Untrusting Hearts: A Contemporary New Orleans Romance

by Hartt, Madison

  Gage opened the drinks and poured them over ice in a pair of glass tumblers. “Was it a good nap?”

  “It was perfect,” she said as she accepted the glass and curled up in a chair.

  He sat nearby and swept her with his eyes. “You look a lot more at ease now.”

  “A short rest was just what I needed. I don’t know how you knew that, but thanks.” She felt rejuvenated, comfortable with him, happy she’d decided to come along after all.

  He seemed contented, too, leaning back in the chair next to her, his long legs stretched out in front of him. She took a sip of her soda and said, “I don’t really know that much about you and I’m curious. You’ve never mentioned your extended family. What about grandparents? Aunts and uncles?”

  “My grandparents on my mother’s side are dead. I never knew them.”

  “What about your dad’s folks?”

  “What about them?”

  “Where are they?” She set her glass down.

  “I have no idea.”

  She waited, but he said nothing further. He seemed to be withdrawing from her. She pressed ahead, wanting to hang onto that sense of companionable ease, that feeling of closeness they’d been enjoying. “Well, tell me about them. Didn’t you ever meet them?”

  “Yes. A long time ago. When I was a kid.”

  “What were they like?”

  “Why does it matter?” He sounded almost angry.

  “I suppose it doesn’t.” She blinked in surprise. “I just wondered, is all.”

  “They’re not wealthy, if that’s the information you’re fishing for.” He stared into his glass. “Not all of us are lucky enough to have a Dubois or Broussard in our bloodlines.”

  “I don’t even know how to respond to that.” She felt her dander rise.

  “Let me spell it out for you. Not all of us come from thoroughbred stock. Not all of us can trace our lineage back to the vaunted gentry. Be honest. If you hadn’t found a lady of Maylene’s standing, would you be all that interested in your family tree?”

  “What’s your problem, Gage? Can’t I even make small talk now without you blowing a gasket?” She stood and set her glass down firmly on the dresser. “As for lineage, I’m not that hyped up about it. I found it interesting to learn I had relatives I’d never heard of, but it’s not an all-consuming passion for me.”

  “Let’s just forget it.” He parted the curtains to stare out the window.

  “It’s hard to forget when you bit my head off over nothing.” Jade frowned at him.

  He let the curtain drop and gazed at her. “I didn’t bite your head off. Nonetheless, I apologize.”

  “What good is saying you’re sorry when you don’t mean it?” She crossed her arms.

  “I do mean it. I shouldn’t have snapped at you.”

  “No, you shouldn’t have. But I shouldn’t be surprised that you did. Being with you is like picking my way across a minefield. I never know when I might take the wrong step and set you off.”

  He surprised her by chuckling. “I’m sorry. I just got a mental image of you hopping around in a field to avoid suspicious-looking piles of dirt.” He reached over to take her hand, but she pulled away.

  “I don’t see the humor.” She flopped back into her chair and clasped her hands in her lap. “I don’t know why you invited me to come when you obviously despise me.”

  It was his turn to look surprised. “I don’t despise you. In fact, I feel quite the opposite.”

  “Spare me.” She looked down and fought against the tears that threatened. The last thing she wanted was for him to see her vulnerable. Not giving in to weakness, she rose from the chair and picked up her purse. “I’m going to the gift shop. I need something to read while you’re gone.”

  “I’ll walk down with you.”

  “Don’t bother. In fact, why don’t you just leave?”

  “Unfortunately, I have to. But just for a short while. This meeting won’t take long.” He stood. “Jade, I really am sorry; I acted like an ass.”

  She paused with her hand on the door, listening as he spoke.

  “I’m sorry for all of it. All the times I’ve treated you rudely and said hurtful things. Things based on nothing more than assumption and past experiences. I’ve been unfair to you, and not just today. But when you brought up the subject of my grandparents, it got under my skin for reasons you couldn’t possibly have known.”

  “I’m glad you had a good relationship with your family. I wish my own relatives were people I could be proud of, but that’s not the case. My dad kept me away from my grandfather, for my own good. It’s one of the few things the man did right. His father was a despicable man and his mother wasn’t much better. I don’t want to go into the sordid details, but I will say that the old man spent some much deserved time in prison. Maybe I’m a little sensitive, I don’t know. But I don’t like to go rooting around my family tree.”

  She said nothing, but didn’t make a move to leave.

  He came to stand beside her. “When I was growing up, other kids I knew loved their grandparents. Their aunts and uncles. I had to keep my mouth shut about mine.”

  She glanced up at him and back down at the floor. “It’s not necessary to bare your soul, Gage.”

  “I know. I want to.” He checked his watch, then put a hand on her arm and ran his fingers over her wrist. “I’ve told you how good Jean Pierre was to me. What I didn’t tell you is how patient he and Maylene were. I’m embarrassed to even recall the kind of person I was back then. So uncouth. So ill-equipped to be out there in the workforce, in the world, really. A kid growing up without a role model to guide me, without any kind of social compass to follow. A young man who was never really taught how to behave. Some of the things I said back then.” He shook his head, a wry grin on his mouth. “Maylene did her best to smooth out my rough edges, teach me manners.”

  Jade felt her own lips curl in mirth. “Maybe you should take some more lessons from her. I don’t think her work with you is finished yet.”

  “Touché.” He gave a short laugh and then continued to describe the generosity of his benefactors, how they’d stuck by him until he had transformed himself, how they’d helped him through school, given him a position in the company. His dark eyes were pools of emotion and she felt her anger slipping away.

  “Eventually I caught Liv’s eye and we tried to make a go of it. We seemed the perfect match at first, both of us going places, both ambitious. But she was born into high society; I was there by the good graces of the Dubois family. I wanted to work for my reward. She felt entitled to hers and didn’t appreciate my attitude. It was a relationship destined to fail. I’m glad Ty brought her to the masquerade ball. It was a good reminder for me of what I don’t want. I can be cordial to her when necessary, but that’s as far as it will ever go.”

  “Ty didn’t even seem to like her that much. I don’t understand why he brought her.”

  “That’s easy. It was a jab at me. And possibly at Maylene. But it didn’t turn out quite like he expected.”

  “I guess not,” Jade said.

  Gage slid his fingers from her wrist and took her shoulders in his hands, compelling her to look up at him. “Please give me another chance to make this a good day for you.”

  Jade swallowed hard. “How late do you think your meeting will last?”

  “Hard to say. Why?”

  “Just wondered if we’d be driving home in the dark.”

  “I do have headlights, Jade. They work very well.” He studied her. “What are you getting at?”

  She steeled herself, as if preparing to dive off a cliff into deep waters. “We could spend the night.” She lifted her chin and forced herself not to turn away from his surprised eyes.

  “Are you saying what I think you are?” His deep voice set off sparks under her skin.

  Biting her lip, she nodded.

  “There’s nothing I’d like more,” he admitted, “than a night with you in my arms.” He stroked
her cheek with gentle fingers. “But it will change...well, everything. Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure,” she managed before his lips came down on hers in a kiss that was both tender and fierce. He pulled her close, pressing her against his chest, and groaned as she dropped her purse and threaded her hands into his hair, cupping either side of his head as she tasted deeply of his hot, moist lips.

  When they parted, both were breathless. “Tonight will be like a dream come true for me,” she said softly from the circle of his embrace.

  “Why wait?” He nuzzled her hair.

  “Your meeting, remember?” She reluctantly pushed away from him.

  He took a breath and blew it out slowly as she edged past him and went around the room, switching on lamps.

  “Damn that meeting,” he mumbled, but went to the table to retrieve his briefcase. “I hope you don’t get cold feet before I return.”

  She laughed lightly. “Believe me, Gage, nothing about me is cold at this moment.”

  He kissed her goodbye before disappearing through the door.

  Once he was gone, doubt set in. Was this really what she wanted? It couldn’t lead anywhere, other than to give her a spectacular memory to take back home. She decided that was enough, at least for now. She might never again meet a man who made her feel the way he did, in spite of the turmoil that accompanied the flaming desire. She wanted to experience that level of passion at least once in her life.

  Jade visited the gift shop and bought a magazine, a book, a razor, and two toothbrushes and toothpaste. She took a shower, primping and shaving away every unwanted hair before ensconcing herself in one of the plush robes the hotel provided. Still, she had time on her hands. Neither the magazine nor the book could hold her attention. She tried to watch TV, flipped through the channels, but found herself listening for footsteps outside the door, which was ridiculous given the thick carpeting in the hallway.

  When Gage finally returned, she fell into his arms. After a long kiss, he murmured into her ear, “I have to know something, Jade. And I want you to tell me the truth.”

  “Anything. Just ask.” She laid her head on his broad chest, felt his heart beating against her ear. Her own pounded an answering rhythm.

  “What made you change your mind about coming with me?”

  She froze in his arms. He deserved the truth, but she couldn’t tell him she’d come at Maylene’s request to give Ty a chance to prove himself. That would wreck the progress they’d made, turn their relationship sour once again. What could she say that wouldn’t be a lie?

  She searched her heart and was stunned when she realized another truth; she’d been lying to herself. Helping Ty was never the reason she’d come along. Nor was pleasing Maylene. They were only excuses she’d used to do what she wanted to do anyway. But was she ready to confess her feelings for him?

  “I guess I thought Baton Rouge would be interesting.” Her vague half-truth set like a guilty rock in her chest. Heavy. Wrong.

  He held her at arm’s length and scrutinized her face. “Dubois would have taken you. No, what I want to know is why did you come with me?”

  “I didn’t want to go with Ty.” She straightened her shoulders and fearlessly met his gaze. “It was you I wanted to be with.”

  “I was hoping to hear that. Now, give me a minute; I want to grab a quick shower.”

  He left the room before she could ask a question of her own. But he wasn’t gone long, returning with a towel around his waist and his hair wet and wavy around his face. He moved to one of the chairs and draped his clothes haphazardly over Jade’s.

  Almost without thinking, Jade approached him. She gulped before stuttering, “What about you, Gage? Did you only bring me because Maylene asked you to?”

  “You know better than that,” he half-growled. His hand caressed her cheek, tilted her head back for a kiss. “I want you like I’ve never wanted anyone or anything in my life.”

  As his lips claimed hers, she was overwhelmed by sensation and emotion, as if spinning under starry skies. Her lips parted and his tongue slipped inside her mouth. She met it with her own and they tasted deeply of each other.

  A moan escaped her throat and it fueled their passion. He cradled her in his arms and rocked her against the hard length of his body. “Why did we wait so long?” His voice was husky. “How did we?” He lifted her into his arms and carried her toward the bed.

  “It doesn’t matter now,” she said, smoothing a fingertip over his lips. “It’s in the past. This is a new start for both of us.”

  He laid her carefully on the bed, sat on the edge, and slowly untied the sash of her robe. Leaning down he sprinkle kisses over her cheeks, ears, and throat. Then he cupped her breasts, and his hands were hot like fire. She gasped as she stared into his eyes, dark with yearning. “I want to explore every part of you. Savor you.”

  “Make love to me, Gage.” Her lips felt full and lush, her body liquid as she reached for him.

  He slid the robe from her shoulders and pulled her body to his, kissing her long and deep. Her arms went around him and drew him close.

  “You taste so good,” he murmured against her ear.

  He laid her gently back on the pillow and stood. She stared openly; she would finally see what she’d been longing to see, touch what she’d ached to touch. Her body flushed with desire as she watched him reach for the damp towel. He was magnificent, from his massive shoulders to his broad chest and firm abdomen. She filled her hungry eyes as he let the strip of terrycloth fall in a heap at his ankles. His legs were perfectly formed, muscular, solid. The thick, heavy length of his manhood stood proudly at attention.

  She couldn’t stop a sharp intake of breath at the sight. She was overcome with a savage desire to touch him, grasp him in her hand, draw him without preamble to her molten center. As if sensing her thoughts, he said in a low rumble, “There’s no hurry. We have all night and I’m going to make the most of it.”

  Then he was beside her on the bed, his naked skin pressed against hers. His eyes traveled her body, followed by his fingers. “You’re so beautiful, Jade. I’d never tire of looking at you.”

  Before she could utter a word, his mouth claimed hers and she felt the thrill reverberate through her body. She wound her fingers into his hair, pulling him closer, slipping a leg over his thigh, yearning toward him with her very essence.

  But he took his time, slowly exploring and savoring her most sensitive areas. Caressing, stroking, kissing, and tasting. She’d never felt such sensations, not even in her fevered fantasies. As he swirled his tongue over her most intimate places, she experienced an ecstasy more intense than she’d ever known. She arched into the sweet release and moaned his name.

  When the ripples of pleasure waned, she pushed his head from between her legs. He looked up at her in surprise.

  “My turn,” she said hoarsely. “Come here.”

  He crawled up beside her, and she pushed him over onto his back. She stared down at him for a few seconds, her eyes stormy with longing, then began kissing his neck, his shoulders, his chest. Breathing deeply of his clean masculine scent, she trailed her lips lower, down his belly, into the nest of dark hair at the juncture of his muscular thighs. She could feel his erection against her cheek. When she took his swollen shaft into her eager mouth, he groaned, “Oh god, Jade! I want you.”

  They could wait no longer. He reached under her arms, pulled her up on the mattress, rolled her over, nudged her legs apart, and lowered himself onto her. With a look of tender agony on his face, he entered her in one long, slow move. She lifted her hips, welcoming him into her hot center. As he slid in to fill her, she sighed with pleasure. For a long moment, they clung to each other, relishing the exquisite feel of their joined flesh.

  He began to piston slowly, in and out. She wrapped her legs around him and drew him inside again each time he pulled back. The rhythm of their love was perfect, thrilling, intoxicating.

  Her need built to a fever-pitch and she rocked her pe
lvis against him, riding delicious waves of release. She cried out in bliss and he laughed softly. “I felt that,” he murmured.

  A smile played at the corners of her trembling lips.

  He growled deep in his throat and his strokes turned long and fast. With a low moan, he emptied himself into her.

  Afterward, he stayed atop her, still buried deep in her warmth. Breathless, Jade looked up into his whiskey eyes. They gazed back at her, tender and warm. She stroked his moist brow, smoothed damp tendrils of dark hair away from his temples, and smiled softly. “I think I’m in heaven.”

  “Then I am also.” He bent his head to press gentle kisses over her forehead, cheeks, and mouth. “Jade, you don’t know what you do to me.”

  “Tell me.”

  “I can’t. I don’t have the right words.”

  He rolled off her and gathered her in his arms, cradling her against his side. She lay with her head on his chest, her heart swelled with emotion. This was a night she would always remember, no matter what came after.

  His hand moved lazily up and down her arm, a soothing motion, yet strangely exciting, too. “I’ve never felt this way about a woman,” he said finally. “I’m captivated. And a bit lost.”

  “Are you sorry we made love?” Jade whispered.

  “Lord, no. It was amazing. In fact, it felt like coming home after being gone too long. This was meant to happen.” He paused. “It felt right.”

  “To me, too.” She cuddled closer.

  “I don’t know your heart and mind, Jade, but this was more than just sex to me. When I was younger, I was like most guys. It was all about conquest, or a lot of it was, and I had my share. But as a man, I find purely physical encounters to be less than satisfying and rather empty. I want something deeper.”

  Her pulse, which had begun to normalize, now picked up. “What are you saying?”

  “That you not only entice me, you also intrigue me. That I enjoy your company, even when we are at odds with each other. When we talk, for instance, I can’t wait to hear what you’ll say next. When you’re with me, I feel alive. When we’re apart, I look forward to seeing you again. This is more than just physical attraction. You matter to me, Jade.”