After her waves of climax had retreated, she sank into the bed. Her hands ached and she realized she was gripping the comforter with such force that when she let go, her fingers were stiff.
“That was…unbelievable,” Trent sighed behind her.
Rayne let out a long breath. “Yeah.”
He rubbed his hand over her back and then turned her to him. “Was I too rough?”
She wiped the dampness from her face. “No.”
He traced his fingers along the top of her left thigh. “Are you sure?”
“Positive,” she affirmed.
He climbed on top of her and held her hands out to her sides. “I don’t believe you.”
She wrapped her supple legs about his waist. “What will it take to convince you?”
His hand dipped between her legs, fondling her folds. “Let’s say I need more proof.”
Her skin pulsated with his touch. “Oh, Trent,” she cried out as she gripped his shoulders.
“We’ve got all night, baby,” he whispered into her cheek. “All night for you to prove it to me over and over again.”
***
Monday morning Rayne walked into the employee break room to find Lindsey with her nose in another romance book. Sitting at the faux-wood table with her white coffee mug in front of her, she never looked up when Rayne went to the coffeemaker.
“What’s this one about?”
Lindsey gaped at her, appearing disoriented for a second. “Oh, hey Rayne. I didn’t hear you come in.”
“How could you with….” She paused and read the cover of the book. “The Lady’s Gentleman.”
Lindsey put the book down on the table and snatched up her coffee. “This one is pretty steamy.” She took a sip from her mug. “How was your weekend? You and the horse guy do anything fun?”
Carrying a mug of fresh coffee, Rayne had a seat at the table across from Lindsey. “Actually, we went to a party Saturday night in the city. A formal affair at the home of one of Trent’s business associates. Beautiful place in Highland Park.”
“And you didn’t invite me?”
Rayne raised her mug to her lips, smirking. “Wish I had. There was someone there you would have loved to have met.”
Lindsey put her coffee down. “Really? Who?”
Rayne let a dramatic pause settle between them before she announced, “Monique Delome.”
The scream that filled the break room was earsplitting.
“You met Monique Delome!”
“What is it? Is everything okay in here?” Dr. Moffet shouted at the break room door.
Lindsey pointed to Rayne. “She met Monique Delome at a party.”
Dr. Moffett rolled his tired brown eyes. “Jesus, is that all, Lindsey? You scared the crap out of me and Mrs. DeBois.”
Dr. Moffett disappeared from the doorway and Lindsey turned back to Rayne.
“I need to hear everything! How did you meet her? What was she like? Was she nice, mean, a real bitch to you? I’ve met her once at one of those book signing things and she seemed real nice, but you never know if they are like that in real life or is it just something she puts on for her fans. I had a friend of mine go to one of her conferences in South Carolina and she says she never showed up, and after that—”
“Lindsey, you need to take a breath.” Rayne broke in, putting her mug on the table. “Yes, she was very nice. She’s married to one of Trent’s friends, Tyler Moore, and that is how I met her. We talked for a while about Trent, she introduced me to her baby girl, and then…that was it.”
“I don’t believe it! You got to pal around with Monique Delome, meet her little girl, and your boyfriend is friends with her husband. You know what that means, don’t you? You’ll be able to get copies of her books before they hit bookstores.” Her blue eyes burned into Rayne. “I hate you.”
“If I see her again, I’ll ask her to sign one of your books. Will that make you unhate me?”
Lindsey, obviously disgusted, grabbed for her coffee mug. “Only if you take me with you and I get to grovel at her feet.”
“I’ll think about it,” Rayne teased, grasping her mug.
“So what did she tell you about your horse guy?”
Rayne nonchalantly shrugged. “She confided that Trent really cares for me and I should give him a chance.”
“I could have told you that,” Lindsey scoffed, then sipped her coffee.
“You already did.”
Banging her mug on the table, Lindsey eyed Rayne. “So what happened after that? Did you run into his arms and profess your undying love?”
“You really don’t have to tell anyone you like romance novels,” Rayne lightly tittered, nursing her warm mug in her hands. “And no, it didn’t quite turn out like that.”
“So how did it turn out, Rayne? Did you at least tell him how you feel?”
Rayne refrained from sharing the wisecrack poised on her lips. “Yeah, I think he knows how I feel.” She ran a finger along the rim of the white mug in her hand. “He gave me a key to his house. Told me he wants me to come and go as I please.”
“Oh, I see.” Lindsey’s blonde eyebrows went higher. “And did you give him your key?”
Rayne plopped her mug on the table. “Was I supposed to?”
“Ah, yeah. He lets you have access to his life, and you are to allow him access to yours. First, you exchange keys, and before you know it you’re having that ‘we need to consider living together in one place’ discussion.”
Feeling like an idiot, Rayne sagged into her chair. “I didn’t know that was what was expected.”
“Lord, woman,” Lindsey admonished with a roll of her blue eyes. “You really are a babe in the woods when it comes to men. Didn’t you learn anything after all those years with Foster?”
“Foster.” Rayne grimaced as she pictured her ex. “He was at the party, too. He found me just as Trent and I were leaving. He told me Connie left him.”
“Hallelujah.” Lindsey loudly applauded. “The bitch finally wised up to him.”
“And he was there with someone else. Trent’s former flame, a woman named Lisa Shelby. Trent used to ride for her at Shelby Stables.”
“And how did that go? An uncomfortable time had by all, I suppose.”
“Yeah, you could say that,” Rayne admitted. “Lisa Shelby was in this black strapless dress that let everything hang out, and was drooling all over Trent. Foster said they were just friends, but Lisa made it pretty clear that there was more to it than that.”
“You mean Foster might actually be sleeping with someone over the age of twenty-one?” Lindsey clapped her hands over her cheeks, feigning utter shock.
Rayne chuckled at her friend’s performance. “I know, it sounds incredible.”
Lindsey lifted her coffee mug. “Yeah, well, the Catholic Church might want to investigate that little undocumented miracle.”
“Anyway, it was really nerve-wracking meeting Trent’s former lover. We left right after that.”
Lindsey took another pull of coffee. “What did your guy think about Foster and this Lisa woman?”
“He broke out in a fit of laughter as we were leaving the party. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him laugh so hard.”
“That’s good. That means he doesn’t care about her anymore. If he had been mad, then I would be worried.” Lindsey stood from her chair and made her way to the sink. “So when are you going to give him your key?”
“I can give it to him this weekend when we see each other at—”
“Honey, he gave you that key to use. You go over there tonight and give him your key.”
Rayne pivoted around in her chair to her. “You don’t think that would be…rude?”
Lindsey placed her coffee mug in the sink and scowled at Rayne. “Girl, he gave you that key hoping you would just show up at any time during the day, and especially the night. Now you go over there after work and give him your key. That will let him know you’re just as interested in moving ahead with this relati
onship as he is.”
“But I’ve got to go to the stables and ride Bob after work. I’ve got a show in two weeks and a lot to do to get him ready. ”
“Rayne, the sooner you give the key to Trent, the better.”
“I know, you’re right,” Rayne sighed, turning back to her coffee on the table. “I’ll stop by his place after work and see if he’s home. If he isn’t, I’ll just leave it on his kitchen counter.”
“Tie your underwear to it,” Lindsey chimed in.
“What?” She whirled back around.
“I read it in a book once. The heroine tied her hotel room key to a pair of sexy underwear so the guy knew exactly what that key was for.”
“Jesus, Lindsey. What kind of book was this?”
“Hey, you can’t have a good romance without a whole lot of sex, at least that’s the way I like my romances.”
“I should introduce you to my friend Rebecca,” Rayne quipped. “You two would have a lot in common.”
Lindsey ran some water over her mug in the sink. “Hey, Casey loves that I read romance books, especially when I finish them.”
“Why is that?”
Lindsey set out for the open break room door. “Because after I finish a book, I usually like to practice the love scenes on him.”
After Lindsey was gone, Rayne picked up her coffee and slinked down in her chair. When her eyes spotted the book Lindsey had left on the table, she stared at it. The scantily clad woman on the cover was in the arms of a man who reminded her of Trent. His black, wavy hair and intense gray eyes were identical. With her curiosity ignited, Rayne put her coffee down and flipped the book over. Reading the page where Lindsey had left off, she soon became engrossed in a heated love scene. Getting comfortable in her chair, Rayne inched the book closer to her face, eager to take a few more minutes to discover what other things a woman could do to a man.
Chapter 21
After work, Rayne drove to Trent’s, anxious to see his reaction when she handed him the key with lacy, red thong underwear she had purchased at a lingerie store on the way to his home. Her mind was exploding with vivid images of things to try with him after reading excerpts from Lindsey’s racy book. A whole world of possibilities had opened up to her between the pages of that novel; possibilities she was eager to explore with Trent.
Her jazzy ringtone suddenly interrupted her steamy daydreams. Spying her mother’s number, Rayne’s excitement quickly disintegrated.
“Hello, Estelle.”
“Where are you?” Estelle’s raspy voice sounded unusually flat.
“Heading to the stables,” Rayne lied, not wanting to tell her mother anything about Trent. “I have a show I have to get ready for.”
“A show?” Estelle sounded surprised. “You’re going to start that nonsense again?”
“Yes, Mother. I want to start showing again. Trent has been working with me and encouraging me to…never mind. Why are you calling me?”
“Well…Raynie, I was wondering if you could go to the doctor with me later this week.”
“Wait, you had an appointment today.” Rayne gaped at the iPhone in her hand. “Did you change it?”
“No, I went, and they drew a lot of blood and he did some other tests and told me to come back Friday to go over the results. But I need you to help explain things to me. You know that business and what those tests mean. All that stuff is lost on me.”
“It’s not lost on you, Mother. You just choose not to pay attention to it, like everything else in your life.”
“Fine. Think what you like,” Estelle huffed. “I’m sorry I bothered you.”
Rayne wanted to scream out loud, but then she heard her father’s voice in her head. “Wait, Mother. When on Friday?”
There was a long break, and then Estelle sweetly answered, “Ten at Dr. Emerit’s office.”
“I’ll take off work and pick you up.”
“I can take a cab, like I always do,” Estelle smugly asserted
“You can’t afford to keep taking cabs everywhere, Mother.”
“Well, how do you expect me to get around? I don’t have a car.”
“You don’t have a car because…never mind. I’ll pick you up Friday,” Rayne insisted, raising her voice.
“I’ll see you then, Raynie.”
Tossing her iPhone to the passenger seat, Rayne shook her head, fascinated at how the woman was still able to push her buttons. She sometimes contemplated what things would have been like if Jaime and her father had not died that winter’s day so long ago. But as visions of the life that could have been materialized in her mind’s eye, Rayne brushed them away. Better not to think of what might have been, and deal with what was.
“Christ, I sound like my mother,” she muttered.
Pressing her foot down on the gas pedal, she was more anxious than ever to get to Trent’s. She needed to forget about her mother and her past, and invest her energy in her possible future with the man who was beginning to take up a permanent place of residence inside the confines of her heart.
***
After parking in front of Trent’s wood and stone contemporary home, she peeked around the side of his front gardens to discover that one of his garage doors was open and his dark blue BMW was parked inside. Hoping to surprise him, she took the key he had given her along with the one she had tied with the fancy red underwear from her backpack and exited her car.
At the double doors to his home, she put her gold key in the lock.
“Trent?” she called out as she opened the doors.
The short entrance hall was dark, but the lights were on in the grand living room and she could hear the strains of soft music coming from within. Entering the living room, she found a CD player in a recessed wall to the far right of the stone hearth filling the home with a mellow jazz tune. Rayne searched the connecting kitchen and dining areas, but when her eyes went to the open patio doors, she froze. Draped over one of the cedar chaise lounge chairs, beside the rectangular pond, was a pair of black riding breeches, a black T-shirt, and black, lacy underwear. Rayne’s fist closed over the key tied to the panties in her hand. A wave of nausea came over her as she began to jump to a number of conclusions.
“Rayne?”
When she reeled around, Trent was behind her, clutching a white envelope in his hand. The smile on his face held not the slightest hint of deception.
“You used your key.” He came up to her and kissed her cheek. “I’m so glad. I didn’t know if you—”
The sound of splashing and hurried footsteps outside made him turn toward the patio doors.
Rayne followed his eyes and recoiled when she spotted the reason for his sudden loss of words. Standing outside on the deck, and naked as the day she was born, was Lisa Shelby. Her long brown hair was wet and clung to her shoulders, and although she pretended to be embarrassed and hide her nudity, Rayne could tell by the evil grin on her red lips that she was more delighted than upset at being seen that way.
“What in the hell are you doing?” Trent shouted.
“I was waiting for you to join me in the pool.” Lisa came into the house, leaving tiny wet footsteps on the bamboo floor.
Trent jogged out the patio doors. “Are you mad?” He hastily collected her clothes from the chaise lounge. “I never said anything about you swimming in my pool. Honestly, Lisa, what is wrong with you?” He went up to her and shoved the clothes at her. “Get dressed.”
But Lisa made no attempt to dress as she kept her almond-shaped eyes on Rayne. “Remember how much fun we used to have in your pool, Trent?”
Trent’s eyes swiveled around to Rayne, and his anger turned to bitter concern when he saw her face.
Common sense told Rayne that the whole incident was nothing more than cruel manipulation by a spiteful ex-lover. But as the naked woman’s green eyes bore into her, Rayne began to consider all the other women who had come before her; all the women he had made love to in the shallows of his swimming pool. She had always been aware of Tre
nt’s history with the opposite sex, but it was not until she saw Lisa naked in his living room that Rayne began to carefully question why he had such a history.
“Rayne, don’t you for one minute believe that I knew—”
“I’m sure she knows better than to trust you, Trent,” Lisa interrupted as a scheming smile spread across her red lips. “I could never trust you, so why should she?” She frowned at Rayne. “You see, he asked me to come here. He wanted me, even though he already had you.” She laughed, sounding cold and empty inside. “They’re all the same, Rayne. They’ll say anything to get you into bed, but they don’t mean it. They never mean it.”
“Shut up!” Trent yelled. “You backstabbing bitch.” He rushed across the living room to Rayne’s side. “You can’t believe a word she says. She came here begging me to return to Shelby Stables. She even wrote out a check for a year’s salary.” He threw the white envelope still in his hand to the floor.
Lisa just stood in her spot inside the patio doors, dripping all over the finely polished wood floors and with her clothes strategically positioned over her naked body.
“Get out,” Rayne growled to Lisa.
Lisa opened her mouth to object.
“You heard her, get out of my house,” Trent hollered.
Lisa indignantly raised her head. “At least allow me to put my clothes on and—”
But before she could finish, Trent seized her wrist. He dragged her wet, naked body toward the living room entrance.
Interested in what would happen next, Rayne slowly followed them and stopped just short of the hallway.
“We’re over, Lisa. Don’t ever come back here,” Trent went on as he practically carried her down the hallway.
“Let me go,” Lisa squawked.
“If you ever say anything negative about me or Rayne, I will be sure to let everyone know about all those disgusting affairs you bragged to me about.”
“You better think twice about that, or else—”
“Or else what?” Trent opened the front doors. “By the time I’m done with you, no one will ever want to go near Shelby Stables. You’ll be ruined.” He shoved her, still naked, outside to the porch. “Don’t threaten me, Lisa. Don’t ever threaten me.” Trent smashed the doors closed.
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