Page 29 of One Steamy Night

“I have a question for you and I want it for your ears only. Just give me an answer, no inquiries, please. Will you do that?”

Rissa hesitated a minute, then said, “Yes.”

Satisfied her friend would do what she said, Nadia asked, “How do you get a man to make love to you without seducing him?”

Eleven

Jaxon got out of his car and strolled up the walkway to Nadia’s front door. She had left a message on his business phone last night while he’d been in the shower. She’d taken her car to the shop yesterday and it wouldn’t be ready for today’s trip to the valley. Nadia wanted to know if she could catch a ride with him. He had called her back and in the most professional voice he could deliver, he’d told her that yes, she could, and he would arrive to pick her up around eight.

To be quite honest, he’d been surprised by her call. Especially when her request meant they would be sharing the same vehicle to get to their destination. But then he figured since she was getting free publicity for the school and the holiday play she would tolerate anything or anyone. Including him.

The door opened and she stood there. She held his gaze and he held hers. Had it been just a few days ago when he’d seen her last? He should have been prepared but he wasn’t. Now he couldn’t help but zero in on everything about her. She was dressed in a two-piece business suit that made her look both professional and gorgeous to a degree that left him speechless. Her hair was pinned up on her head and twisted in a ball. Her makeup wasn’t heavy; it was just enough not to overtake her natural beauty.

It seemed each and every time their paths crossed the sexual chemistry between them increased. Even now it flowed between them, and they both knew it and there wasn’t a damn thing either of them could do about it. It was a raw physical force made up of her hormones and his testosterone that had taken over not only their minds but also their bodies.

The sound of his phone alarm going off broke the spell. He glanced away momentarily to pull it out of his pocket and turn it off. When he glanced back at her he saw the same sexual awareness in her features that he figured she saw in his. Only thing they could do was try and ignore it.

“Good morning, Nadia. Are you ready to go?”

“Yes. Just let me grab my coffee. Would you like a cup?”

If he said yes, that meant she would have to invite him in. That would definitely be a change from the last time he’d been here, when she’d been waiting outside on the steps with no need for him to come inside.

“Yes, if you don’t mind. I wasn’t sure how traffic would be getting here this morning, so I didn’t stop for coffee.”

“No problem,” she said, moving aside for him to come in.

He turned back to her when he heard the door close behind him. “You look nice.”

“Thanks. So do you. And how do you like your coffee?”

“Black.”

“Okay. I’ll be back. I’m sure you want us to get on the road as soon as possible.”

When she left and headed for the kitchen, he was drawn to that huge photo over the fireplace just like the last time he’d been here. That photo of her parents and sisters. This time he really studied it. She was the perfect combination of both parents. That’s what he wanted for them. Him and her. Kids who would look like the both of them. He could envision a daughter with her eyes and smile; and a son who would have his height and mouth. It was a mouth his mom often referred to as the Ravnel mouth. She said that was one of the first things that drew her to his father. The shape of his mouth and the darkness of his eyes.

“Here you are.”

He turned around and she was there, handing him coffee in a to-go cup with a lid. “Thanks. Cup’s convenient,” he said, accepting the coffee she offered. Their hands touched in the process and he felt a flutter in the pit of his gut.

“I keep a ton of them here. I have two cups of coffee every morning. One before I leave here while getting dressed and another when I get to school, from Rissa.”

“Rissa?”

“Yes, Marissa Phelps, my best friend.”

He lifted a brow. “Your best friend is living in Gamble?”

“She’s lived here all her life. We separated when I moved to Denver but we stayed in touch and went to the same college in Wyoming.” She glanced at her watch and then at him. “I’m ready to leave if you are.”

Yes, he was ready. The sooner they got out of this house the better. “I’m ready.”

“Are you attending Cheyenne’s surprise birthday party?”

Nadia glanced over at Jaxon. They were out of Gamble’s city limits and were in the part of Wyoming the locals called the valley. It was the area between Gamble and Jackson Hole. Sparse towns were scattered about and most of the people were ranchers.

She nodded resolutely and said, “Yes, I plan to go. What about you?”

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