Page 92 of Tempt Me

My heart slammed into my chest, and the urge to throw up gripped me.

I wanted to believe he was wrong, but somehow, I knew he wouldn’t be. “What do you mean?” I twirled a lock of my wig around my finger in a futile attempt to retain my secret identity.

He reached for my hand and entwined his fingers within mine. “Your eyes give you away. They’re beautiful, Jane.”

I was completely torn. On the one hand, happy butterflies danced in my stomach at his comment; on the other, I was completely embarrassed by my sneaky indiscretions. I covered my eyes with my free hand. “I’m so sorry.”

He slipped off the bed, kneeled at my feet, and pulled my hand away from my face. “I’m not.”

I blinked at his extraordinary molasses eyes with a thousand unanswered questions swirling around my brain.

He squeezed my hands. “I feel like the luckiest man alive to have met you.”

I frowned. “Really?” Strange music started playing, and it took me a moment to realize it was my phone.

He glanced over his shoulder at my bag and then turned to me. “Do you want to get that?”

I rolled my eyes. The timing couldn’t have been worse. “No.” It was probably Lolita.

He cupped my hands in his. “I don’t know why you pretend to be Memphis, and I’m not complaining because she’s amazing, but I’d love to know Jane a little better, too.”

My jaw dropped. The hottest cowboy in the world wanted to know more about Plain Jane. This, whateverthiswas, just didn’t happen to me.

My damn phone rang again, and I clenched my jaw, willing it to go away.

He stood, reached for my hand, and lifted me to my feet. “You better get it; it must be important.”

My feet moved like lead weights, and with my swirling thoughts, I felt like I was walking in a pit of jello. The ringing stopped, but I still reached for my phone to check the missed calls. As I’d thought, both were from Lolita. It rang again, and I frowned briefly at the strange number on the screen before I swiped the green button. “Hello?”

“Hi, Jane. It’s me, Clayton.”

My head exploded, as did my galloping heart. “Oh, hi.” I was surprised any words came out.

“I just wanted to confirm you were still okay for lunch today.”

I’d been so caught up in Billy that I’d completely forgotten about my lunch date with Clayton.

I blinked, trying to force my brain to stop spinning. With Cowboy Billy sitting practically naked on the bed and looking at me as I stood wearing only a pair of red boots, I told another man that I was indeed ready to see him in a few hours.

I’d totally hit mental-asylum mode.

Maybe I was bipolar. Or just plain crazy. Either way, I shouldn’t be allowed to roam the streets.

A scathing flush burned my cheeks as I said goodbye to Clayton and ended the call. Guilt had me feeling very naked, and not just because I wasn’t wearing anything. I picked Billy’s shirt up off the floor. “May I borrow this again?”

“I told you; you can keep it.”

Completely dazed, I didn’t bother with my teddy. Instead, I redressed in his shirt and buttoned it up. “I’ve got to go.” I shoved my teddy into my bag and hooked the leather strap over my shoulder.

“Are you okay?”

I nodded, barely able to speak. “Yes, I’m sorry, but I really do have to go.” As much as I wanted to stay and talk over a thousand things, I couldn’t do it now that Clayton had reminded me of our lunch date. It just didn’t seem right.

Billy stroked my forearm. “Don’t worry, Jane; your secret is safe with me.”

The tenderness of his touch nearly brought me to tears. “Thank you.” A thick fog gripped my brain.

“I’ll be back for you,” he said.

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