Romance in Dallas - Tycoon! (14 page)

Frowning, he said, "Of course. If you're
tired. Feel free to lie down. Let me know if you want an
explanation."

She nodded, before she walked quickly into
the bedroom, slamming the door behind her. Pacing the room now, she
felt like a caged animal with no escape.

Actually, she thought she could never think
of a thing he could do to her that would be quite as bad as meeting
with another woman.

She called Natalie, who chattered on about
Warren and his attributes, before she asked, "Hey sweetie, how's
everything going with you?"

"I want to come back."

"What? To Dallas? Why?"

"It's the picture of him with that
woman."

Nat paused. "Did he explain?"

"There's no explanation I'd want to hear from
him. As I said, I'd like another assignment please."

"All right," Nat said slowly, "I'll come over
there and replace you. I'll get plane reservations as soon as I
can. Have you explained to Ram yet?"

"No. I wanted to talk to you first."

"Okay, sweetie. I'll be in touch.

After pacing for another few minutes, Jace
took a deep breath and went into the living room, where Ram sat on
the couch staring absently at the artwork on the wall.

"I'm leaving here," she said, "Natalie will
take my place. It will be another day or so. She's getting plane
reservations."

His sigh seemed to echo in the room. He
didn't look at her as he replied levelly, "Y'all are still under my
employ. The hours are from nine in the morning until nine at night.
And overtime is at my discretion, mentioned in your contract."

"I see. Anything else?" she said tersely.

"You'll follow me. Come to my meetings. I may
need you. And, right now, darlin,' I need you to work on my back as
soon as you get settled. Within fifteen minutes," he drawled.

She noticed the absence of 'please' and
'thank you.' And she grew angrier with his every word. "I
understand," she said.

Ram heard her go back in the bedroom. He
called Warren.

"Hey, buddy," Warren answered, "where you
been?"

"To heaven, now I'm in hell. Jace said just
now she wants Natalie to replace her over here."

"Wow. What happened?"

"Paparazzi. I was in the wrong place at the
wrong time."

"You said Nat's going over there?"

"Yeah. You know her?"

"Intimately. Why don't I come over there with
her? Maybe the both of us could talk Jace into staying. You sound
like you're too wrapped up in the thing to be impartial."

"I guess. Do whatever you think is right,
guy."

They hung up and Ram heard Jace set up the
table. "Ready when you are," she said in her most professional
tone. He stripped off his clothes, leaving his underwear on, and
lay on the table. But his reserve started to crumble as she worked
on his muscles. It hit him hard that she was leaving, and he had no
clue how to stop her.

He heard his own groan from far away. His
mind riveted back on the accident and Susan. As Jace worked his
lower muscles, he thought of Susan's laughter and their plans for
children, and when the massage was over, he just stayed on the
table, unable to move.

Jace knew how badly he was hurting, and she
let him lay, face down still, while she retreated to the second
bedroom, where she sobbed into a pillow.

About an hour later, she came out, her eyes
puffy, and saw he'd folded the table and dressed again. He stood by
the window looking out at the panoramic view of the ocean. He said
softly, "You'll come with me all day, you'll attend my meetings and
if I need you, you'll be available for me. You can also make
suggestions on my routine and how I can be helped. I need your
expertise while you're still here."

He continued, "I've ordered you some night
clothes. I can't have you walking around nude. Right now, it
doesn't seem appropriate."

Just then, he answered a knock on the door
and accepted several large packages.

His turquoise eyes met hers as he turned back
around. "Here you go." He placed the boxes on the couch. And before
he walked into his bedroom, said, "Also, I need you to accompany me
to a gala tonight, so rest up. I've approved your overtime with
Natalie already. You'll find a new dress and shoes from the
boutique in these boxes, along with the nightclothes."

Victoria was ecstatic when her contact told
her Ram was back in town. She knew, from her sources, that he'd
been on the yacht with his consort, the woman, and she would see
him tonight at the gala. She remembered how thrilling he was the
last time she saw him, a new and vibrant side to Ram that she just
loved.

Marley was almost asleep in her bed and she
shoved him, trying to wake him.

"What?" he said irritably.

"Are you coming to the gala with me tonight?
Do get up, you ass. I need your company."

"That's a first," Marley said irritably,
"what do I do, jump and you say how high?"

"Don't be ridiculous, you know I care for you
very deeply," she said offhandedly.

"Right," he replied, shaking his head and
trying to wake up from the wine they'd had earlier. "Don't count on
me to buy anything, my dear, as the allowance hasn't hit my bank
account yet this month."

"Whatever do you do with your money,
Marley?"

"Why," he replied, pulling on his slacks, "I
waste it the same way you do, lovey."

Chapter 12

Jace sat at the bedroom desk later that
evening, wearing one of the negligees delivered earlier. She
thought it was quite nice, gold, with a floor length nightgown and
shimmering robe. They weren't leaving the penthouse for the party
for another hour, and she'd wanted to research her theory on the
computer, so her door was closed.

Her theory was accurate. She knew it was now,
but she needed the help of Doctor Seth. His card was in her wallet,
along with his cell number for emergencies with Ram. She decided
that what she was going to propose was a type of emergency, so she
punched up the number.

"Jace?" he said tiredly, realizing it was her
from the name display on his phone.

"Sorry to wake you, but I need to run
something by you."

"Is Ramsey all right?"

She cleared her throat to get rid of the
tightness there. "Yes, well he's basically the same. But I have an
idea of why his bones are the way they are."

"Well, I thought I covered everything. I was
very thorough."

Understanding his sensitivity, she covered it
by saying, "I know you were. Your work is always great. But with
his bone pain and headaches, I can't help feeling he has a
parathyroid tumor. Do you remember what his calcium labs were?"

"Right off, I remember it being slightly
elevated. But, when I think about it, it may be an obvious cause
for the osteoporosis, even though the calcium wasn't high enough to
worry anyone. Let me check into it tomorrow and I'll call you right
away."

They hung up and Jace just sat looking at the
beautiful dress on the bed, and her eyes filled with tears again,
as she said softly, "At least I can finish my research for him
before I leave."

Ram knocked and reminded her it was time to
go to the party. But when she walked out of the bedroom, his breath
caught in his throat.

Her dress was a sleeveless, low cut,
sparkling bright red figure-hugging to the floor number, with a
long slit up the front. She wore matching lipstick and heels, with
her hair worn loose around her shoulders. "Are you ready?" she
asked.

What a question, he thought. He really was.
But, not for a party, but for her, with or without the red dress.
And he found himself wondering whether she wore panties or not.

"Yes," he finally managed to say.

On the way down to the ballroom, he thought
the ruby ring he bought for her, the one she'd rejected, would
match just perfectly with the dress. It was still in his
suitcase.

His eyes met hers in the mirrors heatedly, as
they stood side by side. It was all he could do not to press the
'off' button and settle this thing between them once and for all.
But, in the end, his pride wouldn't let him do it and they walked
off on the second floor.

Music filtered in from the ballroom, and the
place was crowded with people all laughing and chatting as they
entered.

Char Boyette waved to them, and Jace sat with
her and her husband, as Ram worked the room, saying hello,
greeting, chatting, before he sat down with them again.

Jace sensed Char knew something was amiss
with her and Ram, but the woman was polite enough not to say
anything as they just chatted about dresses.

However, with the next slow dance played, Ram
took Jace's hand. Not wanting to make a scene, she followed him
hesitantly onto the dance floor.

His left hand reached and pulled her close to
him, while he held her right hand close to his chest. As the song
played, his hand at her back drew her even closer still. His lips
whispered some unknown entreaty in her ear, with the sound causing
havoc with her senses along with the scent of his aftershave. And
she quickly found out it was useless to try to pull away, he would
have no part of that. His arms just tightened more with his
hardness pressing against her.

Finally, the song ended, and she pushed
herself away from him and walked quickly to the restroom.

Char followed. "What's going on, Jace?" she
asked, with a concerned look, as she sat next to Jace.

But a voice interrupted, "Trouble in
paradise, dear?" Victoria said sweetly.

"Trouble?" Char responded evenly, looking up
at the busty woman, "We have no trouble here, Victoria. You must be
thinking of Marley, he was looking for you earlier."

"Ask me if I care," she replied.

Char sniffed. "I know what you care about,
and you're never going to get Ram, so quit playing around. You
can't win." Then, looking back at Jace, she said, "It's getting too
warm in here. Let's go for a little walk around the hallway, shall
we?"

The two left, and Victoria scurried back into
the ballroom as fast as she could go. Spotting Ram sitting staring
moodily into space, she sat down. "Ramsey," she cooed, "how are you
darling?"

He smiled at her sardonically, before he
said, "I've been better. I see you paid off another photographer to
put our picture in the paper. And, by the way, y'all keep your
hands off me."

"Why Ram, I don't know what you mean."

"Then you're not as smart as I thought." And,
his eyes left her and gazed again into space.

For some reason, his remark just inflamed her
more. "I could touch you in ways you've never had before."

He laughed at that. "I don't think so,
Victoria, you're not that talented darlin.'"

But, by that point, he'd tired of the verbal
jabs, and excused himself and went to look for Jace. Walking down
the hallway, he rounded the corner and saw her chatting animatedly
with Char. His breath escaped in a rush as he watched her.
Something deep inside him longed for her, an ache that was familiar
to him. He thought of the loss of Susan, and the feeling was so
similar. But that was not preventable, and, he thought, this
was.

Limping now, due to his leg pain, he made his
way down the hall towards her.

She looked up to see him coming, and a
concerned look flashed across her face.

"You are having pain?" she asked him in a
level professional voice, while Char stepped back and discreetly
left them.

"Yes," he answered huskily, before he took
her in his arms. Holding her face then, he kissed her soundly,
before he teased her lips with his own, sucking first the bottom
one, then the top. "I miss you, I miss talking with you, being with
you," he whispered. But he barely gave her time to reply, before he
plundered her mouth with a second deeper kiss, one so sensual, he
could feel her shaking.

"You can't-" she began.

"Yes, darlin,' I can."

But, as he pulled back to look at her, he
ached for her, as he felt his pants straining with the weight of
his desire. And the feeling was not a new one. Since he'd met her,
he'd had this often; this strong desire, this need for her.

Her eyes had little golden flecks, and he
watched them flicker, as her eyes moved over his face.

"Please," she whispered, "you're making this
very difficult for me. I didn't even want to come here
tonight."

Stepping back, he said stiffly, "Of course. I
didn't want to come either. Let's go back up to the penthouse. I'd
like a massage before I turn in. And I need to call Warren and find
out when they'll get here. When I can set y'all free."

Taking her arm, they walked back to the
table, collected her clutch purse, and rode up the elevator.

He left her standing in the living room and
said, "Leave your dress on. I'm going to take a quick shower. I'll
be right out."

Jace wasn't sure why he wanted her to leave
her dress on, but she just set up her table while he was in the
shower. He came out a few minutes later wearing a towel around his
middle, limping, and looking very tired, she thought.

"Listen-" she began.

But he held up his hand, before he lay face
down on the table. "I understand darlin' don't worry yourself."

She frowned. "Well you may as well take the
towel off; I've seen you before, Ram."

He took it off and threw it on the floor.

She began to work on him, neck, powerful
shoulders, upper back, and she saw him visibly relax. His breathing
grew regular, and she thought he was asleep as she continued the
rub.

Ram loved the feeling she brought out in him.
With every massage, she seemed to release more and more of the
tension which had built up in him over the past months and months.
He was in a hazy world now, between sleep and wakefulness.