It wasn’t until Jason left town that she’d learned Shaun had been harboring feelings for her. With her being madly in love with Jason, she’d never even considered that Shaun’s devotion was anything more than a deep, caring friendship. But the night Jason broke her heart at the Christmas dance, Shaun had been the one to drive her home. And again, a couple of months later, he’d been there at one of the lowest points in her life. He’d reached out to her and...
“Kara, are you okay?” Jason asked, moving next to her.
She glanced back at the photo, seeing Shaun’s sweet smiling face...so much like her daughter’s.
“I’m fine.” Her voice was barely more than a whisper.
“It’s okay. You aren’t alone. I miss how things used to be, too.”
The wind howled outside, while Jason’s heated gaze warmed her soul. The past and the present collided. His thumb brushed over her cheek and down her neck. Kara’s heart thumped madly. Could he feel the blood pulsating through her veins, making her head dizzy with need?
His gaze dropped. His pupils dilated. He was going to kiss her. Her breath caught in her lungs. This was wrong. But it’d be only once. For old times’ sake. Drawn to him in the same manner a hummingbird craves sweet nectar, she licked her lips with the tip of her tongue.
His head lowered. She should turn away.
Instead, her eyes drifted closed. His mouth pressed to hers. A moan of long-held desire formed at the base of her throat. This was crazy. Utter madness. And in that moment she wanted nothing more than to be here with him, like this.
She slid her arms over his shoulders. Her fingers stroked his short tufts of hair, enjoying the texture.
His hands moved to her waist, pulling her closer. Her chest bumped against the hardness of his. Her palms slid down his shoulders, savoring the ripple of muscles. No man had a right to feel so good. She attempted to impress every delicious detail, every spine-tingling sensation to memory. She never, ever wanted to forget this moment.
His mouth plundered hers. She welcomed him with an eagerness of her own. Her protective walls fell away, leaving her open and vulnerable to this man who made her body sing with desire.
Her breath came in rapid gasps. Her hands slipped inside the collar of his shirt. His skin was smooth and hot.
“Kara,” he murmured, as his lips traced up her jaw. “I want you so much.”
She wanted him, too. The years peeled away. Lost in a haze of ecstasy, she couldn’t form even the simplest of words. Instead, she sought out his lips and showed him how much she wanted him.
A thundering crack sent her jumping out of his arms. Dazed, she glanced around the room.
“What...what was that?” she asked, her breathing labored.
“It’s okay,” he said, running a hand over her hair. “Probably a tree limb snapped in the wind. As long as it doesn’t come through the roof, we’re in good shape.”
Satisfied they were still safe in their little bubble, away from the realities waiting for them just outside the door, she turned her hungry gaze back to him. She leaned forward, eager to taste him once more. Thirsting for him like a person lost in the desert thirsts for water, she pressed her lips to his mouth.
Yet his lips did not yield to her.
They were pulled tight, resisting her advances.
Confused, she sat back.
The flames of desire in his eyes had died out.
“This can’t happen.” His voice was raspy and his chest heaved. “You and me. This thing. It can’t happen. Not now. Not ever.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
EVERY MUSC
LE IN Jason’s body tensed, bracing for the firestorm brewing in Kara’s eyes. She yanked herself out of his hold.
“You’re right.” She ran a shaky hand over her mussed-up hair, failing to smooth the unruly waves. “I don’t know what I was thinking. You rejected me once. Why in the world did I think it’d be any different now?”
“It’s not you. I never rejected you.”
“Really? That’s odd. I seem to recall you making me promises of forever, and then just leaving, with no explanation.” Pink stained her cheeks as her voice rose almost to a shout. “You didn’t even have the decency to tell me what I’d done wrong. You never gave me a chance to fix things.”