My Once and Future Love by Carla Krae

didn’t stop him
from seeing thigh-high stockings, so he directed them skyward,
instead. She lifted her arms once he’d reached her shoulders. When
the dress was past her head, she took it from him and tossed it on
the bed.
    “Thanks.”
    He kept his eyes on her face. “You’re
welcome.”
    “I-I’ll be right back.” She backed into the
bathroom.
    “Yeah.”
    Just shut the damn door, Beth .
    Once she was out of sight, he rubbed his face
with both hands and let out a long breath. If she stood there a
moment longer, he’d have looked, and after looking, he’d have
touched.
    He left her bedroom and jogged downstairs.
Saw enough, though.
    Black bra with matching satin knickers, and
those stockings…long, slender legs in sheer black…an image of those
legs wrapped around his hips popped into his head and he headed for
the kitchen and a drink. Couldn’t hop in a cold shower, but he
could down some ice water.
    Get a grip, man.
     

Chapter Eight
    I leaned against the closed door, feeling
flushed all over. Not even a week since I first kissed him and the
man had seen me in my underwear. Logically, I didn’t have many
options. Cut myself out of the dress—ah, no. Wake Vivian to help
me—rude when she wasn’t feeling well. That left him, and for a
second, I almost succumbed to the tension between us and kissed
him.
    Could I keep resisting the entire month he
wanted me to stay?
    I dressed in jeans and a tee, put away my
finery, and sat down to send Mom an e-mail about the party.
Describing the house and dinner and the music helped calm me down,
and I felt cool and normal by the time I carried the envelope of
prints downstairs.
    “Jacob?”
    “In the kitchen, pet.”
    He stood at the window to the backyard with a
glass of something clear. Probably water.
    “Here are the photos I was going to show
you.”
    He took the envelope. “Thanks. I should be
goin’. It’s late. I’ll come get you for the meeting tomorrow.”
    He was leaving?
    “I thought we were going to grab a bite.”
Great, Beth, you scared him off.
    He sighed. “Food isn’t really on my mind
right now.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “You’re a bloody siren, Beth. More alone time
isn’t the best idea at the moment.”
    “It’s a restaurant , Jacob, not a cozy
cabin for two.”
    He turned from the window and set the glass
on the island. “And then?”
    “And then, what?”
    “Where do we go from there? My flat?
Here?”
    I threw my hands up. “Fine. Leave. Run away.”
I stomped out of the kitchen and opened the front door.
    He slowly followed, looking pained. He
glanced at my face, set in a hard mask, shook his head, and walked
out. I slammed the door, locked it, and ran upstairs to flop on my
bed.
    Dammit. Why couldn’t we date without all this
sexual tension?
    I hoped no one heard the door. It was stupid
to slam it at this hour, but that was a Lawson trait. Doors got
slammed when we were pissed off. My mom’s version was slamming the
cabinet doors in the kitchen while she cleaned. Always knew Dad was
in trouble if I heard that.
    If I went to bed now, I could wake up early
enough to call Mom. I washed my face, brushed my teeth, pulled the
pins out of my hair, and turned off the lights.
    ****
    I woke a little before seven. Since I’d
washed my hair the afternoon before, I knotted it out of my way for
a quick shower. No one else was up, yet, so I found the laundry
machines and washed the clothes I’d worn so far.
    Vivian came downstairs at eight-thirty.
“You’re up early for a Saturday.”
    “Got my eight hours. Tea? Kettle’s gonna
whistle any minute.”
    “Certainly. Thank you.” She opened a cupboard
and took out a tin of loose-leaf and a small teapot. “Did you have
fun last night?”
    Except at the end of it . “Yeah. Not my
normal scene, but it was nice enough. I never went to a formal at
school, so getting dressed up was neat.”
    The kettle sang. She poured hot water into
the little teapot. “I’m sorry I had to leave