A Hard Man to Forget (22 page)

For the first time, he seemed to realize how angry she was.
“Naturally he never shared anything with me that you told him
in confidence—"

“And how do I know that?” she snapped. “If you were
willing to go that far, who’s to say how far you went?”

“I am. Laura, you know you can trust me.”

Simon stepped forward. “Actually, we’re not so sure about
that.”

“I don’t care what you think of me,” Jason snarled
at Simon. “Laura’s opinion’s the only one that
matters.”

“Simon’s right,” she said softly. “I don’t
know that I can trust you at all.”

Hurt flickered across his face. She’d wounded him, but no more
than he’d wounded her. She saw now what a mistake she’d
made by not making her feelings clear sooner and allowing him to
remain close. She’d let this man feel like he had too much of a
say in her life. She never should have let it get this far.

“Where were you this weekend, Jason?” she asked.

“I went to visit some friends in Los Angeles. After the way you
were acting on Friday, I needed some time to get away.”

“Is there anyone who can confirm that?”

“Quite a few people, not that it matters. Why?”

“Someone tried shooting us several times this weekend,”
Simon said.

“And you thought—" He turned to Laura. Outrage
flashed in his eyes. “I can’t believe you would think I
could do that to you. I thought we were friends. I thought we could
be more.”

“I know you did, and I’m sorry. But I don’t feel
the same way about you.”

“So this is how you give me the kiss-off? You accuse me of
trying to kill you?”

“I didn’t think you had, but we needed to be sure.”

“Oh,
we
did, did we?” he echoed. “You leave
me hanging for two years, but this guy comes along and you hook up in
a couple days? I knew you had problems, Laura, but I had no idea they
were this serious.” With a grunt of disgust, he turned away
toward the house.

Simon took a step after him, anger radiating from him. Laura caught
his arm, holding him back.

“Leave it,” she said wearily. “Let’s get out
of here.”

She wondered for a moment if he was going to obey. A few second
later, his muscles relaxed beneath her hand and he let her pull him
back toward the car.

The skies chose that moment to release their burden. Heavy raindrops
began to beat down on them. They raced for the cover of the Volvo.

Simon didn’t automatically reach for the ignition when they
were both inside. He turned toward her instead. “Are you okay?”

She gave a tight nod of her head. “I knew it was going to be
bad, but that was about a hundred times harder than I ever imagined.”

“You’re better off. I’ve known the guy for two
minutes and I can tell he’s a jerk.”

“Too bad it took me two years to figure that out, right?”

“I’d say a part of you always knew. Something kept you
from getting serious with him. It’s just too bad he’s not
our shooter. He seems like the jealous type.”

“You’re so sure he’s not the one?”

“I keep thinking about what his secretary told us. He told her
on Friday that he was leaving town for a few days, leaving right
after work. If that’s true, he couldn’t have been home to
receive your call on Saturday.”

“And so he wouldn’t have seen your name on the caller ID
and seen who I was with,” she finished. “Even if he
checked his messages, I don’t think he could have checked the
ID from out of town.”

“Exactly.”

“So where does that leave us?”

“I don’t know,” he admitted. “We’re
missing something. We’ll have to give it some more thought.”

“Just not right now. I think I’ve had enough for one
day.”

“Maybe you’re right. Where do you want to go?”

“Home,” she said with a trace of longing. It felt like
she hadn’t been there in years. “My apartment’s not
far from here.”

He stuck the key in the ignition and started the engine. “Lead
the way.”

THE RAINFALL HAD TURNED into a heavy downpour by the time they made
it to Laura’s street. As she peered through the gloom at her
apartment building, she waited once again for the sense of comfort
and relief that coming home should have given her. It never came.

She didn’t ask if he wanted to come inside. She didn’t
have to. He was already unbuckling his seat belt and opening his door
before she had even reached for hers.

They didn’t have an umbrella. He came around to her side of the
car and held his coat open over her head so she wouldn’t get
drenched. It still didn’t help much. It only took two steps for
her to feel soaked through to the skin. They made a mad dash for the
building and up the stairs to her second floor apartment.

She quickly unlocked and opened the door. He hesitated before
following her in, eyeing his dripping shoes and the plush carpet
inside her apartment. She waved him in with a smile. “Come in.
You’re only getting yourself wetter.”

“I’m not sure that’s possible,” he said. But
he obeyed, allowing her to shut the door behind him.

Laura watched him survey her apartment. She tried to see it through
his eyes and didn’t like what she saw. She’d tried to
make it as much of a home as possible, but in the shadowed darkness
of the room, it simply looked drab and shabby. The furniture was
sparse and inexpensive, mostly pickups from secondhand stores. A
low-slung couch was shoved up against one wall, a small coffee table
arranged in front of it. There was a kitchen table with two chairs,
and she had a few plants. That was about it.

Standing there, seeing it with fresh eyes, she saw what she hadn’t
before. She hadn’t decorated much because she hadn’t
wanted to get attached to any of it. Some part of her had always
believed that she would find eventually remember or find out the
truth in some other way. Then she’d leave this behind to go
where she really belonged.

Now she knew the truth, but it didn’t feel like she belonged
there any more than she belonged here.

She lifted her head and found Simon was no longer looking around the
room. Not surprising, since there wasn’t all that much to look
at. He was standing completely still in that way of his, dripping
onto her carpet, watching her.

One look into his dark eyes and she had no doubt where she belonged.
It was with him.

“Aren’t you cold?” she asked.

“No.”

“Me either.” Her clothes were clinging to her body, yet
all she felt was a pressing warmth spreading through her body. “We
should still get out of these clothes before we get pneumonia. Hang
up your coat and take off your shirt. I’ll get some towels.”

Peeling off her shirt, Laura crossed over to the hallway closet and
pulled out a stack of towels. She tossed her shirt into the bathroom,
then turned back to him.

He hadn’t moved. His eyes swept over her, leaving a trail of
heat licking along her skin everywhere he looked. She had the
impression that he was holding himself in check—barely. He
wanted her. It was written in every tense line of his body, in the
dark intensity of his stare. The air between them crackled with
fevered emotion. It was palpable, and mutual. She could feel it
humming through her.

She set the towels down on the table. “Do you need some help?”

“I think I should go.”

“Why would you want to do that?”

“Because if I don’t, we both know what’s going to
happen.”

Her pulse leapt in her throat. “Would that be so bad?”

“Once burned, twice shy,” he said, a darkly amused tilt
in his voice. “I’m not sure you know enough to make an
informed decision.”

“I know everything I need to know.”

“Really? Enough to guarantee you won’t have second
thoughts in the morning? That you won’t take off again?”

“I told you I’m not going anywhere.”

He merely arched a brow and said nothing. The gesture did enough to
connote his disbelief.

She stifled a sigh. Maybe he was right. Maybe it was a promise she
couldn’t make. She couldn’t remember why she’d left
the first time. How could she guarantee she wouldn’t again?

She couldn’t. But that didn’t matter. She was tired of
trying to figure out the past and worrying about the present. Even if
all they had was this moment, she’d take it, fully believing it
was worth it.

Laura reached for the button of her pants, taking several long steps
forward as she did. “Don’t you want me?”

His mouth twisted in a dark smile. “That was never the
problem.”

She popped the fly, slowly pulling the zipper down. “Then there
shouldn’t be one now.”

“I’m not sure you know what you’re doing. I
wouldn’t be much of a man if I took advantage of that.”

Her pants now loose, she let them tumble to the floor at her feet. “I
may not remember doing this before, but I definitely know what I’m
doing.”

As if to prove it to him, she grabbed two fistfuls of his shirt and
pulled it apart. Buttons flew in all directions. Neither of them
checked to see where they went.

Laura lowered her eyes to his bare chest. Releasing his shirt, she
placed her hands flat on his taut pecs. The light dusting of crisp
chest hair tickled her fingers. She smoothed her hands over the
muscle there, and felt his heart thump unevenly beneath her touch. He
tensed and trembled the slightest bit, and a ragged breath slipped
from his mouth.

He said nothing. She knew he was maintaining control by the slimmest
of threads. She didn’t know why he bothered.

Testing him, she leaned over and pressed a kiss to the bare skin at
his throat. His adam’s apple constricted against her cheek. She
let herself fall against him, her breasts brushing his chest with
only the thin scrap of her bra between them. He smelled so good. She
inhaled deeply, pulling the scent of him into her until it penetrated
every inch of her body.

“How long has it been since I touched you like this? Since you
felt my skin against yours?”

“Too long,” he whispered.

She met his eyes. “I don’t remember,” she said.
“Help me remember this. Help me remember the way it was, and
make sure I never forget.”

That was all it took. A low growl rumbled deep in his throat. He
reached for her, grabbing her upper arms and pulling her close. The
motion was so fast a gasp escaped from her throat.

Then his mouth was on hers, swallowing the sound.

The gasp died on her lips, quickly replaced by a low hum of
contentment that rumbled forth from deep in her belly. His kiss by
now had become familiar, but far from tired. Sparks of excitement
zinged along her skin as his firm, purposeful lips stroked against
hers. She pushed her palms higher up his body, lifting her arms to
wind them around his neck. His tongue pushed into her mouth and
grazed against her teeth. She responded in kind, sliding her tongue
against his, wanting that taste of him, needing it.

His arms went around her, hauling her up against his body. She didn’t
know if he’d lifted her straight off her feet or if it merely
seemed that way. Suddenly it felt like she was floating, weightless,
in his arms. Nothing else registered but Simon. He filled her senses,
surrounding her with his taste, with his touch, with his smell. With
the way his muscles felt holding her close and the way the hairs on
his belly felt tickling the smooth skin of hers. It was all she could
do to cling to his neck and hold on tight, the heady sensation of
being with him buzzing through her body.

She didn’t know how they made it to the bedroom. He must have
carried her. The next conscious thought she had was of the bed
bumping the backs of her calves. He lowered her onto the mattress.
She almost thought he was going to pull away and she held on, not
wanting to let go. But he fell with her onto the bed, covering her
body with the long, slender length of his. He was so big, so warm.
She felt more than heard the low chuckle that shuddered through him
as he dragged his lips from hers.

“For a beginner, you certainly know what you’re doing.”

“Some things just come naturally,” she said softly.

“Like you and me.” The certainty, the rightness, of those
words sent a burst of warmth through her chest. It was different from
the giddy rush his body inspired, something far deeper. A lump of
emotion lodged in her throat. She didn’t need to remember
anything to know what he said was true. Nothing had ever felt more
right than this.

He started to lower his mouth onto hers again. She stopped him,
lifting her hand to his face and curving her palm to his cheek. He
was nothing more than a silhouette, looming huge and shadowy over her
in the dark. Even this close, she couldn’t see his eyes, so she
knew he couldn’t see hers. Suddenly nervous, she was glad for
the cover the darkness provided. “I’ve never done this
before,” she admitted. “Not since…the attack.”

The doctors had examined her in the hospital, so she’d known
all along she wasn’t a virgin. But despite her bravado in the
living room, she’d never felt more like one than at this
moment. This would be the first time that she remembered.

He hesitated for only a split second before dipping his head, this
time moving his mouth to her ear. “Me either. Not in three
years.”

A rush of adrenaline soared through her veins at the words. She
didn’t have a chance to absorb them before he was kissing her
again. This time she didn’t stop him. There was no need. They’d
waited long enough.

They made quick work of their clothes, hands desperately seeking
buttons and clasps, eager for new territory to explore. He unfastened
her bra and slid the garment off. His fingers moved to cup her
breasts, stroking over the round fullness of each. Her nipples were
already swollen and tender, and when he brushed the rough pads of his
thumbs over the engorged tips, a soft moan of pleasure tugged itself
from her mouth. She shoved his shirt from his shoulders, letting her
hands play over the smooth, muscled lines of his back. She tried to
memorize the feel of each one beneath her fingertips, wanting to
remember everything about him, every tiny response and reaction she
caused in him. His body fascinated her, and she didn’t ever
want to forget again.