“You’re so beautiful,” he said. “Your skin,” he kissed a spot below her shoulder, “is so soft, so perfect.” He drew his lips up her neck and back to her mouth. “This mouth. I can’t get enough of this mouth.”
She gathered his shirt in her hands, lifting slowly. It was so hard to concentrate when he was stealing her breath with his lips and her mind with the words he mumbled along her skin.
He sat up and finished the job, yanking off his shirt. Jill felt stunned by the sight of him before her. His wide shoulders lorded over a perfectly formed torso that narrowed to his waist. The dusting of golden hair felt furry beneath her fingers and formed a path that led her wandering fingers to the band of his jeans. She struggled with the button.
“Not so fast.” His voice shook when he shooed her hands away. “I don’t want it to be over so soon.”
My God, she thought. He’s as moved as I am. The knowledge that she could do to him what he’d done to her made something click inside of her. Or click off. She didn’t think, she didn’t analyze, she didn’t measure. She simply let herself feel.
She felt the bunching of his muscles wherever she touched. She felt his breath hitch when she set her teeth on his shoulder and bit. She felt the length of him against her bare stomach and rocked her hips until he groaned.
She reached for his pants at the same time he unhooked her bra and tugged it off her arms. He nuzzled her breasts against his cheeks, past his lips, and finally, finally his tongue. She arched and let out a startled cry. The pulsing within her grew frantic.
She lowered the zipper on his pants and reached for him. “Jill,” he said with gratitude or frustration, she couldn’t tell. All she knew was that she needed him, all of him, around her, on top of her, inside her. She’d have given anything he asked to have him.
He hauled her jeans down and away, staring down at her like a man possessed. He reached his hand out and touched the lace panties she’d put on before coming to him. He swallowed once and licked his lips. When his fingers grazed her core, she closed her eyes and moaned.
“Baby,” he said as he parted her. “You’re so wet.” He made quick work of her panties and kissed his way up her legs. She wanted to feel embarrassed; she’d never been so thoroughly examined and pampered. With Darren, there was no excitement, no foreplay. She’d always wondered why everyone made such a fuss.
She didn’t have to wonder any longer. Everything inside of her was glowing, ignited by his touch, consumed by his fire. She’d never felt so free and yet so helpless, so completely out of control. She cried out as he brought her over a dark and dangerous edge. She opened her eyes when the heat from his skin was replaced by a cool blast of air.
He flipped onto his back, wrenched his jeans off, and reached for a condom on his nightstand. He positioned himself over her and rolled it over his length. “I can’t wait any longer.”
“I need you, Ty. I need you.”
With one stroke, they were joined. He held himself still, buried inside of her, the muscles of his arms shaking with restraint. She arched against him, urging him to move, begging him to ease the throbbing inside. He started off leisurely, measuring himself within her again and again and again, watching her until she couldn’t hold her eyes open any longer and she felt the rolling tide begin to swell.
The sound of skin slapping skin echoed in the room, inciting her passion. Grunts and groans escaped his lips. She peeked through her lashes and marveled at the look on his face. She’d never seen affable, unflappable Ty look so fierce, so completely focused. Only on her. Jill wrapped her legs around him and let herself go.
He collapsed on top of her, his breath escaping in short, choppy bursts. Their hearts pounding, their scents mingling, their limbs intertwined.
After nuzzling her neck with his lips, he raised his head and stared at her warily. “Are you okay?” he asked.
Was okay enough to describe feeling as if she’d been given the secret handshake to enter the most exclusive club in the world? “You could say that.”
His eyes narrowed on her face. “Did I hurt you?”
“No.” She laced her fingers through his hair, steadying his gaze. “I’ve never felt so incredible. And that’s such a feeble word for what I’m feeling.”
His cocky grin shot straight to where they remained joined. “Better than winning a race?”
She let her hands wander down his back and come to rest on his most excellent butt. “Better than winning gold in the decathlon.”
He chuckled and eased himself off of Jill, flipping onto his side and draping an arm over her stomach. His lips grazed her shoulder. “Make room on the podium, babe.”
Chapter 27
Jill clutched the sheet to her chest, staring at the beams on the ceiling when Ty walked back from the bathroom. Still naked, he eased onto the bed and pulled her hand free so he could link their fingers. He could almost see the wheels in her head spinning.
“Is it always like that?” she asked.
He propped his head onto his elbow and thought again of how fragile she was. The woman who’d come alive at his touch, met him stroke for stroke, thrust for thrust, had a soft and vulnerable core. “No. It’s never been like that because it’s never been you.”
She let out an impatient huff.
“Jill.” He turned her head with his hand on her cheek. Her eyes were dark and fathomless. “You can’t know how it feels to be with you. How long I’ve wanted you.”
“No one’s ever wanted me like this. No one’s ever made me feel the way you do.”
The thought, just the flash of her with another man made his chest drum with adrenaline. His fingers flexed on her face before he deliberately relaxed his grip and drew his hand down to cup her breast beneath the sheet. Her nipple peaked at his touch. “I feel you when you’re around. Last year, when you’d run up here, I knew every time you were on your way. Something always pulled me to the door and there you were.”
She arched into his palm and he felt a fresh wave of need for her.
“I wanted you then,” she said on a sigh. “I knew it was wrong. I knew you were taken, but I wanted you. I tried to ignore it, but it kept tugging me toward you. My father warned me not to run up here.”
To hide his grin, he drew the sheet down and lowered his head to her breast to kiss the delicate underside. For so long, he’d wondered if he was the only one who felt the connection. “Why did you try to ignore it?”
“Because you belonged to someone else.”
He looked in her eyes, held her skeptical gaze. “I didn’t. How could I have been hers when I ached for you?”
“Why did you stay with her all summer? You had to have known how I felt.”
He let out a chuckle. “You’re not that easy to read, Jill. Trust me.”
“I know you’re not a coward.”
The arrow went right where she’d intended, a direct hit to the pride. He flipped onto his back and mimicked her position. She needed to hear his reasons. He needed to explain. “I couldn’t bring myself to break up with her over the phone. When she was here, I couldn’t do it because she’d just flown across the country to see me. I went to her as soon as I got back and told her it was over.”
“She asked me if you were cheating on her.”
He whipped his head around. “What? When?”
“At The Tap one afternoon.”
Damn. He’d hurt Dana. He should have told her. He should have been honest no matter how much money she’d spent on the ticket. “It was you. It wasn’t the same after you. I’d already let her go by the time she got here. I was so full of you by then.” He inched closer so their bodies touched, torso to torso. “I’ve never gotten you out of my system. I don’t think I want to.”
“I don’t think I want you to, either.”
Slowly, with infinite patience, he tugged the sheet lower, gliding his hands over the muscles of her stomach. “Stay.”
She answered with her body, rolling on top of him, giving him permissi
on to look his fill at her implausible physique. She was so strong on the outside, pale skin over sleek muscle, and yet so delicate inside. The combination made him weak and needy.
Later, when they fell into an exhausted sleep, he curled around her and dreamt of the future.
***
“He’s not coming?” Bobbie asked when Jill entered the house alone.
She set her purse on the entry table and walked past her mother into the kitchen. “He’s working. He’ll be here for dessert.”
“Good thing I made dessert.”
Jill spun around, surprised and a little hurt by her mother’s sarcastic tone. Bobbie Jennings possessed many qualities, but a biting humor wasn’t one of them. Especially where Jill was concerned. “Why don’t you like him? You don’t even know him.”
“How could I know him when you didn’t tell me he existed?”
The hurt, Jill now knew, was on both sides. “I’m sorry, Mom. I just…it seemed too good to be true for a while. I thought if I told you, told anyone, I’d burst the bubble and he’d be gone.”
“Olivia knew,” Bobbie said as she scooped wild rice into a serving dish.
“I live with Olivia. It’s hard to hide things from her.”
Bobbie carefully set the spoon on the counter and turned to face her daughter. Jill recognized the look on her mother’s face. She’d seen it whenever her mom needed to calm down and gather her patience. “So tell me now. Is it serious?”
Jill’s favorite chicken dish had never smelled less appetizing. She chewed her lip. “Serious enough.”
Bobbie’s shoulders slumped. “What does that mean?”
“It means he’s perfect and I’m trying not to get so caught up that I lose my footing. He’s smart and easy going and so incredibly good looking. He gets me, Mom. He thinks my quirks are endearing instead of weird. He treats me like I’m beautiful.”
“Oh, Jill.” Bobbie stepped closer and rubbed Jill’s shoulder. “You are beautiful.”
“You’re my mother.”
“Yes. You’re my daughter and I think you’re beautiful because you’re mine. But I’m also a woman who sees that her little girl has grown into a striking woman. I’m not surprised your young man is so attracted. I only wonder what took the men around here so long.”
“I intimidate most of them.”
Bobbie let out a sigh. “I always thought it would be Lyle.”
“I did, too,” Jill admitted. “For a while. It would never have worked. He just thinks I’m quirky.”
“Are you happy?”
Jill couldn’t suppress her smile. “Yes. But I also feel sick inside.”
“Why?”
“He seems so sure about me and about us. And he’s leaving at the end of the summer.”
“Where does he live?”
“North Carolina.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah,” Jill agreed. She began pacing the kitchen in her normal route, past the dishwasher, to the pantry, and around again. “No matter how great things are now, it’s going to end in a couple of months.”
“Oh, sweetheart. Don’t go putting the cart before the horse. You may be ready for things to slow down by then. Remember how quickly things fizzled with Darren?”
Jill couldn’t even begin to compare the two men. “This is different.”
“Things are always rosy during the first few weeks. The shine will fade and get dull.”
“And what if it doesn’t?”
“Then you’ll know it’s real.”
“I’m scared, Mom.”
“I’d worry if you weren’t scared. Falling in love is scary.”
Jill grabbed her stomach. “I never said anything about love.”
“You didn’t have to. Come on,” her mother said. “Grab the rice and let’s eat.”
***
Jill’s mom answered Ty’s knock. Her black hair was so dark and shiny it looked blue. Her bright smile was a contrast to the sneer she’d leveled at him the last time they met. “Mrs. Jennings. Thank you for having me. Sorry I couldn’t join you for lunch.”
“Come on in, hon, and please call me Bobbie. There’s plenty of left overs if you didn’t get a chance to eat.”
“No, thank you, ma’am. I’m fine.”
“Well, I hope you’ve got room for dessert because I baked an apple pie.”
“Sounds delicious.” Ty glanced around. What he could see of Jill’s home had understated style. The living room served as an office for Jill’s dad. He recognized Warlock State’s green and gold on the wall and the big, bold desk seemed too manly for petite Bobbie Jennings.
She led him into the dining room where Gary Jennings sat at the head of the table, his elbows on the glossy surface, his fingers linked, his disapproving glare turned on Jill, who sat facing the heavily curtained window. She whipped her head around when Bobbie cleared her throat. “Look who I found.”
Jill stood up and stepped next to Ty, running her arm from his shoulder to his wrist. He wasn’t sure how touchy feely to behave in front of her parents, but when Gary stood and his expression didn’t change. Ty figured the less physical contact the better. He held out his hand. “Mr. Jennings, Tyler Bloodworth.”
Gary narrowed his eyes at Ty as he shook his hand. “Do I know you?”
“We met at the hospital the day Jill broke her leg.”
Jill’s eyes flew to his. “You did?”
He nodded, but kept his eyes on Gary. Recognition dawned and didn’t help to dim his suspicion.
“Ah, yes. I didn’t realize you two knew each other then.”
“We were friends,” Ty said. No need to explain to Jill’s dad that he’d watched and wanted her like a man obsessed. He had her now and this ritual, this passing of the guard, so to speak, was always an uncomfortable step. This time, he sensed Gary understood he might lose Jill forever.
“I take it you’re more than friends now?”
What a pompous ass. No wonder Jill seemed so upset about this invitation. Ty wrapped his arm around Jill’s waist. “Fortunately for me, yes.”
Bobbie asked Jill to help her in the kitchen, and with a wary look in his direction, she disappeared through an adjacent door.
“Have a seat.” Gary motioned toward the empty chair to his right. Ty skirted the table and sat down. “So what do you do?”
“I’m a fishing guide at The Golden Rule.”
“You work with Tommy?” Gary asked. When Ty nodded, Gary said, “He’s a good man.”
“The best,” Ty agreed.
“So you ski the slopes in the winter?”
“No, sir. I just finished my master’s in economics. I’m starting a teaching position back home in the fall.”
“High school?”
“A small college about the size of Warlock State.”
Gary’s brows shot under his dark hair. “And where’s home?”
“Western North Carolina.”
Jill’s dad couldn’t hide the smug smile. “Very nice,” he said just as Jill and her mom joined them at the table.
“Tyler was just telling me about his teaching position back home,” Gary said to Bobbie with an overly toothy smile.
Jill snuck a glance at Ty and lifted her brows in question. He shrugged and accepted a plate from Bobbie. “He’s teaching economics.”
“That’s wonderful, Tyler. Does your family live near the college?”
“Yes, ma’am, they do.”
“Ty has an interesting family,” Jill said. “Tell them, Ty.”
“My parents are divorced. They’re both remarried and have young kids.”
“They’re all friends,” Jill said as if the concept were foreign. “They get along and do stuff together.”
“They’re coming out next week,” Ty explained. “Everyone but my grandfather. They’re staying at the resort between the Lower Fork and Del Noches. They’re looking forward to the rodeo.”
“I’ve heard that resort’s very nice,” Bobbie said. “I hope you get some tim
e off to spend with them. Jill said you work quite a bit.”
“I do, but Tommy knows they’re coming.”
“How’d you end up out here?” Gary asked. “Two summers in a row?”
“I wanted to fish out west. Tommy’s a great boss and the fishing’s good. I liked the people.” He winked at Jill. “So I decided to spend my last free summer here.”
“As a college teacher, this won’t be your last free summer,” Gary said in a condescending tone.
“I’m going into business with my dad. He owns a raft shop on the Powellachee. I’m opening my own fishing shop with him and I’ll run that in the summer.”
“So, you’re going to be tied back east after this summer?” Gary asked. Ty knew all too well what he was getting at.
“I suppose you could say that.” He noted the stricken look on Jill’s face before she evened out her expression and averted her eyes. Tied back home meant their relationship would end when the summer was over. He should have felt gratified that the thought of him leaving left her upset, but he didn’t. The thought of him leaving felt like the final blow to their relationship. It was too soon to talk about the future. He couldn’t broach the subject when he was still reeling from their first night together. He’d have to start planting the seeds soon, before she started pulling away. If he understood anything about Jill, it was that she’d do just about anything to protect her fragile heart.
“Jill said you were a wonderful cook, Bobbie. This pie is delicious.”
Her mother beamed under the praise. “Thank you, Tyler. I made an extra for Jill to take home. It’s her favorite. You make sure she shares.”
“Oh, I will,” he said. He’d make sure of a lot of things.
Chapter 28
Olivia walked into Tap and stopped just inside the doorway. She glanced around until she spotted Jill serving burgers and sandwiches to a table of six by the window. Olivia walked behind the bar and waited for Jill to see her. When she did, she followed her to the kitchen where Stevie plated food and worked the grill like the seasoned line cook he was.
Mending the Line Page 16