Desire Collection: January Books 1 – 4. Maisey Yates

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СКАЧАТЬ rel="nofollow" href="#ud65ff115-d442-511f-be06-ed7ebe5d4ef7">Nine

      Alexa toweled off and slid into another of Hayes’s shirts. She found herself becoming more comfortable in his clothes than her own. He’d definitely delivered on those promised talents, both in the study and in the shower.

      Now he was outside assessing the rising water and checking on the horses. He’d made her promise she wouldn’t come out because there was no sense in both of them getting soaked again.

      She made him promise that if he needed help he’d come back and tell her and not be so hardheaded. Alexa worried with the storm still raging that the thunder would thrust him back to the darkness inside his mind, but she had to let him go on his own. She wasn’t his keeper. She wasn’t even his girlfriend, so hovering was not going to fly with this sexy cowboy. Besides, once she left he’d be on his own to handle matters his way.

      Two stubborn souls trapped together proved to be quite the tug-of-war.

      Yet they matched each other in bed and out. She shouldn’t be thinking of all the ways they blended and complemented each other, but she couldn’t help herself.

      Alexa padded barefoot back into the bedroom and started adjusting the covers. Her body heated all over again as she recalled exactly what they’d done here hours ago.

      But her heart clenched as night fell and she worried about Mason. Even if she’d been next door at the B and B, nighttime would still be difficult. She’d laid out his favorite book for Sadie to read him after his bath, but Alexa just wanted to hear his voice.

      More than likely this separation was more difficult for her than for Mason. He was probably playing, watching his favorite cartoons and keeping Sadie on her feet.

      What she and Hayes had going on was as simple as it was complicated. Bringing her son into the mix, other than just speaking of him and showing off pictures, was just another layer of intimacy that probably wasn’t a smart idea.

      This was all so temporary. She definitely wasn’t ready to bring anyone home to meet her son or step up to play Daddy.

      “The rain has slowed.”

      Alexa glanced over her shoulder. Hayes came into the room wearing nothing but his boxer briefs. “You lose your clothes in the rain?”

      He hooked his thumbs in his briefs and stripped them off as well. Oh, mercy. That man had some serious confidence, and for good reason. All of those well-defined muscles, lean hips, broad shoulders, the smattering of hair across his chest, and that ink she’d all too happily traced with her tongue earlier... Honestly, if she looked half as sexy as he did, she’d parade around naked, as well. Alas, she had dips and curves and dimples in places that were not attractive. Yet Hayes made her feel exactly the opposite. And desired.

      The man definitely made her feel desired.

      “I put my clothes in the utility room since they were soaked. Figured you wouldn’t mind.”

      “Not a bit.” She crossed her arms over her chest and tried to calm her heart. “What are we doing, though?”

      He continued coming toward her. “I plan on messing up that bed you just straightened.”

      Those big firm hands slid around her waist. Every time her body lined up with his, she couldn’t help but think how perfectly they felt together. Why did something so temporary feel so right, so comfortable?

      Were her mind and her hormones playing tricks on her? Even though it had been a couple of years since she’d become a widow, was Hayes the rebound guy?

      “I’m not asking for more, but this is all we are, right?” she asked. “After I leave, we’re done.”

      The muscle clenched in his jaw as he lined their hips up and palmed her backside. “But you’re not leaving yet.”

      If he was trying to throw her off by dodging her question, it was working. “Do you ever get tired?” she joked.

      He nipped her lips. “Oh, I’m tired. I plan on crawling into this bed and holding you until I get my stamina back.”

      Her heart ached. She hadn’t slept in a bed with a man other than her husband. “Um...maybe I should sleep in the spare room.”

      And that was really saying something about her fear of becoming too attached or pretending to play house. The man was wearing nothing and she had on only his shirt as he ground against her...and she was making plans to sleep elsewhere.

      “Is that what you want?” he asked, easing back to look her in the eye.

      Alexa swallowed. “I have no clue, to be honest. I haven’t slept in the same bed with a man since my husband died.”

      Something dark slid across his eyes. “I wouldn’t make you do anything. You want to sleep somewhere else, then I’ll get the bed ready. You’re in control here.”

      Was she? Because this all felt eerily out of control and spiraling into something she was neither ready for nor could wrap her mind around. Since meeting him in the stables, everything had snowballed. It was almost like she was watching this all happen to someone else.

      Placing her hands on his shoulders, Alexa stared at the difference between their skin tones, hers dusky and his lighter. They might be completely opposite in their lifestyles, their upbringings, pretty much everything. But Hayes seemed to get her, to understand her need for space, and how could she not find that even more attractive than just the physical package?

      “Why don’t we watch a movie? Could we do something simple like that?”

      Raking his hands up her sides, pulling the shirt with them, he let out a soft laugh before stepping back and dropping the material back in place.

      “Sure, on two conditions.”

      “What’s that?”

      He nodded toward the bed. “We lie right there and you wear nothing.”

      Alexa opened her mouth, but Hayes held his hands up, palms out. “That’s all. Anything that happens beyond that is your call.”

      “You think we’re going to lie there naked and nothing will happen?”

      Hayes leaned forward enough to brush his lips against hers. “I said you were in charge. I never said nothing wouldn’t happen.”

      Yeah, well, there was only so much a woman could take and Hayes had already proven he was well beyond her breaking point.

      “You fight dirty,” she muttered as she turned toward the bed and jerked the T-shirt over her head.

      She was treated with a smack on her bare backside and a deep laugh.

      One hour later, the movie still hadn’t captured her interest. How could it? The man was not playing fair. Oh, he hadn’t so much as touched her. He remained across the king-size bed with the sheet draped over his hips, just low enough to torment her. He’d propped pillows up and crossed his arms behind his head, showcasing ripped arms and a mouth-watering chest.

      But even when the oversize footboard procured a gigantic flat screen at just the touch СКАЧАТЬ