Candy Crush

by Tami Lund

  “There’s a bottle of chardonnay in the fridge,” Brandon commented, so Gabriella added two glasses of wine to her table setting.

  When they sat down and began eating, Brandon surprised himself by saying, “That was fun.”

  “What, cooking?”

  “Cooking with you. I don’t think I’ve ever cooked side by side with someone else before, except my mother or my grandmother. And all they do is bitch at me because I’m not doing it their way.”

  “We hardly cooked together,” Gabriella pointed out. “All I did was cut up a few vegetables and set the table.”

  “Trying to be nice here, and you aren’t really working with me.”

  Gabriella smiled and said, “Okay, sorry. Yes, it was fun.” She paused and then asked a question she’d been curious about all day. “Do you pick up all women the same way?”

  Brandon looked surprised by the question. “No. It depends on their personality, or their expectations. Why?”

  “I was just wondering why you are using the ploy you’ve been using on me.”

  Brandon chuckled. “I don’t know if I’d call it a ploy just yet. I haven’t quite figured out what makes you tick. Although I can tell that you are attracted to bad boys. You have this smooth and innocent southern belle demeanor, but I bet you like a man who’s just a little bit dangerous. Everything else in your life was probably so damn perfect and right, the only way you could get a little excitement was by dating the wrong men. Probably drove your parents nuts.”

  Brandon watched her as he took a sip of wine. She took a fair amount of time collecting her thoughts before replying. “I suppose there is some truth to your statement.” Her words were slow, deliberate. She was thinking about a specific situation or a specific man. He wanted to ask but instinctively knew she would not be forthcoming with information.

  “But I think I may be changing my perspective a little. The last bad boy was a tad too dangerous for me,” she added after another moment’s pause.

  “Did he hurt you?” He finally asked, because he really wanted to know. And then he’d hunt down and kill the bastard if he had.

  Gabriella stared off into space for a long time. Finally, she said, “No, not physically, although the threat was certainly there, especially at the end. He was dangerous in other ways. And it took me a long time to build up the courage to leave him. Towards the end, I think he was getting suspicious, and desperate, and I really did begin to worry that he would physically hurt me. But I left before he had a chance.”

  “You make it sound like you were a prisoner.”

  Gabriella nodded and absently sipped her wine. “I felt like I was. I guess I kind of was. It was not a relationship I could simply walk away from. I had to have a plan in place, and I had to be sure he would never be able to find me.” She glanced up and saw that Brandon was watching her intently.

  “What’s his name?”

  “Why?”

  “So if someone by that name comes to town, I can head him off at the pass, so he can’t get to you.”

  “Miguel,” she said softly. “Miguel Martinez.”

  Brandon nodded and committed the name to memory.

  After dinner, they cleaned the kitchen together, and then sat down on the couch to watch television. They argued over what to watch, and finally settled on an old sitcom, and soon, they were both laughing and joking along with the television. It was companionable and comfortable.

  After a few hours, Gabriella excused herself and went upstairs to bed. Brandon remained seated on the couch, not really watching television, but thinking about her.

  He couldn’t believe how insanely jealous he’d felt over the idea of her going out with Jared. He lost potential bedmates to Jared all the time. It was part of the game. Why did this one matter so damn much?

  And now, she’d laid it on the line: she was not interested in having sex with him. Yet, he still wanted her, almost desperately, and he was willing to wait until she came around to his way of thinking. That in itself was shocking, since Brandon was not normally one to wait.

  On the rare occasion that a woman tried to play hard to get with him, he usually simply moved on. There were plenty of other beautiful women out there who would be more than willing to warm his bed without making him chase them. Brandon shook his head, clicked off the television, and headed upstairs to bed.

  Alone.

  CHAPTER THREE

  On Thursday morning, Gabriella woke up and glanced at the clock on the bedside table: 6:46. If she hurried, she could get in and out of the shower before Brandon even woke up.

  She scrambled out of bed and padded to the bathroom in stocking feet. When she emerged twenty minutes later, she stepped out of the bathroom in her pajamas and let out a little shriek when she spotted Brandon, lounging against the railing across from the bathroom, wearing nothing but a pair of flannel pajama bottoms. She sucked in a breath and tried not to stare at his chest.

  “You scared the heck out of me,” she accused.

  “Serves you right. You’re lucky I didn’t climb into the shower with you. I don’t exactly function at full capacity at seven in the morning.” He sounded grumpy. Not a morning person, apparently.

  “Sorry. I thought I’d be done before you woke up. Here, it’s all yours.” She stepped aside, and with one last assessing look, he walked past her into the bathroom and closed the door behind him.

  Half an hour later, she was waiting in the kitchen when he walked into the room. His hair was still wet and he wore a charcoal grey suit with a paler grey shirt and dark grey tie. He looked positively delicious, Gabriella thought, and then she decided maybe she was just hungry. She snagged a banana off the counter and peeled it and took a bite, ignoring the fact that she’d just picked the most phallic fruit she could have thought to eat.

  “Morning,” he said as he poured coffee into a travel mug.

  “Good morning. I thought I’d walk to work with you this morning, if that’s okay.”

  ***

  She wore the same sweatshirt and jeans she’d worn yesterday and her hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She reminded Brandon of an all-American cheerleader. Which was only mildly better than the sexy temptress he thought she was when she’d emerged from the bathroom wearing a practically see-through white tank top and pink pajama bottoms.

  He never realized pajamas could be so sexy before. He needed to get her into his bed before he self-imploded, and he had no idea how he was going to do it, since he’d promised not to make moves on her.

  “Sure,” Brandon said, and he pulled a travel coffee mug out of the cupboard for her. A few minutes later, they were walking to work, with Butter padding along in front of them.

  “Do you walk to work, even in winter?” Gabriella asked.

  “Depends. Sometimes I have meetings out of the downtown area, so I have to drive. Like tomorrow, for instance. I have a meeting down in the Detroit area. I’ll be gone all day. Don’t forget to cancel with Jared,” he reminded her, and she saluted him with her coffee mug.

  “And sometimes,” he added, “It gets too cold here to be outside for more than a few minutes.” He watched her face and laughed at the horrified look.

  “You are pulling my leg, right?”

  “Nope,” he said, and then he laughed. “It doesn’t happen very often, so you can relax. Although the Farmer’s Almanac says this winter is supposed to be cold with lots of snow. We’ve had a few mild winters, so we’re due.”

  “Great,” she grumbled. “I had to pick the year you’re due for a hard winter. I should’ve left last year.”

  Brandon laughed. They stepped onto Main Street, and Brandon walked her to the door of the candy store. “We keep coffee on all day in my office, so feel free to come over for a refill.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Do you want to have lunch again?”

  “Sure,” Gabriella said.

  ***

  She found this new, charming, non-sexually exploiting Brandon somewhat disarming. As
nice as he was, she almost missed the sexual innuendos and teasing. Apparently she was glutton for punishment.

  She let herself into the candy store and decided today she would work on putting together a list of suppliers and start making contact. She had very little capitol left, so she hoped the cost to initially fill her shelves would not be too astronomical. Maybe she should visit a local bank and see about a line of credit. Brandon probably had some relative or another who worked at the bank and could help her. It did not escape her notice that she had already fallen into the comfortable habit of assuming his family would be willing to help.

  She headed back to the storage room. She used a box to prop the door open, so she would see if anyone came into the store, and she set about inventorying the wasted overstock in the back room.

  Mid-morning, just about the time she felt she had waited a reasonable length of time before heading across the street to get a coffee refill, a woman walked in the front door of the candy store. She carried two Styrofoam cups of steaming coffee and Gabriella recognized her as one of the women who had flirted with Brandon at the Chamber mixer last night. She was tall, had high cheekbones, bright green eyes and brunette hair with lots of red highlights. She wore a fitted black leather jacket, belted over a black suit and she wore black boots with four-inch heels on her feet. Gabriella was instantly suspicious. Butter was not. She rushed up and wagged her tail, sniffing the woman’s feet.

  “Good morning,” she called, and Gabriella walked toward the front of the store, feeling horribly inadequate in her sweatshirt and jeans. She barely wore any makeup and she wasn’t even wearing jewelry. If Brandon saw them side-by-side right now, Gabriella was sure he’d quit chasing her and go back to what he knew, because Gabriella was sure he’d slept with this woman at one time or another.

  “What can I do for you?” Gabriella asked, trying not to sound standoffish.

  “I brought coffee, do you drink it?”

  “Yes,” Gabriella admitted, because the fresh coffee smelled wonderful.

  “Here.” She handed one of the cups to Gabriella. “I doctored it with a little creamer. I hope that’s okay.”

  Gabriella nodded. “Thanks.”

  The woman stood in the middle of the room and took her time looking around. “You’ve really made progress in a very short time. After the Sarantos’ are done on Saturday, you’ll practically be ready to open next week.”

  “You know that Brandon’s family is coming to help on Saturday?”

  “Sure. I’m sure I’ll be here too.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I’m pretty sure we’re going to be sisters-in-law at some point, and family always helps family, especially around here.” She looked mighty cheerful as she said it.

  Gabriella fumbled with her coffee cup and quickly placed it on the counter, next to the cash register so that her suddenly jumpy hands would not spill it.

  “Excuse me?” she said, sure she had not heard the woman correctly.

  “I’m Nicole Sarantos. Brandon’s sister-in-law.” She was still grinning, clearly enjoying herself.

  Gabriella frowned. “I thought you were one of Brandon’s ex’s.”

  Nicole nodded. “Oh, I am. It was so long ago; I hardly remember what it was like. Well, that’s not true. Brandon is pretty unforgettable, and he was even back in high school. I’m married to his brother now, and he’s pretty unforgettable too. It obviously runs in the family. I figure I got the bonus package.” Her grin widened.

  Gabriella found herself warming to the woman, even though she wasn’t sure she wanted to. “So who do you think I’m going to marry?”

  “Brandon, of course. God, the older women in the family will be so ecstatic. I hope you like the idea of a big wedding. Yours will be the wedding of the century around here.”

  “I think you can cancel the invitations. That is not going to happen.”

  “Have you slept with him yet?”

  “Of course not,” Gabriella blustered.

  “Definitely not cancelling the invitations. I was there last night. I saw that emotional display. Brandon’s never shown that much emotion over a woman, ever. I’ve known him since we were in diapers.”

  Gabriella stared at her, unable to form any sort of response. She thought about the emotion he expressed yesterday evening. He’d been possessive, angry, demanding… Hardly emotions that could be mistaken for love.

  “Anyway, my husband and I run the local insurance agency.” She pulled a card out of her purse and set it on the counter. “I don’t know if you’ve insured this place yet, but we’ll give you the family discount, which is going to be better than anywhere else you check. Just call me, and I’ll send Anthony out to assess the building and put together a quote. Or he can just do it Saturday, since we’ll both be here.”

  Gabriella nodded absently, because she did need to insure both the store and the apartment upstairs. Plus, she would eventually need to switch her car insurance before the old policy expired. Might as well take advantage of the family discount, before they realized that there was no way in hell she was going to become a part of their family.

  Nicole switched gears again. “Is Brandon taking you to the game tomorrow night? We’re small town, so high school football is the highlight of our week in the fall.”

  Gabriella finally cracked a smile. “I’m from Texas, so I understand completely.”

  Nicole nodded. “I was wondering about the accent. It’s pretty.”

  “Thanks,” Gabriella said, mildly surprised. “Actually, I’m supposed to go to the game with Brandon’s cousin, Jared.”

  Nicole looked appalled. “Oh God, don’t do that. I can’t believe Brandon is allowing that. Jared is a fink. And if you go out with him, everyone will assume you’ve slept with him, whether you do or not. He’s charming enough when he wants something that he’ll probably talk you out of your skirt. And since your Brandon’s, that’s probably not a good idea.”

  “I’m not Brandon’s,” Gabriella said defensively. She wasn’t a piece of property, for God’s sake.

  “You may not realize it yet, honey, but yes you are.”

  Gabriella suddenly felt uncomfortable, but lucky for her, Nicole switched gears again. “Cancel with Jared and you and Brandon can double date with Anthony and me.”

  “I was planning to cancel with Jared,” she admitted. “But I don’t know about the double date.”

  Nicole glanced at her watch and abruptly stood straighter. “I have to go. Talk to Brandon about it. And if I don’t see you tomorrow, I’ll see you Saturday morning. Nice to meet you, Gabriella. Welcome to the family.” She grinned again and then spun on her four-inch heels and left.

  Five minutes later, Brandon walked in the front door. “I see you met Nicole.”

  “What, are you spying on me now?” Gabriella snapped.

  Brandon cocked an eyebrow. “My office is directly across the street and when I sit at my desk, I face the door. When you finally remove all this butcher paper, then I’ll be able to spy on you.”

  He grinned, but she simply scowled at him. “What the hell did she say to you?” he demanded, dropping all pretenses.

  “Nothing,” Gabriella snapped back.

  “Don’t lie to me.”

  “Fine. It’s none of your damn business.”

  “Obviously it is, since you’re taking your bad mood out on me. I have to assume Nicole caused it, because you weren’t this prickly when we left the house this morning.”

  “I know you slept with her.”

  Brandon blinked at her. “She told you that?”

  “I guessed, and she confirmed it. Said you were pretty unforgettable.”

  “Gabriella, we were both seventeen. It happened fifteen years ago. I hardly think you can hold that over my head. My brother doesn’t, and he’s married to her.”

  “I know, she told me that too.”

  “So I’m unforgettable, huh? Does that tempt you at all?” He grinned wolfishly.

  Gabri
ella glared at him, because damned if it didn’t tempt her, and the last thing she needed right now was to climb into the man’s bed. It was bad enough he was complicating her life, although, if she were honest with herself, she could admit that so far, he’d managed to make her transition easier than she ever would have expected.

  Unbidden, her thoughts strayed to Miguel, and sex. Unforgettable was not the first adjective that came to mind. The sex hadn’t been terrible, at least for the first year and a half. It hadn’t been fabulous either, though. Gabriella had experienced a handful of partners before him who were much more attentive and exciting, so she knew what sex could be.

  Miguel was the type of man who was as selfish between the sheets as he was in the rest of his life. He got his rocks off and he was done, regardless of where his partner stood in the equation. This worked to Gabriella’s advantage toward the end of their relationship, when she’d grown slightly repulsed by him, but she was too afraid to say no to him, so she’d simply lie there and let him do whatever he wanted, and he never knew the difference.

  “Earth to Gabriella. Are you in there?” Brandon brought her tumbling back to the present. When she focused on him, he said, “Wow, where’d you go? It was like watching you have an out of body experience.”

  “Sorry,” Gabriella mumbled, fidgeting with her coffee cup. “I was just… Lost in thought.”

  “Do you miss him?” Brandon asked softly.

  Gabriella’s eyes flew to his, but all she saw there was curiosity and concern. She shook her head. “Not at all.” She missed her family and her life, but not Miguel.

  “Good. I gotta get back to work. I’ll be back at noon.” He pushed off from where he had been leaning on the counter and strolled out the front door.

  When he returned, he carried a paper bag and two fountain Cokes from the deli down the street. “Does your family own it too?” Gabriella asked, as she greedily bit into her sandwich.