“Have you seen her? She looks hot! Hotter than I thought she ever would. I mean she was cute, but she wasn’t exactly hot in high school.”
Yes she was. His brother was too much of an idiot to notice.
Again Nate was silent and again his brother continued anyway. “After all these years, the spark’s still there. It was like the Fourth of July when we saw each other. We picked up right where we left off. I guess what they say about your first love is true, you never get over them. I’m taking her to the Masquerade Ball.”
Nate felt his brother’s words like a punch to the gut. Nate was gifted in predicting behavior, even his erratic brother’s behavior. But hearing that Eliza and Neil were picking up where they left off came so far out of left field, he was glad he was already sitting down, because otherwise the blow would’ve knocked him on his ass.
“You’re what?”
“We’re going to the ball together,” he repeated as his phone buzzed. “Oh shit. Timbo’s at The Plate. You wanna go grab a beer?”
“No.” Nate answered flatly hoping that his face was blank. If there was ever a time he didn’t want someone to know what he was really thinking and feeling, it was now.
“Alright, bro. See you Friday. Mom told me to tell you to make sure your penguin suit is dry cleaned.” Neil winked before leaving the office.
Nate felt a numbness come over him as he sat in his chair dumbfounded at what his brother had just told him. If there was a jackass scale, Neil had registered at about a four in high school. As an adult, he was definitely coming in at a ten. How in the hell didn’t Eliza see that? Could having a first love really make her that blind?
Another wave of déjà vu washed over him. But this time it wasn’t about the best part of his day, this was about one of the worst days of his life. The day that Neil had barged into his room and told him that Eliza Young was his girlfriend.
Nate was heartbroken then, but now he didn’t have a heart to break. She’d taken that with her and never returned it.
Chapter 9
Eliza stared at her reflection as she turned from side to side in front of the full-length mirror. This was the third lingerie set she’d tried on. Her plan had been to come to Tempting to buy one set, but she honestly didn’t think she could possibly choose just one at this point. Every time she put a new one on it became her favorite. Never in her life had she owned such provocative bras and panties. She never thought that she could feel this comfortable and this sensual.
Her hands slid down the curve of her sides that were covered in a sheer black, unlined corset, loving the sensation of the material beneath her fingertips. It stopped just above the satin strap that sat on her hips. She traced the hem as she admired the sweetheart neckline that gave her natural cleavage a boost and was accented with a black satin bow sitting in the center.
Wow. She wasn’t one to toot her own horn, but toot toot.
She’d told herself that it didn’t matter that she would be the only person enjoying this view. But that didn’t change the fact that with each new garment she slipped on, her first thought was, I wish Nate could see me in this.
It had been four days since he’d saved her from an embarrassing situation by preventing the alarm from going off.
Four days since he’d told her that she deserves a man that sees her. Since then she’d played the entire speech over and over again in her head and had come to memorize each word.
It had been four days since she’d seen him. In that time, he’d installed a brand new security system with all the bells and whistles in the office while she was out. He’d said it was a homecoming gift.
He used to do this in high school. He’d do incredibly thoughtful and caring things and then be emotionally distant. She’d gone to Elite Security three times and each time the receptionist, Darla, had told her that he was unavailable.
On the last visit, Darla had lowered her voice and said that if Eliza “happened” to need to use the conference room, Darla might need to send Nate in there for a “client meeting.” As much as Eliza appreciated the woman’s help, she didn’t want to ambush him. He was telling her what he wanted. He was a generous, kind and incredible man who didn’t want to see her…she needed to respect that.
She did, however, send him an edible bouquet of his favorite fruit, or at least what had been his favorite fruit in ninth grade, with a thank you card that was as impersonal as the white paper it was written on.
“How’s everything fitting?” Haley’s voice came from behind the dressing room door. “Do you need any other sizes? Colors?”
“No. Everything is perfect,” Eliza enthused.
“Okay, I’ll be out front. Call if you need me.”
The sound of retreating heels clicked on the hardwood floors as Eliza took one more look in the mirror. And even though she knew better than to think it, the first thought that popped in her mind was, what would Nate think if he saw me in this?
A sigh of frustration at herself and her weak resolution to stop thinking about Nate every two seconds escaped her. She reached behind her and unfastened the corset and slipped the straps down her arms. As she pulled on her old bra and got dressed in her clothes she looked at the threesome of pretties laid out on the dark gray silk-covered bench.
There was no reason that she needed all three sets. One would be fine. But as her gaze bounced between the black sheer corset with matching silk bikini panties, the red lace push up bra with matching boy hipsters and the white bralette with crisscross straps and matching thong she decided that she was going to splurge and get all three.
It had been a tough few weeks and like L’Oréal says, she was worth it.
She gathered her things and headed to the counter to pay, and after a small but heated dispute with Haley, who insisted the items were on the house, she ended up walking out of the beautiful boutique with a hefty discount. She’d tried to argue with even that, but Haley teasingly explained that she’d taken her business plan from drug dealers. She gave out the first hit for free and then people came back for more. Eliza had laughed when she realized she wasn’t going to win but she’d made her friend promise to let her pay full price when she came in for her next hit.
As she stepped outside in the bright, warm day she squinted at the harsh rays of sunlight. Her light eyes had always been extra sensitive to the sun and if she didn’t wear the proper eyewear to protect them she’d usually end up with a severe headache.
Since the Masquerade Ball was tonight she definitely didn’t want to be battling a migraine. She would already be fighting not to wear a perma-scowl sharing the ballroom with Nate and Bailey, throw in excruciating pain and she didn’t think there was a fake smile big enough to cover up her agonizing discomfort.
Reaching into her purse, she dug all the way to the bottom in search of her sunglasses as she stepped onto the sidewalk. She felt the moment the tip of her heel caught on the seam of the concrete and before she could balance herself she was being catapulted forward. In the split second that it took for her mind to register that she was going to face plant on the sidewalk, she tensed her body and stuck out her arms, waiting to feel the pain from the impact.
But that never happened.
What she landed on was hard, that was for sure. But it wasn’t a slab of cement. It was a slab of muscle. And there was definitely something shooting up her arms, but it wasn’t pain, it was tingles. Large arms wrapped around her and the instant they did her stiff protective posture melted like the Wicked Witch of the West.
Before her eyes lifted to see who she’d crashed into, her body already knew. That didn’t change the fact that when she did lift her eyes and had visual confirmation of her sexy collision victim, she sucked in an audible gasp of shock. Partly because of the revelation and partly because of how incredible it felt to be cocooned in his embrace.
His dark eyes flared with intensity as he stared down at her and his arms tightened around her. A quiver fluttered through her from head to toe and a pool of hea
t gathered low in her belly at the overwhelming sensation of being held in his strength and the intoxicating look of possession in his gaze.
It was then that she realized in all the years they’d known each other, he’d never hugged her. The only contact that they’d had was a few times when she’d almost fallen off of her stool in science class and when he’d moved her so she didn’t run into people when they’d walked down the halls of their high school.
Basically, every time he’d touched her it had been to protect her. The problem was, how was she supposed to protect her heart from that…?
“Are you okay?”
When he spoke, she felt the vibration come through his chest and even though she knew better, she closed her eyes and let herself luxuriate in the pleasure and tingles that spread through her. There were so many emotions and feelings swirling through her and instead of fighting them, like she had for the past week, she gave into the sensual hurricane of sensations.
Her heart was beating so fast and so hard, she was sure he could feel it and honestly, she didn’t care. She’d waited to feel like this her whole life and she wanted to hold on to every second that she could.
“Ellie, are you okay?” the concern in his tone pulled her out of the lust cloud that she’d allowed herself to float away in.
Her eyes opened and she was back in the real world. In Harper’s Crossing. On the sidewalk. Her fingers were fisted in his shirt as she desperately clung to him.
“Oh, yeah…sorry…” she stuttered as she released her hands and stepped back and tried to gather her wits about her. Her brain felt like the mush her mom used to make her eat on cold Illinois winter mornings because she said it would stick to her ribs, whatever that meant.
After making sure that she was steady, he released his hold and the second his arms fell to his sides she missed his touch. Missed the feeling that only he’d ever inspired in her. She missed the connection that she’d only felt with him. In that moment she knew that he was the only man that she’d ever truly loved.
Too bad he didn’t feel the same.
Tears began filling her eyes and she knew if she didn’t do something fast, she was going to be a blubbering mess. She looked down to try to get herself together and that’s when she saw that her heart wasn’t the only casualty of the impact. Her Tempting bag had fallen to the ground and the contents were now scattered on the sidewalk.
Heat rose up from her neck in embarrassment as she bent down to gather them. Unfortunately, Nate had always had the reflexes of a superhero and he beat her to it.
When he stood, he had all six items in his large, tanned hands and just stared down at them. The erotic sight of him holding her unmentionables, and looking so casual, so right, doing it caused her to blush even deeper. She waited for him to hand them back to her, but he didn’t. He just kept staring at them.
His silence was causing a panic to rise in her. The anxiousness of what he was thinking caused her already clouded state of mind to fog up even more.
In a horribly misguided attempt to humor her way out of this embarrassing situation she heard herself blurt out, “I wanted you to see those, but on me, not the ground.”
The second the words came out of her mouth she wished she had the ability to suck them right back in. Her eyes widened and she tried to force herself to laugh, and play it off like a joke, when honestly that was as real as it got. But nothing came out except a squeak.
* * *
Nate couldn’t move, he couldn’t speak as he stared at the sexiest collection of underwear he’d ever seen. All he could hear was a loud buzzing and voices telling him to give them to their owner, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it.
At first his inability to act appropriately was due to the fact that he’d wanted to memorize the items because he knew every day from that point on, every time he saw Eliza, he would be wondering if she was wearing one of them. But that motivation quickly morphed into another, much stronger reason. When he thought about the next time he saw her, he knew it would be at the Masquerade Ball. The one she was attending with his twin. His mind swam with questions.
Would she be wearing one of these tonight?
Had she bought them with his brother in mind?
Would Neil be seeing her in these?
Would he be seeing her out of these?
No. That was wrong. Everything inside of him was screaming that it was wrong.
A distant sound of her voice drifted into his consciousness. He couldn’t make out the words she was saying but it served as a rubber band and snapped him out of his temporary paralysis. When he returned to the present he heard a high-pitched sound.
He looked up and saw Eliza standing in front of him and she was rubbing her thumb against the pads of her fingers so hard and fast he’d be surprised if there were prints left after she was done.
Shit. She must think I’m a total pervert.
Then in a move that rivaled “now-you-see-them-now-you-don’t” he returned the items into the bag he’d picked up off the ground and handed it back to her.
“Thanks.” Eliza’s voice was two octaves higher than it usually was and a forced smile was on her lips.
Double shit.
She was really upset and it was his fault. He needed to fix this and fast.
“I heard you’re going to the fundraiser with Neil.”
What the fuck? Why would he bring up his brother? And why the hell had he growled his comment through gritted teeth?
He knew the answer to one of those questions. His jaw was tense and his words animalistic because the thought of her and Neil attending the event as a couple made him feel like a lion that wanted to protect his pride. And she was his pride.
“What?!” she asked, outraged.
He’d never seen her angry. Frustrated, yes. Ready to rip someone’s head off, no.
“Sorry.” He held up his hands apologetically. “It’s none of my busine—”
“No. I’m not mad at you for asking. I’m mad that he told you that…wait when did he tell you that?”
“It’s all he’s talked about all week.”
In Ranger training they had hell week, which had been the hardest week of Nate’s life before the past four days had eclipsed it. He’d gladly subject himself to Ranger training hell week before suffering through another Neil and Eliza going to the ball week.
She took in a deep breath and lifted her arms and smoothed her hair as she visibly tried to calm down. But once she started talking, her hands began gesturing animatedly. “He came by my office on Tuesday and asked me to go. I explained that I would be escorting Mrs. Lewis, since Dr. Lewis had sponsored a table for Smiles but isn’t feeling up to taking her. It was like I was talking to air. He said it was a date and when I tried to reiterate that I would be going with Mrs. Lewis he made a joke, or at least I hope it was a joke, that he liked threesomes and he would see me there.
“Then he called yesterday to find out what color my dress was so he could get my corsage and again I relayed, in no uncertain terms, that I was not going with him. Or meeting him there. Mrs. Lewis was my date and I would arrive with her, spend the evening with her and leave with her. He said he understood but at this point I’m beginning to wonder if he’s an idiot or just delusional.” She ended her rant with her elbows bent and her palms facing up.
“No one said he can’t be both,” Nate said dryly, doing his best to disguise the fact that he wanted to do a victory lap around the block and high five every person he saw. He’d never understood the overused gesture before and had never wanted to initiate it, but right now that’s exactly what he wanted to do.
Her hand lowered to her stomach as her head bent back and the melodic sound of her laughter filled the air around them. She was still chuckling when her phone dinged. She rummaged through her purse, cursing underneath her breath before finally pulling out her phone.
When she looked at the screen her face dropped slightly. Her miniscule reaction may have slipped the layman’s eye, but
not Nate’s. He was a master-level observer of all things Eliza Young.
“Is everything okay?”
Her face brightened, a little too much. As if she was trying not only to convince him of whatever she was about to say, but herself as well. She nodded. “Yep. I just…I have to go. It’s Bones, Balls & Bellyrubs. I dropped Farmer, not the Dell, off there to be groomed while I went shopping.”
As much as he’d like to delve deeper into her shopping trip, specifically offering to be an audience if she wanted to do a fashion show, he resisted. Instead he went with a safer follow up. “Not the Dell?”
“Your idiot, delusional brother thought I named him after ‘The Farmer in the Dell.’” She shook her head slightly. “Sorry, I don’t mean to keep insulting your brother. I shouldn’t have said that.”
“You never have to apologize for telling me the truth.” Even as he said the words, his own guilt rose up in him like a flash flood.
She grinned but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Thanks, for saying that and also saving me from being the dentist that knocked out her own teeth on the sidewalk.”
“My pleasure.” He hadn’t intentionally made the double entendre, but he couldn’t say that he regretted it.
The pink shade on her neck flushed a shade darker and she shook her head as she closed her eyes tightly. When she opened them again, they held a determined stare and she lifted her hand in a small wave. “Well, thanks, again.”
Before he had a chance to respond, she started down the street towards the dog groomer. She’d only made it a couple steps before she turned on a dime and snapped her fingers. “Oh, I can’t believe I forgot. Thank you so much for the security system. It’s amazing and I already feel safer.” She hesitated for a minute. “I stopped by a few times, to thank you in person, but you were busy.”
No, I wasn’t. He’d given Darla a standing order that he was not available if she stopped by. In fact, he’d almost run into her when Darla had paged him up to the front—which she claimed was “an accident”—but he’d had quick reflexes and dipped into an empty office before Eliza had seen him. He’d felt a little bad about avoiding her, but it was purely out of self-preservation. The more time he was around her, the more feelings, memories, wants and desires surfaced from the deep depths where he’d buried them.
All He Desires – Nate & Eliza (Crossroads Book 12) Page 8