Open Your Heart

by Cheris Hodges

  “Um, thanks?”

  “That was the icebreaker we needed before going to your place,” she said, and immediately hated herself. Why was she trying to act like what happened didn’t matter? That she didn’t love every second of it?

  “Yeah, now we can focus on what matters.”

  She raised her eyebrow for a second, then realized she’d started this. Yolanda eased out of his embrace, but he wrapped his arm around her. “If you get up, we have to go back to the real world. Let’s have this moment.” He brushed his lips across the back of her neck. She smiled and pressed her bottom against him.

  “I knew you were a smart man,” she said as she turned to face him.

  “Be a smart lady and kiss me.”

  He didn’t have to ask her twice.

  Chapter 18

  Yolanda woke up in an empty bed and was convinced that the morning and early afternoon had been a dream. But the soreness in her thighs told her that she hadn’t been dreaming at all. But where was Chuck and what time was it? She looked at her alarm clock and saw it was five after two. Had they been in bed that long?

  She sat up at the moment that Chuck walked in the room with a tray of food. “I see that only the smell of sausage and coffee wakes you up,” he said with a smile.

  Dimples.

  “You know my weaknesses. What’s this?”

  “Lunch. Chicken, rice, and broccoli.”

  “So, you like cooking?” she asked as he set the tray on the nightstand.

  He shrugged. “I have to eat and it gives me time to think.”

  “And what do you think about when you’re cooking other than not scorching the rice?”

  Chuck smiled. “I’m from Charleston, I never scorch the rice.”

  “You’re from Charleston, yet we never met before. That’s just sad,” she said as she picked up her bowl of food.

  “Guess we ran in different circles. Where did you go to high school?”

  Yolanda smiled. “I went to a private high school. And hated every minute of it. There was no football team, I couldn’t be a cheerleader, and everybody was scared of my father.”

  “Shaped your whole life, huh?” Chuck laughed.

  “Is that judgment?”

  He shook his head and grinned. “But I know some private school women. They’re the most creative and passionate.”

  She rested her chin on her fist. “Do I want to know where I rank?”

  “Top three.”

  Yolanda scoffed. “It only means something if I’m number one.”

  “You are at the top of the list, trust and believe,” he said with a smile. “How’s the food?”

  She took another bite and smiled. “Great. You know, if you need a second career, a chef might work for you.”

  “I’m good with that. I told you, I grew up in a house of women who cut me no slack. I would never open myself to that kind of criticism again.”

  “Is your family still in Charleston?”

  Chuck shook his head no as he took a bite of his food. “My sisters moved out west after my mom passed.”

  “Oh,” she said quietly. “I’m sorry.”

  “Mom lived a great life and we had a good time with her,” he said.

  Yolanda tried not to cry, but anytime she thought about how she never got to have that time with her mother that other people had it made her sad. While she shouldn’t begrudge people who got to know their mothers as adults, she did.

  Chuck seemed to notice her emotion and set his bowl to the side. “What’s wrong?” he asked. His eyes were filled with concern. She shook her head and wiped the moisture from her eyes.

  “I lost my mother when I was young and . . . I hate to say it but sometimes I get . . .”

  He pulled her into his arms. “It’s all right,” Chuck cooed as he hugged her. “You’ve been through a lot, huh?”

  “That’s why all of this is so scary to me. I can’t lose anyone else that I love,” she said. The last thing Yolanda wanted was to be blubbering in Chuck’s arms, but here she was doing just that. His warm arms felt so comforting and safe. Was this what a bodyguard did? Made all the nightmares go away? Yolanda patted him on his arm as she pulled away from him and wiped her eyes.

  “I-I, um, I’m going to take a shower.”

  “Why don’t you finish eating and I’ll run you a bath?”

  “Wow,” she said with a bright smile. “I should’ve cried on your shoulder the day we met.” Yolanda wiped her eyes, again. “Thanks, Charles.”

  He looked back at her as he headed for the bathroom. “Just so you know, I don’t have a tub at my place, so you’d better enjoy this.”

  Charles walked into Yolanda’s bathroom and noticed how small it was, for him. But it seemed just right for her. The round garden tub, the jasmine oils, and the pink rose wallpaper. Well, maybe the wallpaper was her sister’s style. But the aroma in that bathroom was all Yolanda. She’d been more than he’d cooked up in his dreams. But he was going to have to tuck this day away in his memory banks. Yolanda seemed willing to do the same. Was he okay with that? Maybe it made sense that they got their needs taken care of and now they could focus on stopping a killer. But he knew he’d never be satisfied with just one taste of Yolanda. And if he was going to keep her alive, then he needed to separate what he was feeling for her and realize that he was doing his job.

  At midnight, he’d be focused. Because that’s when he was taking her back to Charleston. To his home, where she’d be safe and he’d have to keep his hands to himself. Right now, he was just going to run her a bath and marvel at that amazing body.

  Ten minutes later, he was leading Yolanda into the bathroom. He’d lit the candles that she had in the bathroom and turned the overhead lights off.

  “Wow,” she said as she took in the scene. “This is awesome. Thanks.”

  “Well, you seem like you do this a lot.”

  Yolanda nodded as she dropped her robe and stepped into the tub. “You even got the temperature right.”

  “I just set it on hell,” he said. “I’m going to leave you to soak.”

  “Or you could join me,” she said with a slick smile.

  “Somehow, I don’t think we’re going to fit in there together.”

  “You never know until you try,” she said with a wink. “Do we have to get back to the real world right this second?”

  Looking at her standing in the tub, the warm water causing her body to sparkle with sweat, Charles didn’t want to go back to the real world, the fake world, or a world without Yolanda Richardson in it. This was a problem. He’d hoped to keep things professional. Find the people trying to kill her and move on with his life. But that taste of her sweetness and being inside her had awakened something that he couldn’t put back to sleep if he tried.

  Though he wasn’t going to try today, he was going to have to forget how good she made him feel.

  “All right,” he said as he removed his clothes and climbed into the tub. Water sloshed over the side as they eased into a seated position. Yolanda’s back rested against his chest. She was so soft. Charles ran his hand down her stomach, slipped it between her thighs, and stroked her until she melted against him.

  “How are we supposed to get clean when you’re playing dirty?” she asked as she placed her hand on top of his.

  “That’s what you’re calling it?” Charles slipped his finger inside her. Yolanda moaned as he toyed with her clit.

  “Um. Yes. Yes. Yes!”

  With two fingers inside her, Charles drew circles making her scream as she reached her climax. The sated look on her face gave him as much pleasure as he’d given her. He needed to stop. Because he couldn’t get addicted to her feel or her taste. He needed to focus on the job. They soaked in the water until it went cold. “We probably should get packed and head down to Charleston.”

  “The real world is back,” she said with a sigh. When Yolanda stood up, Charles wanted to forget that they had to leave. Wanted to pretend that this was the beginning
of something beautiful. But like she said, the real world was back.

  The couple dried off and Yolanda packed a couple of bags while Charles cleaned the kitchen. He decided to set timers on the lights to make it seem as if someone was still living in the town house. That way if the killer who was stalking her was still watching, maybe he’d make a mistake and get caught by the police. Charles wondered if he could use Yolanda’s mannequins to throw things off. He dried his hands then dashed upstairs.

  “What are you doing?” Yolanda asked when she saw Charles coming downstairs with a couple of her mannequins.

  “Setting a scene. When we leave, if someone is watching this place, they need to think we’re—you’re—still here. This will give us at least a couple of hours to get away before they’ve figured out we’ve given them the slip.”

  Charles placed the two mannequins around the front room. And Yolanda shook her head. “This is crazy,” she muttered. “If we’re being watched, won’t they see us walk out the front door carrying bags?”

  “That’s not how we’re going to leave,” he said once he was done staging the scene. Charles noticed that Yolanda was wearing another catsuit. She looked good in them. This one was gray and black. It was as if she was trying to be a shadow. Cute, he thought. But she needs to stop watching superhero movies.

  “What?” Yolanda asked when their eyes locked.

  “Are you a DC or Marvel woman?” he asked.

  She tilted her head to the side. “I’m both, and Catwoman is misunderstood, unless we’re talking about the Halle Berry version. I’m hard-core Selina Kyle.”

  Charles threw his hands up and didn’t say a word about how she would look amazing in Halle’s Catwoman costume. “Those boxes in your studio, do you need them?”

  She shook her head. “I’ve been meaning to take them out for recycling.”

  “That’s how you get your bags out. But I’m sure we’re not being watched at the moment.”

  “Does that mean I can get one last kiss before you return to being Chuck Morris?” She crossed over to him and pressed her body against his. Leaning down, he brushed his lips across hers. She flicked her tongue across his bottom lip. He captured her mouth and kissed her deep and hard. They were supposed to stop this. He knew that kissing her was something he wasn’t going to stop doing. Not when she felt so good in his arms.

  Pulling back, she looked up at him and smiled. How was he going to live with her for a month and not fall hard for her?

  Chapter 19

  It was after midnight before Yolanda and Chuck left the town house. Instead of taking the highway to Charleston, they headed down the back roads and added about another forty-five minutes to their trip. He told her that driving down the two-lane highways would allow him to see if someone was following them or not. So far, they were the only car on the roads. Yolanda felt weird when she saw Charleston come into view. Usually, she’d be heading to the bed-and-breakfast, ready to drive Alex crazy, hang out in her dad’s office, and talk about his choice of suits.

  Not tonight. She was heading for the Morris residence, where she was going to hide out for a month? How was she going to come up with a story to cover why she wasn’t in Charlotte to help Nina with her wedding dress search?

  “You know,” she said as Chuck turned down a neighborhood road, “we didn’t think this out. I still have to help Nina prepare for her wedding. I’m sure my sisters are going to want to know why I’m not in the shop.”

  “We’ll figure it out later today.”

  Yolanda sighed. And as she watched the houses that they passed, she realized where they were. “Ashley Hall, huh?” she said. “I don’t know why I figured you had a house on the beach.”

  Chuck laughed. “Is that why you keep drawing pictures of me in swimming trunks?”

  “Stop looking at my sketches, okay? And now that I’ve seen the real thing, I might need you to model those trunks for me if I ever get them made.”

  He shook his head as he turned onto the driveway of a ranch-style home. Yolanda was happy that it wasn’t a town house. They would have enough space to avoid each other if need be, and maybe he could spare an extra room for her to work in. Well, she was making assumptions about the inside of this man’s house. When he drove into the garage, the workout equipment didn’t surprise her.

  “So that’s how you do it,” she said as he placed the car in park.

  “Do what?”

  “Keep your body tight.” She nodded toward the weight bench.

  “It releases stress when I can’t get to the gym.” Chuck hopped out of the car and crossed over to the passenger side to open Yolanda’s door.

  “Do you have pets?” she asked as he took her hand and escorted her out of the car.

  “No, I’d be the most irresponsible pet owner ever. I’m rarely here.”

  She nodded. “I guess you feel the same way about relationships, too?”

  “Woman, it’s late and we need sleep. I’ll get some blankets for the bed in the guest room.”

  Guest room?

  Charles was tired and trying to remember the dumb promise he’d made himself about not getting too caught up with Yolanda. He noticed the scowl that darkened her face when he said guest room. He should just take her straight to his bedroom and go to sleep. They hadn’t been followed; they could unpack and get sleeping arrangements settled later today. You know, if she is going to be in your bed tonight, you’ll never let her leave, he thought as they walked into the house through the garage door. He pressed the code to disarm the alarm system and then turned the lights on.

  “Welcome to my home,” he said.

  Yolanda seemed to drink in her surroundings. Charles’s kitchen was right off the garage, filled with stainless steel appliances that shone against the earth-tone walls. He had a marble island in the center that he used more for work than dining or preparing complex meals. One of his laptops rested on the middle of the countertop. He had a couple of file folders stacked next to a bowl of fruit.

  “Where’s the coffeemaker?” Yolanda asked as she looked around.

  “I know you’re not trying to . . . I have a K machine,” he said and nodded to the black machine next to the stove.

  Yolanda snorted. “You drink one cup of coffee a day, don’t you?”

  “Yeah, and sometimes it’s decaf.”

  She grabbed her chest and pretended she was having a heart attack like on the old Sanford and Son shows. “Who hurt you?” she quipped.

  “Let me show you to your room and you can talk about my coffee choices later.” He led her to the room next to his master bedroom. The bathroom was across the hall from the bedrooms. He pushed the door open to the guest room and nodded toward the queen-sized bed.

  “I hope you’ll be comfortable,” he said.

  She walked into the room and smiled. It was another earth-tone palette with a bit of red and gold. “Do you need more blankets?” he asked as she plopped down on the bed.

  “This should be fine. Thanks.”

  “You want me to bring your bags in or . . .”

  “I’m just going to go to sleep,” she said and Charles could’ve sworn he heard a bit of disappointment in her tone.

  He nodded and started to head out of the room. “Chuck.”

  “Yeah?”

  “Um, good night. Or is it good morning?”

  “See you soon.”

  “Better not be with no decaf coffee,” she quipped as he walked out the door.

  * * *

  Yolanda closed her eyes as Chuck left the room. Was she tripping because they had sex and she thought it meant more than just the two of them getting pleasure? Was she really acting like one of those women who confused her heart and vagina?

  This wasn’t who she was. Sinking into the bedding, she closed her eyes and sighed. How was she going to make it for the next thirty days in this house without losing her mind? And how in the hell did he turn his feelings on and off? Chuck Morris was back and her sweet, passionate Charles seem
ed to still be in Charlotte.

  The man said he is doing his job, so let him do it.

  Richmond, Virginia

  Danny looked at the report his social media maven, Brittany, had given him. She had found out more about Yolanda Richardson than he’d expected. And now he knew he had a big problem on his hands. When that woman came up missing, she’d be noticed. Knowing more about Yolanda made having her death look like an accident more imperative.

  Danny was certain that it wouldn’t be long before she decided to tell the police what she saw.

  “Hey, Danny,” Brittany said. “I’m going to head out. What did you think of my report?”

  “It was great. You have that SEO magic,” he said with a smile. “If you keep this up, you’re going to be in a marketing department before you’re a freshman in college.”

  “Thank you,” she replied. Danny reached into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. He gave her two one hundred–dollar bills.

  “Have a nice weekend on me,” he said, then walked her out of the office. After she left, he pulled out his burner phone and called Chase.

  “What?” he snapped when he answered.

  “We have to change things up. Unless you’ve taken her out already.”

  “She’s missing,” Chase said. “That man who was with her had to be a personal security guard. They disappeared and made it look as if there was someone in the house. He has the police doing more patrols in the neighborhood. Who the hell is this woman?”

  Danny sighed. “A bigger problem than I initially thought.”

  “You made this a bigger problem with your handling of Bobby G. when . . . What’s the next move?”

  “Clearly, you have to find her first,” Danny snapped. “And remember what I said, that it needs to look like an accident.”