The Wanted Bride (A Contemporary Romance) Read online

  She stood up, turned, and gazed at him, her eyes clouded with passion. In amazement he stared at her as she reached behind her and unzipped the back of her dress. Shocked, he watched as she slid the spaghetti straps down her shoulders and the dress dropped to the floor.

  She stood before him in thong panties, no bra.

  Without a word to him, she turned and walked toward his bedroom.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Dear God,” he exclaimed and almost fell off the couch in his hurry to catch up with her. His feet wouldn’t move fast enough as he ran down the hall. He tore his shirt out of his pants and fought the buttons, finally yanking it over his head. Fumbling with his belt, he kicked off his shoes and shed his pants, almost tripping as he ran.

  When he reached the bedroom, she had pulled back the coverlet of his big bed and lay curled on her side, waiting for him.

  “What took you so long?” she asked, a smile of anticipation on her face.

  She amazed him. She surprised him, and her beauty rocked his world.

  “Oh hell,” he muttered as he yanked his underwear and socks off.

  He crawled naked into the bed beside her and took her into his arms. For a moment he just held her, enjoying the feel of her naked flesh against his. He gazed into the depths of her sapphire eyes and marveled at her beauty. God, she was stunning.

  “I’ve waited so long to see you here, in my bed with me, both of us naked.”

  With her hand, she stroked his hair and brought his face close to hers. “Quit talking and kiss me.”

  She pressed her lips to his, and he returned her kiss, his mouth covering hers, his tongue stroking her with a passion denied until he felt like he would explode with anticipation.

  Math problems. He needed to do math problems, to slow down the speeding climax headed toward his penis. Two times two, is…his hand stroked her soft skin. She was satin and silk to the touch, and he wanted to let his fingertips linger, but he yearned for more. His blood soared with the feel of her beneath his hand.

  Oh, hell…he moaned. Four times four is…his hand reached out and touched her breast, and he pebbled her nipple with his fingers. She moaned, and the sound was hungry and wanting and needy, making him hard enough to burst.

  Five times five would never get him through this night.

  Reluctantly, he lifted his mouth from hers and placed his lips over her nipple. He sucked gently at first, lavishing her breast with his tongue, teasing her nipple until her breathing was harsh in his ears and her fingers clutched at the sheets.

  He wanted this night to be perfect, he wanted to give her the greatest pleasure she had ever received. He wanted to erase her bad memories and replace them with slideshows that would arouse her every time she thought of him.

  After weeks of persuasion, he finally had her right where he wanted her. In his bed. He’d gone from doubting who she was to only wanting her in his life, and he was determined to show her just how much he needed her.

  His fingers slid over silky curls and delved into her moist center. He teased and plundered her intimately while she writhed beneath him. He kissed her neck, the sensitive spot behind her ear, his lips making their way back to her mouth. He wanted to hear her cry out his name. He needed to feel her tense around his fingers, and he wanted her pleasure before his own.

  She grabbed his shoulders, her hands demanding as she pulled him to her and cried out his name as ripples of pleasure overtook her.

  “Now,” she demanded, and he smiled at her, only too happy to obey her command.

  He opened the drawer to his nightstand and pulled out a condom. Quickly, he opened the foil packet and slipped the latex over his erection.

  She lay before him, her chest rising and falling, her eyes smoky with passion, and he wanted to freeze-frame this moment, but couldn’t. He had to have her now.

  Matt layered his mouth over hers and kissed her until he felt they were one, and then he pushed deep inside her. She was tight and warm and slick with desire for him. And he knew that even though he wanted this night to stretch into forever, he wouldn’t last long.

  With each thrust of his body, she met him with an equal passion and fervor that had his blood soaring. Her arms wrapped around him, clinging to him as she moaned deep in her throat. She broke the kiss, and her eyes met and held his gaze as they reached toward that elusive crest.

  The sapphire of her eyes darkened with passion and emotion, sending him riding the peak.

  “Matt,” she moaned.

  He groaned, releasing the passion he’d held back, trying to hold out as long as possible. His mouth covered hers, almost eating her up as he reached his climax. He thrust into her, groaning into her mouth as he felt himself coming. She met his driving force and clung to him as she shivered with release. He reluctantly freed her lips, kissing her gently.

  His heart pounded in his chest as the haze slowly cleared from his brain. Stunned at the magnitude of emotion overwhelming him, he swallowed and tried to regain his wits. How could sex one time with this woman totally blow his mind?

  Matt sighed. Valerie had taken him to heights of pleasure, and though he liked to remain in control, she’d sapped his strength and wrung him out. He rolled them onto their sides, their breathing heavy, and their bodies glistening with sweat.

  Yet he felt whole. Tonight felt right and special. So much more than just sex. Warmth, contentment, protectiveness, and an emotion he’d never felt before filled him as he held her. Could he be falling in love with her? He closed his eyes to savor the moment.

  Slowly, he opened his eyes and stared into hers. They lay there staring at one another. She smiled and stroked his cheek. That simple gesture filled him to near bursting with emotion. But was it love?

  “Wow!”

  He shook his head at her. “Not a strong enough word. More like, spectacular.”

  She giggled and snuggled closer to him, and he wanted to give her the world. “I think we should do it again, just to see if it’s twice as good.”

  “Your wish is my command.” He pulled her even closer.

  Oh yeah, they needed to do this again. He’d known they would be good together, but could it get any better than this?

  #

  Valerie awoke the next morning with Matt’s arm around her. They’d spent the night tormenting each other’s bodies with pleasure, and now this morning she’d awoken with the shadows looming, frightening her.

  Yesterday she realized this funny lawyer had captured her heart.

  Matt was everything she could hope to find in a lover, a mate, a friend, and she had fun with him. They laughed when they were together. They teased one another. They talked about everything, and she’d shared things with him she’d never told her best friend. But she hadn’t told him the one thing that could jeopardize everything.

  She hadn’t told him who she really was. And she feared he would hate her once he realized she’d lied to him.

  Truth and trust were very important to Matt, and he would be angry that she hadn’t believed in him enough to confess that she wasn’t Valerie Brown.

  At first he’d been so determined to see her on the next bus out of town that she could never have trusted him, and now…well she’d never intended to get involved with him. She was never going to get mixed up with any man, let alone another lawyer. And here she was in his bed.

  She sat on the edge of the bed, unable to stay a moment longer. She had to get out of here. She had to get to the café. She had to slip away and call her father today.

  Daddy could tell her how bad the situation was in Dallas. Then she would tell her father how she wanted to correct the past. Correct what she’d done to Carter.

  When everything was corrected, then she would tell Matt the truth about her identity.

  Matt stirred beside her, the sheet trailing down to reveal his strong, muscled shoulders. God, he was so handsome. He was a great lover. He was kind, he was fun and hopefully he was hers.

  And she loved him.

&
nbsp; She shook her head. She was so afraid. So afraid he would learn the truth before she could make things right.

  So afraid he would hate her. By lying, she’d screwed up the best relationship she’d ever experienced. Funny, she’d never lied before, and this time she’d only lied to protect herself from her father and Carter.

  Somehow, it had all backfired, and now she found herself in a precarious position. She looked around the room for her clothes and remembered they were in the living room. She tiptoed in, picked them up, and dressed before she headed out the door.

  How was she going to tell Matt that she was not Valerie Brown, but Valerie Burrows, daughter of trial litigation lawyer Paul Burrows? A debutante. A millionaire. A possible arsonist.

  Somehow, she had to convince him she’d had no choice but to lie to him. He had to understand that she would never lie again. Because she loved him.

  #

  Matt awoke to the sound of someone pounding on his door. He reached over and saw that the bed was empty. He glanced around the room and knew she was gone. The house sounded empty, except for the relentless pounding on the door.

  “Just a minute,” he yelled, reaching for his pants. They were still in the living room, where he’d yanked them off. He found some sweats and pulled them on before heading down the hall.

  When he opened the door, he saw Jesse standing there with a smirk on his face. “Late night?”

  Matt moved to let his friend come in. He looked around the living area. Her clothes were gone, but his left a trail to the bedroom.

  Jesse looked at his shirt and pants, thrown recklessly on the floor, scattered down the hall. “Did I interrupt something?”

  “Do you think I would have let you in if you had?”

  Jesse frowned and held up a brown envelope. “I hope that whomever you were following down that hall was not our favorite waitress.”

  Matt felt a tremor of fear trickle down his spine. “You got the results.”

  For a moment he didn’t want to know what Jesse had learned. Valerie had explained her secrecy, and Matt understood and accepted her explanation.

  “Yep.”

  “It’s okay. She told me she was running from a wedding, so it’s no big deal.”

  Jesse shook his head. “It’s quite a big deal. Our little bride is wanted back in Texas. Her father and her fiancé are on their way to Colorado.”

  Matt froze. “What?”

  “I tried to reach you last night but couldn’t get you by telephone, so I decided to come by this morning to warn you. Seems like I’m a little late.”

  “Wait. What is she wanted for?” Matt asked, his stomach tightening with dread.

  “Remember that article in the paper about the bride running away at the church and then torching her fiancé’s car?”

  “Yes.”

  “That was Valerie. But her name is not Valerie Brown. It’s Diane Valerie Burrows. As in Paul Burrows, the famous Dallas litigation lawyer. A Dallas debutante worth millions.”

  The blood drained from Matt’s face. His insides turned cold, and he shivered.

  She had lied. His mother’s pained expression came into view, dredging up raw memories of his parents’ divorce. He pushed the vision away.

  Valerie had lied about her identity. She wasn’t just no one. She was a debutante worth millions.

  Everything seemed to fall into place, all his doubts about her confirmed. No wonder she was used to the finer things in life. She had come from money. But more than anything, she was hiding something and was wanted by the police.

  Last night she’d had the opportunity to tell him the truth, but instead she’d continued her charade. And in the meantime, he’d given her his heart.

  He sank down onto a nearby chair. “What’s she charged with?”

  “Nothing yet. But he could file criminal mischief. He’s threatening to press charges, and the insurance company is not too happy either.”

  Matt rubbed his hand through his hair. Why hadn’t she told him last night? She’d told him about the wedding disaster, but she hadn’t trusted him enough to tell him what she’d done or who she really was.

  She wasn’t a broke waitress, but a rich debutante. And she was Paul Burrows’ daughter. The Paul Burrows, the most successful litigation attorney in Texas. The very man he’d modeled his own practice after. No wonder she wouldn’t travel to Texas with him.

  The thought of her deception pissed him off in a major way. How could they have any kind of lasting relationship if it was built on nothing but lies? Without trust, how could they have any kind of future?

  “Damn!”

  “Please tell me you’re not in deep enough you can’t get out.”

  Matt stared at his friend. “What the hell do you think? She spent the night with me and—Oh hell.”

  He put his head in his hands and then rubbed his face, trying to erase the painful heartache. Just when he’d thought they had a chance, he learned the awful truth.

  Just like his mother, he’d been betrayed.

  Jesse watched him quietly, not saying a word.

  “I know I’m crazy for getting involved with her.”

  “I didn’t say a word,” Jesse said, throwing up his hands.

  “You didn’t have to. I should have listened to my instincts. I knew something wasn’t right.” Silence stretched between the two men, uncomfortable and strained.

  “So what are you going to do?” Matt asked, unable to think of her in jail.

  “I’m going to wait until her father and fiancé get here, and then, if the fiancé wants to press charges, I’m going to arrest her.” Jesse folded his arms across his chest in his best warrior stance.

  Matt cursed.

  “What do you want me to do?”

  “I don’t know. It’s just…the fiancé was a bastard to her.” Though that didn’t excuse her behavior. Even though she’d lied, he still felt the urge to protect her.

  Jesse stared at him. “You’re hopeless.”

  “What?”

  “You’re mad as hell at her, but you don’t want me to arrest her,” Jesse said, looking at him like he’d lost his mind.

  Maybe he had. He’d dropped his guard, let her into his heart, and she’d betrayed him. She’d lied about everything.

  It was time to set things right.

  “I want her father to take her back to Texas. I want her out of my sister’s house. I want her out of town.” The hurt and anger were talking, but he couldn’t shut them up. “And I’m going to go tell her right now.”

  #

  Valerie looked up from wiping off a table and saw Matt and Jesse come into the restaurant. She smiled, and her heart puddled in her chest.

  God, he was handsome, and her breath quickened. She loved him so much and was so afraid of telling him the truth. Would he forgive her for her deception?

  He didn’t return her smile, and then she noticed for the first time that Jesse and Matt were frowning. Normally, they came in joking with one another. Matt’s expression looked like he was ready to tackle anything or anyone who got in his way.

  Something was wrong. Her stomach tightened in fear. Could it be McKenzie and the kids? Was he angry she’d snuck out to let him sleep this morning?

  Matt walked over to Fran and whispered something to her. She pointed to where Valerie stood filling a customer’s coffee cup. He strode toward her, a determination in his step that didn’t bode well.

  “What’s wrong?” she asked when he stopped in front of her.

  “Outside,” he commanded.

  She set the coffee pot down on a nearby table and walked toward the door, her heart pounding in her chest. He was furious. There could only be one thing that would make him this angry.

  As soon as they were outside in the cold, bright, sunshine, she turned on him. “What’s happened?”

  “Tell me your name,” he demanded.

  She swallowed hard and squeezed her eyes shut, wishing that she had told him last night. “Valerie Burrows.”r />
  “And you’re wanted in Texas, aren’t you?”

  Her eyes widened. “I didn’t know.”

  “You torched your ex-fiancé’s vintage Corvette!”

  “It just sort of happened.”

  “A burning car doesn’t just happen.”

  His attitude went all over her, like a dash of hot sauce on a sizzling egg. “You have no idea what it feels like when five minutes before your wedding you find out that your fiancé got your best friend pregnant. You go into shock. You feel hurt. You get angry. So you jump in his car and run. But his damn car stalls in downtown Dallas, so I ended it for him and the car. I struck a match and watched that sucker burn.”

  “You broke the law.”

  “Yeah, well, I don’t see anyone arresting him for screwing around.”

  Matt glared at her. “The worst thing is you lied to me. You lied and pretended to be someone you weren’t.”

  His words were like a bucket of cold water on her anger.

  “You’re right. I lied. But I had no choice. I needed time to clear my head and find out who I am. I’m sorry that I didn’t turn out to be the girl you thought I was. I’m sorry I wasn’t the perfect little princess you wanted me to be.” She took a deep breath, watching his face for any sign of a good reaction from him. Nothing. “I’m a damn good woman who had to outrun her father and fiancé in order to find out who she really is.”

  “And that new person turned out to be a lie.”

  She took a deep breath and stared at him. “No, the person who got off the bus was a lie. This Valerie, the one standing here, is the real person. A good woman who wants the same things in life that you do, a family and loving home. But if you can’t deal with her, then it’s a good thing you found out the truth!”

  She was tired of being run over by men, and if he couldn’t take her for the woman she really was, then she needed to know before they went any further. Valerie stood in front of him, trembling, her chest heaving.

  “You know I would have understood. I could have even accepted what you did, until last night. You had the opportunity to come clean last night. You could have told me the truth. I thought we had something, and today I find out it was all based on lies.”