remembering the last time he’d spoken to her in the hallway outside his
apartment. She had wished a hundred times she’d gone back in there and had sex
with him. Then she could have walked away the next morning and kept her emotions
safely buttoned up.
Instead she’d opened herself up to dating and already she knew
that was a mistake. The gifts, the texts and now this morning call were all
signs that they were getting in too deep.
“I did…why are you calling me so early? Shouldn’t you still be
in bed?” she asked. It was nine on the East Coast, which meant it was only six
in Los Angeles.
“Got a shoot this morning with PJ Montaine…surfing in
Malibu.”
“You do lead a hard life,” Willow said. She wasn’t ready to
talk to Jack about anything consequential. She needed time and privacy and she
hoped that there would be enough of both before she saw him again so she could
figure out exactly what she needed.
Silence buzzed on the line and she looked for something to say
so she could end this call.
“Did you like my gifts?” he asked.
“Yes. They were fun and made me smile. Thank you,” she
said.
“You’re welcome. I saw them in the lobby gift shop and since I
was thinking of you—”
“Were you thinking of me?” she asked.
“All the time,” he said with a sigh she heard through the
phone. “I can’t wait to see you again. What about you?”
She took a deep breath. “I’ve been thinking of you, too. You
are without a doubt the most complicated man I’ve ever met.”
“You sound frustrated.”
“I am.”
“Sexually?”
Startled, she had to laugh. “A little bit. This would be a lot
easier if it was just about sex. Is it for you?”
Five
S ex. She wanted to know if
he was pursuing her just for sex. It had started out that way; he wasn’t going
to lie about that to himself. But he’d dated enough women to know he could never
say that out loud.
In his mind he knew the exact moment when Willow became a woman
he wanted in his bed as opposed to being a girl he used to know that he worked
with now. And though he’d spent a lot of time imagining her straddling his lap
with that long fall of black hair spilling over her shoulders as she rode him,
that wasn’t what had made the crucial difference in how he’d seen her.
No, that had been an unexpected moment when he’d been on the
set with the second couple on the show—Alex Cannon and Fiona McCaw. Fiona had
her sweet little daughter, Bella Ann, with her.
Seeing Willow holding Fiona’s baby had been like a bolt of
lightning to him. He caught a glimpse behind that prickly shield of hers and
something had changed. He’d seen a bit of longing and such adoration for that
baby that he wanted to pull her into his arms and promise her that he’d give her
whatever she wanted.
“Jack?” she asked.
“Yeah?” he answered, still stuck somewhere in the past and in a
fantasy where they didn’t have all the pressures of his job and lifestyle. Not
to mention her job and her hang-up when it came to men and dating.
“So it is all about sex for you?” she asked. He heard more than
just a tinge of disappointment in her voice. And though he knew he shouldn’t be,
he was upset that she’d been so easily let down by him.
“I should have guessed,” she said at last.
“Don’t put words in my mouth, Willow. Of course I want you.
You’re one sexy woman and when I’m with you I can’t help thinking about what it
would be like to have those long legs of yours wrapped around my hips.”
“Really?” she asked, that adorable little squeak of hers making
an appearance.
“Yes,” he said because he couldn’t think of Willow and not
think about having her in his arms. “But it’s not just that. I also think about
how your silky hair will feel against my chest when I hold you afterward, but
that doesn’t mean I just want sex from you.”
“Why not?” she asked. “If this was just a one-night thing we
could both just do it and move
apartment. She had wished a hundred times she’d gone back in there and had sex
with him. Then she could have walked away the next morning and kept her emotions
safely buttoned up.
Instead she’d opened herself up to dating and already she knew
that was a mistake. The gifts, the texts and now this morning call were all
signs that they were getting in too deep.
“I did…why are you calling me so early? Shouldn’t you still be
in bed?” she asked. It was nine on the East Coast, which meant it was only six
in Los Angeles.
“Got a shoot this morning with PJ Montaine…surfing in
Malibu.”
“You do lead a hard life,” Willow said. She wasn’t ready to
talk to Jack about anything consequential. She needed time and privacy and she
hoped that there would be enough of both before she saw him again so she could
figure out exactly what she needed.
Silence buzzed on the line and she looked for something to say
so she could end this call.
“Did you like my gifts?” he asked.
“Yes. They were fun and made me smile. Thank you,” she
said.
“You’re welcome. I saw them in the lobby gift shop and since I
was thinking of you—”
“Were you thinking of me?” she asked.
“All the time,” he said with a sigh she heard through the
phone. “I can’t wait to see you again. What about you?”
She took a deep breath. “I’ve been thinking of you, too. You
are without a doubt the most complicated man I’ve ever met.”
“You sound frustrated.”
“I am.”
“Sexually?”
Startled, she had to laugh. “A little bit. This would be a lot
easier if it was just about sex. Is it for you?”
Five
S ex. She wanted to know if
he was pursuing her just for sex. It had started out that way; he wasn’t going
to lie about that to himself. But he’d dated enough women to know he could never
say that out loud.
In his mind he knew the exact moment when Willow became a woman
he wanted in his bed as opposed to being a girl he used to know that he worked
with now. And though he’d spent a lot of time imagining her straddling his lap
with that long fall of black hair spilling over her shoulders as she rode him,
that wasn’t what had made the crucial difference in how he’d seen her.
No, that had been an unexpected moment when he’d been on the
set with the second couple on the show—Alex Cannon and Fiona McCaw. Fiona had
her sweet little daughter, Bella Ann, with her.
Seeing Willow holding Fiona’s baby had been like a bolt of
lightning to him. He caught a glimpse behind that prickly shield of hers and
something had changed. He’d seen a bit of longing and such adoration for that
baby that he wanted to pull her into his arms and promise her that he’d give her
whatever she wanted.
“Jack?” she asked.
“Yeah?” he answered, still stuck somewhere in the past and in a
fantasy where they didn’t have all the pressures of his job and lifestyle. Not
to mention her job and her hang-up when it came to men and dating.
“So it is all about sex for you?” she asked. He heard more than
just a tinge of disappointment in her voice. And though he knew he shouldn’t be,
he was upset that she’d been so easily let down by him.
“I should have guessed,” she said at last.
“Don’t put words in my mouth, Willow. Of course I want you.
You’re one sexy woman and when I’m with you I can’t help thinking about what it
would be like to have those long legs of yours wrapped around my hips.”
“Really?” she asked, that adorable little squeak of hers making
an appearance.
“Yes,” he said because he couldn’t think of Willow and not
think about having her in his arms. “But it’s not just that. I also think about
how your silky hair will feel against my chest when I hold you afterward, but
that doesn’t mean I just want sex from you.”
“Why not?” she asked. “If this was just a one-night thing we
could both just do it and move
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