Dee returned in no time with a small plastic tray holding a box of Band-Aids, a bottle of peroxide, a clump of cotton balls, and a jar of Advil.
“How are you doing?” she asked as she approached me.
“I’m okay.”
“Let me see.” Gently, she lowered my hand and examined the damage. “Shit. You’re going to have a big bump, but the cut doesn’t seem too bad. I don’t think you’ll need stitches.”
Stitches? Fuck no. I had them once under my chin when I fell off a jungle gym at the age of seven and then again at seventeen after being hit in the shin by a hockey stick when I was in college.
“Stay still,” she said, setting the first aid supplies on the table.
I watched as she opened the peroxide and soaked a couple of cotton balls with the antiseptic solution.
“Shit! That hurts!” I yelped as she dabbed one of them on my wound.
She smiled and continued to dab away. I squirmed in my seat.
“You’re worse than a six-year-old.”
The fact was all men were big babies. We could take a knife to our heart, but when it came to the little things like a small cut it was like we’d been to war. And don’t get me started on guys getting sick. Did you ever hear of a guy with a cold? No, it was always the flu and we were always sick as a dog.
Dee stepped back and examined my face. Her eyes narrowed. “Good. The bleeding is stopping. But you need to keep this cut covered so it won’t get infected.”
I kept my eyes on her as she opened the box of Band-Aids.
“Are you fucking kidding me? You’re going to make me wear a Danger Rangers Band-Aid? Those are for six-year-olds.”
“That’s right. They’re Tyson’s favorite. And right now, I’d say you’re acting like a two-year-old.”
I started to roll my eyes at her, but it hurt too much. Instead, I grimaced as she affixed the bandage. Okay, confession. I was enjoying every minute of her attention. I loved the way she was so maternal. So different from all the women who were after me, especially Krizia, who didn’t have a maternal bone in her body.
My temp stepped back to examine her handiwork and flashed a proud smile. “All done. You’ll be as good as new in a couple days.”
My eyes stayed on her as she traipsed to the kitchen sink. Her heart-shaped ass was fucking gorgeous and her gait had a sexy little bounce. Opening a cabinet, she removed a glass and filled it with water. She returned and handed it to me.
“Take some Advil. It’ll help with the pain.”
Wordlessly, I unscrewed the ibuprofen jar and then downed a couple of the tablets.
Setting down the glass of water on the table, I gazed up at her. “Didn’t you forget something?”
Puzzled, she stared at me.
“You know, you need to kiss the boo-boo.”
“Oh, right.”
As she bent down to kiss me, I impulsively drew her into my arms until she was straddled on my lap. I began to kiss her slender neck, trailing soft kisses from under her chin to her ears, then along the nape. Delicious, sexy little sounds, which were totally turning me on, filled the back of her throat.
“You do a lot of things well,” I whispered between kisses, my dick hardening.
“Like what?” she breathed out, arching her back.
“You’re great at undoing knots…”
“Yeah…”
“And you’re a terrific dancer…”
“What else?” she asked, her voice low and seductive.
“You administer first aid like a pro…”
“And…”
“You’re one hell of a kisser…”
Without giving her time to respond, my lips latched onto hers, the kiss hungry and fierce. Her hands moved to my hair as I parted her lips and thrust my tongue into her warm mouth, tangling it with hers. A symphony of moans and groans accompanied the wild clashing of our warm wet vessels.
Without warning, she pulled away. No smile lifted her glistening lips. Instead, a look of regret and confusion washed over her face.
I tipped up her chin with my thumb. “What’s the matter?”
“Everything. I wish you didn’t have to meet Kyle that way. And we shouldn’t be doing this. I’m your assistant.”
I kept my thumb pressed to her soft skin and looked straight at her. “Hey, it wasn’t your fault he was here and quite frankly, I’m glad I showed up when I did. Lucky thing you didn’t lock your door, which in the future you better do.” I moved my thumb to her lips, those magical lips, and swept it across the sensuous curves.
She held back a smile. “We should call it a night.”
“There’s no way I’m leaving because that motherfucker might come back.”
“Please, Drake. You don’t need all this drama.”
“I’m part of the drama now,” I countered. “And besides, this is supposed to be a date. I mean a work date.”
I quickly corrected myself. “Let me take you out for dinner and then we’ll come back here and listen to the auditions.”
Folding her arms across her lovely breasts, she pressed her lips thin, contemplating my words. “Okay. Here’s the deal. One…this is definitely not a date.”
“Call it what you want.”
“Two…forget that I ever kissed you.”
I had to bite down on my tongue to stifle my laughter. Was she kidding? I could still taste her on my lips. It almost hurt to say the next words: “Sure. No problem.”
“And three…we’ll stay in and I’ll cook.”
Victory. My eyes blazed into hers. “Oh, is that another one of your amazing talents?”
She stood up and grinned. “You’ll soon find out.”
Deal.
CHAPTER 14
Dee
It took me no time to whip up spaghetti and meatballs along with a hearty salad. Rather than eating at the kitchen table, I set up dinner on the coffee table in the living room and managed to find a few votive candles for atmosphere along with a bottle of wine to accompany the meal. Soft jazz, thanks to handy Drake, drifted in the air. The candles, wine, and music should have had a calming effect on me, but I was all aflutter.
I’d be lying if I said he didn’t affect me. And it wasn’t just physical. He was funny and caring. And I felt beholden to him for saving me from Kyle. It had been years since I’d spent quality time with a man—let alone, one I was insanely attracted to. He looked even more crazy gorgeous in the candlelit room even with the silly Band-Aid above his eyebrow. I was going to have to control myself. Act professional for the rest of the evening. Keep the conversation casual. And pretend that I didn’t want those luscious lips all over me.
Sitting on the floor cattycorner to me, Drake inhaled the heaping plate of spaghetti. “Mmm. This smells awesome.”
“Thanks. It’s Tyson’s favorite.”
“Where is your daughter?”
“She’s at a sleepover. She’ll be back in the morning.”
“Man, it’s a lucky thing she wasn’t home.”
“Tell me.” The thought of her witnessing my encounter with Kyle sent an icy chill down my spine.
“Is she all recovered from the bee sting?” inquired Drake, stopping me from going down an even darker path.
“Yes, totally. Thanks for asking. She was the star of her class. Everyone wanted to know what it was like to be in an ambulance and in the hospital.” I poured us each a glass of wine. “And of course, sharing all those toys you got her with her classmates didn’t hurt.”
“She’s a really great kid.”
“Yes, she’s special. I feel very blessed. Thanks.”
He smiled at me and lifted his wine glass. “Bon appétit.”
“Bon appétit,” I repeated, clinking my glass against his. We each took a sip, and after we set the glasses down, I piled some salad into our bowls. Mental note: Do not drink on an empty stomach. I sure didn’t want a repeat of the other night.
Drake immediately dug into the spaghetti and meatballs, twirling a bountif
ul amount of the long pasta strands around the tines of his fork. My eyes stayed riveted on his bronzed, beautiful biceps, which flexed as he put the forkful to his mouth and sucked in the sauce-covered bundle. Then, silently he went for a meatball.
“Shit!” he blurted out as the meatball disappeared.
My heartbeat sped up with worry. “What’s the matter?”
“This is fucking amazing!”
I inwardly sighed with relief as I helped myself to a forkful of salad.
“Where did you learn to cook like this? From your mother?”
“Hardly. My mother was a drunk. She was either screwing someone or passed out so she never made us dinner. I had to take care of my little sister Lulu so I taught myself how to cook by watching the Food Network.”
If privileged Drake was shocked by this revelation, he didn’t show it. After digging into the salad, he asked, “Where did you grow up?”
“Outside Fresno…in a trailer park.” There was no point in hiding the truth. “This kids in school called me trailer trash.”
“I’m sorry,” Drake said, compassion in his voice. “Some kids can be so mean.”
While I took another long sip of the wine to stay loosened up, he twirled some more spaghetti around his fork. “What did your father do?”
I swallowed hard. “I don’t know. He abandoned us when Lulu and I were both very young. I have no recollection of him. And have no idea if he’s dead or alive.”
“How long did you live there?”
“Too long.”
“With your sister?”
I shook my head. “No, she was the rebellious one. She hated our life and ran away to LA when she was sixteen. She begged me to join her, but I couldn’t leave my mother alone. She was dying of cirrhosis.” I paused. “Then I got married.”
His face darkening, Drake poked at the other meatball with the tip of his fork. “To Kyle?”
“Yes.” I swallowed his name as the memory of our encounter tonight flashed into my mind. I took another big gulp of the wine to banish it.
“How did the two of you meet?” He took a sip of wine, waiting for me to answer.
“In high school. He had a band. I was one of his groupies and then he asked me to do backup for him.”
“Singing?”
“No, backup dancing. And then one night after a performance, we both got loaded and…I became his girl.” Yeah, I lost my virginity, but the thirty-seconds he was inside me were hardly memorable. He came prematurely.
Drake cut the memory short. “Were you in love with him?”
“I don’t know. I think it was more of an infatuation. He was sexy and dangerous.”
“Oh, so you like your men dangerous?” A bit of sarcasm laced his voice.
“If you mean with guns and knives, the answer is no. And if you mean men who physically abuse women, the answer is no again.”
“So, why did you marry him?”
I was young. Only eighteen. It was a way out of my rut. We both had dreams—him to score a record deal and hit it big, and I wanted to be an artist. But he also had a problem. He wasn’t patient. And the more his dream eluded him, the more he turned to drugs and booze. I thought if I gave him a child, he would have something to live for; he’d turn his life around and we’d have a future together. He was all I had. I didn’t want to lose him.” I paused and my voice grew rueful. “But it didn’t work out.”
Drake’s eyes held mine. Compassion was written all over his face. “You’ve had a rough life, Dee.”
“I guess, but I’m turning it around. Soon after Tyson was born, my mother died. I sold her trailer and moved further south to get away from Kyle who was incarcerated. People in small towns talk and can be cruel, and I didn’t want Tyson growing up with the stigma of having a father in prison. I put myself through college to get a teaching degree. On the side, I made a small living, giving art lessons to kids. I finally scraped up enough money to move to LA to be with my sister and to give Tyson a better life. One with love, culture, and opportunities. Los Angeles…the City of Angels, right?”
“Yeah, right.” His eyes circled the living room, stopping on the boxes that were scattered on the floor.
“Did you just move here?”
“A couple of months ago. This is my sister’s place. She had a spare bedroom because her roommate got a job in Chicago, and because the girl’s new employer covered the rest of her lease, Ty and I got to live here rent-free. But at the end of the month, we’re all moving out because this house is being demolished to make way for a condo complex. Hence, the boxes. We’ve begun to pack.”
“I hope you’re looking for a more secure place.”
“Yes. I’ve been looking at some apartment buildings close to Ty’s school that have an intercom system.”
“That’s good.” He flashed that dazzling smile that again made my heart dance.
Avoiding eye contact, I glanced down at his plate; to my delight, it was scraped clean. “Enough about me. Would you like dessert?”
“Depends. Is it as delicious as you are?”
The temperature in the room suddenly went up ten degrees. I felt myself flush at his sexual innuendo. Words once again were caught in my throat. I laughed nervously.
The temperature kept rising. I gulped down what remained of my wine and stood up after collecting the spaghetti and salad plates. “I’ll be right back.”
A cocky grin played on his lips. “Surprise me.”
CHAPTER 15
Drake
My eyes stayed on her as she returned to the kitchen. She was trying to play it cool, but she was on fire. I just knew it from the way she played with her food and kept drinking her wine. And from those little blushes. After our conversation, I found myself even more wildly attracted to her.
I liked the fact that she wasn’t stuck up or money-hungry.
I liked the fact that she was both honest and humble.
I liked the fact that she was a fighter and a survivor.
I liked the fact that she was funny and caring. Her laugh was adorable like the rest of her. And she made me laugh too.
Yup, I liked a lot of things about my temp, even the fact that she could cook like America’s Top Chef, but I loved the fact that she totally turned me on. I craved more of her like a little kid craved more candy. She was irresistibly delicious. And not good for me. The warning sign was there in bright neon—Steer Clear!—but I found myself not heeding it. Why was it men wanted more of what they couldn’t have? Fuck. She wasn’t even available. My chest clenched as I fought the urge to follow her into the kitchen and bend her over the counter.
“You’re going to love this.” Dee’s bright voice cut my mental ramblings short. My eyes instantly darted in her direction. She was heading my way with two sundae glasses piled high with whip cream. Long spoons stood up from the glasses.
“Shit. Is that what I think it is?” My mouth was watering as she set one of the fluted glasses in front of me. She sat down again in her spot and placed the other glass on her placemat.
“Uh-huh, it’s a hot fudge sundae. Tyson loves them.”
I immediately dug in and put a heaping teaspoon of the creamy vanilla ice cream, warm rich fudge, and fluffy whipped cream into my mouth. I moaned as I swallowed. “Jesus, Dee, this is crazy good! I haven’t had one since I was a kid.”
“Your mother made them for you?”
“Hell no. My nanny Blanca did. She made them just the way you do. I fucking loved them.” I ingested another big spoonful. “You’re going to kill me.”
She laughed. The cutest, sexiest laugh. “Don’t die on me. I’ve had enough drama for one night.”
I laughed too. That was a fact.
Dee dug into her sundae. My gaze stayed fixed on her as she put an equally heaping teaspoon to her mouth. A sexy little “mmm” spilled out as she savored the delectable desert. It was so refreshing to be with a real woman who had a healthy appetite and didn’t pick at lettuce leaves or call a blueberry dessert. A litt
le bit of the whip cream stayed behind on her kissable lips. My cock flexed as she licked it off with her tongue. She had no clue how fucking sexy she was and that’s what made her sexier. My deviant mind wandered to all the places I could lick whip cream off from her. Her pussy was one of them. My cock twitched at the delicious thought.
“Do you want my cherry?” she asked, giving me a jolt. What kind of loaded question was that? Oh God, Lord of the Boners, I wanted to eat her pussy, oh pretty please with a cherry on top.
“You don’t want it?” I managed, almost choking on my words.
“Uh-uh. I don’t like them. I just put it on to make the sundae look pretty. Tyson loves them. She once ate a whole jar of them.”
“A girl after my own heart. I did that once, too, when I was her age.”
“So, you want it?” she asked again, already dangling the bright red candied fruit in front of me by its stem.
What a fucking tease! With a boner raging under my jeans, I snagged it out of her fingers with my mouth and sucked it, squeezing out the juice. I had the burning desire to kiss her, to share the sweetness, and to taste hers. It took all I had not to pull her into my arms and devour her. I wasn’t getting kudos from any little voice in my head or from my throbbing cock. I went back to the sundae and consumed it until there wasn’t a drop to be had.
“Should we listen to the auditions now?” Her voice was hesitant.
“It can wait till Monday.” The truth is I didn’t even bring them along.
She shifted uncomfortably. “Well then, I guess it’s time to call it a night.”
A short stretch of silence followed until I broke it. “Dee, I don’t think you should stay here alone tonight. It’s too risky. The asshole may come back.”
She weighed my words. “What are you trying to say? That I should check into some hotel?”
Or come home with me. The thought of her all naked in my bed sent my cock into a tailspin. Before I could respond, she continued.
“I don’t think so. I need to be here for Tyson when she comes home in the morning.”
Baby Daddy: A Sexy STANDALONE Romantic Comedy Page 7
