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“Uh-oh.” He gave her a sheepish grin. “When I got up and went to shower and change, I moved it to my room.”
“What am I going to put on?” she asked, looking around for something—anything—to wear.
“I really like what you’re wearing now,” he observed, setting the tray on top of the dresser.
“I’m naked under here.”
“Bingo.”
Her cheeks heated at his lascivious grin. “Seriously, what am I going to wear?”
“I think you wear nothing very well,” he commented, rocking back on his heels. “It really looks good on you.”
“Will you be serious?” she pleaded, feeling a little desperate. “I can’t even go downstairs to get my clothes without something to cover up with. Poor Mrs. Beck would probably have a massive coronary.”
He looked thoughtful. “I guess you might have a point.”
“I do have a point.” She shook her head. “And unless you intend for me to stay in this bed the rest of the day, I need something to put on.”
“Staying in bed presents some very interesting possibilities,” he responded, his grin widening. When she tugged the sheet free from the end of the mattress, he pulled the tail of his shirt from his jeans. “If you’re that adamant about it, I’ll have to make the sacrifice.”
She stared shamelessly as Luke unbuttoned the garment and revealed his wide chest. Earlier when they’d made love, she’d been too nervous and preoccupied with the newness of it all to pay a lot of attention to his physique. But as he shrugged out of the shirt, her breath caught and her heart did a funny little thump against her rib cage.
His body was absolutely perfect. Every muscle from his shoulders all the way to the waistband of his low-slung jeans was well-defined and he was most definitely the type of man dreams were made of. At least, her dreams.
When he handed her the shirt, then stood there expectantly, she forced her thoughts back to the matter at hand and shook her head. “Turn around.”
His smile sent a wave of sizzling warmth shimmering over her skin. “Sweetheart, I saw your body when we made love and believe me, you have no reason to be self-conscious. You’re beautiful.”
“I’ll have to take your word on that,” she remarked, refusing to give too much weight to his appreciation of her body. “But it’s extremely difficult to throw caution to the wind after twenty-eight years of keeping myself covered up.”
Apparently deciding she meant business, he finally blew out an exaggerated breath, shook his head and turned his back to her. “We’ve already made love once and I anticipate doing so again quite frequently. It won’t take long before I know your body as well as I know mine.”
“In less than a week, we’ve gone from nothing more than boss and employee to sleeping together,” she tried to explain, pulling on his shirt. The delicious masculine scent surrounding her as she buttoned the garment caused Haley to feel warm all over. “We only went on one date—if you want to call it that—and that was the night before we got married.”
When he picked up the breakfast tray from the dresser and turned to face her, his expression was thoughtful. “So what you’re saying is, you don’t switch gears quite that fast.”
“Something like that.” Maybe he was beginning to understand how she felt.
“I guess that makes sense,” he said absently as he set the tray over her lap, then lowered himself to sit on the mattress beside her. He looked pensive for a moment. “Since we’re discussing your inhibitions, were they the reason you were still a virgin?”
She knew he’d be curious and ask about it. “It’s quite simple, really. I went to a very strict, private high school for girls. In our Freshman year, we were encouraged to take a pledge to stay pure until we married. I promised that I would.” Reaching for a slice of crispy bacon, she shrugged. “Besides, I never met a man that I cared enough about to be intimate with.”
“Never?”
“Oh, I was tempted a couple of times in college with one or two of the guys I dated.” She shook her head. “But I always found a reason not to break my vow. Probably because it just didn’t feel right with them.”
“Do you always keep your word, Haley?” His question was casual enough, but she could tell he was extremely interested in her answer.
Swallowing the bacon she’d been nibbling on, she nodded. “It’s not always easy, but if I tell someone that I’ll do something, I try my best to do it.” She smiled. “I have had to break my promises a few times, but I’ve never made a habit of it.”
“So that’s why you followed through when I called your bluff about having to be married,” he proclaimed, capturing her gaze with his. “You gave me your word.”
Haley nodded again. She wasn’t overly surprised that he’d figured out that she was discouraging him when she laid down the terms to have his baby. He was very perceptive and it was one of the many reasons he was such a highly successful businessman.
“Knowing how you feel about relationships, I thought mentioning marriage would dissuade you,” she admitted. “If I’d tried to back out when you said you were agreeable, you wouldn’t have given me a minute’s peace until I honored my word.”
“That’s true, but why didn’t you just reject my request outright?” he asked, obviously trying to figure out what made her tick as he took a big bite of his scrambled eggs.
“Because I know you well enough that when you set your sights on something, you don’t give up. You’re like a dog with a juicy bone.” Picking up her glass of orange juice, she gazed at him over the rim. “Would you have abandoned the idea of me having your child if I’d said no right away?”
Chuckling, he shook his head. “Not a chance in hell, sweetheart.”
“My point exactly.”
“So, if you know me so well,” he argued as he placed his fork on his empty plate, “why do you keep insisting that we need to get to know each other further?”
How could she explain that it was the little everyday things that she wanted to know?
“Do you have any idea why my hair is straight when I’m at the office, but when I’m at home it’s curly?” she finally asked.
His expression clearly stated he thought she’d lost her mind.
“Bear with me for a minute.”
He gave her a dubious look. “Okay. I assume you’re like my sister and use a curling iron when you want to make your hair curly.”
“Just the opposite.” She couldn’t help but laugh. “I use a flat iron to take the curl out.”
“Your hair is naturally curly?” He shook his head. “I wasn’t aware of that.”
“That’s what I meant about knowing each other. Don’t you think that’s something a man would know about the woman he has a child with?”
He looked thoughtful. “I suppose it might be since it’s a trait that could be passed on to my son.” Grinning, he winked at her. “But it’s certainly not a requirement for having sex.”
Luke wasn’t going to concede easily. But neither was she.
“I know how you take your coffee. Do you know how I prefer mine?”
He was silent for several seconds before he finally answered. “No.”
“That’s something else most couples know about each other by the time they walk down the aisle or have a baby.” She smiled. “And just for the record, I don’t drink coffee because I don’t like the taste of it.”
“I never noticed,” he acknowledged as he picked up the tray. “But I think I have an excellent way of remedying this little problem you think we have while learning each others’ likes and dislikes.”
“Really? What would that be?”
“We’re going to take a drive across the mountains over into North Carolina. And while we’re traveling, we’ll take turns asking questions about the little everyday things.” He looked quite pleased with himself. “It won’t take any time at all and we’ll know each other quite well.”
“But I thought you had plans to stay here for the rest of the weekend,” she reminded him, fascinated by the play of muscles in his broad back as he balanced the tray and walked to the door.
Stopping, he turned. “That was before I took your virginity.”
“What does that have to do with anything?” she asked, getting out of bed to find her clothes and take a shower.
Luke suddenly groaned, closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath.
Alarmed by his uncharacteristic behavior, she went to him. “Are you all right?”
When he opened his eyes, the intensity in his incredible blue gaze warmed her. “Do you have any idea how sexy you look wearing nothing but my shirt? Or what a turn-on it is for me just knowing that you don’t have anything on underneath it?”
“Not really.” She wondered if he knew how sexy he looked without a shirt.
“The reason we need to go for a drive is because if we don’t, I’m going to put down this tray, carry you back to bed and make love to you until we both collapse from exhaustion.” He glanced away. “And that wouldn’t be a good idea right now.”
Had he changed his mind about wanting her to become pregnant immediately?
“Why not? Isn’t that a prerequisite for making a baby the old-fashioned way?”
“Sweetheart, nothing would make me happier than making love to you all day and all night.” He gazed at her and shook his head. “But you’re new to this and I’m sure you’re a little sore. If we wait until this evening, it might not be as uncomfortable for you as it would be now.”
Haley felt as if her cheeks were on fire. She wasn’t used to discussing something so intimate and personal. “Oh, I…um, didn’t realize.”
“We’ll make love again tonight.” He gave her a quick kiss, then walked out into the hall. “Now, do me a favor. Go down to the master suite and get ready. We’ll leave as soon as the rental car agency can have a car delivered.”
When she started to walk past him, he shook his head.
“Let me go first.”
“Why?”
Giving her a look so sensual it could have easily turned a stone to mush, he started down the hall. “Because if you walk downstairs ahead of me, I’ll end up hard as hell. And when I take the tray back to the kitchen, I don’t think Mrs. Beck could stand the shock of seeing me in that condition.”
“That might even traumatize her more than me wearing nothing but a sheet,” she said, laughing.
Luke snorted. “Knowing Mrs. Beck, I’d put money on it.”
As Haley followed him toward the stairs, a tiny feminine thrill flowed through her at the knowledge that he was that attracted to her. She wasn’t foolish enough to think that just because he wanted her, that he cared deeply for her. But if he desired her now, maybe one day he would develop true feelings for her.
As Luke steered the rental car into a parking area at Chimney Rock in North Carolina, Haley gazed at the lush green mountains surrounding the natural monolith. “I see why this location was chosen for several movies. It’s absolutely gorgeous. Can you imagine how fantastic the hiking must be around here?”
Turning off the car’s engine, he smiled. “Did I just learn another little known fact about you that I wouldn’t have guessed? Are you a hiker?”
“Not anymore.” She looked out at the panoramic view. “But I used to go hiking all the time when I was younger.”
“Let me guess. One of the college boyfriends appreciated nature.”
“Not hardly. They might have gotten their hands dirty.” Just the thought of any of them going anywhere that took them outside of a climate-controlled environment was laughable. “My passion for hiking started long before college. I went on nature walks when I joined the Campfire Girls. Then later, when I was in high school, I joined the hiking club.”
“Interesting.”
“What about you? Do you enjoy any outdoor activities?” She grinned. “Surveying the work-in-progress at a job site doesn’t count.”
He laughed. “But that’s outdoors and I do enjoy watching another Garnier project take shape.”
She shook her head. “That’s something I already know about you. Remember, we’re supposed to be sharing the unknown.”
“Right. Let’s see, Jake and I used to go on an annual camping trip in the Sierras,” he replied, referring to his twin brother. “But in the past several years, we’ve both been so busy that we haven’t had time.”
“Did you enjoy those trips to the mountains?” she asked, trying to imagine what it would be like to have a family to share things with.
Looking thoughtful for several seconds, he nodded. “We’d spend an entire week fishing and catching up on what plans we were making to advance our careers.”
“You should make the time to do that again, Luke.” If she had a brother or sister, nothing would stand in the way of their spending time together. “You know what they say about taking the time to smell the roses.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he indicated, getting out of the car to come around and open the passenger door for her. “What about you, do you have a family tradition with one of your siblings?”
Taking the hand he offered to help her out of the car, she tried not to meet his questioning gaze. If she did, he might see how truly alone and sad she’d always felt.
“I was an only child,” she revealed.
“Really?” Closing the car door, he put his arm around her waist and tucked her to his side as they walked to the edge of the scenic overlook. “I wasn’t aware of that.”
Before he could question her further about her family, she pointed to a black bear and two small cubs that waddled into a clearing on the slope below. “Aren’t they adorable?”
He snorted. “I suppose, if you like a lot of fur and really big teeth.”
“I love babies of all kinds,” she confirmed as she watched the two cubs engage in an impromptu wrestling match.
“What about alligator babies?” Turning her to face him, he pulled her close. “They don’t have fur, but they do have a lot of teeth. You don’t think they’re cute, do you?”
The feel of his arms around her sent a languid heat flowing through every part of her. “Well, they may not be as sweet as a live teddy bear, but I’m sure the momma alligator thinks they are.”
He stared at her for several long moments, then slowly lowered his head to capture her lips in a kiss so tender it brought tears to her eyes. Thoughtful and sweet, Luke explored her with a thoroughness that made her feel as if he truly cherished everything about her.
But when he slipped his tongue inside her mouth to taste and tease, the kiss became so steamy that Haley felt as if the earth moved beneath her feet. Stroking her inner recesses at the same time he pressed his hips against her belly caused an empty ache to settle deep in the most feminine areas of her body. The feel of his strong arousal and the mastery of his kiss caused her knees to give way and she clung to his solid strength for support.
“I think we’d better head back. Otherwise, I’m going to abandon my good intentions and make love to you right here and now,” he vowed, breaking the kiss. “Besides, there’s one other place I think you’d enjoy seeing.”
“Really? Where would that be?” she questioned, not really caring as long as they were together.
“You’ll see,” he promised, guiding her to the car.
Two and a half hours later, as they stepped onto the moving walkway that led through the acrylic tunnel at the aquarium in Gatlinburg, they were immediately surrounded by thousands of species of aquatic creatures. “This is wonderful, Luke,” Haley declared, marveling at the activity surrounding them. “It’s like being underwater.”
“You find this interesting, do you?”
“Absolutely.” She smiled at a couple of orange and white striped fish gliding effortlessly through the water. “Aren’t they sweet?”
