Vegas Two-Step by Liz Talley

as he was? Did she feel the same way?
    He needed to play this cool. No need to rush her, scare her. They had time. These past few days were only the beginning. Dallas wasn’t far, and he had plenty of frequent-flier miles. He’d be in Texas on a regular basis with the ranch venture, anyway. He knew their blossoming relationship was meant to be.
    “What do you want to do today?”
    A furrow emerged between Elle’s eyes. “Gosh, I hadn’t really thought about it. I mean, I probably need to get going. I’m sure Kate’s got something planned. She always does, and since I’ve been…occupied lately, I should hang out with her.”
    “Oh, so that’s what you call this…occupying time?”
    Elle’s cheeks flushed yet again. She did that so easily. Man, she was cute. Jack wanted her for himself. All day. All night. And every moment in between. But he understood. Maybe he could figure out a way to share her. “Well, if you have plans…”
    Elle set her coffee mug down. Her eyes focused on the swirls of cream clouding the surface. “Let me call Kate and we’ll go from there.”
    “Wait—why don’t you see if your friends want to come over here?”
    “Over here?” Elle jerked her cup, causing coffee to slosh over the rim. She darted to the counter and ripped a few paper towels off the roll.
    “We could have a get-together…a cookout,” Jack said, lifting one shoulder to send a “no big deal” vibe even as he silently prayed for her to agree.
    “A cookout?” Elle swiped the spill from the glass table.
    “Are you a parrot?” Jack laughed. “I thought maybe we could grill the chicken we never got around to grilling last night. Then maybe swim, drink Coronas, or whatever.”
    Jack watched Elle’s wheels turn. He could see her weighing the pros and cons, wanting to be fair to her friends but still be with him. Jack thought the cookout was a pretty good idea. He would be able to finally meet Kate, learn more about the real Elle Hughes. That was, if she agreed to it.
    “Okay, that sounds fun. Let me call Kate and make sure she doesn’t have some big deal planned for today. She’s usually up for a good time.”
    Jack lifted his hand and gestured her to go ahead.
    “My phone’s upstairs.” Elle slid from the chair and he tried not to watch her as she walked out of the room. Shit. If she happened to glance back, she would see the naked hope in his eyes. Jack smacked his head as she disappeared around the corner. When had he become such a putz?
    He cleared the dishes, loaded them into the washer, and poured himself another cup of coffee. He stared out at his back patio to see Dutch digging in a flower bed.
    “Okay.”
    Jack jumped at the sound of Elle’s voice behind him.
    “Sorry, did I scare you?” she asked, rubbing his shoulder tentatively as if she were unsure about touching him in such a possessive manner.
    “You don’t know the half of it,” he muttered.
    “Huh?” she asked as he turned and took her in his arms.
    “Nothing,” he answered, hauling her against him and delivering a kiss on her delicious lips. She tasted like coffee and sex so he deepened the kiss. When he finally lifted his head, they were both breathing heavily.
    “Let’s not start something we can’t finish,” she said against his shoulder.
    “Who says we can’t finish it?”
    “Me.” She gave him a playful push. “I’ve got to go back to the hotel, change, grab my suit and stuff.”
    Jack allowed himself to be pushed back, but not before he caught her hand and brought it to his lips. “I’ve been having a good time, Elle.”
    “Me, too,” she whispered, watching his hand cradling hers. “I didn’t know I would feel so… I mean…”
    Her eyes caught his, held his gaze. He could see her searching for the right words. The moment was so tender, so poignant, yet he knew the words would be left unsaid, hovering just out of reach. It was all too strange for both of them.
    Elle laughed. “I can’t even remember what