“Sounds like a plan,” she agreed. She disappeared into the guest bedroom and Tyler went into the kitchen and sat at the kitchen table, his thoughts on Greta and everything he’d learned over dinner.
It sounded as if she and her family had been through the wringer over the past couple of months and yet she appeared to have weathered everything very well.
Beneath the cheerful attitude she displayed, did a well of emotion exist that she hadn’t tapped into? Time would tell. He was only grateful that she’d apparently forgiven him for the lie that had not only got her out of prison but also broken her engagement to his brother.
Although he hadn’t spoken to Mark since providing the alibi, he had seen him twice at popular restaurants, each time with a different woman on his arm. He didn’t appear to be too upset over the loss of Greta. Greta might not know it, but he’d actually done her a favor. She would have never been happy married to Mark.
It was nine thirty when he and Greta carried glasses of wine into the living room for a nightcap. “I’m assuming you’ll be returning to work tomorrow?” she asked when they were settled on the sofa.
“That’s the plan,” he replied. “And I’m assuming your work with She-Sugar won’t require me at first.”
“Nice save,” she replied at his stumble over the horse’s new name. “And no, for the first week or two, depending on Sugar, it will be just me and her working out together.”
He took a sip of his wine and gazed at her. What were the odds of having her in his bed that night? It was impossible for him to sit next to her, with her heavenly scent surrounding him, and not want her again.
He couldn’t help but remember the silkiness of her skin, the fire of her kisses as they’d made love the night before. She’d been an eager participant, giving as well as receiving. She’d been everything he’d dreamed of and more...and he definitely wanted more.
“Earth to Tyler.” Her voice interrupted his thoughts. “You looked like you drifted off there for a minute.”
“Sorry. I did,” he replied and focused on the sweet curve of her lips. “I was just wondering if you’d want a repeat of last night.”
Her cheeks immediately flushed with color and her eyes widened. She took a sip of her wine and then carefully placed the glass on the coffee table and looked at him. “What, exactly, do you want with me, Tyler?”
She’d asked him the question before, but he hadn’t given her a real clear answer, because he hadn’t had one. He still didn’t have one.
He gazed at her for a long moment before replying. “To be honest with you, I’m not sure. I know I’m tremendously drawn to you physically and I’d definitely like to get to know you better. I’ve wanted that for a long time, but beyond that, I don’t know.”
She averted her gaze from his once again. “I appreciate your honesty.”
“But you didn’t answer my question.” He waited until she looked at him again and then he smiled. “You know what you’re good at and I know what I’m good at.”
She laughed, a musical sound that only increased his desire. “Does that ego get in your way much?”
“I try not to pull it out too often,” he replied lightly. But his lightness of tone didn’t last but a moment. “Make love with me again, Greta. Let me hold you in my arms again and kiss you until you can’t think straight.”
He could tell by the expression on her face that she was conflicted and he pressed on. “Don’t overthink things. Just let it happen. There is no right or wrong to this. I want you again and I believe that you want me, too.”
Her eyes filled with an emotion that had his blood simmering. “I do want you,” she confessed softly.
He didn’t say another word. He stood and took her hand and pulled her up from the sofa, and together they walked down the hallway to his bedroom.
* * *
She’d officially lost her mind. That was Greta’s first thought when she awoke in the guest bedroom the next morning. She’d made love with Tyler and again had refused to stay in his bed through the night, as if that somehow mitigated the fact that they were acting like horny teenagers with no self-control.
He’d told her he wanted to get to know her better, and she’d like to get to know him better, too. But they’d got it all backward, making love first and getting to know each other later.
She had never allowed physical attraction to lead her in a relationship. She’d always allowed her heart and her head to be in charge of her hormones.
But when Tyler looked at her with such hunger, when his lips curved into that sexy smile, she became powerless to deny him whatever he wanted...because she wanted it, too.
It was time she fixed things, refused any more physical contact with Tyler until she at least decided if she really liked him or not. So far she found him surprisingly warm and charming, but she’d really known him for only two short days.
She hadn’t forgotten that the times she’d encountered him while she’d been with Mark, he had struck her as cold and not particularly interested in her presence.
Will the real Tyler Stanton please stand up? she thought as she scooted out of bed. She grabbed a pair of jeans, a blue flannel shirt and clean underwear for the day, intending to spend most of the daylight hours in the corral with Sugar.
Minutes later as she stood beneath a hot shower spray, she couldn’t help but think of being in Tyler’s arms, of his kisses and caresses, which had formed such an intense fire inside her, a fire she’d never felt before.
They fit together perfectly in the bed, but she had no idea how well they’d fit together out of bed. Things had happened so fast. Everything had been pleasant between them so far, but it was early in the game and she really had no idea what to expect in day-to-day life with him.
“You’ll find out soon enough,” she muttered as she stepped out of the shower and grabbed a fluffy fresh-smelling towel from a cabinet.
At least Tyler would be at work today and she would be able to focus her sole attention on the horse renamed Sugar. To Greta there was almost nothing worse than somebody who abused a helpless animal, unless it was somebody who took the life of an innocent human being.
Once she’d dried off and dressed, she stared at her reflection in the mirror and thought of the twin sister she’d never met.
It was obvious from the fact that Abra had thought it was Greta who’d attacked her, and that Daniel had believed he’d seen Greta at the ranch when in reality she’d been in Oklahoma City, that her sister was an identical twin.
Greta had seen heartwarming shows on television about the reunion of separated twins. The reunions always resulted in joy and love and new extended families. Why hadn’t that happened for her? She would have welcomed her twin sister into her life, enjoyed the friendship and love of somebody she’d shared a womb with through nine months.
She didn’t even know her twin’s name or much of anything about their biological mother. All Big J had been able to tell them was the woman’s name was Tamara Stewart and that she had sold him the baby. He’d met her only once, in a small house someplace on the west side of Tulsa near the hospital.
He hadn’t been able to remember the address or the specific neighborhood of the house. He hadn’t even remembered that much about the woman. He either hadn’t paid attention or had forgotten the details from that day so long ago. All he knew was that he’d been so desperate to replace the baby Abra had lost that that was all he’d really cared about. He hadn’t wanted Abra to suffer the grief of finding out that her baby girl had died.
Greta knew her brother Ryan