“It’s not about photography. I wanted to talk to you about Rupe.”
Now her heart pounded for other reasons. Her palms sweated. “Did he send you here? Well, you can go back on your little way and tell him, ‘Not interested.’” She slammed the pad back down on the desk.
“My name is Bosley Wentworth. I’m a friend of Rupe’s. He doesn’t know I’m here.”
“You’re the computer game designer?” Not that she knew much about gaming. But Evan had mentioned that name in reverence a few times and had talked endlessly about him living in the area.
He blushed, his face taking on a surprised look. “That’s me. I didn’t think you’d know my name.”
“Look, Mr. Wentworth ...”
“Call me Bos.” He shrugged his wide-for-his-frame shoulders.
“Bos.” She set down her pen. “I don’t mean to be rude, but what’s happened is between myself and Rupe.”
“I know that. But hear me out about a couple of things.”
She didn’t want to and had opened her mouth to say that when he launched onward.
“The curse becomes permanent on the winter solstice. Of this year.”
Her eyes darted to her desk calendar. “But that’s ...” She’d had no idea there was a deadline, nor that it was so close.
“Only a few days away. I know.” He nodded, his face serious.
Damn. The idea of Rupe stuck in this existence bothered her more than it should. “So you know about the curse, then? Everything about it?”
“Rupe and I have been friends a long time.” He leaned back in his chair. “He’s a good man, Gill.”
“Look, obviously, I don’t love him.” She fiddled with papers on her desk. “The curse is still working, isn’t it? He’s still a deer during the day.”
“If you spent time with him, you’d fall for him. If you let yourself.” He shook his head, his hair flying. “He loves you. And I’ve never seen him in love before.”
“He was using me.” She folded her hands on her desk, getting into stuff she’d never intended to revisit, especially with a friend of Rupe’s. “To break his curse. He doesn’t love me.”
“You’re the first woman since this curse began that he’s tried to be with. But he was never using you. Can’t you see romance in breaking the curse for him? Being the woman who frees him?” Bos’s piercing eyes came up to meet hers. “And weren’t you using him?”
“What?” She clenched the arms of her desk chair. How dare this man walk into her office and say that to her?
He gave her a sly grin. “You’re recently divorced. You had sex with Rupe after one day of knowing him. Weren’t you using him for sex? To get over your ex?”
“I didn’t use him to get over my ex,” she sputtered, her thoughts flying, and then lowered backwards into her chair. That much was true, but she’d wanted a strings-free sexual relationship because she’d never had one before. Her hand came up to cover her mouth. Put it that way, and she had been using him.
He’d wanted more than she had from the beginning.
You’re the first woman since this curse began that he’s tried to be with.
Why had she been the first one he’d tried to fall in love with?
Even as she’d railed against him using her, there was a bit of a romantic side about being the woman to break the curse. She’d been ignoring it in her anger. Only she hadn’t broken it yet. Frowning, she stared at a spot on the wall over Bos’s head.
“You’re sure he loves me?” Maybe that was why the curse hadn’t broken.
Bos took a deep breath. “I overheard some things last night. You were recently booked for an art show?”
Her heart plummeted into her stomach. “Yes.”
He grinned rather boyishly at her. “It was your talent that got it, don’t fret about that. You know as well as I do, Chase Boying doesn’t book talent based on who your friends are. But don’t you wonder who brought your photos to his attention? How he discovered you?”
She had wondered. It wasn’t as if she’d been well published or had a lot of credits to her name, because she hadn’t been working hard at it long. For too long, it had been “her little hobby.” Boying had talked about loving her fresh style, but she’d speculated how the man had found her. He’d mentioned the wildlife spread she’d put out on her blog and the spread she’d signed on for at a magazine. Bos was right, Boying did have many friends in high places, but had the reputation of booking on talent rather than who people knew. So he had to have liked her work, but how had he found her?
Comprehension dawned in her dull brain. Her eyes flew to Bos’s. She didn’t have to utter a word.
“Rupe didn’t want you to know. Now, if he were using you only to break the curse, would he have kept that a secret? Because giving you a dream would surely tip the scales in his favor.”
Her lashes fluttered shut. Rupe had done something amazing for her. Something wonderful. Hadn’t she recently been hoping for someone to do something like that? And now, she had it. “Oh, my God.” Warmth cruised down her body, infusing her stomach with great heat. Her throat closed up.
Bos cocked his head to the side. “You’re going to be good for him, I can tell. Go find him.”
She looked at her watch. “He’s a deer right now.”
“Ehhh. Go make his day. I’m going to find something to eat.” He shook her hand tightly. “Good luck.”
* * * * *
Pulling into her driveway, Gill parked the car and dashed into the house.
She changed clothes and redid her hair, primping to go see a deer. How warped was that? After her hair had carefully crafted curls, she noticed the quietness in the house. Evan wasn’t in front of the TV, on the computer, or rifling through her fridge. Usually, he wasn’t there when she got home, so it hadn’t registered. But shouldn’t he be here today? He hadn’t mentioned going out with friends.
“Evan!?” She bellowed upstairs and down. She rechecked, his car was out front. He should have been there. Where could he be?
Freezing in the hallway, a horrid ball of worry went down her throat. Unless ...
She dashed to his room, flinging open the door, to hell with his privacy. She needed to see what was in his room or, more importantly, what wasn’t.
No gun.
This was where he kept all of his hunting gear. And none of it was there. He’d gone hunting for the white deer against her admonition.
“Shit. I’m going to have to hurt him.”
She yanked her shoes back on her feet and dashed out the backdoor.
Coming around a tree, she spotted the white deer, Rupe, near the creek bed in a small cleared space near a down tree. Relief surged through her. His head plopped down to nibble at some grass.
Thank God he was still alive, though they were going to have to figure out his curse problem quickly. How did she make her heart go all the way? She didn’t have a clue.
A movement caught her eye. She saw a gun level and point. Evan was in a grove of trees across from Rupe and had spotted him, but not her.
“No!” she screamed, running into the small clearing. “Run!” The deer’s head lifted to look at her, surprise in its innocent eyes.
Blam.
“No!”
Rupe reacted, running to her, not running away from her. “Go! Get out of here. Stop it, Evan.”
“Gill, get out of there! He might be wounded.” Evan stepped out in front of the grove, aiming the gun again. “He’s a crazy deer.”
No blood marred the beautiful white fur. His expressive brown eyes met hers, brimming with emotion no deer ever had. He bleated softly.
Rupe positioned his body in front of hers, blocking Evan from her view.
He was protecting her as best he could from Evan’s shots at the expense of his own life. He’d thought of her first. He could have run away. Evan wouldn’t aim at her. But he’d shoot after the running deer, and he was a horrible shot, which Rupe knew.
Evan thundered from his place i
n front of Rupe. She heard the crunch of leaves. “Move, Gill. He’s going to hurt you. I can’t fire with you so close to him.”
“Stop it.” And before Rupe could stop her, she’d shoved at his shoulder with both arms and all her might, so he almost went down on the ground. And she moved between him and Evan. She wrapped her body around his, hugging the deer from her standing position as he tried to regain his footing. “Don’t, Evan.”
Please let me save him. Don’t let him die.
She wasn’t sure when she realized something was different.
But one second, she held a big, furry animal on four legs. The next, she realized Rupe was straightening up on two legs. There was skin under her fingertips. Bare skin. She released him.
She turned her head from Evan to see the man standing before her.
Rupe looked down, taking in his body, and then looked up to the sun with an amazed expression.
Her heart had let down all the walls. She loved him, knew it, and had the proof in the curse being broken. Neither of them had to say their thoughts ‑‑ they each knew what the other one was feeling.
He grabbed her, wrapping his body around her and kissing her hard, so fast and furious she could hardly keep up.
A cleared throat behind them made her groan.
Go away, Evan.
“What the fuck happened? Where’s my deer?”
Pulling away, Rupe laughed, turning his face to the sunshine he hadn’t seen as man in so long. “It’s a long story.”
Evan took a step back, still looking flabbergasted. “Dude, put some clothes on before you start it.”
Gill hugged Rupe tightly from beside him, not intending to let go of him, naked or not, for a long while.
* * * * *
Rupe heard the door open. He checked the clock on the stove. Gill was home early. Dinner wasn’t yet on the table like he’d planned it, but thank God she’d left her office already with the way the snow was piling up. It was an early snowfall for this area ‑‑ it had caught the forecasters off guard, and it looked as if it was going to be big.
He heard the tap of her new briefcase hitting the floor by the door as usual, and the sound of her stomping her boots to get the snow off.
“Hi, honey, I’m home,” her voice called out.
She always did that, and it always made him smile.
They had lived at her house since the curse had been lifted. So far, they hadn’t talked about anything beyond the present, but he intended to change that soon. He wasn’t sure what he’d do about his house, but hers had the hot tub, making it hard to leave. Maybe they’d keep both. That way they wouldn’t argue over the boundary between their land.
“I’m in the kitchen. Dinner will be ready in ten.” He’d been cooking all afternoon, preparing a special dinner for tonight. His special recipe of marinara took lots of preparation and stove time. He whistled cheerfully as he stirred the pot of it.
Her footfalls padded into the kitchen. “It’s snowing like crazy out there. I don’t think this chance of flurries is letting up anytime soon. Maybe I should go into forecasting.” She snickered. “Do I have time to change into something more comfortable for dinner?”
He chuckled with her at her assessment of the weather. “You sure do. Take your time.” She could come down naked. Yeah, that would be more comfortable. “Nekkid would be fine.” He waggled eyebrows at her.
She snorted at him, before turning around.
Hearing the creaking of the stairs as she ascended them, he took dishes out to set the table, lost in thoughts of what she’d come down wearing or not wearing.
His attention had turned back to the bubbling stove by the time she made it back downstairs. She’d changed into her favorite short skirt and a soft chenille sweater, which he liked. It was the same color as her eyes.
A skirt?
“You’re wearing a skirt to dinner?” She was more a jeans and T-shirt kind of woman when they were home alone.
Her cheeks stained with a blush. “I thought I’d dress up a little.”
Wicked thoughts entered his mind about what could lie under the skirt and the best ways to find out. He’d not forgotten conversations they’d had about his habit of going without underwear. His cock stiffened even more than it had when she’d arrived home. Could he abandon stirring for a quickie on the counter? He glanced to see the marinara was bubbling. Not a good time to abandon it. He had lots of surprises in store for his lady tonight; the dinner was only the start.
“That smells yummy.” She aimed for his cheek, and he turned at the last second so that her satiny lips landed on his. He pushed one hand through her hair, loving the way it stroked his fingers. After a moment of his appetizer, she broke the kiss. “What’s for dinner? Spaghetti?”
“With homemade marinara, garlic bread, and salad.”
Her easy smile radiated out light and warmth. How he loved to see her face with that look. “My favorites.”
He kissed her cute button nose. “Yep.”
He did some more stirring of the sauce and pasta. She turned toward the kitchen table, then back to him, her head cocking to the side. “You set the table. With my good dishes.” Usually, they ate off and with plastic. He’d pulled out her glassware and cutlery.
He nodded. “We’re celebrating.”
“That you no longer have to chew cud?” Her eyes twinkled in merriment. She loved to tease him almost as much as Bos. At least Bos had finally stopped eating venison around him all the time. Damn smartasses.
He shook his spoon at her as if it were a teacher’s ruler. “Cut that out. Or you’ll get a spanking later. On second thought, don’t cut that out.” He put the spoon back in the spaghetti pot to stir. “We’re celebrating love.”
Her voice grew soft and thoughtful. “All I could think about today is that if I hadn’t met you, you might be still cursed. Permanently.” She patted his arm. Her eyes had grown shiny with potential tears.
“I know.”
It was the winter solstice. All he had been able to do the whole day was thank whoever had brought her into his life and plan his evening with her.
“Did you send Bos what we talked about?”
He nodded. He’d sent a couple of cases of Corona to him from both of them. They owed him so much. And he hadn’t even rubbed it in. He hadn’t told Rupe anything about the visit he’d made to Gill until she had blabbed it. Bos had waved a hand when Gill had kissed his cheek, thanking him. First time Rupe had ever seen him speechless. “He called me to say thanks.”
He drained the pasta, putting it back in the pan, then dumping his sauce over it. “Go sit down. I’ll bring dinner over.” Pulling the garlic bread out of the oven, he placed it on a plate. The kitchen now reeked of garlic.
She grabbed the salad bowl and sashayed over to the table. His eyes followed the swing of her hips, catching her every sway, distracting him from his task. He blew out a breath. Never had anything been more delectable than her body, her love. He spilled some marinara on the counter and muttered a curse before wiping it up. Back to focusing on what he was doing because he didn’t want to burn any important parts, he delivered dinner to the table.
As they ate, she told him about her day, and he shared his. He still was deciding whether to get back involved in his business or leave it running the way it had been while the curse had been in effect. Thanks to her, he could get back into it now if he wanted.
Their subjects of discussion and argument differed nightly. Some of his favorite moments were eating dinner with her and lying in her arms after the loving, talking, and falling asleep. His favorite thing to do was sink into her body as he took her, watching her face the whole time.
It was amazing the intimacy that came with being a part of each other’s lives. Like the warmth of the sunshine on his face, he didn’t think he’d ever get over it.
Setting down his wine after a long sip, he wiped off his fork and tossed it under the table, where it skidded to a stop somewhere near Gill’s chair.
<
br /> She paused, her eyebrows going up under her hair as she surveyed him. “What are you doing?”
“I dropped my fork.” He slid down in his seat, going to his knees on the floor. “I have to go get it now.”
“I can get it ...” She started to bend down, reaching with her arm.
“No. I’ll get it.” She sat back up, eyes still watching him. On his knees, he crawled under the table to Gill’s side
Her voice sounded muffled. “Did you find it?”
His fingers grasped a silken calf, causing her to jump slightly. “Yeah, I think I did.” One hand gripped her foot in his hand, kneading it with a thumb at the pressure point.
“That’s not your fork, but ohhh ....” Her voice sounded strangled as his fingers worked their way up her ankle and leg, stroking. He leaned his head in closer to nip at her knee. “So glad you ... er, found something.” She sounded breathless.
“Me, too.” He licked, tasting the salty sweetness of her skin. She was so soft and supple. Her muscle flexed in her leg, changing the feel of her calf from relaxed to hard.
Inhaling, he caught the light jasmine scent of her perfume, the light flowery hint of her lotion. All were familiar to him. Underneath those was a musky scent of woman from her arousal. His cock jerked. “You taste and smell so good.” She was his ambrosia. He couldn’t get enough of tasting her.
Pushing her legs further apart, he ran a hand up her inner thigh, which quivered under his touch.
His fingers reached to where he should feel her underwear start, but he touched nothing but skin. He shuddered in excitement. All through dinner, she’d been bare-assed underneath her skirt. “Commando?” he whispered, slowly stroking a tongue along her leg.
“Uh-huh.” Her voice trembled, sounding hoarse and strained.
He couldn’t see her face to see if she blushed. He’d bet she did.
“Ever going to do this outside the house?” God, please say yes. Of course, he’d never be able to keep his hands and tongue off of her if he knew. But it would ensure quick trips to town and plenty of sightseeing under her skirt.
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