Seducing Cinderella (5 page)

“I know. My sensei tells us the same thing. I can’t
believe
it’s really you! Man, I wish my friends were here. They’re never going to believe I met you.”

“Tell you what, let my lovely date take a picture of you, me, and your dad. That way you have solid proof.”

“Yeah!”

Lucie was so moved by the way Reid was indulging the young boy she almost didn’t realize he was speaking in reference to her. “Oh! Yes, that’s a great idea. Would you like me to use your phone?” she asked the father.

The man’s face fell as he looked at his son. “Sorry, kiddo, but I left my phone at home so we wouldn’t be interrupted at dinner.” He went on to explain to Reid, “I only get him every other weekend so I don’t like anything interfering with our time together.”

The disappointed look on the boy’s face was enough to rip her heart out. “How about I take the picture with my phone and then I can e-mail it to you. Would that work?”

“Yes, it would. Thank you so much.”

Reid posed with the boy and his dad for a nice picture in front of the gigantic fish tank, and then he suggested a fun picture with just him and Austin. She laughed as Reid crouched down to Austin’s level and they held up rocker hands and donned some sort of fighter face with their noses scrunched up and their tongues hanging out.

After getting the e-mail address and ensuring both pictures had no problems sending, they said their good-byes to Austin and his dad and left the restaurant.

As they walked to the car she studied him from the corner of her eye. Suddenly he stopped and bent to pick up a discarded bag of food from the ground she’d been about to step on. Telling her to hold on, he jogged back to the entrance and tossed it into the garbage can.

When he returned she said, “That was really wonderful of you, Reid.”

“What, that? I didn’t want you to step on it. Besides, I can’t stand littering. It’s lazy, and I hate lazy people who, for instance, refuse to put forth the little bit of effort it would take to throw something away properly.”

“I was talking about what you did for Austin and his father.”

“Oh, that,” he said, smiling. “I’m not as benevolent as you think, Lu. I get just as much of a kick out of meeting them as they do me. Especially the kids.”

“Don’t you worry about the impression extreme fighting could make on young children?”

He slipped his hand into hers and she was surprised at how natural it felt. “A lot of people have issues with the sport of MMA. They call it human cock fighting. But they don’t pay attention to the extreme discipline and technical aspects of what we do, or the incredible sportsmanship it takes to shake the hand of a man who just literally beat the shit out of you. As long as kids are made aware of those things, like Austin obviously was, there’s nothing to worry about.” He shrugged. “There’ll always be people who misunderstand it. But I’d like to think they’re the minority.”

They arrived at his car and like the gentleman he was, he opened her door. Before climbing in she turned, tilting her head a little to the side as she studied him. “You really love it, don’t you?”

“I’ll always love the sport.” For a moment he raised his eyes to the horizon before returning his attention to her with a bit of a sad smile. “How much I’ll love being in it remains to be seen.”

It bothered her a great deal to see him without his usual to give him a kiss. She’d intended for it to be on his cheek, but the wine must have messed with her aim because she landed square on his luscious mouth.

For several seconds they stayed like that, frozen in time, lips pressed together, until the sound of someone’s car alarm brought her senses back. She pulled away and touched her fingers to her lips as if she’d just been caught doing something scandalous

“Not that I’m complaining,” he said, “but what was that for?”

She studied her feet in the strappy heels before looking up from under her lashes. “Because you’re a good man. And to thank you for a wonderful day.”

His wicked smile was breathtaking under the light of the moon. “Well then in that case, Miss Lucie Miller, I’m going to make sure you have a whole slew of wonderful days.”

Lucie laughed and climbed into the car, but her amusement screeched to a halt before he even made it around the car.
If that wasn’t her most recent lesson in high-def, she didn’t know what was.
Yep, she’d just witnessed a master flirt at work. And totally fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

Now she knew what it felt like for those women who Stephen turned his charm on for. She couldn’t wait to be on the receiving end of his dimpled smile. The one that said he couldn’t wait to devour his latest catch instead of the buddy version she’d always gotten. Yes, sir, the doctor wasn’t going to know what hit him the next time he saw her. She could hardly wait.

Chapter Seven

Lucie couldn’t believe it had already been a week since Reid moved in. The days had been a whirlwind of physical therapy sessions for him and beautification appointments for her. She’d had her hair trimmed with some long layers added in, which she really liked and had felt foolish for worrying about so much. It wasn’t until they did the foil highlights, making her into an aluminum Medusa, that she had an anxiety attack. Thankfully the girl knew her stuff and the subtle caramel streaks gave her darker brown a beautiful depth she hadn’t known was possible.

After that her brows were waxed, shaped, and plucked to the extent she thought her eyes would never stop watering. When it came time for her nails she’d had to admit to never doing anything other than trim them when they got too long, which made the nail technician place a hand over her heart and look at her like she was a charity case off the streets before setting to work. Now they were filed, devoid of excess cuticles, she hadn’t even known that was a
thing
, and polished a dark purple called Extreme Eggplant that sounded less like a color and more like a dish on
Iron Chef America
.

On top of all that, Reid handed her over to Trixie at the Nordstrom’s makeup counter with instructions to give Lucie a How-To for every possible life situation. After learning how to apply everything from a five-minute dash of color to an evening look to a dramatic photo shoot session, Lucie was confident she could moonlight as a makeup artist for a morgue or circus if the economy tanked. Though some of the lessons were obviously unnecessary, she gave Trixie her head and let her have fun. Her excitement had been too endearing to crush with the reality that only a quarter of what she taught would ever see the light of day. Or night.

However, at the end of the week, Lucie had to admit that she looked almost…beautiful. It was crazy the difference some slight adjustments in her beauty regimen could make. Or, to be more exact, acquiring any sort of beauty regimen at all.

“Gorgeous.”

Lucie spun around from the full-length mirror in her bedroom to find Reid leaning against the doorjamb, arms crossed over his chest, the elastic cuffs of his black polo stretched to their limits over his biceps. The deep arcs and swirls of his tattoo seemed to extend from his shirt, making it look more like futuristic armor rather than a mere cotton blend. His dark jeans encased his muscular thighs and fell straight to bunch at the hem around his bare feet. She’d learned over the last week that he didn’t put socks or shoes on until he absolutely had to. And with that came the accompanying lesson of how sexy a man in jeans and bare feet was.

He pulled off the polished bad-boy look flawlessly. His hair was brushed into his usual style, but tonight the tips ended in a small peak over his forehead drawing her attention to his intense eyes. Tonight he wore earrings; square-cut diamonds that somehow managed to make him more manly, not less. When she’d cataloged every last detail and finally let her brain acknowledge the whole package, her mouth dried up and she had to swallow hard before she was able to speak.

“You look pretty good yourself,” she said. “But I still don’t know why you want to come to Lizzie’s baby shower with me.” Lizzie was one of the best nurses on staff at NNMC and was a month away from having her first child, so her friends and coworkers were throwing her a shower at a swanky steakhouse. “You’re going to be bored out of your mind.”

He pushed off the frame and crossed into the room. “I’m never bored. I always manage to entertain myself one way or another. Come on, we’re already going to be late.”

Lucie glanced at the clock on her nightstand, confirming their tardiness. “Crap!”

He chuckled as she raced to her closet to snatch her heels and purse. “Relax. Cinderella’s supposed to be late to the ball so everyone notices her when she walks in.”

“That’s exactly what I’m afraid of,” she said as she hopped on one shoed foot while trying to make the other side match with little success.

“Here, let me.” Reid took the silver shoe from her and lowered himself to one knee. She stood holding onto the bedpost, mesmerized by his hands as they helped slip the shoe on her foot. The warmth of his fingers as they grazed her ankle sent shivers up her leg and spread through her sex as though he’d touched it directly.

He held her foot on his thigh with one hand while the other opened, releasing a silver chain he’d been hiding in his palm to dangle from where he held the end. Surprise left her speechless as she watched him wrap it around her ankle and clasp it in place.

The delicate chain was practically weightless, and she wondered if she’d feel it at all if it wasn’t for the charm and beads attached to the small links. In the front, a small silver bird in flight hung from the chain. Crystalline beads of sky blue dangled every inch or so, completing the piece with a classic beauty.

“It’s beautiful,” she said. “But you’ve gotten me so much already, Reid. You don’t need to keep getting me things.”

“I know, but as soon as I saw it I thought of you.”

“Really? Why?”

“This is a sparrow.” He looked down and fingered the bird charm. “Unlike most birds, when a sparrow finds its soul mate, they stay together until the end of their life.” Raising his head again he met her gaze. “Making them the symbol for finding one’s true love.”

Finding one’s true love. Lucie merely wanted to find her one true companion and wasn’t holding out much hope for the love part anymore. Regardless, the sentiment was the sweetest thing she’d ever heard, and knowing he’d thought of her when he saw it touched her deeply.

He carefully placed her foot back on the floor and rose to tower over her at his full height. She tried thanking him but the words got stuck somewhere in her throat as her gaze traveled up from the open V of his shirt revealing the tan skin at his neck, past his freshly shaven jaw and full lips, until it was trapped by his eyes. They changed colors depending on his outfit or his surroundings or even the lighting. Now they were a light green shot through with streaks of caramel, reminding her of a taffy apple.

Reid Andrews was an absolute enigma. In Vegas she knew he lived the life of a rich playboy fighter, spending the majority of his time either training or casually “dating” more women than she cared to think about. But since he’d moved in with her for this truly crazy deal they’d struck, he’d been nothing but charming, supportive, and thoughtful. Just like she remembered him to be when she was young and hopelessly crushing on her big brother’s best friend. If she’d thought he was fantastic back then, he’d grown to be even more so now.

She cleared her throat and gave the whole speaking thing another shot. “Thank you, Reid. I love it.”

“You’re very welcome. Now let’s go. I can’t wait to see that doctor’s jaw unhinge when he sees what he’s been missing out on.” When she scrunched up her nose in doubt he kissed it and said, “Trust me,” and grabbed her hand to lead her out of the room.

Thirty minutes later they arrived at the restaurant and the hostess escorted them back to the rented-out room where the shower was being held. Lucie placed her gift for Lizzie on the designated table by the door and then nervously scanned the sea of people.

“Stop fidgeting,” Reid said in her ear. His hand at her lower back helped to ease her, but not by much.

“I’m not fidgeting.”

“Yes, you are.”

He was right. She was practically hyperventilating, which was likely to come next. She couldn’t seem to stop. Why did she feel like she was stepping into the lion’s den? These were people she’d known and been comfortable with for years. But what if they didn’t like her new look? Or what if they thought poorly of her for changing her appearance?

She barely managed to keep her startled squeak contained in her chest when Reid yanked her out of the room. “Hey!”

“Shh,” he ordered as he dragged her down a hall, turned a corner, and then sandwiched her between his large body and the wall. “You’re freaking yourself out for no reason, so I’m going to teach you a trick I use before a fight.”

“Reid, I hardly think—”

“No thinking. Visualizing. Before I step into the cage I visualize every punch, every kick, every takedown. I know my opponent well from studying his previous fights. I anticipate how he’ll react to my attacks so I’ll be ready for any situation. That’s exactly what I want you to do right now.”

She knew she must be looking at him like he was crazy, because that’s exactly what she was thinking. How could this technique could help her talk to Stephen? If she needed to anticipate the guy’s punches there was a bigger problem than wanting a date.

“Close your eyes.” Seeing his determined look—and in all honesty desperate to try anything to get rid of her nerves—she obeyed. “I want you to picture yourself walking into that room, your head held high, and your confidence even higher. You
know
you look fabulous. This dress fits your body like it was designed for you. The heels make your legs look impossibly long and every guy in that room will be picturing them wrapped around his waist.”

She was slightly cold with the A/C blasting from the vent above them, but when he placed his hand on her waist, any chills disappeared from the heat of his touch. He stepped into her body, her breasts lightly grazing his hard chest with every breath she took. Her eyes remained closed, but the magnitude of his presence was palpable. Focusing was definitely no longer an issue. She was wired into him now, brain and body, whether she wanted to be or not.

“Pretend I’m him. I haven’t been able to keep my eyes off you since the moment I saw you. I’m wondering how I could’ve been so blind not to have noticed how truly gorgeous you are.”

Reid’s hand slowly slid up her side until his thumb was millimeters away from her breast. She told herself she shouldn’t feel disappointed when he moved it around to her back, managing to avoid anything inappropriate. His voice, pitched low and near her ear, rolled over her skin causing the tiny hairs at the back of her neck to stand on end. “I start with simple chitchat, shoptalk, but the entire time you’re talking I’m staring at your lips and imagining what they’ll taste like.”

“You are?” she asked on a breathy whisper.

“Fuck yeah, I am.” His free hand came up to frame her face and he nudged her cheek with his nose until her head angled to the side. “You’re sexy as hell, Lucie, and I want to unwrap you to get to the decadent prize underneath. I want to learn your likes, your dislikes—to know your fears and your dreams—and I vow to peel back each beautiful layer until I discover everything about you.”

Lucie’s heart was pounding so hard she was sure the hostess could hear it in the front of the restaurant. She wanted to be known like that—physically, emotionally—desperately.

“Yes,” she said. “I want that.”

“Then
take
what you want.” His voice was little more than a rasp at her ear. It sounded strained and on the edge. “Make it happen.”

She was so wrapped up in the image in her mind, she didn’t notice Reid had stepped back from her until the feeling of bereftness came over her. Letting her eyes flutter open she focused on Reid standing in front of her. His hands shoved into his front pockets and the stiff look on his face didn’t match the sultry emotions he’d just poured over her.

“All you have to do is remember everything I’ve just told you, and walk through that door.” Before she could ask him if everything was all right, he jerked his head in the direction of the banquet room. “Go on. It’s time to make your entrance, Cinderella.”

The idea of walking into a room with all eyes on her no longer sent her into a panic. He was right. She might not be celebrity beautiful, but she did look one hundred percent better than she had a week ago. There was no reason she shouldn’t find some confidence in that. Stretching up on her tiptoes Lucie placed a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you, Reid.”

One side of his mouth quirked up. “Anytime, sweetheart.”

With her newfound conviction and brand-new look, Lucie pushed her shoulders back and strode down the hall.

…

Reid dragged his hands down his face as soon as Lucie turned the corner. What he wouldn’t give for a sweaty gym and a tough sparring partner to beat him senseless right now. The visualization technique was something that could be applied in any situation so he knew it would work for her. What he hadn’t known was how it would work him
over
.

He couldn’t even say for sure who he’d been speaking as that whole time. At some point it felt like he’d slipped out of character. He hadn’t been picturing Dr. Dipwad staring at her lips and kissing her. He’d been picturing himself.

“I need a drink,” he mumbled, making his way to the room. As soon as he crossed the threshold he spotted Lucie. Like she was the North his gaze would always point to. The simple pale blue shift dress she wore was understated and yet magnificent. He kept eyes on her as he crossed to the table set up with punch and premade cocktails. Grabbing one of the drinks he watched her ass as it moved under the thin material with every step she took. His gaze drifted lower to wander over the curves of her smooth legs.
Damn, she’s hot
.

He raised the glass then stopped. If he had to guess based on the shower’s signature drink, Lizzie was due to have a girl. It looked like a crazy version of a Shirley Temple, bright pink with cherries stabbed on an open plastic diaper pin straddling the rim of the glass.