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27
She woketo the smell of breakfast and coffee. It was so innocuous after the night she’d shared with Jack, so deceptively innocent, that she wanted to extend the moment. Wanted to stay in Jack’s big bed a little longer without analyzing everything that had happened — everything she’d done, everything she’d said — the nightbefore.
He’d been gentle with her after their sexual encounter, running the promised bath and leading her into a lavish marble bathroom almost as big as her apartment. Candles had flickered alongside the tub, and the air was scented with lavender and something almost antiseptic that might have beenaloe.
She had been surprised to see red lines crisscrossing her skin even after Jack carefully unwound the rope. She’d felt nothing but pleasure while she’d beenbound.
When she’d slid into the bath, the water was lukewarm, as if Jack knew her skin would be tender. The thought had stuck with her as she sunk into the tub: Jack had done thisbefore.
It wasn’t a revelation. She’d been clued into Jack’s womanizing — and rumors of his sexual proclivities — long before lastnight.
But that knowledge had been abstract. She hadn’t yet felt Jack’s mouth on the most intimate parts of her body, hadn’t yet watched him disappear insideher.
She didn’t like the idea of Jack with anyone else, although she recognized the unfairness of it. She’d loved being with him, had been excited by the thrill of a new sexual experience and the awakening of her body, and yet she had no intention of breaking things off with Liam. Not yet,anyway.
She and Jack weren’t teenagers going steady after a first kiss. Karen had been right all those weeks ago: Nina needed to figure out who she was and what kind of man — if any — she wanted in her life long-term.
She didn’t even know if Jack wanted to see her again, but if he did, she wasn’t going to throw away the camaraderie and affection, and yes, the passion she felt withLiam.
Not until she let it playout.
All of which meant she had no right to begrudge Jack his sexualexperience.
She stretched and looked toward the windows. There was nothing but sky on the other side of the glass, the nearby buildings invisible from the bed, and she again had the sensation of hovering in midair. It was hard to believe the world still existed outside of this place and the man who, from the smell of it, was making herbreakfast.
Her mind drifted back to the night before: Jack, helping her from the bath, drying her gently, patting rather than rubbing the chafe marks on herskin.
He’d sat on the edge of the tub to apply salve to the marks, working slowly and gingerly, and had handed her a stack of clothes. He’d left her to dress and she’d discovered a T-shirt and cotton drawstringpants.
Nounderwear.
She’d sighed aloud as she slipped on the clothes, the cotton soothing against her skin. She’d pushed away her questions — whether the clothes belonged to someone else or, just as likely, had been purchased for her by Jack ahead of theoccasion.
He’d left her a hairbrush and toothbrush, both brand new. She used them and stepped back into the bedroom, expecting him to be dressed and ready to see herhome.
Instead he’d been sitting against the headboard in pajama pants and no shirt, reading a book with a title she couldn’tread.
He’d set it down as soon as he realized she was there. “Come to bed, darling. You must betired.”
She was suddenly exhausted, her body responding to his words as if he’d cast a spell onher.
“Do you… do you want me to go home?” she’dasked.
He’d been taken aback. “Of course not, although I’ll take you if that’s what youprefer.”
“I want to stay with you.” She sounded painfully young, even to her ownears.
His expression softened. “Good.”
She walked around to the other side of the bed and slid in next to him. He’d pulled her into his arms and stroked herhair.
“It’s natural to crash after an unfamiliar or intense sexual experience,” he said softly. She closed her eyes, let herself be soothed by his voice. “The body expends a lot of adrenaline, much like it does when we’re in fight orflight.”
“Thank you for the bath,” she mumbled, already drifting into sleep. “And for the clothes. And for…everything.”
He kissed her head. “Sleep now, sweetNina.”
It was the last thing she remembered, and she couldn’t help wondering which Jack Morgan she would find in the kitchen this morning. Would it be the cool, distant Jack she’d been dating for the past month? The passionate, demanding Jack she’d met in bed last night? The gentle, kind Jack who’d taken care of herafterward?
