Twice the Temptation

by Francis Ray

  Too bad, she thought as she parked the van and got out. Chase had a kind of sexy magnetism that she found absolutely fascinating, if a bit overpowering. Or perhaps that was what attracted her to him.

  She wouldn’t have minded getting to know him better if the situation were different. The intriguing thought stayed with her all through getting ready for bed and followed her into a restless sleep.

  For four days Chase tried reason, and when that failed he tried exercise, which also failed. He couldn’t get Julia Ferrington out of his mind. She was nothing like he’d expected. Her warm, caring nature invited a man to get closer. Then there was the vulnerability he’d glimpsed in her dark brown eyes, eyes that could quickly change into fire if she was crossed.

  She was a woman of contrasts.

  Hands stuffed in the pockets of his jeans, Chase stood outside Sweet Temptation on Monday afternoon. The day was beautiful. Blue skies stretched forever.

  Unlike the sweltering heat in Texas in September, the temperature in D.C. was in the upper sixties. Best of all, after the past few days of showers no rain was in the forecast. Judging by the heavy crowds passing by, people fully intended to take advantage of the good weather.

  Watching people enter and leave the shop, most of the time with a handled shopping bag with the Sweet Temptation logo, he debated his options. He was a man of action, a Texas Ranger whose courage was well documented. He didn’t have to be nervous about seeing a woman. Besides, if he stood beneath the pin oak tree much longer, the birds might decide to try to roost on top of his Stetson.

  He had to get a grip, and fast.

  He’d been the same way, indecisive and unsure of himself, when he went to the flower shop to order her flowers the morning after he met her. In the past he’d faced a crazed, knife-wielding junkie high on crack with less concern. But then he had known to expect the unexpected.

  In selecting the flowers he’d had nothing to go on. There was just the driving need from somewhere that the flowers be just right. He instinctively knew she had put a great deal of thought into his basket, and he wanted to do the same with the flowers. It was impossible to do less. By the time he’d left the florist, the poor woman working there had practically pushed him out the door.

  Julia Ferrington was changing him, and it wasn’t for the better. What was it about her that tugged at him? Had him thinking about her throughout the day? Maybe it was because she didn’t act or look as he’d expected and that had captured his attention and interest.

  He was a seasoned law enforcement officer. He knew how to step back and analyze a situation. This was no different. He just needed to see her again to figure out what was happening to him; then he could get on with his life.

  Without further hesitation, Chase crossed the busy sidewalk and strode into the shop, sure he would find the answer he sought … until he saw her. And seeing her, he wanted to touch, to taste.

  She wore a lemon yellow dress that reminded him of the daffodils that shot up yearly around the perimeter of his ranch house. Although he didn’t particularly pay attention to flowers, at least until three days ago, he’d always admired the way the daffodils foreshadowed spring, their delicate beauty, their tenacity for life.

  Across the room, Julia gracefully bent from the knees to pick up a crystal bowl from the lowest shelf of a six-foot glass-and-brass étagère. The silky material flowed down the gentle curve of her back to lovingly cup her hips. Standing, she traced her delicate fingers over the fragile curved glass, her touch reverent and loving.

  Grace. Beauty. Strength. She was all that and more.

  Would she touch a man the same way or with greedy anticipation? Chase rammed his hands deeper into his pockets because he couldn’t fool himself any longer as to why he had come.

  He wanted Julia Ferrington. Wanted her badly. There wasn’t a thing he could do about it. The fact that she was out of his class and that he had less than four weeks left in D.C. didn’t seem to matter.

  Julia felt him. She didn’t understand how; she simply knew Chase Braxton was in the shop watching her. Her hands trembled. Carefully she set the crystal bowl on a nearby table.

  Forgetting one of her ironclad rules, she shifted her attention from a client. Chase stood ten feet away, watching her. The impact of seeing him again, this time in the bold revealing light of day, stole her breath and scattered all thoughts, but one. He affected her as no other man ever had.

  He was impossibly handsome. Once again he was in jeans that appeared to have been sculpted to his muscled legs and a white long-sleeved shirt. The cuffs were rolled back to reveal a gold watch on one powerful wrist and a thick gold link bracelet on the other. If GQ or CODE could get him to pose, he’d certainly set the style and have the magazines flying off the shelf.

  He slowly crossed to her and paused a few feet away. “Hello, Julia.”

  “Hello, Chase,” she answered, trying to calm her racing pulse and booming heart. “Welcome to Sweet Temptation.”

  Midnight black eyes glanced around the crowded upscale shop that gleamed in the bright sun like a multi-prism jewel. “You have quite a place here.”

  “Thank you.”

  He shifted from one eel-skinned boot to the other. “I’d like to talk with you, if you have time.”

  “Certainly.” Did he ever smile? “Just as soon as I finish with my customer.”

  “Sure. I’ll just look around.”

  “All right.” Julia followed him with her eyes as he moved away, much in the same way she had seen so many children in the shop stare with such intense longing at the wide array of candy behind the glass casing, wanting to taste everything but resigned that it was not to be.

  With an annoyed shake of her head, Julia went back to helping the customer, making sure her attention didn’t wander. Admiring a good-looking man was acceptable; letting it interfere with business was not. Certainly not a man who wouldn’t be around long. Five minutes later, she rang up the sale.

  Satisfied she had whatever crazy musings she had about Chase under control, she turned to seek him out. One glimpse and her heart thumped sharply against her breastbone. So much for control. He made her restless. He made her contemplate throwing caution to the wind.

  Brushing her damp palms on the sides of her dress, she went to Chase. He was in Toyland watching a working replica of a chocolate Ferris wheel. Thankfully, no children or adults were nearby. She had a feeling the conversation might get heavy. “I hope I didn’t keep you too long.”

  Hands still firmly in his pockets, his gaze shifted to her. “No.”

  “Thanks again for the flowers, Chase. They’re lovely.”

  “They reminded me of you,” he said, then frowned as if annoyed with himself.

  For the first time since he had walked in, Julia relaxed. She could because Chase was nervous enough for both of them.

  For a man who had single-handedly captured three bank robbers and rescued their hostage, according to a proud Mabel, a nervous Chase seemed incongruent. He was also annoyed. Somehow it made her erratic emotions easier to deal with. Neither one of them was entirely comfortable with what was happening between them.

  Her eyes had foolishly teared up on seeing the dozen white roses. She’d taken half of them home so she could enjoy them there as well while she watched the tight, perfect buds blossom into an aromatic profusion of white. She’d been touched by his thoughtfulness and unspoken apology. She also understood perfectly his dilemma because it mirrored her own.

  “You didn’t want to come here, did you?”

  His gaze sharpened. “No.”

  “Then why did you?”

  “Because I wanted to more than I wanted to stay away.”

  Her heart sighed. “Chase, that’s the most beautiful thing anyone ever said to me.”

  His scowl deepened.

  She laughed.

  “This isn’t funny.”

  “Believe me, I know.”

  “I’m leaving in less than a month.” He tossed the words al
most as if they were a challenge.

  “Yes, I know.”

  “I don’t want to get involved.”

  “Neither do I.”

  He nodded as if that settled everything. “Would you like to meet for a drink or something after work?” he asked, then rushed on. “You understand it wouldn’t be a date or anything.”

  “Of course.” Whatever this was, they were going to pretend it wasn’t there. She decided to show him she understood the unspoken rules. “Why don’t we meet at Leo’s around seven?”

  “I could pick you up.”

  “I can get there myself. It’s not a date or anything,” she said, giving his words back to him.

  “All right. See you at seven.”

  “Fine.”

  Still he didn’t move, simply frowned at her as if she were an annoying puzzle he had yet to figure out. The front door opened and three shoppers came in. “I better get back to work,” she told him.

  “Yeah.” Tipping his Stetson, he spun on his booted heels and left the shop. The interested gaze of the three women followed. Julia didn’t blame them.

  Now that, Julia thought as she watched Chase through the glass storefront, was another kind of sweet temptation.

  FOUR

  Chase was waiting for Julia when she arrived at Leo’s. Seeing her walk through the double mahogany doors smiling and looking beautiful somehow calmed the doubts that had plagued him all day. It was natural for a man to be attracted to a friendly, attractive woman. Feeling more confident, Chase leaned back in his chair and studied the woman who was seldom far from his thoughts since he had met her.

  She wore a long-sleeved jacket in jewel tones over the yellow dress. She had a way with colors that drew the eyes and made a man think of what lay beneath. Desire, fierce and hard, hit Chase low and fast. Grimacing, he rocked forward. His logic of moments ago went out the window. The deep intensity of his attraction was unreasonable, undeniable, and, worse, uncontrollable.

  Her progress across the room was slow. First one man, then another stopped her. Her warm, open smile never faltered despite the continued apologetic glances she kept throwing in Chase’s direction. It didn’t help his mood that all the men she stopped to speak with were young, well dressed, and good-looking.

  Finally, she made it to the table. “Hello, Chase.”

  Standing, his mood decidedly testy, he held out her chair. “Do you know everybody in this place?”

  Her black eyebrows lifted regally at his brusque tone. “Three of the men I was speaking with are co-owners of Leo’s. We were discussing business. The other is an old friend. Any other questions?” Her tone was civil but tinged with frost.

  Her message came through loud and clear: Back off.

  She was absolutely right. It shouldn’t matter to him if she talked to a thousand men. She had waited much longer for him and greeted him with a smile instead of an accusation. If it had been another woman, he wouldn’t have been bothered by the length of time it took to reach their table or the number of men she spoke to on the way.

  But it wasn’t another woman. It was Julia, and therein lay his problem. A problem he was determined to rectify. He just had to figure out how.

  “Sorry,” he muttered.

  She smiled, sending his heart thumping in his chest, and placed her small yellow handbag on the corner of the table. “Long day.”

  “Yeah.” Long because he had wanted to see her, kiss her. Concentrate, Chase, concentrate. “What do you want to drink?”

  “White wine. I took the precaution of eating a quick sandwich around four, so I shouldn’t fall asleep on you.”

  “You work too hard,” he told her, then signaled a waitress to take their drink orders.

  “True, but I enjoy what I do.” She leaned forward, wondering if she’d ever get used to the little leap in her heart when she saw him. “So do you, I heard.”

  “Mabel?”

  “Mabel,” she confirmed, accepting her wine. “She says you have quite a reputation as a Texas Ranger.”

  “I have a good unit. We work together as a team to get the job done.” Chase sipped his mineral water. He never drank while on duty, and in his opinion the six-week assignment in D.C. was duty. “There’s only the four of us, myself and three sergeants, assigned to the Austin area. We investigate major felony crimes and other related incidents. You already know I report to Captain Johnson in Waco. I fought the assignment of coming here. They sent a replacement for me, but since there are only six field captains and seven lieutenants out of one hundred and seven commissioned members in the entire Ranger force, someone’s job had to go lacking to do mine.”

  “You’d rather do the job yourself, wouldn’t you?”

  He frowned into his glass. “My temporary replacement is a good man.”

  “But he’s not you.”

  “Yeah. Captain Johnson says I should learn to delegate more,” Chase told her, not sure why he was telling her this except she listened well.

  “Chase, you don’t appear the type of man to take your responsibility lightly. You’d want to make sure every detail is taken care of.”

  He arched a brow. “How did you know?”

  She sipped her wine and sat back. “I used to be the same way. I’ve just learned to let my assistant manager do what I had hired her for. I found out the hard way I couldn’t do it all and do it all well. This time away from your unit should convince you that it won’t fall apart without you there.”

  Black eyes narrowed. “You’re saying I’m not needed.”

  “I’m saying I can’t imagine you having people working under you who didn’t know what they were doing or who don’t have the intelligence to act independently.”

  Studying her closely, he leaned back in his chair. “Every time I think I have you figured out, you say or do something that baffles me.”

  “Is it so important to figure me out?”

  “Yes.”

  Julia was afraid she knew why. He hated the attraction between them, and with his analytical mind he was probably trying to figure out the how and the why to put an end to it. She wasn’t waiting around until he did. She’d had enough rejection in her life.

  She picked up her purse. “Let me know if you come up with an answer.”

  He frowned. “You’re leaving already?”

  “Yes.”

  “You just got here.”

  “I have a feeling things won’t be any different an hour from now,” she said sadly and stood.

  Slowly coming to his feet, Chase signaled the waitress. What had he said or done to make Julia leave so abruptly? “I’ll see you to your car.”

  “No need. I promised Noah I’d stop by his office on the way out.” She extended her hand. “Good night, Chase.”

  Her hand was soft, smooth, her grip surprisingly strong. He didn’t want to let go. He had a sinking feeling that she was saying good-bye, not just good night. But he didn’t know the words to stop her or if he should.

  “Good night, Julia.”

  Pulling her hand free, she headed for Noah’s office in the back of the restaurant. Keep walking, she told herself. Keep walking away from temptation and heartache.

  Chase got as far as the parking lot. The area was well lit, but lighting in itself wasn’t enough of a deterrent to a determined criminal. Retracing his steps, he positioned himself in the deep shadow of the building beside the restaurant and waited for Julia. She might not want to talk with him and they may not have had a date, but he was going to make sure she got home safely.

  Ten minutes later, she came out. One of the men she had spoken with earlier was with her. Chase gritted his teeth in annoyance when Julia held up her keys and firmly refused the man’s offer to see her to her minivan. Lord save him from stubborn, independent women.

  Brisk steps quickly carried Julia to her minivan. By the time she reached the first signal light, Chase was a car length behind. She drove fast but competently. When she pulled into her complex, Chase lagged back and watched he
r speak briefly to a security guard, then proceed through the black iron gates into the underground garage.

  Chase felt a strange something in his chest as the taillights of her vehicle disappeared. Probably the chili dog he had for lunch. Putting the Jeep into gear, he drove to his hotel and went to bed.

  Two hours later a wide-awake Chase stared at the ceiling and finally gave in to the inevitable. Whether he liked it or not, it wasn’t over between him and Julia.

  The next morning Chase was standing in front of Sweet Temptation when Julia unlocked the door. “May I come in?”

  She debated only a second. “Of course.” She stepped aside, noticing that he didn’t look as if he had slept any better than she had.

  He glanced at the other young black woman in the shop, then faced Julia. “Is there a place where we can speak privately?”

  “Georgette, I’ll be in my office if you need me.” Julia went to the back, past the gift-wrap area, to her small office. She didn’t offer him a seat. “We don’t have long, Chase.”

  “Tell me something I don’t know.”

  “Chase, you’re not making sense.”

  “Right again.” His hands closed around her upper forearms with surprising gentleness and undeniable strength. “Wanting you is not making sense, but I can’t seem to help it. I go to bed thinking of you. Wake up thinking about you, wondering about how you’d taste. I’m tired of wondering.”

  His determined mouth came down on hers, demanding a response. Julia didn’t hesitate. Her tongue greeted his with greedy anticipation and bold acceptance. Fierce pleasure swept through her.

  With a ragged groan, his arms tightened around her waist, anchoring her to the hard length of his muscular body. On tiptoes, she strained to get closer, her arms locked around his neck.

  The kiss was fire and heaven, bliss and hunger.

  Chase finally lifted his head, but as if he couldn’t bear to be away from her, his hands palmed her face as he pressed soft kisses to her mouth. “I’m not sure what I would have done if you had slapped my face.”