“What time do you leave in the morning?” she asked.
“About oh-six-hundred. It’s a long drive.”
“What are you doing tonight?”
“Getting a good night’s sleep, I hope.”
A shadow crossed her face, and he didn’t like it.
One slow dance evolved into another and when he looked around he realized the rest of the bridal party had fallen into the same pattern. It was if they were all taking a last dance before the show was over. At the same time, he couldn’t deny the heat simmering between him and Melanie as they turned about the dance floor. She felt so warm and delicious he wanted to taste her then and there. Instead he drew her closer and closer yet. They molded together like two puzzle pieces and the loneliness inside him threatened to take his knees out.
“What are you doing tonight?” he asked in her ear.
She drew back a little and gazed into his eyes, her voice soft. “Getting a good night’s sleep, I hope.”
Before he could say anything else, Patrick cut in. He planned on dancing with all the ladies and Danelle planned on dancing with the men. Matt danced with almost every woman in the room before he noticed Melanie had departed without saying goodbye to him.
* * * * *
That was that.
Danelle’s words rang in Melanie’s head as she walked into her apartment and closed the door. Today’s wedding had promised to be a happy day but unfortunately it had crumbled under her. Like a zombie she walked to her bedroom, her eyes swimming with tears. She’d told Danelle that she was feeling a bit under the weather and had cut out before anyone else could waylay her. She’d had a terrible feeling if she said goodbye to Matt she’d do something perfectly moronic like dissolve into tears. And she’d be damned if she’d do anything to spoil Danelle and Patrick’s special day.
She stripped off her maid-of-honor dress, showered and put on an old gray sweatsuit. She couldn’t put words to how she felt. At the least, annoyed with herself for getting too damn attached to Matt Frasier. At the most, bereft at the thought of not seeing him again. Yeah, that was her problem. She was going to miss him like hell.
God, she hated this. She wanted, more than anything, to time travel to right after the shooting in the mall. She’d kiss Matt good night at her apartment door and never allow him inside. Done. Over. Nothing invested but gratitude for his heroism and friendship.
“Who am I kidding?”
Who indeed? She’d wanted Matt fiercely and he’d wanted her. She’d thought she could get away with sex for pleasure without emotional attachment. She’d never been more wrong about anything in her life. Of course she was envious and happy that Danelle and Patrick had found each other and would be off to their honeymoon cruise to Nassau tomorrow. That didn’t for a minute banish the lump in her throat or the watery eyes. She refused to sob like a baby, though, and took action.
She wandered out to the living room and stood in the middle, unsure what she wanted to do. Make a snack? No. Read? Hell no. She knew she’d read the same page over a half-dozen times without recording a single concept. Indecisiveness pissed her off too, and so she made a decision. She opened the cabinet under her television and selected a Blu-ray. Her favorite weepy, romantic, awesome movie with Hilary Swank and Gerard Butler, P.S. I Love You. She popped it into the Blu-ray player and flopped onto the couch with a box of tissues. She never made it through this movie without buckets of tears, and she knew tonight would be no exception.
When the doorbell rang an hour later she was into full crying mode. Tears ran down her face like a faucet but she wasn’t sobbing. She mopped at her face with a wad of tissues, knowing she must look horrible. It was probably Kathleen or Lena checking up on her. She looked through the peephole and froze to the spot.
Matt.
Damn. She hesitated. Part of her was annoyed and the other happy as hell. What was he doing here? She glanced at the clock on the wall. It was getting late. The doorbell rang again.
He stood with his hands stuffed on his hips. He still wore his tux but his short hair stuck up in places. She took a deep breath and opened the door.
“Matt.”
His eyes were bleak, as if he’d just gone through something draining. “Hey. I know it’s late but…”
His gaze danced over her, his brow furrowing as if he was examining a creature of interest.
Worry immediately gripped her. “What’s wrong?”
“Can I come in?”
She backed away and let him inside. After closing the door and locking it, she turned back to him. He stood in the middle of the living room, the frown on his face so thunderous she launched right into finding out what the hell was going on.
“Matt, what’s happened? You’re scaring me.”
His face relaxed a little and he took a deep breath. He walked toward her, his particular walk a slow, muscular movement that made her ache with longing just to look at him. God, she was going to miss him.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just… Look, I don’t know where to start. I didn’t even realize you’d left the wedding for a long time. When I went looking for you Danelle said you went home sick and I was worried.”
Seeing him now only drove home how much harder it would be to say goodbye again. “I shouldn’t have left her to fend for herself like that. It was selfish of me. I’m the maid of honor after all.”
To her surprise he cupped her face in both hands. “Are you sure you’re all right? Damn it, sweetheart, you’ve been crying. Are you in pain?”
She clasped his forearms, savoring the feeling of hard muscles under her fingers. “Oh no. No I…” She gestured to the television, which was still running. “I always cry when I watch this movie.”
“Uh-huh.” He looked doubtful. “I needed to talk to you anyway before I left tomorrow morning. There’s no way I was leaving us like this. I’m a marine, damn it, and I’ve been acting like a green teenage boy with his hormones on fire instead of a man. I’m a fucking chump.”
His description amused her and she laughed softly around the lump in her throat. “There’s nothing remotely boyish about you, Matt Frasier.”
He caressed her cheeks and the sensation of his fingers on her skin sent her hormones into a wild riot. “I was raised to treat women right and I haven’t done that with you. I’m ashamed.”
“What?” Confused, she continued with, “I don’t understand. You’re the most protective, chivalrous man I’ve ever met.”
He kissed her forehead. “That’s not what I mean. What I mean is that I’ve been dancing around my feelings this whole week. You know I was attracted to you from the moment I saw you. I could have chalked up the connection we made after the mall shooting as a temporary thing but it wasn’t. It isn’t. I don’t want to leave us like this, Melanie. I care for you more than any woman I’ve ever met.”
He kissed her tenderly and her heart melted into a puddle at her feet. It was a sweet, cherishing kiss and it made her glow from the inside out. Happiness began a dance inside her. She smoothed her hands over his chest and looked up at him in wonderment.
When she didn’t speak, he cracked a half smile. “You’re killin’ me here, sweetheart. Talk to me. If you don’t feel the same way, if you want me to drag my sorry ass out of here, just say the word. I won’t bother you again. I want to be with you, Melanie, and I want to work it out some way. Somehow.”
With a joyous sound she threw her arms around his neck. He laughed and drew her tight against his chest. When she drew back a moment later, she said, “If you’re a chump, so am I. I could have told you at any time that I was starting to have feelings for you but I knew you were leaving for California and I thought the whole just sex thing would be enough. But it isn’t. I’ve been unhappy as hell. Even if I wasn’t watching this movie I’d still be bawling my eyes out over you.”
He grinned, and the happiness in his expression told her everything she needed to know. He did want to be with her.
“I want us
to be together whenever and however we can. If that means visiting on weekends, whatever,” he said.
With hot, deep kisses she showed him how much she loved the idea. When she came up for air, she almost cried again, this time with joy. “We’ll work this out, Matt. I’m so glad you stopped by. God, I’m so glad.”
“This is the start of something special.” His voice was hushed, reverent. “I’m falling for you.” He lifted her into his arms again and headed for the bedroom. “Let me show you just how much.”
The End
About Denise A. Agnew
Suspenseful, erotic, edgy, thrilling, romantic, adventurous. All these words are used to describe award-winning, bestselling novelist Denise A. Agnew’s novels. Romantic Times Magazine called her romantic suspense novels Dangerous Intentions and Treacherous Wishes “top-notch romantic suspense”. With paranormal, time travel, romantic comedy, contemporary, historical, erotica and romantic suspense novels under her belt, she proves her gift for writing about a diverse range of subjects. (Writing tales that scare the reader is her ultimate thrill.)
Denise’s inspiration for her novels comes from innumerable sources, but the fact that she has lived in Colorado, Hawaii and the United Kingdom has given her a lifetime of ideas. Her experiences with archaeology have crept into her work, as well as numerous travels throughout England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Denise currently lives in Arizona with her real life hero, her husband.
Denise welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.
Tell Us What You Think
We appreciate hearing reader opinions about our books. You can email the author directly or you can email us at [email protected] (when contacting Customer Service, be sure to state the book title and author)..
Also by Denise A. Agnew
Bridge Through the Mist
Dangerous Intentions
Daryk World 1: Daryk Hunter
Daryk World 2: Daryk Rogue
Daryk World 3: Daryk Craving
Daryk World 4: Daryk Warrior
Deep is the Night 1: Dark Fire
Deep is the Night 2: Night Watch
Deep is the Night 3: Haunted Souls
Ellora’s Cavemen: Dreams of the Oasis II anthology
Ellora’s Cavemen: Tales from the Temple IV anthology
Major Pleasure
Meant to Be
Redemption Ridge
Special Investigations Agency: Clandestine
Special Investigations Agency: Hideaway
Special Investigations Agency: Impetuous
Special Investigations Agency: Instinct
Special Investigations Agency: Jungle Fever
Special Investigations Agency: Maneater
Special Investigations Agency: Over the Line
Special Investigations Agency: Primordial
Special Investigations Agency: Shadows and Ruins
Special Investigations Agency: Sins and Secrets
Special Investigations Agency: Special Agent Santa
The Dare
Treacherous Wishes
Print books by Denise A. Agnew
Bridge Through the Mist
By Honor Bound anthology
Dangerous Intentions
Daryk World 1: Daryk Hunter
Daryk World 2: Daryk Rogue
Deep is the Night 1: Dark Fire
Deep is the Night 2: Night Watch
Deep is the Night 3: Haunted Souls
Ellora’s Cavemen: Dreams of the Oasis II anthology
Ellora’s Cavemen: Tales from the Temple IV anthology
Meant to Be
Special Investigations Agency: Clandestine
Special Investigations Agency: Hideaway
Special Investigations Agency: Impetuous
Special Investigations Agency: Primordial
Special Investigations Agency: Shadows and Ruins
Special Investigations Agency: Sins and Secrets
The Dare
Treacherous Wishes
Ellora’s Cave Publishing
www.ellorascave.com
Sudden Heat
ISBN 9781419948152
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Sudden Heat Copyright © 2013 Denise A. Agnew
Edited by Ann Leveille
Cover design by Syneca and Michelle B.
Cover photography by CURAphotography, conrado, Dmitrijs Bindemanis/shutterstock.com
Electronic book publication September 2013
The terms Romantica® and Quickies® are registered trademarks of Ellora’s Cave Publishing.
With the exception of quotes used in reviews, this book may not be reproduced or used in whole or in part by any means existing without written permission from the publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.® 1056 Home Avenue, Akron OH 44310-3502.
Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. No part of this book may be scanned, uploaded or distributed via the Internet or any other means, electronic or print, without the publisher’s permission. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000. (http://www.fbi.gov/ipr/). Please purchase only authorized electronic or print editions and do not participate in or encourage the electronic piracy of copyrighted material. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.
The publisher and author(s) acknowledge the trademark status and trademark ownership of all trademarks, service marks and word marks mentioned in this book.
The publisher does not have any control over, and does not assume any responsibility for, author or third-party websites or their content.
Discover for yourself why readers can’t get enough of the multiple award-winning publisher Ellora’s Cave. Be sure to visit EC on the web at www.ellorascave.com to find erotic reading experiences that will leave you breathless. You can also find our books at all the major e-tailers (Barnes & Noble, Amazon Kindle, Sony, Kobo, Google, Apple iBookstore, All Romance eBooks, and others).
www.ellorascave.com
SuddenHeat Page 9
