ENCORE PERFORMANCE (THE MATCHMAKER TRILOGY)

by Marie, Bernadette

  Thomas opened the door for her. His cologne tickled her feminine senses. He was cleanly shaven, well dressed, and God, he was handsome. The shorter haircut made him look even more virile, if that were possible.

  Carissa stood there a moment and looked into his eyes. “You know what would start this date off right?”

  “What would that be?”

  She reached her hand behind his neck and brought his head toward her. “If we start with a kiss.”

  There wasn’t a moment to protest if he’d had the mind to do so. She had those full lips brushing against his, but it wasn’t just a peck. Her mouth opened to his and her tongue sought his out as her other arm pulled him tight to her body.

  Thomas had never had a kiss that had him lightheaded, but the one Carissa was planting on him was doing just that. His arms wound around her waist and pulled her to him, pressing their bodies tight to each other.

  She wasn’t letting up. Her hand was in his hair, the other sliding over his chest. The knot in his belly was as tight as the pressure in his slacks. When she finally released his lips she balanced her forehead against his.

  “I knew you were a good kisser.” “Yeah, you’re not too bad yourself,” he said with an unsteady breath.

  “Thomas.” Her head still pressed to his, she shifted her eyes to meet his. “I’d really like more of that.”

  He made a moan of some kind to indicate that his thoughts were on the same path.

  Carissa closed her eyes. She didn’t release her grip but took in a deep breath before opening her eyes and gazing at him.

  “I want to make something clear. I know what I’m doing. I’m not a child. When I want something I go after it.” She lifted her head. “Thomas, I want you.”

  “Carissa.”

  “Don’t say anything.” Her finger pressed to his lips. “I know we haven’t even started working together, but in the last couple days the things you’ve done to me by just being near me have sent my head spinning.” The hand on the back of his neck slid toward his cheek. Her perfume filled his head. Her eyes settled right into his. “After dinner I want to take that kiss further.” She molded her body harder to his. “I want to make love to you.”

  He knew he gasped aloud by the widening of her eyes, but he didn’t release her. He wasn’t sure he could physically walk away from her at that moment.

  “Carissa, you don’t know me.” At the moment he didn’t know himself. That was what this trip was about. Finding himself without hurting anyone in the process. How come she kept putting herself in his path?

  Carissa touched his lips with a brush of her fingers.

  “But I want to know you.” She straightened, released herself from him, and ducked into the car.

  He shut the door, noticing her wanting eyes were still on him. How was it he finally landed the job of a lifetime and with it a woman he dreaded hurting for any number of reasons—but couldn’t turn down?

  The hostess greeted them at the door and escorted them to a booth that would seat four. Carissa scooted to sit at the place setting right next to Thomas. She liked having him that close. Candles lit the darkened room and soft music set the mood for romance.

  She felt her skin get hotter with him near her. She rested her hand on his leg and felt him straighten. She realized she might be a bit much for him, but she’d never been so attracted to a man in all her life. She wanted this one, and every minute that passed, she realized she wanted him for keeps.

  “How about a bottle of wine?” Her voice was low and husky. “How about a glass for you and I’ll have water,” he said with a dip of his head, his voice soft as though he were saying it in secret.

  She considered him a moment. “Designated driver?” “Not much of a drinker.”

  Carissa scanned the menu. She wasn’t the least bit

  hungry—for food. She wished the waitress would come to the table. Studying the menu wasn’t what she wanted to be doing with her eyes.

  The waitress finally arrived at the table and offered the specials for the evening. Carissa considered them then ordered her wine and dinner, then relaxed next to him, hoping to find out more about the man who was stealing her heart piece by piece.

  “Are you always quiet or just around women?” she asked from behind the rim of her wine glass as the candle on the table flickered.

  Thomas adjusted his shoulders, squaring them. “I get pretty quiet around women who have me thinking thoughts I shouldn’t be thinking.”

  Carissa inched even closer to him. “I love that I’m driving you wild.”

  “You’ll hate me next week,” he promised, lifting his water glass to his lips, but she shook her head.

  “I hope not.” She sat back. “What worries you? Do you think I can’t work with you if I seduce you?”

  “Let’s just say I’m not the kind of man . . . women don’t want men like me.”

  Carissa wasn’t sure why he was so afraid of her, but it wasn’t going to stop her.

  “I think women like you just fine. Let’s get to know each other. I think you’ll find it hard to turn me down.” She drank down her wine. Feeling it swim in her head, she let the smile settle on her lips. She was making him nervous and it.

  By the time they finished eating, she didn’t know much more about the man, but he had her turned up. His eyes smoldered in the dark booth. He told stories of places he’d been and people he’d met. He stole a kiss after stealing a bite of cheesecake from her fork and she trembled. He spoke to her in Italian and her pulse began to race.

  She watched him with a knot that tightened in her belly. This man was going home and falling into bed with her, so help her God!

  Hand in hand, they left the restaurant and stepped out into the cool evening air. It wasn’t even close to the cold shower Thomas would need when they got home. No matter what Carissa said, he couldn’t take her to bed. There was a fine line and he couldn’t cross that line no matter how badly he wanted to.

  “Why don’t we take a little walk?”

  “A walk?” Disappointment dripped in her voice. “Yeah, I think we need a walk.”

  It was perhaps a bit cooler than he’d thought, but he

  tugged her along. She hugged up to his arm. “Are you afraid to be alone with me?”

  “I’m man enough to say yes.”

  “Thomas.” She stopped and looked up at him. “What are you afraid of?”

  He gathered her hands in his and held them to his chest. “Carissa, I’m not the marrying kind.”

  “I didn’t know I was asking.”

  “You deserve better than me. I’ll hurt you.”

  “Then don’t.” The glimmer in her eyes was fading and that began to break his heart. “What if I hurt you?”

  He smiled. “Why would you do that?”

  “C’mon, I think we’re on equal ground. Who’s to say one of us isn’t going to break the other’s heart? I’m a professional and I thought you were too. We’re going to work together, that’s a given.” He wished he could control the rapid pace of his heart when she laid her hands on his chest. “For the time being we’re even going to live together.” Her eyebrows gave a playful rise. “It’s been a long time since I’ve been with a man I find not only as attractive as you but that I’m completely comfortable around.” She pushed her body up against his and he could feel the warmth radiate from her.

  “You’re not going to back down, are you?” With her that close he couldn’t help but reach his hands into her hair.

  “No,” she said as she rose on her toes and took his mouth with hers.

  The air around them grew colder, but the heat between them sizzled. He pulled her closer. Urgency burned through his core and he knew he had to get her home before he ripped her clothes off right on the street.

  They collected the car and started home. Now that it had started, he was having a hard time keeping his hands to himself. His lips wandered down her neck and over her ear as she drove.

  “Thomas.” Her voice was
airy, and he tugged on her ear with his teeth. “I can’t—concentrate this—way.”

  “Then drive faster,” he said and she laughed.

  The moment they hit the driveway she killed the engine and flew into his arms. His hands tangled in her hair, pulling her closer as his tongue explored her mouth. His hands slipped through her jacket. He tugged her blouse loose and his hands roamed over her warm skin. She moaned, which drove him mad.

  When he cupped her breast and gave it a squeeze, she gasped.

  The soft sound sent his body into overdrive. He had to get her into the house, on a flat surface, against a wall, anywhere where there wasn’t the obstacle of the center console.

  “We have to get inside.” He moaned against her lips.

  “I don’t know if I can wait that long.” She worked the buttons on his shirt.

  The glow of lights moved down the street.

  “Wait. Wait.” He pulled back.

  Sirens blared, approaching fast.

  They adjusted themselves quickly and climbed from the car as a fire truck and an ambulance pulled up in front of the quiet house. Only a moment later her parents’ car screeched to a stop behind the fire truck.

  They both flew from their car.

  “Oh, my God! What’s wrong?” Carissa was running to her father as Sophia ran through the front door of the house.

  David grasped her shoulders and glanced over her disheveled appearance and then at Thomas’s before looking back at Carissa. “Katie. She fell.”

  “Oh, God.” She covered her mouth and broke from her father’s grasp to run into the house.

  Paramedics had Katie on the gurney by the time Thomas made it into the house. Carissa was already at her side.

  “Oh, I should have been here. I should have stayed with you.” She cried as her mother put her arm around her.

  “I’ll be fine,” Katie assured her as they moved her through the house.

  The words were confident, but Thomas couldn’t help but notice how weak Katie’s voice sounded. Carissa collapsed against Sophia.

  “I should have stayed. I should have been here for her.”

  “She would have been mad if you canceled your dinner. Besides, it could have happened with you here just as easily. She was in bed. She was getting up to go to the bathroom. You can’t blame yourself.”

  “I need to go with her. I need to be with her.” Carissa pulled away and stumbled toward the door.

  Thomas took a step toward Sophia and laid a gentle hand on her arm.

  Thomas was in unfamiliar territory. Compassion wasn’t something he’d witnessed in his life too often. Watching the women comfort one another, he wished he could offer some.

  “Sophia, go with her. You can leave Hope with me. I’ll look after her.”

  “Thomas, that would be wonderful. Thank you,” Sophia patted his hand as she walked Carissa out of the house.

  David carried in Hope, who was sound asleep. He laid her on the couch and draped an afghan over her.

  “Are you sure about this?”

  “It’s the least I can do.” He looked up David, whose brows were creased. Thomas realized his shirt was still unbuttoned and his hair was a mess.

  The feeling of being caught with Carissa was worse than he’d imagined when he’d seen David at the restaurant.

  “Katie will be all right, won’t she?”

  David shrugged. “She’s tough. We’ll call you.”

  Thomas nodded and watched as David left the house.

  He sat quietly, watching the small girl on the couch breathe in and out. Her eyes darted beneath her eyelids as she dreamed. She reminded him of his own sister, so sweet, so innocent. The thought tugged at him uncomfortably. He missed his sister. Envy surged through him when he thought of the relationship Carissa had with Hope. He’d been a part of a relationship like that once. But those days were long gone.

  Thomas turned on the television and the glow filled the dark room. He turned the sound to a whisper so it wouldn’t disturb Hope. He watched for a few minutes, but his body refused to be still.

  His fingers itched to move. He’d noticed the piano in the study pushed against the wall. Obviously it was there more for the purpose of lessons than for decoration, but it was late and he didn’t want to wake Hope. He longed to touch the keys, to make music now when he didn’t know what else to do.

  He walked to the study and shut the door.

  He rested his fingers on the keys and let them slide along them without a sound. The song he’d play wouldn’t be joyful or beautiful. It would be painful and mournful. That was how he felt.

  Thomas walked to the kitchen and found a bowl and a cup in the sink. He washed them and set them on the counter to dry, then wiped down the already spotless counters to keep his hands occupied. Soon he moved from the kitchen to the hallway where he could see Katie’s bedroom. The light on the nightstand was still on. He entered the room cautiously and picked up the few items that had fallen to the floor with Katie. He arranged her slippers on the side of her bed, pulled the sheets and quilts up to tidy the space. Then he turned off the light and headed back toward the living room.

  Hope was awake. She sat very still on her greatgrandmother’s couch and looked at the television through sleep-hazed eyes. She wasn’t startled when Thomas entered the room. She looked up at him and then back at the television.

  “Do you understand them?”

  “What?” He looked at the television and realized he’d been watching an Italian movie. He smiled. “Yes, I understand them.”

  “What language are they speaking?” She pulled her legs under her and wrapped the blanket around her.

  “It’s Italian.” He took his seat in the chair by the couch again. “That’s what they speak in Italy.”

  “That’s where you came from?”

  “Well, that’s where I was living.”

  He watched her as she watched the movie for a few more minutes.

  “How come you can understand them, but I can’t?”

  “I lived in Italy a very long time. You learn the language when you live somewhere long enough.”

  “Will you teach me Italian?”

  “Maybe I can teach you some words.”

  Hope stood from her seat on the couch and walked toward him with the afghan dragging behind her.

  She stopped in front of him and made a move to sit on his lap. Thomas tensed, and Hope climbed up on him, laying her head on his shoulder and draping her feet over the side of the chair.

  Thomas covered her with the afghan and did his best to settle into the chair with her. Perhaps she needed comfort. Perhaps she was cold or scared. He wasn’t sure, but she seemed to trust him and he wasn’t going to break that trust.

  “Is Grandma going to be okay?” Her voice was muffled against his shirt.

  “I’m sure she will. Your dad said he’d call.” He ran his hand over her soft blonde hair and she snuggled closer with a yawn.

  “Grandma is very old.”

  “Yes she is.”

  “Someday she’ll die.”

  Thomas swallowed hard. Someday they all would die, he thought. Some would die from old age like Katie, some to disease like their Aunt Millie, and some by the hands of hateful others.

  “I don’t think that’ll be soon. You have to think positive thoughts,” he offered, and he heard her sniffle.

  “Aunt Millie died.” The comment was simply stated. “Mandy died.”

  “Who’s Mandy?” He ran his hand down her hair again. Though he was trying to soothe her, he found comfort in it.

  “My mother.”

  Thomas felt his breath hitch. He wouldn’t ask. That wasn’t right. Yet that one sentence had so many things running through his head. Wishing Carissa were there, he closed his eyes and took a moment to enjoy the feeling of someone needing him for comfort the way Hope was. Who was this misplaced child that ended up in Sophia’s hands? What a gift, he thought. What a gift.

  He felt her become heavy against h
im and realized she’d fallen asleep. He managed to pull the lever on the side of the chair and raise his feet. The movie on the television still played out in Italian and he listened to the words that were as familiar to him as English. Soon he drifted to sleep.

  It wasn’t until he heard the opening of the front door that Thomas’s eyes flew open. He quickly felt the numbness of his arms and realized Hope still slept on his lap. The television now played a French movie, which he understood as well as the Italian one. David’s weary face appeared in the shadows of the television light.

  “Sorry to wake you,” he whispered.

  “No.” Thomas tried to wake himself up to be more alert. “No problem.”

  “I should have called. But Sophia and Carissa were a wreck. Trying to calm them kept me occupied.” He ran his hands over his face. “I hope she wasn’t any trouble.”

  “Not at all.” He tried to make his body to move, but found it impossible after having held her for so long.

  Hope stirred on his lap and woke up when she heard her father’s voice call her name softly. She smiled and slowly crawled off Thomas’s lap.

  “C’mon let’s get you home.” David tucked the afghan around her and held her to him as she gathered her bearings. “Carissa is going to stay at the house tonight. Will you be all right here alone?”

  “Sure, I’ll be fine. Is Carissa okay now?”

  “She’s fine. I think this shook her up. When Millie died she’d fallen too and didn’t recover.”

  “But Katie’s okay, right?” There was desperation in his voice as he tried to stand to talk to the man before him.

  “She’ll be okay. They’re going to keep her for a few days. They thought she’d broken her hip, but it looks like she’s just banged up a little.”

  Thomas nodded. That was good news, he decided.

  David offered a tired smile.

  “Thanks for watching her.”

  “My pleasure.”

  Thomas walked them to the door.

  David opened the screen to let Hope out. She took a few stumbling steps then stopped and turned back around. She wrapped her arms around Thomas’s legs and gave him a tight squeeze.