Kitabı oku: «The Wedding Wager», sayfa 3
“We could declare a truce,” he suggested softly. “That was long ago, Megan.”
Holding back a seething retort, she glared at him. “This is a useless discussion,” she said, hating that she couldn’t appear more poised. Appear as if what he’d done years ago no longer mattered. She reached to light another candle, but he steadied her hand and they lit a candle together.
Once more, he was holding her wrist. His slight touch increased her awareness of him more. And he was taking his own sweet time getting the candle burning. She was tempted to yank away from his grasp, but she’d already been foolish enough to reveal how much she reacted to the past. Over the flickering light, she looked up to meet his hot gaze trained on her mouth. She couldn’t get her breath. Her lips parted and she wanted him in spite of what was sensible.
“Light the candle, Jared,” she whispered.
His thumb moved back and forth slowly, a feathery touch on her wrist, until he paused and she knew he was fully aware that she always reacted to the slightest contact.
Desire magnified, pounding with each heartbeat. Setting aside the candle, he slid his hand behind her head.
“Jared,” she whispered, a protest that came out a breathless invitation.
He drew her the last few inches and his mouth covered hers.
His warm lips moved caressingly, his tongue touching hers and then sliding deep into her mouth. Longing, physical and emotional, tugged at her even as she returned his passion. His other arm went around her waist and he stepped around the corner of the table to pull her body against his.
Once again, she was in his arms. How often had she dreamed of this moment, only to wake and discover it had been a fantasy. That Jared had still broken her heart so ruthlessly. Amazingly, here she was, actually kissing him, held in his strong embrace, finding him even sexier than she’d remembered.
Heat became fire. She fought the urge to wind her arms around him and press closer against him. Half of her longed for him desperately and the other half screamed to step away, to prevent what was happening.
His kisses burned wisdom to ashes. She kissed him hungrily, aching for more, knowing she was tumbling to disaster. Each second compounded her years-old need. Finally, she pushed against his chest.
He released her slowly, opening his eyes to study her in a heated silence.
“We’re not going back there, Jared,” she declared with a gasp. “I didn’t want that to happen. Don’t make anything of it. It meant nothing, except I haven’t kissed a man in a long time.”
“Don’t be so angry, Meg. I like kissing you,” he said in a husky voice that held such warmth she tingled from head to toe. “No harm intended and no damage done,” he added in unruffled assurance.
“Don’t!” she cried. “I’m turning in,” she said, circling the table in the opposite direction from Jared.
“You don’t have to escort me to the bedroom door,” she said, when he started toward her.
“Good night, Jared,” she stated firmly.
“I wish I could take away your anger. We were young, Megan.” His dark shirt was open at the throat and locks of hair had fallen over his forehead. Because of the rain, the natural curl in his hair had tightened and black curls framed his face.
She shook her head. “Good night,” she repeated.
Emotionally exhausted, she entered her bedroom.
Her lips were still warm from his kisses and she was on fire with craving. The manner in which she had responded to him tore at her. He had opened Pandora’s Box for her. She blamed it on not dating, but she kept busy and didn’t miss having a man in her life. Between work and taking care of Ethan and his activities, her life was full, busy, so she fell exhausted into bed at night. But with a kiss, Jared had effortlessly demolished all her defenses. One touch, one kiss and she had been mush, melting and kissing him back. He’d made her yearn for his kisses and the feel of his warm, muscular body.
All yearnings she didn’t want.
Crossing the room, she tried to forget that Jared was close, that he was soon to be undressed and stretched in bed. He used to sleep in the nude and she suspected he still did. Images plagued her, driving any chance of sleep away.
Why couldn’t she have remained aloof and showed him that he couldn’t stir her? Instead, she had responded passionately. She couldn’t stop going over it, even though thinking about it made her hot. How could she have responded like that to a man whom she despised?
And his one million …
Sell him the ranch and she’d never see or hear from him again. Logic said to sell. She would get an incredible price, be rid of something she didn’t care for anyway, She would sever most ties with South Dakota and only run a risk of seeing Jared when she visited her aunt and uncle. She would narrow the chances of Jared discovering what she had done.
On the other hand, she couldn’t bear to deed the ranch to him. Fury over the hurts he’d inflicted tempted her to strike out at him in any way she could. Retribution was too enticing, something she had dreamed about for the first years after Jared’s disappearance.
Plus, her father would never sell Jared the ranch. Her dad had hated the Daltons, despising Jared’s father because of their continual fights over water. Each one had accused the other of taking too much. Water fights had always spilled over into every other contact. If a fence went down, each man blamed the other.
She knew, too, her father had viewed Jared’s dad’s simple background with disdain, as if he were a peasant. When Jared had walked out on her, her father had hated him for hurting her, even though he had been doing his best to talk her out of marrying Jared when Jared had vanished. Many issues fueled the family feud.
Both sides of her argument were strong. Money versus emotional satisfaction.
When her father’s health began to fail, he had deeded the ranch to her. Upon his death, that decision became a safety net for her. It saved her time and money to have the ranch already in her possession, and left her free to sell it.
Each time she thought about Jared walking out on her and now coming back to buy the ranch, she felt as if she couldn’t bear to sell—at any price.
Was she harming herself and Ethan by her refusal to let Jared buy the ranch? The money would be more than enough to provide for Ethan’s education and a comfortable lifestyle they could never have otherwise. If she refused Jared, she might not get anywhere near her asking price from other buyers.
She was certain she would sell, but it could take a while—time she really didn’t want to devote to the care of the ranch. It took money to keep it running smoothly, and with her father’s failing health the past year, there were areas that had been neglected. The sensible business and professional approach was to sell to Jared or counter for an even higher amount—something she suspected he would agree to, to get what he wanted.
She knew she would pore over the arguments all night long. So far, the only person interested in the ranch had been Jared. She curled up in a chair near the window, watching the rain and flashes of lightning. Hopefully, once the rain stopped, the river would drop rapidly.
She rubbed her temples. Sleep would likely elude her for hours. To sell or not to sell? Stop remembering his touch and being aggravated with herself for succumbing to his slightest touch.
She paced to the window to stare outside, blowing out the candle to depend on lightning flashes for illumination.
If she would agree to sell the ranch, it would be the quickest way to get Jared out of her life. She stood at the window watching rivulets of water zigzag their way along the glass. Flashes of lightning revealed small rivers running through the yard and large silver puddles. The river would be high and impossible to cross, and the rain hadn’t slacked off any.
She returned to a chair to stare outside while her thoughts churned over her predicament. Far into the night, she fell asleep in the chair.
Dawn was streaked with rays of the rising sun, lifting her spirits and giving her hope that she could leave soon.
She still struggled with her decision. Because of her fury at Jared, and her father’s memory, she didn’t want to sell. Keeping the ranch when Jared wanted it would give her immense satisfaction and a bit of revenge.
At the same time, the argument to sell couldn’t be dismissed lightly.
She fell asleep in the chair, and woke undecided in the morning. Gathering her things, she headed to the bathroom to shower and dress in what she had worn the evening before. After combing her hair, she went to the kitchen, where she found Jared with a cup of coffee on the table in front of him. Dressed in jeans and a short-sleeved, gray Western shirt and boots, he looked irresistible.
“Good morning,” he said easily, walking over to her, his gaze roaming over her appreciatively. “You’re gorgeous—as you were last night,” he said, curling a lock of her hair around his fingers. “This is the way I like your hair best.” Catching the scent of his masculine aftershave, she felt her pulse kick up.
“Thank you for your compliment,” she replied, wishing she had done something else with her hair. She didn’t care to wear it in the style he liked best. “I’m a little overdressed for breakfast, but so be it.”
“I could loan you my jeans,” he said, with a twinkle in his eyes.
“No, thanks,” she answered quickly.
“I didn’t think you’d accept, but they wouldn’t fit you anyway. I cooked breakfast—help yourself to whatever you like,” he said, waving his hand toward covered dishes and pans on a stove. “Fruit is on the table. Would you like orange juice or tomato juice, milk, coffee—you can have all if you’d like.”
“Orange juice and coffee please,” she said, picking up a plate and looking at the many dishes. She helped herself to scrambled eggs, slices of kiwi and a bowl of blackberries. She had lost her appetite. As she watched him serve her juice and coffee, she knew she couldn’t bear to sell him the ranch, no matter how much refusing him cost her. She would get a bit of satisfying retaliation here.
“This is a huge breakfast. Do you cook often?”
“Not unless there’s no alternative. This morning we’re cut off from my kitchen help.”
“Looks like I’m here longer.” She carried her plate to the table where he sat facing her.
“There are all sorts of things we could do to fill the day,” he stated, causing her to look up sharply. When he gave her a disarming smile, she shook her head, smiling in return.
“I think simple conversation is the most likely. Or if you have business you can transact, you go right ahead.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it. If you don’t sell your ranch to me, we’ll be neighbors, so we might as well get reacquainted.”
“I see no point in that,” she said quickly.
“You surely don’t plan for us to go through the future fighting, the way our fathers did.”
“No … but reacquainted—I don’t think so.”
“So what’s it going to be? To sell or not to sell?” he asked.
Three
Jared’s pulse drummed as she faced him. Intuition hinted she would refuse him. Using logic, he couldn’t imagine her rejecting his money.
“You made me a generous offer. One that kept me up almost all night,” she said.
“A shame. I can think of other ways we could have spent the time,” he said, unable to avoid flirting in spite of the tension between them. She was breathtaking, and he wanted to reach for her. Sunlight spilled through the windows and highlighted strands in her cascade of black hair. Her eyelashes were a thick, dark fringe that were a startling contrast with the crystal turquoise of her eyes. He waited in silence until she shook her head, dismissing his remark.
“I won’t sell the Sorenson ranch to you,” she answered.
His insides knotted and he curbed the urge to swear, instead remaining impassive, smiling at her as he shrugged. “That’s what you want to do. You’re turning down an extra one million.”
“You received that well, Jared. Too well. I pulled the ranch off the market and decided to keep it.”
“Even with your son to consider?”
Her face flushed and something flickered in her eyes and he knew he’d hit a nerve. “Yes, Ethan and I will get along without your money. We have thus far.”
He was disappointed, but the world held countless opportunities. “Win some, lose some,” he repeated the old saying. “Maybe you’ll change your mind about selling after you spend a few years going back and forth and maintaining the ranch and your Santa Fe home.”
“I’ll manage, Jared.”
“Well, I’m disappointed, but if you’re not going to sell to me and go hurrying back to New Mexico,” he said, approaching, “there’s a bright side.” He placed his hands on her shoulders, sliding one hand under the large bow that fastened her dress over her shoulder. “We’ll be neighbors,” he said in a warm voice. Undeniably, he wanted her more than her ranch. “You’ll have to come home more often … I’ll certainly spend more time here.”
Drawing a deep breath, she frowned. “We’ll be neighbors, not seeing each other.”
“You opposed anything concerning me, Meg,” he said in a husky voice. “We’re bound to see each other, and why not? Why cling to the past? I told you I was sorry. Your refusal to sell guarantees I’ll be around,” he said.
“That wasn’t my intention,” she said. Her words were unfriendly but her tone wasn’t. Her protests were light, almost halting, and contradictory to what she was saying—an unspoken invitation to him. “Not at all, Jared.”
“Well, that’s the result you’ve achieved. You’ve put me back into your life. I’m looking forward to being your neighbor.”
“Go back to Texas, Jared. You know this is going nowhere.”
“If you really want me out of your life so badly, maybe you should think some more about this answer you’ve given me. I can’t help but feel that there’s some part of you that wants to keep me here.”
She twisted out of his grasp as his cell phone rang. He took it out of his pocket. “Excuse me, Megan,” he said, answering his phone and talking briefly.
“That was one of the hands,” he said when he was finished. “The river is still as the bridge level—some water washing over, but you can get through.”
“Great!” she cried. “I’m going home.”
She was clearly combating the physical attraction with all her being, a battle he felt she would eventually lose. He knew how to be patient, and the bet had been the most exciting thing he had going. Until she came along.
“I’ll go first, Megan,” he said as they walked to the door. He took a wide-brimmed, black Stetson off a hat rack and put it on. They stepped out into warm sunshine and a day that was crisp and clear, with a deep blue sky. A vast difference from the stormy night.
At her SUV door, he paused. “Wait and let me go ahead. I’ll cross the bridge to make sure it’ll hold. After I get to the other side, you can cross.”
“I know I’m wasting my breath when I say you don’t have to accompany me.”
“Stop cutting off your nose to spite your pretty face, Megan.”
“I’ll try, Jared,” she said with sarcasm lacing her voice.
“Keep your SUV doors unlocked so you can get out or I can get in to help you. Let me clear the bridge before you follow. If it shifts or anything indicates it’s weakened, I won’t motion to you to proceed. Okay?”
“Yes, thanks. I’ll follow you.”
“Megan,” he said in a deep voice, “I’m glad you were here last night. It’s good to see you and be with you again. Better than ever,” he said, thinking about their kisses and her eager response. If she reacted that much in anger, what would it be like if he could melt those hurdles she kept between them?
“It was meaningless, Jared. The result of my not dating enough and a turbulent night. And you know you hold a certain charm for me, whether I like it or not.”
“I think there may have been a left-handed compliment somewhere in there. I certainly hope so,” he said.
She shook her head and he held the door, assessing her long, shapely legs as she climbed into the SUV. He closed her door and hurried to his pickup. As he got in he caught her watching him. Once again, he had the feeling that he was missing something with her and he couldn’t fathom what.
Passing her, he worried about the safety of the bridge.
He topped the rise and looked at the muddy, rushing water that was tumbling and flowing as rapidly as the night before, sending rivulets over the bridge. It was standing, but the force of the water could have taken a big toll on it. He slowed and saw she was only a short distance behind him. Stopping, she waited while he proceeded.
As soon as they had crossed, he stopped and walked over to talk to her through her open window. Leaning closer, he pushed his hat to the back of his head. “Would you like to go to dinner tonight?”
She shook her head. “No, Jared. Business between us is finished. There’s no reason for us to get together again. I meant no sale. And it’s good-bye.”
He slid his hand behind her head, leaned down and kissed her hard, thrusting his tongue into her mouth, aware of her soft hair tangled in his fingers and spilling over his hand.
He’d caught her by surprise, but she kissed him back, arousing him instantly. He was tempted to open the SUV door, slide inside and take things further, but he knew that would end the kiss.
She pulled away. She was breathless, her eyes filled with longing, her mouth red from his kiss. “Good-bye, Jared,” she whispered, but her inviting expression contradicted the farewell.
He stepped back. “Call if you change your mind. Otherwise, I’ll see you soon,” he said, knowing he was annoying her.
Without a word she drove away and he watched, standing in the road with his hands on his hips, until her beige SUV disappeared from sight.
She was more beautiful than when she’d been eighteen. More poised, infinitely more sexy. He wanted her and didn’t intend for her to go out of his life until he had seduced her.
He suspected that might take awhile, but he wasn’t a marrying man and he wasn’t the green twenty-four-year-old that he had been.
And he still expected to buy her ranch. It would be ridiculous to refuse to sell to him because of old hurts. He didn’t see how she could possibly mean no.
He climbed into his pickup to cross the river and drive back to the house, lost in thoughts about Megan, about making love to her when she’d been eighteen, naked and passionate. He stirred uncomfortably. He wanted her in his arms in his bed. With a groan he tried to get the erotic images out of mind.
If he could get past her smoldering anger, she could be seduced. Even as she burned with indignation, she hadn’t rejected his touch and his kisses. Attraction was still alive between them. It was only a matter of time, he felt certain, until seduction. Everything in her cried out to him.
The future didn’t hinge on Megan selling the ranch to him. He could move on to the next lucrative deal. This had looked like an easy one that could have been handled quickly, made him some easy money and cinched the bet.
A jingle interrupted his thoughts. He answered his cell phone again, to hear his cousin’s voice.
“Hey, Matt here. Chase said you’re in South Dakota. I wanted to see if you’ve been washed away. The rain is making national news.”
“Thanks for call,” Jared replied. “I’m fine. Bridge was underwater last night, but we have sunshine today and the water’s receded.”
“That’s good news. I hear you’re buying the Sorenson place—that’s sweet payback!”
“The old man died, but it’s still sweet payback with Megan,” Jared said, thinking about her refusal and feeling certain he’d get his way eventually.
“Good luck with it. It doesn’t matter, though, I still intend to win our bet.”
“Wishful thinking. Thanks for your call,” Jared said, smiling and remembering a pugnacious look Matt often had when he wanted something that was difficult to acquire. Beneath the curly black hair was a brain that clicked constantly.
“Go back to work. You’ll need to do all you can,” Matt teased, and was gone. Jared chuckled over the good-natured teasing and the competitiveness that had been present since as far back as he could remember. He glanced at his calendar, Matt’s call fading from his attention.
Monday morning, he was scheduled to see his attorney in Sioux Falls before he headed home to Dallas and now he had a lunch appointment with his real estate agent. As Megan invaded his thoughts again, he forgot about a schedule.
Monday, the eighth of June, he dressed in a charcoal suit and tie and drove himself, leaving behind his bodyguard and chauffeur, feeling secure in South Dakota.
In Sioux Falls, he drove downtown to his attorney’s office. It was another sunny June day.
As soon as lunch was finished, he parted with the real estate agent and headed to his car, his thoughts already turning from South Dakota, as he mentally ran through projects for the week. He paused to call his pilot to be certain his plane would be ready. As he talked, he glanced up the wide main street and saw an unmistakable dark head of hair.
His pulse speeded—it had to be Megan. She stood in front of a restaurant talking to two people with a boy beside her. He had his back to Jared and wore a ball cap.
Jared recognized her aunt and uncle and guessed that Megan had her son with her.
Impulsively, he crossed the street in long strides. Megan was dressed in red slacks and a red, short-sleeved cotton shirt and her back was to him. Her hair was caught up in a clip high on her head.
It had been years since he had seen Olga or Thomas Sorenson, the older half-brother of Megan’s father, Edlund.
“Hello, there, Megan,” he said cheerfully. They all turned to face him, and once again Megan’s face drained of color.
“It’s been years,” he said, extending a hand to Thomas Sorenson, who hesitated a few seconds and then reached out. In that first moment, her uncle and aunt had looked as shaken as Megan.
Under Thomas’s solemn, half-angry gaze, Jared realized something was amiss. Tall and graying, Thomas Sorenson gave him the barest possible handshake. Jared smiled at Olga Sorenson, Thomas’s diminutive blond wife, who merely nodded with tight lips. His sudden departure seven years ago resonated badly with all three adults even today. Jared turned to Megan who was frowning at him.
“Sorry, if I interrupted you folks, but I saw you and thought I’d say hello. I didn’t intend to intrude,” he said.
When his pleasant comment was met by awkward silence, his curiosity grew. He glanced at the boy, who was looking at a bright red toy rocket he held in his hands. “This must be your son, Ethan,” Jared said, holding out his hand in greeting. “Ethan, I’m Jared Dalton.”
The boy looked up and shook hands with Jared.
“I’m glad to—” Jared’s words died, as if he had been punched in the stomach. With midnight eyes, a cleft in his chin and black curls escaping from his cap, the boy staring back at him was his own image, a face that would match childhood pictures of Jared himself.
His own son!
