hands held her still. “What’s wrong, Jemma?” he asked, his voice even deeper than before.
She shook her head, begging him to understand. “I can’t do this. Not this time,” she explained.
“Why not? You’re an adult, so am I. We want each other,” he covered her mouth when she started to say something, “Don’t even try to deny that because we just proved that you’re just as attracted to me as I am to you.”
“It’s more complicated than that. We’re not animals,” she retorted. “We can’t just react to our baser instincts. I did that once and I didn’t like myself the next day.” She looked up into his eyes, trying to see if he understood. “I don’t want to feel that way ever again.”
Damien understood. He didn’t like it, but he understood. “So have dinner with me tonight. Let’s get to know each other.”
Jemma almost agreed, wanting to get to know this amazing, dynamic man. But then Dylan popped into her mind and she shook her head. “I can’t.” With that, she slipped around his large frame and put several feet between them. “Besides, I’m seeing someone else.”
Damien almost laughed out loud. The idea that she could be seeing another man after reacting to him like that was ludicrous. “Break it off with him,” he told her. “I don’t like to share.”
Jemma shook her head, astounded that he would command her to do something like that. “I’m not breaking it off. George is the kind of man who is steady and sweet, compassionate.”
“The implication being that I’m not.”
She didn’t bother to answer him, only raised her eyebrow in return.
He laughed and shook his head. “Okay, so you don’t know me. I’m willing to get to know you. Let me at least take you to dinner. We can talk, get to know one another, I’ll prove my sterling qualities to you and then….”
She almost laughed at that, but the situation was too dire and her body was still on fire for him. “There will be no ‘and then’ during any scenario with you, Damien. And no, I don’t want to get to know you. I thought you were getting a puppy,” she came back. “Why don’t you just pick one out and bring it back to your niece? I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to have one of the dogs. Labs are great with kids as long as the kids are willing to play with them. They’re very gentle and kind, but beware if you live near water.”
His eyes showed his curiosity. “What’s wrong with water?” he asked.
She smiled. “Historically, Lab are working animals, bread to help fishermen. They’re also great at retrieving hunting prey. But they absolutely love water. They will dive into water with careless abandon and will look back at you, begging you to get into the water with them.” She stopped and looked up at him. “Do you have water around your home?” she asked, not wanting to be curious, but unable to help herself. She told herself she was only asking for Dylan’s sake. One day, he might want to know about his father.
“Yes, my home has a pond and other water features. I also have a summer home near the ocean on the Adriatic Sea.”
Jemma grimaced. “Water features as in something nice and beautiful with plants around it?” She was more than a little stunned about the “summer home” idea. She struggled to pay her mortgage each month but this man had a “summer home”.
“The gardener can replace any damaged plants.”
Good grief, the man had a gardener as well? She cleared her throat and looked down, feeling depressed all of a sudden. This man was completely out of her league. Even if they did go to dinner, he would quickly realize that she was country bumpkin while he was city vogue.
She turned away. “If you’re willing to deal with the consequences, then choose whichever you think will suit your niece. Keep in mind though that all dogs are pack animals.” She turned to look up at him, wanting him to understand this point. “When you adopt a dog, that dog considers you his or her pack. You have to treat that dog like you would family.” She watched him carefully, his eyes amused at her warnings. “Maybe your niece would prefer a kitten,” she finally said, irritated that he thought her warnings were funny.
“Adriana is allergic to cats. And I believe she has her heart set on a dog. She’s even chosen a name.”
Jemma thought that