Page 39 of Trailer Trash

“Last night. You trusted me enough to take me into Slick Willy’s.”

“I didn’t have a choice.”

“Not true,” he said softly, lowering his mouth to my ear. “You could have tried to make me stay in the car,” he whispered. His breath, hot on my neck, sent a shiver down my spine.

“Would you have stayed?” I asked, sounding breathless.

He chuckled. “Not a chance in hell.”

I nearly jumped out of my skin when I felt the lightest of kisses behind my ear.

I lifted my hands to his shoulders, wanting more, but he sat up slightly and put my hands back on the bed. Then he placed a soft kiss at the base of my jaw.

I closed my eyes, my body burning with lust and anticipation.

“You have got to be the sexiest woman I’ve ever known,” he murmured against my neck as he licked and nibbled his way to my collar bone. “It’s important you know that.” He moved his hand to my waist and lightly skimmed upward, stopping underneath the rise of my breast. “I don’t want you to think I rejected you last night.”

My breath came in hard pants. I was dying to touch him, but I grabbed handfuls of the bedspread to stop myself.

His mouth traced the scooped neckline of my sundress, lingering over the curve of my breast before dipping down the shallow valley of my cleavage and continuing up my other breast.

White-hot heat pooled between my legs, and it took everything in me to keep my hands off him.

He leisurely kissed a path up my neck. “I told you that you were in control, and that’s still true. But nothing has changed for me. I want you.” His mouth hovered over mine, and his tongue traced my full bottom lip before darting in for a second and then tracing my upper lip.

His hand lifted to my face again, and he gently held me in place as his lips brushed mine, his tongue still performing its dance, darting into my mouth and taunting my tongue to join in.

I was completely turned on and ready for his seduction to move to the next level, but his mouth continued its lazy plunder of mine. He sucked my bottom lip into his mouth, raking it between his teeth, and then gave me the gentlest of kisses. Then, as if sensing what he was doing to me, he lifted his head.

“I want you, Neely Kate, but not now. Not yet. I don’t want there to be any doubt in your head that I want you foryou, not whatever sleazy image of yourself you have in your head.” He sat up and gave me a soft smile. “Now I’m going to go get us some breakfast. Do you want to shower while I’m gone? I can take a shower when I get back. Then we’ll come up with a plan for the day.

Gaping, I sat up in disbelief. He’d gotten me all worked up, but for all his big talk, he was going to walk out the door?

I suddenly realized that while I’d brought a bag with clothes and toiletries, he had nothing. “What are you going to do about a change of clothes?”

He stood. “I have a bag in the trunk. I never know when I’ll be gone overnight.”

“You’re like a Boy Scout.”

His smile got smaller, tighter, but it didn’t fall away. “Not even close.” He grabbed his phone off the nightstand and checked the screen.

I didn’t even remember him taking it out of his pocket. I’d still been too drunk and out of it. Great. The man had lost his job, maybe permanently damaged his relationship with his best friend, to haul me to the middle of nowhere and watch me make a drunken fool of myself. And here I was, moping because he wanted to grab a change of clothes and get me something to eat.

“Hey,” he said, stepping in front of me as he shoved his phone into his front jeans pocket. “No negative thoughts.” He cupped the side of my face again and tilted my head up so I was looking into his face. “Remember what I said?Isee a sexy, smart, loyal, and loving woman. I’m not sure what you see in that head of yours, but if you don’t see those things, you need a new mirror.”

I gave him a soft smile. “I’m not sure if any man has ever told me anything so sweet before.”

His grin spread. “Then you obviously need to spend more time with me.” He leaned down and gave me a gentle kiss. “I’ll be back in less than half an hour. Put the chain on the door after I leave. Got it?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s my girl.”

I watched him leave, then put the chain on the door. As I showered, I thought about the man I’d gotten to know over the last few months. If someone had told me three months ago that I’d spend the night in Jed Carlisle’s arms, I would have called them a liar. Yet here I was . . .

But where exactlywasI?

From what little I knew about Jed, he didn’t have girlfriends. He dated, though perhaps that was a generous word. I’d asked around a little, overheard some, and it sounded like the most serious he got was still pretty casual—multiple-night stands rather than one-offs.

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