Dinner First, Me Later?

by Candy Halliday

  But dammit, dammit, dammit!

  What was she going to do now? Could she really blame Jake for heading in the down-to-business direction? She’d been nothing but a big tease from the very beginning. Leading Jake to believe she was some fantasy expert. Some sex kitten who could yawn and have an orgasm.

  Swapping fantasies with her Housewives Fantasy Club was one thing—that was all talk. Ravishing Jake when she had his ever-so-incredible body pressed against his own front door was another thing—that was all action.

  But down-to-business phone sex?

  Were they really that desperate?

  “Hey,” Jake said. “Are you still there?”

  Alicia blushed again.

  “Look,” Jake said. “Maybe it’s time for the knight to climb back over the fortress wall and let the princess get some sleep.”

  What?

  Oh, hell no! Alicia decided.

  A fantasy relationship was all they had at the moment.

  Why not try a little talk with a little action?

  The knight wasn’t the only one craving physical release!

  “Just give the princess two seconds, Jake,” Alicia breathed into the phone. “And when she comes back, she really will be stretched out on her bed, completely nude, rubbing lotion all over her quivering body.”

  “Quivering?” Jake repeated with hope in his voice.

  “Quivering and writhing,” Alicia promised.

  Jake let out a low, tortured moan.

  Alicia dropped the phone and ran for the lotion.

  Chapter 18

  The last thing Alicia wanted to do on Sunday was meet Alfie and his new live-in lover for brunch. What she wanted to do was lie in bed all day and relive the incredible experience she and Jake had shared together the night before.

  Alicia tingled all over just thinking about it.

  Jake’s deep voice telling the princess where to touch herself. His own deep breathing echoing through the phone when it was the princess’s turn to have her way with the handsome knight.

  Alicia would never think of phone sex as desperate again. From now on, the only thing desperate would be waiting six long days for another Saturday night fantasy phone call from Jake.

  She’d accepted Alfie’s invitation to brunch because she’d been avoiding her twin over the last few weeks—something that hadn’t gone unnoticed by Alfie even with his newfound domestic bliss. She’d also accepted the invitation because there was no way she wanted to arouse Alfie’s suspicions that she was hiding anything from him.

  Her twin had always had the innate ability to read her mind. Better to appease him and throw him off guard than to have Alfie zone in on his super-twin powers. Especially with princess and the knight fantasies dancing through her head.

  Alicia made it a point to force those fantasies out of her mind when she arrived at The Tree House Café, one of Alfie’s favorite restaurants. The downtown Chicago bistro was named for its giant potted ficus trees and the unique third floor outside terrace that had a spectacular view of Lake Michigan.

  Knowing the terrace was where she’d find her brother on a beautiful summer day like this Sunday, Alicia took the elevator to the third floor. But she stopped just short of walking outside to the terrace, and stepped behind one of the tall potted ficus trees leading to the outside eating area. She’d arrived ten minutes late for a reason. She’d wanted to observe Alfie and his new roommate before she joined them. It was a given that Gwen would be on her best behavior once Alfie introduced them. Alicia wanted the advantage of watching how Alfie and the new love of his life interacted with each other when they weren’t aware she was watching.

  And why wouldn’t she be worried? Asking anyone to move in with him was a first for Alfie. Alicia’s main concern was that Alfie had gotten himself involved with a carbon copy of their father’s type of woman—a woman with old family money dollar signs in her eyes.

  After a quick search of the crowd, Alicia found Alfie and Gwen seated at a small wicker table, their chairs close together the way all lovers sit when the relationship is still new. Alicia’s eyebrow rose slightly, thinking that Alfie’s nurse was nothing like what she’d expected. Gwen was definitely a pretty redhead, but she was pretty in a wholesome, girl-next-door kind of way—so different from Alfie’s usual high-maintenance type of woman.

  Her long red hair was tied at the nape of her neck with a dark green ribbon the same color as the leaves of the flowers on her strapless sundress. Her makeup was sparse, her cheeks were rosy, and even though she was seated, Alicia could tell that her figure was trim.

  Gwen laughed at something Alfie said. Alfie leaned forward, kissing her lightly on the lips, and Gwen’s hand came up gently caressing his face. The moment was so tender Alicia’s heart ached, wondering if she and Jake would ever be able to sit on this same terrace someday, sharing an innocent kiss like that one.

  Alicia took a deep breath, stepped out onto the terrace, and headed for the table. Alfie was on his feet the second he looked up and saw she was walking in their direction.

  Alicia smiled and waved, thinking whether he was her brother or not, Alfie was still one of the most handsome men she knew. Tall, blond, well built. Blue eyes that could look right through you.

  A metro sexual through and through, Alfie was always impeccably dressed—a characteristic he claimed came from being born to a rich daddy and a mother who would have had them both in designer diapers had there been such a thing. His light blue Brooks Brothers shirt only enhanced his deep tan. His khaki pants were perfectly pressed. His shoes shined to the point you could see your own reflection.

  “Promise you’ll be nice,” were Alfie’s first words as he leaned forward and kissed Alicia on the cheek.

  “Have I ever been rude to any of your women?”

  “Not blatantly rude,” Alfie admitted. “But you haven’t exactly been nice to some of them.”

  “I’ll be nice,” Alicia promised.

  He stepped back and looked her up and down.

  “What?” Alicia demanded.

  “You look fabulous,” Alfie said.

  Alicia looked down at her short royal blue dress. “You’ve seen this dress a dozen times,” she scoffed. “In fact, I think you were with me the day I bought it.”

  “It’s not the dress,” Alfie said. “You look different somehow. Glowing almost.” He grinned. “For the lack of a better phrase, you look like a saucy, sexually satisfied wench.”

  Alicia smiled and said, “It must be the phone sex I’ve been having with Jake Sims.”

  Alfie laughed. “Go ahead and be a smart ass when I’m trying to pay you a compliment. Just don’t be rude to Gwen.”

  He placed his hand at her back as they started walking toward the table. But Alfie waited until he’d pulled out her chair and Alicia was seated before he made the formal introductions. Gwen reached across the table, her hand outstretched. Did Alicia imagine it? Or did Gwen’s hand tremble slightly when they shook hands?

  “I’ve heard so much about you, Alicia,” Gwen said, smiling.

  “Likewise,” Alicia said and Alfie instantly shot her a warning look.

  And okay, maybe she was being a bit of a bitch.

  She couldn’t help it. She was every bit as protective of Alfie as her brother was protective of her. She could just imagine how Alfie would be reacting if he knew she’d been telling the truth about the phone sex. Or if the situation were reversed and he was the one meeting Jake face-to-face for the first time.

  Alfie would go into freaking orbit.

  The exact reason she had no intention of telling Alfie anything about her pretend relationship with her imaginary boyfriend. Outrageous behavior had always been Alfie’s trademark. Even her friends in Woodberry Park could testify to that.

  She still couldn’t believe Alfie had actually sent doctored photos of Zada and some guy to Rick six months ago when they were already on the brink of divorce. But as Alfie had explained later, he’d been so worried over Alicia’s dee
p depression, he’d hoped having two divorcees living in the cul-de-sac on Owls Roost Road would take care of Alicia being left out of the loop.

  Like that made any sense.

  Thank God Rick and Zada had both forgiven him. In fact, as Zada had put it, Alfie’s stupid stunt had actually been responsible for her and Rick getting back together.

  Alicia glanced up from her menu at another one of Alfie’s stupid stunts. Gwen was nibbling at her bottom lip as she perused her menu. A little nervous maybe? Had Nursezilla already figured out that Alfie’s twin wasn’t nearly as gullible as he was?

  When the waiter walked up to the table, Alfie looked over at Gwen, then across the table at Alicia. “How about it, ladies? I recommend the brunch buffet. It’s scrumptious.”

  “Not me,” Alicia said and handed her menu to the waiter. “I’ll have the Mandarin chicken salad, please. And a glass of white wine.”

  Gwen said, “That sounds good. I’ll have the same thing.” She patted Alfie’s hand when he looked so disappointed. “You go ahead to the buffet,” she told him sweetly. “It will give Alicia and me a few minutes to get to know each other better.”

  Satisfied with her suggestion, Alfie left the table.

  Gwen waited until he was out of hearing range before she looked at Alicia and said, “I know Alfie tells you everything, Alicia, so I can only imagine what you think of me.”

  “I’m concerned about your true intentions,” Alicia admitted. “I’m not going to lie about it.”

  “I could care less about Alfie’s money,” Gwen said, laying Alicia’s first suspicion right out on the table between them.

  “And the ex-boyfriend?” Alicia asked, deciding she would be just as candid. “Could you care less about him, too?”

  Gwen flushed slightly. “My ex-boyfriend was a first-class jerk. Just like all of the other men in my life have been.”

  “I can relate to that,” Alicia said.

  Gwen said, “I’m sure you can. Alfie told me about your ex-husband.”

  “Touché,” Alicia conceded.

  Gwen took a deep breath and said, “After I met Alfie, I just wouldn’t let myself believe he was for real. I mean, he’s so amazing. Alfie is what you call a genuine good guy.” Her expression was thoughtful when she said, “And how many times do you run across genuine good guys like Alfie in your life?”

  “Not often,” Alicia said, thinking about Jake.

  “I kept telling myself I’d have to be an idiot to believe I could ever be that lucky,” Gwen said. “I’d met someone who treated me the way I want to be treated. Who showered me with more affection than I could ever hope for. Who even wanted to get married and eventually have children. I couldn’t see how it was possible someone like Alfie could be in love with someone like me.”

  Alicia instinctively said, “And so you broke it off with Alfie before he had a chance to break your heart. And you never had any intention of going back to your jerk of an ex-boyfriend.”

  Gwen nodded, tears already brimming to the surface. She wiped the tears away with her fingertips and said, “And then Alfie called me the day after I told him I didn’t want to see him again. He said he just wanted to make sure I was okay. And he also said that what he wanted most was for me to be happy. I lost it. I burst into tears right there on the phone and confessed everything.”

  “And that’s when Alfie asked you to move in with him?”

  Gwen nodded. “I’d been staying with a friend for the last three months, ever since I . . .” Her voice trailed off. She looked at Alicia for a second and said, “My ex-boyfriend was abusive, Alicia. After I ended up in the hospital, I finally found the courage to leave him.”

  Alicia paled. Oh. My. God! A dozen tragic scenarios ran through her mind at once. Alicia wasted no time asking, “Are you and Alfie in any danger from this guy?”

  “No,” Gwen said.

  Still panicked, Alicia said, “Gwen, you have to know how serious this is. How can you be so sure he won’t come looking for you? I’m sorry you’ve been through such a rough time, but my first concern is Alfie. I don’t want this guy putting Alfie in the hospital next.”

  Gwen said, “That isn’t going to happen. He finally picked a fight with the wrong person. He was shot and killed six weeks after I left him.”

  Stunned, Alicia didn’t know what to say.

  Tears filled Gwen’s eyes again. “I know I’m the last person you want to see living with Alfie, Alicia. My past sounds like an episode straight out of one of those daytime talk shows.”

  “Don’t say that,” Alicia told her, remembering Alfie had said the same thing about Jake.

  “But it’s true,” Gwen said. She dropped her head, staring down at the linen napkin she was twisting in her hand. “I was raised in a two-bit trailer park by a worn-out mother with six kids, and an alcoholic father who liked to slap her around the same way my ex-boyfriend did to me. I swore I’d never be like my mother. I worked hard in high school, I got a scholarship to nursing school, but as the old saying goes, the fruit never falls too far from the tree. I still ended up in the same situation I tried so hard to leave behind. The closest someone like me has ever come to rubbing elbows with the people on your family’s social register is bending over so you could lift your champagne glass off my serving tray.”

  Alicia reached across the table and took Gwen’s hand. “Look at me,” Alicia told her. When Gwen looked up, Alicia said, “The past is the past, Gwen. Let it go. I only have one question I want you to answer truthfully.”

  “What’s the question?”

  “Are you in love with my brother?”

  “Completely,” Gwen said.

  Alicia said, “Then that’s all that matters to me.”

  Chapter 19

  After lunch on Sunday, Dani drove the golf cart out of the garage and headed across the backyard for the cart path below the house. She’d only agreed to go to the driving range with Jake because he said she could drive the cart.

  And because Alicia wasn’t home, which meant she couldn’t swim today. Alicia had told her at family night she was meeting her brother for brunch on Sunday.

  Dani had often wished that she’d had a brother or a sister. Cousins, aunts, and uncles would have been nice, too. But her mother had been an only child. And so had Jake. She glanced over at Jake, sitting on the seat beside her. He looked over at her at the same time.

  “Have you ever played any golf?” he asked.

  God, he is so lame. Always trying to make stupid small talk. Always being so polite it makes me want to puke!

  “Sure,” Dani snipped. “Didn’t you know? I taught Tiger Woods everything he knows.”

  He laughed.

  And God, she hated it when he did that! Laughing like some stupid goof when she said something smart back to him. He’d put up with a lot more crap from her than she’d ever be willing to put up with from anyone.

  Just once, she wished Jake would call her on it. Tell her to lose the attitude. Tell her to stop acting like a spoiled brat. Just once, she wished he would act like he really was her father.

  But she doubted Jake would do that.

  Not with the social worker coming on Tuesday.

  She knew he was worried about the visit. She’d overheard him telling his agent Mr. Vance he was worried. Well, she’d actually been eavesdropping on them, if you wanted to be technical about it. But that was only because their angry voices had carried upstairs to her bedroom shortly after she’d gotten off the phone with Natta that same afternoon.

  She’d sneaked downstairs, staying just inside the dining room off the kitchen where they couldn’t see her. Mr. Vance had been yelling because Jake refused to sign another contract for the underwear commercials. That’s when Jake had brought up the social worker’s visit. He’d yelled back at Mr. Vance that underwear model as a profession didn’t exactly look good on his résumé when he was trying to convince the social worker he was a fit father.

  Fit father.

  What a joke
!

  Dani thought back to what Natta had said about the real reason Jake wanted her in Illinois. That he was only trying to get back at her because he blamed Natta for the divorce. It also made Dani think about what Natta had said about Alicia.

  Dani looked over at Jake again and said, “Do you think Alicia is only being nice to me because she wants to be your girlfriend?”

  “Of course not!” he said with so much certainty that Dani believed him. “Why would you even think something like that?”

  Dani only shrugged and pressed down harder on the gas pedal as the golf cart strained to make it up a small hill. But she decided maybe it wouldn’t hurt to ask Jake a few more questions. If she could get a name of one of his girlfriends, maybe Natta would forget about giving Alicia’s name to her stupid detective.

  Dani looked over at him again. “Do you even have any girlfriends?”

  “No,” he said. “Not at the moment.”

  “Why not?”

  He looked over at her. “Because girlfriends aren’t my top priority right now.”

  “What is your top priority right now?”

  He said, “You are, Danielle.”

  “Why am I your top priority?” Dani asked him straight out. “So you can get back at my grandmother because you hold her responsible for Carla divorcing you?”

  She saw a muscle in his jaw twitch. He let out a long sigh and pointed to a clearing off the cart path at the bottom of the hill. “Pull over up ahead,” he said.

  Dani pulled over and turned off the ignition. When she looked at him, he said, “You’re my top priority because you’re my daughter. And because I love you, Danielle. That’s the only reason.”

  Something deep inside Dani snapped.

  She kept waiting for her anger to come to her rescue, but it didn’t. This time the pain she’d kept buried deep inside filled her eyes with tears.

  Her lower lip quivered when Dani said, “I’ve always been your daughter, and I never was your top priority before. I was never anything to you before. All I was to you was an inconvenience. Someone you had to see on my birthday and at Christmas.” Tears were streaming down her cheeks now, but Dani made no effort to wipe them away. “Do you realize that before you made me come out here to live with you, I’d seen you a grand total of twenty-six times in my whole life. Does that sound like I’m your top priority to you?”