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Her voice wasn’t working. Fortunately, he took her silence as an answer.
His lips touched hers. Warm. Tender. Caressing. Then stronger. Scalding. Claiming. Something swirled in her head and burst behind her eyes. A million stars. Her heart climbed into her throat. She couldn’t breathe. She didn’t care. She kissed him back, trying to curb her hunger. It didn’t work. He knew! He had to know!
“Papa?” said a small voice.
Jarrett’s lips jerked away, his arms still holding her up. He twisted to look behind him.
“Gabe? What’s wrong buddy?”
“I thirsty.”
With steady legs, Rylie straightened, catching her breath. “I’ll get it for you, Gabe.” She was proud her voice didn’t quiver.
“I can do it,” Jarrett said.
“It’s my night.” Rylie hurried around the kitchen, finding one of Gabe’s cups and filling it with water. What had they been thinking? They’d risked the marriage. They’d risked the adoption. They’d forgotten what was important. Gabe. Only Gabe.
“And Jarrett…”
“What?”
He sounded as miserable as he looked. She almost lost her resolve. Then Gabe’s scrawny arms wrapped around her legs.
“Mama, I thirsty.”
She handed Gabe the cup and looked at Jarrett, gathering her determination. “That can never happen again.”
“Is that so?”
His devastating eyes locked with hers. She couldn’t tear her gaze away. Her pulse quickened, her hand rising to her clenched throat.
“Rylie, itwillhappen again.” With his eyes still pinning her in place, his lips spread in a slow smile. “And that’s not a threat. It’s a promise.”
Chapter 19
Though it was Rylie’s turn for night duty with Gabe, Jarrett turned his ear monitor on before he climbed in bed. She was exhausted from spending the day with his sisters. Besides, he wasn’t likely to get much sleep anyway. His mind was still reeling from that kiss.
Was it because it had been a long time since he’d kissed a woman? In fact, after his last failed attempt at a relationship, he’d made a decision similar to Rylie’s. Only, he’d taken it a step further and sworn off women altogether. But Rylie had awoken something in him that had been asleep for longer than he could remember. He couldn’t think of another kiss that had fried his mind like that one.
Even the first touch of her lips had been a rush, like he was unwrapping a secret treasure. But when she’d responded with a hunger that matched his own, his pulse had raced like he was running a marathon. He wanted more. Much more. He was beginning to think long term—like forever—and it made him nervous. She was attracted to him, physically, but that wasn’t enough to build a marriage on. Even their mutual love for Gabe wasn’t enough for a lasting relationship.
He couldn’t waste time worrying about the future. He could only protect the ground he’d gained. He wouldn’t let Rylie rebuild the walls he’d torn down. Not now. Not after he had a taste of what could be. When he’d told her it would happen again, he’d meant it.
He tossed and turned on the bed that had been his since Rylie had moved in, thinking of her lying alone on his king-sized mattress. Was she sleeping? Or was she awake, tearing herself up about letting him kiss her? He would guess the latter. Rylie tended to overthink everything, just like he did. He’d always thought he needed someone carefree, like Carlie, to take his mind off his worries, but he’d changed his mind. With he and Rylie sharing the same concerns, the weight of his worries felt lighter. He loved nothing more than to make her laugh when she was stressed, and she did the same for him.
Bran had questioned whether Jarrett had ever truly been in love with Carlie. Jarrett thought back to the time when they were together. He’d never been happier or more carefree than when he and Carlie were hanging out, relaxing at the twins’ apartment.
Money had been tight. But he and Carlie had often chosen to spend time with Rylie even when extra funds were available. In their few dates alone together, Carlie had complained of boredom, unless she’d somehow persuaded him to go to a high-spirited party.
“Let’s go have some fun!” she’d said. “You’ll learn to love it!”
That he’d hated every minute hadn’t been important. He’d thought he was working toward a noble goal—to come out of his shell, as Carlie described it. Thankfully, he hadn’t had to work on being social all that often. Usually, he was in his happy place, sitting beside Carlie and Rylie on the couch, watching TV.
His favorite thing about Carlie was the way she always made him laugh and forget the pressures of grad school. Or had she? A memory played in his mind—the three of them laughing so hard there were tears flowing down their faces. But it wasn’t Carlie who’d set them off. The triggering remark had been a sarcastic quip from Rylie. In fact, she’d always kept them in stitches. Sometimes he and Rylie would trade remarks until Carlie was rolling on the floor.
He sat up in bed, board straight.
Rylie… it was Rylie! The whole time, it had been Rylie! Carlie and I would never have worked! How could I have been so blind?
