Seduced The Unexpected Virgin - By Emily McKay Page 0,49

to do.

But of course he was sorry. But at the same time, he’d experienced exquisite pleasure in her arms. So was he sorry he’d made love to her? No. And he didn’t exactly regret the fact that she’d been a virgin. The opposite in fact. The thought of her being with another man filled him with a primitive and very uncivilized rage. So, no, he wasn’t sorry about that, either.

He just wished…

He sank to the edge of the bed as a realization washed over him. He wished she’d told him herself. He wished it had been a big deal to her. Because it sure as hell had been a big deal to him.

Even without knowing she was a virgin, making love to Ana had been a big deal to him. Hell, this was the first time he felt like he had been making love to a woman since Cara had died.

That summed it up perfectly.

He’d had sex with women since Cara. But he hadn’t made love. He hadn’t really cared about any of those other women. He hadn’t felt so much as a scrap of real emotion until Ana.

And that was the way he’d wanted it. Cara’s death had been brutal on him. Worse, still, was the way she’d pulled away from him. From the moment she’d been diagnosed, she’d started pushing him away. Suddenly, the woman with whom he’d once shared everything couldn’t even talk to him about the disease that was tearing her apart. Even in the beginning, when her prognosis was good, she’d distanced herself. Thrown herself into her charitable works. She’d given so much of herself to others, there was nothing left for him.

Talk about a complaint you can’t even voice aloud. What kind of jerk complains because his dying wife is spending too much time helping the needy children of the world? At first, he’d thought it was because she feared not accomplishing all the things she wanted to in life. For a long time he wondered if she just couldn’t stand to be close to anyone. By the end of her life, he realized the truth. She’d fallen in love with a rock star and ended up married to a mere human. She just didn’t want to spend her dying days with someone who’d been such a disappointment.

Not that she’d ever said so much aloud, but he’d felt her emotional distance like a third person in the room with them every time he’d been with her. On her deathbed, every conversation they’d had had been about what she hadn’t yet accomplished in her charitable works.

It was why he’d started the Cara Miller Foundation. He couldn’t be what she’d needed when she was alive, but he could damn well fulfill her dying wish.

Of course, this was a hell of time to remember all of this. But this was a hell of a situation to be in.

Cara—the love of his life—had pushed him away. And now he was involved with yet another stubborn woman determined to keep her emotional distance. So here he was. Right where he’d sworn he’d never be again.

The funny thing was he’d spent so much time trying to protect Ana from himself, he never wondered who was going to protect him from her.

He was well on his way to falling in love with her, and she…well, who the hell knew what she felt for him.

What exactly was he supposed to say here? I wanted it to be a big deal. I wanted you to care more about me. Why do you think I waited to sleep with you…? I waited because I wanted it to matter. I wanted you to care.

Yeah. That would sound about as manly as a thirteen-year-old girl. Hell, actual thirteen-year-old girls sounded tougher than that. At least the ones he knew did.

If he said anything even approaching that, it would send Ana running for the door. If she hadn’t already been walking in that direction anyway.

Eleven

Before Ward could even consider how to handle this, the bathroom door opened.

She’d pulled her hair back off her face with a clip and scrubbed off the last traces of her makeup. She’d dressed once again in jeans and a sweater, but this time they weren’t clothes she’d bought God only knew where. They were her own clothes, obviously favorites. The jeans flattered Ana’s curves, the sweater was conservative, hiding as much as it revealed, only hinting at the bounty beneath.

Looking at her now, it seemed so obvious she’d been a virgin. As