The Earl's Outrageous Lover Page 0,37

I was going to discuss, but if that’s really how you feel about the issue…”

She pasted a smile on her face and looked at his nose, not able to look into his eyes right at the moment. Besides, ‘issue’ seemed inordinately worse than ‘incident’ so he was on her bad boy list right now. She didn’t feel like being sincere and honest with a man who referred to a mind blowing sexual experience as an ‘issue’. “Yes, we should put it behind us.”

Edward didn’t like that at all. He didn’t want to put it behind him. He wanted very much to put it in their future. In their very near future if he had anything to say about it. But apparently he didn’t have much say if Jessica wanted to ignore the chemistry that was almost palpable. “If that’s what you want,” he said after a long moment. Something in her face told him to challenge her assertion. Something wasn’t quite right, but then he recognized that he didn’t know Jessica well enough to know what was right or wrong about her expressions. Her beautiful features were so animated most of the time, he had a hard time keeping up with whatever she was thinking, which was usually right on her face or in those expressive eyes.

With a sigh, he leaned forward, ready to get this over with. “Okay, tell me how you want to move forward.” The thought occurred to him that he would prefer moving forward with her legs wrapped around his waist, her body arched against him….but she must have different ideas. He mentally braced for her explanation.

She never thought she could hate a man as strongly as she felt right now about Edward. She thought her heart might be breaking in two but she refused to play the needy girlfriend to his distant one-time lover routine. With a deep breath, she girded herself for the conversation. “I don’t really have anything other than what I’ve been doing. It might not be working too well, but I don’t have an alternative.” She reached out and touched her water glass, her finger tracing the rivulets flowing down the side as the ice melted.

“And so if it isn’t working too well, perhaps we could move on to a different plan. Maybe you have a plan B in case things get too close to the deadline?” he suggested. He actually wanted to suggest that she consider him for her husband. He could provide for her, keep her safe and she’d never want for anything. There was also this tension between them that would certainly help on those long, lonely winter nights. He wouldn’t mind coming home to her warm smile instead of the nothingness he’d be facing without her in his life. He thought of Julianna and their mutual assumption that the two of them could make a good marriage together. That was completely shot to hell now. Julianna was a beautiful, elegant woman who deserved better than a man who was waiting for another woman.

Damn, could this get any more complicated he thought?

“I don’t have a plan B. I only have the current idea of finding a husband as quickly as possible.”

“So what are you looking for in a man?” he asked, resigned to push through this responsibility regardless of how distasteful it was becoming. He hated the idea of Jessica in the arms of another man. She was his! She’d given herself to him last night!

Jessica looked back at Edward and forced a smile. “Well, he definitely has to be tall. I know that shorter men are just as nice, but I want a man that I can snuggle up with while dancing. And he has to be strong. I don’t want to sit on his lap and feel like I’m going to crush him with my weight.” She squinched up her nose and shook her head. “Not a sexy feeling.”

“You’re not heavy in any way, Jessica. So those concerns shouldn’t be an issue.” Edward wanted to slam his fist against the table and demand that she just marry him and forget about all this ridiculous search, but refrained and focused on trying to find someone that was willing to make her happy. “Tall and muscular. Anything else?” he demanded. Most women would have said they wanted a man who made them laugh or who was intelligent.

She tilted her head to the side as if thinking, but in reality, she was looking at him, trying to determine what