tastes."
Larry's steel-gray eyes narrowed to menacing slits. "You couldn't possibly know what my tastes are."
Jesse slipped his arm around Aubrey's waist and pulled her close. "I'd say I've got a real good idea what pleases you."
Rather than respond, Larry sent an insolent glance roving over Jesse's muscular frame. When he finally lifted his eyes to Jesse's, his grin was mocking. "You might be surprised." He turned, then and left without bothering to tell Aubrey good-bye.
Aubrey walked back into the house, but the way Larry had looked at Jesse had made his skin crawl and he was too stunned to move for a moment. Finally, he closed the front door and followed her into the living room. "Is Larry gay? Is that why you're no longer married to him?"
Aubrey sat down on the sofa and folded her hands primly in her lap. "No. He's not gay. He was just playing with your mind, and it obviously worked. But please, I don't want to agrue with you about him."
"We're not arguing," Jesse denied. "I just asked you a simple question. You make only vague references to an unhappy marriage in your book. Now that I've met Larry, I'd really like to know what happened. Hell, I'd like to know why you married a man like him in the first place."
Aubrey bit her lower lip to force back the tears that thoughts of Larry always brought. "You've no right to ask such personal questions, Jesse. I think you'd better go."
"Oh no, I'm not going anywhere," Jesse promised as he walked around the sofa to face her. There was a slate-topped coffee table in front of the sofa and after deciding it would support his weight, he sat down on it opposite her. Easily capturing her knees between his own, he reached out and took her hands in a gentle clasp. "Neither of us is going anywhere for a good long while."
Aubrey wasn't afraid of Jesse, merely embarrassed to tears by the years she had wasted trying to please a man who had refused to be pleased. She shook her head and glanced away.
Jesse tightened his grasp. Aubrey was again wearing the calla lily ring, and he took care not to gouge the petals into her finger. "I want the truth, lady. All of it and right now."
Aubrey responded with a surprisingly defiant tear-brightened stare, but despite her stubborn effort to exclude him, Jesse knew he had every right to learn her secrets, even though he had known her only three days. On Saturday he had been prepared to dislike her quite thoroughly, but he had soon discovered that was impossible. She was far too exciting a woman to dislike, even if they did clash wills far too often.
"How do you reconcile the fact that you don't always practice the same open, caring attitude that you preach in your seminars?"
"It's not a question of not practicing what I preach," Aubrey insisted obstinately. "It's a matter of maintaining my personal privacy."
"The hell it is!"
Aubrey recoiled as though he had struck her, but she still didn't begin the tale he was so anxious to hear. Jesse
was regarding her with the same hostile stare she had seen at the seminar, but this time she fully understood the cause. He challenged her constantly, but he had every right to hold opposing opinions. Still, she wasn't convinced she ought to trust him as completely as his demand required.
"All right/' Jesse conceded. "I apologize for the foul language, but I was sorely provoked. Let's start over from where you got home this afternoon. How did your seminar go?"
Aubrey was surprised by his sudden change of direction, but gave him credit for at least attempting to understand her. "Corporations hire me to conduct stress reduction workshops for their executives. That's what we were doing today. My presentation is slightly different than the one you attended, but the message is essentially the same: what we can imagine, we can achieve. People impose a great deal of stress on themselves when they try to live up to the unreasonable expectations of others, rather than striving to fulfill themselves."
'That's
Larry's steel-gray eyes narrowed to menacing slits. "You couldn't possibly know what my tastes are."
Jesse slipped his arm around Aubrey's waist and pulled her close. "I'd say I've got a real good idea what pleases you."
Rather than respond, Larry sent an insolent glance roving over Jesse's muscular frame. When he finally lifted his eyes to Jesse's, his grin was mocking. "You might be surprised." He turned, then and left without bothering to tell Aubrey good-bye.
Aubrey walked back into the house, but the way Larry had looked at Jesse had made his skin crawl and he was too stunned to move for a moment. Finally, he closed the front door and followed her into the living room. "Is Larry gay? Is that why you're no longer married to him?"
Aubrey sat down on the sofa and folded her hands primly in her lap. "No. He's not gay. He was just playing with your mind, and it obviously worked. But please, I don't want to agrue with you about him."
"We're not arguing," Jesse denied. "I just asked you a simple question. You make only vague references to an unhappy marriage in your book. Now that I've met Larry, I'd really like to know what happened. Hell, I'd like to know why you married a man like him in the first place."
Aubrey bit her lower lip to force back the tears that thoughts of Larry always brought. "You've no right to ask such personal questions, Jesse. I think you'd better go."
"Oh no, I'm not going anywhere," Jesse promised as he walked around the sofa to face her. There was a slate-topped coffee table in front of the sofa and after deciding it would support his weight, he sat down on it opposite her. Easily capturing her knees between his own, he reached out and took her hands in a gentle clasp. "Neither of us is going anywhere for a good long while."
Aubrey wasn't afraid of Jesse, merely embarrassed to tears by the years she had wasted trying to please a man who had refused to be pleased. She shook her head and glanced away.
Jesse tightened his grasp. Aubrey was again wearing the calla lily ring, and he took care not to gouge the petals into her finger. "I want the truth, lady. All of it and right now."
Aubrey responded with a surprisingly defiant tear-brightened stare, but despite her stubborn effort to exclude him, Jesse knew he had every right to learn her secrets, even though he had known her only three days. On Saturday he had been prepared to dislike her quite thoroughly, but he had soon discovered that was impossible. She was far too exciting a woman to dislike, even if they did clash wills far too often.
"How do you reconcile the fact that you don't always practice the same open, caring attitude that you preach in your seminars?"
"It's not a question of not practicing what I preach," Aubrey insisted obstinately. "It's a matter of maintaining my personal privacy."
"The hell it is!"
Aubrey recoiled as though he had struck her, but she still didn't begin the tale he was so anxious to hear. Jesse
was regarding her with the same hostile stare she had seen at the seminar, but this time she fully understood the cause. He challenged her constantly, but he had every right to hold opposing opinions. Still, she wasn't convinced she ought to trust him as completely as his demand required.
"All right/' Jesse conceded. "I apologize for the foul language, but I was sorely provoked. Let's start over from where you got home this afternoon. How did your seminar go?"
Aubrey was surprised by his sudden change of direction, but gave him credit for at least attempting to understand her. "Corporations hire me to conduct stress reduction workshops for their executives. That's what we were doing today. My presentation is slightly different than the one you attended, but the message is essentially the same: what we can imagine, we can achieve. People impose a great deal of stress on themselves when they try to live up to the unreasonable expectations of others, rather than striving to fulfill themselves."
'That's
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