And the truth was finally going to come out.
She dropped her face into her hands. Maybe she could push him away. Pretend it was only about sex. Maybe it wasn’t too late to backtrack and try to get back to the way things had been between them.
Because if she couldn’t, she was going to have to tell him the truth.
It had been easier when he kept her at a distance. When he refused to talk to Becca. When he was the same cold man who’d made love to her and left without a glance back. Those reasons drove her forward, reassuring her she had made the best decision for all of them.
But now he was talking about second chances. Sending her daughter flowers. Trying to embrace the woman she’d become, not the young girl she’d been.
Sydney prayed for strength to weather what was ahead for all of them.
Tristan woke up to the scent of eggs and bacon.
He rolled over, confirming her empty space in the bed. He mourned the chance to have woken her up properly this morning, but breakfast came in a close second. If his plans held, he’d have plenty of opportunities to seduce Sydney and watch her gorgeous face in the sunlight as he brought her to climax.
Groaning, he headed to the bathroom with his morning wood and took a quick cold shower. He wrapped a towel around his hips, wondering how he was going to handle going home in a shirt with no buttons. Talk about the walk of shame. Or as his brothers would term it, the walk of fame.
“Morning.”
She whipped around. Damn, she was hot. Dressed in a faded gray Adam Levine T-shirt and tight Lycra bike shorts that cupped her glorious ass, she sported bare feet and wild, unbrushed hair. Oversize black-framed glasses perched on her nose, giving her the slightly sexy nerd look men found so intriguing.
He waited for her reaction, not knowing if he’d get shyness, distance, or panic. When she smiled at him slow and sweet, his knees almost buckled.
Oh, yeah. She still held witchlike power over him.
“Morning. Becca should be home in an hour. I made bacon omelets and wheat toast.” She filled a mug with steaming brew and handed him his coffee. “I’m sorry about the shirt. I found some safety pins. Maybe if you button your jacket, it won’t be so noticeable.”
He slid onto a stool, still clad in only a towel, and stared at the perfect plate she put in front of him. “I’m not sorry at all. But I’ll take the apology if I get a breakfast like this. I think I died and reached heaven.”
She grinned. “You don’t ask for much in the afterlife.”
“Maybe just you naked, and then I’m good.”
She sipped her coffee, regarding him above the rim of her mug. “Figured you would have had your fill last night. I think we slept a whole hour.”
“One hour too much.” He forked up a bite and moaned in happiness. “So good. Okay, I’m ready. Let’s do this.”
“Don’t you want to finish your breakfast before a morning quickie?”
“Was talking about the morning-after discussion. I’m sure you have plenty of questions and would like an in-depth analysis of what is going to happen between us now that we’ve had carnal relations.”
“Fancy words for a fancy guy.”
“I try.”
“Thanks anyway, but I’m good.”
His fork clattered to the plate. “Huh?”
She shrugged and sipped more coffee. “I’m good. No need to freak out over a night of great sex. I say we acknowledge it and move on.”
He gazed at her with suspicion. He should’ve known she’d throw him off. Sydney never did what was expected, and the moment he caught up, she was already ahead with a new curveball. “You’re accepting that we’re getting involved in a relationship?”
She blinked. “Of course we have a relationship. We work together, and I’ve known you for years. But last night was about sex. Now that we’ve satisfied ourselves we can move forward and concentrate on work. Not all that sexual tension. Don’t you agree?”
“Hell no!” He stood up and glowered. No way was she going to use last night as a check mark on her list of things accomplished. He knew it was more than just scratching an itch, and he knew she knew that, too. Was she trying to protect herself by pretending it wasn’t a big deal? “Last night blew my mind. I don’t intend to walk away from you and not do it again. And I’m not just talking about sex. I’m talking about the connection between us. I’m talking about the whole package. Get it?”
Panic flared in her bright green eyes. Ah, there it was. That made more sense than the casual speech she’d thrown at him. She could handle thinking of him as a one-night stand, but anything more pushed her buttons.
Well, tough luck. He was going full throttle here and she’d just have to learn to deal with it.
He slid out of the chair and stalked toward her. The towel dropped to the floor. Her gaze slid down his body, noting his heavy erection, and she tried to hide the raw lust on her face.
Too late.
She was just as crazed for him as he was for her.
“I thought men liked simple,” she shot at him, holding her hands in front of her to ward him off. “Why complicate things? I like my life the way it is, and I don’t intend to blow things up. I’m sure you can appreciate that. Plus, I have a daughter to think of, and she comes first. You should love this new setup.”
“I hate it.”
“But why?” Frustration nipped at her tone. “Isn’t this what you always wanted? Low maintenance and no strings? You can have it all this way!”
He grabbed her hands and pulled her in. She stumbled off balance and fell against his chest. He took the opportunity to hold her tight, his hand gripping the back of her head so she was forced to look up at him. “I don’t want it all,” he growled against her lips. “I just want you. I want a second chance at your heart. I know you’re scared shitless because of what happened in the past, but we’ve both changed and grown, and I refuse to blow this because it’s easier to pretend it’s all about sex.”
“But—”
He slammed his mouth over hers, kissing her with a fierce desperation he didn’t want to hide any longer. He kissed her until she was bent over, her fingers in his hair, her lips soft and yielding, her body pressed against him, already begging for more.
Finally he broke away. “Do you want me?” he demanded.