by A. m Madden
“I think he’s Maygen’s date.”
They both looked at me for confirmation, and all I could manage was a nod. My mouth went dry, my palms began to sweat, and I could feel desire furl within me like a piece of paper touching a flame.
“Hey,” David said when he reached us. He leaned in and kissed my cheek before whispering in my ear, “Simply beautiful.” When he pulled away, he met my eyes for a split second before turning toward my friends. “I’m David.”
Reed was a quarterback in his old life, yet he seemed of average build beside David. I watched one of my closest friends assess my new friend from head to toe.
“Hello, David.” Phoebe spoke up when Reed hadn’t. She threw Reed a sideways scowl before adding, “I’m Phoebe, and this is my husband, Reed.”
Recognition of their names had David smiling and offering his hand. Phoebe smiled shyly as David said, “It’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”
I felt like I was having an out-of-body experience. I’d merely mentioned Reed and Phoebe to David in one conversation, so, huh? Who was this charming man beside me and what did he do with the brooding, confused man who was slowly stealing my heart piece by piece?
David then moved his hand toward Reed, who accepted it with a forced smile. “Nice to meet you as well, although I can’t say the same,” Reed admitted with a touch of attitude.
“Is that so?” David looked down at me with amusement all over his face. “I’m hurt.”
“Um…I…” Instead of pretending to be a well-spoken human, I gave up and sipped my champagne as a pathetic distraction.
“Cat got your tongue?” He laughed at my fumbling and kissed my cheek again.
“Where did you guys meet?” Phoebe asked with her eyes pinned to David’s face as if Mr. Universe was standing before her.
“Funny story. Maygen ran into me outside her building and spilled coffee all over me.”
“No. Actually, he spilled coffee all over me,” I corrected.
“Hmm, that’s not how I remember it at all.” With a teasing gleam in his eye, he wrapped an arm around my bare shoulder and drew me closer. “I guess it doesn’t matter how we met, just that we did, right, baby?”
Seriously…huh?
“Um…right.”
Phoebe and I locked gazes, hers questioning and mine completely confused. In girl code, I tried to communicate that I needed her and Reed to get lost. After I darted my eyes to the left, she nodded and said, “Honey, I really need some air. I’m sweltering. Walk with me outside for a bit?”
Reed said, “We’ll be back,” and walked his wife toward the doors. The moment they took a few steps away I was in David’s arms.
“David—”
“Maygen.”
We both stopped and laughed. “You first,” I said welcoming the extra time to gather my thoughts.
“First off, you look stunning.” He cupped my face with one hand. “Second, I’m sorry.”
“What for?”
“For allowing my fears to ruin a good thing.”
“Really?”
“Really.” He stared at my mouth before nodding slowly. “Maygen, I can’t keep denying how much I enjoy your company, how I want to see your beautiful face when I’m not seeing it, and how much I want to fast-forward months and even years ahead just to see where we end up.”
“And if we don’t end up?”
“Then I’ll no doubt be in a much worse predicament than I’m in now.”
Part of me wanted to drag him by the hand to a private supply closet and have my way with him. The other part of me remembered how completely disconnected I’d felt toward him this week. I still couldn’t wrap my brain around the fact he had so easily left me hanging without a second thought, twice.
He gauged my face, his own brow scrunched up in confusion. Before I could explain my silence, or my hesitation to respond, the bandleader announced dinner would be served and for everyone to please be seated.
A fleeting look of annoyance passed over his face before he smiled and said, “To be continued.” We took our seats, and one by one our table mates appeared. Reed and Phoebe returned with more ice, and Phoebe took the seat to my right with Reed beside her. When my uncle George and my aunt Theresa arrived, David smiled widely and said, “George. Small world.”
“David Cavello,” my uncle said with a huge returning smile. “How the hell are you?”
Uncle George and David shook hands, and from the looks on their faces they were long-lost friends.
“I’m great, George. Thanks to my beautiful date.”
What the hell?
I felt like everyone was in on David’s huge secret, except me. “How do you two know each other?”
“George works for my brother-in-law, Nick.”
“Did I know Angela’s husband was in the FBI?” I asked out loud, trying to rack my brain whether I did know it or not.
“Don’t know.” He leaned in and added, “But after the FBI found me, I met George.”
I widened my eyes in surprise. “After the FBI found you?” I whispered in his ear so only he could hear me.
One side of his full lips quirked upward. “Long story. I’ll tell you all about it later.”
George introduced my aunt Theresa, and they took the seats on the other side of David.
“I didn’t know you two were dating,” George said with a huge smile. “I must say I approve.”
“We’re just friends,” I quickly interjected. David leveled me with a piercing stare, but before I could try to backspace over my comment, Dad and Felicia walked up to the table.
My father’s eyes landed on David, and held even while he helped Felicia into her seat. George looked at my father smugly and said, “Maygen brought a date.”
“I see. My daughter didn’t tell me she was bringing a date.”
My father gave me the same piercing stare David had just given me. Predictably, he didn’t look at all happy. Dad hated being left in the dark regarding my personal life. It was the overprotective freak in him and he’d never change.
I’d need to have a little talk with my uncle. He loved riling his younger brother up at every turn and most of the time it was funny to witness, but not this time. He was poking a dragon, one whose fire-breathing abilities were trained on my date.
“Dad, this is David Cavello. David, my father, Garrett Whitney.”
David stood politely and offered his hand to my dad. “Hello, Mr. Whitney.”
“David.” He shook David’s hand, but left it at that.
When David sat back down, he gave me a smile and a wink. He was so calm, so comfortable in this very intimidating environment. I, on the other hand, was internally freaking out. Except for my uncle, the other two men in my life looked peeved at my neglecting to mention David prior to springing him on them unannounced.
Between Reed’s and Dad’s scrutiny, Phoebe’s gawking, and my uncle’s constant chatter I sat beside David wanting nothing more than for us to disappear so we could continue our conversation.
With each course served, it became more and more difficult to disappear.
David politely repeated the story of how we met, the true story. He fielded questions from the ladies with humor, questions from the men with confidence. I felt helpless and pathetic not contributing in a positive way. I was too busy playing out a conversation in my head that I needed to have with him.
“David, what do you do?” Reed asked as we ate our filet mignon. The piece I had just placed in my mouth suddenly felt like a large rock.
“I’m actually taking online courses at the moment to get my degree in psychology.”
“That’s fantastic.” George nodded approvingly.
David shrugged, focusing on his meal before adding, “It’s a start.”
I placed my hand on his knee and squeezed as a sign of support. Without looking my way, he placed his hand over mine and squeezed back. I didn’t want him to feel he needed to answer any questions he didn’t want
to. I also didn’t want to risk him feeling uncomfortable in any way.
The conversation moved toward David’s deployment and I impulsively said, “Dance with me?”
With our dinner only half-eaten, he smiled knowingly and nodded. “I’d love to.”
I could feel all eyes on us as we made our way to the dance floor. No one else occupied it, since they were all eating.
Brilliant move, I thought.
The moment he wrapped his arms around me, he said, “I’m fine.”
“I know,” I responded defensively.
“Do you?” When I looked away he said, “Look at me, Maygen.” The moment I brought my eyes back to his he added, “You can’t always protect me from my past. It’s not realistic.”
“I just feel…” I took a deep breath, nervous to say what I honestly wanted to.
“You feel what?”
“I feel we’re already on shaky ground and I don’t want my dad or Reed’s interrogations to push you away…again.”
Pain flashed over his handsome face before he replaced it with a warm smile. “That’s my fault, I guess.”
“What is?”
“The fact you feel I’m so unstable that any tiny, inconsequential thing can push me over the edge.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
“Babe, it is. And it’s okay. But you can’t worry about me every time we’re together. I know we have a lot to talk about, and I plan to, but not here and not now. For now, you need to know I’m fine. Okay?”
“Okay.”
“Ms. Whitney, picture?” The photographer stood a few feet away, holding his camera expectantly.
“Sure.” David and I stared at the camera as the photographer took the shot, his arms still wrapped around me.
“Beautiful couple. Thank you.”
Once the photographer moved on, David looked down at my face with a devilish smile. “Well, since the entire ballroom is staring at us now, do you want to give them something to really talk about?”
“That depends on what you have planned,” I quickly responded.
“How about just a kiss?”
“Now?” I scanned the room, blushing when I saw more eyes than not staring our way. “You weren’t kidding; everyone is watching.”
“All the better reason to. Don’t worry, I’ll keep it G-rated.” He bent slowly and gave me a very soft, very sweet kiss. He didn’t linger, didn’t turn it into something obscene. I felt he just wanted to show everyone I knew that he cared…and, more important, to show me.
Chapter 16
David
For obvious reasons, I couldn’t wait for this party to be done with. For Maygen’s sake I did everything in my power to appear relaxed and comfortable. Internally, I desperately wanted to get the fuck out of there.
I could handle the scrutiny from the men in her life, and based on the boatloads I was receiving it was clear they were very protective of Maygen. I could also handle being dressed in a monkey suit while four hundred pairs of eyes watched my every move because I was with the boss’s daughter.
What was getting the best of me was how much I wanted to be alone with her. The need to hold her, kiss her, be with her consumed me. The more I told my libido to behave and be a good boy, the more he would try to push my limits. The way she looked in her black dress, her intoxicating scent, the way her smooth skin felt beneath my touch, my lips, weren’t helping matters.
I planned to explain to her later, when we were alone, why I stayed away for a week, what drove me to try to ignore my feelings for her. The possibility that she’d decide it all wasn’t worth it, that I wasn’t worth it, hung heavy on my mind…but I still needed to take the chance.
While Maygen mingled around the room, I escaped to the bar to grab a beer. Her father cornered me, and if there was a doubt he didn’t want me dating his daughter then he definitely made it loud and clear for me in not so many words.
One could say I loved a challenge, and his disapproval would only fuel my impetus. However, the real reason I’d ignore his demands was my feelings for his daughter, and whether he liked it or not, if she agreed then I intended to continue seeing her. He’d get over it, especially if I could make her happy. But that was the million-dollar question, and the little nagging voice at the back of my mind reminded me of that unknown often.
I sat at the table after getting us both a drink, waiting for her to return. My eyes followed her around the room as she chatted with guests. Her face beamed with her stunning smile. Occasionally, she’d throw her head back when she laughed at something that was said. At other times her eyes would find mine, and she’d smile shyly, making me think it was me they were talking about.
Patiently waiting for her, I sipped my beer, spectating from my seat.
Phoebe and Reed returned from a dance. “Having fun, David?” Phoebe asked before taking a huge drink of her ice water. Her face was flushed as she used her napkin to fan herself.
“I am. Are you okay?”
“No. I feel like someone shoved a space heater up my dress.”
Her comment caused me to chuckle, as her husband said, “Pheebs.”
She gave him a quick look and shrugged. “What? I do.”
“Maybe you’re coming down with something?”
“I do have a bug. It should arrive in about six months.” She smiled and patted Reed’s tense jawline. “We’re expecting.”
“Congrats.”
Phoebe smiled warmly, but her husband clearly had an issue with me. Maygen wasn’t kidding when she said all the men in her life were extremely overprotective.
An odd tension hung over the table when Maygen returned. Smiling, she took her seat and asked, “What did I miss?”
“David was just congratulating us on the baby,” Phoebe responded.
“I can’t wait to see you two handle this. Especially Reed,” Maygen quipped, fighting a grin.
“No one has faith in me.” He turned to his wife and asked, “Haven’t I been handling it well so far?”
“Yes, honey. You’ve been awesome.” When Phoebe turned to look our way, it appeared she and Maygen had exchanged some sort of private joke between them. “I think it’s time for me to get to bed. Are you ready, hon?”
“Whenever you are.”
They said their goodbyes, leaving us alone at the table for the first time all night and leaving me jealous that they could leave. I would have loved to follow them out the door and leave as well. Except for the dance we shared, I hadn’t had one moment to enjoy her without nosey ears hanging on every word.
“Are you bored?” she asked, reading my mind.
“Not with you sitting beside me.”
“You lie. We’ll leave soon.” When she saw a new flute of champagne waiting for her, she added, “Thank you. I saw you with Dad at the bar. Everything okay? It looked like he was giving you a hard time.”
“Yep.”
“Yep he was or yep you’re okay?” She narrowed her eyes, watching my face for a few moments, clearly waiting for me to elaborate. When I didn’t bite and instead smirked, she shook her head. “Okay, don’t tell me.”
“Maygen?”
We both turned to see a small man hovering behind her chair. “Oh, hi, Ted. How are you?”
“I’m great. You look beautiful. Um…would you like to dance?”
What. The. Fuck? Was this dude serious?
I casually draped an arm around her bare shoulders because obviously this asshole couldn’t pick up on the fact she was with me. His eyes noticed the smooth move, yet undeterred, he added, “You said you owed me a dance last time we spoke.”
“She lied,” I responded before Maygen could.
Maygen looked over her shoulder and gave me a half grin with a tiny shocked gasp.
“Relax, we’re just friends,” he said with attitude. “I’ll have her back to you unharmed.”
Seriously? I kind of had to respect the set on this fucker, especially since he looked like a shorter version of Michael J
. Fox.
“Thanks, Ted, I’m going to pass tonight. Sorry, but I promised all my dances to David.”
His eyes measured me up, and I almost laughed out loud at his attempt to intimidate me. I could easily stand up, palm his head like a basketball, and toss him across the room. I placed my free hand on the frame of my chair, tensed my thighs, and pushed back in an attempt to help this guy move along.
Maygen’s hand clenching my leg firmly while she said, “Happy holidays, Ted. Enjoy the rest of your night,” was what stopped me from giving him a one-way ticket to Hurtsville.
“Okay,” he finally said. “If you change your mind, I’m sitting at table forty.”
Once he walked away, she turned toward me with a huge smile on her face.
“What?”
Leaning in until her lips were on my ear, she whispered, “You are so hot when you get jealous.”
“Jealous?” I smirked arrogantly. “That little man has nothing on me.” Reversing our positions, I placed my mouth against her ear and added, “Unless the thought of him needing a stool to go down on you turns you on.” Her mouth hung open and her eyes became heated with desire. “Are you ready to go?”
Nodding while looking like a deer caught in headlights, she reached for her bag and said, “Hell yes.”
—
“Where are we going?” she asked once the cab turned south on Park instead of north.
“My place.” I gauged her response carefully. She nodded with a smile before turning to look out her window. “I want you to see where I live.” I felt the need to explain.
Reaching over, she placed her hand on mine. “I would love to see where you live.” When she turned her head to look at me, I bit back the urge to crush my lips against hers, to pull her onto my lap and devour her. That wasn’t the reason I’d decided to take her to my place instead of hers. I had a lot to say, and I wanted to be sure she knew it came from my heart and not my cock.
Uncharted territory was an understatement. I felt like I was in fucking Antarctica wearing nothing but a Speedo.
Flipping my hand so hers rested in mine, I squeezed her fingers before bringing them to my lips. A kiss to her knuckles was a poor substitute for her delicious lips, but it would have to suffice for now.