yet he left you here
all alone with me.”
“That’s funny.” Ariel rolled her eyes, taking a
tentative step away. She wanted to be brave, but her
heart was breaking all over again. She refused to shed
a tear over that sorry excuse for a man, but her
hormones were working against her in that regard. “I
was thinking the same thing.”
He stuck out his hand in greeting. “Damien
Carter.” That was all he said. There was no apology for
11
One Night Forever
his actions, only a calm civility as if this were an
everyday occurrence.
“Ariel Wilson.” She took his offered greeting and
strong fingers closed around her much smaller hand.
Ariel was struck how much it looked like a child’s hand
in an adult’s, he was that much bigger. His grip was
firm, but gentle and all too brief. In the perfect spot
under the street lamp, the stranger gave her a great
view of exactly whom she was dealing with. Ariel
admired the sculpted muscles of his arm, the veins
curling around his forearm and biceps. His chest was
heavily muscled and his abdomen rippled with
strength when he moved. A dark dusting of hair teased
his skin and made her wonder if it was as silky as it
looked. She was so lost in admiring his masculine
beauty, she missed his question until she looked back
at his face. His eyes danced with amusement. Damn
her hormones. She was torn between sorrow for the
lost life she’d had with Tom and desire for an absolute
stranger. Ridiculous. She was definitely losing her
mind.
“I beg your pardon?” Ariel’s face heated. Grateful
for her dark skin, she ducked her head hoping her hair
would cover her embarrassment. Lord, the man was
seriously fine! She had noticed the way he put his body
between hers and Tom’s car. Now, though he stood
12
Marteeka Karland
close, he was careful to keep out of her personal space.
Obviously, he was a considerate man, maybe even a bit
protective. That thought sent another wave of heat
coursing through her, and she was immediately
ashamed of her reaction. Tom might be the kind of
person to sleep with anyone who’d let him, but she
wasn’t.
“I asked where you were going.” He didn’t seem
perturbed or annoyed that she hadn’t been paying
attention to his words, only slightly amused. Ariel was
certain her reaction wasn’t unusual to him. Women
probably fell all over this man all the time.
“To my sister’s,” she finally managed, pulling
herself together. It was too bad, really. Under different
circumstances, she would have liked to meet this man.
He had a look about him. A look that said he protected
what was his with his life, and never betrayed those he
loved. Something Tom would never understand.
Unshed tears threatened to spill once again, but she
swallowed hard and held on to them by sheer
willpower. “It’s just a couple of blocks down the
street.”
“Let’s go then. The sooner you get there, the
sooner I can get back to bed.” There was amusement
in his voice, but also a sexy gleam in his eye. The
image of that big body sprawled between satin sheets
13
One Night Forever
sprang to mind and Ariel’s knees went weak. She
seriously needed to take a cold shower. She could only
attribute her wayward thoughts to an over-infestation
of hormones and a healthy dose of disappointment in
the male species as a general rule. She wanted this
man to be different because he was so seriously good
to look at. It would be a waste of a good man for him
to be the same kind of asshole as Tom.
She sighed and let Damien escort her down the
block to her sister’s house. He stood at the bottom of
the steps leading to the porch while Ariel rang the
doorbell. A couple minutes later, her sister, Gretta
peeked through the curtain before flinging the door
open wide. “What the hell are you doing out at this
time of night? It’s dangerous for a woman out by
herself!”
“Not to worry, Gretta. I looked after your
all alone with me.”
“That’s funny.” Ariel rolled her eyes, taking a
tentative step away. She wanted to be brave, but her
heart was breaking all over again. She refused to shed
a tear over that sorry excuse for a man, but her
hormones were working against her in that regard. “I
was thinking the same thing.”
He stuck out his hand in greeting. “Damien
Carter.” That was all he said. There was no apology for
11
One Night Forever
his actions, only a calm civility as if this were an
everyday occurrence.
“Ariel Wilson.” She took his offered greeting and
strong fingers closed around her much smaller hand.
Ariel was struck how much it looked like a child’s hand
in an adult’s, he was that much bigger. His grip was
firm, but gentle and all too brief. In the perfect spot
under the street lamp, the stranger gave her a great
view of exactly whom she was dealing with. Ariel
admired the sculpted muscles of his arm, the veins
curling around his forearm and biceps. His chest was
heavily muscled and his abdomen rippled with
strength when he moved. A dark dusting of hair teased
his skin and made her wonder if it was as silky as it
looked. She was so lost in admiring his masculine
beauty, she missed his question until she looked back
at his face. His eyes danced with amusement. Damn
her hormones. She was torn between sorrow for the
lost life she’d had with Tom and desire for an absolute
stranger. Ridiculous. She was definitely losing her
mind.
“I beg your pardon?” Ariel’s face heated. Grateful
for her dark skin, she ducked her head hoping her hair
would cover her embarrassment. Lord, the man was
seriously fine! She had noticed the way he put his body
between hers and Tom’s car. Now, though he stood
12
Marteeka Karland
close, he was careful to keep out of her personal space.
Obviously, he was a considerate man, maybe even a bit
protective. That thought sent another wave of heat
coursing through her, and she was immediately
ashamed of her reaction. Tom might be the kind of
person to sleep with anyone who’d let him, but she
wasn’t.
“I asked where you were going.” He didn’t seem
perturbed or annoyed that she hadn’t been paying
attention to his words, only slightly amused. Ariel was
certain her reaction wasn’t unusual to him. Women
probably fell all over this man all the time.
“To my sister’s,” she finally managed, pulling
herself together. It was too bad, really. Under different
circumstances, she would have liked to meet this man.
He had a look about him. A look that said he protected
what was his with his life, and never betrayed those he
loved. Something Tom would never understand.
Unshed tears threatened to spill once again, but she
swallowed hard and held on to them by sheer
willpower. “It’s just a couple of blocks down the
street.”
“Let’s go then. The sooner you get there, the
sooner I can get back to bed.” There was amusement
in his voice, but also a sexy gleam in his eye. The
image of that big body sprawled between satin sheets
13
One Night Forever
sprang to mind and Ariel’s knees went weak. She
seriously needed to take a cold shower. She could only
attribute her wayward thoughts to an over-infestation
of hormones and a healthy dose of disappointment in
the male species as a general rule. She wanted this
man to be different because he was so seriously good
to look at. It would be a waste of a good man for him
to be the same kind of asshole as Tom.
She sighed and let Damien escort her down the
block to her sister’s house. He stood at the bottom of
the steps leading to the porch while Ariel rang the
doorbell. A couple minutes later, her sister, Gretta
peeked through the curtain before flinging the door
open wide. “What the hell are you doing out at this
time of night? It’s dangerous for a woman out by
herself!”
“Not to worry, Gretta. I looked after your
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