Mariah deserved a man who could offer her a future free of the emotional and physical scars of the past. Unfortunately, he had both.
* * *
When Jaron drove his truck beneath the arched entrance sign of the Wild Maverick Ranch, Mariah’s heart skipped a beat. She still couldn’t believe that he’d kissed her, let alone that she was going to spend the night at his new ranch.
When she was eighteen, she’d had a crush on him and dreamed of nothing more than having him feel as enamored with her as she was with him. He’d known about the infatuation, and instead of teasing her about it as some men might have done, he had been a perfect gentleman. He hadn’t encouraged her in order to stroke his ego, nor had he discouraged her. He had simply ignored it and treated her the same as the rest of his brothers. She’d known he thought he was too old for her back then, and he’d been right. She hadn’t been mature enough to handle a relationship with a man in his late twenties.
As the years went by and they saw each other at the family gatherings her sister held for the six foster brothers, she’d seen Jaron watch her and known he found her attractive. But to her disappointment, he hadn’t asked her out or treated her any different than he had when she was a teenager.
Then as the brothers married and started their families, her relationship with Jaron had turned into a rivalry of sorts. Whenever one of the sisters-in-law became pregnant, Jaron insisted the baby would be a boy, while she just knew it would be a girl. But even as they argued about it, there had been an undertone of tension that had recently become so thick it was impossible to deny.
Mariah glanced at Jaron. But tonight something had changed between them. She’d known it the moment he punched the cowboy at the Broken Spoke. Although any of his brothers would have taken exception to the man grabbing her by the arm, Jaron had been absolutely furious. And if his reaction hadn’t given her a hint that things were different between them, the kiss he had given her certainly had.
She had been kissed many times before, and although they’d been pleasant, none of them had been like the kiss Jaron had given her. There had been so much passion in the caress that it had been overwhelming. And what she couldn’t get over was the fact that they had both ignored it, as if it hadn’t even happened. They had started talking about her car problems and where she was going to stay for the night instead of addressing the fact that after all these years he had finally acted on their mutual attraction.
“Unbelievable.”
“What’s unbelievable?” he asked as he parked his truck in the four-car garage and pushed the remote on the visor to lower the door.
Unaware that she’d spoken her thoughts aloud, Mariah shrugged. “I was just thinking about my day,” she lied.
“Some days are like that,” he said, getting out of the truck. “Maybe tomorrow will be better.”
“It has to be. I doubt it could get any worse,” she said, opening the passenger door. Before she could figure out how to get out of the truck without breaking one of her high heels, or for that matter one of her ankles, Jaron was there to lift her down from the seat. His large hands wrapped around her waist caused her to feel warm all over. “Th-thank you.”
“Would you like something to eat?” he asked as they walked through the door to the mudroom. “I’ve got a couple of frozen pizzas I can toss in the oven.”
“No, thank you.” She shrugged. “I had dinner after my meeting.” She didn’t add that she hadn’t been able to eat due to the fact that during the meeting she had learned she was out of a job—effective immediately. “If you don’t mind, I think I’d like to go on to bed.”
“Of course not.” He led the way down the hall to the stairs. “Bria and the other sisters-in-law made up all the rooms when they decorated the place, so you can have your pick.”
“They did a fantastic job,” she said, noticing the original paintings by a popular Western artist hanging on the wall as they climbed the steps. The decor reflected the Wild Maverick’s new owner and his cowboy lifestyle.
“They did a better job than I would have done, that’s for sure,” he commented. When they reached the top floor, he opened the first door they came to and flipped on the light switch to turn on the bedside lamps. “If you don’t like this room, there are four more to choose from.”
“This will be fine,” she said, looking around. Decorated in a cool shade of green and cream, the colors complemented the Native American artwork on the walls and the handwoven area rugs on the hardwood floor. “Bria and the others should consider going into interior decorating.”
“I was going to leave the bedrooms empty, but Bria pointed out that I needed to furnish them in case I had guests.” He shrugged. “I doubt that I’ll ever have that many, since all of my brothers live close by.”
“If you don’t think you’ll need the rooms, why did you buy such a big house?” she asked, unable to see the logic in him paying for something he didn’t intend to use.
“I wanted the land,” he admitted. “It’s close enough to all of my brothers’ ranches that we can help each other out when needed and not have to drive more than an hour or so to get there.” He gave her a half smile. “The house just came with it.”
She wasn’t surprised Jaron wanted to live close to his foster brothers. From what her sister had told her, all six of them had been in trouble with the law when they were teenagers and the foster-care system had given up on them as lost causes. They’d been sent to the Last Chance Ranch, and thanks to a special man named Hank Calvert and his unique way of using ranch work and rodeo to teach them life lessons, all of the boys had worked through their troubles and turned their lives around. They had all become honest, productive adults, and because of their similar problems when they were boys and having no families to return to once they were of age, they had bonded into a very close family of their own.
“I wish I could live closer to Bria and Sam,” Mariah said wistfully. Living a couple of hours away, she didn’t get to see her only sibling nearly as much as she would have liked.
Jaron surprised her, and if his expression was any indication, he might have stunned himself when he stepped closer and brushed a wayward strand of her hair from her cheek. “Maybe one day that real estate place you work for will open a branch office somewhere around here and you’ll be able to live closer to your sister.”
She knew he meant the gesture as comforting, but his gentle touch and the knowledge that she no longer had a job with the company caused her to blink back tears. “I doubt...that will ever happen.”
“What’s wrong, Mariah?” His deep baritone was filled with gentle concern.
“Nothing,” she lied. “It’s been a really tough day. And one that I would just as soon forget.”
She didn’t want to go into the dismal turn her life had taken. She’d lost a boyfriend, a roommate and her job in less than twenty-four hours, and when she’d left Fort Worth after her meeting, she’d planned on having a good cry once she got home. The boyfriend hadn’t really bothered her because they hadn’t been seeing each other more than a couple of weeks and their relationship hadn’t been serious. In fact, it never would have been. They both knew that one day they’d stop seeing each other and she hadn’t even bothered mentioning that she was seeing him to her sister. But the loss of her roommate and her job had been devastating. Her roommate had left without notice, and she was going to have to find a way to pay both halves of the rent. Without her job, she had no way of doing that. But since her car broke down and she couldn’t be alone for that cleansing cry, she’d just have to keep her tears at bay for a while longer.
Jaron seemed to hesitate a moment before he wrapped his arms around her and drew her to his broad chest for a supportive hug. “I’m sure you’ll feel better after a good night’s sleep.”
“I doubt it, but thanks for the encouragement.” She knew he was only trying to se
t her mind at ease, but the feel of his strong arms around her was absolutely wonderful, and without thinking she snuggled closer into his reassuring embrace.
She felt him go perfectly still. “Mariah...I think I’d better let you get some sleep.”
She nodded but couldn’t bring herself to pull away from him. “That would probably be for the best,” she agreed.
When neither of them moved, Jaron used his index finger to lift her chin until their gazes met. “Tell me to get the hell away from you and leave you alone, Mariah.”
Staring up at him, she knew she should do as he commanded. But without hesitation, she slowly shook her head. “I can’t do that, Jaron.”
“What I’m feeling right now is wrong,” he warned, his expression testament to his inner turmoil. “I’m no good for you.”
“That’s your opinion,” she said softly. “It isn’t mine and never has been.”
He stared at her a moment before he shook his head. “Don’t say that, Mariah.”
“I’m just being honest, Jaron,” she answered quietly.
He closed his eyes a moment, as if struggling with himself, before opening them to capture her gaze with his. Slowly lowering his head, he kissed her so tenderly it sent shivers of anticipation up her spine. But instead of him releasing her and taking a step back as she thought he would do, his mouth settled more fully over hers for a deeper caress.
When his tongue touched hers, the heat that she’d felt the first time he kissed her came rushing back and caused her knees to give way. As he caught her to him, he stroked and teased her with precise care and Mariah felt the growing evidence of his need against her lower belly. An answering desire caused an empty ache deep in the most feminine part of her. Her heart skipped a beat when she realized where things were going. She knew without question that if she asked him to call a halt to things, he would do it no matter how difficult it was for him. But that wasn’t what she wanted. She had waited for what seemed like an eternity for him to hold her like this and now that he was, she never wanted it to end.
Feeling as if her head was spinning from the intense longing coursing through her, she was vaguely aware that he tightened his arms around her a moment before he lifted his head to stare down at her. “Mariah, kissing is one thing. But it’s going to go way beyond that if we don’t stop this right now.”
“Jaron, I don’t care how far this goes,” she said honestly. She raised her arms to circle his neck and tangled her fingers in his thick dark brown hair brushing the collar of his shirt. “I’ve wanted you to hold me like this since the moment we met.”
“Don’t say that.” When he closed his eyes, a muscle twitched along his lean jaw and she knew he was struggling to do what he thought was right. “I’m not the kind of man you need, Mariah.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, cowboy,” she whispered, cupping his cheek with her palm. “You’re exactly what I’ve always needed.”
Copyright © 2016 by Kathie DeNosky
ISBN-13: 9781488001536
How to Sleep with the Boss
Copyright © 2016 by Janice Maynard
Never Too Late
Copyright © 2006 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Brenda Jackson is acknowledged as the author of this work.
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