Hot in Here (31 page)

provide relief.

Stepping into the kitchen, she stopped just in time to see Bryce standing shirtless at the kitchen counter,

drizzling honey over something.

He stopped. She hadn’t made a sound, but it was as if he felt her standing there watching him. As he

looked over his shoulder, he put the honey down and wiped his hands on his jeans.

His gaze raked over her from the top of her head to the tips of her pink toes, which Sarah had painted

for her only a few hours before. When his stare proceeded back up the length of her, Jenna recalled that

she was wearing a translucent baby doll negligee that left little to the imagination.

“I just came for a drink,” she muttered as she made a beeline for the fridge. But when she reached the

door, he was standing there, looming over her, his hazel eyes almost black.

He didn’t say anything, just reached out and grabbed her wrist, turning her until he had her trapped

between the counter and his hard thighs.

She struggled, and the strap of her nightie slid down her shoulder. She froze as he put his face into the

crook of her neck and pressed against her, his mouth moving slowly, almost imperceptibly along the

column of her throat as his hands tightened hard against her waist.

“I’ve missed this, smelling you. Feeling you against me.”

“Bryce, don’t.”

“Jenna, talk to me,” he pleaded. His lips were nuzzling her ear and her traitorous libido began to wave the

white flag. “We’ve always been able to talk to each other, no matter what.”

“There were never lies between us before.”

“Lies aren’t the only thing separating us,” he retorted. “You are.”

She gaped at the accusation. “I beg your pardon? I’m not the one who plotted with my brother to date a

plain Jane and get my picture taken with her to restore my reputation.”

“I told you, I didn’t know Trey was going to do that. He never meant to hurt you and neither did I. He

thought he was helping me—helping us—by pushing us together. I don’t know how to make you

understand. Maybe if you stayed and had some dessert with me, we could talk, and I could convince you

to believe in me.”

She wasn’t surrendering, and certainly not this easily. “I don’t think so, Bryce. The last time you fed me

dessert, I ended up sleeping with you—which is how we got into this mess in the first place.”

He reached for the pie plate and showed it to her. “Whenever I’m stressed, I cook.”

“Whenever I’m stressed, I eat.”

“Then we make a good pair.”

Oh, she was so not falling for this, for the words that were tripping so easily—too easily—from his

mouth. She’d fallen for it in Tuscany, that day he’d been posing for the camera, and she’d been looking

up at him like a lovesick fool.

“I came in here, not knowing what I was doing. Everywhere I looked,everything , it just brought me back

to you. Everything in this house, this kitchen, is a reminder of you—of us. It’s the memories of the

past—it’s the glimpses of the future.”

There went that white flag again, waving like mad. Her thighs were beginning to tremble and she felt the

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first flush of moisture trickle out of her sex. He certainly was a master at more than cooking.

“Even when I closed my eyes, I could see you, hear you, smell you. So, I did the only thing I could: I put

everything that reminds me of you into this dessert.”

“I remind you of a pie?” Well, wasn’t that romantic? A fattening piece of lard and sugar. She didn’t know

whether to laugh or cry.

Bryce reached up and pulled the elastic from her ponytail. Her thick hair tumbled to her shoulders and

Bryce smoothed it back, caressing her collar bone. “The crust is made with buttermilk. It made me think

of your skin: white, creamy, smooth, rich. The peaches are for how you blush. I’ve never been able to

look at a peach and not think of you.” As if to prove his point, he trailed his fingertips down her arms,

and damn her, she felt her skin begin to heat up. “See, that’s the peach glow I love so much.”

“Bryce—”

He put his fingers over her lips. “The almonds, they remind me of the way you smell, the way your skin

tastes when I trail my tongue all over you. And you know what the honey reminds me of. I can still taste

your honey, Jenna, the way it drips onto my hand, my tongue.”

OK, so that was romantic and the white flag was flying high again. But she still wouldn’t let herself buy it,

even though she was beginning to turn into a pile of liquid honey right there on the kitchen counter.

“Don’t go, Jenna,” he pleaded, his voice hoarse. “Please stay.”

“We have nothing we need to say to each other.”

“I’ve got ten years of things to tell you.”

“I’m not interested.”

“How can I tell you, Jenna?” he murmured against her throat as his lips trailed lower. “How can I make

you understand what I feel for you? Do I just say the words? Will you even listen?”

No, she wouldn’t. She couldn’t. She couldn’t allow herself to think of anything but that hated e-mail and

those pictures. No words could erase what she’d read. Nothing Bryce could say now could make her

heart stop bleeding.

“How can I make you understand?” he asked again, only this time his hand left her waist and traveled

over to her belly, then slowly moved up until he reached the underside of her breast. “Do I show you

with my body?”

Definitely not,she thought, already feeling herself begin to melt.

“If I make love to you, will you understand how much I need you in my life?”

She shoved at his shoulders but he didn’t move an inch. “I’m not interested in falling into bed with you,”

she snapped, trying again to push him away.

“That’s not what you said when we started this,” he replied hotly. “Remember, Jenna? Hot, sweaty,

anytime sex, with no strings.”

“Damn you!”Jenna slapped him against his shoulder. “How could you throw that in my face after the way

you and your brother plotted against me?”

“Stop it!” He tried to keep his voice steady, though he felt himself shaking with emotion. “I told you, I

was not plotting with Trey!” He ran a hand through his hair, struggling for control. “He sent that e-mail to

push me into seeing you as the woman I loved. He knew I’d balk at any matchmatching stuff, so he

worded it in such a way that I’d never suspect what he was up to. You see, since Chrisy—” He licked

his lips and Jenna felt his fingers dig into her waist. “When Chrissy left I began to fear that I had nothing

to offer, that I could never make a woman happy. Especially a woman like you.”

“But you replied—”

“I know what I said. But try to understand how I felt. It was all so confusing. We were friends. Then we

were having sex. Then before I knew it, I was falling in love with you. But I had no idea how you felt

about me. I was afraid that maybe it was just sex you wanted, after all. That scared the hell out of me,

but I decided to go along with it. I was gambling that eventually you’d develop the same feelings for me

that I had for you. I didn’t give Trey’s e-mail a second thought. I should have taken the time to correct

his assumptions, but all I could think about that night was getting you alone. I’ve never been so out of

control, Jenna. I was going out of my mind for you.”

“But you’re the one who used me—”

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“Enough! It’s truth time, Jenna. You weren’t honest with me about your feelings, and I wasn’t honest

with you. Can you admit that we both made mistakes? That out of insecurity and stupidity we screwed

up?”

“I thought . . . I thought . . .” Oh, God, was she really ready for this? Ready to confess her feelings even

though he’d betrayed her?

“Truth time,” he repeated.

Their gazes met, held. His never wavered. She felt that penetrating stare right to the very core of her

being.

“I only offered you the sex because I thought you wouldn’t be scared off that way. I kicked you out of

my apartment that night because I thought you’d be apprehensive about anything that smelled of a real

relationship. I knew you weren’t ready for that. I didn’t know if you would ever be ready for that. And

that’s . . . all I’ve ever wanted. But I thought you’d only want the sex.”

He lifted her face in his palms and looked down into her eyes. “I love you, Jenna.” His voice was dark

and husky as the words drifted between them. “I love you so much. I want everything from you, not just

your body.”

Jenna cast her eyes down and her hands fisted against his shoulders. Her heart was beating so hard, it

was difficult to breathe. When she finally looked up, it was to see his eyes wet with unshed tears. Now

she was robbed completely of the ability to draw air into her burning lungs.

“I love how we laugh at the same things, think the same way. I love how comfortable you make me feel

in my own skin. I’m myself with you—something I’ve never been with any other woman in my life. You

don’t know what a gift that is, Jenna. You can’t imagine how I want to kick myself for not seeing you this

way before. But I am seeing you now, and I love what I see. I love you. Why can’t you believe that

you’ve done the impossible? You’ve made me want a relationship—the kind that comes with a wedding

band.”

Her mouth wouldn’t work, but then her brain couldn’t come up with the words, anyway. She just stood

there, looking into Bryce’s face.

“Marry me, Jenna. I’m ready to be a husband. I’m ready to be a father. Hell, I’m ready to be a farmer.”

“Pardon me?”

Oh, boy. Here goes. “I bought the farm.”

“You what?”

“I sold the two oceanfront properties and the farmhouse in Tuscany to buy the farm.”

“You didn’t! Bryce, those restaurants were your dream.”

He brushed his fingers along her cheek. “It means nothing if I can’t share it with you. Besides, this place

is my dream. I bought it for us. For our kids, Jenna.”

Jenna’s heart went into overdrive. She felt like she was going to pass out; her head was swimming.

“What do you know about farming?” she asked skeptically.

“Nothing except that it’s hard work and I’m damn glad your father and Ashton have agreed to help me

out. But this isn’t going to be just a farm, Jenna. This is going to be a vacation retreat for couples. And

that barn, it’s going to be my next four-star restaurant, and this house is going to be a luxury

bed-and-breakfast. And I’m going to fight like hell to get my show taped out here, too. I’m hoping

you’re going to have a damn good marketing plan to get this up and running.”

“My business,” she muttered, trying to take it all in. “I know I wanted the whole marriage and kids thing,

but I want to work, too. I’m not the stay-at-home type.”

“I know. I’d never ask you to give your business up. Actually, I was thinking that maybe you could

divide your time between here and your office in the city. I’ll still need to go into the city a few times a

week to Cravings. I thought we’d commute together.”

She looked up at him. “Are you sure?”

“About everything except your feelings for me.”

Jenna buried her face against the smooth skin of his chest. “How could you not know how much I love

you? I’ve loved you all my life!”

He pulled her back and looked down at her. “Then what do you say? Will you marry me?”

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“Oh, yeah.”

“Shall we seal the deal in your bedroom?”

“Are we bringing this?” Jenna asked, lifting the pie from the counter.

“Absolutely.” He grinned as he lifted her into his arms.

“We’ve got a lot of time to make up for.”

He put her down and patted her bottom. “Then let’s get started.”

As soon as the bedroom door shut behind them, his arms were around her and his face was buried in her

hair. “Are your mom and dad asleep?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure.”

“What’ll happen if you get caught?” he teased.

“I don’t know. I’ll probably be grounded,” she giggled.

“I’ve been dreaming of doing you on that twin bed,” he said naughtily in her ear.

Together they laughed. Jenna led him to her bed by the hand and he fell on top of her.

“Where is that pie?” Jenna asked as he kissed a path to her breast.

“Why, babe?”

“I just had a yen to eat some strategically placed peaches.”

He looked up from her body, his eyes glowing. “It’s going to be such a pleasure to grow old with you,

Jenna.”

“And I’m going to be so well fed.”

He pulled a sliver of peach from the crust and dangled it over her mouth. “In more ways than one, I

think.”

She smiled and caught the peach slice between her teeth. “You are so bad, Bryce Ryder, and I love

every sinful inch of you.”

“Good, because I love every beautiful inch of you, Jenna McCabe.”

The rain was coming down hard in straight lines. Forked flashes of lightning illuminated the black sky,

while thunder rumbled overhead. Tucked up in the hayloft, Jenna snuggled back against Bryce’s chest as

they watched the thunderstorm together.

She sighed as his hand began to roam over her belly, then sneak beneath the waistband of her shorts. He

started caressing her pussy with slow, languid strokes, as if he had all night to bring her to orgasm.