He considered her answer for a long moment. “Too bad. Because I’m still kind of attracted to you. Yeah, I know. Surprising, right?”
“Still?” Caley asked, stunned by his admission.
“Yeah, still. Hey, I always thought you were hot.”
Caley laughed out loud at the audacity of his comment. “Please,” she said.
“No, I did. I do. Come on, Caley, look at yourself. A guy would have to be crazy to think otherwise. You’re beautiful and sophisticated and smart.”
She wasn’t sure whether he was teasing her or telling the truth. But it did make her feel better. Caley smiled.
“All the guys were madly in love with you that summer before you left for college.”
“Now you are lying. But go on.”
“I told them you were taken.”
She frowned at him. “But I wasn’t. Why would you tell them that?”
“They were only looking for one thing and I just didn’t want them putting the moves on you. I didn’t think you were ready for that. And maybe I felt a little possessive.”
“You were the reason I left for college a virgin.”
“Believe me, I would have loved to help you out on that one, but I wasn’t sure I’d be the right guy for the job.” He paused. “I’d assume you solved that problem a while ago.”
Caley giggled. “Are you asking if I’m a virgin? I’m twenty-eight years old.”
“I was talking about finding the right guy. Teddy mentioned that you’re living with some lawyer.”
Caley opened her mouth, ready to tell him that Brian was probably moving his stuff out of their apartment as they spoke. But admitting that would leave her with no defense against seduction. “Yeah. We’ve been together for a couple years. What about you?”
Caley didn’t want to hear the answer. She wanted to believe that the only woman on his mind was her. But that would be unrealistic. Jake was an attractive, successful man.
“No one special,” he said. “I guess I was saving myself for you.”
She bit her bottom lip, focusing on the road ahead. Why did he say things like that? Was he testing her? Jake had always enjoyed teasing her, but this was different. It was as if he was daring her to take his words seriously.
They drove for a long while in silence. She took out her cell phone and began to text another message to her assistant.
“Do you take that thing with you everywhere?”
“I need to be available. People are counting on me.”
“The rats would continue to race even if you weren’t running alongside them. Take a break. You’re supposed to be on vacation.”
“Partners don’t ever really go on vacation,” she said. Still, she tucked the phone back into her pocket, leaving the message unfinished.
A question nagged at Caley’s brain, a question she never thought she’d have the nerve or the opportunity to ask. But it needed to be answered. “If you were so attracted to me, then why did you turn me down that night?”
He smiled, but kept his gaze fixed on the road ahead. “You’d just turned eighteen. I was almost twenty. I didn’t think it was the right time. It was your first time and I figured that should be perfect. I wasn’t sure I would be able to do that for you.” He glanced over at her. “I did you a big favor, Caley. I didn’t want you to regret your first experience.”
Caley sat back in the seat and stared out the window. Though his words did a bit to soothe the memory of her humiliation, she had a hard time believing Jake was that noble. “I was devastated,” she said.
He reached over and slipped his hand around her nape. Her pulse quickened and Caley felt a rush of desire as his fingers tangled in her hair. “I’m sorry,” he replied, gently forcing her to look at him. “But, if it will make you feel better, I’d be glad to do the job now.”
She saw the wry grin on his face and Caley couldn’t help but laugh. “I’ll let you know.”
“Hey, I’ve been told I do an admirable job in the sack.”
“That’s because all the women you sleep with are too blinded by your pretty face. They’d say anything to keep you in their beds.”
Jake pulled the truck over to the edge of the road and threw it out of gear. “My charm worked pretty well on you this morning.”
“I was asleep.”
“You said my name.”
She shrugged, trying to maintain a cool facade. It wasn’t working. Her hands were trembling and she felt a little light-headed. “Well, it won’t work anymore. Go ahead. Kiss me. You’ll see, I won’t have any reaction.” It was a feeble challenge and she knew he could see right through it. But she didn’t care. She wanted to kiss him again and she couldn’t wait any longer.
To her surprise, he accepted her challenge. Before she could even take a breath, he grabbed her face between his hands and kissed her. At first, the kiss was full of frustration. But then, he softened his touch and slipped his tongue between her lips.
Caley grabbed the front of his jacket and pulled him toward her, until he was sprawled across the console, his hands furrowed through her hair. They couldn’t seem to get close enough, tearing at each other’s clothes, searching for something more to touch. Though she knew she ought to put a stop to it, the taste of him, the feel of his body against hers was exhilarating, like some crazy carnival ride that frightened her and thrilled her all at once.
He slipped his hand under the waist of her pants and clutched her backside, pulling her hips against his. He was aroused and Caley enjoyed the fact that he couldn’t resist her any more than she could resist him.
“What the hell are you doing to me?” he murmured, his breath warm against her ear. “You have a boyfriend. You’re living with him.”
“We broke up,” she murmured, nuzzling her face into the curve of his neck.
Jake grabbed her shoulders and pushed her back, staring down into her eyes. “Don’t play games with me, Caley.”
“I’m not. I swear, we broke up. It’s over.”
Jake dragged his thumb over her bottom lip. “Can we just stop pretending then? I’m man enough to admit that I want you. And I think you want me, right?”
“Maybe,” Caley murmured.
“Not maybe,” he said, shaking his head.
“All right. I’ll admit that there is an interesting attraction between us.”
“So what are we going to do about it?”
Caley frowned. “I don’t know. It could be complicated.”
He drew back, then grinned. “When you figure out what you want, you let me know,” he said.
Caley gasped softly. Was that it? Wasn’t he supposed to pull her into his arms and kiss away all her doubts? Or seduce her without any regard to her reservations? He wasn’t supposed to drop the ball back in her court!
“I will,” Caley said softly.
Jake straightened, sliding back behind the wheel. “We should probably get going.”
When they reached the small bridal shop in the village, Jake parked, then hopped out and circled around the front to open her door. The Burton boys had always had impeccable manners.
“Watch out,” he said, as he grabbed her waist. “It’s slippery beneath this snow.” His hands lingered on her hips as