by Vivian Arend
Or more accurately, Diane had ordered with Kelli’s approval.
Jack slid into the bench seating next to his girlfriend and placed an arm around Diane’s shoulders. “There we go, all set up.”
Luke settled next to Kelli, suddenly uncertain where he should put his hands.
“We really appreciate it,” he started again, but Jack waved it off.
“It’s been a couple years since we got to talk. And while I know we’ve got the week ahead of us, you’re going to be busy chatting it up with everyone else.” Jack squeezed Diane’s shoulders as he glanced at her with affection. “This way we’re guaranteed to get some of their attention, right, darlin’?”
“See? We have selfish motives for our generosity,” Diane offered with a wink. She stared intently across the table at Kelli, one brow rising the longer she focused. “I haven’t met you before, have I? Because you look familiar.”
Kelli shook her head. “Unless you’ve been out to Silver Stone or the Calgary Stampede, it’s doubtful. I don’t get around that much.”
Then she messed with his mind, leaning against Luke’s side as she wrapped her fingers around his biceps. With her cuddled up against him once again, that hitch in his belly shot back to high.
She was acting like they were a couple, and he couldn’t fault her on that, but every time she moved he was far too aware of her strong grip on his arm. Her thigh under the table brushing his.
The food arrived, and the temperature in the room seemed to skyrocket. He thoughtlessly pulled off his jacket, not realizing that the next time Kelli touched him, her fingers would brush bare skin.
It was hard to concentrate on the conversation, and the only thing he truly remembered about lunch was admiring the way Kelli slid into her comfort zone the instant Diane brought up the topic of horses.
Somehow they made it to the end of the meal, transitioning to the next thing without him making a single decision as well.
That whole out-of-control business—yeah, still in play.
“The food filled the holes, but now I need a chance to wash those travel hours off me.” Jack glanced at Diane, mischief in his eyes. “Ready to join me?”
“Hmm, now that you mention it, the trip was rather exhausting.” Diane slipped her hand into Jack’s before turning to Kelli. “Don’t worry. I promise we’ll behave and not make you uncomfortable while we’re sharing space.”
Jack and Diane were obviously very into each other. But the questions and the conversation had stayed low-key and generic throughout the meal. Out of all the people they could’ve ended up having to room with, Jack was as solid as they came.
“You guys go enjoy some privacy,” Kelli suggested. “Luke and I are taking a walk. We need to stretch our legs a little.”
“This is supposed to be a holiday from your chores,” Diane reminded her, “but we’ll get time to chat later. Enjoy your exploration and the snow, and I will enjoy checking out the shower facilities with my man.”
The smile stayed firmly on Kelli’s face until Jack and Diane had vanished in the distance, then she grabbed Luke by the hand and tugged him straight toward a set of exterior doors.
Once outside, she released him, marching across a wide expanse lined with spruce trees wrapped in twinkling white lights. The landscape nearby was a mess of gardens and what would be grassy areas in late summer, now covered by a beautiful blanket of pristine white.
“Slow up,” Luke ordered.
“Too public for my purposes.”
That sounded ominous. He went for distraction. “Lunch went well.”
They’d reached an area set up as a skating rink. To one side, ice walls rose vertically to create a windbreak. Kelli stepped behind it and he followed.
It wasn’t just one wall, it was three, set up in a rectangle to form a fantasy garden, with ice statues on carved pedestals around the perimeter. The effect was stunning as the final rays of the day shone over the nearby mountain and lit up the western ice wall. Small alcoves were tucked along the east side, with fuzzy blankets draped on the seating areas.
In the middle of the space was a heater, somewhere to warm hands and toes—
—then he couldn’t see anymore because Kelli had grabbed hold of his face and turned him determinedly toward her.
“We need to talk.”
There was fire in her eyes again, and considering the tightrope line he’d put himself on with this whole disastrous event in the first place, Luke hesitated to jump to any kind of assumption regarding what she wanted to talk about. “Okay.”
“We’re sharing a room.” She swallowed hard.
Before she could speak again, Luke hurried to reassure her. “I’m sorry, but I was doing my best to figure out a way to give you space, and then Jack showed up, and one thing just kind of led to another—”
Instead of getting all indignant and flashing him righteous fire, she rolled her eyes. “Two ears, one mouth. Shut up and listen.”
“Listening.” Although he had thought apologizing was the more important thing.
She pushed him backward, and he was forced to move or fall over. His feet hit the edge of a seat and he tumbled back into an alcove. A little more privacy was probably a good thing, though, as another couple wandered into the space, arm in arm.
Kelli stepped closer, that determined expression of hers that he knew far too well back in place. “We are no longer having the discussion we had on the road while headed here. Got that? We agreed this is about us— You as just Luke, and me as just Kelli. Both of us adults who represent Silver Stone. Correct?”
“That’s right.” A huge sense of relief raced through him. She was being so amazing in spite of his foolishness.
“Adults. Who are not related in any shape or form, which means there is no problem with us sharing a room.”
Tension was building inside far too quickly. He was on a damn emotional roller coaster between one second and the next. He hurried to reassure her. “Nothing will happen, though. Just because we have to share a room—”
“What if I want something to happen?” She lowered her voice and leaned in as she spoke, her face inches away from his. Eyes fixed forward so there was no way he could ignore how serious she was.
Only his brain was a jumble, and nothing seemed to be firing in order. “Wha…what?”
Her gaze dropped to his lips, drifting over his body before rising back to meet his eyes again boldly. “I’m giving you a green light, Luke. Hell, I’m telling you if something doesn’t happen between us I’m going to be disappointed. But just like you should’ve talked to me and not tossed that significant other at me last-minute, I’ve realized I can’t storm in and demand we jump into bed.”
She’d laid her hands on his shoulders, and the light pressure was the only thing keeping him from falling over. “Wait. You’re saying—?”
Kelli didn’t offer any more explanation. Her lips pressed together in a serious smirk. One brow rose as she waited for him to clue in.
Oh, he’d heard every word, but he was having a hard time processing. Until today he’d spent so much time and energy making sure he didn’t think about her as a woman, tossing that aside was the equivalent of picking up an entire truck.
“You want to sleep with me.” The whispered words sounded far too shocked, like an indignant turn-of-the-century virginal maiden.
“I assume sleep will be involved at some point, but I am talking about sex.” She straightened, her expression only the slightest bit embarrassment, but instead mostly determination. “I planned to seduce you, but I obviously have zero skills. And to demand sex be put on the table would be wrong, because I don’t want you thinking we have to fool around. If you’re not attracted to me, I’m not about to get mad. I know I’m not the most feminine—”
“Dammit.” He caught her by the hand and tugged, rotating so she ended up on the seat next to him.
The shock of the movement stopped her ramble, which was a good thing. If she’d kept talking, his brain w
ould get fuller, and there was zero space left between his ears to begin with.
“Two ears, one mouth,” he repeated.
“Shut up?” she asked primly.
He nodded, taking a deep breath and examining her closely.
She wasn’t pulling his leg, which meant sometime in the past few minutes he’d entered the twilight zone. Which explained why the number-one thing racing through his brain had nothing to do with the tangled knot she’d tossed his direction.
“What are you putting yourself down for?” he demanded.
Kelli tilted her head to the side.
“Not the most feminine—? Total load of bull right there. What the hell does that even mean?”
Her brows popped up. “It means I’ve been around the ranch for a long time, and you’ve never once looked at me like I’m a woman. And I get that part of it is the whole ‘working together’ thing. But just because I’ve had the hots for you forever doesn’t mean you feel the same way. And that’s okay.”
It was a good thing he was sitting down, or he would’ve fallen over.
A snicker escaped as she adjusted position on the heavy blanket, curling her legs up and sliding in a little closer. “Your face is hysterical right now.”
“You’re messing with my mind,” he confessed.
“I feel a little giddy,” she returned. “I’m not drunk, but I may as well be considering I’m spilling all the beans I’ve held back for so long.”
Luke shook his head. “I had no idea.”
“That was the whole point,” Kelli informed him. “And honestly, I’m not telling you this for any reason other than if it’s something that you want as well, I’m saying this would be a pretty awesome time to have a bit of a fling. You know, if there’s any chemistry. But no harm, no foul if there’s not.”
The words were beginning to register, but inside, he was still a mess. “I can’t—”
“And don’t think you have to jump me right now, or tell me no. Just… Green light, that’s all I’m saying. If nothing more comes of it, I promise you will never hear another word from me about this.”
“I—”
“And if anything does happen, I don’t expect it to last beyond the gala. We go home, it’s over and will never be mentioned again.”
Luke nodded because she was still talking, and he couldn’t really speak right then anyway, but it seemed polite to acknowledge he was sort of comprehending.
“Only, one thing? Nonnegotiable.” She twisted, half-launching herself off the seat.
Instinctively, he threw his arms out to grab her and when the dust settled, Kelli was sitting in his lap, her arms draped around his shoulders.
Face to face.
His turn to swallow hard.
She stared at his lips again. “If we’re supposed to be a couple, you can’t jerk away every time I touch you. Just like I can’t react as if it’s the first time you’ve ever touched me. I know that’s a little out of our comfort zone, so we’d better practice.”
Her sitting in his lap, staring at him intently, was doing wicked things to his system. Luke had been aware Kelli was a woman, but he’d deliberately not thought about her in a sexual way before.
Being given a green light—stupid how parts of his brain had switched paths almost instantly. The more animal-based parts.
Her sitting in his lap now was not remotely like the other day when he’d hugged her, offering comfort. Nope, feeling her slight weight resting against his body sent a whole different sensation roaring through him.
“You’re right.”
Jeez, was that his voice? Far too low and far too needy.
She tipped off his cowboy hat, gingerly stroking her fingers through his hair, and a shiver shot down his spine. A second ago he’d had an enormous knot in his throat, and now his mouth had gone dry, and as she slid a finger down the side of his neck to the top button on his shirt, heat flared.
Shocking in its intensity. Devastating in the speed of its arrival.
“I’m going to kiss you,” she warned.
He should be warning her off. He should be stopping her, turning this entire train around before they went out of control, but the track had already been set.
“Tell me no,” Kelli whispered. “Or tell me yes. This is up to you.”
His heart pounded, and the heat gathered in his belly had nothing to do with impressing people or making Silver Stone look good. It had everything to do with the fact he was suddenly, shockingly aware of the woman in his arms. The strong, confident and desirable woman who he had never even thought of being with, and yet here she was.
A woman who had clearly told him she wanted him, no strings attached. No demands, no fallout. Just desire.
He still wasn’t sure where the train was going, but there was no way he could stop this part of the journey.
Luke leaned in and slid his hands around her body as their lips connected.
8
This was really happening. She was sitting in Luke Stone’s lap, kissing him.
Being kissed, because even as she leaned in to make the connection, it was clear Luke had made his choice.
This was not a man sitting passively while she pressed hesitant kisses on him. Which was what she’d worried about in the first place, and sometime when she was alone, she and her confidence were going to have a firm talking to because the whole “maybe you don’t want me, but I’m going to tell you how I’ve been drooling over you for years” confession had been a little over the top for someone who was used to keeping her cool.
That had not been cool at all. Nor flirtatious or seductive.
No, what it had been was honest, which was pretty much where Kelli’s head and heart were firmly stuck. So be it. Just like when she had refused to tell Luke about her situation that had led to helping Ryan, it hadn’t been her lying. Just keeping silent.
It seemed those were her two choices: shove down her emotions or let them spew.
Didn’t seem to have harmed her so far, though.
And then she wasn’t thinking anymore because their soft, gentle exploration was heating up. Luke’s hands fell to her hips, sliding down her thighs slowly as their mouths explored. Lips moving, teeth nibbling. The connection was still delicate, but instead of a slow, single drip from a faucet, pressure was building.
Her hands were in his hair, stroking and playing, the soft strands teasing her palms. His thumb rubbed back and forth just above her knee, his other hand easing up her spine until he wrapped his hand around the base of her braid. He tugged lightly to pull their lips apart.
Luke swore softly, gazing into her eyes for a split second before his lips returned to her skin, brushing over her cheek, making contact below her ear.
A shiver took her, shaking her entire body and making her ache. Heat flashed between her legs, and she pressed her hands to the tops of his shoulders so she could shift position.
Kelli intended to rearrange herself to straddle his thighs, only at that exact second a polite but firm cough sounded behind them, and Luke jerked his body the wrong direction. She was already in motion, unable to stop the firm connection between her knee and his groin.
Luke made a soft sound of distress, then in spite of the fact she’d just canned him in the nuts, he rose awkwardly to his feet. He hauled Kelli up with him, and when he shifted her to stand half in front of his body, she went willingly.
She was particularly grateful that female anatomy, while annoying in some ways, didn’t announce arousal as vigorously or visually as for males. Except nipples, and that’s what padded bras were for.
“Sorry to interrupt.” The older gentleman was mostly serious, but amusement danced in his eyes. No way could he have missed that they’d been fooling around. “I thought I recognized you in the restaurant earlier. Someone suggested I might find you out here.”
Luke held out a hand, reaching around Kelli’s shoulder. “Luke Stone.”
“Timothy Carlyn,” the other man responded.
H
oly little cats in the milk jug. That was a name she’d heard mentioned in some big-time circles. Kelli shoved out her hand as well. “Kelli James. It’s a huge honour to meet you, Mr. Carlyn.”
“You as well. I assume you’re here for the Triple Crown Gala?”
Kelli nodded. “Representing Silver Stone ranch. You’ve probably met Luke before at the Calgary Stampede.”
“I don’t know that I’ve had that pleasure, but I’m sure we’ll have time to speak over the coming days.” His gaze was back on her face, and she suddenly wondered if there was a streak of dirt on it, or leftover lunch.
Luke had noticed the intense scrutiny as well, and he laid a hand protectively on her shoulder. “Is there something else you needed, sir?”
Timothy Carlyn seem to blink in surprise then smiled. A hint of a distraction remained as he shook his head. “No, no. Just thought I would be polite and introduce myself. I’ll see you tonight.”
“Looking forward to it,” Luke said, even as his arm slid farther around Kelli, possessive and protective at the same time.
The older man tucked his hands behind his back and looked up into the sky as he wandered off, a slow whistle drifting back.
Inside, Kelli was still vibrating, and when Luke groaned and slowly sat down again, she whirled—
“Careful,” Luke warned, hand held out protectively.
“Shit. I’m so sorry.” She glanced toward the exit, but Mr. Carlyn had disappeared from sight. “What was that all about?”
“I’m not sure, but if he looks at you like that again, I’m giving him a firm talking to.”
That eerie sensation at the back of her neck slid off worrying and back into pleasure. “Eccentric trillionaires who run world-class breeding stables in Kentucky are probably used to staring at whomever they want. Ignore him. Thank you for my kiss.”
His eyes flashed hot before he cringed, lips twisting into a sarcastic smile. “It shouldn’t have happened.”
Oh no he didn’t. “Don’t you start that,” she ordered. “It’s not as if I twisted your arm and forced you to kiss me, so let’s just carry on the way we started.”
“I get it. I hear you,” Luke insisted. He opened his knees, making a face as he moved, but then he caught her by the hand and tugged her to stand between his legs. When he caressed a finger over her cheek, Kelli wanted to nuzzle against him.
