“Damn, Wyatt, this is impressive,” Lena breathed, taking it all in.
“If I’m going to take you away somewhere, I’m going to do it right,” I told her, pulling her into my arms and kissing her.
She laid her head against my chest, relaxing into me. “I should let you take me away more often,” she murmured.
I held her tightly. “Anytime, baby. Anytime.” She had no idea how sincerely I meant it.
“Let’s check out the rest of this place,” Marlena said after a few minutes, extracting herself from my embrace, but taking my hand again.
There were three bedrooms, but the master bedroom was truly opulent with a California king-sized poster bed taking up the center of the large space, there were more picture windows that overlooked the valley, and a two-seater couch tucked away in a nook. There was another fire blazing from a stove in the corner.
Lena released my hand and slowly walked to the windows. “God, it’s gorgeous. This is about as close to my dream house as I’ve ever seen.”
I came up behind her and put my arms around her waist. She leaned back into me and I rested my chin on the top of her head. “I could stay here forever,” I admitted.
“You and me both. It’s perfect,” Lena agreed.
It would have been so easy to turn this moment into something sexual. To slowly move my hands down her front. To let my fingers dance between her thighs. To palm her breasts. To do all the things to her body that I knew she loved.
But I was hesitant to go there.
Not because I didn’t want to—God, I wanted to—but because this was an opportunity to spend time together in a different way.
I nuzzled the side of her neck, relishing the taste of her on my lips. “Get changed. Put on that something fancy I told you to pack. It’s time for me to wine and dine you,” I murmured.
“We don’t have to go anywhere. Maybe we should call something in,” Lena suggested.
I turned her around so that she was facing me. I cupped the sides of her face. “We keep this thing between us secret for obvious reasons. But there’s no reason to do that here. There’s not a chance anyone will see us.” I caressed her cheeks with the pads of my thumbs. “Indulge me. Let me be a decent guy for once. Let me show you I can treat you like a queen.”
Her expression went soft. “You don’t need to prove anything to me, Jeremy.”
I kissed her. Softly. Tenderly. “Maybe I do.”
Chapter 14
Jeremy
Lena wore a form-fitting black dress that dipped dangerously between her cleavage. The skirt hit right above her knees and she wore red high heels that showed off her long legs. She had pulled her hair over one shoulder and a solitaire diamond necklace rested in the hollow of her throat.
“Fucking hell, woman. Dressed like that I’m not sure we’ll make our dinner reservation.” I licked my lips, thinking of how much I would enjoy taking that dress off her later.
Lena put a hand on her hip and gave me a saucy smile. “I thought you wanted to wine and dine me.”
I stalked across the room and took her in my arms. I captured her mouth greedily. My tongue plunged inside, mating with hers. I wanted to devour her. I wanted to consume her completely. I pulled away after a few seconds, both of us panting. “I do. But I also want to woo and screw.” I raised an eyebrow and Lena laughed.
She smacked my arm. “Where do you come up with this stuff?” She smirked and grabbed her purse, then patted my ass. “You clean up pretty nicely yourself. Those slacks mold your butt like a glove.”
It was my turn to chuckle. Lena Ducate knew how to turn the tables on me. I loved it. I had dressed in dark grey dress slacks and a cashmere sweater. I took her arm and walked her out to the living room where we had left our coats.
Upon opening the door, I could see it was still snowing. It was a good thing my car had four-wheel drive. I opened the passenger side door for Lena and let my eyes wander up the length of her as she carefully got in.
A few minutes later we were headed toward town.
“Are you warm enough? I turned the seat warmers on,” I told her as I drove slowly down the road.
“I’m perfectly comfortable.” Lena rubbed her hands together. “So where are we going? I like surprises and all but I’m hungry, so I want to start preparing.”
I grinned. “I’ve noticed you definitely like to eat.”
She gave me a bland look. “I don’t understand why I should deny myself food I enjoy because it’ll ruin my figure. I say life’s too short. As long as you’re healthy, go for it.”