His By Any Means. Maureen Child

She would drive up to Sage’s ranch in the morning and nerves were beginning to settle in. Three days at his house. God, she could hardly sit across from him in a restaurant without her body erupting in dangerous wants and needs. The next few days were going to be agonizing.

      Unless, she thought wildly, something happened between them to release all this tension she felt building inside her. But if they did sleep together, then what? From everything she’d learned from J.D., she knew that Sage wasn’t interested in a real relationship. And even if he were, he wouldn’t want her, she knew that already.

      So what would she gain by going to bed with him?

      Lovely memories, her brain shrieked. Orgasms galore, her body chimed in.

      She shivered again.

      This had seemed like such a good idea, having Sage show her the mountains and how to avoid danger.

      Which was really funny if you thought about it, because Sage himself was dangerous to her. He was becoming too important to her. While she planned her new life, looking forward to all the exciting things stretching out in front of her, Sage was in those mental images, too. He had become a part of the dream she’d nurtured for so long and she didn’t know how to separate them now.

      The only thing she could do was try to protect her heart from the inevitable crash that was headed her way.

      “Hello?” Jenna demanded her attention. “Did you know he was that rich?”

      In spite of everything, Colleen laughed. “It never crossed my mind to ask J.D. what Sage’s bank account looked like.”

      “Well, it just doesn’t seem fair, does it?” Jenna turned the laptop so that Colleen could see the screen, where an image of Sage stared out at her. “A man should not be allowed to be that amazing-looking and rich to boot. Just seems selfish somehow.”

      Colleen would have laughed, but she was staring at the image of Sage, drawn from some tabloid site. He looked impossibly handsome in a tux and was glaring at the camera even as the woman on his arm, last year’s Oscar winner, beamed at the photographer as she draped herself against Sage’s broad chest.

      There it was, she told herself silently. Proof that whatever was between her and Sage wasn’t permanent. Wasn’t anything more than a temporary fantasy on her part, just a lot of chemistry that sizzled and flashed between them.

      So, knowing it was all fleeting, what was she supposed to do? Stay home? Avoid Sage? Or should she accept the fact that this was all transitory and simply enjoy it for what it was? A swirl of expectation swam in her veins, side by side with a few slim threads of reality. It would be interesting to see which sensation finally won out.

      “Anyway,” Jenna was saying as she slapped the laptop lid down, shattering the spell Colleen had been under. “I found a couple of cabins for sale. One has a lot of land with it—like thirty acres—the other’s close to a county road.”

      “Sounds great.” She smiled appreciatively as Jenna handed over a piece of paper with the addresses. “I’ll see if Sage can take me to look at them.”

      “We’re depending on Sage a lot lately, aren’t we?”

      Colleen quirked a smile. “Is that the royal we?”

      “It’s the you we,” Jenna said, leaning back against the headboard of Colleen’s bed and stretching out her legs to cross them at the ankle. “You’ve really been seeing a lot of him and now you’re off to stay with him at his place.”

      “Not with him,” Colleen corrected, though her body hummed at the idea. “Just at his house.”

      “Uh-huh.” Jenna just looked at her for a second or two, then she huffed out a breath. “It’s crazy, I know, but I’m worried he’s going to break your heart.”

      “What?” Surprised, Colleen stared at her friend.

      “Okay, sure, I was caught up in the whole billionaire-suddenly-wanting-to-date-my-friend thing, too. But honestly, now that he’s stuck around for a while, I’m just...uneasy.”

      “Why?” Colleen knew why Jenna was uneasy, of course. Because she still couldn’t quite bring herself to believe that Sage was actually interested in her. But she’d like to hear her friend’s reasons.

      “Because he’s too damn solitary,” Jenna blurted. “Anybody who’s alone that much? There’s probably a reason and I don’t want to see you get caught up in whatever his issues are.”

      Colleen laughed shortly.

      “What’s so funny?” Jenna demanded.

      “Nothing.” Waving one hand, she said, “It’s just, I thought you were going to say what I’ve been telling myself. That I’m not the kind of woman he usually goes for. Not sophisticated enough or beautiful enough or rich enough for him.”

      “Please.” Clearly offended, Jenna sat straight up. “He’d be lucky to have you. You’re plenty beautiful and way better than sophisticated or rich, you’re real. You have a warm and generous heart. Maybe sometimes too generous.”

      Colleen reached over and hugged Jenna tight. When she let her go again, she said, “Thanks for that. But don’t worry, okay? I’m pretty sure that whatever this is, it’s short-lived. I’m not going to let my too-generous heart get all gooey and involved. Honestly.”

      “You know the too generous thing was a compliment, right?”

      “Absolutely.”

      “Good.” Jenna nodded. “So...back to mystery mountain man.”

      “He’s not a mystery,” Colleen insisted. “And this isn’t some romantic getaway. Sage is going to show me around the mountain and probably try to scare me out of the idea of living alone up there.”

      “If only he could.”

      “Thank you for your support,” Colleen said wryly.

      “Oh, I support you, sweetie.” Jenna sat up, grabbed a T-shirt and folded it as she continued, “But you forget, I’ve lived in Wyoming all my life. I know how dangerous the mountains can be. Beautiful, yes, but also deadly if you’re not careful.”

      Colleen started to talk, but her friend cut her off.

      “I don’t like the idea of you living in the high country all on your own.” She waved one hand as if to dismiss the argument she didn’t give Colleen a chance to make. “Yeah, yeah, feminists, hear us roar, but just because you can do a thing doesn’t mean you should do it, you know?”

      Colleen dropped onto the edge of the bed, pushed the suitcase out of the way and faced her friend. “Fine. I’m a little anxious about being alone up there, I admit it, but I’ll get used to it. And Jenna, I’m not helpless or stupid. I’ll take care and I’ll make sure to get help if I need it.”

      “I know.” Jenna nodded and shrugged helplessly. “Maybe I just don’t want you to move away.”

      Colleen leaned in and gave her friend another hug. “I’ll miss you, too. But we’ll still see each other.”

      “Oh, you bet we will. You’re not going to get rid of me that easy.” Jenna handed her the folded shirt. “But do me a favor. When you see the cabins, even if you fall in love...don’t make a hasty decision. I don’t want you to rush into something that you won’t be able to get out of easily.”

      That was good advice. And not just about the cabins. She was about to head off to stay at the home of a man who turned her knees to mush. Was she already in way too deep for her own good? Would she get out now if she could?

      No.

      Colleen thought about it while she finished packing and realized that if it would be smart to stay far, far away from Sage Lassiter...she’d rather be stupid.

      * * *

      It had only been a week.