I booted up my laptop and checked the comments on my last blog post while I waited for my coffee to cool. My tips on handling a cranky member of the wedding party were a hit. I’d kept it simple, reminding my readers that everyone had their own set of problems. Sometimes those problems bled into their behavior. Getting to the root of a miser’s moodiness was better in the long run than going on the attack.
Funny that instead of taking my own advice, I had sex with my cantankerous groomsman. I wondered if I should add a note to the article warning readers not to do that. Then again, it remained to be seen whether our affair had affected Levi’s attitude. Maybe he’d wake up a new man.
Heh. As if.
I opened up a blank Word document and considered what to write about next. After several minutes of staring at the steam twirling above my coffee mug, I came up with nothing. At least, nothing blog-worthy. I thought about weddings and clients and anything that might inspire me to write, but Levi’s black gaze kept flashing in my mind instead. I saw his muscled chest above me, the wrought-iron bars he called arms flexing as he thrust into me. I could almost taste his kiss. His sweat.
My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I jumped. My heart raced as I dug it out, wondering if Levi was calling to find out where I’d gone. Valerie’s name was on the screen instead, and I answered.
“You are just the person I need to hear from today,” I said.
I still hadn’t even gotten to the issue of whether I should tell Val what happened with Levi or not yet. Part of my conscience warned me not to, both for professional reasons and personal ones. The fewer people I told, the less real it felt. Then again, I could never keep anything from Valerie. I didn’t think she would want me to either.
“Things not going so well up there?” Val asked. “I am so sorry, by the way. You wouldn’t be alone up there if it weren’t for me. When I found out the roads were closed, well, suffice it to say I was pissed at my dad for calling me in.”
I could practically feel the aftershocks of last night’s orgasms still rattling through me. If my vagina were in charge of speech, it would answer that things were going very well, thank you very much. The rest of me was in despair.
“Something…happened last night.”
“Oh no,” she gasped. “Did you kill Levi?”
“No! Of course not!”
“Don’t take it off the table as an option,” she replied. “Garrick and I have a bet going for who’s going to make it out alive.”
“That’s not very nice.”
“Hey, at least I’m rooting for you.”
A smile scored my lips.
“So what happened last night?” she asked. “If not murder most foul?”
My smile vanished. I took an anxious sip of my coffee and tried to decide how best to approach the topic. Did I ease into it? Gauge her reaction to a lesser sin first? Or did I just go for it?
In the end, I’d always been more comfortable with taking a direct approach to my problems.
“Levi and I had sex is what happened.”
I tensed, waiting for her reaction, but she went silent. Had I given the poor girl a heart attack?
“Val?”
“Woah!” she boomed. “You had sex with Levi?”
I had to pull my phone away from my ear in order not to go deaf. A woman at a nearby table peered up from her newspaper, and I quickly looked out the window.
“Could you say that a little louder?” I grumbled. “This time for the NASA satellites on the other side of the planet.”
Val laughed. “Sorry, just…wow. I was not expecting that.”
“As you shouldn’t have,” I replied. “It was completely unprofessional of me, and I feel horrible.”
“Unprofessional? Please don’t ever worry about being unprofessional with me. You’re a dynamite wedding planner, and I wouldn’t be able to do any of this without you. If it were anyone other than Levi I’d be throwing you a parade.” She sighed. “I only wish that man deserved you.”
Cool relief swept through me. Val wasn’t mad. If anything, she was concerned for me, and that made me feel all fuzzy inside.
“It’s not going to happen again,” I said. “We agreed that it was just because we’re stuck and had some unresolved tension between us. It’s been resolved now.”
“Yeah. Sounds like you resolved it all night long.”
“Val!”
She dropped her voice to a purring whisper. “Was it good?”
Heat splashed my cheeks, and I considered pressing my face against the window to cool down a little. I looked around the café to make sure Levi hadn’t snuck up while I was on the phone and, satisfied he was nowhere within earshot, indulged in a little girlish giggle.
“It was amazing,” I admitted. “That’s part of what’s making me so confused.”
“A good dickin’ will do that to a girl.”
I scrunched up my nose. “I had no idea you could be so vulgar.”
“Now you see why I don’t get along with all those society bitches,” she said. “Too bad Levi was a star in the sack. At least if he’d been crap, you would have something over him.”
“I know, right? He’s annoyingly good at everything.” I traced the vein of the wood tabletop with my fingernail and sighed. “The worst part is we had this, I don’t know, breakthrough yesterday. By the end of the night, we were having fun together.”
“Yes, you said.”
“No, I mean we were having fun before we had sex.”
Val hummed in thought. “Are you saying you wanna have his babies now or something?”
“God no!” I said, jerking back in my chair. “I’m just confused. Anyway, it’s a moot point because I’ll bet you that the next time I see him, he’ll be back to rude and crude. We got whatever it was out of our systems and from here on out it’s business as usual. But hopefully with a bit more civility.”
“I can’t tell how this is going to affect my odds of winning the bet,” Val muttered.
“I’m afraid it’s going to be a boring case of both of us arriving home in one piece.”
She laughed. “Bummer.”
I chatted with Val a little more about what I was missing at home. They got quite the dump of snow too, and she and Garrick had plans to build a snowman and watch Christmas movies later. Still no word on the road up the mountain opening anytime soon, though Val said the forecast looked optimistic. It called for heavy winds tonight but the worst of the storm had passed. I promised to let her know if anything else happened, and we ended the call.
I stayed at the café for another half an hour and managed to hammer out a rough draft for a post on the challenges of winter weddings, including potential weather mishaps. When I finished, I chugged the rest of my coffee and went back to the room.
I had no idea what to expect when I got there. Would Levi still be asleep? Would he be waiting for me, naked, in a pile of rose petals?
What I found instead was an empty room. Or at least it appeared so upon first glance. Then I noticed the light coming from under the master ensuite door and got close enough to hear the sound of the shower.
With nothing else to do, I grabbed a book and retreated to the window seat. I didn’t know whether when Levi came out we were supposed to talk about last night or not. I figured I would leave the ball in his court. If he came out of the shower and wanted to chat about our evening, he could, but if he didn’t mention it, that was also a-okay with me. I was impartial. It meant nothing to me. Oh, Levi and I had sex? I’d already forgotten.
I was a few pages into my book, snuggled cozily under a blanket with my back resting on a throne of pillows, when Levi sauntered out into the living room.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hey,” I replied coolly.
His damp t-shirt clung to the lines of his chest, and I had to force myself to keep my eyes from wandering.
Levi looked past me out the window, where the snow was still falling, albeit a little lighter than the day before.
> “We were supposed to go skiing today.”
I snorted. “There’s no way. I’m a horrible skier.”
He shrugged. “Fair enough. I’m not great either.”
He sank down onto the couch with a sigh.
Huh. So there was something in the world Levi Wheeler didn’t excel at. I filed away that piece of knowledge.
“Mind if I watch TV?” he asked, tilting his head back against the couch.
“Nope. Just don’t turn it up too loud.”
He chuckled and flicked on the TV.
It was a peaceful way to spend a morning, but I felt anything but peace. I tried to focus on my book but couldn’t stop myself from sneaking glances at the top of Levi’s head. It was the least interesting part of him, and I still couldn’t leave it alone.
Neither of us talked for hours. The longer it went on, the more I found my mind wandering back to last night. I would get to the end of a page and realize I hadn’t absorbed any of the words on it, and sometimes it took me two or three tries before I could move on. I didn’t want to admit it, but Levi was under my skin. Staying away from him had seemed like such an easy thing to do when I was sitting in the safety of the cafe this morning.
I redoubled my efforts. I wouldn’t fall to temptation, especially not when it came wrapped in the 6’3” package of my nemesis. Even if he was smokin’ hot.
Chapter 17
Levi
To my frustration, I turned on the TV and discovered there weren’t any games on. I watched sports highlights instead, but it wasn’t the same. I didn’t feel any calmer, I couldn’t stop my leg from bouncing, and I was staring so hard at the TV it was a wonder my retinas didn’t burn.
I could feel her. Even though I was sitting on the couch and Frankie was several feet away on the window seat, I could feel her. I was acutely aware of her presence, just like this morning when her absence had been my first waking thought. I was dying for another taste of her mouth but I knew it wasn’t the right thing to do. I just couldn’t remember a time when I’d had better sex.
It didn’t make any sense. This girl and I couldn’t be any less alike, and the only reason we had sex in the first place was that we were stranded and apparently that made me lose my mind. I knew better than to get involved with any girl who’d be a fixture in my life for longer than one hot night. This went extra for Frankie, yet I hadn’t been able to keep away from her. I was still struggling with it now. It was a one-time thing, but I couldn’t stop thinking about how good it was, how much she turned me on, how many things I still wanted to do to her.
The fact that Frankie snuck out of bed first thing in the morning told me all I needed to know about where she stood. At least one of us was being smart about it.
I got up to make myself a coffee and caught Frankie peeping at me over the top of her book. She snapped her eyes back to the page when she saw me catch her. Maybe I wasn’t the only one who was a little distracted today.
“You want a coffee?” I asked.
“Uh, sure.”
I started up the machine and pulled two mugs from the cabinet. “Cream or sugar?” I asked.
“Just a little cream please.”
I returned to the living room a couple of minutes later with our coffees and held Frankie’s mug out to her. She was bundled up right to the neck, and only her hands poked out to hold her book. It was adorable.
“Thanks,” she mumbled, taking the mug from me.
“No problem.”
I walked back over to the couch and resumed my previous activity of pretending to watch TV while trying not to think about Frankie. At least now I had coffee.
Most problematic of all, my reasons for disliking her were crumbling around me like dry leaves. Who would have thought that spending some time with the girl would give me a better understanding of her character? Crazy.
She was genuine and thoughtful, and behavior that I found annoying before suddenly didn’t bother me so much. It was harder than ever to distance myself. All I wanted to do was hoist her off that window seat, toss her over my shoulder, and carry her into the bedroom to have my wicked way with her. At least then we would have something to do.
I did everything I could to distract myself. I channel surfed, I messed around on my phone, I even tried to have a nap, but I could still feel Frankie like I’d grown an antenna that solely picked up her frequency.
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. My own company was not enough to distract myself. I flicked off the TV and got up, pacing over to the kitchen and opening the cupboard I’d shoved Garrick’s “care package” in the day before.
“What are you doing?” Frankie asked.
I grabbed the Monopoly box. I couldn’t believe I was resorting to such a thing.
“I’m bored. Let’s play Monopoly.”
“Did you just say what I think you said?” Frankie asked.
I walked back into the living room and stood in front of her, holding up the box. “Garrick sent this up for us yesterday.”
“And you want to play it?” Frankie’s book was still open in her hands and she seemed to keep one eye on the page while she spoke.
“Yes,” I replied. “Come on.”
She didn’t move. “I don’t want to play Monopoly.”
“Why not?”
“I’m reading.”
“You’ve been reading all day. Humor me a little here.” I locked eyes with her. “Please?”
Frankie let out a gust of breath. “Did you just say please? Jeez, I knew I should have started taping our conversations. Nobody is ever going to believe me.”
I rolled my eyes and extended a hand to her. Frankie eyed it suspiciously, but eventually something gave and she allowed me to help her up.
“I’m telling you right now,” she said, “if you’re one of those ugly competitive types that toss the board when they’re not winning, I do not put up with that kind of bullshit.”
“You’ve got nothing to worry about,” I said, even though I could think of several times when Garrick and I were younger when I did just that.
We set up the board in front of the fireplace. I took the top hat as my piece, which Frankie frowned on for being predictable. She took the dog.
Frankie may have agreed to play to shut me up, but I could see the cogs in her head turning with strategy. She wanted to beat me.
She wouldn’t, but I’d let her figure that out for herself.
“Ugh! You’re joking me!” Frankie complained. “How much do I owe you this time?”
I grinned. “Five hundred. Hardly worth getting your panties in a twist over.”
“Yeah, five hundred isn’t a big deal if you’ve got it,” she grumbled. “Capitalist pig.”
“Stop complaining and pay your damn rent,” I replied. “I should charge you extra for wasting my time.”
Frankie rooted through her stack of cash and tossed a collection of multicolored bills at me. I tutted and collected the bills, sorting them into neat piles.
“What was that you said about sore losers?” I asked.
Frankie glared, but her expression soon cracked, and a smile like a sunbeam burst through.
“I should have mentioned that Monopoly brings out the worst in me.”
“Monopoly brings out the worst in all of us,” I replied. “Many a relationship have splintered on its cragged shores.”
“I don’t know about that,” she said, pointing to my organized stacks of money. “You seem to be doing quite well for yourself. Must be because you’re a businessman.”
I laughed. “Maybe I’m a businessman because I’m good at Monopoly.”
Frankie handed me the dice, and I rolled, landing on the Just Visiting square of jail. A boring turn for me.
“Do you think Black Mountain and Feisty Fox are going to merge now that Val and Garrick are getting married?” Frankie wondered, smiling. “You know, like bridging an alliance between two great kingdoms?”
My jaw tensed, but I forced a stiff shrug and handed
her the dice. Frankie caught my eye. Her smile had vanished, and her brow wrinkled with thought. “That’s your problem with her, isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“You’re anxious about Val’s intentions for your business.”
“It’s not that simple,” I said. “And anxious is putting it on a bit thick.”
Frankie shook her head. “I can’t believe you.”
“That family has been pressing into our business for years,” I replied. “Her parents are ruthless. I think it’s understandable for me to go into this union with a little caution and I’m not going to apologize for that.”
“How many times do I have to tell you that Val is nothing like her parents? If she had to choose between Garrick and her family’s legacy, I know she wouldn’t hesitate for a second to marry your brother.” Frankie chewed her bottom lip and stared at me, and when she spoke next, it was in a gentler tone. “I don’t know anything about business or corporate espionage or even beer, but I know people pretty damn well. Val’s a good egg. If you get to know her a little better, you’ll see that too.”
Normally I would ignore that kind of advice, but I could see how much Frankie believed what she said. More than that, my approval of Val meant something to her. That shouldn’t have mattered to me, but for some reason it did. I filed away a mental note to look a little closer at Val the next time I saw her.
The dice clattered across the board. Frankie groaned.
“Looks like you’ve landed on Park Place,” I drawled.
“I haven’t landed on anything yet. I haven’t moved.”
“But you’re going to.” I gestured to the dice. “Hop to it.”
Park Place and Boardwalk were my crown jewels. I had outfitted each with a hotel that burned a hole through the wallet of unlucky visitors. Frankie was my first guest.
Rather than moving her dog to its doom, however, Frankie stood. “I’m hungry.”
Mister Diamond Page 52
