Chapter Fifteen
It was late afternoon in Dallas when Carly settled herself in front of her laptop, seated at the same desk on the executive floor she had used the last time she’d been in Tex/Am’s headquarters building.
After the visit to Conchita, Linc had driven her back to the yard. She’d gotten a good deal of work done before he’d returned to pick her up for the quick chopper ride to the city, but there always seemed to be more to do.
For the past hour, he’d been locked away behind closed doors. Carly had busied herself with her customer list, checking what needed to be done to make sure the clients were all satisfied, making a list of potential new customers.
It surprised her to realize how good it felt to bring in a new account. Wherever Joe was, he’d be pleased.
Since Linc was still working and she needed a break, she decided to do a little more digging. He was an interesting man, but not particularly forthcoming about himself. She typed in his name and started clicking up Web links with information about him.
The executive floor was humming away, people moving around at a rapid pace. The pace was brisk and efficient at Texas American Enterprises.
After a particularly interesting article, she looked up at the sound of voices close by and saw a tall, slender, raven-haired woman talking to Millie, pointing toward Linc’s office. She was wearing a sleeveless dove gray dress with white trim, a slim skirt that fell midcalf, with a wide self-belt, definitely a designer brand. The garment curved perfectly over her hips, and sky-high heels pushed her to over six feet.
The woman had a fabulous figure and she was stunningly beautiful.
“I’m sorry, Ms. Aiello,” Millie said. “Linc is tied up all day. There’s no way you can get in to see him.”
“That is ridiculous. Please tell him Sophia is here. We must discuss the gala coming up next week. We need to talk, finalize our plans for next Saturday night. I must have time to choose the right gown to wear.”
Millie shook her head. “I’m sorry. Mr. Cain gave me strict instructions he isn’t to be disturbed. You might try calling him later. Or perhaps tomorrow.”
The woman’s plump lips turned down in a pout. “Linc will be very angry when he finds out Sophia was here and you would not let her see him.”
“I’m sorry,” Millie firmly repeated.
“Fine.” The woman spun around and swanned elegantly across the carpet to the elevator. The doors slid open with a ding. She stepped inside, pushed the button, the doors closed, and the woman disappeared.
Carly just sat there. Her stomach was churning as if she’d swallowed a handful of rocks. Her breath seemed to be stuck in her chest. It was insane. She had no claim on Lincoln Cain. So they’d slept together. So what? They were both adults. She’d wanted him and he’d wanted her.
Aside from that he was just trying to help her, doing her grandfather a favor.
She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, suddenly weary. Surely she hadn’t thought it was more than just sex. Linc was a normal, red-blooded male, and sex was always on a man’s mind. At the moment, he was enamored of her because she was someone new.
She thought of him with the gorgeous raven-haired woman. He’d be spending next Saturday night with her. Carly wondered what excuse he would come up with. Or maybe he would just tell her the truth. He’d never said their relationship would be exclusive.
Her eyes burned. Why did it always turn out this way?
Because men were jerks and that wasn’t going to change. Surely she had learned that lesson by now.
At the sound of footsteps, she looked up to see Millie standing in front of her. “It’s not what you think.”
Carly sat up a little straighter, embarrassed the woman had caught her eavesdropping. “I-I don’t know what you mean.”
“That was Sophia Aiello. She’s a Vogue cover model. She and Linc are slated to attend a charity event together a week from Saturday. It’s just a publicity stunt to help raise money. Linc has no interest in Sophia . . . though I won’t deny she might have considerable interest in him.”
Carly didn’t doubt that. She shrugged as if it didn’t matter, tried to will the ache in her chest to ease. “It’s none of my business.”
“Maybe not. But Linc’s never invited a woman into his private suite. Special circumstances or not, he took you in there. Whatever is or isn’t going on between the two of you, I don’t want that catty, spoiled little . . . Italian to give you a false impression.”
Carly forced herself to smile. “Thank you.”
But in truth, it was exactly the right impression. Somehow, with all the trouble swirling around her, she had let down her guard, let Lincoln Cain slip beneath her defenses.
She’d started to trust him. To believe he was somehow different. She’d slept with him. More than that. She’d given herself more freely than she had ever done before.
Just thinking of what they had done in bed made her red with embarrassment. It made her want to drag him back to the bedroom and have mindless, scorching, totally amazing sex with him again.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
Millie turned and went back to her desk and Carly looked back at her computer screen. She tried to immerse herself in Drake Trucking business and not think about Cain, but it was impossible to do.
She made it through the next two hours, but when Linc appeared in the cubicle and asked if she wanted to go to supper before they went back home, she told him she had a headache—which by then was true—and she didn’t feel up to going.
He cast her a glance. “All right. The helicopter is waiting whenever we’re ready.”
She just nodded. She packed up her computer and they headed for the roof. She hoped the headache excuse would be enough to get him to let her sleep in one of the other bedrooms. Tomorrow she would tell him she had changed her mind, that she wanted to return to her own home, that she appreciated his help, but from now on, she could take care of herself.
The flight back was quick and uneventful. All the way there, Linc watched her. By the time they reached the ranch house, her heart hurt and despair had her mouth so dry she could barely speak. As soon as they walked through the door, she headed for the kitchen to get a drink of water and distance herself from Linc.
As if he had some kind of Carly radar, he followed her into the room and just stood watching her. She worked to keep her hand steady as she finished the water and set the glass down in the sink.
“What happened today?” he asked, the unnatural calmness in his tone putting her on alert. “Something happened that changed things between us. What was it?”
He was amazingly perceptive. She thought about lying, but it wasn’t worth the effort. She might as well end things now.
“Sophia happened. She reminded me of the way things really are.”
“Sophia Aiello?” He frowned. “What does Sophia have to do with anything?”
“She came to see you. You didn’t have time for her, but I’m sure she’ll forgive you.”
“I’ve never slept with Sophia.”
“You have a date with her next week. Were you going to tell me the truth or make something up?”
A knot of anger appeared in his jaw. “It’s just a PR stunt to raise money. I have no interest in a woman like that.”
“No? You were married to a beauty queen.”
“That’s right. Three years of misery and that god-awful house was the result. One thing you can be sure of—I’m a man who learns from his mistakes.”
She looked up at him. She wished she’d never met him. Wished Joe had never asked him to watch out for her.
“I want to go home. I’ll sleep in one of the other bedrooms tonight, but tomorrow I’m going home.”
His jaw went harder. “You’re not leaving. I’m not letting you put yourself in that kind of danger.”
“You can’t tell me what to do.”
“You don’t think so? I’ll tell you this—I’m not letting some spoiled, self-absorbed female I don’t give a fuck about ruin what’s happening between us.”
Her head came up. “Nothing’s happening. It’s just sex.”
“Is it?” He stalked toward her, caught her shoulders. He was mad, furious. She didn’t understand why he was so angry.
Linc hauled her closer. “I don’t know where this is going. But if Sophia upset you that badly, I mean more to you than just sex. We’re going to see where this leads. We’re not going to let other people decide the outcome.”
He fisted a hand in her hair to hold her in place and his mouth crushed down over hers. Heat speared through her, and wild, uncontrollable lust. She told herself to stop him, that he was just saying the things every woman wanted to hear, that he would get tired of her and leave, just like Garth and Carter, men who had professed to love her.
But what if she was wrong? What if Linc was the one man she could trust? The one man who was everything he seemed? She wanted to believe it so badly.
Carly struggled against him, but the heat was too much, the yearning too strong. Her body went primal, demanding she give in to him, let him take what he wanted. Carly kissed him back with all the need she felt for him, all the hunger, slid her fingers into the hair at the nape of his neck and her tongue into his mouth. Linc kissed her until her legs felt weak, until she couldn’t think of anything but him. She whimpered when he broke away.
“Another thing you should know. I’m not above using sex to get what I want. Since I know how much you like sex with me, I’m going to remind you why you decided to stay with me in the first place.”
Carly gasped as his big hands circled her waist, lifted her up, and set her down hard on the kitchen counter. He found the button on the waistband of her jeans, popped it open, then buzzed down her zipper. Her shoes landed on the floor. He lifted her and jerked down her skinny jeans, her panties along with them.
Carly couldn’t breathe. Heat roared through her. Every part of her body was sizzling. Linc pulled her to the edge of the counter, kissed her long and deep, parted her knees, and moved between them. Her blouse vanished and he was feasting on her breasts, turning her nipples diamond hard. Kissing his way past her navel, he suckled and tasted, used his hands and his mouth to bring her to a screaming climax. Her head fell back as pleasure spilled through her; the world tilted sideways, into a wash of color and sweet sensation.
Limp and sated, she lay back on the counter, too boneless and numb to protest when he unzipped his Levi’s and freed himself. Linc leaned over and kissed her. She whimpered as his hard length began to fill her.
“You like this?” he asked.
“Oh, yes . . .” she whispered. She loved the way he touched her, loved everything he did to her body.
“I’m glad you do because we’re only getting started.” Pinning both wrists together above her head, he took her right there on the counter, took her hard, claiming her in some way.
For a moment, fear gripped her. She was getting in deep with Lincoln Cain. Risking her emotions, setting herself up for heartbreak. The thought slid away as Linc moved above her, surging deep, driving her toward another searing climax.
Carly closed her eyes and let the storm of passion roll over her.