Candy Crush

by Tami Lund

  “Anyway,” he sighed, “You went to Main Street Pizza Parlor with me, so there’s an assumption on the beautiful part.”

  “A little conceited, are we?”

  Brandon shrugged again. “Probably more than I should be. But actually, it’s all about reputation, and I have one.”

  “Which is?”

  “I only spend time with beautiful women.” He added a smoldering look to the comment, a look he’d perfected in the mirror when he’d been a randy teen, determined to figure out the most efficient way to get girls naked and horizontal. Her eyes flared for a moment before she devoted her entire focus on sucking on the straw in her drink. As he watched her lips pucker, he imagined her sucking on a decidedly larger straw. One attached to his body.

  Before he could open his mouth and undoubtedly crush any potential chance he had with the skittish woman, the front door opened and a shaft of sunlight accompanied a man inside. He wore a police uniform. Brandon cursed under his breath and then called out a greeting.

  “Hello Daniel.” His voice did not sound inviting.

  “Brandon. What are you doing here?”

  “Having lunch with my newest merchant.”

  “I was stopping by to meet your newest merchant too,” Daniel said.

  He pulled his hat off his head and stepped into the room. He had short-cropped brown hair and dark brown eyes. His complexion was ruddy and his build attested to the fact that if he did indeed indulge in donuts, he worked them off each day in the gym. Brandon watched as Gabriella wiped her hands on a napkin and stepped around the counter to greet him.

  “Hi, I’m Gabriella Hadley,” She said, extending her hand in front of her. He shook it and she said, “I’m the new owner of the candy store. I’m sorry I’m such a mess. I’ve been trying to clean up, get it in shape so I can hurry up and stop being the eyesore of Main Street.”

  She gave him a winning smile that caused Brandon to scowl. He wanted her attention to be on him, of course, but if he had to share her attentions with anyone, it sure as hell wasn’t going to be Daniel Franks.

  Daniel shook her hand enthusiastically and said, “Pleased to meet you. I’m Daniel Franks, Deputy Police Chief. Anything you need, do not hesitate to call me.” He handed her a business card. “My cell phone number is on there. Call anytime. And rest assured, you are not an eyesore. Not at all.”

  Brandon’s scowl deepened.

  Gabriella smiled widely and asked, “Do you have kids, Mr. Franks?”

  “Call me Daniel. Yes, I have kids. But I’m divorced,” he added hastily.

  “I’m glad to hear you have kids, because I plan to have this store open before Halloween, and I would love for them to attend the grand opening. I have big plans for it. So I’ll keep your card on file, so I can send them an invitation. It was very nice to meet you, Daniel. Have a great day.”

  He clearly read her dismissal, and after a moment’s hesitation, he bid her farewell and left.

  Brandon whistled. “That was impressive,” he said.

  “What?”

  “The way you just dismissed him. I like it. I’m glad you didn’t do that to me.”

  “I tried, yesterday, but you ignored it.”

  “Good thing, too, don’t you think?” Brandon winked and ignored her lack of response. “Your instincts are right to stay away from Daniel Franks.”

  “I was definitely getting the impression that you don’t like him.”

  “I don’t. He’s divorced because he cheated on my cousin. He’s still able to live in this town because she was cheating too.”

  “What, is your family the mafia or something?”

  “Nah, we’re Greek.” As if that explained everything.

  “So you’re pissed off at him because he divorced your cousin?”

  “That’s part of it. He also fucked my sister over the summer after she graduated from high school. And I didn’t like the way he was looking at you. All in all, I’d say I’m justified in not liking Daniel Franks.”

  He stood up and gathered the trash from their lunches and threw it into the nearly full bag in the middle of the room. “I have to get back to the office. You want me to take this out back before I leave?”

  Gabriella said sure, so he gathered the full trash bag, tied it closed and flung the bag over his shoulder. He caught her staring at his biceps so he flexed a couple extra times, strictly for her benefit. When she realized what he was doing, she rolled her eyes and shifted her focus to the front of the store. He chuckled as he carried the bag outside through the storage room.

  When he returned he said, “You need to call and make sure you’re signed up to have that dumpster emptied. It’s not automatic.” He lifted his drink off the counter and began heading toward the front door.

  “I have to attend a chamber mixer this afternoon at four. Do you want to go? Most of the Main Street merchants will be there. It’s a good opportunity to meet everyone and to keep your front door from becoming a revolving door.”

  ***

  For a minute there, Gabriella thought he was asking her out on a date, and then she breathed a sigh of relief when she realized it was a business event. She had no idea how she would have answered, had he asked her on a date. “I don’t know” probably wouldn’t fly, and she wasn’t quite ready to say “yes,” and she doubted very much she could choke out a “no” at this point.

  The man looked at her like she was candy. Delicious candy that he wanted to spend a great deal of time licking, maybe biting, definitely suckling. Or maybe that was her own overactive imagination, coming up with such… interesting ideas.

  She cleared her throat and forced herself not to fan her overheated face.

  “That would be lovely. Thank you for inviting me. I’ll go back to your house and take a shower and change in a couple hours. Should I meet you at your office at four?”

  “Sounds good. The mixer is at the Holly Hotel, which is just a couple blocks away. See you later.”

  He walked out the door, and the room felt distinctly empty afterward. Gabriella decided she needed a radio. Surely it was the lack of sound now that he was gone, not the lack of his presence.

  At two-thirty, Gabriella locked up the candy store and she and Butter headed back to Brandon’s house. At three o’clock, she stood in front of the closet in the guest bedroom, where she’d hung most of her clothes, and tried to decide what she should wear.

  She had taken a shower and wore a towel wrapped around her body. Her hair was still wet. Besides the fact that she couldn’t decide which outfit was best, they were all wrinkled, and she had no idea where Brandon’s ironing board was located. Probably the laundry room, she decided, and went downstairs to look.

  While she was in the laundry room, she heard the front door open and close and she felt a moment of panic when she realized she was completely naked save for the towel wrapped around her body. And her clothes were upstairs in the guest room. She heard the clipped sound of Brandon’s loafers, walking through the house and into the kitchen. And then he stood in the doorway to the laundry room.

  ***

  Brandon sucked in a breath, felt his groin tighten and choked out, “Well, hello there, Sweet Pea.”

  He leaned against the door jam, trying to exude a casual confidence he was not feeling at the moment. He felt more like a teenage boy who was being given an opportunity he had no idea what to do with. Which was crazy, really, because Brandon had learned at far too young an age what precisely he should do with such a golden opportunity. Interesting that he was midway through his thirties and fully aware of what could – what should – happen when boy meets hot girl, and he felt more awkward and foolish than he had as a horny sixteen-year-old.

  Gabriella’s cheeks pinked as her eyes dropped to stare at the floor. Brandon decided his only saving grace was that she obviously felt the same way.

  “I was – ah – looking for your ironing board. All of my clothes are wrinkled.”

  “Looks like you found it.”


  “What are you doing here, anyway?”

  “It was slow at the office, so I figured I’d come get you, so you didn’t have to walk back alone.”

  Gabriella cleared her throat. “I should go upstairs and get dressed.”

  No you shouldn’t.

  Just before she was about to slip past him and into the kitchen, Brandon lifted his arm across the doorway, momentarily blocking her exit. She looked up at him and took an involuntary step backwards.

  Her foot snagged on the laundry basket and she would have tumbled backwards if Brandon had not shot out his arms and caught her. He pulled her upright and into his arms and before either one of them could form a coherent thought, he dipped his head and kissed her.

  Her lips softened and opened as her eyes fluttered shut. One hand clung to his arm while the other held tightly to the towel wrapped around her body. Undaunted, Brandon smoothed one hand up her side to the top of the towel. His fingers teased over the top swell of her breast as he deftly worked to loosen the towel. Gabriella’s eyes shot open and she pushed herself backwards, this time sidestepping the laundry basket as she did so.

  “Thank you for catching me,” She said curtly. “Now if you’ll excuse me.”

  He didn’t move as she darted past him and fairly flew through the kitchen and out of sight. When he heard her bare feet slapping against the stairs, he leaned against the door jam again, much heavier this time, and waited for his erratic heart beat to slow down. He glanced down at the dog, which had wandered into the room and said, “Does everyone have that kind of reaction to her?”

  Butter wagged her tail and Brandon pushed off from the doorframe and went into the kitchen in search of his bottle of Maker’s Mark.

  An hour later, Gabriella walked down the stairs wearing a blue suit with a fitted jacket, short, snug skirt and matching heels. Just as he suspected when he first met her, those mile long legs did look awesome in heels, even conservative ones with barely an inch heel.

  He tore his eyes away from the sight to focus above the neck. Her streaked blond hair hung in loose curls around her face and her facial features were accentuated with just the right amount of makeup.

  Brandon decided he wanted another one of those kisses, along with whatever came naturally afterward. He stood and tried to keep his features passive. He could tell by the closed look on her face that she had every intention of pretending the kiss never happened. He suspected it was going to be harder than he originally thought to get her to tumble into his bed.

  “Ready?” he asked and she nodded.

  Brandon unabashedly admired her backside as she bent and patted the dog on the head as they headed out the door. He definitely had to figure out a way to get this woman into his bed.

  As soon as she was outside, Gabriella shivered.

  “Cold?” Brandon asked.

  “Yes. I don’t really have an appropriate jacket to go with this suit. I need to go shopping soon. I don’t even own a winter coat.”

  Brandon slipped off his suit coat and draped it over her shoulders. It was almost as long on her as her skirt. “Better?”

  “Yes, but now you’re going to be cold.”

  “I’ll be fine,” he said, thinking that just walking next to her kept him warm enough. Besides the fact that it was at least fifty degrees outside, which was hardly cold at this time of year.

  They walked in silence for a few minutes, until Brandon asked, “Why won’t you tell me where you’re from?”

  Gabriella continued walking for a few paces before answering. “I suppose you could say I’m running away from my old life, and I’m still a little afraid it might catch up to me.”

  “That sounds ominous.”

  “It feels ominous sometimes.”

  “Are you running from the law?” Brandon wondered if she were, would it make a difference to him? Would it make him want her less?

  Probably not, he decided. Aside from telling him she had an estranged husband back home, he couldn’t imagine anything adversely affecting the way he wanted her. Hell, he wasn’t sure an estranged husband would matter. As long as he was estranged. Brandon didn’t like to share.

  Over the course of less than twenty-four hours, he’d developed a curious obsession over the petite blond southern bell. He decided to attribute it to the way she played hard to get. He didn’t usually have to work very hard to convince women to hop into his bed. In fact, he could say with absolute certainty that he had never before had an unrelated woman spend the night in his house and not in his bed. Until last night, that is.

  “No, not exactly. I didn’t do anything wrong, personally. But I know about some stuff that other people did. It seemed prudent at the time to get as far away as possible.”

  “Did you leave a lot behind?”

  Gabriella nodded. “My family. Everyone. I was very close to my family, so it’s hard to be two thousand miles away from everyone.”

  Brandon heard the sadness in her voice and it pulled at his heart. Without thinking about it, he put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her into his side. She didn’t resist, and much to his delight, leaned into him.

  “I’m sorry,” he said. He squeezed her shoulder and added on a lighter note, “You can borrow my family any time you want. There are plenty of them around.”

  Gabriella giggled and the serious moment passed.

  ***

  When they were a block away from the Holly Hotel, Gabriella extracted herself from under Brandon’s arm and slipped his suit coat off her shoulders. She was instantly chilled, but she decided it was better than the very obvious message it would send if she walked in under his arm and wearing his coat. Brandon frowned slightly but didn’t comment, as he slipped his coat over his own shoulders. She pretended not to notice when he leaned his head to the side and inhaled before buttoning the front of the suit coat. The only reason she noticed at all was because she’d done the same darn thing when he first draped it around her shoulders.

  Brandon held the door open, and then, before she had a chance to look around, he whisked her up a set of stairs, calling out hello to several people as he passed. At the top of the stairs, he turned her to the left and whispered, “Ready?”

  Then he looked up and smiled as an elderly woman in a red suit with a badge pinned to her lapel that read, “Holly Chamber of Commerce” hustled up to them. She hugged Brandon and extended her hand to Gabriella.

  “Hello there. I’m Constance Trakas, president of the Holly Chamber of Commerce. You must be the new owner of the candy store. On behalf of the Village of Holly, welcome to our community.”

  She beamed at Gabriella and pumped her hand until Gabriella thought it might be pulled from its socket. She had wavy dark hair that was pulled back from her face and fell to her shoulders, and bright blue eyes. She bore a strong resemblance to Brandon. Gabriella cocked an eyebrow at him and he whispered in her ear, “Another aunt.”

  “Hello, Mrs. Trakas, I’m Gabriella Hadley. It’s nice to meet you. And thank you for the welcome.”

  Constance finally released Gabriella’s hand and then made a dismissive gesture. “Oh nonsense, call me Constance. We aren’t that formal here. Where are you from, dear? I just love that accent.”

  Ignoring Brandon’s gentle probes for information was one thing. Ignoring the president of the Chamber of Commerce was quite another. Grudgingly, Gabriella said, “Dallas.”

  She glanced at Brandon. He smiled blandly, but she could see the look of triumph behind that smile. The man was incorrigible.

  “Dallas? I just love that city. I’ve been there once or twice. What brings you all the way to Holly, Michigan? And with winter coming, no less.” Constance chuckled.

  Gabriella blanched and Brandon put his hand on her forearm. “Aunt Constance, you can’t hog her. You know everyone wants to meet her. Save your inquisition for the next family gathering.”

  Constance’s attention shifted as she zoned in on her nephew. “She’ll be at the next family gathering?” she asked s
harply.

  “We’ll see. She’s staying with me temporarily. If she’s still there, yes. If not, you can grill me.”

  “Good. I’m looking forward to it.” Someone called out to her, and Constance turned to greet the next group of guests.

  Brandon guided Gabriella into the private dining room where the event was being held.

  “Thank you for saving me, but what was that last bit?” Gabriella asked, as they made their way to the bar.

  “You are welcome. I didn’t want her to find out all your deep dark secrets before I had my chance to do so.” He grinned. “And I told you I have a reputation. It is the mission of all of the elderly women in my family to try to destroy that reputation. They’re determined to see me settled down and married to a nice Greek girl who will keep me in line and give me lots of healthy Greek babies.”

  “I’m not Greek,” Gabriella blurted before she could stop herself.

  “That’s okay, that’s the least important part, at this point. Since I’m a full blood, my kids will be half, so they’ll be satisfied. They’re starting to suspect I might be a lost cause, though, so it’s getting intense. But you have nothing to worry about. I’m not in any hurry to see their wishes come true.”

  He leaned closer and whispered in her ear, “I definitely want you in my bed, Sweet Pea, but I’m not interested in marriage.”

  Gabriella shivered and saw his wolfish grin before he turned to the bartender and ordered a glass of cabernet for her and a Maker’s Mark, neat, for himself.

  Gabriella accepted the wine and said, “Since you seem determined to constantly order for me, I prefer merlot to cabernet.” She took a sip and derived a little bit of satisfaction in the surprised look that crossed his face. Two can play at this game, Brandon Sarantos.

  That was a lie, of course, but Gabriella was far too shaken by her own physical response to the man, and she needed to cling to something.

  He wants me in his bed.

  Well, she knew that right from the start, from that first heated look, when they met on the sidewalk outside the candy store. But to have him say it out loud, well, that added an entirely new level of intensity to this convoluted relationship. For crying out loud, she has only known the man for one full day, and she had the distinct impression he was slightly baffled by the fact that they had not yet tumbled into bed together.