How to Seduce a Bad Boy

by Traci Douglass

  “Okay, kiddos.” Marguerite held out a white shopping bag to Mel. “Free goodies for you. Samples of everything I used today. Should last you for a month or more. By the time you run out, you’ll be due back to see me for a touch-up. Job security. You’re drop-dead gorgeous, honey. Hold your head high and be awesome.”

  “But—” Mel started as she and Adam were herded toward the front entrance. “I need to pay.”

  “Lilly already took care of it,” Marguerite said. “She said it was her treat. Now go. You lovebirds enjoy the rest of your day. I’ve got my next client waiting.”

  “Oh, we’re not—” Mel and Adam began in unison, but the salon door’s closing cut them off.

  “So.” Mel became aware of all the people walking past them in the mall concourse, the sunlight streaming in from the skylights above, the tingling weight of Adam’s stare.

  “So.” Adam blinked, as if seeing her for the first time. “Marguerite was right. You’re gorgeous, Mel.”

  She couldn’t help fidgeting under his intense scrutiny. The warm fuzziness that had filled her earlier now turned molten, spreading heat outward from her core to her extremities.

  “Uh, thanks.” Woefully inadequate, but the best she could do under the circumstances. She reached up to tuck her hair behind her ear, realizing how much lighter and softer it felt. “I really love what Marguerite did.”

  Adam brushed her new bangs aside, his fingertips tracing over her widow’s peak. “It suits you. You have a heart-shaped face.”

  “Since when do you know about women’s face shapes?”

  “I don’t really. I just know what I like.”

  Oh, snap. Fresh awareness zinged through Mel’s belly as his hand fell away. After all those years of fantasizing and plotting and planning, all it took was a single haircut to make him stand up and take notice? If she’d known that, she would’ve cut her hair a long time ago.

  Adam’s gaze narrowed, and it felt like he was peering into her very soul. Then he stepped back and dug the toe of his boot into the tile floor. “You hungry?”

  It took her a moment to switch gears. Food. Yes. Good.

  She was on a mission, not a date. The sooner she remembered that, the better. Adam might think she was hot, but he was still far from the point she needed him to be for the rest of her plan. So, yeah. Lunch sounded perfect. They’d chat; they’d relax. Then they’d shop for a new wardrobe. Her spirits flagged a bit. She wasn’t actually looking forward to that part with him. Because seeing yourself in the dressing room mirrors wasn’t bad enough. She hardly wanted an audience, especially the guy she wanted to sleep with more than she wanted her next breath.

  But she’d gone this far. She couldn’t turn tail now.

  Mel forced a confident smile she didn’t quite feel and started off toward the restaurants in the mall. “Cheesecake Factory. I’m buying.”

  …

  Adam couldn’t seem to quit glancing at Mel as they waited in line for a table at the popular eatery. James’s little sister. The thought had stopped him in his tracks back in Point Beacon, but today it didn’t seem to faze him as much. Maybe it was seeing her with new hair and a new look that had changed things—made Mel more than a girl he’d known half his life, a girl he’d laughed with and consoled when she cried, a girl he’d played stupid video games with until the wee hours.

  Or maybe it was being in a different location, one where no one knew them and they could just be themselves, without all the baggage.

  Whatever it was, Adam had finally acknowledged Mel was a woman. A woman he found damned attractive. Seeing her in the mirror at the salon, all his senses had sat up and begged. Even now, the cherry scent of her perfume, mingled with the new shampoo the stylist had used, had his muscles tightening with awareness.

  Lord help him, he was in trouble.

  But Adam was a man of his word. A promise was a promise. It was what had gotten him through his tours of duty in Afghanistan, and it was what would get him through this new minefield with Mel. He’d vowed to help her with this crazy scheme, and he’d protect her through it, come hell or high water. It didn’t matter that the more time they spent together, the more he liked her. And it certainly didn’t matter that with each day, each second, his attraction to her grew stronger and stronger.

  None of that mattered, because he refused to betray James’s trust. He wouldn’t.

  Not now. Not ever.

  He’d keep his hands, and his heart, to himself.

  The hostess called their name at last and escorted them through the packed house to a large booth near the windows in the back; Adam did his best not to notice the seductive sway of Mel’s hips as she walked or the unsteady trip of his heart.

  When exactly had it gotten so damned hot in here?

  They took seats on opposite sides of the booth, and Adam hid behind his massive menu while Mel continued to chat away about her books and her library and her time in the salon. He made occasional grunts or murmurs in hopes she’d think he was paying attention, but in truth, his mind was a mess of grinding gears.

  He’d meant what he’d told Mel earlier. She was gorgeous. Hell, he’d thought she was beautiful before the haircut and makeup. But seeing her now, transformed right before his eyes, had taken the turmoil inside him to a whole new critical level. Of course, the bubbling excitement in her voice and the adorable snort she gave when she laughed didn’t help, either. Then there was her stunning smile and the sexy looks she gave him when she thought he wasn’t watching. All of it had combined to smack him over the head like a sledgehammer.

  He felt off-balance and shaky and decidedly unsure about where to go from here.

  Honestly, he never should have agreed to any of this. She was a friend. She was James’s sister. She was sexy and smart and so out of his league it wasn’t even funny. But the thing that kept him here, that made his skin crawl with anxiety, was that if he didn’t help her, some other guy would. Some guy who wouldn’t know Mel, wouldn’t cherish her, wouldn’t protect her with his life the way Adam would. So he sat in an overpriced restaurant with a twenty-five-page menu and quite possibly the most massive slabs of cheesecake he’d ever seen, feeling more like he was facing the firing squad than helping out a friend.

  “What are you going to have?” Mel asked, smiling at him over the top of her menu.

  Adam shrugged. “Probably a burger, same as always.”

  “Aw, c’mon. Break out of your comfort zone.” She grinned. “I am.”

  Food wasn’t something he thought a lot about. As long as his belly was full, he was good. When he’d been in the military, you wolfed down whatever they served you in record time because you never knew when you might get called out to the field. Now that he was back stateside and on his own, he pretty much stuck to the basics. Living alone meant cooking for one, which wasn’t fun. Not that he knew how to make much. Mac and cheese out of a box. Scrambled eggs. A steak or burger on the grill. That was it.

  He flipped through the pages of his menu again, frowning at all the weird names and strange ingredients. “I don’t even know what half this stuff is. What do you recommend?”

  “I’m having the truffle honey chicken with asparagus and mashed potatoes.” Mel set her menu aside. “And cheesecake for dessert, of course.”

  “Of course.” A waiter walked by with a tray full of food, and Adam sniffed the delicious aromas of garlic and caramelized onions. “Maybe I will get something more than a burger. How about carne asada steak medallions? Ever had those?”

  “No. But it sounds good. Do you like Mexican food?”

  “I like chips and salsa.”

  She laughed and gave another cute little snort. He fisted his hands in his lap to keep from reaching over to stroke her hair again. God, he was such an idiot. He didn’t know anything about fine cuisine. Was the Cheesecake Factory even considered fine cuisine?

  The server returned, and they placed their orders. Drinks arrived shortly thereafter. Iced tea for Mel and a Bud Light in t
he bottle for Adam. A man needed all the fortitude he could get for the clothes-shopping mission ahead, right?

  Thankfully, Mel picked up with her chatter again, this time gossiping about people around Point Beacon she’d run into through her library. Who was getting married, who was getting divorced, who was cheating on whom. Funny, but Adam had never really thought being a librarian was that exciting, but the way Mel talked about it, it sounded like the coolest job ever.

  Well, besides being a mechanic. He did love his Victory Vets.

  He’d noticed that even in the short time since they’d left the salon there’d been a change in Mel. He wasn’t sure she was even aware of it yet herself, but she seemed more confident. And he hadn’t missed the looks she’d gotten from several guys in the restaurant as they’d been led to their table, either. That thought had him on edge again. He wasn’t possessive. He wasn’t. That was ridiculous. She wanted to change her life, and he was here to make sure it happened, safely. Mel was his to protect, that was all.

  Liar.

  Well, regardless of what his internal motives were, he was sticking with what he knew where Mel was concerned. He’d deal with his weird new feelings and he’d move on, because that’s what he did. He wouldn’t ruin her chances of finding love and happiness by letting her get involved with a dead-end, nowhere guy like him, even if she did look at him sometimes like he was one of those slabs of scrumptious cheesecake.

  Speaking of scrumptious, that word led to all sorts of naughty images of the two of them together in his bed, with whipped cream and caramel sauce, feeding each other bites of dessert before forgetting about the food altogether and…

  Do. Not. Go. There.

  They were polar opposites. And yes, sometimes opposites attracted, but that didn’t make it right. He closed his eyes and scrubbed his hand over his face, glad for the distraction as the waiter returned with his salad and her soup.

  “Can I get either of you anything else right now?” the server asked.

  “No, thanks,” she said.

  Mel smiled, and Adam felt like the clouds parted and his day brightened. Which only made him grumpier. He didn’t want his world coming to life when Mel was around. They were partners on her quest to change herself. That’s the only way he could think about any of this because it was better that way. He needed to stay businesslike, unemotional, unattached. The waiter still hovered nearby, waiting for Adam’s answer. He glanced up and shook his head. “Nope. Thanks.”

  The crisp veggies in his house salad were surprisingly good, as was the ranch dressing he smothered them in. Adam worked out pretty regularly at home, plus all the heavy lifting and moving in the garage meant he could eat whatever he wanted, within reason. He grabbed a breadstick from the basket between them and bit into it, looking over at Mel to find her smiling.

  “What?” he asked around a mouthful of food.

  “Nothing.” She sipped her soup, all dainty and ladylike. “It’s good to hang out with you. I’ve missed you, you know.”

  “Yeah?” He lowered his gaze. He’d missed her, too. He hadn’t realized how much until they were back together again. “How’s the soup?”

  “Good.” She dabbed her mouth with her napkin, then gave a delighted squeal he felt straight to his groin. “Look, the lip stain doesn’t wipe off. That is so cool.”

  Adam nodded and looked away from her fast, because now all he could picture was him kissing her hard and long to test out how well that new makeup of hers lasted.

  Mel sighed, her tone subdued. “Look, I know this is difficult for you, and I appreciate the effort. I hope you know how grateful I am that you’re helping me.”

  He did his best to come up with an answer that wasn’t a total lie. “I do, Mel. It’s just awkward sometimes, is all. This isn’t exactly my usual MO. Fancy eats and designer clothes and stuff. I’m a jeans and barbecue kind of guy.”

  “How will your bad-boy image ever survive an afternoon of clothes shopping?” she asked, using a fake Southern accent and giving him a wink.

  And there was the question of the day. He’d thought the salon trip would be a breeze, drinking fancy bottled water and looking at hot chicks in magazines while he waited. But then he’d spotted Mel across the salon, and the only hot chick he’d been interested in was her. And while they were on the subject, Mel’s winking at him like that should be illegal. His traitorous body tightened a fraction more, and Adam tried to play things off by shifting the spotlight back to her. “Are you flirting with me, Mel Bryant? One haircut and a few makeup tips and you’re a man-eater.”

  She rolled her pretty brown eyes. “Thanks. Now I’ll have that earworm stuck in my head the rest of the day.”

  “You’re welcome.” He devoured the rest of his salad and bread before the waiter returned to clear their dishes. Keeping on the straight and narrow, he returned to military analogies to deal with the shopping ahead. “What’s your plan of attack? Any particular stores you want to target?”

  Her brown eyes sparkled as she talked about the shops in this exclusive little mall. She rattled off several names, but they didn’t mean squat to Adam, nor did he really care. Not with the way her hair danced around her face when she moved. Not with the sweetness of her grin that warmed him from the inside out. He wasn’t sure how he’d let Mel go at the end of all this, only that he would, because he had to. Because of who she was and what he wasn’t.

  Because love was at the top of her list, and because it wasn’t even in his vocabulary.

  When he tuned into the conversation again, Mel was watching him expectantly as if waiting for an answer. Crap. He had no idea what she’d said. His head was pounding and his heart was racing and if he didn’t come up with something quick, he was liable to lean across the table and kiss her until neither of them cared about clothes anymore. So he said, “Fine.”

  The waiter returned with their main courses, and they both sat back.

  “Wow,” Mel said. “The shoes, too?”

  “Huh?” That must’ve been what she’d asked him. Something about shoes. As Adam stared at his plate of steak and peppers and the delectable smell of onions drifted around him, he knew he couldn’t say no, to shoes or whatever else she wanted. Nothing else in the world compared to his Mel lit up from excitement. He’d tried something new with his food, and from the looks of it, it was good. Maybe trying something new with Mel this afternoon would be okay, too.

  He gave her a tentative smile and picked up his knife and fork. “Shoes, too.”

  “Great.” Mel munched on her chicken and veggies, glancing his way periodically as if she wanted to ask him something but couldn’t find the words or courage. Finally, she came out with it. “So, Afghanistan. That must’ve been tough, huh?”

  He shrugged, hoping she’d drop the subject. Talking about the war wasn’t his favorite topic. Especially today, when it was supposed to be all about her and light and fun. During his service, sunny, fun spots had been few and far between.

  No such luck though, as Mel pressed on. “James never really talks about his experiences overseas, but I’ve read some horror stories online.”

  Adam took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He understood why James didn’t talk about it. Most of the guys didn’t. It was tough to verbalize what you could barely wrap your head around. Still, Mel was staring at him again with those pretty eyes of hers, so he felt like he should try. Besides, they had a whole afternoon filled with conversation stretching ahead of them. Maybe if he opened up to her a little now, she wouldn’t press him for more later. “I don’t know. It was weird.”

  “Weird how?”

  “Like I enlisted to be a good citizen and do my duty. It wasn’t like I had a lot going on around here anyway.” He swallowed another bite of food, then took a sip of beer. “College wasn’t an option for me at that point. I had no real family life, so yeah. I joined up. Figured I’d go over there, help make things better, hopefully come home with all my limbs and my mind intact, learn how to be a leader, someone I
could be proud of.”

  “And did you?” she asked, tilting her head to the side, eyes thoughtful. “Learn how to be a leader? Become someone you were proud of?”

  “Yes and no.” He stared out the window near their table, at the people milling about in the parking lot. “I definitely gained more independence being on my own. I wasn’t just the town delinquent anymore, the local screwup that mothers warned their daughters about. I got the rare opportunity to reinvent myself, to become the man I wanted to be. In that respect, I succeeded. I became stronger, braver, better able to stand up for myself and what I believed in. So yeah, I guess I became a leader in that sense.”

  Mel watched him closely, pushing her half-finished plate aside. “But not in others?”

  “To be honest, it was all really confusing.” Adam looked back at her, finding himself wanting to tell her things he hadn’t ever wanted to tell anyone else. But here, in their little corner of the restaurant, in their own little universe, he felt safe enough to open up. With her. He sat back as the waiter came to take Mel’s plate to box up her leftovers and get their cheesecake order.

  Once they were alone again, he continued. “When they first send you over to Afghanistan, after basic training, they tell you you’re going to fight the Taliban. But the thing is, there’s no way to tell who’s in the Taliban and who isn’t. It’s not like they wore uniforms or anything. Like one day you roll into a village on a humanitarian visit and these people bring their kids into the clinic you helped set up for treatment, then the next day they’re shooting at you. What’s worse is a lot of those people didn’t even know why we were there. They live in these remote areas with no connection to the outside world. They’d never heard of 9/11 or that the Americans were coming or whatever. Plus, they speak like fifteen different dialects, so communication is a problem.”

  “That sounds really hard.” Mel reached over and took his hand that was resting on the table. “I can see why James doesn’t want to talk about it.”