As Deanna pulled into the woman’s driveway and cut the engine, she wrapped her black calf-length wool coat around herself a little tighter. Winter was in full swing and kicking her butt today. She started to get out when her cell phone rang. Deanna looked at the caller ID. UNAVAILABLE. The only person who came up like that was Valdez. She took a deep breath and let it out. “It’s now or never.”
Deanna hit the SEND button. “Hello?”
“Miss Harrison, it’s Terrance. I saw that you called?”
“Yes,” she said, striving for confidence. “I wanted to let you know that I won’t be able to do the project after all.”
“Oh?”
“Yes, something’s come up.”
Like the fact that you’re a drug-dealing loser.
“I’m sorry if I’ve wasted your time.”
“That’s unfortunate, but I understand. Business is business, after all. Will you be picking up those fabric samples, then?”
The fabric samples! Damn, she’d completely forgotten about them. “Oh, uh, yes,” she replied. “I can swing by tomorrow. Around noon work for you?”
“That’ll do fine. Till then, Miss Harrison.”
Deanna ended the call. “Done. Whew.” Instant relief flooded her system.
As Deanna got out of her car, a gust of wind caught her hair and she shivered. She quickly grabbed her briefcase and jogged up to the front door. Valerie met her with a cheerful hello.
“Come in, dear, before you freeze to death.”
Deanna didn’t have to be asked twice. “Boy, do you have terrific timing,” she said. The warm fresh scent of pastries and the sound of a crackling fire hit her. Deanna’s stomach growled even as her body began to warm.
Valerie laughed and took her coat from her shoulders, then hung it on a rack next to the door. “I just took a pie out of the oven. I hope you’re hungry.”
“Ooh, that sounds wonderful, thank you. I haven’t eaten anything today. Been busy.”
Valerie shook her head. “You’re just like my youngest, Danielle. She gets tied up at work and skips right past lunch. I get on her all the time about it. Do you like cherry pie, Deanna? The crust is homemade.”
Her mouth began to water. “Homemade crust? No way am I turning that down.”
“I knew I was going to like you,” Valerie said, beaming from ear to ear.
That quickly, Deanna forgot all about her worries and poured herself into the job as she gave her client her full attention.
23
“T
his restaurant is wonderful, Jonas.” Deanna looked around, impressed all over again. “The open kitchen, crisp white linens, and that beautiful Italian mural”—she pointed to the far wall—“make me feel as if I’ve stepped right into a restaurant in Italy.”
“I’m glad you like it. As you’ve no doubt figured out by now, I can’t cook for shit. Unless you count spaghetti and sauce from a jar. But these folks know how to cook good Italian food.”
“My dish is delicious.” She’d ordered penne pasta with smoked salmon and mascarpone cheese sauce on top. “And the atmosphere is so cozy, and the service is friendly, without being intrusive.”
“Cozy, yeah, that was the plan,” he murmured as he took a bite of his chicken marsala.
“How’d you know about it?” Deanna wondered if he’d brought other women to the restaurant. Unreasonable as it was, she sincerely hoped not. She wanted Vino’s to be their special place.
“You mean because it’s located in an ugly-ass strip mall?”
She laughed around a bite of salmon. “Yeah.”
“One of those hidden treasures that I’d stumbled on purely by accident. I’ve only had the opportunity to come here a couple of times, with Wade.”
“Of course Wade’s been here.” She recalled the Mexican restaurant in Miami. “You know, it occurs to me that he doesn’t share well with others.”
Jonas chuckled. “He likes to keep his cards close to the vest.”
She moaned as she took a sip of her Chianti. “I’ve been so deprived. This wine is excellent, and that’s coming from someone who isn’t a big drinker.”
He winked. “You weren’t going out with the right guy, kitten.”
Deanna’s heart melted at his quiet statement. “Are you the right guy, Jonas?”
“That depends on you.” He cocked his head to the side and asked, “Do you think I’m the right guy, Deanna?”
This was it. Her answer could alter everything and she knew it. Should she be honest and tell him that he was the one? Or should she keep it light and say something flirtatious? Taking a leap of faith, and a deep breath, Deanna said, “Yes, I do.”
Jonas reached across the table and growled, “Good, because you’re definitely the right woman for me.”
And because she was too nosy for her own good, Deanna asked, “Have you brought other women here?”
“No. I didn’t want to share it with just anyone. I wanted to experience it with someone special.”
Deanna squeezed his hand. “I’m glad it was me you brought here, Jonas.”
“There’s more to this night, kitten. This is just the beginning.”
Deanna dropped her fork. It hit the plate with a loud clang, but she didn’t bother to pick it up. “More?”
He brought her hand to his lips and placed a kiss on her knuckles. “When we’re through, I want to take you back to my apartment,” he said, his voice low and intimate. “There’s a surprise waiting for you.”
Deanna’s heartbeat went from a gentle saunter to a wild gallop. “Oh?”
He nodded. “Will you come home with me?”
Yeah, like she was fool enough to say no. “I’d like that, Jonas.”
The waiter came over then and inquired about dessert. They both declined. Jonas asked for the bill and to-go boxes. After the waiter left, Jonas leaned forward and said, “You look gorgeous tonight, by the way. I think the waiter is half in love with you.”
“Thank you,” she said as she felt her cheeks heat with embarrassment.
Since it was going to be their first real date, Deanna had taken extra time getting ready. As silly as it seemed, considering they’d already spent a weekend together, Deanna felt as if she were going out with Jonas for the first time.
He’d told her red was his favorite color, so she’d worn her ruby-red cashmere sweater. With the deep V neckline and above-the-waist hemline, Deanna always felt sexy and confident in it. She’d paired it with her black skinny jeans and black leather high-heel shoes. She’d left her hair down around her shoulders. Judging by the way Jonas kept finding reasons to touch her, she figured the effort had been well worth it.
The waiter came back with their bill, and Jonas quickly paid, then stood and held out his hand. Enchanted by the romance of it all, Deanna placed her hand in his and let him lead her out of the restaurant. Once they were in the privacy of his shiny black Charger, Deanna took a moment to look at him. So rarely afforded the opportunity, Deanna knew that with the darkness surrounding them, it was as good a time as any.
The hard angles of his face appeared even rougher in the low, white light coming from the instrument panel. His dark hair was always a wild, untamed mane, but tonight it seemed as if he’d stepped right out of the jungle. Short tendrils kept dropping onto his forehead, and Deanna had the insane urge to reach out and play with them. Too easily she remembered what he had looked like in the morning when they’d been in Florida. That moment when he’d first woken up, before he’d had the chance to shower and comb his hair. He’d looked positively sinful in that rumpled state.
“You’re looking at me,” Jonas whispered.
“That’s because I think you’re hot,” she answered with complete honesty. No sense in beating around the bush, she thought. Heck, he had to know how she felt about his body by now.
He chuckled. “Do you know that’s one of the things I adore about you?”
Genuinely confused, Deanna asked, “What’s that?”
“Your honesty,” he stated as he reached over the middle console and entwined his fingers with hers. “You could’ve tried to save face just now, but you didn’t. I like that.”
Jonas’s forearm flexed with each move of his fingers. He was six feet two inches of gorgeousness, Deanna thought as she sighed. “You work out, don’t you?”
He took his eyes off the road for a second and said, “Six days a week, why?”
“Just thinking maybe we could work out together.”
“What gym do you use?”
Deanna named the place she usually went to. “It’s close to my house and small enough that I don’t feel exposed to a bunch of guys looking to hook up.”
He nodded. “I know that place.”
Her gaze narrowed. “I’ve never seen you there.”
“I haven’t worked out there, but I know the owner.”
“You know Troy?”
Jonas nodded as he turned down a side street. “He’s a good guy.” He glanced over at her for a second, then back at the road. “You’re on a first-name basis with him?”
“Not really. He helped with an overzealous patron once. The guy kept chatting me up. When I exercise, I want to exercise, not look for a date.” She shrugged. “Troy took care of it.”
“He’s a good guy.” Jonas shook his head. “Guys can be such horny idiots.” He sent her a quick wink and said, “How about I come with you next time? I could be your bodyguard.”
Deanna rolled her eyes. “It was one incident, Jonas. I don’t need a bodyguard. But I wouldn’t mind a workout partner.”
He chuckled. “You just want to watch me bench-press.”
Yeah, okay, he had her there. “And maybe that’s part of it too,” she conceded as she opened her purse and took out her lip balm. Deanna applied it while her gaze surreptitiously zeroed in on the fly of his jeans. Even in the low lighting, she could tell he was hard. Her body burned in anticipation.
Jonas glanced at Deanna and noticed her gaze on his crotch. Even in the dark, where the only real light came from the dashboard and the few streetlights they passed, Jonas could tell she was hungry for him. The knowledge had him turning his gaze back onto the road and pressing harder on the gas pedal.
As his mind went over their video date the night before, and the late-night confession that had followed, Jonas decided now was as good a time as any to lay his heart on the line. “Last night when we were on Skype, I told you that you weren’t the only one falling.”
“I remember,” she replied.
Her response was vague. Too vague. He wanted her open and trusting, the way she’d been when she’d come for him. The way she’d been when she’d told him she was falling for him. “Would it surprise you to learn that I think I started falling for you that day at your family picnic?”
Out of his peripheral vision, Jonas saw her gaze dart his way. “You did?”
“Yeah, kitten,” he murmured. “And I have this overwhelming need to make up for all the time we’ve lost over the years.”
“How?”
“You’ll see when we get to my apartment.”
“The surprise,” she whispered.
“Yeah, the surprise.” Jonas turned his car into his apartment complex, found his parking spot, and shut off the engine. “We’re here,” he growled as he turned in the seat to look at her.
“Yes, we are.”
He leaned toward her and brushed his lips with hers. “Are you ready for your surprise?”
“Y-yes,” she moaned.
“I love when you do that, kitten.”
“What?”
“That little stutter you get when you’re turned on. It’s hot as hell.”
“I don’t stutter,” Deanna insisted.
He smiled at her embarrassment. “Do, too, but don’t worry, I’ve only seen you do it with me.”
“You’re delusional,” she said as she laughed and unbuckled her seat belt.
No, I’m in love,
Jonas thought. He wanted to share those words aloud, but he wasn’t sure she was ready to hear them. Yet. When he unbuckled his own seat belt and opened the car door, he instructed her to wait for him. By the time he’d jogged around to her side, she’d already gotten out and closed the door.
Jonas frowned. “Is this a control thing for you?”
“Is what a control thing?”
The big doe-eyed look she sent him wasn’t fooling him one bit. “Or is it that you think it’s sexist?”
“Your need to pay for dinner, carry my suitcase, and open doors for me, you mean?”
“Yeah,” he growled.
“No, I think it’s lovely,” she admitted, her gaze softening.
More confused than ever, he asked, “Then why the hell didn’t you wait for me?”
Her lips twitched. “Because I like to drive you crazy.”
Jonas cupped the back of her neck and leaned close to her ear. “That ass of yours is going to get a good spanking if you keep this up, kitten.”
“Promises, promises,” she murmured as she slipped away from him and started walking toward his apartment building. Jonas took a second to admire the view. Son of a bitch, her ass was a thing of beauty.
By the time they’d reached his apartment, Jonas was as hard as a spike and ready to be buried balls-deep inside of Deanna’s tight cunt.
Slow down, big guy. There’s still the little matter of her surprise.
Jonas unlocked the door and let her enter ahead of him. He flipped on the light and waited for her to spot the big bouquet of white roses and miniature gerbera daisies. He heard her gasp. Yep, found them.
“Oh, Jonas, they’re gorgeous!” She crossed the room, then leaned down and inhaled. When she turned around, Deanna’s eyes immediately filled with tears. Every muscle in Jonas’s body tensed.
“No crying,” he ordered. “Even if it’s a happy cry.”
She bit her lower lip and looked down at the floor. Jonas took the room in three strides; then he reached behind the vase and handed her the small red box he’d hidden there. “Promise me you won’t cry and you can have your other present.”
Instead of answering, Deanna plucked the box out of his hand and gently lifted the lid. After a few seconds, her gaze came back to his and stayed there. She didn’t say anything, merely stared at him. Jonas started to worry he’d screwed up. “Uh, if you don’t like it, I can take it back.”
“Why did you get me this?”
Ah, so that’s what had her so quiet. “You can’t guess, kitten?”
“I could,” she murmured, “but I’d much rather you tell me.”
“The daisies are because they’re your favorite flower,” Jonas explained as he took the necklace out of the box, unfastened the hook, and put it on her. “The ruby teardrop necklace is because red is your favorite color,” he went on as he cupped her face in his palms. “And this,” he murmured as he pressed his mouth to hers, savoring the delicate sounds she made, “is because I love you with all my heart and soul.”
A single tear spilled over and her lower lip quivered. “What I feel for you is so much more than I ever thought possible, Jonas,” she said. “You’re demanding, romantic, sexy, arrogant, and you’ve completely ruined me for other men.”
“And?” he urged.
“And I love you.”
Jonas shook his head. “You sure do know how to put a man on his knees, kitten,” he grumbled as he leaned down and lifted her into his arms. “There’s another present in the bedroom. Want to see?” he asked as he cradled her against his chest.
She wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head against his shoulder. “Show me, Jonas.”