She seemed distracted this morning, and he was hoping he knew the reason why. All night long he'd been falling in and out of triple X dreams of the two of them. Him on her, her on him. Doggy-style. Up against the wall. Sixty-nine.
In his dreams, he'd had her in every possible way. Was it too much to hope that she wasn't any more immune to him than he was to her?
He got off the bench and picked up an eighty-pound barbell to work on his triceps. How pathetic would he be if he got an erection at the gym? He had to stop acting like a teenage boy dreaming about getting his first piece of ass.
Dominic DiMarco, one of the veteran Outlaws, walked into the gym, and Ty watched him speak to Julie. When Julie laughed, jealousy drop-kicked Ty.
Dominic was one of the few guys on the team who went home alone after a game, who didn't burn it out with groupies hanging on to him. A girl like Julie was probably just what Dominic was looking for, the perfect gorgeous, smart woman to settle down with.
Whereas Ty was fucking around and wasting his time.
His triceps burned as he pumped the weight harder in jealousy and frustration.
Dominic dropped his gym bag on the floor between them and picked up some weights. "Julie's with you?"
Fuck. They were already on a first-name basis.
"I'm living with her," Ty said, then felt like an idiot for trying to lay claim to her before his friend could. He'd never acted like such a pussy before.
Dominic laughed. "Sean told me your new image consultant had you on a short leash." He did a curl, then winced in pain. "Good time to be a dog, I'd say." Then he asked, "You like being with her?"
Ty grunted as he did his last rep. "Sure," he said in an offhand way. Time to change the subject. "Your shoulder still giving you trouble?"
Dominic dropped to a lower weight. "A little," he admitted. "Julie said you knew each other in high school. Pretty girl."
Ty could think of a hundred better words to describe her than pretty.
"Thinking of settling down?" Dominic asked.
Ty forced a laugh. "No way. Not with all the action I get." It sounded empty, even to himself.
"I know you're not asking for my advice," Dominic said, putting down his weights and pinning Ty with a glance in the mirror. "Hell, you probably don't even need it. Forget I said anything."
Ty sat down on the incline bench, figuring it wouldn't hurt to let Dominic say his piece.
"I'm listening."
"I made some bad decisions way back." Dominic shook his head.
Ty nodded, wondering where Dominic was heading with this. He'd never been much for other people's opinions, but Dominic had the years, the experience behind him to back up whatever he was going to say.
"If you're lucky enough to meet someone special, don't let her go. You've got money and fame already. But you won't have her."
CHAPTHER FOURTEEN
Later that afternoon, during the ninety-minute drive from San Francisco to Napa, Julie couldn't dismiss the feeling that something had changed. For some reason, Ty was going out of his way to be nice. Attentive. Even sweet.
She knew he desired her. And the clearer he made that, the less immune she was to it.
Already, she was worrying about making it home fully dressed. And if she could barely keep her panties on during a ninety-minute car ride, how could she possibly last the next eleven days? With every passing hour, Ty was making it clearer and clearer that he wanted to be with her, sleep with her, give her pleasure.
If only she could trust him not to turn around and break her heart again.
Fortunately, Ty misinterpreted her quietness.
"Are you afraid I'm going to act up at the party? Get all the woman to rip off their clothes and jump naked into the fountain?"
She took in the sharp planes of his cheeks, his strong nose, full mouth. Those dark brown eyes that knocked her right in the gut.
Surprisingly, what she saw in them reassured her. For some reason that she didn't understand, he was going to try to behave.
"Would it hurt your feelings if I said no?"
He kept his gaze on hers. "Don't worry. I'll make up for it later."
Instinctively she smiled. "I have no doubt that you will."
At last they pulled up in front of the vineyard estate. Ty held out his hand to help her out of the car, his heat enveloping her. As the limo pulled away, they stood together on the golden pavers, her hand still in his.
"Have I told you how beautiful you are?"
"Thank you."
"I'm not just talking about tonight."
No. He couldn't say something like that to her when her resistance was so low. She couldn't afford to let his admiration sink in.
"You clean up pretty good yourself. I like the suit."
"I'll tell them to blame you."
She cocked her head to one side. "Why?"
"They're paying for flash and trash. I usually put on my diamond-studded grill for events like this."
She frowned. "You do not." Then, when he didn't say anything, "Do you?"
He laughed. "You're too easy."
Their host suddenly appeared beside the Tuscan-inspired fountain at the top of the steps.
"There he is, the man of the hour. Ty Calhoun. And of course, a beautiful woman on his arm."
As Gordon Montague made his approach down the steps, Julie tried to pull away from Ty. She wasn't his date, she was his employee. She'd stay just close enough to keep an eye on him.
But he refused to let her go. Instead, he put his hand on the small of her back. Exactly where his hand always seemed to be.
"Gordon Montague at your service." Their host lifted her hand to his lips in a gesture that should have seemed gallant, but came across as creepy instead.
Julie fought the urge to roll her eyes. "Thank you for allowing me to accompany Ty to your party."
Gordon turned to the devastating man beside her. "Even a superstar like you pales in comparison to your companion's ravishing beauty."
"Hey, Monty," Ty said, pulling Gordon's tight grasp off her hand under the pretense of shaking it. "How goes it? What's on the agenda for tonight?"
He was doing it again. Always coming to her rescue.
"We're fund-raising for leukemia tonight." He turned to Julie. "My wife's sister's friend was touched by the disease."
Feigned concern did not suit Gordon in the least.
Ty grinned. "I'm always up for a dog and pony show for a good cause. Who would you like me to meet first?"
Ty was so irreverent, not the least bit bowled over by Gordon's money, his connections, his power. She'd grown up in this world, yet she'd never learned how not to take it seriously. She could learn something from him.
Gordon led them inside, and as the evening progressed from cocktails and appetizers to a seven-course sit-down dinner paired with expensive wines, it became abundantly clear that no one knew quite what to make of her. Was she Ty's girlfriend? His business associate? A groupie?
Julie didn't want to make Ty look bad by saying, "I was hired to watch over him," but she didn't want people to think she was the latest in a long string of one-night-stands, either. She settled for pleasant, but distant when answering curious questions. She enjoyed herself, but not too much. She stood near Ty at all times, but not too close.
Out of the blue, a lovely woman who seemed out of place in a light blue linen dress and shawl pulled Ty aside.
"I'm Gordon's sister, Gina the black sheep of the family. You must be the prized pig."
Ty didn't take offense, just shook her hand and said it was nice to meet her.
"I'm afraid I can't stand too close to you for too long, though. When a man is as good-looking as you, it's dangerous to give anyone the chance to make comparisons." Gina gestured in Julie's direction. "Although I do have to say that the two of you look good together."
Ty turned to Julie. "I told you so." Then to Gina, he added, "She refuses to believe me."
Julie bared her teeth at him, hopin
g it looked at least a little bit like a smile. "That's because I've never heard so many people use the word 'pretty' to describe a man before."
Gina grinned. "Mark my words, this is the girl for you. She's not blinded by all of your shimmer and shine."
Julie felt completely transparent. She couldn't pinpoint the exact moment that Ty started to get to her; all she knew was that he had, and was doing it still.
And she couldn't let him. No matter what.
"Excuse me, I need to find the ladies' room."
She dashed through the lavish ballroom, searching for a place to hide out for a few minutes, to try to regain her equilibrium. She ran into the kitchen, where she saw a set of stairs, a narrow, dark flight that she hoped led up to maids' quarters.
The stairs seemed to go up and up forever, growing darker with every step, climbing up to a secret tower. Something told her to turn back, that she shouldn't be trespassing in a stranger's house, but she was more afraid of the devastatingly handsome man who awaited her at the bottom of the stairs than she was of being caught.
Continuing to climb, she felt for a light switch along the wall. She heard footsteps on the steps behind her a moment before she flicked the switch and gasped aloud.
At the top of Gordon Montague's secret tower was a fully equipped sexual hideaway . . . the last place on earth she wanted Ty to find her.
Only, judging by the heat she felt at her back, he already had.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Ty had long believed in the power of positive thinking. Coach after coach during the past decade had pressed the power of visualization upon him and his teammates. Although he wasn't big on woo-woo stuff, acting like you already had what you wanted worked most of the time on the field.
Ty wanted to win games; he won them. He wanted lots of money; he had it. It hadn't occurred to him to use this technique for getting a girl, but then, he'd never wanted anyone nearly as much as he wanted Julie. And he'd certainly never had to work for it like this before, either.
He'd made his way through the kitchen, signed a few autographs, and asked which way she went. Something about the dark stairwell conjured up a flow of sexy images. Julie asking him to unzip her dress, beckoning him over, ripping his clothes off, lying across his lap, begging him to spank her sexy lace-clad ass.
He'd been stuck on this fantastic image as he made his way up the circular stairs. A light scent of apples and cinnamon lingered in the air and he'd known he was on the right track. His cock had hardened at the thought of how soft her ass cheeks would feel beneath his palm, at how good it would feel to cup her breasts with his other hand.
And then she'd switched on the light, and he'd seen a sex toy wonderland. He'd never seen so many erotic pictures, paintings, sculptures, dildos, vibrators, and books outside of a porn shop.
He was clearly better at this ask and you shall receive stuff than he'd ever realized. Maybe when he retired from the game, he'd write a book on visualization.
He whistled at the S and M equipment hanging from the walls, the thick chains by the bed. "Damn. This is some room." He figured Julie was probably freaking out right now.
She giggled. "You know when you took me into your basement? I thought you had one of these rooms under there."
He smiled. "As if I'd ever need to chain a woman down."
Her eyes were big as she examined a two-headed dildo from a distance. He was pretty sure she had no idea what it was for.
"True," she agreed. "But you still could have been into kinky stuff."
He pushed her farther into the room. "Go ahead, examine everything. I know you're dying to." She made a face. "I'm too grossed out right now. Just thinking about Gordon in here with ... whoever he comes here with." Her shoulder nearly brushed into a fully erect statue and she jumped. "I hope he washes everything on a regular basis."
As Ty did a quick perusal of the room's contents,he could see Julie warring with herself, opening her mouth, then shutting it.
"Go ahead, ask me. I know you're dying to." She stood in the center of the room, a perfect, pure goddess in the midst of sin. "Have you ever ..." Her cheeks flushed pink. "Once."
Her mouth flew open. "You've used this stuff?"
He grinned, looked around at the impressive contraptions. He wasn't into anything crazy, but a pair of handcuffs with Julie certainly wouldn't suck.
"Not exactly."
"Please tell me pictures aren't going to surface of you naked in leather chaps with a spiked collar around your neck."
"I went to an S and M club once, a long time ago. Just to watch. Not participate." He shrugged. "Every guy wonders."
"Not the guys I know," she muttered. Then she asked, "Was it weird? Or . . ." She looked like she couldn't quite get her mouth around the word. "Exciting?"
Ty spotted a balcony out the window, and he grabbed her hand.
"Come outside with me and I'll tell you," he said as she willingly escaped with him out a set of French doors.
The view from the rooftop terrace was breathtaking. The sun was just starting to set over endless fields of vines, and the air was scented with growing grapes. Holding Julie's hand, something in Ty's chest buzzed like he was on the verge of a game-winning play.
"Honestly" he said as he rubbed his thumb softly against her palm, "I don't need a bunch of contraptions and semi-naked strangers to make sex exciting."
She looked up at him, her blue eyes almost translucent in the sunset's reflection.
He was going to put himself out on the line. He'd just have to pray that she wouldn't take him down.
"All I need is you."
It should have sounded like a sappy come-on but it didn't. And there were a million things she could have said, like, "I bet you say that to all the girls," or "Give me one reason to believe you." But she didn't.
The only words she had were, "One night only."
He stared at her with an intensity that made her go hot all over.
"Only tonight."
He moved quickly, not giving her a chance to change her mind, to listen to the part of her brain that was reminding her she was on the clock right now, that she was supposed to be policing Ty's licentious activities, not leading him down the path of sin.
He brought her hand to his lips, kissing the pad of one finger. His lips were soft, so soft, and she wasn't prepared, couldn't have ever walled herself off to the sensation of him unfolding her other fingers, of the kisses he laid on her skin, of the way he was worshipping even the smallest areas of her body.
"So stern tonight," he murmured.
He slowly turned her away from him, and she placed her hands on the balcony railing as he pressed his hips against her bottom.
"But always so perfect. So beautiful."
Julie was helpless to move, to speak, to think as his thumb slid up from the base of her neck to her hairline. She held her breath, waiting for his next move, knowing it was going to be just the right one.
She'd twisted her hair in a tight bun. He gently removed the pins holding back her hair one at a time, letting it fall down around her neck and shoulders. Strong fingers massaged her scalp.
A moan emerged from her throat. The longest tips of her hair brushed against the top of her breasts and she found herself wishing his hands were on her, instead.
"Does that feel good?" he whispered against her hair.
"Mmm-hmm," she whispered back, not wanting him to stop the massage, yet wishing he would just push her skirt up and take her from behind without any more foreplay.
His hands moved across her shoulders, his fingers brushing against her collarbones as he slid her black wrap off her shoulders. It slid against her sensitive skin, down her back, to the floor. Julie had never felt so sexy. She'd never been undressed by a man before; no man had ever taken the time.
Ty brushed her hair to one side and began unclasping and untying the tiny strings behind her neck that held up the top of her dress. The way his fingers brushed against her skin, the fact that every ounce of h
is attention was focused on her, was unbearably sensual.
The fastenings give way and arousal flooded her from head to toe. No matter how things turned out between them, she'd remember his kindness, his tender touch, for the rest of her life.
"I need you to promise me something," he said.
Somehow she managed to nod.
"Promise me you'll tell me if you want me to stop. No matter what."
Deep within her chest, something full and sweet began to blossom.
"I promise."
An instant later, he cupped her breasts in his big hands. She rubbed against him, pressing herself into his palms, and he stroked her with the tips of his fingers.
"Is this okay?" he said in a low voice.
He already knew the answer, but part of their dance was hearing her say it aloud.
She gasped as his thumb and forefinger found her nipples. Her legs were shaky and she leaned into him, into his huge erection, for support.
"It's perfect."
A breath before his mouth came down on her neck, he said, "You're perfect," and then he was nipping at all the sensitive spots he'd remembered for ten long years. All the while he cupped and stroked and caressed her breasts, which seemed to grow fuller, her nipples harder, with every kiss.
"I want more," he said softly and she pushed her hips into his as a silent "Yes."
In a moment, her dress fell to the terra-cotta tiles.
His gaze roved up her legs, her hips, her back, burning a path of sensual destruction. She hadn't been able to resist putting on her sexiest panties, sheer black lace that revealed most of her bottom. She'd told herself she hadn't worn them with the intention of Ty ever seeing them, but now, as she stood before him gripping tightly to the cool rail, she knew she had.
Every single thing she'd done since he'd reentered her world had been with the intention of seduction. Every movement, everything she'd said, everything she'd thought, had been about fulfilling temptation.
She wanted him to want her.
And he did.
She wanted pleasure.
And he would give it to her.
She turned her head slightly and he pounced. His mouth claimed hers, and one hand curved around her rib cage to fondle her breasts again. Please, she begged silently, please touch me between my legs.