Authors: Crista McHugh
She turned away before he saw how tempted she was. Her heart hammered in her chest, but she managed to keep her voice level as she said, “The online auction might be a good idea. It will raise awareness for the foundation beyond the local level and help us raise more funds.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” Denise placed her hand on Frank’s arm and smiled up at him. “We can’t thank you enough for all you’ve done.”
Frank turned his charming grin on her. “I’m just getting started, Mrs. Dyer. Your husband was an inspiration to me, and this is my chance to pay it forward.”
“And what else are you planning on doing?” Tre asked in a way that clearly said
keep your hands off my sister
.
“Depends on when Kiana tells me to stop.”
Her pulse went into overdrive. Oh, dear Lord, would these boys just grow up? “So far, I’m liking everything Frank’s done.”
And that includes what was happening a few minutes ago
.
Frank caught the underlying meaning of her answer and bounced on his heels. “Good to know, because as I mentioned, I have a few more things up my sleeve.”
“Such as?” Tre asked, his frown deepening.
“My brother is asking some of his hockey buddies for items, for example. After all, hockey gear can be pricey, but the kids still need good brain buckets if they want to play.”
The boy was so good at playing the innocent act, Kiana wondered how many times he’d gotten away with it. At least it kept her from getting a tongue lashing from her brother, although she’d probably hear about it later once Frank left.
Denise, however, remained the peacekeeper. “And the foundation would gladly fund any youth hockey programs in need.”
“I’ll pass that on to Ben so he can drum up some more support.”
Tre’s expression darkened into something akin to jealousy. “Well, that’s nice and all, but we have lunch reservations.”
It was his way of ending the conversation before Frank got any more praise, but Kiana was grateful they had a reason to leave. Any more time in Frank’s presence, and she might forget herself.
“Would you like to join us?” Denise asked.
Frank took one look at Tre before shaking his head. “Thank you, Mrs. Dyer, but I have a plane to catch.”
That got her attention. Kiana lifted her gaze to him, trying to decipher what the next step in his plan was. “Where are you going?”
“Orlando,” he replied as though he were just taking a jaunt to another part of the city. “The Braves are down there for spring training, after all.”
Her jaw dropped, which was the only reason why she didn’t say anything when he kissed her cheek and made his way to the door.
“I’ll be in touch,” Frank said with a wave before leaving the office.
“Such a nice young man,” Denise said.
“He’s anything but that.” Tre’s hands tightened into fists. “What exactly are you up to?”
“What do you mean?” If Frank could play innocent, so could she.
“You know exactly what I mean.” He grabbed her keyboard and entered in a web address.
A picture of her and Frank kissing at the Hawks game appeared on the screen.
Kiana’s foot twitched, and her tongue tumbled over an appropriate answer. “It was for the Kiss Cam.”
“Uh-huh.” The tone in his voice said he didn’t believe her. “I’ve already warned you once, but I’m going to warn you again. Stay away from Frank. He’s nothing but a player.”
Kiana closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I know, I know.”
“Then why are you falling for his line of bullshit?”
“Watch your language,” Denise snapped. “And last I checked, Kiana was a grown woman who is capable of making her own choices.”
“Yeah, and look at her track record. She’s just like her white trash mama.”
“Don’t talk to your sister that way. I raised you better than that.” Denise glared at Tre, who responded by lowering his eyes.
But the damage had been done. Tre’s accusation hit her like a blow to the chest. The line of men that streamed through her mother’s bedroom. The loud arguments that sometimes ended with slaps and punches and broken furniture. And then the night where the sound of a single gunshot ended it all. “Please, Tre, you don’t have to remind me.”
“Good, because I want to bring up one more thing. You’ve got to think of that little girl of yours. How do you think Frank’s going to react when you tell him about Savannah?”
She bit her bottom lip and looked away.
“I thought so.” Tre crossed his arms over his puffed-out chest. “You know as well as I do he’s not someone you want around her, so you’d better keep that in mind the next time Romeo tests out his moves on you.”
She wilted inside. Tre was right. Frank might be one hell of a kisser, but he’d probably take off running the moment he learned she had a kid. That is, if she ever trusted him enough to tell him about Savannah. She’d gone to great lengths to protect her daughter from her ex, and that included limiting the number of people who knew where she was or even of her existence. She refused to drag Savannah into the hell that had been her own childhood with the revolving door of her mother’s “boyfriends.” She had to be better than her mother.
“Point made,” she muttered.
“Good. Now let’s go before they give away our table.” Tre led the way out of the office, but Denise trailed alongside her.
A sympathetic smile lingered on the older woman’s lips. “Don’t listen to him, Kiana. Listen to your heart and your gut. Between the two of them, they’ll never steer you wrong.”
The problem was, her heart and her gut were at odds. Her gut warned her to keep Frank Kelly at arm’s length, but her heart wondered if there was more to him than the player he pretended to be.
Chapter Eight
Frank breathed in the balmy central Florida air that was scented with orange blossoms. The sun had set hours ago, but the heat of the day still lingered to the point where sweat prickled his skin as he sat on his balcony with his phone in his hand. Just like before, his stomach was a tangle of nerves as he worked up the courage to call Kiana.
But this time, it was for a different reason.
Before, he wasn’t sure if the attraction was mutual, but the heat of their kiss this afternoon left no question about that. She wanted him as much as he wanted her. It was her behavior around her family that bothered him more now. How she could go from hot to cold so quickly. How she refused to make eye contact with him. How Tre’s accusatory glare was as equally directed toward her as it was him.
And his gut told him it was better to get to the bottom of it now than be blindsided down the road.
He dialed her number and waited for her to pick up. Just when he thought he was going to end up in voice mail purgatory, she picked up.
“Hello,” she said in a voice barely above a whisper.
“Hey, lovely lady.”
A sharp intake of breath answered him, followed by a long pause. “Let me move to another room.”
He heard the muffled sound of her voice, followed by the soft shutting of a door, and his fingers twitched. Where was she? And what was she doing that she needed to step away to talk to him?
“Sorry about that, Frank,” she said, still speaking in the same hushed tone. “Why are you calling so late?”
“It’s not even nine.” He forced himself to sound casual, even though his sweat production had doubled in less than a minute. “What are you doing?”
“I’m at home.”
He was tempted to ask if she was alone, but he already knew the answer. Why else would she cover the phone and speak to someone else before stepping into another room? He rubbed his hand on his shirt and scratched the back of his head. “It’s really nice down here in Orlando.”
“Did you call just to gloat?”
“Maybe.”
She responded with that low, sexy laugh of hers, and some of the tension fled his shoulders. “Is that all?”
He looked behind him at the big empty room and equally empty king-sized bed. In the past, he would’ve headed straight for the clubs to pick up some fun for the night, but right now, there was only one woman he wanted to share his space with. “Would you like to come down and join me?”
“Frank—”
He heard the note of rejection in her voice, but he cut her off and plowed ahead, desperate to sell her on the idea. “I’ll even pay for a first-class ticket, Kiana. We could catch a few games, have some nice dinners, maybe even play in the amusement parks. And then, at the end of the day…”
He purposely left it hanging to let her fill in the blank. He already knew what he’d do if he had her with him.
Silence lingered on the line, and he offered a silent prayer that meant she was considering his offer. But when she spoke, he caught a hint of the conflict raging inside her. “It sounds wonderful—it really does—and I’d love to be able to join you, but I—” Her voice halted like she’d almost let something slip out and caught herself just in time. “I just can’t.”
The hairs on the back of his neck rose, and he stood up straighter. “Why not?”
“Because I can’t.”
“Give me a good reason why.” He’d either learn the truth, or he’d win her to his side. Until then, he wasn’t going to accept her answer.
“Frank…” She said his name like an exasperated sigh. “Unlike you, I have a job I have to go every day.”
“But it’s the weekend.”
“That still doesn’t change the fact that I have plans and appointments and other things that I can’t brush aside.”
He gritted his teeth, and the knots returned to his stomach. “What’s so important that you can’t get away for a few days?”
Another pause filled the line, and he curled his fingers around the railing of the balcony.
“Please, Frank, between the foundation and my family, my schedule is full.”
“So you can’t make any time for me? Is that what you’re saying?”
“No, I didn’t say that,” she snapped, and for the first time in this conversation, he felt the tide turning in his direction. “What I’m saying is that I’m not the spontaneous type, so if you want to do something, I need to know in advance so I can make arrangements.”
Her explanation still didn’t settle the suspicions forming in his mind. “Prove it.”
“Why, you arrogant—”
He cut her off again, this time with a low chuckle. Somehow, he’d managed to rile her up as much as she had him. “Forgive me if I want to spend time with you, especially after our
meeting
this morning.”
A secretive giggle answered him, and he could almost picture her cheeks flushing like they had when they’d almost gotten caught. “Fine. When are you coming back to Atlanta?”
“Don’t know. Maybe at the end of the week.” It was a dick move, but if she could play vague, so could he. Make her wonder what he was up to.
He hoped it would spark some flame of jealousy or possessiveness, but instead, all he got was a cool, collected voice accompanied by a few clicks of a mouse. “Would Friday work for you?” she asked as though she were scheduling him for a dental appointment rather than a hot date.
Damn the woman. She had him so turned around, he wasn’t sure which end was up. “Friday night would work, but only if it involved dinner. And dessert.”
He said that last part in such a low, seductive way that there would be no doubt in her mind that she was what he planned on indulging in after the meal.
Her breath hitched, and he silently laughed. Maybe she would be game for skipping dinner and going straight for dessert if he was lucky.
A few more clicks followed, and that professional voice returned. “I have you tentatively penciled in for dinner on Friday night at seven.”
Oh, sweet Jesus! Would he have to schedule sex with her, too? This was why he hated phone calls with women. It was always much easier to convince them to go along with his plans when he could exercise all his charms on them in person. But he wanted her so badly, he’d play along. “You sure you can’t come down here sooner?”
“Sorry, Frank, but—” She dropped her voice to a whisper and finished. “But I look forward to Friday night.”
There was just enough sexiness in her reply to keep him from listening to the warning bells going off in the back of his mind. “I’ll make reservations for STK.”
He’d wine her and dine her, just to prove to her he could be a gentleman. But after dinner, he made no promises.
“Deal.” She hung up, giving him enough time to clear his mind and dissect the conversation.
The back-and-forth bothered him, but at least he’d managed to convince her to go out with him again. One thing became undeniably clear, though, from the hushed tones and hesitations.
She was hiding something from him.
He paced the balcony while his mind raced with possibilities. Maybe she was with another man. Shit, maybe she was married and was just using him to help her foundation. For a second, he was tempted to call Tre and find out, but based on the existing tension surrounding the two siblings, he didn’t want to cause Kiana any more grief there.
He needed answers, and there was only one person he could turn to for them.