By the time she was twelve Kyle had entered college, and she saw less and less of him, but her feelings had only intensified over the years. By the time she was fourteen she was still operating under the strain of an enormous crush on him. At the age of sixteen her crush had transformed into love. It was that same year that she experienced her first heartbreak over his engagement.
In the following years, thanks to numerous publishers who loved to print new stories about the rich and famous, she had read with envy as Kyle wined and dined one gorgeous woman after another. She had long ago accepted that she was someone whom he would never be interested in.
She felt disappointment touch her with a tangible force. The only reason Kyle had married her was to fulfill his grandfather’s wishes. She knew she was a far cry from the glamorous women he preferred. Luckily her heart was now inviolate to him.
A lump formed in Kimara’s throat when she suddenly became aware of the state of her dress-- or undress --which meant Kyle had removed most her clothing the previous night. The last coherent memory she had of the night before was him carrying her over the threshold. She wondered what happened after that? Certainly they had not made love. She would remember if they had. Wouldn’t she?
Deciding it would be best not to be in the same bed with Kyle when he awakened, and to give herself time to try to remember exactly what did or did not happen in that bed, she tried easing out of his arms.
Kyle’s hand resting on Kimara’s hip tightened and his leg moved over hers. “Going someplace, sweetheart?”
Her gaze flew upward and the eye contact jolted her as an intense sensation erupted deep in the pit of her stomach. She lowered her eyes, suddenly feeling shy and uncertain. “Yes. It’s morning.”
Kyle’s hold on her tightened even more. “I can see that,” he replied huskily, pushing himself up on one elbow and looking down at her.
A warm feeling began to seep from Kimara’s fingertips to her toes with Kyle’s touch. “Kyle, I don’t think we should--”
“You don’t think we should what?” he asked, cuddling her closer to him. He nuzzled her face, and then gently kissed her lips. “I think we should do whatever we feel like doing. After all, we’re married.”
She ignored the feel of the stubbly chin scraping her skin, but she could not ignore the feel of his kiss on her lips. Nor could she ignore the hair-covered leg over hers or the feel of the hard, masculine bulge that was resting against her side. A blush spread across her features. He didn’t have on any clothes!
“Kyle, I think we should talk about this. I know the reason we married, but I don’t think we should rush into anything. Shouldn’t we get to know each other better?”
Kyle threw his head back and let out a great peal of laughter. “Get to know each other better? Baby, I’ve known you from the very beginning. Have you forgotten that I was here in this very house the night you were born? I was barely seven at the time. Our fathers tried their damnedest to talk your mother into going to the hospital, but she refused. My mother wasn’t any help. She was encouraging your mom to be rebellious. Dr. Firestone arrived just in time. He was in this house less than five minutes before you were born.”
Kimara couldn’t help but smile at Kyle’s recounting of the story she’d heard numerous times. According to her father, her mother had almost given him heart failure that night.
“Then there was the time I got into trouble when I was twelve for something that you did, Kimara.”
She raised a brow. “And what did I do?”
A smile touched Kyle’s lips. “You were around five years old at the time and had decided you wanted to play pirate by burying things. When I happened to come upon you on your knees, busy at work digging a hole in our backyard, I foolishly agreed to help you bury your treasure. How was I to know that little brown bag you were burying contained some of your mother’s valuable jewelry?”
Kimara couldn’t help laughing. She tried to ignore the slight ache in her head from her overindulgence in champagne the day before. “Oh, Kyle, I remember that! I did get you in trouble, didn’t I? I really didn’t mean to. It was just a game. I’ll never forget the look of horror on my parents’ faces when they found out a large chunk of the Staffords’ gems were buried in a hole somewhere on the Garwood estate. It was a good thing you remembered where the spot was. I was too tired and sleepy after all that digging to even care.”
Kyle’s laugh was deep, warm, and rich. “Then there was the time that I jumped into that huge swimming pool to save that blasted puppy of yours and almost got my nose bit off in the process.”
“He thought you were trying to hurt him.”
“I was trying to save his hide.”
Kimara tried to suppress a giggle. “He didn’t know that. He was afraid.”
“If you say so. But it didn’t help matters when that same animal grew up to be an ungrateful mutt. He tried to bite me again when I dropped by to see you years later.”
“He didn’t remember you, and he was trying to protect me,” she implored as a smile stole into her features.
“I guess in that case I can forgive him for the mix-up. But, as you can see, Kimara, we do know each other,” Kyle said in a silky voice. “The only way we really don’t know each other is intimately, but we’ll remedy that soon, won’t we?”
Before she could think of a reply, Kyle’s mouth came down on hers. The unexpectedness of the kiss and the erotic feelings it evoked made her heart begin hammering in her chest. His tongue, silken and hot as a summer’s night, flitted across her lips in a taunting play of feathery strokes. She found herself filled with a strange inner excitement. A shudder passed through her when Kyle deepened the kiss, allowing his tongue to penetrate the confines of her mouth, and at the same time he gathered her closer into his arms and held her snugly.
When his tongue came into contact with hers, a sensuous duel took place. Kimara’s skin tingled with this intimate touch. When he finally released her, she relaxed, sinking into his cushioning embrace, totally in awe of the magnitude of the effect Kyle’s kiss had on her. His breath was warm and moist against her face, and she could see the smoldering depths of his eyes and a light sheen of moisture on his lips.
Kimara blinked, and then focused her gaze again on him. He stared back; his gaze beckoned her closer and closer. Suddenly she remembered that night, so long ago, when she was going to reveal to him the secret of her love. But only it hadn’t worked out that way. He had chosen another. A pain surrounded her heart at the memory. She didn’t want to fall under Kyle’s spell ever again. Every time he kissed her she felt things she’d never felt before. Suddenly feeling a need to get away from him, she placed her hands on his chest, intending to push him away. But he didn’t let her. He covered her hands with his.
“I’m not ready to let you go yet.”
Kimara ignored the rich seductiveness in his voice. But she couldn’t ignore the feel of his free hand as it slowly moved upward toward her inner thigh. “Stop it, Kyle. I have no intention of making love with you right now. The only thing I plan on doing is taking a shower and fixing breakfast.”
Kyle frowned at the iciness in her voice and pulled both hands away. “And what about the kiss we just shared?”
“What about it? Our hormones were acting up, nothing more. We’ll just have to work hard at keeping them under control, won’t we? And what you said earlier isn’t true. We don’t know each other, at least not as adults. All we have between us are childhood memories, and they don’t make a relationship.”
Kyle looked exasperated. “Who’s concerned about a relationship? We’re not here to play a game of ‘getting to know you.’ We’re here to--”
“I know why we’re here. I allowed you to rush me into this marriage, but I won’t be rushed into anything else, especially sleeping with you. I don’t feel comfortable sharing a bed with a man I know nothing about other than what I read in the papers and magazines.” She didn’t add that she wasn’t in a hurry to sleep with the man who had hurt her once, and if she didn’t keep the upper hand, could possibly hurt her again.
“Please turn your back, Kyle.”
He lifted a brow. “Turn my back? For what?”
“I need to get out of bed.”
“What’s stopping you?”
She took a deep breath. “I have no intention of parading in front of you half naked.”
Kyle rolled his eyes upward, shaking his head. “Kimara, I undressed you last night. Besides, soon enough I’ll now your body as well as I know my own. Why do you want to hide it?”
She shrugged. “I’ll appreciate it if you’ll just turn your back.”
“What if I don’t want to?” he said with a wicked smile.
Kimara’s eyes reflected her anger. “You’re impossible!”
“I’m sorry you think so. I just happen to love looking at you. You should have figured that out that day by your pool. However, since I feel like being a nice guy this morning, I’ll be glad to get your robe for you. I put away some of your things last night.”