Sheltered by the Millionaire (5 page)

“We’re all called to make a difference in the world. This is my way,” she said simply and sipped her wine, her eyes tracking him with a hint of confusion.

Keep on course.

And he found himself actually wanting to get to know her better. Staying in the chair and finding out more about Megan wasn’t such a hardship. “What made you choose this line of work?”

“I’ve always loved animals.”

“But it must be more than that.”

She eyed him over the rim of her glass. “Most people accept the simple answer.”

“I’m not most people.”

He stared back, waiting even though he wanted to close the space between them and lay her down along that sofa. He burned to cover her, kiss her. Take her.

“Well, while other girls were reading
Little House on the Prairie
or Nancy Drew novels, I devoured everything I could find on animals, their history, how to care for them, how to train them.” The more she spoke, the more she relaxed on the throw pillows piled on the corner of the sofa. “I had these dreams of going to the big dog shows with my pup Snickers. I watched the shows over and over again so I could train him to do all the moves.”

She was so buttoned up and proper, all about the rules, he hadn’t expected such a quirky story from her. He wanted to know more. “What happened?”

Megan rolled her eyes and lifted her glass in toast. “Somehow I missed the memo that the dog show was just for purebreds.”

“What kind of dog did you have?”

“A Jack Russell-Shih Tzu mix. Absolutely adorable and somehow unacceptable.” She shook her head. “Wrong.”

“I’m sorry you didn’t get to have your big show with that pup.”

Her gaze narrowed to a steely determination he’d seen before, except he’d been the cause of her ire then.

“Oh, I made sure Snickers still had his moment in the sun. I trained him to ride a skateboard, made a video and sent it into the
Late Night
show. Imagine my mom’s surprise when they contacted us. I went on the show. And my dog was famous for a week.”

He leaned back with a chuckle of admiration. “If you did that today, you’d get a reality show.”

“You could be right.”

“You were famous for more than a week. I remember that story now....”

“I ran the talk show circuit until my fifteen minutes of fame was up.”

He blinked in surprise. “Somehow I didn’t guess you were a limelight seeker. I envisioned you more as the studious type, the crusader in a more conventional way. Now I see where Evie gets her showmanship.”

She laughed. “We’ve never really spent enough time with each other to form opinions.”

“You must have been fearless.” His mind filled with images of her as a child, as quirky and incredible as little Evie. “Most kids would be scared to put themselves in front of the camera that would broadcast them to the whole world.”

“I was hoping my father would see me.” She sipped her wine and stared into the flames crackling in the fireplace.

“Your dad?” he prompted.

“My biological father wasn’t in my life. He made child support payments and sent a birthday card with a check each year, which puts him one step ahead of Evie’s dad, who hasn’t so much as bought her a pair of shoes.” She cleared her throat. “But back to my father. I know he saw the show because he mentioned it in my next birthday card. He’d noticed, but it didn’t change a thing.” She shrugged. “I found out later he was married. I worry about Evie, since her father’s chosen not to be a part of her life.”

“I imagine it doesn’t help to hear that missing even a minute with Evie is his loss.”

She held up a hand. “Stop, I don’t want sympathy. I love my daughter and I’ve worked hard to build this life. I just want her to have an easier path, to find a man who will value what a gift she is.”

“That makes sense.”

She leaned forward, elbows on the arm rest. “I’m not sure you’re hearing me though. I can’t afford to make another mistake in a relationship. I have to be a good example as her mother, as a woman.”

Was she tossing him on his ass before they even got started? He angled forward, and suddenly the space between them wasn’t so great after all. “That doesn’t mean you can’t have a social life.”

“I need to be careful for my daughter.” She nibbled on her bottom lip. “So things like dating, especially now, need to be on hold.”

She half rose from the sofa and her mouth was a mere inch away from his as he sat in the leather chair beside her. Her pupils widened with unmistakable arousal. But she’d just said she wasn’t interested in dating. He had to be misreading her...unless...she wanted a one-night stand, which was ironic as hell since she was the first woman he’d had serious thoughts about dating in a very long time. Before he could wrap his brain around that thought—

She kissed him.

Five

S
himmers of desire tingled through her.

Megan settled her mouth against his. It was no impulsive “thank you” this time. She’d thought it out, planning to make the most of this evening with Whit. She could indulge in this much before returning to everyday life and responsibilities.

She’d spent so much of the past three and a half years annoyed at Whit, resisting the attraction. Until now. She’d been tempted, seeing the altruistic side of him that she’d heard about but he’d done his best to keep hidden from her. Then watching him with her daughter totally slayed her.

Just one night. That’s all she could have. And she intended to make the most of it.

Her lips parted against his, encouraging...
Yes.
His tongue traced along her mouth, sweeping inside to meet hers. Kissing. She’d longed for a man’s kiss, the bold give and take, the hard planes of a masculine body.

Of his body.

Whit.

She’d been attracted to him from the start, and resented those feelings since they’d been at odds over the property dispute. Not to mention he wasn’t particularly known for being environmental friendly. She’d given him an earful once over his purchase of a piece of wetlands.

However, even if they hadn’t been adversaries, she’d been wary of dating because of her little girl, who was less than a year old then. The memory of Evie’s father’s betrayal had still been so fresh. She’d been struggling to put her life together and Whit had threatened to rock that. She’d been tempted though, then deeply disappointed when he quickly squelched those fantasies by being a ruthless land baron, causing her constant headaches.

The ache was lower now, pooling between her legs.

She thrust her fingers into his hair, and something seemed to snap inside of him. His muscular arms wrapped around her, hauling her closer until her chest pressed to his and she sat on his lap. She wriggled against him and straddled his legs, kneeling on the leather chair. His low growl of approval rumbled against her, flaming the heat inside her higher, hotter.

His hands slid down her back in a steady caress to cup her hips. The steady press of his fingers carefully sinking into her flesh had her writhing closer. It had been so long since she’d languished in these sensations of total, lush arousal. Maybe she was feeling emotional in the wake of the storm’s destruction, leading her to want something more.

And judging from his response, he felt the same. She’d known he was attracted to her too. She couldn’t miss that in his eyes. But feeling the thick length of his arousal against her stomach sent her senses reeling.

His mouth moved along her jaw, then down her neck, his breath caressing along her overheated skin. Her head fell back to give him better access and with each breath she drew in the scent of his aftershave mixed with the sweet smell of fragrant smoke wafting up from the fireplace.

He stroked her arms, then ran his hands up over her shoulders to cup her face. The snag of his callused fingertips sent a thrill through her. He was a man of infinite finesse and raspy masculinity all at once. Would they go to her bedroom or his? She had condoms in her purse. Always. She loved her daughter but she wouldn’t risk an unplanned pregnancy.

The thought threatened to chill her and she sealed her mouth to Whit’s again, her fingers crawling under his sweater to explore the solid wall of his chest. His touch trailed back down her arms in a delicious sweep until he clasped her wrists.

And pulled her hands away from him.

She blinked in confusion. “Whit?”

He angled back, his brown eyes almost black with emotion. “You’re beautiful. I’ve fantasized about what your hair feels like so many times.”

Then he cradled her hips in his palms again and shifted her off his lap and onto the sofa. Were they going to take things further out here? She opened her mouth to suggest they go to her room when she realized he wasn’t sitting down again.

She reached up for him, ready to follow him wherever. He took her hand and pressed a kiss to her palm.

His eyes held hers. “Thanks for an amazing day. I look forward to tomorrow.” He squeezed her hand once before letting go. “Goodnight, Megan. See you in the morning.”

Cool air chilled over her flaming face. The first time she’d kissed him she could write off as an accident and save her pride. But not now. And he’d clearly been turned on and into the moment. So why the rejection?

Damn it all, she didn’t have time in her life for games. Anger took root inside her, fueled by frustrated desire. As far as she was concerned, he could take his mixed signals and stuff them.

She would communicate with him on a professional level for the animals. But beyond that, she was done throwing herself at Whit Daltry.

* * *

As Whit landed his plane on the runway back in Royal, he couldn’t help but compare this journey home to their flight out to Colorado. Yesterday’s trip had been full of chatter and fun. The whole day had been one of the best he could remember. And he wanted more of them—with Megan and with Evie. Which meant he had to stay the course. As much as he’d wanted to follow through on Megan’s invitation last night, he sensed she wasn’t as ready as her kiss indicated.

So today, he sat up front alone at the plane’s helm, while Evie stayed in the back napping beside her mom. The craft glided along the runway, slowing, slowing, slowing. He taxied up to the small airport that serviced their little town, the only place that had ever felt like home.

Megan had stayed quiet all day for the most part, giving only one or two answers to his questions about her work. Had he offended her last night? He’d only intended to ramp her interest, to take his time rather than rush her and risk her bolting. And now she’d bolted anyway after one of the most explosive kisses of his life. Only a kiss, damn it.

A cinnamon-scented moment.

The memory of that instant with her had him hard and wanting her now. But from the steely set of her jaw and straight spine, another kiss wasn’t welcome. He had some serious backpedaling to do.

He steered the plane into the appointed parking spot. His employees converged outside to service the plane, unload the luggage and all the empty animal crates. He opened the hatch and lowered the steps while Megan unbuckled her napping daughter. Megan hefted Evie up into her arms and paused by Whit, her eyes scrubbed free of any emotion.

“Thank you for everything,” she said with a careful smile.

He touched her elbow. “It was a good weekend.”

“I should get home to relieve the pet sitter. Evie and I need to tackle washing before Monday hits.” She nibbled her bottom lip, anger flickering in her eyes.

Well, hell. That cleared up any questions. He didn’t have to wonder if he’d upset her by giving her time and space. And in the process, he’d denied them both an incredible night together for no reason at all. He needed to let her know he wasn’t rejecting her, just...giving her time to adjust to the change in their relationship. “Do you need help with anything? I’ll have the crates delivered back to the shelter.”

“Thank you,” she said tightly, then looked away for a second, adjusting her hold on her daughter before meeting his gaze head-on again. “Listen, about last night when I kissed you—”

He tapped her lips. “Would you like to spend Thanksgiving together?”

Her eyes went wide with shock. “What?”

“Let’s spend Thanksgiving together.” He hadn’t planned on that particular offer, per se, but it made perfect sense now as a way to show her he was serious. “Last night wasn’t a game to me. Your place or mine, whichever you want. I don’t expect you to cook for me.”

“What is going on with you? You’re giving me whiplash.” She cupped Evie’s head. “You plan to make the meal?” She laughed skeptically.

“If you don’t mind ptomaine poisoning.” He scratched the back of his neck. “Actually, I have a cooking service and they’ll cater Thanksgiving. Unless I got a better offer from you and Evie.”

“No.” She shook her head without hesitation. “I’m sorry. But no. Spending the holiday together would give Evie the false expectations about the two of us.”

She was turning him down?

Okay, now he was truly confused. “We just spent the weekend together. How is an afternoon of turkey a problem?”

“You didn’t hear me. It’s Thanksgiving. A holiday. That’s for families.” Her throat bobbed with a quick swallow. “Last night, I, uh, I didn’t mean to give you the wrong impression with that kiss.”

“What impression was I supposed to get?” He braced a hand on the open doorway, trying to get a read on her. She’d kissed him, made it clear she was ready for sex but didn’t want anything—close. Damn. She’d wanted a quickie with him and nothing more.

Now he was mad.

“Whit, you don’t have to worry about me throwing myself at you anymore.”

“Seriously?” he said, unable to believe he’d so misread this woman. “You expect us to go back to avoiding each other after the weekend we just spent together?”

“Not at all. I can behave maturely as I trust you can too. We both have to live in this town.” Without another word, she descended the stairs and stepped out into the sunshine. The rays streamed over her hair, turning it into a beacon, and he couldn’t peel his eyes away.

Damn, she was hot when she was all fired up. Of course she was hot any time. And while he’d misjudged her intent with the kiss Saturday, he hadn’t misread her interest. For some reason she thought a one-night stand would suffice, but she was wrong.

He would give her some space for now. Holidays were tough. He got that. But after Thanksgiving?

They would not be ignoring each other.

* * *

Monday morning, Megan carried her sleepy daughter with her into work. The familiar chorus of barking dogs greeted her, reminding her of her responsibilities here, to all of the animals still in need of homes. Saturday’s placement of twelve cats had been an amazing coup for such a small shelter. She couldn’t afford to turn down Whit’s generous offer of his plane, but she also couldn’t put her heart at risk again.

The weekend with Whit had been better than she could have dreamed. He’d been charming, helpful, generous. He’d been amazing with her daughter.

And he’d been a perfect gentleman.

She was the one who’d gone off the rails and kissed him. She’d literally thrown herself at him. Again. Sure, he’d responded, but then he’d pulled away. She was starting to feel silly.

Except she knew she hadn’t misread the signs. He wanted her too. So why did he keep pulling away? She’d all but promised him a night of no-strings sex and he’d still walked.

Usually guys bailed out because she had a kid. Those guys were easy to spot. They were awkward with Evie. But Whit wasn’t that way.

Had he freaked out that there was a child in the picture at the last minute anyway? She didn’t think so. His eyes had still smoked over her at every turn Sunday. But she hadn’t felt up to the embarrassment of doing a postmortem on how he’d walked away from taking that kiss to its natural conclusion.

Damn it, she didn’t have time for these kinds of games in her life. Which was the very reason she’d wanted one night, just one night with him.

She nodded to Beth at the front desk and walked past to settle Evie in her office on the small sofa. Evie had chosen a doctor’s costume today, to cure all the people and animals hurt in the tornado. The post-Halloween sales had filled Evie’s costume box to overflowing. Every time Megan or one of her friends offered to buy her a toy, Evie shook her head and picked another outfit. Megan had thought about counseling, even discussed it with the preschool director. Sue Ellen had pointed her in the direction of some videos the other children in the preschool had watched together, but so far those hadn’t effected any changes in Evie.

Megan sagged against the open door frame.t

Beth waved from the desk. “Good morning. How was your weekend?”

She dodged the question that she didn’t even really know how to answer. “You’re here early.”

Beth cradled a mug of herbal tea, the scent of oranges and spices drifting across the room. “The kennel supervisor let me in. I wanted to see your face when you came to the shelter today.”

Alarms sounded in Megan’s mind. “Is something wrong?”

“Things are very right.” Beth set aside her mug. “A dozen guys—and women—from the Cattleman’s Club spent the weekend volunteering.”

Another reason to be grateful to a man she’d spent the past three and half years resenting. “Whit said he intended to ask them to help out....”

And she was grateful. She’d assumed a couple of them would come by to play with the dogs.

“Well, they did more than help out. In addition to doing the regular cleaning and exercising the dogs, they fixed the broken kennel run and cleared an area behind the play yard that’s been full of debris. They said they’ll be back after Thanksgiving weekend to build an agility course for the dogs and add a climbing tree for the cat house.” Beth winked, her eyes twinkling with mischief. “You must have really impressed him.”

Megan’s knees felt wobbly. He’d coordinated all that effort this weekend while she’d been thinking about a quick fling? She’d had Whit Daltry all wrong. All. Wrong.

“Whit mentioned putting in a call, but I had no idea how much they would do. Especially when everyone is still dealing with the upheaval in their own lives.”

“They care about each other and our community. They just needed pointing in this direction to help. It’s okay to ask for help every now and again, Megan. You don’t have to be a superwoman.”

She nodded tightly. “For the animals, absolutely.”

“For yourself.”

Megan stayed silent, uncomfortable with the direction of the conversation. She was happy with her life, damn it. She was looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with her daughter, eating turkey nuggets and sweet potato fries.

Memories of Evie’s laughter at the ice skating rink taunted her with all she might be missing.

“So?” Beth tipped back the office chair and sipped her tea. “How did things go with you and Whit on the great kitty transport?”

“Fantastic. The rescue is all foster-home-based, so every cat is now placed with a family until an adopter is found.” Megan opted for impersonal facts. She walked to the shelves by a small table and straightened adoption applications and promotional flyers. After Thanksgiving, she would need to put up a small Santa Paws tree for donations. So much to do. She didn’t have time for anything else. “I even made some notes for our shelter on how they handle their foster system.”