But that was a problem for another time. Tonight she was going to enjoy everything as it came. She had a fabulous new look and she was going to have dinner with the man of her dreams. That was enough for now.
Francine led her down an elegant hallway. They stopped in front of wide double doors and Francine let her inside.
“Enjoy your stay,” she said.
“Thank you.”
She went inside.
Her first impression was of space. There were sofas and chairs, all done in taupes and beiges. On one side of the room was a baby grand piano, which was so over-the-top, she started to laugh. Through glass doors was a terrace about three times the size of her apartment back home. She could see a private dining room and at the other end of the room was the bedroom.
It was too much, she thought, dazed by all she was seeing. And it was exactly what Jack would do to seduce her.
She heard a sound and turned. The man of the hour stood just outside the bedroom. He wore a dark suit with a white shirt and red tie. He looked good. Better than good. The laughter faded, replaced by a sense of her world being made right. Even nicer was his wide-eyed appreciation as he stared at her.
“Larissa,” he breathed. “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
He started toward her, so tall and strong. Her heart fluttered just a little.
“Great dress,” he told her. “You make it shine.”
He took her hand and lightly kissed her knuckles, then led her into the dining room where a bottle of champagne waited in an ice bucket. Next to it were two Tiffany boxes.
“Don’t get too excited,” he told her. “These are on loan.”
“You can do that?”
“I know people.”
She’d bought his goodbye gifts to his various girlfriends for years now and, per his request, always shopped at Tiffany. She knew the beauty of the selection and loved how her favorite associate always made her feel special. She was used to the sparkle, the elegance, the perfect presentation. What she wasn’t used to was seeing a diamond necklace that nearly blinded and was probably worth as much as the GDP of California.
“Oh, my.”
He put it on her, then handed her the matching earrings. The style was simple. A single row of diamonds with a diamond-studded X-shaped clasp. But the size, the clarity, the sheer brilliance was enough to make her rethink her philosophy that she wasn’t the least bit interested in jewelry.
“You’re allowed a night off,” Jack said, turning her so she could see herself in the mirror. His gaze met hers. “There is a second bedroom attached to this suite,” he told her. “I want you to have a good time. But at the end of the night, if you’ve changed your mind, that’s where I’ll sleep.”
“I’ll never change my mind,” she told him as she turned and faced him. A statement that was also a challenge, she thought.
Ever smooth Jack simply smiled. “My kind of woman,” he told her as he handed her a glass of champagne.
They settled on the sofa. Jack pulled out a remote and started the music, then they toasted each other.
“Impressive,” she said after she’d taken a sip. “No wonder you have women lining up to date you.”
He chuckled. “This isn’t what I usually do for a date. I’m more the dinner-and-a-movie type.”
Which meant this was especially for her? She hoped so.
She smoothed the front of her dress. “When we get home, I want to talk to Taryn about her castoffs. I never got the whole designer clothes thing before, but I’m starting to see the appeal. This feels really nice.”
“It looks better than it feels.”
“You can’t know that.”
His smile was slow and sexy. “Yeah, I can. So tell me about the chiweenies.”
The change in topic caught her off guard. “What do you want to know?”
“What are they?”
“A Chihuahua-dachshund mix. So not purebreds. They’re cute and have good characteristics of both breeds. I guess that’s what makes them popular.”
“And a breeding program had gotten out of hand?”
She nodded. “I can see how it would happen. Someone who doesn’t have the experience thinks it might be fun and moves forward. Then a couple of years later, there are too many dogs and not enough buyers.”
“Like the people who think a baby alligator would be fun and then it grows?”
“Right, but I don’t think chiweenies endanger as many chickens.”
“We’re all against chicken death.”
She laughed, then picked up her champagne. “I checked my phone while I was getting my hair done. The dogs are safely in Sacramento. They’ll be evaluated by veterinary staff. The ones that are okay will be treated for parasites, vaccinated, then put out to foster.”
“Which is where you come in.”
She nodded. “I have already checked with a few people to see if they’ll take in a dog or two temporarily.”
“How many am I getting?”
She studied the lines of his face, the way his suit jacket emphasized his broad shoulders.
“Does it bother you that I do that?” she asked. “Do you mind about the owls and dogs and everything else I bring into your life?”
He took the champagne glass from her hand and set it on the coffee table, then leaned in, cupped her face in his large hands and kissed her.
The touch of his mouth against hers was soft and caring, with the slight hint of restrained passion. Tenderness ripped her apart from the inside until she was nothing but a beating heart filled with love.
He drew back and stared into her eyes. “I need you to be exactly who you are, Larissa. Chiweenies and all.”
She thought about how easily her dress undid from the back. The single long zipper would make it easy for anyone to help her out of the dress.
She slipped out of her shoes, then stood. “Come on,” she said quietly as she started for the bedroom.
Jack stayed on the sofa. “Larissa, you need to be sure.”
She smiled at him. “I’m leaving on the diamonds.”
He laughed, then got to his feet and followed her.
The bedroom was large, dominated by the big bed. She got as far as the middle of the room before suddenly losing her courage. It was one thing for Jack to seduce her but quite another for her to take charge. She’d had boyfriends before and it wasn’t as if she was a virgin, but Jack was, well, Jack.
She was sure there was more self-doubt on the way, but before she could form it into coherent thought, he walked up to her and pulled her close. She went into his embrace, reveling in the feel of his body against hers.
She reached up as he lowered his head and they met in an openmouthed kiss that started her body humming. His tongue tangled with hers, his hands roamed her from shoulders to hips. She wrapped her arms around him and hung on for all she was worth.
This was what she’d wanted for so long, she thought. Him and them. At last.
He moved his mouth over hers, even as he kissed her deeply. She found herself wanting to move in the same rhythm as the kisses, rubbing her body against him. But there were too many layers, too many clothes. She’d seen Jack naked a thousand times, but never like this. Never in an intimate setting. She wanted to be free to study and touch and explore without the constraints of work or professional conduct.
She tugged at his suit jacket. He drew back and smiled at her. “Impatient?”
“You have no idea.”
“Then let me help.”
He shrugged out of his jacket and tossed it onto a chair. While he toed off his shoes, he unfastened his tie and slid it through the collar.
She’d planned on undoing her dress so it could be out of the way, but found herself mesmerized by what h
e was doing. Because while she regularly saw Jack without clothes, she’d never once seen him take them off.
There was something erotic about watching his big hands move gracefully on the buttons at his cuffs and then down the front of his shirt. When he pulled away the white cotton, she saw strong muscles and the scars from his various surgeries.
He pulled off his socks, then reached for the buckle of his belt. She felt both shy and eager.
Seconds later he was naked and standing in front of her. Six feet two inches of honed, aroused male. Passion darkened his eyes. His breathing was a little fast, and when he reached for her, she knew that for the rest of her life, there was nowhere else she wanted to be.
“Now it’s your turn,” he said as he tugged on the zipper. “This is going to be good.”
The dress drifted to the ground. She stood in front of him wearing a black push-up bra and ridiculously tiny panties. His breathing hitched slightly.
“Damn.”
She smiled. “Oh, please. You’ve been with some of the most beautiful women in the world.”
“Not one of them is anything like you.”
Exactly the right thing to say, she thought happily. She stepped closer and he wrapped his arms around her. They kissed again. She leaned into him, letting him take her weight, wanting to surrender as much as possible. He stroked her arms, then her back. His fingers were warm and sure as he unfastened her bra.
The scrap of lace dropped away and then his hands were cupping her breasts. As his fingers moved against her tight nipples, he kissed his way from her mouth to her jaw. He nibbled and licked until he reached her ear. He sucked on the lobe before biting down.
Shivers rippled through her. There were too many sensations. She didn’t know what to focus on. The way he rubbed her breasts or the feel of his fingers dancing against her nipples? The hot breath on her neck or the pattern traced by his tongue? The heat of his body or the surge of his erection against her belly?
He shifted slightly, then sat on the bed. He pulled her between his parted legs and settled his mouth on her right breast. The hot, wet heat caressed her sensitive skin. He sucked her in, then flicked her nipple with his tongue. At the same time, he drew her panties down and she stepped out of them.
He shifted to her other breast, giving it the same attention. Something heavy and delicious connected her breasts to the very core of her and with each stroke, each suck, each second that passed, she felt herself readying for him more and more.
She stroked his hair and his shoulders. The ache between her thighs intensified. He needed to touch her there, she thought. Only what he was doing with her breasts was too good. She didn’t want that to stop, either.
He put his hands on her thighs and slid them up slowly. His thumbs moved closer and closer to the very core of her but didn’t touch. He moved against her labia, the very outside, lightly touching. Playing, she thought, arching her hips toward him in what she hoped was an unmistakable invitation. He ignored her.
He ran his fingers along the outside, just touching the seam, but not parting her or going deeper. He explored the crease where her thighs met her body and lightly stroked her butt. Fingers slipped between her thighs again, but still didn’t go deep enough to get to anything good—all the while he sucked and licked and caressed her breasts.
Arousal grew until it was nearly painful. Her clit was swollen and aching. Hunger burned. She held in a whimper.
With lightning speed, he put his hands on her waist. He shifted her, lifting and turning until she was flat on her back in the center of the bed with no idea how she’d gotten there. Before she could catch her breath, Jack was between her bent legs, parting her sensitive flesh and pressing his mouth to the very center of her body.
The feel of his tongue against her core nearly made her scream with pleasure. She was wet and more than halfway there. A couple of strokes later, she was gasping and digging her heels into the bed. When he sucked on her swollen clit, she thought she was going to lose it and when he flicked his tongue over her again, she did.
She came in a rush of shuddering pleasure that claimed every cell of her body. She writhed and gasped, wanting it to never end. He stayed with her, his pace steady, until she was able to breathe again. Only then did he slow, drawing it out until she had nothing left.
He moved next to her on the bed and drew her against him. She snuggled close, feeling the aftereffects of her release rippling through her. He kissed her forehead, then her cheeks. She opened her eyes and saw him watching her.
The need still darkened his eyes but there was something else there, as well. Smugness. That damned male swagger that came from having a well-pleased woman in his bed.
She smiled. “Yes, you were all that.”
He grinned.
She sat up. “Now it’s your turn.”
“I like it when you’re fair.”
He opened the nightstand drawer and pulled out a box of condoms. She shifted onto her knees and took the box from him. He raised an eyebrow.
“You’re doing all the work?” he asked.
“You just did.”
She opened the package and slid the condom over his impressive erection, then straddled him. Jack’s eyes widened.
“On top?”
“Don’t you like it that way?”
“It’s a personal favorite.”
“For me, too.”
While it never had been before, she found herself wanting to be able to see what they were doing. Maybe it was silly, but she wanted to watch him as he got close. She wanted to see him come.
She straddled him. He put his hands on her hips and guided her into place. Her long hair hung down, nearly brushing his chest.
“This is going to be good,” he said and lowered her onto his arousal.
She felt him slide inside. He stretched and filled her. She shifted so she was more upright, able to take all of him. When he was completely inside of her, she squeezed and they both groaned. She bent forward and braced her hands on the bed, then began to move.
Their eyes locked. His hands cupped her breasts and he stroked her sensitized skin. In and out and in and out. He filled her again and again. She increased the pace, watching his face tighten.
Their breathing increased. The friction deep inside made her push harder, faster. She was getting close again. Just being with Jack was enough to make her want to climax a second time. With him, she thought. That was what she wanted.
“Larissa,” he breathed, her name nearly a groan. He swore and tensed. She could feel his muscles pushing him forward. She was close, but not there, she thought frantically, and rode him harder.
Need burned. Tension filled her. She strained to find the last bit of magic needed to push her over the edge.
He slipped a hand between them and pressed his thumb against her and circled the swollen knot of nerves.
It was all she needed. She felt her release begin deep inside of her before spiraling out to claim all of her. She cried out and shuddered, still moving up and down. Jack put his hands on her hips and kept her steady. He half rose and groaned deeply as his release overtook him.
Their eyes locked in that moment of perfect pleasure, and for the first time in her life, she saw down to her lover’s soul.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
THE DRIVE FROM San Francisco to Fool’s Gold took about three hours. Larissa was content to sit quietly in the rental car while Jack drove. The miles passed quickly. Too quickly, she thought. She wasn’t ready to return to the real world.
The past twenty-four hours had been amazing. The previous night, after they’d made love, they’d dressed and gone downstairs for dinner. Later, they’d filled the huge bathtub and had touched each other with the thrill that comes with exploration. They’d made love with the water sloshing onto the floor.
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She’d slept in Jack’s arms. Larissa turned to look out the window so he wouldn’t see her smile as she explored that nearly unbelievable thought. She’d awakened to find him holding her tight—as if he never wanted to let go.
The concept might be wishful thinking on her part, but she was going to go with it for now.
She glanced back at him. “Thank you for all that.”
“You’re welcome. I had a good time.” He glanced at her and smiled before returning his attention to the road.
She sighed with contentment. “This could make your massages really interesting.”
He laughed. “You’re right. I’m going to have even more trouble not getting a hard-on.”
She thought about the massage table. “Oh, I think we could use that to our advantage.”
“Intriguing. I look forward to what you have in mind.”
* * *
JACK WALKED INTO his house to find Percy on the living room floor playing with what looked like a dozen small dogs. They were tumbling together in a mass of dogs and teen. When Percy saw him, he sat up and grinned.
“We’ve got dogs.”
“I see that.”
Jack put the garment bag he’d purchased in San Francisco over the stair railing. Now that they weren’t moving, he could see there were five. All small with big ears. Some looked more like Chihuahuas and others favored their dachshund blood.
“The guy who dropped them off said these ones were healthy. Probably all under three years old. They should be easy to adopt.”
“Good. I don’t want five dogs.”
Jack started toward the living room. All the chiweenies rushed toward him and began sniffing his shoes and jeans, jumping in front of him and yipping. He bent down to offer pats. One of the little girls flipped onto her back and offered her tummy for a quick rub.
“At least they’re socialized,” he said. “That’s something.”
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