Shana opened the door. There was no need to ask why he was there. She had become one of those women her father had described, a woman a man could have fun with. Why did such a thought bother her? It shouldn’t really, when she should see him only as a man she could have fun with. She didn’t want a serious relationship with anyone any more than Jace did.
She stepped back and let him inside, and he closed and locked the door behind him. Before she could say anything, he rushed to ask, “When I got out of my meeting, they said you left the office early. You never leave early. Is anything wrong?” He reached out and pushed a wayward curl back from her face. She figured he probably assumed she was ill or something since she had on her pj’s.
“No, I’m fine. I hadn’t visited my father all weekend and wanted to see him.”
“Oh. And you’re dressed for bed already. I should have called first. I had decided to call you when I got home, but halfway there, I turned around and headed back this way. I wanted to see you.”
Jace drew in a deep breath. All of what he’d just said was the truth. He had joined Dalton for dinner, and when Dalton had invited two women to join them for drinks afterward, Jace knew it was time for him to split. The women had been nice enough, but there was no interest on his part. There was none of the gut-stirring attraction and desire he’d felt for Shana from the start. He had been on his way home, halfway there, when the need to see her again had tugged inside of him so badly that it became an ache. He’d then made a U-turn and come here.
Jace was well aware of the brief amount of sleep they’d both gotten the night before and figured Shana needed her rest; that was fine. All he wanted to do was hold her in his arms for a while. “You were about to go to bed?”
“Yes.”
“Come on, then, and let me tuck you in before I leave.”
Shana quirked her eyebrows questioningly. “Tuck me in?”
“Yes, and then I’ll leave.”
This I got to see, Shana thought. No man had ever tucked her into bed without staying the night. “Okay.”
He took her hand, and she thought he would walk her up the stairs. She gasped when he swept her off her feet and into his arms. “I can walk, Jace,” she said, looking up at him.
“Why do so when you don’t have to?” was his reply.
He took the stairs with ease while holding her, and Shana felt cuddled firmly in his strong arms. When they reached the bedroom, he set her down beside the bed. He then began removing his jacket. After placing it across the wingback chair in her room, he pushed back the bedcovers and then glanced over at her. “In.”
Like a dutiful child, she moved to crawl between the covers, and then he kicked off his shoes and joined her on the bed, stretching out his legs. “I want to hold you until you doze off to sleep.”
She nodded and, filled with an emotion she tried and failed to push back, she eased toward him, and he held her in his arms with her head pressed against his chest. She could inhale his masculine scent and could hear the steady beat of his heart. For some reason, she was comforted by the sound. His arms were wrapped around her, and she thought that she could lie in his arms like this forever.
She glanced up at him, parted her lips to say something...what, she wasn’t sure...and instead she tipped her mouth up for a kiss she desperately wanted. He lowered his head and complied.
The stroke of his tongue against hers was soothing, passionate, and her body responded by stretching upward for more. And he delivered, deepening the kiss, intensifying those strokes, and she heard herself moaning out her pleasure.
He broke off the kiss, and his breath seared across her parted lips when he whispered, “Don’t tempt me, Shana. Go to sleep.”
Drawing in a deep, satisfying breath with the taste of him still embedded on her tongue, she settled back down in bed and he wrapped his arms around her again. Held against him moments later, she heard it...a steady hum...and realized what he was doing. Not only was he holding her, but he was humming her to sleep, as well. She recognized the tune, Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star. She smiled as she closed her eyes, and that was the last thing she remembered.
* * *
Jace stopped humming and glanced down when he heard the steadiness of Shana’s breathing. She had fallen asleep. A part of him had felt guilty most of the day knowing he had robbed her of sleep Sunday night. Hopefully, this would make up for it.
Carefully, he eased away from her and smiled when she whispered his name in her sleep. He couldn’t resist leaning over and placing a tender kiss on her lips. Then, covering her up completely, he moved away from the bed, slid back into his shoes and put on his jacket again. He glanced back over at her one final time before turning out the lights and quietly moving downstairs.
A part of him knew he should not have come here, but then another part knew he had no other choice. Shana had gotten under his skin from day one, and although he’d tried, there was no eradicating her. This affair they’d agreed to would eventually run its course. This fierce attraction and desire would one day be a thing of the past. They were merely enjoying each other for now. It was about sex and nothing more.
If all those things were true, then why did he feel possessiveness toward her that he hadn’t felt for a woman in a long time? He’d felt possessive toward Eve, but then he’d had every right to do so since she was his wife. But no other woman had stirred such need for exclusivity and selfishness where she was concerned.
He recalled the first time he’d met Bruce, that first day the man had come to install her computer. Jealousy had eaten at Jace as he observed the man’s easy and carefree relationship with Shana. It was a relationship he didn’t have with her and couldn’t have with her. Now things were different. He had the relationship he wanted, so why wasn’t it enough?
He armed her security system and quickly opened the door, locking it behind him. As he walked to his car, he couldn’t help but recall how good it felt holding her while she dozed off to sleep. He’d liked the feel of her in his arms, experiencing something apart from deep intimacy...although he damn well liked doing that.
Being inside her body was like a high he’d never felt before. He didn’t just feel passion, he felt feverish passion. He was discovering there was a difference between the two. And whenever he thrust in and out of her, a need that bordered on madness would take over him, driving him to satisfy a greed that controlled everything within him at that particular moment.
Moments later, he was back on the interstate again and headed toward home. Damn, but he missed her already and had to talk himself out of making yet another U-turn and going back. She needed her rest, and he needed his. Besides, if he slept away from home two nights in a row, Hannah would start thinking things. It was Hannah’s ardent desire that one of them finally settle down and fill Sutton Hills with the patter of little feet.
Hannah had never liked Eve; she thought Eve was too selfish for her own good and, like Jace’s grandfather, felt he could do better. Now he was convinced he could, as well. So why did his thoughts automatically come back to Shana?
Hell, other than being off the charts in bed, what did he know about her? He knew she had a father and a sister and that she got along great with her staff, some of whom he had met. He knew where she lived and that she liked her hamburgers well-done and was in love with strawberry shakes.
But there was more, and a part of him wanted to know all there was. He released a deep sigh, satisfied with his goal of finding out. For the moment, he wouldn’t question why he felt the need; he would just accept that he did.
* * *
Dalton walked into his condo while stripping off his tie. Tonight had been fun and the woman enjoyable. She was disappointed they had gone to her place instead of his. But she soon got over it. She’d wanted him to stay the night, and he’d turned her down. A one-night stand was just that, a one-night stand. There was no need to get greedy.
He headed for his bedroom to take a shower. Then he would call Victoria. He hadn’t talked to her but twice since he’d been here. She was involved with Wimbledon, and he knew how hectic her schedule was these days. And he’d seen her several times in the paper being escorted to and from events by Sir Isaac Muldrow.
Dalton had met the man and thought he was nice enough, but probably a little too old for Victoria’s taste. But he thought Muldrow was just the man Victoria needed. He was as rich as she was, and he was well-respected in European circles.
A short while later, after taking his shower and slipping into a pair of briefs—which was the only thing he wore to bed—he lay back against the pillows and placed a call to Victoria.
He liked his condo and liked Holly, the cute young woman who’d come to decorate the place, even better. Holly was playing hard to get, but get her he would eventually. He’d missed a call from her tonight, which meant she was softening. He would make it a point to return her call tomorrow.
“Hello?”
Victoria sounded wide-awake, which made him remember the time difference. It was daytime in England and Tuesday already. “Miss me?”
“Dalton! Glad to hear your voice. I was beginning to think you’d forgotten about me.”
“Never. How are things going? I see Wimbledon went off without a hitch.”
“Yes, and I’m so glad about it. We’re still recovering from all the work we did during last year’s Olympics. So tell me, how are things going with your being a corporate executive? Is it simply boring, darling?”
He had to admit it wasn’t as bad as he thought it would be, but then there was nothing better than making money doing nothing, which is what he’d done for the past year. “It’s okay, not as bad as I thought it would be. I’m learning a lot. Staying busy.”
“But not too busy to keep your hands off the women?” she asked, laughing.
“I’ll never be too busy for that.” That’s what he liked about his relationship with Victoria. She knew him like he knew her. They enjoyed each other in bed, but they were also friends. There was no possessiveness, jealousy or control. It was what it was.
They talked for a little while longer, and he was determined not to bring up her ex if she didn’t. She didn’t, so he hoped she was still getting over the bastard. “I thought about taking a trip to the States to see you. I haven’t been to America in years.”
He smiled. “Then come. I’d love to see you.”
She chuckled. “But your brothers might not. I believe they think I’m a bad influence or something.”
“Who gives a crap what they think? We’re friends and nothing more. Friends with benefits.”
“Yes, but maybe it’s time for you to look for more with another woman. I’ve been thinking about that.” She paused a moment and then said, “I’ve been seeing a lot of Sir Isaac.”
“I know.”
“You do?” she asked, sounding surprised. “How?”
“We get the papers here, Victoria, and I’m also interested in what’s happening over there. I take it that you like him.”
“Yes. He reminds me of an older you.”
He smiled. “An older me isn’t so bad, is it?”
“No. I like him, Dalton.”
“And if he’s smart, he would like you, as well.”
He didn’t have to see the smile he knew had touched her lips. “Father said the same thing.”
“Stuart and I think alike. I consider that a compliment.”
She didn’t say anything for a moment and then said, “I have decisions to make, Dalton. If I decide to marry Muldrow, that means ending things between us. Muldrow wouldn’t want me to retain our close friendship.”
In other words, Dalton thought, the man wouldn’t want Dalton fucking his wife. “I can’t blame him. We will always be friends, you know that. Just not bed pals. I can handle that. Can you?”
“Not sure at the moment, Dalton. You’re more than my bed pal. You’ve become my security blanket. You make me have confidence in myself.”
He tightened his hand on the phone, hearing the lack of self-assurance in her voice. “You will always have my support like I know I’ll always have yours, Victoria. You are a beautiful woman who deserves a man like Muldrow. He will make you happy.”
“I truly believe that he will. But there’s a lot to think about. I’ll let you know what I decide.”
“All right.”
“Okay, I have to run. Good night, Dalton.”
He smiled. “And a very good day to you, my lady.”
As he hung up the phone, he had a feeling she wouldn’t be “his” lady too much longer.