Beauty from Pain (Beauty, #1)(79)

“What she told me is our little secret, not for you to know.”

Great. My mum and the woman I’m having an affair with are sharing secrets behind my back. That’s not awkward at all.

Now, I’m more curious than ever. “Tell me. I want to know.”

“No. She would have told you if she wanted you to know.”

“She thinks we’re in love. Or at least have the potential to be.” I throw the words out like bait on a hook to see if I can get a nibble.

“You think so?” Dammit. I can’t tell by her tone if she’s asking my opinion or if she’s being facetious.

She isn’t budging, but I have my ways. I might not get what I want out of her by asking, but I have other methods of making this little bird sing.





39

Laurelyn Prescott

Margaret McLachlan’s words echo in my head as we drive toward her house. “The only way he’d let you call him Jack Henry was if he was in love with you.”

It’s a nice theory if he’d asked me to call him that, but he hadn’t.

He’s dying to know the secret I share with his mother. He’s going to try to persuade me to tell him later. He thinks he’s smooth, but I’ve learned his ways during our time together. It’ll be fun letting him try, but he won’t succeed. My lips are sealed.

Lachlan navigates up a long drive leading to a huge house on top of a hill. Maybe a mountain. I’m not sure because it isn’t nearly as impressive as the mansion sitting on it. “Is this where you grew up?”

“Yes.”

“It’s beautiful.” It beat the hell out of the tiny apartments and rental houses I bounced through during my early years.

Lachlan takes our bags from the car and carries them inside. There’s no his or mine. Our things are packed together in his expensive luggage so at least I don’t have to be embarrassed by my worn, mismatched set.

We enter through the foyer and I can’t help but stare at the beautiful spiraling staircase leading to the upper floor.

I hear his mother call out, but I can’t see her. “Jack Henry?”

“Yes, Mum. We’re here. I’m going to put our things away and we’ll be down in a minute.”

I follow him up the stairs and he takes me into his large bedroom. I’m a little surprised to see a four-poster bed. It’s very romantic and doesn’t fit what I’d expect to see in a man’s room. I walk over and run my hand down one of the thick pillars. We need this bed at Avalon. I could definitely do some interesting things with it.

We go downstairs to the living room to join Lachlan’s family and I remind myself the whole way that he’s not Lachlan. He’s Jack Henry. “Jack Henry.”

He turns at the sound of his name. His real name. The name only his mother calls him. “What is it?”

This is going to take some getting used to. “Nothing. I’m saying your name so I can get used to it. I’m afraid of slipping up.”

“Don’t worry. If you have a slip of the tongue, we’ll tell them Lachlan is your pet name for me. Not caveman.”

“I guess that will work. It is part of your last name. Is that why you chose it?”

“I picked it because I wanted to hear you say some semblance of who I really am.”

“Do you always do that?”

“No, just with you.”

Damn. The conversation ends as we enter the living room. I’d really like to know his rationale behind the things he does. I’m hopeful that this conversation is only postponed until a later time.

–––––

After spending the evening with the McLachlan family, I’m in the bathroom getting ready for bed. I thought meeting them would help me understand why Jack Henry is the way he is, but it only makes things feel more out of sorts. They’re all so normal. And loving. Theirs isn’t the kind of family I would expect for a man who propositions women for meaningless sexual relationships.

I search through my sleepwear, if that’s what we’re calling it, and choose the least desirable thing I packed, but who am I kidding? This is the same man I’ve been living with for the past two months. He isn’t going to perceive a short, black satin nightgown as anything but a prelude to sex.

I stop in the doorway of the bathroom before entering his bedroom. “Are you sure it’s okay for us to sleep together in your parents’ house? It doesn’t feel right.”

He’s lying shirtless in bed with his hands folded behind his head. I sigh with pure pleasure as I behold the sight of him. “Trust me. Mum would have it no other way.”

I come to the bed but stop to run my hand down the large post. I love this bed.

“Are you going to give me a private dance on one of these poles tonight?”

Even after all this time together, his forwardness is shocking—he wants to get frisky in his childhood home with his family across the hall? “No way, not in your parents’ house. It would be disrespectful.”

He gets out of bed and catches me before I climb in. He reaches around me from behind and puts my hands around the bedpost. He locks his hands on top of mine to hold them in place so I can’t move. His breath is warm on the back of my neck and chills erupt all over my body. He doesn’t play fair. “You’re telling me no?”