Resounding Kisses

by Jessica Gray

  “I love meeting the people.” Her voice audibly cheered up and she started talking about her love for intellectual property rights and helping her clients navigate through the pitfalls.

  Ter sensed how she finally relaxed and the nervous tension left her body as he pulled onto the last street they’d be able to traverse by car. From here on, everything was already fenced off. He found a parking space and parked the car. “We have to walk from here.”

  Ivy reached out to open her own door, but Ter stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Stay there until I get the door opened. Please.”

  Her eyes widened in surprise, but she nodded and folded her hands in her lap. He hurried around and opened her car door with a flourish. “Madam?”

  She took the hand he reached out for her and he pulled her out and onto the sidewalk. “Thanks,” she murmured.

  Ter smiled at her and then grabbed her hand as if it was the most normal thing in the world for him to do. When she twitched and started to pull away, he squeezed her hand tightly for just a moment, before he released the pressure again.

  ***

  Ivy was in love with the way Ter seemed to anticipate her actions before she even knew them herself. He insisted on opening doors for her, taking her hand to help her from the car – it was all so normal.

  When he’d tried to keep hold of her hand, she’d instinctively pulled it away before she could tell herself not to. Even then, he’d shown her in such a caring way what he wanted, yet had given her the power to decide for herself. Deciding to trust, she’d snuck her small hand back into his big one.

  Now they walked like a happy-in-love couple towards the cordoned off area around the building that was getting ready to be no more. Ter headed directly for a uniformed security officer, keeping her right beside him. He spoke to him for a brief moment and then the security guard walked toward the fenced off area surrounded by emergency vehicles.

  He returned a few moments later with Grant in tow. A gorgeous woman with long auburn hair was with him, and Ivy racked her brain trying to figure out why she looked so familiar. Grant pulled the smiling woman into his side when they reached her and his brother.

  Watching the two of them together, Ivy could easily understand why Grant hadn’t even tried to flirt with Bella. His girlfriend was not only gorgeous, but she clearly admired him and his eyes shone with love whenever he looked at her – which he did all the time. I hope loyalty is a family trait.

  Loyalty was a biggie on her list. It was a non-issue in Ivy’s opinion. A real man was loyal, and that was that. Any man wanting to conquer her heart would have to possess that sterling quality. Along with Intelligence and being a gentleman. A beautiful voice would be the icing on the cake. She mentally added another point: the ability to make her shiver whenever she looked at him. Like Ter did.

  She caught herself comparing Ter to her list. So far he’d already scored five points, but she’d have to get to know him better to find out about the remaining points. She’d promised herself years before that she wouldn’t settle for anything less than a nine out of ten.

  “Hello. I’m Sam, Grant’s fiancé.” Sam stretched out her hand and gave her a full-blown smile. Ivy knew that smile, but still couldn’t point to it. She took the hand and shook it. “I’m Ivy. I work for Ter’s record label.”

  “Nice to meet you.”

  Grant interrupted them. “Hey, do you two want a tour? We have about twenty minutes before everyone will have to clear the crash zone.”

  “Including you?” Ivy asked.

  “No. My assistant and myself will stay in a safe area, but inside the police tape.” Seeing the worry on Sam’s face, he hugged her and offered, “Don’t worry, Sammie. I’m always extra careful.”

  “I know that, but still.” Sam pressed herself tighter into Grant’s arms.

  Ivy was touched by how much love those two felt for each other. She wanted a relationship like they had.

  “So, how about that tour?” Grant asked again.

  Ivy looked at Ter and then nodded, “I’d love to. That sounds interesting.”

  Grant smiled proudly at her. “Great. Follow me.”

  Chapter 13

  Ivy dutifully followed along behind Grant and Sam. Ter had released her hand when she greeted his brother and fiancé and now she felt strangely lost and wished he’d take her hand again. But he didn’t. As they narrowed their ranks to enter the building, she couldn’t take it anymore and reached her hand out to search for his.

  When she found it, he immediately wrapped his fingers around hers and turned towards her to give her the most irresistible smile. He squeezed her fingers in silent communication and she felt her heart melt. Maybe she should settle for less than a nine?

  To keep herself from throwing her principles overboard in that very instant, she asked, “I know I have seen Sam somewhere, but can’t put my finger on it.”

  Ter barked out a laugh, loud enough to make Grant and Sam stop and turn to look at them both with curious looks on their faces.

  Ivy felt the blood rush into her cheeks and had never been more grateful for her dark skin. She hated being embarrassed, and only someone who knew her well would be able to tell she was flushing.

  “Care to share what’s so humorous?” Sam asked with a smile.

  Ter nodded. “Ivy was just wondering where she knew you from, Sam.”

  At that, Sam and Grant joined in the laughter and Ivy was left to wonder what was so funny about her question.

  Sam must have seen the confusion and hurt on Ivy’s face, because she hurried to explain, “Ivy, my full name is Samantha Armstrong and you’ve probably seen my face on some of the magazine covers.”

  That explained everything. “Top model Samantha Armstrong?” she asked in awe.

  “Yep, that’s me. But let’s keep it with Sam, okay?”

  Ivy looked at Sam with a critical eye, trying to come to grips with the fact that the normal girl in front of her was the same person she’d seen on last month’s cover of Vogue.

  That woman had been all dressed up in a gold shimmery dress with strategic cutouts around the bodice. Her hair had been elaborately styled and she’d been wearing shoes that Bella had raved about for weeks.

  Trying to match that image with the one in front of her was difficult. Today, Sam was wearing a light yellow t-shirt with ripped boyfriend jeans, white heels, and a dark yellow chartreuse knee length jacket with large buttons down the front. Her long hair was casually styled and down, rather than up on top of her head, and she wore large over-sized sunglasses, which covered up half of her face.

  Sam and Grant turned around and headed into the building, and Ivy whispered to Ter, “You should have told me, now I’ve made a fool of myself.”

  He flashed her his panty-melting grin again and said, “Sorry, lovey, I forgot. Sam is used to this so you didn’t make a fool of yourself.” Then he leaned in closer and his lips brushed her ear lobe and she had to suck in a breath when he lowered his voice to a lusty whisper, “You know, it’s almost invisible, but I love the way you blush.”

  Ivy felt even more blood rush to her cheeks and she was sure the burning heat could have set the entire building on fire. He nibbled on her ear lobe and raised one hand to caress her cheek. His cool fingers eased some of the scorching heat from her skin. “Like now. I can feel you blushing.”

  He stopped nibbling her earlobe and met her eyes. “It makes you even more beautiful. You are the most gorgeous woman I have ever seen.”

  If he didn’t stop complimenting her soon, she would turn to liquid and melt into a puddle around his feet. She squirmed, trying to avoid looking at him, but he held her chin in place with his, pinning her with his stare. The stare from his emerald eyes that seemed to bore straight into her soul.

  “Don’t say that. We’re here with a top model and she’s a lot more beautiful than I am.”

  His eyes darkened and took on the color of a pine tree, his forefinger caressing her cheek while his thumb still held
her chin in place so she couldn’t evade his glance. “Not to me.”

  Her heart ratcheted up a notch, or twenty notches, as he leaned down to kiss her. She had been waiting, hoping, yet fearing this kiss since the moment he’d picked her up this morning. And now she lost track of time and space, because the world around her ceased to exist with his sensual lips on hers and his strong arms wrapped around her body. She went on her tiptoes to be nearer to him, to disappear into him.

  Sam’s voice cut their kiss short. “Hey, lovebirds, you two can do that later. We’re kind of on a tight schedule here.”

  What is it with embarrassing myself today?

  Ter released her lips, grabbed her hand and they hurried into the building. Ivy had never been on a construction site before, so seeing the partially demolished walls and open ceilings was an eye opening experience for her. In preparation for imploding the building, as much of the water piping and electrical that could easily be removed, had been, leaving walls torn open, and large expanses of the building in complete disarray.

  “What happened here?” she whispered.

  Grant turned and explained how they prepped a building before demolishing it. “Ideally, there will be little left but the walls and floors when we actually bring it down on itself. It makes the clean up so much easier if we’re not dealing with miles of wire and piping.”

  Grant led them around the building, quickly explaining how he used the plans on file with the building and planning commission to begin a project like this. He calculated the strength of the building, determined where the load-bearing walls were, and then used a complicated algorithm to determine exactly where the explosives should be and how much to use.

  Ivy was fascinated with how much work went into something like this. She’d always dismissed demolition as a grunt job that took little skill, just a lack of self-preservation. After listening to Grant speak, she realized that only someone with killer mathematical skills would be able to actually do what he’d just described.

  “So the first blast will take out this area,” Grant was explaining.

  Ivy looked at him and asked, “First blast? Doesn’t the building come down all at once?”

  “No.” Grant shook his head. “We take out the center supports first. Then we move outwards, caving in the bottom load-bearing structures. Last, we collapse the very top and send it all crashing in on itself.”

  “Three different blasts?” Ivy asked.

  “Yeah, but they follow each other fairly quickly. Unless you were really listening and watching for them, it would all seem like one elongated blast.”

  Grant continued to explain how the building would fall. “It’s important that the building fall straight down in order not to damage nearby buildings.”

  “But don’t most explosions send things in all directions?” she asked, feeling adrenaline rushing through her veins. This was a lot more exciting than she’d anticipated.

  “They do, but these aren’t your normal, every day, run of the mill explosions.” Grant’s eyes sparkled with genuine excitement and love for his work.

  Sam grinned. “But there are always exceptions, no matter how carefully things are planned.”

  “That’s why we make sure the surrounding buildings have been evacuated before we start the explosions. There have been some major incidents over the years.”

  “Seriously?” Ivy caught her breath.

  “Sure. One wrong calculation and this entire block could go down. It would be like toppling over dominoes.” Grant reached for Sam’s shoulders and pulled her in front of him, wrapping one arm around her collarbones and the other around her waist.

  Ivy had always thought public displays of affection were cheesy and unnecessary, but watching Grant and Sam together, she realized how wrong she’d been – again. They didn’t have to verbally communicate; they simply never stopped touching one another. It was natural and there was definitely nothing cheesy about it. On the contrary, they looked so sweet together and once again, Ivy found herself re-evaluating her preconceived notions.

  Just like there was nothing cheesy in the way Terrence held her hand. Or the way he’d snuck in a few kisses. And the heated glances he kept throwing her way had her heart racing and her stomach in knots.

  Grant looked at his watch and then released Sam. “Guys, I hate to break this little show and tell session up, but we have to get out of here now. My assistant will come through to make sure the buildings are all clear.”

  “Then what happens?” Ivy wanted to know.

  “Well, once we’ve ascertained all of the buildings are clear, there will be one last radio check. If everything checks out, I’ll blow the first round of dynamite forty-five minutes from now.”

  They reached the barrier and Grant kissed Sam goodbye. “See you later, Sammie.”

  The trio slipped beneath the barrier and headed for a nearby restaurant. They grabbed deli sandwiches and glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice before heading back outside to find an empty table where they could eat and observe the coming event.

  Just as they were about to sit down to eat, Sam waved at someone further down the barrier. “Hey, I’ll join my friend down there since she’s all alone.” She turned to Ivy. “It was great meeting you. Enjoy the show.”

  “I will. It was nice meeting you as well.”

  “Bye Ter.” She hugged Ter and took off, leaving them alone once again. The difference between that night in the bar and now was – Ivy had no intention of running away. In fact, she was glad they were alone. Very glad.

  Chapter 14

  Ter watched Ivy as they sat at the outside table and ate their sandwiches. Thoughts seemed to be rushing through her head and he was curious. “What has your brain all tied up, lovely lady?”

  Ivy looked up at him and grinned. “Well, so far you’re scoring quite well.”

  “Scoring?” Ter asked, intrigued by her comment.

  Ivy blushed again and then explained about her ten-point system. “The list is just for me. To help me sort out the losers from the real contenders.”

  List? Losers and contenders?

  “You sound like my twin sister, Reese. She makes lists for everything. And I mean everything.”

  “She sounds like a very organized person.”

  “She is, almost neurotically so.” He chuckled.

  “Says a man who has never made a list in his life,” Ivy countered back.

  “Got me there. Lists are not my thing. But they are yours, so tell me what these ten points are.” He grabbed her hand and grazed his thumb over the back of it.

  “Do you really want to know?” She’d never told anyone the points on her list before. Except Bella, of course.

  “Sure. If I’m not getting all the points I think I deserve, I need to know where I can improve.”

  Seriously? She’d never thought about using the list to help change a man before. She wanted one to meet all of her criteria from the get go.

  Ivy nodded. “Fine. Loyalty is at the top of the list. Intelligence. A loving and caring personality. Romantic. Strong. Humorous. Good looking. An advocate for equal opportunities.” She saw him raise a brow at that one, but she didn’t stop. She was almost done with her list, and he had asked about it. “A beautiful voice that moves me. Someone who wants to get married and have children. And last but not least, someone who makes the butterflies in my stomach churn.”

  Ter had been listening intently and counting as she spoke. “But there are eleven points on that list.”

  He could sense her face heating up and the dark mahogany color of her cheeks intensified as she was flushing again and he couldn’t help but think how cute she was. Everything about her. Not only cute. Sexy as hell.

  The killer dress she was wearing was driving him insane. It hugged her full breasts and emphasized the cantilevered hips. She looked scrumptious and the tightening of his pants reminded him he’d been on fire for her since he’d picked her up that morning.

  “Well?” he asked whe
n she didn’t answer him.

  “I kind of made that last one up just today,” she admitted, blushing more furiously.

  “You made it up? Why?”

  “Because it seemed to fit and I’d really like you to score well.”

  Ter pulled her hand off the table and plastered it against his chest. “Feel that? You have my heart racing at top speed right now.”

  Her eyes dropped to where her hand touched his broad chest and she flexed her fingers the slightest bit, causing him to inhale sharply.

  She looked up him and he asked, “So, how am I doing so far? In the score department?”

  “You’re at an easy five, which is so so.” She said with the most business-like voice she was capable of.

  Ter made an exaggerated sad face. “Only a five? What do I have to do to score higher?”

  Ivy shook her head. “It’s not that easy. I have to get to know you better before I can add points.”

  “I can definitely do that.” In fact, it was exactly what he wanted. A chance to get to know her better. “Are you finished eating?”

  She nodded and he tossed their trash in a nearby receptacle. Grabbing her hand, he suggested, “Let’s go find a better place to watch the action.” He led them along the barrier until he found a spot where they would have an unobstructed view of the building as it came down. “How about here?”

  Ivy nodded, winding her way between the other onlookers. “Perfect.”

  Ter followed right behind her, not caring if he had the best view of the building or not. He’d seen this a few times back in Chicago, and while it was always exhilarating, today the only view he cared about was Ivy.

  “Is this the first time you’ve seen something like this?” he asked next to her ear.

  Ivy nodded. “Yeah.” He stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, holding her as tight as he could without squashing her, much like Grant had done to Samantha earlier. He wanted her close. She was tall, the top of her head reaching almost to his nose, and when he nuzzled her ear, Ivy tipped her head to the side to give him better access.