“As I’ll ever be.”
“Alright.” She walked him over to his horse. “Put your foot in the stirrup and swing yourself over.”
He did as instructed and found himself on top of the large animal. Lady grunted and made noises, but Damian watched Jada sooth her with words before handing him the reins. “Lead her, and she’ll follow.”
“Wish that were true of all the ladies.”
Within seconds, Jada mounted Thunder and made tisking sounds that prompted Lady to follow her out of the stables. As for Damian, he felt odd horseback riding. He was a city kid, raised on the streets, and he was riding out into the open as far as the eye could see. They rode for a time in companionable silence before Jada yelled, “Give her a kick.” Then she was off galloping.
Damian did the same, and Lady took off after Jada and Thunder like a bat out of hell. Lady caught up with Thunder quickly, and Jada smiled at Damian as her hair flew in the wind. She looked carefree and uninhibited. It made him wish she could always be like this.
After they’d run some energy off both horses, they stopped for a break so the horses could graze. Damian swung himself off the horse and found he had some trouble walking, which made Jada burst into a fit of giggles. “It’s not funny. Don’t laugh at me.”
But it was, and soon he was laughing right along with her. Damian couldn’t recall the last time he’d truly laughed and had a good time, certainly not with another woman, but Jada brought out that side of him. He reached across the short distance between them and pulled her into a kiss.
Hungrily, he fused her lips with his and kissed her open-mouthed. His tongue slid against hers, rough and wild, just like he wanted her to be. Her body instantly responded to his, and she pressed herself against his already primed erection. It didn’t take much for her to light a fire in him—he was that hot for her. He savored every minute of the delicious kiss, cupping her bottom and pulling her more firmly against him.
When she finally lifted her head, she moaned. “Jesus, I can’t think straight when I’m around you—”
“No thinking is required.”
She muffled a laugh. “That’s right. You only want me naked.”
“I do, but that’s not the only reason I came here. I’m here because I was worried about you.”
A beep sounded, and Jada pulled out her phone.
“What is it?” Damian asked.
“Grayson just texted me. Bree was released from the hospital. I’d like to go check on her. We should get going.” She turned toward the horses, but Damian placed a hand on her arm.
“And our talk?”
“Later.” She moved away and began tending to the horses. He followed her.
“I think you know me well enough to know that I don’t like being put off, Jada.” Damian would drop the conversation for now, but it was far from over.
He and Jada had a reckoning coming.
“Omigod, you look so much better,” Jada said when she sat beside Bree on the oversized couch of the Wells’s mansion in Preston Hollow. She and Damian had arrived a few moments earlier and found her sister downstairs resting in the living room with her husband and his brother, Cameron.
“Really?” Bree pinched her cheeks. “I thought I looked a bit ashen.”
“You’ve never looked lovelier,” Grayson said from a chair by her side.
“I was so frightened for you,” Jada said.
“So was I,” Cameron chimed in. “But Bree’s going to be OK, right, Grayson? She’s not going to go to the hospital and not come back like Mom?”
Bree glanced at Grayson, and he immediately stood and walked over to his brother on the loveseat. “That’s right, Cam. Bree and the baby are going to be OK.”
“I’m so glad.” Cameron turned to Damian, who was sitting next to him. “I’m going to be an uncle, you know.”
“And I’m sure you’ll be a great one,” Damian said with an indulgent smile. Jada hadn’t shared with him that Cameron was autistic, but he must have picked up on it. He’d been humoring all of Cameron’s questions about who he was, why he was here, and how long he was staying.
“How about some lemonade for the ladies and a beer for us?” Grayson glanced at Damian.
“Sounds good.” Damian rose from the loveseat. “I’ll join you.”
“Cam, why don’t you help us out?” Grayson asked.
“But I want to stay with Bree,” Cameron complained with a frown. “I missed her.”
“She’s not going anywhere,” Grayson said. “Plus, I think Bree and Jada want some time alone.”
“Oh, so they can have girl talk,” Cameron said, and everyone chuckled. “OK, then I’ll go too.”
Jada watched as the three men exited the room. She was thankful that Grayson recognized her need to spend some quality time with her big sister. Jada reached across Bree and pulled her into a small hug. “I’m just so …,” Jada said, her voice breaking, “happy. My prayers were answered.” She pulled back to look at her sister. “I don’t know what I would have done.”
“Let’s not think about that,” Bree said and patted her hand. “Me and this munchkin,” she said, patting her swollen abdomen, “we pulled through.”
Jada inhaled deeply, trying to center herself. “I know, I know.” She jumped up from the couch and began pacing the room.
“Why do I have a feeling my condition isn’t the only reason you’re so jumpy?” Bree asked.
“Why would you say that?”
“Because you’re as jumpy as a cat.”
“Am not.”
Bree stared at her incredulously, then patted the seat Jada had just vacated. “C’mon over here and tell me what’s really going on.”
Jada sighed. She could never fool Bree. Somehow, her sister could always sense when something was wrong and would always call her out on it. Jada walked back over to the couch and gingerly took a seat beside Bree. “If you must know, I’m conflicted.”
“About Damian?”
Jada nodded.
“I’m not surprised. I’ve never seen you bring home a man before other than Joshua, and he doesn’t count. We grew up with him.”
“I didn’t bring him home. He followed me here to Dallas.”
Bree raised a curious brow. “Do tell.”
“Damian and I work together,” Jada started, then stopped. If she couldn’t be honest with Bree, who could she be honest with? “Damian is my boss. And we’ve had a somewhat combative relationship over the last month until a few days ago when—”
“When what?”
“When we had sex,” Jada blurted. “At the studio. Up against a wall.”
“Well damn!”
Jada glared at Bree.
“What?” Bree bunched her shoulders. “Don’t get all high and mighty now when you’ve been getting freaky with your boss. And at the office, no less.”
“Don’t rub it in, Bree. I’ve been trying to figure out what’s going on with me.”
“Lust, plain and simple. You’ve finally found a man who has you all hot and bothered, a man that you cannot manipulate with a bat of those beautiful brown eyes of yours, and it’s got you running scared.”
“Thanks a lot, Bree.”
“You wanted someone to give it to you straight,” Bree said, folding her arms across her chest. “And I’ve always done that for you, Jada. I’m your sister, and I’m going to speak the truth. You may not like to hear it, but you know I’m right. And what’s really got you on the ropes is that the man cares for you.”
Jada frowned. “Why would you say that?”
“He flew to Dallas to be by your side. And he’s here now spending time with your entire family. Looks like he’s a man who is not afraid of commitment.”
Jada shook her head. “This isn’t commitment, Bree. Damian wants what happened at the studio to happen a
gain.”
“Don’t you?”
Jada colored, and Bree pointed to her. “See? I’m right. You want him too. So, why don’t you go after what you want? I’ve never seen you shy away from living life on your own terms. Why start now?”
Because Jada was afraid if she wasn’t careful she could lose her heart to Damian.
To prepare the beverage tray, Damian helped Grayson take some beers out of the stainless steel refrigerator in the large kitchen. He had to admit he liked the feel of the breakfast bar’s spacious counters and large rectangular table in the nook facing the pool. It had a homey lived-in vibe that lended itself to family meals with everyone gathered around the table.
“So, you’re into Jada,” Grayson said conversationally as if they’d been talking about the weather. He placed a pitcher of lemonade on the beverage tray.
“Yes, I am,” Damian said as he looked at Grayson. “Do you have a problem with that?”
“Not at all. As the youngest of the Hart clan, I’ve heard Jada can be a handful and not easy to manage.”
“No kidding.” Damian chuckled.
“Sounds like you’ve experienced it firsthand.”
Damian nodded. “But no one can say she’s boring.”
“Neither is Bree,” Grayson said. “This pregnancy may have sidelined her a bit, but Bree is just as stubborn as the rest of the Harts. Must be genetic.”
“Yeah, Duke can be pretty intimidating,” Damian said, “but lucky for me I grew up on the streets of Los Angeles, so I’m used to standing up for myself.”
“Couldn’t have been easy, and I can commiserate. My father died when I was young, so I had to be the man of the family and look after Cameron and my mother. Well, now just Cameron, since Mother passed.”
“I’m sorry.”
Grayson shrugged. He reached for one of the beer bottles, screwed off the top, and handed it to Damian before reaching for another. Damian watched as Grayson joined him in tipping their bottles back for a swig. Both men were contemplative. Then Damian broke the silence.
“How long have you and Bree been together?”
“Less than two years.”
“Any insight you can give me on Jada?”
“Not really. Jada has always kept herself somewhat apart from the family living in San Francisco, but she’s fiercely loyal. She wasn’t too happy when she found out why I’d initially sought Bree out. Heck, most of the family wasn’t, but eventually I gained her respect. She does, however, strike me as a woman who is ruled by emotions. If you can touch the right chord, you can win her over.”
“Thank you, Grayson,” said Damian as he tapped his beer bottle against the other man’s, “for the words of wisdom.”
“Don’t thank me yet. The Hart women are tough nuts to crack, so be prepared to pull out all the stops.”
Damian took Grayson’s advice to heart, and while Grayson joined the women in the living room, Damian stepped away to make a few phone calls. Grayson was right. It was time he went for the full-court press. And tonight, he intended to do more than just talk with Jada.
Chapter 12
“Where are we going?” Jada asked when she noticed that Damian wasn’t driving toward her family’s ranch. They’d just left Bree’s a short while ago. Jada felt much better seeing that her sister was OK. She would wait another day or so before returning to San Francisco just to make absolutely sure her sister was on the road to complete recovery.
“You’ll see,” Damian responded.
“Excuse me?” Jada turned to glare at him. “I thought we were going back to the ranch.”
“Not tonight. I have other plans.”
“Would you like to clue me in on those plans? Or am I supposed to remain completely oblivious?”
Damian cocked his head to look at her. “Something like that.”
Jada fumed in her seat but saw no point in escalating the conversation because she was a bit curious as to what Damian had up his sleeve. It wasn’t like they were dressed for a night out on the town. She was in jeans and cowboy boots for God’s sake, as was he.
Jada found out what his plan was when they drove into the heart of Dallas’s central business district and he pulled the Range Rover to the curb outside The Joule. Damian came around to open her door, and Jada had to admit she liked his style. The neogothic building turned hotel was a landmark in the city and known for dramatic artwork that adorned its walls. It was quite chic. Jada would never have thought Damian would go for a place like this. She’d pictured him in the Ritz or Four Seasons.
She didn’t gripe when he took her hand. Instead, she tried not to focus on the burst of sensation that traveled up her arm at his touch. She tried to jerk her hand away while she still could, but he wouldn’t budge. Instead, his larger, warmer hand enveloped hers, leading her to the elevator. He pressed the button for the Penthouse West. She was happy when he released her hand because the ride up to his suite was uncomfortably tense. She should be angry at his presumptuousness and want to ring his neck. Damian thought it was a given that she would go to bed with him tonight.
She would show him he was wrong.
When the door swooshed open to the penthouse, the ultrachic sophistication of the contemporary interior bowled Jada over. Her boot heels clicked on the marble floor as she followed Damian in. She loved the variety of colors ranging from blue to gold to deep red to plum and silver. Two large gray sofas with comfortable cushions and rich blue chairs were sprinkled throughout the large living area, and a long, sleek dining room table and a stunning chandelier abutted the room and the adjoining full kitchen.
“Would you like a drink?” Damian asked. He moved toward the wet bar that had been tucked on the far side of the living room and faced a terrace that wrapped around the entire penthouse.
“Yes, thank you. A bourbon if you have it.”
“I have a full bar,” Damian said as Jada made herself comfortable on one of the sofas while he set about making their drinks.
When he was finished, he handed her the bourbon but instead of joining her on the sofa as she’d expected, he sat in one of the blue chairs across from her. Better to read me from there? she wondered. It didn’t matter. Jada only intended on staying here long enough for Damian to get off his chest whatever was on it and go home. If he didn’t want to drive her, she had any number of people in town available to give her a ride.
She sipped her drink and waited, but Damian seemed to be in no hurry to speak. Instead, his onyx eyes continued to fix on her, making Jada squirm in her seat. Was his intention to keep her off kilter?
Jada placed her nearly finished bourbon on the sleek, white coffee table and folded her arms across her chest. “Well?”
“Well what?”
“You brought me here, Damian, I presume to talk. So here I am. Talk.”
He sipped his drink, and Jada couldn’t read his eyes as he glanced at her above the rim of his glass. “Where would you like me to start?”
Jada shrugged. “I don’t know. You tell me.” She felt like a caged lioness.
“Alright, Jada. Let’s start with the fact that we’ve been orbiting each other for weeks, no, make that a month.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Would you like me to remind you?” Damian started to rise, and she put her hand up.
“Stop. Alright. I admit there has been a certain level of sexual tension between us that erupted and we had sex.”
“Sex? That’s all you felt?” Damian stared at her boldly.
His glare made it uneasy for Jada to continue, but she had to end this once and for all so they could move on. “Yes, sex, which I’ve come to realize was a mistake.”
“I see.”
Damian slammed his glass down on the table, rose from the chair like a sleek panther, and was now stalking toward her as if she were his prey.
>
“Stop right there, Damian.” Jada jumped to her feet. “Even you must see that this, this situation between us is not ideal. You’re my boss, and I’m your employee. It would be too complicated, too messy for us to become involved, not to mention what this would do to my career.”
“This situation, Jada, is all I have thought about for days.”
Jada wasn’t prepared for his honesty. She didn’t know what to say.
“All I’ve thought about is the abrupt end to our evening when you ran away from me.” Damian moved toward her, and just like the last time, Jada moved away. “All I’ve thought about is how I can’t wait for it to be messy and complicated again because maybe then I can sleep at night without picturing myself buried deep inside you as you come and moan my name.”
Jada colored at his bluntness. This was a bad idea. She should never have come upstairs with him. She started toward the elevator, but she didn’t make it far because Damian blocked her path. She glared at him, and his dark eyes burned bright and hot, damn near searing straight through her.
“You can’t stop this,” Damian said quietly. “And I won’t let you. You know that you’ve never had it so good with another man. You’ve never felt the kind of passion we shared that night with anyone else. That’s why you ran scared and left me with a raging hard-on, I might add.”
“I would have thought we’d solved that after our interlude,” Jada responded huskily.
“Not in the least,” Damian said. “I was just getting started. That wasn’t even the appetizer.”
Jada swallowed and looked down because she didn’t want to see the naked hunger lying in the depths of his eyes. “Please move aside, Damian, and let me go. This isn’t good for either of us.”
Damian couldn’t let Jada leave him. Not now. He was hungry for her. He had been for days and he’d done the right thing, waiting in the background until her sister was out of the hospital and out of danger. But it was his turn now. Their turn. He didn’t want her to turn away from what was developing between them.
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