SEALed With Love (DiCarlo Brides book 2) (The DiCarlo Brides) (20 page)

Sage rose early and went through her morning routine before heading down the stairs to see if her conversation with Joel had been real, or a figment of her imagination. She touched her fingertips to her lips in the memory of their gentle kiss. That had been real, hadn’t it? Sometimes he seemed hard, more like a weapon or machine than a man, but then he showed this soft edge. Was it only with her? He’d called her baby over the phone; had he realized what he was saying? Could he really feel the same way about her that she felt for him? The thought made her feel like she was flying.

She found him in the kitchen, standing over a pan of eggs loaded with finely chopped vegetables.

“Good morning, bright eyes. Sleep well?” he asked.

“Yes. Good morning.” She shifted her gaze to include Rosemary and Jonquil in the greeting. “Are you cooking for everyone?”

“Eggs? Me? Not a chance. Strictly tasteless bran muffins,” Rosemary grumbled and took another mouthful.

“You’re an amazing chef. Surely you can find a way to make those tastier without making them unhealthy,” Jonquil said.

“Of course, but that would imply I have time to cook for myself.” Rosemary ate the last bite of her muffin, swallowed the end of her black coffee and hopped up from the stool. “I’m off. We have a wedding banquet and reception to prepare for, not to mention the usual guests.” She waved over her shoulder as she headed through the door to the garage.

“Well, I’m not opposed to eggs,” Jonquil told Sage. “You do eat eggs, don’t you?”

“Yes, I do.” Sage grabbed the bag of cat food she kept in one cupboard and stepped onto the porch to feed Mr. Sunshine. He rubbed against her, purring loudly as she ran a hand down his back. “There you are, sweetheart. Plenty of food to keep you warm and happy today.”

There was a thin layer of snow from the previous night and she shivered in the cold mountain air. She smiled when the cat meowed to her. It had been years since she had a pet, and she missed the cats they’d kept on her mom’s property—they had been there as mousers, but were always good sounding boards when she needed to talk things out. Mr. Sunshine wandered a lot, but he made her feel good when he bumped his head against her hand, begging to be pet.

She obliged for a moment before returning the food to the cupboard. She washed her hands and took Rosemary’s abandoned stool. “How is your leg feeling?”

“It hurts,” Jonquil said. “But not as bad as yesterday. Of course, everything else is sore now.”

“Tell me about it,” Sage felt every muscle in her back and neck protest as she shifted in her seat. “A hot shower and three ibuprofen seem to be helping, but I may need a massage later.” She couldn’t think of anything else that would help her stiff neck besides acupuncture, and she had to wait until Monday to get an appointment with the practitioner a friend had recommended in Denver.

“Would a massage help?” Jonquil asked.

“Oh, yeah. When you get those flowers all placed, come to the spa and we’ll squeeze you in to work all that lactic acid out of your muscles. It won’t solve everything, but it’ll make a difference.”

Jonquil smiled. “Sounds like heaven. Do you have a big muscle-y guy named Sven working for you?”

“No, but Damon is tall with blond hair and blue eyes—and he’s got some serious arm muscles.” Sage took a sip of the juice Joel set in front of her. “Is that close enough?”

“It’ll have to do.”

“What are you doing studying Damon’s muscles?” Joel asked, glaring at Sage.

“I’m not studying them, but it’s hard to miss sometimes. Besides, you beat him hands down when it comes to muscles.” Amusement trickled through Sage at the thought of Joel being jealous of Damon. Like she’d looked twice at another guy since she’d tricked Joel into eating at a vegetarian deli the day they met.

“
I’m
going to study them and enjoy every minute of it.” Jonquil accepted the plate of eggs and wheat toast Joel set in front of her. “This looks awesome.”

“It should, since he used half the block of cheese,” Sage teased as she accepted her plate.

“I never noticed you had a prejudice against cheese.” Joel took the stool on the other side of her and rotated his plate so the eggs were closest to him.

“I don’t. I think it’s a lovely food, but it’s hardly good for you in large quantities.”

“I’m sure your arteries are in fine shape.” His eyes raked over her quickly with a look that said the rest of her was fine as well.

Sage didn’t respond except with a blush. She couldn’t figure him out and didn’t have the energy to start trying today. A bite of her breakfast proved Joel was proficient with eggs, however, and she eagerly cleaned her plate.

“Were you hungry?” Joel teased as he cleared their dishes a while later.

“I guess so.” Sage stood and stretched, feeling every sore muscle again. “Let me grab my things and we can head into the office.”

“We need to swing by my place first so I can grab a quick shower and change of clothes,” he reminded her.

“Right.” She would have to think about that if he spent another night on the couch.

It made her feel bad, knowing he’d crammed his long frame on the sofa.  Surely there was a better solution.

“Could you give me a ride to the resort when you finish up next door? I can’t drive with this cast,” Jonquil said.

“Of course.” Sage felt guilty, she would have offered to chauffeur Jonquil to the moon if she wanted—not that Jonquil would want to get back into a car with her behind the wheel anytime soon.

“It’s no problem, and my Range Rover is a lot roomier than most cars.” Joel wiped off the counter and Sage ran upstairs to grab her bag.

“So,” Joel asked once he’d studied the yard and determined it was safe for her to join him outside. “Are you going to get one of those massages from your muscle-man Damon, too?”

Sage smiled to herself, reveling in the touch of jealousy in his voice. “I thought about it, but I’ve got a lot going on. Maybe tonight we could soak in your hot tub instead.”

He studied her for a moment. “You
want
to be tied up in knots today.” It was more observation than question. The light dusting of snow that had fallen overnight squeaked under their feet as they headed toward his door.

Sage tried to decide what to admit to, then went for straight-up honesty. “I don’t like pain, but a little soreness reminds me of what happened.” She allowed an ironic chuckle. “Call it a form of self-flagellation if you like. I’m responsible for Jonquil’s injury. I thought we were being careful, but I didn’t think it through. I know I can’t live like I used to, but I can’t stay cooped up all the time.” She hunched further into her jacket. “It was a bad judgment call.”

He waited until he’d opened the door and ushered her inside, locking up behind him, then pulled her close. “You said yourself that I couldn’t have done anything if I’d been there—and I wouldn’t have thought twice about letting you go out for lunch—with me for protection. Your car still would have slid. None of this is your fault; don’t blame yourself. It’s all him.”

“Sometimes I feel like my whole life is about him.”
And that’s exactly the way he wants it.

“We won’t let it be.” Joel pressed a kiss to her forehead and released her.

The apartment was awfully quiet, and as always, immaculate. Sage needed to distance herself from her worries, so she changed the subject. “I thought guys were supposed to be slobs. What happened with you?” she called to him from the kitchen as he entered his bedroom upstairs.

“
Some
guys are slobs, like
some
women are slobs,” he shot back.

Sage started peeking through the cupboards—she had nothing better to do. She looked up when Joel exited his room with a uniform in his hand. “You stock my favorite tea. I’ve never seen you drink tea,” she pointed out.

“Yeah.” He shrugged, looking uncomfortable. “I thought you might want a cup sometime. Winter is here already.”

His thoughtfulness always tugged at her heart, and this was no exception. “You’re always trying to make me comfortable around you,” she said, realizing how many little things he’d done, minor changes he made in his life to accommodate her. How had she never noticed before? “But you’ve never acted like you’re interested in me, as a woman. Why would you bother?”

“A guy can’t be thoughtful?” he asked as he ducked into the bathroom.

She considered following him to push her point, but decided that would only make things worse. Instead she folded her arms over her chest and watched the door shut her out. She decided to poke into his cupboards a little more.

When he emerged again less than ten minutes later, Sage was leaning against the door jam, a package of Godiva chocolates in her hand. “I thought you were allergic to chocolate.”

“I am.” He avoided looking at her and made a beeline for the kitchen.

“You know this happens to be my favorite flavor, in my favorite brand. I haven’t found any local stores who carry this flavor.”

“Hmmm, is that so?” He shrugged into his jacket and checked his gun to make sure it was loaded but didn’t have a bullet in the chamber.

“Yes, and I know you’re aware of it, because it came up in conversation with Rosemary a few weeks ago. You were standing right next to me when we talked about it.” She remembered thinking that roses were too sweet of a gesture for him, but now she realized he was naturally thoughtful, but had been holding himself back. This man was the man inside, fighting to get out.

Joel straightened his lapels, not looking at her. “Okay, so I find myself compelled to buy things that you like when I’m at the store. You spend time here training. We’re together a lot. I want you to feel comfortable in my place, okay? And if picking up a box of tea or a bag of chocolate will make you feel more comfortable—oh screw it.” He took one long step, grabbed her by the shoulders and laid his mouth on hers.

This was nothing like the light, innocent kiss from the previous night. This was firm and hot and intense. His mouth claimed hers, slid to cover more and had her tipping her head back to give him better access. Joel’s hands on her shoulders loosened, then crossed behind her, skimming over her back and pulling her closer. Sage dropped the chocolate and her hands delved beneath his blazer to grab at his polo shirt, and yank him closer. She had dreamed of this for months, but her expectations never came close to the deliciousness of reality. The kiss lightened—but not to end it, rather to intensify the experience.

Going up on her toes, she pressed against him, changing the angle of the kiss again, reveling in the heat radiating through their clothes and the smell of the cologne he’d just applied.

The kiss went on as they both lingered over it, tasting and testing and unwilling to let go. Eventually he pulled back, ending it. His dark eyes bore into hers as they both breathed heavily, staring.

“Is that what you wanted?” he asked about the time her brain slipped back into place.

“Yeah, actually.” She felt a trifle lightheaded and licked her lips, tasting him on them.

“Lucky for both of us that I couldn’t take the bullying anymore.” He slid his fingers across her bottom lip, along her jaw and down the length of her neck, making her shiver.

Sage slowly released him, though she didn’t want to. “Bullying? I’ve never bullied anyone.”

“Right. I’ll remember that next time I see you nag one of your sisters to come into the spa for a treatment.”

“That’s nagging—it’s entirely different from bullying. Besides, it’s in their best interest. While we’re on the subject—I’ve never seen you come in for a massage.” The banter was making it easier to center herself after the kiss, to refocus on something—anything but the desire for him to kiss her again.

His expression turned grim. “So, we talked last night about what you wanted to do. Are you feeling better about your living situation?” He leaned back against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest, his biceps bulging nicely.

Because the kiss had allowed Sage to cross a line she hadn’t dared cross before, she reached out and ran a hand long the tempting bicep, enjoying the warm smoothness of his muscle. “Way to avoid the subject.” She pursed her lips, decide to accept his change of topic, though she’d rather not. “But yes, I’ve thought about it. I still don’t think it’s fair for me to stay there, putting them in danger. We really can’t move you in, even when Cami moves out and we have a spare bedroom. I don’t think the others would be comfortable with it. It’s way too much to ask.”

He grinned. “But I cook breakfast.”

“I noticed, and again, thank you, but it’s one thing when we have a crisis, it’s another thing when the crisis lasts for weeks or months—and don’t say it won’t take months, because you’ve already been all but living in my pocket since April.” Not that she was complaining.

“True enough. What alternatives did you have in mind?”

“I could run away—which won’t solve anything and might end very badly when the guy catches up to me eventually. Or I could move in here.” She really hoped he went for the second choice—there was no way he’d go for the first one, and running away was too chicken-hearted anyway.

Joel leaned over and rubbed his lips over hers. “No.”

Sage blinked. She hadn’t expected him to refuse both options. “No?”