Page 63 of The House on Blueberry Lane

“Thanks for inviting me.” He shifted his attention to Velvet. “I was wondering if I could get a ride back to town with you when you left?”

Velvet swallowed. She and Jaye riding in the same car with all that sexual energy? Seriously? “How did you get here?” she asked.

“I rode here with Evans Toussaint. I didn’t want to risk driving myself and getting lost.”

Velvet was about to ask why he couldn’t ride back with Saint and then thought better of it. She looked across the room and saw Saint standing in a group with Isaac, Brody and Ray, and they seemed to be sharing a joke. Zara was on the sidelines, talking to Freda and Donna. After Zara’s earlier reaction at seeing Saint, she seemed to be ignoring him now.

There had to be a reason Jaye couldn’t ride back with Saint. Maybe the man had made other plans when he left here. But still... “I’m not sure when I’ll be leaving, Jaye. I helped plan the party and I might be needed to stay and—”

“Do nothing,” Bryce broke in quickly. “Vashti, Donna and I can handle everything, Velvet. Don’t worry about it. But the two of you can’t leave before the dancing begins to work off all that food we’ve eaten.”

Suddenly, loud music began playing and Bryce grabbed Velvet’s hand and pulled her toward the dance floor.

VELVET ENJOYED THE line dancing, where you didn’t need a partner. She hadn’t danced this much since Kaegan and Bryce’s wedding reception. She liked dancing, always had, and Jaye would take her dancing all the time because he liked to dance, too. But he wasn’t dancing tonight. Instead, he was sitting at a table with Sawyer, Ray and Kaegan. They were talking and Jaye was obviously pretending to listen because she felt his eyes clearly following her.

When the DJ announced he was toning things down with a couple of slow tunes, Velvet turned to Bryce to let her know she would be sitting the next ones out. But then she felt someone take her hand. She didn’t have to wonder who it was.

Turning, she saw Jaye’s face. The intensity of his gaze held her spellbound and he said in a low throaty voice, “Please dance with me, Velvet.”

She knew without looking that several pairs of eyes were on them, and to avoid stirring up further attention, she nodded. He gently pulled her into his arms. The moment her chest pressed against his, she thought that maybe dancing with him wasn’t such a good idea. They were two aroused bodies moving in sync to a slow tune.

She remembered the last time they had danced this way together—her body remembered as well. It recognized the solid muscular body that was holding her, and just like the last time, she was enveloped in his heat, his scent and all that was Jack Colfax, Jr. Automatically, she rested her head against his firm chest and closed her eyes, letting her mind and senses absorb everything about him. Even the sound of his breathing was soothing something within her.

She knew people were probably looking at them and wondering how a man and woman who barely knew each other could connect so perfectly. Velvet didn’t want to think about the implications of that now. All she wanted was to feel Jaye’s hand gently gliding across her back, stroking a need she couldn’t deny.

The music came to an end and Jaye whispered into her ear, “Let’s step outside for a moment.”

She nodded and with his warm hand at the center of her back, he led her outside to the patio where a few couples were talking. He guided her to a darkened area that overlooked the Bayou. She inhaled the fresh air, loving the scent of the seasoned seafood that still lingered. But more than anything, she loved the masculine scent of the man standing beside her with his hand still at the center of her back.

Jaye hadn’t said anything, but then no words were needed. They had come to a crossroad although nothing had changed between them. The relationship was still one-sided. She knew she still loved him, although for the past two years she’d tried fighting it. She had told herself she had eradicated him from her heart, but in essence she hadn’t. Now, she was in the same predicament she’d been in two years ago that had driven her to leave him and not look back.

“Velvet, we need to talk. There’s something I need to tell you.”

She really didn’t want to hear it. There was no need for him to reiterate that although he desired her, he could never love her.

“I don’t want to talk, Jaye. I want to act. I don’t love you and you don’t love me. I think we’ve pretty much established that fact.” She couldn’t admit to him she still loved him and had never stopped loving him. She didn’t want to think what that said about a woman who loved a man who would never love her.

“You said I was the only woman you would engage in a sex-only affair with, then that’s all I want until you leave the cove. The one-and-done wasn’t enough for me.” There. She had said it, without shame. If physical pleasure was all she would ever get from him, then she would take it.

He’d leave in a few months, and when he left, she knew he would be taking a piece of her heart with him. But at least she would have this time with him. She intended to create new memories to sustain her.

He didn’t say anything, just stared at her for a long while. Then when he spoke, he asked, “Are you ready to leave?”

She nodded and answered, “Yes, I’m ready.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

WHEN VELVET BROUGHT the car to a complete stop in front of the house on Blueberry Lane, Jaye opened the door and got out. Hearing her again say that she didn’t love him was a pain he would bear because deep down he believed if she loved him once, then she could do so again. Nothing had changed because he intended to do whatever he had to do to make that happen. Even if she thought for the time being that they were engaging in a sex-only affair. Each time they came together, it wouldn’t be for sex but for love, and he hoped that eventually she would realize it.

He went around to her side, opened the door for her and then swept her into his arms. “Jaye! Somebody might see us.”

“I doubt it.”

Then, to make sure her mind wasn’t on who might see them, he leaned in and kissed her. The drive from the Bayou had been tortuous as hell. He had let her concentrate on driving while he had concentrated on her.

He wasn’t sure how he made it up the steps, holding her in his arms with their lips locked, but by time he pulled his mouth away, they were in front of his door. She had never been inside his home and he wanted her in his bed. Adjusting her in his arms, he fished the key from his pocket and opened the door, then maneuvered his way up the stairs.

When he reached the landing, she said, “You seem pretty good at climbing stairs with a woman in your arms.”

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