The Best Man (24 page)

You don’t deserve to be loved
. It was the voice of her father.

“You’re wrong, Daddy. I do deserve
to be loved. And I want to love.”

She blotted out the picture of her
enraged father. The image of two couples making love on Jared’s living room
carpet came into focus. She grinned and sighed. More images came into view: images
of hurriedly claiming each other that first time in her entryway; images of
riding Jared on the western saddle; images of watching them in his bedroom
mirrors as he took her ass after giving her a thorough spanking.

Kitty jerked up abruptly and dug her
fists into her eyes. Could it be? As she’d replayed that scene she’d watched in
the mirrors, she saw the same kind of adoration and love reflected on
her
face as she’d seen on his and on Serena’s.

“Holy shit,” she murmured. Her
nipples strained hard against her robe.

Standing, she ignored everything but
her dilemma. This was not a time to be sidetracked.

She’d blown it badly. She paced,
gulping in air, wishing she could turn back the clock. Had Jared already moved
on? He hadn’t reached out to her, but she’d hardly expected him to. He wouldn’t
beg.

She wasn’t into groveling either,
but if what she was feeling really was real, she’d better figure out some way
to regain his attention. She knew far too well that opportunities for real love
were rare.

Kitty felt her body hum as she
switched gears from berating herself to devising a plan to make things right
with Jared. She couldn’t risk simply showing up on his doorstep again. Having
him slam the door in her face could be too devastating—even for her.

Kitty stopped pacing. He’d caught
her attention initially by sending her roses, and then they’d gone through a
gift exchange that culminated in his coming to Chicago.

She inhaled deeply. It was worth a
try. She’d find a gift he couldn’t ignore.

- o -

Looking at his travel schedule for
the following week, Jared tried to feel some excitement. He always enjoyed Zurich. Maybe what he needed was an understanding Swiss woman. He could always tack on an
extra week and fly to Amsterdam. He grimaced. Would Maya be particularly
understanding? She’d probably demand to know why he was sitting on his hands if
he’d finally found the woman he wanted to spend his life with. She’d question
his pride.

“Pride,” Jared grunted. This wasn’t
about pride. Kitty had slithered off into the dark to escape him. That was
that. He wouldn’t chase of after her—no matter what Maya thought or even what
Serena thought.

He glanced toward his open office
door. Serena had been staring darts at him ever since Kitty left, as if it was
his fault or somehow within his power to make things right again for all of
them.

He did not have a magic wand. There
had been no word at all from Kitty explaining her actions, apologizing, or anything
else.

Jared stood. He was so damn tired of
replaying every word the two of them had ever exchanged. He needed to move on
and put her behind him. Hopefully, his European trip would help. Right now the
best thing to do was ignore his feelings and everyone else. He’d go saddle up
his favorite mare and head out across the range. That might prove good for what
ailed him.

He stepped into the outer office and
quickly realized escape wasn’t going to be that easy. Serena stood at one of
the file cabinets rifling through papers. Instead of wearing her usual pullover
and jeans, she had on a short skirt and a blouse open nearly to her navel.

Jared glared at his personal
assistant, who likely believed she knew how to cure him of his blues.

“She’s been gone over a week, Jared.
Don’t you think it’s about time for you to stop moping around here like a lost
puppy?” The redhead came to stand before him. She held his gaze steady as she
undid the top two buttons of his shirt.

“I can help,” she murmured. “You
know I can. Seth and I are both worried for you.” She reached between them to
encourage his semi-hard cock.

He shook his head and took a step
back. “Don’t,” he said, grasping her wrists.

“Why?”

Serena’s pain cut through him.

“Why are you rejecting me—me and
Seth? We were happy before she came here. We can be happy again. Can’t we?”

Jared tried not to respond to his
long-time lover, now sticking her tongue out at him. Reluctantly he pulled her
into his arms and buried his nose in her hair. She hugged him tight. He grabbed
her butt to keep her from grinding against his crotch.

“Don’t,” he whispered. “I’m not
rejecting you and Seth. I never will. You must know that. I’m just not ready
yet.” He lifted her skirt with one hand and popped her bare bottom with the
other.

She jerked back in surprise.

“Now,” he said, lifting her chin and
brushing his lips across hers. “Be a patient girl. I’ll come around. Probably
by the time I get back from Europe I’ll have her out of my system.”

“Maybe you should be going to Chicago instead of Europe,” Serena snapped. “I’ve never seen you like this before. Kitty marked
you good.”

Serena turned back to her desk and
Jared headed for the exit, but she had one more parting shot. “On second
thought, I don’t want you fucking me until you’re straight with Kitty—one way
or another.” She scowled. “And I doubt dashing off to Europe will resolve
anything.”

Two hours later Jared stalked toward
his office. His ride had cleared his mind some and he was about to straighten
out his assistant who was so determined to be the guardian of his heart. He’d
toyed with the idea of laying her across her desk and proving her very wrong
about not wanting to fuck him, but then that might be what she wanted. Even
though he’d known Serena much longer than he’d known Kitty, he didn’t think either
woman was transparent when they wanted to remain mysterious.

Instead, he’d tell Serena to butt
out. He knew what it’d take to put Kitty behind him. The European trip was the
medicine he needed. Maybe he wouldn’t stop over in Amsterdam. The twin blondes
he’d known in Brussels might be a better option. They’d be happy to see him and
wouldn’t be at all interested in prying into his personal life. In that regard,
they’d be much more reliable than Maya.

He slammed the office door loudly behind
him. Serena didn’t flinch. She gave him a broad smile, as if she hadn’t just
bitched at him a couple hours earlier, and pointed toward his open office
doorway.

“Before you try chewing on me,” she
said, batting an eyelash, “you may want to check out your mail. I left it on
your desk.”

“Don’t go anywhere,” he groused. “I
still owe you a piece of my mind.”

She shrugged. “I don’t care, though
I’d rather have you chewing me out. Maybe you’ll think differently in a few
minutes.”

Jared stalked past his desk and on
into his office, slamming that door behind him. He’d had about enough of her—of
all women, for that matter.

He scowled down at the package on
his desk. Immediately he recognized the handwriting and the address.

He sighed and slouched down in his
desk chair. Should he open it? Was this a parting gift? He shook his head and
glanced quickly at the door. How long would Serena wait before barging in?

Cautiously, he opened the package—
A
Pictorial Guide to the Kama Sutra
. “What the hell?”

There was no card. He opened the
book cover and read the inscription.

Hi sunshine man,

Sorry for my abrupt departure, but I
needed space and time. As you can see, I’ve been doing some profound reading of
late. Looks like we may have unfinished business. We didn’t get around to half
the possibilities described here.

Is it too late for more adventures?

KP

Jared flipped through the pages of
intertwined lovers. He smiled at several pictures thinking how easily he and
Kitty could have been the photographer’s subjects. He eyed others closely,
realizing Kitty was right. They hadn’t nearly explored all the possibilities.

Unfinished business. He tapped his
finger on the book. So Kitty was willing to take another step or two with him. He
sniffed the air, trying to inhale her scent that must cling to the book. Would
she really want more adventure when she discovered the stakes? This time he’d
settle for no less than all of her—body and soul. He’d accept no less, because
she already had his.

He started to get up to tell Serena
to cancel his European trip when she entered his office without knocking. He
grinned. Shouldn’t he be more annoyed with his assistant for intruding?

Serena flashed a broad smile. “Looks
like you’re coming back to life. So what did she send this time?”

Jared shoved the book toward her.

Serena flipped through the pages. “This
seems rather straghtforward.” She giggled and pointed at a page. “And look at
this, a woman with two guys. Kitty is sending a message loud and clear.”

“Check out the next page. Two women
and a guy.” Jared smirked at Serena’s scrunched features.

“I’m sure she didn’t want to deface
the book by ripping out a page.” She leveled a glare at him. “So what’s next? The
ball appears to be in your court.”

He shrugged, but she wasn’t having
anything to do with his feigned nonchalance. “I haven’t decided yet. But when I
do, everything will be on the line. I won’t settle for less than marriage.”

Serena chuckled and leaned across
the desk to kiss his forehead. “That sounds more like our Jared. Do you want me
to cancel your European reservations?”

He shook his head. “I’ll let you
know.”

“I’ve already routed them through Chicago—just in case.”

He straightened. “I’m not flying
direct?”

She withdrew slightly. “I just said
I have you connecting in Chicago.”

“Great. Are all women as conniving
as you and Kitty?”

“You,” she said, looking demure, “probably
have experience with more women than I do.”

“Don’t try looking so innocent. It
doesn’t become you.” Jared tapped his fingers on his desk. “And if I can
convince her to marry me, that doesn’t mean Kitty will want a repeat
performance like we had in my living room.”

“I’m not worried.” Serena drew
herself up on her toes. “Maybe I know Kitty better than you do in some ways. If
she agrees to marry you, it’ll probably be on the condition that she still has
access to two cocks. She strikes me as a woman as fond of two cocks as I am. And,”
she wet her lips, “she and I have an agreement. If I share Seth’s cock with
her, I get to share my pussy with you. That’s a bargain you can count on,
lover. Don’t assume otherwise. You won’t be able to keep her entirely to
yourself.”

“That’s fair, I suppose, because I’ll
never give you up entirely.”

Serena smirked. “I know that,” she
said softly. “All kidding aside, so does Kitty. She wouldn’t be sending you
that book if she thought otherwise.”

He nodded and glanced back down at
the book, open to the picture of a woman sandwiched between two guys. He didn’t
doubt Serena’s assessment of Kitty. Kitty had nearly said the same thing when
they were together in Chicago. Wasn’t that why he’d introduced her to Seth?

He glanced back up at Serena. “Why
don’t you go do something useful? I’ve got some serious thinking to do.” He
scrunched his mouth. “I’ll let you know about the reservations when I’ve made
up my mind.”

“Okay boss,” Serena quipped. “Just
don’t take too much time. We don’t know how long Kitty will wait.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Two days later, Kitty stared in
disbelief at the contents of the package that had arrived at her house. There
was no card. The return address was Jared’s.

She tried to steady her breathing as
she flipped through the real estate guide for Jared’s region in the San Diego foothills. She felt her eyes widen as she saw some of the prices. She’d thought
she was quite jaded by high real estate prices, but the possible commissions on
those California properties boggled her mind. No doubt that was Jared’s plan.

She set the guide aside and gingerly
lifted the blue and white garter, as if it might burn. She brought it to her
nose slowly and sniffed it. Jared didn’t have to enclose a card. His intentions
were obvious—blue and white garters were for brides. She’d never had the chance
to wear one.

Kitty fought the urge to get up and
flee from her house. Where would she run? She wanted to explore more
possibilities with him—and with Serena and Seth—but he wasn’t accepting that. He
wanted it all. She’d thought about those next steps, but not about taking them
now.

She’d have to respond, but how? She
couldn’t ignore the feeling of being cornered. Should she pick up the phone and
clarify what she wanted? That assumed she knew what she wanted.