Ways in the Guardian: A Menage Romance Book Collection

by Barbara Downey

  It could have, she admitted, been weird. There was always that dark voice in the back of a woman's mind that fed her the worst possible scenario. She didn't actually believe that tonight was going to end with her in the obituaries and Hayden sold to some third world country, but that didn't seem to much matter to her subconscious.

  There was also the chance that the NBA star would never show.

  With a deep breath Sofie pushed open the door to the pizzeria. Instantly she was hit with the smell of cheese and marinara sauce. Families were crowded into booth and couples were sitting at small tables. The entire place was warm and bright.

  “Look, Mom! There he is!”

  Sofie looked up and there Luke was. His jeans hugged at his long legs, and the shirt sat on the wide line of his shoulders.

  “Did you two have trouble finding the place?”

  “Nope!” Hayden said before Sofie could answer. “We just got here. Mom almost got into an accident.”

  “Hayden...”

  “Did she?” Luke looked amused.

  “She said a bad word because some guy cut her off.”

  Luke laughed and Sofie shook her head. She should explain to her son that there were certain things you just didn't say to strangers. But she already knew his argument would be that he knew Luke. There were some arguments that just weren't worth having.

  “Have you ordered?” Sofie shifted the conversation and took a seat in the bright red booth. It sagged comfortably beneath her. She scooted over so that Hayden would sit next to her, but when she looked up he was scrambling over next to Luke.

  She glanced up into that blue-eyed gaze. Silently she asked him if it was okay. He gave a short nod, and his dark hair fell over his brow. It was damp from a shower. The curled were heavy with water, but slowly drying.

  “I have not,” he explained. “I didn't want to make any assumptions. What is your favorite pizza, Hayden?”

  “Pepperoni! What's yours?”

  “I like anything,” he answered.

  “Even the fish things?” Hayden's lip curled in disgust.

  “Even anchovies,” Luke admitted. He leaned back in the booth and crossed one leg over the other, stretching them out. “You see, when I was growing up we had the same food every night. All the time. Can you imagine that?”

  Hayden paused before saying. “One time we had to have hot dogs for a whole month. I don't like eating them anymore.”

  Sofie could have died. She sunk down in her seat a fraction of an inch, but she got the distinct feeling that Luke saw. That was the month that Grandma Lily had slipped and needed to go to the doctor. Her insurance hadn't covered as much as Sofie would have liked.

  “No hot dogs, got it.” Luke nodded. “So pepperoni pizza. Anything else?”

  Hayden glanced over at Sofie. “I'm only allowed to get one thing.”

  Luke smiled. “That's not a bad rule, but today is your birthday party, and it's my treat.”

  Sofie sat up, “Are you sure?”

  “Positive.”

  That was all Hayden needed. Within twenty minutes their table was crowded with pizza, mozzarella sticks, chicken wings, onion rings, a plate of chicken Alfredo, and a few slices of cake with ice cream. Sofie couldn't remember the last time she had seen so much food. It was a little overwhelming.

  It was also surprising how easy Luke was to talk to. She had always heard that NBA stars were arrogant, wild, and flirted with everyone and anything. If that was true, then Luke broke all those rules. He could talk with Hayden or Sofie without letting either of them feel left out. He was relaxed, and surprisingly humble. He did flirt, just a little, every now and then; he'd flick his eyes over at her, and when he passed her things their fingers would touch more than necessary.

  It could have all been in her head, so quietly it was done, but Sofie didn't think so. Then again, maybe it was wishful thinking. With every playful anecdote, and careless gesture Sofie found herself drawn to him.

  “I didn't play basketball until I was a little older. I hadn't even heard of it when I was a kid.”

  “How?” Hayden demanded.

  “We didn't have a television.”

  Hayden's eyes went wide. “What did you watch?”

  “Books,” Luke answered. “I love to read.”

  “Mom reads,” Hayden supplied, with an exaggerated roll of his eyes. “All the time.”

  “Do you have a favorite?” Luke asked, glancing across the way.

  “Can you narrow it down to a genre?” She asked.

  He laughed, “Romance?”

  She lifted her brow, “Are you assuming that romance is my favorite genre because I'm female?”

  “No, I'm asking because that's my favorite genre.”

  She blinked in shock. Hayden laughed, “But you're a boy!”

  Luke shrugged his shoulders. “Books are books.”

  “I have a lot of regency era stuff,” Sofie answered. “I dunno, maybe it's cheesy.”

  He shook his head, “I have all of Heyer's works.”

  If he had said Jane Austen Sofie wouldn't have believed him. Everyone knew who Austen was. It was like asking who your favorite horror author was and spitting out Stephen King; it might be true...but it was an easy truth.

  Georgette Heyer, however, was a queen of regency romance. She wrote more than Austen and her books really breathed life into the genre. Either Luke was telling the truth, or he was a talented liar.

  They spent time talking about books while Hayden killed his way through two pieces of cake.

  “I like science fiction,” Sofie admitted.

  He grinned, it was a good smile, “Like Clark and Asmiov? Foundation series?”

  She chuckled. “I do like Asimov's works, but I've always been a Le Guin fan.”

  “Ahhh, Left Hand of Darkness.”

  She felt her heart swell in her chest. “I love that book. I love it so much.”

  “Tell me why.”

  It could have been an order- so many guys loved to take charge and order a woman around on the first date, but it didn't have that tone. He sat forward and linked his long fingers together over his empty plate. Had he eaten anything? She couldn't remember him eating anything.

  “Uhm,” she shook it off. He must have. There was far too much food gone for it to be just her and Hayden eating. “I guess, in part, because it is a bit of a love story, but not a typical one. Here is a person who has a really set idea that love happens between one guy and one girl and then boom, here comes this alien who does not adhere to that. I like that is shows love being...different.”

  “So you don't think that love is set to gender?”

  “I think love just is,” she explained. “I think that we put all these parameters on it but...oh gosh I'm rambling.”

  His eyes sparkled when he said, “I love it.”

  She felt warm all the way down to her toes.

  When he took care of the bill he wouldn't even let her pay for the tip and he then escorted them to her car. Hayden was barely able to keep his eyes open but he managed to ask Luke if he wanted to come to his birthday dinner on Sunday.

  “I thought we just had birthday dinner?” Luke questioned.

  “The other one,” Hayden responded.

  Sofie opened the door so Hayden could crawl into his seat, his eyes barely staying open.

  “It's a family thing, my sister and her kids come over, and I made lasagna. We play board games and there are a couple of gifts.”

  Luke tucked his hands in his pockets. “Am I invited?”

  She looked over at Hayden, who had curled up in his seat.

  “Yeah, looks like you are.”

  Luke lifted one hand and pressed it to her cheek. His fingers were cool, cooler than she would have expected. “Are you sure?”

  She looked up at him. He had stepped closer, but she couldn't remember him moving. Black hair fell across his very pale brow. Her fingers itched to push it back.

  “Do you want to come?”

&nbs
p; “Yes, I do.”

  His voice was warm with honesty. She wanted to believe him. More than that she wanted to believe that he wanted to be there. Maybe it was his love of romance books, or how he didn't seem to look at Hayden like he was an interference.

  “Can you be there at five o'clock?”

  He thought about it. “I might be a little later than that, practice and all.”

  “On a Sunday?”

  “Every day,” he said. “All the way through playoffs.”

  She nodded. “I like the honesty. I'll see you there.”

  *****

  He had been late, but he'd brought a kid-sized jersey signed by the entire team for Hayden, a bouquet of flowers for Grandma Lily, and a gift card to the bookstore for Sofie. He certainly knew how to woo them all.

  It helped that he stayed late and helped to clean up, long after the kids were gone and Hayden was tucked into bed.

  “Well,” Grandma Lily, who gave Sofie a clandestine wink. “It is past my bedtime.”

  Sofie glanced at the clock. It was 10, and she knew for a fact that Grandma Lily was a habitual night-owl.

  “It was very nice to meet you,” Luke gave her an honest-to-god bow and kissed the elderly woman's hand. Lily chuckled and waved him off.

  “Go on then, you'll give me palpitations.”

  He winked and Sofie shook her head as her Grandmother wandered off to bed, humming a light tune on her lips.

  “You really made his night,” Sofie said as she shoved wrapping paper into a plastic garbage bag. She held it open so he could deposit a box and deflated bubble wrap.

  “He's a great kid.”

  “Yeah,” she said with a smile. “He is.”

  “Can I ask a question?”

  “Is it about Hayden's father?”

  “I was told by a nosy teammate to watch out for the presence of a bio-dad.”

  “Bio-dad,” she snorted. “Yeah. Well, it would help if I knew who that guy was.”

  His brow quirked up. “What do you mean?”

  Sofie flopped down on the couch and tucked on leg under her. The living room was clean enough for the moment. In the morning Hayden would bring out his new things and make another mess.

  “My life is the classic ugly duckling story. I was an awkward youth who turned into a less awkward adult. I went from being ignored by guys to having them buy me drinks and try to get my number. It was kinda...”

  “Overwhelming?” he asked.

  “Intoxicating.” She flopped back. “I was stupid about it and I made some mistakes. One of them was hooking up with a guy I had never met before. We spent a weekend together and then I never saw him again. The number he gave me was either bogus or badly scrawled. So...”

  “So you don't know him.”

  “I don't need to. I've done my best for Hayden.”

  “He's happy.”

  “We don't have much.”

  “It's enough,” he reached across the way and put his hand on her knee. The touch was ever so light through the thinness of her cotton pants. A soundless hum started where his fingers lay.

  Silence stretched between them. Her eyes locked with his. They weren't crystal blue, she realized, they were the color of a spring sky on ice. He scooted forward ever so slowly.

  “I'd really like to kiss you.”

  She wondered if anyone had ever told her they were going to kiss her before they actually did it. The fact that he asked made her heart ache.

  “Okay,” she whispered. Her heart was pounding hard enough to make her ears ring.

  “I shouldn't.”

  At first she thought she hadn't heard him right. He hadn't said he couldn't, just that he shouldn't. Sofie wondered if there was someone else, something that would keep him away. “Why?”

  “Because I don't know if I'll be able to stop.”

  “Oh. Well. Then let me.”

  She surged towards him. She wasn't entirely sure what came over her. She'd always let men kiss her, rather than the other way around. Her arms wrapped over the wide line of his shoulders. She felt them vibrating with his strength.

  His lips were cool against her own, but satin-soft. A delicious shiver worked its way down her spine, making her even more bold. She pressed herself closely against him, the tender crush of her soft curves against the unrelenting line of his chest. Her head spun and she parted her lips from his just long enough to get a deep breath. The scent of soap swept over her, a rich clean essence, and she pressed her forehead to his.

  “More,” she groaned, and pressed her mouth to his again.

  Copper and mint and spice assailed her mouth. It was a strange and intoxicating mixture. Had her skin ever felt so alive? It was a tempest of tingles, and all from a single kiss. She swept her tongue against his, over and over again, and Luke made a sound before tugging her closer. Her body twisted away from the couch and she spread her knees to mount his lap. He was so solid beneath her. For all his slender build he felt so terrifically strong. With the desperation that only the better part of a decade of celibacy could give a woman, she ground herself against him once more, and he made another, lower, sound.

  She rocked over him in a slow parody of sex, acutely aware of his fingers splayed wide over her hips. The harsh scratch of denim against her thin pants, drew her attention lower, and it took her a moment to understand what was wrong. It had been a long time since she had felt a man between her legs, but more often than not after a hot and steamy make-out session he had been rigid and ready for her. Not Luke. There was no rising heat, nor stirring of his masculinity.

  She kissed him more, harder, her mouth parting with a wildness that left them both breathless. Their tongues tangled in that sensual dance of tasting one another. She pushed herself against him once more, but continued to feel nothing.

  “Is...is something wrong?” she asked softly. “Am I hurting you?”

  “No,” he shook his head. His fingers flexed on her hips. “God, no. You feel so good, Sofie.”

  “Then...?” She didn't know how to ask.

  He blew out a deep breath and pillowed his forehead against her collar bone. “I...can't.”

  She blinked. “Can't?”

  “I,” he cleared his throat. He looked away, focusing on some spot past her rather than looking at her. “I have a condition.”

  She felt her heart drop to her toes. “Oh, I'm...I'm so sorry. Can I ask-” Sofie didn't know how to phrase the question. She had never felt so awkward.

  “It's a circulation problem. I usually take something, but I didn't expect-”

  “No, no! It's fine, it's perfectly okay. I didn't know. We can just-” She tried to pull away but his fingers dug firmly into her hips. She wondered if there would be bruises tomorrow; she wondered if she cared.

  “Don't stop. Please. Just because I can't, doesn't mean you can't. I like how you feel. I could...take care of you.” He wrapped his arms around her back and nuzzled against her neck. She felt him shift beneath her.

  Sofie bit her lip, not entirely sure why the thought excited her. “Oh really? I mean, are you sure?”

  “Very.”

  He licked his lips and she could feel the sweep of his tongue against her neck. His hands tugged at the hemline of her shirt.

  “Wait,” she put her hands on his. “My bedroom.”

  “Lead the way.”

  Moments later she was laid out on her bed. He knelt between her knees, and bent over her, catching himself on his palms. His hands were on either side of her head and she felt trapped, in the best way. His eyes glittered down at her in the near-black of her bedroom.

  “Sofie, I am going to take my time with you.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I think it has been a very long time...for both of us...and I want to enjoy every moment that I have your sweet body beneath mine.”

  “Well,” she said, feeling her lips spread into an impish grin. “If you insist.”

  “I do.”

  He lowered himself in a push-
up movement, his hair falling over his brow. His mouth kissed ever so lightly against her own, the gentlest caress of his satin mouth. She lifted to it, and he swept his tongue against hers. Never had a man kissed her with such reverent thoroughness. Only when she grew numb to its perfection did he shift his attention elsewhere. He bent to her cheek, and then that soft spot just behind her ear. Down, down, down his lips went, brushing just light enough for her to feel them.

  Without the help of lighting, all she could do was see the outline of his body as he continued his languid assault. He traced the shape of her with the tips of his fingers, light as a spring breeze, or the brush of a butterfly’s wings. If his digits not as cool as they were she might not have felt the caress at all.

  With a graceful shift, he slithered her top up her body and onto the floor. He did the same with her pants, and she lay there wearing simple white cotton underthings. She was suddenly very aware of her every flaw, it had been years since a man had seen her naked, Hayden's father had been the last. What would Luke, who must have had hundreds of women, think of her soft belly and the lines on her hips and thighs? She found herself suddenly very thankful of the dark.

  “Sofie,” he whispered. “You are so beautiful.”

  His hands flattened against her naked stomach. The caress of his thumbs grazed against the bottom of her bra, sending shivers to her nipples, making them press to the thin cotton like twin peaks of pleasure. Her body wakened to those light touches. His palm slid upward, cupping one breast and giving it a gentle squeeze.

  “What are you going to do?”

  “Make you feel good,” Luke purred. He glanced up at her, and for just a second, his eyes seemed to glow. Not the typical shimmer of a man's eyes when he looked down at a nearly naked woman, but something far more. Like blue fireflies caught behind the aperture of his gaze. Was it some trick of light? No, it couldn't have been, as there was no light. Just her overactive imagination, she assured herself.