Chapter 67 Temptation
Soon after they returned to the ranch house, Luke realized something was bugging him.
He had tried to forget about it, but his talk with Terry and the threats that she made still lingered at the back of his mind.
As soon as he changed out of his camping clothes into a fresh t-shirt and jeans, he headed over to Terry’s house to talk to her.
Now that things were finally starting to progress with Hallie, he didn’t want anything to get in the way.
“Oh, hello!” It was actually Terry’s husband who opened the door and seemed strangely shocked to see him.
“Hi, I was hoping to talk to Terry.” Luke wondered how much Bill knew. Most likely Terry had told him at least some part of the truth if not the whole truth, judging by his uneasy reaction.
Luckily, Terry, wearing a rather sexy top with a keyhole cutout, breezed over to them and took charge.
“Bill, go on over to the main house,” she said, “I’ll join you very soon.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, giving her a very obvious meaningful gaze, which made Luke absolutely certain he knew something. This was just what he needed, the whole state of Texas knowing he was a royal prince!
“Go!” she insisted.
“Okay...”
As soon as he left, Luke said, “I’ve thought about your proposition, and I’ve decided I’m not giving in to any of your ridiculous demands.”
“Is that so?” Terry faced him confidently, her arms folded in front of her chest.
“Yeah. I don’t care if you reveal my royal status to the family. I could go do it right now if I wanted to. I’m sure they’d understand my need for secrecy. They already like me, which is more than I can say for you at the moment.”
“Ha! You’ve got some nerve! You seriously think my parents like you more than me?”
“I’m willing to gamble on it.”
“You’re bluffing.”
“You and Hallie need to get over your differences,” he said, suddenly losing his patience. “Nothing I do or say is going to change that.”
“You like her a lot, don’t you?”
Perhaps he unwittingly gave himself away because he couldn’t help but feel a warm glow whenever he thought of her. It must have translated to his face.
“I don’t know what that has to do with it,” he replied.
“Oh yes.” Terry smiled evilly. “I see it now. You’re crazy about her.”
“I’ve never been crazy about any woman,” he said.
“You’re gay?”
“No, I just don’t get emotionally attached. Anyway, what difference does it make?”
Terry considered him with a lingering gaze, her blue eyes accentuated with heavy black liner. “What is it about her that you like so much?”
“Why do you care?”
“Just curious. Hallie and me are not that different in some ways. So why do you like her and not me, for example?”
“I could just as easily like you,” he said carelessly. “You and Hallie do have a similar set of mind, though I’m sure she would be loath to admit it.”
He noticed Terry’s eyes flicker when he said this. Maybe flattery was the way to get to her.
“You mean we both tend to manipulate people?” she suggested.
“I wasn’t going to say it so bluntly, but you may be on to something,” Luke said, flashing one of his charismatic smiles.
“But then bluntness is one of your winning qualities. You’re very honest, and it’s refreshing.
” He felt he was about to go on a roll. When he came to think of it, Terry had many positive qualities.
“Some people refer to me as the ‘ugly sister’,” Terry said, pouting.
“Oh, I’m sure that’s not true.” When Luke actually took in her overall physique, there was nothing ugly about it.
She was a strapping ranch girl, and her face looked a little more straight-edged where Hallie’s was rounded.
It wasn’t a typical kind of beauty, but it had its appeal.
Her eyes were a different color than Hallie’s, but equally alluring.
Maybe it was just his personality, but he usually found something attractive about most women when taking a closer look.
Terry retreated to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of orange juice.
“Would you like some?” she asked.
“No, thanks.”
“So you don’t think I’m ugly?”
“You’re quite the opposite,” Luke replied, playing along, “but I think you know that very well.”
He followed her into the kitchen, standing between the two counters facing her.
“You really mean that, don’t you?” she said. “But you’re a prince of a whole country. You could have any woman you want. Why are you interested in backwoods redneck women?”
Luke felt the danger of getting pulled into her eyes, which looked back at him in fascination.
“Because they’re very beautiful women...”
“Sometimes it feels good to be seen...” Terry said, taking a step closer to him. He was vaguely aware of her hand floating up to his shoulder and sliding slowly down his chest.
He knew he was standing on dangerous ground, but that made it all the more exciting. He gave in to the impulse and leaned towards her, just as she tipped her face up to meet his.
She kissed him with a hint of tumultuous passion, just as he expected from a constantly angry woman like Terry. While she was holding some of that passion in reserve, she showed him just enough to make him engage fully with her sensuous lips.
His arms moved naturally to wrap around her, feeling her strong, curvy figure.
“What... the... hell!” a voice said somewhere at the front of the house.
It was Hallie, standing by the door and looking at them in complete shock.
How did they not hear her come in? Luke sighed, knowing that a storm was about to pour down on him. He should have known that such stolen kisses always came at a price...