She was the sweet new temptation of a spring morning, the sultry seductress of summer's heat. And wherever he led, she kept pace with him. To places of hot, dark pleasures and whirling dervishes and erotic delights.
He told himself it was all need and greed and speed yet … for an infinitesimal hiatus, there was a lifetime in her eyes. But there was no time to puzzle it, less to wonder. He drove faster, harder, until he heard her cry out as she came, the wonder of it as he lost himself inside her.
For a long moment he rested his head on her breast, listening to her heart's rapid pounding, his own heart beating in his ears while they both came down to earth. What had just happened here? Was this intensity normal? Surely it hadn't been so long he'd forgotten what it was like?
'You okay?' he murmured, moving his lips over her skin. He looked into her eyes.
She blinked at him. 'Mm-mm.' It was a lazy, satisfied sound. 'I reckon so.'
'I think I can just about feel my legs again. What say we find somewhere a little more comfortable?' Without waiting for an answer he carried her across the patio and inside.
He set her on her feet in front of the white leather couch and stared at her. With only the underwater lights from the pool beyond the window to lend them light, awe and … something more … filled him.
She was a picture of perfection. Her lips were ripe, full, thoroughly kissed, her eyes wide and soulful, her long bare legs, dainty feet crammed in the sexiest pair of shoes he'd ever seen. Who was this dishevelled Sophie with her hair a tangled dark halo, her nipples pinched in the cool air? 'Are you cold?'
Sophie looked into his eyes and wondered who this woman was that she'd suddenly become. And how could she be cold bathed in all that stunning heat? She shook her head. 'But there is a problem here.'
He frowned. 'What?'
'I'm the only one naked. Hardly seems fair.'
A slow smile touched his lips. 'You're probably right.'
Her gaze drifted down his dishevelled torso. His shirt was crushed, his trousers hung open and low on his hips. She reached for his top shirt button. 'My turn, I think.'
She worked the rest of his buttons, then she was dragging the shirt aside so she could see if her dream lived up to the reality. To splay her hands over hard, bronzed skin sprinkled with dark hair. 'So hot,' she murmured, then leaned forward to press a kiss over his heart and feel the strong beat beneath her lips.
Still stroking his skin with its hard muscle beneath, she flicked her tongue around a tight male nipple. A tingle of salt, a whiff of masculine soap, the unique scent that was Jared. Sliding her hands over his shoulders, she eased the shirt off his arms. The immediate urgency over for the next few moments at least, she continued her journey of exploration in a leisurely, indulgent fashion.
Enjoying her newly discovered feminine power, she tugged the waistband lower and ordered, 'Everything off. Now.'
'Bossy little creature, aren't you?' he murmured, voice tinged with amusement.
When he'd obliged, she took a moment to admire the view. Gorgeous. Perfect. She had to touch. So many places. So many textures. He reigned over Michelangelo's David any day … Venice, Rome.
Her joy in the moment slipped a little. Soon she'd be far from here and this would be a memory. And it could never be anything more with him. This afternoon with baby Arabella had confirmed she'd never be the woman for Jared.
Oh, but what if she could? Rather than meet his gaze, she pressed her lips to his chest. What if he didn't care that she couldn't have kids? What if he could love her for who she was and it would be enough?
Love? She yanked herself back. Whatever was she thinking?
'Regrets?'
'Oh, no.' Now she met his eyes. 'No. I was thinking, that's all.'
'Sad thoughts.' He slid his arms around her and held her close. And his skin when it touched hers was like fire, intensely arousing yet quietly comforting at the same time.
'I've seen that look in your eyes already today,' he murmured, his words muffled against her hair.
'No.' She had to be more careful. Keep her guard up around him. She mustn't let him see. It was all about good times for the next couple of weeks. She wouldn't let herself think beyond that. 'You imagine too much.'
And she kissed his chin and smiled into those perceptive eyes. Her fingers busied themselves lower down and she saw his gaze change from concern to arousal and felt him stir to life again in her hands. She blinked and ran a thumb over the silky tip. 'Already?'
He grinned. 'Just give me a few minutes.'
She wondered how long it had been since he'd been with a woman.
She let him tug her down onto the wide leather couch. They lay close in companionable silence for a moment, staring up at the underwater light from the pool reflecting on the ceiling. Somewhere across the water drifted the distant sound of wind chimes.
'Tell me about him.'
She frowned in the darkness. Just when she thought he'd forgotten about it … 'Who?'
'The guy from your home town. The reason you left.'
'How do you … ?' She trailed off. That first day on the way to Coolangatta she'd talked about a 'change of scenery' and avoided mentioning him because it was none of Jared's business. But Jared was the kind of guy who made you want to share. 'That would be my ex-husband.'
She felt him shift, felt his gaze on her. 'You were married?'
She kept her eyes focused on the ceiling. 'For five years.'
'When?'
'We split up five years ago.'
'You must have been ridiculously young when you got married.'
The words hurt. And angered. 'I was eighteen and maybe it seems ridiculous to you but I had my reasons. Don't presume to know me, because you don't.' And just as ridiculous were the tears that stung the backs of her eyes.
He immediately rolled towards her, then up onto an elbow, and looked deep down into her eyes. Further. All the way to her scarred heart. 'Hey … ' he said softly. 'That's me being an insensitive jerk. I had no right to say that and I apologise.' He pressed a chaste warm kiss on her lips.
She stared up at him, seeing genuine concern. Because he was that kind of guy. He'd been blunt but he hadn't meant to hurt her. He'd just touched a particularly sensitive nerve. 'Apology accepted.'
He dipped his head so that his brow touched hers. 'It's just that I think of Lissa at eighteen. If she- Well.' He blew out a slow breath.
'Maybe you're too protective,' Sophie said carefully. 'Big brothers are like that sometimes.'
'What about your brother?'
'No.' She tried to remember the last time she'd seen him and couldn't. 'Corey's one of the exceptions.'
'So this man you married and divorced still puts clouds in your eyes. He still has the power to hurt you.'
'No.' She shook her head. 'How can a man who means nothing to you hold that kind of power? He has another woman, a young son and another baby on the way. He's happy. I'm happy,' she finished, determined, as much to convince herself as to convince Jared. If Glen was unfaithful to his current wife, Sophie didn't know about it. Didn't care.
'Do you want to tell me why you married him?'
'Because I was ridiculously young?' She gave a half-smile, forgiving Jared, and he reached for her nearest hand, twined his fingers with hers and somehow the story flowed like the river outside while she lay in his arms. She'd never shared her past. Only Pam knew her story, but sharing it with Jared felt natural, like lifting a burden off her shoulders. And it was almost as seductive as sex.
'My parents drank a lot and fought more. Dad was in and out of work. Violence was the norm. Corey was out of there by the time he was sixteen. 'But when I was sixteen Mum was involved in a major car accident and I stayed on to help. That lasted about eighteen months but eventually I couldn't stand the arguments and the booze any longer.
'I'd met Glen a few months earlier. He was ten years older than me and we were both working in hospitality. He seemed a good-natured guy and, looking back now, I guess I saw him as a substitute father.' A safe haven. A way out. 'One day we walked into a register office and just did it. When I informed my parents, they told me I was nothing but a disappointment, no better than my brother. Then they cracked open a cheap bottle of wine and began to drink themselves into their regular oblivion. I never saw them again.'
Jared gathered her to him. For a long moment he offered no words, just a hug as sweet and comfortable as it was uncomplicated.
'I send them Christmas and birthday cards with a cheque when I can afford it. They cash the cheques without fail but I've never heard boo from them. So I don't go back. I don't want to.'
He squeezed her hand. They both knew the money was wasted. 'So … you keep a dream diary,' he prompted, switching to a less painful topic a moment later.