Mostly Perfect

by Heather B. Moore

  Nick already had eclectic sleeping hours, but after kissing Lauren, he’d taken insomnia to a whole new level. Even doubling the miles he usually ran hadn’t helped. There was nothing for it but to see her again. He just hoped that she’d be mellow about what he had to tell her on the drive.

  About an hour ago, he’d answered a call from her grandmother, and well, things were about to change.

  Nick climbed out of the car and headed to Lauren’s front door. He was on time, and he was sure that Lauren would be ready. She didn’t do much by halves. But when he rang the doorbell, there was no answer. He waited a few moments, then knocked.

  The door opened a crack, and he caught a glimpse of her blue eyes and the fact that she was wearing a towel. “Hi,” Lauren said. “I’m sort of running late. Do you mind waiting outside?”

  “Uh, no . . .”

  The door shut.

  Nick blinked. Okay, then. He paced away from the front door and gazed out over the condo property. There wasn’t a soul in sight, and he guessed everyone was enjoying a lazy Sunday. The minutes ticked by, and Nick turned to the most recent emails on his phone. He replied to a couple of them.

  Then the door cracked open again. “Do you think you can help me?” Lauren asked.

  Nick looked over at her. “Sure.” She was dressed now, and well, she looked beautiful. She’d swept her hair from her neck and arranged it into a chignon. Silver earrings dangled from her ears, matching the silver chain she always wore.

  Her dress was definitely peach, and the thin straps exposed her smooth shoulders. The bodice dipped low enough that for the first time he saw the heart-shaped pendant at the end of her necklace. The skirt of the dress flared over her hips, following her curves as if the dress had been custom-made for her body. The length hit her mid-thigh, giving Nick a good dose of her long legs and the fact that she was still barefoot. Eyes up, he commanded himself.

  “You look beautiful,” he said, although it felt like an understatement.

  Lauren gave him a half smile. “You look nice yourself. No jacket?”

  “No jacket.”

  He didn’t know what she needed help with, but he should keep his hands to himself. She opened the door wider, and he stepped in. She smelled like fresh flowers, and he wondered if it was too soon to kiss her right now or if he should wait until the end of their date.

  Lauren pushed the door closed, then turned her back to him. The zipper on the dress was halfway up. Which gave him a view of her back. He swallowed.

  “Can you finish zipping me up?” Lauren asked, looking over her shoulder at him. “This dress runs small, and I can’t get it to zip. I might have to change.”

  Nick could help her out. Yes. He stepped forward, and grasped the zipper tab. But that also put him closer to Lauren and her tempting skin. He moved up the zipper, and although it was snug, the dress zipped closed. But he didn’t step away, because what would one small kiss hurt?

  He rested his hands on her bare shoulders, then pressed his mouth on her neck.

  “Did I tell you that you look beautiful?” he whispered.

  “You did,” she said.

  He kissed her shoulder. She exhaled and leaned against him. Then he ran his hands over her arms and settled at her waist.

  Lauren slipped her hands over his, and they linked fingers. She felt heavenly in his arms, and he breathed her in.

  “Are you trying to butter me up before meeting your mom?” she asked.

  Nick chuckled. “No, my intentions are pure.” He hadn’t meant to sound so serious, but that’s how it came out.

  Lauren noticed, and she turned in his arms. He kept his hands at her waist because he wasn’t ready to let her go yet.

  “What are your intentions, Nicholas Matthews?” she asked, her lake-blue eyes connecting with his.

  Her tone was light, but he sensed her question to be sincere. And leading. “My intentions are to get to know you better. And since I can’t stop thinking about you, I want to figure out if we should be . . . seeing each other more.”

  She rested her hands on his forearms, bringing them a tad closer. “You know I only date casually.”

  “I know.” His gaze dipped to her mouth. “What are the chances of me changing your mind?”

  Her eyes sparkled. “I guess we’ll find out.”

  He lifted her necklace and gazed at the heart pendant. “You always wear this.”

  “My grandmother gave it to me when I was sixteen,” Lauren said. “She believes it’s good luck. And if I take it off, the family curse has more power.”

  He ran his thumb over the face of the pendant. “Do you ever take it off?”

  “No.”

  Nick gazed at her. “Never?”

  She shook her head, then wrapped her fingers over his hand that was holding the pendant. “Not even in the shower.”

  He tried not to let his mind go there, but the brush of her body against his was making it a difficult feat. “I want to hear the legend.”

  Her brows lifted. “Why?”

  “So I can figure out how to break the curse,” he said.

  “It won’t matter,” she said. “I once tried to talk to my grandma into burning candles at the church to reciting spells. She just scoffed at that.”

  “Sounds like we have more research to do.”

  Her mouth tilted upward. “You really think you could break the curse once and for all?”

  “I guess we’ll find out,” he said, lowering his head and tasting her mouth.

  “Nick,” she murmured against his mouth even as she kissed him back. “You can’t be serious.”

  “I’m very serious.” Kissing Lauren told him one thing. She wanted him too. And that was enough for him, for now, but he had every intention of digging deep into the Ambrose Estate. Both literally and figuratively. As much as he’d like to stay in her condo forever and keep kissing her, they needed to get on the road, and he needed to tell her about the progression of the contract with her grandmother.

  But Lauren’s arms twined about his neck, and her body pressed against his as she slowly kissed him back, so Nick decided to stay in this bubble a little while longer. But there was one question that was plaguing him. How did her sister Sofia and her boyfriend manage to avoid the “curse”?

  “We need to get going,” Nick whispered against Lauren’s neck.

  “Mmm.”

  “Lauren.”

  She opened her eyes, and her gaze told him that they were about to cross the line into feeling emotions that, according to Lauren, she refused to entertain.

  He released his hold on her and stepped away. Her cheeks were flushed, and she blinked a couple of times. “Okay, let me grab my things.”

  He smiled at the breathlessness of her voice. And as he watched her cross to the kitchen table to retrieve her multicolored bag and her cell phone, he shoved his hands in his pockets so that he wouldn’t pull her into another kiss.

  Once they were in his sports car and on the freeway, heading north, he put the car onto cruise control, then reached for her hand. Their fingers linked naturally, comfortably. And Nick wasn’t sure if his heart rate would ever go down around Lauren.

  But he couldn’t wait any longer to tell her about Ambrose. “When’s the last time you talked to your grandmother or Sofia?” He immediately felt the tension in her hand. He glanced over at her and found her blues eyes on him.

  “I haven’t talked to my grandmother,” Lauren said. “Sofia and I have texted a little. A phone call from Lillian Ambrose is usually an emergency. And Sofia and I have never been . . . close.”

  He nodded. “I understand. And I should probably let Sofia tell you about this, but since we’re, uh, dating . . .”

  The edges of her mouth lifted, but her eyes looked worried.

  “Your grandmother and I are in contract negotiations,” he said, putting it all out there as quickly and concisely as possible. “She turned down the initial offer, but I followed up a couple of days later with some revis
ions. She and Sofia sent over an entire list of demands. Some were potential deal breakers, but we have found common ground and have both made some compromises.”

  He stole another glance at Lauren. She was still holding his hand, so that was a good sign, but her eyes had narrowed. “What exactly are you asking my grandmother for, Nick?”

  He exhaled. Okay. Here it was. “Thirty percent, but I’m the primary investor. I have three others on board, and we are sinking in all the up-front financing. Predictions are that it will take four or five months to have the operation running and six months before we see income. Another three months before there’s profit. I won’t pull dividends until the twelve-month mark, which gives a ninety day cushion for reevaluation on all fronts. Sofia insisted on that, and I agreed.”

  Lauren stared straight ahead, not saying a thing.

  “You understand the political climate in our country and the oil and gas crisis,” Nick said in a quieter voice. “This new technology will be a forerunner, and I’m currently working to add the Ambrose company on the patent. That will be the final piece in the process. Your grandmother said that if the company is named as a partner on the patent, then she will sign.”

  Lauren’s voice was small when she said, “What does that mean for Ambrose?”

  “It means . . . that if this technology eases the crises by superior oil excavation, then by owning the only patented machinery and software, your grandmother could become the wealthiest woman in the nation.”

  Lauren exhaled, then closed her eyes.

  Nick had given her the basics; although there were still a thousand tiny details, she now knew the gist of it all.

  “Money always talks, doesn’t it?” Lauren said, her eyes still closed.

  Nick rubbed his thumb over her hand. “Money motivates. It’s a mover and shaker. Money can be used for good. Money can save a nation. Restore it to independence. The technology that I’ve invested in is not an anomaly. Someone else will come up with something similar. There’s no reason your grandmother shouldn’t be the forerunner instead of someone else. She’s worked her entire life in this industry, sometimes white-knuckling it in a business world not accepting of female CEOs. This could be your grandmother, or I could take it to another landowner.”

  Lauren nodded and opened her eyes.

  “It’s not a threat, Lauren; it’s a fact,” he said in a soft voice. “And it’s only business.”

  “Business that could change the face of America’s economy.”

  “That too.”

  Her smile was sad. “My grandmother built an empire on her own. She played the rules until she could make her own. Bringing in you, with so much investment power, feels like a step backward.”

  Nick could understand how Lauren would say that, although he saw it differently. He brought her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss there. “I’m going to take good care of your grandmother, Lauren.”

  Her gaze met his, and he hated that her eyes were watering.

  “But I also want you to know that if you think I should back off, I will.” He swallowed at the words that had come out of his mouth. Although they were true. The woman next to him was becoming more important than a business deal. That was undeniable.

  Her eyes widened. “You’d lose millions of dollars, maybe more.”

  He gave a short nod. “I know.”

  She leaned over and kissed his cheek, then pulled back. “You do what you are good at, and I’m sure my grandma and sister will be only too happy to keep you in line. As for me, I trust you.”

  If Nick hadn’t been driving, he would have pulled her into a fierce kiss.

  In any other case, Lauren would have called her date off and phoned her grandmother or Sofia. She couldn’t believe that Sofia had predicted Nick’s counteroffer. Yeah, Nick was different, but where was the line drawn between business and relationships? Lauren honestly didn’t know anymore. But she’d come to learn that first impressions could be way, way off-base. And Nick was the perfect example of that.

  As they sped along the San Diego freeway, headed north, his warm hand cradling hers, she felt something she hadn’t ever with another man. Comfortable. Content. Yes, the future was unknown, vastly so, yet . . . Right here, right now, being with Nick was where she wanted to be.

  Even if they were about to see his mother.

  Lauren had rarely met the parents of any man she’d dated, but Nick was different. He knew her background, the real her, and so dating him felt more real. More scary, truth be told.

  But she didn’t want to let go of his hand. She wanted this drive to last for hours. She wanted him to kiss her again.

  “What are you thinking about, sweetheart?” Nick asked.

  “Isn’t that the woman’s line?” She was stalling, trying to come up with something that wasn’t what she’d been actually thinking about. She was also trying not to let the way that Nick called her sweetheart go to her head. He’d said it once before, just before he kissed her for the first time.

  Nick squeezed her hand. “Is there a rule book somewhere that I don’t know about?”

  “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus?”

  He chuckled. “That’s a book I’ve never read.”

  Lauren peeked at him, appreciating the way his dark hair nearly touched his collar and how he hadn’t shaved today, giving him a bit of scruff along his chin. “Well, you should. You’ll then clearly understand the differences between men and women.”

  His hazel eyes flicked to hers. “I’ve never had a problem noticing how a woman is different than me.” His voice was low, and goose bumps broke out on her arms. “And I think you’re avoiding the question.”

  “You know,” Lauren said, still hedging, “sometimes thoughts are private, and they should stay that way.”

  “I agree,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t ask you and hope you’ll answer. Unless it’s something like plotting my imminent demise because you’re secretly furious that I’ll be partnering with Ambrose Oil.”

  She couldn’t help laughing. “You should have been a writer,” she said. “You’ve got a great imagination.”

  “You’re still stalling,” Nick said, his lips quirking. “Will it be in the library with the candlestick?”

  Lauren scoffed. “More like the conservatory with the wrench.”

  “Ouch,” Nick said. “Remind me not to wander a giant mansion with you.”

  “Like Ambrose?”

  “I’d be fine at Ambrose,” he said. “I think your grandma would stand up for me, and besides, it’s beautiful there.”

  Lauren felt inordinately pleased he’d complimented her childhood home. “Okay, Mr. Matthews, if you really want to know what I was thinking about . . . it was how I liked your kissing.”

  Nick didn’t say anything, didn’t even seem to react, but a few moments later he pulled off the next exit. She was about to ask him where they were going, but then she saw a sign for a museum.

  Nick didn’t head for the museum, though, and instead pulled to the side of the road as soon as they were off the freeway.

  Lauren couldn’t figure out why he was stopping. Then he released her hand and lifted his to her shoulder. She looked over at him, only to witness the intensity in his gaze.

  His thumb brushed against her neck as his gaze dropped to her mouth. Predictably, her stomach erupted in butterflies.

  “You can’t say things like that and expect me to not act on it,” he said in a quiet voice.

  Then he leaned toward her and brushed his mouth against hers.

  She loved the softness of his lips, the way he smelled, the way he ran his fingers along her neck, then slid his hand behind her neck to draw her closer.

  Lauren moved her hand to his arm and tilted her head and let him take the kiss deeper. His other hand rested on her thigh, and she could feel the heat of his hand through the fabric of her dress. The way he kissed her told her more than words could. He liked her, a lot, and she already felt the same way.
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  When he broke off after a breathless few moments, he leaned his forehead against hers. “What else were you thinking about?”

  She heard the smile in his voice, and she couldn’t help the tingle of happiness that traveled the length of her body. “I think I’ve shared enough of my thoughts.”

  He chuckled, then kissed the edge of her jaw, lingering.

  She traced her hand along his cheek, then down his neck, and rested it on the shoulder that was solid beneath his shirt.

  “I like your kissing too, sweetheart,” he whispered.

  Butterflies zoomed through her, and she was pretty sure by the way her skin had heated that she was blushing. “Thank you, I guess.”

  He chuckled, then kissed the spot on her neck right below her ear, and the bristle of his chin softly scraped hers. More goose bumps. “As tempting as you are, we have an agenda, you know.”

  “Oh, what’s that?” she murmured.

  He kissed a little farther down her neck. “There’s a museum I want to show you.”

  She ran her hand down his arm, then drew back. “Okay, let’s go.”

  Nick lifted his head. “Just like that?”

  “Well, we don’t want to be late to your mother’s function.”

  His gaze searched hers, and something in his eyes made warmth pool in her belly. She gently pushed him away. “Drive, Romeo.”

  He shook his head, smiling. After checking for traffic, he pulled onto the road again.

  As they turned into the parking lot of the museum, Lauren read the sign aloud: “The Museum of Making Music.”

  “Have you ever been?” he asked.

  “No. Sounds interesting, though,” she said as he pulled into a parking stall. Only a handful of cars were in the lot.

  “I thought you might like it, since you listen to all the old stuff.”

  Yeah. Nick was all right.

  He opened his door, then said, “Wait for me.”

  So she waited for him to walk around the car and open her door. More than all right. He held out his hand to help her to her feet. Not that she needed the help, but the chivalry was nice. Besides, he didn’t let go of her hand, and she wasn’t about to complain about that.