Double Dare
Page 4
“What?” Sasha said, but Emma had lost her ability of speech.
The same man who had rescued her the night before, kissed her with wild abandon, was the man with whom she planned to set up a business arrangement.
Emma should have been shocked. Even a little angry because he’d known who she was earlier and hadn’t said anything. Instead, she tripped up on stupid stuff, like how the lighting allowed for a cozy atmosphere, but she could remember in the shadows how his mouth and tongue could lash out a punishment. The same visceral reaction left Emma wanting to do more things Tobias could punish her for.
Her mind snagged on more dumb things, like how her eyes couldn’t stop drinking him in. He nodded to Lucia and the intent focus flicked to Emma. His gaze stripped her bare. She couldn’t help but revel in the feeling of being both vulnerable and desired.
She frowned. Although Abigail stood right next to her, Tobias’ gaze didn’t waver. Emma glanced to her left and made sure Sasha was still there, too. She was. Emma’s frown deepened. It felt odd to have such an intense gaze focused solely on her.
Tobias held Emma’s gaze for another beat and then brought his attention back to the local store owner. She noted he hadn’t looked apologetic for lying.
“Speaking of a scenic route, not only does he want to take yours…” Abigail sounded a little breathless. “I―I can’t even think of something dirty enough to finish that sentence.”
“You?” Sasha whispered. “Speechless? I’m impressed and intrigued.” She forced the box into Emma’s hands.
“It was your idea,” Emma muttered, but stepped forward when the older woman moved from the counter.
As they passed, Lucia nodded to all three women and left. Tobias crossed his arms, his eyes never leaving her face as she made her way to counter. She gave Tobias points for not looking at her boobs now that the apron was out of the way.
“Emmaline,” he said.
Oh, she thought, at the sound of her full name but said, “Tobias,” to make it clear she knew his true identity. Still no guilt crossed his face. She cleared her throat, motioning to the two women beside her. “My tribe wanted to thank my rescuer.”
He kept his eyes on her. “They do?”
Sasha and Abigail thanked him but looked confused, and then the truth dawned on them. First Sasha and then Abigail, but both women’s brows lifted before lowering again. Emma loved them for picking up the subtle clue without fanfare.
“No problem,” Tobias said. “Though I’m confused about why you two didn’t talk her out of streaking.”
The penetrating weight of his gaze moved from her, to her friends. She waited for the heat, the slow up, down glance Abigail normally received from men. Those same men usually lost all rational thought when forced to look directly at Sasha. Unlike most men, Tobias paid little attention to the other women and turned back to Emma.
“We were the ones who talked her into it,” Abigail said.
The laugh was low and damn near seductive. “Color me really confused now.”
Still a little shocked he was looking at only her, Emma gripped the box and managed to say, “Long story.”
Abigail’s hand came from behind her and into the space Emma and Tobias shared. He took the offered hand while she introduced herself.
“Abigail. Tribe member and ad account executive.”
“The getaway driver,” he said.
Abigail nodded and her friend’s gaze swept over and detailed the set up behind him. “What plans do you have for advertising?”
“I’m in a college town, so that’s my primary focus. I know things won’t pick up until fall, but I’ve figured this will be my soft opening to ease my way into the rhythm. The current demographics are factory and construction workers. I’m still arranging for functionality. My brother’s good with his hands and he can create a nook for me to put there.”
He gestured to the highest edge of the counter. If a line formed the person wouldn’t be able to look anywhere else but at the display. He shrugged. “Perfect place to put desserts. Deli sandwiches, whatever I don’t currently offer. You present an option enough to someone, eventually, they go for it.”
“Brother?” Emma asked. He gave off a lone wolf sort of vibe, but even if he did have a pack he’d definitely be the alpha.
“You hired Josh earlier,” he said without any need to explain. “He’s enrolled at the college, but won’t start until for a few more weeks. He wants to be an architect, but he has an affinity for craftsmanship.” His chin jerked in the direction behind her. “The chairs and tables he had pictures of in his portfolio.”
Joshua. The boy fighting his way to manhood with wide, puppy-dog eyes. He’d come into her store, asked for a carpentering job and she’d hired him as a summer assistant. How could she say no to his face? And he was related to the man who stood in front of her. It was simply too much.
Emma followed the gesture, still in a shock as the bits of information tried to merge in her mind. Tobias was Graham. He owned the store. She’d hired his brother this afternoon. She was here for a meeting to agree on the details of a business venture they’d been attempting to coordinate for months now. He’d also lied to her face.
He’d seen her in the buff.
Emma wanted to curl into a fetal position. She wanted to run and forget all that had transpired in the past twenty-four hours, but the tables and chairs came into focus. As a pair their beauty was subtle. When she first walked in they’d hit her radar simply as furniture but hadn’t inspected them. Now she did.
His brother had handcrafted designs along the legs and around the edge of the table. The same design decorated the chairs. The mahogany gleamed in the light. It had to have taken time and patience and passion. A quality that ran in the family.
Tobias wasn’t a man to settle either. He hadn’t come into Sweet Tooth on a whim, but to check her out. She tried to remember his reaction. Shock had quickly turned to incredulous anger. She’d written the ridiculous emotions off. Now it made sense.
“You must be proud.” She faced Tobias again.
“I am.”
His stare unsettled Emma only because she could see his mind working. What did he see when he looked at her like that? What did he see when he looked at her friends? What had he decided? Had he decided to end the deal? She knew those stupid dares would bite her in the butt one day.
“What did you think of Emma’s desserts?” Abigail asked.
“I―my brother devoured both.”
“Have you considered Emma for your display?” Sasha grinned.
Emma wanted to throttle them both. Tobias probably didn’t catch on to the innuendo, but she had. Heat flushed to her face.
“I had and did.” The deep timbre of the reply sent wicked visions of being spread open and on display for Tobias through Emma’s mind. The thought seemed telepathic as a flash of knowing desire filled his gaze. He’d definitely caught on to the innuendo.
“But I figured our situation is complicated now. There are some boundaries we need to go over before I’m sold.”
“Agreed.” Her tone was just as cool.
Ok. It had been reckless and stupid to run down the street naked. It was also underhanded to lie about who he was. Tobias was a stuffy, know-it-all…but she couldn’t call him passionless.
“We’re heading out,” Abigail said. “Just us two.” She pointed to herself and Sasha. “We’re late for a prior dinner engagement. From my experience, I’ve found the easiest arrangement is probably the best one. Emma’s a soft sell so present her the idea and I’m sure she’ll go for it. It was nice meeting you.”
“Nice to meet you, too,” Tobias said with sincerity. “Both of you.”
Emma caught the amusement in his gaze before he snuffed it out. Her friends fled and it would be weird and immature if she suddenly had a reason to go too, especially when she had his undivided attention. They had a meeting, boundaries to draw up. She had to decide if his actions were enough to kill the deal.
She broke eye contact first. Remembering the box in her hand, she handed it over. “My tribe told me I was remiss in simply giving you an éclair and croissant. Did Josh enjoy both desserts?”
His laugh seduced her with its softness. “He’ll probably talk you into giving him an employee discount so he can steadily eat his income.” Tobias flipped back the lid of the box as he spoke.
The short stack of chocolate and crème breading had been an experiment many moons ago. The drizzle of caramel and raspberry created a clean presentation, but also made the dessert irresistible after one bite. He picked up the fork and broke off a crisp corner with both toppings.
The challenge left his gaze after he chewed. He hummed with pleasure and chewed some more. He closed his eyes as he made a low, guttural sound.
Emma’s blood pumped at his blatant satisfaction. She didn’t usually watch someone enjoy her baking. He opened his eyes, speared a bigger piece. His teeth sank into the food and scraped the fork. Tobias’ mouth closed around what was left of the pastry. He sighed deep in his chest, licking the utensil clean. Would he have the same reaction if he bit her inner thigh? Lips? And then lick her to make sure nothing was missed? She made a soft, barely audible moan. For the first time ever, Emma was envious of a fork.
“I don’t know if this is a cake or a brownie.” He didn’t sound confused. He sounded filled with need. “Is there more?”
The question did more than please her, it ignited a fire along her skin. This man was potent. Emma doused the sensation, knowing she had to get a hold of herself.
“There’s more, but how about you make me a coffee first? Though I hate to admit it, my friend is right. I’m a soft sell. Maybe we can still come to an agreement about what you have in mind. I have no problem helping a newcomer with potential.”
Most businesses crashed and burn within two years and Tobias’ hadn’t. He even had enough money to open a new branch, but that didn’t mean this one would do as well. The e-mails they exchanged lent her a view of him. This man had a sharp-edged mentality to business. He didn’t do anything without seeing all the angles, pitfalls and disasters. Moreover, he had the means to go at it. The situation gave him a slight upper hand and the choice to turn her away. Why wasn’t he? Damned if she didn’t want to work with him more.
“All the frills?” Tobias asked as he moved behind the counter.
“What are the frills?”
“Whipped cream, and a dash of cinnamon or chocolate shavings?”
“Chocolate.”
Between brewing a tall cup of coffee, he attacked the Late Night Tennessee. Except for the moments where he stopped long enough to enjoy her concoction, he kept in motion grinding fresh beans, adding water slowly to the complicated looking percolator, and then getting a cup prepped for the coffee. Stop, enjoy, shake his head on a sigh, and then back in motion.
It put her in a trance, the hypnotic way he moved with grace and focus, so when he finished the Late Night, his voice broke the spell. “Does Abigail work for a company or is she solo?”
“Both. If things are slow or boring, she picks up side work.”
Artfully, though his movements were precise, he stacked the whipped cream before putting on the finishing touch of shaved chocolate. He set the cup between them, and she picked it up.
“You don’t seem nervous.” She wondered what would put nerves into his solid, six foot plus frame. “My first sip is going to decide me, you know?”
“I know.” He shrugged. “You’re the one who seems nervous.”
She was. If the coffee tasted like sludge and sawdust it would disappoint the hell out of her. He had magnetism and a focus that had convinced Emma everything he put his mind to came out exactly as he envisioned.
If the coffee sucked it meant he had a huge ego. Why did it matter? This would be a business relationship, if that. He wasn’t talking about seeing her naked or their chance meeting this morning. Ok. So, maybe, it bugged her he cared so little. It was a blip. She was a blip. Even naked.
Maybe it mattered because he intrigued her interest, and when was the last time a man had captured her curiosity? After three years of only an occasional date or the even rarer night of sex, she missed the push and pull of being attracted to a man. That’s why it mattered for his coffee to be not just good but excellent. Didn’t mean it would go further, but it mattered that he met at least this expectation.
With trepidation she took her first sip. The brew went down smooth and slowly blossomed over her taste buds. By the fourth sip, she had to give the man credit for not bragging. He didn’t need to.
“This is really good coffee,” she said.
“Thank you.” He straightened. “Now can we please go get more of whatever you fed me?”
His words hit her Achilles’ heel. One taste of Late Night and Tobias reacted exactly how she’d wished he had earlier in Sweet Tooth. A man spurned by passion and need for her, but instead he felt it for her pastry. Her passion. If he had said something else she might have ignored the push and pull. She could have written off the sizzle, because how could a man not look at you without heat after seeing you naked?
He craved her baking. He wanted more. Was begging for more of her sweets. Emma really needed a different Achilles’ heel.
Chapter Five
Tobias sighed and glanced at Emmaline under the streetlights. The wavy dark strands of her hair glinted in the light. The oval shape of her face softened the sharp cut of cheekbones. Her physical beauty was an afterthought, because in less than twenty-four hours he found himself alone with her again and that was more troublesome. The knowledge that her skin resembled the highest quality of silk tortured and annoyed him. Tobias preferred to keep personal matters and business separated, but how could he now?
One thing continued to really irk him: why hadn’t she run screaming in the other direction when he came into her shop? He knew he had a certain intensity about him that made plenty of people uncomfortable. Josh reminded him of that with a simple, “I swear I didn’t do it, Officer.”
Tobias had left the job, but the job couldn’t seem to leave him. Emma appeared unperturbed. There was blind trust or stupidity. He couldn’t put her in the latter, but it was hard to securely place her in the former.
They crossed the street in silence. She unlocked the door to Sweet Tooth and didn’t turn to see if he followed. Her blasé attitude about letting men into a secluded area, without, at the minimum, wariness, bothered him.
“Why do you trust me?” he asked at her back.
She turned for a second, by-passing the mostly empty display cases. “Are you untrustworthy?”
“That’s not the point,” he ground out the words.
“The point is?” She shot back and crossed her arms.
“I could be a serial rapist.”
“If that’s the case I was delivered from the heavens right into your arms.” She tilted her head and shifted. “I trust you because you kept your hands in a G-rated zone.” The flippant tone left her voice. “When you found out I had hired your brother you came over here to check me out. When you realized I was the naked chick from last night you didn’t bring it up. Despite your lecture, questioning my intelligence—”
“Not your intelligence.” He jerked his head left then right. “Your lack of self-protection.”
“Despite that, you’ve been polite and considerate.”
She had a point. Several actually. “Still.” He closed the distance between them, and she didn’t step back nervously or look for an exit. Once again proving his point. “I kissed you.”
She lifted a brow, a smile playing at the corner of her lips. “I asked you to.”
Less than an inch away from her, Tobias inhaled throu
gh his nose. The scent of vanilla overpowered his senses, making him forget the point. “You did, but I didn’t have to.”
She jerked a shoulder up. “Why’d you lie?”
“Didn’t want to be connected with someone who thought getting naked and running down a street as something fun to do.”
“What changed your mind?” Emmaline asked.
He answered with the seriousness of the conversation. “This is what I need to get my business where I want it to be.”
She swallowed, and he stepped out of her space. Glancing around he could see most of the displays were empty, and couldn’t imagine how she would give him another helping of Late Night Tennessee.
“Follow me,” she said.
The hallway she led him down had a coat of beige paint and scrapes, hip-level, along the wall that finally opened up to a large and airy kitchen. She pointed to a squat bar stool by a large wooden island. “There’s a good place. I’ll have to heat up the topping. Might take a while.”
“I’ve got time.” He sat down onto the padded stool, clasped his hands together.
She washed hers in the industrial-sized sink. Cursed, opened one of the cabinets, and took out a plate. She placed it in front of him. “Ask about me while I cook.”
His brows furrowed. “Why?”
“You don’t go into a business deal blind. We never got personal in the e-mails. Well, Tina and George never got personal. We’ve never spoken, actually. Directly, at least. Now’s a good time as any.”
Another piece that didn’t seem to fit. “Ok,” Tobias said, but found his mind blank.
The vanilla scent drifted up at her close proximity, and then it was gone. She washed her hands again, and afterward began to take dishes out of the refrigerator. He latched onto the first thought that managed to get through the haze.
“What culinary school did you go to?”
“None, but I did go to college. Junior year my parents passed.” She paused. The silence practically told a life story. She forced a self-deprecating smile. “I was home alone a lot. Idle hands.”