TENSE - Volume One (The TENSE Duet Book 1)

by Deborah Bladon

  "Maybe we can work out a schedule for visitation," I joke.

  "That discussion needs to include details about what the visitation will cost you."

  The air around me suddenly feels much thicker. I've been hyperaware of everything about him since I arrived. That's not surprising given how he's dressed. It's all black, from the trousers to the button down shirt. The only color that's visible on him is his eyes. Each time I see them, I'm amazed at how strikingly blue they are. Mine pale in comparison to his.

  I don't back down from his statement. It might be the faint buzz I feel from the glass of cheap wine I had with dinner. It could be the rush I experienced from playing such a difficult piece so effortlessly. Whatever it is it fuels me to look him straight in the eye. "Is the price steep?"

  "It's manageable."

  I feel my face heat. "How do you know it's manageable for me?"

  "You've kissed a man before, Sophia. We'll start there."

  "A kiss?" The words catch in my throat. It's not as if I've never been kissed. I have by plenty of men. I remember some of those kisses with a longing that's faint but familiar like the smell of rain in the distance after a long drought. I can't recall the taste of the lips or the names of the others. Those are the men I didn't share my body with because their kiss wasn't enough to make me wonder what it would be like to taste more.

  He leans forward on his elbows, his hands parting. "You want to kiss me. You have since we met."

  "No, I haven't," I say with conviction even though I know it's not the truth.

  "You're a liar." He stands and faces me. "Give me your hand."

  I stare at his outstretched hand for a heartbeat. The skin is smooth, the lines that cross his palms faint. My gaze follows the path of his skin up the sleeve of his shirt that covers his muscular forearm and bicep before it lands on his face. "Just a kiss, Nicholas?"

  "One kiss." His fingers curl in unison, beckoning me to take his hand.

  I place my hand in his knowing that I can't turn back. I don't want to. I want to kiss him. Hell, I want so much more. He's every woman's dream. His black hair is a tousled mess. The subtle shading on his jaw gives him an edge that promises of a hint of roughness. His lips are full and pink. They're the most kissable lips I've ever seen on a man and he's right. I've wanted to kiss him since the moment I turned to look at him on the subway.

  "Come here," he whispers darkly as he tugs me to my feet.

  I don't resist when he rests my hand on his chest over his beating heart. His pulse is racing and his breathing is shallow. If I didn't know better, I would think that he's as nervous about our first kiss as I am.

  I don't say anything when his hand slides up my arm to the back of my neck. I draw in a deep breath when he tilts my head and looks into my eyes. I smile at him before he bites his bottom lip.

  "You're beautiful, Sophia," he says in a husky voice. "I've never met anyone like you."

  I close my eyes just as I feel his lips touch mine.

  Chapter 15

  Nicholas

  I take my time with the kiss. My first taste of her is better than I imagined and when I slide my tongue along the seam of her lips and she opens herself to me, she moans. It's soft, almost inaudible, but I hear it. I feel it reverberate through our kiss.

  I tighten my grip on her neck as my other hand circles her waist. I pull her closer, wanting to meld her body with mine. I know she can feel my arousal. My dick is hard as concrete, aching to be inside of her.

  Her hands grip the front of my shirt, the material fisted in her palms. She tugs slightly as if she wants us closer. She needs more and I'm not about to deny her anything.

  I slide my hand lower until I'm cupping that delectable ass. It's soft and lush beneath her dress. "Sophia." I breathe the word into our kiss. "Please."

  She shakes her head slightly just as she deepens the kiss. Her tongue glides against mine in a silent invitation to take more. So I do.

  I move my hand lower until it skims the hem of her dress. I want to touch the flesh of that beautiful ass and run my fingers between her legs. I need to feel her wetness. I have to know that she craves me too.

  "Nicholas." Her voice is a whisper as she pulls back. "Just a kiss tonight."

  I want more. I need it, but I'm not the type of guy to push when a woman pulls back. I won't do it. I break the kiss, my hands loosening their grip.

  "You can really kiss." She leans her forehead against my chin. "Like holy fuck, you can kiss."

  I laugh deeply. "I'd say the same for you."

  Her eyes are cast down. They're in perfect alignment with the outline of my massive erection through my pants. She has to know what she's doing to me; what she's done to me since the first night we met.

  "I need a cold shower," I say half-jokingly. "That or a nude run in the snow."

  "A nude run in the snow?" Her head pops us to look at me. "No one does that."

  "I did it once," I say with a straight face. "You're welcome to join me the next time I do it."

  She studies me carefully. "I'm not as gullible as you. I don't fall for things that easily. You've never run around New York in the nude."

  "You think I'm gullible?" I ask on a grin. My eyes are glued to her mouth and the faint trace of red lipstick that's still there.

  I want that mouth on my dick. If she blows cock the way she kisses, I'll lose it within the first minute.

  "You fell for it when I told you to cover your ears before I started playing your piano." She raises her hands to her ears. "I'd call that gullible."

  "I'd call it being a gentleman. I'm guessing you're not used to that."

  Her hands drop to her hips. "You consider yourself a gentleman?"

  I toss her a condescending smile. "Absolutely."

  She throws her head back in laughter. "You were groping my ass when we were kissing. I'm pretty sure you're not going to find ass groping listed as one of the definitions of the word gentleman in the dictionary."

  "That thing is a magnet for these." I wave my hands in the air in a wide arc. "You have the best ass I've ever seen. I'm saying that in the most gentlemanly way I can."

  She looks over her shoulder as if she expects to catch a glimpse of her spectacular ass. "You like it?"

  "What do you think?" I adjust the buckle of my belt in an effort to pull her gaze down to the outline of my erection through my pants. "You have to know what you're doing to me."

  "I know." She keeps her eyes trained on my face. "I felt it. That's biology though. You can't help it. It probably happens whenever you see a woman's ass."

  "I'm not sixteen-years-old." I lean in closer. "I want you. That's why my body is reacting like this. I want to strip you naked and carry you to my bed. I want to taste you, touch you and yes, Ms. Reese, I want to fuck you."

  Her lips open until her mouth is a perfect O.

  "This game we've been playing has been fun," I go on. "I'll continue for as long as it takes but one day soon I need to be inside of you. I know you want the same thing."

  She swallows, her gaze moving from my face to the front of my pants before her eyes meet mine. "You don't know what I want. You can't read my mind, Nicholas."

  "You're right. I can't read your mind." I pause. "I can sense that you want me though. You can pretend that it's not real, but if you do that, you're just lying to us both."

  She stands her ground, listening to every word I'm saying. "You don't know me. You're basing all of this on your experiences with other women. I bet you're used to women fawning all over you. You think that just because most women will bow at your feet, that I will too."

  "You're wrong," I say succinctly. "This has nothing to do with other women."

  She steps back, her shoulders tense again. "I doubt like hell that you've ever had to put in any real effort to get a woman into bed. When's the last time you chased a woman?"

  I move to lessen the distance between us but she counters with another step back. "Do you want me to chase you, Sophia?"
/>   "I didn't say that." Her hand darts in the air to stop me in place. "Besides, I'm not sure you could ever catch me."

  "Is that so? Because from what I've seen…" I begin as I run my index finger along the curve of her chin. "I'm not sure you can handle what's going to happen once I do catch you."

  "I can handle it," she whispers under her breath before she moves away from my touch.

  "What was that?" My gaze narrows. "I missed that."

  She shoots me a look. "I said I need to go home."

  "That's not what you said."

  Her mouth twists ruefully. "I'm leaving. This has been interesting."

  "I'll say," I quip as I tug my phone from the front pocket of my pants. "I'll call for a car. Don't worry. I won't follow behind in the shadows."

  "I know you won't," she says, her voice a more even tone. "You're not up to the chase."

  "Challenge accepted." I look her dead in the eye. "I want you, Sophia. Don't expect me to give up easily."

  A small smile ghosts her lips. "Surprise me, then, Nicholas. Prove me wrong."

  "I intend to." I lean forward to kiss her forehead. "I'm a better man than you think I am. I'm also persistent when I see something I want."

  She opens her mouth to say something but I stop her with a quick kiss to her lips.

  "I'll give you a head start." I move to grab her coat from the chair I placed it on when she arrived. "Then the chase is on."

  "You seriously think you can catch me?"

  I move behind her to help her with her coat. "I will catch you. This thing between us is too strong to ignore. We will happen. Mark my words."

  She turns quickly on her heel, her eyes raking me from head-to-toe. "We'll see. I'll find my own way home tonight."

  With that she scoops up her purse, tosses her hair behind her shoulders and walks out of my apartment without a single glance back.

  Chapter 16

  Sophia

  I admit that I want him to work for it, even if it's just a little bit. I was tempted to give in when Nicholas was kissing me. My body was screaming at me to let him inch his fingers up the skirt of my dress so he could feel my arousal, but I stopped it. I had to. If I would have slept with him last night, I doubt I'd be sitting at my desk now staring at the dozen light violet roses that were delivered this morning.

  I knew instantly that they were from him. I didn't even have to open the card that was attached to the bouquet, but I did.

  Thank you for last night, Sophia. Nicholas. xx

  "Those are beautiful." Gabriel stops at my desk on his way into his office. "Would it be out of line if I asked if those were from Nicholas Wolf?"

  It wouldn't be. Our relationship has slowly morphed from being strictly business to having faint touches of friendship woven into it. It's the main reason I agreed to go to the book signing when Isla, Gabriel's wife, asked me to. She told me that she planned to go herself but Gabriel's brothers Caleb and Asher decided to throw him a pre-birthday surprise dinner party. She had to be there, so I ventured out to the signing in her place.

  I may have to thank her for that since that's the night I met Nicholas.

  "They're from him." I tuck the card into my palm to shield the words from Gabriel's view.

  He bends down to smell one of the perfectly symmetrical blossoms. "He has excellent taste in flowers and women."

  The compliment is unexpected and I fumble in my mind with what to say in response. "Thank you, sir."

  "Tomorrow is the last Friday of the month, Sophia." He stands upright, his left hand reaching to adjust the lapel of his jacket. "That means you can leave at noon for the weekend."

  I've kept a close eye on the calendar and on Mr. Foster to see if he'd remember the promise he made. "Thank you again. It's with pay, right?"

  "That it is."

  I nod as he turns to walk back toward his office. When he's completely out of view, I fish my phone from the purse hanging on the coatrack near my desk. I open it and scroll through my contact list until I land on his name. Then I type out a quick text message.

  The flowers are beautiful, Nicholas. Thank you.

  I reach to drop my phone back into my purse when I hear the faint chime that signals a new message.

  They pale in comparison to you. (Cheesy, I know.) Do you want to play the piano tomorrow? Say at seven?

  I bite my bottom lip while I consider the invitation. I told him I wanted him to chase me and he is but if I walk back into that apartment so soon, I know I'll end up beneath him in his bed. Besides, I do have somewhere I need to be tomorrow night.

  I type back a response, keeping one eye on the open door of Mr. Foster's office.

  I have plans tomorrow. Maybe one night next week?

  A boulder forms in my stomach as I watch the three dots jump as he types.

  Next week it is. I'll be in touch.

  I stare at the screen, reading the message twice. I expected him to suggest another day when I turned him down, but he didn't. I shrug it off, toss my phone back in my purse and get to work emailing all Foster executives about the board meeting next Tuesday.

  ***

  When I open the door to my apartment the next afternoon, I'm surprised to find not only my best friend standing behind the stove but a stack of bridal magazines on the counter next to her.

  "Den?" I say her name loud enough that she'll hear me over the buzz of the exhaust fan that is on its highest setting. "What are you doing here?"

  It's a question I always hate asking when she shows up unexpectedly. She owns this two bedroom apartment outright so I can't exactly ask for her keys back. I appreciate the company on most days, but today I had a clear plan in place. I want to finish the white maternity dress I started last week before I need to leave at seven o'clock. I had every intention of dropping by Den's place tomorrow to give it to her and get her to model it for me so I can upload images of it to my website.

  "This is your first official, Friday afternoon off, so I'm here to celebrate." She waves her hand through the smoke that's billowing off the two pieces of salmon she has on the indoor grill. "We're having salmon with that grainy mustard sauce you love and a sauerkraut salad with a mayonnaise dressing."

  I cringe inwardly. The salmon sounds delectable. The sauerkraut salad seems more like a weird pregnancy craving than something I'd want to voluntarily eat.

  "You didn't have to do this," I say gently. "I'm not that hungry."

  I'm famished. I skipped breakfast entirely because I was hand sewing pearls on the white dress right after I woke up. I picked up a small coffee at the bodega on the corner but ended up tossing it in a trash can before I stepped on the bus. It was bitter and obviously left over from yesterday.

  "I'm starving." She rubs her stomach. "Firi is a food fiend. My boy is always hungry."

  I feel tears instantly well in my eyes. "Is that the baby's name?"

  The fork that was in her hand drops to the counter before it bounces to the floor. "Tyler wants to name him after my dad. I love it, Soph. He'll be little Firi Monroe."

  I love it too. Cadence has worked hard for the past year to bridge the emotional gap that developed between her and her dad, Sergio Firi. She may have followed in his footsteps when she became a chef, but that didn't cement their relationship. They were estranged for years and now, finally, they've found their way back to each other.

  "It's perfect, Den." I wipe my eyes with the back of my hand. "He's going to be the most amazing little boy in the world."

  "You and I both know it." She smiles proudly. "I can't wait for him to get here. I want you there, Soph. I'm going to need you with Tyler and me in the delivery room when he's born."

  I reach to grab hold of her forearm to steady myself. The rush of emotions I feel barrels through me like a freight train. "I'll be there. I wouldn't miss that for the world."

  "Good." She brushes her lips across my forehead. "I want you to kick off your shoes, change out of your work clothes and get ready for a meal you'll never forget."<
br />
  I turn to race to my bathroom where I keep the antacid in the medicine cabinet. I might as well nip the indigestion I know is coming in the bud.

  Chapter 17

  Sophia

  I ate the salmon first and now as I pick at the sauerkraut salad, I stare across the room at the roses that Nicholas sent to me. I'd brought them home yesterday after work. Lugging the heavy vase and flowers on the subway wasn't an easy task. I'd carefully wrapped them in the packaging they'd arrived in and after considering hailing a taxi outside my office building, I decided that the subway would work just fine. My stop is less than a block from my apartment, so I made it home with the vase still in one piece.

  "Nicholas Wolf sent you those," Cadence says matter-of-factly. "I noticed them when I came in. I hope you don't mind that I read the card."

  I don't mind. Why would I? I had every intention of telling Den that I had dinner with Nicholas at his place. I was going to tell her when we first sat down to eat lunch but she'd started talking about her wedding and hadn't stopped. The only time she wasn't speaking was when she was chewing.

  "I had dinner at his place." I place my fork on my plate. "He made me tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches."

  She uses both hands to seamlessly switch our plates by sliding mine in front of her and vice versa. She reaches over to grab her fork from the empty plate that's now in front of me. "I'm going to finish this if you don't mind."

  I'm grateful that she's offering to eat it. The salad brought tears to my eyes when I took that first bite. It wasn't because I hated the taste, even though I strongly disliked it. The heavy dose of vinegar in it made my toes curl. "It's all yours."

  "It's adorable that he cooked for you, Soph." She bats her eyelashes. "He's crushing on you, isn't he? Do you feel the same way about him?"

  I owe it to Den to be honest. She's always been with me, even when her relationship with Tyler was confusing, she confided in me how she felt. I knew she was in love with him before he did. "I like him. There's something about him that I really like, Cadence."