One Perfect Moment Read online

  “Right,” she replied as she realized he was carrying her to where he wanted her.

  Ava couldn’t think. She’d never been in this room before, so she wouldn’t have been able to direct him to the bed anyway. Still, all her mind could absorb was the instant need that being near him sparked. She’d been afflicted with this situation for the past months as they’d worked closely together. And that night in her trailer, she’d perhaps foolishly thought that it would be cured. But it hadn’t. She’d continued to want Gage long after that night. Only the thousands of miles that she’d put between them by returning to LA had kept her from showing up at his apartment and begging him to take her once more.

  When he laid her down on the bed, Ava stared up into the face that had haunted her dreams too many times to count. He was possibly one of the most handsome men she’d ever seen. Certainly he was the best lover she’d ever had. But there was something else—she’d noticed it just now for the first time. Gage’s dark brown eyes held a hint of wariness, even at this moment, a fact that shocked her.

  “This is not why I came here,” she said on impulse. “I didn’t follow you so that we could do this again.”

  “Did you hear that?” he asked as he stared down at her.

  “Hear what?”

  “The sound of my ego deflating,” he replied and then gave her that cocky grin she’d seen a few times before.

  “I’m serious,” she said, but found herself smiling, as well.

  He shrugged and lifted the T-shirt he was wearing up and over his head. “I never pegged you for a stalker,” he told her after tossing his shirt onto the floor.

  She sat up on the bed and removed her shirt. “I definitely do not stalk,” she said.

  “But you stare,” he added.

  Ava’s gaze snapped back to his face, as she’d been caught staring at his bare chest. He looked like he’d been sculpted instead of being a flesh-and-blood man. There was no other body like this, she was certain.

  “Only when it’s something I like,” she admitted and kicked off the flats she’d been wearing.

  Gage had removed more of his clothes during their banter, so that now he stood naked in front of her. She still had on her bra and panties, but he quickly rid her of them.

  “So let’s be clear,” he said as he eased off the bed once more and found his wallet in the side pocket of his shorts.

  “You’re here to write and I’m on vacation.”

  Ava watched as he moved, loving the unfettered view of his butt and, when he turned toward her once more, his beautiful erection.

  He handed her the condom packet and continued, “So this is just...”

  She nodded as she ripped the foil and slid the latex out. “Is just one time. Right. Agreed.”

  Her hand moved slowly as she smoothed the condom over his thick length. She loved how he felt: hot, heavy, potent. She resisted the urge to moan, and he pushed her legs apart before coming over her on the bed.

  “I’m going to enjoy this agreement,” he whispered as he grinned down at her.

  Biting on her bottom lip, Ava wrapped her arms around his shoulders and lifted her legs until they were around his waist. “Me, too,” she said when the tip of his erection tapped her entrance, as if asking permission.

  He rotated his hips. She lifted her bottom a bit off the bed until they were joined. He pushed inside her slowly. She dug her fingers into the skin of his back. He moaned until he was completely embedded inside her and her legs trembled. Tossing her head back against the bed, she gasped because there had never been a moment when she wanted anything as badly as she did right now. There’d never been another man to drive her to this point of desperation.

  When he moved again it was to pull out of her slowly, and Ava thought she would scream. This was madness. It was torture. It was...intimate. It wasn’t what she wanted, or rather, what she’d had in mind when she invited him up here. Her thought had been of him pounding into her with the same hungry ferocity that was roaring through her at this moment. She wanted to hear the sound of their bodies clapping together as they stroked and pushed to get to that delicious pinnacle. She did not want lovemaking because this had nothing to do with love.

  As Ava had always done in her life, she took control. This way she was assured to get what she wanted. She moved quickly, catching him off guard and twisting their bodies until she came out on top. They both heaved out a breath as her hair draped down, the tips touching his cheeks as she grinned.

  “I’ll take it from here,” she said and pushed back until she was straddled over him, his length still buried deep inside.

  He gave her that smirk once more and lifted his arms so that his hands could cup her bare breasts.

  “Do your thing,” he replied.

  And she did.

  Ava rode him until they were both panting. His hands had gripped her hips, holding on to her tightly as she circled, lifted and sank down, taking everything he dished out and giving him all she had.

  Minutes later, after they’d both moaned with their release, he wrapped his arms around her back, holding her against his chest. She felt his heart beating a quick rhythm, slowing only as time passed. She didn’t move because she needed to catch her breath, as well. But the moment he lifted a hand and stroked the back of her head, once and then twice, as if he were enjoying the feel of her hair or something equally intimate, Ava pulled back.

  “Bathroom,” she whispered when he stared up at her, a quizzical look on his face.

  He waited a beat before replying. “Yeah. Okay.”

  He released her, and Ava moved quickly, sliding off him and off the bed. “I have an early morning tomorrow,” she began. “I want to get some work done before I’m scheduled to meet with Harper at her office. And I’ve been traveling all day so—”

  He sat up, and Ava took another step back toward where she’d noticed a door, which she assumed led to the bathroom.

  “Got it,” he told her. “I’ll get going.”

  “Ah, good night,” she said and almost cringed at how crazy she must sound to him. Good night. Thanks for the great sex. Now be gone. Yes, definitely crazy.

  Gage looked at her then, his gaze holding her to that spot. “A very good night, Ava.”

  When she couldn’t decide whether he wanted her to say or do something else, or if she even wanted to say or do something else, Ave decided to cut her losses. She smiled and then turned before closing herself in the bathroom, leaving Gage—and the feeling that maybe they shouldn’t have done this one more time—behind.

  Chapter 4

  “You’re not listening.”

  “I am,” Gage replied. He moved away from the windows where he’d been looking out at the town of Temptation.

  He liked the view of thick trees, leaves already the rich orange, green and yellow of autumn and the rooftops of homes built in the colonial and Victorian style. Just beyond those homes was a field of grass that gave way to a thicker copse of trees. Farther east was the Lemil Mountain Lake, a popular tourist destination for Washington, DC, and Raleigh, North Carolina, residents, because of its less-than-five-hour drive. Feeding into the Potomac River, a tributary to the Chesapeake Bay, the lake area held fond memories for Gage.

  Gray frowned before continuing. “This wing of the hospital is dedicated to our mother. It’s built to house the new obstetrics and gynecology department. As well as a spacious research facility to be dedicated to the study of—”

  “Infertility and multiple births,” Gage finished Gray’s speech.

  He turned away from the window to face his brother, who was standing a few feet away from him, dressed in black slacks, gray dress shirt and tie. Gage opted for a more casual look this morning, with jeans and a polo shirt. With one hand stuffed in his front pocket, he dragged the other down the back of his head.

  “I’d like your hand in th
is,” Gray said. “Dad wanted us to do this together.”

  Gage gave a wry laugh. “I’m still trying to wrap my head around you actually wanting to carry out Dad’s wishes.”

  “We’re not kids anymore, Gage,” his brother told him.

  Gray moved to stand closer to the alcove in the wall. Six feet tall, broad shouldered, intimidating glare—that was Grayson Taylor. He was always in control of his emotions, the situation around him, the people in his care, everything. Gray was born to be a leader. Gage, as the next youngest sextuplet, had always been carefree, fun-loving and easy to get along with. That’s what Gemma would say. He wasn’t the one in charge, nor was he the one the siblings thought would ever stay focused long enough to become successful. But he had, and now Gray was asking for his help. Pride swelled in Gage’s chest at that thought, even though standing in this hospital talking about their father still managed to irritate him.

  “I’m well aware of the fact that we’re adults now. I mean, look at you with your lovely wife and four kids all settled in the house where we were born,” he said.

  Gray smiled. Happiness looked just as good on Gray as his expensive tailored suits.

  “I love them more than I ever thought possible,” Gray said.

  Gage nodded.

  “The way Mom loved us.”

  “Dad loved us, too,” Gray said.

  When Gage only raised a brow, Gray continued, “Look, I know about the past. We all know, Gage, we lived it. And we can’t go back and change it. What we do now is what counts. It’s the only thing we have control over, and it’s all we have to leave our children.”

  “Unless you don’t have children, like me,” Gage countered as he fingered the keys in his pocket.

  Touching that one key in particular had his mind circling back to the day he’d found out he didn’t get the promotion. As disappointed as he’d been, Gage stayed at work that day. But instead of making the call to the foundation in Paris, he spent the day preparing for his time off. He drafted memos for Carrie to send to the other doctors in his department with notes about his patients with specific health concerns and tests that could not be rescheduled, and at the end of the day he returned to his apartment to pack for his trip.

  The envelope that Gray had sent earlier this year was still unopened, sitting on the edge of Gage’s desk in his home office. After their father’s death, Gray had found envelopes marked for each of the sextuplets and a bank account under the name of Taylors of Temptation LLC. Each of the siblings were named as owners of the account holding a balance of 6.8 million dollars. In death, Theodor Taylor had been more than generous with the children he’d left for a production assistant all those years ago.

  For endless moments Gage had simply stared at the envelope, knowing that now was the time. When he’d first received the envelope, he’d wanted to ignore it and whatever was inside of it, because it had come from his father. But since he was planning a return to his childhood home, Gage figured the time for ignoring the envelope had passed.

  There were six sonogram pictures inside. They were lettered, so Gage put them in order from A to F. He was “Taylor Baby E” and he stared at that picture for some time before moving on to the only photograph from the envelope. It was of Theodor and Olivia holding their six little babies while sitting on the couch in the old Victorian house like one big happy family. On a ragged sigh, Gage had set all the pictures aside and checked the envelope one last time before tossing it into the trash. There was a key inside.

  “Hey, you still with me?” Gray asked, interrupting Gage’s memory.

  Gage cleared his throat and pulled his hand out of his pocket.

  “Ah, yeah. I’m good,” Gage said. “It’s cool. I’m on board. Do you have a plan for this wing? I mean, something in writing I can review and then add to if necessary?”

  For a few seconds Gray just stared at Gage, then he took a few steps, his dress shoes quiet on the beige carpet.

  “I do. They’re in my home office. Is everything all right, Gage?”

  “Of course everything’s all right. Why would you ask me that?”

  “Oh, because about five months ago Garrek suddenly appeared in town under the pretense of just stopping by for a visit. Turns out he had been reported as AWOL and needed an attorney to get his military career straight. So I’m asking you again, is everything all right?”

  Gage had heard—via Gemma—of Garrek’s troubles in the navy, and he’d reached out to his brother about six weeks ago to make sure that he was doing well in his new position.

  “I should have come for a visit sooner,” he told Gray. “I just didn’t have time, or I didn’t make time, if I listen to what Gemma has to say. I didn’t get a promotion I was looking forward to at work, so I figured now was as good a time as any to take a step back and reevaluate things. And I opened that envelope you sent me.”

  Now Gray nodded. He folded his arms over his chest.

  “What was in it?” Gray asked.

  Gage shrugged. “Just some sonogram pictures of us and a picture of Mom and Dad.”

  “Speaking of that, we haven’t had any success in figuring out who transferred that money into the Grand Cayman accounts.”

  “Garrek said they’d come from an address here in Temptation,” Gage said.

  “They did. But the house was used as a rehabilitation center at that time. There were at least twelve adults living there during the month the deposits were made.”

  Gage shook his head. “Is it really that important that we find out who put the money into those accounts? I mean, Dad is gone and whoever made the deposits is likely gone, too, so why shouldn’t we just move on?”

  “You don’t want to know?”

  “I don’t want to live in the past,” Gage told him. “My whole purpose in being here right now is to look forward to the future.”

  It had taken Gage a long time to be able to say that. He only wished that he totally meant it.

  “And Ava Cannon is your future?”

  Gage immediately tensed. He inhaled slowly, determined to keep his body and expressions as normal as possible.

  “Ava Cannon is a television producer and writer. I have a professional relationship with her.”

  When Gray tossed his head back and laughed, Gage frowned.

  His brother clapped a hand on his shoulder and said, “You keep telling yourself that.”

  Gage didn’t reply to that comment because he hadn’t come here to talk about Ava.

  “Why don’t you just tell me more about this facility?” he said instead.

  And when Gray kindly obliged, Gage walked through the hallways of the hospital, listening to his brother talk about the town, the doctors and the additions he had made. He did not think about the vixen who had once again brought his body to a fierce release last night.

  Or the fact that despite their declarations to the contrary, and what he knew he should do, Gage wanted her again.

  * * *

  Ava finished the last bite of the best meat lover’s omelet she’d ever had while scrolling through pictures of tiny houses on her iPad.

  “Presley Construction has never built a tiny house,” Harper said from across the table where they sat in Ms. Pearl’s Diner. “But one of my new interns is fascinated by them and has shown me some drafts she made of a couple. If you’re really interested, I can set up a time for us to meet with Fred Randall. He’s the best real estate agent in town. Actually, he’s the only agent in town,” she added with a chuckle.

  Ava looked up as she reached for a napkin. Wiping her mouth, she chuckled, as well.

  “Small town, I get it,” she said. “I don’t know if I’m ready for that step just yet. I only wanted to get your thoughts about the idea.”

  That was partially true. Looking at tiny houses had become one of Ava’s guilty pleasures in the last couple of years.
With work and warding off the blind dates her mother routinely sent her way occupying most of her time, there was rarely time to do the things she loved.

  Harper sat back against the red vinyl-covered booth. Her sandy-brown hair was pulled back, hanging down in a straight ponytail. She had inquisitive brown eyes and a pretty freckled face.

  “Are you sure you want to build a tiny house in Temptation? I mean, you’re a producer and a writer. Why would you want to live here as opposed to in some luxury condo or mansion in LA?” Harper asked.

  “I have a condo in LA. My mother is only twenty minutes away and drops by whenever she feels like it. My agent also drops by a lot instead of calling to discuss whatever business she has with me. So sometimes the condo can be a little too busy for writing. I’m always looking for a quiet place to get work done.”

  Harper chewed the last piece of her blueberry muffin. “I see. So this would be like a vacation home?”

  “Something like that,” Ava replied. “Your family has lived here for years, correct? Did the Presleys always know the Taylors?”

  Ava had been up all night thinking of how she would start the conversation with Harper. She’d also been thinking about Gage and how they’d ended up in each other’s arms once more. The last thought had given her much more trouble than the first.

  “My father knew Theodor Taylor pretty well, and my grandfather knew Olivia Taylor’s family. They both said the two seemed to be revitalized by the birth of the sextuplets. And there are people around here who still talk about having television crews here all the time, boosting revenue for local shops and B and Bs that housed them. It was a pretty exciting time.”

  “And now? I mean, in the years since they’ve been gone, it seems like the town is still bustling without the added attention,” Ava stated.

  “You’re right.” Harper finished off her glass of water with lemon. “The town has come a long way and we’ve thrived over the years. But I have to admit that when Gray came back last year and saved the hospital and community center from going into a stranger’s hands, the people here were relieved. It’s like they’ve always wanted a Taylor to live here again.”