by Eugene, Lisa
“Wait just a second!”
“Bedroom?”
“I have no recollection…”
“Bedroom.”
“I was provoked!”
“Bedroom.”
“I…ah…ah…” I sputtered and grunted again, giggling as he used me to do bicep curls, jostling me up and down. I couldn’t help wiggling, and screeched again as he pretended to lose his grip on me. The room filled with his laughter, a deep rumbling sound that caressed me from inside out.
“Where’s the bedroom, dammit?”
I pointed and buried my face in his neck, holding him and grinning secretly. I positioned my nose against his skin and inhaled deeply as he carried me down the hall.
He deposited me on a pillow, then stood and turned to leave. I let my gaze travel over his body, enjoying his muscular build, the broad sculpted shoulders, and the delectable curve of his firm ass. I propped up on one elbow and strands of shoulder length hair fell over my face. “Where are you going?”
He bent and kissed my lips, gently brushing the hair off my face. “Although I’ve already eaten, I believe you have not. I’m getting your food.”
I watched the sly smile slide across his face and it dawned on me what he was referring to. The dimple at the corner of his mouth deepened and I blushed floridly.
“You are so dirty.” I smiled.
“Oh, you have no idea,” he tossed over his shoulder as he left the room.
I flopped back on the pillow, trying to wipe the stupid grin off my face. I was deliriously happy and it filled every inch of space inside me. My workout mix had cycled again and Eminem was giving me counsel.
Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity to seize everything you ever wanted. One moment. Would you capture it or just let it slip?
I pulled the pillow over my head to block out the noise, afraid to fully explore my feelings. Instead, I let my worries slip into the swirling pot of uncertainty that had been stewing for the past few weeks. It had been poisoning me with indecision, but tonight I would not relinquish this happiness.
I reached over and grabbed a remote from my night table, turning off the music. A few minutes later, he came into the room carrying the bag with the Chinese food in one hand and his cell phone in the other. He was having a conversation with someone. I tried not to listen, though wondered who he could be calling while here with me. It was when he blew kisses into the phone and reminded Livy to brush her teeth that I realized he’d called his daughter to say goodnight, and I felt all the more stupid for the pricks of jealously that had needled me. I of all people had no right.
He hopped onto the bed and sat with his shoulders against the headboard, then pulled me against him, my back leaning on his chest and his long legs astride me. I settled against him, conscious of the warmth of his hard, naked body. I wanted to turn around and wrap myself around him, but forced myself to focus and breathe as he started to open cartons and break apart a set of wooden chopsticks.
“We forgot plates,” I realized, starting to get up.
He snaked a long leg around me, preventing me from rising. His lips kissed my naked shoulder. “No need.”
Dipping the chopsticks into a carton of noodles, he brought them to my mouth. I accepted it, suddenly ravenous. He fed me that way for a while, taking a bite now and then himself, and I couldn’t believe the comfortable intimacy I felt with him. We were sitting naked on a bed, and he was feeding me Chinese food. Never in my life had I done such a thing and I never would have thought it could feel so wonderful.
“This place is pretty amazing. How long have you lived here?”
“Too long.” I chuckled wryly, then continued, “This penthouse actually belongs to my parents. I’m looking for a place of my own.”
“You’re moving?”
He sounded surprised, and I knew it must seem crazy to move out of a gorgeous penthouse.
I shrugged. “I just need my own space, and really this is too much room for me. It—it’s hard to explain.”
“I get it. Staying in the city?”
“Yeah, I love living in Manhattan.”
“Me too. Plus with my business, it makes sense. Have you always lived here?”
I shook my head, finishing up a bite he’d given me. “I’m originally from Scarsdale, but I went to boarding school in upstate New York when I was ten. Then I moved to the city for college.”
“Boarding school at ten? What was that like? I can’t imagine Livy leaving me so young.”
I shrugged, but couldn’t keep the emotion from my words. “I never fit in. I was always different from the other girls.”
I sensed him frown behind me. “Did your parents know you disliked it?”
“If it were up to them, I would have been in boarding school from the time I was three.” I laughed bitterly. “My grandparents were the only ones who objected, but my parents thought it would be good for me.”
His arms tightened around me. “Are you an only child?”
“No. I have an older brother. He lives in Italy. I think he just needed to get away. My parents can be a bit much at times. We were close for a while, but it’s hard when he’s so far away. I’m close with my grandparents. They’re the ones who got me involved with the Vandercamp Foundation.”
“You seem to enjoy it. I could tell from your interview.”
“I love it. It’s my life,” I replied truthfully. “It gives me purpose.”
“You run it by yourself?”
I nodded. “My parents aren’t really interested and my grandparents are too old. It’s too much for them. It’s really only a small part of our family’s estate. My parents would rather hire someone to run it, but I love doing it,” I explained. “What about you? Are your parents around? Do you have any siblings?”
“My parents live on Long Island where I grew up. I’m one of six boys.”
“Let me guess.” I shifted to face him. “The youngest.”
His brows shot up and he laughed. I loved that sound.
“Why would you think that?”
“I can see you as the prankster, playing tricks on everyone.”
He clutched his heart, pretending to be wounded. “I’m shocked that you could say such a thing.” He looked chagrined, then leaned forward and kissed the tip of my nose. “Okay. I am the youngest. And I did play tricks on all my brothers.”
“Knew it!” I gave him a sassy Z-snap of my fingers complete with head bopping attitude. He laughed and tickled my ribs in response.
“So you think you know me, do you?”
“Are you always this playful?” I asked, smiling broadly. This wonderful?
His fingers stopped for a moment and he looked down at me, suddenly serious. “I used to be. I haven’t been this way for a long time, Kay. Only with you.” He launched into a full grin and resumed his tickling. “You. Inspire. Silliness. Among other things.”
I twisted and squirmed, laughing while trying to capture his dancing fingers. It reminded me of when my grandmother would tickle me as a child. Something came to mind and my head shot up.
“Oh, I wanted to thank you for finding my grandmother’s pearl earring. I thought it was gone for good.”
“What?”
“The earring you put in my shoe at Mr. Kotobuki’s party,” I reminded.
He frowned and his fingers stilled. “What are you talking about?”
I chewed on my bottom lip then clarified slowly, hoping to jog his memory. “That night at Sensations, I lost an earring. It showed up at Mr. Kotobuki’s party.”
“I didn’t—”
Whatever he was about to say was cut off by the musical chime that rang through the penthouse. And it sang like knife blades slicing through my head.
“Oh, FUCK!” Galvanized, I sprang from the bed, tipping over several cartons of food. My eyes were wide with alarm.
Luke was right behind me, his muscles corded and primed. Confusion wrinkled his forehead.
“What’s wrong?”
&n
bsp; “Someone’s in the elevator.”
Luke forked his fingers through his wavy dark hair and his jaw tightened. His gaze tracked me as I zipped into the bathroom and grabbed a bathrobe then flew to the door. I turned to look at him, feeling terror in my heart and knew it must be written all over my face.
“Please stay in here,” I begged, infusing an apology in my voice.
He nodded, a slight dip of his head, but I could see anger etch lines in his face and darken the green of his eyes.
My bare feet beat soundless on the wood floor as I ran down the hall toward the living room. My mind spun with thoughts of who could be in the elevator and my heart banged chaotically at my sternum. Oh, God! It was probably Josh. He had the key and could open the elevator door! I’d told the doormen not to let him up, but he’d come up to the apartment when I hadn’t been feeling well. The doormen might think he’d again been granted full access. Lord knows what he’d do if he found Luke here!
Oh, fuck, fuck, fuck!
I came to a grinding halt just as the elevator doors started to slide open. My gaze dashed around the room and I spotted Luke’s clothes in a pile on the floor where I’d pulled them off. Leaping across the floor with a maneuver that would rival an Olympic athlete, I gave a few swift kicks to the pile and banished the clothing under the coffee table. Unfortunately, my body did not perform as efficiently as an Olympian, and with a startled yelp I lost my balance and ended up with my butt flat on the floor.
It was just in time for the elevator to open fully and for my parents to step out and stare down at me with surprise and confusion.
“Hi.” I waved and squeaked. Relief tiptoed through me, but just minimally.
My mother was standing at the elevator, head to toe in Mink. My father was equally decked out. He frowned.
“What on earth are you doing on the floor, Katherine Regina?”
Think! Think! Think! Get them out of here!
“I—I’m not…feeling well. I’m sick!” I coughed violently. “I just managed to crawl out of bed to get something from the kitchen! I had to sit and rest on my way back to the bedroom…” Cough. Cough. Cough.
“What?” My father frowned, taking a step toward me. “Let me help you.”
I stuck out a hand, stopping him. “No! Don’t come any closer!” Cough. Cough. “I don’t want you to get sick!”
“Do you need a doctor? We were just on our way to dinner and thought we’d stop by,” Diana explained.
“No!” I shook my head vehemently, pulling the edges of my robe tighter.
Diana’s spine straightened and her lips thinned. “You no doubt caught this from hanging out at those shelters, or perhaps from one of those women you work with!”
I had to bite my lip to contain the scathing reply that came to mind. I coughed vigorously in my mother’s direction and wanted to smile when she took a cautious step back.
“This is just a twenty-four hour thing. I’ll be fine by tomorrow. Really,” Cough. Cough. Cough. One more for good measure. Cough. “You should go. I don’t want you coming down with this.”
My parents looked at each other, then looked back at me, bewildered.
“Don’t worry about me. Really.” Cough. Cough. “Enjoy your dinner.”
Diana adjusted her fashionable Mink hat and sighed. “Fine. I’ll touch base tomorrow. We have to finalize some more details for the wedding, and don’t forget about the holiday party this weekend.”
“Feel better, dear,” my father said solemnly as he stepped back into the elevator.
Relief washed over me when my mother followed. Suddenly Diana’s hand shot out, stopping the elevator door just as it was about to slip closed. A slow smile oozed across her face. “I’m glad to see you and Josh have resolved your differences.”
I frowned and followed my mother’s gaze to the obvious men’s clothing peeking out from under the coffee table. I felt the blood drain from my face and my skin grow ice cold.
Fuck!
I turned back to the elevator, sputtering, but Diana had let go of the door and it was now closing. I cursed and squeezed my eyes shut. I felt deflated, like fists were pummeling my body and soul. I wanted to scream. I wanted to wail. I wanted to go into my bedroom and crawl back into Luke’s lap. I wanted to be selfish and not think about anyone or anything but myself. Blowing out a long breath, I laid back on the floor, exhaustion claiming me. And to make matters worse…my butt hurt. I wondered if I’d injured myself when I fell and I thought of my foundation’s major contributor. No doubt Margaret Lindon would say that my fucked-up life and my broken butt were just God’s punishments for my morally corrupt behavior.
I sensed a shadow move over me and opened my eyes to see Luke bending over me. He peered down at me, one eyebrow raised. I looked up at his handsome upside down face and my heart squeezed tight. I waited to see the grin appear, knowing he’d no doubt find my situation funny. But it didn’t come. Instead he silently offered a hand and pulled me off the floor, then turned to retrieve his poorly concealed clothes.
Silently he got dressed and I stood watching, chewing up my bottom lip. A stale calmness engulfed the apartment and tension settled like heavy dust between us. He was angry. I felt horrible and didn’t exactly know why. What was I supposed to do? Introduce him to my parents? I wanted to rewind the clock by fifteen minutes. I wanted things to be different. This was my fault. God! What had I been thinking? I shouldn’t have allowed him to come tonight. I shouldn’t be a slave to my lust. I shouldn’t be seeing him when things were still unresolved with Josh. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt him. Tears filled my eyes and I blinked them away.
“Luke, I’m sorry,” I whispered.
The angles of his face sharpened as he stepped into his jeans and pulled on his shoes. He concentrated on his task, ignoring me. Had he heard what I’d said? I filled my lungs with remorse and apologized again, feeling my stomach lurch with the meal he’d fed me.
He silently buttoned his pants and tended to his zipper. I felt a tear escape down my cheek. I needed him to understand.
“He cheated on me!” I admitted, my voice cracking miserably. I didn’t have to say his name. We both knew to whom I was referring.
His hands stilled on his belt and his head rolled up slowly. His green eyes bore into mine but he remained silent. I vaguely noted that he didn’t seem surprised.
“That’s why I went to Sensations that night. I—I caught him with his ex-girlfriend.” I wrung my hands white and almost choked on the words. “At least, I—I think I did.”
He abandoned his clothing and stalked toward me, gripping my chin with his big hand. His lips pulled in an angry, thin line.
“Tell me.”
My gaze fell to the floor. I couldn’t look into his eyes. “I found them together in his apartment. It looked suspicious, but he swears he wasn’t doing anything. I called off the wedding and broke up with him, but…but…I.”
He cursed angrily and turned his head away. He looked like he wanted to say something, but changed his mind. I could feel emotions emanating from him like a reckless storm, but he stood rigidly still.
“What if I was wrong?” Tears streamed unchecked down my face, wetting my robe. “I don’t know what to do? I don't want to be hasty. We’ve been together for three years! We’ve been planning our wedding. There’re so many people involved…so much pressure…so much to consider.”
His gaze swung back to me and stark lines marked his face. “Fuck, Kay! What does your gut tell you? What do you feel in here?” His finger jabbed at my heart and he looked deep into my eyes. His palms came up to clutch my cheeks, almost painful with his grip. “What do you feel when we’re together? It’s not that complicated. I wish I could tell you what to do. I wish I could have a go at that motherfucker! He has no idea how lucky he is.”
I hiccupped a wet sob, miserable because I couldn’t explain this weakness I had for Luke. I truly believed I loved Josh and yet my desire for this man was stunning in it’s intensity. Thi
s desperate craving could do nothing but destroy me, yet I felt powerless to stop it and wanted more and more.
“Know this,” he grated roughly. “I want you. I want you so much that it fucking scares me! And I don’t just want sex! I want to get to know you. I want Livy to get to know you.”
His lips swooped down on mine and he plunged his tongue into my mouth, intruding with an almost brutal force. I returned the kiss greedily, moaning and biting his lips and tasting the salt of my tears in the kiss. Desire ignited a torch inside me and flames lashed at my damp sex. I rocked my hips against him, feeling the hard proof of his arousal jutting into my abdomen. Desperate for him again, I curled my fingers over his straining erection, trying to free him.
He cursed and stepped back, plucking his shirt from the floor. He shrugged into it as he moved toward the open elevator, and it hung open, the dragon seeming to roar angrily on his chest. He grabbed his jacket and backed in, his gaze never leaving my face. He shot me a half smile, but it only made my tears come faster.
“You owe me a shirt,” he said softly as the doors slid close.
“Why so grumpy, Kay?” Michelle took a big bite of her sandwich and chewed dreamily. “This is sooo good. It’s like having an orgasm.”
I smiled and looked around the tiny Italian restaurant. “No wonder you like coming here.”
“Literally.” She grinned. “Want some?” She waved the meatball parm in front of my face.
I shook my head and picked at my salad. “Not really hungry.”
“Maybe you should try something with pumpernickel!”
“I didn’t get much sleep last night,” I stated, ignoring my friend’s innuendo. It only served to burn guilt and longing into my chest and made her think of the pumpernickel sex I’d had with Luke the night before.
“Still stressing about the wedding?”
I nodded, wishing it were that simple. I regarded Michelle across the table happily devouring her sandwich. A confession sat on the tip of my tongue, but I curled it back into my mouth and swallowed it. I usually shared everything with my best friend, but had a hard time explaining Luke. Maybe because he was her boss, or maybe because I couldn’t explain him to myself.
