She did. He’d sat behind his father’s desk, in his dad’s chair with his feet up on the heavy oak surface and watched silently while his father and uncle spent an hour asking her questions about the environment and why JaBro would benefit from having a consultant on staff. Although she’d remained focused and had answered all their questions professionally, Jared had drawn her attention, flustering her with his presence. Even then she’d found him attractive in the tailored slacks and navy-blue dress shirt he’d worn. She’d tried to look at him as little as possible so he wouldn’t throw her off, but had failed to keep her eyes off him entirely.
He hadn’t spoken a word until the end of the interview, when he’d looked her in the eye and said, “Welcome aboard.” Even though she hadn’t been offered the position until two days later.
His presence that day had made her uncomfortable, his silence even more so. And the discomfort had annoyed the hell out of her. Even then, she’d felt as though she had something to prove to him, and she’d answered the interview questions accordingly. She wondered whether she would have managed the questions as well as she had if he hadn’t been there staring at her. She’d gotten just angry enough to work her butt off for the position.
“I looked at you that day and thought, this is the woman I want.” Jared continued wetting her hair, stroking it with the washcloth. It relaxed her more than she would have expected, and she let her eyes drift closed. “I think my dad and uncle would have contracted with you anyway. I guaranteed they did by promising to make the rounds of these planting expeditions only if you were the one going with me.”
The water running down her neck made Cassidy shiver. Or maybe Jared’s words caused it. He’d been interested in her from the moment he saw her, and he’d admitted it.
It wasn’t possible. She had to be imagining this. Her head injury must have caused her to hallucinate. She didn’t doubt that lust at first sight existed, and she could kind of accept that Jared lusted for her. However, if he’d gone to those lengths to ensure she had the consultant position, there had to be more to it than lust.
There couldn’t be. She’d never suspected he might actually like her, never mind any stronger emotions than that. Even when she’d discovered he wanted her, she hadn’t thought it had to do with anything but sex. They were too different. He treated her like a sparring partner, not a love interest, and she thought of him as nothing more than a spoiled rich kid.
She had to be dreaming the words Jared had said.
Except the water on her skin felt very real, and so did Jared’s hands as he gently rubbed shampoo into her hair. “You never knew that, did you?” he murmured. “You never realized why they gave you the job, or how I felt about you right from the start.”
His words yanked her out of her pleasant peace. She’d only been hired because he’d told his father and uncle to hire her. If he hadn’t been in the room that day, someone else might have been given the position. That pissed her off. “I thought I got the job on my own merits,” she snapped. “I didn’t realize you bribed your father and uncle into hiring me.”
“Oh brother, I knew I should have kept my mouth shut. That isn’t what I meant at all. You would have had the job anyway! Did you miss the part where I said that? My father and uncle don’t take my hiring advice generally. Maybe I sealed the deal. They still made the choice. They pretty much laughed at me when I gave them my ultimatum, because they already wanted you on JaBro’s team.”
Right. And he thought that would make her feel better. Some horny PR rep had demanded she be the one traveling with him, and since his dad owned the company, lo and behold, he’d been granted his wish. It had nothing to do with her knowledge of the environment, or her college degree, or any of the other things she’d done in her life to show her competence. Nothing he said would make her feel better about that. Not a chance.
She bit her tongue as another thought occurred to her. Even if they’d hired her because of Jared’s request, surely they wouldn’t have kept her on the payroll if she hadn’t proven herself. She did know what she was doing, and even if she struggled a little with speaking to groups of people, she’d done pretty well so far in the towns she and Jared had visited. Maybe it didn’t matter if he’d persuaded them to give her the position. Even if she didn’t have it solely because she was good at what she did, she’d held on to it on her own merits.
She’d done her research on the environmental impact of construction projects ranging from office buildings to highway extensions. Despite her difficulty speaking to large groups of people, when it came to explaining things to the JaBro higher-ups either verbally or in writing, she demonstrated that she knew what she was talking about. Her review of a few proposed projects had even saved the company money, because she’d detected things that would have either required new permits or might have resulted in fines if JaBro had gone forward.
Jared might have gotten her the position, but she’d earned her place.
He stepped out from behind her to look her in the eye. “You’re pissed at me again, aren’t you?”
She narrowed her eyes, though she didn’t feel quite as angry as she tried to look. “Yeah, kind of. I would have had the position without you sticking your nose into it, though.”
“Absolutely,” he said firmly. “You’re damn good at what you do, Cass. I knew that the first day. My dad and uncle threw some ringers in there with those questions they asked you in your interview, and they didn’t faze you in the slightest. I didn’t tell them to hire you just because I wanted to get you into bed, though I confess that idea appealed to me. You’re so intelligent, so beautiful, and something about you just plain struck me. I needed a woman like you in my life. I knew you’d be good for me and good for the company too.”
Cassidy rolled her eyes. Leave it to Jared to throw in sexual commentary even when she was ticked at him. “You’re not making this sound much better. Especially the whole wanting to get me into bed thing.”
“I had you in bed,” he pointed out. “Twice. Last night when you fucked me so hard I wanted to scream, and again just now all injured and stuff. Today you were completely at my mercy. I didn’t take advantage of you, did I?”
“Nope, you acted like a perfect gentleman,” she admitted.
“Yeah. I must be slipping.”
“So, um, you wanted to scream?”
He chuckled. “I thought I wasn’t allowed to speak of it ever again. Yes, I wanted to scream. I’ve never had a woman fuck me like that. I came so hard I pretty much blacked out, and then you walked out that door, and I— Anyway, yes.”
Then she’d walked out that door and slammed it on any chance either of them might have had to be honest about their feelings. She’d cheated both of them.
He stepped closer and massaged the shampoo into her hair, keeping his fingers well away from her bandage. It felt heavenly, better even than when she had her hair done at a salon. She closed her eyes and leaned back slightly, enjoying the tingles that radiated through her from his touch. Why not let herself be turned-on now that she’d discovered she’d been wrong about him? It wasn’t as if anything would happen.
“I hope I can rinse all this shampoo out,” Jared complained. “Your hair is thicker than it looks.”
“That’s why I keep it shoulder length or shorter,” she murmured. “Otherwise it gives me neck cramps.”
He laughed. “I can imagine. Does this feel okay? I’m not hurting you, am I?”
“It’s great.” A splotch of shampoo landed beside her eye. “Except you’re making things a bit messy.”
“Nothing wrong with messy sometimes.” She shuddered at his husky tone. He removed the splotch with a finger. “Okay, look. I want to straighten this out with you. Figure out where we stand with each other, all right?”
Where he stood with her. Good question. She didn’t know anymore herself. If someone had asked her that morning, she would have called him a complete asshole who sponged off Daddy’s money and only had a job because Daddy
pitied him. In fact, she’d said pretty much just that to Jared’s face a few minutes earlier.
She cringed. She had been cruel to him. Even though she’d thought he didn’t like her, that didn’t excuse the way she’d treated him.
“Why do you act the way you do?” she asked after a moment. If she wanted to understand her feelings about him, she needed to understand him.
Jared wrung out the washcloth and started wiping the shampoo out of her hair. “What do you mean?” he asked.
“Cocky, arrogant, full of yourself.” She ticked off each item on her fingers.
“Is that how I come across?” He sounded stunned.
“You said yesterday that I look like someone jammed a stick up my ass,” she reminded him. “That isn’t exactly something most people would say to a woman they’re interested in.”
“Well, you did in that damn suit,” he muttered. “If I recall, I also said you looked good in jeans and a T-shirt, didn’t I?”
“The insult outweighed the good part,” she replied. “You’re dripping water in my eyes.”
“Sorry.” He wiped her forehead gently with his hand. “This isn’t going to be easy. Maybe I shouldn’t have tried washing your hair this way.”
“It’s better than having all the dirt and stuff in it,” she pointed out. “It’s a little too late now to decide not to do it.”
“I guess.” He ran the cloth over her hair again. “I’m sorry I insulted you. Sometimes I just don’t know what to say around you. Besides, by then I’d figured you already disliked me, so I didn’t think it would really matter what I said. You wouldn’t be able to dislike me more than you already did.”
She thought over what he’d said. He didn’t know what to say around her. Apparently she flustered him to the point that he acted like an idiot. Either she should just stay away from him so she didn’t confuse him, or she should take it as a compliment. She’d never had an effect like that on a guy before and didn’t know how to respond. So she turned it into a joke. “I bet when you were a little kid, you pulled girls’ hair when you liked them, didn’t you?”
“Yep,” he replied cheerfully. “That or chased them around the playground until they tripped and fell. None of them ever ended up slicing their heads open on shovels, though.”
“You weren’t chasing me,” she reminded him.
“Yeah. That must be where I went wrong.” He rinsed the cloth he’d been using and took the other one out of the bucket. “I may have used too much shampoo, damn it. And your shirt’s soaked.”
“It doesn’t matter. Are you done yet?” She’d grown fidgety. Sitting still had never been one of her favorite things, and if she didn’t move from this chair soon, she would scream. And her neck had become sore from trying to hold still so no water or shampoo ended up in her face or on her bandage.
Some of the fidgeting probably had to do with the conversation. Now that Jared had admitted having feelings for her, she didn’t know what to do.
“Almost.” He ran the second washcloth over her hair in several wide lines, followed by his hand. “That takes care of most of it, I think.” He rinsed out the cloth. “I don’t know if I can rinse all of it. I’m sorry. I should have just left well enough alone and let you wash it when you got home and had plastic to put over your bandage.”
“I probably wouldn’t have been able to do the plastic,” she replied. “I’m not all that coordinated, in case my tumble at the site didn’t give you that idea. Besides, how would I cover part of my head?” She sighed. “Remind me to avoid head injuries in the future. I prefer being clean.”
“You’re very graceful except when someone leaves a pile of dirt in your path,” he said gallantly. “At least I think that’s what you tripped over.”
He ran his hand through her hair. Cassidy shuddered and a tiny tingle began between her legs. Oh god, having her hair washed couldn’t turn her on. Especially when Jared Jackson was the one washing it.
Jared Jackson, who apparently had wanted her since the day they’d met. Who had completely turned her opinion of him on its ear by admitting his feelings. Who was bringing her to the boiling point just by touching her hair. God, she wanted him to touch other places. Even hearing him jerking off, knowing she was on his mind, hadn’t turned her on this much.
She wanted his cock inside her again. This time, they wouldn’t only be fucking, and that would make it even better. Her clit pulsed and she became even wetter. Her nipples stiffened, though she could pretend that was because of her soaked shirt.
Her body definitely responded to his touch. The ache between her legs demanded that she fuck him. Hard and fast or slow and sweet, it didn’t matter.
Crap. “Yeah, I’m about as graceful as an elephant doing ballet.” She tried to force her mind back where it belonged, which definitely wasn’t on the image of Jared with his clothes off.
“Right,” he said. “Any woman who can walk in two-inch spike heels without stumbling is graceful as far as I’m concerned.” He came around the chair again and appraised her. “Okay, I’ve de-shampooed you as much as I can without wetting the bandage.” He handed her the towel. “Be careful drying off so you don’t hit the cut. I’m going to dump this out.” He went back to the bathroom.
With Jared out of the room for a moment, Cassidy managed to bring her breathing back to normal. The rest of her body did not follow suit. Okay, so maybe Jared wasn’t as much of a jerk as she’d thought. That didn’t mean she should consider going to bed with him.
The little shivers running through her were just a side effect of the hair-washing, not an actual thought. That was what she intended to believe, anyway.
He came out of the bathroom with his shirt off. Cassidy barely managed to show no reaction, even though she had to force her gaze away from his chest. Her hands itched to run over his bare skin.
“Tried to dump out the water too fast,” he explained. “It splashed up on me. Are you okay?”
“Um, yeah, fine.” Deep breaths. Get under control. “You might want to put on another shirt before you take the bucket back, though.”
“You don’t think I should give the desk clerk a thrill?” Eyes twinkling, he set the bucket down. “I didn’t plan to return it quite yet.”
“Oh? Why not?”
He walked over to stand in front of her, so close she could have counted the hairs on his chest if she’d wanted to.
“Because I don’t think it’s fair that I have no shirt on and you do,” he replied, voice husky with desire.
There went her breathing again. More like panting now, accompanied by a pulse between her legs. Her nipples stiffened as she thought of revealing them to him. A man she’d despised so recently shouldn’t have this much effect on her. Part of it was the sheer desire to feel another body against hers, since the past several months the only sex she’d had had been solo.
She didn’t want to think about what the other part might be. She didn’t hate him. Maybe cared about him. But she definitely didn’t love him.
Chapter Eight
She closed her eyes and swallowed hard. “It’s completely fair,” she retorted. “You’re a man. Men can go shirtless.”
“So can women under the right circumstances.” He grasped the bottom of her shirt and lifted it. “Put your arms up.”
She slapped his arms. “I don’t recall giving you permission to take off my shirt.” She had to stop him before she completely lost control. Before he realized that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
“I don’t recall asking for permission.” He let go of the shirt, grinning lewdly. “Oh, beautiful environmental consultant, may I please remove this interfering garment so I might gaze upon your beauteous orbs and suck your hard nubs into my mouth?”
She cracked up, despite the electric jolts his words sent through her. “You’ve been reading too many bad romance novels.”
“Nah, I just have really bizarre fantasies.” He paused. “In fact, I think you may have heard some of them last nigh
t. You definitely added a new one.”
“You wanted me to hear,” she pointed out. A thrill ran through her as an image of her riding his cock, pinning his arms to the mattress, floated into her mind.
“Oh, hell yeah I did. So are you taking off the shirt, or am I?”
“Neither,” she said firmly. She refused to give in to him or to her own arousal. They worked together, for Pete’s sake. They couldn’t just jump into bed together again. It would complicate everything even more than he already had by admitting how he felt about her. And that admission had made things damn complicated.
He raised an eyebrow. “So should I make love to you with your shirt on?”
“What the hell makes you think you’re going to make love to me?” she demanded. She stood quickly, ignoring the dizziness that struck her. “You’re assuming a hell of a lot, you know that? After hassling me for weeks, you tell me you think I’m ‘best’ for you and expect me to just strip and bow at your feet?”
“Nope, at my dick.” He shook his head, looking disgusted. “Sorry. That was way out of line.”
“Yes, it was. Who the hell do you think you are, anyway? We’d started getting along, and then all of a sudden you turn into Jackass Jared again.”
He recoiled. “I’m sorry. I had no right to say that. It’s just…” He shook his head. “Never mind. I’ll go take the bucket back.”
“Wait.” The command escaped Cassidy’s lips before she could stop it.
Jared folded his arms. “What? Going to tell me more about what a jerk I am?”
“No.” She took a step toward him. “I hurt your feelings again. I’m sorry about that. You can’t just assume you can have whatever you want, though. Especially not with me.”
He nodded. “Understood. I’ll leave you alone.”
“That isn’t what I mean!” she said, exasperated.
“Then what do you mean?”
She regarded him—his bare chest, his long legs. His eyes, watching her expectantly. Even though she’d thought she disliked the man, she’d grown used to being around him. Somewhere in a part of herself she’d learned to ignore, she cared for him.
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