Page 44 of Now and Forever

Nosy Jared surely read it as well. I didn’t care if he did or didn’t. Replying to his message, I quickly responded that I’d call him tomorrow.

“He’s quite persistent, isn’t he?”

Wyatt…damn. If I kept going this way, Blair wouldn’t be amused. I had to make a decision soon because if Blair heard it from another person, she’d be none too pleased. “He makes me laugh. It’s so easy to be with him. He knows me so well I don’t have to hide anything from him, but I don’t know…I haven’t made up my mind yet.” My honesty shocked me. Jared had no designs where I was concerned; maybe it made it easier to state such truthful things to him.

“I saw the possessive way he looked at you. He won’t stop until you’re his.”

“That’s nothing new. He’s always had a thing for me.” Much more so now seeing I was actually considering him after years of ignoring his advances towards me.

“What’s stopping you?”

You. It was always you. Sadly, this pathetic excuse didn’t satisfy any longer. I had vowed to move on, and I intend to, whether my heart agreed to let go of Jared or not.

“Nothing’s stopping me, Jared. I don’t see anything wrong with taking my time after Jack. Wyatt knows that.” Well, I hoped Wyatt knew it. I had revealed as much.

“And Dexter Berg?”There was a strange quality to his voice.

Was it disapproval? Worry? Disgust? I couldn’t be sure. Maybe it was because Dexter was David Berg’s spawn. It had to be. Even though David Berg remained in the company after a major falling out with my father, David had continuously tried to undermine my father’s decisions. And I supposed, David’s negativity would now be channeled to the new CEO of the company. Jared could handle him. Jared seemed considerate where I was concerned, but everyone knew the man made a terrifying adversary. Jared wasn’t my father, and I doubted he had Peter Weber’s patience, either. David had better watch out.

“Dexter? I don’t think he sees me that way. He’s always been über friendly, but he never really asked me out.”

“I saw you give your number.”

He caught everything; it was unnerving. “He asked for it. I saw no reason not to give it.”

“You were flirting with him…at your father’s funeral at that,” he uttered disapprovingly.

Flirting? That was beyond absurd. “Don’t be ridiculous!”

“You like him.”

“I’ve always thought him cute, but now…I haven’t seen him for two years, and he looks great.” Well before Jared came into the picture, Dexter Berg was my crush. Our fathers used to be really close, so we hung out almost every weekend. “Does he meet your approval?”

“No. Not by a long shot.”

“Why not?”

“His father’s David Berg. The man’s been undermining my authority, much more so now that Peter’s gone. Second, Dexter doesn’t deserve you. You’re too good for the likes of him.”

“You’re entitled to your opinion, of course. But if it comes to it, if David does show interest, it won’t stop me from seeing him,” I said. I wasn’t to conform to his beliefs. He wasn’t his father. David had done nothing wrong. And I wasn’t going to ignore him because his father was a spiteful idiot.

“Be careful…That’s all I ask.”

Jared sure took this “you’re my responsibility” to a new level. He was more protective than my father. Imagine that. If he was like this towards me, I couldn’t fathom how he’d be to his wife and children. “You’re going to be a nightmare to whoever marries you someday…with you being a bona fide stalker and all. I’ll make sure to pray for her.”

“Oh, yeah?” He playfully pinched my hip. “Says the woman who married me!" He pompously declared before his teeth sank into my neck.

A sudden burst of wetness seeped out between my thighs, making me whimper with need. “Jared—stop, stop! I don’t want to get aroused. So please stop.”

In a quick haste, the man shifted my body so he was facing me instead of my back. The soft glow of the candle gently bounced across his chiseled features. It made his eyes a hundred times more magnetizing than they had the right to be. He gazed down on me, noting my face so close to his own. “You already are aroused.”

I’ll always want you.

“It’s hard not to be. You’ve been naughty.” I saw no need to lie.

“You are so responsive…” His heated eyes slid lower, admiring the rapid rise of my chest as I heavily panted against his intense scrutiny. My nipples blatantly protruded over the sheer cotton slip. “Sometimes I wonder what it’d be like to taste you…”

“We’ve been there, done that. I don’t want to fight with you.” The last fight we had was a tumultuous one. He abhorred the idea of wanting me; he declared as much. So why was he giving in to his baser instincts?

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