Page 3 of Whispers of My Skin

He’s just as handsome as he always was, in fact, more so now that he’s matured into a man. Already I’m consumed by his presence. My heart beats wildly, my breathing becomes shallow. Everything’s changed, yet nothing has changed. His effect on me is just as strong as it always was. I want to throw myself into his arms, beg him to help me. But I force myself to keep my feelings under control.

I have to, there’s too much at stake.

“Tara?” he asks incredulously, as if he can’t quite believe what he’s seeing. “God, it’s been a long time.”

“Hello, Joel.” My voice is quieter and more hesitant than I’d hoped, giving away my nervousness. “Yes, it has been a long time.”

Neither of us says anything more. The silence crackles between us, the magnetism draws us in as we stare at each other.

The years have been kind to him.

Joel has matured from a good-looking boy into a downright dangerously hot and sexy man. With broad shoulders. Powerfully muscled arms. Thick, black, tousled hair worn shorter than before, but still begging for my fingers to run through it. Same goes for the dark scruff on his face.

Woah, girl, calm your tits. Remember why you’re here. This is business, not pleasure. Well, it is and it isn’t, depending on how things go…

I need a manager for my ranch. Just focus on that.

The spell between us is broken when he jumps up and gestures towards a seat in front of his desk. “Sit down, Tara, please, you must think I have no manners. Can I offer you something to drink?”

“Thank you, but this isn’t a social visit.”

We sit facing one another. Joel leans back in his luxurious leather seat behind his large, masculine, dark wood desk, presenting the perfect picture of a commanding figure of authority, while I perch nervously on the edge of the low, uncomfortable chair in front of his desk. The whole scene puts me in mind of an errant school girl being hauled in front of the Principle, or a job interview that I’m vastly under qualified for.

“Please, fill me in. I’m all ears,” he says, raising his eyebrows in askance.

“Well, you see…” I’ve prepared and rehearsed this speech in my head over and over, yet I’m still struggling to get the words out. However, I force myself to continue. “Since my father unexpectedly passed away, we’ve encountered all kinds of problems running the ranch, since neither my mother nor I had any idea how to manage things. Then she married again and let her new husband take over—unfortunately with disastrous results.”

Joel raises his eyebrows again, bridging his fingertips and resting them against his mouth, as he digests the facts.

“And what exactly does that have to do with me?” he frowns.

“I need a manager, someone to take care of the ranch, to deal with all the day to day issues as and when they come up,” I elaborate.

“You want me to recommend someone? I could come up with a list of suitable candidates if that would help,” he suggests, running his hands through his hair and mussing it up in such a sexy way that I virtually have to sit on my hands to stop myself reaching out to touch it. I always loved his hair…

“No,” I confess, shaking my head to force these foolish thoughts away “I need more than an employee. I need someone who loves the land, who would care for Redlands as his own.”

I take a deep breath and just come straight out with it. “I came because I want you.”

Wow, that didn’t come out quite how I’d planned it, but we both ignore the heavy double meaning.

“I already have a job here, Tara,” he states. “It’s a good position on an excellent ranch, and I hadn’t planned on leaving any time soon.”

“I understand that, but I just thought, I hoped maybe…” I whisper, and in my head, all my arguments crumble.

He’s not interested.

“If that’s all you came for, then I’m afraid you’ll have to excuse me. We’re real busy right now, and the work won’t get done by itself,” he cuts me off. “If you want that list of potential candidates, leave me an email address and I’ll make a few calls on your behalf, see what I can come up with. So, if that’s all everything, I’ll show you out.”

He stands from his chair and indicates the way out.

But this isn’t over yet. I haven’t said all I came to say.

“Wait,” I say before he drags me out of the office. “I have something else to offer you. Something I’m sure you’ll be interested in.”

“Oh? And what exactly might that be?” he asks skeptically.

“Me.” I hold my chin up defiantly. Please don’t let him reject me. Or laugh me out of the place.

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