“Of course. And while having a nice dinner, maybe I can change your mind about the other decision.” She heard the humor in his voice.
“Why don’t you text me where we’ll be going and I’ll meet you there, okay?”
“I’m happy to pick you up.”
“Thanks just the same, but I’ll meet you there,” she chuckled. She was no dummy.
He sighed good naturedly. “Alright then. I already know where I’d like to take you.” He named a pricey restaurant she was familiar with. “I’ll see you there at seven then.”
“Will do.”
“I’m looking forward to it, Miss Callahan. Until then.”
“Bye, Eric.”
They disconnected and Janie sat wondering if she was playing with fire just as Luke had warned her against. Maybe she should pack the fire extinguisher and bring it with her.
The rest of the day passed in a blur, while Janie did some Yoga, cleaned up some loose ends from the party that weekend and got her invoice ready for when she would speak with Luke’s assistant Carolyn later in the week. What helped to create the blurring effect, however, was the fact that Janie had received not just the call from Eric, but two more messages from men looking to go out with her.
She laughed at the irony of it all. She’d been back from Europe for nearly two years, had spent the majority of those years working to start up her business and had really only dated one guy in all of that time, Detective Danny Fernandez. She’d been out with friends from school, of course, but nothing romantic. Now, here she was, in one day with a photo of her kissing a man on an entertainment site, and fielding messages and calls from three men who wanted to pursue her.
A few hours after speaking with Eric, Miguel Gastaldi had texted her. She’d wondered if she would ever hear from him again considering it was now on the internet that Janie had joked with his sister about Luke’s sexual orientation. Apparently that didn’t stop him. Their stream of texts happened in the early afternoon.
MG: Hi Janie. It’s Miguel Gastaldi. Remember me?
JC: Of course!
MG: I didn’t know if I needed to reintroduce myself again. I heard the GSoul party was a smash.
JC: It was…and ur wines were a smash too. ;)
MG: So, I hear. Would love to get together to p/u our convo from the other night. I’m in town tom afternoon. Are u interested in getting a cup of coffee?
Janie hesitated, then responded.
JC: That would be great. What time will you be in the City?
MG: Around 1. Why don’t we get some lunch.
JC: Ok. Text me tom when ur here and we’ll meet up.
MG: Looking forward to it. C U tom.
JC: Thanks, Miguel. Ttyl.
After how her conversation had gone with Luke about her date with Eric, she dreaded telling him about Miguel. She’d just include it in the text tonight after she got back from going out with Eric.
The third man to contact her was via Facebook; another message from Chaz. It was short and to the point.
How about that drink?
Geez, there were some horny men in New York City that evening. She responded with, Hi Chaz. We’ll definitely catch up. Can I get back to you in a day or two with a date?
She’d decided she was indeed going to meet up with him for a quick drink. It was childish, she knew, but she wanted to put some closure on his years of torment. He may or may not have changed, but either way she knew nothing would come of it, and it didn’t hurt to settle things from her past once and for all. Maybe at the end of the week she and Chaz could meet briefly for an early drink.
He responded moments later. I have time this week. Let me know. Looking forward to seeing you.
Janie finally put her phone down and got ready for her date with Eric Weston.
PART TWO
Two years earlier
“Ahh!” Janie squealed as she ran to hug her seventeen year old brother, Robbie. “Hey, bud!” she yelled as she squeezed the life out of him.
“Hey. You’re choking me, here,” he laughed, his voice muffled against her shoulder. She leaned back and inspected him. Regardless of his disgruntled comment, he was smiling.
“You grew,” Janie said with a smile.
He rolled his eyes at the observation. “Yeah, well you shrunk,” he said looking at her figure. “And it’s only been a year, Janie.”
“I know but you look so different!” she gushed and hugged him again.
“You’re the one who looks different,” he said stepping back from her and looking at her. “Did you lose more weight in Paris?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she smiled.
“You look good,” he complimented.
“Thanks, bud.” They stood outside arrivals at JFK airport in the December air, Janie having just picked up her luggage from the carousel inside. “Where is everyone?” Just as she asked it, she looked up and saw her older brother, Mike, beaming at her from about twenty feet away.
And standing next to him was Luke Daniels.
Mike and Luke walked toward her as she and Robbie maneuvered her cart of luggage toward them. She couldn’t stop smiling. She was excited to be home.
“Holy fuck, look at you!” Mike said, lifting her into a huge bear hug. “You’re a hottie boombalottie!”
She laughed and then smacked his arm. “Don’t curse in front of Robbie,” she ordered.
“Yeah, Mike. ’Cause I’ve never heard that word before,” Robbie quipped. “I’m tellin’ Mom. You’re such a bad influence on me,” he muttered while shaking his head.
Mike released Janie and at the same time pushed his little brother. “You look incredible,” Mike continued, looking her over and making her turn. “Paris definitely agreed with you. How on earth did you lose weight while in cooking school?”
She shrugged, letting her eyes skate over to Luke who was standing off to the side intensely looking at her with a smile touching his lips. She looked back at Mike. “I was determined and had made the decision to do it, so…”
“Incredible. Mom and Dad are gonna flip. So’s Jem,” Mike said, leaning down and giving her a loud smacking kiss on her cheek. Then he turned to Luke. “Doesn’t she look hot, bro?” he said, still in disbelief over the physical transformation of Janie over the two semesters she’d been in Paris studying at Le Cordon Bleu.
Luke cleared his throat and finally stepped forward. “Yeah, she does,” he said with a quiet smile. He leaned down from his height and hugged her, kissing her on the cheek. “You look fantastic, baby girl. Really.” He leaned back and tweaked her nose, then twirled her so the guys could inspect all sides of her. She giggled, then Luke said, “You should be proud of yourself, on multiple levels.” He turned to Mike. “Let’s get her in the car. It’s cold, it’s late and I’m sure she’s tired.”
She held in the sigh that was always close to the surface when around Luke. He looked good, as always. She’d missed him. Even though she’d had sex for the first time in France, his face was never too far from her thoughts.
“Are you guys the only ones here?”
“Yeah,” Mike said, as all of the guys helped with the luggage and walked over to a black limo at the curb. “Jem couldn’t make it at the last minute, and Mom and Dad wanted to have everything at the house ready for you. Luke brought us over.”
“Thanks,” she said to Luke with a smile. When they reached the limo, Kenneth, Luke’s driver walked up to her.
“Miss Callahan, it’s so good to have you back.”
“Thank you, Kenneth. It’s good to be back. Thanks for the ride,” she smiled.
“Not a problem.”
They all helped with the bags then got into the limo and were on their way.
Mike and Luke sat opposite her and Robbie, while her older brother continued looking at her, shaking his head. “Seriously, Janie. I can’t believe how much weight you’ve lost. You were just starting to lose it when you left, but I can’t believe how different you look.” He turned to Luke. “We’re
gonna have to start fightin’ men off with a stick now. Before it was just with our hands, but now? Definitely a stick.”
A smile played on Luke’s features and he nodded while inspecting Janie. She flushed with heat.
“So how did you like Paris? Because it certainly appears to have treated you well,” Mike continued. “Were the guys all over you, I bet?” He didn’t sound happy about it.
Janie teased and leaned over to cover Robbie’s ears. She whispered dramatically, “They definitely like curvy fair maidens.” Robbie leaned out from under her hands and covered his own ears, grimacing.
“Oh, God. Please don’t talk about your sex life, Janie. I’m beggin’ you.”
She laughed at him then looked back at Mike who winced with his brother in commiseration. She caught Luke’s eye. He was no longer smiling.
“You guys don’t want to hear about all of the liaisons with my French men?”
“No,” Luke said quickly. “We definitely don’t,” he said giving her a look. “I don’t have the time at the moment to hop a plane and commit murder.”
“Oh, come on, Lukey. You’re no fun,” she said flirtily, kicking her top leg and pushing his leg with her boot encased foot. He looked down at her ancient boots and quirked his lips, then he spoke.
“I’m serious, baby girl. I don’t want to hear about your escapades,” Luke said pointing at her. Her two brothers grunted in agreement.
She made a raspberry sound at all of them. Luke smiled dryly, if not a little disgruntled.
“Fine. I’ll just save all my romantic stories for my grandchildren,” she said, her eyes twinkling. “I’m sure my granddaughters will love to hear them.”
“Well, let’s hope that you find a husband who will so completely sweep you off your feet, that he’ll wipe the memory of those Frenchmen from your mind,” Luke said pointedly. “If you’d traveled to Spain, I’m sure you would’ve been much more impressed with the men there.”
“No way. I won’t be forgetting those guys from France for a long time,” she teased, wiggling her eyebrows and letting her tongue run over her teeth. She loved getting him going and watching him get pissed. He might’ve been an American with dual citizenship, but Spain would always be his home away from home and therefore according to him, the best country in Europe.
“Alright,” Robbie whined. “I so don’t wanna hear sex talk.”
They all laughed.
“It’s almost your birthday,” she said to Luke. “Let’s get everyone together to celebrate! I want to see your parents and Jem and everyone. Will Tiff be coming down for Christmas?”
“She’s hoping to. I’m sure we can make a party happen. My parents are out of the country at the moment. They won’t be back until after the holidays. And listen, now that you’re home,” Luke began, “we should set up a time to talk shop. I have a great lawyer that you can use for when you’re ready to set up the catering business now that you have the degree.”
“You do? That would be great! Yeah, I’m definitely ready,” she mused. “I’d like to start looking for some commercial and residential space, too. I’ve been saving up and obviously can’t work out of my small apartment forever. I also need to start finding some backers.”
“We’ll do all of that, don’t worry,” Luke assured her. “There are some great spaces in Tribeca.”
“Okay. And I hear things have really solidified with you and the conglomerate this year. You must be really excited,” Janie said to him with a smile.
“Things are moving along nicely,” he said warmly.
“I’m glad she has you in her corner, Luke. With all of the business questions she’s gonna have, it’ll be good to have you there for guidance,” Mike said to one of his two best friends.
Luke nodded and looked at Janie. “I’ll do whatever it takes, don’t worry.” Luke then glanced at Mike and smiled only to look back at Janie to say, “Anything she needs, she’ll have. I’ll take good care of her.”
Janie swallowed and smiled, trying not to appear nervous. Hearing those words from his mouth caused a zip of arousal and heat to pass through her. She may have gained her sexual experience in France, but she so wanted to continue it in Spain.
It was good to be home, if for no other reason than to see these special men again. She couldn’t wait to see the rest of the family. And she was definitely looking forward to spending more time with Luke.
If she couldn’t have him the way she wanted him, she’d take him any way she could.
Chapter 12
Present Day
Janie walked into the swanky restaurant and immediately caught Eric’s eye at the bar. He was facing the door, and he looked good, dressed in a navy blue suit, his russet hair gleaming, his eyes dancing with mischief. When they made eye contact, his gaze moved over her in a lazy sensual sweep. With a charming smile, he sauntered over to where she was by the maître d station. Wasting no time, he gave her a full frontal hug and a soft kiss on the cheek.
This man definitely knew what he was doing.
“Hi,” he said with a very telling smirk.
“Hi,” she smiled back.
“You look fantastic.”
She’d worn the sides of her hair up and left the rest down, curling over her shoulders and back. Covering her curves were a cashmere plum colored sweater and a long fitted wool skirt with high heeled boots. Her requisite bohemian sweater coat and chunky jewelry finished her outfit.
“Thank you.”
“We’re ready to be seated now,” Eric said to the maître d.
“Right this way, Mr. Weston.”
Once they’d been seated with wine poured, Eric sat back and looked appreciatively at her. “Tell me about your business.”
She did and by the time she was done, the waiter had returned to take their order. While waiting for the food, they talked about his father’s business, for which he worked.
He was all charm and ease, occasionally reaching out and touching her hand, rubbing her knuckles. When their food had arrived, they’d eaten for a few minutes and then Eric jumped in to another subject area.
“So, let’s get something out of the way,” he began.
She raised an eyebrow at his intro. “Okay.”
“What’s going on between you and Luke Daniels?”
She examined him first, then raised an eyebrow again as if she didn’t know what he was talking about.
He gave her a Come on look. “There’s a photo of the two of you on the internet in a heated embrace from the party, so something is happening. There’s also a photo of him with his model ex-girlfriend at the same party. Looks like he got around that night. I’m just curious what your relationship is with him.”
“Luke and I are good friends.”
“How good?”
She gave him a look that said it was none of his business.
“I’d like to know who my competition is,” he shrugged cutely. “It’s not like he’s known to be a one woman man, Janie, so I’m thinking there may not be as much competition as I’d originally thought.”
Her conversations with Luke rushed back into her memory about how Luke’s desires were the complete opposite to what the general population thought; Luke wanted long term, but Eric obviously thought otherwise.
“And you are?” She cocked an eyebrow. “A one woman man, that is?”
“I could be, if the right woman came along.” He pinned her with his stare, then threw her a confident smile.
She sighed. “Eric,” she began, “I’m going to be honest with you. I don’t know if you and I would be a,” she hesitated, “good fit.”
“See, that’s where I disagree.” He leaned forward intimately. “I bet we’d fit just perfectly,” he said, his voice taking on a sexual and cajoling quality while emphasizing the word ‘fit’. “Besides, you won’t know that until we get to know each other a little better.”
She gave him an exasperated smile. “A woman doesn’t have to have sex with a man to know whether they’ll work
out or not. Can’t we just have a nice dinner together?”
He dissected her with his eyes then finally nodded. Then, “Is something going on between the two of you? You and Luke, I mean. I don’t mean to be insensitive, but,” with a note of sympathy in his tone, “he’s got women all over the place. You don’t strike me as a woman who’d like to share.”
She was starting to get pissed. “You know, it doesn’t really matter who Luke is dating or not dating. You and I having dinner, and me not thinking we’d be a good fit doesn’t have anything to do with him. And quite frankly, it’s really none of your business what my relationship is with him, Eric. We’re only having dinner here,” she pointed out.
“Now you’re angry,” he sighed. “I just think maybe you need to know more about him. You say you’re good friends, but I don’t know what that means. Do you know much about who Luke Daniels is? I know you catered the party, but do you know his reputation with the ladies?” He paused to let that sink in. “Unless, of course, you’re just looking for a little fun. And if that’s the case, I can definitely provide that,” his voice low and wrought with promise.
Unbelievable. And this guy was part of GSoul? She wondered if Luke knew how this man talked about his CEO.
Rather than show her attitude, she decided to take the humor route. Humor had saved her for many years. It had always been her good friend.
She chuckled lightly. “Well, this conversation isn’t fun, Eric. And that was all I was hoping for tonight, that we could just keep it light.”
Just like that his demeanor changed, lust gleaming in his eyes. “Light it is, then. And I can definitely do fun.” His eyes twinkled. “Let’s get outta here. We’ll finish up and head to my place.”
She stopped at the implication and gave him a pointed look. “I’m not sleeping with you,” she reminded him.
“I don’t want you to sleep with me.” He purposely misunderstood her and the look he was giving her said that he knew it.
“Let me clarify then. I won’t be having sex with you. I don’t want you to think I’m just playing hard to get. I’m not.”
Remembrance: A Contemporary Erotic Romance (Iris Series Book 4) Page 21
