“A neighbor had come to help?” I asked, scooching a bit closer.
“It was Thomas,” Wyatt said. “He rescued us both.”
Involuntarily I squeezed his hand. “He did?”
“Thomas had seen the flames and came to try and help,” Wyatt said. “He bundled Xander in his coat, and pulled the sweater off his own back, and wrapped me up in it as best he could.”
“He did that?” I blinked.
“He didn’t tell you about that part of the story?”
I shook my head. “No, he didn’t.”
“It was Thomas who stayed with Xander and I at the hospital until my grandparents could get to William’s Ford. Thomas had been friends with my parents, and he refused to leave Xander and I alone until our grandparents arrived the next day.” Wyatt leaned forward and took my hand. “Thomas Drake is many things. He’s powerful, shrewd, a hell of a businessman, and he can be intimidating. However he is also one of the kindest men I’ve ever known. He’s simply discreet about it.”
“So he has a habit of rescuing people in one way or another,” I said
Wyatt nodded. “I found out years later from my grandparents, that Thomas had covered the funeral expenses for my parents, and he’d also set up a college fund for both Xander and me. That fund paid for my degree, and covered almost all of Xander’s firefighter training.”
“I thought your brother was an EMT?”
“He’s both, actually,” Wyatt said proudly.
“I’ve enjoyed getting to know Xander over the course of the wedding,” I said. “You two have similar coloring, his eyes are a deeper blue, but you’re taller and thinner.”
“My brother outweighs me by a good fifty pounds.” Wyatt brushed the hair out of his eyes. “It’s all the weight training. Xander does CrossFit.”
With my free hand, I poked a playful finger in Wyatt’s ribs, making him twitch. “You’re no slouch there, honey. That’s all lean muscle.”
Wyatt grinned at me. “You think so?”
“I know so,” I nodded. “I felt it when you held me on the dance floor. Makes me wonder if you do some sort of Yoga or something to stay in shape?” I’d meant for my comment to lighten the mood after such a serious conversation. But I saw that his eyes had changed. In fact his entire posture had.
Oh my. I thought, repressing a shiver. Things were about to get very interesting.
Slowly, Wyatt leaned in, pressing closer beside me on the couch. He waited, watching me carefully. “I’ve been thinking about kissing you again since last night.”
I smiled. “Well sugar, maybe you should stop thinking and start with the doing.”
“Aw hell, you called me sugar,” he groaned. “Haven’t you figured out what that does to me?”
“What does it do to you?” I asked softly.
“Let me show you,” he said, and in one smooth move, I found myself pressed under him on the couch.
I tipped my face up as his mouth came down and met his kiss with my own. The kiss started out soft and testing. After a few minutes Wyatt lifted his head and gazed down in my eyes.
“Wyatt,” I whispered, and reaching up I sank my hands in his hair and tugged him back down to me.
His reaction was explosive. Now our kiss was open-mouthed, and we strained to touch each other. He swept his hands gently over my breasts, causing me to shudder. In turn, I passed my hands over his chambray-covered chest. I slipped a hand inside his shirt, felt all that lean muscle, and purred in appreciation.
Wyatt suddenly paused, and gave my bottom lip the smallest of nips. “I want you,” he said.
My heart slammed hard against my ribs. “I’m not quite ready for this,” I admitted, removing my hands from him.
“Magnolia.” Wyatt shifted slightly and it left no doubt as to his desire for me.
“Oh god,” I managed, as any good sense I had threatened to go straight out the window. I reached up for his face, as I started to tremble.
We stayed exactly like that for a few moments. Him staring down in my face, and me lying beneath him. My hands were tangled in his hair, while the both of us tried to catch our breath.
Eventually, Wyatt sighed and rested his forehead against mine. I was surprised when he dropped a chaste kiss on my mouth and lifted his weight from me. He leaned back on the far side of the sofa, out of arm’s reach and calmly smiled.
“I didn’t mean for things to go quite so far tonight.” Wyatt’s voice was a low rumble.
I pulled my long hair over one shoulder. “The truth is, it can’t go any farther. We aren’t alone, and I’m not exactly prepared, or ready for such an event.”
Wyatt’s lips twitched. “Event?”
I tipped my head to one side and sent him a considering look. “Wyatt, I’ve only ever been with one man, and I married him. Since my divorce I haven’t been with anyone else because I am very cautious. It’s not my style to casually jump into bed with a man, even if I am attracted to him.”
“I appreciate your honesty,” Wyatt said soberly. “But to be clear, I’ve never thought of you as the ‘quick tussle in the sheets’ type, Magnolia.”
My eyes ran over his partially naked chest and I told myself to be practical, to be smart, and not to pounce on the man. “Do me a favor will you?”
“What?”
“Button up your shirt.” I said. “It’s distracting having you sit there like that, when I’m trying to be sensible.”
At my words, a slow smile spread across his face. It made my stomach jump. Lord almighty, I thought. Seeing him like that, all that lean muscle, made me want to drag him to the bedroom, lock the door, and go crazy with him. And to hell with sensibility.
“What are you thinking?” Wyatt asked, jolting me from my wayward thoughts. “You have this look on your
