Her Heart's Desire (5 page)

“How about I walk you out?”

“Sure.”

He escorted her to her car and made sure she was inside and settled. He sat back on his haunches so they were eye level.

“Thanks again for coming.”

“My pleasure.”

“Good night, Tiffany. Ring me one when you get home so that I know you’re safe.”

She looked surprised. “Oh, sure.”

He stood up, tapped her door, and then moved back. Tiffany waved and drove away.

She decided to take the long way home to give herself some time to process what had happened after their exercise class. Out of the blue, their light, jovial manner had changed to something thick, tangible and most definitely sexual.

Recalling their conversation sent tingles throughout her body. She had never been that suggestive before, but being alone with Ivan after such a hands-on type of class made the nerve endings in her body go supercharged. She could feel an undercurrent. His amber eyes reminded her of a tiger’s, making her wonder if there were a few seconds before being devoured that the jungle cat’s prey stood mesmerized by the sheer hypnotic effect of its golden gaze.

The feeling was similar to observing one of her favorite paintings. The longer she stared at it, the more she wanted to stare.

When she was wrapped in Ivan’s ironclad embrace, the only thing on her mind was that she wanted him to kiss her. Not the quick peck on the lips, but the most thorough, deep, erotic kiss she’d ever had in her life.

* * *

As Ivan drove home, he thought about his evening. He had enjoyed teaching the seniors’ class—and spending time with Tiffany.

Who are you kidding? It’s the most fun you’ve had in a while.

He thought about the gleam in Tiffany’s eyes when she took him down for the first time. There was such a sense of accomplishment and confidence in her expression that he had to chuckle. Before she got back to business, she took a victory lap around the class that reminded him of Sylvester Stallone jumping up and down in triumph in the movie
Rocky.
She was something else.

He also recounted their playful banter and how, seconds later, it took everything in him not to grab her and claim her sexy mouth for a searing kiss. His body reacted instantly to the memory of how good she looked. Suddenly uncomfortable at the tightness below his waist, Ivan shifted a few times in his seat.

His cell phone rang. Thankful for the distraction, Ivan answered. “Hey, Cole. What’s up?”

“You done with class?”

“Yeah, why?”

“How about dinner at Giordano’s?”

“Sure. I’ll get us a table.”

Ivan arrived and ordered a beer. As he sipped it, he thought about his social life. GiGi was right. It was pretty boring. It was all work and family obligations. Not that he would ever shirk one of his responsibilities. Ivan was overzealous when it came to doing what was expected of him. The army had amplified that mantra. Still, there was more out there, and it was passing him by.

His thoughts strayed to Debra. Pain and remorse wrapped themselves around his heart like a vise grip.

“You’re scaring potential dates off,” Cole greeted him, sitting down.

Ivan pushed away the melancholy. “I’ll do my best.”

Since they already knew the menu, they ordered a deep-dish pizza with everything on it.

“So how was class?” Cole asked after their server left.

“Good. Tiffany was a fantastic assistant,” he said proudly. “You should’ve seen her.”

“Tiffany helped teach your class? As in, ‘she’s my client,’ Tiffany?”

“Yes.”

“What happened to that whole rule thing?”

“Technically, she’s not my client anymore,” Ivan pointed out.

“Great. Does that mean you’re going to ask her out?”

Ivan was silent.

“Don’t even try to convince me that you don’t want to. You should’ve seen your face when you described your evening. I thought you were going to need a towel to wipe the drool.”

Ivan grinned and took another sip of beer. “Shut up.”

“Dude, tell me I’m wrong,” Cole countered. “I don’t know why you’re trying to act like you aren’t attracted to her.”

“That’s not what I’m doing. In fact—”

Cole sat back in his chair. “Then what are you doing, Ivan?” He interrupted. “I’ve seen her. The woman is seriously working the hotness factor. Plus, she’s warm, funny and for whatever reason likes you. You scowl all the time, have no sense of humor and no love life. Why all that drives women out of their panties, I’ll never know.”

Ivan glanced over at his brother. “Wait...how do you know she likes me?”

Cole shook his head. “You’re pathetic.”

“What?”

“How is it you can hear a grenade pin being pulled from twenty clicks away, you’re a weapon unto yourself, an expert strategist, and can speak not one, but several languages in addition to English, but something as rudimentary as a woman who can’t keep her eyes off you goes poof...right over your head?”

“Okay, it’s not twenty clicks, and you have two seconds to answer the question,” Ivan warned.

Cole took a pull on the beer he had been given. “In that whole list of stuff, that’s all you got out of it?”

Ivan stared at him.

Cole shook his head. “It’s
how
she looks at you when she thinks nobody is looking, Ivan. She hangs on your every word, and the most telling sign was when you arrived late the other night and she thought you weren’t coming. She looked like someone had kicked her puppy.”

Ivan took a breath, then said, “Earlier this afternoon, we almost kissed.”

Cole leaned back in his chair with a shocked but satisfied grin. “Tell me everything.”

Ivan filled his brother in on his day and the connection he felt with Tiffany. Cole listened intently. When Ivan was finished, Cole said, “So what’s with the long face?”

“It’s...complicated.”

“What is? Call her up, take her on a proper date and get this thing going. What am I missing?”

Ivan frowned. “Debra.”

Cole let out an expletive. “I told you to take care of that situation, but you didn’t listen. Now you have to clear the air with Tiffany, and you know how that’s going to go.”

“I know,” Ivan replied. “I’m not sure she’s going to understand.”

“To be honest, big brother, I don’t understand why she’s still in your life. Cut her loose, and be done with it.”

“Debra and I were over a long time ago. She made her choice, and I respected it. I didn’t like it, but I didn’t have much of a choice, did I? She picked Brian to spend her life with, and I’ve been dealing with that decision ever since.”

“But you haven’t let go.”

Ivan’s expression darkened. “You know I don’t have feelings for her anymore.”

“What I know, big brother, is that you’re in a complicated mess because you’re too damn noble to extricate yourself from it. While I can, though I don’t understand it, appreciate your dedication to friends, promises and what you consider your obligations, I’m at a loss to understand how you’re going to get Tiffany to understand this mess you’re in—or to be okay with it.”

Ivan swirled the beer around in his mug. “I know.”

Cole held up his beer in a toast. “Here’s to things working out the way you want.”

Ivan raised his mug, and then downed his beer. “It will. Failure’s not an option.”

Chapter 7

H
ow do you celebrate having avoided another bad romance? With a darn good dinner. Tiffany took a sip of wine and put her feet up on the coffee table. First, a sumptuous meal, and then a movie. She raised her glass and toasted herself. “Works for me.”

When the phone rang, she leaned over and answered it.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Tiffany...were you busy?”

She bolted upright. “Hi, Ivan. No, not really. What’s up?”

“Well, I just got home from doing an install. I know it’s short notice, but would you like to grab a bite to eat?”

Her eyes grew wide. “I—I, um...”

“I get it, now’s not the best time—”

“No, it’s not that,” she said quickly.

She glanced toward the kitchen. “But what if you come here? I’m sort of in the middle of cooking dinner. You’re welcome to join me. I have plenty.”

“Are you sure it’s not an inconvenience? We can make it another time if you’d prefer.”

“It’s no imposition, Ivan. Can you head over now? Dinner’s almost ready.”

“Sure. Text me your address.”

“Okay.”

“Great, I’ll see you shortly.”

Tiffany hung up and eyed her sweatpants and tank top in a panic. She ran into the kitchen and turned the stove heat to low. Then she ran into the bathroom, freshened up and changed into a pair of jeans and a blouse.

Twenty minutes later, she was pulling the steaks out of the broiler when the doorbell rang.

A jolt of energy coursed through her veins. She walked to the door, ran her tongue over her teeth a final time, and opened it.

“Hi.” Ivan smiled.

Tiffany stepped aside to let him enter. She shut the door, motioning for him to sit on the couch. She headed toward the kitchen.

“Make yourself at home. I’ll be right back. Would you like some wine?”

“No, I’m good.”

She stared at her glass longingly. She wanted to have one to settle her nerves more than anything, but she would wait.

“It’ll be a few more minutes,” she told him.

“You have a beautiful home.”

“Thank you.”

Ivan took a deep breath. “Tiffany, I don’t want to be presumptuous, so if this is off base, tell me...but I think it’s time to acknowledge that there’s an attraction between us. At least that’s what I took away from our actions at the seniors’ class.”

Tiffany wrapped her arms around her middle. “What actions?”

“Unless I missed the mark, we almost kissed. Didn’t we?”

She could only manage a nod.

Ivan took a deep breath and continued. “I like you, Tiffany. A great deal, so I need to be honest with you about something. I—”

Unable to wait, she blurted out, “I already know you have a girlfriend, Ivan.”

Ivan sat back. His expression relayed his surprise. “Did you say
girlfriend?
”

She nodded and went over to sit next to Ivan on the couch. “I know about Debra. I overheard you and Cole talking the day you installed my security system. I came back in to get my phone, and I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but I heard you discussing her—and...”

“And...you surmised that Debra and I are together?”

“Of course. You said she needed you, and that you made a promise to always be there for her. I’d say that speaks volumes.”

“I guess it does,” he replied.

“So it’s obvious that you and I really should stop this before it goes any further. I’m sorry I got caught up in my...attraction to you. Or that I allowed myself to almost kiss you, but I assure you that I respect other women’s relationships, and I truly apologize for my actions. It won’t happen again.”

“Good to know.” He chuckled.

She lowered her gaze. He sounded almost relieved. It was a blow she found hard to recover from. Standing up, she said distractedly, “I’ll go check on dinner.”

Before Tiffany got farther than a foot, Ivan was in front of her.

“Tiffany, there are two things you need to know before we go out.”

“Go out? Go out where?”

“On a date.”

She stood there dumbfounded. “I don’t... What are you talking about?”

“Tiffany, Debra is not my girlfriend.”

She was still unable to process what he’d told her. “I don’t understand. You said—”

“She and I are not together. She... It’s a long story, but the short version is that she and I used to date about five years ago. I was deployed and only came home on leave. Debra decided that she didn’t want to be an army wife. This caused serious tension in our relationship.”

“Wife?” Tiffany repeated.

“Yes, we were talking about marriage at the time. Until I found out that she was dating a man on my team. She met him while he and I were on leave. I invited him to dinner at our house. Apparently there was a connection. When I found out that she was cheating on me—with him—let’s just say I didn’t take it well. I refused to play games or be in some love triangle. I left her and never looked back. He and I suffered a serious blow to our friendship. Six months later, they got married.”

She nodded. “Whoa. How did you feel about that? Were you hurt?”

“Hell, yes. She says she doesn’t want to be married to a military man, and then up and weds my teammate? That told me the real issue was that she didn’t want to marry
me
. I won’t lie, my pride was bruised—a lot—but I got over it. Her husband and I definitely had a strained relationship after that, but in our job, we had to rely on each other. Personal B.S. couldn’t get in the way of our missions. The good of the team was always the top priority.”

“So you sucked it up.”

“Yeah, I did. Anyway, he died a year later. Took a bullet to the stomach. He didn’t make it. I contacted Debra directly to let her know what happened. She didn’t take the news well.”

“Who would expect her to?”

“She blamed me for his death, and I can’t fault her for that.”

“Why?”

“It was my operation. I was in charge.”

“But it wasn’t your fault!” Tiffany grasped his hand. “You’re not to blame, Ivan.”

“Still, I promised him I’d make sure she would be okay. Brian had insurance, and Debra was entitled to military benefits. But it wasn’t enough, and Debra wasn’t working, so I stepped in to help.”

“So that’s what you and Cole were discussing when I overheard you.”

“Yes. He thinks I should stop helping her financially, and continuing to do so sends the wrong message to her. Like there’s a chance we’ll get back together.”

Tiffany searched his face. “Is there?”

“No. It was over the moment she cheated on me and didn’t have the decency to end our relationship first,” he said vehemently. “Make no mistake, I don’t harbor any feelings for Debra, but I also don’t wish her ill will. She’s down right now, and I’m trying to help out. That’s it.”

“I hear what you’re saying, and it’s admirable you’d want to help her through a difficult time, but...does she still have feelings for you?”

“I can’t answer that. I have no idea if she’s hoping for more than my monetary support, but that’s all I’m giving.”

“And how long is that?”

“I don’t know. Cole and my dad have been pretty vocal about their opinion. They think she’s taking advantage of me.”

“And what do you think?” she said quietly.

“I made a promise, Tiffany. I can’t break it. That’s not who I am.”

She placed a hand on his shoulder. “I get it, but surely you don’t think it’s feasible to help her indefinitely—do you?”

“Of course not. It was only until she got back on her feet.”

“Maybe you should check in. You know, see how she’s doing. Maybe she’s already looking for a job.”

Ivan nodded. His gaze held hers for several moments. Finally he said, “I will, but I don’t want to talk about Debra anymore. There’s something else you need to know.”

With a deep breath, she said, “I’m listening.”

He took her hand and held it suspended between them before he raised it to his lips and kissed it. He lowered it, but didn’t let go.

“It was apparent to me after you left the community center the other day that I didn’t make my intentions clear. I guess I’m out of practice, so let me rectify that oversight immediately. Tiffany, would you like to go out on a date with me tomorrow night?”

Tiffany could feel relief and then happiness flitter across her face.

“Yes,” she replied. “I’d love to go out on a date with you—and I’m very glad you’re single.”

He grinned. “Does that mean you won’t feel guilty the next time we almost kiss?”

“Who said I felt guilty?”

“Your face is very expressive.”

“Okay, maybe I did feel guilty, but I don’t now,” she clarified.

“Good, because I’ve wanted to do something else since I arrived.”

Before Tiffany could ask what, Ivan’s lips descended on hers.

What started out as an exploratory kiss grew more intimate. He kissed her with a confidence, as though he’d done so a thousand times before. Then he tightened his hold to bring her closer still. It blew her mind.

Tiffany did what she had longed to do since the day she met him. She rubbed the back of his head with the palm of her hand. It was smooth, like she had imagined. Being in his arms, and knowing that she had every right to do so, produced a rush of adrenaline. Tiffany was so elated, she could hardly stand still.

Ivan broke their kiss and released her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to come on so strong, it’s just that...I’ve thought of nothing else for a very, very long time.”

Tiffany stared at him in wonder. “You didn’t. I wasn’t trying to get away.” She laughed. “I was just...antsy. I think I’ve wanted to kiss you like that since the day we met.”

“Me, too,” he confessed. “You’d blush if you knew all the thoughts going through my head after that self-defense class.”

Her smile was radiant. “Really?”

“Tiffany, do you have any idea how sexy you looked in your workout gear? After you left, the image was in my head the rest of that evening—and every evening since.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and brought his head down for another kiss, and reveled when she felt his arms encircle her waist to keep her close.

Tiffany headed to the kitchen and pulled Ivan along behind her. “My nerves are shot. You can’t imagine all the things I thought you were going to tell me tonight.”

“I’m sorry. I had no idea you thought Debra and I were together. No wonder you were worried.”

“You don’t know the half of it.”

He tilted her face up to meet his. “I’m an idiot, and I plan on making it up to you.”

“You do? How?”

“You’ll see.”

“Wait. It can’t be tomorrow. We’re due at the Andersons’ house for a barbecue, remember?”

Ivan frowned. “Now I do. Well, how about Monday?”

“I’m free. So where are we going?”

“I’m not telling. It’s a surprise.”

“I hate surprises.”

Ivan wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close. “Trust me, you’ll love this one.”

* * *

For the next hour, they camped out on the floor, talking and eating like they were at a real picnic. The more Tiffany learned about Ivan, the more she liked.

“I’m glad you came over,” she told him. “For a lot of reasons.”

His expression was playful. “Me, too.”

They moved to the couch and watched a movie. When it was over, Ivan said, “I think it’s time I said good-night. Thanks for having me over.”

Tiffany walked him to the door. “You’re welcome. I had a great time.”

“Me, too.”

When he left, Tiffany closed and locked the door.

With a high-wattage smile, she went back and flopped on the couch. “Well, that definitely wasn’t my plan for tonight, but it sure as heck worked!”