by A. C. Arthur
“I’m a licensed massage therapist.” She didn’t mention the fact that she owned her own spa because that seemed to pale in comparison to what the Donovans were used to as a way to make a living.
“She also graduated from Harvard. That’s where she and Lincoln met,” Mrs. Donovan added.
“So you’ve known Linc for about eight or nine years now?”
Leveling her gaze at Trent, the middle child, the one with the cool dark eyes and a strong jaw, she tried to read his expression. If she didn’t know better she’d think he was purposefully goading her. Instead she was slightly intrigued by this instant dislike he directed toward her. “Yes. But we haven’t seen each other in quite some time.”
“And you picked now to show up?”
“Actually, I didn’t pick anything. I went to the Gramercy for some R&R. My grandmother passed away almost a year ago and I needed to get out and do something with myself. I had no idea that Linc owned the Gramercy.” Part truth was just as good as total honesty, she reminded herself.
“But you were happy to find out weren’t you?”
“Trent, that’s enough,” Mr. Donovan stated adamantly.
So the lion had decided to bare his teeth after all. Jade never backed down from a battle. It would do Trent good to find this out now. “I was not looking for your brother, who I knew from the moment I met him eight years ago would be successful. So to answer your question, yes. It was good to see Linc again and yes, I was proud of what he’d accomplished with his life.” She took a deep breath and continued to stare at Trent. “And no, the fact that he owns a casino did not register dollar signs in my mind. I have my own education and ambition and I don’t need to ride on anybody’s coattails.”
Adam grinned. “Score one for Jade and a whopping goose egg for Trent.”
Mr. Donovan rolled his eyes.
Mrs. Donovan wiped her hands on her napkin. “That’s enough, Trent. Jade is Lincoln’s guest and we will be nothing but polite to her. It’s good to see Lincoln with someone. He appears happy.”
Jade turned at the woman’s words. Did he appear happy? She couldn’t tell. But then it didn’t matter. Lifting her spoon to her mouth again Jade silently chanted “business, not pleasure,” over and over again.
The meal was soon over and even though Trent seemed to question her more than others Jade found that she enjoyed herself. Mr. Donovan was quite the comedian once he managed to get a word in between his wife and his youngest son. Adam was hands down her favorite Donovan—in the room, that is. With his laughing eyes and easy personality he was a stark contrast to Trent’s serious, almost suspicious nature.
But neither of them measured up to Linc. Throughout the meal she found her thoughts constantly returning to him. His presence did something to her, something other than annoy her with memories, something she wasn’t quite willing to examine just yet. Besides, she wanted to do her job to the best of her ability; dismissing the five-thousand-dollar debt was all that mattered.
Her heels clicked on the hardwood floors in the foyer of the Donovan home. She paused in the living room to examine all the family photos strewn about. They seemed so happy, so complete. On her mantel in her apartment she had a photo of her, Noelle and her mother when she was six and her, Grammy and Noelle when she’d graduated from Harvard. Emptiness settled over her as she traced a hand along one silver-trimmed frame.
Quickly regaining her senses she left the beautifully decorated room in search of the den and Linc. He was sitting in a sage-green high-backed chair. This room was warm, more inviting than any of the others in the house. With its coppery wallpaper and forest-green carpet, the lighter green furniture looked comfortable and relaxing. Coming farther in the room she realized he was on the speakerphone so when she would normally have immediately spoken, this time she remained quiet. Going to the couch she sat, crossing one leg over the other, watching him as he flipped through a folder and talked in that smooth, commanding voice that sent pleasurable chills down her spine.
He still wore the slacks and polo shirt he’d worn since this morning, his thick biceps straining just a bit against the rim of his sleeves. She sucked in a breath as his broad chest moved rhythmically while he spoke. Confidence oozed from his every pore and she couldn’t help but admire him. He was a success. He ran a lucrative business he seemed to enjoy. He had it all. She not only admired him, she envied him. These were the things she wanted. The things that always seemed just out of her reach.
Linc felt her presence. The moment she’d walked into that room, he’d known, his whole body becoming alert. She sat across from him now looking like she had a lot on her mind. Lines knotted her forehead and caused him to frown. The urge to cure whatever it was that ailed her was great. That bothered him, so he shifted to thoughts he more easily understood—the physical pull between them.
She’d changed clothes, the pants clinging to her hips a little more than the ones she’d had on earlier and the deep green color of the top highlighting her hazel eyes, its thin straps drawing his attention immediately to the honey-toned skin of her bare shoulders and inevitably the plump roundness of her breasts. He shifted in the chair, his erection making it harder to sit still.
She licked her lips and he almost expired right then and there. He’d have to cut this phone call short or risk embarrassing himself with his colleague. “So I’ll give you a call in the morning and we can go over the rest of the figures,” he said in closing.
He’d long since given up looking at the papers in the folder and was now solely focused on the minx across from him. With her legs crossed she dangled one sandal-clad foot in the air. The heels were spiked, at least four inches high, and he could imagine how they emphasized those long, gorgeous legs of hers. The man on the phone’s voice resonated throughout the room but Linc had no idea what he’d said. Standing on less than stable legs he went to the desk and said quickly, “Yes, I’ll call you in the morning.” Before the man could respond he’d switched off the speakerphone and went to face her.
Without another word he reached for her hands and hefted her to her feet. Her breasts—to his immense delight—made instant contact with his chest as his hands moved around her waist. “Did you come in here to deliberately tempt me?” he asked in a low voice.
“No. I came in here to tell you that your family expects you to participate in the week’s events, not work the entire time.”
He raised a brow. “Did you miss me?”
She moved out of his embrace. “You wish.”
He watched her walk away and stop in front of the window. “They’re about to play golf,” she said as she turned to face him again.
“I don’t play golf.”
He managed a smile, relief at the disappearance of the lines in her forehead spreading through him. He still couldn’t believe she was actually here with him. Last night, he’d wondered why she’d really agreed to this week. That question had led to several more, like what she did for a living.
“Then what do you do? For fun, I mean,” she continued.
“We’ve all been asking ourselves that question for years now.” Adam chuckled as he entered and walked across the room idly swinging a golf club.
Both Linc and Jade acknowledged the intruder, Linc with a scowl and Jade suppressing a grin. “Shouldn’t you be out on the course?” Linc asked, eyeing his brother’s attire.
“Shouldn’t you?” Adam added teasingly.
“That’s what I was trying to tell him,” Jade interrupted. “Your father said some of his friends were coming by to play. Your mother had some sort of last-minute meeting to attend but suggested that I take a swim.”
Linc thrust his hands in his pockets in an attempt to hide his growing arousal. The mere thought of Jade’s seductive body, wet and barely clad, had his mouth watering. He could just imagine licking each droplet from her moist skin, exploring her completely as he’d done before. It had been a long time yet he’d never forgotten her sweetness.
He cleared his thro
at. “I don’t play golf.”
“But you do ride,” Adam said with a devilish grin. “Horses, I mean. You love to ride…horses, right, Linc?”
Linc hadn’t missed his brother’s crass remark and frowned as it appeared Jade hadn’t, either. “I have work to do.”
“I’d love to go riding,” Jade quickly added.
She folded her arms behind her back, her breasts jutting forward as she toyed with her bottom lip again. Did she have any idea how sexy that was? How when her tongue grazed that plump bottom lip he simply wanted to ravish her? How the sight of her breasts being offered, albeit unknowingly, spiked his blood pressure? No, she didn’t know. He was just getting used to the realization himself. He desperately wanted to get her in his bed.
Still, he wasn’t so lust-filled that he missed the light in her eyes when she spoke of riding. He decided instantly that he liked that light in her eyes and would do whatever he could to keep it there. “Go change. I’ll meet you at the stables.”
“Great! Thanks for the suggestion, Adam.” Planting an impromptu kiss on Adam’s cheek she turned and made her way out of the room.
Linc went straight to the bar and felt his brother’s elated glare on his back as he did. “Go ahead and say it.” He picked up a glass and poured a finger of brandy then drank it down and poured another.
“Say what?” Adam chuckled. He still held his golf club but had now wandered over to the bar to take a seat on a stool. “That it’s a little early in the afternoon for drinks?”
Linc scowled. He was disturbed by Adam’s intrusion and a little agitated that Jade had readily kissed Adam but couldn’t wait to get out of his arms. But mostly he was grumpy because he was horny as hell and couldn’t seem to scratch his itch no matter how close she was.
Still grinning Adam twirled the golf club again. “So how did you get her to agree to this week of celebration on the Donovan estate?” he asked.
“What do you mean?” The last thing Linc wanted to do was tell his brother he’d paid for a date. “I asked her to come.”
“And because you’re the legendary Lincoln Donovan she came?”
Linc shrugged. “You know how I do things.”
“Yeah, I do. But I just don’t see that working with a woman like Jade.”
“What’s that supposed to mean? A woman like Jade? What kind of woman is she, Adam?”
“I don’t know, she just seems cool, like she has a mind of her own. Did you know she was a masseuse?”
No, he didn’t know, and the fact that Adam did, didn’t sit well with him. “Look, this is just an arrangement for the week. There’s no need for me to get all into her personal life because by Sunday morning she’ll be on her way and I’ll be on mine.” He said the words but felt a sudden jolt at the fact that it might be true.
Adam stood and strolled leisurely toward the door. “I wonder though, how a man could have a woman like that and let her walk away.’
“I don’t keep women, Adam. You know that.” Everybody knew that, he thought dismally. But what if he were different? What if he did keep women? Would he keep Jade?
Adam turned briefly. “Yeah, I know. The Triple Threat Brothers stand alone.”
Linc frowned then filled his glass again. “I’ll drink to that,” he said, lifting the glass in his brother’s direction before downing its contents.
Was it just her or did the sun shine extra bright today?
Jade inhaled deeply letting the not-so-fresh air fill her lungs. She stood in front of the stables watching while the stable boy saddled a caramel-colored mare for her. Linc saddled his own horse. She stared as the muscles in his back rippled and bulged with his motions. The horse stood perfectly still as if he knew that Lincoln would tolerate nothing less.
That’s how it was with Linc. She noticed that everyone around him seemed to operate on command, not doing or saying anything that he hadn’t personally requested for fear of what his reaction might be. The stable boy hadn’t made any attempt to retrieve Linc’s horse or saddle him for that matter. In fact, the young man had waited patiently for Linc to instruct him as to which horse she would ride.
“Saddle up Lily. She’s mild tempered,” Linc had finally instructed.
Jade bristled at the comment. “Does that mean you think I need a mild-tempered horse? I’ll have you know that I’ve ridden a horse before.”
He’d given her a curious look, one that was becoming quite familiar to her. One that made her wonder what he was thinking. “You’ve never ridden in this terrain and you’ve never ridden prize horses.”
“Are you afraid I’ll hurt your precious horse?” she asked sarcastically.
What he said next was a complete surprise.
“I’m more afraid of what will happen if they decide to hurt you.”
That hadn’t sounded like the Linc she knew so she’d been at a loss for words.
Linc didn’t seem to notice as he lifted a leg to swing effortlessly into his own saddle. She had to crane her neck to look up at him and wished she hadn’t bothered at all. He was beautiful. They were beautiful together. Lincoln dressed in black jeans and a black T-shirt, his dark complexion framed by the golden sunlight and the majestic ebony creature he sat astride. That horse was made just for him, with a huge build and its shiny coat that said he was well taken care of. It exuded the same power that oozed from Linc. For a brief moment she wondered…just imagined what it would feel like to be so perfectly matched with someone that way.
“Chad, help her up,” he directed the stable boy.
Tearing her gaze from him with a heaviness in her chest she couldn’t explain Jade looked at Chad. “I can do it myself.”
Chad looked from her to Linc, clearly unsure of what to do next. Neither man moved or said a word as she stuck a foot in the stirrup. She grabbed hold of the reins and attempted to hoist herself up as she’d watched Linc do just moments before.
Her thigh slid unceremoniously down the back of the horse.
Okay, so she wasn’t smooth enough to get it right the first time, but that was no reason to quit. She tried again…and again until she felt hands go around her waist. Looking over her shoulder she confirmed that it was Linc although the heat soaring through her body had already alerted her to that fact.
“Don’t be so stubborn,” he said, his warm breath brushing over her ear. He lifted her effortlessly and placed her in the saddle.
Again, she was speechless.
Linc mounted his horse again and trotted past her slowly. Her mare began a slow trot and she frowned at his retreating back. “I am not stubborn.”
Jade’s mood was sour. And she didn’t know why. Okay, she had an idea why. For eight years she’d had only the memory of Linc. And that memory was of a careless, selfish coward. That memory was easy to live with.
In the last two days she’d begun to see something else. Something that she despised even more. He was a gentleman. He obviously loved his family. And he wasn’t totally careless. These things were much harder to swallow.
In fact, there was no use in listing Linc’s good points. They didn’t matter. Nothing mattered but the fact that by the end of this week that debt would be cleared. She had to focus on only that.
They’d been riding for almost a half hour in complete silence. Linc didn’t take his horse above a mild canter and when she’d tried to go beyond that he’d quickly caught up with her and grabbed her reins. Now she had no choice but to stay right beside him as he only allowed a slight berth between them. Nevertheless, the scenery was magnificent. While Nevada is known for its steamy deserts, the Donovans’ land was an endless stretch of emerald green. Acres and acres of rolling lushness that boasted the simple life, a life of rest and relaxation personified.
She reveled in that for a while, remembering how Grammy always wanted to live in the country. She had planned to buy her a house just as soon as the spa was doing well. After the hefty inheritance Grammy had left for her, Jade wondered why her grandmother hadn’t simply bought he
r country home herself before she died. Thoughts of Grammy had her feeling nostalgic and she glanced at Linc.
He looked tense, as if something weighed heavily on his mind. She wondered if he was regretting asking her to come. He could have easily found another date. Why he’d asked her to do this was a mystery. This made her question, for the millionth time, what had happened eight years ago. Why had he approached her and asked her to accompany him to his room? Even then he could have had his choice of girls. They were from different worlds. She was sure he’d known that then just as he knew it now.
“Why did you leave?” she asked spontaneously.
“What?” He looked at her with a baffled expression.
“That night in your dorm. Why did you leave without saying goodbye? I mean, you could have stayed. It was your room.” Although he held the reins she nervously twisted her fingers around the leather strap of the saddle. Business deal or not they had a past and she felt like she deserved an answer. Whatever he said now wouldn’t change what happened but she would finally be able to reconcile with it.
He paused another minute. “It doesn’t matter. It’s in the past.”
“It does matter. We were both consenting adults. I would think that earned me some level of respect.”
He didn’t look at her but spoke quietly. “It wasn’t what you thought.”
“Then tell me what it was. I gave myself to you freely. If you didn’t want me you should have been man enough to stick around and say that.”
“I wanted you…” His words trailed off.
“Just not for keeps.” The admission hurt her more than she’d anticipated. Why, after all this time, was the pain still so fresh and so strong? She turned away from him then looked toward the golf course just beyond the house.
Linc turned down an incline that led into a cluster of trees, yanking on the straps as he pulled her horse along. “I can’t go back and change what I did.”
“I know,” she said sadly, wishing they could both go back and make different decisions.
