by Anara Bella
“Ah, it all becomes clear. You’re worried I’m a closet slob after all.”
He grinned. “How’d you guess?”
“Just a hunch.”
He took the key out of the ignition and crossed his arms in front of him. “I’m not starting this car until you agree.”
Oh hell, if the man wanted to help carry her groceries in who was she to argue? “Far be it from me to turn down free labor.”
He put the key back in the ignition. “That wasn’t so hard, was it?”
Her mind immediately jumped to a visual of Reese’s hard, throbbing cock. Well, hell. All he’d done was say the word hard and it sent her into a tizzy of lust. Apparently, he’d already turned her into an insatiable wanton. What the hell was she going to do when she didn’t have Reese to slake her lust on?
As she directed him to her place, she forced her thoughts away from sex and instead tried to remember what kind of shape she’d left her place in yesterday. She tried to tell herself she didn’t care either way, but who was she fooling? Especially when she couldn’t stop herself from taking a quick peek inside as soon as she unlocked the door.
Annoyingly pleased it wasn’t too bad, she led the way in, with Reese right behind her. Putting down the groceries he’d lugged up, he didn’t say anything at first. Just looked around, taking in her collection of Kewpie Dolls and the easy-going disarray she liked to live in.
Her place wasn’t what you’d call cluttered, but the feel was homey and comfortable. You weren’t afraid to put something in the wrong place, mess something up or put your feet up on the coffee table. And it suited her perfectly.
She glanced over at Reese, trying to assess his reaction. Finally, he smiled and nodded. “It’s definitely you.”
Dana let out a breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding and then paused. He hadn’t actually said what he thought of it. “Is that a good thing?”
He pulled her close and kissed her nose. “Definitely a good thing. Actually, it’s a lot like my parent’s place.”
“Really? I can’t picture you growing up in a place like this.”
“Well, it was a house rather than an apartment, but it had this same cozy feel to it.”
Huh. Go figure. “Your place is the exact opposite of this. All sleek and modern. I just assumed that’s what you were used to.”
He shook his head. “My décor is thanks to a friend. She begged me to let her decorate the place so she could use it as a reference when she started her own business.”
She rolled her eyes. Of course women were decorating for him. “Why am I not surprised?” She shimmied out of his arms, pretending she wasn’t the least bit jealous at the thought of him with another woman. It was stupid. She was stupid. She shouldn’t be feeling jealous at all. And the uneasy feeling intensified. “We’d better get the rest of the groceries. Some of it needs to go in the freezer pronto.”
Reese helped put everything away, which was really nice, but that domesticated feel was beginning to unnerve her. Not because they didn’t get along, but rather because they did. Too well.
With stunning clarity it suddenly hit her why she was feeling so freaked out. This was a man she could fall crazy, stupid, heart-blown-to-smithereens in love with and it was starting to scare the shit out of her. Especially when she remembered that earlier feeling of jealousy. What business did she have feeling jealous? They were all about short term. Tomorrow he could go sleep with someone else if he chose to and that was the way she wanted it. Wasn’t it?
But the feeling persisted and the more she thought about it, the more alarmed she became. By the time they got back to his place, she’d gone way past fear straight to panic. If she didn’t do something, she was going to end up really hurt. Because one thing was certain—if the boring guys she’d been with up to now had gotten bored with her, then Reese was going to as well.
There was only one thing she could do. She had to make a clean break. If she didn’t she was going to start getting all clingy and needy and she’d be hurt worse than ever before. And with her track record that was saying something.
The strong reaction she had to Reese was all the proof she needed. It wasn’t that he was perfect. No one was. The problem was he was perfect for her, but she wasn’t perfect for him. Even if he was interested in anything long term, which she knew he wasn’t, it could never work. And the longer she let things go on, the worse it was going to be for her.
She had no one to blame but herself for this mess. She’d known from the beginning where he stood and it was, in fact, the very reason she’d picked him for her first foray into strictly sexual relationships. She was the one who’d changed, not him. Or maybe it was that she hadn’t really changed at all.
Shit. That was it, of course. Underneath it all she was the same relationship girl she’d always been. Reese had been right about her. He’d told her she didn’t know what she was letting herself in for and damn it all to hell, he’d been right.
What she couldn’t understand was why he kept prolonging their time together. But even there, she knew herself better than he did. He could be forgiven for thinking she could handle it. She’d insisted she could. No, she was the one at fault here and a complete idiot to boot. She should never have let it go so far. For the sake of her own heart, and even in the interests of being fair to Reese.
Thank goodness, it wasn’t too late. She could break things off right now. Minimize the damage. And once she’d pulled herself together, she’d figure out what to do from there. In fact, that’s exactly what she would do. Make a clean, fast break. Before she wimped out.
She helped Reese take his groceries up to his place, nabbed her picnic basket and waited at the door.
She looked around his apartment for the last time, her eyes drawn to the couch where they’d done everything from have toe-curling sex to sitting comfortably together in companionable silence. The ache she felt wrenched clear to her soul.
Reese stepped out of the kitchen. “You leaving already? I was hoping you’d stay over.” He held up a package of steak. “I have staples again. We could cook dinner in and then have dessert in the bedroom.” He waggled his eyebrows as he reached for her.
She adroitly avoided his arms. God, how she wanted to do just that. Spend the rest of the day with him and cap off their time together with perfectly stupendous sex. But she couldn’t put this off another minute. She might not be able to go through with it if she did.
“I can’t stay.” She barely choked out the words.
His arms dropped to his sides. “Something else planned?”
She shook her head. “No. I just can’t do this anymore.”
He stilled. “Do what anymore?”
“This. Us.”
“What’s wrong?” Dead serious was the only way to describe the expression on his face.
“Me. I have to break this off while I still can. I promised you short term, but I’m getting too attached. Too used to being with you. It’s best we stop now so I don’t embarrass us both.”
When he tried to speak, she held up her hands to stop him. “Thank you for everything, Reese. You’ve been beyond wonderful, but this is the end of the road for us.” Her voice broke on the last word but at least she hadn’t started to cry.
Reese looked thoroughly confused. She didn’t give him a chance to say anything, the truth was she couldn’t bear to hear it anyway, so she turned and all but ran to the elevator.
His voice called after her as the elevator doors were closing, but she didn’t stop. She didn’t dare. She just headed home and spent the rest of the day crying her eyes out.
Chapter Thirteen
A week later, Reese still didn’t know what had hit him. And it wasn’t just because he felt sideswiped by abruptly being dumped after they’d had such a great time together. It was also because he never would have believed he’d feel this way about someone.
He’d tried talking to Dana in person both at work and at home. He’d also tried calling, but she ref
used to discuss what had happened. She just kept repeating it was best this way. He apparently had no say in the matter, and that didn’t sit well with him either.
In fact, nothing about this felt right, and it sure as hell didn’t feel as if it was for the best. For one thing, he wasn’t sleeping. When he went to bed all he could think about was Dana—in his bed, on his desk, against his couch. Damn it, she was everywhere and it wasn’t getting any better.
And judging by the dark circles under Dana’s eyes, she wasn’t doing any better than he was. So how the hell did he convince her to change her mind and start seeing him again?
This was uncharted territory for him. In the past, he’d never had any problems moving on. He’d get back on the dating track and everything would be back to normal in no time. Now, he couldn’t even muster any interest in other women, which was more than just unsettling. It was downright frightening. Nothing like this had ever happened to him before.
He knew he was in big trouble when a gorgeous redhead propositioned him and he turned her down flat. Without being the least bit tempted.
Yep, he was in deep shit and he knew it.
Finally accepting he was out of his league, he knew there was only one person who might be able to help him. He couldn’t talk to his friends, they’d just laugh in disbelief, and his brother wasn’t any better. No, he had to talk to someone who would take him seriously and might have some idea of the best way to handle things with Dana.
Which was why he was sitting here feeling slightly ridiculous while he pretended to watch football with his father. Pretending because he really couldn’t concentrate on the game. Pretending because he couldn’t seem to figure out how to bring the subject up. Pretending because he hadn’t talked to his father about women since he was a teenager.
“You ever going to tell me what’s on your mind?”
Startled out of his thoughts, Reese looked over to find his father watching him instead of the game. Which was pretty amazing considering nothing much ever distracted his father from a game. Thomas Cooper was a huge sports aficionado and didn’t often let anything come between him and a game. Except maybe Reese’s mother. “What makes you think anything’s on my mind besides the game?”
His snorted guffaw told Reese just what his dad thought of his question. “I raised you, didn’t I? Think I can’t tell when my son’s got a problem?”
Reese had mastered the ability to keep his face neutral a long time ago, but it seemed some things never changed. “You’re the only person who can, besides Mom that is.”
“So, what’s up?”
He put down the beer he’d been nursing. “A woman.”
His father’s eyebrows rose to what used to be his hairline. “This is an interesting turn of events.”
“How so?”
“Never known you to concern yourself over a woman too much. It doesn’t work out, you move on. End of story.”
Reese heaved a sigh. “Yeah, in the good old days.”
“What changed?”
Reese shrugged. “The woman, I guess.”
His father’s eyes narrowed and a curiously all-knowing smile graced his face. “So you’ve finally met your match.”
Reese went perfectly still. “What makes you say that?”
“Us Cooper men are all the same. We merrily make our way through women until we find the right one. Once we do, game over.”
Reese knew he looked as surprised as he felt. “Same thing happened to you?”
His father’s bark of laughter ricocheted off the wood-paneling. “I was exactly like you, son. Played the field hard and had a blast doing it, but once I met your mother that was it. No other woman came close to catching my interest again.”
This was news to Reese. His father had never struck him as any kind of a ladies’ man. “At least Mom felt the same way about you. Made things a bit easier. Dana refuses to see me.”
He laughed again. “You think it was easy to convince your mother to marry me?”
His father was full of surprises today. “It wasn’t?”
“Hell, no! She didn’t even believe I was serious at first. Because of my past, I guess. I had to use every ounce of persuasion I could muster to change her mind.”
Why had Reese never heard this part of the story before? “I had no idea. Mom’s joked about making you work for her, but I thought she was kidding.”
“I wish.” A look of fond nostalgia crossed his father’s face. “Then again, it made winning her that much sweeter.”
Reese could well imagine it had. “I don’t know that I’m ready for marriage. But I do know I’m not ready to let Dana go.”
“Then don’t.”
“I wish it was that easy.”
“Nothing in life is easy. Not if it’s worthwhile. You want this woman, you have to prove you’re serious.”
“It’s a little more complicated than that. She doesn’t want anything long term.”
“Does she care for you?”
“I think so.”
“Then it doesn’t matter. You have to convince her to see you again. Fight for her. The rest will fall into place with time.”
Good advice. But then, he hadn’t expected anything less from his father. And it pretty much echoed what Reese wanted to do anyway.
The main reason he’d hesitated was because he’d worried that pushing Dana would be a mistake, but maybe he’d been wrong about that. Maybe what she needed was a little push. Maybe what she needed was to know he was serious.
Now to follow through with the plan he’d been formulating for the last few days. It wasn’t anything innovative. It simply involved copious amounts of wining, dining and enticing. Lots and lots of enticing. Something he hoped would lead to other seriously interesting activities involving his cock and her pussy.
Decision made, he only needed one thing to set his plan in motion. “Does Mom still have that picnic basket kicking around?”
Chapter Fourteen
“I think it’s dead already.”
Dana looked up from the Sticky Bun dough she’d been pummeling with ferocious vigor. “What?”
“The dough. It’s dead, done, kaput, finito. You don’t have to keep beating it into a pulp.”
Dana’s face reddened but she gave the mutilated glop a final punch. “I wasn’t, I just…”
Sandy adjusted her perch on the counter and leaned closer. “Just wanted to mold it to your will?”
“No.” What was she doing? Dana sighed. She knew what she was doing. “I guess I’m venting my frustrations out on it.”
“No kidding. Is that even going to be edible anymore?”
She looked askance at the pulverized mess on her countertop and wrinkled her nose. “Probably not.”
“Didn’t think so. Talking about it might help, you know.”
Dana’s shoulders sagged in defeat. She’d asked Sandy not to bring Reese up again, figuring it would help in her efforts to get over him. That it wasn’t working was obvious since Dana couldn’t stop thinking about him no matter what she did. “I thought I could put Reese out of my mind and move on, but it’s not happening.”
“You can’t put him out of your mind because like it or not, you weren’t made for one-night-stands. If you were, you’d have moved on by now.”
“I have moved on.” Dana shrugged sheepishly. “Sort of.”
“In what way would that be exactly? You’re not eating, not sleeping and the real clincher, you haven’t even looked at another guy since Reese. Not even when we watched P.S. I Love You. I was beginning to worry you were really ill.”
“That doesn’t mean I haven’t moved on.”
“That’s exactly what it means. Admit it, you love him.”
Sandy’s pronouncement rang true all the way down to Dana’s toes and pretending bravado didn’t change a thing. She gave up the false front and dropped into the nearest chair. “Is it that obvious?”
“You may as well have taken out an ad.”
“No!” Surely
it wasn’t that bad.
“Oh, yeah”
“Damn it. I thought I was covering pretty well.”
“Maybe in an alternate reality.”
A horrific thought struck her. “You don’t think Reese knows, do you?”
Sandy paused as if considering. “I think he might.”
“Oh God. He must think I’m such a loser.”
Sandy jumped down from her perch and walked over to the table. “I doubt that. From everything you’ve told me about him, he’s a nice guy.”
“Yeah, he is a nice guy.” Nice and out of her league.
Sandy plunked herself down in the chair facing Dana. “So why aren’t you still seeing him?”
“I promised him a short-term relationship. I’d have turned into a clingy mess if I hadn’t cut things off when I did. Anyway, it doesn’t matter now. He probably doesn’t think about me at all anymore. Hell, he’s probably already seeing someone else.”
“It would serve you right if he was. You’ve never even given him a chance to talk, have you?”
“I couldn’t bear to hear all the reasons why we can never work.”
“Why are you so sure that’s what he wanted to say?”
Dana shrugged. “I just am.”
“Wow, that’s what I call concrete evidence. You’d have made quite a lawyer.”
“Oh, shut up. You’re supposed to be making me feel better.”
“I doubt a truckload of happy pills could make you feel better.”
Dana threw her a half-hearted smile. “You’re probably right about that.”
A loud knock interrupted them.
“I’ll get it.” Before Dana could move, Sandy bolted for the door in an uncharacteristic sprint of enthusiasm.
Dana was still mulling over why Sandy wanted to answer the door so badly when she came back into the kitchen with someone who was both the most dreaded and most welcome person Dana had ever seen. Carrying a picnic basket of all things.
“Reese!”
“Hello Dana.”
“What are you doing here?”
