Jared's Counterfeit Fiancee - Brenda Jackson [15]
She cleared her throat, needing to regain control of her senses. “Trust me, twice was enough. I can possibly understand the blunder in college, but I was involved with someone a few years ago and my opinion hasn’t changed.”
He leaned back in his chair, surprised that she was able to dismiss such a profound intimate act from her life just like that. “A few years ago? How far back was that?”
“Three years, closer to four.”
Jared raised a dark eyebrow. “Are you saying that you haven’t slept with a man in almost four years?” he asked, not sure if he had heard her correctly.
Dana lifted her chin, wondering how they had gotten on such a personal subject, but decided to answer anyway. “Yes, that’s just what I’m saying.”
Deciding she had given him enough information about herself, she said, “So tell me what things you expect us to do during this pretended engagement?”
He watched as she licked her lips again and wished it were his tongue at work instead of her own. And if that wasn’t bad enough she crossed her legs and his gaze moved down the length of them, catching sight of the thigh he’d gotten a glimpse of earlier. His gut clenched when he thought of licking those legs and thighs.
Damn! He couldn’t help but curse his bad luck. He was still way too attracted to her and the last thing he needed was a reason to spend more time in her company. In this situation, his mother’s needs came before his own. But boy did he have needs and the enormity of those needs was hitting home—in this case right below his belt. He shifted in his seat to relieve the strain he felt behind his zipper. He could definitely use some sexual playtime and would’ve loved to suggest a purely physical relationship, with no emotions involved. But after her broken engagement, the last thing he wanted to do was take advantage of the situation by suggesting such a thing.
He cleared his throat. “What kinds of things did you and Cord do together?” He gave her a lopsided grin. “You’ve already told me about one particular activity the two of you didn’t do.”
Dana smoothed down her skirt. He watched as she then rolled one shoulder, which made his gaze move from her legs to her breasts. Suddenly he felt tension in his fingers. He would give just about anything to cross the room, lift her top, unhook her bra—if she was wearing one—and take his fingertips and graze her flesh before taking his mouth and latching on to a nipple and sucking—
“Luther and I went out a lot,” she finally said, snatching back his focus. “We attended concerts, plays and parties. He was a sales representative with his company and often had to do a lot of socializing.”
For several seconds Jared looked at her, thinking because of his clientele he often did a lot of socializing, as well. However, recently he’d cut back because of his workload. “We can do those same things. However, my mother is big on family gatherings and would expect us to also attend any. Can you handle that?”
Dana thought about how much she had enjoyed herself yesterday, almost too much. “Yes, I can handle that. Like I told you yesterday I think you have a wonderful family. But I’d hate deceiving them.”
“It’s for a good reason.” A grin turned up the corners of his lips. “And I’d like to think that a pretended engagement with me wouldn’t be so bad. I’m a pretty decent fellow.”
Decency was the last thing on Dana’s mind at the moment although she knew it shouldn’t be. Heat was curling in her stomach just from staring at him. “How long do you think this pretended engagement will have to last?”
“That will depend on my mother’s condition. If this is a false alarm, then we’re only looking at a couple of weeks. But if we’re looking at treatments, the last time they lasted for eight weeks. Will that be too long for you?”
Dana sighed. Any length of time would be too long as far as she was concerned. “No, umm, that would be fine.”
Jared hated the uncertainty, the wariness he saw in her eyes but knew those emotions mirrored