle this situation? Should he prove her wrong, show her that the chemistry they shared would fade, as it always faded?
He tipped his head and looked at her. “Kiss me.”
She blinked several times in rapid succession. “What?”
Okay, this was more like it. He’d thrown her. About time.
“I asked you to kiss me. You’re telling me you want us to have sex. Well, I figure we should start out with a kiss. Who knows, maybe the kiss will rank up there with catching the flu. Maybe after that, you’ll find out you aren’t so hot for me after all.”
She laughed, her eyes dancing with humor. “Oh, I see. This is a test. You don’t think I’ll really kiss you.”
“Oh, no, I believe you will. I’m just not sure you’ll like it. We’re friends, Megan. We probably have zip in the way of sexual chemistry. But hey, it you want to give it a try,
then it’s fine by me. Kiss me.”
She narrowed her eyes. “I can’t simply kiss you.”
“Why not?”
She waved one hand as if searching for the words. “Because you lead up to a kiss. You share a romantic evening. You talk about your feelings. You don’t just grab someone and kiss them.”
“Why not?” he asked again.
“It’s not romantic.”
He shrugged. “I’m not a romantic guy. You know that.”
Her expression softened. “Yes, you are. You’re very romantic.”
His heart seemed to lurch in his chest, but he refused to let her see this was getting to him. But it was. He was more than ready to show her anything she wanted.
But that was his hormones kicking in. It was late. She was practically naked and staring at him with desire in her eyes. He was a red-blooded, healthy male.
Of course his engine was racing.
But if Megan insisted on playing this game, then she had to be the one to lead it.
“If I’m such a romantic guy, then kiss me,” he said.
He expected her to back down, but his request had the opposite effect. She gave him a look that let him know in no uncertain terms that she was on to his trick and wasn’t about to fall for it. She slowly scooted forward until she was next to him on the couch. Holding his gaze, she leaned forward and lightly brushed her lips across his.
Chase was totally unprepared for the sensation. It felt like electricity skittered through his body at her touch. For a split second, they both froze. Then she pulled away from him.
“There. I kissed you,” she said softly, her face mere inches from his own.
“Ah, now, Megan. That wasn’t a kiss.” He lightly touched her hair. “Old ladies kiss better than that. Guess I was right. We have no sexual chemistry,” he lied.
Her eyes darkened, and she smiled at his obvious fib. “You think you’re so smart, don’t you?”
He couldn’t prevent the grin that crossed his face. “Just pointing out the obvious.”
She shoved his shoulder good-naturedly. “You figure you’ve got this all worked out. I know you. You think I’ll chicken out and not give this kissing thing another try.”