Sweet Stallion

by Deborah Fletcher Mello

  “Do you think you’d ever come back here to live?” he asked, as he pulled his car into the driveway.

  “I’ve thought about it,” Naomi said. “I know that I’ll be around more while I get Vitally Vegan up and running here, but I really like Arizona. I don’t know.”

  They sat side by side, settling into the quiet. His radio played in the background, a soft jazz tune billowing out of the speakers. There was nothing uncomfortable about the moment, neither of them feeling uneasy or anxious. Naomi finally broke the silence.

  “Thank you. I had a really good time tonight.”

  He shifted his gaze to meet hers. “So did I. I’m glad you gave me a chance.”

  She laughed, the warm lilt of it vibrating through him. “I’m glad you came looking for me. I really was ready to run. It’s been a long time since I’ve dated.”

  He nodded. “So, I guess that means it’s been a long time since you were last kissed?”

  Naomi felt herself blush. “I can admit it. It’s been a while,” she said.

  “Huh,” he muttered, seeming to ponder her response.

  She giggled, and Naomi wasn’t a giggler. Color warmed her cheeks, tinting them a deep shade of pink. “What about you? When was your last kiss?”

  “Honest?”

  “I expect nothing less.”

  “Yesterday.”

  A rumble of jealousy suddenly flooded Naomi’s spirit. The foreign emotion caught her off guard and she heard herself gasp. “Yesterday?”

  He nodded, his smile widening as he watched her. “Mrs. Maher. She lives two floors below me. I stopped to drop off a package that had been left for her. The woman attacked and had me in a lip-lock before I knew what was happening. Practically needed a crowbar to pry her off. It scared the bejesus out of me!”

  Naomi laughed heartily. “You are so not funny!”

  “I had you nervous, though, didn’t I?”

  “No.”

  “Yes, I did.”

  “No. You didn’t. It’s none of my business who you might be kissing. You can kiss anybody you want to.”

  He hesitated for a split second. “Okay.”

  “Just okay?”

  He shrugged. “Yeah.”

  She shook her head. “On that note, I should probably head inside. It’s late and we both have work in the morning.”

  “I’ll walk you to the door,” he said, then exited the vehicle, rounding the back of the car to come open her door. He extended his hand as he helped her out.

  The walk to the door felt surreal. A full moon sat bright and abundant in the midnight sky. The air was still and warm, and just the faintest sounds of a neighbor’s dog barking and a passing car broke the late night quiet.

  The motion-sensor lights illuminated the front of the home, triggered just as they hit the walkway to the front door. Naomi fumbled in her purse for the keys, her mind suddenly racing. Anxiety seemed to resurface and she felt herself begin to shake, a slight chill causing a quiver up her spine. She took a deep breath and then a second. Patrick reached for the keys in her hand and unlocked the front door. He pushed it open, then took a step back as he passed them back to her.

  “Thank you for a really great time, Naomi Stallion.”

  The slightest smile lifted her lips in the sweetest bend. She nodded, fearful of what might come out of her mouth if she tried to speak. She’d been debating whether to invite him inside or not, unable to fathom what might happen if she did. There was something decadent, full and abundant growing between them, taking on a life of its own. But it was only their first date, and she kept repeating that over and over again in her mind. She took another deep breath.

  “This was fun,” she finally said, emotion fueling her words.

  “When can we do it again?” he asked. “Because I really want to see you again.”

  Naomi smiled. “I’ll call you,” she said, a hint of teasing in her tone.

  Patrick’s deep laugh echoed loudly. “Touché!” he said, amusement filling his gaze. “You really plan to make me work hard, don’t you?”

  “I want to make sure you know I’m not easy and that I’m also well worth your efforts.”

  He nodded. “You better call me, Natalie Stallion, because if I don’t hear from you, I will come find you. You know that.”

  She laughed with him. “I will! I promise.”

  “Good night, Naomi.”

  “Good night, Patrick.”

  He started to turn and then stopped short. Naomi’s breath caught in her chest as he suddenly eased an arm around her waist and pulled her close. Her heart felt as if it skipped a few beats, then synchronized sweetly with the pounding in his chest. Their gazes locked together and his eyes danced with hers, and then he cupped his palm against her cheek, gently lifting her chin. “You are the only woman I want to kiss,” he said softly.

  Her tongue peeked slightly past her lips, moistening them, and she felt her eyes close in anticipation. Time stopped and then, with the gentlest touch, Patrick pressed a damp kiss to her other cheek, allowing his lips to linger there. The moment was surreal, feeling like an eternity before he pulled away. Naomi inhaled swiftly as her eyes flew open, meeting his sweet smile, and then he was gone, hurrying toward his car as she stood staring after him.

  Chapter 6

  Patrick wanted to call and tell someone about his date. In the past, he would have given Garrison a blow-by-blow account of what had and hadn’t happened. But this time he had no interest in sharing anything with his old friend, least of all what was between him and Naomi. This date had been wholeheartedly different from anything he’d ever experienced, and he didn’t want it marred by college frat-boy jokes and childish innuendo.

  Despite his best friend’s many faults, Garrison was exceptionally protective of his sisters. When it came to the women he loved, he earnestly tried to be a true gentleman. Now, knowing their kinship, Patrick didn’t want to put Naomi in the path of anything his buddy would later regret if he ever found out the truth. Garrison could be crass about some women and not exceptionally sensitive. And if Garrison said something out of turn, Patrick knew it could become a problem between them. His being privy to Naomi’s secret suddenly had him exceptionally protective of her.

  He reached for his cell phone, pressed a number and waited for it to be answered. Three rings and his father’s booming voice called out his name. A Leoni Torres song, one of his father’s favorites, was playing in the background and it made Patrick smile.

  “¿Hola, Papi, cómo estás?” he asked, greeting him in Spanish.

  “Patrick, how are you, Hijo?”

  “I’m good. Thought I’d call to check on you.”

  There was a slight pause on the other end. “You checked on us this morning, son. What’s wrong?”

  Patrick took a deep breath. “There’s nothing wrong. I just...well...”

  His father laughed, his hearty tone ringing through the phone line. “How was your date? You had a date, right?”

  Patrick laughed in turn, suddenly feeling foolish. “I did have a date and it was good. It was really good.”

  “So, tell me about this young lady.”

  Patrick settled back in his leather recliner. “Her name’s Naomi. Naomi Stallion. And she’s beautiful, Papi. Absolutely beautiful!”

  Minutes later he’d told his father everything he knew about Naomi. He told him about how they’d met. About the auction, her business and her connection to his friend and the man who had mentored him. He delighted in sharing the details of their dinner date and how she made him laugh. How comfortable he was in her presence and how he wanted to get to know her better.

  His father had listened intently, asking a question here or there that he’d been eager to answer. When there was little else left for him to tell, he waited
for his father to say something. Anything. But he wasn’t expecting the question that came.

  “What will you do if you have to choose between this woman and your friendship with Garrison?”

  “Excuse me?” Patrick said, a wave of confusion washing over him. “I don’t understand.”

  “If you and she become serious, and you must choose between them, what will you do? Naomi might not be able to come together and be friends, least of all family, with the Perrys the way you might like. What will you do then?”

  There was a heavy pause as Patrick pondered his father’s question. He hadn’t considered that the woman he chose to be with wouldn’t be able to be friends with the people he considered his second family. Suddenly that thought had him feeling out of sorts.

  “Hijo, it’s just something that you may have to consider if you and this woman become closer. If she becomes important to you, you very well may have to choose. You need to prepare for that.”

  With a heavy breath, Patrick answered, “She’s already important to me, Papi.”

  * * *

  Sleep refused to come. Patrick tossed and turned and finally rolled out of bed and stumbled through the darkness to the living room. He dropped onto the sofa and turned on the television. A late-night infomercial suddenly blared from the speakers, someone selling a miracle cure for stretch marks. He switched channels until he came across an old black-and-white Western playing on a classic-movies station. He adjusted the volume down a bit and settled back against the pillows.

  Since ending the conversation with his father he hadn’t been able to stop thinking about Naomi. He’d thought about calling her, twice dialing and then disconnecting the call before it rang on the other end. Feeling awkward was out of character for him, but everything he’d found himself feeling about the woman was out of the norm.

  Naomi’s nontraditional approach to life was intriguing to him. He understood when she said that her friends and family were often challenged by how she did things, but he found her youthful exuberance and her bohemian spirit refreshing. Despite her carefree spirit and devil-may-care attitude, she possessed an astute business expertise and she had just enough of a competitive nature to give any challenger a run for their money.

  He really liked Naomi. He liked her more than he had expected to, and that fact had surprised him. She was not like any woman he’d ever dated. Women who’d been desperate for husbands and financial futures that would enable them to be stay-at-home, country-club moms. Women who wouldn’t be caught dead in overalls, or get their hands dirty simply because they loved it. Women who were shallow and callous and so self-absorbed that he was more of a notch on their belt than anything else.

  What he found himself feeling for Naomi also had him wondering what she might be feeling for him. Because he wanted her to feel something. He realized he’d be devastated if she felt nothing at all. He lifted his phone in his palm for the umpteenth time, debating yet again whether to call Naomi. With nothing to lose and everything possible to gain, he finally dialed, crossing his fingers that he wasn’t making a complete and utter fool of himself.

  * * *

  “I knew I shouldn’t have called you,” Naomi snipped, as her sister laughed on the other end of the phone line. “I should have just kept the details of my date to myself.”

  “That wouldn’t have been any fun,” Natalie said. “Why didn’t you just invite the man inside? You know you wanted to.”

  “I didn’t want him to think I was fast. Or easy.”

  “But you are.”

  “I am not! I’m controlling, maybe a little neurotic, but any man I’m going to be with is going to have to work for it. I don’t just give my very good girl away, willy-nilly, without some level of emotional commitment.”

  Natalie laughed hysterically. “Oh, gosh!” she gasped, fighting to catch her breath. “I haven’t heard that since I was thirteen! Norris Jean would always tell us to keep our legs closed and our very good girls good. It was years before I figured out she was talking about our vaginas.”

  “It wasn’t your vagina she was concerned about. It was your uterus. Your mother had no interest in being anyone’s grandmother.”

  “She was barely interested in being anyone’s mother!”

  “Exactly. You could use your vagina all you wanted as long as you didn’t come up pregnant.”

  “So, you’re really going to make this man work for your good girl?”

  “It’s the respectable thing to do,” Naomi said with a deep chuckle.

  “Oh, my gosh! You really like this man!” Natalie screamed loudly into the telephone.

  Naomi rolled her eyes. “Of course I like him. I wouldn’t have bothered to call you for advice if I didn’t like him, Natalie. Would you please catch up?”

  Her sister laughed heartily. “Just be you, Naomi! He’s going to love you no matter how hard-to-get you play.”

  “I wasn’t planning to play hard-to-get. Besides, it wasn’t like he was really trying to get anything. In fact, he was quite the gentleman.” She touched her fingers to the spot where Patrick had kissed her cheek, and felt herself grinning at the memory.

  She changed the subject, suddenly wanting to leave the conversation about her date and Patrick O’Brien alone. “Have you talked to our brothers recently?” she asked.

  She could sense her sister nodding as she answered. “I’ve talked to all three of them. Noah says he likes your new friend. That you two make a very cute couple.”

  Naomi ignored Natalie’s comment. “Did he tell you he and Cat are thinking about having a baby?”

  “He did.”

  “So, when are you and Tinjin going to start a family?”

  “When you have sex with one man, any man, the same man, for a whole year straight.”

  “You are so not funny, Natalie.”

  Her sister laughed. “Well, if you don’t ask me about my uterus, I won’t ask you about yours.”

  “Deal.”

  “When are you going to see Nicholas? He sounded good when I spoke with him. He says he’s training for some handicap championship?”

  “He’s doing a paratriathlon. It’s a seven-hundred-fifty-meter swim, a twenty-kilometer ride on a hand cycle and a five-kilometer race in his wheelchair. He’s very excited about it.”

  “He sounded happy. He and Tarah both sounded very happy!”

  “They really are. She’s loving her job at the surgical center. He loves his new gig with ESPN and being able to commentate sporting events. They are making it work and I’m so proud of them both. She is so good for him!”

  “Are they thinking about babies? I wanted to ask, but didn’t know if it’s a sensitive topic for them or not.”

  “I don’t think so. He told Noah that they’re investigating in vitro fertilization. But he also said he wasn’t sure if he or Tarah were ready for kids right now. Her schedule is still crazy at the hospital, and his isn’t much better. But I’m sure when they make a decision they’ll let us all know.”

  “Well, they shouldn’t rush into anything. I know Tinjin and I are definitely not ready. I can see us now, forgetting the kid in Paris while we’re in London working, or something crazy like that.”

  Naomi laughed. “I’m sure your husband would not let that happen.”

  “Well, I’m not,” Natalie said with a soft chuckle. She changed the subject. “How’s Nathaniel? Are he and that woman still together?”

  “You mean is she still obsessed and is he still ignoring her?”

  Natalie laughed. “He knows he loves that woman.”

  “I don’t think he does. Our brothers are clueless when it comes to the opposite sex.”

  “I should probably come home to help. You and Nathaniel both sound like you need me.”

  Naomi laughed in turn. “I really don’t need y
our help.” Her phone suddenly beeped and vibrated, indicating an incoming call. She looked down at the device and her eyes widened as she pulled it back to her ear. “That’s him. He’s calling!”

  “Who?” Natalie queried. “Who’s calling?”

  “Patrick. He’s on the other line. Why are you so slow tonight?”

  Natalie giggled. “Go handle that. Your uterus is dying to hear his voice again!”

  “You’re the one with the uterus issues. I’m just trying to keep my very good girl good.”

  Her phone beeped a second time.

  “Girl, bye! Your good girl would be much happier if you let her have herself a good time,” Natalie said as she disconnected the call.

  * * *

  Patrick was just a split second from hanging up when Naomi finally answered the phone. The sweet cadence of her voice vibrated through the phone line.

  “Hello?”

  “Naomi, hey. It’s Patrick. I didn’t wake you, did I?”

  Naomi shifted in her seat, tucking her legs beneath her buttocks. “No, you didn’t. How are you?”

  “Missing you and that beautiful smile of yours.”

  She felt her lips bend upward and her face flushed with heat. “So, you’re that kind of guy, are you?”

  “What kind of guy is that?”

  “The one with the smooth lines who thinks if he tells a girl how pretty she is he can get her to fall for him?”

  “Is it working?”

  “No.”

  “Then I guess I’m not that kind of guy.”

  Naomi laughed warmly. “Thank you again for dinner. I really did have a great time.”

  “So did I. When can we do it again?”

  “I thought I was supposed to call you?”

  “I’m not a very patient man. I got tired of waiting.”

  “It’s only been an hour.”

  “It’s been three. By tomorrow you would have forgotten all about me.”

  “You really don’t believe that, do you?”