Sarah's Surrender Page 9

  It was a simple answer but he didn’t care for it a bit. “Why?” he asked her in a voice that held more than a touch of male irritation.

  “Why?”

  “That’s the question. Why do we need to wait?” Why the hell would she want to wait when it wouldn’t accomplish anything? All it would do would be to make him that much hornier, that much more rushed, that much more impatient with her. He wasn’t a patient man.

  “Are you serious?” She sounded completely dumbfounded.

  “Yep.”

  “We need to wait because we need time to get to know each other. Because after I get to know you, I’ll know if I want to sleep with you.” Sarah bit the words out to him one at a time as if she was explaining something to someone who refused to learn.

  “Nobody wants to sleep together after they get to know each other,” he stated bluntly.

  “Oh my God. Is that what you really think?”

  He looked her up and down and raised one eyebrow. “You got to get it while it’s hot.”

  “Get it while it’s hot?” She knew she kept on repeating everything he said. She just couldn’t seem to help it. The words that came from his mouth were so un-fucking-believable.

  Sarah watched him run his fingers through his hair in what looked like pure male aggravation. He turned away and then back to face her in a quick move that relayed his frustration. “I don’t know what your hold up is. I want to sleep with you. That’s all I want. So simple.”

  “That’s all you want? You are so freakin’ rude. You’re rude and impatient and—”

  He interrupted her with a hiss, “Forgive the shit out of me! Maybe you haven’t noticed, but I haven’t had a cigarette in almost two fucking days!” His mouth was carved into lines of strain, his eyes were hot on hers.

  Sarah froze and stared at him. “What? Why?”

  His mouth flattened into a thin line. “Because you don’t like it.”

  Sarah was speechless. Momentarily, absolutely speechless. He quit smoking for her? A small kernel of pleasure blossomed within and began to spread, radiating out from the inside.

  And then he spoke again. “So what the fuck do you want, Sarah? What’s it going to take for those twisted little panties to come off?”

  Sarah breathed in deeply and just stopped herself from ordering him from her house again. Fury and shock in equal amounts pumped through her. The guy damn well thought he could say whatever the hell he felt. So why not give him an answer? “My girlfriend said you’re a player. That you screw women and dump them. She warned me—”

  “This the same girlfriend who was with you at the Cut-n-Shoot?” he asked her in a dry voice.

  “Yes, why?” She frowned at him.

  “No reason. Just want to know who’s talking shit about me.” John knew he’d pissed more than a few women off in the county. But he hadn’t recognized her friend that night. As far as he knew, he’d never met the other woman before and whether it was true or false, he didn’t know how she’d come into the knowledge that she had.

  “So, are you denying it?” She crossed her arms and waited for his answer.

  He didn’t mind telling her the truth as he saw it. “I don’t screw women and dump them. We get together, it plays out, end of story.”

  “And do these women agree? Or are you the one who decides when it’s over?” she asked him in a tone that pretty much said she thought he was lower than a snake.

  He watched her for a moment in silence. Her mood had gone swiftly from tears to angry accusation. She was being clingy and needy already and he hadn’t even gotten in her goddamn pants yet. And why the hell wasn’t he running in the opposite direction already? “I don’t really need your shit, Sarah.”

  “That’s fine. You don’t need my shit and I’m not going to roll over like a simple-minded slut and spread my legs for you. So that’s one issue down and now we only have one to go.” Sarah knew she wasn’t going to get any help from him now, so she didn’t need to take care not to piss him off. “We can move on to the reason I came to see you in the first place. Are you going to help me or not?”

  She really wasn’t a bit surprised when he crossed the room and came to stand in front of her. She wasn’t surprised but she couldn’t help the shivers that ran down her spine. She lifted her chin and stood her ground while she waited to see what his reaction would be.

  She didn’t have long to wait.

  He lifted her face in his callused palm and jerked her chin up until her eyes were on his. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can control me, babe. I’ve warned you about that before. We’ll get to the second issue when the first one is resolved. And it will be resolved when you’re naked in my bed. You want to get to know me? Fine. I’ll pick you up at seven tomorrow night. Be ready.”

  His mouth landed on hers and he kissed her just once before he turned and walked out the door.

  ****

  Sarah couldn’t think of anything else besides her upcoming ‘date’, and by the time seven o’clock came the next evening, she was nothing but a bundle of nerves. There really wasn’t much of anywhere to go around here, and she seriously doubted they’d make the drive back to San Antonio, so she opted for casual and dressed in capri pants and a soft cotton t-shirt. Low-heeled, silver sandals completed her outfit, and she was as ready as she’d ever be.

  She was a few minutes early and saw no reason to act as if she wasn’t, so she sat on the old porch swing and waited for him to drive up.

  He arrived a short time later, and Sarah noticed at once that he wasn’t in the SUV, but in the diesel pick-up truck that he’d been driving the first time she met him. The memory of that day snuck up on her, and the knowledge that she was about to climb up in that truck made a shiver of helplessness run through her. She quickly steeled her nerves and reminded herself that she was in control of her own actions.

  She stood and locked her front door, grabbed her purse and walked to the truck. He pushed the passenger door open from the inside, and she pulled it open and stepped up on the running board. She lifted herself up and within seconds she was seated next to him with the door closed.

  The truck idled as he reached over and buckled her in as if she was as incapable as a four-year-old. But for whatever reason, it didn’t upset her as it possibly should have, instead she felt only a moment of security, as if she was completely safe.

  When the task was accomplished, he leaned away from her and gave her a cursory, unreadable look and then put the truck in reverse. As he negotiated the move, he drawled, “City girl.”

  Their glances connected and Sarah felt the impact of his eyes. She licked her lips. “Why do you say that?”

  “You locked the front door. You’re in the middle of nowhere, sweetheart. Who do you think you’re locking it against?”

  “I don’t know. It’s habit, I guess.”

  “Yeah. City girl.”

  “I’m sorry you don’t like it,” she answered him crisply.

  “Where’d you get the idea I don’t like it?” He stopped at the crossroads before turning onto the paved highway and turned to study her. His eyes ran over her, from her head, down her torso, stopping at her breasts, before lifting to her face again. “I like it, all right.” His words were drawled, low and deep, and they set subterranean quakes shooting through her stomach.

  Sarah didn’t know how to respond. Anything she might have said would be in a voice that she was very afraid might tremble, so she tried to keep her expression neutral. He must have figured out he wasn’t going to rile her as easily as he wanted, and he looked away from her and resumed driving.

  She didn’t ask him where they were headed, but it didn’t surprise her when he pulled onto his own property some twenty minutes later.

  He pulled up in front of his house, and before she could get her unruly brain to function, he climbed down and walked around to her side. He opened her door and held out his hand to her. “You going to sit there all night?”

  Sarah swallowed a
nd put her hand in his. He pulled her from the truck and walked with her behind him, tugging on her hand as he led her into the house.

  Wonderful smells hit her as she entered and she knew someone had cooked dinner, probably his housekeeper. He confirmed that as he said, “I hope you’re hungry. Beth left us some dinner.”

  “She’s not here?”

  “Nah, she went home.”

  “I thought she might live with you.”

  “Nope.”

  “Oh.” The idea they were all alone in the secluded house could easily start playing a mind game on her. She shoved the thought to the back of her brain.

  He led her through the living room to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. He pulled out two beers and offered her one. “Let’s have a drink before we eat.”

  She hated beer. She always had and she knew for a fact she always would. “I’m not crazy about beer.”

  “You want something else?” he asked with a low-pitched drawl.

  “What do you have?” She knew she shouldn’t have alcohol tonight, but having a drink to calm her nerves was more than tempting. Suddenly, it was mandatory.

  “Whatever you want,” he said in a smooth voice that indicated to her he meant more than just a beverage.

  She ignored the look in his eye. She wanted a drink but she also needed to stay in control. “Wine-cooler?”

  “No.” The word shot from his mouth as if he’d never considered letting a six-pack of wine-coolers grace his refrigerator.

  “Zinfandel?” she questioned.

  “No.”

  “Wine of any kind?”

  “No.”

  She blinked up at him. Why the heck had he told her he had whatever she wanted? She was silent as he walked over to a sideboard and opened it. He held the cabinet door ajar and looked inside. “Tequila. Bourbon. Rum. Vodka. Gin.” His dark voice rang out as he sank to his haunches and moved a few things aside and then stood again. “No scotch.”

  “Vodka and whatever juice you have.”

  “Orange juice is all I drink.”

  “That’s fine.”

  “A Screwdriver it is.” He lifted a glass down from an overhead rack and filled it with ice.

  “Make it light, please.”

  “No problem.”

  Sarah stood to the side as he mixed the drink. He popped his beer can open and handed her the glass. Standing in front of her, he held his can toward her in the universal signal to make a toast. “Here’s to getting to know each other in the least possible amount of time.”

  “That’s not very nice.” She clinked her glass to his can of beer anyway, lifted it and took a small sip. It wasn’t super strong, but it was in no way ‘light’.

  “No?” he asked. “Thought you wanted to get to know each other.”

  “Yes, I do. Just—never mind. This is good.” She took another sip and savored the orange flavor before swallowing and enjoying the small spread of heat that the vodka induced. Even as she enjoyed the drink, she admonished herself to be careful.

  “Let’s go outside and sit. We can have a few drinks and loosen up a bit before we eat.”

  “We can’t have too many or you won’t be able to drive.”

  John ignored that comment and ushered her out the back door. There was no sense riling her and telling her that he didn’t intend on taking her home tonight. That could come later, after he got some more vodka down her. He had no plans to get her drunk and take advantage of her, but why the hell shouldn’t she stay the night? He liked the thought of her being around for a few days; the vision of her padding around barefoot in the morning came to him and filled him with pleasure. The realization that he’d never wanted another woman in his house since his wife had died crept up on him and beat a silent warning that he forced to the back of his brain.

  He led her down a cobbled path until they reached a large gazebo he had built a few years before. He had put built-in seating all around the inside, and he propelled her to a bench seat with outdoor cushions.

  She sat down, and he sat at an angle to her, so he could study her. A person could see everything Sarah was thinking and feeling right there in her eyes, and he planned on picking up every nuance and learning all he could from her. He needed to know what made her tick, so he could more easily push her buttons.

  He took a drink of beer and let his eyes wander over her. “You have the most gorgeous lips.” He hadn’t meant to start hitting on her immediately, the words just slipped out as he was trying to think of something that would be appropriate in the ‘getting to know you phase,’ something that would put her at ease and loosen up that steel rod in her spine.

  Her eyes dropped to her drink and she took a quick sip. “You think?”

  He studied her, looking for a flaw. “Yeah. Your mouth is perfect.”

  “My teeth are bucked.”

  He almost groaned out loud. “They damn sure are.”

  Sarah heard the groan he tried to stifle and her fingers trembled as she took another sip. The way that he agreed with her made her think that he liked her teeth. There was nothing negative in his tone at all. On the contrary, he studied her lips and she had the feeling he was trying not to reach out and touch her.

  She’d always been a lightweight, and the vodka was warming her insides already. “How old are you?” She couldn’t believe she asked that out loud. Smooth, Sarah. The question popped into her head and the words came flying out.

  “Thirty-two. You?” His hand reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

  “Twenty-seven.”

  “That old, huh?” He teased her. “You’ve got a lot of living left yet.”

  She had a past he knew nothing about. Maybe it wasn’t fair that she knew about his marriage and he knew nothing about hers. Well, she didn’t know about his marriage, only that there had been one and it had ended tragically. “I’ve lived quite a bit already. Or it feels like it.”

  “Why do you say that? Is a classroom full of teenagers that much hell?” he questioned her.

  She laughed softly at that. “They’re not too bad.” She took a moment to observe him closely while he took a sip of his beer.

  He was watching her watch him. His mouth broke into a small grin as she continued to study him. “What?” he asked in that deep voice of his.

  “Did you really quit smoking because you know I don’t like it?”

  “Yeah. Trying to, anyway.”

  “Why?”

  “What are you fishing for here, babe? You want me to make it all romantic for you or tell you the truth?”

  “Oh, I think I already know the truth, so let’s go the romantic route.”

  He hesitated a moment and then touched her hair again, pushing it behind her ear the same way he had done seconds before. Heat went through Sarah as she realized that through all his smooth talk he was seriously having a hard time keeping his hands off her. His thumb softly caressed her ear and then lowered to her cheek. He took a deep breath. “Romance, huh?” At her nod, he continued, “You’re beautiful,” he started slowly and then seemed to get into the groove. “You’re sweet and kind and deserve someone special.” His hand moved back to her hair and her eyes were glued to his, waiting. “I’ll never be someone special. I’m just an ordinary guy. But if it’s within my power to be even a tenth of what you deserve, I’m going to try my damndest.”

  Sarah knew she should blink, but she couldn’t seem to remember how. Her gaze was tangled with his, and what started out soft and teasing turned into something so much deeper. His eyes wouldn’t let hers go and with an ache in her heart, she wondered if he really believed he wasn’t special. What he said was almost magical, and she was scared to respond; she so didn’t trust him not to ruin the moment. She wanted to say thank you, she wanted to tell him he was special. But she was scared he would respond sarcastically and so she just stayed silent.

  After a moment, he dropped his hand from her hair and cleared his throat. “Which part of Dallas do you live in?”<
br />
  She took a deep breath, tried to focus on the present and named an area of town north of the city.

  “Live in an apartment?”

  “I have a condo.” She thought of her small, one-bedroom condo with a sinking feeling. She wished she could sell it and never go back.

  “You live alone?”

  His voice was deep and his question held something she couldn’t readily identify. Maybe concern that she lived alone? Maybe he was wondering if she had been living with Randall? “Yes.”

  He took a drink of his beer as if he was satisfied with her answer. “When is your birthday?”

  “October twenty-eighth. When is yours?”

  “February twenty-ninth.”

  The date hit Sarah as odd until she realized why. “Get out.”

  “Seriously.”

  “That’s so sad.” All she could think of was that he only had one real birthday every four years.

  “Nah. It’s unique. I felt special as a kid.”

  “That’s sweet. Are your parents still alive?”

  “Yep. And still married. They’re retired and living in Florida. How about yours?”

  “My parents divorced when I was young. My dad is dead now and my mom is remarried and living in Australia.”

  “Australia.” He said it like it was a world away and she guessed that was true. He continued to watch her. “Is that okay with you?”

  “Yeah, I guess. She’s happy and we Skype a lot.”

  “Have you ever thought about moving there?”

  “No. I’ve got the farm. I’m never leaving it.” She determined to keep the farm, if nothing else.

  “The land gets in your blood, doesn’t it?”

  “It does. It’s almost a physical pain to be away nine months out of the year.” It was something her friends in the Dallas area didn’t understand. How a plot of land could mean so much to her that she would up and leave every summer.

  “So you don’t feel the same way about your condo?” he asked.

  “Not at all. It’s homey and nice, but it’s just a place to live.”

  “Why don’t you move here, then?”

  “The same reason I’m trying to get you to fund the retirement home. Lack of jobs. I couldn’t find work if I tried. The school doesn’t need teachers and there isn’t anything else available.”