by Cait London
“I run a business, you know.”
“Ah. Howard.”
“Yes.” The flash of her eyes and Jessica’s one word said she didn’t want his interference. Too bad, Alexi decided. He was taking the rights of a lover to protect his own.
“Get out of here,” he said lightly. “That’s what you want to do, isn’t it? Leave? Pack up and go, then. We’re both adults. There’s no need to try to make nice.”
He didn’t need to look at Jessica to feel her response to his challenge. Alexi could feel her bristle in the cold air between them.
“I thought you Stepanov boys were supposed to be easygoing. But you are definitely a mountain of trouble.”
Alexi looked down at her. “Make up your mind. Either you want me—what I am—or you don’t.”
“Your bruises are showing, Alexi.”
“Maybe. Either you stay or not. Either you come back or you don’t.”
“This is some morning after,” she muttered, and tossed a small piece of wood at him.
Alexi moved his arm, deflecting the wood. He’d thought about flowers and breakfast in bed. At another time, when his edges weren’t so raw, terrified that she’d walk away from whatever might grow between them, he might have been less harsh. A wealthy woman, Jessica was used to more, more than he could give her.
And he couldn’t settle for less than what they could have—“You can’t make it here, Jessica. There’s no way you can give up everything you have and lower yourself to a working man’s life—my life.”
“I know what you’re doing, Alexi. You want me to commit to you right now. You’re challenging me. And you really think I’ll walk, don’t you?”
“The choice is yours. I want you here, with me. And I’m not sneaking up to the resort to visit your suite when you drop in now and then.” Maybe his pride was showing—or his fear—but pushing Jessica into a semi-commitment was something he needed now. Uncomfortable with his insecurity, Alexi knew what he was challenging Jessica to do—to overturn her entire life to stay with him, a man who had little to offer. “If you want to keep tabs on Willow, on whatever her problem is, you’ll have to do it yourself. Let me know what you decide.”
Then to soften his fear, to reassure himself and to give Jessica something to balance during her day, Alexi reached down to cradle the nape of her neck. He watched her eyes darken, felt the sensual heat stir in the shadowy cold air between them. “Come here,” he whispered.
The resistance to his order was there in the stiffness of her body. She was a woman who chose her own path—would she choose him?
Then she took two more steps up the ladder. That encouraged Alexi, and he bent down slightly. “Come here,” he whispered again, and feared he was pushing his luck.
Jessica’s next step took her to a level where their lips met and played and warmed. “I thought you were civilized, Stepanov, or trying to be,” she whispered, and caught his bottom lip with her teeth.
He smiled lightly and his tongue traced her upper lip. “Only when I have to be.”
Her lips opened and his tongue instantly slipped inside. Their eyes met, so close he could see himself in the darkness of hers. The slight suction of her mouth caused his body to harden instantly.
Jessica leaned a fraction away, studying him. She licked her lips and tilted her head, those dark green eyes heavy-lidded and sultry. “I could make you beg.”
The taunt was sexual, playful, and Alexi delighted in this feminine woman set to torment him. “Try it. Now.”
Her shocked expression pleased him and Alexi couldn’t help grinning.
“You’re overconfident, Stepanov,” Jessica murmured. “Someone needs to take you down.”
“Try.”
She shook her head and Alexi could feel the heat in her, that need to meet his challenges. She snapped her fingers. “I could seduce you in a minute. Just like that.”
He grinned, enjoying the intimate, playful rivalry between them. “Try.”
“It’s cold outside and you’re sweaty. You look fizzed. What’s wrong?” Willow asked anxiously as Jessica entered her shop.
“I’ve been running. I do work on keeping in shape, you know.” Jessica regretted her sharp reply, an aftermath to fighting her instincts to climb that ladder and wipe the smile—rather, change Alexi’s expression to one of that dark hunger.
But then that would have just tripped her own, and they would be back in bed—or the first flat surface or—Jessica blinked with an unexpected thought: Alexi could support her weight; he’d just carried her into the house and he’d carried her to bed.
When he’d looked down at her and said that one word, “Try,” she almost did, her body warming and softening and aching for his.
It was all about sex and testing each other’s limits, nothing more. Alexi was a tall, fascinating challenge and he knew it. He knew just how to test her, pushing for more.
Jessica held her smile inside, where she was warm and happy and feeling like taking Alexi down and—All she had to do was to circle him sensually, find his weakness and go for him, and then they’d see about “Try.”
Her legs were shaking—either from her hard run along the beach or thinking about Alexi’s demands, pushing her to the limit and leaving her exhausted, clinging, sated and smiling against his damp shoulder. She’d never felt so complete, her body blending with his, as if he were the other part of her. How could a man be so tender, soothing her later? How could he be wrapped in his own demanding hunger and yet put hers first?
Jessica caught Willow’s puzzled expression. “I’m sorry, Willow. I’ve got things on my mind. What were you saying?”
Willow’s eyebrows rose and behind the glint of her small glasses, her eyes sparkled with humor. “Things on your mind like Alexi Stepanov? That dreamboat? So you spent the night there? Tell all. I’ll put the teakettle on. I’ve never seen you blush before, Jessica.”
Jessica leveled a look at Willow, who was studying her with interest, as if noting every minute change.
She ran her fingertip over the small strawberry-shaped soaps on display with others, all placed in ceramic clam shells and sealed in plastic. Was it that evident? The hours spent making love with Alexi? “It was only because the weather conditions were bad. My car stalled.”
“Uh-huh. Like I believe that,” Willow said, leading the way back to her apartment. “I know what I’d do if I could catch that guy. I’d nail him on the spot.”
Jessica shivered, remembering how Alexi had watched her bathe…how those blue eyes had stroked her body beneath the sudsy water. That dark, contemplative, hungry look brought to life emotions she hadn’t experienced, and she feared trusting them.
Once in her kitchen, Willow ran water into the kettle, put it on the flame and turned to Jessica. Willow leaned back against her kitchen counter and studied her friend. “I’ve known you too well for you to put one over on me. You had sex with him and liked it—this, after not being touched by a man since your teenage marriage. He’s got you all steamed up—a man like Alexi would do that to a woman he wanted. And he’d make life pretty darned difficult for that woman, too. Now you’re running because you’re frustrated and don’t know how to handle yourself, or what to do next, and you want to go to him and tell him all that, but you don’t know how to give yourself over—to trust anyone but me. Is that about it?”
“Sex? You think I had sex with Alexi? Am I wearing a label or something?” Willow had perfectly described Jessica’s problems. She studied Willow, who had often spoken about Alexi, how nice he was. “He’s…interesting. Are you interested in him, Willow?”
“He’s been around, in the shop and at the resort,” Willow stated cautiously. “Alexi seems interested in me. I hope that doesn’t bother you. I wouldn’t want my best friend to feel… well, jealous. Do you? I mean, just because you had sex with him doesn’t mean that—”
“Of course not.”
When Willow grinned, Jessica pushed away that slight burning emotion that she wouldn�
��t call jealousy; Alexi might want another woman, and there was no lasting commitment between them.
Or was there? Her senses told her that their bond as lovers went deeper. Jessica sipped the tea Willow had just poured. Her plan to have Alexi investigate the danger to Willow may have backfired.
Or Alexi could genuinely be interested in Willow.
Jessica’s body tightened, remembering Alexi’s fierce possession. “If he is interested, he’s a darned good—”
“What, Jessica?” Willow asked.
“Nothing.” She noted the cardboard taped over Willow’s window. It was new; the other broken window was in the shop. “Did you ever find out who broke the window?”
Willow shrugged, but she’d turned her telltale face away from Jessica. “Kids, probably. Probably threw a rock and it accidentally hit my window. They were probably too scared to come tell me.”
Concerned for her friend, Jessica placed her hand on Willow’s. “Willow, I’m worried. You said someone was calling, breathing heavily. You’re here alone. You could be in danger.”
“It was probably someone who just got the wrong number.”
“And took a few minutes breathing heavily? I don’t think so.”
“Jessica, they dialed the wrong number, and when they heard my voice, it took them a moment to regroup. That’s all.”
“It’s someone you know, isn’t it? Someone is threatening you and—”
“And I do not want trouble,” Willow finished briskly. She turned to Jessica, studying her over the rims of her small glasses. “We both know that Alexi has only one woman on his mind. Last week, when you were in Seattle, he had the lonesomest look. And he’s the first man to interest you. Are you going to grab this chance or not? Does Howard know? I do not like that guy. He’s a bully. You should separate completely from him.”
“I can’t. He’s Robert’s son. Robert asked me to protect Sterling Stops, but also to understand that he’d never given Howard the father he needed. Robert felt guilty about that, and I promised him that I’d watch out for Howard.”
On a visit to Sterling Stops’ corporate office, Willow had experienced firsthand Howard’s jealousy, his anger and his need to possess Jessica. A simple lunch date between friends had infuriated him—especially when he invited himself and Jessica preferred Willow’s company over his. Alarmed that Howard could be stalking Willow, Jessica asked, “Has Howard called you? Has he come here?”
Willow’s expression tightened and she crossed her arms, leveling a look at Jessica. “Honey, that was over four months ago. He knows you and I are close and wanted me to get you to play ball on some deal or another. I kicked him out. He made a pass at me—it was like, ‘gee whiz, she’s a woman, and I’ve got some spare time. I’m doing her a favor.’ Look, dear heart, I detest the guy and I can protect myself against someone like him.”
Infuriated at the lengths Howard would go, Jessica placed her cup into the sink. “You should have told me. I’ll see that Howard doesn’t bother you again.”
“I can handle myself—with some jerk like him anyway. He was limping when he left. I believe his crotch was hurting. He won’t be back. But what about you? Are you going to stop him from bothering you, too?”
“I’ve been stopping it for years.” But Alexi had just upped the ante because Howard would consider him to be a poacher.
“So you spent the night with Alexi and now you’re set to go right back where you were—killing yourself with work and guilt. That’s what you plan to do, isn’t it?” Willow asked. “And if I didn’t care, I just might let you do that. But I do care, and I want you to take some time to deal with what you need as a person, as a woman—to find yourself and what you deserve. You do not owe anyone anything. You’ve already paid too much—first of all to that family, and then to that idiot you married before that. I know you loved Robert, but now it’s time to move on—and if I weren’t your friend and didn’t love you dearly, I wouldn’t be telling you that it’s time to deal with your life and your feelings.”
Willow paused to take a deep breath as if unloading a huge burden. “He came after you, didn’t he? And you came here to see him, didn’t you? Gee whiz, it doesn’t take a brainiac to figure out there is something cooking between you. Go for it, Jess.”
“Are you finished?” Jessica asked, shocked because Willow had always been so careful not to voice her very definite opinions about her friend’s life.
“No. There’s this.” Willow stepped close and hugged and rocked Jessica. As if firmly resolved, Willow stepped back. “I needed that. Because I’m terribly afraid.”
Jessica took her friend’s hand and smoothed a tightly waving strand back from her forehead. “I told you. I’ll see that you’re protected. I’m not leaving here without some safeguard in place for you.”
Willow’s fingers tightened on Jessica’s. “Jess, I’m a busybody and shouldn’t interfere, but we’re best friends. Aren’t we?”
“Of course. How did you interfere? The soap you sent to the office? It was lovely. My secretary wants to order more for her friends—”
“I had good motives. Don’t hate me.”
“But I could never hate you. You’re the only person I’ve ever trusted with how I feel, with my life—”
“You might hate me after this,” Willow muttered as if to herself. After taking a deep breath, her words rushed from her. “I set this up. You said that your relationship with Robert—wasn’t sexual, though you loved him. Now you seem to be locked in to that business. I knew you’d stay in that office, working yourself to death, and that deadbeat, Howard, would be leering at you. Someday, when you’re tired and down, he’ll probably catch you and—”
Willow paused and looked at her wristwatch. “Oh, shoot. I was supposed to pick up Patience to take her to the clinic and then drop by to take Frank to the grocery store, and then go back and pick up Patience. Oh, wait a minute, before Patience, I was supposed to… It’s my day to shuttle everyone around and I forgot. I was worried about you and a shipment of supplies was due and—”
Jessica placed her fingertip in the center of Willow’s forehead, effectively stopping the flow of Willow’s schedule. Jessica sensed she wasn’t going to like whatever was coming next in her friend’s plot to get her to Amoteh. “Let’s get back to you worrying about me not managing my own life. I was tired and rundown and Howard was bothering me…. And?”
Willow threw up her hands and shook her head. “I think you’re a great match for Alexi, and you weren’t taking my hints so I had to act. I knew you’d come here and stay, to protect me. Since I played summer theater—”
“I knew I wasn’t going to like this.”
“You’re looking all dark and mad… Like when you think something isn’t my business, but it’s bothering you—like resolving your family stuff—and I think you should get it out and talk about it…. And besides, it might actually be true that someone is stalking me. But it isn’t…. Okay, well. My motives were well-intended. Just don’t hate me…. Oh, I just hate it when you get that scrunched-up look like when I paid that guy to dance with you—I really did think he was a good match for you and you needed to feel like a woman instead of a machine…. Um, would you like me to make you some fudge? I’ll cancel everything and close the shop. It’s going to rain today. We can watch movies and eat chocolate and—”
“You faked danger to yourself because you knew I’d get involved with Alexi? You did that? Does Alexi know? Does Alexi know?”
Willow’s hands raised to rub circles on her temples and she frowned at Jessica from between her little fingers. “I knew you’d get all worked up. I can’t do everything, you know. I’m supposed to give this little talk to some ladies on retreat at the Amoteh about soap-making. One of their grandmothers actually made her own and she’s basically called me out to prove that I’m a fake, that real soap-making is done with fat, lye and a kettle. It’s a duel, Jessica, and I have to turn up. The ladies are afraid they’ll fall in the mud, so I have to go t
o them. I stand to get some big orders out of them. I forgot about the appointments I had to transport the elderly, and you’re just going to have to help me out.”
“Oh, I am, am I?”
“Yes, you are. Because you’re my friend and I’m yours, and I know that you had good sex last night, because you’re glowing.” Willow picked up a pad and pencil and started sketching a map.
She handed it to Jessica. “You’ll help me, won’t you, Jess? Please, please, please? I love you, Jessie, and the marked Xs are pickups with the names and times,” she singsonged.
“Give me that and never call me Jessie again,” Jessica ordered without anger as she snatched the map. How could she possibly be angry with a friend who had given her so much, who was almost the sister she’d wanted for a lifetime?
Jessica leaned away from Willow’s kiss on her cheek and said, “Okay, but you’re pushing it. But don’t think that I’m done with you, or with Alexi. I’m not happy that you set this up, and if he has any idea of what you’ve done, I’m going to teach him a lesson.”
Seven
A t seven o’clock, the night was quiet and moonlit outside the Stepanov Furniture Shop. Unable to stay in his home and pursued by images of Jessica, by her scent, Alexi had come to work on the desk. He had started it during the week Jessica was in Seattle. Now, he didn’t want to go home to find her gone, so he had stayed away.
He ran his hand over the smooth unfinished walnut of the small secretary desk. In the plain, sturdy style of Stepanov Furniture, the desk was large enough for a laptop and a small printer. The cubbyholes and narrow drawer would serve well for necessities.
He’d designed the functional desk to suit a woman like Jessica—strong, intelligent, elegant, confident and smooth to the touch, to enjoy touching. The reddish grain running through the dark walnut reminded him of her hair—
Alexi traced the wood with his finger and thought of how her hair had looked, vivid against her pale skin. He hadn’t seen Jessica since that morning and ached to hold her in his arms, to let her scent comfort him, arouse him—
