Adore You
Authors: Nicole Falls
Adore You
Nicole Falls
Copyright © 2016 Nicole Falls
Cover art by Visual Luxe
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. Any similarity to real locations, people, or events is coincidental, and unintentional.
To PeeWee, may you never read this : )
Table of Contents
I wandered down to the lobby bar of the hotel in search of...well that was to be determined. I just knew that this staycation needed to consist of more than me prancing around in a fluffy bathrobe, singing Beyoncé tunes at the top of my lungs as I danced around my room. So I moisturized, fixed my face, slid into a sundress and took the elevator down to WXYZ. Walking across the lobby into the bar area, I had immediate second thoughts. What I was hoping would be a low-key hotel lobby bar was actually popping
.
Lucky for me there was exactly one stool left at the bar. I walked over and snagged it before some girl who looked like a newborn calf walking could reach it. I raised a hand in the air to grab the attention of a bartender.
“Double Makers…rocks,” I said over the low music playing.
The bartender looked at me sympathetically and said, “Let me upgrade your bourbon. Please.”
“Or you could just bring me what the fuck I ordered,” I countered with a slight smirk.
“Feisty! I like it! Aight bet...I'll make you a deal. You try my bourbon. If you don't like it better than Maker's Mark, I'll gladly cover your tab for the night. Deal?”
There had to be a catch to this. Either he was stupidly overconfident or this was damn good bourbon. However it shook out, I would win because bourbon. He looked at me expectantly, extending a hand to shake on the deal.
What the hell.
I slid my palm into his.
“Deal.”
The bartender moved about five feet away, grabbing an oblong shaped bottle with a label I couldn't read from my perch. He pulled a rocks glass from below the bar and put an ice sphere inside. He then poured two very generous jiggers worth of this mystery bourbon into the glass before returning to stand in front of me.
“Cherry?” he asked.
I just held out my hand for the drink expectantly. I took a sip and tried with all my might not to show the pleasure that coursed through me as soon as the slightly cooled amber liquid hit my lips. My eyes closed of their own volition as the oaky flavor hit the back of my tongue. Before I knew it, a slight shiver overtook my body as I swallowed.
Goddamn, that was smooth
.
“Well?” the bartender asked with one eyebrow raised.
“It's aight…” I said, fighting to sound casual.
I was also fighting to keep a smile of satisfaction off my face. That one sip made the hundreds of gallons of Maker’s I've undoubtedly consumed in the past ten years taste like somebody's grandpappy's moonshine. The bartender's eyes twinkled knowingly, so I was sure my physical reaction hadn't gone unnoticed by him.
“Oh it's more than aight. I saw that shimmy. This smooth jazz that is playin' ain't coercing any moves like that outta you.”
“Ok, so you know your shit.”
“That's some mouth you got on you.”
“Problem?” I huffed, agitated.
“Not at all.”
A man approached to my left and signaled to the bartender.
“I'll be back. You let me know if you need anything else.”
The bartender walked away to serve the guy and I took a good look at him. I was in such a mood that I initially didn't notice how handsome he was. He looked to be at least six feet tall with skin the color of mahogany. The crisp, white button down shirt he wor
e
,
with sleeves rolled up to the elbow, showcased a body that was clearly no stranger to the gym. Broad shoulders and well-defined pecs that tapered down into what I was certain were abs that would make me weep. That body, combined with a smile that was surely the product of orthodontia, had me thinking things I certainly should not have been thinking. I shook off the salacious thoughts about the barkeep and continued sipping my bourbon. Lusting after this guy who was clearly too young for me was not in the plan for these few days of staycation. And I certainly didn’t need the stress of another man in my life giving me grief. The one I was currently avoiding was more than enough.
Hell, truthfully
he
was one of the reasons that I needed to get away. Dealing with catching unexpected feelings when this was just supposed to be a mutual satisfaction of needs was not in the game plan. Couple that with the fact that I have been stressed at work and I needed this little respite. So I decided that a stay at a boutique hotel in the City would be the cure. I planned a few days of spa treatments, decadent food, and drinks. It would be capped off with seeing my darling babyniece Sophie in her dance recital on Saturday afternoon. As soon as we’d wrapped the Hartman Enterprises project, I booked my stay at the hotel. I didn’t even travel back home to the burbs to pack a bag, instead choosing to splurge and buy a couple new outfits and necessities to get me through the next few days.
“So what's your story?” the bartender grinned as he came back over to me.
I let my eyes travel up his body slowly, while sipping my drink.
“Really? How cliché?” I laughed.
“So what brings you here tonight? You're too fine to be sitting here by yourself.”
“Who says I'm by myself? I could be meeting someone.”
“You're too relaxed to be meeting someone. You've been at my bar for fifteen minutes without a second glance to your phone. In fact, it's been face down on the bar this entire time as if you're avoiding it…”
Score one for Mr. Bartender and his keen observation skills. I
was
avoiding the phone. As if it knew we were talking about it, my phone vibrated at that moment. I was reluctant to even look at it. Releasing a sigh, I turned over my phone to look at the text I'd just received.
Call me. - Cadence
Of course it was Cade. She has tried to contact me no less than fifty times since I told her that I was staying in the City for a little R&R. We talked briefly right before I'd checked into the hotel before I came up with an excuse to ring off the line. I tapped out a reply and sat my phone back dow
n
,
face up this time. Almost immediately, it rang. The bartender had been looking on in amusement this entire time.
“Hold my seat?” I asked and then rushed off to a quieter place to answer the phone without waiting for his answer.
“Yes, mom?”
“Har de har, bitch. You wish this was your mom.”
“Cadence Melody McPherson, I told you I was fine!”
“And you also told me you were drinking bourbon in a hotel lobby bar. Which…”
“It's gin that makes you sin, not bourbon. I'm fine, Cade…really.”
And I was. For once my mind was clear; the only thoughts swimming around in my head were finding out the name of the bartender's mystery bourbon and whether or not I wanted steak for dinner.
“Ok, girl. So have you decided to talk—”
“We're not talking about Voldemort, Cade, remember?”
“You came up with that silly ass rule; not me. You need to just be real with—”
“Lalalalala…” I began singing off key into the phone. Childish, but a sure fire tactic to shut my best friend up as she went on a rant that I could probably quote verbatim now.
“Fine. I'll drop it...for now. I just…go find your bliss, friend. Please. You deserve it more than anyone I know.”
“This is my bliss, Cade. Total relaxation and bourbon being served to me by a man more handsome than he needs to be. I couldn't ask for anything more.”
Except I could ask for a whole lot more. Namely, companionship. That was the one area in my life that always seemed to be lacking, no matter how hard I tried. Without fail, it was either I was in a drought with no available prospects or the object of my desire was inappropriate. We were in the season of the latter, currently.
“You know I just worry about you.”
“I know, mom.”
“Speaking of moms...you're not the only one who'll be calling me that soon.”
“I’m sorry, come again? Are you really telling me that you’re pregnant via the phone?”
“Yes. Because your trifling ass refused all six of my pleas for you to come see me prior to your staycation.”
“I thought you'd want to talk about—”
“That's what you get for assuming…” Cadence trailed off.
“Oh my goodness, I'm so fucking happy for you and Geoff! You’re gonna be a mama, Cade!” I sighed.
Cadence and Geoff had been trying for a few years, but she hadn’t been able to get pregnant. I was so overjoyed at the fact that her biggest dream was finally coming true. Cadence was going to be a great mom and I was ever grateful to be the babysitting, baby spoiling auntie once again.
“You could have this too, if you'd just—”
“Bye, Cade.”
I hung up the phone, walked back toward WXYZ and my handsome bourbon provider. I slid onto the stool once again, poised to order a new drink, but he must have been watching and saw my return. I didn't even need to signal him as I saw him walking toward me with a fresh glass of bourbon.
“You're smiling now. I take it that call brought good news?”
“It did.”
“So now can you tell me what someone as fine as you is doing here alone?”
“There you go assuming again. Who said I was alone?”
“Touché.”
The bartender sauntered away to take care of another customer as my phone buzzed. I picked it up; noticing that there were three new text messages.
I need to see you. - E
Cadence says you're at the Aloft. I'm on my way. - E
Have a Macallan neat waiting. - E
Shit. Meddling best friends who don't know how to leave your life alone were the fucking worst
.
I signaled to the bartender.
“Ready for another already?” he asked with a slight lift of his brow.
The glass he’d poured mere minutes ago was still full.
I heaved a sigh and asked, “Do you have Macallan?”
I came awake, slowly, in an unfamiliar bed. My mouth felt like I’d spent the night playing the chubby bunny game — dry, yet sticky. An arm was slung low on my waist, pulling me into the hard line of a body whose identity I was afraid to know. The last thing I remembered from last night was bourbon. And lots of it. Whoever was behind me shifted in his sleep and pulled me closer. I felt his chin dig into my shoulder as he pressed a kiss onto my neck and murmured something I could barely understand. I was on high alert, wracking my brain about who it could be. His voice was muffled since he'd spoken directly into my skin, so I couldn't readily place it. Whoever he was had my height dwarfed by at least a foot if the legs stretching way past where mine ended were any indication. I felt the hardness of his erection coming to life, pressing into the small of my back, growing larger as he awakened. I didn't want to turn around, so I shifted slightly to rustle the sheet so I could at least see the arm clutching me so tightly. A downward glance showed me a milk chocolate colored arm.
Sooooo...it's not the bartender.
Shit
.
“Good morning, Bee,” a voice murmured, kissing my shoulder.
Mr. Chocolate’s identity was now crystal clear. The events of the previous night flooded my mind and I was slow to extricate myself from his embrace. I allowed myself to forget everything else and just be.
I exhaled slowly and said, “You shouldn’t be here, El…”
“But, I am…and you love it,” Ellis paused, kissing a path from my shoulder to my ear. Hands that were as busy as his mouth traveled up my torso, making their way to my breasts, which he palmed firmly.