by Zoe York
“I did. But it was with every good intention,” she said quickly. “I wasn’t trying to cause trouble. I really wanted to give him a meaningful gift that he’d never expect and that he’d never get for himself.”
“Did he even have room for a huge dog in his home?” Evan asked.
“Oh sure. He had the entire upper floor of his building. More square footage than most homes. And he could have afforded to hire someone to take care of it, walk it and stuff.”
Evan nodded. “I guess. Was he touched by it?” He almost hated asking, somehow knowing the answer.
“Well, he was surprised by it. But he didn’t really have a chance to let the…gesture…sink in,” she said. She winced slightly, but she was also clearly fighting a smile.
“What happened?”
“The dog was very excited about the party,” she said, her lips twitching. “He went barreling in, knocked over some lady on really high heels, stopped and peed in the middle of the dance floor, and then headed straight for the buffet table.” She paused, clearly remembering the scene. “There was this horrendous crash, the total silence, then the sound of my father bellowing ‘Corrine Michelle Carmichael!’ louder than I’d ever heard him yell.”
Evan grimaced. He couldn’t imagine Rudy yelling. He really couldn’t. He could, however, imagine Rudy loving a St. Bernard puppy. “And then?”
“He grabbed the dog by the collar, me by the arm, marched us both to the elevator, took us down to the car, shoved us inside, and told his driver to take us straight to the Humane Society and then home.”
“Oh. Wow.” Shit.
“Well, we didn’t go to the Humane Society,” she said. “I took the dog back to where I got it and then went home. And didn’t speak to my father for six months. Which was fine, because he wasn’t talking to me either.”
“Damn, Cori.”
“I know.” She sighed. “But you see what I mean? I have this way of making things…too much. I go overboard. I get an idea and then it just keeps growing. I could have gotten him a watch. Or a tie. But no, I had to get him a puppy.”
Evan paused, not sure he should say what he was about to. Then he went ahead. Because he wasn’t huge on thinking through consequences either. “I don’t think you could have.”
Her head came up. “What?”
“I don’t think you could have just gotten him a watch. That didn’t even occur to you, did it?”
She didn’t react right away. But finally she shook her head slowly. “Not until afterward.”
He nodded. “Exactly. You can’t just make pecan pie. I mean, you can, of course. But why, when you can make chocolate toffee pecan pie? When you can make it more and better?”
She stared at him for a long moment. “Damn,” she said softly. “I really want to make you that pie.”
And he really wanted her to. And “that pie” was suddenly symbolic of a lot more.
“I guarantee that he never forgot that birthday party. Because of you. Was he embarrassed at the moment? Maybe. Irritated? Maybe. But I promise you that the other parties he had all blurred together, but he always remembered the parties you were at.”
She laughed. “Well, there’s that.”
“And I’ll bet the parties after the ones you went to seemed boring and quiet.”
Her grin softened into a smile and she gave him a look that stirred him. Physically. For sure. But it was more than the braless thing going on, and he felt the stirring somewhere else. Somewhere deeper.
“Thanks, Evan.” Her voice was soft and husky and that stirring intensified. Everywhere.
“My pleasure.”
“Oh, hi, Evan.”
He jerked his attention away from Cori and focused on the woman who had just come into the room. The woman who was supposed to be his girlfriend. “Hi, Ava.”
It was stupid to feel guilty, like he’d been caught doing something he shouldn’t have been doing. Maybe he shouldn’t have been imagining Cori spread out on the kitchen countertop with chocolate pie spread all over those teasing nipples. But he hadn't really been doing anything wrong. He wasn’t cheating on Ava. And he hadn’t actually licked one inch of Cori Carmichael.
Yet.
He made himself concentrate on Ava instead. “How was the conference call?”
“Fine.” She opened the fridge and pulled out a bottle of water. She opened it and took a drink. “Just so you know, Jack Mitchell is making everything twice as hard as it needs to be.”
Jack Mitchell was the acting CEO of Carmichael Enterprises while Ava was in Bliss. Evan shrugged. “Sorry.”
“You’re not.”
“There’s nothing I can do, Ava. The trust is clear. I’m just the messenger.”
She sighed. “Yeah. I know. It’s ridiculous, but I know.”
“Which reminds me,” Evan said, determined to fulfill his part of this deal. Even if it killed him. “We need to go out to dinner tomorrow night.”
Ava took another drink, just watching him. “You and me?”
“Yep.”
“Something romantic, I assume?”
“Probably. Mostly just something public, but yeah, probably more than a beer and a game of pool.” Though seeing Ava shooting pool might be interesting.
“What do you have in mind?”
“There’s a nice place over in Morris,” he said, naming the little town about fifteen minutes from Bliss. “They do steak and pasta and some seafood.”
Ava sighed, but nodded. “Okay.”
He couldn’t help but grin. “Your enthusiasm is overwhelming.”
Ava gave him a little smile. “Sorry. I really am. It’s nothing personal.”
Evan nodded and couldn’t resist glancing at Cori. Yeah, it was nothing personal. Because there was nothing between him and Ava. But personal felt like it described him and Cori well. Too well. “I get it,” he told Ava. “But we need to be seen in public together. And,” he added, thinking about the other reason they were “dating”, the main reason, “you need to get away from work. We’ll go to dinner and then maybe do something fun after.”
“Something like what?”
He regarded the straight-laced triplet. He didn’t have to know her well to know a few things about her. “Just leave it to me.”
Predictably, her eyebrow arched. “Oh?”
Yeah, Ava Carmichael didn’t let other people take the reins very often. Or ever. And he was pretty sure she didn’t like surprises. Again, he couldn’t help but glance at Cori. Cori loved surprises. Somehow he just knew.
He looked at Ava again and nodded. “Yep. I’ll surprise you with something fun.”
She didn’t look any more enthusiastic now. “Fine.”
Yeah, a reluctant “fine” with a touch of skepticism was exactly what a guy wanted when asking a woman out. But he still smiled. “Fine.”
“Okay, I’m going to head to bed,” Ava said. “Text me to let me know the time and details for tomorrow?” she asked.
Evan lifted a shoulder. “I’ll pick you up here at six. Wear a dress. But nothing too fancy. And I wouldn’t go too high on the heels.”
Ava again looked less than thrilled, but she nodded. “Dress. No heels. Six o’clock. Got it.”
And just because he knew it would be funny he said, “Be sure to put some vanilla on.”
She frowned. “Vanilla? On?”
“Vanilla extract. It’s a great bug repellent without the chemicals.”
That was true.
“I’m going to need bug repellent?” Ava asked.
He’d been right, that was funny. “Don’t worry. I’ll be happy to check you for ticks after.”
He heard a little choking sound from Cori. But Ava just stared at him. “I don’t know what that means.”
Checking someone for ticks meant looking them over very carefully, head to toe, for any of the little buggers that liked to hide where it was hard to find them. In personal places. But even though ticks were a possibility when you spent time outside in the gr
ass in the country, getting checked for ticks was actually code for getting a girl naked.
“I’ll explain everything. Tomorrow,” he said with a little wink.
“Um, okay.”
Yeah, he wasn’t going to check Ava Carmichael for ticks. But it was fun to tease her. And he just needed to get her smiling. And away from work.
He glanced at Cori and found her frowning at her sister. She must have felt him watching her because she looked over. Her frown didn’t ease.
And something in Evan’s chest warmed. He grinned. Her frown deepened. Cori was jealous of the idea of him and Ava together. He liked that. And that was a really bad idea.
“Okay, then. I’m going to head back upstairs,” Ava said. She looked back and forth between Cori and Evan. “Everything okay in here?”
“Completely,” Evan assured her. It was much more than okay. And so much worse.
“Yep,” Cori agreed. Though she was still frowning.
Ava nodded. “Okay. ’Night.” She turned on her heel, heading for the staircase.
When she’d disappeared up the steps, Evan slid off the stool. He needed to get going. He’d done what he’d come over to do. And if he didn’t leave now, Cori might end up on the kitchen counter after all.
“I’m going to head home,” he said.
Cori chewed on her bottom lip. Then she pushed away from the countertop. “I’ll walk you out.”
He’d been hoping she’d say something like that. Or stay. Or my bedroom’s the one on the right at the top of the stairs. Yeah, he needed to go.
He waited for her to round the breakfast bar and they walked to the front door together. She pulled the door open and he stepped onto the porch, but he turned back.
She propped her shoulder against the door, reminding him of the way they’d stood the first night in New York.
“Thanks for the pie,” he said, instead of all of the other things he wanted to say.
“I’m glad you stopped by.”
There was something in her voice, and her eyes, that made him step closer.
“You realize I could have called Ava and asked her out,” Evan said. Because he suddenly had to.
“I didn’t really think about that,” Cori said. “But yeah, I suppose you could have.”
“And she basically has to say yes to that kind of stuff, right?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
“But I wanted to come over in person.”
Cori didn’t say anything for a moment. Then she took a step closer. “Why?”
“Do you think I should say it out loud? That makes it more official,” he said.
“I know.”
They were definitely on the same page. Something was happening between them and acknowledging it was going to make it harder to ignore.
Then she nodded. “But yeah, I think you should say it out loud.”
Okay then. Not going to ignore it. “I wanted to see you.”
She nodded. “And I really don’t want you to check my sister for ticks.”
“And I really don’t want to check your sister for ticks.”
Cori blew out a breath. “Thank God.”
“You didn’t really think I did, did you?”
“I keep thinking there’s no chemistry but then I think that maybe it’s because I don’t want there to be.”
He finally lifted his hand to her face. “There’s no chemistry between me and Ava.”
She covered his hand with hers. “You’re not attracted to her?”
“No.”
“She looks just like me.”
That was true. And yet…she didn’t. “Doesn’t matter.” He leaned in as Cori went on her tiptoes.
“You’re not attracted to me?” she asked.
Evan knew she already knew the answer to that question. “No,” he said sincerely.
“No?” But she didn’t move back.
“I don’t think attracted is the right word for it. Too tame.”
Her lips were nearly against his but they weren’t kissing. Yet. “What’s the right word for it then?” she asked softly.
Just her warm breath against his mouth made his lower body harden and heat. Several words tripped through his mind at her question. Words like lust and need and obsessed and desire. But none of that was accurate either. Because there was more. He liked her.
He loved just talking to her. He wanted to check her for ticks. With his tongue. But he also wanted to make her laugh and hear all of her stories and take her to a town picnic and to a movie and to a million other seemingly boring, usual things—because he knew that she would make them fun and new—and he wanted to watch her make a pie.
“Captivated,” he finally said. He slid his hand up her arm to the back of her neck and pulled her against his lips. “Completely fucking captivated.”
She sighed—a sweet, happy sound—and he felt her smile against his lips. “No one has ever used that word for me before,” she said softly.
“Good.” He wanted her to feel appreciated and liked and cared for, but he, by God, wanted to be the one doing it. He wanted to be something new and different for her too. But, instead of saying anything else that might complicate things even further, he kissed her.
It was a slow, leisurely kiss. Where the others had been hot and passionate and surprising, this was fully intentional and all about tasting and exploring. And with every long stroke of his tongue, he wanted more. With every sigh from her, he wanted more. With every flex of her fingers against his chest, he wanted more. She tasted like sugar and chocolate and something he could only call every craving he’d ever had.
It took minutes, long delicious minutes, before Evan even thought about lifting his head. When he did, he let her go slowly and rested his forehead against hers. He breathed in deeply, sucking her scent into his lungs.
“Boy I hope some of the neighbors were watching that,” she said huskily. “That was very convincing.”
He gave a soft laugh. “I should probably go before we convince them of anything more.”
She took a deep breath, then let him go, seemingly reluctantly. “I guess I’ll…see you.”
Yeah, she would see him. He was dating her sister. “It’s a small town.” There was that too. And the fact that there was no way he was going to be able to stay away from her.
“Right.”
Cori took a step back. “Um…thanks for sampling my pie.”
A wave of pleasure shot through him as she almost looked embarrassed for a moment. “It was my pleasure.”
She gave a little laugh, then stepped back and looked up at him. They stared at one another for a long moment.
“Cori!” One of her sisters—maybe Ava (and he should probably figure that out for sure once and for all)—called from inside the house. “Can I borrow your boots tomorrow night?”
Yeah, it was Ava. And she was asking about Cori’s boots. For her date with him. And he was hoping they were the short black ones Cori had worn her first day in Bliss. Because those were hot. On Cori.
Fuck. He ran a hand through his hair and Cori took a deep breath, then blew it out.
“Don’t let her borrow those boots.”
“Why?”
“Those boots make me…they’re your boots and I really want to kiss you, a lot, but I need to be her boyfriend, and…I’m just kind of messed up about what I should be doing and feeling here.”
Cori pressed her lips together as she studied his face. Finally, she nodded. “Okay.”
“And, because of all of that I should probably stop kissing you.” God, he didn’t want to say that. Or do that.
She simply nodded again.
He was rejecting her. That seemed like a harsh word for it, and she really seemed more resigned than devastated, but he felt like an asshole. This was all his fault. “I’m sorry, Cori. I shouldn’t have kissed you in the first place.” Fuck, he hated every word he was saying.
She gave a sigh. “You only kissed me in the first place because you thoug
ht I was Ava.”
She was right. They both knew that. But it felt like kissing Cori was exactly what should have happened.
“And I was the one that kissed you first tonight,” she added.
“Because of the neighbors.”
She hesitated, then shook her head. “Not really because of the neighbors.”
Yeah, he knew that. This was really complicated. Fuck. He dug deep. At least that’s what it felt like he was doing. It wasn’t like digging deep for the fortitude to be a better man was something he was all that familiar with. He used his gut, or his heart, more than he used his head. He went with what felt good, what seemed fun at the moment. He simply didn’t think much beyond this will be great very often. And being with Cori Carmichael, in every way, would be great.
“I just...I promised to do this thing with Ava. It’s what’s best for her and Jill and really both you and Brynn too. And I’m supposed to be making sure you don’t have casual flings and that you focus on your sisters and the shop. Kissing you and wanting to do a hell of a lot more than that, isn’t helping with any of those things. I need to think about that. What I should do, instead of what I want to do.”
Cori wet her lips—an action that shot straight to his cock—and nodded.
“You’re right. Being jealous of my sister because she gets to go out with you is not the way to get closer to her. Hoping that you have no fun and no chemistry with her is not the way to be supportive of what Ava needs to do for the trust and everything.”
Damn. He grasped the back of her neck and pulled her close. He rested his forehead against hers and said, “With the taste of you still in my mouth, it’s going to be very difficult to be…convincing…with Ava.”
She took a deep, shaky breath. And then she said, “Yeah. We need to be good. For everyone.”
He squeezed her neck gently, then let her go. “Yeah. Good. I’m working on that.”
She swallowed. “Goodnight, Evan.”
“’Night, Cori.”
She gave him one last lingering look and then turned and headed into the house.
As he watched her go, only one thing went through his mind. Please, God, help her remember not to loan Ava those boots.
Chapter 8
