Authors: Jean Brashear
CHAPTER ELEVEN
H
E
LEFT
HER
SLEEPING
.
Because he wanted to stay, to watch her awaken.
A fling, they’d both agreed. It was smart, it was right. Those were his usual terms.
They’d moved to her room sometime during the night, and now he watched her from the chair across from her bed, elbows on his knees, hands clasped beneath his chin. In the moonlight, her skin was nearly translucent, the lines of exhaustion easing when she was relaxed.
He wanted her again.
And he wanted his camera in his hands. To capture the pure beauty of her.
But what if she woke up and saw him photographing her? He could explain the intrusion, he told himself, tell her that photographing her while she slept was only an artistic exercise, that the human body was simply a compilation of planes and curves and angles, that no one would know it was her.
All true.
But still a lie.
He would know, and she would, too. He would be taking advantage of her by displaying her without her defenses, however much he honestly was fascinated by the contours, the tones of skin, the shadows and abstract lines formed by her body and her bed.
With her, he could make art again. He knew that to his marrow.
I need that, Sophie
.
I need to hope
. He could say that, and she might even understand, to a degree.
But she would feel invaded at a moment in her life when she was already so vulnerable. So alone, more than he could imagine being. He spent much of his time by himself, yes, but always secure in the knowledge that people who loved him were only a phone call away, that he was in their thoughts.
Sophie had no one, except Jenna and this friend, Maura, who had put her money into Sophie’s dream, money that weighed on Sophie, that kept her working too hard, too late into the night, putting her slender back into work meant for someone his size.
She’d trusted him. Shared herself with him tonight, first with details of her past he sensed no one else knew, then sweetly, generously with her body.
To betray that trust would be the most egregious sin he could commit against her.
But he needed to take those shots so badly that he’d nearly done so, anyway. He’d thrown on his clothes, been halfway down the stairs, already calculating lighting and f-stops and apertures…
To let this moment pass, to open his fingers and let the inspiration fly away, scared him to death. Such a moment might never come again. He was risking everything.
But he would not reclaim his life at Sophie’s expense.
By the skin of his teeth and the grace of his upbringing, Cade rose and made his way down the stairs. Locked her door behind him and made himself keep going until he was at Jenna’s.
S
OPHIE
AWOKE
WITH
A
START
when she heard Armando and his crew talking outside. She was late, she’d overslept, she—
Oh, sweet mercy, she was naked.
The night flooded in, the fun, the teasing. The astonishing bliss.
She knew he was gone without looking. Cade filled a room with his sheer presence. As she hurriedly dressed, she guessed he was already outside. She brushed her teeth, ran a comb through her hair, then yanked it into a tight ponytail, wincing at the slight headache. She hadn’t had alcohol in so long that one margarita had given her a hangover.
She dashed down the stairs. Her head might not be happy, but her body felt terrific. Mamma mia—
terrific
was an understatement.
He’d boasted that he’d leave her so satisfied she’d be boneless in his bed, hadn’t he?
Jerk, she thought affectionately. Big, fat, arrogant jerk.
But oh, he had. Sweet heaven, the headache didn’t really matter because the rest of her felt so amazing. A week at a pricey spa couldn’t have had more effect.
He’d been right about that, too, drat him. She might not have had that much rest, but the hours she’d managed had been restorative. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d slept without worrying.
She wasn’t sure she even needed breakfast or coffee or…
Sophie laughed out loud as she crossed the porch. Oh, he’d be unbearable if he knew, wouldn’t he? All smug and
I told you so
and Queenie this, Queenie that.
Even that name couldn’t aggravate her on this beautiful morning.
Then she spotted the chipper. “Armando, it’s beautiful.”
“Qué?”
He looked confused.
Well, of course a piece of rental machinery couldn’t be beautiful, but the morning was just so pretty and she felt great and—and she was acting like a teenager....
Hurriedly she gestured toward the area they’d cleared yesterday. “What you did, it’s wonderful.”
His face lit with shy pride.
“Gracias.”
She stopped herself before she kissed his cheek or hugged him or— Oh, what the heck. She hugged him anyway. “Armando, what would I do without you?” He
was
a treasure, a kind, strong, responsible man she could trust.
He tugged at the bill of his cap, smiled nervously.
“Thank you so much for everything you’ve done.” She nodded at the other men and realized she was getting misty over all of them. “Thank you.
Gracias
.”
“Nada
.
”
In the manner of men everywhere, they clearly couldn’t wait to be away from the utterly frightening combination of a female and tears. “We work now,” he said cautiously.
She nearly giggled then— Good grief, what had Cade unleashed in her? First she was crying in his lap, nestled in strong arms, then she was limp from astonishing sex, and along the way she’d found a friend who also happened to be an extraordinary lover and—“Where is Cade?” she asked Armando as the other men walked away.
“No sé,”
answered Armando. “I do not know. He was not here when we came.”
“Oh. I, uh, I thought I’d heard him,” she said hastily. “No problem.” Maybe he’d gone to get breakfast or take a shower before returning or.
Was this where she admitted she’d been thinking about shower sex? Where she revealed that long-dormant appetites had awakened? Sophie couldn’t help a grin. She felt a little smug about last night herself.
She’d rocked his world. She’d been an animal. They’d had jungle sex, and it had been fantastic. She all but skipped toward the front yard, barely frowning over the work she hadn’t gotten to last night. She felt so energetic that she’d probably be able to accomplish all of it and more today.
She couldn’t wait to see Cade again. Not, of course, for any other reason except that, astonishingly enough, Mr. Grumpy had become her friend last night.
Okay, admit it
.
And you want to get him naked again
.
Well, who wouldn’t? With a body like that…a man’s body, a real man, one who bore the scars of a challenging, very physical life spent mostly outdoors.
Oh, good heavens, if she didn’t stop herself she’d be a babbling fool by the time he got here.
Where was he, anyway?
Sophie forced herself to stop gushing over him, this difficult, fascinating, sexy man with whom she was going to have a fling. She reminded herself that she didn’t really have time for him.
Honey, everyone has time for great sex
.
Point taken, Mr. Rugged and Sexy.
With effort, she wiped the stupid grin off her face and went inside to make coffee, though he might be bringing some when he arrived, but how was a woman to know when her lover left without a note or a word or…
Chill, Queenie,
she could just hear him saying.
Right.
Just then the chipper roared into action. Wow. How on earth had she slept through it? But all that lovely mulch… She loved that chipper, just as she loved this day and last night and she loved—
She couldn’t breathe as fear struck her.
Oh, no, no, you don’t get to do this,
she lectured a heart she couldn’t possibly allow to be so foolish.
Yes, he’d held her while she cried. Yes, he’d understood her pain and her fear and her need. Yes, he was charming and fun and he made love like nothing she’d ever experienced before. And that lazy, we-just-had-amazing-sex cocky grin could seduce a saint, but…
She did not, would not come within a country mile of loving any man. Not ever. That was not in her plans, and she had too much to lose not to remain rigidly focused on those plans. No matter how much she’d lost herself in that bed last night, she had not lost her mind.
Abruptly her cell rang. She answered without looking, assuming it was Maura. “Hi, Maura.”
“Hello, Sophie.” The voice she never wanted to hear again.
“Kurt.”
“Don’t sound so enthusiastic.”
“What do you want?”
“Now is that any way to speak to a friend?”
A friend
. His tone insinuated much more. Her skin crawled. The fact that she’d been deluded by him for even a second was humiliating. They’d been together briefly at a point in her life where loneliness had threatened to drown her. But before long, she’d begun to see that his charming exterior was a ruse. He was only using her to get ahead in the company. When she’d broken it off, he’d tried to force himself on her. When she’d managed to escape, he threatened to claim she’d come on to him, to sue her for sexual harassment. In the end, he’d done far worse.
Quickly, she put distance between herself and the workers, grappling for the control that had once been second nature to her.
Blast you, Cade MacAllister, for making me weak.
But she couldn’t think of Cade in the same sentence with the man responsible for destroying her career. She forced her tone to be neutral. “Why are you calling?”
“No time for friendly conversation? Tut-tut. I find it interesting that you and Maura are still so close that you’d assume it was she who was calling. I was also very surprised to learn that you’ve brought Maura in as an investor. Haven’t you let her down enough?”
“My hotel is no business of yours. Nor are my friends.”
“Oh, but they are. There is still the little matter of embezzlement charges that could be pressed against you.”
Her blood chilled. “You know I did nothing wrong.”
“Do I?”
“What do you want, Kurt?”
“To be sure you aren’t going to make a mistake.”
“What do you want from me? I’m out of the game. The field is all yours. Play to your heart’s content.” Inside, she bled at her cowardice. Never in her life had she given up without fighting. But if she had, it would have hurt Maura’s nephew and Maura herself. What else could she have done? Kurt had been extremely careful to distance himself from any possibility of blame.
“If you meant that, you’d have cut all ties.”
“Why on earth would you care about anything I do? You won. I’m gone.”
His voice went hard. “Proximity brings…temptations, Sophie.” The tone turned oily. “Besides…I miss you.”
She shuddered. “Leave me alone, or—”
“Threats are not a good idea, lover.”
“I’m not threatening you. I just… Let it be over, Kurt.”
“Sophie…”
“I have another call coming in. Goodbye.” Stomach burning, she clicked off.
But she knew he wouldn’t let it be over. And she was vulnerable in so many ways—he could spread rumors, he could use the grapevine to cost her bookings. He’d figured out how to destroy her once; he could do it again.
C
ADE
DROVE
OUT
TO
J
ESSE
and Delilah’s house in the hills west of Austin. He’d managed to slip away from Jenna’s before she was up. The few hours’ sleep he’d snatched had been troubled by nightmares about the fall, by bittersweet memories of Jaime…by images of Sophie and the visceral impression of her body against his, the taste of her, the textures…that thick, wavy hair, that sleek skin, the contours of her feminine frame with a surprising amount of hard-won muscle.
He touched the camera on the seat beside him and wished yet again that life were simpler.
One day at a time
.
You’ll take other shots
.
He’d at least tried shooting this morning while he was waiting for the photo lab to open. He’d walked the downtown streets, seizing on anything that took his fancy—a streetlamp, an ornate door handle, an angle down Congress Avenue toward Lady Bird Lake where his eye could nearly make out Sophie’s roof. He’d wondered if she was up yet, if she missed him, if she worried about where he’d gone....
Cade had more advanced instincts for danger than many people due to the hair-raising circumstances he so often found himself in. And every instinct he had was now screaming—he was treading on perilous ground with Sophie. Particularly from the powerful temptation to cross a line and seize the inspiration her sleeping form had presented.