By Private Invitation (34 page)

“Jared, please.”

Her eyes closed, she banged her head against the mattress and pulled on the cords,
wanting to release her wrists so she could reach for him.

The sound of foil tearing made her pause and her eyes opened to find him rolling a
condom onto his engorged shaft.

“Hurry.”

He didn’t answer. Instead, he stepped back, but only far enough so he could grab her
ankles and lift them to his right shoulder. He lifted her until he was perfectly aligned
to thrust into her. The tip of his cock pierced her, and he gave one shallow thrust
before he slammed home and slid deep.

The pace he set was hard and fast and just this side of dirty. The position allowed
him to watch her, his eyes slitted and intense, a dark, dark blue. He reached out
to caress her breasts in time with his thrusts. Raising her hips to meet each thrust,
she encouraged him to go faster, to fuck her harder.

She couldn’t look away. He had her pinned with his eyes. He forced her to stay with
him, to match his every thrust with her own.

“Like it, Belle?”

She didn’t have the breath to answer. She could only tighten around him, making him
groan.

“I know you do. Jesus, Belle, you are so fucking tight. I love being inside you.”

His words tugged on that invisible string inside her, making her body tighten almost
to the point of pain.

Her orgasm built low in her body, her blood beating in her veins. She drew the scent
of him into her lungs with each breath and let that trigger her final descent into
bliss.

Her orgasm ripped through her, arching her body and taking him even deeper.

With a groan, he froze for a second before he began to piston his cock in and out,
each stroke a sensual delight, until finally he came with a flood of warmth.

With her eyes closed, she felt every inch of him buried inside her, felt every twitch
and pulse. Only the sound of their heavy breathing filled the air for several minutes.

Jared lay unmoving on top of her, the heat of his body like a blast furnace.

Finally, he pressed his lips to the side of her neck for an open-mouthed kiss that
roused her desire once more before he slid out of her and reached for the cords around
her wrists. With a few flicks, he released her, staring down at her with lust-darkened
eyes and a wry smile on those gorgeous, talented lips.

“You’re going to be the death of me.”

“I think that’s my line,” she said, running her hands up and down his sweaty, but
quickly cooling arms. They’d been too hot for each other to notice the cold before.
“Are you cold?”

His chuckle sent a tingle down her spine. “Yeah, not so much. But I’m sure you’re
freezing.”

Jared pulled her up and into his arms, holding her against his naked chest. For several
seconds she listened to him breathe, felt the steady rise and fall of his chest beneath
her cheek.

Now, this is what I want. Forever.

Everything stilled in that second of realization, which wasn’t really that much of
a shock. She’d been falling for him since the first moment she saw him. Her heart
had made up its mind days ago. Her brain had been slower to catch up.

Well, crap. What the hell did she do now?

Jared took that second to sit back, his gaze dropping to her sweater to watch his
fingers slide each button back into place.

When he’d finished, he stood and gathered the rest of her clothes and placed them
on the bed next to her.

His blue eyes glittered and his smile made her want to pull him back down onto the
bed with her.

“I’m just gonna see if the bathrooms are working. Stay put. I’ll be right back.” He
bent down to kiss her softly on the lips before pulling up his pants and heading down
the stairs.

Annabelle couldn’t move, her emotions roiling from more than just sex. Swallowing
past the lump in her throat, she took a deep breath and tried not to panic.

She loved Jared.

She loved his tenderness and his wit, his laugh and his sexy smile. She loved the
way he held her after they made love and she loved to see him asleep in her bed, sprawled
on more than his half, but always touching her.

He made her adventurous and she loved feeling that way about herself.

She finally felt like she was coming alive after being in limbo for so many years
since her parents had died.

She realized she needed to tell him about her parents. About who she really was. He
deserved to know the truth.

And when he knew the truth, would that change how he felt about her?

As a kid, she’d encountered two kinds of reaction to who she was. Horrified outrage
from those who thought her parents were degenerates. Or sly, innuendo-filled curiosity.

That last had been the worst. She could shrug off the outrage because those people
didn’t have a clue. They hadn’t known her parents, hadn’t known how loving their relationship
had been. How adored she’d been by three parents, who’d loved one another.

But the curiosity…That had been the toughest to deal with. The cruel questions from
the press, even some of the cops and social workers who’d taken custody of her until
her grandfather had taken her away.

How would Jared react when she told him?

And she had to tell him. She couldn’t love him then continue to lie to him about who
she really was. What if someone in the press figured it out before she told him? He
might not forgive her and he had a reputation to protect.

Jared was Philadelphia blueblood royalty. The gossip rags would have a field day.

If she told him, maybe…Maybe what?

Maybe when they got married, her cover story would hold up to the press?

Christ, was she really considering marriage?

Shaking her head, she grabbed the rest of her clothes.

No, she was getting way ahead of herself. Jared hadn’t said anything about marriage.
Hell, he’d basically told her he wasn’t looking to get married. And she’d told him
the same.

She heard footsteps below and hurried to pull on her clothes, working to clear her
expression of any and all signs of her thoughts.

She needed a little more time to think about this.

Jared couldn’t believe his luck as he hurried down the steps from the loft.

This place was almost too good to be true.

And then there was Annabelle.

She was perfect.

For the first time in his life, Jared thought he might actually be in love.

It should have scared the crap out of him. Should have made him want to head back
to Philadelphia like there was a gun aimed at his head.

Instead, all he wanted to do was run back to Belle and tie her to him. Forever.

There, that brought the fear back. Not a fear of commitment, though.

The fear she’d say no.

Latching onto the basin in front of him, feeling the cold porcelain beneath his hands,
Jared tried to sort through an avalanche of feelings threatening to bury him.

Annabelle rapped on the door. “Jared, are you okay?”

Staring into his reflection, noting his disheveled hair and sated expression, he knew
he was more than okay.

“Yeah, I’ll be right out.”

Turned out only the cold water worked, but it helped. And when he opened the door
a few minutes later, Belle still waited on the other side.

She smiled at him, and he couldn’t resist. He wrapped her in his arms and pressed
a kiss to her lips that left her gasping.

“Come on,” he said when he could breathe, “we’ve got work to do.”

For the next hour, they wandered through the house, Jared making all sorts of notes
as he placed phone call after phone call—to his brother, his lawyer, a contractor.
It seemed like he was planning a siege, and maybe he was.

Stopping in what would be the reception area just inside the front door, while Jared
continued into the kitchen, Annabelle took a closer look, trying to see what he saw.

Yes, the building had a great shape and large rooms, several fireplaces and the grand
staircase. But it didn’t have enough bathrooms, the kitchen wasn’t equipped to handle
a multitude of guests, and the entire place had been plastered, which meant there
were thousands of cracks all over the walls.

Jared saw beyond the surface. From what she’d picked up in his conversation with the
contractor, he already had an image in
his head of what he wanted. He explained in detail the building’s attributes and its
faults. Crown molding and paint colors were already fixed in his mind’s eye.

He was fascinated and, as she watched, she became fascinated with his vision. The
more she listened to his plans, the more it took shape in her mind. She saw how to
furnish Jared’s dream.

“Hey, Belle, you ready to head out? We’ve gotta get to the agent’s office by six.”

“Yes,” she said. “I’m ready.”

“Annabelle, someone’s been digging into your background.”

With the cell phone caught between her shoulder and her ear as she carted a rug out
of storage to the shop Friday afternoon, she had to stop to catch her breath. Though
not from exertion.

Dropping the rug where she stood, she took the phone away from her ear and blew out
a deep breath. She wanted to be surprised. Really, she did.

She wasn’t.

“Annabelle, are you there?”

Was it Jared? Was her background something he had Dane looking into? Had she said
something to tip him off?

She put the cell back to her ear. “Yeah, I’m here, Reggie. Were they able to get enough
info to piece it together?”

The man who’d been entrusted by her grandfather to keep her secrets gave a frustrated
sigh and Annabelle knew Reginald Kauffman was running one hand over his bald head
as if shining it.
“That’s the thing, Annie. I’m not sure. Whoever was nosing around was damn good. My
IT guy wouldn’t have caught it except for the fact that he was actually in the system
at the same time as whoever was attempting to access the files. He’s not even sure
if the guy got in or not.”

“And when was that?”

“Last Saturday afternoon.”

The day Dane had been there.

“Thanks for letting me know, Reggie.”

“Would you like me to look into it?”

If Dane was as good as Jared claimed, Reggie wouldn’t find anything. And if it hadn’t
been Dane, then maybe she’d be forewarned about some journalist’s interest.

“Sure. That’d be great.”

Reggie paused. “You sound…unsure. Is something going on, Annabelle? Is everything
alright?”

“Yes, everything’s fine. I’ve just…I’ve been thinking about revealing my identity,
Reggie. I’ve met a man…”

“Ah.”

So much said in one word.

“Annabelle, are you sure that’s wise?”

“No, I’m not.”

Another pause. “Would you like me to have him checked out?”

The thought had occurred to her, though she couldn’t imagine Reggie would be able
to discover anything about Jared she didn’t already know or couldn’t find out by asking.

And maybe she was being incredibly naïve.

If Dane had been the one digging into her background for Jared, what was he looking
for? Did Jared suspect who she was? And if he did, was he only interested in her because
of who she was? And the paintings she owned?

What should she do?

“Listen, can I call you back, Reggie? I need…I’ll let you know.”

“Of course you can. And you know I’ll do whatever I can for you, Annabelle.”

After saying good-bye, she hung up the phone and silence filled the shop.

Jared had left Tuesday morning for Philadelphia to deal with hotel stuff. And put
an offer together for the property, which looked like it was a go.

He’d called every night but hadn’t been able to return yet. Hotel business, he’d claimed.

She tried to take a deep breath but it kept getting stuck on the lump in her throat.

Was he playing her?

Yesterday, she might have said no. Today…she didn’t have a clue. It made her feel
like an idiot.

He’d said he’d call tonight. Should she confront him? What if it turned out Jared
had nothing to do with this and she revealed her most closely kept secret without
cause?