What to Read After FSOG: The Gemstone Collection (WTRAFSOG Book 3)

by Lauren Hawkeye

  “Tremendously handsome?” he repeated her words and she arched her eyebrow at him waiting for his answer. “When women find out I am your driver they automatically think we are involved. You yourself are tremendously beautiful, and you have a presence about you that screams power.” She wasn’t expecting that she was the reason why he didn’t have someone.

  She didn’t know how to respond to what he said so she kept quiet, and was thankful when he pulled into her driveway. Her house was smaller than what people would assume. It was a two-story four bedroom white house with a blue door and blue shutters. The front yard had four acres of beautiful green grass with pink Coneflowers that lined her pathway to the house.

  “You should take some time off, you deserve it.” Since he had started to work for her he had only missed one day. He didn’t say anything as he parked the car and got out to let her out. But when he placed his hand out in front of her she hesitated. He had helped her out of the car countless times but now she was starting to see him as a man and not just her employee.

  He sighed and bent down so that he was eye level with her. “Evangeline, what’s going on? You are acting different for some reason, are you sick? Do you need me to call a doctor for you?” Concern and affection was thick in his voice.

  She shook her head and smiled at him. “No I am fine, I’m sorry for acting strange.” His ice blue eyes stared into hers and when he was satisfied that she was okay he stood up once again offering her his hand.

  “Have a good night and I will see you in the morning.” She nodded and walked towards her blue front door. When she was younger she always thought she would have a family by now, an adoring husband and the two point five children. She thought she would be closer to her mother and that they would repair their shattered relationship but some things don’t happen like you anticipated.

  When she got to her door and turned around, she found Axel watching her. Leaning against the door she briefly wondered if she wasn’t the only one feeling the attraction. She strolled into her house without watching him leave, and headed to her bedroom to get ready for a date. In her closet she found a black sweater dress with a red belt and she grinned. She knew one of her best features was her legs, she was short but her legs were tone and tan. Undoing her bun her long wavy hair went to the middle of her back. With her red high heels she walked back out her front door to her black BMW convertible. She hated to drive herself because some people drove crazy but she started her car and headed to the restaurant.

  She still couldn’t believe she agreed to a date. She hadn’t been on one in six years. There was something about Angelo Giovanni that made her want to say yes to anything he asked for along with the promise of some heated passion. Top of the World usually needed a reservation months in advance, but she had a standing reservation because she was friends with the chef.

  She parked her car in the valet and a young blonde woman smiled as she moved towards the shiny black convertible. “Welcome Ms. Skyler,” the pretty younger girl said. Evangeline was guessing she was in her late teens. She got out of her car and handed the girl the keys.

  “If you leave my car out front I will give you a really good tip.” Everyone here knew she was a good tipper, and most would do anything to be the one to wait on her. She handed the young girl a fifty dollar bill.

  “Of course Ms. Skyler!” the younger girl’s smile widen as she took the tip from her. Evangeline rested her hand briefly on the other girl’s shoulder before walking away. Angelo was watching her, and she felt heat flood her cheeks. She wondered how long he had been watching but guessed he saw the whole thing because he was smiling at her with something she hadn’t seen directed towards her before. Pride.

  “Looking for an easy escape?” he asked with a devilish grin.

  “You never know when a girl will become suddenly sick. And need to go home.” He laughed at her.

  “You are a hidden Angel, Ms. Skyler.” He said and she didn’t know what to say to that. She had never been the one to be speechless but with him she seem to be at a loss of words.

  “I think since you insisted on this date, you should call me by my first name.” He took a step towards her and wrapped an arm around her back to close the space between them.

  He tilted his head down so his lips were next to her ear. “Evangeline,” he whispered and she shivered, she loved the way he said her name.

  She cleared her throat and backed away from him. “We should get inside.” She didn’t want to make a scene in public.

  He grinned and took her by surprise by taking her hand in his. She hadn’t held hands with a man since she was in high school, and she loved it. She adored how he wanted to be seen with her. With her past lovers they never went out in public they stayed in the bedroom where she liked. He squeezed her hand and walked into the elaborate restaurant, warm colors surrounded them with dim lighting.

  “Ms. Skyler, your table is ready please follow me.” A young man said when he saw them.

  “You seemed well known here.” He whispered as he brought his lips to her ear.

  “I am friends with the chef,” she answered back and he didn’t say anything until they were seated at the small round booth. He let her hand go when he reached for the menu. She already knew what she wanted, chicken marsala was her favorite.

  “Were you more than friends with the chef?” his deep voice asked her but he didn’t take his chocolate eyes away from the menu. If she was right she heard a jealous tone in his accented voice.

  “That is none of your business.” His eyes met hers, and heat rushed through her body. She and Dean were only friends. She had never slept with him because she didn’t want to ruin what they had. He was her closest friend and she trusted him with her darkest secrets. Secrets that would weaken her if anyone found out and she had made sure they had stayed hidden.

  “I just want to know what I am getting into before I start going down this path. You are successful and beautiful I know you have had other men in your life. But you need to know I don’t share. If you are with me I want you one-hundred percent. So I ask you again were you involved with the head chef here?” She wasn’t sure if she liked him asking these kind of questions. But for some reason she didn’t want him to leave, there was something about him that called to her.

  But she wasn’t sure how to answer him because he wanted more than she did. Yes, she wanted to have sex with him. Any straight woman would but he wanted them to be an us, and that petrified her. That would leave her open to being broken again and that couldn’t happen.

  “You are asking for a lot, and I don’t know if I can give you what you need. I’ve told you I don’t do the whole love and relationship thing. And I never had anything more than a great friendship with Dean.” He kept his eyes on hers trying to read her, but she was good at hiding her feelings. She had learned to keep her emotions hidden because people would use whatever they could against her.

  A waitress beamed at Evangeline as she approached the small booth and Angelo moved closer to her. “Welcome back Evangeline,” she was one of her favorite waitresses here and usually asked for her in advance.

  “Hello Nicole, how are you?” she asked and her date took the chance to place his hand on her knee. Instant heat rushed from his hand and throughout her body. She couldn’t deny their chemistry that was between them.

  Nicole glanced at Angelo and her eyes slightly grew wide as she took in his utter beauty. “I…am good. Are you ready to order?” she turned her head to the side to look at him and he nodded.

  “I would like my regular please.” Evangeline said.

  “That would be one large order of chicken marsala, what about you sir?” she asked and turned her attention to the Italian God that had his hand on her knee. Slowly he rubbed his thumb along the inside of her thigh.

  “I will take what she has ordered.” Nicole wrote down the order and another waiter poured them a glass of white wine. When they were alone he turned his body so he was facing her. “Why don’t yo
u do relationships?”

  She stared deeply into his eyes and sighed. She knew he wouldn’t let it go. “I have been hurt by many people I have loved, so I figured it was easier this way. If I don’t get attached then I won’t be broken again.”

  He brought his hand to her face and ran the tips of his fingers down her cheek until he got to her chin. He cupped her face in his large hand, and smiled tenderly at her. “Without love, life would be a lonely existence. Maybe you need to be shown that love can be a good thing.” She wasn’t sure if she was able to love, maybe she wasn’t programed for it.

  “Maybe I am not meant for love,” she whispered but she knew he heard her because his eyes darkened.

  “Maybe you need the right man to show you. Evangeline I know you are no sub I can tell you like to be the one in control. Let me take it. I want to be the one you run to when you need to lash out. Try with me, I will make you believe.” She knew she should say no, she barely knew him. Hell, she had just meant him in her elevator. But for some reason her mouth wouldn’t open to tell him that, she sat there staring into his eyes and slowly she felt her head nodding.

  He grinned at her and brushed his lips quickly against hers. “You won’t regret it I will make sure of that.” She wasn’t sure and had been thankful that Nicole picked that time to serve them their food.

  Normally she would come here and eat alone, once in a while she would have her assistant Heather with her. Mercifully Angelo didn’t speak as they were eating. She wasn’t sure what she would say after agreeing to try to make something work between them. When the bill came she reached for it, out of habit. He raised his dark eyebrows at her, and she removed her hand. Generally she was the one to always pay for the meal because she had the wealth.

  Nicole came back and took his credit card and told him she would be right back. “You’re being awfully quiet,” he said. His eyes found hers and he placed his hand on top of her hand. “I would never make you do something you didn’t truly want to do. If you just want to fuck then I will do just that, but if you want to know what it feels like to be the center of someone’s world I can do that as well.” Her heart raced with every word he said. She wanted to be with him but a part of her wanted everything he was offering.

  “I want to try, but I also want you.” He laughed and brought her hand to his lips and slightly kissed her knuckles.

  Nicole came back and handed him his card, he signed the receipt and handed it back to her. “Have a great night you two.”

  Angelo escorted Evangeline out of the busy Top of the World restaurant but stopped right outside of the glass doors. He wrapped his arms around her pulling her to him, and he lowered his forehead to hers.

  “What are you thinking about?” she licked her lips and gazed into his eyes. It had been too long since she had been with a man, and she knew he would give her all the passion she wanted.

  “Come home with me,” she pleaded with him and he slowly nodded. “Want to ride with me? Then I will bring you back here in the morning to get your car.”

  “I took a taxi here so it works out perfectly for me.” He smiled at her, and her body seemed to respond to him.

  “Ms. Skyler I have your car ready for you,” a young man said from behind her and she turned out of Angelo’s warm embrace. She smiled sincerely at him and took her keys he was offering her.

  She reached in her purse and pulled out a fifty dollar bill and passed it to him. His eyes grew wide. “Thank you for having my car ready for me.”

  “Anytime ma’am! Have a good night.” he said as he ran to open her car door for her. She didn’t have to turn around to know her date was following her. Angelo got in the car and closed the door and she started the car. She twisted her head to the side to regard him, and found him staring at her.

  “You astound me. You aren’t what I thought you would be.” She had read what reporters said about her, and most of it wasn’t true.

  She arched one eyebrow at him. “What did you think I would be like? Rude and a bitch?” a smile played at the corner of his luscious lips and she wanted to kiss him again.

  “I did think that, but I was wrong and so are they. You just tipped that young man fifty dollars, and I know you would have done the same if I let you pay for dinner. You are nothing like I have heard. Why don’t you do more interviews to reveal who you truly are?” she didn’t answer him she just pulled away from the fancy restaurant and headed towards her house.

  When she stopped at a stoplight she glanced over at him. “I don’t like people in my personal life, I like to keep the two separate for a reason. I am no kitten in the bedroom I like my sex rough and if the press found out they would eat me alive along with my company. I worked way too hard to lose it for some interview that made me look better. If we are going to do this I need to know you will never print anything about me.” He stared at her and she wasn’t sure what he would say. If he was like her he would want to put his career in first place.

  “Everything after I left your office has been off the record. I too like to keep my personal life private. You need to trust me.” Trust didn’t come easily for her, she wasn’t sure if she could trust someone other than Axel. The thought of him made her feel guilty that she was with someone she was bringing home.

  Chapter Three

  She stared ahead wondering if she could trust someone again, or would she place her trust in the wrong hands once more.

  Evangeline parked her BMW in her driveway and took a deep breath as she got out. As Angelo was walking toward her, he glanced over his shoulder at her house.

  “Now I didn’t expect you to have a family home, I thought you would be in a high rise’s pent house.” She shrugged, she never liked high rises because it would take so long to get up to her pent house.

  “I am not the woman they portray in the media.”

  “I am now seeing that.” She smiled and started to walk towards her house. She opened the door and allowed him to walk in before she shut the door. She didn’t bring men here, she would usually rent a hotel room. Her house was her special place and the only man to see the inside was Axel and now Angelo.

  He turned to face her with a light in his dark chocolate eyes, and she didn’t want to talk. She had wanted him since the moment she saw him and she always got what she wanted. The problem was he wanted more than just a few wild nights and she wasn’t sure if she was up for that.

  She didn’t want to waste any more time so she moved to him and tangled her hands in his hair. His arms mechanically wrapped around her waist and he smiled down at her revealing his dimple. She stood on her tip toes and laid her lips on that dimple that has been on her mind all day. Slowly she kissed her way to his irresistible lips, wanting to kiss him all night and now she would get that chance.

  She devoured his mouth with deep sweeping strokes of her tongue causing him to groan in her mouth. She loved knowing she was the reason for that groan, and hoped she would make him groan and moan later. But right now all she could think about was his lips on hers. He spread his hands wide on her back and moved one hand up to the middle of her back and the other one to cup her bottom.

  He held her tighter to him and she felt his excitement against her stomach as she pulled harder on his hair to hold him closer. Never had she wanted someone as much as she wanted Angelo Giovanni. He drove her crazy.

  When he tore his alluring mouth from hers and he stared down at her something flashed in his dark eyes. “We need to get a bedroom now, I want to be with you in a bed not against the front door.”

  She laughed, and shrugged. “I would never look at my door the same again.”

  “Bedroom,” he growled.

  She smirked and moved passed him. “Follow me,” she said and started to saunter up the stairs to her bedroom.

  Once in her bedroom she kicked off her shoes and shrunk five inches, but he was there with his hands teasing her bare arms. She liked the feel of him touching her, she hadn’t been touched like this in so long. He dropped to hi
s knees in front of her and looked up at her.

  “Your beauty could weaken men,” he said as he slowly started to lift her dress. “I have never wanted something this bad and I am afraid if I don’t have you now I will lose my mind.”

  “Then take me now, I don’t need or want foreplay.” He stood up but kept the hem of her dress in his hands. He deliberately took his time taking her dress off and she was left standing in front of him in her white push-up bra and lacy boy shorts.

  “I am one lucky man to see you like this,” he said and ran his soft fingers down to the dip in her cleavage. “You are the most beautiful women I have ever seen.” He dropped his head to her breast and lightly kissed her and he repeated the same action to her other breast. He brought his eyes to hers as he unclasped her bra, and let it fall to the ground at her feet with her discarded dress.

  His scorching sinful mouth closed around her nipple causing her to arch into him. “I want you now,” she barely recognized her own voice. He glanced up at her and she felt him take her underwear slowly off of her leaving her completely naked and him still fully clothed. She bit her bottom lip and wondered how much she could be in control with him. “Undress for me.” She kept her voice even and gradually backed up to her bed and sat down.

  He narrowed his chocolate eyes but a smile played at the corner of his lips. He brought his large hands to the base of his shirt and quickly removed it, his bronzed sculpted chest was within reaching distance from her. She knew she was staring at a work of art as he had spent countless hours making himself look marvelous.

  She licked her lips when his hands unbuttoned his pants and he slowly removed his dark color pants. Black briefs were under and she could see how large he was.

  She reached in her nightstand and pulled out an unopened box of condoms, Angelo smirked down at the box in her hands. “Were you ready for tonight or do you always keep an unopened box next to your bed?” his accent seemed thicker than it was when they first started the night.