“Tyler Savoy, I’m counting on it,” she said in a low, sultry voice.
He glanced over at her. Again her face was a mask of unreadable expression.
***
Megan began wondering if she had bitten off more than she could chew when she felt the heat of Tyler’s gaze burn through her clothes, and boy was it intense. Liquid heat was already gathering in her stomach and slowly spreading lower. The nipples of her breasts were beginning to feel achingly hard, and had been since she opened the door to find him standing there and his hazel-eyed gaze had locked on her.
She was momentarily pulled from her thoughts when he led her to a silver gray Jaguar. She blinked. The car was a real beauty. She then glanced up at him and he read the question in her eyes and smiled.
“The SUV is my company vehicle. This is what I usually drive when I’m off work and at play.”
She nodded and couldn’t help wondering how many women had had the pleasure of sitting next to him in this vehicle while he was at play. “It’s nice,” she said, forcing the jealous thought from her mind. They had officially broken up years ago and the women he had shared his time, bed and body with over the years was none of her business. Accepting that to be a fact of life, she relaxed the hands by her side that had curled into fists.
“Thanks,” she said when he opened the car door for her and waited until she had snapped her seat belt and shoulder harness in place before closing it. She watched as he quickly walked around the front of the car to get in. Tyler could still wear a pair of jeans and draw attention. She remembered how envious the other girls were that she had a boyfriend who had looked so good. But then, all the men in the Savoy family had a reputation of looking good and were considered a good catch. Any parent would have been proud for their daughter to bring a Savoy home to dinner.
A few seconds later, they pulled off. Megan only hoped that she could survive an evening out with the much older and sexier Tyler Savoy.
***
“Are you ready to order, ma’am?”
The waitress’s question made Megan glance up. The last time she had eaten at Paddy’s the menu consisted of a half page of items. Now the menu consisted of five pages. It seemed they not only served delicious seafood but served other full course, mouth-watering meals as well. Although she’d had a taste for fried shrimp earlier, she couldn’t help eyeing the baby-back ribs. The couple sitting at the table across from theirs had ordered a plate and they looked simply delicious.
“May I make a suggestion?” Tyler spoke up, evidently understanding her dilemma. “How about if you order the fried shrimp plate and I order the baby-back ribs and we can share.”
She knew Tyler couldn’t help but see the gratitude that was shining in her eyes. “Are you sure?”
He chuckled. “Yes, I’m positive.”
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
After writing down their orders, the waitress collected their menus then left them alone.
Tyler forced his gaze away from Megan and glanced around. The last time he had come here was when the male Savoy cousins had gotten together last summer to celebrate Blake’s engagement. They had pushed three tables together to accommodate all ten men. He smiled remembering how much fun they’d had and how they had practically ordered everything on the menu that night.
He couldn’t stop staring at Megan. She was avoiding his eyes by studying the flickering candle that sat in the middle of their table. She hadn’t brought a jacket, and he couldn’t help wondering if she was cold since the air conditioning seemed to be set at a low temperature. It was a cool summer evening, not the typical for July. But then he had to admit he was enjoying her bare shoulders and how the top part of the dress cradled her firm breasts. He wasn’t good at guessing women sizes but he figured she was probably a size sixteen and definitely a nicely built one.
When she finally glanced up at him he couldn’t help but ask. “Are you cold?”
She shrugged and smiled. “No. I’m used to warm days and cool nights. The part of California where I live is known for them.”
“Oh.”
She placed her elbows on the table and leaned toward him. Her smile widened. “Haven’t you ever been to California?”
For a moment he couldn’t answer, couldn’t utter a single sound. When she’d leaned over, the top of her dress gaped open and he could see more of her breasts. He sat nearly motionless when he realized she really wasn’t wearing a bra.
He swallowed when he remembered that one night when his mouth had gone crazy on her breasts by making a feast of her nipples. Boy had he enjoyed himself, he thought, remembering every single detail, especially the purrs that had come from her lips.
“Tyler?”
He quickly moved his gaze from her chest to her eyes. “Yes?” he asked, barely able to get the word out.
“Have you ever been to California?” she repeated the question.
He shook his head, trying to concentrate on what she was asking him. “No.”
“Then I’m issuing an invitation for you to come and visit me one day. I think you would like it. The Pacific Ocean looks a whole lot different from the Atlantic. Both are beautiful but I think the Pacific is even more so.”
“Yes, that’s what I heard from Blake,” he said, settling back in his chair so looking down the top of her dress wouldn’t be so obvious. “And thanks for the invitation. I might take you up on it.”
“I’m hoping that you will.”
Tyler lifted a brow as he watched Megan pick up the glass of water she had ordered and take a sip. There was something in the way she’d just spoken, a sexy tone that had made his breath catch and had him thinking that she’d been flirting with him.
It then struck him that other than the time he’d taken her to the prom; the two of them had never officially gone out on a date. When they had been in high school and she had been an advanced student; a senior at sixteen. Although her fellow classmates were dating, her parents felt that she was too young to do the same; however, since they approved of their relationship they did allow them to take part in supervised activities around her grandfather’s ranch or at his grandmother’s house. He had never taken her to the movies, a sports event or a drive along the countryside. To say her parents had been rather strict would be an understatement.
He took a sip of his own water as he waited for her to look at him. Was she nervous about them being together? If that was the case he intended to get her relaxed.
Avoiding Tyler’s gaze, Megan set her water glass down. She then glanced around again noticing how crowded the place had gotten since they had arrived.
“Megan?”
She glanced up and met his gaze. “Yes?”
Whatever words he was about to say died on his lips when the waitress returned with their meal, sitting both platters in the middle of the table. “Let’s dig in,” he said instead.
Four
Tyler placed down his fork and glanced across the table at Megan. Like him she had finished eating but was studying the lit candle again, seemingly in deep concentration. Something warm and tender touched him as he continued to study her. She’d always been special to him and he remembered feeling on top of the world just knowing he’d been the guy in her life.
He doubted that she knew just how much he had loved her back then. When he’d first shown interest in her she’d seemed surprised that any guy would go for the brainy type. But there had been more to her than just a high IQ. She had been a caring person and there hadn’t been a pretentious bone in her body. And more importantly, she had a special way with animals, especially those that had been in her grandfather’s care.
Again sensing her nervousness and not understanding the reason for it, he decided to break the silence. “Did you enjoy everything?” he asked quietly, not wanting to startle her to attention.
It seemed that he did anyway when she snapped her head up and her gaze met his, held it and locked into it. Parts of him began simmering, a
slow, low heat. As a young girl Megan James could break through his every defense and now it seemed that since she had become a woman she was effectively sending every defense he had tumbling.
Over the years he had missed her. He had thought of her often, wondering if she was happy. What had made their relationship so special was that they’d been friends before they had become lovers.
Lovers.
He quickly reminded himself that they had never been lovers, not in the true sense of the word, although they had come close that night. So close his body ached just thinking about it and the memories were starting to overwhelm him.
“Yes, I enjoyed everything,” Megan spoke, breaking into Tyler’s thoughts. “Nothing has changed. As usual the food here is excellent.” She leaned back in her chair. “I was just thinking a few moments ago that not counting prom night, this is our first real date”
He smiled. “Yes, I was thinking that same thing earlier myself.”
She sighed deeply. “My family’s overprotectiveness didn’t help me, Tyler. When I got to college I was like a fish out of water and quickly became a target for guys who had only one thought on their minds.”
Tyler eyed her steadily as his lips thinned to a hard line. Her family had thought that all her problems would be solved once they got her off to Harvard, but even schools like Harvard had guys who were intent on getting inside a girl’s panties. “Did you handle them?” he heard himself asking in a low voice, inwardly hoping and praying that she did.
She chuckled. “Oh, yeah, I handled them. I might have been naïve in some things but not in all. Besides, the first strike against them was that they weren’t anything like you. You had spoiled me.”
Tyler’s brow lifted. “Had I?”
“Yes. Being your girlfriend taught me to expect a certain behavior from a man and it helped to instill total confidence in myself. It also taught me not to sell myself short. In my book you were a tough act to follow for any guy.”
He smiled. If her intent was to stroke his ego, then she was doing a pretty good job, Tyler thought. At that moment the one question he had been asking himself since seeing her again yesterday resurfaced and he couldn’t help but want to know the answer. “Why aren’t you married, Megan? All you used to talk about was getting your education and getting married one day.”
Megan took a swallow of her water, deciding not to remind Tyler that at the time the man she’d thought she was going to marry was him. “I almost got married.”
That definitely got Tyler’s attention. “You did?”
“Yes. Jason and I met while in grad school and were engaged for almost a year.”
Tyler broke off one of the cookies that had been served as a complimentary dessert. He tried to savor it but all he could do was think about Megan in the arms of another man, and a bitter taste crept into his mouth. “What happened?” he asked, chewing slowly.
“Although we thought we were well suited, we later discovered we weren’t. Jason was a walking genius and could analyze anything to death. After a while it wore on my nerves. I couldn’t imagine spending the rest of my life with him.”
She decided not to add that Jason’s kisses hadn’t stirred her, his touch hadn’t filled her with desire and there was never a time she was tempted to rip his clothes off.
Tyler stopped chewing and met her gaze intently. “So you broke off your engagement?”
“Yes.”
“What about love?”
A long pause. Not that Megan had to think about the answer but she knew he needed to understand. “Like I said, Jason and I were well suited. He figured that with our intelligence our kids would be little geniuses. All I could see were kids growing up being too smart for their own good.” And she decided not to add they wouldn’t be Savoys, inheriting their father’s hazel eyes the way she always dreamed about.
“So you didn’t love him?”
Megan wondered if he was asking a question or making a statement. But she decided to answer anyway, wishing that she could tell him that he’d been the only man she had ever truly loved. “No, I didn’t love him,” she finally answered. “So, what about you?” she decided to ask, shifting the focus from her love life to his.
Tyler shifted in his chair. He knew what she was asking. Eleven years was a long time for him not to be in a serious relationship with someone. “No engagements, not even close,” he said as a half smile tilted the corners of his mouth. “I date occasionally but that’s about it.”
But even as he said the words, he knew that wasn’t about it.
Although he had spent a lot of time working it hadn’t been like he’d had to build up his practice. The persons whose animals he took care of were the same ones Dr. James had cared for, and since he had been his assistant, it had been fairly easy for him to come back home and get established in his private business. Also, the name Savoy had helped. His family was well known and respected around these parts.
It suddenly occurred to him just how intimate their setting was. The lights were low, jazz music was playing and the candles on every table were lit. He enjoyed the conversation he and Megan were having and decided that he liked the new grown-up version of Megan James too much. The transformation was startling and definitely pleasing to the eyes. And speaking of eyes, she still had a turn-you-on pair. He would never forget how those same eyes had darkened as he moved over her in bed that night just moments before he was to enter –
“It’s hard to believe you don’t have a steady girlfriend.”
Tyler swallowed. Glad her words had intruded into his thoughts when they had since they’d been headed for dangerous territory. He leaned back, hearing the implied message in Megan’s words. “I can say the same for you. It’s hard to believe you don’t have a steady boyfriend either.”
He took his statement one step further and said. “You’re a very beautiful woman, Megan.” He hoped she believed that he wasn’t just giving her a line but had meant every word he’d said.
“Thank you.” Megan nervously glanced around. She didn’t want him to take note of the effects his words had on her. From other men she would consider them just words a man would say in an attempt to score, but Tyler had always been different.
She noted that most of the people who had been sitting around them had either left or were in the other room where a jazz band was performing, which was another new addition to Paddy’s since the last time she’d been here. She sighed deeply, knowing she had to get things out in the open and make her request to Tyler. Now that she knew that he wasn’t involved in a serious relationship with anyone, she didn’t have any misgivings about what she was about to say to him.
“Tyler?”
He met her gaze. “Yes?”
She swallowed past the lump in her throat. “We’ve always had this special bond, haven’t we?” she asked, reaching across the table and squeezing his hand.
Tyler nodded, feeling tension, and something pretty close to desire creep into him. “Yes, why?”
“Because I need to ask a big favor of you.”
She removed her hand but that didn’t stop Tyler’s heart from pounding. “Sure, what do you need?”
She smiled. “My birthday is in a few months.”
He nodded. Knowing exactly when it was and how old she would be. “October tenth, and you’ll be thirty.”
Her smile widened. “You remember?”
“Yes.”
She leaned over the table, closer to him as if the words she were about to speak were meant only for him. “Do you also remember prom night?”
Tyler lifted a brow as he swallowed deeply. “Yes.” He wondered why she was bringing that night up and what one had to do with the other.
“Things didn’t go the way I had wanted and planned,” she admitted softly.
That was an understatement, he thought. He had known what was on her mind when she had suggested they go somewhere private to talk, since he could always read her like a book. She had sent out signs, big ones, all du
ring the dance, and the smiles she had given him that night had meant to seduce. At sixteen she had decided she wanted to take their relationship to another level if he was ready or not. And unfortunately, he had played right in her hands.
Almost.
At the very last minute he had come to his senses. Pulling away from her had been the hardest thing he’d ever had to do.
“For a long time I was angry with you, Tyler, for what you did,” she said, interrupting his thoughts.
He nodded. “Your letters said as much,” he replied, trying to ignore the look in her eyes that had him thinking of things that he shouldn’t be thinking about.
“After I broke off my engagement with Jason my mother and I had a long talk, and although she had no idea what almost happened between us that night, she did tell me the truth.”
Tyler was about to pick up his glass to take a sip of water, then hesitated. “The truth about what?”
She eyed him steadily. “She told me about the promise my grandfather convinced you to make after finding that love letter I had written you.”
Tyler lifted a brow. He hadn’t known anything about a love letter. All he knew was that Dr. James had spoken with him privately, and the old man’s request was to promise that he would never touch his granddaughter in an inappropriate way. Tyler had known just what way the man had meant.
“Do you deny you made my grandfather a promise involving me?”
Tyler shrugged. “No, I don’t deny it,” he said, thinking there was no reason not to be honest with her now since it was water under the bridge. He watched as her gaze took on a determined glint just seconds before she began focusing on the candle once again.
“Hearing you confirm that makes what I’m about to say a lot easier,” she said in a slow breath before lifting her eyes to meet his. “You owe me something, Tyler, and it’s something I want.”
ALL HE DESIRES (Voluptuous Woman Series) Page 20