The friend had whispered that to Mallory when they'd taken a break and gone into the kitchen for a moment.
And Mallory had known.
She'd nearly defended it. Because without knowing the woman, she'd known.
And it had disturbed her down to her core.
It was why she'd had to be done. Just done when she'd discovered he'd been unfaithful while living with her. While sleeping in their bed.
And right now she not only felt resolute, but triumphant.
Because at the end of it all, she had a job that she loved, had a family that loved her and had what promised to be a night of incredible sex in front of her.
And Jared was just him. With no one to take care of him. A whiny manbaby who would have to find some other woman to foot the bill of his life. Because she wasn't doing it anymore. She didn't want to.
Her cowboy left a ten-dollar bill on the bar top and tipped his hat at the bartender, who waved slightly. And then, he wrapped his arm around Mallory's waist and started to propel her toward the door.
And a whole bunch of worries and doubts started to crowd her throat, trying to make their way toward her mouth.
What if this just wasn't actually that good?
Because that was the other thing. While a lot of her friends had engaged in one-night stands, they'd also said that the drawback to it was that the guy didn't have to care about your pleasure, since he never had to see you again.
And she thought privately that the man she saw all the time didn't care all that much about her pleasure.
That was the worry. The concern. She hadn't been able to get to completion more than half the time with the man who actually knew her body. So... What hope did she have with a guy who didn't know her at all?
What if he didn't enjoy himself? What if it was all a whole lot of... Excitement and buildup, and then it was nothing.
But then she found herself outside, and very suddenly, pinned against the wall of the bar, just around the corner from Main Street, in a shadow, concealed from the street-light. And he was right there, hard in front of her, his eyes glittering.
And then his mouth was on hers. And she didn't have the ability to think of any sort of objection. Didn't have the ability to think of anything. Because she'd never been kissed like this before. Like he was starving.
He consumed her.
Angling his head and sliding his tongue against hers.
And she grasped on to him, clinging to his shirt, his shoul-ders, pushing her fingers through his hair. She rolled her hips back and forth against his arousal, already so close she couldn't believe it. She was slick and hot between her legs, and if he unzipped his jeans and pushed her dress up then, she wouldn't have said no.
In fact she would've said yes.
Emphatically, enthusiastically yes.
"Damn," he breathed. "Which motel?"
"Up the street," she said, breathless.
"Better make it quick."
She nodded and fumbled for his hand, taking hold of it and leading him down the sidewalk, her heart thundering so hard she was nearly sick with it.
She opened her mouth to say she didn't do things like this.
Ever. But then stopped. Because he didn't need to know that.
They were strangers, and that was why it was exciting.
They were strangers, and that was why this was okay.