So here was the sticky part, where he could lay himself bare and risk being rejected as a coward, or make up some other story to explain his behavior. He was a pro at making up stories.
But he also was tired of lying to cover his ass. “I was afraid I wouldn’t be any good at it.”
“Really? But you already knew so much about this life.”
“Book learning, as they used to say in the Old West. It’s not the same.”
“No, but you’re a smart guy. You’d catch on. I was a horrible housekeeper for the first couple of months, but people cut you some slack if you’re trying.”
He took a deep breath. “It’s more than that. Sure I was afraid of making a fool of myself, especially after Jim Ford developed this reputation as a seasoned cowboy. But what if it turns out that I love the fantasy and not the reality? What if I don’t like ranch life?”
Her eyes widened. “Oh. I didn’t think of that. If the real thing ruined your fantasy, you wouldn’t be able to write about it so lovingly, would you?”
“No.”
“So why risk that now?”
“Couldn’t avoid it.” He told her about the PR campaign and his connection to Bethany. “She said I could trust Sarah and Jack to keep my identity secret while I learned enough to make it through the video.”
“You can. You can trust me, too.”
“I know.”
“How do you know? We just met yesterday.”
“Jack vouched for you.”
“He did? That makes me feel good.” She smiled, but then her smile faded. “Wait, if Jack vouched for me, then you two must have discussed whether to tell me your secret. Now I get why Jack was quizzing me about my Jim Ford books after lunch today. He was afraid I’d catch on.”
“That’s right. We decided I should tell you rather than you stumbling on to something when you were cleaning my room and finding out that way.”
“I appreciate that.”
This was his golden opportunity to segue into the other topic, the more loaded one. His heart rate picked up. “That wasn’t all that Jack had to say this afternoon.”
Her cheeks turned pink. “If he mentioned that I overstep sometimes, he would be right. I’ve learned how to cook and clean, but sometimes I forget that I’m the hired help, not the mistress of the house. Old habits die hard.”
“I’ll bet, but that wasn’t what we talked about. He...got the impression that you were...attracted to me.” God, this felt like junior high. He said you liked me. Do you like me?
Her blush deepened and she looked away. “Okay, now I’m totally embarrassed. I’ll talk to him tomorrow and assure him that I’m not making a play for his important guest. In fact, I should go back to my room right now.” She stood quickly and started toward the door.
Michael left the bed. “He doesn’t care.”
She turned back to him, her face suffused with pink. “What?”
“He mentioned it because he thinks that would be fine. More than fine. He—”
“He wants me to make a move on you? That sounds bad on so many levels!”
“No! He didn’t say that! This is coming out all wrong.”
She folded her arms, and now she made no attempt to hide her temper. “No shit, Sherlock. Maybe you’d better tell me Jack’s exact words instead of paraphrasing.”
He thought about some of Jack’s comments and winced. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”
“You can hardly make things worse.”
“You have a point, there.” He blew out a breath. “He said that near as he could tell, you haven’t been getting any since you came to work here.”
Her green eyes glittered with fury. “That is none of his damned business, and first thing tomorrow, I’ll tell him exactly that. I don’t care if he fires me. I’ll—”
“Keri, he meant it kindly. He noticed the chemistry between you and me and figured we’d both resist out of respect for him.”
“Well, duh. I may forget my position sometimes, but I would never in a million years...” She peered at him. “Maybe you’d better tell me what you said to Jack on this topic.”
“I told him I couldn’t imagine how I’d ever broach the subject to you, and he claimed I have such a big vocabulary that I shouldn’t have any trouble. Obviously he was wrong.”
She kept her arms folded protectively over her chest, but her gaze grew speculative. “So basically, after Jack gave us the green light, you were ready to go along with his suggestion, assuming I agreed.”
He tried to think of a way to reply that wouldn’t land him in more hot water. But in the end, he decided that his new vow of complete honesty dictated that he could only give one answer.
“Yes.” He looked into her eyes and hoped she’d see the desperate longing he felt every time she was near. “I’ve been lusting after you ever since you marched out of the house with that dead mouse.”
Her mouth twitched as if she wanted to laugh but wouldn’t let herself. “Smelly rodents turn you on, huh?”
“No, but a woman who’s willing to dispose of them without freaking out certainly does. And if she’s doing it out of a sentimental attachment to some adolescent boys, that’s even more appealing. I figure a woman like that has character, and character turns me on.”
Her rigid posture relaxed a little, although she didn’t uncross her arms. The real change registered in her eyes. Hot indignation had been replaced by a different kind of heat. It flared for a moment, but she quickly looked away, as if she didn’t want him to see. But he had, and that hot glance gave him hope.
“You’ve given me a lot to think about,” she said.
“I’ll bet.”
“I left the Epsom salts and the liniment on the bathroom counter for you.”
“I noticed. Thanks.” He could be wrong, but that sounded as if she was about to make her getaway.
“Have a good night.” She turned and walked out the door.
“Keri, wait.” He followed her.
She turned, but kept her hand on the door into her room.
“If your answer is no, that’s understandable. I’ll only be here a week. You might consider that a bad deal all the way around.”
She had the brass to look him up and down, as if considering her options. “Thanks for giving me a graceful way out. Even a woman who hasn’t been getting any for the past year likes to give herself time to think things over.”
“Keri, Jack didn’t mean anything by that remark. He’s a guy, and that’s the way we talk.”
“Uh-huh.”
“I thought of something else, too. I’ll only be here for a week, but after you quit this job and move back to Baltimore, then—”
“Don’t you think that’s getting way ahead of ourselves?”
“Yeah.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Forget I mentioned it.”
She didn’t look as if she’d forget anything, especially not the lame parts of this conversation, which had been most of it. “For the record, have you been getting any lately, Michael?”
He felt warmth climbing up from his collar. “I’m kind of in your same boat.”
“Hmm.” She smiled. “That could make for an interesting combination. Good night.” She opened her door, walked inside and closed it with a soft click.
He’d maintained control until her interesting combination remark. That got to him. He turned back to his room, his cock growing harder by the second. She was going to make him sweat out her decision, which meant he was in for another frustrating night.
But she hadn’t said no. And the gleam in her eyes before she’d closed her bedroom door had definitely hinted at yes.
* * *
KERI CLOSED THE door and leaned her forehead against it as thoughts swirled in her mind. An hour ago, she’d
had a crush on a hot guy who’d come to the Last Chance for a crash course in cowboy skills. Sure, she’d been frustrated that she couldn’t pursue him because of her job, but there’d been some comfort in that, too. She could fantasize without repercussions.
Jack was absolutely right. She hadn’t been getting any for the past year, and she’d become used to being guy-less. Being without a man had given her time to think about where her life was going, and where she wanted it to go.
Until tonight, she’d figured on returning to Baltimore sometime this fall. But when Michael referred to it as a done deal, she was reminded of what waited for her there—more of the same. She could probably get her old job back and fall into the routine she’d left. She’d be a city girl again, wearing high heels to work and attending cocktail parties in sparkly dresses.
She remembered the constant hum of downtown Baltimore, the wail of a siren, the rattle of a jackhammer, the blare of a taxi, the rumble of a delivery truck. Walking over to her window, she raised it and listened. A cool pine-scented breeze billowed the curtains.
In the distance, an owl hooted. Some little night creature rustled in the bushes. Those sounds soothed her, whereas the mechanical noises in the city put her on edge. She’d never admitted that to herself before. When she ventured down to the harbor she felt closer to nature, but at the Last Chance she was immersed in it 24/7.
She edged closer to a decision that would change everything. She thought of her parents, but even when she’d lived in Baltimore she hadn’t seen them all that often. She had friends in the city, too, but amazingly, she was more in sync with the people she’d met here. The life she’d once led seemed distant and unfamiliar. This place was her reality now, not the world she’d known back east.
Michael might be leaving in a week, but as she stood at the window gazing into darkness more complete than she’d ever find in the electricity-filled city, she knew what was right for her. She’d have to return to Baltimore to settle a few things, but after that, she was coming back to Wyoming.
That left her with another decision—what to do about the man across the hall. He’d thought she might guess his identity, but he was giving her too much credit. She’d been so firmly convinced that Jim Ford knew his stuff that she might never have figured out who Michael was.
Going over to her bedside table, she picked up the paperback she’d finished the night before and opened it to the author picture in the back. If she squinted so the mustache was blurry, she could clearly see that the man was Michael. Same broad shoulders, narrow hips, square jaw and sensuous mouth.
And he wanted her. As she studied his picture, sexual tension coiled low in her belly. He didn’t just want her. He’d admitted to lusting after her. She believed him. He’d had that untamed look in his eyes when he’d said it. Her body had reacted to that look—it still hummed with anticipation.
Now that she knew who he was, she understood why he might have a wild side. After all, his characters did. She knew those guys, which gave her some insight into Michael. His characters were men of action, which she found very sexy. That’s why she’d wanted more detail in the love scenes. That energy carried through a more explicit scene would be incredibly arousing.
Thinking about how he could improve those scenes aroused her even more. She was making herself squirm a little, to tell the truth. Relief was right across the hall. All she had to do was walk over there, and—her imaginary sexual adventure screeched to a stop when his door creaked open.
Was he coming back to mount another offensive? Her heart hammered as she waited to see what happened next. Footsteps padded down the hall. That was logical. He’d have to pick up condoms before knocking on her door.
She held her breath and listened for the sound of his returning steps. Instead, she heard water thundering into the tub. He hadn’t gone after condoms. He was going to soak in Epsom salts.
If anything was going to happen tonight, she would have to initiate it. That was fair. He’d braved the first conversation, and she hadn’t made that discussion easy on him.
When she pictured Michael and Jack discussing her lack of sex, she got angry all over again. But Michael was right about one thing. Jack had meant well.
He’d taken the only route he could think of to remedy a problem. He’d clumsily but effectively removed a barrier between two people who weren’t getting any. And now, thanks to Jack’s meddling, they had a golden opportunity to get some.
The more she thought about that, the more touched she was. Maybe Jack should have minded his own business, but he hadn’t, and it was done, now. What a shame if his efforts went to waste.
Her heart began to pound as she envisioned what she was about to do. But she’d learned a valuable lesson in the past year. If she wanted something, she had to be willing to take the risk of going after it. She wanted Michael.
Putting down the paperback, she stripped off her clothes and took her silk bathrobe out of the closet. If she planned to seduce him, she would do it right. She hadn’t brought many luxury items to Jackson Hole, but this emerald-green bathrobe had made the trip.
Next she took her hair out if its ponytail and fluffed it around her shoulders. A quick check in the full-length mirror on the back of her closet door told her that she looked...untamed. Her blood heated, much as it had when she’d hurled herself into the girl fight.
Except this time she wasn’t flying into a rage over an insult. She was turning loose a more basic, primitive desire, one she’d kept in check, afraid the intensity would intimidate a lover. But now...there was Michael.
Leaving her room, she walked barefoot down to the bathroom. If he’d locked the door, then she’d have to rethink her plan. But the knob turned easily, and she walked right in.
Michael sat up so fast that water sloshed over the edge of the tub. “Keri! What the hell are you doing here?”
“Do you really have to ask?” She feasted her eyes on the first naked man she’d seen in quite a while. Michael was worth the wait.
His powerful chest heaved as he stared at her. She stared right back, enjoying the way drops of water clung to his dark chest hair and glittered in the overhead light. She followed the line of his damp body hair down to his navel and beyond, where his pride and joy rose from the water in a gratifying display of the lust he’d mentioned earlier.
She was glad he made no move to cover himself with a washcloth. She might have caught him by surprise, but he was quickly adjusting to the possibilities of the situation. His eyes grew hot, burning with the same intensity that made her heart hammer.
Without taking his gaze from hers, he reached forward and pulled the plug. As the water drained away, he stood, his body glistening with water and radiating sexual power. He stepped out of the tub and surveyed her green robe. “Is that silk?”
“Yes.”
“Unless you want to get it wet, you’d better take it off.” His voice was tight, as if he was holding on to his control with difficulty.
Her blood pounded hot through her veins. “We have to get the condoms.”
“Right behind you.”
She turned, and there was the box, sitting on the counter. “Were you so sure of me, then?”
“No. Not sure at all. I never thought you’d come in here.”
“Didn’t you?”
He swallowed as his glance raked over her. “Only in my fantasies.”
“We can go back to your room.”
“I don’t think so.” Hooking a finger in her robe’s sash, he pulled it free. “We’re staying here.”
8
TALK ABOUT WHIPLASH. He’d given up on getting any response from her tonight. He’d told himself that most women would want some time to think about whether they wanted to have a temporary fling with a guy they’d just met.
Apparently he’d misjudged. She’d walked right in on hi
m as if she had every right in the world to do so. Damned if he was going to argue the point. No, what he had in mind was kissing her. And then...yeah, and then.
He cupped her face in both hands. God, her skin was soft. He looked into her green eyes, exactly the color of her robe. “Did some guy buy you the bathrobe?”
“No.”
“Good.” It shouldn’t matter, but it did.
“I bought it for me. I like the feel of it on my bare skin.” She slid her hands up his chest to his shoulders.
He shuddered at the caress. Thank you, Jack. And that was the last thought he’d give his host tonight.
He stroked his thumbs over her cheekbones. “I admire a woman who knows what she wants and goes after it.”
“That’s why I’m here.” She clutched his shoulders. “Now kiss me before I go crazy.”
“Would you really?” He leaned down and nibbled her lower lip. “I’d like that.”
Her breath came in quick little gasps. “I’ve been known to smash crystal.”
“No crystal here.” He outlined her mouth with his tongue. “Do your worst.” Holding off was driving him crazy, too, but it was a good kind of crazy. He didn’t plan to leave this room until he’d used one of those condoms, and in the meantime, they could play.
Now that he knew the outcome, he wanted to savor the lead-up. They were two powder kegs ready to blow, and once they let loose, there would be no stopping them. This would be his only chance to build the suspense. As a bestselling author, he knew something about that.
“My worst?”
“Yeah.” He feathered kisses at the corners of her mouth. “Bring it. Show me what you’ve got.”
He wasn’t even slightly prepared for what happened next. Sliding down his water-slicked body, she took his cock in her mouth. He swore softly as she reduced him to a blithering idiot. It seemed her worst was also her best.
“Enough.” Somehow he found the fortitude to pull her upright before the inevitable happened. Then he gave her a long, slow and very deep kiss. She tasted of sex, and he was fast losing the battle to make this first encounter last. He wanted her wild, sassy, sexy self now.
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