He glanced around and winked at Jenny. “Thanks, Sweetheart. This will be my dinner tonight.”
“In that case we’ll keep it full,” she told him, and brought over some pretzels.
Turning away, my mind escaped again to Billy. How could he support himself, and her, with college loans to repay? What if Katie got pregnant right away? I released a heart-felt sigh.
“You okay, Candy?” Jake asked, his smile not reaching his eyes.
I nodded, pouring a seltzer water to calm my belly. I needed to talk to Billy, but there hadn’t been two seconds to get away.
Jake nudged my hip with his, reaching around me for another glass. “Nice crowd,” he said, pouring a draft for a smiling twenty-something and her friend.
“For a crappy night, it’s not bad.”
By nine o’clock the Friday night band was setting up. Most of the tables were full. Not like the old days when we had several waitresses working, but busy enough where I lost track of time, and stopped looking at the door.
Jake handed me a bill and a credit card to run since I was already at the machine. “That guy at the end asked for you. Is that the Wolfe?”
I finished running the card, casually glancing in the direction Jake told me. There he was. Harrison. My stomach clenched. “Mmm-hmm. It sure is.”
“Don’t go there, Candy.” Jake narrowed his eyes at me. “I’m warning you.”
“Uh-huh. I won’t go anywhere,” I said, moistening my lower lip as I remembered Harrison’s excellent kiss.
He’d changed into jeans and a white shirt with his sleeves rolled up, and looked sexier than I remembered. My mouth went dry and my pulse raced like a Kentucky Derby winner. I picked up a drink menu and fanned my face and chest.
“You’re flushed again. Are you frickin’ crazy?” Jake grabbed my shoulders and shook me, as if hoping to get some sense in there. “Wait here. I’ll get rid of him.”
“Jake.” My teeth rattled. “Sweetie, I appreciate the thought. I really do. But I can handle this. We’ve got to talk, for Billy’s sake.”
Jake dropped his hands and gave me an enigmatic stare with some message that refused to transmit, then shrugged and walked away. “You’re something else.”
Ignoring my temperamental bartender, I sauntered over to what could soon be Billy’s new father-in-law, and my new family member. Seeing him at the wedding, birthdays, anniversaries, baptisms, all that familial closeness was an intoxicating thought. But…
“You shouldn’t have come,” I said, putting my hand on my hip and tilting my head to give him a half-smile. “I’ve been hoping all night that you wouldn’t.”
He folded the stir straw in half, his eyes never leaving mine. “No, you haven’t.”
“You’ve got a high opinion of yourself.” My toes curled inside my pink boots. “I’ll give you that.”
“You gave me more than that this afternoon, and that’s some of the reason I’m here.” Harrison flashed a panty-melting smile, as good as Jake’s who was at least a decade younger.
“Don’t,” I said, warding him off with one hand in a “stop” gesture. “You can’t flirt with me. Not today—not ever.” I had a sudden thought, a way to justify our flirtatious actions. “Unless we can make sure that our kids have come to their common senses and their engagement is off.”
“That’s the idea.”
I glanced at his mouth—thinking about how good his lips had tasted—and how much I’d like to sample them again. “Then you can do whatever you like.”
“Anything I like?”
“Well, most anything.”
He quirked a brow and his eyes slid over me, bringing heat to my inner core and a tingling from the tips of my toes to the roots of my colored hair. How in the world had this guy managed to stay single for three years after his poor wife passed away? He had heads swirling all over the bar, oozing sex appeal from every manly pore.
A big, big man that commanded attention. Broad shoulders, slim at the hips, great hair, perfect teeth, a well-shaped nose, and gorgeous eyes that lasered in and saw more than he should. Irresistible, and yet I must resist.
Life was cruel. First it had tempted me with Jay Carpenter, the first man in years that had set my heart on fire, and now again it offered a man I couldn’t have. Why, with all the men that stumbled through this bar, did I have to fancy the ones who were poison to me? Maybe I was just meant to stay single.
“What time are you closing down tonight?” Harrison asked. “Should I wait?”
“I can leave once things get slow. You want a drink?”
“Just a beer, thanks. A light draft.”
I poured an Amstel and slid the mug over to him. Our fingers bumped, and I jolted as a current went through me. He was like an electrical force that lit me up like the fourth of July. Inside of me, I tingled with awareness. It was so bad. So wrong.
Determined to put an end to an unfinished beginning, I spoke quickly. “Don’t wait for me or come back. Not unless you’ve figured out a solid plan to break our kids up. Pretending to be receptive of this idea might backfire, and I don’t want to take a chance.”
He took a sip of his beer, wiped his mouth, his eyes holding mine captive. My blood heated up. “I’d like to discuss this with you in private.”
“How private?” I blurted out, wishing I could learn to keep my mouth shut when temptation knocked on my door.
“I have a hotel room two miles away.” He twisted the mug around. “We could talk there.”
“We could talk in the coffee shop first thing in the morning,” I offered instead.
“Tonight,” he countered quietly.
“Tonight…okay. Sure. But at my place, not the hotel.” If we went to his place, it meant out and out sex. My apartment? There was a chance one of us would see reason. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jake watching us. I felt a twinge of guilt, but shrugged it off—figuring I’d carried enough around for the greater part of my life.
“I can leave now,” I told Harrison, wanting to get it over with. Whatever was going to happen, needed to happen before I became completely combustible and exploded. “My bartender will close up. You can ride with me, if you want, my place is only a few blocks from here. But no funny business. We just need to talk.”
“I’ll follow you in my rental. Whatever you say, Candy, although I can’t guarantee anything.” He finished his beer and I was transfixed by his jaw. “There’s something about you that’s calling to a part of me. Never felt anything like it before.” His gaze narrowed and he pushed the empty mug away.
“It’s the bar,” I explained with a shrug. “And storms. I’ve seen it time and time again.”
“And yet you’re still single.”
“By choice, mostly. Besides, you can’t control the metaphysical. Today, the place was empty, except for my friends. Maybe lightning doesn’t strike twice, because they’ve all been hit before.” I picked up his mug and leaned forward, as if sharing a secret. “I don’t know how or why it happens, but it does.”
His deep eyes smiled, crinkling at the corners. “I don’t believe in magic. I do believe in physical attraction.”
I believed in all sorts of things—not as woo-woo as my friend Susie, but not black and white, either. “I’ve seen it firsthand and on numerous occasions, so I know it’s real. It can cause a person to do a lot of things they normally wouldn’t.” Like lust after a perfect, forbidden, stranger. If I didn’t have him in my arms soon, I’d scream with frustration.
As if he could feel my tension, he ran the back of his hand in a soothing gesture down my cheek. “Let’s hope back at your place we can behave like two mature adults, instead of randy kids.”
My face warmed from his light touch. “Yes. We already have two of those on our hands—and that’s who we need to focus on. You and me aren’t going anywhere.” I took a few deep breaths, wondering if these feelings might fade come morning. Unlike my girlfriends, I hoped I could maintain some kind of control. Not for myself, but for
the love of my son.
* * *
Harrison followed me back to my apartment, and Jimmy, the doorman gave him a look of approval as he held the elevator. “Good evening, Ms. Thompson. You both have a pleasant night now.”
“Mr. Wolfe won’t be long. How’s your wife, Jimmy? She over that bout of pneumonia?” My doorman had seen me through thick and thin over the years, and we were friends of a sort.
“She sure is. Thanks for asking.” He pushed the number for my floor then stepped back.
Alone in the elevator, I darted a quick glance at Harrison. Why had I invited him here? What the frig was I thinking—or he for that matter? We were like dogs in heat, wanting to tear at each other, to mate, with no regard to the calamity it could bring.
I was not going to do this. I’d make him a cup of coffee and send him on his way.
“What are you thinking?” he asked softly, his eyes warm on my face.
I bit my bottom lip, wanting to feel the pain. No pleasure for me. Not tonight, not with this man.
“That this is wrong. Stay for a cup of coffee, if you will, and maybe we can come up with a plan. But that’s it. Nothing physical. Not even an accidental brush of the hand.”
“You mean like this?” He nudged up beside me, and the back of his hand was against my hip.
Heat pierced me and I began to tingle. I stepped back. “Yes, like that.” My eyes were glued to his. “Stop looking like that.”
“Like what?” He advanced one step closer.
“Like you want to eat me.”
“I do.” His hand cupped my ass.
Trying desperately for levity I asked, “Should I be worried? Maybe you’re a cousin of Hannibal Lector.”
He laughed. “You wish. No, you know what I want to do with you, and you’re afraid that you’re going to like it.”
“I’m not stupid. I know I’ll like it, and that’s precisely why it can’t happen…it can’t.” If it didn’t happen, I might die. I wouldn’t have to explain or apologize to Billy about my rotten decision as his only parent—I’d be found alone in my room, dead of unrequited longing.
The door of the elevator slid open and I dashed out, hoping Harrison wouldn’t follow. He did.
We got to my apartment and he was right behind me, his body pressed to mine. I felt his hardness—from shoulder, to chest to groin. It should have been creepy, and I should have stood my ground and told him to get away from me, but I didn’t. I shivered with pleasure, my fingers clumsy as I unlocked the door.
We stumbled in and then his arms were around me, and mine around him, and we did a strange backward walk until my knees touched the sofa. I collapsed into the cushions, Harrison on top of me.
My hands clasped around the back of his head as his big, warm body suffocated me. I held on to him and kissed him madly, wishing that I could be strong and resist this overpowering desire, be unmoved by this man’s caress, the taste of his mouth, the hunger of his tongue. Let me feel nothing, I cried silently, knowing I’d already lost the battle.
Ravenous desire pierced my defenses and I could feel myself slipping away, further, further into a lust-filled passion. His hand was on my tee-shirt, lifting it up so he could feel my breasts. My breath hitched, and I pushed myself into his hands, needing the rough feel of them on my tender skin. I broke away from him long enough to rip the shirt over my head and toss it on the floor. He suckled my nipples through the silky bra, then pushed the cup down, taking one breast firmly in his mouth. He laved it for a long time while I wriggled under him, and then he started on the other.
I was squirming with desire, whispering his name, taking nips of his shoulder, his neck—out of control. He reached down to unsnap my jeans, and then his fingers slid the zipper down. I sucked in my breath, creating enough space for his hand to dip inside, and then he was there.
His warm hand covered my panties, and one finger dipped in lower. Nearly delirious, I tried to tear his buttons off his shirt, but he grabbed my hand and put it on his crotch.
Oh, my! He was a big, big man. I gasped and pulled his zipper down. He was commando underneath, and the back of my fingers discovered the hard, long length of him.
I had him between my fingers, and wondered if I had any condoms in my bedroom, and how I could get to them without breaking contact with this delicious specimen of a man.
“The bedroom,” I gasped. “Condoms.”
He pushed himself off me, just as I heard the front door open. I looked up, over Harrison’s shoulder, and there stood Billy, a young girl next to him.
“Billy?” I squeaked, emotions other than lust a driving force to my brain. “What are you doing home?”
“Interrupting something, obviously.” Brow furrowed, he turned to his friend. “I’m sorry. This isn’t how I wanted you to meet my mother.”
Her eyes were wide. Tears slid down her cheeks. “Dad?”
CHAPTER FIVE
After thirty-eight years of living, I can say with complete certainty that this was the most painfully awkward, extremely mortifying moment of my life, bar none. There we lay, Harrison and I, with our flies down, my top on the floor, my bra exposing my nipples, and Harrison’s manhood sticking straight out of his jeans.
To our credit, we quickly rearranged our clothing before getting off the sofa, and didn’t stand to face our children until my top was back on, and Harrison was tucked away again. We stood together, shame-faced, eyes cast down, waiting for their disapproval to rein down on our heads.
Judgment day, and boy were we found wanting.
It didn’t come all at once. At the prolonged silence, I lifted my chin a little, and glanced from one shocked young face to the other. I shifted my feet like a child, and wrung my hands nervously in front of me. Harrison, white-faced, said nothing either.
I felt Billy’s angst and had to break the silence. “I’m sorry. This is very awkward, isn’t it?” I tentatively stepped forward and reached out a hand. “You must be Katie. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
She didn’t take my hand, probably thinking about where it had so recently been. I didn’t blame her. Not really. I thought about going to the bathroom and scrubbing my hands and mouth, but that was too easy. I deserved to be back-lashed for allowing this to happen. Here—in my own apartment—knowing that Billy was returning in the morning, and had his own key.
Billy’s face was beet red, his neck was flushed, and he was breathing out of his nostrils. His hands were fisted next to his side. I’ve seen him angry many times, heard him shout and rage and call me names, but that was when he’d been a frustrated teenager. I hadn’t deserved it then, but I sorely did now.
I waited for his outburst, but he looked so appalled that he was at a loss for words. “Billy,” I said. “I’m so sorry. This isn’t as bad as it looks. Harrison came to the Candy Bar to tell me that you two were engaged. We had a thunderstorm and you know what happens.” I rushed on, hoping for a little understanding. “This isn’t our fault. It’s the Candy Bar magic.”
I looked at Harrison, and saw his mouth open and shut several times, like a mute guppy.
I glanced back at Billy, and his face was redder still. I braced myself for a burst of shouting which didn’t come.
“Don’t you for one moment try to excuse this behavior,” he said, sounding like a grown-up for the first time. “You and him—it’s disgusting. Gross. I can’t believe this.”
Harrison cleared his throat, and took a step toward his daughter. “Let me explain…”
Katie shook her head and backed away from him. “There’s nothing you can say that will make any difference. I saw you with my own eyes. You were going to have sex with that woman…”
Her face twisted with pain, and she gave me such a look of pure hatred that I couldn’t stop the tears from sliding down my cheeks. I used the back of my hand to swipe at them and stood there—allowing her to call me anything she liked. I deserved worse.
“I’m sorry. I would never have hurt either of you if I could ha
ve prevented this.” I glanced at Harrison’s hard face. “He only came here tonight to talk about the two of you. We were concerned because you’re so young and don’t know each other well. Married, Billy? To someone I haven’t even met? It’s too soon. It can’t happen.”
My son’s mouth tightened.
“How well do you know each other?” Katie asked, her gaze ping-ponging from me to her father.
Harrison wouldn’t look at me. His eyes were on his daughter. “Katie. I’m so sorry. Let’s leave. We can talk about this later. I have a room at the Hyatt down the road.”
She shook her head, her long blonde hair swinging wildly from side to side. She looked so tortured that my heart broke. These poor children. What have we done?
Again, I tried to explain. “Katie. You don’t understand any of this, but hear me out. The bar I own is built on an ancient Indian burial ground and during tropical storms lights flicker, the brick wall behind the bar sweats, and magic is in the air.” At her contemptuous look, I cried out, “It’s true! Several of my friends have experienced it, and it’s a wonderful thing. But it also takes away a person’s control.”
“Enough, Candy.” Harrison growled. “You have no idea how ridiculous you sound.”
I shut up then, knowing he was right and hating him for it. I’d been looking for any excuse for my actions, but there were none. My shoulders shook, and I kept my head down and cried silently.
“Don’t speak to my mom like that,” Billy said, leaping to my defense. “You can see how upset she is, and magic or not, you came here by choice and tried to seduce her. Don’t see you apologizing for it either.”
Katie lashed out at Billy like we were all play-actors in a bad comedy. “My dad isn’t the rotten one here. Your mother probably came on to him, like all the women do. Since my mother died, dozens of women began the casserole brigade, bringing food and wine—literally throwing themselves at him. Isn’t that right, Dad?”
He nodded, still not gracing me with his gaze. I wished one of those Florida sinkholes would open right now and swallow us up. The thought of sliding down into the deep dark earth—never to be seen again—had its own magical allure.
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