Impetuous. Lori Foster

Tyler stroked her cheek. “Will you stay with me for a while longer?”

      Her smile was shaky, a bit uncertain, but it was a smile.

      Laughing, feeling incredibly lighthearted, he held her tight as he turned on the couch, putting her on top of him. She came up on her elbows, her heavy breasts swaying over his chest.

      “Now, this is nice.” His hands cupped her, his thumbs flicking over her soft, dusky nipples until they drew tight.

      “Can you scoot up just a bit,” he growled. “I want you in my mouth.”

      Her lips parted, but she complied, her breath already thickening. Tyler swept his hands down her back and spread them wide over the buttocks, pressing her close.

      “I’m going to make love to you all night, honey. I want to show you all the different ways to enjoy yourself. I’m going to see to it that you’re so overwhelmed with pleasure, you won’t be able to resist seeing me again.” He said the words quietly just before he took her nipple in his mouth, licking and teasing and making her shudder. His hands moved over her bottom to the back of her thighs, then parted her legs so she was draped over him. “You’ll wake up at night and think of me touching you.” His finger slid inside her and she tensed, her hips pressing hard against him.

      “I want you to think of me,” he explained, loving her with his fingers until she trembled uncontrollably, “because I know I’ll be thinking of you.”

      TYLER HELD to his promise, exhausting both himself and Carlie with pleasure.

      Hours later, long after midnight, he slept, still holding her close. Carlie was stunned by all that had happened, never having imagined that such complete satisfaction was possible.

      Tyler lay relaxed beside her, one heavy muscled arm circling her belly, his hand splayed over her hip. He was even beautiful when he slept, she thought, when the lines of his face softened, making him look almost vulnerable.

      Of course, he could never know the truth. She would be mortified if Tyler ever discovered he’d made love with his sister-in-law’s dumpy best friend. Tyler didn’t even look at women like her, let alone sleep with them.

      Not that she wanted it any other way. She was dumpy by design, choosing her clothes with an eye for concealment, rather than enticement. She didn’t want a man, any man—not now, not ever.

      Relationships hurt. She’d learned that lesson after her marriage failed. And she’d also learned she could rely on no one but herself. Not on the grandfather who’d raised her after her parents’ death, treating her more like a burden than a grandchild, nor on her brother, who’d made it clear she was to deal with her mistakes on her own.

      But marriage had been her biggest mistake. One she wasn’t likely to forget.

      She could never tell Tyler the truth, but at least she’d learned something valuable; she wasn’t frigid. Her husband had been wrong, his accusations unjust. Probably, it had just been another of his attempts to destroy her self-confidence. But now she knew the truth, and for that, if nothing else, she was glad she’d stayed with Tyler.

      He shifted in his sleep, and she stilled, watching him closely, but he didn’t awaken. She leaned down and very gently kissed him on the corner of his mouth, then slipped from the couch.

      By the time Tyler woke, a smile of anticipation on his face, Carlie was gone.

      3

      ”YOU CAN’T TELL anyone I was at the party.”

      Brenda tugged Carlie through the kitchen door and then quickly shut it. “I wondered all night what happened to you. Where did you go? Why did you leave so soon? I thought for sure you were going to enjoy yourself.”

      Wincing, Carlie gave Brenda an apologetic look. She had enjoyed herself, all right, just not the way Brenda had expected. She pulled out a chair at the round wooden table and slumped into it. “I didn’t mean to worry you. I’m sorry.”

      “So what happened? Why did you run off?”

      Hesitating, Carlie tried to decide how much to tell her friend. It wouldn’t be the whole truth, that was for certain. Somehow, the night seemed…magical, something she could tuck away and keep to herself. She couldn’t share it, not even with Brenda. But she had to tell her something….

      “Brenda…I felt really foolish…in the costume. Maybe if I hadn’t been wearing something so…”

      “Sexy?”

      Carlie spared her friend a quick look, and saw Brenda was smiling. “Yeah, well, maybe. I just couldn’t face all those people looking like that.”

      “I’m sorry I pushed, Carlie. I just wanted you to realize how attractive you are. Those damn baggy suits you wear make you look fat.” Brenda pursed her lips, then idly traced the wood grain in the table with a fingertip. “Tyler noticed you.”

      Carlie felt her heartbeat race. “I… Did he say something to you?”

      “He asked who you were.”

      “You didn’t tell him!” Carlie nearly choked on her embarrassment, waiting for Brenda’s reply.

      “No. I just told him you were a guest.” Then she patted Carlie’s arm. “Hey, calm down. It wouldn’t be the end of the world if Tyler took a liking to you. You have to admit, he’s gorgeous.”

      Oh, yeah, he was gorgeous. Carlie licked her lips, then said carefully, “He, ah, approached me.”

      “He did?”

      “Yes.” Carlie cleared her throat, then immediately launched into her rehearsed story. “We talked for a while. In, ah, the pool house.”

      When Brenda’s eyes widened, Carlie reminded her, “It was raining, remember? And we went inside to stay dry. He, well, he was attracted to me.”

      “No kidding?”

      Carlie hated the note of fascination in her friend’s tone. She also hated lying to her, but she didn’t see any way around it. Brenda leaned forward. “So, what happened?”

      Carlie shrugged. “He didn’t recognize me.”

      “Well, of course he didn’t! He’s used to seeing you looking like this!” Brenda indicated Carlie’s dark, frumpy suit. With her honey blond hair in a tight braid and a pair of glasses perched on her nose, she looked nothing like the harem girl of the night before.

      “This isn’t funny, Brenda!” Carlie felt like strangling her. “And you can’t ever tell him, either. I don’t want him to know it was me he was…flirting with.”

      Brenda looked skeptical. “Ah, Carlie, don’t you think—”

      Whatever Brenda was going to say was cut off by a loud voice from the living room. Seconds later, Jason and Tyler strode into the kitchen. Carlie stiffened, all her defenses jerking into place. But her face remained impassive. Almost painfully so. There was absolutely no way she would let Tyler know she was the woman he’d spent the night with. She didn’t even want to think about how mortifying that would be.

      Brenda didn’t miss a beat after shooting Carlie an I’m not-responsible-for-this look. “I thought you fellas were going fishing. What happened?”

      Tyler reached Brenda first. He leaned down and lifted her from her chair, giving her a tight bear hug and a kiss on the cheek.

      Brenda’s face turned pink. “What did I do to deserve that?”

      Tyler’s smile was so warm and sincere, Carlie had to look away. “You invited me to your party.” Then he added softly, “Thanks.”

      Jason shook his head, and Carlie had the horrifying suspicion that Tyler had confided to him what had happened. Don’t blush, don’t blush! She glanced at Jason, but he was looking at his wife.

      Leaning