Tempting Nora

by Evanston, A. M.

  "I want it," she whispered.

  "What was that?" It was obvious Gideon had heard what she said, but he was trying to annoy her as much as possible anyway.

  "I said I want your stupid cake." She seized it before he could tease her more.

  Gideon looked way too pleased. She really wanted to stab him with her fork, but she guessed that would have to wait until she was done eating. It was important for a woman to have her priorities straight, after all. And she did. She'd eat cake, kill Gideon with the plastic fork, and then find a way to get rid of the body. Yep, it sounded like she had everything about right.

  As she grinned at the thought of chocolate and violence, she opened the cake box. She scooped up a bite of dessert and shoved it into her mouth. The taste of chocolate tantalized her taste buds. She was having an out-of-body experience. Good grief, cake was so good! She squeezed her eyes shut and groaned. When she opened her eyes again, Gideon was staring at her.

  But he wasn't staring at her mockingly like he normally did. Instead his eyes were dark as he licked his lips. She found herself growing nervous. Not I'm-about-to-be-murdered kind of nervous, but I'm-getting-hot-all-over kind of nervous. She wished he'd stop staring at her as if he'd like to gobble her up like a piece of divine chocolate cake.

  "Why are you staring at me?" she asked.

  "You have chocolate on your face," he said.

  Oh great. Now she was embarrassed on top of everything else. She was twenty-eight and should have been able to eat without making a mess of herself.

  "Where is it?" she asked, taking a napkin and scrubbing her chin.

  "Not there." He shook his head. "By your lip."

  He looked at her mouth and the darkness in his eyes grew even more intense.

  "Okay." She nodded and licked her lips, then ran her fingers over her skin.

  "It's still there," he said.

  Darn it. Where was the chocolate smudge? She was going to explode if she kept this up.

  Just as she was about to attack her face with a napkin, Gideon wet his thumb in his mouth and then touched her face. She felt the dampness of his digit against her bottom lip and froze. He's touching my lip! Suddenly, she forgot how to breathe. Heck, she even forgot how to think. Her brain melted into a puddle of ooze.

  After he pulled back, he licked the icing from his skin, never breaking eye contact with her. Her stomach flopped. I can't believe he just did that! she thought as she felt her eyes bulge from her head.

  "The cake is good," he said. "I wanted to try it."

  "You—you—" She was shaking.

  "What?" Gideon looked amused that she was at a loss for words.

  "Your finger was on my lip and…" Her face was on fire.

  "What about it?" Gideon raised an eyebrow and licked his thumb again.

  Now she knew he was teasing her. Despite that, she couldn't fight down the stupid blush. His thumb had touched her lips and then his own. It was an indirect kiss.

  As she stared at him, aghast, she berated herself. She had to come to her senses. You're not a teenager anymore. Most women your age wouldn't bat an eye over something like this. Her thoughts reminded her of how ridiculous this whole situation was. It wasn't like Gideon had licked her cheek or something. He'd just wiped off a chocolate smudge.

  Finally, her heart rate slowed. She could feel her cheeks cool down too.

  "It's a pity." Gideon examined her face.

  "What's a pity?"

  "Your blush is gone." Gideon let out a morose sigh. "I guess I'll have to do something to make it come back."

  "You're making me blush on purpose?" Of all the nerve!

  "I can't help it." Gideon shrugged. "You're cute when you blush."

  "Cute?" She glared at him.

  Puppies gamboling were cute. Kittens playing with dandelions were cute. Babies in onesies were cute. She wasn't cute. Heck, she didn't want to be cute! Cute indicated sweetness and innocence. She wasn't sweet or innocent.

  "Hey." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't call me cute."

  "How can you think me calling you cute is an insult?" Gideon gave an exasperated sigh.

  "Hmph." She crossed her arms.

  As the two of them glared at each other, the door to the shop opened and Robert walked inside holding a Styrofoam box.

  "Back again?" Robert glanced at Gideon and headed over.

  "Yep." Gideon shrugged. "I'm not letting up until Nora agrees to be with me, but she's having none of it."

  "We're never going to be together," she snapped. "Give up now."

  "Do you know that your eyebrow twitches when you're angry?" Gideon patted her head. "It's rather cute."

  She knew that he meant to insult her without Robert knowing. After all, she'd just said five seconds before that she didn't want to be called cute. At least, not by him.

  "I'm going to kill you." Her eyes narrowed. "Mark my words."

  "I feel for you, brother." Robert whistled. "She's as stubborn as a mule."

  "Hey!" Now Robert was picking on her too?

  "Don't I know it…" Gideon gave an exasperated sigh. "I even bought her cake, but she doesn't appreciate it."

  She glared at him.

  "It looks like you know how to win her over." Robert held up the box in his hand. "I brought her cake too. She won't say no to it, even after she spends hours telling you how much she wants to punch you in the face."

  "Don't talk about me like I'm not here," she said.

  Yet Gideon stepped right in front of her and behaved as if he hadn't heard her speak.

  "Yeah, I realized she won't refuse dessert." Gideon nodded. "Should I consider you competition if you're bringing Nora chocolate cake too?"

  "You guys," Nora cried.

  "Me?" Robert gave a derisive snort. "Nora's a peach—"

  "Stop consorting with the enemy, Robert," she said.

  "—but she's more like my little sister than anything. Also, I'm afraid I'm not quite enough man for her. She'd run all over me." Robert wrinkled his nose. "This cake is just a bribe because I'm taking her to a concert tonight that she'll loathe."

  Why are they ignoring me? Nora thought, exasperated.

  "Concert?" Gideon cocked his head.

  "A Trevor Malone concert." Robert placed the cake on the desk. "She hates the guy."

  "Ah, Trevor Malone." Gideon nodded sagely. "I can see why Nora isn't—"

  "I'm right here," she said. "Stop excluding me from the conversation."

  "—fond of him." Gideon shrugged. "Still his music isn't half bad. I like a lot of his songs, even though I'm a guy."

  "Me too." Robert's eyes glistened. "You know what, you aren't half bad. I think I've been listening to Nora too much. She made me think you're a pigheaded jerk."

  Nora gave up on trying to insert herself into the conversation.

  "I'm guessing she's not shy about voicing her opinions about me." Gideon shook his head, his glorious eyes shining.

  "Is Nora ever shy about voicing her opinions about anything?" Robert asked.

  "I hate you both," she muttered.

  "No, she really isn't," Gideon said. "It's one of her charms."

  "If you say so." Robert shrugged.

  She shot him a death glare.

  "I do." Gideon nodded. "I find her forwardness quite—"

  "That's it!" She seized Gideon by the arm and pulled him backward.

  "—lovely," Gideon finished.

  Robert looked like he was fighting back a laugh.

  "You two are driving me nuts," she said. "If you're going to talk about me like this, do it elsewhere."

  She hadn't meant that literally. In fact, she hadn't meant it at all. She just wanted one of them—or preferably both of them—to leave. Instead Robert's eyes lit up.

  "You know what, that's a marvelous idea." Robert grinned. "Do you want to have lunch, Gideon?"

  "You know what, I really do." Gideon removed Nora's hand from his arm.

  "Wonderful." Robert's eyes twinkled. "I know a great
place down the street."

  All of the sudden, Nora remembered that Robert was the keeper of her secrets. And right now, he wasn't acting like an ally.

  "No, don't go out to lunch," she said.

  "Why not?" Gideon raised an eyebrow, not even bothering to conceal his smirk. "I thought you wanted us to talk elsewhere? We're just doing what you asked."

  "Stop smirking at me." She pointed a threatening finger at him. "And Robert, I forbid you from going."

  "You forbid me from going?" Robert shook his head.

  "What, is Robert your slave?" Gideon asked.

  "Well, no." She hated the way Gideon made her sound. "I didn't mean to boss him around."

  "Yes, you did." Robert shot Gideon a pained look. "Nora always bosses me around."

  "Well, today you aren't going to listen to her." Gideon wrapped an arm around Robert's shoulders. "Let's go grab something to eat, my friend."

  "No!" she yelled.

  The two of them headed for the door.

  "Sorry, Nora." Robert waved at her.

  As she watched the two of them walk out the door—laughing at her expense, she might add—her eyebrow twitched. She clapped her hand to her brow and muttered, "Sorry my foot…" As of right now, Robert was the enemy. She cursed for the first time in two years and took a bite of her chocolate cake.

  ****

  Two hours before the Trevor Malone concert, Nora stood in front of the mirror in a red dress. Her makeup was tasteful, but she had to admit that she may have gone a little overboard with the crimson lipstick. As she struck a pose, she thought, Not half bad. Sure, she didn't look like a model, but that didn't bother her. After all, she bet models never got to eat chocolate cake.

  As she grabbed her purse from the dresser, she looked down at Mr. Fleas. The dog was panting as he stared at her.

  "I really should have told Robert I couldn't go to the concert after the stunt he pulled this afternoon, huh?" She wished she hadn't said yes to him.

  Mr. Fleas stared at her, his dark brown eyes wide. That was when a high-pitched squeak burst from his little body. At first she thought, What on earth was that? Unfortunately, that was when she smelled a noxious odor. No, she more than smelled it—she tasted it. The dog had farted. The scent of rotting eggs was so pungent it enveloped her, making her feel as though she was drowning in stank. How on earth had a dog that small made a smell so disgusting?

  "What have you been eating?" Her eyes watered.

  The dog hopped to his feet and wagged his tail. Heaven help her, the stinky canine was coming straight for her. She had to escape this apartment before she suffocated.

  She staggered out of the bedroom as Mr. Fleas yapped at her heels. She headed out the door and shut it halfway. Mr. Fleas stared up at her through the crack in the door, still wagging his tail. Unfortunately, the lethal odor clung to him like the world's worst perfume. She'd never smelled a corpse, but she had a feeling it would stink less than Mr. Fleas.

  "Geez, dog," she said. "Release all of that gas before I come home, okay?"

  Another high-pitched squeak came from the dog's tiny body. Good grief, Mr. Fleas had just farted again. She gasped and shut the door the rest of the way, feeling bad for Chubby who was now locked inside with the world's most odorous canine.

  "I have to switch dog foods or something," she said, scratching the back of her neck.

  She'd smelled many putrid scents in her lifetime, but never anything that bad.

  With a sigh, she headed down the stairs. When she made it outside, she breathed in the fresh air and tilted her head back. This was exactly what she needed after what she'd just experienced due to her dog's overactive rear-end.

  After she inhaled a few more times, she climbed into her car and started it. The vehicle backfired and then stalled. Oh goody. This again. She whacked the dashboard and the car sputtered back to life. After she was certain the vehicle was going to remain running, she pulled onto the road and drove to the restaurant where she had a reservation with Robert. Unfortunately, after she pulled into the parking lot and parked, she spotted a black truck that looked just like Gideon's. Her hair stood on end. He couldn't be here, could he?

  She realized she was paranoid. No, worse than paranoid. She was obsessed. Gideon was not at the restaurant. There were zillions of people who drove black trucks. Just because she happened to see one didn't mean that Gideon was around. Laughing at herself, she finally jumped out of the car and then went inside the restaurant.

  As her mouth watered due to the smell of roasting steak, she walked over to the hostess who stood behind a service desk.

  "I have a reservation," she said. "It should be under the name Robert Campbell."

  "Yes, your friend is already here." The hostess let out a dreamy sigh.

  What was that sigh about? Normally people didn't sigh when talking about Robert—unless it was a sigh of exasperation.

  "Oh." Nora nodded. "Okay."

  "I'll show you to your table." The hostess flashed a grin, then sized her up. Judging by the way her smile lessened several molars, the woman was not impressed.

  Perplexed, Nora trailed behind the hostess. She was led over to a table in the backroom. But Robert was not waiting for her. Unfortunately, Gideon was.

  "Here you are, ma'am," the hostess said, even as she simpered at Gideon.

  The woman went ignored by both of them. Looking putout, the hostess left.

  "No, no, no." Nora glared at Gideon. "What the heck are you doing here?"

  Gideon cocked his head and gave a dazzling grin.

  "You may want to sit down." He motioned for her to take a seat. "People are staring."

  Sure enough, every head was turned in her direction. For a moment Nora considered making a fool of herself and running away, but then—much to her shame—curiosity got the better of her. She sunk down into her chair and glared at Gideon.

  "Where's Robert?" she asked. "I was supposed to meet him here, not you."

  She said "you" as if she was talking about something unpleasant like a creepy spider.

  "Something came up." Gideon shrugged.

  "Something?" She glared at him suspiciously. There was no doubt in her mind that Gideon was responsible for this something.

  "Yes." Gideon shrugged and opened a menu.

  "And what would this something be?" She wasn't going to let this go without a fight.

  "I happen to have a lot of beautiful friends that would love to go to a Trevor Malone concert." Gideon shrugged. "One of them happens to be a model for an up-and-coming magazine. Naturally, Robert was more than a little ecstatic to have such a gorgeous date, so he was willing to let me have you for the evening if I set him up with her."

  My best friend left me with Gideon because of a model? The betrayal stung. Sure, she hadn't wanted to go to the concert anyway, but what Robert did was low.

  "I can't believe him," she said.

  "You aren't mad, are you?" Gideon asked. "I talked him into it. And it took a lot of persuasion. A lot."

  "How much persuasion is a lot?" She raised an eyebrow.

  "Well, I had to show him the woman's picture." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

  She winced. That wasn't much persuasion at all.

  "Oh, come on." Gideon frowned, noting her pained expression. "When else would Robert have an opportunity to go on a date with a model? He saw a chance and he took it."

  "He practically sold me to you." She wrinkled her nose.

  "Sold you?" Gideon snorted. "Stop being so dramatic. He thought he was doing you a favor. He told me so."

  "What?" How could Robert think such a thing?

  "It seems he worries about your lack of love life." A wicked grin crossed Gideon's face.

  "That's it." She flew to her feet. "I'm killing him and then you."

  Heads turned in her direction again. Even though Gideon was smiling, he pulled her into her chair.

  "Don't leave," Gideon said. "You want cake, don't you?"

  "Hmph." Of cour
se she did, but she was still mad.

  "Order anything you want." Gideon pulled out the dessert menu and handed it to her. "Heck, eat an entire cake if you want to."

  As she stared down at the menu, her mouth watered. She studied the picture of her favorite dessert. Layers of thick chocolate cheesecake were drenched in gooey fudge. A whipped cream swirl covered the top of the cake. The piece was garnished with shreds of dark chocolate and decadent syrup.

  She looked up from the menu.

  "What's the catch?" she asked.

  "Catch?" Gideon cocked his head. "There isn't a catch."

  "There's always a catch." She glowered.

  "Nora, the only thing I want to do is eat dinner." Gideon eyes blazed as he looked at her.

  Good grief, the guy was smoldering at her again. His powers of seduction were so strong that several women at surrounding tables were caught in his trap and stared.

  "I thought you weren't interested in dating women." She wrinkled her nose. "This seems like a date to me. Why would you even bother to bribe my friend to spend an evening with me?"

  Gideon didn't say anything.

  "Answer me or I'll leave." Nora narrowed her eyes.

  "I think you know why I'm doing this." Gideon leaned closer. "The more time you spend with me, the more you'll like me. You'll give in eventually."

  "Yeah, right." She laughed. "The more time I spend with you, the more I think you're annoying."

  Her outburst didn't appear to upset Gideon. Instead he gave her a knowing grin and grabbed her arm. She tried to pull away, but his grip was so strong she couldn't. He flipped her hand over so it was palm side up and ran his fingertips over her skin. Tingles spread from where he touched to the tips of her fingers. Startled by her feelings, she looked straight into her eyes—which turned out to be her gravest error. Her brain was instantly electrified.

  "I can tell I'm growing on you, despite what you say," he whispered seductively. "Do you want me to list all of the things I think you like about me?"

  "Um…" She blinked.

  She'd forgotten how overpowering his intense caramel eyes could be. One look and she turned into a gibbering moron.

  "You like the fact you can argue with me," he said.

  "What?" she sputtered.