by Katie Dowe
But they had fun! The others had come over in the next hour and there was the usual ribaldry among men of a certain age. Clive had brought food along with several others and the next door neighbor Marion had cooked her famous pot roast and baked yams. Bubba’s backyard stretched for several miles and the soil was good. When his wife was alive she had planted rose bushes which still thrived even now. Bubba had built her a chain link swing on the limbs of the huge oak tree at the far end of the garden and Jasmine remembered sitting on it and pushing herself especially when she felt particularly down. She had wandered away from the party and had come to sit on the swing. She looked up resignedly as she heard footsteps knowing that it was Lucas. “Hiding?” he asked her mildly as he caught one end of the swing to stop it.
“Maybe and now you found me.”
“You cannot run away from me, Jasmine.”
“Apparently not.” She dug her sneakers into the soft grass.
“What’s with Phil? You gave him the impression that you had a thing for him?”
“Jealous?” she jeered as she looked up at him.
“Maybe.” He shrugged. “Do I have reasons to be?”
“Seriously? You popped my cherry remember?”
He smiled at her term. “How could I forget,” he said softly. “He is a cop so I am kind of fearing for my life.”
“If I thought that siccing Phil on you would make a difference I would.”
He laughed softly as he pulled her out of the swing and up against him. “Your dad likes me, darling.” He tilted her chin up and looked down at her. “I would say that’s a big start.”
“That’s not going to influence me.” She did not push him away but spread her hands over his chest.
“I have a feeling it will.” He bent his head and took her lips with his. The kiss was soft and feather like, but it burned along her body like a raging fire! They were so engrossed in the kiss that they did not hear or notice that Phil had come up on them and stood there staring at the intimate embrace. His eyes burned with unshed tears and he stumbled back, not able to bear to see it anymore.
He was drinking a beer moodily when they came back to the party and he wanted to knock the smug look of the bastard’s face so badly that he could hardly contain himself!
*****
“Come back to my place,” he insisted as they got ready to leave. “Tomorrow is Sunday and we could stay in bed for the entire morning until I am ready to take your dad to the hardware store. You don’t know where I live, Jasmine. I am your man and you have no idea where I live.”
Her heart jumped at the term he used.
“My man?” she asked him softly. The others had gone an hour ago but he had stayed back with her. Marion and Bubba were inside sipping hot chocolate and whiling away the night. It was almost seven and had gotten dark a long time ago.
“Yes, your man.” He hauled her up to him. “Come to the apartment with me. I have been at your place every time so it is only fair that you come to my place.”
“We are not in a relationship.”
“Aren’t you getting tired of saying that?” He kissed the tip of her pert nose lightly. “We will take my car.”
“I did not say yes.”
“And you did not say no. Let’s go say our goodbyes.” With a sigh she went with him.”
*****
“This is very nice,” Jasmine allowed her fingers to trace the highly polished wood of the staircase. The apartment was starkly beautiful and spoke quietly of wealth.
“See what you have been missing?” he asked her in amusement as he watched her look around.
“You think wealth impresses me?” she asked as she kicked off her sneakers and let her feet sink into the thickness of the white carpet. The color scheme was a blend of off white and some sort of gold that went well together.
“I think you try hard not to be impressed by anything. It goes against the toughness you try to portray.” He went into the kitchen and she followed him. She caught her breath at the shiny chrome and steel of the ultra-modern kitchen. She did not cook but when she did she cooked very well. She had had to learn because she was left alone at lot because Bubba had to work.
“I am tough.” She accepted the glass of wine he gave her and leaned against the counter as she looked at him. “Do you cook?”
“Sometimes.” He walked over to her and crowded her against the granite counter. “I will cook for you next time.”
“You are that sure of yourself?”
“I am that sure of what we feel for each other.” He put the wine glass on the counter and cupped her cheeks. “You need to stop fighting it, Jasmine.”
“I can’t,” she whispered.
“Just let go.” He bent and took her into his arms and went upstairs to his suite.
Chapter 9
She woke up around noon. He had kept her up for most of the night and she had fallen asleep in his arms, her face buried in his chest. Her eyes flickered open slowly as her pupils adjusted to the sunlight streaming through the thick gold drapes at the floor to ceiling windows. Awareness hit her at once that she was not in her bedroom at home. She was in his opulent one. She sat up and pulled the sheets around her like a chaste maiden caught in the act. The bed was huge and she remembered saying something about it before he entered her and he had whispered that it was big enough for them to roll around in. Her eyes caught the open doors of the closet and the rows upon rows of shelves with neatly folded clothes and suits hanging from hangers. The room was vast but had a lot of space as there were not a lot of furnishings in it. The bed was on a raised dais with steps giving access.
She climbed off the bed and looked around for her clothes but saw no sign of them. With a sigh she grabbed one of his shirts and put it on wondering where she could find him. The smell of freshly brewed coffee pointed her into the direction of the kitchen. She peeked into some of the the other suites and admitted that she was impressed by the elegant décor.
Her heart slammed into her chest when she saw him at the foot of the stairs. He had not bothered to put on a shirt and only had a pair of jeans slung low over his hips. He had not bothered to button up and she could see where the light blonde hair disappeared in the material.
“You spoiled it,” he told her softly his green eyes taking in the curves of her small breasts in his light blue shirt. He loved that she was wearing something of his!
“Spoiled what?” She had almost reached the bottom of the stairs.
“The wake up kiss I was coming to give you.” He caught her around the waist holding her fast. She spread her hands against the warmness of his chest and shivered slightly as his hair tickled her skin. “I will have to improvise,” he murmured as he bent his head to take her lips in a soft invasive kiss that had her clinging to him, her heart beating fast. He lifted his head after a while and swinging her into his arms he carried her into the kitchen and placed her onto a stool around the counter. He tilted her chin and kissed her roughly on the mouth before going to the coffee pot to pour them some. “How do you take yours?”
“Two creams and no sugar.” She was still trembling from the feel of his mouth on hers and had to take breaths to calm herself.
“I ordered breakfast. Maeve does not come in on the weekends and I usually eat out anyway.” He slid a plate to her with some succulent looking pancakes complete with whipped cream and maple syrup. Scrambled eggs and bacon bits were in another plate as well as biscotti. She took the cup of coffee and stared down at the laden plate dubiously. “I don’t eat much.”
“We share.” He grinned at her as he took the seat next to her. He cut into the pancake and jammed the fork into it bringing it to her mouth.
“What are you doing?”
“Feeding you,” he said with a straight face. “I figured it is time someone took care of you and I want to be the one.” He took her chin and maneuvered so that her mouth opened. Jasmine chewed the pancake automatically and stared at him. It could hardly pass the lump at her throat!
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“How does it taste?”
“Good,” she mumbled as she took a sip of her coffee. Her eyes widened as the rich blend of caffeine hit her taste bud and she fell instantly in love. “This is-”
“Awesome?” he asked with a grin. “The finest from Columbia. It costs a fortune but it is well worth it.”
“It is.” Her dark brown eyes sparkled and this time she did not resist as he brought the fork to her mouth.
“I was thinking we could go and take in an afternoon movie and then go for a drive in the country.” His tone was casual as he spooned eggs into his mouth.
“I am going home, Lucas.”
“I need to spend the day with you.”
“I am not going to a movie with you.”
“We have had this discussion already and I don’t want to have it again,” he told her a little grimly. “We are together, Jasmine, and you need to get that through your head. I am dancing around the fact that you have trust issues. I want to marry you and-”
He stopped abruptly as she jumped to her feet, her eyes wide. “What did you say?”
He stayed where he was afraid of spooking her some more. “I want us to get married.” He strove for calm even though his heart was hammering inside his chest. He had spoken too soon. He should have waited.
“How dare you!”
“I would like to think that what I said was something good.” He put his fork away. “I am in love with you and I have a feeling that you already know that.”
“When did us screwing becomes an offer of marriage?” she asked sarcastically as she wrapped her arms around her waist as if warding off a blow.
“Just now.” He still did not make a move to her knowing that she was spoiling for a fight. “I love you, Jasmine, and I have never told another woman that before.”
“Do you want me to congratulate you?” she whispered.
“I want you to love me back,” he said softly. “I think that if you are not already there you are halfway there.”
“You think you know me?”
“Not enough, but I am going to spend the rest of my life getting to know you.” He got off the stool and walked to her carefully. She did not move and he heaved a sigh of relief. He reached out hands to clasp her arms. “I know you are scared and I get that but you never have to be afraid around me. I am going to dedicate my life catering to your needs. I cannot be away from you, Jasmine, and I don’t want to be. Please I am asking you to give us a chance.”
She stared up at him and her body could not stop trembling. How she wanted to believe him! How she wished she could shuck the coldness around her heart and just give in to the wonderful feeling of being loved by a man! But she could not do so. She had sworn ever since she had been in the group home and when she had gotten out that she would never bring a child into the world. It was too cruel a place and she had felt it first-hand! Not only that, she had no idea who her father was and she was too afraid to find out. She was too damaged to be anyone’s wife much more wife to one of the richest men in the world!
“I can’t,” she said thickly and pulling out of his grasp she ran towards the stairs and bounded up.
Lucas tunneled his fingers through his hair and stood there for a moment before going up. He found her dressed and ready to leave. “We are going to talk about this.” He closed the door and stood there against it.
“Let me go, Lucas,” she told him, her eyes bright with unshed tears. They both knew she was not talking about letting her out of the apartment.
“I can’t,” he whispered as he folded his hands across his chest. “Talk to me.”
“I don’t want children,” she said defiantly.
He went still at her words. Of all the things he expected her to say it was certainly not that. “Okay. Why?”
“I don’t have to explain myself to you.”
“You are not leaving here until you do.”
Anger shot through her slender body and he saw her hands clench into fists.
“Think you can take me?” he asked her softly.
Her eyes flashed and she turned and walked to the window. “I have no idea who my father is.” Her back was turned to him and she stared out at the traffic going lazily along the streets below. “I used to fantasize that he was in the Army and had to go away and could not come back for me. Then I would tell myself that he was a diplomat who had fallen in love with my mother against his will. At one point he was a king.” She shrugged. “The reality hit me that if my mother had been a drug addict he had probably been her supplier or even worse. I got so paranoid that I never even try to sneak a smoke and that was one of the reasons why I remained a virgin.” She turned to face him. “You are the face of Henderson’s Hardware. A giant that puts you in the media ever so often. There are going to be questions about who I am and where I come from and I don’t have the answers. If I get pregnant there are also going to be questions from the children I bore when they ask who my parents were. I have no intention of putting a child through that.”
“Are you done?” he asked her quietly wanting to go over and wrap his arms around her.
She nodded.
“I don’t care what the media thinks about me, but apparently you do. If you want to find out about your biological father we can make it happen. When we have kids and when they are old enough they are going to know that their mother is the bravest woman who ever lived! She fought the odds and turned out wonderful! Bubba is going to make a great grandparent and that is enough for me. I love you for who you are, Jasmine, and I really do not give a damn who your parents were.”
She had to blink the tears away as she looked at the tall handsome enigmatic man who was standing there and defending her! She wanted to fly into his arms but he was not thinking straight and she had to save him from all the bad publicity being with someone like her would do to him. With a forced smile she walked towards him and into his arms. “We don’t have to talk anymore about it now.” She snuggled into his arms as he hugged her to him tightly. She closed her eyes as she knew exactly what she needed to do. But today she was going to enjoy being with him!
*****
“I am going away for a little bit,” Jasmine told Bubba quietly as she popped by him Monday morning before she went to the papers. She had spent the night at Lucas’ again and had abandoned every inhibition and had given as much as she took. She had propped her head on her hand and looked down at him as he slept. He was so beautiful, she thought achingly with an unconsciously tender smile and such a pain in the ass! He was the only man who had her rethinking her philosophies in life and her hang ups and she wanted to weep at that! If only she had been born to normal parents! Even if her mother had been a normal housewife who had fallen into the wrong man’s arms and she had been there for her, then she would have given in to him.
“Where?” Bubba looked up from the ground he was mulching. He had started out early this morning and found that he was having fun. Marion had come over with breakfast and after he had eaten he had started working. Lucas had made the call and the things had been delivered to him. The power of wealth!
“I don’t know yet.” She crouched down and shifted the rich soil through her fingers.
“What about your young man?”
“He is not-” She stopped abruptly and then continued. “It is something I have to do.”
“So in other words you have not told him you are leaving.” He got to his feet and so did she. “Girl, you need to let it go.”
“I can’t.” She did not pretend not to know what he was referring to.
He took her hand and they went to take a seat near the fence away from the glare of the sun. “Your mother was just a foolish girl who had problems and took drugs for them. She was not a prostitute.”
“So who was my dad?”
Bubba stared at her and considered lying to her but knew it would do her no good. “I don’t know.” He took her hands in his. “Does it matter?”
“To me it does. I love you, Bubba,
and you are my dad but I want to know where I came from.” She lifted his hands and kissed the rough knuckles. “You are the best dad a girl could ever hope for.”
“So be satisfied with that,” he said gently.
“I just want to get my head on straight and do some thinking.”
“What should I tell him?”
She stared at him and looked away. “Just tell him you don’t know anything.”
“I hope you know what you are doing.”
*****
He sensed that something was wrong. He had felt it last night after making love to her and had felt the change in her emotions. He had brushed off the feeling that she was saying goodbye. She had been slightly cheerful in the morning when he was taking her home and when he had told her he would see her later she had nodded without responding. He had been in meetings for most of the morning. Spring meant a lot of actions for the hardware stores and the fact that he had not gone to any of the locations around the world meant he had had to be delegating the traveling and getting the reports. It was almost two when he got a chance to call her phone and it went straight to voicemail. He frowned as he tried again and the same thing happened. He left a brief message and went back to work with a slight frown on his brow. He did not get a chance to call again until he was leaving and still he did not get her. He drove around to her apartment and found that she was not there. With determined steps he went back to the car and drove to Bubba’s place. The man was sitting outside on a bench with a can of beer in his hands.
“Lucas.” He got to his feet and stretched his hand out. Lucas clasped it warmly and took a seat next to him. “How are you?”
“I am good.” He looked around at the freshly dug ground and the smell of rich soil. “I see you got some work in.”
“You had them deliver far more than I wanted. Thanks.”
He nodded and then looked at Bubba. “You know why I am here.”
Bubba sighed. “I am afraid I do.”
“Where is she?”
