“You kept it.” She breathed heavily. “You…You’re wearing it.”
He smiled—oh, how she’d missed that smile—and she felt it all the way to her toes.
“You’re here.” She grabbed the lapels of his tuxedo and held on tight, with no plans of ever letting go. “And you’re beautiful.”
“No, Jessie. You’re beautiful.”
“Kiss me, Jamie. Please, don’t make me wait another seco—”
He sealed his lips over hers. His mouth was warm as their tongues met and found their familiar rhythm, as if they’d never been apart. His low moan told her he’d missed her as much as she’d missed him, and when he deepened the kiss, to a hungrier, rougher kiss, she pulled herself tighter against his hard body. His hands moved over her hips, up her back, one hand tangled in her hair, the other gripping her lower. She was his. So very his.
“I’ve missed you,” he said against her lips and tugged her hair back a little, opening her mouth so he could take his fill.
She wrapped her arms around his neck as he slid his lips to her jaw and nipped, then dragged his tongue slowly over the tender spot, drawing a moan from deep inside her. His forehead touched her, and he looked deeply into her eyes. She nearly crashed to the ground again at the well of emotion that lay there. For her. For them.
“Come home with me, and I promise we’ll talk, but I need you with me, Jessie. I don’t want to let you go again.”
She nodded, still shaken to be near him again. He picked up her cello and phone, and wrapped a powerful arm around her waist, pulling her against him so hard that he was practically walking for her.
In the car, she needed to get the rest out of the way before they fell into each other’s arms again, because once they did, it might be a very long time before she remembered how to speak. But no words came.
He drove with one hand holding hers, the other on the steering wheel, bringing back memories of when they’d left Marconi Beach and pulled over on the dark side street. A rush of heat shot through her with the intimate memory.
“When you didn’t call back, I thought I’d lost you for good.” His voice was rough with desire, his eyes were dark and sensual, and as hopeful as she felt.
“I was a distraction and didn’t want to make it worse.” She glimpsed his reflection in the window. With the starched white collar against his tanned skin and his five-o’clock shadow, he was more handsome than any movie star, but it was his voice that shot to her heart. The love and desire, the hope and apology, all wrapped up in one, made her pulse quicken and her heart feel full.
“No. You were never a distraction. I love you, Jessie. I was stupid not to come right back to your apartment that night.”
She lowered her eyes, catching a glimpse of the stone on the mood ring. Pink and violet. She’d never seen one turn both of those colors at once. Amorous. Heat. Sensual. Happy. Curious. She’d memorized all of the meanings in the days they’d been apart.
Jamie pulled down a residential street. The houses sat far back from the road, each different from the next, and, she realized as they drove slowly past them, these were no houses. They were mansions. Sprawling homes with several wings and stories, set on several acres of perfectly manicured lawn. Vera’s cottage at the Cape was modest, small even. She hadn’t pictured Jamie in anything as lavish as a mansion. She glanced at him again, in his perfectly pressed tux, driving the expensive vehicle that she had somehow overlooked. How did I miss this? She must have been so taken with him that everything else fell away. Another trick of love, she assumed.
Jamie turned off the residential road onto a dark, tree-lined street. With the umbrella of trees blocking the moonlight, the road was pitch-dark, save for the beams of the headlights.
“Is this your street?”
“This is my driveway. It’s a little long.”
They’d been driving on the same dark road for at least three minutes already. No wonder Mark was ridiculously protective of Jamie. Probably every single woman within a hundred miles who knew anything about the Internet was after him.
They rounded a bend and in-ground lights spilled onto the pavement. Aboveground lights illuminated the night like magical fountains, and just beyond the circular drive was a beautiful and unique stone cottage. A round stone tower with a conical roof anchored the home on one side, with various-sized peaked roofs over nooks and bay windows in the recessed center of the home, and a three-car garage rooted on the far side. The ornate variations in size and shape of stone, evident even from the driveway, gave the home a warm, aged appearance.
Jamie parked in the driveway, and before getting out of the car, he took Jessica’s hand and, for a minute, gazed into her eyes.
“Jess.” His voice was soft as his eyes rolled over her face, neck, and shoulders like a caress. “The way I see it, we have two options. I can carry you up to my bedroom and make love to you until neither of us can remember anything about the last few days, or we can go inside, open a bottle of wine, and clear the air before going any further.”
His voice was tender and patient, his words carefully chosen. He didn’t move to get out of the car or try to rush her to make a decision. He was just as patient with her as he’d always been, which made the decision even more difficult.
“What if…?” She closed her mouth tight, debating if the question was worth asking. Maybe she should choose making love. She wanted that connection. To be that much closer and lose herself in him the way she had days earlier. But somewhere deep inside her, even though she didn’t have experience with this type of thing, she knew that was a bad idea.
“What if we talk, and then something one of us says changes everything?” She didn’t want to believe it could happen, but after the last few days, she realized that she didn’t know squat about how quickly relationships could go awry.
He slid his hand beneath her hair and stroked the nape of her neck with his thumb. “Then maybe it’s better if we do clear the air first, so you have no regrets later. Jess, I love you, and I’m ready to commit regardless of what happens when we talk. Nothing you could say, short of telling me you’re a child-abusing heroin addict, will change that.”
She laughed at the quirky smile on his beautiful lips as he spoke.
“I would rather know that you’re just as committed to me—to our relationship—before making love to you, so maybe it’s better if we talk and then decide where we go next.”
A nod brought his arms around her in a warm embrace that her body took as an invitation to go soft against him. Talking was not going to be easy.
Jamie held her hand as he guided her through the wide hardwood foyer, over inlaid mosaic tiles in a spacious living room, past a fireplace and several sets of French doors.