“Good to hear.”
“Dad has a partial draft of the catalog done with the pieces I’ve already inventoried.” She pulled it out of her briefcase, and Jared moved closer to look, holding one side of the brochure when she opened it. They carefully went through it, commenting on the pictures and the descriptions.
“This is excellent, Allison,” he said, and she looked up at him. Only inches separated them. He focused on her, and as she gazed into his clear green eyes that had always fascinated her, she forgot the business at hand. Her heartbeat quickened and she fought the urge to look at his mouth. Wanting to lean closer, she knotted her fists and tried to look away, to escape the mesmerizing draw of this potent man.
“I don’t want to do this,” she whispered, still frozen in his gaze.
“Yes, you do. As much as I do,” he said softly, drawing closer. She couldn’t get her breath. She wanted to reach for him, to wrap her arms around his neck and hold him while she kissed him, and he kissed her back.
When his gaze shifted to her mouth, her lips tingled. His head lowered before his lips brushed hers in a feathery touch that she should have barely felt. Her toes curled, her breath escaped her and her resistance crumbled. She closed her eyes while his mouth covered hers and his tongue slipped over hers.
As she shuddered, he caressed her nape. She wasn’t capable of stopping him. She kissed him back with fervor. She knew one kiss would never be enough.
She couldn’t get her breath when she finally pulled back. “I don’t want to feel this with you,” she said, as much to herself as to him. “We’re not right for each other.”
“I think we’re as right as can be. Stop fighting it. Can’t you feel it, Allison? Everything in you responds to me just as I respond to you. Darlin’, we’ve got something special between us. You can’t deny it,” he whispered, staring intently at her.
She couldn’t. She wanted to deny it, to fling the words in his face, but in all honesty, she couldn’t say them, because they both knew there was no way to deny the attraction.
“You spin magic between us, weaving a spell around me,” she said. “I need to finish this job and go home, before I’m hopelessly ensnared and in love, something you won’t be.”
“You’ll never be ‘hopelessly ensnared,’” he said. “You’re far too independent. Besides, we’re not even having an affair.” He reclined back in his seat and stretched out his long legs.
“And we’ll keep it that way,” she added.
* * *
To her relief, when they reached the Houston mansion and she went directly to work, Jared remained remote, professional and totally focused on the task until half past five in the afternoon. Even so, she could not keep from noticing the flex of muscles in his arms if he lifted any of the furniture. His cotton sleeves were rolled up. When he knelt to look under furniture, his jeans pulled taut, molding to his muscled thighs. Everything he did drew her attention. Even though he might go half an hour without saying a word, having him beside her constantly was almost as much torment as when they flirted.
Finally he set the iPad on a table and placed his hand lightly on her arm.
“We should stop now for dinner. No working day and night. We’ve gotten a lot done today.”
“But I want to get this job done,” she said, facing him, looking into his searching gaze.
“Are you in a hurry now because of Dawn?”
“No. I believe what you said.” She set down her pencil and paper and focused on him. “Jared, we have to face the facts. You’re not the marrying kind, and I am. We’re just not right for each other. All this going out at night, flirting, dancing, kissing—that all leads one direction, to an affair.” When he was about to object, she stilled him with a hand. “You have a well-stocked kitchen. Let’s eat here.” The cook hadn’t returned with them to Houston, but Allison figured they could find something to prepare. “I’ll keep working. You can do what you want.”
“We’ll eat here, and I’ll work with you,” he said. “You can pause for a drink, can’t you?”
His capitulation to her wishes made her happy, and she smiled at him. “Yes, I can. I’m quite ready for a break.”
He touched the corner of her mouth lightly with his finger—a feathery touch that melted another bit of her resistance. “There—it’s good to see you smile. C’mon. It’s a pretty spring day. We can sit outside and have a drink. We can even go for a swim if you want. It is a heated pool.”
“No, thanks, Mr. Tough Man,” she said quickly as she joined him, and they headed down the hall toward the kitchen. “It may be a heated pool and a sunny day, but it’s way too cool for me to swim. And it isn’t officially spring yet, by the way.”
“I’ll keep you warm,” he offered.
She laughed. “I’m sure you would. Thanks, but as enticing as your offer is, I’ll pass. I do not swim before the traditional Memorial Day weekend at the earliest. In cooler climes, I do not swim until the Fourth of July. I’m not trying to live life on the edge or prove anything. You can meet life’s challenges, but not me, thank you.”
“I’m dealing with one of life’s biggest challenges right now,” he said, holding the back door for her and following her outside to the patio. He motioned in the direction of the outdoor kitchen and bar. “I’m trying to figure out how to get you to knock off working tonight, as well as a few bigger challenges you’ve thrown my way today.”
“I definitely am not trying to challenge you,” she said. “Far from it. Just ignore me and go on with your life.”
“That, Allison, is a complete turnaround from the night we met. And I’m not accustomed to getting that reaction from a woman, particularly one I really like.”
His words were heat and enticement. She fought her attraction to him, the constant pull on her to relax, flirt and do what he wanted.
