Putting it that way made good business sense. “But wouldn’t it make sense to just open another sports bar in another part of town?”

“Maybe. It’s an option. But is that what you really want to do?”

No.

As soon as the word formed in her head, she realized another sports bar wasn’t at all what she wanted. What she really wanted was what she secretly thought she could never have.

Until she’d met Ty. Now she wanted things she’d never wanted before.

And she was tired of thinking about them, at least for tonight. Those possibilities gave her a massive headache.

She laid her whiskey glass down and reached for his, putting it on the table behind her, then climbed into his lap.

“Conversation over?” he asked.

“Yes. You’re leaving town for a few days and I don’t want to spend our last night together talking about floor plans and electrical.”

“What? That’s not foreplay to you?”

She laughed and brushed his hair away from his face. “Not in the least. I prefer my foreplay a little dirtier.”

He squeezed her hips, his hands traveling down to cup her ass. “Floor plans and electrical can get very dirty.”

“You can get very dirty. That’s why I like you.”

Before she knew it she was on her back on the carpet, Tyler looming over her. “Yeah? How dirty do you want me to get?”

“Very.”

He lifted her sweater and pressed a kiss to her belly, rolling the sweater upward as he moved his lips across her stomach and ribs. When he got to her bra, he kissed the swell of her br**sts and undid the front clasp of her bra, exposing her to his gaze.

“Firelight does amazing things to your skin. It makes you golden,” he said, lifting her sweater over her head and slipping her bra straps down her arms. He bent, pressing light kisses to each of her ni**les before taking one in his mouth to suck and nip with his teeth. She arched to feed her breast to him, needing him to take more of it. He slipped his arm around her back and pulled her nipple into his mouth to suck her more deeply.

“Yes. That’s what I need,” she said as he worked both nipples—and her—into a frenzy. Her back bowed with need as he fed on her br**sts until they popped—wet and glistening—from his mouth.

Then he went to work on her pants, unfastening them and drawing them off, followed by her panties, leaving her bare. The fire bathed her in warmth as she lay there na**d before him. He laid his palm over her stomach and traced a path south, taking his time to tease and torment her before he found her sex and petted her lightly, making her h*ps rise off the carpet to meet his searching fingers.

But he dropped down between her legs, cupping her butt in his hands. She leaned up on her elbows to watch as he put his mouth on her.

All that wet heat surrounding her made her quiver. She tuned into only him, on the way he licked around her cl*tbefore taking it into his mouth to roll the piercing around his tongue until she wanted to die from the sweet pleasure of it. Watching him only notched up the frenzy of her desire. Seeing his tongue swipe over her sex was so incredibly intimate, and the way he’d dart glances at her made her breath catch. She felt the tingles of her approaching orgasm, almost embarrassed that he could make her come so easily, but he’d become so knowledgeable about her body and her reactions that he knew just where to touch her, where to taste her, to get her there.

She lifted against his mouth, urging him to lick faster. He knew, sliding his fingers inside her because that would intensify her orgasm. And when it hit, she unabashedly cried out, letting it roll throughout her as she released in wild abandon until she completely fell back, spent and sawing out breath.

Tyler stood and began to undress. Jenna rolled to her side, content to watch.

“You could do that as a strip tease and it would be way more entertaining.”

“Ha-ha. Not a chance. I don’t have any rhythm.”

“Liar. I’ve danced with you before and you do have rhythm.”

“Not on a stripper pole I don’t.”

“Really. So you’ve tried and failed on a pole. Who knew you had a background as a stripper?”

“Now you know my deep, dark secret.”

When he dropped his briefs, she figured he could just stand there na**d and women would happily toss money his way. Even with the scars he bore from battle wounds on the ice, he was pure male beauty.

She reached for his ankle and slinked her hand up toward his calf, loving the muscle that spoke of his strength.

He dropped down to the carpet and drew her against him, kissing her until she forgot all about worshipping his body and concentrated on worshipping his mouth. She’d miss him when he was gone this week. She’d gotten used to having him with her, touching her and kissing her. She especially loved the kissing, the way he lazily brushed his lips over hers before rolling her onto her back and deepening the kiss until heat flared throughout her body. Her heart pounded against him, her pulse rate speeding up until she felt dizzy and hot. The world melted away until all she knew was his lips, his tongue, his hand sweeping down over her br**sts to pluck and tease until she arched against him.

She reached for his cock, encircling it in her hand to stroke his length. She circled her thumb over the crest, using the fluid that gathered there to coat his c**k head.

The groans he made when she touched him only increased her need to feel him buried inside her, and when he rolled her over onto her belly, she was ready for him.

“On your knees,” he said, grabbing a condom while she got into position.

He put his hands on her butt and spread her legs with his knees. She quivered in anticipation as his c**k head inched inside her, and when he smoothed one hand over her back, she arched to meet his touch.

There was nothing sexier than a woman on her knees. Tyler slid his c**k home, entering Jenna with one swift thrust. She hissed and pushed back against him, her pu**y clenching around him, refusing to let go as he eased out, then powered back in again.

“I love f**king you in this position,” he said, smoothing his hand over her back, tracing the lines of her dragon. “I love this tattoo.”

She was a wild, untamed woman, and perfect for him. She bucked back against him and he gave her what she wanted, sliding his c**k deep into her, but not too hard. Not yet. He needed to wait until the end or this was going to be over too soon. She was hot and wet and milking him with her muscles, her body glowing in the firelight as she moved against him.

He leaned back to watch his c**k disappear into her, to see how her pu**y grabbed on to him and draw him in. He spread her ass cheeks, the tiny puckered hole enticing him. He wet his finger and teased her there, rubbing his finger back and forth over her anus as he thrust in and out of her. Her moans of pleasure told him she liked what he was doing.

When he inserted the tip of his finger, she let out a cry of pleasure, her pu**y clenching around him in response.

“Where’s your lube, Jenna?”

“Right-hand bedroom drawer.”

“Stay just like that. I’ll be right back.”

He withdrew, went into her bedroom, and grabbed the lube, then came back, coating his finger with it. He entered her pu**y again, and played with the little hole, making sure it was well lubricated. This time, he slid his finger in deeper.

“Oh, God,” she said, lowering her head to the carpet and lifting her ass against him. “I like that.”

He drew his finger in and out in rhythm to f**king her pussy. Her ass clenched around his finger, a tight sheath, her pu**y convulsing around his c**k as he speared her with both. His balls quivered at the thought of f**king her tight hole, of taking her there right now.

“You want this?” he asked, pushing his finger farther into her anus.

“Yes,” she said, her voice breathless. “Let’s go to the bedroom. I have a dildo in there that’ll get me off while you’re f**king my ass.”

He shook his head. “You never fail to amaze me, Jenna.”

She gave him a quirked smile in response. “I hope not.”

He withdrew and they went into the bedroom. He washed up, then joined her.

Jenna was on the bed, a thick silicone penis in her hands. She handed him the lube.

He smiled down at her. “I’m going to f**k you in the ass and make you come. I’m going to make us both come. Hard.”

She got on her hands and knees, lubricated the dildo, and slid it into her pussy. “I’m going to enjoy this.”

Hell, he could just watch her f**k herself with that dildo and jack off. The sight of her on her knees getting herself off was such a turn-on he could come right now.

“Damn, Jenna,” he said.

“You like to watch me.”

“Yeah.”

“Remind me to get myself off for you sometime.”

He took his c**k in his hand, stroked it. “Anytime you want, babe, I’ll be a happy voyeur.”

“Put your c**k in my ass. I’m ready to come.”

He put on the condom and coated it with lube, then poured more on her anus. He spread her ass cheeks, his balls tightening with anticipation of having her here, of feeling her getting herself off with that dildo while he f**ked her ass.

He pushed his c**k head past the barrier of tight muscle. She hissed.

“Tell me if you hurt.”

“Just get your c**k inside me,” she said, pulling the dildo out of her pu**y when he pushed his c**k deeper into her ass.

He did it slow and easy, inch by inch, gritting his teeth as her body clenched around him, squeezing his dick in a stranglehold that made his balls tighten up and threaten to erupt.

Not yet. Not even close. He held back, then slid in all the way home.

“Oh, yes,” Jenna said, then slid the dildo back in. He felt it sliding past the thin barrier between her pu**y and her ass.

When she pulled it out and plunged it back inside her pussy, he started to move inside her ass.

“Oh, fuck,” she said. “Yes. Yes.”

That was exactly how he felt. It was tight, hot, and perfect. He pulled partway out, then thrust into her again, getting into rhythm with the dildo she used, taking her cues on when to pull out, and when to shove back inside her again.

She squeezed him perfectly, and he had to hold on until she got off. Truth was, he could come any moment. His balls quivered and he was ready to shoot. With every plunge of the dildo, she tortured him, made him ready to go off. And when she went faster, so did he, giving her exactly what she asked for.

Sweat poured down his body, into his eyes, as he held on, thrusting into her, watching her pleasure herself. The intimacy and trust she gave him undid him. He wanted this to be good for her.

“Oh, God, oh, God, Tyler, I’m going to come. Fuck me harder.”

She had his c**k in the iron grip of her ass, and he was going to explode. He reared back and powered into her, again and again, and when she screamed, her body convulsing around him, he let go, shouting out as his cl**ax was wrenched from him. He wrapped an arm around her waist and held on as he shuddered and emptied until he had nothing left.

He withdrew, pulling Jenna with him into the shower.

She lay against the wall like a limp rag doll. He washed her, taking tender care with her, then turned off the shower and handed her a towel.

“I’m done for,” she said, giving him a sleepy, half-lidded look as she towel-dried her hair.

“Me, too.”

He looked out the window. Snow had fallen steadily, had covered the grass and sidewalks and was still coming down. He wondered if his flight would take off as scheduled tomorrow.

He set the alarm on his phone. They climbed into bed and he pulled Jenna against him, realizing how much he was going to miss her when he left town for his road trip tomorrow.

He didn’t like being separated from her.

Is that what love was like? Feeling empty when you weren’t with that person, as if something essential was missing from your life?

Was he falling in love with Jenna? He hadn’t intended to. He never intended to love anyone. Ever. Fun times, yeah, but love? He’d seen what love could to do people who’d once claimed to care about each other.

He was sure he never wanted to do that to Jenna. Tearing apart someone you cared about? Yeah, that wasn’t what love was supposed to be about.

TWENTY-THREE

JENNA DIDN’T KNOW WHAT HAD POSSESSED HER TO call Elizabeth and Tara and invite them to the music club.

Maybe she was tired of being afraid. Or maybe she needed a second opinion.

Ty, after all, was sleeping with her. Having sex with someone could skew your opinions, make you like something that other people thought was terrible. The only way she was going to be able to figure that out would be to get the opinion of two people she trusted most.

Tara and Liz would tell her if she had no talent. Okay, Tara would be polite and sweet. Liz would be blunt and tell her she sucked. Then she’d have sweet Tara to hold her hand when she cried.

She’d brought along her guitar, though she’d left it in the trunk of the car, since there was still a ninety-eight percent chance she’d chicken out and never muscle up the nerve to get up there and sing.

“Oh, I’ve heard about this place,” Liz said as they got through the line and found a table. “It’s a new hot spot. Great live music.”

“I read about it in the paper’s entertainment section,” Tara said, looking around for a waitress. She slid out of her coat and hung it over her chair. “It’s getting great reviews.”

“Ty brought me here a few weeks ago.”

“Did he? Was it good?” Tara asked.

“It was amazing.” One of the best nights of her life. Now if only she could drum up the courage to sing again.