No wonder he hadn‘t smelled anything cooking! He looked away and stared at the floor. “I’m afraid you’ve got the wrong idea, Peg.”
He didn’t hear her move, but the kisses nipping at his neck proved she had. Her bussing tickled, and he arched away. “Stop!”
She did, but instead of giving up her efforts, she flung herself over the back of the sofa and inched her way into his lap. He juggled his beer bottle, leaning away from the cloying hands working at his shirt buttons. “I know you want me, Wolf. I can see it in your eyes.” She managed to lock her arms around his neck. “Kiss me.”
Tensing his muscles, he kept her from pulling his head down so their lips would meet. “Peg, please don’t. You’re making this much more difficult than it has to be.” His plea fell on deaf ears.
She rose on one elbow, her moist lips mere inches from his. “Just a single kiss and I’ll stop.” Slipping one hand inside his shirt, she splayed fingers across his chest. “But I know once you taste me, you’ll want more.”
He turned his cheek, determined to avoid the kiss, and yanked her hand free.
Undeterred by his lack of interest, she abandoned her massage tactic, straightened, and began to unbuckle his belt. When he squirmed, her fingers strayed to his family jewels. An inward gulp reminded him how long he’d been without a woman’s touch. But she wasn’t the right woman and he again restrained her hands.
“You can’t refuse me…stop trying,” she purred, stretching to pepper kisses alongside his throat.
He cursed the betrayal of his tightening crotch, determined to free himself from her seductive attempts. Placing his beer on the end table, he abruptly stood, dumping her onto the floor. “I said no!” He stepped away and stared down.
Peg fixed him with an upward gaze iced with anger. “I can’t believe you did that!”
‘And I can’t believe you’re so self assured.” He re-buttoned his gaping shirt and tugged on his pant legs. “I only accepted your invitation so I could tell you I like you only as a friend, nothing more. There’s someone else.”
Still boring holes through him with her eyes, she pulled her mouth into a pout. “It’s Sarah, isn’t it? What does that wimpy…editor have that I don’t?”
“Class,” Wolf responded. She’s a lady and I like that.”
Peg pulled herself to her feet, teetering in her stilettos. “I can be a lady, just--”
“Thanks for the offer, but I already have my sights set on a pretty little blonde just down the hall, and since we aren’t having dinner, I think I’ll skip dessert and see if she’d be open to a date.”
Her mouth gaping, Peg watched him leave and didn’t utter another word.
“Hmm, he mumbled in the carpeted corridor. “I think I got my point across. One down, one to go.”
Wolf headed for Sarah’s apartment. Time for his confession.
* * *
Sarah opened the door, and widened her eyes at finding Wolf. “Hi, I didn’t expect you. I stopped by earlier to see if you and Molly had given any more thought to our conversation last night and she told me you were having dinner with Peg.” She cocked her head and fixed her gaze on his face. “Judging from the lipstick all over you, I’d say you had more than dinner.”
It’s nothing like you think.” Wolf swiped his long sleeve across his face. “Did I get it off?”
Sarah reached up and wiped away a final smudge with her fingertip. “Yeah, it’s gone.”
“So, can I come in?”
Backing up, Sarah opened the door wider. “Of course. Would you like something to drink?”
He rolled his eyes. “No thanks, I’ve about had my fill.”
His response puzzled her. “What does that mean?”
He plopped on the couch. “That woman practically attacked me. One minute I was sitting on the couch, enjoying a beer, and the next minute she was all over me like Velcro, and scantily clad at that.”
Sarah giggled. “What did you expect? She’s had her eyes on you ever since you moved in. You expected dinner and ended up as the main course. No big shock.”
Instead of the festering jealousy Sarah experienced when Molly told her about Peg’s invitation, Sarah filled with elation. Clearly Wolf hadn’t been interested in what Peg had to offer. Sarah sat angled next to him so she could watch his expression. “So, being disgusted at missing a meal doesn’t explain why you came here.”
He took a deep breath. “I….”
That dreaded uncomfortable silence loomed.
“You what?”
“I figure you shared something special with us last night, now it’s time for me to share something with you, but first I need a favor.”
“And what would that be?”
“Answer Molly’s question. Did the guy get the girl?”
Sarah rested her arm on his lipstick-smeared sleeve. “Sadly, no. In that day and time, prejudice prevented the two from finding their happily-ever-after no matter where they went. Wolf cared for Sarah too much to put her through what he’d gone through his entire life, and she loved him enough to let him go.”
“So your dream didn’t have a happy ending?”
“Like a book, it depends on if you get the gist of the story or not. Somehow, I woke up to find the man I loved standing at my door with an empty cup in his hand.” She melted into a smile at the fondness she saw in his eyes. “I took your presence as a sign meaning Wolf and Sarah get a second chance at love in a more forgiving time and place. But only--”
He gathered her close and silenced her with a kiss, long, deep and passionate just like the one she remembered when they parted in the stable.
Pulling back, he gazed into her eyes. “I’ve wanted to do that for a very long time.”
“Really?” Still breathless, she barely choked out the word.
“Really.” He caressed her cheek. “I love you Sarah Collins, and I’d be honored if you would consider spending this life with me. I might have been unselfish enough to have given you up once, but not twice.”
Glee squeezed Sarah’s heart. She’d lived through pure hell in a dream, found the love of her life only to lose him, and now she had a second chance. No way was she missing out on the passion she felt for this man. Locking her arms around his neck, she rested her cheek against his chest, drinking in his warmth, his smell, his feel. “I love you, too, Nathaniel Grey Wolf Elder, and I can’t think of anyone I’d rather spend eternity with…even if it’s on a cattle ranch in Missouri.”
She straightened and peered into those hazel eyes she adored. “Remember the day you came to my door and I asked if you believed in dreams?” She chuckled and splayed her fingers through his hair. “Well, I definitely do, and I’m pretty sure mine is coming true.”
Silence lingered again, but this time she didn’t mind a bit. Her mouth met his in a kiss that would have curled Wonder Woman’s toes.
The End
About The Author
Ginger lives in Tennessee with her husband, Kelly and both are retired…sort of. Ginger views writing as her second career and loves the voices in her head. As transplants from California, both have accepted that in the south, you get a side of gravy with everything you order in a restaurant, and humidity is far worse than dry heat. Preferring the slow Tennessee pace to the hustle and bustle of California, they’ve decided being close to their only grandson is a good enough reason to stay. When asked how long she plans to keep writing, Ginger will always say, “as long as the Good Lord allows me.”
Also Published by Books We Love
Sarah's Heart
Ellie's Legacy
Embezzled Love
First Degree Innocence
Time Invested
Time Tantrums
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