by Tessa Radley
He forgot everything. His family receded. His whole awareness centered on the pair of clear sky blue eyes.
The moment shattered as a furry body barreled into his legs.
A golden Labrador grinned up at him, and he heard Georgia laugh.
“I see I forgot to introduce Zeus,” he said ruefully.
She rubbed the dog’s head.
Jay looked up. Everyone appeared to be transfixed at the sight of the ring on Georgia’s hand as she caressed Zeus’s ears. No one could have missed what he’d known the moment he met Georgia: the ring was perfect. The blue of the diamond reflected the brightness of her eyes, while the silver setting glittering with pavé diamonds matched her hair. With his grandmother’s ring on her finger, Jay had sent a message: he expected his family—every one of them—to honor his choice.
“Don’t let Zeus jump up—his feet are all muddy.”
His mother was the first to step forward, gently kneeing Zeus out of the way. She kissed Georgia, first on one cheek, then on the other.
“This is such happy news,” she said, her voice thick with emotion.
Thank you, Mom. A wave of love for his mother filled Jay.
His sister hadn’t moved. She stood beside his father, a question in her eyes. Jay read it as easily as though his sister had yelled it at him.
What about Suzie?
Dammit!
The old guilt stirred deep in his gut. He pushed it away. He’d deal with Suzie later. Tomorrow. She’d be at the anniversary celebration. Unlike the old man, Jennifer would reserve judgment—even though her loyalties would be torn.
Jay headed back to the SUV. It only took a moment to heft their bags out of the trunk. Georgia, thank God, had traveled light. He retrieved their coats from the back seat. His mother had finally released his brand-new fiancée, who looked a little dazed as he dropped her coat over her shoulders.
“Let’s go inside,” Jay said brusquely. For now, she had endured enough. There was more to come—her weekend escape was the beginning of his purgatory. There was little hope of forgiveness: he’d left it too late for that.
* * *
“Give me one minute. I need a word with Betty to sort out a few last-minute details.” Nancy Black touched her husband’s arm and fixed him with a look that Georgia guessed held a warning. “Darling, prepare Jay and Georgia something refreshing to drink—I’m sure they’re parched after the trip.”
“I’ll get Zeus cleaned up.” Jay’s sister grabbed the Labrador by the collar.
Georgia’s desire to murder Jay escalated another level.
He hadn’t been joking. He’d given his unsuspecting family no warning that he was bringing a guest—much less a fiancée. His mother’s need for time to consult with the housekeeper revealed that much. Not that Nancy had made her feel like an interloper; to the contrary, Nancy’s welcome had been the warmest of all.
Nor had Jay been joking when he’d said his parents would expect her to be wearing an engagement ring, although she hadn’t anticipated that they would be quite so riveted by the sight of the ring on her finger.
This was far from the modest, ordinary family she’d expected.
Jay’s mother exhibited the easy style of a woman comfortable with wealth, while his father wore jeans, a Western jacket and, once again, the ubiquitous JJB boots—although his were the scuffed cowboy kind.
And then there was the house...
Once inside the heavy front door, Georgia found herself standing in a double-height—or was it triple-height?—foyer. Never-ending living spaces unfolded before her, with fabulous mountain vistas visible through the surrounding windows. In the distance, a curved staircase in black wrought iron with a carved wooden bannister rose to the upper floors. From the marble-tiled lobby, two steps led down to a spacious living area arranged around a stone fireplace. Wooden floors—walnut, she suspected—were scattered with large handwoven rugs. On the far side of the fireplace, Georgia glimpsed a dining space surrounded with vast floor-to-ceiling windows that framed more spectacular views.
She wanted nothing more than to get Jay alone. To demand some answers. Why had he never said a word about his family’s wealth? In all the time she’d known him, all the time she’d worked head-to-head with him, he’d never discussed it. He’d mentioned parents and a sister in passing. But nothing had prepared her for this—this—
Words failed her.
Murder might not be enough...
As she and Jay trooped down the two stairs behind J.J., Georgia tried to fathom the family dynamics that were swirling around them. There was clearly a bond of deep affection—love—between Jay’s parents. But the relationship between Jay and his father was not as easy to decipher. Jay gestured to a leather sofa. Once she sat down, Georgia glanced around with interest, taking in the pewter chandelier overhead and the pair of bronze elk statues beside the hearth. But when Jay settled beside her, his thigh close to her own, any curiosity instantly evaporated.
All she could focus on was the pressure of Jay’s thigh against hers.
“So, you want to marry my son?” J.J. had taken the leather armchair directly across from where she and Jay sat.
Before she could respond, Jay spoke from beside her. “I proposed—I want to marry Georgia.”
But J.J. appeared deaf to the warning note in Jay’s voice as his bitter brown eyes drilled into Georgia.
J.J.
The name nagged at her. Jay’s father looked vaguely familiar. But she’d swear they’d never met. Georgia took her time studying him. The broad shoulders and head of gray hair. The heavy brows over measuring eyes. He was the picture of a successful, wealthy man comfortable in his skin right down to the scuffed Western boots he wore. JJB boots. Like hers.
J.J. Black?
As in JJB Boots? Iconic Western boots. She and Roberta both loved them. She’d had a vague idea that the company was based out west. In Colorado?
Oh, my God!
Jay was one of those Blacks.
And he’d never told her?
JJB Boots!
Deep inside, something twisted painfully at that thought. Despite all their skirmishes, despite her fears that Jay was after her dream job, she’d always known he shared many of her own visions and values. She’d spoken the truth down beside the creek: Jay understood her better than anyone she’d ever met, and that only intensified the hurt she was feeling. He’d confessed to lying to her about the past. Now she’d discovered he’d chosen to tell her nothing about his family business—yet he knew everything there was to know about Kingdom.
How had he come to work for Kingdom? How had he learned about the post Ridley had vacated?
Jay had risen to his feet. A dark wood unit opened to reveal a liquor cabinet and a fridge. “What would you like to drink, Georgia?”
A destructive impulse to demand a triple tequila before noon overtook her. Georgia stifled it. Jay might be amused, but she doubted J.J. would appreciate it. Getting off on the wrong foot with the man would only make what was starting to look like a challenging weekend more difficult.
“May I have some water, no ice, please?”
“Sure.” Jay took a bottle of mineral water out of the concealed bar fridge, then twisted the top off and poured it into a tall glass.
Georgia felt ridiculously obtuse. Part of it was Jay’s fault—he’d never given her any hint. How could she have guessed? It wasn’t as if Kingdom ever had any business dealings with JJB Boots.
Although that wasn’t such a bad idea...
“—and I’ll cut down on my working hours once you’re back. Your mother will be pleased.”
What? Ripped out of her thoughts, Georgia’s sudden movement caused the ring on her finger to flash blue fire. All at once it no longer mattered how or why he’d come to work for Kingdom.
Her gaze meshed with Jay’s.
; “You’re planning to leave Kingdom?” she whispered.
“Of course, he’s going to leave!”
She blocked out J.J.’s loud voice and kept her eyes on the man who had become her rock. Jay’s expression was unfathomable. It had been bad enough to think about him leaving her for a vacation, but for Jay to leave Kingdom forever...?
“My son was never going to stay at a New York luxury label when he has the solid family tradition of JJB Boots waiting for him back home.”
There. If she’d needed confirmation, she had it in J.J.’s contempt. Anger, hurt, a raw pain contracted her chest.
But Jay’s eyes remained steady on hers. “My fiancée would be the first to know if I were considering such a drastic step.”
Fiancée. His warning was clear: she’d better not give the game away.
Even as he handed her the soda and sat down beside her, a frantic desire to slip into the bracing chill outside overcame her. Anything to get away from the suddenly oppressive mood in the room and to clear her thoughts.
Jay was part of JJB Boots. He had a career—a life—waiting for him here. A life he’d said he didn’t want to be pressured into going back to. But someday, he would realize the value his family and the JJB Boots brand held.
Someday, he would leave Kingdom.
All Georgia’s anger at Jay evaporated as a greater dread set in.
They made a great team. How often, during the worst moments of her day, when she was bogged down with stress and deadlines, would Jay arrive brandishing a cup of coffee just as she liked it and flash that lazy grin, his eyes glinting with devilry. Tension would seep out of her. Life would instantly become simpler, more fun for a few moments. Solutions to all the problems plaguing her would fall into place.
What would she do when Jay decided to leave?
A shocking realization struck her: she didn’t want him to leave. Ever.
Really rattled now, Georgia couldn’t hide her relief when light footsteps sounded, and Nancy reappeared.
“Ah, good. J.J., I see you got Georgia a drink.” No one disabused her of the notion. “Everything is sorted out, Jay. The guest suite is ready for both of you.”
The guest suite is ready...for both of you?
Georgia blinked. Twice. Her lips parted. “Um—”
“Thanks, Mom.” Jay was already on his feet. “I’ll take our bags up.”
Georgia was left with no choice. Flashing a polite, vacant smile in the direction of her hosts, she abandoned her untouched drink and dashed after him. He took the wooden stairs two at time, his black boots thudding against the wooden stairs.
Black leather boots...
JJB Boots.
How could she have been so blind? She could’ve screamed. Had Jay been laughing at her all the time that he’d had her fooled?
“Wait,” she called out as he reached the top.
“We’re just through here.” Without slowing, Jay vanished through a stone arch.
Ten
“You have some explaining—”
Georgia came to an abrupt stop under the arch. Through the rustic doorway, she could see Jay setting their bags down on an antique blanket chest at the foot of the bed.
She did a double take as she took in the size of the sleigh bed that dominated the guest suite. It was ginormous.
“—to do.” Her voice fizzled out.
And just like that, Jay’s relationship to JJB Boots became the least of her worries.
One bed... Two people.
And not another bed in sight. Tension gripped her belly. Refusing to acknowledge it, she reminded herself that she and Jay were colleagues.
No, they were friends.
Only friends. Nothing more...
She thought of the skimpy lace and satin pajamas in her trolley bag and drew her brows together.
“I am not sleeping here, Jay.” She fought to keep her voice from rising. “Not in one bed.”
“And if there were two beds? Would that make a difference?”
Georgia narrowed her gaze. She was starting to suspect that the lazy mocking smile, the good-humored teasing masked a more intense, far more complex man. This Jay was all too familiar. Maddening. Provocative. Engaging. Amusing. But not even an invitation to debate the matter was going to distract her. Not this time.
“That hardly solves the problem,” she said firmly.
The corners of his mouth kicked up into a crooked smile.
Oh, she knew that smile...
Except this time, her reaction was different. More complicated. For once, she didn’t rise to the bait. Instead, her eyes flickered to the undone top button at the neckline of his white shirt and the sliver of bare skin revealed at his throat, then quickly away...back to his face.
From the light in his eyes, she knew he’d recognized the heat she’d felt.
“We don’t even have to sleep, you know.” He followed that smile up with a wicked growl. “Not if you’re so dead set against it. That should solve the problem, right?”
She swallowed hard.
Suddenly, she was finding it hard to breathe.
While that magnificent maple bed behind her was simply waiting...
Georgia’s heart started a slow thud in her chest.
He was coming closer. The wickedness in his widening smile caused her throat to tighten further and her skin began to tingle.
How had she never noticed the sensual ease with which he moved...or the sexy slant of his cheekbones? The catalog of her oversights was growing longer by the hour.
“Hey.” She struggled to laugh.
Too late. Way too late. It came out breathy and expectant, and the awful sound hung between them.
Nice work, Georgia!
Warmth flooded her face. Striving for firmness, she channeled her most businesslike boardroom voice. “Don’t tease, Jay.”
His smile was all teeth, and his eyes gleamed.
“Whatever makes you think I’m teasing?”
At the low husky note, a pang of yearning—just short of pain—stabbed at her heart. A memory of that instant she’d uttered the reckless bid that had won her Jay at the Bachelors for a Better Future Benefit Auction swept over her. His stunned expression and the surge of triumph that had seized her in that moment came sharply back into focus.
When his gaze dropped to her mouth, the tingle flared into heat, shocking her with its intensity. Georgia resisted the urge to run the tip of her tongue over lips gone suddenly dry.
But she couldn’t stop her heart from slamming against her ribs.
“Stop it!” she croaked.
“Okay.” He looked up from her mouth and met her gaze full-on. “So what do you want?”
That huskiness in his voice—her heart recognized it. Even though she could’ve sworn she’d never heard it from Jay before. She backed up a couple of steps. The drumbeat against her ribs grew heavier.
“Your parents will be wondering where we are.” Desperation called for desperate measures.
“My mother knows we’ll be taking time to freshen up a little.”
She took another step back. The big bed banged into the back of her legs, and she stilled in surprise.
“So, you never did answer my question.”
She was aware of his intent gaze, of his lean strength, of the heat of his body in front of her. Oh, dear heaven.
“What question?” She shuddered inwardly at the squeakiness of her voice.
“What do you want?”
Her heart jolted. His closeness—
The rustle of denim, the smell of suede and the fresh mossy, woodsy scent of his aftershave filled her senses.
“Georgia...”
At last, she lifted her gaze. The final traces of a smile still lingered. But as their eyes connected, it vanished. The diamond hard-edged inte
nsity in his expression caused her heart to splinter painfully.
Jay wanted her.
In the absence of his teasing smile, the hard slash of his cheekbones and the tight line of his mouth were a revelation. Again, that Alice-down-a-rabbit-hole sense of not knowing, not seeing the real Jay filled her.
Her breath caught in the back of her throat. She placed her hands on his forearms, the suede jarringly rough beneath her touch. “I don’t think we should—”
“Don’t think,” he ordered.
His head came down.
“Feel,” he whispered against her mouth.
Her heartbeat went through the roof.
Excitement tore through her. This kiss was nothing like the sweet, chaste kiss of friendship they’d shared in the hospital courtyard. This time, there were no preliminaries. His mouth was hard and hungry. His tongue lashed into her mouth, tasting her...scorching her.
Digging her fingertips into the thickness of his jacket, Georgia made a little sound in the back of her throat.
It was part surprise. Part something...darker, far more frightening.
Then she released her grip on him to edge her hands down around his hips. As he groaned and pushed closer, she clutched at his jeans, the ridge of the pocket edges rough against her fingers. Beneath the denim, she felt the tight butt she’d so covertly admired on the stairs only minutes before, and arched up against him.
He felt hard and unmistakably male against her.
Panting, she tore her mouth from his. Instantly, he eased back so that her hands slid from his buttocks to his hips.
Her hands tightened on the waistband of Jay’s jeans.
Did he know what he was doing to her? Did he know about the desire that pulsed through her veins? She flipped him a quick upward glance from under her lashes. He was watching her, disconcertingly composed, his gaze steady. No glint of mockery in sight.
“Are you okay?” he asked, utterly serious for once.
“Of course!” She tried to smile.
But was this a good idea? They worked together. She was terrible at romance. And worse at reading men’s intentions. Now was the time to tell him that the only thing they had in common was business. The fashion industry. Work. Kingdom.
