JEREMIAH OPENED HIS EYES. The early-morning light streamed through the window, making Renee’s hair blaze like a reddish-blond halo framing her face. She was so beautiful he wanted to run his hand over her cheek to be sure she was real, but resisted the urge. He didn’t want to wake her up.
His mind replayed everything that had happened. He had thought sex with her would be great, but it was so much more. Incredible, that’s what it was. Everything about her was amazing. The way her lips felt against his, the way she tasted, the little squeals she made as she came for him.
He wanted it all, over and over again.
As if she could read his thoughts, Renee snuggled closer to him, kissing his shoulder as she opened her eyes. “Good morning,” she said with a nibble that shot through his heart and straight down to his groin.
“If you keep doing that,” he said through his teeth as he struggled to maintain control, “I’m going to have to do things to you.”
“Oh yeah?” she responded with a mischievous smirk. “What kind of things?”
“The kind that would probably come to Jessica and Aaron’s attention.”
Her groan of annoyance was so adorable that he chuckled, which turned quickly to a sharp intake of air as her fingers slid along his already-hard shaft. He pulled her hand away, cupping it in his own. “You should probably head back to your room before they wake up,” he told her, wishing he was saying something very different.
Confusion swept across her features before being replaced by understanding. She sat up. “This is your room,” she said.
Jeremiah was nonplussed. “Whose room did you think it was when you sneaked in here last night?”
Renee shook her head. “You don’t understand. Jessica switched me into this room. You sneaked into my room. On accident, apparently.”
She sounded deflated, and it took him a moment to figure out why. Then he realized and squeezed the hand he still held. “I tried to go to your room last night to apologize, but the light was off and I didn’t want to wake you up.” He laughed. “Apparently I was being polite to an empty room.”
Her mood brightened immediately, and his heart thumped harder in his chest. “So, I guess I should go back to my room, which isn’t my room?” he asked, a little confused.
She nodded, but the regret on her face was too much for him. He wished he didn’t have to go, but then he had an idea. He sat up beside her and kissed her and in seconds they were both breathless. “Throw on some clothes,” he told her.
She looked so disappointed he didn’t know if he should laugh or hug her close. “I have a plan. It’s a good one, trust me.”
The disappointment was replaced with curiosity, but he shook his head before she had the chance to ask. “Just put on some clothes. I’m going to the other room for a minute. I’ll meet you at the bottom of the stairs, okay?”
He tossed on his clothes and opened the door carefully, trying to keep it from squeaking. As soon as he was sure the coast was clear, he hastened across the hall to what he had believed to be Renee’s room. After a few seconds making the bed look slept-in, he was back in the hallway and bounding down the stairs as quietly as he could. He was filled with a nervous excitement as he assured himself that the house was still quiet, its owners still asleep.
Renee came down the stairs only a minute after him. He raised a finger to his lips to let her know to be quiet, then grabbed her hand and pulled her after him out the door. He didn’t need to hold her hand for this part, but it just felt so good. They began walking down the property, the barn ahead and slightly to the right of them.
Once they were outside, she asked, “Where are we going?”
“To see the river that runs along through the trees.”
“Maybe I should have grabbed a coat,” she said, rubbing the goose bumps on her arms.
The cool morning breeze swept over them and she shivered. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close. They began to pass the barn. “The river is silvery with tiny waterfalls. It babbles and everything.”
“It sounds nice,” she responded, clearly still wondering what he had in mind.
“What does the river look like?” he asked her as they passed behind the barn.
Her forehead wrinkled. He waited, and after a beat she answered, “Silver with little waterfalls?”
“Perfect,” he said, then stopped walking. “Now you know how to answer if Jessica or Aaron asks you about it.”
With that, he opened a small door in the back of the barn and gestured for her to follow. Renee’s confusion changed to delight as his plan became clear, and she walked quickly to catch up to him.
In no time, they had made their way through the building and up to the loft. The excitement in Jeremiah’s stomach was reaching a fever pitch. The moment they were hidden away in the hay-scented loft—either as an added protection against discovery, or because it seemed really sexy—Jeremiah pulled Renee toward him and gave her the long kiss he’d been waiting for all morning.
In moments, Jeremiah’s blood was pounding in his veins, and his erection was straining the zipper of his jeans. His hands roved over Renee’s body, enjoying every piece of her they could find. He leaned back for a second to get a full view of her face. Her lips were swollen from the kiss, her hair disheveled, and she wasn’t wearing any makeup. She was the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen.
He moved back toward her and kissed her again. This was the best morning of his life, hands down.
* * *
RENEE PUT HER hand on Jeremiah’s chest and grabbed a fistful of his shirt, as if hanging on for dear life. Which, in a way, she was. Last night had proven that her fantasies hadn’t even come close to the real deal. Her knees were still weak from those bone-shattering orgasms, and here she was moving quickly toward another one. With Jeremiah’s arm wrapped around her, holding her up, who needed knees?
Jeremiah’s lips and tongue and teeth moved down her neck, leaving a wet trail that sizzled with heat. As he moved lower, he said, “You told me you fantasized about us getting together. What exactly did you imagine us doing?”
With another guy, Renee would feel embarrassed about describing her fantasies, but with Jeremiah there was just the thrill of knowing that whatever she said, he would be an incredibly willing participant. “I pictured myself on top of you, riding you until I came.”
Jeremiah stilled for a second and the breath whooshed out of him. “Good fantasy,” he murmured against her ear.
And then he got to work undressing them both. Renee’s hand was no longer holding a fistful of his shirt, but instead lay flat against his chest, feeling the warm, taut skin stretched over muscles that would make any woman melt.
She pressed her hand against him, directing him to lie down on the floor of the loft. His eyes were dark with arousal, and his cock stood straight at attention as she unrolled the condom along his length.
She kissed his chest as she positioned herself on top of him, straddling him. He groaned. “Really, really good fantasy.”
When she took him inside her, a small scream escaped her at the pleasure of it. Every glorious inch of him filled her. She began to move, the friction where their bodies joined making her entire being feel tight and sensitive. Then his thumb moved between her legs, sliding against her nub until she cried out again.
He touched and teased her as she rode him, his head thrown back and every muscle taut. She moved faster, rushing toward release. It exploded through her, making every part of her quiver, and he came with her, gasping her name.
She leaned forward, her body on top of his, feeling deliciously spent. His skin smelled of sweat and sex, and she breathed it deep into her lungs, enjoying it. His arms slid around her, holding her close.
Renee opened her eyes, suddenly uncomfortable. It felt more like a love scene than she liked. It was just sex. Really good sex, but that was it. She couldn’t let it turn into anything more than that or she’d be nursing a broken heart when she went back to New York. There was no other way for that path to end.
Jeremiah shifted slightly to look at her face. “Hey, you okay?” he asked, concern in his voice.
She sat up and slid off him, hating how empty she felt when he was no longer inside her. She forced herself to be perky and pleasant. “Yep, I’m fine. Do you think Jessica and Aaron will be up?”
He looked like he wanted to ask something else, but to her relief he just shrugged. “Probably.”
She stood and started getting into her clothes. “Good, because I’m starving and the only breakfast food I’m capable of making is toast.” She cringed at her own fake tones.
“Don’t knock toast. It’s the key to a great breakfast,” he answered, giving her his lighthearted smile.
She tried to ignore the fact that only his mouth smiled. His eyes still held concern.
Renee turned to the ladder, trying to get away from those eyes. “I only burn it like sixty percent of the time.”
Once she was at the bottom of the ladder, she brushed herself off one last time, feeling anxious in Jeremiah’s presence, though she wasn’t completely sure why. When he was standing beside her, she turned for inspection, more to mask her discomfort than anything else. “Is there any hay or anything on me? I don’t want to leave any clues for Jessica to pick up on.”
Jeremiah took a step closer, halting her nervous movements. The deep brown of his eyes sucked her in, calming her jitters. “Would it really be the worst thing in the world if Jessica found out?” he asked her.
She knew he wasn’t asking just that question. He was asking another one, a question that sent the panic monster running through her brain. She turned her eyes away from his, breaking away from that intoxicating stare. It was time to make this completely clear for both of them. “Yes. If Jessica knew what was going on, she would either be horrified that her little sister was having a fling instead of helping her with the wedding, or she would get excited and think that this is going to turn into something more, which it won’t.”
She paused for a second, letting her words sink in. She still couldn’t look at him. “Since it can’t go beyond this week, Jessica absolutely can’t find out.”
For what felt like a very long time, neither of them spoke. Then he began walking toward the barn door. “Rules one and two—Jessica can’t know, and this is just for the week. Got it.”
She followed him as he walked in silence back to the house. Renee wanted to bring back the fun, easygoing banter she so enjoyed with him, but couldn’t think of anything else to say.
When she was lying there with him, it didn’t feel like a simple fling—it felt more serious than that. And that was exactly what she didn’t want. She just needed to get back to fun and flirty, and nothing else. Once she figured out how to break through this awkwardness.
As soon as they were inside the house, the sounds and smells of breakfast bombarded her senses. Aaron was at the stove again in his garish apron.
“That thing looks ridiculous on you. You know that, right?” Jeremiah said as he sat down.
“Well, good morning to you, too. I like this apron. Best present you ever gave me.”
“What about that football I got you that was signed by the entire 1995 Dallas Cowboys team?”
Aaron’s eyes shifted. “That...kind of exploded.”
“What!”
“I hooked it up to the electric pump to inflate it a little bit, but you look away for one second—apparently there’s a limit to how much air it’ll hold.”
Jeremiah seemed suspicious. “One second, huh? Was Jessica in the room?”
Aaron answered with a grin. Jeremiah shook his head. “You win. From now on, I’m not getting you anything but girlie kitchen items.”
“Great! I need pot holders.”
Jeremiah glanced at Renee and smiled. A real, genuine smile that she couldn’t help but return.
She sat down next to him, stifling a laugh, either of amusement at the boys’ conversation or relief that the unease between her and Jeremiah was gone. This was the Jeremiah she wanted, not the sweet, caring one who made her heart ache in a way that bothered her.
Jessica walked into the kitchen. “Good morning. What have you two been up to?”
Renee tried to keep her face from betraying her. “We went for a walk to the river.”
Jessica’s eyes lit up. “Isn’t it beautiful?”
“I love the little waterfalls,” Renee responded, seeing Jeremiah’s grin out of the corner of her eye and almost breaking character.
Jessica seemed satisfied and shifted her attention to Jeremiah. “Sorry I gave away your room without telling you. Aaron and I didn’t realize how weird that must have been for you until this morning. I hope it didn’t cause any problems last night.”
Renee purposely avoided looking at Jeremiah, but she knew exactly what he was thinking. It caused a lot of very good things. He just said, “No problem,” and they moved on without getting any closer to that land mine.
Aaron served up another amazing breakfast and Jessica began discussing the tasks for the day, including setting up the chairs in the barn.
“If you need to work,” Jeremiah said, turning to her, “I can help out setting stuff up.”
It was such a sweet gesture, and he was so clearly apologizing for the day before that she was halfway to a puddle of goo before she managed to get a hold of herself.
She certainly had a lot to do if she wanted to get that spread perfect before the end of the week, but she’d come all this way to help her sister. Thoughts warred inside her.
Finally, she decided on a compromise. “How about we both set up the chairs? Everything will get done faster, and then I can do some work before...”
Before what? Before they spent another night together? God, she hoped so.
His lips twitched at the corners and he nodded.
“It’s settled,” Jessica said, her voice slicing the moment to shreds. “Let’s eat, clean up, and then we can all get to work.”
They ate and made conversation, but Renee missed pretty much all of it. She was far too intent upon Jeremiah’s hand, which pressed lightly against her thigh under the table. It wasn’t much, definitely not something that would catch the attention of the other two, but oh man, it caught hers.
By the time breakfast was over, she could feel her eyes glazing over, and she was little more than a puddle. How could he do so much to her with just the backs of his fingers under the table?
Unfortunately, there was no time to explore the question in more detail. Jessica was already divvying up tasks. “I need a quick shower,” Renee said before Jessica could give her another job. After the night before and then the romp in the loft, she felt like she was exuding sex out of her pores, and any moment, Jessica was going to catch on.
Jessica nodded. “You do that while we wash the dishes.”
Renee stood, a little shaky on legs made of jelly. Jeremiah shifted uncomfortably before standing, and Renee laughed quietly under her breath. Apparently his little bit of below-the-table teasing had tortured him as much as her.
Renee didn’t realize her sister was standing next to her until she spoke, startling her. “What’s funny?” Jessica asked.
Renee couldn’t think of a thing to say. Her mind was blank.
* * *
JEREMIAH SAW RENEE’S panic and thought of something as fast as he could. “You were thinking about that terrible joke I told you on the walk back, weren’t you?” he said.
Both women turned to him.
“What’s the joke?” Aaron asked, picking up the dishes.
“Okay, but prepare yourself. It’s pretty bad,” Jeremiah said, turning on his “joker” setting to full blast to get the attention off Renee. “Did you hear about the circus fire? It was intense.”
There was a silent pause.
“Get it? In. Tents. A circus fire.”
Jessica nodded. “You’re right. That’s a horrible joke.”
The moment was over, and Jessica and Aaron started to turn back to cleaning off the table. Renee, however, was still staring at him. As he watched, her silent giggles turned into loud guffaws. She was laughing so hard she looked like she could barely breathe. His heart seemed to leap in his chest as he watched her, blown away by how adorable she was.
When she finally got control of herself and moved to leave the room, she sent him one last look, and it sizzled across the space between them. They were both thinking the same thing, he was sure, but Jessica and Aaron would definitely notice something was up if he went with her into the shower.
So instead he would stay downstairs and wait until she appeared again, driving himself crazy with the image of her soapy and wet with water running down her silky skin. It seemed like the only thing to do.
* * *
RENEE LEANED FORWARD until her head was fully under the hot streaming water and she let it run over her. She hated to admit to herself how much she wanted Jeremiah there with her, and not just for his sexy body.
That was one reason, certainly, but not the only one. She wanted to talk to him more, just to hear what he would say. And that was a problem she would need to get over.
In a week-long one-night stand, it seemed better not to love the guy’s personality. That just made things harder when the week ended.
She finished rinsing and turned off the water. Once she was dry and dressed, she went downstairs, where the rest of the group sat at the table. The look in Jeremiah’s eyes as she stepped into the kitchen made a zing of electricity shoot through her. Instead of being satiated by that recent sexcapade and rocking orgasm, she was ready to curl her legs around his body and take him for another ride.
That just wasn’t in the cards for the moment, though. Jessica was already up and ushering them out of the house, and there was no choice but to follow.
As they all trouped out to the barn, Jeremiah sidled up beside her and slowed down, allowing Aaron and Jessica to get ahead of them. The air crackled between them, shooting sparks of desire through her. There was so much Renee wanted to say, but the only words that formulated in her brain were: I want you so badly right now. And that wouldn’t help either of them get through these next few hours.
“Thanks for saving my ass back there. And nice joke,” Renee told him under her breath instead.
She clasped one hand in the other to keep from reaching out and touching him. Jessica might not be the most observant person, but she’d probably notice if Renee started groping the best man.
“Glad you liked it,” he answered quietly. “I’ve been saving it to tell you. That seemed like a good time.”
His fingers brushed hers for just a second, sending another jolt through her, and then he sped up to help Aaron push aside the heavy barn door. She took in a deep breath, trying to keep the bones in her body where they were instead of turning to mush and melting into a pool of desire.
Just as she had the time before, Renee stopped to watch as the two men rolled open the large door to the picturesque barn. Her mind managed to focus on the scene in front of her, and immediately the gears in her head began to turn.
“Jessica, you have a decent camera, right?” she called to her sister.
Jessica looked confused about the seemingly random question, but nodded. Renee ran up and grabbed her hand, pulling her back toward the house. “I need it.”
“Now?”
“Now.” Renee turned to the men, who had just gotten the door fully open. “Shut the door again, guys. I need to get a picture of you opening it.”
She didn’t wait for a response. Her mind was buzzing too fast to slow down as she hustled Jessica back inside. The sunlight, the barn, the men. It was all perfect, and she needed that photo to grace Jessica’s story and her page design. But she had to move quickly if she wanted to capture that magic.
In no time, she had the camera around her neck and was running back down toward the barn. “Open the door slowly,” she commanded to Aaron and Jeremiah, raising the camera to her face.
The shutter clicked again and again as the barn door opened, and once it was in place, the two men turned to Renee. “What was that all about?” Aaron asked.
“Something for work,” Renee mumbled, not looking at him, her thoughts occupied.
She stared intently at the screen on the back of the camera, reviewing the photos she’d captured. There. Renee couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face. She had found the perfect one for her page.
Giddy, she turned to Jessica. “This photo will look perfect with your article.”
Jessica narrowed her eyes at her sister, but then she looked down at the screen and her expression changed. “Wow. That’s an amazing picture.”
Renee noted that Jessica hadn’t said anything about not using the article. Could this day get any better?
She took the camera back to the house, holding it carefully, as if it was a priceless treasure.
Renee set the camera on her bed. She was itching to sit down and work on the spread, but everyone was expecting her to return to the barn and the business of wedding preparations.
At least in the barn she’d be able to watch Jeremiah. Her lips curled into a smile as she thought about the muscles in his arms rippling as he moved heavy objects. Maybe she’d even get lucky and he would need to bend over to work on something, giving her a great view of his ass.
That thought sent her bounding down the stairs and to the door. Before she could open it, though, Jeremiah stepped through, and his lips were on hers.
Renee had no idea why he was there or if Jessica would be following right behind him, but she couldn’t care too much when Jeremiah was kissing her like that.
Just as the kiss began to deepen and her fingers crept along the waistband of his jeans, he stepped away from her, leaving her kissing nothing but air.
“We’d better get back,” he said. “Jessica forgot her wedding notebook and I volunteered to grab it for her, but if I take too long, she might get suspicious and come looking.”
Renee nodded and started for the door, but before she could reach it, Jeremiah grabbed her arm and pulled her in for one last kiss. This time, she was the one who pulled away, though reluctantly. “The notebook, remember?”
He gave her his sexy sideways grin. “Couldn’t help myself. I’ll see you out there.”
She left him to search for the notebook and headed back to the barn, heady from the kiss.
This day was definitely in the running for the best day of her life.