No, it wasn’t fear.
Anticipation?
Had Jared asked Dane to come? Why? To join them in bed?
Heat flashed through her body, hard and fast. Her nipples peaked beneath her cotton T-shirt and she went wet between her thighs.
She should be embarrassed, should want to crawl in a hole somewhere and hide.
But this was definitely not embarrassment.
This was lust, pure and simple.
And both men could probably read it all over her face though Dane’s smile was nothing but pleasant.
Damn them.
Fighting back the urge to gape at the man, Annabelle forced her lips to curve in a smile. She could do nothing at all about the blush she knew stained her cheeks.
“Nice to meet you, Dane.”
Again.
Jesus, did Jared actually think she wouldn’t know who this man was? That she wouldn’t recognize that mouth and those eyes?
Did he expect her to just fall into bed with both of them?
And would that be such a bad thing? The first time was amazing.
Dane released her hand as she pulled hers back, successfully quashing the impulse to rub her sweaty palms on the thighs of her jeans.
Damn it, she was not into playing games. She wanted to know what was going on. Her arms crossed over her chest as she looked directly into Dane’s eyes. “So, what brings you all the way to Adamstown?”
Dane’s lips curved in a devastating grin. “You’re right, Jed. I do like her. She cuts to the chase.”
What the hell was that supposed to mean?
She opened her mouth to ask but Jared touched her elbow, effectively cutting her off and drawing her attention. “I asked him to give me his opinion on a few of the properties since Tyler’s tied up at the hotel.”
Blinking, she tried to get her brain to function enough to ask rational questions. “Oh. Are you in the hotel business too?”
Dane shook his head. “I’m in information retrieval.”
She gave him a confused frown. “And what does that mean?”
“It means when Jed needs information, I track it down for him.”
Her breath caught in her chest, but she shoved down the trepidation threatening to choke her as she flashed a quick glance at Jared. “And what information are you tracking for Jared now?”
Dane shrugged. “Mainly boring stuff. Local zoning laws, tax structures, things like that.”
Okay, that sounded innocuous enough. But she still couldn’t shake the feeling that that’s not all Dane was investigating.
The way he looked at her, like he was dissecting her…
Was she reading too much into this?
Or had Jared invited Dane here to join them in bed?
Her heart pounded as Dane’s expression gave nothing away, and her gaze flipped back to Jared.
Hunger started to show in the darkening of his eyes and the line of his mouth. That gorgeous mouth that gave her so much pleasure.
“Are you wondering if he’s going to join us in bed, Belle?”
All the air left the room and her lungs collapsed in on themselves. “Jared…”
He took a step forward, their bodies almost touching. “Are you thinking about New Year’s Eve? You remember him, don’t you?”
God, yes, now she could think of nothing else. Her mouth went dry and her hands clenched into fists, practically aching with the desire to touch him. To be touched.
By both of them.
Jared’s features had sharpened with lust. He had to have seen her thoughts in her eyes, read it in her body language. He took another step closer and this time she took a step back. Right into Dane.
Dane’s hands settled on her shoulders, light and unconfining. But her reaction to his touch was anything but. She began to burn.
Oh, holy hell, this was screwed up.
“No, don’t start to analyze it.” Jared cupped her chin in one hand, forcing her to hold his gaze. “Pleasure isn’t bad. If no one gets hurt, there’s no need for embarrassment or regret. I asked Dane here to help me out but yes, I specifically asked him to come here. To stay the night.”
Jared didn’t ask her permission for Dane to stay. But she didn’t feel like he was forcing her to agree to take Dane into her bed.
And if she had to admit it, if only to herself…she wanted to explore that passion again, that sense of freedom.
“Belle, do you want Dane to leave?”
She took a deep breath and shook her head. “No. He can stay. But traffic may be heavy today. The weekends always pick up and the shop’s open until eight tonight. I won’t have time to talk until later.”
Jared controlled the smile that might have made Annabelle run for the hills. Or kick him and Dane to the curb.
“Then Dane and I will get out of your hair for awhile.”
He bent to kiss her, forceful enough that he pressed her even more fully against Dane. She didn’t flinch. And when he knew she was about to open her mouth and let him in, he pulled away.
Belle’s cheeks blushed a very pretty pink before she carefully stepped out from between him and Dane.
“I’ve got work to do.”
She walked away and he turned to watch, her fiery braid twitching down the back of her dark green T-shirt and that luscious ass swaying in her tight jeans.
Christ, he’d be hard all day.
When he’d called Dane yesterday, he’d wondered if he would be pushing her too far, too fast.
Yes, she’d enjoyed the party on New Year’s Eve, but that had been a moment out of time for her. She’d never told him otherwise, but he knew the moment Dane had touched her that night, that she’d never had two men make love to her at the same time. It wasn’t a situation most women found themselves in. It wasn’t a situation most men would be comfortable with.
He wasn’t most men. And neither was Dane.
Her agreement to let Dane stay made Jared feel like swinging from a vine.
Because Jared knew, with Dane’s help, he could make Belle burn hotter than she ever had. He could take her to a whole new level of pleasure.
“I thought I was about to be shown the door.” Dane’s voice drew his attention and Jared turned to see his friend watching him closely. “You sure this is what she wants?”
“Believe me, Annabelle will let you know exactly what she’s thinking. If she doesn’t want you in her bed, she’ll tell you to get the hell out.”
Dane paused, as if thinking that one over. “You want to tell me why I’m here now? I mean, besides the sex? I know you, Jed. There’s something else going on.”
“You’re serious?”
“Yes.”
Dane took a sip of coffee as they sat at a table at the diner down the road, their booth far enough removed from anyone who might overhear them. “You really think she could be O’Malley’s daughter?”
“Yes.”
Jared watched Dane think about that for a few seconds.
“Based on the fact that she has two O’Malleys in her collection?”
“Three. I told you about the portrait I saw in her hall. No way that wasn’t an O’Malley. And I noticed tonight she’s moved it. No idea where. Like she hid it.”
Dane paused again. “So what if she is? Are you planning to expose her?”
Jared grimaced. “Hell, no. Christ, the tabloids and the national media brutalized this story when it happened. The girl was fourteen and pictures of her parents’ dead bodies were everywhere. I hope whoever leaked those photos goes to hell and fast. No, I just…I need to know.”
“Then why not ask her?”
Because if she lied…
He shook his head. “Just do it, okay? And make sure no one else finds out what you’re up to.”