by Tina Martin
“No, I’m not. I’m saying it because I mean it. Every word of it. You’re beautiful, inside and out, and I count myself lucky to have crossed your path, Jojo.”
“You really mean that?”
Holding her gaze for a few seconds, he said, “Yes. I mean it, and feel free to taste my mustache whenever you feel so inclined, baby.”
She laughed, then gripped the back of his head as he, once again, lowered his lips to hers. And he nibbled on her neck, her ear. The more he tasted, the more he wanted.
“Oh, Giovanni. You have to stop.”
“Why, baby?”
“Because I’ve never felt this way before. I feel weird.”
“But it’s a good weird, isn’t it?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then describe to me what you feel, sweetheart, and I’ll let you know.”
“Um…” She lost her train of thought when she felt his tongue twirling in circles on her neck. “I feel like I’m hyperventilating. Feel like I…like I need you.”
He stopped kissing her and looked at her instead. “Keep talking like that and you’re going to be in way over your head.”
She closed her eyes. She was already in over her head.
Chapter 17
She couldn’t believe he’d actually invited her to dinner—a real family dinner. Giovanni reintroduced her to Remington and Kenton, then introduced her for the first time to Drake, Davina, Jessalyn and Emory.
So far, dinner was going well. Giovanni was pleased that Jojo was getting along with his sisters, even his sister-in-law, Emory. After dinner, he excused himself to the kitchen to help Remington since Remington insisted that the menfolk prepare desserts for the women.
Jojo took a bathroom break, and after checking her makeup and feeling proud about having a successful evening, she was on her way back to the dining room when she heard Davina say, “I like her.”
“Me, too,” Jessalyn said.
“Me three,” Emory added. “I’m glad Giovanni took my advice.”
“What advice?” Jessalyn asked.
“We were talking one day about the kind of woman he likes and I told him to pick a woman he wouldn’t typically date, and that’s exactly what he did.”
“Really, Emmie,” Davina said. “You date experimenting with Giovanni.”
“No. Giovanni met Joelle because of work.”
“But she’s not his type,” Davina said. “They seem to have good vibes between them, but I know she’s not his type. Vanni likes the loud chicks with big butts, heavy makeup and long weave.”
“No, he doesn’t. He likes mature, business women,” Jessalyn said. “With a long hair and big butts.” Jessalyn and Emory laughed.
“And Joelle is skinny,” Davina said. “She’s cute, though. I just don’t see it lasting. He’s gon’ break her heart, just like all the others.”
“Cut Giovanni some slack,” Emory said. “Maybe he’s trying to change.”
“I doubt it. Giovanni’s always been a heartbreaker,” Jessalyn said. “Remember that chick from a year ago. She fell hard for him and she was his type. He kicked her straight to the curb and didn’t think twice about it.”
“Yeah, so what makes you think he’ll keep a woman around who’s not his type, Emmie? Joelle is far from the type of woman he likes.”
“That may be true, but I think your brother is ready to settle down. People change.”
“Yeah. Right. I’ll believe it when I see it,” Davina said.
Jojo couldn’t believe what she was hearing. How could Giovanni humiliate her like this? She wasn’t his type and his sisters were sure that she was just another woman he’d kick to the curb. All this after Giovanni made her feel special? After he supposedly cared for her. Now she knew it was all a game. An experiment. Giovanni’s interest in her was first and foremost about the lodge. Second, about seeing whether he could date a woman outside his usual scope of women. He’d succeeded, and she’d been his fool.
___________
“So, you really like her, huh?”
Giovanni looked up at Remington. “Yeah. I like her.”
“You should’ve heard him the other day, Rem,” Kenton said. “I told him I thought Joelle was beautiful, and he got all possessive on a brother.”
“I didn’t get possessive,” Giovanni said.
“You said she was yours,” Kenton reminded him. “If that’s not possessive, I don’t know what is.”
Giovanni took a sip of his beer. “She’s a sweet girl.”
“Yeah, but come on man,” Drake said. “We all know the Giovanni-girl.”
“What are you talking about, Drake?” Giovanni asked with a smirk.
“Joelle is pretty and all, but she doesn’t fit the typical girls you mess around with,” Drake explained.
“No, she doesn’t,” Giovanni said, leaning up against the counter with his arms crossed. “But I’m in love with her.”
Remington smirked.
Drake nearly choked on a beer and Kenton shook his head.
Drake looked at the beer bottle and said, “Did someone put something in these beers or what?”
Remington laughed.
With a twisted face, Drake asked, “You love her?”
“Yes. I love her.”
“That’s a bunch of bull and you know it, Vanni,” Drake said. “You have never given a woman a second thought. Now, suddenly, you’re in love? And just how long have you known this girl?”
“Why does it matter to you? I know what I feel. I don’t need your approval, nor do I need to explain anything to you. None of you.”
“Actually, there is one thing you need to explain,” Remington said.
“What might that be?”
“You were reckless when mother abandoned us.”
“That was a long time ago, Rem.”
“Yeah, but you swore to me that you’d never get close enough to a woman to let her hurt you, which means that you would never let a woman close to your heart. Are you telling me that you’ve let Joelle in?”
“Just bring those desserts out. Let me worry about my baby.” Giovanni walked out of the room. Stepping back into the dining room, he locked eyes with Jojo, then returned to the chair directly beside her. Leaning close, he whispered in her ear, “Are you having a good time?”
Jojo plastered a smile on her face and nodded.
Giovanni stared at her. Whispering again, he asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Then why did you just flash me a phony smile?”
She took a hard look at him, her eyes scanning every beautiful inch of his face. She couldn’t even be mad because, in life, a woman like her would never end up with a man like Giovanni. And now that she knew his real reason for showing interest in her—an experiment his sister-in-law had come up with—she knew there was no hope in thinking that it was a real possibility he could actually love her. But at least he’d helped her get over some of her phobias. She showed him her scars, though, in hindsight, she realized now that it probably disgusted him. Still, she did it. If she could do it with him, she could with someone else – someone who truly did like her.
“Jojo?”
She looked at him. “Yes?”
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay,” Remington said, walking from the kitchen with a cake that he and Emory had baked together. “Please try to eat all of this. Otherwise, I’ll have to.”
Drake took a seat.
So did Kenton after he left a small bucket of vanilla bean ice cream next to the cake.
Giovanni remained staring at Jojo. The women, watched as he did so.
“Um, it’s getting late,” Jojo said. “I think I should go.”
“Not yet,” Giovanni told her. “At least have a piece of cake first.”
“No. I’m going to go,” she said, standing. “Thank you guys for having me over. It was nice meeting all of you.”
“Nice meeting you, too,” Emory said. Je
ssalyn and Davina followed suit.
Giovanni stood up and followed Jojo to the door. When they stepped outside, he said, “Tell me what’s wrong?”
She smiled warmly. “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just tired.”
“Then why do I feel like there’s something wrong, Jojo?” he asked, stroking the side of her face.
“I don’t know. Why do you?”
“Because you fake-smiled me.”
Although she felt like crying, she giggled. “I’ll see you later, Giovanni,” she said, then wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him the way he liked, but this was a true hug goodbye. “Thank you for inviting me.”
“You’re welcome, Jojo,” he said, but why did this hug seem so final? Why did it feel like she was saying goodbye?
Jojo didn’t wait for him to open the door for her this time. She did it herself and quickly closed it behind her. Starting the car, she backed out into the street and drove away.
Chapter 18
Giovanni stepped back inside, headed straight for the dining room and said, “Okay…what did y’all say to her?”
“Huh?” Emory asked.
“When the guys were in the kitchen, what did y’all say to Jojo?”
“We didn’t say anything,” Jessalyn said. “We were just talking, asking her where she was from…normal conversation.”
“That’s it?”
“Yeah,” Jessalyn said.
“No, that’s not it,” Emory said. “We were talking about how she wasn’t your type.”
“You said that to her?” Giovanni asked with a frown dented in his forehead.
“No. Joelle went to the bathroom, and we were talking amongst ourselves but—”
“But she could’ve overheard you?” he asked, fuming.
“I don’t know. It’s a possibility, I guess.”
“Great. I knew I shouldn’t have invited her here. I see that now,” Giovanni said.
“Vanni, I’m sorry,” Emory said.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said, heading for the door.
“Hey, where you going man?” Kenton asked.
Giovanni turned around and glared at them. All of them. “Let me say this before I go. I’ve never brought a girl here. Never introduced you to any woman I’ve ever dealt with. But I introduced you to Jojo because I genuinely like her. No, I take that back. I love her. Yes, I’ve known for less than a month, but I know what I feel, and the one time I try to introduce you all to someone, you treat her like she’s unworthy, or like something must be wrong with me because I’ve fallen in love. Nothing’s wrong with me. I’m fine. I have no mental issues. And to answer your question, Rem, when mom abandoned us, it did hurt me. It hurt all of us. I had my guard up…never intended letting it down and definitely didn’t plan on falling in love. I had my guard up with Jojo, but she managed to work her way into my heart, the only woman who’s ever done that.” He took a breath and continued, “Just try to respect that. Respect her, even if you don’t respect me.”
He turned and walked away, incensed beyond comprehension.
___________
Over the next week, he stewed, especially when he’d tried contacting Jojo and she wouldn’t answer or return his calls. He thought about going to her house and popping up at the deli when she was working, but she probably needed time to think just like he did.
So, taking that time, he sat on the dock, fishing alone, the way he used to before her, thinking about when she was there. A smile came to his face when he remembered how she threw his fishing rod in the water. Another one shone on his face when he recalled how she’d gotten the hang of it.
Then he reminisced on how he’d tried to teach her how to kiss – how her lips felt juicy and moist against his and how good it felt to hold her in his arms. Six days without talking to her didn’t feel right. Everything about it felt wrong.
He picked up his cell, dialed her number again and when she didn’t answer, he blew a breath and closed his eyes.
“Thought you’d be back here.”
Giovanni looked up at the sound of his sister’s voice. “What you doing here, lil’ girl?” he asked Davina.
“Just came to check on ya.”
He snickered. “You came to check on me? That’s a first.”
“I know. I actually wanted to apologize.”
“For what?”
“Dinner the other night. We were being silly, and I didn’t know how much you liked Jojo.”
“Don’t worry about it. It’s okay.”
“Have you talked to her since?” she inquired.
“Nope. She won’t return my calls, but that’s not for you to worry about, Vina.”
“Well, I happen to know where she is right this moment.”
He grinned. “So do I.”
“Then go talk to her.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re my brother, I love you and I want you to be happy. Right now, you’re not happy. Go. Talk to her, Vanni.”
“Maybe I will.”
Chapter 19
She’d made peace with the Giovanni situation, so talking openly about it to Kierra wasn’t as difficult as she thought it might be. Besides, seeing Kierra’s reaction to what she’d been up to for the last couple of weeks with Giovanni was worth it.
“Let me process this for a moment.” Kierra held up an index finger while she took a sip of water. They were sitting on the patio of a tapas restaurant in downtown Bryson City – one of Kierra’s favorite places to eat. “You actually kissed him?” Kierra asked, flabbergasted.
Joelle grinned. “Yes.”
“Giovanni Lennox?”
“Yes.”
“Meaning your lips touched his lips?”
Jojo smiled big. “Yes. We kissed. Of course he had to school me how because I had no idea how to do it.”
“Oh, give me a break, Jojo. All those Hallmark movies you watch and you don’t have the slightest idea how to kiss?”
“No, but he taught me,” she said, reminiscing. “And I did something else I thought I’d never do.”
“Don’t tell me you let him seduce you?”
“Well, not exactly.”
“Joelle Bannon!” Kierra said with bright eyes.
“Let me explain. He kissed me and then, afterward, he wanted to see the scars on my stomach, so I let him.”
Kierra’s mouth fell open. “You said you would never let a man see that part of your body.”
“I know. Probably shouldn’t have let him see it, especially since he’s not even attracted to me.”
“Okay, now I’m confused.”
“Hear me…he invited me over to his brother’s for dinner and all of his siblings were there. Two sisters, two brothers. Then there was his cousin and his sister-in-law. Anyway, the evening started off good, then when dessert time came around, I went to the bathroom and on the way back to the dining room, I overheard his sisters talking about how I wasn’t his type. And his sister-in-law said she told Giovanni to date a girl he wouldn’t typically date. Someone who was the opposite of everything he thought he wanted in a woman. Apparently, I was that girl,” she said with an unsteady voice and sad eyes.
“But that doesn’t make any sense. Why would he invite you to his home for dinner and even have you over to meet his family if he wasn’t really interested in you?”
Jojo bit back disappointment and said, “Maybe he was trying to make himself like me. Or, maybe it was his way of keeping me on board with this project—to make sure I was there to help him out with the lodge. I don’t know.”
“When did you last talk to him?”
“Six days ago. Haven’t spoken since the family dinner.”
“He hasn’t tried to call you?”
“He has, but I don’t bother answering. There’s no need to develop feelings for someone who doesn’t have the same feelings I have. I mean, I fell for him in such a short period of time, and maybe I let my guard down because it actually felt good being the center of his attention, but I
should’ve known a man like him wouldn’t be interested in a woman like me anyway, right? Who was I fooling?”
“Don’t say that,” Kierra said, watching a man walk their way with an undeniable swag, rocking a pair of jeans, a T-shirt and black baseball cap. Upon further scrutinizing, she recognized the man – Giovanni.
She looked at Jojo and smiled. With her back to him, Jojo couldn’t see him.
“Are you sure he’s not interested?” Kierra asked.
“Why are you smiling?”
“Don’t look, but your man is heading this way.”
“Whatever.”
“He is.”
“Yeah, probably meeting up with someone who’s more of his type.”
“Wonder how he knew you were here?”
Jojo rolled her eyes. “He said he made it his business to know everything there was to know about me.”
“Looks like he meant business. I guess I should get my stuff together.”
“No, don’t go, Kierra.”
“I’m not going to stay here while he talks to you. He looks like he has a lot on his mind with his fine self.”
“Kierra…”
“Shh. He’s almost here,” Kierra whispered, then took a sip of her soda.
Instantly, Jojo felt her body tense up just at the smell of his cologne.
Not saying a word, he pulled a chair from a nearby unoccupied table and placed it next to Jojo’s chair. Then he took a seat, staring at her, sitting so his knees were pointed towards her.
She looked at him, feeling her heart yearn for him. Feeling her stomach flutter. She’d never seen him rock a baseball cap, but it made him look that much more cuter. And he had the nerve to have it low on his head.
“Hi, Jojo.”
“Hey,” she responded.
He looked over at Kierra and said, “Kierra, right?”
“Yes. I see you’ve done your homework.”
He smirked, returned his attention to Jojo, staring at her like he could take a kiss from her succulent lips. The sight of them made his mouth water. He looked back at Kierra and said, “I’m sorry to interrupt your lunch, but I had to see my girl and it couldn’t wait, so…” He looked at Jojo and said, “Here I am.”