condoms are at home.”
She worried her bottom lip between her teeth, briefly considering her brazen request. “Maybe you could drop me off at my place, then go and get them, and a spare change of clothes?”
He stared at her, searching her expression-for what, she couldn’t be certain. “Are you sure about this, Teddy?”
For a moment, her heart faltered. Trapped by the hunger glittering in his eyes, her breath fluttered in her throat. He wasn’t asking for a lifetime commitment, she told herself, just the certainty that she was ready for a more intimate relationship. Adults indulged in mutual pleasure all the time, and she desperately craved that sensual connection with him.
“Yeah, I’m sure,” she whispered. Framing his face between her hands, she lowered her parted lips to his to prove just how certain she was about becoming his lover.
A rapid tapping against Austin’s window startled Teddy, and it took a few heartbeats and Austin’s comical expression for her to realize that someone had caught them making out. Horrified at the prospect, but grateful for the fogged windows which offered a modicum of privacy, she scrambled back to her side of the car. Her dress caught on the gearshift, and the vehicle rocked with her swift movement over the console. Finding Austin’s sweater on the floorboard, she tossed it at him.
“Put that on!” she ordered frantically.
“Kinda late for modesty, don’t you think?” he drawled, tugging the sweater over his head and adjusting it over his torso.
She glared at him, tamping down the bubble of laughter working its way up. The situation was hilarious, if not a bit humiliating, but she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of humoring him.
“Hey, kids, roll down the window,” a gruff voice commanded. “It’s past curfew, and I don’t think your parents would appreciate being called down to the police station on Christmas Eve.”
Austin did as he was instructed, rolling his window halfway down while Teddy gave the hem of her dress a fierce tug, stretching the material to her knees. “Good evening, sir,” he said respectfully to the uniformed officer standing outside the Mustang.
The cop crouched down, and a beam of light searched the interior of the car, bouncing from Austin to Teddy. Her cheeks flamed with embarrassment.
The officer grinned, clearly expecting teenagers, not two grown adults. “Considering you’re both consenting adults, I’m guessing your parents wouldn’t give a damn if you spent the night in the slammer.”
“Uh, no, sir,” Austin replied politely.
The cop snapped off his light. “I’ll give you five minutes for the windows to clear, then I suggest you take this to a private place,” he said, amusement obvious in his voice.
Austin nodded his gratitude. “We’ll do that, sir.”
The officer headed back to his squad car, and Austin turned and grinned impishly at her. “Well, you’ve just experienced the full effect of making out on a dark, secluded road.” He turned the ignition and put the window defroster on full blast. “That was probably just as embarrassing as getting caught by one of your brothers.”
Teddy groaned and slumped against her seat. “Thank you for the unique experience.”
Austin winked at her. “It was my pleasure.”
AUSTIN STUFFED a clean change of clothes into his duffel bag, then crossed the wooden floor of his room to the bathroom, the spurs he’d attached to his cowboy boots jangling with each impatient step. Grabbing his toothbrush and a few other necessities, he returned to the bed, tossed the toiletries into the duffel, then went to retrieve the most important item for his sleep-over at Teddy’s.
Just as he withdrew the unopened box of condoms he’d had stashed in his nightstand for the past six months, he heard a brisk knock on the open bedroom door. Like a kid being caught with something forbidden, the tips of his ears warmed, and he discreetly buried the box in his bag. His reaction was insane, considering he was a grown man, but there was something about Teddy that made what was going to happen tonight special. He didn’t want to spoil his own mood, or tarnish Teddy’s reputation, by enduring Jordan’s ribbing.
However, explaining the costume he was wearing was something he hadn’t considered.
Reluctantly, he turned to face Jordan, who was leaning against the doorjamb, his hands buried in the pockets of his robe.
A grin twitched the corners of Jordan’s mouth as he took in Austin’s cowboy attire, complete with Stetson, chaps and shiny silver spurs he’d bought to complete the Fantasy for Hire ensemble.
Jordan moved into the bedroom, curiosity brimming in his eyes. “I was expecting to hear Santa tonight, but the jangling noise I heard didn’t sound like Christmas bells, so I thought I’d better investigate.”
Austin zipped up the duffel, anxious to be on his way. “I’m sorry if I woke you up.”
“Where in the world are you going dressed like that on Christmas Eve?” Jordan’s amusement faded into a frown of disapproval. “Don’t tell me that you’ve got a gig tonight.”
Austin was beginning to feel like tonight’s “gig” would be the performance of his life. Slinging the duffel over his shoulder, he grinned at his brother. “Don’t wait up for me, pardner,” he drawled humorously, tipping his Stetson at Jordan. “I’ve got one last fantasy to fulfill, and I have a feeling it’s going to take all night long.”
A slow grin spread across Jordan’s face as understanding dawned.
Before Jordan could comment, Austin headed out the door and down the stairs. The metallic sound of the spurs’ rowels chinking against wood rang throughout the house.
Jordan stood at the top of the stairs, and called after Austin, “Be careful that you don’t hurt Teddy with those spurs!”
Austin chuckled. It was obvious that his brother adored Teddy as much as he did. Now it was just a matter of convincing Teddy how much she belonged in his life.
10
AUSTIN DIDN’T KNOW what to expect when he returned to Teddy’s condo, but it certainly wasn’t the sultry vixen who greeted him. Just like him, Teddy had changed, but her attire was far more enticing, and certainly more revealing. Soft chiffon and sheer lace in a deep shade of purple shaped her full breasts and draped along her curves to midthigh, accentuating everything womanly about her. Her hair was tousled around her head, her eyes shone bright with anticipation, and she smelled delicious, like citrus and something infinitely soft and feminine.
“Very nice,” he murmured appreciatively, forgetting all about the role he’d wanted to play for her.
She shifted anxiously on her feet, and the hem of the nightie flirted along her thighs. “I got the nightgown for my birthday, and I thought I’d put it to good use,” she explained, a faint blush touching her cheeks.
He didn’t bother to point out that she wouldn’t be wearing it for long.
He waited for her to invite him in, but she didn’t seem in any hurry to do so. Her gaze leisurely traveled the length of him, and he could have sworn he heard her breath catch when she reached the spurs attached to his boots. There was no mistaking the excitement wreathing her expression when she glanced back at his face.
“Hello, cowboy,” she said in a husky, come-hither voice.
He touched the brim of his hat politely, ignoring the swift current of heat rushing through his veins so he could play along with the fantasy he wanted to create for her. “Ma’am.”
Her small, pink tongue licked her bottom lip, and she leaned against the wall in the entryway, looking entirely too tempting. Blinking innocently, she asked, “So, cowboy, what brings you to my neck of the woods?”
Austin quickly realized that the woman he’d planned to seduce was turning the tables on him. Not that he minded having a willing counterpart, but if she wasn’t careful, her provocative act was going to send him over the edge sooner than he’d anticipated. “I’m looking for a place to bunk down for the night,” he drawled, struggling to maintain his composure when all he wanted to do was take this woman up against the wall, finesse be damned. “And I was hoping you could accommodate a lonesome cowboy.”
Batting her lashes demurely at him, she skimmed her fingers over the swell of her breasts. Austin’s mouth went dry as her nipples tightened.
A seductive smile added to her beguiling act. “Well, you’re more than welcome to sleep in the stable with your horse.”
