by Nadia Aidan
She turned away from his intense stare, but before she could retreat, his next words stilled her.
“You don’t believe me.”
Teresa faced him again. “I don’t trust you.”
His eyes narrowed, and before she realised his intent, he snaked his arm around her waist, bringing her flush against his body.
Hard flesh met her yielding curves, and she was forced to bite her lip to stifle the needy moan which bubbled in her throat. The strength of him surrounded her, heating her skin until every inch of her pulsed with warmth. Her nipples drew tight until they nearly ached and she could not mistake the wetness that dampened her panties. This was the first time Jeff had ever held her so close, touched her so intimately, and her body burned with the rough, masculine feel of him, until she could no longer deny the shudders of arousal roiling through her.
“No, it’s not me you don’t trust,” Jeff whispered, his warm breath caressing her face. “You don’t trust yourself.”
Unwittingly, a small gasp tumbled out of her. How he’d gleaned the truth, she would never know, but his words rang true.
She did not fear Jeff, even though she truly wasn’t certain he wouldn’t hurt her in the end, but that was not because she didn’t trust him—it was because she didn’t trust herself. Not her body, not her mind…and certainly not her heart. When she was around him, whenever he touched her, it was as if her entire being called out to him with a desperate longing she’d never known. She’d fought it, denied it, but the truth now stared her in the face.
“I would never hurt you, Teresa. Not ever. Just as you can always trust yourself with me. I will never do anything to you that you don’t want. I will never demand of you what I am not prepared to give myself. I can promise you that.”
With any other man, she would have turned her nose up at such lofty declarations, but coming from Jeff… His expression had never been more genuine, and his whispered words rang with a sincerity she’d never heard before. Yet, it was her name on his lips that was her undoing. He always called her ‘Red’—rarely Teresa—yet whenever he did use her real name, she always sat up straight and took notice because it meant it was something important.
No matter if she could trust him or not.
No matter if he would hurt her or not.
Jeff believed every word he said, and for the first time in two years, the wall of ice she’d built around her heart began to thaw, because she believed him.
Chapter Three
When he pulled her closer and dipped his head, she didn’t push him away. Instead, she let her eyes drift closed at the first brush of his lips to hers, as her arms twisted around his neck.
She expected him to crush his lips to hers and devour her, but Jeff’s kiss was gentle, almost tentative as he nibbled against her mouth until she parted her lips beneath his. The wet slide of his tongue was erotically sensuous as he probed her mouth with slow, teasing strokes.
With his lips, his tongue, he ignited a slow burn inside her belly—the deepening pressure of his kiss stoking the flames until desire scorched through her like a blazing wildfire. She curled her hands into his hair, holding him closer, her fingers slipping through the soft, wet tendrils.
She ached for Jeff…she burned for him as she pressed deeper into the hollow of his frame until his hardening shaft nudged her belly. His hands slipped beneath her shirt, and she gasped into his mouth as his callused fingers feathered across the wet skin of her belly. Slowly, he inched his way to her breast, cupping the full mound in his palm.
He whispered her name against her lips, the sound tortured and needy as he trembled against her. Teresa recognised the desperate yearning in his rough voice, because she felt it. Her entire body quaked with the feeling.
Jeff massaged the supple flesh of her breast, his lips leaving hers to trail a pathway of kisses along her cheek, down her neck, until he reached the hollow of her throat. He buried his face within the crook of her neck and shoulder, his mouth fluttering tiny kisses across her heated skin. When he plucked at the tightened bud of her nipple, they emitted simultaneous groans, and his warm breath tickled across her throat, causing a fresh wave of wet heat to flood her pussy.
Teresa clung to his broad, muscled shoulders and when he slid his free hand down the length of her body to the fastener of her jeans, she neither protested nor did she stop him.
What did, however, was the sharp roar of thunder that shook the house. They both stilled as if realising where they were and what they were doing.
Jeff reluctantly pulled out of her embrace, and she was just as slow to release him.
“We better get you dried off and in some fresh clothes,” Jeff said, and Teresa noticed his voice wasn’t entirely steady.
As she nodded and followed after him down the hallway, she held back a small smile. Her legs weren’t entirely steady, either…and staring at the broad wall of his muscled back was not helping her wobbly gait.
Like hers, his clothes were plastered to him, and Teresa visually traced every chiselled ridge of sinew that bunched and flexed with each step he took. If it was even possible, her heart beat out a faster, harder rhythm, sending blood rushing through her body until she was lightheaded.
He entered the guest room on the first floor and Teresa hesitated in the doorway, shivering, though she could not say it was all from the chill of the air conditioning. Jeff turned, his piercing stare slamming into her, which forced another pulsing vibration down her spine. Several seconds passed before she realised he was holding out his hand to her and within his grasp were a pair of sweats and a T-shirt.
His full, sensual lips curved into a knowing smile and her face suffused with heat in embarrassment.
“I will leave you alone to change.”
His fingers brushed against hers as she took the clothing from him, and they both stilled as an ember of fire and lightning crackled between them. She sucked in a breath, while Jeff hissed. Their gazes clashed and when he inched closer she knew he wanted to take her into his arms and finish what they’d started, but at the last moment he halted his steps and spun around, breaking the spell which had held them enthralled.
“When you’re done, head to the kitchen. I’m going to try to find us something to eat before we lose power, too.”
With that, he closed the door behind him, leaving her standing there alone in the centre of his bedroom.
As she dragged on the clothes that were too big for her, Teresa battled with the conflicting emotions jostling inside her.
She wanted him.
She didn’t want to want him, but she did.
And now that she was here, in this home and alone with him, she’d simply come to accept the inevitable—that they would finally get to the bottom of this unrelenting attraction, which had been brewing between them for the past year. She’d sincerely hoped that maybe once they got it all out of their systems, they could both move forward and function like normal, civil human beings around one another.
Well, so much for that.
Instead of acting on their mutual attraction, Jeff had been the one to pull away just now. He’d been the one to stop when she’d all but welcomed him to touch her, kiss her, make love to her…
Even now—engulfed in his clothes, the scent of him seeping into her skin, burning through her chest—her pussy clenched and throbbed with need for him. She knew he felt it, and she had no doubt he wanted her, too. So why the hell had he walked away?
* * * *
Jeff quickly changed in Jason’s room before heading to the kitchen, where he managed to find some leftovers that BJ had stashed in the back of the fridge. After warming and setting out the food and preparing a space to eat at the kitchen table, he waited for Teresa to join him.
With the storm hurling through the small town of Hockley, he could barely make out the soft bustling of the woman in the other room, but despite the furore of the rain and wind whipping outside, Jeff could still hear Teresa shuffling about as she dressed.
Th
e entire time that he stood in the kitchen listening to the faint sounds, he wondered what the hell he was doing out here when she was in there.
He’d read the invitation in Teresa’s eyes, an invitation he’d only imagined and dreamt would come.
So why did you walk away then, jackass?
The questioned burned in his brain, and the glaring answer was not far behind.
Jeff glanced towards the doorway as Teresa sauntered into the room. He could not help but grin at how even her voluptuous frame had managed to be swallowed up in his clothing. She’d tried to rectify that by tying the T-shirt in a knot at her waist and rolling up the legs of his grey sweat pants.
“What?”
His gaze slowly made its way back to her face after he’d taken a leisurely trip over her curves. “I like the way you look in my clothes. Actually, I don’t think they’ve ever looked better than they do now on you,” Jeff admitted, and he had to force himself not to smile wider when her face flushed a soft rose as she dipped her gaze.
Teresa, embarrassed? The brazen, ballsy woman he knew was rarely flustered or ruffled by anyone or anything, but the blush staining her cheeks suggested otherwise. Jeff gave an inward smile. This softer side of Teresa was endearing, even as it was unexpected. He liked it, and he had a feeling she didn’t show this part of herself to very many people—the part that was vulnerable and open, the part that was even capable of being embarrassed a time or two.
He acknowledged then the reason why he’d walked away just moments ago—why he’d forced himself not to succumb to the temptation of her desire, her beautifully curved body…
Make no mistake, he still wanted Teresa, and the yearnings of his body would not allow him to hold out much longer, but in the same breath, Jeff wanted to know her…truly know her.
He wanted to know what made Teresa laugh, what made her smile, what made her cheeks darken with a soft blush. There was no denying he wanted to know her intimately on a physical level, but he didn’t want to stop there. Before he took her to his bed, he needed Teresa to open herself to him and push past that wall she kept firmly erected between them. He needed her to give herself to him not just because her longings, like his, had begun to wear upon her, but because she trusted him not to hurt her, because she trusted him with not only her body, but because she trusted him with her heart.
* * * *
Teresa sat down to eat while Jeff telephoned his brother. She learned that Jason was still securing her home and would be back shortly. Jeff ended the call soon after that and pocketed his cell.
When he didn’t join her at the table she looked up at him curiously.
“You’re not going to eat?”
He leaned against the refrigerator, his arms folded across his chest. He watched her from hooded eyes, his intense stare causing a small ripple to tingle down her spine. She did her best not to shiver beneath the weight of his scrutiny, but when his lips curved slightly, she realised she hadn’t entirely succeeded.
“I’m not hungry,” was all he said as he continued to watch her. The way his gaze remained riveted upon her, she got the distinct impression that he wasn’t hungry for food but instead craved something else…and she had an idea that she was somewhere on that menu.
Once again, she questioned why he’d walked away from her earlier. Desire radiated from every fibre of him as he stood across the room, his eyes darkening with lust.
She cleared her throat, slightly unsettled beneath his probing stare, as she studied him in turn from beneath her lashes. He could have easily made good on his promise to bed her. Even now they could have been twisted in his sheets, making love. Teresa decided to ignore the thrill of pleasure that drummed through her at the very image, the fleeting thought.
And yet he’d walked away…
She recalled the not so subtle hints that BJ had been dropping for the past year. She’d always brushed them aside because she’d never quite believed her friend. Jeff was a playboy who enjoyed the thrill of the chase. But focusing on one woman? And the likelihood that woman was her? She’d always rolled her eyes at the notion. But maybe BJ was right. All the times he’d come to Hockley, she’d always thought Jeff was after one thing, and yet as much as he flirted and hit on her, he never pushed too strongly. Whenever he was around, he was always overly concerned about her, always helping her with whatever task she was seeing to around the ranch. Even tonight, he’d told her to seek him out if she needed help, but he hadn’t waited around to see if she would go to him. He’d come for her anyway.
While she always pretended to be aggravated by his presence, secretly she was flattered by his attention. But, because she’d always been convinced he had ulterior motives, she hadn’t given much credence to his attention. She considered then that maybe she’d misjudged him…maybe she’d been wrong.
“Is there something wrong with the food? BJ made it just before she left, but I thought it was fine. I can whip together some sandwiches if you like.”
Jeff’s brow was furrowed into a frown and it took her a moment to realise what had prompted his question. Deep in thought, she’d stopped eating. She pushed the plate aside, realising she was no longer hungry anyway.
At the same time, she came to another realisation and a small smile teased across her face.
“No, it was fine, but I’m full.” She crossed her arms beneath her breasts, delighting in the feminine flutter in her belly when his gaze followed her every movement, his eyes swirling darker as the swells of her breasts stretched the thin cotton shirt.
He shifted against the refrigerator and the growing bulge behind the zipper of his jeans did not go unnoticed, nor did the cocky grin that spread across his face.
“So it’s not food you want…” His eyes sparkled with mischief and before he even spoke she knew what was coming next. “But perhaps I can offer you something else?”
The husky edge to his voice sizzled through her, but with her deeper understanding of him, his provocative question did not arouse her irritation as it usually did.
She arched one brow. “Why do you always do that?”
“Do what?”
“Pretend as if you’re a player, when you’re not. Act as if you’re a real bad boy, when you’re actually a gentleman through and through.”
She caught a fleeting glimmer in his eyes and knew then her statement had caught him off guard but he was quick to recover.
“I’m neither pretending nor acting. I am all of those things, Red.”
“Maybe. Even all at one time, perhaps, but not anymore.”
She stood and gathered her plate to cross the room where she washed it in the sink. When she was done, she looked at him from over her right shoulder. Only a few feet now separated them. With his body closer, she could feel heat drifting off him to warm her skin. Teresa’s heart jumped in her chest. She could not believe she was prepared to do this, that she so openly flirted with temptation, but she was determined to prove a point.
“You’re a good guy, Jeff Downing,” she said finally.
He chuckled. “If you want to believe that, Red, then fine—”
“Because if you weren’t,” she continued, as if he hadn’t spoken, “you wouldn’t have walked away from me earlier.”
The temperature in the room plunged within a matter of milliseconds. Jeff wanted to pretend he didn’t hear her, then he wanted to pretend he didn’t understand what she meant, or even the language she was speaking, but it would have been futile. Teresa was no fool, and she knew that neither was he.
She inched closer, and the only thing that kept him rooted in place was that his pride wouldn’t let him run.
He shook his head when not even an inch separated them. “Don’t do this, Teresa.”
Teresa.
He only called her by her name when he meant business and was serious. Damn the stubborn, impish woman when she smiled. He shouldn’t have flirted with her just then, but he enjoyed the sexual banter between them. Yet, had he not, she wouldn’t be so determ
ined to prove her point, and he could tell by her resolute expression that she definitely had a point to make.
“Don’t do what?” When she placed the palm of her hand against his chest, he closed his eyes, a desperate groan rumbling out of him. “Don’t touch you? Don’t flirt with you? Don’t try to kiss you? What will you do, Jeff? Will you walk away again?”
His eyes snapped open, but he didn’t say a word.
“You would, too, because that’s what a good guy would do—”
He clamped his fingers around her wrist to stop her hand from drifting lower past the planes of his abdomen where it now rested.
“Why are you doing this, Teresa?”
“To prove a point.”
Yeah, he’d already figured that.
He glared at her when he tried to fling her hand away and step back, but she refused to budge. She wanted to prove that he was a nice guy, a good guy… Well, he hadn’t always been, and he wasn’t certain he would be able to walk away from her again if she didn’t stop.
“And what if you’re wrong, huh Teresa? Did you ever stop to think about that? What if you start something you’re not prepared to finish, only to realise I’m not the good guy you think I am?”
“I already know you’re a good guy, or we wouldn’t even be having this discussion.” She leaned into him, and he had to remind himself to breathe when her sweet scent assaulted him as if it were hell bent on destroying the last vestiges of his resolve.
Clenching his hands tight, he bit back a groan and held himself completely still, afraid that even slightest movement would shatter what was left of his restraint.
“See…look at you. You’re afraid to touch me, even though you’ve spent a year chasing and hitting on me—”
“Teresa—”
She ignored his warning growl. “But what I don’t understand is now that we’re here, why is it you keep hesitating?”
