by Donna Vitek
After the man held the front door open for Katherine, she murmured her thanks politely, then stepped into the cedar-paneled foyer, forgetting completely that she hadn't knocked. Her heart was thudding so violently she had difficulty breathing and she had the distinct impression that her knees would knock if she gave them half a chance. So she didn't. Immediately, she stepped into the great room, then stopped as she saw Jason. His back to her, he was standing at a side window looking out at the trees. His hands were thrust into the pockets of his tobacco-brown trousers and the cream-colored polo shirt accentuated his tanned skin. She watched as he massaged the back of his neck with one lean hand. After having come all this way, at least emotionally, she now found she couldn't take the remaining few steps between them. But Jason saved her from having to. As if he sensed her presence, he turned around slowly, but Katherine couldn't tell if the sudden light that flared in his eyes denoted anger or a welcome. His expression was remote; he simply stared at her, creating such overwhelming tension in her she thought she would explode. When he moved abruptly toward her, her heart lurched and she took a step backward, trapping herself against the newel post at the foot of the stairs. Jason stopped close in front of her and her eyes dilated and widened as she gulped and gazed up at him.
"Well, Kit," he murmured emotionlessly. "Have you come to say good-bye?"
Though she longed to throw herself into his arms, she didn't dare. If he rejected her, she wanted to retain at least the tattered remnants of her pride. Her throat was too dry for her to speak and the tip of her tongue came out to moisten her lips. His jaw tightened as he waited a long, tense moment for her answer and at last she shook her head.
"Then why are you here?" he persisted softly. But, amazingly, he cupped her face in both his hands. "Tell me."
Katherine closed her eyes, his touch warming her entire body with an odd sense of belonging and security. Her own hands sought his hard chest, her fingers stroking the knit fabric of his shirt as her eyes opened slowly again to meet the compelling light in his. "I can't go, Jason," she whispered. "I don't want to leave you, no matter…"
"Kit," he murmured, his mouth descending swiftly to cover hers, halting her words with a gentle yet seeking kiss. His hands moved urgently down over her back to her waist, arching her to him as her arms encircled his neck and she raised up on tiptoe, inviting a rougher taking of her mouth. His lips released hers, however, to blaze a burning trail along her creamy throat to the hollow beneath her ear. "Thank God you didn't go," he groaned, his deep voice muffled in the thickness of her hair.
Relief washed over her, weakening her limbs. She felt dizzy with happiness as she leaned back against his arms to look up at him. "I love you," she said huskily. "You may not want to hear that but I do."
"Not want to hear it?" he exclaimed softly, his eyes narrowing to slits. "I never wanted to hear anything more in my life. Kit, I love you, too."
Chewing her lip, she shook her head. "You don't have to say that. Really. I'll stay with you anyway, as long as you want me."
His short laugh combined with a groan. "Little idiot," he uttered hoarsely, then took her mouth again hungrily with only a slight hint of tenderness as her lips parted eagerly at the first touch of his. As his hands explored her soft curves, their kiss slowly altered from its initial urgency to a languorous sharing of sensuous delight. Accepting total surrender as inevitable, Katherine moved against him, pliant and acquiescent in his arms, but as Jason obviously realized she no longer controlled her responses, he dragged his mouth from hers reluctantly, his breathing ragged. Hard fingers kneaded her waist and he smiled gently as she gazed up at him with drowsy eyes. "Kit, you crazy child, I do love you. And where did you get the idea I just wanted you to live with me for a while? That's not exactly the kind of commitment I wanted you to make."
"You don't want me to live with you?" she questioned bewilderedly. "But what…"
"I want you to live with me—but as my wife," he interrupted, placing a kiss on the tip of her small nose as she gasped. "How could you believe I'd ask an innocent like you to just move in with me. You're the kind of young woman a man wants to marry, Kit. And I want you to marry me. Very soon."
Katherine actually felt faint. Her mouth nearly fell open as she stared up at him with wide incredulous eyes.
Gamblers didn't propose marriage! But this one just had and after it finally dawned on her that he really meant it, she propelled herself closer to him, laughing tearfully as his strong arms tightened around her and he lifted her off her feet. "I've been so miserable," she whispered. "Why didn't you tell me all this before?"
"You wouldn't have believed me. I'm surprised you believe me now."
"Maybe I do because I want to so much," she murmured against his neck. "Or maybe I'm beginning to trust you."
Holding her away from him, Jason searched her face. "Are you sure you can trust a gambler?"
"I think I can trust you. No matter what you are."
"I was beginning to think I'd never hear you say that," he answered huskily, tracing the bow-shaped outline of her mouth with one fingertip. Yet, when her lips parted with the caress, he didn't kiss her. "Kit, I have something to tell you." He hesitated a moment before continuing, "As you came in today, did you see a man leaving?" When she nodded, he smiled almost sheepishly. "Well, that was Bill Anders, my editor from New York. He's on his way to San Francisco so he stopped here to see me."
"Editor," Katherine squeaked, understanding immediately what Jason was saying yet not really able to believe it. "You're not saying you're… You can't be that Jason Roarke! Not the writer!"
Saying nothing, Jason nodded.
"But you can't be!" she persisted, thoroughly confused. "You're a gambler. You have to be! You always win."
"No, I don't, Kit," he replied softly, massaging her tensed shoulders. "Nobody who gambles wins all the time."
"But how could you ever win, if you're not a professional gambler?" Katherine argued, unable to accept what he was saying. "Not many people could just sit down with professional gamblers and ever win even one game. So how did you do it?"
"I've played poker for years," Jason explained. "And I spent three months with an old pro who taught me everything he knew about the finer points of poker. With that and a lot of luck, I managed to get by."
"But why should you want to?" she protested. As she scanned his face for some indication that he was lying and found none, she shook her head bewilderedly. "I just don't understand."
"It was research, Kit. Professional gamblers have always intrigued me, but to write about one, I needed to become one for a while, to experience exactly the kind of life they live."
"You deliberately deceived me then!" Katherine accused, her eyes flashing green fire as she tried to pull away from him. But when his hold on her only tightened, her struggling ceased though she glared up at him resentfully. "Why? Why did you have to lie to me? You even told me your ex-wife disapproved of your gambling."
Jason shook his head. "No, I didn't, Kit. I distinctly remember telling you she disapproved of my profession, which she did. When Denise and I got married, I was a struggling short-story writer, selling very few, and she thought and often said I should stop wasting my time on such nonsense and go out and find a real job."
"But letting me assume she disapproved of your gambling was just as bad as telling an outright lie," Katherine muttered bitterly. "Why couldn't you just tell me the truth? I wouldn't have had to drive myself crazy trying not to love you if I'd known you weren't a gambler."
"Some people think writing for a living is as irresponsible and risky as gambling," Jason said wryly, trailing his fingers along her slender neck. Then his expression' sobered again. "Denise believed that and after my experience with her, Kit, it was important to me for you to love me and trust me because of who I am, not what I do."
"Oh." Katherine bent her head, all her resentment draining away abruptly, leaving her feeling very ashamed of herself. "You were testing me. And I almost
failed the test. Jason, I nearly left this morning. I was on my way to the airport."
"But you didn't get there," he reminded her, smiling Indulgently, his thumbs brushing caressingly over her high cheekbones. "And the fact that you decided not to leave is all that matters now."
"No, there's one more thing I need to know," Katherine murmured. "If… if I had gone this morning, would you… have just let it all end that way?"
Jason laughed softly. "No. I have a feeling I would have manufactured some excuse to visit Baltimore very soon. I didn't want to lose you, Kit."
"You never will now," she promised, content with his answer. Lifting her arms up around his shoulders, she pressed her cheek against his chest. "I love you, Jason. So very much."
"Does that mean you're accepting my marriage proposal?" he inquired unnecessarily, a note of loving amusement in his voice. "Are you saying yes, Kit?"
"Yes," she whispered, her breath catching as he gathered her closer, his mouth taking hers with tender, irresistible passion. For a long time the silence in the room was broken only by the intimate endearments he whispered against her lips. Then, at last, when their desire for each other threatened to burn out of control, he put her from him, his eyes glittering sapphires as he held her gaze. "If I asked you to stay here with me until we can get married, would you, Kit?" he asked huskily. "Could you trust me that much?"
"Yes," Katherine answered without hesitation. "I never want to leave you, even for a minute."
"I'm glad to hear it," he replied with a teasing smile. "But I won't make you prove your newfound faith in me. This is Nevada. Remember? The land of the quickie divorce and, luckily for us, the even quicker marriage. So, we won't even have to rush around madly to be married by this evening. Or is today too soon for you?"
Enchanting rose color tinted Katherine's cheeks but she answered truthfully "I'm not sure I can even wait until this evening."
"Ummm, I like your attitude," Jason murmured, tangling his fingers in her hair as he smiled down at her. "If you're that eager to be my wife, then we should have a fascinating honeymoon and a very long, happy marriage." Brushing her hair back over her shoulder, he lowered his head to nibble the tender lobe of her ear. "And I won't be gambling anymore, Kit. If we really try, I'm certain we can think of more exciting ways to spend our nights. Don't you?"
"We'll think of something to do, I'm sure," she answered, laughing softly up at him until his gently marauding mouth covered hers and altered her laughter to a breathless whispering of his name.