Page 36 of One Texas Night...
“Of course I do. Everyone does.”
“You think?” she asked, amused by his certainty he could control falling in love. “Now maybe you’re flinging a challenge my way.”
One dark eyebrow arched in speculation. “Maybe I am. Try to make me fall in love, Allison. We’ll see if I can resist.”
She laughed softly. “That’s a challenge I think I will let drift right on past. I’m not out to capture your heart,” she said, her words stirring a twinge of guilt.
“If any woman could, it would be you.”
She looked at him, suddenly solemn. “I won’t be the one. I couldn’t take the life you lead. Not in someone I deeply love. Each time you walked out the door, it would tear me up inside.” She smiled. “Jared, darling, you’re quite safe from my seductive wiles,” she stated in a sultry voice, running her fingers along his jaw.
“You keep that up, and we’ll never even get to the tub,” he said in a deep voice that had lost all amusement.
“Oh, my. I didn’t know I could do that to you. What else can I do?” she teased, always enjoying flirting with him.
They entered his bathroom that was actually two large rooms, one with mirrors, plants, a massage table, a wingback chair, a rack of magazines and a flat-screen television. In one corner was an enclosed shower.
She followed him into another large room with a stand holding folded fresh towels and a large sunken marble tub. He began to run water, turning back to look at her, a tantalizingly slow, thorough perusal that had the same effect as caresses would have.
“Jared,” she whispered, stepping closer to him.
He was aroused, studying her now with hunger in his eyes.
“We just made love. We have a tub of hot water waiting. C’mon.” She took his hand and they climbed into the tub. He turned off the faucets before they sat. He pulled her between his legs and she reclined back against his warm body while hot water swirled around them.
They talked, and when the water cooled, he added more hot water until she finally raised a hand in front of his face. “Look, I’m withering.”
“I don’t think you’re withering. Let me see,” he said, cupping her breasts to run his hands lightly over her. His hands were warm, the water making their skin slippery as he slowly caressed and stroked her.
“Jared,” she gasped and wriggled away slightly, rubbing against him with each move she made.
Standing, she splashed water, stepping away from him. He stepped out of the tub and pulled her close as they began to dry each other with thick, fluffy beige towels. He was aroused again. His green eyes had darkened with desire. He framed her face with his hands and looked down at her before he kissed her.
Stepping close, she slipped one arm around his waist to hold him while her other hand ran over his shoulder and down his back. His arm circled her waist tightly, and he drew her closer as they kissed.
* * *
It was hours later when he pulled her close against him, and she put her head on his chest.
“I’d say we fit together rather well,” Jared murmured.
She felt his warm breath on the top of her head as they lay once again on the blanket before the fire. They had made love again, but it still wasn’t enough.
“When we get back to Texas,” he asked her, “will you come to the rodeo with me? You won’t be scared I’ll get hurt. It’s not that wild and woolly.”
“Of course it’s that wild, or you wouldn’t be doing it. Yes, I’ll watch you ride, but if you get hurt, you’ll never bring up the subject of going again.”
“That’s an easy promise, since we may not see each other in the future. Sure, I promise,” he said lightly.
His words dissolved the euphoria she had been enveloped in. The reminder of her future without Jared was a cold dash of reality that she’d hoped to put off until morning. It was knowledge she knew full well but hadn’t wanted to think about it tonight.
“Jared, why do you take such risks? Why are you drawn to so many wild sports?”
“I like the challenge, the discovery. It seems incredibly exciting to think about climbing Mount Everest and seeing that spectacular landscape. Life is filled with marvelous adventures that are thrilling, and I want to do them all. I want to see and do and experience life.”
“You remind me of my mother, of all people—sort of larger-than-life with a zest and hunger for adventure, living every moment to the fullest. She could get excited over a rose or over jumping out of a plane—which, by the way, she did.”
“I knew a little about her but was shocked the first time Sloan started telling me more about her. Since you, your dad and Sloan are all worriers—your dad not as badly—I figured she was, too.”
