by Dahlia Rose
Sweets For My Sweet
By Dahlia Rose
Copyright © September 2010, Dahlia Rose
Cover art by Anastasia Rabiyah © September 2010
ISBN 978-1-936110-84-1
This is a work of fiction. All characters and events portrayed in this novel are fictitious or used fictitiously. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form.
Sugar and Spice Press
North Carolina, USA
www.sugarnspicepress.com
Chapter One
It was a fabulous convention. The thought ran through Sapphire Payton’s mind as she drove down the duty road back home from Tulsa. She could hear metallic jangle from candy making supplies bouncing together in the box on the back seat. Right next to the box was the coveted Decadence award for the best new confection creation. Her name was on the metal plaque under the glass diamond. She won for the first time ever with her chocolate truffle rose, aptly named after her hometown of Paradise.
George Strait was playing on her truck radio and she sang loudly along with the lyrics, enjoying the validation and the pride she felt for winning at the convention. Up ahead she saw a lone figure walking on the dusty road. Her truck bounced down the road drawing closer and she saw the man was wearing an army uniform, right down to the beret still positioned perfectly on his head. He carried a big army green duffle bag and she could see it was heavy. How the hell is this fair, she thought angrily. When the other soldiers came home, there were people lining the streets to welcome them back. There was no way this man should be walking into town carrying a heavy pack.
Sapphire pulled her truck alongside him and stopped. He turned to face her. Mesmerizing hazel-green eyes met her and a small smile crossed his face. Whoa, she thought as she took in the rugged cut of his jaw. Up close he was big and tall with wide shoulders and lean hips. The man was sexy and built like a Mack truck but even as he smiled his eyes held so much sadness it almost left her speechless.
“Hey soldier, you need a ride into town?” Sapphire asked.
“Thanks. I thought no one would drive down this road.” He leaned into the truck and then his eyes widened in surprise. “Sapphire Payton, is that you?”
“Um, yeah. Should I know you?” she asked in confusion.
“I guess not since I’ve been gone for like, six years.” He laughed. “I’m Eric Dawson. I played football with your brother in high school. The last time I saw you, you still had braces on and ran around the backyard thinking you were a fairy.”
“Oh yeah…fairy.” The memory of her childhood flooded her with embarrassment and a vague recognition of the man in front of her came to mind. Back then he was this tall kid who had a throwing arm that could have taken him to any college on a scholarship. Instead here he was leaning into her truck looking delicious in uniform.
“Throw your duffel in the back of the truck I’ll give you a lift,” Sapphire said.
He did just that and folded his body into the cab of her truck, which seemed to get smaller when he got inside.
He looked over at her and grinned. “Little Sapphie, you grew up great! How is your brother?”
Sapphire threw him an irritated look and waved a finger at him. She hated that nickname and swore it would follow her until she was old and gray. “First off, don’t call me that. I hated that dumb nickname. It’s just Sapphire, please. Justice is fine. He lives in Boston. He is a lawyer, believe it or not.
He gave a low chuckle. “Sorry about that. I won’t say it again. Well check Justice out. No more beer bongs and a lawyer, to boot.”
“Who is married with two kids,” she added with a smile. “How come I haven’t seen you around and why are you walking into town?”
“Well I’ve barely been home since I joined the Marines. I only came once or twice from my unit,” he answered. “Last year mom and dad passed. I only got two weeks leave to come for the funeral before I had to go back. There’s no one here to meet me, but it’s the only home I know.”
Sapphire gasped. “Oh my god, the Dawsons. They died in that car accident. I am so sorry I did not put that together. Your dad ran the mechanic shop down the street from where my shop is.”
Eric nodded. “Yeah, I’m going to go open back the shop and build it up again.”
“Wow, that’s great!” Sapphire enthused. “What if you get called up again? Will you leave someone to run it?”
“I’m out,” Eric replied. “Master Sergeant Eric Dawson has done his tours and I will be officially deactivated from service in two months.”
“Well then congratulations, Master Sergeant, on both your retirement and your business.” Sapphire gave him a salute.
He grinned at her and it made him look so carefree she could remember the boy who ate dinners at her house years ago. Paradise came into view and he said one word on a sigh. “Home.” Paradise hadn’t changed, in her opinion. She saw the same small town streets with antique shops for tourists and two story houses with manicured lawns all her life. Rode down Main Street
on her bike and ate ice cream with her friends at the Malt shop. The oil fields sat outside of town and the derricks could be seen silhouetted by the evening sun. Nate had brought the town back to life from his wretched father and the good ol’ boys club he used to head. People were working again and the town was growing. It was not a bad place to be.
“My parents’ house is next to the mechanic shop so you can drop me off at either place,” Eric said.
“I know. That’s where I’m heading.” Sapphire smiled. “I may have forgotten your face but I do know how to get around this town.”
“Maybe I should be offended you forgot all about me. You had a crush on me from the time you were eleven,” Eric teased.
“Don’t remind me,” Sapphire moaned. “You must have thought I was such a weirdo.”
“I thought you were cute then,” he said with seriousness. “I think you are gorgeous now.”
His words hung in the air and made butterflies flutter in her stomach. She pulled the truck up to the curb in front of the house his parents had lived in. She changed the subject quickly. “So do you need help with ads or the reopening or anything?’
“I did all that en route to home, sweetness.” Eric climbed out of the truck and pulled his big duffel from the back. He poked his head back into the window and gave her an easy smile. “I’m sure I’m going to see you again…Sapphie.”
“Ugh don’t call me that!” she yelled. His laughter met her ears as he bounded up the stone steps.
Eric Dawson was in town and down the street. She grinned, thinking of the boy she knew as a child, but the sadness in his eyes belied the happy go lucky boy she remembered from long ago. She wondered what had happened in his life to make him look so unhappy. And she wondered if she should make an effort to find out.
* * * *
Eric dropped his duffle bag on the hard wood floor just inside the front door and looked around at the house that he grew up until he was nineteen. His mother’s friend, Ruby, had aired the house out and he had sent her money to stock the fridge before she left to go see her children in Arizona. The silence was almost deafening and when he walked into the kitchen he could almost see his mother’s smiling face turning to him to welcome him home.
He changed into civilian clothes, then roamed the three bedroom house for a little bit, looking at the knick knacks and pictures his mom had collected over the years, before he went outside to sit on the front porch and take in the town. He saw Mr. Pickard’s fence that he hurtled over at sixteen, running from Suzie Milson’s father when he caught them in her garage making out. He looked over to Johnny Levin’s roof he had jumped off and broke his wrist. Then he looked up to the big ho
use on the hill where Nate used to live and recalled them sliding down the hill to the pond on plywood. Life was simpler then. He used to laugh easily and joke with the best of them. No one knew what was inside him since those years had gone by. He had so much inside him he wished he could reveal.
Sapphire Payton was an unexpected surprise. Her soft brown eyes and the sweet smile on her full sexy mouth was a welcome sight. As tired as he was, he thought about reaching over and kissing those glossy lips. But just as easily as he recalled her in braces and pigtails. He could remember her temper. She would literally be ready to fight guys twice her size for her older brother, much to their amusement. He had no doubt if he had tried to kiss her she would have decked him. Maybe they could… Eric put that thought out of his mind. He could never put her through being with him and all the stuff he was dealing with.
“You look like you have the weight of the world on our shoulders.”
Eric looked at Sapphire, who stood at the bottom of the steps, and smiled. “Nah, I’m just a tired man home from a country of rocks and sand.”
“Where were you this time—Iraq or Afghanistan?”
“A little bit of both and some other places.”
She came up a few more steps and sat down. Eric couldn’t help but look at her long smooth legs the color of milk chocolate in a pair of blue jean shorts. He could see the curve of her breasts through the pink knit top and her cleavage peaked from the low neckline, beckoning him to touch her skin. He hoped he wasn’t drooling but lord she looked delectable.
“I figured since it’s your first day home, you might not want to cook or go out or anything so I brought you something to eat.” Sapphire lifted the wire metal holder that held a covered dish. She set it on the steps. “It’s nothing much. Just a taco casserole with sour cream and guacamole.”
Eric put his hand over his stomach. “Nothing much, huh? Gimme the dish, woman, and come inside before I steal it and make a fool of myself.”
Sapphire laughed. “Come on, I’ll dish it out and you can eat to your heart’s content.”
“I officially love you.” Eric stood up and helped her to her feet.
She winked at him. “You should have told me that when I was eleven.”
“This place brings back memories. I don’t think I have been here since I was a kid,” she said looking around, following him to the kitchen. “You okay staying here after…well…you know?”
“I thought it would be harder,” Eric admitted. “But I feel them here. I know they’re together and happy and that gives me peace. You know what I mean?”
“I understand.” Sapphire put the dish on the kitchen counter. “Grab me some plates and we can eat.”
Eric took down two plates from the cupboard and grabbed some glasses. From the drawer next to the stove he took out forks and the napkins his mother used to always keep folded there. He put them on the table and offered Sapphire a big spoon to dish out the delicious smelling dinner she had brought over. After serving up two plates of the steamy hot food, she sat down across from him. He could smell her light floral scent coming across the table. “Dig in,” she encouraged and he didn’t need a second invitation. Flavor burst in his mouth, reminding him that military food had nothing on home cooking. Eric found himself eating ravenously while she got them drinks from the fridge. Two helping later and great conversation with a girl he knew from childhood. Eric had never felt more alive.
Afterwards, they sat on the porch and looked out to the edge of town. The neighborhood kids built a ramp and were yelling in triumph as they tried to jump their bikes. Couples were walking to the ice cream shop to share a scoop or two and cars were heading to the drive in on the outskirts of town. Everything around him was serene but inside he was restless.
“So Sarge, are you enjoying your first night back?” Sapphire asked.
He leaned closer and gave her a gentle shove with his shoulder. “Yes, I am. Thank you for asking, Sapphie.”
She gave a low growl of frustration. “I seriously hate that name. Why must you torment and after I fed you?”
“Why? It’s so cute,” he teased and earned a slap on the shoulder.
“Tell me something, Eric. What did you do over in those countries?” she asked. He could hear the hesitation in her voice. “You smile and you tease but I can see something in your eyes.” She reached up and caressed his face. Eric closed his eyes at her touch, relishing in the feel of her warm hands against his skin. “If you need to talk I’m here.”
Eric nodded solemnly. “Thanks, Sapphire. I was in Special Recon and I-I did things that—” Unable to go on he cut his words off. “—I don’t need to talk. I’m a big boy.”
“Everyone needs to talk sometimes,” she pointed out gently.
“I know what you can do for me,” Eric said. “Well, two things, actually.”
“Hmmm, I shall ponder these requests?” She leaned against her hand and tapped her chin with the tip of her fingers.
“First, let me take you to the drive in tomorrow.”
“That sounds like a good idea. I haven’t been to the drive-in a long time.” Sapphire winked. “What’s your second request?”
“A kiss.” Eric’s tone was serious. “A soldier coming home should have a kiss from the prettiest woman in town.”
The smile she wore melted away and Eric thought she was ready to slap his face and walk back up the street. But since she picked him up, her mouth and how it would taste was on his mind. It couldn’t hurt to ask the woman who owned those delectable lips for a sample. She nodded slowly as if unsure and Eric swooped in for a hungry kiss. He made a gruff sound of gratification when she opened under his onslaught and he drove his tongue into her mouth. She tasted sweet, like caramel. Eric vaguely recalled her candy shop and wondered if she had sampled the sugary confections she’d brought along for after dinner. He pulled her onto this lap pressing her upper body to his and devouring her mouth with an intense kiss.
He forced himself to pull away and let her go. His head swam with the intensity of the kiss. He expected it to be good but damn, he never would have thought he would want to pull her under him and take her right on the steps of his house from just one kiss.
“Oh boy,” she whistled. “I should…yeah, I should go home. I have more caramel that need to be covered in chocolate. Um, I brought you a sample. It’s on the kitchen counter.
“I tasted it…on your tongue.” His voice was low. He was trying his hardest not to pull her into his arms again.
“I’ll get the dish tomorrow when we get back from the drive-in.” She moved from where she sat and smoothed unseen wrinkles out of her shirt.
Instead, all she did was accentuated the tight tips of her breasts and Eric bit back a moan of need. He nodded and waved at her as she dashed across the street to her candy shop. I am in trouble, Eric thought while he strained to see the curve of her hips before she was lost behind the door of her shop. He knew he should stay away from Sapphire but he didn’t know if he had to willpower to even try.
Chapter Two
The garage door went up with the clanking of thick chains against the metal rolling door. Eric pulled the mechanism easily even though he could feel the resistance of its age and being closed for so long. He made a mental note to oil it before he closed up for the day. With light streaming through the door, he looked around at his father’s old shop. The updated machinery would be coming in by tomorrow. His father’s shop was one from his era but with new cars and everything being computerized, Eric knew he would need diagnostic computers and new lifts to keep the garage up and running. His dad had a good space but never really used it to its full potential. Now it was his turn. Eric was going to make sure he kept the Dawson name alive.
He grinned when he saw the old dusty tarp in the center of the room. He knew what was under there and he whistled when he pulled the cover away exposing the prize beneath. The light glinted off the cherry red paint of the 1966 Pontiac GTO with convertible soft top. The red leather seats
matched the exterior color. The car was his father’s pride and joy. A muscle car that had an engine that purred like a large jungle cat. He recalled how he used to have to beg to drive it out on dates so he could impress his girlfriends.
“Hello, sweetheart. You’ll be my best girl now.” He spoke to the vehicle lovingly as he walked around the exterior. He would give her a soft cloth rubdown and shine her to perfection before his date tonight with Sapphire.
“You open for business yet?” The strict voice came from behind him.
“Mrs. Waverly, it’s good to see you.” Eric smiled at the older woman. Everything in this town gave him memories. This woman taught him in eighth grade and even though she had aged, she still exuded a powerful force. The long brown hair she kept pinned up was now shorter and had turned to gray. She walked using a cane but her back was still straight.
“Yeah, so you say, Eric Dawson.” She walked in. “I see you got your daddy’s car out. It will be good to see it on the road again. You never answered the question, kid. Are you open.
Eric couldn’t help but grin. Here he was standing at six-two and she would still look at him and call him kid. “Yeah, I’m open. I’m waiting on a few pieces of equipment to be delivered but the old place will be up and running in no time.”
“Thank god, finally a mechanic so we don’t have to drive all the way over to Mooresville,” she replied. “My daughter and son-in-law bought me some car. They said it was more economic on gas that my Caddy. The dumb thing keeps blinking a check engine light at me and jerking all over the place. I’ll bring it down later on and you can work on it.”
Eric nodded. As was her way, Mrs. Waverly wasn’t asking—she was telling and like when he was in eighth grade, he dutifully listened. He had no doubt she would whip a ruler out of that big purse she carried and whap him on the knuckles.
She went back to the door and looked at him with a genuine smile. “You’re a good boy, Eric Dawson. Every time your ma saw a letter from you from overseas, her eyes lit up. I kept an ear to the TV to hear if your named was called. I’m glad it wasn’t and that you’re home.”