The Ultimate Romance Box (6 Bestselling Romance Novels)

by Eckhart, Lorhainne

  “Y-yes.” At least she could finish out her summer session.

  “You’ll receive written notification, but I decided you should know right away so you can start making arrangements. Goodnight.”

  Casey sank onto her bed. Barely able to breathe, wild thoughts going crazy in her head, she couldn’t stop herself from bursting into tears.

  Drew rushed in. He sat next to her and pulled her into his arms. “What happened, Casey? Who was that?”

  “My landlord. He sold this building. I have to be out by the end of next month.”

  His warm strength enveloped her. She let herself cry.

  He cradled her head against his chest. “There are other buildings around. You’ll find something.”

  “I’ve looked,” she moaned, sniffing and choking on her tears. “Even if they weren’t all in horrible locations, they need work. You can’t dance on cement or warped, splintered wood. And parents won’t send their kids to a place with peeling walls and leaky plumbing. I made sure to get a long lease here, but I should’ve hired a lawyer to examine the small print before I sank every penny of my savings into this school. I am such a loser.”

  “That’s just not true, Casey. You’re an amazing teacher. Look what we were just saying about my son.” Drew reached for the box of tissues on her night table and handed her a few.

  “I thought I might’ve finally gotten something right with my dance academy. But I’m even letting Josh down. I am a total screw-up.”

  Sobs wracked her body. Drew stroked her back and kissed the top of her head. Casey could hardly believe the tenderness he showed her.

  “Let’s see. How much space are we talking about?” He bit his lips together. “My guess is about two thousand square feet or so of actual dance floor. Add on the second studio, plus room enough for the reception area. Of course finding commercial real estate where you can have an upstairs apartment might be tricky…”

  “I’m sorry, Drew. I didn’t mean to get you involved in hashing out my mess.” She wiped her face with a tissue.

  He shrugged. “I like dealing with property. I already own my share of buildings in the city, but they’re all jointly owned with my father. Recently I’ve been thinking about investing in real estate that’s all me. Here in the North Fork.”

  Casey stood. “Wait a minute. If you’re thinking…”

  “What’s the big deal? I buy some property. Improve it with renovations. The school stays alive. It’s a win-win.”

  She crossed her arms, stared down at the floor and shook her head. “It’s all very heroic of you, but I can’t let you do it.”

  “Don’t be a stubborn fool. Like I said, I’ve been pondering the idea for awhile.”

  Although her heart wanted to leap at his suggested solution, a part of Casey cringed at how desperate she must look to him. And how unfair it was to expect him to jump into the fray for her. “Actually I’m thinking a dance school isn’t such a good business move anyway. I made practically nothing on it.”

  Drew rose and stepped close to her. “Aside from the fact that you’re a lousy liar, you seem to have forgotten you told me how much this school meant to you. How you wanted to work at something you found meaningful, something you love.”

  “I love animals, too. And I have a friend in San Francisco who needs someone to manage her pet shop. I’ve been thinking about—”

  “Quit it, will you? A ballerina toting heavy bags of litter?” He snorted. “Can’t have that.”

  Casey bit her lower lip. “But, Drew, we barely know each other. Why would you do this?”

  Those blue eyes stayed on hers. “First of all, it’ll make my son happy. Second, I told you I was thinking of buying real estate around here. So, you just got me in the mood to stop putting things off. And third, you can’t quit doing this. You’re too good a teacher to go to waste.”

  Hearing his last reason, Casey beamed, more grateful than Drew could know. Suddenly giddy, she threw her arms around his rock solid torso. “My hero.”

  “Hero? No way.” Drew gave her a quick squeeze and let go. “But you’ve got to admit I came up with an excuse for you to go out with me. What say we discuss terms over dinner? You like jazz?”

  She nodded.

  “Know just the place. Serves great food, too.”

  Casey turned toward her closet. “Let me flip on a new dress.” She glanced back at Drew and saw him studying her shelf of unicorns.

  “What do these mean?” he asked.

  Baffled and slightly embarrassed by his personal question, Casey started giving him a standard folklore explanation.

  But Drew interrupted her. “I can read a book to learn that. I want to know why you collect these. What do they mean to Casey Richardson?” He touched the frosted crystal blue unicorn with a fairy riding on it. “Especially this one. Bet it’s your favorite.”

  How did he know? How could he see into her so clearly?

  “My father gave that one to me when I was fifteen.” Casey stopped, not sure she could say any more without ending up in tears again.

  “That’s who you were to him.”

  It wasn’t a question. The sincerity in his tone made Casey take a closer look at Drew Byrne.

  And made her continue. “It was a horrible time. My father’s cancer had gotten the best of him, and he didn’t have much longer to live. I used to write stories for him about magical places where everything was happy and beautiful. In some ways that’s what dance became to me later as I grew up. A magical place that’s separate from all of life’s troubles. And a woman named Amanda convinced me it was true.”

  “So the unicorns are about your dreams and wishes.”

  “Funny you should say that. My mom used to get on my case for being a dreamer, a rainbow chaser. But Dad loved me for it. He’d always tell me, ‘Listen to the dreams in your heart.’ ”

  Suddenly embarrassed for spilling her soul, Casey turned to the closet and pulled out a belted, blue V-neck with a straight skirt that covered most of her thigh. Somehow it felt safer to show less skin around Drew. This newly formed connection with him still had her nervous. “I’ll be fast about it,” she said, walking to her bathroom.

  “Take your time.”

  “But it’s a week night. Most places stop serving early.”

  “Not where we’re going.”

  “Oh? Where’s that?”

  “The Garage.”

  “Don’t know that one.”

  “It’s on Seventh and Grove.”

  “In Manhattan?”

  “Yeah.”

  “But that’s at least a two hour drive from here.”

  “Not if you’re going by helicopter.”

  ***

  “Will you relax, Casey? I’m not trying to be your sugar daddy. That’s just not me.” They sat together on a red leather bench, their balcony table overlooking the cavernous restaurant. The red brick walls and the shiny copper hood over the bar glowed with warmth in the soft light, faces of customers blending into the shadows.

  “Sorry to sound so paranoid. But I have this tendency to get enthusiastic about things and jump in, only to realize later that I missed some important details.”

  Drew reached his hand across the table and placed it over hers. “There’s nothing to miss here. No secret plot. Whatever does or doesn’t happen between us will have no bearing on our business arrangements. My only stipulation is that we don’t let Josh know. That could muddy things up.”

  “Agreed.” Still, warning bells went off in her head. Not about having Drew as a landlord, but about the temptation to get romantically involved with him. Flying to Manhattan in a private helicopter brought back memories of Jeff and the cruel lesson she’d learned about the way rich guys like him really saw women like her.

  But with Drew’s charm and the way he flirted and joked with her, Casey found herself letting down her guard. And now his warm hand covering hers sent her pulse racing. Dangerous thing to allow around this wealthy, heavy-hitting player and for
mer prize contestant of “Dating Mr. Mega-Bucks.”

  She slipped her hand out from under his, took a therapeutic gulp of her margarita and listened to the smooth jazz quartet. “I love the way Manhattan doesn’t shut down at night. When I lived here I often shopped at an all night grocer, and I’d actually run into my neighbor buying carrots at three in the morning.”

  “You’re a night person? So am I. Bet we like a lot of the same things.”

  “Think so?”

  He handed Casey a piece of coconut shrimp and nibbled one himself. “We both like to work out.”

  “True.”

  “We like the sea, or we wouldn’t live where we do.”

  “Right again.”

  “Hmm.” He drummed his fingers on the table.

  “Want some help?”

  “Sure.”

  Casey licked the margarita salt from her lips. She pretended not to notice Drew’s eyes riveted on her mouth. “I like the color blue. Maybe it’s the sea talking and one reason I’m an environmentalist.”

  “Ditto for me on both counts. Plus I’m an animal lover.”

  “Well, you know I’m going to meet you there.”

  Drew leaned closer. “How about we meet on one other topic we’ll both enjoy?”

  Her heart took an extra beat. Here it comes. She arched a brow.

  “Wine. I love a bottle of good pinot noir with my dinner. What do you say?”

  “Sounds good.”

  As Drew checked the wine list and placed his request with a waiter, Casey told herself she wasn’t disappointed that his proposition was about sharing wine with her rather than sharing a bed. And when she thought about it, he kept a gentlemanly distance from her even though they were seated together on this banquette-for-two where he could easily slide nearer to her.

  Was it because she’d revealed her mistrust? Or had he decided he wasn’t all that attracted to her after all?

  “I chose a wine from a North Fork vineyard to celebrate our new venture,” he said. “Never tried it before.”

  “What’s the name of it?”

  “Chateau TR.”

  A tall waiter with a tattoo of Chinese script on the side of his neck returned with the wine along with Drew’s grilled filet and Casey’s lobster ravioli.

  As they sampled the wine, Drew looked at the label. It had the owner’s signature scrawled across it in gold. “Taz Ravage? The lead singer with Jet Streak?”

  Small world, Casey thought.

  “That’s right,” the waiter said. “He bought himself a vineyard out on Long Island. Lot of celebs seem to be into that these days.”

  Too small. She’d been a lead dancer in a Taz Ravage music video. Casey decided not to mention it, since Drew would probably ask about him. She didn’t feel like lying, and she certainly wasn’t going to tell him about the post wrap party when Taz had practically forced himself on her. The bad boy rock star was not used to hearing a female say no.

  When the waiter left, Drew held up his glass and said, “To the North Cove Dance Academy.” He inclined his head and added, “Even if we have to move it a little ways out of North Cove.”

  Casey smiled and touched her glass to his, relief washing over her. This man was going to help her save her dance academy. But when Drew leaned forward and brushed a whisper of a kiss over her mouth, a simple kiss that left her wanting a whole lot more of him, she wondered if she was steering herself into unsafe waters.

  Chapter Eleven

  Friday was a scorcher. Casey returned from the Laundromat and lugged her heavy basket upstairs. She dumped the clothes in a pile on her bed and headed for the kitchen, craving a cold lemonade. She poured a glassful and slapped some peanut butter on multi-grain bread. Her usual snack before teaching the four o’clock class. Advanced level ballet today.

  A strange beeping sound came from the living room. Casey wandered in and saw what it was. The mobile Natalie had given her for the psychic readings. Recognizing the caller ID, she grabbed the phone and deepened her voice. “Madame Lumina.”

  “Finally,” Drew said. “I’ve been trying to reach you all day. Left several messages on your voice mail.”

  “Um, sorry. I was busy.” She had totally forgotten about this phone, figuring she didn’t need to bother with it until his next appointment on Monday.

  “Listen, I need some more of your wise counsel.”

  “Now?”

  “Is that a problem?”

  “No. But I only have about thirty minutes before my…next appointment.”

  “That’s fine. I’ll get right to it.”

  “Just a moment, please. I need to prepare myself.” Casey set the phone on the trunk and zoomed into the kitchen where she wolfed down her lemonade and peanut butter snack. Didn’t want to go all hypoglycemic in the middle of teaching her class. Still chewing, she sprinted to her bedroom, grabbing the phone on her way, and searched for the tarot cards she’d stored with Natalie’s notes. I know I put them here somewhere.

  She found the cards and papers on a bookshelf and settled herself on the bed. “All right, Dionysus, what can I do for you?”

  “Well, actually it’s this woman again. The dancer. You were dead-on accurate about her in that first reading. Thought maybe you could help me again. I’m damn good at playing most women, but I can’t figure this one out.”

  That set off a battle that had already been raging inside Casey. Should she trust Drew or not? Was he just “playing” her? Should she recognize this as a code red alert reminding her of the heartache and humiliation she’d suffered after once trusting a handsome and wealthy hotshot like him?

  Or was Drew different? Last night he seemed so kind and sincere. Didn’t even kiss her goodnight when he dropped her off after their little jaunt to New York City. And he was singlehandedly saving her school, for God’s sake.

  “Madame Lumina? You still there?”

  That was the other problem. His sexy voice. Plus his lion-like grace and power. And the look he got in his eyes when he spoke about his son. Made her want him so badly she didn’t care about the risks. “Yes. I’m here. Go on.”

  “So, this dancer. She acts ambivalent to me. I can’t tell if she’s attracted to me or just being friendly. Last night we went out, but it was kind of a spontaneous thing because of a project we’ll be doing together. But last time I actually asked her to go out with me she turned me down. I’m afraid she’ll just turn me down again if I—”

  “No, she won’t.”

  “Hey, you answered that fast.”

  “The vibrations are very strong.”

  “You think I should—”

  “Take her to dinner again.”

  “How’d you know I took her to dinner?”

  Casey slapped her forehead. “Well, I, uh…could tell…”

  “Oh, yeah, I forgot who I was talking to. You are amazing.”

  She was moving too fast, getting caught up in her runaway imagination. Casey stopped herself. Came down to earth. Which brought her to the reality of this situation: she was a fraud. The honorable thing to do would be to level with Drew right now. Tell him she was Madame Lumina.

  Except he’d be so angry it would ruin any chance of a relationship with him.

  Whoa, girl. Where did that come from? This guy is not relationship material.

  Casey reminded herself of what she’d decided last night as she tossed in bed thinking about him. That they would just be friends. He was giving her the opportunity to make a go of it with her business. She would be a good tenant and a good teacher and friend to his son. That was the safest route.

  But you just told him to take you to dinner!

  Because I’m an idiot.

  Because you can bet sex with him would send you to the moon.

  And that was the problem. It wouldn’t be just sex for Casey. She could tell Drew was someone who could rock her world. She felt that special buzz working every time she got near him.

  “Are you seeking a serious relationship?” The words
were out before Casey realized what she was doing.

  “You mean like marriage? I’m not into getting married. Guys like me are better off single. I get tired of most women pretty fast.”

  “Hmm.” Casey ignored the sinking feeling inside and instead congratulated herself for finding this out before she got burned.

  “Why? What do you see?”

  She turned over a card that had a lot of yellow, two people waving bouquets of flowers overhead, and what looked like a garden trellis. “Well, I’ve got the Four of Wands.” Flipping through Natalie’s notes, she came to the page and read, “ ‘This is a card about a rite of passage to a new stage in life, like marriage.’ ” What?

  “You’re kidding.”

  “But I see it can also be about property. Are you in the process of buying some property?”

  “That project I mentioned to you earlier. I’m looking to buy a building where she can keep her school going. Her landlord just sold the one she’s in. So, does it look like a good thing to go ahead with?”

  “Yes. This is a card of harmony and success.” Then guilt flooded her. “But let me pick another just to make sure.” She wiped a hand over her face. Casey badly needed him to go through with buying the property, but she hated people who manipulated others to serve their own goals. She’d never been that kind of person and didn’t want to become one. “King of Pentacles.” Her fingertip skimmed across the page to find the meaning. “It’s about a successful man of business…and real estate.”

  What is it with these cards? Could they actually be right?

  “That’s good. Because I’d really hate to see this fail.”

  “Because of the dancer?”

  “Well, for her and my son. He’s a shy kid who hasn’t done too well in a lot of arenas, but she’s given him a place to shine. Right now he needs her and her school. And, blockhead that I am, I almost made him quit. I can be pretty blind sometimes.”

  Casey was almost moved to tears. “That is a truly wonderful thing to do.”

  He gave a soft laugh. “She called me a hero. Can you believe that? I’m so used to being a shark. In my business and with women. I’m a ruthless competitor who doesn’t like to lose. But with my son, well, that’s where I keep on falling short. And yet he’s the most important thing in my life.”