by Katie Dowe
“For being my friend and for putting up with me.”
He grabbed her hand as she moved away and laced his fingers with his. “That will never change,” he promised her.
*****
Later that night in his apartment, Adam sat in his den and stared into the whiskey he had just poured himself before he sat at the desk. He had called and asked Bianca how she was and enquiring about her day in a solicitous tone of voice. He had thought about asking her to dinner but had decided against it. He had spent three hours with Amber, cooking for her and then chatting and sitting on the floor in the living room with her head in his lap as they passed the time. He had run his fingers through her messy hair like he usually did and the movement relaxed him the way it usually did, but there was something else there as well. He had asked himself the question over and over again why he had never persuaded Amber to sleep with him and part of him knew that it was because he never wanted to lose her. He lived in fear of losing her and no matter what he felt, he preferred to have her as his friend than to lose her. She was beautiful and smart and outrageously and brutally frank and a pain in the ass most of the time, but he enjoyed being with her more than anyone else. He had traveled far and wide when he would feel the unnamed feelings invading him and threatening to spoil or destroy their relationship. He sipped his drink broodingly as he continued his contemplation. He had seen the way men looked at her and had told himself that he was furious because they looked at her because their main objective was to get her into bed and he wanted more than that for her. What the hell did he care? He was not her brother for crying out loud! She was a grown woman who could pretty much do whatever she wanted and be with whomever she wanted. He leaned his head back against the seat. He knew that Bianca was expecting him to take her to bed and he had been hedging. He hated that he was doing that, but he did not know what else to do! He had told her that she was different and he had told her the truth. She was different from the beautiful, shallow, society women he took to bed because she actually had thoughts of her own! She actually cared about people and he liked that. It impressed him that she came from a wealthy family and had decided to fight for people who could not fight for themselves! So why can’t you fall for her? Why can’t you fall in love with anyone? Why is Amber so important to you? Why is she the first person you want to tell whenever you are bothered by something or need advice?
He gulped the rest of the drink and almost choked as it burned a fire down his throat and through his stomach! Amber was his best friend, he told himself stubbornly. And even if there was something more, he could never run the risk of spoiling the friendship. He could get sex anywhere, there was no shortage there, but the relationship he had with her was too important to be destroyed and he would never forgive himself if he did that!
Chapter 6
He took Bianca to the annual Labor Day activities at the club. He had thought about it and had decided to invite her to go with him for the weekend. He had squelched the thought that he was doing it out of guilt and had forced a smile when she had sounded so pleased over the phone.
“What should I pack?” she had asked him.
“They usually have an all-day outdoor activity that goes into the night. It starts with breakfast out on the lawn and various games right after. Pack a swimsuit as well and something formal for dinner and dancing,” he had told her.
“I am looking forward to going.”
He ignored the fleeting thought that he had wanted to invite Amber. He had invited her in the past and she had told him an emphatic no! “I cannot stand to be around too many rich people at one time, darling. It scares the hell out of me.” He had never invited her again. But he wanted to. Now he wished she was there. They had arrived a few hours ago and he had introduced her to some of his friends and sat down to breakfast. Now she was playing tennis with some of the women and he was lounging in one of the chairs by the pool, watching the activities going on around him. It was a sultry summer-like day with a faint breeze going through the palm trees dotting the landscape. He had not eaten much at breakfast and was now sipping a glass of whiskey.
“Isn’t it too early for that?” His eyes snapped up as a shadow loomed over him. He smiled automatically as Kelly Takahashi took a seat at the edge of his chaise lounge. He admired her style and the way she looked. At one point in his life, he had been a little attracted to her but had never moved it to the next stage. And now he was happy he had not done so. She was married to a friend of his and he saw how happy they both were. Somehow, she was good for the usually taciturn man whose face lit up whenever he was around her. But Kelly also reminded him of Amber.
“I would hate to see your husband and I have a falling out just because you chose to come and sit on my chair,” he told her with his lazy, devastating smile.
Ignoring that, Kelly scooted nearer to him with that sultry smile of hers. “My husband is very secure in the knowledge that I have eyes only for him that sitting next to a beautiful man like you would never faze him.” She studied him curiously. “Why are you here all by yourself?”
“I wanted to be alone,” he told her pointedly.
“You chose the wrong place to be.” She waved a hand. “The place is crowded.”
He shrugged and sipped his drink, his eyes going over to the tennis match in session. Kelly’s eyes followed his and she looked back at him in contemplation. “Your girl seems to be having fun.”
“She is not-” He broke off abruptly as he realized what he had been about to say. “I am happy she is.”
“Honey, if you are not interested in her that way, why did you bring her here for the weekend?”
He bit off a sigh. Kelly Takahashi was not known for her tact and was not one to give up until she had answers. He should have known better because Amber was the same! “I would have thought that living with Kane would teach you to mind your own business.”
She smiled at him innocently. “My husband happens to like the fact that I pretty much say whatever I please. He loves me in spite of my flaws.” Her dark brown eyes studied his. “You know, I met someone by the name of Amber Gardner a few months ago. I happen to like her designs and even though I am truly a Romano’s client, I like the fact that her designs are different and have actually ordered pieces of clothing from her. She mentioned that she was friends with you.”
“So?” His brow lifted arrogantly. Amber never told him that she had met Kelly or that the woman was one of her customers.
“I told her that there was no way that Adam Whitmore could be friends with a beautiful woman.”
“And she proved you wrong.”
She studied him for a moment. “She insisted that you two were friends of course and that got me curious.” He looked over to where Bianca was playing a strenuous game of tennis. The woman was beautiful and likeable, but she had been watching the two of them together at breakfast and realized that Bianca was trying hard to get Adam to notice her, but for a man who was into beautiful women, he was barely aware that she was around. “Why didn’t you invite Amber?”
“Why would I do that?” he asked her in amusement.
“Just a feeling I have that if Amber was here you would not be sitting here all by yourself,” Kelly told him. She got to her feet in one graceful fluid movement. “Think about that, darling.”
Adam watched her walk away, objectively admiring her long-legged walk and the way the wraparound dress fit her curves. He finished the drink and turned his head to look at Bianca moodily. He was happy she was having fun, happy that she did not notice he was not! He pulled out his phone and hesitating slightly, he made the call.
“You are bored.” Her sultry voice caused him to smile.
“Why do you say that?”
“Why else would you be calling me?”
“I always call you.” He settled back, intent on enjoying the conversation. “What are you doing?”
“I was just about to hop into the shower. Jared invited me out to have lunch and I have decided to g
o. How is going?”
“It’s going,” he said carelessly. “Things are progressing on that front?”
“We are having lunch, honey, not going to bed or going to the chapel.”
“I wish you were here.”
“No, you don’t!” she denied with a laugh. “And I certainly do not wish I was there. When are you coming back?”
“I was planning to stay for the entire long weekend, but there is a function I have to attend on Monday. It has something to do with some charity we are involved with. Why don’t you come?”
“No,” she said resolutely.
“You could come with Jared, I am sure he will be there.”
“If he invites me, I will think about it.” She paused. “I kinda miss you.”
He closed his eyes at that. “I kinda miss you too.”
“Okay, I am hanging up now. I am going to be late.”
“I will call you tonight.”
“No, you will not!” she said with a laugh. “Go and have fun.”
He hung up with a smile on his face and turned his head around just in time to see Bianca coming towards him. He made an effort to appear pleased to see her and also made the concentrated effort to enjoy her company.
He was so successful that by the time it came around to the dance later that evening, she was smiling and clinging to his arm. But underneath the charming smile he bestowed on her and the other women he danced with, he could not stop thinking about Amber and wondering what she was doing! He deliberately did not call her that night. He forced himself to concentrate on the woman he was with and that night he even managed to peck her on the cheek, ignoring the disappointed look she gave him when she realized that they were sharing separate rooms!
*****
“This is nice,” Amber murmured as she sipped her margarita. “I like your place. It is not too modern that it appears uncomfortable.”
“Thank you.” Jared took a seat next to her and leaned back against the cushions. They were seated out on his balcony gazing up at the myriad of stars in the velvety sky. Lunch had spilled over into dinner at his place and she was rather enjoying it. She really liked him and was hoping that the like would turn to something stronger. He was charming and considerate and those were two attributes she wanted in the man she would like to spend the rest of her life with. But he was not Adam! The thought came unbidden inside her head and had her sitting up suddenly.
“Are you okay?” Jared turned his head to look at her in concern.
“Of course.” She forced a smile and lay back down. “I was just wondering if I remembered to turn on the porch light.”
“You did.” He reached out a hand to take hers and she let him. She was not sure if coming to his place had been the right thing to do and was wondering what he expected to happen. “Amber, I really like you-”
“I really like you too,” she interrupted him swiftly. “I am going to be honest with you, Jared.”
“I am not sure I like the sound of that,” he told her lightly.
“I want to take it slow.”
“We have been taking it slow,” he reminded her. “I am respecting your wishes to just try and be friends now, but I would like to think that I am becoming more than that.”
“I certainly hope so,” she told him honestly.
He removed his hand. “Good.” He nodded. “Now let’s enjoy the rest of the evening.”
Amber gave him a grateful look and settled back against the cushions. She did not allow thoughts of Adam to invade her mind until she was back at her place!
*****
Amber Maria Gardner was not a hypocrite and neither was she a coward. She did not lie to people and she did not lie to herself. She had avoided the obvious for a very long time and she could not do that anymore. She had allowed Jared to take her into his arms and had avoided the intimate touch of his lips on hers. He had kissed her on the cheek instead. She had not apologized or tried to explain that she did not feel the urge to allow him to be that intimate with her. He had watched her go inside and waited until she had locked the door behind her, and she had not invited him in for a nightcap. She had started to reach for the phone to call Adam and had stopped herself. Adam was on a date. A weekend date with a woman who was interested in having a future with him and one who was insecure about her friendship with him. She went into the kitchen to put the kettle on to make some tea. “You make herbal tea when you are troubled,” Adam’s teasing voice came to her giving her pause as she reached for the pack of tea. She deliberately switched and reached for the green tea. She turned the stove on and sat at the counter with her chin propped onto her chin. They were friends, she thought stubbornly. She had never felt anything other than friendship for Adam Whitmore in all the years she had known him. And why is that? The question startled her for a moment and she got up to turn the stove off and pour the water over the pouch. “Because I want him to be just a friend,” she said aloud. “He is just a friend,” she added as she went to sit back down. “Adam is just a friend.” But instances of their friendship sprang to her mind. When they had been in college, they had invariably found themselves together. They had not taken the same courses, but they had studied together. He had been the one to comfort her when the bastard she had been seeing had cheated on her with one of the girls from her dorm. He had sought Wayne out and provoked a fight with him. She had been the one he had come to when he was tired of the girls throwing themselves at him. She had shared everything with him, so much so that at one point people thought they were together. He had been the one she talked to about her dreams of becoming a fashion designer and he had talked to her about the problems in his family. She had told him how much she missed her dad and how much she hated the way her mother behaved. Even on holiday breaks, they had kept in touch, no matter where he was for the summer. She had told him scathingly how he was using his wealth and looks to bed as many women as he could and he had looked chastened. She had influence over him and she knew it and had known it for a very long time. He had been upset when she had started seeing someone else again a few months after the Wayne episode and had told her that she was going to get hurt again. “He is not good enough for you!” he had told her coldly.
“According to you, no one is!” she had snapped at him. “Leave me alone, Adam, you are not my brother.”
They had not spoken to each other for two whole days and at the end of it Amber had felt as if she lost the only person in the world who mattered to her. She had met him halfway to his dorm and he had told her that he had been coming to apologize. She had flung herself into his arms and he had held her to him as if he would not let her go. They had never fought that way again! They had frequent disagreements because she was outspoken and he was used to people, especially women, agreeing with him, but they had never reached the point where they were not speaking to each other. Over the years, the only constant that had been in her life had been Grams and Adam. Grams was dead, but Adam was here with her and she needed him. He was the one she could talk to for hours on end. She did not have female friends because she often thought their conversations were frivolous and pointless! She had a few girlfriends she hung out with but not frequently. She much preferred spending time with Adam. When he was off on his sojourns as he called it, they kept in touch and even when they did not, she never resented him for it. He had tried in the past to give her expensive gifts and she had given him one look that had stopped him. He had asked her why a long time after and she had told him. “We are friends, Adam. I am more than capable of buying my own stuff. What we share is much more than some trinket you pick up. Don’t insult me like that again.”
*****
He saw her the minute she entered the vast ballroom. He had been looking for her ever since he got to the party and had forced himself to be attentive to Bianca who was clinging to his arm. The weekend had not gone well as he had felt her confusion and disappointment that he had not once asked her back to his room. He had given her no explanation and the ride home i
n his private jet had been done in silence. They had taken separate cars to the hangar so as soon as they landed he had wished her goodbye and went to get his vehicle. He had placated her by calling and inviting her to the party. Adam’s eyes narrowed as they wandered over Amber. She was wearing a jeweled tone strapless dress with a tight fitting bodice and a skirt that swirled with her every movement. A thin gold necklace hung around her throat and there were thin gold bangles at her left wrist. Her hair was loose around her face and her makeup was flawless. She outshone every woman in the room without even trying. He waited several minutes and leaving Bianca with several friends including his father and grandfather, he made his way over to her. The dancing had started and he had every intention of asking her to dance. She looked up as he approached and her smile sent small darts to his heart and throughout his body.
“You look nice,” she teased as she took in his black tux that vied with his jet-black hair.
Adam gave a brief nod to Jared and took her outstretched hands, pulling her to him. “And you look stunning. Dance with me.” He did not give her a chance to object but led her onto the dance floor. “And you are fully clothed for once.”
“I am actually not.” She eased away to show him. He looked down at the glimpse of flesh as the material parted to reveal slits all the way up to her waist, cleverly concealed when she was not moving.
“I am happy to see that you are still the same,” he told her with a laugh. His hands tightened around her small waist and pressed her closer to him. “How was your weekend?”
She shrugged eloquently. “It was okay. How was yours?”
“I am afraid I have disappointed Bianca.” His silvery gaze searched and found the woman he had taken with him and realized that she was watching them.
“Why is that?”
Adam looked back down at her. “I did not invite her to my room.”
Amber tilted her head up to look at him. “That’s a first for you.”
He smiled sardonically. “I told her that I wanted to take it slow.”
