Sara didn’t know what had happened next. She’d decided she’d fallen asleep again. What terrible timing. It was morning before she woke – alone. There was a note on the pillow next to her. On the front of it, Jared had used colored pencils to sketch a white wolf, holding a red rose with its teeth. She turned it over. The message was short and sweet.
Morning, Angel,
What you did last night took courage and willpower. You made the right choice. Special moments are what bind us together, forever. Next time, you might be the one begging me to stop – for real. I took your IV out this morning while you were asleep. You’re gonna be fine, but you need to take it easy. Drink plenty of fluids. If Gerald brings you something to drink, you drink it! I’ll call you later on today. Just sleep and dream of me.
Jared
Sara tried to move her foot and remembered her twisted ankle. She’d fallen down the hill. She threw the covers back; she was naked. Her eyes turned to dark pools. Had they made love? Had she sleep right through it? No, she couldn’t have!
She grabbed the card and read it again. Her eyes lit. “Of course, I remember. He must’ve taken my clothes off when he washed me. But that would mean, when we were - I would’ve been - and he would - damn!” Jared had possessed more self-control than she’d given him credit for. But, if she couldn’t find her clothes, what was she gonna wear?
She wrapped the sheet around her and sat on the side of the bed, but not without pain. She peeled the piece of tape off her arm and tossed it into the wastebasket. She frowned. She couldn’t understand how he got the IV in her arm without her knowing. She attempted to stand, and fell back on the bed. She groaned. “Well, I won’t be walking away from this one. Maybe I should take his advice.” Sara yawned and laid back on the pillows, but not before she’d made sure her phone was within reach. She smiled and rubbed her cheek against his pillow, inhaling his scent. “I’ll rest my eyes while I wait for his call.” Before she knew it, she was asleep again.
~ ~ ~
Sara’s phone woke her. She read the name. Just as he promised, she smiled.
“Morning - feeling better? Well, I say morning, but it’s almost noon. I was beginning to think you’d run out on me again.”
“Really? Why? It’s not as if I can run.”
Jared chuckled. “I called about thirty minutes after I got to the office, to tell you, your panties are hanging in the bathroom.”
“That takes care of my bottom half. What am I supposed to do about the top? By the way, where are the rest of my clothes?”
“In the laundry. Cassie’s washing them. You can borrow one of my shirts from the closet. Listen, I talked to Lucy, and she and I agreed. You might as well stay with me until your ankle heals. Besides, I need to make sure you don’t have any side effects from the bump on your head.”
Sara laughed. “You want me to hang around because of a twisted ankle, and a bump on my head? Are you sure it’s not because you don’t want me to leave?”
“Alright. I’ll admit it,” he said, embarrassingly. “After holding you in my arms all night and waking up with you still in my bed, I’m being selfish again. I want you with me. No - I need you with me! You have no idea how I felt when I thought I’d lost you. Nothing mattered, Sara, not the house, not the job, not even my life.” He paused. “I want you to stay with me, but if you truthfully wanna go back to Lucy’s,” his smug voice trialed off. He knew what her answer would be.
“No, I’ll stay if you’re sure you want me to.”
“I’ve been sure since before I laid eyes on you, but this must be your choice, what you want. Are you sure about me?”
Her eyes glossed. She couldn’t stop smiling. She blinked to clear her vision. If he only knew, how sure she was of him, and how badly she needed him. “I’m sure.”
“You’ll move in with me?” he asked in a high-pitched voice.
“Yes, but I wanna hold off telling Lucy for a while. She knows I’m staying until my ankle heals. I think we should leave it at that for now. I’m afraid she might talk to my mother. That would not go over well. Oh, and I’ll need some of my things.”
“Text me a list, and I’ll pick it up when I leave the clinic. I might be kinda late. I still have the staff meeting, I was telling you about.”
“I thought it was last night.”
“It was supposed to be, but I was rescuing my damsel in distress. My enormously sexy, damsel in distress,” he said, playfully.
“Oh! Right. Jared?”
“Hmm.”
“What do I do today?”
“With your twisted ankle, I wouldn’t suggest trying out for any marathons. I’m afraid the dance contests will have to wait a week or two.”
“Ha - ha – very funny. Can I go downstairs?”
“I’d rather you didn’t. If you need anything, Gerald or Cassie, will help you – or I suppose you could call me. If I’m with a patient, I might not be able to talk long, but I could call you, when I get a break. It’s up to you. Seriously, you need to stay off your ankle as much as possible and give the swelling a chance to go down. Oh, I’ve got some news. I’ve booked us at the Hirsch Memorial Coliseum. KWKH is throwing a reunion for the old Louisiana Hayride next month. We’re in the lineup. I don’t know what time we’ll be going on stage. They’re sending me a schedule later on. I need my lead female vocalist in top shape or I’ll have to cancel. Raging Storm gets bookings, but this could be your big break.”
My big break? Sara’s eyes widened; she swallowed hard. “You’ve booked us at HMC? Jared, it holds over ten thousand people. There’ll be radio and TV crews there, as well! If you want me to get out in front of all those people, you’ve got a lot more than my ankle to heal.”
“Don’t worry, Sara,” he said in a deep sexy voice. “I’ll conquer all your fears.”
By the sound of his voice, she could tell he wasn’t only talking about her stage fright. Her heart fluttered. She tried to keep her voice even. “I’ll look forward to that.”
“See you tonight – gotta run, love you.”
She opened her mouth, but he was gone. “I need to talk to him about that,” she complained, but she couldn’t stop grinning. “He loves me!”
She held the sheet with one hand and hobbled to the closet. Finding something to wear wasn’t easy. She settled on one of Jared’s old flannel shirts. She held it to her nose and inhaled deeply; the scent of his cologne was still in the fabric. She closed her eyes and slid her arms into the sleeves, imagining his arms were wrapping around her, keeping her safe and warm. She loved that feeling. Hell, she loved everything about him. The sleeves were too long, so she rolled them above her elbows.
Sara shambled to the bathroom and slipped into her panties. The tail of the shirt went almost to her knees, so she didn’t need anything to go over her underwear. Besides, he’d apparently intended for her to stay in bed, something she wasn’t looking forward to.
She brushed her hair, tied it up in a high ponytail, and sprayed on a hint of perfume. She examined her reflection in the mirror. She didn’t look half bad, but she didn’t expect to be making fashion statements. At least more of her was covered today than yesterday. The thought colored her cheeks. Her stomach fluttered. Anyone else would’ve taken advantage of her, but not Jared. He was one of a kind.
She wondered if she could be more in love with him than she was right now. He’d woven himself into her soul. She felt so happy and light. She wanted to dance around the room like a ballerina, but instead of gliding gracefully across the floor, her twisted ankle and bruised ribs made her wobble like a toddler. She was literally bored out of her mind. She was determined to find something to occupy her time, even if it meant crawling.
Her search was fruitless. She couldn’t find a crossword puzzle or even a deck of cards. Without her laptop and guitar, she couldn’t work on her songs. She played some games on her phone but soon lost interest. Her eyes lit. She remembered Jared saying he had the Twilight book set. Her smile quickly faded. The library was downstairs across from the Navajo room, out of reach. She thought about going downstairs and playing his piano, but he wanted her to stay off her foot. She groaned. “I have to find something or I’ll go nuts!”
Sara staggered to the bookcase on the other side of the bed. She was ready to give up, when she saw some books on the shelf underneath the nightstand. “Yes!” she gasped. It was all four books of the ‘Twilight’ saga by Stephanie Meyers. They weren’t downstairs, after all.
She grabbed ‘Twilight’ as if it were a life preserver and crawled back onto the bed. She propped her back against the headboard, elevated her foot and settled down to read. By the time she’d read the prologue, she was intrigued. She had quickly sympathized with the heroine. If it meant spending eternity with Jared, she would gladly risk her soul to become a vampire.
~ ~ ~
With little else to do that afternoon but read, Sara had finished the book and started on the next one, ‘New Moon’. She’s been hooked on it too until she’d discovered the hero had left, never to return. That wasn’t supposed to happen! She wanted the happily ever after. Surely, Edward wouldn’t leave Bella with nothing to remember him by, not even a photograph! She continued reading, sometimes laughing and other times crying. She checked the time on her phone. Jared would be leaving work soon, and she hadn’t texted him her list.
Minutes after she sent it, Jared had replied.
‘Anything for you, Angel – home soon – love you.’
How had two words turned her world upside down? How had she fallen so hopelessly for a stranger in less than a week? The answer was easy. They were meant for each other. At least Sara had convinced herself they were.
~ ~ ~
After reading his note for the tenth time, she smiled, grabbed her book and crawled back on the bed.
There was a knock. She was so engrossed in her book she almost jumped off the bed. It was Gerald, the butler, bringing her a plate of fruit and yet another colossal glass of cold drink. Jared was making sure she stayed properly hydrated. She’d drank at least half a gallon of tea by now. Her trips to the bathroom were becoming a nuisance. Her phone rang.
“Hey, kid, how’s life in the lap of luxury?”
Sara smiled. “What lap of luxury?”
“Don’t be naïve, Sara,” Lucy snorted. “Jared has his staff waiting on you, hand and foot. It must be nice.”
“I could come home if you want me to,” she half-heartedly offered.
She laughed again. “Oh, come on, Sara, tell me you’re not in seventh heaven?”
Her cheeks showed some color. “I guess you could say that. You’re not mad at me, are you Luce?”
“Heavens no, kid! If I’d had the opportunity, I’d be right where you are. Jared and I went out a couple of times, but it never went anywhere – mainly his decision. We’ve stayed good friends, and there were no hard feelings. I’m glad you’re happy. How are you feeling?”
“Stiff and sore. I can’t put my weight on my foot, but other than that, I’m OK.”
“Think you’ll be well enough to join us with the Reunion gig?”
“I’m gonna try. I told Jared he has between now and then, to get me over my stage fright. He said, quote, “I’ll conquer all your fears, unquote.”
“Wow, he’s serious about you. I don’t get it. I hang around the guy for five years. I practically throw myself at him. You come along, and manage to get two dates out of him, in the same number of days. You’ve spent three days with him, and you’re practically engaged. What’s your secret?”
Sara laughed. She wasn’t going to respond. She’d accidentally brought up the subject of marriage to Jared, and he’d backed off. She wouldn’t mention it again. The next time it would be him who brought it up. She cleared her throat. “So, did Mother call again?”
“She’s getting suspicious. I had to tell her something, so I told her you were with your boyfriend.”
“What?” Sara almost shouted.
“I’m kidding,” she laughed. “I told Kaye you were at the store. She’s not gonna buy these stories much longer, though. You have to tell her about you and Jared. She’s half figured it out already.”
“Yeah, I know,” she sighed. “I told her a little about him. She knows he’s Navajo and the leader of the band. I haven’t told her how close we are, and how much he means to me. I don’t want her to spoil it for me, Lucy.”
“Hang on a minute, there’s someone at the door.”
“That’ll probably be Jared. He’s picking up some of my things.”
“Hang on a minute.” Lucy put the phone down. “I’ve gotta go now,” she said when she came back. “Lover boy’s here. I’ll talk to you later.”
With Jared at Lucy’s that meant she had minutes before he got home. Home? Strange she should be using the word so soon, but Wisteria Hall felt like home.
Sara brushed through her hair, touched up her makeup and sprayed on some more perfume. She grabbed her book and laid on the bed, hoping she didn’t look too anxious.
~ ~ ~
Half an hour later, there was another tap on the bedroom door. “Are you decent? Can I come in?”
She stretched across the bed. “I’m never decent, but you can come in.”
“I think I got everything on your list, and a few extras Lucy thought you might need. It’s all in your case. Here’s your laptop, and guitar,” Jared broke off and stared at her, looking her up and down. Her heart rate sped up; her cheeks flushed. “Wow!” he said with a grin of satisfaction. “That looks a lot better on you than it ever did on me.”
He put her guitar and laptop case on the foot of the bed and laid beside her. “Honestly, you look totally sexy in my old flannel shirt. I might not give you the rest of your clothes. Come let me hold you.” Sara opened her mouth to speak; her words were caught in his mouth as it came down on hers, full of fire. His hands roamed over her body. He wasn’t holding back. For minutes, he forgot about controlling himself. “I’ve been thinking about doing that all day,” he said, when he finally came up for air. He rolled onto his back. Sara laid her head on his shoulder. “I’ve said it before, and I’m gonna keep saying it. Sara, you’re dangerous!”
She softly chuckled. “You think you’re the only one fighting for control?”
He arched an eyebrow and laughed. “Yes, I do. You’re not even trying. Every time you kiss me, you keep pushing me closer to the edge. Sooner or later, I’m gonna give in. You’re gonna regret it when I do.”
“What makes you think I’d regret it?”
Jared exhaled and wiggled his hips. “Can we talk about something else? Even talking about it isn’t safe anymore. You’re here in my house, in my bed, and you’re too damned accessible.”
Sara sighed; he wasn’t giving an inch. She softly cleared her throat. “Tell me about your day.”
“I’ve got a better idea. You tell me about yours. What did you do all day?”
“Until you got home – I guess if I could describe my day in a single word, it would have to be boring.”
His eyebrows shot up. “Boring?”
“Try lying in bed most of the day, not a puzzle book in sight, no laptop, and no guitar. The only thing that broke the monotony was games on my phone, and reading your two books of the ‘Twilight’ Saga.”
Jared smiled and kissed her temple. “I forgot to tell you they were under my nightstand. You’ve read the first book, and started on the second, already?”
Sara nodded. “I’m over halfway through the second one.”
“What do you think about ‘New Moon’?”
“I’m not happy that Edward left Bella. If he doesn’t come back, I won’t read ‘Eclipse’.” Jared laughed, knowingly. Sara arched an eyebrow. “Does he come back?”
He buttoned his lip. “I’m not spoiling it for you. If you wanna know what happens, you’ll have to read the rest of the book.”
She goosed his ribs. “Meanie!”
Jared guffawed. “Don’t start that. I’ll retaliate, and I show no mercy.”
“I’ll accept your challenge after my ankle heals. Then we’ll see who shows no mercy.”
“Oh you will – will you? Speaking of your ankle, are you able to put any weight on it yet?”
“No,” she pouted. “I tried, but it hurt!”
“See, that’s what you get for not listening. You haven’t tried to go downstairs have you?”
“No.”
“Good.”
“How long do you think it’ll take for it to heal?”
Jared sighed. “It’s not sprained, so it shouldn’t take over a week, two at the most – if you stay off of it.” He yawned. “I need to take a shower, and I wanna get outta these dress pants. They’re driving me batty. I won’t be long.” He waited for her to move off his shoulder. He laid a pair of dark jeans and a T-shirt across the foot of the bed, kissed her and turned to leave.
“Want me to come and take a shower with you,” she offered.
One side of his mouth turned up. “Sure – if you wanna get raped.”
“Hmm, sounds interesting.”
“Sara!” he groaned.
She held her hands up. “I was kidding.” She wasn’t, but he didn’t need to know.
Jared kissed her again and handed her the book. “I’ll be right back. In the meantime, find out what Edward does.”
Sara frowned. “Right!” she said with sarcasm. I’d rather take a shower with you, but I guess Jacob will have to do.