Chapter 7
The day toddled on for Caroline and her constant surveillance of the clock didn’t help. It was as if the day’s hourglass had gotten clogged, slowing down Father Time.
J.T. told her to text him when she was finished, and she was out the door at six on the nose, her cell phone in hand. She was punching in her message to him when she heard his unmistakable laugh. Swinging around, she spied him across the street, leaning against his Ferrari.
He held an entire bunch of colorful balloons. “I thought you might finish on time today,” he said, checking both directions before walking toward her. “You should have seen me trying to fit these in my Ferrari.”
She realized she should meet him halfway, but her feet couldn’t seem to do it. Since he’d left the gallery earlier, all she’d thought about—heck, fantasized about—was him. Some of her worry about Cynthia hadn’t gone away, so she’d overridden her fears with thoughts about his hands running all over her naked body. She’d gotten so overheated, she’d had to prop the front door open for a while. If any passersby had thought it odd, well, too bad. Spending weeks around J.T., on the brink of a relationship but not quite there, had driven her crazy with wanting.
He’d finally stepped forward! She could feel it. About damn time, she wanted to say.
“How about an early dinner?” he asked when he reached her. “I have a restaurant rented out for your complete enjoyment. Oh, and I have a clown on standby if they don’t freak you out.”
She’d had time to think about how she wanted things to go. And dinner didn’t figure into her plans just yet. She didn’t want to give him time to change his mind again.
“Not that I don’t enjoy the gesture—and clowns don’t freak me out FYI—but how about you follow me home?”
The heat in his green eyes made her want to sigh right there on the street.
“Dinner would be a safer place to start,” he said in a quiet voice.
“And you said let’s wait a week to see what your ex would do.” She planted her feet. “Well, now we know. Forget about the week.”
His mouth parted as if he were surprised at her directness.
“Do you still have reservations about me and how I feel?” she asked. “Or how you feel?”
He reached out to caress her upper arm, the touch sending a shiver through her. “Never you, and I know how I feel about you.”
“Then let’s get a move on. J.T., I want you to follow me home.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said, sweeping his hand out grandly. “After you.”
“And hurry,” she added.
He let go of the balloons in his hand immediately, his gaze blazing with desire. “Your wish is my command.”
Music to her ears. She strode off to where she’d parked and checked to make sure he was behind her. Behind her? Suddenly, she had an image of him standing behind her, his hardness pressed against her, kissing the back of her neck as she…
Goodness, she was going to implode on the way home if she didn’t get herself under control. She drove slowly even though he knew where she lived. She went through all the reasons she shouldn’t sleep with him, but the only one that came to mind was that she hadn’t shaved her legs last night. Did she have stubble? Moira and Natalie always said men didn’t care, and right now, she was inclined to believe them. Heck, she wasn’t thinking clearly. Maybe she needed an outside perspective.
She called Moira first, and her sister picked up on the first ring.
“Hey! I was just thinking about you. Are you calmer after what happened yesterday?”
“My hormones are out of control at the moment,” she replied. “I’m thinking about having sex with J.T. tonight. Any concerns? I can’t seem to come up with a negative except I didn’t shave my legs last night.”
“I told you men don’t care,” she said immediately. “I could have hair like a mountain man and Chase would still do me. Right, hon?”
Caroline heard Chase bark out a laugh in the background.
“Thanks for that image,” Caroline said. “Seriously, Mo, am I going too fast?”
“Has J.T. finally picked up the pace?”
“Yes, he’s on the uptick. And wait until you hear this. His ex-wife paid me an unpleasant visit at the gallery today.” Of course, she’d told her siblings everything about his ex after the family party.
“She did what?” her sister yelled. Then she could hear the sound of Mo’s muffled voice at the other end of the line, and she knew her sister was filling in Chase.
“Yes, seems she knows I was in Rome with J.T. Anyway, I’ll tell you more about it later. Right now you need to help me. J.T. drove up to Denver after his ex visited—long story—and we talked. He tried to give me an out after meeting his ex, but I didn’t bite.”
“Of course you didn’t. We don’t let crazy people dictate our actions. If J.T. is up for it, you should go for it. You’ve wanted him since Rome, Caroline. And we both know how rare that is. I was the same way with Chase and look how that’s worked out.”
After Rome, Caroline had secretly wondered if J.T. might be “The One.” Heck, when he’d flown to Colorado to see her a short time later, under the guise of attending a corporate party for Evan’s new ventures, she’d walked on air for days. But he’d held back, and now she understood why—he hadn’t wanted them to get serious before she understood the situation with Cynthia, and he hadn’t wanted to explain it before they got a chance to know each other.
The invisible wall that had stood between them was finally gone.
“Thanks, Mo,” she said. “I’m almost home. If you don’t hear from me—”
“I’ll hope it’s because you’re too exhausted to pick up your phone. Have fun, babe.”
Leave it to Moira to be practical. Her sister had always been good at breaking things down. She thought about calling Natalie just to cover bases, but she was making the left to her street and there wasn’t time. Plus, shouldn’t she be confident enough to make such a choice on her own? She snorted aloud at the thought. She didn’t call her sisters in moments like this because she needed reassurance—or at least that wasn’t the main reason. Mostly she called them because they were her sisters and she loved them.
She parked her car in the space closest to the sidewalk that would take her to her apartment. J.T. pulled in next to her. Caroline checked to make sure the lipstick she’d applied before closing the gallery was in place. Then she laughed at the impulse. It wasn’t going to last long if she had anything to say about it.
J.T. was waiting by her car door, and when she opened it, he helped her out and closed it like the gentleman he was. “Too bad about the balloons.”
“Collateral damage. Did you call one of your sisters?” he asked, the streetlights casting shadows on his face.
“How did you guess?” she asked, stepping back a moment.
“I have siblings too,” he said. “We do the same thing.”
She tilted her head to better see his face. “So did you call anyone?”
“Nah,” he said. “I already knew what Trev would say.”
Taking his hand, she led him down the path to her apartment. “What’s that?”
“Go for it,” he said. “He’s been at me for weeks to stop letting the past hold me back.”
She liked the man Trevor had become. He was big and tough, and no one with sense would want to mess with him, but he’d cracked joke after joke with them. He seemed to belong with the extended Hale clan as much as J.T. did. Of course, now she understood why Trevor was spending time in Dare Valley—J.T.’s twin had his back.
“I’m glad you decided to take his advice,” she said, fighting the urge to rush down the sidewalk.
She had her house key ready when they reached the door, and she waved his hands away when he offered to open it. No, it was faster this way. The moment the door closed, she locked it and leaned against it.
“I’m not normally this bold—”
“Caroline, I’ve wanted you from the first moment I saw you in the gallery,” he said, shrugging out of his overcoat. “Come here.”
She felt the flutter of relief in her gut. “Whew! I was hoping you hadn’t changed your mind on the way here.”
He chuckled, but it was a husky sound, full of pent-up longing. “Not a chance. Do you remember how it was in Rome? I asked you where you’d been my whole life, and I meant it. Caroline, this isn’t casual for me. That’s why I needed the divorce to be final. What I feel for you is wonderful and raw and joyous.”
She felt a wave of awe flood through her. Of course she had known the connection between them wasn’t casual—at least it had never felt casual—but this…
“Dammit, you’ve really been holding back! That might be the sweetest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”
He tugged off his tie and shoved it in his suit pocket. “I’m only getting started now that we’ve put the turtle pace behind us. You’re overdressed.”
She still had her coat on, but when she tried to shrug out of it, she caught the right sleeve on her purse. “Oops. I forgot.”
He took the bag from her and walked around to help her out of her coat. “Let me help.”
She leaned back against him as he slid an arm around her waist. “Oh, J.T., I’ve been thinking about this all day. Well, if I’m being honest, I’ve been thinking about it since Rome.”
His lips brushed the side of her neck, and she felt him move her hair to the side. The kisses were gentle, but oh so hot, and she angled her head to give him better access.
“I’m glad we didn’t go to dinner,” he whispered.
“I hope the clown wasn’t crushed when you gave him the night off.”
He laughed. “Forget about his feelings. Sweetheart, I plan to savor you all night.”
She loved that idea. And that word… No one had ever savored her before, not that she was all that experienced. Her first had been in college, and she’d been intimate with a few men she’d met in professional circles. None of the relationships had become serious. That line of thinking reminded her that she was cautious by nature and there were practical considerations to address.
“I’m not on the Pill right now,” she said, “but I bought some condoms a few weeks ago, hoping…”
“It was my first post-divorce purchase,” he said, laying his head against hers for a moment in what felt like a comforting embrace. “And I’m clean. Caroline, you can trust me.”
“You can trust me too, J.T.”
“I know that, and for someone who’s developed serious trust issues the past couple of years, you have no idea how much that means to me.”
But she was starting to understand that. It seemed important to face him, so she turned around and looked him in the eye.
“I’ll never betray you,” she said.
His face tensed up and then he took her in his arms. “I know that too.”
They held each other for a moment, and she knew he was battling something. She gave him time. When he leaned back and looked into her eyes, she knew he’d found solid ground again.
“Kiss me,” she whispered.
His head lowered, and their mouths met. They both took their time, letting the passion between them build. Then he tugged on her bottom lip, and she could stand it no longer. She opened her mouth and welcomed his tongue. The kiss turned hot and carnal, and her hands gripped his back.
Pulling away, she reached for the buttons on his suit jacket. He took her hands in his.
“Caroline, part of me wants to just take you on the floor, now, but it’s our first time. Plus, it’s cold in here, and you tend to get chilly easily.”
She remembered how he’d made sure their outside dinner in Rome had patio heaters. His insight and his attentiveness sliced straight down to her heart. “Come with me.”
They took the stairs and walked hand in hand into her bedroom. She’d completely forgotten in the heat of the moment, but her bed was unmade, and she had work clothes and shoes from last week still on the floor in the corner.
“It’s a mess. I didn’t…ah…expect company,” she stammered. “I mean, I was gone all weekend.”
“I kinda like seeing this,” J.T. said, gesturing with his hand. “Makes you seem human like the rest of us. I’ll confess something to you as well. If I didn’t have someone come twice a week, my place wouldn’t be inhabitable. And I haven’t made a bed since I moved out from under my mother’s eye. Bad habit perhaps, but I figure I’m only going to—”
“Crawl back in later so why bother?” she finished for him.
He smiled at her. “We’re a match made in heaven. I’ve…never had anyone finish my thoughts before.”
She rested her hand on his chest. “And no man has ever paid close enough attention to realize I get chilly easily.”
He caressed her cheekbone and pushed her hair back behind her ear. “You pay attention when you care about someone. Let me show you what else I plan to pay attention to tonight.”
As he undid her silk blouse and opened it, she kept her eyes on him. J.T. knew how to make a woman feel like she was his whole world.
“You’re so beautiful,” he said, tracing a line from her collarbone to her belly button. “But I’m really going to have to buy you some special lingerie.”
She pushed him playfully. “What’s wrong with it?”
He was chuckling under his breath, and she knew he was teasing her. “Nothing, but breasts this perfect should be cupped in Italian lace.”
When he reached behind her and unhooked her bra, her skin tingled. “No one has ever said my breasts are beautiful.”
He edged back. “Those guys were dumb. These are works of art. For a while, I thought the best depiction of breasts was in Dominique-Louis-Féréa Papety’s painting The Temptation of Saint Hilarion. Then I saw René Magritte’s Philosophy in the Boudoir. Talk about… Never mind.”
Caroline had to admit those were some great breasts. “You’ve thought about things like this?” she asked, not sure if she should laugh out loud.
“I was a boy who loved art,” he said. “Of course, I thought about it. Trev says seeing naked women is the only good reason to support the arts, but that’s his philistine side showing.”
Okay, this time she did laugh. “So that’s why you have a huge section of nudes!”
He snorted. “Grandpa Emmits bought most of those. What can I say? A love of beautiful breasts runs in the family. You should hear my brother, Flynn, wax poetic about them. Never mind.”
And yet she understood. “When I spent that summer in Rome in college, I finally saw the beauty in the human body. Male and female. Before that, I was embarrassed by the whole thing.”
“Did you lose your virginity in Rome?” he asked in a teasing tone.
“That is none of your business!”
She made a show of pulling her shirt together, but she rather liked that they could talk so openly in such an intimate moment. Somehow it made them feel closer. She didn’t want J.T. for his body alone, although he really did have too many clothes on.
“Isn’t it time for you to get undressed?” she asked.
“Not yet. Come here, Caroline Hale.” He grabbed her and made a show of lifting her off the floor and twirling her around like he’d done in the gallery.
“What are you doing?” she asked, trying not to start laughing again.
“Distracting you,” he said with an exaggerated huff. “You were starting to get nervous.”
She slid down his body as he lowered her, and her laughter subsided. “It’s our first time, so yes, I am a little nervous.”
He framed her face in his hands. “I’m nervous too. It’s been…a long time since I’ve…put my heart out there. And I haven’t been with anyone since…”
He’d left his wife, she realized. “It’s going to be all right,” she said, lifting her hand to touch his.
His smile was slow and sensuous, and her belly fluttered once again. “Oh, it’s going to be better than all right. You have my promise on that.”
When he moved in to kiss her, she edged back. “You know what I mean, don’t you? J.T., I’ll be careful with you. You have my promise on that.”
He pressed their foreheads together. “That…moves me. More than you know. Come. Let me make love with you.”
With you. Not to you. She liked the difference.
He shrugged out of his jacket and then started unbuttoning his dress shirt. She knew this act was somehow a show of trust even though she didn’t fully understand it yet. Instead, she simply watched as he bared his chest to her. When he crossed the short distance between them, he took her hand and placed it over his heart.
“It’s yours,” he whispered, “along with the rest of me.”
She touched his jaw with her other hand. They stayed in the moment, merely gazing at each other. Words were unnecessary. She knew what was in his heart, and in the silence, she let him see what was in hers.
Pulling back slowly, her eyes linked to his, she shrugged out of her blouse and let it fall to the floor. Once she was free of her top and her unhooked bra, she wrapped her arms around him and stepped forward until their skin met, his hot against hers. Her breasts suddenly felt heavier, and when he shifted his hands and held them, her head fell back. With that first touch, she let her eyes close. And when his mouth covered her nipple and started to suck, she was sure she was experiencing heaven on earth. He took his time like he’d said he would, and she caressed the long line of his back, luxuriating in the muscles there.
When he walked her backward toward the bed, she smiled at him, reveling in the moment—and in the realization that this was already the most sensual experience she’d ever had.
When the backs of her legs touched the edge of the bed, she undid the rest of her clothes and let them fall away. His face grew flushed, looking at her. Then he undid his pants and slid them to the floor, removing the rest of his clothes in their wake.
God, he was beautiful, his body a union of perfect, graceful lines of muscle and bone. This was the kind of male beauty that had inspired some of the ancient greats.
“You’re so beautiful,” he said in a hushed voice, his finger tracing a line across her belly. “And I want you. God, how I want you.”
“I was thinking the same thing,” she whispered. “Come here.”
When he took her mouth in a kiss again, the preliminaries were gone. Heat rolled through her, and she closed her eyes and simply fell into the moment. His lips rubbed against hers, and then his tongue was seeking entrance again, and oh, how delicious it all felt.
Her hands gripped his hips and he moved against her, sending shockwaves through her body. Suddenly all she wanted was him. On top of her. Inside her. All around her.
She lay back on the bed, and he followed, covering her. Pressing her lips to his skin, she savored him as well, delighting in the change in his breathing and the tension in his body. He was hers for the taking, and she wanted every bit of him.
When he slid his hand between her legs, she moaned and surged up to meet it. God, this was good. So good. His clever hand knew just where to touch her, and she came hard and quick. She was still crying out in pleasure when he caught her cry with his mouth. A new feeling of urgency built in her core, pulling another moan from her, and this time he edged away. She heard the tear of a condom’s foil packet. Forcing her eyes open, she watched him position himself between her legs. He was hard and hot, and she reached out her hand to him.
He slid over her, and their hands entwined as he came into her. The fit was tight and hot and wonderful.
“God, you feel good,” he hissed out, pressing deep.
She moaned when he reached the hilt. “J.T.”
“Yeah, babe?” he whispered, slowly withdrawing and then sinking back inside her.
“Don’t ever stop,” she said, and caught his smile before she closed her eyes again.
And so it went. The slow entry and the smooth withdrawal. Over and over again, until his breathing shuddered out and he picked up the force of his thrusts. This time he moved rapidly and with less finesse, but it was perfect because she didn’t want finesse now. She wanted madness and heat and all of him, moving inside her as though driven to the very edge.
They crossed that edge together, and she held him when he fell onto her, not minding the weight or the sheen of sweat on his body. No, he was exactly where she wanted him, exactly where he was supposed to be.
When he rose up and stared into her eyes, she noted the dampness in his hair and the look of awe on his face.
“You,” he whispered. “Just you.”
Her heart gave an answering cry in response. “Yes. You.”