Ten Brides for Ten Hot Guys

by Donna Fasano

  Her sister’s voice brought Jenna back to the present as Casey called the dancers to the center of the studio for the final port de bras. Jenna luxuriated in the slow moves, curving her arms just so, bending forward in a deep stretch, head to her knees, then using the strength of her back to bring her upright again so her legs and feet stayed locked in a tightly crossed fifth position.

  When class ended, she hurried out the back door. Not something that would make her community-oriented sister happy, but Jenna wanted to reach the gift shop in town before it closed.

  Living in Manhattan, she’d never considered buying her own car. Luckily, her mom hardly used hers, which Jenna now drove to Cove Street Gifts and Cards. She hoped they still had the thing she remembered seeing there once. Betty Surinty, who owned the gift shop, had good taste. Unfortunately, she was also a terrible gossip, plying Jenna with questions, mostly about guess who?

  But then, it wasn’t every day a local girl dated a star in television and movies.

  Jenna made every effort to be patient and polite, but she knew she had to get out of the shop when Betty eyed the miniature telescope paperweight Jenna chose to buy.

  “That’s a lovely item,” she said. “A gift for someone special?”

  “It’s for this guy I know,” replied, Jenna. “He’s into telescopes.”

  “So Sean Risk is what we’d call a stargazing star.”

  A vacuous smile was all Jenna had to offer in response to Betty’s inane play on words. She wasn’t about to muster up an explanation for the town nosey-body. Instead, she selected a card with stars and planets on it and scooted out of the shop.

  She sat in the car and penned her thanks to Aiden for saving Rachel last night. Who knew what Nick might’ve done before the cops arrived if Aiden hadn’t been there? Tapping her pen against her lip, she went back and forth on whether to also mention the realization she’d just had thanks to his words, how right he’d been when he spoke about her need to dance. But she decided she’d rather talk face-to-face with him about that.

  Arriving home, Jenna had a quick lunch with her mother. A hummus and avocado salad sandwich. Jenna didn’t want her mom to feel ignored, so she hung with her for a little while, chatting about Casey’s Family Day and the plans Lauren Richardson had for doing some spring advertising for the B&B with the vineyard association.

  When she couldn’t hold on any longer, she asked, “Is Mr. Flynn still here?”

  “Should be. He’s paid for the coming week.” Her eyes narrowed. “Don’t tell me that odd bird is the one who beat up Nick Stiebler?”

  “How did you know? I thought—”

  “I saw Parker’s truck in the yard when he brought you home last night, and you know what an inept fibber your brother is. He said my tenant Mr. Flynn came along when you and Rachel were in trouble at the Sunoco mini-mart.”

  Jenna just nodded at the lie she’d told her brother, thinking, Good thing I’m not an inept fibber. But why was she being so secretive about her date with Aiden?

  Maybe because everybody thought she and Sean were a couple.

  Right. Everybody except her and Sean.

  After giving her mother a rundown on Rachel’s condition, she said, “It was so horrible. I’m convinced Mr. Flynn saved Rachel’s life last night. So I bought him a small thank you gift. Guess I’ll go see if he’s in.”

  When Jenna headed upstairs to her room, she listened briefly at Aiden’s door and heard someone inside tapping on a keyboard. Good.

  She stopped in her own room, tidily hung up her jacket and sorted out her dirty and clean dancewear. She kept the room spotless, with everything in its place. Aside from the fact that this was one of the deluxe en suite rooms in Richardson’s Bed and Breakfast and her mother might need it at any time for a guest, neatness was Jenna’s middle name.

  She freshened up with a shower, then donned clean jeans and a silver blue jersey top. Gift bag in hand, she knocked on Aiden’s door. Why was her heart racing?

  The door opened only a crack, Aiden’s striking green eyes peeking out at her. “Jenna?”

  “Am I interrupting your work?” she asked.

  “Uh, no.”

  “Mind if I come in for a minute?”

  “Not at all.”

  He stepped back, opening the door, and Jenna saw he was shirtless. His torso was lean and beautifully ripped. He turned and quickly plucked a T-shirt off the bed. Watching him put it on gave her goose bumps.

  Jenna strolled into the sitting area of the room, babbling about Rachel and their visit to the E.R. “She fractured her wrist from falling when he shoved her, needed stitches in her left eyebrow, and she’s got some nasty bruises all over.” Of course Aiden had left the gas station without a scratch. “My brother picked us up. Parker is friends with the head of our police department as well as some influential people in the township government, so I asked him to help us keep the story out of the local news. And your name out of it.”

  “They told me that when they called me in for a statement late last night. I really appreciate it. Please thank your brother.”

  The warm and inviting attention he usually offered her was missing. Today he got a D- on eye contact. Was he angry with her for getting him involved? No, he’d insisted on it yesterday. Maybe he was just trying to tell her whatever it was that they’d started was over.

  She tried not to show her disappointment when she handed him the small gift bag with the card.

  “What’s this?”

  She crossed her arms over her chest, refusing to leave until she at least got to see his expression when he opened it. “I wanted to thank you for what you did last night.”

  “You don’t owe me any—”

  “Just shut up and open it.”

  At least that got the hint of a smile from him.

  Aiden slid the card from its envelope. Jenna studied his classic profile while he read it. He had one of those faces that could look harsh if you took in the sharp angles. But put together with his full lips and amazing eyes she could barely take her gaze off him.

  “You make me sound like some kind of hero.”

  “To Rachel, Danielle, and me you are.”

  He said nothing, but two spots of red formed on his cheekbones.

  “You were also right about dancers falling into a weird, abnormal state if they don’t dance. I took a ballet class today after a month-long break, and I can see now that I’ll have to keep that part of myself alive no matter what profession I end up in.”

  “Don’t tell me you’ve now got something else in mind besides dancing or acting?”

  Jenna fidgeted. “I’m not sure. For all I know I could end up working in Lexi’s clothing boutique. My big bro is always telling me I don’t know who I am yet, and I guess he’s right. But every time you and I talk, you say something that gets me closer to figuring it out.” She pointed to the gift bag. “Go on.”

  He looked down at the package and began opening it. Jenna noticed his hair had a slight case of bed head. And he was barefoot. One glance at the four-poster and the rumpled covers confirmed he’d been lying down, maybe even napping, when she’d knocked at the door. She tried not to picture him naked in the bed but was having a difficult time of it. Especially since he smelled of fresh soap, like maybe he’d showered not long ago.

  Aiden pulled out the box and lifted the lid. The grin that crossed his face when he saw the miniature brass telescope was exactly the reward she’d been hoping for, not to mention the tingling glow it sent through her.

  “Like it, Aiden?”

  Still grinning, he set the paperweight on the coffee table, dipped his head and gave her a short, chaste kiss on the forehead.

  Jenna’s arms seemed to act on their own, reaching around his neck, pulling him down to her until their lips met. Aiden’s lips were warm and hesitant at first, but that same spark she’d felt the last time they kissed burned between them again and a heat flared inside her, erupting into a full-blown desire more intense than anything s
he’d ever experienced.

  When he pulled back, she was breathless. They stared into each other’s eyes, silent and almost questioning, as if neither knew what was happening between them.

  Her hand reached up and caressed the soft stubble on his cheek. He grabbed the knot of hair at the nape of her neck and tilted her head back, his mouth devouring hers. His tongue demanded entry and she opened her lips, her tongue sliding against his in a dance of desire.

  He kissed her senseless, then made his way down her throat to the skin above the low-cut collar of her jersey. She slid her hands under his tee, loving the feel of his taut muscles. Unable to resist, she yanked the shirt over his head, treating herself to the vision she’d been holding in her mind since she walked in.

  Jenna took in the soapy fresh masculine scent of him, her hands admiring the ridges of his six pack and the smooth skin of his gorgeous torso. Her tongue laved over his chest as she pressed herself against his rock-hard body.

  Aiden moaned and pulled off her jersey. Jenna had always been self-conscious about her small breasts, but when Aiden whispered, “You are so beautiful,” over and over, she felt like the most glorious woman in the world.

  He removed her bra and stroked her breasts. Jenna trembled, loving the feel of his hands on her. They were long and graceful, yet so strong. He bent forward and let his mouth worship her breasts. Jenna sighed and whimpered, threading her fingers through his hair, then running her hands over his shoulders and down the sculpted muscles of his strong arms.

  His lips moved from her breasts, to her shoulders, to her collarbone, and back up her throat. Then he covered her face with kisses and claimed her mouth once again.

  It felt so good to be in his arms. But she wanted more of him, all of him. In a bold move, she unzipped her jeans and pulled them off, along with her shoes.

  He smiled. “I like your kitty cat panties.”

  She giggled, unfastened the belt on his pants and shoved them to the floor. “You’re wearing your baby blue briefs. I knew you’d look great in them.” And he did. His long, muscular torso tapered down to narrow hips and solid runner’s legs. “Don’t you have a pair of pastel green briefs, too?

  His eyes narrowed. “How do you know what underwear I own?”

  She bit her bottom lip. “I saw your open suitcase when I changed your bedding last week and couldn’t help but peek.” A rush of panic shivered through her. Would he guess that was how she knew about his dangerous profession? That she’d been snooping? What if she’d seen some top secret intel?

  But then Aiden grabbed her butt and pulled her against him—and all thought went flying out of her head. She fell into his arms, his hard body pressing against her own, and a deep ache for him consumed her.

  “Aiden, I want you. Please,” she heard herself say in a breathless voice.

  Tightening his grip, Aiden lifted her. Jenna’s arms snaked around his neck, and her legs wrapped around his waist as he carried her to the bed.

  Pulling away the final barriers, they explored each other with the same wonder and magic she’d felt looking at the stars. She’d never known anyone quite like Aiden. So attentive, so sensitive. At one point his emerald eyes looked so adoringly at her she thought she might cry.

  When he turned to the night table, Jenna hated the loss of his body next to hers for even a few seconds.

  Aiden took a condom from his wallet, and when he returned, he settled between her thighs, easing himself into her gently at first. But soon his heat and passion filled her to bursting, urging her on to new heights.

  As he moved inside her, their rhythmic dance exploded into a mounting frenzy that sent her soaring and reeling, clutching and moaning at the wonderful sensation of Aiden’s body joined with hers, until they both cried out in an ecstatic release.

  He rolled to the side but pulled Jenna into his arms. She rested her head on his chest, entwining her legs with his, their torsos pressed together, slick with sweat.

  Jenna was not a tremendously experienced lover, but she’d had enough affairs to know how unusual it was to have the strong emotions that assailed her while making love with Aiden.

  Was it him? Was it the incredible depth of his mind and heart?

  Or was it because she’d ventured into new territory with her own life?

  It had never happened with anyone else. She wasn’t even sure she could describe what the “it” was, much less name it.

  All Jenna knew was that when Aiden began kissing her again, she was once again seized by a burning need for him the likes of which she’d never known before.

  Chapter 11

  Aiden turned the telescope to the south. “Venus. Ancient Sumerians called her the Queen Of The Heavens. One of the brightest objects in the sky next to the Sun and the Moon. She’s sixty-eight million miles from where we stand.”

  Just then a bright white streak bulleted across the sky. “Oooh,” Jenna exclaimed. “Did you see that?”

  “Sure did.”

  “A shooting star.”

  He brushed a kiss on her lips. “Make a wish.”

  Jenna shut her eyes. “Done.” Sitting on his lap, her arm around his shoulders, she bent and returned his kiss. “And don’t you dare ask me what I wished for.”

  “What did you wish for?”

  She swatted his arm and pointed at the sky. “What’s that star over there?”

  “Got me.”

  “You’re supposed to be an expert.”

  “I am?” Aiden looked up into her wide-eyed beautiful face, still stunned by the evening they’d spent together in his bed. Merely touching Jenna was sheer bliss, much less being inside her, having her soft lips on his, inhaling the sweet scent of her coconut shampoo when he buried his face in her long tresses. How lucky could a guy get? “Are you cold?”

  “Nope.”

  They had both dressed and were talking about going out to eat when Jenna’s mother had called up the stairs for her. Forty minutes later Jenna returned with a few slices of her mother’s cold meatloaf for Aiden and a tahini butter sandwich for herself.

  “Let’s go west.” He turned the telescope to the left and arched it upward. “Aha. Here’s a nice bunch of little twinklies.”

  She laughed.

  “What’s so funny?”

  “Little twinklies. Seems strange hearing words like that from you, Mr. Macho.”

  Was that how she saw him? “Oh. That fight. I don’t usually get into that stuff. Haven’t in a long time, anyway.”

  “I was thinking about that other thing. You know.”

  “What other thing?”

  She made a tsk sound. “I promised never to bring it up, remember? Your secret profession?”

  “Oh that.”

  “So you get my point?”

  He shrugged. “Not really. I never saw machismo as being a requirement for my profession.”

  “So humble. Sign of a true hero. Meanwhile, each day you go around putting your life on the line for your country.”

  His brows knit. “I do?”

  “I’m sure it’s not always the way it looks in the movies. Gunfights and car chases.”

  “You’ve totally lost me now. What are you talking about?”

  She leaned in close and whispered, “About you being a secret agent.”

  He belly laughed. “Jenna, I love your offbeat sense of humor.”

  “Don’t play me, Aiden.”

  He paused and stared at her, reading the seriousness in her face. “You’re not kidding, are you?”

  “Okay. I get the message. I promised never to bring it up, and I broke my word. Let’s just pretend I never said anything.”

  Aiden studied her, dumbfounded. “You honestly do believe me to be some kind of government operative?” A deep chuckle rumbled through him.

  Jenna slid off his lap and went to the porch railing. “You can stop the games. It’s humiliating and unkind at this point. Sorry I brought it up. From now on, consider I have amnesia.”

  “I am not toyi
ng with you, Jenna. I don’t work in law enforcement, and I’m not a government agent of any kind. Where did you ever come up with such a wild idea?”

  At first her chin went up in an indignant pose. Then she frowned and tilted her head, looking confused. And embarrassed. “Well, I… it was an accident. I was changing your bedding one day, and I bumped your laptop and saw this document about Briggs, a photint, and some other obviously clandestine bits of intel for the CIA and FBI.”

  “Briggs? Oh no. Do you think if I were really an operative I’d be that sloppy? To leave that kind of information lying around on my laptop?”

  “I…I never thought of it that way.” She looked at the ground and at the sky. Anywhere but at him. Then she seemed to rally, crossed her arms over her chest, faced Aiden and said, “What about that phone call?”

  “What phone call?”

  “Don’t take me for a snooper—”

  “Which of course you are.”

  “—but I just happened to be opening my window when you were out on the deck talking on your mobile. You said something about an agent named Jim who died.”

  “Jim was a literary agent. Died of a heart attack. What you saw were notes for a story. I don’t work for the CIA or the FBI, Jenna.”

  She looked crushed, her embarrassment turning to—what was it?

  Disappointment.

  Aiden felt it like a blow to the gut. Or heart. What a fool he was to think she might actually want him. Just him for his plain old self.

  His voice went flat. “Now I see what’s going on here. Sorry to disappoint you, my dear excitement addict. But I’m just a boring schoolteacher who likes to write. If you’re looking for 007, try Daniel Craig. No, wait. You’ve already got Sean Risk. I do believe he’s going to be playing agent Monte Blessing in Aftermath, that frikken spy movie everybody’s talking about. So you’re all set.”

  Jenna exploded. “How dare you judge me this way? Just because I had the wrong idea? Gimme a break. Every time I asked you what you did, you evaded the question.”