Now and Forever

by April King

  “I’ve never been to race,” Grace said. “Maybe we can go to one together?” She swallowed hard. What the hell was she doing? Why was she making future plans with Tanner? The plan had always been to run away and avoid him, not get closer to him. Just because the man was easy on the eyes, intelligent, and made her stomach do cartwheels, back flips, and somersaults, was it really that hard to resist him?

  Yep.

  His lips hovered over hers. “I’d like that.”

  Something dangerous stirred deep inside of Grace. It was feral and frantic. The sudden disturbing sensation was caused by Tanner’s satin-smooth voice. She was swathed in its softness from head to toe. Warmth flooded her. A rush of excitement threatened to surface and reveal Grace’s condition to Tanner. Quickly, she quelled her exhilaration. She forced her mind to focus on anything, except the sweet sensations tormenting her. Mercy me. “Um…you have very interesting and impressive family members.”

  A puzzled look crossed his face. “And you came to this conclusion after meeting one cousin?”

  She adjusted her position in his lap. “Actually, Lorilee came into my lounge today.”

  His brows furrowed. “No, she didn’t.”

  Grace nodded. “Yes, she did. As you know, she wanted to talk to me about using The Pigeonhole for the fashion show.”

  Tanner raked his fingers through his dark curls. The fashion show had totally slipped his mind the other night. He had told Lorilee he would help her with locating a place to hold her function. And he had intended to ask Grace about opening the doors of The Pigeonhole for the charity event. But the moment she had appeared on her front porch, looking radiant in her formal dress, expecting to dine at a fancy restaurant, thinking straight became a strenuous task.

  Later, when her arms had been wrapped around his neck and her tongue flicked against his, only her sweetness had garnered his attention. Now he wished he’d broached the subject of the fashion show, and Lorilee, between those salacious kisses. No one should ever be caught off guard by Lorilee. “I hope she didn’t bully you into saying yes.”

  She glared into his eyes. “I know it’s hard for the McGregor tribe to believe, but I do have a spine. Just because she’s a powerhouse in the fashion industry doesn’t mean everyone wilts like a flimsy fabric in her presence. Furthermore, I chose to have the fashion show at The Pigeonhole because I support Starting Over.” She bit her bottom lip, which began to quiver. The last thing Grace wanted Tanner to think was that she needed him to protect her from Lorilee. There was no reason for him to don a red cape and swoop down and fly her to safety. Neither Lorilee’s status, nor her ego was insurmountable in Grace’s mind. The true hurdle was getting beyond Tanner’s tendency to be overprotective of her. This annoying habit of his made her feel like a little sister who required constant supervision, instead of a grown woman who had powerful needs and desires.

  What a way to spoil an evening. Maybe she should just take her pride, and raging hormones, and hit the road. The temperature had dropped and she was feeling a bit chilly. She moved her feet from the sofa to the floor. Then she hugged herself with trembling hands. “I don’t need you to protect me from your sister.”

  To her surprise, and chagrin, Tanner laughed. The rich and boisterous sound echoed throughout the room. “Babe, I couldn’t protect you from Lorilee even if I wanted to. She’s like a tornado—there’s no way to stop or control her. Like a weatherman, it’s my job to warn you when a tornado is in your vicinity so you can take the necessary precautions, including shelter,” he said between chuckles. “But you can handle your business anyway you see fit. And if you have learned how to tame a tornado, please teach me.”

  Grace shook her head. “Well, Lorilee’s not that bad.”

  Her comment triggered another round of laughter. This episode was short-lived. Tanner sobered up quickly. A serious expression replaced the merriment in his eyes. He fixed an intense gaze on Grace. “As much as I love my sister, she’s not my favorite subject. You are. Why don’t we forget about her for a while and concentrate on us.”

  Grace stiffened. “Technically, there’s no us.”

  “There could be. Technically.” He placed his hands on her shoulders. “You are so tense. Lie on your stomach.”

  She lifted a brow. Heat suffused her cheeks. Over her shoulder, she asked, “Why do I need to do that?”

  “I want to give you a massage to relieve some of the stress in your body. Free of charge of course.” He twisted her body. She was putty in his hands, easily malleable. He bent her forward until she was fully stretched out on the sofa with her head resting on top of her hands.

  “It’s been a long day,” she whispered.

  “I know, honey.” He sat sideways on the sofa with his hip touching hers. Leaning over her, he applied gentle pressure to the back of her neck. He studied her reaction as he massaged her flesh expertly. A placid expression settled on her face when he brought his hands to her shoulders. He loosened her taut muscles with his fingertips, which sank deep into her shoulder blades.

  Grace moaned as his hand strong hands soothed her body. She shuddered when he slid his hands smoothly up and down her spine, kneading the flesh just above her In her utterly blissful state of mind, she couldn’t recall when he had slipped his hands underneath her tank top. However, she was totally aware of the ripples of pleasure his hands inspired throughout her body. Something dangerous stirred in her once he skimmed over the soft flesh of her derriere.

  With lightning speed, she flipped onto her back. Roughly, she shoved Tanner to floor and straddled his hips. She raised his hands above his head. Her lips crashed into his. She kissed him fiercely. A feral tigress had invaded her body, demanding to be fed. Greedily, she dragged her throbbing lips down his neck and over his chest, breathing heavily in the process. Her body ached to feel Tanner plunge deep inside her repeatedly. With unsteady fingers, she struggled to remove his pants.

  Tanner had another idea. He placed his hand on top of hers, in order to prevent her from undressing him.

  She stared at him with wild desperation. “Give me what I want,” Grace ordered, panting.

  “Do you love me?” He said in a deep and gravelly voice.

  “Huh?” Grace flinched. His use of that powerful word “love” had literally sobered her. She met his intense gaze and blinked. He actually wanted an answer. Her mind searched its database for something to say. Why not lie? She could easily tell him what he wanted to hear so he could give her what she wanted to feel. A fair exchange. But she couldn’t do it. She wasn’t able to say anything.

  “I see,” Tanner said. “Although you didn’t ask me, I think it’s only fair that I level with you. I’ve been walking on a tightrope for a long time, trying not to fall in love with you. But I have fallen for you. It was inevitable. I’m madly in love with you and there’s no turning back. Lorilee was right, you are my queen and I claim you as mine.”

  She gasped. Did she just hear him say that he was in love with her? Did he just claim her? She didn’t know how to take either statement. His words were just a beautiful illusion, some magic he cooked up, as far as she was concerned. And she was definitely concerned that she could possibly have more than sexual feelings for him. But they had to be squashed. The daily thoughts she had of his body connecting passionately with hers also needed to cease. His touch, his taste and his kisses needed to be forgotten.

  She wouldn’t forget. She was infected, and he was her disease.

  Weakly, she pushed away from him. Her legs felt like jelly. Somehow, she managed to stand. The ache that previously aggravated her loins had transferred to her head. Her senses were muddled. She wanted to feel the overwhelming joy women experienced when the right man looks at them in a special way, calls their name, or brings their body to life with sexual pleasure. Her Adonis just declared his love for her. Before Kevin, she would have been blissfully floating on a cloud. But her wounded heart wouldn’t even allow her feet to leave the ground after Tanner’s admission.

/>   She slid on her shoes. Grabbing her purse, she slung it over one shoulder. “I wished you hadn’t said those…those…words.”

  Tanner reached for her hand, but she yanked it out of his range. “I had to tell you how much you mean to me.”

  Grace made a beeline straight for the front door. Her heels clicked loudly on the hardwood floor. The angry beats drowned out the mellow jazz music. With her hand on the door knob, she said, “It would never work between us. Can’t you understand?”

  Composed, Tanner said, “The only thing I understand is that you and I were made for each other. But you refuse to accept this fact because your ex-husband was a jerk. I know the pain he caused you is still fresh in your heart, but I can take it away if you let me.”

  Grace sighed. “This is too much. I need…I must…go.”

  “Nothing you do will get me out of your system. If you listened to your heart, you’d realize we are destined to be together—forever.” Tanner said just before the front door slammed.

  *

  Upon arriving home, Grace kicked off her shoes at the door and rushed to the kitchen. Her frazzled nerves prompted her to grab a bottle of wine. Foregoing a glass, she tipped the bottle to her lips and guzzled to intoxicating liquid in the most unladylike fashion. She drank liberally, trying to drown out thoughts of Tanner. Not to mention his true confession.

  At least she thought it was true. Wanted to believe it was true. Hoped it was true—fingers crossed and all.

  Great. She was doing it again—acting like a desperate teenage girl with a crush on the most popular boy in school.

  Frustrated with herself, she laid down the bottle on the counter with a loud thud. That man was an impossible, unforgettable and a drop dead sexy force of nature. He had blown into her life, stirred up her emotions and threatened to destroy her barriers, her defenses, with no apologies. And absolutely no mercy.

  The nerve of him, she thought. She was doing just fine before they met. Hell, she’d even come to accept the fact that she may end up an old and lonely spinster, catering to a houseful of cats and cuddling nothing but her pillow at night. Yep, she was doing pretty terrific in a sorta sad way before tasting Tanner’s kiss, absorbing Tanner’s touch, sampling Tanner’s love. She didn’t need to know how strong, and right, his arms felt wrapped around her waist. Nor was it necessary for her to endure the heat of his sultry gazes. Not learning how firm the muscles of his chiseled chest felt beneath her fingertips would not have caused her any misery. After all, what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her.

  But she did know. He had worked his magic on her. Tanner made her hormones tick like a time bomb, waiting to explode all over him. It was unfathomable the way her body reacted to his ever look and touch. Even the timbre of his deep voice ignited her flames. The manner in which he tugged at her heartstrings was, well, unforgivable. Just when she had begun to totally accept ‘not ever’ when it came to finding true love, he had twisted her thoughts into wondering ‘what-if’ with his talk about being in love with her.

  Grace placed her head into her hands, fighting the urge to scream. I’m a complete mess, she told herself. She needed to get a serious grip, which was impossible to with Tanner monopolizing her thoughts. No other man had done such devilish things to her body. Even at this moment moisture formed at the gulf between her legs. He definitely possessed her body—in more ways than one. And in every way, but one. Who was he not to take full advantage of her sexual advances?

  Creep.

  Maybe he wanted to prove his strength by not giving in to temptation. There was no doubt she tempted him. His numerous rock hard erections revealed as much. The intensity of his kisses was undeniably. From what she gathered, Tanner hasn’t been in a serious relationship since Sheila. Word around town was that he wasn’t chasing every skirt around town, which was surprising. His options when it came to having any woman he desires were limitless. Yet, he chose to pursue her. But he refused to consummate their relationship. However, they didn’t have a relationship. Right?

  Ugh.

  Deciding to forego another glass of wine, Grace padded across the floor barefoot. She entered her bedroom and sat at the desk situated in the corner. She turned on the computer and began checking her emails. Spam…spam…more spam. Ava had sent her two emails. In the first message, she wanted to know if Grace had seen Tanner? The other message detailed the evening Ava had spent with some Adonis. Ava had only pinpointed the highlights of her date. But Grace sensed that a good time had been had by all parties involved. Grace hated to admit it, but she envied the carefree way her best friend lived her life. Compared to fun-loving, outgoing Ava, Grace felt like a boring and stuffy prude. Oh, don’t forget spinster. Her daily routine consisted of going to work or sitting at home, thinking about work. Or Tanner. There have been days that both were too much to deal with.

  And she wondered why she couldn’t get a date.

  She even received an email from Lorilee. It was to remind her of the upcoming fashion show. The message was filled with so much information that Grace’s temples began to throb from trying to take it all in. She opted to read the rest of the email in the morning after a good night’s sleep and a strong cup of black coffee. While scanning and deleting junk mail, her eyes came across an email address for a local dating website. Curiosity got the best of her.

  She viewed the profiles of intelligent and successful single men who were looking for love. Her eyes lit up when she spotted a few hunks in the bunch. But no one made heat creep down her spine like the melt-in-your-mouth sexy man with hair the color of whipped butter. What pleasure it had been to spend the better part of the day teasing, tempting and torturing, testing his sexual resistance to the max. No more than he’d done to her. However, she’d been pushed to the limit, until there was no way to control her wanton appetite.

  Try as she may, she couldn’t focus on the many handsome faces that appeared on her computer screen. Their dazzling smiles didn’t have the power to mesmerize her. Her body refused to respond to their bedroom eyes. Not even the winning profiles of the eligible bachelors were enough to reel her in because not one of those men was Tanner.

  Sighing, she turned off her computer.

  Grace filled her garden bathtub with rich lavender scented bubbles. She removed her clothes and piled her hair on top of her head. After sinking into the tub, she leaned back and closed her eyes. The hot water and luscious fragrance soothed her. She tried not to think about Tanner. But she had no success. Just the thought of their lips locking in a passionate kiss sent her pulse racing erratically. Besides, no one had to know how intense her desire was for him. It was her sweet little secret. Her remedy to the sexual frustrations, which afflicted her daily, included fantasizing about Tanner. It was a prescription she would recommend to any woman in need. Well, she wouldn’t recommend Tanner per se. He belonged to her. In her dreams.

  Grace breathed deeply. Boy, her thoughts about Tanner were really potent. She could smell his rich scent. It overpowered the lavender bath fragrance. This was the same masculine aroma she had caught a whiff of when their bodies had meshed on the sofa at his house. In fact, his smell had lingered on her clothes. On the drive home, she had sniffed her shirt. It had brought her extreme pleasure to have a piece of him to relish and remember, especially since she didn’t know when she would see him again. When she had slammed his door behind her earlier, she may have shut out any future they could’ve had together. Even if all the future held for them was friendship. Yeah, right. What transpired between her and Tanner stretched beyond the confines of friendship. More like a spontaneous combustion. Their relationship consisted of the mental and physical sexual tug-of-war usually found in paperback romance novels, which she refused to read. She didn’t need to know how the other side lived.

  Grace wriggled in the water. She fought to ignore the great sensations that washed over body, which had nothing to with creamy lavender bubbles. Crazy as it seemed, she couldn’t shake the feeling she wasn’t alone in her own her ba
throom. The presence she felt was strong…and familiar. Too real to be imagined. Too dominant to be disregarded by her doubting mind. But that was impossible.

  Or was it.

  Slowly, Grace opened her eyes. She knew it. The scent she smelled only belonged to one man. Shock reverberated throughout her body. Her face flushed. Joy and pain swept over her, as well as anger. The lump lodged in her throat blocked a cry of disbelief from being released. Even though the bath water was still relatively warm, goose bumps formed on her arms. Hair stood on the back of her neck. A tingling sensation developed in the pit of her stomach. The moment definitely brought to mind one of her many fantasies. However, she wasn’t dreaming. Her eyes were locked with those of the devilish sexy man who towered over her with a wickedly seductive grin plastered on his lips.

  She hauled her eyes from his face and allowed them to trail the length of his body. Huge mistake. Dangerous decision. His masculine figure was gloriously naked. The soft glow from candles spread around the bathtub illuminated his skin with a golden hue. From head to toe, mounds of his muscled flesh were displayed for Grace to enjoy. And she couldn’t count the ways in which she enjoyed the view before her. It was both a blessing and a curse. Desired, but unacceptable. It was…he was…hell. Honestly, who was she kidding? She wanted him. Her body craved his touch. Obviously, he felt a mutual attraction for her. His presence said as much. The look in his was glazed with such intense desire that Grace’s toes curled. A question lingered on the tip of her tongue. As usual, Tanner read her mind. He gave her an answer that shivers down her spine.