The Mysterious Stranger (Triple Trouble)

by Susan Mallery

  The music ended. They stepped apart and clapped. Jarrett took her bare arm and led her back to the table. He knew several of the men in the room were watching them, wondering about his relationship with the stunning creature at his side. He allowed himself a small smile. They could look, but they wouldn’t be touching any part of her tonight.

  “What are you so happy about?” she asked.

  “I was thinking how beautiful you are,” he told her.

  She blushed. “Thank you. It’s the dress.”

  She motioned to the strapless, beaded gown she wore. It started at her breasts, leaving a fair amount of cleavage exposed, skimmed over her waist and rounded hips, before stopping about six inches above her knees. The glittering fabric was the exact color of her eyes. High heels made her already long legs look even longer. With her hair piled on top of her head and makeup highlighting her perfect features, she was more supermodel than real woman. Maybe there were people who would disagree and point to other guests as more beautiful or sophisticated. Jarrett didn’t care. Fallon was all he could see—all he wanted to see.

  Anna Jane was waiting for them at the table. She finished a glass of water and fanned herself. “Did you watch me? I’m dancing. I hated those lessons Nana B. made me take, but now I’m glad. I can do all the dances.” She wrinkled her nose. “I don’t have to kiss any of those boys, do I?”

  Jarrett stiffened at the thought. “Not only don’t you have to, you’re not allowed to. You’re only nine years old. What on earth—”

  Fallon laid a hand on his forearm. “Uncle Jarrett, don’t overreact to the question.”

  Her calm voice had the desired affect. He realized Anna Jane was looking apprehensive. He bent and kissed her cheek. “I’m the only boy you’ll be kissing tonight.”

  She laughed. “You’re not a boy. You’re all grown up.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “But I’m glad. Bobby told me there was kissing at midnight.” She made a gagging noise. “I didn’t think I’d like it.”

  The waiter appeared with more champagne for the adults and sparkling soda water for Anna Jane. The band started up again and yet another youngster appeared to claim the little girl.

  “It’s crazy,” Jarrett said, watching her go off with a boy. “How am I supposed to handle dating? Maybe I could send her to an all-girls school.”

  Fallon smiled at him. “It wouldn’t help. She’ll still discover boys when she’s ready.”

  “What about when I’m ready? Shouldn’t she have to wait until then?”

  “You’re never going to be ready. Besides, it could be worse.”

  “How?”

  “You could have triplet daughters.”

  He groaned at the thought. “I couldn’t handle that.” He pulled her into his arms and they moved back onto the dance floor. “About that midnight kiss,” he said.

  “Yes?”

  “Well, will you mind very much?”

  He felt her shiver slightly, and his own body hardened in anticipation. “‘Mind’ isn’t the word I’d use,” she said, her voice low and husky. “I was thinking more of anticipate.”

  But it didn’t turn out to be an issue. Anna Jane faded shortly after ten and it was barely eleven by the time they returned home and he carried her to bed. Fallon came with him and got the young girl out of her fancy party dress and into her nightie. Jarrett peeled back the covers.

  “I could have left you at the party,” he said quietly as he placed Anna Jane in bed. She stirred sleepily and rolled onto her side.

  Fallon shook her head. “Why would I want to stay there without you? This is fine. I had a wonderful time, but I’m also happy to be back here.”

  “Thanks.” He wondered how many other women would have understood. Probably about as many as would have been pleased to have Anna Jane tagging along in the first place.

  They turned off the light and stepped into the hallway. For the first time in a long time, Jarrett was unsure of what to do next. He didn’t want to leave Fallon, but he didn’t know that he had the right to expect her company any longer. She might be tired. Or sick of being with him.

  “I have champagne downstairs,” he said. “But if you’re sleepy, you’re welcome to go to bed.”

  She moved away from Anna Jane’s door and paused by her own. “I’m not the least bit sleepy,” she told him.

  He tried not to notice the fire in her eyes. He suspected it was there without her consent. Probably just a reaction to the night, or the dancing, or the champagne they’d already tasted.

  Or maybe it was something else entirely. Maybe she was reacting to him the way he was reacting to her. Maybe she felt the need, too. Maybe the desire had kept her awake until dawn, just as it had kept him tossing and turning.

  “Hell,” he muttered, and ran his fingers through his hair.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m trying to decide if I’m going to be a gentleman or not.”

  “I could help you decide, if you could explain the difference.”

  Her voice—the melodious tones tugged at him like a siren’s call. He tried not to notice how much of her breasts were exposed by her dress, or think about what would happen to the garment if he undid the zipper. The beaded fabric looked heavy. Would it fall to the ground and leave her exposed before him? What exactly was she wearing underneath?

  “If I were acting like a gentleman, I would invite you downstairs for more champagne.”

  Her eyes turned smoky and her mouth parted. “If you weren’t acting like a gentleman?”

  “I would invite myself into your bedroom…and your bed.”

  She stared at him for several heartbeats. It took him a couple of seconds to figure out he was damned nervous about her reaction. He didn’t think rejection would kill him, but it would certainly rip a few holes in his hide.

  Instead of answering, she reached behind her and turned the knob. The door swung open, as if beckoning them into the darkness.

  Anticipation tightened his throat. “Fallon?”

  “The whole gentleman thing is highly overrated,” she murmured.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Fallon couldn’t believe she’d been so bold. Judging from the look on Jarrett’s face, he didn’t believe it, either. She consoled herself with the thought that if nothing else, he appeared very happy.

  He cupped her cheek in his hand and kissed her gently. She felt the warm contact all the way down to her toes. His fingertips gently stroked her cheekbone while his tongue traced the seam of her mouth. She parted for him, her body already hot and ready for what he offered.

  But instead of plunging inside, he licked her lower lip, then teased at the sensitive skin inside. He held her still, tilted his head and nibbled at the corner of her mouth. His teeth gently pressed against the sensitive skin. Her breath caught in her throat.

  At the sound, he shuddered. Some of Fallon’s nerves faded at the obvious proof of his desire. Apparently she wasn’t the only one trembling with unfamiliar need. Cautiously, not sure exactly what he expected of her, she placed her hands on his shoulders. He was hard and strong, so powerful. Yet he held her and touched her as if she were a fragile and precious creature. He was a man of contrasts. A tough, successful businessman who hid the bruised soul of a poet.

  He moved his head a little and pressed his mouth to the sensitive spot below her right ear. Tiny bolts of electricity raced through her as her breasts began to ache. Her legs trembled until she wondered if she could continue to stay upright. She leaned on him, letting his strength support her.

  His tongue tasted her neck as he trailed a damp path to the hollow of her throat. Her breath caught there as sharp, exquisite desire grew.

  “Jarrett,” she whispered, because the sound of his name brought her pleasure.

  “Tell me you want me,” he commanded, his voice muffled as he moved lower, kissing her chest, then reaching the full curve of her breasts.

  “I want you,” she said easily, as if she’d spoken the words a thousand t
imes before. As if this wasn’t the first time they’d fallen from her lips. Perhaps it was easy because she’d wanted Jarrett for so long.

  He dropped his hands to her bare shoulders and massaged her. He dipped down and licked the sensitive valley between her breasts. A thrill shot through her. The round flesh swelled more and she instinctively arched her back to give him more access. Her nipples were hard, tight buds. She wanted him to touch her there as he had a few nights before, only this time she didn’t want the barrier of clothing between her hungry body and his hands.

  He reached behind her and found the dress’s zipper. Long, lean fingers tugged it down. She felt the dress begin to slide to the ground.

  Her first instinct was to grab it so she could cover herself. Then she reminded herself this was Jarrett. Not only did she want him, she trusted him. She let the garment slip over her hips before it pooled at her feet.

  He raised his head and swore softly. The harsh word excited her as she caught the gleam of appreciation in his eyes. His dark gaze took in the strapless bra, her lace panties and the thigh-high stockings clinging to her legs.

  She squared her shoulders, half proud, half nervous. She wanted him to want her. She wanted to reduce him to a quivering mass. The only problem was, she didn’t know what to do with him when she got him that way. Pray God he could take charge.

  Jarrett did. He gave her a smile that promised paradise, then bent and picked her up in his arms. Instinctively, she clung to him.

  “My room is right here,” she said.

  “I know, but I’ve been dreaming about having you in my bed.”

  The possessiveness in his voice combined with the admission that he’d been thinking about them being together increased her nervousness. Maybe she should tell him the truth.

  “Jarrett, I—”

  He dropped his mouth to hers. Without thinking, she parted her lips and he swept inside.

  His tongue stroked against hers. Heat flared between them. She could feel his hard chest against her side and the strength in his arms. Their breath mingled and she could not imagine a place she would rather be. It was as if she’d been born to be in his arms.

  When he reached his room, he pushed the door open, then kicked it shut behind him. Not breaking their kiss, he brushed against a light switch on the wall and a lamp came on in the corner. The faint illumination showed a large bed in the center of the room. Jarrett headed for that and placed her gently on the spread.

  At last he released her mouth. “Second thoughts?” he asked. “I’ll stop if you want me to.”

  Her senses were scattered, as if she’d been caught in a vortex of sensual pleasure. The world didn’t spin exactly, but it wasn’t as stable as she was used to. If this was passion, then that one taste had only whetted her appetite for more.

  Stop? Why? “No second thoughts,” she managed to say. She reached for his bow tie and pulled one end.

  He grinned and shrugged out of his jacket. “Good. I would have stopped, but I would have been cranky as a bear.”

  “We can’t have that,” she said. “We must—”

  He stopped her words with another kiss. As he teased her mouth, he lowered her onto the mattress. She relaxed beneath him, letting his broad chest shelter her.

  There was much to explore, much to learn. She placed her fingers on his shoulders, then moved them lower across his back. Muscles bunched and released, rippling under her tentative touch. The contrast—his smooth, cool shirt, his hard, hot body—excited her.

  One of his legs pressed possessively across hers. As her hand slipped lower, she felt the waistband of his trousers. Beyond that was the high, round swell of his buttocks. Hoping their deep kiss was enough to distract him, she boldly let her fingers trail along that curve.

  Instantly his pelvis pressed into her. She felt something hard nestle against her hip. It was, she realized, the essence of his maleness—the proof of how much he wanted her.

  “I wish you knew what you did to me,” he told her as he slipped one hand behind her and unfastened her bra.

  He worked the hooks expertly and drew the boned garment away. Before he touched her, he looked at her. “Beautiful,” he whispered, and she felt that way. For now. For him.

  He drew his hand around her rib cage then up higher to cup her bare breast. Her fingers curled into her palm. The heat between her thighs increased and she had the strongest urge to thrust toward him.

  As his fingers circled her, moving closer to her taut peak, she found herself focusing completely on the perfect pleasure rippling through her. It was like heat with an edge. Tension increased and she found herself straining as if toward a goal.

  At last he touched her nipple. He brushed the pad of his thumb against the tight tip. She bit her lower lip to keep from calling out. Her eyes drifted closed. He shifted, but she barely noticed. Then his mouth closed over her other breast.

  Damp warmth caressed her. His tongue teased her. Forefinger and thumb matched the movements on her other breast. It was like a sensual dance, point and counterpoint, increasing her desire, like a wheel picking up speed on a steep hill. She couldn’t speak, could barely breathe. There was only the man and the magic he created.

  She didn’t know she was making a sound until he lifted his head and smiled at her. “I love how you say my name.”

  “Am I?” She felt the heat on her cheeks.

  “Like a prayer. Don’t stop.”

  Don’t stop. That’s what she wanted to say to him. Don’t stop touching me this way. Don’t stop making me feel these things.

  He read her mind. He returned his attention to her breasts, then one hand slipped lower, across her belly to the elastic edge of her panties. This time her hips did rise toward him, as if helping him achieve some goal that heretofore had been hidden from her.

  When he tugged at the scrap of silk, she didn’t protest. When he dropped his mouth from her breast to her rib cage, her whimper was barely audible. New pleasures distracted her.

  He moved again, this time kneeling between her legs. He kissed her belly, then each hipbone. His hands rubbed up and down her thighs. With each sweep, his thumbs moved perilously close to her hot, damp center. Anticipation grew as did her restlessness. She wanted—she needed.

  “Jarrett,” she murmured.

  “Soon,” he promised.

  Soon. Was he right? Would she finally experience all she’d read and heard about? Would the earth move and the heavens open? Did that really happen?

  Before she could figure out a way to ask that question without sounding like a complete dork, he crouched down and pressed his tongue against her most secret place. The sensation was so amazing, so consuming, she didn’t have heart or breath to protest. Instead, shameless and wanton, she dug her heels into the bed, raised her hips and pleaded, “Again.”

  He chuckled against her. “I thought you’d like that.”

  Like wasn’t exactly the word she would have used. Adored. Loved. This feeling, the arousing, mind-numbing perfection that his tongue invoked was the stuff of dreams. She hadn’t known feelings like this existed.

  He explored and teased, then found a steady rhythm that caught her up in a journey from which there was no escape. She found herself panting and tensing, surging forward toward an unseen destination. He worked magic between her thighs, and as the pressure increased and she again called his name, he slipped one finger into her and stroked her from the inside.

  The combination could not be survived. She exploded into starlight—shattered yet whole. In that space of time, with her body rippling and with Jarrett urging her to more and then more, she understood what it meant to love and be loved, why couples faced everything just to be together.

  When the last ripple faded, she opened her eyes. Jarrett still knelt between her legs, watching her. His lips curled in a smile of pure male satisfaction.

  “I’m impressed,” he said.

  “Me, too.”

  The smile faded as urgency took its place. She held op
en her arms. It was time. “Be with me,” she told him.

  Jarrett unbuttoned his shirt. Fallon wasn’t going to have to ask him twice. He quickly shed his clothing, then reached for the protection in his nightstand drawer. As he slipped on the condom, she ran her hands over his chest.

  “You’re so beautiful,” she said.

  Her praise made him uncomfortable. “Guys aren’t beautiful.”

  “Yes, they are.” Her green eyes glittered. “I want you, Jarrett. I want you inside of me. I want you to be the one.”

  He almost asked her what she meant, but just as he was about to, she parted her legs and gave a little thrust of her hips. It was all the encouragement he needed. He pressed against her tight opening, then slowly pushed inside.

  The slight resistance didn’t capture his attention in time. He was too busy gasping for breath at the wonder of her slick heat surrounding him. He tensed his muscles to plunge in deeper. Her arms wrapped around his shoulders and she gave a small moan of encouragement. He thrust into her, feeling a barrier stretch, then break.

  Disbelief nearly surpassed desire. He glanced at her, not sure he understood what had just happened.

  “Fallon?”

  She bit her lower lip. “Don’t stop, Jarrett. I want this. I want you.”

  I want you to be the one. Now he understood. The missing pieces fell into place. She was a virgin—or she had been. Not anymore, thanks to him.

  Like the proof of her virginity, his conscience split in two. Even as he told himself to stop, to pull back, the entire essence of his being screamed at him to continue. He needed to be in her, with her. He needed them to be one.

  And then it was too late to pull back. Her body’s heated passage was too perfect, too tempting. He found himself moving in an age-old rhythm until there was no retreat. Until the ripple of her muscles around him drew him into paradise and he was left helpless as he spilled his seed and lost himself in pleasure.