Anderson swallowed and dabbed a napkin to the corner of his mouth. “Count on it.” He hoped that dessert might extend beyond cake or pie, to something that tapped into his carnal taste buds. “So tell me about your childhood.”
Her eyes widened. “You really want to know?”
“Yes, I’d like to know everything about you.”
She blushed and was happy to share. “I had a wonderful childhood. My parents doted over me and my brother, Stuart, and probably spoiled us too much.”
“I don’t know about that,” Anderson said, lifting a fork with mashed potatoes. “I don’t think parents can ever spoil their children too much. After all, the time they have together can be so fleeting.”
Holly thought about how young Anderson had been when his mother died, depriving him of her affection during those precious formative years when perhaps he needed her most. “You’re right about that.” She decided not to bring up his absent father again, knowing that had been a point of contention previously.
Anderson sensed that Holly was probably thinking about his uneasiness about his father. He wanted her to feel comfortable broaching subjects with him, even if they were hard to deal with.
“I’ve started to look into who my father might be. I want to find out if he’s still alive, and, if so, where he’s living.”
That surprised Holly. “That’s good to know. I’m sure it’s difficult and you may not get the answers you want, but at least you will have tried.”
“Those are my sentiments as well.” He met her eyes. “Thanks for pressing me on this.”
“Sometimes I may go overboard in speaking my mind,” she admitted. “But if it helps you, then it was worth it.”
“Yeah, I think so.”
“I hope it works out for you,” Holly said, biting into a muffin.
“Me too.” Anderson leaned forward. “In fact, I’d say it’s working out pretty well so far.”
She felt the same way.
Anderson got up and moved to a chair on her side of the table. He angled his head just right and planted a kiss on those luscious lips of hers.
Holly closed her eyes and relished the kiss, returning it with equal desire. Like before, it was a wonderful kiss that aroused her and left her wanting more and more of him.
Anderson put his hand around Holly’s neck to better hold them in place for the kiss, which enveloped him from head to toe, causing flashes of light to go off in his head. He didn’t want this moment to end.
The ringing of the doorbell caught them both off guard. They pulled away from the kiss.
“Expecting more company?” Anderson asked, disappointed with the timing.
“Not that I know of.” Holly bit back her frustration that their kiss had been disrupted.
The bell rang again.
Anderson looked at her. “I think you’d better get that.”
“Don’t move,” she told him. “I’ll get rid of whoever it is, and we can get back to where we were.”
He smiled yearningly. “I’d like that.”
* * *
Holly opened the door to see her father. Since he almost never dropped by, and certainly not unannounced, her first thought was that something was wrong.
“Dad—”
“Hello,” he said. “Sorry for barging in on you like this—”
“Is everything all right?” she asked.
“I’m fine,” he said. “Are you?”
“Yes. Did you hear otherwise?”
“Actually, I talked to your brother and he suggested I check on you. Since I was in the neighborhood, I decided to stop by.”
Holly recalled sharing some of her frustrations about Anderson with Stuart but hadn’t expected him to pass it on to their father.
“Please come in,” she told her father, figuring it was as good a time as any to tell him she was seeing someone.
Anderson, curious about the visitor, had left the table and walked toward the foyer just as Holly was showing her father in.
“Didn’t know you had company,” Robert said as he laid eyes on Anderson.
“Dad, this is Anderson Gunn,” Holly said evenly. “Anderson, my father, Robert.”
“Nice to meet you, sir,” Anderson said, sticking out a hand to shake his.
“You too.” Robert shook his hand.
Anderson could see the clear resemblance between father and daughter. He could also see that Holly seemed slightly uncomfortable with the unplanned meeting and sought to put her at ease. “I’m guessing that you’re a Houston Texans fan like me?”
“Oh yeah, big fan,” Robert said.
“I’ve got season tickets in a choice location,” Anderson said. “Maybe you can come with me to see our team kick some ass.”
Robert grinned widely. “Sure, I’d like that.”
“Good.” Anderson smiled at Holly. “We’ll set it up.”
Anderson was for sure earning brownie points with Holly.
“We were just finishing up dinner,” she told her father. “There’s still food left, if you’d like something.”
Robert shook his head. “No, I already ate. I can see you’re busy, so I’ll leave you two alone.”
“You can stay for a few minutes,” Holly said. Now that he had met Anderson, she might as well see how they got along. So far so good.
“All right,” Robert said.
“Can I get you a glass of wine?” she asked.
“Yeah, okay.” He sat in the living room and Anderson joined him. “So are you dating my daughter?”
“Yes, sir,” Anderson said straightforwardly.
“Call me Robert.”
“All right.” Anderson was only too happy to have him as an ally.
Robert stretched his legs, studying him. “What do you do for a living, Anderson?”
“I’m a legal consultant.”
“So you’re a lawyer?” Robert asked.
Anderson nodded. “Yes. Used to practice law in the corporate world, but now I work with law firms to strengthen their positions.”
“I see. And where did you and Holly meet?”
“At the airport a while back,” Anderson responded.
Holly caught that last part as she came in with wine for her father and a refill for Anderson. “Hope you’re not being grilled too much by my father.”
He laughed. “Not at all. Just having a friendly conversation.”
“That’s right,” Robert said, taking the glass of wine from her. “Why didn’t you tell me you were involved with someone?”
She exchanged glances with Anderson. “I would’ve gotten around to it sooner or later,” she said, sitting in a chair. “We both wanted to see how things went first.”
“And I take it things are going well for you?” he asked directly.
She smiled. “Yes, we’re enjoying each other’s company.”
“Good thing, because I don’t want to miss the opportunity to sit in good seats and watch the Texans play.”
Anderson chuckled. “Don’t worry about that. You’ll definitely get to be there to watch them beat up some other team.”
Robert laughed. “One could only hope it’s not the other way around.”
“Not a chance,” he said.
Robert finished his wine and stood. “Well, I’ve got another stop to make, so I’ll leave you two to your date.”
“I’ll walk you out,” Holly said. She wanted a moment alone with him to get his opinion of Anderson.
“Sure. Nice meeting you, Anderson.”
“You too, Robert.” He shook his hand again. “I’ll be in touch regarding the game.”
“You do that.”
“Be right back,” Holly whispered to Anderson as her father walked to the door. “Try no
t to miss me too much.”
He grinned. “Won’t be easy, but I’ll do my best.”
Holly stepped outside where her father was standing on the porch. “Hey,” she said.
“Hey.” Robert put his hand on her shoulder. “Is he the one your brother was somewhat concerned about?”
“Yes,” Holly admitted. “It was no big deal really.”
“If you say so.”
“I do. No need to worry about me, Dad.”
“I’m not,” he said. “I know you’re a big girl and can take care of yourself.”
“I try to,” she said.
“Anderson seems like a nice fellow.”
“He is nice,” Holly said. “We get along well.”
Robert peered at her. “Is it serious?”
“Not right now. But maybe we’re moving in that direction, slowly but surely.”
“Slow is good. No need to rush into anything. If he’s the right one for you in the long haul, you’ll know it soon enough.”
“I’m sure you’re right,” she agreed. “Well, I’d better get back inside.”
He kissed her cheek. “Your mother would be pretty proud of you right now.”
“You really think so?”
“I know so. And your brother, too. Now get going, and I’ll see you later.”
Holly’s eyes crinkled at him as she waved goodbye. It was hard to adjust to the fact that he was starting to get up there in years. She wondered if Anderson thought about his father when he met hers and if it had made him wonder what it would have been like to attend a football game with his own father.
Chapter 8
Holly stepped back inside to find Anderson clearing dishes from the dining room table.
“You don’t have to do that,” she said.
“I don’t mind,” he told her. “I’m happy to help out.”
Your being here has helped more than I can say, she thought, moving toward him. “Thank you.”
Anderson smiled. “It was my pleasure.” He put the last dish on the counter in the kitchen. “I hope I passed the father test.”
Holly chuckled. “Yes, I believe you did.” Indeed, she could not remember anyone she had dated previously who had gotten off to such a good start with her father, which was definitely a positive sign. “It was nice of you to offer to take him to a football game.”
Anderson shrugged. “It was no big deal. I usually take clients to butter them up.”
She grinned. “Ah, so you want to butter my dad up, do you?”
He chuckled warmly. “Well, it never hurts to get the old man on my side.”
“Very true,” Holly said. “And I’d say it’s working.”
“Good.” Anderson took her in his arms. “I seem to recall that we were enjoying a rather nice kiss before we were interrupted.”
“Hmm...I seem to recall the same thing,” she said.
“What are we going to do about that?”
She batted her eyes coquettishly. “What would you like to do about it?”
Anderson looked into her eyes squarely, full of desire for her. “Just this—”
He tilted his head slightly and began to kiss her. She returned the kiss in full and Anderson quickly gave her mouth his undivided attention, loving every moment of it.
Holly felt light on her feet, as the powerful kiss left her helpless to this man and the sexual energy passing between them like bolts of lightning.
By the time she unlocked their mouths, Holly felt totally overwhelmed by Anderson. “Maybe we should postpone the peach cobbler,” she said on a quick breath.
His eyes pinned on her—he wanted her more than ever.
“Yes, maybe we should.”
Holly took him by the hand and led him silently to her bedroom. She began to remove her clothes and watched with great anticipation as he did the same. He looked sexy from his head to his bare feet.
Anderson took only a sweeping glance of the room, noting the elegant cherrywood furniture set, before returning his focus to the beautiful woman before him. She was even more beautiful as the clothing vanished from her body and he got to take in her naked perfection, beginning with her small, nicely rounded breasts and a shapely body that was taut in all the right places.
Grabbing a condom from his pants pocket, Anderson quickly slipped it onto his erection. He was barely able to contain himself, knowing the moist warmth of her body was sure to captivate him to no end.
He scooped her up in his arms and carried her to the sleigh bed. He placed her on top of the bedspread, then joined her. He brought his mouth to hers for a delicious kiss. When he slid between her legs and entered her, she was wet and very ready for him.
Holly welcomed the feel of Anderson inside her, coaxing him deeper within as she held on to his firm buttocks. She arched her back, bringing her breasts up to his chest, then sought out his lips again. They made love as if they were already completely familiar with one another’s body.
As her orgasm began, Holly gasped, feeling the surge spread joyously throughout her entire body. She trembled and clung to her lover while he too quavered with the release of his orgasm.
Anderson let out a deep breath, stifling the urge to moan, as the powerful sensations of satisfaction overcame him. He thrust harder into Holly, her cries urging him on, kissing her face, neck, ears and mouth lustfully and riding the waves of passion and pleasure.
They both enjoyed every second of sexual appeasement till they were spent and content in the afterglow.
Anderson gave Holly one final succulent kiss before rolling off her and onto the bed. “You were amazing,” he said.
“Look who’s talking,” Holly responded unabashedly. “I think we were both pretty amazing.”
“I couldn’t agree more.” Anderson kissed her shoulder. “Some things in life are well worth the wait. This was certainly one of them.”
“So you were waiting for this?” she asked playfully.
He grinned. “Weren’t you?”
“Well, I wasn’t exactly counting down the seconds, but the thought did cross my mind as to how nice it would be to make love to you.”
It pleased Anderson to know that she obviously wanted him as badly as he wanted her. “Fortunately, we can keep making love to each other.”
“Are we already planning the next time?” Holly asked, feeling remarkably comfortable talking to him about sex, even as they lay there naked.
“Yeah, and the next ten times,” he said with a wink.
Making love to Anderson only made Holly’s desire to have him that much stronger. But, at the same time, she didn’t want them to get too ahead of themselves.
“For now, let’s just enjoy the moment,” she said.
“That’s exactly what I’m doing,” Anderson said with a kiss.
* * *
The next week, Anderson was in his office doing his usual videoconferencing with clients and giving them advice. He found it hard to focus when Holly always seemed to be at the forefront of his mind. She had left an indelible impression on him mentally, physically and sexually, and he was determined to build upon what they had begun to establish.
When his assistant buzzed and told him that John Lacey was there to see him, Anderson asked her to wait five minutes before sending him in. It gave him time to wrap up things with the videoconference and set up the next meeting.
He stood up, straightening his tie and buttoning the jacket of his gray suit coat. He watched as the private investigator he had hired to search for his long-lost father entered the office. Anderson hadn’t expected to hear from him so soon.
“Mr. Gunn, I hope I didn’t catch you at a bad time,” John Lacey said.
“Not at all,” Anderson told him. He shook the hand of the fortysomething man wit
h gray hair and glasses.
“I’ve got some information for you.”
Anderson tensed as he considered the possibility that his father was dead. Or, just as unsettling in some ways, that he was alive and well and living in Houston.
“Why don’t we sit down,” he told the detective as he pointed at some comfortable chairs surrounding a round table.
John sat and put his briefcase on the table. “As you know, I didn’t have very much information to go on, trying to locate your father. But I did have the name listed on your birth certificate as the father—Chester Gunn.” He opened the briefcase and took out a sheet of paper, handing it to Anderson.
“What’s this?” he asked before studying it.
“It’s a list of all the Chester Gunns I’ve come up with so far that fit the age range your father would likely be. As you can see, it is not exactly a common name, but not so unique either.”
Anderson could see that there were around twelve people named Chester Gunn. Only two lived in Texas, with the rest scattered across the country. He looked at the detective. “You think my father is one of these men?”
“It’s possible,” John said. “It’s also possible that he’s dead or using another name now. I’d like to contact all of these men and either eliminate them from the list or further pursue leads, as well as check out any others who come up that may give you the answers you need.”
“Do whatever is necessary,” Anderson said. He took out his checkbook and made out a check for a generous amount, then handed it to him. “Will that cover your expenses?”
John nodded. “Yes, I believe it will. As soon as I have anything else pertinent, I’ll let you know.”
“Sounds good.” Anderson stood. “You have my cell phone number.”
“I’ll be in touch,” John said after getting up. The two shook hands again.
“Have a good day,” Anderson said. He saw him out before going back in the office and calling Holly.
“Hello, handsome,” she answered in a bubbly voice.
“Hello, gorgeous,” he responded. “Doing anything special for lunch?”
“No, nothing special. Why?”
“I’d like to take you somewhere for a great lunch and to share some news.”
Love is in the Air Page 7
