“It isn’t,” she admitted. “But I like him a lot, and I’d like to date him. I’d like my dad to know and appreciate a man I’m involved with.”
“Since when does my opinion matter on the subject of your love life?”
Lexi laughed. She couldn’t help it. That was the only obvious reaction to his absurd question. “Since forever. I don’t feel like you ever approve of my choices. And I’m tired of feeling like that.”
“The divorce wasn’t your choice.”
“But you blame me for it, don’t you?”
He frowned and marched right up to her, gently caressing her shoulder. “Never, Lexi. Roger hurt you. I would never blame you for that.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. I only want you to be happy. Roger made you unhappy, and that makes him the wrong person for you. That is the extent of my opinion on the matter.” He let go of his grip on her and strode back to the door. “As for Jack, let’s play it by ear.”
It was late on Monday night when Jack arrived back at the Appaloosa house to grab a few hours of sleep. Just like when he and Lexi had done when they’d first arrived Friday, Jack practically stumbled inside. He sat on the stairs in the foyer and untied his work boots, casting them aside. He was exhausted. Dead on his feet. It was past ten o’clock, and if he didn’t get to bed soon, that exhaustion was only going to get worse tomorrow.
He trudged up the stairs and down the hall to his bedroom, immediately confronted by the memory of his weekend with Lexi. They’d made love in nearly every corner of this room. It used to be that he would go to the window and look out at the water, but now he was struck by the mental image of the first time he saw Lexi naked, her luscious body reflected in the glass and lit by the soft glow of the moon. And then there was the bed, where time and place had meant virtually nothing because they were so wrapped up in each other. Even this room smelled like her, and that made the rest of the workweek staring him down that much more depressing. He wasn’t sure he could make it without seeing her. And that was a worry in its own right. He wasn’t supposed to get in so deep with Lexi.
Damn. What kind of spell was this woman casting over him?
To wash away his day, he walked into the bath and turned on the shower, then shucked his dirty work clothes and stepped inside. As the warm spray hit his back and shoulders, the temperature in the room began to rise. Jack closed his eyes and made a conscious decision to relax, but that made the visions of Lexi that much more real, especially in the shower, where everything was hot. And wet. As he lathered himself up, he couldn’t stop thinking about her, about kissing her, touching her and being inside her. His entire body went tight at the thought, then with a rush, the blood in his body seemed to head straight for his groin.
He opened his eyes and looked down, confronted with his own arousal. Logic said he could easily satisfy this urge on his own, but the truth was that the mere thought of Lexi made his chest ache. Rinsing, he wondered if she would be up for a late-night phone call.All I can do is try, he thought as he turned off the shower.
He grabbed a towel and dried off his chest and shoulders, then stretched out on the bed and called Lexi.
“Hello?” she answered, her voice light and bubbly.
“Hello, beautiful.” He nearly growled out his response. One word from her and his whole body felt like it was going to explode.
“I’m surprised you called. I figured you would be too busy. Or sleeping. I didn’t want to bother you.”
Jack stared up at the ceiling, but in his mind, all he saw was Lexi—her gorgeous red hair and bright green eyes. “You couldn’t bother me if you tried. What are you doing?”
“Just getting ready for bed. I was going to read for a bit then catch up on sleep. Somebody kept me up all weekend.”
Jack laughed and closed his eyes, luxuriating in Lexi’s sweet, sultry voice. Indeed, they hadn’t slept much over the course of the weekend, but rest was the last thing he cared about right now. “Have you already dressed for bed?”
“That’s sort of a weird question.”
“You wouldn’t say that if you knew what state I’m in right now.”
“And what would that be?”
Jack was having a hard time putting this into words. How he wished she was here, in some mind-blowing lingerie, and he could take off every enticing stitch of it and make love to her. “On the bed. No clothes. And hard.”
“Oh. I see...”
Lexi wasn’t giving him much to work with here, and he couldn’t help but feel like he was standing on a precipice, staring down his own future. If he leaped, would she follow? Or would she say it was too much?Life is too short to second-guess yourself, Jack.“I swear, Lexi. One step into this bedroom and all I could do was think about you and how badly I want you. How amazing our weekend was. And how much I can’t wait to do it again.”
“That’s so sweet, Jack. Truly.”
It still felt like she was missing the point. He wanted to be talking to the Lexi who was bold and not shy. He wanted her to show him just how uninhibited he knew she could be. “I’m not trying to be sweet, Lexi. I’m trying to seduce you. I want you to undress and tell me what you’re doing. Tell me what you’re feeling.”
Several moments of quiet played out on the other end of the line. The wait was excruciating. “Of course I will. Anything you want.”
“Just tell me everything, okay?” Jack put his phone on speaker and laid it next to him on the bed.
