UnderFire
Page 8
She hesitated and glanced over at the rest of the wedding party—they’d already entered the floor and started dancing.
She slipped her hand into his and a jolt of longing hit him straight in the gut. He ached to connect with her at least one more time.
“All right,” she said, her voice so soft he almost couldn’t hear it.
He drew her onto the dance floor. The slow song was sultry and sexy. As their movements flowed together, her breasts and hips brushed against him. He gritted his teeth. Fuck. Just what I need. A hard-on. Her eyebrows went up and her lips parted. Oh yeah. She had to feel that.
Under the music she said, “When do you leave tomorrow?”
Not what he expected her to say. “Probably around six. I want to get an early start.”
“Of course.”
Was it his imagination or did her voice and eyes hold sadness? An ache started in him that had nothing to do with his cock. Yeah, she was driving him out of his mind.
“Jake, I need to talk to you,” she said.
Surprised, he said, “About what?”
“About the way we left things.” Contrition colored her voice.
His arm tightened around her waist as they moved in slow, sensuous rhythm to the love song.
“What else can we say? We don’t see eye to eye,” he said.
“Of course we don’t see everything eye to eye. No one does. Please, Jake.”
He drew in a deep breath. If nothing else he owed her a clean break, and they couldn’t do that in the middle of the dance floor. Her hand smoothed over his chest and he felt it in his heart.
“Let’s meet up after the reception.”
“Stop by my hotel again?”
“All right.”
She smiled as the song got louder. “If there’s one thing we still have between us, Jake, it’s heat.”
He couldn’t stop a smile. “That’s for damn sure.”
But it just wouldn’t be enough.
* * * * *
Kathleen paced the hotel room floor. She’d tried to tell herself that if Jake was willing to meet with her, that had to be good. At least if he turned away from her forever they’d still leave this relationship on a good note. She’d changed from her bridesmaid dress into jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt. Nothing sexy. She didn’t want him to think she planned to seduce him. Nope. That wasn’t going to happen, unfortunately.
When a knock came on the door, she jumped. She hurried over, checked the peephole. She opened the door for Jake. Of course he looked wonderful in a coat, blue sweater and jeans, as always. He walked in with a serious expression firmly planted on his face, as if someone had relayed bad news. Regret pierced her like a knife.
He shoved his hands in his pockets. “So. What did you want to talk about?”
“Take off your coat. Want something to drink?”
He stripped off his coat and placed it over the chair. “I’m good, thanks.”
God, this felt weird. And she was tired of pretending it wasn’t. “This is awkward.”
His expression warmed, a gentle smile touching his lips before he sat in the chair. “Yeah.”
She rubbed her hands together, nervous as hell. “The way things ended between us the other night… I’m sorry.”
“Me too.”
Okay, so he didn’t like the way it ended either but his voice and face were bleak.
“I screwed up, Jake. I hope you can forgive me.”
“Screwed up how?”
“Should be obvious, shouldn’t it?” She paced the room a little and rubbed her hands together once more. “You were right. I do tend to treat all men with distrust. When Rick said he didn’t want to get married ever and I saw Lena’s face, I felt bad for her. I felt like Rick was being a jerk. But then maybe he really feels that way.”
His gaze softened, understanding flooding his eyes. “Of course you don’t want to see her hurt. Sometimes Rick opens his big mouth and inserts his foot. I think he needs a woman to shake him up. Make him see that he can’t get away with being a dumbass about people’s feelings.”
Surprised by the vehemence in his voice, she asked, “You think he’s insensitive?”
“He can be. Do you think Lena would like him if he was that bad?”
“I don’t know. I mean, every woman I’ve known has fallen in love one time with a man who isn’t good for her.”
His attention went laser sharp. “Is that what happened with you? Your father was an ass to you and another man broke your heart?”
She shook her head and closed her eyes for a moment. “No…I…” How could she tell him what she’d just discovered herself? “It’s not all right that I treated you that way. I know you’re not my father.”
He stood, and as he approached her she stood her ground. He was close enough she could smell his delicious scent. “You’re a wonderful woman, Kathleen. You’re strong, and you put up with a lot from your family. And it hasn’t been that long since your sister passed away.”
She swallowed hard, battling emotions still tender enough to bring tears to her eyes. “I couldn’t help her. Sometimes I think I could have.”
He stepped forward and cupped her shoulders. “No, you couldn’t have helped her any more than you did. You tried your best but she made the choices. Sometimes we can’t help people. We can’t fix them.”
God, she knew that. She really knew it. Convincing her emotions to accept what she understood intellectually took hard work.
“I admire how you turned out. You’re a great person, Kathleen. All that shit against you and you could have let it beat you down forever. Instead you stood up and fought.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “God, Jake. You always know what to say.” He pulled her into his arms and brought her against his chest. “Crap. I’ve cried way too much the last few days. Weddings suck.”
Jake laughed. “Yeah right. This is coming from a woman who wants to be a wedding planner.”
“Maybe I should rethink my idea.”
“You gotta do what makes you happy.” His eyes filled with a passionate conviction. “Anything less… It just isn’t worth it.”
Something profound broke loose inside her but not in a bad way. She was uplifted, brought to the surface after a long time with water over her head. Clouds parted and she could see land ahead. “You’re right, Jake. How did you get to be so damned smart?”
“Huh. If I was so smart, I wouldn’t have left things the way they were all those years ago.”
She wiped her eyes with one hand as tears dried and new hope surfaced. “We were just kids. We didn’t know jack.”
He pressed his forehead against hers. “That’s true. When I left Constitution for the military I didn’t think we’d ever stand here like this. That I would have made love with you.” His gaze swept her with clear admiration and undeniable heat. “You don’t need a man to validate you. You’re perfect as you are, Kathleen McSwain, and don’t ever forget it.”
She smiled as a wave of affection and longing hit her. “Thank you. I know you weren’t trying to control me, and I apologize for treating you the way I did.”
“I overreacted. I didn’t realize how deeply you’ve been hurt by what happened in the past. Of course you’d think I was ordering you around. I didn’t think before I spoke.”
She drew in a deep breath and spread her palms across his wide chest, savoring what she could of his masculine warmth before he left her for good. She still heard goodbye in his voice, and that hurt more than she could have imagined. “Thanks for understanding.”
She would have pulled away but he drew her closer. “Was I imagining things at the wedding? Were you jealous of that woman who was hitting on me?”
She laughed softly. “Which woman? There were a few drooling.”
He snorted. “Talia. I was talking to her when you walked up and mentioned the dance.”
“Right.” She heaved a short breath. “Yes, I was jealous. But that’s wasted emotion, isn’t it? It never solves anything.” Amus
ement shoved aside the building sadness inside her. “When we were dancing you seemed happy to see me.”
He laughed. “Yeah. I was.” He slipped his fingers into her hair. “I still am.”
She winced, not from physical pain but from knowing he would leave tomorrow. Tonight. “Jake, I—”
He kissed her.
Heat burst under her skin as a wave of desire caught her up. She grabbed at him and his touch was just as greedy. Their mouths mated with urgency, his tongue thrusting deep to taste her in a carnal kiss. He drew her against him, his arms secure, warm, and the sensuality of his touch undeniable.
He broke away but his arms stayed around her and his lips touched her forehead. “God, I don’t want to leave all this.”
“Neither do I, but what do we do? You’re leaving for Fort Carson. I’m going back to California.”
He placed one tender kiss to her forehead and another to her nose. “You said you might come back to Arizona.”
An idea came alive in her mind. “What if we…if I visited you down at the fort sometimes? On holidays or something? Jake, I don’t want this to end here.”
Heat flared in his eyes and she knew she’d lit a spark. “It doesn’t have to. Kathleen, I’ve always wanted you. I feel this connection, I feel if I walked away from you now I’d be making a huge mistake.”
Happiness flared in her heart, a promise of a future blossoming on the horizon. “We can make this work, Jake. We can.”
His eyes burned with a hope that stirred excitement in her body and mind. His mouth found hers again and she knew they’d made a new beginning forged with an understanding deeper than anything she’d known. Maybe even love.
When he finally pulled back from the kiss he said, “Let’s make tonight count, and every night after that. I want to be with you, Kathleen.”
Happiness moved aside her fears, giving her a new sense of direction and the strength to go forward with him every step of the way. “Yes. Yes.”
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.
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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
Sudden Heat
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
Daryk World 3: Daryk Craving
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
Under Fire
ISBN 9781419948220
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Under Fire Copyright © 2014 Denise A. Agnew
Edited by Ann Leveille
Cover design by Syneca & MichelleB
Cover photography by CURAphotography, conrado, Dmitrijs Bindemanis/shutterstock.com
Electronic book publication January 2014
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