“Oh hey Jimmy, I didn’t see you there.”
“Hey Angel,” he responded. “What brings you to the boss’s office?”
“N-nothing really I just- uh.”
She looked at Tony then hoping he would help her out. Instead of speaking he just tugged her to him and kissed her briefly. Tony turned to look at the man over his shoulder a look of pure happiness replaced the scowl he wore just a moment ago. “As I said, I don’t plan to do anything but only because I’ve already taken care of it.”
Understanding dawned bright and clear and Jimmy couldn’t stop the silly grin that spread across his face. “I'm glad to know you’re not a complete idiot. For a minute there I wasn’t so sure.”
Tony looked down at the pretty young woman tucked into his side. His entire demeanor changed the minute he'd seen Sarah. It was incredible really and Jimmy couldn't wait to tell the others. The man had turned into a marshmallow in the space of a heartbeat. “Not even I am that dumb. I recognized the truth almost immediately and tried my best not to waste any time after that. It’s been my wisest decision to date, don’t you think?”
All Jimmy could do was nod. He reached for the door knob to close it. “No argument there, I’ll -uh, I guess I’ll be going. I’ll lock up downstairs on my way out.”
Tony watched the door close behind Jimmy and listened to the man’s retreating footsteps as he exited the building. “So, what was all that about?” Sarah asked.
He turned so that he could put both arms around Sarah. It felt good and right to have her there at the end of a busy work day to greet him. “Oh nothing, Jimmy figured out what was going on and finally asked me about you.”
“What did he say?” She was careful to keep her voice neutral but Tony could detect a note of apprehension.
“Don't worry. He only wanted to know when I planned to make a move on you since it was clear to everyone around us I’m crazy about you.”
“So, what did you tell him?”
“I told him that I didn’t intend on doing anything about my attraction to you because I had already acted on it. When he saw the two of us together just now he knew I wasn’t bullsh- uh making up stories to get him off my back.”
“Ah, so that explains the idiot comment.”
Tony chuckled and kissed her again. “I may be an idiot about some things but this isn’t one of them. I knew a good thing when I saw it.”
“Is that also the reason you kissed me in front of him too?”
“No, I did that because I needed to. It’s been hours since I’ve felt your lips on mine and I was beginning to miss you.”
“You know Mason?” Sarah said casually reaching up to run her fingers through the soft curls at the nape of his neck. He loved the sensation of her hands on him anywhere she felt like touching him.
“I think I like you.”
He chuckled again and drew her closer so she now pressed against him from chest to thigh. “You only think you like me?”
“Yes, I think I like you.”
He bent to kiss her then, a long deep lingering kiss that left her dazed and clinging to him for support. “Is that the way you react to being kissed by a man you only think you like?”
“Alright, so I know I like you.”
He began to nibble along her throat while letting his hands skim up her small waist and just barely grazed the lower curve of her breasts. “I think you like me a bit more than that. Admit it.”
She didn’t say anything but when he swirled his tongue over her pulse, she began to whimper and squirm. “Tony, you have to stop.”
“I will.” He breathed into her ear. “Just as soon as you tell me the truth. How do you really feel about me, Baby?”
“Uh.”
“Come on, you can tell me.”
He lifted his hand a little higher to cup a breast. She hissed out. “I like you a lot, OK?”
“You like me a lot?” He crooned still not sounding convinced. His thumb found her nipple and coaxed it into a stiff peek that poked right through the material of her shirt.
“Tony.” She whimpered. The tortured sound did crazy things to his own pulse and he nearly gave in and let her go for the sake of his own sanity but he wanted the truth from her. He needed it and knew that without persuasion it was unlikely she would actually give it.
“Come on Baby, you know how I feel about you. I just want the same acknowledgement. I promise I won’t lord it over you like the asses you dated in the past. I told you before, I’m not like them. You know you’re safe with me. I’m crazy about you Sarah. Everything about you makes me want you. I need to know if I’m wasting my time hoping you feel the same way.”
“No,” she whispered against his lips. “You’re not wasting your time. I’m- I'm crazy about you too.”
He rewarded her words with another tender kiss.
“Was that so hard to admit?”
“More than you know but I don’t want you to ever think you don’t mean something to me. I’ve never been with a man like you and I guess I worry that I shouldn’t take your words at face value. I’ve been lied to so many times in the past I can’t always recognize the truth when I hear it. I’m sorry.”
He held her tight then resting his chin on the top of her head. “I understand. I should probably apologize for pressuring you to open up but there are times when I swear that’s the only way I’m going to get the truth out of you. You mean so much to me, Sarah. I need to be sure that what I feel for you isn’t all one sided.
“It’s not. I feel the same way. I’m just a little scared that’s all. I don't want to take a chance on you only to yet again have my heart broken. I have a feeling it would hurt a lot more this time.”
“Don’t worry so much, Baby. I’m right here with you and this is all new to me too. I don't want to get hurt any more than you do. Just relax and lean on me. I’ll take care of you okay?”
“I’ll try.”
"That's all I can ask. Now, why don't we deal with this money so we can get out of here?"
"What do you want to do tonight?"
"I was hoping you'd want to go to my place."
Laughing, Sarah shoved him away shaking her head. "No way Buddy, my mother warned me about propositions like that."
"What if I promise to behave myself? We'll make dinner together then we can watch a movie or just talk, your choice. If it makes you feel any better we can even sit at opposite ends of the couch. I will be a gentleman the entire night."
"It sounds tempting but I need to take a shower and change first."
"You can do that at my house if you want."
"Tony-" she warned.
He held up his hands in protest. "I wasn't suggesting anything else. Trust me Sarah. I wouldn't take advantage of you like that. I promised not to push, remember? I just want to spend more time with you and I figured this was a way to prove to you I can be trusted."
She studied him for a long time trying to determine if she should take this chance. He had been true to his word so far, never pushing for more than a kiss or two on any given night. Most of the time they'd spent together was at the shop though and it wasn't at all romantic. He was trying and she promised she would do the same so despite her misgivings she relented.
"Alright, why don't we stop at my house so I can get a change of clothes? Then we need to head to the supermarket to get the food."
He grinned with satisfaction. "I've already gotten the food part covered. I went to the store this afternoon. I have steaks for the grill and vegetables for a salad along with a bottle of wine to go with it."
She grinned back. "OK but I’m doing the cooking."
With that, she took his hand and tugged him out the door. "Come on slow poke. I have steaks you need to pound and a dressing to prepare."
Laughing he followed. “Steaks I need to pound. Is that a euphemism?”
“Get your mind out of the gutter wise guy. It’ll make more sense when we get started.”
An hour or so later Sarah was
freshly showered and dressed in a clean pair of jean cut offs with a form fitting t-shirt that showed off her toned legs, flat stomach and generous breasts. The sight was doing a lot more to make Tony's mouth water than the dinner was and that was saying something considering that whatever she was cooking smelled heavenly. She bent over a small bowl where she was mixing chopped garlic in with Dijon mustard and olive oil. There may have been other ingredients that she'd added but he wasn't paying attention. She'd had him pound out the steaks until they were flat and spread the mixture that she made onto each steak before rolling them up and tying them with cooking twine. After that, she lightly basted them with more oil and set them in a searing hot pan.
"Where did you learn to cook like this?" He asked in an effort to keep his hormones in check and his mind off how sexy she looked in her "play" clothes. She reminded him of his old days the ones he didn’t like to think about. Which reminded him – one day soon he was going to have to come clean about his past and pray like hell she didn’t hate him. The thought nearly made him lose his appetite.
Oblivious to his worries, Sarah continued cooking, turning the two steaks in the pan. "My mother is a chef."
"Really? Where does she work?"
"She has her own restaurant in the Back Bay area. You might have heard of it- Lorraine's"
"Isn't that the expensive French place known for all those fancy desserts?"
She smiled as she moved the meat yet again. "Among other things, she taught me everything I know which, despite her best effort, isn't all that much. I was never interested in cooking as a career so I learned just enough to not burn down the house."
"Well, whatever you're making smells incredible."
"Thanks," she bent to remove the pan from the stove and opened the oven to slide the pan in to finish cooking the meat. Then she turned to the kitchen table where she had Tony peeling carrots for another pan she had on the stove.
"So, did your mother go to cooking in school or did she learn by working her way up in the kitchen?"
"She went to cooking school in France."
"Wow, no wonder her place is doing so well. She must really know her stuff."
Sarah took a sip from her glass of wine. "She does. She even worked a couple of years in Paris which is where she met my dad."
"Tell me about them." He encouraged. “How did they meet?”
"Mom was working in a restaurant that was owned by Daddy's family. One day when she was in the kitchen preparing for the night's guests he came in carrying a box of vegetables from the market. She looked up then and from what they told me, the rest was history. Daddy once told me he nearly dropped the box he was carrying he was so stunned when he saw my mother for the first time. She tried her best not to notice how big and strong Daddy was but he was determined to get her attention. Eventually he convinced her to share a glass of wine later that day and they started talking. He had studied English and Mom had studied French and had been pretty much immersed in the language once she started attending school so they didn't have all that hard a time communicating. They had to meet in secret though since Daddy's family would never have approved of their match."
Tony frowned at that. "You mean because he was fraternizing with the help?"
She shrugged. "That and the fact that he was a white man in love with a black woman. As you can imagine it wasn't a good combination back then."
"So, their situation wasn't much different from ours."
"No not really, accept Daddy defied his family and ran away with Mom. They moved back here and got married. Together they started the restaurant and not long after that they had me. They'd hoped a grandchild would help to ease the rift that had formed between Daddy and his family but his parents have never openly acknowledged me."
Tony saw the sadness in her eyes and slipped an arm around her to hug her from behind. "It's their loss, not yours, Baby. They're the ones missing out on knowing how incredible you are."
She tried to smile as he turned her face into him but it didn't quite reach her eyes. His heart ached for the little girl that had been rejected by her paternal grandparents because they didn't like her or her mother's skin color. "So, now your parents run Lorraine's together? Do you have any siblings?"
She stepped away from him then, her head down. Clearly he'd touched on yet another tender topic. "No, after a while the stress of being in an interracial marriage that no one supported and being so far away from his family proved to be too much of a strain and Daddy moved back home. His father retired and Daddy took over the family restaurant. I still talk to him often but I haven't seen him since I was four, at least not in person. He sends me pictures of him and his new family but he never came back and I've never been out of the country to see him."
"That doesn't mean he doesn't love you." She smiled brightly at him then and he had a feeling he could thank dear old dad for those beautiful eyes of hers. It also explained a few things about her ambivalence towards their growing relationship.
"I've never doubted that. He's always made sure I knew how much he loves me. He's never tried to deny my existence. I'm his only child. He's had a few step children over the years but he never managed to remain married long enough to form any real and lasting attachments with any of them."
She gave Tony an impish little grin. "I'm still a Daddy's girl I guess. Even from afar he has always spoiled me rotten."
“I wouldn’t say that. I’ve met women more spoiled than you. You don’t have temper tantrums when you can’t get your way and you don’t mind rolling up your sleeves and getting your hands dirty. To me, that’s not spoiled that’s down to earth and exactly what I’m looking for.”
She turned then and slipped her arms around his neck. The uninitiated physical contact was still something he was getting used to. In the first couple of weeks Sarah hadn't been as comfortable with that. He was the one always pulling her close. But lately as they'd started to spend more time together she had begun to trust him and reached for him more often. He was thrilled that she was getting so comfortable but outwardly he tried his best not to show too much pleasure. Sarah was so different from the women he’d grown accustomed to he found himself holding back a lot afraid his past might rear its ugly head and ruin what he had with her.
“You’re really good for my ego you know that right?”
He kissed her nose. “Good, I want you to know how much I admire you and it’s not just for your body.”
She cocked and eyebrow. “What about my body?”
He froze, unsure how he should proceed. “Uh, other than I think it’s sexy as hell, not a thing. Do you want me to give you an in-depth description of what the sight of you in that outfit you’re wearing is doing to me?”
“That’s alright. I think I have a pretty good idea already.”
He drew away from her, embarrassed about the erection tenting the front of his jeans. “Sorry. This isn’t me trying to pressure you. I’ve never hidden the fact that I want you. Seeing you dressed like this showing off your hot little body just makes the urge to make love to you that much stronger that’s all.”
“If it helps any, I can always put my smelly work clothes back on.”
“I don’t think that would make much difference. To me you would be hot covered in dog sh- uh crap.”
“Well, it wouldn’t be that far from it.”
“That’s alright. I would rather you keep these on. That way when we’re finished eating I can set you on my lap and touch your bare legs all I want.”
She blushed prettily at that and he lowered his head for a kiss. Just as he was attempting to deepen it though, she gently pushed him away. “Dinner is going to be ruined if you don’t let me take it out of the oven right now.”
She stepped away and reached for the oven mitts. Tony enjoyed the sight of her bending at the waist to open the door and lift the steaming pan from the oven. Despite his growing desire for the small woman in his kitchen, his stomach growled at the scent of roasting meat filling the air. Sar
ah served the steaks with the salad he had helped to prepare along with fresh bread and the ginger glazed carrots she had nearly forgotten on the stove. Dessert was juicy berries served over moist sponge cake with whipped cream and coffee. The way she presented the meal on the plate alone made dinner look like a work of art. Tony was in heaven as he took his first bite of the steak roulade and groaned in appreciation.
“You can take over my kitchen any time you want.” He said while he chewed.
She beamed at him as she cut into her own dinner. “Thanks, I like cooking. It relaxes me. I haven’t had a chance to do much of it lately but when I do take the time, I like to put on some music or an audio book and just get to work.”
“What kinds of books do you like? Romances, I’ll bet.”
“Shows how much you know. I like pretty much all books; romance is just one type. What I really like though are mysteries. Unfortunately, I have this bad habit of peeking at the end to see how it ends.”
She confessed and he laughed.
“So, that tells me you aren’t a very patient person are you?”
“Not really, when I want something I want it now. Like I said before, I’m spoiled.”
“I still don’t believe it.”
Tony had managed to finish his dinner while they continued to talk. “That was great, Baby, thanks again.”
She stood ready to clear his place at the table. “Did you have enough? I can get you some more if you're still hungry.”
Before Sarah could pick up the plate, however, he’d tugged her down on his lap. “What I want right now isn’t on the stove.”
“Really, and what would that be?” She teased. Lowering her head to see into his eyes, a lock of hair slid forward draping her face in shadow. Tony reached up to run his fingers through the silken strands before drawing her head down for a soft tender kiss. He moaned in deep satisfied pleasure as he drew away from her.
“Now the meal was absolutely perfect.”
She giggled and got to her feet. He stood as well and together they cleaned up the mess. Later when they were through they sat together on the living room couch to watch television. Much to Tony’s delight, Sarah didn’t sit across the room like he had suggested. Instead she took a seat right next to him. He even let her hold the remote control but neither of them was very interested in the show she had chosen. Instead Tony focused on the way it felt to hold Sarah as she rested her head on his chest. He loved the way she smelled, like spring flowers and her soft warm body pressed against his felt even better.
His Redemption Page 6