Smooth Irish (Book 2 of the Weldon Series) (15 page)

Jackson brushed his thumb against the bare skin of
her arm. “When I talked to her this morning, she said she was
feeling a lot better.”

Nan snuggled into his embrace. Every nerve in her
body crackled with awareness, and she had to fight the whole
evening long for coherency.

Any single woman would have a hard time staying sane
around the Weldon brothers. They were all raven hair, hot-eyed
temptation in boots. And they left no doubt the devil had made it
to Georgia and spawned four men guaranteed to lead a woman
astray.

Nan couldn’t get his passion out of her mind.
Pretending for three months that he didn’t exist anywhere but in
her fantasies hadn’t helped. So maybe making love would. Maybe once
she knew his touch completely, then she could get on with her
life—a been there, done that, sort of thing. So why did she feel
that she wasn’t just throwing caution to the wind? Why did she feel
as if she were blasting caution all the way to outer space?

Alexi clapped her hands to quiet the laughter and
the jokes to finish her announcement. “John and Emma, and Dad,” she
said getting the attention of her in-laws and her father. “Jesse
and I found out today that you’re going to have a grandson.”

Nan saw Jackson’s mom and dad smile and hug. By
Alexi’s father’s grin and puffed chest, you’d think he was the one
having the baby. The sense of family between the Weldon’s went
straight to Nan’s heart. She had no family, no parents. She’d have
no moments like these and it hurt.

Alexi continued. “Next, Jesse and I would like for
Jackson and Nan to be the baby’s Godparents.”

Nan sat up in surprise, a rush of joy flooding her
heart. She and Alexi were close friends, but that Alexi would
entrust her with so dear a responsibility, touched Nan’s heart. She
heard a moan of pain next to her and looked at Jackson. She
couldn’t tell exactly what he thought about being a Godparent, but
it didn’t look good. He had his face buried into the palms of his
hands and he was rubbing his eyes.

Nan suddenly realized everyone was waiting for her
to respond. She stood, sort of blocking Jackson from the eyes of
the group. “I’m honored. I only hope that I’ll be as good a
Godparent to Jesse junior as Alexi and Jesse are friends to
me.”

“Thank you,” Jackson said as he stood up next to
her. His voice was gruff and filled with tension. Once the crowd
moved their attention back to Alexi and Jesse, Nan brushed her hand
through Jackson’s jet-black hair. What about being a godparent
caused him anguish? “Are you okay?”

Her caring touch seemed to surprise him. He caught
her hand in his and brought her fingers to his lips. The need in
his eyes went way beyond the physical. Nan saw into his soul and
she saw a man in pain.

He drew a deep breath. “Yeah. Let’s dance,
sugar.”

As he pulled her into his arms and she felt the beat
of his heart against her cheek. She knew then, she would spend the
weekend with him. She had to have answers to her questions and a
weekend of just sex, might help her get him out of her mind. Sort
of like a hair of the dog that bit her type thing.

A slow song played softly, and she melted into his
embrace. His touch held as much magic and warmth as the moonlit
summer night. He pulled her close to his hard muscle and everything
inside of her reached out to him. She had no idea how long they
swayed or if the music changed.

“Let’s go,” Jackson whispered in her ear.

“Where?”

“To dance. I know a better place and a better
song.”

From the smooth, deep sexy rumble of his voice, Nan
had no doubt that the time had come to go with Jackson to his
cabin. She followed him, but kept in the background as they said
good night. She felt a bit odd, though at thirty it shouldn’t
bother her that others knew she was leaving the party with Jackson.
When they stopped to see Jesse and Alexi, Nan could tell they were
both worried about Jackson.

“We need to talk,” Jesse said to Jackson. Nan
watched the men’s intense blue gazes measure each other.

Alexi stepped forward, her brow creased and a
troubled depth lay in her eyes. She hugged Jackson. “We didn’t mean
to upset you. We should have thought to ask you in private.”

Jackson patted Alexi to comfort her, but stepped
back from her after a short hug. “You surprised me. I’ll need to
think about it. I can’t promise anything,” he said to Alexi and
then turned to Jesse. “I don’t have any more to say.”

“We still need to talk. I’ll call you later.”

“Later then.” Jackson took Nan’s hand. She quickly
leaned over and gave Alexi a hug.

“Call me,” Alexi whispered and Nan nodded.

Jackson led the way from the party out into the
darkened perimeter. Nan searched her mind for the best way to ask
him what lay behind his dark moments. “Jack, why—”

“Shh. I’ve been aching to do this all night, all
week.” They’d reached the driveway. He pulled her up against his
body and lowered his lips to hers, effectively staving off any
questions. He kissed her thoroughly with a needy, tender roughness
that had her desire burning. She panted for air by the time he
ended the kiss as a shivery with anticipation tingled and burned
through her erogenous zones like a flash fire.

“Follow me, sugar.” He released her and walked to
his Harley, looking way too calm for her peace of mind. He seated
himself and gave her a questioning look. She hadn’t moved.

“
You coming?”

Jackson clearly thought she was having
second thoughts. Trouble was she was having second, third, and
fourth thoughts about making love to him on his motorcycle. She
couldn’t wait to get him where she wanted him and if she didn’t
hurry she was going to strip him naked right there in his parent’s
yard. Smiling, she turned around, and walked to her car, making
very sure she added enough hip action to her stride to cause the
hem of her skirt to bounce.

As she followed him, she realized that
for the first time in her life she was headed down a road that she
had no idea where it would end, but she was having fun.

* * *

Ten minutes later, they pulled up in
front of a small cabin. Jackson reached her car and opened her door
before she could. A grin tugged her lips. He obviously wasn't
giving her any room to change her mind and kept brushing
tantalizing circles on her hip as he walked her to his
door.

“
I didn’t realize that you
live so close to your parents.”

“
Actually, it’s a cabin on
the backside of the farm. I like it here, very private, very
secluded. Besides my parents, the nearest neighbor is a mile or so
away.” They walked up onto the quaint little porch and Jackson
unlocked the door. “Wait here,” he said, then disappeared inside,
shutting the door.

Nan blinked in surprise. She expected
Jackson to be tearing her clothes off by now, just as she wanted to
attack him. Instead, she was left standing alone on his porch.
After what seemed like an eternity, but had probably only been a
minute, Jackson came back and opened the door.

“
Okay, you can come in
now.” He pushed the door wider.

The furnishings were sparse and it
appeared to be a one room deal with a four poster bed in one corner
and a small refrigerator, microwave, and hot plate in the other,
but that wasn’t what drew her attention. About the room there were
dozens of lit candles emitting a spicy aroma. A bottle of champagne
sat on ice in what looked like an old cow milking bucket, and
spread out on the little dinette table were small dishes of cheese,
crackers, whipped cream and strawberries. She blinked away
threatening tears. He’d obviously gone to a lot of trouble to plan
their evening, and the romantic simplicity of his gesture reached
deep inside of her, touching her heart. “This is wonderful,” she
said, her voice husky with emotion.

“
No, you’re wonderful.” He
flipped the power button on his boom box and soft, slow music
filled the small room. “Come here, Nan.”

Nan liked Jackson’s wonderful a whole
lot more than Brad’s pleasant. She dropped her purse and walked
into Jackson’s arms. For a long moment he hugged her tight and then
he began to sway and step to the music. She released a sigh of pure
pleasure. He felt so, so good.

His voice was low at first then grew
to a deep sexy timbre as he sang to her, dancing intimately beneath
the flicker of candlelight. He stepped true to the beat of the
song. Her step lagged a bit as she relaxed into him, but that
seemed to be okay with him. He just molded himself to her, and kept
on dancing, and the longer they swayed, adjusting to each other,
the more in tune they moved.

When they’d dated before, their
relationship had been casual and looking back on it, Nan had to
admit almost impersonal. There’d been no sticky bun breakfast,
motorcycle rides, or romantic candlelight. His band had been doing
a six-week stint at a local bar and she’d gone to see him sing.
They’d done a movie or two, ate dinner a few times, and spent a lot
of time kissing. Jackson had been angling to get horizontal and
she’d been set on something more than heating up the sheets.
Between his night schedule and her day one, there’d been little
time.

So what made the difference this time?
Why was she here, about to make lo—have sex with him? They weren’t
officially dating. Jackson was still angling for the horizontal and
as far as she could tell his hot sheets were never going to lead to
a warm home and hearth.

Was it because no matter what she’d
done she hadn’t been able to get the man out of her mind? Or was he
different? Did she see a vulnerability to him she hadn’t seen
before? She supposed she was here because of a combination of those
things and because she had to have an answer to all of the
questions Jackson provoked. And yes, the fantasies were part of it,
too. He stirred something deep within her she hadn’t known existed,
a part of herself she was almost afraid to face.

The music changed and his voice
deepened. Her heart started to beat faster as her body became more
and more aware of his heated muscles and musky scent. It was the
song he’d sung at the hospital benefit. As he had before, he
changed the words. “Lady, I want you. Lady, I need you. You’re the
only one I care enough to dream about.”

Nan shut her eyes and drew in some
air. If he only knew how much he had filled her dreams. He kissed
her next, his lips warm, his breath intoxicating. Tenderly he
massaged, working his hands up to the back of her neck and inside
the collar of her blouse. Her blood raced until stole all of her
thoughts and all of her doubts away. For better or for worse,
whether this would be a mistake or not, she couldn’t fight her
attraction to this man any longer. Be it a day, a week, or a month,
she had to have an answer to what he made her feel.

The liberation to enjoy the moment hit
her blood stream like a heady aphrodisiac. She kissed him, threaded
her fingers through his silky hair, and pressed her body close to
his. His fingers trailed from her nape to the pulse pounding in her
throat, then dipped lower. She arched to him and he opened the
first two buttons of her blouse. His mouth followed his fingers,
and his tongue tantalized her skin all the way to the front clasp
of her black bra.

“
You’re beautiful,” he
said cupping her breasts through the cotton of her shirt and bra.
“So hot, so soft, and smooth.”

She moaned. Never in her life had she
felt so sexy and free. He stepped back, his demanding gaze met
hers, and he sang another verse, again using his own words. “Lately
I've been thinking. Lately, I've been hoping that you'll share with
me everything you’ve got to give.”

Deep inside her the need to meet his
demand on an equal level stirred. Not only did she want to be
seduced, but she wanted to do the seducing, too. She released her
hold on his shoulders and without moving her gaze from his,
finished unbuttoning her blouse, letting it slide off her shoulders
to the floor. She then did the same to his shirt, touching his
chest, his nipples, running her finger down the trailing line of
soft black hair disappearing into the waistband of his jeans. She
reveled in the play of candlelight on his smooth sun-darkened skin,
kissing and licking wherever she could.

He placed her hand over his erection.
“Lady I need ya. Lady I'm dying. Can’t you see what you’re doing to
me?”

“
Me too,” she said softly.
Taking his hand she placed it on the bare skin of her thigh, and
then guided him up under her skirt to settle over the heat of her
sex. Her action seemed to snap his control. He groaned and time
became a whirlwind.

He quickly removed her skirt and bra,
trailing tiny kisses over her shoulders, leaving little love bites
on her waist. When she stood in nothing but her heels and her black
lace underwear, he backed away from her, circled her, and then
moved toward her like a hungry lion about to devour. “You’re
beautiful, and so damn sexy,” he growled.

She stopped him with a hand to his
chest. “Your jeans,” she whispered. “Take them off.”

First went the boots, then the jeans,
leaving only his briefs.

“
Everything,” she said as
he started her way. “Take it all off.”

He stopped a second, raised his brow
at the insistence in her voice then followed her instructions. When
he finished, she moved, walking around him. From the broad curve of
his shoulders to the narrow flare of his hips, he was all man, hard
muscle, jutting erection. He was elemental male and beautiful. She
moved up behind him and pressed herself to him, snaking her hands
around to cup and stroke his arousal.