LITMIR.BIZ

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You know what they say. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.”

      “I did not scorn her.” He tunneled his fingers through his hair again and swore. “God knows I wanted to. I was furious, but I was also humiliated. I wanted her to like and respect me for my acting, but you know what? I wonder if she was jealous of the attention I got. Maybe she thought that if we had sex she’d have some leverage, some power over me.” He glanced over. “Does that make sense?”

      “Unfortunately it makes perfect sense.” Her heart ached for the loss of his idealistic dreams. Briana had ruined what should have been special.

      “I knew that yelling would make things worse so I tried to be nice. I had to think of something that didn’t sound insulting, so I made up a personal rule—never get involved with a costar. I don’t have any damned rule like that. It sounds stupid and anal, especially coming from somebody as green as I am, but I tried to make it sound believable.”

      “But you still rejected her.”

      “I had to! But I swear I wasn’t mean about it.”

      “Doesn’t matter. Once she made a move, she put you in a no-win situation.”

      “Are you saying I can’t win this fight?”

      “No, I’m definitely not saying that.” She considered telling him that he had all the ammunition he needed right here on this ranch—his background as a foster kid, his bond with his foster brothers, his amazing foster parents and his scholarship plan to support the new venture. All he had to do was turn her loose on this PR bonanza and everyone would forget about the stupid scandal as they soaked up Matt’s touching past.

      But she could predict his response to that idea, especially after a long and emotional day. Timing was everything. “We’ll figure this out, and I’m grateful to you for taking me into your confidence. Obviously it’s a painful episode and we don’t have to bring it up again.” She stood.

      He got to his feet, too. “You can see why I don’t want this to come out, right?”

      “Yes, I do. Besides, it would be tacky and pointless to accuse her of trying to seduce you. That could really backfire on us.”

      “And it would hurt Cliff.”

      She sighed. “You’re gonna have to let that one go. He married a toxic woman. That decision will come back to bite him eventually, and everyone who knows and loves him will hate seeing it happen. But it can’t be helped.”

      “Rosie said basically the same thing.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “He was in Utah with us for a couple of weeks. He was great, always complimenting me on my work and encouraging me whenever I struggled with a scene.”

      “I’ll bet Briana hated that. I’m guessing his primary job is telling her she’s fabulous. No wonder she propositioned you. She could gain power over you and punish her husband at the same time.”

      “Guess so.” He looked destroyed. “And now, if he believes Briana’s lies, which he has to since he loves her, he must hate my guts.”

      She closed the gap between them. “Matt, I’m so sorry. We’ll fix it.”

      “I hope so.” His troubled gaze searched hers. “I’m glad you’re here.”

      “Me, too.” She reached up and stroked his cheek. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”

      He muttered an oath and drew her close. “I shouldn’t be doing this. But God, you smell good.”

      “I shouldn’t be doing this, either.” She slid her arms around his waist and nestled against him. Sure enough, her glasses misted and she couldn’t see him. “Wait. I need to take off—”

      “Don’t. Once I see you naked I won’t be able to stop.”

      “I meant my glasses.” She pulled them off and held them in her hand.

      “Oh. I could work around those.”

      “But they fog up whenever we...whenever I...”

      “I’m not surprised.” His gaze roamed her face. “We generate a hell of a lot of heat.” He shuddered. “I need you, Geena. One kiss. Just one.” And his lips came down on hers.

      She held tight as his big body trembled with the force of his powerful emotions and his attempt to keep them in check.

      His tongue thrust deep as he lifted her hips to meet the hard ridge of his erection. He pressed forward with an urgency that tightened her core as moisture gathered between her thighs. She whimpered, yearning for that connection that he promised with each stroke of his tongue but ultimately would deny her, at least for tonight.

      And then, as if a storm had passed, he gently eased away. Keeping his hands at her waist to steady her, he raised his head and gulped for air. “Enough.”

      Breathing hard, she looked into eyes that glittered with passion. “Is it?”

      “For now.” He paused and took a breath. “It has to be.” He let go of her and stepped back. “I shouldn’t have started that. But I...it helps when I can hold you.”

      “I’m glad.”

      “But this isn’t the place or the time. I’m going to the barn.”

      “Me, too.”

      Smiling faintly, he glanced down at her bare feet. “I think not.”

      “You can carry me.” She felt safe saying that because of all his lovely muscles.

      “Lady, you are temptation personified.” He swallowed. “But I want you to stay here.” He reached out and stroked her cheek with the tip of his finger. “Please. I’d rather not take a chance that we’d get so involved that a member of my family would find us in the morning, all tangled up together and naked as the day we were born.”

      “I guess you’ve had enough embarrassment for a while, huh?”

      “Actually, I was thinking of your embarrassment.”

      A surge of warmth moved through her, warmth that had little to do with sex. “Thank you, Matt.”

      “Don’t give me too much credit. I was this close to pulling off your sleep shirt a moment ago, despite what I said.”

      “But you didn’t.”

      “You whimpered as if I was being too rough. That was enough to bring me to my senses.”

      “For future reference, I wasn’t whimpering because you were being too rough.”

      “You weren’t?”

      “When I make that little noise it means I’m frustrated beyond belief and I’m hoping you’ll take care of the issue immediately.”

      “Oh.”

      “Just FYI.”

      He picked up his hat and settled it on his head. “Probably a good thing I didn’t know that.” He touched the tips of his fingers to the brim. “See you in the mornin’.” And he walked out the front door.

      * * *

      Geena’s questions had been answered by the interlude with Matt, even if her libido hadn’t been satisfied. Apparently answers were more important than orgasms right now because she slept soundly until her phone chimed at five in the morning. Dawn would break in fifteen minutes.

      Obviously the birds outside her window hadn’t gotten the memo. They chirped and chattered as if the sun had come up an hour ago. Must be the early birds determined to get that worm. Which was a gross image, now that she thought about it.

      Ten minutes later, her hair in a ponytail and wearing a tiny bit of makeup because she’d be seeing Matt, she put on a pair of beige linen pants and a green silk blouse. Until Rosie coughed up some cowgirl duds, it was the best she could do. Her open-toed slides didn’t

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