by Donna Hill
“It’s never too late to make amends.”
Her hands were shaking. She put the car in Park, squeezed her eyes shut. “It is too late,” she murmured. “I’m not the same girl.”
“Yes, I know. And I can’t wait to see the woman you’ve become. You remember how it was between us, Mari?”
Her nipples hardened as she stifled a moan.
“Do you?” he whispered in her ear.
“I…I have to go.”
“I’ll see you soon.”
The call disconnected.
Her body trembled with a need she’d kept in abeyance. Just his voice, just the mere mention of what they once had turned her into a cat in heat.
Focus girl, focus. Put Terrance out of your mind. You have a date with a great man. Terrance Bishop is the past. Sterling Chambers is the present and maybe the future. Focus. She repeated the mantra all the way to her apartment.
Ann Marie made quick work of taking a shower and changing into a pair of jeans and a freshly starched white blouse. She freshened her makeup and fluffed her shoulder-length hair. She’d just purchased a pair of three-inch heels made of denim that she’d been dying to wear. This was the perfect outfit. She checked her appearance in the mirror. Satisfied she hurried out. Baring any late evening traffic, she should arrive at Sterling’s place right on time.
Sterling opened the door and a slow smile of appreciation spread across his mouth. His dark eyes rolled down her body then up to her eyes. He leaned forward and put a light kiss on her lips.
“Hey.” He took her hand and ushered her inside. “Welcome.”
“…to my lair said the spider to the fly,” she joked.
Sterling chuckled. “Naw, nothing like that. Come on in and make yourself comfortable. Dinner is almost ready.”
“Can I help with something?”
“This is your night. Maybe you can do the honors next time.”
“Love to.”
“Want a drink?”
“Sounds good. What are you having?”
“Brandy.”
“I’ll take a short one with ice.”
“Coming right up.” He walked toward the bar on the far side of the simple but totally contemporary living room.
Ann Marie followed him into the room and looked around. He definitely had good taste, she observed. Understated and classy.
The butterscotch colored leather sectional looked soft enough to melt in your mouth. A low, smoked-glass table and two smaller matching ones were the focal points of the room, that is until she noticed the entertainment unit. It rose almost to the cathedral ceiling and was at least six feet in width. A state-of-the-art stereo system sat on the top of the multilevel unit. Set directly in the center was a plasma-screen television, the size of which she’d never seen before. One vertical cabinet held an innumerable amount of CDs and actual albums. The other cabinet held DVDs and VHS tapes. He certainly must like music and movies, she thought.
She walked around and took in the two art pieces that hung on the wall. Both were abstracts in brilliant colors with a focus on the butterscotch color of the sectional.
“Here you go,” he said, coming up behind her with her drink.
She turned and took the drink. “You have a great looking place.” She sipped her drink.
“Thanks.” He glanced around absently. “It’s comfortable.” He walked over to the stereo, lifted a remote control and turned on the music. Kem drifted sensuously into the room. “So, how did everything go today after I left? You all looked pretty busy.” He walked toward the couch and sat down.
Ann Marie took a seat. She smiled. “We stayed busy right up to closing.” She shook her head slowly. “It’s really quite incredible how well things have taken off.” She leaned back against the plush leather. “Terrance called,” she said softly and glanced at him above the rim of her glass.
“Oh.” His eyes jerked in her direction then away.
“What did he say, if you don’t mind my asking?”
“He wanted to know why our daughter Raquel moved out.”
His brows rose. “Why did she move out?”
Ann Marie looked away. “It’s a long story.”
“We have the whole night.”
She sighed then leaned back in her seat. “She moved in a few months ago. Left her husband. Or should I say her husband left her—for another man.”
“Whoa. One of those brothers.”
“Seems so. When she left she came to me. It was hard at first. Raquel and I have…never been very close. But then we seemed to be making some headway. She helped out a great deal with the opening of the spa. I found out things about my daughter that I’d never known.” She smiled sadly. “Then this thing with her pops…”
He sipped his drink thoughtfully. “But that doesn’t explain why she moved out.”
Ann Marie stood and walked toward the bar, thought about refreshing her drink but changed her mind. She kept her back to Sterling. “We had a falling out about her father.” She turned to him. “I’d rather not talk about it if you don’t mind.”
Sterling blew out a breath. “Done. If you want to…I’m always willing to listen.”
She nodded. “Thanks.”
Sterling got up. “Dinner should be just about ready.” He walked to the kitchen. He turned off the oven and opened the door, pulling out the pan with the steaks and baked potatoes. What had happened? he wondered as he put the tray on the counter. He wanted to get to know Ann Marie. But the more he found out, the less he actually knew. Maybe getting involved with her and all her issues was more than he bargained for.
He took two plates out of the over-the-sink cabinets and placed them on the counter. But there was something about Ann Marie that moved him. For all of her tough exterior there was a softness underneath that longed to come out. He wanted to be the one to open that door. Terrance Bishop, he thought, spooning the food onto the plates. What kind of man was he that could leave such an impact years after he’d been long gone? It was clear that he still shook Ann Marie. Was her reaction to him simply one of old memories and bad vibes or did she still care about the man she remained married to?
He walked into the living room with the plates. When he saw her standing in front of the windows she looked so tiny and vulnerable. He was going to make it his business to wipe Terrance Bishop out of her mind and, if need be, out of her heart.
“Dinner is served, Madame,” he said in a very bad British accent.
Ann Marie turned, a gentle smile on her face. Sterling’s insides shook just a little. Yes, he was going to make her forget.
“We can eat in here.” He placed the dishes on the table. “I’ll get the salad.”
“I’m impressed,” she said crossing the room and sitting on the couch.
Sterling winked. “I have all kinds of skills and talents.”
“I’m sure.” She spread the napkin on her lap. “Is this something you do for all your lady friends?” She cut into her tender steak.
He shrugged slightly. “I don’t make it a habit if that’s what you’re asking.”
She put a piece of steak in her mouth and chewed thoughtfully. “It seems that you know all about my dirty laundry and other than where you work and live I know nothing about you.”
He grinned. “I’m used to being the one who asks the questions.” He wagged a finger playfully at her and did a pretty good imitation of Al Pacino as Michael Corleone in The Godfather. “This one time I’m going to let you ask me about my business.”
Ann Marie cracked up laughing. “If you ever quit your day job you could do some stand-up.” She put down her fork and wiped her mouth. “Well have you ever been married, have any kids?”
“No to both questions. I’m an old-school brother. I have no intention of putting the cart before the horse. I want the wife first then the kids.” He paused a moment. “To be truthful I’m not really interested in a wife either.”
His answer was surprising to Ann Marie. She wasn’t certain if she was disappointed or n
ot. “That’s honest,” she said.
“I guess it’s because I didn’t have the best of role models. My mom and dad had what you would call a dysfunctional marriage. It ended ugly and the ugly ending was the best part. The years getting there…” He shook his head slowly, frowning as the past entered his present. “I grew up thinking that bitch and no-good bastard were terms of endearment, that the Saturday-night boxing matches weren’t only reserved for television. I got the live broadcast right in my house.” He sighed heavily. “We were poor. I mean really poor. The kind of poor that sits by the window and waits for the welfare check. The kind of poor when your vocabulary only consists of four-letter words and your only form of entertainment is to sit on a bench and watch the world go by while you cuss it out for not including you on the trip. The kind of poor when you believe that the only way out is down, and drugs and violence are the quickest way to get there.” He looked into her eyes. “I saw and heard things growing up that left a stain on my soul that I don’t think I’ll ever be able to remove.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”
He held up his hand. “No. It’s okay, really.” His features went through a series of movements. “After dealing with that for years, it hardened me in a way. I never attached myself to anyone. Whatever I did was for the moment—immediate gratification. I guess it came from being deprived of so much for so long. I just want to gobble everything up as quickly as I can and move on.” He reached for his drink on the table and took a long swallow. “Pretty shallow, huh?”
“Not at all. We all have pasts that color our present. What and who we are today is made up from all the little pieces we picked up along the way.”
“Sounds very wise,” he said with a sad smile.
“Don’t know about wise, but I do know that it’s true. The trick is to be able to see all that and learn from it. Some folks are luckier than others in that regard.”
“What have you learned from your past?”
Ann Marie lowered her head then looked directly into his eyes. “That no matter how far and how fast you run, your past will always catch up with you.”
They were both silent as they listened to their pasts tapping gently on the door, begging to be let in.
Chapter 12
“You have to let me help clean up,” Ann Marie said, picking up the dishes to take them into the kitchen. “It’s the least I can do after such a nice meal.”
“On one condition.”
She looked at him askance. “What condition?”
“That you let me take you out again.”
Ann Marie drew in a slow breath. Sterling’s words were so simple but the sincerity in his eyes and timbre of his voice elevated the simplicity to much higher implications.
“I’d like that very much.”
He pressed his lips together and nodded then started toward the kitchen. “I was thinking that you might want to take the next thing smoking after hearing my confession.” He glanced at her over his shoulder as he bent to open the dishwasher.
“Me don’t scare easy,” she said, slipping her accent back in place. “Got to come betta den ‘dat.
Besides what woman don’t really want a bad boy wrapped up in a good suit?” With her hand on her hip she looked him up and down.
Sterling laughed long and hard. “Woman, you are something else.”
“So I ‘ere.” She winked.
Sterling walked up close to her. “That’s what I like about you,” he said in a rough whisper.
“What’s that?”
He grinned. “That…something else.” His gaze held hers for an instant before he lowered his head to touch his lips gently to hers.
Ann Marie drew in a short, startled breath, the contact sending a shock through her body.
Sterling pressed closer, his arms snaked around her small waist. He let his tongue drift across her mouth until it opened ever so slightly and welcomed him inside.
Her tongue did a slow, tentative dance with his, feeling her way, matching her step to his. She moved closer while his fingers played along the curve of her spine.
This was by no means her first kiss, Ann Marie thought as the warmth flowed through her veins. But everything about it was new, exciting and full of possibilities.
By degrees Sterling eased back. He brushed his thumb across her mouth. “That was nice.”
“Yeah, it was.” She lowered her gaze then looked up at him. “So…now what?”
“It can be whatever you want it to be.” He moved further away and leaned against the counter, looking at her. “I have to be honest with you.”
Her heart knocked against her chest. She didn’t know what to expect.
“I haven’t been in a serious relationship in a very long time, for a number of reasons.” He cleared his throat. “This isn’t going to be easy for me.”
“What isn’t going to be easy?” she asked, hesitation drawing out each word.
“Getting into a serious relationship.”
“Are you thinking about getting into a serious relationship with me?”
His mouth quirked into a semi-smile. “I think so.”
“Funny, I’d been thinking the same thing about you.”
He smiled full out. “Is that right?”
“Yes.” She suddenly felt like a young thing. “That’s right.”
Sterling reached out and stroked her cheek with the tip of his finger.
“Even with all you know about Terrance?” She held her breath.
“We’ll deal with it when the time comes. My gut feeling is that he wants to finally break ties—once and for all.”
Ann Marie looked up into his eyes, wishing that she could believe in what she saw there. She still held onto some secrets; the delivery of flowers, Terrance’s declaration of love and the heat she still felt deep in her belly for him.
She rose up on tiptoe and tenderly pressed her lips to Sterling’s. If she let him, if she let herself, she could push Terrance and all that he represented behind her.
Sterling held her close. There was less than a breath separating them. He lifted her ever so slightly off her feet so that each dip and every curve of their bodies melted into each other like pieces from a puzzle.
This was so unlike him, he thought as his arousal grew and pulsed, seeking release. He tread the relationship road with caution. Women came in and out of his life as often as the mood hit him. There’d been no one to captivate his full attention. They were all either looking for a quick diamond ring or a sugar daddy with no strings. He wasn’t into playing either role. He was in love with the law and his music.
Slowly he put Ann Marie on her feet.
“Woman…” He smiled down at her. “You could make a man change his mind.”
Ann Marie cocked a brow. “Really? About what?”
“About slowing down and taking in the view.”
“What’s stopped you from slowing down before?”
He turned away, suddenly subdued. “Let’s go inside.”
Ann Marie wasn’t sure what had happened as she followed him into the living room. That’s when she noticed a saxophone resting in a stand against the wall.
“You play?” she asked pointing to the sax.
The smile returned to his face. “As often as I can.”
“You keep surprising me. First you cook and now you play.” Her eyes ran over him. She drew in a breath and let out her question. “What just happened back there? Just like that,” she snapped her fingers, “you…changed.”
Sterling strolled over to the floor to ceiling windows and stared out onto Central Park. “I guess you could say I have a tug of war going on.”
Ann Marie lowered herself onto the loveseat, preparing for anything. She folded her hands in her lap and waited.
He turned to face her, slid his hands into the pockets of his slacks. “When we met,” he shrugged, “I figured it would be something casual. You know.” He tugged on his full bottom lip with his teeth for a moment. “Gettin
g all serious was not on the docket. But then spending time with you, getting to know you, all the rules are starting to change. And then there’s the issue about your husband.”
Her mouth pinched. She lowered her head then looked directly at him. “I can’t give you any guarantees. I have a lot of baggage. Some I can leave at the door, then some I have to drag in the house with me.”
He flashed a crooked grin. “All I’m saying is that as much as I want to jump feet first into this thing with us I know that if I do I’m going to be all tied up in you woman.”
She rose slowly from her seat and crossed the room to stand in front of him. “When we met, you know the thing that struck me about you? You said you liked a challenge.”
“I did, didn’t I?” He brushed his thumb across her lips and she captured it in her mouth. “You are definitely that and more.” He lowered his head and kissed her, tenderly at first and then with more urgency.
Ann Marie rose up on tiptoe and wrapped her arms around his neck, sinking into the warmth and security of him.
“Are you sure?” he whispered against her mouth.
“Can one ever be fully sure about anything,” she whispered back.
He took her by the hand and led her to his bedroom.
Once inside Sterling dimmed the lights then took her in his arms once again. He knew making love with Ann Marie could only lead to trouble but he didn’t care. All he cared about at the moment was possessing her, feeling her wrapped around him, succumbing to her island fire.
He unbuttoned her blouse and pushed it down over her arms then tossed it on a chair by the window. Then he unfastened her jeans.
Ann Marie stepped out of her shoes and took off her jeans. Her lime green ensemble was near iridescent against her rich brown skin.
She was a perfect little package, Sterling thought taking in her delicate curves. And her skin felt like silk as he ran his hands along her exposed flesh. He slipped his hands behind her knees and around her waist and picked her up then carried her to the king-sized bed. He gently put her down and lay beside her taking in every inch of her with his eyes.
Ann Marie felt suddenly shy, as if this was her first time, hoping and praying that he liked what he saw. She’d never before second-guessed her effect on a man. This time she did. This time it mattered.
