“Are you sure you want to dine here?” she asked as they pulled up in front of The Grand.
That surprised him. It was one of the more expensive hotels in town, and Hawk knew she was questioning the price tag. It shocked him, because that was not something that the Kathryn he had once known would ever have done. When they’d been together all those years back, she hadn’t thought twice before batting her lashes and getting someone to spoil her rotten. Seemed like at least one of them had done a little growing up since college. To his surprise, Hawk found he really liked that idea, even though he’d never minded spoiling his girl. His girl … she’d been his one. And he’d let her go.
“Hawk?” Kathryn interrupted his musings. “Hello?”
“Sorry, yeah. I’m sure. I’ve always favored it myself,” he said as he got out of the cab and walked around to her side. He opened the door for her, and Kathryn stepped out. Hawk couldn’t help but steal a glance at her leg when she stepped onto the pavement. His eyes moved over the delicious curves of her thighs and the beautiful arch in her calf. He couldn’t think about them long or he would find himself becoming aroused.
They went inside and had dinner, and Hawk was amazed at how well it all went. Though they hadn’t seen each other for quite some time, they had so much to talk about, he couldn’t believe how quickly the evening went. They played the slot machines, and time after time had to catch himself from crossing that invisible line. He had no idea why he was feeling so strongly attracted to her—okay, he actually did, because she was a total knockout both in looks and personality, but still—and it only was made worse because she seemed to be coming on to him.
More than once throughout the evening she would intentionally bump into him while they were walking, and though they were both enjoying their drinks, he could see that she was far from intoxicated. She was flirtatious and funny, laughing at everything he joked about and offering plenty of her own.
The more time they spent together, the more Hawk had to wonder about why they hadn’t lasted in the first place. She was everything that he remembered wanting in life—and this night reminded him of that. The time flew by, and before he realized it, it was well past midnight.
“I guess we better get going,” he said at last. Kathryn laughed.
“I’m not Cinderella. I don’t have to be home before my cab turns into a pumpkin,” she teased. He laughed.
“I might be Prince Charming,” he said with a wink. Kathryn smiled, and the two of them headed back to the hotel. Their conversation was far tamer on the way back, and Hawk could sense she was tired. She leaned over in the cab and laid her head on his shoulder. Hawk glanced down at her and smiled to himself. There was something nice about the total comfort they had around each other, a comfort that hadn’t been lost in spite of their breakup and the years in between.
When they arrived back at the hotel, he got out of the elevator on her floor and walked her to the door.
“Aren’t you going to come inside?” she asked, and Hawk shook his head.
“I think that is more than enough adventure for one night,” he said with a smile. To his surprise, she suddenly closed her eyes and leaned forward, clearly wanting a kiss. Hawk hesitated. He desperately wanted to kiss her—he wanted to do far more than that to her, let’s be honest. He wanted to kick in the door and throw her on the bed and remind her of how good it had once between them in bed, as good as it was when they together outside of bed.
Instead, he merely leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead. She opened her eyes in surprise, and he smiled.
“Goodnight, Kathryn,” he said. He heard her bid him a goodnight as well, but he was already walking back toward the elevator. He had to get back to his room before he gave into temptation and did what he really wanted to do with her.
Chapter Eight
Kathryn
Kathryn slowly opened her eyes. Her head was buzzing from the alcohol that had worn off during the night, and she reached for her purse, in desperate need of some Tylenol. She tried to remember exactly what had happened. She hadn’t been drunk by any means, and as far as she could tell, Hawk hadn’t been, either.
But she couldn’t think of why he had behaved the way that he did. She’d thought he was having a great night and that he was really into her—every time she’d turned around she had seen him watching her with that look on his face that men only had when they wanted to take her home with them. But then, she had sworn that there was something else there as well. The things he’d asked her were far more than just the questions of someone who wanted in her pants. He hadn’t just wanted to take her to bed; he’d somehow seemed to also want to know her. That was brand new.
She was no stranger to flirtation, and as much as she could remember from the night before, they had both been extremely flirty with each other, in addition to the comfortable friendly banter.
Hawk had put his hands on her hips and her lower back. He had held his arm for her to loop hers around his. He had walked her through the street and made sure she could pass safely. He had put his arm around her whenever they were walking past a group that seemed rather sketchy.
Everything she could remember pointed to the fact that he had been interested in her through and through. But then, when they’d gotten back to the hotel, things had suddenly changed. As much as she could remember, nothing had happened between them that would have caused such a change. He had seemed to be just fine one minute, then he’d been entirely different the next.
Or was he? She remembered they had both been tired on the ride back to the hotel. Neither one of them had spoken much, though there had still been plenty of laughter shared between them. Then he had walked her back to her door. Was that when things had gotten weird between them?
All she could clearly remember was feeling confused that he had merely chosen to kiss her on the forehead rather than on the lips. She hadn’t even offered to let him come into her hotel room— though if he had taken the initiative, she would have been more than happy to encourage and accommodate. Kathryn sighed.
There was something that was so familiar about Hawk—and she knew it stemmed from the brief past that they had—but at the same time, there was something changed about him.
She knew he was a different person than he had been in college, and that was to be expected. She herself was far different than she had been in college. She was older, wiser, and less of the drama queen she had been. She now was familiar with the ways of men and knew how to handle them far better than before.
Before, she had leaned on Hawk for so much emotional support—she had often gone to him when she was having problems with her father. Ever since they had broken up, she had had to deal with that on her own. And she had. She’d learned how to stand on her own two feet. She now knew how to handle her father when she didn’t want to deal with him.
And she knew what she wanted in life.
Or did she?
Kathryn decided she was going to call Dana and let her know about the night before. Dana was always really smart about guys—much like herself, it was the experiences with the bad that made her know how to handle the good—and she had been the only woman in the history of women who had been able to convince a Parker brother to marry her.
She rifled through her purse as she looked for her phone, experiencing a brief moment of panic thinking she might have lost it somewhere. She breathed a sigh of relief as she pulled the device out and turned it on. When she saw three notifications, she hoped one of them was from Hawk.
None of them were.
There were three different messages from men whose names she recognized, but whom she didn’t know personally. They were all asking her out when she got back to New York, each one playing it cool as much as possible. The more she listened to them, the more she wondered if her father really thought she was that foolish. There was simply no way these men—so much older, for one thing, and so vastly wealthy—would reach out to her unless her father was behind things. Some might cal
l it paranoia, but the clinch for Kathryn was that, to a man, the phone calls failed to mention where they’d gotten her number. She’d never had a single social encounter with any of these men and it stood to reason that they’d obtained her contact information who someone trafficked in their rarified business social circles. Namely, her dad.
She angrily deleted each message then called her father, completely forgetting about calling Dana. She listened as the phone rang twice and angrily checked her watch. She knew that with the time difference it might be harder to get a hold of him, so she was happy when he picked up. Happy that she got to tell him how she really felt.
“Dad, I want you to stop trying to set me up with anyone, for any reason!” she said as soon as he answered. She didn’t give him time to reply as she continued.
“I know you were behind those three messages I got today. There is no way any of those men would have thought to contact me. They wouldn’t know who was, much less that I was single, or how to contact me, if you hadn’t told them!” She was breathing hard, though she did her best to keep her voice under control. She didn’t want to end up in a yelling or screaming match with her father, but she couldn’t believe he kept doing this to her. And she wanted it to end—once and for all.
It seemed he was determined to believe that if he got enough men to harass her, she would eventually give in and date one of them—not realizing that the more men he sent her way, the more likely she was to turn every single one of them down. Past experience had taught her that he was not simply looking out for his lovelorn little girl. Far from it. The men he gave her information were chosen because of their wealth or social status and because Kathryn dating them would benefit him in some way. That was how her father worked. Total quid pro quo.
“I am tired of you treating me like property to be auctioned off to the most well-connected business associate! I want to have a relationship with you, but you treat me as though I am incompetent, and I am not! I know how to pick someone to fall in love with, and I know what I am looking for in a man. I want you to trust me!” Kathryn’s voice cracked.
“Are you crying? You’re crying because your father is just trying to look out for you? Unbelievable!” Mr. Wellington’s voice sounded just as appalled as she imagined he looked. She shook her head as she sat up in bed.
“I’m not crying! And even if I were, it wouldn’t be because you are trying to take care of me, because you aren’t—as with every other part of my life, you are just trying to control me!” Kathryn was watching herself in the mirror as she spoke, and she hated the fact that she did actually see tears forming.
“Control you? You think I’m trying to control you! Ha! That is rich! No, honey, I am not trying to control you; I’m trying to take care of our company. You have no idea what kind of power you could bring about with your marriage. I want you to choose the right one, that’s all.” His voice was soothing but condescending. It only angered her more.
“You don’t care about love, and you don’t care if I’m happy. All you care about is how much money you have to count at the end of the day, and I’m going to tell you right now, I am over and done with it all! I am not going to marry or even go out with anyone you send my way, ever! I can choose who I love, who I date, and who I marry!” Kathryn was about to hang up the phone, but the sound of her father laughing caused her to pause.
“What’s so funny?” she demanded.
“You act like you’re all grown up, but all you do is spend the money that I have earned. You think you are an adult, but all you have ever done is act like that teenager that I spoiled.” His voice was mocking.
“Fuck you!” she shot into the phone.
“You know what, little girl? It’s high time you learn how to treat me with some respect. As of today, you are out of the trust fund. And I don’t want to hear from you until further notice!” Her father hung up the phone before she had a chance to reply, and Kathryn ran over to the bed and grabbed a pillow. She buried her face into it and screamed, muffling the noise with the cushion.
After she had let out her frustration, she yanked off her nightgown. She was out of the trust fund? That was fine. She was going to shower, then she was going to spend the day shopping. She could deal with the credit cards when she got home.
Kathryn sighed when she looked at herself in the mirror of the bathroom. She drew herself up to her full height and looked at her naked body with pride. It showed that she worked out and took care of herself, and she knew she could have anyone she wanted.
Her thoughts wandered back to the night before, and she smiled as she thought of Hawk. There were a thousand reasons she could consider to justify his actions, though deep down she knew none of them made sense. There was a time when he had been all over her, unable to keep his hands to himself. Even the night before, it had been evident that he was having a difficult time controlling himself. The way he looked at her had told her that there was more going on inside his mind than he wanted to let on.
The Parker brothers were a strange bunch—all of them too proud to say what they really wanted, and too stubborn to do what anyone else wanted them to do. But if Hawk wanted to play that way, that was just fine with her. Kathryn knew how to drive a hard bargain, and she knew how to send it home when she wanted to.
Last night had been just as much about having carefree fun away from her father as it had been about seducing Hawk, and if he was going to be hard to get for any reason, she was perfectly fine with that. She was sexy and she knew it, and she wasn’t afraid to flaunt what she had.
Hawk wanted her; there was no way he could deny it. There had to be some reasonable explanation for his behavior the night before. As she brushed her teeth and put on her makeup, she made a decision. Kathryn was in control of her own life, and she wouldn’t give up that control to anyone, let alone some guy who didn’t act on opportunity. She would give him another chance, and if he truly wasn’t interested, that was fine—she would find someone who was.
Chapter Nine
Hawk
Hawk woke with a start and quickly looked around the room. The night before came rushing back to him, and he remembered what had happened right before he’d said goodnight to Kathryn. Part of him felt a rush of relief knowing that he had turned her invitation down, but another part was kicking himself for letting her get away so easily.
Though their fling in college had been rather short lived, he could still remember how beautiful she had been lying on his bed completely naked. Her breasts were full and round, her nipples firm but soft. She had a flat stomach, wide hips, and an ass that he had slapped to his heart’s content, for the sake of both their enjoyment.
And, from the looks of things, the years had only been good to her. There were times he’d seen her in passing, when she was hanging out with Dana and he was dropping something or other off for Cole, and he couldn’t help but wonder if she had some kind of surgery done to her breasts. It something she hadn’t needed, but how could any woman look better with every passing year, rather than the reverse. And her father had the money to do it, so she might have.
At the thought of Kathryn’s father, he almost immediately lost his arousal. The phone conversation he had had with the man came back to him, killing his mood even more. Of course, Wellington would do what he could to ensure he got his daughter matched to someone with money, but it still really didn’t make much sense given how much he and Hawk hadn’t seen eye to eye. Surely there was a better babysitter available, someone who was more in line with Wellington’s skewed view of things?
Shaking his head, he threw his legs over the side of the bed and went to take a shower. Walking past the desk, Hawk could see right away that there were several messages flashing on his phone, but he wasn’t going to concern himself with those. Growing up, his father had often told him and his siblings to sit down and shut up until after he had had his coffee. Hawk had absorbed that lesson better than most and now felt that the entire world could wait until at least after he had a sho
wer.
As he stood with the water beating down on his head, Hawk once again thought about the previous night he had spent with Kathryn. He wanted to leave it at just having a good time with the woman, but there were buried emotions that were beginning to come up in his mind once again, and he wanted to get rid of them.
Or did he? He said that he did, but at the same time, he was enjoying the feeling that was rushing down his spine—and lingering in his manhood. He remembered what it had been like to take her for his own—to show her off to one all—and it was something even after all these years and dozens of women later, that he still had not forgotten.
He stepped out of the shower and wrapped the towel around his waist before wandering back to the bedroom, finally ready to see what the world wanted of him. As suspected, there were several messages from both of his brothers—two from Blake and one from Cole, both asking him the same thing. They wanted an update on how things were going with the hotel—and Cole, of course, wanted to know if there had been any developments with Kathryn.
Hawk was never one to invest emotionally in anyone, let alone his older brother, but he did want to tell him that he had taken her out the night before, and that it did seem like she was in to him— at least to an extent. He replied about the hotel, telling them both he was going to check up on the progress and have a better report later that day, then he included in his message to Cole that he had indeed seen Kathryn, but he couldn’t think of how he wanted to word the message beyond that.
After hitting send, he set his phone down, but was surprised when it went off again almost immediately. Thinking it was Cole teasing him about the night before, he picked it up—but it was Kathryn.
Just wondering if you want to grab lunch.
“What the fuck?” he muttered. His initial response was to go, but he changed his mind, telling her that he was going to head out to the construction site and see if there was any progress he could report to his brothers. She gave him a short reply, but he didn’t have the time to worry about that. She was just going to have to get over whatever game she was playing with him, and let him work.
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