Megan quickly recounted her night and Bug’s prognosis for her friends, as Beatrice plied them with freshly baked bagels.
“So, what did you and Jake do to pass all that time together?” Ruby asked, eyebrows climbing behind her glasses.
“Um.” Megan could feel the flush spreading over her skin. “A little of that, yeah.”
“What?” Ruby said, her voice rising to a squeal. “I was just joking, Meg. Holy shit, what did you guys do?”
“Kissed, messed around some. He hasn’t…” She rubbed at the fatigue-induced headache building behind her eyes. “You know about his wife, and well, she was in a coma for nine years…”
“He hasn’t been with anyone since his wife died?” Elle asked.
Megan shook her head. “So that’s…a lot to think about.”
“It is,” Ruby agreed. “In fact, I say we need a girls’ night to discuss before you take this any farther.”
“Any excuse for girls’ night sounds good to me,” Elle said.
“Yeah,” Megan agreed. Now that she was back at the castle, dinner with Jake tonight felt like too much, too soon. Ruby was right. Shedidneed to talk this through with her friends before she made any decisions. “Let’s do it.”
* * *
Jake walkedinto the farmhouse and headed straight for the bedroom. He sat on the bed, unzipped his jacket, and tossed it aside. It felt good to sit on something soft. He needed sleep, but before he could sleep, he needed a shower. Was Megan doing the same thing right now, undressing for a shower before she climbed into bed? The image formed in his head before he could stop it, followed by a vivid memory of the way it had felt to hold her in his arms and kiss her, the intense pleasure of her hips grinding against his.
His cock hardened inside the confines of his jeans. He needed release. Desperately. All thoughts of a shower or sleep now forgotten, he lay back on the bed and unzipped his jeans, fisting himself, imagining that he was back in the barn with Megan. Instead of the mattress beneath him, it was Twister’s red winter blanket, and she was riding him hard and fast. This was his fantasy after all, so the reasons they hadn’t actually had sex in the barn didn’t matter.
He imagined sinking deep inside her, hips thrusting against hers as he barreled toward the finish line. And since it was only a fantasy, he didn’t care that he wasn’t going to last long, because his orgasm was already building, and all he could think about was getting there as quickly as possible.
His cell phone started to ring. He stilled his hand, glancing over at it. Megan’s name gleamed on the screen, and she really had amazingly accurate timing for interrupting him. This time, he could easily let her go to voicemail, though, and carry on. But suddenly, the need to hear her voice was greater than his physical need. He released his cock, swallowing a groan.
“Hello?” His voice sounded like he’d swallowed sandpaper.
“Hi,” she said. “It’s Megan.”
As if he could possibly mistake her voice or the fire that shot through his groin at the sound. “I know.”
She laughed softly. “I figured, but…you weren’t already asleep, were you?”
“Nope, not asleep.” Very painfully awake.
“You sound kind of…” She drifted off, as if she’d just realized exactly what he was doing. Maybe she had. The thought only made him harder. “Did I interrupt…?”
“Not interrupting anything,” he said, hearing the raw need in his voice and not much caring. His cock throbbed impatiently.
“No?” Now she sounded amused. “So, you don’t mind chatting with me while I get ready for bed?”
“Can’t,” he growled. “Busy.”
“That’s what I thought.” He could hear the smile in her voice. “Listen, I was just calling because it turns out I have plans tonight. Can we do dinner tomorrow night instead?”
“Sure. No problem.”
“Okay. I’ll let you go, then,” she paused. “Oh, and Jake?”
“Yeah?”
“Think of me,” she whispered.
As if he could possibly not. He slung the phone onto the table beside the bed, his fist again moving at a frenzied pace. Megan’s voice in his ear, the heat of her body grinding against his…
