“How are you feeling?”

She took in a deep breath. “Wonderful.”

“Good. That’s how I want you feel.”

I pulled out of her, climbed off the bed, and walked into the bathroom. After disposing of the condom and walking back into the bedroom, I stopped and stared at her as she lay on her side, her back to me and with the sheet covering her. This was the part I was dreading; kicking her out and sending her home. Walking over to the other side of the bed, I sat down and ran my finger down her arm.

“I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No.” She smiled. “Not at all. You were amazing.”

You can do it, Jack. Tell her you had a good time. Thank her for coming over and send her home in a cab.

“Thank you. You were equally amazing.” I stroked her hair.

She sat up, letting the sheet fall down. “I should go,” she spoke.

“Yeah. I guess so.”

This didn’t mean anything. I’d wanted to fuck her since the moment I saw her, and now that I had, she could leave like the rest of the women did.

She climbed out of my bed and picked up her panties off the floor.

I watched her as she slipped them on and then grabbed her dress. I’d brought her up to my room. That meant something. I didn’t want her to leave and I didn’t want to be alone. The thought of her leaving did something to me inside. It created an ache that I didn’t like.

“Lorelei.”

“Yes?” She turned around.

“Don’t go. Please spend the night with me.”

“Are you sure, Jack?”

I held out my hand to her. “I’ve never been so sure about anything in my life.”

She gave me a small smile as she set her dress down on the lounge chair and climbed back into bed. Wrapping my arms around her, I pulled her into me as she snuggled tightly against my chest. She fit perfectly into me. Almost as if she was made to be there.

Kissing the top of her head, I asked the question that I was sure she wouldn’t answer.

“Why haven’t you had sex in seven years?”

Chapter Eighteen

Lorelei

I wanted to tell him so badly about Hope. He needed to know, but I was scared. He hated kids and what we had just shared was beyond magical. I’d never felt this kind of connection before. Don’t get me wrong; I loved Brett with every fiber of my being. He was the love of my life. But this connection I had with Jack was something different. Something I couldn’t explain. Did I want to open up the wound that never fully healed seven years later? Not tonight.

“Can we talk about it in the morning? I’m really tired right now.”

“Of course. Get some sleep.”

I lifted my head from his chest and kissed his lips. He gave me a small smile and my insides filled with happiness. This was the tender side of Jack Sutton. A side I hadn’t been so sure existed.

The next morning, I opened my eyes and looked around the room, trying to focus where I was at, forgetting at the moment that I wasn’t in my bed in my apartment. Rolling over, I stared at the empty spot where Jack had laid last night. Regret started to settle inside me as I lay there. What the hell did I do? Now what? I sat up, holding the sheet over me as my eyes looked around his bedroom. The gray walls were the same as the rest of the house, as were the white crown molding that accented them. His bedroom furniture was black and very much the same style as the downstairs.

Climbing out of bed, I used the bathroom and then grabbed a blue t-shirt Jack had lying on the chair. After slipping it over my head, I walked downstairs and into the kitchen where the aroma of coffee awoke my senses.

“Good morning.” Jack smiled. “Coffee?” he asked as he held up the pot.

“Yes. Please. Coffee is very much needed right now.”

He poured coffee into the mug and handed it to me. His eyes raked over me from head to toe.

“You look great in my t-shirt. Very sexy.” He leaned over and kissed my lips.

“Thanks. I hope you don’t mind. I didn’t want to get back into that dress.”

“I don’t mind at all. I really like the view.” He winked.

Sitting down on the black stool at the island, I took a sip of my coffee. Jack set down a small brown basket filled with croissants, muffins, and small pastries.

“Dig in.” He smiled as he took a croissant. “My maid, Madeline, is off on the weekends so she makes sure to pick these up every Friday.”

“You have a maid?”

“Yeah. She’s great. She’s more than just a maid, though. She’s my chef, my friend, my confidant, my tailor if something needs mending, and she’s just an overall great woman. Between you and me, I think she and Tony have a thing for each other.”

I laughed. “Really?”

“Yeah. Even though they won’t admit it, I know something’s going on.” He set down his coffee and sat on the stool next to me. “How did you sleep?”

“Great. How about you?”

“Good.” He slowly nodded his head. “Are you ready to tell me why you hadn’t had sex in seven years?”

I tilted my head as I stared at him. “You’re just dying to know, aren’t you?”

“Actually, I am, because I can’t imagine someone as beautiful as you not having sex for all those years.”

Taking another drink from my cup, I sighed. “When I was sixteen, I met this guy named Brett. We fell in love and had big plans for our future together. We were going to go away to college, graduate, get married, start a family, and live happily ever after until he was killed in a car crash two years later by a drunk driver.”

“Lorelei, I’m sorry.” He reached over and placed his hand on mine.

“After he died, I had no interest in meeting other guys. Brett wasn’t just my boyfriend and my lover; he was my best friend and I couldn’t see myself with anyone else.” I looked down.

He gave my hand a gentle squeeze. “I can’t even imagine what you went through but not to have sex for seven years seems a little ridiculous.”

There was no way he could understand. He was Jack Sutton and apparently not a very emotional man. I turned my head and glared at him for a few moments. Our eyes locked on each other.

“Have you ever been in love, Jack?”

“No. I can’t say that I have.”

“Then you could never understand. Do me a favor. When you do fall in love at some point in your life, get back to me on how you’d feel if something happened to that person. How your whole world comes crashing down in a split second and you find it hard to breathe and go on without them in your life.”

I got up from the stool and went upstairs to get dressed and leave. As I put on my dress, Jack walked into the bedroom and clasped my shoulders.

“Lorelei, I’m sorry. I was being insensitive. To be honest with you, I’m not a very sensitive person. Let me ask you something. Why me? After seven years, why did you finally choose to have sex with me?”

“If you would have asked me that last night, I would have told you something different from what I’m about to say now. The truth is, I don’t know. I have to go.”

I grabbed my shoes from the floor, my purse from the nightstand, and walked down the stairs. I expected him to follow me down, but he didn’t. Walking down the street and trying to put on my shoes, I waited until I reached the corner to hail a cab. My stomach felt sick and my feelings were hurt. Maybe Jack wasn’t the man I thought he was. Or actually, maybe he really was and I just chose to see him as someone different. Who the hell knew and who the hell cared? I was happy I didn’t tell him about Hope. Jack Sutton was nothing to me but a one-night stand who happened to be my boss.

****

Jack

Lorelei left in anger and I just let her leave. I should have gone after her, but I didn’t like what she said to me. I still didn’t understand why she wouldn’t have sex. I guess it was a woman’s thing. I knew that I would never go without having sex for seven years. Good grief, I couldn’t even make through a week. I sighed as I stepped into the shower. Once I was finished, I went into my closet to get some clothes. As I was getting dressed, I looked at the crumpled sheets where Lorelei lay in my arms and slept last night. She didn’t know it, but I lay there for a while and watched her as she slept. She looked so peaceful and so angelic. She made me feel things last night as we were making love that I’d never felt before, and for her to just walk out like she did today really bothered me. Great. She was mad and now things were going to be tense at the office on Monday. I needed to rectify things and I needed to do it now.