by Linda Verji
“No, I’ll pay it back.” Sin waggled her eyebrows. “There’s always some old randy man with too much money on his hands.”
“Sin!” Both Kelly and A.J exclaimed.
“What?” Sin’s eyes were wide with innocence as she explained. “It’s not conning if he knows what he’s getting into exactly.”
“This woman!” A.J shook her head slowly as she stared at her friend.
“Just so you know,” Kelly threatened Sin. “If you get arrested, I’m not defending you. And I will make sure Spencer’s the one to prosecute you.”
“Wow! That’s harsh.” Sin tried to affect a hurt look but her grin ruined it.
Despite her attempt to remain grave, a smile crooked A.J’s mouth. “Don’t worry, Sin. You don’t have to go to jail or sell your soul to pay back the money you used here. Just tell me how much money you added and I’ll give it back.”
Despite Sin’s protests that she didn’t need to pay back the money, A.J wrote her a check to cover the extras. The last thing she wanted was to be the person that pushed Sin back to a life of crime.
“You’ll let me decorate the kitchen too, right?” Sin asked, eagerness shining in her eyes.
“Yeah.” A.J’s eyes narrowed. “But you have to stick to the budget this time.”
“Ugh!” Sin made a face. “You people and your budgets.”
“You know,” Kelly cut in, “Lawrence is looking for someone to update his place too. Do you want me to recommend you?”
Sin’s eyes immediately started to sparkle. “Lawrence is your rich, single, godfather-in-law, right?”
“No.” A.J hit Sin’s back. “Absolutely not.”
“What?” Sin danced away from her.
“You’re not going to hit on Spencer’s godfather,” A.J warned.
“I wasn’t going to hit on him,” Sin protested. “I just wanted more information on him.”
“Riiiiight!” A.J cut her eyes at her.
“I’m serious.” Sin turned to Kelly to reassure her, “I won’t go after Lawrence. I don’t mess around with my friends’ family.”
“I trust you.” Kelly smiled. “So should I ask him if you can do his place?”
“Yes, please!” Sin clapped.
“I think we might have found a new career for you,” Kelly said. “If you do a good job on this, he might even recommend you to some of his rich friends.”
“Rich. I like the sound of that.” Sin gleefully rubbed her hands together, earning herself laughter from her friends.
Soon the conversation turned away from Sin’s change of career and back to A.J.
“I didn’t see Mr. Tall, Dark and Sinful today,” Sin commented, mentioning the nickname they’d given Lee.
“Oh, he was in the store earlier, but he had to leave.” Kelly’s twinkling eyes settled on A.J. “So what’s really going on between you two?”
“How many times do I have to tell you nosy women that nothing’s going on between him and me?” A.J gave her friends a pointed look.
“Mm hmm.” Kelly’s amused eyes left no doubt that she didn’t believe a word. “Nothing’s going on.”
“Lies!” Sin was more passionate in her disbelief. “We’ve seen the way he looks at you.”
“He doesn’t look at me any kind of way,” A.J protested.
“Girl, please!” Kelly scoffed. “The looks between you two are so hot I have to bring my own A.C unit and a glass of icy water when I know I’ll be in the same room with you two.”
“Tell me about it.” Sin laughed. “The other day when we were painting, I felt like I was watching the opening scene of a porno.”
Were she and Lee that obvious? Embarrassed heat rushed to A.J’s face.
“Aww, look at her blushing,” Kelly pointed out with a short laugh. “That means there’s something, right?”
A.J didn’t say anything but she lowered her gaze and bit her lip. It was enough answer for her friends.
“Wooh! “Giiirl!” “Stop!” They hooted happily, making her blush even harder.
“Tell us more,” Kelly insisted.
“Have you two done the dirty yet?” Sin butted in.
Luckily, the phone rang then, saving A.J from having to answer their questions.
“A second.” A.J pulled her phone from the pocket of her jeans. When she saw the name on the screen, her lips lifted in an instinctive smile.
“It’s him,” the ever observant Kelly said.
“Pick it up. Pick it up,” Sin cheered, practically bouncing on the couch. “Pick it up.”
“Hello?” A.J answered as she stood then started towards her bedroom.
“Hey, where are you going?” “Pick it up here.” Her friends’ calls echoed behind her.
She closed the bedroom door, blocking their loud voices before she turned back to her call. “Sorry about all the noise, Lee.”
“This isn’t Lee,” a strange man’s voice echoed through the line. “But I assume that’s the name of the owner of this phone.”
A.J frowned. “I’m sorry, who is this? And why do you have Lee’s phone?”
“My name’s Fabián and I own a restaurant down here in Hell’s Kitchen.” The man asked, “You know the owner of this phone, right?”
Was the guy deaf? She’d just called Lee by name, and her name was in his phonebook. Impatience thrumming in her voice, she said, “Yes, I know Lee.”
“He’s just been stabbed,” Fabián said.
A.J could’ve sworn that she felt the world tilt beneath her feet. Her breath caught in her throat and her lungs tightened in instinctive terror. “What?”
“The guy who owns this phone was stabbed a few minutes ago,” Fabián said, “but he’s refusing to go to hospital. We don’t know what to do. He keeps telling us to call you.”
“Are you stupid?” A.J’s voice rose with the fear pulsing through her. “Take him to the hospital.”
“Like I said, he’s refused,” Fabián said. “And I don’t want to get sued.”
“Sued for what?” This idiot needed to be beat upside the head.
“I don’t know. Forcing him to go to hospital?” Fabián’s blasé tone sent irritation rushing through her. “Hey, you come and handle this yourself.”
“Are you crazy?” A.J yelled. “What if he bleeds out?” What if he dies? The thought was enough to stop her blood cold in her veins.
“That won’t happen. Shit! He looks strong enough,” the man said callously.
If Fabián was standing in front of her right now, she would’ve killed him. Unfortunately, anger would only worsen this situation. She took in a deep breath to calm herself then instructed, “I’m on my way there. Is the knife still inside him?”
“No,” Fabián said. “I already got it out.”
That idiot. Real fear pulsed through A.J, but somehow she kept her cool as she said, “Then use a clean cloth to apply pressure on the wound to stanch the flow of blood and get someone to call an ambulance.”
“’Kay.” The man’s voice was surprisingly calm as he added, “But get here quick.”
“Give me your address.” Once she’d memorized the address, she turned back to Fabián, “Lee better be alive when I get there because I will kill you if he isn’t.”
Her tone must’ve hinted at the seriousness of her threat because the man audibly gulped. When he spoke again, his voice was low and shaky. “Um… okay, I’ll keep him alive.”
“You better.” As soon as she ended the call, A.J left her bedroom.
“So what did you and Lee talk about?’” Sin confronted her when she emerged in the living room.
A.J ignored Sin and turned to Kelly. “Can I borrow you car?”
Worry flashed in Kelly’s eyes. “Of course. Is something wrong?”
“Yeah.” A.J nodded but didn’t explain further. Mostly because terror had closed her throat. Even just saying “Thanks,” before she grabbed the car keys was a struggle.
Without briefing her friends on the situation, she left the apa
rtment. Hell’s Kitchen was just a short drive away, but those minutes felt like an eternity. A.J had always thought of herself as cool under pressure but she could feel her muscles trembling and panic drumming on her nerves as she cruised down the road.
My God. What if Lee died? The thought was enough to make her step on the gas.
Why in the world had he refused to go to the hospital anyway? The truth dawned on her a second later. Maybe Lee had refused to go to hospital because he’d been attacked by Casper or one of his men. That was the only reason that made sense. Lee was probably afraid that if he went to hospital, questions would be asked and A.J might end up in trouble with the law. That fool. She would gladly deal with the police if it meant keeping him safe. She sped up.
Eighteen minutes later, she brought her car to a stop in front of La Taberna. From the outside, it was easy to tell that this was a Spanish inspired restaurant. Even as a valet rushed to open the door for her, A.J noted that there were no signs of an ambulance having been here.
Inside the restaurant, there was none of the commotion one expected to see after a stabbing. Clients sat around the numerous square tables, chatting and eating happily as servers weaved their way around them. If she was in her rational mind, she would’ve felt woefully underdressed and out of her place in her leather jacket over a white tank-top, jeans and boots. But she wasn’t. All that mattered was Lee.
Panic speeding her footstep, A.J hurried to the kitchen window.
“Hi.” The host stopped her before she got to the kitchen window. He asked, “Can I help you?”
“I’m looking for Fabián.” Her eyes roved the dining room looking for any signs of Lee as she spoke to the host. “He said my friend had been stabbed.”
“You’re A.J?” The host asked. When she nodded, he smiled. “This way please.”
Had he just smiled at her? A.J wondered as the host led her past several tables. These people were acting like this was a normal night, like Lee wasn’t dying somewhere in there.
They’d just entered a hallway when a tall, olive-skinned man with curly hair met them. The host introduced, “Fabián, this is A.J.”
“A.J?” A smile lifted the man’s lips as he gave her a quick once-over.
“Yes. And you’re Fabián?’” When he nodded, she asked, “Tell me the ambulance already took him away.”
The nervous look in Fabián’s eyes sent instant terror pulsing through her because it said that he hadn’t even called the ambulance. A.J almost drop-kicked him right there. Fortunately, her worry over Lee was more overwhelming than her anger at Fabián.
Her voice tight, A.J asked, “Where is Lee?”
“This way.” Fabián led the way down the hallway.
The hallway was flanked with several alcoves that were obviously reserved for private parties. He led her to an alcove at the end of the hall and pulled back the beige curtains. “He’s here.”
A.J expected to walk into a bloody scene, Lee unconscious or holding on to his stab wound. That’s not what she found.
The space she walked into was intimate and classy. Cream walls complemented the beige couch that surrounded the already set table. Right in the middle of the table was wine cooling in a bucket flanked by two wine glasses. As for Lee? He was seated on the couch looking as right as rain. In fact he was smiling.
“Hi, A.J.” He stood at her entrance.
As far as she could tell there was no stab wound on him. There was no blood on his black jacket or the green, light pullover beneath or even on his beige khaki pants. But she still couldn’t believe that he was uninjured.
She rushed to him, grabbing his arms so she could look at him. “Are you okay? Where did they stab you?”
Lee grinned. “Nobody stabbed me. I’m okay.”
Relief like she’d never felt before pulsed through her as she took him in. “You’re okay.”
“I’m okay.” He nodded. Smiling, he explained, “I wanted to have dinner with you and knew you wouldn’t come unless I did something out of the box so…”
Was he kidding her? She stared at him unblinkingly as he spoke. Had he really just faked this? Did he know how worried she’d been?
“… so I got Fabián to call you-” Lee paused. His smile faded and was replaced by concern as he studied her. “Are you okay?”
Was she okay? Did this fool just ask if she was okay?
“You’re okay.” This time her words weren’t a statement or question. They were an accusation.
“Yeah.” He nodded. “I-”
A.J didn’t even know when she cocked her arm. One second she was glaring at him and the next she’d thrown a punch. Her fist met his jaw with a satisfying crunch.
CHAPTER 11
This is not how things were supposed to go. Lee slowly rubbed his throbbing jaw as he stared at A.J in wide-eyed shock. It was supposed to be a funny surprise. Something they would laugh about over wine and a good meal. A.J was supposed to be so happy that he was fine and impressed by the fine table he’d set for their date that she’d jump straight into his arms. However, judging by her stormy expression and his aching jaw, it was obvious she didn’t find the situation humorous.
“What the hell was that for?” Lee asked as he worked his jaw.
A.J didn’t answer. She glared at him for another drawn out moment before turning on her heels. Fabián, who was still standing by the entrance of the alcove, quickly moved aside when she prowled towards him.
Fear flashing in his eyes, Fabián pointed at Lee. “This was all his idea.”
Traitor. But A.J wasn’t interested in Fabián or in any excuses he had to make. Without a word, she swept right past him and left the alcove.
That’s when Lee came alive.
“A.J.” Forgetting his pain, he moved swiftly out of the alcove to go after her. “A.J, wait!”
But his panicked calls did nothing to stop her. She was several feet ahead of him and moving swiftly to increase that distance. His breath coming in harsh gasps, Lee increased the length of his strides. However, the problem with dating a woman who’d made a career out of evading people was that she was hard to catch.
He eventually caught up with her outside the restaurant.
“A.J, wait.” He closed his hand over her elbow to stop her.
She spun around to face him. The flames in her eyes were so fiery he stepped back, afraid that she’d punch him again. But he didn’t let go of her arm.
“Let go.” Her voice was tight with unrestrained anger.
“No.” He kept a firm grip on her arm. “Not until you hear me out.”
“Let. Go,” she enunciated each word clearly. “Or I will punch you again.”
A crowd of people had gathered by the entrance to the restaurant and were staring at them with unabashed curiosity.
“There are too many people here,” Lee muttered. Instead of letting A.J go, he dragged her away from their audience.
A.J let him lead her to the corner of the building but once they were hidden, she yanked her arm out of his hold. She cocked her arm as her fingers balled into a fist.
“Whoa!” Lee grabbed that arm to keep it from flying. “Easy there.”
“You stupid idiot,” A.J bit out as she tried to yank her hand out of his grip. “Do you know how worried I was?”
Her words brought him to a stop. His eyes flew to meet hers, and he found her glare angry but suspiciously shiny, almost as if she was holding back tears. It was then that he understood why she’d hit him. Other girls cried when they hurt. A.J punched.
Despite his still aching jaw, he smiled.
“Are you smiling?” She glowered at him.
Yes, he was smiling, but it was only because he was happy that she was worried about him. It meant that she cared about him. Still smiling, he urged her closer to him then took her in his arms. “I’m sorry.”
At first she was stiff in his arms but soon she melted into him. Her hand came up to hit his back, but she didn’t use her full strength and it didn’t hurt. “I
hate you.”
“No, you don’t.” Lee grinned as he kissed her temple.
When he looked up, he found Fabián standing a few feet behind A.J. The other man mimed, “Everything okay?”
When Lee gave him the okay sign, Fabián chuckled and headed back into the restaurant.
“I’m sorry I took the joke too far,” Lee apologized as he drew apart from A.J to meet her eyes. “Were you worried?”
“Why would I be worried?” she denied sulkily. “I wasn’t worried.”
But her oddly wet eyes belied her words.
“Sorry,” he apologized again before he dipped his head and captured her mouth with his.
Initially, it was a soft kiss, the mere meeting of mouths, his way of sealing his apology. But within seconds it transformed into something more. Something deeper, something hotter, something sweeter.
Lee groaned low in his throat when she opened her mouth for him. Her taste was as overwhelming as the feel of her body against his, and as his tongue swirled against hers, he felt himself burning from the inside out. It took everything in him to end the kiss.
His voice gruff, he asked, “Can I make it up to you with dinner?”
“If you think I’m going back to that restaurant again…”
The threatening look she gave him was enough to make him say, “Okay not in there.” Thinking on his feet, he suggested, “I have a better place in mind.”
“Where?”
“It’s a surprise.” He took her wrist, but when he tried to pull her, she stayed firmly planted in the same spot.
“I don’t like your surprises,” she glowered at him.
Lee held back a laugh. His girl could really hold a grudge. “You’ll like this one.”
She stared at him with suspicion for quite a while before finally easing up and allowing him to lead her back towards the entrance of the restaurant. However, before he could ask the valet to bring out his car, she said, “I came with Kelly’s car.”
“Oh!” There was no way he and A.J were driving in separate cars. In her current mood, there was every chance that she’d turn the car around and go her own way instead of following him.
Lee thought over it then suggested, “I’ll just leave my car here and come back for it tomorrow.”
