by Milly Taiden
“I’m…so…er…sorry.” The baker giggled nervously.
Lucky widened her eyes in alarm and watched Jared lift the fallen chair, take a seat, and smile at the baker as if nothing had gone wrong.
“I can’t seem to keep my hands off her.”
The baker sighed. “What a lovely couple you both make. It’s so nice to see people so in love, even with the craziness of wedding plans.” She placed a large oval gold-rimmed plate on the table. “Most of the couples I see at this stage are either fighting over budgets, seating plans, honeymoon destinations, or how many children they’re going to have.”
He turned from the baker to glance at her. “We don’t have those issues. It’s hard enough for me to get her to spend time with me as it is. Besides, we already know we’re going for a baseball team. I want a big family.”
The baker laughed and winked at Lucky. “He’s funny.”
Lucky forced herself to smile when all she wanted was to tell the woman to get the hell out, jump on the table, spread her legs wide open, and offer herself to him as his next meal. Heat crawled to her face and she was damn glad he couldn’t read her mind.
“Yeah,” she snorted. “He’s a riot.”
“I’ve brought you the choices you requested. There’s vanilla with dulce de leche filling, vanilla with guava filling, chocolate with mousse filling, chocolate with vanilla filling, and banana with cream filling.”
Lucky knew Nina loved sweets, but damn. This was harder than she expected, since she loved dulce de leche and guava.
“And the groom’s cake?”
The baker laughed and rubbed her hands on the sides of her uniform. “I got the request. Vanilla cake with cheesecake filling, right?”
She nodded and wrote a note, hoping neither the baker nor Jared noticed the pen shaking in her grasp.
“I’ll leave you to try. Make whatever combination you think you want per layer and we’ll work it out for you.”
“What’s the groom’s cake?” Jared asked once they were alone again.
Glancing up from her notes, she smiled at his confused frown. “A cake made with the groom in mind.”
“Does Max know about this? He never mentioned a groom’s cake.”
“No. And unless you want a very pissed-off Nina, which is never a good idea, I’d suggest you keep what you heard to yourself.”
He showed his gorgeous, even teeth again when he smiled. “What’s the big deal with this cake?”
She nibbled on her lip, wondering how much she should tell him. “It’s something she wanted to do for him. It’s a special cake: the filling is her favorite, but the shape of the cake is all for him.”
His brows lifted and curiosity filled his eyes. “What shape is it?”
“It’s going to be shaped like the Enterprise.” She giggled at his confusion. “Come on, Max is your friend. You know he loves Star Trek.”
“You mean they’re going to recreate the Enterprise in cake form? For Max?”
“Yes.”
He whistled. “Wow. Nina really must love him to go that far. He’s going to go nuts when he sees that.”
She grabbed a fork and dipped it into a piece of fluffy cake. Her hormones were still bouncing around from that kiss. “Well, it’s usually what happens when people love each other. They try to do things they know will make their partner happy.”
He stopped her from lifting the fork from the plate with his hand and tugged it from her fingers. A sexy smile flirted over his lips. “Let me.”
Their gazes locked as he brought the piece of cake to her lips. Warmth seeped down her veins, heating her to the core. Opening her mouth, she watched his attention drop to her lips. She allowed him to place the small bit of cake into her mouth.
Sweet decadence exploded on her tongue from the guava filling. She moaned and shut her eyes.
“Jesus.”
She snapped her eyes open to meet his.
Arousal whirled in his gray depths. His jaw was clenched and his nostrils flared. “Are you trying to kill me, woman?”
She laughed at how frustrated he sounded. “What are you talking about?”
“You can’t eat cake like that anymore. It will only end in us finishing this early and me having to sit here in discomfort.”
Another round of laughter bubbled up her throat. “You know, not everything I do is done to tempt you.”
He leaned forward, caressed her cheek with his other hand, and watched her lick her lips. “I know that. It’s what’s making it harder to sit here and not take you home, fuck you until neither one of us can move and forget about this cake stuff.”
She widened her eyes, surprised at how gentle and serious he sounded. It was surreal. She’d never seen a man react that way to her. A thrill of pleasure traveled straight to her heart.
“Here.” She picked up a piece of chocolate cake and brought it to his lips. “Tell me what you think.”
He grabbed her hand and held it while he inserted her fingers, cake and all, into his mouth and proceeded to suck on her digits.
She gulped, trying to calm her racing heart and the throbbing in her pussy.
Entranced, she stared as he pulled her fingers out of his mouth, sans cake, and chewed. “Mmm. You’re right. This is really great cake.”
What? Oh right, the cake. Shit. She should probably just go with the vanilla guava combination and get the hell out of there before the baker came back to find them in a compromising position involving cake and two very naked people.
“Yeah. I think we’re going with what I know Nina would prefer.”
A random, naughty thought slipped through her mind then. She stood, walked over to him, and reached into his pocket, pulling out the red panties he’d shoved in there earlier. A sinful grin split his lips. She wiped the corner of his mouth with the material before dropping them back into his pocket.
“I think we should go.” She jumped away with a giggle when he tried to grab her.
They left a few moments later, arousal buzzing between them. The sun dropped lower on the horizon, creating darkened areas in the empty lot.
When they reached the car, she waited for him to open the door as he had been doing. She was unprepared to find herself draped over the vehicle, her back on the metal and Jared’s hard body pressed to her front, his erection rubbing her belly and making her moan.
Their lips met in a desperate bid to mate. She tasted the man, dark, mysterious, sexy. She tasted the sweet chocolate he’d had moments before.
Whimpering into their kiss, she caressed her way up to his shoulders, curled her hands behind his neck, and dug her nails into the short hair at the nape of his neck.
Sweet desire shot all thinking to hell. She could only feel. He ran his hands through her hair, cupping the back of her skull and holding her at the angle he wanted. The longer their tongues danced, the more irrational her thinking became. She was ready to beg him to do her right there in the back lot of the bakery, when he tore his mouth away from hers.
Passion filled his eyes. They panted in unison, trying to clear the haze of lust from the kiss.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he said.
“What?” How? She was too turned-on to look at him any other way.
“Your eyes are talking for you, and they’re telling me you can’t get enough of me, which is something I can understand because I sure as hell can’t get enough of you.”
She blinked, hoped her mind came back to working order, and glanced at his lips. Her nipples ached, her pussy throbbed, and her panties had gone from soaked to dripping.
“I—”
“Relax, sweetheart. This isn’t a race to anywhere. We have plenty of time to get to know each other better.” He dropped his head, nuzzled her lips, and she sighed. She held on to him for a moment before he let go and opened her door.
As they pulled away from the venue, he glimpsed a white car sitting across the street. Was it the same one that just hit them?
When traffic bare
ly allowed, he sped across all lanes toward the car. He would find out how this drunk person was.
Lucky grabbed onto the door’s armrest and her seat. “What the hell are you doing, trying to get us killed again?”
Instead of answering, he focused on the white car, now pulling away. Another car horn snapped his head around to the side warning him he either had to stop or get hit again.
He slammed on the brakes and slid the car into the middle lane, one over from the passing vehicle.
“That’s the white car that hit us.”
She looked around. “Where?” The car had already disappeared.
“Fuck,” he said, “it’s gone.” He put his car in gear before traffic behind them caught up.
“Are you sure?” Lucky asked. “There’s tons of white cars.”
Of course, he wasn’t sure. All he saw was the side and back of the car. Nothing from the front which would have the telltale signs of damage. Shit. Now, he was paranoid. Would he flip out with every white car he saw?
* * *
“Where are you going looking like that?”
Lucky turned to grin at her sister. Kaylani was watching her with a smile.
“To dinner with Jared.” Even though she and Jared had a harried day with the accident and all, she wouldn’t let it bring down her great mood.
“Oooh, the bad boy player and security genius also known as Mr. Sexy?”
She laughed. “Has Jazz been talking?”
Kay rolled her eyes. “He’s always talking. Tell me more about him.”
She did a final appraisal in the mirror. The spaghetti-strap black dress was one of her favorites and very lightweight, which was her first priority with the heat of the summer. She didn’t want to be sweating bullets when Jared picked her up.
Sitting on the bed next to Kay, she gathered her belongings and scooped them into the small clutch. “Well, Jared is…”
“Hot, yeah, I know.” Kay giggled. “What I mean is, what are your thoughts? You’ve seen him a few times.” She frowned, concern taking over her features. “L, you were never this excited to be anywhere near Nick the Dick before. Even when you guys were first dating.”
Cold water would’ve had the same effect. She moved back, not wanting to admit that she hoped for things to go further with Jared. “You’re being silly. Besides, he and I have been very casual about this.” The corners of Kay’s mouth tipped downward.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to put you on the defensive. I’m just worried about you. What Nick did was awful, and you have been shying away from men until now.” She placed her hand over Lucky’s and squeezed. “I’m worried about you, big sis.”
She gulped, wincing at the dryness taking over her throat. Her heart ached for her sister. She didn’t need to be stressing over the sad state of Lucky’s love life. Or lack thereof. “You don’t have to be. He and I are just seeing how things go. I’ve got no plans.”
Liar. She was lying to her sister and herself.
She knew that. Spending time with Jared had been an eye-opener. He was sweet, he listened, he actually seemed to care, and it all scared the living daylights out of her.
“Don’t make any hasty decisions because of your past.” Kay handed her the half-filled clutch. “Not all men are like Nick the Dick.”
She sat there for long minutes after Kay had left and debated whether to cancel their dinner date or not. In the end, her need to see him won out. She wanted to be with him, found him interesting, and enjoyed spending time talking to him. What she needed to do was keep herself from letting emotions rule her actions. Tonight she’d focus on enjoying herself.
9
Air pounded hard in Jared’s chest. Jesus, he was like a goddamned teenager counting the seconds before she opened the door. His knuckles had just grazed the wood on the door before it opened.
Luciana filled the entryway. She looked amazing. Fucking hell, she looked gorgeous. How was he going to keep his hands off her and get to know her when all he wanted was to get her out of her dress? She was smiling, her sexy lips covered in glossy red, showing off their plumpness even more. A black dress caressed all her curves in an almost sensual hold.
“You look…amazing.” He was used to complimenting women, but he didn’t want to sound like an idiot by saying what he really wanted to, that she looked damn hot and he was having a hard time thinking of eating food versus eating her for dinner.
Her smile widened and her eyes sparkled with joy. “Thank you. You look pretty hot yourself.”
Women told him that before…all the time. But none of them had that soft look in their eyes. He’d marry her that very moment if he knew she’d say yes, but she’d more likely run the other direction.
“Are you ready to go?”
“I am.” She stepped into the hallway and shut the door behind her. “So…you’re cooking, huh?”
“I did promise to show you I can be Martha Stewart.”
She laughed. The husky sound played havoc with his concentration. “I can’t wait to see what you have in store.”
Their drive was filled with wedding planning conversation. He listened while she explained why Alex was upset she had to wear a dress that made her look like a beached whale with a bad tan while Nina had tried to reassure her—without much success— that she looked great.
He studied her while she spoke. She was so animated retelling the bridal party dramas that he couldn’t help but smile. When they arrived at his home, she peeked around as if looking for other people. “It’s just me and you.”
She grinned. “Why didn’t you say this was your house? And I bet that’s your yacht, too!” She pursed her lips. “You let me think we were on private property.”
“We were on private property. Mine.”
Her eyes twinkled with mirth. “I’ve been on many nice boats, but none hold the fond memories of that one.”
“There’s other areas of this property where we can create memorable moments later.”
Her eyes darkened, and she glanced at his mouth before meeting his gaze. Dinner. He needed to keep his mind out of the bedroom and on making sure she enjoyed their date.
“You know, without all those poker tables and the extra couple hundred people, this house is huge. Why would you live here all by yourself?”
He shrugged, walked to the bar and opened some wine. “It’s been in my family for generations. When my parents decided to travel the world, I bought it from them.”
“It’s beautiful. Huge, but beautiful.”
He handed her a glass of wine and led her to the kitchen area. It was one of his favorite spots because it opened into the smaller of two dining areas. He had so many memories of his family eating breakfast while his mom ran back and forth to the kitchen to get stuff. He hoped when he and Lucky had kids, they’d love the house as much as he had. Filling it with laughter, family and children was what that house was meant for.
“Now this…is a kitchen.” She sighed. “I think I’m in love.”
He chuckled. “Here, I thought you would be saying that once I got you out of that dress.”
She lifted her brows and gave him a haughty look. “You clearly have never lived in an apartment with a tiny kitchen or bathroom. Those are the two worst things to have small in any household. Right now, I am in love with this kitchen, and if your bathroom is anything like this, I may try to buy this place from you.”
She sipped her wine and slid her finger over the pristine marble top of the kitchen island.
“What do I get if the bathroom is better?”
Her laughter was quick and filled him with pleasure. “I bet I can think of something.”
“Come on. Let’s get you some food before you start saying I’m an ungracious host trying to starve you.”
She grinned. “Has Jazz been talking about how I love food again?”
“Your Jazz is always talking, but no, I just want to know what you think of my food.”
“Oooh, I can’t wait.” She sat at th
e pre-set dining room table.
He’d been more careful than ever and had even gone as far as to call Max to find out what her preferences were. He’d never taken so much trouble to make a first impression on a first date with a woman he’d already been with. He picked his mother’s favorite china and got his housekeeper to fill a vase with pink peonies.
“I love these.” She caressed one of the flower petals with so much care, you’d think it was a newborn. “They’re so pretty and different.”
Just like her. It finally dawned on him that while he’d been obsessing over what his ex-fiancée had done, Lucky hadn’t asked him how much money he made, what his net worth was, or anything related to his finances. She’d just been getting to know him.
Dinner started backward. It was his own fault—he’d put cookies in to bake while he’d handed her some wine.
“What is that smell?” She groaned. “Is that chocolate?”
He watched her eyes go wide. “I’m baking cookies.”
Her eyes widened. “You’re what?”
He grinned. “For dessert.”
She visibly gulped. “What’s the rest of dessert?”
“Fresh-baked chocolate chip cookies with vanilla bean ice cream.”
She bit her lip and groaned. “Okay, we’re going to have to eat that first. It sounds amazing, and I don’t think the smell will let me eat anything else right now.”
He grinned, pleased she seemed so willing to eat whatever he made. “Aren’t you worried they’ll taste bad or be undercooked, overcooked, or something?”
She looked at him as though he’d said something stupid. “It’s chocolate. Chocolate is perfect in every way, shape, or form.”
Laughing all the way to the oven, he pulled the cookie tray out and put them on a cooling rack while he served the ice cream. He’d been told she loved cinnamon, so he sprinkled some over her ice cream and placed a fresh-baked cookie next to it.
Topping the concoction with some whipped cream, which he couldn’t take the credit for because his housekeeper made it for him, he brought the dessert bowls to the table.
