Now and Forever (10 page)

She slid on her shoes. Grabbing her purse, she slung it over one shoulder. “I wished you hadn’t said those…those…words.”

Tanner reached for her hand, but she yanked it out of his range. “I had to tell you how much you mean to me.”

Grace made a beeline straight for the front door. Her heels clicked loudly on the hardwood floor. The angry beats drowned out the mellow jazz music. With her hand on the door knob, she said, “It would never work between us. Can’t you understand?”

Composed, Tanner said, “The only thing I understand is that you and I were made for each other. But you refuse to accept this fact because your ex-husband was a jerk. I know the pain he caused you is still fresh in your heart, but I can take it away if you let me.”

Grace sighed. “This is too much. I need…I must…go.”

“Nothing you do will get me out of your system. If you listened to your heart, you’d realize we are destined to be together—forever.” Tanner said just before the front door slammed.

*

Upon arriving home, Grace kicked off her shoes at the door and rushed to the kitchen. Her frazzled nerves prompted her to grab a bottle of wine. Foregoing a glass, she tipped the bottle to her lips and guzzled to intoxicating liquid in the most unladylike fashion. She drank liberally, trying to drown out thoughts of Tanner. Not to mention his true confession.

At least she thought it was true. Wanted to believe it was true. Hoped it was true—fingers crossed and all.

Great
.
She was doing
it
again—acting like a desperate teenage girl with a crush on the most popular boy in school.

Frustrated with herself, she laid down the bottle on the counter with a loud thud. That man was an impossible, unforgettable and a drop dead sexy force of nature. He had blown into her life, stirred up her emotions and threatened to destroy her barriers, her defenses, with no apologies.
And absolutely no mercy.

The nerve of him
, she thought. She was doing just fine before they met. Hell, she’d even come to accept the fact that she may end up an old and lonely spinster, catering to a houseful of cats and cuddling nothing but her pillow at night. Yep, she was doing pretty terrific in a
sorta
sad way before tasting Tanner’s kiss, absorbing Tanner’s touch, sampling Tanner’s love. She didn’t need to know how strong, and right, his arms felt wrapped around her waist. Nor was it necessary for her to endure the heat of his sultry gazes. Not learning how firm the muscles of his chiseled chest felt beneath her fingertips would not have caused her any misery. After all, what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her.

But she did know. He had worked his magic on her. Tanner made her hormones tick like a time bomb, waiting to explode all over him. It was unfathomable the way her body reacted to his ever look and touch. Even the timbre of his deep voice ignited her flames. The manner in which he tugged at her heartstrings was, well, unforgivable. Just when she had begun to totally accept ‘not ever’ when it came to finding true love, he had twisted her thoughts into wondering ‘what-if’ with his talk about being in love with her.

Grace placed her head into her hands, fighting the urge to scream.
I’m a complete mess
, she told herself. She needed to get a serious grip, which was impossible to with Tanner monopolizing her thoughts. No other man had done such devilish things to her body. Even at this moment moisture formed at the gulf between her legs. He definitely possessed her body—in more ways than one.
And in every way, but one.
Who was he not to take full advantage of her sexual advances?

Creep.

Maybe he wanted to prove his strength by not giving in to temptation. There was no doubt she tempted him. His numerous rock hard erections revealed as much. The intensity of his kisses was undeniably. From what she gathered, Tanner hasn’t been in a serious relationship since Sheila. Word around town was that he wasn’t chasing every skirt around town, which was surprising. His options when it came to having any woman he desires were limitless. Yet, he chose to pursue her. But he refused to consummate their relationship. However, they didn’t have a relationship.
Right?

Ugh
.

Deciding to forego another glass of wine, Grace padded across the floor barefoot. She entered her bedroom and sat at the desk situated in the corner. She turned on the computer and began checking her emails. Spam…spam…more spam. Ava had sent her two emails. In the first message, she wanted to know if Grace had seen
Tanner?
The other message detailed the evening Ava had spent with some Adonis. Ava had only pinpointed the highlights of her date. But Grace sensed that a good time had been had by all parties involved. Grace hated to admit it, but she envied the carefree way her best friend lived her life. Compared to fun-loving, outgoing Ava, Grace felt like a boring and stuffy prude. Oh, don’t forget spinster. Her daily routine consisted of going to work or sitting at home, thinking about work.
Or Tanner.
There have been days that both were too much to deal with.

And she wondered why she couldn’t get a date.

She even received an email from
Lorilee
. It was to remind her of the upcoming fashion show. The message was filled with so much information that Grace’s temples began to throb from trying to take it all in.
 
She opted to read the rest of the email in the morning after a good night’s sleep and a strong cup of black coffee. While scanning and deleting junk mail, her eyes came across an email address for a local dating website. Curiosity got the best of her.

She viewed the profiles of intelligent and successful single men who were looking for love. Her eyes lit up when she spotted a few hunks in the bunch. But no one made heat creep down her spine like the melt-in-your-mouth sexy man with hair the color of whipped butter. What pleasure it had been to spend the better part of the day teasing, tempting and torturing, testing his sexual resistance to the max. No more than he’d done to her. However, she’d been pushed to the limit, until there was no way to control her wanton appetite.

Try as she may, she couldn’t focus on the many handsome faces that appeared on her computer screen. Their dazzling smiles didn’t have the power to mesmerize her. Her body refused to respond to their bedroom eyes. Not even the winning profiles of the eligible bachelors were enough to reel her in because not one of those men was Tanner.

Sighing, she turned off her computer.

Grace filled her garden bathtub with rich lavender scented bubbles. She removed her clothes and piled her hair on top of her head. After sinking into the tub, she leaned back and closed her eyes. The hot water and luscious fragrance soothed her. She tried not to think about Tanner. But she had no success. Just the thought of their lips locking in a passionate kiss sent her pulse racing erratically. Besides, no one had to know how intense her desire was for him. It was her sweet little secret. Her remedy to the sexual frustrations, which afflicted her daily, included fantasizing about Tanner. It was a prescription she would recommend to any woman in need. Well, she wouldn’t recommend Tanner per se. He belonged to her.
In her dreams.

Grace breathed deeply. Boy, her thoughts about Tanner were really potent. She could smell his rich scent. It overpowered the lavender bath fragrance. This was the same masculine aroma she had caught a whiff of when their bodies had meshed on the sofa at his house. In fact, his smell had lingered on her clothes. On the drive home, she had sniffed her shirt. It had brought her extreme pleasure to have a piece of him to relish and remember, especially since she didn’t know when she would see him again. When she had slammed his door behind her earlier, she may have shut out any future they could’ve had together. Even if all the future held for them was friendship. Yeah, right. What transpired between her and Tanner stretched beyond the confines of friendship. More like a spontaneous combustion. Their relationship consisted of the mental and physical sexual tug-of-war usually found in paperback romance novels, which she refused to read. She didn’t need to know how the other side lived.

Grace wriggled in the water. She fought to ignore the great sensations that washed over body, which had nothing to with creamy lavender bubbles. Crazy as it seemed, she couldn’t shake the feeling she wasn’t alone in her own her bathroom. The presence she felt was strong…and familiar.
Too real to be imagined.
Too dominant to be disregarded by her doubting mind.
But that was impossible.

Or was it.

Slowly, Grace opened her eyes. She knew it. The scent she smelled only belonged to one man. Shock reverberated throughout her body. Her face flushed. Joy and pain swept over her, as well as anger. The lump lodged in her throat blocked a cry of disbelief from being released. Even though the bath water was still relatively warm, goose bumps formed on her arms. Hair stood on the back of her neck. A tingling sensation developed in the pit of her stomach. The moment definitely brought to mind one of her many fantasies. However, she wasn’t dreaming. Her eyes were locked with those of the devilish sexy man who towered over her with a wickedly seductive grin plastered on his lips.

She hauled her eyes from his face and allowed them to trail the length of his body.
Huge mistake.
Dangerous decision.
His masculine figure was gloriously naked. The soft glow from candles spread around the bathtub illuminated his skin with a golden hue. From head to toe, mounds of his muscled flesh were displayed for Grace to enjoy. And she couldn’t count the ways in which she enjoyed the view before her. It was both a blessing and a curse.
Desired, but unacceptable.
It was…he was…hell. Honestly, who was she kidding? She wanted him. Her body craved his touch. Obviously, he felt a mutual attraction for her. His presence said as much. The look in his was glazed with such intense desire that Grace’s toes curled. A question lingered on the tip of her tongue. As usual, Tanner read her mind. He gave her an answer that shivers down her spine.

“Grace, I’m here to satisfy your needs.”

Chapter 6

“How did you get into my house?” Grace’s eyes darted from side to side. The serious nature of the matter finally registered. Possessing magic, she surmised that Tanner could’ve easily walked through a wall. But
that
was nonsense. His kind of magic only affected her senses, which she couldn’t reel in whenever he was around. Despite her wayward hormones, she tried remain focused on the issue at hand. He made it hard to concentrate, looking so yummy. To her, Tanner was a hunky piece of man candy—unwrapped and ready to be tasted.

“You left your front door unlocked. I’ve taken care of the situation.” His sultry gaze disappeared for a moment. A stormy glare altered his features. In a low voice filled with strong conviction, Tanner said, “We will discuss your disagreeable safety habits later. Now, I have something more heavenly on my mind.”

In a heartbeat, his sturdy limbs were touching Grace’s in the bathtub. His lips captured hers, silencing the tiny gasp of surprise and replacing it with a pleasurable moan. Her lips had a will of their own, refusing to deny Tanner’s tongue entry in order to explore her mouth. Automatically, her back arched as his strong hands glided gently up and down her smooth lavender-scented skin. Her body was drawn to his like a moth to a flame. Their tongues played a tantalizing game of tag in each other’s mouth. During their erotic game, her heart beat frantically. She whimpered and panted in his arms unabashedly. Instead of words, Grace employed a multitude of guttural sounds to urge Tanner to further deliver on his goal to ‘satisfy her needs.’ Those wonderful uncontrollable needs that plagued her regularly because they’ve neglected far too long, which often forced her to take of them in ways she preferred to keep to herself.

Grace flung her arms around his neck and pulled him closer. Her grip was tight as a vice. When his lips shifted from her mouth to her neck, Grace gasped. A mind-numbing quiver rocked her body as his moist tongue devoured her sensitive flesh. Desperately, she buried her manicured fingers inside his curly hair. She guided his head along the length of her neck repeatedly, tilting her head frequently to give Tanner better access. The smooth rhythm of his kisses sent her swaying in time with the water swirling around their meshed body. The bliss she received from his masterful lips was incomparable and inexplicable. The man was unbelievable. He took her to such amazing heights. Tanner had her under his spell and she loved every earth-shifting moment of her captivity. Their hot-blooded sessions were remarkable. This instance was no different. She blocked out everything else and surrendered control of her body and thoughts to Tanner.

Omigod
, she thought. What was really going on? How could she have allowed her lust to dictate her actions? Since the moment she was digging herself deeper into a magical hole where the possibility of escaping was uncertain. But what else could she do? She was undeniably caught up in the rapture of wanting and needing and receiving his touch. Clearly, she was addicted to him. Now wasn’t the time to reflect upon breaking the habit. Love-making was on her mind. Tanner was thoroughly kissing her tender flesh, creating an ache between her legs. At the moment, she was oblivious to everything, except him and her. Grace felt consumed her untamable lust-filled hunger and greed. Tanner wasn’t help matters any. In fact, he was downright sinful.