Free Open House (Kingston Bros.) by Tamara Larson Page A

incapable of any kind of emotional connection.
    If he was really lucky, like lottery-winner lucky, then she would be innocent and adventurous. What were the odds of that? He was pretty sure this phenomenon never happened outside of really bad porn. But this was exactly what he needed at this point in his life. If there was even a chance Lacey could deal with his limitations and still wanted to explore her sensual side with him then he really needed to broach the subject with her. He would be kicking his own ass if she got away from him again.
    Until Lacey had walked into that Open House he'd thought his libido was dead. But apparently it had just been dormant. Now that it was active again, his lust was like a constant hunger in him that refused to be ignored. He was used to keeping that side of his nature in check. Even while married, he had learned to repress it. But all his usual tricks, like cold showers and exhaustion, weren't working anymore. He needed to let the beast loose.
    He was a deeply sexual person, but Deborah had not been an enthusiastic lover. She had barely tolerated his touch, and yet he had remained faithful, even when it was obvious that their marriage was over. He had pushed his body and mind to the limit of his endurance with work and exercise, and yet it would still be there. That need. He had hated that weakness in him. Despised his inability to control his thoughts and the way his mind would shift into a fantasy world of women, usually not his wife, when he was not diligent in repressing his impulses. He never acted on them, but his fantasies were vivid and he feared that they would take over if he ever gave them an outlet.
    Man, would he love to play out some of those fantasies with this woman. He had many years of frustration to make up for. If only she was willing to buck traditional values and have some fun. He would do everything he could to ensure she didn't get hurt. They were adults. They could be honest about their needs and what they hopefully both wanted. He didn't see why they couldn't enjoy each other without getting too heavily involved. Now, if he could just figure out a way to bring it up without sounding like a complete scum-bag.
    "Okay," Serena said, looking down at her watch. "This is what I propose. Just give me three minutes, and then take a day to think about it before you guys react, okay?" She waited for Lacey's vigorous nod, and Jack's impatient, "move this along" gesture before she continued.
    "Jay, you know that big old house on Elm you're currently working on? You were going to put a gatehouse sort of building out back, right? Well, I was thinking why don't we have it rezoned as two properties, and then we could build something like this for Lacey." She spread her arms to indicate the cottage.
    Jack couldn't help it. Serena's idea was ridiculous. He needed to interrupt before her big ideas got out of hand. "Ess, you know that's not possible. When you brought her here to see the cottage, I thought she already had purchased the land for us to build on. What you're talking about is a very expensive piece of real estate. If the row-house was out of her price range, then your idea is way, way beyond her means." He looked apologetically at Lacey. "I'm really sorry. You have no idea how much I hate disappointing you, but Serena's plan is totally unrealistic."
    "That's okay. I totally get it. I kind of had a feeling it was too good to be true," Lacey responded, trying not to let her profound disappointment show.
    Serena stomped her foot in impatience. "What did I say? Give me three minutes, and then react. Just listen for another two minutes, and then you can both go back to shooting down my idea before you even give it a chance." She glared at them and then continued. "What I was thinking is that the market is changing. Look at Lacey, she's single and childless. Sorry, Lacey, but you are. Usually someone like her would be restricted to an apartment or a small townhouse. But she