Love is in the Air

by Devon Vaughn Archer

  “I’d love it,” Holly said, following him across the bamboo floor through the spacious condominium. The furnishings were an eclectic mix of antique finished leather and traditional wood, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering magnificent panoramic views of Houston. As she had expected, the place was spotless. “Very nice.”

  “I saved the best for last,” Anderson said as he led her into the kitchen with a gourmet island, gas cooktop and custom cherrywood cabinetry.

  “Mmm...something sure smells good,” Holly said as she glanced around the impressive kitchen.

  “That would be our lunch.” It had been a while since he had put his cooking skills to work for a woman and Anderson was slightly nervous, wanting to impress her.

  “Can I help?” Holly asked.

  “Yes, you can set the table. Dishes are in that cabinet and silverware in that drawer,” he said, pointing. With any luck, she would be around enough to know the place by heart.

  “Will do.” Holly washed her hands and proceeded to do her part as they worked in unison preparing for lunch. It amazed her just how comfortable she felt in his home, as though they had been seeing each other for a while. That was definitely a good sign.

  At the dining room table, Anderson opened the white wine while listening with interest as Holly told him about her job promotion. He didn’t doubt that she deserved everything that came her way. Including him.

  “I won’t even pretend to know the ins and outs of television news,” he said, “but I gather that there’s an endless stream of material you have to digest and decide what to report.”

  “That’s about the size of it,” Holly said, lifting her chicken sandwich. “We try to broadcast what’s most relevant and leave it to the competition to do the fluff stories.”

  “Well, you do a damned good job of it.”

  “Why, thank you.” She couldn’t help but smile at the compliment before biting into the sandwich. “I do my best, but I know that I’m far from perfect.”

  “Could have fooled me,” he said, tilting his head while studying her. “From this perspective, all I see is perfection.”

  Holly laughed. “Where do you get your lines from?” She wondered how many other women he had used the lines on.

  “I get them from here—” He hit his chest with a balled hand. “I only say what I mean.”

  “Fine. I’ll let you off the hook this time.”

  “That’s good enough for me,” he said. “So where have you traveled, other than to Portland?”

  “You mean in the United States?”

  “There and anywhere else.”

  “I’ve been to New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, Detroit, Chicago, Miami and a few other U.S. cities,” Holly said. “In addition, I’ve been to Vancouver, British Columbia, London and Nigeria.”

  “You have traveled a lot,” Anderson remarked. “Why Nigeria in particular versus some other country in Africa?”

  “Good question.” She wiped her mouth with a napkin. “I went there when I was in college. A dorm friend was from Lagos and she invited me to visit. I figured why not?”

  He nodded. Apparently a little fear of turbulence did not stop her from flying quite a bit, which was good.

  “What about you? Where have you traveled in and out of the country?” Holly asked, sipping wine. She imagined he had probably been to quite a few places.

  “I’ve pretty much been to all of the big cities in the continental United States at one time or another,” Anderson admitted. “I also went to Honolulu once—beautiful landscape.”

  “Lucky you.” Holly thought about Blythe’s recent trip to Hawaii, which made her feel left out of the supposedly breathtaking experience. “Where else?”

  “Mexico City, Toronto, the Bahamas, and I’ve also visited London, Paris and Switzerland.”

  “Wow, that’s impressive.”

  “No more than your travels,” he said.

  “So were these trips abroad romantic outings?” Holly asked, as they made their way to the great room and looked out the window. She was envious of the women who may have accompanied him.

  Anderson hadn’t expected the question but didn’t want to dodge it. “They were mostly business trips,” he said. “But I did go to Paris with someone years ago.”

  “Was it the one you let get away?” she wondered, remembering the relationship he had lost.

  “No, it was someone else,” he said. “We went there on business and it became something more, but fizzled quickly. We both ended up regretting it.”

  “Do you always get into relationships that end quickly or prematurely?” she asked. Now was probably a good time to know, she thought.

  Anderson supposed he deserved that, all things considered. He gazed into her eyes. “No,” he promised. “It’s certainly not what I want out of this budding relationship.”

  “Are you sure about that?”

  “As sure as I’ve felt about anything.” The last thing he wanted was for her to believe he was afraid of commitment.

  “Just wondering before either of us gets too deep into this.”

  “Deep works for me,” Anderson said, facing her.

  “Me too,” Holly said, looking up into his eyes. “As long as we’re always honest with each other every step of the way.”

  “Agreed. Scout’s honor.”

  “Were you a Scout?” she asked.

  “Cub and Boy Scout,” he said proudly. “I learned a thing or two.”

  She chuckled. “Not sure I want to know what it was.”

  “Only how to take responsibility for one’s actions and how to fasten a tie.”

  “Oh, well, both of those sound very practical.”

  “They were.” Anderson regarded her in earnest, holding her shoulders. “There is one thing I didn’t learn in my Scout days...”

  “What might that be?”

  “This—”

  He angled his head and kissed her. She opened her mouth slightly so their lips aligned perfectly.

  Anderson pulled Holly closer to his body so he could feel the contours of hers. He inhaled the scent of her perfume, which made him feel even hotter. He turned his face to the other side to enjoy the power of her kiss from a different angle.

  Holly was breathless from the kiss that also left her seeing stars. She had always believed that a man’s kiss could make or break any possible relationship. In this case, Anderson’s kiss was definitely making the case for a sustained relationship between them. She opened her mouth wider, prompting him to do the same as they moved more deeply into the kiss, arousing her from head to toe. She imagined how fulfilling it would be if and when they made love.

  The kiss went on unabated in its intensity. Holly felt warm and moist all over, something she couldn’t remember feeling to this degree from a kiss. It left her breathless and wanting more.

  But she also wanted things to move along at a gradual pace so that they could enjoy the slow torture of seduction every step of the way.

  It was with that thought in mind that she forced herself to break away from his lips. Her eyes lifted to

  Anderson’s. “That was really nice, but I think we need to slow down just a little.”

  Anderson could barely contain his desire for her. But, given his past experiences with moving too fast only to see things fizzle, he was inclined to agree with her.

  “I understand,” he said, smiling.

  Holly touched her swollen lips, feeling as though he was still kissing them passionately. “Thank you.”

  “Thank you,” Anderson countered, “for coming into my life and giving us a chance at something special.”

  “I could say the same about you. We’ll see where this goes, but I am certainly enjoying it so far.”

  To prove it, Holly gave him one more
quick kiss before turning and walking out of his loft.

  Chapter 6

  Two weeks later, Holly went jogging with Madison. She was barely able to keep up with her friend, who was in excellent shape. She confided in Madison that she was seeing a man, and she hoped it wouldn’t somehow bring back memories of Madison’s own disastrous relationship.

  “How long?” Madison asked.

  “Not long,” Holly told her, though it seemed like she had known Anderson forever.

  “I’m happy for you.”

  Holly took a breath. “Really?”

  Madison looked at her. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”

  “I just thought—” Holly fumbled for the right words.

  Madison frowned. “You thought that because my ex-fiancé turned out to be a jerk, I wouldn’t want any of my friends to date someone who could make them happy? Give me more credit than that.”

  “I’m sorry.” Holly wiped perspiration from her brow. “It’s just that I’ve never known anyone who actually had her wedding called off. I wasn’t sure where to go with that.”

  “It’s okay,” Madison said. “If I were in your shoes, I guess I wouldn’t be sure how you’d react either. So what does he do for a living?”

  “He’s a legal consultant,” Holly said. “And a successful one at that.”

  “That’s always a plus.”

  “I didn’t go looking for that, but it is nice that he’s gainfully employed, not to mention devilishly handsome.”

  Madison chuckled. “Those certainly help.”

  Holly laughed. “That’s for sure.”

  “And I suppose he’s dynamite in bed, too?”

  Holly colored. “I wouldn’t know. We haven’t had sex yet.”

  “Your choice or his?”

  “Both. We’re taking it slow, going with the flow and all that.”

  Madison twisted her lips. “Good idea. Maybe if I had done that with my ex instead of jumping in the sack on our second date, I would’ve seen him for what he truly was and gotten the hell out of the relationship before he hurt me.”

  Holly truly felt for her. Obviously Madison still had a chip on her shoulder that was preventing her from moving on.

  “Do you still love him?” Holly had to ask.

  “Hell no!” Madison insisted. “Been there, done that. Trust me when I say I’m over him.”

  Holly had her doubts about that, but would take her word for it. “So maybe it’s time you found someone to share your life.”

  “You know, maybe you’re right,” Madison said. “I’ll try to keep an open mind from now on and see if Mr. Really Right comes my way.”

  “You know what they say—hope springs eternal,” Holly said.

  “Yeah, right,” Madison said. “For now, I’d rather hear all about your new man.”

  “There’s not much more to tell right now, other than he’s never been married, has no children and travels a lot with his job. He also seems to be crazy about me.”

  Madison smiled. “And you feel the same way about him?”

  Holly blushed. “Well, he has brought a spark into my life, and we do seem to get along so far. As for being crazy about him, I’ll hold off on that till things begin to heat up a bit.”

  “Got it,” Madison said. “Great sex can certainly do wonders for making a person a little crazy about someone else. Not that I know anything about that from recent memory.”

  “So now you can begin to create new memories,” she said optimistically.

  “Hey, I’m still a long way from where you are now, but I’m all for brand-new memories and tossing the old ones in the trash.”

  Holly smiled. “Sounds good to me.”

  “So when do I get to meet your consultant man?” Madison asked.

  “Soon,” Holly promised as she began to feel strain on her leg muscles. “Right now, I just want to continue to work on what we have before I start introducing him to my friends.” Not that she believed for one moment that it would jinx the relationship. It was more that she wanted to feel confident things between her and Anderson were truly the real deal before she got too carried away with introducing him to everyone in her life.

  They ran up a hill and down, and then sprinted through the park before beginning their cooldown.

  * * *

  On a Wednesday afternoon, Anderson headed toward the soup kitchen on Mission Avenue. As part of the new-and-improved man he had become, over the past couple of years he had given his time once a month as a volunteer to help feed the needy. After a smart investment had paid off, he had even anonymously paid off their mortgage to allow them to stay afloat. He knew his mother would have approved, had she lived long enough to see it.

  He was only too happy to give something back to the community, since he felt he had certainly been blessed more often than not.

  That had certainly been the case since he’d met Holly. They seemed to connect intellectually and, most of all, romantically. And she was doing a lot to help him discover romance again. This time, he planned to do it right because he had no intention of losing her.

  He had told her about the soup kitchen and she had quickly offered to accompany him there sometime. In turn, he had agreed to participate in the school literacy program that she was devoted to.

  Stepping inside the redbrick building, Anderson immediately laid eyes on Esther Wright, the woman who ran the soup kitchen. She had once been homeless and a drug addict, but she had cleaned herself up and made something of her life.

  “Afternoon, Anderson,” Esther said with a big smile. “Nice to see you, as always.”

  “You too, Ms. Wright,” he said, smiling at the fortysomething woman.

  “You all set to work?”

  “Ready as ever,” he assured her.

  “That’s what I like to hear,” she said. “We can always use your help.”

  A couple of minutes later, Anderson had put on an apron, hairnet and gloves and stood beside Esther, serving candied yams and brown rice. He would bring Holly the next time—he was sure she would light up the sometimes gloomy place with her beautiful smile and engaging personality.

  “I think it’s time you got yourself a girlfriend,” Esther told him. “You can’t let some past mistakes weigh you down forever.”

  Anderson cracked a smile. One time when he had been feeling down, he had told her about some things he wasn’t particularly proud of from his past, such as ending a relationship the wrong way and wishing he could go back and do things differently.

  Instead of passing judgment on him, she had literally taken him by the hand and made him feel that burying his head wasn’t the way to go, but that he instead should take whatever he could from a bad situation and turn it into a positive. He had done just that by being a lot less self-centered and by volunteering to help those in need.

  “I hear you,” he told Esther thoughtfully. “As a matter of fact, I’m seeing someone now. Her name is Holly and I plan to bring her here soon so you can meet her.”

  Esther’s brown eyes lit up. “That would be wonderful. I’m so happy for you.”

  “Thanks. You’ll like her.”

  Anderson doubted that anyone could like Holly more than he did, though. She had the energy to keep up with him and the passion to succeed in her field while still finding time for the new man in her life.

  He missed her whenever they were apart. Maybe he could do something about that.

  * * *

  The next day, Anderson was sitting at the desk in his office. He placed a call to the station manager at KOEN and offered his services as a legal consultant. The majority of his work came through referrals and contacts he’d built up during his days as a corporate attorney. But, in this instance, he hoped that putting himself out there might be a way to bet
ter acquaint himself with Holly’s world. And, in turn, he could get to know her better as a businesswoman.

  The manager, Felix Yasmin, seemed enthusiastic and agreed to meet with him this afternoon.

  Since Holly worked weekends, Anderson felt there was little chance they would bump into each other. If things went as planned, he would surprise her. If not, she need never be the wiser that he had tried to add the station to his client list.

  By two o’clock, Anderson was in Felix Yasmin’s small office, exchanging handshakes with the shorter, stockier man and the station’s taller, thinner lawyer, Blair Fisher.

  “Your résumé is impressive,” Felix said as they all sat down. “As are your references.”

  “It comes with being around for a while.”

  “Looks like you’ve made the most of it,” Blair said. “I’m curious. With your impressive qualifications, why the interest in this station in particular?”

  Anderson suspected he would ask that and had prepared an answer. “I like your programming, plain and simple,” he told them. “Especially the news. You seem right on top of the latest happenings and present it very professionally. Seemed like a great place to lend my expertise on legal matters.”

  “Great answer,” Felix said. “I think we could make good use of your talents in dealing with some of the issues we face.”

  Anderson grinned as he shook hands with the men. He looked forward to springing the news on Holly when they got together tonight for dinner at the Aspen Club.

  Ten minutes later, he left the office with Felix and was about to head out when they ran into Holly.

  “Hey,” Anderson said evenly. He hadn’t expected to see her there today.

  “Hey.” Holly lifted a brow, surprised to find him there. She was even more taken aback to see him with Felix. “What are you doing here?”

  Anderson was about to respond when Felix asked, “Do you two know each other?”

  “Yes, we’re friends,” Anderson said, seeing no reason to divulge the personal nature of their relationship. “Isn’t this your off day?”

  “I often come in on ‘off days’ to prepare stories,” she told him. “The news never takes an off day.”