Chapter 5

Felicity haunted his thoughts. A flicker of light against the windows reminded him of her flashing gray eyes. God, she was something else. Jared grinned. It had been a long time since he'd had so much fun teasing a girl. The look on her face when he'd tucked the cab money back in her pocketshe'd been all flushed and wide-eyed. Damn. He'd gotten hard as a rock imagining how else he could have made her all pink and hot. But she was young. A graduate student.

So why did he keep reliving last night like some teenager in a fantasy? There was more to it than a warm body in bed beside him. It was the way she'd fallen asleep almost instantly, showing complete trust. Sharing a bed for the night with another person was more intimate than sex. You let your guard down, had no ready defenses. Most people refused to let themselves become that vulnerable. He was one of them.

But last night, he could have stayed next to her forever. The sweet smell of her, the rhythm of her light breathing, and the way she'd curled up against him until just before dawn. Jared doubted she remembered that part of the night. He'd have to remind her later, just to see a blush creep across her cheeks.

There couldn't be a later, though.

Suddenly gripped by a bad mood, he stalked down the hall to his bedroom. Even though he kept his windows fairly tinted against the sun, the bold rays lit up the room. A streak of gold and burgundy caught his eye.

A wolfish grin tugged his lips back up.

The princess had left her gown.

Walking over to his bed, he reached out and touched the silk, which gleamed in the light. A hint of heat from the sun warmed his fingers as he picked up the gown. His eyes closed as he remembered the way she'd offered her back to him, so shy and yet completely trusting him. His hands tangling in the laces as he sought to undo them. The whisper of silk against skin.

Arousal slammed into him. His eyes flew open, and he forced himself to let go of the gown. Since when had he become so sentimental?

"Morning, Jared," Layla greeted him from his doorway, dressed in Tanner's shirt and boxers. Her long dark hair was sexy and rumpled. No doubt she and Tanner had partied well into the night.

"Layla," he answered and shifted slightly to block the view of Felicity's gown on his bed.

Her eyes tracked the movement like a cat sensing the darting shadow of a mouse.

"What's that?" She was instantly alert as she padded across his room.

"Nothing," he growled, taking a step toward her. Layla had no sense of boundaries, the result of too many siblings growing up, he supposed.

"Oh yeah? Sure doesn't look like nothing." She winkled her nose as she giggled. Then without warning, she dove around him and snatched up the gown. "This is Felicity's costume. Why do you have it?"

Jared licked his lips. It never ceased to amaze him how she could intimidate him, despite her small size. He stood nearly a foot taller than her, but when she got that look in her eyes, it made even him want to retreat.

"She left it here when she took off for her class." He attempted to wrestle the dress back from Layla's hands, but the young woman kept a possessive grip on the fabric, and he didn't want to tear it.

"Uh-huh." She didn't sound all that convinced. "I'll just take this, if you don't mind. It's not like you need it." With a saucy little wink she started for the door, then stopped to look over her shoulder. "Oh, Jared, how was last night, by the way?" She paused in the doorway, her gaze on him assessing.

"Fine." That was all she was going to get.

He waited until Layla had disappeared before he shut the door and headed for the shower. Technically, he didn't have to work today. The sale for their client, the buyer, had gone through yesterday. After this sale, things at the office would settle down. At least for a few days.

Jared cranked the shower nozzle on and stripped out of his pajama bottoms. When he stepped inside, a sweet vanilla scent hit him hard. Felicity. Her body wash? Or maybe her shampoo? He reached for his own shampoo, a minty-scented bottle. Disappointment prickled inside him at the way the spearmint covered the vanilla. One more trace of last night's encounter was gone. With a frustrated growl, he scrubbed his scalp, lathering the shampoo into a thick froth before he rinsed.

A whole day. He had a whole day to burn and do whatever he wanted. Part of him was tempted to crash on his bed and sleep the rest of the day away. But that would only screw up his sleep schedule. He got so little as it was. It would have been worth it if he could have slept in with Felicity in his arms, although if she was there, he'd likely be tempted to do other things than sleep.

How is Felicity doing on her research? It had been six years since he'd been in college. Seemed more like a hundred. Law school and college were nothing alike. Undergrad had been fun. He'd worked hard and played hard. He didn't know what getting a master's degree was like compared to law school, though. Law schoolthat was the equivalent of joining the army and, rather than going to boot camp for training, just being dropped into the middle of a war zone with a water gun. He had barely gotten out of that experience alive. If it hadn't been for Shanaand more importantly, her fatherhe might never have landed his current associate position.

He scowled. These were never thoughts he liked to linger on, the possibility that he'd only been hired because he'd dated a partner's daughter. Yeah, really bruising to his ego.

Jared was tempted to linger in the shower, relishing the way the water soothed his tense muscles. But he couldn't avoid the inevitable. With a heavy sigh, he shut the water off and exited the shower. He reached for a fresh towel and saw the one that Felicity had used dangling over one peg. It was impossible to forget the look on her face when he'd caught her searching his bathroom. The puffy white towel had hugged her full figure, making her look soft and cuddly. He'd been torn between the desire to hug her to him, stripping the towel away to lick the crystalline droplets from her skin, or to just drag her to bed to make love the rest of the day.

His cock twitched in a silent salute at the idea. Damn. He needed to get his mind off the little princess. Princess. She'd left her gown. Surely she'd want it back, right? The pearl-encrusted bodice and silk fabric looked pricey.

It would be rude of him not to return the dress. He had no other plans today. Might be fun to tease her again. Striding over to the chest, he grabbed jeans and a black T-shirt. No suit today, thank God. As much as he loved dressing well, sometimes a man just needed jeans. Once he was dressed, he went in search of Layla and the costume.

His brother's girlfriend was in the kitchen, perched on the counter, bare legs swinging as she texted someone and sipped coffee from one of the black mugs he and Tanner had in their cupboards.

"Where's Felicity's costume?"

She didn't pause in her texting. "My room. Why?"

"I'm not working today, and I'd like to return it to her."

This made Layla's fingers freeze above her phone's screen. Her dark eyes drew a slow line up from her phone to his face. A glint of mischief peeked out from beneath her lashes.

"Mmmkay. Do you need her phone number and address? I wouldn't call for at least an hour. She has to finish the paper and turn it in to the professor around eleven a.m."

"Good point." He pulled his phone out of his pocket and waited for Layla to give him Felicity's info. When she was done, he pocketed the phone and returned to his room. He unloaded his briefcase on his desk and happily turned his mind off work, an event that rarely happened.

"You should take her bag, too." Layla was in his doorway again, pointing to the blue gym bag half-hidden behind his door. He'd missed that somehow. Layla hadn't.

"Okay. Thanks." He retrieved the bag and set it on his bed.

"So what happened last night?" Layla asked, her tone neutral as she walked over to his bed and plopped down on it like she owned the place.

"Kid, it's none of your business."

She kicked one leg off his bed, grinning like a Cheshire cat. "She's my best friend. It's definitely my business."

"You only met her like a few months ago, right?" He wanted to know more about his bed partner, but he didn't want Layla getting any crazy ideas in her head.

"Sometimes how long you've known a person doesn't matter." Layla fixed him with a catlike gaze full of intentions he couldn't read clearly. "She and I just clicked."

He understood that. Sometimes you met someone and they just fit into place, like an intricate puzzle. You fit, no questions, no doubts. Something about Felicity made him feel like that. He'd never felt that way about a girl before, and frankly, it was a little unnerving.

"If you like her, Jared, be careful. You break her heart, I break your balls." Layla mimicked a karate chop motion.

He chuckled. "You don't need to worry. She's sweet but way too young for me. I just feel like I owe her after last night. I should have taken the couch."

Layla bit her bottom lip but didn't bother him further. "Uh-huh." She slid off his bed and walked to the door, only pausing once to motion with two fingers pointing at her eyes, then to his face. She would be watching him.

He grinned and picked up his phone and Felicity's things. He wanted to be ready the moment she turned her paper in. He thought about surprising her. Would that be weird? To show up at her place? No, it wasn't like he was some creep. He was just giving her bag back.

With a tenderness that shocked even himself, he folded her gown and then tucked it into her bag. A flash of bright red caught his attention deep in the bag. Using his finger, he extricated the item.

Red silk panties. Not a thong, just a normal pair, but the way the silk caught the light and slid smoothly against his skin­ God, was the girl determined to drive him insane with lust?

"Damn it." Guilt nipped at his insides as he tucked the red silk underwear back into the bag. He checked his watch again. Half an hour to go before he could text her. Excitement jittered inside him, a strange feeling he hadn't felt in a long time. He couldn't wait to see his princess again, make her blush again, make her smile.